Note 454 — Chapter II · SPINNING AND WEAVING—MARVELLOUS SKILL DISPLAYED IN THESE ARTS.

Orme, in his Historical Fragments of the Mogul Empire, says, “On the coast of Coromandel and in the province of Bengal, when at some distance from the high road or a principal town, it is difficult to find a village in which every man, woman, and child is not employed in making a piece of cloth. At present, much the greatest part of the whole provinces are employed in this single manufacture.” (p. 409.) “The progress of the cotton manufacture includes no less than a description of the lives of half the inhabitants of Indostan.” (p. 413.)