58 S. B. Miles —On the route between [No. 1, 
Musande (^od~x>), Harimal Haik (cJAs»>), ’Askori 
(c SJj***)> & c -> an( l eac ^ which is in a state of clientsliip to some power¬ 
ful Arab tribe, generally that of course with wbicli it lias most trading con¬ 
nections. Tbe Zatt all profess tbe Musalman religion, but no doubt 
they retain many of tbeir own customs and usages. Tbe levirate law ob¬ 
tains among them, but should there be no brother, tbe nearest male relative 
can take tbe widow to wife. They are looked down upon by tbe Arabs as 
an inferior race, but they are valued for tbe useful services they perform; 
and as tbeir persons and property are always respected, they usually go 
about unarmed. In Nejd, I bear, tbe Zatt women are considered to be very 
handsome and dance publicly for money, but they are reputed to be chaste 
and moral; they are a necessary ingredient at private festivities, as they set 
off tbe assembly by tbeir beauty and tbe party is not thought complete 
without them ; they are consequently also more sought after by tbe Arabs 
there as wives. In ’Oman tbe case is different. Tbe ’Omani women are 
more highly endowed by nature than tbeir Nejd sisters, and tbe Zatt are 
not thought so favourably of by comparison. They appear to lead a semi- 
nomadic life, and move about from village to village with tbeir families and 
chattels, working as occasion requires, but a few families may be found 
permanently established in most of tbe large towns and settlements. Tbeir 
* 
little mat hovels are tbe smallest and wretekedest human tenements I have 
ever seen, being merely a couple of mats arranged round three or four sticks 
tied together at tbe top, and the whole concern not usually exceeding 4 or 5 
feet in height. They are accomplished handicraftsmen, being farriers, smiths, 
tinkers, carpenters, weavers, and barbers. They manufacture also guns and 
matchlocks ; indeed most of tbe trades and manufactures seem to be in 
tbeir bands, and they are to tbe natives of tbe interior what tbe Banians 
and other Indians are at tbe sea-port towns. 
Tbe Arabs assert that the Zatt speak among themselves in a dialect 
unintelligible to strangers, and they call this ‘ Battini’ or ‘ Farsi’ ; but it 
is my belief that tbe original tongue of tbe Zatt has become almost entirely 
obliterated through long and intimate intercourse with tbe Arabs, and that 
what they speak among themselves is a jargon or gibberish of them own 
particular manufacture, composed of a corrupted Arabic mixed with tbe 
few Jat words they have retained. To effect this they have invented a 
simple and ingenious system by which they are able to transmute any word 
required into tbeir own jargon without tbe slightest hesitation. The plan 
is to prefix tbe letter m and to suffix an additional syllable eelc , while 
lengthening the first or second syllable of tbe word itself. Thus Bard 
(cold) becomes Mbardeek; Kamar (moon), Mkamareek ; Ghol (dj*. snake), 
Mgboleek. I subjoin a few words that appear to be of tbeir own vocabu¬ 
lary, as specimens :—Father—Bweieekee ; Mother—Mabiktee ; Brother— 
