The men are better because they have cricket and polo. I
found nobody stiff individually, but society very much so in the mass.
The order of precedence seemed to be uppermost in every mind, and as
an outsider I thought how tedious "ye manners and customs of the
Anglo-Indians" would be all the year round.
I found the native populace much more interesting. The great mass
consists of Konkani Moslems, with dark features and scraggy beards. They
were clad in chintz turbans, resembling the Parsee headgear, and in long
cotton coats, with shoes turned up at the toes, and short drawers or
pyjamas. There were also Persians, with a totally different type of
face, and clothed in quite a different way, mainly in white with white
turbans. There were Arabs from the Persian Gulf, sitting and lolling in
the coffee-houses. There were athletic Afghans, and many other strange
tribes. There were conjurers and snake-charmers, vendors of pipes and
mangoes, and Hindu women in colours that pale those of Egypt and Syria.
There were two sorts of Parsees, one white-turbaned, and the other whose
headgear was black, spotted with red. I was much struck with the immense
variety of turban on the men, and the _choli_ and headgear on the women.
Some of the turbans were of the size of a moderate round tea-table.
Others fit the head tight. Some are worn straight, and some are cocked
sideways. Some are red and horned. The _choli_ is a bodice which is
put on the female child, who never knows what stays are.
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