Page:Twelve men of Bengal in the nineteenth century (1910).djvu/206

180 to retire to his private apartments where he remained occupied with his own private affairs until breakfast, which he took in company with all the chief members of his family, was served. From eleven till two o'clock he devoted himself to his wife and children in the seclusion of the Zenana, attending to their needs, instructing them and conversing with them on family matters. At two o'clock he usually went to his office room in the Ahsan Manzil where the chief business of the day claimed his attention. Exercising so close a control over all the affairs of his vast Zemindari, the business that he had daily to transact was no light task. His work, moreover, was by no means confined to his own affairs. He was always accessible during these hours to any of his friends or tenants who wished to see him, and so great was his reputation as an arbitrator, owing to his tact and knowledge of the world, that there were always many who preferred to bring their disputes to him for decision rather than to take them to the Law Courts. His business for the day over, he usually rode or drove late in the afternoon, returning in time for the evening meal. From eight till ten o'clock he sat with his friends and relatives, listening to music or discoursing on current topics. Such was the daily routine of Abdul Ghani carried out with almost unvarying consistency for nearly forty years. Extremely conservative as to his personal habits and loyal to his old friends, he desired no change.