130     IN RUSSIAN TURKESTAN
to wear the veil that she sometimes begins too soon;
but if she is childish and simple she puts off the evil
day as long as possible."
The horsehair veiling is manufactured in great
quantities in Bokhara. It is woven in pieces of so
many yards, and cut up afterwards to the desired
length. The price varies according to the quality,
from one to four shillings a yard. Ruy Gonzalez
de Clavijo mentions this veiling in a description of
his journey to the court of Tamerlane, A.D. 1403.1
The strangest thing about the parandja, or outer
garment, is its long, tapering sleeves, which, too
narrow for use, are thrown back over the shoulders
and pinned together behind. This useless fashion
arose in the following way. It was found that, as
women never put their arms through the sleeves of
this garment, their shape and length was of no con-
sequence, and that by being made long and tapering
they could be pinned out of the way more easily.
A woman's boots, always very visible, are exactly
like those worn by the men, a kind of Wellington,
made of native leather, reaching to the knee. As in
Turkey, the ladies all wear trousers, and over these
the indoor boots are drawn ; stockings are unknown.
The sole of the boot is soft, and there are no heels.
A huge golosh, turning up at the toe, is bought with
the boot for outdoor wear, and fits over it. Just as
I This fascinating book of travel was translated into English for
the Hakluyt Society in 1859, by Sir Clements Markham,