1 CONDUCT OF BUSINESS. 15
2 In affairs of importance he consults the
3 Grunth, the religious book of the Sikhs, and
4 often acts as he is guided by that oracle. His
5 correspondence with foreign states, as well as
6 with his own functionaries, is solely dictated
7 by himself; and, though illiterate, he exercises
8 a minute criticism in correcting the diction of
9 his secretaries. An habitual reserve in matters
10 of business forms a striking feature of his cha-
11 racter. It is an invariable rule with him never
12 to mention his object to any one until the time
13 for execution has arrived.
14 During the early part of his reign, he and the
15 other Sikh chiefs had no system of official re-
16 cords ; business was conducted by verbal orders,
17 and continued so with Ranjeet Singh until Di-
18 wan Bhowani Das, a clever native of Peshawr,
19 was employed. When he came into his service
20 he divided the transaction of the affairs of state
21 into different offices or departments, keeping
22 the accounts, farming of districts, and preserv-
23 ing every record of importance, commenced
24 only from that period: At present there are
25 twelve Daftars or offices where the civil and
26 military business of the government is arranged.