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5/10/1965 - India: The Village-I by Granville S. Austin

NOT FOR PUBLICATION INSTITUTE OF CURRENT WORLD AFFAIRS GSK Nizamuddin West Indi The Vi11age Delhi May Richard H Nolte Executire Drector Institute C rrent World Lffairs Madison Avenue New Yrk New York Dear Diick The jounced along rattling tincan stones In hours stops breathy loadings loadings noisy gettings after grazing noses sublimely trusting buffaloes along shade spreading trees covered seventy miles Aligarh Karimganj village There although regular driver With bedroll shoulder I followed rambling dusty village I Charlotte Wiser silver haired woman seventy gallant Im distrus unassuming In husband William Wiser Karimganj surve ocial religious economic fairly typical Norbh lndia village They intended collect terial direct methods possible But found knowledge urely friends Five years later finished larimganj They spending thirty years districts Karimganj When official retirement decided Karimganj build house there William Wiser never chance Ive picture I Id known Blot harlotte Wiser Among other things added chapters their first explaining changes taken place intervening years university alifornia Press published called Behind Mud gentle perceptive N I believe should think about India until Wiser lives Hindu joint family whose Bajran eighteen years Karimganj their first friends village wasMr Wisers village I friends Karimganj village seems risen ground almost grown there The buildings clods chUnky khaki colored tiffed walls roofs The doors opening lanes dueky rooms passageway whose turning hides inner courtyard The floor houses hardy smooth swept The roofs horizontal rafters crooked branches overlaid under thick layer dried houses dried brick called kkaIq proper houses One stories Lanes wander through village several inches except where water drain slopped beside stained brown The clean there urban filth stench The smells sometimes smoke cooking fires sometimes animals During earth smells In evening becomes thicker richer there dampness breeze Through lanes moves quietly But holler their school Btllock rattle along drivers clucking speed fails twisting oxenls tails Two women shout their disagreemen shaking I coraing wagon wheel licks wheel around holds chisel lines wheel On baiak raised plaform shade beside sring quietly smoking hookah while watch penner acroses fashion wheel Babie oddle along older unhooks chain leads tuffalo village afternoon drink wearing cloth roughly urban shors drives locks9 under large bowls Then hitches another lookingnearly white ribhy poorlooking animals drives hundred yardso hreshing ground ircleonhewhea Topea cocks loudly another farmyard Btffalo Bah This begun gressed would otherso At about olclock began sparrows chatter The peacocks mewed trees crows returned their roosting place Men sleeping platforms their charpoys hawked their noses through their Some measured buffaloes about pounds largely chopped wheat chaff little grain perhaps would repeated Oher hauled buckets water wells animals In their courtyard women children 11my11 family getting In corner courtyard replastered ooking chela village stove lndia cylinder Making fires about eight inches partially shown provide accompaniments prayers about months The became sacred could enter except woman doing cooking family The girls later joined family Bahenji spected sister Mrs calls collected buffalo baskets swept cattle courtyard clean They emptied baskets another courtyard where later would knead finally stack conical mounds cooking fires Then joined other women village saris their heads lotas smali brass water their hands shrouded parade select field outside village where relieved themselves hildren could squatting uninhibited around edges T farmers themselves hired labor sharecroppers headed toward threshing floors around village shade trees The carpenter tailor potter goldsmith washerman began Where point village touches three shopkeeper opened their shops recently established flour grinding pressing greased machinery Inside houses women measured amount wheat ground between stones As approached added partied cakes ossed until became chappaties crepe susette thick peasan pancakes Then cooked bread slightly concave metal Some fields rested Sometimes women chappaties perhap tidbit their thresh floor wrapped sirled about increasing This brides rived courCyard teeli family caste pressers mostly ecuse farmers their mustard mills beside One young brought clayater tinned lotas Founding grain I extent dotty marriage ceremony several weeks before girlies father rupees prospective groom Wiser saict possib years Several courCyards B farmer three brothers united feast offer village after death They shaved their heads Bahenji reported doing things right Bajran invited tended declined because being caste halve separately might cause embarrassment stopped burning small drove herds buffaloes nosing barren field asional grass rewarding grazing ashtray better toldime there wheat lentil nearly there animalso spring harves watching farmers raise green fodder seems quickly eaten I Bides their faces deferentia covered their effects Mother pulls autumn sometimes dried raised amount never large IoTa ermont standards animals little nutritious With animals fields threshing floors fenightly chores Smoke rises fires chappaties ealthier homes lenil flavored green mangoes bubble deliciou perhaps egetableo arpoys dragged childrem gleep Then curled together kittens Normallyamosteveryoneouldbeasleepbyaboutten otclock butor several before I village I there Evening The daughter boi1ing 1entils mangoes courtyard Kachi farmero I aughters dfudges serve entire The sewing machine prized possession DJvlhi brought admire company I anpur played Ramayana lengthy religious familiar Indians Christmas story Americans lthough Ramayana usually performed luring Dus festi 0ctober villager would quibble offered excitements T story could follow little dialogue unfortu nately I couldntt understand broad jokes tbarber partner between merely whets villager appetite after I sneaked T could groan harmonium intricate rhythm lauher shouts Lon Live Rama Ram Chandra Ki Jai Ybur sincerely Granville S ustin Received New York May