Page:History of India Vol 9.djvu/165

Rh these persons are bound to keep on the left side of the road till they arrive at their homes. As to the construction of houses and the enclosing walls, the land being low and moist, the walls of the towns are mostly built of bricks or tiles, and the enclosures of the houses are matted bamboo or wood. The houses have balconies and belvederes made of wood, as well as flat roofs with a coating of lime, and are covered with burnt or unburnt tiles. The buildings are very high, and in style of construction they are like those in China. Branches or common grasses or tiles or boards are used for covering them. The walls are covered with lime, the floor is smeared with cow's dung as means of purity, and it is strewn with flowers of the season. In such matters they differ from us.

Many Samgharamas (Buddhist monasteries) are constructed with extraordinary skill. A three-storied tower is erected at each of the four angles. The beams and the projecting heads are carved with strange figures. The doors, the windows, and the walls are painted in many colours; the houses of the ordinary people are luxurious on the inside but plain on the outside. The interior and central rooms vary in height and width. As to the form and construction of the tiers of terraces and the series of salons, there is no fixed rule. The doors open toward the east; the royal throne also faces the east.

When the Hindus sit or rest they all use corded benches; the royal family, great personages, the officials, and the gentry use benches variously ornamented,