Mirzapur

“ At any rate the Mirzapur Bâwariyas admit no connection with such people. According to their own account they were originally Bais Chhatris, and come from Baiswâra, a tract of country which Sir H. M. Elliot defines as lying between Cawnpur on the west, the Sâi river which, running through the Partâbgarh District, joins the Gûmti some twenty miles south-east of the town of Jaunpur; and between the Chhuâb rivulet on the south, and Dikhtân, or the land of the Dikhit Râjputs, on the north. ”

“ In Mirzapur he is pre-eminently the marriage godling. In the marriage season he is worshipped in the family cook-room, and at weddings oil and turmeric are offered to him. When two or three children in the same hamlet are being married at the same time, there is a great offering made of a red goat and cakes; and to mark the benevolent character of the deity as a household godling, the women, contrary to the usual rule, are allowed a share of the meat. This purely domestic worship is not done by the Baiga or devil priest, but by the Tikâit or eldest son of the family. ”

“ Some live a solitary life, others associate in monasteries (math) under an abbot (mahant) .
Agariya.1—A Dravidian tribe found in scanty numbers only in the hilly parts of Mirzâpur south of the Son, where, according to the last Census, they number 481 males and 457 females, in all 938 souls. The Mirzâpur Agariyas confined themselves almost entirely to mining and smelting iron. They are certainly quite a different people from those described by Colonel Dalton and Mr. Risley in Chota Nâgpur,2 who claim to be Kshatriya immigrants from the neighbourhood of Agra and live by cultivation. ”

“ Sir John Malcolm notes that the Bhopa of Central India, who acts as the village priest, is generally drawn from some menial tribe.23 In the hill country of South Mirzapur, the Baiga who manages the worship of Gansâm, Râja Lâkhan, or the aggregate of the local deities, known as the Dih or Deohâr, is almost invariably a Bhuiyâr or a Chero, both semi-savage Drâvidian tribes. ”

“ In Mirzapur, only the northern part of the field, that facing the Himâlaya is dug up in five places with a piece of mango wood. The peasant, when he goes home, eats rich food, and abstains from quarrels. ”

“ In Mirzapur another name for the Hela sub-caste is said to be Mâlwar, which the members say is derived from their profession of keeping hogs. They may possibly be akin to the Mâl of Bengal.
30. Lastly, Sir H. M. Elliot names the Bhangi sections (gotra) as Baniwâl, Bilpurwâr, Tânk, Gahlot, Kholi, Gagra, Sarohi, Chandâliya, Sirsawâl, and Siriyâr. Some of these are the names of Râjput septs; others are apparently taken from the place of their origin. It has as yet been found impossible to identify the exact part of the country in which these sections prevail. ”

“ Some remarkably picturesque Hindū temples are on the ghāts, with fine trees in the back ground. The cliff is abrupt, and the river is always crowded with vessels full of merchandise: steamers having plenty of cargo to land are generally detained here four or five hours. Mirzapūr is from Calcutta, via Bhagirathī, 748 miles, and by dāk route, 455. ”

“ In quality and size they are similar to bricks often seen in ancient Buddhist buildings. The old capital of the Bhars, five miles from Mīrzāpur, is said to have had 150 temples.”3 Elliot remarks4 that “common tradition assigns to the Bhars the possession of the whole tract from Gorakhpur to Bundelkhand and Saugor, and many old stone forts, embankments and subterranean caverns in Gorakhpur, Azamgarh, Jaunpur, Mīrzāpur and Allahābād, which are ascribed to them, would seem to indicate no inconsiderable advance in civilisation.” ”

“ One of the most valuable of these protectives is the magic circle, which appears in various forms through the whole range of folk-lore. The idea is that no evil spirit can cross the sacred line. Thus, in Mirzapur they make a circle of grain round the circular pile of corn on the threshing-floor to guard it from evil. ”

“ In Mirzapur there is a regular bride-price fixed by tribal custom: this is nine and a half rupees in cash, liquor to the value of three rupees, two sheets, three sers of coarse sugar, and two sers of sweetmeats. More or less than this cannot be given without leave of the council. An outsider marrying a virgin widow has to pay twenty-two rupees, and it is a peculiarity among them that the man, as in other castes, does not go to fetch his wife, but her relatives bring her, realise the marriage fee, and then make her over to her new partner. ”

“ The rain god is afraid to put out the sacred light, and retires. Another way in use in the Panjâb is to give an unmarried girl some oil and get her to pour it on the ground, saying, “If I pour not out the oil, mine the sin; if thou disperse not the clouds, thine the sin.” In Mirzapur it is considered a good plan to name twenty-one men who are blind of an eye, and consequently ill-omened, and make twenty-one knots in a cord and tie it under the eaves of the house. ”

“ We have now arrived within a very short distance of Allahabad; I shall be quite sorry to end my voyage, and feel the greatest reluctance to returning into society.
15th.—“Sirsya is a large cotton mart on the right bank; it is sixty miles above Mirzapūr and twenty-three miles below Allahabad, to which place there is a good road. There are several pakka (brick) houses here, and two very fine tanks at the back of it, and an old mud fort; thence to Prāg, the river is very [456] intricate and shallow. Iron work in a small way can be done for boats at this place. Turkeys and guinea-fowls abound.” ”

“ Here the destruction of the city was caused by niggardliness towards a personage of supernatural power. Another Indian saga shows us this crime punished by petrifaction. Near the village of Dudhi, in South Mirzapur, are two stones, once a bride and bridegroom who were thus transformed by an angry bhút, or malevolent spirit. His proper offerings had been forgotten, and he wrought his vengeance in this way.132.3 Sometimes the fault is breach of tribal custom or social convention. ”

“ Every passer-by adds to the pile, which is in charge of the Baiga or aboriginal priest, who offers upon it a pig, or a cock, or some spirits, and lights a little lamp there occasionally. Many such shrines are to be found in the Mirzapur jungles. In the Central Provinces they are known as Pât, a term applied in Chota Nâgpur to holy heights dedicated to various divinities.93 They are usually erected in a place where a man has been killed by a tiger or by a snake; sometimes no reason whatever is given for their selection. ”

“ They do not prostitute their married women or girls. They will eat almost any kind of meat except beef, and indulge freely in liquor. They will eat and drink from the hands of any Hindu except Nats and the regular outcaste tribes.
The Eastern Bâwariyas of the North-Western Provinces. 9. In direct contrast to this disreputable branch of the tribe are the Eastern Bâwariyas of Mirzapur. They are very possibly an offshoot of the Bauris of Western Bengal, of whom Mr. ”

“ From Benares and Chunargur, as a glance at the map will shew, the course of the Ganges, of the great trunk-road, and of the railway in process of construction, brings us to Mirzapore—a town not actually thrown into rebellion during the month 107of May, but placed between two foci of inflammable materials, Benares and Allahabad, and liable at any time to be inflamed by them. Mirzapore is on the right bank of the Ganges, which is half a mile wide at this spot, and is crossed by a ferry in the absence of a bridge. It is a great commercial city, with about eighty thousand inhabitants ”

“ The country around is pretty, and the officers' bungalows are most pleasantly situated on the bank of the river, in the midst of large compounds, or gardens, which are not exuberant with vegetation. The population of Mirzapore is between 70,000 and 80,000, the people are particularly industrious and active, and have great commercial enterprise. ”

“ Drums and trumpets sounded, a man in a scarlet mantle, embroidered in gold, sat on a splendidly caparisoned horse surrounded by richly dressed slaves; half Bagdad crowded after him, and they all shouted, ‘Hail, Mirza, the Lord of Bagdad!’
The two storks on the palace roof looked at each other, and Caliph Chasid said, ‘Can you guess now, Grand Vizier, why I have been enchanted? This Mirza is the son of my deadly enemy, the mighty magician Kaschnur, who in an evil moment vowed vengeance on me. Still I will not despair! Come with me, my faithful friend ”

“ The European residents were perpetually on the watch. When a battery of artillery came up the Ganges en route to Allahabad, they earnestly entreated to be allowed to retain it for their own protection; but Neill, the presiding genius at that time, would not listen to this; Allahabad and Cawnpore must be thought of, and Mirzapore must shift for itself. When the affairs at Segowlie and Dinapoor became known, measures were taken for making some kind of stronghold at Mirzapore. ”

“ Before leaving the hotel I paid the Commander of the "Soorma" 217 rupees, 10 annas, i.e. 166 rupees, 10 annas, for a cabin to Calcutta; and 51 rupees for seventeen days' messing; being 3 rupees per diem, exclusive of wines, beer, and other extras: or £21 15s.
On the 23rd, at about 3 P.M., we anchored off Mirzapore, nearly ninety miles from Allahabad. It is one of the largest inland trading towns in Hindoostan, and the great mart for cotton. It is noted for its manufacture of carpets, somewhat resembling those of Turkey, and used all over India. ”

“ THE SECRET OF ISMAIL I MUSTAPHA MIRZA knew it—Mustapha Mirza, the blind Persian who makes shoes hard by the Bâb ez-Zuwêla and in the very shadow of the minarets of Muayyâd; Hassan es-Sîwa of the Street of the Carpet-sellers in the Mûski, Hassan, who, where another man has hands, has but hideous stumps, knew it, and because of him it was that Abdûl Moharli sought it—Abdûl the mendicant who crouches on the steps of the Blue Mosque muttering, guttural, inarticulate, and pointing to the tongueless cavity of his mouth. ”

“ In the middle of the night as Mirza was keeping watch around the camp, he saw giants proceeding toward the palace of the King. Coming nearer he perceived that they were his adopted brothers each carrying a large iron nail as long as a man is high. ”

“ Market days are Mondays and Fridays. MÍRPUR KATHA—Pargana MANGALSITahsil FYZABAD--District FYZABAD.---This village is 12 miles from Fyzabad. Its population is 2,500, of whom 42 are Musalmans. There are 437 houses and one temple to Mahadeo. It is not on any line of road. MISRIKH Pargana*-Tahsil MISRIKH-District SITAPUR.--Pargana Misrikh is bounded on the north by pargania Maholi, on the east by parga- nas Sitapur, Rámkot, and Machhrehta, on the south by parganas Kurauna and Aurangabad, and on the west by the rivers Kathna and Gumti. ”

“ The King hearing that Mirza had come, bringing inestimable wealth, hastened to meet him at the city gate, all his noblemen and peers accompanying him. As soon as they met, Mirza said to the King:
“I cannot talk with you until you convoke a meeting of all the noblemen and wise men of your realm to try your three daughters.”
“What!” said the King, “is it not a shame to bring maidens to trial?”
“Nay,” said the lad, “your daughters are false, and shameless; they must be tried and punished as an example to the womanhood of the realm. ”

“ I have said at the outset, that the journey to India is not the same as it was in 1855, and that still less is India the same India, and I may certainly say that still less is Western Mysore the Western Mysore of 1855, except that its beautiful scenery is as beautiful as ever. For our planting is not like that of Ceylon, where the planter, like the locust, finds a paradise in front to leave a desert in his rear—a desert of bare lull sides from which the beautiful forest has been entirely swept away, while the most valuable constituents of the soil have been washed down to the river beds. ”

“ During his minority Hyderabad was wisely administered by Sir Salar Jung, who initiated a form of government which was most beneficial to his State.
The Maharaja of Mysore is the ruler of a State in southern India of a total area of 80,000 square miles, containing a population of 5,500,000, and yielding a revenue of about £1,500,000. It is an ancient Hindu dynasty which has undergone strange vicissitudes. ”

“ If the surmise of the native historians be correct that Abdul Ahid Khan had been privy to the late combination between the Sikhs and Zabita Khan against Mirza Najaf the fact of his being sent against them, without any objection from so wise and loyal a minister as the Mirza, can only be accounted for by citing it as a proof of the peculiar danger to which great men are exposed, under an Eastern despotism, of reposing their confidence in secret enemies. ”

“ Mirza began next day to tell a parcel of lies about Sabat, and to bring proofs of his own learning. The manifest tendency of all this was to make a division between Sabat and me, and to obtain his salary and work for himself. Oh, the hypocrisy and wickedness of an Indian! I never saw a more remarkable contrast in two men than in Mirza and Sabat. One is all exterior—the other has no outside at all; one a most consummate man of the world—the other an artless child of the desert. ”

“ He does not eat like us, he rises from his seat differently. He is here in the holy city to spy upon us!”
There was a stir among the guests, and they fell away from Ferrers as if he had been denounced as plague-stricken. He himself, as if by a sudden inspiration, attempted no defence. He looked at the Mirza, then bowed his head, and stood in a submissive attitude. The Mirza came to his rescue at once.
“The man is my disciple, and no Sahib,” he said. ”