Indische Palaographie von circa 350 a. Chr. – circa 1300 p. Chr. c48.s2.23

c48.s2.23

e) **Masons** (51,400). The Thāvī of the sub-Himālayan region, is an offshoot of the carpenter, but, as the dwellings in those parts are chiefly of stone, the caste has developed into masons as well as workers in wood, and in the plains, too, the Rāj, when the title is not merely functional, is a carpenter turned mason. The large caste of the Sutradhār in Bengal, is of local origin, probably akin to the Kaibartta, but is now much subdivided into functional groups taking rank a good deal according to the nature of their work, such as boat-building (one of the lowest), wheelwright, builder, turner and painter, all independent of each other. Some have established a body of priests of their own. The barber, whose function is one of the touchstones of rank, considers them high enough to be shaved by him, but will not undertake their pedicure. This discrimination between the different branches of the craft is found elsewhere. The carpenter who undertakes the repair of municipal conservancy carts, for example, has, for an obvious reason, to sacrifice his position; and the making of oil-presses and, as just mentioned, boat-building, is considered degrading, owing, probably, to the indirect connection of these articles with the destruction of life. Both carpenter and blacksmith belong to the class of village artisans remunerated by customary shares in the year's harvest. During the cultivating season, therefore, they are bound to devote their time to the needs of their clients, but during. the rest of the year they make carts, bedsteads, irrigation-wheels, and other articles which are charged for in the ordinary way, at a price either cash or kind, more usually the latter. The workers in brass and copper appear among the Pāñckalsī, and can claim considerable antiquity, but they are urban rather than village castes, and are rarely found, except casually, in any place smaller than the local market town. At the same time, their occupation enters largely into village life, since there is no more distinctive mark of the prosperity of a tract than the substitution of metal vessels, especially of the larger sorts, for the porous earthenware which was formerly in universal use. Once established, the demand for the former is extensive, as each family requires its own complete set, to obviate the risk of contamination by contact with other castes.