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An Account of a Journey in Kashmir by David Lockhart Robertson Lorimer and Letters from Emily Overend Lorimer to her Parents sent from Bahrain and Kerman [396r] (811/1291)
The record is made up of 2 files (630 folios). It was created in 1898-1914. It was written in English and Persian. The original is part of the British Library: India Office The department of the British Government to which the Government of India reported between 1858 and 1947. The successor to the Court of Directors. Records and Private Papers Documents collected in a private capacity. .
Transcription
This transcription is created automatically. It may contain errors.
4.
Bomoay, at;out tLe Zoo aaci t^e grass ana t**8 climates oi‘ our
respective countries. Tney asxea me aia I come xrom
r.onaon (to many Persians M Lonaon" means 5ng^lana). I
triea to explain tnat Lonaon was only one cig city many
nunarea timea oigger tx.au Bombay, out tuat there were many
other cities in England ana tx.at t came xrom one ox tnarn, ana
tne name or the part ox tae country waere T came xrom was
"Irelana", wnich was I'urtner on than Lonaon. There was
no use trying to explain aoout isianas; in any case T coulan't
rememoer tne word xor tx.em. I tnougx.t t*»e lady naa got
aold ox my general arixt, till she turned round to explain
it more fully to her aaugater, ana I neara ger explain taat
in England tnere were two cities one was r.ondon and tx.e otner
was EE-Lonaon ana tne Kx*aniim came xrom tx.ere l Tnen tx.ey
tola me that tne wire naa oeen married twenty years ago;
my only nav^been married two ana a nail years puzzlea tnem
arjo_ they prooaoly presume me to oe at least Lock’s tnira,
ana wonaer no aouot why he didn’t txae a young one.
explained tx.at we married mucx. later; this t^.ey mail Kne 1 .*,
out tuey say that tneir girls marry aoout 10 or 11 ana are
’’old maias" ix leit till 12. They usually nave tneir xirst
oabv aoout lb or 14. Tt seems awxully wicKea a»ia ^r el,
ana they agreed with me that it mig*.t with advantage oe post
poned a littie. But to Iook at t^e two aappy cneerrul
laces ana the olooming health ana rosy—cneeKs ox the wixe
or 20 years standing one could not say that they seemea to
have suixered seriously. T got mixed as to their respective
children's ages etc. ana I x’elt s certain delicacy aooat
asxing them how ma.iy other wives there were. As a matter
ox xact monogamy is very xasnionaole even amongst t..e wealthy
"Persians ana necessary to the less wealthy who cannot axxord
several wives. TV*on we talxed aoout carpets ana seeing
ana emoroiaery and servants ana various other topics, out
until r know more Persian ana have more practice in conver
sation I shan't oe aole to get on to any really interesting
suojeots. Alter all it was the xirst time I naa tried to
speax except to the servants, ana T was rather surprised to
oe aole to understand so much as I did. '^e haa tea oroug^t
in ana they helped titemselves to coxes etc.lioerally, out to
my great chagrin though tx.ey lingered them and crumolea them
they practically ate nothing. I maoe a mental note t~ht
■nersian politness does not aemana that one snail eat every
thing one taxes on to one's plate. Ana my bsisgrln at their
lack ox appreciation xor my nice caxes was assuaged oy the
comxorting thought that I shan't nave to maxe a clean sweep
About this item
- Content
This file consists of two separate physical files as follows:
1) An account of a journey in Kashmir in 1898-99 written by David Lockhart Robertson Lorimer of the Indian Army. His account is entitled 'Three Months of Privilege Leave'. It contains his observations on the languages, peoples, transport, flora and fauna, trade and climate of the region. There are occasional edits and corrections to the original text marked in red pen. The Persian language material in the file is a proverb written on folio 194.
In addition to this travel diary, the following is enclosed: an essay by Lorimer entitled 'Modern Education' dated 9 February 1895 (folios 1-24); two copies of a pamphlet that was published 'for private circulation' in memory of David's brother, John Gordon Lorimer, following his death on 8 February 1914 (folios 255-262); and another essay by Lorimer entitled 'Our Indian N.W. Frontier - a study in a bye-gone Civilisation. A forgotten Chapter of Frontier History' (folios 221-253).
2) Copies of letters that were sent from Emily Overend Lorimer to her parents, Thomas George Overend and Hannah Kingsbury. The letters describe the lives of Emily and her husband, David Lockhart Robertson Lorimer (referred to as 'Lock' in the letters), while living in Bahrain from October 1911 until November 1912 (folios 263-310) and in Kerman from January 1913 until November 1914 (folios 313-634). David served as Political Agent A mid-ranking political representative (equivalent to a Consul) from the diplomatic corps of the Government of India or one of its subordinate provincial governments, in charge of a Political Agency. in Bahrain 1911-12 and as HM Consul, Kerman and Persian Baluchistan, 1913-14.
The letters discuss a range of topics including Lorimer's observations of local customs, food, climate, scenery and festivals; the couple's domestic life and arrangements (especially their servants, who are often discussed in racialised, insulting language); and her interactions with other non-local residents. Also discussed are Lorimer's reading habits, her and her husband's health, family news and, occasionally, world events and political developments.
On folios 322-324, the file contains a description of a walk around Kerman in March 1914 that is accompanied by a sequence of six small black and white photographs of various points in the journey (folios 315-321).
In addition to these letters, the file also contains a number obituaries and letters of condolence written upon the death of David's brother, John Gordon Lorimer, on 8 February 1914 (folios 299-302, 415-416 and 543-544).
On folio 417, the file contains an obituary of David Lockhart Robertson Lorimer published in an unknown newspaper following his death on 26 February 1962.
- Extent and format
- 2 files (630 folios)
- Physical characteristics
Foliation: this file consists of two physical volumes. The foliation sequence commences at the front cover of volume one (ff 1-262) and terminates at the inside back cover of volume two (ff 263-634); these numbers are written in pencil, are circled, and are located in the top right corner of the recto The front of a sheet of paper or leaf, often abbreviated to 'r'. side of each folio.
- Written in
- English and Persian in Latin and Arabic script View the complete information for this record
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An Account of a Journey in Kashmir by David Lockhart Robertson Lorimer and Letters from Emily Overend Lorimer to her Parents sent from Bahrain and Kerman [396r] (811/1291), British Library: India Office Records and Private Papers, Mss Eur D922/1, in Qatar Digital Library <https://www.qdl.qa/archive/81055/vdc_100179946969.0x0000b7> [accessed 22 June 2026]
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- Reference
- Mss Eur D922/1
- Title
- An Account of a Journey in Kashmir by David Lockhart Robertson Lorimer and Letters from Emily Overend Lorimer to her Parents sent from Bahrain and Kerman
- Pages
- 263r:298v, 303r:306v, 309r:391v, 393r:411v, 418r:542v, 545r:634v
- Author
- Lorimer, Emily Martha
- Copyright
- ©Munro Family
- Usage terms
- Creative Commons Attribution Licence