I wished to obtain
a few specimens, but could not succeed. My friend, the bottlee wallah,
though very civil, could not afford me the information I required,
nor have I yet been able to obtain it. I have seen some handsome jars,
plates such as are used in England for the deposit of visitors' cards,
&c., which were purchased for a few annas, and have been told that
I might procure any quantity I pleased, but the where is still a
mystery.
All the information obtainable in Bombay must be fished out in an
extraordinary manner, both natives and Europeans seeming to make it a
rule never to commit themselves by a direct reply to any question;
in every single instance, up to the present time, I have always, upon
making an inquiry, been referred to somebody else. Neither do I
find the same zeal manifested in the servants, which amounts to
officiousness on the other side of India. I have sent them to purchase
the china, but can get nothing but rubbish, knowing all the while that
there are plenty of a better description to be had.
Upon my return, the bottlee wallah accompanied me to the carriage in
waiting, and as I paused to notice some of the children in the school,
introduced me to a group of his own sons and daughters, well decked
out in jewels, and otherwise richly dressed.
Pages:
239
240
241
242
243
244
245
246
247
248
249
250
251
252
253
254
255
256
257
258
259
260
261
262
263