THE FAKĪR.
The group in the foreground represents a Bābū, a native gentleman, awaiting the cool of the evening before he enters his palanquin; an attendant is supporting a chatr, or native umbrella, over his head, and the bearers with the palanquin are in attendance.
In front is a Muhammadan Fakīr leading a white bull fancifully adorned with peacocks’ feathers, cowrie shells, coloured worsted tassels, bits of brightly-coloured cloth, and brass bells; the plume on the top of his neck is the tail of the yāk, the cow of Tartary, much used in Hindostān in the adornment of holy bulls and of horses. In the back-ground is an Hindū temple, gilded by the rays of the setting sun.
The portico or entrance to the house of an opulent Bābū, a Bengalī gentleman, now appears; it is of native architecture, singular and handsome; the ornaments of some of the pillars are most elaborate, and it is remarkable that each has a separate design.