ABSTRACT
In a maritime sense, the term lascar referred to any non-European seaman. John Pope writing of life on board the Country ship in which he was serving for three years from 1786 had plenty of time to observe them:
They eat twice a day, rice and ghee with a little fish, being the whole of their allowance. Nay they find the fish themselves … They have no watch, all hands being continuously on deck, rain or fair weather. He had intended to learn to write their language but I find there is not a man on board that can either write or read. The songs that they sing when at work I find nobody understands. I suppose they must have some meaning – [they] are mostly in rhyme and have a great deal of melody in them. 63
