35053668-Empire-of-the-Soul-Paul-William-Roberts

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EMPIRE OF THE SOUL
had taken three years to reach Bombay, one has to admire his
optimism. I have been unable to learn if he ever collected the prize
money.
Yet indescribably petty incidents continued to receive lavish
coverage by the Times. On December 6, 1906, the paper devoted a
considerable number of column inches to a lawsuit at the Bombay
Small Cases Court.
‘HOTEL COMPANY SUED’, the headline howled. A certain
Mr Coke, it seems, had been hired by the hotel company as band
master, with a contract whereby he agreed ‘to provide for one year
an efficient orchestra and to play at the Taj appropriate selections of
music.’ Four months into his contract Coke was fired – unfairly, he
claimed. The hotel, however, had its reasons:
Manager, Mr F. T. Burcher stated that Mr Coke did not play
according to scheduled time. He did not dress correctly – wore
riding breeches. His performances were repetitious. On some
occasions he mingled with the guests. The band had become a
bore. On 28th February he stopped earlier than scheduled.
Next day, the Times carried the band master’s version: Mr Coke
admitted to some of the charges but said that on February 28 his
men were tired. He claimed that most of the charges for his dismissal
were frivolous and minor. Obviously the judge thought Mr Coke’s
charges were also frivolous and minor, for on December 11 he
‘dismissed the suit with costs.’
Still, the Raj elite, whether they disapproved of Jamsetji Tata or
not, patronised his hotel in ever-larger numbers. Bombay society
gathered there, as it still does. On November 16, 1906, the Times
announced that there were ‘WEST END DRESSES IN BOMBAY’:
Mr. Alfred S. Phillips, of the well-known firm of Messrs Phillips
& Sons, ladies’ tailors and gown makers of Quadrant House, 58,
Regent Street, London, is at present on a visit to India and
Bombay with a large selection of exquisite gowns. Mr A. S.
Phillips has come to India personally in order to fit and take
ladies’ measures, and the visit is of more than usual interest. It is