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Chapter One. The Material Background |
| caption: |
views to west over plains of Assam |
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To the west and northwest the people of Wakching looked over country long pacified by the British Administration. In this direction lay the foothills, covered by dense tropical rain forest and the broad plains of the Brahmaputra valley, the home of peaceful Hindu peasants and the site of many flourishing tea estates. Beyond this valley one saw on clear days the snowy peaks of the Himalayas, but the Nagas had no conception of the true nature of those dazzling peaks, the nature of snow lying outside the realm of their experience. The plains of Assam, however, held no mystery for the men of the mountains. Their forefathers had been accustomed to raid the low country in search of loot and head trophies, but with the coming of British rule conditions had changed, and now the Nagas descended into the plains for the purpose of bartering their produce against salt, iron, and various manufactured goods. |
