Page:The People of India — a series of photographic illustrations, with descriptive letterpress, of the races and tribes of Hindustan Vol 6.djvu/279

 MOHANA. (337)

THE SAME. (337-2)

HE Indus, which traverses Sind, abounds with fish, which forms a huge portion of the food of its inhabitants of all classes, Mahomedan and Hindoo; and a peculiar class of people are the fishermen. They are the Mohanas, the subject of the present Photographs, with their large hand nets, of which they make such skilful use; and we revert to Captain Burton's almost inexhaustible history for particulars of them.

"The Mohanas, or fishermen caste," he observes, p. 2.51, "appear to be a tribe of converted Hindoos. Their own account of their origin, however, is as follows:— When Salayman (Soloman), the son of David, was amusing himself by 'ballooning' over Cashmere, he saw a horrible looking woman, and, although the wisest of human beings, was puzzled what manner of man it could be that would marry her. Some time afterwards, the prophet king lost his magic ring by the wiles of Sakhar the demon, who ascended his throne, seized the palace, and drove out the lawful owner. Salayman, impelled by destiny, wandered to Cashmere, and became the husband of that 'grimme ladye.' Her dowry was every second fish caught by her father, who happened to be a fisherman. As usual in such tales, the demon soon lost the ring, and it was found in the stomach of one of the fishes. This Salayman recovered his kingdom. His wife, who remained behind in a state of pregnancy, had a son, who became the sire of the Mohana.

"The Mohana do not look like Sindees; their features are peculiar, and their complexion very dark. Some of the women are handsome when young; but hardship, exposure to the air, and other causes, deprive them of their charms. They are to be found chiefly about the lakes of Manchar, Maniyar, and Kinjur. At the latter of these places are some ruins of a palace built by Jam Tanuichi, one