Indische Palaographie von circa 350 a. Chr. – circa 1300 p. Chr. c48.s2.30

c48.s2.30

§ 44. **Washermen** (2,887,600). In the south and west of India, the washerman is generally placed next below the Barber castes, but in Agra, Oudh, Bihār and Bengal, his position is far lower. This difference arises from convention and custom. In the one region, all but the wealthy do their own washing, either in person, at the tank in the mornings, or through the women of the family. In the north and east, however, the handling of soiled clothes is a polluting task, and the Dhōbi ranks no higher than the leather-worker. He is moreover associated in these parts with the donkey, like the Kumhār, and pays the penalty of the convenience. In most parts of upper India, in Bengal and in the Panjāb and parts of the Karnatic, the washerman is one of the hereditary village staff, and gets his share of the crops like the artisans. In Bengal he has even to take a part in the marriage-rite of the superior castes, a function which he is not called upon to perform elsewhere. At the same time, it is usually a lucky omen if on leaving home one catches sight of a Dhōbi in clean clothes. The last qualification is of uncertain signification. It may be due to its rarity, or, again, it may be connected with a popular saying that the Dhōbi’s outer garments belong to his patrons. Except, however, in the localities just named, the Dhōbi belongs to the town rather than to the village. In the south, the Vaṇṇān, like the Dhōbī of Hindustān, have a subdivision which will wash the clothes of the lowest classes. In Malabar only the women of the caste do washing and the men work as tailors. The Nāyar have a caste of washermen to themselves, under the title of Veḷuttēḍan, or Vaṇṇattān, who often describes himself, at the Census and otherwise, as belonging to the tribe of his employers. The Kanarese washerman is the Agasa. In the Telugu country, the Cākala have a subdivision which occupies itself exclusively with dyeing, and holds itself superior to the rest. It seems, indeed, to be connected with the Velama caste of agriculturists. In the Panjāb there is a similar connection between the Dhōbi and the dyer, and in some of the north-central districts of the Province the two castes are returned impartially by either trade.