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 108 THE PEOPLE

ance. As to the deftness and taste of the weavers the shawls themselves are the best testimony. .

The population of the whole Kashmir State is 2,905,578, and of the Kashmir Province 1,157,394, Of these 98 per cent of the Kashmir Province and 74 per cent of the whole State are Mohamedan, and the remainder chiefly Hindu. But the rulers are Hindus, and consequently the Mohamedans are as much in the shade as Hindus are in States ruled by Mohamedans, The ruling family is also alien, coming not from the valley itself, but from Jammu, on the far side of the mountain to the south,

The inhabitants were not, however, always Mohamedans. Originally they were Hindus. It was only in the fourteenth century that they were converted—mostly by force—to become Mohamedans, The present indigenous Hindus of the valley are generally known as Pundits, and Kashmir Pundits are well known over India for their acuteness and subtlety of mind, their in- telligence and quick-wittedness. They prefer priestly, literary, and clerical occupation, but in the severe competition of life many have been compelled to make more use of their hands than their brains, and have had to take up agri- culture, and become cooks, bakers, confectioners,