nd
walk across it, he would marry her and make her wealthy. Accordingly
the rope was stretched, but the queen from jealousy went and cut
it nearly through in the night, and when the Natni started to walk,
the rope broke, and she fell down and was killed. Having regard to
the Kumaon rite, it may be surmised that these legends commemorate
the death of a Natni or acrobat during the performance of some feat of
dancing or sliding on a rope for the magical benefit of the crops. And
it seems possible that acrobatic performances may have had their
origin in this manner. The point bearing on the present argument is,
however, that the Nat performed special functions for the success of
the village crops, and on this account was supported by contributions
from the villagers, and ranked with the village menials.

30. Household servants.

Some of the castes already mentioned, and one or two others having
the same status, work as household servants as well as village
menials. The Dhimar is most commonly employed as an indoor servant
in Hindu households, and is permitted to knead flour in water and
make it into a cake, which the Brahman then takes and puts on the
girdle with his own hands. He can boil water and pour pulse into the
cooking-pot from above, so long as he does not touch the vessel after
the food has been placed in it. He will take any remains of food
left in the cooking-pot, as this is not considered to be polluted,
food only becoming polluted when the hand touches it on the dish after
having touched the mouth. When this happens, all the food on the dish
becomes _jutha_ or leavings of food, and as a general rule no caste
except the sweepers will eat these leavings of food of another caste
or of another person of their own. Only a wife, whose meal follows
her husband's, will eat his leavings. As a servant, the Dhimar is
very familiar with his master; he may enter any part of the house,
including the cooking-place and the women's rooms, and he addresses
his mistress as 'Mother.' When he lights his master's pipe he takes
the first pull himself, to show that it has not been tampered with,
and then presents it to him with his left hand placed under his
right elbow in token of respect. Maid-servants frequently belong
also to the Dhimar caste, and it often happens that the master of
the household has illicit intercourse with them. Hence there is a
proverb: 'The king's son draws water and the water-bearer's son sits
on th