National Institute of Informatics - Digital Silk Road Project
Digital Archive of Toyo Bunko Rare Books

> > > >
Color New!IIIF Color HighRes Gray HighRes PDF   Japanese English
0296 The Pulse of Asia : vol.1
The Pulse of Asia : vol.1 / Page 296 (Color Image)

New!Citation Information

doi: 10.20676/00000233
Citation Format: Chicago | APA | Harvard | IEEE

OCR Text

 

228   THE PULSE OF ASIA

people are not in the habit of smiling much. Nevertheless, the quarrels are usually mild, though noisy; and one feels that, on the whole, the people are good-natured. The very profanity of the Chantos expresses their mildness. I had some most profane camel-men and guides, but the strongest expression that I heard was, "Damned bad old pig."

In discussing the shrines and hospitality of the Chantos, I have given some illustrations of their religious tolerance and democracy. The former trait is not at all in accord with the general tendency of Mohammedanism, while the latter is highly characteristic of that faith among the people of west-em and central Asia, but not among those of India. Therefore it is hard to determine to what extent these characteristics are due to religion or to some other cause. Among the Chantos, men of all ranks eat together and share in social pleasures. Great respect is paid to official and religious rank, but even the humblest boy has the opportunity to rise to any post that he is capable of filling.

The industry of the Chantos is a point upon which all writers do not agree. Those who have had the best opportunity for observation, however, such as Shaw, Hedin, and Stein, give the people the most credit. Of course the Chantos are idle in winter, when there is no work which they can do, but they work unremittingly for week after week in summer. My Chanto servants, with one exception, were faithful and industrious. Shaw sums up his impressions of Chanto industry thus : -

"The laborers give a good day's work for a good day's wages. There were some men employed making a melon-garden . . . behind my house at Kashgar. . . . They had