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AMILY LIBRARY.

]N«. XLIX.

CO

HISTORY

OF

BRITISH INDIA,

WITH ENGHAMNGS.
IN THREE VuLUMKS.

VOL. IIL

^eto*S#oirk :

J. & J. HARPER, e2 CUFFSTREEt.
Stereotype Edit um.

1832.

l^reuBxdeb to
of tl|e

The Harris iainily,
Eiaon House,

London, Ontario

BRITISH INDIA.

VOL. III.

NEW-YORK:

J. & J. HARPER, 82 CLIFF-STREET.

1 8 .3 2.

HISTORICAL AND DESCRIPTIVE

ACCOUNT ^yyCt^t^^^ /ffj ^

BRITISH INDIA,

FROM
THE MOST REMOTE PERIOD TO THE PRESENT TIME :

INCLITBINO

A NARRATIVE OF THE EARLY PORTUGUESE AND ENGLISH VOYAGES, TBV.
REVOLUTIONS IN THE MOGUL EMPIRE, AND THE ORIGIN, PROGRESS, AND
ESTABLISHMENT OF THE BRITISH POWER ; VCITH ILLUSTRATIONS OP
THE ZOOLOGY, BOTANY, CLIMATE, GEOLOGY, AND MINERALOGY. ALSO
MEDICAL OBSERVATIONS,— AN ACCOUNT OF THE HINDOO ASTRONOMY
—THE TRIGONOMETRICAL SURVEYS,— AND THE NAVIGATION Of THE
INDIAN SEAS.

BY

HUGH MURRAY, ESQ., F.R.S.E.

JAMES WILSON, ESQ., F.R.S.E. AND M.W.S.

R. K. GREVILLE, LL.D.

PROFESSOR JAMESON.

WHITELAW AINSLIE, M.D., M.R.A.S.,

Late of the Medical Staff of Southern India.

WILLIAM RHLND, ESQ., M.R.C.S.

PROFESSOR WALLACE.

AND CAPTAIN CLARENCE DALRYMPLE,
Hon. East India Company's Service.

IN THREE VOLinWES.
VOL. III.

WITH A MAP AND ENGRAVINGS.

NEW-YORK :
PRINTED AND PUBLISHED BY J. & J. HARPER,

NO. 82 CLIFF-STREET,

AND SOLD BY THE PRINCIPAL BOOKSELLERS THROUOHOnT

THE UNITED STATES.

1832.

k

G52nftA

v.^

CONTENTS

OF

THE THIRD VOLUME.

CHAPTER I.
Introductory OflSKRVA.TioNs Page H

CHAPTER n.

THE QnADRrPEDS OF INDIA.

The Gibbon— Entellns Monkey— Wanderoo — Bats — Bears — Jackal

ThibetDog— Ichneumon— Lion — Tiger — Hunting-tiger— Squirrel-
Gigantic Rat— Pangolin— Elephant— Rhinoceros— Camel— Musk-deer
— Nepaul Stag— Rusa Deer— Spotted Axis — Hog-deer— Roebuck-
White Oryx- Chiru— Four-horned Antelope— Nyl-ghau— Cashmere
Goat — Jemlah Goat —Wild-sheep— Buffalo— Arnee— Grunting-ox—
Gayall— Cetaceous Animals— Diigong—Gangetic Dolphin 19

CHAPTER m.

THE BIRDS OF INDIA.

Vultures— Lammergeyer—Pondicherry Eagle— Finch Falcon of Bengal
—Hawk-owl of Ceylon— Fork-tailed Shrike— Jocose Shrike or Bulbul
— Mina-bird— Locust-eating Grakle— Honeysuckers— Kingfishers—
HornbillB— Woodpeckers— Wryneck— Parrot Tribe— Common Pea-
cock—Aldrovandine Peacock— Polyplectron— Domestic Poultry— Jun-
gle Cock— Lophophorus— Horned Pheasant— Bustards— Golden Plo-
ver—Coromandel Courier— GigantiT Stork— Anastomus— Rtynchea—
GoUs— Terns— Geese— Widgeon— Pink-headed Pochard 60

CHAPTER IV.

THE REPTILES AND FISHES OF INDIA.

Great Indian Tortoise— Gangetic Crocodile— Flying Dragon— Serpent
Tribe— Viperine Boa— Russelian Snake— Whip Snake— Cobra de Ca-
pello— Water Snakes— Pomfret—Scir Fish— Gymnetrus— Indian Re-
mora— Dolphin— Scorpaena— Insidious Dory— Zebra Sole— Chaetodon
—Unicorn Acanthurus— Climbing Sparus—86her—Wrahl— Leopard
Mackerel — Indian Surmullet— Flying Gurnard— Exocaetus— Mango
Fish— Ostracion ijS

A 2

" CONTENTS.

CHAPTER V.

THE SHELLS AND INSECTS OF INDIA.

Sepia— Conus—Oliva—Cypraea — Ovula — Marginella — Voluta — Mitrse
— Terebra — Eburna — Buccinum, &c. — Bivalves— Spoiidyli — Pectens,
&c. — Fresh- water Stiells — Pearl-fislieries — Insects — Coleopterous
Insects— Orlhopterous Insects— Hemipterous Insects — Kermes — Gez
or Manna — Hyinenopterous, Neuropterous, and Dipterous Tribes —
Silk-worm 101

CHAPTER VI.

PROGRESS OF INDIAN BOTANY — GENERAL DESCRIPTION OP THE VEOE-

TATION.

Climate — Investigators of Indian Botany— Foundation of the Calcutta
Botanic Garden — Liberality of the East India Company— Dr. Wal-
lich's Exertions — His Return to Europe with large Collections-
Generous Conduct of the Court of Directors — Some Results of Dr.
Wallich'8 Discoveries — Private Exertions of Dr. Wight — Extent of
the Indian Flora — General Features of Indian Vegetation on the
Plains and on the Mountains 116

CHAPTER VII.

SOME ACCOUNT OF A FEW OF THE MORE REMARKABLE INDIAN PLANTS.,
IN WHICH THE SPECIES ATE ARRANGED ACCORDING TO THE NATURAL
FAMILIES TO WHICH THEY BELONG.

Plants deserving of particular Notice in the Families, Ranunculaceaj —
MagnoliacesB- Malvaceae— Dipterocarpese- Combretaceee- Th5'meleK
— SantalaceaB — Rosaces— Leguminosae—Urticese—Artocarpeae — Ba-
tulineae — Euphorbiaces — Cedreleas — Aurantiaceee — Anacardiacae —
PiperacesB— Sapoteae — Valerianeae- Cinchonaces — Lorantheee — Apo-
eyneae — Verbenaceae — Asphodelea? — Palmae — Gramineaa — Ferns and
Aeotyledonous Plants— Mosses — Algae— Fungi 127

CHAPTER Vin.

Himmaleh Region— Middle India— Peninsular India— Height of the Land
in the Peninsula — Meteorology — 1. Changes in the Pressure of the
Atmosphere; 2. Composition of the Atmosphere; 3. Effects of Moun-
tain-air; 4. Temperature of the Atmosphere; 5. Making of Ice in
India; 6. Snow-line; 7. Heightof the Snow line in the Himmalehs;
8. Evaporation ; 9. Humidity of the Atmosphere ; 10. Dew; 11. Rain ;
12. Monsoons ; 13. Hail ; 14. Falling Stars and meteoric Stones ; 15.
Mirage; 16. Black Colour of the Sky over the Himmalehs; 17. Zo-
diacal Light; 18. Miasmata; 19. Climate; 20. Sanitary Dep6t8—
Table of comparative Temperatures 158

CHAPTER IX.

HVnROGRAPHy.

SSprings— Hot Springs— Wells— Lakes— Rivers— The Ganges— Length
of the Rivers of India— Catarsicts 210

CONTENTS. '

CHAPTER X

GEOLOGY AND MINERALOGY.

Geology and Mineralog}'— 1. Soils of India, viz. Soil of Bengal ; Cotton
Ground; Musaree Soil; Laterite Soil; Nitre Soil; Soda Soil; Salt
Soil— 2. Geognostical Structure and Composition of India— l.Him-
maleh or Alpine Region ; Its Rocks, Minerals, and Mines— 2. aiiddle
India ; Its Rocks, Minerals, and Mines— 3. Peninsular India ; its
Rocks, Minerals, and Mines— 4. Submergence and Upraising of Land—
5. Destruction of the ancient City of Ougein and other Places in India
by a Shower of Volcanic Ashes— 6. Earthquakes 223

CHAPTER XI.

CONSTIT0T1O5IS BEST SUITED TO INDIA— PRESERVATION OF HEALTH
ON BOARD OF SHIP AND AFTER ARRIVAL— MANAGEMENT AFTER RE-
TPRN TO EUROPE.

A-'es most suitable for Recruits for Indian Service— Ages at which Offi-
cers may be sent out— Medical Examination of Recruits- Epilepsy-
Small-pox — Cutaneous Eruptions — Dyspepsia — Cautions against
Intemperance— Diet— Exercise— Danger of using Mercury— Gout-
Gravel— Complexions peculiarly dark and unusually fair— Rheuma-
tism—Mental Derangement— Scrofula— Consumption — Preservation
of Health on board of Ship, and after Arrival in India— Management
alter Return to Europe • ^''^

CHAPTER Xn.

SPASMODIC CHOLERA.

Symptoms— Persons most liable to the Disease— Predisposing Circum-
stances— Treatment— Precautions necessary to prevent its Attacks-
Symptoms and Treatment of the Disease in Britain 273

CHAPTER XIU.

HINDOO ASTRONOMY.

Origin of Astronomy— Opinions of Bailly concerning the Antiquity of
that Science in India— Striking Coincidence between the Indian and
Arabian Zodiacs— Hindoo Computation of Time— Periodic Revolutions
of the Planets— Theory of Eclipses— Figure of the Earth— Determi-
nation of Latitudes and Longitudes— Moon's Parallax— Computation
of Eclipses and of a Solar Year— Antiquity of the Surya Siddhanta
and other Astronomical Works— Deficiencies and Errors of the Hindoo
System 279

CHAPTER Xrv.

HINDOO MATHEMATICS.

Division of the Circumference of the Circle— Ratio of the Diameter to
the Circumference— Tables of Sines and Versed Sines— Mathematical
Treatises— Account of the Origin of the Lilavati— Its Contents-
Knowledge of Algebra •■• • ^"^

o CONTENTS.

CHAPTER XV.

COLONEL LAMBTON'S SURVEYS.

Colonel Lambton appointed to make a Survey across the Peninsula—
Advantages possessed by him lor this Task— Difficulties of a Trigo-
nometrical Survey— Colonel Lambton commences his Labours — Tri-
angles carried across the Peninsula — Continuation of the Survey —
Death of Colonel Lambton— Conclusion 316

CHAPTER XVI.

PRESEXT STATE OF NAVIGATION BETWEEN ENGLAND AND THE EAST
INDIES, WITH INSTRUCTIONS FOR THE GUIDANCE OF PASSENGERS.

Siie and Appointments of an Indiaman— Promotion of Officers— Their
Duties — Instructions to Passengers— Classes of Ships — Outfit — Pas-
sage-money—Voyage to India- Madeira — Daily Routine on board an
Indiaman— Amusements of the Passengers — Observation of Sunday —
Catching Sharks— The Nautilus— Equatorial Limits of the Trades be-
tween 18° and 26° W. Long.— Crossing the Line— Wreck of the Blen-
denhall— Cape of Good Hope— Constantia — Current off the Cape —
Marine Barometer— Trade-winds — Route through the Mozambique
Channel — Bombay Harbour— Route to the eastward of the Cargados
Bank— Wreck of the Cabalva— Ceylon— Madras Roads— Mouth of
the Hoogley — Homeward Voyage— The Cape— St. Helena — The
Azores 326

CHAPTER XVII.

PROPOSED STEAM COMMUNICATION BETWEEN ENGLAND AND THE EAST

INDIES BY THE RED SEA.

Voyage of Sir John Malcolm from Bombayto Cosseir in the Hugh Lind-
say Steamer — Reasons for prefernng the Route by Cosseir to that by
Suez — Size of Vessels— To be manned from the Indian Navy — Coals —
Sir John Malcolm's Opinion of the Advantages of this Communication
— Obstacles to it— The Plague — Winds in the Red Sea— Post-office
Regulations — Mr. Waghorn's Remarks on the Navigation of the Nile —
Steam-tugs on the Ganges 370

I

ENGRAVINGS IN V'^OL. III.

VioNKTTE—Gangoutri— Shrine of Mahadeo — Source of the Ganges.

The Monkey Page 18

Boar-hunting 44

Sleeping Tiger 53

Cockatoo taking a Walk 84

HISTORICAL AND DESCRIPTIVE
ACCOUNT

OF"

BRITISH INDIA.

ZOOLOGY.

CHAPTER I.

Introductory Observations.

The great Asiatic division of our globe, when considered
under its zoological relations, may be partitioned into
several different departments. The Siberian or most
northern portion, in consequence of the severity of its
winter season, possesses even in its southern districts many
attributes of the arctic regions ; but, at the same time, its
inland valleys and the upper basins of its numerous and
far-flowing rivers are enriched, during a brilhant though
short-hved summer, with many of the more gorgeous
features both of animal and vegetable hfe. Another vast
and imperfectly known region of Asia is bounded to the
north by Siberia, and to the south by those highly-elevated
table-lands which terminate among the Himmaleh moun-
tains. This division still presents several features which
prove its assimilation in some respects to the characters
which distinguish animal life in Europe ; for although it is
undoubtedly characterized by numerous peculiar forms of
existence, yet many of its genera and species are either the
genuine types of groups which occur in countricB with which

12 ZOOLOGY OF INDIA.

we are familiar, or pertain to groups which are themselves
well exemplified by European species. Among the Him-
maleh mountains, however, and other southern portions
of this division, we discover many of the genera which
occur in the low lands of Hindostan, and the peninsular
projection of Malacca. The same circumstance indeed
occurs, — we mean the like transition of species, — in all
the great geographical sections of animal life. Each ex-
tensive division is characterized by several pecuhar forms,
and yet at the same time nourishes many species which
are common alike to it and to other regions ; and it is only
under some peculiar circumstances of local situation that
either the zoological or botanical products undergo a sudden
change in character and condition. As the adventurous
and observant traveller advances on his journey, a few
species are continually perceived to decrease in numbers,
and then to disappear, — while their places are supplied by
others, which, at first but thinly scattered, gradually acquire
an accession of numbers, till they too have reached their
full amount or centre of dominion ; but the change bemg
only partial from place to place, the difference is no more
suddenly perceptible than that in the horizon by which the
traveller is himself surrounded, and a portion of which in
his onward progress becomes insensibly firom the circum-
ference the very centre of the field of vision.

Many species indeed can scarcely be said to have any
proper centre of dominion, but are rather repeated again in
different and far-distant regions ; thus showing that certain
peculiar combinations in the physical character and consti-
tution of countries, which we cannot always perceive or
appreciate, lead to an analogous character among the tribes
of living nature, almost independent of latitudinal or longitu-
dinal position. These latter circimistances, however, — that
is to say, the position of a place in relation to latitude and
longitude, especially when combmed with a knowledge of its
height above and distance from the sea, — are on a general
view highly influential in regulating the distribution of
species, and form, if not an mdispensable, at least a highly
interesting element m our knowledge of the geography
of natural groups. Although under similar climates the
species may be singularly diversified, yet an identity, or
close resemblance of specific forms, may no doubt be relied

INTRODUCTORY OBSERVATIONS. 13

upon as indicating an analogy in the climate. It is now,
to be sure, somewhat inaccurately said by botanists, that a
mountain is high enough to enter " into the region of the
rhododendrons," just as it was fonnerly said that such a
mountain attained to the Hmits of perpetual snow, — an
erroneous mode of expression, as admitted by Humboldt,
if it be thereby meant to intimate that under the influence
of a certain temperature, or any other climatic influence,
certain vegetable forms must of necessity be developed.

Heat and cold certainly produce very different eflfects
upon different species of living creatures. A quadruped or
bird which has its centre of dominion or characteristic
locality in a temperate region will be so far influenced by
an amelioration of climate as to extend its range somewhat
farther north, under a meridian where, from local causes, a
ereater warmth prevails than is customary in the same
deorree of latitude ; but a truly northern species, which
dwells by preference " in thrilling regions of thick-ribbed
ice," would rather extend southward on a meridian line
of more than usual coldness. The one would advance in
the direction of the Pole, attracted rather than driven
northwards by the increase of temperature ; the other
would migrate in a southerly direction, not to avoid but
to accompany the cold. Thus the musk-ox, one of the most
remarkable of the North American animals, which affects a
cold and barren district where grass is replaced by lichens,
owin<T to the greater mildness of the climate, does not
rantre so far to the southward on the Pacific coast as it
does on the shores of Hudson's Bay ; for it is neither
found in New-Caledonia nor on the banks of the Columbia,
nor does it occur on the rocky mountain-ridge at the
customary crossing-places near the sources of the Peace,
Elk, and Saskatchewan rivers.

In tracing each parallel throughout its whole extent we
shall find, as we advance from the polar and temperate to
the equatorial regions, that the species become restricted
in their distribution, and that although they may occupy in
reality as great an extent of actual space, they yet extend
over a smaller portion of the earth's circumference. Thus
in the northern hemisphere we find the wolf, the seal, the
walrus, and the Polar bear, occupying a large portion
of the entire circumference of the higher latitudes, from

Vol. III.— B

14 ZOOLOGY OF INDIA.

the vicinity of the Pole itself to the Arctic circle. But ^s
we proceed sovithwards, these and many more inhabitants
of the colder climates disappear, and their places are occu-
pied by others which, however extended may be in some
instances their latitudinal distribution, are yet much more
restricted in the amount of meridians through which they
pass than are those to which we have just alluded. Thus,
of the numerous feline animals which inhabit Asia, the lion
alone extends the " reign of terror" to the corresponding
parallels of the African continent, while the wolverene
of the north prowls alike over the snows of Europe, Asia,
and America.

It is probable, however, that most of those species which
have their centre of dominion in temperate countries are
capable of enduring the most widely extended geographical
distribution. This may be illustrated even by the different
varieties of the human race. A native of Britain braves
alike the most fiery breath of the torrid zone and the frozen
climates of Greenland ; but an Esquimax would perish on
the shores of the Congo ; and a negro, although better
supplied than were the Russian sailors under similar
circumstances, would barely survive a winter amid the
desolate snows of Spitzbergen. Most of those animals
which we have domesticated, and carried along with us in
our almost universal migrations, such as the horse, sheep,
and goat, have their origin in the temperate countries of
higher Asia, among the mountains and elevated plains
of which their originals arc still to be traced. It is no
doubt ovvincr to the physical conditions of clime and country
that these and certain other species have been enabled to
follow their masters, and to breed and prosper under almost
every variety of climate. On the other hand, had they been
native to an equatorial region, they would have been com-
paratively of little service in the northern parts of Europe
or America ; or had they been naturally confined to the
vicinity of the Arctic circle, their value would have suffered
a corresponding diminution in relation to the inhabitants
of intra -tropical climes. It is thus, by an admirable law
of Divine benevolence, that all those animals, from the
domestication and culture of which the most widely spread
and essential advantage was capable of resulting to the
human race, have been created and retained the natural

I

INTRODUCTORY OBSERVATIONS. 15

inmates of the temperate regions of our globe ; while those,
again, the general distribution of which must have been
regarded rather as a curse than a blessing, have been, with
few exceptions, rendered the invariable inmates either of the
hottest or the coldest climes. By way of illustration, let
us take an example from each of the two extremes. Were
a tiger conveyed from the jungles of tropical Asia to tlie
northern steppes of Siberia, or the shores of the Arctic
Sea, how soon would he lose his gio-antic strength and
ferocious vigour ! — or, were a Polar bear transferred from
his bleak eternity of floating icebergs to a sultry island
of the Indian archipelago, how speedily would the surly
savage cease to create alarm ! The spirit of the same
observation might be applied to much more serviceable
animals, which, however, not being natives of temperate
countries, are for that very reason incapable of being
rendered useful in the most universal and therefore highest
degree. We may adduce as famihar examples the rein-
deer and the dromedary, the former of which the wandering
Bedouin of the desert would as vainly attempt to rear amid
the shifting sands of Arabia, as the Nomadian of the north
would the latter on the cold and lofty plains of Finmark or
Norway.

But to proceed with the more immediate subjects of our
present inquiry : No sooner do we enter upon the zoology
of India Proper, than the European forms of animal lit^e
almost entirely disappear, and are succeeded by others of a
richer and more varied character of form and aspect, some
of which, however, extend to the parallel latitudes of the
African continent. The Asiatic islands, again, present us
with another picture, and this latter change may be said to
commence at the southern extremity of the Isthmus of
Malacca. Java and Sumatra will probably be found to be
the metropolis or central region of this range, which still
produces several of the forms of Northern India ;* while in

•Among birds, for example, the singular genus EwjCTirw^ ofTem-
minclt, which that naturalist places between Accetitor,aT]d Motncilla,
which M. Reinwardt regards as pertaining to Latiiw:, and M. Lesson
classes with the Miiscica'udce, has been recently received by Professor
Jameson from the northern parts of India, it was formerly believed to
belong exclusively to Java and Sumatrsi. In like maner the genus Miio-
vJuJtius, regarded as peculiar to Java {M. metalltcus, Tern., being a short

16 ZOOLOGY OF INDIA.

New-Guinea and New-Ireland, the Asiatic forms, properly
so called, begin to disappear, and are replaced by many
singular and interesting species, which exhibit the com-
mencement of what may be named the Australasian king-
dom. For example, the genus Meliphaga (including those
honey-sucking birds which so strongly characterize the
latter region) are also found in the above-named islands, as
are likewise species belonging to Dacdo, Barita, and other
groups, which were long believed to pertain exclusively to
Australasia. In all other countries the larger quadrupeds
of the Indian islands entirely disappear, and the suctorial
family of birds are displayed in all their brilliancy ; while
the New-Guinea Promerops unites with the McU-phagidm,
and beautifully exhibits the finely graduated transition in the
forms of animal life from one region to another.* None
of theperching-birds {Inscssores) of these southern countries
are generically the same as those of Europe, and an exami-
nation of the insects and shells leads us to the same general
results.

For the present, however, we must confine our observations
chiefly to the territories which lie to the south and west
of the great mountain-chains of Himmaleh and Hindoo
Cush,— to Cabul, Cashmere, and Hindostan, properly so
called. We shall also refer occasionally to the zoological
productions of the great island of Ceylon; so that our
sketches will comprehend a space extendmg from the 6th
to the 34th degrees of north latitude, and from about the
65th to the 90th degrees of east longitude. This division
of the Asiatic territory is convenient, not only in a political,
but also in a zoological point of view ; for while it embraces

time ago the only known siiecies), is now known to contain two
additional species iM. Horsfddii and Temminckii, figured by Mr.
Gould), both of which occur amon;; the Himmaleh mountains.

* The genua Pmnatorhinus, Horsfield {Linv. Trans., vol, xiii, p.
164), in relation to the preceding observations, may be said to exhibit a
more complicated distribiition. It was established by its founder for
the reception of a species from the wooded mountains of Java ; but the
dusky be.'-eater of Latham {Gen. Hist., vol. iv. p. 146, No. 31) belongs
to the same Renus, and a new species has lately bean added to it under
the name of P. supercilioeus {Lnm. Trans., vol. xv. p. 330). Both
of these are native to New-Holland, where, I helieve, they were first
observed by Mr. Robert Brown. Lastly, the P. erythroi^enys. a recently
discovered species, has been ascertained to inhabit the Himmaleli range

INTRODUCTORY OBSERVATIONS. 17

all our great Indian possessions, it also marks out the line
of demarcation between these and the adjacent countries,
which, in regard to many important features of their
natural history, present a considerable disresemblance.

Although these regions, or the greater portion of them,
are situated beneath a tropical sun, they yet present many
modifications of soil, temperature, and climate. Immense
plains, either richly wooded and well watered, or exhibilmg
a more barren and uncultivated aspect ; a great extent of
Beacoast intersected by large and numerous rivers, the
mouths of which are enriched by deltas of alluvial land ;
sloping hills, and upraised terrace-lands, embowered amid
the most gorgeous vegetation,

•' Shade above shade, a woody theatre,
Of stateliest view ;"

lofty mountains, with their " crags prerup't," separated by
dark ravines where the foot of man has never trod ; — and,
finally, the snow-covered summits of the loftiest alps,
piercing even above the regions of cloud and storm, and
contrasting magnificently their stainless and star-like peaks
with the deep blue ether of that crystalline sky,

" Through which the sun walks burning without beams;"—

these, and other diversified localities, present, as may be
supposed, the most apt abodes to a vast variety of species
in the brute creation.*

* The following extract conveys a striking picture of the scenery of
the Asiatic alps:— "The dazzling brilliancy of the snow," says Capiam
Hodgson, " was rendered more striking by its contrast with the dark-
blue colour of the sky, which is caused by the thinness of the air : and
at night the stars shone with a lustre which they have not in a detiser
atmosphere ; it was curious, too, lo see them, when rising, appear like
tine sudden flash, as they emerged from behind the bright snowy sum-
mits close to us ; and their disappearance, when setting behind the peaks,
was as sudden as we generally observed it to be in their occultation by
the moon. .

" We were surrounded by gigantic peaks, entirely cased m snow, and
almost beyond the regions of animal and vegetable life, and an awful
silence prevailed, except when broken by the thundering peals of falling
avalanches ; nothing met our eyes resembling the scenery in the haunts
of men ; by moonlight all appeared cold, wild, stupendous, and a pagan
mi<'ht aptly imaeine the place a fit abode for demons. We did not se«

B 2

18

ZOOLOGY or INDIA.

even bears, or musk-deer, or eagles, or any living creature, except some

small birds. ^ , _^

" To form an idea of the imposing appearance of -a snowy peak, as
seen here under an angle of elevation of nearly 33'-\ and when its dis-
tance is not qnite three miles, and vel its hcighl 8052 feet above the sta-_
lion one should reflect, that if, even when viewed from the plams ot
Hindostan, at angles of elevation of one and one and a half degrees,
these peaks, towering over many intermediate ranges of mountains, in-
BPire the mind with ideas of their grandeur, even at so great a distance,
—how mucli more must they do so when their whole bulk, cased m snow
from the base to the summit, at once fills the eye. It falls to the lot of
fow to contemplate so magniticent an object as a snow-clad peak rising
to the height of upwards of a mile and a half, at the short horizontal
distanceof only two and three-quarter mi[es."—.Iournal of a Siirvey
to the Heads of the Rivers Ganges and Jumna. By Captain T. A.
Hodgson.

QUADRUPEDS. 10

CHAPTER II.

The Quadrupeds of India,

The Gibbon — Entellus Monkey — Wanderoo — Bats — Bears- — Jackal —
Thibet Dog — Ichneumon — Lion— Tiger — Hunting-tiger— Squirrel-
Gigantic Rat — Pangolin— Elephant — Rhinoceros — Camel — Musk-deer
— Nepanl Stag — Rusa Deer — Spotted Axis — -Hog-deer — Roebuck —
White Oryx— Chiru— Four-horned Antelope— Nyl-ghau— Cashmere
Goat — Jemlah Goat — Wild-sheep — Buffalo — Arnee — Grunting-ox —
Gayall — Cetaceous Animals — Dugong — Gangetic Dolphin.

In our zoological sketches we must of course confine
ourselves to the history and attributes of but a small por-
tioit of the animal kingdom compared with the total species ;
but we shall at the same time endeavour to make such a
selection as may illustrate most of the peculiar and more
remarkable features of Indian zoology. We shall there-
fore proceed, conformably with the systematic arrangements
of naturalists, to the quadrumanous order of the class
Mammalia, which, containing the monkeys and other spe-
cies, one of which even Linnaeus regarded (under the name
of Homo nocturnus) as nearly allied to the human race,
may be considered as entitled to our earliest consideration.

Of the orang-outang, the most remarkable of the order,
■we cannot here speak, as it occurs only in Borneo and cer-
tain other districts which lie beyond the bounds of our pres-
ent jurisdiction ; but many of the smaller species are na-
tive to the Indian forests. Indeed nowhere in the known
world are monkeys better provided for than in India, where
in some districts the weak and idolatrous superstition of
the natives has raised them even to the rank of gods.
Temples of the most magnificent structure were erected in
their honour ; and when one of these was plundered by
the Portuguese in Ceylon, they found in it the tooth of an
ape enclosed in a casket of pure gold. In such veneration
was this relic held by the natives, that they offered seven

20 ZOOLOGY OF INDIA.

hundred thousand ducats as the price of its redemption,—
but in vain ; for it was burnt by the viceroy, with a view to
stop the progress of idolatry. There are hospitals for apes
in Ahmedabad ; and in many parts of India they are so
familiarized by indulgence as to breed in numbers among
the bamboo-copses by the wayside.

The gibbon, or long-armed ape {Hylobahs lar), has been
brought from Pondicherry. The name by which it is dis-
tinguished appears to be of ancient origin. According to
Delachamp, the animal called cephos by Pliny is designated
keipon bv Strabo, and from the latter term gibon or gibbon
may have been derived. Both terms probably originate
from koph or kophin, which in Hebrew and Chaldee signifies
ape ; but the description of the cephos given by Pliny does
certainly not coincide with the ascertained characters of
the modern cribbon, which is chiefly distinguished by the
enormous length of its arms. The eyes are large and
deeply seated, the nose is flat, and the ears resemble those
of the human race. A circle of gray hairs passes over the
eyes, cheeks, and beneath the under-jaw, ai.d, completely
surrounding the visage, gives a singular aspect to the
animal. The general colour of the hair is black, except on
the backs of the hands and feet, which are gray. The
disposition of the long-armed ape is mild and gentle. In
a state of domestication it receives its food without any
impatient greediness, and manifests a strong attachment to
those with whom it becomes acquainted. This long-armed
ape is native to the coast of Coromandel, and occurs also
in the peninsula of Malacca and the Molucca islands. It
was in one of the latter that Father de Compte had an op-
portunity of examining an individual of the species, which,
he says, walked on two feet, used its hands like a man, and
had a face like a Hottentot. The whole of its body was
covered over with a dark-gray w ja', and its voice, by which
it expressed a variety of passion-, exactly resembled that
of an infant.

Intermediate between the gibbons and macaccas may be
placed the genus SemnQpithecus, of which the entellus
monkey offers a characteristic example. Though the tribe
to which this species belongs resemble the gibbons in the
shape of their heads, and in their physiognomical expression,

QUADRUPEDS, Zh

they are easily distinguished by their lengthened tails, of
which the gibbons are entirely destitute. The entellus
monkey, though extremely common in Bengal, appears to
have been recorded in sj'stematic works only at a compara-
tively recent period, by M. Dufresne. It differs frum its
congeners in its long and slender limbs, the slowness of its
motions, and a certain unalterable apathy of expression.
It is of a uniform ashy-gray in the upper parts, somewhat
darker on the tail. The under-surface of the body is of a
dingy yellowish white ; and the fore-anns, hands, and feet
are of a dusky black. The fingers of both extremities are
very long, and the thumbs comparatively short. The face
is black, tinged with %dolet, and is surmounted above the
eyebrows by a line of long, stiff, black hairs projecting for-
ward, and slightly upward. The sides of the cheeks and
the under part of the chin are margined by a beard of
grayish white, which passes along the line of the jaws, and
extends upward in front of the ears, which are large, prom-
inent, and of the same colour as the face. The height of
the specimen in the Zoological Gardens exceeded two feet
when in a sitting posture, and its tail, which was rarely
unfurled, measured nearly thirty-six inches. This is one
of the species worshipped in the religion of the Bramins.
According to Mr. Bennet, it is identical with the Ceylonese
species described by Thunberg and Wolf. It frequently
occurs in a domestic state in that island ; and such is the
respect in which (whether wild or tame) it is held by the
natives, that, whatever ravages it may coramrt, the latter
dare not venture to destroy it, but merely endeavour to
frighten it away by cries more discordant than its own.
*' Imboldened by this impunity, the monkeys come down
from the woods in large herds, and take possession of the
produce of the husbandman's toil with as little ceremony
as though it had been collected for their use ; for, with a
degree of taste which does them credit, they prefer the
cuhivated fruits of the orchard to the wild ones of their
native forests. Figs, cocoa-nuts, apples, pears, and even
cabbages and potatoes, form their favourite spoil. The
numbers in which they assemble render it impossible for
the sufferer to drive them away without some more efficient
means than he is willing to employ ; he is consequently
compelled to remain a spectator of the devastation, and to

22 ZOOLOGY OF INDIA.

submit without repining to his fate."* This species appears
The very susceptible of cold, and cannot stand a removal
from its native regions. Thunberg's specimen died m the
Sde of the Cape, and the individuals more recently
transported both to London and Paris have since expired.

When the government of Dubhoy, after its surrender to
General Goddard in 1780, was intrusted to Mr. Forbes, the
city contained about 40,000 inhabitants and as many mon-
kevs The governor, on his first arrival, resided in a house
the back part of which was separated by a narrow court
from that of a Hindoo ; and, in consequence of the cool-
ness afforded by its shaded situation, he usually retired with
Ms book to a veranda there during the heat of the after-
noon Here small portions of mortar and tiles frequently
ftU upon him, to which at first he paid no attention UU one
day a blow from a larger piece than usual made him turn
round to discover the cause. To his surprise he obsen^ed
Sat the opposite roof was entirely covered with monkeys,
Xh, havi^ng probably taken a dislike to 1"^ European
Tomplexion, had commenced a system of warfare which
Sly Sft him no other alternative than that of changing

^^The^Wanderoo monkey {Macacus .,7«m5) is also in-
digenous to the East Indies. It appears to be figured in
Knoz's History of Ceylon, although that author erroneously
applied the pa^e to several different species which he re-
Sed as varieties of one and the same. The prevailing
folour o? this animal is a fine black, but the sides of the
head and chin are surrounded by a broad beard or ruff of
a c^ngy white or pale gray colour. The tail is about half
as long as the body, Ind is terminated by a tul^ of hair;
onSh account, probably, it has by some authors been
named the lion-tailed monkey. "There are," says Fa her
Vincent Marie, "four sorts of monkeys on the coa.t of
Malabar The first is perfectly black, covered with glossy
S wiA a wMte beard surrounding his chin, and extend-
Sg a span or more in length. To this monkey all the re t
^ay sach profound respect, that they submit and humiliate
themselves in his presence as though they were capable of

* The Gardens and Menagerie of the Zoological Society Delineated,
▼ol. i. p. 86.

QUADRUPEDS. 23

appreciating his superiority and pre-eminence. The princes
and great lords hold him in much estimation, because he is
endowed above every other with gravity, capacity, and the
appearance of wisdom. He is easily trained to the per-
formance of a variety of ceremonies, grimaces, and affected
courtesies ; all which he accomplishes in so serious a man-
ner and to such perfection, that it is a most wonderful thing
to see them acted with so much exactness by an irrational
animal." Of this species there is a fine example in the
Edinburgh College Museum. It was kept alive in a do-
mestic state for a couple of years ; but the most remarkable
instance of its courtesy during that period consisted in its
biting off the calf of a negro's leg. It was accordingly
slain.

The preceding examples must suffice to illustrate the
history of the quadrumanous tribes of India. We come
next to the Cheiroptcnis family, which includes and is con-
stituted by the bats.

When the " knell of parting day" announces the approach
of the long-continued twilight of our temperate regions, we
see our own diminutive species flitting about on leathern
wings, or dimpling the surface of the still waters in search
of insects and other natural prey ; but these give us but a
feeble idea of the monstrous forms wliich inhabit equatorial
countries. The Indian species belong chiefly to the genus
Pteropus. The eatable rousette (Pt. edults), called kalon by
the natives, is abundant in the great .\siatic islands. Its
flesh is white, delicate, and remarkably tender. Its wings
extend more than five feet from point to point, and its muz-
zle resembles that of a dog with the point of its nose cut
in two. It is taken by means of a sack fastened to the ex-
tremity of a pole. Its flesh is rendered less pleasing to
European palates on account of the strong odour of musk
with which it is infected.

We now enter upon the history of the carnivorous tribes,
of which the first family is the Plantigrada, including the
extensively distributed though not very numerous group ot
bears, as well as the racoons, coati-mundis, badgers, and
other species, characterized, as the family-name implies, by
their walking on the entire under-surface of the foot, and
not merely on the points of the toes after the manner of

24 ZOOLOGY OF INDIA.

docs and cats. Among carnivorous quadrupeds there are
many gradations of ferocity, from the bloodthirsty tiger,
which so greatly rejoices over the palpitating flesh of a
livino- victim, to the more omnivorous propensities which dis-
tinguish the subjects of our present paragraph. This ver-
satility of instinctive habit is no doubt closely connected
with, if it does not proceed from, a less determinate forma-
tion of the digestive and prehensile organs, such as the
stomach, teeth, and claws. The unequalled strength and
rapacity of the tiger, — his sharp retractile talons, — the great
development of his canine teeth, and the compressed and
cutting character of the molars, combined with the simpli-
city of the stomach and the shortness of the intestinal
canal, render it, as it were, the type of carnivorous animals.
It exhibits no tendency in any of its forms to the herbivorous
structure, but is strictly and characteristically a flesh-eating
animal, — " a most beautiful and cruel beast of prey." The
contour and physiognomy of the bears are very different.
Heavy and inactive in their forms, with unretractile claws,
more elongated muzzles, and consequently weaker jaws, their
teeth also, though sufficiently formidable, show a decided re-
lation to the herbivorous structure in the breadth of the
molars, and their bluntly tuberculated crowns. " One of
those phenomena," observes the editor of the English
translation of the Res"ne Animal, " which is most worthy
the attention of the naturalist, and most calculated to lead
us to appreciate the infinite power of the Creator, consists
in the insensible and gradual changes which the same organ
will pass, by which its nature will in some measure be trans-
formed, and results produced entirely different from those
which constituted the object of its original destination.
The organs of sense and motion ofl'er frequent examples of
this phenomenon ; and the teeth of certain animals present
a remarkable instance of the same. The true Camivora, the
cats for instance, have in each jaw teeth evidently destined
by their form and position to cut, like the two blades of a
scissors, the fibres of the muscles of their prey. But in pro-
portion as the destination of an animal is more decidedly
carnivorous, the teeth lose their trenchant character, and
grow thicker, and thus we at last arrive at a limit where they
can no. longer be distinguished from the tuberculous teeth,
whose office simply consists in triturating the food. These

QUADRUPEDS. 25

teeth, when sharp and slender, are opposed face to face ;
but when thick, they are opposed crown to crown ; so that
they become truly transformed into molar teeth ; and nature,
in operating so considerable a transformation, has no need
of making any essential change in those organs. It is
sufficient for the purpose that a very small tubercle, which
is already found on the internal face of the slenderest teeth,
should simply receive a more augmented development."*
Even the bears of the Arctic circle, which, from the scarcity
of vegetable food in those frost-bound regions, are probably
the most carnivorous of their kind, have in a state of cap-,
tivity been sustained for a length of time, and in vigorous
condition, on bread alone.

The labiated bear {Ursus lahiatus) inhabits the moun-
tainous districts in the north of India. It dwells in holes
and caverns, which it sometimes excavates with its long
claws, and feeds chiefly on fruits, ants, and honey ; but the
structure of its teeth indicates strong carnivorous propensi-
ties, and its natural habits are in truth but little known. It
seems more docile and intelligent than others of the species,
and is frequently taught certain " fantastic tricks" by the jug-
glers in Bengal, where it is exhibited for the amusement of
the people. It is not uncommon among the mountains of
Sihlet, and in the environs of other inhabited places.

According to M. Duvaucel, three species of bear inhabit
India and the neighbouring islands. The tirst is the one
just noticed, which the reader may have seen exhibited in
menageries under the inapplicable name of ursine sloth ;
the second species is the Malay bear (17. Malayanus) ; the
third is the Thibet species described by M. Duvaucel, and
observed by Dr. Wallick among the Nepaul mountains. It
is supposed to occur likewise in Sumatra. A fourth Asiatic
form of this genus, the Bornean bear {Hdarctis eurypsilvs
of Horsfield), inhabits the great island from which it de-
rives its English specific name.

The ratel or honey-eater (Vtverra mellivora of Spar-
mann), an animal of singular habits, long regarded as pe-
culiar to the African continent, appears from the testimony
of General Hardwicke to occur in India. Its manners, how-
ever, do not at all correspond with those assigned to the

* Griffiiti's AJiimal Kingdom, vol. ii. p 246.

OL. III.— C

26 ZOOLOGY OF INDIA.

African individuals of the species. The Asiatic variety in-
habits high banks on the borders of the Ganges and the
Jumna, from which it rarely issues by day. At night it
prowls around the Mohammedan habitations, and will some-
times even scratch up recently interred human bodies, un-
less the graves are protected by a covering of thorny
shrubs. So rapid are its subterranean exertions, that it
will work its way beneath the surface in the course of ten
minutes. Their favourite food consists of birds and small
quadrupeds. The specimen in the Zoological Gardens is
remarkable for its playfulness and good-humour. It solicits
attention by a variety of absurd postures, and tumbles head
over heels with the greatest delight as soon as it has suc-
ceeded in attracting the notice of visiters.*

The rivers of India are so well stored with fish that we
naturally expect, on inquiring into the history of the Digiti-
grada, which form the second tribe of carnivorous animals,
or such as walk upon their toes, to tind the insidious otter
lurking along their shores. We must not, however, con-
found the Pondicherry otter {Lutra nair, F. Cuvier) with
the corresponding, though not identical, species of Europe
or America. Its hair is of a deep chestnut colour above,
paler on the sides, and of a reddish-white on ihe under parts
of the body. The end of the muzzle is reddish, and there
are two spots of a similar colour one above and the other
beneath each eye. It measures about two feet and a half
exclusive of the tail, which is a foot and a half in length.
This species was sent from Pondicherry, .where it is named
ISir-nayk by M. Leschenhault ; and other Asiatic otters
have been described by Sir Stamford Raffles {Unn. Trans.,
vol. xiii.), by Dr. Horsfield, and by M. Diard.

We come next to the history of the canine tribes, one or
more of which are distributed over the East, as they are
over almost all the other known countries of the earth. The
real origin of our domestic breed of dogs, whether from a
single o'r complex source, may be said to be entirely un-
known as a subject either of history or tradition. It is lost
in the usual obscurity of a remote ancestry, and can now

* Gardens and Menagerie, &c., vol. i. p. 20.

A

QUADRUPEDS. 27

be ascertained (if at all) only by the investigations of the
naturalist. So infinitely varied is the external aspect of the
domestic dog, and so much does it seem to depend, not only
on the physical conditions of clime and country under
which the animal exists, but on the moral and political state
of the particular nation by which it is held in subjection,
that in numerous instances all traces of resemblance to the
original stock, or to any known species of wild animal,
have disappeared ; and after the lapse of ages, we are in
fact at last presented with what may be called artificial
creatures, incapable of subsisting without the aid of man,
and of which accordingly no strictly natural type can be
said to have ever existed in any age or country. They have
arisen in some cases from the necessities, in others from the
caprices, of the human race, which in tliis respect may be
said to have fulfilled the threat of Caliban, and " peopled' the
isle with monsters."*

The jackal or chacal (Canis aureus) is extensively
spread over all the countries of the East. Its great voracity,
gregarious habits, and dreadful nocturnal cries are well
known to Indian travellers ; and poor Leyden has alluded
to this animal in his address to an Indian gold coin, writ-
ten, it is said, when labouring under the fatal effects of a
coup desoleil.

" Slave of the dark and dirty mine !

What vanity has brought thee here ?
How can I love to see thee shine

So bright whom I have bought so dear?
The tent-ropes flapping lone I hear,

For twiligtit converse arm in arm ;
The Chacal's shriek bursts on mine ear,

When mirth and music wont to charm.
By Cherical's dark wandering streams.

Where cane-tufts shadow all the wild,
Sweet visions haunt my waking dreams

Of Teviot, loved while yet a ciiild;
Of castled rocks stupendous piled,

By Esk or Eden's classic wave.
Where loves of youth and friendship smiled

Uncurs'd by thee, vile yellow slave I

The most remarkable of the canine animals of India'is
the Thibet-dog, a gigantic kind of mastiff, which inhabits

* See Quarterly Journal of Agriculture, No. 5, p. 540.

28 ZOOLOGY OF INDIA.

certain portions of the table-land of the Himmaleh moun
tains. It is employed as a watch-dog by a tribe called the
Bhoteas, and is said to have a strong aversion to Europeans,
or, as Dr. Wallick expresses it, " flies ferociously at a white
face." " The mansion of the Rajah of Bootan," says Cap-
tam Turner, " stood upon the right ; on the left was a row
of wooden cages, containing a number of large dogs, tre-
mendously fierce, strong, and noisy. They were natives of
Thibet, and, whether savage by nature or soured by con-
finement, they were so impetuously furious that it was un-
safe, unless the keepers were near, even to approach their
dens." The individuals transmitted to the Zoological Gar-
dens came from the neighbourhood of Diggarchee, the
capital of Thibet, and are supposed to be the only indi-
viduals which wer&ever domesticated by Europeans. Their
colour was a deep black, slightly clouded on the sides ;
their feet, and a spot over each eye, being of a full tawny
or briaht brown. They had the broad, deep, truncated
muzzle of the mastiff, and lips still more deeply pendulous.
We regret to add that both these animals died soon alter
their arrival in England. it j • i n

Another species of Indian dog (Caws qiLOa., Hardwicke)
inhabits the mountains of Ramghur.

The group which is next to claim our attention is that of
the mangoustes or ichneumons, the most celebrated of
which is of Egyptian origin. Several species, however, in-
habit the Asiatic continent and islands, and the mungos
(Viverra mumros, Linn.) is characteristic of India. The
last-named species, like its brother of the Nile, is celebrated
for its destruction of reptiles and poisonous snakes, and is
still more deservedly renowned for its discovery of the me-
dicinal virtues of the plant called ophiorhtza mongos, as an
antidote to the otherwise fatal eflfects of their envenomed
fanirs Bufi'on appears to have confounded the Indian man-
goulte with the ichneumon of the Nile. It is scarcely half
the size. Another Indian species is named the gray ich-
neumon {Ichneumoii griseus). It is easily domesticated,
and although it thrives well on bread and milk, its carnivo-
rous propensities are unsubduable ; and, as we know from
experience, it forms, even in the most thoroughly-reclauned
condition, a dangerous neighbour in the vicmity of ornitho-

QUADRUPEDS. 20

logical pets or poultry. It may be rendered useful in the
destruction of rats and other vermin.

We have now to present a brief sketch of a few of the
feline animals which occur in the countries with the natural
history of which we are at present engaged ; and the first
" grand chat," as the French term him, which attracts our
attention, is what we more poetically call the lion, or " king
of beasts." We shall not here repeat what we have already
stated regarding the geographical distribution and general
attributes of this majestic creature,* but shall merely remark,
that the lion {Felis leo) is easily distinguished by "his large
and flowing mane and tufted tail. His colour is uniform,
of a tawny hue, approaching to whitish on the belly, and
the mane is sometimes dark-brown or black. When full
grown he has been known to measure from eight to nine
feet in length, and four feet and a half in height." His gen-
eral aspect is strikingly bold and majestic : "his large and
shaggy mane, which he can erect at pleasure, surrounding
his awfiil front, — his huge overhanging eyebrows, — his
bright commanding eyes, which upon the least irritation
seem to glow with unearthly lustre, — together with his mus-
cular paws, extensile talons, and formidable tusks, — all
these, combined with the voice of thunder with which he
springs upon his prey, render him an assailant of the most
formidable kind. The elastic bound of the swift-footed
antelope is then in vain ; for, paralyzed by terror, and heart-
struck even by the glare of those terrific eyes, it falls to the
earth as powerless as a dead leaf from a blasted tree, and
Ufe is extinct aknost before the " empurpled stream" has
begun to flow. A horse also is " a vain thing for safety,"
for his quivering limbs and large dilated eyes exhibit the
depth of uncontrollable dismay, and he too" falls an unre-
sistant victim to the " king of terrors." One blow upon the
neck with that tremendous paw, and a single infliction on
throat or shoulder of those all-piercing tusks, and the tur-
moil is for ever done. One short and interrupted crv, or
rather shriek, responds to the lion's roar, and the blood of

* See the former volume of our series (No. 16 of the Family Librarj')
entitled " Narrative of Discovery and Adventure in Africa," &e.

c

30 ZOOLOGY OF INDIA.

the beautiful courser bedews the shaggy mane of this relent-
less and insatiate foe.

The elephant is found to be the only efficient coadjutor
in the pursuit of this noble game. " But of all the diversions
of the field," says Bernier, "the hunting of the lion is not
only the most perilous, but it is peculiarly royal ; for, except
by special permission, the king and the princes are the only
persons who engage in the sport. As a preliminary step,
an ass is tied near the spot where the gamekeepers have
ascertained the lion retires. The wretched animal is soon
devoured, and after so ample a meal the lion never seeks for
other prey, but, without molesting either oxen, sheep, or
shepherd, goes in quest of water, and after quenching his
thirst, returns to his former place of retirement. He sleeps
until the next morning, when he finds and devours another
ass, which the gamekeepers have brought to the same spot.
In this way they contrive, during several successive days,
to allure the lion, and to attach him to one place ; and when
information is received of the king's approach, they fasten
at the spot an ass where so many others have been sacrificed,
down whose throat a large quantity of opium has been
forced. This last meal is of course intended to produce a
soporific effect upon the lion. The next operation is to
spread, by means of the peasantry of the adjacent villages,
large nets, made on purpose, which are gradually drawn
closer in the manner practised in hunting nyi-ghaus. Every
thing being in this state of preparation, the king appears on
an elephant barbed with iron, and attended by the grand
master of the hunt, some omrahs mounted on elephants,
and a great number of gourse-berdars on horseback, and of
gamekeepers on foot, armed with half-pikes. He imme-
diately approaches the net on the outside, and fires at the lion
with a large rausketoon. The wounded animal makes a
spring at the elephant, according to the invariable practice
of lions, but is arrested by the net, and the king continues
to discharge his musketoon until the lion is at length killed."*

The Asiatic Hon, it has been observed, seldom attains the
dimensions of the fall-grown individuals from Southern
Africa. Its colour is also more uniform and of a paler yel-
low, and its mane is in general fuller and more complete.

* Travels, vol. ii. p. 115.

QUADRUPEDS. 31

He is also a much rarer animal in Asia than in Africa. " In
the sandy deserts of 'Arabia, in some of the wilder districts
of Persia, and in the vast jungles of Hindostan, he still
maintains a precarious footing ; but from the classic soil of
Greece, as well as from the whole of Asia Minor, both of
which were once exposed to his ravages, he has been utterly
dislodged and extii-pated."* The fine Indian lion which is
at present an inhabitant of the Tower of London under the
name of George was procured by General Watson in the
following manner, according to the account published by
Mr. Bennet : — It was about the commencement of the year
1823, when the general was on ser\'ice in Bengal, that,
being out one morning on horseback, armed with a double-
barrelled rifle, he was suddenly surprised by a large lion,
which bounded out upon him from a thick jungle, at the
distance of only a few yards. He instantly fired, and the
shot taking complete effect, the animal fell dead almost at
his feet ; but no sooner was this formidable foe thus disposed
of than a second, equlilly terrible, made her appearance m
the person of the lioness, whom the general also shot at and
wounded so dangerously that she retreated into the tliicket.
As her following so immediately in the footsteps of her mate
afforded strong grounds for suspecting that their den could
not be far distant, he determined upon pursuing the adven-
ture to the end, and traced her to her retreat, where he
completed the work of her destruction by again discharging
the contents of one of the barrels of his rifle, which he had
loaded for the purpose. In the den were found a beautiful
pair of cubs, male and female, supposed to be then not more
than three days old. These General Watson brought away
with him, and succeeded, by the assistance of a goat, who
was prevailed upon to act in the capacity of foster-mother
to the royal pair, in rearing them until they attained suffi-
cient age and strength to enable them to bear the voyage
to England. On their arrival in this country, in September,
1823, he presented them to his majesty, who commanded
them to be placed in the Tower. t

The extreme youth of these lions at the time of their
capture, and the constant control exercised over them, pro-
duced of course the expected results. They continued so

* Tower Menagerie, p. 6. t ^^- P- "•

32 ZOOLOGY or inbia.

tame and docile, that for twelve months after their arrival
thev were suffered to walk at large in an open yard, where
thev were played with and caressed by all and sundry, liut
no sooner had the female given birth to her first litter of
cubs, than a total change was effected in her disposition.
Absorbed by one idea, the support and preservation of her
young, she no longer suffered the slightest famdianty, even
on the part of her accustomed keepers, and, apparently
haunted by the fear that every person who approached her
den was about to deprive her of her cherished offspring, she
gave full scope to the violence of her passion, and exhibited
a beautiful but appalling picture of maternal tenderness and
the most savage ferocity. The cubs, which were three in
number, two males and a female, were whelped on the 20th
October, 1827, the day of the battle of Navarino ; and it
was discovered by the curious in such coincidences, that
they were the only lions born in the Tower since the year
(1794) of the great naval victory gained by Lord Howe over
the French fleet.

Inferior to the lion in the majesty of his deportment, but
nearly equal in strength, and perhaps excelling him in ac-
tivity, the tiger {Felis tigns), though his nature and aspect
are known to all, forms too prominent a feature in the
zoology of Hindostan not to require from us a brief record.
This savage and very powerful animal has a more slender
body and a rounder head than his great congener. His mo-
tions are full of graceful ease, and the bright tawny-yellow
of the prevailing portions of his coat, contrasted with the
numerous sloping lines of black, and the pure white ol the
under portions of his body, constitute one of the most perfect
pictures of savage beauty presented by the brute creation.
The geographical distribution of the tiger is considerably
more extended from north to south than that of the lion, as
it not only advances far into those desert countries which
separate China from Siberia, but is also found between the
Irtysch and the Ischim, and even, though rarely, as far as
the banks of the Obi. On the other hand, it is more re-
stricted in a longitudinal direction, as it appears rarely to
pass to the westward of a line drawn from about the mouths
of the Indus in a northerly direction to the shores of the
Caspian Sea. The tiger was therefore much less familiarly
known to ancient writers than the lion, and even among the

I

w

QUADRUPEDS. 33?

Romans it was long regarded as an extreme rarity. Megas-
thenes alone, among the Greeks, seems to have been ac-
quainted with it from personal observation ; for Nearchus
had only an opportunity of seeing the skin, and Aristotle
merely mentions it as an animal of which he had heard by
name. Among the Romans, according to Pliny, the first
tiger ever exhibited to the people was a tame one belonging
to Augustus, which had been sent to that emperor in siorn
of homage by an Indian king. Claudius afterward exhibited
four at one time, and it has been conjectured that the beau-
tiful mosaic picture of four tigers, discovered some years
ago in Rome near the arch of Gallienus, was executed at
that period in commemoration of so striking and unprece-
dented a display.*

The pursuit of this animal is of course attended by con-
siderable danger. In the following anecdote, however, as
related by Mr. Williamson, no damage appears to have
resulted either to the huntsman or his elephant. "The
tiger had satiated himself upon a bullock he had killed, and
lay lurking in the grass, which was as high as the backs of
the elephants, and very thick, not far from the remains of
the bullock. He was extremely cunning, and crouched so
close as to render it for a long time doubtful whether he was
in the jungle or not. The symptoms displayed by the ele-
phants, in approaching the place where he lay concealed,
induced the party to persevere in their efforts to rouse him.
One gentleman particularly urged his mahout to make his
elephant beat the spot where the scent was strongest, which
being done in spite of the tremendous tones of the agitated
animal, ihe tiger finding himself compelled either to resist or
to submit to being trodden upon, sprang upon the elephant's
quarter, and so far succeeded as to fix his claws in the pad ;
his hind-legs were somewhat spread, and their claws were
fixed into the fleshy membranes of the elephant's thigh.
Actuated by the excess of fear occasioned by so sudden and
so painful an attack, the elephant dashed through the corn
at a surprising rate, the tiger holding fast by its fore-paws,
and supported by its hinder ones ; unable, however, in con-
sequence of the rapid and irregular motions of the elephant,
either to raise himself any higher, or to quit the hold he had

* See Ossemens fossiles, nouv. ed. torn. 4, p. 415.

34 ZOOLOGY OF INDIA.

so firmly taken with his claws. The gentleman, who had
much ailo to keep his seat, was precludea firing at his grnn
companion, as well from his unprecedented situation, as
from the great danger of wounding some of the numerous
followers, who were exerting the utmost speed of their
respective elephants to come up to his assistance. The
constant desire felt to get rid of his unwelcome rider, which
produced a waving and irregular pace, gave the opportunity
for those who were mounted on light and speedy animals
to overtake the singular fugitives. Another gentleman of
the party, coming up close, was enabled to choose his posi-
tion ; when, taking safe aim, he shot the tiger, which fell to
the ground and required no further operation."*

The following anecdote illustrates the character both of
the tiger and the sepoy. It is about twenty years ago since
Major Hull, the conimanding-officer of a battalion on the
Bombay establishment, was proceeding along the banks of
a ravine, with eight or ten men of his corps, in search of
some lions which had been seen near the cantonment of
Kaira in Guzerat, when a royal tiger suddenly sprang upon
him. The ground gave way, and the tiger and Major Hull
rolled too-ether to the bottom of the ravine. Though this
fall prevented the latter from being killed by the first assault,
still his fate seemed certain ; and those who know the terror
which this ferocious beast is wont to inspire can alone ap-
preciate the character of that bravery which induced every
sepoy who was with him to rush at once to his succour.
The tiger fell under their bayonets, though not before it had
desperately wounded two of the assailants, one of whom
lost his leg, and the other was so severely lacerated as to be
incapable of any future service. But they deemed their
wounds trivial when they saw that the officer whom they
loved had escaped unhurt from his perilous encounter.!

The hunting-tiger or chittah {Felis juhata, Schreber) is
one of the most pictures{iue and elegant of the genus. It
is considerably less than the panther, and of a more slender
form. Its legs are proportionally higher, its ,ail longer, its
head somewhat smaller and shorter, than in any of its con-
geners. It may also be distinguished by a black line which

* Oriental Field Sports, p. 72.

t Uuarterly Review, vol. xviii. p. ifH.

aUADRUPEDS. 39

passes from the anterior angle of the eye to the corner of
the mouth, and by another shorter one which proceeds from
the posterior angle of the eye tov/ards the temple. The
upper parts of the body are of a beautiful clear tawny-yellow,
adorned by numerous small round black spots, which are
simple, — that is, not eye-shaped, or en forme de rose^ as in
the most nearly-allied species. The under parts are white,
marked by larger and more waving spots. The upper half
of the tail is tawny-yellow above and white below, with
black spots ; the lower half is marked by twelve alternate
rings of black and white. This animal measures rather
more than three feet in length, and stands about two feet
high. Its toes are lengthened like those of a dog, and the
claws are blunter and less curved than in the other animals
of the cat kind.

In conformity with these characters the disposition of
the chittah is more gentle, and its nature more readily
admits of domestication and a certain degree of regulated
culture than the rest. In eastern countries it is trained to
the chase of antelopes and other wild animals, being carried
in a small wagon chained and hoodwinked till the game
appears. It is then let loose, and generally makes its first
advances by creeping insidiously like a serpent, with its
belly close to the ground, till within a short distance,
when it makes five or six tremendous bounds, and falls
upon its prey with the velocity of an arrow. One, which
died some years ago in the royal menagerie of Pans, had
been so completely reclaimed from a state of nature that
it was left in a park to the freedom of its own will, and
where it yet obeyed in every thing the commands of its
k«eper, and showed a great attachment to the society of

dogs.

The geographical history of this species appears to have
been but little known till of late years. Its distribution is
verj' extensive. It occurs, as we have already mentioned,
in Hindostan ; it is known in Persia by the name of youze,
and great quantities of skuis, apparently identical, are
transmitted to Europe from Senegal and other parts of
Africa.

Several other species of the feline race are indigenous to
that portion of Asia which it is our present endeavour to

36 ZOOLOGY OF INDIA.

illustrate ; but the three above described will probably suffice
to represent the habits and. history of the whole.

Passing over the great and eccentric order of marsupial
or pouched animals, which, though not entirely unknown
to the great Asiatic division of our globe, are yet strangers
to Hindostan and the other countries of our present mquiry,
we proceed to the order Rodentia or Glires, which includes
what are designated gnawers, — such as rats and mice, and
many others too numerous to mention. Of this order the
squirrel tribe (genus Sciurws) are among the most beautiful
and most to be admired, and of these the Malabar species
(Sc. maximus) is the largest known,— measuring fifteen or
sixteen inches from the muzzle to the root of the tail, which
is itself nearly a foot and a half long. The upper parts
and outsides of the limbs are of a bright chocolate-brown,
which changes suddenly on the imder parts, fore-arms,
and inner sides of the limbs, into a pale yellowish brown.
The back and shoulders are sometimes of a deep black. The
ears are short and covered with tufted hair, the whiskers
are long and black. The tail is broad and branching from
the centre to the siGes, and its colours are bright chocolate-
Lrown at the base, black in the intermediate portion, and
chestnut at the extremity. This beautiful species was ob-
served and figured by Sonnerat. It is native to the coasts
of Malabar.

Of the rat tribe we shall here mention only a single ex-
ample of enormous size. It is the Malabar-rat of Dr. Shaw,
and the Mus giganteus of General Hardwicke.* The nose
is rounded, the under jaw much shorter than the upper, the
cutting-teeth broad, incurved, compressed, the lower ones
measuring eight-tenths of an inch, and the upper four-
tenths in length. The body is thick, and greatly arched ;
the upper part is most hairy and black, the lower inclines
to gray. The legs and toes are black, and the tail is thinly
covered with hair, and measures two and a half inches in
circumference at the root. The specimen above described
was a female, and weighed two pounds eleven ounces and a
half. The male weighs above three pounds, and measures,
including the tail, which is above a foot long, nearly thirty

* In Linn. Trans., vol. vii. p. 306.

QUADRUPEDS. 37

inches in length. This gigantic rat is found in maay
places on the coast of Coromandel, in Mysore, and in
several parts of Bengal, between Calcutta and Hurdwar,
It is partial to dry situations, and scarcely ever occurs at a
distance from human habitations. The lowest caste of
Hindoos, according to General Hardwicke, eat the flesh of
this rat in preference to that of any other species. It is
extremely mischievous, and will burrovv to a great depth,
passing beneath the foundations of stores and granaries,
if these are not deeply laid ; and it perforates with ease the
walls of such buildings as are formed with mud or unburnt .
brick. It is destructive in gardens, and roots up the seeds
of all kinds of leguminous plants. Fruits also suffer from
its depredations, and it will even attack poultry when it
finds itself stinted in a vegetable diet. The bite of this
animal is considered dangerous ; and a European serving
in the Honourable Company's artillery is known to have
died in the Doab of confirmed hydrophobia, in consequence
of having been bit by the species in question. We may
here add, that the common rat {Mu.s decumanus), now the
pest of most of the great cities of Europe, is supposed to
have come originally from India.

The animal kingdom presents no species of a more sin-
gular form and aspect than the pangolins, or manis tribe,
sometimes denominated scaly lizards. They occur both in
Africa and the East, and belong to the order Edentata.
The short-tailed manis {M. pejitadactyla, Linn.) appears to
have been described by JElian under the name of phattagen.
Its body is covered with thick scales disposed over the sur-
face like tiles on the roof of a house. It is destitute of
teeth, but has a long extensile tongue, with which it preys
on ants and termites. The tail is shorter than the body,
and the total length is from three to four feet. They
kill lizards, according to Erxleben. Their dispositions are
gentle, their voices feeble, their progression slow. They
seldom appear except during the night, and their flesh in
some countries is sought after as a delicate article of food.
The species alluded to is called Ahmgu on the coast of
Coromandel. It inhabits several parts of India, and like-
wise occurs in the islands of Formosa and Ceylon.

Vol. III.— D

gg ZOOLOGY OF INDIA.

%Tl\eZTlElepMs Indicus), supposed by many to

^' 'r ?s'bvtl2t?s l°n bltd "rm many actions
proboscis, by which it i^ en . »' ^ably superior in

which the dog ^"'l ,^,^;„^°',';h\evTncrf frL their different if
wisdom, are incapable ot achieving, entertain

not more defective organization S^iU je can
no doubt, either from the ancient records «' m
exhibitions of its docile disposition, *^^ f '^ J^y re-
highly gifted for an irrauon. being^ S^t ^^jfnSnlith
tains its finer natural in^^mcts even i J j ^^^^

those more artificial acquirements, which mse
species seem to deaden or counterac the mfljnces p^^^
instinctive feeling. For example, ?^J^. "^^ Joddam of
Johnson, that an elephant belong ng to Mr- Bodda

the Bengal civil service at 5^y=^^'"'!f^*;!!'J house to the
over a small bridge leading f'^^'^.^^^^^^^'^J^Ji u ; but was
town. He one day, hovvever, '^.^^^tnt ^hT^.J ^ith an
at length, by being cruelly gored ^^out the heaa ^^

'"EteDhanls in Am country ar. usually fed on hay and

rdTdT^';.=e":V 5° :unL\»eigV »Hh »
adlilLa/suppl, often pounds of »8"' '>-'^'" '^Xw^
and popp.- ;,™'l^f"™| *r;«ThrM 6« princi ar!

s;rdSJt.Tt*l-:js?.T^:&^^^^^^^

the Carthaginian eleplrants captured by Metellus so costly
that thev were afterward slain in the circus. Yet, accord
£g to Xn's account, less rigid economy prevailed m the

* Indian Field Sports, p. 56.

QUADRUPEDS. 39

days of Germanicus. His elephants were exhibited in the
arena, reposing on splendid couches adorned with the
richest tapestry. Tables of ivory and cedar-wood were
placed before them, and on these their viands were pre-
sented to them in vessels of silver and gold. They danced
to the sound of " flutes and soft recorders," or moved in mea-
sured and harmonious steps around the theatre, scattering
the freshest and the choicest flowers around them. Arrian
mentions an elephant which played on cymbals, one being
fastened to each knee, and another held in his proboscis,
while his unwieldly companions danced in a circle, keeping
time with the greatest exactness.

So many contradictory accounts have been given of the
size of the adult elephant, that we find some difliculty in
stating its true dimensions in a few words. The African
are alleged to be superior in size to those of Asia. Major
Denham, while journeying to the Tchad, saw individuals
so enormous that he calculated their height to be sixteen
feet. These, however, he had no opportunity of measur-
ing ; but another, which was killed in his presence, was
found to be nine feet six inches from the foot to the hip-
bone, and three feet from the hip-bone to the back, — or
twelve feet six inches in all, — which is more than twice
the height of the taller races of the human species. When
we consider that, even in proportion to its height, the ele-
phant is an animal of enormous bulk, and of the most mas-
sive proportions, we may conceive what a load of flesh and
bone its rugous coat must have contained. Mr. Scott of
Sinton, whose authority is frequently quoted and deservedly
valued on such points, states, in relation to the Asiatic
species, that he never heard of more than a single instance
of the elephant much exceeding the height of ten feet. The
following are the proportions which he gives of a fine male
belonging to the Vizier of Oude : —

Ft. In.

From foot to foot over the shoulder, 22 lOJ

From the top of the shoulder, perpendicular height, 10 6

From the top of the head when set up, 12 2

From the front of the face to the insertion of the tail, 15 11

Nothing is more deceptive than the dimensions of an
animal which, obviously exceeding in size any thing that we

40 ZOOLOGY OF INDIA.

had been previously accustomed to, has yet been unsubjected
to accurate measurement, for our astonishment magnifies
its actual size. Thus a celebrated elephant belonging to the
Nabob of Dacca, which was generally said to be fourteen
feet high, and which even Mr. Scott's practised eye estimated
at twelve, was found by measurement not to exceed ten
feet. Those from Pegu and Ava are, however, larger than
the elephants of Hindostan, and the Ceylonese variety
is also of great dimensions. The skeleton of an individual
in the museum at Petersburg, which was presented by
the King of Persia to the Czar Peter, measures sixteen feet
and a half in height ; but we are uncertain how much of
this prodigious stature may be owing to the mode in which
the bones have been articulated, and the more or less nat-
ural curvature of the spine.

A large elephant weighs from six to seven thousand
pounds, and we may easily conceive that when journeying
through the forests, with any very special object in view,
he must force his way through all intervening obstacles,
more after the manner of a steam-engine than of any mere
animal force of which we have a clear and accustomed con-
ception.

"Trampling his path through wood and brake
^nd canes which crackling fall before his way,
•And lassel-grass, whose silvery feathers play,
O'ertopping the young trees,
On comes the elephant, to slake
His thirst at noon in yon pellucid springs.
Lo! from his trunk upturn'd, aloft he flings
The grateful shower : and now,
Plucking the broad-leav'd bough
Of yonder plume, with waving motion slow,
Fanning the languid air,
He waves it to and fro."*

The new-born elephant measures about thirty-five inches
high ; he grows about eleven inches during the first year ;
eight in the second ; five in the fifth ; three and a half in
the sixth ; and two and a half in the seventh. He takes
from twenty to thirty years to attain his full growth.

It has been said that the invention of gunpowder in the
practice of war, and the application of steam to machinery,

* Curse of Kehama.

QUADRUPEDS. 41

have superseded the uses of this great living engine. It is
still, however, extensively used in the East for a variety of
purposes, and Bernier in his Travels has given a spirited de-
scription of a grand procession of Aurengzebe's retinue.
The conveyance of the " lovely and distinguished females"
seems chiefly to have attracted the observance of the lively
Frenchman. " I cannot avoid," he observes, " dwelling on
this pompous procession of the seraglio. It strongly ar-
rested my attention during the late march, and I feel de-
light in recalling it to my memory. Stretch imagination to
its utmost limits, and you can conceive no exhibition more
grand and imposing than when Rochinara Begum (Aureng-
zebe's sister), mounted on a stupendous Pegu elephant, and
seated in a mik-dember blazing with gold and azure, is fol-
lowed by five or six other elephants with mik-dembers
nearly as resplendent as her own, and filled with ladies at-
tached to her household. Close to the princess are the
chief eunuchs, richly adorned and finely mounted, each
with a cane in his hand ; and, surrounding her elephant, a
troop of female servants from Tartary and Cashmere, fan-
tastically attired, and riding handsome pad-horses. Besides
these attendants are several eunuchs on horseback, accom-
panied by a multitude of pagys or lackeys on foot, with large
canes, who advance a great way before the princess both to
the right and to the left, for the purpose of clearing the
road and driving before them every intruder. Immediately
behind Rochinara Begum's retinue appears a principal lady
of the court, mounted and attended much in the same man-
ner as the princess. This lady is followed by a third ; she
by a fourth ; and so on, until fifteen or sixteen females of
quality pass, with a grandeur of appearance, equipage, and
retinue more or less proportionate to their rank, pay, and
office. There is something very impressive of state and
royalty in the march of these sixty or more elephants, in
their solemn and, as it were, measured steps ; in the splen-
dour of their mik-dembers, and the brilliant and innumera-
ble followers in attendance : and, if I had not regarded this
display of magnificence with a sort of philosophical indif-
ference, I should have been apt to be carried away by the
similar flights of imagination as inspire most of the Indian
poets, when they represent the elephants as conveying as
many goddesses concealed from vulgar gaze.'

D 2

42 ZOOLOGY or india.

It appears, however, that these journeys are not always
unattended by danger, for Bernier was hunself an eyewit-
ness of the following catastrophe : — " The king (Aureng-
2ebe) was ascending the Peer-Punchal mountains, from
■which a distant view of the kingdom of Cashmere is first
obtained. He was followed by a long line of elephants,
upon which sat the ladies in mik-dembers and amaris (seats
vpith canopies). The foremost, appalled, as is supposed,
by the great length and acclivity of the path before him,
stepped back upon the elephant that was moving in his
track ; who again pushed against the third elephant, the
third against the fourth, and so on until fifteen of them, in-
capable of turning round or extricating themselves in a
road so steep and narrow, fell down the precipice. Happily
for the women, the place where they fell was of no great
height ; only three or four were killed ; but there were no
means of saving any of the elephants. Whenever these
animals fall under the immense burden usually placed upon
their backs, they never rise again, even on a good road.
Two days afterward we passed that way, and I observed
that some of the poor elephants still moved their trunks."*

In regard to the pecuniary value of the elephant, Mr.
Forbes informs us that a common price is from 5000 to 6000
rupees, but that he has seen one valued at 20,000. The Hin-
doos become much attached to these animals when they
have been long in their service, and a wealthy owner will
not part with one of extraordinary qualifications for any
consideration. A well disciplined war-elephant will stand
a volley of musketry. " I have seen one," says the last-
named author, " with upwards of thirty bullets in the
fleshy parts of his body, and perfectly recovered from his
wounds."!

Though much remains untold of the habits and history
of this ponderous creature, we must now proceed to other
subjects, having already devoted more space to the preced-
ing notices than we can well afford.^

* Bernier's Travels, vol. ii. p. 149.

t Ttie difficulty of destroying elephants by firearms may be con-
ceived on perusal of an anecdote in Captain Beaver's " African Memo-
randa." See also tlie painful narrative in the third volume of Mr. Grif-
lith's edition of the Animal Kingdom.

i We beg to refer the reader to the Library of Entertaining Know-

QUADRUPEDS. 43

Inferior in size to the elephant, and of a much more re-
stricted capacity, the rhinoceros (Rh. Indicus, Cuv.) is yet
of sufficient dimensions to form a very imposing feature in
the zoology of the East. There are three species of this
animal in Asiatic countries. The Indian and Javanese
have each a single horn, while the Sumatran is "doubly
armed" like the African species. It is to the first of these
that our present observations may be understood to apply.

A young rhinoceros, preserved in the Garden of Plants,
was habitually gentle, obedient to its keepers, and extremely
sensible of kindness. At times, however, he exhibited parr
oxysms of violent rage, during which it was necessary to
keep beyond his reach, as it would have been but a poor con-
solation to those whom he might have impaled, to be in-
formed that for the most part his intentions were innocent.
He was generally calmed by a liberal supply of bread and
fruit, and as soon as he saw those who were in the habit of
feeding him, he would stretch his muzzle towards them,
open his mouth, and push out his tongue. His proportions
were thicker, and still more unwieldy than those of the ele-
phant. His height was about 5 feet 6 inches, and his length
nearly 8 feet, and his whole body was covered by a thick
nearly naked tuberculous skin, disposed in irregular folds.
Its natural colour appeared to be gray, tinted with violet ;
but as it was apt to crack, it was kept lubricated, which
altered the natural hue. His senses, with the exception of
that of touch, appeared to be tolerably acute. The follow-
ing anecdote is from Grifiith's Animal Kingdom (vol. iii.
p.'426) :—

" The power of this species is frequently displayed to a
surprising degree when hunting it. A few years ago, a
party of Europeans, with their native attendants and ele-
phants, when out on the dangerous sport of hunting these
animals, met with a herd of seven of them, led, as it ap-
peared, by one larger and stronger than the rest. When
the large rhinoceros charged the hunters, the leading ele-
phants, instead of using their tusks or weapons, which in
ordinary cases they are ready enough to do, wheeled round,

ledge, vol. it, entitled The Menageries, where a complete and very ample
account is given of the ancient and modern history of elephants. ^Ve
have availed ourselves of several of the authorities brought forward m
that amusing volume.

44

ZOOLOGY OF INDIA.

and received the blow of the rhinoceros's horn on the poste-
riors. The blow brought them immediately to the groun 1
■with their riders, and as soon as they had risen, the bruta
was again ready, and again brought them down, and in .this
manner did the combat continue until four out of the seven
were killed, when the rest made good their retreat."

Wild-boars are among the most ferocious of the animals
of India. They chiefly inhabit the woods and jungles;
hut when the grain is nearly ripe they occasion great dam-
age in the corn-fields, and still more among the sugar-
plantations, as they are extremely fond of canes. Their
irascible nature is indeed remarkable for creatures of an her-
bivorous disposition, and their pursuit and capture is con-

(ItJADRUPEDS. 45

seqoently not unattended bj' personal danger. They are
spread over a vast tract of eastern territorj', and exist in
great abundance in the archipelago of the Papuas, to the
north of the Moluccas, and the westward of New-Guinea.
It would even appear that two wild species occur in the
Celebes (independent of Sus babyrussa), and some writers
maintain the opinion that there exists in the Indian and Chi-
nese dominions a species of wild-boar distinct from that of
Europe, and the more probable source from which the
Siamese breed and that of China have been derived. Thus
if the domestic races peculiar to, or characteristic of, the
northern and temperate part of Europe have sprung (as we
think cannot be doubted) from the wild-boar {Sus aper), we
shall have three distinct sources from which to trace the
rise and progress of domestic swine.*

The Ruminating order is the next in succession to that
cf which we have just treated, and contains many of the
species from which man derives his most valuable supplies
both of food and raiment. The order may be divided into
two great divisions, — those without horns, and such as are
provided with those weapons.

The camel (C Bactnanus), by which term the two-
humped species is usually designated, is indigenous to the
central deserts of Asia, and is used as a beast of burden in
Turkestan and Thibet, and even as far north as the shores
of Lake Baikal. The more abundant and better-known
species, which is in fact the dromedary (C dromedarnis),
is now spread over the whole of Arabia, Syria, and Persia.
It is this species which in India precede the nabobs on state-
occasions to fire salutes ; and IMajor Hamilton Smith
informs us that the East India Company maintains a corps
of dromedaries, mounted fay two men each, and armed
with musketoons or swivels. These animals are very
savage at particular seasons. An instance is related of a
must-camel (an individual rendered furious by the excite-
ment of the ruttincr-season) tearinj; off a young man's arm
in India : the writhing body of his victim was with dim-

* See Forrest's Voyage to New-Guinea ; some observations by An-
loine Desmoulinsin the Diction. Cla-ss. d'Hist. Nat., torn. iv. p. 271 ; and
aae Quarterly Journal of Agriculture, voL iii. p. 50, note.

48 ^ ZOOLOGY OF INDIA.

culty •withdrawn from the enraged animal, who stood in
terrific exultation over the torn limb, and for some time
would suffer no one to approach it.

If we may judge from the close and efficient covering of
fur with which, except towards the termination of the rut-
ting-season, both the camel and dromedary are clothed, we
should infer that these anunals came originally from a tem-
perate climate, where, as in the central parts of Asia, a
considerable degree of cold was at times experienced. The
coat appears to become scanty only in such individuals as
reside in very hot regions, and this circumstance is regarded
by Major Smith as a fair indication that their primitive
habitat was in a region occasionally subjected to a pretty
severe temperature. The southern base of the Caucasian
mountains has been assigned to what is named the Arabian
species or dromedary ; and the arid plains beneath the
northern confines of the Paropamisaden range, with the
wilderness of Jasnak and Chorasmia, east of the Caspian,
may perhaps be regarded as among the native abodes of the
camel or Bactrian species. Something to this effect may
be inferred from scattered hints in the Zend, the poems of
Schah, named Ferdusi, and in the Arabian epic, the romance
of Antar.* The articles used in manufactures, and known
under the names of mohair and camlets, are the produce
of the fur of these animals.

The musk-deer (genus Moschus) are the only other tribe
which we include among the hornless ruminants of Asia.
Of these the musk-deer, far excellence {M. moschifenis), is
one of the most remarkable. Although the drug called
musk has been known throughout Central Asia from time
immemorial, it does not appear that the animal which pro-
duced it was known to the ancients, or indeed in any way
identified till it was described by Abuzeid Scrassi, an Ara-
bian author, who stated that it was a deer without horns.
A knowledge of it was first introduced in Western Europe
by Serapion, who flourished in the eighth century. It is
nearly the size of a roebuck, with an exceedingly short
tail, and covered by a very coarse coat. Its native regions
are the alpine tracts of Central Asia, where it dwells amid
barren rocks and perpetual snows, descending occasionally

* Griffith's Animal Kingdom, vol. iv. p. 46.

QTTADRTJPEDS. 4t

to the Tetnon of the pines. It is a nocturnal animal, of
solitary dtsposition, and extremely timid. The province of
Thibet is the most renowned for the superior quality of its
musk. This prized perfume is obtained from a small hag
situated in the lower region of the abdomen of the male.
The flesh, though strongly impregnated with a ipusky odour,
is also much esteemed.

Ceylon produces a small species of this genus, called the
viemina. It is about 17 inches long, of a cinereous-olive ;
the throat, breast, and belly white, and the flanks ornamented
by long bars of that colour. It inhabits the jungles, and
was first described by Kiiox.*

Such of the ruminating order as we have still to describe
are furnished with horns. We shall speak in the first
place of the deer tribe. These animals are remarkable
for their elegant forms, their light but strong proportions,
and the ene°rgy and activity of their general movements.
As among the "nobler subjects of the chase, they have long
been objects of interest in various countries to the aris-
tocracy of the human race. The genus is pretty widely
distributed over all the greater divisions of the globe, with
the exception of New-Holland.f

We shall not enter into the history of the elk, because,
although it is an Asiatic animal, it does not proceed so far
to the southward as to enter within our present boundaries,
and the same reason of exclusion will apply to the red-deer

or stag.

There are, however, many magnificent examples of this
tribe of animals to be found to the south of the Nepaul
mountains. Of these we shall mention in the first place
the Nepaul stag itself (Cervus Wallichi), which in several
respects exhibits a resemblance to the red-deer of our own
heath-clad hills. The only known individual of this species
was brought by Dr. Wallick to Calcutta from ]Vepaul. It
was figured by a native artist from a five specimen in the
menagerie of the governor-general at Barrackpore ; the

* Historical Relation of Ceylon.

t We have ourselves introduced deer into Jamaica, and those imported
by the Portuguese thrive well in the Isle of France. It is to be hoped
that the vast pastures of New-Holland will be ere long stocked with
what would prove a valuable accession to those otherwise unpeopled
vraetes.

48 ZOOLOGY OF INDIA.

drawing was transmitted by Duvaucel to Paris, and has
been published by M. F. Cuvier. The horns are rather
short, with two small antlers at the base, pointing to the
front ; half-way up the beam a small snag turns forwards •
the suborbital openings are lar'ge ; the general colour is
yellowish brown-gray, with a large paler-coloured disk upon
the croup. The tail is very short.

The Rusa group of stags is entirely Asiatic, and is dis-
tinguished by round horns, with a brow-antler, but without
any median or bezantler ; the beam terminates in a single
perch, with a snag more or less elongated, placed midway
or higher, on its anterior or posterior edge.

The great Rusa {Cervus hippelaphus) is nearly as large
as a horse. It has trifurcated horns, very coarse hair, of a
fulvous-brown in summer, changing during the winter
season to a grayer hue ; it has no disk, and the tail is
rather long. This species is found in several of the Asiatic
islands, and in contmental India it occurs chiefly in the
Jungleterry district of Bengal. It corresponds to the great
axis of Pennant.

The exact nature of the animal described by Aristotle
under the name of iTrjrfXa^oj has been a subject of consid-
erable controversy. Linnajus and Erxleben applied the
name to a species which occurs in the forests of Germany •
but, according to M. Duvaucel, it is undoubtedly the black
deer of Bengal.* Its horns are forked at the extremity,
and bear only a single antler at the base, similar, as Aris-
totle expressed it, to those of a roebuck.t

The Gona Rusa (Cervus umcolor) inhabits Ceylon, and
IS the largest species of that island, surpassincr in size the
stag of Europe. The throat is loaded with long bristly
hair, the tail is short, and the general colour is a uniform
dark-brown. This species is very bold and fierce, and
dwells in the jungle and the deepest recesses of the forests
The saumer, or black Rusa of Bengal {Cervus Aristo-
tehs), inhabits the Prauss jungles. The male is nearly as

* Asiatic Researches, vol. xv. p. 157.

t In relation to this point, we should bear in mind Ruffon's important
observation regarding the Latin translation of Aristotle bv Theodore
ill^ A r '^' ''"^'■" '* "'^'■'^ ^i''*"" a^ 'li*? interpretation of Soxos,
»nb!fi?I "''"''''' V'"" '^""^ '" '^^ t"'"^''?^ regarding the horns, ^ve murt
substitute cnpea; for c/^jtcb, or the horns of a roe for those of a goat.

QUADRUPEDS. 4&

large as an elk, and is represented by British sportsmen in
India as exceedingly vicious as well as strong. Some of
these, while engaged in a shooting expedition, had crossed'
an arm of the Jumna to a well-wooded island in search of
game ; they were mounted on an elephant, and, entering
the jungle suddenly, they roused an old male of this species.
" On se'eing the elephant," says Major Smith, " he started
up with a loud shrill pipe or whistle, which caused others
to rise and dart into cover, while he stood at bay with his
bristly main on end in a most threatening attitude ; but
before the sportsmen could prepare proper shot, he wheeled
round and dashed through the underwood with the facihty
of a rhinoceros." It is to this species that the name of elk.
is erroneously applied by many Anglo-Indians. Its head,
shoulders, back, and buttock are dark brown in summer,
and in winter nearly black. The belly, and a ring round
the nostrils and mouth, are whitish. The insides of the
legs are fawn-colour, and the breast is black. Captain
Williamson describes it as attaining to the size of a Lincoln-
shire cart-horse (fifteen or sixteen hands high), of a shining
black, with tanned points. He adds that the females are
of a mouse-colour. There are heads of this species in the
British Museum.

Other species of Rusa inhabit the Indian archipelago,
the island of Tijnor, the peninsula of Malacca, and the
Marian Islands, — but our restricted limits will not admit,
of our entering into any further details in illustration of
this very striking and peculiar group.

The spotted axis {Cervxis axis) resembles the fallow-deer,
but is easily distinguished from it by the roundness of its
horns, and the want of a terminal palm. The female,
however, is with difficulty discriminated from the doe of the
fallow-deer. It was the opinion of Pennant, that the spot-
ted-deer of our preserves came originally from Bengal, but
in the fourth edition of Gwillim's Heraldry (1660, p. 171)
the spotted biick is quoted as borne in ancient coats-of-arms
at a period long anterior to any British intercourse with In-
dia. The fallow-deer itself appears from various historical
and etymological considerations, into which we cannot at
present enter, to have been indigenous to the southern and
central districts of Europe. The axis, however, is the best
and most anciently known of all the Asiatic species. It is

Vol. hi.— E

50 ZOOLOGY OF INDIA.

found throughout India and the islands of the archipelago,
but is most abundant in Bengal and on the banks of the
Gantres. Being an inhabitant of a country where the revo-
lutions of the season do not produce alternately the extremes
of heat and cold, the stag of the Ganges, unlike the spe-
cies of most other countries, is coloured in a similar man-
ner throughout the year. The antlers attain to a consider-
able size as the animal increases in years ; but they are
always of a simple form, bearing only a single frontal
branch or snag, and the main stem forming two terminal
forks. This species has been frequently imported into
England and France, in both of which countries it propa-
gates freely. According to Peter Collinson, they have even
bred with the fallow-deer. Their sense of smell, as ob-
served by Pennant, is so singularly acute, that although re-
markably fond of bread, they will not eat it if it has been
previously blown upon ; and M. F. Cuvier confirms this
trait in their character, by stating that he has observed them
refuse that favourite article after it had been much handled
by the keepers. Their disposition in a state of captivity is
remarkably mild and accommodating.

A large fulvous variety of the axis, with high shoulders
and two rows of oval white spots upon the back, is found
in the Rohilla country and the Dacca districts. These are
the true hog-deer of Indian sportsmen on the Cossimbuzar
Island, in the Jungleterry, and Bahar. The forests of Ce}'-
lon produce a large variety, with a straight back like a cow.
The oval spots are wanting ; the face is entirely of a buff-
colour, with a rather prolonged nose. " In India," says
Major Smith, " all the varieties are known by the general
name of hog-deer, and are called in the Moorish language,
used in the country, parrah. They are found most usually
in the heavy grass jungles in the lower provinces, and to
the northward in the Jaw and Jurput jungles along the
banks of rivers ; they feed in preference on the silky grass
used for making twine, called nioonge, if it be found near
some heavy covers, where they breed, and from whence the
female leads her fawns in twelve or fifteen days after birth.
They are extremely indolent, feeding at night, and passing
most of the day in sleep ; and, perhaps, on that account
they are averse to, and will not remain in the vicinity of
wild peafowl. They are fleet for a short distance. The

QtrADRUPEDS. 51

does are seldom seen in an advanced state of pregnancy,
keeping at that time in the cover ; and the bucks are then
very vigilant and fierce in their defence."

Another section of horned ruminants is called the capre-
oline group, or roes. The common roebuck (Cervus capre-
olus), according to Captain Williamson, is not unknown in
Bengal ; but it is only found on the borders, particularly
among the crags and ravines of the western frontier. It
there frequents elevated situations, and prefers especially
such covers as are divided into small patches. They are
extremely shy, and their dimensions are said to be less than
those of Scotland.

Passing over the muntjaks, which are numerous in India,
the next group which presents itself is that of the swift
and elegant antelopes. Of these, the greater proportion
being of African origin, a brief notice will suffice for the
Indian species.

The white oryx {Antilope leucoryx) measures about three
feet seven inches in height at the shoulder. The body is
rather bulky, the legs slender, and the horns of the male
are horizontal, bent backwards, obliquely annulated, with
smooth tips, and about three feet long. There is a black
spot at the base of the horns passing down the face, and a
second which passes through the ej-es towards the mouth,
widening upon the cheek ; a dark band passes from the up-
per arm down the fore-legs ; the lower parts of the thighs
are rufous, darkening into black about the houghs and upon
the hind-legs. This species has a dark short mane, and a
black tuft at the end of the tail. The other parts of the
body are white. It inhabits sandy and desert districts, and
has been shot on the west side of the Indus, in the deserts
of the Mekran.

We may here mention a remarkable species, called the
chiru {Anlilope Kemas 1 Smith), an inhabitant of the inac-
cessible and piny regions of Chandan}', which verge on
the eternal snows of the Himmaleh mountains. It is some-
times found with only a single horn, and that accidental
condition is supposed to have given rise to the belief in
monocerotes or unicorns, — animals which all who are ac-
quainted with the structure of the scull, and the position
of the frontal sutures, must also know to be incapable of
existing without a violation, we may almost term it, of the
laws of nature; This species is remarkable for an abuu-

S3 ZOOLOGY OF INDIA.

dant coating of wool, a provision which beautifully coincides
with its position as a mountain-dweller in a cold and icy
clime. The characters of the female are still unknown.
The male is nearly six feet long, and measures about three
feet in height at the shoulder ; the croup is higher than the
withers; the horns are black, slender, slightly lyre-shaped,
annulated, with sharp points turned forwards. The hair is
thick and coarse, but conceals beneath it a finer covering
of downy wool. The face and legs are dark, the neck and
back grayish slate-colour, passing to rufous, and the belly,
insides of the limbs, and tip of the tail are white.

The forests of Hindostan produce the chickara or four-
homed antelope. According to General Hardwicke, this
species inhabits the forests and hilly tracts along the west-
ern provinces of Bengal, Bahar, and Orissa. It is a wild
and agile creature, incapable of being tamed unless when
taken young. It is about twenty inches in height, and
measures two feet nine inches from the nose to the root of
the tail, which is about five inches long. The larger pair
of horns are smooth, erect, slightly inclined forwards, and
somewhat divergent, — their length about three inches.
About an inch and a half in front of these horns, rise a very
short stumpy pair, scarcely an inch in length, and about an
inch and a half in circumference. The general colour of
this animal is uniform bright bay on all the upper parts.
The chin, under-line of the neck, abdomen, and insides of
the thighs incline to white, with a mixture of sand-colour.
The female is of a lighter colour than the male, and is un-
provided with horns.* It does not clearly appear whether
the various contributions which have been made towards
the elucidation of the history and structure of this animal
by General Hardwicke, MM. F. Cuvier and Duvaucel, and
Drs. Leach and De Blainville, apply to one and the same
species. Is the Aniilope quadricornis distinct from the An-
tilope chickara ? And if so, to which of the species does
the Telracerus striaticornis of Dr. Leach belong?

We shall conclude our notices of this tribe by introducing
the nyl-ghau to the attention of the reader ; and we place
it in its present position, rather in accordance with the cus-
tomary practice than from any conviction of its natural alH-
ance with the antelopes. Its name signifies blue-ox, and

* Linn. Trans., vol. xiv.

I

QUADRUPEDS. 63

it is never classed with the above-named animals by the
native observers in any of the countries where it occurs.
The nyl-ghau was unknown to the ancients, and one of
the first notices of it with which we are acquainted was
published by Dr. Parsons.* A pair were transmitted to
England from Bombay by Lord Olive in the year 17G7, and
these bred regularly for several seasons. The species is
not very widely distributed over the peninsula of Hindostan.
They still occur in the districts of Kamaghur in Central
India, and spread from thence to the foot of the Himmaleh
mountains. They are also met with in the north-western
provinces, and are not uncommon in many of the countries
which are intermediate between these and the Persian do-
minions. Bernier describes it as one of the objects of the
chase which delighted the Mogul emperor Aurengzebe, in
his progress from Delhi to Cashmere. It is a treacherous
animal, vicious and full of vigour, and a dangerous neigh-
bour even in the domestic state.

The country last mentioned reminds us of a beautiful
species of another genus, the coat of which is highly prized
in commerce as the ingredient of a valuable manufacture.
We allude to the Cashmere goat, commonly so called, which
inhabits the countries of Thibet, and produces the long
white silky substance, for we can scarcely call it wool, from
which are made the famous shawls of Cashmere. The
cars are large, of a brown or blackish colour, and turned
downwards, and the limbs are slender. According to Mr.
Moorcroft, the Tartars of Zadouk had a monopoly of all
the wool produced in the districts behind Himmaleh, and
they were in use to send it, in exchange for other goods, to
be manufactured into shawls by the Cashmerians.f

Another singular goat (which however cannot be referred.
like the one just mentioned, to the Capra agagrus) inhabits
the Jemlah chain of the Himmaleh mountains to the east
of the Brahmapoutra, the most elevated portion of the vast
Asiatic range. The horns are placed high above the front-
lets, come nearly in contact in front, are depressed, flattened,
inclined outwards, and taper suddenly at the points, which

* Phil. Trans., vol. xliii. tm -^ ,

I Journey to Lake Majiasawara in Undes, a proviiice In Little 1 luDet.

£ 2

54 ZOOLOGY OF INDIA.

are curved inwards. They are about nine inches long;.
This species has no beard, but the sides of the head and
whole body are covered with an abundance of long buff-
coloured hair. A darker-coloured streak prevails down the
face and along the spine. It is the Capa Jemlahica of
Hamilton Smith.*

The wild-sheep, or Asiatic argali {Ovis Ammon), scarcely
falls within the limits of our present inquiry ; but the high
mountains of Bootan are inhabited by an animal of the
genus, which is supposed to be nearly allied, if not identi-
cal. This is the wild-sheep of Bhoti, the colour of which
resembles that of the chiru. They are known under the
name of nervati ; but little has transpired of their history,
and the form of the horns has not been ascertained.

The last of the ruminating order which we shall notice
are the Bovidce. The buffalo {Bos Buhalus), so long intro-
duced to the southern countries of Europe, is of Asiatic
origin. It is an animal of almost amphibious habits, loving
the long, coarse, rank pasture which springs up in moist
and undrained lands. Hence its love of the Pontian matshes,
where, according to Scaliger, it will lie for hours submerged
almost to the very muzzle, — an instinctive habit which it
exhibits equally in Timor, where it was more recently ob-
served to indulge its aquatic propensities in a precisely
similar manner by Dr. Quoy of the Uranie. Although by
no means remarkable for any intellectual qualities, nor dis-
tinguished even in the domestic state by more than a dull
docility, the following anecdote related by Mr. Johnson
seems to indicate both courage and attachment : " Two
biparies, or carriers of grain and merchandise on the backs
of bullocks, were driving a loaded string of these animals
from Palamow to Chittrah. When they were come within
a few miles of the latter place, a tiger seized on the man
in the rear, which was seen by a guallah (herdsman) as he
was watching his buffaloes grazing. He boldly ran up to
the man's assistance, and cut the tiger very severely with
his sword ; upon which he dropped the biparie, and seized
the herdsman. The buffaloes, observing it, attacked the
tiger and rescued the herdsman ; they tossed him about
from one to the other, and, to the best of my recollection,

* See the Figure in the 4th volume of Griffith's Animal Kingdom, p. SOB.

QUADRUPEDS. 56

killed him. Both the wounded men were brought to me :
the biparie recovered, but the herdsman died."*

A still more gigantic inhabitant of India is called the
arnee {Bos Arnee). The male is said to measure seven feet
hicrh at the shoulder, and three feet across the breast, and the
horns are each nearly six feet long. The hide itself is white,
but covered by a black and abundant coating of hair. This
species is domesticated in China, the Indian archipelago,
and the peninsula of the Malays. In a wild state it inha-
bits the woody valleys of the Birman empire, and the south-
ern base of the Himmaleh mountains. It is a rare animal,
althoutrh perhaps regarded as more common than it is in'
realitv, owing to the wild-buffalo being very generally named
amee'or arnaa in the central districts of Bengal.! A party
of British cavalry officers stationed in the north of Bengal,
who spent three months employed on a hunting expedition,
during which they killed 42 tigers and numerous buffaloes,
shot only a single arnee. " When the head of this speci-
men," says Major Smith, "rested perpendicular on the
ground, it required the outstretched arms of a man to hold
the points of the horns." A. good figure of this animal is
given by Captain Williamson. t

Another arnee, somewhat less in size than the one just
mentioned, but possessed, notwithstanding, of very gigantic
proportions, is also an inhabitant of India. It is somewhat
difficult in this tribe of animals to trace the range of specific
character, or to draw the precise line of demarcation be-
tween a species and variety. However, the individuals now
alluded to are more abundant than the greater arnee.
Their habits are gregarious, — they live in wooded swamps,
and are sometimes seen in droves floating down the Ganges,
apparently asleep. " An animal of this kind drifted down
to near Shaugur island, in 1790, and was shot by the crew
of the Hawkesbury Indiaman, towed alongside, and hoisted
in. The meat weighed three hundred and sixty pounds per
quarter, exclusive of the head, legs, hide, and entrails, and
the whole could therefore be scarcely less than two thou-
sand pounds, although the ship's butcher pronounced it not
above two years old."<J

* Sketches of Indian Sports.

t According to Mr. Colebrooke, the Bos Arnee is nothing more than
the wild-bulpilo called Arna.

X Oriental Field Sports. ^ Animal Kingdom, vol. iv. p. 391.

56 ZOOLOGY OF INDIA.

The mountainous regions of Bootan and Thibet produce
another remarkable bovine animal called the j'ak (Bos pod'
phagus). This is the grunting-ox of Shaw and Pennant,
and the soora goy of the Hindostanese. It is domesticated
over a vast tract of country, from the Altaic mountains to
the central parts of India, and over a great portion of
China. The horse-tails, as they are commonly called, used
as standards by the Persians and Turks, are in fact made
of hair (usually died of a fine crimson) from the tail of the
grunting-ox ; and the chourics, or fly-drivers, employed in
India, are composed of the same material. This species
has a downcast, heavy look. It is sullen and suspicious,
and usually exhibits considerable impatience on the near
approach of strangers.* The yak pastures on the coldest
parts of Thibet, upon the short herbage peculiar to the
tops of mountains and bleak plains. That lofty chain
■which is situated between latitudes 8° and 27° north, and
which divides Thibet from Bootan, where the summits are
commonly clothed with snow, constitutes its favourite
haunt. The southern glens afford a sufficiency of food and
shelter during the severity of the winter season ; while
during summer the northern aspect is more congenial to its
nature, and admits of a wider range. This animal is of
great value to the Tartar tribes. It is an excellent beast
of burden, and its milk is abundant, and very productive
both of butter and cheese.

The last species we shall mention is the gayall (Bos
frontalis, Lambert — Bos gavces, Smith), which in size and
shape resembles an English bull, but in reality is almost
equal in strength and activity to the wild-buflTalo. It de-
lights to dwell in the deepest jungles, feeding on the tender
leaves and shoots of the brushvv'ood. It occurs in the wild
state among the mountains which fonn the eastern boundary
of the province of Chittagong, and is reared as a domestic
animal by the people called Kookies, who inhabit those re-
gions. It is easily tamed. t We shall say nothing of the
zebus, and other domesticated breeds of Indi:in cattle, having
exhausted our limits in the descriptions of the foregoing
species.

•* In Turner's Account of an Embassy to Thibet this species is figured
under the name of the bushy-tailed bvl'l.
t Linn. Trans., vol. vii. p. 57 and 305.

CETACEA. 57

Tho great aquatic mammalia which compose the ceta-
ceous class occur in the Indian seas as well as elsewhere ;
but as a knowledge of the habits of these monsters of the
deep is of difficult attainment, and a mere enumeration of
their names, or a dry detail of their technical characteristics,
would probably afford but slight amusement to the reader,
we shall select two of the most remarkable, to " stand by
their order" and serve as its representatives. These are
the halicore or Indian dugong, and the Gangetic dolphin.

Our readers are probably already aware, or, if they are
not, we take this opportunity to inform them, that the ter-
minal division of the class Mammalia, commonly called
Cetfz, contains the whole of those extraordinary beings
which seem to connect land-animals, or quadrupeds, with
fishes, properly so called. In their forms and general as-
pect they resemble the latter ; but in the structure and
functions of all their vital and most influential organs they
are formed entirely after the model of the higher terrestrial
animals. The order is divided into two great families : 1st,
The herbivorous cetacea, consisting of the lamantins, du-
gongs, and stellers ; and, 2dly, Of the ordinary cetacea,
including the dolphins, narwals, and whales. With the
exception of the lamantins, which occasionally repose on
the banks of rivers, none of the genera of this order ever
leave their native element. The members of the first family
(excepting the stellers, which are northern animals) are
only found in equatorial regions ; those of the second occur
in almost every quarter of the globe, although the greater
whales prefer the vicinity of the polar circles. We shall
present an example of each.

The halicore, or " daughter of the sea," is called douyong
by the Malays, and has hence acquired the name of dugong
in our books of natural history. There is only a single
species as yet ascertained. It inhabits the Indian seas, es-
pecially the Sumatran coasts, and has been confounded by
several voyagers with the lamantins, which belong to the
African and American shores. It measures seven or eight
feet long, and is covered by a thick hide, of a pale-blue
colour, with whitish marks on the abdomen. The head
somewhat resembles that of a young elephant deprived of
its proboscis. The body is fish-shaped ; the anterior ex-
tremities are contained within an undivided membrane, in

58

ZOOLOGY OF INDIA.

the form of a fin. The rudiments of a pelvis are ob-
servable, and the caudal extremity is horizontally sloped, or
cut like the arch of a circle. The flesh of this animal is
held in great estimation, and is usually reserved for the
tables of the sultan and rajahs. Its own food is said to
consist of algffi, fuci, and other marine productions of the
vegetable kind.

The Gangetic (io\phin{DdphinusGangcticus) is about seven
feet long. Its head is round, terminated by a slender elongated
muzzle, the jaws of which are armed with numerous teeth.
The tongue is thick, fleshy, heart-shaped. The eyes are small
and black. The skin is rugose, shining, of a pearly lustre
on the back, and of a whitish gray on the abdomen. This
, species inhabits the waters of the Ganges, and ascends that
river as far as it is navigable. It chiefly abounds, however,
in those numerous divided streams which form the delta of
Bengal. When in pursuit of fish, on which it feeds, it
moves with great velocity ; but at all other times its mo-
tions are described by Dr. Roxburgh as slow and heavy.
The blubber or fat of this species is highly valued by the
Hindoos as an external medicine of great efficacy in the
removal of various pains. Its habits are gregarious, and it
is known to the natives by the name of svusoii.

BIRDS.

59

CHAPTER III.

The Birds of India.

VultuTes-Lammergeyer-Pondicherry Eagle-Finch Falcon of Bengal
—Hawk-owl of Ceylon— Fork-Uiled Shrike— Jocose Shrike or Bulbul
— Miria-bird— Locust-eatins Grakle— Honeysuckers— Knigfishers— -
Hornbills— Woodpeckers— Wryneck— Parrot Tribe— Common Pea-
cock—Aldrovandiiie Peacock— Polyplectron— Domestic Poultry- Jun-
gle Cock— Loiihophorus-Horned Pheasant— Bustards— Golden Plo-
ver—Coromandel Courier— Gigantic Stork— Anastomus— Rhynchea—
Gulls— Terns— Geese— Widgeon— Pink-headed Pochard.

The birds of India must be admitted to be on the whole
less splendid than those of South America ; but the class
itself being in seneral remarkable both for splendour of
colour and gracefulness of form, many gorgeous examples
of feathered life occur in the tropical regions of the Asiatic
continent. The shining creepers, the ring-necked paro-
quets, the lories, and many others, are indeed very signal
instances of ornithological beauty. We shall, however,
commence with the accipitrine tribes, those "lords of the
lion heart and eagle eye," which are usually more remark-
able for strength of body and power of wing than for the
adornment of a showy or fantastic plumage.*

* Let us here note, that collections lately transmitted to this country
indicate a stronger analogy between the ornitliological productions of the
north of India and those of Europe than has been previously supposed.
Our present limits exclude those details into which we might otherwise
be tempted to enter in illustration of this curious topic ; but we consider
ourselves as authorized to name the following species, from the Him-
malch range, as identical with those of Europe, viz. The lammergeyer
(Gypoihis harOatiLs). the cuckoo {Cuculus canorus), the rosecolouied
0U7e; (Pastor rosevs). the hoonoe ( Vpupa epops), the stonechat (Stucicola
rnbicola), ihc wllincbat (.S. rnbetra), the black redstart {Sylvia tithys),
the common redstart (Sylvia pluBntcurus), the missel-thrush (lurdus
viscivoTus), the starling (Sluruns vulgaris), the kingfisher (Alcedo
ispida). the sand|)i|)er (Trf/ts-a hypoleucns), the wryneck (YiWtx tor-
qudla), the red-legged crow (Coradas i'ra^u/us), the common heron
(Ardea cinerea), the francolin partridge (Vra-ncoUmis vulgaris), the pin-
tail duck (Anas acuta), the rcd-cresied duck (.4. rvfina), the ferruginous

60 ZOOLOGY OF INDIA.

The vulture tribe occupies the foremost place in our or-
nithological arrangements, and is represented in India by-
several species. Of these we shall mention only two.
The Pondicherry vulture (F. Ponticerianus) equals the size
of a large goose ; its head and neck are naked and flesh-
coloured ; there is a white collar on the upper part of the
breast, but the prevailing colour of the plumage is brown.
The legs are yellow, and the bill nearly black. It occurs
chiefly in the district from which it derives its specific
name. Another species is called the Indian vulture (F.
Indicus.) Its plumage is of a fulvous-brown, each feather
being paler on the edges. Like most of its congeners, it
is extremely voracious, and freqyents alike the shores of
the sea and the banks of rivers, preying on dead fish or any
other putrid substance, — from the bloated corpses of the
human species, which are not unfrequently seen floating
down the sacred waters of the Ganges, to the more insig-
nificant carcasses of the reptile race.

Among the numerous links which serve to connect one
tribe with another may be mentioned that remarkable bird
the lammergeyer, or bearded- vulture {Gypcztus harhatus of
Storr). The Greek term, which has been adopted as the
generic appellation, literally signifies vulture-eagle, and ap-
propriately expresses its intermediate position between the
species which rank respectively under one or other branch

duck (A. n/t/ia), the common vi'ild-duck (.4. ioscAas), the teal (A.crecca),
the gadwall {A. strepera), the lufled duck {A. fulig^da). the garganey
(A. qiierquedula), the castaneous duck (jl. nyroca). Many of these 1
have verified by an attenlive examination and comparison with European
specimens, while others rest upon the authority of Mr. Gould, who, as
the author of the accurate and sumptuous " Century of Birds from the
Himmalaya Mountains," has necessarily directed a strict attention to the
ornithology of Northern India. The following eimmeration contains the
names of certain species, for the most part as yet neither figured nor
described, which approach so closely to the European species that we
may regard them as their Asiatic representatives. Certain perceptible,
though, in some instances, very feebly-defined characters of distinction,
prevent our considering them as identically the same. In the mean
time, however, we shall indicate them merely by their corresponding
English names, viz. The kestrel, Sfiarrow-hawk, turtle-dove, raven,
-green woodpecker, black and white woodpecker, nutcracker, red-legged
partridge, jay, golden oriole, nuthatch, blackbird, bullfinch, greater tit-
mouse, all our wagtails, crtei>er, redbreast, titlark, tree-lark, sparrow,
tree-sparrow, and several others.

BIRDS. Gl

of that compound designation. The beak is lontf, com-
pressed, convex, rounded on its upper edge, and furnished
with a thin cere, covered by thick rigid hairs directed for-
ward. But 'one of its most remarkable characters consists
in a brush or tuft of bristly feathers, which depends from
either side of the angle of the lower mandible. The legs
are short, thick, and feathered to the toes.

Although the attitude of this bird is more upright than
that of the preceding species, its half-expanded wings, and
neck retracted when at rest, remind the spectator of the
vulture tribe. It is, however, a comparatively rare and un-.
social bird, and is esteemed a valuable capture by the natural-
ists even of those countries in which it most abounds.
The geographical range seems very extensive. In Europe
it haunts the steeps of the Pyrenean mountains and the
central Alps from Piedmont to Dalmatia ; as an African
species it has been described by MM. Larrey and Savigny
as occurring in Egypt, and by Bruce (under the name of
niser) as an inhabitant of Abyssinia ; while in Asia it is
known to spread its " sail-broad vans" over the vast steppes
of the Siberian deserts. Professor Jameson has recently
called our attention to the same species, transmitted to the
Edinburgh Museum from the Himmaleh mountains. The
lammergeyer is the largest, or at least the longest-winged,
of all the European birds of prey.

Of the nobler and more active birds of the predacious
order may be named the Pondicherry eagle {Falco Ponti-
cerianus), a very elegant species, nearly equal in size to
the jer-falcon. The head, neck, breast, and upper part
of the abdomen are white ; the remainder of the plumage
is reddish-chestnut colour ; the wings are tipped with black ;
the bUl and legs are yellow, and the cere is blue. This
species inhabits many parts of India, and is esteemed
sacred in Malabar, it is said to be extremely voracious,
and feeds, like the kite, not on living prey alone, but on
the remains of dead animals.

The finch-falcon of Bengal (Falco ceerulescens) is the
smallest of all the accipitrine birds. It was described and
figured by Edwards, under the title of the "little black and
orange-coloured Indian hawk." The upper parts of the
plumage are of a fine bluish black, with a few spots anil

Vol. III.— F

^

Gi ZOOLOGT OF IKDIA.

bars of white. There is also an elongated spot of black
on the side of the head or cheek beneath each eye. The
under-plumage is white, more or less tinged with orange,
especially in the female. This beautiful little bird, which
scarcely exceeds the size of a sparrow, is a native of Bengal,
Java, and the isles of Sunda. Those from the continental
parts of Asia are asserted to be larger than such as occur
in the islands ; and, like other species, they also vary in
colour, according to age and sex. It is said by M. Tem-
minck, to feed on insects ; but, from the strongly-toothed
bill and muscular limbs, there is reason to believe that it
does not confine itself to such humble game, but also attacks
and overpowers many species of the gentler tribes, equal
or superior to itself in size, though inferior in strength and
courage. Indeed, Dr. Horsfield states that it was de-
scribed to him in the eastern parts of Java as displaying
uncommon boldness in the pursuit of small birds.*

The alliance between the hawks and owls is extremely
close both in structure and habits, although the same
difference is observable between them as that which dis-
tinguishes butterflies from moths, — that the one tribe fly
by day and the' other by night. Hence the more solemn
associations, which we connect with these inauspicious
tribes : —

"Percli'don the roof, the bird of niglit complains
In lengthen'd shrieks, aud dire funereal strains."

One of the smallest and most beautiful of the Asiatic
species, and the only one to which we shall here allude, is
the little hawk-owl of Ceylon {Sinx Indica of Gmelin).
The back is dusky ; the wing-coverts are gray, with black
lines ; the breast is buff-coloured, with small arrow-shaped
markings. It is not above seven inches long.

We shall now pass to the butcher-birds (genus Lanius),
which, presenting as it were a connecting or intermediate
link, have been arranged by some authors as the terminal
group of the accipitres, by others as the commencement
of the passerine order. Their bills are elongated and but

* Zoological Researches.

BIRDS. 63

slightly curved, and their feet and talons are comparatively
feeble. Yet their dispositions are lierce and sanguinary^
and their general habits exhibit a bold and contentious
nature. The genus, as characterized by Linnaeus, has
undergone numerous divisions by later systematists ; but,
as most of these belong to Africa, New-Holland, and the
intra-tropical regions of the New World, they do not come
within the scope of our present publication. India, how-
ever, also presents us with several species.

The fork-tailed shrike {Lanias candcscens, Linn.) is a
native of Bengal, where it is called fingah. Its superior
colour is glossy black, with reflections of purple and green.
The tail-feathers are long, and forked at the tips. The
under-plumage is of a dull white, with a few dusky crescents
on the thighs. This bird is named by the Indians the king
of the crows, on account of its frequently pursuing these
birds from place to place with a loud clamour, and pecking
them on the back, till they take their departure from its
accustomed haunts. The Malabar shrike {L. Malabaricus,
Lath.) is another singular species described by M. Sonnerat.
Its size is about that of the missel-thrush, and its general
colour is deep-black glossed with blue. On the head rises
a large tuft, consisting of many plumes of various length.
The exterior feather on each side of the tail is greatly ex-
tended, and ends in an elongated oval web. This bird is
said to occur particularly in the hilly regions of the king-
dom of Arracan. Both these species belong to the division
called drongos (genus Edolius of Cuvier). The jocose-
shrike (L. jocosus, Linn.) resembles a lark in size. Its
colours are brown above and dull-white below, with some
crimson or rose-coloured plumes beneath the tail. The
crown of the head is black, with a finely-fibred crest in the
centre. From the corners of the bill on either side runs a
black stripe ; and there is a bright crimson spot beneath
each eye. This bird is of a very lively disposition, and its
manners are extremely amusing. It has been very generally
considered as the celebrated hdhid, or Persian nightingale,
so often commemorated in the writings of Hafiz and Sadi,
and known in Persia under the name of hazariasitaurv, or
the " bird of a hundred songs." But it would seem that
the term bulbul is applied to different species in different
countries of the East ; at least it is only in this way that

f^

54 ZOOLOGY OF INDIA.

we can explain the discrepancies observable in the accounts
of travellers. It appears however certain, that the present
species is taught to combat with its kind by the natives
of Bengal. It is also trained up by the young Indians to
execute commissions of gallantry ; and, at a signal given
by the lover, will seize and carry offin the most dexterous
manner, and convey to its expectant master, the small gold
ornament usually worn on the forehead by the Indian
females. So quick is its eye, and so rapid are its evolu-
tionary movements, that it will follow the descent of a
ring down a deep draw-well, and catch it in its fall before
it has reached the surface of the water. The Persian
poets have represented the bulbul as enamoured of the
rose, and as grieved by its destruction or decay.

Among the more noted of the Indian species we must
not omit to mention the mina-bird or grakle {Gracula.
religiosa, Linn.). The great Swedish naturalist appears to
have confounded two species under a single name, and
considerable uncertainty still pervades their history. The
Indian species is somewhat larger than a blackbird. Its
plumage is of a rich silky black, with a white spot about
the central edge of the wing. The bill and feet are yellow,
and a peculiaf fleshy appendage or caruncle stretches from
the side of the face, and behind each eye to the back of the
head. This bird is easily tamed, and of very familiar
manners in the domestic state. It is perhaps the most
accomplished linguist of all the feathered tribes, and may
be taught to pronounce long sentences in the most clear
and arUculate manner. It is consequently held in the
highest esteem by the natives, and is not unfrequently
brought alive to European countries, although the moral
purity of the English tongue is not always exhibited by
the result of its maritime education. " It imitates," says
Willouffhby, " man's voice much more accurately than a
parrot, so that oftentimes it is troublesome with its prattle."
The food of the mina in a state of nature is said to consist
both of fruits and insects. In this country it is very fond
of grapes and cherries.

The genus Gracula, as restricted by the Baron Cuvier,
contains some interesting species, the general aspect of
which will be more clearly comprehended by our readers
■when we mention as a close ally that rare and beautiful

BIRDS. 65

British bird the rose-coloured ousel. The Paradisea tristts
of Linnseus, or the paradise-grakle of Latham, pertains to
this aenus. It is correctly named Graada gryllivora by
Daudin, and is remarkable, as its name implies, for its
destruction of locusts. In illustration of its history we
abridge the following curious particulars from Buffan : —
The "island of Bourbon, where this species was formerly
unknown, was at one time overrun to an alarming extent
by locusts, which had been introduced from Madagascar.
The governor-general and the intendant of the island,
alarmed at the desolation which was taking place, delibe-,
rated on the means of extirpating the nuisance, and with
that view they introduced several pairs of the paradise-
grakle from India. The plan promised to be successful ;
but unfortunately some of the colonists observing the birds
eagerly thrusting their bills into the soil of the newly-sowa
fiefds, imagined they were in quest of grain, and spread a
report that the grakles, so far from proving beneficial, were
likely to be highly detrimental to the country. The case
was argued in due form. It was statedonthepart of the birds
that they ransacked the new-ploughed grounds not for grain
but insects : but the opposite view prevailed, and two
hours after the edict of proscription had been pronounced
against them, not a living individual was to be found in the
island. But a speedy repentance followed this hasty
execution ; the locusts regained their ascendency, and be-
coming ere long more injurious than ever, the grakles were
again introduced, and after an absence of nearly eight
years, were received by the inhabitants with transports
of joy. Their preservation and extension now became an
affair of state, laws were enacted in their favour, the
physicians, either in truth or policy, declared their flesh
unwholesome, and the locusts quickly disappeared. But
an opposite inconvenience is said to have since arisen. The
birds, having prodigiously increased in numbers, and being
no longer adequately sustained by insect food, have had
recourse to grapes, dates, and mulberries, and have even
proceeded to scratch up rice, maize, wheat, beans, and
other useful produce ; they enter the pigeon-houses and
attack the eggs and young ; and thus, after destroying
the destroyer," they have themselves become a greater
pestilence than that which they extirpated. There is
*^ F2

66 ZOOLOGY OF INDIA.

probably, however, some exaggeration in this account ;
because M. Duplessin, who resided several years on the
island, has given it as his opinion that the paradise-grakle
might be advantageously introduced into Spain, which,
from its proximity to Africa, is not unfrequently ravaged
by the locust hordes. He adds, that so far from having
become a nuisance in the Isle of Bourbon, the laws for its
preservation are still in force.* We may mention that this
species is of the same lively and imitative disposition as the
mina-bird, and is easily taught to speak. When kept near
a farm-yard, or other assemblage of domesticated creatures,
it spontaneously acquires the various cries of dogs, ducks,
geese, sheep, pigs, and poultrj-.

The manners of this genus in general resemble those
of the starling. They fly in troops, searchuig for insect
prey ; their habits are familiar, their docility remarkable,
and their powers of imitation almost unparalleled. The
only other species which we shall mention is the pagoda-
thrush, so called from its frequent occurrence among the
pagodas of Malabar and Coromandel. It is frequently
kept caged for the sake of its song.t •

That division of the great Linnaean genus Certhia which
includes the soui-mangoes, or honey-eaters (genus Cinnyns,
Cuvier), is widely dispersed over all the southern regions
of the old continent, and seems in those countries to re-
present the beautiful humming-birds of the Western World.
Indeed these tribes greatly resemble each other both in
form and habits. The soui-mangoes are subject to a double
moult, which occasions a considerable diversity in the
plumage even of the same species, according to the season
of the year; and hence our knowledge of this sumptuous
family, though voluminous, is probably not as yet remark-
able for its accuracy. Several splendid works, however,
have been devoted, either in whole or in part, to their
illustration.t The nuptial plumage is remarkable for its

* Shaw's General 'Zoology, vol. vii p. 457.

t Sonnerat, Voyage aux Iiides.

i Le Vaillant, Hist. Nat. dee Oiseaux d'Afrique, five vols, in 4to, Tana,
1799, and subsequent years. Audubert, Oiseaux, dorfs ou a reflets
metalliques, two vols, in folio, Paris, 1802. A continuauon of tUui
work has been published by M. Vieillot.

BIRDS. 67

golden lustre, and the richness and variety ot its innu-
merable hues ; but alter the termination of.' the breeding-
season, a much more humble garb is assimi^l, and many a
bizarre appearance is presented by the infewnediate links
of that changeable costume which connects 'Ehe holy day-
suit of spring with the more quaker-like attire of autumn.
Hence the difficult}' of distinguishing between a specific
difference and an individual variation, especially where
foreign species are concerned ; for in such instances we
have seldom a prolonged opportunity of verifying our
observations on external characters by an examination'
of natural habits and instinctive modes of life. Yet it is
only by ascertaining the conformity presented by all these
circumstances in a variety of individuals that we are
enabled to trace out the exact limits of specific identity.
We shall not here enter into further details.

The next tribe which deserves our notice is that of the
kingfishers. These are also distributed over a great por-
tion of the earth's surface, though they are of rarer occur-
rence in America than in the ancient continents. In Eu-
rope, indeed, we have only a single species (unless the
Alcedo Smyrnensis occasionally visits the Grecian shores
and those of the Mediterranean islands), but the umbrageous
rivers of India are beautified more abundantly by their
azure hues. The Asiatic kingfisher {Alcedo Asialica of
Swainson*) bears a strong resemblance to the European
species, but may be distinguished on closer inspection and
comparison by its smaller size, and the somewhat crested
form of the occipital plumes. It inhabits the hottest parts
of continental India, as well as the great Asiatic islands ;
thus differing firom the European species, which is known
to brave the cold even of a Siberian winter, and, although
not unfrequent along the banks of the comparatively tran-
quil streams of England, likewise haunts the snow-descended
waters of the Alpine regions. Hence its appropriate intro-
duction to a fine apostrophe by a modem poet, —

" Not to thee,
O wild and desert stream 1 belongs this tale.
Gloomy and dark art thou,— the crowded firs

* Zoological Ulustrations, first series, plate 50.

63 ZOOLOGY OF INDIA.

Tower from thy shores, and stretch across thy bed,

Making thee doleful as a cavern- well :

Save where the shy kingfishers build their nest

On thy steep banks, no loves hast thou, wild stream.

The last genus of the great passerine order is that called
Biiccros, which includes the calaos or hombills. Ihese
birds are remarkable for their enormous dentated beaks,
frequently surmounted by an additional horny structure,
which bestows on them a very striking and peculiar physi-
oenomy. They resemble the toucans in their heads ; their
port and general habits assimilate to those of crows, while
their feet are somewhat analogous to those of the kingfishers.
The hombills exhibit an awkward and uncommon aspect
while in the act of flying, in consequence of the great size
of their beaks and lengthened tails, and altogether their
appearance is extremely uncouth. Perhaps one of the
most singular features in their economy is the iact of their
feeding greedily and without injury on the seeds of nux

vomica. , , . , i,„„„

A Iar<Te and remarkable species of this genus has been
recently'described by Mr. Hodgson. It measures four feet
five inches from tip to tip of the wings, and is three feet six
fnches long, from bill to tail inclusive. The bill is e.gjit
inches long, and the tail one foot five mches. Its body
exceeds tliat of the largest raven, but is very lank and in-
compact. The general colour is black, with a white pointed
tail and a patch of the same colour on the wings. It is
often difficult to ascertain the natural habits of a shy and
rare species; but it is believed that the bird in question
feeds chiefly on fruits, although when pressed by hunger it
will also seize upon reptiles. The bill is far less formidable
than it would appear to be, and the claws are extremely
blunt, from which it may be inferred that its habits are not
raptorial, even in the meanest sense ; and its freedom trom
any offensive odour, as well as the excellence of its flesh,
which is much esteemed by the mountaineers as an article
of food, go far to prove that its habits are almost entirely
frugivorous. Mr. Hodgson, however, observes, that in the
domestic state it will eat meat either dressed or raw, and
with apparent relish. The specimen in question was ted
principally on boiled rice mixed with ghee, and made up
into large balls. It was never observed to take any water.

BIRDS. ®9

The throat is very wide, and the swallowing powers con-
sequently great. Whatever is offered to it is first worked
about between the hucje mandibles, and then gulped entire.
Should the morsel swallowed be so large as to produce any
feeling of discomfort, it is immediately disgorged, and re-
swallowed after having undergone a little additional masti-
cation in the bill.*

Adopting, as we have hitherto done, the leading divisions
of the system expounded by Baron Cuvier, the next order
is that of the Scansorial birds, or climbers, of which one
of the most characteristic external marks consists in the.
structure and position of the toes, which are usually placed
two before and two behind. From this result considerable
strength and tenacity of grasp, which enable the species so
constituted to adhere to the bark of trees, however vertical
their direction, and even in some eases to run along the lower
surface of horizontal branches with as much ease and safety
as others execute such ordinary movements as seem less op-
posed to the laws of gravitation. It is no doubt true that
many species, such as the cuckoo in which the toes are in
pairs, or yoke-footed, as M. Temminck has tenned it, do not
climb ; while it is equally true that several other species (such
as the creeper, C. familiaris), which are constant and accom-
plished climbers, are yet excluded from this order on ac-
count of the structure of their feet ; and that, consequently,
the denomination cannot be applied in its most rigorous
sense, as alike characteristic and inclusive. The ordinal
characters, considered in their generality, are in fact seldom
so precise and natural as to admit of no exceptions ; and
it is questionable whether a title should be immediately
changed upon the discover)' of every species which rnay
not coincide with its most rigorous interpretation. It is
not very easy, indeed, to understand how this alteration can
in every case be effected, merely upon the consideration of
a single character, without producing greater inconve-
niences than those which it is intended to obviate. In the
zygodactylous genus Galbula, for example, we have a three-
toed species ; and a similar anomaly occurs among the
woodpeckers. In like manner, the order Alcyones of Tem-
minck, which is characterized by its founder as having

* Transactions of the Physical Class of the Asiatic Society of Ben-
gal, part i. p. ITS.

70 ZOOLOGY OF INDIA.

three toes before, united at their bases after a certain
fashion, and one behind, contains a species which pos-
sesses only three toes in all, and which would therefore
find some difficulty in complying with the regulation of the
ordinal character. In short, what we mean to express is,
that it may reasonably be doubted whether a mere change
in the title of an order, which certainly so far tends to
diminish that clearness of mutual intelligence which it is so
desirable to establish and maintain in the scientific inter-
course of diflerent peoples, is productive of any decided
advantage to the subject in hand, especially when it can
easily be demonstrated that the characters of that order, by
whatever name it may be known, are left not less vague
than heretofore.

We may remark that the bill of the scansorial tribe varies
so greatly in the different genera, from the straight, length-
ened, angular mandibles of the woodpeckers, to the deep,
curved, compressed organ of the parrots, that we must
omit all consideration of it in the ordinal characters. Its
form may, however, be studied with great advantage in
relation to the sections and other minor divisions. The
species are, with few exceptions, inhabitants of the forests,
and usually build their nests in the hollows of old trees.
Their powers of flight are not remarkable. The European
genera are almost entirely insectivorous ; the parrot family
feed on fruits ; the toucans exhibit a tendency to the car-
nivorous habits of the accipitrine tribes ; while other gen-
era of the order enjoy a mingled or miscellaneous diet.

If our present space in any measure corresponded with
the rich abundance of our materials, we could dilate with
pleasure on many magnificent examples of the scansorial
order peculiar to, or chiefly characteristic of, the Indian
regions. But, in order to admit of our embracing a greater
extent of the science in general, we must necessarily cur-
tail our more detailed observations in relation to the history
and attributes of particular tribes.

The woodpeckers (genus Picus, Linn.), of which we
have six or seven well-known examples in Europe, seem
distributed over the surface of the whole earth, with
the exception of New-Holland. In whatever countries
they occur, they are characterized by strong affinities of
form and colour, and constitute one of the most natural

BIRDS. 71

and woll-defined groups with which we are acquainted.
Buffon has drawn a melting picture of the miseries of a
woodpecker's life. According to the views of the eloquent,
but eccentric, and sometimes inconsistent Frenchman, no
bird which earns its subsistence by spoil leads a life of
such painful labour. Nature appears to have condemned
it to incessant toil. While others freely employ their
courage or address, and either glide along on fearless
and rapid wing, or lurk insidiously in closer ambush, the
woodpecker is constrained to drag on a miserable existence,
in boring through the scaly bark and the unyielding fibres'
of the hardest trees. Necessity suffers no intermission of
its labours, nor any interval of sound repose. Even the
darkness of the night brings no solace to its sufferings, for
the nocturnal hours are spent in the same painful posture
as those of day. It never shares in the joyous sports of
the other inhabitants of the forests, and so far from joining
in their glad responses, it rather deepens the sadness of the
woodland glades by its wild and melancholy cries. Its
movements are quick, its gestures full of inquietude, and
it seems to shun the society even of its own kind.

Such is a sketch of Buffon's more lengthened picture.
Let us console ourselves by an inspection of another and
more pleasing portrait. " No sooner," says Mr. Audubon,
" has spring called them (the golden-winged woodpeckers)
to the pleasant duty of making love, as it is called, than
their voice, which by-the-way is not at all disagreeable to
the ear of man, is heard from the tops of high decayed
trees, proclaiming with delight the opening of the welcome
season. Their note at this period is merriment itself, as it
imitates a prolonged and jovial laugh, heard at a con-
siderable distance. Several males pursue a female,
reach her, and to prove the force and truth of their love
bow their heads, spread their tails, and move sideways,
backwards, and forwards, performing such antics as might
induce any one witnessing them, if not of a most morose
temper, to join his laugh to theirs. The female flies to
another tree, where she is closely followed by one, two, or
even half a dozen of these gay suitors, and where again
the same ceremonies are gone through. No fightings occur,
no jealousies exist among these beaux, until a marked
preference is shown to some individual, when the rejected

72 ZOOLOGY OF DJDU.

proceed in search of another female. In this manner all
the golden-winged woodpeckers are soon happily mated.
Each pair immediately proceed to excavate the trunk of a
tree, and finish a hole in it sufficient to contam themselves
and their young. They both work with great industry and
apparent pleasure. Should the male, for instance, be em-
ployed, the female is close to him, and congratulates him
on the removal of every chip which his bill sends through
the air. While he rests he appears to be speaking to her
on the most tender subjects, and when fatigued is at once
assisted by her. In this manner, by the alternate exer-
tions of each, the hole is dug and finished. They caress
each other on the branches, climb about and around the
tree with apparent delight, rattle with their bill against the
tops of the dead branches, chase all their cousins the red-
heads, defy the purple-grakles to enter their nest, feed plen-
tifully on ants, beetles, and larvse, cackling at intervals,
and ere two weeks have elapsed the female lays either four
or six eggs, the whiteness or transparency of which are
doubtless' the delight of her heart. If to raise a numerous
progeny may contribute to happiness, these woodpeckers
may be happy enough, for they have two broods each sea-
son. Even in confinement the golden-winged woodpecker
never suflers its naturally lively spirit to droop. It feeds
well, and by way of amusement will continue to destroy as
much furniture "in a day as can well be mended by a dif-
ferent kind of workman in two. Therefore, kind reader,
do not anj' longer believe that woodpeckers, I mean those
of America, are such stupid, forlorn, dejected, and unpro-
vided-for beings as they have hitherto been represented."*

In regard to the Indian woodpeckers, we shall merely
mention that they inhabit a great extent of country, from
the southern point of the peninsula to the sombre forests
of the Hiinmaleh mountains. From the latter locality, that
fine species the picus squamatus has been lately transmitted
to the Edinburgh Museum. It is figured by Mr. Gould.t

The limited genus Yrmx, which contains the European
wryneck, is remarkable for its wide distribution. Though

* Ornithological Biography, or an Account of the Habits of the Birds
of the United States of America. By John James Audubon, F.B.SX.
and E., &c.. vol. i. p. 191.

t A Century of Birds from the Hinunalaya Mountains, part 1.

BIRDS. 73

the species are few in number, one or other of them occurs
in Europe, Asia, Africa, and America, and the one above
named ( Yunz torquilla), a rare bird in Britain, is,well known
in the northern parts of India.

The magftificent family of the parrots is the last of the
scansorial order to which we shall here allude. Abundant
in almost every region of the torrid zone, and in the New
World extending from the shores of the Ohio to the Straits
of Magellan, this tribe, though presenting considerable
differences of structure, is yet 'strongly marked by many
characters common to all the species. The strong, hard,
curved, solid bills, surrounded at the base by a . membrane
in which the nostrils are perforated,^-the thick, roundefd,
fleshy tongue, — the inferior larynx of a complicated struc-
ture, and pro\'ided on each side with peculiar muscles, — the
splendid plumage, exhibiting every imaginable hue, — and
the extremely imitative and very garrulous habits' of these
birds, distinguish them from every other tribe. The genus
Psittacus of Linnffius forms a vast assemblage of species
from every country of the world, excepting the compara-
■ tively cold and cloudy clime of Europe, and has been par-
titioned into numerous sections or sub-genera by modem
observers.*

The most anciently known of the parrot race belong to
the genus Palctornis of Mr. Vigors. To this section per-
tain the Alexandrine paroquet, and others of the long-tailed
species, distinguished by their elegance of form, their ruby-
coloured beaks, their semicircled necks, and the rich verdure
of their plumage. The one above named is native to India
and Ceylon, and derives its designation from the fact, real
or supposed, of its having been first transported from
Asiatic countries by Alexander the Great. The most dis-
tinguishing characters of the species consist in the broad

* For representations of these gorgeous birds, see Vaillant's Histoire
Naturelle des Perroquets, Swainson's Zoological Illustrations, Tem-
minck's Planches Coloriees, and Illustrations of the Family of the Psit-
tacidae by E. Lear. Consult also, for a knowledge of the subdivisions,
Kuhl's Monasraph of the genus in the tenth volumeof Nova Act. Acad.
Nat. Cur., Observations on the Psittacids by Mr. Vigors in the second
volume of .the Zoological Journal, a paper by that accomplished orni-
thologist, in conjunction with Dr. Horsfield, in the fifteenth volume of the
Linn^an Transactions, and volume fourteenth, part first, of Shaw's Gen-
eral Zoology, as continued by Mr. Stevens.
Vol. III.— G

74 ZOOLOGY OF INDIA.

black patch which, occupying the fore-part of the tbraar,
extends laterally in two narrow processes on each side of
the neck ; ^ black line extends from the base of the beak
to the eyes ; and there is a deep purplish-red patch at the
base of the wings. Its bill is larger than that of the rose-
coloured paroquet {PalcBornis torquatus), whiA, however,
in general it greatly resembles. It is of rarer occurrence
than the last-named species, and is not so easily domesticated.
It may, however, be taught to speak with tolerable distinct-
ness. The P. torqxmfiis is widely spread over India, and
as far to the eastward as Manilla. It appears indeed to be
identical with another species extremely abundant on the
African coasts, and well known in France under the title
of Perniche de Senegal. In as far as any conclusion can
be drawn from the vague and brief descriptions handed down
by ancient writers, it would appear that the present species
was, as it still corttinues to be, more frequent in the days
of antiquity than any of its congeners. No allusion is made
to those specific marks' by which the Alexandrine paroquet
is so clearly distinguished, and the general sketch applies
very closely to the rose-necked kind. " That the species
before us," says Mr. Bennet, " was extensively known, and
held in high estimation on account of the brilliancy of its-
plumage, the docility of its manners, and its iniitative
powers of voice, is proved by innumerable passages in the
classical writers of Rome, more especially from the earliest
times of the empire, to a very late period of its annals."*

The singular poem of " Speake-parrot," written by John
Skelton, an English poet who flourished in the time of
Henry VIII., no doubt alluded to the P. torquatus.

" My name is parrot, a bird of paradise,
By nature deuised of a wondrous kynd,
Dienteli dieted with diuers delicate "spice,
Tyl Euphrates that floud driueth me into Inde,
Where men of that countrey bi fortune me find,
And send me to great ladyes of estate.
Then parrot must haue an almon or a date.

" A cage curiously caruen, with siluer pin,
Properly painted, to he my couenowre,
A myrror of glasse, tljat I may lok therein ;
There maidens ful mekely w^ih iiiany a diuers flour, '
Freshly they dresse, and make sweie my boWre,

* Zoological Gardens, vol.ii. p. 96.

BIRDS. 75

"Witn, speak parrot, I prai you, ful courteously thei say,'
Parrot is a goodly bird, a pretty popagey.

" With my beeke bent, my little wanton eye,
My feders freshe, as is. the emeraude grene,
About my necke a circulet, like the ryche rubye,
My lyttle legges, my fete both nete and cleane,
I am a minion to waite upon the quene ;
My proper parrot, my lytile pretty foole,
With ladies I learne, and go with them to scole."

Among the more remarkable kinds are these furnished
■with cylindrical, elongated, tubular tongues.* Their cheeks
are naked, and their upper mandible greatly developed. The
two species best known are the Psillicus gigas of Shaw,
sometimes called the giant-cockatoo, and the Psitticus go-
liath of Kuhl. These now form the genus MiCToglossum.
The giant-cockatoo was first described and figured by Ed-
wards, from a drawing taken from the living bird in the
island of Ceylon. Both species, however, are now said to
be derived from the Papuan Islands, which lie beyond the
bounds of bur domain.

We have next to present a brief sketch of the gal-
linaceous order, which is represented in India by several
species of importance.

The common peacock {Pavo cristaius, Linn.), so much
admired for the surpassing splendour of its plumage, and
now so familiarly knowTi as a domestic bird, though it has
been reduced to servitude for some thousand years, still oc-
curs in the wild state in the forests of Hindostan as well as
in Japan and other parts of Southern Asia. Its earliest
record is contained in the sacred writings : — " For the king's
ships went to Tarshish with the servants of Huram : every
three years once came the ships of Tarshish, bringing gold
and silver, ivory, and apes, and peacocks."! The intro-
duction of this bird to the western and northern quarters
of Europe has never been clearly traced ; but every step
of its progress has no doubt been owing rather to the art
of man than the instinct of nature. Its 7tatural tendency

* The structure of the tongue in this limited section is probably nd
accurately known. If not elongated and tubular, it is at least cup-shaped
St the extremity, and supported on a cylindrical stalk.

I 2 Chronicles ix. 21.

76 ZOOLOGY OF INDIA.

would in fact have been to return to the countries from
whence it came,— to seek again the perpetual sunshine and
ever-verdant forests of Asia, the banks

" Of Ganges or Hyflaspes, Indian streams."

It appears to have been unknown even in Greece during
the early manhood of Alexander the Great, by whom it is
said to have been first obsen'ed with no less wonder than
delight in the course of his southern expedition, and to have
been immediately transmittejl to his native country. It
must, however, have multiplied rapidly, after its arrival, as
Aristotle, who died within a year or two after " the great
Emathean conqueror," mentions the peacock as a well-
known bird. The Greeks were satisfied with the delight
afforded to the eye, while contemplating its brilliant colours,
and most graceful form,— "being so majestical, they would
not oflTer it even the show of violence ;"' and it was left to
the more, luxurious Romans, not only to serv'e it entire on
the table of Hortensius, but to pamper the diseased appetite,
or minister to the. inordinate extravagance of Heliogabalus,
by presenting enormous dishes of the brains alone. In
more modern times, and during the progress of nautical dis-
covery and commercial intercourse by which these were dis-
tinguished, the peacock has been transported to both the
Americas, to many points along the African shores, and to
numerous islands of the West Indies. A white variety has
also sprung up .in Europe, more frequent in northern than
in southern kingdoms, which is not alluded to' by ancient
writers, and has probably resulted from the influence of a
colder temperature, by which a natural tendency to albinism
appears to be produced in many species of the feathered

race

There are only two species of this genus, — the one above
alluded to, which is too well known to require description,
and the Javanese peacock (Pavo Javanicus of Horsfield), of
which we have figured both the adult and young, under the
name of Aldrovandine peacock, fi-om the specimens in the
Edinburgh Museum.*

It occurs in Japan, Java, and other eastern and southern

* Wilson's Illustrations of Zoology, vol. i. plates 14 and 15.

BIRDS, 77

regions of Asia. It is chiefly to be distinguished from the
common kind by the form and structure of the feathers which
compose the crest, and which are well barbed throughout
their whole extent, or somewhat lance-shaped, instead of '
presenting little more than terminal expansions.

Another singular bird of the gallinaceous order, which
by some authors has. been classed with the peacocks, is the
polyplectron, so called from the circumstance of its tarsi
being armed with several spurs. It is the peacock-pheasant
of Edwards's Gleanings, and the Iris and Thibet pheasants
of Latham's General Synopsis. This bird is extremely
beautiful, a great proportion of its plumage being orna-
mented by very brilliant spots of greenish blue, changing
with the lifrht to gold and purple ; these spots are sur-
rounded by a circle of black, and then by another of yellow-
ish white,'and a spot of the latter colour terminates the tip
fi{ every plume. The male is about the size of the golden-
pheasant. The plumage of the ferpale is less brilliant, and
her tail is shorter. The young birds are entirely of an
earthy gray, with large spots, and small lines of a brown
colour. After the first moult the plumage becomes less
irregular, and the position of the spots on the wings and
tail becomes ^^sible ; the second moult produces a more
determinate distribution of the colours, and the feathers
begin to be distinguished by a fine golden-blue tint, with
green reflections. It is not, however, till after the third
change, which occurs about the completion of the second
year, that the colours are manifested in their full per-
fection. The species is native to the mountains of Thibet.
It is said to occur also in China. It is of easy domestica-
tion, and is not remarkable for shyness even in a state of
nature.

The common cock and hen {Gallus domesticus) next de-
mand a brief record. Of the numerous benefits which the
goodness of Providence has enabled us to derive from the
feathered race, there is probably none which surpasses in
extent and utility the domestication of these most familiar
birds. So ancient, hqwever, has been the subservience of
the species to the human race, that no authentic traditionary
traces now remain of its original introduction to any of the
more ancient kingdoms of the earth, and its existence under
the guardianship of man seems indeed coeval with the most

G2

78 ZOOLOGY OF INDIA.

antique records. It may be regarded as one of those par-
ticular and providential gifts which, like the faithful and
accommodating dog, may be said to have joined its fortunes
at an early period of the world with those of the first families
of the human race, — to have followed man in his wonderful
and far-spread migrations, — and, adapting its constitution
with facility to the diversified circumstances of clime and
country which these migrations produced, to have finally
lost, in consequence of such plastic nature, almost all resem-
blance to the source from which it sprung. For some
thousand years the observers of nature were ignorant of any
wild species which, even in a remote degree, resembled any
variety of the domestic breed ; and from the era of Herodotus
to that of Sonnerat, the domestic cock and hen might have
been regarded as birds, the living analogues of which were
no longer known to exist in a natural and unsubdued con-
dition. ,

In consequence of the remote obscurity in which the sub-
ject is thus involved, few points in natural history have
occasioned more inconclusive speculation, or are even now
mote difficult to determine with precision, than the source
from which we primarily derived the different races of our
domestic poultry. That they came originally from Persia
has been inferred from this among other circumstances, that
Aristophanes calls the cock " the Persian bird." Such an
origin is, however, improbable, when we consider that the.
researches of modern travellers, and of all who have visited
that countrj' since the revival of learning, have failed to
discover there any species of wild poultry ; and although its
ornithology is not yet known in detail, especially as regards
the smaller species, that so conspicuous a feature in its
natural history as the existence of the bird in question should
have escaped the notice of recent inquirers is by no means
likely. In f^ct, no gallinaceous bird exists in Persia more
nearly allied to the genus Gallus than a species of Lopho-
phorus.* If, however, it is merely meant that the Greeks,
during the intercourse, hostile or otherwise, which existed

* Maeneill's Lophophorus {Lnph. NigeUi of Jardine and Selby. Illust.
of Cm. pi. 76), so called in honour of Dr. Macneill, lately physician to
the English embassy at the Persian court, and now our resident at Bn-
shire. The species, of which the male is not yet known, wasfirst trans- .
milted to Europe by that gentleman.

BIRDS. 79

between them and the Persian nation, may have obtained a
breed, previously domesticated, from that country, the appel-
lation is less objectionable,— for it is knowi^ that in a do-
mestic state poultry have existed in Persia from a very
remote antiquity.

It may be mentioned, as a curious fact illustrating the
extensive distribution of these " household birds," that when
the South Sea islands were first visited by Captain Cook,
they were found well stocked with poultry ; and the more
recent as well as more ample narratives of the missionaries
have confirmed the statements of the great navigator re-
garding the practice of cock-fighting in Otaheite and other
islands of Polynesia.* • '

In regard, however, to the origin of our domestic poultr}',
the first approximation to the truth (and it can be regarded
as nothing more) resulted from the discovery by Sonnerat
of a species of tvild poultry, native to the mountains of the
Ghauts in India. This is' the Gallus Sonneratii of system-
atic naturalists, better known to the British residents under
the now familiar name of jungle-cock. But our knowledge
of gallinaceous birds has so greatly increased during recent
years, and so many additional species have been discovered,
that we are able to proceed upon much more secure grounds
• in our present reasoning than were the naturalists of the
preceding century. The jungle-cock is not only no longer
the only claimant to the honour of having so greatly bene-
fited the human race, but other species have become known
which bear a resemblance so much closer to certain standard
varieties among the domestic breeds, that his claims may
fairly be considered as altogether set aside. In fact, several
characters of the jungle-cock have never been traced in
any of the domestic varieties, and many of these latter pre-
sent features which, if not incompatible with, at least bear
no resemblance to any of the attributes of the supposed

original, t . .

As the species which we consider as more justly entitled

than the jungle-cock to be regarded as the natural stock of

our domestic breeds occur chiefly in the great eastern islands,

*See more particularly Mr. Ellis's Polynesian- Researches.

t For a more ample exposition of this subject, consult a paper ' On
the Origin of Domestic Poultry," in the 6th volume of the Memoirs of the
Wenierian Society, p. 402,

80 ZOOLOGY OF INDIA.

or at least have not been as yet ascertained to exist within
our prescribed boundaries, we shall not enter into any details
of their history or habits.* But as the jungle-cock, from
its Indian locality, is a legitimate subject of disquisition, we
may add another circumstance which we consider as very
decisive against its alleged claims. The native tribe of In-
dians, inhabiting the districts where the jungle-cock abounds,
rear a breed of poultry which differs as much from the sup-
posed original as our own, and whiqh never intermingles
with the forest-brood. Perhaps nothing points out the dis-
tinction of species more strongly than this fact, of their not
seeking each other's society, when we know that even the
pheasant, a bird now regarded as pertaining to a different
genus, is frequently known to breed with the domestic hen.

The most remarkable character of the jungle-cock consists
in the horny expansions of the central portion of the feathers
of the neck and wing-coverts. Its best-known localities are
among the mountains of the Ghauts in Hindostan.

The genus LophophoriLs contains several splendid species,
of which the bird named the Impeyan-pheasant by Latham
{Loph. refulge7is of Temminck) is one. of the most remark-
able. The head is ornamented by a fine crest. The feathers
of the neck are long and loose, like the hackles of a cock.
The colours of the plumage are so exceedingly btilliant from
their metallic lustre, and so variable according to the direc-
tion of the light or the position of the spectator, that they
cannot be expressed by words ; and even the skill of the
most accomplished painter would in vain attempt to equal
the bright original. Purple, and green, and gold are the
prevailing hues. The female is smaller than the male, and
her plumage is destitute of metallic splendour. These birds
inhabit the mountains in the northern parts of Hindostan.
Though naturally wild, they are said to submit to confine-
ment with a tolerable degree of subservience. Lady Impey
endeavoured to transport them alive to England, but they
died on the passage. Were the attempt repeated, it would
prcibably ere long succeed ; for they endure cold well,
although impatient of extreme heat. The male was never

*We allude more particularly to the Jago-cock of Sumatra (GaVus
gigantens), and to another species discovered some years ago by M.
Leschenault in the usland of Java, and which is called hy the natives ayarn

i>a?i.Vu'a.— See M. Tomminck's Histcire des Gallinacis.

BIRDS. ■ 81

observed to crow, but uttered a strong hoarse cackle, resem-
bling that of a pheasant. This fine species is named by the
natives monaul, a term which we understand to signify the
bird of gold. Another species, native to the hills of Almo-
rah, has been more recently described by General Hard-
wicke.* • .

A singular genus of the gallinaceous order is that consti-
tuted by the horned-pheasant {Pkas^ianus satyra of Vieillot).
It is now named Tragopan by Baron Cuvier ; and contains,
in addition to the species just mentioned, another nearly
allied' and equally gorgeous bird (figured by Mr. Gould under
the title of Tragopan Hastingsii), of which some beautiful
specimens, including the adult male, not previously known
to naturaUsts, were lately received at the Edinburgh Mu-
seum by Professor Jameson. Both species come from the
Nepaul country.

Several species of the quail and partridge tribes inhabit
India ; but as there is nothing very marked or peculiar in
their history or habits, we shall merely mention the fact of
their occurrence.

The bustard tribe (genus Otis, Linn.) forms in some re-
spects a connecting link between the gallinaceous birds and
those called GrallcB or waders, and they have accordingly
been located in either division, according to the pecuUar
views of different authors. Of the Indian species we shall
notice only the Passarage bustard {Ohs aurita of Latham),
which is figured in Mr. Forbes's Oriental Memoirs under the
erroneous name of ruffed-bustard, or Otts houbara. It is
of comparatively rare occurrence, and like its congeners is
of a wild disposition, inhabiting plains and open districts.
It is highly esteemed on account of the delicacy and fine
flavour of its flesh, and consequently bears a high price in
the Indian markets. In some districts it is called the black
florikan.t

The golden plover ( Charadrius pluvialis) has been sup-

* Linn. Trans., vol. xv.

t Both se.xes of the eared-bastard are correctly figured by Sir Wm.
Jardine and Mr. Selhy in iheir Illustrations of Ornithology . — See plates
40 and 92 of that work. Two other species XOtis Himalayaniis &ni Otis
nigriceps) are figured by Mr. Gould.

82 ZOOLOGY OF INDIA.

posed to exist in India. But the species most frequently
found there,. though very closely allied, does not seem en-
tirely identical with the European kind. It is the yellow-
lipped plover ( Charadriu's xanthocheilus) of Wagler.

Of the couriers (genus Cursorius) at least two species
inhabit Asia, viz. the Coromandel courier (C. Asiaticus),
figured on the 22d plate of our " Illustrations of Zoology,"
and the so-called European species (C. isahellinus of Meyer)
which Professor Jameson lately received from the north of
India.* ■ .

The gigantic stork {Ardea duhia of Gmelin, Ciconia ar-
gala, Vigors) is* a species well known in India, where it
performs^the services .of a scavenger, and is consequently
protected even in the streets of populous cities. Its habits
appear to be somewhat migratory. It arrives in Bengal
about the commencement of the rainy season, and is useful
in clearing the country of snakes and other reptiles, as well
as of offal. It is a most voracious creature, and will devour
as much at a single 'meal as would satisfy four hungry men.
The bill is of enormous size, and the bird itself measures
from five to seven feet in length, including the legs.f

The genus Anastomus, of which the Pondicherry and
Coromandel herons of Latham may ser\'e as examples, is
peculiar to the East Indies. These birds present a remark-
able peculiarity in the structure of their bills. The mandi-
bles touch each other only at their points and bases, thus
leaving an open gaping space in the centre. The last-
named species is common on the banks of the Ganges and
other Indian rivers, and frequents the Coromandel coast
during the months of September, October, and November,
feeding on fish and reptiles.

Of Indian birds allied to the snipe and woodcock kind we
shall mention no more than the Bengal rynchsea, of which
the synonymes seem very vaguely applied in books of natu-
ral history, probably in consequence of the strong resem-

* This species ,also occurs over a considerable extent of the African
continent, and sometimes makes its way as far north as the temperate
parts of Europe. It vv-as once shot near St. Albans in Kent. .The speci-
men alluded to is now, we believe, in the British Museum, and is said lo
have been purchased by Mr. Donovan, at the time of the Leverian sale,
for eight5'-three guine&s.

t For a lucid account of the differences between the species above
Darned and the African Marabou, see Zool. Gar. vol. ii. p. 278.

. BIRDS. 83

blance which subsists between it, the Cape snipe {Scolopax
Capensii, GnTelin), and other species by svhich the genus is
at present constituted.

We have now arrived at the last great division of the
class of birds, viz. the Palmipedes, or web- footed order. We
formerly observed in our sketches of African Zoology,* that
these tribes are of wandering habits, and that being pos-
sessed, in addition .to great power of wing, of the faculty of
resting on the water, we can scarcely place any limits to
the extent of their migratory movements. They thus be-
come more cosmopolite than many of the other groups, and
are therefore less entitled to our attention during an exposi-
tion of the peculiar and more characteristic features of a
particular country. For this reason a briefer notice will suf-
fice. In truth, we have been already induced, by the over-
flowing riches of Indian ornithology, to extend and multiply
our notices of many genera beyond such limits as are con-
sistent with a due and proportional consideration of the
remaining classes of the animal kingdom. We must there-
fore present our future observations with greater bre\'ity.

The pearly-plumaged gulls and buoyant terns are found
along the Indian shores, as elsewhere. Of the latter tribe
we shall specify only a single example, that of the black-
bellied tern (Sterna Melauogaster, Temminckt), of which
the head, abdomen, and inferior coverts of the wings are
black, while the cheeks, throat, wings, and tail are of a deli-
cate ash-colour. It inhabits Ceylon and continental India.

Among the Indian AnatidcB may be mentioned the black-
backed goose {Anser melanotosX), which measures nearly three
feet in length. The head and half of the neck are white,
spotted and streaked with black ; the rest of the neck and the
under parts of the plumage are white, with a tinge of gray
upon the sides ; the back, wings, and tail are black, glossed
with green and purplish reflections, for which reason it was
named Voie bronzee by Buffon. It is common in Ceylon,
and also occurs both along the Coromandel coast and on the
shores of the Ganges. The -barred-headed goose {Anser
Jndica) occurs in the southern and central parts of Hindostan

* Family Library-, No. 16. • | Planches Col., 434.

J Zool. lad., xxi. plate 11.

84

ZOOLOGY OF INDIA.

(luring what may be called tlie winter-months. It is very
destructive to corn ; and is supposed to migrate from Thibet
or other northern quarters, to which it again departs as the
summer approaches. Of the duck tribe, the spotted-billed
■wigeon {A7ias pa;ci!orhyncha, Gmel.) may serve as an ex-
ample. The beak is long and black, and is distinguished
by a red spot on each side at the base. This species in-
habits Ceylon. The pink-headed pochard (Anas caryophyl-
lacca, Lath.) inhabits various parts of India. The bill,
head, and upper portioA of the neck are of a fine pink
colour. This bird is seldom seen in flocks. The female
scarcely differs from the male. They are frequently tamed.

REPTILES. 85

CHAPTER IV.

The Reptiles and Fishes of India.

Great Indian Tortoise— Gangetic Crocodile— Flying Dragon— Serpent
Tribe— Viperine Boa— Russelian Snake— Whip Snake — Cobra de Ca-
pello — Water Snakes— Pomfret—Scir Fish— Gymnetrus — Indian Re-
mora — Dolphin— Scorpaena-Insidious Dory — Zebra Sole — Chstodon
— Unicorn Acanthurus — Climbing Sparus — S6her — Wrahl — Leopard
Mackerel— Indian Surmullet— Flying Gurnard— ExocaBtus-Mango
Fish— OstracioD.

The principal characteristic of reptiles in general con-
sists in this, that only a portion of the blooJ is transmitted
through the lungs, the remainder being projected by the
heart directly to the other parts of the body, without being
specially subjected to the influence of the respiratory or-
gans ; whereas in the higher classes, such as man, the rest
of the mammalia, and birds, t!ic whole of the blood must pass
by the lungs before it is transmitted to the more distant
parts of the circulating sj'stem. The amphibious habits of
such reptiles as are unprovided with gills result in a great
measure from the power which they thus enjoy of carrying
on a partial circulation of the blood independent of respi-
ration. The respiration of animals, or the process by
which the blood is oxygenated, becomes weaker and less
frequent in proportion to the diminution which takes
place in the quantity of blood transmitted to the lungs,
compared with that which passes directly from the heart ;
and as it is respiration which warms the blood, and pro-
duces in the fibres their susceptibility of nervous irritation,
it follows, as observed by Cuvier,* that the blood of reptiles
is cold, and their muscular strength much less than that of
birds or quadrupeds. The seat of their sensations is also
much less centralized than in the last-named classes ; and
hence many of them exhibit life and motion long after their
heads have been severed from their bodies.

Of the first division, called Chelcmian reptiles, India pro-

* BegDe Animal, vol.li. p. 1.
Vol. III.— H

86 ZOOLOGY OF INDIA.

duces several species. A very large terrestrial kind is named
the great Indian tortoise {Testudo Indica of Vosmaer).
It was first described by Perrault in the History of Animals
published by the Royal Academy of France. A specimen
caught on the Coroniandel coast measured four feet and a
half from the tip of the nose to the tail, and its height or
convexity was fourteen inches ; the shell itself was three
feet long and two feet broad, and was of a dull-brown
colour.

The second order is named Saurian reptiles, and includes
the crocodiles and lizards. Of the former, the gavial or Gan-
getic crocodile is one of the most noted. It is characterized
by a cartilaginous prominence which surrounds the nostrils.
It attains to an enormous size, and is well distinguished from
the Nilotic species and alligator of America by its very pro-
jecting eyes and its narrow elongated muzzle. The teeth
are extremely numerous.

The remarkable genus Draco is of easy discrimination
from all others on account of its very peculiar structure.
The first six false-ribs, instead of surrounding the abdomen,
project on a straight line with the back, and support a
membranous and wing-like expansion. Hence the species
are known under the name of flijnig dragons ; and although
such appellation may convey to the mass of mankind the
idea of formidable if not fabulous monsters, it in truth de-
signates nothing more than a few harmless lizards. Several
species, first clearly distinguished by Daudin, inhabit the
East Indies."^

♦About the midflle of last century, a Hamburgh merchant greatly
prided himself on llie possession of a famous dragon, which he consid-
ered as worth 10,000 florins. It was, however, discovered by the pene-
trating eye of Linnseustobe a gross deception, formed hy a combination
of the skins of snakes, the teelh of weasels, and other heterogeneous
elements. It is said that the great ?\veilish naturalist was obliged to
flee the city to avoid the wrath of the enraged proprietor. A similar
.scientific fraud appears to have been practised in our own country to-
wards the close of the seventeenth century. !t is thus related by Dr.
Grainger, from a note of Dr. Zachary Orey, in his edition of Ilndibras,
vol. i. p. 125 .— '• Mr. Smith of Bedford observes lo me on the word dm iron
as follows,— Mr. Jacob Bobart, botany professor of Oxford, didj about
forty years ago, find a dead rat in the Physic Garden, which he made to
resemble the common picture of dragons, by altering its head and tail,
and thrusting in taper shsrp sticks, which di.etended the skin on each side
till it mimicked wings. He let it dry as hard as possible. The learned
immediately pronounced it a dragon ; and one of them sent an accurate

REPTILES.

87

The third order of reptiles is named Ophidia^i, and in-
cludes the serpents. It was well observed by Linnsus,
that if Nature has thrown these repulsive creatures naked
upon the earth, destitute of limbs, and exposed to every
injury, she has, in return, supplied them with a deadly
poison, the most terrible of all weapons. From the earUest
ages they have been regarded either as objects of unmingled
horror, or of superstitious and fearful veneration, by the
human race.

The poison of these subtle reptiles seems to produce
death under a variety of aspects. A universal torpor and
lethargy, without pain, was said to follow the bite of the
asp. Hence its preference by Cleopatra. This fact, though
doubted by medical observers, seems, in some measure,
confirmed by the examples adduced by Captain Gowdie, in
Dr. Russel's splendid publication." Lucan distinguishes
the poisonous serpents that infested the march of the Ro-
man army over the deserts of Libya by the various symp-
toms which they produced ; but his dreadful catalogue
should perhaps be regarded rather as a piece of poetical
embellishment than as an historical relation. At all events,
it seems now decided that, however the symptoms may
vary, the nature and action of the poison is the same in all,
and is to be counteracted, in most cases, by the same means.
The virulence of the bite of individuals of the same species
varies according to the season of the year, just as their
manners and external aspect also vary, according to the
beautiful description in the Georgics : —

" Postquam exhausta pains, terrsqne ardore dehiscunt ;
Exilit ill siccum, et flammanlia lumina torquens
SiE^it agris, asperque siti, atque exterritus aestiu
IS'e mihi lum molles sub dio carpere somnos,
Neu dorso nemoris libeat jacuisse per herbas :
Ciim positis novus exuviis, nitidusque juveiita,
Volvilur, aut catulos lectis aut ova relinquens,
Arduus ad Solein, ct lUiguis micat ore trisulcis."

Lib. iii. I. 4S2.

description of it to Dr. Magliabechi, librarian to the Grand-duke of
Tuscany : several fine copies of verses were wrote on so rare a subject ;
but at last Mr. Bobart owned the cheat ; however, it wa.s looked upon as
a masverpiece of art, and as such deposited in the Museum, or Anatomy
School, where I saw it some years after." The curious in dragons may
consult the works of Gesner Aldrovandus.
* Account of Indian Serpents.

88 ZOOLOGY OF INDIA.

The extreme rapidity with which death was sometimes
produced by the bite of poisonous snakes led Dr. Mead to
infer that its fatal influence affected the nervous rather than
the circulating system. But the experiments of Fontana
go far to demonstrate that the venom of the viper is per-
fectly innocent when applied to the nerves only, but that it
acts immediately upon the blood, and through .the medium
of this fluid destroys the irritability of the muscular fibre,
and thus produces death. A more recent idea has been
proposed, — that the poison of serpents acts upon the blood
by attracting the oxygen which it contains, and which is
essential to its vitality. The human heart, and in general
the heart of all animals with warm blood, has two cavities
or ventricles, and the blood, before it is returned to the right
ventricle of the heart, has to perform two circles, a lesser
between the heart and the lungs, and a greater between the
heart and the rest of the body. While the blood passes
through the lungs it undergoes a very remarkable change
of colour, and of other properties ; a certain portion of the at-
mospheric air is attracted and absorbed, while the remainder
carries off by expiration that matter in the blood which is
either useless or injurious to the system. The atmosphere we
respire is a compound fluid, one portion of which is oxygen,
or pure air, and another, and much larger portion, is nox-
ious or azotic air ; and it is the former ingredient only
which is attracted by the blood in its passage through the
lungs, and contributes to the maintenance of animal life.
It is from this combination that the heat of animals and
the red colour of the blood are supposed to be derived.

These observations will enable the reader to judge more
clearly of Mr. Boag's theorj' of the action of animal poisons.
He adduces the following arguments in its support: — 1.
Man, and other warm-blooded animals, exposed to an atmo-
sphere deprived of oxygen, quickly expire. The poison of a
serpent, when introduced into the blood, also causes death ;
but carried into circulation by a wound, and in very small
quantity, its operation is comparatively slow and gradual.
2. The appearances, on dissection, in both cases, are veiy
similar. The blood becomes of a darker hue, and coagu-
lates about the heart and larger vessels. The irritability of
the fibres is nearly, in either case, destroyed to the same
degree, and in both circumstances the body exhibits a

REPTILES.

strong tendency to rapid putrefaction. 3. Although Dr.
Mead^mingled the venom of a viper with healthy blood out
of the body, without perceiving it to produce any change in
its appearance, this arose from his mixing a very small por-
tion of poison with a large portion of blood ; but if two or
three drops of venom be mixed with forty or fifty drops of
blood, it immediately loses its vermilion colour, becomes
black, and is incapable of coagulation. 4. It is, moreover,
a remarkable circumstance, that the poison of serpents has
most power over those animals whose blood is the warmest,
and the action of whose heart is the most lively ; whereas,
on the contrary, it is but a feeble poison to the serpent
itself, and a very tardy instrument of death to most cold-
blooded animals. The reason of this, according to Mr.
Boag, appears to be, that cold-blooded animals do not re-
quire a large quantity of oxygen to preserve their lives ;
and this is indeed evident from the conformation of their
heart and respiratory organs.

Fontana's experiments, with a view to the prevention of
the fatal effects of poisons, may be stated in a few words.
He applied lunar caustic, which is a preparation of sdver
in nitric acid, and found, on so doing, that not only was the
venom thereby rendered innocuous, but that the corroding
power of the caustic was greatly diminished. He next
wounded a variety of animals, by means of envenomed
teeth, and scarifying the wounds, he washed them in a so-
lution of lunar caustic and water : by this means the lives
of the greater number of the animals were saved, though
they befoncred to species which he knew, in general, to be
mosi easilv killed, and the death of the others was greatly
retarded. ' These experiments, we may add, neither pro-
ceeded upon nor conducted to any theory.

Now, the applic:ilion of the following admitted facts is
supposed by Mr. Boag to explain the efficacy of Fontana's
treatment, and illustrates the accuracy of his own views:—
1. Oxygen enters into the composition of all acids, and is
the principle, as its name imports, upon which their acidity
depends. 2. Metals are united with oxygen under various
circumstances, but chiefly in two ways; the first is by
burning them in an open fire, or, to speak more philo-
Bophicaily, bv the contact of heat and air, when they are
converted into metallic oxides ; the swond is l)y the decom-

H 2

90 ZOOLOGY OF INDIA.

position of acids, when thpy form compound salts. 3.
Oxygen is attracted l)y different metals, with different de-
grees of force ; those which attract it with the least force
are the more perfect metals, such as plalina, gold, and silver,
which cannot be converted into oxides, except at very high
temperatures ; whereas arsenic, and many other substances,
attract it strongly, and are usually found in combination
with it even in the bowels of the earth. If, therefore, the
mortal effects arising from the bite of a serpent result, as
stated by Mr. Boag, from the subtraction of oxygen from
the blood, it is natural to suppose that the most efficient
cure must consist in the renewal of that vital ingredient,
and the most obvious and easy mode of accomplishing this
will be to employ such substances as are known to contain
oxvgen in the greatest abundance, and to part with it with
the greatest facility. This is precisely the character of the
lunar caustic, which is made by dissolving silver in the
nitric acid, and afterward evaporating and crystallizing the
solution.*

We may observe that the strength of the poison varies
greatly in the different kinds of serpents. Thus, the use
of the lunar caustic, which, in the hands of the Abbe Fon-
tana, proved so efficacious when applied as remedial to
the bite of the viper, was found of little or no avail in
India as a counteraction to the venom of the cobra de ca-
pello.

If it were not inconsistent with our necessarily narrow
limits, we might here exhibit a very formidable list of spe-
cies indigenous to India. But, referring the student of
herpetology to the splendid work of Dr. Rassel on the ser-
pents of the coast of Coromandel, and to the writings of
Daudin,t Schneider,^ Wagler,^ and other systematic au-
thors, we shall confine our present attention to a very few
species.

The viperine-boa {Paduin Cootoo of Russel) is not above

* See a paper, On the Poison of Serpents, by W. Boag, Esq., Asiatic
Researches, vol. vi. p. 103.

t Histoire Naturelle des Reptiles, 8 vols. 8vo.

} Historiae Aniphibiorum Naturales et Litterariffi, fascic. I. et n. in
8vo.

^ Hist. Nat. des Esp. Nouv. des Serpents, d^crite d'apres les Notes du
Voyageur (M. Spix), par Jean VVagler. Lat. et. Fr., 4to,, Munich, 1824

REPTILES. SH

a foot and a half long. It is said to produce by its bite a
slow wasting of the fingers and toes, analogous to what has
been obsen-ed to occur in some leprous cases. A living
specimen, however, which was in excellent order, and bit
some chickens ferociously, produced no more material con-
sequences than might have followed from any ordmary
wound.

The Russelian snake {Coluber Russeln) measures about
four feet in length. It is an elegant species, of a pale yel-
lowish brown, marked throughout its whole length by a
continued chain or series of large oval spots, of a deep
brown colour, paler in the centre, and encircled by a nar-
row white edging. A chicken bitten in the pinion by this
snake was sefzed with convulsions, and died in 38 seconds.
On the death of the chicken he bit a stout dog, which was
seized with paralysis and stupor, and died in 26 minutes.

The whip snake is common in the Concan, where it con-
ceals itself among the foliage of trees, and darts at the
cattle grazmg below, generally aiming at the eye. A bull,
which was thus wounded at Dazagon, tore up the ground
with extreme fury, and died in half an hour, foaming at the
mouth. This habit of the reptile is truly singular,— for it
seems to proceed neither from resentment nor from fear,
nor yet from the impulse of appetite ; but seems, " more
than any other known fact in natural histoiT, to partake of
that frightful and mysterious principle of evil which tempts
our species so often to tjTrannize for mere wantonness of

power.^

The hooded snake {Coluber naja), or cobra de capello, so
called in the Portuguese language from the appearance of
a hood, which, when irritated, it produces by means of the
expanded skin about the neck, is one of the most noxious
of the Indian reptiles. Its general length is from three to
four feet, and the diameter of its body about an inch and a
quarter. The head is small, and is covered on the fore-
part with large smooth scales, resembling in that respect
the majority of the innocuous kinds. At a short distance
below the head is a lateral swelling, or dilatation of the
skin, which is continued for about four inches downward,

* Quarterly Review, vol. xii.p. 183.

92 ZOOLOGY OF INDIA.

after which it gradually sinks into the cylindrical form of
the rest of the body. This portion is capable of being
raised and expanded at the pleasure of the animal. It is
marked above by a large and conspicuous patch, closely re-
sembling the figure of a pair of spectacles. The usual
colour of the body is pale ferruginous brown above; the
under parts being of a bluish white, occasionally tinged
with pale brown or yellow. The terminal portion tapers
gradually, and terminates in a slender sharp-pointed ex-
tremity. _ . „ ,

In India this dreaded species is more universally known
than any other. It is frequently exhibited as a public show,
and, being carried about in a covered basket, is made to as-
sume a kind of dancing motion, for the amusement of the
public. It raises itself up on its lower extremity, and,
moving its head and body alternately from side to side, it
appear's to keep time with the measured melody of " flutes
and soft recorders." It is probable that the love of music
on the part of the serpent tribe was anciently known m
Palestine, as the inspired psalmist compares the ungodly to
the deaf adder, which stoppeth her ears, and refuseth to
hear the voice of the charmer, charm he never so wisely.
The individuals so exhibited are, in the first place, deprived
of their poisonous fangs, although this customary extraction
does not seem universal. " When the music ceases," says
Mr. Forbes, " the snakes appear motionless ; but, if not
immediately covered up in the basket, the spectators are
liable to fatal accidents. Among my drawings is that of a
cobra de capello, which danced for an hour on the table
while I painted it ; during which I frequently handled it to
observe the beauty of the spots, and especially the spec-
tacles on the hood, not doubting but that its venomous
fangs had been previously extracted. But the next morn-
ino-°my upper servant, who was a zealous Mussulman,
came to me in great haste, and desired I would instantly
retire and praise the Almighty for my good fortune : not
understanding his meaning, I told him that I had already
performed my devotions, and had not so many stated prayers
as the followers of his prophet. Mohammed then informed
me that, while purchasing some fruit in the bazaar, he ob-
served the man who had been with me on the preceding

REPTILES. 93

evening entertaining the country people with his dancing
snakes ; they, according to their usual custom, sat on the
ground around him ; when, either from the music stopping
too suddenly, or from some other cause irritating the vicious
reptile which I had so often handled, it darted at the throat
of a young woman, and inflicted a wound of which she
died in half an hour."'^ The rattlesnake has been known
to kill a dog in two minutes ; but Dr. Russcl informs us
that he never knew the bite of the hooded snake prove mortal
to a dog in much less than half an hour. It can kill chick-
ens, however, in less than half a minute. There are seve-
ral varieties of this species.

Snakes are numerous in Guzerat, and occasioned consid-
erable annoyance to Mr. Forbes during his residence near
Baroach. Harrabhy, his head gardener, may be said to
have paid them religious veneration, and his assistants
called them by the most endearing names. It happened,
however, that on one occasion a young lady, more alarmed
than Eve, though in the same condition, was obliged to
make a precipitate retreat through the garden from her
bath, in consequence of the appearance of a cobra de capello.
War was thereafter denounced against them.

The garden occupied by Sir James Macintosh, while he
resided at Torala, near the town of Bombay, is also described
by an eyewitness as a little paradise, but for its reptile in-
habitants. " Snakes, from the enormous rock-snake, who
first breaks the bones of his prey by coiling around it, and
then swallows it whole, to the smallest of the venomous
tribe, glide about in every direction. There the cobra ca-
pello, whose bite is in almost every instance mortal, lifts
his graceful folds, and spreads his large many-coloured
crests ; here, too, lurks the small bright-speckled cobra ma-
nilla, whose fangs convey instant death. "t

We shall here give a short account of some remarkable
water-snakes, belonging to the genus Hydrus. Soon after
the opening of the bar in the month of October, 1815, re-
ports prevailed at Madras that a great shoal of sea-snakes
had entered the river, and that many natives while crossing
had been bitten, and had in consequence died. A reward

* Oriental Memoirs, vol. i. p. 44.

t Journal of a Residence in India, by Maria Graham.

94 ZOOLOGY OF INDIA.

was ofTered for each of these animals caught, on the con-
dition of its being carried to the superintendent of police.
Pandauls were erected opposite to the two principal fords,
and skilful natives, under the superintendence of Dr.
M'Kenzie (to whom we are indebted for the information),
were provided with eau-de-luce and other remedies, and di-
rected to atford immediate aid to those persons who might
be unfortunately bitten. Many were bitten accordingly,
and all of them exhibited the symptoms usually consequent
upon the action of a powerful animal poison ; but none of
them died. We shall briefly state a couple of cases : — A
native woman, in crossing near the land custom-house, was
seen, while stepping out of the water, to shake something
off which had grasped her foot, and which to several spec-
tators appeared to be a water-snake. The woman, after
advancing a few paces from the river, fell down, and was
carried to the pandaul in a state of apparent insensibility.
On examining her feet two small but distinct wounds were
perceived on the ankle of her right leg ; her skin was cold,
her face livid, her breathing laborious, and her pulse scarcely
perceptible. A ligature was immediately applied above the
wound, which had been previously enlarged with a lancet,
and a piece of the carbonate of ammonia, well moistened
•with pure nitric acid, applied, and 30 drops of the eau-de-
luce were administered nearly at the same time in a glass
of water. In five minutes more a similar dose was poured
down her throat, which seemed rather to increase the spasm
at the chest, but the pulse became distinct at the wrist,
thoutfh feeble. A third dose was repeated in three minutes-
more, on which she uttered a scream, and began to breathe
more freely. About ten minutes had now elapsed since she
had been carried to the pandaul, and in about three minutes
more a teaspoonful of the eau-de-luce was given, which al-
most immediately produced violent nausea, and profuse
perspiration. When a little salt was put into her mouth
she declared it was not salt, but sugar ; and this the natives
deemed an infallible sign of still-continued danger. She
was soon, however, entirely relieved, and merely complained
for three or four days of a numbness in the limb above the
wound.

Another case was that of a lascar, who was bitten by a
snake when about the middle of the river. He advanced a

REPTILES. 95

few paces after quitting the bank, and then fell down in
violent convulsions. When brought in his breathing was
laborious, his skin cold and clammy, his countenance livid,
and his pulse feeble at the wrist, but distinct at the temples.
A quantity of froth and foam was ejected from between his
closed teeth. He too recovered after a similar treatment •
but he complained for many days that he had no left leg.

A large healthy chicken was exposed to the bite of a
hydrus major four foot long. It was bit in the foot, and
in about ten minutes began to droop, and to show a slight
convulsive flutter in both wings. In three minutes more
it was convulsed ; and at the end of seventeen minutes
from the infliction of the wound, it suddenly dropped down
dead.*

While on the subject of poisonous snakes, it may not he
uninteresting to the reader to peruse the recorded experience
of a medical gentleman, who had himself nearly fallen a
victim to the bite of one of these insidious reptiles. On
the night of the 12th of May, 1809, Mr. John Macrae, civil
surgeon at Chittagong, while stepping into the southern
veranda of his house, oliserved a small dark-coloured snake
running along the terrace. After several unsuccessful
attempts, he succeeded in killing it with a small cane ;
but in doing so the creature struck against one of his an-
kles, which it touched with the point of its fangs, but so
slightly as to draw no blood. A few minutes afterward,
while undressing to go to bed, he felt a peculiar glow over
his whole body, with a strong palpitation at the heart ; but
this he at first attributed merely to his exertions in killing
the snake. He soon, however, became very restless, and
experienced a singular sensation as if a warm fluid were
circulating through his veins to the extremities of his fin-
gers. He was then attacked by violent sickness, the heat
of his body abated, and was succeeded by a deadly coldness
of the skin, and profuse perspiration. He took repeated
doses of the spirihis ammonict compositus ; after which the
sickness subsided, and his breathing became easier. So
entirely was the nervous sensibility of the palate aflJected
that on swallowing the first doses he was insensible to the
nauseous taste of the alkali. In the course of three hours
he was out of danger.

• Asiatic Researches, vol. xiii. p. 339.

96 ZOOLOGY OF INDIA.

From the foregoing statement it appears, as observed by
Mr. Macrae, that the first effect of the poison on being re-
ceived into the body is to excite the action of the heart
and arteries, and to produce a great heat over the whole
body ; and as a similarity of effect proves a similarity of cause,
and the effect of all stimuli is to excite, it follows, in his
opinion, that the poison of the serpent is a stimulus of the
most powerful nature, which destroys life by its excess.

Dr. Russel has figured and described 43 of the most
common serpents of HinJostan ; and he informs us that a
quantity of warm Madeira taken uiternally, with an out-
ward application of eau-de-luce on the punctures, was
generally successful in curing the bite of the most venom-
ous species. He also states that the medicine called the
Tanjore-pill is equally efficacious. Of the 43 serpents ex-
amined by Dr. Russel, he found only seven that were pro-
vided with poisonous organs ; and on comparing the effects
of the poison of five of the oriental species on brute animals
with those produced by the poison of the rattlesnake and
the European viper, he remarked that they all produced
morbid symptoms nearly similar, though they might differ
in the degree of their deleterious power, and the rapidity
of its operation.

We shall devote the remainder of this chapter to a short
indication of a few of the fishes of India.

Bombay is supplied by the surrounding sea with a variety
of excellent fish. The pom/ret is not unlike a small turbot,
but possesses a more delicate flavour ; and the kind called
the black pomfret is still more highly esteemed. The robal,
the scir-fish, and several others, are also excellent ; but
the bumbalo, a small species of an exceedingly nutritious
nature, is the favourite food of the natives, who capture it
in immense numbers. In a dried state it furnishes an im-
portant article of commerce, and forms a principal article
of food among the lascars, or Indian sailors.

The Indian eel described by Willoughby (^IchtL appen.
t. 3, p. 3), belongs to the genus Tnchiurus. The colour
is pale-brown, varied with spots of a somewhat deeper hue.
It is said to possess a certain degree of electrical power,
ftom which it derives its name of Tnchiurus eleclriciis.

The extraordinary genus Gymncirus, — of which the fish

FISHES. 97

popularly called the king of the herrings, which is ten feet
long and not more than six inches in diameter, is a northern
example, — also occurs in the Indian seas. The Russelian
gymnetrus, described by Dr. Shaw from a drawing in pos-
session of the gentleman after whom it was named, was
taken near Vizagapatan.

The Indian remora {Echencis neiccrates) appears to occur
in many different quarters of the world. According to
Commerson, it is common about the coasts of Mozambique,
where it is used for the catching of turtles. A ring is
fastened to the tail of the fish, and a long • cord inserted
through the ring. It is then carried to sea in a vessel of
salt water ; and as soon as the boatmen perceive a turtle
asleep upon the surface, they endeavour to approach as
close to it as possible, and then throwing the remora into
the sea, they give it the proper length of cord. If it per-
ceives the turtle, it inunediately attaches itself to its breast,
where it adheres so firmly as to enable the fishermen to
draw the turtle within their reach. This species, according
to Bloch, sometimes attains to the length of seven feet.

The Corj'phene, or dolphin (C. Hipjmrus), distinguished
by the splendour of its varying hues, occurs occasionally
in the Indian seas. The gradual disappearance of its gor-
geous colouring when about to die is regarded by the rude
sailors with as much delight as were the changes of the ex-
piring mullet by the luxurious Pomans. The dolphin is a
strong and vigorous fish, a voracious eater, and extremely
rapid in its movements. Flying-fish constitute its favourite
food. Its flesh is excellent.

The genus Scorpmia presents some singular and uncouth
forms of animal life. The truncation of the head, its
enormous size, and the remarkable processes with which it
is furnished, bestow on several of the species a pecuhar as-
pect. The horrid scoipsena {S. horrida) may be presumed
from its name to present a somewhat unamiable appearance.
It resembles, in truth, rather some imaginary or fictitious
monster, than the legitimate production of nature. We
shall not venture to describe it at present.

The insidious dory {Zeus insidiator) inhabits the rivers
and other fresh waters of India. Its colour is bright silvery,
with a bluish-green tint above, speckled with black spots.
The body is apparently without scales. The mouth is of

Vol. III.— I

98 ZOOLOGY OF INDIA.

3 much more lengthened shape than in the others of the

genus, and is so constituted as to foTm at pleasure a kind
of tubular snout, by means of which tfiis fish possesses the
singular faculty of ejecting a drop of water against such
insects as happen to alight near the surface, or to hover over
the foliage of aquatic plants.

We may mention, as an example of the flat-fish of the
warmer regions of the world, the zebra sole {Pleuronectes
zebra), a very elegant species, easily recognised by its con-
trasted colouring, the upper parts being white, with a tinge
of brown towards the back, and marked from head to tail
by numerous double deep-brown transverse bands, which
pass also across the fins ; the body is rather longer ir pro-
portion than that of the common sole {P. solea), and the
dorsal and anal fins are continued onwards in a line with
the tail. This inhabitant of the Indian seas is highly
esteemed as an article of food.

Many species of ChcBtodon inhabit the Indian seas.
The only example of the genus which we shall here adduce
is a fresh-water species,— the rostrated chaetodon (CA. ros-
tratus). The length of this curious fish is about six mches.
The colour of the "body is whitish, with a dusky tinge upon
the back. It is marked by five transverse and nearly equi-
distant brown bands, with milk-white edges : the first
band, which is narrower than the rest, passes across the
head, through the eves ; the next three across the body ;
and the last across the base of the tail. The dorsal and
anal fins are very broad behind, and the former is marked
by a large black spot, bordered with white. This extraor-
dinary ifttle creature is famed for the method by which it
captures its prev. When it perceives a flying insect either
hovering over the water or quietly sunning its gauzy wings
on the feaf of some aquatic plant, it shoots out a drop of
water from its tubular mouth, so suddenly, and with such
unerring aim, as to tumble the insect in a state of stupefac-
tion on°the surface of the stream. "In shooting at a
sitting insect," says Dr. Shaw, " it is commonly observed
to approach within the distance of from six to four feet
before it explodes the water. When kept in a state of
confinement in a large vessel of water, it is said to afford
high entertainment by its dexterity in this exercise, since,
if a fly or other insect be fastened to the edge of the vessel,

FISHES. 99

the fish immediately perceives it, and continues to shoot
at it with such admirable skill as very rarely to miss the
mark."*

The unicorn acanthurus (the Monoceros minor of Wil-
loughby) is said to occur both in the Inuian and Arabian
seas. It was in the latter locality that, according to Forskal,
a fisherman obsen-ed an eagle descend among a shoal of
this species, and which, happening to transfix one with
each foot, was instantly killed and nearly torn asunder
by their sudden and violent separation in opposite directions.

The genus Spams produces many interesting species
along the shores of Hindostan. The'climbing-sparus (Sp.
scandens) is not unworthy of special record. It measures
about a span in length. The skin is covered bv a blackish
mucus, and the dorsal-fin is occasionally sunk' in a longi-
tudinal fossule. The most remarkable peculiarity of this
fish is the power of climbing, from which it derives its
specific name. It performs this action by means of the
spiny processes of the gill-covers, and moves at pleasure
up the trunks of trees which grow by the water-side. It
was observed by Lieutenant DaldorlT, at Tranquebar, as-
cending by a fissure in the stem of the palm called Borassus
flahdlifer, and was also found to be so tenacious of life as
to move about upon the dry sand for some hours after it
was captured on the tree. The natives regard the spines
of the giU-covers as poisonous.

The Alacananda, or that branch of the Ganges which
has its source among the inferior hills on the southern side
of the snowy mountains, produces, according to Messrs.
Raper and Webb, a beautiful fish called soher, which attains
to the length of six or seven feet. The scales on the back
and sides are of an exquisite green, encircled by a bright
golden border ; the belly is white, slightly tinged with gold ;
the tail and fins are of a dark bronze ; and its flavour is
equal to its extewial beauty. +

A fish called n-rahl in India inhabits the lakes, and is
so highly esteemed as a nutritious and healthy food as to

* .fiejera! Zoolotr>'. vol iv. p. 338. See also Naturalist's Miscellany,
u. pi. 6/, and the Phil. Trans, for 1765.

t Narrative of a Survey for the purpose of DiscoTering the Sources
of the Ganges.

100 ZOOLOGY OF INDIA;

be recommended for the diet of convalescents. It is the

Ophicephalus striatus of Bloch.

Of the scomber tribe, the leopard-mackerel (Sc. Uopardus)
is nearly three feet long. Its colour is dusky-blue above, and
silvery on the sides and abdomen. The sides are also
marked by numerous black spots. This species is much
esteemed by the European residents as an article of food.
It is described by Dr. Russel under the name of imngeram.
The rahtu goolixinda of that author (pi. 157) is the Indian
.surmullet {Midlus Indicus). The aspect of the living fish
is sincTularly beautiful, but speedily fades after death. The
upper" parts of the head, neck, and back are of a dark
changeable purple, fainter on the sides, which are marked
by a few longitudinal lines of azure and gold. There
are two oblon<T spots on each side ; the first, situated
near the centre of the body, is smallish, and of an opa-
line colour, or changeable from bluish-white to gold; the
second is nearer the tail, of a larger size, aiwl of a dark-
purple hue. The abdomen is white ; the dorsal-fin purple,
streaked withUght-blue ; the pectoral and anal fins are pink.
This beautiful creature was observed by Dr. Kussel near
Vizagapatan. As an article of food it is not greatly es-

^ We may here mention the flying-gurnard ( Trigla volitans),
which swims in shoals, and ever and anon darts into the
air, and makes its way to a considerable distance. It is
famihar to the Indian voyager. Several other species of
flying-fish (belonging, however, to the genus Exoccttiis)
are likewise common to the Indian seas. According to
Bloch (who quotes from Plumier), the spawn of one of them
is so hicrhly acrimonious, that the smallest portion cannot
be applied to the tongue or palate without producing unme-
diate excoriation. ,

The mano-o-fish {Polynemus ■paxadisetis), so called proo-
ahly on acco'Imt of its yellow colour, which resembles that
of a ripe mango, is said by Dr. Russel to be regarded as by
much the most delicate food of any of the Calcutta species.
It is called tuvsec mutchcy by the natives. Another species
of the same genus (P. flehcius of Broussonet) is also an
excellent fish for the table, and is much esteemed by the
inhabitants of the Malabar coast. It is dressed m varioua

SHELLS. 101

ways, and is sometimes dried and salted for sale. It
occasionally measures upwards of four feet in length.

Many cartilaginous fishes belonging to the ray and shark
tribes are found along ihe Indian shores, and the file-fish
(genus Baltstcs) are very numerous. The Ostracions or
trunk-fish are distinguished by a bony crust or covering.
The triquetral trunk-fish (0. triqucter) is about a foot long.
It feeds on the smaller Crustacea, shellfish, and marine
worms, and is itself much esteemed by East Indians as an
excellent fish for the table. Species belonging to the
genera Diodon, Teiradon, Pegasus, and others, inhabit tho
fresh and saline waters of Hindostan.

CHAPTER V.

The Shells and Insects of India.

Sepia-Conus-Oliva-Cypra-a-Ovula-Marginella-Volma-Mitrffl
—Terebra—Ebunia-Biicciinim.&c— Bivalves- Spondyli—Peclens,
4e — Fr^sh-water Shells— Pearl-fisheries— Insects— Coleopterous
Injects— On houterous Insects— Hemi[iterous Insects— Kernies—Gez
or^Manna— Hjnietioiiterous, Neuropterous, and Dipterous Tribes—
Silk-worm.

If, while engaged with the vertebrated or higher classes
of the animal creation, we found ourselves embarrassed by
the muhitude of our materials, and, equally delighted with
the beautiful forms and exquisite adaptation of struc'ure
which characterize so many species, were occasionally at
a loss in our selection, how much more must that same
difficulty press upon us when we enter on the examination
of the lower tribes ! When we consider that the ascertained
insects of Great Britain alone are more than ten times as
numerous as the known quadrupeds of the entire surface
of the whole earth, we may conceive how vast a field tho
science of Indian entomology would lay before us were we
to venture upon any thing approaching to a detailed expo-
sition of its wonders. But it is not to be expected that a
gf neral work like the present should achieve what even
^ I?.

IQ2 ZOOLOGY OF INDIA.

systematic treatises, exclusively devoted to the subject
W as yet in vain endeavoured to accomplish; and al
that%! shall therefore here attempt is a cursory noHc-
of 1 few of the more remarkable phenomena of msec lifb.
;n?h? first place, however, we shall demote a page or two
to the testaceous productions of India, for lucre

" the gorgeous East
Showers on her sons barbaric pearl's and goia ;"

^vith the species of foreign climes; and they are conse-

that climate was characterized. ^ ,

WUhout a greater degree of precision than consists with
the present stSe of ou? knowledge- it will, however, be a
t n'attempt to deduce any general 1-s m rdation to h^s
important subject ; for m truth, notwithstanding the spien |

did collections which exist in several of the B^^vsh ana |

Continental cabinets, our knovyledge of tl« di^^nbution o^ |

species is extremely vague and ^"^P^rfect m rega d to aU
other countries except those of Europe and J> o-^tli f-"^^^
other 5°""" ^l J especially, we are in almost total j

.ess -for the coUectors\f Eastern shells have never I

ica
darkness

SHELLS. 103

paid the slightest attention to localities, and seem indeed
not to have been aware that any importance could attach to
the subject. However, the voyages of Leschenault de La-
tour and of Messrs. Diard and Duvaucel, have thrown some
light on certain species of India and Ceylon. The testa-
ceous productions of the Indian archipelago are somewhat
better known since the days of Rumphius and Seba, incon-
sequence of numerous obsen-ations made by MM. Peron
and Lesueur, during the expedition of Captain Baudin, and
by the investigations of MM. Quoy, Gaymard, and Gaudi-
chaud, in that of Freycinet. The shells of Java have also
been well illustrated by Kulk and Van Hasselt.

The same general fact applies to most molluscous ani-
mals as to almost every other department of zoology, that
the genera and species increase as we advance from polar
and temperate to equatorial regions. Africa is probably too
dry and sandy, but the more varied soils of Asia and Amer-
ica, combining nearly equal heat with greater moisture,
produce in their torrid portions a more abundant store.

As the countries to the description of which these volumes
are devoted have long been known to Europeans, the beauti-
ful shells of India and its islands are common in the cabinets
of naturaUsts. The Dutch, at the period of their maritime
glory, were the principal importers of Asiatic shells, m col-
lecting which they seem to have found as much pleasure as
in cuTtivating tulips and other gaudy productions of the
vegetable kingdom ; and of late years the EngHsh have
abundantly supplied their own cabinets, as well as those of
the Continent, with the more common or beautiful species,
although little zeal has been displayed by them in attempt-
ing to elucidate, in a philosophical manner, the conchology
of^India. Although the shells of all warm climates pos-
sess the general character of brilliancy of colouring, those
which inhabit the Indian seas are so pecuharly remarkable
in this respect as to form indeed the principal ornaments
of our collections. Notwithstanding this, however, they
are not in general so keenly sought after as those of coun-
tries less generally or more recently known.

Of the cephalopodous mollusca which occur in the Indian
seas, we may mention the Sejna officinaUs and tuberculata,
from the black fluid contained in the abdomen of which, or
of some other species of this family, China ink is said to

104 ZOOLOGY OF INDIA.

be manufactured. The argonaut and the common and um-
bilicated nautili, — the two former common in collections, —
also occur in these seas.

In the brief account which we have here to give of these
productions, it is unnecessary to arrange our remarks in
conformance with the order of systematic writers, more es-
pecially as we shall mention only a few of the most splen-
did. The genus Conus, celebrated for the beauty of its
species, has numerous representatives in the Indian seas.
Conus marmoreus, with black and white spots, resembling
brecciated marble, C. cedo-mdli, of which all the varieties
are highly prized on account of their great beauty, C. am-
miraiis, milhpunctatxis, literatus, generalis, princeps, auran-
tius, and many others, the mere enumeration of which
would be unprofitable, are well known as productions of
India. Some of these are considered as of great value. A
variety of C. ccdo-nulli, according to Dillwyn, has been
valued at three hundred guineas. Of the beautiful genua
Oliva we need mention only 0. erylhrostoma, viaura, Uxtilis,
irinans, and fulininans. Many rare and beautiful species
of Cypma from India adorn our cabinets, such as C. Argus,
so named from its eyelike spots ; C. viappa, the markings
of which bear some resemblance to the sinuous coast-lines
of a map ; C. tigris, the most common, but at the same
time one of the most beautiful species; C. tesludianaria,
which resembles tortoise-shell ; and C. moncla. and helvola,
used as money. The Ocula oviformis, resembling a large
white egg, and various species of MargincUa, from India,
are well known. Of the fine genus VolvM may be men-
tioned V. melo, iinpcrialis, pdlis-serpentis, iiaiUica, musica,
and vexUlum, the latter, striped with white and orange,
greatly prized by collectors. The MitrcB are almost pecu-
liarly Indian, and the finest species have received distinct-
ive names from a fancied resemblance to the headgear of
the ecclesiastical dignitaries, such as pajialis, ponhjicalis,
cardinalis, and episcopalis. Terebra maculata and flammsa,
Eburna Zeylanica, arcolata, and spirata, may be mentioned
as examples of these genera, and the like might be done
with others ; but where technical terms alone could be em-
ployed, it would be useless to adduce a long list of the many
beautiful species of Buccina, Doha, Purpura, Harpiz, Cas-
aiict, Tritona, Muricr.s, Pyrulcc, Fusi, Turbinellcz, and other

SHELLS. 105

tribes which inhabit the Indian seas. Of the land and
fresh-water skells belonging to the trachelipodous family-
little is known ; and we may conclude our remarks on the
univalve shells by mentioning the Umbrella Indica, which
resembles an expanded parasol, and Patella granatina and
tcstucUnana, species of a similar form.

The conchifera or bivalve shells are usually le^s nume-
rous in collections than the univalve, but a large proportion
of those known to naturalists is from India. The beautiful
and singular Sfondyli, various Pedcns, Peda, Avicula,
Mallei, and others of the family of Malleaceaj, of which
the most remarkable is the Melcagrinamargariiifera,yN\ach.
furnishes the mother-of-pearl of commerce, are natives of
the Indian seas. Ostrca folium grows on the roots of the
mangrove and other littoral trees. Tridacna gigas, the
largest shell known, of which individuals have been found
to weigh from 400 to 500 pounds, occurs in the Indian and
Chinese seas. A large valve of this shell, presented by the
Venetians to Francis I. of France, is used as a baptismal
font in the church of St. Sulpice in Paris. The fresh-water
shells of India are as yet little known ; but although the
genera Unio and Anodon have their finest representatives
in the rivers and lakes of America, the species of these
genera that have been brought from the East give promise
of an ample store to reward the labours of scientific in-
quirers. There are many beautiful species of Cardita, Car-
dmm, Tcllina, Mactra, Mya, Solcn, and Pholas ; but we are
unable to communicate any information regarding their his-
tory which would interest the general reader. The allied
genera Venus and Cytkerca, named after the goddess of
beauty, whom the poets inaptly feigned to have emerged
from the sea, are plentiful in all countries ; but many of the
Indian species, such as V. lilerata, puerpera, Malabarica,
and C. tigerina, and erycina, are peculiarly beautiful. With
the Aspergillum Jaranum, a tubular shell, having a disk
surrounded by fimbriated rays, so as to resemble the pipe
of a watering-pail with the water issuing from it, we shall
conclude our necessarily brief enumeration. A few words,
however, will not be misbestowed on the pearl-fishery.

The pearl-fisheries of Ceylon are among the most noted.
The most skilful divers come from CoUesh on the coast of
Malabar, and some of these are alleged to have occasionally

106 ZOOLOGY OF INDIA.

remained under water during the lapse of seven minutes.
According to the testimony of Mr. Le Beck, this feat was
also performed by a Catfre boy at Carical. The following
is the usual mode of diving for pearls : — By means of two
cords a diving-stone and a net are connected with the boat.
The diver, putting the toes of his right foot on the cair-
rope of the diving-stone, and those of his left on the net,
seizes the two cords with one hand, and shutting his nos-
trils with the other, plunges into the water. On gaining
the bottom he hangs the net around his neck, and throws
into it as many pearl-shells as he can collect while he is
able to remain beneath the surface, which is generally about
two minutes. He then resumes his former posture, and,
making a signal by pulling the cords, he is instantly hauled
up into the boat. On emerging from the sea, he discharges
a quantity of water from his mouth and nose. There are
generally ten divers to each boat, and while five are respir-
ing, the other five descend with the same stones. Each
brmgs up about one hundred oysters in his net at a tirne,
and If not interrupted by any accident, will make fifty trips
in the course of a forenoon.* The most frequent and
fetal of the catastrophes to which they are subjected arise
from sharks, by whom the divp.rs are sometimes bitten

in two.

The natives entertain opinions regarding the formation
of pearls similar to those of the ancients. They deem that
they are formed from dewdrops, in connexion with sun-
beams. It is recorded in one of the Sanscrit books that
pearls are formed in the month of May, at the approach of
the Sooatee star (one of their twenty-seven constellations),
at which time the rf)ystcrs come up to the surface of the
water to catch the drops of rain ! We find the same idea
expressed in the following quaint yet beautiful passage
from the 12th chapter of the Cosmographc and Description
of Albion, prefixed to Bellenden's translation of Hector
Boece's History and Chronicles of Scotland : — " Now we
will schaw the nature of mussillis and coclis, of quhilkis
many kindis ar amang us. Sum ar small, with the meit
thairof richt delicius to the mouth ; utheris ar mair, nocht

* Account of the Pearl-fishery in the Gulf of Manaar, in March and
April, 1797. By H. J. Le Beck, Esq.

INSECTS. - 107

unlike, in forme and quantite, to the samin mussillis that
hes the purpurc ; and howbeit they have na thing thairof,
Ihay ar yit richt dilicius to the mouth ; utheris ar lano- and
greter, calUt hors mussillis, and are gotten in sindry reveris,
specialie in De and Done ; and in thir mussillis ar generit
the perlis. Thir miissulis airlie in the morning, quhen the
lift is cleir and temperat, opnis thair mouthis a litill abonc
the waiter, and maist gredelie sicellts the dexc of the heein ;
and, aftir the mcsurc arid quanlitc of ihe dnc that they swellie,
thay consavc and hredis the perle. Thir mussillis ar sa doyn
gleg of twiche and hering, that howbeit the voce be never
so small that is maid on the bra beside thaim, or the stain
be never sa small that is cassin in the watter, thay douk
haistilie at ains, and gangis to the ground, knawing weill
in quhat estimation and price the frute of thair wambe is
to al peple."*

We shall now devote the remainder of our space to a few
brief notices of the insects of India. It has been observed
that real insect climates, or those in which certain groups
or species appear rather than others, may be regarded as
by no means certainly regulated by any isothermal lines.
Humboldt remarked, in reference to the simulia and culiccs
of South America, that their geographical position did not
appear to depend solely on the heat of the climate, the ex-
cess of humidity, or the thickness of the forests, — but on
local and unappreciable circumstances. t Under certain
limitations, however, it may be safely admitted that tempera-
ture is extremely influential on the distribution of insect
life. An increase of caloric seldom fails to produce a cor-
responding increase in the number and variety of entomo-
logical forms ; jnd if, reversing the journey from " Indus
to the Pole," we travel from the hvperborean regions towards
the sunny south, we shall find that the tinj^ multitudes ac-
cumulate in the warmer portions of the temperate zone till
they swarm between the tropics. J A similar relation ob-
tains between the base and the summit of mountains.
Such species as inhabit the plains of northena countries are

* Tail's Reprint, Edin. 182], p. 44.
t Personal Narrative, vol v. p. S8.
t Introduction to Entomology, by Kirby and Spence, rol. It. p. 484;

108 ZOOLOGY OF INDIA.

found to occur on the mountains in more southern ones.
Thus the beautiful Apollo-butterfly {Parnassius Apollo) is
a mountainous species in France, while it inhabits the val-
leys of Sweden.

Of coleopterous insects the genera Mimela, EucUora,
CoUiuris, Catascopus, Apogonia, &c., seem peculiar to
Asia. The genus Mylabns is widely spread over the Old
World, and in addition to the M- Cichmii, of which the ve-
sicatorial powers were well known to the ancients,* General
Hardwicke has described another species extremely plenti-
ful in all parts of Bengal, Bahar, and Oude, and which as
a blister insect is said to be equally efficacious as the Span-
ish fly.t

Of the genus Buprestis many splendid species, such as
B. ocellata, &c., occur in India ; and throughout that vast
and varied country innumerable examples maybe found of
many other coleopterous tribes.J At night the fireflies
glitter by thousands among the dark recesses of the banian-
tree ; and these same insects are observed to dance in per-
petual motion around the outmost branches of the spreading
tamarind, producing a brilliant and singularly beautiful
effect.

The Orlhopterous order, which contains, among others,
the locust and grasshopper groups, is the next in succession.
The plague of locusts is known to India in like manner as
to most of the warmer countries of the globe :

" Onward they come, a dark continuous cloud
Of congregated myriads numberless.
The rushing of whose wings is as the sound
Of a broad river headlong in ns course
Plunged from a mountain summit, or the roar
Of a wild ocean in the autumn storm.
Shattering its billows on a shore of rocks."^

We are told, indeed, that during the rainy season in
India insects of all kinds are sometimes so numerous, and
so active in their operations, that it becomes necessary to

* Amcenitates Academicee, torn. vi. p. 138.

t Asiatic Researches, vol. v. p. 213.

j See Histoire Naturelle des ln.sectes {Coliaptires), par A. S. Olivier,
five vols., in 4to., avec planches enlurniniSes, and Species Gfcntral des
Col6optdres, par M. le Baron Dtjean.

$ Thalaba, vol. i. p. 169.

INSECTS. 109

remove the lights from the supper- table. In regard to the
Indian locusts a correspondent of Messrs. Kirby and Spence
informed these authors that he was eyewitness to an im-
mense army of locusts which ravaged the Maliratta coun-
try, and was supposed to come from Arabia. This column
extended five hundred miles, and was so compact when on
the wing that it darkened the sun like an eclipse ; so that
no shadow was cast upon the ground, and some lofty tombs,
distant not more than two hundred yards from the observer,
were rendered invisible. This was not the Gryllus migra-
tcrius of Linnffius, but a red species, and its peculiar colour
added to the horror of the scene ; for, after having stripped
the trees of their foliage, it congregated around the bare
and desolate branches, producing a hue like blood. " And
the sound of their wings was as the sound of chariots,
and of many horses running to battle." Another orthop-
terous species, now sufficiently common in our kitchens
and pantries, we mean the cockroach {Blatta oricritalis),
was originally and no doubt unintentionally imported into
Europe from the countries of our present disquisition.

Among the lantern-flies, which form part of the Hemip-
terous order, the Fulgora diadema may be mentioned as an
Indian species, remarkable for its long spiny muricated
front, with a triple division at the crown. It is of a brown-
ish colour, variegated with red and yellow.

The insects called kernies likewise belong to the hemip-
terous order, and were highly valued in commerce and
manufacture before the introduction of the still more fa-
mous cochineal {Coccus cadi), which is a South American
species. The Coccus ilicis is common in the south of Eu-
rope on the evergreen oak, and appears to be widely dis-
tributed over many of the south-eastern countries of the
ancient world. Though supplanted over the greater por-
tion of Europe by the American product, it is still exten-
sively used in India and the Persian dominions.* It has
been employed from time immemorial to impart a blood-red
or crimson die to cloth, and was known to the Phenicians
by the name of thola. It was called coccus (Ksxxof) by
the Greeks, and kermes or alkerraes by the Arabians. Ac-
cording to Beckman the epithet rermiculatum was applied

* Introdaction to Entomology, and Bocbart's Hieroaoic. .-. >

Vol. III.— K

110 ZOOLOGY OF INDIA.

to it during the middle ages, when its insect origin came
to be generally understood ; and hence our word vermilion is
derived. The French term crammsi is evidently from the
Arabic. It is supposed to have been by means of this sub-
stance that the curtains of the tabernacle (Exodus xxvi.
&c.) were died of a deep rod (which the word scarlet then
implied, rather than the colour so named in more modern
days, which was unknown in the reign of James I., when
our Bible was translated), and from the same source have
been derived the imperishable reds of the Flemish tapestries.
The scarlet afforded by cochineal was unknown in its high-
est perfection till the year 1G30, when the singular power
of the oxide of tin in exalting its colours was discovered
in Holland ; it was soon after communicated to one of the
celebrated MM. Gobelins of Paris, and may have con-
tributed to the perfection of their tapestries.* Since the
manufacture or preparation of morocco-leather has been
established in this country, cochineal has been employed to
produce the beautiful colour of what is called red morocco ;
but in Persia, Armenia, Barbary, and the Greek islands a
similar colour was originally produced by the use of either
kermes or lac.t The colouring matter of kermes is con-
sidered by Dr. Bancroft as identical with that of cochineal,
but combined with some astringent matter derived from the
tree on which the insects feed.

Lac is also the produce of" an insect of the coccus kind,
which is collected from various trees in India, where it is
used in the fabrication of beads, rings, and other ornaments
of female attire. When mixed with sand it forms grind-
stones ; and added to lamp or ivory black, and previously
dissolved in water with a little borax, it composes an ink,
which, when dry, is said to be capable of resisting a con-
siderable dejiree of damp or moisture. In this country, ac-
cording to the different conditions in which it is imported,
it is called stick-lac, seed-lac, lump-lac, or shell-lac. It is
chiefly used in the formation of varnishes, japanned ware,
and sealing-wax, although in later years it has been applied
to a still more important purpose, as originally suggested

' Quarterly Review, vol. ix. p. 210.

t Experimental Researciies concerning the Philosophy of Ferraafient
Colours, &c. By Edward Bancroft, M.D., vol. ii. p. 167.

INSECTS. Ill

by Dr. Roxburgh, — that of a substitute for cochineal ia
dying scarlet. The first preparations from it with this
view were made in consequence of a hint from Dr. Ban-
croft, and large quantities of a substance termed lac-lake,
consisting of the colouring matter of stick-lac, precipitated
from an alkaline lixivium by alum, were manufactured at
Calcutta, and sent to this country, where at first the con»
sumption was so considerable that in the three 3'ears previous
to 1810 the sales at the India-house equalled in point of col-
ouring matter half a million of pounds' weight of cochineal.*
"More recently, however, a new preparation of lac-colour,
under the name of lac-clie, has been imported from India^
which has been substituted for the lac-lake, and with such
advantage that the East India Company are said to have
saved in a few months 14,000/. in the purchase of scarlet
cloths died with this colour and cochineal conjointly, and
■without any inferiority in the colour obtained."! The only
mordant formerly used with kermes was alum, and ths
colour communicated was .blood-red ; but Dr. Bancroft as-
certained that with the solution of tin used with cochineal
it was capable of imparting as brilliant a scarlet as that die>
arid one perhaps more permanent. J

Several other curious and valuable products are obtained
from Asiatic insects. The pc-la, or white wax of the Chi-
nese, is derived from an insect, probably of the coccus
tribe, described by the Abbe Grozier ; and a nondescript
Indian species produces a wax analogous to pe-la, first no-
ticed by Dr. Anderson under the name of white lac. It
may be obtained in any quantity in the vicinity of Madras,
and at a much cheaper rate than bees-wax ; but the results
of Dr. Pearson's experiments do not countenance the idea
that it can be advantageously used for domestic purposes,
or at least for the making of candles. i^i Geoffroy had long
since attributed to a species of kermes the property of pro-
ducing a sugary substance of a white colour, resembling
manna ; and Captain Frederick described an article called

* Bancroft, nlii stipra.
' t Inlrod. to Entom., vol. i. p. 318.

i It may be mentioned, however, that as ten or twelve pounds of
kenTiPs contain no more colouring matter than a single pound of cochi-
neal, the latter at its ordinary price is after ail the cheapest.

$ Philosophical Transactions, 1794.

\\2 ZOOLOGY OF INDIA.

gez or manna, found in Persia and Armenia ;* but he seemed
doubtful whether to attribute to it an animal or a vegetable
origin. More recently General Hardwicke has described
an Indian insect under the name of Chermis mannifcr, of
the size of the domestic bug, and of a flattened oval form,
with a rounded tail. From its abdomen a quantity of sac-
charine substance is exuded, and assumes the form of a
bunch of feathers, with a consistence like that of snow.
The insects are found on the branches and leaves of trees
in millions, and they there generate this feather-like secre-
tion, till il becomes elongated, and, dropping on the leaves,
hardens upon them into a substance resembling the most
beautiful v/ax.t

India abounds in hymenopterous insects, such as wasps
and bees. The latter build their nests in hollow trees and
rocky caverns, and produce great quantities of wax and
honey. At times they prove troublesome and even danger-
ous, and often annoved Mr. Forbes in his visits to the caves
at Salsette and the Elephanta, where they make their
combs in the fissures of the rocks and the recesses among
the figures, and hang in immense clusters. " I have known
a whole party put to the rout in the caverns of Salsette,
and obliged to return with their curiosity unsatisfied, from
having imprudently fired a gun to disperse the bees, who in
their rage pursued them to the bottom of the mountains."t

As we are not aware of any remarkable pecuharities in
the history of either the Neuropterous or the Dipterous
orders of Indian entomology, we shall leave these exten-
sive divisions without any special comment, and conclude
our present summary with a short historical notice of an-
other insect-product of the East, of the highest value as a
branch of manufacturing industry, and now so universally
known under the name of silk. Though to ourselves
" familiar as household words," its nature and origin were
but obscurely, if at all, known in ancient times ; and in the
days of Aurelian it was valued at its weight in gold. This
was probably owing to the mode in which the material was
procured by the merchants of Alexandria, who had no direct
intercourse with China, the only country in which the silk-

* Transactions of the Bombay Literary Society, vol. i.

t Description of Gez or Manna, Asiatic Researches, vol. xiv. p. lo?-

i Oriental Memoirs, vol. i. p. 46.

INSECTS. 113

worm was then reared. Though the manufactures of silk
were lauded in terms of the higliest admiration both by-
Greek and Roman authors, they were in frequent use for
several centuries before any certain knowledjje was obtained
either of the countries from which the material was derived^
or of the means by which it was produced. By some it-
was supposed to be a fine down adhering to the leaves of
trees or flowers ; by others it was regarded as a delicate
kind of wool or cotton ;* and even those who had some idea
of its insect-origin were incorrectly informed of the mode
of its formation. The court of the Greek emperors, which
surpassed even that of the Asiatic sovereigns in splendour
and magnificence, became profuse in its display of this costly-
luxury ; but as the Persians, from the advantages which
their local situation gave them over the merchants from the
Arabian Gulf, were enabled to supplant them in all those
marts of India to which silk was brought by sea from the
East, and as they had it in their power to cut off the cara-
vans which travelled by land to China through their own
northern provinces, Constantinople thus became dependent
on a rival power for an article which its sumptuous nobles
deemed essential to the enjoyment of refined life. Of
course the Persians, with the accustomed and long-con-
tinued rapacity of monopolists, raised the price to an ex-
orbitant height, and many attempts were made by Justinian
to free his subjects from such exaction. An accidental
circumstance is said to have accomplished what the wisdom
of the great legislator was unable to achieve. Two Per-
sian monks, who had been employed as missionaries in one
of the Christian churches established in India, had pene-
trated into the country of the Seres, that is, to China,
where they observed the natural operations of the silk-worm,
and acquired a knowledge of the arts of man in working up
its produce into so many rich and costly fabrics. The love
of lucre, mingled perhaps with a feeling of indignation
that so valuable a branch of commerce should be enjoyed
by unbelieving nations, induced them to repair to Constan-
tinople, where they explained to the emperor the true origin
of silk, and the various modes by which it was prepared
and manufactured. Encouraged by the most liberal prom-

* Robertson's Historical Disquisition concerning Ancient India.
K2

114 ZOOLOGY OF INDIA.

ises, they undertook totransport a sufficient supply of these
extraordinary worms to Constantinople, which they effected
by conveying the eggs in the interior ot a hollow cane.
They were hatched, it is said, by the heat of a dunghill,
and the larva; were fed with the leaves of wild mulberry.
They worked, underwent their accustomed metamorphosis,
and multiplied according to use and wont ; and, in the
course of time, have become extensively cultivated through-
out all the southern countries of our continent,— thus et-
fecting an important change in the commercial relations
which had so long existed between Europe and the Last.t
It is curious to consider how the breeding of a fewr mil-
hons of caterpillars should occasion such u. disparity in the
circumstances of different tribes of the human race. When
the wife and empress of Aurelian was refused a garment
of silk on account of its extreme costliness, the most or-
dinary classes of the Chinese were clad m that material
from top to toe ; and although among ourselves week-day
and holyday are now alike profaned by uncouth forms,
whose vast "circumference is clothed "m silk attire, yet
our own James the Sixth was forced to borrow a pair of
silken hose from the Ear! of Mar, that his state and hear-
in<T might be more effective in the presence of the ambas-
sador of England ; " for ye would not sure that your king
should appear as a scrub before strangers." King Henry
the Eighth was the first of the English sovereigns who
wore silk stockings.

The silk-worm cultivated in Europe is the same as that
which produces the greater proportion of the Chinese man-
ufacture. It is the larva of the Bombyx mon. But in
Bengal and other parts of India valuable silk is procured
from^the cocoons of other species of moth. The first ot
these, described by Dr. Roxburgh under the name of Flia-
Icena vaphta, is found in such abundance over many parts ot
Bengal and the adjoining provinces as to have afforded to
the natives from time immemorial an abundant supply ot a
very durable, coarse, dark-coloured silk, calbd tusseh, inuch
used by the Bramins and other sects of Hindoos. 1 his
species cannot be domesticated ; but the hill-people go into
the jungles, and when they perceive the dung of the cater-

* Procopius, De Bello Gothico. , , ■ s _.i ;,

t See Gibbon's Decline and Fall, ice. (reign of Justinian), vol.iv.

INSECTS. 115

pillars under a tree, they immediately search for them
among the branches, and carry off whatever they require.
These they distribute on the asseen trees ( Terminaha alata
glabra of koxb.), and as long as they continue in the cat-
erpillar state, the Pariahs guard them from bats by night
and from birds by day. The natural food of this species is
the Byer tree of the Hindoos, called Rhamnvs jujuba by
botanists. The Jaroo cocoons are produced from a mere
variety of the kind just mentioned.*

The Arrindy silk-worm belongs, however, to an entirely
diiierent species (the Phalcena cynlhm, Drury, vol. ii. tab. 6),
and appears peculiar to two districts in the interior of Ben-
gal, viz., Kungpore and Dinagepore, where it is reared in a
domestic state. The food of this caterpillar consists entirely
of the leaves of the common Ruinius, or Palma Christi, which
the natives call Arrindy, and hence the name by which the
insect is itself distinguished. The cocoons are in general
about two inches long, and three inches in circumference,
pointed at either end ; they are of a white or yellowish
colour, and their texture is extremely soft and delicate.
The filament, indeed, is so exceedingly fine, that this silk
cannot be wound off, but is spun like cotton. The yarn is
wove into a kind of coarse white cloth, of a seemingly
loose texture, but of such extreme durability that the life
of one person is seldom sufficient to wear out a garment
of it ; so that the same piece frequently descends from
parent to child. It must always be v^ashed in cold
water. t

The only other species of silk-worm to which we shall
refer is alluded to in an extract of a letter published in the
Annals of Agriculture by Mr. Arthur Young. It has been
introduced into India for a, good many years. " We have
obtained," says the writer alluded to, " a monthly silk-worm
from China, which I have reared with my own hands, and
in twenty-five days have had the cocoons in my basins, and
by the twenty-ninth or thirty-first day a new progeny feed-
ing in my trays. This makes it a mine to whoever would

* The Tusseti silk-worm moth appears to be synonymous with the
Bombyx viyW.ta of Fabricius. It is figured by Drury in his Illustra-
tions of Natural History, vol. ii. tab. 5.

t See Account of the Tu.sseh and Arrindy SiUi-worms of Bengal. By
(ViUiam Ro.\burfih, M.D., F.R.S.E. Linn. Trans., vol. vu. p. 33

116 BOTANY OF INDIA.

undertake the cultivation of it." "We here close our sketch
of the zoology of India.

" These are thy glorious works, Parent of good !
Almighty ! thine this universal frame,
Thus wondrous fair; thyself how wondrous then!
Unspeakable ; v.ho sit'st above these heavens !
To us invisible, or ihmly seen
In these thy lower works ; yet these declare
Thy goodness beyond thought, and pov;er divine !"

BOTANY.

CHAPTER VI.

Progress of Indian Botany — General Description of the
Vegetation,

Climate— Investigators of Indian Botany— Foundation of the Calcutta
Botanic Garden— Liberality of the East India Company— Dr. Wal-
lich's Exertions- His Return to Europe with large Collections-
Generous Conduct of the Court of Directors— Some Results of Dr.
Walhch's Disoovenes— Private Exertions of Dr. Wight— Extent of
the Indian Flora— General Features of Indian Vegetation on the
Plains and on the Mountains.

Our knowledge of Indian vegetation, although extend-
ing itself with a rapidity almost unexampled in the botani-
cal history of any country, is yet extremely limited. Nor
can this be a matter for surprise when we call to mind the
prodigious extent of our Asiatic possessions, reaching as
they do from within six degrees of the equinoctial line to
Ihe'thirty-fifth degree of northern latitude, with a range of
temperature from that of the torrid zone to regions of per-
petual snow. While, therefore, it is quite impossible, from
deficiency of materials, to give any thing like a complete
view of the Indian flora, whether we look to sj^stematic
details or the geographical distribution of its species, there
is much interesting information concerning the useful, sin-

BOTAKIC GARDEN OF CALCUTTA. 117

gnlar, and beautiful plants of this fine country that may be
transferred to these pages.

What we do know of the vegetable productions of our
Indian territories is to be ascribed almost exclusively to the
munificence of the East India Company, as well as their
rational desire to become acquainted with the economical
resources of the country they govern, and to the unwearied
exertions of the gifted individuals in their ser\'ice. Before
we proceed to the more immediate details of this sketch, it
will not be uninteresting to trace an outline of the progress
of Indian botany.

Of the earlier labours illustrative of our subject, the most
eminent is the Hortus Malabaricus of Henry Van Rheede
Van Drakenstein, governor of the Dutch settlements in
the East Indies. This valuable work, consisting of twelve
folio volumes with excellent plates, was published in the
latter part of the seventeenth century, and made us ac-
quainted with about 800 plants from Malabar. Subse-
quently appeared a catalogue of the plants of Ceylon by
Paul Hennann, the Thesaurus Zeylankus by Burrman,
and in 1747 the Flora Zeylajiica by Linnaeus. Little seems
to have been done between the date of the last work and
the formation of the Botanic Garden at Calcutta, which
took place in the year 1788 ; this was at first managed by
its founder, the late Colonel Kydd, but soon came under
the superintendence of the celebrated Dr. Roxburgh, whose
zeal and energy both enriched the institution and estab-
lished his own fame. A Hortus Bcngalensis, or " Cata-
logue of the plants growing in the Honourable East India
Company's Botanic Garden at Calcutta," was printed by
Dr. Carey in 1812, the year in which Dr. Roxburgh was
obliged to leave India on account of his declining health.
The manuscripts of this excellent man contain descriptions
of above 2500 plants, illustrated by nearly 2000 drawings
executed by native artists, copies of which exist in the
Company's Museum. From this source was compiled that
magnificent work, Roxburgh's Plants of the Coast of Coro-
mandel, in three volumes folio ; and it has also served as
a foundation for a Flora Indica, of which Dr. Carey has
published the two first volumes in octavo, extending as far
as the first order of the Linnsean class Pentandria.

In 1814, when the garden was for a short period under

118 BOTANY OF INDIA.

the direction of Ur. Hamilton, well known by his Travels,
his account of the fishes of the Ganges, and his commentary
on the Hortus Malaharkus and Herbarium Amboynensc, the
number of species amounted to 3500.*

Of Dr. WaUich, the present superintendent, we must not
in this place speak as the feelings of private friendship
might otherwise dictate. He entered upon his arduous
office in 1815, and his indefatigable energy and scientific
perception have only been equalled by the devotedness with
which he gave himself up to the duties of his situation. His
exertions, it has been observed, have rarely been exceeded
in any country, and certainly have never been paralleled in
a tropical climate. " At his suggestion, the directors of the
East India Company placed the garden-establishment upon
a footing far surpassing any thing of the kind known in
Europe. The spot of ground is no less than five miles in
circumference, and upwards of three hundred gardeners and
labourers are employed in the charge of it. Gardens in
connexion with it have been formed in other remote parts
of the Indian possessions ; collectors have been sent out to
discover new and especially useful plants, and the residents
and other gentlemen attached to science were invited to
send the vegetable productions of their respective districts
to Calcutta, both in a living and dried state ; and among
these the honourable Colonel Gardner, for a long time the
company's resident at Sylhet, furnished most extensive and
■valuable collections.!

The result of this enthusiasm has been a most noble and
extensive collection, not only of living plants, which have
been freely distributed, but of preserved specimens, which
■were transmitted from time to time to the company's mu-
seum. The herbaria, in fact, communicated by various
individuals from all parts of India, and amassed by Dr.
Wallich himself in his excursions to Nepaul, to Singapore
and Penang, to the kingdom of Oude, the province of Rohil-
cund, the valley of Deyra, &c., and lastly, to the court of
Ava, the coasts of Martaban and Tenesserim, became so
extensive as to contain nearly nine thousand species, and
an almost incalculable number of duplicates.

A voyage to Europe having been pronounced indispensa-

*Hook. Bot. Misc., vol. ii. T Ibid.

DR. WALLICH's COLLECTIONS. 119

bly necessary for the recovery of Dr. Wallich's health, which
had become greatly enfeebled by repeated attacks of fever,
he arrived in England in 1828, bringing with him the greater
part of his enormous collections, in order that he might de-
liver them in person to the court of directors. Two great
objects immediately occupied his attention. The first was
the arrangement of the collection ; for with a princely Hbe-
rality and' due appreciation of the value and importance of
natural science, the directors empowered him to proceed to
the distribution of the duplicates among the principal public
and private museums in Europe and America ; and this .
laborious yet pleasing task he proceeded at once to effect.
It is, however, yet more delightful to reflect, that the gene-
rositv of the company has been everywhere met with an
equally generous sentiment of gratitude, upwards of thirty
of the' most eminent botanists in Europe having come for-
ward to undertake the publication of monographs of the
more extensive and interesting families.* Thus will a
splendid series of Asiatic plants, brought together at great
labour and expense, be rendered available to the progress of
science in the shortest possible period of time. The second
object of Dr. Wallich's attention immediately after his arri-
val in this countr)-, v.-as the preparation of a magnificcHt
work upon Indian plants, of which two volumes in large
folio have already appeared under the patronage of the East
India Company"; and which, for scientific details and ex-
quisitely-coloured plates, ^re worthy of appearing under
such auspices, and of perpetuating the name of their most
estimable author.t

We cannot terminate this brief notice without mentioning
another excellent friend, Dr. Richard Wight, whose name
will ever be associated with the cause of Indian botany.
Besides contributing ver>' largely to the herbarium brought
home by Dr. Wallich, he has for a considerable time em-
ployed two collectors and a draftsman at his own personal
cost, and has returned to his native countr}^ with a finely-
preserved collection of nearly 4000 species, and 100,000
specimens, all gathered in the presidency of Madras. It is

* Wall. PI. Asiat. Rar., preface.

t The -work alluded to is the Plantai Asiatica Rariores, or Descniv
tions and Figures of a select Number of East Indian Flants, by N. Wat-
Uch, M. et. Ph. D.

120 BOTANY OF INDU.

Dr. Wight's intention to publish his discoveries, and in the
distribution of his duplicates to follow the example of the
East India Company.

It is extremely difBcult to form an estimate of the probable
extent of the Indian flora, the vegetation of many parts of
the country being entirely unknown, and almost everywhere
very imperfectly explored. In fact, in the remote districts,
little more has been done than to follow the courses of
rivers. The herbarium in the museum of the East India
Company contains about 9000 species, including those known
and described by Roxburgh in his manuscript catalogue,
most of which were at that time new. To this amount
remain to be added a considerable number of new species in
the collection of Dr. Wight. It is the opinion of the latter
gentleman, that when he returns to India he shall be able
to collect as many species in the presidency of Madras alone
as we possess at present from the whole of our possessions
there. Dr. Wallich obtained, from his own personal exer-
tions in the valley of Nepaul and within an area of about
sixty miles in circumference, upwards of 2500 species.
Twelve months was the space of lime devoted to this labour,
and it cannot be supposed that he succeeded in discovering
all the vegetable productions of that district. From these
and other data, it has been calculated by Dr. Wallich that
we are not acquainted, at the present moment, with more
than the eighth part of the flora of India ; an estimate by no
means improbable, but which gives to India itself as many
species of plants as we find described in botanical works.

By the discoveries of Dr. Wallich and his zealous coadju-
tors, a great accession of knowledge has been gained re-
specting the geographical distribution of many natural fami-
lies of plants ; and although this will be developed in a more
perfect and useful manner when his collections shall have
been described, yet even a list of those families which have
heen ascertained to belong (as far as we know) exclusively
to India, or to abound, or to have their maximum in that
country, will not, we hope, be without interest to the bo-
tanical reader.

The following families are exclusively Indian : — Chlena-
cese (confined to the island of Madagascar), Dipterocarpese,
MemecyleiB, Alangieae, Aquilarines?^ Stilagineae, Brexiacea

EXTE.MT OF THE INDIAN FLORA. 121

(confined toMadagascar), Hydroceres (confined to the island
of Java,) XcpenthesB (India and China).

The following families either abound in species or have
their maximum in India : —

Araliaceae, Nelumbones, Capparideae, FlacouTtiaceE,
Anonaceas, .Alyristiceffi, Dilleneaceag, Laurine^, Menisper-
meae, the true Sterculiacecs and the section Dombeyacese of
the same family, Moringes, ElaeocarpetB, Salicarise, Myrta-
ce£8, Combretaceffi, Santalaces, Olacinese, Leguminosae,
Urticeae, Artocarpeae, Euphorbiacese, Celastrinele, Rham-
neae, Sapindaceae, Vites, Meliaceae, Cedreleae, Aurantiacese^
Connaraceae, Amyrideae, Burserace©, Anacardiacese, Och-
nacess, Balsamineae, Begoniacea;, Piperaces, Cucurbitaces,
Cinchonacea;, Lorantheae, Loganiaceae, Asclepiadese, Apo-
cineffi, Convoh-ulaceas, Ebenaceae, Jasmines, Mvrsinese,
Cyrtandracese, Bignoniaces, Cycadea;, Commelineae, Scita-
niineae, Smilaces, Pandanes, Aroidese.

We are precluded by the limits of this article from enter-
ing into any details relative to the proportion which the
number of species in the different famihes bears to that
found m other parts of the world. Such calculations, be-
sides, could we even introduce them, would be far from
satisfactory, if drawn from such partial data. The number
of species in some families is, however, already known to
be very large. In the herbarium brought toaether by Dr.
Wallich, there are about 750 Legumutosa:, 5Q0 Cinchonacca^
nearly the same number of Fdxcps, about 300 Euphorbiacea,
300 OrchtdecE, and 300 Gramincce; while, if we select a few
©f the genera, we shall find him to possess 114 species of
Conyza, 105 kinds of Ficus (fig), 86 of Convolmilns, 88 of
Ruelha, 78 oi Justkia, 72 of Cypems, 46 of Vriica (nettle),
43 of Loranthis, 40 of Laurus, 39 of Tctranthera, 27 of
Ruhcs (bramble), 26 of Qucrcus {osk), 11 of Visaim (mis-
tletoe), &c.

The vegetation which characterizes an Indian landscape
depends upon so many circumstances, and varies so much
according to situation and elevation, that it is not easy to
convey more than a general impression by means of words.
The warmer parts partake more or less of the features of a
tropical,— the colder ones of those of an alpine flora. In
the low grounds bordering the seashore, especially of the
peninsula and islands, the cocoa-palm, with its lofty, straight

Vol. III. — L

122 BOTANY OF INDIA.

and naked stems and feathery tuft of arching leaves, forms
large groves, and, often lining the coast for many miles in
succession, is a striking and conspicuous object. Sandy
tracts of country on the seaside also produce various species
of Acada, whose finely-divided foliage is one of the first
attractions to the eye of the stranger. In such places the
Euphorbia antiquontm is common — an odd-looking, three-
cornered, and thorny kind of spurge, the juice of which is
supposed to furnish the Burmese with poison for their spears
and arrows. One of the most frequent and pleasing features
in the landscape throughout Hindostan is the luxuriant and
umbracreous mango-tope, yielding alike shade and subsist-
ence to the inhabitants. The mango {Mangifera Indica) is
a large tree with foliage somewhat resembling that of the
Spanish chestnut, and producing a fruit which is said to
vary in shape, colour, and flavour as much as apples do in
Europe. The fruit is brought to Europe in an unripe state
as a well-known pickle ; but in India it is esteemed a deli-
cacy by the rich, and a nutritious diet by the poor. Accord-
ing to Forbes, mango and tamarind trees are usually planted
when a village is built. " Some of the plantations or topes
are of such an extent, that ten or twelve thousand men may
encamp under shelter. It is a general practice, when a
plantation of mango-trees is made to dig a vyell on one side
of it. The well and the tope are married — a ceremony at
which all the village attends, and large sums are often ex-
pended. The well is considered as the husband, and its
waters, which are copiously furnished to the young trees
during the first hot season, are supposed to cherish and
impregnate them."*

^o country in the world produces so large a number of
forest-trees as India ; many of them of the highest value
for timber, and, unlike our European trees, often distin-
guished for ample leaves and large and fragrant flowers.
Nothing can be more glorious than the appearance of an
Indian scene during the period, or soon after the rainy
season, when the whole country is replete with fragrance
and verdure ; when many of the more delicate herbaceous
plants, which had vanished, or languished under the intoler-
able heat, put forth their blossoms of every hue with aston-

* Forbes's Oriental Jlemoirs.

VEGETATION' OF THE PLAINS. 123

ishing' rapiJit}-, and seem bj' their wild luxuriance to ex-
press their joy and gratitude to the great Author of nature.
An endless variety of shrubs adorn the hedges, which are
often formed of some kind of Euphorbia or the odoriferous
Pandaitus, while cucurbitaceous plants, and a vast number
of bindweeds and- other climbers, interlace their flexible
branches, overtop the hedges, and decorate even lofty trees
with festoons of living drapery. A species of Trichozanthes
ascends to the tops of the highest trees, and produces a
beautiful white flower with a fringed border, but which, ex-
panding only in the night, is rarely seen ; while the abun-
dant fruit, nearly as large as a small orange and of a vivid
scarlet-colour, is very ornamental. So numerous are climb-
ers of this description, that trees and shrubs are lashed as
it were together, and the Indian forests or jungles often
rendered impenetrable except to birds and wild animals.
Where the silk cotton-tree {Bombax Ceiba) and the Decan-
nee-bean {Bufta siiperba) abound, the effect which is
produced by the crimsom blossoms of the one and the scarlet
blossoms of the other has been described as inconceivably
splendid. These^ contrasted b3- their black stalks, observes
Forbes in one of his poetic descriptions, give a briUiant
eS'ect to the western woods, which appear at sunset like im-
mense forests in a glow of fire. The cocoa-palm has been
alreadj' mentioned as forming a remarkable spectacle on
the coasts of some parts of the country ; other palms must
not, however, be omitted in this picture, particular!}', the
palmyra-tree {Borassus flalelUformis), one of the largest of
the Indian palms, ffrowino- to fifty or even a hundred feet
high, and surmounted by a circle of enormous tan-shaped
leaves. The Caryota, urcns, nearly as lofty as the cocoa-tree,
has a trunk sometimes nearly three feet in diameter, and a
twice-feathered crown of leaves. All these, however, yield
in grace to the betel-nut-tree {Areca calcclai), the po-ka-
tskilfoo of the Hindoos, — a palm cultivated all over India
for the sake of the fruit, the celebrated betel-nut. The
trunk of this beautiful palm is perfectly straight, forty or
fifty feet high, and about twenty inches in circumference,
smooth, and of nearly equal thickness throughout its whole
length. " There is a peculiar delicacy in the proportion and
foliage of this tree," says Forbes, " which makes it gener-
ally admired ; the Indians compare it to :m elegantly-formed

124 BOTANY OF INDIA.

and beautiful woman." It will be at once felt how strik-
ingly these princes of the vegetable kingdom must charac-
terize the aspect of those districts where they most abound.
IVor must we forget to particularly admire in the scenery of
this country the several kinds of Bambusa, all passing un-
der the popular name of bamboo. The bamboo is a native
of tropical regions, and though a gramineous plant, attains
almost an arborescent character : it is from thirty to a hun-
dred feet in height ; and, when bending gracefully before
the wind, is aiSrmed by Humboldt to be one of the most
remarkable objects in a tropical landscape.

The tanks and streams in India present a variety of
beautiful flowers, mostly belonging to the genera Nelumbo,
Nymphcea, and YiUarsia, but going under the general de-
nomination of water-lilies. These delight in a warm at-
mosphere, but the shade afforded by the surrounding groves
is at the same time congenial to their nature ; and their
broad blossoms of various hues, as thej- float on the surface
of the quiet water, are the admiration of natives as well as
of foreigners.

As we leave the plains and ascend the hilly country, the
vegetable forms are obsened to change, and when we at-
tain an elevation of about 5000 feet we begin to find a flora
characteristic of a temperate region. " On arriving at
■what maj' be called the mountains, though they are not
separated from the low hills by any distinct boundary, we
have a very elevated region, consisting of one mountain
heaped on another, and rising to a great height ; so that
when any fall happens in winter their tops are for a short
time covered with snow. The inhabited valleys between
these are in general very narrow, and are of various degrees
of elevation, probably from 3000 to 6000 feet of perpendicular
height above the plains of Puraniya. Of course they differ
very much in their temperature ; so that some of them
abound in the ratan and bamboo, both of enormous dimen-
sion, while others produce only oaks and pines. Some
ripen the pine-apple and sugar-cane, while others produce
only barley, millet, and other grains. The timber-trees
consist of various oaks, pines, firs, walnut, chestnut, horn-
beam, yew, laurels, hollies, birches, Gordonias, Michclias,
&c., most of them species hitherto unnoticed by bota-
nists."*

* Hamilton's Account of Nepaul.

MOUNTAIN' VEGETATION. 125

Captain Raper, in his Survey of the Ganges, when
speaking of the vegetation at a great elevation, mentions
similar productions, — especially a species of oak, bearing
acorns as large as pigeons' eggs and of the same form, —
and abundance of hazel and walnut-trees.

Of many other European genera we find representatives
in these regions, exhibiting a physiognomy derived from
their elevated situation, which strikingly corresponds with
that of species exposed to a similar temperature in other
parts of the world. Roses are found in the tropical, but
more plentifully in temperate and frigid regions; whil&
brambles delight in the two latter. The genus Pnmida
occurs at an altitude of 5000 feet ; Androsace, which is al-
ways more truly alpine, at 10,000 feet. On the Himmaleh
range we find Geum, and several species of Ribcs (cur-
rants). Rhododendrons, Andromedas, and Gualtherias
have a range from the temperate to the frigid regions.
Rhododendron arhorcum, the most beautiful species of a
beautiful genus, rises among the mountains to the height of
a tree, with a trunk of above twenty feet, bearing large
clusters of vermilion-coloured flowers at the ends of the
smaller branches. Rose-coloured and white varieties were
found by Dr. Wallich on the verj' summit of the mountain
Sheopur, in Xepaul, at an elevation of 10,000 feet. Even
the strawberry flourishes, and the nearly-allied genus Po-
tentilla furnishes among others two most remarkable species,
P. forinosa and atrosaiiguinea, which, for the sake of their
fine red flowers, have been transported from the lofty sum-
mits of Nepaul to the flower-gardens of Europe. Among
these mountains we also observe a species of Cypripcdium,
nearly allied to the European and American ones. C. re-
mtstum and msignc, which differ so much from their con-
geners, do not belong to Nepaul, as has been commonly be-
lieved, but were discovered, as Dr. Wallich infonns us, on
the mountains of Sylhet. At about 1000 feet above the
Valley of Xepaul, the genus Pinus, of which eight species
are known to inhabit these regions, becomes conspicuous.
Some of them are worthy of particular notice, — especially
the Prints Deodar, closely resembling the true cedar, and
confined to great elevations ; the P. excelsa of the Planfa
AsialiccE Rariorcs, a gigantic tree with cones nine or ten
inches in leni^th ; and P. Wcbbianaoi Wallich, also an im-

L2

126 BOTANY OF INDIA.

mense cedar-like tree with purple cones, from which the
Tartars prepare a kind of indigo.

The discovery of a beautiful species of palm in the Val-
ley of Nepaul must be regarded as an extraordinary phe-
nomenon, and an exception to the general character of the
vegetation of a mountain region. This palm was found by
Dr. Wallich in one circumscribed spot, at an elevation of
5000 feet above the level of the sea, and has been named
by him Chamcerops Martmna,'- after the celebrated Brazilian
traveller and naturalist Von Martius, whose magnificent
work on the Palms of Brazil fully entitles him tolmy dis-
tinction that one man of science can confer on another.

It is at an elevation similar to that of the Valley of Ke-
paul that the beautiful and graceful family of ferns" begin to
develope themselves in prodigious luxuriance and variety ;
nor do they cease to flourish Under an elevation of 10,000
feet. Mosses, of which many very curious kinds have been
forwarded to this country by Dr. Wallich, prevail for the
most part in similar situations. Lichens are more sparino-ly
scattered than in Europe, and constitute, as in every other
part of the globe, the limits of mountain vegetation.'

* Since Ais notice was sent to press, we have received the ninth fasci-
culus of the P/arete Asiatics Rariores, in which tliis palm is exotu-
sitely figured from a drawing executed under the immediate inspectioa
of Von Martius. '

i

POWERFUL VEGETABLE POISON. 127

CHAPTER VII.

►Same Account of a few of the more rcmarkalle Indian Plants,
in which the Species are arranged actoi'ding to the Natural
Families to which they belo7ig.

Plants deserving of particular Notice in the Families, Ranunculaceae—
Magnoliaceee— Malvareas— Dipterocarpea;— Combretaceae — Thymeles
— Santalacese— RosaeecB — Leguminbsas— Urticeae— Artocarpea'— Be-
tiilineae— Euphorbiaceaj — Cedreleae — Aurantiaceae — Anacardiacae —
Piperaces — Sapoteae — Valerianese— CinchonaceiE — Lorantheee — Apo-
cyneip— Verhenacese— Asphodelete— Palms— Gramineae— Ferns and
Acotyledonus Plants— Mosses— Algae— Fungi.

PANUNCULACE^.

Ix this family are four species of aconite, natives of the
mountain ranges of Northern India. All are said to be
virulent poisons ; but one of them in particular, the Acn-
nilum ferox, of which a beautiful figure is given in the
Plantoe AsioAicce Rariores, is celebrated, and would appear
from various experunents to contain a principle nearly, if
not quite, as powerful as strychnine, the upas, and voorara
poisons. According to Dr. Wallich, it is probably the most
deleterious vegetable poison of Continental India. The
Sanscrit name is visha (poison), and Dr. Wallich has satis-
factorily ascertained that a poisonous plant, alluded to by
Dr. Hamilton in the following passage, and called bish or
bikh by the natives, is really to be referred to the present
species. " This dreadful root, of which large quantities
are annually imported, is equally fatal when taken into the
stomach or applied to wounds, and is in universal use for
poisoning arrows ; and, there is too much reason to siaspect,
for the worst of purposes. Its importation would indeed
seem to require the attention of the magistrates. The
Gorkhalese pretend that it is one of their principal securities
against invasion from the low countries, and that they
could so infect all the waters on the route by which an
enemy was advancing, as to occasion his certain destruc-

128 BOTANY OF INDIA.

tion."* "Upon this account it has been remarked by Wal-
lich, " his statement of the belief of the Gorkhas, that the
bikh would protect them from foreign invasion, and his
opinion that such a kind of defence might be easily frus-
trated, have been fully verified during the late war with Ne-
paul. In the Turraye, or low forest-lands which skirt the
approach to that country, and among the lower range of
hills, especially at a place called Hetounra, quantities of the
bruised root were thrown into wells and reservoirs, for the
purpose of poisoning our men and cattle ; the attempt,
however, was verv soon discovered."!

It is added by the same author, that the hikh is employed
in the northern parts of Hindostan for destroying tigers.
Arrows poisoned with that drug are shot from bows fixed
near the tracks leading to their watering-places ; and it
generally happens that the animal is found dead at the lat-
ter. The tuberous roots are imported into the plains, and
sold at the rate of a shilling a pound.

MAGNOLIACE.?:.

There are few genera in which the species are all so beau-
tiful as in Magnolia. The family is a small one, and
though its focus, as Professor Lindley has observed, is un-
doubtedly North America, where the woods, the swamps,
and the sides of the hills abound with them, individuals
straggle on the one hand into the West India islands, and
on the other into India, through China and Japan. A
charming species, named by Wallich Magnolia insigms,
was found by him at Sankoo, in the great valley of Nepaul,
and on the mountain Sheopur, towards its summit, a spot
which appears to be singularly rich in a splendid vegetation,
for it was here where also grew the white and rose-coloured
varieties of the tree rhododendron, and the Quercus seme-
carpifolia, a tree eighty to a hundred feet high, and with a
trunk between twenty and thirty feet in circumference.
Even Magnolia insignis is a tree of vast size, the trunk
being frequently four or five feet in diameter. When in full
blossom, it is affirmed by its estimable discoverer to be one
of the most magnificent objects ever beheld ; the large, fra-

* Hamilton's Account of Nepaul.

t WalUcU's Plantae Asiatics Rariores.

SUPERSTITIONS OF THE NATIVES. 129

grant, and beautiful yellowish-white flowers are produced in
vast numbers amid the dark-green foliage, and are suc-
ceeded by oblong cones of purple capsules, from which the
scarlet seeds are suspended by delicate white threads. This
noble tree will bear, there is little doubt, the climate of
Great Britain ; and to try the experiment, at least, is one of
the many laudable objects to which Dr. Wallich looks for-
ward on his return to India.

The flower of the champac, which is either a species of
Magnolia or Michelia, is frequently praised by Sanscrit
poets for its elegant appearance in the black hair of the In-
dian women. A blue-flowering champac is said to exist ;
but the Bramins insist that it flowers only in Paradise.

MALVACEAE.

Malvaceous plants abound in the tropics, forming, ac-
cording to Humboldt, one-fiftieth of the flowering plants.
In India they are very numerous, and many species are put
to economical use. In China the well-known Hibiscus
Rosa Sinejisis is used by the people to blacken their eye-
brows and the leather of their shoes. The difterent species
of Gossypmm which furnish the cotton of commerce, and
some of which are cultivated in India, belong to this place.
Hibiscus cannabimis, the gong-kura of the Telingas, is
much cultivated by the natives. According to Roxburgh,
its leaves are used as an esculent vegetable, tasting like
sorrel ; and the bark is converted into a substitute for hemp,
to which, however, it is in every respect greatly inferior. It
is an herbaceous plant, from three to seven feet in height,
with handsome flowers.

DIPTEROCARPEjE.

The saul-tree {Sharea robusta) is a magnificent and much-
esteemed forest-tree ; it is indeed regarded as a staple
timber of Hindostan, and produces the best resin in the con-
tinent of India for naval and other purposes. The natives
also prefer it to bum as incense in their temples. Lord
Teicnmiouth and Sir William Jones collected evidence of
this tree being employed in some of the superstitious prac-
tices of the country, which are too interesting not to trans-
cribe : " To ascertain with a degree of certainty the per-
sons guilty of practising witchcraft, the three following

130 BOTANY OF INDIA.

modes are adopted : — 1. Branches of the saul-tree, marked
with the names of all the females in the village, whether
married or unmarried, who have attained the age of twelve
years, are planted in the water in the morning for the space
of four hours and a half; and the withering of any of these
branches isj)roof of witchcraft against the person whose
name is annexed to it. 2. Small portions of rice enveloped
in cloths, marked as above, are placed in a nest of white
ants ; the consumption of the rice in any of the bags es-
tablishes sorcery against the woman whose name it bears.
3. Lamps are lighted at night ; water is placed in cups
made of leaves, and mustard-seed-oil is poured drop by drop
into the water, while the name of each woman in the village
is pronounced. The appearance of the shadow of any
woman on the water during the ceremony proves her a
witch."* Grains of rice are frequently resorted to by the
deluded natives in other superstitious rites. When desirous
of obtaining an answer to their prayers from any of their
deities, they apply several grains of moistened rice to each
side of the idol's body ; then, after relating all the particu-
lars of their case, they entreat him to signify his gracious
pleasure by allowing some of the grains to fall on one side
or the other. If the grains fall from the wrong side, the
image is unfavourably disposed, and the petitioner begins
the ceremony anew. The grains are again wetted and
applied ; and as they are just as likely to fall from one side
as the other, he never eventually fails of success.

To DipterocarpecB belong some of the most splendid trees
of India. The genus Dipterocarpus itself, the type of the
family, is famous for affording the carjan, or wood-oil of
the English ; that obtained from one species in particular
is, according to information kindly communicated by Dr.
Wallich, equal to linse^d-oil as a drying oil for painting,
and superior to it in conservative properties. Six Diplero-
carpi are enumerated by Dr. Wallich, and several are rep-
resented in Blume's Flora Jaca, of which D. trinervis and
retusus are from one hundred and fifty to two hundred feet
in height ; D. spanoghei, one hundred feet in height and
above ten feet in diameter ; D. gracilis, equally thick, and
one hundred and fifty feet in height. These trees must

* Asiatic Researches, vol. iv.

CAMPHOR-TREE COPAL-TREE. 131

therefore rank among the most noble ornaments of an
Indian forest, and deser\'e the appellation, " arlores vastis-
Simmy Dry ohalancrps camphora, or the Sumatra camphor-
tree, supposed by some botanists to be a species of Dipte-
rocarpus, also rises to an elevation of one hundred feet and
js remarkable for yielding a kind of camphor, which is found
lodged m cavities, a few inches wide, in the heart of the
trunk. The trunk of one tree yields from ten to twentv
pounds of camphor, called se tantong. It is said to be
more pure than the common camphor of commerce, which
IS obtained from a kind of laurel, the Laurus Camphora.

The Indian genera Hopea and Vaiena are likewise
referred to this place ; the former, containing some magnifi-
cent trees, was named in honour of Dr. Hope, Professor
of Botany in the University of Edinburgh ; the latter is
known lor the resin it produces, which is said to resemble
copal, and to be called by that name in India. The best
specimens have the appearance of amber, and are manu-
factured into ornaments. In its recent and fluid state it
forms a good varnish.

COMBRETACE^^.

In this family are several plants extensively used in
economy and the arts, some of which are produced in our
Indian possessions. The most valuable is Terminalm Che-
bula, the cadukay of the Telingas, native of the mountainous
parts of the Circars. It is a large tree, with a wide-spread-
ing, shady, evergreen head, producing an oval yellow fruit
about the size of a pigeon's egg. The timber is of consider-
able size, hard and durable; but the greatest use is made
of the outer coat of the fruit, which is extremely astrinaent,
by chintz-printers and diers. A kind of gall found on the
leaves, and which is sold in every market, is also extensively
employed to produce one of the best and most durable yel-
lows obtained in India. Ink made with the assistance of
the fruit IS said to stand the climate better than that im-
ported from Europe. Terviinalia xernix is believed to fur-
nish the celebrated Chinese varnish.

THYMELE/E.

From the bark of two or three species of Daphne the
natives manufacture a very good paper, an account of which

132 BOTANY OF INDIA.

was published by Dr. Wallich in the Asiatic Researches.
As the information which he there gives is curioas and in-
terestintr, and probably new to most of our readers, we
shall lay it before them. The principal species made use
of in the making of paper is the Daphne cannahma. It is
a very branching shrub, six or eight feet high, with lanceo-
late shining leaves, and grows in the mountainous parts of
Hindostan,1from Ncpaul to the province of Kemaoon. The
flowers are exquisitely fragrant, resembling those of the
I), odora of our hot-houses. The paper manufactured from
the bark is of various dimensions and texture. The finest
kind measures ten feet in length by four feet in breadth,
and is manufoctured chiefly in Dotee, a province to the
eastward of Kemaoon. It approaches in softness and size
to that which is made in China, and Dr. Wallich thinks it
is not improbable that some of the latter may be produced
from the same material. The following particulars are ex-
tracted by Dr. Wallich from the MSS. of Lieutenant H. K.
Murray, forming a part of that gentleman's official corres-
pondence with the Military Board at Calcutta :— " 1 he
Sel-Burooa, or paper-shrub, is found on the most exposed
parts of the mountains, and those tlie most elevated and
covered with snow, throughout the province of Kemaoon.
In traversing the oak-forests between Bheemtah and Ram-
ghur, and attain from Almora to Chumpawat and down
towards the river, it has come under the immediate obser-
vation of the writer of these communications, that the Sct-
Burooa, or paper-plant, only thrives luxuriantly where the
oak grows ; so that it is not likely that it will succeed in
the plains. It is hardy, and attains a height of five or six
feet ; blossoming in January and February, and ripening
its acrid red fruit about the end of April. The paper pre-
pared from its bark is particularly calculated for cartridges,
being strong, tough, not liable to crack or break, however
much bent or folded, proof against being moth-eaten, and
not in the least subject to dampness from any change in
the weather ; besides, if drenched or kept in water for any-
considerable time, it will not rot. It is invariably used all
over Kemaoon, and in great request in many parts of the
plains, for the purpose of writing misubnamees or genea-
logical records, deeds, &c., from its extraordinary dura-
bility. It is generally made about one yard square, and

PAPER-SHRUB SANDAL-WOOD. 133

of three different qualities. The best sort is retailed at the
rate of forty sheets for a current rupee, and wholesale at
eighty sheets. The worst sort, however, is of a much
smaller size, and retailed at a hundred and forty sheets,
and wholesale at a hundred and sixty or seventy for the
rupee. The following is the very simple process of manu-
facturing this paper :— After scraping off the outer surface
of the bark, what remains is boiled in fair water with a
small quantity of the ashes of the oak, — a most necessary
part of the ingredients, — which has the effect of cleaning
and whitening the stuff. After the boiling it is washed,,
and immediately beat to a pulp with small mallets on a
stone ; so that, when mixed up in a vat with the fairest
water, it has the appearance of flour and water. It is then
spread on moulds or frames made of common bamboo-
mats."*

Daphne Gardneri, another new species with fragrant
flowers, described by Dr. Wallich, and native of the moun-
tains of Nepaul, also furnishes materials for making a very
superior kind of paper.

SANTALACF,^.

Few Indian productions are better known than the san-
dal-wood of commerce, — the product of a small tree, the
Santalum album of Linnsus. Highly prized, however, as
this fragrant wood is in Europe for various kinds of cabinet-
work and ornamental articles, it is equally esteemed by the
natives themselves. The best kind is brought from the
western coasts of India. When the tree becomes old, the
centre of the trunk acquires a yellow colour, great fra-
grance, and hardness, while the exterior part is less firm,
white, and without fragrance. Among the Hindoos it is
called chaiidana, and is frequently mentioned in their most
ancient books. An elegant Sanscrit stanza, says Sir Wil-
liam Jones, of which the following version is literally exact,
alludes to the popular belief that vinus {teaugsa according
to others), or bamboos as they are vulgarly called, oflen
take fire by the violence of their collision, and is addressed,
under the allegory of a sandal-tree, to a virtuous man
dwelling in a town inhabited by contending factions : — •

* Asiatic Researches, vol. xiii.
Vol. III.— M

134 BOTANY OF INDIA.

" Delight of the world, beloved chandana, stay no longer in
this forest, which is overspread with rigid, pernicious
vans'as, whose hearts are unsound, and who being them-
selves confounded in the scorching stream of flames kindled
by their mutual attrition, will consume, not their own fami-
lies merely, but this whole wood."

EOSACE^.

Most of the plants belonging to this beautiful family are
found in the temperate and cold climates of the northern
hemisphere. In the West Indies only one solitary repre-
sentative occurs, the Rubus Jamakensis. In the East
Indies, however, we find a richer flora,— the high lands of
even the tropical part producing, according to Lindley,
twelve species of Rubus. Dr. Wallich's catalogue contains
an enumeration of sixteen different kinds of Rosa ; twenty-
seven Rubi ; two species of Neillia ; ten of Spiraa ; three
of Geum ; twenty-two of PotentiUa, one only of which
belongs to tropical India, &c. Were we to include in this
family the pomace.e, considered by Lindley as distinct from
the true rosace^,* we should be able to reckon in the Indian
flora seven species of Pyrus (pear) ; eight of Cotoncastcr ;
two of Eriobotrys ; five of Photinia, &c. And among the
AMYODALK.'E, also a distinct family, according to the same
author.t ten species of Ccrasus (cherry) ; one of Amygdalus,
&c. From the petals of Rosa Daniasccna is obtained tnat
exquisite Indian perfume, attar of roses. This it is not
unusual to adulterate, by adding raspings of sandal-wood
during the process of distillation, or (as in Cashmere) the
leaves' of a sweet-scented grass. It is worthy of remark
that genuine attar is of no peculiar colour. The same
roses gathered on different days, but growing on the same
piece of ground, and treated in the same way, yielding
attar of an emerald-green, a bright yellow, and of a reddish
hue.

LEGUMINOS-^.

We have already had occasion to notice how large a
number of these plants are produced in British India. We

* Linnfpan Transactions, vol. xiii. ]). 93.

t Introduction to the Natural System of Botany, p. 84.

FINE TIMBER-TREES. 135

have now to add that there are few families which furnish
more useful vegetables for the service of mankind. Here
we find many gums and resins, many plants whose pods
or seeds constitute a nourishing diet, or from their astrin-
gency are sought after by the tanner and the dier. The in-
digo, one of the most useful of all dies, is yielded by Indi-
gofera Indka. Some of our best timber is obtained from
trees belonging to this family ; and, where no striking prop-
erty has been discovered, the exquisite beauty of many
others entitles them to our attention and admiration. Some
of the finest leguminose timber-trees are perhaps to be
found in the genus Dalbergia. Roxburgh describes D.
latifolia as one of the largest mountain-trees of the penin-
sula. The wood is known by the name of blachcood, and
is of a grayish black with light-coloured veins, so heavy as
to sink in water, close-grained, and admitting of the highest
poUsh, which renders it highly esteemed for furniture. Dr.
Roxburgh mentions having seen planks of it from the Mal-
abar coast full three feet and a half broad ; and allowing
nine inches of white wood to have been on the outside, the
circumference must have been fifteen feet, exclusive of the
bark. Equally useful, and possessing the advantage of
being one of the quickest-growing timber-trees in the world,
is Dalbergia Cissu. This wood, we are informed by Dr.
Wallich, has no rival for purposes where toughness and
elasticity are required to be combined. It does not splinter
when penetrated or perforated by a cannon-ball. Through-
out Hindostan the naves, felloes, and spokes of gun-carriage-
wheels are made of it in preference to any other. In the
navy it is chiefly excellent for what are called crooked-tim-
bers. For all these purposes it attains a sufficient size in
thirty-five or forty years : this is proved by several trees
which were planted in the Botanic Garden at Calcutta in
the year 1796, and wliich have now an elevation of eighty
to a hundred feet, and a circumference of fourteen feet.
D. Cissu is found only in the north of Hindostan, and in
point of geographical extension, we are assured by Dr.
Wallich, is one of the most limited species we know of.
At the ^same time it is abundantly prolific in throwing up
saplings ; but though a forest produced in this way looks
more promising than any other, the wood produced by sap-
ling-timber is much inferior, and the greatest caution is

136 BOTANV OF INDIA.

therefore required. This propensity to thro\y up sapUngs
is so striking, that no seedling is ever found within the con-
fines of a Clssu forest, owing to the excessive luxuriance
of the ground-shoots and the thin and perishable nature of

the seed.

Butea Frondosa, a rather large tree with a crooked trunk,
is one of those considered holy by the Hindoos, who call it
Palasa. The leaves are twelve' or sixteen inches long,
composed of three oval leaflets ; the flowers large and pen-
dulous and forming rich racemes, — their ground-colour a
beautiful deep-red shaded with orange and silver-coloured
down, which gives them a most elegant appearance. We
are informed by Sir William Jones that the Palasa is named
with honour in the Vedas, in the laws of Menu, and in
Sanscrit poems, both sacred and popular : it gave its name
to the memorable plain called Plassey by the vulgar, but
properly Palasi. A grove of palasas was formerly the pnn-
cipal ornament of Crishna-nagar, where we still see the
trunk of an aged tree near six feet in circumference. From
natural fissures, and wounds made in the bark during the hot
season, there issues a most beautiful red juice, wluch soon
hardens into a ruby -coloured brittle astringent gum, which
may at some future time be applied to useful purposes.*
A beautiful yellow die is obtained from the flowers ; and
Dr. Roxburgh mentions, that from the expressed juice of
the fresh flowers, which, after diluting with alum-water, he
evaporated by the heat of the sun into a soft extract, he
procured a brighter water-colour than any gamboge he ever
met with ; nor did it fade during a period of twelve months.
Another species of Butea, B. superba, is a very large
climber, with a stem thicker than a man's arm, and beanng
the most splendid flowers, in such profusion as to render it
one of the most gaudy vegetables known. They also yield

a similar die. , »• <•

The nest plant that we shall notice in. our selection ot
leguminose species is perhaps one of the most interesting.
This is the rice-paper-plant {JEschynomene paludosa), the
Shola of the Bengalese. Much uncertainty has prevailed
in retrard to the real nature of the substance called rice-
paper ; and many people actually believe that rice enters m

* Roxburgh's Plants of Coromandel

RICE-PAPER-PLANT. 137

some way or other into its composition. This, however, is
an erroneous impression. Rice-paper is prepared, or rather
simply cut out of the stem of an herbaceous plant, to which
Roxburgh gave the name above mentioned. The portions
of the stem which we have seen are several inches in length,
and from half an inch to above one inch in diameter, and
entirely composed, to the very centre, of a fine white cellu-
lar tissue, marked in a transverse section with two or three
delicate concentric circles, resembling those in thfe woody
structure of dicotyledonous plants. In order, therefore, to
procure a sheet of this substance, it is necessary to cut it
in a circular manner, unrolling it, as it were, like a scroll.
We learn from an account published by Dr. Hooker,* that
rice-paper was first brought to this country from China,
about twenty-five years ago, by Dr. Livingstone. The
Chinese die it of various colours, and employ it chiefly in
the manufacture of their artificial flowers. Formerly, the
size of each piece was about four inches square, but they
may now be had upwards of a foot in length and five inches
in breadth. This curious vegetable is not, however, con-
fined to China. " It grows," says General Hardwicke, in
a communication to Dr. Hooker, " abundantly in the marshy
plains of Bengal, and on the borders of jedls or extensive
lakes in every province between Calcutta and Hurdwar.
The plant is perennial, of straggling low growth, and sel-
dom exceeds a diameter of two inches and a half in the
stem. It is brought to the Calcutta bazaars in great quan-
tities in a green state ; and the thickest stems are cut into
laminae, from which the natives form artificial flowers and
various fancy ornaments to decorate their shrines at Hindoo
festivals. The Indians make hats of rice-paper, by ce-
menting together as many leaves as will produce the requi-
site thickness ; in this way any kind of shape may be formed ;
and when covered with silk or cloth, the hats are strong and
inconceivably light. It is an article of great use to fisher-
men ; it forms floats of the best description to their exten-
sive nets. The slender stems of the plant are bundled into
fascines about three feet long ; and with one of these under
his arm does every fisherman go out to his daily occupation.
With his net on his shoulders he proceeds to work without

* Botanical Miscellany, vol. i.

J 38 BOTANY OF INDIA.

a boat, »nd =l»lcl'e> " » "» ">«Pf ""J ■°°" """'™™
akes supportea with this buoyant lagot. f ,. „ ^_

I .St of the le-umioose faniilv, and one of the ex-
teniv. t°. . C ««™, we have a very pne.al snb.t.tn.e
fo?! emfth oughout the warmer parts ol InJ.a, ttnd e en

rr r »dtw»t"pSr» IS, i£: ^
s^ro'ES'hi^h;''^: c«^£ts; i'jt^tjs^

substance (the .tale ■»"l''**Xorabout'a rupee and a
about 600 P»«"''f Jl,"' ™j;. This is the only plant
'",f'^ ""ftaSe „a ives Ke fcoromandel coast as fo»l

s\?;'od:,crr.-i^r"° ' »*" "- "^"■

^;f ''r ' ' fides felinJ the greater part of the gum-
""^ if" commerce the wo°od is valued for its strong, tough
arable ^f 'commerce, tne wo ^^^ ^^^^^.^^

and durable quaht^s It IS e^^^^^^^^ ^^ ^^^.^ ^

timbers m ^^'P-'^'^'^f f'„b'U is a most powerful simple
other purposes. The inner to m p^^ ^^^ ^^ ^.^
astringent, and is not onl> emplo>ea i ° j j, 3,e

various shades of brov^n ' T^^ile the unr p j

T' '^'l^rpti^fe-rs. icS/cLi^^a, as I'arge and
diers and chmtz-prmiers. ^<' furnishes an astnn-

-nfbS'^^rih t Ses-^ilstU an ardent spirit.
Hemp and Flax."

DANGEROUS KINDS OF NETTLE. 139

The fresh bark, after having been cut in pieces, is fermented
with water, palm-juice, and a little coarse sugar. When
the fermentation is at its proper height, the liquor is dis-
tilled and the spirit drawn off. From a third species, whose
wood is of uncommon hardness, the Bramins are accus-
tomed to kindle their sacred fire by rubbing two pieces of
it together.

URTICE^E.

India is singularly rich in plants of this family. Dr.
M'allich's catalogue contains 47 species of Urtica (nettle),
while in Sprengel's edition of the Systema, Yegetabilium,
the total number amounts only to 111 species. Fourteen
species of Procris are also enumerated in the same catalogue.
Several of the Indian nettles have been substituted for hemp
ty the natives, and experiments have been made upon the
fibre, with a view of ascertaining its real value, butwithout
much success. The Urtica tejiacissima of Roxburgh is the
most useful species for this purpose, and indeed is cultivated
bj' the inhabitants of Rungpoor for the sake of the fibres
of its bark, of which they make their fishing-nets. It is
the kankhura of that district, and the ramy of the Malays.
The plant grows from cuttings, and the fibres are certainly
very fine and strong, but the cleaning is a tedious process.
Everybody is acquainted with the effects of the sting of
the common European nettles, but they can hardly form an
idea of the consequences which arise from handling some
of the Indian species. Professor Lindley mentions a '
strikmg example in the case of M. Leschenault, who de-
scribes the effect of gathering Urtica cremdata in the Bo-
tanic Garden at Calcutta. The account is contamed in the
sixth volume of the Miinoircs du Musium ; but as we have
not that work at hand, we shall quote Professor Lindley's
own words. " One of the leaves (says M. Leschenault)
slightly touched the first three fingers of my left hand : at
the time I only perceived a slight pricking, to which I paid
no intention. This was at seven in the morning. The
pam continued to increase ; in an hour it had become in-
tolerable ; it seemed as if some one was rubbing'my fingers
with a hot iron. Nevertheless there was no remarkable
appearance ; neither swelling, nor pustule, nor inflamma-

140 BOTANY OF INDIA.

tion. The pain rapidly spread along the arm as far as the
armpit. I was then seized with frequent sneezing, and
with a copious running at the nose, as if I had caught a
violent cold in the head. About noon I experienced a pain-
ful contraction of the back of the jaws, which made me fear
an attack of tetanus. I then went to bed, hoping that re-
pose would alleviate my suffering ; but it did not abate : on
the contrary, it continued during nearly the whole of the
following night ; but I lost the contraction in the jaws about
seven in" the evening. The next morning the pain began
to leave me, and I fell asleep. I continued to suffer for two
days, and the pain returned in full force when I put my
hand into water. I did not finally lose it for nine days."*
These effects did not arise from any peculiarity in the con-
stitution of M. Leschenault, for a workman in the garden
was affected in the same way. There is, however, a nettle
in Timor, called daoun sctaji, or devil's leaf, the effects of
which are said by the natives to last for a year, or even to
cause death itself, t

Cannabis sativa, or the common hemp, another plant of
this family, is less known out of Europe for its useful fibre
than the intoxicating and stupifying qualities of its leaves.
The Hottentots resort to it for the purpose of inebriation,
and call it dacha. By the Turks it is named malach ; by
the Persians beyig. In some parts of India, among Euro-
peans at least, it is known by the name of bhanff, and is
consumed very generally by the natives, especially in the
northern parts of Hindostan. It was formerly put to the
vilest purposes. " State-prisoners in Mysore," says Dr.
Fryer, a writer in the latter part of the last century, " are
sent bv the king's order to a place of punishment, where
the keeper, being informed of the heinousness of the crime,
mingles for them a drink made of bhang, the juice of an
intoxicating sort of hemp. This at first they refuse ; but
on receiving the addition of some diitnj, made from the
deadly solanum, called poss, it makes them so foolishly mad,
that, after a week's taking, they crave it more than ever
they nauseated.''^

* Introduction to the Natural System, p. 93. t Lindley

$ Pr, Fryer's Account of East India and Persia.

BREAD-FRUIT-TREE. 141

ARTOCARPE^.

To the genus from which the name of the family has been
borrowed belongs the well-known bread-fruit (^r^ocarpw*
incisa),* and the jack or jaca {Artocarpus integrifoUa). _ The
former as well as the latter is said to be found in India, be-
sides eight other species, as appears from Dr. Wallich's
catalogue. The bread-fruit-tree is about forty feet iri height,
having a trunk commonly from one to two feet in diameter,
and alarge umbrageous head. The dark-green and glossy
leaves grow to a great size, even two or three feet in length
by fourteen or eighteen inches in breadth. According to
Mr. Ellis, the trunk is sometimes two or three feet in diame-'
ter, and rises from twelve to twenty feet without a branch.
Speaking of this vegetable, the same author says, " A fine
stately tree, clothed with dark shining leaves, and loaded
with many hundreds of large light-green or yellowish-
coloured fruit, is one of the most splendid and beautiful
objects to be met with among the rich and diversified scenery
of a Tahitian landscape. Two or three of these trees are
often seen growuig around the rustic native cottage, and
embowering it with their interwoven and prolific branches.
The tree is°propagated by shoots from the root : it bears in
about five years, and vvill probably continue bearing for
fifty."t The fruit, which, in the South Sea islands at least,
is produced two or three, or even four times a year, is some-
thing like a roundish or oval melon, with hexagonal marks,
and "six or eight inches in diameter. The seedless variety-
is most esteemed, and its substance, when roasted, resem-
bles the crumb of wheaten-bread. The bread-fruit was
called by Solander the most useful vegetable in the worid ;
and Ellis, the excellent missionary, considers it the staff of
life to the South Sea islanders. Its praise has been sung
by a noble poet, who has " married to immortal verse" less
interesting and less innocent subjects.

" The bread-tree, which, without the ploughshare, yields
The unreap'd harves-t of unfurrow'd fields,
And bakes its unadulterated loaves
Without a furnace in unpurchased groves,
And flings oflT famine from its fertile breast ;
A priceless market for the gathering guest."

* Botanical Magazine, tab. 2809,2870, and 2871.
t Ellis's Polynesian Researches, vol. i. p. 333.

142 BOTANV OF INDIA.

The wood of the tree is useful, and equally so the gum
that exudes from it.

The jaca* is a larger tree than the preceding, the trunk
being, according to Roxburgh, from eight to twelve feet in
circumference. The fruit is oblong and very large, sixty or
seventy pounds in weight, and containing several hundred
seeds three or four times as large as almonds. As an article
of diet it is not much esteemed, though the natives of Ceylon
eat it freely. The milk-like juice which the plant gives out
•when wounded, in common with many others of its tribe, is
so tenncious as to form good birdlime. The whole aspect
of the jaca is extraordinary when seen for the first time,
hearing, as it does, its " ponderous fruit of the weight of
sixty or seventy pounds, on the trunk and arms, — huge de-
formities for the lap of riora."t

To the present family belong also the fig (Ficus), and the
mulberry (Morus) ; of the former of which we have in Dr.
Wallich's catalogue 105 species, of the latter eight species.
Of the Indian figs very few indeed, we believe, are edible.
Ficiis glomerata, we are however told by Roxburgh, pro-
duces fruit in clusters nearly as large as the common fig,
■which is eaten by the natives, but not found palatable by
Europeans. The most interesting species of this genus is
unquestionably the banian-tree {Ftciis rcligiosa), regarded
-with religious veneration by the Hindoos, because they
believe their god Vishnu to have been born under it, and
because they consider its long duration, and outstretching
arms, and overshadowing beneficence as emblems of the
deity. Temples are often, from the same cause, erected
near it, and images often planted under its shade. The
most peculiar and striking feature of this remarkable tree is
the property which it possesses of throwing out supports
from the horizontal branches, which take root as soon as
they reach the ground, enlarge into trunks, and, extending
branches in their turn, soon cover a prodigious extent of
ground. No tree can accommodate itself better to the situa-
tion where it happens to vegetate. According to Forbes, it
frequently shoots from old walls and runs along them.
*' On the inside of a large brick wall one of these trees lined

* Botanical Magazine, tab. 2833 and 2S34.

t Uuilding's AccouDt of the Botanic Garden in the Island of St Vmcent.

BANIAN-TREE. 143

the whole circumference of the internal space, and thus
actually became a tree turned inside out." It has sometimes
been known to enclose the trunks of palms or other trees
and has then received the name of the wedded-banian. A
curious fact was communicated to us by Dr. Wallich, which
still further illustrates its singular propensity to propel a
shoot into every accessible quarter. A banian-tree in the
Botanic Garden at Calcutta had extended a branch across
one of the walks, and in due time a support thrown out bv the
branch took root and grew into a trunk on the opposite' side
of the walk. The original branch, now the connectincr me-
dium between the two trunks, happening to decay, an order
was given for its removaL; but it was ascertained that the
offspring, finding the link between itself and its parent about
to give way, had actually begun to send forth a healthy
shoot along the centre of the decayed and yielding sub-
stance. It is hardly necessary to add that the order was
rescinded, and the two trunks are again united by what in
this case may be metaphorically termed reciprocal affection.
On the banks of the Nerbudda is a celebrated banian-tree ;
and though much of it has been swept away by high floods,
what still remains is near two thousand feet in circumfe-
rence, measured round the principal stems ; the overhanahig
branches which have not yet thrown out supports cov'er a
much larger space. The large trunks of this sinirle tree
amount to three hundred and fifty, and the smaller ones
exceed three thousand. Each of these is constantly sending
forth branches and hanging roots, to form other trunks, and
become the parents of a future progeny. This tree is called
cubbcer-burr by the Hindoos, in memory of a favourite saint,
and has been known, in the march of an army, to shelter
seven thousand men beneath its shade.* The leaves of this
species are broadly ovate with a very long point, and, inde-
pendent of the foot-stalk, not more'than five or six inches
in length ; the fruit very small, of a bright scarlet-colour
when ripe, and said to afford sustenance to monkeys, squir-
rels, and birds. Milton has admirably described the banian-
tree in its principal phenomenon ; but if it was indeed, as
he makes it, the fig-tree of the book of Genesis, the leaves
with which he invests it must have been larger in those

* Forbes's Oriental Memoirs.

J 44 BOTANY OF INDIA.

days, to have served the purpose of our first parents, than
the degenerate foUage which we now see.

" So counseird Vie, and both together went
Into the thickest wood ; there soon they chose
The fig-tree ; not that kind for fruit renown'd,
But such as at this day to Indians known,
In Malahar or Deccan spreads her arms,
Branching so broad and long, that in the ground
The bended twigs take root, and daughters grow
About the mother-tree, a pillar'd shade.
High overarchM, and echoing walks between :
i There oft the Indian herdsman, shunning heat,
Shelters in cool, and tends his pasturing herds
At loopholes cut through thickest shade : those leaves
They gather'd, broad asAmaionian targe."

The northern parts of Hindostan have furnished Dr.
WalUch with four new species of birch [Betula), and one
of the alhed genu^ alder (Alnus). The bark of Betula acu-
minata,* Uke that of B. papyracea, or the canoe-birch of
America, is apphed to economical purposes by the natives.
The epidermis, according to Dr. Wallich, is employed by
the mountaineers for writing upon instead of paper. Large
quantities are brought down into the plains for covering
the inside of the long flexible tubes of the apparatus used
for smoking tobacco, called hooka. The Sanscrit name for
birch is bhoorja ; and Mr. Graves Haughton, oriental ex-
aminer to the honourable East India Company, observes
Dr. Wallich, " is of opinion that the word hhoorja is the
etymon of birch, and that it is one of the many proofs of the
descent of the Saxon part of the English language from the
Sanscrita."

EtJPHOREIACE^.

We have already mentioned that about three hundred
species belonging to this family have been brought from
India by Dr. Wallich, among which are very many belong-
ing to that difficult genus Phjllanthus. Various species of
Cluytia are esteemed for their hard and durable wood of a
red or pink colour. Rolllera iinctoria of Roxburgh yields
a valuable die. It is a middle-sized tree growing in the
mountainous parts of the Circars, having an erect trunk, and

* Plants Asiaticse Rarjores, vol. ii. tab. 109. j

REMARKABLE ORANGE-TREES. 145

producing racemes of capsules about the size of a cherry,
each of which is covered with a quantity of red powder.
This powder is carefully brushed off the ripe capsules, and
constitutes a considerable branch of commerce from those
parts of the Circars, being purchased by the merchants
trading to Hydrabad and other interior parts of the peninsula.
It is said to die silk of a very beautiful, bright, and durable
orange or flame colour. The botanical reader will be aware
that the genus Rotthra of Roxburgh is not the Roltlcra of
Vahl. The former is supposed by some botanists not to be
distinct from Trewia of Linnasus.

CEDRELE.E.

Swietenia fehrifuga and cMoroiylon furnish excellent
timber. The former is the redwood-tree of Coromandel, a
very large tree with a lofty, thick, and straight trunk. The
wood is of a dull-red colour, remarkably hard and heavy,
and used by the natives as the most durable kind they know
for all the wood-work in their temples. S. chloroxylon is a
native of the mountainous parts of the Circars, and is report-
ed by Roxburgh to be of a deep-yellov? colour, exceedingly
close-grained, heavy, and durable, and to come nearer to
boxwood than any other wood he had met with.

AUEANTIACE^.

The orange tribe, so peculiarly Indian, is now, in regard
to the orange, the lemon, the lime, and the shaddock, dis-
persed over the rest of the tropics ; and although these plants
are the most interesting ones that belong to the family, they
are too familiar to our readers to require that we should
devote to them any portion of this limited article. We
shall therefore, after saying a very few words respecting the
orange-tree, proceed to notice two or three less-known
plants. We can ferm no idea of the size and luxuriance
which the orange-tree is capable of attaining by the speci-
mens cultivated with so much attention in this northern
climate. It is said that in Spain there are old orange-trees
forming large timber. " In the convent of St. Sabina at
Rome there is an orange-tree thirty-one feet high, which is
said to be six hundred years old ; and at Nice, in 1789, there
■was a tree which generally bore five or six thousand oranges,
which was more than fifty feet high, with a trunk that re-

VoL. III,-=N

146 BOTANY OF INDIA.

quired two men to embrace it."* Lindley mentions, when
speaking of the productiveness of the orange-tree, that a
single tree at St. Michael's has been known to produce
20,000 oranges fit for packing, exclusively of the damaged
fruit and the waste, which may be calculated at one-third
more. "The duty upon oranges is 68,000/. per annum, at
the rate of two and sixpence for a package not exceeding
five thousand cubic inches. Assuming the cubical con-
tents of an orange as ten inches, there are five hundred m
each package ; and thus we see that 372,000,000 of this
fruit are annually imported, allowing about a dozen per
annum to every individual of the population." t

JEgie Marmdos is a pretty large tree in the mountainous
parts^of the Coromandel coa'st, producing a sort of berry of
the size of a large apple, which is a wholesome, fragrant,
and delicious fruit. Within this fruit are from 10 to 15
cells, containing, besides a few seeds, a great quantity of a
very tenacious transparent gluten, which may be drawn out
in threads of one or two yards in length, and so fine as to
be scarcely perceptible to the naked eye ; when dry it is hard
and transparent. In the island of Ceylon a perfume is pre-
pared from the rind. The wood-apple {Feronia elephantum)
is another fruit, the pulp of which is universally eaten on
the Coromandel coast, according to Roxburgh, though Forbes
savs it is acid, full of seeds, and only eaten by the poorer
natives. Externally it is circular, hard, and woody, and
about the size of an orange, with the smell of a mellow ap-
ple. The tree is a large beautiful evergreen, bearing at the
same time blossoms and fruit, the latter of which hang at
the extremity of long slender branches, that bend with their
weio-ht. The last plant of the orange family which we shall
notice is Bcrs^cra Kanigv, a small tree growing in the
mountainous parts of the Circars, but cultivated in gardens
for the sake of the leaves. These are used both in a fresh
and dried state for mixing with the curries of the natives,
of which they form a principal ingredient, and are to be
found in every bazar.

* Library of Entertaining Knowledge, on the authority of Risso, vol.
ii. p. ?30. '

CHINESE VARNISH BETEL-LEAF. 147

ANACARDIACE^.

One of the most interesting individuals in this family is
the Melanorrhaa usitata, of which an excellent plate and
ample account are given by our friend Dr. Wallich in the
Plantce AsialiccB Rarwrcs. It is an enormous tree, with
fine massy foliage, and splendid clusters of dark rose-
coloured involucres, which at first sight looked like the blos-
soms. Its known geographical range is from Munipur, in
lat. 25° north, long. 94° east, to Tavoy, in lat. 14°, long.
97°. Every part of it abounds in a thick and viscid gray-
ish-brown liuid, which turns black on exposure to the air.
This fluid is collected in large quantities, and forms an
admirable varnish, supposed to be the same made use of by
the Chinese in their eastern and north-eastern provinces.
There is also no doubt that it is the theet-tsec, or varnish-tree
of the Burmese. This, as well as some other Indian var-
nishes, is dangerous to many constitutions, and produces
painful and alarming effects.*

Another large tree producing varnish is the Semecarptis
Anacardium, or marking- nut-tree of commerce, a native of
the mountainous parts of India. The seed of this tree \s
a nut resting on a fleshy receptacle, and furnished with two
coats, between which is the black, corrosive, resinous juice
from which the varnish is manufactured. The fruit, while
green, is sometimes pounded into a pulp for birdlime ; and
the acrid juice used externally to remove rheumatic pains,
but it often produces inflammation. The fleshy receptacle
of the seed is roasted in the ashes and eaten by the natives ;
the taste is exceedingly like that of roasted apples.

PIPERACE^.

The betel-leaf, familiar by name at least to the general
reader, is a species of pepper, the Piper betel of Linnteus.
It is highly esteemed by the natives of India, and cultivated
in most of the provinces, but especially in Guzerat. It is
a beautiful climber, and yields, after its fourth season, an
abundant supply of leaves for six or seven years.

^ Platitae Asiaticse Rariores, vol. i. p. 9.— See also, for an account of
the poisonous qualiiies of vepeiable varnisbes, Brewster's Journal of
Science, vol. viii, p. 96 and 100.

148 BOTANY OF INDIA.

SAPOTE^.

In several trees of this family we find a singular substi-
lute for an animal product. The mihwah-tree, or Indian
butter-tree (Bassia butyracea), the oil or lUeepei-tree
(Bassia longifoUa), and the shea-tree or butter-tree of
Africa, probably also a species of Bassm, are among the
number. The mahwah-tree is the most remarkable one
in India ; it is about the size of an English oak, according
to Forbes, but with a beautiful large shining foliage. The
flowers are produced in full clusters at the ends o{ the
smaller branches, and look exactly like berries ; the true
fruit, however, resembles a walnut, the olive-shaped seeds
of which are replete with a thick oil, which is used as a
substitute for ghee. To obtain the oil, the kernels are
bruised to the consistence of thick cream, and then sub-
mitted to pressure. The oil or fat becomes immediately
of the consistence of hog's lard, and is of a delicate white
colour. The flowers are equally prized, for when dried m
the sun they have been compared to Malaga raisms, botii
in flavour and appearance. They are eaten in fact m va-
rious ways,— as a preserved fruit, as an ingredient m cur-
ries and other dishes, or even in their fresh state. A good
tree will produce in one season nearly three hundi^ed-weight
of flowers. Their greatest consumption, however, is m
the distillation of a kind of spirit^which goes by the name
of m^hwah-arrack, and is so cheap that an English -pint
may be had for one picc, about the value of a halfpenny. _

the oil expressed from the fruit of Bassia longijolia is
constantly used by thP common people instead of ghee and
cocoanut oil. The flowers are also, collected for food, as
in the preceding species, and almost every part of the plant
put to some use. It is said that owls, squirrels, lizards,
do^s, and jackals eat the flowers, and that the latter some-
tinies become mad by partaking too freely of them.* Both
these plants must yield to the butter-tree of Africa. The
kernel," says Park, " is enveloped in a sweet pulp, uncler
a thin green rind ; and the butter produced from it, besides
the advantage of its keeping the whole year without salt, is
whiter, firmer, and to my palate of a richer flavour than
the best butter I ever tasted made from cow s milk, iue

* Asiatic Reaearclies, vol. viii. p. 480.

THE TRUE SPIKENARD. 149

growth and preparation of this commodity seem to be among

the first objects of African industry in this and the neigh-
bouring states."* It is called shea ioulou, or tree-butter.

VALERIANEiE.

The spikenard of the ancients, about which there has
been much learned controversy, has been at length satis-
factorily referred by Sir William Jones to a species of vale-
rian, named by the Hindoos ja^arna??*?, and which he there-
fore calls Valeriana Jatamansi (Nardoslachys Jatamansi,
D. C). It abounds in the most remote and hilly parts of •
India, such as Nepaul, Morang, &c., near which Ptolemy
fixes its native soil. The part of the plant known more
particularly under the name of spikenard, or Indian nard
of commerce, is a mass or series of numerous sheaths aris-
ing from the top of the root, and enveloping the lower part
of the stem for the space of five or six inches ; the outer
ones fibrous, — the inner ones membranaceous, — and the
whole bearing considerable resemblance to an ermine's tail.
It is carried over the desert to Aleppo, where it is used in
substance mixed with other perfumes, and worn in smalJ
bags or in the form of essence, and kept in little boxes or
phials like attar of roses. As a perfume its use is of very
remote antiquity, being alluded to several times in the Holy
Scriptures, particularly in the Song of Solomon, iv. 13, 14 : —

" Thy plants are an orchard of pomegranates, with pleasant fruits ;
camphire with spikenard.

" Spikenard and saffron ; calamus and cinnamon, with all trees o£
frankincense ; myrrh and aloes, with all the chief spices."

Considerable quantities of jatamansi are brought in car-
avans from Bootan ; but living plants cannot be exported
without a license from the sovereign.!

CINCHON.iCE.E.

A very numerous order, in which at least five hundred
species are now known to be Indian. The beautiful gar-
denias are found here, so much prized for their delightful
fragrance ; Gardenia dumctorum produces a fruit like a
small yellow apple, which, when bruised and thrown into

* Park's Travels in Africa, p. 202.

t AfliaUc Researches, vol. ji. and vol. iv. p. 433, with a plete. 5

N3

150 BOTANY OF INDIA.

tanks, intoxicates the fish, and in the hot season destroj's
them ; but in the cold season they are said to recover.

One of the most elegant among Indian trees is Nauclea
orientalis. The flowers are capitate, and deck the charm-
indy-verdant foliage with, as it were, thousands of little
globes of golden flowers. They have an odour very agree-
able in the open air, which Sir William Jones says the an-
cient Indians compared to the scent of new wine ; and hence
they call the plant Halipnya, or beloved by Halim, that is,
by the third Rama, who was evidently the Bacchus of India.*
The leaves of Canthittvi parviflm-vm, a common scraggy
thorny bush, are miiversally eaten in curries.

LORANTHEa^.

Eleven species of that most remarkable genus mistletoe
(Viscum) are in the East India Company's collection ; and
it is a circumstance deserving of notice, that, according to
Sir William Jones, the Viscum of the oak (he does not
specify any species) is named vaiida, the vandaca or oak
being held sacred. t It has always been our opinion that
the British mistletoe was not held sacred by the druids, ex-
cept when it was found growing upon the oak ; and hence
the association between the mistletoe and the oak. Perhaps
the fact that it was hardly ever discovered in this situation
gave rise to the superstition ; for it is certain that it is an
exceedingly rare event in this country to fmd it growing
upon the oak, even in districts where it is a nuisance upon
apple, thorn, and other trees.

APOCYNE^.

Strychnos potatorum will be known to some of our
readers as the clearing-nut of India. It is rather a scarce,
moderate-sized tree, growing mostly in mountainous dis-
tricts, and producing a shining black berry about the size
of a black currant. The peculiar purpose to which they
are applied is thus described by Dr. Roxburgh: — "The
ripe seeds are dried, and sold in every market to clear
muddy water. The natives never drink clear well-water if
they can get pond or river-water, which is always more or
ess impure according to circumstances. One of the seeds,

* Asiatic Researches, vol. iv. I Ibid.

CAOUTCHOUC TEAK-TREE. 151

or nuts, as they are generally callecl, is rubbed very hard
for a minute or two round the inside of the vessel contain,
ing the water, which is generally an unglazed earthen one,
and the water left to settle ; in a very short time the impu-
rities fall to the bottom, leaving the water clear, and, so
far as I have been able to learn, perfectly wholesome."*
The fruit of another Apocyneous plant (Carissa Caran-
das), resembling a black middle-sized plum, is said to make
a pickle superior even to that of the mango. Urceola elas-
tica, or the elastic gum-vine, is a plant of this order, which
yields a viscid milky juice possessing the properties of ca-
outchouc. It is an extensive climber, two hundred yards or
more in length, winding among the branches of the loftiest
trees, and rising above them into the open air. The milk,
when exposed to the atmosphere, beoomes solid ; and by
means of it Mr. Howison succeeded in rendering cloth
waterproof, and suggested that it might be applied to
the making of hats, great-coats, tents, coverings for car-
riages, &c. The plant grows in Sumatra also, and Dr.
Roxburgh believes that the Chinese make their elastic
rings from its juice.

VEEBENACE^.

One of the largest Indian trees, and one of the most val-
uable for its excellent timber, is referred to this family, — the
teak {Tectona grandis). The trunk is erect, lofty, and
of an enormous size, the leaves above twenty inches long
and a foot or more in width, the flowers small, white, and
fragrant, and collected into very large panicles. It is a
native of various parts of India, and was introduced into
Bengal by Lord Cornwallis and Colonel Kydd.

Long experience has proved the wood of this tree to be
the most useful timber in Asia. It is light, easily worked,
and at the same time strong and durable. For ship-building
it is considered equal to oak, and many of the vessels trad-
ing between this country and India are constructed of it.
That which grows near the banks of the Godavery is beau-
tifully veined, closer in the grain, and heavier.

* Plants of Coromandel.

J 52 BOTANY OF INDIA.

ASPHODELE^.

Very few examples of this family occur in India, and of
those we shall only speak of the bowstring-hemp {Sanse-
rtcra Zeyhnu a), v. mch Dr. Roxburgh thought migh be
cultivated to great advantage for the sake of its tibre. It is
a Dlant with one to four radical semi-cyhndncal leaves, one
to four feet long, with the flowers produced on a scape about
two feet in heiiht. The leaves contain a number of very
stron<^ white fibres, from which the natives manufacture
their "best bowstrings. Roxburgh obtained from eighty
Dounds of the fresh'leaves one pound of clean dry fibres,
and from h»lf the quantity of better leaves, in a second
experiment, the same weight of fibre ; and this quanti y
misht be produced on three square yards of ground. 1
am inclined to think," says the same naturalist "that the
fine hne called china-grass, which is employed tor hshing-
lines, fiddlestrings, and other purposes, is made from these
fibres."

PALM.^.

On some of the Indian species of this magnificent tnbe
we have already made some observations ; but they torm
too important a feature in the vegetation of the country, and
are too extensively useful to mankind, not to demand a more
particular notice. The fruit of the Areca catechu is the
Celebrated betel-nut, esteemed, both for its narcotic qualities
and as a fine preservative of the teeth and gums, by the
inhabitants of the East. It resembles a large nutmeg
enclosed in a thick membranaceous covering : when used it
is cut into small pieces, and eaten with the pungent leaf of
riper betel, spread over with chunam or delicate shell-
lime The palmvra-tree {Borassus flabelHformis), for-
merlV aUuded to as one of the largest Indian palms, is not
onlv a splendid but a most useful plant. The fruit forms
an 'article of food in various states of preparation, and
abundance of toddy, or palm-wine, is obtained by <lividing
the voun- spadix or branched receptacle of the fructifica-
tion; and collecting the juice which flows from the wounded
part. In old trees the wood, or that part which consti-
tutes the shell or circumference of the trunk, 1/ "f ^mgular
hardness and durability, and is much employed for the mak-
ing Of rafters for roofs, &c. The centre is composed only

COCOANUT-TREE. 153

of a coarse spongy farinaceous sort of pith. With the leaves
the natives thatch their houses and construct baskets, and
they are commonly used as a substitute for paper, beino-
written on, or rather engraved, with an iron-pomted instru-
ment.

In the peninsula occurs a dwarf species of date-palm,
named Phonux fariniferahj Roxburgh, but little known to
botanists in general. It appears to be found chiefly on
sandy lands at a small distance from the sea. The trunk is
only one, or at most two feet high, and so entirely enveloped
in the leaves, which are a good deal like those of the[com-
mon date-palm (Phcenix dactylifera), that the whole appears'
like a large round bush. Baskets are constructed of the
leaflets, and a great quantity of farinaceous substance is
obtained from the centre of the stem, which in times of
scarcity has frequently supplied the poor people with food.
It is, however, less nutritious and palatable than common
sago.

The cocoanut (Cocos nuciferd) is of all palms most de-
servedly valued as one of the greatest of the many bless-
ings showered down by a bountiful Providence upon the in-
habitants of a tropical climate. It is a common saying
that the cocoanut-tree has ninety-nine uses, and that the
hundredth cannot be discovered. The limits prescribed to
this article will only permit us to describe its general ap-
pearance, and give a brief outline of the purposes to which
the various parts are applied. This palm is from siity to a
hundred feet in height, and one to two feet in diameter : at
the top it is crowned with a magnificent tuft of leaves, each
about fourteen feet in length, and resembhng an enormous
feather. It rejoices to grow in the nloist low grounds that
border the seacoast, or that form the neighbouring islands.
Nothing can be more beautiful than these cocoa-groves.
The bare trunks rise like columns to a vast height, and the
regular foliage arching their summits carries the eye along
the vistas, as it were, of a boundless gothic edifice. It is a
very prolific tree ; flowers are put forth every four or five
weeks, and thus flowers and fruit are generally to be seen
at the same tune. Of the roots are constructed baskets ;
of the hollowed trunk drums, pipes for aqueducts, &c. The
reticulated substance at the base of each leaf, besides serv-
ing for infants' cradles, is manufactured into coarse sack-

154 BOTANY OF INDIA.

cloth. The terminal bud is accounted a delicacy for the
table. The leaves are employed for thatchmg buildings, for
makin<r baskets, fences, and torches, besides furnishing the
chief diet in Ceylon of the tame elephants : in a young
state thev are transparent, and are made into lanterns by
the Cevlonese. The woody ribs of the leaflets are formed
into a 'kind of basket-work for catching fish, and into the
brushes and brooms used for domestic purposes. Good pot-
ash is yielded by the ashes, and the latter is used instead of
soap by the native washermen of Ceylon. From the unex-
panded flower is procured the sweet jmce, which is con-
verted into a pleasant wine celebrated by one of our poets :—

" Stretch'd amid these orchards of the sun,
Where high palmettoes lift their grateful shade
Give me to drain tlie cocoa's milky bowl,
\nd from the palm to drawr its freshening wme ;
More bounteous far than all the frantic jmce
Which Bacclius pours."

The same fluid is unfortunately distilled into arrack; and
frantic indeed and melancholy are the efl-ects whicli spring
from the intoxicating draught, from whatever source it be
obtained ! Even the juice of this fertile tree the wayward
ineenuity of man has converted from a blessmg into a curse.
The spirit is manufactured in such large quantities in Oey-
lon that it is sold for a trifle, and is productive of all the
unhappy consequences which invariably Ibllow its use as a
common beverage. From palm-juice is hkewise prepared
in <rreat abundance a coarse kind of sugar called jaggeri^.
The value of the fruit of this tree, the well-known cocoa-
nut, can only be fully appreciated in the countries that pro-
duce it. As an article of food it is inestimable. The fibrous
coverino- is an admirable substitute for hemp, and is largely
manufactured into coir,— a. substance peculiarly well adapted
for the cordage of vessels. When the Dutch were m pos-
session of Ceylon, they made annually, according to Mr.
Marshall, 3,000,000 lbs. weight of coir. A vast quantity
of oil is expressed from the kernel, the excellent quality and
commercial value of which are known to every one.

GR AMINES.

It is in tropical countries that the tribe of grasses attains

BAMBOO — TABASHEER. 155

its utmost development in regard to size. Accustomed to
behold them in cold and temperate regions, forming the ver-
dant carpet that stretches far and wide over our hilly pas-
tures and fertile meadows, or at most contemplating our
fields of waving com, or the reeds which fringe the borders
ef our streams, we can hardly imagine individuals of the
same family emulating the stature of the trees of the forest,
and constituting an equally imposing feature in the pano-
r-ama of a living landscape. Such, however, is the bamboo
(Bambusa), whose name is derived, as we are informed by
Dr. Wallich, from the Hindoo word veangsa, pronounced
hiyigsa, signifying a family or tribe, — for the bamboo grows
many together, or in an associated manner. The bamboo
is applied to a great variety of purposes, and no p' mt is
more useful where a union of strensth and lishtnesy is re-
quired. In building it is so generally employed, that the
houses of the inferior classes in India are almost exclusively
constructed of it. It is adapted to the formation of bridges,
masts for boats, and almost every article of domestic furni-
ture. Bedding and sacking, and even cordage, are manu-
factured from it. It is the common fence for gardens and
fields, and palanquins and light carriages are principally
composed of it. The hollow stems serve for water-pipes,
and in military operations it has often been resorted to for
the construction of screens. Finally, according to Barrow,
the Chinese find the bamboo invaluable for keeping the
whole empire in due subordination, through the medium of
iucessant bastinading. We shall now proceed to notice
briefly the difierent kinds of bamboo that are most valued
for their useful properties. The most common one is the
Bamhusa arundinacca : — this produces from ten to one hun-
dred stems from the same root, and after continuing straight
for fifteen or twenty feet begins to bend gently to one side.
It bears innumerable branches, the joints of which are fur-
nished with double or triple thorns. It is in the cavities of
the joints of this species in particular that the curious sub-
stance called tahashcer is found, though it is not improbable
that it may exist in most of the others likewise. This sub-
stance is named redroo paloo (milk of bamboo) by the Telin-
gas, and mungil upoo (salt of bamboo) by the Tamuls. Me-
dicinal virtues are attributed to it, and it is mentioned in the
Sanscrit works on medicine, such as the Bkava Prakas and

156 BOTANY OF INDIA.

Raja Nighant.* Dr. Turner has shown it to consist of
" silica, containmg a minute quantity of lime and vegetable
matter." In Malabar this kind of bamboo is formed into
an arch, by training it, while growing, over an iron frame,
to the shape required for supporting the canopies of palan-
quins. Finely-arched speciuiens have been known to bring
five or six hundred rupees. Bambusa stricta is a smaller
species, considerably more straight in the stem, and with a
smaller cavity ; on which accounts it is better adapted to
some purposes, and the natives always select it for making
shafts to their spears. Bambusa spinosa is in request for
scaffolding and wicker-work. Bambusa baccifera,\ a tall
and very curious species, having for fructification a large
pendulous one-seeded berry, is a native of the Chittagong
mountains, and used in that country for all building] pur-
poses. It is said to be a foot in diameter at the base, from
fifty to seventy feet in height, bare of branches except near
the extremity, and so beautifully straight as to be without
the least flexure or inequality of surface. According to M.
Pierard's account, in Roxburgh's Plants of Coromandel, it
j'ields more or less tabasheer ; " sometimes, it is said, the
cavity between the joints is nearly filled with this substance,
which the people call choonah (lime)." There is another
species which grows on the Martaban coast, having the
stem about twelve inches in diameter, and a hundred feet in
height : this appears to be undcscribed.

All the species of bamboo are at first tender and succu-
lent ; they grow with amazing rapidity, but they are often
many years before they produce flower and seed. This pri-
mary object being once accomplished, they die, and are suc-
ceeded by a new generation.

The sugar-cane {Saccharum officinarum) was knovsm in
the East at a very early period ; but it is cultivated to a
very small extent with a view to the making of sugar. The
cane is still in request, being cut into small pieces, and sold
like fruit in the bazars.

Several plants of this family are cultivated in India, in
the same manner as corn is with us ; of these the principal
are Oryza sativa (common rice). Sorghum vulgare, PennisC'

* Dr. Wilson, in Brewster's .Toumal of Science, to!, viii. p. 268.
t RosburgU's Plants of Cororaandel, vol. iii. p. 38, t. 243.

GRASSES FERr-vi;. 157

turn lyphoideum, Eleusine corscana, Paspalum scroUculatuniy
Panicum mUiaceum.

Poa cynosuroides, another species of grass, called aU''ha
and darbha by the natives, is held in peculiar favour by
them, — so much so, that, according to Sir William Jones,
" every law-book, and almost every poem in Sanscrit, con-
tains frequent allusions to the holiness of this plant ; and
in the fourth Veda we have the following address to it at the
close of a terrible incantation : — ' Thee, O Darbha, the
learned proclaim a divinity, not subject to age or death ;
thee they call the armour of India, the preserver of regions,
the destroyer of enemies ; a gem that gives increase to the
Held. At the time when the ocean resounded, when the
clouds murmured, and lightnings flashed, then v^'as Darbha
produced, pure as a drop of line gold !' Some of the leaves
taper to a most acute evanescent point ; whence the pundits
often say of a very sharp-mindf.'d man, that his intellects
are acute as the point of ciis'a leaf."*

In regard to the F'dices and families of the acotyledonous
class, little has hitherto been done to elucidate the Indian
flora. We are, however, in possession of materials, which
will, to a certain extent, supply this desideratum. It has
already been stated that the collection in the East India
Company's Museum contains between four and five hundred
species of fern. Some of these have been represented and
described in the Icov.es Filiaim, by Hooker and Greville,
and the publication of the remainder will be undertaken by
the same gentlemen at no distant period. We have re-
ceived from Dr. W^allich many interesting mosses and he-
paticce, some of which have already been given to the
world in Dr. Hooker's Musci Exotici ; and by Dr. Wight
we have already been put in possession of about one hun-
dred species of Alga, Of the Indian Fungi very little is
known, and but few species have reached us. The natives
hold them " in such detestation, that Yama, a legislator,
supposed now to be the judge of departed spirits, declares
that ' those who eat mushrooms, whether springing from
the ground or growing on a tree, are fully equal in guilt to
the slayers of Bramins, and the most despicable of all
deadly sinners.' "t

* Asiatic Researches, vol. iv. p. 2J3. j Ibid. vol. iv. p. 311

Vol. III.— O

(158)

# CLIMATE,

GEOLOGY, A^D MINERALOGY.

CHAPTER VIII.
Climate.

8. Evaporation; 9;, Hum.d.n- of the A^m-Ph-e 10^ De^^_^

Dep6ts-Table of Comparative Temperatures.

In the view we are now about to take of it, India mav
be considered as formed of three grand divisions viz.—
1. The Himmaleh. 2. The belt of flat country extending
from the Indus to the Brahmapoutra, which may be distm-
Juished bv the name of Mnidle Ind^a. 3. The region
which constitutes Peninsular I'tdia.

1. i7„„mfl/r;t or ^/pn,.ii.-.o«— The central and interior

Tecrion of Asia, which forms neither an immense cluster ot
mountain chains nor a continued table-land, is crossed from
east to west by four grand systems of mountams, ^^hlch
have manifestly influenced the movements of the PopulaUon ;
these are the Altai, which is terminated on the ^^.t b^ ^
mountains of Kirghiz, the Teen-shan the Kw=^n-lun and
the Himmaleh chain. Between the AUai ^"d the Teen-
shan are placed Zungaria and the basin of t'^/'l« ' ^^I
tween Teen-shan and the Kwan-lun, Little or rather Lppe
Bucharia, or Cashgar, Yarkand, Khoten, the ?^^^' d^"'
Gobi (or Cha-mo), Toorfan, Khamil (Hami), and Tangout
that is. the Northern Tangout of the Chmese, which mu»t

MOUNTAIN REGION. 159

not be confounded with Thibet or Sefan ; lastly, between
the Kwan-lun and the Himmaleh, Eastern and Western
Thibet, where Lassa and Ladak are situated. The Him-
maleh system, the only one which at present particularly
interests us, separates the valleys of Cashmere, IS'epauI,
and Bootan from Thibet. To the west it stretches by
Javaher to 26,420 feet; to the east by Dhwalagiri to
27,000 feet above the level of the sea. It ranges geneirally
from north-west to south-east, and consequently is not par-
allel with the Kwan-lun ; it approaches it so nearly in the
meridian of Attok and Jellalabad, that between Cabul,
Cashmere, Ladak, and Badakshan, the Himmaleh seems to
form a single group of mountain chains with the Hindoo-
kho and Tsung-ling.

In those parts of the Himmaleh that form the northern
boundary of India are situated some of the highest moun-
tains in the world. Of these the most elevated summit a,t
present known is Dhwalagiri, or White Mountain, already
mentioned. The following are other heights, as deter-
mined by Webb : —

reet.

Jumnotree ^^AIP,

Setghur, or ihe WTiite Tower, north of Nepaul Uo,Zbl

A mountain, supposed to be Dhaibun, above Catmandoo, in the
direction of Cala Bhairava, 20,000 feet above the Valley of Ne-
paul. and above the sea •. 24,025

Anoi,Jier mountain near it, 1S,662 feet above the Valley of Nepaul,

above* the sea ^'?5„

A third, in its vicinitv, 18,452 feet, above the sea. H'"^

A peak, named St. George, was esumated by Hodgson at 22,240

Mountain Region. — Interposed between the Alpine and
Fcstikntial Regions of India is the richest mountain land
in- the world, — the beautiful girdle of Assam, Bootan, Ne-
paul, Serinagur, Cashmere, and Peshawer. These de-
liirhtful regions range in altitude upwards of 7000 feet above
the level of the sea, rising with a steep ascent from the
plains of the low country. According to Rennel the south-
ernmost of the Bootan mountains attain nearly a mile and
a half of almost perpendicular height, in a horizontal
distance of fifteen miles ; and from the summit the traveller
looks back with wonder on the extensive prospect of tb-e
plain.5 beneath. When the great range changes to a
westerly direction, near. the upper part of the Ganges and

160 PESTILENTIAL REGION GOITRE REGION.

Indus, the lower mountains are separated from it by a wide
interval occupied by the lofty valley of Cashmere ; and to
the south and south-west is a mountainous country, which
on the north bounds the Punjaub or country of the five
rivers. When in December Turner returned from Thibet,
then covered with ice and snow, in Bootan every thing "was
green, and the trees were loaded with apples and oranges, —
so great is the diflerence of climate. Notwithstanding
this, the summer temperature of Tassisudon in Bootan re-
sembles that of the winter of Bengal, and the Bootan winter
is too severe for the rajahs, who descend and spend that
season in the warmer Chickacotta. The Bengalese clothe
themselves in silk and muslin ; the Bootanese in wool ;
the Thibetians in wool and fur ; and not less characteristic
is the contrast between the feeble Hindoo in Bengal and
the Herculean Bootanese, or the active, abstemious Thibe-
tian. The Hindoo, accustomed to the moist and suhry at-
mosphere of Bengal, cannot exist in the cold and dry
alpine air of Thibet, and conversely the Thibetian cannot
live in the sultry India.

Pestilential Region. — A zone of unequal breadth, of a
peculiar nature, lies between the northern mountainous and
hilly boundary of India and the low country. It extends
from the frontiers of Assam almost uninterruptedly to the
banks of the Ganges and Jumna, at Hurdwar and Serinagur.
It is thirty miles broad on the Bootan frontier, and he»e, as
elsewhere, is filled with swamps, and covered with a dense
and luxuriant vegetation. It forms the natural boundary
between Bengal and Assam, Bootan and Nepaul. None
of the neighbouring nations have been able to obtain an
ascendency in this melancholy region ; for man flies its
marshes, which are inhabited principally by amphibious and
other offensive creatures ; and where the woods penetrate
among the lower hills, numerous herds of elephants range
from Assam to Hurdwar. The exhalations arising from
the multitude of springs which the vicinity of the mountains
produces are collected and confined by those almost imper-
vious woods, and generate an atmosphere through which
no traveller ever passed with impunity. Its effects were
fatal to Captain Jones, and to a great part of his troops, in
1773.

Gottre Reg-ion. — The pestilential region is not without

MIDDLE INDIA.

161

inhabitants, though its influence has wholly debased in them
the form, the size, and the strength of human creatures.
Here the disease named goitre prevails. From Rungpoor
towards Bootan it is estimated that every sixth man has a
crop or swelling. It occurs also in Lower Bootan ; but
Turner saw nothing of the kind in Thibet. The inhabitants
of Assam are visited w ith great goitres, and also the people
of the vallevs of Serinagur and those that dwell near the
open land of Kemaoon. This disease, conjoined with
cretinism, prevails throxighout the whole zone, from the
borders of Assam, in 27° north lat. and 110° east long., to
Hurdwar on the Ganges, in Rohilcund, in 30^ north lat.
and 78° east long., in those districts bounded on the south
hv Bijnee, Cooch-Bahar, Rungpoor, Dinagepoor, Purnca,
Tirhoot, Bettiah, and the northern boundary of Oude
through Gooracpore, Baraitsch, Pillibeat, and on the fron-
tier of Rohilcund, through Hurdwar. It extends farther to
the westward : Forster met vi-ith it on his mountain journey
from the Jamboo pass towards Cashmere. Appearances of
the same kind occur on the southern border of the Gobi
above Pekin, in the Kolla and Magaza in Africa, in the
marshy woods of Simbani, in the land of the Mandingoes,
in the southern acclivity of the Alps, &c., as well in those
places where snow-water is wanting as where it is met
with, — a fact in opposition to that opinion which ascribes
the goitre disease to the bad qualities of the snow-water.

^? Middle India.— TYas great comparatively flat region,
the richest and most productive part of our eastern empire,
comprehends, 1. The great tract watered by the Ganges.
2. The tract watered by the Indus. 3. The intermediate
desert.

As this division of India is noticed in a preceding volume
of this work we need not enter into further details, but
merely remark that the alluj'ial tract from Hurdwar to the
mouth of the Ganges may, ^cording to Hindoo speculators,
formerly have been occupied by the sea, — thus giving to
the peninsular part of India an insular form ; and that the
desert, which in many of its characters resembles strongly
tke African and Arabian sandy plains, is the eastern por
tion of the vast series of deserts which stretch from the
western boundary of the great Sahara m Africa across the

0 2

162 PENINSULAR INDIA.

■whole of that continent, Arabia, part of Persia, to the west
side of the Indus.

3. Peninsular India. — The peninsula of India, which is
totally unconnected with the Himmaleh range, is bounded
by the waters of the ocean and the plains of Central or
Middle India, and forms, as it were, a world for itself. It
is bounded on the north by a mountainous, hilly, and table-
shaped country, which includes the mountains extending
from the Gulf of CutcU on the west to the Bay of Bengal
on the east, viz. — those of Guzerat, Malwah, Candeish,
and Gundwana. We also, in a geological view, include in
this region the mountainous and hilTy ranges stretching
around the great western desert as far as the neighbourhood
of Oodipoor, Ajmere, Jyepore, to Delhi. On the south-
west and south-east it is bounded by the Indian Ocean and
the Bay of Bengal.

The Ghauts enclose the main body of the peninsula,
which consists of table-lands and mountains and hills, ele-
vated from 2000 to 4000 feet above the sea. The ranges
of the Ghauts join on the north side of the great pass or
gap of Coimbetoor, first made known during the military
excursion of Colonel Fullcrton. Tins striking pass is
about sixteen miles wide. It is well known that ships
navigating the Malabar coast during the north-east mon-
soon°commonly experience a stronger gale in the neigh-
bourhood of Paniani than elsewhere ; and this opening in
the Ghauts appears to be the cause of this effect. It is
also said that the lower part of the Coimbetoor country
partakes of the rainy or south-west monsoon of the Malabar
coast, which may be referred to the same cause. We re-
gret we have not been able to find any statements in regard
to the height of this pass above the Coromandel and Mala-
bar countries.

From the- south side of the sap the Ghaut range con-
tinues onward in a southerly mrection to Cape Comorin,
where it terminates. The land at its extremity is low and
flat, covered with trees, and not visible from the deck more
than four or five leagues ; but about half a mile inland is
the mountain of Komari, the termination of the Ghauts,
rising to a height of nearly 4000 feet. From this moun-
tain the southern extremity of India takes its name ; its po-
sition is lat. 8° 4' north, long. 77° 45' east. Daniel says it is

HEIGHTS IX THE PENINSULA. 163

quite smooth, and verdant to the very' summit. Near the
base bursts forth a magnilicent cataract.

Cmintry belon: the Ghauis. — On both sides of the penin-
sula, interposed between the foot of the mountains and
the coast, there is a tract named Payeenghaut, or below
the Ghauts ; that above these ranges being named Bala-
ghaut, or above the Ghauts. The country below the
Ghauts is composed of hilly and low and fiat countrv, va-
rying in breadth from a few miles to eighty or ninety.

Height of the Land in the Peninsula. — The followincr de-
terminations of heights we owe to Captain Cullen of the
Madras artillery : — *

^1 ithout taking into account those habitable but confined
tracts in the IN'hilgcrry hills, which are from 5000 to 7000
feet, and those on the Shervaroy or Salem hills, from 4000
to 5000 feet above the level of .the sea, the table-land of
Mysore presents the most elevated surface of the peninsula.
The highest part of this table-land includes the stations
of Bangalore, IS'undidroog, Colar, and Oossoor, forming an
area of sixty miles by tifty, and presenting a mean altitude
of about 3000 feet. There is a rapid fall thence on every
side ; and the mean height' of this belt may be siated at
about 2400 feet. The valley of Seringapatam, including
the town of Mysore, is also about the same height.

TrichinopolV; the capital of the southern division, is only
about 250 feet above the sea ; but the ground rises to the
southward, attaining at one point the height of 800 feet ;
so that, if a line be drawn by Madura and Palamcotta to
Cape Comorin, it would give a mean altitude of between
400 and 500 feet. The country in this quarter has a
gradual rise from the eastern shore to the westward,
where it is bounded by the great Travancore chain of moun-
tains.

There is, indeed, a very remarkable a«cent observable
throughout almost the whole of the peninsula south of

* In Mr. Babington's paper in the 5th volume of the Geological So-
ciety's Trajisaciions, the height of one peak, Bonasson hill, is said to be
7000 feer iibove the sea ; and in a description of the'Nhilgerrj- reaion by
lir. Smiih young, the peak of Dodajiet. situated between II^ and 12=
north lat. and 7e= east Ion?., Is said to rise to an elevation of 8700 feet.
It is rnvuh to be regretleri that we h.ive so few pubii.^hed reports of
he;ghts, by ac!ual gcomtirical or baroir.elrical measurements, of the
principal summits iu the peninsula.

164 HEIGHTS IN THE PENINSULA.

Berar, from the eastern shore to the great Western Ghauts ;
and one need only cast his eye on tide map to perceive thi*
by the course of the rivers, which uniformly take an easterly
direction, and fall into the Bay of Bengal. The country
from Madras by Arcot towards the bottom of the Pedanaig-
drooj pass' rises gradually to between 800 and 900 feet
above the sea ; and a similar slope may be considered to
obtain for sixty or seventy miles southward of Madras, and
for 130 or 140 miles north of it. The western coast is,
however, more hilly, and is covered with jungles or forests
from the sea to the Western Ghauts. The mean height of
the provinces of Malabar and Canara may be estimated at
about 200 feet above tire sea.

The Ceded Districts adjoining the Mj'sore territories on
the north partake of the general slope which has been no-
ticed. Bellary the capital, lying nearly in the centre of
the province, is about 1600 feet above the sea, and the rise
continues westward till it attains the elevation of 2500 feet.
Belgaum in the Doab, situated at this height, is nearly the
highest part of that province.

The average height of the province of Hydrabad, including
an area of nearly the same magnitude as the Mysore table-
land, is about 1900 feet above the sea; the city of Hydra-
bad lies low, near the northern edge of this area. Tha
slope to the east and the north-%vest from this elevated tract
is rapid ; that to the north is much more gradual ; the spaco
to the south, between it and the ceded districts, compre-
hending the bed of the Kistna, is from 1100 to 1300 feet
above the sea.

The elevation of Bangalore and Hydrabad thus interrupts
the general slope of the peninsula. The country round
Jaulna is from 1600 to 1800 feet above the sea, and the
general ascent from east to west is here very distinctly
marked. Poonah, situated very near the Western Ghauts,
is believed to be 2500 feet, or nearly so, above the sea.

The flat open plains of Nagpore seem to indicate their
approach to the alluvial districts of the Ganges ; for at the
very base of the peninsula, and at a distance of 400 miles:
from either the eastern or western sea, they attain only an
elevation of 800 or 900 feet. Hinginghaut, fifty miles south
of Nagpore, is only 700 feet above the sea.

The northern division, including Guntoor, is ^ series of

METEOROLOGY. 165

level plains, elevated nowhere more than 50 feet above the
sea. The Ghauts approach the coast near Vizairapatan,
without causing any material alteration in the level of the
intermediate valleys.

The following table contains some barometric measure-
ments by Mr._ Babington across the peninsula from Madras
to Tellichern," : —

Arcot above Madras 624i

Chiltore above Arcot 4321

Mooglee above Chittore 573^

Pullamaurey above Mooglee 573^

Nungily above Pullamaurey 'ui;

Moohvagul above Nungily 437^.

Colar above Moohvagul. '.. ...f 31

Mysore above Seringapatam 2^3'

Top of Ghaut above Peria 251

Midway Hut below topofGhaut. 973i

Bottom of Ghaut below Midway Hut 1320J

Mr. Dyer's house, Tellicherrv, below bottom of Ghaut 3 ^9!

The Sea below Mr. Dyer's house ^ 119"

Malabar Sea below Bangalore •....;..■ 2698

Differs from Lambton's measuremeat ..,.. 210

METEOEOLOGV.

The atmosphere of India is chiefly tropical' a small ex-
tent only being situated in the southern part of the northern
temperate zone. In some districts, however, the atmo-
sphere, owing to the form, elevation, and nature of the sur-
face of the land, exhibits characters almost identical with
those of the northern temperate, and even of the polar
regions. To place ih full array before our readers a com-
plete view of a subject so vast and complicated as the me-
teorology of India would very far exceed the limits of the
present work. We must therefore rest satislied with the fol-
lowing details and views, which will illustrate, in a popular
view, the meteorology of Kindostan : —

1. Changes in ihe Pressure of the Atmosphere.— The
changes in the pressure of the atmosphere, as ascertained
by means of the barometer, have not in India been traced
out with that care and accuracy which the importance of
the subject demands. Of the barometric phenomena, the
rnost curious are those that point out the daily atmospheric
tides, the horary motions, or the double rise and fall of the
barometer within twenty-four hours. In India, as in the
temrerate and arctic regions, there are daily or hourly varia-

166 PRESSURE OF THE ATMOSPHERE.

tions, in which the mercury in the barometer is always
higher at 9 A.M. and 9 P.M., than at 3 P.M. and«3 A.M.
These motions are much more distinct in India, and in
tropical regions in general, than in temperate region?.
From the observations of Humboldt we learn, that in tropi-
cal America these atmospheric tides are independent of
changes in the weather and seasons. Thus, it the mercury
is falling from nine in the morning until three or four in the
afternoon, or if it be rising from four in the afternoon until
nine or eleven at night, a storm, an earthquake, or violent
tempest of wind does not aflect or alter its course. It appears
to be aifected only by true time, or the position of the sun.
In the tropical regions, he adds, the moment when the mer-
cury begins to fall is so marked, that the barometer indi-
cates true tune within a quarter of an hour. Whatever
truth may be in the latter observation of Humboldt, there
can be no doubt as to the motions themselves. The only
obser^•ations made io Ij^dia with which we are acquainted,
are the very interesting one's of Dr. Russel at Burhanpoor,in
24° north lat., and of Mr. Prinscp at Benares, in 25h° north
lat., continued for three 3'ears, and which hannonize in
general with those made in other tropical countries. At
present we are not in possession of a range of observations
sufficiently extensive to enable us to explain these horary
motions. The speculations of Humboldt, Leslie, and others
on this subject are unsatisfactory. It is indeed evident
that these motions are connected, not only with the atmo-
spheric temperature, but also with its associated moisture.
Until, however, we have a series of hourly-connected ob-
servations of the barometer and hygrometer, we cannot at-
tempt any explanation likely to be plausible.

The connexion of the mean monthly heights of the ba-
rometer with the south-west and north-east monsoons is
also a subject of considerable interest, and is well illus-
trated in barometrical observations made at Seringapatam,
Bangalore, Calcutta, Benares, Catmandoo, and Madras, for
the particulars of .which we refer to the original tables and
observations of the obsen^ers.

2. Composition of the Atmosphere. — It would appear
firom experiments made in ditierent countries and at different
heights, that the proportions of oxygen and azote, the. prin-
cipal constituents of the atmo?phcrc,'do not vary. Carbrmjc

EFFECTS OF MOUXTALX AIR, 167

add, another but minute constituent of the earth's atmo
sphere IS said to vary in quantity ; for at one and the same
place the carbonic acid suffers continued changes ag^o
quantity, according to the temperature, wind, rain, and at-
mosphencal pressure. Thus, near Geneva, acco^diS^ to
Saussure, the mean quantity of this gas in 1000 parti bv
volume of air is at midday 5, or more accurately 4 9 • tliP
maxmium IS 6 2 ; mmimum, 3.7. The same excellent ob!
server hnds, that m Svsitzerland carbonic acid increases in
sjimmcr, but dtmvuskes in autunm ; further, that the quan-
tity of carbomc acid at midday, in December, January, and
Februa^ is to that in June, July, and August JhTo
100 He also found, that over a ivet soil the atmosphere
contams less carbonic acid than over a dry one ; that more
..xis sill he atmosphere during the «;>/i^ than during the
day , that the superior strata of the atmosphere contain
more t^ian the i^iferior ; and, lastly, that .1 violent tTd
genera ly augments the quantity in the lower atmospheric
strata durmg the day, by the intermixture of the lower and
upper aerial strata, and sometimes by the wind bIowin<T

and water, the atmosphere occasionally contains, probably
in some measure as accidental mixed parts, a particular
vegeto-an.mal matter, and salts of various descriptions'
Ihe preceding details show what is expected from those
who may undertake to make us acquainted with the chvmica'
naiure of the atmosphere of India,-a subject of great im-
portance, but hitherto neglected.

3._ Effects of hio-hly attenuated Momitain Air —It is well
known that on ascending high mountains, owing to the
diminished pressure of the atmosphere, the animal, and
indeed also the vegetable, functions are more or Jess affected.
•Some individuals of the human species feel these chan-^es very
intensely, while others experience comparatively little incon-
venience. Thislattercircumstancehasledsomephilosophe?s
to imagme that these ener^•ating effects are solely owin^ to
fatigue, and not to the attenuated state of the air,-an
opinion, however, which is disproved by a fact stated by
Gay Lussac, who, during his aerostatic voyage, wliife calmly
seated ,n his balloon, experienced all those ditt^essin. svmp^

l?^ne r.T n' °''"''""-" '° ^'^^^"^^^ °^ ^heir accent of
alpme lands. Our entcrpnsing countrymen, while ex-

168 TEMPERATURE OF THE ATMOSPHERE.

ploring the Himmalehs, suffered from this cause. Thys
Captain Gerard, in the account of one of his journeys,
says, "Our elevation was now upwards of 15,000 feet,
although we had but ascended in company with the river
against its current. Here only began our toils, and we
scaled the slope of the mountain slowly ; respiration was
laborioxis, and ice felt exhausted at cccry step. The crest
of the pass was not visible, and we saw no limit to
our exertions. The road inclined at an angle of 30°,
and passed under vast ledges of limestone. The projec-
tions frowned above us in new and horrid forms, and our
situation was different from any thing we had yet expe-
rienced. Long before we got up, ice were troubled with severe
headaches, and our respiration became so hurried and oppres-
sive, that ice were compelled to sit down every few yards, and
eccn then we could scarcely inhale a sufficient supply^ of q.ir.
The least motimi was accompanied with extreme debility and
a depression of spirits ; and thus we labourtd for tivo miles."*
Even the lower animals are observed to experience similar
inconvenience from attenuated air. Thus the yali and the
horse are mentioned by Moorcroft and others as suffering
considerably when driven into high mountainous situations.

The effects of the attenuated air 'on sound is also a
curious subject for observation and experiment. Saussure
found sounds very feeble on the summit of Mount Blanc ;
Dr. Schultes experienced the same on the Glockner and
Stiria ; and other travellers notice the comparatively smal!
extent to which the voice can be heard at an altitude of
13,000 feet on Mount Rosa. Observations have never,
as far as we* know, been made on this point among the
Himmalehs, although such would prove interesting. They,
might be made by the explosions of a small detonating
pislol loaded with a constant charge, and the distances
should be measured ; for the voice loses much of its force
from the diminution of muscular energy in rarefied air,
and distances are much underrated by estimation in such
situations.

4. Temperature of the Atmosphere. — The problem of the
distribution of heat' over the globe is a very complicated

♦ For other details on this sutject, see that valuable periodical the
Asiatic Journal.

TEMPERATURE OF THE ATMOSPHERE. 169

one, the solution of which requires a vast series of data,
founded on observations continued for a long period of
years by experienced meteorologists, providecf with a full
complement of the best instruments. In this investio-ation
independent of other inquiries, we have to determine with
accuracy the inflection of certain lines of equal annual tem-
perature, the isothermal lines ; also those of equal summer
temperature, the isotheral lines ; and of equal winter tem-
perature, the isochemenal lines : we have to fix the relative
positions of these lines in regard to each other, and to the
meridians and parallels of latitude.* Such inquiries, although
most interesting to the professed meteorologist, cannot be
indulged in a work of this description with anv prospect of
advantage ; and besides, the known data are "by no means
so satisfactory as to allow us to enter on the subject with
that confidence which would be inspired by the conviction
of ©ur having to work with numerous good observation.^
made with accurate instruments. .Such being the case, we
shall here simply notice the general range of Indian tem-
perature, referring for the temperature of particular prov-
inces to the observations under the head of each.

The range of temperature is very great, extending from
the freezing point of water, and even below it, to 130° of
Fahrenheit's scale. The highest temperatures are met with
in the great Western Desert, and other sandy districts at the
level of the sea, or nearly so, as the Circars and the Lower
Camatic. Elphinstone observed the thermometer at 112° in
the Western Desert ; but he remarks that even where these
high temperatures prevail, the evening air is cool to such a
degree that the English gentlemen of the embassy used to
suffer from cold during the night marches, and we're happy
to kindle a large fire as soon as they reached their ground ;
yet the sun became so po^verful early in the morning, that
they always awoke with a feverish heat which last'ed till
sunset. Humaioon, the father of the great emperor Akbar,
lost most of his followers in the march over this dreadful
desert ; beneath a vertical sun, on burning sands and with-
out water, tortured with violent thirst, they were seized with
phrensies, burst out into piercing screams and lamentations ;

* It is even of importance, in reference to climate, to determine by
means of springs the isogeothermal lines.
Vol. III.— P

170 ICE IN INDIA.

they rolled themselves in agonies on the parched soil, their
tongues hung out of their mouths, and they expired in most
exquisite tortures.* Speaking of the Circars, Heyne says,
nothing can be more distressing than the failure of the sea-
breeze for several successive days, when the land-wind blows
all night, and heats every thing so much as to become dis-
tressing to the touch. This was the case in the year 1799,
in the Northern Circars, for about a fortnight. The ther-
mometer at midnight stood at 108° F., and at 8 o'clock, A.
M. at 112°. Neither wood nor glass is capable of bearing
the heat for any length of time ; the latter, as shades, globe-
lanterns, &c., crack and fly in pieces ; the former warps
and shrinks, and the nails fall out of the doors and tables.
Heyne never saw the thermometer higher than 115° F. in
the coolest part of the house. Some persons affirm, that in
such cases they have seen it as high as 130° F. The cli-
mate in the lovver part of the Carnatic is one of the hottest
in India. Frost never occurs in the Deccan, nor to the south
of it ; but sometimes the temperature of Hydrabad is only
6° or 8° above freezing. In Malwah, during the hot season,
the parching winds from the northward and westward, that
prevail in most parts of India to an intense degree, are
comparatively mild and of short duration. The thermome-
ter, however, during the day rises sometimes as high as 98°;
but the nights are invariably cool and refreshing. During
the cold season the thermometer sinks as low as 28°. In
the higher parts of India, as at Delhi, in north lat. 28°
37', for example, the winter's cold is sometimes 3° or 4°
below the freezing-point of water, and the tanks are frozen
entirelv over. In a Persian work called Mutaghevin, or
Modern Times, there is mention made of a frost at Delhi
which continued three nights, in consequence of which
brazen vessels filled with water burst.

5. Mailing of Ice m India. — Ice is considered a great lux-
ury, and hence is made in many parts of the country. All
over Upper India it is procured in a very simple manner.
A number of broad shallow earthen pans are placed on a
layer of dry straw, and filled with water. In the night even
the slight frost felt is sufficient to cover these with a thin
crust of ice, which is carefully collected and packed up. An

* Dow's Ferishta, 8ro. edition, ii. 159.

(

I

ICE IN INDIA. 171

intelligent gentleman, David Scott, Esq., says the subject
of arliticial congelation is not so well understood by scien-
tific men in Europe as it might be. The old story of eviipo-
ration being at the bottom of the process, and porous pans
being necessary for its success, is repeated by one author
after another, although nothing can be more erroneous. In
respect to the first, it seems sufficient to observe, that when
ice is produced in temperatures above the freezing-point, a
plentiful deposition of dew is always going on, which seems
to be altogether inconsistent with the idea of air being in a
state capable of receiving -fresh accessions of moisture. Mr.
Scott found, by repeated experiments, that ice may be pro-
duced although a thin film of oil be spread over the surface
of the water, — the latter being contained in glazed plates,
which indeed answer much better than the porous pans of
the countr_y, the ice in them being invariably thicker, and
the water, when it does not actually freeze, somewhat colder
thun the similar contents of porous pans placed in exactly
the same situation. The fact is that the natives use porous
pans from necessity, there being no other description of
earthenware manufactured in the country ; but so well ar?
they aware that the ;;oro*iVy of the vessels is of no advanta^re,
that they usually rub them with grease for the purpose of
more easily taking out the ice, and also facihtating the pro-
cess, by keeping the straw upon which they are placed in a
perfectly dry and non-conducting state. Mr. Scott repeated
some of Dr. Well's experiments, and obtained interesting
results. On one occasion, a turban being suspended across
the pit three feet above the pans, it, as it always does, pre-
vented the formation of ice in those inunediately under it ;
and in several which it only partially covered, ice was formed
on the half of the water out of this perpendicular line, while
that under the turban was fluid. Two strings crossing each
other, and placed at a less height above a pan, will also
•livide the ice into four quarters ; but it is obvious that these
results will not always be obtained ; for, if the temperature
be rather lower than would be necessary to freeze the water,
j^upposing no impediment to exist, the whole may be frozen,
although partially covered ; and, on the other hand, if just
sufficient to freeze the water under the most favourable cir-
cumstances, the contents of a vessel not fully exposed to the
influence of the sky may remain fluid throughout. Mr. Scott

172 SNOW-LINE.

could never make ice (operating, however, on a small scale)
when the temperature exceeded 41° F. on the level of the pits ;
but on such occasions the temperature is much higher at some
distance from the ground, and a series of bottles filled with
water, suspended from a mast of about seventy feet high,
exhibited an increase of 1° for every ten feet of elevation.
Mr. Scott adds, that therefore Sir H. Davy is right in sajing
ice may be made when the thermometer is above 50°, if he
allude to the upper regions of the air, or hills of moderate
height ; but, as has been already said, it cannot be made
when the thermometer, suspended at three feet from the
ground on the plain, stands at about 41°. Mr. Scott's ex-
periments extend to the height of 3400 feet, at which eleva-
tion, on a detached mountain, the temperature of the air at
sunrise is several degrees higher than in the plain of Bengal.

6. Snoio-Une. — ^Although, as already remarked, the ther-
mometer sometimes stands as low as 28° F. in Malwah, yet,
as far as we know, snow has not been obsen'ed in India to
the south of the grand Himmaleh mountain-barrier. On
several ranges of this vast alpine land snow lies all the year.
The lower "boundary of this snowy covering is named the
snow-line, which varies in height according to the season
of the year, being highest during sununer and lowest during
winter. Of late years the height of this line in different
parts of the world has engaged the particular attention of
meteorologists, and the investigation has led to interestmg
results. The subject has been pursued with energy among
the Himmalehs by several active British officers, — of whom
Webb, Gerrard, and Herbert are the most distinguished.
In November, 1817, Captain Webb published a memoir on
the heights of the Himmalehs, in which, by tracing the
Gauri river upwards, he found that it burst from the snow
at the elevation of 11, .543 feet, — a striking coincidence be-
tween actual obserA'ation and the calculated formula of au-
thors, which assigns 11,400 feet. Mr. Golebrooke, in a
paper published in Brande's Journal from the observations
of Captain Webb, for the first time remarked that the inferior
limit of perpetual snow does not everywhere descend so low
as theory would lead us to conclude.

According to theory, the height of the snow-line between
latitudes 27° and 35°, about the range of latitude of the
Himmalehs, is as follows : —

HEIGHT OF THE SNOW-LINE. 173

l*btiide. Height of the Snow-line.

Feet.
270 12,145

28 11,930

29 11,T10

30 11,484

31 11,253

32 11,018

33 10,778

34 10,534

35 10,287

The following fact.s show, not only the difference between
the line of theory and that of actual observation, but also
that the snow-line is higiier on the northern than the south-
ern side of the Hiniiaalehs : —

7. General Great Height of the Srioic-line on the Himmalchs,
— The village and temple of Milem were found by Captain
Webb at the respective elevations of 11,405 and 11,682 feet
above Calcutta ; extensive fields of buckwheat and Tartaric
barlej' occupying the space between the two. A year after
these observations were made, viz. on the 21st June, 1818,
Captain Webb proceeded southward from Joshi-mat-h, and
from the Dauli river observed barometrically the altitude of
a station on the ridge of mountains to the south. He found
it to be 11,680 feet above the level of Calcutta; yet the
place was surrounded by flourishing woods of oak, long-
leaved pine, and arborescent rhododendrons, and the whole
surface covered with a rich vegetation as high as the knee,
extensive beds of strawberries in full flower, and plenty of
currant-bushes in blossom all around, in clear spots of rich
black mould. On the following day, Captain Webb reached
the summit of the pass Pilgointi Churhai, and found it.s
elevation to be 12,642 feet above the same level, or more
than 12,700 feet above the sea. A dense fog confined the
prospect ; but no snow was to be seen contiguous to the
spot. The surface exhibited a black soil, unless where the
bare rock appeared, covered with strawberry plant.?, butter-
cups, dandelions, and a profusion of other flowers. The
goatherds of tiie country are accustomed to lead their flocks
to pasture during July and August upon a yet loftier ridge,
estimated to be as much above the pass of Pilgointi as thi.s
was above the preceding day's encampment, — that is, nearly
1000 feet ; and which therefore removes the snow-line to a
etill higher elevation.

P2 ,

174 HEIGHT OF THE SNOM-LINE.

The temple of Kedar-nath, according to a mean of five
barometrical measurements, is 11,897 feet above Calcutta,
or 12,000 feet above the level of the sea ; but no snow
remained in the vicinity of the temple later than the beg:m-
nina of July; so that under the latitude of 30° 40' at the
last-mentioned elevation, the snows were not perpetual on
the southern side of the Himmaleh mountains.

Captain Webb's observations on the summit of the Nitee
Ghaut afford another example of this interesting fact. At
the elevation of 16,814 feet, not a vestige of snow was to be
seen on the Ghaut, nor upon the projecting shoulder of the
mountain-ridge, rising about 300 feet on the western side
of the pass ; and we may hence conclude that the height of
the snow-line on the northern side of the Himmaleh range
cannot be less than 17,000 feet. The great elevation of the
table-land of Tartary is, from its connexion with the distri-
bution of the snowy boundary in these regions, deserving of
particular notice. By observations made on the ridge of the,
Nitee pass. Captain Webb found the Sutledge to flow in a
plain 14,924 feet above the sea ; yet so far are the U7ides, or
great plains, from being buried in eternal snow, as our com-
mon estimates would lead us to suppose, that the banks of
the river afford the finest pasture for thousands of quadru-
peds throughout the year. The town of Daba appears to
be inhabited all the year, and not a temporary residence.
In the neitrhbourhood of this place and near Doompoo, both
considerably higher than the bed of the Sutledge, Captain
Webb was informed that the finest crops of the grain called
ora were gathered, irom which the natives make their bread.
Captain Gerrard, when proceeding by the Charang pass,
17,348 feet high, to the valley of Nangalti, says many beds of
snow were crossed, and that at the height of about 16,300 feet
the " continuous snow-hcds conrmenccd." In another place,
however, he remarks that the mountains in the neighbour-
hood of Charang are all of blue slate, naked to their tops, and
exhibiting decay and barrenness in their most frightful forms.
They tower in sharp and detached groups to about 18,000
feet, no vegetation approaching their bases, nor do their
summits offer any rest to snow. Upon the left bank of the
Tagla, mountains 1 6,000 feet high appear, on which no snow J

was observed. The summits on the right bank seem to be M

waa uucic 1 * »-*^« -I ».^ ^v— --f-)

18,000 feet, and with but httle snow in streaks. 1 he moun-

HEIGHT OF THE SNOW-LINE. 175

tains also which enclose the dell of the Tagla are between
19,000 and 20,000 feet high, and just tipped with snow.

The ditierence of height of the perpetual snows on the
northern and southern sides of the Himmaleh mountains is
further shown by the following remarks of Captain Gerrard.
Zamsiri, a halting-place for travellers on the banks of the
Shelti, is 15,600 feet above the sea, — a height equal to that
of the passes through the outer range of the Snowy Moun-
tains ; and yet, he says, there is nothing to remind the
traveller of the Himmalehs. Gently sloping hills and tran-
quil rivulets with banks of turf and pebbly beds, flocks of
pigeons and herds of deer, present the idea of a much lower
elevation. But nature has adapted the vegetation to the
country ; for did it extend no higher than on the southern
face of the Himmalehs, Tartary would be uninhabitable
either by man or beast. On ascending the southern acclivity
of the snowy range, the extreme height of cultivation is
found 10,000 feet ; and even there the crops are frequently
cut green. The highest habitation is 9500 feet ; 1 1,800 feet
may be reckoned the upper lunit of forests, and 12,000 that
of bushes, although, in a few sheltered situations, dwarf-
birches and small bushes are found almost at 13,000 feet.
But if we go to the Baspa river, the highest village will be
found at an elevation of 11,400 feet, cultivation reaching to
the same altitude, and forests extending to 13,000 feet at
least. Advancing farther, we find-villages at the last-men-
tioned elevation, cultivation 600 feet higher, fine birches at
14,000 feet, and tama bushes, which furnish excellent fire-
wood, at 17,000 feet. Eastward, towards Manasawara,
according to the accounts of the Tartars, crops and bushes
thrive at a still greater height.

These facts, then, show not only that the snow-line gen-
erally is higher than was anticipated, but also that we must
ascend several thousand feet more on the northern than
the southern acclivity of this alpine land before we reach
the perpetual snow. Many explanations have been given
of this striking fact which we cannot discuss here. It is
sufficient to remark, that the radiation from the surface of
the table-land of Thibet, the dryness of the air throughout
"Central and Northern Asia, the small quantity of snow
which falls during winter when the temperature sinks to
10°4 F. or + 53 F., lastly, the serenity and transparency of

176 EVAPORATION— HUMIDITY OF ATMOSPHERE.

the atmosphere which reigns dong the northern declivity of
the Himmalehs, and which augments at the same tune the
irradiation of the table:iand, and the transmission of the
xadiant heat which the table-land em_it^, may be considered
as the principal causes of the great difference of the heigh.
of the snow-line on the north and south sides of the central
mountain-ranges of India. , v,- u

8 i:rflpara/iMi.— Evaporation is that process by which
the atmosphere is furnished with the moisture it contains.
Water assumes the vaporic form at all temperatures, how-
ever low. Thus vapour rises, not only from the plains ot
Bengal, but also from the icy and snowy mantles on tho
hif^hest rid<Tes and summits of the Himmalehs. Hitherto,
owin<T to the want of obsenations, naturahsts have not
been^able to trace out in a satisfactory manner the phe-
nomena of evaporation in different climates ; although we
know, from its general relations to heat, that it is most
powerful in the equatorial regions of the globe, and gradu-
ally diminishes towards the poles. The instruments neces-
sary for ascertaining the power of evaporation have never,
as far as we know, been used in India ; but the time is not
distant, we hope, when these will find a place in Indian me-
teorological observatories. .

9. Humidxty of ihc Atmosphere.— The earth, as is well
known, is surrounded by an atmosphere of air and aqueous
vapour. These two matters are mechanically mixed, and
each is governed by its own peculiar laws. In order ta
supply the atmosphere with aqueous vapour, the process ot
evaporation is almost in constant activity ; and Nature has
set limits bej'ond which this vapour cannot pass, so as to
prevent excessive moisture and long-continued dryness.
This dependence of moisture on temperature enables us to
trace some of the phenomena of its distribution. There is,
as is well known, a gradation of heat from the equator to the
poles, and also from the surface of the earth upwards into the
hiaher regions of the air. Generally speaking, the lowest
stratum of the atmosphere, in whatever latitude it is found,
must contain the greatest quantity of aqueous vapour, on ac-
count of its being nearest the source whence that moisture is
supplied. If an equality of temperature existed, there-
fore, at the surface, the same quantity of air, in whatever
latitude it was taken, would contain when completely

DEW. 177

saturated, the same quantity ol' moisture. But since the
temperature diminishes with the latitude, a given vohime
of air in a perfect state of saturation must contain less and
less moisture as we approach the poles. From a similar
cause the moisture of the atmosphere must diminish as we
ascend above the earth. Local circumstances also affect
the moisture of the atmosphere : thus, over coasts it is much
moister than in the interior of continents, as is well exem-
plified in the moist atmosphere of Western Europe, when
contrasted with the very dry atmosphere of Asia. The at-
mosphere over wooded districts is moister than over those
sparingly covered with vegetation ; and the driest reposes
upon arid sandy tropical plains. In India, for the ruost
part, between December'and June,' while the general motion
of the air is southward to the sea, the atmosphere is com-
parativelj- dry. It attains its maximum of humidity during
the blowing of the south-west monsoon. After the rains
eease, fogs in the mornings continue for some time, and re-
appear before the commencement of the iainy season. Such
fogs are useful, Heyne remarks, to the growth of plants, as
they clear them from dust, open their pores, and supply
them with nourishment, which they could not obtain from
the earth in this season. Without these irrigations very
little saltpetre could be made, as the earth which contains
it can be recognised only after it has attracted this moisture.

The only accurate mode of ascertaining the quantit}"^ of
moisture in the air is by means of the hygrometer, an in-
strument which has hitherto been but sparingly used in
India. W^e regret this, as the extensive employment of this
instrument would throw much light on the climate of our
eastern empire. Hygrometers ought, along with other me-
teorological instruments, to be distributed by government
throughout India.

10. Dew. — Dews, in many parts of India, are hea\'iestin
December and January, before the fogs set in. They be-
come perceptible before eight or nine in the evening, when
the atmosphere is perfectly serene. On the Coromandel
coast, according to Heyne, the inhabitants are not so much
afraid of exposure to them as those of other countries.
During the foggy season the vinegar of Sennagalu (the
acid dew of sbme authors), so much prized by the Moormen
and rich Hindoos, is obtained. It is made by spreading

178 RAIN.

pieces of muslin cloth on the flowering sennega {ciccr arte-
tinum, Bengal gram) after sunset, and removing them be-
fore the sun gets through the clouds of mist. The moisture
with which they are saturated is wrung out, and preserved
for use. The acid juice is said to contain oxalic, malic, and
a little acetic acid.*

11. Rain. — The humidity communicated to the air by
evaporation is returned to the earth chiefly in the form of
rain. The quantity of rain which falls is greatest at the
equator, gradually decreasing towards the poles. The quan-
tity is estimated by means of the rain-gauge, and is given
in inches and fractions of inches. When we say, for ex-
ample, that one inch has fallen in a district in a specific
time, it means that if all the rain which fell in that time had
remained on the surface, it would have covered it to the
depth of one inch. This explanation is offered, as some of
our readers might not be aware without it of the precise
meaning of the following details.

In India the rains occur at determinate periods, named
the rainy seasons. In general there is but one rainy sea-
son, during June, July, August, September, and October,
during the south-west monsoon ; little or no rain falling
in the other months. In the peninsula, however, there
are in some places lico rainy scaso7is, — one during the
south-west monsoon on the west side, the other in the time
of the north-east monsoon on the east side of the country.

Rain falls, not only all over the peninsula and Middle In-
dia, but also among the Himmalehs, and at a great height
above the sea. Thus Gerrard, in a snow-covered region
15,000 feet high, experienced a shower which lasted for
two hours. He was also detained three days by incessant
Tain at Shalpia, a resting-place for travellers.

On the coast of Malabar, mean latitude about 1U° north,
the annual amount of rain is stated at 123^ ; at Bombay,
the fall observed during twelve years is stated at 82 inches
annually ; at Calcutta 81 inches during the year. Of the
quantities falling during successive months the results are
necessarily very variable. The means of twelve years' ob-
servations for Bombay afford the following results : —

* Dew collected from the loaves of plants contains a large dose of car-
tonic acid ; thus Lampadius found 2 per cent, of carbonic acid in dew
collected from the leaves of the akhcmilla vulgaris.

RAIN— MONSOONS. 173

j","f 24.09 inches.

•""'y 23 95

August is's

, S^P'ember '.'.'.'.'. li'm

October j 06

the greatest fall being found in June and July, and declin.
ing to a very small amount in October.

The quantity of rain which sometimes falls in a short
time IS ve^ great. Thus, a letter from Mr. Scott says,
there fell at Bombay during the first twelve days of the rainy
season thirty-two inches of rain, so that all the roads be-
came like nvers. In England the average fall for the
whole year is thirty-two inches,— the same as fell at Bom-
bay in the course of twelve days. Between Bombay and
the southern part of the Malabar coast, places not 500 miles
distant from each other, very great differences prevail, both
in mdividual years and in the amounts of the annual means,
liie following are a few of the results of each:—

Toan Amount of Rjin at Bombaj Amount of IU« on the''

'" '°'^'»es. Coast of Malabar in inches.

\l\L 103"9 i36.ro

il]l 81.14 169.19

??1? 77.10 135.47

1820

1821 82.99

'''■34 147 18

1822

98.44

112.21 ....145.60

^^'-3 • _61£0 121.67

IMeans 85.18 136.32

Here the average annual amount of rain differs sixty per
cent, within so small a geographical limit.

From the want of obser v°ations we have no opportunity

ot laymg before our readers any details in regard to the re-

ative proportions in the mountainous, hilly, -flat, low, and

littoral parts of India, nor have met with any very accurate

registers of the daily and nightly fall.

12. Monsoons.—Jniii^ though it approaches nearer to the
equa or, is not so hot as the Sandy Arabia or the adjacent
countnes The course of the seasons is also more rec^ular
and constant, and it is in this part of the world thai we
meet with tho.se remarkable winds-the seasonal or period-
ical wmds called monsoons-^^■]uch throughout Indifblow
nearly one-half the year from south-west to north-east, and

180 MONSOONS.

the other half from north-east to south-west, and are the
great distributers of its rain and modifiers of its cUmate.
The most remarkable rainy season is that called the south-
west monsoon. It extends from Afjica to the peninsula of
Malacca, and deluges all the countries within certain lines
of latitude for about four months of the year. In the
southern parts of India this monsoon commences about the
nennning of June, but it gets later as we advance towards
the north. Its approach, says Mr. Elphinstone, is gene-
rally announced by vast masses of clouds that rise from
the Indian Ocean and advance towards the north-east, ga-
thering and thickening as they come near the land. After
some tlireatening days the sky assumes a troubled appear-
ance in the evenings, and the monsoon in general sets in
durincr the night. It is attended by thunder-storms far ex-
ceeding in intensity those of temperate regions. It gene-
rally begins with violent blasts of wind, which are succeeded
by floods of rain. For some hours lightning is seen almost
without intermission; sometimes it only illuminates the
sky, and shows the clouds near the horizon ; at others it
discovers the distant hills, and again leaves all m darkness,
when in an instant it reappears in vivid and successive
flashes, and exhibits the nearest objects in all the bright-
ness of day. During all this time thunder never ceases to
roll, and is only silenced by some nearer peal, which bursts
on the ear with such a sudden and tremendous crash as can
scarcely fail to strike the most insensible heart with awe.*
At length the thunder ceases, and nothing is heard but the
continued pouring of the rain and the rushing of the rising
streams. The next day presents a gloomy spectacle ; the
rain still descends in torrents, and scarcely allows a view
of the blackened fields ; the rivers are swollen and discol-
oured, and sweep down along with them the hedges, the
huts, and the remains of the cultivation which was carried
on during the dry season in their beds.

* To persons Mr. Elphinstone says, -who have long resided in India,
these storms lose mucti of their grandeur ; yet they sometimes rise to
such a pitch as to make an impression on those most habiiuated to them.
He was told by a gentleman who had been for some time m Malabar,
theproNince most distinguished for the violence of the monsoon, that he
there heard a clap of thunder which produced a silence of a mmute in a
large party of officers, aad made a great part of the company turn paJe.

MONSOONS. 181

This lasts for several days ; after which the sky clears,
and discovers the face of nature changed as if by enchant-
ment. Before the storm the fields were parched up, and
except in the beds of the rivers scarcely a blade of vegeta-
tion was to be seen ; the clearness of the sky was not inter-
rupted by a single cloud, but the atmosphere was loaded
with dust, which was sufficient to render distant objects
dim, as in mist, and to make the sun appear dull and disco-
loured, till he attained a considerable elevation ; a parching
wind blew like a blast from a furnace, and heated wood,
iron, and every other solid material, even in the shade ; and
immediately before the monsoon this wind had been suc-
ceeded by the still more sultry calms. But when the first
violence of the storm is over, the whole earth is covered
with a sudden and luxuriant verdure ; the rivers are full
and tranquil ; the air is pure and delicious ; and the sky is
varied and embellished with clouds. The effect of the
change is visible on all the animal creation, and can only
be imagined in Europe by supposing the depth of a dreary
winter to start at once into all the freshness and brilliancy
of spring. From this time the rain falls at intervals for
about a month, when it comes on again with great violence,
and in July the rains are at their height ; during the third
month they rather diminish, but are still heavy ; and in
September they gradually abate, and are often entirely sus-
pended, till near the end of the month, when they depart
amid thunders and tempests as they came.

Such is the monsoon in the greater part of India. It is
not, however, without some diversity, the principal feature
of which is the delay in its commencement, and the dimi-
nution of the quantity of rain as it recedes from the sea.
It is naturally most severe near the sea, from which it draws
its supplies, and is exhausted after it has passed over a great
Tract of land. For this reason the rains are more or less
plentiful in different districts according to their distance
from the sea, except in those near high mountains, which
arrest the clouds, and procure a larger supply of rain for
the neighbouring tracts than would have fallen to their share
if the passage of the clouds had been unobstructed.

The obstacle presented to the clouds and winds by the
mountains has another effect of considerable importance .
The south-west monsoon blows over the ocean in its natu-

Vol. III.— Q

182 MONSOONS.

lal direction ; and though it may experience some diversi-
ties after it reaches the land, its general course over India
may still be said to be towards the north-east, till it is ex-
hausted on the western and central parts of the peninsula.
The provinces in the north-east receive it in a different man-
ner : the wind which brings the rains to that part of the
continent originally blows from the south-west over the Bay
of Bengal, till the mountains of Himmaleh, and those
•which join them from the south, stop its progress, and com-
pel it to follow their course towards the north-west. The
prevailinff wind, therefore, in the region south-west of the
Himmalehs is from south-east ; and it is from that quarter
that our provinces in Bengal receive their rains. But when
the wind has reached so far to the north-west as to meet
with the Hindoo Coosh, it is again opposed by that chain
of mountains, and turned off along its face towards the
west, till it meets the projection of Hindoo Coosh and the
range of Solimaun, which prevent its fiuther progress in
that direction, or at least compel it to part with the clouds
with which it was loaded. The effect of the mountains in
stopping the clouds borne by this wind is different in differ-
ent places. Near the sea, where the clouds are still in deep
mass, part is discharged on the hills and the country beneath
them, and part passes up to the north-west ; but part is said
to make its way over the first hills, and produce the rains in
Thibet.

The above observations, Mr. Elphinstone continues, will
explain, or at least connect the following facts : — The south-
west monsoon commences on the Malabar coast in May,
and is there very violent ; it is later and more moderate in
Mysore ; and the Coromandel coast, covered by the moun-
tainous countries on the west, is entirely exempt from it.
Farther north the monsoon begins early in June, and loses
a good deal of its violence, except in the places influenced
by the neighbourhood of the mountains or the sea, where
the fall of water is very considerable. About Delhi it does
not begin until near the end of June, and the fall of rain is
greatly inferior to what is felt at Calcutta or Bombay. In
the north of the Punjaub, near the hills, it exceeds that of
Delhi ; but in the south of the Punjaub, distant both from
the sea and the hills, very little rain falls. The clouds pass
with little obstruction over Lower Sinde, but rain more

HAIL. 183

plentifully in Upper Sinde, where these rains, though not
heavy, are the principal ones in the year.

By the beginning of October, when the south-west moi>
soon or rainy season is nearly at an end, the change gradu-
ally takes place from the south-west to the north-east mon-
soon. This monsoon is attended with dry weather through-
out the peninsula, excepting on its eastern side on the coast
of Coromandel. On this coast the north-east monsoon
brings the periodical rains, which begin about the middle
of October, and end generally about the middle of Decem-
ber. From December to the beginning of March this mon-
soon continues, but is now a dry wind. The weather is at
this season cool and agreeable. The north-east winds cease
about the end of February or beginning of March, and
from this period to the beginning of June, the winds are
irregular and the heat great all over the peninsula. The
winds are chiefly from the south at this time in the Bay of
Bengal and on its shores, and are hot, moist, and relaxing.
About the end of May or beginning of June, as already re-
marked, the south-west monsoon begins, and is attended
with the periodical rains in all parts of the peninsula ex-
cepting the Coromandel coast, which then suffers gr.eatly
from heat and drought.

13. Hail. — In India hail falls only daring the hottest sea-
sons of the year, frequently in pieces the weight of half an
ounce, and is accompanied by heavy thunder and storms or
gusts of wind. In the peninsula, showers are more fre-
quent in the country above the Ghauts than in that below
them. The natives call the hail rainx/oncs, and ascribe to
it invigorating virtues. Although none of the mountains in
Peninsular India reach the snow-line, and frozen water
rarely appears there otherwise than in the form of hail,
snow being unknown in Southern India, yet some writers
maintain that hail-storms never occur in the torrid zone,
while others affirm that they never appear there except at
an elevation of not less than 1500 or :2000 feet above the
sea. This statement, however, is far from being correct ;
for although hail-storms are not so common and destructive
in India as in the south of Europe, — the grand region of
these stonns, — still they do frequently happen, even at the
level of the sea. In May, 1823, a violent hail-storm oc-
curred at Hydrabad, which is about 17° north latitude, at an

184 HAILSTONES FALLING STARS.

elevation of not more than 1000 feet above the sea. The
hailstones were of considerable size, and a sufficient quan-
tity was collected by the servants of a military mess to cool
the wine for several days. A hail-storm occurred at Darwar,
north latitude 16° 28', east longitude 75^= 11', in Mayor
June, 1825. The height of Darwar above the sea is 2400
feet, but it is near no high range of mountains. The hail-
stones had a white porus nucleus, and varied from the size
of a filbert to that of a pigeon's egg. A similar storm oc-
curred at the same place, and about the same season, in
1826. These, Dr. T. Christie says, were the only hail-
storms that came under his notice during five years' resi-
dence in India ; but from the testimony of others he men-
tions the following : — Lieutenant-colonel Bowler of the
Madras army informed him that he witnessed a violent hail-
storm at Trichinopok, about the middle of the year 1805,
when the hailstones were nearly as large as walnuts. An-
other very violent hail-storm occurred in the Goosma Valley,
about twenty-five miles west of Ganjam, and only a few
feet above the sea, when the same officer was in camp there
about the end of April, 1817. It commenced about half-
past three in the afternoon. The weather had previously
been very sultry, with hot blasts of wind, and heavy clouds,
which appeared almost to touch the tops of the tents. On
the hail falling, the air became on a sudden disagreeably
cold, as it had been before oppressively hot. We are told
by Heyne, in his Historical and Statistical Tracts on India,
that "masses of hail of immense size are said to have fallen
from the clouds at difierent periods" in the Mysore coun-
try ; and that, " in the latter part of Tippoo Sultan's reign,
it is on record and well authenticated, that a piece of ice
fell near Seringapatam of the size of an elephant." Of
course, we are not to believe this to the letter, — we must
make some allowance for oriental exaggeration. It is need-
less to multiply examples ; for there is probably not an officer
who has been many years, in India who cannot bear testi-
mony to the frequency of hail-storms in that countrj-.

14. Falling Slars, Fire-balls, and Met cork Stones. — Fall-
ing stars are of frequent occurrence, falling or rather shoot-
ing through the atmosphere in countless numbers, and at
all times of the day, in India as in Europe. Fire-balls also
are not very uncommon. Colonel Blacker gives an ac«
count of a meteor, having the appearance of an elongated

METEORIC STONES. 185

ball of fire, which he observed, on the 3d November,
1820, a little after sunset, when on the road between
the court-house and the town-hall of Calcutta. Its colour
was pale, for the daylight was still strong, and its larger
diameter appeared greater and its smaller less than the
semi-diameter of the moon. Its direction was from east
to west, its track nearly horizontal, and its altitude about
30°. As it did not apparently move with the velocity of or-
dinary fire-balls, it was probably at a great distance, and
consequently of large size. So long as Colonel Blacker
saw it, which was for five or six seconds, its motion was
steady, its light equable, and its size and figure perma-
nent. It latterly, however, left a train of sparks ; soon
after which it suddenly disappeared, without the attend-
ant circumstance of any audible report. These fire-balls
sometimes burst, and precipitate meteoric stones and iron.
Lord Valentia and Mr. Howard mention stones that fell in
this way from the atmosphere of Bengal on the 19th De-
cember, 1798; several fell near Moradabad, in 1808, and
nineteen were found at Futtypore, in the Doab, on the 5th
November, 1814. Dr. Tytler says, that on the evening of
that day, shortly after sunset, before daylight had entirely
faded, a meteor was distinctly seen, shooting with consid-
erable velocity in a direction nearly north-west. This ap-
pearance was also observed by the Europeans in the lines
and natives in the city, and is described to have comprised
a blaze of light, surroundmg a red globe about the size of
the moon, which impressed the spectators with the idea of
that luminary descending from the skies. The same phe-
nomenon, and at the same moment of time, was seen at
Hazareebaug, in Bengal, a distance of upwards of 3.50 miles
eastward from Allahabad. The meteor descended at Rour-
poor, nearly 70 miles north-west from the station of Allaha-
bad, immediately after it was seen at that place. Its fall
was accompanied with noises resembling the explosion of
distant artillery, and a stone was seen falling, which in the
act of descending is said to have emitted sparks similar to
those proceeding from a blacksmith's forge. A strong sul-
phureous smell was also perceptible, and when first discov-
ered the stone was hot to the touch. Besides the stone
thus actually known to have fallen, several others of a simi-
lar description were picked up, at the distance of several

Q 2

186 MIRAGE.

coss from each other, whence it appears that a shower of
stones in this instance took place. The fragments amounted
to several pounds in weight. One weighed nearly one
pound six ounces avoirdupois, and exactly resembled a bodj'
coated with black paint or pitch. Its interior was of an ash-
gray colour, and contained imbedded metallic-looking parti-
cles. Its specific gravity is stated as varjing from 3.352
to 4.281. On the night of the 7th August, 1822, a me-
teoric stone fell near the village of Kadonah, in the district
of Agra, with much noise as of cannon, the wind awaken-
ing those who were asleep, and alarming a watchman who
heard it fall ; on making search in the morning it was found
warm, and with little smoke rising from it. The stone was
shown in London in 1827. Several stones fell in the dis-
trict of Azim Gerh on the 27th Februar}-, 1827.

These fire-balls, and the meteoric stones they drop, are
considered as formed in the earth's atmosphere, and there-
fore as of tellurian atmospherical origin.

15. Mirage. — On viewing distant objects, it often hap-
pens, under certain circumstances, that these objects pre-
sent many images which are straight, oblique, or inverted,
and always more or less changed in the contour. It is the
appearance of these images, without any visible reflector to
produce them, which constitutes mirage. In explanation
of this phenomenon it may be remarked, that as- soon as
the soil becomes heated, the lower stratum of air is also af-
fected by the calorific influence. Numerous aerial currents
are established, and an undulatorj' motion takmg place in
the air, distant objects become changed in form, and va-
riously distorted and bi'oken. If when these changes are
going on a calm should prevail, and the mass of atmosphere
upon the plain remain at rest while the stratum in contact
with the ground becomes gradually heated, mirage will arise.
In such cases the observer will see distant objects in their
natural positions and forms ; but bclaw them their images
will be seen reversed, and the spectator believe that he is
looking at a reflection from the surface of a body of water.
The sky also joins in completing the illusion, its image be-
ing reflected in the same manner. The whole visible ap-
pearances, the French philosophers who visited Egypt re-
mark, are mdeed the same as those usually exhibited by
water. All the laws by which the obsener has been accus-

BLACK SKY. 187

tomed to judge of the existence of water, viewed at a dis-
tance, are here called into action, and the man of science as
well as the peasant alike find themselves deceived.

This curious appearance is noticed by several of our In-
dian travellers. Tlius, Mr. Elphinstone, in describing his
passage through the Great Desert, says, " On the 2.5th No-
vember we marched twenty-seven miles to two wells in the
desert. In the way we saw a most magnificent mirage,
which looked like an extensive lake, or a very wide river.
The water seemed clear and beautiful, and the figures of
two gentlemen who rode along it were reflected as distinctly
as in real water." The same very interesting writer re-
marks, " On the 22d we made a march of thirty mUes to
Moujgur ; the heat of the afternoon was intense, while we
halted as usual in the naked plain to give our people some
water and to take some refreshments ourselves. In the
course of the day several hundred skins of water came to
us from Moujgur, where Bahawul Khan had sent his princi-
pal officers to receive us. Towards the evening many per-
sons were astonished with the appearance of a long lake, en-
closvn^ several Utile islajids. Notwithstandin<; the well-
known nature of the countrj', many were positive that it
was a lake, and one of tiie surveyors took the bearing of it."

Other varieties of mirage are noticed by Colonel Tod in
his valuable work on Rajasthan.

15. Black Colour of the Sky over the Himmalehs. — The
sky, when viewed from lofty mountains, presents a deep
blue colour approaching to black. This fact is often men-
tioned by travellers among the Himmalehs. Thus, near
the sources of the Ganges, the dazzling brilliancy of the
snow was rendered more striking by its contrast with the
dark blue, approaching to Uackncss, of the sky ; and at
night the stars shone with a lustre which they do not pre-
sent in a denser atmosphere. " It was curious to see them,"
says Captain Hodgson, " when rising, appear like one sud-
den flash as they emerged from behind the bright snowy
summits close to us ; and their disappearance, when setting
behind the peaks, was as sudden as we generally observed
it to be in their occultations by the moon." At Zinchin,
16,136 feet above the sea, the atmosphere exhibited that
very fij^k-black colour which is observed from great eleva-
tions. The sun shone like an orb of fire without the least

188 ZODIACAL LIGHT.

haze. At night, the part of the horizon where the moon
was expected^to rise could scarcely be distinguished before
the limb touched it ; and the stars and planets shone with a
brilliancy never seen unless at great heights.

With a transit-telescope of thirty inches, and a power of
thirty, stars of the fifth magnitude were distinct in broad
dav ; but none of less size were perceptible. At Subathu,
4200 feet above the sea, stars of the fourth magnitude re-
quire a power of forty to make them visible in the day.

17. Su7iri£e and Pillar of Light, or Zodiacal Light in
/?i(f?'a.— Sunrise is often characterized by the appearance
of a pillar of light, which never fails to make a strong im-
pression on those who take an interest in the natural phe-
nomena around them, and who, for the first time, witness
tWs beautiful appearance. Dr. Adam, in the following de-
scription of Indian sunrise, mentions this luminous ap-
pearance : —

" The country in the neighbourhood displays a thousand
charms compared with the district near the Jumna. The
roads are drv, and the rocky elevations in front, having a
covering of beautiful shrubs, entwined with numerous va-
rieties of climbing plants, give quite a new feeling to the
mind on viewing the prospect. New animals, too, inhabit-
ants of these, present themselves. The peacock, arrayed
in all his gorgeous hues, and shining with a native glossi-
ness of plumage, is not unfrequently seen perched on a pro-
jecting block of granite, while herds of antelopes bound
along the plain below ; and the shrill cry of the Indian par-
tridge, heard on every hand, first cheers the traveller with
the opening day. I was much delighted one morning here
with viewing the natural phenomenon of sunrise. Con-
trary to my usual practice, I had started early with my bag-
gage. It was quite dark, excepting what light the stars af-
forded, which in India is always considerable at this season
(October), when not a cloud obscures the expanded vault
of the heavens. After moving on for some time, on turn-
ing my eye towards the east, I could perceive the first ap-
pearance of day. It was not dawn, but a mere grayish pil-
lar of light shooting from the horizon upwards, in the shape
of a comet's tail, but without lustre ; the effulgence, if it
could be so called, resembling that of the milky way more
than any other object in nature which I have seen. This

MIASMATA. 189

dall pillar of light was well defined. It continued a long
time apparently little increased in size, and without having
acquired much brilliancy. At length its sides near the bot-
tom gave way, and the light, now stronger, dilfused itself
laterally to a considerable extent. By-and-by the stratum of
clouds immediately over this expansion displayed the roseate
hue of morn, and the whole heavens became (though yet
faintly) illuminated. The rosy tints, disappearing in their
turn, were succeeded by a greater degree of pale light,
and soon after the near approach of the great luminary him-
self was announced by a pillar of red or orange-red light,
which terminated in the orb, now appearing large and fiery,
through the medium of the horizontal morning air. This
is the general course of sunrise in India, as I have often
witnessed since. The precursoiy phenomenon of the pil-
lar of light, with the successive changes, being then new to
me, appeared perhaps more interesting on that account."

This pillar of light is the zodiacal light of astronomers,
which we find first mentioned in modern times by Childraus
in the year 1559. After his observation had been recorded, it
was entirely forgotten until again seen by Cassini on the
18th March, 1683. Since that period its appearance is often
recorded by naturalists. Its nature is not well understood.
Cassini, Mairan, Euler, Laplace, Regnier, Hube, and
Hahn have speculated with more or less plausibility in re-
gard to it.

IS. Miasmata. — Under this name we understand that
matter or those matters which, emanating from marshes
and other situations where organic bodies are in a state of
decomposition, and received into the human system, produce
disease, particularly remittent and intermittent fevers, &c.
A moderate degree of heat is necessarv' for the formation
of this poison, and also a moderate quantity of moisture.
Low situations are more exposed than high ones to miasm,
as it is formed at the earth's surface, and as it rises up-
wards becoming more and more diluted with pure air.
Thus the inhabitants of the Campagna di Roma retreat on
the approach of the sickly season to the higher grounds,
and consider it dangerous to sleep in the lower apartments
of a house. Stagnation of the air sometimes allows dan-
gerous accumulations of raiasmatous matter ; the growth
of underwood is very favourable to its accumulation, by

]90 CLIMATE.

breaking and arresting the currents of air, which would
otherwise sweep through the forests ; and plains without
intervening rising grounds, high walls, or trees, arc fovour-
able to the diffusion of miasm, by allowing every slighS
horizontal motion of the air to intermix laterally the pure
and contaminated portions of it. Thick ranges ol trees, by
impeding this horizontal commixture when the an- is calm
or nearly so, and by altering the direction of light breezes,
are very etfectual in confining marsh-effluvia. That some
kinds of poisonous matters are produced by the decomposi-
tion of animal and vegetable substances seems highly prob-
able : others again may emanate from the interior ot the
earth as the result of subterranean action ; and these prob-
ably are the most noxious kinds.

19. CZ?ma^c.— British India, situated partly in the torrid
and partly in the north temperate zone, is enclosed by
boundaries varying much in character,— namely, on the
west by the great Western Desert ; on the south-west,
south-east, and south by the ocean ; on the east by moun-
tain-ranges ; and on the north-east and north by the vast
alpine land of the Himmalehs,— a mountain-barrier so ele^
vated as nearly to shut out the atmosphere of India, and
thus to secure a meteorological system for itself, different
from, and independent of that of Hindostan. As to form
and elevation above the sea, striking contrasts are displayed
between the flat lands of the Ganges, the mountain-chains
of the peninsula, the littoral plains of the Circars, and the
table-lands of Mysore. Its surface exhibits sandy deserts,
bare rocky plains, extensive cultivated fields, jungles, and
dense forests,— traversed by numerous and often consider-
able rivers, but rarely varied by the appearance of lakes ;
over which blows, for one half of the year, the south-west
monsoon, and during the other half the north-east mon-
soon, thus affording the conditions for a strikingly-marked
climate. The year is divided by the Hindoos into six sea-
sons, but the more common division is into three, viz. the
rainy, cold, and hot seasons ; the rainy in general extends
from June to October ; the cold from November to Febru-
ary ; and the hot from March to May. Every year there is
a variation in the commencement and termination of the
seasons, which renders absolute precision impossible in the
statement of them. The healthy season may be said to be

MADRAS PRESIDENCY. 191

from November to the setting in of the rains, and the un-
healthy season during the period of the rains, and a short
time after their termination. The following short view of
the climate of particular provinces will afford to the reader
a general conception of the healthiness and unhealthiness
of the different provinces of Hindostan.*

I. MADRAS PRESIDENCY.

« The Carnatic. — The climate of the Camatic may be gen-
erally characterized as dry and hot. The range of the
thermometer at Madras is usually from 72° to 92° ; but
sometimes, during the hot months of May and June, it is as
high as 98° and even 105°. In January, February, March,
and April, the monthly mean is from 77° to 86° ; the ex-
treme variation in each month is usually from 15° to 22°.
In May, June, July, and August, the monthly mean tem-
perature is usually about 91°, 90°, 88°, and 87°, respect-
ively, the extreme variation being generally from 18° to 23°.
During September, October, November, and December, the
ijionthly mean falls progressively from 85° to 77° or 76°,
December being generally the coldest month. The extreme
variation in these months is from 13° to 18°. The hot
and windy season of May, June, and July is generally the
most healthy : sickness prevails most about the commence-
ment of the monsoon, or from August to November. Some-
times, hov/ever, it is greatest in December and January, and
at other times in June and July. The prevailing diseases
are fever, dysentery, and hepatitis or li.ver complaint.

Travancorc. — The weather of this province, which is sit-
uated at the south-western extremity of the peninsula, is
usually hot. Hea%7^ falls of rain take place between June
and December. After these showers the sun generally
shines, and produces a disagreeable moist heat. The pre-
vailing diseases among the Europeans are hepatitis and dys-
entery ; and among the natives fevers and 7tlcers of the
lower extremities.

Counbetoor. — This country is upon the whole healthy,
and the houses of the native cultivators more comfortable
than in many parts of the peninsula. Fevers are the pre-

* The view of the climate of the provinces we owe chiefly to Aanesley,
Jameson, Young, Brander, and Christie.

192 CLIMATE.

vailing diseases, wliich in some seasons become epidemic,
particularly among the natives.

Malabar and Cayiara. — These provinces form the princi-
pal part of the Malabar coast, and extend from Cochin to
Sadashevaghur. In February the low country becomes ex-
tremely hot, and the vapours and exhalations so dense that
it is difficult to distinguish objects at the distance of a few
miles. The heats increase during March and April, and
with them the quantity of aqueous vapour. On the setting
in of the western monsoon in May, the whole is condensed
into rain. Fccers, dysentery, and hepatitis are the prevail-
irig diseases among the Europeans ; and fevers and ulcers
of the lower extremities among the natives.

Daru-ar District. — The most opposite climates are met
with in diiferent parts of the southern Mahratta country ;
for the western parts, towards the Ghauts, may be reck-
oned among the wettest of the Indian peninsula, and the
eastern among the driest. The average quantity of rain in
the latter is from twenty to twenty-six inches ; in the former
a larger quantity often falls within one month. The climate
becomes gradually drier as we proceed eastward from the
Western Ghauts ; and as this chain runs north-north-west
and south-south-east, we have consequently a drier climate
in the northern parts of the district than in the southern,
en the same meridian. Thus, at Soondak the climate is
rainy and cool ; at Gokauk, on the other hand, which is in
the same longitude, it is dry and hot. A considerable quan-
tity of rain falls as far eastward as the country continues
hilly ; but beyond this the supply is scanty and precarious.
In August, 1824, according to Dr. Christie, a good deal fell
at Darwar ; while, at the same time, not a drop had fallen
fifteen miles to the east, and the wells were nearly dried up.
For three weeks in July and August, 1827, the rain con-
tinued nearly incessant at Darwar, and during the same
time not a drop fell in the eastern parts of the district.
The difference in the habits and mode of life of the in-
habitants of the western and eastern parts of the district
abundantly testifies how very opposite are their respective
climates. In many places, the former are often for weeks
during the monsoon confined to their own villages, not only
by the severity of the rains, but, in many instances, in con-
sequence of all communication being stopped by the swollen

DARWAR DISTRICT. 193

nullahs. During this dreary period (in anticipation of
which a stock of provisions is always laid in), the inhabit-
ants sit round a fire in the centre of their miserable dwell-
ings, which are constantly filled with smoke. When they
do venture out they wrap themselves in a cunih,* and over
this place « a sort of thatched case or shell, made of the
leaves of the jar,i or some other of the pabi tribe. It is
broad over the whole back and shoulders, narrowing to a
peak immediately over the head, and coming down the front
over the face just as far as is necessary to give it a firm
hold, with a slope sufficient to carry the water that falls on
It clear ot the body." In the eastern parts it is very differ-
ent. The ram is seldom so severe as to prevent the inhab-
itants from going out for four-and-twenty hours at one
time ; and precautions against heat, not against cold, are
necessary. The villages in the western parts consist of
thatched huts, whose steep sloping roofs nearly reach the
ground, the walls being only a few feet high, that they may
be effectually protected from the rain. Everv spot is covered
with vegetation. Hedges and trees covered with twining
plants, line the roads, and the thatched roofs are often con-
cealed by creepers, generally cucumbers, pumpkins, &c.
1 he villages in the eastern parts present a curious contrast
to the above. Generally not a spot of green, for many
months, relieves the horrid glare. All is parched and browii.
IMo protection being required against heavy rain, the houses
are built entirely of clay, which one heavy shower, such as
the western inhabitants constantly experience, would com-
pletely level to the ground. The walls of the houses are
formed of sun-baked clay, and are from eight to ten feet
high. Lpon these is supported a terrace-roof composed of
branches of trees or bamboos, and covered with clay. No-
thing can be conceived more ugly than these villa<Tes. On
every side square masses of drv clay give one more the
Idea of huge ant-hills than of human habitations. In these
places, wood bemg found in too small quantity to serve as
tuel, cow-dung is used for this purpose, which, bein^ made
into small cakes, is thus plastered on the walls of the houses
to dry m the sun. When ready, it is collected into piles
like peat-stacks m a Scotch villaae.

* A native blanket. t Borassus fiabelliformis.

VOL. ill. — R

194 CLIMATE.

Mysore —The whole of this country has somewhat of the
character of a table-land with its accompanying mountains.
The elevation varies from 1900 to 4700 feet. The climate,
according to Hamilton, is temperate and healthy to a de-
gree unknown in any other tract withm the tropics. The
monsoons, or boisterous periodical rains, which at different
times delude the coast of Coromandel and Malabar, have
their force broken by the Ghauts, and from either side ex-
tend to the interior in frequent showers, which, though
sometimes heavy, are seldom of long continuance, and pre-
serve both the temperature of the cUmate and the verdure
of the fields throughout the year. The island of feerin-
gapatam, on which the capital is built, is under the influence
of both the north-east and south-west monsoons ; rainy
weather continues from the beginning of May until the
commencement of December. January, February, March,
and April are dry and sultry. From the middle ot Decem-
ber till the beginning of February, cold and bleak north-east
winds prevail ; and between this period and the commence-
ment of the south-west monsoon is the hottest season.
The atmosphere is damp, and the dews more or less hea^-y
throucrhout the year, particularly in January, February,
March, and April. The variation of temperature between
the day and night is also greatest at this season. The un-
healthiest periods are March and April, or a little before the
setting in of the south-west monsoon, and about the close
of October. Bangalore, the principal military cantonment,
about 3000 feet above the sea, is one of the most temperate
places in the peninsula. In 1800, the thermometer was ob-
served not to rise higher than 82°, nor to fall loweT than 58 .

Salem and the Bammahl, which form a part of the table-
land above the Eastern Ghauts, have a climate and seasons
nearly the same as those of Mysore.

The Bala^rhant, or Ceded Districts.— This country is ele-
vated, but not so high as Mysore. The weather and cli-
mate on the whole are nearly the same as in Mysore.

Bcjapore.— The climate and the seasons resemble those

of the Ceded Districts. , ^ ^ .

The Northern Circars.— To the south of Connga, strong
north-east winds prevail along the shore for the first two
months of the year, which, together with the sea-breezes,
moderate the heat. But where the winds pass over the salt

HVDRABAD.

195

sta<Tnant marshes, as they do in ahnost every part of the
seacoast of this quarter of the province, their influence
upon the health is baneful. During March, April, and part
of May, high winds from the south-west prevail, and are
attended with clouds of dust. In May, June, July, August,
and September, the wind generally blows from the west
over an extensive parched soil, and hence become intolerably
hot ; so' that the thermometer, as formerly mentioned, not
unfrequently reaches 110^ or even 112°, and stands above
100= at midnight. In the hilly and more inland parts, the
air, owin-T to the exhalations from the jungles and fores s,
is unwholesome, particularly in the valleys and ravines by
which the hilly districts are intersected. Owing to the
great power of the sun in the dry and sandy plains ot the
south of this province, coap de soleil not unfrequently occurs.
The diseases are fever, hepatitis, and dysentery.

Hydrabad.— This province is a table-land ; hence its tem-
perature is lower than the latitude indicates. At the city
of Hydrabad, during the cool season, the thermometer is
often as low as 40° and 45°. In this district the south-west
monsoon usually conmaences about the beginning of June,
and continues With some intervals till the middle of October.
Durin<r November and December the sky is generally
cloudy! the winds easterly ; and sometimes, when the north-
east monsoon is heavy, a considerable quantity of rain tails.
Dews are frequent during January and early m February ;
but both these months, and March, April, and May, are
dry. The mean monthly temperature, in-doors, is stated
as follows-:— January, 73° ; February, 75° ; March, 82 ;
April, 89° ; May, 90° ; June, 86^° ; July, 81° ; August,
79° ; September, 78° ; October, 78° ; November, 75° ; De-
cember, 73° ; giving an annual mean of nearly 80 . 1 his
is perhaps a little higher than the thermometer placed in a
more exposed situation would indicate. The daily range
is often very considerable, particularly during November,
December, January, and February, amounting in the shade
generally to about 20°, and not unfrequently to 30°. Severs
and dysentery are the prevailing diseases.

Aurangahad.—The aspect of the country, the climate, and
seasons are nearly the same in the eastern districts of this
province as in the province of Hydrabad.

Candtish.—'n\e climate and seasons are here not mat©"

196 CLIMATE.

rially different from those of Aurungabad, or Malwah, to
be noticed afterward.

II. BOMBAY PRESIDKNCY.

The new town of Bombaj', the capital of the presidency,
is built in a low, muddy, unwholesome tract of land ; hence
the climate is unhealthy. Poonah, a military station and
populous city, about thirty miles eastward of the Ghauts,
and about_2500 feet above the sea, is comparatively healthy.
The alternations of temperature are great and sudden.
The prevailing diseases are remittent and intermittent fevers.

Guzerat. — Westerly winds prevail the greater part of the
year. In May and June thej' are very hot. During De-
cember and Januar}% east and north-east winds prevail, and
remarkably tliick fogs are generally observed every morning
in these months.

III. BENGAL PRESIDENCY.

Bengal. — The cold season commences, according to Dr.
Jameson, with November, and ends in February. About
the middle of October the weather begins perceptibly to
change. The days are still oppressively hot ; but the
mornings and evenings gradually become cool. The wind,
which during the preceding months had blown generally
from the south and the east, now begins to come round to
the west and north, and to carrj- along with it those heavy
masses of clouds which almost constantly float about and
obscure the horizon during the whole of the rains. The
atmosphere, from being very damp and watery, grows dry
and elastic, and the heavens begin to brighten a little. But
these appearances are not yet uniform ; the sky still at
times becomes gloomj' and overcast, and hea^y showers,
accompanied by thunder and lightning, show that the
south-east monsoon has not yet finally taken its leave.

In November the weather becomes delightfully fair and
pleasant. A cold sharp wind now blows steadily from the
north, and frequently also from the west. The air is diy,
clear, pure, and serene ; the vault of heaven is of a beautiful
deep azure colour ; and, in general, not a cloud is to be
seen. The nights are clear, with hea\y dews. The ther-
mometer in the shade ranges throughout the month from

BENGAL PRESIDKNCY. 197

66=* to 86° ; the mean heat about 74= ; medium altitude of
the barometer, "29.98.

As December comes on a considerable change takes place.
Although the middle of the day and the afternoon be
clear and fine, a haze generally towards evening collects
round the horizon, and obscures the setting sun. As the
night advances thick fogs, sometimes general, sometimes
partial, begin to collect, and do not disperse until morning.
As they are broken up by the influence of the sun's rays
their vapours rise and form gray masses of clouds, which
render the early part of the day hot and unpleasant, and
do not disappear until it is far advanced. These fogs do
not by any means occur every night. .Sometimes, though
rarely, the whole month passes over without them ; ordina-
rily they appear only three or four times ; sometimes during
severaf nights successively. As in Xovember, the north
and west a^re the prevailing winds. They are very sharp,
but blow steadilv, never rising to a gale, nor falling to a per-
fect lull. The range of the ''thermometer is from 56= to
78° ; the mean temperature about 70° ; altitude of the
barometer, 30.01.

During January much the same weather prevails. The
air is ser'ene, and to the feel piercingly cold. The wind
blows steadilv, and perhaps more forcibly, from the north
and north-west, than in December. Fogs are still very
frequent, and sometimes so thick that scarcely any object
is visible until a late hour in the morning ; and every thing
exposed to the external air becomes wet and covered with
drops of moisture. They may be often seen rolling in dense
lartfe bodies in opposite directions. During the clear nights
heavy dews fall. The range of the thermometer is from
47= to 75° ; the mean heat about 68° ; altitude of the ba-
rometer, 29.99.

The weather keeps very pleasant until the second week
of February, when. the middle of the day grows warm ; and
the changeof the wind to the south and east, and the col-
lection of clouds in the horizon, withthreateningsof thun-
der-gusts, portend the approach of the hot season. At
ni<Tht the air is raw and cold, and the mornings are foggy.
The thennometer ranges from 65° to 82° ; the mean heat,
76° ; altitude of barometer, 30.3.

Sometimes a few heavy and refreshing showers fall about
R2

198 CLIMATE.

Christmas ; but the \Yhole of the cold season is generally
marked by the total absence of rain. It is remarkable how
invigorating the cold bracing wind of the north, and the
pure elastic air and clear sky of tliese months, prove to the
European constitution, harassed and broken down by the
previous long continuance of moist and oppressive weather.
The appetite and strength, which had long before failed,
now return, and the whole frame becomes light and springy.
Vegetable nature partakes of the generally salubrious effects
of the season ; and garden plants and exotics, at all other
times killed by the excessive heats, now grow with fresh-
ness and vigour.

The hot season may be considered to set in fairly witli
March. The sun now becomes very powerful, and the
days are warm, and even hot. They are however'pre-
vented from being oppressive by the strong and steady*
•winds uniformly blowing from the south. Fogs are yet
not uncommon in the mornings ; and as they clear up, go to
the north to form, with the thick dispersed masses of clouds
that are constantly drifted along the horizon by the wind,
materials for the approaching storms. Thes(^ storms, which
by the inhabitants are termed north-westers, do not, however,
generally occur till towards the middle and end of the month.
They are usually preceded, during several days, by cloudj"-
mornings and strong gales. Then, for one or two evenings,
comes on distant thunder, with strong gusts of wind, but
without rain. Towards the afternoon of the day in which
the storm is to occur, the wind, that during the morning
and forenoon had been continued and boisterous, begins to
fail, and at length settles into a dead calm. The air becomes
oppressively sultry. The clouds gather in the north-west,
and form a deep, dense, lowering bank. Vivid lightning,
accompanied with heavy thunder, and gradually advancing
nearer and nearer, indicates the immediate approach of the
stonn. At length the calm is suddenly interrupted by a tre-
mendous burst of wind, and by clouds of dust which darken
the horizon. Then follow torrents of rain, with close and
heavy thunder ; and these are soon succeeded by a serene
sky and cool air. The appearance, however, of these sud-
den commotions is not always the same. Sometimes a
shower of hailstones precedes, or comes in the place of the
heavy fall of rain ; sometimes there is no rain, even when

BENGAL PRESIDENCY 199

the fury of the wind and quantity of the lightning are ex-
cessive The general time of their coming on is about
sunset ; thev rarely occur earlier than six in the afternoon,
or later than midnight. When the days keep clear and the
^ind moderate, heavy dews fall at night; but in blowmg
weather there is no dew, the moisture, as it settles, bemg
carried off bv the wind. Range of thermometer, from
73° to 86° ; mean temperature, 79^ ; altitude ot barom-

eter, 29.86. , , , ^ rr.i

\pnl has generally blowing weather throughout. Ihe
pr;vailing wind is still the south. The ftmosphere is some-
times clear, generally hazy, with much dust, and th^^k loo»8
clouds conliSually moving to the north The breather is
hot, but pleasant, till towards the end of he month when
the niahts become close and sultry. The general close-
ness, however, is from time to time relieved by thunder-
storms and seasonable falls of rain. The wind usual)
becomes hot to the feel about the 20th, and so continues to
the end of the succeeding month. Range of the ttier-
rnometer, from 78= to 91= ; mean heat, 84= ; barometrical

altitude, 29.75. , ,

Mav is the most disagreeable month m the year. In tne
commencement there is high wind at times ; but during the
greater part of the month the weather is exceedmgly close,
ftill, and oppressive. The nights especially are su try.
There is httle or no ^vind in the mommgs, which we thick
and hazy, with low, gloomy, scattered masses of clouds
But as the sun rises a breeze springs up from the south, and
keeps gradually freshening until the evemng, when u
again fades away. The air ,s hot but inelastic and
as it does not carry off the perspirations, leaves the body
moist and clammy. The dejectipn and lassitude now uni-
versally produced by the great heats a^^"' h°^7"' ^^^ ^■
nately removed by the frequent occurrence of violent nortb-
westers, with their usual accompaniments of thunder and
rain. There are no fogs durmg April or May. The ther
mometer ranges from 81° to 93° ; mean heat, 86= ; baro-
metrical altitude, 29.60. „^„li„ hp-
In some vears, but not always, nor even generally, oe
tween the 15th and 25th of this month, the horizon becomes
overshadowed with dark, thick clouds from the south-east
quarter, and much rain falls dunng several days, consu-

200 CLIMATE.

tuting what are called the lesser rains. But more com-
inonlv the close muggv weather continues, with little inter-
ruption, until the end of the first or the beginning of the
second week of June, when the veering round of the wnid
towards the east, the occurrence of thunder in the evennig,
and the constant cloudy state of the atmosphere mdicate the
approach of the regular rains. These commence from the
4th to the ISth of June, and continue, with frequent varia-
tions, during the four following months. At first they set
in with thunder-showers, sometimes heavy, sometimes
litrht, crenerallv from the south and east. Then follow
several days of very heavy rain, during which the sun is
completelvhid from view. Then there is a show of fair
weather, with sunshine and beautiful clear nights ; but this
is of very uncertain duration, and liable to be interrupted
with scarcely any previous warning. The heavy rain
rarely keeps up for more than forty-eight hours at a time ;
then gradually diminishing to drizzling, and at length givin^j
way to fair weather. There is at frequent intervals, during
the whole period of their continuance, much vivid light-
nin(T, with violent thunder-storms and gusts of wind. 1 he
wind frequently changes from east to south and west, rarely
to north. Its "return to the east, and fixing steadily in that
quarter, is usually accompanied with heavy rain.

\s soon as the rainy season has fairly commenced the
atmosphere becomes manifestly cooler, and the weather m
general very pleasant ; the only exceptions being now and
then a sultry night, and the dead oppressive calm which some-
times precedes a storm. From the dust and other particles
floating about in the atmosphere being carried away by the
successive showers, the sky during the intervals becomes
beautifully clear, the sun shines with great splendour, and
the nights are bright. There is very little variation of the
atmospherical temperature throughout the season. The
thermometer ranges from 77° to 88° or 90° ; the mean
heat being 81°, or perhaps a degree or two higher. The
air, from The constant rain, becomes surcharged with mois-
ture, and every thing exposed to it gets damp and mouldy.
There is, consequently, little alternation in the barometer.
The mean altitude is about 29.45.

There is little perceptible change in the weather till the
middle of October. The rain then begins to abate, the

BAHAK ALLAHABAD. 201

showers are fewer in number, and, though hea^y, of short
duration. The wind gets very variable. There are still
frequent storms of thunder and lightning ; but they gene-
rally pass off without producing rain. The days are yet
sultry ; but the mornings and evenings begin to grow cool ;
and the increasing clearness of the air, with the coming on
of dews at night, presage the speedy accession of the cold
season. x\t length the'veering round of the wind to the
■west-north-west quarter, the disappearance of clouds and
vapours from the horizon, the sharpness and dryness of the
air, the rapid rise of the barometer and concomitant fall of
the thermometer, towards the end of the month, evince the
entire departure of the rains. The total quantity of rain
falling during the season varies much in different years.
In Bengal the average has been fixed at eighty inches.

Baliar. — The seasons are nearly the same in "this pro%'ince
as in Bengal ; but as it is higher above the sea its climate
is in some respects superior. The nights are generally
much cooler ; but it is more subject to great drou'ghts and
heat, and to parching winds from the west during the warm
season. Tirhoot, the north-western quarter of this province,
is more elevated and healthier than the districts to the south.
On account of the soil and climate Bahar has been selected
by the British government as a proper country for the im-
provement of the breed of horses, the native race of the
Bengal province being of a diminutive size. A low and
marshy soil, it is remarked, seems everj'where uncongenial
to the horse ; for he appears to degenerate in such places
even when he lives and propagates. In districts in warm
climates which are more than usuaUy low and marshy the
horse generally experiences the fate of the Europeans ; he
either dies soon after he is brought to those places, or his
progeny seldom reach maturity.

Allahabad. — That part of this province adjacent to the
Ganges and Jumna is low and verj' productive ; but its
western districts, particularly the Bundelcund territory, are
diversified with high hills. Between these two divisions
there is a considerable difference of climate, the former be-
ing sultry and subject to hot winds, from which the latter
is exempt. Benares, the principal military and civil sta-
tion, contains, according to the census of 1830, upwards of
200,000 inhabitants. The cantonments, which are exten-

202 CLIMATE.

sive, are four or five miles distant from the city. The
country around is dry and parched. Fever and dysentery
are most prevalent during October, November, and Decem-
ber, owing to the inundations from the previous rains and
the cold nights.

Oude. — This province is generally level and well culti-
vated, with the exception of Gorucpoor. It is, on the
whole, healthy, except in the vicinity of jungles and cotton-
fields. The district of Gorucpoor is bounded on the north
by a range of lofty mountains. The country extending
southward from the base of these mountains is flat, covered
with woods and jungles, and intersected by numerous
streams. Easterly winds prevail generally throughout the
year. The climate is far from being healthy, owing to the
great extent of jungle, stagnant water, and marshes, over
which the easterly winds pass before they reach the more
inhabited parts of the country. Fevers are most prevalent
and dangerous in May and June.

^iara. — This province is generally flat and open ; but to
the south of the Chumbul river, and towards its western
frontier, it is more hilly and jungly. The climate is tem-
perate and healthy, except during the prevalence of hot

winds. . ,11

Delhi.— The climate of this provmce is, on the whole,
temperate, except during the warm seasons when the hot
winds blow. The north-west quarter is much overgrown
with trees and thick jungle, and is consequently unhealthy,
especially during the hot and rainy seasons. The south-
west quarter is free from jungle, and its soil is dry and fer-
tile. The centre of the province is level and well watered.
Meerut, the principal town of the district of the same name,
is considered one of the healthiest stations in India. Mi-.
Jackson strongly recommends it as a place of residence far
convalescents, and for those who have become naturalized
to India, and estranged from their own country. The so-
ciety is extensive, and the roads good.

Malwah and Central India.— The climate of Malwah is,
on the whole, mild. The range of the thermometer is
small, except in the latter part of the year, when great and
sudden changes often take place. The seasons are those
common to Western India. The fall of rain during June,
July, August, and September is, in general, moderate and

HIMMALEH MOUNTAINS. 203

regular. The annual fall is about fifty inches. Durino-
this season, says our distinguished countryman Sir J. Mal^
colm, "the range of the thermometer is very small, seldom
falling lower than 72° night and morning, or rising higher
than 76° or 77° at noon. Though the mornings" become
cooler after the close of the rainy season, there is no very
cold weather until the month of December ; it continues
until January and part of February. In the latter month,
in 1820, at six o'clock A. M., the temperature was 28^.
During the hot season which succeeds the parching winds
from the northward and westward, that prevail in most
parts of India to an intense degree, are here comparatively
mild and of sliort duration. The thennometer, however,
during the day rises sometimes as high as 98*^ ; but the
nights are invariably cool and refreshing."

Bagur is a hilly region, situated between Malwah and
Guzerat. Owing to its extensive and thick forests fevers
of a malignant nature prevail during two or three months
following the rains : the climate can at no period be con-
sidered salubrious.

Gundwana is a vast wild region, consisting of rmroped
hills, uninhabited jungles, and deep watercourses, ravines,
and valleys, covered with forests, and pervaded by marsh
miasmata. Its climate is generally unhealthy.

Orissa has many features in common with Gundwana,
and a similar climate.

Hiinmaleh Mountains. — The climate of the valleys and
ridges of this vast mountainous country is, as already stated
in our observations on the height of the snow-line, much
milder than we were led to expect from the conjectures and
calculations of philosophers, — vast tracts, which, according
to their views, ought to be steril in the extreme, or eternally
covered with snow, are, on the contrary, richly clothed with
vegetation, ^bounding in animals, and animated by villages.
Thus Marang, a large village surrounded by lofty moun-
tains, though 8500 feet above the sea, enjoys a mild cli-
mate. During eight days spent there by Captain Gerrard
the temperature varied from 58° F. to 82° F. ; and flies
were very troublesome. The sun, even in July, was scarcely
visible above the mountains before 8 A. M., and disappeared
behind them at 5 P. M. There were, alternately, light clouds
and sunshine, and now and then a little rain, which in this

204 CLIMATE.

valley never falls heavy ; the height of the outer chain of
the Himmalehs being sufficient to exclude the rains that
deluge India for three months. Mr. Colebrooke, speaking
of Zoncheng, a village among these mountains whose height
is 14,700 feet, which in latitude 31° 36' N., according to
received theory, should be buried in everlasting snow, as-
sures us that the case is far different. On every side of
the glen, which is a bowshot across, appeared gently sloping
hills, for the most part covered with tama, or Tartaric furze.
The banks of the river were covered with grass-turf and
prickly bushes. Around the land was covered with ver-
dure ; flocks of sheep were browsing, and deer leaping ;
altogether it was a romantic spot, wanting but trees to make
it delightful. Gerrard, on the crest of the Huketo pass,
15,786 feet high, observed yaks and horses feeding on the
surrounding heights ; and the climate was pleasant, the
temperature being 57° F. On Zinchen, which is 16,136
feet high, and on the neighbouring mountains, horses were
observed galloping about in all directions, and feeding on
the very tops of the heights; kites and eagles were soaring
in the air ; large flocks of small birds like linnets were flymg
about, and locusts jumping among the bushes. The cli-
mate is very diflferent from that experienced in crossing the
outer rano-e of the Himmalehs at the same season. Here,
at the height of 16,000 and 17,000 feet, is abundance of
fuel {met^h, bearing a beautiful yellow flower and no
prickles), good water, and a serene sky ; there, at an i«/e-
rior elevation, no firewood is nearer than five or six miles,
the clouds hang around the mountains, the sun is scarcely
visible, and showers of rain are frequent. At the village
of Pui, at an elevation of 13,600 feet, there are cultivated
fields of barley, phapnr, and turnips. A little lower tne
ground was covered with thyme, sage, and many other aro-
matic plants, besides juniper, sweetbrier, and g&oseberries.
Here also are vineyards and groves of apricots.* At Dab-
ling there was much cultivation, with plantations of apricots
and walnuts. During Captain Gerrard's residence here
(August) the temperature was warm, varying from 61° F.

* The apricots form a pan of the subsistence of the people. At this
season they are pulled, and exposed to the sun on the roofs of tue
hoases; -when dried they are not unlike pruneB.

SAJJITAKY DEPOTS. 205

at sunrise to 85° at noon, the wind blowing strongly from
the south-west, and the sky frequently obscured with light
clouds, attended with Httle rain. Near the village of Niko,
in the midst of these mountains, situated 12,000 feet above
the sea, in the heart of abundant population, he found the
grain " already yellow, with a broad sheet of water, sur-
rounded by tall poplar, juniper, and willow-trees, of pro-
diorious size, and environed by massive rocks of granite.
Here are produced most luxuriant crops of barley, wheat,
fhapur (poli/gonum), and turnips, rising by steps to nearly
700 feet higher than the village, where is a lama's residence,
inhabited throughout the year. The fields are partitioned
by dikes of granite. At Taz-hi-gang they are enclosed by
barberry and goosebeny bushes."

The seasons at this great elevation are similar to those
of our northern latitudes, the grain being sown in March
and April, and reaped in August and September. Snow
generally falls towards the end of (jctober. It seldom ex-
ceeds two feet in depth, but does not leave the ground for
nearly six months. Want of moisture in the air prevents
its earlier descent (since the beginning of October is winter)
under a clear sky. In the middle of October, 1818, the
thermometer at sunrise was seldom above 20^^ F. ; in
August the temperature was 75° F. at noon, and never be-
low 62° F.

20. Sanitary Depots. — It having been found that those
suffering under the diseases of the Iswer and hotter parts
of India had their health improved by a residence in the
hilly districts, the government have of late established sani-
tary depots in several of the hill-provinces. Not many
years back the Mount of St. Thomas, near Madras, was
considered the Montpellier of the south of India. After the
fall of Seringapatam, and the consequent occupation of the
table-land of Mysore by the British troops, the cantonment
of BaniTalore became the general resort of all classes whose
health required a change of climate. Now the Nhilgerry
mountains, in the same division of India, are considered as
affording a healthier climate ; and there the government
have established a sanitarj' depot. The greatest length of
the Nhilgerries Proper is from east to west thirtj'-six miles,
and the medium breadth fifteen miles.

Althousrh only twelve degrees distant from the equator,

Vol. III.— S

206 NHILGERRIES.

and surrounded b)' plains where the thermometer not un-
frequently stands in the shade at 100= F., yet, from its ele-
vated situation, it possesses a mildness of climate not infe-
rior to the temperate parts ©f Europe, and also a great
equability of temperature, which renders it so beneficial in
many diseases. During a great part of the year, says Mr.
Young, the range of the thermometer on the INhilgerries
is less" than is known in any part of the globe ; and during
December, January, and February,— the season of the
greatest cold, — it lias never been known to exceed 28=> F.,
the greatest heat 59° F., including, between the extremes,
a temperature which has always been found congenial to
the European constitution, and very different in its effects
from similar oscillations at a higher temperature, as exhib-
ited in all parts of the Deccan and throughout India gene-
rally. During the rainy season the thermometer varies but
little,— the range has been so low as 2^° for a whole month.
Except the three cold months the range will generally be
from 2i° to 6=, or at most 10°, making the climate one of
the most equable on the earth ; and consequently very fa-
vourable to persons of a consumptive habit. Invalids, on
reaching the hills in the cool season, feel the air of the
mountams too rigorous ; but to the healthy it is the period
of the greatest enjoyment, when they can wander through
the woods in search of game, and almost forget that they
are still exiles from their own countr>\ The only wmter
on these mountains is experienced during this period ; the
grass which covers the downs and elevated ridges becommg
yellow and seared ; but the moment the frosts are over, about
the end of February, the countrj- quickly assumes its verdant
appearance, and the duties of the husbandman recommence
just as the plains below are beginning to feel the desolating
effects of the hot winds. The climate of the iS'hilgerries
may, in some measure, be considered a perpetual spring ;
vegetation is slow and steady, except during frosts. Psot-
withstanding the lowness of the thermometer during the
whole year, sick persons cannot, without risk, expose them-
selves to the sun from 10 A. M. till 4 P. M. ; and as the
mornings are very agreeable they are recommended to take
exercise either on foot or horseback from 6 till 9 A. M., and
from 5 till 7 P. M., confining themselves in the middle of the
day, except during the delightful intervals of fine weather

SANITARY DEPOTS. 207

•which prevail during the rains, when they may walk out at all
hours with advantage. This precaution is only intended to
apply to a state of actual sickness or debility ; for persons
in riide health may get out at all times and seasons. During
March, April, and' May there are refreshing showers. The
temperature in the sun's rays exhibited to Mr. Young an
excess of from 2.5° to 12° above what the indications were
found to be in a veranda out of the sun's rays.

Should future experience confirm the accounts of the
sanitarj- virtues of its climate, this mountainous region, says
Mr. Young, may become an asylum for such as have lost
their health in other parts of India, not only superseding
expensive voyages to the Cape and the Isle of France, but
in many cases a trip to the mother countr}-. To such of
the civil and military ser\-ants of the India Company as
have outlived all their relations and friends in Europe, and
to whom a return thither would amount to a melancholy
species of banishment, the Nhilgerries present a delightful
asylum for the remainder of their lives,— a sort of Eurasian
climate, and within a moderate distance from the friends
of their adopted country, many of whom they may expect
to see on the hills.

A report has lately been published in regard to a sana-
tarium for the Calcutta district at DargeeUng, in the Sikkim
mountains. The travelling distance of DargeeUng from
Calcutta is about 3.30 miles. It is situated on one of the
numerous branches of the Sinchul mountain, elevated nearly
9000 feet, and forming a remarkable feature in every %iew
of the Sikkim hills from the plains. Captain Herbert, who
visited the spot on the part of the government, is of opin-
ion that the climate, salubrity of the approaches, and the
convenience of the situation, all speak in its favour. Its
elevation above Calcutta is 7218 feet, and its mean tempera-
ture is calculated to be 24° below that of Calcutta, and only
2° above that of London (52°).

Accommodation for invalids has been provided at Simhi,
a station among the hills between the Sutledge and Jumna
near Subhatto, and 7500 feet above the sea. Even the
winters here are much less rigorous than in England, with
the advantage of powerful solar radiation, which is said to
increase as we ascend higher on the mountains.

Pooree, which can be reached by sea at all seasons from

208 POOREE.

Calcutta in two days, is a station whose pure and invigo-
rating air, together with its equable climate, render it one
of the most salubrious spots in the East. Dr. Brander
says the best months for convalescents residing at Pooree
are February, March, April, May, and the early part of
June, which, as they are found to he the months apparently
the most trying to the European constitution in other parts
of India, become, in a ratio corresponding with the differ-
ence of temperature and other local advantages, relatively
the most healthy and the best suited to a sojourn on the
coast. At that' period the south-west monsoon prevails,
and seems to exert with greatest effect its prophylactic in-
fluence over the convalescent visiter, who is not a little
gratified to find, instead of the tattus and artificial refrige-
ration necessarily employed at inland stations, a never-fail-
ing source of cool air in the renovating sea-breezes. Al-
though a preference has been assigned to the above months,
it is not easy, in a climate on the whole so uniform as this,
to point out"^with precision the period of the year that may
be considered as the healthiest : the most agreeable, and
probably the most congenial, to the feelings are the months
compris'ed between October and February inclusive, when
the thermometer ranges between 64° F. and 76° F. The
extremes of temperature during the twelve months are 64"
and 89°, subject to very little variation during the twenty-
four hours. June, July, August, and September may be
considered as the unfavourable months. Seeing how en-
tirely remote Pooree is from the sources of disease pecu-
liar to inland stations, the salubrity and uniformity of its
climate, its ready access at all periods of the year, and fur-
ther, the benefits the voyage holds out to the invalid and
those sinking under tropical disease, it is probably difficult,
■with such available advantages, to fix upon any spot better
suited for a sanatarium, or convalescent retreat, than the
one under consideration ; a ^^sit to which might, in many
instances, preclude the necessity of undertaking voyages to
Europe or the Cape,— performed frequently with consider-
able sacrifice and inconvenience.

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210 HYDROGRAPHY.

CHAPTER IX.

Hi/drographi/.

jjnrines-Hot Springs-Wells-Lakes-Rivers-The Ganges-Length
apnuga f jjcf^gg^vgrs of India— Cataracts.

The following observations on Springs, Lakes, Rivers,
and Cataracts are to be considered merely as an addition to
what is contained in the general and geographical depart-
ments of these volumes of the Family Library.

^j,,j„^5._Although India, like other great tracts of coun-
try, contains many springs, these have hitherto =^ttracted but
little attention. The temperature of but few of them is
known; their magnitudes and geognostical situations are
scarcely ever mentioned; and their chyimcal composition,
excepting in a very few instances, has been neglected. 1 he
most important feature in the natural history of commm or
perenmal springs,-namely, their temperature,-is rarely
noticed, although a knowledge of this fact is i»uf ^f ^^^ "°'
only of the mean temperature of the climate, but also of the
elevations of the land above the level of the sea ; and our
information in regard to their chymical nature is equally

Salt 'springs, although met with in saline soils, in some
instances probably connected with a salt formation, might
be shown to exhibit interesting relations ; yet they are not
so curious in a general view as the hot sprmgs in different
parts of India, concerning which the following details are
worthy of being communicated to our readers.

Hot Springs.— The appearance of hot springs in a country
never fails to interest the geologist, because, independent y
of high temperature and other properties, their mtunate
connexion with igneous rocks and distorted conditions of the
strata, shows not only that a subterranean heat still exists,
to which they owe in some degree their elevated temperature,
but also that they mny have burst forth during some early
subterranean igneous action.

HOT SPRINGS. 211

They occur among the primitive and secondary strata of
the peninsula, and flow from primitive and transition rocks
in the Himmalehs. Thus Heyne says he heard of a hot
spring situated in the middle of the river Godavery, near
Badrachellum, about 100 miles west from Rajahmundry.
.Spilsbury mentions two hot springs in the valley of the Ner-
budda, at the northern base of the Mahadeo hills. They
are much resorted to ; not indeed for medicmal purposes,
but principally as a place oi pooja or worship, though people
bathe at times for the cure of cutaneous disorders. At both
a sort of resen-oir has been constructed ; but the western
spring, near Sohagpoor, is the only one that can be bathed
in ; and even its heat is too great to allow a person to remam
in it above a few seconds, while the eastern one is so hot
that the hand can scarcely be dipped in it. Both emit a very
olfensive smell at the spring head ; but the water from the
western, on cooling, almost totally loses this smell; whereas
that from the eastern, or one near Futtypore, retains it a
long time. A lamp held over the place where the west or
Unhonee spring bubbles up is immediately extinguished ;
and at about five or six paces off is a cold spring. In a
paper by the late Dr. White, lately read before the Royal
Asiatic Society, mention is made of hot wells situated about
fifty miles south-east of Surat. The temperature of one
is 111° F., of another 120<^. Mr. H. Wilson notices hot
springs in Ramghur, that flow from the base of the granite
table-land of Hazareebagh. There are four springs at the
spot, varying considerably in temperature ; the water of one
is at the temperature of the atmosphere, that of another is
108"^ F., while that of the other two is severally 170° F. and
190° F. From the last of these arises much sulphuretted
hydrogen, the odour of which continues to be felt long after
the water is cool. The water yields a copious residuum
upon evaporation, having as its chief ingredients muriate
and sulphate of soda, with a very slight indication of sul-
phate of iron. It is not unpleasant to the taste, and the
cattle are said to be very fond of it. When drunk in suffi-
cient quantity it acts as a gentle aperient. Captain Frank-
lin mentions a hot spring flowing from neiv red sandstmie,
near the river Bagin, in the Pana diamond-district inBun-
delcund. In the neighbourhood of Uteer, a village about
thirty miles distant from Pooree, there is a hot mineral

212 HOT SPRINGS.

sprin<T • but Dr. Brander, who mentions it, gives no details
in regard to its temperature. Setacuno on the Ganges,
according to Dr. Adam, is celebrated on account of it^ hot
spring, which, like those in Southern Africa, described m a
■former volume of the Family Library, issues from quartz
rock. This sprintr is about 500 or 600 yards from the river.
When Dr. Adam visited it in November, it was running in

'■ full stream ; but before and during the early part of the rainy
season he was told it always dried up, and when low indi-

' cates merely the common temperature. He found the sen-
sation of heat intolerable when the hand was immersed in
it, and the thermometer stood at 140° F. at all parts, as well
near the surface as within a few inches of the bottom. Lx-
ceptintrthe increase in the temperature, this water possesses
no sen'sible properties different from rain or common spring
water ; it is clear and tasteless : gas was constantly disen-
Satred from the surface in large bubbles, but the nature of
the" eras has not been determined. Many virtues are attrib-
uted'to the waters in the cure of diseases ; and the Brainins
who take charge of it derive considerable emolument from
the crowds resorting thither for relief. Mr. Ludlow de-
scribes a hot sprin-T at the town of Sonah, about thirty-hve
miles we?t from Delhi and fifteen from Goorgaon, at the
eastern face of the Mewat hills, which are of sandstone, with
dispersed iron ore. Close to one of the most craggy and
precipitous of this range is the spring in question, which
issues out of a hollow dug in the rock. 1 he water, being
at a temperature of 108° F., is seen bubbling up, abundantly
charged with gas, and so impregnated with sulphur as to
diffuse a strono- smell through that part of the town in which
the sprincT is situated. The well is cut out of the solid rock,

,■ about thirty feet deep, in the centre of a basin sixteen feet
square, with steps leading down to the water for the con-
venience of bathing. The whole is covered by a beautiful
dome of ancient architecture, and surrounded by apartments
with open verandas, which form a court or area. Mr. Lud-
low says the water contains no iron, and may be classed
with the strongest of the sulphureous waters.

At Jauvi, on the northern bank of the Sutledge, eight or
ten hot springs burst forth a few feet from the river. A
thermometer plunged into one of them rose to 1 30^;° F., while
the temperature of the river at the time, the Ist of October,

WELLS.

213

I

was 61° The water has a sulphureous smell, with a very-
disagreeable brackish taste, and incrusts the stones with a
yellowish matter resembling sulphur. Gerrard noticed hot
wells amons the mountains at the heau of the same mer,
13,000 feet' above the level of the sea. A range of hot
springs, which threw up clouds of steam, was obser^-ed by
Captain Hodgson towards the head of the Ganges. Ihe
same enterprising traveller discovered, in the upper part of
the Jumna, hot springs at Oetha-Gur, Bannassa, and Jumno-
tree ; at the last-mentioned place an arch of snow forty feet
thick extends across the nascent stream, and comple %
conceals the ravine from which it takes its rise. L nder this
arch are numerous hot springs. Their vapour melts the
snow from below upwards, so as to form cavities and arches,
while the snow is perpetually falling from above. The tem-
perature of the water, where it issues from the rock, is 19.1
F., which, considering the elevation, 10,849 feet, is nearly
the boiling point of water. These springs issue from rocks
of sramte and deposite oxide of iron. Some of them are
spoutincr, being projected upwards in columns of consider-
able magnitude. They are of great sanctity ; and at a spot
used for bathing a considerable one rises in a pool of the
river, and renders it mUk-warm. This jet is both seen and
heard as it plays under the surface. \^ here the Soar and
the Elffie flow towards the Ganges, there occurs on the op-
posite bank of the fonner a series of hot springs, said to issue

from primitive rocks. . ^ j- . • ,.„ .«.

Wells.— On sinking pits or shafts, we m most districts at
len-th reach some reservoir, from which water rises upwards
and forms wells. Owing to the peculiar nature of the cli-
mate in many parts of India, wells are of vast importance m
cupplyincr the deficiency of rain- In the Balaghaut countiy,
or the country between the Krishna and Toombuddra m the
north and the Mysore on the south, when taken possession
of by the British,'fifty thousand wells were reckoned. Jiven
in the ereat Western Desert, wherever pits are sunk to a
sufficient depth, water is met with. These well* m the
Desert are often 300, and one was observed 345 leet deep ;
with this enormous depth some are only three feet m diame-
ter. The water, which is always brackish, unwholesome,
and so scanty that two bullocks working for a night witb
ease empty a well, is poured into reservoirs Imed with clay,

214 LAKES.

which Mr. Elphinstone's party drank dry almost in an in-
stant after their arrival. The wells are lined with masonry.
The natives have a method of covering them with boards
heaped with sand, that eflectually conceals them from an
enemy ; so that scarcity of water is at once their wo and
protection. Mr. Elphinstone notices a magnificent well of
line water under the walls of the fort of Bikaneer, 300 feet
deep, and fifteen or twenty-two feet in diameter. Four
• buckets, each drawn by a pair ot oxen, were worked at once ;
. and when a bucket was let down its striking the water made
a noise like a great gun. In India, as in other countries, |

water might be brought from below in such quantity as to I

fertilize arid and desert tracts, especially if advantage were 1

taken of the clay and marl so often niet with during the "

sinking of shafts and pits.

A curious mode of sinking wells is mentioned by Heber,
as being employed by the natives of the country between
Agra and Jyepore. They build a tower of masonry of the
diameter required, and twenty or thirty feet high from the
surface of the ground. This they allow to stand a year or
more, till its masonry is rendered firm and compact by time,
then gradually undermining it, the whole tower sinks with-
out difficulty in the sandy soil. When level with the surface
they raise its wall higher, and so go on, throwing out the
.sand and raising the wall, till they have reached the water.
If they adopted our method, the soil is so light that it would
fall in before they could possibly raise the wall from the
bottom ; nor without the wall could they sink to any con-
siderable depth.

LAKES.

In India the waters of the land are principally distributed
in the form of rivers and springs, lakes being"of but rare
occurrence, and the few that do appear of inconsiderable
size. Some of these lakes are salt, others fresh, and a few
owe their chief characters to carbonate of soda.

Salt Lakes. — A salt lake, twenty miles long by one and a
half broad, occurs near Samber,"a Rajpoot town in north
latitude 26° 53', and longitude E. 74° 57'. The salt from
this lake supplies a considerable portion of Upper India, and
during the Mogul government it was carried as far as Be-
nares and Bahar. Every year after the rains the water be-

LAKES. 215.

comes so strongly irapregnateJ, that when the lake dries up
the salt is found crystallized in large quantities under a layer
of mud. It is collected towards the close of the hot season,
without having undergone any artificial process ; it is then
sj)read out and exposed to the sun for ten or fifteen days, in
which space of time it hardens and forms large lumps ; on
these lumps a quantity of dry grass is placed and set fire to,
which calcines the external surface and forms a covering
sufficiently hard to resist the rain. In this last state it is
sold, and reaches the different markets. There are many
other salt lakes in this part of India, as those of Didwana
and Ser ; indeed, the soil throughout India is so impregnated
with salt, that it is very rare to see a hollow or low spot
without a saline efflorescence on the surface.

In Berar there is a salt lake named Loonar, which, ac-
cording to Captain Alexander, lies in a sort of caldron of
rocks. It contains in the 100 parts, muriate of soda 20,
muriate of lime 10, muriate of magnesia 6. The chief use
to which the sediment is applied is cleansing the shawls of
Cashmere. It also forms an ingredient in the alkaline ley
of the Mohammedans. High in the Himmalehs, towards
the sources of the Indus, salt lakes were observed by Mr.
Gerrard at an elevation of 16,000 feet. Natron or soda
lakes are said to occur in certain parts of the Himmalehs.

Fresh Water Lakes. — A large fresh u'ater lake, or rather
jeel, named the Colair Lake, formed chiefly of the overflow-
ings of the Krishna and Godavery, is situated at the north-
east projecting corner of the Condapilly Circar, about five
miles south from EUore, whence the water is conducted into
many channels to irrigate the circumjacent country. Its
breadth, according to Hamilton, varies fi:om seven to twelve
miles, while its extreme length may be estimated at twenty-
two miles, covering an area of about 164 square miles. On
a failure of the periodical supplies the lake dries up, and
drinkable water becomes so scarce that the poorer inhabit-
ants are compelled to migrate, and suffer privations almost
equal to famine. Magnificent artificial fresh water lakes,
formed by dikes built across rivers, are described by Dan-
gerfield as occurring in Mewar. The Lake of Cashmere
and that of Manasawara in Tliibet, although in many re-
spects interesting, do not properly belong to India.

216 RIVERS.

RIVERS.

' The rivers of India may be classed under t.wo divisions,
viz. those that flow from the Himmalehs, and those that
take their rise in the mountains of the peninsula. They
carry with them to the ocean, not only a vast body of water,
but an enormous quantity of the debris of the lands through
■which they pass. The Himmaleh rivers, as the Indus,
Ganges, and Brahmapoutra, obtain their supply of water
partly from the snows and glaciers of the mountains, and
partly from the rains of the monsoons ; while those of the
peninsula are entirely supplied by the monsoon-rains. The
livers most celebrated in history and geography are the
Indus, Bralunapoutra, and Ganges ; the latter is the most
important to India as a great province of the British empire.
From its elevated source, nearly 1.5,000 feet above the level
of the sea, the Ganges winds through mountainous regions
for fully 800 miles, and issues into the open country at
Hurdwar, in latitude 30° north. During the remainder of
its course to the sea, which is about 1350 miles, flowing as
a smooth navigable stream through delightful plains, it
leceives eleven great rivers, some of which are equal to
the Rhine, and none smaller than the Thames, besides as
many others of less magnitude. It is owing to this vast
influx of streams that the Ganges in point of magnitude
so greatly excels the Nile, while the latter exceeds it in
length of course by one-third. Like the Nile, it has a vast
delta, which exhibits the usual characters of such alluvial
formations. To the natives the mundations of this river
are equally objects of interest, as are those of the Nile to
the Egyptians. These annual overflowings of the Ganges
are owing as much to the rains and to the melting of the
snow among the mountains beyond Hurdwar as to the rains
that fall in the plains ; for at the latter end of June the river
has risen fifteen feet and a half, out of thirty-two, the sum
total of its rising; and it is well known that the rainy
season does not begin in most of the flat countries till about
that time. In the mountains, the rains commence early in
April, and near the latter end of that month, when the rain-
water has reached Bengal, the rivers beghi to rise, but by
Tery slow degrees ; for the increase is only about one inch
per day for the first fortnight. The increase then gradu-
ally augments to two and three inches, before any quantity

GANGES. 217

of rain falls in the flat covuitries ; and when the rain
becomes general, the increase on a medium is five inches
per day. Before the end of July all the lower parts of-
Bengal contiguous to the Ganges and Brahmapoutra are
overflowed, and form a lake of more than 100 miles in
breadth ; nothing appearing but villages and trees, except-
ing very rarely the top of an elevated spot, or the artiiicieJ
mound of some deserted village rising like islands in the
flood.

The inundations in Bengal differ from those in Egypt in
this particular, that the Nile owes its floods entirely to the
rains that fall in the mountains near its source ; but in
Bengal they are as much occasioned by the rain that falls
in the country itself as by the waters of the Ganges ; and
as a proof of this, the lands in general are overflowed to a
considerable depth long before the bed of the river is filled.
It may be remarked that the ground adjacent to the bank,
to the extent of some miles, is considerably higher than the
rest of the country, and serves to separate the waters of
the inundation from those of the river until it overflows.*
The high ground is in some seasons covered a foot or
more ; but the depth in the lower country varies of course
according to the irregularities of the ground, and is in some
places twelve feet. Even when the flood becomes general,
the river still shows itself, as well by the grass and reeds
on its banks as by its rapid and muddy stream ; for the
water of the inundation acquires a blackish hue, by having
been so long stagnant among grass and other vegetables ;
nor does it ever lose this tinge, which is a proof of the
predominancy of the rain-water over that of the river»
The slow motion of the inundation, which does not exceed
half a mile per hour, is owing to the flatness of the country.

There are certain tracts of land which require less
moisture than others, from the nature of their productions ;
these are defended from the floods by vast dikes, which are
kept up at an enormous expense. One branch of the Gan-
ges is thus confined to the breadth of the Thames at Bat-

* This property of the bank is caused by the deposition of mtld from,
the waters of the river when it overflows. Tlie inundation, as Buffon
remarks, purities itself in its advance over the plain ; so that the de-
position must be greatest on the parts nearest to the margin of the
river.

Vol. III.— T

a

gl8 RIVERS.

tersea for an extent of seventy miles ; so that when the
-river is full passengers look down on each siJe as from a
lofty eminence into the subjacent country. Durmg the
swollen state of the river the tide loses totally its effect in
counteracting the stream, and in a great measure its ebbmg
and flowing, except very near the sea. The following is a
'table of the°gradual increase of the Ganges and its branches,
liccording to observations made at Jellinghy and Dacca :—

At JellinghT. At Decca.

Ft. In. Ft. In...

^ iiaiayitrose ::::"::;; 9 Iw.w.'.w.'.l t'

June ■

July

The first half of August.

12 6 5 6

4 0 1 U

32 6 14 3

These observations were made in a season when the
-waters were higher than usual ; so that we may take 31
feet for the medium of increase. The inundation is at its
heio-ht, and continues without diminution for some days
before the middle of August, when it begins to run ott ;
for althoucrh great quantities of rain fall in the flat coun-
tries durin<T August and September, yet by a partial cessa-
tion of the rains in the mountains there happens a dehciency
sn the necessary supplies. The quantity of the daily
decrease of the river is nearly in the following proportions :
— Durina the latter half of August and all September, from
.'three to'' four inches ; from September to the end of iXo-
•vember, it gradually lessens from three inches to an inch
and a half; and from November to the latter end of April,
the decrease is only half an inch per day at a medium.
These proportions must be understood to relate to puch
parts of the river as are removed from the influence of the
tides. The decrease of the inundation does not always
keep pace with that of the river, by reason of the height
of the banks ; but after the beginning of October, when
the rain has nearly ceased, what remains of the water is
quickly evaporated, leaving the lands highly manured, and
in a .state fit to receive the seed after the simple operation
.cif ploughing. . ,

The quantity of sediment contained m the water ot tnc
Ganges, according to Rennell, is truly astonishing. ' A

GANGES. 219

glass of water," he says, " taken out of this river when at
its height, yields about one part in four of mud. No won-
der, then, that the subsiding waters should quickly form a
stratum of earth, or that the delta should encroach on the
sea." Rennell also computed the mean quantity of water
discharged into the sea by the Ganges through the whole
year to be 80,000 cubic feet in a second. When the river
is most swollen, and its velocity much accelerated, the
quantity is 405,000 cubic feet in a second. Other writers
agree that the violence of the tropical rains, and the fine-
ness of the alluvial particles in the plains of Bengal, cause
the waters of the Ganges to be charged with foreign matter
to an extent wholly unequalled by any large European
liver during the greatest Hoods. The Ganges frequently,
sweeps down large islands, and Colebrooke relates exam-
ples of the rapid filling up of some branches of this river,
and the excavation of new channels, where the number of.
square miles of soil removed in a short time was truly
astonishing, the column of earth being 114 feet high.
Forty square miles, or 25,600 acres, are mentioned as hav-
ing been carried away in one district in the course of a few"
years. If we compare the proportion of mud, as given by
Rennell, with his computation of the quantity of water
discharged, very striking results are obtained. If it were-
true that the Ganges in the flood season contained one part
in four of mud, we should then be obliged to suppose that
there passes down every four days a quantity of mud equal
in volume to the water which is discharged in the course of
twenty-four hours. If the mud be assumed to be equal to-
one-half of the specific gravity of granite (it would, however,.
be more), the weight of matter daily carried down in the flood
seasons would be equal to seventy-four times the weight o£^
the Great Pyramid of Egypt. Even if it should be proved
that the turbid waters of the Ganges contain one part itiv
100 of mud, which is affirmed to be the case in regard to
the Rhine, we should be brought to the extraordinary con-
clusion, that there passes down every two days into the Bay
of Bengal a mass about equal in weight and bulk to the
Great Pyramid.

The following table is given by Hamilton of the probable
length of some of the rivers of India : —

220 CATARACTS.

Miles to the sea.
(1. Indus noO

2. Jumna (to its junction with the Ganges 780 miles) 1500

3. Sutledge (to the Indus 900) 1400

4. Jhylum (ditto 750) 1250

5. Gunduck (to the Ganges 450) 980

6. Godavery 850

7. Krishna 700

8. Nerbudda 700

9. Mahanuddy 550

10. Tuptee 460

11. Cavery 400

CAT.<RACTS.

The Ganges, Indus, and Brahmapoutra, during their
course among the mountains, exhibit cascades hitherto but
imperfectly described. Some very splendid and beautiful
waterfalls are met with in the peninsula ; the most consid-
erable are those of Bundelcund, of the Western Ghauts,
and of the River Cavery.

Falls in Bundelcund. — The only account we have met
with of these magnificent falls is given by Captain Frank-
lin. He visited all that are between the Katra pass and
the Tonse river. The first is near the village of Bilohi,
about twelve miles west from the pass of Katra, where the
fall of water is 398 feet, and the rocky wall of red sand-
stone over which it is precipitated nearly perpendicular.
Ten miles farther west is the cataract of Bouti, 400 feet
in height, which is very picturesque, owing to the great
extent of the circus over which it falls. At Keuti, twenty-
four miles farther west, is another fall 272 feet in height ;
and westward still, at Chachai, one 3G2 feet high. At a
short distance from Chachai is the cataract of the Tonse,
where the volume of water is greater than in the others,
but the fall less, being only 200 feet.

Many of the waterfalls in the Western Ghauts, although
exhibiting magnificent scenes during the rains, are com-
pletely dried up in the hot season. There are many fine
cascades in the Ghauts above Honoor, which for sublimity
and magnitude will probably yield to few in the world.
They have hitherto been little visited, even by Europeans
in India ; and it is, we believe, only within the last ten or
twelve years that they have received a name. They are
situated on the river Shor\'atty, about fifteen miles up the

FALLS OF GARSIPA. 221

Ghauts from the town of Garsipa, and are now known tc«'
Europeans by the name of the Falls of Garsipa.

Falls of Garsipa. — The countiy in the neighbourhood of
the falls," says Dr. Christie in a communication to us, is ex-
tremely beautiful, combining the majestic appearance of a
tropical forest with the softer characters of an Enghsh park.
Hill and dale are covered with soft green, which is finely
contrasted with a border of dark forest, with numerous
clumps of majestic trees, and thickets of acacias, the ca-
runda, and other flowering shrubs.

Upon approaching the falls you emerge from a thick
wood, and come suddenly upon the river, gliding gently
among confused masses of rock. A few steps more over
huge blocks of granite bring you to the brink of a fearful
chasm, rocky, bare, and black ; down which you look to
the depth of 1000 feet. Over its sides rush the different
branches of the river, the largest stretching downwards
without break in one huge curling pillar of white foam.
Beneath, the waters by the force of their fall are projected
far out in straight lines ; and at some distance below the
falls form a thin cloud of white vapour, which rises high,
above the surrounding forest. The sides of the chasm are
formed by slanting strata of rock, the regularity of which
forms a striking contrast to the disorder of the tumultuous
waters, the broken detached masses of stone, and the soft
tint of the crowning woods.

The effect of all these objects rushing at once upon the
sight is truly sublime. The spectator is generally obliged
to retire after the first view of them, in order gradually to
familiarize himself with their appearance ; for the feeling
which he experiences in suddenly coming on them amounts
almost to pain. After the first impression has somewhat
subsided, and he has become accustomed to the scene, he
can then leisurely analyze its parts, and become acquainted
with the details. .

The chasm is somewhat of an elliptical form. At its
narrowest and deepest part is the principal fall ; smaller
branches of the river and little rills dash over its sides, and
are almost all dissipated in spray before they reach the
bottom. The principal branch of the river is much con-
tracted in breadth before it reaches the brink of the preci-

T 2

222 CATARACTS.

pice, where it probably does not exceed fifty or sixty feet ;
but it contains a very large body of water.

The falls can only be seen from above, for the cliffs on
both sides of the river afford no path to admit of a descent.
Some gentlemen have attempted to reach the bottom by
having themselves lowered by ropes ; but no one has hith-
erto succeeded. A view of the falls from below, says Dr.
Christie, would, I am convinced, exceed in grandeur every
thing of the kind in the world. The spectator can very
easily, and with great safety, look down into the chasm to
its very bottom. Some large inclined plates of gneiss pro-
ject from its edge ; so that by laying himself flat upon one
of these he can stretch his head considerably beyond the
brink of the precipice.

Although no accurate measurement has yet been made of
the height of these falls, it would appear from Dr. Christie's
account that they cannot be much short of one thousand
feet.

Falls of the Cavery. — The falls in the course of the river
Cavery, still farther south in the peninsula than Garsipa,
are celebrated by travellers. Of these two are particularly
noticed, viz. the Ganga Chuki and Birra Chuki.

The branch of the river which forms the Ganga Chuki
is subdivided into two lesser ramifications, a short distance
above the fall. The nearest and by much the largest of
these streams is broken by projecting masses of rock into
one cataract of prodigious volume and three or four smaller
torrents. The water of the large cataract plunges into the
ravine below, from a height of from 100 to 150 feet ; while
the smaller torrents, impeded in their course by the mter-
venino' rocks, work their way to a distance of about 200
feet from the base of the precipice, where the whole unite,
— the other detached portion of the river precipitating itself
at the same time in two columns from a cliff about 200
feet high, the rapid above flowing nearly at right angles with
the principal branch. The surrounding scenery is wild,
and the whole offers a most striking spectacle, especially
during the height of the rains.

The second cataract is that of another arm of the
Cavery, at a spot called Birra Chuki about a mile from the
fall above described. The channel of the river here is
spread out to a magnificent expanse, and its stream divided

GEOLOGY. 223

into no less than ten distinct torrents, which fall with in-
finite variety of form over a broken precipice of more than
100 feet, but presenting no single body of water equal in
volume to the main fall at Ganga Chuki.

CHAPTER X.

Geology and Mineralogy.

Geolog>' and Mineralog^'-l. Soils of India, viz. Soil of Bengal ; Cot ton
Ground: Musaree Soil; Laterite Soil; Nitre boil; boda boil , Salt
Soil— 2. GeoTOOstical Structure and Composition of India— l.Hmi-
maleh or Alpine Region ; Its Rocks. Minerals, and Mines-2 Midd e
India ; Its Rocks, Minerals, and Mines-3. Peninsular India , -Its
Rocks Minerals, and Mines-4. Submergence and Lpraising of Land—
5 Destruction of the ancient City of Ougein and other Places in India
by a Shower of Volcanic Ashes-b. Earthquakes.

Regarding the geology and mineralogy of India our in-
formation is very defective, and many years must elapse
before even the general geognostical and mineralogical re-
lations of so vast a region can be determined. The India
Company has miuiificently patronised the researches ot the
botanist ; it is now time to encourage and forward other
branches of science. We expect ere long to hear oi the
estabUshment of meteorological observatories amply fur-
nished, in well selected stations, from Cape Comorin to
the centre of the Himmalehs ;— to find carried on by sci-
entific men throughout India those important investigations
requisite for the illustration of hydrography ;— to rejoice in
the appointment of active and experienced geologists, mm-
eraloffists, and zoologists, for every part of our Eastern
empire.* "V\Tiat is known of the geologj' and mineralogy
of India has arisen from the labours of Hamilton Bu-
chanan, Heyne, Voysey, Dangerfield, Turnbull Christie,
Franklin, Adam, Hardie, Webb, Herbert, Genard, Hodgson,

* Dr Turnbull Christie, we are happy to announce, has been ap-
pointed bv the Indian Company to investigate the geology of the Bombay
pre^^idency. A more fortunate selection could not have been made.

224 SOILS OF INDIA.

Calder, Govan, and others. To such as have no opportu-
nity of consulting the memoirs and works of these natural-
ists the following short view of the geology of India may
not be unprofitable.

1. SOILS OF INDIA.

The soil of India, as that of other countries, is formed
principally by the action of the atmosphere on rocks, and
dead animal and vegetable matter; the broken down or
disintegrated rocks mixed in various proportions with de-
caying organic substances, giving rise to the different spe-
cies of soil. These soils have particular names in different
parts of the country, and in many instances the distinctions
are not without their practical utility. We cannot attempt
to give a detailed view of this subject, even were it required
in a work of this description ; what we consider necessary
we shall therefore include under the following heads : — 1 .
Soil of Bengal. 2. Cotton ground or regur soil. 3. Mu-
saree soil. 4. Nitre or saltpetre soil or ground. 5. Soda
soil or ground. 6. Salt soil or ground.

1. Soil of Bengal. — There is no rock of any kind on the
banks of the Hoogley, nor do we meet with any after en-
tering on the principal stream of the Ganges, until we
approach the province of Bahar. The'whole country seems
to consist of a mixture of clay and sand, in such proportions
as to form a compound well adapted for the purposes of
vegetation, and conducing in no small degree to that fer-
tility for which the plains of Bengal are so celebrated.
Disseminated scales of mica often give to this soil a. glim-
mering appearance, and when mingled in minute grains
with the sand, more or less prevalent on the banks of the
river during its whole course, they impart a brilliant lustre
to the extensive plains. Strata of sand of various colours
are frequently observed lying over each other ; these seem
to have been formed in successive seasons ; above them is
a mixed soil, or sand approaching to soil. When not des-
titute of herbage the surface bears a coarse grass or reeds.

On the Fertilizing Principle of the Inundations of the
Hoogley,— It is generally supposed that the fertilizing prin-
ciple of the inundations of the great tropical rivers is vege-
table matter in various states of decomposition. The fol-
lowing details in regard to the silt of the Hoogley are at

INTJNDATIONS OF THE HOOGLEY. 225

variance with that opinion. It is well known, says Mr.
Piddington, that while the tracts within the reach of the
inundation preserve their original fertility, the higher soils
are gradually and rapidly becoming impoverished, and this
to a degree of which few who have not made the subject
one of* attention are aware; there are some crops which
cannot be repeated, unless at intervals of three or four
years ; while on the lowlands these crops have been con-
tinued for a period beyond the memory of man. Indigo is
a striking and the most familiar instance of what is here
advanced ; the following analyses were made with a view
to some miprovement in the cultivation of that plant. Por-
tions of the silt or mud deposited by inundations were pro-
cured from Bansbariahnear Sukhsagar, and from Mohatpur
near Kissinnuggur ; the analysis of each gave, in two hun-
dred parts, —

Silt from S;it from

BsnsbariaU. Mohatpur.

Water 2 2

Salinematter, principally muriate of potash Oi »k

Vegetable matter destructible by heat 4i 44

Carbonate of lime. , 12i 16^

Phosphate of lime 0 1

Oxide ofiron 12 12

Silica 156^ 139

Aliunina ^2 1'**

193i 190|

Loss 6i 9|

200 200

The unlooked-for circumstance of only two and a half
per cent, of vegetable matter being found in these speci-
mens appeared almost to show that such matter was not
the fertilizing principle, or at least not exclusively. On the
other hand, from six to eight per cent, of calcareous matter
appearing in them, when, m an extensive series of analyses
of the higher soils, this was always found remarkably dif-
ferent (seldom more than 0.75 to 1 per cent.), it seemed
probable that the calcareous matter was the great agent ;
and in as far as regards indigo this was found by experi-
ment to be the fact, — for a minute portion of lime was found
to increase the produce upwards of 50 per cent. In con-
sidering this subject further, it occurred to Mr. Piddington

226 SOILS OF INDIA.

that lime might probably exist in solution among the rich
mud on which the seed is sown as the waters retire, — and
this was found to be the case ; a quantity of it being pro-
cured at the moment of the subsidence of the waters, it
was found that the drainings were highly impregnated with
carbonic acid gas, and that lime was held in solution by it,
— a fact which perhaps throws some light on the phenomena
of the formation of kunkur.

2. The Cotton Groiaid or Regur Soil forms one of the
most interesting features in the physical geography of many
districts of India. It probably originates from the disinte-
gration of trap rocks. It varies in depth from two or three
to twenty or thirty feet, and even more ; its extent is pro-
digious, "as it covers all the great plains in the Deccan and
Candeish, some of thos.e in Hydrabad, and perhaps also
those of other parts of India. This soil is as remarkable
for its fertility as for its very great extoiir. ; and a curious
circumstance is, that it never hes fallow, and ncvir receives
the slightest manure. Even the stems of the cotton-plant
are not allowed to remain on it, being employed for making
baskets, or used as firewood ; moreover, in all those parts
of the country where the cotton ground is met with, there
is so little wood that cow-dung is carefully collected and
dried for fuel. Cotton, jovaree, wheat, and other grains
are raised from it in succession ; and it has continued to
aiford the most abundant crops, without receiving any re-
turn for centuries, nay, perhaps for 2000 or 3000 years, —
thus proving the inaccuracy of the opinion held by agricul-
turists, that if something be not constantly added to land
equal to what is taken from it, it must gradually deteriorate.
Attention must be paid to the order of cropping ; but if the
weather be favourable the ryot is always sure of an abun-
dant harvest.

The fertility of this soil is probably owing in part to its
power of absorbing moisture from the atmosphere. This
power is great, even when compared with the best soils in
Britain. A well-known writer. Sir H. Davy, says, " I have
compared the absorbent powers of many soils with respect
to atmospheric moisture, and I have always found it greatest
in the most fertile soils ; so that it affords one method of
judging of the productiveness of land." He further states,
that 1000 parts of a celebrated soil, from Ormiston in East

\

COTTON GROUND NITRH GROUND. 227

Lothian, when dried to 212°, gained in an hour, by expo-
sure to air saturated with moisture, at a temperature of
63°, 18 grains ; and that 1000 parts of a very fertile soil,
from the banks of the river Parret in Somersetshire, under
the same circumstances, gained 16 grains. The following
are the results of some experiments made by Dr. T. Christie
on the absorbent power of the cotton soil. He thoroughly
dried a portion of the earth by a heat that was nearly suffi-
cient to char paper. He then exposed to the atmosphere
of a moderately damp apartment 20 15.6 grains of it, and
found, after a few days, that it had gauied 147.1 grains.
He now exposed it to an atmosphere saturated with moist-
ure, and found that the weight increased daily till the end
of a few weeks, when it was found to be 2828.4 grains.
The soil had therefore gained 212.8 grains, or about 8 per
cent.

In the hot season the regur or cotton ground is traversed
in all directions by very deep fissures. In the rainy season
it is in the form of very tenacious clay. Almost all the
• crops raised from it are sown towards the end of the rainy
season, and therefore during their growth receive com-
paratively little moisture ; often indeed none but that of the
heavy dews descends on them for a length of time.

3. Musaree Soil. — In many parts of India there is an-
other soil, named the mussub or musaree soil, which does
not form extensive plains like the cotton ground, but is gen-
erally found at the foot of hills, or in the bottom of small
valleys. At the bases of the sand stonehills it consists of
little else than loose sand. On the sides of the hills that
contain beds of quartz it is very gravelly.

4. Laterile Soil. — The laterite or brick stone affords in
<reneral, on disintegration, a soil not very productive, and
apt to become extremely hard in dry weather ; but in the
bottom of many small valleys large deposites of it are met
with, which have been more perfectly disintegrated and
mixed with other substances, and form productive soils.
The soils in the valleys of clay-slate districts are also la
many places very good, when the clay happens to be mixed
with fragments of quartz.

5. Nitre or Saltpetre Ground or Soil. — In India this soil
is found in places where there has been a due admixture of
animal and vegetable matter, as in old populous villages

228 SOILS OF JSDIA.

1

built on black cotton ground, or forming the rich mould of
gardens, as in many parts of the Northern Circars. In such
situations, from the begiiming of the dry season in Feb-
ruary till the rains commence again in May and June, the
streets, and particularly the lower parts of the mud walls
with which the houses are built, or the yard surrounded,
appear wet and black in the morning, and crumble down
into a fine soft mould. What collects in a heap under the
walls is gathered every other day by sweeping. It contains
about one-fifth of its weight of crude saltpetre. The na-
tives observe that this substance is produced abundantly in
those years in which the preceding monsoon-rains have
been strongest, and accompanied by a great deal of thun-
der and lightning. A heavy thunderstorm in April or May
is likewise reckoned very favourable for the manufacture.
When the saltpetre has been extracted from this earth, it is
thrown in heaps, and spread out when the monsoon is over.
After lying a year or two it is swept every day, and is again
found to yield, by sweeping it every other day, saltpetre
earth fit for the manufacture ; for no potash is added, so
that the saltpetre seems to be ready formed in the soil.

The manufacture of saltpetre hardly extends lower than
the eastern limits 6i Bahar, and it is said that the produc-
tion of nitre is greatest during the prevalence of the hot
winds. These winds blow from the west, and formerly did
not extend eastward beyond Bahar ; but from the change
of seasons within these forty years their influence is now
felt in Bengal ; in which province, on that account, the ex-
tensive manufacture of saltpetre might be attempted with
success.

Saltpetre grounds are frequent in Bengal. The tendency
of the soil to reproduce saltpetre is very troublesome to the
builders and the occupants of houses. " It can scarcely,"
says Heber, " be prevented from encroaching, in a few years,
on the walls and floors of all lower rooms, so as to render
them unwholesome, and eventually uninhabitable." Half
the houses in Calcutta are in this predicament, and their
ground-floors useless. Cellars are unknown in this part of
India.

In Tirhoot, one of the principal districts in India for the
manufacture of saltpetre, the soil, according to Tytler, is
everywhere thoroughly impregnated with this substance.

KITRE GROUND — SODA SOIL. 229

During the rains and cold weather, it appears abundantly
on the lime on the walls of houses. From these and other
damp spots it may be brushed off every two or thi'ee days
almost in basketfuls. The groimd too, even in the hot
weather, is so moist that it is extremely difficult either to
cret earth of sufficient tenacity to make bricks (the country
beincr quite destitute of stones), or when the bricks are
made to find a spot sufficiently solid to bear the weight of a
house. Notwithstanding the greatest attention, the ground
at length yields, and the saltpetre corrodes the best of the
bricks to such a degree that the whole house gradually
sinks several inches below its original level. Houses built
of inferior materials, of course, suffer much more ; one, of
which the inner foundations were of unburnt bricks, abso-
lutely fell down while Dr. Tytler was at Mullye, and the
family had a miraculous escape. Dr. Tytler's own house,
one little better, sank so much, and the groundwork was so
evidently giving way, that at great expense and inconve-
nience he was compelled to pull down the whole of the
inner walls and rebuild them in a more secure maimer.
From the same cause a new magazine, which government
had ordered to be built with an arched roof of brickwork,
was, when complete, found so very unsafe that it was ne-
cessary to demolish it entirely, and rebuild it on a new plan,
with a roof of tiles. One hundred parts of nitre earth or
soil from the Tirhoot district, when analyzed by Dr. Davy,
afforded —

Nitrate of potash 8.3

Nitrate of lime 3.7

Sulphate of lime 0.8

Common salt 0.2

Carbonate of lime 35.0

Earthy matter insoluble in water and niiric acid 40.0

Water with a trace of vegetable matter 12.0

100.0
The soil in many parts of Ajmere is very nitrous.
5. Soda Soil or Ground. — Soil more or less impregnated
with carbonate of soda occurs in different parts of Mysore,
where the soda is separated and used for glass-making and
for washing. Soil of the same kind is found in the Coim-
betoor province, and in many other parts of the peninsula
of India. Hej'ne savs, the soda of the Mysore effloresces
Vol. III.— U

230 SOILS OF INDIA.

on a red ferruginous soil ; when purest it is collected by the
•washermen, and used by them instead of soap ; hence it is
known by the name of washerman's earth. Soda also oc-
curs in efflorescences on the surface of cotton ground ; but
there it is mixed with a great proportion of common salt,
which fonns the principal object of a manufactory carried
on by the people called tank-diggers by Europeans, and
salt-people by the natives. Saltworks of this kind are of
frequent occurrence in the Mysore country, which renders
importation of salt from the coast very trifling.

6. Salt Soil or Ground. — In many parts of India the soil
is richly impregnated with common salt, thus forming a salt
soil or ground, as it is sometimes termed. Thus, near to
Vencataghery, common salt appears to be generally diffused
over and through a black poor soil, where it is collected and
used for culinaiy purposes. Between Baydamungulum and
Tayculum in the Mysore, Buchanan had an opportunity of
examining one of the places where salt is made. The sit-
uation was low and moist; the soil a black mould, consist-
ing of a mixture of sand and clay, that from its appe.-irance
would have been reckoned good ; but the impregnation of
salt renders it for cultivation greatly inferior to soils appa-
rently of a worse quality and free from salt. The natives
allege, that if they walk much on this saline earth their bare
feet become blistered. In the dry season the surface of the
earth is scraped off and collected in heaps. In front of
these heaps the native salt-makers construct a semicircle of
small round cisterns, each about three feet in diameter and
a foot deep, with sides and floors of dry mud. Towards the
heaps of saline earth there is in the floor of each a small
aperture, with a wooden spout to convey the brine into an
earthen pot placed in a cavity below. The floors of the cis-
terns are covered with straw, and the saline earth is put in
till it rises nearly to the level of the tops of the walls. On
the surface of the saline earth water is then poured, which
in filtering through into the pots carries with it all the salt.
The inert earth, being thrown out behind the cisterns, is re-
placed with new earth for saturating more water. In the
mean time the brine is emptied into a cavity cut in a rock,
and is evaporated entirely by the sun. The natives say that
the salt is sufficiently wholesome. The grain is large and
consists of well-formed cubes ; but the salt is miied with

GEOGNOSY OF INDIA, 231

much earthy iiapuritj'. It is principally used by the lower
orders.

II. GEOGNOSTICAL STRrCTURE AND COMPOSITION OF INDIA.'

1. Hirnmahh or Alpine Region. — It is said that the prin-
cipal valleys in this alpine land are perpendicular to its di-
rection, that is, run from north-north-east and north-east to
south-south-west and south-west ; and that frequently the
surface exposed to the west is rugged, while the opposite
one, facing the south-east, is shelving. The forms of the
mountains are exceedingly varied, being described as needle-
shaped, peaked, conical, ridge-shaped, and round-backed.
There are precipices, often of fearful abruptness and mag-
nitude, sometimes continuing mural or perpendicular for
miles, with an elevation of 200 and 300 feet ; and, accord-
ing to some travellers, even of 2000 and 3000 feet. The
jiasses that lead through this extraordinary region vary in
height, from that of Tungrang, one of the lower passes,
■which is 13,740 feet, to the pass of Charang, 17,348 feet
above the sea. We possess but little information as to tha
general and particular direction and dip of the strata ; even
the principal geognostical features of the various formations
are scarcely at all knowai to us.

1. Primitive Rocks. — From the reports of Webb, Gerrard,
Franklin, Govan, and Colebrooke, it appears that gneiss is
one of the most abundant of the stratified primitive rocks ;
associated with it, in some places having a subordinate
character, in others predominating, there occur mica-slate,
clay-slate, quartz-rock, hornblende-rock, potstone, indurated
talc, primitive limestone, and gypsum. These rocks are va-
riously intersected by granite and quartz veins, and in some
quarters vast bodies Of granite, forming whole mountains,
are observed rising through the stratified Ncptunean rocks
above enumerated. Schorl and tourmaline are of frequent
occurrence in these rocks. Of the gems, the precious gar-
net is the only one we have seen in specimens from the
Himmalehs, nor is any other mentioned by travellers. It
has been found in granite at the enormous height of 22,009
feet above the sea, — an interesting fact, showing that the
garnet is found at a greater elevation than any other gem.
The obsers'ations of our pupils in tropical regions, and at
the highest northern latitude hitherto reached by man, like^

232 GEOGXOSV OF INDIA.

wise show that this beautiful precious stone ranges from the
equator to the vicinity of the north pole. The following is
an enumeration of the heights above the sea at which several
of the primitive rock-formations have been noticed : —

F«t.

A. cavern in primitive limestone near the Sutledge 6500

Mountain near the Sutledge, composed of gneiss 8350

Eastward of the Tarhegang mountain, at the head of the rivulet
Ripsang, the rocks are gneiss, granite, mica-slate, and quartz-
rock, with tourmaline 11,000

Pass of Bruang, mica-slate, gneiss, granite, containing tourma-
line and garnet 15,000

The RoUor or Shatul pass, gneiss 15,000

Mountains near to the Shatul pass, mica-slate, gneiss, and
granite 15,556

2. Transition Rocks. — On the primitive formations rests
a vast deposite of rocks of the transition class, principally
consisting of clay-slate, graywacke-slate, graywacke, flinty-
slate, gypsjdn, and transitton-limc stone. Fossil organic re-
mains first appear among these deposites. The ammonite is
the most celebrated, on account of the superstitious value
attached to it. The heights stated under are probably
formed of transition clay-slate, and therefore belong to this
section : —

Feet aboire the Sej.

Overhanging the town of Marang, a mountain of clay slate 12,000

Tungrang pass, clay-slate, with pyrites and mica 13,740

Mountains of clay-slate on the Chinese frontier, containing am-
monites 16,200

Mountains in the neighbourhood of Chrang, of blue clay-slate — 18,000

Mineral Substances useful in the Arts found in the Primi-
tive and Transition Rocks of the Himmalehs. — We shall notice
the rocks and minerals in the following order : — 1. Rocks.
2. Saline minerals. 3. Inflammable minerals. 4. Metallic
minerals.

1. Rocks. — Granite. — Many fine granites occur in the
Himmalehs, which, owing to their remote localities, are as
yet of but little value. A beautiful gray porphyritic gratiite
occurs, however, close to the cantonment of Ahnora, which
would furnish ornamental pillars or slabs of any size.

Clay-slate. — Of this rock, so useful as a roofing material,
many extensive deposites are known, but hitherto they have
not been quarried.

GEOGNOSY OF THE HIMMALEHS. 233

Ltmestane.—\:ndeT this name we include the various
marbles whether white or coloured, that have been seen m
the vallevs and mountains. Captain Frankhn mentions a
variety resembling that of lona, found at no great distance
from the plains, and also a fine dolomite marble which he
observed in many places. At no great distance from the
lona-like marble there is a flesh-coloured dolomite, with
Burple-clouded delineations, which promises well. A mar-
ble of more crystalline nature appears on the road to tiha-
dreenatk above the Bishen Ganga.

C:y„,„„,._This rock has a pure white colour and granu-
lar foliated structure. " It is probable," Uaptam Frankhn
remarks, "that its chief use in Bengal, for some time,
would be as convertible into plaster of Pans, and affording
a material for cornices and ornamental work, to the banish-
ment of the ver,- rude productions of this kind we have
hitherto put up with. There is, perhaps, a sufficient quan-
tity of it to answer anv demand likely knmediately to arise.
When the government-house was last repaired, it was con-
sidered desirable to obtain a sufficiency for the purpose
above indicated ; but the f\ict of its occurrence within our
mountain-provinces was not known at that time. As it is
within fifty or sixty miles of water-carnage, it might be ex-
pected to pay for its transport." , . , , , -•

Polxlonc— This rock mav be used with advantage tor
linincT ovens and furnaces, and for architectural purposes.
Front its sothiess it might easily be turned on a lathe into
various useful articles. _

2 Salme Minerals.— Alum.— This saline mineral occurs
in efflorescence on rocks of different kinds, particularly on
alum-slate, and might in some situations be collected with

^^°Su'lphate of Iron, or Green Vitriol.— Th\s salt too is met
with frequently as an efflorescence, on rocks containing py-
rites or sulphuret of iron. We do not know that it is any-
where collected for economical purposes. •

Borax —\\tho\i<yh this salt has not been discovered within
the present limits of British India, still, as the production
of a neitrhbouring country, and a valuable article of com-
merce, it may be mentioned. The whole supply of the
European market passes through these mountains.

3. Inflammable Muccrals.—Sulphur.—Be^osHions ot sul-

U 3

234 GEOGNOSY OF INDIA.

phur are formed around hot springs, in the bed of the Ram-
gano-a and of the Garjia rivers, in the province of Kemaoon,
but mixed with carbonate of Urae, from which it can be
readily separated by subhmation. It occurs in considerable
quantities in some of the galleries of the lead-mines at
Mywar on the Tonse, ui Jaunsar.

Mineral Oil and Pitch. — These minerals do not occur any-
where abundantly. Mineral oil is mentioned as having been
observed oozing from rocks of limestone in the range be-
tween Sarju and the Ramganga.

Graphite, or Black Lead. — This valuable mineral has not
hitherto been found in considerable quantity in any part of
the Himmalehs, although, from the nature of the country
and the notices of travellers, it is not improbable that enough
of it will be met with for the various purposes of the arts.
It occurs in imbedded masses, varying in size from an inch
to three or four inches in diameter, in a graphitic mica-
slate.

4. Metallic Minerals. — The Himmalehs have, hitherto,
afforded but a comparatively small quantity of ore, owing
not so much to the poverty of this vast country in metallif-
erous substances as to the neglect of observers, who have
been principally occupied with geographical investigations
and the collecting of plants. The only metals at present
met with in such quantity as to yield a profitable return are
copper, iron, and lead ; but besides these there also occur
gold, antimony in the state of sulphuret, the gray antimony
ore of mineralogists, and manganese combined with iron.
We shall now notice, in a general way, these different sub-
stances.*

Gold. — In the Old World almost every extensive range
of mountainous country has been found to afford gold,
which is indicated either by its occurrence in the sands of
rivers and rivulets, or disseminated in diluvia, or through
the mass of solid strata. The gold of the Himmalehs oc-
curs in the alluvial soil of several mountain-rivers, and one
instance is mentioned of its having been observed in grains
in granite [at Kedarnath. During the Gorkhali rule the

* Arsenic combined with sulphur, or in the state of yellow and red
orpiment, is imported from beyond the frontiers, for it has not been found
in the British dominions.

GEOGNOSY OF THE KIMMALEHS. 235

gold collected afforded a small duty ; but the amount was
too trifling to render its continuance expedient. It is col-
lected from loaras, sands, and clays, by washing in the usual

manner.

Copper Mines.— There are seven places where ores of
copper are raised ; these are,—

Rupees per annum as rsnt

1. Dhanpnr ? 1200

2. Dhobri S

3. GangoU } 1000

4. Sira i

5. Pokri '''^X

6. Khari ^'^

7. Shor Gurang

50

These mines, if they deser\'e the name, are worked in
the most miserable manner, under every disadvantage, and
therefore afford but paltry returns. No mine can thrive in
our Indian possessions until well-instructed. mine-masters
and experienced miners are sent out from Europe.

The ore found in the Dhanpur mine is gray copper ore,
which affords from 30 to 50 per cent, of copper; it is as-
sociated with malachite, or green carbonate of copper. The
ores are contained in a compact red-coloured dolomite ;
hence mining operations can be carried on without the ex-
pense of wooden framework or masonry. The Pokri mine
or mines are situated in talc slate of a loose texture ; and
hence the working is more difficult. The ores are vUrcmis
and purple copper, both of them rich in copper. The wa-
ters flowing from the mine are impregnated wich sulphate
of copper or blue vitriol. The Sira and Gangoli mines are
situated in beds of indurated talc, which are enclosed ia
dolomite. Sometimes the one sometimes the other rock
form the walls and roof of the mine. The iron is yellow
copper or copper ■pyrites, mixed with iron pyrites and smaller
portions of gray copper ore. The Khari and Shor Gurang
mines are similarly situated ; the ores are gray copper, yellow
copper, or copper pyrites, and carbonate of copper. The
method of working' these mines is as follows :— A gallery
or passage is cut into the face of the hill, with such a bot-
tom declivity as to allow the water to run off. Where the
rock may require it, frames of timber, rudely constructed,
are set up to support the roof and sides. The area of the

236 GEOGNOSY OF INDIA.

gallery is always small ; in those parts where the hardness
of the rock occasions any difficulty in working it is scarcely
sufficient to admit a person even in a creeping posture. In
no place will it admit of an erect position. The ore is de-
tached by means of a very ill-shaped and disproportioned
pick, and by chisels and hammers. It is removed from the
mines on skins drawn along the floor of the gallery by boys.
The ore, being delivered at the mouth of the mine, is re-
duced to small fragments by the hand. At Dhanpur, how-
ever, the work is done by a water-mill. It is next roasted
in an open fire or forge-hearth with charcoal, and the heat
occasionally urged by means of two air-bags or skins,
which are alternately shut and opened by the hand. After
being in this way imperfectly roasted, it is smelted on the
forge-hearth, and the process is repeated till the metal is
sufficiently pure. No flux appears to be used to assist the
operalioji. . .

Iron Mines. — The wretched condition of Indian nnmng
is shown by the fact that the united rent of the numerous
iron-mines does not exceed the annual sum of 1500 rupees,
while the iron is of the very worst quality. The mining
and metallurgical operations in use are on a parallel with
those of Europe during the dark ages. The Himmaleh
mines supply chiefly varieties of red iron ore, affording from
60 to 30 per cent, of metal. Red hematite, associated with mi-
caceous iron ore, occurs in a large bed in gneiss at Dhaniakot
on the Cosillah. At Ramghur, on the road from Bhamaori
to Almora, there are beds of the scaly red iron ore also in
<rneiss. Compact red iron ore occurs in clay-slate, contain-
fng beds of limestone, at Katsari on the Ramganga. The
iron manufactured from it is esteemed the best in the
province of Kemaoon. Near Kalsi, on the Jumna, there
is an extensive bed of specular iron ore. In Chawgarka-
^urgunnah the ore is the brown or the hydrated species,
which contains manganese ; hence the superiority of the
steel prepared from it.

Lead Mines.— Of these mines, which are numerous, the
most productive are situated on the river Tonse, at no great
distance from the Deyra Dhoon. The Borela mine in this
district formerly paid'2000, the Maijar 4000 rupees yearly ;
but the present rents axe much lower. The ore, which is.

GEOGNOSY OF THE HIMMALEHS. 237

fine granular galena, is found in clay-slate and clay-slate

limestone. „ . ,, j- ■ •

t 5 Secondary Rocks.— Resting upon the preceding primi-
tive and transition rocks, but occupying a much lower situa-
tion, we find formations of the secondary class. These
form the immediate north-east boundary of the^ great allu-
vial plain of Middle India, and are principally of sandstone,
in all probability of different ages. ^,,,^.11 1

Mr Scott has communicated, through Mr. Colebrooke,
«ome details in regard to the secondary strata' he observed
on the banks of the Tista and Subuck, where they issue
from the mountains of Bootan. The strata he noticed on
the Tista are micaceous sandstone, bituminous shale, slate-
clay, and coal ; and rocks of the same descnption were
observed on the Subuck. The coal has a dark hrown colour,
with a conchoidal fracture, and is associated with tossil
wood. The colour of the coal would seem to intimate that
it belongs to the brown coal series, and therefore is of a
more recent oriffin than the coal of Damoda near to Cal-
cutta. The hills foraied of these strata, in Mr. Colebrooke s
opinion, may be considered as fair examples of the entire
range which skirts the north of Hindostan. They rise to no
sreat height, and constitute the first step from the plain ot
India a'scending towards the mountains of Bootan and the
loftier peaks of the Himmalehs. Everywhere, so far as is
vet ascertained, the lower range of hills consists of sandstone
abounding in mica. To the above details we may add, that
throughout the whole line of sandstone hills that 1^ at the
foot of the Himmaleh chain, according to Captain Herbert,
coal occurs in beds varying from a quarter ot an inch to a
foot in thickness. It often shows the ligneous texture ;
and where that texture is no longer visible it presents a
conchoidal fracture, and burns with much flame and smoke.
It appears to be the brown coal of Werner.

6 Tertiary Rocks.— An interesting display of rocks ot
this" class was discovered by Mr. Scott at Cooch-Behar on
the north-east border of Bengal, where the Brahmapoutra
emerges into the plain. The strata are of yellow and green
.<;and, alternating with clay, that lie horizontally at the
height of about 150 feet above the level of the sea, and
contain organic remains resembling those of the blue clay
of the London and Hampshire basins. Mr. Scott also

238 GEOGNOSY OF INDIA.

noticed, at Robagiri in the same district, a stratum of white
limestone containing nummulites and vertebrae of fish,
surmounted by beds of clay which contain the same nura-
muUtes, and also bones of fish, with specimens of the
genera Ostrea and Peclcn. Near Silhet, the Laour Hills,
composed of white limestone abounding in immmulites,
form another example of a tertiary formation in the eastern
extremity of this province. Mr. Pent land discovered among
mutilated fragments of bones, referable to the mammalia
from these tertiary deposites, remains of four distinct
species, viz. 1. A new species of the genus Anthracolherhun
of Cuvier; 2. A small species of ruminant allied to tho
musk-deer tribe ; 3. A small species of herbiverous animal
referable to the order Pachydermata, but more diminutive
than any of the fossil or li\'ing species ; and, 4. A carnivo-
rous animal of the genus weasel or viverra. In addition to
the above the following are mentioned by Mr. Colebrooke : —
Sharks' teeth, vertebra and fin-bone of a shark, crocodiles'
teeth, vertebra of a crocodile's neck, thigh-bone of a croco-
dile, dorsal fin and pectoral fin of a balistes, palates of the
lay, palates of the diodon, oj'ster-shells of various species,
a Turritella, and several species of Ealani and Patella.
These strata thus present us with the same association of
organized remains that accompanies the tertiary strata of
Europe, in which extinct genera of the Pacliydermata have
been discovered, and also with marine shells of the same
genera, if not the same species, with those which charac-
terize the most modern antediluvian formations, those de-
scribed under the title of upper marine formation m the Paris
basin, and to which are to be referred the extensive marine
deposites encircling the shores of the Mediterranean, those
covering the less elevated countries of Central Europe, and
that appear to extend as far as Lake Ural into the interior
of Asia. The tertiar}' deposites of Caribari, as already
noticed, appear to form a band at the base of the Thibetian
mountains, since we find them extending to Silhet. How
far this formation may stretch along the peninsula of Ma-
lacca and Hindostan it is impossible at present to say ; al-
though it seems to occur at Madras, where it contains the
same shells as on the Brahmapoutra, and at Pondicherry^
where it encloses great masses of woodstone.

7. Alluvial Rocks. — The usual alluvial deposites occur

GEOGNOSY OF MIDDLE INDIA. 239

throughout the Himmalehs. The most curious statement
in regard to them is one made by Gerrard, who tells us that
he met with fossil shells in alluvium at a great heicrht amoncr
the mountains, as fresh and entire as if they had recently
emerged from their own element ; and that just before
crossing the boundary of Ladak and Bussahir he was much
gratified by the discovery of a bed of antediluvian oysters
clinging to the rock as if they had been alive, and this at
16,000 feet above the sea. The verification of this obser-
vation is expected.

II. MIDDLE INDIA.

In this vast tract the country forms an inclined plane, of
•which the great declivity sinks gradually towards the mouth
of the Ganges, while the other inclines towards the Indus.
It is almost entirely composed of alluvial clays, loams,
sands, and gravels, with occasional intermixtures of calca-
reous concretions named kunhir, fossil woods, and animal
remains. The most remarkable deposite of the latter
was discovered near Pinjore, north latitude 30° 47', east
longitude 76° 54', during the digging of a canal between.
two rivers, by the Sultan Ferose III. It was obser\^ed on
cutting through a hill, in which bones of elephants and men
were found. The bones of the forearm measured 3 gez,
or 5 feet 2 inches in length ; hence it is evident that none
of them were human, but belonged to large Pachydermata ;
but whether elephant or mastodon is not so apparent. The
few fixed rocks that occur during the course of the Ganges
are to be viewed as prolongations of the primitive and sec-
ondary rocks of the peninsular part of India. We ma)',
however, include in this division of India the coal-field of
the Damoda. This deposite of coal, which occupies both
sides of the river, has been traced southward to within a
few miles of Raghunathpur, reposing on granite and sye-
nite ; and about forty miles north-by-east from that place
we come to the first colliery ever opened in India. The
late Mr. Jones, who had the merit of commencing these
works in 1815, describes this as the north-west coal district
of Bengal ; he states that he observed the line of bearing for
sixty-five miles in one direction, its breadth towards Bun-
cora (on the south-west side) being not more than eleven or
twelve miles from the river; and he conjectures, although

240 GEOGNOSY OF INDIA.

erroneously, that the same coal-formation, crossing the val-
ley of the "Ganges near Catroa, unites with that of SUhet
and Cashar, which he denominates the north-east coal dis-
trict. The rocks of this coal-formation are sandstone,
slate-clay, bituminous shale, and coal, traversed by veins
of greenstone. The bituminous shale of the coal-roof
abounds with vegetable impressions, and also contains some
animal remains. The vegetables have not been accurately
examined, which is much to be regretted, as it would be
highly interesting to know if the same or different genera
or species occur in the coal-field of Bengal as those met
with in similar geognostical situations in Europe. Men-
tion is made of a Calamite, a Lycopodum, and a gigantic
species of Patella. In the coal-pits, of which there are but
three, sunk to a depth of ninety feet, there are seven beds
of coal, one of them exceeds nine feet in thickness. The
coal is said to resemble that of Sunderland in England,
but leaves a larger portion of cinders and ashes. It is
nowf extensively consumed in and about Calcutta.

in. PENINSULAR INDIA.

A very large portion of the peninsula of India is com-
posed of Plutonian rocks, as of granite, syenite, and trap,
the Neptunean strata being much less abundantly dis-
tributed. We shall now state, in a general way, what is
known of the geognostical nature of these formations, fol-
lowing in our sketch a geographic order.

Guzerat is a primitive district, with occasional displays
of secondary depositee, and in many places deeply covered
with diluvium. In the neighbouring district of Cutch, so
remarkable for its salt marsh called the Runn, a coal-field is
said to have been discovered, and is likely to be worked.
Our former pupil, Mr. Hardie, who has made so many good
observations, informed Mr. Calder that from specimens he
had received he was led to believe that in Cutch there ex-
isted secondary rocks newer than the lias. We hope Mr.
Hardie will be able to verify these conjectures, which are not
without probability, when we call to recollection the chalky
minerals met with in the great Western Desert of India.

The great western or Malabar chain of mountains, which
commences in Candeish and terminates at Cape Comorin,
is, at its northern extremity, covered by a part of the ei-

GEOGNOSY OF PENINSULAR INDIA. 241

tensive overlying trap-formation, which extends in this
quarter from the seashore of the Northern Concan to a
considerable distance eastward, above and beyond the
Ghauts, as far as the river Toombuddra and Nagpore.
The rocks of this formation, which are ■ greenstone, basalt,
amygdaloid, wacke, and trap-tufa, are columnar, globular,
tabular, and amorphous. The amygdaloidal structure is
most general in the amygdaloid, in the cavities of which
rock amethyst and various beautiful and splendid zeolites
occur. The trap hills are tabular, terraced, separated from
each other by ravines often of vast magnitude, and the
whole frequently covered with fine forests of teak and other
trees, forming some of the most romantic scenes in India.
The elevation of this part of the range seldom exceeds
3000 feet ; but advancing towards the south its height
gradually increases, and granite rocks begin to appear above
the surface between the seventeenth and eighteenth degrees
of north latitude, and from thence forming, along with
gneiss and other Xeptunean primitive strata, the chain, with
little interruption, all the way to Cape Comorin, and thence
to the extremity of the peninsula. The granite tracts of
India exhibit the same general forms as granitic countries
in other parts of the world. Rugged hills, with bold den-
ticulated outlines, lie grouped together in the greatest ir-
regularity, or occasionally form ridges, which, when inter-
posed between the spectator and the evening or morning
sun, present the most varied and fantastic forms. Some
of these ridges, when their dark outline is seen at twilight
against a ruddy western sky, emulate in their various forms
the apparently capricious forms of summer clouds, and we
can then trace along their summits the appearances of
castles, trees, men, and various strange groups. Many of
the hills have the appearance of mere collections of large
fragments of rock thrown confusedly together by some con-
vulsion of nature ; while frequently larger masses, piled
with great regularity on each other, look like remains of
gigantic architecture. High insulated masses, forming con-
siderable hills, in many instances rise abruptly out of a plain
to a height of several hundred feet, and present nearly
mural faces on several of their sides ; thus affording situa-
tions of immense natural strength, which have almost in-
variably been taken advantage of by the natives for the
Vol.: III.— X

242 GEOGNOSY OF INDIA.

-erection of their famous Mil-forts. These insulated hills
are generally met with at the borders of the granite district,
when it is succeeded by the stratified, primitive, or transi-
tion rocks ; and, beinrr situated in the midst of very exten-
sive plains, when they are seen at some distance they have
very much the appearance of rocky islands in the midst of
the ocean. Some of the strongest hill-forts in India are
of this description; for instance, Chittledroog, Gooty,
Copaldroocr, Eidghur, &c. Granite and syenite are tra-
versed bylwo kinds of trap,— the one is contemporaneous
hornblende, the other secondary greenstone. In nearly the
same parallel of latitude this trap-formation is observed to
terminate also on the seacoast a httle to the north ot I'ort
Victoria or Bankot, where it is succeeded by the lalcnte,
which extends thence as an overlying rock, with little in-
terruption, to the extremity of the peninsula, covering the
base of the mountains, sometimes also their suminits, and
the whole narrow belt of land that separates them from the
sea ; exhibiting a succession of low rounded hills and ele-
vations, and resting on the primitive rocks, which sonaetimes
rise above the surface ; as at Malwan, Calicut, and some
other points, where granite, for a short space, becomes the
surface rock. From the mainland the laterite passes over
to Ceylon, where it reappears under the name o{kahuk,s.nd
forms a similar deposite of some extent on the shores ot the

island. , , ^ .,

From the extreme point of the land, on the eastern side
of the peninsula, and northward along the foot of the moun-
tains, we meet with a country differing considerably from
the Malabar coast in aspect and geognostical structure and
composition. The plains of the Coromandel coast form a
broad although unequal belt of land between the mountains
and the sea, composed partly of river, partly of sea allu-
vium. The mountain chain that forms the eastern boundary
of the peninsula begins to diverge eastward, where its con-
tinuity is interrupted by the Valley of Coimbetoor. Thence
it divides into many chains, parallel to the great western
rano-e, but of inferior height ; and in the farther progress
northward, after branching off into subordinate hilly groups,
occupying a wide tract of almost unknown country, and
affording valleys for the passage of the great rivers that
drain nearly aU the waters of the peninsula into the iJay

GEOGNOSY OF PENINSULAR INDIA. 243

of Bengal ; this eastern range may be said to terminate at
the same latitude as that of the commencement of the
western. Granite and syenite appear to form the basis of
the whole of these eastern ranges, appearing at most of the
accessible summits from Cape Comorin to Hydrabad. Rest-
ing upon them are various primitive and transition stratified
rocks, as gneiss, mica-slate, quartz-rock, clay-slate, chlorite-
slate, talc-slate, potstone, serpentine, graywacke, and lime-
stone. In many places there are extensive deposites of a
red sandstone, and also some partial displays of overlying
trap.

The flat country of the Carnatic, that is of the country
east of the Ghauts of Mysore as far as the Pennar river,
seems to consist of the debris of granitic rocks, with plains
of sand and mud, probably left by the retreating sea. In
confirmation of the former presence of the sea in the tract
now occupied by the flat lands the following fact may be
menti^Dned : — On digging a garden about two miles from
the seashore at Madras, from the surface, for five feet, there
was a stratum of brown clay, chiefly intermixed with sand ;
then followed a stratum of bluish-black clay, in which, at
the depth of twenty-one feet, was a thin and scattered layez
of large or/ster-shells, all lying in a horizontal position ; into
the lamina composing the shell the black clay had penetrated,
so that they split asunder with great facility. There were
also shells of the cockle and other kinds. At the depth of
twenty-seven feet springs began to gush, the stratum be-
came softer, and more and more mixed with quartz-sand,
still, however, of a dark slate-colour. This continued to
the depth of thirty-seven feet. In the neighbourhood of
Pondicherry are beds of compact shelly limestone, and some
remarkable silicious petrifactions, said to be chiefly of the
tamarind-tree. These deposites at Madras and Pondicherry
are considered to be tertian,'. The bed of the Cavery, or
rather the alluvial deposites in the vicinity of Trichinopoly,
afford gems corresponding to those found in Ceylon. In
approaching the Pennar the laterite formation expands over
a larger surface, and clay-slate and sandstone begin to
appear. The river-districts of the Pennar, Krishna, and
Godavery are based on granite, syenite, and various primi-
tive stratified rocks, all of which are frequently traversed
by veins and overlaid with masses of trap. Upon the

244 GEOGNOSY OF INDIA.

primitive rocks rest sandstone, and a limestone resembling
in some of its characters the lias of England. The well-
known diamond-mines of tliis part of the peninsula are
situated in the sandstone districts of these rivers. The
Krishna is much richer in gems than the Godavery, or prob-
ably than any other river of Hindostan. The waters of
the Krishna and Godavery, as they approach the sea, divide
into numerous branches, and deposite their mineral contents
during inundations over the low level tract that separates
them. These deposites consist, according to Heyne, of a
black earth, composed of the debris of__trap rocks, and of
decayed vegetable matter washed from the extensive forests
through which these rivers flow. A characteristic ditier-
ence may be pointed out in regard to the alluvium of the
principal river of the south,— the Cavery. This river,
flowing in a long course through the Mysore country, over
an extensive and generally barren surface of granitic rocks,
with scarcely any woods or jmigle on its banks, se^ms to
bring down little or no vegetable matter, but a rich clay,
produced from the felspar which predominates in the gran-
ites of the south, intermixed with decomposed calcareous
conglomerate, rendering the plains of Tanjore the most
fertfle portion of the south of India. Onwards to Viza-
gapatan and Ganjam syenite and gneiss predominate, and
are occasionally covered with laterite. The granite and
syenite at Vizagapatan contain numerous unbedded gar-
nets. This variety of granite passes into the province of
Cuttack. Granite and syenite, with their usual accompa-
nying stratified primitive rocks, form the basis and principal
elevations of this district. Sandstone extends over a great
part of the district of Cudapah : it is in this sandstone, or
amid its debris, that some geologists place the original
repository of the diamonds found in this part ot India.
Coal is reported to occur here, and the sand and loam of
the Mahanuddy, besides diamonds, afford grains of gold.
Granite and gneiss, covered more or less completely with
sandstone and laterite, continue onward through the dis-
trict of Medinpur, and thence northward by Bishenpur and
Bancora to Birbhum. At Bancora the calcareous rock
named kankiir begins to cover the surface of the gramte
and syenite rocks which rise above the surface to consid-
erable elevations.

GEOGNOSY OF FEXIXSULAR INDIA. 245

In our progress onward we pass the coal-field of Da-
moda, already described ; and from it, in a north-westerly
direction, the road to Benares leads over granite, of which
the ranges of hills on the left, and the whole country as faor
as the Soane, and round by Shirghati and Gaya, is probably
composed. On approaching the Soane river, and crossing
the hills behind Sasseram, sandstone begins to appear, and
seems to continue, with probably only one considerable in-
terval, all the way to Agra, forming, as already mentioned,
the southern boundary of the Ganges and Jumna ; that in-
terval occurs in the low lands of Bundelcund, where the
remarkable isolated hills, forming ridges running south-
west and north-east, are all granite and syenite, the high
lands being covered with sandstone. The geognosy of the
Tyndhia mountains, which cross the peninsula trom east to
west, uniting in some degree the two northern extremities
of the Malabar and Coromandel ranges, has been partially
examined. It can be traced ranging about 75° west, from
the point called the Ramghur hills, towards Guzerat. The
predominating rocks in this vast space are granite and
syenite, with gneiss, mica-slate, quartz-rock, clay-slate,
graywacke, and other primitive and transition stratified
rocks, the relations of which may be well studied in the
Oodipoor primitive chain of this range, also on the verge of
the trap near Jabulpur, and in the bed of the IS'erbudda at
Beragerh, near Garrah. These rocks are more or less ex-
tensively covered by secondary sandstones and limestones,
of the coal, new red sandstone, and lias formations, and
traversed and overlaid by enormous bodies of trap. The
extent of the trap-rocks is verj' great ; for it has been traced
northward all over Malwah and Sagar, and eastward to-
wards Sohaghur and Amerakantak; thence extending
southward bv Xagpore, it sweeps the western confines of
Hydrabad, nearly to the fifteenth degree of latitude, and
bending to the north-west, reaches the sea near Fort Vic-
toria (including the islands of Bombaj^ Salsette, and Ele-
phanta), and forms the shores of Concan northward, all the
way to the mouth of the Nerbudda, covering an area of up-
wards of 200,000 square miles. This vast igneous forma-
tion covers sandstone in the district of Sagar, and comes
also in contact with limestone, which it converts into dolo-
mite. This sandstone, which is red, and generally hori-
X3

246 GEOGNOSY OF INDIA.

5 E.rmiies ftomsS auring the c.,.h,u»ie of June,
^^1^'a- n= ;t annears from the preceding details, affords

Sal, and the littoral deposites on the^plains of the Coro-

age of the HiHimalel cUai J -^^^ ^^^^ the ranges

:rptSar ?L?a werrelevated!^ These periods can be
Setlrmned only after an examination of the Phenomena
^Sued at tife line of junction of the ranges with the
t .Tl strata Thus, for example, if any range is found
o hatTLraTsed the ne^ red sandstone strata, but not the
ias Sones which remain in a horizontal position, we

GEOGNOSY OF PENINSXJLA.R INDIA. 347

MINERAL SUBSTANCES USEFOL IN' THE ARTS POUND IN MIDDLB

AND PENINSULAR INDIA.

1 Eocks^'2. Earthy Minerals— 3. Saline Minerals-A. In-
'flammable Minerals— 5. Metallic Minerals.

1, EOCKS.

1. Granite and Syenite.— These rocks, which extend with
few interruptions from Cape Comorin to beyond Nagpore
and Ellichpore, occupying a great part of the Carnatic,
Malabar, and Mysore, nearly the whole of the nizam s do-
minions, and a large part of Bahar, and which are met with
still farther to the north,— m Malwah, Bundelcund, the
neighbourhood of Delhi, and, as already mentioned, even
high among the Himmalehs,— are interesting in an econo-
mical view. Granite is not generally employed m India as
a building stone, on account of the great expense m work-
ing it ; but large slabs are sometimes brought into the ba-
zars for sale by the Wudrahs (a vagrant class of people,
somewhat resembling gipsies), and are used for paving the
floors of verandas in the better sort of native houses, and
other similar purposes. It is also hewn into hand-mills for
grinding corn; two or four of which load an ass or bul-
lock, and are thus carried to the bazar for sale. These are
the primeval mills of all countries, from the North Cape of
Europe to Cape Comorin, and are the same as are men-
tioned in Scripture. The ancient Hindoo temples at Ana-
eoondy, now partly in ruins, are built of gray granite, or
rather syenite. The massive and gloomy style of architect-
ure which characterizes all Hindoo buildings, is also met
with here ; but in one instance it has to a certam degree
been departed from, for in one of the principal buildmgs
there is an extensive colonnade, the columns of which are
liaht, with small pedestals and capitals, and approaching
somewhat in their proportions to the Grecian. Some ot the
pillars are tastefully carved with flowers. A few are in the
form of caryatides. They support immense slabs of granite,
which are car\'ed on their under surface, so as to form an
ornamental roof. The largest of these slabs, which are in
the central part of the building, are at least thirty feet long.
A black coloured trap, which occurs imbedded ui the syemie

248 GKOGNOSY OF INDIA.

and otherwise associated with it, is extensively used in
India for architectural purposes, and for statuarj'.

The Hindoos poUsh all kinds of stones by means of
pounded corundum mixed with melted lac. The mixture
being allowed to cool, is shaped into oblong pieces three or
four inches long. The stone is sprinkled with water, and
at the same time rubbed wuth these oblong masses ; and
the polish is increased by the use of masses with suc-
cessively liner grains.

Talc-slate and Potstonc. — These minerals frequently
occur together associated with various transition rocks.
Potstone is found along with talc-slate and chlorite-slate
in the south-east part of the Darwar district, and is used
by the natives in the manufacture of various utensils. It
is so soft, that pencils are formed of it for writing upon
books made of cloth blackened and stifiened with gum.
Both the books and the neatness of the writing are very in-
ferior to similar ones of the people of Ava. All the fine
plaster, so much admired by strangers, with which the walls
of the houses are covered in India, is composed of a mix-
ture of fine lime and soap-stone rubbed down with water.
When the plaster is nearly dry, it is rubbed over with a dry
piece of soap-stone, which gives it a lustre very much re-
sembling that of well-polished marble.

Limestone. — Some hills on the north and north-east of
Guzerat are said to be chiefly composed of marble exhibiting
many colours and qualities. The coarse granular white,
and white with black veins, are the most frequent ; but
amono- the ruined tombs and murjids, in the neighbourhood
of Ahmedabad, may be found many small granular varieties
of different colours, as white, yellow with red veins, and
green clouded with yellow and even black. Of these de-
posites of marble no account has been puWished. A variety
of Ihnestone met with near Bagulkote, in Darwar, answers
well as a lithographic stone ; for which purpose it has been
used at Bombay. LucuUite marble is mentioned b\ Dan-
gerfield among the productions of Malwah, and Tod says
there are marble quarries in Rajast'han. The kunkur, a
calcareous deposite, is used for cement and as a manure.

Latcrde or Ferruginous Clay-stone. — This mineral may
be described as a clay-stone, more or less impregnated with
iron, with a perforated and cellular structure. It frequently

GEOGNOSV OF PENINSULAR INDIA. 249

ccmtams imbedded in it small masses of clay, quartz, or
sandstone. In its native beds, a short way under the sur-
face, it is so soft that it can be easily cut with a hatchet or
spade ; and when sufficiently compact, and not containing
imbedded portions of quartz, &c., it is cut into square
masses like bricks, and used as a building-stone. Hence, Dr.
Buchanan Hamilton names it laterite or brick-stone ; and
its names in the native languages are derived from the same
circumstance. When these square masses remain in the
open air for some time they become very hard ; and whea
not exposed to constant moisture they answer admirably as
building-stones. Most of the handsome Roman Catholic
churches at Goa are built of this laterite. In the principal
fronts it is covered with plaster ; but in other parts it is left
bare, and retains its hardness when exposed to the atmo-
sphere.

2. EARTHY MINEKALS.

1. Corundum. — Gray, green, blue, and red varieties of
this very hard mineral, usually more or less perfectly crys-
tallized, and ranging fromopaque to translucent, occur im-
bedded in granite and syenite in the district of Salem in the
Madras presidency, among the mountains of the Carnatic,
and in other parts of the peninsula. It is associated with
cleavelandite, indianite, and fibrolite. Some varieties, as the
blue, when cut in a hemispherical form, exhibit, when
turned round, a white star with six rays. It is used as
emery for polishing hard bodies.

2. Spinel Ruby.— This fine gem is found at Cananor, ia
the Mysore country.

3. Beryl. — The varieties of this gem at present most
highly prized by the jeweller occur in a locality lately-
discovered at Cangayum, in the district of Coimbetoor,
where they are associated with cleavelandite. The most
beautiful cut beryl known is in the cabinet of the late M.
H. P. Hope. In the language of the jeweller, its colour
and transparency are perfect, and although weighing not
more than six ounces, .500/. sterling were paid for it. It is
reported, although we believe erroneously, to have been
found in Ceylon ; for Mr. Heath, who discovered and worked
the beryl mine of Cangayum, assures us that beryl does
not occur in Ceylon ; and, therefore, as Mr. Hope's beryl

250 GEOGNOSY OF INDIA.

■was brought from India, it was very probably found in the

^^^^Zirc'on.— Fine specimens of this gem are met with in
alluvial deposites in the district of EUore.

5. Schorlous Topaz.— Th\s interesting variety of topaz is
mentioned by Dr. Heyne as occurring in different localities
in syenite and granite districts. • , .

6 Schorl and Tourmaline occur in granite, mica-slate,
and"in quartz-rock, bordering the granite and syenite dis-

• ^7^'chrvsolUe.— This gem occurs in the basaltic rocks of
the secondary trap series in the great trap district already

described. , . , , .

8. Precious Garnet.— In many hills this gem abounds in
syenite, in others it is imbedded in mica-slate and gneiss.

9. Pi/ropc.—This beautiful mineral, the finest gem ot the
garnet "family, is mentioned by Heyne as having been met
with among "the primitive rocks of the central parts of the

^^^O.^Grcnatite has been found in the southern parts of the

Mysore. . . , .

11. Rock Crystal, and other varieties of quartz, occur m
the granite, mica-slate, and quartz-rock districts. _

12 imetht/.ft.— This beautiful kind of quartz is met with,
in greatest beauty, in drusy cavities of overlying trap mthe
.-o-reat northern trap district.

"^ 13 Cat's Eye. Varieties of this ornamental quartz are

found in the alluvium of the river Krishna, also on the
coast of Malabar.

14. CarneUatu— Mines, as they are called, ot this orna-
mental stone occur in the principality of Rai Beempla,
about thirty miles due east of Broach, and about five miles
«n the southern bank of the Nerbudda. The stones are
obtained by sinking pits during the dry season m the chan-
nels of torrents. The nodules which are found in this way
are intermixed with other rolled pebbles, and weigh fi-om a
few ounces to several pounds. Their colour, when recent,
is dark olive-green, inclining to greenish-gray. The prepa-
lation which they undergo is, first, exposure to the sun
for some time, and then calcination. The latter process is
performed bv packing the stones in earthen pots, and cover-
ing them with a laver five or six inches thick of dried goat s

GEOGNOSY OF PENINSULAR INDIA. 251

dunor. Fire is then applied, and in twelve hours the pots
are sufficiently cool to be removed. The stones are now
examined, and some are found to be red, others nearly
white ; the difference in their respective tints depending in
part on the original quality of the colouring matter, and in
part, perhaps, on the difference in the heat to which they
have been exposed. The annual value of camelian ex-
ported from India formerly amounted to 11,000/. The
great emporium Tor these articles is the ancient city of
Cambay, where a very considerable trade is carried on by
the Borah tribe, whose agents purchase the rough stones
from the mountaineers, and convey them to Cambay, where
they are wrought into various ornamental articles. Such is
the low price of labour and of material at Cambay, that a
complete set of female ornaments, necklace, bracelets, cross,
brooch, and eardrops, ready for setting agreeably to their
colour and quality, costs from eight to twenty-five rupees,
the usual price ; or, if very fine, from that sum upwards to
fifty rupees for the most beautiful set that can be procured.
Beautiful jaspers and agates are found in the camelian dis-
trict and other parts of India. In general these sihcious
minerals are derived from the overlying trap-rocks, in
which they occur in cavities, imbedded masses, and ia
reins.

15. Zeolite. — The great overlying trap district contains
the principal species of this elegant family of minerals,
which are generally found in drusy cavities.

16. Ihe felspars and micas of the primitive districts, al-
though apparently very interesting, have not hitherto engaged
the attention of mineralogists. Of the hornblendes, the
common, granular, slaty, actynolitic, and asbestiae, have
been met with ; but we do not possess any information ia
regard to the calcareous and harytic minerals.

Saline Minerals. — Common salt, carbonate of soda, and
nitrate of potash, as already mentioned, occur in considera-
ble quantity in some districts, forming the salt, soda, and
nitre soils, — but no beds of these minerals have as yet been
met with in Southern India.

Inflammable Minerals. — Diamond. — This beautiful min-
eral, the most precious of all the gems, is found at Cudapa,
Banaganpilly, &c., in the river-district of the Pennar ; at
Cwndapilly, in the district of the Krishna; near to Bttd"

252 GEOGNOSY OF INDIA.

drachhillum, in the bed of the Godavery ; at Sumbhulpore,
in the district of the Mahanuddy ; and at Pannah, in Bun-
delcund. In all these so called diamond districts, there are
deposites of sandstone and alluvium ; and in some instances
at no great distance appear igneous rocks, as trap and
granite. The diamond is obtained by washing the alluvial
sands, clays, loams, and conglomerates; it is said also
to have been met with in the sandstone. If the diamond
be of icrneous origin, we might explain its occurrence in
the sandstone by the action of igneous rocks under the
sandstone ; if of aqueous origin, by the gradual attraction
and combination of the adamantine carbonaceous particles,
diffused through the sandstone or alluvium. From facts in
our possession, it is even not improbable that this gem may
at times appear as a vegetable secretion, just as is the case
•with the silicious substance named tabasheer, found in the
joints of the bamboo.

Coal is said to occur in connexion with some of the sand-
stone deposites, and mineral oil and pitch near to springs.
Sulphur, although but in small quantity, was found by Dr.
Heyne near the Godavery, deposited from a shallow lake
which extends several miles from north to south.

Metalliferous Minerals. — GoW.— This metal, although in
small quantities, has been obtained by washing the alluvial
soil of several of the rivers. Silver also, but in small quan-
tities, has been noticed in this quarter of India. Irmu—
This metal in the states of oxide, hydrate, carbonate, and
sulphuret, is met with in many parts of the peninsula.
Iron mines and forges occur in the Mysore, at Coimbetoor,
Malabar, and in the Bundelcund country. At present the
whole of the mining and metallurgical operations are in the
hands of the natives, and consequently are carried on in
the worst possible manner. Iron to any extent might be
obtained from the great beds and veins distributed through-
out the country, and sold at such a rate as to banish all
foreign competition. Copper. — The general use of copper
or brass utensils among the natives of India, and the pre-
ference given to them before all other kinds of vessels,
seem to show that in all probability copper was formerly
obtained in India in considerable quantity.* At present

* Colonel Tod says there are abundant copper-mines in Bajasfban,
and also mines of im.

STJB>rERGENCE OF LAND. 253

there are no copper mines of importance in any part of our
Eastern empire ; although, from the reports of travellers
and naturalists, rich ores of copper are met with. The
ores are carbonate of copper, or malachite, anhydrous carbo-
nate of copper, which contains half its weight of metallic
copper, copper pyrites, or yellow sulphuret of copper, and
gray copper ore. Lead mines occur in Rajasf han.

'■ 4. SUBMERGENCE AND UPRAISING OF LAND.

The account of Lieut. A. Burnes, who examined the
Cutch portion of the delta of the Indus in 1826 and 1829,
as Stated by Mr. Lyell, furnishes the following very inter-
esting details regarding the submergence and upraising of
land during the earthquake of 1819 : — A tract around Sin-
dree, which subsided during the earthquake in June, 1819,
was converted from dry land into sea in the course of a few
hours ; the new-formed mere extending for a distance of six-
teen miles on either side of the fort, and probably exceeding
in area the lake of Geneva. Neither the rush of the sea into
this new depression, nor the movement of the earthquake,
threw down the small fort of Sindree, the interior of which
is said to have become a tank, the water filling the space
within the walls, and the four towers continuing to stand ; so
that on the day after the earthquake the people in the fort,,
who had ascended to the top of one of the towers, saved
themselves in boats. Immediately after the shock, the in-
habitants of Sindree saw, at the distance of five miles from
the village, a long elevated mound, where previously there
had been a low and perfectly level plain. To this uplifted.
tract they gave the name of " L'llah Bund," or the " Mound
of God," to distinguish it from an artificial barrier previously
thrown across an arm of the Indus. It is already ascer-
tained that this newly-raised country is upwards of fifty
miles in length from east to west, running parallel to that
line of subsidence which caused the ground around Sindree
to be flooded. The breadth of this elevation from north to
south is conjectured to be in some parts sixteen miles, and
its greatest ascertained height above the original level of the
delta is ten feet. This upraised land consists of clay filled
with shells. Besides " Ullah Bund," there appears to be
another elevation south of Sindree, parallel to that befor&
^ Vol. III._Y

gg^ SHOWER OF ASHES.

mentioned, regarding Which ho^^^^^^^^

has been comm-i-t f^^^ Jenturies^e*^''' upheaved .l.rge
quake having, about * e^*^^^^^^^^ . ^ .^^^ j^^^^ . ^ ^^^

area of the bed ot t^ie 8^=^'^' „ g^ that numerous harbours
^^^^"ITd^ IHhts ^erU ecked and ingulfed ,• in
were laid diy, ana snips ^7"=. v ^^^in 1819 that

iC^efion .he« we« c J. up numerou. piec.. of wrought
iron and ship nails.

5. nESTK.CTlONO. THE ANCIENT ClXV OF OOOEIS ANP OTHER
PLACES IN INDIA BY A SHOWEK OF YOtCANIC ASHE».

The volcano said to have burst forth in the district of
CuTch i^lSlQ is the only one of modern date menti^^^^^^^^^^^

authors as ^^^^f^^>J^^^ h^vt^f
ashes overwhelmed the ancient city 01 ^ ^^

Si^?;::?M2^rS:iid^'ftot^

Shteen 'fLt, there are f-q-^^^^ -^S^^/rex aordt

-^^"^^Pf^L'^UlEuTei^iroTviUrkinL!:^

nar>- hardness besides uten.i.^ from which several

:rne pi larsMd b:endug,'there was observed a space from
^wPlve to fifteen feet long, and seven and ei^ht feet high,
comp s d of eTrthen vessels broken and closely compac^d
3 It was conjectured to have been a potter's kUn.
Seen this place ani the new town is a follow m which
tradition saysf the river Sipparah formerly ran I changed
it<i rourse at the time the city was buried, and now mns 10
the we ward In the Asiatic Journal, the sod which covers
OuS is described as being of an ash-gray colour, with
2Se specks of black sand, thus somewhat resembling
San c a'sts. Captain Dangerfield observe a^ a depth
of thirty feet, in a so-called tufaceous mass, in the course
: he Verbudda near to the city of Mhysir bncks and
large earthen vessels, said to have belonged to th« ancient
dty Of Mhysir, de6troyed by the catastrophe of Ougem. if,

EARTHQUAKES.

255

on more careful examination, it shall be proved that the
earthy matter coverins the ancient city of Ougein, and the
beds of tufa-like deposits on the banks of the ?, erbudda, and
in many other parts of Malwah and Baghur, agree in char-
acters with the matters that cover Pompeu and Hercula-
neum, &c., we shall be entitled to infer that the Hindoo
" shower of ashes" proceeded from some volcano or volca-
noes, the remainsof which may still be found in India.

6. EARTHQUAKES.

The mountains, hills, valleys, and littoral plains of India
are sometimes agitated by subterranean concussions or
earthquakes ; but these tremblings and heaymgs of the solid
mass of the country are not so frequent in India as mmany
other regions. Earthquakes are recorded as having occur-
red in the course of the Ganges in 1665, 1763, and m 18u0.
In 1803 an earthquake in the course of the Ganges occa-
sioned great disasters, particularly at Barahat. But these
agitations of the ground are not confined to the middle and
lower parts of the course of this river, for Captain Hodg-
son experienced an earthquake near to its sources. He.
savs, " We lay down to rest ; but between ten and eleven
o'clock were awakened by the rocking of the ground, and
on runnincT out we saw the eftects of an earthquake, and
the dreadful situation in which we were placed, in the midst
of masses of rock, some of them more than 100 feet in di-
ameter, and which had fallen from the ciitis above us, prob-
ably broucrht down by some former earthquake. I he scene
around ul, shown in all its dangers by the bright moon-
lio-ht, was indeed very awful. On the second shock, rocks
w'ere hurled in every direction from the peaks around to the
bed of the river, with a hideous noise not to be described,
and never to be forgotten. After the crash caused by the
falls near us had ceased, we could still hear the terrible
sounds of heavy falls in the more distant recesses of tlie
mountains. We looked up with dismay at the clihs over-
head, expecting that the next shock would detach some
ruins from them : had they fallen we could not have es-
caped, as the fragments from the summits would have tum-
bled over our heads, and we should have been buned by
those from the middle. Providentially there were no more
shocks that night. This earthquake was felt in all parts

256 EARTHQUAKES. ,

of the mountains, as well as in the plams of the north-west
provinces of Hindostan."

On the I6th June, 1819, the western part of India was
visited by an earthquake, which spread desolation and panic
over a vast extent of countrj'. It was felt from Bombay to
beyond the tropic of Cancer ; but the centre of the shock
seems to have been in the province of Cutch, which suffered
severely. The first and greatest shock took place on the
16th June, a few minutes before seven P. M. The wretched
inhabitants of Bhooj were seen flying in all directions to es-
cape from their falling habitations. A heavy appalling
noise, the violent undulatory motion of the ground, the
crash of the buildings, and the dismay and terror which
appeared in every countenance, produced a sensation fear-
ful beyond description. The shock lasted from two to three
minutes, in which short period the city of Bhooj was almost
levelled to the ground. The walls, from the sandy nature
of the stone, were crumbled into dust ; nearly all the tow-
ers and gateways were demolished ; and the houses left
standing were so shattered as to be uninhabitable. It was
calculated that nearly 2000 persons perished at Bhooj alone.

The devastation was general throughout Cutch. In other
quarters its effects appear to have been equally disastrous.
Thus, from Ahmedabad, the capital of Guzerat, we have
the following description : — " This city is justly celebrated
for its beautiful buildings of stone and other materials, and
for the famous shaking minarets, which were admired by
every stranger. Alas ! the devastation caused by this com-
motion of the earth is truly lamentable. The proud spires
of the great mosque erected by Sultan Ahmed, which have
stood nearly 4.50 years, have tumbled to the ground witliin
a few yards of the spot where they once reared their heads !
Another mosque of elegant structure, which lies to the left
of the road leading to Shahee Bagh, has shared the same
fate. The magnificent towers which formed the grand en-
trance into the citadel have been much shaken and cracked
in several places. The fort and town of Jelelsheer are re-
duced to ruins. Many of the people killed were already out
of doors, which is usualty considered a situation of com-
parative safety. A marriage was about to be celebrated in
a rich man's family, and the castes had assembled from va-
rious distant quarters : the shock occurred when they were

EARTHQUAKES. 257

feasting in the streets, and upwards of 500 of the party
were smothered in the ruins of the falling houses."

The effects of this earthquake were indeed so extensive
that we cannot afford room for more minute particulars ; but
we may add some account of the sensations felt by individ-
ual sufferers during the continuance of the shocks. In the
British camp, which was pitched in a plain between the fort
and city of Bhooj, the general feeluig was an unpleasant
giddiness of the head and sickness of stomach, from the
heaving of the ground ; and during the time the shock
lasted, some sat down instinctively, and others threw them-
selves on the ground. Those who were on horseback were
obliged to dismount ; the earth shook so violently that the
horses could with difficulty keep their feet ; and the riders,
when upon the ground, were scarcely able to stand. At
Ahmedabad, " all the disagreeable sensations were experi-
enced of being tossed in a ship at sea in a swell ; and the
rockino- was so great, that every moment we expected the
earth to open under our feet." One gentleman, writing
from Sural, where the earthquake began at twenty minutes
past seven, says, " The vibration of the couch I was lying
on was so great that I was glad to get off it ; the house
was considerably agitated, — the furniture all in motion ; a
small table close to me kept striking the wall, and thft
lamps swung violently. I ran dov;n stairs, and got out of
mv house as fast as possible. On getting on the outside, I
found a number of people collected, gazing with astonish-
ment at my house, which stands alone, and was so violently
agitated that I expected it to fall down. The earth was
convulsed under our feet." Another 'writes thus from
Baroach : — " Such of the houses as are elevated, and at all
loosely built, creaked like the masts and rigging of a ship in
a o-ale ; the Venetians and window-frames rattling violently,
and the buildings threatening immediately to fall ; a con-
siderable lateral motion was impressed on every thing that
admitted of it. After this more violent concussion had lasted
a minute or upwards, it was succeeded by an oscillatory mo-
tion, of a more equable character, which continued formore
than a minute and a half, making the whole period of th&
convulsion nearer three than two and a half minutes." Aa
intelligent native residing in Iseria gives the following ac-
count :— " Yesterday, in^the evening, a noise issued frona.

12

258 MEDICAL OBSERVATION'S.

the earth like the beating of the nobut, and occasioned a
trembling of all the people ; it appeared most wonderful,
and deprived us all of our senses, so that we could not see,
every thing' appearing dark before us ; a dizziness came upon
many people, so that they fell down." The inhabitants
of Cutch, however, were much relieved from the dread of
further convulsions by the circumstance of a volcano having
opened on a hill about thirty miles from Bhooj ; and, about
ten days after the first shock, a loud noise like the discharge
of cannon was heard at Porebunder. The sound came
from the east, and was supposed to indicate the bursting of
one or more volcanoes in that direction. The earthquake
affected in a remarkable degree the eastern and almost de-
serted channel of the Indus, which it refilled and deepened.

MEDICAL OBSERYATIONS.

CHAPTER XI.

Constitutions best suited to India — Preservation of Health on
Board of Ship and after Arrival — Management after Re-
turn to Europe.

Ages most suitable for Recmits for Indian Service — Ages at which Offi-
cers may be sent out — Medical Examination of Recruits — Epilepsy —
Small-pox — Cutaneous Eruptions — Djspepsia — Cautions acainst

Intemperance — Diet— Exercise — Danger of using Mercur>- — Gout

Gravel — Complexions peculiarly dark and unusually fair — Rheuma-
tism—Mental Deranaemeat— Scrofula— Consumption — Preservation
of Health on board of Ship, and after Arrival in India— Management
after Return to Europe.

CONSTITUTIONS BEST SUITED TO THE CLIMATE OF INDIA.

Considering the numhers of all ranks and denomina-
tions annually required in the service of our Indian empire,
there arises a question of the first importance, — " what de-
scription of men are best fitted to endure the influence of
a climate essentially different from that of the mother
country, and which, though liighly favourable for particular
constitutions, will prove injurious if not fatal to others ?"

AGES MOST SUITABLE FOR RECRUITS.

259

We have often thought that officers employed in enhst-
in<r soldiers for the honourable company did not always sut-
fidentlv consider what is the most proper period of lite to
prefer "in recruits : for, although a young man of seventeen,
weU-grown and healthy, may, in his own country, easily
enough bear the heat of the dog-days, the fatigue of a long
march, and the pains of hunger and thirst ; yet it does not
follow that he will be fit for the same hard ser%-ice in a hot
cUmate. In India the scorching winds at one season, and
the damps at others, with the peculiar ills which they never
fail to bring along with them, are tryuig enough to the
most robust and best inured ; how much more so must they
be to the juvenile and perhaps delicate frame which has not

attained the vigour of manhood ! P'^""g,J^^^°"f. f„t!;
dence in India! the writer frequently saw the injudicious
practice of too earlv enlisting for the tomd zone prove
fatal to striplings, who, had they been permitted to remain
but three years longer in Britain, might have grovNTi up into
hardy men, able to endure the severities and vicissitudes
of any chmatc in the world. It is difficuh, mdeed, to con-
ceive a more helpless or miserable being than a raw lad,
durina his first severe indisposition in that country, when
he begins most sincerely to regret the want of his family
and friends. The glow of health and the vivacity of
youth, it is true, are for a time rendered more vivid and
buoyant by the brilliant sunshine and exhilarating air ot an
-Asiatic clime ; but no sooner do disease and languor assail
an individual so circumstanced than the fair illusion van-
ishes : he looks around, but sees no well-known face to
cheer him • he finds himself desolate and abandoned, and
not rarely sinks into that degree of mental depression
which is of all states the most likely to aggravate bodily
complaint. Such is one great evil that arises from enlist-
in<r recruits for Eastern service before their constitutions
are ftiUy formed ; an evil the extent of which maj- be judged
of from its results in a single regiment. Sir George bal-
lin<rall, in his excellent Practical Observations on t ever,
Dysentery, &c., page 13, mentions, that; "from an inspec-
tion of the tables exhibiting an abstract of the register of
deaths in the second battalion of the Royals, it will appear,
that durincr the first year of the regiment bemg in India,

260 MEDICAL observations:

out of 206 sufferers 160 were under twenty-five years of
age." Under the age of twenty-one no soldier should be
permitted to proceedlo our possessions in the East.

But as it is injudicious to despatch to a tropical region
recruits who are too voung, so there may be an equal im-
propriety in sending "them out at too late a period of hfe.
The habits of the animal economy, like other habits once
finnly established, cannot be easily or safely altered ; none
of the threat organs of the human frame, preparing or cir-
culating for a length of years, with a certain energy, a spe-
cific quantity of^any fluid, can be suddenly forced to do
more or less'without inducing some degree of variation lu
the constituent parts of such fluids, if not producing m
them a condition actually morbid ; and the same may be
said of the different smaller glands and emunctones, all of
which are in some measure affected by a change of climate.
With the exception of the rapid alteration caused by death
or acute disease on the human frame, there is none so great
as that which is brought on by a removal from a cold to a
torrid region ; and so far as we are beings adapted by habit
and constitution to a temperate air, so far is the experiment
we make in venturing into tropical climes attended with
danger. Yet, however great the revolution which takes
place upon reaching a highly-heated atmosphere, so admi-
rably are we organized, so nobly fitted for all the purposes
of hfe, that, with the necessary care, and at a proper age,
comparatively little risk is incurred. No soldier, unless he
has been seasoned to a hot climate in other parts of the
worid, should be embarked for India after passing the age
of thirty-six. Even to that age safety can only be promised
to his majesty's regiments, which consist in general of dis-
ciplined men, who""have not to undergo the severe drilling
to which recruits for the company's sen.'ice are obUged to
submit soon after landing, and than which nothing can be
more trying to the constitution. We would therefore recom-
mend that, in enlisting for regiments in India, a preference
should be given to those between twenty-one and thirty-
five years old. , , , ,

These observations, it must be remembered, only apply
to those whose condition in life does not admit of their pro-
curing the comforts and indulgences which the more afflu-
ent can command. Private soldiers, not many days after

AGES MOST sriTABLE FOR RECRUITS. 261

landing, are oftea in time of war under the necessity of
marchniiT from morning till night, at a season when perhaps
the thermometer is as high as 80° or 90^ in the shade at
noon ; sleeping, moreover, on the damp ground, and rismg
half-refreshed to toil on through an unhealthy district,—
perchance to encounter the enemy. At all times, however,
when their armies are not in the tield, and when stern ne-
cessity does not demand the imposition of such hardships,
the ditferent governments of India invariably evince the most
humane consideration for voung soldiers on their first arnval.
It is to be observed, also, that the king's and company's
officers, and the civil servants, feel few of the mconve-
niences just mentioned, because their circumstances procure
exemption from them. Carried about in palanqums, during
the hot hours, for the first few months they are in the
country, exposed neither to great fatigue nor to the noxious
niffht-dews, they become gradually habituated to the fervid
atmosphere, and in due time are able to endure all weathers.
With such advantages, accordingly, these gentlemen might
safely venture to India at an earUer age ; nineteen would
not be premature. To engage them so soon in active duties
micrht, indeed, entail upon them the disadvantage of an un-
perfect education, which is a consideration of great import-
ance ; but it is merely in regard to the ability of the bodily
frame to encounter the inconveniences of climate that we
speak in this place. As those of a superior rank, then,
may without hazard proceed to the East sooner than people
of inferior stations, they may, for similar reasons, with
greater safety visit Asia at a more advanced age. In proof
of this we have only to refer to our governors, judges, and
commanders-m-chief, many of whom were in the decline
of life before they stepped on Indian soil, and who, without
having previously been in the torrid zone, enjoyed excellent
health and spirits in a country which to them was like a
new world.

We shall now proceed to a few observations regarding
the description of men, in point of natural constitution best
fitted for the ser\-ice in question. Taking it for granted
that the recruits are in the first place examined in the usual
wav, in order to ascertain their ability to perform all mus-
cular motions, we should think it advisable, considermg the
nature of the country for which they are destined, that par-

262 MEDICAL OBSERVATIONS.

ticular attention should be paid to them in other respects.
Any one who has accurately scrutinized the different appear-
ances of sound health and latent disease can readily distin-
guish the eligible recruit. A vivid colour, animated look,
firm step and voice, clean tongue, and inoffensive breath,
with what is commonly called the white of the eye clear,
and without the slightest yellow tinge, are in general very
sufficient proofs of good digestion and well-performed vis-
ceral secretions ;* and these, with the other requisites, may
with propriety entitle the possessor to a passport to the
plains of Hindostan. On the other hand, young men
who seem sluggish, sallow, with rather tumid bellies, and
somewhat bloated countenances, whose movements are lan-
guid, and the white of whose eyes has a yellowish or
suffused appearance, though they be ever so well grovm,
ought to meet with a decided rejection ; for in them there
certainly lurks the seed of future disease, which will not
be slow to show itself if ever they are exposed to ardent
heat in a tropical country. A disposition to hepatic de-
rangement, and consequent visceral obstruction, may not
unfrequently be discovered early in life, and should never fail
to excite a due caution in the medical officers who examino
recruits for our army in the East. By rigid observance of
these particulars, not only might our European force in that
quarter be rendered more certainly healthy, but many fine
fellows be kept at home for the defence of the parent state,
who would fall victims iu another climate to maladies which
their peculiar constitutions are not fitted to withstand.

In making the foregoing remarks, the writer chiefly had
in view the troops of that service to which for many years
he had the honour to belong. They are equally applicable,
however, to his majesty's regiments, as may be seen by
turning to the valuable publication above mentioned, in
which'Sir George Ballingall expresses regret on account
of the error so frequently committed of selecting boys for
the king's service in the East Indies. But we should be in-
clined to go farther, and, influenced by feelings of humanity
as well as" by a just regard for the public purse, suggest,
that when whole corps are ordered to any part of our Indian
dominions, they should previously undergo the most minute

* Maclurg on the Bile, p. 106-204.

4

MEDICAL EXAMINATION OF RECRUITS. 263

examination, and that healthy men should be substituted
for all such as, from their habit of body or otherwise, seem
likely to suffer from a hot climate.

The impropriety of sending to India men who are subject
to epilepsy must be obvious, when it is considered how great
are the languor and exhaustion which but too frequently
oppress even the healthiest within the tropics ; and which
never fail to prove more or less injurious, by increasing the
mobility of the nervous system. Nay, the almost constant
irritation, from the feeling_ of heat alone, independently of
its other effects, we conceive to be no trifling source of mis-
chief to those who are subject to attacks of this malady.

No man should be allowed to enlist for any of our Eastern
settlements who has not been vaccinated or had the small-
pox ; for this disorder, if caught naturally in India, is often
of the confluent kind, and proves most destructive.

Such individuals as suffer from cutaneous eruptions, of
•whatever description, are most unfit for service in India.
In a climate where the skin has so much to do, it is abso-
lutely necessary' that its condition be healthy, so as to trans-
mit the perspiration with the greatest possible facility, — a .
principle, it is true, which will hold good in every part of
the world, but which is particularly applicable to the torrid
zone, where a free exudation, to afford relief during the ex-
cessive heat, is almost as indispensable as the secretion of
mine itself. But it is not in this way alone that the cuticu-
lar discharge proves salutarj- in tropical countries : it ap-
pears to be powerfully preventive against various com-
plaints. Thus, it has been repeatedly remarked that such
70ung men as had suffered from dyspepsiain England found
their health much improved on coming to the Coromandel
coast, — a fact which could be accounted for in no other way
than by the almost continual moistness on the surface of the
body there experienced ; for it is an observation well estab-
lished, that in using exercise as a remedy in cases of bad di-
gestion in Europe, little benefit is derived from it when not
employed to such an amount as to bring on a degree of sweat-
inor. All extremes, however, are injurious. Should per-
spiration be excessive, or allowed too often to take place,
lanouor and general weakness in the first passages will en-
sue^ with that most certain of all consequences of violent
perspirations, constipaiion; much crude matter being thus

264 MEDICAL OBSERVATIONS.

pent up, and the bile obstructed in its natural course through
the ducts, heating and ultimately inflaming various organs,
the sound state of which is essential to any thing like health
or comfort in the Eastern world.

We have said that, generally speaking, the climate of our
Asiatic dominions is far from hostile to the dyspeptic. It
is still less so if they are at the same time cautious with
regard to diet. Even the most robust frequently find their
stomachs weakened by want of due attention to their mode
of living ; what then must the delicate hazard by the same
inadvertency ! It must be confessed, also, that at the tables
of the affluent and luxurious there are many temptations
to excess, especially for new comers. Certain mixtures of
food cannot be made without danger of bringing on indi-
gestion ;* hence follows a baJlj'-prepared chyle, which will
not only prove detrimental by insufficiently nourishing the
body, but sow the seeds of different chronic disorders.
Thus it is that we see at our various watering-places in
Britain hundreds of martyrs to gout, gravel, and rheuma-
tism, many of them reaping the fruits of years of irregularity,
— men, too, not unusually at a time of life when, with ordi-
nary prudence, they might have ensured the enjoyment of
perfect health. " How does it happen," said an inteUigent
Frenchman once to the writer of this article, " that such
numbers of you English become infirm so early in life ?"
A full reply was not called for, as the foreigner, being a
person of great penetration, probably guessed the real cause
with sufficient accuracy, and only put the question by way
of insinuating in the most delicate way the greater tem-
perance of his own countrymen. Soldiers in India have it
not much in their power to err either with regard to quantity
or quality of food, as, happily for them, their mess regula-
tions fix all those matters. The consequence is, that among
them dyspepsia is not of frequent occurrence, their mala-
dies arising chiefly from exposure to ardent heat, the abuse
of spirituous liquors, and debauchery of other kinds.

This is no place to treat medically of indigestion ; yet it
may not be amiss to warn all young Eastern adventurers
who wish to avoid it, that they will do wisely to live on the

* For example, the writer has known many persons who could not take
a single glass of Madeira wine, at the same meal with cnrry or m416gi-
tfinie without bringing on heartburn in the course of four hours.

CAUTIONS AGAINST INTEMPERANCE. 265

plainest food, which should be well done ; to dine, if pos-
sible, on one dish, or two dishes at most ; not to take more
than two meals in the day, the second certainly not sooner
than six hours after the first ; not to be afraid of Mack tea,
which in moderation is virtually stomachic ; to masticate
sufficiently, so as not to entail on the stomach a duty which
does not belong to it ; to shun crude vegetables or fruits ;
to prefer that liquor (sparingly used) which is least apt to
Droduce acidity, such as Cape Madeira* of the best quality,
sherry, or weak brandy and water ; not to expose them-
selves to great heat more than duty requires ; to sleep with
the head high ; to take care that the bowels are kept regularly
open ;+ and if their situation renders it convenient, to use
equitationt in the cool of the morning ; in a word, always
to manage themselves, according to the best of their means,
with a view to eschew, if possible, those disorders, whether
hepatic or otherwise, for the removal of which mercury is
usually employed. The frequent or indiscriminate use of
that medicine is the ruin of many fine constitutions ; and
in Hindostan, when employed by injudicious men (and es-
pecially those lately arrived from Europe, who have been
informed that in India mercury will do every thing), is ten-
fold more destructive than the sword itself.

What the souty, or those liable to become so, have either
to dread or to hope from the chmate of the East, comes
■next to be considered. It has been remarked, that some

* This wine is not in good repute on account of a great deal of vile
stuff being sold under the name : but the writer can declare that he has
Imown more dyspeptic people benefited by usmg m moderation Cape
Madeira of the first quality (which can be had in London from those who
deal in no other wines), than by any medicine whatever. But it is cheap,
—a sufficient reason in our good country for its being condemned.

+ After what has been already noticed of the mischief done by neg-
tecting constipation, it is scarcely necessary to say more ; but this must
be added, that the writer never yet knew a bad case of liver or dysentery
in India that had not been preceded by costiveness. The pill which he
found most useful for keeping the bowels open is the common compmmd
Colocynth pdl -it never sickens the stomach nor gripes. Four grains
Df this will usually be found sufficient, taken at bedtime, to assist nature.
Double the dose will generally open the bowels freely.

I Of all modes of exercise the most conducive to health in inaia is
■riding on horseback ; by no/t trotting there is a gentle impulse given to
the ingesta, downwards, as well as to the bile, <fec. ; and a tone ana
.^nergy produced throughout the whole circulation. So much cannot oe
iiaid for hard galloping, which, in a torrid region, often over-agitates, ana
never fails to be injurious in what are called nervous habits.
Vol. III.— Z

266 MEDICAL OBSERVATIONS.

nations are less subject to this malady than others. Pliny
speaks of it as of more frequent occurrence in Italy in his
time than it was in former ages ;* and he believed it to be
of foreign origin, from the circumstance of there being no
Latin name for it. The disease is very rare in China, and
is said to be little known in some parts of Germany. In
Arabia it is seldom met with ; but this does not appear to be
the case in Persia, where, among those who do not adhere
strictly to the rules of temperance prescribed in the Koran,
it is by no means uncommon. We have never known more
than one Hindoo who suffered from the gout. The Moham-
medans are not so fortunate in this respect ; nor can they
expect to be so, for they are often indolent, live freely, and
do not abstain from many of the good things of this world
which it is in their power to enjoy. From the data before
us, therefore, we may conclude that the climate of our
Asiatic territories does not encourage this disorder. Eu-
ropeans subject to it have for the most part long intervals
between the fits ; and when these do come on, they are gene-
rally slight. What may be the positive cause of this mild-
ness or infrequency of the disease in a hot climate it is
difficult to determine ; but as India proves advantageous to
the dyspeptic, it may be equally so to the gouty, seeing that
those are constantly the greatest martyrs to it who suffer
most from indigestion. If digestion be well performed, a
wholesome chyle is ultimately produced. But if the chyme,
from which the chyle is in the first instance separated, has
been rendered corrupt by repletion or heterogeneous mix-
tures in the stomach, heartburn ensues, which is character-
ized by an acid of a peculiar nature, — and this we conceive
to be the prime agent in bringing on both gout and gravel.
Dr. Wollaston has demonstrated, that the concretions formed
in the joints of gouty persons are composed of an animal
acid, termed the 2iric or lithic acid, together with soda.
Such concretions are no doubt hastened by frequent indiges-
tions ; and certainly the disposition to their formation ia
increased with advancing years and an over-indulgence in
fermented liquors. Hereditary ills will assail us in spite of
our greatest care : those, however, who have such calamities
in prospect ought not to despair, but to hold in remembrance,

* Kst. Nat. hb. x\y\. cap. 10-

GOUT GRAVEL.

267

that as these maladies must have had a commencement m
the family, occasioned most likely by imprudence, so they
may have a tennination— the reward of persevering modera-
tion. A residence in India may also be considered favour-
able to the gouty on account of the free perspiration there
experienced, which, there is ground to believe, carries off
much peccant acid matter.

We have had occasion to attend both Hindoos and Mus-
. sulmans suftering from gravel or stone, but cannot say that
these are maladies of common occurrence in Hindostan. As
for confirmed stone in a European habit, the writer never
saw a case of it. But the affinity between gout and gravel
being unquestionable, so it often happens that nephritic
calculi are a sequel to gout, when it has assumed a chronic
form ; and we find, accordingly, that the children of gouty
parents are often hereditarily disposed to both disorders,—
some having a gouty, and others a nephritic, affection. The
use of hard" water has been supposed by Dr. Lister to be a
powerful cause of gravel ; other physicians, again, ascribe
more mischief to acid food. Were the latter a serious source
of the affection, we should see the Indians suffer more from
it than thev do, for they use limes, tamarinds, &c. very
liberally. While, however, we cannot beheve that the nat-
ural acid found in fruits or potherbs induces the complaint
in question, we would ascribe that effect to the morbid acid
produced in the first passages by indigestion. But perhaps
no stronger argument can be adduced to prove that a hot
climate fs beneficial in gravelish complaints, than what we
find recommended by Dr. John Mason Good,* who says, that
whatever tends to promote a determination to the skin will
be serviceable in such aliments, " for the skin itself becomes
in this case an outlet for a discharge of a redundancy of

acid."t

It has occasionally become a subject of discussion whe-
ther the climate of India is better suited to those of dark or
fair complexions : but this does not appear to be a matter
of great importance, as the tropics, with proper care, will be

i •• Study of Medicine, vol. v. p. 523, 524.

t Several of the delicious fruits of India contain little or no acidity ;
such as the custard apple (annona squamosa), plantain (musaparadisia-
ca). bullock's heart (annona reticulata), &c., and which, consequently,
may be used by those wto have the most delicate digestioa.

268 MEDICAL OSSERVATIONS.

found to agree well with either ; still we must remark, that
there is a sort of extreme fairness, accompanied with white
hair, and very light-coloured gray eyes, approaching to those
of the Albinos, which is far from desirable in hot countries.
Individuals so distmguished not only suffer much in their
sight from the glare of bright sunshine, but, being often of
lax fibres, fall into those disorders to which such a* frame of
body is subject, and invariably get scorched on exposure to
a heat from which others suffer no injury. This remark
must be understood to applj-, not to what is commonly called
simply fair complexion, but to that almost unnatural white-
ness of hair and skin which we sometimes see. There is
also a degree of dark complexion, which we should not select
for India, namely, that which is often accompanied with
torpor of the bowels, languid circulation, dark-coloured
faces, grave manner, full black eyes, and not rarely a pe-
culiar attachment to abstruse studies,— in fact, that class
of appearances by which the melancholic temperament is
chiefly characterized. To young men of this complexion
we should say that India is prejudicial, as the natural or
habitual morbid torpor would be increased by the wasting
influence of great exudation,— sobriety of manner passing
gradually mto a love of seclusion,— dyspepsia putting on
some of the distressing features of hypochondriasis,— and
intellects frequently of the noblest and most generous cast,
though in their reasoning faculty unimpaired, losing much
of that manly energy which once constituted their principal
charm. Upon the whole, complexions neither unusually
dark nor peculiarly fair are best adapted to the East. But,
after all, as already hinted, this is a matter not worthy of
much consideration ; and we know that the Romans of old
said, « Nimmm nc crede colori:' Much more essential for
India are, a perfect frame, a cheerful disposition, and good
digestion.

For the rheumatic the warm climate of Asia is favourable
with common prudence ; but this, though absolutely neces-
sary, IS, we are sorry to add, not always exercised ; for, to
avoid the nearly suffocating heat of close nights, Europeans
are too often tempted to sleep altogether sub Jove, or, which
is worse, behind wetted tatties ; and they suffer accord-
ingly : for these practices, as every medical officer who has
been in India can attest, are two of the most undoubted

INSANITY SCROFULA CONSUMPTION. 269

sources, not only of rheumatism, but of fever and palsy,
among his majesty's and the company's troops.

It is, we should imagine, scarcely necessary to observe
how baneful the climate of the East is for those who have
any tendency to mental derangement. Perhaps no cause
has excited complaints of this nature oftener than inordinate
heat. This is particularly noticed by Pinel, in his admirable
work on insanity. Cox, an Enghsh writer on the same
disease, and Dr. Arnot, have fully verified the correctness
of the distinguished Frenchman's assertion ; and we feel
concerned to say that we witnessed too many deplorable
instances of madness among the troops on the Coromandel
coast to have any doubts on the subject. It may be further
remarked, that the operation of great heat is, in this instance,
increased tenfold by a frequent use of mercurial medicines,
which are, in our humble opinion, little short of a poison m
those maladies commonly termed nervous.

But, perhaps, of all disorders, that to which the climate
of India proves most ungenial is scrofula. No young man
•with an hereditary tendency to this complaint should on any
account be sent to India, where we have never known one
individual with the malady in his habit who enjoyed tolerable
health for ten months together. Soldiers so tainted are
fit for nothincT but lumbering up an hospital ; and, for the
most part, after lingering a few years, burdens to themselves
and to their regiments, they fall a prey to the most frightful
and ravafxing ulcers. How this baneful effect of a hot
climate uoon persons so unfortunately predisposed is to be
accounted for it may be difficult to say, as the state of dark-
ness in which we have so long wandered, regarding the
proxunate cause of affections of this nature, leaves us little
more than a conjecture. One thing is certain, that as laxity
of the solids and a general deficiency of bodily vigour are
known to be the constant concomitants of the complaint,
such a condition will be greatly increased by extreme heat,
which enervates in no common degree.

As to the benefit or bad consequences of a residence in
India to such as have a predisposition to consumpltoru, an
opinion cannot be given with too much caution ; as far as
enlisting recruits for our foreign dominions goes, it is cer-
tainly wise to take no person whatever of doubtful stamina.
It is an ascertained fact, that although the malady in ques-

Z2

270 MEDICAL OBSERVATIONS.

tion is to be met with in Hindostan among the natives, it is
not nearly so common as in Europe. We have all seen the
good done by a speedy removal to milder air when this dis-
order first threatens ; and indeed a change of place,* of
whatever nature, would seem to have a happy eflfect. In
preventing the suppuration of tubercles, therefore, the warm
clime of Asia, we should say, might be safely recommended
to such, for instance, as have simply a disposition to disease
of the lungs, but on whom the enemy has as yet made no
direct attack. More especially the experiment might be
attended with advantage to those who are not under the ne-
cessity of undergoing the hardships which the poorer adven-
turer must encounter in the torrid zone. On the other hand,
when the disorder has once made a fatal breach in the lungs,
the decay and weakness are greatly hastened by the ener-
vating influence of excessive heat, — and death soon ends
the scene. Where the greatest risk lies, then, we shall not
pretend to decide ; with such facts before them, parents may
be enabled to make up their own minds.

To conclude this part of the subject, we beg it may not
be imagined that the obser\ations here advanced convey
even the slightest censure on those liberal and able men who
direct the affairs of our Asiatic possessions. The prosperity
of that great branch of our foreign empire proves the justice
and humanity with which it is governed. The fortunate
termination of our Eastern wars, and of our other difficulties
in that quarter, at a period too when Europe trembled under
the scourge of the second Attila, and down to these later
times, sufficiently testify the talent with which affairs have
been conducted. Nor can the smallest blame attach to the
authority which now presides over the medical department
immediately connected with the passing of recruits for In-
dia. Zeal and assiduity are here as conspicuous as private
character is benevolent and estimable. In the mother coun-
try the evil consequences were not seen, and could only be
remedied by representations from the distant territory in
which they were felt, — representations which, if we may
judge from the result, must have been as strongly urged as
they were speedily attended to.

* I have known several persons with the seeds of consumption in their
frame, who, by frequent change of cUmate, effectuallv succeeded in avert-
ing the calamity.

PRESERVATION OF HEALTH. 271

PRESERVATION OF HEALTH ON BOARD OF SHIP, AND
AFTER ARRIVAL IN INDIA.

It may, we think, be safely said, that, generally speaking,
young men are healthy on board of ship during their way to
India,— partly owing to the great care in supplying proper
food, and partly to their not being exposed to the vicissitudes
of weather or intemperate living. The chief inconvenience
experienced is constipation, and this is occasioned in two
ways,— the want of the same quantity of vegetable aliment
as on shore, and the increased perspiration, the natural
consequence of entering the warmer latitudes. Young men
are very apt to treat this complaint lightly. Suffering for
days together little or no uneasiness, they pay no regard to
it till incalculable mischief is done. If no medical officer is
in immediate charge of the recruits going to India, it ought
to be the duty of the surgeon of the ship, not simply to pre-
scribe for those who request it, hit daily to see every young
man on board, and to acquaint himself with the actual state of
each. In this way, and in this way alone, can disease be
arrested in its commencement, and many bad consequences
avoided. It should also be the care of the medical officer to
see that the youths are kept perfectly clean by frequent bath-
ino-s in salt water, so that there may be no obstruction to
free perspiration, on which, we repeat, so much depends,
while approaching or on reaching the torrid regions. There
need hardly be urged here the necessity of exercise to main-
tain good health. In crowded ships it is sometimes difficult
to obtain this. One of the easiest and, perhaps, one of the
best modes is to get the young soldiers to assist the sailors
in performing such naval duties on deck as they can execute,

exercise being taken at hours when there is least chance

of injurious consequences from the heat.

Most of these cautions will apply to the treatment of
young soldiers on their first reaching the Indian continent,
with the following additional hints : — The strictest rules
ought to be enforced regarding the use of fruits, vegetable
die", and spirituous liquors. The two first, if partaken of
injudiciously by the new comers, are a certain source of evil ;
indulgence in the last is a never-ending bane to both old and
young. Exposure to the heat of the sun rqust be avoided
as much as circumstances will permit, as it is a powerful
exciting cause of disease. _ On this account it is safest to

272 MEDICAL OBSERVATIONS.

teach the military exercise in the cool of the niorninor, or
in the evening. Above all things sleeping in the open air
is to be shunned, as nothing is more pernicious than heavy
cold dews falling on a frame relaxed by the heat of a burn-
ing sun.

MANAGEMENT AFTER RETURN TO EUROPE.

If a great change takes place in the human fiame on first
entering the warm latitudes, a great corresponding chano-e
must also be occasioned by returning to the temperate clime.
If individuals thus restored to their native shores have not
already put on flannel clothing, they should lose no time in
doing so, making the shirt-sleeves come dmvn as far as the
wrist. Great attention must be paid to the state of the
bowels, bj' the use, when necessary, of some gentle aperient.
The diet should be regular, avoiding as much as possible
injurious mixtures ; in fact, dining when it can be done
on one, or at most two dishes. With regard to wine, sherry
and the best kind of Cape Madeira are perhaps the safest,
as they contain little or no acidity ; but even these must be
used moderately. No suppers should be taken. Nothing,
we can say with the most perfect certainty, conduces more
to preserve the health of old Indians than gentle exercise on
horseback. These remarks, it must be remembered, appljr
merely to those who come home free from any particular
bodily ailment ; those who suffer from peculiar affections
will of course make application to some professional man
who has been long enough in India to acquaint himself with
the maladies of that country, and long enough returned to
have judiciously remarked the effects of a change of climate
on the constitution. From misapprehension in such cases
on the part of inexperienced physicians, many an unfor-
tunate is sent to Cheltenham, or Bath, or Harrowgate, who
would have derived much more benefit from a very different
treatment under the salutary and natural influence of his
own native climate. We should not advise in every case to
abstain from those valuable waters ; but, it is certain, a very
nice discrimination is required to ascertain when they are
necessary ; and, further, we must regret that no such ap-
pointment has ever yet been made by the honourable com-
pany as that of a medical officer of experience in both coun-
tries (Icdia and England), who could at once be a physician,

SPASMODIC CHOLERA. 273

a guide, and a friend to sick officers on their return to their
native land, often with incomes not well suited to afford
many fees, and otherwise unacquainted with the most proper
course for ensuring comfort in a countr)' which, though their
own, has become strange to them.

CHAPTER XII.

Spasmodic Cholera.

Sjmptoms — Persons most liable to the Disease — Predisposing Circum-
stances— Treatment — Precautions necessar)- to prevent its Attacks —
Symptoms and Treatment of the Disease in Britain.

In a preceding part of the work* has been given a brief
history of the progress of this malady, which for a series of
years has committed such devastation in India and other
Eastern countries. It claims notice here, not only as one
of the diseases incident to India, but because it has extended
from the climes where it originated to the continent of 'Eu-
rope, spreading its ravages throughout the British islands,
and exciting an intense interest far beyond what it would
have done had we only continued to hear of its effects in a
distant land. A short view of its nature and treatment
becomes, therefore, doubly necessary.

Cholera often comes on suddenly, and generally without
anj' previous warning, — most commonly during the night
or towards morning ; occasionally, however, it is preceded
for some days by a slight diarrhoea. The patient complains
of a feeling of anxiety or uneasiness at the pit of the stomach ;
this changes into a sensation of heat and pain. To these
symptoms succeed sickness, giddiness, ringing in the ears,
witn vomiting and purging, and great prostration of strength.
The evacuations at first consist of the common contents of
the stomach and bowels, but afterward of a thin muddy
fluid resembling rice or barley water unmixed with any trace
of bile ; and this latter circumstance forms a distinguishing

♦ Vol. ii. p. 191-195.

274 SPASMODIC CHOLERA.

feature of the disease. There is a sudden sinking of the
pulse, a diminution of the heat of the body, a pallor of the
countenance, suppression of the urinary discharge, and oc-
casional cramps in the limbs. As the malady advances,
the cramps and spasms increase in violence and frequency,
and the vomiting and purging are severe. The skin be-
comes deadly cold ; it is covered with a clammy moisture,
and is of a bluish colour about the face ; the extremities are
shrivelled, and the nails of the fingers of a purple hue.
The countenance is ghastly, and expressive of great anxiety.
The eyes are sunk in their sockets, and surrounded by a
dark hvid circle : there is a distressing thirst, with burning
heat and pain in the region of the stomach. If blood be
drawn from a vein, it is of an unusually dark colour and
thick consistence. Debility increases rapidly, — the patient
lies in a state of helpless exhaustion, — the spasms and vomit-
ing cease, — the breathing is oppressed or scarcely percep-
tible,— and under these unfavourable symptoms death closes
the scene, in many cases in the course of six or twelve
hours, generally within eighteen or twenty, from the com-
mencement of the attack. Under all these bodily sufferings
the mind remains collected and sensible to the last.

A favourable issue of the case is denoted by the pulse
rising in strength, a return of heat to the surface, an incli-
nation to natural sleep, and a diminution or cessation of
vomiting, purging, and spasms, with the usual appearance
of bile in the excretions. Among the natives, in whom
there is little tendency to inflammatory disease, the recovery
is speedy and perfect, no symptoms of the attack remaining
after the lapse of a few days ; but in Europeans, in whom
there is a much greater propensity to inflannnation, the
recovery from cholera is by no means so rapid and complete ;
affections of the intestines,'lhe brain, liver, or stomach, are
often found to supervene.

In India, persons exposed to great bodily fatigue, con-
fined to poor and scanty fare, or leading irregular lives, were
usually the victims of this dreadful disease. The Euro-
peans were comparatively less subject to it than the natives ;
and the higher classes of the latter were more exempted
from its effects than the lower. Females suffered more
rarely than men, and children in a less degree than either.
Of all the circumstances predisposing to an attack, great

SPASMODIC CHOLERA. 275

fatigue of travelling and hard labour in the open air were
found the most powerful ; and thus troops on a march, and
people whose occupations exposed them to the weather, as
boatmen, fishermen, husbandmen, gardeners, grass-cutters,
washermen, palanquin-bearers, were extremely subject to
the disease. All derangements of the stomach and bowels,
as vomiting or purging, whether occurring naturally or
produced by purgative medicines, more particularly by
Epsom salts, had a tendency to bring on the disease. It
was found that a person who had completely recovered
from cholera was rarely seized a second time,* although a
few relapses were occasionally recorded.

When the disease first makes its appearance in a town
or camp, a few solitary cases occur; these gradually in-
crease in ntimber for the first week or ten days, till at last
the malady spreads in every direction. For a fortnight or
three weeks it rages to a frightfial extent, and then as rapidly
declines, shifting its seat to some other district, where it
conimits similar devastation. In this manner it spread over
India ; and, in a way strictly analogous, it has pursued its
deadly progress over the continent of Europe.

In the treatment of a malady which makes such rapid
inroads on the vital powers, prompt and decisive means are
especially requisite. The most approved practice, and that
which seems to have been generally followed by the medi-
cal men in various parts of Indiat with the greatest success,
is as follows : — In the first stage of the disease, before ex-
treme debility and exhaustion came on, blood-letting was
occasionally had recourse to.j This was followed by large
■doses of calomel and opium, or laudanum mixed with brandy
^nd spices, or oil of peppermint. The hot bath, of a high
temperature, was also used, together with friction of the
whole body, sinapisms, blisters, &c. If the disease had
proceeded to the second stage, termed collapse, blood-letting
was of no avail, and, indeed, from the feeble or almost ex-
tinct circulation, was impracticable. Stimulating cordials,
dry heat applied to the body by means of hot air-baths, hot
bran, or sand, hot bottles of water, and frictions unremit-
tingly employed, are the means recommended. Harts-

* Mr. Jameson, Bengal Reports.

t Bombay, Madras, and Bengal Reports.

J Mr Scott's e.\oeUent Remarks prefixed to Madraa RopoMB.

276 SPASMODIC CHOLERA.

horn, ether, and various antispasmodics were also freely
employed; and castor oil and magnesia were substituted
bv some practitioners for calomel. Cold liquids, though
eLerly desired, were prohibited ; but tepid mucilaginous
drmks and slightly acidulated fluids were given at mtervals.*

* We subjoin the following directions and recipes for the cure of

^^'l^'aS^trp^^ntttL^n^^^o^^ibleth^ ^ '

Tincture of opium, one drachm ;

Sulphuric ether, one drachm ;

Brandy or arrack, half an ounce ;

Water, one ounce.— Ml\.
If this he vomited, let it be repeated every time, m ten minutes after the
vomUing In half an hour after the vomiting has ceased, give a bolus

of this description :—

"' Calomel, twelve grams;

Camphor, three grains ;

Opium, one grain ; „ ■ . v i„c

Oil of peppermint, two drops.— MaKe into a bolus.
If this bolus be vomited, it must be repeated in a similar manner, each
Imp half an hour after the vomiimg has ceased. If thevomitmgbe
ViSenf Live an° n ec on o.' one drachm and a half of laudanum m four
ounces of conTee-water, and let it be repeated as often as it is rejected
Half the quantity of this injection should also be administered aOer
every liquid "tool. When no vomiting occurs at aU, give a draught and
bolus of the following prescription :— , ,^ , ,
Doius oi Tincture of opium, half a drachm;

Sulphuric ether, half a drachm ;

Ipecacuanha wine, half an ounce ;

Water, two ounces. — Mix.

Calomel, twelve grains ;

Extract of jalap, four grains ;

Camphor, three grains ;

Opium, one grain ; „ , . v i

' Oil of peppermint, two drops.— MaKe into a bolus.

If these nroduce no effect, repeat the draught after every forty minutes.
In all ca^I^rub the arms and legs with hot sand, and apply a blister, or
«;inanism over the Stomach, prepared as follows:—
sinapism, over ine ^^^^^^^^"^ mustard-seed, half a pound ;

Ditto capsicum, one drachm ;
Ditto ginger, one drachm.
Make into a cataplasm, with vinegar, to which add two ounces of oil of
mpeilune If the pulse be perceptible at the wrist, take twenty, twenty-
live or thirty ounces of blood from the arm. . V, V .„
'•if the eie be lingering and doubtful after much medicine has been
eiven, then omit all other medicines, but those prescribed thus :-
" Calomel, three grains ;

Ipecacuanha, two grains ;
Aloes, three grains;
Opium, half a grain.
Make into a pill ; one to be taken every nour.
CoBjee water, four ounces ;
Brandy or arrack, three drachms.— Mix.
To be taken every hour.

SPASMODIC CHOLERA. 277

In many cases the attack is so sudden, and the progress
to a fatal termination so rapid, as to baffle all attempts at
afibrding relief.

From this brief account of the disease, the precautions
necessary to be observed, in order as much as possible to
guard against its attacks, will at once suggest themselves.
Thus every circumstance which debilitates the system is to
be carefully avoided : such as excessive exertioli, exposure
to night-dews or vicissitudes of temperature, unwholesome
food, — as bad rice, bad water, &c. ; irregularity of living, —
especially intemperance ; all damp and unhealthy situations,
or crowded places of abode, particularly sleeping apart-
ments. A generous nourishing diet, with a moderate allow-
ance of wine to those who are habituated to this mode of
Jiving, are recommended ; while, on the contrary, as Mr.
Kennedy justly remarks, the person who has uniformly
rived on a spare diet, and found it the best suited to his con-
stitution, ought to beware of suddenly changing his ab-
stemious system. Every extreme and every species of ex-
cess should be carefully guarded against.

The prevalence of spasmodic cholera on the continent of
Europe, and lately to an alarming extent in Great Britain,
has enabled practitioners who have witnessed the disease
both here and in India to identify it as the true Asiatic
cholera. The leading features of the disease, as common
to both hemispheres, are exactly the same. Some pecu-
liarities, however, of the symptoms as they have manifested
themselves in Russia and in Britain, it may not be uninter-
esting to mention.

The first or premonitory symptoms, consisting of slight
bowel complaints, giddiness, and nervous palpitations about
the heart, prevailing from one to three or more days pre-
vious to the second stage of the disease, are found to occur
in a much larger proportion of cases in the English than in
the Indian disease.

The febrile symptoms, or reaction after the state of col-
lapse, accompanied by determination to the head, bowels,
&c., are also more universal and more protracted in the

" The patient, il" thirsty, is to be frequently supplied with acid drink :
a -wine-glassful of tepid water, acidulated with lime-juKe or citric acid,
Or With nitric or sulphuric acid, may be given as often as the patient re-
quires it."

VcL. III.— A a

■278 SPASMODIC CHOLERA.

British cases than those of India ; and, consequently, in
the favourable cases the recoveries are much slower. A
deeper and more general discoloration of the skin, resem-
felino- a leaden hue, is also more common in the former than
in the latter. It is found, too, that the majority of the cases
in Britain consist of females, being in general as two or
three to one male, and in some as high as six to one. A
greater proportion of children likewise appear to become
victims to the disease in Britain than in India.*

In the treatment hitherto pursued in Britain, great im-
portance is attached to checking the first or premonitory
symptoms; for this purpose pills, containing one or two
grains of calomel, with a quarter or one-half grain of opiuin,
are given every hour or two hours ; at the end of five or six
hours to be followed by a gentle dose of castor-oil or mag-
nesia and rhubarb, in peppermint-water. The operation
of this to be followed by another moderate opiate, combined
with chalk-mixture ; bleeding from the arm is also advised,
especially in those patients where the pulse is full, and
where there is much pain across the region of the stomach.

In the state of collapse, or when it is apprehended to be
coming on, an emetic of a table-spoonful of common salt
in a glass of tepid water, t or two tea-spoonfuls of powder
of mustard-seed, in the same quantity of water, have been
used with apparent advantage.} External heat by means
of heated plates, hot bags of sand, hot bricks, and even the
application of cloths dipped in boiling water, is to be unre-
mittincrly employed. The steam of water or spirits of tur-
pentine, raised to a high temperature, and diffused over the
whole surface of the body by means of a steam apparatus,
has been found very efficacious. An enema of two or three
pounds of very hot water, to which may be added five or six
ounces of common spirits, is meanwhile to be administered,
and hot brandy and water, hot beef-tea, or other stimulants,
are to be given at short intervals. The febrile symptoms
occurring after this stage are to be treated with local bleed-
ings, gentle purgatives, and cool regimen.

* Essay on Cholera by J. A. Lawrie, M.D., Glasgow,
t Mr. Searle on Russian Cholera.

i Suggestions on Malignant Cholera, by Dr. J. Atnbercrombie, Edllt-
bBrgh, Dn. Burton and Loriraer, Mr. Greenhow, &c.

( 279 )

HINDOO
ASTRONOMY AND MATHEMATICS,

CHAPTER XIII.

Hindoo Astronomy.

Origin of Astronomy — Opinions of Bailly concerning the Antiquity of
that Science in India — Striking Coincidence between tlie Indian and
Arabian Zodiacs — Hindoo Computation of Time — Periodic Revolutions
of the Planets— Theory of Eclipses— Figure of the Earth— Determi-
nation of Latitudes and Longitudes — Moon's Parallax — Computatioa
of Eclipses and of a Solar Year — Antiquity of the Surya Siddhanta
and other Astronomical Works — Deficiencies and Errors of the Hindoo
System

There are two powerful motives which at all times must
have acted on the human mind, and instigated man to the
study of nature ; one is the advantage to be derived from
such knowledge in procuring the means of existence, — the
other, the desire for knowledge which all men have, and
some in so eminent a degree as to make its pursuit a prin-
cipal object of their lives.

The heavenly bodies are well adapted to call into action
both these motives ; they would sen'e the hunter in direct-
ing his path homeward from the chase, and the husband-
man in choosing the proper time for preparing and sowing
the soil. Their splendour could not be overlooked by the
most incurious ; and their courses and the regularity of their
motions were a fine subject for contemplation to minds of a
more elevated order.

The climate of India, and the occupations of mankind in
the very early ages, were highly favourable to the most sim-
ple kind of astronomical observations, — those made by th-e
eye unassisted by any instrument. But they cannot be
considered as forming a science. The origin of astronomy

280 HINDOO ASTRONOMY.

in a country must be reckoned from the time that men began
to reason from a recorded series of observations, and to de-
duce from them the laws of the celestial motions. In all
countries the origin of astronomy goes beyond record, and
is lost in the darkness of their early history : hence there is
a boundless field for ingenious conjecture ; and the astron-
omy of India has in this way afforded a topic for discussion
which has engaged the attention of the most eminent men
of the last half-century.

The Indian astronomy has been the subject of an exten-
sive work by Bailly, well known as a victim in the atroci-
ties which accompanied the French Revolution, and his
views— ingenious, plausible, and seductive by his elo-
quence—were adopted by one of the most elegant writers
of this country, the late Professor Playfair, who gave them
still greater weight by his high reputation for science, can-
dour, sound judgment, and diligence in the investigation
of truth. It was the opinion of Bailly that the Indian as-
tronomy was of very great antiquity indeed, inasmuch as
he believed it to be founded on obsenations made 3102
years before the Christian era ; and he has endeavoured,
with great ingenuity, to establish his views by considera-
tions drawn from the discoveries in astronomy made in
modern times, with which he was intimately acquainted,
and which no man could turn to better account in support
of a favourite system. It would seem, however, that he
deceived himself in estimating the force of his an^uments,
and overlooked the strong objections to his hypothesis.
His contemporaries Laplace and Delambre, who were
also his friends, while they have professed the highest
respect for the learning and eloquence which he displayed
in his researches, have nevertheless declared their dis-
belief in his conclusions, and have proved them to be erro:
neous, by divesting his arguments of the specious but de-
ceptive dress in which they are arrayed, and showing that
some of the data which served as the basis of his system
had been incorrectly assumed. Even his advocate and
learned commentator. Professor Playfair, appears to have
had his confidence in the truth of Bailly's views at last
considerably shaken.*

* See Edinburgh Review, vol. xxix. p. 161, 162.

HINDOO ASTRONOMYc 281

The Indian astronomy became first known in Europe
through M. de la Loubere, who ^vas sent by Louis XIV.
on an embassy to Siam, in the year 1687. He brought
thence the precepts of that people for the calculation of
eclipses ; but these were incomplete, for want of an example
to show their application ; and it required all the sagacity
of the celebrated astronomer Cassini to explain their mean-
ing. M. le Gentil, of the Academy of Sciences, brought,
in 1772, from the coast of Coromandel, tables and astro-
nomical precepts of the Indians of Trivaloor. These pre-
cepts are much more extensive and complete than those of
M. de la Loubere, and M. le Gentil has accompanied them
■with examples, by which they can be easily understood
and put in practice. In addition to these there were found
in the Marine Depot of Charts and Plans at Paris two
manuscripts of Indian tables, which had been deposited by
the astronomer M. de Lisle. He had received one of them
in 1 750 from Father Patouillet, who had corresponded with
the missionaries ; and the other had been sent from Indi'
by Father du Champ to Father Gaubil, and communicated
by that missionary, in 1752, to M. de Lisle. The first of
these came from Masulipatan, or from Narsapour, and the
second had been found at Chrisnabouram, in the Carnatic
country. It was from these four sets of tables that Bailly
composed his Astronomk Indicnnc et Orientale.

Since the tune Bailly wrote very considerable additional
light has been thrown on the subject of Indian astronomy
by some members of a society instituted in Bengal for in-
quiring into the history and antiquities, the arts, sciences,
and literature of India. Their labours have been pubhshed
in the Asiatic Researches.

The astronomy of India is confined to one branch of the
science. It gives no theory, nor does it even describe dis-
tinctly the celestial phenomena. It is limited to the calcu-
lation of certain changes in the heavens, particularly eclipses
of the sun and moon, and with the rules and tables by
which these calculations must be performed. The Bramin,
seated on the ground with his shells before him, repeats the
enigmatical verses which are to guide his calculation, and
from his little tablets of palm-leaves takes out the numbers
that are to be employed in it. He obtains his result with
certainty and expedition ; but, having little knowledge of

Aa2

282 HINDOO ASTRONOMY.

the reason of his rules, and no wish to be better informed,
he is perfectly satisfied if, as it usually happens, the actual
commencement and duration of the eclipse agree within a
few minutes with his prediction. Beyond this his astro-
nomical inquiries do not extend ; and his observations, if
he make any, go no further than the determination of a
meridian line, or the length of the day at the place of his
residence.

This astronomy, as exhibited in their tables, presents
three principal objects : 1. Tables and rales for computing
the places of the sun and moon. 2. Tables and rules for
calculating the places of the planets. 3. Rules for deter-
mining the phases of eclipses.

The Indian astronomers, hke all others, have distin-
guished that portion of the heavens in which the motions
of the sun, the moon, and planets are performed from the
rest of the celestial sphere. This tract, which corresponds
to our zodiac, they divide into twentj'-seven equal portions,
called lunar houses, each marked by a group of stars or
constellations. This division was naturally suggested to
the early astronomers of all countries by the motion of the
moon, which makes a complete revolution round the heavens
in about twenty-seven days and seven hours. The moon
does not exactly pass over equal portions of the heavens in
equal tunes, but astronomy must have made some progress
before this important fact could be ascertauied. It is prob-
able that the moon's supposed uniform motion would be
used by the first astronomers as the means of measuring out
the heavens into equal spaces, and detemaining the position
of the most remarkable stars. In this way the moon would
serve the purpose of an astronomical instrument.

Besides their lunar zodiac they had another divided into
twelve signs of thirty degrees each. This was purely
mathematical, and served for the purposes of calculation.
The divisions of this other zodiac were distinguished by
names and emblems, and, what is truly remarkable, they
are the same as those which are connected with the signs
«f our zodiac. This striking coincidence naturally dis-
poses to the beUef that the Bramin and the Arabian zodiacs
had a common origin. Sir William Jones thought they
had not ; but Mr. Colebrooke, whose labours have thrown
much light on Indian science, is inclined to a contrary

INDIAN AND ARABIAN ZODIAC. 383

opinion. He reckons the coincidence too exact in most
thinc-s to be the effect of chance, and, from the slight dif-
ference between them, he infers that one of the two na-
tions must have taken its zodiac from the other, but not
copied it with servility. He says, "I apprehend that it
must have been the Arabs who adopted, with slight varia-
tions, a division of the zodiac familiar to the Hindoos : this,
at least, seems to be more probable than the supposition
that the Indians received their system from the Arabians.
We know that the Hindoos have preserved the memory of
a former situation of the colures compared to constellations
which mark divisions of the zodiac in their astronomy ;
but no similar trace remains of the use of the lunar man-
sions as divisions of the zodiac among the Arabs in so very
remote times." ' , • u

The almost perfect identity of the Hindoo zodiac with
ours will appear from the names of their signs, —

Mesha, the Ram.'
Yrisha, the Bull.
Mifhuna, the Pair: '
Carcata, the Crab.
Sinha, the Lioo.
Canya, the Virgin.

7V/a, the Balance.
Vrishchica, the Scorpion.
Dhamis, the Bow.
Macara, the Sea Monster.
Ciimbka. the Ewer.
iXma, the Fish.

The zodiac itself they call sodi-nmndalum, the circle of
stars. The figures of the twelve asterisms have been speci-
fied in Sanscrft verses by Sripeti, one of the early Bramin
writers, which have been translated by Sir W. Jones as
follows :— " The Ram, Bull, Crab, Lion, and Scorpion have
the figures of these five animals respectively. The Pait
are a°damsel playing on a ri'na, and a youth wielding a
mace. The Virgin stands in a boat on water, holding in
one hand a lamp, and in the other an ear of rice-corn. The
Balance is held by the weigher vaih a weight in one hand ;
the Bow by an archer whose hinder parts are like those of
a horse. The Monster has the face of an antelope. The
Ewer is a waterpot borne on the shoulder of a man, who
empties it. The Fish are two, with their heads turned to
each other's tail,— and all these are supposed to be in such
places as suit their several natures." There is a repre-
sentation of the zodiac in the Asiatic Researches,* but it

* Vol. ix. p. 330

a

284 HINDOO ASTRONOMY.

does not exactly agree with the above description. The
JBull is entire, and not cut in two, as in the Greek zodiac.
In the couple the damsel has no vina, nor the youth a mace,
— they stand embracing each other. The man who holds
the Balance seems to be placing something in one of the
scales. The zodiac, therefore, proves that the sign of the
Balance is of great antiquity. It appears from Ptoieme
._ that it was also in the zodiac of the Chaldeans.
'■' It would be important to know the time in which Sri-
peti hved. A zodiac and twelve signs, the names and
figures of wliich bear so close a re^semblance, are not like
the heavenly bodies, the obliquity of the ecliptic, the sun's
semi-diameter, &c., phenomena which have been the same
in all ages, and would convey exactly the same notions to
observers of the heavens who might have no communica-
tion with each other.

The Bramins divided time into periods of seven days.
Bailly supposed that this interval was taken as a fourth
part of twenty-seven days and seven hours, — the time of a
complete revolution of the moon through the zodiac. The
time of her sidereal revolution, however, was not so likely
to have drawn the attention of these early astronomers as
that of her passing through all her phases, which is twenty-
jiine and a half days : the latter was therefore probably
first observed, and its fourth part might be taken for their
"week as readily as that of the other. But it is more prob-
able that their period of seven days had a relation to the
number of the planets. We learn from Herodotus that the
Egyptians had a week of seven days, which might be de-
rived from a tradition of the time in which the world was
created, but more probably was fonned from the planets ;
the day was divided into twenty-four hours, and one of the
seven heavenly bodies, in the following order, viz. 1. The
Sun ; 2. Venus ; 3. Mercury ; 4. The Moon ; 5. Saturn ;
6. Jupiter ; 7. Mars ; was supposed to rule over the suc-
ceeding hours. Supposing the sun to be the presiding
planet over the first hour of any day, he would also govern
the eighth, the fifteenth, and twenty-second hours ; the
twenty-third hour would belong to Venus, the twenty-fourth
to Mercury, and the first hour of the next day vpould be
under the influence of the moon. In the same way the first
hours of the following days, in theii order, would be gov-

COMPUTATION OF TIME. 285

erned by Mars, Mercury, Jupiter, Venus, Saturn, and after
seven days the sun would again govern the first hour, and
the other planets would follow in the same order as before.
Thus the days of the week became associated with the
names of the planets.

Although the planetary names were given to the days of
the ancient Hindoo week exactly in the same order as ours,
their week had a different beginning. They reckoned out
Friday to be their first day. The names of the planets in
the order of the days were, —

I. Sovcra.Xenvs. \ 5. JlfanfraJa, Mars.'

2 Sany, Saturn. 6. Bouta, Mercury.

3. Addita. the Sun.* I 7. Brahaspati, Jupiter.

4. Soma, the Moon.

And the names of the days of their week with the corres-
ponding planets and the days of our week, as follows :

1. Smi.crav2ram, day of Venus," Friday.

2 Sanyvaram, Saturn. Saturday.

3. Additavaram. the Sun, Sunday.

4. Somavaram, the Moon, Monday.

5. Mangalavaram, Mar3, Tuesday.

6 Bo7Uavaram. Mercur)', Wednesday.

7. Brahaspativaram, Jupiter, Thursday.

It is a remarkable circumstance that the Bramins should
have had a week, and that planets should have been con-
nected with the days, exactly in the same order as in that
of the Egyptians and Greeks, because it has no relation to
their apparent magnitudes, their brightness, their distances,
or any of their obvious appearances. The coincidence can-
not have been the effect of chance, and there seems to be
no way of accounting for it but the supposition that the
adaptation of the planets to the days must have had a com-
mon origin, although it be now impossible to trace it back
to its source. The nacshatras, or asterisms, which mark
the moon's path in the heavens, twenty-eight in number,
have names and presiding deities or resjents ; they have also
their emblems or figures. This is their order, according to
Mr. Colebrooke : —

* Tlie 8tin and moon were also called by other itames, and there are
varieties of speUtng in the names of the planets.

286 HINDOO ASTRONOMY.

Name?. Kepramitd hj

1 . Aswini, a horse's head.

2. Bharani, »he Yoni.

; 3. C.Tltica, a knife, or razor.

'4. Rohini, a wheeled carriage.

5. Mrigasiras, an antelope's head.

«. Ardra, a gem.

7. Punanasu, a house.

8. Pusht/a, an arrow.

9. Aslesha a potter's wheel.

10. Mag'ha, a house.

11. Phalguni (preceding), couch, or bedstead.

12. Plialguni (following), a bed.

13. Hasta, a hand.

14. Chitra, a pearl.

15. Swati, a coral bead.

10. Visacha, a fe.stoon of leaves.

17. Anuradka, a row of oblations.

18. Jyesktha, a ring, or earring.

19. Mula, a liori's tail, or a conch.

20. Ashadka, a conch, or'elephanl's tooth."

2). Ashadha (following), an elephant's tooth, or a bed.

22. Ahhijit, a triangular nut .

S3. Sravana, three Ibotsleps.

24. Dhanishtha, a drum, or tabor.

25. Satabhisha, a circle.

„ „, . , ^ a couch, or bed, or figure wtth

26. Bhadrapada, ) two faces.

„ „, , . ,r 11 ■ N i a twin, or person with a double

27. Bhadrapada (followmg), ? ^^^^ '^j. ^f^g „ ^ouch.

28. Revati, a labor.

Mr. Colebrooke has compared the nacsliatras of the Hin-
doos with the manzels of the moon or lunar mansions of
the Arabians ; and he has shown that the Indian aster-
isms, which mark the divisions of their echptic, generally
consist of the same stars that constitute the lunar mansions
of the Arabians ; but, in a few instances, they differ essen-
tially ; and hence again it is natural to infer that the Indian
and Greek zodiacs must have been derived from the same
source.

Sir William Jones had, at an earlier period, given a de-
scription of the Indian zodiac, and the names of the nacslia-
tras : he makes them to be only twenty-seven ; however,
he observes, that in a representation of these fanciful signs
there is inserted a constellation of three stars, called Abhijit
in their nuptial ceremonies, for some astrological purpose ;
this is one of the nacshatras in Mr. Colebrooke's enumera-
tion : so that, on the whole, both agree. The names of the

COMPUTATION OF TIME. 287

Indian months are derived from twelve of the asterisms, in
the usual form of patronymics; for their pauranics (poeti-
cal fabulists), who reduce all nature to a system of em-
blematical mythology, suppose a celestial nymph to preside
over each of the constellations, and feign that the god
Soma, or Lunus, having wedded twelve of them, became
the father of twelve genii or months, who are named after
their several mothers ; but the jyautishicas (the astrono-
mers) give a more rational account of the matter ; they say
that when the lunar year was arranged by former astrono-
mers the moon was at the full in each month of the year,
on the very day when it entered the nacshatra, — from which
that month is denominated. The names of the months
are, —

1. Aswini. 4. Pa-usha. 7. Chaitra. 10. Ashara.

2. Cartica. 5. Ma^ha. 8. Vaisacha. 11. Sravana.

3. Margojirsha. 6. Phalguna. 9. Jyaishtha. 12. Bhadra.

From the two different accounts of the origin of the
months it is easy to understand that the history of astronomy,
as delivered by the Indian poets, must be a tissue of ab-
surdities. Indeed there is an entire want of that soberness
of description and precision of language which characterize
the science of the nations of Europe.

It appears from the astronomical tables that the ancient
Hindoos knew that the intersection of the equator and
ecliptic is not always in the same point, but that it is con-
stantly retrograding on the ecliptic in a direction contrary
to the order of the signs, thereby producing an apparent
motion of all the stars eastward from the equinoctial point ;
so that the time between the vernal equinoxes in two suc-
ceeding years is less than the time in which the sun moves
round the ecliptic. This difference, called the precession
of the equinoxes, the modern Hindoos reckon to be fifty- ;
•' four seconds in a year ; so that the period of a complete
' revolution of the equinoctial points will be about 24,000
years. The precession is, indeed, about four seconds less
than they suppose ; but Sir W. Jones believed that the old
Indian astronomers had made a more accurate calculation,
but concealed their knowledge from the people with a view
to impose on them in regard to the antiquity of their nation-
Sesides the Indian tables already noticed the astroooisy of

288 HINDOO ASTRONOMY.

the Bramins has received fiirther illustration from some of
their books of science, which have been discovered by the
zealous exertions of members of the Asiatic Society. One
of the most curious books in Sanscrit, and one of the
oldest after the Vedas, is a tract on religious and civil du-
ties, taken, as it is believed, from the oral instructions of
Menu, son of Brama, to the first inhabitants of the earth.
Sir W. Jones has translated, and given in the Asiatic Re-
searches, a part of this work, which seems to relate to as-
tronomy. It runs thus : — " The sun causes the division of
the day and night, which are of two sorts, — those of men
and those of the gods : the day for the labour of all crea-
tures in their several employments, the night for their
slumber. A month is a day and a night of the patriarchs,
and it is divided into two parts ; the bright half is their day
for laborious exertions, the dark half their night for sleep,
A year is a day and night of the gods, and that is also di-
vided into two halves ; the day is when the sun moves
towards the north, the night when he moves towards the
south. Learn now the duration of a night and day of
Brama, with that of the ages respectively and in order.
Four thousand years of the gods they call the critica (or
satyd) age, and its limits at the beginning and at the end
are in like manner as many hundreds. In the three succes-
sive ages, together with their limits at the beginning and
end of them, are thousands and hundreds diminished by
one. This aggregate of four ages, amounting to 12,000
divine years, is called an age of the gods ; and 1000 such
divine ages added together must be considered as a day of
Brama : his night also has the same duration. The before-
mentioned age of the gods, or 20,000 of these years multi-
plied by 71, form what is named a manamntara. There
are alternate creations and destructions of the world threugh
innumerable mamvantaras : the being supremely desirable
performs all this again and again." This specimen of
Hindoo chronology, which is believed to have been revealed
from heaven, is sufficient to show that clouds and darkness
must for ever hang over the origin of Indian science, and
how difficult a task it must be to elicit from such a mass of
absurdity any thing that can be relied on as an approxima-
tion to truth in regard to astronomy. The immense long
periods spoken of in the preceding quotation have given

COMPUTATION OF TIME. 289

rise to various conjectures which seem to be too vague to
have any value.

The most ancient book of Hindoo astronomy is the Surya
Siddhanta, which the Bramins assert to be a divine revela-
tion received 2,164,899 years ago. Here we have another
example of the fabulous texture of the whole system of
Indian chronology and astronomy. Indeed, it is quite evi-
dent that it is a vain task to seek to discover the times at
which their systems were constructed from their own ac-
counts. If these possibly can be found, they must be dis-
covered by a careful examination of the construction of their
tables. This kind of analysis has been actually employed
by Bailly, Playfair, and at a later period by Davis and
Bentley ; but the great disagreement in the conclusions to
which these ingenious men have come, seems to leave but
little hope of the truth being ever absolutely discovered, or
even a considerable approach to it.

Mr. S. Davis, in a Memoir on the Astronomical Compu-
tations of the Hindoos,* says that many treatises on astron-
omy in the Sanscrit tongue might be procured, and that the
Bramins were very willing to explain them ; he also adds,
that Sanscrit books in this science are more easily trans-
lated than almost any others, when once the technical
terms are understood. With a view to the computation of
an eclipse, he procured a copy of the Surya Siddhanta,
which had been brought from Benares, and also the Tika,
which is a commentary on it.

According to this ancient treatise the Hindoos divide the
ecliptic into 360 degrees, as has been already stated. Their
astronomical year is sidereal, and begins at the instant the
sun enters the sign Aries, which they call Mesha, or when
he enters into the nacskatra Aswini. Each astronomical
month contains as many days and parts of a day as elapse
while the sun is in each sign, and the civil differs from the
astronomical account of time only in rejecting the frac-
tions, and beginning the year and months at sunrise, instead
of the intermediate instant of the artificial day and night ;
hence it happens that their months are unequal, and depend
on the situation of the sun's apsis, and the distance of the
equinoctial vernal colure from the beginning of Mesha in

* Asiatic Researches, vol. ii. p. 225.
Vol. III.— B b

"290 HINDOO ASTRONOSIY.

the Hindoo sphere. It was Mr. Davis's opinion that the
Hindoo science of astronomy is as well understood at this
time as ever it was among them ; but that it is less general
because of the want of that encouragement which was for-
merly given to men of science by the native princes.

In constructing tables of the celestial motions, astrono-
mers fix on some epoch from which, as a beginning, they
reckon the motions of the planets. The ancient Hindoos
chose for their epoch that point of time counted back into
past ages, when, according to their motions, as they had
detemiTned them, they must have been in conjunction in
the beginning of Mesha, which corresponded to our Aries,
and they suppose that the v.orld was then created. This,
in rcfrard to the planets only, would have produced a mode-
rate term of years ; but having discovered a slow motion
of the nodes and apsides, they found that it would require
a length of time con-esponding with 1,955,884,890 years,
now expired, when they were so situated, and 2,364,115,110
years more before they would return to the same situ-
ation, fonning together the grand anomalistic period called
a calpa, and fancifully assigned as a day of Brama. They
divided the calpa into manwantarvas, and greater and less
tingas. The use of the mamvaniara is not stated in the
'Sur)/a Siddha7ita, but that of the viaha or greater yug is
sufficiently evident. It is an anomalistic period of the sun
and moon, at the end of which the latter, with her apogee
and ascending node, is found with the sun in the first point
of Aries ; the planets also deviating from that point only
by the diflerence between their mean and true anomaly.
These cycles being so constructed as to contain a certain
•number of mean solar days, and the Hindoo system assum-
ing that at the creation, when the planets began their mo-
tions, a straight line drawn from the equinoctial point
Lanca, through the centre of the earth, would, if continued,
have passed through the centre of the sun and planets to
the first star in Aries, it was easy to compute their mean
longitude for any time afterward by proportion, thus : —
As the number of days in any cycle to the revolutions a
planet makes in that cycle, so are the days given to its mo-
•cion in that time ; and the even revolutions being rejected,
the fraction, if any, shows its mean longitude at midnight
under their first meridian of Lanca. For places east or

COMPUTATION OF TIME.

291

west of that meridian a proportional allowance is made for
the difference of longitude on the earth's surface. The
positions of the apsides and nodes are computed in the
same manner, and the mean places being found, the true
places were determined by applying an equation on pruir
ciples which are also explained.

It does not appear from the Surya Siddha.nta that the
di^-isio^ of the malm yug into the satya, treta, dicapar, and
cali a<Tes serves anv practical purpose in astronomy. Their
oriauThas, however, been ascribed to the precession of the
equinoxes. In every point of view, the latter is anoma-

listical. . . , ,, . ,-

The time called murfa (that is, mean sidereal) is esti-
mated by respiratio7is : six respirations make a vicala; sixty
vicalas a danda ; sixty dandas a nacshaira day ; and thirty
nacshatra days a nacshatra month. The savan montH is
the time contained between thirty successive risings ot
Surva (the smi), and varies in its length accordmg to tho
la^na bhuja (right ascension); thirty Ufhs compose the
chindra (lunar) month. The saura month is that in wliich
the sun describes a sign of the zodiac, and his passage
through the twelve signs forms a year, and one of these
vears^is a dcva day, ov a day of the gods ; 60 deva days
Multiplied by 6 give a deva year, and ICOO of the deva
years form the aggregate of the four yugas. To determine
the saura years contained in this aggregate, write the num-
ber 4,320,000; this is the vmha yuga, comprehending the
sandhi and sandhjo.Tisa (the morning and evenmg twihght).
Divide the ealpa bv 10, and multiply the quotient by 4 for
the satya yug, by 3 for the treta, by 2 for the dicapar, m,d
bv 1 for the call yug. Divide either of the yitgs by 6 lor
their twihghts ; seventy-one yugs make a manwantara_: a
twilidit is equal to the satya yug, during which there is a
universal deluge ; fourteen manwantaras, mcluding the twi-
Ughts, compose a calpa ; and at the commencement of each
cklva there is a sandhi equal to the satya yug, or 1,728,000
saira years. One calpa is a day with Brama ; and his
ni<Tht is of the same length ; and the period of his 1 fe is
100 of his vears, of which one half is expired, and ot the
remainder the first calpa is begun, and six maim a, it ar as,
includin<x the sandliis, are expired. The seventh, m whicti
we are now advanced, is named taicasicaia. 01 this twenty-

292 HINDOO ASTRONOMY.

seven maha yugs are elapsed, and we are now in the sati/a
yug of the twenty-eighth, which consists of 1,728,000 saura
years. Hence the years, since the beginning of the calpa,
may be found ; but from this 100 times 474 divine years
must be deducted, or of that product multipUed by 360
for human years, that being the term of Brama's employ-
ment in the creation, after which the planetary motions
commenced.

By following out the calculations, the calpa is found to
contain 4,320,000,000 years ; and the period of it elapsed at
the end of the last satya age, v^'hen the Surya Siddhanta
is supposed to have been written 1,970,613,360 years.

The bhagana, or zodiac, is divided into twelve 7-asis, the
rasi into thirty bhagas, the bhaga into sixty calas, and the
cala into sixty vicalas. The rasi, therefore, answers to a
sign or 30°, the bhaga to a degree, the cala to a minute of
a degree, and the vicala to a second.

We have already given the Hindoo names of the planets,
and therefore need not repeat them. In one yug the sun,
Mercury, and Venus complete 432,000 madhyama revolu-
tions through the zodiac ; Mars, Jupiter, and Saturn make
the same number of sighra revolutions : these answer to
what we now call their revolutions about the sun. The
moon makes 57,753,336 madhyama revolutions, Mars
2,296,832 madhyama revolutions. Mercury's sighras are
17,937,060, Jupiter's madhyamas 364,220, Venus's sighras
7,022,376, Saturn's madhyamas are 146,568. The moon's
apogee makes 488,203, and her ascending node 232,238
revolutions.

The time between sunrise and sunrise is the bhumi savan
day, of which the yug contains 1,577,917,828. The num-
ber of nacshatra days is 1,532,237,828, of chandra (lunar)
days 1,603,000,080, of adhi months 1,593,336, of tit'Ms
25,082,252, of saura months 51,840,000.
From these numbers it has been found that

The mean time of a lunation 29d. 121t. 44m.- 2.79s.

Time of moon's sidereal revolution 27 7 39 12.64

Hindoo year 365 6 12 36.5f)

Diurnal revolution of stars 366 6 12 36M

It appears from a commentary on the Surya Siddhanta,
that the Hindoos knew that the moon revolves once on her
axis in a lunar month, and consequently has the same side

REVOLTJTIONS OF THE PLANETS. 29»

always towards the earth. They had also noticed the dif-
ference between her apparent magnitude in the horizon and

on the meridian. ■ , ^ ^■

According to the ancient Hindoo astronomical treatise,
the sun's apogee makes 387 revolutions in a calpa, that ot
Mars makes 204, Mercury's makes 368, Jupiter's makes
900 Venus's53o, Saturn's 39 : these are all direct or ac-
cording to the order of signs. The number of revolutions
«f the\odes, which are retrograde, in ^.calpa, is for Mars
2141, for Mercury 488, for Jupiter l^*, /or Venus 903, for
Satunr 662. It has been observed by Mr. Davis tha
althoudi the planetary motions, as above determined, might
have served for computations in the tune of Meya, the
author of the Surya Siddhanta, yet tor many years past
they have ceased to agree with the observed places in the
eavens, and therefore corrections have been introduced
IXreasing or reducing the numbers. Thus the revolu-
tions of the moon's apogee and node are each now increased
by four in a yug : the nature of these corrections, called bija^
is explained in the commentary Tica. , u„ .,

Although the Surya Siddhanta, which professes to be a
divine revelation, ought to have given correct e ements of
the planetary motions, yet the V,shm Dhermottcr directs-
hat Ae planets be observed with an instrument by means
of wl iclUhe greater or less agreement between the observed
and computed places may be determmed, and an allowance

"^Tiie foUowing table contains the periodic revolutions of
the planets, of their apsides and nodes accordmg to the-
Sun/a SMhanta. The Mja, or corrections are wanting.
The inclination of the orbits is given, and the obliquity of
the ecliptic is 24°. It is the same in their astronomical
iJeaUses written only 268 years ago ; so that the Hindoos
do not appear to have discovered any dmrmution,— a prooi
that they were never accurate observers.
^ Bb2

294

HINDOO ASTRONOMY.

ELEMENTS OF THE PLANETS ACCORDING TO THE SURYA
SIDDHANTA.*'

Plaaets.

Sidereal Periods.

Period o( Apsides.

The Moon

Div5. D. P. V.

27 19 18 1

87 53 10 0

231 59 38 0

365 15 31 31

636 59 50 53

4332 19 14 20

10765 46 2 13

Uai.. iJ.

3232 50
4237820184 46
2949379117 45
407730704) 5
77350S7392 9
1753242031 0
42767 12.-5794 52

Plaoets.

Period of Nodes.

D.

ly [ In

of

Circumference of

motion. 1 orBit.

Orbit.

Davs. D.

■

' o

/

Yojan.

The moon

6794 23

790

35 4

30

324000

Rlercury .

323374245S 1 1

1S6

24 2

0

1043208

Venus . . .

1747417306 45

37

0 2

0

26646637

The sun .

Precession 54" per an.

59

8 24

0

4331500

Mars —

7373447794 23

31

26 1

30

8146909

Jupiter . .

9068493264 22

5

0 1

0

51375764

Saturn.. .

2333561673 42

2

0 2

0

127666255

The longitude of the sun's apogee, reckoned according
to the Hindoo account, at this time differs from modem
observations 1° 20'. But there is much greater disagree-
ment with respect to the aphelia and nodes of the other
planets.

It has been supposed that the days during which Brama
is said to have been employed in the creation, and which
the Surya Siddhanta directs to be subtracted to have the
time since the planets began their motions, are merely a
correction introduced to compensate the errors which have
been discovered since the composition of the work. This
is probably a true explanation ; and hence we see the utter
tmcertainty that pervades the whole system of astronomy
delivered in the treatise.

We have now, according to the Hindoo system, the mean
motions of the planets, their nodes and apsides, and the
time since they were in conjunction in the beginning of
Mesha (Aries). From these their mean longitude may be
found for any proposed time. The S^^rya Siddhanta, however,

* The periods are reckoned in davs and dandas. palas, vicalas, of
which each denomination contains siity of the ne.\t lower.

THEORIES OF EXCENTRICS AND EPICYCLES. 295

says, that it is not necessary to assume so remote a period ;
for the computation may be made from the beginning of the
treta acre, at which instant all the moveable points of the
heaven's were again in conjunction in Mesha, except the
apogees and ascending nodes, which must therefore be
computed from the creation. The present Hindoo astrono-
mers, therefore, go no farther back than the call yug in de-
termining the mean longitudes.

For the equation of the centre a trigonometrj' is re-
quired. This is given in the Surya Siddhanta, and it is
one of the most curious and interesting parts of the treatise :
it will be described in the sequel.

To account for the apparent unequal motion of the
planets, which they suppose to move uniformly in their
orbits, they have recourse to excentric circles, and deter-
mine the excentricity of the orbits of the sun and moon
■with respect to that circle, in which they place the earth as
the centre of the universe, to be equal to the sines of their
greatest anomaUstic equations. The Hindoos in this agree
whh the ancient Greek astronomers, but their calculation is
very different. They substitute an epicycle instead of the
excentric, which cornes to the same, but, what is peculiar
and difficult to explain, they make the radius of this epi-
cycle vary at ever\- degree, which thus goes on diminishing
from 0= to 90^ of anomaly. Indeed it is not the radius
which they make truly to vary, but the circumference of the
epicycle ; thus they render the calculation needlessly com-
plex. There is another singularity ; although the equation
of the moon is more than double that of the sun, the varia-
tions of their epicycles are sensibly the same. Thus, like
the Greeks, the Indians have their theories of excentrics
and epicycles ; but instead of calculating by the rigorous
rules of trigonometry, they have introduced an empirical
term for which there' is neither reason nor necessity. The
\-ulo-ar anions the Bramins believe that eclipses are occa-
sioned by the monster Rohere, and they join to this idea
others equally tainted with ignorance and absurdity. This
belief being founded on declarations contained in works
supposed of divine authority, which no pious Hindoo can
call in question, some astronomers have been cautious in
explaining the passages in these books which do not accord
with the principles ot' their science. They have justified as

296 HINDOO ASTRONOMY.

well as thev could propositions which disagree with the
principles of their science, observing that certain things in-
dicated in the Sastras may have been so formerly, and may
be so still, but for astronomical purposes astronomical rules
must be followed. Others, with a bolder spirit, have at-
tacked and refuted unphilosophical opinions. Their as-
tronomer and mathematician Bhascara argues, that it is
more reasonable to suppose the earth to be self-balanced in
infinite space, than to be supported by a series of animals
with nothing assignable for the last to rest upon ; and
another commentator says, that by rahii and ceiu, the head
and tail of the monster, the position of the moon's nodes
and her latitude are meant, on which eclipses certainly de-
pend ; but he does not therefore deny the reality of rahn
and cctu, the existence of which, he says, may be maintained
as an article of faith without prejudice to astronomy. Tliis
appears to us very absurd ; but it is not more so than the
subterfuges to which Copernicus and Gahleo were forced
to have recourse to shelter the true doctrines of astronomy
against the denunciations of the Church of Rome.

°The Hindoos consider the earth as spherical, and sup-
pose its diameter divided into 1600 equal parts or yojans.
The Surya Siddhanta states the circumference in round
numbers to be 5059 yojans; but in the Puranas the cir-
cumference is declared to be 500,000,000 ijojans,— and to
account for this difference, a commentator says that the
yojaji of the Surya Siddhanta contained 100,000 of those of
the Puranas. Some say that the earth was really of that
size in some former calpa, and others believe that from the
equator, southward, the earth increases in bulk ; but for
astronomical purposes the dimensions given in the Surya.
must be assumed.

To find the latitude of a place the Hindoos observe the
length of the shadow of a perpendicular gnomon when the
sun is in the equator, and compute by their geometry the
angle which the gnomon makes with the line drawn from
its top to the extremity of the shadow. — This is the lati-
tude.

The longitude is directed to be found by observations of
lunar eclipses, calculated for the meridian of Ltt?ica, which
passes through Ougein, a place in the Mahratta dominions.

CALCULATION OF AN ECLIPSE OF THE MOON. 297

Benares lies sbcty-four yojans eastward from this meridian ;
its longitude is therefore fourty-four palas.

To determine the moon's distance, or her parallax, they
observe the time of the moon's rising, and compare it with
the computed time ; the difference is the tmie in which she
describes an arc of her orbit, equal in length to the earth's
semidiameter ; this difference of time is to her periodic
month as 800 yojans to the circumference 324,000. Thev
neglect refiraetion, of which they seem to have no know-
ledge, although they are not quite ignorant of optics, be-
cause they know that the angle of incidence is equal to the
angle of reflection of a ray. They also reckon the motion
along the sine instead of the arc. In this way they find the
parallax to be 53' 20", and her distance from the earth's
centre to be 51,.570 yojans, which answer to about 220,184
geographical miles. European science has determined it to
be about 240,000 miles, which is about a fifteenth part more
than the Hindoos had found it so long ago as the time of
Meya, the author of the Surya Siddhanta.

The Hindoos suppose that all the planets move in their
orbits with the same velocity. The dimensions of the
moon's orbit being known, those of the other planets are
determined by the rule of proportion.

To find the diameters of the sun and moon, the time that
elapses between the upper limb of the rising sun toucliing
the horizon and the lower limb reaching it is obser\-ed ; in
this way the sun's diameter has been found 6500 yojans,
and that of the moon 480 yojans. These diameters are
varied according as they exceed or fall short of the mean in
the calculation of eclipses, ^\^len the moon's anomalv is
three signs, her diameter is reckoned to be 32' 24", which
is suflSciently exact.

The calculation of an eclipse of the moon, by the prin-
ciples of European astronomy, with the aid of the more
simple tables, — those in Ferguson's Astronomy for example,
— is not a tedious operation. It is, however, otherwise in
the Indian astronomy. The first step of the process is to
find the number of mean solar days from the time of the
creation to the time of the eclipse ; the next, to find the mean
longitude of the sun, moon, and the ascending node : these are
determined by very tedious operations in multiplication and
division. The astronomical calculations in Europe led to

298 HINDOO ASTRONOMY.

some ingenious devices by which the labour was abridged,
and, at last, to the important invention of logarithms. The
Indians had a like or even greater stimulus to their inge-
nuity ; but it does not appear to have led to any abbrevia-
tion"or simplification of their calculations.

Those curious in such matters may see a specimen of the
calculation of an Indian eclipse in the second volume of the
Asiatic Researches, — also in Delambre's Astronomie An-
cimne, vol. i. From the whole operation Delambre has
drawn the following conclusions : —

1 . The computation of an eclipse by the Indian tables is
an operation of excessive length.

2. These ancient tables are very inaccurate ; although, if
we believe Bailly, they were deduced from observations
made at very long intervals, and for that reason ought to
have oiven the mean motions of the planets with consider-
able precision.

3. There are three other Indian tables, more modern,
which give errors of 28™, SI-", and 12'», in the time of
eclipses ; and errors of from 12'" to 20'°, and even to 32", in
the time of their duration.

4. The calculations of the Hindoos are less geometrical
than those of the Greeks, and, like theirs, they depend on
excentrics and epicycles, which are disfigured by empirical
suppositions.

5. The Indian tables can be of no use in correctmg tho
mean motions of the planets, although Bailly believed that
they might be so employed.

6. It is a remarkable circmnstance that the Indian theories
of astronomy make no mention of observations or even of
an instrument ; but, indeed, there is no proof that the
theories were really formed by the Indians ; moreover, we
cannot place the least confidence in them, because we are
entirely unacquainted with the principles of their founda-
tion, and have no means of estimating the errors that may
have been committed in making the observations. If we
judge of them by those wliich we know to have been made
1600 or 1800 years ago, the Indian observations must have
been very indifferent, or even utterly worthless.

7. Lastly, the knowledge which the Indians had of astron-
omy is greatly inferior to that of the Greeks.

The Indian methods of calculation are altogether differ-

LENGTH OF THE SOLAR YEAR.

299

ent from those of Hipparchus ; they have given no demon-
gtration —while the Greeks, on the contrary, have fully ex-
plained the formation of their tables. The modern astron-
omy has been formed from the writings of Ptolemy ; his
three centres, viz. of the equant, of the excentnc, and of
the zodiac, led Kepler to the centre and two foci of us
ellinse However well instructed we may suppose the In-
dians to have been, their science and their discoveries have
hitherto been, and always will be, useless to us. That the
Greeks received anv knowledge from them is more than
doubtful ; while it is certain the Greeks formed the Ara-
bians, the Persians, the Tartars, and ourselves. Bailly
would indeed have us believe that Hipparchus knew the
Indian tables ; but there seems to be no reason for this sup-
position, seeing he has not taken the Hindoo solar excen-
Jricitv, nor the inclination of the lunar orbit. He differs
from" them in these essential points; we must therefore
conclude that he found for himself all that he has taught

the moderns. i ,• i

Mr Davis's Memoir on the Indian Astronomy, as delivered
in the Surya Snldhanta, does not go beyond lunar eclipses,
and it gives rather an unfavourable notion of what they
have done in regard to solar eclipses. Their parallax ot
.51', so ill determined, and the variations, which are not
better, throw great uncertainty on eclipses of the sun and
occultations of the stars and planets.

It is sino-ular that the Indians, the reputed inventors ot
decimal arithmetic, should in all their calculations have
made continual use of sexagesimal fractions. In these the
numbers which expressed the days in their prodigiously
Ion a periods went far beyond the limits of the Greek arith-
metic It would be curious to know how they express
such lar<^e numbers. In the third volume of the Asiatic
Researches, Mr. Davis has given, in a memoir on an In-
dian cycle, a translation from the Sanscrit ot a method lor
determining the length of the solar year. This consists m
observing the sun's amplitude at rismg, on a day about the
time of an equinox, and again on the day before the sun
has completed a circle round the heavens from his position
on that day, and on the next day when he has more than
completed "it, also noting the times from the first observa-
tion. Thus the number of whole days in the year will De

300 HIXDOO ASTRONOMY.

known, and the fractional part to be added will be the same
part of a day that the diflerence between the middle ampli-
tude and one of the extremes (that first observed) is to the
difference between the extremes. The amphtudes, or
rather their differences, are to be detennined by marking
the sun's position at rising on a horizontal circle of con-
siderable magnitude. This method is ingenious, and it
would be improved by observing the sun's position at rising
on several days before and after the year is completed.
Theoretically it is good, but probably it was never put in
practice ; and with any horizontal circle such as the Hin-
doos might be supposed to possess, was not likely to lead to
much certainty.

The Surya Siddhanta being regarded as the most ancient
astronomical treatise among the Hindoos, it is important to
know the time at which it was composed. It is now gener-
ally admitted that the Hindoos are a very ancient people.
Bailly believed that their astronomy was founded on obser-
vations made more than 3000 years before the Christian
era ; and, in particular, that their tables of the sun and
moon were determined by actual observations made at the
beginning of their celebrated era the call yug, which was
3103 years before the Christian era. It might, however,
well be doubted whether they had any books of such extraor-
dinary antiquity. To dissipate these delusions J. Bentley,
Esq., has given to the world a memoir which has for its
object to determine the age of the Surya Suldhanfa,* and in
this he has clearly explained the manner in which their
tables were formed. We have seen that in the Hindoo sys-
tems certain parts of time were fixed on as epochs at which
the planets are assumed to have been in a line of mean
conjunction with the sun m the beginning of Aries. From
these the Hindoo astronomer carried on his calculations as
if they had been fixed by actual observation, and thence
determines such mean annual motion as will give the posi-
tions of the planets in his own times so as to correspond as
nearly as he can with the observations then made.

In fixing on these epochs, the first Hindoo astronomers
took the precaution to throw them so far back into antiquity
that the difference between the assumed and real places, of

* Asiatic Researches, vol. vi. p. 540.

FORMATION OF THE INDIAN TABLES. 301

the planets, -whatever they might be at that time, would,
when divided by the number of years reckoned forward
from the epoch, be a quantity too inconsiderable to affect
the mean annual motions deduced from thence for several
years.

For example, let an epoch of mean conjunction be as-
sumed at only the distance of 648,000 years, and without
considering what was the actual position of the planets at
that time, which cannot certainly be known, let us suppose
that they were all in conjunction with the sun in Aries.
Now, since a planet cannot be more than half the circum-
ference of the heavens, that is, six signs or 180 degrees,
from its assumed fictitious place, the error that will be made
in determining its mean place, at any time within a con-
siderable interval before and after the period when the
tables were actually constructed, will not exceed 180 de-
grees divided by 648,000, that is, one second of a degree, —
an error not greater than would be made by the modern Eu-
ropean tables.

This is Mr. Bentley's idea of the manner in which the
Indian tables were formed ; and Delambre says, that it
coincides nearly with that which he himself had formed
when he first read Bailly's Astronamie Indicnne. He made
the supposition that in 1491, or any other year, if an astron-
omer knew the places of the planets, and their mean mo-
tions, it signifies not whether well or ill determined, he
might thence find the epoch of a general, or almost general
conjunction ; for a conjunction rigorously exact is impossi-
ble, unless we go back to a very remote period indeed.
But without going unreasonably far back, he might find a
time when the planets were all in the compass of an arc of
some degrees in extent. He might then, neglecting the
differences, feign that they were all at the same point (it
might be zero, or any other point). The degrees thus
neglected divided by the number of years would be reduced
to insensible fractions, which would be corrections to be
made in the annual motions. It is no doubt in this way
that all the civil and astronomical periods have been found.
"This idea," continues Delambre, " is so natural, that I
have always been surprised it did not make Bailly drop his
pen. It has prevented me from placing the least confidence
m the pretended proofs on which he has rested, and which I
Vol. Ill— C c

302 HINDOO ASTRONOMY.

would never have discussed, had I not been obliged to do so
in a history of astronomy."

Mr. Bentle)', to exemplify his idea of the formation of the
Indian tables, has supposed the planets to have been in a
line of mean conjunction in the beginning of Aries at the
commencement of the cali yug, that is, at midnight between
17th and 18th February, O.S., in the year of the Julian
period 1612, on the meridian of Lanca (7.5° 50' E. long.).
He then, by proceeding on the principle which he believed to
have been employed in forming the Indian tables, and using
Lalande's tables, has deduced a set of mean annual motions
of the planets on the Hindoo sphere, which differ but a few
.seconds from the annual motions as given by Lalande.
ZS'ow, had a European astronomer who had no idea of the
Hindoo method found these fictitious motions in their
tables, he would have been deceived by appearances, and
have supposed them to be of great antiquity.

The Hindoo systems of astronomy may be divided into
three classes.

The first class supposes a general conjunction of all the
planets, their apogees and nodes, in the first point of Aries,
and this conjunction has for its period the culpa of Brama,
which contains 4,320,000,000 years, and which began
] ,972,944,000 years before the call yug. It appears that
the astronomer Bramagupta was the author of this enor-
mous period.

The second supposes a general and true conjunction at
the end of the calpa of Varaha, with a mean conjunction
at the end of certain cycles. The calpa of Varaha is of the
same length, but it began 17,064,000 years later.

The third does not suppose any conjunction either at the
beginning or end of the calpa.

The writings of Bramagupta, the Siddhanta, and the
Siromani of Bhascara, belong to the first class : these do
not assume a conjunction of the cali yug. Again, the
Surya Siddhanl/i, Soma Siddhanta, Varisha Siddhanta, and
Guch others as assume a mean conjunction at the beginning
of the cali yug only, as the Jat Karnob of Varaha, the
tables of Trivalore, &c., belong to the second. And to the
third belong the Brama Siddhanta, Vish7m Siddhanta,
Bhasvoti, Drubo Rolhono, Chendrika, and other Siddhayitas.

ANTIQUITY OF ASTRONOMICAL WORKS. 303

These are constructed on the principles of the European

, Mr Bentlpy lays down this as a canon, " that the most
certain mode of investigating the antiquity of Hindoo astro-
nomical works is, by comparing the positions and motions
of the planets computed thence with those deduced from
accurate European tables ; for it must be obvious, that
every astronomer, be his system what it will, whether real
or artificial, must endeavour to give the true position of the
planets in his own time, or at least as near as he can or the
nature of his system will permit, otherwise his labour
would be totally useless. Therefore, havmg the positions
and motions of the sun, moon, and planets, at any proposed
instants of time, given by computation from any origmal
Hindoo system, and having also their positions and motions
deduced from correct European tables, lor the same in-
stant, ^y^ can thence determine the pomt or points of tune
back when their respective positions were precisely the same

in both." , , . ■ 1 !,„

Proceeduitr on this apparently reasonable prmciple, he
finds the secular motion of the moon's apogee, accordmg to
the Surya Siddhanta, and the tables of Lalande, to be 4-
10 9" Now, suppose that Varaha (the real author ol the
Surm) had determined for his own time the position of the
apogee, it would follow that, at the end of 100 years, there
would be an error of 42' in the place of the moon ; 200
years after, the error would be double ; and accordmg to
ihis idea, the apogee must have been determined by obser-
vation 605 years before the epoch of 1799, that is, m 1134

Bv like calculations on the node, he finds 580 years. The
equations since found by Laplace change somewhat these
detenninations ; besides, it is impossible to answer lor the
positions found by Varaha.

By the motion of the sun's apogee, the time when the
observations were made on which the tables were con-
structed comes out 1 105 years. But the motion is so slow,
and so difficult to determuie, that this result ought not to be
reckoned with the others.

Mercury, which separates so little from the sun, gives a
result with a contrary sign ; from this nothing can be de-
termined.

304 HIXDOO ASTRONOMY.

Venus gives 860 years, and Mars 140, which is evidently
too little.

For Jupiter, Saturn, and the sun Mr. Bentley makes use
of new equations.

The aphehon of Mars gives 641 years. The sidereal
year 736. The whole brought together stand thus : —

From the moon's apogee 605 Years.

node 530

Sun's apogee 1105

Venus 860

Mara 340

Moon 759

Jupiter 875

Saturn 805

Mars 's aphelion 641

Length of the year 736

Total 7306

which being divided by 10, the number of results, in order
to get the mean, gives 731 years nearly for the age of the
Surya Siddhanta, which differs but five years from the age
determined by the length of the year only.

Mr. Bentley says, that independent of all calculations,
it is known from the Hindoo books by whom the Surya
Siddhanta was written, and when. In the commentary on
the Bhasvoti, it is declared that Varaha was the author of
the work. Now, the Bhasvoti was vrntten in the year 1021
of saka, by one Sotanund, a pupil of Varaha, and under
whose directions he v^ote his commentary. Varaha must
then have been alive, or a short time before. This agrees
as nearly as possible with the age above deduced ; for the
Bhasvoti, in the year 1799, the time when Mr. Bentley made
his computations, was exactly 700 years old. It is ex-
tremely probable that the name of Varaha must have been
to the Surya Siddhanta when it was first written ; but that
after his death, priestcraft found means to alter it, and to
introduce the absurd story of Meya or Moya having re-
ceived it through divine revelation at the conclusion of the
satya yiig. Indeed, according to Bentley, a number of
other astronomical works were then framed for the purpose
of deception, — some were pretended to be delivered from
the mouth of one or other of their deities, as the Brama,
Siddhanta, Vishnu Siddhanta, and the works of Siva, com-

DEFICIENCIES OF THE HINDOO SYSTEM. 305

monly called Tanfros, Others were pretended to have been
received through revelation, as the Soma Siddhanta ; while
others again were imputed to sages who lived in the re-
motest periods of antiquity, as Varishta Siddhanta, and
other Siddhaiitas, to the number of about eighteen alto-
gether, including the Surya Siddhanta. These are now
called the eighteen original shasteis of astronomy, although
there be not above three or four of them original.

M. Delambre says that the system explained in Mr.
Bentley's memoir is so simple and reasonable, that it might
have been found without the aid of the Indian hooks ; but
when it appears to be the result of a careful examination
of them, it seems to be placed beyond all doubt. On the
whole, it appears that the Hindoo astronomy is entirely dif-
ferent from ours. If there be any resemblances, they have
arisen out of the nature of the science, or from what the
Indians have borrowed from the Arabians, who were in-
structed by the Greeks, rather than from any thing bor-
rowed from the Indians by the Arabians, or by the Greeks.
The enigmatic methods of the Indians were never known
to the Greeks, and indeed have only been explained of late
vears ; so that the Greeks have taken nothing in astronomy
'from the Indians, unless perhaps the constellations ; this,
however, has not by any means been proved. As to the
mathematical doctrines 'in the astronomy of the Greeks,
they were their own ; and they have demonstrated them,
while the Indians have proved nothing. It cannot even be
shown that the Indians have ever observed, nor are there
any recorded original observations of which the date is cer-
tain. It is remarkable that the Indians, who could compute
eclipses, and who now announce them in their almanacs,
have not recorded even one as having been actually ob-
served ; while the Chinese, less skilful calculators, and ye6
less geometers, have long recorded them in their annals.
• We have been told of their spheres and their gnomons ;
but the gnomons of India appear to have served merely as
sundials, and to determine the latitude of a place. It is
surprising that we have never heard of the solstitial shadow,
and but rarely of the equinoctial shadow : that the Surya
Siddhanta only slightly mentions the armillary sphere,
which served to divide the zodiac into nacshatras ; that we
find only in the commentary some imperfect indication^

Cc2

306 HINDOO ASTRONOMY.

but no actual observations. Their armillary sphere, with a
terrestrial globe in its centre, and all their planetary orbits,
resemble the furniture of a cabinet rather than instruments
intended for real observations. With their obUquity of 24°,
their ignorance of refraction, the errors which they would
no doubt make on the altitude of the pole, it is not easy to
see how they could find with any accuracy the longitude and
latitude of the stars. They have only designated twenty-
seven, that is, one in each nacshatra, and their positions are
only given in degrees. •-

We believe enough has been now said on the Indian as-
tronomy. The opinions which we have followed are those
of Sir William Jones, Messrs. Davis, Bentley, and Cole-
brooke, as delivered in the Asiatic Researches, and which
have been adopted by Delambre, — a high authority in the
history of astronomy. On a subject which has been so
much contested, it will no doubt be highly satisfactory to
have also the opinion of the celebrated Laplace, the author
of the Micamque Celeste. He says, " The Indian tables
suppose an astronomy considerably advanced ; but all tends
to produce a belief that it is not of high antiquity. Here I
differ, with much regret, from the opinion of an illustrious
and unfortunate friend. • . . The Indian tables have two
principal epochs, one 3102 years before our era, the other
1491. These epochs are connected by the motions of the
sun, the moon, and the planets, in such a manner, that de-
parting from the position which the Indian tables assign to
the stars, at the second epoch, and returning to the first, by
means of these tables we find the general conjunction which
is supposed at that epoch. The celebrated philosopher to
whom I have alluded (Bailly), has sought to establish in his
Indian Astronomy that this first epoch was founded on ob-
servations ; but, notwithstanding his proofs, exhibited with
that clearness which he knew so well how to spread over
the most abstract subject, I consider it as very probable that
it has been imagined in order to give a common origin in
the zodiac to the celestial motions. Our latest astronomical
tables, improved by a comparison of theory with a great
number of very precise observations, do not allow to admit
the supposed conjunction in the Indian tables. They even
present differences much greater than the errors of which
they are susceptible. Indeed, some elements of the Indian

HINDOO MATHEMATICS.

307

astronomy could only have the magnitude assigned to them
a lon<r time before our era. For example, it would be neces-
sary to go back 6000 years to give the equation of the sun s
centre the value it has in the tables ; but, independently ot
the errors of their determinations, it must be observed that
they have considered the inequalities of the sun and moon
only in relation to eclipses, in which the annual equation oi
the moon unites with the equation of the sun s centre, and
increases it by a quantity nearly equal to the difierence ol
its true value from that of the Indians, hevera! elements,
such as the equations of the centre of Jupiter and Mars, are
ver>- different in the Indian tables from what they ought to
be at the first epoch. The whole structure of the tables,
and especially the impossibility of the conjunction which
they suppose," prove that they have been formed, or at least
rectilied, in modern times."

CHAPTER XIV.

Hindoo Mathematics.

division of the Circumference of the Circle-Ratio of the Diameter to
the CMr?umference-Tables of Sines and Versed Sines-Mathematical
TreS-Iccount of the Origin of the -Lilavati-Its Contents-
Knowledge of Algebra.

There is another subject of inquiry intimately connected
with the astronomy of India ; this is their knowledge of
the mathematical sciences. Here there is not so much
room for the exercise of that disposition to exaggeration in
respect of dates which so eminently distinguishes their as-
tronomical systems. It is true, that part of their geometry,
which is contained in the Surya Siddhanta, which pro-
fesses to have been a revelation delivered four millions of
years aao in the golden age of the Indian mythologists,
when rnan was incomparably better than he is at Present,
when his stature exceeded twenty-one cubits, and his lite
extended to ten thousand years, is involved in the absurdity

308 HINDOO MATHEMATICS.

of a pretension to antiquity which outrages all probability j
yet this is not any part of the doctrines themselves : set-
ting aside what is fabulous, there yet remains sufficient to
give the subject high interest as a most important feature in
the history of the pure mathematics.

In the Surya Suldhanta, notwithstanding the mass of
fable and absurdity which it contains, there is a very ra-
tional system of trigonometry. This has been made the
subject of a memoir by the late Professor Playfair, in the
fourth volume of the Edinburgh Philosophical Transac-
tions ; and although it be evidently written with a belief of
the truth of Bailly's visionary system deeply impressed on
his mind, yet, leaving out of view the question of absolute
antiquity, it will be read with all the interest which that ele-
gant writer has never failed to excite, even when the reader
is not disposed to agree with him in opinion.

We have already noticed that the Indians divided the cir-
cumference of a circle into 360 equal parts, each of which
was again subdivided into sixty, and so on. The same di-
\ision was followed by the Greek mathematicians. This
coincidence is remarkable, because it has no dependence on
the nature of the circle, and is a matter purely conventional.
It is probable both nations took the number 360 as the sup-
posed number of days in a solar year, which might be the
first approximation of the early astronomers to its true
value. The Chinese divide the circle into 365 parts and one-
fourth, which can have no other origin than the sun's an-
nual motion.

The next thing to be mentioned is also a matter of arbi-
trary arrangement, but one in which the Bramins follow a
mode peculiar to themselves. They express the radius of
a circle in parts of the circumference. In this they are
quite singular. Ptolemy and the Greek mathematicians
supposed the radius to be divided into sixty equal parts,
without seeking in this division to express any relation be-
tween the radius and the circumference. The Hindoo mathe-
maticians have but one measure and one unit for both,
xdz. a minute of a degree, or one of those parts of which the
circumference contains 21,600, and they reckon that the
radius contains 3438. This is as great a degree of accuracy
as can be obtained without taking in smaller divisions than
minutes, or sixtieths of a degree. It is true to the nearest

SINES AND VERSED SINES TRIGONOMETRY. 309

minute ; and this is all the exactness aimed at in their trig-
onometrical tables. The author, however, does not mean to
assert that the ratio of the radius to the circumference is
either accurately, or even very nearly, as 3438 to 21,600,
which makes the diameter to the circumference as 1 to
3.14136. It appears from the Institutes of Akbar that the
Bramins knew the ratio of the diameter to the circum-
ference to greater exactness, and supposed it to be that of 1
to 3.1416. "

The tables employed in their trigonometrical calculations
are two, — one of sines, and the other of versed sines. The
sine of an arc they call cro.majya or jyapinda, and the versed
sine utcramajya. These temis seem to be derived from the
word jya, which signifies the chord of an arc, from which
the name of the radius or sine of 90°, viz. trijya, is also
taken. This regularity in their trigonometrical language is
not unworthj' of remark ; but what is of more consequence
to be observed is, that the use of sines, as it was unknown
to the Greeks, who calculated by the help of the chords,
forms a striking difference between theirs and the Indian
trigonometry. It is generally supposed that the use of sines,
instead of chords, in modern trigonometr)', was borrowed
from the Arabians. It is certainly one of the acquisitions
which the mathematical sciences made when, on their ex-
pulsion from Europe, they took refuge in the East.

The table of sines exhibits them to every twent3--fourth
part of the quadrant ; the table of versed sines does the
same : in each the sine or versed sine is expressed in
minutes of the circumference, neglecting fractions. Thus,
the sine of 3° 45' is 225, the sine of 7° 30' is 449, and so
on. The rule for the computation of the sines is curious ;
it indicates a method of computing a table by means of
their second differences, — a considerable refinement in cal-
culation, and first practised by the English mathematician
Brigjs.

The Surya Siddhanta does not give the demonstration
of the truth of the rule ; but the commentary gives direct
geometrical means for their calculation. In the progress of
science, the invention of trigonometry is a step of great
importance, and of considerable difficulty. He who first
formed the idea of exhibiting in arithmetical tables the
ratio of the sides and angles of all possible triangles must

310 HINDOO MATHEMATICS.

have been a man of profound thought and of extensive
knowledge. However ancient, therefore, any book may be
in which we meet with a system of trigonometry, we may
be assured that it was not written in the infancy of the
science. We may therefore conclude, that geometry must
have been known in India long before the writing of the
Siirya Siddhanta. Professor Piayfair, speaking of the In-
dian rule for computing sines, wiiich is certainly very in-
genious, says, " It has the appearance, like many other
things in the science of those Eastern nations, of being
drawn up by one who was more deeply versed in the sub-
ject than may be at first imagined, and wlio knew much
more than he thought it necessary to communicate. It is
probably a compendium formed by some ancient adept in
geometry for the use of others who were merely practical
calculators."

The earliest notices which reached Europe concerning
the Hindoo mathematics came, we believe, from an inge-
nious English mathematician, Reuben Burrow. Residing
in India, and taking a lively interest in every thing con-
nected with the history of his science, he was led to collect
oriental manuscripts, some of which in the Persian lan-
guage, accompanied with an interlined translation into Eng-
lish, he sent to his friend the late Isaac Dalby, Professor
of Mathematics in the Royal Military College. These
were communicated to various persons in this country about
the j-ear 1800.

In the year 1813 Edward Strachey of the East India
Company's service pubhshed a translation from the Persian
of the Bija Ganita (or Vija Ganita), a Hindoo work on al-
gebra, written by Bhascara Acharya, who lived about the
year 1150 of the Christian era, and who, besides this book,
had composed other mathematical treatises, particularly the
Lilavati, a work on arithmetic and practical geometry.
These books, composed originally in Sanscrit, had the
highest reputation in India, and were translated into differ-
ent languages. The Lilavati was translated, by order of
the Emperor Akbar, into Persian, on account, as Fyzee the
translator says, of the wonderful arts of calculation which
it contained. The Vija Ganita was also translated into
Persian in the year 1634, and it was from this Mr. Strachey
made his English translation.

ROMANTIC ORIGIN OF THE LILAVATI. 311

Again, in the year 1816 John Taylor,'M.D., of the East
India Company's Bombay ]\Iedical Establishment, pub-
lished in India a translation of the Lilavati directly from the
Sanscrit ; and in the following year, H. T. Colebrooke,
Esq., published Algebra, with Arithmetic and Mensuration,
from the Sanscrit of Bramagupta and Bhascara. This work
contains translations of four different treatises WTitten in
Sanscrit verse on the arithmetic, algebra, and geometry of
Hindostan. Two of these are the LUavati (arithmetic)' and
Vija Ganita (algebra) of Bhascara already mentioned. The
other two books are still more ancient, and were composed
by a mathematician named Bramagupta. These, like most
of the mathematical treatises of the Hindoos, form part of
iiystems of astronomy ; the first two being the introduc-
tion to the Stddhanta Siromam of Bhascara, and the other
two forming the twelfth and eighteenth chapters of the
Bravia Siddkanta, an astronomical work of Bramagupta.

The age of Bramagupta is considerably earlier than that
of Bhascara, and his works are very rare. Mr. Colebrooke
was fortunate enough to obtain a copy of them, which is
imperfect in some respects, but in which the chapters on
mathematics are complete. The age in which he lived is
fixed with great probability from various concurring circum-
stances, particularly from the position which he assigns in
his astronomy to the solstitial points, to the sixth or begin-
ning of the seventh century of the Christian era, — a period
earlier than the first dawn of the sciences in Arabia, al-
though much less ancient than all that now remains of the
Greek mathematics and astronomy. Ganesa, the most dis-
tinguished of the commentators on Bhascara, quotes a pas-
sage from Arya Bhatta on algebra, which contains the re-
fined artifice for the solution of indeterminate problems,
which is called in Sanscrit Cuttaca. Arya Bhatta is in-
deed regarded as the most ancient uninspired writer that
has treated of astronomy. By a variety of arguments Mr.
Colebrooke makes it appear that this alo-ebraist wrote as far
back as the fifth century of the Christian era, and perhaps
earlier. He was therefore almost as old as the Greek al-
gebraist Diophantus, who lived about the year 360. The
Persian translator of the Lilavati, Fyzee, gives an account
of the origin of that treatise, whichhas in it much of that
air of romance that distinguishes every thing oriental, not

312 HINDOO MATHEMATICS.

excepting their science. Lilavati was the name of the au-
thor's (Bhascara's) daughter, concerning whom it appeared,
from the qualities of the ascendant at her birth, that she
was destined to pass her life unmarried, and without chil-
dren. Her father thought he had discovered a lucky hour
for contracting her in marriage, that she might be firmly
connected and have progeny; and when the hour ap-
proached, he brought his daughter and her intended hus-
band near him. He left the hour-cup on the vessel of water,
and kept in attendance a time-knowing astrologer, m order
that, when the cup should subside in the water, these two
precious jewels should be united. But as the intended mar-
riage was not according to destiny, it happened that the girl,
from a curiosity natural to young persons, looked into the
cup to observe the water coming in at the hole, when by
chance a pearl, separated from her bridal-dress, fell into the
cup, and rolling down to the hole, stopped the influx of the
water ; so the astrologer waited in expectation of the prom-
ised hour. When the operation of the cup had thus been
delayed beyond all moderate time, the father was m con-
sternation,—and, examining the cup, found that the hole
was closed, and the long-expected hour past. Bhascara,
thus greatly disappointed, said to his unfortunate daughter,
" I will write a book of your name, which shall remain to
the latest times,— for a good name is a second hfe, and the
groundwork of eternal existence." . , ,

The Lilamli treats of arithmetic, and contains not only
the common rules of that science,— there reckoned eight m
number,— but the application of these rules to various ques-
tions on interest, barter, mixtures, combinations, permuta-
tions, the sums of progressions, indeterminate problems,
and, lastly, of the mensuration of surfaces and solids. All
this is done in verse, and the language, even when most
technical, is often highly figurative. The question is usually
proposed with enigmatical conciseness, next the rule for
computation is given in terms somewhat less obscure, i he
example follows ; but it is not until this has been studied
that all obscurity is removed. No demonstration nor reason-
ing is subjoined ; but the rules are found to be exact, and
nearly as simple as in the present state of analytical mves-
tiffation. The numeral results are readily deduced ; and it
they be compared with the earliest specimens of Greek cal-

ARITHMETIC GEOMETRY ALGEBRA. 313

culation, the advantages of the decimal notation are placed
in a striking light. The work begins thus : " Having
bowed to the deity, whose head is like an elephant, whose
feet are adored by gods, who, when called to mind, restores
his votaries from embarrassment, and bestows happiness on
his worshippers, I propound this easy process of computa-
tion, delightful by its elegance, perspicuous with words,
concise, soft, and correct,!and pleasing to the learned." The
definitions are given in the form of an introduction, and are
followed by an invocation : " Salutation to Ganesa, re-
splendent as a blue and spotless lotus, and delighting in the
tremulous motion of the dark serpent which is continually
twining within his throat." The rules of arithmetic are
then delivered in verse, and addressed to Lilavati, a young
and charming female, who appears to be receiving the in-
structions of the author, and to whom the examples of the
rules are usually proposed as questions to be resolved.

The arithmetic is followed by a treatise on geometry, in-
ferior in excellence certainly to the treatise on algebra, yet
well deserving of attention. We have here the celebrated
proposition, that the square on the hypotenuse of a right-
angled triangle is equal to the squares on the sides contain-
ing the right angle ; and other propositions which form part
of the system of modem geometry. There is one proposi-
tion remarkable, namely, that which discovers the area of a
triangle when its three sides are known. This does not
seem to have been known to the ancient Greek geometers.

It is a most singular circumstance that, with such a body
of mathematical science as has descended from a very re-
mote period to the present time, there is almost an entire
want of all analysis or synthetic demonstration ; for this it
is not easy to assign a cause. Some learned men in Europe
have supposed, that the entire ignorance of the modern Hin-
doos of the demonstrations of their rules is a satisfactory
proof that they are not the inventors of the science ; or else
that the knowledge of the mathematics has declined so much
that they have no longer any idea of the fundamental prin-
ciples and the practical operations which they have been
taught by their ancestors.

The algebra of the Hindoos comes next to be considered.
We have seen that the age in which Arya Bhatta lived was
probably not very different from that of Diophantus. It

Vol. lU.—D b

314 HINDOO MATHEMATICS.

must, however, be conceded to the Hindoo algebraist that
he had advanced farther in the science, since he appears to
have been able to resolve equations containing several un-
known quantities, which it is not clear that Diophantus
knew : and also had a general method of resolving indeter-
minate equations of at least the first degree, which it is
certain that Diophantus had not attained. There is yet a
curious question left for discussion : Was the science ot
algebra known long before, and by what degrees of improve-
ment did it advance until the time of Arya Bhatta 1 The
late Professor Playfair was of opinion that it was much
older. He observes, " It is generally acknowledged that /^w-
phantus cannot have been himself the inventor of a.l the
rules and methods which he delivers; much less is Arya
Bhatta to be held the sole inventor of a system that was
still more perfect than that of Diophantus. Indeed, before
an author could think of imbodying a treatise of algebra in
the heart of a system of astronomy, and turmng the re-
searches of the one science to the purposes of the other, both
must be in such a state of advancement as the lapse ot
several aaes and many repeated elibrts of invention were re-
quired to° produce."* Delambre, in answer to this, says,
when an author has created a new science among a people
considerably advanced in civilization, men of genius wiU
not be long in acquiring the new notions, in order to ex-
tend and multiply their application. Thus among the
Greeks, Archimedes succeeded to Conon, and -^poUomus
followed Archimedes, in less than sixty years. The Ber-
noullls made decided progress in modern analysis even m
the lifetime of Newton and Leibnitz, its inventors.!

It appears from the Hindoo treatises on algebra that they
understood well the arithmetic of surd roots ; that they
knew the general resolution of equations of the second de-
gree, and had touched on those of higher denomination, re-
solving them in the simplest cases ; that they had attained
a general solution of indeterminate problems of the first de-
gree, and a method of deriving a multitude of answers to
problems of the second degree, when one solution was dis-
covered by trials. Now, this is as near an approach to a

' * Edinburgh Review, vol. xxii. p. 143. , r, „ „,ii.-,

t Delambre, Hist, de PAstronomie du Moyen Age, Dtseours preltm-
inaire.

ALGEBRA.

{15

seneral solution as was made until the time of Lagrange.
The Hindoos had also attempted to solve equations ot higher
orders, but with very little success. They not only apphed
alcrebra both to astronomy and geometiy, but conversely
ap^pUed geometry to the demonstration of algebraic rules.
In fact, they cultivated algebra much more, and with greater
success, than geometry, as is manifest from their low state
of knowledge in the one, and high attainments m the other.
Mr Colebrooke has instituted a comparison between the
Indian algebraist and Diophantus, and has found reason to
conclude that, in the whole science, the latter is very far
behind the former. He says the points m which the Hin-
doo algebra appears distinguished from the Greek are, be-
sides a better and more convenient algorithm,—

1st, The management of equations of more than one un-
known quantity. ,

'>d The resolution of equations of a higher order, m
which, if they achieved little, they had at lea>t the merit ot

' 3d"Se'ral methods for the resolutions of indeterminate
problems of the first and second degrees, m which they
went far indeed beyond Diophantus, and anticipated dis-
coveries of modern algebraists. . , . r
4th The application of algebra to astronomical mvesti-
aations and geometrical demonstrations, in which they also
hit upon some matters which have been reinvented m mod-

"o!uhe whole, when we consider that algebra made little
or no pro^rress among the Arabians— an ingenious people,
and particularly devoted to the study of the sciences, and
that centuries elapsed from its first introduction into Europe
until it reached any considerable degree of perfection-we
incline to the opmion of Professor Playfair rather than to
that of Delambre, on this branch of Indian science and^re
disposed to believe that algebra may have existed in one
shape or another, long before the time of Arja Bhatta.

( 316 )
TRIGONOMETRICAL SURVEYS.

CHAPTER XV.

Colonel Lambtovi's Surveys.

Colonel Lambton appointed to make a Survey across the Peninsula —
Advantages possessed by him for this Task— Difficulties of a Trigo-
nometrical Survey — Colonel Lambton commences his Labours — Tri-
angles carried across the Peninsula — Continuation of the Survey —
Death of Colonel Lambton— Conclusion.

About the year 1800, Colonel Lambton, then a major in
the king's service in India, a most intelligent officer, and
well versed in mathematical science, and particularly in the
means of applying it to the improvement of geography,
projected a survey across the peninsula of India, for the pur-
pose of determining the positions of the principal geographi-
cal points. By the success of the British arms, a district
of country had been acquired, which not only opened a free
communication with the Malabar coast, but, from its nature,
afforded the means of connecting that with the coast of Co-
romandel, by an uninterrupted series of triangles, and of
continuing that series to an almost indefinite extent in every
direction. He accordingly communicated his views to the
governor in council at Madras, and was by him appointed
to conduct that important service, with a liberality by which
alone it could be carried into execution.

A new era had commenced in the practice of trigono-
metrical surveying, by the determination of the distance be-
tween the meridians of Paris and Greenwich. This was
begun by General Roy, in the year 1784, who then measured
a base of about five miles in length on Hounslow Heath
with a degree of scientific skill that had never before been
exceeded, and probably not then equalled. This was the
first of a series of operations. The labour was recommenced
in 1787, and carried on until completed, under the able
direction of the general, by a series of triangles extending
from Greenwich Observatory to Dover. A like series of

ADVANTAGES POSSESSED BY COL. LAMBTON. 317

triangles was determined, by eminent French mathemati-
cians; between Paris and Calais, Blancnez and Montlam-
bert, points near the French coast opposite to Dover, and
the British and French triangles were then connected by
observations made across the Channel, by means of lights
exhibited at the stations. At that period the English artists
excelled all others in the world in the construction of ex-
quisitely-divided astronomical instruments. Probably the
French mathematicians employed on this occasion were
superior to the English in the refined theories of moderii
analysis. However this might be, the series of geodetical
operations then begun soon called into action the exertions
of artists and mathematicians to the great benefit of astro-
nomical and geographical science. , . , , , , . ,

Colonel Lambton, then, in beginning his labours, had tire
advantacre of excellent instruments ; a theory almost per-
fect in the writings of Delambre and Legendre ; the pre-
vious example of the British trigonometrical survey along
the southern and eastern coasts of England, by Colonel
Williams, Captain Mudge, and Mr. Dalby, the account ot
which, to one about to commence a like labour, was, as he
says, a treasure. There must have been partial surveys
of portions of our Indian territories before this time ; but
these were all conducted on principles much inferior m ac-
curacy to those employed by Colonel Lambton, and with
less perfect instruments.

The survey of a kingdom, or of such an extent of country
as that undertaken by Colonel Lambton, besides requiring a
detrree of intelli<Tence and resources much beyond what are
necessary in the survey of a district of no great extent,
wanted turther for its complete execution two most important
elements,— one of these is the magnitude, and the other the
fiaure of the earth. The dilficulty of resolving these prob-
lems in geography was, therefore, to be surmounted ; and
for their solution, besides purely mathematical know'led^e,
various applications of the doctrines of astronomy and other
branches of physical science were essentially necessary.

The general" object to be attained in the survey of a coun-
try is to determine the precise position of every remarkable
point, and the exact direction of straight lines joining them,
as well in respect of each other as in respect to the merid-
ians which they intersect. To effect this four serarate pro-
Dd2

318 TRIGONOMETRICAL SURVEV3.

cesses, differing from each other, and directed to different
objects, must be performed and combined. The first is the
measurement of one or more bases, each from five to seven
miles long, and the longer the better. These should be on
a straight and level line ; but as this can hardly ever be
exactly obtained, it must be nearly such a line. It has
been usual to measure this line by placing straight rods,
sometimes of deal, sometimes of metal, and on one occasion
ofglass, all of the same length, end to end in succession,
and each supported horizontally, and those behind brought
forward and placed in advance along the whole line. Gene-
ral Roy, after having tried the deal, and also the glass rods,
at last had recourse to steel chains made like a watch chain.
He found that these, when laid in wooden troughs, and
stretched by weights that were always the same, were as
much to be trusted to as rods, and greatly more convenient.

In the grand series of operations carried on by the French
mathematicians to determine the length of a quadrant of the
meridian, rods of platina were used ; and in the latest ope-
ration of this kind, viz. the base measured along the shores
of Loch Foyle for the trigonometrical survey of Ireland, two
parallel rods of different metals, united together in a par-
ticular way by cross-bars at their ends, have been employed.
Rods of this description we believe have been sent to India,
and will be employed there in future geodetical operations.

The next part of the process is the selection of a number
of points, called stations, all over the country to be surveyed.
These are supposed to be joined by straight lines which
form a series of triangles. In each triangle the angles are
to be taken by a theodolite of large dimensions, and then,
when one side is known, the others may be found by trigo-
nometry. These being known, the whole series may be
delineated on paper, and the position of each point on the
survey found in respect to all others. This is sufficient for
determining every line, and every figure within a given ex-
tent ;" but something more is necessary to determine its po-
sition on the earth's surface, and its situation in respect to
the quarters of the heavens, and the parallels of latitude,
and the meridians on the surface of the globe. The first
of these objects is determined by observing the angles which
one or more sides of the triangles make with the meridians
passing through the stations which are the intersections of

MEASUREMENT OF A BASE. 319

the sides. This sen'es to place the whole in its proper po-
sition with respect to the cardinal points. The next thing
to be done is to place the tract surveyed between the two
parallels of latitude on the artificial globe, corresponding to
those on the surface of the earth which they represent.
This is done by determining by astronomical observations
the latitudes of any two stations in the survey at a con-
siderable distance north and south from each other. "When
this is performed, and the magnitude of the celestial arc in
the heavens expressed in degrees is compared with the mea-
sured length of the terrestrial meridian between the parallels
passing through the stations, the length of a degree on the
earth's surface will be known.

The position of the whole as to its distance from the
equator or pole will now be known ; but its distance east or
west from some known meridian, that is, its diiference of
longitude, remains to be determined. This must be found
by means taught in the doctrines of astronomy.

Colonel Lambton, being in possession of some valuable '
instruments, and in expectation of others from England,
which the India Company had with the most laudable libe-
rality given him permission to procure, began the survey by
measuring a base on the table-land of the Mysore covmtry,
near Bangalore : it was more than 100 miles from the sea,
and on this account unfavourable, because its elevation
above the level of the sea required to be found, and this
could only be done by corresponding observations of the
barometer made at the base and at Madras. However, '
having provided an apparatus similar to that employed for a
like purpose in the British survey, he commenced his labour
on 14th October, 1800, and completed it on 10th December.
After making the necessary corrections for the expansion
and contractions of the chain by heat and cold during the
process, he found the true length of the base, at the tem-
perature of 62° and reduced to the level of the sea, to be
39,267.706 feet, or 7.4321 miles. By a series of subsequent
astronomical observations, the latitude of the south end of
the base was foimd to be 12° 54' 6".

Colonel Lambton resumed his labour in the year 1802.
He had by this time received a most complete apparatus
from England : this enabled him to execute his views on
the scale originally proposed, which was the measurement

320 TRIGONOMETRICAL SURVEYS.

of a oonsiderable arc of the meridian. Without regarding
■what he had formerly done, he began anew, and fixed on a
tract of country for a base near Madras. It was well
adapted to his purpose, being an entire flat, extending in a
southerly direction almost eight miles. The length of the
base, reduced to the level of the sea and the temperature
32°, was 40,006.44 feet, or 7.546 miles. The latitude of the
north end was 13° 0' 29", and it made an angle of about
12° with the meridian. From this a series of triangles was
carried about eighty-live miles westward, extending north
to the parallel of 13° 19' 49", and south to Cuddalore, in
latitude 11° 44' 53", embracing an extent of 3700 square
miles. The country seems to be favourable to the choice
of stations, and the' climate to geodetical observations, for
the triangles are of considerable magnitude, the sides of
some being thirty or forty miles in length. They are also
well contrived for avoiding very acute or very obtuse angles,
which are unfavourable to accuracy in trigonometrical sur-
veys. In computincr the sides. Colonel Lambton reduced
the observed spherical angles to the angles of the chords of
the arcs, according to the method of Delambre. The chords,
which were the sTdes of the triangles, were then converted
into arcs ; and as by a very judicious arrangement,— which
is, however, not alw'ays practicable, — he had contrived that
the sides of four triangles which connected the stations at
the north and south extremities of the meridian should be
very nearly in its direction, their sum, with very little de-
duction, gave the length of the intercepted arc, which was
thus found to be 95,721.326 fathoms.

By a series of observations for the latitude at the extrem-
ities of this arc, made with an excellent zenith sector of five
feet radius by Carey, the amplitude of the corresponding
arc in the heavens was found to be 1°. 58233. The length
of the terrestrial arc in fathoms divided by this number
gives 60,494 fathoms for the length of a degree in the
middle parallel of latitude, viz. 12° 32'. This at the time
it was measured was the degree nearest to the equatoi
(except that in Peru almost under it) which had yet been
measured, and on that account was highly interesting.

The next object was to measure a degree perpendicular
to the meridian in the same latitude. This degree was ac-
cordingly derived from a distance of more than fiftj'-five

TRIANGLES CARRIED ACROSS THE PENINSULA. 321

miles, between the stations of Carangooly and Camaghur,
nearly due east and west of one another. To determine
the length of this degree, very correct measures of the angles
which that line made with the meridians at its extremities
were necessary. In fact, the angles were observed with the
greatest care ; but from the nearness of the intersection of
the meridional arc and perpendicular arc to the equator, the
result is less to be relied on than the measure of the merid-
ional degree. The degree perpendicular to the meridian of
Carangooly was found to be 61,061 fathoms.* By com-
paring this with the meridional degree. Colonel Lambton
found that the earth's compression at the poles should be
reckoned 1-210. This, however, we know to be too much ;
but if we diminish the perpendicular degree by 200 fathoms
and make it 60,861, as a writer in the Phil. Trans. 1812
contends that it ought to be because of an error in Colonel
Lambton' s calculations, then the compression will come out
1-330, which is probably near the truth.

The measurements which we have hitherto described
were made in the year 1803. In 1806 the series of trian-
gles was carried quite across the peninsula to the Malabar
coast, which they intersected at Mangalore on the north and
Tellicherry on the south. They passed over the Ghauts, —
so celebrated both in the natural and civil history of Hindos-
tan. Two of the stations, Soobramanee and Taddianda-
mole in the Western Ghauts, not far from the coast, were,
the former 5583 feet, and the latter 5682 feet above the
level of the sea. The heights of the stations were all de-
termined from the distances and observed angles of eleva-
tion ; and it is no small proof of their accuracy, that after
ascending the chain of the Ghauts from the Coromandel

* The reader should know thai the earih is not an exact sphere, but a
solid, formed by an ellipse, turning round its lesser axis ; so that a me-
ridian is not a circle, but an ellipse, the curvature of which gradually
diminishes from ihe equator to the poles. It is a consequence of this
figure that the degrees of latitude gradually increase from the equator
to thi poles ; and the inequality of the degrees in dilferent latitudes de-
pends on the inequality of the axes in such a way that the one is de-
ducible from the other ; that is, if we know the proportion wliich the one
axis bears to the other, we can find the proportion w hich the lengths of
degrees in any two parallels, 5^ and 10* for example, have to each other,
and the contrarj-. The deviation of the figure of the earth from a per-
fect sphere is called its compression, and it is measured by the fractional
part that the difference of the two axes is of the greater.

322 TRIGONOMETRICAL SURVEYS.

coast on the east, and descending again to the level of the
sea on the Malabar coast, a distance of more than 360 miles,
the sum of all the ascents differed from the sum of the de-
scents only by eight feet and a half.

From the triangles thus carried across the peninsula, a
correct measure of its breadth was obtained, and one con-
siderably different from what had previously been supposed.
The distance from Madras to the opposite coast was found
to be nearly 360 miles, instead of 400 miles as given in the
best maps before the time of the survey.

The great extent of the triangulation now required a
second base to be measured in the interior of the country.
This was accordingly done near Bangalore, about 170 miles
west from Madras, not far from the position of the first base.
The work was performed with great accuracy by Lieutenant
Warren of the 33d regiment. It was connected with the
Madras base by the intermediate triangles, and by these its
length was computed. The result differed only about three
and a half inches from what it was found by the actual
measurement, — a remarkable proof of its accuracy, con-
sidering that the two bases were 170 miles distant. Such
a near coincidence must produce great confidence in the
skill of the observers and the excellence of the instruments
they employed. The length of the second base, reduced to
the temperature of 62° and to the level of the sea, was

39.793.7 fathoms, or 7.536 miles. The latitudes were de-
termined by the zenith sector with every precaution at both
stations ; the same stars were observed at both many times,
and a mean of the results taken. From the observations
it was found that a degree of the meridian in lat. 12° 55'
10", is 60,498 fathoms.

The next thing attempted was the measurement of a de-
gree perpendicular to the meridian in the above latitude,
which is that of Savendroog, near Bangalore ; but here an
uncertainty similar to that in the former case was found
in the result. This, indeed, was inseparable from the nature
of the thiiicp to be done. The degree was found to be

60.747.8 fathoms. Colonel Lambton remarks that, suppos-
ing the ratio of the earth's diameter to be 1 to 1.003125, the
meridional degree 60,498 fathoms gives 60,858 fathoms for
the perpendicular degree, which differs by 110 fathoms from
what is found by measurement ; hence we must infer either

SERIES OF TRIANGLES COMPLETED. 333

that the earth is not an ellipsoid,* or that this measure is
incorrect.

In the year 1810, Colonel Lambton communicated to the
\siatic Society an account of the measurement of an arc on
the meridian, extending from lat. 8° 9' 38" to 10^ 59' 49" ;
and again, in 1812, he made a further communication on
the extension of the meridional arc, from the last-mentioned
latitude to 15° 6' 1". His principal object, when he com-
menced the survey, was to connect the two coasts of Coro-
mandel and Malabar, and to determine the latitudes and
longitudes of the principal places, both on the coasts and
thelnterior ; but, as the work advanced, his views expanded,
and in addition to the triangles carried across the peninsula
between the parallels of 12=" and 14°, he extended another
series from Tranquebar and Negapatam entirely across to
Paniani and Calicut ; and to render the skeleton complete,
a meridional series was carried down the middle of the pe-
ninsula, terminating at the sea near Cape Comorin ; from
this series others were extended to the east and west, en-
tirely along both coasts ; so that, in 1812, a web of trian-
gles" had been completely woven over the peninsula of India
from the parallel of 14° to its southernmost extremity. This
trianaulation had for its object the determination of the
latitudes and lon<Titudes of all the remarkable points ; such
as tops of mountliins, cities, &c. The result of these has
been applied to the improvement of the topography of the
country ; and has been given to the public, we believe, in the
excellent maps of that accurate geographer the late Mr.
Arrowsmith. The measurements of the meridional arcs,
which had a higher aim, the determination of the figure
and magnitude of the earth itself, have, however, been most
interestmo- to general geography and astronomy ; and, ac-
cordingly,°Colonel Lambton's various memoirs have lound
a place in the Asiatic Researches and London Philosophical
Transactions, as aflording most important data m philo-
sophical and astronomical science. r i -n i

In the progress of the survey the meridian of the Doda-
goontah station, or of Savendroog, was continued south to
Punnae, in the lat. of 8° 10' ; and the series of triangles
for extending its length was continued to the same point.

* Ellipsoid, a solid generated by the revolution of an ellipse about one
of its axes ; in this case lUe lesser.

324 TRIGONOMETRICAL SURVEYS.

In the extent of this prolongation two new bases were
measured, — one at Putchapoliam, where the meridian inter-
sects the parallel of 11°, and another at Tinnevelly, near
the southern extremity of the arc. These bases were
nearly of the same length, but somewhat shorter than that
at Bangalore. In many places the country is high and
difficult to penetrate. There is a mountain here, the hill
of Permaul, in lat. 10° 18' ; its height is 7367 feet. On
this meridian, the distances of five stations, with the cor-
responding latitudes, were determined. The amplitude of
the whole arc, between Pmmae, the south extremity, and
Paughur, the northerimiost point, was 5° 56' 47.32", and
its length 359,595.4 fathoms. From this and the inter-
mediate points, the following degrees and their measures
were deduced : —

Fathoms. Mid. lat.

Punnae and Putchapoliam 60473 9° 34' 44"

Punnae and Uodagoomah 6049ti 10 34 49

Punnae and Bomosundrum ^ 60462 II 4 44 )

Punnae and Paughur ) 604S9 11 8 3S

Mean of the two last 60465.5 11 6 23.5

From a former measurement 60494 12 32 0

In these degrees the same anomalies occur which have
been observed in France and England, and probably will
always occur when contiguous arcs are compared with one
another. We have already observed, that on the suppo-
sition that the earth is a figure generated by the revolution
of an elhpse about its lesser axis, the degrees should grad-
ually increase from the equator to the pole, according to a
determinate law. Here we see that the length of a degree,
of which the middle parallel is 1 1° 4' 44" is less than others
nearer the equator. A small part of this irregularity may
be owing to error of observation ; but the greater part must
be placed to account of the irregularities in the direction
of gravity arising from the inequalities at the surface, or
in the interior of the earth, the attraction of mountains, or
the local variation of density immediately under the surface.
This is an example of the difficulties which are to be ex-
pected in an extensive trigonometrical survey. In the
London Philosophical Transactions for 1818, Colonel
Lambton has given an abstract of the results of his meas-
urement of the meridian. He had then at different times
measured three complete sections of an arc of the meridian.

earth's compression at the poles. 325

"We have already described two of these, viz. one extending
from Punnae, lat. 8° 9' 38", to Putchapoliam, in lat. 10°
59' 49", and another extending from Putchapoliam to Nam-
thabad, in lat. 15° 6'. He had afterward the good fortune
to get another section extending from Namthabad to Dau-
mergidda, in the nizam's dominions, which, being in lat. 18°
3' 24", gives an addition of 2° 57' 23", making on the whole
an arc of 9° 53' 45" in amplitude, — an extent of upwards
of 680 miles, — the longest single arc that had ever been
measured on the surface of the globe at the time it was ac-
complished. The number of base lines measured were five.
He had now got the measured length of a degree in three
different parallels, viz. —

FithoDis. Mid. lat

60472.83 9034' 44"

60487.56 13 2 55

60512.78 16 34 32

From these, compared with the length of degrees meas-
ured in England, Sweden, and France, he obtained various
fractions for the earth's compression at the poles, and taking
a mean among them, at last came to the conclusion that
the compression was ^j-^. The rei^ainder of the details in
his abstract of his operations is highly interesting to mathe-
maticians, but hardly to general readers. ,

Again, in the Philosophical Transactions for the year
1823, Colonel Lambton has applied to his measured me-
ridional arc the corrections necessary to change his former
measures to the parliamentary standard measure. The
differences are too trifling to require notice in the general
view which we have attempted to give of the exertions of
this indefatigable labourer in the field of science. He con-
tinued the survey beyond this period ; and we add with re-
gret that he died in January, 1830.

We have selected the labour of Colonel Lambton as a
proof of the intelligence with which the present ruler.s of
India have applied their power and their ample means to
the promotion of geographical knowledge. Science suffered
a great loss by the death of that meritorious officer ; but
we add with satisfaction, that he has had successors who, in
his lifetime, had prosecuted similar views. In the fourteenth
volume of the Asiatic Researches, we have a journal of a
survey to the heads of the rivers Ganges and Jumna, by
Vol. hi.— E e

326 NAVIGATION.

J. A. Hodgson. Also an account of trigonometrical and as-
tronomical operations for determining the heights and po-
sitions of the Himmaleh mountains by the same officer, in
conjunction with I^ieutenant Herbert ; and, lastly, a val-
uable memoir on the ancient geography of India, by Colo-
nel Wilford. These were given to the world before 1822.
But we know that the East India Company still continue,
with the same laudable diligence, the determination of the
geographical features of their territories, and that instru-
ments of the most improved construction, and similar in all
respects to those now used in the survey of Ireland, have
■been obtained, and placed in the hands of military officers,
who will not fail to emulate the zeal and industry which so
eminently distinguished their predecessor Colonel Lambton.

NAVIGATION.

CHAPTER XVI.

Present State of Navigation between England and the East
Indies, u-ith Instructions for the Guidaiice of Passengers.

Size and Appointments of an Indiaman— Promotion of Officers— Their
Duties — Instructions to Passengers— Classes of Ships — Outfit — Pas-
sase-money — Voyage to Indisj — Madeira — Daily Routine on board an
Indiaman — Amusements of the Passengers — Observation of Sunday —
Catching Sharks— The Nautilus— Equatorial limits of the Trades be-
tween 18° Rnd 26* \V. Long. — Crossing the Line— Wreck of the Blen-
.denhall — Cape of Good Hope — Constantia — Current off the Cafie —
Marine Barometer — Trade-winds — Route through the Mozambiqite
Channel — Bombay Harbour — Route to the eastward of the Cargados
Bank — Wreck of the Cabalva— Ceylon— Madras Roads — Mouth of the
Hoogley— Homeward Voyage— The Cape — St. Helena — The Azores.

The present state of navigation to India, contrasted with
what it was even fifty years ago, is very remarkable. A
voyage to India ont and home is now sometimes accom-
plished in eight months by the same ship ; and to a letter
by one ship, an answer may occasionally be receiyed by

SIZE AND APPOINTMENTS OF AN INDIAMAN. 327

another in six months. Fifty years ago, six months was
an average passage out to India. The purpose of the fol-
lowiinT pages is to give a summary view of the route pur-
sued by ships in the present da}', with instructions for the
guidance of passengers and others interested in East India
shipping. The latitudes and longitudes, together with othe-r
nautical observations, are taken from the latest and most
authentic sources. Captain Horsburgh, hydrographer i&
the East India Company, has kindly given permission to
make free use of his " Directions for sailing to and from the
East Indies," at once the most comprehensive and correct
•work which has ever been or probably ever will be published
for the guidance of those " who go down to the sea in ships."*
Columbus crossed the Atlantic in a caravel of 40 tons
burden ; and the vessel in which De Gama first rounded the
Cape was not larger than a coasting-sloop. The East In-
dia Company have now about 50 noble ships, each of 1200
tons burden and upwards, employed in their trade to India
and China. They are manned as follows : —

1 Captain.
6 Officers.
6 Midshipmen.
1 Clerk.
1 Surgeon.
1 Assistant do,
1 Purser.

] Ship's steward and Cooper.
1 Boatswain and 4 mates.
1 Gunner and 2 mates.
1 Carpenter and 3 mates.
Armourer, sail-maker, and calker.
Including servants and seamerr,
total 130.

They are always well armed, carrying in time of peace
20 eighteen-pounders on their main-deck, and six thirty-
two pound carronades on the upper-deck. During war the
number of guns is increased to 32. In addition to great
guns, each ship carries 100 muskets, 50 pistols, 50 cut-
lasses, and 100 pikes, with all needful ammunition, and a
magazine fitted for action. From their warlike equipment
and formidable appearance, these ships in time of war have
great advantages when sailing in a fleet. It is supposed
tliat at the expiration of the East India Company's charter,
this fine class of ships will be discontinued. The present

* Captain W.'F. W. Owen , R.X., having lately been employed on sur-
vevin the Indian Seas, has published a table of latitudes and longitudes,
which differs materially I'rom other authorities. For the sake of accu-
racv, it has been thought necessary, wherever lat. or long, is quoted in
this chapter, to subjoin in a note the corresponding geographical site
according to Captain Owen.

338 NAVIGATION.

lage for every thing cheap has blinded many persons on
this subject ; and no other argument will obtain with them
but this, — " Tea can be brought to England cheaper in a
small ship than in a ship of 1200 tons; therefore small
ships are preferable." Much might be said on this subject
which would be out of place here.

The East India Company have two classes of ships in
their regular service. The ships of the first class (eight in
number)' are the private property of the company. In these
ships all the appointments are in the gift of the East India
directors, and promotion from the lowest to the highest is
strictly according to seniority. A captain obtains the com-
mand of a ship in this class without paying sixpence for it,
and is allowed to retain the command for five voyages, after
■which he must retire. The other class consists of ships
let on hire to the company for a certain number of voyages
by private owners. The captains and oflicers of these hold
the same rank in the company's service as the captains and
officers of the company's own ships, and are subject to the
same laws as to qualification, &c. ; but the appointments
of both captains and officers are in the gift of the private
owners, and the rule of seniority is not observed. In these
ships the progress of a young man through the different
gradations is very vexatious to parents, all depending upon
interest, which must be renewed and reapplied ever>- suc-
ceeding voyage. The most rapid promotion which can
take place would be thus : One voyage as midshipman ;
one as sixth or fifth officer ; one as third ; one as second
or first ; and then captain. Or it might be thus (which
•would probably be more advantageous to the officer) : Two
voyages as midshipman ; one as fourth officer ; one as third ;
and one as second or first. The captain, first, second, third,
and fourth officers, each take an oath of fidelity to the com-
pany every voyage. No person can be sworn in as fourth
officer without producing certificates that he has performed
two voyages to India ; that he is twenty-one years of age ;
that he is^qualified to work the longitude by chronometers
and lunars ; together with a certificate of good conduct from
his last commander. These certificates are all printed
forms. He is then examined in seamanship by the com-
pany's master-attendant. An officer is examined every time
he gains a steu, from fourth officer to first inclusive. The

DUTIES OF OFFICERS. 329

first and second officers are examined by one or two of the
nautical directors. At sea the routine of duty for officers
is as follows : The tirst or chief officer may be termed the
head of the executive ; he superintends and directs all under
the sanction of the captain. The second officer usually
assists the captain in navigation, and instructs the middies
and junior officers in nautical astronomy. The third offi-
cer has charge of every thing below, assisted by the fourth,
fifth, and sixth. He has the cables and the holds under his
immediate charge ; he also regulates the berthing and mess-
ing of the crew ; he is cognizant of, and responsible for,
every thing which occurs under hatches. The crew are
divided into two watches, the officers into three. The first,
second, and third officers have each charge of a watch ; the
fourth, fifth, and sixth conduct the duty on the forecastle.
The middies are employed on the poop and in the mizzen-
top. No person is permitted to act as surgeon of a regular
ship who shall not have performed one voyage in a com-
pany's ship, or served twelve months in his majesty's ser-
vice in hot climates. The surgeon and surgeon's mate
must produce a certificate from the examiners of the Royal
College of Surgeons, and also from the physician appointed
by the compan}', of their being qualified for such stations.
The surgeon presents a list of the sick every day to the
captain, who is obliged to examine and sign the surgeon's
journal once a month. The purser superintends the pro-
visions and slops. The station and quarter bills are hung
up in the gun-deck for general inspection. The first and
second officers, the purser, and surgeon mess with the cap-
tain ; all the other officers and mids pay for their own mess.
The ships are amply stored and provisioned, and always
leave England in good repair. Their whole outfit is con-
ducted under the superintendence of public officers ap-
pointed by the company. The provisions and water, with
every other description of stores, are always apportioned
by well-established rules to the length of the voyage. The
discipline is strict, and according to an established system.
The ships always sail on the day appointed, the orders on
this point being rigidly enforced by the company. It may
fairly be conceded that the existence of all these regula-
tions, together with the spacious accommodation and clear
decks of an Indiaman, ought to ensure great punctuality

£ 62

330 NAVIGATION-

and comfort. Notwithstanding it has been found that since
the free-trade to India commenced the greater number of
passengers prefer the private, ships. The ships in the pri-
vate trade are of various classes and dimensions, from 800
tons to 150. Many of them are expressly fitted for pas-
sengers, and in some instances great care and expense have
been bestowed both as to their sailing qualities and internal
comfort.

It may not be out of place here to give a few particular?
for the guidance of passengers bound to India. At Lloyd's
Coffee-house, where most of the private ships are ensured,
they are classed according to their age and condition. Be-
fore an ensurance can be effected the ship is surveyed.
There arc five classes, — A, E, I, O, and U. In each class
there are three gradations. Thus, if a ship is quite new,
well built, and altogether in good condition, she is in the
first class, which is called A 1, the next A 2, next A 3,
next E 1, and so on. As ships, like books or estates, are
always putled off in the newspapers, it is as well to know
the above ; and it may be fiirther remarked, that if a ship
is classed A 1 it will usually be so stated, whereas if she
happens to belong to class E 2 nothing respecting her class
will be found in the advertisement.* Of late years many
agency-houses have been established for the express pur-
pose of doing all the necessary business for passengers res-
pecting their outfit and return. To agents and brokers the
owners of private ships give a per centage for every pas-
senger they procure. It must be observed that the brokers
get this per centage on the amount of passage-money for a
passenger from the owners -of all classes of ships, and
therefore it must be expected that they will puff a ship
coiite qui coute whether she be A 1 or U 20 ! In all re-
spects, except the actual choice of a ship, an agent or bro-
ker will be found highly useful both out and home.f .

* The Jerusalem Coffee-house, Cornhill, is tlie great emporium of
East India shipping intelligence; and there passengers may oblain all
needful information from Ihat most obliging and well-known peraoa
Horatio Hardy.

t The following gentlemen are agents for passengers, and transact all
business connected with procuring a passage, shipping, baggage, &c.
They are acquainted with all forms necessary for passengers, and readily
afford every facUity without any direct fee. Their remuneration, as be-
fore observed, i3 derived from a commission on the passage-money ; this

PRICES OF PASSAGE.

331

In laving in a sea-stock for India, either of clothes, furni-
ture, &c., or eatables, passengers are strongly recommended
to employ persons accustomed to supply the India market ;
and although many articles may be got cheaper from other
houses, still the risk of their not being adapted to the pe-
culiarity of an Indian climate, or the casualties of the voy-
a<Te, make it highly advisable, as far as means go, to employ
persons experienced in these matters.

The East India Company have established the following
scale of prices, for persons in their sernce proceeding to
India, as passage-money in company's ships, and captains
are restricted from asking more for accomtnodation at their
table : —

f Including

Writers MIO ! charter party

Subalterns 110] allowance to

I. owners.
Assistant-surgeons . . .95 \ exclusive of

Cadets 95 I ditto.

N.B. — In the third mate's mess of an
Indiaman a cadet's and assistant-sur-
geon's passage-money is 55/.

The regulation of prices for ofiBcers in the hinges service
proceeding to India is as follows :—

General officer r.25n

Member of council 200

Lieutenant-colonel 1

Major I

Senior merchant ) 150

Junior ditto !

Factors J

Captains 125

p.«f"^| ^-j?^] These sums include the whole

colonel -..•• ••..• i passage-money which can be de-

Lieutenant-colonel }35 l^lnandld from kings officers on.

Major. . . .... •■;■••••• i^^ < duty; and particular cabins are al-

geons 95 J

ships.

As no cabins are allotted by the company for passengers
(except to officers in the king's sen'ice, or to their own
officers when in charge of troops), the captain is at liberty
to let his cabins, and those who require them pay a sum in
addition to the above prices. There is no allowance for
officers' vrives and children. An officer with his wife will
require a separate cabin, in which case he will be charged

is a transaction between the <»ptain or owner and the broker, with
which the passenger has no pecuniary concern.
Agents for passengers, &c.— Captain Gnndlay, Captain Thacker.

383 NAVIGATION.

an extra sum beyond the regulation, both for his wife's
passage and for a cabin. Ladies should have all their mil-
linery, gloves, &c., which they do not intend to use on the
voyage, packed in air-tight tin cases, soldered up. A piano
should be packed in blankets ; and a silk cover, lined with
a blanket, is the most useful kind of cover in India for a
piano. A Broadwood grand piano, secured for the climate,

the best description of instrument. Those of the com-
mon kind sometimes go to pieces in a single night during
the prevalence of hot winds. The action of the hot wind
on furniture, particularly on musical instruments, is very
remarkable, and makes "it highly necessary to have both
well secured by clamps, and properly packed. Solid ma-
hogany, covered with leather, having spare brown Holland
covers, is best adapted for the voyage ; and to those who
can afford it handsome furniture of this description viill
be very acceptable after reaching India. Oil-cloth is the
best and coolest thing for the cabin-floor, and is very much
used for the same purpose in India. A cadet who has a
cabin to himself should furnish and fit it in such a manner
that his equipment will be equally adapted for a tent.

Parents who have children destined for India would do
well to consider that in all Hindostan Proper there is not
an inn or hotel to which it is usual for ladies or gentlemen
to resort, except in cases of urgent necessity. Even in
Calcutta the taverns are commonly called punch-houses.
This is a very evident proof of the liberal scale of Indian
hospitality. It therefore becomes the duty of parents, par-
ticularly in the case of a young lady, to place beyond all
doubt the certainty of her reception at the house of a friend
or acquaintance actually residing at the presidency to which
she is going. And it should never be forgotten that some
of the stations in India are 1000 miles distant from the
different presidencies, which makes it extremely desirable
(if the relations or friends she is going to reside at one of
the distant stations) to have an understanding before she
leaves England, that there shall be some friend ready to re-
ceive her on the day of the ship's arrival. Cadets, on land-
ing, by reporting themselves to the town-major, are imme-
diately provided with quarters.

The cabins of private traders vary in size and arrange-

INSTRUCTIONS FOR THE VOYAGE. 333

ment, but those of the company's ships mostly resemble each

It is hoped that the foregoing remarks will be found use-
ful to persons bound for India. The remainder of this ar-
ticle shall be devoted to a description of the usual route
pursued by the regular Indiamen and free-traders. Some
aoolocry may be necessary for the nautical phraseolog}- em-
ployed ; but it is at all times difficult to communicate pro-
fessional knowledge except in the terms commonly applied
in each particular profession ; and as public attention has
lately been much occupied with works on naval subjects, it
may be presumed that most readers are familiar with the
pecuUar language of seamen.

As ships are generally in the hands of a pilot till they
get well down Channel, it would be superfluous to give m-
structions for any part of the voyage above the Isle ot
Wiffht. With a fair wind the course from the back ot the
Wight is west-by-north-half-north by compass, and it will
be useful to note which way the wind is inclmed to veer.
If to the northward and westward, it will be advisable to
keep the shore on board till past the Lizard. If the wind
is inclined to the south-eastward, a west-by-north course is
the best. With a raw ship's company m winter, the ba-
rometer falling, and an increasing gale, after the pilot has
left the ship it is considered hazardous to attempt beating
down Channel. The different ports in England are so well
known, the pilots and others so constantly on the look-out,
that with common prudence a ship may always find shelter
below the Owers. The heaviest gales in the Channel are
from south-west to west-south-west. Steering out with a
fair wind ships generally stand to the southward too soon.
The south-west and westerly winds prevail for a great
part of the year in the Bay of Biscay and off Cape Fims-
terre. By standing well to the westward a ship may avoid
the necessity of making a board, should she meet with
south-westerly winds ; and if enabled to clear Cape Finis-
terre at a moderate distance, standing to the southward, the
wind will generally veer to west-north-west and westward.
Madeira may be passed at a moderate distance on either
side ; but ships passing to the westward must be careful
to .rive a good berth to the Salvages, a dangerous group of
rocks which lies to the southward of Madeira, in lat. 30

334 NAVIGATION.

13' north, lon<r. 15° 46' west.* Many of the private traders
touch at Madeira, but very few of the company's ships. A
ship bound for Funchal should pass between Point de Sol
and the Desertas, and haul in for the Roads. The approach
to the Roads is very striking,— on the left are seen the
Desertas,— high, daA, barren islands, enveloped in clouds
and mist ; on the right Madeira rises in a bold cliff of a
Teddish aspect, over which are seen the vme-clad lulls
With a commanding breeze the ship sweeps round Toint
de Sol, and is frequently becalmed before she gets near the
anchoratre. The merchants are always on the look-out,
and ever ready to welcome their friends from England.

Madeira mav be termed the first stage in a voyage to In-
dia, and is usually performed in eight or ten days. By this
time people have'been shook, or rolled, or pitched into their
places. The weather has become genial, the scene is new,
and the deck of an Indiaman full of troops and passengers
presents a gav appearance on her arrival at Madeira. 1 be
style of society on board the regular ships is extremely
£Ood. There is no doubt much restraint and great attention
to etiquette ; but a reflecting mind will at once perceive
how necessary restriction must be where a mere handlul
of officers have to keep in a state of prompt obedience a
crew of 130 seamen of ail characters, and sometimes three
or four hundred troops in addition. Some allowance ought
to be made for a commander who is often p aced in very
tryincr circumstances ; and when it is considered that he
can neither select his officers nor choose his passengers,
and that the ship is sometimes fairly at sea in forty-eight
hours after the captain, passengers, and crew have joined
her, it must be apparent that to produce perfect harmony is
sometimes attended with great difficulty. The following
sketch of a day will show the usual routine on board an In-
diaman : at daylight the upper deck is washed and scoured
■with sand and stones from stem to stern. This operation
occupies the watch upon deck till seven o'clock, when the
decks are dried up, the awnings and curtains spread. At
half-past seven the hammocks are piped up and stowed m
the nettmgs. The troops are paraded a few minutes before

_., < East Rock, lat. 30° 3' N., long. 16° 2' W.
^Capt. Owen— Salvages, Piton, j Large Islet, — 30 7 N., 15 54 W.

DAILY ROUTINE OX BOARD AN I.VDIAMAK. 335

eight (which ensures the punctual attendance of the soldier-
officers at breakfast), and some commanders parade the ca-
dets with the troops, which is recommended. Breakfast at
eight, hot rolls, dried fish of various kinds, preserves, cold
meats, &c. The ship's progress during the night is a con-
stant and always interesting theme of conversation. Durino-
the forenoon, passengers lounge about the deck, and amuse
themselves in watching the evolutions of the ship, or the
occupations of the different tradesmen. In the waist the
armourer and his mate are working at the forge, and the
clang of the anvil has quite a shore-like sound. The car-
penter's crew occupy a prominent place ; the lee-side of the
deck is devoted to sail-making and mending. In the cuddv
the middies are writing their journals and working days-
works. Below, a fatigue party of the soldiers are cleaning
their berths and accoutrements' ; the surgeon and his assist-
ant are administering to the wants of the sick ; and part of
the crew are employed in getting water and provisions out
of the hold. In this manner, every one (except the passen-
gers) is occupied during the forenoon. At twelve the ship's
position is ascertained by observation, and the last twenty-
four hours' progi-ess is duly noted. Most of the passengers
assemble at this time to "learn the result and discuss^the
matter over a glass of wine and water and biscuit. At one
the officers mess, the ship's company and soldiers dine,
which clears the deck, and oilers an opportunity to the
passengers for an hour's exercise. At three the captain's
dinner is served.* It is the usual and wholesome practice
in the regular Indiamen to dress for dinner. By four o'clock
the tradesmen's work is put below, the decks entirely
cleared, and in the cool of the evening dancing is the usual
amusement. Like all other small societies, that of a ship
depends very mucli upon the elements of which it is com- .
posed. Most people get over the mere inconvenience of .^
being at sea by the time they reach Madeira, and to a welf-
composed party, there is nothing in the regulations and
etiquette of a company's ship to prevent the utmost exten-

■> The liberal scale on which Ihe table of an East India captain is con-
ducted, being 80 well known, needs no comment. Of late years, the
method of preserving fresh meat for any length of time has added greatir
to the luxury of the table. Fresh salmon and game of all kinds retaia
their flavour uaimpaired during the whole voyage.

336 NAVIGATION.

sion of amusement and good-humour. Theatricals are very
common, and newspapers have been known to succeed in a
large party. To a mind dependent on a variety of external
objects for sources of amusement an India voyage is dull
enough ; but the human mind is fertile in expedients, as
may be seen by the following instance :— A number of
sporting characters being met on board an Indiaman, for
lack of amusement established a shooting club, and although
Uainj Jones bagged all the pintadoes and Mother Carey's
chickens, yet they kept up an incessant lire, and sometimes
iilled twenty or thirty head of game in a day ! Bishop
Heber, speaking of his voyage, says, » I find two circum-
stances for which at sea I was by no means prepared ; that,
namely, we have no great time for study, and that, for me
at least, there is so much which interests and occupies me,
that I have no apprehensions of time hanging heavy on my
hands."

Sunday is strictly observed, and the captain is liable to
a pecuniary penalty for omitting to perform divine service.
The scene is very impressive ; the decks get an extra scrub,
awnings and curtains spread, white hammock-cloths fore
and aft. The capstan is the pulpit, covered with a union-
jack. The capstan-bars form benches for the seamen on
each side the forepart, of the quarter-deck ; chairs for the
officers and passengers abaft. At five bells (half-past ten) a
blue burgee is hoisted at the mizzen-peak as a signal to
ships in company to prevent interruption. The bell is tolled,
troops paraded on the poop, passengers and crew seated on
the quarter-deck, and divine service is performed by the cap-
tain, with the purser readijig the responses. In most cases
the crew are very attentive.

The Canaries are eleven in number, four of them small,
extending from lat. 37° 40' to 29° 20' north, and from long.
13° 35' to 18° 6' west. They are mostly high with steep
Tocky shores, rendering the landing often impracticable, and
they are all destitute of safe harbours for large ships. After
passing to the westward of the Canaries, some navigators
prefer the route outside of the Cape de Verd Islands. The
north-east trade is thought to blow stronger in the open sea ;
but many of the company's ships pass between the islands
and Cape de Verd, keeping about mid-channel, by which
the distance is much shortened. The writer of this article

CATCHING SHARKS FLYING-FISH. 337

has often pursued this route with success, and passed twice
near the spot assigned to the Bonetta shoal without perceiv-
ing any indication of shoal-water. The north-east trade
between the islands occasionally veers to east, and brings
from the African coast clouds of sand, which covers the rig-
ging on the side next the shore. After losing the north-east
trade, the weather generally becomes very sultry, with fre-
quent heavy showers and squalls. Long calms are often
experienced ; and the occasional breezes which spring up
are of short duration and most uncertain. This kind of
weather is called by sailors the doldrums.

The tedium of this part of the voyage is often enlivened
by the capture of a shark or dolphin. In a large Indiaman
full of troops, the scene which ensues upon taking the first
shark is most amusing. The huge animal, sometimes twelve
feet in length, is hoisted in amid the shouts of the recruits,
who all crowd round the victim. The Jacks, who always
endeavour to play off a trick on the soldiers, take this oppor-
tunity of making a rush behind them, — down they all go,
head over heels, and some poor devil finds himself hugging
in a close embrace the ravenous monster of the deep, with
forty or fifty of his comrades heaped on him. The beautiful
little fish called the pilot-fish, which always accompanies (or
rather precedes) the shark, has been known to follow a ship
for six weeks after the shark to which it belonged was taken !
The flying-fish are seen in large flocks near the line. Single
ones sometimes fly on board. They are good eating, and
the mode of catching them at the island of Anna Bona is
curious : The head of some large fish, such as the albacore,
is hung even with the water's edge, to the side of a canoe,
which collects the flying fish in great numbers ; the fisher-
man stands up in the canoe, dives into the midst of the fish,
and comes up generally with one in each hand.*

* This singular manner of catcliinj fish brings to mind a still more
remarkable mode of fishing practised in China : the fisherman is furnished
■with a very finely tapered rod; the line is considerably longer than the
rod. The hook is fixed to the side of a piece of lead in shape and size like
the little finger. The fish are about three inches in length, and live in
holes on a mud bank over which the water flows and ebbs. The fisher-
man stands on the mud at low water, watching the fish, and the moment
one is seen within distance popping up its head, the hue is thrown with
great dexterity, and nine times out of ten the fish is hooked in the side
by a jerk of the hand,— like tipping a fly off the leader's ear with a four-
in-hand whip 1
Vol. III.— F f

338

NAVIGATION.

The fish called the nautilus always excites great interest,
and seamen call it a Portugee nian-o'-war. Its little sail is
composed of bony fibres, covered with a thin filmy sub-
stance of transparent blue. The body of the fish is just a
round piece of blubber, with a number of long slimy roots
hanwin^ down, and floats even with the water's edge ; over
this'rises the tiny sail. Its power of locomotion seems to
be derived from the sail, for it always contrives to get out
of a ship's way.

Both the outward and homeward bound ships endeavour
to cross the line at the same point, from long. 18° west to
long. 23° west. This is also the favourite cruising-ground
for^pirates. The fatal instance of the ship North Star,
where many of the officers and passengers were wantonly
murdered by the pirates, who even extended their brutal
outrage to the unoffending ladies, ought to serve as a warn-
ing to the commanders of India traders; and as the long
continuance of peace is likely to increase piracy, ships can-
not be too much on their guard, or too well prepared with
the means of resistance.

The following table of Horsburgh will show the equatorial
limits of the trades between the 18° and 26° of west long.
It exhibits the actual experience of about 230 of the com-
pany's ships.

Lost N. E.

Got N. E.

11

Lost S. E.

Got S. E.

3 Ji
° 0

Months.

Trade Out-

Trade Home-

^ o

Trade Home-

Trade Out-

03 r^

ward in

ward in

ward in

ward in

S 5

Latitude

Mean

Latitude

Mean

Latitude

Mean

Latitude [Mean

nonh

north

north

north

north

north

north

north j north

nor*

.Ian.

50to lOO

70

3"to 60

4J0

5',o

AOto40

2io

20,0 40

30

2J0

Feb.

5 —10

7

2-- 7

5

6

2S.— 3

U

i-1

I

U

March

2'.— 8

5V

2 — 7

5

5^-

1 -2

1

h-Vi

Ik

14

April
May
June

4'— 9

fi"

4-8

5^

55

2 —2.4

1

0 —24

14

U

5 —10
7 -13

7
9

4i- 7

7"— 12

6
9

6A
9

IN -4
1 -5

24
3

0 —4
0 —5

3
3

24
3

July
August

8.V— 15

12

11 -14

12

12

1 —6

4

1 — 5

3

e\ 1

3i
3|

iT- 15

13

11 -14.!.

13

13

3 —5

4

1 —4

2i

Sept.
Oct.

9 —14

Hi

11 —14

12

11}

2 —1

3 A

1 —3

2

3
3

7i— 13
6 —11

10

8J— 14

10

10

2 —5

3

1 —5

3

Nor.

9

7 — 0

7

s

3 —4

3i

3 -5

4

3}

Dec.

5 — 7

6

3-6

5

5V

1 -4

ll

1 — 4.\

4 31 1

CROSSING THE LIXE. 339

The observations in some of the months are rather few to
obtain a correct mean ; but the first column, showing the
extreme limits for each, will be most useful to refer to, as
it marks the situation where the trades may reasonably be
expected to fail or commence.

The curious ceremony observed by seamen crossing the
line is thus described by Bishop Heber in his journal : —

" July 25. — To-day the first or introducton,- part of the
ceremony usual on passing the line took place. Soon after
dark, Xeptune's boat was supposed to approach the ship,
of which notice was given in the regular form to the officer
on watch. A sailor from the fore-chains, m a dismal voice»
aggravated by a speaking trumpet, hailed the captain, as if
fr^m the sea ; and after a short conversation, carried on with
becoming gra\-ity, Neptune was supposed to take his leave^
and a barrel with a lighted candle in it was sent off from
the fore-chains to represent his boat dropping astern.

" July 26. — To-day we passed the line, and the greater
part of it was spent in the mummeries usual on such occa-
sions, which went off very well and in good-humour. The
passengers were not liable to the usual interrogatories and
shaving ; but the male part of them took their share in the
splashing and wetting, which made up the main fun of these
naval saturnalia. I was a good deal surprised at the con-
trivance exhibited by the masqueraders in dressing out
(with the help of a little oakum and paint, a few fish-skins
and decayed finery) the various characters of Neptune, Am-
phitrite, Mercun,-, Triton, &c., with far more attention to
classical costume than I expected. With the distance and
usual aids of a theatre, the show would not have been con-
temptible ; while there was, as might be supposed, a suffi-
cient mixture of the ludicrous to suit the purposes of fun
and caricature."

After crossing the line the south-east trade is entered.
The ship is kept clean full, and runs rapidly down the coast
of South America. The island of Trinidad lies in long. 29°
10' west, and lat. 20° 22' south, and is often* seen by ships
passing to the southward through the south-east trade. It
is a hTgh, rocky, barren island, with stupendous detached
rocks round it. ' It may be passed quite close on either side.

* Captain Owen—Trinidad, souih pt. long. SQO 21' W., lat. 2(P 31' S.

340 NAVIGATION.

Here the trade-wind is sometimes interrupted, or occasionally
shifts to north-east in passing. As the wind veers to
the northward and eastward, the ship's course is altered so
as to enable her to pass the meridian of Greenwich in the
latitude of the Cape of Good Hope. From Trinidad to the
Cape, ships commonly experience fair strong winds and fine

weather. . i ^ , , ^

This is probably the most agreeable period of the whole
voyage. For the first time the prow of the ship is pointed
directly towards her place of destination, supposing that to
be the Cape of Good Hope. To the bitter cold of the Chan-
nel,— the turbulence of the Bay of Biscay, — the excessive
heat of the line, — the comfortless uncertainty of the dol-
drums, has succeeded the fresh healthful breeze of the great
South Atlantic, with a temperate atmosphere, and serene
cloudless weather ; so cloudless that the planets Venus
and Jupiter are often distinctly seen during the daytime
without a telescope. Here, too, the monotony of the scene
is enlivened by the appearance of numerous birds. First
appears the pintado, a pretty black and white bird about the
size of a pigeon ; it is usually first seen after leaving the
tropic. These birds will accompany a ship for six weeks,
and fly close enough to be shot in great numbers. They
are also caught with a hook and line. Next, the albatross,
a noble bird, which is also sometimes caught with a hook.
Petrels or Mother Carey's chickens are very numerous.
Immediately before a gale, these birds, with many others,
assemble near the ship in large flocks. Much amusement
is often afforded by a bird called the booby. It has probably
acquired this name from the stupid manner in which it
allows itself to be taken, as it seldom moves from where it
lights, and may always be caught by hand.

In this route, the small group called Tristan d'Acunha
is sometimes seen. It consists of three high barren islands.
The watering-place is about the middle of the north side of
the largest ; the water is plentiful and good. The landing
is easy, upon a beach of pebbles ; the anchorage is in deep
water, and not safe except in very fine weather. The lat.
of this group is about 37^ .5' south, long. 12° 2' west.*-

In approaching the islands during thick weather great

* Captain Owen— Tristan d'Acunha, long. 12° 23' W., lat. 37-^ 17' S.

WRECK OF THE BLENDENHALL. 341

caution is necessary. In 1820 the Blendenhall, Captain
Greio-, struck the steep shingly beach on the south side of
the largest island before land was discovered ; the crew
and passengers got ashore with difficulty, and the ship
almost immediately went to pieces. Some bales of light
goods, of which clothes were made for those who had es-
caped without them, and a patent iron buoy, which was
cut in two and converted into a cooking utensil, were the
only things saved. The party subsisted several weeks on
penguinslind on the fish caught from the projecting rocks.
A curious trait of Jack's improvident character occurred
while they were on the island : — A sailor had been missing
some days, and while his comrades were roaming about
in search of him, they came to a rum-cask standing on
end. A halt was instantly called ; and, having duly ascer-
tained its marks and number, they resolved to taste the
contents. Proceeding to make a tap, they found it to be
empty ; and on removing it discovered their missing com-
panion fast asleep. When roused he explained to them,
that, strolling about two days before, he had hit upon the
cask, and indulged in potations so liberally and so long
that he felt himself getting uncomfortably chill, and thought
the best thing he could do was to knock the end out of the
cask, and capsize it over him as a shelter from the cold
night-air and heavy rain. The crew, after being some
time on the island, constructed (with the help of the sur-
geon's case of instruments !) a small boat, which enabled
them to reach a neighbouring island whence they had ob-
served smoke ascending. There they found several Ameri-
can seamen, left by a whaler to kill seals ; and the vessel,
calling some days after, conveyed them to the Cape of
Good Hope.

A ship not bound to the Cape, after passing the meridian
of Greenwich in lat. 35° south, from December to April
should keep between 37° and 39° in running down her
easting ; for the winds will be found as favourable in this
parallel as in a higher latitude. On this point, however,
there is much dilTerence of opinion ; and general rules are
often set aside when a spurt of fair wind tempts one to point
the ship's head towards her port. Ships bound to the Cape
ou<:ht to increase the latitude to 35° or 352° as they draw to
the eastward, to avoid the risk of being blown tothenorth-

Ff2

342 NAVIGATION.

ward by southerly winds, which are frequently experienced
near the Cape, particularly in February and March. From
December to April, if a ship is bound for India without
touching at the Cape, she should get into lat. 37° or 38°
about the meridian of London ; and passing the Cape in
parallel 39°, more favourable winds are likely to be met with
than farther south.

In passing the Bank of Aguilhas, the stream of current
setting westward is avoided by keeping to the southward of
37°. To the northward of this parallel south-east winds
prevail in the summer season, from December to April, —
which, it may be observed, is just the reverse of our sum-
mer. If a ship bound for Table Bay should be blown to llie
northward, the soundings between Saldanha Bay and Table
Bay prove a good guide, and are regular, extending several
leagues from the shore. The Table Mountain is so re-
markable that it cannot be mistaken : it is perfectly flat at
the top, and, being 3500 feet above the level of the sea, is
the highest land in that neighbourhood. The east and west
ends are nearly perpendicular. The land is high and un-
even from Table Mountain to the extremity of the Cape of
Good Hope. Table Bay is considered quite safe in sum-
mer, from October to April, and many ships touch there in
winter, although the risk of north-westerly gales blowing
into the bay with much violence and a high sea is very
great. In the summer months, when the Table Mountain
is covered with a white fleecy cloud, which is called the
Devil's table-cloth, it indicates a strong south-easter, for
which ships ought to prepare accordingly. When the
mountain is free from cloud, this gale (which is almost of
daily recurrence) will be mild ; and a gentle sea-breeze
blows in on the western side of the bay, when a fresh
south-east breeze prevails from the east side half across
during most of the day. The Dutch fixed upon the 10th
of May as the latest day for remaining in Table Bay. Cape
Town is a delightful resting-place either on the voyage out
or home. The old Dutch houses are large, commodious,
and clean. Most of the inhabitants take in passengers to
board at a moderate rate. Refreshments of all kinds are
plentiful. Horses and carriages are to be had, and most
people pay a visit to Constantia, where the celebrated vine
of that name is grown. The vine is a small bush, and the

CAPE TOWN CONSTANTIA. 343

crapes of delicious flavour. Constantia is situated in a clgft
ff the hills, on the edge of a romantic glen. The vvanderer
?rom Caledonia is here gratified by the sight ot heath m
%Zi beauty and infinite variety ; and John Bull may fancy
himself at home when the noble oaks which abound at Lon-
stantia meet his eye. The Cape horses are particular y
fine, and show much blood. They are driven six-m-hand.
A team of young horses which would grace any noble-
man's carriage in England may often be seen cantering
Song with a clumsy wagon behind them The ^nhabuan s
of Cape Town promenade in a fine public garden, which is
overtopped by L magnificent Table Mountain ; to the
north is the bay studded with shippmg ; and the Lion .
Mount bounds the westward view. ,i,„ «n„tb

Shins should endeavour to make the land to the south-
ward of the entrance to Table Bay, as the current sets reg-
ularly round the Cape to the north-westw-ard as far as the
high land on the west s.de of the bay, where it is met by
the southerly current setting down along-shore trom uas-
sen S mh From the Capelo Table Bay the land ,s steep-
o and safe to approach within one and ahalf or two miles.
The passage into the bay is between Green Pomt and Pen-
guin Island. The latter must not be passed nearer than
fwo miles, to avoid the Whale Rock, which is about one
mile and a half from its southern extreme In going ou
S- the bay the channel to the northward of Penguin Is and
il the hek. False Bay is fomied by the Cape of Good
Hope on the west, and Cape Hanglip «" /he east. Ihe
middle and eastern parts of the bay are thought free from
danger. Simon's Bay is four leagues ^r^l^,^'^^^/^"""^?"?!
Poiirt, and near the north-west corner of f f^e Bay. 1 here
is a small town here chiefly mhabited by Dutch. The
road to rape Town is very indifierent, and the journey is
usual? pelrmed in a covLd wagon, with fourteen or su-
"een tall bullocks. A Hottentot boy runs before and the
drive has an immense whip, which requires both hands
The bullocks trot along at a good pace. Ships bound to
the eastward should leave the bay when -/th-west wmd.
begin to blow ; if bound to the westward, they should wait
tilf these winds are on the decliire, and get ""der sail w hen
they shift to the westward, as it is probable they ^il ^^ei
from west to south-west and south-east, which will be

344 NAVIGATION.

favourable for doubling the Cape. After leaving Table or
Simon's Bay, bound to the eastward, it is advisable to stand
well to the southward across the Bank of Aguilhas, to
avoid the stream of current setting over the bank to the
westward. To the southward of latitude 37° an easterly
current is often felt, and greatly facilitates the progress to
the eastward, particularly as the winds are uncertain and
unsettled hereabouts. Around the Cape Bank the winds in
changing follow the course of the sun. The heavy gales
generally blow from north-west ; if the wind backs to
north-north-west it increases ; if it veers to west-south-
west it decreases ; and when at south-west the gale breaks.
It is very useful to note this fact ; for ships bound east-
ward are often tempted to make northing when running be-
fore a north-westerly gale ; whereas the latitude should
then be increased to allow for being headed off to the north-
ward as the wind veers round to the eastward, which it has
been known to do five or six times in a week.

The southernmost land of Africa is Cape Aguilhas or
Lagullas. It is found to be farther south than early navi-
gators supposed, being in lat. 34° 55' south, long. 20° 18'*
east, bearing east 20° south from the Cape of Good Hope,
distant thirty leagues. It is low even land, and may be
seen five or six leagues from the deck. There is no high
land within several miles in any direction. The Gunner's
Quoin, aver)' remarkable hill of that shape, is three or four
leagues west-north-west of Cape Lagullas, and is often seen
before the low land about this cape, and sometimes mistaken
for it. The Quoin appears isolated, and slopes down to the
eastward. From the Cape of Good Hope to Algoa Bay a
bank of soundings projects to the southward, in some re-
spects conforming to the shape of the coast. The southern
point of the bank is supposed to be in long. 22° east, lat.
37° south. Westward of Cape Aguilhas, to the south-
ward of 35° 15' south, the soundings are generally mud;
to the southward »f the Cape, green sand, on the south-east
and eastern parts of the bank, mostly coral, coarse sand,
shells,- and small stones. Abreast of Cape Aguilhas and
the land to the eastward of the Cape, there are generally
from forty to fifty fathoms three or four leagues from the
shore.

* Captain Owen— Cape Lagullas, long. 19o 56' E., lat. 34<? 51' S

CURRENT OFF THE CAPE. 345

The current which prevails over this bank has been the
subject of much speculation, and Major Rennell took great
pains to explain its direction and velocity. For this pur-
pose he published a chart of the bank for the winter months.
It must be evident that such a chart could only be used for
general purposes ; for the current is found to vary in the
same months of different years,— is often obstructed and
changed in its direction by gales of wind, — sometimes ceas-
ing altogether even in fine weather. A variety of opinions
exist as to the originating cause of this current. The most
<renerally received is the following :— By the constant action
of the south-east trade-wind, the water of the great Indian
Ocean is displaced, or forced before the breeze to the north-
westward, round the north end of Madagascar, finds its
way to the southward through the Mozambique, and takes
a westerly direction round the Cape. To account for this
westerly direction, it must be observed that the constant
action of north-west and westerly winds on the west side
of the Cape causes a displacement of water, which the
westerly current runs to replace. It must be sufficiently
obvious, that if this is the true theory on the subject, it be-
comes impossible to give any specific rules for determining
with accuracy either the duration, velocity, or direction of
this remarkable current. After a gale from the westward,
if the current has been repressed by the gale, it generally
runs with redoubled velocity. The current is generally
weak near the land, and the sea smooth. Horsburgh gives
the following as the general course of the current : — " In
June, July, and August, from about long. 37° or 40° east,
the current generally sets westward between lat. 30° and
35° south, tifl it reaches the eastern part of the Cape Bank,
otf Algoa Bay. On the coast of Natal it sets along-shore
to south-westward, till joined by the oceanic stream on the
«dge of the bank in 27'^° or 28° east long., between Algoa
Bay and Infanta River. After the junction it increases in
strength abreast of Algoa Bay, and takes the direction of
the outline of the bank, which is west-by-south nearly, to
long, about 23 i° west. In this space it often diverges a
little from the outline of the bank, setting west-by-south
one-half south, or west-south-west, but seldom if ever west-
north-west or west-by-north, as represented by the charts.
In long. 23i° east, the edge of the bank begins to take a

346 NAVIGATION.

south-westerly direction ; soon after, about south-south-
west one-half west nearly to its southern extremity. Here
also the current follows its concave outline, taking a south-
westerly course in long. 24° east ; and from 23° east it gen-
erally sets about south-west-by-south to the southern ex-
tremity of the bank in long. 21|° or 22° east. The velocity
of the' current is greatest from long. 25° to 22° east, along
that part of the bank which takes the most southerly direc-
tion. At the southern extremity of the bank it seldom runs
strong beyond lat. 36io south, or to the westward of long.
21° east." An easterly or contra current is sometimes felt
to the southward of soundings on the Cape Bank. By the
help of the westerly current, ships get round the Cape in
the winter months against the north-westerly gales which
then prevail, generally blowing with great fury for two or
three days together ; the wind then veers to the southward
and westward, — then to south-east, where it lulls. After
this a favourable spurt from the eastvpard is experienced, of
which advantage should be taken to place the ship in a
situation on the bank most favourable for the westerly
current.

A few remarks on the marine barometer may be useful
here ; for there is no part of the world where this valuable
instrument acts so truly as off the Cape. It gives certain
indication of the north-westerly gales by a rapid fall of the
mercury, and it often does this when the weather is per-
fectly serene ; its warning ought never to be disregarded. In
the southern hemisphere the mercury rises with southerly,
and falls with northerly winds. During light winds from
the south-eastward, after a gale off the Cape, it commonly
stands high, and a considerable fall takes place when the
wind veers to the north-east, although no gale should fol-
low. This merely results from the change of temperature,
— the northerly winds being warmer than those proceeding
from the frozen regions round the south pole. If the mer-
cury continues to fall after the breeze is settled from the
northward, then more wind may certainly be expected.
During the heaviest gale the writer of this article ever ex-
perienced off the Cape, the mercury stood as low as 28.98.

Before proceeding to notice the different routes to India,
it will be needful to give a general description of the trade-
winds and monsoons in the Indian seas.

TRADE-WINDS AND MONSOONS. 347

Trade-winds blow from the same quarter during the
whole year. They are probably called trade-v/inds from
the circumstance of their strength and duration being pro-
pitious to commerce. Without entering into a scientific
disquisition on the subject, it is highly interesting to ob-
serve the beautiful adaptation of winds to the purposes of
intercourse between distant countries. In some short
voyages, a different disposition of winds might facilitate the
passage ; but with a chart of the world before the eye, it
will be at once conceded that to imagine monsoons where
trade-winds now exist, or take away land and sea-breezes,
placing uncertain variable winds instead, — or, in short, to
alter the laws which now govern winds all over the world,
would certainly impede intercourse by sea. It must be ob-
served that trade-winds are liable to be obstructed by the
vicinity of land, and only blow constantly in the open sea.
The presence of the sun in either hemisphere obstructs the
regularity and strength of the trade-wind in that hemi-
sphere, and vice versa.

The trade-winds generally extend as far as 28° on each
side the equator. Between the trades there is a space of
light variable winds, mostly from the west, forming a kind
of monsoon near the equator in several parts of the globe.
In the Indian Ocean the south-east trade prevails from 10^
south to 28° south ; from lat. 10° south to the coast of India
the winds are periodical.

In Februarj-, March, April, and May, the southern limit
of the south-east trade in the Indian Ocean is frequently
extended to 30° south, and blows at this season from east
to east-north-east. Near Madagascar, the islands of Mau-
ritius and Bourbon, the trade-wind is often obstructed by
sudden changes and hurricanes. In one of these violent
storms the honourable company's China ship Dunira of
1300 tons was totally dismasted, and forced to seek shelter
at the Isle of France. She was running down the trade
with everj' stitch of canvass set in the morning, and before
midnight she lay a mere hulk on the water without a stick
standing.* Another and later instance may be mentioned

* The mainmast in its fall broke through the poop-deck, and the tressel-
trees, which maybe about two feet apart, struck down the cot of Sir
William Frazer (late of the company's civil service in China), who was
Jying in it at the time,— passing one on each side of his breast, without
d»ing him the slightest injury.

348 NAVIGATIOX.

as a caution to navigators. The honourable company's
ship Bridgewater was dismasted in a typhoon off Macao,
and refitted at Whampoa, chiefly from her own resources.
On her homeward voyage with many passengers on board,
in Ion Of. 90° east, lat. IS'-' south, running down the trade,
the barometer indicated bad weather. The ship was well
manned and commanded by a most skilful and inteUigent
officer. Captain Manderson. Preparation was promptly
made, and every precaution was taken which human fore-
sight could suggest to encounter the approaching gale. It
came, and lasted for fifty-six hours with unremitted vio-
lence. The ship lost every thing but her foremast and bow-
sprit,— her guns and part of her cargo were thrown over-
board,— the anchors were cut away, and she bore up for
Calcutta, was condemned, and broken up. Had the warn-
ing of the barometer, which fell to 28.70, been neglected,
and the ship less skilfully handled, her total loss would most
probably have ensued. The hurricane commenced at east,
veered to north, and broke up at west.

From the equator to the 10th or 12th degree of south lati-
tude, east and east-south-east winds blow six months of
the year, from April to November, with dry weather, — and
this is called the easterly line monsoon. From October to
April, west, north-west, and north-north-west winds prevail
within these limits, with cloudy weather and rain, — which
is the westerly line monsoon. The westerly winds are
strongest in December and January ; but are never so con-
stant as the easterly winds in the opposite monsoon, which
is frequently extended to the equator in June, July, and Au-
gust, from long. 45° east to 90° east. During the south-
east or easterly monsoon to the southward of the equator,
on the north side of it, the south-west monsoon prevails,
which is the rainy season on the coasts of India. It com-
mences in April at the north part of the Arabian Sea and
Bay of Bengal, but seldom till May near the line, which is
its southern limit ; thence it blows home to all the coasts of
India and Arabia, continuing till October. This is a change-
able month, and liable to gales on the Malabar coast and
Bay of Bengal. In October, or early in November, when
the north-west or westerly monsoon begins south of the
equator, the north-east monsoon commences in the Arabian
Sea and Bay of Bengal, and lasts till April, with fair

MONSOONS CURRENTS. 349

weather. The line is the boundary between the north-east
monsoon and north-west wind to the southward, but a
space of light variable winds intervenes. Between Ceylon
and Achen Head, from the line to 8° or 10° north lat., west-
erly winds are often experienced in October and November,
which blow strong at times. On and near the line these
■winds are mostly from north-west and north-north-west. In
a line across from Achen Head to Ceylon, they are from
west-north-west to west-south-west ; and farther north, from
south-west to south-south-west.

After passing the Cape, the most direct route for the
western coasts of India is through the Mozambique Chan-
nel, which is seventy-one leagues wide at its narrowest
part, in about lat. 15° south. The south-west monsoon
blows through the Mozambique Channel at the same time
that it prevails on all the coasts of India. In this channel
the south-west monsoon is the tine-weather season, and the
sea is commonly smooth. It has several dangerous points ;
but b}' a diligent use of the sextant and chronometer, there
is little risk in attempting this passage during the fair sea-
son, from April to September. On the coast of Africa the
current sets strong to the southward and westward nearly
all the year round ; and the early Portuguese navigators
named Cape Corrientes from the difficulty they experienced
in getthig round it to the northward.

In mid-channel the currents are variable and uncertain,
and require great caution. On the Madagascar shore the
set is mostly to the northward in the south-west monsoon.
Between Cape Corrientes and Madagascar a south-easterly
current is sometimes experienced, by which ships have been
set over towards St. Augustin or Cape St. Mary. When
running to the northward in mid-channel, among the Co-
moro Islands, and between Cape Amber and the coast of
Querimba, the currents set westward all the year round.
Ships bound for the Mozambique, after passing the Cape,
should keep m the parallel of 34° or 35° south, till they
reach 37° east long., and then shape a course for mid-chan-
nel, where the winds are more steady, and only three dan-
gers in the way : — the first is the Europa Rocks, — the high-
est about the size of a long-boat, and the sea at times breaks
over them all. Captain Huddart gives the following as the

Vol. III.-G g ^

350 NAVIGATION.

geographical site : — Northern extreme of the shoal in lat.
21° 28' south, and the westernmost in long. 40° 8' east by
lunars, and 39° 58' east by chronometer. Captain Hors-
burgh thinks the shoal lies a little to the west of this posi-
tion. Secondly, the Bassas de India is an island five or six
miles in length and two or three in breadth, highest at the
northern part, where there are a few trees. The rest of it is
covered with brushwood, and has a white sandy beach. It
is in long. 40° 37' east, and the south end in lat. 22° 26'
south. It may be seen six leagues from the mast-head. It
is thought to have no soundings within two or three miles.
Juan de Nova, or St. Christopher, is an island situated in
lat. 17° 2' south, long. 43° 9' east, about a mile in circum-
ference, of a round form, with a reef projecting two miles
to the southward, and more than a mile north-west and
north-east from the island. It is forty feet high, and sur-
rounded by breakers. The Europa Rocks and Bassas de
India may be passed on either side. Juan de Nova should
be passed to the westward, and thence a direct course for
Mohilla or Comoro is the best. In April, or early in May,
the winds are more steady to the west of Comoro, — rather
to the westward of the mid-channel track. Cape St. Mary,
the southern extreme of Madagascar, lies in lat. 25° 40'
south, and long. 45° 16'* east. The Star Bank, which is
an extensive and dangerous shoal, is sixty miles west-north-
west from Cape St. Mary, and at least five leagues from the
shore. It is steep-to on the west side : there is an unfre-
quented channel between it and the shore. It extends from
lat. 25° 7' south to 25° 25' south, and is in long, about 44°
16' east. The Comoro Islands are high, bold, and may be
seen sixteen or twenty leagues in clear weather. They are
inhabited by Mohammedans, a mixed race of Arabs incor-
porated with Africans. Of late years they have been very
hospitable, and many ships touch at Johanna for refresh-
ments, the supplies "of bullocks, poultry, and fruit being
abundant. The natives have adopted the names of our
court calendar, and King George of Johanna is no in-
considerable personage. His royal highness the Duke of
York is a washerman, and many of the princesses fill even

* Captain Owen— Cape St. Mary, long. 45? 1' E., lat. i250 38' S.

COMORO ISLANDS. 351

more ignoble offices. Comoro is the largest island : the
body of it is in lat. 11° 32' south, long, about 43° 25' east.
It is high water at 4h. 45m., and the tide rises twelve feet on
the springs. The anchorage is on its north-west part, but
is deep, dangerous, and unfrequented. The land is gen-
erally steep-to, having no soundings at a small distance
from the shore, except to the north-west. Mohilla, the
smallest of these islands, lies in lat. 12° 20' south, long.
43° 50' east ; it is ten leagues west-south-west of Johanna,
and twelve leagues south-east-and-by-south from Comoro.
In the ship Sibbald a rocky islet was seen, which appeared
to lie seven or eight miles nearly east from the body of Mo-
hilla, and may be dangerous to ships passing in the night.
Mayotta is the easternmost of this group, being about
twelve leagues east-south-east half south of Johanna. On
its south end stands a high conical mountain called Valen-
tine's Peak, by mean of many observations in lat. 12° 54'
south, long. 45° 14' east. 'The island is surrounded by
reefs, and ought not to be approached nearer than five miles.
In 1798 the variation at Mayotta was 17° 36' west ; and
at these islands the variation has not materially changed for
fifty years. A reef with breakers is thought to lie about
four leagues off shore to the eastward of Mayotta.

Johanna is higher than Mohilla or Mayotta, but not so
high as Comoro ; it has a peak, sometimes mistaken for
Valentine's Peak, which has the appearance of an oblong
mountain, and is in lat. 12° 15' south, long. 44° 34' east.
The anchorage is in lat. 12° 7' south, long. 44° 30' east,
three or four miles to the west of the tovsm, abreast a range
of cocoanut-trees, and having a large black rock to the
eastward, between the trees and the town. Off the rock
soundings may be obtained in passing. The south-west
and north-west points of the bay are bounded by reefs pro-
jecting two miles from the shore. To anchor at Johanna,
steer direct for its north-west point, where is situated a
small island called Saddle Island, to which a berth of a
mile and a half must be given in passing, as the reef which
connects it with Johanna projects a considerable distance
round it. When past Saddle Island haul in for the anchor-
age, and borrow to the shore with hand and deep-sea lead
going. Cantain Owen's latitudes and longitudes differ so

352

lifAVlGATION.

materially from those of Horsburgh and others, that an ex-
tract from his table is here subjoined.*

From Johanna a north-north-east course will take a ship
clear of the Aldabra Islands ; after passing which a more
direct course may be shaped for Bombay. Supposing a
ship to have passed through the Mozambique between April
and September, the winds will generally blow from south-
south-eastward to the line ; as the latitude is increased to
the northward, the winds will veer to south-westward
Bound for Bombay, steer for the parallel of Kana^, and
then due east on that parallel till you make the island ; the
soundinas regularly decrease towards the island, which is
smaU,bSt easily known when the latitude is correctly as-
certained. As soon as Kanary is discerned, haul up to the
northward for the lighthouse on Colaba, which is often
seen through the haze before the land is distinguishable.

Except in clear weather, very little use can be made of
the cross-bearings of land around Bombay harbour. Ka-
nary, the Ughthouse, and the Fair^vay buoy are the be^t
leadin<T marks for the harbour's mouth, which is formed by
TuU-reef on the starboard, and the Prongs on the larboard
hand going in. As soon as a ship is seen from the hght-
house a pilot is sent out; but it must be observed tha
neither a boat nor bris can work out agamst a flood-tide and
strong monsoon. BSmbay harbour is very ^^cure in a 1
weathers, being nearly land-locked. The islands of Sal-

' Islands, &c. in the Mozambique Channel.

Eoropa Island

IBasses de India

Juan de Nova ■ •

Chesterfield Bank .
I^ven's Bank

Intermediate Bank
Comoro islands, Jlobilla

Johanna .

Comoro Island
Glorioso Isles— Isle Glorietix

Centre ffi.S-5j40.19o|2.41.16

21^9-0 ;39.35-5 2.3S.22

21.26-5'39.27-5|2.37.50
•3 2.30.49

( East point

(A". IT. point
CciUie

Do.
5 Extreme
i Do.
Centre
C North point
i E<ut point
5 Town
I Sighist peak
C y. E. point
\ S. E. point
( S. IV. point

l7.03-5i42-42

16.17-5 43.50
12.435I47.41
12.21-8,47.52
12.24-0'4S.20'
12.36-0 45.06
12.20-0 43.55
12.110;44.Z2
12. 13-5 144.24-
11. 19-5143.34
H.54-0'43.2S'
1 11.55 0,43.22'
11.34-8|47.19

■4i2.55.22

-513.10.46

■2 3.11.2s

-0 3.13.20

■5 3.00,26

■5]2.55.42

■3'2.57.29

3 2.57.371

2.54.16!

2.53.52,

2,53.28

3.09.16

Leven, sometimes
called Basses de
India.
Sometimes called
Europa Rocks.
Do.
Leven and Bam-
couta.
Do.

Do-) Not dan-
Do! i serous.

Admiralty Charts.
Do.

Leven.

3900 feet high.

Admiralty ChartJ,

Leven.

Admiralty Charts.

i Leven.

Capt. W. F. W. OvviN, R. iV.

NARROW ESCAPE OF SHIP MARQUIS OF ELY. 353

sette, Caranja, and Elephanta lie between the shore and
the island of Bombay ; and the view all around the har-
bour is extremely beautiful. The different islands are
thickly wooded, and during the rains exhibit a richness of
verdure and foliage which is truly striking. On the main,
the land rises in high bold peaks ; and far to the northward
is seen a most remarkable isolated conical mountain, called
the Queen of Mahratta's Knitting-needle. The celebrated
caves of Elephanta are distant only a few miles from the
anchorage.

It is usual when running in to make Kanary, in the south-
west monsoon, to allow for a northerly current ; but great
care ought to be taken in making this allowance. The
honourable company's ship Marquis of Ely, running in to
make Kanary in the night, allowed for a set of two miles
and a half per hour, and the ship was probably kept to the
southward of her course. At daylight land was suddenly
discovered close aboard, and before the ship's head could be
got round, she was within broken water in six fathoms ; let
go all her anchors, and rode for thirty-six hours off Severn-
droog in imminent danger, the sea frequently breaking over
the forecastle. From this perilous situation escape seemed
hopeless, till about noon on the second day, when the wind
veered a point or two to the southward, and the tide was
observed to set off the shore. It was immediately determined
to make sail and cut. It was blowing hard, with frequent
squalls and heavy rain. One anchor was hove up with great
dilRculty, — the ship lay with her head to the north-west, —
the whole crew, together with 300 soldiers, manned the
top-sail sheets, fore and main tacks, with the )"ards braced
sharp up on the larboard tack. Every thing being ready
for this bold attempt, the order was given, — Let fall, sheet
home, cut the cable ! In an instant the ship felt the power
of the canvass, and started out to seaward through the
surf like a hound slipt from the leash. — The honourable
company's ship Kellie Castle, from not making sufficient
allowance for the northerly set, got to the northward of
Malabar Point, and, working to the southward, struck on
the outer edge of the south-west Prong, and received much
damage.

The south-west monsoon generally sets in at Bombay
about the latter end of Mav or beginning of June ; but

G22

354 NAVIGATION.

commences about fifteen or twenty days sooner near Cape
Comorin and on the southern coast of Malabar. During
the months of June and July the monsoon blows strong,
with frequent hard squalls and constant ram ; notwithstand-
ing which the company's ships every year make t^eir passage
down the coast inside of the Laccadives m the teeth of the
monsoon without difficulty. The whole coast from Bonibay
to Cape Comorin is well kno.%Ti and safe to approach in
the north-east monsoon.

The Laccadives group of islands has not yet been very
accurately surveyed, and therefore great caution is necessary
if a ship should accidentally be forced among them. Ibe
Nine Decrees Channel, to the southward between them and
the island of Minicoy, is perfectly safe, but should not be
passed without paying great attention to the current, which
most commonly sets to the southward in both monsoons
amoncT the Laccadives. To the southward of Mmicoy is
the Efaht Degrees Channel, quite safe ; it is bounded on the
south by the northernmost of the Maldives, another exten-
sive chain of low islands, whose geographical position is
not very accurately determined. Captam Horsburgli has
taken great pains to collate information respectmg them
from the journals of the East India Company's ships. After
giving many extracts, he says, " Although the geographical
positions of the channels which divide the Northern AtoUs
of the Maldive chain ought not to be relied on as perfectly
ascertained, from a deficiency of correct observations yet
the Umits given for the One-and-a-half Degrees Channel, the
Equatorial Channel, and the South Channel may be con-
sidered a near approximation to the truth. Nevertheless
large ships ought always to approach these islands with
great caution, on account of strong currents, often uncertain
in their direction, although generally setting east and west
between the Atolls and in the channels." The shoals which
bound the north end of the Laccadives are very dangerous.
In 1837 the Byramgore was lost on a coral reef between
the northernmost Laccadive and Cherbaniani Reel. 1 his
shoal was unknown till she struck on it ; and the Competitor
in the same year also struck on a shoal among the islands,
whose geographical site is not yet determined.

The north-east monsoon, which is the fine weather sea-
son, commences at Bombay in the middle of November ; and

WRECK OF THE CABALVA. 355

(luring this season most of the wealthy inhabitants raise
bungalows, or tents, on the esplanade close to the sea in
Back Bav. These temporary habitations, rendered neces-
sary bv the heat, which is almost insupportable within the
wails of the fort, have a truly oriental and picturesque effect.
As soon as the south-west monsoon commences, which is,
far excelletice, called the monsoon, the whole of this gay
town disappears as if by magic. It has been remarked,
that finer weather is now experienced than early navigators
met with on the western side of India ; but it may readily
be conceived, that the great improvements, both in construc-
tion and skilful equipment of ships, together with the more
scientific attainments of modem navigators, will sufficiently
account for this, without supposing any material alteratioa
in the weather. *■

The next route from the Cape of Good Hope to the Mala-
bar coast is that to the eastward of the Saya de Mala, and
the Cargados Bank. On this extensive reef the honourable
company's ship Cabalva, of 1200 tons, was wrecked in 1818-
The narrative of this shipwreck presents a melancholy pic-
ture of human suffering and human depravity. The ship
struck on the outer edge of the reef at half-past four in the
morning. In less than half an hour she became a total
wreck. The masts were cut away, and fell towards the
rocks. The sea went over and through the ship's very side
with irresistible force. The distance from the ship to the
nearest dry rocks was about sixty yards ; the space which
intervened was a perfect whirlpool of contending waves.
Most of the crew appear to have reached the shore (if mere
rocks above water can be so termed) unconscious of the
means by which they had been saved. Mr. Ayres, the
purser, thus forcibly describes his own escape — (He, with
about twenty-five others, had got into the large cutter, and
by dint of great exertion cleared her from between the wreck
of the masts. The first wave they encountered dashed
them all out of the boat, with the exception of the fourth
officer, who clung to the thwarts and landed safely) : — " I
was precipitated to the bottom, and as far as regards myself
I never expected to rise from it again. In the supposed
interval of drowning I felt all the horrors that can belong to
that deplorable situation ; and, conscious of the fate which
awaited me, I still retained sufficient mind, as I resigaed

356 NAVIGATION.

mv life to the will of tfee Almighty, to invoke his mercy and
protection towards those objects who were dearest to my
heart, and whom I had now left for ever. In a short time,
however, I felt myself very heavily struck and impelled by
the following surf; sometimes raised for an instant to tire
surface, and then precipitated agam to the bottom. These
tremendous surfs followed in quick succession, and to their
\ impulse, under God, we may all attribute the savmg our
^ lives. Nothin<T could resist their power; hey swept us
away in their long train towards the shore, divesting us of
every possible means of self-caution, or of contnbutmg in
the least towards our ovm salvation ; leaving us m the wash
with barely sufficient power to crawl out and reach terra
frma, and like wretches more than half-drowned and with
bewildered senses, wondering by what means or accident
we had been saved." By about nine o'clock the whole of
the crew (excepting the captain and fourteen men, who were
drowned) had reached the rocks. Their prospects were to
all appearance most appalling and hopeless. Pso land— no-
thing but coral-banks and rocks to be seen in any direction,
and the very spot on which they stood rapidly disappeanng
under the rising tide. Will it be beheved that in this ex-
traordinarv situation, when just rescued from death, without
even waitin<T to know who was saved or who was drowned,
the whole of the seamen, regardless of their officers orders
or entreaties, and before the boat was rescued by means ot
which alone their future escape was practicable, commenced
the most childish and wanton pilfering among the goods
with which the rocks were strewed ! Every package was
broken open, not in search of food, but out of mere cunosity ;
and numbers possessed themselves of articles wholly useless
' to men of their class of life anywhere, but more strikingly so
to forlorn shipwrecked mariners on a lone dreary sand-bank,
with scarcely dry ground to stand upon except at low water.
As wine, spirits, and beer came ashore with the rest of the
car<T0, drunkenness prevailed to a great extent ; all subordi-
natton was at an end ; all obedience ceased. A great many
casks of beer having been thrown upon a bank at some dis-
tance from the one on which the officers lived, most of the
crew went over and established themselves there, calling it
Beer Island ! Several pigs escaped alive, and lived prin-
cipally upon Windsor soap. Eight sheep also landed ahve,

WRECK OF THE CAEALVA. 357

and two bales of hay came on shore very opportunely for
their sustenance. The ship was wrecked on a Tuesday,
and during the week, by dint of great exertion, the officers
and the few that remained faithful to them secured and
repaired the large cutter, intending to despatch her to the
Mauritius for succour. Strange to say, the Beer IsloMders
objected to her going, and the manner in which they were
persuaded to acquiesce is the only redeeming trait of char-
acter these degenerate wretches exhibited durmg their stay
of three weeks at Cargados. Mr. Ayres, who appears to
have shown great presence of mind and decision, wrote xn
pencil a short address or sermon ; and on .Sunday, the men,
by common consent, having mustered round the tent ot the
officers (composed of spars, and covered ^^ith the company s
splendid woollen cloths), he stood up in the cutter tor a
pulpit, and read his sermon. This little composition, prob-
ably the only one ever written or delivered under similar
circumstances, does great credit to the feelings and judgment
of Mr \jTes. It had the desired effect, and immediately
after the sermon, it was agreed to by all hands that the
cutter should be despatched forthwith. Mr. Ayres and the
sixth officer were appointed to make the voyage to the
Alauritius, which they accomplished in three days, under
circumstances of great difficulty and privation. 1 he Magi-
cienne frigate went to Cargados, and took on board the re-
mains of the Cabalva's crew, many of whom left Beer Island,
accordintr to their own confession, with reluctance, as they
had plentv of beer still unconsumed, and regretted leaving
so much '' good stuflf" behind. , .v at ,

Some ships pass up between Madagascar and the Mau-
ritius, others to the eastward of the Mauritius, sightmg (ra-
lega or Agelaga, the geographical position of which is not
very accurately kno%vn.

Lit. l^i>i-

Capt.Briggs,H.M.S.CIorinde,made 560 38*'E.

it Id „ - ■" cc on

S^X^Sn^'M'ST^^nX^.e it:wfor^t.ae leagues
farther east ihan the position given by Capt. ttine.
The adoption of either of these routes will greatly depend
upon the winds a ship meets with on the verge of the south-

358 NAVIGATION.

east trade, and it is an object of importance, not only as
retrards the passage to Bombay, but to all parts of India, to
observe, that little easting can be made after the south-east
trade is entered ; so that, contending with uncertain winds
between the Cape and the limits of the south-east trade, a
spirt of southerly wind should not tempt the navigator to
the northward of lat. 30° south till he is nearly on the me-
^ lidian of the port of India to which he is bound ; and this is
' more particularly necessary when the north-east monsoon
. is prevailing to the northward of the line. The different
routes, such as the Outer, Middle, and Boscawen Passages,
were formerly chosen from circumstances unconnected with
the prevailing winds, such as the geographical site of the
islands or shoals being in some better known than in
others ; it being thought unsafe to approach certain islands,
and supposed shoals, which frightened navigators away
from others. The late surveys of Captain Owen, R. N.,
Captains Ross and Maughan (honourable company's ser-
•vice), together with the indefatigable researches of Captain
Horsburgh, have at length cleared away most of this uncer-
tainty. "Henceforward, then, the choice of the route must
be determined according to the season of the year, by the
■winds then prevailing. Thus, any of the before-mentioned
routes may be adopted by ships which cross the line from
March to October; because the south-west monsoon blows
home to all the coasts of India from about the line in these
months, and therefore a direct course may be pursued to
any of the ports or coasts of India. In the opposite months,
it will be sufficiently obvious that a different course must
be pursued. From the Cape to the limits of the trade un-
certain winds prevail, of which every advantage must be
taken ; and here it may very properly be observed, that
experienced sea officers differ very much on the subject of
carrying sail. Some crack on through every squall while
their sticks wiU stand ; the risk of springing a lower mast
or lower yard is thus very much increased ; and it is need-
less to say how an accident of this kind in a merchant ship,
with few resources for repair on board, would retard the
progress. The following practice is recommended as pre-
ferable : — Never reef, when it can be avoided, off" the wind ;
^reduce sail in time to a squall, but out with every rag
again the mopaent the height of the squall is past. It is

PASSAGE FROM THE CAPE TO INDU. 359

quite certain that ships in the present day make quicker
passages to and from India than formerly. Among other
reasons may be adduced the rehance which is now placed
upon the marine barometer : it enables an attentive observer
of its motions to carry as much sail at night as in the day.
Before this admirable instrument came into common use,
it was customary to reef every night. Captain Meriton, an
excellent officer, while in command of the honourable com-
pany's ship Exeter, used to take two reefs in every night at
sunset.*

At all seasons of the year the three following points
ought to be carefully considered by navigators who are
anxious to make a quick passage from the Cape to any part
of India : —

First, What are the limits of the south-east trade, and
what is the usual direction from which it blows at the pe-
riod when the ship is likely to enter it ]

Secondly, What is the jirobable limit and direction of the
line monsoon at the time ?

Thirdly, Is the north-east or south-west monsoon pre-
vailing to the northward of the usual limit of the line mon-
soon!

These are essential particulars in the navigation of the
Indian seas, and a due attention to them is earnestly re-
commended.

Ships bound for Ceylon while the south-west monsoon is
prevailing to the northward of the line, having proceeded
by Boscawen's or the Middle Passage, may pass through
the South, Equatorial, or One-and-a-half Degrees Channel.
Along the south side of Ceylon westerly winds prevail
nearly eight months in the year, and westerly currents are
also frequent, particularly in October and November, and
they run with considerable velocity. It may not be out of ^
place to observ'e that a westerly wind and a westerly cur-
rent, according to nautical phraseology, run in opposite di-

* This reminds one of the tardy proceedings of Dirk Hudson, one of
the early discoverers of North America, who used to heave-to every
night ; by which sage proceeding he gained a whole night's sleep, —
never ran over, anybody in the night,— and always knew where ho
■was in the morning. It is further related of this ancient mariner, that
he nearly created a mutiny in the Goede Frau of Amsterdam, by inter-
dicting his jolly tars from going aloft with more than six pair of breecbea
OD, or from reefing topsails with pipes in their mouths.

360 NAVIGATION.

sections. Seamen name the wind by the point of the com-
pass/rom which it blows, and the current is always desig-
nated by that point of the compass towards which it is pro-
ceeding. This westerly current near Ceylon may carry a
ship nearer the Maldives than is expedient. If bound for
Colombo, having passed through either of the above-men-
tioned channels, a direct course may be steered ; and in
clear weather Adam's Peak, a very high-peaked mountam
about thirty miles to the eastward of Colombo, will be
fist seen, and is sometimes visible at thirty leagues' dis-
tance. A ship may anchor off the town in six or seven
fathoms, with the flag-staff on the fort bearing south-by-
east. Colombo is in lat. 6° 57' north, long. 80° east, and
is the seat of government. The cinnamon plantations are
in the neighbourhood, and it is a remarkable fact that the
odour of cinnamon is smelt at a great distance off-shore iu
passing Ceylon ; so that

" The spicy gales of Araby the Blest"

are not necessarily mere poetical fictions.

Point de Galle is another settlement towards which a
direct course may be steered. The flag-staff is situated in
lat. 6° 1' north, long. 80'^ 20' east. Large ships anchor in
the roads, in sixteen or eighteen fathoms, with the flag-
staff bearing about north-north-east, two miles off the town.
The inner harbour requires a pilot, the outer roadstead is
jiot safe in the south-west monsoon. There is a high
conical mountain, which is very conspicuous from the offing.
The land to the westward is generally low, with cocoanut
trees fronting the sea, but the land rises in high moun-
tainous ridges to the north-east of Point de Galle. There
are many dangers on the coast of Ceylon, between Point
de Galle and Trincomalee. The Euphrates, honourable
company's ship, was lost by making too free with the shore
near Dondre Head, which is a low bluff point, being the
southernmost land of Ceylon. If bound for Trincomalee,
or the southern part of the Coromandel coast, it is advisable
to fell in with the land hereabouts in the south-west mon-
soon ; and great caution is required in proceeding to the
northward to avoid the Great and I^ittle Basses. It seems
advisable at all times to pass outside of them ; they consist
«f two dangerous ledges of rocks, the highest being just

HARBOUR OF TRINCOMALEE.

361

above the water. After passing Dondre Head, by keeping
alontr the edge of the Bank of Soundings, and never shoal-
in o- the water under thirty-four fathoms, a ship will pass
about two miles outside of the rocks. In clear weather,
and daylight, they may be approached to the depth of
twenty-four fathoms, which is about half a mile from the
Great Basses. About Dondre Head and the Basses the
currents are very uncertain,— sometimes running with great
velocity to the north-eastward; by not observing which
many ships have overshot their reckoning in the night, and
come up with the Basses very unexpectedly. His majesty's
frio-ate Dajdalus, Captain Sir Murray Maxwell, was lost on
the Little Basses, and the fleet under her convoy nearly
shared the same fate. The Elephant Hill is a high isolated
rock on the low land near the sea, and is on-with the Great
Basses, bearing north 5° west. Chimney Hill is pretty
hit^h, near the sea, with a remarkable rock rising from its
side, resembhng a chimney. It is on-with the Little Basses,
bearing north 59° west. Proceeding to the northward,
alono- \he east coast of Ceylon, if bound to Trincomalee,
a ship should keep well in with the coast after passing the
Basses, and make the land (in the south-west monsoon) to
the southward of Flag-staff Point, which is in lat. 8 33i
north, long. 81° 23' east. It is high, bold, is covered with
trees, and has several fortifications on it. This point is
easily known from its bluff appearance, and from th£ land
to the northward and southward being very low ; it is steep-
to, and safe to approach. Trincomalee has little trade, and
is not much frequented, except by the men-of-war on the
Indian station. The harbour is capacious and safe ; al-
thoutrh there are many shoals and rocks in it, yet they are
all well known, and 'there is plenty of room, with good
holding-Tound. The navigation of the harbour is some-
what intricate ; but with Horsburgh's sailing directions and
a chart there is nothing to prevent a stranger either run-
nintr in with a fair wind, or working into the bay. In
former days, when dull-sailing ships were navigated by
dead reckoning, it was usual to keep in soundings if bound
to Madras, after passing Ceylon, in order to avoid the chance
of failin<T in with the land to the northward of Madras, m
the south-west monsoon. In the present day this loss of
time seems unnecessary ; for it is hardly to be supposed
Vol. III.— H h

362 NAVIGATION.

that the commander or officers even of the private ships iff
India are unacquainted with the use of the sextant and
chronometer, by means of which, in clear weather, the ship's
true position can always be ascertained. When there are
three chronometers on board agreeing, great reliance may
be placed on them ; but lunar observations ought never to
be neglected, for their use may suddenly be required when
the practitioner is not prepared to place confidence in his
skill, from want of habit. The following routine is recom-
mended to all navigators on long voyages : —

" Take two sets of observations for the time every fore-
noon and afternoon ; take sights for and work the latitude
by double altitudes every day ; take lunars whenever the
■ moon is in distance with objects east and west of her ; ob-
serve the magnetic variation every twenty-four hours, let
each ofhcer who has charge of a watch be bound to ascer-
tain the latitude by stellar observations at least once every
twenty-four hours. Let the dead reckoning for practical
purposes be always deduced from the ship's last true posi-
tion, as ascertained by observation."

Navigators are gTeatly indebted to Captain Thomas
Lynn, of the honourable company's service, for his ad-
mirable work on navigation, called " Lynn's Tables." He
is the person appointed by the East India Company to ex-
amine young officers in nautical astronomy, and he clso
conducts a naval academy with infinite credit to himself.
Captain Lynn recommends stellar observations to be taken
in the twihght of morning and evening, when the horizon
is generally clear and well defined.*

It is material to observe that Madras is sixty miles west
of Flag-staff Point, and the easternmost part of Ceylon is
in about lat. 7° north. In the north-east monsoon the cur-
rent sets at times strong to the southward, but is liable to
be obstructed. In the south-west monsoon the current
along the Coromandel coast runs to the northward ; and
therefore ships bound for Madras or any other place on this
coast should make the land to the northward or southward

* An admirable and very simple method of computing the latitude by
double altitudes is that of Mr. Samuel Dunn, which is mentioned by
Captain .Lynn in his " Horary Tables" lately published. Captain L.
lias given arguments exactly suited to the solution of this problem in
bis " Aiimutb Tables."

MA.DRAS KOADS. 363

•df tlieir port, as circumstances require. In both monsoons
alono- the whole of the Coromandel const there is a heavy
surf^roliing in upon the shore, which prevents all commu-
nication, except in boats, called masoolah-boats, of a pecu-
liar construction. They are of a clumsy hog-trough shape,
without timbers, and the planks are sewed together ; they
are rowed with ten or twelve paddle-shaped oars, and are very
buoyant and vielding. When the surf strikes them on the
side' the planks bend inwards. The fishermen on this coast
use a catamaran, which is simply three logs tied together,
the middle one being longer than the others, and pomted
a little upwards. This ^simple contrivance is generally
about ten feet in length, and eighteen inches in breadth.
With a man on it the upper edge is generally under water.
Pondicherrv, formerly a French settlement, is in lat. 11°
5G' north, long. 79° 54' east. It is easily distinguished
from seaward, has an agreeable aspect, and may be known
by a remarkable black patch on a long flat hill north-west
of the town, with a grove or tuft of trees on it. A ship
may anchor in six or seven fathoms ofl' the town, m the
fair season. Bound from England to Madras, a ship, having
sighted any part of Cevlon, may shape a direct course for
Madras Flag-statT, which is in lat. 13° 4' north, long. 80°
21' 30" east. In the night the lighthouse may be seen
tive leagues from the deck, and is highly useful in guiding
ships clear of Pulicate Shoal, the south point of which bears
from the Ughthouse north-by-east three-quarters east, thir-
teen miles. If the light is kept to the westward of south-
south-west one-quarter west, the shoal will be avoided.
Madras Roads are open to all winds except from the west.
The anchorage is foul from the many anchors left there.
It is liable to be visited by sudden severe storms, and even
in fine weather there is a heavy swell tumbling in from sea-
ward. From the beginning of October to the 10th or 15th
of December is considered the most dangerous season to
remain in Madras Roads, or in any roadstead on this coast.
It must, however, be observed, that ships remain in Madras
Roads at all seasons, being ready to cut or slip, and run
out to sea on the first intimation of a hurricane. During
the bad weather season ships should lie in Madras Roads
with good sails bent, and close-reef their topsails and courses
be[oie they are furled. With the flag-staff about north-

364 NAVIGATION.

west-by-west, in nine fathoms, two miles from the shore, is
a good berth for a large ship. The masoolah-boats are used
at Madras ; and when the surf is too high for them to go
off, a flag is hoisted at the beach-house called the foul-
weather flag. While this continues flying all communica-
tion with ihe shore is interrupted ; yet the catamaran-men
will at these times venture off with a letter, which they
contrive to keep dry by placing it in their scull-cap, over
which the folds of the turban are tightly twisted.

The coasts of Golconda and Orissa (after passing the Pu-
licate Shoal) may be safely approached in most parts with
the lead.

The approach to the Hoogley in both monsoons is ren-
dered very difficult, from the circumstance of long spits of
sand extending from the mouth of the river, out of sight of
land. Between these sands or reef* are different channels,
and the one now used is bounded on the east by Saugor
Sand, and on the west by the Eastern Sea-reef. The en-
trance to this channel, as before mentioned, is out of sight
of land. Ships bound for Calcutta in the south-west mon-
soon ought to make the land about Pondy or Ganjam, where
it is of considerable height. The Juggernaut pagodas are
a good mark to run for ; the coast abreast them is safe to
approach, and they cannot easily be mistaken. In a clear
day, at a moderate distance, they present a magnificent ap-
pearance. There are three large circular buildings with
domes, and several smaller pagodas ; from the sea they look
like one vast palace. Having passed the pagodas, a course
about north-east-by-east, keeping in about fourteen or fifteen
fathoms, must be shaped for False Point, abreast of which
the soundings are brovsTi sand and shells with black specks ;
but to the northward of False Point, all over False Bay,
the bottom is very soft green mud. With False Point
bearing west-north-west, in fourteen or fifteen fathoms, the
course is north-east ten leagues, to clear the reef off Point
Palmyras ; but the lead is the best guide, and a ship ought
not to come under fourteen fathoms crossing False Bay.
This depth may be increased to fifteen fathoms rounding
the reef off Point Palmyras ; for when the point bears to
the southward of west a ship in fifteen fathoms will not be
far from the edge of its reef. On the island of Mypurra a
Ijo-hthouse has lately been erected, which in cleai" weather

^.PPROACH TO Tire HOOGLEY. 365

5s very useful in rounding the reef, and enables the pilots
to keep their station, which is on a line due east from the
liahlhouse. It is very material not to mistake False for
True Point Palmyras. If a doubt is entertained on the
subject, a ship off False Bay, in fifteen fathoms, by steermg
north, will shoal the water over a bottom of soft mud ; but
from fifteen or sixteen fathoms oif Point Palmyras, and
clear of the north-east edge of the reef, in steermg north
she will deepen her water. In Balasore Roads, or otf Pomt
Pahnvras, the pilot-brig oug-Jit to be found in the south-west
monsoon, although ships beat about for several days before
they find one. It is advisable to anchor under Mypurra
. Island during the night, and stand over towards the Eastern
Sea-reef in the dav. Some navigators have ventured into
Saugor Channel, without having seen the land. The lol-
lowing instance may be adduced, as showmg the practica-
bility of doina so, and will also place in a stnkmg pomt of
view the accuracy of nautical science m the present day :-—
The honourable company's ship Thomas Grenville lett
Encrland on the 12th of June, 1825,— passed the Cape 20th
of Aucrust,— crossed the line in long. 80° east, and stood
right up the bay, u-ilkout having seen any land smce leaving
Eiiirland. Captain Manning, who is an excellent seaman
and' a skilful observer, found, by lunars and chronometers
agreeing, that the ship's true position at noon on the 1st ot
October was in long. 88° £0' east, and lat. 20° 25' north.
He steered north for the mouth of Saugor Channel, and
havin<r run about thirtv-five miles by log, fell in with a pilot-
brig in ten ftithoms water at six o'clock in the evening.

Captain Ross, the company's marine surveyor, states,
that the Ucrht-vessel stationed in the Eastern Channel is
placed in fong. 88° 13' east, and not in 88° 25', as stated
bv Captain Maxfield. And he also thinks the extreme points
of the reefs two miles farther north than they are usually
marked in the charts. Pilots are sometimes to be found on
board this brig, and she \s distinguished dunng the day byu
white flag at her mast-head. o j •

The channel is about five miles wide. Saugor Sand is
steep-to on io^A sides; and the sea-reefs are also steep-to
on their western edges ; but on their eastern sides the depths
decrease gradually, though quickly ; so that turning to wind-
ward in SaugM Chaunel, the soundings must be taken horn
^ Hh2

866 NAVIGATION.

the western side of the channel, and a ship ought to avoid
the risk of a hard cast, standing towards Saugor Sand.
The course of the channel is north-north-west and south-
south-east. In the channel the bottom is soft mud ; on all
the reefs the bottom is hard sand with bright specks like
steel filings. The leadsmen of the pilot-brigs can tell in a
moment by the feel of the ground whether they are on the
reefs or in the channel. The tides have a rise and fall of
ten or eleven feet, and the water is highest over the ground
on the Sea-reefg, and in Bala sore Roads about nine hours
full and change. The tail of the Eastern Sea-reef is in
about lat. 21° north. The first or Reef-buoy is close to
the eastern edge of the Sea-reef, in lat. 21° 16' north, from
whence the course is north-north-west half-west, to the buoys
in Thornhill's Channel. If it is determined to stand over to
the mouth of the Saugor Channel, from Point Palmyras, in
search of a pilot, great attention must be paid to the tides,
and the reefs ought to be approached about the first of the
flood, as ships cannot work to the southward again till the
ebb makes. If a ship could, in a clear day, about noon,
when the latitude has been obtained, and with the last of
the flood, be near the tail of the Western Sea-reef, she rnight
venture to cross and look into Saugor Channel, and either
anchor there or work to the southward with the ebb.

At all times during the south-west monsoon great caution
is requisite in approaching the Hoogley. Cloudy weather,
with frequent hard squalls and rain, may be expected, par-
ticularly from May to September. In June and July, which
are the worst months, ships standing towards the Western
Sea-reef, across Balasore Roads, or towards any of the reefs,
ought to have good canvass bent, and have every thing
ready for turning to windward, in the event of suddenly
getting a hard cast on any of the reefs, which spread out to
seaward from the mouth of the river something in the form
of a human hand, supposing Saugor Sand to be the thumb.
From Point Palmyras, the flood-tide sets over towards the
Eastern Sea-reef with considerable velocity on the springs ;
but close to and over the reef of Palmyras, the flood sets
towards the mouth of Kanaka river. In July the freshets
from the river cause a drain of current to the southward.
A ship under way off the mouth of the Hoogley ought never
to neglect the lead for one moment.

In the north-east monsoon, which generally commences

HOMEWARD VOYAGE. 367

early in October along the head of the bay, the pilots cruise
off "the tail of Saugor Sand, in lat. 21° north, and long,
about 88° 40' east. It is very essential at this season to
keep well to windward of the reefs, for the tides set con-
stantly to the west and south-west. Coming up the bay
in the north-east monsoon, a ship should get into about lat.
21° 7' north, well to the eastward of Saugor Sand, and steer
west in eight and a half fathoms at low water, and ten at
high water. In this parallel, the bottom is soft till the
depth suddenly decreases over a hard bottom on Saugor
Sand. The success of this proceeding will greatly depend
on a strict attention to the tides ; for if a ship is set to the
southward of 21° 7', in running westward she will miss
the Saugor Sand, and get her first hard cast on the Eastern
Sea-reef It seems therefore advisable to cross the tail of
Saugor Sand, and work up as far as the Reef-buoy in search
of a'pilot, taking care not to stand more than one-half or
two-thirds of the channel over towards the Saugor Sand.
When the north-east monsoon is prevailing in the Bay of
Bengal, ships bound for Calcutta should enter the southern
limit of the south-east trade, so as to enable them to cross
the line in about long. 90° east. From about 10° south
lat., variable winds, mostly from west and north-west, may be
espected till the limit of the north-east monsoon is reached.
From the equator a course ought to be shaped with refer-
ence to the winds encountered ; thus, if the wind hang to
the eastward, endeavour to close with the Nicobars, and
stand up the bay to the westward of these islands and the
Andamans. The old practice of going to the eastward is
now exploded, and a ship is more likely to make a passage
by working up the east side of the bay in the open sea, than
by closing with the Arracan shore or Andaman Islands.

It wiirbe needful to make a few remarks on the home-
ward voyage, although most of the foregoing observations
may be applied generally to outward or homeward bound
ships. From Bengal or Madras, homeward bound ships
should, at all seasons of the year, endeavour to cross the
line in about 87° or 90° east long. ; and, having entered the
south-east trade, it will be prudent, particularly in February,
March, and April, to pass well to the eastward of Roderigue,
to avoid the hurricanes which sometimes occur in the vicinity
of this island and the Mauritius. These hurricanes are less

S68 NAVIGATION.

severely felt in proportion as the distance is increased to
the eastward of the islands. Ships from the Malabar coast
should endeavour to take a departure from about Dondre
Head, and cross the line in 85'^ east, which will enable them
to give Roderigue a wide berth. From April to November,
storms seldom happen near Mauritius ; and in these months,
thirty or forty leagues is a sufficient distance at which to
pass ; at other times, the islands ought not to be approached
nearer than eighty or ninety leagues. In one of these hur-
ricanes it is supposed the gallant Trowbridge was lost with
all his crew, in his majesty's ship Blenheim. In general,
ships run rapidly through the south-east trade, towards
the Cape of Good Hope. The south end of Madagascar
should be passed at a distance of thirty or forty leagues,
and a course shaped to fall in with the coast of Africa about
Point Natal.

In a preceding part of this article, instructions are given
for making a passage round the Cape by help of the current.
In the winter months ships cannot be too well prepared for
bad weather on approaching the Cape, and crazy ships
should keep well in with the land, where they will have
smooth water and less wind than is experienced far on the
bank. It is not thought dangerous to hug the land, as the
wind seldom blows strong from the south. If a ship is beat-
ing round the Cape with a westerly wind, she should en-
deavour to have a good offing when about the meridian of
Cape LaguUas, particularly towards the conclusion of a
north-west gale, by which she will be enabled to bear up for
St. Helena much sooner than if she happened to be in with
the land when the wind veered to the southward and west-
ward, which it commonly does towards the end of a gale.
Ships from Bombay bound to England in November or De-
cember, may proceed by the Mozambique Channel ; but
southerly winds are often experienced there in February.
The current setting to the south along the African shore will
always help a ship through this channel, and she may pass
in sight of Cape Corrientes, where it is very strong. Except
in November and December, ships from Bombay should go
by the outer passage round Roderigue.

From the Cape to St. Helena ships commonly experience
fair winds and pleasant weather. A south-easter off Table
Bay will frequently carry a ship into the south-east trade.

HOMEWARD VOYAGE. 369

The course to St. Helena from the Cape is north-north-west
half-west, and it may be safely approached in the night ;
but ships are not allowed to anchor till they have commu-
nicated with the shore, either by signal or by a boat sent
to the fort on Sugar-loaf Point. The best anchorage is in
sixteen or eighteen fathoms, with the street of James Town
open. The geographical site of the town is long. 5° 36J'
west, lat. 15° 55' south.* From St. Helena a ship departs
with the trade-wind, and may shape a course to pass on
either side of Ascension as most expedient. From Ascen-
sion a north-north-west course ma}' be steered for the equa-
tor, which should be crossed in 18° or 20° west, as before
directed. From the line a ship ought to keep on the tack
which will give most northing till she meets the north-east
trade. From lat. 24° or 25° north in this route will be
seen the gulf-weed, which covers the whole face of the wa-
ters to about 40° or 41° north lat. By catching a quantity
of this weed in passing, many curious marine animals may
be collected which are found upon it. In the gulf-stream
the temperature of the water is 4° or 5° higher than the
temperature of the atmosphere. The north-east trade
generally carries a ship far to the westward, and nothing
can be conceived more provoking than the continuance of
easterly winds after a ship has got as far as 30° or 35°
north, forcing her daily farther in distance from the " desired
haven." It is advisable to pass to the westward of the
Western Islands or Azores. They are nine in number, with
safe channels between them all. The two which form the
north-western corner of the group are most commonly seen
by homeward-bound ships from India. Flores, the western-
most, is in lat. 39° 33' north, long. 31° 11' west. Corvo is
separated from Flores by a channel three or four leagues
wide, and is in lat. 39° 42i' north, long. 31° 6' west. After
passing the Azores, a direct course should be pursued for
the Lizard.

In the foregoing pages the variation of the compass in
different parts of the globe is rarely mentioned, on account
of its constant fluctuation, and because it is presumed that
every careful navigator ascertains the magnetic variation of
the compass by observation every twenty-four hours, when-

* Captain Owen-^t. Helena, town, long. 5° 44' W., lat. 15° 54' 9.

370 STEAM NAVIGATION BY THE RED SEA.

ever the weather will admit of it, and corrects his courses
and bearings accordingly. The local variation of the com-
pass, since first observed by Captain Flinders, has been the
subject of much speculation. For scientific purposes, the
local variation must be carefully ascertained ; but for the
common uses of navigation it is not quite so important.

CHAPTER XVII.

Proposed Steam Communication between England and the
East Indies by the Red Sea.

Voyage of Sir John Malcolm from Bombay to Cosseir in the Hugh Lind-
say Steamer— Reasons for preferring the Route by Cosseir to that by
Suez— Siie of Vessels— To be manned from the Indian Navy— Coals —
Sir John Malcolm's Opinion of the Advantages of this Communication
— Obstacles to it— The Plague — Winds in the Red Sea— Post-office
Regulations — Mr. Waghorn's Remarks on the Navigation of the Nile—
Sleam-tugs on the Ganges.

A COMMUNICATION with India by means of steam has
lately occupied the attention, not only of individuals, but
of the government in India. The different passages to In-
dia round the Cape of Good Hope, by steamers, have been
all unsuccessful as to time ; and it may fairly be doubted
whether steam will ever compete with sails on this long
passage. The honourable company's ship Thomas Coutts
made the passage to Bombay in eighty-four days, — the Atlas
in eighty-three, — and ninety da3's is not considered as any
thing very extraordinary by some of the free-traders, such
as the Roxburgh Castle and others. Mr. W^aghorn, an
enterprising ofticer of the Bengal pilot service, is the princi-
pal advocate and projector of the passage by steam round
the Cape. The route by the Red Sea having been lately
traversed with complete success by Sir John Malcolm, our
observations shall be confined to this route. The present
Pacha of Egypt is higlily favourable to the establishment of
steam-packets at Alexandria, and would afford every facility
on the land journey, if this great object is undertaken by
government. The following observations (in substance)

PASSAGE OF THE HUGH LINDSAY. 371

were most kindly supplied by Sir John Malcolm : — He left
Bombay on the 5th of December, 1830, for England, in the
honourable company's steamer Hugh Lindsay. Arrived at
Macula on the 14th of December, and remained there three
days to take in coals, water, and refreshments. Macula is
situated on the coast of Arabia, at the mouth of the Red
Sea, where there is good anchorage and a safe harbour.
Arrived at Juddah on the 22d of December, and remained
there two days to take in coals, water, &c. Arrived at Cos-
seir in Egypt on the 27th of December ; having been at
anchor nearly six days, and actually steaming from Bombay
to Cosseir in sixteen days and twelve hours. If Sir John
had gone to Suez instead of Cosseir, he is of opinion he
would certainly have reached that place on the 29th, and
misht easily have arrived at Alexandria on the 2d or 3d of
January ; but he went to Cosseir to meet Lord Clare, the
new governor of Bombay, who was appointed to succeed
him. Sir John passed twenty-seven days in Egypt " seeing
the lions." He then went to Malta in a frigate, which oc-
cupied eleven days ; a steamer could accomplish it with ease
in seven. He sailed from Malta in the Meteor steamer on
4th February, 1831 ; arrived at Gibraltar on 12th February ;
remained there two days to take in coals, water, &c., and
sailed on the 14th. Arrived at Falmouth on 25th February,
having had only three days' fair wind between Malta and
England.

Sir John is of opinion that in future two days may be
saved in the passage from Bombay up the Red Sea by im-
proving the power of the steamer, and that despatches may
be carried from Bombay to Alexandria in twenty-four days,
for nine months of the year ; during the other three months
the progress of the steamers will be impeded by the violence
of the northerly winds. Sir John recommends the route by
Cosseir to Alexandria for passengers, in preference to that
by Suez, the latter being much exposed to inundation and
other inconveniences. As to the relative advantages or
disadvantages of building, it is executed equally well and
stronger in^Bombay than in England. Teak is belter than
oak ; and the Hugh Lindsay was built so correct to the
model, that her large engines (two of eighty-horse power)
fitted on to almost a hair's breadth. IVo change has been
made in this vessel, except cutting her paddle-boards six

372 STEAM NAVIGATION BY THE RED SEA.

inches, which, tried on the second voyage, has been fovmd
an improvement, owing perhaps to the depth of water she
drew when overloaded with ten days' coal, which is three
if not four days' more than this fine man-of-war steamer
was built to carry. The Hugh Lindsay steamed from
Bombay to Cosseir, a distance of 2700 miles, in sixteen
days and twelve hours, which is an average of seven knots
an hour. The passage from Bombay to Cosseir will, from
1st September to 1st June, be always made in twenty-one
days, including the taking in of coals ; and to Suez in twenty-
three davs. Mr. Barker, his majesty's consul-general in
Egypt, thinks that, with a relay of dromedaries, packets
raii^ht be sent by the Desert from Cosseir to Alexandria in
six'or seven days ; and this would prevent the possibility
of stoppage from the inundation of the Nile. It would also
save four°or five days' coal in going to Suez and returning,
and the expense and trouble of depositing and shipping it
at a place where vessels must anchor five miles from the
shore. At Cosseir they lie close to the town, and have in
all weather safe anchorage, besides plentiful supplies, good
water, and a land carriage for packets and passengers.
With respect to the latter, few will go this route that do not
desire to see Upper Egypt ; this they could not do without
much trouble and expense if they went to Suez.

With regard to passengers, they should not be counted
upon as ever likely to remunerate government for the ex-
pense of steam-vessels between Bombay and Egypt. These
vessels should be built as packets. There cannot be a better
model than the Meteor, or the Admiralty yachts, which are
about 300 tons, with round sterns, and the cabins lighted by
sky-lights. The vessels for the Red Sea might have about
two feet beam more than the Meteor, and two sixty, instead
of two fifty-horse power engines. This would greatly
increase the speed. They might carry eight or ten passen-
gers with very limited accommodation, and they could be
provided with a plain table by the commander of the vessel
for half the price charged (the same as his majesty's steamers
to Malta), the other half going in part payment of coals.
No other plan will succeed. As to passengers, there is not,
and will not be for many years, any intercourse between
India and England bv this route that will make passengers
profitable ; and no extra expense is warrantable on thus

DIFFICULTY OF SCPPLYIXG COAL. 373

account. The expense of coals in the Meteor was eight
chaldrons per diem ; but this last voyage it was diminished
to seven, from having the fiery-vein coal from Wales. With
this coal, such a vessel as before mentioned, with sixty-horse
power, would not require beyond nine chaldrons of coal per
diem ; and if either Mr. Morgan's plan is approved of, or
the experiment of cylindrical boilers and expansion engines,
now trying by Captain King at Falmouth under orders of
the Admiralty, succeeds, which is probable, the consumption
of coal will be decreased one-third. Lord William Bentinck,
Sir Charles Malcolm, and Captain Wilson, commander of
the Hugh Lindsay, concur in the opinion of the size of the
vessels for the Red Sea. Lieutenant Symons was also con-
sulted (who has for some time commanded the Meteor), and
Captain King.

To give success to this plan, the execution of every part
of it should be left to the government of Bombay, and cer-
tainly the vessels should in all, except the engines, be built
and equipped in India. It is further quite essential for this
and general purposes, that they should be officered and
manned from the Indian navy. Experienced and steady
lieutenants or masters will command them, and these should
not only possess a complete knowledge of the engines and
steam-navigation, but the most intelligent midshipmen of
the Indian navy should be instructed in that science ; while
English and half-caste boys should be educated, as they
now are, to supply the place of engineers from Englafid,
who are a great expense and trouble.

With regard to coals, government has not yet been suc-
cessful in finding any in Cutch. The death of Mr. Macul-
ioch, who was a good geologist, has for a period stopped the
prosecution of the search in quarters where the coal might
have proved less superficial than where first discovered.
Doctor Christie, who has gone to the Continent with the
intention of proceeding to his station at Madras, by Bom-
bay, has received the sanction of the court of directors to
employ himself two years in scientific pursuits, and is stated
by competent judges to be an able geologist. He has prom-
ised to visit Cutch ; but it would be useful to desire that if
he is so inclined he should have every reasonable aid, for the
object is of importance. Until coals are found on the west-
ern side of India, they must be imported from Ensland;

Vol. III.— I i

374 STEAM NAVIGATION. BY THE RED S£A.

but they may be brought as ballast at a very moderate rate,
and, with all wastage, may, it is supposed, be deposited at
ports in the Red Sea cheaper than by the route of Egypt-
Vessels going at certain seasons through the Strait of
Madagascar would lose little by depositing them at Mocha :
but these are points of mere calculation. The authorities
in England should be cautious in attending to plans and
maps as to depots and other matters connected with this
part of the subject. Those that give them only know the
general features of the question. For instance, Socotra
appears a most desirable place for a depot ; but it has yet
no supplies for a vessel, nor is there any town to aid in
loading or unloading cargoes of coals, xhese are for the
present great objections. The government of Bombay will
early discover what is best, both for economy and expedi>-
tion ; and a well-qualified young officer of the Indian navy,
of whom many speak Arabic, should remain at Cosseir as
an agent to secure quick lading and depositing, and to be
in communication with the consul-general, to accelerate the
despatches to Alexandria.

By this route and mode packets from Bombay will cer-
tainly be dehvered for nine months of the year at Alexan-
dria in twenty-eight days. The passage from Malta to
that place will not average more than seven or eight days
for a steamer, and one of a small class kept by his majesty's
government would be sufficient, if no enterprising individual
undertakes it, and there is so much traffic that the passen-
gers would pay well. The Pacha of Egypt neither is nor
will be inimical to this line of communication ; on the con-
trary, he will rejoice in this and every opportunity of meet-
ing the wishes of a country on whose friendship and good
feeling he has become from his condition so very dependent.
The attention of the government of Bombay may be so far
directed to the communication by Bassorah or the Eu-
phrates, as to send a minute report on the subject ; and
should it at any period prove more eligible than by the Red
Sea, the same vessels which answer for the one line will
perfectly suit the other ; and this, therefore, can be no
ground of delay to the immediate establishment of so im-
portant an object as a steam-communication with India.
The following extract, from a minute by Sir John Malcolm,
will further show his opinion on the subject. These obser-

OPINION OF SIR JOHN MALCOLM. 375

nations are highly valuable, proceeding as they do from the
comprehensive and intelligent mind of Sir John Malcolm,
who can viev? the subject in all its bearings with the eye
of practical experience : —

" I have on several occasions stated the great importance
of having an establishment of steam-vessels attached to
the Indian na%'y, both for purposes of war and keeping up
the communication with Europe. There is yet only one
steamer in this service, the Hugh Lindsay ; there cannot
be a finer vessel for the purposes for which she was built, —
that of an armed steamer. She has two engines of eighty-
horse power each, and can carry eight guns, with coal for
six or seven days : goes very fast, and against any sea.
This vessel, though too expensive and too large to take
packets to Suez, has been used for that purpose, and per-
formed the voyage, at a season of the year not the most
favourable, in twenty-one days' steaming. She actually
steamed, at as high a pressure as could be applied the first
stage, to Aden, 1640 miles, in ten days and nineteen hours,
and that with a contrary wind. She went, when deeply
laden with coal, five and a half knots, but increased her rate
to full nine knots when lightened.

" It is the opinion of the superintendent of the Indian
navy, and has been transmitted as such to the honourable
the court of directors, that a class of small vessels, like
those employed in packet service from Milford-haven to
Ireland, would be the best to keep up the communication
with Europe by the Red Sea. This is also, I observe,
from his minute upon the subject, the opinion of the gov-
ernor-general ; and Captain "Wilson, the commander of the
Hugh Lindsay, on whose judgment, from his full knowledge
of the seas, and experience of navigation by steam, I would
implicitly rely, thinks that a vessel of 270 tons, built more
with a view to the capacity of stowing coal than very rapid
steaming, would make Suez in two stages, taking in coals
only at Mocha, where, if she did not draw more than ten
feet, she could be at all seasons in smooth water, and with
security against every wind. This voyage would require
that she should carry thirteen days' coals, as it is a distance
of 1780 miles, and cannot be expected to be performed in
iess than eleven or twelve days.

*' If this quantity of coal cannot be carried, the first stage

37(» STEAM NAVIGATION BY THE RED SEA.

must be Macula, and the second Judda, as at present these
are both excellent ports for shipping coals, as a vessel can
lie close to the shore ; but having three stages instead of
two would cause a delay of at least two days ; and with two
Captain Wilson calculates the voyage from Bombay to
Suez cannot be performed to a certainty under twenty-five
days. But it appears to me, if one of three vessels was
kept at Mocha, and her furnace lighted as another hove in
siuht, this voyage would be reduced to three weeks, and
ample opportunity given to the steamers to put in order or
repair any slight injury to the machinery, as well as to pro-
cure supplies ; and with the establishment of packets the
communication might be kept up by vessels sailing every
five or six weeks from Bombay, and from Suez nine months
of the year. In June, July, and August a steamer would
easily come from the Red Sea ; but could not return against
the violence of the south-west monsoon. There would be
a great advantage in keeping a small steamer a^ Mocha,
from the power the Indian government would possess
of sending, on emergency, a saiUng vessel or boat during
five months of the year, which, having a fair wind, would
be certain of that passage in fifteen or sixteen days. With
this number of packets, and another armed steamer, carry
ing four or six guns, and not drawing more than eight feet
water, Bombay would be complete in this essential branch
of naval establishment. Besides the keeping up a rapid
communication with Europe by the Red Sea, that by the
Persian Gulf would be improved, and we should, beyond
ordinary service and putting down piracy, be prepared to
give efficient aid in every naval service in India. Nor is it
speculative to suppose that emergencies may arise on which
the ready application of this powerful arm of our force on
the Indus or the Euphrates might be of the most essential
service to the general interests of the empire.

" To secure all these objects it is indispensable, in nay
opinion, that in whatever way steamers are employed in
this quarter, they should be exclusively navigated by the
Indian navy ; for it is of much importance that a scientific
knowledge of the engines and their management should be
generally diffused throughout this service. We must not
omit the opportunity to form men capable of performing
and directing all the duties which belong to such vessels

OBSTACLES TO THIS COMMUNICATION. 377

With the able and intelligent officers this navy can boast
of, and the number of fine youths it contains, I cannot have
a doubt but thev will easily attain a proficiency in this line
of service that' may prove of much consequence to the
general interest ; and I must further expect that through
the instruction given to European and East Indian boys at
the Mint and in the steamers, we shall be early independent
of those engineers now sent from England at such expense,
and who have proved themselves in several cases so un-
worthy of the liberal treatment and confidence placed m

them."

The complete success which has attended the establish-
ment of steam vessels on our shores has led to exaggerated
expectations regarding the proposed steam communication
with India; anil although great advantages must imme-
diately accrue from the very commencement, it would be
unwis"e to overlook the obstacles which really exist. The
first and greatest is the plague, which, being of periodical
as well as accidental recurrence, causes a rigorous ad-
herence to the quarantine laws in the Mediterranean. The
following extract of a letter from Sir John Malcolm to
Sir George Don, Governor of Gibraltar, refers to this sub-
ject : —

"I would not trouble your excellency respectmg the
quarantine on the steamer were it not a question connected
with the important object of establishing rapid communi-
cation with India, the success of which depends upon as
few impediments as possible being made to the delivery of
packets, and the arrival in England of those charged with
them. Though it would be an accommodation to me per-
sonally to have pratique to-morrow before we sail, I could
not presume to address your excellency on any ground but
that of the public service. I am more anxious, as I know
our first statesmen are desirous to promote this communica-
tion between India and England, and some who are op-
posed may find in any impediments that occur a ground of
argument against its establishment from the opinion they
entertain upon the subject."

The plague season at Alexandria commences about the
20th of February, and ends about the 20th of June. The
winds in the Red Sea are periodical. About the latter end
of May usually the northerly winds commence to blow down

Ii2

378 STEAM NAVIGATION BY THE RED SEA.

the whole Red Sea, and continue till October. From Oc-
tober to May the southerly winds prevail in the southern
latitude of the Red Sea only. In the northern latitudes the
northerly winds prevail during the whole year. The limits
of the two opposite winds, or the region of change, may
be placed between the 18° and 20° of north latitude. In
June, July, and August the northerlj' winds are strongest
near Suez. The end of June and beginning of July is the
proper season of arrival at Alexandria. The northerly
winds do not commence in the southerly part of the Red
Sea till the end of May, and continue till October.

It must not be overlooked that the existing post-office
regulations are inimical to private enterprise as connected
with the establishment of a steam communication to India
hy the Red Sea. By law all vessels to India are compelled
to take letter-bags free ; therefore no remuneration can be
derived from the conveyance of letters.

Mr. Waghorn's remarks on the navigation of the Nile
are as follows : — " There is no river in the world, perhaps,
that baffles a just description on this head more than the
Nile : its depth at Rosetta is sometimes ten feet. A north-
erly gale blowing in the Mediterranean vrould completely
close this up, and even raise a sand-bank in its place,
stopping the whole navigation between Alexandria, by not
allowing even a passage for the jerms or corn-boats to ar-
rive there. This will continue till the torrents gather, in
consequence of the sudden check thus experienced, and
again open the same passage by the strength of their
pressure. Again, there are certain parts in the river, one
in particular at Shallakan, where shoals constantly exist ;
the depth of water consequently depends upon the strength
of the current at the time. It was December when I
passed, and the depth of water was only two feet six
inches at places : there are many others where the channel
IS only four feet, with deep holes from thirty to forty.
Steam navigation on the Nile could not admit of comfort,
because the small class of the vessel would not allow it ;
but it would be perfectly useless, as the distance by water
doubles that of the land, and from the canal of Alexandria
only being navigable three months out of twelve ; and
if such a casualty took place as the gale before mentioned,
there would be no water communication whatever till the

ROUTE RECOMMENDED BY MR. WAGHORN. 379

obstacle was removed by the river's current washing it
away."

The Nile runs ebb the whole year. Mr. Waghom re-
commends the following route-: — From London to Ancona
by land in nine days ; thence to Alexandria by steam in
seven days ; to Suez in five days ; from Suez to Bom-
bay a steamer will generally accomplish the passage in
twenty-three days, including the stoppage at Mocha for
supplies.

Before quitting the subject of steam, it may be as well
to mention that the Bengal government have adopted a
plan for establishing steam-tugs for towing passengers'
baggage, and cargo boats on the Ganges. Many persons
undergo more fatigue, and are sometimes longer in a voy-
age from Calcutta to the upper provinces than on that from
England.

THE END.

HARPER'S FAMILY LIBRARY.

- Books that y<m may carry to the fire, a7id hold readily m your hcmd,
are the most Jeful after all. A man u;U often ^^f ''l^^^C^^
tf-antti to go on, When he would have been /lightened at lyooks of aUarger
vtze,andvfa more erudite appearance:'— D)^. Johnson.

Thk proprietors of the Family Library feel themselves stimulated t«
iiicresse,! exertions by the distmgmsheJ favour witli winch it has already

^^Tl'v^'^volmnes now before the public may be confidently appealed to
as proofs of zeal on the part of the publishers to present to their readers
a sene* of productions, which, as they are connected, not with ephemeral,
but with permanent subjects, may, years hence as weU as now,^be con-
eulted for hvelv amusement as well as solid instruction.

To render this Library stili more wonliy ol patronage, tt^ pn^ne-
tors propose incorporating in it such works of interest and value as
nTv api.rr in the various Libraries and Miscellanies now preparing in
Eurq.^ Ta^cularty the " National" and the " Edinburgh Cabinet" Libra-
ries All these ppxluctions. as they emanate from the press, will be
submitted to a committee of literary gentlemen for '"^f ^",'>" ! f"^. "°'^
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exalted character which this Library has already acquired. .,..„.

Several well-known authors have been engaged to prepare for it onginal
works of an American character, on History, Biography, Travels, &c. &c.

Everv distinct subject wUl in general be comprehended in one volume,
or at most in three volumes, which nwy form either a portion of the
eenes or a complete work by itself; and each volume wiU be embelUsUed
with appropriate engravings. , ,_ , • _„ „>,„

The entire series will be the production of authors of enunenee, who
have acquired celebntv by their literarj- labours, and whose names as
thev api^ar in succession, will afford the surest guarantee to the public
for 'the satisfactory manner in which the subjects will be treated.

•Snch is the plan bv which it is intended to form an American Family
library, composing all that is valuable in those branches of knowledge
which most happily unite entertainment with instruction. The mmo;,t
care mil be lakVSi, not only to exclude whatever can have an injurions
influence on the mind, but to embrace ever)- thing calculated to strengthen
the best and most salutary impressions.

With these arrangements and facilities, the publishers flatter them
Belves that they shall be able to present to their fellow-citizens a worjs
of unparalleled merit and cheapness, embracing subjects adapted to all
cia.s9es of readers, and forming a body of literature deserving the praise
of having instructed many, and amused all ; and above eveo' other spe-
cies of eulogv, of being fit to be introduced, without reserv-e or exception,
bv tho father'of a familv to the domestic circle. Meanwhile, the very low
uflce at which it is charged renders more extensive patronage necei«ary
for its support and prosecution. The immediate encouragement there
fore of iliose who approve its plan and expedition is respectfully soI:cite<l
The wort m^v be ouiained ni complete sets, or m separate miiub«r*
»o;n iho paiKiyal boolvwUers throUfciioui the Uiuied Stat**.

Notices of the Family Library.

execution, it well deserves no lamuy.i ^ Ljbrarv, as it furnishes
dren to be brought 'iP'^^S l'J°educa on vWch ought to accompany or
the readiest resources ff^i^i^*=J.':''"i,g academy, Ind is infinitely more

:SrrS?o1Sral^n^^^^^^^^^^

I.ibrarv into the hands ot his cnuareii. a^.x.jj ^ . ..

rarure'th^U^is^TuTaXr^serh^eSoral^^^
nf thp neoDle." — Constellation. .

•We have repeatedly borne testimony to the utility of this work. It is

kuowled"-e."— BosJo'i Statesman.

° We venture the assertion that there is no publication in the country
n,or^S. adapted to the '-- a,u| reqmr—

^'^We have so often recommended t^s enterprising and useful pu^^^^^^^^^
tion (the Family Library), that ^^^ can >t"e on^y add,_that^ac^^^^^^^
■sive numbtr appears to confirm its merited popuiariij . _'''•'

'xhe lit. e volumes of .his series truly comport ^vith their title^ and are
m themselves a Family Library."-iV. Y. Commerc^al Adverser.

..we recommend ;he^^^^^^
SfnUTs^wUh « we' are acquainted."- 17. S Gazette.

.. It will prove instructing and amusing to all classes. We are pleased

riSvs ;ss=ti ;s.'-;fffir -^^^^^^^^^^^^

"The Family Library is. what its name implies, a collection of various

;r,t\Sd^-the;nrebrSderate\"_^^^^^

A .„ coo tiTjf ihi nnhlishers have obtained sulncient en-
eo^^SSlo^contlnullhr^^^^^^

^"« Th?Familv Library presents, in a compendious and convenient form,

rurerr«"tare^el%t;rr' pr^ce'atnong those witU .horn ,hey

Sbiie."— Charleston Gazette.

Recommendations of the Family Library.

The following opinions, selected from highlj- respectable Journals, will
enable those who are unacquainted with the Family Library to form an
estimate of its merits. Numerous ether notices, equally favourable, and
from sources equally respectable, might be presented if deemed necessary.

"The Family Library.— Avery excellent, and always entertaining Mis-
cellany."— Edinburgh Review, Ao. 103.

" The Family Library.— We think this series of books entitled to the
extensive patronage they have received from the public. The subjects
B€lecte<l are, generally, both useful and interesting in themselves, and are
treated in a popular and agreeable manner : the style is clear, easy, and
flowing, adapted to the taste of general readers, for whom the bonks are
designed. The \\Titers are mostly men of high rank in the literary world,
and appear to possess the happy talent of blending instruction with

amusement We hesitate not to commend it to the public as a valuable

series of works, and worthy a place in every gentleman's library."— J/a^a-
zine of Useful aiid Entertaining Knowledge.

" We take the opportunity again to recommend this valuable series of
Tolumes to the public patronage. We know of no mode in which so much
entertaining matter may be procured, at so cheap a rate, as in the Family
Library."— N. Y. Daily Advertiser.

" The Family Library should be in the hands of every person. Thus
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and agreeable style We have so repeatedly spoken of the merits of the

design of this work, and of the able manner in which it is edited, that on
this occasion we will only repeat our conviction, that it is worthy a place
in every library in the country, and will prove one of the most useful as
it is one of the most interesting publications which has ever issued from
the American press."— lY. Y. Courier 6f Enquirer.

" It is needless at this late period to commend to public attention and
encouragement the collection of delightful works now in a course ol jiub
Ucation under the appropriate title of the Family Library."— JV. Y. Eve
ning Journal.

" We have repeatedly expressed our unwavering confidence in the
merits of this valuable series of popular and instructive books. The
Family Library has now reached its sixteenth number, with the increasing
lavour of the enlightened American public ; and we have heard of but
irm dissenting voice among the periodical and newspaper publishers who
h;ive frequently noticed and applauded the plan and the execution of the
Family Library. A censure so entirely destitute of reason cannot injure
a class of publications pure in sentiment and judicious andtasteOU in
composition."— Tfte Cabinet of Religion, ic.

" The names of the writers employed are a sufficient surety that the

merit of the Family Library will suflTer no decline."— iV. Y. Evening Post.

"The Family Librarv is a collection which should be sougnt after by

every one desirous of procuring the most valuable new works in the

cheaiwst and most convenient form."— iV. Y. Daily Sentinel.

"Those who condense and arrange such works for publication, and
they also who promulgate them, richly deserve the thanks and patronage
of all enlightened communities in the country. The Family Library
promises to be a most useful and cheap repository of the most important

events of profane, ancient, and modern history A series of volumes,

well conducted, and published with such stirring contents, cannot fail to
surpass all drv encvclopcdias, or diffuse and elaborate histories or biogra-
phies, miserably translated, and extended to the very stretch of ver-
bosity "—Philadelphia Giuettb

FAMILY CLASSICAL LIBKARY.

The Publishers have much pleasure in recording
the following testimonials in recommendation of the
Family Classical Libraiy.

" Mr Valpy has projected a Family Classical Litrrary The idea ia
excellent, aad the work cannot faU to be acceptable to youth of both sexes
as well aa to a large portion of the reading community, who have n jt liaJ
the benefit of a learned education."— fiert«e»iafi's Magazine, Dec. 182i».
" VVe have here the commencement of another undertaking for the mora
general distribution of knowledge, and one which, if as well conducted
Is we may expect, bids fair to occupy an enlarged station in our imme-
diate literature. The volume before us is a specimen well calculated to
recommend what are to foUow. Leland'a UemoslUenes is an excelleul
work." — Lit. Gazette. . ^ ,

" This work will be received with great gratification oy every man who
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those illustrious models. To extend the knowledge of such works is to
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"The Family Clsissical Library is another of those cheap, usetul, ana
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" This work, published at a low price, is heautifuUy got up. Thougn
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To them this work will he a treasure."- Sii^Kiajr Times.

"This design, which is to communicate a knowledge of the most
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execution well accords with the design, it must command general appro-
h:,i ion."— Tlie Observer.

'■ We see no reason why tliis work should not find its way into th«
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<'

♦

f

PLEASE CK) NOT REMOVE
CARDS OR SLIPS FROM THIS POCKET

UNIVERSITY OF TORONTO LIBRARY

DS Murray, Hugh

4-36 Historical and descrlotiv

account of British India'

M8

1832

V.3

HARPER'S FAMILY LIBRARY.

No;. . -, - niman's History
01 iheJews. WUh plates 3t.

4.5. Lochhart'a Li.'e of Napo-
leon Bonapar' 8. Plates-. 2 V.

6, SouiUey's Life of Nelson 1, v.

t. WilUam.'s's Life of Alexan-
der iheGreat. Plates.... It.
Natural History of Insucta 1 v.
Gait's Life of Lord Byron 1 v.

10- Bush's Life of Mohammed 1 v.

11. Scott ny. Demonology and
Witchcraft. Plate Iv.

12. 13. Gleig's Bible History.. 2 v.

14. Discovery and Adventure

in the Polar Seas, dec It.

15. Croly's Life of George IV. 1 v.
15. Discovery and Adventure

in A&toa. Ensravings ..It.

37, 18, 19. Cunningham's Lives
of Painters, Sculptors, &c. 3 v.

20. James's History of t;hiT-
alry and the Crusades — It.

21,22. Bell's Life of Mary
Queen of Scots. Portrait 2t

33. Bussell's ^nciont and Mod-
em Egypt. With plates. . 1 v.
Fletcher's History Poland It.
Smith's pestivals, Ga.'nei!,

and AmUiseriients 1 ▼.

Brp wster'fe Lift of Sir Isaao
NKwtori. With plates... IT.
Rjs.iell's Paitsiune, or the
Ho.y Land. With Plates 1 v

33. Meinca'a Memoirs of Etn-
l>r<>.sa Josephine Plateo. . It.

24.
23.

26.

87.

No. 29. The Court and Camp e
Bonaparte. With plale

30. Lives of Early Navigator

31. Description of Pilcairn'l
Island, Mutiny of theUoan
ty, &c. Engravings.

32. Turner's Sacred History o|
the World

33,34. Memoirs of celebratei]

Female Sovereigns.
35,36. Landers' Africa . .

37. Abercronibie on the lute]]
lectual Powers, die.

38, 39, 40. Lives of Celebrate|

41, 42. Life of Frederic II; K)B|

of Prussia. Portrait.
I 43, 44. Sketches from X'enetiaj

Hidiory. With plates.
' 46, 46. Thatcher's Indian Liv
I47, 48,4U. History of India.
50. Brewster's Letters on N.til
wtal Magit. Engravingsj
51,52. History of Ireland. •••
$eversl kistorieal works in ]

CLASSICAL SERIES.!

1,S. Xenophon. (-* nabasis anl

Cyropaidia } Poi trait . . .
3,4. Leiand"'? f>enia''t hones
;fc Koiie's SailJSl. Portrait.!

DRAMATIC SEK1ES.|
1, 2, 3. Massinger's Plays. .
4, 6. Ford's Plays

ei)eolofltcal JL[ftcats.

1. Life of Wiclif. By ReT. C t 2. Consislenc>- of Reveiatioi|

W. Le Has. Portrait .

It.

By Rev. Dr. Shuttlewortl

aaoj's anti (SixVs aibtar?.

I. Uvea of the Apostles, &c. It. 1 2,X gwiss Fanaly Ro;)ln9on .

Gihbon't Rome
Robertflon's Works

StanUatO JQlstovtes.

Maps 4t. I History 01 Modern fciur'

Plates.. 3 v.

RussviU and Jones

1,2, Cvril Thornton 2t.

3,4. Dutchman's Fireside.. 2 v.

5,6. The Young Duke .... 2 v.

7, a Anastasius... 2v.

0,10. Philip Augustus..... • 2t.

11, 12. Caleb Williams 9v.

13, 14. The Club-Book • 3t,

15,16. D«Ver9 ^T.

aiDrars of Select Ndbels.

17, 18. The Smiiggler

19,20. I'liipne Aram

21,22. L.elina ■

•Si, 24. The Spy

25, 26. Westward Ho! By .|

K. Paulding

27,28. Glauber Spa

29,30. Henry Masterton..

■i^- • <l|t^