180 



P H Y S I C A I, HISTORY OF MAN. 



19th of January, 1845, at Bombay ; in which, I recognised scarcely 

 any points of resemblance, besides the bearing of paper shrines. 



In connexion with the Telingan race it is of importance to note, 

 that Muslim political influence in India, "never reached the eastern 

 coast." The practice of seclusion, I believe, prevails on that coast; 

 and it may in part account for the circumstance, that I saw but one 

 woman of Hindoostan at Singapore. 



Individuals who called themselves 'Arabs,' were numerous at Sin- 

 gapore ; but their claim was not in all instances free from suspicion, 

 on account of an obvious motive : Arab influence being paramount 

 with the Malays, " who plume themselves according to the proportion 

 of the blood they may have in their veins;" while on the other hand, 

 they look down upon the Indian Muslims. These self-styled Arabs 

 were mostly persons of mixed descent; but I was not prepared at the 

 time, to distinguish the Ethiopian from the Telingan admixture; and 

 indeed, the task may not prove of easy accomplishment. One of these 

 persons had his beard striped longitudinally gray and black (it is pre- 

 sumed by artificial means) ; and the same was observed in an Abys- 

 sinian-Arab from Mukdusha, who was likewise residing at Singapore. 



Through the operations of modern commerce, people of Hindoostan 

 have been sometimes carried far to the eastward of their limits when 

 left to their own resources. Besides those seen at Sooloo and Manila, 

 I found several living in Sydney. A " native of Calcutta" had talven 

 up his residence with the White men at Ovolau, in the Feejee Islands. 

 Others were seen at Oahu ; where, too, I heard of " persons who called 

 themselves Arabs," and saw, if my memory serves me, a Muslim tomb. 



WESTERN HINDOOSTAN. 



During my recent visit to Bombay and the Dekkan, I was much 

 surprised at the rare occurrence of the Telingan race; at least in a 

 condition at all approaching purity. I sometimes thought I could dis- 

 tinguish traces among the low-cast Mahrattas ; and of two "Telinga 

 Bramins, who came from the vicinity of Hyderabad," one (the indivi- 

 dual above-noticed) was devoid of any marks of intermixture with the 

 White race. This man stated, that " his cast intermarried with the 

 Bramins of the Dekkan ; but not with those of Bengal or Guzerat." 

 All the Mahratta Bramins I met with, appeared to be of unmixed 



