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THE INDIAN ANTIQUARY
[NOVEMBER, 1927
and it is difficult to state the exact number of inhabitants, because they vary according to the seasons: there is always a large population all the year round; but, during the monsoon, i.e., at the time when vessels can arrive in and depart from India without danger, during the months of November, December, January, February and March, and even in April, the city is so full of people that it is a difficult task to find comfortable quarters, and the three suburbs are crowded.
The city is inhabited by Indians, Persians, Arabs, Turks, Frenchmen, Armenians and other Christians: however, its ordinary population is divided into three classes, which do not, indeed, include either the French or the other Christians, because they are so few in number in comparison with those professing other religions. These three classes of inhabitants are the Moors, Gentiles1 and Parsees. The term Moors is applied to all the Muhammadans, Mughals, Persians, Arabs or Turks in India, though they are not uniform as regards religion, some being Sunnîs and the rest Shiahs: I have dealt with this distinction in my second book. The second class of inhabitants is the Gentiles, i.e., those who worship idols, and these again are of different kinds. The third class consists of the Parsees, who are also known as Gaures or Ateshperest, fire-worshippers. These profess the religion of the ancient Persians, and they took refuge in India when Caliph Omar subjugated the kingdom of Persia to the Muhammadan power. There are some extremely rich people in Surat, and a Bania named Vargivora, who is a friend of mine, is supposed to be worth eight millions at least. The English and the Dutch have their houses there, which are known as lodges and offices: these houses are very fine indeed, and the English have established the headquarters of their trade there. There are quite one hundred Catholic houses in Surat.
The castle of Surat has been built on the river bank, at the southern extremity of the city, to prevent the entry of anyone who might wish to attack it by coming up the Tapti. This fortress is of reasonable size; it is square, and is flanked on each corner by a stout tower. Its moats are filled with sea water on three sides, and it is watered by the river on the fourth side, i.e., to the west. Several cannon may be seen at the embrasures: this is where they keep the king's revenues which are collected from the province, and they are never sent to him unless an especial order is given the entrance is on the west side by a fine gate which is in the bazaar or maidan: the office of the head of the Customs is near by, and this castle has a special governor of its own, just as the city has its own governor.
The houses in this city, which have cost a considerable amount to construct, are flat, as in Persia, and tolerably well built; but they are expensive, because there is no stone in the district; as they are compelled to use bricks and lime, they also require much timber, and this has to be brought from Daman by sea, because the local wood, which is at some distance, is far more expensive owing to the item of transport by land. Bricks and lime, too, are expensive; and even a middling house cannot be constructed without using bricks to the value of five or six hundred francs, and more than double the value of lime. The houses are covered with tiles semicircular in shape, and half a finger thick, but badly baked; consequently they are still grey when used, and they last no time : for this reason the tilers lay them in double rows, in such a way that the one tile keeps the other up. Canes known as bamboos, which are split into two, serve as laths to which the tiles are attached, and the frame-work which supports all this, is made merely of pieces of wood, round in shape; dwellings of this kind are for the rich; but those which are inhabited by the lower classes, are constructed of canes, and covered by palm branches.
By the way, in India it is better to build during the rains than in fine weather; for the heat is so great, and the sun so fierce, when the sky is bright, that everything dries up before it has a chance to be joined firmly together, and buildings crack in a moment; whereas the rain tempers the heat, and as it prevents the sun from scorching, the masonry has time to dry. 1 I.e., Hindus, as opposed to Moors, Muhammadans.
Gaur, Gaber or Guebra, a Fire-worshipper (Atish, Fire). They landed on the coast of Gujarat, c, 720 A,C,
