The Meitei: Traditional economy

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This article is an extract from THE MEITHEIS T. C. HODSON Late Assistant Political Agent In Manipur And Superintendent Of The State Fellow Of The Royal Anthropological Institute With An Introduction By SIR CHARLES J. LYALL K.C.S.I., C.I.E., LL.D., M.A. Published under the orders of the Government of Gastern Bengal and Assam Illustrated LONDON David Nutt 57, 59, Long Acre 1908 Indpaedia is an archive. It neither agrees nor disagrees with the contents of this article. Secondly, this has been scanned frcm a bcck. You can hclp by send!ng the correcled vcrsion/ additional information to the Facebook community, Indpaedia.com. All information used will be duly acknowledged.

Occupation

In Manipur we find many forms of industry practised by the people who are mainly agriculturists. In every house the wife weaves the cotton cloths for her family and husband. There are goldsmiths whose art produces much that is of great beauty though simple, so that we can believe that, in the palmy days of old, before the great devastation of the country by the Burmese, the land was in enjoyment of such wealth and prosperity as are now impossible. Yet the misfortunes of the past do not altogether account for the decay in the finer arts.

In the economic system competent observers like Colonel McCulloch find a cause of stagnation and decline. " In a country in which each family produces nearly all which it consumes, any advance- ment in the arts can scarcely be expected. But if without other impediments, improvement could take place, it would be re- pressed under a Government such as that of Munnipore. Under the operation of the laloop, a good artificer works along with a bad one, and receives no more thanks for his work than if it wei'e as bad as that of his less skillful associate. He becomes disgusted, and his only aim is to amass quickly, by his superior intelligence, enough to purchase his release from work.

This done, he thinks no more of his trade. Thus all are for ever at the rudiments and no progress is made. What cloths are made, are distinguished for strength more than for fineness, and the inventive faculties having no play, there is very little variety in pattern. Some little embroidery is practised, in which the same paucity of invention is more apparent.

Their eating and drinking vessels, principally of bell metal, are substantial, but in shape vary little from those of the west. They have some dyes and have some taste in the arrangement of colours, but of drawing or painting they have no idea." *

The women hold a high and free position in Manipur, all the internal trade and exchange of the produce of the country being managed by them. The habit of the country is to have bazars at convenient spots by the road side, where a handful of women congregate at an early hour, whiling the time away with gossip and light work, and attending to a chance customer when one offers himself.

Imphal possesses the largest and most important of these bazars, to which the name Sena Kaithel * is given. It is said to have been founded by Mongeanba in about 1580. It is close to the Pat or Royal enclosure, and now consists of a number of embanked mounds which are allotted to the different trades, the cloth weavers being found in one place all together, and the dried-fish vendors gathering their savoury wares in another.

According to Dr.Brown the manufactures of the people are of some extent, and will be described in a later passage. The women weave all the cloths, and all girls whose position is at all respectable learn to dance, for in Manipur the dancing profession is often a road to royal dignity and is not despised in any way as is the case in India. Parties of girls with a master in charge travel to Assam, Cachar, Sylhet, even as far as Calcutta, where they give public performances which are very attractive to the Manipuri exiles in those districts who, I am informed, consider themselves to be the real Manipuris, and the present inhabitants of the country to be of poor adulterate stock ; a compliment which is reciprocated too often with acerbity. I have known Manipuris make a living by gambling with Gurkha sepoys during the Durga pujahs, for the sober and wily Manipuri is at the best of times more than a match in an encounter of wits for the Gurkha, and when the brave little man is excited by orgies of blood and ready, like the heroic but foolish Pandavas, to gamble his all, the astute Manipuri reaps a verit- able golden harvest. But gambling and cockfighting are among the cardinal vices of the Manipuri, and are fruitful causes of crime sometimes even of a serious nature. More than one observer has denounced the Manipuri for useless economy of the truth which is contrasted with their admiration for truth as an abstract virtue.

It must be remembered that for many years they occupied the difficult position of avoiding the Meaning Golden or Royal market-place. attentions of British authority which they saw enveloping them, and at the same time of keeping themselves safe from the vengeance of the Burmese who remembered the part played by Manipur in the First Burmese war.

Such a position does not make for the development of the manliest virtues, and to those who condone prevarication so long as it is capable of being decently regarded as diplomacy, no excuse need be made for the failing of the Manipuri in this matter. There is but Ititle serious crime among them. In the account given by Dr. Brown of the State in the year 1868, there is a table of the offences for which the prison population was confined, and it is interesting to compare it with the offences most common in Manipur at the present time.

Dr.Brown states * that there were in the jail when he visited it 122 prisoners : Munnipories 110, hillmen 10, Munniporie Mussalmans 2. So far as numbers go, the average daily population of the jail with which I was acquainted, was about 100, and the number of hillmen, Mussalmans, etc., divided in not very different proportions. It is equally remarkable to study the offences which were then common in comparison with those now responsible for the inmates of the jaiL Treason then accounted for sixteen, but it has practically disappeared from the list of offences.

Coining sent seven prisoners then, but is now rare, and we have now, as then, a large number of persons imprisoned for theft, inclusive of cattle theft. Bribery was the cause of the detention in 1868 of five persons, and it is not by any means eradicated yet. Another offence which has ceased in altered circumstances to add to the jail population, is slave stealing and abetting desertion of slaves. Then, as now, the liberal employment of the prisoners on extramural labour seems to have conduced to the preservation of their health in spite of bad sanitary surroundings. In those days education cannot be said to have existed in Manipur, while now there are many primary schools and in Imphal a fair secondary school, originally founded by the efforts of Colonel Johnstone, and, reconstituted in later years after the occupation of the State in 1891, is attended by a small but increasing number of scholars.

The education of women cannot be said to have made equal progress, although it was hoped, not without reason, that, in a country Uke Manipur where women hold such an important position in the economic activity of the State, the efforts to establish a good school for the daughters of the higher classes would have been attended with more success than has actually been the case. The failure is not improbably due to the rumour, started by malignity and disseminated by stupidity, that as soon as the girls had been satisfactorily taught to read, write, and speak English, they were to be shipped off to England where there was said to be a scarcity of marriageable women. The sole basis for this untoward myth lay in the fact that at that time among all the officers of Government, Civil and Military, then serving in Manipur, not one was married. Such rumours are constantly arising in Manipur, and derive their wide circulation through the agency of the bazars, where time hangs so heavy that such gossip is eagerly retailed and receives too often ready acceptance.

Houses

Colonel McCulloch says that " the dwelling houses of the Munniporees are all of the same form, but those of the rich are larger and constructed of better materials than those of the poor, that is, the posts and beams of the former are of wood, whilst those of the latter are of bamboo. The walls of both are of reeds plastered with a mixture of earth and cow dung, and the roofs of all are thatched with grass.

All the dwelling houses face to the eastward, in which direction they have a large open verandah. In this verandah the family sits during the day, and in it all the work of the household is carried on, except cooking, which is performed inside ; in the south side of the verandah is the seat of honour. Here a mat or cloth is laid for the head of the family, upon which no one intrudes. Inside, the house is without partitions. The bed of the head of the family is placed in what is called the Luplengka, close to the wall on the south side about the middle. It is usually screened by mats.

The daughters usually sleep on the north side. There are no windows in the houses, the only light admitted being by two doors, one opening into the open verandah, the other to the north, near the north-western corner of the house. The fireplace is on the floor towards the north-west comer. There is no chimney. The fuel used is generally dried reed jungle.

This answers every purpose in the warm weather, but is a sorry substitute for wood in the colder months." *

The style of houses was introduced by a mythical king named Khooi Ningon, but in the reign of Khagenba changes were made. Not many houses are built of brick, though the recent development of the manufacture of bricks may lead to an increase in their number. The temples, both private and public, are built of brick, and the walls of the natch ghar or dancing house which is built in the trabeated style with massive teak beams of enormous size and thickness, are also of the same materiaL The native bricks are long, wide and thin, possessing considerable durability, which is in part due to the liberal amount of genuine mortar and lime used on the walls.

The Chronicles state that in the reign of Khagenba, which seems to have witnessed the inception of the development of civilization in Manipur, two brick-built walls called Hogaibi were erected. Colonel Johnstone t attributes the ^erection of these blocks to Chinese settlers, the remnants of a force of invaders which was nearly annihilated by the Manipuris. To this day, people going to the State office (which is close to the site of these pillars or walls), especially members of the Lairik Yengbam or writer caste, offer a devout salutation to the memory of Khagenba, I may add that it has been put to me that Khagenba may be resolved into Khagi-yen (or yan) "ha, the scatterer or slaughterer of the Chinese (Khagi = Chinese),

Villages

The chief town in Manipur, known as Imphal or the collection of houses (Im = yum = house, phal = to gather or collect), is situated in the north of the valley and possesses some 30,000 inhabitants, but it is not a town : rather it is a gathering by simple accretion of small villages around the Pat or royal enclosure. An ordinary Manipuri village is a long straggling series of houses, each standing within its own enclosure with access to the river, on the bank of which it is built. It possesses length without breadth. The villages are not sur- rounded by any rampart or fortification, and when, as has happened in the case of Imphal, neighbouring villages grow and expand, there are no arbitrary boundaries, though custom recog- nizes them for purposes of administration. The limits of the original settlement are often known though now obliterated.

Furniture

In a Manipuri house the most important article of furniture is the bed of the head of the family, a large wooden structure with four posts, which forms a conspicuous feature in the wedding processions.

Then the chest, in which the family belongings are kept, generally an old wooden box with an iron lock at which the thieves of Manipur laugh. The eating and drinking vessels, the implements of spinning, the few tools if the owner happen to be a carpenter, a blacksmith, or a gold- smith, the jewellery of the wife and the universal eZao, these constitute the ordinary furniture of the house.

In the houses of the better class one may find stools or chairs of European design, perhaps a lamp or two, as likely as not borrowed from one of the public street lamps.

Manufactures

Nearly every housewife is capable of weaving all the cloths needed by her family, and the simple loom stands in the verandah of the house. These cloths are mainly intended for wear and not for decorative purposes, yet since the occupation of the State a trade in fancy and decorative cloths has sprung up.

The Nagas, especially those to the north, often make large purchases of cloths in the Golden Bazar, both of ordinaiy white with red and blue stripes, and also the more special cloths of a dark-blue ground with figures of animals woven in red thread round the borders.

There is reason to believe that in former times this industry was artificially supported, if not altogether created, by royal decrees punishing any Naga who failed to buy his cloths in the Sena Kaithel. The manufacture of silk cloths is entirely in the hands of the Lois, whose low social position permits them to practise many remunerative forms of employment which custom denies to the Meithei.

Dr.Brown gives a complete list of the manufactures then produced by the Manipuris, and as regards the cloths, states that "

These are manufactured in cotton of various kinds, chiefly a coarse quality called ' Kess ' : these coarse cloths are purchased by the hill tribes chiefly: some, however, find their way into Cachar. Of late years finer qualities of cloth have been made from English yarns. In leather manufactures, I am told, there has been of late years a great improvement. Formerly tanning was a matter of great difficulty, and the results inferior. Now they use the bark of a tree (name unknown to me), which is found in plenty in the jungles ; by this they make leather superior to any formerly known in the country; they also enamel the leather very nicely in black. The skins used are those of deer and calf, and the articles made, saddles, shoes, belts, pouches, etc., for the use of the troops. In clay only ordinary pots and water ghurrahs are made. Stone bowls are also to be found nicely made and polished : the stone is ordinary sandstone, artificially blackened.

The jewellery manufactured is of fair workmanship, but not distinguished by any special merit : rings, bracelets, necklets, are the articles chiefly made. A large number of brass and bell metal armlets are made which are disposed of to the hiUmen.

In iron and steel are made daos of various kinds, spear and arrow heads, etc., etc. Firearms are not made in any form.

Carpentry

The Munnipories have a great reputation as carpenters in the adjoining provinces of Cachar and Sylhet, especially for the better kinds of work: here good workmen are few, and are entirely monopolized by the Eaja. The good carpenters there are, however, are capable of turning out first- rate work, and can imitate English work successfully. Shortly after my arrival in the country the Eaja one day borrowed from me a revolving stereoscope which I had, and rather surprised me by showing me a few days afterwards a duplicate perfect in every way excepting the lenses, which, although they had a pair removed from an old stereoscope, they could not adjust properly. Since that time I have had two photographic cameras made by them, complete in every respect and serviceable, which would not show unfavourably when compared with the more common run of English goods.

Turninff, etc

Turning in wood and ivory * is common. They can also silver glass and electro-plate, make good serviceable locks, and can at a pinch repair and clean a clock.

Dyeing in a few colours is practised ; a yellow dye is common, procured in the hills.

Mcculloch in his account, says, " They have some taste in the arrangement of colours, but of drawing or painting they have no idea." There is at present in Munnipore the son of a Brahmin, a native of the country, about thirteen or fourteen years of age, who has what I would call a very remarkable knowledge of drawing and painting so far at least as copying goes. Some time ago, I gave a Lactrope to a Munniporie, and he astonished me a good deal by showing me some copies of the figures so beautifully and correctly drawn and coloured, that it required a close examination of original and copy to detect the difference. I am informed that this lad is engaged in drawing some original comic slides, which I have not yet seen.".

It is sad to notice the decay' in native art which follows almost instantaneously on the withdrawal of the artificial atmo- sphere of royal patronage, but the phenomenon is neither rare nor inexplicable. At |a period much earlier than that of the passage above quoted art and manufactures in Manipur seem to have been in a much more healthy state than in the later years of independence.

The first blow to Manipur as a centre of artistic and industrial activity was dealt by the Burmese, whose repeated invasions of the country depopulated it, and who kept in captivity all or nearly all the famous silversmiths of Manipur. To the excellence of Manipuri art and manu- facture, testimony is borne by several observers.

In the treaty concluded in 1762 with Governor Verelst, mention is made of the following articles, products of the country: silk, iron, kupass, dammer, wood oil, wax, elephants' teeth, agar, sandal wood, camphor, black thread, red ditto, blue ditto, white ditto, black coss, Meklee cloths, Meklee gold rupees.

Colonel Johnstone, speaking with the sympathy of an ardent educationalist, says of the decline of native arts and industries in Manipur, that free trade has done much to injure the trade in cotton goods of local manufacture in India,* but it must in fairness be pointed out that until the revolution in taste has evicted the deeply ingrained religious and tabu beliefs of people like the Manipuris and the hill tribes, or until the manufacturer in Manchester has learnt to imitate native patterns, there will be a large and effective demand for the products of native looms.

Another matter in connection with the manufactures of the Manipuris; nearly all the real manufactures are now in the hands of the Loi communities, and while among the Manipuris we have weaving as a general industry with one or two families exercising special forms of this craft, they practise few other manufactures, and are carpenters, blacksmiths, jewellers, workers in brass, metal casters, bone setters and house builders. I may also add that the manufacture of wooden false teeth gives em- ployment to one old gentleman, who has quite a large clientele.

The Chronicles contain a passage describing the magni- ficence of the table equipage of King Khagenba, who feasted off vessels of solid gold and sat on a chair of gold.

As in the days when Colonel McCuUoch wrote, so even now, "the Loee population is exceedingly useful. Amongst them are the silk manufacturers, the smelters of iron, the distillers of spirits, the makers of earthen vessels for contain- ing water or for cooking in, the cutters of posts and beams and canoes, manufacturers of salt, fishers, cutters of grass for the Eaja's ponies, the payers of tribute in Sd, the coin of the country, etc." Dr. Brown goes into interesting details of the several industries above enumerated.t Of the silk manu- facture he says that " the cultivation of silk which, if properly developed, would form a most important article for export, is unfortunately, much restricted. The silk culture is entirely in the hands of the Loee part of the populatipn, and only five villages to the west and northwest of the valley close to the hills cultivate the worm. The fact of the Loee being the cultivator of silk is fatal to its extension, as by the custom of the country, which so much associates position or caste with the nature of the various employments pursued, any one wishing to engage in silk culture must lose his position and become a Loee ; thus it is that the production of silk is on a very limited scale. The food of the silkworm is the mulberry, and the species is, I understand, common in Bengal, although the silk yielded is of a decidedly superior quality. About 300 persons are employed in the silk culture, and they pay for the privilege some 300 Eupees annually ; they are for this payment excused from the operation of lalloop, or forced labour. The raw silk is disposed of by the above to a weaver class called 'Kubbo' — they having originally, it is said, emigrated from the Kubbo Valley in Upper Burmah. These weave it into various cloths, dhoties, puggris, kummerbunds, dresses for the women, etc. A small quantity only of silk cloths find their way into Cachar. The Burmese traders who frequent Munni- pore, buy up greedily all the raw silk they can get ; this speaks well for the quality of the silk, as the silkworm is plentiful in and near the Kubbo Valley." The trade with Burma is not now- adays of any importance, though the improvements which have been made in the alignment of the Palel-Tamu road through the hills should conduce to an extension of commercial intercourse. Iron smelting is thus described by Captain Pemberton * " Iron, the only metal yet ascertained to exist in Munnipore, is found in the form of titaniferous oxydulatedore,and is obtained principally from the beds of small streams south of Thobal, and the hills near Langatel ; its presence in the latter is ascertained by the withered appearance of the grass growing above it, and in the former it is generally sought after the rainy season, when the soil has been washed away ; an iron-headed spear is thrust into the ground, and the small particles adhering to it lead to the discovery of the bed in which they had been deposited ; this employment of the spear furnished an accidental but very strik- ing illustration of the magnetic property being acquired by iron, which is preserved in the same position for any length of time ; the spear of the Munniporee and Naga is almost invariably thrust vertically into the ground when not in use, and the fact of its being so employed to ascertain the presence of the ore is a proof of the very high degree of magnetism or polarity it must have attained The loss produced by smelting the ore amounts to nearly 50 per cent., and the Munniporees are perfectly sens- ible of the difficulty of fusion increasing with the greater purity of the metal. The principal articles manufactured are such as would be thought of in the earliest stages of civilization — axes, hoes, and ploughshares for felling timber and preparing the ground for agricultural purposes, spear and arrow heads for self- defence or aggression and the destruction of game ; and blades from one to two feet in length, which, firmly fixed in a wooden or metal handle under the name of daoy forms the inseparable companion of the Munniporee, Burma, Shan, and Singpho, With it he clears a passage for himself through the dense jungle that obstructs his path, notches the steep and slippery face of the hill he wishes to climb, and frequently owes the preservation of his life to the skill with which he wields it in the field." In Dr. Brown's time accident led to the discovery of a shallow deposit of iron ore at Kameng. I do not know for certain, but believe that limestone is used as a flux in the process of smelt- ing. It seems reasonably certain that the comparative abund- ance of limestone outcrops in the valley, occurring at places many miles apart, is significant of the presence of this valuable mineral beneath the alluvial deposits of the valley.

It is known that some of the limestone deposits were worked one hundred and fifty years ago.

Yu or country spirit, is manufactured by several Loi villages, some of which are abandoning the industry in order thereby to qualify themselves for admission into the Hindu community. At Sengmai, which, from its position, is well known to Nagas coming from the north, there are stills which produce a liquor which is greatly appreciated by the Nagas, but which to an untrained palate tastes of candle grease and methylated spirit.

Chairel and Shuganu, both on the Imphal river, are the principal villages engaged in the pottery business, probably because suitable clay occurs in their vicinity and not elsewhere, just as in the hills the manufacture of pottery is confined to two Tangkhul villages near which are outcrops of clay. Here the clay is found in the bed of an old lake, between sfaraita of worth- less deposits. The girls knead it with their feet till it acquires the consistency of indiarubber. It is roughly fashioned by hand, then placed on a circular flat disk which is twirled by the thumb and forefinger of the free hand. A rough conventional pattern of cross lines is stamped on it with a piece of wood. The ovens are out in the open. The use of the wheel indicates that they have reached a higher standard of skill than the Nagas, who mould their vessels on a bamboo cylinder and work it into a rounded shape by hand. The pots made at these Loi villages are brought by boat to Imphal and there sold.

I do not know that any Loi village is specially set apart for the work of cutting timber, but the village called Hiroi Lam- gang, in the south of the valley not far from Shuganu, makes boats for the Baja. The villagers themselves assert that the name of their village means " boat-maker on dry land " {hi = boat, loi = to make, cf. Meithei root loi ^ to complete or to be completed, Zam= ground, gang = kang = dry), but the presence of the root Loi which is used constantly in names of Loi villages, may mean that this is one of the Loi villages. Against this we have the fact that this village is not included in the lists of Loi villages, and that it is obviously more closely related in the mass of its customs to hill people than to Lois who are valuable as a link connecting the Meitheis with the hill tribes.

Dr. Brown records the following observations regarding the process of salt manufacture * : — " Nearly the whole of the salt consumed by the Munnipories is obtained from salt wells situated in the valley. A small quantity is occasionally im- ported in times of sc€urcity from Burmah.t The principal wells are situated at the foot of the hills to the north-east, about fourteen miles from the capital ; they are four in number and are named Ningail, Chundrakong, Seekong {Ghl = salt, khong = well), and Waikong ; they all lie close together and are sur- rounded by villages wherein reside those engaged in the salt manufacture. Wells have been opened in other parts of the valley but the supply has not been remunerative. Of late years a road has been constructed between the salt wells and the capital ; it is not finished but will be a good road for all weathers when it is so, and will have brick bridges. This is the only- made road in the country outside the capital with the exception of that leading from the capital to the foot of the hills to join the Government hill road to Cachar.* Ningail has three wells, all .contained in a somewhat elevated dell of small dimensions, surrounded by a low range of hills covered with grass and scrub. It is stated by the Munnipories that the situation of an under- ground salt spring is discovered by the presence of a peculiar mist seen hanging over the spot in the early morning. When the sinking of a well is determined on, large trunks of trees are prepared by hollowing out into cylinders which are sunk gradually until water is reached. In the Ningail wells the depth at which water is found is about 35 to 40 feet, and the wooden cylinders rest upon rock, the intervening stratum con- sisting chiefly of loose earth and boulders. In the oldest of the three wells at Ningail in which the cylinder htis been sunk, it is said for about one hundred years, the wood has become entirely petrified throughout its whole substance, which is more than a foot thick. The others are only partially petrified, they being newer and the supply of water being less. The soil and vegetation surrounding the wells shows nothing peculiar, and there is no appearance of any deposit of salt on or near the surface.

The water is drawn out by wicker baskets and emptied into large earthenware ghurrahs or hollowed out trunks of trees placed by the side of the wells, from whence it is carried in smaller vessels to the boiling down sheds situated some distance off. The water as it is drawn is quite clear, but from its being stored in mud tanks in the sheds it soon becomes very dirty; this could easily be avoided, but the Munnipories do not seem to object to the impurity, and it is positively relished by the hill- men. There are in Ningail three boiling down sheds nearly always fully employed. The salt water is evaporated in small earthenware dishes, shallow and saucer shaped. Before the water is poured into them they are lined with plantain leaves,

• The valley now possesses excellent internal communications, and the

completion of the cart road via Kohima through the hills gives easy access to heavy traffic which in Dr. Brown's days was denied. — T. C. H. to which the salt adheres, and the contents when the salt has filled the dish, are thus easily removed. The pans, about 100 in number in each shed, are placed over little holes, and under- neath is the fire which is stoked at one end, the fuel used, as in the Sylhet lime kilns, being dry reeds. The attendants are constantly on the move supplying the paps with water, emptying them and filling them again.

The Chundrakong salt wells — two in number — are much the same as the above, and somewhat similarly situated in a village to the north-west of Ningail. There is one peculiarity worth noting in Chundrakong, that is, the existence of a fresh- water well in close proximity to the salt ones ; this well requires constant pumping to prevent its dilut- ing the salt water in the other wells. It would appear from the existence of this fresh-water well that the very edge of the salt deposit at this place has been struck in sinking. The salt water here does not seem to have the same petrifying power as that of Ningail, and the same observation holds good with regard to the other wells. The other wells present no peculiar feature. See- kong has four wells, Waikong five ; from this well a superior quality of salt is obtained, which is set aside for the Baja and his immediate retainers ; it can, however, also be procured in the bazaars at a slight advance on the price of the commoner sort ; it only differs from it in being cleaner. Ningail is the oldest of the wells, and has always given the greatest yield. The amount of salt manufactured varies according to season, the most being made in cold weather, when the water is at its strongest. About 150 maunds a month was the average last year (1867-8), of which more than half was furnished by Ningail alone.

The effect of the earthquake of January, 1869, has been to increase the yield of salt water in the wells enormously ; the water in the Ningail well after the earthquake rose six feet, and this rise has continued up to the present time undiminished. The effect of earthquake has been observed before, but not to such an extent or remaining for so long a time. The whole of the wells named above belong to the Eaja, and are worked for his benefit. The men employed are, however, remunerated for their labour, and a certain proportion of salt is set aside for their benefit. The proportion that goes to the Eaja is 30 per cent, of the quantity manufactured, the remaining 70 per cent, is divided among the workmen. The wells are under the charge of a dewan who resides in the capital and visits the wells occasionally. All the men employed in drawing and evaporating the water are Munnipories of the Loee caste or division, the lowest among the Munnipories. These work fifty at a time, and are changed every month. One man's lalloap or forced labour is six months in a year ; but it is stated that no objection is made to this, as they are paid regularly for their labour.

About 200 men are usually liable to this labour in Ningail alone ; this year, on account of the great increase in the yield, more have been required. Besides the Munnipories, many coolies are required for carrying fuel, and these frequently change. Hillmen work for a short time in order to procure a payment in salt. I am assured none of the coolies are pressed, and that all are paid in salt for their labour. No attempt has at any time been made to reach the salt itself; were this possible I have no doubt that rock salt in large deposits would be found. As an experiment I evaporated 36 ounces of filtered water from Ningail, from which I procured 6 drams of pure salt free from smell and apparently quite pure. As before stated, the salt as manufactured is very impure from its being contaminated with mud, but this seems to be relished rather than otherwise. The salt is disposed of at the well to parties who retail it in the various bazaars ; the wholesale price last year before the earth- quake was about 6 rupees 4 annas a maund, a little above that in British territory; now, however, it is considerably less, as the greatly increased yield has caused a fall in the price, and salt has never been so cheap in the country before." In all essentials the salt is manufactured now in the way described by Dr. Brown. For earthen evaporating pans, iron korais of the same shape have been substituted, and are leased out by the State on payment of an annual charge.

There is a disagreement between Colonel McCulloch and Dr. Brown as to the exact position in society held by the Sel Lois or Lois who paid their revenue in sel, the bell-metal coinage of the country. The point is immaterial, and the industry has now ceased to exist, for British rupee coinage circulates in the country, although for some purposes sel are still used. Dr. Brown gives a clear account of the coinage. "The only coin proper to the country is of bell metal, and small in size, weighing only about 16 grains. This is coined by the Raja as required, goods or money being taken in exchange. The metal is obtained chiefly from Burmah, and consists of gongs, etc. : some of it is also pro- cured from the British provinces. The process of coining is very primitive : the metal is first cast in little pellets : these are then softened by fire and placed on an anvil : one blow of the hammer flattens the pellet into an irregularly round figure ; a punch with the word SH cut on it is then driven on it by another blow, which completes the process. The market value of the sel, as it is called, varies : when rupees are plenty, then sd is cheap : when scarce, the opposite.

The present value of the coin is 480 to one British or Burmese rupee, and its usual variation is said to be from 450 to 500. I have before me now e^ht varieties of sel coin, dating from the reign of Pakungba downwards. The coin shown me as Pakungba's is, the Munni- pories say, the oldest in the country ; it is a shield-shaped disk of bell metal, very thin, but of large size, measuring rather more than 3^ inches in diameter : it has no marks on it of any kind. In Khakamba's reign the coin is almost square, and has faint marks on it. McCulloch * credits Khakamba with first introducing bell-metal coinage, and figures the coin, which is round ; the Munnipories, however, have shown me all the old coins they have, and I have adopted their nomenclature as regards the Baja, who issued it.

Marangba coined of a round shape smaller than the above, and with well-raised characters ; Keeyamba, of an irregular square form, with very indistinct characters ; Paikomba, irregularly rounded and faintly marked ; Charairomba, square and with the lettering distinct ; Gurreeb Newaz, round, well-made coin, lettering very superior, the best finished of any of the coins. From Chingtungkomba downwards the coin has not altered much, and is much smaller than any of the above (about 1760 a.d. till the present time). There is no evidence whatever of there having been at any time a gold coinage in existence; but it is stated that Chourjeet Singh, about 1815, coined silver of a square form, and of the same value and weight as the British rupee. I have only been able to obtain one specimen of this coin. The British and Burmese rupee, both representing the same value, circulate freely ; also the smaller silver coins, as four-anna and two-anna pieces. About seven years ago an attempt was made by the then Agent to introduce copper coinage, and a large quantity was supplied by Government. The experiment totally failed, as the women in the bazaar positively refused to have anything to do with it, and the coin had to be returned. The bell-metal coin, in con- junction with rupees and smaller silver coins, are amply sufficient for the wants of the country, and I consider the attempt at introducing copper was unnecessary, as was indeed proved by the determined refusal of the women to accept it." *

Colonel McCulloch refers to the treaty into which Gourosham entered in the middle of the eighteenth century with the East India Company, in one of the articles of which mention is made of gold rupees which Colonel McCulloch regards as a mistake. This is probable enough.

The Chronicles do not afford us any help in determining the nature of the coinage or the date when coins were first struck. It is curious to observe that while in England we change the direction in which the face of the sovereign looks, with, each reign, in Manipur they changed the shape of the coin entirely.

Colonel Johnstone, in an interesting passage, records the trouble caused by the great fluctuations in the exchange between sel and rupees. J The cambists brought the rupee exchange down to 250, whereas its normal rate was, as Dr. Brown says, fipom 450 to 500, but Major Johnstone, as he then was, induced the Raja to make an issue Of sel so that the usual ratio was established. Currency questions, as Mr. Gladstone once said, disturb the mind more than love, and by the abolition of sel and the intro- duction of the copper coinage of India the State has been free from anxiety of this nature.

It is impossible to overlook the ingenious speculations proffered by Colonel Sir Richard Temple in the Indian Antiquary § on the origin of the scale of value between the $d and the rupee as due to the system of reckoning 400 cowries to the anna, and to the identity of the sel of Manipur with the dam of Akbar and of modem Nepal. In the first place, perhaps as a result of the disappearance of the set coinage, the word makhai is not now used by natives to describe set. In itself makhai means the half, from khai-ba, to divide ; and the word ydng khai = fifty shows the same force in the second of its components. Ydng probably means one hundred, for we know the language has become denasalized, and the equation cha = ydng is phonetically permissible. The use of cowries has been coiiipletely forgotten.

Implements And Utensils

Mention has been made of the many uses to which the dao is put in Manipur, and it may therefore be classed not only as a weapon, but as an implement also of uncommon utility. The khutlai, or hand possessions (khut hand ; lai or nai, to belong to or be possessed), vary according to the trade or occupation of the owner.

Thus the agricultural implements will be described in the section appropriated for agriculture, while the implements of the several arts and industries of the country will be set forth in the section reserved for the manufactures. The household utensils consist of earthen pots manufactured for the most part by the Lois of Chairel and Shuganu, who alse produce stone bowls, which they turn from the rough sandstone, which is blackened by lamp black and then wrought to a high polish. Brass, copper, and bell-metal cooking pots are in common use, but are imported from Cachar. Plates, both of metal and cheap earthenware, are found in many houses, for the withdrawal of the numerous sumptuary and economic restrictions which formed so conspicuous a part of the political system of a former day, has undoubtedly been the cause of a rise in the general taste of the community, so that articles, such as an umbrella, once the treasured token of royalty, or at least of royal favour, are now carried without fear of let or hindrance.

Agriculture

Captain Pemberton states that "The agricultural produce of the country consists principally of rice, which forms the staple article of food, and the fertility of the soil is so great that the crops generally prove most abundant ; the innumer- able streams which gush from the bases of the ranges sur- rounding the valley insure an adequate irrigation, even to the fields which are above the level of the general inunda- tion, and it has sometimes happened that the whole popula- tion has been entirely subsisted by the produce of the lands so situated on the inclined planes at the foot of the hills, when from unusual drought there has been an entire failure of the crops in the central portions of the valley: rice has frequently been sold during the last year, when the country was only recovering from the devastating visitations of the Burmahs, at the rate of five maunds for a rupee, and the land now under cultivation is scarcely one-fourth of that which could be rendered available for the same purpose, were the population better proportioned to the extent of country it subsists upon. Tobacco, sugarcane, indigo, mustard, the dif- ferent varieties of Dhal, and opium are also cultivated. • . . Almost all the garden produce of Europe is now found in the valley, such as peas, potatoes, the different varieties of greens and cabbages, carrots, radishes, beetroot and turnips, none of which were known until introduced by the European officers, who have been resident in the country since the late war. The potato and the pea particularly have proved so acceptable to the people, that they are now almost universally cultivated and exposed for sale in the different bazars of the country.

"Fruits do not appear to attain such perfection as the vege- tables, though from the varieties which grow spontaneously in various parts of the valley we should infer that nothing but culture is required to render them as good as the latter. Apples, apricots, raspberries, strawberries, oranges, limes, pome- granates, guavas, mangoes, and jackfruit are all found within this mountain valley, but none attain to such flavour as might have been expected, from the total absence of care and skill in their cultivation ; and we can hardly suppose that they would fail to prove as excellent as the pineapple were the same attention bestowed upon them that is shown in the culture of the latter."* Colonel Mcculloch gives some interesting details of the methods of Manipuri agriculture.* " A branch of a tree crooked in this form the end of which is faced with iron, forms the Munniporee plough. To this a buffalo is attached between a couple of shafts, thus With this instrument the ground when dry is little more than scratched. The plough is held in one hand, and the buffalo, by means of a string passed through his nose, and a vocabulary he seems to understand, is guided by the other. Instead of the buffalo, two bullocks are sometimes attached to the plough, one on each side of a centre pole.

The operation of scratching up the soil and preparing the field for the reception of the rice seed com- mences in February; and in May they sow what is called poong hid, or dry seed cast in dry ground.

In June, the rains having set in, the field is brought by successive plough- ings into a state of liquid mud, and in this the pang phel is cast. The seed for the pang phel is first quickened by being moistened with water and kept in a covered basket until it shoots.

As this seed floats on the surface of the mud, it has to be carefully watched until it takes root, and three or four leaves have sprung up, in order to protect it from wild ducks and other birds. After this comes the lingba or transplanting.

The seed for the plants which are destined to be transplanted are usually sown very close in plots carefully prepared for the purpose. When the transplanting season arrives, the plants are by washing divested of all earth attaching to them, and having been taken to the field, they are one by one separately inserted in the mud. For a time after transplanting they look as if they were all withered up, but they soon spring up and afford an excellent crop. If the ground has been carefully deprived of weeds before sowing the crop, weeding afterwards is not required. The only cultivation of any importance is rice. not a particle of manure is placed on the ground, and yet year after year good crops are raised from the same spot.

The yield has, of course, lessened from what it was, but its being so very considerable as it is evinces a very rich soil. The mainstay, how- ever, of Munnipore is the crop raised at Thobal and its vicinity. There the river once, at least, in the year inundates the rice fields, giving them amazing fertility. About Thobal they weed with a harrow, which, drawn by a buffalo over the rice field, uproots indiscriminately the weeds and the ripe. The former die, but the rice plant takes root again and is not injured. When the rice begins to ripen, it has to be watched against the depredations of immense flights of birds. Deer and other wild animals also do a great deal of mischief, and against them pre- cautions have to be taken. The rice having ripened is cut with a knife slightly curved at the top, and having a rough edge like a saw. As it is cut it is laid in handfuls on the ground, and when dry tied up in sheaves. These sheaves are carried to the part of the field most convenient for the purpose, and the rice beat from them on a^ large reed mat. Af tOr having been winnowed by means of fans, the rice is ready for the granary and removed to it.

This sun-dried rice- keeps very well in husk, but when- cleared of the husk it can be kept for a very short time only. The straw is left lyiug in a pile around the place where the rice was beat out. Except as fuel, no use is made of it."

The yield is still high and the land shows no serious symptoms of exhaustion, and not only is there still a fair amount of land available for the extension of cultivation, but very large tracts could be made cultivable by well-planned and not necessarily very expensive drainage operations. One danger, however, exists, the possibility of fraud on the part of speculators who have at times in the past attempted to profit by the new revenue system to take out pottahs for land which they sublet for grazing purposes to the neighbouring villages at high rents. Un- doubtedly custom recognizes that village rights to grazing and wood and grass-cutting extend over the waste lands adjoining the cultivated areas. The Chronicles contain mention of attempts to divert the course of rivers, and while some if not the greater number of them are due to the desire to provide courses for the boat races, in one or two cases they seem to have been destined to benefit the cultivators by furnishing irrigation channels.

The agricultural implements used by the Meitheis are the kangpot, or sledge, the langol or plough, the Ukai analba or smooth harrow, the phao intok or paddy spoon, the humai or fan used for winnowing the paddy, the ukai samjet or toothed harrow. the chairong or paddy thrasher or flail, the thanggol or sickle (lit. round dao), the yot or spade, the thdngchao or large dao, and the yeina phak or threshing mat.

Crops

The staple of the valley is, as has been said, rice. Dr. Brown * says that " No fewer than seventeen varieties of rice are grown ; these may be divided into early and late crops. The early crop ripens in three months and is ready for cutting in about September. Of late years a large quantity of the early sort has been sown. Of the early there are four varieties. The late crop ripens in six months, and is reaped in November. The great bulk of rice grown in the country is of the late varieties, which comprises thirteen kinds, chiefly distinguished by size of grain and colour. The finest of these are named Phourail, Yentik, and Loeening ; these are white and of large grain — dal. Only two kinds of dal are grown, khessaree and moongh, English vegetables grow remarkably well, and I have a finer garden in Munnipore than I have ever had in India, the Punjab excepted. The pea of the country is of small size but of good quality ; it resembles the English pea.

"Vegetable productions of the country ... pulses as dal^ kalye, etc., are grown, but not largely ; pepper, onions, tobacco of good quality, sugarcane, potatoes of small size and inferior quality ; wheat is grown in the cold season in small quantity. Fruits are scarce and few in number. Plantains of fair quality, pine apples, mangoes (some of large size and fair quality) are almost the only fruits procurable which would be relished by an European. A plum resembling an English variety is common, but as met with in the bazaars, is excessively bitter. That this is simply the result of bad culture, however, I have proved, as I have several plum trees in my compound which I pruned last cold weather, with the result that the fruit this season is perfectly sweet. McCuUoch mentions in his account the ex- istence of good oranges on a hill in or near the Logtak Lake, but I have never seen any. Peaches grow, but of poor quality. Apples grow on the slopes of the hills of fair appearance externally, but quite uneatable. Throughout the valley and the neighbouring hills the bramble and wild raspberry are common."

Dr. Brown's experience of the oranges of the islands of the Logtak Lake is unfortunate, as, though not very plentiful, the fruit is sweet and of fair size. The rice fields are cropped once only in the year, and the winter cultivation is all or nearly all of the garden type. The cultivation of wheat has not proved a success, but there is every reason to believe that with due care rubber, tea, and in some spots perhaps jute might be profitably raised.

The climate is favourable for the production of mul- berry trees which form the food of the silkworms. The floral wealth of the country as a whole is famous. Sir George Watt, K.C.I.E., says that " probably no part of India had such varied and beautiful flora. On going into Manipur the first thing that struck the traveller was the enormous number of trees with which he was not familiar in other parts of India. Speaking from memory he believed that there were probably twenty species of the oak. Manipur was the home of the tea-plant. Another interesting fact about Manipur was that it was the home of the silkworm. He believed it highly probable that the real mulberry silk insect originated in Manipur and went from there into China. The whole of the typical plants of Sikkim were in Manipur, but at an altitude considerably below what they were in Sikkim. Then in the valley of Manipur, the peach, the pear and apple trees were cultivated which would be quite an impossibility in any other part of India at the same altitude."*

Fishing

As a large portion of the valley is still under water, and as fish forms an article of food of the Meithei community, the gentle art gives employment to many people. At present the State enjoys a large revenue from the fisheries, but there is no monopoly in consequence of the wise policy of reserving a

• Journal of the Society of Arts^ No. 2733, vol. liii., p 562.

number of jheds and fats (lakes), which are open to the public at certain times of the year. The Logtak, the great lake of the south end of the valley, is free, and the price of the produce of the private fisheries is regulated by the competition of the fishers of the Logtak. There are varying methods in use in accordance with the needs and capabilities of the diiferent localities. Weirs, fishing baskets, traps, spears, nets, are all used, and all show a high degree of suitability. The women fish with a square net suspended from a central pole by four strings at each comer, and dip the net well under the turbid waters of the edges of lakes or ditches, and slowly raise it till the catch rises above the surface of the water, when they smartly bring it out. Colonel McCulloch gives the following interesting particulars concerning the method of fishing employed by the fishermen on the Logtak.

The Logtak, the great resort of these aquatic birds, is covered with floating islands. Under these, amongst the roots of the v^etation of which they are formed, fish, in the cold weather, collect in great numbers, and are caught in the following manner : An island, having been cut into a manageable size, is pushed to a part of the lake where the water is not very deep, and where the bottom has been paved with stones. There it is fixed by means of long bamboo stakes ; and when the fish have collected in sufficient quantity, a long strip sufficient to surround it is cut from some other of these floating masses of vegetation. With this the asylum of the fish is surrounded, and a row of stones being placed on the edge nearest the island, that edge sinks down to the prepared bottom, whilst the rest remains up- right in the water, and thus forms a wall all round.

The fish are now driven out of their sanctuary ; if small they are taken in nets, if large they are speared by torchlight." * Pemberton f states that in the Logtak there are " no less than twenty-six varieties, eighteen common to the rivers of Bengal and eight not found in any of them." Dr. Brown, in his account, Jremarks that : " Of fish there is a considerable variety, and the supply is plentiful. River fish afford about thirteen different kinds. Of these the most important are the goallee of Bengal (called in Munnipore, ' Surreng'), the Bao mash, gna tel, the Ranee mash, surrong koibee, hagh mash, gna rel, the vapeea, gna tel ; the rest are small and unimportant. The fish inhabiting the Jakes and jheels are, it is said, of twenty-two kinds."

The industry is largely in the hands of Lois, but affords employment to Manipuris, who speculate heavily. The policy of letting the fisheries by public auction is attractive to the sections of the community who have means, but it has on occasions given rise to a conflict of the interests of the fishery lessees and of the villages, many of which enjoy local rights over weirs and streams.

Hunting

The Manipuris are orthodox Hindus of a strait way, and are pot hunters, but for the preservation of human and animal life from the depredations of leopards and tigers which at one time seem to have been fairly numerous in the valley, each village possesses an organization called the kdrup (kei = tiger, rup = club or association) or tiger club, which is responsible to the authorities for the upkeep in proper order of nets and spears in sufficient quantity.

As soon as authentic news of the where- Abouts of a tiger is brought in by the hui-rai (hui = dog ; rai = nai, to own or possess) or scouts, the Keirups of the neighbouring yillages proceed to the vicinity of the beast's lair, which they Surround with the nets.

Rockets and rough squibs are fired off in the jungle, and the infuriated creature rushes to his death by charging the line of nets.

There is considerable danger in this method, but the Manipuri is full of courage and resource in emergencies. It will be remembered, and for the credit of the Manipuris should be placed on record, that about four years ago a small party of British officers went to a quarter of Imphal to shoot a leopard which had taken up its abode in th0 compound of a house there.

The wounded animal sprang on one of the party inflicting injuries which proved fatal, and a casual passer- by jumped to the rescue, snatching up a bamboo with which he belaboured the beast till it let go and ran away. It is hardly pecessary to add that this required no small courage, because a wounded leopard is fierce and dangerous. Bee hunting is practised by Manipuris, who, as noted by Colonel Mcculloch,* "when they come upon a bee of this Species(Koibi namthou) catch him, and, having attached a thread to his body, let him loose. By means of the thread his flight is observed, and he can be followed to his nest.

The spot is marked, and fire having been procured, the bees, other- wise so formidable, are easily destroyed. The spoil, consisting of comb filled with the young, is considered a bonne louche"

It is clear from the Chronicles that the Manipuris were in former times great hunters, and mention is made of the skill of King Pikhomba with the bow and arrow. He is declared to have been able to shoot fish under water, and as more than one king bears the title Til haiba, or skilful archer, it may be believed that they were exceedingly clever in the use of the bow and arrow.

Food And Drink

The Chronicles contain ample evidence of the change in the diet of the Meithei section of the population which is due to the introduction of Hinduism at the beginning of the eighteenth century.

The earlier reigns seem to have been one long feast with hecatombs of fat cattle and oceans of spirituous drinks, even culminating on more than one instance in fatalities due to an excessive appreciation of the good cheer.

They then lived like the wild Nagas of the hills, each tribe regarding only its special tabus, and each individual abstaining only from the private tabus. But the official adoption of Hinduism not only removed the ban against milk but created many prohibitions to which the new converts eagerly submitted. Animal flesh is forbidden, and all spirituous liquor or intoxicants are accursed.

Fish is eaten, and is a common article of diet, so much so, that, as described above,t special care had to be taken to prevent any monopoly of fishery rights from unduly raising the price of this commodity. Rice forms the staple of food, and is boiled in the open air in earthenware pots, and, connoisseurs often have the rice cooked inside a hollow bamboo, and declare that the utony chak (u = wood, tong = to oook, chak = cooked rice) or wood- cooked food, possesses a very delicate flavour. But in child- hood the strict rules of Hinduism are not enforced, and old age has like relaxations, a fact which was noticed by Colonel McCulloch, who remarks, "Children up to ten or twelve years of age eat every sort of food without r^;ard to the Hindoo notions of purity or impurity. And it is a commou practice for old people to abandon fldtogether Hindoo observ- ances." • Honey is eaten by many, who buy it from the hunters whose methods are described above. Children are said to eat the white ant and the grasshopper, f

Dried fish is imported in large quantities from Caohar, and has often been assumed to be the means of spreading cholera through the country, but in the absence of definite scientific investigations into the causation and distribution of that disease, this favourite dainty must be entitled to a verdict of " Not Proven."

Dr. Brown mentions t that, "The Munnipories, both male and female, are inveterate chewers of pan 9ooparee. The whole of this is brought from the neighbouring district of Cachar, and forms a considerable trade. The betel-nut tree will not grow in Munnipore territory. Tobacco is used by all classes and ages, and the tobacco is used and smoked as in Bengal. I am informed that opium is not used by the Hindoo part of the population, neither is there any consumption whatever of Indian hemp or other intoxicating drugs." In recent years, the introduction of cigarette smoking has aroused vehement protests from the structure kind of the orthodox, who elicited a formal condemnation of thff habit from the wise men of the Chirap. At about the tit when the best intellepts of Manipur were exercised by i is problem, another matter of supreme interest occurred wh h. drew public attention away from the misuse of cigarettes. Horrible dictu, a Manipuri was seen in the hills somewhere between Imphal and Cachar, carrying a load slung on his back Naga fashion. He was warned not to do it again, but to use a yoke in future. These edicts produced little effect.

Games

Physically a fine race, the Manipuris are devoted to sports and games. The principal game is foot hockey, or khong kang jei (Khong = foot, kang = ball or round object, jei, from root chei = to hit), which is played by every naked little boy on the waste lands surrounding the village. Armed with a slightly curved bamboo stick, they play keenly, and as time goes, some reach such a degree of proficiency that they are selected to play for the " Panna " in which they live, before the assembled crowds at Imphal during the Diirga Pujas.

There are nine players a side, and the game comes to an end when one side obtains an agreed number of goals. The principal stroke is on the " nearside," as it gives protection to the legs from blows of an opponent's stick.

A player may " collar " or trip an opponent, or may pick the ball up and run with it some way. Such runs are generally terminated by a piece of " gallery " play, the striker throwing the ball up in the air and hitting it. Jeers await the unskilful wretch who unsuccessfully attempts this stroke.

In the reign of Khagenba, drea 1600, the great and famous game of polo was introduced into Manipur. The ponies are strong, wiry little creatures rarely more than twelve hands in height, and are fed on grass, with now and then an allowance of paddy. The saddle is large, light, and peaked both in front and behind. The most curious feature about the saddle is the addition to it of a pair of leather flaps which project around the legs of the rider and afford some protection from a blow.

These flaps are made of enamelled leather, and are fastened under- neath the stirrup irons. The bit is a heavy mass of iron in two pieces which are jointed in the middle where the joint makes a huge knob. The reins, which are of cotton rope, are fastened through rings at either end of the bit, and the headstall carries a framework to which are attached little wool or cotton balls, the purpose of which is to excite the pony and to give it some scanty protection from blows. The saddle is girthed on in the ordinary way so far as I know. The player does not grip with his knees, but balances himself.

The polo stick (kang hu) consists of a long shaft of bamboo with a head of hard wood set on at an obtuse angle which is much greater than is usual among European players. This is necessitated by the fact that the most successful of their strokes are played on the near side, a result of their long practice as children playing hockey. Their fore-arm development is magnificent, and really out of proper proportion. The ball (kang drUm) is made of bamboo root. To describe the game is beyond the powers of any but an imaginative and practised pen, for, in respect of brilliance of play, constant excitement, rashness, courage, skill, and popular enthusiasm, there is no game to equal it. Every man in the huge gathering which sits in an orderly mass on the banks lining the polo ground, is a competent critic, and while the excellences of individuals meet with approving cheers of yam pha-i or very good, Homeric laughter is the portion of the ambitious, but unskilful player who essays in vain some difficult stroke. Keenness is the order of the day, and the right of individual players to appear is jealously scrutinized, and there is a rule that no pony must be allowed to play which at any time during the preceding month has belonged to a representative of another "Panna." By a courteous evasion of difficulties they allow high officials to lend their ponies as they please, on the ground that they are officers, not of a part, but of the whole of the country.

The rules of the game are not obvious, indeed, most observers declare that rules are conspicuous by their absence. Many things are permissible to them which the greater dangers of the game on the bigger ponies render impossible or too hazardous. An opponent's stick may be crooked in any position, and the rule about crossing is not in existence among them. Yet serious accidents are rare, partly as a result of the fact that the Manipuri is light in bone, and active, and the ponies up to the weight they have to carry. Once the ball crosses the back line, a goal is scored, and the ball is thrown in from the middle line, not along the ground, but in the air, so as to give occasion for the brilliant stroke of hitting it in mid-air. Reliefs are permitted, and constantly take the place of tired players. To prevent accidental damage, the players swathe their heads in their pagris, which are fastened under the chin, and wear padded and quilted leggings. It is customary for the losing side to provide rewards for the winners, and, if a man desire to gain reputation, he may arrange a game and provide these not expensive rewards for all the players, adding special prizes for any who have distinguished themselves in the game. Signal skill at the game was a sure road to royal favour in olden times. A party of polo players went to Calcutta on the occasion of the visit of H.M. the King, when Prince of Wales, to India, and again to Delhi to perform before the multitudes which assembled there in 1901.

There is evidence that the popu- larity in India of polo as an organized form of sport is in part attributable to the enthusiasm of British officers who saw that there were sporting possibilities latent in the game as played by Manipuri teams in Cachar and Calcutta.

After the races come sports, such as the rdmbai hunba^ or javelin throwing, " tossing the caber," in this ceise, a weighted dhan pounder, "putting the stone," high kicking, sword play, and spear play with shield and plumes, which distinctly remind one of a Naga warrior's dress. The Mussulman section of the population contributes acrobats and contortionists, and there is always a troupe of low, sometimes very low, comedians, whose jests afford supreme delight to the crowd. But many of the best known performers have either left the country or gone to the majority, and the art of javelin throwing, long one of the special features of the annual sports, is in jeopardy of extinction, for as yet no successor worthy of the name has arisen to take the place of old Bedam Singh, the Nestor, when I knew him, of modern Manipuri polo players, whose fund of reminiscence of the good old days was ever at the disposal of those who loved the royal game and were in sympathy with the departed splendours of the country.

Hardly less enthusiasm is aroused among the Manipuris themselves by the boat-races which, to other eyes, seem to lack that sporting interest which is the great charm of polo in its home. Yet the clean crowds, all well behaved and orderly, present a picturesque sight, for among the men who are dressed in spotless white, are groups of women in bright attire, and on the banks of the river of Imphal the waving beauty of clumps of feathery bamboo, hiding or partly revealing the houses behind, gives an air of placidity to the scene. The six Pannas or Revenue divisions of the country send in a boat each, and, according to custom, the Pannas compete in a fixed order — Ahalup versus Naharup, and Khabum versus Laipham, Hitak-phanba versus POtsangba, Dr. Brown says,* " The boat- races occupy three days in September, and take place on the moat which surrounds on three sides the Eaja's enclosure.t This ditch is about 25 or 30 yards broad, and at the season when the boat-races come off, contains plenty of water. This festival is the most important held in Munnipore, and great preparations are made for it ; stands are erected on both sides of the moat, the one for the Baja being of considerable size and height. The women occupy stands on the opposite side of the moat. The boats used in the races are two in number, one of great length, and hollowed out of a single tree.

The rowers number about seventy men, each with a short paddle. Besides the rowers are several men attending to the steering, and urging on the crew. One of these stands in the front of the boat, and, leaning on his paddle, encourages the efforts of the men by stamping violently with his right foot at intervals. The race itself differs from most boat-races, in the fact that here the great object is for one boat to foul the other and bore it into the bank, so that one side of the boat is disabled, the men not being able to use their paddles. The boats are thus always close together until at the finish, when the race is usually won by a foot or two only. The distance paddled is about quarter of a mile. Each race is rowed twice whichever wins, and the results are carried on from year to year. As in the Lumchel, the com- petitors are men belonging to different punnahs. There are no rewards for the races, they being rowed merely for the honour of the thing.

The Baja in his boat, which is like the others, but ornamented with a carved deer's head and horns gilt at the prow, accompanies the race ; the Baja on the chief day steering his own boat in the dress formerly alluded to. McCulloch, in his account, mentions that the boat-race is not a fair race, but a struggle between the rowers on either side, in which those who can deal the hardest blows, are usually the victors. That fights occasionally happen is correct, but they arise from acci- dental causes and are really not a premeditated part of the performance. While the boats are paddling down to the start- ing-place, a good deal of chaffing, flinging of weeds, water etc., between the rival boats takes place, but all seems to be conducted in a good-humoured manner." Neither of these authorities refers to a curious custom connected with the boat- races, by which the steersman of the losing boat becomes the slave of the steersman of the- victorious crew, to whom the statutory fine of fifty rupees has to be paid for release.

Dr. Brown gives the following account of the Lamchel or foot race (lam = distance, and chel = to run).* " This Lumchel is a competition between the different ' Punnahs ' or classes among the Munniporie population. Brahmins, as also the lowest class of Munnipories, the Looees, are not allowed to compete, but Mussulmans may. t The distance run by the competitors is a straight course from the brick bridge formerly mentioned % to the inside of the Baja's enclosure ; the distance is under half a mile.

The first part of the races consists of trials of speed by two Punnahs at a time ; the winners in these races run again when all have had their trial, and the first man in of the whole wins the race of the year. The first man receives as his reward, sundry presents, and is excused from all forced labour or lalloop for the rest of his life ; he becomes a hanger-on about the Eaja usually after his victory. Old winners are allowed to run again for the honour of the thing ; when they win more than once, they get presents. The first in at the preliminary races between the Punnahs are allowed three months' exemption from lalloop. These races cause great competition, and for months before they come off, various lanky-looking men, with a scanty proportion of clothing, may be seen, morning and evening, trotting along the roads, getting themselves into training for the important event. The Baja is always present at these and the other games, seated in a sort of gateway which bounds the straight road along which the races are run.

The Wrestling, — After the races there is an exhibition of wrestling ; this presents nothing very peculiar ; the only thing that need be mentioned regarding it is a curious custom which prevails. The victor over the wrestler who competes with him, before salaaming to the Baja, leaps up in the air, alighting on his left foot; as he descends he gives his right buttock a resounding slap with his right hand ; having thus asserted his superior skill, he makes his salaam in the usual manner.

Hockey matches after the boat-races, — On each of the three days devoted to the boat-races important hockey matches take place.

Immediately after the races an adjournment takes place to the hockey ground, close by, and the game is at once commenced ; the play being much better than can be witnessed at any other time. The ground at that time not being in good condition, many falls take place, which are not allowed, however, to interrupt the sport. The scoring is carried on from year to year also in this case, and many sporting gentlemen may be seen in various parts of the field carefully marking the results with pieces of pebble.

The excitement and interest manifested in the result is very great."

The dances of the country are four in number. Ras, maribok jagoi, khubeiscisakpay and sanjoiba. In the first three, girls take part, while the last is performed by boys alone. The peculiar costume described above * is worn by the girls who appear in the rds, eminently a dance of sacred Origin. In the dance called maribokjagoi, or the dance of the four comers, only four performers are required, and in* the khubeiseisakpa or the singing with the clapping of hands, the girls keep up an accom- paniment to the music with vigorous hand-clapping.

They wear the ordinary fanek for this last. The boys who dance the sanjoiba, wear a remarkable head dress of peacocks' feathers. The dances and costumes are very picturesque, but the noisy drums on which quite a disproportionate amount of energy is expended, the clanging cymbals, the nasal singing, produce a cumulative effect which soon becomes tiresome. The game known to the Manipuris as kang sd-na-ba or playing the kang, is the local variant of the widely played game described by Captain Lewin under the name of konyon* Colonel McCulloch thus describes it : f " The amusement in its season most enjoyed is kangsanaba, a game as peculiar to Munnipore as that of hockey on horseback. It is played only in the spring, the players being generally young women and girls, with usually a sprinkling of men on each side. The game seems to cause great excitement, and there is great emulation between the sides.

The kang is the seed of a creeper : it is nearly circular, about an inch and a half in diameter, and about three quarters of an inch thick. J It is placed on the ground upright, at one time with its broadside towards the party by whom it is to be struck, at another edge wise. When the kang is placed with its broadside to the party, it is to be pitched at with an ivory disk, when it is placed edgewise, it is to be struck by the disk propelled on its flat side along the surface of the ground by the force of the middle finger of the right hand acting off the forefinger of the left. A good player can propel the disk in this way with great force and precision. The side having most hits wins. The whole is closed by a feast at the expense of the losers."

The wandering minstrel of Manipur is a familiar feature, especially in the villages outside the Capital. Ignorant for the most part of the art of writing, they recite, to the accompaniment of the pena or fiddle, ballads, some of which are of local origin, while others are products of Hindu piety. As remarked by Colonel McCulloch, § " Some of the language used in their songs is quite different from that commonly spoken. The same is the case in their writings; but the meaning of the songs is known to most, whereas the writings are intelligible only to the initiated. Amongst the hill tribes there is the same

difference between the common language and that in their songs. The singers of the adventures of Khamba and Thoibee accompany their song with the notes of the pena, the solitary musical instrument of Munnipore, a sort of fiddle, with one string of horsehair, the body of which is formed of the shell of a cocoanut. On the bow of the fiddle is a row of little bells which jingle in harmony with the air." The sad tale of the distressful loves of Khamba and Thoibee,* though localized at Moirang, the home of the inveterate enemies of Meithei hegemony, is supremely popular. The story of the adventures of Ching Thang Komba, when wandering in exile from the attacks of the Burmese, is sure of a welcome, for the Manipuris have the historical sense more distinctly developed than most, and love to hear of the former greatness of their country. A ballad like that of Numit kappa \ serves as a change to the monotony of sadness produced by the recital of the sufferings and trials of Dhananjai, the Hindu Saint and ascetic. The group of listeners know the right times for mirth and tears, and never fail at the psychological moment, for most of them have heard the tale scores of times before, and take their time from the bard. Wari tabas or parties to listen to these stories are very popular, and the rewards earned by the minstrel are often solid enough.

Pigeon fighting and gambling attract them to a fatal degree, and many are the edicts passed against these sports. Card playing is in great vogue, and the games played are a kind of " Beggar my neighbour " and a hybrid variant of whist. Neither of them are of native origin. Riddles, as noted by Colonel McCulloch, " are a fertile source of amusement. They appear usually far fetched, and sometimes not over-delicate." t

Dr. Brown mentions the game of keKere Ke sanaba, which he says is " only played by the women : in it a number of them join hands dancing round in a circle and chanting the praises of Raja Chingtung Komba in his fights with Nagas to the north,"

In the Chronicles in a passage of the date 1746 occurs the following mention of a game which is still played on occasions : 'The Raja had the pleasure to witness a performance of Khangjing sanaba in the moonlight night Khangjing sanaba is a kind of play, generally used to play in the night time when the moon is clear, by males and females of the country, A long piece of bamboo green suitable for the purpose, placed in the middle part, when a party of males, say a dozen or more in number, will catch the same by the one end, and a party of the female sex of the same number will hold the bamboo by the other end, then both party will pull that bamboo with all their might until one of the party is defeated." It is likely enough that this pastime, to which the name thaurichingba or rope-pulling is applied,* is modelled on the ceremonial rite common among certain of the hill tribes.

The musical instruments of the Meitheis are numerous, but not very elaborate. The drums are of five patterns, differing in length and shape. The horn is used by minstrels who precede the Baja when he is travelling, and they are accompanied by performers on the conchshell and castanets. The stringed instruments range from a very simple type to the modem violin, which is an importation from Calcutta. In essentials they are identical, consisting of a sounding-box and a frame on which the vibrating strings are fastened. Some are played

See also

The Meiteis: Introduction

The Meiteis: Preface

The Meitei Language and Grammar

The Meitei: Laws And Customs

The Meitei: Religion

The Meitei: Traditional economy

The Meiteis Habitat, Appearance

The Meitei community after 1947