| Description | It is five minutes until sale time, which will last an hour or so, and he describes what he can see and hear at the auction. William is sitting outside near the middle of a long table, in a large and lofty room of an Indian house belonging to Mackenzie Lyall & Company. They are selling on behalf of the government 2,500 chests of opium. The merchants are those from China, and it is William's duty as Secretary to superintend the sale. He describes one merchant's success in getting a lower price, and then deliberating on whether he should exercise his right to 25 lots at the same price, or hold out for lower, which he eventually does. William gives a running commentary on other bidding. During a break, William describes some of the participants, commencing with a small gaudily dressed boy, apparently taking notes of the sale. The child's friends are Marwaris, upcountry merchants with bright turbans, shaved cheeks, and moustaches. Next to them are Parsees [Parsis], and William sketches a man in profile to illustrate his headwear. Also present are some Jewish men wearing red fez caps. The bidding continues, with William's overview of it, until the last chest is sold. |