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SRI GUNESHU
sj-'.-r
WANDERINGS OF A PILGRIM,
IN SEARCH OF
DURING FOUR-AND-TWENTY YEARS IN THE EAST;
REVELATIONS OF LIFE
IN
THE ZENANA.
BY
u-^A J^
ILLUSTRATED WITH SKETCHES FROM NATURE.
" Let the result be what it may, I have launched my boat.'
IN TWO VOLUMES.
VOL. I.
LONDON:
PELHAM RICHARDSON, 23, CORNHILL.
1850.
LONDON :
I.ILHLKT AND KIVINOTON, tKINTEKS,
ST. JUUN S blllAKl.
Co ti)t iflemorp
OF
MY BELOVED MOTHER,
AT WHOSE REQUEST IT WAS WRITTEN,
THIS NARRATIVE IS DEDICATED:
AND IF ANY OF THE FRIENDS,
WHOSE KIND PARTIALITY HAS INDUCED THEM TO URGE
ITS PUBLICATION,
SHOULD THINK I HAVE DWELT TOO MUCH
ON MYSELF, ON MY OWN THOUGHTS, FEELINGS, AND ADVENTURES,
LET THEM REMEMBER THAT
THIS JOURNAL WAS WRITTEN FOR THE AFFECTIONATE EYE
TO WHOM NOTHING COULD BE SO GRATIFYING
AS THE SLIGHTEST INCIDENT CONNECTED WITH HER
BELOVED AND ABSENT CHILD,
tft
INVOCATION.
Work-perfecting Giineshu ! Salamut.
Gane*sh ! Ganesh !
Two-mothered ! One-toothed !
Portly-paunched ! Elephant-faced Guneshu !
Salam ! !
Moon-crowned ! Triple-eyed !
Thou who in all affairs claimest precedence in adoration !
Calamity-averting Ganesh !
Salam ! !
Thou who art invoked on the commencement of a journey,
the writing of a book,
Salam ! !
Oh ! Gane*sh, " put not thine ears to sleep ' ! "
" Encourage me, and then behold my bravery ;
Call me your own fox, then will you see me perform
the exploits of a lion 2 ! "
" What fear need he have of the waves of the sea,
who has Noah for a pilot 3 ? "
First-born of Mahadeo and ParvutI !
God of Prudence and Policy !
Patron of Literature !
Salam ! !
May it be said,
" Ah ! she writes like Ganesh ! "
1 Oriental Proverbs and Sayings, No. 2. Ibid. No. 3. * Ibid. No. 4.
m
INTRODUCTION.
GANESH, THE PATRON OF LITERATURE.
" WHATEVER THE WANDERING TRAVELLER SAYS, HE DOES SO FROM HAVING
SEEN THAT OF WHICH HE SPEAKS V
So many admirable works have appeared of late, illustrating
scenes in India, both with pen and pencil, that I offer these
sketches in all humility, pleading the force of example.
" THE CAMELS WERE BEING BRANDED WITH HOT IRONS FOR THE PUBLIC
SERVICE, AND THE SPIDER CAME TO BE MARKED ALSO 2 ."
For four-and-twenty years have I roamed the world,
"i NEITHER WENT TO MEKKA NOR MUdInA, BUT WAS A PILGRIM
NEVERTHELESS*."
The Frontispiece represents the idol Ganesh, the deified infant
whom I have invoked.
The sign Sri, at the top of the page, implores his triple
eyes to look with favour on the undertaking, in the same
manner that this sign, %, the old heathen invocation to Jupiter,
sought his blessing ; and is equivalent to the usual invocation of
the poets to the Muses, the Muhammadan authors to the
Prophet, or the " Laus Deo," with which merchants' clerks
formerly began their books, a practice not yet quite extinct.
1 Oriental Proverbs, No. 5. 2 Ibid. No. 6. ' Ibid. No. 7.
viii INTRODUCTION.
" Sri " is written at the top of all Hindi writings ; the
meaning of the word is "prosperity;" it is put as a title of
respect before proper names ; frequently they write the same
word twice over (" Sri, Sri,") or they write " Sri Gandsh."
The Muhammadans, in a similar manner, dedicate their writings
to God by a character on the first page, which, as in short-hand
writing, implies a whole sentence.
The history of G#nesh is as follows :
" I STEAK TO THOSE WHO HAVE DAUGHTERS, AND LET THOSE WHO HAVE
SONS LISTEN ' !"
Parvutl, the mountain-born, the daughter of the Himalaya,
the mountain goddess, the mother of Gane'sh the wisest of
deities, on the birth of her son, charmed with his beauty, and
proud of the infant, in the presence of the gods assembled in
council, requested their congratulations on the happy event.
Shivii the destroyer, although he paid the compliments
necessary on the occasion, ever avoided looking upon the child.
The mother naturally reproved him ; Shivii, annoyed at the
rebuke, gazed upon the infant, whose beautiful head instantly
withered away beneath a glance which none can endure and live.
Indra, the abode of the gods, resounded with the lamentations
of Parvutl, who, struck with dismay, was inconsolable.
Brahma, having pity on her distress, bade her be comforted,
and commanded Shivii to bring the head of the first animal that
he should find lying with its head to the north.
This sleeping with the head to the north is unlucky, and
ever to be avoided, it being forbidden by the Shastr, and the
penalty thereof death.
Shivii went forth : the first animal he encountered in the
above-mentioned unlucky position being an elephant, he cut off
its head, and, returning to the assembly of the gods, fixed it
upon the body of Gftne'sh. Seeing this, the mother became
1 Oriental Proverbs, No. 8.
INTRODUCTION. IX
frantic, nor could she be consoled until Brahma thus addressed
her : " Lament not the fate of your child ; with the head of an
elephant he shall possess all sagacity. In piija Ganesh shall be
invoked ere any other god be worshipped, hence shall he be
greater than all the gods. Ere a pious Hindu commence any
sort of writing, the sign of Ganesh shall he make at the top of
the page, otherwise his words shall be folly, and his traffic a
matter of loss. He shall be the patron of learning, his writing
shall be beautiful.
" ' Behold ! he writes like Ganesh ! ' who shall say more?
with the simplicity of the child shall be united the wisdom
of the elephant, his power shall be all-seeing The patron of
literature and work-perfecting."
The daughter of the Himalaya listened to the words of Brahma,
and the heart of the mother found consolation in the honours
bestowed upon her child.
He is called two-mothered, uniting the elephant's head to
his natural body, therefore having a second mother in the
elephant.
In the wars of heaven he lost one tusk, hence his appellation
one-toothed.
His quadruple hands and arms denote power. In one of his
hands is the dnkus, the instrument with which the elephant is
guided ; in another a battle-axe. Being a child, and therefore
fond of sweetmeats, a third hand bears a small cup filled with
pera, a sweetmeat common in all bazars ; in the fourth he carries
a short rosary, wherewith he counts his beads. Around his
neck is twined the Cobra-di-capello, the holy serpent, whose
hood is outspread upon his breast. This image is dignified by a
frontal eye, signifying the sun, encircled by a crescent, a sol
lunar emblem and mystical mark, hence " moon-crowned,"
" triple-eyed." His attendant, a rat, holding a pera, sweetmeat, is
placed at his side : on his head is a crown, and around his limbs
a yellow dhoti, a cloth of Benares tissue edged with gold. His
body is covered with ornaments of rich jewellery, such as are
X INTRODUCTION.
worn by men in the East, his single tusk is bound with gold,
his hands and feet are dyed with menhdi, hinna. On each of
his four arms are two bdzubands, or armlets ; and churls, or
bracelets, of massive gold, adorn his wrists. A golden plate on
the back of the hand is fastened round the wrist by chains of
gold, and from the upper part similar but finer chains pass
over the back of the hand, and unite with rings on all the
fingers and the thumb. This ornament is very peculiar ; both
hands are thus adorned. The chaunrls above his head, emblems
of royalty, are used by the attendant Brahmans to keep off the
flies ; they wave them over the head of the idol during puja.
Gane"sh is seated on an altar, such as is used in the mut'hs,
Hindu temples, surrounded by divers idols, sacred shells, and
instruments of worship ; small brass cups filled with oil, called
chirdghs, are burned as lamps before the shrine. The worshippers
pour oil and the holy water of the Ganges over the head of the
god, which is thus bathed daily, and offerings of boiled rice and
flowers are made at the time of prayer. The conch shell, which
lies before him, is blown by the Brahmans during the hours of
puja at different times it is considered very holy the priest
holds it clasped in both hands, and blows into it from the top.
The sound can be heard afar off, especially when on the river
at the time of evening worship ; it resounds from every side of
the water, mingled with the ringing of the priest's bells and
the sound of a sort of brass castanet, which they strike whilst
chanting forth their prayers.
The opening of these shells is on the left side ; but they say
a shell is sometimes found with the opening on the right side,
and its spiral involutions reversed ; it is then called Dukshina
Viirtii, and is valued at from three to five hundred rupees.
Vishnu is said to hold a shell of this sort in his hand. Shells
are placed with flowers around the idol, the bull-mouthed is
considered sacred, and often adorns the shrine.
Small brass bells are used in worship ; some are decorated with
the image of Hiinooman, some with the sacred cow. They are
INTRODUCTION. XI
rung during puja, not only, it is said, to amuse the god, but to
keep off evil spirits.
The shape of the spoon with which the rice or oil is put upon
the head of the image is remarkably beautiful and antique. The
top of the spoon bears the image of Ganesh, crowned by the
Naga, or holy serpent, with a hundred heads, which are out-
spread, to screen him from the sun.
This idol is made of solid white marble, and weighs three
hundred weight and a quarter. It is painted and gilt, as in
the Frontispiece. It was brought down from Jeypur to the
sacred junction of the triple rivers at Prag, at which place it
came into my possession.
Although a pukka Hindu, Ganesh has crossed the Kdld Pant,
or Black Waters, as they call the ocean, and has accompanied
me to England.
There he sits before me in all his Hindu state and peculiar
style of beauty my inspiration my penates.
O Gandsh, thou art a mighty lord ! thy single tusk is
beautiful, and demands the tribute of praise from the Haji of
the East. Thou art the chief of the human race ; the destroyer
of unclean spirits ; the remover of fevers, whether daily or
tertian ! The pilgrim sounds thy praise ; let her work be
accomplished !
Salam ! Salam !
u^; b , J'*
CONTENTS
VOL. I.
INTRODUCTION.
PAGE
G3nesh, the Patron of Literature Parvuri The Gods in Council
Chaunris of the Yak The Conch Shell Bells used in Puja The
Sacred Spoon The Kala-Pani The Salam . . . . . vii
CHAPTER I.
DEPARTURE FROM ENGLAND.
1822, April.
Flying Visit to Switzerland The good Ship ' Marchioness of Ely '
H. M. 16th Lancers Porto Santo Fellow-Passengers Isle of Palma
Divine Service The Band Quadrilles The first Shark Bristol
Water Skip-jacks Prickly Heat Crossing the Line Amusements on
Board A Blue Shark Sucking-Fish Bonito Santa Trinidada and
Martin Vas Rocks The Albatross Thoughts of Home A Calm
Shooting Season on the Ocean Three Days of Battue Whale-Shooting
A deep Calm Scarcity of Water Anchored at Camicobar . . 1
CHAPTER II.
CARNICOBAR.
1822, October.
Appearance and Attire of the Islanders Canoes Visit to their Village
Ornaments of the Natives Departure from the Island The Andamans
Anchorage at Saugor The Hoogly Arrival in Calcutta . . .14
CHAPTER III.
LIFE IN INDIA.
1822, November.
Calcutta First Impressions Style of Indian Houses Furniture Mats
Arabs Departure of the Marquis of Hastings Fogs Christmas-Day
Indian Servants The Sircar Thieves The Hot Winds Pankhas
Fire-flies North- Westers The Foliage Musquitoes Elephantiasis
Insects The Churiik Pooja Religious Mendicants . . .20
XIV CONTENTS.
CHAPTER IV.
RESIDENCE IN CALCUTTA.
1823. PAGE
Baboo Ramohun Roy Nach girls Children in India Sickness in the
Fort The Rains Vessels for a Voyage on the Ganges Indian Fever
Arrival of Lord Amherst Introduction of Steam-boats on the
Hoogly Interest of Money in Calcutta Robberies Jamh o Deen,
Prince of Mysore The Doorga Pooja Images of Clay The Races
Chinese Screens The Dog Crab 29
CHAPTER V.
RESIDENCE IN CALCUTTA.
1824.
Advantages and Disadvantages Interest never sleeps Barrackpore
Cairipoor The Fakir The Menagerie Hyena Change of Residence
to Chowringhee Road Mouse and Spotted Deer Bengallee Goats
Lotteries Trial by Rice The Toolsee Epidemic Fever Burmese
War Major Sale Haileybury The Hooqii Dr. Kitchener Death
of Lord Byron Early Marriages Pleasures of the Cold Season Indian
Hospitality Knack of Fortune-making lost 37
CHAPTER VI.
RESIDENCE IN CALCUTTA.
1825.
A Day in March The Furlough and Pension Funds Bandicote Rats
The Strand The Cutting System Harrow-on-the-Hill Sickness in
Arracan The Golden Feet Arrival of Lord Combermere Bhurtpore
La Pucelle Marsh Fever Change of Residence to Middleton Row,
Chowringhee Fogs up to the Second Story Burra Bazar Seed Pearl 50
CHAPTER VII.
DEPARTURE FROM THE PRESIDENCY.
1826.
Fulbertus Sagittarius Billiards The Recal of Lord Amherst Zenana of
an opulent Hindoo The Death of Bishop Heber Affliction in the
Family of the Governor-General Appointment to Allahabad Sale of
' Scamp 'March up the Country Dak Bungalows Fakirs en route
The Soane River Sassaram Suttees at Nobutpoor Benares Pooja
in a Hindoo Temple Brahmani Bulls The Minarets Beetle Wings
Hindoo House Benares Hackeries Dak to Allahabad Visit to
Papamhow ........... 58
CONTENTS. XV
CHAPTER VIII.
LIFE IN THE MUFASSIL.
1827, January. page
First Visits in the East Papamhow Runjeet Singh's Illness Death of
Lord Hastings Lord Amherst created Earl of Arracan Marriage of
a Neem to a Peepul The Bacain A Koord Arab Visit to Lucnow
His Majesty Nusseer-ood-Deen Hyder Lord Combermere Kywan
Jah Presents not allowed to be accepted Fights of Wild Beasts
Quail Departure of Lord Combermere Skinner's Horse Return to
Prig 70
CHAPTER IX.
RESIDENCE AT ALLAHABAD.
1828.
Sinking a Well Hurriannah Cows Delhi Goats The Jumnapar
Doomba Sheep Buffalo Humps Water-cresses Marrowfat Peas
Carrots The Chatr The Oleander The Ice-pits Cream Ice, how
to freeze Burdwan Coal Indian Fevers Mr. Bayley, Viceroy Fear
of the Invasion of the Russians and Persians Intense Heat Deaths
in the Farmyard Chota Jehannum The Verandah at Noon Mad
Pariah Trelawny Chateaux en Espagne Height of the two Rivers
Death of the Bishop of Calcutta An Hummam The first Steamer at
Prig 77
CHAPTER X.
LIFE IN THE ZENANA.
1828, October.
Zenana of the King of Oude Regiment of Females The Favourite
Wife The English Begam The Princess of Delhi, the Begam par
excellence Colonel Gardner Mirza Suliman Sheko and his fifty-two
Children The Forty Princesses Mootee, the Pearl of the Desert
Hunting Season at Papamhow Jackals and Foxes A Suttee at Prag
Report of a Suttee An Ill-starred Horse . . . . .87
CHAPTER XI.
RESIDENCE AT PRAG.
1829.
March to Benares Misfortunes en suite The Hummam of the Rajah
Flowers of Wax and Ubruk Return to Prag Storm en route Gram
A Central Government Thieves, Domestic Snake in the Stable
Death in a Palkee Power of the Sun to change the Sex Lord William
XVI CONTENTS.
PAGE
Bentinck Half- Batta The Jaws of the Crocodile The Clipper-
Discontent of the Army Recovery of the Stolen Rupees The Gosain
Ram Din- The Ancient Temple 98
CHAPTER XII.
SKETCHES AT ALLAHABAD.
1829.
The Snake-charmer Ram Leela Board of Works The Hukak
Kurand Patthar Pebbles from the Soane and Cane Rivers Raj Ghat
The Dhrumsala The Ginee Temple of Hunooman, Ram, and
Seeta Ravuna the Giant Bene-Mahadeo The Adansonia Little
Jack Bunce Encampment of the Governor-General Ashes of a Rajah
consigned to the Ganges Christmas-boxes ..... 107
CHAPTER XIII.
REMOVAL TO CAWNPORE CONFESSIONS OF A THUG.
1830, January.
Removal to Cawnpore Failure of Messrs. Palmer and Co. An Ap-
pointment at Cawnpore Removal from Allahabad The Mowa Tree
Futtehpore Dead Body in a Well The Kutcherry Confessions of a
Thug . . 121
CHAPTER XIV.
RESIDENCE AT CAWNPORE.
1830, March.
The Iron-shod Lathi Coins of Sekunder al Sani Hindustani Song
The first Thermantidote Dak to Cawnpore The Barkandaz The
Station Sand-storm Indian Method of Washing the Hair' Pukka
Houses and Bungalows The Ayha's Revenge Horses Poisoned The
Isle of France The Visionary Old Man Influence of Women in India
Gambling Eating the Air The Ayha's Trowsers Darzees Refuge
of the Distressed Signet-rings The Durwan Ganges Water Small-
pox Grass-cutters Beauty of a Night in India Forgery Qui hy ?
Winged Ants and Bugs The Moon A Set-to Revenge of a Sa'is
Soldiers in Hospital Arrak The Charpai A New Servant Unpopu-
larity of the Governor-General 1 32
CHAPTER XV.
THE THUG'S DICE.
1830, October. t A
The Thug's Dice Execution of Eleven Thugs 151
CONTENTS. XV11
CHAPTER XVI.
RESIDENCE AT CAWNPORE THE DEWALI.
1830, October.
PAGE
Agha Meer the Nawab Elephants Swimming the Ganges Cashmere
Goats Discontent of the Soldiers Buffaloes Methodism Desertion
of Soldiers to Runjeet Singh Marks of Age on Stud-bred Horses
Abolition of Siitee Pilgrim Tax The Dewali The Phulu-huree
Festival Arrival of Agha Meer and his Zenana Vicious Horses
Turquoise Mines in Persia Lament of the Hindoo Women Burning
the Dead The Mug Cook Brutal Punishment Plagues of Egypt
Conversion of Hindoo Women The Races The Riding School
Kishmish Bakhshish Apples and Grapes from Cabul Arab Merchants 159
CHAPTER XVII.
SCENES IN OUDE.
1831, January.
New Year's Day Meeting of the King of Oude and the Governor-
General Visit of Lord William Bentinck to Lucnow A Native Christian
Elephant, Tiger, Buffalo, and Bear Fights Constantia Beautiful
Buildings Departure of the Governor-General The Padshah Bagh
The Royal Hummam The King's Stables The Party at the Residency
Dil-Kusha Zoffani's Picture Doves released from Captivity The
Menagerie A Zenana Garden Letter of Introduction to the Begams
at Delhi Gardner's Horse The Sorrows of the Begam . . . 1 73
CHAPTER XVIII.
REVELATIONS OF LIFE IN THE ZENANA.
1831.
Pedigree of the Kings of Oude Lucnow Mohurs Anniversary of the
Coronation The Prime Minister Khema-jah Feredooa Buckht Evil
Omens Mossem-ood-Dowla Largesse Hars, Pan, and Atr The
Zenana Sultana Boa Mulka Zumanee Gosseina Tajmahul Plu-
rality of Wives 186
CHAPTER XIX.
THE RETURN TO ALLAHABAD EXECUTION OF TWENTY-FIVE THUGS.
1831, February.
Removal to Allahabad Crocodiles Aurunzebe's Fort The Old Well
at Kurrah Arrival at Allahabad The Thermantidote The King's
VOL. I. a
xviii CONTENTS.
PACE
Picture and ttie Celestials Pnttii Execution of Twenty-five Thugs-
Cholera The Effect on the Insane The Arabian Leprosy Elephantiasis
Asylums for the Blind and for Lepers Lachhmi, the Goddess of
Prosperity Intense Heat Early Rising Danger of a Thermantidote
List of Servants 196
CHAPTER XX.
SCENES AT ALLAHABAD PILGRIMAGE TO THE TRIVENI.
1831, July.
The old Brahman The Triveni The Achivut The Patal Pooree
Temples of Bhardoajmun Radha Krishnu Hindoo Oath The Tulsi
The Peepul-tree Skeleton Leaves Lamps in the Air Paintings
on Ubruk Impressions on Leaves and Flowers The Mootee Musjid
The Crows a Pest By a Birds Haymaking The Silver Tankard
An Earthquake Transferring Diseases to Flowers Perjury Farming
Operations Oats Bhoodder Ram the Dwarf The Camel The
Powder Works and Rocket Manufactory . . . . . .212
CHAPTER XXI.
LIFE IN THE ZENANA.
1832, February.
Devotees at the Great Fair Wild Ducks Quail Shooting Price of
English Hounds Colonel Gardner Life in the Zenana The Grass
Cutter Dub Grass The Gram-grinder The Chakki Jack Fruit-
Duty of a Sa'is Arrangement of a Turban The young Princes of
Lucnow Archery Indian Bows and Arrows Whistling Arrows The
Bows, Arrows, and War Hatchet of the Coles The Pellet Bow Witch-
craft practised with a charmed Bow ....... 227
CHAPTER XXII.
ADVENTURES IN THE EAST.
1832, May.
Gaiety of Allahabad Lucnow Chetnee Tails of the Yak Horn of the
Unicorn The Looking-glass Shawl The First Flight of Locusts An
Adventure The Rats' Granary Balls Profiles -The Leaf Grass-
hopperAppointed to Allahabad Ramohun Roy The Bottle of
Horrors Narrative of a Thug The Quicksand Meteors and Falling
Stars Hanging oneself for spite The Sipahi Guard The Ghurl
The Sitar The Ektara The Gynee Club Soonghees Colonel
Gardner ...... o<j 8
CONTENTS. XIX
CHAPTER XXIII.
THE GREAT FAIR AT ALLAHABAD.
1833, January.
PAGE
Booths at the Fair Diamonds, Pearls, Shawls, Sable, Coral The Triveni *
Suicide Religious Mendicants The Sacred Gini Consecration of
an Idol Household Gods Rosaries Pilgrims, Carriers of Holy Water
Snakes Arrival of Lady William Bentinck Visit to the Fair
Description of the Frontispiece Chamelee, the Brahmanical Bull . 253
CHAPTER XXIV.
THE NUT LOG.
1833, February.
The Hounds A Gumuki The Eade Trelawny The Rev. J. Wolff
The Nut Log Balancing Goat Sirrakee Grass A Dividend
Earrings of Jasmine A Rat given to a Cow The Mddar Enamelled
Grasshoppers The Shaddock The Agra Gun Corruption of Words
Variegated Locusts Beautiful Flowers ...... 2G7
CHAPTER XXV.
THE CHOLERA.
1833, August.
Hindu Method of Frightening away the Cholera recommended to the
Faculty Death of the Darzee Necromancy The New Moon A Bull
laden with the Pestilence Terror of the Natives The Pathan An
Earthquake Sola Hats Importation of Ice from America Flight of
Locusts Steam Navigation The Civil Service Annuity Fund The
Baghsira Rajput Encampment Hail Storm Delights of the Cold
Weather 280
CHAPTER XXVI.
THE MUHARRAM.
1834, May.
The Imams the Leaders of the Faithful The Muharram The Procession
The Banners The Band The Sword-bearer The Mourners
Dhul Dhul The Reader The Fakir The Taziya Tomb of Kasim
Palki and Trays of Mehndi Charkh-charkhi Wala The Bihishti
Camels Elephants and Charity The Chameleon The Ghirgit An
Alligator The Tiger on his Travels A well-educated Snake Indian
Fevers Depression of Spirit ........ 293
a2
XX CONTENTS.
CHAPTER XXVII.
THE BRAHMANICAL THREAD.
1834, June.
PAQK
The Janao The Fakir The Fair Puja of the Cow Cusa Grass
The Flying Fox Air Plants -Musk Deer Nag-panchaml The
Snake The Pinnace City of Allahabad The Pillar in the Fort-
Sealing-wax Butea Frondosa The Dewall The Bower Climbers
and Creepers The Humming Birds The Pellet Bow White Ants-
Chintz The Horseradish Tree The Ichneumon The Garden The
Bouqiiet Cold Mornings for Hunting The Moustache . . . 304
CHAPTER XXVIII.
PILGRIMAGE TO THE TAJ.
1834, December.
The Seagull The Pateli Chapatis Sujawan Deota Burriaree Rocks
Thieves Parbosa Temple of Parisnath Darogahs Utility of a
Pellet-bow The Cane River The Leak A Storm Kalpee Belas-
poor Alligators in their own Wildernesses River Shells Passage
through the Rocks A Pilot Badowra Fossil-bones The Chumbal
River Bhurrage Burning the Dead A Woman Drowned Cutting
through a Sandbank on a Chain Cable A Leak White Ants Pictu-
resque Scenes A Tufan The Mem Sahiba's Speech River Dogs
Presents of Sweetmeats 321
CHAPTER XXIX.
PILGRIMAGE TO THE TAJ.
1835, January.
Etaweh Moonlight Ride The Wolves Bird-catchers Peacocks The
Bar of Sand The Good Luck of the Mem Sahiba Narangee Ghat
Betaizor The Silk-cotton Tree Fields of the Cotton Plant The
Chakwa Chukwaee Eloquence of a Dhobee Aladtnpoor Noon, or
Loon Modelling in Khuree Cotton Boats The Ulak Vessels on
the River Plantations of the Castor Oil Plant Cutting through a
Sandbank First Sight of the Taj Porcupines Bissowna Quitted the
Pinnace Arrival at Agra 336
CHAPTER XXX.
THE TAJ MAHUL.
1835, January.
The Taj Mahul Arzumund Banoo Shahjahan The Screen The
Echo of the Dome Momtaza Zumani Her Sons and Daughters
Axaf-jah Noormahul Ruins of the second Taj Offerings at the
CONTENTS. XXI
PAGE
Shrine The Wall The Kalun Darwaza The Fountains Mela of the
Eed The Burj The Jamma Khana The Masjid The Bao'li
Tomb and Masjid of the Fathlpooree Begam Tomb of the Akbarabadee
Begam Ground-plan of the Taj The Minarets Stones used in the
Mosaic Tomb of the Simundee Begam The Sitee Khanam A Fare-
well to the Taj 318
CHAPTER XXXI.
PLEASANT DAYS IN AGRA.
183?, February.
The Fort The Mosque of Pearl The Jahangeeree Mahul Mher-ul-
Nissa Sellm Ghar The Palace in the Fort The Dewant Khas
Noor-jahan Burj Zenana Masjid The Shisha-Mahal Hall of Audi-
ence The Vault of Secret Murder The Black Marble Slab The
Throne of Akbar The Steam Baths The Worship of the Rising Sun
View from the Bridge of Boats on the Jumna ..... 360
CHAPTER XXXII.
REMARKABLE BUILDINGS AROUND AGRA.
1835, February.
The House of the Wuzeer The Jama Masjid Tomb of Jahanara
Begam TheTripolia The MahookmaMasjid The Madrissa Etmad-
od-Doulah Cheen-ke-Masjid Ram Bagh Syud Bagh Secundra
The Chamber of Gold Miriam Zemanee Kos Minars . . . 370
CHAPTER XXXIII.
REVELATIONS OP LIFE IN THE ZENANA.
1835, February.
Invitation to Khasgunge Kutchowra The Zenana A Timoorian Princess
Opium-eating Native Dishes The Evening Party The Beautiful
Begam Musalmani Attire and Ornaments Timur-lung Gold and
Silver Beds Atr of various sorts Pel fume of the Body of the Prophet
Dye for the Hands and Feet Churees . . . . . .378
CHAPTER XXXIV.
LIFE IN THE ZENANA, AND CHITA HUNTING.
1835, February.
Plurality of Wives Intrigues and Hatred Arrival at Khasgunge The
Four Walls Arwarl Shooting The Putli-nach The Lynx Intro-
duction to Colonel Gardner's Begam The Morning Star The Evening
Star The Nawab of Cambay The Beautiful Gardens The Bara Deri
Rattler Chita Hunting Antelopes The Sulky Chita Heera Sing
Chita Hunting attended by Native Ladies 390
XXli CONTENTS.
CHAPTER XXXV.
KATHIPOOR SICRI AND COLONEL GARDNER.
1835, March.
PAGE
Pilgrimage of Akbar Shah to Fathipoor Sicri Shaikh Selim Cheestie
The Jodh Ba'I Birth of Selim The Tomb of the Saint The Gateway
A Tradition The Temple of Magic The Zenana The Pachlsl
Board The Mint Akbarabadee Rupees and Gold Mohurs The
Elephant Minar A Child destroyed by a Wolf Tomb of the Jodh Ba'I
Agra built by Akbar Sketches of Remarkable Living Characters in
India Legality of a Marriage between a Christian and one of the
Faithful Colonel Gardner's Letter Letter of Colonel Tod Insult
offered by Holkar Colonel Gardner's Marriage Tomb of Colonel
Hessing Cure of Influenza within the Four Walls Death in a Steam-
Bath 401
CHAPTER XXXVI.
THE MARRIAGE.
1835, March.
Pedigree of the Bride and Bridegroom Reports concerning the Beauty
of the Bride Anxiety of English Gentlemen to marry into Colonel
Gardner's Family Mirza Unjun Sheko The First Procession The
Bride's Dress Necessity of Weeping The Oily Mixture Strict
Seclusion Dress of the Bridegroom 'The Oily Mixture complimentary
The Hooll Bridal Songs The Sachak The Bridegroom's Procession
Nach Girls on Platforms The Menhdi The Grand Display in the
Bride's Procession The Parda The Prince dyed with Hinna
Midnight the Fashionable Hour for Dinner Wedding Dishes Silvered
Food Conclusion of the Day Mr. James Gardner Mulka Begam
highly respected ; her will is law ....... 420
CHAPTER XXXVII.
THE BURAT.
1835, March.
The Bridegroom fights for his Bride The Grand Procession Super-
stition of the Prince Bridal Attire The Bride's Consent Signing the
Contract The Nose-ring Dress of the Bride The Prince enters the
Zenana He beholds his Bride He carries her off Colonel Gardner's
Distress Fani Bhu'a The Bride's Dower carried in Procession with
the newly-married Couple to the Prince's Tents A Singular Custom
Pan 437
CONTENTS. XX1U
CHAPTER XXXVIII.
THE CHAOTREE.
1835, April.
PAGE
The Chaotree Timurian Dance Churees Finale of the Wedding
Jhanee Khanum The Zenana Doll Jealousy of the Natives Meals
of the Slave Girls Tara, the Pretty Slave Conduct of English Ladies
considered extraordinary Poppy-heads Devotion of Native Women to
their Husbands Illness of Colonel Gardner Burial-ground of the
Family My Departure Death of Colonel Gardner, and of his Begam
Orders of Knighthood Remarks on the Muhammadan Religion, and
the Punishments of the Grave ........ 447
LIST OF PLATES
VOL. I.
No.
1. Frontispiece Gfinesh, to face the Title
2. Introduction The Camels
3. The Albatross .
4. Carnicobar
5. The Sircar
6. The Churiik Puja
7. Puja of the Tulsi
8. Bengali Woman .
9. The Ice Pits
10. Temple of Bhawani, and Suttees, Alopee Bagh
11. A Dhrumsala, Bene Mahadeo Ghat
12. Adansonia Digitata
13. A Kutcherry
14. Hindustani Song
15. A Barkandaz
16. The Durwan
17. The Thug's Dice
18. Elephant Fights
19. Pedigree of the Kings of Oude
20. Lachhmi, the Goddess of Beauty
21. The Grasscutter
22. Hebrew Hymn .
23. The Imams the Leaders of the Faithful
24. The Taj
25. Ground-plan of the Tomb of the Taj
26. The Tomb of Akbar Shah
27. Tomb of Shaikh Selim Cheestie .
28. Pedigree of Colonel William Gardner
To face page
vii
8
14
21
27
43
60
77
95
107
116
121
133
135
142
151
173
186
207
231
270
293
348
357
374
403
420
GLOSSARY.
Ab, water. Abddr, water-cooler.
Abir, red powder used in the Holl.
Abnus, ebony.
Achchhd, good.
Adah, salutation, respects, politeness.
Adalut, court of justice.
Adam-khor, a cannibal.
Afgan, overthrowing.
Afghan, the name of a race of people
who inhabit the country to the north-
west of Lahore ; called also Pathans.
They are supposed to be of Jewish
extraction.
Afim, or aphlm, opium.
Agarl pichhdri, the ropes with which
horses are tied.
Agast, seschinomene grandiflora.
Aghd, lord master.
Aghan, the eighth Hindu solar month.
Aghori, professing ughorpanth, an order
of religious mendicants, who eat
every thing, however filthy, even
human carcases ; hence, a gross or
filthy feeder.
A'ina, a mirror.
Akas, the sky, the firmament.
Akas-bel, the air-creeper ; it has no
root nor leaves, but grows on the tops
of trees.
Akas-diya, a lamp which the Hindus
hang aloft on a bamboo in the month
Kartik.
Akbar, very good, greatest.
Akbarabadi, of Akbar.
'Alam, a spear, a standard.
'Alam-dar, standard-bearer {Abbas).
'Alam-glr, conqueror of the universe.
Allah,God. Allahuakbar, God is great !
Am, mango (mangifera Indica).
Amari, a seat with a canopy to ride
in on an elephant.
And, a copper coin, the sixteenth part
of a rupi.
Anannds, pine-apple.
Andhi, storm, tempest.
Angethi, chafing-dish, brazier.
Angiya, a native boddice.
Ankus, the elephant goad.
Arghd, a vessel shaped like a boat,
used by the Hindus for making liba-
tions in their devotions.
Arsl, a mirror, particularly a mirror in
a thumb-ring.
Asan, a seat or small carpet. See Vol.
ii. p. 385.
Asdrh, the third Hindu solar month
(June and July).
Aswina, the first month of the Hindu
lunar year.
Atashbazi, fireworks.
Atash-khwar, fire-eater; name of a
bird, the chakor.
Atr, perfume. Atr-dan, perfume-box.
Avatar, a descent.
Ayb, or aib, spot, mark, defect.
Ayha, a lady's maid.
Azan, the summons to prayers, gene-
rally proclaimed from the miliars or
towers of a mosque.
XXVI
GLOSSARY.
B.
Baboo, a Hindu gentleman, a Calcutta
merchant.
Babul, mimosa Arabica.
Badri-ndth, a celebrated place of pil-
grimage.
Badshah, or padshdh, a king.
Bagh, a tiger.
Bagh, a garden.
Bdgh-sira, gryllus monstrosus.
Bdghlchar, a small garden.
'baghnd, an ornament made of tigers'
claws.
Bahadur, champion, boaster.
Bahangi, a stick with ropes hanging
to each end, for slinging baggage
to, which is carried on the shoulder.
Bahut, much, most.
Bd'l, mistress, lady amongst the Mah-
rattas.
Baiti, bullock carriage.
Bairdgi, a fakir.
Bdjrd, panicum spicatum.
Bakdyan, melia sempervirens.
Bakhshish, a gift ; bakhshnd, to give.
Bakrd, he-goat.
'Bandar, a monkey.
Bandh, an embankment.
Bangld, a thatched house.
Baniya, shop-keeper.
Bans, the bamboo.
Bd'oli, a large well.
Bard, great.
Bara-din, a holiday.
Bdra-singha, twelve-horned stag (cer-
vus elaphus).
Bardt, marriage procession.
Barddr, a bearer.
Barha'i, a carpenter.
Bart, a garden house.
Barkanddz, a native policeman.
Basanti, yellow, the favourite colour of
Krishna.
Basti, a village.
Bater, quail.
Batu'd, a small bag.
Banna, a dwarf.
Bdwarchi, cook.
Baya, loxia Indica.
Bazar, market.
Bdzubands, armlets.
Begam, lady.
Bel, aegle marmelos(crataeva religiosa).
/>'< In. j.'iMiiiiunii zambac.
Bengali, a native of Bengal.
Bir, or bar, ficus Indica.
Besan, flour or meal of pulse, particu-
larly otchand (cicerarietinum).
Betl, daughter.
Bhabhut, ashes which the fakirs use.
Bhagat, a devotee of a religious order,
peculiar to the low tribes, whose ini-
tiation consists in putting a necklace
of beads around the neck, and mark-
ing a circle on the forehead ; after
which the initiated person is bound
to refrain from spirituous liquors,
flesh, &c.
Bhdgulpur, the town of.
Bhagwdn, the Deity, the Supreme Be-
ing, fortunate.
Bhains, buffalo.
Bhaiyd, brother.
Bhang, or bhengh, cannabis Indica.
Bhdtd, an extra allowance to troops on
service.
Bhu'a, a father's sister.
Bhusd, chopped straw.
Bichchhu, the scorpion,
Bidri, a kind of tutanag, inlaid with
silver, used to make hukka bottoms,
cups, &c.
Bighd, a quantity of land, containing
20 katthds, or 1'20 feet square, or
1600 square yards, which is nearly
one-third of an English acre ; in the
Upper Provinces it is nearly five-
eighths of an acre.
Bihisht, paradise.
Bihisht-i, a water-carrier.
Bilva, or bilwa, crataeva marmelos
(Linn.).
Binauld, seed of the cotton tree.
Biskhopra, lacerta iguana.
Bismilldh, in the name of God.
Boxwdld, an itinerant merchant with a
box of goods.
Brahm, or Brumhu, the one eternal
God.
Brahma, the first person of the Hindu
trinity.
Brahman, an Hindu priest.
Brahmand, the mundane egg of the
Hindus.
Brinddban, the forest of Brindd, in the
vicinity of Mathurd, celebrated as
the scene of Krishna's sports with
the Gopis.
Burdk, Muhammad's steed.
Burhiyd, old woman.
Burj, a bastion, tower ; buruj, pi.
Burji, a turret, a small tower.
Burka, a dress, a disguise.
GLOSSARY.
XXV11
Chabetii, parched grain.
Chdbuk, a whip.
Chabutdra, a terrace to sit and con-
verse on.
Chddir, Chddar, mantle, garment.
Chakki, a mill-stone.
Chakor, partridge (perdix chukar).
Chakwd, Brahmanical duck.
Chakwl, the female of the chakwd.
Chamdr, currier, shoemaker.
Champa kali, a necklace.
Chand, gram (cicer arietinum).
Chdnd, the moon.
Chandni-chavk, a wide and public
street or market.
Chandnt kd mdr-jand, a disease in
horses, supposed to proceed from a
stroke of the moon. " The moon-
light has fallen on him," is said espe-
cially of a horse that is weak in the
loins.
Chdotree, or chauthi, a marriage cere-
mony, the fourth day.
Chapdii, a thin cake of unleavened
bread.
Chaprdsl, a messenger or servant wear-
ing a chaprds, badge.
Char, four.
Charkhi, a spinning-wheel, &c.
Chdrpdi, bed, four-legged.
Chatd'i, mat.
Chair, umbrella.
Chauk, market,
Chaukiddr, watchman.
Chaunri, fly-flapper.
Chhach hundar, musk-rat.
Chhalld, thumb or great toe ring.
Chhappar, a thatched roof.
Chhat, roof.
Chhattak, about an ounce.
Chilamchi, washhand bason.
Chirdgh, lamp.
Chirdgh-ddn, stand for lamps.
Chiri-mdr, bird-catcher.
Chita, hunting leopard.
Chitthi, note.
Chob-ddr, mace-bearer.
Chor, or cho'dr, thief.
Chulee, a fire-place.
Chund, lime.
Churi, bracelets.
Churuk-puja, a festival.
Chyunta, black ant.
Compound, ground around a house.
Conch, a shell.
Corook. See Kurk.
D.
Dabdo, pressure.
Daftari, the paper-ruler, penmaker,
&c.
Dak, post, post-office.
Dakait, or ddku, a robber.
Daldal, bog, quagmire.
Ddli, basket of fruit.
Damri, a coin, four to a paisd.
Ddnd, oar.
Ddndi, boatman.
Darbdr, hall of audience.
Darogha, head man of an office, in-
spector.
Darwdza, a door ; darwan, doorkeeper.
Daryd-i, or daryd, the sea, river.
Darzi, a tailor.
Dastkhatt, signature.
Dasturi, perquisites paid to servants by
one who sells to their master.
Daulut-khana, house of fortune.
Derd, a dwelling, a tent.
Devi, a goddess.
Dewdlai, dewdl, or dewdlaya, temple
of idols.
Dewdli, an Hindu festival, celebrated
on the day of the new moon of
Kdrtik ; when the Hindus, after
bathing in the Ganges, perform a
shraddhd, and at night worship
Lakshmi ; the houses and streets are
illuminated all night ; and in Hin-
dostan the night is universally spent
in gaming.
Dhan, rice before it is separated from
the husks.
Dhanuk, a bow, a bowman.
Dhobi, washerman.
Dhoti, a cloth, passed round the waist,
passing between the limbs, and fast-
ening behind.
Dighi, a large tank or reservoir, in
the form of an oblong square.
Dil, heart ; dil-kushd, heart-expand-
ing.
Dilli, or Dihli, the metropolis of Hin-
dustan; generally called by Musal-
niiins Shah-jehan-abad, and by Euro-
peans Delhi.
Dinghee, a small boat.
XXV111
GLOSSARY.
Diwak, white ant.
Diwan-i-am, public hall of audience.
Diwdn-i-khas, privy-council chamber.
Dogh, buttermilk.
Dohd'i, or duhd'i, mercy.
Doti, a kind of sedan for women.
Domra, the name of a caste of Musal-
mans, the males of which are mu-
sicians, and the females sing and
dance in the company of females
only.
Doni, a native vessel or boat.
Do-patta, or du-patta, a sheet of two
breadths.
Do-shala, or du-shdla, two and shawl,
two shawls being always worn to-
gether by the natives.
Dosutd, two- threaded cloth.
Dub, name of a grass (agrostis linearis).
Dudhiyd, milky.
Duldul, a hedgehog ; the name of the
horse of 'Ali, the prophet's son-in-
law.
Dulhd, or dulha, bridegroom.
Dulhdn, bride.
Dumba, a kind of sheep with a thick
tail.
Durga, one of the names of BhawanI,
the goddess Durga.
Durga-puja, the festival in honour of
Durga.
Durgah, a tomb, a shrine.
E.
Eed, a festival, a solemnity.
F.
Fajr, morning; barl-fajr, early dawn.
Fakhr, glory, nobility.
Fakir, a religious mendicant.
Falita, fusee ; falita-ddr, a matchlock.
Fdnus, a shade to keep the wind from
a candle.
Fath, victory.
Fdtima, the daughter of the prophet,
and the wife of the caliph 'Ali.
Fidwi, devoted (your devoted servant).
Fit, elephant.
Fil-khdna, elephant shed.
Fil-pdi, elephantiasis.
G.
Gaddi, sovereign's throne.
Gdgri, a water-vessel of brass.
Gaind, a species of small bullock.
Gaini, a carriage for a gaind.
Galahi, forecastle.
Gal'haiya, boatswain, forecastle-man.
(! all, abuse.
Gdndar, a kind of grass, of which khas-
khas is the root (andropogon muri-
catum).
Ganjha, or gdnja, the young buds on the
leaves of the hemp-plant.
Garh, a fort, as fatih-garh.
Gari, a cart, a carriage.
Gari-wan, carter, driver.
Gaur, an ancient city, formerly the
capital of Bengal.
Ghantd, a clock.
Ghar, a house.
Ghard, an earthen waterpot.
Ghardmi, a thatcher.
Ghari, an instrument for measuring
time, a water-clock.
Gharis, division of time.
Ghariyal, a crocodile, a plate of brass
for beating time.
Ghariydli, the person who attends the
ghari, and strikes the hours.
Gharna'i, a raft supported by empty
pots (ghard, an earthen waterpot).
Ghi, clarified butter.
Ghirgut, or girgui, lizard, chameleon.
Ghuldm, slave.
Ghunghru, a small bell, or little bells
on a string for the ankles.
Ghur, or ghord, a horse.
Ghur-daur, race-course.
Ghuwd, a coarse kind of cotton cloth,
Go-mukhi, a cloth bag, containing a
rosary, the hand being thrust in
counts the beads ; the chasm in the
Himalaya mountains, through which
the Ganges issues.
Gobar, cow-dung.
Gola, a granary.
Gop, a cow, a caste.
Gopi, feminine of gwdld, a cowherd.
Gor-istdn, burying-ground.
Gosd'in, a holy man.
Gul-db, rose-water.
Gul-badan, a kind of silk cloth.
Gulistdn, rose garden.
Gun, track rope.
Gunth, a pony.
Guru, spiritual director.
GLOSSARY.
XXIX
H.
Hap, pilgrim.
Hajjam, a barber.
Hakim, a physician, a learned man.
Hakri, a cart.
Hammam, a hot bath.
Han, yes.
Handi, a pot, a small cauldron.
Har, a necklace of pearls, a wreath, a
chaplet of flowers.
Hargilla, the adjutant, or gigantic
crane.
Harkara, running footman.
Harpharewrl, or harpharaurl, the name
of a sour fruit (averrhoa acida.Linn.).
Hath, the hand, a cubit, or eighteen
inches.
Hathi, an elephant.
Hathi-wan, elephant-driver.
Hawaldar, a native military officer of
inferior rank.
Hazim, digestive.
Hazir, present.
Haziri, breakfast.
Hazrat, a title addressed to the great ;
majesty; highness.
Hazrat'isa, Jesus Christ.
Hinna, the tree lawsonia inermis.
Hirdawal, the name of a defect in
horses.
Hisab, accounts, computation.
Howa, air.
Howdah, a seat to ride in on an ele-
phant, without a canopy.
Hubab, a bubble.
Hubab-i, bubbling.
Hukak, stone-cutter, lapidary.
Hukka, or hooqu, a pipe.
Hukka-bardar, pipe-bearer.
Hukm, order.
Huzur, the presence.
I. J.
Jddu, enchantment.
Jadu-gari, magic.
Jafari, lattice-work.
Jaglr, land given as a reward for
service.
Jahdndra, world adorning.
Jahan-gir, world-taking.
Jahan-pannah, world protection, his
majesty, your majesty.
Jahannam, the infernal regions.
Jahaz, a ship.
Jahazi, a sailor.
Jai, or jaya, triumph, victory, bravo I
huzza ! all hail !
Ja'l, oats.
Jamadar, head of the harkaras.
Jan, life, soul, spirit.
Janao, Brahmanical thread.
Jangal, forest.
Jangli-kawwa, a raven.
Janwar, an animal.
Jawab, an answer.
Jhalhar, cymbals or bells for the
ankles.
Jhama, pumice-stone, bricks burnt to
a cinder.
Jhamp, a matted shutter.
Jharu, a broom.
Jharu-bardar, a sweeper.
Jinn-i, genii.
Ikbal, good fortune.
Imam, a leader in religious affairs.
Indra, the Hindu heaven.
Joar, or j war, millet (andropogon sor-
ghum).
Ishk-peshd, ipomea quamoclit.
Islam, the religion of Muhammad.
Istri, a smoothing iron, a wife.
Jum'a, Friday.
Jum'a-rat, Thursday, eve of Friday.
Izar-bund, the string with which trow-
sers are tied.
K.
Ka'ba, the temple of Mecca.
Kabr, a grave, a tomb.
Kabul or kubul, consent, assent.
Kabul, the capital of Afghanistan.
Kachari, or kacheri, court of justice
an office.
Kachehhi, a horse with a hollow back
from the province of Kachchh, on the
banks of the Sind.
Kachndr, bauhinia variegata.
Kadam, a footstep.
Kadam-bos, one who kisses the feet of
a superior.
Kadam-chumna, to kiss the feet, to bid
adieu.
Kafir, infidel.
Kafur, camphor.
Kdghaz, paper.
Kdghazl, paper-case.
Kahan, an aggregate number, consist-
ing of 17 pans, or 1280 kauris.
\\\
GLOSSARY.
Kahar, a palki bearer.
Kahwa, coffee.
Kola, black.
Kcila chor, an unknown person, a do-
mestic thief.
K'lld namak, a kind of rock salt,
impregnated with bitumen and sul-
phur.
Kalii pani, the ocean, the black water.
Kala zlra, the seeds of the nigella
Indica.
Kalam, a pen, a reed.
Kalam-dan, inkstand.
Kalghi, an ornament on a turban, an
aigrette, a plume.
Kali, the goddess ; or, Kali Ma, the
black mother.
Kalsa, the spire or ornament on the top
of a dome, a pinnacle.
Kam-bakht, unfortunate.
Kam de'o, the god of love.
Kaman, a bow.
Kaman-dar, an archer.
Kamar-band, a girdle.
Kammal, a blanket.
Kanat, canvas enclosure, walls of a
tent.
Kanauj, the ancient city.
Kangan, an ornament worn on the
wrists of Hindu women, a bracelet.
Kangni, millet (panicum Italicum).
Kanhaiya, a name of Krishna.
Kavs, or Kansa, the tyrant whom
Krishna was born to destroy.
Kapas, cotton undressed, the cotton
plant (gossypium herbaceum).
Kapra, cloth.
Karbala, the name of a place in Irak,
where Husain, the son of 'Ali, was
murdered.
Karbl, the stalk or straw of jo'ar or
bajra (holcus sorgum and spicatus).
Kar-khana, workshop.
Kark-nath, a fool with black bones.
Karn-phul, a kind of ear-ring.
Karor, ten millions.
Kartik, a Hindu month, our October
and November.
Kartva-tel, oil made from mustard-seed,
bitter oil.
Kas, a kind of grass of which rope is
made (saccharum spontaneum).
Kasu'i, a butcher, cruel, hard-hearted.
Kashi, the city of Benares.
Kasid, courier, a runner.
Kath, an astringent vegetable extract.
Katmiram, (vulgo : catamaran,) a very
small raft, used as a fishing boat on
the coast of Madras.
Kauri, a cowrie, a small shell used as
a coin (cypraea moneta).
Kawar, the baskets in which the holy
water is carried.
Kawwa, a crow.
Kazi, a judge.
Khala, mother's sister.
Khalasl, a sailor, a native artilleryman,
a tent pitcher.
Khan, a lord, a title of respect.
Khana, a house.
Khana, food.
Khana-pina, meat and drink.
Khansaman, head table-servant.
Kharita, bag, a letter.
Khas-khas, root of gandar. See Gan-
dar.
Khatri, the second of the four grand
Hindu castes, being that of the mili-
tary.
Kazanchi, treasurer.
Khet, a Held.
Khidmatgar, table-servant.
KhiVat, dress of honour.
Khisd, a rubber used in baths.
Khraunchi, a native carriage.
Khudu, God.
Khuda-wand, master.
Khuda-ya, O God !
Khund, a well, a spring.
Khush-bo, perfume, odour.
Khusru, the king ; Khusrau, the sultan.
Kibla-gah, the place turned to when at
prayer ; a father, or the one beloved.
Kibla, Mecca, an altar.
Kimkhwab, silk brocade worked in gold
and silver flowers.
Kishan, the Hindu god Krishna.
Kishti, (prop, kashii), a ship, boat,
barque.
Kismat, fate, destiny.
Kitab, a book.
Kohl, mountain.
Kohl-nur, the mountain of light, the
great diamond.
Kohirawan, the moving mountain, . e.
the elephant.
Kot, a fort.
Krani, a clerk.
GLOSSARY.
XXXI
Krishna, a descent of Vishnu.
Ku'a, a well.
Kudali, a small pickaxe.
Kulfi, a cup with a cover, in which ice
is moulded.
Kumbhir, an alligator.
Kumhar, potter.
Kum'hir, a crocodile.
Kur'an, (vulgo: koran,) the precepts of
Muhammad.
Kurand, corundum stone (adamantine
spar).
Kurk, an order made public, that no
one may be seen on the road on pain
of death.
Kurta, a kind of shirt, a tunic.
Kuril, a short garment for women,
jacket for soldiers, coat.
Kusur, fault.
Kulb, the polar star, the north pole.
Kutta, a dog.
Kutwal, native magistrate, head of the
police.
Lachhman, the half-brother of Rama-
chandra.
Lachhmi, the goddess of beauty.
Laili, also Laild, the beloved of Maj-
nun.
Lakh, one hundred thousand ; gum lac,
a kind of wax formed by the coccus
lacca.
Lat, or lath, obelisk, pillar, club, staff.
Lathi, staff, stick.
Law, a rope, cable.
Ltcht, a fruit (dimocarpus litchi).
Lil, indigo.
Log, people.
Lon, salt.
Lota, a drinking vessel.
Lubada, or labdda, a wrapper, great
coat.
Lurii, the salt that effloresces from
walls.
Lunj, or langra, lame.
M.
Ma, mother.
Ma-bap, mother and father, parents.
Machh, or Machchh, the name of the
first avatar.
Machchhar, a gnat.
Machhli, or Machhi, a fish.
Madrasa, a Muhammadan college.
Magar, an alligator.
Magrela, a seed (nigella Indica).
Maha-bharat, the great war.
Mahadeo, or Maha-deva, a descent of
Shiva.
Maha-kali, or Kali-ma, a terrific form
of Durga, the consort of Shiva.
Maha-nimba, melia sempervirens.
Maha-raj, great king, excellency.
Maha-raja, an Hindu emperor."
Mahal, house.
Mahawat, elephant driver.
Mahu'a, or mahu'a, bassia longi folia,
bearing flowers which are sweet, and
from which a spirituous liquor is dis-
tilled; the nuts afford an oil used
instead of butter.
Maidan, a plain.
Makka, vulgo: Mecca.
Makri, a spider.
Mala, Hindu rosary, a garland.
Mali, gardener, florist.
Malik, lord, master.
Mandap, or mandul, a house, a temple.
Mangus, or newala (viverra mungo),
ichneumon.
Manjhi, master of a vessel, steersman.
Masalah, spices, drugs, materials.
Mash'al, a torch.
Mash'al-chi, torch-bearer.
Mashk, water bag.
Masih, or Masihu, the Messiah, Christ
our Lord.
Masjid, mosque.
Masjid-i-jaml, a great mosque.
Masnad, a throne, a large cushion.
Maya, idealism, illusion ; a deception
depending on the power of the Deity,
whereby mankind believe in the ex-
istence of external objects, which are
in fact nothing but idea.
Mela, a fair.
Mem sahiba, madam, the lady of the
house.
Menhdi, lawsonia inermis.
Mihtarani, sweeper's wife.
Mik'hal, the instrument with which
collyrium is applied to the eyes.
Mirg, a deer.
Mirg nabbi, musk, a bag of musk.
Mirza, a prince.
Mist, or missi, a powder to tinge the
teeth black.
xxxn
GLOSSARY.
Misrdb, a steel frame for the fore-finger
when playing on the sitar.
Moti, a pearl.
Muazzin, the call to prayers.
Mufassal, the country.
Mugdar, a club.
Muhammad, the Arabian prophet.
Muharram, the first Muhammadan
month.
Muldkdt, interview.
Mulk, kingdom, realm.
Mumtdz, distinguished, exalted.
Mun, a weight, forty ser.
Mund-mdl, anecklace of human heads.
Mtii/li. mouth.
Muniya, amadavat.
Munkir, Nakir, the names of the two
angels who examine the dead in the
tomb.
Murabbd, a preserve, confection.
Musdjir, a traveller.
Musdhib, aide-de-camp, companion.
Musalld, a carpet to pray upon.
Musalmdn, a Muhammadan.
Musalmani, fem. of Musalman.
Mushk, musk.
Mut'h, Hindu temple.
N.
Ndch, an Indian dance.
Nadi, or naddl, a river.
Nadir-shah, the king.
Nd'echa, a small reed, hukka snake.
Ndgd, the holy serpent.
Nahin, or nd'ich, not, no.
Ndld, a rivulet.
Ndlki, a sort of litter used by people
of rank.
Ndnd, a large earthen pan.
Ndrangi, an orange.
Ndrjil, cocoa-nut, or cocoa-nut tree.
Naslb, fortune ; bald-nasib, unfortu-
nate.
Nawab, vulg. Nabob.
Nazr, a gift especially offered to a
superior.
Newala, mungoose (viverra mungo).
Neicdr, tape.
Nhut, a nose-ring.
Nil-gdw, lil-gd'l, or rojh, the white-
footed antelope of Pennant, antilope
picta of Pallos.
Nim, or neemb, margosa tree (melia aza-
dirachta).
Nimbu, or limu, a fruit, the lime.
Nun, non, or Ion, salt.
.A/tir, light.
Nut-log, tumblers.
Pdbos, kissing the feet.
Pachdsi, a game, so named from the
highest throw, which is twenty-five.
Padshah, a king.
Pdgal, fool ; pdgal-i-ndch, a fancy-
ball.
Pahdr, a mountain.
Pahar, a watch of three hours.
Pahare-wdld, a sentry.
Pahar-i, a hill, a mountain.
Pd'l, the fourth part of an and.
Paisd, copper coin.
Pdjdma, trowsers, long drawers.
Pakkd, exact, expert, built of brick.
Palang, couch, cot.
Pallta, match (of a gun).
Palki, or palkee, a palanquin.
Palwdr, a boat.
Pan, leaves of piper betel.
Panchdydt, a court of inquiry.
Pant, water.
Pankhu, a fan.
Pa-posh, slipper.
Pdras-patthar, the philosopher's stone.
Parbati, purvati, mountaineer.
Parbut, mountain.
Parda-nishin, remaining behind the
curtain.
Pari, fairy.
Pat, a leaf, ornament worn in the upper
part of the ear.
Paid, a plank on which washermen
beat clothes.
Patdl, the infernal regions.
Pateld, or pataild, a flat-bottomed boat.
Pateli, a small flat-bottomed boat.
Pdthur, or patthar, a stone.
Patlar, putti, or palti, a leaf.
Pattu, a kind of woollen cloth.
Pera, a sweetmeat.
Peshkdr, minister, deputy.
Peshwd, Mahratta minister.
Peshwdz, a gown.
Phdns, a bamboo.
Phdnsi-gdr, a strangler, a Thag.
Phdnsnd, to noose.
Phurr, the noise of a bird, as a par-
tridge or quail, suddenly taking
wing.
GLOSSARY.
XXX1I1
Phuslana, to decoy.
Phuslu'u, wheedling.
Pili-bhit, the name of a town in Ro-
hilkhand, famous for the smallness
and fineness of its rice.
Pinnace, a yacht.
Pipal, ficus religiosa.
Pir, a saint.
Pitdra, a basket.
Piyala, a glass, a cup.
Prdg, the ancient name of Ilahabad,
commonly Allahabad.
Puja, worship, adoration.
Pul, a bridge.
Puld'o, a dish of flesh and rice.
Pur, a town, a city.
Purd, a large village, a town.
Puran or purana, the Hindu mytho-
logical books.
Putla, a puppet, an image.
Putli, a small puppet or image.
Putvdl, straw.
R.
Rahlm, merciful, compassionate.
Rahman, forgiving.
Ra'iyat, tenants, subjects.
Raj, kingdom.
Raja., a prince, a king.
Raj^rani, a queen, royal consort.
Raj-put, a descendant of a raja, the
name of a celebrated military caste.
Rdkki, a bracelet or amulet, which the
Hindus tie on their arms on a cer-
tain festival, held in the full moon of
Sdwan, in honour of Krishna.
Ram, the seventh Hindu incarnation.
Ram-ram, a Hindu form of salu-
tation.
Ramtur'ai, hibiscus longifolius.
Rant, a Hindu queen or princess.
Rd'o, a prince.
Ras, the circular dance performed at
the festival of Krishna.
Ras-dhari, a dancing boy.
Rasul, a messenger.
Rdt-alu, the yam (dioscorea sativa).
Rat-aundha, blindness at night (nyc-
talopia).
Rath, a four-wheeled carriage.
Rauza, mausoleum.
Rawti, a kind of tent.
Rezai, or razai, a native counterpane.
Rikhi or rithi, a sage, a saint.
VOL. I.
Rohu, a fish (cyprinus denticulatus).
Roti, wheaten cakes baked on an iron
plate, called tawa.
Rupiya, a rupee.
Rustam, a hero.
Sach, truth.
Sdchak, hinna presented to the bride
on the day of marriage.
Sadr'addlut, supreme court of justice.
Sagar, the sea, the ocean.
Sagun, teak, a forest tree.
Sahajnd, horseradish tree.
Sahib, master, gentleman of the house.
Sahiha, lady.
Sd'ls, a groom.
Sajjada, a carpet or mat on which the
Muhammadans kneel at prayers.
Salagram, a stone containing the im-
pression of one or more ammonites.
Salam, salutation, peace, safety.
Saldmut, salvation, safety,
Sallam, cloth.
Salotari, horse doctor.
Samat, signs.
Samudr, the sea.
Saneha, a mould.
Sang-i-miknutis, the loadstone.
Sang-i-sulaimani, agate, onyx.
Sang-tarash, a stonecutter, lapidary.
Sang-i-yashm, a kind of jasper or
agate.
Sangtara, an orange (cintra).
Sankh, a conch which the Hindus
blow, a shell.
Sankho, shorea robusta.
Sara'e, a native inn.
Sara'i, a small cover.
Sarangi, a musical instrument like a
fiddle.
Saras, a species of heron (ardea anti-
gone), saras phenicopteros.
Sardar, headman.
Sarhang, (corrupt: serang,) or galaiya,
master of a vessel, commander.
Sari, a dress, consisting of one long
piece of cloth or silk, worn by Hindu
women.
Sarkar, a superintendent.
Sarp, a serpent.
Sarpat, a kind of reed or grass (sac-
charum procerum).
Sarpesh, an ornament worn in the
turban.
Sarposh, cover, lid.
b
XXXIV
GLOSSARY.
Salt, a woman who burns herself on
her husband's funeral pile, chaste,
virtuous, constant.
Sawar, a horseman.
Ser, two pounds.
Shab-bo, polianthes tuberosa.
Shaddd, the banners that are carried
with the Taziya in the Muharram.
Shadi, a wedding, marriage.
Shah, king.
Shah-bash ! bravo!
Shah-zada, a prince.
Shahi, kinglike.
Shaikh, (vulgo : Shekh) a chief, a vene-
rable old man.
Sharab, wine.
Sharm, shame.
Shdstr, Hindu scriptures.
Shatrang-i or sutraengi, a kind of
carpet.
Sher, a tiger, a lion.
Shi'a, a follower of the sect of 'All.
Shikar, chase.
Shisha, glass.
Shlsha-mahul, a house adorned with
glass.
Shlsham, dalbergia sissoo (Roxb.).
Shiva, the third person of the Hindu
triad.
Shola, (commonly pronounced sola,)
aeschynomene paludosa (Roxb.).
Sihra, a chaplet worn on the head by
the bridegroom and bride at the
marriage ceremony.
Sila, the stone on which cooks grind,
with the looreea or rolling pin of
stone.
Singhara, trapa natans.
Sipdh'i, (whence seapoy,) a soldier.
Sir, head.
Sircar. See Sarkdr.
Sirjah-talu, black mouthed.
Sitalpatl, a fine and cool mat.
Siwala, or shiwala, a temple dedicated
to Mahadeo.
Sona, gold ; sonahla, golden.
Sonta, a club.
Sonte-barddr, a mace-bearer ; a person
in the retinue of the great, armed
with a short curved club, generally
covered with silver.
Sraddha, funeral obsequies in honour
of ancestors.
Sri or Shrl, a name of Lakshmi, the
wife of Vishnu. It is written as a
mark of respect at the beginning of
Hindu proper names of persons.
Su'ar, a hog.
Subadar, governor of a province.
Sulaimun, Solomon.
Sultan, king, emperor.
Sunn, hemp.
Sunnl, an orthodox Muhammadan, who
reveres equally the four successors
of Muhammad. The Turks are Sun-
nis, the Persians are Shl'as.
Sup, a kind of basket for winnowing
corn.
Supydri, betel nut.
Surah-i, a long-necked goblet.
Surma, collyrium.
T.
Taat, paper made of hemp, i. e. sunn.
Taj, a crown.
Takd, a copper coin, equal to two
paisa.
Takht, a throne ; padshah-i-takht, the
king's throne.
Taksdl, the mint.
Tamasha, fun, sport.
Tana, a spider's web.
Tanjan, a chair carried by natives.
Tarai, marsh meadows.
Tasar, a cloth.
Tattt, a screen or matted shutter.
Tattoo, a pony.
Tawa, the iron plate on which (roti)
bread is baked.
Taziya, the representation of the tomb
of Hasun and Husain, used during
the Muharram.
Thaili, purse, bag.
Thiliya, water pot.
Tikd, a mark or marks made with
coloured earths, or unguents, upon
the forehead and between the brows,
either as ornament or sectorial dis-
tinction ; an ornament worn on the
forehead.
Tilak, a mark the Hindus make on the
forehead.
Tiriyd, wife.
Tiriyd-raj, Amazon country, petticoat
government.
Top, cannon.
Tope, plantation.
Tri-beni, or tri-venl, the junction of
the three sacred rivers.
Tufdn, a hurricane, a storm of wind
whirling round.
Tuls'i, a plant, basil (ocymum sanc-
tum).
GLOSSARY.
XXXV
U. V.
Uchchat tilak, a religious ceremony,
see vol. ii. p. 385.
Vishnu, the second person of the Hindu
triad.
Ulak, a small boat.
Ummed-war, an expectant.
Voirdji, or bairdgi, a religious men-
dicant.
Upld, cakes of dried cowdung.
W.
Wali-uhd, heir apparent.
Y.
Yak, the small cow of Thibet.
Yug, or yitga, an age of the world.
The Hindus reckon four yugas, or
ages, since the creation of the pre-
sent world.
Yugant, the end of the four yugas, or
ages, when, according to the Hindus,
a total destruction of the universe
takes place.
Z.
Zaban-i-urdu, the eourt language.
Zdmin, guarantee.
Zamiindar, landlord.
Zanana, or zenana, female apartments,
feminine, effeminate.
Zul-jana, the horse of Husain, i. e. the
winged wolf.
Zunnar, the Brahmanical thread.
WANDERINGS OF A PILGRIM.
CHAPTER I.
DEPARTURE FROM ENGLAND.
1822, April Flying Visit to Switzerland The good Ship 'Marchioness of
Ely' H. M. 16th Lancers Porto Santo Fellow-Passengers Isle of Palma
Divine Service The Band Quadrilles The first Shark Bristol Water
Skip-jacks Prickly heat Crossing the Line Amusements on Board A
Blue Shark Sucking-Fish Bonito Santa Trinidada and Martin Vas Rocks
The Albatross Thoughts of Home A Calm Shooting Season on the
Ocean Three Days of Battue Whale-Shooting A deep Calm Scarcity
of Water Anchored at Carnicobar.
In April, 1822, Monsieur mon mari took me to Switzerland.
For the first time, I quitted England. How beautiful was the
Valley of Chamouni ! how delightful our expedition on the
La Plegere ! The guides pronounced it too early in the year to
attempt the ascent of Mont Blanc. We quitted the valley
with regret, and returned to Geneva : but our plans were
frustrated, and our hopes disappointed ; for, on reaching the
hotel, we found a letter requiring our instant return to England.
The ' Marchioness of Ely,' in which we had taken our passage to
Bengal, was reported to be ready to sail in a few days : no time
was to be lost ; we started immediately, travelled night and day
incessantly, and arrived, greatly harassed, in town. The illness
brought on by the over-fatigue of that journey never quitted
me for years. The vessel, however, was merely preparing for her
departure, and did not sail until long after.
Happily the pain of separation from the beloved home of my
VOL. I. ^ B
2 WANDERINGS OF A PILGRIM.
childhood was broken by the necessity of exertion in preparation
for the voyage.
June \3th. We went to Gravesend, to see the ship: it was
scarcely possible to enter our destined abode, the larboard stern
cabin ; so full was it to overflowing boxes of clothes, hampers of
soda water, crates of china and glass a marvellous confusion !
After a time the hampers and boxes were carried below, the
furniture cleated and lashed, and some sort of order was
established.
We had carefully selected a ship that was not to carry troops :
we now found the 'Ely' had been taken up to convey four troops
of H. M. 1 6th Lancers; the remainder of the regiment was to sail
in the ' General Hewitt.' Some of our fellow-passengers were on
board on the same errand as ourselves.
June \8th. We had lingered with our friends, and had de-
ferred the sad farewell until the last moment : half uncertain if
we should be in time to catch the ship in the Downs, we posted
to Deal, took refuge at the ' Three Kings,' and had the satisfac-
tion of watching the 'Marchioness of Ely,' and the 'Winchelsea'
her companion, as they bore down. At 1 1 p.m. we went on board,
and sailed the next day. There was such a glorious confusion
on deck, that those who were novices in military and naval
affairs might deem, as they gazed around, it could never sub-
side into any thing approaching order. Every one, however,
was saying it would be very different when the ship was at sea ;
of which, indeed, there was little doubt, for to go on as we
were would have been impossible. Off the Isle of Wight the
pilot left us to our captain's guidance ; the breeze was favour-
able; we were sailing so smoothly, there was scarcely any
motion. The last farewell tears dropped as I passed the
Needles and the coast of Hampshire, whilst memory recalled
the happy days I had spent there, and in the Forest, the beau-
tiful Forest !
Such thoughts and feelings it was necessary to. throw aside.
I joined the party in the cuddy, scrutinized the strange faces,
and retired to my cabin, with as solitary a feeling as if my
husband and I had been exiles for ever.
THE VOYAGE. 3
The voyage began prosperously; I was satisfied with the
captain, with my cabin, with my servant, and happy with my
lord and master.
We regretted we had taken our passage in a ship full of
troops, and anticipated we should be debarred taking exercise
on the quarter-deck, and enjoying ourselves with walk and talk
during the fine moonlight nights. In the ' Ely ' it appeared as
if it would be impossible ; were you to attempt it, you would be
sure to blunder over some sleeping Lancer. However, the band
was on board some small consolation ; and as the society was
large, there was more chance of entertainment.
July 1st. Porto Santo looked beautiful, its head enveloped
in clouds. The rocky island rises boldly out of the sea; its
mountains are very picturesque. The sight of land and white
chateaux was quite charming.
I now began to recover from the maladie de mer, and to
regain my usual good spirits. Creatures of habit, we soon
grew accustomed to the small space. The stern cabin, twelve
feet by ten, at first sight appeared most extremely inconvenient ;
but now it seemed to have enlarged itself, and we were more
comfortable. Still sleep would scarcely visit me, until a
swinging cot was procured. From that time I slept calmly and
quietly, whatever pranks the old ' Ely ' might choose to play.
The comfort or discomfort of a voyage greatly depends upon
your fellow-passengers. In this respect we were most fortu-
nate ; one-half the officers of the 1 6th Lancers were in the
'Ely.' The old 16th to me were friends; my father, who had
been many years in the regiment, was forced to quit it, in con-
sequence of a severe wound he received in action in the Pays
Bas, under the command of the Duke of York. My uncle had
commanded the gallant regiment in Spain, and other relatives
had also been many years with the regiment. Chance had
thrown us amongst friends.
Perhaps no friendships are stronger than those formed on
board ship, where the tempers and dispositions are so much set
forth in their true colours.
July 4th. We passed the Isle of Palma ; it looked beautiful,
b2
4 WANDERINGS OF A PILGRIM.
rising abruptly from the sea; the trees appeared fine and
numerous. We are in the trade winds, going generally about
eight knots an hour; the evenings are delicious; little or no
dew falls so far from land ; in the evening we sit on deck, and
enjoy the breeze. The moon is reflected so beautifully on the
waves, the nights are so warm, the air so pure, the climate so
agreeable, I could willingly turn canary bird, and take up my
residence in this latitude.
Sometimes quadrilles are danced by the light of the moon ;
sometimes by the glare of half-a-dozen lanterns. There is little
or no motion in the vessel j no events occur ; yes let me not
forget a little boy fell into the pea-soup and got a ducking;
luckily for him, it was nearly cold. "The misfortunes of the
stable fall on the head of the monkey 1 ." The deck presents
a curious assemblage: Lancers at extension exercise, women
working, sailors hauling, children at school, ladies reading or
talking in groups altogether an amusing scene.
On Sundays Divine service is performed; the psalms are
sung in very good style, accompanied by the Lancer band.
The weather is hot; the thermometer 79 in our cabin, 81 in
the cuddy, which at dinner-time contains six-and-thirty people.
To-day a shark was caught ; it was attended by three pilot fish,
which, they say, guide the shark to its prey. These small fish
are very pretty, and striped like zebras. The shark vras hooked
and dragged up by the stern windows ; he struggled manfully,
but was soon despatched.
A little flying-fish flew into one of the ports to escape the
pursuit of a larger fish ; it was small and curious, but not so
pretty as one would imagine. Two large fins spread out on its
sides, like wings. It was a novelty to most of the passengers.
July 22nd. What a strange, bustling life ! This is baggage-
day ; all the trunks are on deck such a confusion ! I am
suffering from maladie de mer ; the wind is contrary ; we tack
and veer most tiresomely; the ship pitches; we cling about
like cats, and are at our wits' end, striving to endure our miseries
with patience.
1 Oriental Proverbs, No. 9.
SKIP-JACK. 5
The Bristol water is invaluable, the ship water very black,
and it smells vilely. I knew not before the value of good
water ; and, were it not for the shower bath, should be apt to
wish myself where Truth is at the bottom of a well.
Yesterday such a noise arose on deck, it brought me to the
scene of action in a minute : " Come here ! come here ! look !
look ! There they go, like a pack of hounds in full cry !" I
did come, and I did look ; and there were some hundred of
skip-jacks leaping out of the water, and following each other
with great rapidity across the head of the ship. When many
fish leaped up together, there was such laughing, shouting,
pointing, and gazing, from four hundred full-grown people,
it was absurd to see how much amusement the poor fish
occasioned. I looked alternately at the fish and the people,
and laughed at both.
A kind of rash teases me ; in these latitudes they call it
prickly heat, vow you cannot be healthy withoiit it, and affirm
that every one ought to be glad to have it. So am not I.
Having beaten about the line for a fortnight, with a con-
trary wind, at length we entertained hopes of crossing it, and
letters were received on board from Neptune and Amphitrite,
requesting to be supplied with clothes, having lost their own in
a gale of wind.
July 30th. Neptune and his lady came on board to acquaint
the captain they would visit him in form the next day. The
captain wished the god good night, when instantly the deck was
deluged with showers of water from the main-top, while a
flaming tar-barrel was thrown overboard, in which Neptune
was supposed to have vanished in flame and water.
July 3\st. At 9 a.m. the private soldiers who were not to be
shaved were stationed on the poop with their wives ; on the
quarter-deck the officers and ladies awaited the arrival of the
ocean-god. First in procession marched the band, playing
" God save the King;" several grotesque figures followed ; then
came the car of Neptune a gun-carriage with such a creature
for a coachman ! The carriage was drawn by six half-naked
seamen, painted to represent Tritons, who were chained to the
vehicle. We beheld the monarch and his bride, seated in the
6 WANDERINGS OF A PILGRIM.
car, with a lovely girl, whom he called his tender offspring.
These ladies were represented by the most brawny, muscular,
ugly and powerful fellows in the ship ; the letters requesting
female attire having procured an abundance of finery. The
boatswain's mate, a powerful man, naked to the waist, with
a pasteboard crown upon his head and his speaking-trumpet in
his hand, who represented Neptune, descended from his car,
and offered the captain two fowls as tropical birds, and a salted
fish on the end of a trident, lamenting that the late boisterous
weather had prevented his bringing any fresh. A doctor, a
barber with a notched razor, a sea-bear and its keeper, closed
the procession.
Re-ascending the car, they took their station in front of the
poop, and a rope was drawn across the deck to represent the
line. Neptune then summoned the colonel-commandant of
the Lancers to his presence, who informed him he had before
entered his dominions. The major was then conducted, by a
fellow calling himself a constable, to the foot of the car : he
went up, expecting to be shaved, but the sea god desired him to
present his wife to Amphitrite. After the introduction they
were both dismissed.
My husband and myself were then summoned : he pleaded
having crossed the line before. Neptune said that would not
avail, as his lady had entered the small latitudes for the first
time. After a laughable discussion, of to be shaved or not to
be shaved, we were allowed to retire. The remainder of the
passengers were summoned in turn. The sentence of shaving
was passed upon all who had not crossed the line, but not
carried into execution on the officers of the ship. The crew
were shaved and ducked in form, and in all good humour. Tn
the mean time the fire-engine drenched every body on deck, and
the officers and passengers amused themselves for hours
throwing water over each other from buckets. Imagine four
hundred people ducking one another, and you may have some
idea of the frolic. In the evening the sailors danced, sang,
recited verses, and spliced the main brace 2 , until very late,
' Drank grog.
CROSSING THE LINE. 7
and the day ended as jovially as it began. Several times they
charmed us with an appropriate song, roared at the utmost
pitch of their stentorian lungs, to the tune of "There's na
luck about the house."
" We'll lather away, and shave away,
And lather away so fine,
We always have a shaving day
Whenever we cross the line."
With sorrow I confess to having forgotten the remainder of
the ditty, which ended
" There's nothing half so sweet in life
As crossing of the line."
" Rule Britannia," with a subscription for the ruler of the
seas, was the finale, leaving every one perfectly satisfied with
his portion of salt water. It was agreed the rites and
ceremonies had never been better performed or with greater
good humour.
Colonel Luard's beautiful and faithful sketches have since
been presented to the public. Watching his ready pencil, as it
portrayed the passing scene, was one of the pleasures of the
'Ely;' and I feel greatly obliged to him for having given me
permission to add copies of some of his original sketches to
my journal.
Neptune was accompanied on board by a flying-fish that came
in at one of the ports, perhaps to escape from an albicore : a
lucky omen. The gentlemen amuse themselves with firing at
the albatross, as they fly round and round the vessel ; as yet, no
damage has been done the great birds shake their thick
plumage, and laugh at the shot.
The favourite game is pitch-and-toss for dollars. Boxing is
another method of spending time. Chess and backgammon-
boards are in high request ; when the evenings are not calm
enough for a quadrille or a waltz on deck, the passengers retire
to the cuddy, to whist or blind hookey, and dollars are brought
to table in cases that formerly contained Gamble's most excellent
portable soup ! On the very general introduction of caoutchouc
g WANDERINGS OF A PILGRIM.
into every department of the arts and sciences, some of the
principal ship-builders proposed to form the keels of their
vessels of indian-rubber, but abandoned the project apprehending
the entire effacement of the equinoctial line.
Aug. 1st. Caught a bonito and a sea-scorpion; the latter
was of a beautiful purple colour, the under part white : also a
nautilus and a blue shark ; in the latter were four-and-twenty
young ones. The shark measured seven feet ; its young
from twelve to fourteen inches. The colour of the back was
blue, of the belly white ; several sucking-fish were upon the
monster, of which some were lost in hauling him on board :
one of those caught measured nine inches and a half; it stuck
firmly to my hand in an instant.
Our amusements concluded with viewing an eclipse of the
moon.
A stiff" gale split the mainsail and blew the foretop and
mizentop sails to pieces : no further damage was sustained. I
enjoyed the sight of the fine waves that tossed the vessel as if
she were a cockle-shell.
We caught two Cape pigeons, very beautiful birds ; the
moment they were brought on deck they suffered extremely from
maladie de mer !
Aug. l\th. During Divine service we came in sight of
San Trinidada and Martin Vas Rocks ; the former distant
twelve miles, the latter thirty.
Aug. \6th. Lat. 27 S., long. 19 W. The annexed litho-
graph is from an original drawing of Colonel Luard's, and the
following extract from his " Views in India :"
" This drawing represents the numerous birds that constantly
follow ships from lat. 27 S. to lat. 40 S., constantly hovering
about the ship, and picking up anything eatable which may be
thrown overboard. The pintado, or Cape pigeon, a very pretty
bird, black and white striped all over, is the most numerous.
They fly backwards and forwards across the ship's wake, in such
numbers and so carelessly, that they are frequently caught by en-
tangling their wings in lines thrown over the stern of the ship
to catch the albatross. This immense bird is also portrayed in
SHOOTING SEASON.
the drawing, whose astonishing power, fierceness, and fleetness,
render him formidable amongst the feathered tribe of these
regions. There is an instance on record of a man having
fallen overboard from a ship-of-war, when a noble-minded mid-
shipman instantly jumped overboard, and, from his power as a
swimmer, would probably have rescued the sailor from a watery
grave, had not an albatross passing at the moment stooped upon
the generous youth, and struck him upon the head : he sank to
rise no more ! Both he and the sailor were drowned."
Aug. 23rd. There is a ship alongside ! a ship bound for
England ! it speaks of home and the beloved ones, and although
I am as happy as possible, my heart still turns to those who
have heretofore been all and everything to me, with a warmth
of affection at once delightful and very painful.
Aug. 27th. Lat. 32 9' S., long. 4 25' E. A dead calm !
give me any day a storm and a half in preference ! It was so
miserable a long heavy swell, without a ripple on the waves ;
the ship rolled from side to side without advancing one inch ;
she groaned in all her timbers : the old ' Marchioness ' ap-
peared to suffer and be as miserable as myself. The calm con-
tinued the next day, and the rolling also ; the captain kindly
allowed the jolly-boat to be lowered, in which some of the
Lancers and my husband went out shooting.
This day, the 28th of August, was the commencement of the
shooting season : game was in abundance, and they sought it over
the long heavy swell of the glasslike and unrippled sea. The
sportsmen returned with forty head of game : in this number
was an albatross, measuring nine feet from the tip of one wing
to that of the other ; a Cape hen, a sea-swallow, with several
pintado and other birds.
When the boat returned, it brought good fortune ; the wind
instantly sprang up, and we went on our way rejoicing. This
day a whale was seen at a distance ; if it had approached the
vessel, a captain of the Lancers had prepared a Congreve rocket
for its acceptance.
Sept. 1st. We spoke a Dutchman off the Cape, looking in a
very pitiable condition : the same gale which had damaged
her overtook us, and blew heavily and disagreeably for three
10 WANDERINGS OF A PILGRIM.
days. The weather was very cold and wet, and we felt disap-
pointed at not touching at the Cape.
Sept. \0th. Lat. 36 43' S., Ion. 45 3V W., ther. 64.
Another calm, and another battue : the gentlemen returned from
the watery plain with great eclat, bringing seven albatross, thirty
pintados, a Cape hen, and two garnets. One of the albatross,
which was stuffed for me, measured fifty-three inches from head
to tail, and nine feet ten inches across the wings.
Sept. 20th. In the evening we passed St. Paul's and Amster-
dam, but the haziness of the weather prevented our seeing them.
This, the most southerly point of our voyage, was also the coldest.
The cold was really painful.
Sept. 23. A school ' of twenty or thirty whales passed near
the ship ; it was almost a calm ; they were constantly on the
surface, frolicking and spouting away. They were, the sailors
said, of the spermaceti order, which are smaller in size, and do
not spout so high as the larger race. I was disappointed.
Two of the officers of the Lancers rowed within ten yards of a
large whale, and fired a Congreve rocket into its body; the
whale gave a spring and dived instantly. The rocket would
explode in a few seconds and kill him : a good prize for the first
ship that falls in with the floating carcase. They fired at
another, but the rocket exploded under water and came up
smoking to the surface. The boat returned safely to the ship,
but it was rather a nervous affair.
Sept. 25th. Another calm allowed of more shooting, and
great was the slaughter of sea game. I must make an extract
from Colonel Luard's work, speaking of a battle that took place
on the 10th : " The Cape hen was a large fierce black bird, and
only having its wing broken, tried to bite every person's legs in
the boat. When she was placed on the ship's quarter-deck, a
small terrier belonging to one of the officers attacked her, and
they fought for some time with uncertain advantage ; the bloody
streams from the dog proving the severity of the bird's bite :
at last the terrier seized his adversary by the throat, when the
battle and the bird's life ended together. In lat. 4 13' S., long.
1 A technical term used in the whale fishery.
A CALM. 1 ]
93 ll'E., the thermometer in the sun standing at 130, and
in the shade 97, two small birds, in every respect resembling
the English swallow, came about the ship. One of them was
caught, and died ; the other (probably in hopes of rejoining its
companion) remained with the ship fourteen or fifteen days,
frequently coming into the cabins and roosting there during the
night. It was at last missing ; and, not being an aquatic bird,
perhaps met a watery death."
During the time of the battue on the third day, three sharks
were astern ; we caught one that had a young one by her side.
When opened on deck, a family of twenty-four were found, each
about twelve or fourteen inches long; the mother measured seven
feet. The shark is said to swallow its young when in peril, and
to disgorge them when the danger has passed. The curious
birds and fish we see relieve the tedium of the voyage.
We now looked impatiently for the end of our passage, and
counted the days like schoolboys expecting their vacation. It
was amusing to hear the various plans the different people on
board intended to pursue on landing all too English by far for
the climate to which they were bound.
The birds were numerous south of the tropics ; we saw few
within them. The flying-fish are never found beyond the tropics.
Oct. llth.La.t. 4 2<Y S., long. 93 11' E. The heat was
very great; the vertical sun poured down its sickening rays,
the thermometer in the shade of the coolest cabin 86 ; not a
breath of air ; we felt severely the sudden change of temperature.
The sails flapped against the mast, and we only made progress
seventeen knots in the twenty-four hours ! Thus passed eleven
days the shower bath kept us alive, and our health was better
than when we quitted England. M. mon mari, who was study-
ing Persian, began to teach me Hindostanee, which afforded me
much pleasure.
In spite of the calm there was gaiety on board ; the band played
delightfully, our fellow-passengers were agreeable, and the calm
evenings allowed of quadrilles and waltzing on the deck, which
was lighted up with lanterns and decorated with flags.
We spoke the ' Winchelsea,' which had quitted the Downs
12 WANDKRINGS OF A PILGRIM.
seven days before us and experienced heavy weather off the
Cape : it was some consolation to have been at sea a shorter
time than our companion. But little sickness was on board ; a
young private of the Lancers fell overboard, it was supposed,
during a squall, and was lost ; he was not even missed until the
next day : a sick Lancer died, and a little child also ; they were
buried at sea: the bill of health was uncommonly good. A
burial at sea, when first witnessed, is very solemn and impressive.
We passed an English ship the Lancer band played " God
save the King," the vessel answered with three cheers. It was
painful to meet a homeward-bound ship ; it reminded me of
home, country, and, dearer still, of friends. The sailors have a
superstition, that sharks always follow a ship when a corpse is
on board : the night after the man fell overboard, the Lancer
and the child died ; the day they were buried three sharks were
astern. I thought of the sailors' superstition ; no sharks had
been seen along-side for three weeks. The sunsets on and near
the fine are truly magnificent, nothing is more glorious the
nights are beautiful, no dew, no breeze, the stars shining as
they do on a frosty night at home, and we are gasping for a
breath of air ! A sea-snake about a yard and a half long was
caught many turtle were seen, but they sank the moment the
boat approached them. A subscription lottery was made ; the
person whose ticket bears the date of our arrival at Saugor will
win the amount.
Oct. 22nd. Becalmed for eighteen days ! not as when off
the Cape ; there it was cool, with a heavy swell, here there is
no motion, the sun vertical, not a breath of air, the heat exces-
sive. At length a breeze sprang up, and we began to move :
one day during the calm we made seven knots in the twenty-
four hours, and those all the wrong way !
" Day after day, day after day,
We stuck, nor breath nor motion ;
As idle as a painted ship
Upon a painted ocean."
Our voyage advanced very slowly, and the supply of fresh
NICOBAR. 13
water becoming scanty, we were all put on short allowance ;
any thing but agreeable under so hot a sun. Captain Kay deter-
mined to make the land, and water the ship, and made signals to
our companion, the ' Winchelsea,' to that effect.
Oct. 30th. To our great delight we arrived at, and anchored
off, Carnicobar, one of the Nicobar Islands, lat. 9 l& N., long.
92 56' E. Boats were immediately sent on shore to a small
village, where the landing was good, and two springs of delicious
water were found for the supply of the ship.
CHAPTER II.
CARNICOBAR.
'a handsome sistee, with a mat for a petticoat 1 ."
1822, October. Appearance and Attire of the Islanders Canoes Visit to
their Village Ornaments of the Natives Departure from the Island The
Andaman* Anchorage at Saugor The Hoogly Arrival in Calcutta.
The island where we landed was covered to the edge of the sand
of the shore with beautiful trees ; scarcely an uncovered or open
spot was to be seen. Off the ship the village appeared to
consist of six or eight enormous bee-hives, erected on poles and
surrounded by high trees ; among these, the cocoa-nut, to an
English eye, was the most remarkable.
The ship was soon surrounded by canoes filled with natives ;
two came on board. The ladies hastened on deck, but quickly
scudded away, not a little startled at beholding men like Adam
when he tasted the forbidden fruit : they knew not they were
naked, and they were not ashamed. I returned to my cabin.
The stern of the vessel was soon encircled by canoes filled with
limes, citrons, oranges, cocoa-nuts, plantains, yams, eggs,
chickens, little pigs, and various kinds of fruit. The sight of
these temptations soon overcame my horror at the want of
drapery of the islanders, and I stood at the port bargaining for
what I wished to obtain until the floor was covered. Our
traffic was thus conducted I held up an empty jam-pot, and
received in return a basket full of citrons ; for two empty phials,
a couple of fowls ; another couple of fowls were given in
1 Oriental Sayings, No. 10.
CANOES. 15
exchange for an empty tin case that held portable soup ; the
price of a little pig was sixpence, or an old razor : they were eager
at first for knives, but very capricious in their bargains : the
privates of the Lancers had glutted the market. On my holding
up a clasp-knife, the savage shook his head. I cut off the
brass rings from the window-curtains, great was the clamour
and eagerness to possess them. On giving a handful to one of
the men, he counted them carefully, and then fitted them on
his fingers. The people selected those they approved, returned
the remainder, and gave me fruit in profusion. Even curtain-
rings soon lost their charm my eye fell on a basket of shells,
the owner refused by signs all my offers he wanted some
novelty: at length an irresistible temptation was found an
officer of the Lancers cut off three of the gay buttons from his
jacket, and offered them to the savage, who handed up the
shells.
" Figurez-vous," said the Lancer, " the Carnicobarbarian love
of that fellow, matted with straw and leaves from the waist to
the knee, decked with three Lancer buttons suspended round her
neck by a cocoa-nut fibre, and enraptured with the novelty and
beauty of the tout ensemble ! ! "
The dress, or rather the undress of the men was very simple ;
a handkerchief tied round the waist and passed between the
limbs so as to leave the end hanging like a tail : some wore a
stripe of plantain-leaf bound fillet -like round their heads ; the
necks of the chiefs were encircled either with silver wire in many
rings, or a necklace of cowries.
One of the canoes which came from a distant part of the
island was the most beautiful and picturesque boat I ever saw ;
it contained twenty-one men, was paddled with amazing swift-
ness, and gaily decorated. Of the canoes, some were so narrow
that they had bamboo outriggers to prevent their upsetting.
The natives appeared an honest, inoffensive race, and were much
pleased with the strangers. After dinner it was proposed to go
on shore in the cool of the evening: the unmarried ladies
remained on board. I could not resist a run on a savage island,
and longed to see the women, and know how they were treated.
16 WANDERINGS OF A PILGRIM.
Really the dark colour of the people serves very well as dress, if
you are not determined to be critical. On landing, I was sur-
rounded by women chattering and staring; one pulled my
bonnet, but above all things they were charmed with my black
silk apron ; they greatly admired, and took it in their hands.
They spoke a few words of English, and shook hands with me,
saying, " How do ? how do ?" and when they wished to purchase
my apron they seized it rather roughly, saying, "You buy? you
buy ? " meaning, Will you sell it? they were kind after the mode
Nicobar.
The natives are of low stature, their faces ugly, but good-
humoured ; they are beautifully formed, reminding one of ancient
statues ; their carriage is perfectly erect. A piece of cloth is tied
round the waists of the women, which reaches to the knee. Some
women were hideous : of one the head was entirely shaved,
excepting where a black lock was left over either ear, of which
the lobes were depressed, stretched out, and cut into long
slips, so that they might be ornamented with bits of coloured
wood that were inserted. She had the elephantiasis, and her
limbs were swollen to the size of her waist. They are
very idle; in fact, there appears no necessity for exertion
fruits of all sorts grow wild, pigs are plentiful, and poultry
abundant. Tobacco was much esteemed. Silver they prized
very much, and called coin of all sorts and sizes dollars a six-
pence or a half-crown were dollars. The only apparent use
they have for silver is to beat it out into thick wire, which they
form into spiral rings by twisting it several times round the
finger. Rings are worn on the first and also on the middle
joint of every finger, and on the thumb also. Bracelets formed
after the same fashion wind from the wrist half-way up the arms.
Rings ornament all their toes, and they wear half-a-dozen
anklets. The same silver wire adorns the necks of the more
opulent of the men also. They are copper-coloured, with straight
black hair ; their bodies shine from being rubbed with cocoa-nut
oil, which smells very disagreeably. Their huts are particularly
well built. Fancy a great bee-hive beautifully and most carefully
thatched, twelve feet in diameter, raised on poles about five feet
VISIT TO THEIR VILLAGE. 17
from the ground ; to the first story you ascend by a removeable
ladder of bamboo ; the floor is of bamboo, and springs under
you in walking ; the side opposite the entrance is smoked by
a fire : a ladder leads to the attic, where another elastic floor
completes the habitation. They sit or lie on the ground.
Making baskets appears to be their only manufacture.
From constantly chewing the betel-nut, their teeth are
stained black, with a red tinge, which has a hideous effect. I
picked up some beautiful shells on the shore, and bartered with
the women for their silver wire rings.
The colours of my shawl greatly enchanted Lancour, one of
their chief men ; he seized it rather roughly, and pushing three
fowls, tied by the legs, into my face, said, " I present, you
present." As I refused to agree to the exchange, one of the
officers interfered, and Lancour drew back his hand evidently
disappointed.
The gentlemen went on shore armed in case of accidents ;
but the ship being in sight all was safe. I have since heard
that two vessels, which were wrecked on the island some years
afterwards, were plundered, and the crews murdered.
Many of the most beautiful small birds were shot by the
officers. As for foliage, you can imagine nothing more luxuriant
than the trees bending with fruits and flowers. No quadrupeds
were to be seen but dogs and pigs ; there are no wild beasts on
the island. They say jackals, alligators, and crabs are numerous :
the natives were anxious the sailors should return to the
ship at night, and as they remained late, the Nicobars came
down armed with a sort of spear ; they were cautious of the
strangers, but showed no fear, and told the men to come again
the next day. It must be dangerous for strangers to sleep on
shore at night, on account of the dense fog, so productive of
fever.
The scene was beautiful at sunset ; the bright tints in the
sky contrasted with the deep hue of the trees ; the shore covered
with men and boats ; the bee-hive village, and the novelty of
the whole. Many of the savages adorned with European jackets,
vol. i. c ,
|8 WANDERINGS OK A PILGRIM.
were strutting about the vainest of the vain, charmed with
their new clothing ; Lancour was also adorned with a cocked-
hat ! The woman who appeared of the most consideration,
perhaps the queen of the island, wore a red cap shaped like a
sugar-loaf, a small square handkerchief tied over one shoulder,
like a monkey mantle, and a piece of blue cloth round her
hips ; a necklace of silver wire, with bracelets, anklets, and
rings on the fingers and toes without number. The pigs
proved the most delicate food ; they were very small, and
fattened on cocoa-nuts : the poultry was excellent.
The natives make a liquor as intoxicating as gin from the
cocoa-nut tree, by cutting a gash in the bark and collecting the
juice in a cocoa-nut shell, which they suspend below the open-
ing to receive it ; it ferments and is very strong the taree or
toddy of India.
Little did I think it would ever have been my fate to visit
such an uncivilized island, or to shake hands with such queer
looking men ; however, we agreed very well, and they were quite
pleased to be noticed : one man, who made us understand he
was called Lancour, sat down by my side, and smoked in my
face "by way of a compliment. They delight in tobacco, which
they roll up in a leaf, and smoke in form of a cigar. I cannot
refrain from writing about these people, being completely island
struck.
It was of importance to the ' Winchelsea,' in which there
were a hundred and twenty on the sick list, to procure fruit
and vegetables, as the scurvy had broken out amongst the
crew.
We landed, Oct. 30th, and quitted the island, Nov. 2nd, with
a fair wind : all the passengers on board were in good spirits,
and the ship presented a perfect contrast to the time of the
calm.
Nov. 3rd. We passed the Andaman Islands, whose inha-
bitants are reported to have a fondness for strangers of a nature
different to the Carnicobarbarians, they are Cannibals !
A steady, pleasant monsoon urged us bravely onwards: a
ARRIVAL IN CALCUTTA. 19
passing squall caught us, which laid the vessel on her side,
carried away the flying jib, and split the driver into shreds :
the next moment it was quite calm.
7th. We fell in with the Pilot Schooner, off the Sand-heads,
the pilot came on board, bringing Indian newspapers and fresh
news.
\0th. We anchored at Saugor. Here we bade adieu to our
fellow-passengers, and the old ' Marchioness of Ely :' perhaps a
more agreeable voyage was never made, in spite of its duration,
nearly five months.
Our neighbours, in the stern cabin, very excellent people,
and ourselves, no less worthy, hired a decked vessel, and pro-
ceeded up the Hoogly ; that night we anchored off Fulta, and
enjoyed fine fresh new milk, &c. ; the next tide took us to
Budge-Budge by night, and the following morning we landed at
Chandpaul Ghaut, Calcutta.
The Hoogly is a fine river, but the banks are very low ; the
most beautiful part, Garden Reach, we passed during the night.
The first sight of the native fishermen in their little dinghees is
very remarkable. In the cold of the early morning, they wrap
themselves up in folds of linen, and have the appearance of men
risen from the dead. Many boats passed us which looked as if
" By skeleton forms the sails were furled,
And the hand that steered was not of this world."
13th. In the course of a few hours after our arrival, a good
house was taken for us, which being sufficiently large to accom-
modate our companions, we set up our standards together in
Park-street, Chowringhee, and thus opened our Indian cam-
paign.
c 2
CHAPTER III.
LIFE IN INDIA.
" I HAVE SEEN BENGAL! THERE THE TEETH ARE RED AND THE MOUTH IS BLACK 1 ."
1822, November Calcutta First Impressions Style of Indian Houses Fur-
niture Mats Arabs Departure of the Marquis of Hastings Fogs
Christmas-Day Indian Servants The Sircar Thieves The Hot Winds
Pankhas Fire-flies North- Westers The Foliage Musquitoes Ele-
phantiasis Insects The Churiik Pooja Religious Mendicants.
The four troops of the 16th Lancers, from the 'Ely,' disem-
barked, and encamped on the glacis of Fort William; the
' General Hewitt,' with the remainder of the regiment, did not
arrive until six weeks afterwards, having watered at the Cape.
Calcutta has been styled the City of Palaces, and it well
deserves the name. The Government House stands on the
Maidan, near the river ; the city, and St. Andrew's Church, lie
behind it ; to the left is that part called Chowringhee, filled with
beautiful detached houses, surrounded by gardens ; the veran-
dahs, which generally rise from the basement to the highest
story, give, with their pillars, an air of lightness and beauty to
the buildings, and protecting the dwellings from the sun, render
them agreeable for exercise in the rainy season.
The houses are all stuccoed on the outside, and seem as if
built of stone. The rent of unfurnished houses in Chowringhee
is very high ; we gave 325 rupees a month for ours, the larger
ones are from 4 to 500 per month.
1 Oriental Proverbs, No. 11.
3 1RCAR
CALCUTTA FIRST IMFRESSIONS. 21
The style of an Indian house differs altogether from that of
one in England.
The floors are entirely covered with Indian matting, than
which nothing can be cooler or more agreeable. For a few
weeks, in the cold season, fine Persian carpets, or carpets from
Mirzapore are used. The windows and doors are many ; the
windows are to the ground, like the French ; and, on the out-
side, they are also protected by Venetian windows of the same
description. The rooms are large and lofty, and to every sleep-
ing-apartment a bathing-room is attached. All the rooms open
into one another, with folding-doors, and pankhas are used
during the hot weather. The most beautiful French furniture
was to be bought in Calcutta of M. de Bast, at whose shop
marble tables, fine mirrors, and luxurious couches were in
abundance. Very excellent furniture was also to be had at
the Europe shops, made by native workmen under the superin-
tendence of European cabinet and furniture makers ; and furni-
ture of an inferior description in the native bazaars.
On arriving in Calcutta, I was charmed with the climate ; the
weather was delicious ; and nothing could exceed the kindness we
experienced from our friends. I thought India a most delightful
country, and could I have gathered around me the dear ones I
had left in England, my happiness would have been complete.
The number of servants necessary to an establishment in India,
is most surprising to a person fresh from Europe : it appeared
the commencement of ruin. Their wages are not high, and they
find themselves in food ; nevertheless, from their number, the
expense is very great.
The Sircar.
A very useful but expensive person in an establishment is a
sircar ; the man attends every morning early to receive orders,
he then proceeds to the bazaars, or to the Europe shops;, and
brings back for inspection and approval, furniture, books,
dresses, or whatever may have been ordered : his profit is a
heavy per centage on all he purchases for the family.
One morning our sircar, in answer to my having observed that
22 WANDERINGS OF A PILGRIM.
the articles purchased were highly priced, said, " You are my
father and my mother, and I am your poor little child : I have
only taken two annas in the rupee, dustoorie."
This man's language was a strong specimen of Eastern hyper-
bole : one day he said to me, " You are my mother, and my
father, and my God ! " With great disgust, I reproved him
severely for using such terms, when he explained, " you are my
protector and my support, therefore you are to me as my God."
The offence was never repeated. The sketch of " the sircar "
is an excellent representation of one in Calcutta : they dress
themselves with the utmost care and most scrupulous neatness
in white muslin, which is worn exactly as represented ; and the
turban often consists of twenty-one yards of fine Indian muslin,
by fourteen inches in breadth, most carefully folded and
arranged in small plaits ; his reed pen is behind his ear, and
the roll of paper in his hand is in readiness for the orders of the
sahib. The shoes are of common leather ; sometimes they wear
them most elaborately embroidered in gold and silver thread and
coloured beads. All men in India wear mustachoes ; they look
on the bare faces of the English with amazement and contempt.
The sircar is an Hindoo, as shown by the opening of the vest on
the right side, and the white dot, the mark of his caste, between
his eyes.
Dustoorie is an absolute tax. The durwan will turn from
the gate the boxwallas, people who bring articles for sale in
boxes, unless he gets dustoorie for admittance. If the sahib
buy any article, his sirdar-bearer will demand dustoorie. If the
mem sahiba purchase finery, the ayha must have her dustoorie
which, of course, is added by the boxwalla to the price the
gentleman is compelled to pay.
Dustoorie is from two to four pice in the rupee ; one anna,
or one sixteenth of the rupee is, I imagine, generally taken. But
all these contending interests are abolished, if the sircar pur-
chase the article: he takes the lion's share. The servants
hold him in great respect, as he is generally the person who
answers for their characters, and places them in service.
It appeared curious to be surrounded bv servants who, with
ARABS. 23
the exception of the tailor, could not speak one word of Eng-
lish ; and I was forced to learn to speak Hindostanee.
To a griffin, as a new comer is called for the first year, India is
a most interesting country ; every thing appears on so vast a
scale, and the novelty is so great.
In December, the climate was so delightful, it rendered the
country preferable to any place under the sun ; could it always
have continued the same, I should have advised all people to
flee unto the East.
My husband gave me a beautiful Arab, Azor by name, but as
the Sa'Is always persisted in calling him Aurora, or a Roarer,
we were obliged to change his name to Rajah. I felt very
happy cantering my beautiful high-caste Arab on the race-
course at 6 a.m., or, in the evening, on the well-watered drive in
front of the Government House. Large birds, called adjutants,
stalk about the Maidan in numbers ; and on the heads of the lions
that crown the entrance arches to the Government House, you
are sure to see this bird (the hargilla or gigantic crane) in the most
picturesque attitudes, looking as if a part of the building itself.
The arrival of the 16th Lancers, and the approaching depar-
ture of the Governor-general, rendered Calcutta extremely gay.
Dinner parties and fancy balls were numerous ; at the latter,
the costumes were excellent and superb.
Dec. \6th. The Marquis of Hastings gave a ball at the
Government-house, to the gentlemen of the Civil and Military
Services, and the inhabitants of Calcutta; the variety of cos-
tume displayed by Nawabs, Rajahs, Mahrattas, Greeks, Turks,
Armenians, Mussulmans, and Hindoos, and the gay attire of the
military, rendered it a very interesting spectacle. Going to the
ball was a service of danger, on account of the thickness of one
of those remarkable fogs so common an annoyance during the
cold season at the Presidency. It was impossible to see the
road, although the carriage had lights, and two mashalchees,
with torches in their hands, preceded the horses ; but the glare
of the mashals, and the shouts of the men, prevented our meet-
ing with any accident in the dense cloud by which we were
surrounded.
24 WANDERINGS OK A PILGRIM.
Palanquins were novel objects ; the bearers go at a good rate ;
the pace is neither walking nor running, it is the amble of the
biped, in the style of the amble taught the native horses, accom-
panied by a grunting noise that enables them to keep time.
Well-trained bearers do not shake the palkee. Bilees, hackeries,
and khraunchies, came in also for their share of wonder.
So few of the gentry in England can afford to keep riding-
horses for their wives and daughters, that I was surprised, on
my arrival in Calcutta, to see almost every lady on horseback ;
and that not on hired hacks, but on their own good steeds.
My astonishment was great one morning, on beholding a lady
galloping away, on a fiery horse, only three weeks after her
confinement. What nerves the woman must have had !
Dec. \6th. The Civil Service, the military, and the inha-
bitants of Calcutta, gave a farewell ball to the Marquis and
Marchioness of Hastings, after which the Governor- general
quitted India.
On Christmas-day the servants adorned the gate-ways with
hars, i. e. chaplets, and garlands of fresh flowers. The bearers
and dhobees brought in trays of fruit, cakes, and sweetmeats,
with garlands of flowers upon them, and requested bakhshish,
probably the origin of our Christmas-boxes. We accepted the
sweetmeats, and gave some rupees in return.
They say that, next to the Chinese, the people of India are the
most dexterous thieves in the world ; we kept a durwan, or porter
at the gate, two chaukidiirs (watchmen), and the compound
(ground surrounding the house) was encompassd by a high
wall.
1823. Jan. \2th. There was much talking below amongst
the bearers ; during the night the shout of the chaukidiirs was
frequent, to show they were on the alert ; nevertheless, the next
morning a friend, who was staying with us, found that his desk
with gold mohurs and valuables in it, had been carried off from
his room, together with some clothes and his military cloak.
We could not prove the theft, but had reason to believe it
was perpetrated by a khansaman (head table servant) whom we
had discharged, connived at bv the durwan and chaukidars.
NORTH-WESTERS. 25
March 20th. I have now been four months in India, and my
idea of the climate has altered considerably ; the hot winds are
blowing ; it is very oppressive ; if you go out during the day, I
can compare it to nothing but the hot blast you would receive
in your face, were you suddenly to open the door of an oven.
The evenings are cool and refreshing ; we drive out late ; and
the moonlight evenings at present are beautiful ; when darkness
comes on, the fire-flies illuminate the trees, which appear full of
flitting sparks of fire ; these little insects are in swarms ; they
are very small and ugly, with a light like the glowworm's in the
tail, which, as they fly, appears and suddenly disappears : how
beautifully the trees in the adjoining grounds are illuminated at
night, by these little dazzling sparks of fire !
The first sight of a pankha is a novelty to a griffin. It is a
monstrous fan, a wooden frame covered with cloth, some ten,
twenty, thirty, or more feet long, suspended from the ceiling of
a room, and moved to and fro by a man outside by means of a
rope and pullies, and a hole in the wall through which the rope
passes ; the invention is a native one ; they are the greatest
luxuries, and are also handsome, some being painted and gilt,
the ropes covered with silk, and so shaped or scooped, as to
admit their vibratory motion without touching the chandeliers,
suspended in the same line with the pankha, and when at rest,
occupying the space scooped out. In the up country, the pan-
kha is always pulled during the night over the charpai or bed.
The weather is very uncertain ; sometimes very hot, then sud-
denly comes a north-wester, blowing open every door in the
house, attended with a deluge of heavy rain, falling straight
down in immense drops : the other evening it was dark as night,
the lightning blazed for a second or two, with the blue sulphu-
reous light you see represented on the stage ; the effect was
beautiful ; the forked lightning was remarkably strong ; I did
not envy the ships in the bay.
The foliage of the trees, so luxuriously beautiful and so novel,
is to me a source of constant admiration. When we girls used
to laugh at the odd trees on the screens, we wronged the Chinese
in imagining they were the productions of fancy ; the whole
26 WANDERINGS OK A PILGRIM.
nation was never before accused of having had a fanciful idea,
and those trees were copied from nature, as I have found from
seeing the same in my drives and rides around Calcutta. The
country is quite flat, but the foliage very fine and rich. The
idleness of the natives is excessive ; for instance, my ayha will
dress me, after which she will go to her house, eat her dinner,
and then returning, will sleep in one corner of my room on the
floor for the whole day. The bearers also do nothing but eat
and sleep, when they are not pulling the pankhas.
Some of the natives are remarkably handsome, but appear far
from being strong men. It is impossible to do with a few
servants, you must have many; their customs and prejudices
are inviolable; a servant will do such and such things, and
nothing more. They are great plagues ; much more troublesome
than English servants. I knew not before the oppressive power
of the hot winds, and find myself as listless as any Indian lady
is universally considered to be ; I can now excuse, what I before
condemned as indolence and want of energy so much for
experience. The greatest annoyance are the musquito bites ; it
is almost impossible not to scratch them, which causes them to
inflame, and they are then often very difficult to cure : they are
to me much worse than the heat itself ; my irritable constitution
cannot endure them.
The elephantiasis is very common amongst the natives, it
causes one or both legs to swell to an enormous size, making
the leg at the ankle as large as it is above the knee ; there are
some deplorable objects of this sort, with legs like those of the
elephant whence the name. Leprosy is very common ; we see
lepers continually. The insects are of monstrous growth, such
spiders ! and the small-lizards are numerous on the walls of the
rooms, darting out from behind pictures, &c. Curtains are not
used in Calcutta, they would harbour musquitoes, scorpions,
and lizards.
The Churuk Pooja.
The other day, hearing it was a Burra Din, (day of festival in
honour of the goddess Kalee, whose temple is about a mile and a
-D
Pi
W
n
THE CHURUK POOJA. 27
half from Calcutta,) I drove down in the evening to Kalee Ghaut,
where, had not the novelty of the scene excited my curiosity, dis-
gust would have made me sick. Thousands of people were on
the road, dressed in all their gayest attire, to do honour to the
festival of the Chiiruk Pooja, the swinging by hooks. Amongst the
crowd, the most remarkable objects were several Voiragee mendi-
cants; their bodies were covered with ashes, their hair clotted with
mud and twisted round their heads ; they were naked all but a
shred of cloth. One man had held up both arms over his head
until they had withered and were immoveable, the nails of the
clenched fists had penetrated through the back of the hands, and
came out on the other side like the claws of a bird. To fulfil some
vow to Vishnoo this agony is endured, not as a penance for sin,
but as an act of extraordinary merit. At first the pain must be
great, but it ceases as the arms become benumbed. A man of
this description is reckoned remarkably holy, having perfect de-
pendence upon God for support, being unable, his arms having
become immoveable, to carry food to his mouth or assist him-
self. Two or three other mendicants who were present had
only one withered arm raised above their heads. Some Hindoos
of low caste, either for their sins or for money, had cut three or
four gashes in the muscular part of the arm, and through these
gashes they kept running a sword, dancing violently all the
time to hideous music; others ran bamboos as thick as three
fingers through the holes in the arm, dancing in the same man-
ner. One man passed a spit up and down through the holes,
another a dagger, and a third had a skewer through his tongue.
A little further on were three swinging posts erected in this
fashion ; a post some thirty feet in height was crossed at the
top by a horizontal bamboo, from one end of which a man was
swinging, suspended by a rope, from the other end another rope
was fastened to a horizontal pole below, which was turned by
men running round like horses in a mill. The man swung in a
circle of perhaps thirty feet diameter, supported by four iron
hooks, two through the flesh of his back, and two in that of his
chest, by which, and a small bit of cloth across the breast, he
was entirely supported : he carried a bag in one hand, from
js WANDERINGS OF A PILGRIM.
which he threw sweetmeats and flowers to the populace below.
Some men swing with four hooks in the back and four on the
chest without any cloth, eight hooks being considered sufficient
to support the body. The man I saw swinging looked very
wild, from the quantity of opium and bengh he had taken to
deaden the sense of pain. Bengh is an intoxicating liquor,
which is prepared with the leaves of the Ganja plant (Canabis
Indica) .
Hindoos of the lower castes are very fond of this amusement,
accidental deaths occasioned by it are reckoned about three per
cent. Sometimes four men swing together for half an hour ;
some in penance for their own sins ; some for those of others,
richer men, who reward their deputies and thus do penance by
proxy.
Khraunchies full of nach girls were there in all their gaily-
coloured dresses and ornaments, as well as a number of respect-
able men of good caste.
I was much disgusted, but greatly interested.
Sentries from the Calcutta militia were stationed round the
swings to keep off the crowd.
The men on the mound at the foot of the second swing run
round with the bamboo frame which is connected with the pole,
at the summit of which are the cross bamboos. As they pro-
ceed, the four men above swing merrily on their hooks, scatter-
ing flowers and sweetmeats on the people, and repeating verses
and portions of the shastrs.
CHAPTER IV.
RESIDENCE IN CALCUTTA.
1 DEBT IS A MAN S HUSBAND
" i. e. A man in debt is always at the mercy of his creditors, as a woman
at her husband's."
1823. Baboo Ramohun Roy Nach girls Children in India Sickness in the
Fort The Rains Vessels for a Voyage on the Ganges Indian Fever
Arrival of Lord Amherst Introduction of Steam-boats on the Hoogly
Interest of Money in Calcutta Robberies Jamh o Deen, Prince of Mysore
The Doorga Pooja Images of Clay the Races Chinese Screens The
Dog Crab.
1823, May. The other evening we went to a party given by
Ramohun Roy, a rich Bengallee baboo ; the grounds, which are
extensive, were well illuminated, and excellent fireworks dis-
played.
In various rooms of the house nach girls were dancing and
singing. They wear a petticoat measuring, on dit, one hundred
yards in width, of fine white or coloured muslin, trimmed with
deep borders of gold and silver; full satin trousers cover the
feet ; the doputta, or large veil, highly embroidered, is worn over
the head, and various ornaments of native jewellery adorn the
person.
They dance, or rather move in a circle, attitudinizing and
making the small brass bells fastened to their ankles sound in
unison with their movements. Several men attended the women,
playing on divers curiously-shaped native instruments.
1 Oriental Proverbs, No. 12.
30 WANDERINGS OF A PILGRIM.
The style of singing was curious ; at times the tones proceeded
finely from their noses ; some of the airs were very pretty ; one
of the women was Nickee, the Catalani of the East. Indian
jugglers were introduced after supper, who played various tricks,
swallowed swords, and breathed out fire and smoke. One man
6tood on his right foot, and putting his left leg behind his back,
hooked his left foot on the top of his right shoulder ; just try
the attitude pour passer le temps. The house was very hand-
somely furnished, everything in European style, with the excep-
tion of the owner.
The children of Europeans in India have a pale sickly hue,
even when they are in the best of health ; very different from
the chubby brats of England.
All the Indian fruits appear very large, and a new comer
thinks them inferior in point of flavour to the European ; as for
the far-famed mangoes, I was disgusted with them, all those to
be had at that time in Calcutta being stringy, with a strong taste
of turpentine.
The fort is spacious and handsome, but very hot from the
ramparts that surround it. The 44th Queen's have lost three
officers by death, nine more have returned to England on sick
certificate, and three hundred of the privates are in hospital ;
this in six months ! The mortality amongst the privates has
been dreadful, owing, I believe, to the cheapness of spirituous
liquors, and exposure to the sun.
Port or sherry is seldom seen on table, during the hot
weather ; Madeira is not much used ; Burgundy, Claret, and
light French wines are very rationally preferred.
Where the climate is so oppressive, what are luxuries indeed
at home, are here necessary to health and existence ; to walk is
impossible, even the most petty Europe shop-keeper in Cal-
cutta has his buggy, to enable him to drive out in the cool of
the evening.
June 1st. This is the first day of the month ; the morning
has been very hot, but at this moment the rain is descending,
as if the windows of heaven were again opened to deluge the
earth ; the thunder rolls awfully, and the forked lightning
VESSELS FOR A VOYAGE ON THE GANGES. 31
is very vivid. I never heard such peals of thunder in
Europe. No one here appears to think about it; all the
houses have conductors, and as the storm cools the air, it is
always welcomed with pleasure by those on shore.
Our friends who are going to Lucnow have hired their boats,
an absolute fleet ! I must describe the vessels.
1st. A very fine sixteen-oared pinnace, containing two excel-
lent cabins, fitted up with glazed and Venetian windows, pan-
khas, and two shower-baths. In this vessel our friend, his
lady, and their infant, will be accommodated.
2dly. A dinghee for the cook, and provisions.
3rdly. An immense baggage boat, containing all their furni-
ture.
4thly. A vessel for the washerman, his wife, and the dogs.
5thly. A large boat with horses. 6thly. A ditto. What a
number of boats for one family! The hire of the pinnace is
twenty rupees a-day, about 21. ; the other boats are also very
expensive. They will be three or four months before they
arrive at Lucnow ; they quitted us the 12th of June.
I have now become acquainted with the three seasons in
India; the cold weather, the hot winds, and the rains. The
last have set in ; it is quite warm ; nevertheless, the rains
descend in torrents for some hours daily: pankhas are still
necessary.
The natives are curious people ; my ayha was very ill yester-
day, and in great pain, she would take no medicine unless from
a doctor of her own caste ; brandy was prescribed ; she would
not take it, said it was very wicked to drink it, that she would
sooner die ; therefore I was obliged to leave her to her fate,
and sent her home to her friends ; she is a good and honest
servant.
In July, my husband -was seized with one of those terrific
Indian fevers, which confined him to his bed about fourteen
days ; he got up looking very transparent and ghostlike,
and in a state of great debility, from which he was some time
in recovering. Happily, he was saved from a premature
epitaph.
32 WANDERINGS OF A PILGRIM.
I had great trouble with the servants, with the exception of
five of them ; a speech made by the ayha is worthy of record :
" It would be a great pity if the sahib should die, for then we
should all lose our places !" symptoms of fine feelings !
Lord Amherst arrived, and we attended a party given to those
over whom he had come to reign.
There is much talk here of a passage to India by steam.
" Coelum ipsum petimus stultitia," which means, " On veut
prendre la lune par les cornes." Heaven forefend that I
should find myself in a steam-boat, in a fine rolling sea and
a brisk gale, off the Cape. I should not hesitate to give
the preference to the twelve hundred ton ship. Some of
the old rich Indians, as they are called at home, will have full
opportunity to try its safety before my time is come. We
have, however, established a steam-boat upon the Hoogly,
which goes about four knots against tide ; something pro-
digious in a river where the tide runs like lightning, and with
tremendous force.
At this time we became anxious for an appointment up the
country, at a cooler and healthier station than Calcutta, far
removed from the damp, low, swampy country of Bengal
Proper.
August 29th. The Governor-general and Lady Amherst are
great favourites in Calcutta ; the latter renders herself particu-
larly agreeable to her guests at the Government-house. The new
Governor-general is so economical he has discharged a number
of servants, quenched a number of lamps ; on dit, he intends to
plant potatoes in the park at Barrackpore ; people are so unac-
customed to anything of the sort in India, that all this European
economy produces considerable surprise.
It happens that in India, as in other places, they have an ab-
surd custom of demanding a certain portion of the precious
metals in exchange for the necessaries and luxuries of life, to
procure which, if you have them not, you are forced to borrow
from agents, the richest dogs in Calcutta : and why ? Be-
cause, forsooth, they merely require now eight per cent, (for-
merly ten) added to which, after your debt reaches a certain
THE PRINCE OF MYSORE. 33
amount, they oblige you to ensure your, life, and in this ticklish
country the rate of insurance is very high.
In the third place, which to us is the argumentum ad homi-
nem, many and many are the lives that have been sacrificed,
because poor miserable invalids have been unable from their
debts to leave India. Interest horrible interest soon doubles
the original sum, and a man is thus obliged to pay the debt
three or four times over, and after that he may put by a fortune
to support him in his native land.
Do not suppose I am painting ; this is the plain fact, of which
almost every month furnishes an example.
A man on first arrival (a griffin) cannot or will not compre-
hend that "one and one make eleven 1 ."
Sept. 7th. Since our arrival we have been annoyed with con-
stant robbery in the house. Seventy rupees were stolen one
day, and now they have carried off about eighteen silver covers
that are used to put over tumblers and wine-glasses to keep out
the flies ; in consequence we have discharged our Ooriah bearers,
who we suspect are the thieves, and have taken a set of up
country men.
Oct. 1st. We have had a singular visitor, Shahzadah Zahan-
geer Zaman Jamh o Deen Mahomud, Prince of Mysore, the son
of Tippoo Sahib, and one of the two hostages.
He resides in a house near us, and sent us word he would honour
us with a visit. The next morning he called, and sat two hours.
He had studied English for twelve months. Seeing a bird in a
cage, he said, "Pretty bird that, little yellow bird, what you
call?" "A canary bird." "Yes, canary bird, pretty bird,
make fine noise, they not grow here." In this style we con-
versed, and I thought my visitor would never depart. I was
ignorant of the oriental saying, " Coming is voluntary, but
departing depends upon permission 2 ;" his politesse made him
remain awaiting my permission for his departure, whilst I was
doubting if the visit would ever terminate. At last he arose, say-
ing, " I take leave now, come gen soon." The next day he sent
'Oriental Proverbs, No. 13. 'Oriental Proverbs, No. 14.
VOL. I. D
34 WANDERINGS OF A PILGRIM.
three decanters full of sweetmeats, very like the hats and caps
that used to be given me in my childish days, mixed with
caraway comfits, and accompanied by this note :
" Some sweetmeats for Missess with respectful thanks
of P. Jamh o Deen." I suppose my visitor Prince Jamh o
Deen did not understand the difference between compliments
and thanks. I did not comprehend why the sweetmeats had
been sent, until I was informed it was the custom of the natives
to send some little valueless offering after paying a visit, and
that it would be considered an insult to refuse it.
]3th. We went to a nach at the house of a wealthy Baboo
during the festival of the Doorga Pooja or Dasera, held in
honour of the goddess Doorga. The house was a four-sided
building, leaving an area in the middle ; on one side of the area
was the image of the goddess raised on a throne, and some
Brahmins were in attendance on the steps of the platform. This
image has ten arms, in one of her right hands is a spear with
which she pierced a giant, with one of the left she holds the tail
of a serpent, and the hair of the giant, whose breast the serpent
is biting ; her other hands are all stretched behind her head, and
are filled with different instruments of war. Against her right
leg leans a lion, and against her left leg the above giant. In
the rooms on one side the area a handsome supper was laid out,
in the European style, supplied by Messrs. Gunter and Hooper,
where ices and French wines were in plenty for the European
guests. In the rooms on the other sides of the square, and in the
area, were groups of nach women dancing and singing, and crowds
of European and native gentlemen sitting on sofas or on chairs
listening to Hindostanee airs. " The bright half of the month
Aswina, the first of the Hindu lunar year, is peculiarly devoted to
Doorga. The first nine nights are allotted to her decoration ; on
the sixth she is awakened ; on the seventh she is invited to a
bower formed of the leaves of nine plants, of which the Bilwa '
is the chief. The seventh, eighth, and ninth are the great days,
on the last of which the victims are immolated to her honour, and
Bilwa, or Bilva, the Cratacva Marmelos of Linnaeus.
THE RACES. 35
must be killed by one blow only of a sharp sword or axe.
The next day the goddess is reverently dismissed, and her image
is cast into the river, which finishes the festival of the Dasera.
"On the fifteenth day, that of the full moon, her devotees
pass the night in sports and merriment, and games of various
sorts : it is unlucky to sleep ; for on this night the fiend Nicum-
bha led his army against Doorga, and Lukshmi, the goddess of
prosperity, descended, promising wealth to those who were
awake 1 ."
A short time before this festival, the Sircars employed in Cal-
cutta generally return home to enjoy a holiday of some weeks.
Immense sums are expended by the wealthy Baboos during
the Doorga Pooja.
Dec. 2nd. Would you believe that we sit at this time of the
year without pankhiis, with closed windows, and our floors car-
peted! In some houses, fires are adopted. We have not yet
come to this, though I occasionally have found it cold enough
to desire one. The mornings are delightful, and the nights so
cold, I sleep under a silk counterpane quilted with cotton, called
a Rezai.
The natives form images in clay ; the countenances are
excellent ; the eyes, eyelids, and lips move remarkably well ;
they are very brittle ; they represent servants, fakirs, and
natives of all castes : the best, perhaps, are to be procured in or
near Calcutta ; they are attired according to the fashion of the
country, and cost from eight annas to one rupee each.
We are in the midst of our gaieties, .balls, plays, and parties,
agreeably varied. Our first meeting (the races) is held during
this month ; for we have our Derby, and Oaks, and Riddles-
worth. The Riddles worth is with us a very interesting race, all
the riders being gentlemen, and sometimes ten or twelve horses
starting. From the stand, of a clear morning, there is a good
view of the horses during the whole of their course.
We have just received from China two magnificent screens,
of eight panels each j they are exceedingly handsome, and keep
1 Moor's Hindoo Pantheon.
n2
36 WANDERINGS OF A PILGRIM.
out the glare by day and the air by night : I think I may say
they are magnificent.
Amongst the ornaments of the household, let Crab the terrier
be also mentioned ; he is much like unto a tinker's dog, but is
humorous and good-tempered, plays about, chases cats, and
kills rats, not only in the stable, but house, and serves us in
the place of a parvulus iEneas.
CHAPTER V.
RESIDENCE IN CALCUTTA.
1824 Advantages and Disadvantages Interest never sleeps Barrackpore
Cairipoor The Fakir The Menagerie Hyena Change of residence to
Chowringhee road Mouse and Spotted Deer Bengallee Goats Lotteries
Trial by Rice The Toolsee Epidemic Fever Burmese War Major Sale
Haileybury The Hooqii Dr. Kitchener Death of Lord Byron Early
Marriages Pleasures of the Cold Season Indian Hospitality Knack of
Fortune-making lost.
January, 1824. The advantages of a residence in Calcutta are
these : you are under the eye of the Government, not likely to
be overlooked, and are ready for any appointment falling vacant ;
you get the latest news from England, and have the best medi-
cal attendance. On the other hand, you have to pay high house-
rent ; the necessary expenses are great ; and the temptations to
squander away money in gratifying your fancies more numerous
than in the Mofussil.
A friend, now high in the Civil Service, contracted, on his
arrival here about eighteen years ago, a debt of 15,000 rupees,
about 1500Z. or 1800/. Interest was then at twelve per cent.
To give security, he insured his life, which, with his agent's
commission of one per cent, made the sum total of interest
sixteen per cent. After paying the original debt five times, he
hoped his agents upon the last payment would not suffer the
interest to continue accumulating. He received for answer,
"that interest never slept, it was awake night and day;" and
he is now employed in saving enough to settle the balance.
I wish much that those who exclaim against our extra-
vagances here, knew how essential to a man's comfort, to his
38 WANDERINGS OF A PILGRIM.
quiet, and to his health it is, to have every thing good about
him a good house, good furniture, good carriages, good horses,
good wine for his friends, good humour ; good servants and a
good quantity of them, good credit, and a good appointment :
they would then be less virulent in their philippics against
oriental extravagance.
1 5th. The Governor-general has a country residence, with a
fine park, at Barrackpore ; during the races the Calcutta world
assemble there : we went over for a week ; it was delightful to
be again in the country. Lady Amherst rendered the Govern-
ment-house gay with quadrilles and displays of fire-works ;
but I most enjoyed a party we made to see the ruins of an
ancient fort, near Cairipoor, belonging to the Rajah of Burdwan,
about five miles from Barrackpore, and thought them beautiful.
The road was very bad, therefore I quitted the buggy and
mounted an elephant for the first time, feeling half-frightened
but very much pleased. I ascended by a ladder placed against
the side of the kneeling elephant ; when he rose up, it was like
a house making unto itself legs and walking therewith.
"We went straight across the country, over hedges and ditches,
and through the cultivated fields, the elephant with his great
feet crushing down the corn, which certainly did not " rise
elastic from his airy tread." The fields are divided by ridges
of earth like those in salterns at home ; these ridges are narrow,
and in general, to prevent injury to the crops, the mahout guides
the elephant along the ridge : it is curious to observe how firmly
he treads on the narrow raised path.
By the side of the road was a remarkable object :
"The appearance of a fakir is his petition in itself 1 ." In
a small hole in the earth lay a fakir, or religious mendicant ;
the fragment of a straw mat was over him, and a bit of
cloth covered his loins. He was very ill and quite helpless, the
most worn emaciated being I ever beheld ; he had lain in that
hole day and night for five years, and refused to live in a village ;
his only comfort, a small fire of charcoal, was kindled near
1 Oriental Proverbs, No. 15.
THE FAKIR. 39
his head during the night. Having been forcibly deprived of
the property he possessed in the upper provinces, he came to
Calcutta to seek redress, but being unsuccessful, he had, in
despair, betaken himself to that hole in the earth. An old
woman was kindling the fire ; it is a marvel the jackals do not
put an end to his misery. The natives say, " It is his pleasure
to be there, what can we do ? " and they pass on with their
usual indifference : the hole was just big enough for his body,
in a cold swampy soil.
There is a menagerie in the park at Barrackpore, in which are
some remarkably fine tigers and cheetahs. My ay ha requested
to be allowed to go with me, particularly wishing to see an hyena.
While she was looking at the beast, I said, " Why did you wish
to see an hyena?" Laughing and crying hysterically, she an-
swered, " My husband and I were asleep, our child was between
us, an hyena stole the child, and ran off with it to the jungle ;
we roused the villagers, who pursued the beast ; when they
returned, they brought me half the mangled body of my infant
daughter, that is why I wished to see an hyena."
Before we quitted Calcutta, we placed the plate in a large iron
treasure chest. A friend, during his absence from home, having
left his plate in a large oaken chest, clamped with iron, found,
on his return, that the bearers had set fire to the chest to get at
the plate, being unable to open it, and had melted the greater
part of the silver !
It appears as if the plan of communicating with India by
steam-boats will not end in smoke : a very large bonus has
been voted to the first regular company who bring it about, and
the sum is so considerable, that I have no doubt some will be
bold enough to attempt it.
In Calcutta, as in every place, it is difficult to suit yourself
with a residence. Our first house was very ill defended from
the hot winds ; the situation of the second we thought low apd
swampy, and the cause of fever in our household. My husband
having quitted college, was gazetted to an appointment in Cal-
cutta, and we again changed our residence for one in Chow-
ringhee road.
40 WANDERINGS OK A PILGRIM.
Prince Jamh o Deen, hearing me express a wish to see what
was considered a good nach, invited me to one. I could not,
however, admire the dancing ; some of the airs the women sang
were very pretty.
Calcutta was gay in those days, parties numerous at the
Government-house, and dinners and fancy balls amongst the
inhabitants.
A friend sent me a mouse deer, which I keep in a cage in the
verandah ; it is a curious and most delicate little animal, but
not so pretty as the young pet fawns running about the com-
pound (grounds) with the spotted deer. The cows' milk gene-
rally sold in Calcutta is poor, that of goats is principally used :
a good Bengallee goat, when in full milk, will give a quart every
morning; they are small-sized, short-legged, and well-bred.
The servants milk the goats near the window of the morning
room, and bring the bowl full and foaming to the breakfast-table.
Feb. 27th. My husband put into one of the smaller lotteries
in Calcutta, and won thirteen and a half tickets, each worth
100 rupees: he sent them to his agents, with the exception of
one, which he presented to me. My ticket came up a prize
of 5000 rupees. The next day we bought a fine high caste
grey Arab, whom we called Orelio, and a pair of grey Persian
horses.
Feb. 28th. Trial by Rice. The other day some friends
dined with us : my husband left his watch on the drawing-room
table when we went to dinner : the watch was stolen, the theft
was immediately discovered, and we sent to the police. The
moonshee assembled all who were present, took down their
names, and appointed that day seven days for a trial by rice,
unless, during the time, the watch should be restored, stolen
property being often replaced from the dread the natives enter-
tain of the ordeal by rice. On the appointed day the police
moonshee returned, and the servants, whom he had ordered to
appear fasting, were summoned before him, and by his desire
were seated on the ground in a row.
The natives have great faith in the square akbarabadee rupee,
which they prefer to, and use on such occasions in lieu of, the
TRIAL BY RICE. 41
circular rupee. In the plate entitled " Superstitions of the
Natives," No. 5, is a representation of this coin.
The moonshee, having soaked 21bs. weight of rice in cold
water, carefully dried it in the sun : he then weighed rice equal
to the weight of the square rupee in a pair of scales, and, calling
one of the servants to him, made him take a solemn oath that
he had not taken the watch, did not know who had taken it,
where it was, or any thing about it or the person who stole it.
When the oath had heen taken, the moonshee put the weighed
rice into the man's hand to hold during the time every servant
in the room was served in like manner. There were thirty-five
present. When each had taken the oath, and received the rice
in his hand, they all sat down on the ground, and a bit of plantain
leaf was placed before each person. The moonshee then said,
" Some person or persons amongst you have taken a false
oath ; God is in the midst of us ; let every man put his portion
of rice into his mouth, and having chewed it, let him spit it out
upon the plantain leaf before him ; he who is the thief, or
knows aught concerning the theft, from his mouth it shall come
forth as dry as it was put in ; from the mouths of those who
are innocent, it will come forth wet and well chewed."
Every man chewed his rice, and spat it out like so much milk
and water, with the exception of three persons, from whose
mouths it came forth as dry and as fine as powder. Of these men,
one had secreted two-thirds of the rice, hoping to chew the
smaller quantity, but all to no purpose ; it came perfectly dry
from his mouth, from the effect of fear, although it was ground
to dust. The moonshee said, " Those are the guilty men,
one of them will probably inform against the others ;" and he
carried them off to the police. It is a fact, that a person under
great alarm will find it utterly impossible to chew and put forth
rice in a moistened state, whilst one who fears not will find it
as impossible to chew and to spit it out perfectly dry and
ground to dust. An harkara, in the service of one of our
guests, was one of the men whom the moonshee pronounced
guilty ; about a fortnight before, a silver saucepan had been
stolen from his master's house, by one of his own servants.
42 WANDERINGS OF A PILGRIM.
Against another, one of our own men, we have gained some
very suspicious intelligence, and although we never expect the
watch to be restored, we shall get rid of the thieves. So much
for the ordeal by rice, in which I have firm faith.
May 4th. The weather is tremendously hot. A gentleman
came in yesterday, and said, "this room is delightful, it is
cold as a well ;" we have discovered, however, that it is infested
below with rats and musk-rats, three or four of which my little
Scotch terrier kills daily ; the latter make him foam at the
mouth with disgust. My little dog Crab, you are the most
delightful Scotch terrier that ever came to seek his fortune in
the East !
Some friends have sent to us for garden-seeds. But, oh !
observe how nature is degenerated in this country they have
sent alone for vegetable-seeds the feast of roses being here
thought inferior to the feast of marrowfat peas
il
THE TOOLSEE.
An European in Calcutta sees very little of the religious cere-
monies of the Hindoos. Among the most remarkable is the
worship of the toolsee, in honour of a religious female, who
requested Vishnoo to allow her to become his wife. Lukshmee,
the goddess of beauty, and wife of Vishnoo, cursed the woman
on account of the pious request she had preferred to her lord,
and changed her into a toolsee plant. Vishnoo, influenced by
his own feelings, and in consideration of the religious austerities
long practised by the enamoured devotee, made her a promise
that he would assume the form of the shalgramu, and always
continue with her. The Hindoos, therefore, keep one leaf of
the toolsee under and another upon the shalgramu. See Fig. 5,
in the plate entitled " The Thug's Dice."
"The sweet basil is known by its two leaves 1 ." Through-
out a certain month they suspend a lota (earthen vessel) over
the toolsee filled with water, and let the water drop upon it
through a small hole. The Hindoo, in the sketch " Pooja of
' Oriental Proverbs, No. 16.
POOJA OF THE TOOLSEE. 43
the Toolsee," is engaged in this worship, perhaps reading the
Purana, in which a fable relates the metamorphosis of the
nymph Toolsee into the shrub which has since borne her name.
The whole plant has a purplish hue approaching to black, and
thence, perhaps, like the large black bee of this country, it is
held sacred to Krishna, in whose person Vishnoo himself ap-
peared on earth.
The Hindoos venerate three kinds of toolsee the kala (ocimum
sanctum) , purple-stalked basil ; the small-leaved toolsee ; and the
suffaid toolsee, white basil or Indian tea. The leaves of the
latter are used by those in India who cannot afford the tea of
China ; they are highly aromatic. The Hindoos have faith in
their power to cure diseases, and use them with incantations to
dispel the poison of serpents.
This plant is held in estimation by the Mussulmans as well as
the Hindoos. It is recorded of the prophet that he said :
" Hasan and Husain are the best young princes of paradise.
Verily, Hasan and Husain are my two sweet basils in the world."
At Benares I saw, on the side of the Ganges, a number of
pillars hollowed at the top, in which the Hindoos had deposited
earth and had planted the toolsee ; some devotees were walking
round these pillars, pouring water on the sacred plant and
making salam. My bearers at Prag had a toolsee in front of
their house, under a peepul tree ; I have seen them continually
make the altar of earth on which it was placed perfectly clean
around it with water and cow-dung; and of an evening they
lighted a little chiragh (small lamp) before it. If one of these
sacred plants die, it is committed in due form to Gunga-jee : and
when a person is brought to die by the side of the sacred river,
a branch of the toolsee, the shrub goddess, is planted near the
dying man's head.
The shalgramu is black, hollow, and nearly round ; it is found
in the Gunduk river, and is considered a representation of
Vishnoo ; each should have twenty-one marks upon it, similar
to those on his body. The shalgramu is the only stone which is
naturally divine ; all the other stones worshipped are rendered
sacred bv incantations.
44 WANDERINGS OF A PILGRIM.
A pan of water is suspended over this stone during the hottest
month in the year, exactly in the same manner as over the
toolsee in the sketch ; and during the same month another pan
is placed under the stone, in which the water is caught, and
drunk in the evening as sanctified.
Ward mentions that some persons, when ill, employ a Brahmin
to present single leaves of the toolsee sprinkled with red powder
to the shalgramvi, repeating incantations. A hundred thousand
leaves are sometimes presented. It is said that the sick gra-
dually recover as each additional leaf is offered. When a
Hindoo is at the point of death, a Brahmin shows him the
marks of the shalgramfi, of which the sight is supposed to insure
the soul a safe passage to the heaven of Vishnoo. When an
Hindoo takes an oath, he places a sprig of toolsee on a brass
lota, filled with the sacred water of the Ganges, and swears by
Gunga-jee 1 . If a small part of the pebble god be broken, it is
committed to the river. I bought several of these stones from
a Brahmin at the great Mela at Prag. I gave two old Delhi gold
mohurs to a native jeweller, to make into an ornament for the
forehead after a native pattern. My jemmadar took the mohurs,
and, rubbing them on a shalgramti, gave it to me to keep, in
order to compare the purity of the gold on its return when
fashioned, with that of the red gold I had given the man to melt.
In making fine jewellery the natives put one-fourth alloy ; they
cannot work gold so impure as that used by English jewellers,
and contemptuously compare it to copper.
In the plate entitled "The Thug's Dice," Fig. 6 repre-
sents the shalgramu, shalgram, or salagrama ; it is a small heavy
black circular stone, rather flattened on one side, with the cornu
Ammonis strongly marked upon it.
Fig. 5 is one covered by the leaves of the kala toolsee,
purple-stalked basil.
No. 7 is still heavier, perfectly black and smooth, without
any marks. This was the touchstone, and a little gold still
remaining upon it.
1 See Sketch, " The Thug's Dice," No. 4.
THE SHALGRAMU. 45
" Gold is known by the touchstone, and a man by living
with him 1 ."
" Some salagrams are perforated in one or more places by
worms, or, as the Hindoos believe, by Vishnu in the shape of a
reptile ; some are supposed to represent his gracious incarnation,
but when they border a little in colour on the violet they denote
a vindictive avatar, such as Narasinga, when no man of ordinary
nerve dares keep them in his house. The possessor of a sala-
grama preserves it in clean cloth ; it is frequently perfumed
and bathed ; and the water thereby acquiring virtue, is drunk,
and prized for its sin-expelling property."
The shalgrams, which are in my possession, are of exactly the
shape and size represented in the sketch.
July 17 th. On this day, having discovered a young friend ill
in the Writer's Buildings, we brought him to our house. Two
days afterwards I was seized with the fever, from which J did
not recover for thirteen days. My husband nursed me with
great care, until he fell ill himself, and eleven of our servants
were laid up with the same disorder.
The people in Calcutta have all had it ; I suppose, out of
the whole population, European and native, not two hundred
persons have escaped ; and what is singular, it has not occa-
sioned one death amongst the adult. I was so well and strong
over night we were talking of the best means of escaping the
epidemic in the morning it came and remained thirty-six
hours, then quitted me ; a strong eruption came out, like the
measles, and left me weak and thin. My husband's fever left
him in thirty-six hours, but he was unable to quit the house
for nine days : the rash was the same. Some faces were
covered with spots like those on a leopard's skin. It was so
prevalent, that the Courts of Justice, the Custom House, the
Lottery Office, and almost every public department in Calcutta,
were closed in consequence of the sickness. In the course of
three days, three different physicians attended me, one after the
other having fallen ill. It is wonderful, that a fever producing
so much pain in the head and limbs, leaving the patient
1 Oriental Proverbs, No. 17.
46 WANDERINGS OF A PILGRIM.
weak, reduced, and covered with a violent eruption, should
have been so harmless ; after three weeks, nobody appeared to
have suffered, with the exception of two or three children,
whom it attacked more violently than it did grown-up people,
and carried them off.
The politicians at home have anticipated us in reckoning
upon the probability of a Burmese war. We have hitherto
been altogether successful. I saw yesterday a gold and a silver
sword, and a very murderous looking weapon resembling a
butcher's knife, but on a larger scale. A necklace (so called
from its circling the neck, for it was composed of plates of gold
hammered on a silken string), and some little squab images,
gods, perhaps, taken from a chief, whom Major Sale of H. M.
13th, dispatched in an attack upon a stockade, leaving the chief
in exchange part of the blade of his own sword, which was
broken in his skull by the force of the blow that felled him.
It is an unlucky business : the Company certainly do not
require at present more territory on that side India, and
the expense to which Government is put by this elegant little
mill, as Pierce Egan might call it, is more than the worthies in
Leadenhall-street suppose.
I see Lord Hastings is made Civil Governor of Malta ! "To
what base uses we may return ! " I observe the motion to
prevent the necessity of parents sending their sons to Hailey-
bury has been lost. The grand object of the students should
be the acquisition of the oriental languages ; here nothing else
tells.
If a young man gets out of college in three or four months
after his arrival, which, if he crams at college in England, he
may easily effect, he is considered forthwith as a brilliant
character, and is sealed with the seal of genius. Likewise
pockets medals and money, and this he may do without know-
ing any thing else.
To a person fresh from England, the number of servants
attending at table is remarkable. "We had only a small party of
eight to dinner yesterday, including ourselves ; three-and-twenty
servants were in attendance ! Each gentleman takes his own
THE COLD SEASON. 47
servant or servants, in number from one to six, and each lady
her attendant or attendants, as it pleases her fancy. The Hooqii
was very commonly smoked at that time in Calcutta : before
dinner was finished, every man's pipe was behind his chair.
The tobacco was generally so well prepared, that the odour was
not unpleasant, unless by chance you sat next to a man from
the Mofussil, when the fume of the spices used by the up
country Hooqii Bardars in preparing the tobacco, rendered it
oppressive and disagreeable.
Sept. 1st. The fever has quitted Calcutta, and travelled up
the country stage by stage. It was amusing to see, upon your
return to the Course, the whole of the company stamped, like
yourself, with the marks of the leech upon the temples. Its
origin has been attributed to many causes, and it has been called
by many names. The gentlemen of the lancet are greatly divided
in their opinions ; some attribute it to the want of rain, others
to the scarcity of thunder and lightning this season. There was
an instance of the same general fever prevailing in the time of
Warren Hastings. Not a single instance has been heard of its
having proved mortal to adults.
Extract from a homeward-bound epistle.
" The cold season is fast approaching, when every one be-
comes, per force, most amiable. Indeed we are all creatures of
a different order during this delightful time. You in England
cannot fancy the sensible feeling of actual enjoyment our bodies
and minds experience from this exhilarating change. We live
upon the thought of it for months ; it must beat the snake cast-
ing his skin. I feel quite invigorated even at describing its effects.
" We both continue excellently well, and persist in defying
the foul cholera and all other tropical maladies. The hot season
has passed, and the rains are setting in, rendering the air more
temperate. We now occasionally enjoy a cool fresh breeze. A
few days since I felt gay enough to fetch a walk in the evening,
and got well ducked for my reward ; also an appetite for dinner.
Apropos, I rejoice to see that feeding is assuming the high place
among the sciences which was always its legitimate right.
48 WANDERINGS OF A PILGRIM.
' Oil Dick ! you may talk of your writing and reading,
Your logic and Greek, but there's nothing like feeding.'
Dr. Kitchener has borrowed the most erudite and savoury parts
of his two books from the ' Almanach des Gourmands,' a work
well worthy of being placed in the hands of the rising generation
as a standard book ; I am sure it would be a perfect Kuran for
an English lady. But, alas ! in this savage place, dindon aux
truffes, omelette souffle'e, vol au vent a la jinanciere, coquille de
volaille, pate' de Strasbourg, exist but in name. The thousand
temptations which fascinate the eye and distract the choice in a
French carte a, diner, rarely, very rarely appear. The beef of
to-day succeeds to the mutton of yesterday ; none of those
' coruscations of genius, breaking like lightning from a cloud,'
which must now so frequently illumine the horizon of the London
mahogany. But all is tame and unvaried, and man remains
here comparatively dead to one of the noblest ends of his crea-
tion. I endeavour to struggle against this lifeless life by antici-
pating the time when I shall return to Europe, at the proper
gourmand age of forty -five, with a taste corrected by experience,
and a mouth open as day to melting delicacies.
" Oct. We have heard with sorrow of the death of Lord
Byron ; the other evening, as we were driving past a Greek chapel
on the banks of the Hoogly, prayers were being offered for the
repose of the soul of the departed. We cannot join with the
yelpers who cry him down on the score of his immorality ; the
seed he sowed must have fallen upon a soil villainously bad to
have brought forth nothing but an unprofitable harvest. Mr.
Hunt is publishing a translation of a work capable of producing
more evil than any of his lordship's Voltaire's ' Dictionnaire
Philosophique ' to wit. What is the correct story about the
Memoirs ? Are we to believe the papers ?
"The cold weather has now begun. We have weddings and
rumours of weddings. The precipitate manner in which young
people woo and wed is almost ridiculous ; the whole affair, in
many cases, taking less than a month. Many young gentle-
men become papas before they have latvfully passed their years
KNACK OF FORTUNE-MAKING LOST. 49
of infancy. Marrying and giving in marriage is, in this country,
sharp, short, and decisive ; and where our habits are necessarily
so domestic, it is wonderful how happily the people live together
afterwards.
" Dec. The races are beginning, the theatre in high force,
fancy-dress balls and dinner-parties on the tapis, water-parties
to the botanical gardens, and I know not what. My beautiful
Arab carries me delightfully ; dove-like, but full of fire.
" We shake off dull sloth, rise early, and defy the foul fiend.
Many a nail is extracted, by this delightful weather, from our
coffins. Calcutta opens her palaces, and displays hospitality,
after a fashion which far outdoes that of you cold calculating
islanders. And there is such a variety in our pastimes, and the
season is so short, about four months, that we have no time
to ' fall asleep in the sameness of splendour.'
" We were glad to hear our friend would not come out to India.
It is a pity that men like him should be sacrificed and for
what ? To procure a bare subsistence ; for the knack of fortune-
getting has been long since lost. Show me the man in these
latter days who has made one, always provided he be no auc-
tioneer, agent, or other species of leech, and we will sit down
and soberly endeavour to make one for ourselves.
"A merry Christmas to you, dear friends ; may you find it as
great a restorer as we favourites of the sun and minions of the
tropics ! "
VOL. I.
CHAPTER VI.
RESIDENCE IN CALCUTTA.
1825. A Day in March The Furlough and Pension Funds Bandicote Rats
The Strand The Cutting System Harrow- on- the-Hill Sickness in Arracan
The Golden Feet Arrival of Lord Combermere Bhurtpore LaPucelle
Marsh Fever Change of Residence to Middleton Row, Chowringhee Fogs
up to the Second Story Burra Bazar Seed Pearl.
i
January, 1825. The cold weather is delightful, and a Persian
carpet pleasant over the Indian matting, but a fire is not
required indeed, few houses in Calcutta have a fire-place. Ice
is sent from Hoogly, and is procurable in the bazaar during the
cold weather ; it is preserved in pits for the hot season.
March 23rd. I will describe a day at this time of the year.
At 6 a.m. it is so cold that a good gallop in a cloth habit will
just keep you warm. At 9 a. m. a fine breeze very pleasant
windows open no pankha.
3 p.m. Blue linen blinds lowered to keep off the glare of the
sunshine, which is distressing to the eyes ; every Venetian shut,
the pankha in full swing, the very musquitoes asleep on the
walls, yourself asleep on a sofa, not a breath of air a dead
silence around you.
4 p.m. A heavy thunder-storm, with the rain descending in
torrents ; you stop the pankha, rejoice in the fraicheur, and are
only prevented from taking a walk in the grounds by the falling
rain.
5 p. m. You mount your Arab, and enjoy the coolness for
the remainder of the day ; such is to-day.
April \lth. The hot winds are blowing for the first time
this year.
BANDICOTE RATS. 51
We understand that after twenty-five years' service, and twenty-
two of actual residence in India, we of the Civil Service are to
retire upon an annuity of 1000/. a year, for which we are to pay
50,000 rupees, or about 5000Z. This, on first appearance, looks
well for us and generous in the Company; but I should like
first to know, how many will be able to serve their full time of
bondage? secondly, what the life of a man, an annuitant, is
then worth, who has lingered two and twenty years in a tropical
climate ?
May 9th. The heat is intense very oppressive. I dare not
go to church for fear of its bringing on fits, which might disturb
the congregation ; you have little idea of the heat of a collection
of many assembled in such a climate even at home, with all
appliances and means to boot for reducing the temperature, the
heat is sickening. You in England imagine a lady in Tndia has
nothing to do. For myself, I superintend the household, and
find it difficult at times to write even letters, there is so much to
which it is necessary to attend. At this moment I would wil-
lingly be quiet, but am continually interrupted. The coachman,
making his salam, " Mem sahiba, Atlas is very ill, I cannot
wait for the sahib's return ; I have brought the horse to the
door, will you give your orders?" The durwan (gate-keeper),
"Mem sahiba, the deer have jumped over the wall, and have
run away." The sirdar-bearer, "Mem sahiba, will you advance
me some rupees to make a great feast ? My wife is dead."
The mate-bearer then presented his petition, "Will the mem
sahiba give me a plaister ? the rats have gnawed my fingers and
toes." It is a fact that the lower part of the house is overrun
with enormous rats, they bite the fingers and feet of the men
when they are asleep on the ground.
The other evening I was with my beautiful and charming
friend, Mrs. F , she had put her infant on a mat, where it
was quietly sleeping in the room where we were sitting. The
evening darkened, a sharp cry from the child startled us a
bandicote rat had bitten one of its little feet !
It is reported the Burmese war is nearly finished. I hope it
may be true ; it is a horrible sacrifice of human life, a war in
e2
52 WANDERINGS OF A PILGRIM.
such a climate ! I hear much of all the hardships of fighting
against the climate endured by the military, from friends who
return to Calcutta on sick leave.
When we arrived in Calcutta the only drive was on the
Course, which was well-watered; a fine broad road has since
been made along the side of the river, about two miles in length ;
it is a delightful drive in the evening, close to the ships.
The Course is deserted for the Strand.
June 25th. The Furlough and Pension Fund for the Civil
Service has been established ; we subscribe four per cent, from
our salary, for which we are allowed by Government six per cent,
interest, towards the purchase of an annuity of 1000Z. after
twenty-five years service. A very strong inducement this to
economy yet human nature is very contrary.
" J'avois jure d'etre sage,
Mais avant peu j'en fus las.
Ah ! raison, c'est bien dommage,
Que l'ennui suive tes pas."
Nevertheless, we will return home as soon as we can.
Our friend Mr. C is going down to Bulloah, a savage
spot, where he is to make salt ; he takes down three couple of
hounds to assist him in his labours.
Provided there is a good bulky dividend at the end of the
year upon India Stock, the holders think the country flourishing
in the greatest security. Every governor who is sent out is
told that the principal thing to be considered is economy. Lord
Moira, who had a becoming horror of such petitesses, and who
saw the political danger of carrying the cutting system into
practice, in several instances refused to adopt the measures he
was intrusted to execute. Yet India was never in a more flourish-
ing state ; dividends on India Stock never looked up more cheer-
fully. Lord Amherst has applied the paring-knife, and much
good it has done; the military ran riot 1 , the civilians were
inclined to grow rusty, and India Bonds were very dismal and
looking down.
1 Alluding to the mutiny at Barrackpore.
HARROW-ON-THE-HILL. 53
A letter appeared in the Gazette the other day, in which the
Harrow boys were spoken of in an irreverend manner, which
elicited the following answer from the sahib ' :
" To the Editor of the Government Gazette.
"SlR, "June, 1825.
" In one of your late papers T was much amused by a report
of the proceedings of a ' Morning at Bow Street,' during which
the behaviour of the Harrow boys was brought to the notice of
that worthy magistrate, Sir R. Birnie. To suppose that these
young gentlemen are accustomed to parade the streets with
sticks charged with lead, searching for snobs with heads to cor-
respond, and carrying pistols loaded with the same metal in their
pockets to confer the coup- de-grace upon these unfortunates,
would be to believe, what
'Nee pueri credant, nisi qui nondum aere lavantur.'
Excuse Latin, the English proverb is somewhat coarse.
" I recollect the operative artisan Jones : he succeeded an
excellent farrier, who emigrated with Sir Bellingham Graham,
one of our worthies. Unless Jones had in the first instance
made himself obnoxious to the boys, which from W. L.'s account
is more than possible, they would not have interfered with him.
The whole account I know to be sadly exaggerated ; you are,
perhaps, an advocate for the publicity of these reports, so should
I be, were they not for the most part so outrageously sur-
charge's. The ' Gentlemen of the Press' think truth needs the
aid of foreign ornament, for in this particular instance neither
pistols nor sticks, loaded or unloaded, were seen, or afterwards
discovered to have been in the possession of the boys, but were
gratuitously conferred upon them by the reporters.
" Shall such fellows as these be allowed to bespatter an insti-
tution which reckons Sir William Jones, Lord Byron, Parr, and
others ' dear to memory and to fame,' among her mighty dead
and Lord Teignmouth, the Marquis of Hastings, Messrs. Peel,
Barry Cornwall, and myself, among her mighty living 2 ?
1 The gentleman of the house. The master.
* " Cicero, Demosthenes, Judge Blackstone, and myself." Edward Christian
(subaudi Paul\ passim.
VOL. I. E 3 +-
54 WANDERINGS OF A PILGRIM.
" You will, I know, excuse me. I am by nature modest,
even as an American, but having been hitherto particular as to
my society, if I am to be damned to everlasting fame, it must
be in good company !
" We are so few and far between in this country, that we
cannot form a corps to show our esprit, yet even in this wilder-
ness will I upraise my solitary voice in praise of Harrow-on-
the-Hill. Floreat in (eternum ! Hoping that I have said enough
' to Harrow up your soul,'
" I am, your's,
" One of the Old School."
" Jungle Mehals."
August 6th. The natives, especially the Hindus, are dying
by hundreds daily in the damp and marshy part of Calcutta ;
410 died in one night of cholera and fever, both of which
are raging fearfully. They sleep in such swampy places, in
the open air, it is only surprising they are not all carried on".
Last month a fever amongst the Europeans was universal, many
died of it ; it has disappeared, and Calcutta is tolerably healthy ;
the cholera has not attacked the Europeans.
September \8th. We now consider ourselves fairly fixed in
Calcutta ; the climate agrees with us ; and though we hold
existence upon a frailer tenure than those in England, we still
hope to see many happy years.
" 'Tis in vain to complain, in a melancholy strain,
Of the money we have spent, which will never come again."
Furlough and the pension must make amends.
The cold season is the only time in which we live, and
breathe, and have our being, the rest of the year is mere
" leather and prunella," and we " groan and sweat under a
weary life."
But then in Calcutta, we do not die of the blue devils, ennui,
or from want of medical attendance, as those do who are far
removed ; and even the maladie du pays is relieved by the con-
stant letters and news we receive from our native land.
The Burmese seem to have adopted the plan of the Russians,
BHURTPORE. 55
and left their infernal climate to fight their battles ; it has done
it most wofully fever has killed more men than the sword.
Our troops are now waiting for the breaking up of the rains, to
recommence operations. It is supposed that they will meet with
little difficulty in making their way to Amrapura, the capital ;
but if they do, it seems that the king and his court will not wait
for their arrival, but start with their valuables to the mountains.
There has been a sad waste of life and money. Commissioners
have now been appointed. Report says that Sir Archibald
Campbell's spirit is too bellicose ; and the deputation (civil) to
Rangoon is to check his warlike excesses. The company pro-
fess that they do not wish for an extent of territory ; so that the
present war has been entered into solely for the purpose of
avenging the insults that have been offered to their arms. I wish
most sincerely that they had been contented with holding what
they had, instead of proclaiming war ; and probably they may
be of the same opinion. The papers say that a truce has been
entered into with the Burmese, for the purposes of negotiation.
Within these few days we have heard that it has been prolonged,
in order that our terms might be submitted to the Golden Feet.
It is to be hoped that they will not trample upon them, and that
this most detestable war, which has cost so many lives and so
much money, may be honourably concluded.
Lord Combermere has determined to proceed immediately to
the Upper Provinces, and to have a fling at Bhurtpore. There
is no doubt as to the event being successful, but the natives
have a great conceit about it ; it is another Pucelle, as it has
never yet been taken. In Lord Lake's time, our troops were
three times repulsed ; but that is a tale of the times of old, when
these matters were conducted on too small a scale. Now there
is to be a fine park of artillery, fully capable of making an im-
pression on the heart of this obdurate maiden. It will do much
service in taking the conceit out of these people. They have
songs, and even caricatures, in which Europeans are drawn as
craving for mercy under their victorious swords, to the number
of three or four to one Mahratta horseman. It is an old grudge,
and our sipah'is fancy the affair hugely. We took Bhurtpore
56 WANDERINGS OF A PILGRIM.
last night over the whist-table, by a coup de main ; I trust we
shall be able to play our cards as well when before it. This will
be of a different nature altogether from the vile Burmese war.
Those who fall will die nobly in battle, not by the host of dis-
eases by which our poor fellows have been sacrificed at Rangoon
and Arracan.
The early marriages which take place in India were brought
under my eye this morning. My ayha being ill, sent another to
act for her during her absence ; she is a pretty little woman,
aged twenty-five, and has been married fourteen years !
The sickness in Arracan is dreadful; ship-loads of officers
and men are arriving daily, with shaved heads and white faces,
bearing testimony of the marsh fever, considering themselves
most fortunate in having quitted the country alive.
Imagine living in a straw-shed, exposed to the burning sun
and the torrents of rain that fall in this country ; the nights
cold, raw, and wet ; the fog arising from the marshes spreading
fever in every direction. Where the sword kills one, the climate
carries off an hundred.
Oct. Lord Combermere intends to render the cold weather
gay with balls and dinner parties. His staff are quite a relief to
the eye, looking so well dressed, so fresh and European. They
express themselves horrified at beholding the fishy hue of the
faces on the Course ; wonder how they are ever to stay at home
during the heat of the day, and sigh for gaiety and variety.
Speaking of the ladies in the East, one of them said, " Amongst
the womankind, there are some few worth the trouble of running
away with ; but then the exertion would be too much for the
hot season ; and in the cold, we shall have something else to
think about !"
Dec. 1st. We changed our residence for one in Middleton-
row, Chowringhee, having taken a dislike to the house in which
we were residing, from its vicinity to tanks and native huts.
The house has a good ground floor and two stories above,
with verandahs to each ; the rent 325 rupees per month ; the
third story consists of bed-rooms. The deep fogs in Calcutta
rise thick and heavy as high as the first floor ; from the
THE BARA BAZAR. 57
verandah of the second you may look down on the white fog
below your feet, whilst the stars are bright above, and the
atmosphere clear around you. The spotted deer play about the
compound, and the mouse deer runs about my dressing-room,
doing infinite mischief.
The Bara bazar, the great mart where shawls are bought, is
worth visiting. It is also interesting to watch the dexterity
with which seed pearls are bored by the natives. This operation
being one of difficulty, they tell me seed pearls are sent from
England to be pierced in Calcutta.
CHAPTER VII.
DEPARTURE FROM THE PRESIDENCY.
Fulbertus Sagittarius Billiards The Recal of Lord Amherst Zenana of an
opulent Hindu The Death of Bishop Heber Affliction in the Family of
the Governor-General Appointment to Allahabad Sale of ' Scamp '
March up the Country Dak Bungalows Fakirs en route The Soane
River Sassaram Satis at Nobutpoor Benares Puja in a Hindu Temple
BrahmanI Bulls The Minarets Beetle Wings Hindu House Benares
Hackeries Dak to Allahabad Visit to Papamhow.
1826. Lady Amherst is on horseback at gun-fire ; few young
women could endure the exercise she takes. She is an admirable
equestrian, and possesses all the fondness of an Archer for
horses. Her ladyship has won my heart by expressing her
admiration of my beautiful Arab. His name originally was
Orelio ; but having become such a frisky fool, he has been re-
christened ' Scamp.'
On the death of Lord Archer, in 1778, she "who knew and
loved his virtues," inscribed the following sentence on his tomb :
" He was the last male descendant of an ancient and honourable
family that came over with William the Conqueror, and settled
in the county of Warwick in the reign of King Henry the Second,
from whom his ancestors obtained the grants of land in the said
county."
When it was recorded on his monument at Tanworth that
Lord Archer was the last of the male branch of the Archers who
came over with the Conqueror, little did Lady Amherst (then
the Hon. Miss Archer) imagine that, in her future Indian
career, she would cross the path of the poor Pilgrim, the child
of one of the noblest and best of men, who through Humphrey
ZENANA OF AN HINDOO. 59
Archer, deceased 1562, is a direct descendant, in the male line,
from our common ancestor, Fulbertus Sagittarius ' .
March. Lord Amherst has been recalled, a circumstance we
regret He has had great difficulties to contend with since his
arrival ; and now, just at the moment his troubles are nearly
ended, he has been recalled. I believe his lordship signified to
the Home Government his wish to resign.
In a climate so oppressive as this, billiards are a great resource
in a private house ; the table keeps one from going to sleep
during the heat of the day, or from visiting Europe shops.
April \7th. The perusal of Lady Mary Wortley Montague's
work has rendered me very anxious to visit a zenana, and to
become acquainted with the ladies of the East. I have now been
nearly four years in India, and have never beheld any women
but those in attendance as servants in European families, the
low caste wives of petty shopkeepers, and nach women.
I was invited to a nach at the house of an opulent Hindu
in Calcutta, and was much amused with an excellent set of
jugglers ; their feats with swords were curious : at the con-
clusion, the baboo asked me if I should like to visit his wives
and female relatives. He led me before a large curtain, which
having passed I found myself in almost utter darkness : two
females took hold of my hands and led me up a long flight of
stairs to a well-lighted room, where I was received by the wives
and relatives. Two of the ladies were pretty ; on beholding
their attire I was no longer surprised that no other men than
their husbands were permitted to enter the zenana. The dress
consisted of one long strip of Benares gauze of thin texture,
with a gold border, passing twice round the limbs, with the end
thrown over the shoulder. The dress was rather transparent,
almost useless as a veil : their necks and arms were covered
with jewels. The complexion of some of the ladies was of a
pale mahogany, and some of the female attendants were of a
very dark colour, almost black. Passing from the lighted room,
we entered a dark balcony, in front of which were fine bamboo
1 See Appendix, No. I.
60 WANDERINGS OF A PILGRIM.
screens, impervious to the eye from without, but from the
interior we could look down upon the guests in the hall below,
and distinguish perfectly all that passed. The ladies of the
zenana appeared to know all the gentlemen by sight, and told
me their names. They were very inquisitive ; requested me to
point out my husband, inquired how many children I had, and
asked a thousand questions. I was glad to have seen a zenana,
but much disappointed : the women were not ladylike ; but, be
it remembered, it was only at the house of a rich Calcutta
native gentleman. I soon quitted the apartments and the niich.
The sketch of " a Bengali woman" represents the style of
attire worn by the ladies of the baboo's zenana, with this dif-
ference, that the dress of the woman called a sari, is of muslin,
edged with a bright blue border ; it is passed several times
round the figure, but the form of the limbs and the tint of the
skin is traced through it : no other attire is worn beneath the
sur'i ; it forms, although in one long piece, a complete dress,
and is a remarkably graceful one. Her nose-ring, ear-rings,
and necklaces are of gold ; her armlet of silver ; the anklets
of the same metal. A set of churls (bracelets) adorn her
arms, below which is a row of coral, or of cornelian beads.
Silver chains are around her waist ; her hands and feet are
stained with hinnu. She is returning to her home from the
river, with her gagri, a brass vessel filled with water; her
attitude may appear peculiar, but it is natural ; by throwing out
one hip, a woman can carry a heavy water-jar with ease. A
child is often carried astride the hip in the same manner ;
hence the proverb, speaking of a vicious child, says, "Perched
on your hip, he will peck your eyes out." The dark line of
surma is distinctly seen around her eyes, and a black dot
between the eyebrows.
April. We heard, with sorrow, the death of Bishop Heber,
from my sister at Cuddalore, whose house he had just quitted
for Trichinopoly ; after preaching twice in one day, he went
into a bath, and was there found dead. It was supposed, that
bathing, after the fatigue he had undergone, sent the blood to
the head and occasioned apoplexy.
fc
A. BENGALEE, WOMAN.
DEPARTURE FROM CALCUTTA. 61
May 18th. Killed a scorpion in my bathing-room, a good
fat old fellow ; prepared him with arsenical soap, and added him
to the collection of curiosities in my museum.
My Italian master praises me for application : he says, the
heat is killing him, and complains greatly of the want of rain.
When I told him we had had a little during the last two days,
he replied, " You are the favoured of God in Chowringhee, we
have had none in Calcutta." The natives suffer dreadfully.
Cholera and the heat are carrying off three and sometimes five
hundred a day.
An eclipse has produced a change in the weather, and the
sickness has ceased in the bazars.
August. A gloom has been thrown over Calcutta ; and Lord
Amherst's family are in the deepest affliction, caused by the
death of Captain Amherst, which took place a short time ago.
His lordship, his son, and his nephew were seized with fever
at the same time ; Captain Amherst's became typhus, and carried
him off. The family have proceeded up the country. All
those who have the pleasure of their acquaintance, sympathize
most deeply in their affliction ; they are much respected.
Oct. 18th. My husband having received an acting appoint-
ment at Allahabad, we prepared to quit Calcutta. The distance
by the river being eight hundred miles, and by land five hun-
dred, - we determined to march up stage by stage, sending the
heavy baggage by water.
On quitting the Presidency, a great part of our furniture,
horses, &c. were sold. I had refused 2000 rupees for my
beautiful Arab ; but determined, as economy was the order of
the day, to fix his price at 2500. The pair of greys, Atlas and
Mercury, carriage-horses, sold for 2200 rupees, 300 less than
they cost ; they, as well as Scamp, were too valuable to march
up the country. This will give you some idea of the price of
good horses in Calcutta. One morning a note was sent, which
I opened (having received instructions to that effect), requesting
to know if the grey Arab was for sale. I answered it, and
mentioned the price. The gentleman enclosed the amount,
2500 rupees, about 250Z., in a note to me, requesting me to
62 WANDERINGS OF A PILGRIM.
keep and ride the horse during the remainder of my stay in
Calcutta, and on my departure to send him to his stables. For
this charming proof of Indian politesse, I returned thanks, but
declined the offer. I felt so sorry to part with my beautiful
horse, I could not bear the sight of him when he was no longer
my own : it was my own act ; my husband blamed me for
having sold a creature in which I took so much delight, and
was not satisfied until he had replaced him by a milk-white
Arab, with a silken mane and long tail. Mootee, the name of
my new acquisition, was very gay at first, not comprehending
the petticoat, but on becoming used to it, carried me most
agreeably. A fine Scotch terrier was given me to bear me
company on the journey, but he was stolen from us ere we
quitted Calcutta.
The people in Calcutta abused the Upper Provinces so much,
we felt little inclination to quit the city, although we had
applied for an appointment in the Mufassil. Imagining the
march would be very fatiguing, I went on board several pin-
naces ; they did not please me ; then I crossed the river to see
the first dak bungalow, and brought back a good account.
Nov. 22nd. We quitted Calcutta, crossed the river to the
bungalow, on the New Road, stayed there one day to muster
our forces, and commenced our journey the next.
Our marching establishment consisted of two good mares for
the Stanhope, two fine saddle Arabs for ourselves, two ponies,
and nine hackeries, which contained supplies and clothes, also a
number of goats, and two Arabs, which we had taken charge
of for a friend. We travelled by the Grand Military road,
riding the first part of the stage, and finishing it in the buggy.
30th. I now write from Bancoorah, some hundred miles
from the Presidency. Thus far we have proceeded into the
bowels of the Mufassil very much to our satisfaction. The
change of air, and change of scene, have wrought wonders in us
both. My husband has never felt so well in health or so
desennuye since he left England. I am as strong as a Diana
Vernon, and ride my eight or ten miles before breakfast without
fatigue. We have still some four hundred miles to march ; but
MARCH UP THE COUNTRY. 63
the country is to improve daily, and when we arrive at the hills,
I hear we are to be carried back, in imagination, to the highlands
of Scotland. I have never been there ; n'importe, I can fancy
as well as others. We rejoiced in having passed Bengal Proper,
the first one hundred miles ; the country was extremely flat,
and, for the greater part, under water, said water being stag-
nant : the road was raised of mud, high enough to keep it above
the swamp ; a disagreeable road on a fly-away horse like my new
purchase; low, marshy fields of paddy (rice) were on either
side : sometimes we came to a bridge, surrounded by water, so
that instead of being able to cross it, you had to ford the nullah
(stream) lower down. No marvel, Calcutta is unhealthy, and
that fevers prevail there ; the wind flowing over these marshes
must be charged with malaria.
Bancoorah has a bad name. It is remarkable that almost all
the horses that are any time at the station, go weak in the loins.
Dec. 2nd. We reached Rogonautpoor, a very pretty spot,
where there are some peculiar hills. Here we found Sir A. B
and his daughters ; we accompanied them in a ramble over the
hills in the evening. Sir A. took his Sipahee guard with him,
having heard the hills were infested with bears, but we found none.
At Chass, quail and partridge, snipe and pigeons, were abun-
dant. I generally accompanied my husband on his sporting
expeditions in the evening, either on foot or on a pony, and
enjoyed it very much.
At Hazaree Bagh I became possessed of the first pellet bow I
had seen, and found it difficult to use. We travelled from bun-
galow to bungalow. They are built by government, and are all
on the same plan ; at each a khidmutgar and a bearer are in at-
tendance. At Khutkumsandy we were on the hills. Partridges
were in plenty by the nalii.
At one of the stages the bearer of the dak bungalow stole a
large silver spoon off the breakfast-table. Happening, from his
defending himself with great vehemence, to suspect him of the
theft, we sent for the police, to whom he confessed he had hidden
the spoon in the thatch of his own house. They carried him on
a prisoner.
G4 WANDERINGS OF A PILGRIM.
The country from this place, through Ranachitty to Dunghye,
is most beautiful ; fine hills, from the tops of which you have a
noble and extensive view. Sometimes I was reminded of my
own dear forest, which in parts it much resembles. The weak
Calcutta bullocks finding it hard work, we were obliged to hire
six more hackeries. We rode the whole of this stage. The
road was too bad, and the hills too steep, for the buggy ; but as
it was nearly shaded the whole distance by high trees, the heat
of the sun did not affect us. Tigers are found in this pass ; and
when Mootee my Arab snorted, and drew back apparently
alarmed, I expected a sortie from the jungle. At this stage a
horse ran away in a buggy, alarmed by a bear sleeping in the road.
At the Dunghye bungalow some travellers had been extremely
poetical :
" Dunghye ! Dunghye ! with hills so high,
A sorry place art thou ;
Thou boasts not e'en a blade of grass,
Enough to feed an hungry ass,
Or e'en a half-starved cow."
Nevertheless, we saw fine jungle and grass in plenty on every
side, and were told partridge and jungle fowl were abundant.
En route were several parties of fakirs, who said they were
going to Jugunnath. These rascals had some capital tattoos
with them. Several of these men had one withered arm raised
straight, with the long nails growing through the back of the
hand. These people are said to be great thieves ; and when
any of them were encamped near us on the march, we directed
the chaukidars (watchmen) to keep a good look out, on our
horses as well as our chattels. The adage says of the fakir,
" Externally he is a saint, but internally a devil '."
At Sherghattee we delivered the stealer of the spoon over
to the magistrate. In the evening I went out with the gentle-
men on an elephant ; they had some sport with their guns.
At Baroon we bought some uncut Soane pebbles, which
turned out remarkably good when cut and polished. We rode
1 Oriental Proverbs, No. 18.
NOBUTPOOR. 65
across the Soane river, which was three miles in breadth, and
had two large sand-banks in the middle of the stream. Wading
through the water was most troublesome work on horseback.
Twice we were obliged to put the horses into boats, they strug-
gled, and kicked, and gave so much trpuble. The Arab 'Rajah'
jumped fairly out of the boat into the stream. The mares
worked hard getting the buggy across the deep sand ; they went
into and came out of the boats very steadily.
On our arrival at Sahseram, a native gentleman, Shah Kubbeer-
oo-deen Ahmud, called upon us. At tiffin-time he sent us some
ready-dressed native dishes ; I was much surprised at it, but the
natives told me it was his usual custom. In the evening, some
fireworks, sent by the same gentleman, were displayed, par-
ticularly for my amusement. The town is very ancient, and
there are numerous remains of former magnificence rapidly
falling into decay. The tombs are well worth a visit.
Dec. 23rd. We arrived at Nobutpoor, a very pretty place.
The bungalow is on a high bank, just above the Curamnassa
river. To the right you have a view of a suspension-bridge,
built of bamboo and rope ; on the left is a suttee-ground, to me
a most interesting sight. I had heard a great deal regarding
suttees in Calcutta, but had never seen one ; here was a spot
to which it was customary to bring the widows to be burned
alive, on the banks of the Curamnassa, a river considered holy
by the Hindoos.
In the sketch I took of the place are seven suttee mounds,
raised of earth, one of which is kept in good repair , and there
are several more in the mango tope to the left. The people
said, no suttee had taken place there for twenty years, but that
the family who owned the large mound kept it in repair, and
were very proud of the glory reflected on their house by one of
the females having become suttee. A fine stone bridge had been
begun some years before by a Mahratta lady, but was never
finished ; the remains are in the river. The touch of its waters
is a dire misfortune to an Hindoo ; they carefully cross the sus-
pension-bridge.
The next stage took us to the Mogul Serai ; and, some rain
vol. I. F
66 WANDERINGS OF A PILGRIM.
having fallen, we felt the difference between the cold of the up-
country and the fogs of Calcutta.
Dec. 25th. Arrived at Benares ; and here, again, crossing the
Ganges was a great difficulty. The Arab ' Rajah ' was so ex-
tremely violent in the boat, that we were obliged to swim him
over. At length we reached the house of a friend in the civil
service, and were well pleased to rest from our labours. Rising
and being on horseback by four a. m. daily, is hard work when
continued for a month.
My husband, finding it necessary to reach Allahabad by the
30th, left me at Benares, to discharge the Calcutta hackeries, to
get others, and to continue my journey. During my stay, our
friend took me into the holy city, and showed me a great deal of
what was most remarkable. Long as I had lived in Calcutta, I
had seen very little of native life or the forms of pooja. The
most holy city of Benares is the high place of superstition. I
went into a Hindoo temple in which pooja was being performed,
and thought the organ of gullibility must be very strongly deve-
loped in the Hindoos.
It was the early morning, and before the people went to their
daily avocations, they came to perform worship before the idols.
Each man brought a little vessel of brass, containing oil, another
containing boiled rice, another Ganges' water and freshly-gathered
flowers. Each worshipper, on coming into the temple, poured
his offering on the head of the idol, and laid the flowers before
it ; prayed with his face to the earth, then struck a small bell
three times, and departed. The Hindoo women follow the same
custom.
There were numerous uncouth idols in the temple. A black
bull and a white bull, both carved in stone, attracted many wor-
shippers ; whilst two living bulls stood by the side, who were
regarded as most holy, and fed with flowers.
If an Hindoo wishes to perform an act of devotion, he pur-
chases a young bull without blemish, and presents him to the
Brahmans, who stamp a particular mark upon him ; he is then
turned loose, as a Brahmani bull, and allowed to roam at plea-
sure. To kill this animal would be sacrilege. When they get
THE MINARETS. 67
savage they become very dangerous. The Brahmani bulls roam
at pleasure through the bazaars, taking a feed whenever they
encounter a grain shop.
We ascended the minarets, and looked down upon the city
and the Ganges. Young men prefer ascending them at early
dawn, having then a chance of seeing the females of some ze-
nana, who often sleep on the flat roof of the house, which is
surrounded by a high wall. From the height of the minarets
you overlook the walls. I thought of Hadji Baba and the un-
fortunate Zeenab, whom he first saw spreading tobacco on the
roof to dry. The shops of the kimkhwab and turban manufac-
turers, as also of those who prepare the silver and gold wire used
in the fabric of the brocade worked in gold and silver flowers,
are well worth visiting.
Beetle wings are procurable at Benares, and are used there
for ornamenting kimkhwab and native dresses. In Calcutta and
Madras, they embroider gowns for European ladies with these
wings, edged with gold ; the effect is beautiful. The wings are
cheap at Benares, expensive at other places.
I was carried in a tanjan through Benares. In many parts,
in the narrow streets, I could touch the houses on both sides
of the street with my hands. The houses are from six to seven
stories high.
In one of these narrow passages it is not agreeable to meet a
Brahmani bull. Four armed men, barkandazes, ran on before
the tanjan to clear the road. I procured a number of the brazen
vessels that are used in pooja. On my return we will have it
in grand style ; the baby shall represent the idol, and we will
pour oil and flowers over his curly head.
The cattle live on the ground-floor ; and to enter a gay Hin-
doo house, you must first pass through a place filled with cows
and calves ; then you encounter a heavy door, the entrance to a
narrow, dark passage ; and after ascending a flight of steps, you
arrive at the inhabited part of the house, which is painted with
all sorts of curious devices. I visited one of these houses ; it
was furnished, but uninhabited.
The contents of the thirteen small hackeries were stowed away
f2
68 WANDERINGS OF A PILGRIM.
upon four of the large hackeries of Benares, which started on
their march with the buggy and horses. For myself, a dak was
hired. Our friend drove me the first stage, and then put me
into my palanquin. I overtook the hackeries, and could not
resist getting out and looking into the horses' tents. There
they were, warm and comfortable, well littered down, with their
sii'Ises asleep at their sides ; much more comfortable than myself
during the coldness of the night, in the palkee. The bearers
broke open one of my bahangis, and stole some articles.
I reached Raj Ghat early, and crossed the river. The fort,
with its long line of ramparts, washed by the river, and the
beauty of a Dhrumsala, or Hindoo alms-house, on the opposite
bank, under one of the arches of which was an enormous image
of Ganesh, greatly attracted my attention. I watched the
worshippers for some time, and promised myself to return and
sketch it 1 .
The carriage of a friend was in waiting at this spot, and took
me to Papamhow, where I rejoined my husband. Notwith-
standing the difficulties, which according to report we expected,
we made good progress, and arrived at Allahabad on the 1st of
January, after a very pleasant trip. Indeed, this short time we
agreed was the most approaching to delightful that we had
passed in India ; the constant change of scenery, and the
country very beautiful in some parts, with the daily exercise,
kept us all, horses included, in high health and spirits. We
travelled at the rate of about fifteen miles a day, making use of
the staging bungalows that have been erected for the accommo-
dation of travellers, as far as Benares ; thence we travelled by
dak to Prag, the distance being only ninety miles. So much
for our journey, which, considering our inexperience, I think
we performed with much credit to ourselves.
A friend received us at Papamhow with the utmost kindness,
housed and fed us, and assisted us in arranging our new resi-
dence, which, by the bye, has one great beauty, that of being
rent free : no small consideration where the expense of an
1 See the Sketch entitled " a Dhrum sala Bene Mahadeo Ghat."
ARRIVAL AT PAPAMHOW. 69
unfurnished house is equal to that of a small income in England.
Said house is very prettily situated on the banks of the Jumna,
a little beyond the Fort. We like our new situation, and do not
regret the gaiety of the City of Palaces ; indeed, it now appears
to me most wonderful how we could have remained there so
long : in climate there is no comparison, and as to expense, if
we can but commence the good work of economy, we may
return on furlough ere long.
The peaceful termination of the war with Ava was one of the
happy events of this year.
CHAPTER VIII.
LIFE IN THE MUFASSIL.
First Visits in the East Papamhow Runjeet Singh's illness Death of Lord
Hastings Lord Amherst created Earl of Arracan Marriage of a neem to a
peepul The Bacain A Koord Arab Visit to Lucnow His Majesty Nus-
seer-ood-Deen Hyder Lord Combermere Kywan Jah Presents not allowed
to be accepted Fights of Wild Beasts Quail Departure of Lord Com-
bermere Skinner's Horse Return to Prag.
January 1827. It is usual in India for those newly arrived to call
upon the resident families of the station ; the gentleman makes
his call, which is returned by the resident and his family ; after
which, the lady returns the visit with her husband. An invita-
tion is then received to a dinner-party given in honour of the
strangers, the lady being always handed to dinner by the host,
and made the queen of the day, whether or not entitled to it by
rank.
Our debut in the Mufassil was at the house of the judge,
where we met almost all the station, and were much pleased
that destiny had brought us to Prag. Prag was named
Allahabad when the old Hindoo city was conquered by the
Mahomedans. We were very fortunate in bringing up our
horses and baggage uninjured, and in not having been robbed
en route. Lord Amherst has lost two horses, and his aide-de-
camp three : guards are stationed around the Governor-general's
horse-tents and baggage night and day, nevertheless native
robbers have carried off those five animals. His lordship is at
present at Lucnow.
1 Guzrattee Proverb.
MARRIAGE OF A NEEM TO A PEEPUL. 71
We have spent the last three weeks most delightfully at
Papamhow. Every sort of scientific amusement was going
forward. Painting in oil and water colours, sketching from
nature, turning, making curious articles in silver and brass*
constructing iEolian harps, amusing ourselves with archery,
trying the rockets on the sands of an evening, chemical experi-
ments, botany, gardening ; in fact, the day was never half long
enough for our employment in the workshop and the grounds
Papamhow is five miles from our own house, standing on
higher ground and in a better situation, on the Ganges ; when
we can make holiday, we go up and stay at our country house,
as our neighbours call it.
The old moonshee is cutting out my name in the Persian
character, on the bottom of a Burmese idol, to answer as a
seal. What an excellent picture the old man, with his long grey
beard, would make ! I have caught two beautiful little squirrels,
with bushy tails and three white stripes on their backs ; they
run about the table, come to my shoulder, and feed from my
hand.
May. Our friend at Papamhow is gunpowder agent to the
Government, and manager of the rocket manufactory ; his
services are likely to be fully exerted, as it is reported that
Runjeet Singh is not expected to live four months, being in the
last stage of a liver complaint, and that his son, it is thought,
will hoist the standard of rebellion. What gives foundation
for this, is, that Lord Combermere is about to make the tour of
the Upper Provinces, and that a concentration of forces is to
take place on the frontier, under the pretext of a grand military
inspection and review. There is no doubt as to who will go to
the wall.
We have just received news of the death of Lord Hastings,
and learn from the same papers, that Lord Amherst has been
created an earl, and Lord Combermere a viscount.
We have been occupied in planting a small avenue of neem-
trees in front of the house ; unlike the air around the tamarind,
that near a neem-tree is reckoned wholesome : according to the
Guzrattee Proverb, we had made no advance on our heavenward
72 WANDERINGS OF A PILGRIM.
road until the avenue was planted, which carried us on one-third
of the journey. No sooner were the trees in the ground, than
the servants requested to be allowed to marry a neem to a young
peepul-tree (ficus religiosa), which marriage was accordingly
celebrated by planting a peepul and neem together, and
entwining their branches. Some pooja was performed at the
same time, which, with the ceremony of the marriage, was sure
to bring good fortune to the newly-planted avenue.
The neem is a large and beautiful tree, common in most parts
of India (melia azadirachta), or margosa-tree ; its flowers are
fragrant a strong decoction of the leaves is used as a cure for
strains.
Oil is prepared from the berry of the neem, (neem cowrie, as
they call it,) which is esteemed excellent, and used as a liniment
in violent headaches brought on by exposure to the sun, and in
rheumatic and spasmodic affections. The flowers are fragrant :
any thing remarkably bitter is compared to the neem-tree ; " yeh
duwa kiirwee hy jyse neem : " this medicine is bitter as neem.
The bacain, or maha nimba, (melia sempervivens,) a variety of
the neem-tree, is remarkably beautiful. " The neem-tree will
not become sweet though watered with syrup and clarified
butter 1 ."
My pearl of the desert, my milk-white Arab, Mootee, is
useless ; laid up with an inflammation and swelling in his fore-
legs ; he looks like a creature afflicted with elephantiasis they
tell us to keep him cool we cannot reduce the heat of the
stable below 120 !
1 feel the want of daily exercise : here it is very difficult to
procure a good Arab ; the native horses are vicious, and utterly
unfit for a lady ; and I am too much the spoiled child of my
mother to mount an indifferent horse.
August 28th. Last week we made our salam to the Earl of
Arracan and his lady, who stopped at Allahabad, en route, and
were graciously received.
The society is good and the station pretty and well-ordered ;
' Oriental Proverbs, No. 19.
A KOORD ARAB. 73
the roads the best in India, no small source of gratification to
those whose enjoyment consists in a morning and evening drive :
a course is also in progress, round which we are to gallop next
cold weather, when we have, indeed, the finest of climates, of
which you, living in your dusty, damp, dull, foggy, fuliginous
England, have no idea.
About the middle of April the hot winds set in, when we are
confined to the house, rendered cool by artificial means ; after
this come four months of the rains, generally a very pleasant
time ; then a pause of a month, and then the cold weather.
Sept. 20th. I have just received a most charming present, a
white Arab, from Koordistan : he is a beautiful creature, and
from having been educated in the tents of the Koords, is as tame
as a pet lamb. His colour grey, his mane long and dark ; his long
white tail touches his heels ; s\ich a beautiful little head ! he
looks like a younger brother of Scamp, the Arab I sold on
quitting Calcutta. I hear that when a lady was riding Scamp
the other day, he threw her, and nearly fractured her skull.
She was for some time in danger, but has recovered.
Oct. 27th. The weather is now very pleasant, cold mornings
and evenings ; the end of next month we hope to begin collect-
ing the ice, which is quite a business in this country. The next
four months will be delightful ; March will bring in the hot
weather, and in April we shall be roasted alive.
Dec. S\st. For the last three weeks I have been gadding
about the country, the gayest of the gay. A friend at Lucnow
invited me to pay her a visit, at the time Lord Combermere was to
stay at the residency. Having a great desire to see a native court,
and elephant and tiger fights, I accepted the invitation with
pleasure.
Accompanied by an aide-de-camp who was going to see the
tamasha, I reached Lucnow after a run of three nights. Mr.
Mordaunt Ricketts received me with great kindness ; I spent
a few days at the residency, and the rest with my friend.
On the arrival at Lucnow of his excellency the commander-
in-chief, the king of Oude, Nusseer-ood-Deen Hyder, as a com-
pliment to that nobleman, sent his son, prince Kywan Jah, with
74 WANDERINGS OF A PILGRIM.
the deputation appointed to receive his lordship, by whom the
prince was treated as the wall-uhd, or heir-apparent.
The first day, Lord Combermere and the resident breakfasted
with the king of Oude ; the party was very numerous. We
retired afterwards to another room, where trays of presents were
arranged upon the floor, ticketed with the names of the persons
for whom they were intended, and differing in their number and
value according to the rank of the guests. Two trays were pre-
sented to me, the first containing several pairs of Cashmere shawls,
and a pile of India muslin and kimkhwab, or cloth of gold. The
other tray contained strings of pearl, precious stones, bracelets,
and other beautiful native jewellery. I was desired to make my
salam in honor of the bounty of his majesty. As soon as the
ceremony had finished, the trays were carried off and placed in
the Company's treasury, an order having arrived, directing that
all presents made to the servants of the Company should be
accepted, but for the benefit of the state.
That night his majesty dined at the residency, and took his
departure at ten p. M., when quadrilles immediately commenced.
The ladies were not allowed to dance while his majesty was
present, as, on one occasion, he said, " That will do, let them
leave off," thinking the ladies were quadrilling for his amuse-
ment, like nach women. The second day, the king breakfasted
with Lord Combermere, and we dined at the palace.
During dinner a favourite nach woman attitudinized a little
behind and to the right of his majesty's chair ; at times he cast
an approving glance at her performance. Sometimes she sang
and moved about, and sometimes she bent her body backwards,
until her head touched the ground ; a marvellously supple, but
not a graceful action.
The mornings were devoted to sports, and quadrilles passed
away the evenings. I saw some very good elephant fights, some
indifferent tiger fights, a rhinoceros against three wild buffaloes,
in short, battles of every sort ; some were very cruel, and the
poor animals had not fair play.
The best fight was seen after breakfast at the palace. Two
battaire (quails) were placed on the table ; a hen bird was put
VISIT TO LUCNOW. 75
near them ; they set to instantly, and fought valiantly. One
of the quails was driven back by his adversary, until the little
bird, who fought every inch of his forced retreat, fell off the
table into my lap. I picked him up and placed him upon the
table again ; he flew at his adversary instantly. They fight,
unless separated, until they die. His majesty was delighted with
the amusement. The saying is, " Cocks fight for fighting's sake,
quails for food, and the Lalls for love." It appeared to me the
quails were animated by the same passion as the Lalls :
" Deux coqs vivaient en paix : une poule survint,
Et voila la guerre allumee.
Amour, tu perdis Troie ! "
On quitting the presence of his majesty, a harrh, a necklace
of silver and gold tissue, very beautifully made, was placed
around the neck of each of the guests, and atr of roses put on
their hands.
The resident having sent me a fine English horse, I used to
take my morning canter, return to cantonments, dress, and drive
to the presidency to breakfast by eight a. m. The horse, a
magnificent fellow, had but one fault, a trick of walking
almost upright on his hind legs. It was a contest between us ;
he liked to have his own way, and I was determined to have
mine.
The dinners, balls, and breakfasts were frequent. Lord Com-
bermere was in high good humour. His visit lasted about eight
days, during which time he was entertained by the resident in
Oriental style.
My journey having been delayed for want of bearers for my
palanquin from Cawnpore, I arrived at Lucnow too late to see
the ladies of the royal zenana. The lady of the resident had
been invited to visit their apartments the day before my arrival.
She told me they were very fine, at least the dopatta (veil) was
gay in gold and silver, but the rest of the attire very dirty.
They appeared to have been taken by surprise, as they were not
so highly ornamented as they usually are on a day of parade. I
felt disappointed in being unable to see the begams ; they would
76 WANDERINGS OF A PILGRIM.
have interested me more than the elephant fights, which, of all
the sights I beheld at Lucnow, pleased me the most.
I returned home at the end of December. The resident had
the kindness to give me an escort of Skinner's horse, to protect
my palanquin, and see me safely out of the kingdom of Oude, as
far as Cawnpore, which, being in the Company's territories, was
considered out of danger ; and during the rest of the journey I
was accompanied by two gentlemen.
Colonel Luard thus speaks of Skinner's horse : " This is a most
effective irregular corps, taking its name from its gallant colonel.
An extraordinary feat is performed with the lance : a tent-peg
is driven into the ground, nearly up to the head ; and the lancer,
starting at speed some distance from the peg, passes it on the
near side, at his utmost pace, and, while passing, with consider-
able force drives his lance into the tent-peg, allowing the lance
instantly to pass through his hand, or the shock would unhorse
him ; then, by a dexterous turn of the wrist, forces the peg out
of the ground at the point of his lance, and bears the prize in
triumph over his shoulder."
In my vanity I had flattered myself dulness would have
reigned triumphant at Prag ; nevertheless, I found my husband
had killed the fatted calf, and " lighted the lamp of ghee ';" i. e.
made merry.
I sent a little seal, on which this motto was engraved, " Toom
ghee ka dhye jalao," to a lady in England, telling her ghee is
clarified butter. When a native gives a feast, he fights a num-
ber of small lamps with ghee. If he say to a friend, " Will you
come to my feast?" the answer may be, " Light thou the lamp
of ghee ;" which means, " Be you merry, I will be there."
Therefore, if you accept an invitation, you may use this seal with
propriety.
1 Oriental Sayings, No. 20.
CHAPTER IX.
RESIDENCE AT ALLAHABAD.
1828. Sinking a Well Hurriannah Cows Delhi Goats The Jumnapar
Doomba Sheep Buffalo Humps Water-cresses Marrowfat Peas Carrots
The Chatr The Oleander The Ice-pits Cream Ice, how to freeze
Burdwan Coal Indian Fevers Mr. Bayley, Viceroy Fear of the Invasion
of the Russians and Persians Intense Heat Deaths in the Farmyard
Chota Jehannum The Verandah at Noon Mad Pariah Trelawny Cha-
teaux en Espagne Height of the two Rivers Death of the Bishop of Calcutta
An Hummam The first Steamer at Prig.
Jan., 1828, Leap Year. I before mentioned we had accom-
plished one-third of our way to heaven, by planting an avenue ;
we now performed another portion of the journey, by sinking a
well. As soon as the work was completed, the servants lighted
it up with numerous little lamps, and strewed flowers upon its
margin, to bring a blessing upon the newly-raised water. From
Hissar we received six cows and a bull, very handsome animals,
with remarkably fine humps, such as are sold in England under
the denomination of buffalo humps, which are, in reality, the
humps of Indian cows and oxen.
Tame buffaloes are numerous at Pritg. The milk is strong,
and not generally used for making butter, but is made into ghee
(clarified butter), useful for culinary purposes. Some most
beautiful Barbary goats arrived with the cows ; they were spotted
brown and white or black and white, and almost as beautiful as
deer. The Bengalee goats yield a much larger portion of milk.
I had also a Jumnapar goat, an enormous fellow, with very
broad, long, thin, and silky ears, as soft as velvet. The Jumna-
par are the best adapted for marching. Unless they can go into
the jungle and browse, they become thin and lose their milk.
78 WANDERINGS OF A PILGRIM.
These goats, bred on the banks of the Jumna, thence called
" Jumnapar," are remarkably fine, and of a large size.
We had a Doomba ram at Prag. The Doomba sheep are
difficult to keep alive in this climate. Their enormous tails are
reckoned delicacies ; the lambs are particularly fine flavoured.
Jan. Our garden was now in good order ; we had vegetables
in abundance, marrowfat peas as fine as in England, and the
water-cresses, planted close to the new well, were pearls beyond
price. Allahabad is famous for the growth of the finest carrots
in India. At this time of the year we gave our horses twelve
seer each daily ; it kept them in high health, and French-polished
their coats. The geraniums grew luxuriantly during this de-
lightful time ; and I could be out in the garden all day, when
protected by an enormous chatr, carried by a bearer. The
up-country chatr is a very large umbrella, in shape like a
large flat mushroom, covered with doubled cloth, with a deep
circle of fringe. Great people have them made of silk, and
highly ornamented. The pole is very long, and it is full employ-
ment for one man to carry the chatr properly.
The oleander (kaner), the beautiful sweet-scented oleander,
was in profusion, deep red, pure white, pink, and variegated,
with single and double blossoms. I rooted up many clusters of
this beautiful shrub in the grounds, fearing the horses and cows
might eat the leaves, which are poisonous. Hindoo women,
wdien tormented by jealousy, have recourse to this poison for
self-destruction.
THE ICE-PITS.
Jan. 22nd. My husband has the management of the ice con-
cern this year. It is now in full work, the weather bitterly cold,
and we are making ice by evaporation almost every night. I
may here remark, the work continued until the 19th of February,
when the pit was closed with 3000 mann, a mann is about
80 lbs. weight. There are two ice-pits; over each a house is
erected ; the walls, built of mud, are low, thick, and circular ;
the roof is thickly thatched ; there is only one entrance, by a
small door, which, when closed, is defended from the sun and
air by a jhamp, or frame-work of bamboo covered with straw.
THE ICE-PITS. 79
The diameter of the pit, in the centre of the house, is large, but
the depth not great, on account of the dampness of the ground.
At the bottom is a small well, the top of which is covered over
with bamboo ; a channel unites it with a dry well on the out-
side, still deeper than itself, so constructed, that all the water
collected in the pit may immediately run off through this duct,
and be drawn up from the external well. This keeps the pit
perfectly dry a material point. The interior is lined, from top
to bottom, with chata'is (mats), three or four deep, which are
neatly fastened by pegs round the inside ; mats are also kept
ready for covering in the top of the pit. Some abdars recom-
mend a further lining of sulum (cotton-cloth), but it is un-
necessary.
The ground belonging to the ice concern is divided into keea-
rees, or shallow beds, very like saltern-pans in England, about
six feet square and a cubit in depth ; between them are raised
paths.
When the weather in December is cold enough to induce us
to suppose water will freeze at night with artificial aid, the busi-
ness of ice-making commences. At the bottom of the keearees,
the shallow square beds, a black-looking straw is spread about
a foot in depth, called " pooal," which is reckoned better for the
purpose than wheat-straw. Some abdars think sugar-cane leaves
the best thing to put under the pans in the ice-beds ; next in
estimation is the straw or grass of kodo (the paspalum frumen-
taceum) ; and then rice-straw, which is called " puwal," or
" pooal," though the term " pooal " is not applied exclusively to
the straw of rice. The highest temperature at which ice was
made in 1846, at Cawnpore, was 43 of Fahrenheit, or 1 1 above
freezing point. At each of the four corners, on the pathway, is
placed a thiliya (an earthen jar) , which is filled by a bihishti with
water'. The pooal straw in the shallow beds must be kept per-
fectly dry, to produce evaporation and the freezing of the water
in the little pans placed upon it ; should rain fall, the straw must
be taken up and thoroughly dried before it can again be used.
See the sketch of the Ice Pits, with this man and his mashk (water-bag).
80 WANDERINGS OF A PILGRIM.
It is amusing to see the old abdar who has charge of the ice
concern, walking up and down of an evening, watching the
weather, and calculating if there be a chance of making ice.
This is a grand point to decide, as the expense of filling the pans
is great, and not to be incurred without a fair prospect of a crop
of barf (ice) the next morning. He looks in the wind's eye, and
if the breeze be fresh, and likely to increase, the old man draws
his warm garment around him, and returning to his own habita-
tion, a hut close to the pits, resigns himself to fate and his
hubble-bubble. But should there be a crisp frosty feeling in
the air, he prepares for action about 6 or 7 p. m., by beating a
tom-tom (a native hand-drum) , a signal web! known to the coo-
lies in the bazaar, who hasten to the pits. By the aid of the
little cup fastened to the long sticks, as shown in the sketch, they
fill all the rukiibees with the water from the jars in the pathway.
Many hundred coolies, men, women, and children, are thus
employed until every little pan is filled.
If the night be frosty, without wind, the ice will form perhaps
an inch and a half in thickness in the pans. If a breeze should
blow, it will often prevent the freezing of the water, except in
those parts of the grounds that are sheltered from the wind.
About 3 a. m. the abdiir, carefully muffled in some yards of
English red or yellow broad cloth, would be seen emerging from
his hut ; and if the formation of ice was sufficiently thick, his
tom-tom was heard, and the shivering coolies would collect,
wrapped up in black bazar blankets, and shaking with cold.
Sometimes it was extremely difficult to rouse them to their
work, and the increased noise of the tom-toms discordant
native instruments disturbed us and our neighbours with the
pleasing notice of more ice for the pits. Each cooly, armed
with a spud, knocked the ice out of the little pans into a basket,
which having filled, he placed it on his head, ran with it to the
ice-house, and threw it down the great pit.
When all the pans had been emptied, the people assembled
around the old abdar, who kept an account of the number at
work on a roll of paper or a book. From a great bag full of
pice (copper coins) and cowrie-shells, he paid each man his hire.
THE ICE-PITS. 81
About ten men were retained, on extra pay, to finish the work.
Each man having been supplied with a blanket, shoes, and a
heavy wooden mallet, four at a time descended into the pit by
a ladder, and beat down the ice collected there into a hard flat
mass ; these men were constantly relieved by a fresh set, the
cold being too great for them to remain long at the bottom of
the pit.
When the ice was all firmly beaten down, it was covered in
with mats, over which a quantity of straw was piled, and the
door of the ice-house locked. The pits are usually opened on
the 1st of May, but it is better to open them on the 1st of April.
We had ice this year until the 20th of August. Each subscriber's
allowance is twelve ser (24 lbs.) every other day. A bearer, or
a cooly is sent with an ice-basket, a large bazar blanket, a cotton
cloth, and a wooden mallet, at 4 a.m., to bring the ice from the
pit. The abdar, having weighed the ice, puts it into the cloth,
and ties it up tightly with a string ; the cooly then beats it all
round into the smallest compass possible, ties it afresh, and,
having placed it in the blanket within the ice-basket, he returns
home. The gentleman's abdar, on his arrival at his master's
house, re-weighs the ice, as the coolies often stop in the bazaars,
and sell a quantity of it to natives, who are particularly fond
of it, the man pretending it has melted away en route.
The natives make ice for themselves, and sell it at two annas a
seer ; they do not preserve it for the hot winds, but give a good
price for the ice stolen from the sahib loge '.
For the art of freezing cream ices to perfection, and the
method of making them in India, I refer you to the Appendix 2 .
As the abdars generally dislike rising early to weigh the
ice, the cooly may generally steal it with impunity. The ice-
baskets are made of strips of bamboo covered inside and out
with numdii, a thick coarse woollen wadding. The interior is
lined with dosootee (white cotton cloth), and the exterior
covered with ghuwa. kopra, a coarse red cloth that rots less
than any other from moisture.
1 European gentleman. * Nos. 1 to 10.
VOL. I. G
82 WANDERINGS OF A PILGRIM.
The basket should be placed on a wooden stool, with a pan
below to catch the dripping water.
Calcutta was supplied, in 1833, with fine clear ice from
America, sent in enormous blocks, which sold at two annas
a seer, about twopence per pound : this ice is greatly superior
to that made in India, which is beaten up when collected into a
mass, and dissolves more rapidly than the block ice. It is not
as an article of luxury only that ice is delightful in this climate,
medicinally it is of great use : there is much virtue in an iced
night-cap to a feverish head. The American ice has not yet
penetrated to the Up Country ; we shall have ice from Calcutta
when the railroads are established. No climate under the sun
can be more delightful than this during the cold weather, at
which time we enjoy fires very much, and burn excellent coal,
which is brought by water from Calcutta. The coal mines are
at Burdwan, 100 miles from the presidency. In Calcutta it
costs eight annas a mann ; here, if procurable, it is one rupee :
this year we had fires until the 29th of February.
After a good gallop round the Mahratta Bund, on Master
George, a remarkably fine Arab, with what zest we and our
friends partook of Hunter's beef and brawn ! as good as that of
Oxford ; the table drawn close to the fire, and the bright blaze
not exceeding in cheerfulness the gaiety of the party !
March 3\st. How fearful are fevers in India ! On this day
my husband was attacked ; a medical man was instantly called
in, medicine was of no avail, the illness increased hourly. On
the 9th of April, the aid of the superintending surgeon was
requested ; a long consultation took place, and a debate as to
which was to be employed, the lancet, or a bottle of claret ; it
terminated in favour of the latter, and claret to the extent of a
bottle a day was given him : his head was enveloped in three
bladders of ice, and iced towels were around his neck. On the
17th day, for the first time since the commencement of the
attack, he tasted food ; that is, he ate half a small bun ; before
that, he had been supported solely on claret and fresh straw-
berries, being unable to take broth or arrow-root.
Not daring to leave him a moment night or day, I got two
INTENSE HEAT. 83
European artillerymen from the fort, to assist me in nursing
him. On the 23rd, the anxiety I had suffered, and over-
exertion, brought on fever, which confined me to my charpai
for seven days ; all this time my husband was too ill to quit his
bed ; so we lay on two charpais, under the same pankha, two
artillerymen for our nurses, applying iced towels to our heads,
while my two women, with true native apathy, lay on the
ground by the side of my bed, seldom attending to me, and only
thinking how soon they could get away to eat and smoke. The
attention and kindness of the medical men, and of our friends
at the station, were beyond praise. Thanks to good doctoring,
good nursing, and good claret, at the end of the month we
began to recover health and strength.
May \Sth. The ice-pits were opened, and every subscriber
received twenty-four pounds weight of ice every other day
perfectly invaluable with a thermometer at 93 ! Our friends
had kindly allowed them to be opened before, during our fevers.
It is impossible to describe the comfort of ice to the head, or
of iced-soda water to a parched and tasteless palate, and an
exhausted frame.
April. Lord Amherst was requested by the directors to
remain here until the arrival of Lord William Bentinck ; and
such was his intention, I believe, had he not been prevented by
the dangerous illness of lady Sarah ; and by this time, it is
possible the family are on their way home. Mr. Bayley is Vice-
roy, and will reign longer than he expected, as Lord William
Bentinck does not sail before January.
Our politicians are all on the qui vive at the melee between
the Russians and Persians, and the old story of an invasion of
India is again agitated : we are not alarmed.
June 7th. The weather is more oppressive than we have ever
found it ; the heat intolerable ; the thermometer, in my room,
93, in spite of tattees and pankhas. Allahabad may boast of
being the oven of India ; and the flat stone roof of our house
renders it much hotter than if it were thatched.
We were most fortunate in quitting Calcutta ; this past year
the cholera has raged there most severely ; the Europeans have
G 2
84 WANDERINGS OK A PILGRIM.
suffered much ; many from perfect health have heen carried to
their graves in a few hours.
A novel and a sofa is all one is equal to during such intense
heat, which renders life scarcely endurable.
Ice is our greatest luxury ; and our ice, made from the cream
of our own cows, and Gunter's jam, is as good as any in England.
My thoughts flow heavily and stupidly under such intolerable
heat : when the thermometer is only 82, we rejoice in the cool-
ness of the season ; to-day it is 92, and will be hotter as the
day advances ; the wind will not blow. If a breeze would but
spring up, we could be comfortable, as the air is cooled passing
through the wet khus-khus : what would I not give for a fresh
sea-breeze ! Let me not think of it.
Horses at this season of the year are almost useless ; it is
too hot to ride, and even a man feels that he has scarcely nerve
enough to mount his horse with pleasure : in the buggy it is
very oppressive, the fiery wind is so overpowering ; and a
carriage is too hot to be borne. I speak not of the middle of
the day, but of the hours between 7 p.m. and 6 a.m., the cool
hours as we call them !
From Madras they write the thermometer is at 96 ! How can
they breathe ! Here at 93 it is fearfully hot if they have a
sea-breeze to render the nights cool, it is a blessing ; here the
heat at night is scarcely endurable, and to sleep almost im-
possible.
I had a very large farm-yard. The heat has killed all the
guinea-fowls, turkeys, and pigeons, half the fowls, and half the
rabbits.
\2th. We have had a most miserable time of it for the last
two months ; this has been one of the hottest seasons in recol-
lection, and Allahabad has well sustained its sobrique't of Chota
Jahannum ! which, being interpreted, is Hell the Little. Within
these two days the state of affairs has been changed ; we are
now enjoying the freshness of the rains, whose very fall is music
to our ears : another such season would tempt us to quit this
station, in spite of its other recommendations.
Lord William Bentinck arrived July 3rd. The new Bishop
THE VERANDAH AT NOON. 85
of Calcutta is gone home, obliged to fly the country for his life ;
indeed, he was so ill, that a report of his death having come up
here, some of his friends are in mourning for him ; but I trust,
poor man, he is going on well at sea at this minute.
Sept. 8th. My verandah presents an interesting scene : at
present, at one end, two carpenters are making a wardrobe ;
near them is a man polishing steel. Two silversmiths are busy
making me some ornaments after the Hindostani patterns ; the
tailors are finishing a gown, and the ayha is polishing silk
stockings with a large cowrie shell. The horses are standing
near, in a row, eating lucerne grass, and the jumadar is making
a report on their health, which is the custom at twelve at noon,
when they come round for their tiffin.
Yesterday a mad pariah dog ran into the drawing-room ; I
closed the doors instantly, and the servants shot the animal :
dogs are numerous and dangerous at some seasons.
Exchanged a little mare who could sing, " I'm sweet fifteen,
and one year more" for a stud-bred Arab, named Trelawny ;
the latter being too impetuous to please his master.
Our friend Major D is anxious to tempt us to Nagpore,
if we could get a good appointment there. " He rides a steed
of air ' ;" and we have indulged in building chateaux d'Espagne,
or castles in Ayrshire.
Aug. 2\st. It is thought the gentleman, for whom my hus-
band now officiates, will not rejoin this appointment ; should he
be disappointed of his hope of reigning in his stead, he will
apply for something else rather than return to Calcutta, which
we do not wish to see till the year of furlough, 1833-4. Mean-
time we must make it out as well as we can, and live upon hope,
with the assurance that if we live, we shall not die fasting.
I wish the intermediate years would pass by as quickly as the
river Jumna before our house, which is in such a furious hurry,
that it is quite awful to see the velocity with which the boats fly
along. Both the Ganges and the Jumna have this year been
unusually high, and much mischief to the villages on the banks
1 Oriental Proverbs, No. 21.
86 WANDERINGS OF A PILGRIM.
has been the consequence. There was a report the day before
yesterday, that the Ganges, about a mile from this, had burst
its banks. Luckily it was false ; but it was a very near thing.
Since then the river has sunk nearly twenty feet, so that we
have no fear at present. The Jumna was within six feet of
our garden bank.
Of the climate we cannot form a fair opinion, but it is cer-
tainly very superior to any they have in Bengal. This year has
been most unnatural ; no regular hot winds, unexpected storms,
and the rains delayed beyond their proper season. Allahabad
is called the oven of India, therefore I expect to become a jolie
brune, and the sahib well-baked.
We have just received telegraphic intelligence of the bishop's
death at the Sandheads, where he was sent on account of severe
illness, which terminated fatally on the 13th instant. It is
said, that three bishops are to be imported, the late con-
sumption having been so great. They ought to make bishops
of the clergy who have passed their lives in India, and not
send out old men who cannot stand the climate.
We have the use of a native steam-bath, which is most re-
freshing when the skin feels dry and uncomfortable. There are
three rooms the temperature of the first is moderate ; that of
the second, warmer ; and the third, which contains the steam, is
heated to about 100. There you sit, until the perspiration starts
in great drops from every pore ; the women are then admitted,
who rub you with besun ' and native hand-rubbers 2 , and pour
hot water over you until the surface peels off; and you come
out a new creature, like the snake that has cast its skin. One
feels fresh and elastic, and the joints supple: the steam-bath
is a fine invention.
Oct. }st. The first steamer arrived at Allahabad in twenty-
six days from Calcutta; the natives came down in crowds to
view it from the banks of the Jumna ; it was to them a cause of
great astonishment.
1 The flour or meal of pulse, particularly of chana (cicer arietinum).
1 Khisas.
CHAPTER X.
LIFE IN THE ZENANA.
Zenana of the King of Oude Regiment of Females The Favourite Wife
The English Begam The Princess of Delhi, the Begam par excellence
Colonel Gardner Mirza Suliman Sheko and his fifty-two Children The
forty Princesses Mootee, the Pearl of the Desert Hunting Season at Papam-
how Jackals and Foxes A Suttee at Prag Report of a Suttee An ill-
starred Horse.
Oct. 1828. A letter just received from a lady, a friend of mine,
at Lucnow, is so amusing and so novel, I must make an
extract :
" The other day, (Oct. 18th,) was the anniversary of the King
of Oude's coronation ; and I went to see the ceremony, one I
had never witnessed before, and with which I was much gratified.
But the greatest treat was a visit to the begam's afterwards,
when the whole of the wives, aunts, cousins, &c, were assembled
in state to receive us.
"The old begam (the king's mother), was the great lady, of
course, and in her palace were we received ; the others being
considered her guests, as well as ourselves. It was a most
amusing sight, as I had never witnessed the interior of a zenana
before, and so many women assembled at once I had never
beheld. I suppose from first to last we saw some thousands.
Women-bearers carried our tanjans ; a regiment of female gold
1 Oriental Proverbs, No. 22.
SS WANDERINGS OF A PILGRIM.
and silver-sticks, dressed in male costume, were drawn up before
the entrance ; and those men, chiefly Africans, who were em-
ployed inside the zenana (and there were abundance of these
frightful creatures), were all of the same class as the celebrated
VeUuti. The old begam was without jewels or ornaments, like-
wise a very pretty and favourite wife of the late king, their state
of widowhood precluding their wearing them. But the present
king's wives were most superbly dressed, and looked like crea-
tures of the Arabian tales. Indeed, one was so beautiful, that I
could think of nothing but Lalla Rookh in her bridal attire.
" I never saw any one so lovely, either black or white. Her
features were perfect ; and such eyes and eyelashes I never
beheld before. She is the favourite queen at present, and has
only been married a month or two : her age about fourteen ;
and such a little creature, with the smallest hands and feet, and
the most timid, modest look imaginable. You would have been
charmed with her, she was so graceful and fawn-like. Her
dress was of gold and scarlet brocade, and her hair was literally
strewed with pearls, which hung down upon her neck in long
single strings, terminating in large pearls, which mixed with and
hung as low as her hair, which was curled on each side her
head in long ringlets, like Charles the Second's beauties.
" On her forehead she wore a small gold circlet, from which
depended (and hung half-way down her forehead) large pear-
shaped pearls, interspersed with emeralds. The pearls were of
this size and form, /\ and had a very becoming effect,
close upon the / \ forehead, between the eyes. Above
this was a paradise / ] plume, from which strings of pearls
were carried over I J the head, as we turn our hair.
" I fear you will not understand me. Her ear-rings were
immense gold-rings, with pearls and emeralds suspended all
round in long strings, the pearls increasing in size. She had a
nose -ring also, with large round pearls and emeralds ; and her
necklaces, &c, were too numerous to be described. She wore
long sleeves, open at the elbow ; and her dress was a full petti-
coat, some dozen yards wide, with a tight body attached, and
only open at the throat. She had several persons to bear her
ZENANA OF THE KING OF OUDE. 89
train when she walked ; and her women stood behind her couch
to arrange her head-dress, when in moving her pearls got
entangled in the immense dopatta of scarlet and gold she had
thrown around her. How I wished for you when we were
seated ! you would have been delighted with the whole scene.
This beautiful creature is the envy of all the other wives, and
the favourite, at present, of the king and his mother, both of
whom have given her titles the king's is after the favourite
wife of one of the celebrated kings of Delhi, 'Tajmahul,' and
Nourmahul herself could not have been more lovely.
"The other newly-made queen is nearly European, but not a
whit fairer than Tajmahul. She is, in my opinion, plain, but is
considered by the native ladies very handsome ; and she was the
king's favourite until he saw Tajmahul.
" She was more splendidly dressed than even Tajmahul; her
head-dress was a coronet of diamonds, with a fine crescent and
plume of the same. She is the daughter of an European mer-
chant, and is accomplished for an inhabitant of a zenana, as she
writes and speaks Persian fluently, as well as Hindostani, and it
is said she is teaching the king English; though, when we
spoke to her in English, she said she had forgotten it, and could
not reply. She was, I fancy, afraid of the old begam, as she
evidently understood us ; and when asked if she liked being in
the zenana, she shook her head and looked quite melancholy.
Jealousy of the new favourite, however, appeared the cause of
her discontent, as, though they sat on the same couch, they
never addressed each other. And now you must be as tired of
the begams, as I am of writing about them.
" The mother of the king's children, Mulka Zumanee, did
not visit us at the old queen's, but we went to see her at her
own palace : she is, after all, the person of the most political
consequence, being the mother of the heir-apparent ; and she
has great power over her royal husband, whose ears she boxes
occasionally.
'The Delhi princess, to whom the king was betrothed and
married by his father, we did not see ; she is in disgrace, and
confined to her own palace. The old begam talked away to us,
90 WANDERINGS OF A PILGRIM.
but appeared surprised I should admire Tajmahiil more than
the English begam, as she is called, my country-woman as they
styled her !
" Poor thing, I felt ashamed of the circumstance, when I saw
her chewing pan with all the gusto of a regular Hindostanee."
The above letter contains so charming an account of Lucnow,
that I cannot refrain from adding an extract from another of the
same lady.
" At the residency, on such a day as this, the thermometer is
seldom short of 100 !
"Did you ever hear of Colonel Gardner? he is married to a
native princess. The other day he paid Lucnow a visit. His
son's wife is sister to the legal queen of our present worthy
sovereign of Oude. Colonel Gardner came on a visit to the
begam's father, Mirza Suliman Sheko, a prince of the house of
Delhi, blessed with fifty-two children, twelve sons and forty
daughters ! Did you ever hear of such enormity ? the poor
papa is without a rupee, his pension from government of 5000
rupees a month is mortgaged to his numerous creditors. He
has quarrelled with his illustrious son-in-law, the king of Oude ;
and Colonel Gardner has come over with the laudable purpose
of removing his family from Oude to Delhi, where they will
have a better chance of being provided for.
" Indeed, the other day, seventeen of the daughters were
betrothed to seventeen princes of Delhi : this is disposing of
one's daughters by wholesale ! is it not ? Colonel Gardner,
who is a very gentlemanlike person, I hear, of the old school,
was educated in France some fifty years ago. He gave a
description of his sojourn amongst this small family in the city,
in these words, ' I slept every night with the thermometer
at 1 00, and surrounded by 500 females ! '
" What a situation ! I do not know which would be the most
overpowering, the extreme heat, or the incessant clack of the
forty princesses and their attendants. It reminds me of the old
fairy tale of the ' Ogre's forty daughters with golden crowns on
their heads.' "
On dit, the English begam was the daughter of a half caste
THE SUTTEE. 91
and an English officer ; her mother afterwards married a native
buniyii (shop-keeper). She had a sister; both the girls lived
with the mother, and employed themselves in embroidering
saddle-cloths for the horses of the rich natives. They were
both very plain ; nevertheless, one of them sent her picture to
his majesty, who, charmed with the portrait, married the lady.
She had money in profusion at her command : she made her
father-in-law her treasurer, and pensioned her mother and sister.
The Suttee.
A rich buniya, a corn chandler, whose house was near the
gate of our grounds, departed this life ; he was an Hindoo.
On the 7th of November, the natives in the bazar were making
a great noise with their tom-toms, drums, and other discordant
musical instruments, rejoicing that his widow had determined
to perform suttee, i. e. to burn on his funeral-pile.
The magistrate sent for the woman, used every argument to
dissuade her, and offered her money. Her only answer was,
dashing her head on the floor, and saying, "If you will not let
me burn with my husband, I will hang myself in your court
of justice." The shastrs say, "The prayers and imprecations
of a suttee are never uttered in vain ; the great gods themselves
cannot listen to them unmoved."
If a widow touch either food or water from the time her
husband expires until she ascend the pile, she cannot, by
Hindoo law, be burned with the body ; therefore the magistrate
kept the corpse forty-eight hours, in the hope that hunger would
compel the woman to eat. Guards were set over her, but she
never touched any thing. My husband accompanied the magis-
trate to see the suttee : about 5000 people were collected toge-
ther on the banks of the Ganges : the pile was then built, and
the putrid body placed upon it ; the magistrate stationed guards
to prevent the people from approaching it. After having bathed
in the river, the widow lighted a brand, walked round the pile,
set it on fire, and then mounted cheerfully : the flame caught and
blazed up instantly ; she sat down, placing the head of the
corpse on her lap, and repeated several times the usual form,
92 WANDERINGS OK A PILGRIM.
" Ram, Ram, suttee ; Ram, Ram, suttee ;" i. e. " God, God,
I am chaste."
As the wind drove the fierce fire upon her, she shook her
arms and limbs as if in agony ; at length she started up and
approached the side to escape. An Hindoo, one of the police
who had been placed near the pile to see she had fair play, and
should not be burned by force, raised his sword to strike her,
and the poor wretch shrank back into the flames. The magis-
trate seized and committed him to prison. The woman again
approached the side of the blazing pile, sprang fairly out, and
ran into the Ganges, which was within a few yards. When the
crowd and the brothers of the dead man saw this, they called out,
" Cut her down, knock her on the head with a bamboo ; tie her
hands and feet, and throw her in again;" and rushed down to
execute their murderous intentions, when the gentlemen and
the police drove them back.
The woman drank some water, and having extinguished the
fire on her red garment, said she would mount the pile again
and be burned.
The magistrate placed his hand on her shoulder (which ren-
dered her impure), and said, " By your own law, having once
quitted the pile you cannot ascend again ; I forbid it. You are
now an outcast from the Hindoos, but I will take charge of you,
the Company will protect you, and you shall never want food or
clothing."
He then sent her, in a palanquin, under a guard, to the
hospital. The crowd made way, shrinking from her with signs
of horror, but returned peaceably to their homes ; the Hindoos
annoyed at her escape, and the Mussulmans saying, " It was
better that she should escape, but it was a pity we should have
lost the tamdsha (amusement) of seeing her burnt to death."
Had not the magistrate and the English gentlemen been
present, the Hindoos would have cut her down when she
attempted to quit the fire ; or had she leapt out, would have
thrown her in again, and have said, " She performed suttee of
her own accord, how could we make her? it was the will of
God." As a specimen of their religion the woman said, " T
THE SUTTEE. 93
have transmigrated six times, and have been burned six times
with six different husbands ; if I do not burn the seventh time,
it will prove unlucky for me ! " " What good will burning do
you?" asked a bystander. She replied, "The women of my
husband's family have all been suttees, why should I bring
disgrace upon them ? I shall go to heaven, and afterwards
re-appear on earth, and be married to a very rich man." She
was about twenty or twenty-five years of age, and possessed of
some property, for the sake of which her relatives wished to
put her out of the world.
If every suttee were conducted in this way, very few would
take place in India. The woman was not much burned, with
the exception of some parts on her arms and legs. Had she
performed suttee, they would have raised a little cenotaph, or a
mound of earth by the side of the river, and every Hindoo who
passed the place returning from bathing would have made salam
to it ; a high honour to the family. While we were in Calcutta,
many suttees took place ; but as they were generally on the other
side of the river, we only heard of them after they had occurred.
Here the people passed in procession, flags flying, and drums
beating, close by our door. I saw them from the verandah ; the
widow, dressed in a red garment, was walking in the midst.
My servants all ran to me, begging to be allowed to go and see
the tamasha (fun, sport), and having obtained permission,
they all started off, except one man, who was pulling the
pankha, and he looked greatly vexed at being obliged to remain.
The sahib said, the woman appeared so perfectly determined, he
did not think she would have quitted the fire. Having per-
formed suttee according to her own account six times before,
one would have thought from her miraculous incombustibility,
she had become asbestos, only purified and not consumed by
fire. I was glad the poor creature was not murdered ; but she
will be an outcast ; no Hindoo will eat with her, enter her house,
or give her assistance ; and when she appears they will point at
her and give her abuse. Her own and her husband's family would
lose caste if they were to speak to her : but, as an example, it
will prevent a number of women from becoming suttees, and do
94 WANDERINGS OF A PILGRIM.
infinite good : fortunately, she has no children. And these are
the people called in Europe the " mild inoffensive Hindoos! "
The woman was mistress of a good house and about 800
rupees ; the brothers of her deceased husband would, after her
destruction, have inherited the property.
The burning of the widow is not commanded by the shiistrs :
to perform suttee is a proof of devotion to the husband.
The mountain Himalaya, being personified, is represented as a
powerful monarch : his wife, Mena ; their daughter is called
Parvuti, or mountain-born, and Doorga, or difficult of access.
She is said to have been married to Shivu in a pre-existing state
when she was called Sutee. After the marriage, Shivii on a
certain occasion offended his father-in-law, King Dukshii, by
refusing to make salam to him as he entered the circle in which
the king was sitting.
To be revenged, the monarch refused to invite Shivii to a
sacrifice which he was about to perform. Sutee, the king's
daughter, however, was resolved to go, though uninvited and
forbidden by her husband. On her arrival, Dukshii poured a
torrent of abuse on Shivu, which affected Sutee so much that
she died.
In memory of this proof of great affection, a Hindoo widow
burning with her husband on the funeral-pile, is called a Sutee.
The following passages are from the Hindoo Shiistrs :
"There are 35,000,000 hairs on the human body. The
woman who ascends the pile with her husband, will remain so
many years in heaven."
" As the snake draws the serpent from its hole, so she,
rescuing her husband (from hell), rejoices with him."
" The woman who expires on the funeral-pile of her hus-
band, purifies the family of her mother, her father, and her
husband."
" So long as a woman, in her successive transmigrations,
shall decline burning herself, like a faithful wife, on the same
fire with her deceased lord, so long shall she not be exempted
from springing again to life in the body of some female animal."
" There is no virtue greater than a chaste woman burning
REPORT OF A SUTTEE. 95
herself with her husband:" the term Sutee, here rendered
" chaste" is thus explained ; " commiserating with her husband
in trouble, rejoicing in his joys, neglecting herself when he is
gone from home, and dying at his death."
" By the favour of a chaste woman the universe is preserved,
on which account she is to be regarded by kings and people as
a goddess."
" If the husband be out of the country when he dies, let the
virtuous wife take his slippers (or any thing else which belongs
to his dress) -and binding them, or it, on her breast, after puri-
fication, enter a separate fire."
Mothers collect the cowries strewn by a sutee as she walks
round the pile, ere she fires it, and hang them .round the necks
of their sick children as a cure for disease.
In the plate entitled " Superstitions of the Natives," fig. 3
represents the cowrie shells. (Cyprsea moneta.)
The suttee took place on the banks of the Ganges, under the
Bund between the Fort and Raj Ghat, a spot reckoned very
holy and fortunate for the performance of the rite.
Several of our friends requested me, in case another suttee
occurred, to send them timely notice. Five days afterwards,
I was informed that a ranee ' was to be burned. Accordingly
I sent word to all my friends. Eight thousand people were as-
sembled on the suttee-ground, who waited from mid-day to
sun-set : then a cry arose " The mem siihiba sent us here ! the
mem siihiba said it was to take place to-day ! see, the sun has
set, there can now be no suttee !" The people dispersed. My
informant told me what he himself believed, and I mystified
some 8000 people most unintentionally.
TEMPLE OF BHAWANI AND SUTTEES, ALOPEE BAGH.
In Alopee Bagh, in the centre of a large plantation of mango-
trees, is a small temple dedicated to BhawanI; there is no
image in it, merely a raised altar, on which victims were, I
suppose, formerly sacrificed. Each of the small buildings on the
1 A Hindoo queen or princess.
96 WANDERINGS OF A PILGRIM.
right contains the ashes of a suttee ; there are seven suttee-graves
of masonry on this, and six of earth on the other side, near the
temple, in the mango tope. The largest suttee-tomb contains
the ashes of a woman who was burnt in 1825, i.e. six years
ago. The ashes are always buried near a temple sacred to
Bhawani, and never by any other. Families too poor to raise
a tomb of masonry in memory of the burnt-sacrifice, are con-
tented to raise a mound of earth, and place a kulsa of red
earthenware to mark the spot. In the sketch of " The Kulsas 1 ,"
Fig. 8 is one of this description, which I carried away from
these suttee-mounds.
The temple of Bhawani is shaded by a most beautiful peepul-
tree, from the centre of which a fakir's flag was flying ; it stands
in a plantation of mango-trees. I desired an Hindoo, who was
present when I sketched the temple, to count the suttee-graves
around it. As he counted them, he repeatedly made salam
to each mound.
The kulsa, Fig. 8, is made of common unglazed red pottery :
there are five points one at the top, the others placed at equal
spaces around it ; between the points are two figures of human
beings, and tw r o emblems like a moon and a crescent, see Fig. 9.
The kulsa is hollow, and has five holes, through which the points,
which are of solid earthenware, are introduced before baking,
see Fig. 10: height, ten inches and a half; circumference just
below the points, twenty-six inches ; diameter at bottom, six
inches. The kulsa, Fig. 7, is another from a large suttee at the
same spot, of a different form ; they call it a topee walla kulsa.
The suttees in the sketch of the temple of Bhawani are all of
masonry ; the mounds are invisible, lying at the back of the
temple.
Nov. My beautiful Arab, Mootee, after taking a most mar-
vellous quantity of blue vitriol and opium, has recovered, but
will be unfit for my riding ; the sinews of his fore-leg are injured ;
besides which, he is rather too playful ; he knocked down his
sa'is yesterday, tore his clothes to pieces, bit two bits of flesh
1 In Volume the Second.
AN ILL-STARRED HORSE. 97
out of his back, and would perhaps have killed him, had not the
people in the bazar interfered and rescued the man. It was an
odd freak, he is such a sweet-tempered animal, and I never knew
him behave incorrectly before.
We spent the month of December, our hunting season, at
Papamhow; and purchased several couple of the Berkeley
hounds, from the Calcutta kennel, for the pack at Allahabad.
I received a present of an excellent little black horse with a long
tail ; and, mounted on him, used to go out every day after the
jackals and foxes. I am rich in riding-horses, and the dark
brown stud Arab Trelawny bids fair to rival Mootee in my
affections. Returning from chasing a jackal one evening, it
was very dark, and as Captain A S was cantering his
Arab across the parade-ground, the animal put his foot into a
deep hole, and fell ; our friend thought nothing of it, and re-
fused to be bled ; a few days afterwards the regiment quitted
Allahabad, and he died the second day, on the march to Benares.
He was an ill-fated animal, that little horse of his : they called
him an Arab pony, but no good caste animal would have been
so vicious ; he had one fault, a trick of biting at the foot of his
rider he bit off the toe of his former master, mortification
ensued, and the man died. I often wished to mount him, but
they would never allow me : the creature was very handsome,
and remarkably well formed ; doubtless a native would have
found unlucky marks upon him at that time I was ignorant
respecting samat, or unlucky marks on horses.
VOL. i. H
CHAPTER XI.
RESIDENCE AT PRAG.
" 1 KEEP WRITING ON UPON THE PRINCIPLE OF A GOOD ECONOMIST, THAT IT IS A
PITY SO MUCH PAPER SHOULD BE LOST, WHICH, LIKE THE QUEER LITTLE OLD
MAN IN THE SONG, ' HAS A LONG WAY TO GO.' "
WHAT RELIANCE IS THERE ON LIFE
I 9'
HE WHO HAS ILL-LUCK FOR HIS COMPANION WILL BE BITTEN BY A DOG
ALTHOUGH MOUNTED ON A CAMEL 2 ."
1829 March to Benares Misfortunes en suite The Hummam of the Rajah
Flowers of Wax and Ubruk Return to Prag Storm en route Gram A
Central Government Thieves, Domestic Snake in the Stable Death in a
Palkee Power of the Sun to change the Sex Lord William Bentinck
Half-Batta The Jaws of the Crocodile The Clipper Discontent of the
Army Recovery of the Stolen Rupees The Gosain Ram Din The
Ancient Temple.
Jan. 1829. In the beginning of this month, having promised
to meet Captain A. S at the races at Ghazeepore, we
started by land, having sent tents and provisions by water to
await our arrival. A violent headache preventing me from
mounting my horse, I proceeded in a palkee, much against
medical advice, and slept half-way to Benares, in our tents.
Rising late the next day, we had a hot ride before reaching
the Stanhope, where we learnt that our pitaras had been stolen.
My husband rode forward in pursuit of the thieves, leaving me
seated by the side of the road ; the sun becoming very hot, I
got into the buggy, overcome from my recent illness, the sa'Ts
1 Oriental Proverbs, No. 23. ' Ibid. No. 24.
MARCH TO BENARES. 99
holding the horse. I was startled from a doze by the sound
of the bells of a native cart passing with flags flying ; the horse
alarmed sprang from the sa'is's hands, pulling away the reins,
which fell to the ground ; away galloped the horse, a strong
animal fifteen hands high ; he looked down the steep ditch on
one side the raised road, turned round, looked over the ditch on
the other side, made one more sudden turn in alarm, and upset
the buggy. I was thrown head foremost through the opening
in the back, my limbs remaining under the buggy-hood, which
was broken to pieces ; the horse fairly kicked himself out of the
shafts, and galloped off"; I was glad when I found he was free,
and knew he could not break my legs, which were still under
the hood : at length I dragged them out, with my long habit-
skirt, and made an attempt to go after the horse, but was obliged
to sit down blue and yellow suns, stars, and bright objects
floated before my eyes I was unable to stand : my dressing-case
having been thrown out of the buggy, I drank some sal volatile,
which took off the giddiness. My husband returned at this
moment, and an officer from some tents near at hand came to
our assistance. The Stanhope was carried forward by coolies ;
we had a Calcutta buggy also with us, in which we proceeded.
The road was covered with the finest sand, rendering it impos-
sible to see the deep holes in every direction. The horse, a
powerful English imported creature, was going very fast, when
he put both his fore feet into a deep hole, and came down ; the
high Calcutta buggy swung forwards with such force I was
pitched out over the wheel on my head, and remained insensible
for a few seconds. My husband was not thrown out. He was
unable to leave the frightened horse ; it was a relief when he
heard a voice from the dust, saying, " I am not hurt;" a voice
he feared he should never hear again. The bruises I had before
received, united with this blow on my head, which cut through
my riding-hat, made me very nervous ; and when at the last
stage we had to drive a run-away mare, laid for us by a friend,
I really sat in fear and trembling. At last we arrived at Benares.
I was carried up-stairs to bed, my limbs being stiff and painful.
For ten days I could scarcely move, so much was my body
h2
100 WANDERINGS OF A PILGRIM.
bruised by the iron rail and hood of the buggy, and my right
arm was greatly swollen.
My recovery was brought about by having four women to
shampoo me for five hours daily, and by going into a vapour-
bath belonging to the Rajah of Benares. In the bath the
women shampooed, and twisted, and pinched my limbs, until I
could walk without assistance that vapour-bath was a great
relief.
One morning the rajah sent me a bouquet of flowers, they
were beautifully made of ubruk (talc, mica) and coloured wax,
the first I had seen well executed.
My husband at the billiard-table, said : "I am uncertain
respecting that stroke, I wish A S was here." " Do
you not know he is dead?" said his opponent, "he died in
consequence of his fall with that Arab pony at Papamhow."
We were greatly shocked.
Jan. 29th. We quitted our kind friends at Benares to return
home : ill-luck pursued us the first stage the horse fell lame,
and we reached our tent with difficulty. During the night a
heavy storm came on ; the tent being old was soon saturated,
and the water poured in on our charpals. The horses picketed
outside were drenched, they neighed and shook their chains ;
the sa'ises crept under the corners of the rawti, and we had the
floorcloth put over us, to protect us from the rain and cold.
The next day we galloped to our second tent, which we
found soaked through from the rain of the night. There was
the tent, and nothing else. One of the camels having fallen
lame, the servants had made it a pretext for not continuing their
march, and we were plante in the jungle without food, bedding,
or warm clothing ! A camel-driver caught a chicken, and draw-
ing out a long queer crooked blade, killed it, and dressed an
excellent curry in a few minutes ; having had no food all day,
and much exercise, we devoured it to the last grain of rice.
I thought of the saying, " If you ask a hungry man how much
two and two make he answers, 'Four loaves 1 .'" The night
1 Oriental Proverbs, No. 25.
MISFORTUNES EN SUITE. 101
was miserable, the wind blowing through the wet canvass ; we
could not even borrow a blanket from the horses, everything
was drenched. A pukka ague and fever was the consequence,
which lasted seven or eight days, and returned regularly once
every four weeks for three months.
Nor did our misfortunes end here. 'Much to the surprise of
my husband, his Arab Rajah, whom he had had for seven years,
threw him over his right shoulder. Rajah was particularly
pleased ; for having looked at him, he cocked his tail and went
off at his best pace towards home. Monsieur was not hurt, and
received only a few bruises for his carelessness, which, consider-
ing he now weighs fourteen stone, shows that, like Caesar, he
has much respect for his person and can fall in proper form.
Another malheur ! a box from England on its way up the
river was stolen at Patna ; it contained letters and presents for
me, amongst the rest a veritable tete monte'e a la Giraffe, a
serious loss, qui pourrait bien faire monter la tete but I bear the
misfortune bravely.
The arrival of a friend from England has pleased us greatly.
What pleasure reminiscences Etonian and Harrovian give him
and the sahib ! " Economy, esperanza, and 1833," is our motto.
" In five years," says an old Harrovian, " we may hear the bell
and going up sounds worth listening to."
Cicer arietinum (chickweed), is called arietinum because the
young seed bears a very curious resemblance to a ram's horn.
The crops being favourable this year, this chickweed (chana or
gram) was sold in the city one mun twenty-two ser per rupee ;
and in the district, one mun thirty-five ser for the same.
March 8th. At this time my husband was attacked with ague
and fever, the consequence of our expedition to Benares.
There is a rumour of a central government being established,
the location to be hereabouts, so that Allahabad may again
become a city of repute.
We have had much annoyance of late from the servants
stealing all sorts of little things, as also wine. Two of the
khidmatgars were the culprits : one has been rataned, and
put in irons to work on the road ; we could not punish the
102 WANDERINGS OF A PILGRIM.
other, but it was a pleasure to get him out of the house. In
India, amongst so many servants, it is very difficult to discover
the thief.
May 3\st. How I rejoice this month is over! this vile month!
It appears almost wicked to abuse the merry merry month of
May, so delightful at home, but so hot in India. Mr. M
started from Calcutta to come up dak on the 7th instant, and
died in his palkee of brain-fever only three days afterwards,
in consequence of the intense heat ! We spare no expense to
keep the house cool, and have fourteen men whose sole business
night and day is to throw water on tattls to cool the rooms ;
unless the wind blows, the tattls are useless. The heat makes
you as sick as if you were to shut your head up in an oven.
A young bullock was standing in the stable to-day by the
side of three horses, a snake bit the animal, and it died in a few
minutes ; the horses escaped; and so did the snake, much to
my sorrow.
July 19th. The other evening Major P was with us,
when Ram Din, a favourite Hindoo servant, brought into the
room a piece of cotton cloth containing 150 rupees tightly tied
up in it ; the man placed it on the table by my side, and retired.
Major P , who thought the cloth looked dirty, took it up,
and saying, " Oh the vile rupees !" let it drop upon the ground
between his chair and mine. We took tea ; and I retired to
rest, entirely forgetting the bag of rupees. When I looked for
it the following morning, of course it had disappeared. By the
advice of the jamadar of the office we sent for a gosain, a holy
personage, who lived in a most remarkable temple on the ruins
of an old well by the side of the Jumna, close to our house.
The gosain came. He collected the Hindoos together, and
made pooja. Having anointed a sacred piece of wood ' with oil
and turmeric, and placed it in a hut, he closed the door ; and
coming forth, said : "To show you that I am able to point out
the thief, I have now left a gold ring in front of the idol in that
house ; go in and worship, every man of you. Each man must
1 Acacia Arabica, or Babool.
RECOVERY OF THE STOLEN RUPEES. 103
put his hand upon the idol. Let one amongst you take the
ring, I will point out the man."
The Hindoos looked at him with reverence ; they all sepa-
rately entered the dwelling, and did as they were ordered. The
jamadar performed the same ceremony, although he was a
Mussulman. On their appearing before the gosain, he desired
them all to show their hands, and having examined them with
much attention, he exclaimed, looking at the hands of the
jamadar, "You are the thief!" The man held up his hands
to heaven, exclaiming, " God is great, and you are a wonderful
man ! I, a Mussulman, did not believe in your power ; your words
are words of truth ; I took the ring, here it is : if it be your
pleasure, you can, doubtless, point out the man who stole the
rupees."
The gosain then told the people, that unless the money were
forthcoming the next day, he would come and point out the
thief. That evening the jamadar roamed around the house,
calling out in the most dismal voice imaginable, "You had
better put back the rupees, you had better put back the rupees."
The police came, and wished to carry off Ram Din to prison,
because he was the servant who had put the money by my side.
The man looked at me. "Is it your will? lam a Rajpoot,
and shall lose caste ; I have served you faithfully, I am present."
"Who will be security that you will not run away?" said
the barkandaz. I replied, "/will be his security: Ram Din
will remain with us, and when the magistrate sends for him, I
will answer for it he will be present." The man's eyes filled
with tears : it was the greatest compliment I could pay him :
he made a deep salam, saying, " Mem sahiba ! Mem sahiba! "
in an agitated and grateful tone. The next morning the ja-
madar informed me that a bag was on the top of the wardrobe
in my dressing-room, and none of the servants would touch it.
I went to the spot, and desired Ram Din to take it down.
" This is the cloth that contained the rupees," said the man,
" and it has never been opened ; I know it by a peculiar knot
that 1 always tie." He opened the bag, and found the whole
of the money.
104 WANDERINGS OF A PILGRIM.
We had reason to believe one of the under bearers committed
the theft. The Hindoos have such faith in their gosains, and
their influence over them is so great, they dare not do otherwise
than as they are ordered by the holy men. I got back the 15/.,
and gave 41. to those who had exerted themselves to find it.
The Gosain's Temple.
Just above the Fort of Allahabad, on the banks of the
Jumna, close to the Jamma Musjid, or large mosque, amongst
the ruins of the ancient city of Prag, within a Boorj (or Bastion) ,
is an old well, from which the bank has been washed away by
the river, and which now stands within the edge of the stream.
The well in the centre of the Boorj descends into the Jumna ;
over it is built a most peculiar, circular, and singular temple ;
this and a small square outer building is the residence of the
gosain, who by his incantations, made the servants restore the
150 rupees that had been stolen.
The pillars are peculiar Ionic no further ornamental
work is visible : perforated stone fills up the openings
above : some have been blocked up : the Nagree writing in
red letters at the foot of the pillar is recent : several boorj
(bastions) beyond this one, which contains the water-gate, have
sunk into the river : there were eight originally, seven of which
are still visible. Accompanied by a gentleman, I went to sketch
it, and asked the gosain to allow us to see the interior. The
holy man made some difficulty in allowing us to enter ; sweet
words induced him to open the door.
" By sweet words and gentleness you may draw an elephant
by a hair 1 ."
Within was a small room, in which was the gosain's bed,
and a large green painted chest, iron clamped, on wheels, which,
I suppose, contained his valuables ; it must have been put toge-
ther in the room, being too large to have come in through the
door- way. In a nitch of the wall was a small brazen image of
Krishna, with a smaller one of Rhada, the latter dressed in a
1 Oriental Proverbs, No. 26.
the gosain's temfle. 105
full red and yellow petticoat, stretched out like a fan, and many
times wider than the height of the idol.
This is the second time I have seen a place consecrated to
these images. The worship is very impure, I am told ; and, in
spite of the holy character of the priest, histories are whispered
about which account for the marvellous properties of the
seeds of the peepul-tree. Women principally worship at this
shrine.
The circular temple above the well, to which there is a
grating, contains either the gosain's money or zenana, or both :
he would not allow us to take a view of the interior. On the
outside, at the foot of the temple, is a neglected and broken
image, in stone, of Varaha, the avatar of Vishnoo with the head
of a boar.
Whilst sketching the temple, we remarked its strong re-
semblance to the temple of the Sibyl, and were greatly sur-
prised at its Ionic style of architecture.
On my return to England, a gentleman, seeing the sketch,
said, " You must have painted from imagination, no such
architecture is in the East." This remark annoyed me. I
defended the truth and faithfulness of my pencil, and deter-
mined, should fate ever carry me back to the ancient city of
Prag, to pay most particular attention to the architecture,
and to re-sketch the temple. The mystery of its similarity to
that of the Sibyl will be explained hereafter.
I must give a specimen of the natives. I asked the man who
has the charge of the rabbits, why a remarkably handsome
Hbuck was missing, and a white doe was in its place ?
The man vowed that "the day being extremely hot, the sun
had turned the black buck white, and had altered the sex
also ! " I called a chaprasi, desired him to pay the man's
wages, deducting the value of the buck, and turn him out of
my service : his penitence and recantation were in vain. " I
wish you would give me a beating, and let me remain in your
service," said the man. " You may have a beating if you wish
it," said I, " but unless it changes your sex, you shall not
remain in my service."
106 WANDERINGS OF A PILGRIM.
" THE DIVER WHO THINKS ON THE JAWS OF THE CROCODILE, WILL NEVER
GATHER PRECIOUS PEARLS '."
This saying is very applicable to Europeans in India : the cli-
mate is worse than the jaws of the crocodile ; and as for the pearls
when large appointments, in the hope of attaining which men
have been slaving upon small allowances, fall vacant, the shears
are applied, and a reduction of one-third or more follows. It
is rumoured, but upon doubtful evidence, that the Governor-
general and members of Council determined to sacrifice part of
their allowances to contribute to the general exigencies of the
state, but found they were restricted from receiving less by the
Act of Parliament, by which their salaries are fixed. The Go-
vernor-general, in common parlance, is called " the clipper."
It is to be hoped the Half Batta measure will be abandoned ;
if it is insisted upon, the experiment will be somewhat perilous.
Let the Board of Control look at the numbers carried off by the
climate, and they must acknowledge their pay is blood-money.
The sipahis are deserting from different stations, eight and nine
a day, and some regiments are almost in a state of mutiny.
The men desert to Runjeet Singh ; and I understand the officers
of many regiments will not dine at the Government-house, and
only make their appearance when obliged by order. Heaven
help those poor fellows who have wives and children to starve
on half batta !
1 Oriental Proverbs, No. 27.
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CHAPTER XII.
SKETCHES AT ALLAHABAD.
"the lamp burns not before the black snake ',"
Which, like the Burmese idols, is supposed to carry a bright jewel in its head.
1829. The Snake-charmer Ram Leela Board of Works The Hukak
Kurand Patthar Pebbles from the Soane and Cane Rivers Raj Ghat The
Dhrumsala The Ginee Temple of Hunooman, Ram, and Seeta Ravuna
the Giant Bene-Mahadeo The Adansonia Little Jack Bunce Encamp-
ment of the Governor-general Ashes of a Rajah consigned to the Ganges
Christmas-boxes .
1829, Oct. Snakes are very numerous in our garden; the
cobra de capello, and the black snake, whose bite is just as
mortal. This morning I turned over some tiles with my foot,
when a cobra I had disturbed glided into the centre of the heap,
where we killed him.
Mohummud said, " Kill snakes, and kill the snake which has
two black lines upon its back, and kill the snake called abter,
on account of its small tail ; for verily these two kinds of
snake blind the eyes as soon as they are looked at. You must
not kill the snakes that live in the houses, because they are not
snakes but a kind of genii. Domestic snakes, which are genii,
must be warned to depart ; if they do not, they are to be killed.
The genii are of three kinds, one kind have wings, and fly ;
another are snakes and dogs ; and the third move about from
place to place like men."
1 Oriental Proverbs, No. 28.
108 WANDERINGS OF A PILGRIM.
" But do not hurry in killing them, but say, * do not incom-
mode me, if you do, I shall kill you.' Then, if it goes away,
so much the better ; but if not, kill it, because it is an infidel
genius."
"Kill all snakes, except the small white one, which is not
poisonous'."
Several were in the stable and hen-house. A snake-charmer
came, who offered to fascinate and catch the snakes for me at
one rupee a head. He caught one, for which I gave him a
rupee ; but as I had it killed, he never returned the charm
was broken it was a tame fangless snake, which he had tried
to pass off as the wild one.
We killed three scorpions in the dining-room, of rather large
dimensions. Our friend and neighbour had much compassion
on frogs. Many an enormous bull-frog he rescued alive from
the jaws of the snakes he killed in his garden. The poor frogs
lost their defender on his return to England, and we an excellent
friend.
During the Burmese war I had presents made me of seven or
eight idols : one was of gold, several of silver ; some of black,
some of white marble, others of bronze. The soldiers in
Burmah opened the heads of many of the large idols, and
found jewels within them. I have never disturbed the " reflect-
ing gems " within the brains of my Burmese gods ; they may
contain, for aught I know, "heaps of gold, inestimable jewels,"
there let them rest.
Oct. 29th. We drove to the Parade-ground, to view the
celebration of the Ram Leela festival. Ram the warrior god
is particularly revered by the sipahls. An annual tamasha is
held in his honour, and that of Seeta his consort. A figure of
Rawan the giant, as large as a windmill, was erected on the
Parade-ground : the interior of the monster was filled with
fire-works. This giant was destroyed by Ram. All sorts of
games are played by the sipahls, on the Parade. Mock fights
and wrestling matches take place, and fire-works are let off. Two
1 Mishcat ul Masabih.
RAM LEELA. 109
young natives, about ten or twelve years old, are often attired to
represent Ram and Seeta ; and men with long tails figure as the
army of monkeys, headed by their leader Hiinoouian.
On dit, that the children who personate Ram and Seeta, the
handsomest they can select, never live more than a year after
the festival for this I vouch not it is said they are poisoned.
One ceremony was very remarkable : each native regiment
took out its colours and made pooja to the standards, offering
them sweetmeats, flowers, rice, and pan, as they do to a god !
At Cawnpore I saw the men of the third cavalry riding round
the image of the giant, with their colours flying, after having made
pooja to them.
At the conclusion of the tamasha, the figure of Rawan is
blown up by the conqueror Ram. At the great Mela at Alla-
habad, I procured a large marble image of Ram, which came
from Jeypore ; it is highly gilt and ornamented : in his left
hand is the bow of power, and the quiver full of arrows in his
right : the trident mark adorns his forehead, and on his head is
a crown. See the figure on the left of Ganesh in the frontispiece.
" Ram, the deified hero, was a famous warrior, and a youth of
perfect beauty. He was the happy possessor of the divine bow
Danush, which the giant Ravuna could not bend, and with
which he contested for, and won, the hand of the goddess Seeta.
It was ordained, that he only who could bend this bow, and
with it shoot a fish, while revolving on a pole, through the left
eye, not seeing the fish, but its reflection in a pan of oil, should
espouse Seeta. The name of Ram is used beyond the pale of
his own sectarists, in supplication and praise."
Ram, ram, is a usual salutation, like our good-morrow,
between friends at meeting or parting. It is reverently re-
iterated at times in aid of abstraction, and in moments of
enthusiasm or distress.
On the birthday of this god the Hindoo merchants in general
begin their year's accounts ; and on this day the gods caused a
shower of flowers to fall from heaven.
" Ravuna, a giant who reigned at Ceylon, having seized
Hiinooman, ordered his tail to be set on fire. The enraged
110 WANDERINGS OF A PILGRIM.
monkey, with his burning tail, leaped from house to house, and
set all Liinka (Ceylon) on fire ; after finishing which, he came
to Seeta, and complained that he could not extinguish the fire
that had kindled on his tail. She directed him to spit upon it ;
and he, raising it to his face for this purpose, set his face on
fire. He then complained, that when he arrived at home with
such a black face, all the monkeys would laugh at him. Seeta,
to comfort him, assured him, that all the other monkeys should
have black faces also ; and when Hunooman came amongst his
friends, he found that, according to the promise of Seeta, they
had all black faces as well as himself.
" Miindoduree, the chief wife of Ravuna the giant, whom
Ram had killed, came to Ram weeping ; and he, not knowing
who she was, gave her this blessing, that she should never
become a widow. Finding his mistake, having just killed her
husband, he ordered Hunooman continually to throw wood
upon the fire, according to a proverb amongst the Hindoos,
that as long as the body of the husband is burning, a woman is
not called a widow.
" To this day, therefore, Hunooman keeps laying logs on the
fire ; and every time a Hindoo puts his fingers in his ears and
hears a sound, he says he hears the bones of the giant Ravuna
burning 1 ."
The marks on the foreheads of Ram's followers very much
resemble* a trident.
At the time of death many Hindoos write the name of Ram
on the breast and forehead of the dying person, with earth taken
from the banks of the Ganges ; and thence those persons after
death, instead of being dragged to Yamu, the Holy King, the
Judge of the Dead, to receive sentence, immediately ascend to
heaven.
The mock fights at the Ram Leela are in remembrance of the
time when Hunooman and his monkeys constructed a bridge
from the continent of India to Ceylon (Lunka), over which
Ram's army passed, and rescued the imprisoned Seeta from the
1 Ward on the History, Literature, and Religion of the Hindoos.
THE BOARD OF WORKS. 1 1 1
hands of the giant Rawan or Ravuna, who had carried her off.
Seeta then passed through the ordeal of fire, and by her mira-
culous incombustibility assured the world of her purity ; Ram
placed the mala, the chaplet of marriage, around her neck, and
the monkeys capered and gambolled with delight.
The white marble figure in the frontispiece to the left of
Ganesh represents Ram, the deified hero, with his bow and
quiver. The brass figure in front of the latter is Hiinooman,
bearing Ram Seeta on his shoulders.
THE BOARD OF WORKS.
Nov. The cold season is a busy time. Having procured a
quantity of teak timber and toon wood, we established a Board of
Works in the verandah, consisting of five carpenters, two sawyers,
two turners, six iron-smiths, one stone-cutter, and one harness-
maker. Most excellent and very handsome were the dining-
tables, sideboard, horseshoe-table, wardrobes, &c, and a Stanhope
made by these men, from our own designs.
The carpenters carve wood extremely well. On my return to
England, I saw and admired a round table in a friend's drawing-
room ; "Do you not remember," said she with surprise, "you
made up that table yourself?" On looking at it, I recognized
the pedestal and claw carved with broad leaves, copied from a
model I made for my carpenter of Ganges mud.
The furniture was of various kinds of wood, as follows :
Teak sagun (tectona grandis) or Indian oak a fine heavy
timber, in colour resembling oak ; strong and good wood. The
teak I made use of came from Ava, and was brought up from
the salt-water lake near Calcutta ; good sagun was also to be
purchased at Cawnpore.
The finest is brought from Java and Ava. I saw one plank of
Java teak which, even when made up, measured five feet six
inches in diameter. It was the top of an oval table. It bears a
good polish, and is suited for tables, wardrobes, and the beds of
billiard-tables. In the up-country the usual price is one rupee
per foot when the plank is one inch in thickness ; in Calcutta,
the same price when the plank is four inches in thickness. The
112 WANDERINGS OF A PILGRIM.
general size of the timber brought from Ava is eighteen inches in
breadth.
Sal, sankho or sakoo (shorea robusta) a heavy strong wood,
from the up-country ; fit for beams of houses, wardrobes, frames,
window-frames, kitchen-tables, &c. Price, when thirty feet in
length by seventeen inches in breadth, twenty-six rupees ; when
twenty-one feet in length by twenty-two in breadth, thirty-
two rupees. It is sold cheap at Cawnpore in September and
October.
Shisham, sissoo or sesoo (dalbergia sissoo) from the up-
country ; fit for tables, chairs, carriage-wheels and bodies ; very
heavy, takes a good polish, fine grained. Price, eighteen feet
in length by fourteen in breadth, thirteen rupees ; good for
bullock-collars ; cheap in September.
Toon a light soft-grained wood, very much resembling
mahogany ; fit for tables, chairs, billiard-table frames, book-
cases, &c. ; reasonable at Cawnpore.
Soondry comes from Calcutta ; the best wood for shafts and
carriage-wheels.
Arnoose, or bastard ebony, also called teenoo a common
timber, found on the banks of the Jumna ; used for fire-wood ;
three or four muns per rupee. In the centre of the wood the
ebony is found, which is lighter, both in colour and weight,
than the ebony from the hills (abnoos), which is very heavy,
hard, and difficult to cut ; also of a good blackness ; useful for
handles of seals, chess-men, &c.
Cocoa-nut tree, naryul from Calcutta ; also one of the best
for shafts ; the bark is curious ; when petrified and polished it is
made into ornaments, brooches, &c.
Sutsaul something like rosewood ; comes from the Nepaul
Teraee.
Tindoa hard, tough, and very good for turning.
Rouswood (rous) from the hills ; extremely delicate and fine
grained ; turns beautifully ; colour light. I procured rous-
wood fit for turning in the jungles near Allahabad.
Neem or neemb (melia azadirachta) extremely heavy and
tough ; colour light almost white ; turns well.
THE HUKAK. 113
Korieah Benares toys are made of this wood : it is beauti-
fully white, fine grained, and delicate ; it turns delightfully, and
is very light. The toys are lacquered on the lathe by applying
sealing-wax to them ; the friction warms the sealing-wax, and it
adheres. See Appendix, No. 11.
Mango-wood, amra, (spondias mangifera) fit for common
work, out-house doors and beams, kitchen-tables, &c.
Babul a very heavy and extremely hard wood (acacia Arabica) .
Patang a red wood, used in colouring cloths.
Lall chundun a cedar.
Chucrassy also walnut- wood from the hills.
From the Soane and Cane rivers we procured about half a
bushel of pebbles, consisting of chalcedony, moss-agate, tree
and fortification agate, cornelian, cinnamon-stone, goree (a sort
of spar) ; and from Lucnow and Agra, bloodstone, lapis-lazuli,
jet, petrified cocoa-nut bark, plum-pudding-stone, fossil-stone,
gold-stone, and amethyst.
The tree-agate, or tree-stone, is so called by the natives from
the marks on the surface resembling trees and flowers. In
other agates the marks lie deep in the stone, in these they are
all on the surface, and in grinding and polishing are easily
destroyed, unless care be taken not to go too deep ; they re-
minded me of a stone I saw in England, called Mocha-stone,
which was set in small brilliants.
The pebbles from the Soane river are generally esteemed more
than those of the Cane.
The process of cutting, and grinding, and polishing pebbles is
as follows :
The pebble is kept firm by being fastened on a board by a bit
of lac not sealing-wax. It is cut in halves by a small bamboo
bow, strung with fine iron wire j powdered kurand patthar and
water are put upon it during the time. The bow is used by
the hand. The natives cut the pebbles by this simple method
wonderfully even.
The Indian lathe for grinding and polishing stones is turned
by the hiikak, or stonecutter, with a long bow in his right
hand, whilst with the left hand he applies the pebble to the wheel.
VOL. I. I
114 WANDERINGS OF A PILGRIM.
It has four wheels three of them are made of kurand patthar :
the first wheel is of coarsely-pounded particles ; in the second
the particles are finer ; and, in the third, are reduced to a fine
powder. The wheels are merely kurand patthar mixed with
glue, and formed into a large broad flat cake ; in the centre a
hole is cut to allow their being put upon the lathe. The pebble
having been cut by the stonecutter, is now ready for grinding,
which is performed by pressing it against the first wheel with
the right hand, and using water and pounded kurand patthar at
the same time, until the most uneven parts on the surface are
removed ; the second wheel is then put on, and the surface a
little more reduced ; after which the third wheel is used, and
the stone becomes perfectly even : the kurand patthar, in powder,
and water, is used with all the three wheels.
It is now to be polished, which is done upon a wooden wheel.
The kurand patthar is but very little known to stonecutters and
cutlers in England ; for a further account of it, see Appendix,
No. 12.
The pebbles, bloodstone, lapis-lazuli, and agates which I had
cut and polished for bracelets, brooches, and snuff-boxes, were
beautiful, and did honour to the hukak.
During the time of the burra mela (great fair) at Prag,
natives used to come round to the houses of the gentry with
boxes full of polished pebbles for sale in sets for necklaces and
bracelets, and large stones for snuff-boxes.
Raj Ghat is on the banks of the Ganges, about a mile and a
half above the Fort of Allahabad, and the village of Daragunge
extends along the side of the Mahratta Bund above for some
distance. To the right of the spot where travellers land on
coming from Benares is a fine building, called a dhrumsala, or
place to distribute alms ; it is dedicated to a form of Mahadeo,
which stands in the shiwala, or little temple, above : the form
of this octagonal temple, as well as that of a similar one, which
stands at the other side of the building, is very beautiful.
On the left are the remains of a very large and curious old well.
" Why is a woman like a Hindoo temple l t"
1 See Appendix, No. 17.
TEMPLE OF HUNOOMAN. H5
After sketching this dhrumsala, we ascended the bank to
Daragunge, to see the inner court, and found it filled with
elephants, tattoos, cows, and natives. It is used as a sarae, or
abode for travellers. I saw there a most beautiful and exceed-
ingly small gynee (a dwarf cow), with two bars of silver round
each of her little legs ; she looked so pretty, and was quite
tame. Through the doorways of this court you look into the
little octagonal temples, and, through their arches, on a fine
expanse of the Ganges which flows below.
You cannot roam in India as in Europe, or go into places
crowded with natives, without a gentleman ; they think it so in-
correct and so marvellous, that they collect in crowds to see a
beebee sahiba who is indecent enough to appear unveiled. A
riding-habit and hat, also, creates much surprise in unfrequented
bazars, where such a thing is a novelty.
We proceeded through the bustee (village) on foot, and up a
dirty alley, through which I could scarcely pass, to the Temple
of Hunooman, the black-faced and deified monkey, and found
there an enormous image of the god painted red and white, and
made either of mud or stone. A great number of worshippers
were present. The bearers hold Hunooman in the greatest
reverence.
In another apartment were forty or fifty large and small
figures, representing Ram and Seeta his consort, with his brother
Lutchman, Hunooman, and all his army of monkeys. Seeta
was carried off by the giant Ravuna, Hunooman fought for and
restored her to Ram, therefore they are worshipped together.
These figures were decorated with coloured cloth and tinsel,
much in the same manner in which the saints are clothed in the
churches in France. I had never but once before seen idols, in
India, tricked out after this fashion. Many lamps were burning
before the shrine. We were allowed to behold them from the
door, but not to enter the apartment.
The evening was very fine ; my companion, as well as myself,
enjoyed rambling about and exploring such queer, curious, and
out-of-the-way places.
i 2
116 WANDERINGS OF A PILGRIM.
A DHRUMSALA BENE MAHADEO GHAT.
We descended to the side of the Ganges, and walked on until
we came to the Ghat of Bene-Mahadeo which is represented in
the sketch, where there is another dhrumsala. This building is
also dedicated to Shivu; the mystical symbol is in the small
temple above. Under the arches in the lower part, by the side
of the Ganges, is an enormous figure of Ganeshu ; many wor-
shippers were present, who were pouring oil and Ganges water
over the image, with rice and flowers, and hanging chaplets of
flowers around his neck. The idol was dripping with oil.
Above the god, over the arch, three long thin bamboos were
stuck up, each bearing the red flag of a fakir, adding greatly to
the picturesque beauty of the scene. These flags denoted that
three holy men had there taken up their abode for a time. This
temple is very picturesque, and the fine trees around it add to
its beauty.
We ascended the banks, and entered the dhrumsala. It
fronts the Ganges, and a high wall around the other three sides
separates it from the bazar. We entered by a gateway of three
arches. The court in the interior contained three long buildings
supported on arches, and two octagonal temples, one at each
end. The front facing the Ganges had no wall, being built on
the edge of a high cliff. In the arched building to the right, in
which were many apartments, we found a number of devotees
singing and making a great religious noise with small brazen
cymbals.
ADANSONIA DIGITATA.
Dec. 5th. The gunpowder agency at Papamhow has been
done away with by the government, and our friend has quitted
us for England. I must not take leave of Papamhow without
mentioning the remarkable trees in the grounds. The natives
call them velaitee imlee. They are enormous trees, natives of
Africa. Adansonia digitata, from Michel Adanson, a French
botanist. M. G. Mollien thus speaks of this tree the boabab,
Ethiopian sour-gourd, or monkeys'-meat tree in his travels in
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ADANSONIA DIGITATA. 1 ] 7
Africa: "This was the first time that I saw the boabab, that
enormous tree which has been described by Adanson, and which
bears his name ' Adansonia.' I measured one, and found it to
be forty feet in circumference. This majestic mass is the only
monument of antiquity to be met with in Africa. To the
negroes the boabab is perhaps the most valuable of vegetables.
Its leaves are used for leaven, its bark furnishes indestructible
cordage, and the bees form their hives in the cavities of its
trunk. The negroes, too, often shelter themselves from storms
in its time-worn caverns. The boabab is indisputably the
monarch of African trees." It is also called monkeys '-bread.
Several measured by Adanson were from sixty-five to seventy-
eight feet in circumference, but not extraordinarily high. The
bark furnishes a coarse thread, used in Africa for cloth and
ropes ; the small leaves are used as bread in times of scarcity,
and the large for covering their houses, or, by burning, for the
manufacture of soap.
This tree may be styled the Jugunnath of the forest, from the
style in which it grows ; its large branches terminating in an
abrupt end, from which the small branches are given off.
Ropes made of the boabab-tree are indestructible ; there is a
saying, " As secure as an elephant bound with a boabab rope."
Two of these fine trees are still standing in the grounds, there
were originally three; the sketch was taken in January, 1827.
One of the trees fell down in the rains of that year, on the day
Lord Amherst arrived at Allahabad on his return from the hills ;
it measured thirty-five feet in circumference, and we were sur-
prised to find it had scarcely any roots. It did not fall from
age, or from the wind, but because the branches on one side
were much heavier than those on the other. It was so full of
juicy sap that, when the tree was cut, the sap ran out like
water, and the agent preserved some of it in bottles. The wood
was woolly, spongy, of little or no use as timber, and useless
even as firewood it would not burn.
Another of these trees, which measured thirty-seven feet in
circumference, is still in the grounds, which are on the banks
of the Ganges.
118 WANDERINGS OF A PILGRIM.
The tree that fell was supposed by the natives to be 1100
years old. It is only wonderful, from the short distance the
roots penetrated into the ground, it had not long ago been laid
prostrate by a tufan. These trees are natives of Senegal, and
are known in central India; but those at Papamhow are the
only ones on our side the country.
Adanson supposed this tree to exceed almost any other in
longevity. He inferred that the one he measured, and found to
be thirty feet in diameter, had attained the age of 5150 years.
Having made an incision to a certain depth of the stem, he first
counted 300 rings of annual growth, and observed what thick-
ness the tree had gained in that period. The average rate of
growth of younger trees of the same species was then ascer-
tained, and the calculation was made according to the supposed
mean rate of increase.
Had we known the proverb at this time, we would have made
ropes of its bark. On the very topmost bough of one of the t
trees a vulture had built its nest, and appeared to have made
the boabab its city of refuge ; the aerie was filled annually.
The flower is large, beautiful, and smells like a ripe apple ;
the fruit small and granular; the leaves large and fine. It is
said there are several species of this tree in Africa, one of which
yields a large fruit.
During the annual fair held in the grounds at Papamhow in
the month of August, the gaily dressed natives congregated under
the widely spreading branches of the Adansonia, increased the
picturesque beauty of the trees.
Let me record the death of little JackBunce, my pet squirrel.
On our arrival at Prag I went into the stable to see a sick horse,
and, hearing a chirping noise, looked up, and saw a young
squirrel, which, having escaped from its nest, was in great per-
plexity on its first expedition from home. I caught it. Its
eyes were open ; but it could not run very fast. For the first
week it lived either in my husband's pocket or on my shoulder ;
if alarmed, it took refuge with him. It became very tame, and
never ran away. A gay house with two rooms was built for it.
At first it drank milk and ate sweetmeats (pera) ; as it grew
LITTLE JACK BUNCE. ] 1 9
older it had bread, grain, milk, and whatever it pleased during
meals, at which time it would quit my shoulder for the table.
We caught several young ones, and put them into Jack's cage ;
he was pleased, and tended them like a little old nurse ; but
they grew very wild, and we let them go, with the exception of
one little female whom Jack reared as his helpmate, and appeared
very fond of her ; she was very wild, and would not allow me to
touch her. They went with me to Lucnow. One night I heard
Jack and his wife quarrelling violently she bit off his beautiful
long tail, and Jack killed her for it : the wretches also ate their
young one. Jack returned with me, and, to complete his educa-
tion, I took him to the holy city of Benares, that he might gain
absolution for his little improprieties. Never was there so
travelled a squirrel ! He lived with us three years, always fat,
sleek, and merry ; and very fond of us, chirping and running to
us when we called him ; at last he fell ill, and died quickly.
Sometimes he would run off into the garden, but when I called him
would return, run up my gown to my shoulder, and give a shrill
peculiar whistle ; he was the largest of the kind I ever saw, and
the three streaks down his back were beautiful. Poor little
Jack ! you were a nice and sensible little animal ! The males
are more courageous, and more easily tamed, than the females.
At this time the plain in front of the fort, by the avenue on
the side of the Jumna, was exceedingly picturesque. It was
covered by an encampment awaiting the arrival of the Governor-
general. There were assembled 200 elephants, 1000 camels,
horses and hackeries, servants and natives without number. A
double set of new tents for the Governor-general were pitched
on the plain ; the tents which were new the year before, and
which cost a lac, having been discarded. These new tents, the
elephants, camels, horses, and thousands of servants, will cost
the Company more than half-batta saves in the course of a
year.
News have just arrived that the Directors have rendered all
this encampment useless, by sending orders to Lord William
Bentinck not to proceed up the country at their expense ; in
consequence Lord William has discharged the people. I am
]20 WANDERINGS OF A PILGRIM.
glad they are going away. Last night a friend of ours, who is
in tents in our grounds, had his gun and dressing-case stolen,
no doubt by thieves from the encampment.
20th. The ashes of a rajah were brought to Prag this morn-
ing to be thrown into the Ganges at the holy junction ; they
were accompanied by the servants of the rajah, bearing presents
to be given, as is the custom, to the Brahmans, amongst which
were two remarkably fine Persian horses. One of these horses,
a flea-bitten grey from Bokhara, was bought by us from the
Brahman to whom it had been presented. On Christmas-day my
husband gave me this horse, making my own particular riding-
stud amount to a fair number Mootee, Black Poney, Trelawney,
Bokhara. Are ladies in England as fond of their horses as I
am? They cannot make pets of them in that country as we
can in India.
25th. How many presents I received this day and such odd
ones the Bokhara grey, a sketch of Lord William Bentinck,
Martin's Deluge, a proof-print, a bag of walnuts, a diamond ring,
a hill-shawl, two jars of jam, and two bottles of hill-honey ! All
farewell-gifts from friends bound to England. We spent the
evening around the horseshoe-table, the coal fire blazing brightly
as we cracked the hill-walnuts and enjoyed the society of our
friends. Of all the offerings of that day, the most welcome was
a packet of letters from the beloved and absent ones in England.
" A letter is half an interview '."
1 Oriental Proverbs, No. 29.
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CHAPTER XIII.
REMOVAL TO CAWNPORE. CONFESSIONS OF A THUG.
"what variety of herbs soever are shuffled together in the dish, yet
the whole mass is swallowed up in one name of ballet. in like manner
i will make a hodge-podge of differing articles."
1830 Removal to Cawnpore Failure of Messrs. Palmer and Co. An Ap-
pointment at Cawnpore Removal from Allahabad The Mowa Tree
Futtehpore Dead Body in a Well The Kutcherry Confessions of a Thug.
Jan. 1830. The failure of Messrs. Palmer and Co., early in
this month, caused the greatest consternation in India, and fell
most severely on the widows and orphans of military men, who,
having left their little portions in Palmer's house, had returned
to England.
9th. My husband gave over charge of his office to Mr. N ,
who had returned from the Cape, and we began to speculate as
to our destiny.
March 1st. My husband, having applied to remain up the
country, was informed he might proceed to Cawnpore as acting-
collector for eight months, on condition that he consented to
give up the deputation-allowance, to which he was entitled by
the rules of the Civil Service. The conditions were hard,
although offered as a personal favour, and were accepted in
preference to returning to Calcutta.
Cawnpore, 150 miles from Allahabad, and 50 fromLucnow, a
large station, is on a bleak, dreary, sandy, dusty, treeless plain,
cut into ravines by torrents of rain ; if possible, the place is
considered hotter than Prag.
122 WANDERINGS OF A PILGRIM.
Like the patriarchs of old we travelled with our flocks and
herds, or, rather, we sent them on in advance, and followed
dak.
March 27th, We quitted Allahabad, and drove the first stage
to Allumchund, where we were kindly received by friends. At
this place I first remarked the mowa-tree (bassia longifolia).
The fruit was falling, and the natives were collecting it to make
bazar srab (ardent spirits). The fruit, which is white, only
falls during the day-time ; when dried, it is given to cows as
cheap food from it the butter takes a fine yellow colour.
In the evening we proceeded dak, and arrived the next morn-
ing at the house of the judge of Futtehpore. Just before enter-
ing his compound, (grounds around a house,) I stopped my palan-
quin, and desired a bearer to draw me a lota full of water from
a well at the road side. The man took the brass vessel, which
was fastened to a very long string, and threw it into the well ;
then drawing it up, he poured the contents on the ground, saying,
" A thuggee has been committed, you cannot drink that water.
Did you not hear the lota bump bump upon a dead body in
the well * ?" I reported the circumstance on my arrival, and
not having before heard of the Thugs, was very much interested
in the following account of " The Confessions of a Thug."
These fellows, it appears, roam about the country in gangs,
strangling people for their money ; it is their only employment.
During the three weeks of my stay at Futtehpore, the bodies of
three men were found in the neighbouring wells thugged, that
is, strangled. Some years ago the Thugs were in great force,
but they were well looked after by the police, and a thuggee was
seldom committed : within a few months they have become very
daring, especially around Cawnpore, Humeerpore, and Futteh-
pore.
A KUTCHERRY OR KACHAHRI.
The sketch represents the examination of a criminal before
the judge of the station, who is taking notes. The fat moonshee
' See the plate entitled " The Thug's Dice," in which Fig. 4 represents a
.mall brass lota covered by a sprig of the kala toolsee.
CONFESSIONS OF A THUG. 123
on his right hand is reading the deposition, and the native
officers of the court are in attendance. The scene of the
kachahrl, or court of justice, is a room in the house of the
magistrate. The duffadar stooping by the side of the table is
putting the seal of office to the paper that will consign the
criminal for trial to the suddur dewani. The hooqu bardar with
his snow-white beard, standing behind his master's chair, has
just brought a fresh chilam for the hooqu, which the gentleman
has laid aside during the examination of the Thug. The
criminal, who appears to have suffered from a blow on the head
from one of those iron shod liitees, of which a description is
given in the next chapter, is attempting to prove his innocence ;
and the man to the right, who was speaking in his defence to
the judge, has stopped in the midst of his sentence, and is
cocking his ear to catch the words of the defendant. A sketch
of the latee is in the plate entitled "The Thug's Dice," Fig. 2.
Copy of "The Confessions of a Thug," from a circular dated
August, 1829, sent by the Governor-general to the judges of
the different stations on this subject. The reason for the Governor-
general sending this circular to all the judges and magistrates,
was to induce them to be on the alert after Thugs, in conse-
quence of a party of them having been seized up the country by
Captain Borthwick, four of whom turned evidence against the
others. They were examined separately, and their confessions
compared.
The following is the confession and statement of the principal
witness s
" My father was a cultivator of land in Buraicha and other
neighbouring villages, and I followed the same occupation until
I entered my thirtieth year, when I joined the Thugs, with
whom I have been more or less connected ever since, a period
of upwards of thirty years.
"During this time, however, I have not accompanied them on
every excursion; but, on the contrary, for intervals of two,
three, and even six years, have remained at home and earned a
subsistence by cultivating land, so that I have been engaged in
only six predatory excursions : four under a leader, since dead,
124 WANDERINGS OF A PILGRIM.
called Oo-dey Singh, and two under my present chief and fellow-
prisoner, Mokhun Jemadar.
"Whilst residing at home during the last interval alluded to,
I was apprehended on suspicion of being a Thug, but the proofs
I adduced of having been for so many years employed in hus-
bandry were the means which restored me to liberty.
" By this event, however, my circumstances became so greatly
embarrassed, that I was forced to go to Salany to borrow money
from Mokhun Jemadar, who I knew had generally some at
command ; but he would not agree to relieve my wants except
on condition of my engaging to bring my family to Salany and
becoming one of his gang. These conditions T was forced by
my destitute state to comply with, and I accordingly accompanied
him in his last two excursions.
" Oo-dey Singh my former leader was, at the period of my
joining his gang, beyond the prime of life, although, at the same
time, active and enterprising ; but gradually becoming unfit for
the exertion' required of him by his situation, and his son Roman
being seized, with other Thugs, and cast into prison at Jubbal-
pore, he abandoned his former course of life, and shortly after
died.
" At the time I was serving under Oo-dey Singh, tranquillity
had not been established throughout the country, and our ex-
cursions were neither carried to so great a distance, nor were
they so lucrative or certain as they have since been ; for in
those days travellers, particularly those possessed of much pro-
perty, seldom ventured from one place to another unless in
large parties, or under a strong escort ; and we ourselves held
the Pindaries and other armed plunderers in as much dread as
other travellers.
"About three months after I had joined Mokhun's gang,
which consisted of forty men, we set out from Bundelkund for
the Dekkun, this was in the month of Phagoon Summet, 1883
(about March, 1826). We proceeded by regular stages, and
crossed the Nerbudda at the Chepanair Ghat, where we fell in
with Chotee Jamadar (a Brahman), who joined us with his gang,
the strength of which was about the same as our own.
CONFESSIONS OF A THUG. 125
" We then continued our course towards Mallygaow, and at
Thokur, near that cantoonment, celebrated the Hooly ; after
which we resumed our route and reached Mallygaow, where we
struck off by the Nassuk road, intending to turn from Nassuk
to Poona and Aurungabad.
"After proceeding a coss or two on this road we met a
relation of Mokhun's, belonging to Oomrao and Ruttyram's
gangs, who informed us that these two leaders with their gangs
were near at hand on the Poona road, engaged in the pursuit
of some angriahs with treasure. It was proposed that Mokhun
should join them with some of his men, in order to be entitled
to a share of the spoil. Mokhun at first thought of going him-
self, but recollecting that Oomrao and himself were not on good
terms, he sent twenty-five men with Chotee Jamadar. On the
day following we heard the business was effected, and that they
intended to proceed with Oomrao and Ruttyram to Bhooram-
pore, at which place they requested us to meet them. We
accordingly proceeded to that quarter, and found Chotee Jema-
dar and his party at Bhoorampore, Oomrao and Ruttyram
having returned to their homes.
" Here we learnt that the angriahs had been attacked and
murdered near Koker (the place where we had celebrated the
Hooly), and that no less a sum than 22,000 rupees was found
on their persons in gold, bullion, mohurs, and pootlies. Of
this 6000 rupees had been received as the share of our two
gangs, and was disposed of in the following manner.
" Mokhun received one-third for himself and gang, a third
was given to Chotee Jamadar for himself and his gang, and the
remainder was reserved for the mutual expenses of the two
gangs. Mokhun and Chotee despatched the two-thirds above
mentioned to their homes : that sent by the latter reached its
destination safely ; but one of Mokhun's men in charge of our
share having got drunk at Jansy, blabbed that he was a Thug,
and returning with others with a large amount of treasure ; he
was consequently seized by the sirdar of the place, and the money
taken from him. We now quitted Bhoorampore, and proceeded
to Aurungabad, but, meeting with little or no success, we
}26 WANDERINGS OF A PILGRIM.
returned by Dhoolia and Bhopaul to Bundelcund, and reached
our several homes before the rains set in. Our next excursion
was towards Guzerat, but in this nothing occurred worthy of
note.
" 1 have never, during my connexion with the Thugs, known
a single instance of their committing a robbery without the pre-
vious destruction of life, which is almost invariably accomplished
by strangulation. This is effected either by means of a roomal
(handkerchief) or shred of cloth well twisted and wetted, or
merely by the hands, though the latter is rarely practised, and
only had recourse to from accidental failure in the former and
usual mode.
" A preconcerted signal being given, the victim or victims
are instantly overpowered, and death, either by the roomal or
hands, is the act of a moment. In perpetrating murder it is an
invariable rule with the Thugs never, if possible, to spill the
blood of their victims, in order that no traces of murder may
appear, to awaken suspicion of the deed in the minds of those
who may happen to pass the spot, and detection be the conse-
quence. In the hurry in which it is sometimes necessary to
dispose of the bodies, holes cannot be dug sufficiently large to
contain them in an entire state, particularly when the number of
them is great ; the bodies are then cut in pieces and packed
therein.
" When these holes are near the road side, and especially in
an exposed spot, it is usual, after covering them with earth, to
burn fires over them, to do away with the appearance of the
earth having been newly turned. Murders, in the manner just
described, are perpetrated as frequently, and with equal facility
and certainty, whilst the victims are walking along the road, as
when they have been enticed to our places of encampment, and,
unconscious of what is to befal them, are sitting amongst us with
every thing carefully and leisurely arranged for their destruction.
" These murders frequently take place near villages where we
encamp, and usually during twilight; and always, whilst the
business is going on, the hand-drum is beaten and singing com-
menced, to drown any noise that might be made by the victims.
CONFESSIONS OF A THUG. 127
" The several persons actually engaged commence their ope-
rations simultaneously at a preconcerted signal given.
" The signal is an arbitrary one ; generally a common, coarse
expression is used, not likely to strike the attention of the
victims, such as, 'Tumbakoo lao,' (bring tobacco).
" I have never seen the phansy (or noose) made of cord
employed for strangling, though I am fully aware of the general
supposition, that it is with it that we strangle people ; but if
such has ever been employed, which I greatly doubt, it has long
since been laid aside, for the obvious reason, that if a Thug
were seized having it about his person, it would inevitably lead
to his detection.
" A direct understanding with the local authorities in Bundel-
cund is constantly kept up by Oomrao, Mokhun, and all the
other leaders and jamadars, who on their return from their
excursions reside in that part of the country, and these autho-
rities are conciliated and their favour gained by suitable presents.
" Assistance and support from the English authorities, being
likewise indispensable, are obtained through artifice. This is
effected by means of their emissaries, who, by misrepresentation
and falsehood, frequently contrive to extricate them from the
difficulties in which persons of our habits are constantly in-
volved. A relation of Oomrao's, Motee by name, and Lala
Hajain, an inhabitant of Secundra, render important services in
this way. Motee, who was himself a Thug formerly, has for
some years past discontinued going on predatory excursions.
He first brought himself into notice with European gentlemen
by informing against a gang, which was seized in consequence,
and confined at Jubbulpore, where the greater part still
remain.
" Since then Motee has advanced in favour with these gentle-
men, who are led to suppose he acts as a check upon the
Thugs and other plunderers ; at least, he persuades us that such
is the case, the consequence of which is, that he exercises great
influence over us ; making us pay well for his connivance,
and the good offices he no doubt frequently performs in our
behalf.
128 WANDERINGS OF A PILGRIM.
" He principally exerts himself in protecting and assisting
Oomrao, Ruttyram, Hera Mandeen, and their gangs.
" LalaHajain, by means of representations to different persons
of his acquaintance in the adalut at Cawnpore, renders great
assistance to Mokhun in getting him through matters of diffi-
culty. The latter, after his return to Bundelcund from his last
excursion but one, when he heard the mishap which had be-
fallen the share of the plunder sent by him to Boorampore, had
recourse, as was usual with him, to his patron Lala Hajain.
Lala lost no time in waiting on his friend Madee Moonshee, at
Cawnpore, to whom he represented matters in such a light, that
the moonshee wrote himself, or had instructions sent by his
superiors to the Tausy Rajah, intimating that, it having been
made known that he, the Rajah, had seized four travellers of
respectable and inoffensive character passing through his terri-
tories, and plundered them of their property he was directed
to restore them to liberty, with whatever property he had taken
from them.
" A day or two before the receipt of the letter containing this
order, the Rajah had released Mokhun's men, having first ob-
tained from them an acquittance of the money he had taken ;
but now, thinking that unless he could prove the men to be
Thugs, and that their true characters had been misrepresented,
he should get a bad name with Europeans, he immediately
sent after them, and had them again apprehended. What
became of these men afterwards I have never been able to learn.
" Besides Lala Hajain, who manages matters favourably for
him through his acquaintance at the courts and kutcherries at
Cawnpore, Etaweh, Humeerpore, Auria, and Mynpoor, Mokhun
has a great friend and supporter in the Tauzie Vakeel, Gunesh
Lall, who resides at Humeerporah.
" Oomrao may have other patrons besides his relation Motee,
who watches over his interests principally at Jubbulpore.
Makay Sahib, at Kytah, is a great friend of Motee's, and it was
from him that the English pass, which Oomrao showed the
horsemen when we were apprehended at Dekhola, was obtained.
" Passing through a country in so numerous a body as our
CONFESSIONS OF A THUG. 129
gangs sometimes form, is certainly calculated to awaken sus-
picion, but when this happens, it is always lulled to rest by our
being all prepared with the same story or explanation.
" Few of us carry arms, indeed, amongst fifteen or twenty
persons not more than two or three swords may be found.
" When Thugs, though strangers to each other, meet, there
is something in their manner which discovers itself; and, to
make ' assurance doubly sure,' one exclaims ' Alee khan !' which
being repeated by the other party, recognition takes place, but
is never followed by a disclosure of past acts.
" In the division of plunder the jamadars receive seven and a
half per cent., besides sharing equally with the rest of the gang ;
but, before any division is made, a certain portion is devoted to
Bhawani, our tutelar deity. This applies only to money in
gold or silver ; for when the plunder consists of diamonds and
pearls, the leader draws blood from his hand, and having
sprinkled a little over them, the sanction of the goddess to a
division is thereby obtained without any other alienation. But
the omission of this ceremony, or neglecting, when success at-
tends us, to propitiate a continuance of Bhawani's favour by
laying aside a part of our acquisitions for her service, would, we
firmly believe, bring heavy misfortune upon us.
" The office of strangler is never allowed to be self-assumed,
but is conferred with due ceremony, after the fitness of the
candidate in point of firmness, activity, and bodily strength, has
been ascertained, and a sufficient degree of expertness in the
use of the roomal has been acquired by long sham practice
amongst ourselves.
" When thus qualified, the person on whom the office is to
be conferred proceeds to the fields, conducted by his gooroo
(spiritual guide) , previously selected, who carries with him the
roomal (or handkerchief), and anxiously looking out for some
favourable omen, such as the chirping of certain birds, or their
flight past the right hand, knots the roomal at each end the
moment that either occurs, and delivers it to the candidate,
imploring success upon him.
" After this they return, when the ceremony is closed by a
VOL. I. K
130 WANDERINGS OF A PILGRIM.
feast, or distribution of sweetmeats. The seniors only confer
this office, generally old Thugs held in some estimation, but
who from infirmity or age have ceased to accompany the gangs
in their expeditions, and whose chief support is received from
the voluntary contributions of those on whom they have con-
ferred the privilege of using the roomal.
" Certain terms, known to ourselves alone, are made use of
to distinguish certain circumstances, events, &c, connected
with our proceedings : viz.
The persons whose office it is to strangle the victims are
called Luddya, also Bullod.
Those who dig the graves or holes, Lucka.
Those who carry away the bodies, Gutnee Walow.
A scout or spy, Tulha.
A traveller on whom designs are formed, Betoo.
If a Musulman, Sultan Betoo.
If a Hindoo, Bundoo Betoo.
A murder committed at the halting-place or encampment-
ground, Topa.
A murder committed whilst the victims are walking along
the road if during the day, Phoolkee ; if during the night,
Kootul.
The spot where the bodies are buried, Kurwa.
The spot where the murder is committed, Balee.
A female victim, Bemud.
A child victim, Chumota.
Horse, Poornkna or Pootra.
Bullock, Subba.
Gold, Sirya.
Sword, Lumberee.
Silver or rupee, Peeky.
Matchlock, Puttakee.
Gold mohurs, Tandya.
Turban, Kassee.
A ring, Pulbya.
Dhotee, Kurdhunny.
Pearls, Punnyara.
CONFESSIONS OF A THUG. 131
Diamonds, Kukreya.
A knife, Boolcy.
The roomal with which people are strangled, Phyloo and
roomal.
If one person is strangled, it is called Eloo.
If two persons are strangled, it is called Beetsee.
If three ...... Singod.
If four ...... Bhurra.
If five ....... Puckrao.
If six . . . . . . . Chutroo, fyc.
" These terms are used by the Thugs in all parts of the
country. The numerals exclusively apply to travellers, and are
used to denote the number that fall into the hands of detached
parties."
This is the end of the " Thug's Confession."
The other men, on their examination, acknowledged having
murdered a bearer, on whom they found four rupees. They
also met with twelve seapoys ; eight of the soldiers took one
road, and the other four another. The Thugs, therefore, divided
into two parties, overtook the seapoys, and killed them all.
One Thug said, that on a certain day eleven men were killed
and buried. The other Thug said, that on the same day only
seven were strangled: on re-examination he replied, "Yes, it is
true I only mentioned seven there might have been eleven, or
more, I cannot remember ; we strangled people so constantly,
that I took little account of the numbers buried, I only know
on that day about seven or eleven were buried."
The Thugs never attack Europeans.
CHAPTER XIV.
RESIDENCE AT CAWNPORE.
1830. The iron-shod lathi Coins of Sekunder al Sani Hindostan! Song
The first Thermantidote Dak to Cawnpore The Barkandaz The Station
Sand-storm Indian method of washing the hair Pukka houses and bun-
galows The Ayha's revenge Horses poisoned The Isle of France The
visionary old man Influence of women in India Gambling Eating the air
The Ayha's trowsers Darzees Refuge of the distressed Signet-rings
The Durwan Ganges water Small-pox Grass-cutters Beauty of a night
in India Forgery Qui hy ? Winged ants and bugs The moon A set-to
Revenge of a sa'is Soldiers in hospital Arrak The Charpai A new
servant Unpopularity of the Governor-general.
1830, March. The natives use a very dangerous weapon, which
they have been forbidden by the Government to carry. I took
one as a curiosity, which had been seized on a man in a fight in
a village. It is a very heavy lathi, a solid male bamboo, five
feet five inches long, headed with iron in a most formidable
manner. The man was brought before the judge for murder,
and this lathi was the weapon with which two men were sup-
posed to have lost their lives. There are six jagged semicir-
cular irons at the top, each two inches in length, one in height ;
and it is shod with iron bands sixteen inches deep from the top ;
diameter of the iron ornament on the top, six inches. Sticks
headed with brass put on in the same fashion, are often carried
by the native servants for protection when returning to their
homes at night 1 .
1 See the plate entitled " The Thug's Dice," in which fig. 2 represents the
lathi.
COINS OF SEKUNDER AL SANI. 133
During my stay at the house of the judge at Futtehpore, he
allowed me to purchase some coins from the office, which are
very curious. I took four of them ; they are of fine silver,
rather larger and heavier than the common rupee. About 125 of
these coins were found by some children in a field five miles from
Kurrah, in August, 1829, buried in an earthen pot. The letters
are in the Arabic character, and the date corresponds with
a.d. 1313, being 516 years ago. The greater part of the coins
are perfectly bright, and look quite new ; between the letters,
the spaces are filled with the fine white sand in which they
were buried.
On one side of the coin is written in Arabic, fig 2,
"Sekunder al Sani 1 , illuminating the state, Commander of the Faithful."
On the other side, fig. 1 ,
"The mighty Sultan, glory of the world and of religion,
The victorious Mahmood Shah, the Imperial."
Round the edge of the coin is written, fig. 3,
"This silver deposited in a ditch in the year 3 and 10 and 100."
I brought the coins to England. The above translation of
the Arabic is by the munshi of the office. At the bottom of
the plate entitled " HindostanI Song," is a copy of the Arabic
inscription, written from the coins by the same munshi 2 .
The HindostanI song, written in the Persian character, may
amuse the dear friends around the hearth of my childhood's
home; and the translation into HindostanI is annexed, lest
errors may have occurred either in the written character or in
putting it on stone : the oriental scholar is requested to draw
the veil of kindness over any incorrectness in the Persian cali-
graphy of a poor haji in search of the picturesque.
1 Alexander the Second, King of Delhi.
1 In the plate entitled " Superstitions of the Natives," No. 6 is a representa-
tion of these coins.
134 WANDERINGS OF A PILGRIM.
HINDOSTANI SONG.
" Mere jan kliyn dekha Company neshan
Bankee Leek ne marleo Hindostan
Mere jan khyn dekha Company neshan.
Lall, lall kourtee koee jawan
Hart min Putter kullee, pet per tosdan
Mere jan khyn dekha Company neshan.
Agi, agi, Pultan, peche peche sowar
Top ke dunkar se baghe Hindoo Musulman
Mere jan khyn dekha Company neshan.
Dus dus Company jin min goree goree Captan
Godamee fire bolte, nikul jaoe aousan
Mere jan khyn dekha Company neshan."
March 29th. My husband proceeded dak to Cawnpore, to
take charge of his appointment and to engage a house, leaving
me with my friends. On one stage of the road he had such a
set of coolies, instead of bearers, to his palkee, that they could
not continue to carry it at last, setting it down, they all ran
away, and he had to wait six hours on the road until other
bearers came : as this happened during the night, it was of no
further consequence than making the latter part of his dak very
hot, as he did not reach his destination until 11 a.m. The
bearers on this road are proverbially bad.
Here I saw the first thermantidote, and took a sketch of it, in
order to make one for myself. Here, also, I saw the first alli-
gator, a snub-nosed fellow, which was caught in the Jumna, and
sent up on a charpal. Mr. W had the kindness to give
me skulls of alligators, crocodiles, hyenas, and tigers beautifully
prepared, to add to my cabinet of curiosities.
Collecting Persian and Hindostan! proverbs and sayings, and
having them cut on seals, was another of my amusements.
April \9th. This day brought a letter, saying a good bunga-
low had at length been procured, and I started dak the next
day. The judge, that I might meet with no adventures on the
road, gave me a guard, which was relieved at the different
chaukees, police stations.
A barkandaz, or policeman, and two chaukidars (watchmen)
ran by the side of my palanquin all the way ; in consequence I
w
\
**
THE BARKANDAZ. 135
was not detained one moment more than necessary on the road.
One of the barkandaz was armed with two swords and a great
bamboo !
THE BARKANDAZ.
A man of this description is too picturesque a personage to
be omitted. The annexed portrait was taken by S. Mahumud
Ameer ; it represents a policeman in Calcutta with his sword,
shield, and small-arms : the style of the turban and the dress
altogether is remarkable ; on the leathern band across his
shoulder is the chapras, or badge of the station to which he
belongs.
The shield is generally of black leather adorned with brass
knobs. Native gentlemen have shields well painted, sometimes
bearing the portrait of some native lady, and richly ornamented
with silver. We purchased a shield of the hide of the rhinoceros
at the fair at Allahabad ; there are numerous indentations upon
it, the marks of bullets, winch appear to have been turned off by
the thickness and strength of the hide. My husband used to
cut it up to leather the tips of billiard cues therefore I carried
it off, and added it to my museum.
The journey was very unpleasant, very hot, and not a breath
of air.
The dust from the trampling of the bearers' feet rolled up in
clouds, filling my eyes and mouth, and powdering my hair ; and
my little terrier, Fairy Poppus, as the natives call her, in imita-
tion of my " Fury, pup, pup," was very troublesome in the
palkee.
I arrived at Cawnpore at 7 a.m., and was glad to take shelter
in my new house, which I found very cool and pleasant, after a
hot drive during the last stage in a buggy.
The house, or rather bungalow 1 , for it is tiled over a thatch,
is situated in the centre of the station, near the theatre; it
stands on a platform of stone rising out of the Ganges, which
flows below and washes the walls. The station is a very large
'* Properly Bangla.
136 WANDERINGS OF A PILGRIM.
one : besides the gentlemen of the Civil Service, there are
the artillery, the eleventh dragoons, the fourth cavalry, and
three or four regiments of infantry.
The work of this day began by what is really an operation in
India, and constantly repeated, that is, washing the hair. My
ayha understood it remarkably well ; for the benefit of those
ladies having beautiful tresses in the East, I give the receipt 1 .
June 9th. The deaths are numerous in our farm-yard ; in
such weather it is a matter of surprise that any thing can exist.
At 4 p.m. the thermometer outside the verandah, in the sun,
stood at 130; in the shade, at 110! From this time to the
end of August we lost 280 Guinea fowls from vertigo, and three
calves also died.
A storm is raging : it arose in clouds of dust, which, sweeping
over the river from the Lucnow side, blow directly on the
windows of the drawing-room ; they are all fastened, and a man
at every one of them, or the violence of the wind would burst
them open ; my mouth and eyes are full of fine sand ; I can
scarcely write ; not a drop of rain, only the high wind, and the
clouds of dust so thick we cannot see across the verandah. I
feel rather afraid lest some part of the house, which is not in
good repair, should give way if it continue to blow in such gusts.
This bay-windowed room feels the whole force of the tufan,
which is the heaviest I have seen. In Calcutta we had severe
storms, with thunder and lightning; here, nothing but clouds
of sand reaching from earth to heaven with a hot yellow
tinge, shutting out the view entirely. The storm has blown for
an hour, and is beginning to clear off; I can just see the little
white-crested waves on the river beneath the verandah.
In the open air the thermometer stands at 130; in the
drawing-room, with three tattls up, at 88. The heat is too
oppressive to admit of an evening drive.
A high caste and religious native gentleman, Shah Kubbeer-
oo-deen Ahmud, requested to be allowed to play at chess with
me; the natives are passionately fond of the game, which is
*
1 See Appendix, No. 13.
THE AYHAS REVENGE. 137
remarkable, as chess was one of the games forbidden by the
prophet. On the arrival of my opponent, I recognized the
native gentleman who had entertained me with fire-works at
Sahseram. I have spoken of him as of high caste that term is
only correct when applied to an Hindoo, Musulmans have no
distinction of caste.
14th. A tufan, a sand storm, or rather a storm of sand
and dust, is now blowing ; indeed, a little while ago the darkness
was so great from that cause, I was obliged to leave off writing,
being unable to distinguish the letters.
The Ganges opposite Cawnpore is about three miles in breadth;
and, at this season, the water being low, the natives cultivate
melons, cucumbers, wheat, &c, on the islands in the centre of
the stream ; some of the melons are delicious, remarkably fra-
grant, and very cheap. During the rains the islands are entirely
under water, and the river, when there is a breeze, swells into
waves like a little sea.
If a house has a flat roof covered with flag-stones and mortar,
it is called a pukka house ; if the roof be raised and it be
thatched, it is called a bungalow ; the latter are generally sup-
posed to be cooler than the pukka houses. The rooms of our house
are lofty and good ; the dining-room forty feet by twenty-eight,
the swimming-bath thirty feet by twenty-one, and all the other
rooms on a suitable scale. There is a fine garden belonging to
and surrounding the house, having two good wells, coach-house,
stables, cow-house, &c. In India the kitchen and all the ser-
vants' offices are detached from the dwelling on account of the
heat. We pay 150 rupees a month, about 150 guineas per
annum, a heavy rent for an up-country house : the houses are
always let unfurnished.
Very fine white grapes are now selling at fourpence-halfpenny
per pound. Cawnpore is famous for its fruit-gardens.
The natives are curious people ! My ayha, a Musulmane,
asked me to allow her to go to a dinner-party given by some
khidmatgars, friends of hers ; and on her return, she said to me,
" Mem sahiba, we have had a very fine khana (dinner) , and plenty
to eat I am quite full ;" patting her body with great glee, " but
138 WANDERINGS OF A PILGRIM.
we have had a great quarrel." She then explained that at a
native feast every guest sits down in a circle, or in a line, and
before each person a freshly gathered leaf is placed as a plate ;
then the giver of the feast comes round, and puts an equal por-
tion of curry and rice before each guest. When all have been
helped, they start fair and, in general, the host refills all the
plates. It sometimes happens that some of the guests eat so
fast they get a greater share than the others, this puts the rest
into a rage, and they quietly vent their spite by slyly cutting
holes in the clothes worn by the great eaters. It happened at
this feast that my ayha sat next a man who was helped three
times, and I suspect she cut holes in his attire, which caused
the disturbance.
During this month of June we have lost two very fine grey
carriage-horses, the first we have lost during a residence of
nearly eight years in India; they have been poisoned by the
grass-cutters for the sake of their skins, each skin being worth
about six rupees. The first stage out of Cawnpore is famous as
a place where horses die on their march, and hides are there
procurable for tanning. The poison is made into small balls,
scarcely larger than pills, which are thrown into the manger, or
into the grass. In the evening I observed about twenty natives
surrounding the entrance-gates, who had come in the hope of
carrying the carcase away, to sell the hide, and to feast them-
selves upon the flesh, for the people of the Jullah or Doom caste
eat carrion. They were disappointed in their hope of a repast ;
we had the horse put into a boat, and sunk in the Ganges.
Extract from the Letter of a Friend Homeward-bound.
June. " After leaving the Sandheads we were obliged to put
into Trincomalee, Ceylon, in consequence of an accident to
the chain-cable, and having sprung a leak. We put to sea again,
but the leak was as bad as before whenever the sea made the
vessel pitch ; fortunately, we reached the Isle of France, March
1 9th, and were in quarantine three days and a half. On landing I
thought I had never seen a dirtier place nor filthier people than Port
Louis and its inhabitants. And now I will tell you an odd story.
THE VISIONARY OLD MAN. 139
" There is an old French soldier living on this island, who
has the power of seeing in the clouds the reflections of ap-
proaching ships, and this when the ships are at the distance
of 300 or 400 miles. Three days before we came in, he
made his public report at the proper office that five ships
and three brigs were approaching the island, pointing out the
different directions in which they lay. The exact number and
description of vessels, of which our ship, the Lady Flora,
was one, came in ; we were the first at anchor, and the others
came in during the day of our arrival and the next. At
the time he reported seeing us, we must have been at least 350
miles from the island. The old man died suddenly the day
after our arrival. He was an European, born in France, and
had been thirty-six years on this island. Buonaparte made him
liberal offers to go home to France, but he would not as he
said that it was only in a particular atmosphere, such as that
round this island, that he could exert his singular faculty. The
old man used to lie or sit nearly all day, with a telescope in his
hand, looking at the clouds all round the island. He foretold the
number and description of ships when the British expedition to
this island was approaching, and, as I understand, quite correctly.
" Once he reported that there were either two brigs lashed
together, or a four-masted ship coming to the island ; and this
turned out to be a large 1200 ton ship, which had lost all her
masts in a storm, and had put up four temporary spars to supply
the place of masts. The reflection, therefore, in the clouds
must have been very correct. And surely the power of seeing
these reflections is not confined to one individual, but many
have the power of vision equal to this man's, if they had the
patience and time to make the trial."
My friend spoke with great pleasure of the kindness he
received from the governor of the island, during his stay at
Reduit ; and in raptures of a most beautiful waterfall. The
thermometer at Reduit was only 75, the elevation above the
sea being 1200 feet. He says; "The island is an unhealthy
place for animals ; out of 212 Java ponies that arrived here two
months before, fifty or sixty are dead."
140 WANDERINGS OF A PILGRIM.
How much I like the description of the visionary life the old
man led, lying idly on the shore and gazing on the clouds ! It
brought to memory the happy days I formerly passed on the
western shore of Hampshire, seeing or fancying the most
beautiful visions in the clouds, whilst I listened to the sweet
monotony of the waves
" I may not muse I must not dream
Too beautiful those visions seem
For earth or mortal man ; but when
Shall by-past times come back again 1"
Women have more influence over men in India than in any
other country. All out-door amusements are nearly denied to
the latter by the climate, unless before sun-rise or after sun-set ;
therefore the whole time of military men, generally speaking, is
spent in the house, devoted either to music or drawing, which
of course they prefer in the society of ladies, or in the study of
the languages, or in gaming. The young officers at this station
play exceedingly high, ruinously so two guinea points at short
whist, and 100 guineas on the rubber, is not unusual amongst
the young men.
Happily the gentlemen in the Civil Service have too much
employment to admit of their devoting their time to gambling.
If you ask a native " Where is your master gone ?" if the
gentleman be from home, you are sure to receive the answer
" Howa khana-ke-waste " (to eat the air) ; this chamelion-like
propensity of eating the air is always the object during the
early morning ride and the evening drive.
Our servants at present only amount to fifty-four, and I find
it quite difficult enough to keep them in order ; they quarrel
amongst themselves, and when they become quite outrageous,
they demand their discharge.
My ay ha and the abdar had a laughable quarrel. She was
making herself a pair of Europe chintz pajamas (trousers) such
as they usually wear, made very full round the body, and quite
tight from the knee to the ancle.
Musulmane women never wear a petticoat when amongst
REFUGE OF THE DISTRESSED. 141
themselves ; it is the badge of servitude, and put on to please
European ladies ; the moment an ayha gets into her own house,
she takes off her full petticoat and the large white mantle
(chadar) that covers her head and the upper part of her body,
and walks about in the curiously shaped trousers I have de-
scribed, with a sort of loose jacket of muslin over the upper
part, beneath which is the angiya.
The ayha was sitting on her charpiil (native bed) working
away with great eagerness, when her friend the abdar advised
her to make the trousers full to the ankle ; and she came to me
to give warning to quit my service, vowing revenge upon the
abdar, because nach women wear trousers of that description.
The old abdar, Sheik-jee, was sitting down very quietly making
chapaties (flour-cakes), and smoking his narjil (cocoa-nut
shell hooqii) at intervals, enjoying the ayha's anger, until she
stood up, and, screaming with passion, gave him giilee (abuse) ;
he then flew into a rage, and I had some trouble to restore
peace and quietness. Natives seldom, indeed hardly ever, come
to blows, but they will go on for hours abusing each other in
the grossest language, screaming out their words from passion.
A darzee (tailor) is an Indian luxury : they work beautifully
as strongly and finely as the French milliners ; they have
great patience because they are paid by the month, and not by
the piece. In Calcutta I found my tailors great thieves knives,
scissors, seals they would steal anything. One man carried
off a present I had just received, a necklace and bracelets of a
very curious pattern, and a box full of polished pebbles, in sets,
from the Soane river.
Bishop Heber, who did not understand native character,
and possessed much simplicity, was surprised when the up-
country natives thus addressed him : " Defender of the poor,
peace be unto you ! Refuge of the distressed, salamut ' !" and
imagined it was from respect to his holy office. I was playing
with the son of the judge, a little fellow of two years old ; the
child offered to shake hands, and presented his left hand his
' Oriental Proverbs and Sayings, No. 30.
142 WANDERINGS OF A PILGRIM.
native attendant, shocked at what he considered an insult,
desired him to give the right hand ; the child did so, when the
chaprasi cried out with great pleasure, " Well done ! well done !
Refuge of the distressed ! defender of the poor !"
Ram Din, the man mentioned in Chapter XL, was a Raj-
put sipahl in the Company's service, from which, after twelve
years' service, he obtained his discharge ; he was in many
engagements. In Calcutta the man came to us, and, making
salam, presented his chitthls (written vouchers of conduct),
saying; "Refuge of the distressed, having heard of your great
name, I am present to offer my services ; I have served the
Company faithfully twelve years, I will serve you faithfully."
He was a fine native, about six feet high or upwards ; he lived
with us many years, and had always charge of the boats or the
tents when we moved about the country.
A native is very fond of wearing a plain silver ring on the
little finger, with a stone on the top, on which is engraved his
own name, and sometimes that of the god he particularly wor-
ships, if the man be an Hindoo. They usually stamp any
petition they may have to send to any gentleman with it, by
putting HindostanI ink on the seal, wetting the paper, and
pressing the seal down upon it 1 .
On the signet-ring of the Rajput above mentioned w 7 as "Ram
Din Mahadeo." The engraver invariably puts the date of the
year on the corner of the stone, unless it be expressly forbidden.
Engraved on the ruby of a signet-ring, brought to me from
Persia, was "Allah, Muhammad, Ali, Fatima, Hussen, Hossein 2 ."
THE DURWAN.
What happy wretches the natives are ! A man who gets two
annas a day (fourpence), can find himself in food, clothing,
house, silver finery for his person, and support his wife and
children also. My ayha in Calcutta, who received eleven
rupees a month, refused any longer to dine with her dear friend
the durwan, because, as she expressed it, he was so extravagant
1 See Appendix, No. 15. Oriental Proverbs and Sayings, No. 31.
I
>;..<>
THE DURWAN
THE DURWAN. 143
and such a glutton he would eat as much as one rupee and a
half or two rupees a month ; and, as she herself never ate more
than one rupee per month, she would no longer go shares in
his expenses. The durwan lives at the entrance-gates of his
master's house, and is always in attendance to open them ; his
wages are usually five rupees a month ; and he is always on the
watch that nothing may be carried away clandestinely. The
man, whose portrait is annexed, bears the marks of his caste in
three yellow horizontal fines above the red circle on his fore-
head ; around his neck are two strings of the beads called
mandrasee, as represented by Fig. 9, in the sketch entitled
"Jugunnath." Large heavy rings of silver are on his arms,
and the bracelet is also of silver.
The durwans are very fond of brilliant colours, and are gene-
rally well dressed ; their food consists principally of curry made
of kid, fish, chicken, prawns, or vegetables, with a great quantity
of Patna rice boiled to perfection, every grain separate, and
beautifully white. My ayha brought me one day a vegetable
curry of her own making, to show me the food on which she
lived with her friend the durwan ; it would have been excellent,
had it not been made with moota tel, i. e. mustard oil.
16th. The native boys whom I see swimming and sporting
in the river of an evening, are much better off than the poor
people in England. I wish we had some of them here, on
whom to bestow a fine cold saddle of mutton. A round of
beef would be of importance to them. You may imagine how
much must be thrown away, when you cannot with the greatest
care, at this season, keep meat good for more than twenty-four
hours ; and roasted meat will only keep until the next day.
In Calcutta, the tank water being unwholesome to drink, it is
necessary to catch rain water, and preserve it in great jars ; sixty
jars full will last a year in our family. It is purified with alum,
and a heated iron is put into it. Here we drink the Ganges
water, reckoned the most wholesome in India ; it is purified in
jars in the same manner. The water of the Jumna is con-
sidered unwholesome, and in some parts, my old abdar declares,
it is absolutely poisonous.
144 WANDERINGS OF A PILGRIM.
We were glad to quit Allahabad, the small-pox having com-
menced its ravages at that station. On our arrival at Cawn-
pore, we found it raging still worse ; the magistrate took it,
and died in three days. Hundreds of children are ill of this
disease in the bazar ; and the government, in their humanity,
have done away with the vaccine department here. Surely it
is a cruel act, where there are so many regiments and so many
European children, who cannot now be vaccinated. It is very
severe, and numbers of adults have been attacked.
In India wax candles are always burned. A bearer will not
touch a mould because they say it is made of pig's fat. We
burn spermaceti generally. The first time the bearers saw them,
they would not touch the spermaceti, and I had great difficulty
in persuading them the candles were made from the fat of a
great fish. Some bearers in Calcutta will not snuff a candle if
it be on the dinner- table, but a khidmatgiir having put it on
the ground, the bearer will snuff it, when the other man replaces
it. In the upper provinces they are not so particular.
One of the grass-cutters has been sent to the hospital, dying,
I fear, of fever. Every horse has a sa'Is (groom) and a grass-
cutter allowed him : the latter goes out every morning, perhaps
some four or five miles, cuts a bundle of grass, and brings it home
on his head. The men are exposed to the sun so much, and
live so badly, it is no wonder they fall ill of fever ; besides
which, they are extremely fond of arrak (bazar spirits). Wine
they delight in : when the empty bottles are carried from the
house to the godown, the grass-cutters often petition to have
the dregs of the wine. They pour off into their lotas (brass
drinking cups) the remains of all the bottles, mixing beer,
sherry, claret, vinegar, hock, champagne, in fact, any thing of
which they can find a drop ; and then, sitting down, each man
drinks a portion and passes the cup to his neighbour, often
saying " Bahut achchha, bahut achchha," very good, very good,
and eagerly looking out for his turn again, and fair play.
I have several times made them put this vile mixture away
for another day, or they would have drunk it until the whole
was finished.
FORGERY. 145
2lst. Finding the night very oppressive, I quitted my
charpal, and putting on a cambric dressing-gown and slippers,
went out on the platform by the river and stayed there an hour,
there being a little breeze to refresh me. You may imagine how
dry the air must be ; I had no fear of cold, no want of a shawl,
and my light dress was sufficiently warm. It was as fine a
starlight night as I have seen in India. The horses are sick,
burnt up in their stables, which are made on a bad principle ;
they feel the want of the large, cool, loose boxes they had at
Allahabad.
August 4th. It is said, the Earl of C lost 65,000 rupees
a short time ago, by forgeries committed in Calcutta : the person
at the head of the forgeries was Rajah Buddinath Roy, a native
prince in high favour with Lord Amherst ; and I rather imagine
his lordship has suffered also by the Rajah's forged bills. On
dit, he used to talk about Christianity as if in time he might
be converted ; he subscribed to schools and missionary socie-
ties, and distributed Bibles the bait took in return he was
allowed such and such honorary attendance, as by the Com-
pany's regulations a native may not have without permis-
sion. This flattered his pride, and his seemingly religious dis-
position secured him from suspicion falling upon him as a
forger, especially of passing forged bills on the Governor-
general. The case is now being tried in Court.
People think of nothing but converting the Hindoos ; and
religion is often used as a cloak by the greatest schemers after
good appointments. Religious meetings are held continually in
Calcutta, frequented by people to pray themselves into high
salaries, who never thought of praying before.
In India we use no bells to call servants ; but as the chaprasis
are always in attendance just without the door, if you want one,
you say " Qui hy ? " i. e. " is there any one ?" or " Kon hy ? "
" who is there ? " when a servant appears. For this reason
old Indians are called Qui hys.
7th. The plagues of Egypt were not worse than the plagues
of India. Last night the dinner-table was covered with white
ants, having wings : these ants, at a certain period after a
VOL. I. L
14G WANDERINGS OF A PILGRIM.
shower, rise from the earth with four large wings. They fly to
the lights, and your lamps are put out in a few minutes by
swarms of them : they fall into your plate at dinner, and over
your book when reading, being most troublesome. Last night
heavy rain fell, and the rooms were swarming with winged-ants,
which flew in ; their wings fell off almost immediately, verifying
the proverb : " When ants get wings they die '."
To-night we are suffering under a more disagreeable infliction ;
a quantity of winged-bugs flew in just as dinner was put on the
table, the bamboo screens having been let down rather too late.
They are odious ; they fly upon your face and arms, and into your
plate ; if you brush them away, they emit such terrible effluvia
it is sickening, and yet one cannot bear them to crawl over one's
body, as one is at this minute doing on my ear, without pushing
them off.
21s*. There has been a great fire in the Fort of Allahabad,
and the magazine of gunpowder was with difficulty saved.
What an explosion it would have caused had it taken fire !
Oh ! how I long for the liberty and freshness of a country life
in England what would I not give for a fine bracing air, and a
walk by the sea-side, to enable me to shake off this Indian
languor, and be myself again ! The moon is so hot to-night, I
cannot sit on the Terrace ; she makes my head ache. A chatr
(umbrella) is as necessary a defence against the rays of the
moon at the full, as against the sun.
These natives are curious people. Two of our khidmatgars
were looking at the weather; the one said, " It is a good thing
that from the pleasure of Allah the rain has been stopped ;
otherwise, so many houses would have fallen in." The abdar
answered, " Those are the words of an unbeliever." Kaffir ke
bat. "You are a Kaffir," exclaimed the first man, in a great
rage. It being high abuse to use the term, the abdar took off his
shoe and flung it at the other, on which the first man struck
him a good blow with his fist, which cut his cheek open. Here
ended the fight they were both frightened at the sight of
1 Oriental Proverbs, No. 32.
SOLDIERS IN HOSPITAL. 147
blood it is the only instance we have met with of a native
using his fists like an Englishman.
The other affair was this : my sii'Is (groom) had bought
some ganja, an intoxicating herb, which he put into his hooqii
to smoke, and offered it to the other sa'Ises. To refuse to
smoke from an offered hooqii, is a high offence. The sa'Ises
would not smoke the ganja, abused the man for buying it,
and getting intoxicated daily from its effect. He said, " I will
not stay in service, if you will not smoke with me." " Well, go
and give warning," said the head groom. My sii'Is gave him
galee (abuse) ; at which the head groom took a stick and beat
him. The sii'Is immediately said, " My life be on your head,"
and running to the well, he let himself drop down into the
water ; but when at the bottom, he began to halloo for assist-
ance, the well being very deep, and the water also. He was
drawn up by ropes. I do not think he meant to kill him-
self ; and yet dropping down such a distance was a great risk.
He said, if he had died of the fall, the head groom would have
been hung, and he should thus have had his revenge. The
next time he plays such a prank, he is to remain at the bottom
of the well.
22nd. They tell me the people in Calcutta are dying fast
from a fever resembling the yellow fever. The soldiers,
European, here are also going to their graves very quickly ;
three days ago, six men died ; two days ago, six more expired ;
and one hundred and sixty are in the hospital. The fever, which
rages, tinges the skin and eyes yellow ; perhaps only the severe
bilious fever of India brought on by drinking brandy and arrak,
a bazar spirit extremely injurious, to say nothing of exposure
to the sun. Almost every evening we meet the two elephants
belonging to the hospital carrying each about ten sick men,
who are sufficiently recovered to be able to go out " to eat the
air," and for exercise ; the poor fellows look so wan and ghastly.
The sa'Is before-mentioned added the leaves of hemp (cannabis
sativa) to his tobacco, and smoked it to increase its intoxicating
power. Bhang, an intoxicating liquor, is prepared from the
same leaves. Pariah arrak, an inferior sort of spirituous liquor,
l2
14S WANDERINGS OF A PILGRIM.
is sold extremely cheap, from one to four anas a quart : it is
most unwholesome, and mixed with most injurious articles to
increase its intoxicating power, such as the juice of the thorn-
apple and ganja. There are many kinds of arrak ; that distilled
from cocoa-nut toddy is, they say, the least injurious. Who
can be surprised at the number of deaths that occur amongst
men in the habit of drinking this heating and narcotic spirit,
called rack by the soldiers ? Flax is grown in great quantities
in India, but is little used for cloth. Taat, which is made from
sunn (hemp), is manufactured into paper. Linseed oil is
extracted from the seed, and the remainder, the cake, is given
to cows. The waste land in our compound (grounds around
the house) was covered with thorn-apple plants. I had them
rooted out, leaving only two or three of different kinds in the
garden. Abdars have been known to administer this plant
(datura) to their masters in the hooqii : an over-dose produces
delirium.
There are several species of this beautiful plant :
Common datura (Datura stramonium), thorn-apple.
Kala datura (Datura fastuosa), a triple flower of a most
beautiful dark purple.
Suffeid datura (Datura metel), flowers white, hairy thorn-
apple.
Another (Datura ferox), flowers yellow.
Ditto (Datura canescens), a variety, flowers always
single, and of a yellowish white colour.
Qualities, intoxicating and narcotic. The Mahomedans give
kala datura in those violent headaches that precede epilepsy and
mania. It produces vertigo when taken in large doses, and has
the effect of dilating in a singular manner the pupil of the eye.
Some writers call it " Trompette du jugement," and " Herbe aux
sorciers." The leaves of the datura ferox are sometimes used to
make arrak more intoxicating : its seeds produce delirium. Stra-
monium is an abbreviation of the Greek "Mad apple," on
account of the dangerous effects of the fruit of that species.
Metel is an Arabic name, and expresses the narcotic effect of
the plant.
THE CHARPAI. 149
What can be more wretched than the life of a private sol-
dier in the East ? his profession employs but little of his time.
During the heat of the day, he is forced to remain within
the intensely hot barrack-rooms ; heat produces thirst, and
idleness discontent. He drinks arrak like a fish, and soon
finds life a burden, almost insupportable. To the man weary
of the burden of existence, to escape from it, transportation
appears a blessing. The great source of all this misery is the
cheapness of arrak mixed with datura, and the restlessness
arising from the want of occupation; although a library is
generally provided for the privates by the regiment.
You at home, who sleep in gay beds of carved mahogany,
with handsome curtains, would be surprised at sight of the beds
used by us during the hot winds. Four small posts, and a
frame, on which very broad tape (newar) is plaited and strained
very tight, over this a sltal-patl, a sort of fine cool Manilla mat,
then the sheets, and for warmth, either an Indian shawl, or a
rezai, which is of silk quilted with cotton, and very light. We
use no musquito curtains, for each charpal is placed just before
an open window, with the east wind blowing on it, and a
pankha, with a deep double frill, is in full swing over the beds
all night, pulled by a string which passes through a hole in the
wall the wind it creates drives off the musquitoes, and the man
who pulls the pankha is relieved every two hours.
"a new servant will catch deer 1 ."
A gentleman in the Civil Service had succeeded, after much
trouble, in rearing some very fine strawberry plants, and he
visited his garden daily to admire the blossoms. One day,
when he called a chaprasi, a new man, a stupid fellow, came
into the room; the gentleman would not tell him what he
wanted, but said, " Send another servant to me;" the man went
out, and after some time returned with his hands full of the
beautiful strawberry-blossoms ! Had you seen how the coun-
tenance of the sahib fell when he saw them, you would have
1 Oriental Proverbs, No. 33.
150 WANDERINGS OF A PILGRIM.
laughed as I did. He desired the man to put his chapras
on the table, and quit his service at once. The gentleman was
an excellent linguist, but the new servant would willingly have
caught deer.
The Governor-general left Calcutta on the 11th inst, and
proposes to be at Benares on the the 10th December. Lady
William Bentinck accompanies him in his tour. They say that
she is dreadfully nervous about him. His unpopularity is in-
creasing, and some ill-regulated person, in a moment of disap-
pointment and frenzy, might perhaps cause a scene. The
events of the last few years, since Mr. Canning's death, have
been astounding. I wonder if there is more room for amaze-
ment. I hope his Grace the Duke will not take us under his
charge. We are satisfied with King Log, provided he stands
in the way of King Stork.
Lord William has been doing away with all the good appoint-
ments in the Civil Service ; and the army have been cruelly
treated, with respect to the half-batta. Perhaps, when the
renewal of the Charter is concluded, the Directors will again be
enabled to treat those living under their command with the
generosity which has ever distinguished them, and which has
rendered their service one of the finest in the world.
On 3lp<v
THE THUGS DICE .
CHAPTER XV.
THE THUG'S DICE.
The Thug's Dice Execution of Eleven Thugs.
1830, Oct. Mr. S , the acting magistrate, has sent me a
present of the dice used by the Thugs ; they were taken from a
Thug in the magistrate's office. There are three dice, made of
brass roughly filed. In the sketch entitled " The Thug's Dice,"
(Fig. 3.) they are represented exactly of the size and shape of
the originals, which are all of one size and shape. Two sides
are perforated by a large hole that goes through the centre.
Two of the sides are marked with three small circles placed
in a triangular form ; one side has two circles, and four are on
the other side.
When the Thugs are going out on a strangling expedition,
they throw these dice to see what days will prove lucky or
unlucky.
Oct. \6th. In the Government Gazette of this evening is an
account of the execution of eleven Thugs, in a letter from a
man up the country to the editor : the account is so interesting,
I cannot refrain from copying it.
" Sir, I was yesterday present at the execution of eleven
Thugs, who had been seized in the neighbourhood of Bhilsa,
convicted of the murder of thirty-five travellers, (whose bodies
were disinterred as evidence against them at the different places
along the lines of road between Bhopaul and Saugor, where
152 WANDERINGS OK A PILGRIM.
they had been strangled and buried,) and sentenced to death by
the agent to the Governor-general, Mr. Smith.
" As the sun rose, the eleven men were brought out from the
jail, decorated with chaplets of flowers, and marched up to the
front of the drop, where they arranged themselves in line with
infinite self-possession.
" When arranged, each opposite the noose that best pleased
him, they lifted up their hands and shouted, ' Bindachul ka
jae ! Bhawiini ka jae !' i. e. ' Glory to Bindachul ! Bhawani's
glory !' every one making use of precisely the same invocation,
though four were Mahomedans, one a Brahman, and the rest
Rajpoots, and other castes of Hindoos ; they all ascended the
steps, and took their position upon the platform with great
composure, then, taking the noose in both hands, made the
same invocation to Bhawani, after which they placed them over
their heads and adjusted them to their necks ; some of the younger
ones laughing at the observations of the crowd around them.
" One of the youngest, a Mahomedan, impatient of the delay,
stooped down so as to tighten the rope, and, stepping delibe-
rately over the platform, hung himself as coolly as one would
step over a rock to take a swim in the sea ! This man was
known to have assisted in strangling a party of six travellers at
Omurpatan, in the Rewah Rajah's territories, in December last,
and closely pursued to have gone off, joined another gang,
and, in less than a month, to have assisted in strangling thirty
more in Bhopaul ; he was taken at Bhilsa, the last scene of his
murders. Omurpatan is 100 miles east of Jubulpore ; and the
place in which the Thug assisted in strangling in the Bhopaul
territories, a month afterwards, is 200 miles west of Jubulpore.
Such is the rapidity with which these murderers change the
scene of their operations, when conscious of keen pursuit ! He
was taken at Bhilsa by the very man whom he found upon his
trail at Omurpatan, 300 miles distant.
" On being asked whether they had any wish to express to
the magistrate, they prayed that for every man hung, five con-
victs might be released from jail, and that they might have a
little money to be distributed in charity.
EXECUTION OF ELEVEN THUGS. 153
" Their invocation of Bhawani at the drop, was a confession
of their guilt, for no one in such a situation invokes BhawanI
but a Thug, and he invokes no other deity in any situation,
whatever may be his religion or sect. She is worshipped under
her four names, Devi, Kalee, Doorga, and Bhawani, and her
temple at Bindachun, a few miles west of Mirzapore on the
Ganges, is constantly filled with murderers from every quarter
of India, who go there to offer up a share of the booty acquired
from their strangled victims in their annual excursions.
"This accounts for the invocation 'jae Bindachul!' made
use of by these men in approaching and ascending the drop.
These pilgrimages to the temple are made generally at the latter
end of the rainy season, and whilst on their road from their homes
to the temple, nothing can ever tempt them to commit a rob-
bery. They are not, however, so scrupulous on their way back.
" The priests promise the Thugs impunity and wealth, pro-
vided a due share be offered to the goddess. If they die by the
sword in the execution of murders, she promises them paradise
in all its most exquisite delights ; if taken and executed, it must
arise from her displeasure, incurred by some neglect of the
duties they owe her, and they must, as disturbed spirits, inhabit
mid-air until her wrath be appeased. After they have propitiated
the goddess by offering up a share of the preceding year, and
received the priest's suggestions on the subject, they prepare for
the next year's expedition.
" The different members who form the gang assemble at the
village of the leader at a certain day, and, after determining the
scene of operations, they proceed to consecrate their kodalee, or
small pickaxe, which they use to dig the graves of their victims,
and which they consider as their standard. They believe that
no spirit can ever rise to trouble their repose from a grave dug
by this instrument, provided it be duly consecrated, and they
are fearfully scrupulous in the observance of every ceremony
enjoined in the consecration, and never allow the earth to be
turned with any other instrument. It is a neatly made pickaxe
of about four or five pounds' weight, six or eight inches long,
and with one point.
154 WANDERINGS OK A PILGRIM.
" They sacrifice a goat, and offer it up, with a cocoa-nut, to
Bhawani ; they then make a mixture of sandal and other
scented woods, spirits, sugar, flour, and butter, and boil it in a
cauldron.
"The kodalee, having been carefully washed, is put upon a
spot cleared away for the purpose, and plastered with cow dung,
and the mixture is poured over it with certain prayers and
ceremonies.
"It is now wiped and folded in a clean white cloth by the
priest, and the whole gang proceed some distance from the
village upon the road they intend to take, and stand until they
hear a partridge call, the priest having in his mind some one as
the bearer of the sacred deposit. If the partridge call on the
right, he places it in the hands of that individual, and in a solemn
manner impresses upon him the responsibility of the charge.
If a partridge call on the left, or one do not call until the
sun is high, they all return, and wait until the next morning,
when they proceed to another spot, and the priest fixes his mind
upon some other individual ; and so every morning, until the
deity has signified her approbation of the choice by the calling
of the partridge on the right.
" If the kodalee should fall to the ground at any time, the
gang consider it as an evil omen, leave that part of the country
without delay, and select another standard-bearer. If no acci-
dent happen, the man first elected bears it the whole season ;
but a new election must take place for the next. The man who
bears it carries it in his waistband, but never sleeps with it on
his person, nor lets any man see where he conceals it during the
night, or whilst he takes his rest.
" All oaths of the members of the gang are administered
upon this instrument, folded in a clean white cloth, and placed
on ground cleared away and plastered with cow dung : I have
heard the oldest of them declare, that they believe any man
who should make a false oath upon it would be immediately
punished by some fatal disease. If any man be suspected of
treachery, they make him swear in this manner.
"The standard-bearer, immediately after his election, pro-
EXECUTION OF ELEVEN THUGS. 155
ceeds across the first running stream in the direction of the
country to which the gang intend to proceed, accompanied by
only one witness, to wait for a favourable omen. When they
come to the Nurbudda, Jumna, or any other river of this class,
the whole gang must accompany him. A deer on the right of
the road is a good omen, especially if single, according to the
verse
" Leela Mirga daena Suda daena Tas.
Kishunrut hark doo, bhule kure Bhugwan."
"If a wolf is seen to cross the road, either before or behind
them, they must return, and take another road. If they hear a
jackal call during the day, or a partridge during the night, they
leave that part of the country forthwith. An old man once told
me, in proof of the faith to be placed in these signs, that he was,
in his youth, one of a gang of fifty, who were sleeping under
some date-trees, between Indore and Ojeya, when a partridge
was heard to call out of one of them about two in the morning.
They got up in great alarm, moved off instantly, but about day-
light met a party of horse going from Ojeya to Indore. Some
dispute took place between them, and they were taken back to
Indore.
" They had murdered the gooroo (or chief priest) of the
Holcar family and his followers ; and their leader taking a
liking to a parrot of his, had brought it with them.
" On arriving at Indore the parrot began to talk, and was
almost immediately recognized by one of Holcar's family as the
parrot of the gooroo who had gone off for Ojeya some days before.
One of the youngest of them was immediately tied up and
flogged, and after a couple of dozen, he confessed the robbery
and murder. The bodies were taken up and recognized, and
five-and-forty Thugs were blown off at once from the mouths of
cannon. He was one of the five who were pardoned on
account of their youth, and taken into service.
" The handle of the kodalee is made and put on when
it is required, and thrown away the moment the work is
done, so that it forms no essential part of the consecrated
instrument.
156 WANDERINGS OF A PILGRIM.
" The investiture of the roomal (or handkerchief) is the next
religious ceremony performed. No man can strangle until he
has been regularly invested by the priest with the cloth with
which it is performed. Cords and nooses are no longer used.
A common handkerchief or cummerbund is all that men north
of the Nurbudda will now use, though it is said, that in some
parts of the Peninsula the cord and noose are still in use,
owing to the Thugs there being less liable to be searched.
" After a man has passed through the different grades, and
shown that he has sufficient dexterity, nerve, and resolution,
which they call ' hard breastedness,' to strangle a victim him-
self, the priest, before all the gang assembled on a certain day,
presents him with the roomal, and tells him how many of his
family have signalized themselves by the use of it, how much
his friends expect from his courage and conduct, and implores
the goddess to vouchsafe her support to his laudable ambition
and endeavours to distinguish himself in her service.
" The investiture of the roomal is knighthood to these
monsters ; it is the highest object of their ambition, not only
because the man who strangles has so much a head over and
above the share which falls to him in the division of the spoil,
but because it implies the recognition, by his comrades, of the
qualities of courage, strength, and dexterity, which all are
anxious to be famed for.
" The ceremony costs the candidate about forty rupees ; and
is performed by a gooroo, or high priest of the gang, who is
commonly an old Thug, no matter whether Musulman or
Hindoo, who has retired from service, and lives upon the con-
tributions of his descendants and disciples, who look up to him
with great reverence for advice and instruction, and refer to his
decision all cases of doubt and dispute amongst themselves.
"Many attain this degree of knighthood before the age of
twenty, having been taken out by their masters when young,
and early accustomed to assist by holding the hands of the
victims while the roomal-bearers strangle them ; and a man
must show good evidence of the ' kura chatee,' or hard breast,
before he is admitted even to this office; some men never
EXECUTION OF ELEVEN THUGS. 157
attain to this honour, particularly those who have adopted the
profession late in life, and remain all their lives as decoys,
watchmen, grave-diggers, and removers of bodies. An attempt
has been made, and with some success, to impress Thugs with
the belief that the souls of their victims attain paradise, as in
the case of other human victims, offered in sacrifice to this
goddess, and become the tutelar saints of those who strangle
them.
" This is, however, somewhat at variance with their notion,
that the spirits of those who have been buried with the conse-
crated pickaxe can never rise from their graves ; but it reminds
me of an opinion that prevails amongst the people in wild and
mountainous parts of India, that the spirit of a man destroyed
by a tiger, sometimes rides upon his head and guides him from
his pursuers.
" The person invested with the roomal has long used it in
play before the practised eye of his gooroo, and has been long
accustomed to see others use it in earnest ; but it is still thought
necessary to select for him easy victims at first, and they do not
employ him indiscriminately, like the others, until he has shown
his powers in the death of two or three travellers of feeble
form and timid bearing. The maxim that ' dead men tell no
tales' is invariably acted upon by these people, and they never
rob a man until they have murdered him.
" In the territories of the native chiefs of Bundelcund, and
those of Scindia and Holcar, a Thug feels just as independent
and free as an Englishman in a tavern, and they will probably
begin to feel themselves just as much so in those of Nagpore,
now that European superintendency has been withdrawn. But
they are not confined to the territories of the native chiefs ;
they are becoming numerous in our own, and are often found
most securely and comfortably situated in the very seats of
our principal judicial establishments ; and of late years they are
known to have formed some settlements to the east of the
Ganges, in parts that they formerly used merely to visit in the
course of their annual excursions.
" I should mention that the cow being a form of Doorga, or
158 WANDERINGS OF A PILGRIM.
Bhawani, the Mahomedans must forego the use of beef the
moment they enlist themselves under her banners ; and though
they may read their khoran, they are not suffered to invoke the
name of Mahommed.
"The khoran is still their civil code, and they are governed
by its laws in all matters of inheritance, marriage, &c.
" Your obedient servant,
"H. 1 "
I have been greatly interested in the above account : there
are numerous Thugs in and around Cawnpore; they never
attack Europeans ; but the natives are afraid of travelling alone,
as a poor bearer with one month's wages of four rupees has
quite sufficient to attract them. They seldom bury them in
these parts, but having strangled and robbed their victim, they
throw him down a well, wells being numerous by the side of the
high roads.
In 1844, I visited the famous temple of Bhawani at Binda-
chun, near Mirzapore. See the portrait of the Devi, entitled
"Bhagwan ;" and the sketch of the "Temple of Bhawani," in
the Second Volume.
1 From the Calcutta Literary Gazette, inserted in the Government Gazette,
October 7th, 1830.
CHAPTER XVI.
RESIDENCE AT CAWNPORE THE DEWALl.
1830. Agha Meer the Nawab Elephants swimming the Ganges Cashmere
Goats Discontent of the Soldiers Buffaloes Methodism Desertion of
Soldiers to Runjeet Singh- Marks of age on stud-bred Horses Abolition of
Siitee Pilgrim Tax The Dewali The Phulu-huree Festival Arrival of
Agha Meer and his Zenana Vicious Horses Turquoise mines in Persia
Lament of the Hindoo Women Burning the dead The Mug Cook Brutal
punishment Plagues of Egypt Conversion of Hindoo Women The Races
The Riding School Kishmish Bakhshish Apples and grapes from Cabul
Arab Merchants.
1830, Oct. Mooatummud-ood-Dowlah, generally known as
Agha Meer, the deposed Prime Minister to the King of Oude,
Ghazee-ood-Deen Hyder, is coming over to Cawnpore ; his
zenana, treasures, two lacs of shawls, &c. &c, have arrived on
the other bank of the Ganges, escorted by the military. The
ex-minister has not yet arrived ; and a large detachment of the
military from this station has been sent to escort him in safety
to the Company's territories.
This morning, from the verandah, I was watching what ap-
peared to be a number of buffaloes floating down the stream,
with their drivers ; but, as they approached, found them to be
sixteen of Agha Meer's elephants swimming over.
The distance from the Camp on the opposite side the river
to our garden, under which they landed, must be four miles, or
more. Elephants swim very low, and put down their trunks
occasionally to ascertain if they are in deep water. Their
heads are almost invisible at times, and the mahawats strike
them with the ankus (goad) to guide them.
160 WANDERINGS OF A PILGRIM.
On reaching the bank just below our verandah, they set up
a loud bellowing, which was answered by those still struggling
to get to land, a work rather difficult to accomplish on account
of the rapidity of the river.
What would not the people at home give to see sixteen fine
elephants swimming four miles over a rapid river, with their
mahiiwats on their backs, the men hallooing with all their
might, and the elephants every now and then roaring in concert !
It was an interesting sight, and my first view of their power in
the water.
2nd. A friend, just returned from the hills, brought down with
him some forty Cashmere goats ; the shawl goats, such as are
found in the hills : they die very fast on quitting the cold
regions ; he has lost all but three females, which he has given
to me ; they will scarcely live in this burning Cawnpore.
Report says the Governor-general has put off his journey for
a month longer ; it is supposed he will, if possible, avoid this
large military station ; the soldiers are in so discontented a state,
he may perchance receive a bullet on parade. The privates here
have several times attempted the lives of their officers, by shoot-
ing and cutting them down, sometimes upon the slightest cause
of complaint, and often without having any to provoke such
conduct.
7th. I have just returned from calling on a friend of mine,
and overheard the remarks of a gentleman, who was speaking
of her to another ; they amused me.
" Really that is a noble creature, she has a neck like an Arab,
her head is so well set on ! "
Buffaloes from Cawnpore swim off in the early morning in
herds to the bank in the centre of the river, where they feed ;
they return in the evening of their own accord. The other
evening I thought a shoal of porpoises were beneath the verandah
but they were buffaloes trying to find a landing-place ; they
swim so deeply, their black heads are only partly visible, and at
a little distance they may easily be mistaken for porpoises.
Sometimes I see a native drive his cow into the river ; when
he wishes to cross it, he takes hold of the animal by the tail,
ABOLITION OF SUTEE. 161
and holding on, easily crosses over with her; sometimes he
aids the cow by using one hand in swimming.
" What is that going down the river ?" exclaimed a gentleman.
On applying a telescope, we found fifty or sixty buffaloes all in
a heap were coming down with the stream, whilst ten natives
swimming with them kept thrashing them with long bamboos
to make them exert themselves, and keep all together: the
natives shouting and urging on the animals, and the buffaloes
bellowing at every blow they received. At what a rate they
come down! the stream flows with such rapidity during the
rains ! This is the first time I have seen such a large herd
driven in this curious fashion.
Methodism is gaining ground very fast in Cawnpore ; young
ladies sometimes profess to believe it highly incorrect to go to
balls, plays, races, or to any party where it is possible there may
be a quadrille. A number of the officers also profess these
opinions, and set themselves up as New Lights.
9th. I was remarking to an officer to-day, I thought it very
unlikely any one would attempt the life of the Governor-general.
He replied : "The danger is to be feared from the discharged
sipahls, who are in a most turbulent and discontented state.
Squadrons of them are gone over to Runjeet Singh, who is most
happy to receive well-disciplined troops into his service."
I have just learned how to tell the age of a stud-bred horse.
All stud horses are marked on the flank, when they are one
year old, with the first letter of the stud and the last figure of
the year. Our little mare, Lachhmi, is marked K. 0., therefore
she was foaled at Kharuntadee in 1819, and marked in 1820
making her age now eleven years.
Oct. lOlh. I see in the papers " A member in the House
of Commons expressed his satisfaction that so abominable a
practice as that of sutee should have been abolished without
convulsion or bloodshed. Great credit was due to the noble
lord at the head of the Government there, and to the mis-
sionaries, to whom much of the credit was owing."
How very absurd all this is, was proved to me by what came
to my knowledge at the time of the sutee at Allahabad. If
vol. i. M
162 WANDERINGS OF A PILGRIM.
Government at that time had issued the order to forbid sutee,
not one word would have been said. The missionaries had
nothing to do with it ; the rite might have been abolished long
before without danger.
Women in all countries are considered such dust in the
balance, when their interests are pitted against those of the
men, that I rejoice no more widows are to be grilled, to ensure
the whole of the property passing to the sons of the deceased.
The Government interferes with native superstition where
rupees are in question witness the tax they levy on pilgrims at
the junction of the Ganges and Jumna. Every man, even the
veriest beggar, is obliged to give one rupee for liberty to bathe
at the holy spot ; and if you consider that one rupee is sufficient
to keep that man in comfort for one month, the tax is severe.
THE DEWALI.
1 6th. This is the great day of the Dewall, celebrated by the
Hindoos in honour of Kali, also called Kalee-pooja. This evening,
happening to go down to the river just below the verandah to look
at a large toon-wood tree lying in a boat, which some people had
brought in hopes we should purchase it, my attention was attracted
to a vast quantity of lamps burning on Sirsya Ghat, and I desired
the boatmen to row to the place ; I had never been on the river
before, nor had I seen this ghat, although only a stone's throw
from our bungalow, it being hidden by a point of land.
On reaching the ghat, I was quite delighted with the beauty
of a scene resembling fairy land. Along the side of the Ganges,
for the distance of a quarter of a mile, are, I should think, about
fifty small ghats, built with steps low down into the river, which
flows over the lower portion of them. Above these ghats are, I
should imagine, fifteen small Hindoo temples, mixed with native
houses ; and some beautifully picturesque trees overshadow the
whole.
The spot must be particularly interesting by daylight but
imagine its beauty at the time I saw it, at the Festival of
Lights.
On every temple, on every ghat, and on the steps down to the
THE DEWALI. 163
river's side, thousands of small lamps were placed, from the
foundation to the highest pinnacle, tracing the architecture in
lines of light.
The evening was very dark, and the whole scene was reflected
in the Ganges. Hundreds of Hindoos were worshipping before
the images of Mahadeo and Guneshu ; some men on the ghats
standing within circles of light, were prostrating themselves on
the pavement ; others doing pooja standing in the river ; others
bathing. The Brahmans before the idols were tolling their
bells, whilst the worshippers poured Ganges water, rice, oil, and
flowers over the images of the gods.
Numbers of people were sending off little paper boats, each
containing a lamp, which, floating down the river, added to the
beauty of the scene. I saw some women sending off these little
fire-fly boats, in which they had adventured their happiness,
earnestly watching them as they floated down the stream : if at
the moment the paper boat disappeared in the distance the
lamp was still burning, the wish of the votary would be crowned
with success ; but if the lamp was extinguished, the hope for
which the offering was made was doomed to disappointment.
With what eagerness did many a mother watch the little light
to know if her child would or would not recover from sickness !
The river was covered with fleets of these little lamps, hurried
along by the rapid stream.
The stone ghats are of all shapes and sizes, built by the
Cawnpore merchants according to their wealth. Some are
large and handsome some not a yard in diameter. A good
one, with arches facing the water, is put aside for the sole use
of the women; and all were most brilliantly lighted. The
houses in the city were also gaily illuminated. But to see the
Dewall in perfection, you must float past the temples during
the dark hours on Gunga-jee. I was greatly pleased : so Eastern,
so fairy-like a scene, I had not witnessed since my arrival in
India ; nor could I have imagined that the dreary-looking station
of Cawnpore contained so much of beauty.
The goddess Kalee, to whom this festival is dedicated, is the
black goddess to whom human sacrifices are offered. This
m 2
164 WANDERINGS OF A PILGRIM.
evening beholding the pretty and fanciful adorations of the
Hindoos, offering rice and flowers, and sending off their floating
lamps upon the river, I could scarcely believe the worship could
be in honour of Kalee.
I have seen no temples dedicated to her up the country.
Her celebrated shrine is at Kali Ghat, near Calcutta. A Hindoo
often makes a vow, generally to Kiilee, that if she will grant
his prayer, he will not cut off a particular lock of his hair for so
many years; at the end of that time he goes to the shrine,
makes pooja, and shaves the lock : at particular times of the
year, they say, piles of hair are shaved off at Kalee Ghat.
When we were residing in Chowringhee we heard of the
body of a man, who had been sacrificed to the goddess, having
been found before the image at Kalee Ghat. It was supposed
he was some poor wanderer or devotee, possessing no friends to
make inquiries concerning his fate. When a victim is sacrificed,
it is considered necessary to cut off the head at one blow with a
broad heavy axe.
At Benares I purchased thirty-two paintings of the Hindoo
deities for one rupee ! and amongst them was a sketch of the
goddess Kalee.
PHULU-HUREE.
A figure of Kalee, exactly similar to the one purchased at
Benares, and attired in the same manner, I saw worshipped at
Parg under the name of Phulu-huree (she who receives much
fruit). She is worshipped at the total wane of the moon, in
the month Jyoishthii or any other month, at the pleasure of
the worshipper. Her offerings are fruits especially. Animals
are sacrificed in her honour, and Jack-fruit and mangoes are
presented to her in that particular month.
The day after the worship the people carried the goddess in
state down to the river Jumna, and sank her in its deep waters :
the procession was accompanied by the discordant music of
tom-toms, &c, and all the rabble of Kydgunge. The image,
about three feet in height, dressed and painted, was borne on a
sort of platform.
PHULU-HUREE. 165
The goddess is represented as a black female with four arms,
standing on the breast of Shivii. In one hand she carries a
scymitar ; in two others the heads of giants, which she holds by
the hair; and the fourth hand supports giants' heads.
" She wears two dead bodies for ear-rings, and a necklace of
skulls. Her tongue hangs down to her chin. The heads of
giants are hung as a girdle around her loins, and her jet black
hair falls to her heels. Having drunk the blood of the giants
she slew, her eyebrows are bloody, and the blood is falling in a
stream down her breast. Her eyes are red, like those of a
drunkard. She stands with one leg on the breast of her husband
Shivii, and rests the other on his thigh."
Men are pointed out amongst other animals as a proper
sacrifice to Kalee : the blood of a tiger pleases her for 100
years ; the blood of a lion, a reindeer, or a man, for 1000 years.
By the sacrifice of three men she is pleased for 100,000 years.
Kalee had a contest with the giant Raviina, which lasted ten
years ; having conquered him, she became mad with joy, and
her dancing shook the earth to its centre. To restore the peace
of the world, Shivii, her husband, threw himself amongst the
dead bodies at her feet. She continued her dancing, and
trampled upon him. When she discovered her husband she
stood still, horror-struck and ashamed, and threw out her
tongue to an uncommon length. By this means Shivii stopped
her frantic dancing, and saved the universe. When the Hindoo
women are shocked or ashamed at anything, they put out their
tongues as a mode of expressing their feelings. Nor is this
practice confined to the women of the East alone, it is common
amongst the lower orders of the English.
18th. Agha Meer, the ex-minister of Oude, has come over.
His train consisted of fifty-six elephants, covered with crimson
clothing deeply embroidered with gold, and forty garees (carts)
filled with gold mohurs and rupees.
His zenana came over some days ago, consisting of nearly
400 palanquins ; how much I should like to pay the ladies a
visit, and see if there are any remarkably handsome women
amongst them !
1GG WANDERINGS OF A PILGRIM.
\9th. Mr. M rode my Arab Mootee on the course last
night ; how beautiful be looked ! not Mr. M , but the horse ;
there was not a man wbo did not turn to admire him ; nor was
there a horse that might compare with my Pearl of the Desert.
In consequence of the number of troop horses with the artillery
and regiments of cavalry at this station, riding is almost dan-
gerous, especially in the early morning, when the horses are out
for exercise. You sometimes see a vicious native horse, a man-
eater, as they call him, walking with his eyes bandaged, and
led by two natives, one on each side his head ; every now and
then, a beast of this description will turn restive, rear and fight
with his fore-feet, and shout out lustily ; when such animals
break away from their attendants, they attack other horses, and
become very dangerous. Some gentlemen at the station allow
their sa'Ises to carry hog-spears to defend them from loose
horses. To-day, whilst our horses were out in the early morning
for exercise, a troop horse, that had broken loose, attacked our
English-imported grey mare ; she galloped off, he pursued her,
and the men could not secure him before he had bitten her
severely on the neck in several places, and had cut her leg. I
shall make my sa'is carry a bamboo in future, lest my Arab
Trelawny should be attacked whilst I am on his back.
20th. In the evening I went with Mr. A to Sirsya Ghat ;
whilst we were sketching the mut'hs (Hindoo temples), about
fifty women came down, two by two, to the ghat. After having
burnt the corpse of a Hindoo by the side of the Ganges, they
came in procession, to lament, bathe, and put on clean garments ;
one woman walked in front, reciting a monotonous chant, in
which the others every now and then joined in chorus, beating
their breasts and foreheads in time to the monotonous singing.
They assembled on the steps of the ghat. Each woman wore
a white chudda (in shape like a sheet) , which was wrapped so
closely around her that it covered her body and head entirely,
the eyes alone being visible. Standing on the steps of the ghat,
they renewed their lament ; beating their breasts, foreheads, and
limbs, and chanting their lament all the time ; then they all sat
down, and beat their knees with their hands in time to the dirge ;
BURNING THE DEAD. 167
afterwards, they descended into the river to bathe and change
their clothes ; such an assortment of ugly limbs I never beheld !
A native woman thinks no more of displaying her form as high
as the knee, or some inches above it, than we do of showing
our faces. This being rather, too great an exhibition, I proposed
to my companion to proceed a little further, that the lovely
damsels might bathe undisturbed.
25th. I have been more disgusted to-day than I can express :
the cause is too truly Indian not to have a place in my journal ;
I fancied I saw the corpse of a European floating down the
Ganges just now, but, on looking through the telescope, I beheld
the most disgusting object imaginable.
When a rich Hindoo dies, his body is burned, and the ashes
are thrown into the Ganges ; when a poor man is burned, they
will not go to the expense of wood sufficient to consume the
body. The corpse I saw floating down had been put on a pile,
covered with ghee (clarified butter), and fire enough had been
allowed just to take off all the skin from the body and head,
giving it a white appearance ; any thing so ghastly and horrible
as the limbs from the effect of the fire was never beheld, and it
floated almost entirely out of the water, whilst the crows that
were perched upon it tore the eyes out. In some parts, where
the stream forms a little bay, numbers of these dreadful objects
are collected together by the eddy, and render the air pestiferous,
until a strong current carries them onwards. The poorer Hindoos
think they have paid all due honour to their relatives when they
have thus skinned them on the funeral pile, and thrown them,
like dead dogs, into the Ganges.
The Musulmans bury their dead generally under the shade of
trees, and erect tombs to their memory, which they keep in
repair ; they burn lights upon the graves every Thursday
(Jumarat), and adorn the tomb with flowers.
27th. As we floated down the stream this evening, I observed
the first ghat was lighted up, and looked very brilliant, with
hundreds of little lamps ; the Dandees said, it was not on account
of any particular festival, but merely the merchant, to whom the
ghat and temple belonged, offering lamps to Gunga-jee.
168 WANDERINGS OF A PILGRIM.
Nov. 8th. My husband received an order to return to Alla-
habad ; this gave us much satisfaction.
17th. Mr. S , of the Civil Service, told me to-day,
speaking of the Thugs, " It is about a year ago that Major H ,
the assistant to the agent for the Governor-general, had a
narrow escape from a Thug. He was sleeping in his tent at
Powergong, a place between Saugor and Dinapore, when a Thug
entered, and put a noose over his head ! The gentleman stirred,
and his nightcap prevented the noose slipping over his face ; he
awoke, the Thug fled, leaving the noose in the tent, nor were
they able to secure him."
Mr. S tells me he has seen, on the Nurbudda, numerous
images in stone of Bhawani, and that they are very beautiful,
she being one of the most beautiful of the Hindoo idols ! I have
requested him to send me an image, or a picture of the goddess,
as the likenesses I have seen are any thing but agreeable. He
has been looking over my cabinet of curiosities, and promises to
send me some turquoise he procured at the turquoise mines in
Persia, as specimens of really good stones. He tells me, at
those mines you purchase the stones just as they come from the
beds at two rupees eight anas a ser, about five shillings for two
pounds' weight of turquoise !
I gave him a rough emerald, one of five that I purchased of a
native, who found them in the Soane river, and brought them to
the door for sale.
Another fire has taken place in the fort at Allahabad, and
sulphur, valued at two lacs of rupees, melted by the heat, ran
over the square like lava ; fortunately the fire did not reach the
powder magazine. This is the second attempt that has been
made within the space of a few weeks to burn the fort ; the dis-
charged natives who used to work at the powder mills are sup-
posed to be the persons who kindled the fires.
The damage done by these fires is much greater than the saving
which has arisen to Government from cutting the pay of the
men, or from dismissing them ; so much for economy !
\8th. To-day, our Mug cook died suddenly after a short
illness; the corpse will be burned, and the ashes thrown into
BRUTAL PUNISHMENT. 169
the Ganges ; the man came from Ava. The Mugs are reckoned
better cooks than the Musulmans. He was an excellent artiste
and a good servant ; we shall replace him with difficulty. He
professed himself a Hindoo, and during their festivals would give
money, and worship according to their fashion.
During the Muharrum he called himself a follower of the
prophet ; he gave forty rupees to assist in building a Taziya,
performed all the ceremonies peculiar to the faithful, and was
allowed to be considered a Musulman for the time ; at the con-
clusion, when the Taziya was thrown into the river, he became a
Mug again.
22nd. With a westerly wind, and the thermometer at 65,
we Indians find it very cold, the contrast to the hot winds is so
great. I have worn a shawl all the morning, and to-night, for
the first time this year, we have begun fires ; and have had the
horse-shoe table placed in front of the fire-place, that we may
enjoy the warmth during dinner-time. The room looks so cheer-
ful, it puts me into good humour and good spirits ; I feel so
English, without lassitude, so strong and well. My husband
has just sallied out in his great coat to take a very long
walk ; and the little terrier is lying under the table, watch-
ing a musk rat, which has taken refuge in a hole under the
grate.
26th. I have just heard of an occurrence at Lucnow, which is
in true native style. The Nawab Hukeem Mehndee AH Khan, the
present minister, poisoned the King of Oude's ear against one of
his people by declaring that the man betrayed some state secrets
and intrigues; the king accordingly, without judge or jury, ordered
the man's head to be fixed, and a heavy weight to be fastened on
his tongue until the tongue should be so wrenched from the
roots that it should ever after hang out of his mouth. This
brutal punishment was inflicted some two or three months ago,
and the poor creature's life has been preserved by pouring liquids
down his throat, as, of course, he is unable to eat at present.
They have now discovered the man is innocent ! but what does
it avail him ? His accuser, the Nawab Hukeem Mehndee, is rich ;
money is power. The king is displeased with the minister, I
170 WANDERINGS OF A PILGRIM.
understand, for his misrepresentations j he is also on bad terms
with the resident, they do not speak.
Any lady having a horror of the plagues of Egypt would not
admire what is going on at this moment; several lizards are
peering about, as they hang on the window frames, with their
bright round eyes ; a great fat frog or toad, I know not which, is
jumping across the floor, under the dinner-table ; and a wild cat
from the jungles, having come in, has made her exit through the
window, breaking a pane of glass ; a musk-rat is squeaking in
the next room, I must go and prevent the little terrier from
catching it : I do not like to see the dog foam at the mouth, which
she always does after killing this sort of rat.
Dec. 1st. A marriage has taken place this day, between the
widow of the Mug cook, a low caste Hindoo, old and ugly, and
one of our khidmatgars, a Mahommedan. On account of her
caste the man cannot eat with her without pollution ; therefore,
having taken her to a mosque, and the kuriin having been read
before her, she declares herself a convert. The niusulman
servants have dined with her ; she is now a follower of the
prophet. They are very fond of making converts, but the
Hindoos never attempt to convert any one ; in fact, they w T ill not
admit converts to their faith, nor will they embrace any other
religion ; here and there a woman becomes a musulmane, on
her marriage with a man of that faith.
5th. To-day's news is, that the Governor-general met the
3rd cavalry at Allahabad, on their march from Cawnpore to
Benares. His lordship reviewed the regiment, and asked the
officers to dinner ; an invitation they all refused. This annoyed
his lordship very much, being the first display of resentment
manifested towards him on his march by the army, and he ordered
them to dine with him on pain of forfeiting their rank, pay, and
allowances, pending a reference to the Court of Directors. Of
course the officers obeyed the order ; they were obliged to do so :
what an agreeable party the Governor-general must have had,
with guests whom he had forced to partake of the feast !
Dec. Wth. I went to the races at sunrise : the first race was
between two beautiful Arabs ; Sultan looked so handsome at
THE RACES. 171
starting, and shot ahead of the other, keeping him in the rear
until he very nearly gained the stand at the end of the three
miles ; of a sudden his speed relaxed, the other horse came up,
and passed the post just before him. Sultan looked wild ; the
jockey dismounted ; the horse fell, regained his feet three times,
reared with pain, and, falling again, died in the space of a
minute.
The Cawnpore races have been unfortunate ; two years ago, a
jockey was thrown, and broke his neck on the spot. Last year,
the favourite Arab broke his hind leg and was shot : this year,
Sultan has been killed, and two other horses have gone lame.
13th. I accompanied some ladies to the riding-school of the
11th dragoons, and, being much pleased, requested to be allowed
to take lessons with them ; afterwards, riding there during those
hours that the school was unoccupied by the dragoons, formed
one of our greatest amusements. As for the corporal, the rough-
rider of the 11th dragoons who attends in the riding-school,
his affections are quite divided between my horse Trelawny and
myself ; I heard him say the other day, speaking of the former,
" I like that little chap, he looks so innicent."
My sa'Is cannot accomplish putting me on my horse after the
English fashion ; therefore, he kneels down on one knee, holding
the horse in his left hand, and the stirrup in the right ; I step
from his knee to the stirrup, and take my seat on the saddle ;
rather a good method, and one of his own invention.
Christmas Day. The house is gaily decorated with plantain
trees, roses, and chaplets of gaudy flowers, but no holly ; we
miss the holly and misletoe of an English Christmas. The
servants are all coming in with their offerings, trays of apples,
grapes, kishmish, walnuts, sugar, almonds in the shell, oranges,
&c. The saddler, who is also a servant, has brought five trays
in honour of kishmish (Christmas) ; these presents are rather
expensive to the receiver, who returns kishmish bakhshish
(Christmas boxes) in rupees ; the apples au naturel, brought
down at this time of the year by the Arab merchants from
Cabul, are rather insipid, yet the sight is very grateful to the
eye ; they are large, fine, and of a roseate hue. The grapes,
172 WANDERINGS OF A PILGRIM.
which are in small round boxes, are picked off the bunch, and
placed in layers of cotton. The dates are excellent. Kishmish
are small raisins without stones, which have an agreeable
acidity ; they are known in England as sultana raisins.
These Arab merchants bring pattu, pushmeena, cashmere gloves
and socks, curiously illuminated old Persian books, swords and
daggers, saleb misree, and Persian cats, saffron, and various other
incongruous articles, which are all laden on camels, which they
bring in strings, in large numbers. The men are fine, hardy,
picturesque looking personages, independent in their bearing;
and some of the younger ones have a colour on their cheeks
like the bright red on their apples. Their complexions are
much fairer than any I have seen in India.
CHAPTER XVII.
SCENES IN OUDE.
New Year's Day Meeting of the King of Oude and the Governor- General
Visit of Lord William Bentinck to Lucnow A Native Christian Elephant,
Tiger, Buffalo, and Bear Fights Constantia Beautiful Buildings Depar-
ture of the Governor-General The Padshah Biigh The Royal Hummam
The King's Stables The Party at the Residency Dil-Kusha Zoffani's
Picture Doves released from Captivity The Menagerie A Zenana Garden
Letter of Introduction to the Begams at Delhi Gardner's Horse The
Sorrows of the Begam.
1831. Jan. 1st. New Year's Day was celebrated with all due
honour at home, the party separating at 4, a.m. ; punch a la
Romaine and fine ices making men forget the lapse of time.
The people here are ice-making mad j I flatter myself I under-
stand the mystery of icefication better than any one in India.
5th. The view from our verandah is remarkably good ; the
King of Oude, Ghazee-ood-Deen Hyder, has pitched his tent on
the opposite side of the Ganges, and has constructed a bridge of
boats across the river. In attendance upon him, they say, there
are 2000 elephants, camels, and men in proportionate number ;
the sides of the river swarm with troops, animals, and tents.
Early on the morning of the 6th, the Governor-general,
Lord William Bentinck, arrived at Cawnpore ; and her Ladyship
received the station. We paid our devoirs ; and, in conversation
with Lady William on the subject of the zenana of the King of
Oude, I excited her curiosity so much by my account of Tajma-
hiil, that I feel convinced she will pay her a visit on her arrival
at Lucnow.
7th. We were invited to breakfast with the Governor-
174 WANDERINGS OF A PILGRIM.
general, with whom the King of Oude was to breakfast in state.
We rode to the tents but let me commence the narrative from
the dawn of day. Long before sunrise the guns and drums in
the king's encampment announced that all were in preparation
to cross the bridge of boats. About 7 a.m. an enormous train
of elephants, camels, and troops crossed over, brilliantly deco-
rated, and proceeded to the camp of the Governor-general.
We then cantered off I on the Bokhara grey, who became
very impetuous; but, although surrounded with elephants,
camels, galloping horses, and guns firing, I never lost my
courage for an instant : nevertheless, I will play no such game
again, it is too hazardous.
Lord William met the king half-way, and having been invited
to enter the royal howdah, he took his seat on the king's
elephant, and they proceeded together to the breakfast-tent
through a street of dragoons, infantry, &c. Lady William, with
all her visitors assembled around her, was in the tent awaiting
the entrance of the great people ; on their arrival, after the
usual embracings and forms were over, we proceeded to
breakfast.
The whole scene was one of extreme beauty. The magnificent
dresses of the natives, the superb elephants, covered with
crimson velvet embroidered with gold, the English troops, the
happy faces, and the brilliant day, rendered it delightful.
After breakfast Lord William received all visitors who asked
for a private audience in a separate tent : my husband made his
siilam, and requested permission to visit Lucnow in his Lord-
ship's train; having received a kind affirmative, we returned
home.
8th. The Governor-general returned the king's visit, and,
crossing the bridge of boats, breakfasted with his majesty on
the territories of Oude.
\0th. Lady William gave a ball to the station.
llth. His lordship was invited to dinner and dined with
the eleventh dragoons, he being their colonel ; the next day the
Governor-general's party commenced their march to Lucnow,
the king having quitted the day before.
A NATIVE CHRISTIAN. 175
18th. Having sent on our camels and tents beforehand, we
started for Lucnow, intending to drive the whole distance in
one day, for which purpose we had laid eight buggy horses on
the road, the distance being only fifty-five miles.
Going over the sandy bed of the Ganges, the horse being
unable to drag the Stanhope, we mounted an elephant, which
took us some miles ; being obliged to return the elephant, we
got into a native cart drawn by bullocks, and so arrived at the
spot where the second horse was laid. But the horses found it
almost impossible to get through the sand, the country had
been so much cut up from the multitudes that had crossed and
recrossed it. In consequence night overtook us in the middle
of Oude without a tent or food, and a dark night in prospect ;
whilst debating where to find shelter, we espied a tent in the
distance, which proved to be an empty one belonging to a
friend of ours, and there we took up our quarters.
A boy came forward, and saying, " I Christian," offered to pro-
cure a chicken and give us a curry, which we ate off red earthen
dishes, with two bits of bamboo as a knife and fork, after the
style of chop-sticks. I must not forget to mention, that
after our repast, Christian came forward and repeated the Creed
and the Lord's Prayer in Hindostanee ; he repeated them
like a parrot, but, judging from his answers when questioned,
did not appear at all to comprehend his newly-acquired
religion.
The sutraeng!, the cotton carpet of the tent, served to defend
us from the cold during the night ; and the next morning we
recommenced our journey, but did not reach Lucnow in time to
join the dinner-party at the Residency, to which we were invited
to meet Lady William Bentinck.
Our camels, tents, and horses had gone on in advance. On
our arrival, I found the camel that carried my trunks had fallen
down in crossing part of the river, and both my finery and my
journal were soaked in the stream ; much damage was done to
the wardrobe and, as for the journal, it was quite mouldy and
almost illegible : for the benefit of distressed damsels in a similar
predicament, I give a receipt to restore the colour of faded
176 WANDERINGS OF A PILGRIM.
writing, to which I had recourse with good success on this
occasion \
\Sth. The Governor-general breakfasted with the king. The
whole party quitted the Residency on elephants most beautifully
clothed, and were met half-way by his majesty. The scene
was magnificent. The elephants, the camels, the crowds of
picturesque natives, the horsemen, and the English troops,
formed a tout ensemble that was quite inspiring. The Governor-
general got into the king's howdah, and proceeded to the palace,
where breakfast was laid in a fine service of gold and silver.
After breakfast we proceeded to a verandah to see various fights,
and, having taken our seats, the order was given to commence
the tamasha.
THE ELEPHANT FIGHTS.
The river Goomtee runs in front of the verandah ; and on the
opposite side were collected a number of elephants paired for
the combat. The animals exhibited at first no inclination to
fight, although urged on by their respective mahawats, and we
began to imagine this native sport would prove a failure.
At length two elephants, equally matched, were guided by
the mahawats on their backs to some distance from each other,
and a female elephant was placed midway. As soon as the
elephants turned and saw the female they became angry, and
set off at a long swinging trot to meet each other ; they attacked
with their long tusks, and appeared to be pressing against each
other with all their might. One elephant caught the leg of
the other in his trunk, and strove to throw his adversary or
break his fore-leg. But the most dangerous part appeared to
be when they seized one another by their long trunks and
interlaced them ; then the combat began in good earnest. When
they grew very fierce, and there was danger of their injuring
themselves, fireworks were thrown in their faces, which alarmed
and separated them, and small rockets were also let off for that
purpose.
1 Appendix, No. 16.
ELEPHANT FIGHTS. 177
The situation of a mahawat during the fight is one of danger.
The year before, the shock of the combat having thrown the
mahawat to the ground, the elephant opposed to him took a
step to one side, and, putting his great foot upon him, quietly
crushed the man to death !
Sometimes the elephant will put up his trunk to seize his
opponent's mahawat and pull him off": skill and activity are
requisite to avoid the danger.
The second pair of elephants that were brought in front of
the verandah hung back, as if unwilling to fight, for some time ;
several natives, both on horseback and on foot, touched them
up every now and then with long spears to rouse their anger.
One of the elephants was a long time ere he could be induced
to combat but, when once excited, he fought bravely ; he was
a powerful animal, too much for his adversary for having
placed his tusks against the flank of his opponent, he drove him
before him step-by-step across the plain to the edge of the
river, and fairly rolled him over into the Goomtee. Sometimes
a defeated elephant will take to the water, and his adversary
will pursue him across the river.
The animals are rendered furious by giving them balls to eat
made of the wax of the human ear, which the barbers collect for
that purpose !
The hair on the tail of an elephant is reckoned of such
importance, that the price of the animal rises or falls accord-
ing to the quantity and length of the hair on the tail. It is
sometimes made into bracelets for English ladies.
A great number of elephants fought in pairs during the
morning ; but, to have a good view of the combat, one ought
to be on the plain on the other side the river, nearer to the
combatants ; the verandah from which we viewed the scene is
rather too distant.
When the elephant fights were over, two rhinoceros were
brought before us, and an amusing fight took place between
them ; they fought like pigs.
The plain was covered by natives in thousands, on foot or on
horseback. When the rhinoceros grew fierce, they charged the
VOL. 1. N
178 WANDERINGS OF A PILGRIM.
crowd, and it was beautiful to see the mass of people flying
before them.
On the Goomtee, in front of the verandah, a large pleasure-
boat belonging to his Majesty was sailing up and down; the
boat was made in the shape of a fish, and the golden scales
glittered in the sun.
The scene was picturesque, animated, and full of novelty.
In an inclosed court, the walls of which we overlooked, seven
or eight fine wild buffaloes were confined : two tigers, one
hyena, and three bears were turned loose upon them. I expected
to see, the tigers spring upon the buffaloes, instead of which
they slunk round and round the walls of the court, apparently
only anxious to escape. The tigers had not a fair chance, and
were sadly injured, being thrown into the air by the buffaloes,
and were received again when falling on their enormous horns.
The buffaloes attacked them three or four together, advancing
in line with their heads to the ground. I observed that when
the buffaloes came up to the tiger, who was generally lying on
the ground, and presented their horns close to him if the
animal raised his paw and struck one of them, he was tossed in
a moment; if he remained quiet, they sometimes retreated
without molesting him.
The bears fought well, but in a most laughable style. The
scene was a cruel one, and I w r as glad when it was over. None
of the animals, however, were killed.
A fight was to have taken place between a country horse and
two tigers, but Lady William Bentinck broke up the party and
retired. I was anxious to see the animal, he is such a vicious
beast ; the other day he killed two tigers that were turned loose
upon him.
Combats also took place between rams : the creatures attacked
each other fiercely the jar and the noise were surprising as
head met head in full tilt. Well might they be called battering
rams!
'2\st. We visited Constantia, a beautiful and most singular
house, built by General Martine ; it would take pages to
describe it ; the house is constructed to suit the climate ; venti-
t
CONSTANTIA. 179
lation is carried up through the walls from the ground-floor to
the top of the building, and the marble hall is a luxurious
apartment. The king having refused to give General Martine
the price he asked for Constantia, the latter declared his tomb
should be handsomer than any palace in his Majesty's dominions.
He therefore built a vault for himself under the house, and
there he lies buried ; this has desecrated the place, no Musul-
man can inhabit a tomb.
The monument stands in the vault ; a bust of the general
adorns it. Lights are constantly burned before the tomb. The
figures of four sipahis large as life, with their arms reversed,
stand in niches at the sides of the monument. In the centre of
the vault, on a long plain slab, is this inscription :
"Here lies Major-General Claude Martine, born at Lyons, 1735; arrived in
India a common soldier, and died at Lucnow, the 13th December, 1800.
PRAY FOR HIS SOUL."
Claude Martine was a native of the city of Lyons. He was
originally a common soldier, and fought under Count Lally ; he
afterwards entered the service of the East India Company, and
rose to the rank of a Major-general. He died possessed of
enormous wealth, and endowed a noble charity in Calcutta,
called La Martiniere.
The house is a large and very singular building ; a motto
fronts the whole, " Lahore et Constantid," hence the name of
the house.
Returning from this interesting place, we proceeded on ele-
phants to see the Roomee Durwaza, a gateway built at the
entrance of the city, on the Delhi road, by Ussuf-ood-Dowla ; it
is most beautiful and elegant, a copy of a gate at Con-
stantinople.
Near this spot is the Imam-Bara, a building almost too
delicate and elegant to be described ; it contains the tomb of
Ussuf-ood-Dowla, the second king of this family. Within the
court is a beautiful mosque.
We were delighted with the place and the scene altogether
the time being evening, and the streets crowded with natives.
n2
180 WANDERINGS OF A PILGRIM.
22nd. The Governor-general quitted Lucnow at daybreak.
On account of some points of etiquette respecting the queen-
mother and the king's favourite wife, Gosseina, Lady William
Bentinck did not visit the royal zenana.
This day we visited a palace called Padshiih-i-Takht, contain-
ing the king's throne and the banquetting-rooms, a delightful
place ; on quitting it we crossed the river to a new house and
garden, huilt by the present king, called Padshah Bagh; of
which I must give a description, it being the most luxurious
palace I have seen in India.
A large space has been enclosed as a garden within a high
wall ; it contains three houses and two gateways ; the first house
is a most delightful one, all you can wish for in such a climate
as this ; beautiful rooms, with six fountains playing in them,
and everything in fairyland style ; then such an huinmam ! or
steam baths, containing rooms heated to different tempera-
tures, the heat of each increasing until you arrive at the steam
bath itself.
The apartments are built of white variegated marble, and the
roofs arched ; the rooms were so delightful, we felt every incli-
nation to remain in the hummam, the temperature was so
luxurious.
Crossing from this palace to the centre of the garden, we
entered another elegant building, supported on white marble
pillars, beautifully finished, and adorned and furnished with crim-
son and gold.
On the left of the garden is a third palace, sacred to the ladies
of the zenana ; this house is built of marble, and covered with
flower-work of pounded talk (talc), which has exactly the
appearance of silver, giving an eastern style to the place. There
are two handsome gateways, a steam-engine to supply the foun-
tains, and a superb tiger in a cage. Every luxury of life may be
contained within the walls of this garden ; it is at present
scarcely finished, but displays great taste and beauty.
On our return we visited the king's stables, and saw 200
horses, amongst which were some very fine Arabs. His Majesty
has 500 horses in his private stables. This day was one of much
THE RESIDENCY. 181
fatigue ; we were on elephants, and exposed to the sun through-
out the whole day.
23rd. Mr. M invited us to quit our tents, and come into
the Residency, giving us the apartments vacated by the Gover-
nor-general, which are delightful ; and here we are installed with
some most agreeable people. First and foremost, our kind host
the Resident ; Mr. G , the Resident of Nagpore ; Mr. H ,
the Resident of Delhi ; and Col. Gardner, a most charming old
gentleman ; but he will require pages to himself, he is one of
many thousand.
But I can write no more my aide-de-camp, a young Bhopaul
chieftain, is in attendance, to invite me to ride with the Resident.
This little native chief is a fine intelligent boy about fourteen
years of age ; he rides well, on a small horse covered with silver
ornaments ; and his own dress, with two and sometimes three
swords at his waist, is so curious, I should like to have his
picture taken. The young chief, with his followers, often attends
me on horseback to do my bidding.
The king has a charming park near Lucnow, called Dil-Kushii,
or " Heart's Delight," filled with game ; deer, nil-ga'I, ante-
lopes, bears, tigers, peacocks, and game of all sorts ; the drive
through it is most agreeable, the road being kept constantly
watered : the house is good, and very convenient. His Majesty
visits the place often for shooting.
Just beyond the park is a second park called Beebeepore,
formerly the residence of Mr. Cherry, who was murdered at
Benares.
24th. I took a steam bath in true oriental style, which was
very delightful ; when the pleasing fatigue was over, I joined a
party, and proceeded to Daulut Khana, a palace built by Ussuf-
ood-Dowla, but now uninhabited, except by some of the ladies
and attendants of the old king's zenana.
We went there to see a picture painted in oil by Zoffani, an
Italian artist, of a match of cocks, between the Nawab Ussuf-
ood-Dowla and the Resident, Colonel Mordaunt ; the whole of
the figures are portraits ; the picture excellent, but fast falling
into decay.
182 WANDERINGS OF A PILGRIM.
The next place visited was the country-house of one of the
richest merchants in India, a place called Govinda Bagh. It is
one of the handsomest houses I have entered, and beautifully
furnished, with fine mirrors and lustres ; its painted ceilings are
remarkably well done, and have a very rich effect ; the pillars
also in imitation of porphyry look extremely well. The owner,
Govind Lall, fives in a mean dirty house, in one of the meanest
gulls (lanes) in the city, that his wealth may not attract robbers
or cause jealousy.
25th. My husband accompanied the Resident and a party
to breakfast with the King, and I called on my charming friend,
Mrs. F- , in cantonments.
In the evening I accompanied the Resident, in his barouche,
drawn by four fine horses, round the grounds of Dil-Kusha.
The carriage was attended by an escort on horseback ; when it
passed the guards, arms were presented, and trumpets blown :
and sometimes men with baskets of birds running by the side of
the carriage, let them fly whenever they caught his eye, in the
hope of some reward being thrown to them for having liberated
their captives in compliment to the great man.
To release captive birds propitiates the favour of heaven.
A great man will release prisoners from jail when he is anxious
for the recovery of a relative from illness, or to procure an heir !
The Janwar Khana, a menagerie filled with wild beasts,
animals of every sort, and birds in profusion, next attracted my
attention. You may talk of Le Jardin des Plantes, but the
Janwar Khana at Lucnow is far better worth visiting. There
was an immense Doomba sheep, with four horns, and such
a tail ! perfectly enormous.
We paid a visit to the tomb of Saadut Ulee Khan, the king's
grandfather, a beautiful building, near which is the tomb of the
begam, both worth seeing.
20th. I rode with the Resident to his country-house, a
short distance from Lucnow, situated in the midst of delightful
gardens ; there are about twenty of these gardens, filled with
fine tanks, wells, and beautiful trees ; the Resident contemplates
turning them into a park.
THE ZENANA GARDEN. 183
28th. We went over a zenana garden j the house, dedicated
to the ladies, was a good one, situated in a large garden
surrounded by a high stone wall. The orthodox height for the
four walls of a zenana garden is, that no man standing on an
elephant can overlook them. The building is surrounded with
fine trees ; and a fountain played before it, in which gold and
silver fish were swimming. Near it was an avenue, in which
was a swing, the invariable accompaniment of a zenana garden.
The season in which the ladies more particularly delight to
swing in the open air is during the rains. I cantered back to
the Residency at ten a.m. ; the sun was warm, but I thought not
of his beams.
After breakfast, I retired to write my journal (knowing how
much pleasure it would give her for whom it was kept) , although
I had that delightful man, Colonel Gardner, to converse with ;
such a high caste gentleman ! how I wish I had his picture ! He
is married to a native princess, and his granddaughter is be-
trothed to one of the princes of Delhi. The begam, his wife, is
in Lucnow, but so ill that I have been unable to pay my respects
to her. Colonel Gardner has promised me, if we will visit Agra
or Delhi next year, which we hope to do, he will give me letters
of introduction to some of the ladies of the palace, under which
circumstances I shall have the opportunity of seeing Delhi to
the greatest advantage.
A very fine corps of men, called Gardner's Horse, were
raised by him ; single-handed nothing can resist them, such
masters are they of their horses and weapons. I told him, I
was anxious to see good native riding, and feats of horsemanship ;
he said, "An old servant of mine is now in Lucnow, in the
king's service ; he is the finest horseman in India. I gave that
man 150 rupees a month (about 150/. per annum) for the plea-
sure of seeing him ride. He could cut his way through thou-
sands. All men who know any thing of native horsemanship,
know that man : he has just sent me word he cannot pay his
respects to me, for if he were to do so, the king would turn
him out of service." I asked why? He answered, "There is
such a jealousy of the English at court : as for the king, he
184 WANDERINGS OF A PILGRIM.
is a poor creature, and can neither like nor dislike. Hakim
Mehndie the minister rules him entirely, and he ahhors the
English."
It is a curious circumstance that many of the palaces in
Lucnow have fronts in imitation of the palaces in Naples and
Rome, &c. ; and the real native palace is beyond in an enclosed
space.
Being tired with writing, I will go down and talk to Colonel
Gardner; should no men be in the room, he will converse
respecting the zenana, but the moment a man enters, it is a
forbidden subject.
Lucnow is a very beautiful city ; and the view from the roof
of the Residency particularly good.
I am fatigued with my ride through the sun ; nevertheless,
I will go out on an elephant this evening, and view all the
old part of the city. I like this barii sahib life ; this living
en prince; in a climate so fine as this is at present it is
delightful.
The subjects of his Majesty of Oude are by no means desirous
of participating in the blessings of British rule. They are a
richer, sleeker, and merrier race than the natives in the terri-
tories of the Company.
"What a delightful companion is this Colonel Gardner ! I
have had the most interesting conversation with him, which has
been interrupted by his being obliged to attend his poor sick
wife, as he calls the begam. She is very ill, and her mind is as
much affected as her body : he cannot persuade her to call in
the aid of medicine. A short time ago, she lost her son, Allan
Gardner, aged twenty-nine years : then she lost a daughter and
a grandson ; afterwards a favourite daughter ; and now another
young grandson is dangerously ill. These misfortunes have
broken her spirit, and she refuses all medical aid. That dear
old man has made me weep like a child. I could not bear the
recital of his sorrows and sufferings. He said, " You often see
me talking and apparently cheerful at the Resident's table, when
my heart is bleeding."
We have had a long conversation respecting his own life, and
COL. GARDNER. 185
I have been trying to persuade him to write it. He says, " If
I were to write it, you would scarcely believe it ; it would
appear fiction." He is gone to the sick begam. How I long
for another tete a tete, in the hope of learning his private
history !
He must have been, and is, very handsome ; such a high
caste man ! How he came to marry the begam I know not.
What a romance his love must have been ! I wish I had his
portrait, just as he now appears, so dignified and interesting.
His partiality flatters me greatly.
CHAPTER XVIII.
REVELATIONS OF LIFE IN THE ZENANA.
1831. Pedigree of the Kings of Oude Lucnow Mohurs Anniversary of the
Coronation The Prime Minister Khema-jah Feredooa Buckht Evil
omens Mossem-ood-Dowla Largesse Hars, Pan, and Atr The Zenana
Sultana Boa Mulka Zumanee Gosseina Tajmahiil Plurality of wives.
Saadut Khan, known at first under the name of Meer Muham-
mad Ameen, descended in a direct fine from the Imam Mousa
Kasim, of the family of Ali, esteemed in Persia as of the
highest and most noble extraction. During the civil wars, he
quitted Khorasan, his native province, and repaired to Lahore,
where he took the name of Saadut Khan. On the accession of
Mahmud Shah, he was created a noble of the empire, and
Soobadar of Oude, with the titles of "Pillar of the empire,
confident support of the state, Meer Muhammad Ameen Khan,
the Glory of War."
Fortune having proved favourable, he sent for his only sister,
the widow of a nobleman, Jaafer Beg, and her two sons, and
bestowed his only daughter in marriage on the elder brother, the
young Nawiib Munsoor Ulee Khan, commonly called Sefdar
Jung, who on the death of his uncle was confirmed by the king
in his government of Oude. He died in 1 756, leaving Soojah-
ood-Dowla his son and successor.
Soojah-ood-Dowla, the first prince of the race, died leaving
two sons, Ussuf-ood-Dowla and Saadut Ulee Khan. Ussuf-
ood-Dowla ascended the masnud ; he built Lucnow, and most of
the palaces around the city, also the Roomee Durwazah, and
the Imam-Bi^ra ; in the latter he was buried.
fJebigree ai % &mg0 af iDttbi?.
SAADUT
KHAN
A
MUN SOOR
ULEE KHAN
DIED 1756
DAUGHTER
SHOOJA
OOD DOWLA
USSUF
OOD DOWLA
WU/EER
ULEE KHAN
SAADUT
ULEE KHAN
oha:ee
OOD DEEN
HYDUR
NUSEER
| 000 DEEN
HVOUR
OIEO JULY 7~l17
I I U S E E R
000 DOWLA
MAHUMMUD
OUC SHAH
UM.IUD
ULEE SHAH
WAJID ULEESHUH
SOOLTAN ALUM
PRESENT KINO
U
DAUCHTER
KHEMA
J AH
MOOIMA
JAH
A
COUSIN
MOSSEM
OOD DOWLA
/
o>J%cL
PEDIGREE OF THE KINGS OF OUDE. 187
The Daulut Khana was also built by him ; in it is his picture,
by Zoffani. In fact, whenever you ask who built this or that
place, the answer is sure to be Ussuf-ood-Dowla.
He died, leaving no issue, and was succeeded by Wuzeer Ulee
Khan, an adopted son, but whom he declared to be his own.
Mr. Cherry was at this time Resident of Lucnow. Sir John
Shore deposed Wuzeer Ulee Khan, on account of his not being
the real son of the late king, and raised Saadut Ulee Khan to
the throne, the brother of Ussuf-ood-Dowla.
The deposed Wuzeer went to Benares, and attempted to
rouse the natives to murder all the English. In pursuance of
which plan, Ulee Khan came to Mr. Cherry's house, he being at
that time Resident at Benares, and murdered him, while sitting
at breakfast. The house of Mr. and Mrs. Davis, of the Civil
Service, was attacked. Mr. Davis and his wife ran up a narrow
winding staircase to the roof of the house, where, with a hog-
spear, he defended the door of the staircase, and kept his pur-
suers at bay until the arrival of the military from cantonments.
The roof of the house being flat, as is the custom in India, and
the narrowness of the winding stair admitting only one person
at a time, Mr. Davis was able to defend himself, and killed
several of the assailants. Wuzeer Ulee Khan was confined for
life in the Fort, in Calcutta, and died a few years ago.
Saadut Ulee Khan, the brother of Ussuf-ood-Dowla, amassed
thirteen millions of money, and left the throne to his son,
Ghazee-ood-Deen.
The Nawab Wuzeer, Ghazee-ood-Deen Hydur, assumed the
sceptre by the advice of his minister, Agha Meer. He cast off
allegiance to Delhi, and stamped coins in his own name.
The gold mohurs struck by him, bear the following inscrip-
tion in the Persian character :
" Coined in the Royal Treasury of Lucnow, Soubah Oude, in the 3rd year
of the great and auspicious reign. Struck in silver and gold, by the
grace of God, the giver of all good, by Ghazee-ood-Deen Hydur, the
Great Lord, the King of Time."
The crown is placed between two standards, on each of
188 WANDERINGS OF A PILGRIM.
which is a fish : the standards are supported by leopards :
beneath the crown is the double-handled dagger, a most
formidable weapon ; and at the base of the whole are two
large fish.
Ghazee-ood-Deen Hydur had no son, and one only daughter,
who married her cousin, and had issue Mossem-ood-Dowla, the
true heir to the throne ; a man whom you may see constantly
at the present king's table.
Ghazee-ood-Deen, instead of leaving the throne to his true heir
and grandson Mossem-ood-Dowla, left it to Nuseer-ood-Deen
Hydur, a boy whom the king declared to be his own son by a
slave girl; but who, they say, is in reality the son of a
dhobee (washerman) belonging to the palace. This man is the
present king of Lucnow. The English are aware of these facts.
On the decease of the present king, the succession will be dis-
puted, as he wishes to place a boy, named Khema-jah, on the
masnud, instead of his own son, Feredooa Buckht Moona-jah :
but for the history of these two boys, I refer you to the lives of
the wives of the king.
The Muhammadan law allows an adopted son to take the
place of a legitimate son at the pleasure of the parent, by
which law Nuseer-ood-Deen Hydur claimed the throne, and put
aside Mossem-ood-Dowla, the grandson of Ghazee-ood-Deen
Hydur.
29th. We drove to Barouda, a palace built in the French
style ; I saw there nothing worthy of remark, but two marble
tables, inlaid in the most delicate and beautiful manner with
flowers of the convolvulus.
30th. The Resident and all his party breakfasted with the
King on the anniversary of his coronation, which takes place
in any month, and on any day, according to his Majesty's
pleasure.
During breakfast my attention was deeply engrossed by the
prime minister, the Nawab Mootuzim-ul-Dowla, Mehndee Ulee
Khan Bahadur, commonly called Nawab Hakim Mehndi. I
conversed with him at times, and eyed him well as he was seated
next to me, and opposite the King, telling his beads the whole
THE PRIME MINISTER. 189
time, for good luck perhaps ; his rosary was composed of enor-
mous pearls.
His majesty's hooqu was presented to the Nawab ; Lord
William Bentinck and the Resident were honoured with the
same : it is a great distinction ; no subject can smoke, unless by
permission, in the royal presence. Hooqus are only presented
to the Governor-general, the Commander-in-chief, the Resident,
and the Bishop of Calcutta if he likes a pipe.
Numerous histories respecting the prime minister were cur-
rent in the bazar, far too romantic and extraordinary to be
believed, of which the following is a specimen :
" The truth or falsehood of the story rests on the head of
the narrator'."
" The dagger in his bosom and salutation in his mouth 2 ."
The hakim (physician or learned man) was formerly employed
on a salary of about twenty rupees a month. The commencement
of his enormous fortune began thus : He was in tents in the
district ; a very rich Hindoo was with him, within the (kanats)
canvass walls, with which tents are surrounded. This man was
said to have died during the night ; his corpse was given to his
relations, who were in the camp, to be burned according to
Hindoo custom. There were two black marks round the neck
of the corpse. It is a custom amongst Hindoos to put sweet-
meats into the mouth of a dead body. When they opened the
mouth of the corpse for this purpose, within it was found a
finger, bitten off at the second joint. On that very night the
confidential servant of the hakim lost his finger ! The hakim
seized the man's treasure, which laid the foundation of his
fortune. He next took into pay a number of thieves and
murderers, who made excursions, and shared the booty with the
hakim. They say the man's art is such that he keeps in favour
both with natives and Europeans, in spite of his crimes.
Having been unable to bring the Resident over to his views,
he is his sworn enemy, and would give thousands to any one
who would poison him. Many of the servants now standing
1 Oriental Proverbs, No. 33. 2 Ibid. 35.
190 WANDERINGS OF A PILGRIM.
behind the Resident's chair know the reward they might obtain.
They would not poison any dish from which many might eat,
the most likely thing in which it would be administered would
be coffee or ice !
After breakfast, the King went into the next apartment, where
the Resident, with all due form, having taken off the King's
turban, placed the crown upon his head, and he ascended the
masnud.
Khema-jah, the eldest boy, about fourteen years of age, is an
ill-looking low caste wretch, with long, straight, lank hair,
coarse, falling lips, and bad teeth. The manners and looks
of the boy proclaim his caste. He was the first person
presented to his Majesty, and received four or five dresses of
honour, made of thick Benares gold and silver kimkhwab, which
were all put upon his person one over the other. A jewelled
turban was put on his head, and a necklace of pearls and pre-
cious stones round his neck ; and over all these dresses of
honour were placed four or five pairs of Cashmere shawls. A
sword, dagger, and shield were given him ; an elephant, a horse,
and a palanquin. Having made his salam to his majesty, and
offered some gold mohurs, he retired.
The younger boy, Feredooa Buckht, a bold and independent
child, then came forward and received the same presents in the
same style.
The khil'ats (dresses of honour) are sometimes given away to
dependents on the same day ; this, if known, would be considered
an insult.
Then appeared the minister, the Nawab Hakim Mehndi :
when the first dress of honour was put on him, it being too
small, he could only put in one arm ; and there he stood shaking,
perhaps from an idea of its being a bad omen. The Nawiib
prostrated himself before the King, and took off his own turban ;
his Majesty himself immediately placed a jewelled one on the
uncovered head of the minister. Imagine the old man, sinking
beneath the weight of years, his head totally bald, and his person
overwhelmed with dresses of honour, shawls, and presents, like
those before given to the young princes : he trembled so much,
LARGESSE. 191
the elephant-goad fell from his hand, a sign of his own fall ;
and the gold mohurs he attempted to retain in his hands fell at
the foot of the throne. The people say there is a prophecy he
will come to an untimely end next February: "A bad omen
ought not to be mentioned 1 ."
When Mossem-ood-Dowla (the true heir) approached, he was
coldly received, and a deep cloud for some time darkened his
countenance. Mossem-ood-Dowla is a fine, handsome man, with
a keen eye, and a very intelligent, good-natured countenance.
It was a painful sight to see him do homage to one who had no
right to the throne, but through the power of an unjust law.
I was standing next to the Resident and the Prime Minister,
when, during a part of the ceremony, a shower of precious
stones was thrown over us ; I looked at the Resident, and saw
him move his arm to allow the valuables that had fallen upon
him to drop to the ground ; I imitated his example by moving
my scarf, on which some were caught ; it would have been infra
dig. to have retained them ; they fell to the ground, and were
scrambled for by the natives ; the shower consisted of emeralds,
rubies, pearls, &c, &c.
A magnifique style of largesse !
After all the dresses of honour had been presented to the
different persons, a har (a necklace of gold and silver tinsel,
very elegantly made,) was placed around the neck of each of the
visitors ; atr of roses was put on my hands, and on the hands
of some other visitors, in compliment to the Resident, by his
Majesty himself. Pan was presented, and rose water was
sprinkled over us ; after which ceremonies, we all made our
bohut bohut udiib siilam 2 to the King of Oude, and took our
departure. The gold and silver tinsel hars have been substituted
for strings of pearl, which it was customary to present to visitors,
until an order of government, promulgated four years ago,
forbade the acceptance of presents.
1 Oriental Proverbs, No. 36. ' Most respectful reverence.
192 WANDERINGS OF A PILGRIiM.
THE ZENANA.
" WHEREVER THERE IS A FAIRY-FACED DAMSEL, SHE IS ATTENDED BY
A DEMON 1 ."
The following account of the Begams was given me by one
whose life would have paid the forfeit, had it been known he had
revealed the secrets of the zenana ; he desired me not to mention
it at the time, or he should be murdered on quitting Oude.
SULTANA BOA.
" The Queen is the daughter of his Royal Highness Mirza
Muhammad Suliman Sheko, the own brother of the present
Emperor of Delhi, Akbar Shah.
" From the first day after marriage, neglected and ill-treated,
she was only allowed, until lately, twenty rupees a day ; she has
now 2000 rupees a month, but is not permitted to leave her
apartments ; the servants of her family have all been discharged,
and she is in fact a prisoner. Neither the King nor any of his
family ever visit her, and no other person is permitted to approach
her apartments.
"The lady of the Resident told me, ' She is a great beauty, the
handsomest woman she ever saw ;' I have seen her sister, and
can easily believe she has not exaggerated. The Queen is now
about sixteen or seventeen years old (1830), and has been
married, I believe, about five years.
" Mirza Suliman Sheko, the father, lived at Lucnow since the
time of Ussuf-ood-Dowla, and was forced by the late King of
Oude to give him his daughter in marriage. The mehn (dower)
of the Princess was settled at five crores 3 , and the father had a
grant of 5000 rupees a month, which is not paid ; and in June,
1828, the Prince was insulted, and obliged to quit Lucnow with
every sort of indignity."
MULKA ZUMANEE.
" The second begam is the wife of Ramzanee, a cherkut or
1 Oriental Proverbs, No. 37. s Ibid. No. 38.
3 A karor is ten millions.
THE ZENANA. 193
elephant servant, who is now pensioned on thirty rupees a
month, and kept in surveillance at Sandee ; some time after her
marriage the lady proved naughty, and was next acknowledged as
the chere amie of an itinerant barber; she left him, and took service
with Mirza Jewad Ali Beg's family as a servant-of-all-work, on
eight anas a month and her food. She was next heard of as a
gram-grinder at serai, where her eldest son, by name Til-
looah, was born ; her next child was a daughter.
" At this time Moonah Jah (Feredooa Buckht) was born in
the palace ; and, amongst others who sought the situation of
nurse, Ramzanee's wife attended ; she was approved of by the
hakims, and was installed nurse to the heir-apparent.
" Her age was then near forty, her size immoderate, her com-
plexion the darkest ; but she soon obtained such influence over
the King, that he married her, and gave her the title of (the
daughter of the Emperor Furrukshere, and the wife of the
Emperor Mohummud Shah,) Mulka Zumanee ! Well may she
exclaim, ' Oh Father ! I have got into a strange difficulty, I have
left off picking up cow-dung, and am employed in embroidery ' ! '
" She has a jagheer of 50,000 rupees a month, and the power
of expending 50,000 rupees more from the treasury monthly.
Her son Tillooah was about three years of age when she was
entertained as nurse, but such was her power, that his Majesty
publicly declared himself the father of the boy, and he was in
consequence recognised as heir to the crown, with the title of
Khema Jah ! "
The King has five queens, although by Mahummadan law he
ought only to have four. His Majesty of Oude possesses, to a
considerable extent, that peculiarly masculine faculty of retain-
ing the passion, and changing the object.
He heeds not the proverb, " Do not put your beard into the
hands of another 2 ."
As far as I recollect the history of his last and favourite wife,
it is this :
The Nawab Hakim Mehndi, finding his influence less than
usual, adopted a Nach girl as his daughter, because the King
1 Oriental Proverbs, No. 39. 2 Ibid, No. 40.
O
194 WANDERINGS OF A PILGRIM.
admired her, and induced his Majesty to marry her. Her name
is Gosseina ; she is not pretty, but possesses great influence over
her royal lover. This girl, some fourteen months ago, was
dancing at the Residency for twenty-five rupees a night : and a
woman of such low caste not even a sii'is would have married
her. The King now calls the hakim his father-in-law, and
says, " I have married your daughter, but you have not married
her mother ; I insist on your marrying her mother." The hakim
tries to fight off, and says he is too old ; but the King often
annoys him by asking when the marriage is to take place.
" There is no bird like a man '," i.e. so volatile and unsteady.
The beautiful Tajmahul, whom I mentioned in Chapter X., is
entirely superseded by this Gosseina, the present reigning
favourite ; Tajmahul has taken to drinking, and all the King's
drunken bouts are held at her house.
When he marched to Cawnpore, he took Tajmahul and
Gosseina with him, and their retinue was immense. It is said,
that the beautiful Timoorian, Sultana Boa, the Princess of Delhi,
was so much disgusted at her father's being forced to give her in
marriage to Nusseer-ood-Deen Hydur, and looked upon him as a
man of such low caste, in comparison with herself, that she
never allowed him to enter her palace, a virgin queen.
Her sister, Mulka Begam, married her first cousin, Mirza
Selim, the son of the emperor, Akbar Shah ; from whom she
eloped with Mr. James Gardner, and to the latter she was after-
wards married. This elopement was the cause of the greatest
annoyance and distress to Col. Gardner, nor did he grant his
forgiveness to his son for years afterwards.
Affairs being in so unpleasant a state at the Court of Lucnow,
was the cause of Lady Wm. Bentinck's being unable to visit the
zenana ; and after her ladyship's departure, I was prevented
going there by the same reason.
One cannot be surprised at a Musulman's taking advantage
of the permission given him by his lawgiver with respect to a
plurality of wives.
1 Oriental Proverbs, No. 41.
THE ZENANA. 195
The Prophet himself did not set the best possible example in
his own domestic circle, having had eighteen wives ! Nevertheless,
his code of laws respecting marriage restricted his followers to
four wives, besides concubines.
In a book published in England, it is observed, " there are
some instances of remarkable generosity in the conduct of good
wives, which would hardly gain credit with females differently
educated." This, being interpreted, means, a good wife provides
new wives for her husband !
The King is very anxious the Resident should patronize
Khema Jah, his adopted son, and is much annoyed he can gain
no control over so independent and noble-minded a man.
CHAPTER XIX.
THE RETURN TO ALLAHABAD. EXECUTION OF TWENTY-
FIVE THUGS.
"who has seen to-morrow?"
i. e. Enjoy to-day, no one knows what will happen to-morrow '.
Removal to Allahabad Crocodiles Aurunzebe's Fort The Old Well at
Kurrah Arrival at Allahabad The Thermantidote The King's Picture and
the Celestials Pattu Execution of Twenty-five Thugs Cholera The
Effect on the Insane The Arabian Leprosy Elephantiasis Asylums for the
Blind and for Lepers Lachhml, the Goddess of Prosperity Intense Heat
Early Rising Danger of a Thermantidote List of Servants.
1831. Feb. \st. We quitted the Residency at Lucnow, feeling
greatly gratified by the kindness we had experienced from the
Resident, and returned to Cawnpore.
We now prepared for our removal to Allahabad, the horses
and carriages having been dispatched by land ; the furniture,
&c., was put into six great country boats, one of which, an
immense 900 miin patailii, contained cows, sheep, goats, besides
a number of fowls, guinea-fowls, turkeys, &c. ; and on the top of
all was a great thermantidote.
17 th. We quitted Cawnpore, and commenced our voyage
down the Ganges.
\8th. The low sandbanks in the river swarm with crocodiles ;
'en are basking on a bank to the left of our boat, and five or six
.ire just ahead. The sahib has fired at them several times, but
they are beyond the reach of pistol shot. They are timid
1 Oriental Proverbs, No. 42.
COUNTRY BOATS. 197
animals ; as soon as you approach them they dive down into the
river. We have only seen the long-nosed crocodiles, none of
the snub-nosed alligators. What a monster there is very near
us, and such a winsome wee one by its side ! I want a baby
crocodile very much for my cabinet.
At Sheorajpore our friends tried to tempt us to remain with
them, showing us a nil-ga'i, a wild boar, hares, black par-
tridges, and the common grey partridges, that they had shot ;
and offering us an elephant to enable us to join the sportsmen
the next day.
How much I enjoy the quietude of floating down the river,
and admiring the picturesque ghats and temples on its banks 1
This is the country of the picturesque, and the banks of the river
in parts are beautiful.
On the morning of our quitting Lucnow, my aide-de-camp, the
young Bhopaul chieftain, was made quite happy by being allowed
to make his salam to his Majesty, who gave him a dress of
honour.
I can write no more ; the sahib's vessel has lugaoed, that is,
has made fast to the bank ; I must go out shooting with him,
and mark the game.
\9th. We slept off Nobusta ; the wind was very high, it blew
a gale, but the high bank afforded us protection. Our boats are
large, flat-bottomed, shallow, and broad country boats, on each of
which a great house is built of bamboo and mats, and the roof
is thatched. The interior is fitted up with coloured chintz, like
that used for tents. Such unwieldy vessels are very likely to be
upset in a storm. The great pataila, which contains the cows,
&c, has given us much trouble; she has been aground several
times, being, from her height and bulk, almost unmanageable in
a strong wind.
It is very cold, the rain is falling fast ; all the servants and
the crew look so deplorable, and keep their shoulders to their
ears. The horses on their march will be exposed to it ; they are
merely sheltered by a tree at night, a cold berth for animals
accustomed to warm stables.
20th. This has been a day of rain and contrary wind ; we
198 WANDERINGS OF A PILGRIM.
have made but little way, and being unable to reach Mirzapore,
have lugaoed off a sand-bank.
2 Is*. We breakfasted at Mirzapore, and reached Kurrah at
night, where we moored our little fleet under an old fort built
by Aurunzebe. No sooner had we made fast, than a heavy
storm came on, accompanied by thunder and lightning, hail and
rain ; the latter was so heavy, it soaked through the thatch of
the bamboo houses on the boats, and rendered us very uncom-
fortable. The large pataila was missing, but came in the next
day with her cargo of cows and sheep ; from her height she must
have been in danger, as she had not gained the land when the
storm came on.
We have moored just below Aurunzebe's fort, over which I
have roamed ; it is an excellent subject for a sketch ; the view
from the height is beautiful.
On the other side is an old well, built of the very small Hin-
dostani bricks ; the river has washed away all the bank in which
the well was originally sunk, and it now stands naked on the
sand, a remarkable object.
24th. We arrived at Allahabad, and my husband took charge
of his appointment. Then commenced dinner-parties^ given in
honour of our return by our old friends at the station.
Am I not happy once more in dear old Prag ? We have no
troubles as at Cawnpore ; no one poisons our horses ; all the
people around us appear pleased at our return, and eager to
serve us ; our neighbours here are friends interested in our
welfare. My old carpenters, the saddler, the ironsmith, the
painter, the stonecutter, and the sealing-wax-maker, are all in
their old nooks in the verandah.
March 1st. It was so cold we had fires of an evening, which
were not discontinued until the 5th of the month.
Our friend Capt. B is going home ; he will tell those we
love of our goings out and comings in, and will be as a connecting
link to those, betwixt whom and us this great gulph of distance
is fixed. It really requires an exile from home to be able to
enjoy its blessings. He will, or ought to run about almost de-
mented for the first year. Heaven prosper the good country !
THE THERMANTIDOTE. 199
I hope to turn Hampshire hog myself, either here or hereafter,
after the Pythagorean system.
The weather is becoming very hot ; we are making our house
look cool and comfortable, colouring it with French grey, and
hanging pankhas in preparation for the hot winds. We hope
to feel cool by the aid of a thermantidote, for which we are
building a terrace and verandah.
The thermantidote is a structure awful to behold ; but we
shall benefit from its good effect ; and, like a steam-boat, shall
be able to do without wind, which, with the tattls commonly in
use, is the sine qua non for fraicheur.
A thermantidote is an enormous machine for forcing cool air
into the house ; it is made of amra (mango wood) , or of sakoo
(shorea robusta) : the wheels and axle are of iron. In height, it
is about seven feet, in breadth four or five, and some nine or ten
or twelve feet in length.
There is a little machine sold in England, under the name of
a fire-blower, which is on the same principle, and is almost a
miniature thermantidote. It also resembles in some respects a
machine for winnowing corn, but on a larger scale.
The thermantidote, which is hollow, and of circular form,
has a projecting funnel, which is put through and fixed into
a window of the house, from the machine which stands in the
verandah.
In the interior, four large fans are affixed to an iron axle,
which, passing through the centre of the machine, is turned
round by two men on the outside ; by which means the fans
revolve, and force the air out of the thermantidote through the
funnel into the house.
To render the outer air cool, which is thus driven into the
house, a circle of about four feet in diameter is cut out in the
planks which form the two broad sides of the thermantidote ;
and beyond these circles khas-khas tattls are affixed ; so that
the vacuum produced by forcing the air out of the machine is
supplied by air passing through the tattls.
On each side of the thermantidote, on the outside at the top,
a long trough is fixed, perforated with small holes in its bottom.
200 WANDERINGS OF A PILGRIM.
Water is constantly poured into these troughs, which, dropping
through the holes upon the tattis placed below them, keeps
them constantly wetted. This water is received below in two
similar troughs, and, passing through a little spout at the
side, is collected in tubs, or in large high earthen pans. Coolies
are constantly employed in handing up this water, in thiliyas
(earthen waterpots) , to other coolies on the top of the therman-
tidote, whose business it is to keep the tattis constantly dripping
wet. By this means, all the air that passes into the body of the
machine through the wetted khas-khas is rendered cool, and fit
to be forced into the house by the action of the fans in their
circular course.
The thermantidote stands upon four small wheels, which
facilitate the movement of so cumbersome and ponderous a
machine.
Khas-khas was put on the thermantidote to-day ; you have
no idea how fragrant, delicious, and refreshing is the scent of the
fresh khas khas, which is the root of a high jungle grass, called
gandar (andropogon muricatum) . These fibrous roots are thinly
worked into bamboo frames, which fit exactly into the therman-
tidote, or into windows. These frames are kept constantly
watered, for the purpose of cooling the hot wind ; which, passing
through the wetted roots, is lowered many degrees in tempera-
ture, owing to the evaporation that is produced.
Our station is about to be increased by the addition of two
Boards ; one of Revenue, and one of Criminal and Civil Justice.
The station is already sufficiently large for quiet society.
We have received the news of a Chinese revolution ; or rather
the old squabble, but of a more violent sort, between the Fac-
tory and the Hong merchants. Trade is stopped, and the
papers here are talking of the necessity of fitting out an expe-
dition to chastise the celestials. The mob broke into the Factory,
and, amongst other extravagancies, amused themselves with
spitting at the King's picture, and then turning it with its face
to the wall !
The Arabs bring down a sort of coarse shawl, called puttuah
or pattu ; it is extremely light, and remarkably soft and warm.
EXECUTION OF TWENTY-FIVE THUGS. 201
I was examining some, intending to purchase it : " This is not a
good piece," said I. " The name of God is better than this !"
exclaimed the man, with indignation ; meaning, nothing is
superior to it but the name of God 1 .
EXECUTION OF TWENTY-FIVE THUGS.
May 9th. The inhabitants at Jubbulpore w r ere this morning
assembled to witness the execution of twenty-five Thugs, who
were all hanged at the same time, arrangements having been
previously made. It would be impossible to find in any country
a set of men who meet death with more indifference than these
wretches ; and, had it been in a better cause, they would have
excited universal sympathy.
As it was, there was something dreadful in the thought that
men, who had so often imbrued their hands in blood, should
meet their death with such carelessness. I believe they had
previously requested to be allowed to fasten the cord around
their necks with their own hands ; certain it is that each indi-
vidual, as soon as he had adjusted the noose, jumped off the
beam, and launched himself into eternity ; and those who first
mounted the ladder selected their ropes, rejecting such as did
not please them. One of them, who had leaped off the beam,
and had been hanging for more than three seconds, put his hand
up and pulled his cap over his face.
This is the second execution of Thugs that has taken place
here, but no accident happened this time, nor did a single rope
break.
However satisfied with the justice of their sentence, of which,
from the many sanguinary murders proved, there can be no
doubt ; still, it cannot but be lamented that the course of
justice is so slow ; as these men, who were this day executed,
have been in prison for more than eight years, for want of suf-
ficient evidence.
The number of Thugs in the neighbouring countries is enor-
mous ; a hundred and fifteen, I believe, belonged to the party of
1 Oriental Proverbs, No. 43.
202 WANDERINGS OF A PILGRIM.
which twenty-five were executed, and the remainder are to be
transported ; and report says there are as many more in the
Saugor jail.
Too much credit cannot be given to the principal assistants of
this district, who have succeeded in capturing so many of them ;
and Capt. S has the satisfaction of knowing that by his
endeavours these men have been seized.
The extent of murder committed by the Thugs exceeds belief ;
and some time since a serjeant -major was murdered by a party
of them. One of the principal assistants, some time ago, when
marching in the district, received information that some bodies
which had been strangled were under his tent, and upon digging,
he discovered a great many !
One of the men who were executed this morning was a cha-
prasi, who had been sent towards Nagpore to seize the party,
but who joined himself with them, and by his presence protected
them.
A guard of a company of sipahls, under the command of
Lieut. G , was in attendance ; but there was not the slightest
disturbance, nor did the natives betray the slightest emotion of
any kind, except one Nujeeb, who fainted.
A Spectator.
ISth. Deep grief and affliction has fallen upon us ; the
happiness of our lives is overcast : the stroke of death has
deprived us of one beloved most tenderly.
Our physician has just quitted us : we have had a conversa-
tion on the subject of the dreadful malady that has wrought for
us so much misery : he says,
" Cholera is the endemic of Ceylon: from the year 1813 to
1817 I never met with it in India. In 1817 it burst out in a
madhouse, of which I had the charge, and the patients con-
fined there died daily, in the course of a few hours after the
first seizure. The horror produced amongst the unfortunate
insane was so great that many became perfectly sane. One
instance was remarkable.
" A man who had attempted to destroy himself in a fit of
CHOLERA. 203
frenzy, by cutting his own throat, and stabbing himself, became
perfectly sane ; and coming to me, entreated to be allowed to
leave the mad-house, as he was sure he should die of the
cholera. It was utterly impossible his request could be granted
at the moment ; in the course of the week he fell a victim to
the malady he dreaded."
Our medical man added, "The causes of cholera are quite
unknown. I know that the disease is often confined to a space
of two or three hundred yards : for instance, deaths occur daily
in the madhouse. In the jail, which contained five hundred
prisoners, and was not three hundred yards distant, not a case
appeared. I was so well convinced of the disease being con-
fined to a certain spot, that I applied for leave to remove all the
insane to a spare room in the jail ; from the time of their
entering the jail, not one man died of cholera.
" The environs, as well as the interior of the madhouse were
quite clear and pure ; no stagnant water, nothing that could
generate disease in any shape."
I mentioned that it was supposed our beloved one had been
exposed to the baneful influence of cholera, in passing through
Arcot, where it was known to be. He said, " Certainly not, it
would not lurk about a person twenty-four hours." Until the
moment she was seized she was in perfect health. " I once saw
a man, previously in good health, seized with cholera ; he was
sitting in a chair, talking to me : he dropped his nervous
power quite prostrated ; he was perfectly sensible the whole
time, and died in a few hours."
I asked, if the sufferings were not very great the physician
replied, " I should think not, from the extreme want of life in
the body. The effect of the illness is such, that the vital spark
is almost extinguished whilst still the body breathes." He said,
" You should not grieve at the speedy termination of her illness ;
from severe cholera it is hardly possible to recover. Those who
do recover, generally linger on for twelve or fourteen days, and
then expire in a melancholy state : it is better it should termi-
nate at once '."
1 See Appendix, No. 18.
204 WANDERINGS OF A PILGRIM.
It came from Ceylon, and broke out with dreadful severity in
1817; especially in what we call Bengal, which is 100 miles
around the Presidency ; since which time, it has raged partially
in Calcutta, and all the Lower Provinces, also in the higher ;
hut in the Central Provinces, in which Allahabad is situated, it
is very rare, only one case of cholera having occurred during
the last two years at this station.
At Berhampore it is dreadfully prevalent ; the 48th regi-
ment quitted this a short time ago by the river, and lost nine
men at that place. No diet, no care, can avail. Our medical
man said, " I can compare it to nothing but a flash of light-
ning ; its effects are instantaneous ; the nerves from the first
moment are powerless, dull, and torpid."
If I were to be seized with it to-morrow, I should only
strive to resign myself quietly to my fate, feeling, that to strive
against the malady is hopeless : in fever you have hope, in
cholera scarcely a shadow of it ; it is better not indulged ; but
the disease is so powerful it dulls the senses, mercifully dulls
them.
The cholera is raging at Malda ; all the public works are
stopped in consequence.
\8th. The thermantidote has been put up in our verandah.
The rooms are ten degrees cooler than when we had only
tattls. For the first time I have been laid up with a strong
attack of rheumatism and lumbago. My medical man says,
"The thermantidote pours forth such a volume of cold air,
that if you have fallen asleep near it, it has caused all these
aches and pains. ' Nulla rosa senza spine.' "
THE ARABIAN LEPROSY (KOOSTIJM).
Happily this dreadful disease is not as common as the other
forms of leprosy : but once I beheld a dreadful specimen of its
virulence; going into the verandah at 7 a.m., where the car-
penters were all at work,a close and most disagreeable effluvium
annoyed me the cause could not be discovered.
Just beyond, in the garden, lay a lump under a black blanket.
" What is this ? " said Lutchman, the carpenter, " the smell pro-
ARABIAN LEPROSY. 205
ceeds from this lump." He raised the blanket, beneath it
was a leper. Lutchman desired the man to quit the grounds.
The poor wretch held up his hands and showed his feet ; the
fingers and toes of which were festering and rotten from the
black Arabian leprosy !
I desired he might be carried to the hospital. " We will not
touch him," said the servants; "let him go to the leper hos-
pital." I sent the man a rupee. " What is the use of a rupee? "
said Lutchman, " he cannot enter the bazar ; how can he change
it? " I sent him some copper coins. " Perhaps some one of
low caste will bring him food and take the anas," said the
carpenter. The poor wretch raised himself, made salam for
the money, and crawled away on his knees and elbows.
The next day he was found dead in a field : some of the
copper coins had been expended, the remainder and the rupee
were on his person.
The man had come up from Calcutta on a boat, had been
put ashore under our garden bank, and had crawled up ; he had
not a cowrie. " There was not even left a sigh in his heart '."
He was totally destitute : but of this I was ignorant, until
the next day. The effluvium was so bad, and the danger of
infection so fearful, it was necessary to remove him at once from
the garden.
There is a pink leprosy very common : I have often seen a
man once T saw two men bathing amongst a multitude of
men and women, their skins were pink, like the pink of salmon ;
the disease is not catching, I understand, and they are not
avoided.
Another leprosy shows itself in white spots on their dark
skins. I was practising archery one morning early ; suddenly
from behind a tree, a woman came to me, and throwing herself on
the ground, laid hold of my foot with both hands, and bent her
head upon it ; saying, " Mercy, mercy, Beebee Sahiba ! " " May
you bathe in milk, and be fruitful in children 2 ! " A gentleman
present caught me by the shoulder, and pulled me back, at the
1 Oriental Proverbs, No. 44. ' Ibid. 45.
206 WANDERINGS OF A PILGRIM.
same time speaking angrily to the woman. " Do you not see,"
said he, " she is a leper? She is covered with spots, come away,
Lam very sorry she touched you." I gave her some anas, and
told her to go to the hospital one established by the contri-
butions of the gentlemen at the station, and supported by sub-
scription. There is, also, an asylum for the blind, supported in
the same manner.
If I remember correctly, in the course of six weeks after the
opening of the Leper Hospital, it contained sixty patients. I
have often walked my horse round the compound, during my
morning ride, to look at the poor creatures.
The elephantiasis, called by the natives fil-pal, from 11, an
elephant, and pal a foot, is sometimes seen in the Up Country,
but is not as common as in Bengal ; perhaps the chapaties,
thin cakes of unleavened bread which the natives here eat,
conduce more to health than rice, the principal food in Bengal.
However that may be, it is certain so many miserable objects
are not to be seen here afflicted with fil-pal, as in that low,
marshy, and swampy country.
Divine service is performed at Allahabad, either in the Fort
or at the Circuit Bungalow, the resident families being unable
amongst themselves to raise a sum sufficient to build a hand-
some church : nevertheless they are the most liberal contri-
butors to all charitable institutions.
LACHHMI, THE GODDESS OF BEAUTY.
There is to be a raffle for an English imported chestnut horse.
I have taken a ticket, but not without first invoking Lachhml,
the goddess of beauty and prosperity. She who is painted yellow,
and dwells in a water-lily, the goddess of fortunate signs ; she
who holds the water-lily in her hands, she in whom all take
refuge, the wife of Huree.
If a man be growing rich, the Hindoos say, " Lachhml is
gone to abide in his house : " if he be sinking into poverty,
"Lachhml has forsaken him." If they wish to abuse a man
they call him " Lachhml-chara, " i. e. luckless.
Vishnoo obtained this goddess of beauty from the sea, when
/
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t-
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as
O
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LACHHM1, THE GODDESS OF BEAUTY. 207
it was churned by the good and evil spirits for the amrita, or
immortal beverage. Like Venus she arose beautiful from the
foam of the ocean, ascended to the heavens, and captivated all
the gods.
In the sketch which I copied from a native picture at Prag,
the beautiful goddess, seated in a water-lily, is bathing in a
novel style. Four elephants, from their trunks, are pouring
the Ganges water over her.
Oh ! Lachhml, send the chestnut horse to abide in my
stables ! let me rejoice in Akbal ! (good fortune.)
" From the body of Lachhml the fragrance of the lotus
extends 800 miles. This goddess shines like a continued blaze
of lightning ! "
It is as well to remark, with respect to this sketch, that at
the end of each of the trunks of the four elephants there is a
turn, which, in the original old Hindoo drawing from which I
copied it, I could not comprehend. In putting it on stone I
left those four turns, but not quite so large as in the original.
Since which time I have minutely examined a marble image in
my possession, of two elephants pouring water over the head of
the beautiful goddess, who appears seated on a water-lily, with
a chatr, the emblem of royalty, over her head, and the buds of
the lotus in her hands.
Each of these elephants holds in his trunk one of those long-
necked globe-shaped bottles, in which the pilgrims carry holy
water, and from them they are pouring the liquid. It is possible
that the circles that are indistinct in the Hindoo drawing of the
four elephants may have been the outlines of such bottles.
However, the sea-born goddess is placed in a much more
picturesque point of view, if you imagine her as she appears,
floating in the beautiful and pure blossom of the lotus, while
bathed from the trunks of the elephants with the sacred water
of the Ganges.
Since our arrival from Cawnpore, I have never mounted my
horse, my spirits have been too much depressed.
June 1st. Finding myself ill for want of exercise, I com-
menced rising early ; dressing by candlelight, going out by
208 WANDERINGS OF A PILGRIM.
moonlight, and mounting my horse at half-past 3 a.m. ! What
an unnatural life ! The buggy is always sent forward to await
my arrival at a certain spot ; I never draw my horse's rein until
I arrive at the place, the heat is so much greater when you
walk your horse. I return in the buggy at 6 a.m., go to bed
for a couple of hours, bathe, and appear at breakfast.
How often " Char vajr, barl fajr," i. e. four o'clock in the
early dawn, sleepy and unwilling to exert myself, have I thought
of the proverb : " Oh, thou who art so fond of sleep, why
don't you die at once ' ? "
To-day the heat is dreadful ; 89 even at the mouth of the
thermantidote, and in the other parts of the house six degrees
higher ! After my early canter, I did not quit my charpal until
3 p.m., so completely was I exhausted by the heat.
Although by nature not inclined to the melting mood, I felt
as if I should dissolve, such streams from my forehead, such
thirst, and lassitude ; I really " thaw, and resolve myself into
a dew." The call all day is soda-water, soda-water.
To the 21st of June, this oppressive weather held its sway;
our only consolation grapes, iced-water, and the thermantidote,
which answers admirably, almost too well, as on the 22nd I was
laid up with rheumatic fever and lumbago, occasioned, they
tell me, by standing, or sleeping before it after coming in from
a canter before sunrise.
22nd. Heavy rain fell, the thermantidote was stopped, and
the tattls taken down; nor were they replaced, as the rain
poured down almost night and day from that time until the end
of the month.
30th. We had a party at home : the thermometer during
the day 88 ; after dinner it rose to 91, in consequence of the
numerous lamps in the rooms, and the little multitude of
servants in attendance.
1 Oriental Proverbs, No. 46.
SERVANTS IN INDIA. 209
A LIST OF SERVANTS IN A PRIVATE FAMILY.
Wages.
No. Rupees per month.
1 A khansamiin, or head man ; a Musalmiin servant who
purchases the provisions, makes the confectionary,
and superintends the table . . . .12
2 The abdar, or water-cooler ; cools the water, ices the
wines, and attends with them at table . . 8
3 The head khidmatgar ; he takes charge of the plate-
chest, and waits at table . . . .7
4 A second khidmatgar, who waits at table . . 6
5 A bawarchi, or cook . . . .12
6 Mate bawarchi . . . . .4
7 Mashalchl ; dish-washer and torch-bearer . . 4
8 Dhobee, or washerman . . . .8
9 Istree wala, washerman for ironing . . .8
10 A darzee, or tailor . . . . .8
1 1 A second tailor . . . . .6
12 An ay ha, or lady's maid . . . .10
13 An under woman . . . . .6
14 A doriya ; a sweeper, who also attends to the dogs . 4
15 Sirdar-bearer, an Hindoo servant, the head of the
bearers, and the keeper of the sahib's wardrobe ; the
keys of which are always carried in his kamarband,
the folds of cloth around his waist . . 8
1 6 The mate-bearer ; assists as valet, and attends to the
lamps . . . . . .6
22 Six bearers to pull the pankhas, and dust the furni-
niture, &c. . . . . . .24
23 A gwala, or cowherd . . . . .4
24 A bher-i-wala, or shepherd . . . .5
25 A murgh-i-wala, to take care of the fowls, wild-ducks,
quail, rabbits, guinea-fowls, and pigeons . . 4
26 A malee, or gardener . . . . .5
27 A mate, do. . . . . . .3
28 Another mate, or a cooly . . . .2
VOL. i. p
/
210 WANDERINGS OF A PILGRIM.
Wages.
No. Rupees per month.
29 A gram- grinder, generally a woman who grinds the
chanil for the horses . . . .2
30 A coachman . . . .10
38 Eight sa'ises, or (grooms), at five rupees each, for eight
horses . . . . . .40
46 Eight grass-cutters, at three rupees each, for the above 24
47 A bihishti, or water-carrier . . . .5
48 A mate bihishti . . . . .4
49 A Barha'i mistree, a carpenter . . .8
50 Another carpenter . . . . .7
52 Two coolies, to throw water on the tattis . . 4
54 Two chaukldars, or watchmen . . .8
55 A durwan, or gate-keeper . . . .4
57 Two chapriisis, or running footmen, to carry notes,
and be in attendance in the verandah . .10
57 total. Rupees per month 290
or about 290Z. per annum.
During the hot winds, a number of extra coolies, twelve or
fourteen, are necessary, if you have more than one therman-
tidote, or if you keep it going all night as well as during the
day; these men, as well as an extra bihishti, are discharged
when the rains set in.
We, as quiet people, find these servants necessary. Some
gentlemen for state add an assa burdar, the bearer of a long
silver staff; and a sonta burdar, or chob-dar, who carries a silver
club, with a grim head on the top of it. The business of these
people is to announce the arrival of company.
If many dogs are kept, an extra doriya will be required.
The above is a list of our own domestics, and the rate of
their wages.
The heat of the climate, added to the customs and prejudices
of the natives, oblige you to keep a number of servants ; but
you do not find them in food as in England. One man will not
' V
SERVANTS IN INDIA. 211
do the work of another, but says, " I shall lose caste," which
caste, by the bye, may be regained by the expenditure of a few
rupees in a dinner to their friends and relatives. The Moham-
madan servants pretend they shall lose caste ; but, in fact, they
have none : the term is only applicable to the Hindoos.
If your khansaman and sirdar-bearer are good and honest
servants, you have little or no trouble with an Indian house-
hold ; but, unless you are fortunate with your head servants,
there is great trouble in keeping between fifty or sixty domestics
in order.
i2
CHAPTER XX.
SCENES AT ALLAHABAD PILGRIMAGE TO THE TRIVENI.
The old Brahman The Triveni The Achivut The Patal Pooree Temples
of Bhardoajmun Radha Krishnii Hindoo oath The Tulsl The Peepul-
tree The Letin leaves Lamps in the air Paintings on Ubruk Impres-
sions on leaves and flowers The Mootee Musjid The Crows a pest Bya
birds- Haymaking The silver Tankard An Earthquake Transferring dis-
eases to flowers Perjury Farming operations Oats Bhoodder Ram the
Dwarf The Camel The Powder-works and Rocket manufactory.
1831, July 6th. I study the customs and superstitions of the
Hindoos so eagerly, that my friends laugh and say, " We expect
some day to see you at pooja in the river ! "
In one of the temples near the Circuit bungalow, I was sur-
prised at seeing two small brazen figures of Krishnii and his
love Radha, or, to speak more correctly, of Radha Krishnii,
dressed up in silks and satins. Making a reverence, " Salitmut,"
I exclaimed, in Hindostani, " yah ! yah ! " " Oh, my father, what
a beautiful Krishnii is this ! and there is Radha the beloved.
This is, indeed, a Krishnii ; I never saw so beautiful a fellow ! "
The old Brahman made many saliims and reverences, exclaiming,
" There is an excellent mem sahiba! she understands all, she
understands every thing ! " As Krishnii of yore charmed every
woman who beheld him, so that quitting all on earth they fol-
lowed and worshipped him alone, T suppose the old Hindoo
imagined his god still retained the power of fascination.
PILGRIMAGE TO THE TRIVENI.
The Hindoos think it most meritorious to make a pilgrimage
PILGRIMAGE TO THE TRIVENI. 213
to the holy city of Prag (Allahabad) ; but this is not perfect,
unless they visit three different places on that spot :
1st. The junction of the Ganges and Jumna.
2nd. The holy Achibut, or Akhivut.
3rd. The temples of Bhardoajmun.
One of the holiest spots of the Ganges is where it joins the
Jumna (Yamuna) , just below the fort. The Saraswati is sup-
posed to unite with them underground, whence the junction is
called Triveni or Tribeni. This spot is deemed so holy that a
person dying there is certain of immediate moskh or beatitude,
without risk of further transmigration.
There is a mythological representation of the Triveni, or
mystical union of the three divine rivers personified, " Gunga,
Yamuna, Saraswati." The drawing represents a female with
three heads and six arms, riding astride upon a fish. The
Hindoos say the Ganges and Jumna unite above ground ; the
Saraswati joins them below ; this they see with the eye of faith.
In reality, the Saraswati falls into the Jumna a little below
Delhi ; and, therefore, they all three unite below the fort at
Prag. Saraswati, the wife of Vishnoo, by the curse of a Brah-
man was turned into the river which bears her name.
The Puranas declare that the sight, the name, or the touch of
Gunga takes away all sin, however heinous ; that thinking of
Gunga when at a distance is sufficient to remove the taint of sin ;
but that bathing in Gunga has blessings in it, of which no imagi-
nation can conceive. At the Tribeni they bathe and make
pooja.
THE HOLY ACHIBUT.
This tree grows in, or is enclosed within the walls of the fort,
in such a manner that you cannot see it from any place. They
take you into a room, which was formerly one of an hummam, or
steam bath. This room is called the Achibut chamber, and
there, with the eye of faith, the pilgrims behold the everlasting
tree ; which they believe has been there from the beginning
of time, and will remain there to all eternity. They showed me
a crack in the roof, and said, "Do you not see the branch of the
214 WANDERINGS OF A PILGRIM.
tree has cracked the roof in three places?" I certainly saw
three cracks, but whether from a tree or ivy I cannot say ; not
a leaf was visible. The door of this chamber has been blocked
up, on account of a native in the collector's office wishing to
put up his idol there ; the man is a worshipper of Parisnath, the
god of the heretical Hindoos. No orthodox Hindoo will
worship in a temple where there is an image of Parisnath ;
and as this man had raised an altar in the Achibut chamber, and
wished to place his idol thereon, it caused a great commotion ;
to quell which, the Commandant of the fort bricked up the door,
and has never allowed the people entrance since that time.
There are about four hundred heretical Hindoos at Prag ; I
did not know until to-day such a caste existed.
The sacred Achibut is the ber, or great banyan tree, the Ficus
Indica ; the burgot of the Mahrattas ; the Portuguese arbor de
rayz, i.e. the rooting-tree. It is sacred to Vishnoo, who was
born on its leaves. It is called the rooting tree, from the circum-
stance that it propagates itself by letting a kind of gummy string
fall from its branches, which takes root, grows large, and by this
means the branches often spread to a vast circuit, affording the
most delightful shade in a hot climate ; it is one of the largest
and most majestic trees in the world.
At the gate of the magazine is a very fine young ber tree.
Although sacred to Vishnoo, the preserver, nevertheless, it is
said that "a demon resides under a ber tree. 1 " The goblin
attached to this tree is reported to be exceedingly obstinate.
Demons or goblins are said to be attached to different places ;
as to Musans, or places where the dead are burned ; and to
various trees and shrubs.
There is a remarkable passage in the Brahma Purana,
respecting the Achibut.
"Let the man who is afflicted with a grievous and incurable
disease enter a burning fire, or procure his death by starvation,
or by plunging into unfathomable waters, or by precipitating
himself from an eminence, or by ascending to Paradise by a
1 Oriental Proverbs, No. 47.
THE HOLY ACHIBUT. 215
respectful pilgrimage to the Himalaya mountains ; whoever
relinquishes life under these circumstances, by precipitating
himself from the sacred ber tree at Prag (Allahabad), or his
time being come destroys himself; that high-minded person
shall receive a great reward in the future state, and shall not be
considered a suicide ; even although he may have been a great
sinner, he shall meet with supreme bliss in Paradise."
The pooja of the Achibut takes place on the 9th of June
(jet ke pondrah tarik) . All ber trees are holy ; no Hindoo will
cut them.
On the outside of the magazine is a subterraneous passage,
called Patal Pooree ; it is built of stone. From the entrance,
you pass down a long stone passage, the walls of which on both
sides are covered with idols ; you arrive at a chamber, supported
by pillars ; in this place there are forms of Mahadeo, that are
worshipped.
When the Achibut chamber was blocked up, the Brahmans
set up the stump of a ber tree in the Patal Pooree, and declared
that it was a branch of the real Achibut, that had penetrated
through the walls.
They certainly have established it firmly in that situation,
making good the proverb, " Its roots have already reached to
Patal ' " (the infernal regions). The morning I visited the Patal
Pooree, I saw this stump, which must have been freshly
worshipped, as the earth at its base was covered with oil, ghee,
boiled rice, and flowers. The passage itself, and the chamber
also, were oily, dark, very hot, and slippery : we saw it by lamp-
light ; the chiragh (lamp) was carried by a portly Brahman,
who has charge of the place, and makes much money during
the time of the fair. The resident Hindoos of Prag, who know
the trick the Brahmans have played, do not pooja the false
Achibut. In this place is the mysterious passage which they
say leads underground to Delhi ; devotees were making pooja
before it.
1 Oriental Proverbs, No. 48.
216 WANDERINGS OF A PILGRIM.
THE TEMPLES OF BHARDOAJMUN.
The third holy spot visited by the devotees are some mhuts,
Hindoo temples, about two miles from the fort, near the circuit
Bungalow. This spot was formerly the abode of Bhardoajmun,
a fakir, and here he displayed his red flag from a bamboo. This
Bhardoajmun was a very holy man ; after his departure, or after
his ashes had been consigned to Gunga-jee, some temples were
raised on the spot, and dedicated to Mahadeo, the great god.
There are three principal mhuts, in one of which is a white
marble image or form of Mahadeo, with four faces, very well
executed. In the second is an image in stone of the old fakir
himself, about fifteen inches high, to which divine honours are
paid. There are, counting all the small mhuts, some nine or ten
temples, under the shade of very fine tamarind trees, which are
very picturesque. The eyes of the images are covered with thin
silver plates, and the eyes themselves are about five times larger
than the natural size ; in one of the temples the face of the idol
was covered or made of a thin plate of gold.
One of the temples is dedicated to Varaha, an avatar or incar-
nation of Vishnoo ; and represents a man with a boar's head,
on whose tusks rests a crescent, containing in its concavity an
epitome of the earth, which had been immerged in the ocean as
a punishment for its iniquities, the story of the deluge. Vish-
noo, in the form of a boar, dived into the abyss, and restored
the earth on the points of his tusks. This is the first temple I
have seen dedicated to Varaha : also, for the first time, I here
saw a shrine, sacred to Radha Krishnu, the wife of a cowherd,
whom Krishnu carried off from her husband to a forest on the
banks of the Jumna, where they resided for some time ; she has
been deified with the god, and her image is worshipped at his
festivals. If a Hindoo be charged with any particular act, of
which he wishes to express his abhorrence, he exclaims " Radha
Krishnu !" Many persons repeat, " Ram, Ram, Ram I" on such
occasions, but no one says Seeta Ram ; yet, when Krishnu's
name is to be repeated they always join to it that of his beloved
Radha. It has passed into a proverb, " Apne Radha ko yad ker."
OATH OF AN HINDOO. 217
As Krishnii always thought of Radha, so they say, " Attend to
your own Radha '," either in anger or laughingly ; i.e. attend to
your own business.
What a noise the people are making ! a Hindoo is taking an
oath. The man is holding in both hands a lota, a brass drinking
vessel, filled with Ganges water, on which is placed a sprig of
the sacred tulsi, and by Gunga-jee he swears. I would bet ten to
one all he is swearing is false, from the elevation of his voice,
and his insisting so strongly on its being true. In the plate,
entitled " The Thug's Dice," figure 4 represents a highly
ornamented small brass lota, containing the Ganges water, and a
sprig of the kala tulsi on the top of it.
The tulsi or tulasi is a native of India, and there are several
sorts of it. The kala tulsi, purple-stalked basil, (ocymum sanc-
tum,) is more especially worshipped by the Hindoos, and is the
most sacred of all the tulsls. The Malays cultivate this plant
with care, for the purpose of strewing on graves ; it is highly
aromatic.
Suffaid tulsi, white basil, or Indian tea, (ocymum album,)
seldom rises more than a foot high ; the stem is of a greenish
white colour, and woody at the base ; the leaves, which are two
or three inches long, have an aromatic taste and agreeable smell.
Mummerree, or nazbo, (ocymum pilosum,) ciliated basil : the
scent is delicious and powerful ; the bruised leaves have an
odour resembling that of lemon. The Baghuts (a class of Hin-
doos who neither eat meat nor drink wine,) wear rosaries made
of the root of the tulsi. These plants are all considered sacred.
But to return to the man of whose veracity I felt in doubt : Their
own proverbs condemn the Hindoos : " What need of economy
in telling lies 2 ?" and to a man who has an unconquerable habit
of lying, they apply a very singular proverb 3 .
THE PEEPUL TREE (FICUS REMGIOSA) .
A peepul tree grows on the banks of the Jumna, just in front
of our house ; the fine old tree moans in the wind, and the
1 Oriental Proverbs, No. 49. ' Ibid. No. 50. 3 Ibid. No. 51.
218 WANDERINGS OF A PILGRIM.
rustling of the leaves sounds like the falling of rain ; this is
accounted for by the almost constant trembling of its beautiful
and sacred leaves, which is occasioned by the great length and
delicacy of the foot stalks ; whence it is called Chalada, or the
tree with tremulous leaves. The leaves are of a beautiful bright
glossy green, heart-shaped, scalloped, and daggered ; from their
stalks, when gathered, a milky juice pours out ; on wounding
the bark of the trunk this milk is also poured out, with which
the natives prepare a kind of birdlime.
There is a remarkable similarity between the Ancient Britons
and the Hindoos : on the sixth day of the moon's age, which is
called Aranya-Shashti, "women walk in the forests, with a fan
in one hand, and eat certain vegetables, in hope of beautiful
children. See the account, given by Pliny, of the druidical
misletoe, or viscum, which was to be gathered when the moon
was six days old, as a preservative from sterility'." The Hindoo
women eat the fruit of the peepul tree, and believe it to have
the same wondrous qualities. There is another similarity between
the hill tribes and the Ancient Britons, which will be mentioned
hereafter. The peepul is sacred to Vishnoo, one of the Hindoo
Triad ; they believe a god resides in every leaf, who delights
in the music of their rustling and their tremulous motion.
During the festival of the Muharram, the followers of the
prophet suspend lamps in the air, and in their houses, made of
the skeleton leaves of the peepul tree, on which they paint
figures ; some of these lamps are beautifully made ; no other
leaves will form such fine and delicate transparencies ; I have
tried the large leaf of the teak tree, but could not succeed as
well with it as with that of the ficus religiosa. The Chinese
paint beautifully on these leaves, first putting a transparent
varnish over them. At Schwalbach, in Germany, I purchased
skeleton leaves of the plane, in the centre of which the figure of
Frederick the Great was preserved in the green of the leaf,
whilst all around the skeleton fibres were perfect ; how this is
accomplished, I know not. The skeleton leaves are very beauti-
ful, and easily prepared 2 .
1 Vide Moor's Pantheon. ' Appendix, No. 19.
FICUS RELIGIOSA. 219
The peepul is universally sacred ; the Hindoo women, and the
men also, are often seen in the early morning putting flowers in
pooja at the foot of the tree, and pouring water on its roots.
They place their idols of stone beneath this tree, and the ber
(banyan) , and worship them constantly ; nor will they cut a
branch, unless to benefit the tree.
The native panchayats (courts of justice) are often held beneath
it. The accused first invokes the god in his sylvan throne above
him, to destroy him and his, (as he himself could crush a leaf in
his hand,) if he speak anything but the truth ; then gathering
and crushing a leaf, he makes his deposition.
The Hindoos suspend lamps in the air on bamboos, in the
month Kartiku, in honour of their gods ; these lamps are gene-
rally formed of ubruk (talc) . Sometimes they are formed of
clay, pierced through with fretwork, in remarkably pretty
patterns. This offering to all the gods in this month procures
many benefits, in their belief, to the giver ; and the offering of
lamps to particular gods, or to Gunga-jee, is also esteemed an
act of merit.
Speaking of ubruk reminds me of the many uses to which it
is applied. The costumes of native servants, Nach women and
their attendants, the procession of the Muharram, the trades,
&c, are painted upon it by native artists, and sold in sets ; the
best are executed at Benares. By the aid of ubruk, drawings
can be very correctly copied ; they are speedily done, and look
well 1 . We also used ubruk in lieu of glass for the windows of
the hummam.
It was a source of great pleasure to me, at Allahabad, to ride
out long distances in the early morning, hunting for rare plants
and flowers ; on my return I took off the impressions in a book
of Chinese paper, and added to it the history of the tree or
plant, its medicinal virtues, its sacred qualities, and all the legends
attached to it, that I could collect 2 .
1 See Appendix, No. 20. ' Ibid. No. 21.
220 WANDERINGS OF A PILGRIM.
From the Calcutta John Bull, July 26th, 1831.
" The Governor-general has sold the beautiful piece of archi-
tecture, called the Mootee Musjid, at Agra, for 125,000 rupees
(about 12,500), and it is now being pulled down! The taj
has also been offered for sale ! but the price required has not
been obtained. Two lacs, however, have been offered for it.
Should the taj be pulled down, it is rumoured that disturbances
may take place amongst the natives."
If this be true, is it not shameful ? The present king might
as well sell the chapel of Henry the Seventh in Westminster
Abbey for the paltry sum of 12,500 : for any sum the impro-
priety of the act would be the same. By what authority does
the Governor-general offer the taj for sale ? Has he any right
to molest the dead ? To sell the tomb raised over an empress,
which from its extraordinary beauty is the wonder of the world ?
It is impossible the Court of Directors can sanction the sale of
the tomb for the sake of its marble and gems. They say that a
Hindoo wishes to buy the taj to carry away the marble, and
erect a temple to his own idols at Bindrabund !
The crows are a pest ; they will pounce upon meat carried
on a plate, and bear it off : they infest the door of the BawarchI
Khana (cook room) , and annoy the servants, who retaliate on a
poor kawwa, if they can catch one, by dressing it up in an
officer's uniform, and letting it go to frighten the others. The
poor bird looks so absurd hopping about. Sometimes they drill
a hole through the beak, and passing a wire through it, string
thereon five cowries ; this bears the poor crow's head to the
ground, and must torture it. Such cruelty I have forbidden.
The crow is a bird of ill omen.
On a babul-tree in the grounds are twelve or fifteen beautiful
nests pendant from the extremity of slender twigs the habita-
tions of a little community of Bya. birds. I took down three of
the nests ; they contained two, three, and four little white eggs ;
the parent birds made a sad lament when the nests were taken.
If you take a nest with the young birds in it, the parent bird will
follow and feed them. The natives consider it highly improper
BYA BIRDS. 221
to shoot the Bya birds ; they are sacred, and so tame. One of
my servants has brought me a young bird, it flies to my hand
when I call it. There is a pretty fable which says, " The old
birds put a fire-fly into their nests every night to act as a lamp."
Perhaps they sometimes feed their young on fire-flies, which may
be the origin of the story. It is pleasing to imagine the sacred
birds swinging in their pretty nests pendant from the extreme
end of a branch, the interior lighted by a fire-fly lamp. The
Bya bird is the Indian yellow-hammer ; the nests I speak of are
almost within reach of my hand, and close to the house. For
the shape of the nests, see the sketch entitled " The Spring
Bow." They are of grass beautifully woven together, and
suspended by a long thin tapering end, the entrance hanging
downwards. In the nests containing the young, there is no
division, the swelling on the side is the part in which the
young ones nestle together. Some of the nests appear as if
they were cut short off: these are purposely built so, and
contain two apartments, which are, I suppose, the places where
the parent birds sit and confabulate on the aspect of affairs
in general. The birds are very fond of hanging their nests
from slender twigs, over a pool of water, as in the sketch, the
young birds thus being in greater safety.
The wood of the babul (acacia Arabica) is extremely hard,
and is used by the Brahmans to kindle their sacred fire, by
rubbing two pieces of it together, when it is of a proper age,
and sufficiently dried. It produces the Indian gum Arabic.
The gold earrings made in imitation of the flower of the babul,
worn by Indian women, and by some men also, are beautiful.
My ayha is ill with cholera : there is no hope of her recovery.
The disease came across the Jumna, about four miles higher up
than our house, and is regularly marching across the country
to the Ganges : as it proceeds no fresh cases occur in the
villages it leaves behind.
The old peepul moans and rustles in the wind so much, that
deceived by the sound, we have often gone into the verandah
joyously exclaiming " There is the rain ! " To our sorrow it was
only the leaves of the tree agitated by the wind.
222 WANDERINGS OF A PILGRIM.
In such a climate and during the hot winds, you cannot ima-
gine how delightful the noise of the wind (like rain) in the old
peepul appeared to us, or the lullaby it formed. It is a holy
tree, every leaf being the seat of a god. They do not listen to
the music of its rustling with greater pleasure than I expe-
rience ; indeed, my penchant for the tree is so great, I am half
inclined to believe in its miraculous powers.
August 3\st. The ice has lasted four months and fifteen
days, which we consider particularly fortunate. It was opened
the 15th of April.
Oct. We are collecting grass and making hay for use during
the hot winds. The people cut the grass in the jungles, and
bring it home on camels. We have one stack of hay just
finished, and one of straw.
"Bring me the silver tankard." "I have it not, I know
not where it is," said the khidmatgar. The plate-chest was
searched, it was gone.
It was the parting gift of a friend ; we would not have lost it
for fifty times its value. The servants held a panchayat, and
examined the man who had charge of the plate. When it was
over, he came to me, saying, " I had charge of the tankard
it is gone the keys were in my hands j allow me to remain in
your service ; cut four rupees a month from my pay, and let
another silver cup be made." The old man lived with us many
years, and only quitted us when he thought his age entitled him
to retire on the money he had earned honestly and fairly in
service.
My tame squirrel has acquired a vile habit of getting up the
windows and eating all the flies ; if he would kill the mus-
quitoes, it would be a very good employment, but he prefers the
great fat flies a little brute. The little squirrel is the only
animal unaffected by the heat ; he is as impudent as ever, and
as cunning as possible.
Oct. 24th. A slight earthquake has just taken place this
instant. I did not know what was the matter ; there was a
rumbling noise for some time, as if a carriage were driving over
the roof of the house. My chair shook under me, and the
TRANSFERRING DISEASES TO FLOWERS. 223
table on which I am writing shook also. I became very sick
and giddy, so much so, that I fancied I had fallen ill suddenly.
When the noise and trembling ceased, I found I was quite well,
and the giddy sickness went off. I never felt the earth quake
before. Every one in the house was sensible of it. At the
Circuit bungalow, nearly three miles off, it was felt as much as
on the banks of the Jumna.
In a native family, if a person be ill, one of the relations
takes a small earthen pan, filled with water, flowers, and rice,
and places it in the middle of the road or street, in front of the
house of the sick person, believing that if any one en passant
should touch the offering, either by chance or design, the illness
would quit the sufferer and cleave to the person who had touched
the flowers or the little pan containing the offering. A native
carefully steps aside and avoids coming in contact with the
flowers.
To-day, a man was punished for perjury in this manner ; he
was mounted on a donkey, with his face to the tail of the animal ;
one half of his face was painted black, the other white, and
around his neck was hung a necklace of old shoes and old bones.
Surrounded by a mob of natives, with hideous music and shouts,
he was paraded by the police all through the town ! An excellent
punishment.
Our farming operations commenced last September. On
the banks of the Ganges, near the fort, we planted thirty
beeghas with oats, and expect a crop sufficient to feed our horses
and sheep, with plenty of straw to cut into bhoosa. The oats
are not so large and heavy as those of England, nevertheless,
very good. During the hot weather, we give our horses half
oats half gram (chana) ; in the cold season, oats and carrots ;
the latter are remarkably fine, we purchase them by the beegha.
A beegha, or blgha, is a quantity of land, containing twenty
katthas, or 120 feet square.
In Calcutta, oats are procurable in abundance, and are usually
to be had at those stations where there are race-horses ; but they
are not generally cultivated, and where they are a novelty the
natives speak of them as " wheat gone mad." At Allahabad,
224 WANDERINGS OF A PILGRIM.
the gentlemen at the station cultivate large quantities on the
river side.
I have just taken a sketch of a dwarf, a Hindoo, called
Bhoodder Ram ; he is fifty years of age, is married, and has a tall
son, aged twelve years.
Bhoodder Ram measures three feet one inch and seven-eighths
of an inch in height ; his face bears the stamp of more than his
age ; his body is like a child's ; he is a native of Gyah. His
brother, a tall man, accompanied him ; the dwarf rode on a little
pony. I asked him, " How old is your wife ?" He answered,
" She is tall, and like your sirdar-bearer, as old as he is ; and
her face resembles his as nearly as nineteen is equal to twenty !"
The dwarf is of low caste ; he makes a great deal of money by
asking charity, and travelling about the country.
I questioned him as to whom he made pooja to : he said, " God
has made me little, and I go about asking charity ; I was never
taught how to make pooja to any god." He wears a turban
of gold and silver tinsel; but some foolish people, instead of
allowing him to wear an Hindoo dress, have decked him out in
the blue cloth frock and linen trowsers of an European cliild ;
a crimson scarf is thrown over his shoulders, and in his ears are
gold hoops.
A man from Cabul passed me this morning, leading a beautiful
high caste camel, with two humps on its back : the animal was
very handsome, its hair remarkably long. I wished to sketch
it, but the Arab was too great a gentleman to come out of his
way for a rupee. The animals in general use have only one
hump ; they are, in fact, dromedaries, although generally called
camels. The dokaha (camelus bactrianus), the real camel, has
two humps or elevations on the back.
Nov. 7th. We took the hounds to Papamhow, and soon
found a jackal in the grounds : he took shelter in a field of
joar or jwar, millet (andropogon sorghum), from which he could
not again be started. Hounds in this country are extremely
expensive ; it is scarcely possible to keep them alive. Out of
eight couple brought from England and added to the pack at
Allahabad a few months ago, only three couple are alive. We
ROCKETS. 225
rode over the grounds : how deserted they looked ! the flowers
dead, the fountain dry.
" 'Twas sweet of yore to see it play
And chase the sultriness of day ;
As springing high, the silver dew
In whirls fantastically flew,
And spread luxurious coolness round
The air, and verdure on the ground."
"Demons take possession of an empty house 1 ; " the place
is a wilderness. The old Brahman, who lives at a picturesque
temple in the grounds by the side of the Ganges, did not re-
member me ; he spoke in the warmest terms of the agent for
gunpowder to the Government, who formerly lived here ; and
said he prayed to Mahadeo to send him back to Papamhow, as
the natives had never had so good a master, either before or
since.
A fair is annually held in these grounds, at which period the
old Brahman reaps a plentiful harvest of paisa. The people
who attend the fair make pooja at his little temple. The old
man had an idiot son, who, having a great dislike to clothes,
constantly tore all his attire to pieces ; in the sketch, entitled
Adansonia Digitata, he is represented in his usual attitude, with
both arms stretched out, remonstrating (after his fashion) with
his father, on the impropriety of wearing clothes. The poor boy
was speechless, but not dumb, for he could utter the most horrible
sounds : and when enraged at his father's attempting to clothe
him, he would howl, make angry gestures, and tear off the
obnoxious attire. During the time of the fair, the groups of
natives, of horses, and odd-looking conveyances are very pictu-
resque beneath the spreading branches of the great Adansonia
trees.
Our friend was not only agent for gunpowder, but also, by the
order of Government, he had established a manufactory for
rockets at Papamhow, in consequence of the congreve rockets
sent from England having proved unserviceable. He was obliged
1 Oriental Proverbs, No. 52.
VOL. I. Q
226 WANDERINGS OF A PILGRIM.
to make many experiments, to suit the composition to our
burning climate, and to test the result of exposure to the
sun. When the trials were to be made, and the rockets proved,
I often went down upon the white sands in the bed of the river,
to see the experiments.
The Ganges is from forty to forty-five feet deeper during the
rains than during the dry season ; and banks of the finest white
sand, of immense extent, are left dry for many months in the bed
of the river when the rains have passed away. The sands ex-
tended three or four miles, and being without cultivation or
inhabitants, were exactly suited to the purpose. When the
rockets were laid upon the sands, and fired, it was beautiful to
see them rushing along, leaving a train of fire and smoke behind
them ; the roar of the large rockets was very fine, quite
magnificent.
When the rockets were fired from an iron tube at an elevation,
it was surprising to see them ranging through the air for a mile
and a half or two miles before they came to the sands, where, a
certain distance being marked by range pegs at every fifty yards,
the extent of their ranges was accurately ascertained i one of the
large rockets ranged 3700 yards, upwards of two miles. I
should think they would prove most formidable weapons in
warfare.
Nov. 14th. Some natives have just brought a lynx to the
door, such a savage beast ! it was caught in the grounds of the
circuit Bungalow ; the first animal of the sort I have beheld.
At Papamhow we found a wolf, and had a long chase, until the
hounds lost him in an immense plantation of sugar-cane, from
which there were too few dogs to dislodge him.
1 5th. This is delightful weather ; we ride from six to eight,
a.m., and take a drive at four in the evening, returning to dinner
at six, at which time a coal fire is agreeable. I am in stronger
health than I ever before enjoyed in India, which I attribute to
the cold weather and great exercise.
CHAPTER XXI.
LIFE IN THE ZENANA.
Devotees at the Great Fair Wild Ducks Quail shooting Price of English
Hounds Col. Gardner Life in the Zenana The Grass Cutter Dub Grass
The Gram-grinder The Charkhl Jack fruit Duty of a Sa'Is
Arrangement of a Turban The young Princes of Lucnow Archery Indian
Bows and Arrows Whistling Arrows The B 
