CHAPTER 1
Udaipur, January 29, 1820.—The Personal Narrative attached to the second volume of this work terminated with the Author’s return to Udaipur, after a complete circuit of Marwar and Ajmer. He remained at his headquarters at Udaipur until the 29th January 1820, when circumstances rendering it expedient that he should visit the principalities of Bundi and Kotah (which were placed under his political superintendence), he determined not to neglect the opportunity it afforded of adding to his portfolio remarks on men and manners, in a country hitherto untrodden by Europeans.
Although we had not been a month in the valley of Udaipur, we were all desirous to avail ourselves of the lovely weather which the cold season of India invariably brings, and which exhilarates the European who has languished through the hot winds, and the still more oppressive monsoon. The thermometer at this time, within the valley, was at the freezing point at break of day, ranging afterwards as high as 90°, whilst the sky was without a cloud, and its splendour at night was dazzling.
Kheroda.
We passed the sarai of Surajpura, a mile to the right, and got entangled in the swampy ground of Bhartewar. This town, which belongs to the chief of Kanor, one of the sixteen great barons of Mewar, boasts a high antiquity, and Bhartrihari, the elder brother of Vikrama, is its reputed founder. If we place any faith in local tradition, the bells of seven hundred and fifty temples, chiefly of the Jain faith, once sounded within its walls, which were six miles in length; but few vestiges of them now remain, although there are ruins of some of these shrines which show they were of considerable importance. Within a mile and a half of Kheroda we passed through Khairsana, a large charity-village belonging to the Brahmans.
Kheroda is a respectable place, having a fortress with double ditches, which can be filled at pleasure from the river. Being situated on the highroad between the ancient and modern capitals, it was always a bone of contention in the civil wars. It was in the hands of Rawat Jai Singh of Lawa, the adopted heir of Sangram Saktawat, one of the great leaders in the struggles of the year 1748 [A.D. 1691], an epoch as well known in Mewar as the 1745 of Scotland. Being originally a fiscal possession, and from its position not to be trusted to the hands of any of the feudal chiefs, it was restored to the sovereign; though it was not without difficulty that the riever of Lawa agreed to sign the constitution of the 4th of May,[[2]] and relinquish to his sovereign a stronghold which had been purchased with the blood of his kindred.
Tribal Feuds.
Agriculture at Kheroda.
Of the siyalu crop, which consists of makkai, or Indian corn, and juar and bajra, or millet, with the different pulses, the process of distribution is as follows. From every khalla, or heap of one hundred maunds, forty are set apart for the Raj or government, and the rest, after deducting the seranas of the village-establishment, goes to the cultivator.
On the culture of sugar-cane, cotton, indigo, opium, tobacco, til or sesamum, and [597] the various dyes, there has always been a fixed money-rent, varying from two to ten rupees per bigha.
Sugar-Cane Cultivation.
| Rupees. | |
| Hasil, or rent | 10 |
| Seed of one bigha | 20 |
| Gor, or stirring up the earth with spuds, eight times before reaping, sixteen men each time, at two annas to each | 16 |
| Two men at the well, at four rupees each per month, for twelve months | 96[[6]] |
| Two oxen, feeding, etc. | 18 |
| Paring and cutting forty thousand canes, at four annas per thousand | 10 |
| Placing canes in the mill, clothes to the men, besides one ser of sugar out of every maund | 20 |
| Shares of all the village establishment; say, if the bigha yields fifty maunds, of which they are entitled to one-fifth | 40 |
| Wood | 2 |
| 238 | |
| A bigha will yield as much as eighty maunds of sugar,[[7]] though fifty is esteemed a good crop; it sells at about four rupees per maund, or | 200 |
| Leaving the cultivator minus | 38 |
It will be observed that the grower’s whole expenses are charged; besides, to make up, we must calculate from the labour of the same two men and cattle, the produce profit of one bigha of opium and four bighas of wheat and barley, as follows:
| Rupees. | |
| Surplus profit on the opium, seven sers of opium, at four rupees per ser | 28 |
| One hundred and fifty maunds of grain, of both harvests, of which one-third to the Raj, leaves one hundred maunds, at one rupee each maund | 100 |
| 128 | |
| Deduct deficiency on cane | 38 |
| Profit left, after feeding, men and cattle, etc., etc. | 90 |
[598]
Sometimes, though rarely, the cane is sold standing, at four to five rupees the thousand; but, occasionally, the whole crop is lost, if the cane should unfortunately flower, when it is rooted up and burnt, or given to the cattle, being unfit for the use of man. This may be superstition; though the cultivators of the cane in the West Indies may perhaps say that the deterioration of the plant would render it not worth the trouble of extracting the juice.[[8]] I shall here conclude this rough sketch of the agricultural economy of Kheroda, which may be taken as a fair specimen of the old system throughout Mewar, with remarking that, notwithstanding the laws of Manu,[[9]] inscriptions on stone, and tradition, which constitute in fact the customary law of Rajputana, make the rent in kind far lighter than what we have just recorded, yet the cultivator could not fail to thrive if even this system were maintained. But constant warfare, the necessities of the prince, with the cupidity and poverty of the revenue officers, have superadded vexatious petty demands, as khar-lakar (wood and forage), and ghar-ginti (house-tax); the first of which was a tax of one rupee annually on every bigha of land in cultivation, and the other the same on each house or hut inhabited. Even the kaid sali, or triennial fine on the headman and the register, was levied by these again on the cultivators. But besides these regular taxes, there was no end to irregular exactions of barar and dand, or forced contributions, until, at length, the country became the scene of desolation from which it is only now emerging.
Hīnta, January 30.—This was a short march of three and a half coss, or nine miles, over the same extensive plain of rich black loam, or mal, whence the province of Malwa has its name.[[10]] We were on horseback long before sunrise; the air was pure and invigorating; the peasantry were smiling at the sight of the luxuriant young crops of wheat, barley, and gram, aware that no ruthless hand could now step between them and the bounties of Heaven. Fresh thatch, or rising walls, gave signs of the exiles’ return, who greeted us, at each step of our journey, with blessings and looks of joy mingled with sadness. Passed the hamlet, or purwa, of Amarpura, attached to Kheroda, and to our left the township of Mainar, held in sasan[[11]] (religious grant) by a community of Brahmans. This place affords a fine specimen of “the wisdom of ancestors” in Mewar, where fifty thousand bighas, or about sixteen thousand acres of the richest crown land, have been given in perpetuity to these drones of society; and although there are only twenty families left of this holy colony, said to have been planted by Raja Mandhata in the Treta-yug, or silver age of India, yet superstition and indolence conspire to prevent the resumption even of those portions which have none to cultivate them. A “sixty thousand [599] years’ residence in hell” is undoubtedly no comfortable prospect, and to those who subscribe to the doctrine of transmigration, it must be rather mortifying to pass from the purple of royalty into “a worm in ordure,” one of the delicate purgatories which the Rajput soul has to undergo, before it can expiate the offence of resuming the lands of the church! I was rejoiced, however, to find that some of “the sons of Sakta,” as they increased in numbers, in the inverse ratio of their possessions, deemed it better to incur all risks than emigrate to foreign lands in search of bhum; and both Hinta and Dundia have been established on the lands of the church. Desirous of preserving every right of every class, I imprecated on my head all the anathemas of the order, if the Rana should resume all beyond what the remnant of this family could require. I proposed that a thousand bighas of the best land should be retained by them; that they should not only be furnished with cattle, seed, and implements of agriculture, but that there should be wells cleared out, or fresh ones dug for them. At this time, however, the astrologer was a member of the cabinet, and being also physician in ordinary, he, as one of the order, protected his brethren of Menar, who, as may be supposed, were in vain called upon to produce the tamra-pattra, or copper-plate warrant, for these lands.
Māndhāta Rāja.
We also passed in this morning’s march the village of Bahmania, having a noble piece of water maintained by a strong embankment of masonry. No less than four thousand bighas are attached. It was fiscal land, but had been usurped during the troubles, and being nearly depopulated, had escaped observation. At this moment it is in the hands of Moti Pasban,[[13]] the favourite handmaid of “the Sun of the Hindus.” This ‘Pearl’ (moti) pretends to have obtained it as a mortgage, but it would be difficult to show a lawful mortgager. Near the village of Bansera, on the estate of Fateh Singh, brother of Bhindar, we passed a seura or sula, a pillar or land-mark, having a grant of land inscribed thereon with the usual denunciations, attested by an image of the sacred cow, engraved in slight relief, as witness to the intention of the donor.
Hinta was a place of some consequence in the civil wars, and in S. 1808 (A.D. 1752) formed the appanage of one of the Babas, or infants of the court, of the Maharaja Sawant Singh. It now belongs to a subordinate Saktawat, and was the subject of considerable discussion in the treaty of resumption of the 4th of May 1818, between the Rana and his chiefs.
It was the scene of a gallant exploit in S. 1812, when ten thousand Mahrattas, led by Satwa, invaded Mewar. Raj Singh, of the Jhala tribe, the chief of Sadri,[[14]] and descendant of the hero who rescued that first of Rajput princes, Rana Partap, had reached the town of Hinta in his passage from court to Sadri, when he received intelligence that the enemy was at Salera, only three miles distant. He was recommended to make a slight detour and go by Bhindar; but having no reason for apprehension, he rejected the advice, and proceeded on his way. He had not travelled half-a-mile, when they fell in with the marauders, who looked upon his small but well-mounted band as legitimate prey. But, in spite of the odds, they preferred death to the surrender of their equipments, and an action ensued, in which the Raj, after performing miracles of valour, regained the fort, with eight only of his three hundred and fifty retainers. The news reaching Kushal Singh, the chief of Bhindar, who, besides the [601] sufficient motive of Rajputi, or ‘chivalry,’ was impelled by friendship and matrimonial connexion, he assembled a trusty band, and marched to rescue his friend from captivity and his estate from mortgage for his ransom. This little phalanx amounted only to five hundred men, all Saktawats, and of whom three-fourths were on foot. They advanced in a compact mass, with lighted matches, the cavaliers on either flank, with Kushal at their head, denouncing death to the man who quitted his ranks, or fired a shot without orders. They were soon surrounded by the cloud of Mahratta horse; but resolve was too manifest in the intrepid band even for numbers to provoke the strife. They thus passed over the immense plain between Bhindar and Hinta, the gates of which they had almost reached, when, as if ashamed at seeing their prey thus snatched from their grasp, the word was given, “Barchhi de!” and a forest of Mahratta lances, each twelve feet long, bristled against the Saktawats. Kushal called a halt, wheeled his cavaliers to the rear, and allowed the foe to come within pistol-shot, when a well-directed volley checked their impetuosity, and threw them into disorder. The little band of cavalry seized the moment and charged in their turn, gave time to load again, and returned to their post to allow a second volley. The gate was gained, and the Sadri chief received into the ranks of deliverers. Elated with success, the Maharaja promptly determined rather to fight his way back than coop himself up in Hinta, and be starved into surrender; all seconded the resolution of their chief, and with little comparative loss they regained Bhindar. This exploit is universally known, and related with exultation, as one of the many brilliant deeds of “the sons of Sakta,” of whom the Maharaja Kushal Singh was conspicuous for worth, as well as gallantry.
Morwan,[[15]] January 31.—The last day of January (with the thermometer 50° at daybreak) brought us to the limits of Mewar. I could not look on its rich alienated lands without the deepest regret, or see the birthright of its chieftains devolve on the mean Mahratta or ruthless Pathan, without a kindling of the spirit towards the heroes of past days, in spite of the vexations their less worthy descendants occasion me; less worthy, yet not worthless, for having left my cares behind me with the court, where the stubbornness of some, the voices and intrigues of others, and the apathy of all, have deeply injured my health. There is something magical in absence; it throws a deceitful medium between us and the objects we have quitted, which exaggerates their amiable qualities, and curtails the proportions of their vices. I look upon Mewar as the land of my adoption, and, linked with all the associations of my early hopes and [602] their actual realization, I feel inclined to exclaim with reference to her and her unmanageable children,
Mewar, with all thy faults, I love thee still.
The virtues owe an immense debt to the present feudal nobility, not only of Mewar but of Rajputana, and it is to be hoped that the rising generation will pay to it what has been withheld by the past; that energy and temperance will supersede opium and the juice of the mahua,[[16]] and riding in the ring, replace the siesta, and the tabor (tabla) and lute. I endeavoured to banish some of these incentives to degeneracy; nor is there a young chieftain, from the heir-apparent to the throne to the aspirant to a skin of land (when opportunity was granted), from whom I have not exacted a promise, never to touch that debasing drug, opium. Some may break this pledge, but many will keep it; especially those whose minority I protected against court-faction and avarice: such a one as Arjun Singh, the young chief of Basai, of the Sangawat branch of the Chondawat clan. His grandfather (for his father was dead) had maintained the old castle and estate, placed on the elevated Uparmal, against all attempts of the Mahrattas, but had incurred the hatred of Bhim Singh of Salumbar, the head of his clan, who in S. 1846 dispossessed him, and installed a junior branch in the barony of Basai. But the energetic Takht Singh regained his lost rights, and maintained them, until civil broils and foreign foes alike disappeared, on their connexion with the British in 1818. Then the veteran chief, with his grandson, repaired to court, to unite in the general homage to their prince with the assembled chiefs of Mewar. But poverty and the remembrance of old feuds combined to dispossess the youth, and the amount of fine (ten thousand rupees) had actually been fixed for the installation of the interloper, who was supported by all the influence of the chief of Salumbar. This first noble of Mewar tried to avail himself of my friendship to uphold the cause of his protégé, Barad Singh, whom he often brought me to visit, as did old Takhta his grandson. Both were of the same age, thirteen; the aspirant to Basai, fair and stout, but heavy in his looks; while the possessor, Arjun, was spare, dark, and beaming with intelligence. Merit and justice on one side; stupidity and power on the other. But there were duties to be performed; and the old Thakur’s appeal was not heard in vain. “Swamidharma and this” (putting his hand to his sword), said the aged chief, “have hitherto preserved our rights; now, the cause of [603] the child is in his sovereign’s hands and yours; but here money buys justice, and right yields to favour.” The Rana, though he had assented to the views of Salumbar, left the case to my adjudication. I called both parties before me, and in their presence, from their respective statements, sketched the genealogical tree, exhibiting in the remote branches the stripling’s competitors, which I showed to the Rana. Ever prone to do right when not swayed by faction, he confirmed Arjun’s patent, which he had given him three years previously, and girt him with the sword of investiture. This contest for his birthright was of great advantage to the youth; for his grandfather was selected to command the quotas for the defence of the frontier fortress of Jahazpur, a duty which he well performed; and his grandson accompanied him and was often left in command while he looked after the estate. Both came to visit me at Chitor. Arjun was greatly improved during his two years’ absence from the paternal abode, and promises to do honour to the clan he belongs to. Amongst many questions, I asked “If he had yet taken to his amal?” to which he energetically replied, “My fortunes will be cracked indeed, if ever I forget any injunction of yours.”
But a truce to digression: the whole village Panchayat has been waiting this half hour under the spreading bar[[17]] tree, to tell me, in the language of homely truth, khush hain Compani sahib ke partap se, that “by the auspices of Sir Company they are happy; and that they hope I may live a thousand years.”
I must, therefore, suspend my narrative, whilst I patiently listen till midnight to dismal tales of sterile fields, exhausted funds, exiles unreturned, and the depredations of the wild mountain Bhil [604].
[1]. [Twenty-four miles E. of Udaipur city.]
[2]. See treaty between the Rana and his chiefs, Vol. I. p. [243]. [Signed A.D. 1818.]
[3]. The sequel of this feud has been related, Vol. I. p. [511].
[4]. The balahi or balaiti is the shepherd of the community, who drives the village flock to the common pasturage; and, besides his serana, has some trifling reward from every individual. It is his especial duty to prevent cattle-trespasses. [For a good account of allowances to village servants and menials see B. H. Baden-Powell, The Indian Village Community, 16 ff.]
[5]. [Properly the leather bag by means of which water is raised for irrigation.]
[6]. This goes to feed the cultivator, if he works himself.
[7]. [The yield of coarse sugar (gur) is now estimated at 30 or 40 maunds (28½ cwt.) per acre; but as much as 50 maunds (36 cwt.) has been recorded (Watt, Econ. Prod. 947).]
[8]. [The flowering of the cane is regarded as an evil omen. In India the cane rarely seeds; in fact, it is rarely allowed to flower (Watt, Econ. Dict. vi. Part ii. 83).]
[9]. [The king may take an eighth, sixth, or twelfth part of the crop (Manu, Laws, vii. 130).]
[10]. [Mālwa or Mālava is derived from the tribe of that name, but the name Mālava-desa, ‘land of the Mālavas,’ is not mentioned in Sanskrit literature before the second century B.C.; and the tract now known as Mālwa was not called by that name till the tenth century A.D., or even later (IGI, xvii. 100 f.; BG, i. Part i. 28, Part ii. 311).]
[11]. [Sāsan, land granted to Brāhmans, Ascetics, Chārans, and Bhāts, by royal decree and rent-free. It pays nothing but some miscellaneous taxes, is inalienable, but it can be mortgaged.]
[12]. [Māndhātri, son of Yuvanāswa of the race of Ikshwāku, a legendary monarch, is said to have “reduced the seven continental zones under his dominion” (Vishnu Purāna, 363; Dowson, Classical Dict., s.v.). The holy place Māndhāta in the Nimār District, Central Provinces, is said to take its name from him (Gazetteer Central Provinces, 1870, p. 258).]
[13]. [Pāsbān means ‘a watcher.’ Dr. Tessitori writes that the proper form of the word is Pāsvān or Pāsvāni, a term applied to the confidential domestics of a chief, and it is often, as in this case, synonymous with ‘favourite.’ It denotes no particular caste, but is commonly applied to a slave favourite or concubine.]
[14]. [Bari Sādri, about 40 miles S.S.E. of Udaipur city.]
[15]. [Not found in Major Erskine’s or other official maps: in the Author’s map “Mhorun.”]
[16]. [Bassia latifolia, from the petals of which a coarse kind of spirits is made (Watt, Comm. Prod. 116 ff.: Yule, Hobson-Jobson, 2nd ed. 574 f.).]
[17]. [The banyan, ficus indica.]