Note 96 — G

5. On the whole it seems probable that in the Panjâb and in the Western Districts of these Provinces, at least, the tribe is fairly free from intermixture with the lower races. Mr. Ibbetson describes the Gûjar as “a fine, stalwart fellow of precisely the same physical type as the Jât, and the theory of aboriginal descent which has sometimes been propounded, is to my mind conclusively negatived by his cast of countenance. He is of the same social condition as the Jât, or perhaps slightly inferior; but the two eat and drink together in common without any scruple, and the proverb says:—“The Jât, the Gûjar, the Ahîr, and Gola, are all four hail fellows well met.” Of the Kashmîr Gûjars Mr. Drew96 writes:—“The race is Aryan, but their countenance cannot be called high Aryan; their forehead is narrow; they want the well-formed brow of the finer races. The lower part of the face is narrow, too; but the nose has always something of the curve as is often seen in Aryan nations. Some I met with had lighter eyes than are common among the other tribes of the country, and generally their beard was scant. In figure they are tall and gaunt, in motion slow and ungainly. They are rather surly in disposition, having that kind of independence which consists in liking to be left alone, and to have as little as possible to do with other races. When, however, one does come in contact with them they are not bad to deal with.” On the other hand, the eastern branch of the tribe, and particularly those who have become Muhammadans, appear to be very much mixed in blood.