the Viceroy of India will then receive his mail in eight days from London.

The Hindus have not been slow to recognize the advantages of railroads, and their desire to travel from one part of the country to another in so easy and rapid a manner has been a help toward breaking down the evils of the caste system. Among the many curious customs in India, we shall be interested in several to be seen in railway travel. The cars are similar to those common in European countries, having doors along the sides and being divided into sections. Some roads have separate cars for men and for women. One day an Englishman and his wife, who had been in India only a short time, entered a first class compartment and took their seats. In a few moments the guard, or conductor, appeared at the door and told the lady there was a seat for her in another carriage. She and her husband were much surprised, but they were obliged to comply with the rules of the road.

Wherever one travels in India, it is necessary to take at least one servant along to attend to all wants. Also if invited out to dine you must take your own servant to wait on you at the table.

It is customary for every traveler to carry a mattress and some bedding, as he finds, in the hotels and dâk bungalows where he is to stay, that only a bedstead is provided. The dâk bungalows, or wayside inns, were built by the English government for the accommodation of travelers by the post roads.

Before the English built the great railroads across India, the common modes of travel were by bullock

carts, on the backs of camels and elephants, by dâk carriages, and in palanquins. These have by no means disappeared, though they are passing away.

The bullock cart has been used from earliest times. It is a large covered wagon, mounted on heavy wheels, and is drawn by a pair of bullocks. It is not an easy

vehicle, and you would not care to ride far in it over rough roads. The creaking of the wooden wheels, which are never greased, is one of the characteristic sounds to be heard everywhere in India. The Indian bullock has a large, fleshy hump between the shoulders. In many parts of the country it is used in place of the horse, and is the common beast of burden in numer

ous sections of Asia. The palanquin is like a sedan chair, and is borne by two or more carriers. It resembles a small cab mounted upon long carrying poles instead of wheels. The palanquin is frequently seen in narrow city streets where carriages are never allowed to go.

In days gone by elephants were much used for bearing burdens, and, especially in all great processions, for carrying the princes or chiefs. In many parts of India they are still used, and an elephant ride is one of the interesting experiences of a visit to this great country. Dressed for some state occasion, an elephant is a gorgeous sight. The howdah, or saddle, is often covered with silver, and its linings and cushions are made of the richest velvet. This magnificent couch rests on a velvet quilt, and on either side a velvet cloth, embroidered in gold, hangs to the ground. On the elephant's neck is placed a large silver chain from which hang many gold and silver ornaments, and his great flapping ears are pierced and hung with jewels and rings. The number of elephants owned by a man was once the measure of his wealth, as was the number of fine horses owned by an Arab chief.

While it is true of any country that to see the real life of the people one must visit not the cities alone, but the smallest hamlets, it is doubly true of India. The vast majority of the inhabitants of India live in small villages, and a glance at this village system will show us more of the native customs than we can possibly see in the cities. In India a village is not a

a store.

collection of houses, with a schoolhouse, a church, and It is rather a tract of land varying in size from two hundred to five hundred acres, on which is

a cluster of fifty or sixty small houses surrounded by mango, tamarind, cocoanut, and other native trees.

In the poorer parts of India these houses are built

with mud walls, and the roofs are made of a few bamboo poles covered with thatch. In these mud houses, in which millions of the natives live, there is little that can be called furniture. There are no chairs, for the Hindu sits on the floor; no table, for he eats his simple food from plantain leaves laid on the floor; no bed, but in its place a mat woven of palm leaves, which is spread on the floor at night and rolled in a corner during the day.

Each village resembles a large family. There is a headman, or chief, to whom all matters of importance are referred. He settles all disputes. In every village is to be found a Brahmin astrologer, a schoolmaster, a physician, a carpenter, a blacksmith, a washerman, and a potter, each of whom is employed at his trade by the whole village. The Brahmin is held in great respect, and no villager thinks of sowing or reaping, buying a bullock, building a house, or undertaking any other important work, without first consulting him.

Vast numbers of the lowest caste in India, so great is their faith in the Brahmins, believe every word of their Hindu scriptures, which say,

"Before the Brahmins bow with awe,
Esteem their every word as law,
For they shall prosper all, who treat
The Priests with filial reverence meet.

"Yea, though they servile tasks pursue,
To Brahmins high esteem is due.
For be he stolid as a clod

A Brahmin is a mighty god."