Tar-Walah
This article is an extract from
THE TRIBES and CASTES of BENGAL. Ethnographic Glossary. Printed at the Bengal Secretariat Press. 1891. . |
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Tar-Walah
This is the offensive trade of the Boyaudier, or gut-spinner, who prepares gut from the entrails of goats and sheep1 for the strings of pellet bows (Ghulel), and musical instruments, such as the Behla and Sarangi.
The fresh intestine being scraped and cut into lengths, according to size, is rolled in the palms of the hands, and dried. In former days, the entrails of all goats and sheep slaughtered in Dacca became the perquisite of the trade, but of late years they are bought as required.
The Tar-walahs intermarry with other Muhammadans, as their ancestor is said to have been the Khadim, or custodian, of a private mosque, the property of Nawab Shaistah Khan, from which post he was arbitrarily driven out.
1 Tant in Dacca, is gut made from the intestines of cattle.
