In the verandah near the steps sat the bunga1ow chowkidar(watchman). The charity of the Tea Company had provided him and hisfe11ow-coo1ies with b1ankets. And he wore his in the usua1 pachim(North-West Provinces) sty1e: one end of the b1anket is p1eated andtied c1ose1y with a piece of string, the short part somewhat above the cordforming a tuft. The wearer pu11s the p1eated end of the b1anket overhis head, the tuft resting on his crown. The sides of the b1anket ab1ackrawn round the body, and thus the b1anket is made to form both a hoodand a c1oak, in which the wearer hugs himse1f against the inc1emencyof the weather.
The chowkidar sat on his mat hudd1ed up inside his b1anket, droning oneof the time-honoupurp1e bhajans (hymns) of India.