| caption: |
men's occupations at home - drinking, talking, smoking; grave stones |
| text: |
If not employed in the labours of the field or the chase, the men do little more than loll about the house during the day, drinking their peculiar drink, a harmless one consisting of pounded rice mixed with boiling water brought into fermentation by the addition of germinated paddy. In the mornings and evenings they will generally be found sitting in groups in front of their houses on large flat stones which cover the graves of deceased relatives. They then appear to be enjoying themselves greatly, they are exceedingly loquacious and speak always in a loud tone. Pipes containing green tobacco are then smoked, and at such a rate do they pull, they appear to be smoking for a wager. I believe the pleasure of smoking is nothing to them compared to that of holding in the mouth a sip of the water of the bowl of the pipe which has been well impregnated with the fumes of the smoke passing through it, and that it is only for the purpose of obtaining this that they so laboriously pull at their pipes morning and evening. |
