The Nagas

Chinaorang Chapter eight. Exile. Chinaorang leaves; were-tigers books Chinaorang Graham Bower Ursula Soon after this incident (though not because of it) Chinaorang too went home, and except for the cook the staff was now wholly Zemi. The tiger, however, remained; and (69) punctually every morning ..
Last modification on 02 Nov 2011 at 16:08:20

Ramgakpa Chapter eight. Exile. chaos in girl's dormitory caused by fear of a tiger books Ramgakpa Graham Bower Ursula Ramgakpa, as it happened, was in the village when the kill occurred. The late evening is the usual time for bucks to call on the objects of their admiration; and he and three others..
Last modification on 02 Nov 2011 at 16:08:20

Haichangnang Namkia Chapter eight. Exile. Zemi reaction to the death of a child books Haichangnang Namkia Graham Bower Ursula (69) About this time, just before we went back to Laisong, there was an addition to the staff in the shape of Haichangnang the mail-runner. He was Namkia's brother-in-law, a..
Last modification on 02 Nov 2011 at 16:08:20

Samrangba Chapter nine. First-Fruits Festival return to Laisong; water supply; garden books Samrangba 1940-08-01:1940-08-31 Graham Bower Ursula (71) By the end of August everything was still quiet, and we were allowed back to Laisong at last. We found that the gardener and caretaker had kept the ..
Last modification on 02 Nov 2011 at 16:08:20

Zhekungba Ramzimba Samrangba Chapter nine. First-Fruits Festival expense of living in Laisong; an anachic community books Zhekungba Ramzimba Samrangba Graham Bower Ursula It was soon clear that life at Laisong would be no bed of roses. Funds calculated for conditions in Manipur went just half as ..
Last modification on 02 Nov 2011 at 16:08:20

Chapter nine. First-Fruits Festival Laisong's hostility due to misunderstanding with the Government books Graham Bower Ursula And now that I was established and in constant touch with the Zemi, the pieces in the puzzle fell into place. Here were no treacherous savages, but honest, stubborn, ..
Last modification on 02 Nov 2011 at 16:08:20

Hegokulwa (Hegokuloa) Chapter nine. First-Fruits Festival rice harvest festival - Pokpatngi - at Hegokuloa books Hegokulwa (Hegokuloa) Graham Bower Ursula It was autumn now, and the first of the great harvest festivals had begun. The early rice was coming in, the lean weeks of the summer were over,..
Last modification on 02 Nov 2011 at 16:08:20

Chapter nine. First-Fruits Festival buffalo hunt; padded horns books Graham Bower Ursula The mithan-hunt was to be held first thing next morning. At dusk the young men gathered to pad the horns. The animals - there were two - were in fact buffaloes, which came cheaper than mithan. One was not much ..
Last modification on 02 Nov 2011 at 16:08:20

Chapter nine. First-Fruits Festival buffalo stampede books Graham Bower Ursula The headman now came up and asked us to go along for a drink. We perched on three-inch stools in his firelit inner room and were served with rice-beer in pint-capacity banana-leaf cups. But as we sat we heard, suddenly, ..
Last modification on 02 Nov 2011 at 16:08:20

Namkia Paodekumba Ramgakpa Chapter nine. First-Fruits Festival retreat to the village; Namkia's description of catching the bull; Hegokuloa's lack of sportsmanship books Namkia Paodekumba Ramgakpa Graham Bower Ursula He had trampled out an arena for himself in the under- growth and was making short..
Last modification on 02 Nov 2011 at 16:08:20

Chapter nine. First-Fruits Festival second buffalo hunt; filming books Graham Bower Ursula The animal was tied up, as the bull had been, on the flat space in front of the upper morung. Haichangnang and I stationed ourselves with the cameras in the porch of the lower, where we were almost opposite ..
Last modification on 02 Nov 2011 at 16:08:20

Chapter nine. First-Fruits Festival dispensary, then return to Laisong books Graham Bower Ursula We spent the afternoon in a sleep of exhaustion. There was a dispensary in the evening to patch up the day's casualties; the two morungs had fought it out for some time. Hegokuloa then earnestly pressed..
Last modification on 02 Nov 2011 at 16:08:20

Chapter ten. The Zemi Zemi tribal polity; the 'kadepeo' books Graham Bower Ursula (79) Despite their closeness to the railway and the fact that they had been long administered, the Zemis' tribal polity still survived in surprisingly complete form. Much of it dated back to the time of their first ..
Last modification on 02 Nov 2011 at 16:08:20

Chapter ten. The Zemi village government and settlement of disputes books Graham Bower Ursula Each community was ruled by a village council, with the 'kadepeo' at its head. He was, in effect, its president. He convened it; and, with the help of the village priest, the other permanent member, chose ..
Last modification on 02 Nov 2011 at 16:08:20

Chapter ten. The Zemi social organization books Graham Bower Ursula (81) You joined your 'kienga,' willy-nilly, the day you were born. A detachment from one morung or the other came to the house to claim you as soon as you drew breath. (I have belonged to the upper girls' dormitory of Laisong since..
Last modification on 02 Nov 2011 at 16:08:20

Chapter ten. The Zemi girls' dormitories books Graham Bower Ursula At the age of eight or so boys and girls went out to sleep at night in their proper dormitories. It was contrary to all Zemi notions of decency that they should remain any longer at night in the same house as their parents, and from..
Last modification on 02 Nov 2011 at 16:08:20

Chapter ten. The Zemi the morung books Graham Bower Ursula On boys the hold of the morung was far deeper. Unlike the girls, they spent the whole of their time there; they came home only for meals, and when seriously ill. Each morung was the enlarged front porch of a private house. Its owner, always..
Last modification on 02 Nov 2011 at 16:08:20

Chapter ten. The Zemi age progression in the morung; village guard books kienga Graham Bower Ursula Within the 'kienga,' the small boys fagged for the bucks, keeping the morung clean, washing clothes, carrying wood and running errands, and received in return some measure of protection from their ..
Last modification on 02 Nov 2011 at 16:08:20

Chapter ten. The Zemi morung life after marriage books Graham Bower Ursula The elders maintained strict discipline, and loyalty to the 'kienga' was strong. 'Rahangmi' were supposed, too, under the tuition of the married men, to perfect themselves in hunting, fishing, fighting, and the other manly ..
Last modification on 02 Nov 2011 at 16:08:20

Chapter ten. The Zemi communal activities by morung groups books Graham Bower Ursula At any time the 'kienga' could act as a corporate body. As such, they organized dances, made and maintained the village pipelines, carved new water-troughs, and cleared the village paths; or, hired by an individual..
Last modification on 02 Nov 2011 at 16:08:20

Chapter ten. The Zemi women's role in social life books Graham Bower Ursula In all public activities, it may be noted, it was the men who figured. Girls made only their brief and formal appearances with their appropriate 'kienga'; married women had no part in public life at all. They never appeared..
Last modification on 02 Nov 2011 at 16:08:20

Chapter ten. The Zemi male and female roles books Graham Bower Ursula That this was so was partly, but not wholly, for economic reasons. To men fell the heavier and more arduous work, but not that which was the most productive. Aside from hunting, fishing and war, which were not, in current ..
Last modification on 02 Nov 2011 at 16:08:20

Chapter ten. The Zemi influence of women books Graham Bower Ursula Women, then, were a very strong folk. The influence they wielded, aside from that which affection and sentiment would in any case have allowed - for family life is everything to a Zemi - was remarkable. Nor did the women take their ..
Last modification on 02 Nov 2011 at 16:08:20

Dinekamba Rangalang Degalang Chapter eleven. The Affair of Degalang elopement books Dinekamba Rangalang Degalang 1940-10-01:1940-10-31 Graham Bower Ursula (87) At half-past ten on a bright October morning Degalang the dog-boy eloped with Dinekamba's sister. Namkia and I were in the family's rice-..
Last modification on 02 Nov 2011 at 16:08:20

Degalang Rangalang Chapter eleven. The Affair of Degalang love affair; Laisong youths resent intrusion of strange boy; elopement to Impoi books Degalang Rangalang Graham Bower Ursula He was right, as it happened; it was to a large extent Rangalang's own fault. The young couple had been in love for ..
Last modification on 02 Nov 2011 at 16:08:20

Chapter eleven. The Affair of Degalang taboo on marriage during harvest; marriage postponed by elders books Graham Bower Ursula At any other season of the year they would have won; their 'fait accompli' would have been acknowledged. But it was the middle of harvest. There was a strict taboo on ..
Last modification on 02 Nov 2011 at 16:08:20

Rangalang Degalang Namkia Chapter eleven. The Affair of Degalang Rangalang refuses to agree to marriage; Namkia gets his reluctant agreement books Rangalang Degalang Namkia Graham Bower Ursula He had left us by then. I had myself completely forgotten the matter, till one day, on leaving the house, ..
Last modification on 02 Nov 2011 at 16:08:20

Chapter eleven. The Affair of Degalang negotiations over marriage price books Graham Bower Ursula He was lost. Never relaxing pressure, Namkia fought him back point by point and pig by pig through every stage of the marriage-price. Almost single-handed, the Impoi headmen only a murmuring background..
Last modification on 02 Nov 2011 at 16:08:20

Rangalang Dinekamba Degalang Impoi Chapter eleven. The Affair of Degalang girl expelled from Impoi a year later because of thieving books Rangalang Dinekamba Degalang Impoi 1941-01-01:1941-12-31 Graham Bower Ursula A year later, he and I came into the head of the village street. It was almost dark...
Last modification on 02 Nov 2011 at 16:08:20

Namkia Chapter twelve. Symphony on Two Floors visit to Calcutta with Namkia books Namkia 1940-10-01:1940-10-31 Graham Bower Ursula (93) At the end of the same October which saw the elopement I went to Calcutta for a ten days' holiday and shopping-spree. I had been a year up-country; the cobwebs ..
Last modification on 02 Nov 2011 at 16:08:20

Namkia Chapter twelve. Symphony on Two Floors Namkia's exploits books Namkia Graham Bower Ursula At Amingaon Namkia made a friend. As we waited for the train to start, I saw him standing in the doorway of the servants' compartment in all his glory of scarlet blanket, (94) golden-yellow necklaces, ..
Last modification on 02 Nov 2011 at 16:08:20

Namkia Chapter twelve. Symphony on Two Floors Namkia in Calcutta books Namkia Graham Bower Ursula Calcutta's swarming crowds and endless streets frightened the life out of him. He could find his way about the jungle like a wild animal; but one minute on a pavement, and he was lost for good. I had ..
Last modification on 02 Nov 2011 at 16:08:20

Namkia Chapter twelve. Symphony on Two Floors sequel books Namkia 1942-01-01:1942-12-31 Graham Bower Ursula Two years later in Shillong, an officer, seeing Namkia and Haichangnang waiting outside on the hotel drive, pointed them out to me as Nagas - he didn't suppose, he said, I had seen any before..
Last modification on 02 Nov 2011 at 16:08:20

Paodekumba Chapter thirteen. Hgangi the Christmas mithan books Paodekumba 1940-12-01:1940-12-31 Graham Bower Ursula (98) I found myself faced that winter with a lone Christmas at Laisong. The Zemi New Year Feast of Hgangi fell directly after; so it looked as though we were in for a riotous time. We..
Last modification on 02 Nov 2011 at 16:08:20

Chapter thirteen. Hgangi New Year feast of Hgangi books 1941-01-01:1941-01-31 Graham Bower Ursula Hgangi began a few days later. This great feast marks the turn of the year. It opens with the parting of the dead from the living; with its main day, Hgangi itself, the old year closes and the new ..
Last modification on 02 Nov 2011 at 16:08:20

Chapter thirteen. Hgangi stone dragging books Graham Bower Ursula The week before the feast was almost entirely given up to bringing in large slabs of stone to finish the graves of the year's dead. It was astonishing what weights were moved, and across what country. Only manpower was used, but ..
Last modification on 02 Nov 2011 at 16:08:20

Chapter thirteen. Hgangi accidents while stone-dragging books Graham Bower Ursula (100) The work is not without danger. Close to the bridle-road between Asalu and Impoi, where the track curves round a spur through high grass, they still point out to you a stretch of twenty yards or so where the ..
Last modification on 02 Nov 2011 at 16:08:20

Laisong Chapter thirteen. Hgangi carrying the stone into Laisong; a near accident books Laisong Graham Bower Ursula Laisong's biggest stone for that year stood about three-quarters of a mile from the village, rather above it and well out to the side. It was a good-sized slab, but it was the ..
Last modification on 02 Nov 2011 at 16:08:20

Chapter thirteen. Hgangi the 'Hkakngi'- parting of the dead from the living books Graham Bower Ursula A day or two later, when the graves were completed, came Hkakngi, the parting of the dead from the living. The Zemi believes in an after-life. The dead, he thinks, linger in their old homes until ..
Last modification on 02 Nov 2011 at 16:08:20

Paodekumba Chapter thirteen. Hgangi pig chase books Paodekumba Graham Bower Ursula A day or two later the pigs destined to provide the feast were turned loose and caught in much the same way as the Pokpat mithan had been, except that the proceedings were on a smaller and informal scale. The pigs ..
Last modification on 02 Nov 2011 at 16:08:20

Namkia Paodekumba Chapter thirteen. Hgangi quarrells and drunkeness books Namkia Paodekumba Graham Bower Ursula His long absence, and the fact that the others all came back again drunk, upset from the start the never-stable cook. I could sympathize with him, for Namkia drunk was, as I knew to my ..
Last modification on 02 Nov 2011 at 16:08:20

Chapter thirteen. Hgangi fight between morungs books Graham Bower Ursula At ten o'clock there was a sudden confusion which brought us all out running. There on the slope between our water (106) point and the village the entire strength of both morungs was embroiled. It had started over the pig-..
Last modification on 02 Nov 2011 at 16:08:20

Chapter thirteen. Hgangi drunkeness books Graham Bower Ursula By five o'clock that afternoon Namkia was in the village and fighting drunk, and I was praying he would stay there. The cook's strained nerves had snapped, and he had given a loud scream at some minor irritation and slapped Paodekumba. ..
Last modification on 02 Nov 2011 at 16:08:20

Chapter fourteen. Things That Go Bump in the Night. ghosts and poltergeists books 1941-01-01:1941-01-31 Graham Bower Ursula Like most New Year resolutions, it was never kept. (107) The parting of the Zemi dead from the living and the various propitiatory sacrifices to spirits were not the only ..
Last modification on 02 Nov 2011 at 16:08:20

Haichangnang Hozekiemba Chapter fourteen. Things That Go Bump in the Night. poltergeist in camp books Haichangnang Hozekiemba Graham Bower Ursula It began when Haichangnang complained of disturbances in his quarter, which was the last one, at the far end of the lines. The door, he said, was being ..
Last modification on 02 Nov 2011 at 16:08:20

Chapter fourteen. Things That Go Bump in the Night. poltergeist in the cookhouse books Graham Bower Ursula Whatever it was had, in the interval, moved several stages (108) up the lines. Almost everyone had heard it by now, and it had taken - of all noises for a ghost to make ! - to blowing " ..
Last modification on 02 Nov 2011 at 16:08:20

Chapter fourteen. Things That Go Bump in the Night. poltergeist in the bungalow books Graham Bower Ursula The next appearance in the bungalow was sheer farce, and rather vulgar at that. (Phenomena, by the way, were going on in the lines all this time as well.) It was at the usual time in the ..
Last modification on 02 Nov 2011 at 16:08:20

Chapter fourteen. Things That Go Bump in the Night. rats or poltergeist books Graham Bower Ursula A few nights later, when Namkia and I, after an uneventful evening, had retired, I to my camp cot, he stretched out against the far wall like a big dog, there was a rasping, scuffling noise from the ..
Last modification on 02 Nov 2011 at 16:08:20

Chapter fourteen. Things That Go Bump in the Night. phantom voices; poltergeist leaves books Graham Bower Ursula The fifth and last visitation was, perhaps, the oddest. The cook and the rest of the staff had gone to a village party, but Namkia remained behind on his usual bodyguard duty. We sat up ..
Last modification on 02 Nov 2011 at 16:08:20

Chapter fourteen. Things That Go Bump in the Night. Zemi explanation for haunting; burial ground for suicides and bad deaths books Graham Bower Ursula The Nagas' own theory was that the spur was haunted ground in any case. Laisong used it before we came as a burial-ground in the case of suicides or..
Last modification on 02 Nov 2011 at 16:08:20

Hangrum Chapter fourteen. Things That Go Bump in the Night. haunted rest-house at Hangrum books Hangrum Graham Bower Ursula There was a parallel in another Zemi poltergeist, that haunting, or reputed to haunt, the rest-house at Hangrum. This, a violent sprite, had, too, no apparent connection with ..
Last modification on 02 Nov 2011 at 16:08:20

Chapter fourteen. Things That Go Bump in the Night. moving lights books Graham Bower Ursula We ourselves never saw any of the moving lights on the spur, but there was one instance where the villagers claimed to have seen them while we were there. In the small hours of a dark morning a group of ..
Last modification on 02 Nov 2011 at 16:08:20

Chapter fourteen. Things That Go Bump in the Night. thief mistaken for a devil books Graham Bower Ursula Another apparition was certainly earthly. I was away, (114) Hozekiemba was in charge of the camp, and one night he called in the blacksmith - a skinny, impoverished man who often did odd jobs ..
Last modification on 02 Nov 2011 at 16:08:20

Chapter fourteen. Things That Go Bump in the Night. death cry books Graham Bower Ursula One other happening is perhaps worth mention, though still without explanation offered. It occurred some years after, during our spell with the guerilla forces. Namkia went off one morning on leave, to spend a ..
Last modification on 02 Nov 2011 at 16:08:20

Samrangba Chapter fifteen. Village Justice. Samrangba's dismissal books Samrangba Graham Bower Ursula (115) I have said that the Zemi virtually administered themselves. Take, now, the case of Samrangba, once my gardener. He had had to go. I didn't mind him personally; he was a harmless kind of ..
Last modification on 02 Nov 2011 at 16:08:20

Samrangba Chapter fifteen. Village Justice. attempted rape books Samrangba Graham Bower Ursula The tale takes up again in the early morning. It was not yet dawn, but the sky had begun to grey, and objects - houses, trees - were just visible against it. Two early-rising bucks (116) were picking ..
Last modification on 02 Nov 2011 at 16:08:20

Samrangba Chapter fifteen. Village Justice. Samrangba accused books Samrangba Graham Bower Ursula After the brief commotion, the village was still. But, in the girl's house, a hastily-summoned meeting of her male relatives was cross-examining her. Had she ever encouraged Samrangba ? - had she ever ..
Last modification on 02 Nov 2011 at 16:08:20

Sangrangba Hozekiemba Namkia Chapter fifteen. Village Justice. kinsmen seek revenge books Sangrangba Hozekiemba Namkia Graham Bower Ursula The morning sun came clear and cold into the bungalow bedroom. The sun wasn't over the Nenglo hill yet; time enough to move when it came. The air stirred gently..
Last modification on 02 Nov 2011 at 16:08:20

Ningchangba Samrangba Chapter fifteen. Village Justice. attempt to storm family house books Ningchangba Samrangba Graham Bower Ursula He reached it only a little ahead of the hunt. (That was when they began to yell, when they found him there.) They raced back, shrieking, up the street, to where his..
Last modification on 02 Nov 2011 at 16:08:20

Samrangba Chapter fifteen. Village Justice. sanctuary books Samrangba Graham Bower Ursula Meantime, in his protector's house, Samrangba was in the inner room. A ceremonial meal was cooked and served to him, as the formal seal of sanctuary. His host, and as many friends and kin as he could in the ..
Last modification on 02 Nov 2011 at 16:08:20

Samrangba Ningchangba Kepelo Chapter fifteen. Village Justice. headmen banish Samrangba for two years to prevent blood feud books Samrangba Ningchangba Kepelo Graham Bower Ursula At all costs bloodshed, and the resulting blood-feud, must be prevented. The headmen were not at the moment concerned ..
Last modification on 02 Nov 2011 at 16:08:20

the Siemi, a former civilization Chapter sixteen. The Lost Folk books Graham Bower Ursula (121) All through the Barail area, tucked away behind ridges, on precipitous spurs, at the heads of hidden ravines, were the lost villages of a vanished people. The Zemi said they were the relics of the jungle..
Last modification on 02 Nov 2011 at 16:08:20

the Siemi, a former civilization Chapter sixteen. The Lost Folk abandoned village sites books Graham Bower Ursula Small settlements, recognizable by their house-platforms, which, sometimes stone-faced, cropped out on otherwise smooth hillsides, were legion. The Asalu bridle-road crossed one a ..
Last modification on 02 Nov 2011 at 16:08:20

the Siemi, a former civilization Chapter sixteen. The Lost Folk 'gareo' bamboo books Graham Bower Ursula There was one in the Jiri valley, on a spur two miles to the south-east of Nenglo village, where a strongly-defended neck between two gullies led to a level ridge. On this, beside some denuded ..
Last modification on 02 Nov 2011 at 16:08:20

the Siemi, a former civilization Chapter sixteen. The Lost Folk 'deo-moni' beads books Graham Bower Ursula (122) The large stone had been tilted up by a tree which grew, a good yard thick, almost from under it. A man could crawl by now into the cavity below, and men had, if report were true, for ..
Last modification on 02 Nov 2011 at 16:08:20

Bolosan the Siemi, a former civilization Chapter sixteen. The Lost Folk pre-Naga funerary monuments at Bolosan books Bolosan Graham Bower Ursula Now it is worth considering these two stories in connection with the two known classes of pre-Naga funerary monuments. The urns of Bolosan and its ..
Last modification on 02 Nov 2011 at 16:08:20

the Siemi, a former civilization Chapter sixteen. The Lost Folk difficulty in purchasing 'deo-moni' beads books Graham Bower Ursula To return again to the question of ancient beads. The stories of these being found on the sites are most persistent. During my stay at Laisong Namkia acquired from the..
Last modification on 02 Nov 2011 at 16:08:20

Hange the Siemi, a former civilization Chapter sixteen. The Lost Folk supposed Siemi remains at Hange books Hange Graham Bower Ursula About a quarter-mile east of Hange village, on one of those spurs which jut out from the steep Barail where it runs, like a black wall, directly above the railway, ..
Last modification on 02 Nov 2011 at 16:08:20

Hange Asalu the Siemi, a former civilization Chapter sixteen. The Lost Folk traditions of intermarriage between Siemi and Zemi; negrito types books Hange Asalu Graham Bower Ursula Hange had, too, an interesting story, echoed elsewhere, that when the Zemi came they found a handful of Siemi survivors..
Last modification on 02 Nov 2011 at 16:08:20

Asalu the Siemi, a former civilization Chapter sixteen. The Lost Folk remains at Asalu books Asalu Graham Bower Ursula The Asalu sites, the largest and most remarkable in the district, lay almost due south of the village, on the Barail ridge. One climbed up to them from the bridle-road, through ..
Last modification on 02 Nov 2011 at 16:08:20

the Siemi, a former civilization Chapter sixteen. The Lost Folk legend about the Siemi books Kachari Graham Bower Ursula Now for the Naga legend. The Siemi were, it is said, an uncanny race - magicians, (227) " small and dark ". They lived in the forested hills; and, by a secret process involving ..
Last modification on 02 Nov 2011 at 16:08:20

Perry the Siemi, a former civilization Chapter sixteen. The Lost Folk search for the cave, the last retreat of the Siemi books Perry Graham Bower Ursula Naturally, ever since the area had been administered the story had attracted the attention of officers. Almost everyone who served there, I think,..
Last modification on 02 Nov 2011 at 16:08:20

Chapter seventeen. Fire, Fire! danger of fire books Graham Bower Ursula (130) The camp's position on an open spur, with a grassy cliff below it and an open valley in front, had certain very obvious advantages from the point of view of light, air and space; but it had one major disadvantage - the ..
Last modification on 02 Nov 2011 at 16:08:20

Laisong Chapter seventeen. Fire, Fire! trying to make a firebelt nearly causes camp to burn down books Laisong Graham Bower Ursula The obvious course, on that, was to cut a firebelt. The trouble was the cliff. One could only get down to cut for thirty yards, and after this, though a boy could ..
Last modification on 02 Nov 2011 at 16:08:20

Chapter seventeen. Fire, Fire! fighting the fire books Graham Bower Ursula " The house - the house ! " Namkia was shouting. I could hardly hear him through the bellow of the flames. " There isn't a chance - we've got to get the kit out ! " We had to a certain extent put things together, but they ..
Last modification on 02 Nov 2011 at 16:08:20

Chapter eighteen. The First Rains monsoon books Graham Bower Ursula (135) It began to rain that year, 1941, on May 7th. From that day till the first week in September there was hardly a break at all. Twice, only, I saw Nenglo on the opposite hill. Day and night, mist swept up out of the valley. ..
Last modification on 02 Nov 2011 at 16:08:20

Namkia Chapter eighteen. The First Rains collecting folk tales books Asa Munsarung Namkia Graham Bower Ursula I turned to recording folk-lore, for which there had hardly been the time before. Namkia himself had a fair collection of stories, but when I had pumped him dry there were only a few ..
Last modification on 02 Nov 2011 at 16:08:20

Laisong Chapter eighteen. The First Rains illness; dispensary at Laisong books Laisong Graham Bower Ursula Since the Rains are always the sickly season, there was a great deal else to do besides taking notes. I had run a dispensary at Laisong from the beginning, for it was much the best way of ..
Last modification on 02 Nov 2011 at 16:08:20

Hozekiemba Chapter eighteen. The First Rains wrenched knee-cap; divination by ginger books Hozekiemba Graham Bower Ursula We were weeding the spinach, Hozekiemba and I, and when we reached the end and I straightened up, my knee went suddenly click. The cap had slipped, an abrupt and complete ..
Last modification on 02 Nov 2011 at 16:08:20

Chapter eighteen. The First Rains ritual sacrifice books Graham Bower Ursula Namkia went off at once to fetch a suitable bird and call the village priest. He found the bird, but the priest was not available, so he returned with the old ex-headman, Samrangba's uncle. Like many elders, he earned ..
Last modification on 02 Nov 2011 at 16:08:20

Chapter nineteen. Dogs, Snakes and Leopards pet dogs books Graham Bower Ursula (139) The animal kingdom was always well represented in life at the camp. First of all, of course, there was my dog Khamba himself. Then came his two wives, Lassu and Nagi; Lassu arrived as a tired little thing with the ..
Last modification on 02 Nov 2011 at 16:08:20

Chapter nineteen. Dogs, Snakes and Leopards snakes books Graham Bower Ursula Considering that we lived in a semi-tropical climate we were really very fortunate with snakes. There were, it is true, two hamadryads which nested in the bamboos at the foot of the hill, a few yards from the main path to ..
Last modification on 02 Nov 2011 at 16:08:20

Zuingpeo of Impoi Chapter nineteen. Dogs, Snakes and Leopards myths concerning pythons books Bangklawong Zuingpeo of Impoi Graham Bower Ursula Once upon a time, in the very beginning, the great spirit Bangklawong - who was at that time king of all things on earth - had a sister. Miraculously ..
Last modification on 02 Nov 2011 at 16:08:20

Chapter nineteen. Dogs, Snakes and Leopards dangerous snakes books Graham Bower Ursula Occasional snakes, often but not invariably harmless, used to fall in the hot weather out of the bungalow rafters or hide themselves in holes about the place, but only once or twice were the encounters alarming. ..
Last modification on 02 Nov 2011 at 16:08:20

Ramgakpa Hozekiemba Chapter nineteen. Dogs, Snakes and Leopards leopards books Ramgakpa Hozekiemba Graham Bower Ursula (142) Of all our local animals, far and away the most notable was the leopard. What happened when it met the Army, though, must be told in the proper place. It had its lair ..
Last modification on 02 Nov 2011 at 16:08:20

Impoi Chapter twenty. The Land and the People the Impoi morungs books Impoi Graham Bower Ursula (147) Although I lived at Laisong, most of my staff and friends came from the Asalu group. This was dwindling fast, but was the best and kindest community in the Barail. First there was Namkia's Impoi, ..
Last modification on 02 Nov 2011 at 16:08:20

Asalu Chapter twenty. The Land and the People Asalu village books Asalu Graham Bower Ursula Tired and shabby, the blight of malaria on it, much of its young blood gone up the hill with Namkia, it stood on its long spur in the open parkland. Strewn in the grass around were ancient relics, stone rows..
Last modification on 02 Nov 2011 at 16:08:20

Chapter twenty. The Land and the People the economic disaster in North Cachar; over-population and over-cultivation books Graham Bower Ursula The blight which had fallen on Asalu, reducing it from a powerful group to a scatter of poor hamlets, was an advanced stage of the North Cachar Barail's ..
Last modification on 02 Nov 2011 at 16:08:21

Chapter twenty. The Land and the People method of cultivation: jhuming books Graham Bower Ursula The staple crop is rice, though millet, maize and vegetables are grown as sidelines. The method of cultivation is that known as "jhuming ", and is practised by most of the Assam hill-tribes. By it, a ..
Last modification on 02 Nov 2011 at 16:08:21

Chapter twenty. The Land and the People cycle-migration and land rights books Graham Bower Ursula Because of their intensely difficult country, the Barail Zemi were forced to develop cycle-migration. Each stretch of jhum-land was by itself too small to maintain a village indefinitely, since, to ..
Last modification on 02 Nov 2011 at 16:08:21

Chapter twenty. The Land and the People colonisation by the British; Kuki settlements books Graham Bower Ursula Then, in the early nineteenth century, the British and the immigrant Kukis arrived almost together. For the first time the Zemi came under another's control. They had so far successfully ..
Last modification on 02 Nov 2011 at 16:08:21

Chapter twenty. The Land and the People political consequences of alienation of land books Graham Bower Ursula The political consequences were unfortunate. The alienation of their treasured land, unwitting though it was, set the Zemi against the administration from the start. The more Government ..
Last modification on 02 Nov 2011 at 16:08:21

Chapter twenty. The Land and the People economic results of the destruction of cycle-migration books Graham Bower Ursula But if these effects were bad, the economic results were even worse. There was bitter competition between Zemi and Kuki for the means to live, since neither side had enough land ..
Last modification on 02 Nov 2011 at 16:08:21

Mills Chapter twenty. The Land and the People quality of colonial administration in the Naga Hills and North Cachar books Mills Graham Bower Ursula Had the area only been under Naga Hills, the story might have been different. There the administration was of an extremely high standard and tribal ..
Last modification on 02 Nov 2011 at 16:08:21

Asalu Impoi Gareolowa Chapter twenty. The Land and the People attempts to introduce wet-rice cultivation books Asalu Impoi Gareolowa Graham Bower Ursula Since there was not enough land for shifting cultivation, it was necessary to change to permanent fields, by which the (153) same population could..
Last modification on 02 Nov 2011 at 16:08:21

Masang Thingje Chapter twenty. The Land and the People failure of terracing experiment among the Zemi while Kukis prosper books Masang Thingje Graham Bower Ursula When terracing seemed a solution, several men tried it. But by then Mr Mills had returned to Naga Hills as Deputy Commissioner at Kohima..
Last modification on 02 Nov 2011 at 16:08:21

Asalu Impoi Gareolowa Hakaokhang Chapter twenty. The Land and the People collapse of Asalu books Asalu Impoi Gareolowa Hakaokhang Graham Bower Ursula Let us return once more to the history of Asalu. They, when terracing failed them, had recourse again to the ancient remedy. Namkia's contingent left..
Last modification on 02 Nov 2011 at 16:08:21

Namkia Masang Chapter twenty. The Land and the People lack of wet-rice demonstrators books Namkia Masang Graham Bower Ursula (155) Out after pigeon once in the Asalu parkland, Namkia and I stepped out of the high grass into a patch of cultivation. The crops were ripe, but the sparse and wretched ..
Last modification on 02 Nov 2011 at 16:08:21

Masang Dikheo Gaidiliu Namkia Kepelo Chapter twenty-one. Masang death of Masang books Masang Dikheo Gaidiliu Namkia Kepelo Graham Bower Ursula (156) In November, on a cool, clear day, when the forests were dry and sun-dappled, when the air was crisp, and the sky a sheeny, unflecked blue; when the ..
Last modification on 02 Nov 2011 at 16:08:21

Masang Haichangnang Kepelo Chapter twenty-one. Masang visit to Kepelo to see Masang books Masang Haichangnang Kepelo Graham Bower Ursula (157) But I did go over. I couldn't desert Masang. I had an innate sympathy for the rascal - he had been my mentor before Namkia. Namkia or no Namkia, the appeal ..
Last modification on 02 Nov 2011 at 16:08:21