painted horns: it was, however, with some persuasion
the folly of this general practice was omitted in this instance.

The guinah or garland, of flowers on a tray covered with brocade. The
guinah are sweet-scented flowers without stalks, threaded into garlands in
many pretty ways, with great taste and ingenuity, intermixed with silver
ribands; they are formed into bracelets, necklaces, armlets, chaplets for
the head, and bangles for the legs. There are people in Lucknow who make
the preparing of guinahs a profitable business, as the population is so
extensive as to render these flower-ornaments articles of great request.

A tray filled with pawns, prepared with the usual ingredients, as lime,
cuttie[16] (a bitter gum), betel-nut, tobacco, spices, &c.; these pawns
are tied up in packets of a triangular form and covered with enamelled
foil of many bright colours. Several trays of ripe fruits of the season,
viz., kurbootahs[17] (shaddock), kabooza[18] (melons), ununas[19] (pine
apple), guavers,[20] sherreefha[21] (custard-apple), kummeruck,[22]
jarmun[23] (purple olives), orme[24] (mango), falsah,[25] kirhnee,[26]
baer,[27] leechie,[28] ormpeach,[29] carounder,[30] and many other kinds
of less repute.

Confectionery and sweetmeats, on trays, in all the varieties of Indian
invention; a full-dress suit for the young lady; and on a silver tray the
youth's nuzza of five gold mohurs, and twenty-one rupees.

The Eade offering of Meer Mahumud was escorted by servants, soldiers, and
a band of music; and the young lady returned a present to the bridegroom
elect of thirty-five goats and sheep, and a variety of undress skull-caps,
supposed to be her own work, in spangles and embroidery. I may state here,
that the Natives of India never go bare-headed in the house. The turban is
always worn in company, whatever may be the inconvenience from heat; and
in private life, a small skull-cap, often of plain white muslin, just
covers the head. It is considered disgraceful in men to expose the head
bare; removing the turban from the head of an individual would be deemed
as insulting as pulling a nose in Europe.

Whatever Eade or festival may occur between the Mugganee and the final
celebration of nuptials, presents are always interchanged by the young
bride and bridegroom; and with all such observances there is one
prevailing custom, which is, that though there should be nothing at hand
but part of their own gifts, the trays are not allowed