ban by wrapping another
small rag carelessly round the head, leaving the crown generally
bare, as if this part of the person required special sunning and
ventilation. Hindus will not be seen out-of-doors with the head bare,
though the Gonds and other tribes only begin to wear head-cloths when
they are adopting Hinduism. The Gondi fashion was formerly prevalent
in Chhattisgarh. Some sanctity attaches to the turban, probably because
it is the covering of the head. To knock off a man's turban is a great
insult, and if it drops off or he lets it fall, it is a very bad omen.

38. Women's clothes

Women, in the northern Districts wear a skirt made of coarse
cloth, usually red or blue, and a shoulder-cloth of the same
material. Hand-woven cloth is still commonly used in the interior. The
skirt is sometimes drawn up through the legs behind so as to give it
a divided appearance; this is called _kachhota_. On the upper part of
the body they wear an _angia_ or breast-cloth, that is a short, tight,
sleeveless jacket reaching only to below the breasts. The _angia_ is
tied behind, while the Maratha _choli_, which is the same thing, is
buttoned or tied in front. High-caste women draw their shoulder-cloth
right over the head so that the face cannot be seen. When a woman goes
before a person of position she covers her head, as it is considered
immodest to leave it bare. Women of respectable families wear a
sheet of fine white, yellow, or red cloth drawn over the head and
reaching to the ankles when they go on a journey, this being known
as _pichhora_. In Chhattisgarh all the requirements of fashion among
women are satisfied by one cloth from 8 to 12 yards long and about a
yard wide, which envelops the person in one fold from the waist to
below the knee, hanging somewhat loosely. It is tied at the waist,
and the remaining half is spread over the breast and drawn across the
right shoulder, the end covering the head like a sheet and falling over
the left shoulder. The simplicity of this solitary garment displays a
graceful figure to advantage, especially on festival days, when those
who can afford it are arrayed in tasar silk. When a girl is married the
bridegroom's family give her expensive clothes to wear at festivals
and her own people give her ordinary clothes, but usually not more
than will last a year. Whenever she goes back to her father's house
after her marriage, he gives her one or two cloths if he can afford
it. Women of