principal temple, bestows Upadésa, or Chicranticum, on such as have not received these ceremonies, and distributes holy water. He then inquires into matters of contention, or transgressions against the rules of cast; and having settled, or punished these, hears his disciples and other learned men dispute on theological subjects. This is the grand field for acquiring reputation among the Bráhmans. These disputations are said to be very similar to those which were common among the doctors of the Romish church seven or eight hundred years ago; and, in fact, a strong resemblance will be found between the present state of Hindu knowledge, and that which then prevailed in Europe.' I. 22, 23.

There is, perhaps, fomething too much of farcasm in the fpirit of the following general remarks; bat the fact is curious, and deferves to be recorded.

• The circumstances which seem chiefly to add dignity to a cast are, its being restricted from the pleasures of the world, especially those of the table; the following no useful employment; and the being dedicated to what they call piety and learning. Almost every man endeavours, as much as possible, to assume at least the external appearance of these qualifications; and in the people of this country a hypocritical cant is a remarkable feature. Even young men of active professions, when talking on business, will frequently turn up their eyes to heaven, and make pious ejaculations, attended with heavy sighs.' I. 254.

The peruial of these volumes is certainly well calculated to lower very much our popular conceptions of the ease and voluptuoufnefs of an Indian climate, as well as of the boundless opulence and splendour of their chieftains and princes. The common people are univerfally miserably poor, and in many places extremely filthy and flovenly-overrun with vermin, and confumed with itch. A great part of the country is infefted with robbers. The forests, which are in many districts completely obstructed by fallen trees, are extremely unhealthful; and the tygers, in other quarters, fo numerous and fo bold, as frequently to carry the inhabitants off out of their beds. The huts of the peafants are univerfally built with mud, without windows or chimnies. Even their palaces are frequently conftructed of the fame homely materials; and confift, for the most part, of apartments too close and low to be inhabited with any comfort by an European. The author's obfervations upon Seringapatnam, the famous refidence of Tippu Sultan, and the anecdotes he has interfperfed of this fovereign's character, are among the most curious and interefting parts of the publication.

6

Seringapatam, as is well known, is situated at the upper end of an island surrounded by the Cávery, which is here a large and rapid river, with a very extensive channel, filled with rocks, and frag ments of granite. On the south branch of the river a bridge has been erected, which serves also as an aqueduct, to convey from the

upper

upper part of the river a large canal of water into the town and island. The rudeness of this bridge will show the small progress that the arts have made in Mysore. Square pillars of granite are cut from the rock, of a sufficient height to rise above the water at the highest floods. These are placed upright in rows, as long as the intended width of the bridge, and distant about ten feet from each other. They are secured at the bottom by being let into the solid rock; and their tops being cut to a level, a long stone is laid upon each row. Above these longitudinal stones others are placed contiguous to each other, and stretching from row to row, in the direction of the length of the bridge. The whole breadth of this may be twenty feet. One half is occupied by the aqueduct, which is secured at the bottom and on both sides by brick and plaster. The road is laid with gravel, and secured by a parapet wall on one side, and by the aqueduct on the other.' I. 61, 62.

The palace of the Sultan at Seringapatam is a very large building, surrounded by a massy and lofty wall of stone and mud, and cutwardly is of a very mean appearance. There were in it, however, some handsome apartments, which have been converted into barracks; but the troops are very ill lodged, from the want of ventilation common in all native buildings. The private apartments of Tippoo formed a square, in one side of which were the rooms that he himself used. The other three sides of the square were occupied by warehouses, in which he had deposited a vast variety of goods; for he acted not only as a prince, but also as a merchant. ' I. 69.

From the principal front of the palace, which served as a revenue office, and as a place from whence the Sultan occasionally showed himself to the populace, the chief entry into the private square was through a strong narrow passage, wherein were chained four tigers; which, although somewhat tame, would, in case of any disturbance, become unruly. Within these was the hall in which Tippoo wrote, and into which very few persons, except Meer Saduc, were ever admitted. Immediately behind this was the bedchamber, which communicated with the hall by a door and two windows, and was shut up on every other side. The door was strongly secured on the inside, and a close iron grating defended the windows. The Sultan, lest any person should fire upon him while in bed, slept in a hammock, which was suspended from the roof by chains, in such a situation as to be invisible through the windows. In the hammock were found a sword and a pair of loaded pistols.' I. 72, 73.

We hear much in Europe of the goiden palaces of Eaftern kings. It will probably surprise our readers to learn from Dr Buchanan, that though,

- at first sight, one would imagine that much gilding is used in the ornaments of these halls, yet in truth not a grain of gold is employed. The workmen use a paper covered with false gilding. This they cut into the shape of flowers, and paste these on the walls

or

or columns. The interstices are filled up with oil colours, which are all of European preparation.-The manner of making this false gilded paper is as follows. Take any quantity of lead, and beat it with a hammer into leaves, as thin as possible. To twenty-four parts of these leaves add three parts of English glue, dissolved in water, and beat them together with a hammer, till they be thorough ly united; which requires the labour of two persons for a whole day. The mass is then cut into small cakes, and dried in the shade. These cakes can at any time be dissolved in water, and spread thin with a hair brush on common writing paper. The paper must then be put on a smooth plank, and rubbed with a polished stone, till it acquire a complete metallic lustre. The edges of the paper are then pasted down on the board, and the metallic surface is rubbed with the palm of the hand, which is smeared with an oil called Gurna, and then exposed to the sun. On the two following days the same operation is repeated; when the paper acquires a metallic yellow colour, which, however, more resembles the hue of brass, than that of gold.' I. p. 74, 75.

The following sketch of the Sultan's character, will fit almost all defpotic fovereigns poffeffed of more than ordinary talents.

The apartment most commonly used by Tippoo, was a large lofty hall, open in front after the Mussulman fashion, and on the other three sides, entirely shut up from ventilation. In this he was wont to sit, and write much; for he was a wonderful projector, and was constantly forming new systems for the management of his dominions, which, however, he wanted perseverance to carry into execution. That he conceived himself to be acting for the good of his subjects, I have no doubt; and he certainly believed himself endowed with great qualities for the management of civil affairs, as he was at the pains of writing a book on the subject, for the instruction of all succeeding princes. His talents in this line, however, were certainly very deficient. He paid no attention to the religious prejudices of the greater part of his subjects; but every where wantonly destroyed their temples, and gloried in having forced many thousands of them to adopt the Mussulman faith. He never continued long on the same plan; so that his government was a constant succession of new arrangements. Although his aversion to Europeans did not prevent him from imitating many of their arts; yet this does not appear to have proceeded from his being sensible of their value, or from a desire to improve his country; it seems merely to have been done with a view of showing his subjects, that, if he chose, he was capable of doing whatever Europeans could perform: for although he made broad-cloth, paper formed on wires like the European kind, watches, and cutlery, yet the processes for making the whole were kept secret. A French artist had prepared an engine, driven by water, for boring cannon; but so little sensible was the Sultan of its value, that he ordered the water-wheel to be removed, and employed bullocks to work the machinery. One of

VOL. XIII. NO. 25.

G

his

his favourite maxims of policy was, to overthrow every thing that had been done in the Rája's government; and in carrying this into practice, he frequently destroyed works of great public utility, such as reservoirs, and canals for watering the ground. I. p. 70, 71. The following extracts give a very uncomfortable idea of the oldest inhabited and policied region in the universe.

During the whole time that they are absent, the Goalas never sleep in a hut; but, wrapped up in their blankets, and accompanied by their dogs, they lye down among the cattle within the folds, where all night they burn fires to keep away the tigers. This, however, is not always sufficient; and these ferocious animals sometimes break through the fence, and kill or wound the cattle. The men have no fire-arms, the report of which would terrify the cattle; and for driving away the tiger, they trust to the noise which they and their dogs make. They are also much distressed by robbers, who kill or carry away the sheep and goats; but, unless it be a numerous rabble that call themselves the army of a Polygar, no thieves can annoy their black cattle; for these are too unruly to be driven by any persons but their keepers; and the most hardened villain would not dare to slaughter an animal of this sacred species. II. p. 11, 12.

I went into the forest about three cosses, to a small tank, farther than which the natives rarely venture, and to which they do not go without being much alarmed on account of wild elephants. In this forest these animals are certainly more numerous, than either in Chittagong or Pegu. I have never seen any where so many traces of them. The natives, when they meet an elephant in the day-time, hide themselves in the grass, or behind bushes, and the animal does not search after them; but were he to see them, even at a distance, he would run at them, and put them to death. It is stragglers only from the herds, that in the day-time frequent the outer parts of the forest. The herds that at night destroy the crops, retire with the dawn of day into the recesses of the forest; and thither the natives do not venture, as they could not hide themselves from a number. It is said, that at the above-mentioned tank there was formerly a village; but that both it and several others on the skirt of the forest have been lately withdrawn, owing to an increased number of elephants, and to the smaller means of resistance which the decrease of population allows.

The soil of these forests is in general very good, and much of it is very black. In places where the water has lodged, and then dried up, such as in the print of an elephant's foot, this black soil assumes the appearance of indurated tar. The country is by no means steep, and is every where capable of cultivation; but of this no traces are to be seen in any part of the forest. Near Hejuru, the trees are very small; for so soon as any one becomes of a useful size, it is cut. As the distance and danger increase, the trees gradually are allowed to attain a larger growth; and at the tank they are of considerable dimensions. Farther on, they are said to be very

stately.

stately. The forest is free from underwood or creepers; but the whole ground is covered with long grass, often as high as a man's head. This makes walking rather disagreeable and dangerous, as one is always liable to stumble over rotten trunks, to rouse a tiger, or to tread on a snake. These latter are said to be found of great dimensions, and have been seen as thick as the body of a middlesized man. The length of this kind is not in proportion to the thickness, and does not exceed seven cubits. Although I passed a great part of these three days in the forest, I saw neither elephant, tiger, nor serpent, and escaped without any other injury than a fall over a rotten tree. II. 122, 123.

In Malabar, there are more memorials of an antient intercourse with Europe than in any other part of India. A few years ago, an earthen pot, filled with Roman coins of Augustus and Tiberius, was dug up near Palachy; and the Malabar Christians (or Nazareens, as they are called) report, that they have been settled there for 1740 years. Their pope, or priest, Dr Buchanan says, was of a very fair complexion, with high Jewish features. His account of these venerable believers, however, is in every respect very meagre and unsatisfactory.

The intercourse of the sexes, throughout all those countries, is on the most extraordinary footing. We quote the following, as one out of an immense multitude of examples of the most absurd and unnatural institutions.

The Nairs marry before they are ten years of age, in order that the girl may not be deflowered by the regular operations of nature; but the husband never afterwards cohabits with his wife. Such a circumstance, indeed, would be considered as very indecent. He allows her oil, clothing, ornaments, and food; but she lives in her mother's house, or, after her parents' death, with her brothers, and cohabits with any person that she chooses of an equal or higher rank than her own. If detected in bestowing her favours on any low man, she becomes an outcast. It is no kind of reflection on a woman's character to say, that she has formed the closest intimacy, with many persons; on the contrary, the Nair women are proud of reckoning among their favoured lovers many Bráhmans, Rájás, or other persons of high birth. In consequence of this strange manner of propagating the species, no Nair knows his father; and every man looks upon his sisters' children as his heirs.

A man's mother

manages his family; and after her death his eldest sister assumes the direction. Brothers almost always live under the same roof; but, if one of the family separates from the rest, he is always accompanied by his favourite sister. Even cousins, to the most remote degree of kindred, in the female line, generally live together in great harmony; for, in this part of the country, love, jealousy, or disgust, never can disturb the peace of a Nair family.' II. 411, 412.