![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 [‎375r] (769/1291)](https://iiif.qdl.qa/iiif/images/81055/vdc_100000000323.0x0002bc/Mss Eur D922_1_0769.jp2/full/!1200,1200/0/default.jpg "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 [‎375r] (769/1291)")
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 [375r] (769/1291)
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.
This part of th» lott^r is perfectly childish and foolish;
thu precious Mirza Mustafa liko everyone else in Kerman has
only to send in his name at any hour of the day to be received
privately in Lock's study without the
Nawab
An honorific title; an official acting as a provincial deputy ruler in South Asia; or a significant Muslim landowner in nineteenth century India.
's oven knowing that
he has come. The implied imputation is that Lock is w run w
by the
Nawab
An honorific title; an official acting as a provincial deputy ruler in South Asia; or a significant Muslim landowner in nineteenth century India.
is even more comic. Apart from everything else
the dear old man is much too slack and gouty to want the trouble
of "running" anyone. It is the funnier because the cap fits
the other party so entirely. Mirza M. is the Bank's only
pillar and support; he is quite an able man said may —or may
not — be perfectly honest according to Ms lights and zealous
for their interests; but of course he is only a Persian and has
only P irsian lights, which include hearsay evidence and torture
and bribery ana many other odd things. He collects all their
"evidence" or rumours io r them, and even where they make) an effort
to examine matters independently themselves he has to act as
ih sir interpreter. Though they can both talk a little
(with shocking accents) neither Mr. N .wman nor Mr. Gardner
can read a word either of print or script so that they are
entirely d jpendmt on the said Mirza for the translations of
all letters addressed to them end (what to my mind would be even
graver^th -sy cannot read the outgoing letters to which they
append their signatures. The not result is of course that
the Mirza runs the whole show for better or for worse aid when
Lock cannot endorse his methods ana push things through on his
lines the Bank fool their time's t interests are being neglected.
Some amusing incidents are now taking place in connection
with the qaii-bafi (car pet-weaving ). Thj management of
work-rooms and employees is of course full of disgraceful abuses
Fathers of large families a(rike# immense incomes by hiring out
the mother and ail the children to toil all day at the carpets
in the most disgraceful conditiont ana a large part 1^> the
population having been thus hired out by their parents are
practically in a state of slavery. There is of course viry
little that we can do, though th * decent carp t merchants
like Mr. Raaflaub do their best to induce the employers to
improve their premises and look af ter thier work-p eople and some
of them respond very readily. Meantime the present D puty
Governor has * taken the matter up. Unfortunately his philan
thropy is only skin-deep. The fact is that ho is sorely dis
appointed to find that he isn't making anything like the
income that he made out of Kerman when he held the job one 3
before ana he saw whith much. shrewdness a fine revenue to b >
made out of playing at Western iumanitarianism.. He has
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 [375r] (769/1291), British Library: India Office Records and Private Papers, Mss Eur D922/1, in Qatar Digital Library <https://www.qdl.qa/archive/81055/vdc_100179946967.0x00002b> [accessed 19 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