Put away ostrich feathers and delicate gauzes : they can-
not bear the rains. Look to your boots and shoes and articles
of leather ; all such, as well as book.s, need constant airing
and rubbing. The piano should occasionally have an angethi
filled with charcoal i placed under it, and there should be
a fire frequently in the room in which it stands. At the
beginning of the rains look well to the roof; otherwise at
the first downpour you may have to spend the night trying
to save bedding, carpets, and furniture from destruction, or
dragging your bed about the room to avoid sleeping under
an umbrella. Chilly work ! Whenever the sun comes out,
call in your servants and have a grand turn-out. The rank
vegetation which you had cut down on first coming up will
also need seeing to agrain.
In the hills a dandy or jhamjjan, and, if you have chil-
dren, a dooly, are dc rigueur, even though you prefer, as the
authors do, a pony or your own feet. For church, or parties,
or state visits, nothing is so convenient as a dandy : it is a
canoe-shaped chair, which is carried on men’s shoulders.
From two to four men ai'e required, wdio should be engaged
in a tejim, all^ of the same height, and, if possible, of the
same build. 1 hey will carry you, when they please, about
four oiiles an hour, are generally good-humoured and chatty,
and will scramble up or down hill to pick ferns or flowers.
’ A saucer full of nnslaked lime placed inside answers the i)ur-
■nose as wel . * ^ i m
N
194 The Complete Indian
They should bring in a bundle of wood or grass daily, which
should be inspected, as they are up to all sorts of tricks ;
and they should appear before you by twelve o’clock. They
should be ready to clean Avindows, or help in the gai-den,
or go messages in the interval behveen bringing in the
wood or grass and carrying you out. Each hill station
has its scale of Avages for these men, and it is usual also to
buy tickets for permission to cut Avood and grass in the
forests. Hatchets, or sickles, and ropes must be served out.
The bearer should be supplied with a padlock, and should
lock up the wood, but it must be dried ; and it is Avell on
first arrival to lay in a small supply of dry Avood in order
to eke out the daily bundles. The dandy and dooly Avill
require a top and curtains of some kind, or a hood ; and one
or tAvo Avaterproof sheets are most necessary to spread over
the dandy or over your saddle Avhen you dismount. A few
country - made umbrellas (cancAvork frames covered Avitli
leaves) will be a boon to the servants (especially to the
ayah) on their journeys betAveen their houses and yours. A
covered Avay from the kitchen to the house is a great con-
venience, and preference should be given to a house Avith
such.
Page 134
Presented as published in 1898. Historical recipes may not meet modern food-safety standards. Cook from the modern interpretation, not the original instructions.
AI-modernized reading of the original text
Put away ostrich feathers and delicate gauzes : they cannot bear the rains. Look to your boots and shoes and articles of leather ; all such, as well as books, need constant airing and rubbing. The piano should occasionally have an angeethi filled with charcoal i placed under it, and there should be a fire frequently in the room in which it stands. At the beginning of the rains look well to the roof; otherwise at the first downpour you may have to spend the night trying to save bedding, carpets, and furniture from destruction, or dragging your bed about the room to avoid sleeping under an umbrella. Chilly work ! Whenever the sun comes out, call in your servants and have a grand turn-out. The rank vegetation which you had cut down on first coming up will also need seeing to again.
In the hills a dandy or jhamjjan, and, if you have children, a dooly, are de rigueur, even though you prefer, as the authors do, a pony or your own feet. For church, or parties, or state visits, nothing is so convenient as a dandy : it is a canoe-shaped chair, which is carried on men’s shoulders. From two to four men are required, who should be engaged in a team, all of the same height, and, if possible, of the same build. They will carry you, when they please, about four miles an hour, are generally good-humoured and chatty, and will scramble up or down hill to pick ferns or flowers.
’* A saucer full of unslaked lime placed inside answers the purpose as well.
N
194 The Complete Indian
They should bring in a bundle of wood or grass daily, which should be inspected, as they are up to all sorts of tricks ; and they should appear before you by twelve o’clock. They should be ready to clean windows, or help in the garden, or go messages in the interval between bringing in the wood or grass and carrying you out. Each hill station has its scale of wages for these men, and it is usual also to buy tickets for permission to cut wood and grass in the forests. Hatchets, or sickles, and ropes must be served out. The bearer should be supplied with a padlock, and should lock up the wood, but it must be dried ; and it is well on first arrival to lay in a small supply of dry Avood in order to eke out the daily bundles. The dandy and dooly Avill require a top and curtains of some kind, or a hood ; and one or two Avaterproof sheets are most necessary to spread over the dandy or over your saddle Avhen you dismount. A few country - made umbrellas (caneework frames covered with leaves) will be a boon to the servants (especially to the ayah) on their journeys between their houses and yours. A covered way from the kitchen to the house is a great convenience, and preference should be given to a house Avith such.