Page:History of the Indian Archipelago Vol 3.djvu/521

 ARTICLES OP IMPORTATION. 505 The bandana handkerchiefs, manufactured at Glasgow, have long superseded the genuine ones, and are now consumed in large quantities both by the natives and Chinese. Some improvement might be suggested by which they would be still more suitable to the taste of the native consumer. The white spots, for example, might be changed for green or yellow flowers, and handsome colour- ed borders would particularly suit the fancy of the wearer. Cotton velvets are in considerable demand among the richer natives ; not one of whom that can afford such a luxury is without a suit of this material. The favourite colours in this fabric are dark-green, mulberry, and blue, with flowered patterns* A few finer cotton fabrics are in demand among the European part of the population. Woollens are an article of considerable and in- creasing demand among the Indian islanders. There cannot be a greater error than to imagine that this description of fabric is unsuitable to the climate and habits of the people. Woollens are, perhaps, upon the whole, more suitable to climates under and near the equator than to those in the neighbourhood of the tropics. Half the year in the latter is, indeed, a mild winter, in which wool- len clothing is an object ofcomforty but the other half is a sultry summer in which it is inlolerable.