It Consisted Of A Broad Band Extending From The
Forehead To The Waist Behind, And Studded Thickly With Large Coarse
Turquoises.
These generally decrease in size from the forehead, where
there is a larger turquoise than the others, down to the waist, and
where the hair ends, it is joined into a long worsted tail terminating
at the heels.
Some of these bands must be of considerable value,
but the proprietors, although otherwise in complete rags, will not
part with them for any consideration. One lady whom I accosted on
the subject, thought I was going to murder her, and took to her
heels forthwith. In general, however, the fair sex here carefully
hide both their charms and their turquoises behind the nearest rock
or the most convenient cover that presents itself, and vanish like
phantoms whenever they discern a white man in the distance.
The cooking department being delayed by the ascent, we got no breakfast
to-day until one o'clock, unless a drink of milk and a biscuit on
arrival could be called by courtesy a breakfast.
AUGUST 9. - Descended from Lamieroo through a precipitous pass
for about three kos and a half, to Kulchee, a tidy little village
of fifteen huts, situated in an oasis of apricot and walnut-trees,
the first we had encountered since leaving Cashmere.
The people here seemed particularly simple and happy among their waving
corn-fields and wild fruit-trees, and they were most anxious to supply
us with apricots and milk, and whatever they could produce. The Gopa,
or head-man of the village, could speak a little Hindostanee, besides
being able to read and write his own language in two characters, and
as he seemed unusually sharp and intelligent, I was very glad to have
a chat with him while waiting for the commissariat to come up. The
character most common on the inscribed stones, and one of those now in
actual use, he told me was Romeeque; the other, the square character
on the stones, is obsolete, and is called Lantza;[21] while a third
character, which was the one he was most conversant with, but which
did not appear upon any of the stones, he called Tyeeque.
His explanation of the stones was, that at the last day a certain
recording angel, whom he called Khurjidal, would pass through the
land, and inspecting these mounds of inscribed stones, would write
down the names of all those who had contributed to the heap. What the
inscription was he seemed unable clearly to explain, but believed it to
refer in some manner to the Supreme Being. Whatever it was, all those
who had contributed their share towards its dissemination, by adding
stones to the mounds, were certain of future rewards, while those
who had omitted to do so were as equally certain of punishment.[22]
This explanation of the difficulty caused me some qualms of conscience
on account of the future prospects of the unfortunate writer whose
particular stone I had appropriated; but for fear the Gopa himself
might be the sufferer, I thought it better not to confide my emotions
to him, but to leave the case in the hands of Khurjidal.
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