Page:Malabari, Behramji M. - Gujarat and the Gujaratis (1882).djvu/130

114 incarnation of the protecting deity, he is susceptible, perhaps more than ordinary mortals, to pain, pleasure, love, hatred, and other emotions. Pinch him, and he will roar; tickle him, and he will grin; gratify his desire, and he will worship you; baulk him of it, and he will put you out of caste! He is born a "lord" of ancestors the Lord knows who, and at a very tender age he lords it over a seraglio of intellectual ladies whose husbands are men of highly liberal marital sentiment. It is a wonder to many how the Máháráj lives in such a princely style. It is thus:—The Máháráj has a first-rate taxing imagination. Sir John Strachey is a mere novice to this accomplished tax-master. The following are supposed to be among the few known imposts the Máháráj derives from his devout followers:—For homage by sight, Rs. 5; for homage by touch, Rs. 20; for the honour of washing the Máhárájá's toes, Rs. 35; for the credit of swinging him, Rs. 40; for the glory of rubbing sweet unguents on his body, Rs. 42; for the joy of sitting with him, Rs. 60; for the bliss of occupying the same room with the Madana