tion. The shock lasted from two to three minutes, and during that short period the city of Bhooj was almost levelled with the ground. The walls, from the sandy nature of the stone, were crumbled into dust; nearly all the towers and gateways were demolished; and the houses, which were left standing, were so shattered as to be uninhabitable. The fort, which stands at some distance from the city, is so breached as to be rendered useless as a place of defence. It is calculated that nearly 2000 persons have perished in Bhooj alone. Among the sufferers is the mother of the deposed Rajah, who was buried in the ruins of the palace. The surviving inhabitants were obliged to forsake the city, and encamp outside of the walls on some sandhills. Their situation was truly distressing. Bruised, maimed, and in sorrow, they resorted daily to the city to extricate the mangled remains of wives, children, and relations. In this melancholy labour, they were nearly exhausted by the stench arising from the putrid bodies of their friends, and from the carcases of the cattle, which had perished in great numbers. At the date of the last accounts, between 1000 and 1500 persons had been dug out of the ruins.

The devastation was general throughout Kutch. From Luckput Bunder to Butchao, in every town and village, more or less lives were lost by the falling in of the houses; and in the towns of Mandavie, Moondria, and Anjar, very extensive damage has been sustained. Accounts from Anjar state, that the fort wall was almost completely destroyed, not 100 yards of it remaining in one spot, and guns and towers hurled in one common mass of ruin. Scarcely a fourth part of the town is standing, and the houses that do remain are considerably injured. "In one word," says the writer of the account, a flourish ing population has been reduced in one moment to wretchedness and misery; and I fear we shall have to lament the loss of upwards of 100 people, besides those hurt."

The destruction occasioned by this terrible visitation was not confined to Kutch. From Ahmedabad, the capital of Guzerat, we have the following description: "This city is justly celebrated for its beautiful buildings of stone and other materials, and for the famous shaking minarets, which were admired by every stranger. Alas! the devastation caused by this commotion of the earth is truly lamentable. The proud spires of the great mosque, erected by Sultan Ahmed," which have stood nearly 450 years, have tumbled to the ground, within a few yards of the spot where they once reared their heads! Another mosque of elegant structure, which lies to the left of the road leading to the Shahee Bagh, has shared the same fate. The magnificent towers," forming the grand entrance into the citadel, have been much shaken," and cracked in several places, especially the one in which the flag-staff has been placed. Many private houses have been reduced to ruins, but it is most fortunate, amidst all our disasters, that not a single life has been lost, and but few accidents." We learn from Jelilsheer, that "the earthquake was severely felt in that place, and the loss of lives terrible. The fort and town are reduced to ruins. Many of the people killed were already out of doors, which is usually considered a

situation of comparative safety. A marriage was about to be celebrated in a rich man's family, and the casts had assembled from various distant quarters: the shock occurred when they were feasting in the streets, and upwards of 500 of the party were smothered in the ruins of the falling houses."

The effects of this earthquake have indeed been so extensive, that we cannot pretend to enumerate the more minute disasters. We have confined ourselves to the most prominent of them; and we now proceed to give some account of the sensations felt by the individual sufferers during the continuance of the concussions. In the British camp, which was pitched in a plain between the fort and city of Bhooj, the general feeling was an unpleasant giddiness of the head, and sickness of stomach, from the heaving of the ground; and during the time the shock lasted, some sat down instinctively, and others threw themselves on the ground. Those who were on horseback were obliged to dismount, the earth shook so violently that the horses could with difficulty keep their feet; and the riders, when upon the ground, were scarcely able to stand. At Ahmedabad, "all the disagreeable sensations were experienced of being tossed in a ship at sea in a swell; and the rocking was so great, that every moment we expected the earth to open under our feet." One gentleman writing from Surat, where the earthquake began at twenty minutes past seven, says: "The vibration of the couch I was lying on was so great, that I was glad to get off it: the house was considerably agitated, the furniture all in motion; a small table close to me kept striking the wall, and the lamps swung violently. I ran down stairs, and got out of my house as fast as possible. On getting on the outside, I found a number of people collected, gazing with astonishment at my house, which stands alone, and was so violently agitated that I expected it to fall down. The earth was convulsed under our feet." Another thus writes from Broach: "Such of the houses as are elevated, and at all loosely built, creaked like the masts and rigging of a ship in a gale; the venetians and window-frames rattling violently, and the buildings threatening immediately to fall; a considerable lateral motion was impressed on every thing that admitted of it. After this more violent concussion had lasted a minute or upwards, it was succeeded by an oscillatory motion, of a more equable character, which continued for more than a minute and a half, making the whole period of the convulsion nearer three than two and a half minutes." An intelligent native residing in Iseria gives the following account: "Yesterday in the evening a noise issued from the earth like the beating of the nobut, and occasioned the trembling of all the people: it appeared most wonderful, and deprived us all of our senses, so that we could not see, every thing appearing dark before us; a dizziness came upon many people, so that they fell down."

Besides the great concussion on the evening of the 16th, frequent slight shocks were experienced during the night, and throughout the following day. One occurred a little before ten in the morning, which shook the houses, and caused the windows and doors to rattle vio

lently. It continued, however, only for a few seconds. Another, rather more severe, took place on the 23d, at midnight. Some houses were thrown down, but no lives lost. Indeed, daily vibrations were sensibly felt in the camp before Bhooj for more than a month after. The same unpleasant sensations which were experienced during the first shock, also continued for several days. A giddiness, and slight sickness, accompanied with pains in the knees, and an inclination to lie down rather than sit or stand. This is attributed to the rocking or rolling motion of the earth, which, though not observable, was in constant action. The inhabitants of Kutch, however, were much relieved from the dread of farther convulsions, by the circumstance of a volcano having opened on a hill about thirty miles from Bhooj; and about ten days after the first shock, a loud noise, like the discharge of cannon, was heard at Porebunder. The sound came from the east, and was supposed to indicate the bursting of one or more volcanoes in that direction. Undulations of the earth had formerly been felt in this district, but had never been accompanied with any distressing effects. About two years ago, several of the British officers encamped in the neighbourhood of Bhooj experienced a slight shock; but it was so slight that others of them were not sensible of it. It is to be hoped, however, that none will ever be attended with such a horrible catastrophe as the one we have been describing; for the distress occasioned by it is represented by almost all the writers as beyond their ability to describe.

4

EXAMPLE OF DECISION OF CHARACTER.

(From Foster's Essays.)

You may recollect the mention, in one of our conversations, of a young man, who wasted in two or three years a large patrimony in profligate revels with a number of worthless associates who called themselves his friends, and who, when his last means were exhausted, treated him of course with neglect, or contempt. Reduced to absolute want, he one day went out of the house with an intention to put an end to his life; but wandering awhile almost unconsciously, he came to the brow of an eminence which overlooked what were lately his estates. Here he sat down, and remained fixed in thought a number of hours, at the end of which he sprang from the ground with a vehement exulting emotion. He had formed his resolution, which was, that all these estates should be his again; he had formed his plan too, which he instantly began to execute. He walked hastily forward, determined to seize the very first opportunity, of however humble a kind, to gain any money, though it were ever so despicable a trifle, and resolved absolutely not to spend, if he could help it, a farthing of whatever he might obtain. The first thing that drew his attention was a heap of coals shot out of a cart on the pavement before a house.

He offered himself to shovel or wheel them into the place where they were to be laid, and was employed. He received a few pence for the labour; and then, in pursuance of the saving part of his plan, requested some small gratuity of meat and drink, which was given him. He then looked out for the next thing that might chance to offer, and went, with indefatigable industry, through a succession of servile employments, in different places, of longer and shorter duration, still scrupulously avoiding, as far as possible, the expense of a penny. He promptly seized every opportunity which could advance his design, without regarding the meanness of occupation or appearance. By this method he had gained, after a considerable time, money enough to purchase, in order to sell again, a few cattle, of which he had taken pains to understand the value. He speedily, but cautiously, turned his first gains into second advantages; retained, without a single deviation, his extreme parsimony; and thus advanced by degrees into larger transac→ tions and incipient wealth. I did not hear, or have forgotten, the continued course of his life; but the final result was, that he more than recovered his lost possessions, and died an inveterate miser, worth 60,0007. I have always recollected this as a signal instance, though in an unfortunate and ignoble direction, of decisive character, and of the extraordinary effect, which, according to general laws, belongs to the strongest form of such a character.

THE ENGLISH MONTHS.-JULY.

THIS is usually the hottest month in the year; when those who have leisure delight in the coolness of thickets and bowers, and those whose duties call them to out-door labour are apt to do many imprudent things, under the influence of a burning suu. The fatal effects of drinking large quantities of cold water are too well known to require any enforcement; a little cooling fruit, or even a straw kept in the mouth, will much better relieve the oppression of thirst. Let it also be remembered that the most dangerous diseases occur from the exposure of the head to the sun. Any thing of a black colour, as a common hat increases the feeling of heat;-and therefore a hat is often imprudently cast aside :—a white paper cap keeps the head cool, and prevents the injurious consequences of its complete exposure.

This is the season in which bathing is most frequent in this country. It is an wholesome practice if temperately and cautiously used; and every parent should have his boys taught to swim. From the rashness of inexperienced persons fatal accidents often occur in the water. We may perhaps profitably offer a few directions for the proper treatment for the restoration of the apparently dead :-Whatever you do, do it quickly. If a body remains in the water for an hour there is little chance of restoring suspended animation;-but even in such extreme cases there can be no excuse for neglect. Never hold up the body by the heels, according to a common prejudice, nor roll it on casks, nor usé

any roughness whatever. Convey the body carefully to the nearest house, and send for medical assistance as soon as possible. In the mean time strip and dry the body, and cleanse the mouth and nostrils. Place young children between two persons in a warm bed. Lay adults on a blanket or bed, and in cold weather near the fire. In the warm season air should be freely admitted. Rub the body gently with flannel, sprinkled with spirits, and let a warming pan, covered, be lightly moved over the back and spine. There is a particular instrument for inflating the lungs ;-but in the absence of medical assistance, the pipe of a pair of bellows may be introduced into one nostril, while the other nostril and the mouth are closed. Hot bricks may be applied to the palms of the hands and soles of the feet. On signs of returning life, the restorative means must be employed with great caution ;—if the patient possess the power of swallowing, a very small quantity of diluted wine may be given. There are full directions published by the Humane Society, who have usually receiving houses in large towns by the side of rivers. These observations may be of some service in districts where better advice is not easily to be procured. But the best modes of treatment may be useless unless persevered in for three or four hours. Begin promptly, and continue the office of humanity unweariedly.

The lover of nature has now abundant objects to excite pleasure and gratitude, in his morning or evening walks. The meadows, whose produce has been carried, are now usually crowded with cattle, who range at liberty over their luxuriant pasturage ;-the ripening corn calls up the most delightful feelings of the providence of God bestowing its rewards upon the industry of man ;-the hop grounds present a scene of beauty and abundance which may almost rival the gay vineyards of the south;-and the fragrant and beautiful blossoms of the orchards, which we admired a few months ago, have become perfected into clustering fruit, which begins to weigh down the tender branches, and now defies the cutting gales and the devouring blights, which too often destroy the "early promise of the year." Every season has its peculiar joy, its peculiar beauty, and its peculiar lesson of wisdom.

EDITOR K.