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Old Photographs, Recognition, Handwriting Deciphering => Handwriting Deciphering & Recognition => Topic started by: JanSeifert on Thursday 10 October 19 07:44 BST (UK)
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Hi,
this is my first entry and already a problem to solve. I work on an edition of a personal diary from 1832 and since I am a bloody German I face of course some problems. The entire diary is - of course – handwritten, partly under adverse conditions on the way.
The first problem involves a verb I cannot fathom; the text goes:
»
accordingly got under weight once
more. The Heir Apparent [??]
us yesterday leaving the palace in
great state – and accompanied by
700 soldiers. Our coolies were
«
What could be the missing verb after Heir Apparent? Any Ideas?
Thank you!
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Hi and welcome to Rootschat
Looks like preceded to me
Fisherman
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That fits perfectly. It will take some time to read myself into the writing style of Jenkins.
Thank you very much.
Jan
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Happy to help
Fisherman
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Hi Jan,
Welcome to Rootschat!
Fisherman has already solved your query but I wanted to add something.
You wrote:
...the text goes:
»
accordingly got under weight once
more. The Heir Apparent [??]«
It actually says got under weigh, which should really be got underway, i.e. we set off.
Just a little tiny thing, aber Ordnung muss sein. ;-)
Best regards,
Karen
in Wolfenbüttel
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And rightfully you made me aware! The British did not get under weight. They had porters ;)
My bad. I will try to be more german in the future. ;D
Jan
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problem 2
text goes as:
»
distributet this morning and
for the most [??] [??]
of us 4 gentlemen – Lt. Pemberton
Gordon and Mackenzie and myself
«
-
restricted baggage
Fisherman
-
Also first word is distributed
Fisherman
-
Getting shoddy in my old age, do I? Thanks for your help!
Jan
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and one more:
»amounted to just 200 men
[Nagas] [??], of several carts –
the porters of the [??] and his
Highness might amount to about
600 more.
«
edit: forgot probably a comma
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Think it says "of the sepoys"??
Can't make out the other part
Fisherman
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sepoys of his Highness might amount to about?
Skoosh.
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That makes perfect sense. Thank you.
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the other part may read:
»
amounted to just 200 men,
Nagas all, of several carts –
the porters of the sepoys and his
Highness might amount to about
600 more,
«
Its probably more Shakespear than Shakespeare, but (to my knowledge) fits the tone of this kind of reports.
j.
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Hi Jan,
Nagas had me stumped, but I have discovered they are people associated with the North Eastern part of India.
You live and learn ;D
Fisherman
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The Diary of Jenkins deals basically with the »first contact« between the British and the Naga.
The tour is always mentioned, but nobody did actually the work to read (or publish) the original source. It's there in the British Library since I do not know when. Thought, I should give it a try ;D
Jan
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The Naked Naga's presumably, Hindu warriors? ;D
Skoosh.
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'Nagas all of several casts' - maybe a misspelling of 'castes'?
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Casts do not apply to Nagas. Besides 1832 the knowledge of casts was not as widespread as it is today.
»carts« is probably ok. But time will tell. I will keep your idea in my head. By the time I have finished the whole diary, I may well be able to read the first pages easily ;)
Jan
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Hi, more problems to solve:
Sorry for the poor photograph, I was still getting into the flow work and the lighting in the Library is not very good.
2.1
(...such is the difficulty of moving in these hill countries when no animal)
»
[but] man can creep along loaded
and where it’s necessary to carry 8
or 10 days provisions on men’s
backs.
«
edit: I guess now its »but«. Does anyone concur?
-
2.2
»
up the valley of Munnipore [and?] [??]
the last mile or so which took us
through a gap into a parallel
valley half opening into the great
«
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2.3
»
the marks of former cultivation.
The extent now cultivated in the
valley [bears?] a very small proportion
indeed to the present state [??]
«
(and in the valley alone there is room
for a very considerable population)
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2.1 is marked as solved
j.
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2.2 - except
2.3 - the first one looks like 'bears', and I think the phrase with the missing word could be '...indeed to the ground still uncleared'
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Thanks arthurk! That is magic.
j
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2.4
(be quite sufficient to defy the inroads of any foreign people – protec-)
»
ted as they are by such and strong moun-
tainous regions in all directions, [??]
in sites for impregnable fortresses *
«
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2.5
this is from the margins, so please excuse the blurry images, especially at the edge.
»
Sengmai, this
village at which
we stopped is now
inconsiderable
but from the [??]
of the vestiges of
fruit trees it seems
once to have been
very large. The
inhabitants have
only been very lately
converted to Hin-
«
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2.4 - abounding
2.5 - extent
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2.6
last one for today. promise!
»
escaped Assamese
who have found
their way back [??]
there 3 or 4 months.
an old woman is the
only one who was
carried off. The [??]
have [xxxx] been
[??] of [??] [??]
who since dead
were carried
«
(<next page> away by a party of Singphos...)
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2.6
I'm not totally certain of this, and you can probably judge better whether it fits the context:
...their way back within
these 3 or 4 months.
... The rest
have since been
born of Asamese(?) parents,
who were since dead,
they were carried
I can't work out the mark/letters at the end after 'carried'.
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Again, thank you.
»within« fits resonable, so does the following »these«. The signs after »carried« suggest that the margins will go on on the next page, I think. I will check this in the original as well.
I will keep it for now in this state and try to make new enlargements of the more difficult parts when I am back in London (being now out in the field ~150km away from the area dealt with in this diary). Since these were the first few pages, I did not think yet about the problems while photographing. For almost all later margins I have better details.
For the context: my guess is the 500 Assamese were children of Assamese (slave) parents. Ava <the Burmese>, did invade Assam in the early 19th century and took countless as slaves back to their country, where they were used for building projects like large temples and roads. The old woman then was one of the survivors. But there is still more to the story, I guess, as on the next page Singphos come into the play (Singphos settled mostly in the area between Ava and the Nagas, in the Northwest of todays Myanmar. They have since moved on, further up North).
The story slowly unfolds – it's a fascinating read, especially so close by. And only 187 years later :)
j.
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Glad to have helped - post again when you need to!
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todays problems. not many.
3.1
»
On our left we had the great western
ridge of Munnipore. Many of the
peaks of which are 5000 ft above (about?) the
valley and upwards of 8000 above the zea
but their appearance is not that of
any extraordinary height - for the
«
this may be a writing mistake
-
3.2
»
the next region was illuminated
by the rising sun. The third [??]
was covered by fog and mist and once
[all?] occasional glimpses were
attained of the outline of the
«
-
3.3
»
oaks. Some of them which had escaped
the periodical burnings of the grass
were pine (fine?) trees*, [or?] winding through
«
3.3a
»
* I measured one
- 9 ft circumference
and the trunk was [??]
«
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3.1 - does say 'about', but must be a mistake
3.2 - 'space' and 'all'
3.3 - 'fine' and 'or' (the phrase from 'some of them' to 'fine trees' is in parenthesis, so 'or' follows on from 'oaks', and probably makes sense)
3.3a - possibly 'lofty'
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»
We started to day about 8 o’clock
and arrived at our halting ground
at 2 P.M., having made only 12 1/2
miles. About half the march
was up the valley of Singmai.
On our left we had the great western
ridge of Munnipore. Many of the
peaks of which are 5000 ft about [sic] the
valley and upwards of 8000 above the zea
but their appearance is not that of
any extraordinary height - for the
foreground is very deep and the
edge is carried up gradually
over a broad swelling ascent
of gentle acclivities. They appeared
highest early in the morning, when
their base was still in shade,
the next region was illuminated
by the rising sun. The third space
was covered by fog and mist and once
all occasional glimpses were
attained of the outline of the
ridge. For the last half of the
march we were wandering over the
spurs of the mountains, which
were almost entirely covered with
oaks – some of them which had escaped
the periodical burnings of the grass
were fine trees*– or winding through
«
(next page: narrow vales...)
the red passage is probably beyond my english
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A few more thoughts on this...
....Many of the
peaks of which are 5000 ft about [sic] the
valley and upwards of 8000 above the zea
I missed this before - should be 'sea'.
...The third space
was covered by fog and mist and once
all occasional glimpses were
attained of the outline of the
ridge.
the red passage is probably beyond my english
You've done very well - some of the letters are ambiguous, and there are evidently some mistakes too.
Looking at the red phrase in context, I wonder if what you have as 'once all' is actually 'over all' - the letters 'over' also appear in the word 'covered' in the same line, and look very similar. This seems to make better sense than 'once all'. (I also thought it might be 'fogs' rather than 'fog'.)
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That fits way better, you are right.
Here todays last problem – as usual, it's margins. In fact, the rest of yesterday's. Although it's not very conclusive.
»
Kuitel mahke
Jany 9th
>away by a party
of Singphos and [??]
were somewhere
[in] the hands of the
[??] when
hearing that there
were British officers
in Munnipore, they
fled in a canoe and
landed in the Burm-
ese territory. The
old woman looks
as if she was 60 years
of age and [??]
support the [??]
of [??] – They are
rather good looking
people and seem
to have little affinity
with these [??].
«
There is probably proper names in it, and since the tour is the first contact, they will be certainly be misspelled (there is villages I have five different names for, each in different spellings as well), which makes it more difficult. The place name »Kuitel mahke« is one example. I have to look for the old maps of Pemberton and Jenkins in the Collections. There was never anything properly published of these early times.
(I tried to improve the legibility of the original as much as possible)
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This time I'll reply by editing your text in bold, with any extra comments in italics:
>away by a party
of Singphos and then
(probably - it fits the context; the letter to the right isn't part of it)
were somewhere
in the hands of the
('in' is OK)
[??] when
('Kinghtle???' - you'll know more about the different tribes/groups than I do)
hearing that there
were British officers
in Munnipore, they
fled in a canoe and
landed in the Muni-
pore territory. The
old woman looks
as if she was 60 years
of age & can scarcely
support the labour
of travelling – They are
rather good looking
people and seem
to have little affinity
with these tribes.
(I think it's probably 'tribes' - it fits better than anything else I can think of)
«
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very good edits!
I want to come back to the first set of margins:
The »500 Assamese« bugged my, especially as the escaped in »a canoe«
So it may well be it's only 5 of them. But then, what's the thing behind the 5?
»
to which they had
been carried away
slaves by the Burmah
army. We are
accompanied by
a party of 500
escaped Assamese
who have found
their way back within
these 3 or 4 months.
an old woman is the
only one who was
carried off. The rest
have since been
born of Asam parents,
who were since dead
were carried >
«
(the red part still carries a problem, to be solved later I guess.)
-
today I have been quite productive, so a number of questions arose:
4.1
»
up its bed. The pebbles &
boulders are most [??] [??]
the base of the [??] is probably of
clay slate but I had no opportunity
of seeing the naked rock.
[& unfrequent?]
Except slight^ marks of crystallized
quartz veins adhering to the pebbles
I have seen no symptomes as yet
of an [??] to a lower forma-
tion than these two rocks.
«
-
4.2
»
Our encampment is at the [entrance?]
of a valley of broken & rather stony
ground about 5 miles long and
«
-
4.3
»
hill to the right. Behind us
is an extensive [??] land elevated
about 100 ft above this valley.
Our camp is thus [??] in languages
our people bellowing at each other
in 10 or 12 different languages.
«
-
5.1
»
we [rose?] over the spur of the [NAME]
range on the left and found on the
brow beyond & on little vales to the
right patches of neat cultivation or
rather preparations for culture
on
in the [entering] season – Further^ we
«
-
5.2
»
which was the course of the Lalang
interval
and at [a very?] short^ of a few yards
only, the waters began to descend
a valley to the right of the hill run-
ning to the North – this was the
source of the Barak – a few steps
only [there?] in this spot divide
feeders of the Ganges & Irrawaddy
– the mighty streams of [story?]-
«
-
6.1
»
& [very?] little ingenuity, to my own
knowledge, would suffice to make
a navigable stream from this point
to Asam – it’s possible that the Barak
«
-
6.2
»
beauty valley – with magnificent
broad retiring hills on either side,
presenting every possible variety
of greenery, & most delightful to
behold, the valley was nearly entirely
under cultivation – rice grounds
[mounting?] up the little vales
by steps to the [sources?] of all the
«
-
7.1
»
hills, and beyond, & up to the highest
ridges in some places, were cultivated
spots in all diections, some on almost
perpendicular surfaces – with fine green
[??] I presume of cotton or an oil plant.
Two large villages crowned the ridge on
«
-
7.2
»
prepared for cultivation – by burning
the [??] & reducing the surface
to a very fine well reduced soil –
led down to the river bank, literally
over beds of violets & strawberries.
«
-
7.3
»
of oak trees. On the [??] above to the
right are a few lofty firs – the first
I have yet met. We have opened
[??] up a dell among [??] mountains
blocked in front by a ridge which
from its appearance must be higher
than any we have yet encountered.
That ridge is beyond our geography &
we have now passed the limit of [??] discovery
«
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Looking at this again, I suggest:
...The rest
have since been
born of Asam parents,
who were since dead,
they were carried >
It makes reasonable sense if 'since' on the 4th line up is crossed through, and 'were' and 'they' are read not as crossed through, but the result of a blotchy pen. It still doesn't sound quite right to a modern ear, but the idioms of 1832 were almost certainly a bit different.
-
today I have been quite productive, so a number of questions arose:
4.1
»
up its bed. The pebbles &
boulders are most entirely sandstone ['most' probably meaning 'almost', as in modern American usage, but not UK]
the base of the hills is probably of
clay slate but I had no opportunity
of seeing the naked rock.
& unfrequent
Except slight^ marks of crystallized [looks like 'unfrequent']
quartz veins adhering to the pebbles
I have seen no symptomes as yet
of an approach to a lower forma-
tion than these two rocks.
«
4.2
»
Our encampment is at the entrance ['entrance' looks OK to me]
of a valley of broken & rather stony
ground about 5 miles long and
«
4.3
»
hill to the right. Behind us
is an extensive table land elevated
about 100 ft above this valley.
Our camp is truly Babylonish in languages
our people bellowing at each other
in 10 or 12 different languages.
«
-
5.1
»
we rose over the spur of the [NAME] [looks OK to me, but I've no idea about the name]
range on the left and found on the
brow beyond & on little vales to the
right patches of neat cultivation or
rather preparations for culture
on
in the ensuing season – Further^ we
«
5.2
»
which was the course of the Lalang
interval
and at a very short^ of a few yards [probably]
only, the waters began to descend
a valley to the right of the hill run-
ning to the North – this was the
source of the Barak – a few steps
only thus in this spot divide
feeders of the Ganges & Irrawaddy
– the mighty streams of story - [probably - both are legendary rivers]
«
-
6.1
»
& very little ingenuity, to my own [looks OK]
knowledge, would suffice to make
a navigable stream from this point
to Asam – it’s possible that the Barak
«
6.2
»
beauty valley – with magnificent
broad retiring hills on either side,
presenting every possible variety
of greenery, & most delightful to
behold, the valley was nearly entirely
under cultivation – rice grounds
ascending up the little vales
by steps to the sources of all the [OK]
«
-
7.1
»
hills, and beyond, & up to the highest
ridges in some places, were cultivated
spots in all diections, some on almost
perpendicular surfaces – with fine green
[??] I presume of cotton or an oil plant.
Two large villages crowned the ridge on
«
This one defeats me, I'm afraid.
7.2
»
prepared for cultivation – by burning
the sods & reducing the surface
to a very fine well reduced soil –
led down to the river bank, literally
over beds of violets & strawberries.
«
7.3
»
of oak trees. On the hill above to the
right are a few lofty firs – the first
I have yet met. We have opened
sight of a dell among low mountains
blocked in front by a ridge which
from its appearance must be higher
than any we have yet encountered.
That ridge is beyond our geography &
we have now passed the limit of European discovery
«
That's probably going to be all from me for today - anyone else care to have a look? Note that 7.1 (Reply #49) is still unsolved.
-
Sorry - missed this bit:
I want to come back to the first set of margins:
The »500 Assamese« bugged my, especially as the escaped in »a canoe«
So it may well be it's only 5 of them. But then, what's the thing behind the 5?
»
to which they had
been carried away
slaves by the Burmah
army. We are
accompanied by
a party of 500
escaped Assamese...
I think it might be 5 or 7 escaped Assamese
-
Looking at this again, I suggest:
...The rest
have since been
born of Asam parents,
who were since dead,
they were carried >
It makes reasonable sense if 'since' on the 4th line up is crossed through, and 'were' and 'they' are read not as crossed through, but the result of a blotchy pen. It still doesn't sound quite right to a modern ear, but the idioms of 1832 were almost certainly a bit different.
You are right. I was thinking a bit around these phrases and maybe there was a full stop after »dead«. Then we are much closer to even today's idioms. Thank you immensely for your stellar work. I will mention you with certainty if this ever gets out to people ;)
j.
edit:
thought further. what about:
»
carried off. The rest
have since been
born of Asam parents,
who were since died.
They were carried
«
»dead« could well be read as »died«, written with little space left and the dot of the »i« overwritten by the »d«. I will surely check with the original in the BL, but for now I keep it that way. »They« is possibly just blotted over.
-
only few problems today:
9.1
»
Rajah intends settling a village
of Munypooree sepoys in this
neighborhood, this would
seem very desirable on every
account and with such an
ample & improvable country
now in his posession it is much
to be regretted that the Rajah
should entertain any views of
[??] Cachar, for that [??]
would most undoubtedly by drawing
«
Cachar was a neighboring country of Manipur and at the time the center of a conflict between a number of Manipur princes, the ruler of Jaintya and the King of Cachar himself, whom was promised security by the British.
-
10.1
»
Yesterday & to day we have
passed numerous immense flat
blocks of sandstone set on [edge?]
with lines & circles of stones of
smaller size. On enquiry we are
«
-
11.1
»
away, some future Lord Aberdeen
may explain to an illustrious society
of antiquarians in Munipore the
intimate connection between
the Nagas & the British race –
for here are Oak groves & misletoe [sic]
[??] [??]
– Druidical circles – cairns^
materials for unborn [Name]
Whittakers & [Hukeleys?] to write columns
upon.
Hitherto all the rocks we had met
had been sandstone. This was [??]
to day on the top of the hill by the occurrence
«
-
11.2
»
Nullah. Very unpleasant marching [&?]
which might easily have been avoided
by opening a route along the foot of the
«
this may be just a »&« extra.
-
I may have found a solution for 7.1 (#49)
»
perpendicular surfaces – with fine green,
later I presume of cotton or an oil plant.
«
Add a (non existent) comma and it works. Not Shakespeare, but probably ok-ish.
-
"Whittakers & Stukeleys to write volumes upon."
-
"Whittakers & Stukeleys to write volumes upon."
Excellent! Thank you very much. Sadly my knowledge of persons in England at the time is limited. But I am sure, I can learn more.
Any ideas for the third name?
j.
-
9.1
...any views of
renting Cachar, for that measure
10.1
'edge' looks fine
11.1
I think the inserted word is written 'cromleks' - these days we spell it cromlechs
[He seems to be comparing what he sees to the ancient stone structures found in Britain]
the first name is Borlases
...this was varied
11.2
Yes - a superfluous '&'
Back to 7.1
I'm not sure about 'later' - it doesn't seem to me to fit, and the first letter isn't like other initial l's.
I've had a look in the Oxford English Dictionary, and it gives an old word 'cate', which is thought to have come from a Hindi word via Portuguese. The more usual form is 'catechu', and it refers to various trees (eg catechu acacia or catechu palm) or the substances obtained from them. Might that fit?
Incidentally, I think the very first word in 7.1 is 'rills'. If it follows straight on from 6.2, that would fit the meaning better than 'hills'.
-
»renting Cachar, for that measure«
I should have thought of that possibility. Cachar, after all, is at the centre of many of the incidents in the region at the time.
»I think the inserted word is written 'cromleks' - these days we spell it cromlechs
[He seems to be comparing what he sees to the ancient stone structures found in Britain]«
I think spelling was not Jenkins' forte. He often writes after the sound of words. One sees that in many places in his handwritten personal documents. Later, when he was of more importance, he had of course a secretary :)
»the first name is Borlases«
I probably would have never had a chance to find that out myself. Your knowledge astonishes me time and again.
-
Back to 7.1
I'm not sure about 'later' - it doesn't seem to me to fit, and the first letter isn't like other initial l's.
I've had a look in the Oxford English Dictionary, and it gives an old word 'cate', which is thought to have come from a Hindi word via Portuguese. The more usual form is 'catechu', and it refers to various trees (eg catechu acacia or catechu palm) or the substances obtained from them. Might that fit?
My line of thinking goes:
»cultivated spots« on »perpendicular surfaces« – they are certainly not terraced fields but slash and burn patches. So the chance of trees in these spots is nearly nil (they are cut down before burning). This all with the kind of trees you are mentioned quite common in these parts (the seed pods are used for food in a fermented state). But that kind of tree gives a lot of shade. This is not needed in local plantations (no tea, no coffee. at least not at the time)
The second thing is »fine green«. The time is early January. So the only thing you would see up there is preparations for the new agricultural season (seed beds for rice) or very early plant shoots – »fine green«. To me everything after »fine green« is just a supposition (from previous experience) and neither cotton nor oil plants usually grow very tall.
And from all the words possible »later« fits best. The starting »l« is not very clear, but we have to keep in mind that this is written in the field, most certainly without table. Writing with ink alone is some challenge under these circumstances (how to keep the ink in between and from detoriating &c.).
I also implied a comma – probably a far stretch. But then again, Jenkins was not into punctuation (the English language is not very formal in this regard anyway, from my experience, unlike other european languages). But he repeatedly used the end of the column as a break.
After all, these diaries have a at times a style of collections of »Wortfetzen« (scraps of conversations), loose clusters of ideas. Very few people have a clear stream of thought and are able to write that down accordingly.
And maybe we put to much thought in some unimportant part and the meaning was completely different altogether ;)
I am happy to discuss this further.
j.
-
new problem spots:
12.1
»
The form of our encampment
is as near as the ground will permit
a circle. The Rajah’s sepoys forming
the outer circumference with
their sheds facing outwards [sketch]
and [??] to day this is encom-
passed by a slight stockade,
«
-
13.1
»
the road down more precipitous
(its actual height was 3000ft)
but still easy^ with every facility for
making an excellent road if [desirable?].
From the village* we had a very extensive
view, the great cross range in front of
«
-
13.2
»
[It?] was a gap to [Mhow], a large village
formerly subjected by the Munipores,
and low ranges ending
in the table lands of Assam. [It] was
also a gap round terrific mountains
«
-
13.3
»
** The next day in
ascending the opposite
side it was quite
appearent that a good
road might have
been made as
[observed?]
«
-
14.1
»
the loftiest in immediate view
and as the [??] dip at a high
angle to the W. & N. W. there is left
an immense precipitous scarp
on this side under the immediate
ridge. Its in this scarped face
I understand that the [ware?] exported
from their country is chiefly [??]
The Nagas letting themselfes down
«
-
14.2
»
appearently half way up these immense
[castlelated] mountains is the village
of Lee-nie to which I presume this
cultivation belongs, its situated behind
the conical point of the hill on a very
narrow ridge, which appears to [covered?]
with a slanting buttress up which I have
no doubt the villagers have the means of
«
-
15.1
»
the magnificent cross range we had
seen the day before & up the valley
between the two mountains, and as
we proceeded on we observed the village
of Moheelong on the western most
point of the range & commanding a [??]
of all this cultivation. Shortly after we saw the
«
-
16.1
»
off. The gout Rajah a little after
joined Pemberton & they came down
«
solved
-
17.1
»
17 Jany
15 Jany
Yang to the
[S.E.?] cultivation
of Papoolongmei
- 8 miles
«
-
last for today
18.1
»
It then became appearent that
the cones of the hill of Yang were
connected with the ridge we
have called snowy to the [last],
and came round by a gentle descent
«
-
In your last post for today, Jan. "last" is actually "East".
-
Jan. Re your post 15.1 the word is "prospect" i.e. commanding a prospect....
-
Jan. Re your 17.1. I would agree with you that it is "S.E."
-
Re your 13.3., Jan. I would agree that the word is "observed".
-
Suggestions for the ones that Rhododendron hasn't mentioned:
12.1 - I observe
13.1 - desirable
13.2 - E (= East) and W (= West)
14.1 - strata / wax (?) / procured
14.2 - castellated (spelled as you give it) / connect
16.1 - 'gout' seems unlikely; is it some Indian term/title?
-
16.1
I read it as Jaat
A primarily Hindu people originally from Northern India
Fisherman
-
In your last post for today, Jan. "last" is actually "East".
Of course! it was evening and I had been transcribing the whole day. But when you're in the flow...
Thank you for all your input.
j.
-
16.1
I read it as Jaat
A primarily Hindu people originally from Northern India
Fisherman
Jaats are basically a peasant community of North-West India. I do not see any possibility for the use of it here.
j.
-
Suggestions for the ones that Rhododendron hasn't mentioned:
12.1 - I observe
13.1 - desirable
13.2 - E (= East) and W (= West)
14.1 - strata / wax (?) / procured
14.2 - castellated (spelled as you give it) / connect
16.1 - 'gout' seems unlikely; is it some Indian term/title?
14.1 –»wax« hits the spot – after reading bees all I could think of is larvae or honey.
16.1 – »gout« I thought possible, because it was a widespread disease. Also the Raja needed a little longer to arrive – probably because he was slower because of his ailment. But I mark this as open until there is more certainty.
Any new ideas about 7.1?
j.
-
There is another occurence of »Jout« at page 22. No »gout« then ;)
So, as arthurk assumed, it looks more like an addition to the title.
I'll keep an eye on it.
j.
-
Any new ideas about 7.1?
No, sorry. (Forgot to mention that yesterday)
There is another occurence of »Jout« at page 22. No »gout« then ;)
So, as arthurk assumed, it looks more like an addition to the title.
I'll keep an eye on it.
I was going to say that the first letter definitely looks like a 'J' (upper case), rather than a 'g' (lower case), but I've no idea what the word might mean.
-
at page 26 it even looks more like »Jaut Rajah«. There is something fishy going on. Jauts are North-West India. Someone in the employ of the ruler of Manipur? That one died two years after and his only son was too young. Earlier in the diary there is mention of the »young Rajah«. More and more mysterious. I probably have to dig deeper in this Manipur mess to get context.
j
-
20.1
»
From the late-
ness of the hour
at which we
arrived our huts
this evening [??]
[??] slight & the
cold was severe
for us Indians,
«
-
20.2
»
or slave Munipooree from the
village to say that the men of it had
in vain solicited assistance from
the chief village of the tribe [Ta-koop-
ta-gnal] – which had replied that
«
the name starts with a capital T?
-
21.1
»
About 10 o’clock we commenced
- later
our march up to the down^ on [??]
land
table^ connected with the ridge on
which was the village of Papoolongmui
and we had got to the top & been
met with 10 baskets rice* when the
young Rajah was looking out for
«
-
22.1
»
find water – we were winding along
a narrow pathway with a sleek
[??] on our left and stiff
rise on our right round which
by a path that intercepted ours
at half way were were approaching
some straggling Nagas – running
backwards & forwards as if in alarm.
We were following the Jaut Rajah
[??] at the point of intersection
of the two paths some of the
«
-
23.1
»
dangerous pathway and the Jaut
been
Rajah who had ^ apparently watching
the movement of the Nagas behind
with some anxiety had stopped
with our party on a ridge & low
[??] commanding access
to the village. After some dilay [sic]
the Nagas apparently suspicious
of the rear guard & it of them
«
-
25.1
»
companions moved after the Jaut
Rajah up one of the hills proceeding
towards the rear. I took up a
position with the Light Infy of
our personal guard & seing all pursuit
perfectly useless with such hill [goats]
«
-
27.1
»
instantly slaughtered by our Naga
coolies who were delighted with
the days amusement & put us in no
[??]
little alarm for xxxxxx was very
abundant & they immediately
«
-
last for today:
27.2
»
In the evening we heard the yells
of the Nagas in all directions but
except some occasional firing about
half the night passed away smoothly
enough, but early in the morning
some stray Nagas lighted up the
village by burning one hut above
us & another immediately below
us which threatened to burn us
out and at the same time their
yells at the top of the village &
their shouting & abuse from other
parts & quite close to us became
«
solved
-
Steep precipice & toddy was very abundant! so they were apparently bevvied! ;D
Skoosh.
-
Steep precipice & toddy was very abundant! so they were apparently bevvied! ;D
Skoosh.
Oh, they were! But toddy was replaced with a different word.
Why i did not recognise »steep precipice«, I have no clue, though.
thanks
j.
-
Local word for the "Electric Soup!" ;D Hooch still a problem in India apparently.
Skoosh.
-
20.1 - were very slight (in the sense of insubstantial)
20.2 - I agree with your transliteration, but have no idea what or where this is
21.1 - I think the full phrase might be 'up to the downs or undulated table-land'
22.1 - steep precipice (as Skoosh says); I think the other one must be 'and' with a slip of the pen to look like 'ahd'
23.1 - eminences
25.1 - certainly looks like 'goats'
27.1 - toddy deleted, and 'rack' inserted. (OED: 'rack' is a variant of 'arrack' - in eastern countries, a local fermented beverage)
-
27.1 - toddy deleted, and 'rack' inserted. (OED: 'rack' is a variant of 'arrack' - in eastern countries, a local fermented beverage)
I was misled by the slight dot, which made it out for me to look like raik. There my block started :)
Rack or raks(h)i! Of course! Toddy is made from sugar cane and raksi from anything, in this case of course rice. Maybe that was the reason to replace the word.
Thanks again for your input. It really helps me to get better in this. Now I am at the brink of doing 10 pages per day. The whole diary is ( a rough guess) 200 to 250. And more and more often I understand whole pages on my own. That is amazing!
And I learned already an immense amount of new context to understand the early relations between the British and the locals.
One more thing: the place names are not that important, since I already have a rough idea about the route, and local memory will tell the rest. So in most cases it is more important to understand the simple spelling (most often after what he heard or was given by more or less able translators – there was not much change in this regard since – I fight the same wars all the time). There I have limits. Thsis is also to train my eyes on written source of the 19th century. I have a huge amount of material here, all handwritten and in good parts of even worse legibility.
Jan
Attached is an overview of the area where all this took place: North-western Manipur on the border to todays Nagaland. They started south of the picture and used first the right hand valley just till after the point, where it splits. Then they went left up and over to the parallel valley and further up North to cross over the river and left the picture in the left upper corner.
-
You seem to be doing very well, especially since English isn't your native language, and some of the wording is a bit dated. I can't promise to help out every day, so input from others is always welcome.
That terrain looks pretty forbidding, but from what you've posted, it sounds to have been settled in 1832, even if only thinly.
-
back after a short break ;D
28.1
»
The moon shone very bright in a cold
clear night & we could see numerous
Nagas playing anticks & [shirking?] about
the upper part of the village – many coming
within shot but they kept at a more
respectable distance after a chance
ball or two had come close to them.
«
-
28.2
»
& they were so emboldened by this
as to come down quite close to us
cutting [??] [capers?] of defiance. All
firing had ere this been prohibited
but our double barrelled guns having
nearly reached some of them they
kept wide the moment they saw
a gentleman. About [??] the Jaut
Rajah joined us & sent up a
small party to force the stockade
«
-
30.1
»
show us the road to Assam – without
this I know not how we were to have
found our way for we have not a
[??] capable of conducting us beyond
this village and its not the most com-
fortable thing to reflect that our guides
«
-
30.2
»
might have succeeded for before they
[??] which
had a chance of success ^ we had full
400 musquets beyond their reach* &
«
-
30.m1
»
I afterwards
heard Neela Sing
the head of our [guid?]
department & who
had been preparing
«
misspelling?
-
30.m2
»
us. But I thought
at the moment that
their [??] intention
was to get the rear
guard to move
on before them
«
-
35.1
»
Only but for this village, the
road between comparatively civi-
lized countries would be open
- viz. Assam & Munipoore & 1000:s
of [either?] & the intermediate countries
would be employed in the peaceful
interchange of commodities the
produce of their different climates;
instead of traffic however these
[??] prefer rapine & [loot]
upon Assam as their legal
field of plunder & their chace [sic]
«
-
37.1
»
found it quite impracticable for
our [??] & 3 Elephants, just as
we came to the place where the line
halted my poor little Pony after
«
-
37.2
»
best we had. [Three?] minutes after
I met the advanced people returning
in despair of getting on by the road
& this short interval would have
saved the poor beast. The others
which we had got down [were?] only
again got up by main force
& the personal exertions of our
young Rajah & his chief men.
The poor guide when threatened
with instant death, said that
«
-
37.m1
»
This I belive is chiefly
used by the Nagas for
making their spirit
or beer of, but it was
roasted by some of our
people & made a good
[chutenee?]. Of other
«
-
38.1
»
he had been hailed by the people
of the hill this morning who told
him that if he took us by the centre
& best road, they would kill his
mother & himself if ever he returned
– on this their women & children
had taken refuge, & on it their
yams & [cuchoos?] are planted. The
poor devil naturally took us by the
«
-
39.1
»
please both parties – he has [??]
great promises from us & the Jaut
Rajah yesterday gave him a necklace
«
abbreviated »received« ?
-
39.m1
»
of a Palm. The leaves
7 to 8 ft long, branching
at us an umbrella at
top, with marks on the
[trunk?] of the footstalks of the
leaves which had fuller
as the tree progressed.
«
-
39.m2
»
The fructification
was that of the true ferns
with capsules of seeds
below the [??] . It was
growing in a moist dell
overhanging a rivulet.
«
-
28.1 - 'shirking' is OK
28.2 - possibly 'cutting their capers' (OED: cut a caper = dance in a frolicsome way); the other one is '8'
30.1 - looks like 'stal' (possibly some local word?)
30.2 - 'by a rush'
30.m1 - my best thoughts are 'guid' (Scottish variant of 'good'); or, if he uses the long 's', 'said'. But I'm not sure of either of these.
(You've just posted a lot more while I've been writing. I can't look at these now, but if any are still unanswered later I'll see what I can do.)
-
OED: cut a caper = dance in a frolicsome way
Do you use the online version of the OED or do you have a printed copy? I keep thinking about, but the online version's price tag seems a bit over the top.
J.
-
39.m2 - below the fronds*
[a type of leaf found in ferns and palms]
Regards
GS
-
39.m2 - below the fronds*
[a type of leaf found in ferns and palms]
Regards
GS
Thanks a bunch! That I would have never found out by myself.
J.
-
OED: cut a caper = dance in a frolicsome way
Do you use the online version of the OED or do you have a printed copy? I keep thinking about, but the online version's price tag seems a bit over the top.
J.
Hi Jan,
Have you tried this? It's free (and good!):
https://www.lexico.com/en
Best regards,
Karen
-
"The Caper-Hoose!" in Scots = the Assylum! ;D
Skoosh.
Anent guid, is this not the guide department?
-
Re 30.m1:
Anent guid, is this not the guide department?
Skoosh is probably right here. There does look to be something after the 'd', and 'guide' would fit the context.
Do you use the online version of the OED or do you have a printed copy? I keep thinking about, but the online version's price tag seems a bit over the top.
My public library membership gives me free access to the online version. For current usage Lexico looks good, and there's also Chambers at https://chambers.co.uk/ but I don't know of anything that gives historical forms and usage as well as the OED.
There's an excellent dialect dictionary at http://www.rootschat.com/links/01j6q/ but it's based on UK usage, and doesn't help much here where it's standard English with a smattering of words from Indian languages.
Anyway, some unanswered queries:
30.m2 - only
35.1 - & ('& of' would read a bit better, I think); wretches; look
37.1 - tattoos
37.2 - Five (probably); were
37.m1 - could be chutenee - an old form of 'chutney'?
38.1 - don't know
39.1 - recd (standard abbreviation for 'received')
39a.1 - trunk; 'fallen' not 'fuller'
I think that's all, but if there are still any outstanding, including of course the ones I couldn't get, it might be helpful if you did a catch-up post from time to time quoting the ones you still need help with, as each quote will have a link to the relevant post and image.
-
37.1 - tattoos
tattoos as in pipe band?
j
-
41.1
»
us till we were so many
red herrings. We slept however
undisturbed & found the night
[some?]
much warmer than usual (therm. 45),
and this morning we began
to move about 9. For an
«
-
42.1
this is just about the spelling, not the meaning
»
(Qui sungba)
«
-
48.1
»
The road down to the village was
covered with Iron [??] gravel
a few blocks of a sort of Laterite
were by the way side, but the stone
«
-
50m.1
»
A little child
that had been found
deserted in the
jungle, it was [??]
should be taken
«
-
That concludes the first 50 pages. I think I will put in after these a post of the unsolved ones (just 5!).
And the next step will be to find out how many pages there are alltogether :)
Thank you all for your input!
Jan
-
37.1 - tattoos
tattoos as in pipe band?
I wasn't sure about the meaning when I wrote this, but I really couldn't see the word as anything else. Anyway, according to the trusty OED a tattoo is also a native-bred Indian pony - from a Hindi word ṭaṭṭū.
-
37.1 - tattoos
tattoos as in pipe band?
I wasn't sure about the meaning when I wrote this, but I really couldn't see the word as anything else. Anyway, according to the trusty OED a tattoo is also a native-bred Indian pony - from a Hindi word ṭaṭṭū.
That is quite interesting!
I should find out if there is access to the OED at the University. Although there would be little use of the possibility out here in the field ;)
Thank you! I owe you several good ales already ::)
Jan
-
found that for टट्टू :https://www.wordhippo.com/what-is/the-meaning-of/hindi-word-4b3cdd8edf60505f8e8e64d6a08880748607e902.html (https://www.wordhippo.com/what-is/the-meaning-of/hindi-word-4b3cdd8edf60505f8e8e64d6a08880748607e902.html)
j.
-
I think there are a few still outstanding:
41.1 - probably thermmr (for thermometer)
42.1 - I would transcribe it the same as you
48.1 - looks like 'konkar', whatever that might be
50m.1 - it looks as though it might start 'wei...', but from the context I wonder if it's 'wished' (partly hidden)
-
thanks once again for your help.
41.1 I keep on the watchlist for now.
42.1 ok
48.1 with your help I found Kankar (Kunkur) in Ball's »A Manual if the Geology of India«, its a sediment of sorts
50m.1 your idea seems resonable.
For the last few days, I did not find much time to work on the manuscript. Also my internet connection may fail further out.
J.
-
new material – although luckily less as I encountered a rather legible patch of the manuscript.
51m.1
»
upon the woman
and I requested they
might be watched.
But the [shag?] child
did not accompany
the woman & was
next morning tied
to a post in the
«
-
52m.1
»
& it was seen & taken
off before we had
[??] got out, but
when the child
«
-
52m.2
»
of Yéké were quite
innocent of this
transaction & most
probably never heard
of it. I and they [??] -
[??] that the
child might be
surrendered to them
«
-
53.1
»
villagers came down again
and wanted to be admitted
to see the sahib [??] but
were refused, I know not
«
solved, see further down
-
61.1
»
on. We were nearly certain
that we should find supplies
on the Dhunsiri & we were
in its [meridian?] of long(gitude?) nearly
«
-
53.1
»
villagers came down again
and wanted to be admitted
to see the sahib log but
were refused, I know not
«
solved: लोग (hindi = people)
-
Agree with you on 61.1. Jan.
-
Hi,
in 52m.2 I see pe-tioned.
I wonder if he meant petitioned, but lost a couple of letters underway?! ???
Best regards,
Karen
-
I agree with Karen on 52.2.
-
51m.1 - stray
52m.1 - even got
-
Hi,
in 52m.2 I see pe-tioned.
I wonder if he meant petitioned, but lost a couple of letters underway?! ???
Best regards,
Karen
that would sound logical, especially at the end of a (margins) line and keeping in mind the faulty spelling of the diary, but the context is disagreement between »I« and »they«, because »they« wanted just a bit of scalp from the child to settle an old feud. »I« (Jenkins) could of course not agree to that.
so I keep it on the unsolved list for now.
But thank you anyway for your input.
-
51m.1 - stray
52m.1 - even got
I would never have seen an »even« there! And »stray« is surely much better than my idea.
Thanks.
-
a few more problems
86.1
»
got the means of moving
with 20 Coolies & 2 double
platform canoes I left Mulong
accompanied by Mackenzie
«
or 10?
-
88.1
»
2 or 3 miles below Ramsah
we came to the falls & ra-
pids of the river at [??]
Jumoona, the falls are very
«
-
90.1
»
The country we came through
has in the ordinary routine
of Joum cultivation or in better
years been nearly all cultivated
for it was almost entirely covered
with the aftergrowth of crops
grass & brushwood. I am told
«
solved
-
91.1
»
We fell in to-day with a small
herd of wild Buffaloes, [??] or[??]
at which we made some ineffec-
tual shots. They were fine
«
-
92.1
»
pathways of elephants and one
spot under the first hill we came
to appears to be the nightly [?ground]
of a very numerous herd - for
some purpose or other, the natives
«
-
93.1
»
The remainder of the road
was along the bank of a fine
stream of water, the [??]
which even now seemed navi-
gable for {X} canoes. This stream
«
-
95.1
»
of land, and must have
much variety of climate,
these
alloted to ^ requisites for
extended & diversified agricul-
«
solved
-
97.1
»
a scene for her. The valley
of the Jumoona I would [farm {out}?]
to Rajah Tooley Ram at a
low rent for his life or long term
of years and a defined extend
«
-
98.1
»
versation on state matters
with the Rajah but I like
the man's appearance and I
like his people much.
«
solved, thanks to Karen!
-
98.2
»
Started our cattle by land & the major
part of our Guard and ourselves
got into Canoes with our heavy
baggage which we could not bring
[over?] here with us by land from
the difficulty in getting further
coolies. We walked to the
end of scattered hamlets
which form the village of Duboka
and I found them much nicer
than I had yesterday, we were
«
partly solved
-
99.1
»
capabilities than Cachar – and
can never [??] habe been
followed by more damnable
destruction.
«
-
(Quote)
98.1
»
versation on state matters
with the Rajah but I like
the [??] applesauce and I
like his people much. (Unquote)
I think it is actually appearance, not applesauce. :P
Still not sure what the preceding word is, though...
Edit: I was wondering if it might be man's with a bit of the "n" missing...
Best regards,
Karen
-
98.2
[Marched?] our cattle by land & the major
part of our Guard and ourselves
got into Canoes with our heavy
baggage which we could not bring
[over?] here with us by land from
the difficulty in getting further
coolies. We walked to the
end of scattered hamlets
which form the village of Duboka
and I found them much [more?]
than I had yesterday, we were
Marched: I was wondering if it might be Carted with an extra flourish or correction at the beginning.
[over?] here with us by land from: I think it might be by hand
the difficulty in getting further: I see proper, not further (doesn't make much difference, though... :) )
and I found them much [more?]: I see a dot above the word. I think it could be nicer, which fits better, too.
Best regards,
Karen
-
(Quote)
98.1
»
versation on state matters
with the Rajah but I like
the [??] applesauce and I
like his people much. (Unquote)
I think it is actually appearance, not applesauce. :P
Still not sure what the preceding word is, though...
Edit: I was wondering if it might be man's with a bit of the "n" missing...
Best regards,
Karen
t'was a test, a test t'was!
:-X
-
Did I pass? ;D
-
98.2
[Marched?] our cattle by land & the major
part of our Guard and ourselves
got into Canoes with our heavy
baggage which we could not bring
[over?] here with us by land from
the difficulty in getting further
coolies. We walked to the
end of scattered hamlets
which form the village of Duboka
and I found them much [more?]
than I had yesterday, we were
Marched: I was wondering if it might be Carted with an extra flourish or correction at the beginning.
[over?] here with us by land from: I think it might be by hand
the difficulty in getting further: I see proper, not further (doesn't make much difference, though... :) )
and I found them much [more?]: I see a dot above the word. I think it could be nicer, which fits better, too.
Best regards,
Karen
yes, he had probably a bad day (looking at his writing).
»nicer«, although very hard to imagine, could fit.
»proper« uups!
»by land« they went on a boat and took the heavy baggage with them, because of coolie shortage. so »land« should be ok, I guess ;)
»carting« – do you cart cattle? Besides, the »roads« out there were mere paths through jungle and swamps. In some areas in Assam wheels came into use in the 1960s only!
Thank you.
btw. it's »the man's appearance«, although applesauce would fit nicely!
-
Did I pass? ;D
see below. you would have passed with the correct words. all of them
you passed. :D
Jan
(p.s. I gave you full credit though)
-
;D
I like the idea of applesauce. :D
Hmmm...carting cattle. The word is irritating me, as I see a horizontal stroke through not only the "t" (if it is indeed a "t") but also through the first 2 letters, which makes me think it must start with "Th" or something along those lines.
The more I look, the more it confuses me... I'll have a little break and look again later. Maybe Arthur will have solved everything by then! ;D
Edit: Now I can only see "Started", but whether that makes sense..?! ???
-
Edit: Now I can only see "Started", but whether that makes sense..?! ???
a stroke of genius!
that matches the language.
j.
-
Well, that's it, then. I'm officially a genius. ;) ;D
It's a shame I can't work out the other words, though! ::)
But I'm sure Arthur can help.
-
Did I hear my name? Bur first, thanks for your input, Karen - I'm not managing to pop in to this thread quite as often as I did at first. Anyway, here goes...
86.1 - 10
88.1 - Leal? Seal? (is it part of a place name?)
91.1 - 8 or 10
92.1 - rendezvous
93.1 - looks to be the name of a river - Hargatty???
97.1 - could be farm
98.2 - I agree with Started for the first word. The one at the start of line 5 is hard: the first letter could be 'o', and might suggest 'over' or 'out', but the last one isn't like his usual 'r' or 't'. I can't see any strong similarities to any other letters, though, so my current best guess is 'ou' and he forgot the 't'. :-\
99.1 - scarcely
-
97.1 - could be farm
I thought, he may have run out of page and forgot the out part. It would not be the first instance in the text. Then again I do not know too much of language practice of the time. »farm« + out fits quite well in the context. I file it under Jenkins quirks.
98.2 - I agree with Started for the first word. The one at the start of line 5 is hard: the first letter could be 'o', and might suggest 'over' or 'out', but the last one isn't like his usual 'r' or 't'. I can't see any strong similarities to any other letters, though, so my current best guess is 'ou' and he forgot the 't'. :-\
»over«, I thought, would fit better, since it describes the transport to »over here«. The diary was written in the evening, so »over here« describes the day's movement. »out« on the other hand would fit less well, since they were moving »in«, in the sense of into settled areas, coming from »out there« in the jungles.
All the other suggestions are stunningly well founded, as usual. And as usual I cannot fathom how I could miss them in the first place. But there you are. ::)
Thank you
J.
-
98.2 - I agree with Started for the first word. The one at the start of line 5 is hard: the first letter could be 'o', and might suggest 'over' or 'out', but the last one isn't like his usual 'r' or 't'. I can't see any strong similarities to any other letters, though, so my current best guess is 'ou' and he forgot the 't'. :-\
»over«, I thought, would fit better, since it describes the transport to »over here«. The diary was written in the evening, so »over here« describes the day's movement. »out« on the other hand would fit less well, since they were moving »in«, in the sense of into settled areas, coming from »out there« in the jungles.
I'd been thinking about things that had been previously taken 'out' and were now being taken back 'in', but on further thought, I think your interpretation is better.
And looking at this extract again, I'd been used to his final 'r' in what we'd now say was an old-fashioned style, eg line 2, 3rd word and line 6, final word. I now see there's a more modern one on 'major' at the end of the first line, so on balance I'd be happy to accept 'over'.
-
problem 38.1 is solved
»cuchoo« is the local name for Taro, beng. কচু (kochu), skt. कचु (kacu)
got local input ;D
j
-
So, now the rest of the problems. The text is finished now – 158 pages. The next project is letters :)
106.1
»
Jumoona mookh at Kari-
cōna1 and from the appearent
«
----
1. Karieōna?
-
109.1
»
come to, the villagers are ready
waiting with abundant presents
of rice, vegetables, goor & fish
for the Rajah which speaks
well for him & for them &
«
solved: goor= jaggery, ass./beng. গুড় (Guḍ / gur)
-
112.1
»
Asking the Moktear about
the disputed Doab1, the fellow
of course affirmed that it had
been the Jynteah’s time [??]
[??] , but from enquiring
from some Assamese afterwards
the elders of the Panchaet2 at
«
----
1. two rivers (urd: do āb, دو آب ), also the area between the two
2. panchāyat (hind: पंचायत), »assembly of five«
solved: time out of mind
-
114.1
»
We halted to day to change
our boats; the coolies [dandies]
& boats having been furnished
to us gratuitously by the Cacharee
«
solved: dandy - a sailing vessel with two masts; a small mizzen is aft of the rudderpost, a small boat crewed by rowers
-
116m.1
»
at the time. The tree
valued most for making
canoes they call [Chassa?]
a reddish wood of very
large size. Baleeram
«
-
117m.1
»
*From a [parh] in
a note of Mr. Scotts
which I subsequently
met, Mr. S. appears
to have once sent
a batch of Elephants
to Dacca, but the
particulars of the
sale & return I have
not the means of
ascertaining.
«
solved: parh; met; Mr S.
-
121m.1
This is a register of wares sold at a market. I lack the knowledge of book keeping to decipher the abbreviations. There is a second part in the next post.
»
* Present prices at
Rahachokey
[??] [??]
----------------
Rs
Lac 8 a md
& a deduction for wood
Wax 15
Cotton 3 unpicked
«
-
121m.2
»
Do cloth
katto
10x2 2 1/2 fr [??]
Opium [??]
the cloth 6 to twice
that according to the
season & whether
advances are made or
not
Rice 2 to 3 mds for R.
Choul sold at Gowahattie
Canes 22 bundles each of 40 canes
for Cal. [??] R.
see back {sketch of a hand pointing to right}
The principal
imports are Rs
Salt sold from 7 to 10 a md.
Beads
Sindoor
English cloths
Broad cloths [??]
«
-
123.1
»
neighboring Zemindars, rice, dal,
fowls, ducks & [kids?] were sent us in
an abundance propositioned to the
rarity of the presence of a European.
We are quite a show to the poor
people, who seem xxxx gratified
that a gentleman should have
come amongst them.
«
solved: gratified
-
124.1
»
by deep pits beyond the depth
of our luggies denoting the effect
produced upon the Kullung by the
«
luggies as in (scot:) ears?
-
122.1
'time out of mind' = so long ago that no-one can remember; from time immemorial.
Carol
-
125.1
»
two small ones an the Jyanteah
side but generally both banks were
buried with high grass jungle beyond
which however was I believe unin-
terrupted cultivation on both sides.
«
solved: lined
-
130m.1
»
I presume are very
beautiful as repute
[sayeth?] , for many
of the commonest
women in the Bazar
«
solved: sayeth
-
131m.1
»
I have seen the
same occurrence
of this sculpture
at Nagpore (The
[kind?] was sacred
in the Egyptian
temples I think)
does it belong to the
Boodhist or Brah-
minical superstitions?
«
solved: bird
-
132.1
»
The town is a long straggeling
irregular series of hamlets
of thatched & [??] huts and
wears little appearance of
being in a flourishing state
«
solved: tattied, roofed with panka–like plant (fan palm?)
-
136.1
»
them – giving him British
statute size as the most
convenient for inexperienced
manufacturers & [??] .
Desperate rogues should here
as elsewhere beat [??]
at home.
«
-
141.1
»
is now allowed to disperse
itself might be drained &
cultivated and or more running
streams might be brought
through the town to purge
«
-
143.1
»
over some rising undulated
ground forming several
most delightful little vales
well cultivated & well wooded
each of which generally ends
in a [??] hamlet, now surrounded
with most luxuriant [??]
[??] . When first the rains
commence & the plains around
«
partly solved: neat, poppy, cates1
----
1. OED. 'provisions', 'delicacies', or sometimes just 'food'
-
144.1
»
broken hills & the distant
high ranges – the rich & [??]
[??] plains & the pictures-
que old temples, but
«
solved: ver–dant
-
147.1
»
it practicable for carriages with
the addiction of a little [??]
or gravel over the planks.
No difficulty would then
«
solved: soorkee = brick pulverized and mixed with lime to form a mortar
-
153.1
»
the son ([??] the eldest?) of the
aforesaid Gudadhur Sing.
«
solved: Qu: = Query
-
122.1
'time out of mind' = so long ago that no-one can remember; from time immemorial.
Carol
Thank you Carol!
another one off the list!
Jan
-
I haven't managed all of them, but I can offer these, some of which I am not sure of:
114.1 - dandies?
116m.1 - cham? chani?
117m.1 - parh = paragraph; met - then I think "W.S."
123.1 - kids; line 3 'proportional'; line 6 could be 'gratified' but I can't tell what it's been changed from, or what the crossed out word before it is
125.1 - lined
130m.1 - I agree with 'sayeth'
131m.1 - bird
132.1 - tattied? (for 'tattered')
136.1 - burners?
141.1 - looks like 'and or' ('and/or' is now common, but was the phrase used then?)
143.1 - line 6 'neat'
144.1 - rich & verdant
147.1 - I can't get the missing word, but it's 'addition' not 'addiction'!
153.1 - 'Qu:' = Query
-
117m.1 - parh = paragraph; met - then I think "W.S."
but would that not mean »which I met« instead of »whom I met«
another example of his excentric grammar?
also: what about »Mr S.« ?
j
-
143.1 - line 6 'neat'
the following is poppy, but the last word buggs me - again! its the same as in 7.1.
-
147.1 - I can't get the missing word, but it's 'addition' not 'addiction'!
that was actually my speeling mistake ;D
and: I found the word! »soorkee« is brick pulverized and mixed with lime to form a mortar says Merriam-Webster. I was sure, the spelling is bad, so I did not even check!
j
-
117m.1 - parh = paragraph; met - then I think "W.S."
but would that not mean »which I met« instead of »whom I met«
another example of his excentric grammar?
Occasionally you hear 'which' referring to a person ("Our father, which art in heaven...")
143.1 - line 6 'neat'
the following is poppy, but the last word buggs me - again! its the same as in 7.1.
I'd forgotten that, and I didn't get it there either. It looks like 'cates'; the OED gives one meaning of this as 'provisions', 'delicacies', or sometimes just 'food', but that doesn't really fit, does it? Or could it be his way of saying it's a food crop?
-
I'd forgotten that, and I didn't get it there either. It looks like 'cates'; the OED gives one meaning of this as 'provisions', 'delicacies', or sometimes just 'food', but that doesn't really fit, does it? Or could it be his way of saying it's a food crop?
I begin to believe that »cates« is a word he just uses wrongly. I keep loking out for more examples.
-
Here is a summary of the work so far. There is still a few problems to be solved. So if you find time, visit the respective entries and let me know your opinions.
1.1 solved
1.2 solved
1.3 solved
1.4 solved
2.1 solved
2.2 solved
2.3 solved
2.4 solved
2.5 solved
2.6 interpretation issue (https://www.rootschat.com/forum/index.php?topic=819929.msg6822972#msg6822972)
3.1 solved
3.2 solved
3.3 solved
3.4 solved
4.1 solved
4.2 solved
4.3 solved
5.1 solved
5.2 solved
6.1 solved
6.2 solved
7.1 word use issue (https://www.rootschat.com/forum/index.php?topic=819929.msg6824061#msg6824061)
7.2 solved
7.3 solved
9.1 solved
10.1 solved
11.1 solved
11.2 solved
12.1 solved
13.1 solved
13.2 solved
13.3 solved
14.1 solved
14.2 solved
15.1 solved
16.1 solved
17.1 solved
18.1 solved
20.1 solved
20.2 solved
21.1 solved
22.1 solved
23.1 solved
25.1 solved
27.1 solved
27.2 solved
28.1 solved
28.2 solved
30.1 solved
30.2 solved
30m.1 solved
30m.2 solved
35.1 solved
37.1 solved
37.2 solved
37m.1 solved
38.1 solved
39.1 solved
39m.1 solved
39m.2 solved
41.1 abbreviation issue (https://www.rootschat.com/forum/index.php?topic=819929.msg6828190#msg6828190)
42.1 solved
48.1 solved
50m.1 solved
51m.1 solved
52m.1 solved
52m.2 word/spelling issue (https://www.rootschat.com/forum/index.php?topic=819929.msg6832467#msg6832467)
53.1 solved
61.1 solved
86.1 solved
88.1 name issue (https://www.rootschat.com/forum/index.php?topic=819929.msg6833877#msg6833877)
90.1 solved
91.1 solved
92.1 solved
93.1 name issue (https://www.rootschat.com/forum/index.php?topic=819929.msg6833881#msg6833881)
95.1 solved
97.1 solved
98.1 solved
98.2 solved
99.1 solved
106.1 name issue (https://www.rootschat.com/forum/index.php?topic=819929.msg6836667#msg6836667)
109.1 solved
112.1 solved
114.1 solved
116m.1 plant species question (https://www.rootschat.com/forum/index.php?topic=819929.msg6836673#msg6836673)
117m.1 solved
121m.1 abbreviation issues (https://www.rootschat.com/forum/index.php?topic=819929.msg6836677#msg6836677)
121m.2 abbreviation issues (https://www.rootschat.com/forum/index.php?topic=819929.msg6836679#msg6836679)
123.1 solved
124.1 scottish word? (https://www.rootschat.com/forum/index.php?topic=819929.msg6836686#msg6836686)
125.1 solved
130m.1 solved
131m.1 solved
132.1 solved
136.1 word/spelling issue (https://www.rootschat.com/forum/index.php?topic=819929.msg6836700#msg6836700)
141.1 word use issue (https://www.rootschat.com/forum/index.php?topic=819929.msg6836701#msg6836701)
143.1 word use issue (https://www.rootschat.com/forum/index.php?topic=819929.msg6836704#msg6836704)
144.1 solved
147.1 solved
153.1 solved
7.1 and 143.1 are basically the same problem. »cates« is the word.
-
30.1
»
show us the road to Assam – without
this I know not how we were to have
found our way for we have not a
[??] capable of conducting us beyond
this village and its not the most com-
fortable thing to reflect that our guides
«
Could it perhaps be soul?
I must admit that I am impressed by your "to-do" list, with its links! You are obviously an extremely organised person. Hut ab!
Best regards,
Karen
-
136.1
»
them – giving him British
statute size as the most
convenient for inexperienced
manufacturers & [??] .
Desperate rogues should here
as elsewhere beat [??]
at home.
«
Could it simply be a badly-written business? ???
-
30.1
»
show us the road to Assam – without
this I know not how we were to have
found our way for we have not a
[??] capable of conducting us beyond
this village and its not the most com-
fortable thing to reflect that our guides
«
Could it perhaps be soul?
I must admit that I am impressed by your "to-do" list, with its links! You are obviously an extremely organised person. Hut ab!
Best regards,
Karen
I think you nailed it! Thanks a bunch.
Jan
-
136.1
»
them – giving him British
statute size as the most
convenient for inexperienced
manufacturers & [??] .
Desperate rogues should here
as elsewhere beat [??]
at home.
«
Could it simply be a badly-written business? ???
that is the trouble. its just a jumble of letters in this state. and he could have written the word wrong for all we now. but still i find it hard to construct »business« out of it.
Thanks though!
Jan
-
7.1 and 143.1 are basically the same problem. »cates« is the word and as such legible. the use in he context does not fit. so if anyone has a look at it keep that in mind.
-
Regarding »cates«. Now having access to the OED (even »out here in the jungle«) I pondered over the problem. I think, Jenkins used »cates« in a sense of »pods«, in the first instance with cotton and oil plants, in the second with poppy (although I do not know if pod is the proper word for the thing that remains after the flower loses its petals).
Read in that sense the sentences get a meaning: »fine green cates« and »luxuriant poppy cates«.
There is still a few more spots to clean up. So if you find time, please take a minute to cast a look upon them. see: list of issues (post 201) (https://www.rootschat.com/forum/index.php?topic=819929.msg6837131#msg6837131)
Jan
-
The remaining (solved) puzzles:
2.6 »We are accompanied by a party of 5 or 7 escaped Assamese who have found their way back within these 3 or 4 months. An old woman is the only one who was carried off. The rest have been born of Asam parents, since dead, who were carried away by a party of Singphos and then were somewhere on the banks of the Ninghtee...«
7.1 »cates« used as »pods«
41.1 thermometer
52m.2 well
88.1 Seal Jumoona, actually Seel
93.1 Hargatty, actually Horgāti
106.1 Karicōna
116m.1 Cham, a wood used for posts, beams and small boats
121m.1, 2 kept »as is«
124.1 luggie, a rod or pole, supposedly an "english dialect" (which?)
136.1 burners, soorkhie (Hobson-Jobson: SOORKY , s. Pounded brick used to mix with lime to form a hydraulic mortar. Hind. from Pers. surkhī, 'redstuff.')
141.1 kept »as is«
143.1 »cates« used as »pods«
Thanks again for all your input!
Jan
-
two, related, questions. i guess its the same word:
the long text reads:
»
foot of Ooheesaba hill
plain [??] of Ooheesaba village
village of Yueekhe
«
the second is embedded in the sentence
»
Camp in forest in Assam plain, [??] of the Naga hills
«
Jan
-
Could it be "north"?
-
Of course! Thank you. I guess I was distracted of the ominous dot in the first example. That »i« blocked my reasoning completely.
Jan
-
Regarding »cates«. Now having access to the OED (even »out here in the jungle«) I pondered over the problem. I think, Jenkins used »cates« in a sense of »pods«, in the first instance with cotton and oil plants, in the second with poppy (although I do not know if pod is the proper word for the thing that remains after the flower loses its petals).
Read in that sense the sentences get a meaning: »fine green cates« and »luxuriant poppy cates«.
There is still a few more spots to clean up. So if you find time, please take a minute to cast a look upon them. see: list of issues (post 201) (https://www.rootschat.com/forum/index.php?topic=819929.msg6837131#msg6837131)
Jan
Getting further along with the research and now having found the first part of the diary (though as a copy) in Nottingham, I came to the conlusion that »Cates« is Jenkinsish for Khets (fields). It makes so much more sense now. Thank you all for your help!