Page:Life in India or Madras, the Neilgherries, and Calcutta.djvu/550

484 two, with the cooking and eating utensils of clay or brass, complete the furniture of an ordinary house.

They do not need book-cases, for they have no books; nor do they want bureaus and wardrobes, for they seldom have more than a change or two of garments, and the poor, nothing beyond the piece of cotton-cloth they wear by day, and under which they sleep at night. They do not want chairs and bedsteads, as a mat on the floor answers for both; and they need no drawers for spoons, knives and forks, as fingers are found more handy and cheap, and are more easily kept clean. Tooth-brushes grow on every tree, for they abominate the thought of putting a second time into the mouth what has been once defiled by spittle, and break a fresh twig every day with which to rub the teeth. For the same reason, they will not put a cup to their lips or a spoon to their mouth, as they would be defiled by contact with saliva, and could not be used again in food.

In truth, so mild is the climate, and so few are the wants of the people, that their houses are not properly abodes or dwelling-places. They serve for a shelter during the rains, for a place of privacy for the women, for kitchen