Chapter LIV: Preface: TO SECOND EDITION xi (51)

1781.—"The BOARD OF TRUSTIES Assemble on Tuesday at the New Tavern, where
the Committee meet to eat MANGOE FISH for the benefit of the Subscribers
and on other special affairs."—_Hickey's Bengal Gazette_, March 3.

[1820.—"... the MANGOE FISH (so named from its appearing during the
mangoe season).... By the natives they are named the _Tapaswi_ (penitent)
fish, (abbreviated by Europeans to _Tipsy_) from their resembling a class
of religious penitents, who ought never to shave."—_Hamilton, Des. of
Hindostan_, i. 58.]

MANGO-SHOWERS, s. Used in Madras for showers which fall in March and April, when the mangoes begin to ripen.

MANGO-TRICK. One of the most famous tricks of Indian jugglers, in which they plant a mango-stone, and show at brief intervals the tree shooting above ground, and successively producing leaves, flowers, and fruit. It has often been described, but the description given by the Emperor Jahāngīr in his _Autobiography_ certainly surpasses all in its demand on our belief.

c. 1610.—"... Khaun-e-Jehaun, one of the nobles present, observed that if
they spoke truly he should wish them to produce for his conviction a
mulberry-tree. The men arose without hesitation, and having in ten
separate spots set some seed in the ground, they recited among themselves
... when instantly a plant was seen springing from each of the ten
places, and each proved the tree required by Khaun-e-Jehaun. In the same
manner they produced a mango, an apple-tree, a cypress, a pine-apple, a
fig-tree, an almond, a walnut ... open to the observation of all present,
the trees were perceived gradually and slowly springing from the earth,
to the height of one or perhaps of two cubits.... Then making a sort of
procession round the trees as they stood ... in a moment there appeared
on the respective trees a sweet mango without the rind, an almond fresh
and ripe, a large fig of the most delicious kind ... the fruit being
pulled in my presence, and every one present was allowed to taste it.
This, however, was not all; before the trees were removed there appeared
among the foliage birds of such surpassing beauty, in colour and shape,
and melody and song, as the world never saw before.... At the close of
the operation, the foliage, as in autumn, was seen to put on its
variegated tints, and the trees gradually disappeared into the
earth...."—_Mem. of the Emp. Jehanguier_, tr. by _Major D. Price_, pp.
96-97.

c. 1650.—"Then they thrust a piece of stick into the ground, and ask'd
the Company what Fruit they would have. One told them he would have
_Mengues_; then one of the Mountebanks hiding himself in the middle of a
Sheet, stoopt to the ground five or six times one after another. I was so
curious to go upstairs, and look out of a window, to see if I could spy
what the Mountebank did, and perceived that after he had cut himself
under the armpits with a Razor, he rubb'd the stick with his Blood. After
the two first times that he rais'd himself, the stick seemed to the very
eye to grow. The third time there sprung out branches with young buds.
The fourth time the tree was covered with leaves; and the fifth time it
bore flowers.... The English Minister protested that he could not give
his consent that any Christian should be Spectator of such delusions. So
that as soon as he saw that these Mountebanks had of a dry stick, in less
than half-an-hour, made a Tree four or five foot high, that bare leaves
and flowers as in the Spring-time: he went about to break it, protesting
that he would not give the Communion to any person that should stay any
longer to see those things."—_Tavernier, Travels made English_, by J.P.,
ii. 36; [ed. _Ball_, i. 67, _seq._].

1667.—"When two of these _Jauguis_ (see JOGEE) that are eminent, do meet,
and you stir them up on the point and power of their knowledge or
_Jauguisme_, you shall see them do such tricks out of spight to one
another, that I know not if _Simon Magus_ could have outdone them. For
they divine what one thinketh, make the Branch of a Tree blossome and
bear fruit in less than an hour, hatch eggs in their bosome in less than
half a quarter of an hour, and bring forth such birds as you demand....
_I mean, if what is said of them is true_.... For, as for me, I am with
all my curiosity none of those happy Men, that are present at, and see
these great feats."—_Bernier_, E.T. 103; [ed. _Constable_, 321].

1673.—"Others presented a Mock-Creation of a Mango-Tree, arising from the
Stone in a short space (which they did in Hugger-Mugger, being very
careful to avoid being discovered) with Fruit Green and Ripe; so that a
Man must stretch his Fancy, to imagine it Witchcraft; though the common
Sort think no less."—_Fryer_, 192.

1690.—"Others are said to raise a Mango-Tree, with ripe Fruit upon its
Branches, in the space of one or two Hours. To confirm which Relation, it
was affirmed confidently to me, that a Gentleman who had pluckt one of
these Mangoes, fell sick upon it, and was never well as long as he kept
it 'till he consulted a _Bramin_ for his Health, who prescrib'd his only
Remedy would be the restoring of the Mango, by which he was restor'd to
his Health again."—_Ovington_, 258-259.

1726.—"They have some also who will show you the kernel of a mango-fruit,
or may be only a twig, and ask if you will see the fruit or this stick
planted, and in a short time see a tree grow from it and bear fruit:
after they have got their answer the jugglers (_Koorde-danssers_) wrap
themselves in a blanket, stick the twig into the ground, and then put a
basket over them (&c. &c.).

"There are some who have prevailed on these jugglers by much money to let
them see how they have accomplished this.

"These have revealed that the jugglers made a hole in their bodies under
the armpits, and rubbed the twig with the blood from it, and every time
that they stuck it in the ground they wetted it, and in this way they
clearly saw it to grow and to come to the perfection before described.

"This is asserted by a certain writer who has seen it. But this can't
move me to believe it!"—_Valentijn_, v. (_Chorom._) 53.

Our own experience does not go beyond Dr. Fryer's, and the hugger-mugger performance that he disparages. But many others have testified to more remarkable skill. We once heard a traveller of note relate with much spirit such an exhibition as witnessed in the Deccan. The narrator, then a young officer, determined with a comrade, at all hazards of fair play or foul, to solve the mystery. In the middle of the trick one suddenly seized the conjuror, whilst the other uncovered and snatched at the mango-plant. But lo! it came from the earth _with a root_, and the mystery was darker than ever! We tell the tale as it was told.

It would seem that the trick was not unknown in European conjuring of the 16th or 17th centuries, _e.g._

1657.—"... trium horarum spatio arbusculam veram spitamae longitudine e
mensâ facere enasci, ut et alias arbores frondiferas et
fructiferas."—_Magia Universalis_, of _P. Gaspar Schottus e Soc. Jes._,
Herbipoli, 1657, i. 32.

MANGOSTEEN, s. From Malay _manggusta_ (Crawfurd), or _manggistan_ (Favre), in Javanese _Manggis_. [Mr. Skeat writes: "The modern standard Malay form used in the W. coast of the Peninsula is _manggis_, as in Javanese, the forms _manggusta_ and _manggistan_ never being heard there. The Siamese form _maangkhut_ given in M‘Farland's _Siamese Grammar_ is probably from the Malay _manggusta_. It was very interesting to me to find that some distinct trace of this word was still preserved in the name of this fruit at Patani-Kelantan on the E. coast, where it was called _bawah 'seta_ (or _'setar_), _i.e._ the '_setar_ fruit,' as well as occasionally _mestar_ or _mesetar_, clearly a corruption of some such old form as _manggistar_."] This delicious fruit is known throughout the Archipelago, and in Siam, by modifications of the same name; the delicious fruit of the _Garcinia Mangostana_ (Nat. Ord. _Guttiferae_). It is strictly a tropical fruit, and, in fact, near the coast does not bear fruit further north than lat. 14°. It is a native of the Malay Peninsula and the adjoining islands.

1563.—"_R._ They have bragged much to me of a fruit which they call
MANGOSTANS; let us hear what you have to say of these.

"_O._ What I have heard of the MANGOSTAN is that 'tis one of the most
delicious fruits that they have in these regions...."—_Garcia_, f.
151_v_.

1598.—"There are yet other fruites, as ... MANGOSTAINE [in Hak. Soc.
MANGESTAINS] ... but because they are of small account I thinke it not
requisite to write severallie of them."—_Linschoten_, 96; [Hak. Soc. ii.
34].

1631.—

"Cedant Hesperii longe hinc, mala aurea, fructus,
Ambrosiâ pascit MANGOSTAN et nectare divos——
... Inter omnes Indiae fructus longe sapidissimus."
_Jac. Bontii_, lib. vi. cap. 28, p. 115.

1645.—"Il s'y trouue de plus vne espece de fruit propre du terroir de
Malaque, qu'ils nomment MANGOSTANS."—_Cardim, Rel. de la Prov. de Japon_,
162.

[1662.—"The MANGOSTHAN is a Fruit growing by the Highwayes in _Java_,
upon bushes, like our Sloes."—_Mandelslo_, tr. _Davies_, Bk. ii. 121
(_Stanf. Dict._).]

1727.—"The MANGOSTANE is a delicious Fruit, almost in the Shape of an
Apple, the Skin is thick and red, being dried it is a good Astringent.
The Kernels (if I may so call them) are like Cloves of Garlick, of a very
agreeable Taste, but very cold."—_A. Hamilton_, ii. 80 [ed. 1744].

MANGROVE, s. The sea-loving genera _Rhizophora_ and _Avicennia_ derive this name, which applies to both, from some happy accident, but from which of two sources may be doubtful. For while the former genus is, according to Crawfurd, called by the Malays _manggi-manggi_, a term which he supposes to be the origin of the English name, we see from Oviedo that one or other was called _mangle_ in S. America, and in this, which is certainly the origin of the French _manglier_, we should be disposed also to seek the derivation of the English word. Both genera are universal in the tropical tidal estuaries of both Old World and New. Prof. Sayce, by an amusing slip, or oversight probably of somebody else's slip, quotes from Humboldt that "maize, _mangle_, hammock, canoe, tobacco, are all derived through the medium of the Spanish from the Haytian _mahiz_, mangle, _hamaca_, _canoa_, and _tabaco_." It is, of course, the French and not the English _mangle_ that is here in question. [Mr. Skeat observes: "I believe the old English as well as French form was _mangle_, in which case Prof. Sayce would be perfectly right. Mangrove is probably _mangle-grove_. The Malay _manggi-manggi_ is given by Klinkert, and is certainly on account of the reduplication, native. But I never heard it in the Peninsula, where _mangrove_ is always called _bakau_."] The mangrove abounds on nearly all the coasts of further India, and also on the sea margin of the Ganges Delta, in the backwaters of S. Malabar, and less luxuriantly on the Indus mouths.

1535.—"Of the Tree called MANGLE.... These trees grow in places of mire,
and on the shores of the sea, and of the rivers, and streams, and
torrents that run into the sea. They are trees very strange to see ...
they grow together in vast numbers, and many of their branches seem to
turn down and change into roots ... and these plant themselves in the
ground like stems, so that the tree looks as if it had many legs joining
one to the other."—_Oviedo_, in _Ramusio_, iii. f. 145_v_.

" "So coming to the coast, embarked in a great Canoa with some 30
Indians, and 5 Christians, whom he took with him, and coasted along amid
solitary places and islets, passing sometimes into the sea itself for 4
or 5 leagues,—among certain trees, lofty, dense and green, which grow in
the very sea-water, and which they call MANGLE."—_Ibid._ f. 224.

1553.—"... by advice of a Moorish pilot, who promised to take the people
by night to a place where water could be got ... and either because the
Moor desired to land many times on the shore by which he was conducting
them, seeking to get away from the hands of those whom he was conducting,
or because he was really perplext by its being night, and in the middle
of a great growth of _mangrove_ (MANGUES) he never succeeded in finding
the wells of which he spoke."—_Barros_, I. iv. 4.

c. 1830.—"'Smite my timbers, do the trees bear shellfish?' The tide in
the Gulf of Mexico does not ebb and flow above two feet except in the
springs, and the ends of the drooping branches of the MANGROVE trees that
here cover the shore, are clustered, within the wash of the water, with a
small well-flavoured oyster."—_Tom Cringle_, ed. 1863, 119.

MANILLA-MAN, s. This term is applied to natives of the Philippines, who are often employed on shipboard, and especially furnish the quartermasters (SEACUNNY, q.v.) in Lascar crews on the China voyage. But _Manilla-man_ seems also, from Wilson, to be used in S. India as a hybrid from Telug. _manelā vādu_, 'an itinerant dealer in coral and gems'; perhaps in this sense, as he says, from Skt. _maṇi_, 'a jewel,' but with some blending also of the Port. _manilha_, 'a bracelet.' (Compare COBRA-MANILLA.)

MANJEE, s. The master, or steersman, of a boat or any native river-craft; Hind. _mānjhī_, Beng. _mājī_ and _mājhī_, [all from Skt. _madhya_, 'one who stands in the middle']. The word is also a title borne by the head men among the Pahāris or Hill-people of Rājmahal (_Wilson_), [and as equivalent for _Majhwār_, the name of an important Dravidian tribe on the borders of the N.W. Provinces and Chota Nāgpur].

1683.—"We were forced to track our boat till 4 in the Afternoon, when we
saw a great black cloud arise out of ye North with much lightning and
thunder, which made our MANGEE or Steerman advise us to fasten our boat
in some Creeke."—_Hedges, Diary_, Hak. Soc. i. 88.

[1706.—"MANJEE." See under HARRY.]

1781.—"This is to give notice that the principal Gaut MANGIES of Calcutta
have entered into engagements at the Police Office to supply all Persons
that apply there with Boats and _Budgerows_, and to give security for the
_Dandies_."—_India Gazette_, Feb. 17.

1784.—"Mr. Austin and his head bearer, who were both in the room of the
budgerow, are the only persons known to be drowned. The MANJEE and
dandees have not appeared."—In _Seton-Karr_, i. 25.

1810.—"Their MANJIES will not fail to take every advantage of whatever
distress, or difficulty, the passenger may labour under."—_Williamson, V.
M._ i. 148.

For the Pahari use, see _Long's Selections_, p. 561.

[1864.—"The Khond chiefs of villages and Mootas are termed MAJI instead
of Mulliko as in Goomsur, or Khonro as in Boad...."—_Campbell, Wild
Tribes of Khondistan_, 120.]

MANNICKJORE, s. Hind. _mānikjoṛ_; the white-necked stork (_Ciconia leucocephala_, Gmelin); sometimes, according to Jerdon, called in Bengal the 'Beef-steak bird,' because palatable when cooked in that fashion. "The name of _Manikjor_ means the companion of Manik, a Saint, and some Mussulmans in consequence abstain from eating it" (_Jerdon_). [Platts derives it from _mānik_, 'a ruby.']

[1840.—"I reached the jheel, and found it to contain many MANICKCHORS,
ibis, paddy birds, &c...."—_Davidson, Travels in Upper India_, ii. 165.]

MANUCODIATA. (See BIRD OF PARADISE.)

MARAMUT, MURRUMUT, s. Hind. from Ar. _maramma(t)_, 'repair.' In this sense the use is general in Hindustani (in which the terminal _t_ is always pronounced, though not by the Arabs), whether as applied to a stocking, a fortress, or a ship. But in Madras Presidency the word had formerly a very specialised sense as the recognised title of that branch of the Executive which included the conservation of irrigation tanks and the like, and which was worked under the District Civil Officers, there being then no separate department of the State in charge of Civil Public Works. It is a curious illustration of the wide spread at one time of Musulman power that the same Arabic word, in the form MARAMA, is still applied in Sicily to a standing committee charged with repairs to the Duomo or Cathedral of Palermo. An analogous instance of the wide grasp of the Saracenic power is mentioned by one of the Musulman authors whom Amari quotes in his History of the Mahommedan rule in Sicily. It is that the Caliph Al-Māmūn, under whom conquest was advancing in India and in Sicily simultaneously, ordered that the idols taken from the infidels in India should be sent for sale to the infidels in Sicily!

[1757.—"On the 6th the Major (Eyre Coote) left _Muxadabad_ with ... 10
MARMUTTY men, or pioneers to clear the road."—_Ives_, 156.

[1873.—"For the actual execution of works there was a MARAMAT Department
constituted under the Collector."—_Boswell, Man. of Nellore_, 642.]

MARGOSA, s. A name in the S. of India and Ceylon for the _Nīm_ (see NEEM) tree. The word is a corruption of Port. _amargosa_, 'bitter,' indicating the character of the tree. This gives rise to an old Indian proverb, traceable as far back as the _Jātakas_, that you cannot sweeten the _nīm_ tree though you water it with syrup and ghee (_Naturam expellas furcâ_, &c.).

1727.—"The wealth of an evil man shall another evil man take from him,
just as the crows come and eat the fruit of the MARGOISE tree as soon as
it is ripe."—Apophthegms translated in _Valentijn_, v. (Ceylon) 390.

1782.—"... ils lavent le malade avec de l'eau froide, ensuite ils le
frottent rudement avec de la feuille de MARGOSIER."—_Sonnerat_, i. 208.

1834.—"Adjacent to the Church stand a number of tamarind and MARGOSA
trees."—_Chitty, Ceylon Gazetteer_, 183.

MARKHORE, s. Pers. _mār-khōr_, 'snake-eater.' A fine wild goat of the Western Himālaya; _Capra megaceros_, Hutton.

[1851.—"Hence the people of the country call it the MARKHOR (eater of
serpents)."—_Edwardes, A Year on the Punjab Frontier_, i. 474.

[1895.—"Never more would he chase the ibex and MAKOR."—_Mrs. Croker,
Village Tales_, 112.]

MARTABAN, n.p. This is the conventional name, long used by all the trading nations, Asiatic and European, for a port on the east of the Irawadi Delta and of the Sitang estuary, formerly of great trade, but now in comparative decay. The original name is Talaing, _Mūt-ta-man_, the meaning of which we have been unable to ascertain.

1514.—"... passed then before MARTAMAN, the people also heathens; men
expert in everything, and first-rate merchants; great masters of
accounts, and in fact the greatest in the world. They keep their accounts
in books like us. In the said country is great produce of lac, cloths,
and provisions."—_Letter of Giov. da Empoli_, p. 80.

1545.—"At the end of these two days the King ... caused the Captains that
were at the Guard of the Gates to leave them and retire; whereupon the
miserable City of MARTABANO was delivered to the mercy of the Souldiers
... and therein showed themselves so cruel-minded, that the thing they
made least reckoning of was to kill 100 men for a crown."—_Pinto_, in
_Cogan_, 203.

1553.—"And the towns which stand outside this gulf of the Isles of Pegu
(of which we have spoken) and are placed along the coast of that country,
are Vagara, MARTABAN, a city notable in the great trade that it enjoys,
and further on Rey, Talaga, and Tavay."—_Barros_, I. ix. 1.

1568.—"Trouassimo nella città di MARTAUAN intorno a nouanta Portoghesi,
tra mercadanti e huomini vagabondi, li quali stauano in gran differenza
co' Rettorì della città."—_Ces. Federici_, in _Ramusio_, iii. 393.

1586.—"The city of MARTABAN hath its front to the south-east, south, and
south-west, and stands on a river which there enters the sea ... it is a
city of Mauparagia, a Prince of the King of Pegu's."—_Gasparo Balbi_, f.
129_v_, 130_v_.

1680.—"That the English may settle ffactorys at Serian, Pegu, and Ava ...
and alsoe that they may settle a ffactory in like manner at
MORTAVAN...."—_Articles to be proposed to the King of Barma and Pegu_ in
_Notes and Exts._, No. iii. p. 8.

1695.—"Concerning _Bartholomew Rodrigues_.... I am informed and do
believe he put into MORTAVAN for want of _wood_ and _water_, and was
there seized by the _King's officers_, because not bound to that
Place."—_Governor Higginson_, in _Dalrymple, Or. Repert._ ii. 342-3.

MARTABAN, s. This name was given to vessels of a peculiar pottery, of very large size, and glazed, which were famous all over the East for many centuries, and were exported from Martaban. They were sometimes called _Pegu jars_, and under that name specimens were shown at the Great Exhibition of 1851. We have not been able to obtain recent information on the subject of this manufacture. The word appears to be now obsolete in India, except as a colloquial term in Telegu. [The word is certainly not obsolete in Upper India: "The '_martaban_' (Plate ii. fig. 10) is a small deep jar with an elongated body, which is used by Hindus and Muhammadans to keep pickles and acid articles" (_Hallifax, Mono. of Punjab Pottery_, p. 9). In the endeavour to supply a Hindi derivation it has been derived from _imrita-bān_, 'the holder of the water of immortality.' In the _Arabian Nights_ the word appears in the form _bartaman_, and is used for a crock in which gold is buried. (_Burton_, xi. 26). Mr. Bell saw some large earthenware jars at Malé, some about 2 feet high, called _rumba_; others larger and barrel-shaped, called MĀTABĀN. (_Pyrard_, Hak. Soc. i. 259.) For the modern manufacture, see _Scott, Gazetteer of Upper Burma_, 1900, Pt. i. vol. ii. 399 _seq._]

c. 1350.—"Then the Princess made me a present consisting of dresses, of
two elephant-loads of rice, of two she-buffaloes, ten sheep, four _rotls_
of cordial syrup, and four MARTABĀNS, or huge jars, filled with pepper,
citron, and mango, all prepared with salt, as for a sea-voyage."—_Ibn
Batuta_, iv. 253.

(?).—"Un grand bassin de MARTABANI."—1001 _Jours_, ed. Paris 1826, ii.
19. We do not know the date of these stories. The French translator has a
note explaining "porcelaine verte."

1508.—"The lac (_lacre_) which your Highness desired me to send, it will
be a piece of good luck to get, because these ships depart early, and the
vessels from Pegu and MARTABAN come late. But I hope for a good quantity
of it, as I have given orders for it."—_Letter_ from the Viceroy _Dom
Francisco Almeida_ to the King. In _Correa_, i. 900.

1516.—"In this town of MARTABAN are made very large and beautiful
porcelain vases, and some of glazed earthenware of a black colour, which
are highly valued among the Moors, and they export them as
merchandize."—_Barbosa_, 185.

1598.—"In this towne many of the great earthen pots are made, which in
India are called MARTAUANAS, and many of them carryed throughout all
India, of all sortes both small and great; some are so great that they
will hold full two pipes of water. The cause why so many are brought into
India is for that they vse them in every house, and in their shippes
insteede of caskes."—_Linschoten_, p. 30; [Hak. Soc. i. 101; see also i.
28, 268].

c. 1610.—"... des iarres les plus belles, les mieux vernis et les mieux
façonnées que j'aye veu ailleurs. Il y en a qui tiennent autant qu'vne
pippe et plus. Elles se font au Royaume de MARTABANE, d'ou on les
apporte, et d'où elles prennent leur nom par toute l'Inde."—_Pyrard de
Laval_, i. 179; [Hak. Soc. i. 259].

1615.—"Vasa figulina quae vulgo MARTABANIA dicuntur per Indiam nota
sunt.... Per Orientem omnem, quin et Lusitaniam, horum est
usus."—_Jarric, Thesaurus Rer. Indic._ pt. ii. 389.

1673.—"Je vis un vase d'une certaine terre verte qui vient des Indes,
dont les Turcs ... font un grand estime, et qu'ils acheptent bien cher à
cause de la propriété qu'elle a de se rompre à la présence du poison....
Ceste terre se nomme MERDEBANI."—_Journal d' Ant. Galland_, ii. 110.

1673.—"... to that end offer Rice, Oyl, and Cocoe-Nuts in a thick Grove,
where they piled an huge Heap of long Jars like MORTIVANS."—_Fryer_, 180.

1688.—"They took it out of the cask, and put it into earthen Jars that
held about eight Barrels apiece. These they call MONTABAN Jars, from a
town of that name in Pegu, whence they are brought, and carried all over
India."—_Dampier_, ii. 98.

c. 1690.—"Sunt autem haec vastissimae ac turgidae ollae in regionibus
MARTAVANA et Siama confectae, quae per totam transferuntur Indiam ad
varios liquores conservandos."—_Rumphius_, i. ch. iii.

1711.—"... _Pegu_, _Quedah_, _Jahore_ and all their own Coasts, whence
they are plentifully supply'd with several Necessarys, they otherwise
must want; As Ivory, Beeswax, MORTIVAN and small Jars, Pepper,
&c."—_Lockyer_, 35.

1726.—"... and the MARTAVAANS containing the water to drink, when empty
require two persons to carry them."—_Valentijn_, v. 254.

" "The goods exported hitherward (from Pegu) are ... glazed pots
(called MARTAVANS after the district where they properly belong), both
large and little."—_Ibid._ v. 128.

1727.—"MARTAVAN was one of the most flourishing Towns for Trade in the
East.... They make earthen Ware there still, and glaze them with
Lead-oar. I have seen some Jars made there that could contain two
Hogsheads of Liquor."—_A. Hamilton_, i. 63, [ed. 1744, ii. 62].

1740.—"The Pay Master is likewise ordered ... to look out for all the
PEGU JARS in Town, or other vessels proper for keeping water."—In
_Wheeler_, iii. 194.

Such jars were apparently imitated in other countries, but kept the
original name. Thus Baillie Fraser says that "certain jars called
MARTABAN were manufactured in Oman."—_Journey into Khorasan_, 18.

1851.—"Assortment of PEGU JARS as used in the Honourable Company's
Dispensary at Calcutta."

"Two large PEGU JARS from Moulmein."—_Official Catal._ Exhibition of
1851, ii. 921.

MARTIL, MARTOL, s. A hammer. Hind. _mārtol_, from Port. _martello_, but assisted by imaginary connection with Hind. _mār-nā_, 'to strike.'

MARTINGALE, s. This is no specially Anglo-Indian word; our excuse for introducing it is the belief that it is of Arabic origin. Popular assumption, we believe, derives the name from a mythical Colonel Martingale. But the word seems to come to us from the French, in which language, besides the English use, Littré gives _chauses à la martingale_ as meaning "culottes dont le pont était placé par derriere," and this he strangely declares to be the true and original meaning of the word. His etymology, after Ménage, is from _Martigues_ in Provence, where, it is alleged, breeches of this kind were worn. Skeat seems to accept these explanations. [But see his _Concise Dict._, where he inclines to the view given in this article, and adds: "I find Arab. _rataka_ given by Richardson as a verbal root, whence _ratak_, going with a short quick step."] But there is a Span. word _al-martaga_, for a kind of bridle, which Urrea quoted by Dozy derives from verb Arab. _rataka_, "qui, à la IVe forme signifie 'effecit ut brevibus assibus incederet.'" This is precisely the effect of a martingale. And we venture to say that probably the word bore its English meaning originally also in French and Spanish, and came from Arabic direct into the latter tongue. Dozy himself, we should add, is inclined to derive the Span. word from _al-mirta'a_, 'a halter.'

MARWÁREE, n.p. and s. This word _Mārwāṛī_, properly a man of the Mārwār [Skt. _maru_, 'desert'], or Jodhpur country in Rājputāna, is used in many parts of India as synonymous with Banya (see BANYAN) or SOWCAR, from the fact that many of the traders and money-lenders have come originally from Mārwār, most frequently Jains in religion. Compare the Lombard of medieval England, and the _caorsino_ of Dante's time.

[1819.—"Miseries seem to follow the footsteps of the MARWAREES."—_Tr.
Lit. Soc. Bo._ i. 297.

[1826.—"One of my master's under-shopmen, Sewchund, a
MARWARRY."—_Pandurang Hari_, ed. 1873, i. 233.]

MARYACAR, n.p. According to R. Drummond and a MS. note on the India Library copy of his book R. Catholics in Malabar were so called. _Marya Karar_, or 'Mary's People.' [The word appears to be really _marakkar_, of which two explanations are given. Logan (_Malabar_, i. 332 note) says that _Marakkar_ means 'doer or follower of the Law' (_marggam_), and is applied to a foreign religion, like that of Christians and Mohammedans. The _Madras Gloss._ (iii. 474) derives it from Mal. _marakkalam_, 'boat,' and _kar_, a termination showing possession, and defines it as a "titular appellation of the MOPLAH Mahommedans on the S.W. coast."]

MASCABAR, s. This is given by C. P. Brown (MS. notes) as an Indo-Portuguese word for 'the last day of the month,' quoting _Calcutta Review_, viii. 345. He suggests as its etymon Hind. _mās-ke-ba'ad_, 'after a month.' [In N. Indian public offices the _māskabār_ is well known as the monthly statement of cases decided during the month. It has been suggested that it represents the Port. _mes-acabar_, 'end of the month'; but according to Platts, it is more probably a corruption of Hind. _māsik-wār_ or _mās-kā-wār_.]

MASH, s. Hind. _māsh_, [Skt. _māsha_, 'a bean']; _Phaseolus radiatus_, Roxb. One of the common Hindu pulses. [See MOONG.]

MASKEE. This is a term in Chinese "pigeon," meaning 'never mind,' '_n'importe_,' which is constantly in the mouths of Europeans in China. It is supposed that it may be the corruption or ellipsis of a Portuguese expression, but nothing satisfactory has been suggested. [Mr. Skeat writes: "Surely this is simply Port. _mas que_, probably imported direct through Macao, in the sense of 'although, even, in spite of,' like French _malgre_. And this seems to be its meaning in 'pigeon':

"That nightey tim begin chop-chop,
One young man walkee—no can stop.
MASKEE snow, MASKEE ice!
He cally flag with chop so nice—
Topside Galow!
'_Excelsior_,' in 'pigeon.'"]

MASULIPATAM, n.p. This coast town of the Madras Presidency is sometimes vulgarly called _Machhli-patan_ or _Machhli-bandar_, or simply _Bandar_ (see BUNDER, 2); and its name explained (Hind. _machhlī_, 'fish') as Fish-town, [the _Madras Gloss._ says from an old tradition of a whale being stranded on the shore.] The etymology may originally have had such a connection, but there can be no doubt that the name is a trace of the Μαισωλία and Μαισώλου ποταμοῦ ἐκβολαὶ which we find in Ptolemy's Tables; and of the Μασαλία producing muslins, in the _Periplus_. [In one of the old Logs the name is transformed into _Mesopotamia_ (_J. R. As. Soc._, Jan. 1900, p. 158). In a letter of 1605-6 it appears as _Mesepatamya_ (_Birdwood, First Letter Book_, 73).

[1613.—"Concerning the Darling was departed for MOSSAPOTAM."—_Foster,
Letters_, ii. 14.

[1615.—"Only here are no returns of any large sum to be employed, unless
a factory at MESSEPOTAN."—_Ibid._ iv. 5.]

1619.—"Master Methwold came from MISSULAPATAM in one of the country
Boats."—_Pring_, in _Purchas_, i. 638.

[1623.—"MISLIPATAN." _P. della Valle_, Hak. Soc. i. 148.

[c. 1661.—"It was reported, at one time, that he was arrived at
MASSIPATAM...."—_Bernier_, ed. _Constable_, 112.]

c. 1681.—"The road between had been covered with brocade velvet, and
MACHLIBENDER chintz."—_Seir Mutaqherin_, iii. 370.

1684.—"These sort of Women are so nimble and active that when the present
king went to see MASLIPATAN, nine of them undertook to represent the
figure of an Elephant; four making the four feet, four the body, and one
the trunk; upon which the King, sitting in a kind of Throne, made his
entry into the City."—_Tavernier_, E.T. ii. 65; [ed. _Ball_, i. 158].

1789.—"MASULIPATAM, which last word, by the bye, ought to be written
MACHLIPATAN (Fish-town), because of a Whale that happened to be stranded
there 150 years ago."—Note on _Seir Mutaqherin_, iii. 370.

c. 1790.—"... cloths of great value ... from the countries of Bengal,
Bunaras, China, Kashmeer, Boorhanpoor, MUTCHLIPUTTUN, &c."—_Meer Hussein
Ali, H. of Hydur Na'ik_, 383.

MATE, MATY, s. An assistant under a head servant; in which sense or something near it, but also sometimes in the sense of a 'head-man,' the word is in use almost all over India. In the Bengal Presidency we have a _mate-bearer_ for the assistant body-servant (see BEARER); the _mate_ attendant on an elephant under the mahout; a _mate_ (head) of COOLIES or JOMPONNIES (qq.v.) (see JOMPON), &c. And in Madras the _maty_ is an under-servant, whose business it is to clean crockery, knives, &c., to attend to lamps, and so forth.

The origin of the word is obscure, if indeed it has not more than one origin. Some have supposed it to be taken from the English word in the sense of comrade, &c.; whilst Wilson gives _meṭṭi_ as a distinct Malayālam word for an inferior domestic servant, [which the _Madras Gloss._ derives from Tamil _mel_, 'high']. The last word is of very doubtful genuineness. Neither derivation will explain the fact that the word occurs in the _Āīn_, in which the three classes of attendants on an elephant in Akbar's establishment are styled respectively _Mahāwat_, _Bhoī_, and _Meth_; two of which terms would, under other circumstances, probably be regarded as corruptions of English words. This use of the word we find in Skt. dictionaries as _meṭha_, _meṇṭha_, and _meṇḍa_, 'an elephant-keeper or feeder.' But for the more general use we would query whether it may not be a genuine Prakrit form from Skt. _mitra_, 'associate, friend'? We have in Pali _metta_, 'friendship,' from Skt. _maitra_.

c. 1590.—"A MET'H fetches fodder and assists in caparisoning the
elephant. MET'HS of all classes get on the march 4 _dáms_ daily, and at
other times 3½."—_Āīn_, ed. _Blochmann_, i. 125.

1810.—"In some families MATES or assistants are allowed, who do the
drudgery."—_Williamson, V. M._ i. 241.

1837.—"One MATEE."—See _Letters from Madras_, 106.

1872.—"At last the morning of our departure came. A crowd of porters
stood without the veranda, chattering and squabbling, and the MATE
distributed the boxes and bundles among them."—_A True Reformer_, ch. vi.

1873.—"To procure this latter supply (of green food) is the daily duty of
one of the attendants, who in Indian phraseology is termed a MATE, the
title of Mahout being reserved for the head keeper" (of an
elephant).—_Sat. Rev._ Sept. 6, 302.

MATRANEE, s. Properly Hind. from Pers. _mihtarānī_; a female sweeper (see MEHTAR). [In the following extract the writer seems to mean _Bhaṭhiyāran_ or _Bhaṭhiyārin_, the wife of a _Bhaṭhiyāra_ or inn-keeper.

[1785.—"... a handsome serai ... where a number of people, chiefly women,
called METRAHNEES, take up their abode to attend strangers on their
arrival in the city."—_Diary_, in _Forbes, Or. Mem._ 2nd ed. ii. 404.]

MATROSS, s. An inferior class of soldier in the Artillery. The word is quite obsolete, and is introduced here because it seems to have survived a good deal longer in India than in England, and occurs frequently in old Indian narratives. It is Germ. _matrose_, Dutch _matroos_, 'a sailor,' identical no doubt with Fr. _matelot_. The origin is so obscure that it seems hardly worth while to quote the conjectures regarding it. In the establishment of a company of Royal Artillery in 1771, as given in Duncan's Hist. of that corps, we have besides sergeants and corporals, "4 Bombardiers, 8 Gunners, 34 _Matrosses_, and 2 Drummers." A definition of the Matross is given in our 3rd quotation. We have not ascertained when the term was disused in the R.A. It appears in the Establishment as given by Grose in 1801 (_Military Antiq._ i. 315). As far as Major Duncan's book informs us, it appears first in 1639, and has disappeared by 1793, when we find the men of an artillery force divided (excluding sergeants, corporals, and bombardiers) into First Gunners, _Second Gunners_, and Military Drivers.

1673.—"There being in pay for the Honourable East India Company of
English and Portuguese, 700, reckoning the MONTROSSES and
Gunners."—_Fryer_, 38.

1745.—"... We were told with regard to the Fortifications, that no
Expense should be grudged that was necessary for the Defence of the
Settlement, and in 1741, a Person was sent out in the character of an
Engineer for our Place; but ... he lived not to come among us; and
therefore, we could only judge of his Merit and Qualifications by the
Value of his Stipend, Six Pagodas a Month, or about Eighteen Pence a Day,
scarce the Pay of a common MATROSS...."—Letter from _Mr. Barnett_ to the
_Secret Committee_, in _Letter to a Proprietor of the E.I. Co._, p. 45.

1757.—"I have with me one Gunner, one MATROSS, and two Lascars."—Letter
in _Dalrymple, Or. Repert._ i. 203.

1779.—"MATROSSES are properly apprentices to the gunner, being soldiers
in the royal regiment of artillery, and next to them; they assist in
loading, firing, and spunging the great guns. They carry firelocks, and
march along with the guns and store-waggons, both as a guard, and to give
their assistance in every emergency."—_Capt. G. Smith's Universal
Military Dictionary._

1792.—"Wednesday evening, the 25th inst., a MATROSS of Artillery deserted
from the Mount, and took away with him his firelock, and nine rounds of
powder and ball."—_Madras Courier_, Feb. 2.

[1800.—"A serjeant and two MATROSSES employed under a general committee
on the captured military stores in Seringapatam."—_Wellington Suppl.
Desp._ ii. 32 (_Stanf. Dict._).]

MATT, s. Touch (of gold). Tamil _mā_RR_u_ (pron. _māṭṭu_), perhaps from Skt. _mātra_, 'measure.' Very pure gold is said to be 9 _mā_RR_u_, inferior gold of 5 or 6 _mā_RR_u_.

[1615.—"Tecalls the MATTE Janggamay 8 is Sciam 7½."—_Foster, Letters_,
iii. 156.

[1680.—"MATT." See under BATTA.]

1693.—"Gold, purified from all other metals ... by us is reckoned as of
four-and-Twenty _Carats_, but by the blacks is here divided and reckoned
as of ten MAT."—_Havart_, 106.

1727.—At Mocha ... "the Coffee Trade brings in a continual Supply of
Silver and Gold ... from _Turkey_, Ebramies and Mograbis, Gold of low
MATT."—_A. Hamilton_, i. 43, [ed. 1744].

1752.—"... to find the Value of the Touch in Fanams, multiply the MATT by
10, and then by 8, which gives it in Fanams."—_T. Brooks_, 25.

The same word was used in Japan for a measure, sometimes called a fathom.

[1614.—"The MATT which is about two yards."—_Foster, Letters_, ii. 3.]

MAUMLET, s. Domestic Hind. _māmlat_, for 'omelet'; [_Māmlēt_ is 'marmalade'].

MAUND, s. The authorised Anglo-Indian form of the name of a weight (Hind. _man_, Mahr. _maṇ_), which, with varying values, has been current over Western Asia from time immemorial. Professor Sayce traces it (_mana_) back to the Accadian language.[162] But in any case it was the Babylonian name for 1/80 of a talent, whence it passed, with the Babylonian weights and measures, almost all over the ancient world. Compare the _men_ or _mna_ of Egyptian hieroglyphic inscriptions, preserved in the _emna_ or _amna_ of the Copts, the Hebrew _māneh_, the Greek μνᾶ, and the Roman _mina_. The introduction of the word into India may have occurred during the extensive commerce of the Arabs with that country during the 8th and 9th centuries; possibly at an earlier date. Through the Arabs also we find an old Spanish word _almena_, and in old French _almène_, for a weight of about 20 lbs. (_Marcel Devic_).

The quotations will show how the Portuguese converted _man_ into _mão_, of which the English made _maune_, and so (probably by the influence of the old English word _maund_)[163] our present form, which occurs as early as 1611. Some of the older travellers, like Linschoten, misled by the Portuguese _mão_, identified it with the word for 'hand' in that language, and so rendered it.

The values of the _man_ as weight, even in modern times, have varied immensely, _i.e._ from little more than 2 _lbs._ to upwards of 160. The 'Indian Maund,' which is the standard of weight in British India, is of 40 _sers_, each _ser_ being divided into 16 _chhiṭāks_; and this is the general scale of sub-division in the local weights of Bengal, and Upper and Central India, though the value of the _ser_ varies. That of the standard _ser_ is 80 TOLAS (q.v.) or rupee-weights, and thus the _maund_ = 82-2/7 _lbs._ avoirdupois. The Bombay maund (or _man_) of 48 _sers_ = 28 _lbs._; the Madras one of 40 _sers_ = 25 _lbs._ The Palloda _man_ of Aḥmadnagar contained 64 _sers_, and was = 163¼ _lbs._ This is the largest _man_ we find in the '_Useful Tables_.' The smallest Indian _man_ again is that of Colachy in Travancore, and that = 18 _lbs._ 12 _oz._ 13 _dr._ The Persian _Tabrīzī man_ is, however, a little less than 7 _lbs._; the _man shāhī_ twice that; the smallest of all on the list named is the Jeddah _man_ = 2 _lbs._ 3 _oz._ 9¾ _dr._

B.C. 692.—In the "Eponymy of Zazai," a house in Nineveh, with its
shrubbery and gates, is sold for one MANEH of silver according to the
royal standard. Quoted by _Sayce_, u.s.

B.C. 667.—We find Nergal-sarra-nacir lending "four MANEHS of silver,
according to the MANEH of Carchemish."—_Ibid._

c. B.C. 524.—"Cambyses received the Libyan presents very graciously, but
not so the gifts of the Cyrenaeans. They had sent no more than 500 MINAE
of silver, which Cambyses, I imagine, thought too little. He therefore
snatched the money from them, and with his own hand scattered it among
the soldiers."—_Herodot._ iii. ch. 13 (E.T. by _Rawlinson_).

c. A.D. 70.—"Et quoniam in mensuris quoque ac ponderibus crebro Graecis
nominibus utendum est, interpretationem eorum semel in hoc loco ponemus:
... MNA, quam nostri MINAM vocant pendet drachmas Atticas c."—_Pliny_,
xxi., at end.

c. 1020.—"The gold and silver ingots amounted to 700,400 MANS in
weight."—_Al 'Utbi_, in _Elliot_, ii. 35.

1040.—"The Amír said:—'Let us keep fair measure, and fill the cups
evenly.'... Each goblet contained half a MAN."—_Baihaki_, _ibid._ ii.
144.

c. 1343.—

"The MENA of Sarai makes in Genoa weight lb. 6 oz. 2
The MENA of Organci (_Urghanj_) in Genoa lb. 3 oz. 9
The MENA of Oltrarre (_Otrār_) in Genoa lb. 3 oz. 9
The MENA of Armalecho (_Al-maligh_) in Genoa lb. 2 oz. 8
The MENA of Camexu (_Kancheu_ in N.W. China) lb. 2"
_Pegolotti_, 4.

1563.—"The value of stones is only because people desire to have them,
and because they are scarce, but as for virtues, those of the loadstone,
which staunches blood, are very much greater and better attested than
those of the emerald. And yet the former sells by MAOS, which are in
Cambay ... equal to 26 _arratels_ each, and the latter by _ratis_, which
weigh 3 grains of wheat."—_Garcia_, f. 159_v_.

1598.—"They have another weight called MAO, which is a Hand, and is 12
pounds."—_Linschoten_, 69; [Hak. Soc. i. 245].

1610.—"He was found ... to have sixtie MAUNES in Gold, and euery MAUNE is
five and fiftie pound weight."—_Hawkins_, in _Purchas_, i. 218.

1611.—"Each MAUND being three and thirtie pound English
weight."—_Middleton_, _ibid._ i. 270.

[1645.—"As for the weights, the ordinary MAND is 69 _livres_, and the
_livre_ is of 16 _onces_; but the MAND, which is used to weigh indigo, is
only 53 _livres_. At Surat you speak of a _seer_, which is 1¾ _livres_,
and the _livre_ is 16 _onces_."—_Tavernier_, ed. _Ball_, i. 38.]

c. 1665.—"Le MAN pese quarante livres par toutes les Indes, mais ces
livres ou _serres_ sont differentes selon les Pais."—_Thevenot_, v. 54.

1673.—"A _Lumbrico_ (Sconce) of pure Gold, weighing about one MAUND and a
quarter, which is Forty-two pounds."—_Fryer_, 78.

"

"The Surat MAUND ... is 40 _Sear_, of 20 _Pice_ the _Sear_,
which is 37_l._
The Pucka MAUND at _Agra_ is double as much, where is also the
Ecbarry MAUND which is 40 _Sear_, of 30 _Pice_ to the _Sear_...."
_Ibid._ 205.

1683.—"Agreed with Chittur Mullsaw and Muttradas, Merchants of this place
(Hugly), for 1,500 Bales of ye best Tissinda Sugar, each bale to weigh 2
MAUNDS, 6½ _Seers_, Factory weight."—_Hedges, Diary_, April 5; [Hak. Soc.
i. 75].

1711.—"Sugar, Coffee, Tutanague, all sorts of Drugs, &c., are sold by the
MAUND Tabrees; which in the Factory and Custom house is nearest 6¾_l._
_Avoirdupoiz_.... Eatables, and all sorts of Fruit ... &c. are sold by
the MAUND _Copara_ of 7¾_l._... The MAUND Shaw is two MAUNDS _Tabrees_,
used at Ispahan."—_Lockyer_, 230.

c. 1760.—Grose says, "the MAUND they weigh their indicos with is only 53
_lb._" He states the _maund_ of Upper India as 69 _lb._; at Bombay, 28
_lb._; at Goa, 14 _lb._; at Surat, 37½ _lb._; at Coromandel, 25 _lb._; in
Bengal, 75 _lb._

1854.—"... You only consent to make play when you have packed a good
MAUND of traps on your back."—_Life of Lord Lawrence_, i. 433.

MAYLA, s. Hind. _melā_, 'a fair,' almost always connected with some religious celebration, as were so many of the medieval fairs in Europe. The word is Skt. _mela_, _melaka_, 'meeting, concourse, assembly.'

[1832.—"A party of foreigners ... wished to see what was going on at this
far-famed _mayllah_...."—_Mrs. Meer Hassan Ali, Observations_, ii.
321-2.]

1869.—"Le MELA n'est pas précisément une foire telle que nous
l'entendent; c'est le nom qu'on donne aux réunions de pèlerins et des
marchands qui ... se rendent dans les lieux considérés comme sacrés, aux
fêtes de certaine dieux indiens et des personnages reputés saints parmi
les musulmans."—_Garcin de Tassy, Rel. Mus._ p. 26.

MAZAGONG, MAZAGON, n.p. A suburb of Bombay, containing a large Portuguese population. [The name is said to be originally _Maheśa-grāma_, 'the village of the Great Lord,' Śiva.]

1543.—

"MAZAGUÃO, por 15,000 _fedeas_,
MONBAYM (Bombay), por 15,000."
_S. Botelho, Tombo_, 149.

1644.—"Going up the stream from this town (Mombaym, _i.e._ Bombay) some 2
leagues, you come to the aldea of MAZAGAM."—_Bocarro_, MS. f. 227.

1673.—"... for some miles together, till the Sea break in between them;
over against which lies MASSEGOUNG, a great Fishing Town.... The Ground
between this and the Great Breach is well ploughed and bears good Batty.
Here the Portugals have another Church and Religious House belonging to
the Franciscans."—_Fryer_, p. 67.

[MEARBAR, s. Pers. _mīrbaḥr_, 'master of the bay,' a harbour-master. _Mīrbaḥrī_, which appears in _Botelho_ (_Tombo_, p. 56) as MIRABARY, means 'ferry dues.'

[1675.—"There is another hangs up at the daily Waiters, or MEERBAR'S
CHOULTRY, by the Landing-place...."—_Fryer_, 98.]

[1682.—"... ordering them to bring away ye boat from ye
MEARBAR."—_Hedges, Diary_, Hak. Soc. i. 34.]

MECKLEY, n.p. One of the names of the State of MUNNEEPORE.

MEEANA, MYANNA, s. H.—P. _mīyāna_, 'middle-sized.' The name of a kind of palankin; that kind out of which the palankin used by Europeans has been developed, and which has been generally adopted in India for the last century. [Buchanan Hamilton writes: "The lowest kind of palanquins, which are small litters suspended under a straight bamboo, by which they are carried, and shaded by a frame covered with cloth, do not admit the passenger to lie at length, and are here called MIYANA, or _Mahapa_. In some places, these terms are considered as synonymous, in others the _Miyana_ is open at the sides, while the _Mahapa_, intended for women, is surrounded with curtains." (_Eastern India_, ii. 426).] In _Williamson's Vade Mecum_ (i. 319) the word is written MOHANNAH.

1784.—"... an entire new MYANNAH, painted and gilt, lined with orange
silk, with curtains and bedding complete."—In _Seton-Karr_, i. 49.

" "Patna common chairs, couches and teapoys, two MAHANA
palanquins."—_Ibid._ 62.

1793.—"To be sold ... an Elegant New Bengal MEANA, with Hair Bedding and
furniture."—_Bombay Courier_, Nov. 2.

1795.—"For Sale, an Elegant Fashionable New MEANNA from
Calcutta."—_Ibid._ May 16.

MEERASS, s., MEERASSY, adj., MEERASSIDAR, s. 'Inheritance,' 'hereditary,' 'a holder of hereditary property.' Hind. from Arab. _mīrās̤_, _mīrās̤ī_, _mīrās̤dār_; and these from _waris̤_, 'to inherit.'

1806.—"Every MEERASSDAR in Tanjore has been furnished with a separate
POTTAH (q.v.) for the land held by him."—_Fifth Report_ (1812), 774.

1812.—"The term MEERASSEE ... was introduced by the Mahommedans."—_Ibid._
136.

1877.—"All MIRAS rights were reclaimable within a forty years'
absence."—_Meadows Taylor, Story of My Life_, ii. 211.

" "I found a great proportion of the occupants of land to be
MIRASDARS,—that is, persons who held their portions of land in hereditary
occupancy."—_Ibid._ 210.

MEHAUL, s. Hind. from Arab. _maḥāll_, being properly the pl. of Arab. _maḥall_. The word is used with a considerable variety of application, the explanation of which would involve a greater amount of technical detail than is consistent with the purpose of this work. On this _Wilson_ may be consulted. But the most usual Anglo-Indian application of _maḥāll_ (used as a singular and generally written, incorrectly, _maḥāl_) is to 'an estate,' in the Revenue sense, _i.e._ 'a parcel or parcels of land separately assessed for revenue.' The sing. _maḥall_ (also written in the vernaculars _maḥal_, and _maḥāl_) is often used for a palace or important edifice, _e.g._ (see SHISHMUHULL, TAJ-MAHAL).

MEHTAR, s. A sweeper or scavenger. This name is usual in the Bengal Presidency, especially for the domestic servant of this class. The word is Pers. comp. _mihtar_ (Lat. _major_), 'a great personage,' 'a prince,' and has been applied to the class in question in irony, or rather in consolation, as the domestic tailor is called CALEEFA. But the name has so completely adhered in this application, that all sense of either irony or consolation has perished; _mehtar_ is a sweeper and nought else. His wife is the MATRANEE. It is not unusual to hear two _mehtars_ hailing each other as _Mahārāj_! In Persia the menial application of the word seems to be different (see below). The same class of servant is usually called in W. India _bhangī_ (see BUNGY), a name which in Upper India is applied to the caste generally and specially to those not in the service of Europeans. [Examples of the word used in the honorific sense will be found below.]

c. 1800.—"MAITRE." See under BUNOW.

1810.—"The MATER, or sweeper, is considered the lowest menial in every
family."—_Williamson, V. M._ i. 276-7.

1828.—"... besides many MEHTARS or stable-boys."—_Hajji Baba in England_,
i. 60.

[In the honorific sense:

[1824.—"In each of the towns of Central India, there is ... a MEHTUR, or
head of every other class of the inhabitants down to the
lowest."—_Malcolm, Central India_, 2nd ed. i. 555.

[1880.—"On the right bank is the fort in which the MIHTER or Bādshāh, for
he is known by both titles, resides."—_Biddulph, Tribes of the Hindoo
Kush_, 61.]

MELINDE, MELINDA, n.p. The name (_Malinda_ or _Malindī_) of an Arab town and State on the east coast of Africa, in S. lat. 3° 9′; the only one at which the expedition of Vasco da Gama had amicable relations with the people, and that at which they obtained the pilot who guided the squadron to the coast of India.

c. 1150.—"MELINDE, a town of the Zendj, ... is situated on the sea-shore
at the mouth of a river of fresh water.... It is a large town, the people
of which ... draw from the sea different kinds of fish, which they dry
and trade in. They also possess and work mines of iron."—_Edrisi_
(_Jaubert_), i. 56.

c. 1320.—See also _Abulfeda_, by _Reinaud_, ii. 207.

1498.—"And that same day at sundown we cast anchor right opposite a place
which is called MILINDE, which is 30 leagues from Mombaça.... On Easter
Day those Moors whom we held prisoners, told us that in the said town of
MILINDE were stopping four ships of Christians who were Indians, and that
if we desired to take them these would give us, instead of themselves,
Christian Pilots."—_Roteiro of Vasco da Gama_, 42-3.

1554.—"As the King of MELINDE pays no tribute, nor is there any reason
why he should, considering the many tokens of friendship we have received
from him, both on the first discovery of these countries, and to this
day, and which in my opinion we repay very badly, by the ill treatment
which he has from the Captains who go on service to this Coast."—_Simão
Botelho, Tombo_, 17.

c. 1570.—"Di Chiaul si negotia anco per la costa de' MELINDI in
Ethiopia."—_Cesare de Federici_ in _Ramusio_, iii. 396_v_.

1572.—

"Quando chegava a frota áquella parte
Onde o reino MELINDE já se via,
De toldos adornada, e leda de arte:
Que bem mostra estimar a sancta dia
Treme a bandeira, voa o estandarte,
A cor purpurea ao longe apparecia,
Soam os atambores, e pandeiros:
E assi entravam ledos e guerreiros."
_Camões_, ii. 73.

By Burton:

"At such a time the Squadron neared the part
where first MELINDE'S goodly shore unseen,
in awnings drest and prankt with gallant art,
to show that none the Holy Day misween:
Flutter the flags, the streaming Estandart
gleams from afar with gorgeous purple sheen,
tom-toms and timbrels mingle martial jar:
thus past they forwards with the pomp of war."

1610.—P. Texeira tells us that among the "Moors" at Ormuz, Alboquerque
was known only by the name of MALANDY, and that with some difficulty he
obtained the explanation that he was so called because he came thither
from the direction of MELINDE, which they call MALAND.—_Relacion de los
Reyes de Harmuz_, 45.

[1823.—Owen calls the place MALEENDA and gives an account of
it.—_Narrative_, i. 399 _seqq._]

1859.—"As regards the immigration of the Wagemu (Ajemi, or Persians),
from whom the ruling tribe of the Wasawahili derives its name, they
relate that several Shaykhs, or elders, from Shiraz emigrated to
Shangaya, a district near the Ozi River, and founded the town of MALINDI
(_Melinda_)."—_Burton_, in _J.R.G.S._ xxix. 51.

MELIQUE VERIDO, n.p. The Portuguese form of the style of the princes of the dynasty established at Bīdar in the end of the 15th century, on the decay of the Bāhmani kingdom. The name represents 'Malik Barīd.' It was apparently only the third of the dynasty, 'Ali, who first took the title of ('Ali) Barīd Shāh.