![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 [‎388r] (795/1291)](https://iiif.qdl.qa/iiif/images/81055/vdc_100000000323.0x0002bc/Mss Eur D922_1_0795.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 [‎388r] (795/1291)")
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 [388r] (795/1291)
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.
3.
scallywagb for wm saw 'civ ra on our way to church. Lock had sternly
refused tonta or any other oncourageni'>nt to our t, ba.etis n , and told
th im that as th »ro was no earthly sons ) in their o< ing there and no
earthly danger in their going to their own honosy they could, jolly
well sleep in the open ii they insisted on staying.
How the opium-tax scheme will progress wo do not yet know;
w-. shall probably h >ar more or it. q 3 - 10 mr. L's inspectors
iound a man in the bazar wiht a huge piece of ff sukhta n in his hand,
this is some kind of "burnt" opium which is particularly strong
am is contraband. The inspector proceed'd to try to seize it;
the man popped into his mouth to try and save it by swallowing ( tho'
I believe it might i&sily have been fatal if he had), the inspector
got him 'ey tho throat just in time to catch it and after a struggle
mad him disgorge it. The delinquent then brought a complaint
against the inspector for assault. Needless to say crowds collect
ed and all the popular sympathy was with tho opium chap. The
•noputy Governor imposed some slight imprisonment on the opiumm man
ard then wrot* to L. that of course it wa.s true that the inspector
was only doing his duty and was fully justified »tc. '>tc., but
tha.t the public feeling ought to d ) consulted and he would ih *re—
lore strongly recommend L. to imprison his inspector also l
You will be sorry to hear that Lock has had i*i*»—ttw aays
a very smart attack of acute rheumatism and was quit') crippled and
in groat pain for a lew days. He it. improving now and we hope that
the more sottl d weather will chase the devil out of us both. It
is rather amusing that we should have had sharper attacks here
than in Bahrein, tu t x boll >ve it is only the cumulative effects
of the other damp climate and that when wo really shako it off it
will not return.
I had been greatly booking forward to our lunch at the Bank
which was to give us tho opportunity of riding thro* the bazar, but
when Monday morning came and Lock's leg was still so painful that he
could hardly hobble a. step at all, r wait >d to put it off. This,
however, he was very loiluctant to do. Matt r s with the Bank
i re just a litte^L strained and ho was afraid that Mr. G. might
chink he was merely making a, pretext. So he mount d th' Bianop
and found that h< could sit him if not with ease or comfort, and so
we went. Tho rid) thro' the bazar wa.s interesting enough. The
greater part of it is roof id in with handsome round vaulted domes of
brick in tho top of which are holes to let in light and air.
The shp^s are arranged along each side- ana you could see
into the smithies, and the brass—hammerers* and tho cobblers, and
shudder at the aweatmeat—stalls. In tho back "of one shop in
a soi't of shallow collar we saw an unhappy camel walking round and
round working some kind of mill, grinding henna our sowars thought.
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 [388r] (795/1291), British Library: India Office Records and Private Papers, Mss Eur D922/1, in Qatar Digital Library <https://www.qdl.qa/archive/81055/vdc_100179946971.0x00004d> [accessed 24 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