^5 CORNELL UNIVERSITY LIBRARY GIFT OF Mrs. E. Purcell Cornell University Library DS 407.1385 3 1924 022 983 179 DATE DUE jm djmrM p CAVLOnD PRINTEDINU.S A. Cornell University Library The original of this book is in the Cornell University Library. There are no known copyright restrictions in the United States on the use of the text. http://www.archive.org/details/cu31924022983179 Sepoy Tl-iri ^f" Q-ovexhor-Q-eneral of India. INDIA; GEOGRAPHICAL, STATISTICAL, AND ' HISTORICAL: UEINO A COMPLETE DESCRIPTION OF THAT VAST EMPIRE IN ITS SUR- FACE, GEOLOGY, RIVERS, LAKES, ETC.; REUGIOX, GOV- ERNMENTS, REVENUES, AND ODSTOMS OF THE PEOPLE ; ITS AMIBNT m CLASSIMl HISTORY, GIVING A DISTINCT REVIEW OP THE EARLY MOHAMMEDAN INVADERS, AND EUROPE AIV CO]\QUE8T8, WITH A FULL ACCOUNT OF THE LATE WAR, MISSIONARY OPERATIONS, ETC., (up TO THE LATEST DATE.) ACCOMPANIED WITH A NEW AND CORRECT :HAri ALL OP WmOH ARE COMPILED FROM LATE AND AUTHENTIC BRITISH AUTHORITIES. ILLUSTRATIONS BY ENOLISII ARTISTS, DRAWN IN INDIA COMPILED FROM THE l.il.NDON TIMES CORRESPONDENCE, McCUT,I;OCK, AND OTHERS. Sold by Subscription only. LONDON: GEORGE WATTS, PATERNOSTER ROW. NEW YORK AND HARTFOBD: L. ST-EBBINS & COMPANY. -1 n fr o (\m/7(^ Entered, according to Act of Congress, in the year 1S5S, BY LUCIUS STEBBISS, In the Clerk's Office of the District Court of Connecticut. K. H, HOEBS, STEREOTYPER, WILLIAMS AND WU,Ey, PaUHTEHS, CONTENTS. INDIA -GEOGRAPHICAL AND STATISTICAL. FAOB. UiNDOosTAN, or India on this side of the Ganges, or Brahmaputra,. . . 11 Surface and Geology, 12 Kivers, 17 Laljes, 19 Coast outline, 20 Climate 21 Nations and tribes, 23 Foreign Settlers in India, 26 Hindoo Religion, 26 ^ Other forms of Religion in India, 38 Population, 41 History of the Hindoos, 43 Revenue, Resources, &o., 48 Zemindars, talukdars, and ryots, 49 Amounts of revenue in the years 1854-5, 52 Languages, — the Sanscrit Sarasvvatty or Pracrit, and the Pali, 53 " Five, called the Gaurs, 55 " Five, called the Dravire, 55 " Thirty, aa the Garrows, Coolies, Catties, Coles, &o. 57 Literature, 58 Science, 59 Education, 60 Colleges, 61 Arts, 62 Weaving, 64 Cashmere fabrics, 65 Architecture, 66 EfFeots of British rule in India, 68 Bodily and intelleotual endowments, 81 Vi CONTENTS. INDIA-STATISTICAL. PAGE. Extent and Population, ^^ British Possessions, , "0 Native States under British protection, 91 Native Independent States, 91 Foreign Possessions, 91 The East India Company, 92 Government, 93 Judicial System, 97 Revenue System, 102 ! at Hyderabad, 109 Table of Revenue from 1845 to 1850, 119 Moneys, , 121 Strength of the East India army in 1852, 122 " " Contingent troops of the Native States, 122 Number of troops sent from England since June 8, 1857, 123 Commerce and Internal Trade, 126 Railroads, 128 External Trade, 133 Dates of acquisition of the territories comprised within the sovereignty of the East India Company, 136 Historical Sketch of Delhi, 138 The Kotub Minar, 141 Private life in India, 162 Sei'vants, 163 Cost of an establishment, 165 Clothing and style of living, 165 Price of commodities, 166 Luxuries — Routine of life, 1 66 Indian Glossary, 168 India — Its Population, 172 Religion, Languages, 174 Physical and intellectual character, 178 Missionary Statistics, 179 Educational department, 187 Infanticide, 190 Phansiagars, or Thugs, 191 CONTENTS. VU Mei'iah sacrifices, or tlio Suttee, 195 Missionary losses by the mutiny, 202 Murder of Missionaries, 203 INDIA,-HISTORICAL. CHAPTER I. Ancient and Classical History of India, 207 Sesostris — Serairamis, 207 Invasions by Darius and Alexander the Great, 208 Calanus, the stoic, 210 The Greeks invade India, 211 CHAPTEB, II. The early Mohammedan invaders and conquerors of India, 214 Mahmoud, his numerous invasions and great spoils, 214 Mohammed takes the city of Benares, 217 Conquests of Timour, the Tartar, 220 Baber, the knight-errant of Asia, 220 CHAPTER III. The Mogul dynasty — its decline, 222 The Portuguese invited to the com-t, 223 The first English mission to India, 224 Rise of the Mahratta Power, 227 The Sikhs, a religious sect, 229 Invasion by Nadir Shah, 231 CHAPTER IV. Early European Discoveries and Conquests, 234 Vasco de Gama visits India, 234 Albuquerque assaults Calicut, 238 The Inquisition established at Goa, 239 Prosperity of the Dutch in India, 241 CHAPTER T. The early English Expeditions and Settlements, 243 The East India Company, 243 They contemplate greater plans of conquest, 246 The French dispute the possession of India with the English,. . 247 Vlii CONTENTS. FAOE. Clives' sueoessfal management of affairs 248 The French preponderance in India destroyed, 250 CHAPTEE VI. The British Conquests in Bengal, 252 The " Black Hole," in Calcutta, 252 dives' expedition, 253 Battle of Plassey, 253 Defeat of Meer Cossim, 255 Defeat of Surajah Dowlah, 255 Hyder Ali, raja of Mysore, 256 His ambitious career, 258 Devastation of the Carnatic, 260 Defeat of Col. Baillie, 261 Battle of Sholinghur, 262 Death of Hyder Ali, 263 CHAPTEE Til. The wars with Tippoo Saib, and the conquest of Mysore, 265 Bangalore taken by the English, 266 The two sons of Tippoo given as hostages, 268 Mausoleum of the sovereigns of Mysore, 269 Capture of Seringapatam and death of Tippoo, 272 CHAPTEE VIII. The Mahratta War. Conquest of Central India, 273 Gwalior taken by the English, 273 Battle of Poonah, 273 Battle of Assaye, 274 Capture of Burhanpoor, 275 Delhi and Agra taken, 275 Delhi besieged by Holkar, 276 CHAPTEE IX. The Pindares War, 278 Final overthrow of the Mahrattas, 282 Bhurtpore taken by Lord Comberraere, 283 The Afghanistan War, 283 The War in the Punjaub, 285 CHAPTEE I. The Religion, customs, industry, and character of the Hindoos, 287 Brama, the Hindoo Creator, 288 CONTENTS. IX PAQE. Vishnu, the Hindoo Redeemer, 289 Temples at Eleplianta and Kenneri, 290 Siva, the Hindoo Destroyer, 291 The suttees, or immolation of widows, 291 The division of castes, 292 The Sudras, or people of the fourth caste, 293 Indian religious literature, 293 Manufactures and the mechanic arts 297 Amusements and character of the people, 298 The Indian mutiny of 1857, 299 Remote and immediate causes of the mutiny, 299 The IMosIem and Hindoo hatred of the English, 300 Sir Colin Campbell, 301 The mother and brother of the king of Oude visits England,. . 308 Insufficiency of English forces to control India, 309 The greased cartridges, 312 The wheaten cakes, or signals of revolt, 315 Incendiai'ism, 316 The first outbreak at Meerut, 317 Organization and pay of the native troops, 318 Plabits and character of the sepoy, 319 Napier's and Sleeman's views on promotion in the army, 324 First open acts of mutiny near Calcutta, 346 Massacre at Meerut, 349 King of Delhi, 353 Delhi falls into the power of the rebels, 356 View of the City of Delhi, 363 Execution of mutineers, 370 Massacre at Gwalior, 375 English re-enforoements arrive, 377 Prince of Oude, 381 Massacre at Allahabad, 383 General Haveloek, 387 The battle at Agra, 389 Sieges of Luoknow and Cawnpore, 390 Nana Sahib, 396 Massacre near Cavrapore by Nana Sahib, 397 Nana Sahib, 399 Gen. Haveloek relieves Cawnpore, 401 CONTENTS. PAGE. Terrible butchery by Nana Sahib, 404 English repulsed at Arrah, 404 Nana Sahib defeated by Havelock at Futtypore, 407 Havelook gains his ninth victory at Bithoor, 408' Strength and condition of the English camp before Delhi, 412 The three actions before Delhi, 414 Official diary of the siege, 428 Storming of the city of Delhi, 431 Capture of the King and Queen, 434 Death of the king's sons, 434 Battle of Bolundshuhur, 434 The rehef of Luoknow, 435 Death of Gen. Neil, 436 The official detail of Havelook's victories, 437 Scene at Agra, 438 Col. Greathed's march, 439 Proclamation of Nana Sahib, 440 Campbell's siege at Alumbagh, 443 Relief of the garrison at Lueknow, 444 Death of Gen. Havelock, 445 Engagement with Gwahor mutineers, 446 Meeting at London, 447 The influence of the Calcutta journals, 453 Lord Canning's address before the legislative council, 455 Strength of the Indian army under Sir Colin Campbell, 459 Review of the causes, remote and immediate, of the Indian mutiny, ; 460 APPENDIX. The steamship Leviathan, , 465 Din<)ffostau, INDIA ON THIS SIDE OF THE GANGES OR BRAHMAPUTRA. INDOOSTAN, &oc.—Name and Limits.— The ancient inhabitants of India had nocom- mon name for themselves or their country ; but their Persian neighbors called the peo- ple Hindoos, and the country, as far as they knew it, Hindoostan ; words which, in old English, would have been accurately as well as literally rendei-ed " A^e- gro" and "Negro-land." The comprehensive sense in which the term Hindoostan is now employed, as distinct- ive of the entire territory south of the Himalaya moun- tains, over which the institution of castes prevails, is of European origin ; the people of the country confining the term to the territory lying north of the Nerbuddah, and calling all to the south of that river the Deccan, a word derived from the Sanscrit, and meaning " the right hand," and also "the south." In the European sense, Hindoostan comprises the whole of that vast triangular country extending from the borders of Little Thibet, in about the 35th deg. of N. lat., to Cape Comorin, in about the 8th deg. It is bounded on the north by the highest range of mountains in the world, the Himalaya; and by the two great rivers, the Brahmaputra and Indus, on the N.E. and N.W. ; and in every other direction by the ocean. It comprises in all an area of about 1,300,000 square miles, or more than one-third of the entire extent 12 INDIA, — GEOGRAPHICAL AND STATISTICAL. of Europe ; but, from the absence of gulfs, inland seas, and lakes, the proportion of solid land is greater. Surface and Geology .—T^he surface of Hindoostan, tak- ings the word in its widest acceptation, is of a very marked character. On the north, constituting the base of the triangle, we have three great ranges of mountains, with elevated valleys between. These chains rise, the one higher than the other, as we proceed northward, the last constituting the most stupendous and lofty mountains hitherto discovered. The mean bight of the Himalaya range is not less than from 16,000 to 20,000 feet above the sea level, although the peaks exceeding that eleva- tion are numerous; many of them are said to exceed the hight of Aconcagua, the culminating point of the Andes ; and several reach the hight of 25,000 feet. Mt. Everest, (explored within the last year,) rises to the pro- digious elevation of 29,002 feet above the ocean level. For 1,000 miles, from China to Cashmere, a plain might be extended, resting on peaks 20,000 feet high, while some are more than 8,000 feet above this elevation. The valleys themselves are from 2,000 to 4,000 feet above the level of the sea. Primitive rocks alone com- pose the highest ranges. Gneiss predominates ; but with it are found granite, mica slate, hornblende schist, chlorite slate, crystaline limestone, and marble. On these repose clay slate and flinty slate. In the lowest or southern range, sandstone composes that portion wliich terminates in the plain of the Ganges. Crossing this plain, and pro- ceeding southward, we come to another chain of moun- tains, the Vindhyan range, running nearly east and west across the center of Hindoostan, in about the 23d deg. of lat. This is the basis of a triangle of mountain ranges which supports the vast table-land of Central India. The formation here is primitive, consisting chiefly of INDIA, — GEOGRAPHICAL AND STATISTICAL. 13 gneiss ; but where it terminates in the plain of the Ganges, and forms the south barrier of the latter, the forma- tion is sandstone, as on the north side of the same plain. The great western range of mountains commonly, though improperly, called Ghauts,* commences on the north- west, where the Vindhyan range terminates, and runs, in a direction nearly north and south, to between the 10th and 11th deg. of lat., until at Coimbatore they meet the east range, or Ghauts. The formation of this chain is primitive ; but to the north there is a great extent of overlying trap, columar, prismatic, tabular, and globular. To the south again, the overlying rock to a great extent is laterite, or clay iron ore. The western is much more elevated and continuous than the eastern Ghauts, and some of its highest granitic peaks rise to the hight of from 6,000 to 8,700 feet. It is remarkable for the ab- sence of valleys or denudations, and of rivers running west, but is covered with extensive forests. In fact, the sea, in some situations, comes up to the very foot of the mountains, and nowhere leaves any thing more than a narrow belt of low land, much broken by deep and nar- row inlets. This is the coast of Malabar, exposed to all the violence of the south-west monsoon, blowing without interruption for six months from the coasts of Africa and Arabia. Where the eastern and western Ghauts meet, commences the remarkable valley or gap of Coimbatore, which leaves a clear breach in the mountain chains, ex- tending from the eastern coast to the western coast. A single chain of the same formation as the eastern Ghauts then runs all the way to Cape Comorin, leaving the plain of Travancore to the west, and the more extensive plain of Madura and Tinnevelly to the east. The eastern * Gliaut means a pass or patf.ige of any liiiul, not a mountain. 14 INDIA,— GEOGRAPHICAL AND STATISTICAL. chain, or Ghauts, maybe said to commence at the Neil- gherry hills, which are among the highest mountains of Southern India. From this point they diverge in an easterly direction, and soon break into a succession of parallel ranges, less elevated and more broken than the vyestern Ghauts. In their further progress to the north, the eastern Ghauts break into subordinate ranges and valleys, which give passage to the great rivers that drain nearly all the waters of the peninsula into the Bay of Bengal. This range terminates nearly in the same par- allel of latitude to the west. Granite rocks, especially sienite, form the basis not only of the eastern chain, but of the range which runs from the gap of Coimbatore to Cape Comorin. The sienite discovers itself at all the accessible summits, from Cape Comorin to Hyderabad, from the 8th up to the 17th degrees of latitude. Rest- ing on the granite, gneiss, and talc- slate, that form the sides and bases of the eastern chain, are sometimes seen clay, hornblende, flinty, and chloride slate, with primitive marble of various colors. At the Pennar river, in the •14.th and 15th degrees of latitude, clay iron ore, or later- ite, expands over a large surface, and sandstone begins to appear. At Vizagapatam, Ganjam, and Cuttack, the same formation continues, and the laterite extends through Midnapore up to Beerbhoom, sometimes repos- ing upon sandstone. A cellular carbonate of lime, called kankar, peculiar to the geology of India, is found over all the district now named, as well as in many other parts of Hindoostan. We come now to the great coal field, which runs, for sixty-five miles in length, and twelve in breadth, on both sides the river Uamoda. It is supposed to cross the Ganges, and to extend all the way to Sylhet and Cachar, from which places abundant specimens of surface coal haye been brought. The rock formation IXDIA, — GEOGRAPHICAL AXD STATISTICAL, 15 here consists of sandstone, clay-s'.ate, and shale, the lat- ter, as usual, Iving immediately over the coal. The first colliery in India was opened, in 1S15, at this place. Coal is now largely consumed in Calcutta, chiefly for forges and steam navigation. From the Damoda river to Benares, granitic rocks prevail. On approaching the river Soane, however, sandstone becomes the surface rock, and, one interval excepted, extends to the north of Agra, as far as the 28th degree of latitude. The excep- tion alluded to occurs in the lower portion of the prov- ince of Bundlecund, where granite again prevails, while the upper consists of sandstone. The great surface for- mations of the table-land itself are granitic, including always gneiss and sienite, with sandstone and the over- lying rocks. Basaltic trap extends over the provinces of Mahvah and Saugar, proceeds by Xagpore, sweeps the western portion of the Hyderabad territory down to the 15th degree of latitude, where it bends to the north-west, and, running all the way to the coast of Malabar, forms the shores of the Concan. In all, it seems to cover an area of about 200,000 square miles. We may observe here that the geological formation of India is extremely simple, compared with that of European countries, con- sisting only of four classes of rocks, viz.: the granitic, the sandstone and clay-slate, the trap, and the alluvial. Of the latter we have examples on a great scale in the plains of the Ganges and Indus, which meet between the 28th and 31st deg. N. lat, and the 76th and 77th deg. E. long. ; as well as in the plain lying between the eastern Ghauts and Bengal, from Cape Comorin to Cuttack. After this view of the surface and geology of Hindoos- tan, the following natural geographical divisions may be made: 1. The ranges of the Himalaya with their val- 2 16 INDIA,— GEOGRAPHICAL AND STATISTICAL. leys. 2. The Gangetic plain, comprising only the tract of inundation, and which rises very little above the level of the sea. 3. The upper plain of the Ganges, from the province of Bahar, inclusive, up to the foot of the first range of the Himalayas, where the Ganges and Jumna issue from the hills to the north, bounded to the south by the Vindhyan range, and to the west by the great desert. The hight of the eastern portion of this division may be about 600 feet above the level of the sea, and the land rises gradually as we proceed north until, where the great rivers emerge into the plain, it has an elevation of 1,000 feet. 4. The northern portion of the great central table- land as far south as the valley of the Nerbuddah, which generally intersects the table-land in question from east to west. The hight of this portion of the table-land ranges from 1,700 to 2,000 feet, as at the towns of Oojein, Indore, and Mhow. 5. The portion of the table-land which lies south of the valley of the Nerbuddah, down to the junction of the eastern and western Ghauts^ and the valley of Coimbatore. The hight of the table-land ranges here from 2,000 feet to 2,400 and 3,000, as at Poonah, Sei-ingapatam, and Bangalore. 6. From the gap of Coimbatore inclusive to Cape Comorin. 7. The narrow strip of low land lying between the western Ghauts and the sea, or coast of Malabar, including the western acclivities of the mountains themselves. 8. The alluvial plain, of unequal breadth, which lies between the eastern Ghauts and the Bay of Bengal, generally called the Carnatic, rising gradually from the shore to the foot of the mountains ; at the town of Arcot, sixty miles inland, it is 490 feet above the level of the sea ; and, 9. The peninsula of Gujerat, with the adjacent country, containing much mountain land and a kw plains. All these differ so materially in their physical aspect, cli- INDIA, — GEOGEAPHICAL AND STATISTICAL. 17 mate, geological formation, animal and vegetable produc- tions, as well as in the character of the nations and tribes which inhabit them, as fully to warrant this distribution. Nut Hatch. Rivers. — The rivers of India have their sources either in the Himalaya mountains, or within the great central table-land. The first class are by far the largest and most important. Beginning from the east,, the first great river which occurs is the Brahmaputra. The source of this stream is not exactly ascertained ; but its course has been estimated at about 860 miles, and it' is believed to discharge a larger volume of water than even the Ganges. Its course in the plain of Bengal, from Goyalpara to its entrance into the .Bay of Bengal, where it debouches, is but 350 miles ; and having a rapid current, and passing generally through a wild and inhospitable country, it is 18 INDIA,— GEOGRAPHICAL AlvD STATISTICAL. comparatively of little service to commerce or naviga- tion. The Ganges, called Ganga by the Indians, has its origin in two principal branches, about 31° N. lat., and between 78° and 80° E. long. Its whole course is reck- oned at about 1,350 miles ; but, from its entrance into the plain at Hurdwar, its course to the Bay of Bengal, into which it falls within a few miles of Brahmaputra, is about 1,200 miles. Within the plain, all its branches are navigable for boats; and the Bhagherettee, its most western branch, usually called the Hooghly, is navigable for ships of 400 tons burden, as far as Calcutta, 100 miles from, the sea. According to Major Rennel, the princi- pal branch discharges 80,000 cubic feet of water per second. The greatest of the affluents of the Ganges is the Jumna. It also has its origin in two branches within the highest masses of the Himalaya, to the west of the sources of the Ganges. Its course within the mountains is about 120 miles, it issues into the plain about thirty miles west of the Ganges, and here its bed is about 1,200 feet above the level of the sea. In the course of a few miles, however, passing over some falls, it takes a lower level. After a course of 450 miles passing the Moham- medan capitals of Delhi and Agra, and being navigable for a great part of its course, it joins the Ganges at Al- lahabad. The other priacipal affluents of the Ganges, which take their source from the Himalaya, are the Ram tianga, which joins the Ganges above Canoge ; the Goomtee, which passes by Lucknow, and, after a wind- ing course, whence it derives its name, joins the Ganges between Benares and Ghazipoor; the Gogra with a course of 600 miles, and the largest of the affluents of the Ganges on this side the Himalaya, after passing through Fyzabad and Oude, joins the Ganges above the town of Chupra ; the Gunduck, which has a course of 450 miles ; IXDIA, — GEOGRAPHICAL AND STATISTICAL. 19 the Bagmutty, which passes close to Catmandoo, the capital of Nepaul ; and the Coosy, originating in the ta- ble-land of Thibet, and which enters the Ganges at Bog- lipoor. The great delta of the Ganges may be said to commence at SichguUy. The first bifurcation of the Ganges itself commences at Sooty, twenty miles below Rajemahal, at which last place the river is pressed in by some low hills of that name. The Ganges receives, after this, from Himalaya, the Mahanada and Teesta, which have their sources in the mountains of Nepaul and Boo- tan, with courses of from 230 to 300 miles. After the junction of these, the Ganges communicates with the Brahmaputra by a variety of branches. The rivers which fall into the Ganges, or its affluent, the Jumna, from the north acclivity of the central table-land, are the Soane, the Betwah, and the Chumbul : the latter has a course of 400 miles. Both it and the Betwah fall into the Jumna. The Soane is an affluent of the Ganges, and falls into that river a little above Patna. Lakes. — India is remarkably deficient in lakes, and, in fact, contains no large collections of water, fresh or salt, such as the lakes of North America, Northern Asia, Switzerland, or even Scotland. In the northern parts of Bengal, there are a few fresh- water lakes of some extent, but the greater number of this description, found through-- out the country, are supposed to be nothing more than the old channels of rivers which have taken a new course. Of the same character, in some respects, are the Chilka lake in Cuttack, and the Colair lake in Circars ; the first of which communicates with the Mahanuddy, and the last with the Godavery and Kisma. The Chilka lake is thirty-five miles long and eight broad, and contains several islands, and abounds with fish : it is separated from the sea by a sand bank not above half a mile broad. 2* 20 INDIA,— GEOGRAPHICAL AND STATISTICAL. The Colair lake is twenty-four miles by twelve miles in the dry season, but, during the periodical rains, expands from forty to fifty miles in length. During the latter period, the whole flooded country, including the islands of the lake, are fertilized by the deposit of mud brought down the two rivers; and hence. Major Rennel, with some propriety, compares the neighboring country to the delta of the Nile. In the sandy desert to the west of the plain of the Ganges several salt lakes occur, the largest of which, however, does not exceed twenty miles in length. Collections of salt water, more or less connected with the sea, are of more frequent occurrence. Several considerable ones of this nature are to be found on the lower eastern coast of the peninsula; but the great- est and most remarkable is the Runn, lying between the Gulf of Cutch and the mouths of the Indus, which is believed to occupy a space of 5,000 square miles. Coast Outline. — The outline of the coast of Hindoostan is comparatively little broken by any considerable inlet of the sea. From the mouths of the Indus to those of the Ganges there are but three great gulfs, those of Cutch, Cambay, and Bengal ; if the latter, indeed, which, though it breaks the coast of Asia, does not break the coast of Hindoostan, can be reckoned in this class. Harbors are even less frequent. Along the west coast, over fourteen deg. of lat., there is but a single good one, Bombay; and, from Cape Comorin to the most western mouth of the Ganges, a distance of 1,500 miles, there is not one. In this unfavorable feature of its geography, the shore of India resembles more the coasts of Africa than the shores of North America or Europe. The Indian coasts are also in a great measure destitute of islands. Unless we include Ceylon, which can hardly be included, there is not one on the east coast ; and on the west there are INDIA, — GEOGEAPHICAL AND STATISTICAL. 21 very few, and these of inconsiderable size. In this respect, Hindoostan is remarkably distinguished from the two great corresponding Asiatic promontories of Malacca and Cambodia, the coasts of which are thickly studded with islands, many of them of considerable magnitude. Climate. — In a country which embraces 27° of latitude, which contains extensive plateaus, elevated from 2,000 to 3,000 feet above the level of the sea — some of the most extensive plains in the world, almost on a level with, or but a few hundred feet above, the sea — the highest range of mountains in the world' — ^tracts of bare rocks — deserts of mere sand, and deep, primeval forests— it is needless to say there must exist a great diversity of climate. But, besides the diversity arising from these causes, the distri- bution of rain is another source. The whole continent of India, up to the 35th deg. of lat., is subject to the in- fluence of the monsoons, which blow from the north-east during the serene, temperate months of winter, and from the south-west during the tempestuous and hot or I'ainy months of summer and autumn. This is the general rule ; but in India, as in other countries of Asia under the in- fluence of the monsoon, and where there are ranges of mountains running north and south, of sufiicient eleva- tion to intercept the clouds, the time of the periodical fall of rains is reversed. To the west of the great chain of the western Ghauts, on the one hand, over 11° of lat., the periodical fall of rains corresponds with that of other parts of India, or takes place during the west monsoon ; east of the Ghauts, on the other hand, over 8° of lat., the fall of rain takes place during the east monsoon ; while the table-land, which lies between the two ranges, par- takes, to a moderate degree, in both falls. As a general rule, the year is divided in India into three well-defined seasons : a hot, corresponding with part of spring and 22 INDIA, — GEOGRAPHICAL AJS^D STATISTICAL. summer ; a wet, corresponding with part of summer and autumn ; and a cold, corresponding generally with our winter months. With respect to temperature, much of India being within the tropics, and the remaining portion within 12° of the tropic, the whole is entitled to the desig-, nation of a hot country. On the low plains within the tropic, and up to about ^the 18th deg. of lat., winter is scarcely perceptible, and the year may be said to be divided into wet and dry. From that parallel north, winter becomes more and more distinct, and, beyond the 27th deg., lasts for six months, during which the climate is not inferior in point of agreeableness or salubrity to that of Italy. This is, however, counterbalanced by the severity of the hot and dry season, which lasts for three months, and is so intense as nearly to destroy all appear- ance of vegetation. On the elevated central plateaus, the temperature is generally from 6° to 10° Fahr. lower than in the same latitudes on the low lands, and the fall of rain being more equally distributed, the necessary ef- fect is a climate in general temperate and agreeable, though not always salubrious. In the valleys between the two great chains of the Himalaya, the same order of the seasons generally prevails as in the plains, and here the thermometer is rarely less than 18° or 20° lower than in the plains under the same parallels. A few examples may be given of temperature, as indicated by the ther- mometer. The mean temperature of Bombay is 82° Fahr., and in the table-land in the same latitude, at an elevation of 1,700 feet, it is 77°. At Madras, the mean annual temperature is 84°, and at Darwar, on the table- land, it is 75°. At Utakamund, in the Neilgherry moun- tains, 7,000 feet above the level of the sea, the mean temperature is 56°, or 28° lower than that of Madras. Here the thermometer sometimes rises as high as 69°, and INDIA, — GEOGEAPHIC'AL AND STATISTICAL. 23 rarely falls as low as 20°. In the peninsula of Gujerat, and on the level of the sea, the thermometer occasionally rises to 100° in summer, and falls to 45° in winter. The mean annual temperature of Calcutta is 79°, Fahr. In May, the hottest month, it is 86°, and in January, the coldest, 67°. In summer, however, the thermometer frequently rises above 100°, and in winter falls so near the freezing point that, with a trifling assistance from evaporation, ice is easily obtained. Within the upper portion of the plain of the Ganges, both the latitude and elevation contribute to reduce the temperature. From the middle of December to the middle of February, the thermometer sinks every day below the freezing point, and small pools of water are covered with ice, and the average temperature of January is 37°. From April till the middle of June, when the rain falls, the thermometer gradually rises to 90°, and even to 110°; and at Delhi, Agra, and other places on the west bank of the Jumna, in the whole period from March to June, scorching south- west winds, proceeding from the desert, prevail. It is in these same countries that, during the whole period from the beginning of November to that of March, the climate equals that of Southern Italy. Nations and Tribes. — Besides foreigners, who, as peace- able emigrants or conquerors, have settled in India dur- ing the last twelve centuries, but chiefly during the last eight, the number of aboriginal races, distinguished by differences of language, manners, states of society, and great variation, if not difference, of religious belief, is still very great ; and undoubtedly was much greater be- fore the blending, which must have been more or less the result of the extensive conquests of the northern invaders. These have been in active operation for nearly seven centuries, and, in all likelihood, have been materially 2-1 INDIA,— QEOGRAPHICAL AND STATISTICAL. promoted by the conquests of the more powerful Hindoo states over the smaller. There are at present spoken in India, by the most civilized races, not less than twenty- five distinct languages or dialects, indicating the exist- ence of as many distinct nations ; but, including tribes more or less savage or barbarous, at least fifty languages, indicating the presence of at least as many distinct tribes. Of the more civilized nations, eight may be said to be distinguished from the rest by some superiority of civih- zation, as implied in the possession of a national litera- ture, a national alphabet, superior population, superior industry, a greater progress in the useful arts, with the richer and more extensive territory which they are found to occupy. These are the Bengalee, Ooriya, Mahratta, Gujeratee, Telinga, Tamul, Carnata, and Hindoo or Hin- doostanee nations. The Bengalee nation occupies above 80,000 square miles of fertile land, chiefly within the delta of the Ganges, and amounts in numbers to nearly 25,000,000. The Tamul nation occupies 56,000 square miles, at the southern extremity of the peninsula, and numbers between 6,000,000 and 7,000,000 people. The Telinga nation occupies 100,000 square miles of the north-east portion of the peninsula, and numbers probably between 7,000,000 and 8,000,000 people ; and the Ooriya nation occupies at least 17,000 square miles of the low land which connects the delta of the Ganges with the southern peninsula, and numbers nearly 4,000,000. The Mahratta nation extends probably over 200,000 square miles of territory, lying between the 22d and 23d degrees of north latitude, and its numbers may be roughly com- puted at 12,000,000. The Carnata or Canara nation, occupying a central portion of the table-land south of the 18th degree of latitude, may occupy about 75,000 square miles of territory, and their numbers may be 25 taken at about 5,000,000. The nation speaking the Hin- doostanee oi- Hindee language occupies at least 100,000 square miles of the upper portion of the valley of the Ganges, and can not amount to less than 20,000,000, — pliysically and intellectually, the most vigorous of all the Indian races. The most enterprising of these nations, it is to be observed, have occasionally passed, either as con- querors or colonists, into the territories of each other, or of their neighbors. Thus, we find colonies of the Tamuls settled in Malayalim ; of Telingas in Carnata and the Tamul country ; of Mahrattas in the Tamul, Telinga, and Carnata countries ; of Carnates colonized in the countries below the eastern Ghauts ; and colonies from the upper plain of the Ganges, settled as far as Gujerat, Bengal, Nepaul, and even Malabar. These colonies, of whatever nation, not unfrequently preserve their national language, their original manners, and even the purity of their descent, in their adopted countries. The barbarous and savage tribes of India are universally to be found in the recesses of mountainous and hilly regions, never within the fertile plains or extensive table-lands ; and there is scarcely any considerable range throughout India in which some of them are not to be found. They are, however, most numerous on the eastern frontier of Ben- gal, in the fastnesses of the mountains and sterile regions of Gundwana, and generally in the ranges of hills which lie between the Gangetic plain and the great central plateau. These barbarous tribes have been supposed by some observers to be the aboriginal natives of the coun- try, driven from the plains to the hills by strangers and invaders ; but this hypothesis seems little better than a gratuitous assumption : the mountaineers are no doubt aboriginal, in common with the inhabitants of the plains, and their barbarous condition seems naturally enough ac- 26 INDIA,— GEOGEAPHICAL AND STATISTICAL. counted for by the unfavorable circumstances of their situa- tion, and their remaining in that condition to the hostility of the powerful occupants of the lower and more fertile lands. Foreign Settlers.- — Besides the original and peculiar inhabitants of Hindoostan, a crowd of foreign colonists or settlers of different nations, either scattered indiscrim- inately over the country or confined to particular spots, from the accident of their arrival or other chance, forms a considerable proportion of the present population of the country. These, following generally the order of their arrival, or supposed arrival, are as follows : Jews, Syrian Christians, Arabs, Armenians, Persees, Persians, Afghans, Tartars, Turks, Abyssinians, Portuguese, Eng- lish, Dutch, French, Danes, and Chinese. Hindoo Religion. — The forms of religious worship which prevail are the Braminical, Boodhist, Jain, Seik, Mohammedan, Jewish, and Christian. These, and espe- cially the most prevalent of them, are again divided into many sects. But, besides national, colonial, and religious distinctions, there are other nearly innumerable divisions of the great mass of the people. Many are distinguished by the profession which they have immemorially followed; many by their condition as slaves, and many as outcasts, without being slaves ; some are in the hunter, and a few in the pastoral state ; some are freebooters, others pirates ; and there are whole tribes who have, time immemorial, teen illustrious as thieves, robbers, highwaymen, and professional assassins. These distinctions into tribes and families are all hereditary ; each section and even sub- section is isolated by nearly impassible limits from the rest of the society. In the province of Malabar, for ex ample, which contains but 6,000 square miles, and about 900,000 inhabitants, there are about 300 different tribes, few of which are founded on distinctions strictly religious INDIA, — GEOGEAPHICAL AND STATISTICAL. 27 or national. In Canara, with an area of 7,700 square miles, and 657,000 inhabitants, there are, exclusive of strangers and foreign settlers, 104 native castes; and, in the rural districts of Burdwan, in Bengal, it was found that in twenty-six villages, containing a population of about 40,000, there existed, independent of strictly relig- ious distinctions, no fewer than forty-four castes, chiefly discriminated by the trades or professions which they followed, each caste being known by a distinct name, each being hereditary, and each incapable of eating, drinking, intermarrying, or in any other manner inti- mately associating with the others ! The circumstances on which this almost infinite dis- tinction is founded are often trivial, and sometimes even ludicrous ; and yet the practical separation is not there- fore the less real. For example ; one tribe of oil-makers in Telingana, who use two oxen in the mill, will hold no intercourse with another following the same profession, but who use one only ; they will neither follow the same gods nor the same leaders. The great division of the right and left hand, which prevails throughout,the southern parts of India, but which is not known in the northern, does not appear to be of a religious character. One of these tribes ranges itself on one side, and another on the opposite ; and serious disturbances of the public peace are not unfre- quently the result of senseless quarrels which concern neither religion nor politics. It results from this account of the national, colonial, religious, and other distinctions which prevail throughout Hindoostan, that society is there composed of an infinity of discordant and heterogeneous materials, incapable of union or combination, and therefore easily overcome, and as easily retained in subjection ; and hence one great cause of the facility with which, in all ages, foreigners have overrun India, and held it in subjection. 28 INDIA,— GEOGRAPHICAL AND STATISTICAL. Under the general name of the Hindoo rehgion are comprised many different doctrines, and an infinity of castes, which it would be useless, and all but impossible to describe, or even to enumerate. This rehgion, per- haps beyond any other, pervades the entire frame of civil society, and mixes itself up with every concern of life, pubhc, private and domestic. A Hindoo can neither continue his species, be born, die, eat, drink, or perform any of the most ordinary or even vulgar functions of the animal economy, unembarrassed by its trivial and un- meaning ceremonies : military enterprises, the details of commerce, and the operations of agriculture, are more or less under its guidance ; it is part and parcel of the code of laws, or, to speak more correctly, it is itself the law. Almost every act of a Hindoo may, in fact, be said to be more or less a religious act. The most civil- ized and instructed of the Hindoos, but these only, be- lieve in the immortality of the soul, and in a future state of rewards and punishments. The belief in the trans- migration of souls is somewhat more general, but far from universal. There are reckoned to be four orthodox sects, whose principles are determined by the preference they give in their worship to some one of the greater gods of the Hindoo pantheon ; for there are gods, great and small, some almost omnipotent, particularly for mis- chief, and others so feeble as to be all but contemptible, and no match even for an ordinary Bramin ! Accord- ing to the best authorities, the Hindoo pantheon is peo- , pled by precisely 333,000,000 deities ; but, as no one has attempted to name them, it can only be concluded that the Hindoo deities are in reality innumerable. They consist of three. principal gods, who are supposed to re- present, (but their powers and functions are frequently interchangeable at the caprice of their votaries,) the pow- INDIA, — GEOGEAPHIOAL AND STATISTICAL. 29 ers of creation, destruction and preservation or regenera- tion; and of the families of these, with deifications of the elements and powers of nature, of heroes, and espe- cially of saints and abstract ideas. Among the lower orders of the people, and especially among the ruder tribes, a sort of feticism prevails ; and trees, rocks, and rude masses of stone are worshipped or abandoned, ac- cording to the fears, hopes, or caprices of their votaries. The present race of Hindoos are tolerant in all matters of religion, or, to speak more correctly, they are indiffer- ent; in fact, they go even beyond indifference, and, in cases of emergency, are ready to invoke any strange god, or strange saint, by whose aid they may hope to profit. The Mahratta chiefs are in the frequent practice of in- voking Mohammedan saints ; and, Madajee Scindia, the chief of the Mahratta state, a shrewd and politic prince, and a great conqueror, was in the habit of making fre- quent offerings at the tomb of a celebrated saint in Ajmeer, the same to whose shrine Akbar, the most illus- trious of the Mogul emperors, walked 230 miles bare- footed. The Mohammedans of the lower orders, who, in some parts of the country, are indeed little better than Hindoos, return the compliment, and in their need, pro- pitiate the gods of the Hindoos ; and, each will join in the religious festivals and processions of the other. In the south of India, the Hindoos, in their distress, will not unfrequently propitiate even the Catholic Christian saints, and the Christian Hindoos reciprocate. It is not, as already stated, to matters of doctrine or morality, that the Hindoos attach importance. In the same tribe, or even family, will be found sectarians of the De- stroying Power, of his consort, of the Preserver in sev- eral of his incarnations, (the Creator among the Hindoos has no worshippers,) all intermarrying with eacli other, so INDIA,— GEOGRAPHICAL AND STATISTICAL. and the wife adopting the opinions of the husband with- out any difficulty. Some of the Christians of Southern India, intermarry with the Hindoos of their own tribe, without any forfeiture of caste on either side, provided external observances be attended to. Persecution in re- cent times is the exception ; but the sectaries of Nanak, or the Seiks, have been considerable persecutors in their way ; they have destroyed most of the mosques within their territory, and will seldom allow Mohammedans to assemble in the few that remain ; they forbid them from eating beef, or praying aloud, according to law. What, however, the Hindoos really attach importance to, are not doctrinal matters, but distinctions of caste, ceremo- nies connected with marriage and funeral rites, and the whimsical observances respecting supposed purity and impurity in regard to food and other matters connected with ordinary domestic life. The distinctions of caste are the most remarkable of these, and form indeed the characteristic mark of Hindoo society. Every one has heard that the Hindoos are divided into four great classes or castes, founded upon the great distinctions which pre- vail among all people in their first advance toward civil- ization ; that is, into priests, soldiers, traders and labor- ers. As such, a distinction into tribes is natural, and indeed known to have existed among other people : it is highly probable that it prevailed with the first rude tribe or nation with which the Braminical form of worship originated, and thaf it constituted the foundation of the present superstructure of the castes. The first in rank among the four great classes, of course, is the Bramin or priest; and next to him comes, very naturally, the soldier; at a great distance follows the industrious capitalist or trader ; and far. removed from all is the laborer. These divisions are hereditary, INDIA, — GEOGRAPHICAL AND STATISTICAL. 31 impassable, and indefeasible. Such is the theory of the distinctions of Hindoo society ; but the practical and real distinctions are very different indeed. The attributes of the different classes, as they are described in the ancient books of Hindoos, we may be sure never could have been practically in operation. These books, it must be recol- lected, were written by Bramins, who claimed an exclu- sive right to expound them, and all but the monopoly of reading them ; and it was their interest to dwell on the immeasurable superiority of their own order ; but it is hardly credible that any society should be able to hold together for a moment, in which laws such as we find in the Hindoo sacred books were bona fide enforced. For example, it is enacted, among myriads of the same sort, that if a laboring man sit upon the carpet of a priest, he shall be punished, either by having a hot iron thrust into his buttock, or by being branded, or banished the king- dom, or having the offending buttock cut off! Many, in fact, of the Hindoo laws appear to have been framed by the Bramins more for the purpose of deterring, through the terrors of superstition and punishment, the other classes from interfering with their privileges, than for any other object. Whatever may have been the original at- tributes and privileges of the great classes, at their first institution, it is certain that these classes themselves can hardly be said at present practically to exist. In the ad- vance of society, the increase of pepulation, the exten- sion of commerce and conversion, and the operation of the human passions, they have given way to a different order of things. They are referred to by the tribes into which Hindoo society is at present divided, as a matter of genealogy; some tribes claiming, their pedigree from one or other of the original castes ; their neighbors deny- ing the authenticity of the claim, and setting up claims 3* 32 INDIA, — GEOGEAPHICAL AND STATISTICAL. of their own ; but the greater number of the people making no pretense to this purity of descent, for such it is considered, eveii in its lowest ranks. In the most an- cient Hindoo work extant, the Institutes of Menu, which has been computed to be about 3,700 years old, there already existed nearly a hundred castes ; and it must be supposed that the enumeration was confined to that part of the country in which the work was written. The number of the castes not coming within the pale of the four great divisions, suggested the notion of the mixed castes, supposed to have originated from an illegitimate in- tercourse between the four great orders, with the crosses which again sprung from these. This was clearly an after-thought, — a new theory made for the occasion, and wholly inadequate to explain the actual state of society as we find it. This may be made suiSciently plain by a few examples. Among the 25,000,000 of people who speak the language of Bengal, there are none who even pretend to be of the second or third order, that is of the military or mercantile classes ; all who are of these two orders are comparatively recent emigrants from the north, and identified as such. In so far as the four great orders are concerned, the native inhabitants of Bengal consist, in fact, of Bramins, and those who are not Bra- mins. The Bramins themselves consist here of two class- es ; viz. : those who can trace their pedigree to the north of India, and who are held in the highest repute, and of those who can not, being far less esteemed . The Bramins of Ben- gal, including all of both these classes, consist of no less than 168 subdivisions, claiming various degrees of puri- ty, and not one of which will eat, drink, or intermarry with another ! The next most important caste in Ben- gal, is denominated Chysta, and is chiefly engaged in mercantile pursuits: this is the tribe whose name has INDIA, — GEOGRAPHICAL AND STATISTICAL. 33 been supposed by many to have furnished the Enghsh language with the word caste ; but this is a mistake, for the term is simply the Spanish and Portuguese word caste, meaning race or lineage. They are reckoned pure Sudras, or persons of the original servile class, and amount to eighty- three subdivisions, equally unsocial among themselves with the Bramins. Among the peo- ple speaking the Oorissa language, the military order is altogether wanting, and there are but a few families gen- erally reputed of the third class. In Malabar and Cana- ra, the second and third orders are wanting ; the first of these being supplied by the military aristocracy of the Nairs, who are considered to be pure Sudras, or of the servile class ; that is, of the class represented by the Hindoos as being in the last degree of degradation : they are, notwithstanding, the lords of the soil, and, before very recent conquest, the real sovereigns of the country. The celebrated Rajpoots, the most distinguished mihtary order among the Hindoos, have, according to the San- scrit writings, a vulgar origin ; they are sprung from the mercantile classes on the paternal side, and from one of the mixed classes on the maternal. All the warlike and conquering nation of the Mahrattas, who are not Bra- mins, are deemed to be of the fourth or servile order. In every part of India there is a considerable portion of the inhabitants who are utter outcasts, or, at least, be- yond the pale of the Braminical religion ; condemned to this exclusion by their servile condition, their poverty, or the meanness of the employment in which they are engaged ; the proportion of this degraded class being contrary, perhaps, to what might have been expected, always found to be the greatest in the least civilized parts of the country. In the district of Dinagepore, in Bengal, out of a 34 INDIA, — GEOGRAPHICAL AND STATISTICAL. Hindoo population of 800,000, it was found that 8| per cent, only were considered pure tribes, 46 1 impure, 18^ very low, and 26 1 abominable. In Malabar, out of a population of 720,000, 100,000 are in a state of slavery, and treated by the Bramins and Nairs as if they were hardly human. Even a great proportion of the free and industrious classes must not approach, owing to their alledged impurity, the person of a Nair nearer than a prescribed number of paces, this Nair himself being, as already mentioned, the lowest of the original classes ; a being, according to the ancient Hindoo writings, ex- pressly created for the purpose of performing servile offices to the Bramins, and other superior classes. What is still more remarkable, and the same thing obtains with respect to many other impure classes in the south of India, the Bramins refuse to afford them instruction or spiritual comfort : in fact, they are not of the Braminical religion at all ; never enter the Braminical temples, or offer worship to the gods of the Bramins ; but have their own peculiar deities, priests of their own caste, and, contrary to the creed of the Bramins, usually have no knowledge of a future state. The Bramins, although they are to be found throughout India, and have a vast influence everywhere, are divided into more numerous families and varieties than any of the other classes; and, while each is revered by its own immediate follow- ers among the laity, they almost all hold each other in contempt as pretenders. They go the length of reck- oning no less than 2,000 separate distinct families of their order. The order of the Bramins compose the very essence of Hindooism : the Bramin who lives by charity, or the voluntary contributions of the laity, and who performs no part of the common ritual of the Hin- doo worship, is held in the highest repute. Next to him 35 comes the Bramin who lives by his industry and tem- poral employments, provided they be such as become the dignity of the order ; but which commonly exclude holding the plough, and performing any of the manual employments of agriculture. The lowest rank of all is assigned to those Bramins who perform the common ritual of the Hindoo worship ; and among these last, the meanest office of all is that of performing the service of the gods in the temples. To exercise even the office of astrologer or village priest is far more respectable. The service of the temples, indeed, has fallen into such disre- pute, that the Bramins in some cases have abandoned it to the inferior classes. Fastidiousness in respect to food is a characteristic mark of purity of caste, and no people ever carried this matter to so absurd and extravagant a length as the Hindoos. On this point the most essential thing of all is to abstain from eating the flesh of the cow. He who eats beef is no Hindoo, but an utter outcast. He who kills an ox by accident ought to be excommuni- cated ; and he who kills one designedly ought to suffer death. This is perhaps the only religious precept which is of universal acceptance among all Hindoos ; pretty much in the same way as an abstinence from the flesh of the hog is imperative upon all Jews and Mohamme- dans. The higher classes commonly abstain from eating the flesh of all domestic animals, except that of the goat or sheep. Hindoos generally partake readily of almost all descriptions of game, the wild boar included. The impure classes and outcasts, a numerous body of the people in many parts of India, hardly reject any kind of attainable aliment, and devour, without scruple, such articles as carrion, rats, and river tortoises, that feed most impurely; the higher castes commonly eat but once a day, and a few of thtf most fastidious only when 86 INDIA, — GEOGRAPHICAL AND STATISTICAL. the sun is out ; so that in cloudy weather they are occa- sionally put to very trying inconvenience. To abstain from spirituous and fermented liquors, and intoxicating drugs, is a general precept of the Hindoo religion ; and the degree in which abstinence from them is observed marks the purity or impurity of the class. Bramlns and persons of the mercantile order generally abstain alto- gether from the use of spirituous liquors, while the impure classes and outcasts partake of them very freely. The distinctions of caste founded upon employments, though not always rational, are generally much more so than any others. The most honorable employment is that of the priesthood, provided the individual exercising it live on eleemosynary gifts, confine himself to giving instruction, and that that instruction be not given to any person of an impure caste, that is, to those who can not afford to pay handsomely for it, which would be very dis- creditable. The military profession, and the wholesale mercantile profession, are almost equally honorable. Agricultural employment is creditable almost every- where; its respectability being, however, somewhat impaired where slaves are numerous, and principally employed in the labors of the field. All the more ordi- nary trades, immemorially exercised by the Hindoos, are respectable in their way ; such as potters, braziers, gold- smiths, weavers, and barbers. All trades or employments implying the death or destruction of animals, or of which the material is an animal substance, are either low or very impure; such as fishermen, washermen, hunters, snake-catchers, lime-shell burners, curriers, shoemakers, and butchers. Palm- wine drawers and distillers are impure, from thB impurity of the objects they produce. Sweepers, washers, burners or buryers of the dead, and public executipners, are utterly abominable, and indeed INDIA, — GEOGRAPHICAL AND STATISTICAL. 87 sheer outcasts. There are, of course, endless anomalies in this, as in everything else connected with the Hindoo religion. Bankers in Bengal, for example, rank below barbers. All professions which imply poverty in the parties exercising them are mean employments. Basket- making is a mean employment, and the precarious search for drugs and honey, in the forests, is also mean. Almost every employment above a handicraft trade is open to Bramins, and, of course, to all that are below Bramins. It must not be supposed, from what has now been said, that the tribes or families exercising each profession or trade are always the same ; on the contrary, they differ in every province of India : even in the same province, two or three tribes, or a dozen tribes, may exercise the same profession or craft. In each family, trades and professions are generally hereditary, as a mat- ter of convenience, as happens in all rude societies, ,but there is no impassable barrier between one profession and another : there is nothing that should prevent the son of a potter from becoming a goldsmith, or the son of a goldsmith from turning his hand to the loom, except that in particular situations the parties might forfeit some hereditary perquisite annexed to their employme:>t",-Lj the change. Reckoning the entire British army in India, perhaps thei'e is hardly a caste, or sect, or i-eligion, which is not to be found in its ranks — from the purest to the most impure and most abominable — from the most ortho- dox to the most heretical. Bramins may there be seen commanded by Sudras ; and men of pure castes may be seen in the ranks with men of no caste for their officers. The Bramins, under these circumstances, are as exem- plary for their subordination as any other class ; a satis- factory refutation, upon a large scale, of the fallacy and vanity of the pretensions set up for them in the ancient 88 INDIA, — GEOGRAPHICAL AND STATISTICAL. writings of the Hindoos, and maintained by some Euro- pean commentators on those writings. The institution of the castes, as now described, is universal throughout Hindoostan. Other Forms of Religion. — These are the Jain, Boodh- ist, Seik or Singh, the Mohammedan, and Christian. The period or the place in which the first of these had its origin is unascertained : at present, it prevails chiefly in the great province of Gujerat and in Talawa, on the western shore of India, but it is to be found more or less scattered through every part of the country. The Boodh- ist worship originated in Bahar, within the great plain of the Ganges, and according to statements which have a considerable air of probability, in the sixth century be- fore Christ, or about 200 years before the expedition of Alexander. This form of worship, so prevalent in Cey- lon, and in all the countries to the east and north of Hin- doostan, is nearly extinct in that country itself. Nanak, the founder of the Seik heresy, confined to the countries lying near to or among the five great tributary rivers which eventually constitute the Indus, was born in 1419; so that this religion is of little more than four centuries' sta:'.uing. The Mohammedan religion began to make some impression in India about the beginning of the 11th century, and the descendants of foreign settlers, or the converted nations of this persuasion, are at present supposed, for all India, to amount to about a seventh part of the entire population. It is remarkable that they are not most numerous in those parts of the country which were the seats of Mohammedan power, but rather at the extremities, such as the remote border provinces of Ben- gal, in which more pliant materials for proselytism were found. The Christians abound most in the southern parts of India ; the greater number are Nestorians, who Night Gar of Southern India. INDIA, — GEOGRAPHICAL AND STATISTICAL. 41 are supposed to have embraced Christianity, through the labors of Greek missionaries from Syria, as early as the second and third centuries of the Christian era. Most of the remainder are Catholics, the descendants of Por- tuguese, or persons converted by Portuguese missionaries. The Episcopal establishment of India is superintended by a lord-bishop of Bengal, a bishop of Madras, and a bishop of Bombay ; each assisted by an arch-deacon. Ordinary chaplains receive 800 I'upees per month in the Bengal presidency; 700 in that of Madras; and 670 in that of Bombay. Assistant chaplains have 500 rupees per month. At the close of 1850, 403 missionaries, con- nected with twenty-two missionary societies, and 551 native preachers, were employed in India and Ceylon : and the number of native churches founded by them dur- ing fifty years, was 309, with 17,356 members. The sta- tions at which the gospel was preached were 260. There were at the same period 1,345 da.j schools, at which 83,700 were receiving instruction ; seventy-three board- ing schools, with 1,992 boys, chiefly Christian; 128 day schools, in which the English language was taught, and attended by 14,000 boys ; 354 day schools, attended by 11,500 girls; and ninety-one boarding schools, attended by 2,450 girls. The cost of this missionary agency, in 1850, was $935,000. The Bible has been translated into ten languages, and the New Testament into five others, not reckoning the Serampore versions. Population. — Of the whole territory of Hindoostan, supposed to contain, as already mentioned, 1,300,000 square miles, the population may be estimated at about 150,000,000, or nearly one half of the population of Eu- rope. The ratio of population to the square mile is, therefore, a little more than 100 to one ; whei-eas that of Europe is about seventy-five to one. This population is 42 INDIA,— GEOGRAPHICAL AND STATISTICAL. very unequally distributed. The well-watered alluvial plains and valleys are everywhere thickly, and the mountainous or hilly regions always thinly inhabited. From the extreme south point of Cape Comorin, up to the 10th degree of latitude, the population is in some parts as low as seventy-four inhabitants to the square mile ; at Madura, watered by the river Vay, it rises to 160 ; at Tanjore, watered by the Caverry, it rises to 225, being the densest population of the whole of the south- ern portion of India. In the Carnatic, or plain lying be- tween the eastern Ghauts and the sea, it is about ninety- six. On the table-land between the Ghauts, and up to about the 16th degree of latitude, where the land is high and dry, with little other than artificial irrigation, the rate drops to seventy-two. In the narrow plain between the western Ghauts and the sea, and from the 10th de- gree of latitude up to the 20th, it is estimated at about 100. Of the whole table-land, extending from the 16th degree of latitude, up to the Vindhyan range, and the south border of the Gangetic plain, probably the popula- tion does not exceed fifty to the square mile. The population of the great peninsula of Gujerat rises to about 170. More than half the whole population of Hindoostan is contained in the great plain of the Ganges: computing the area of this tract at 290,000 square miles, and the population at 60,000,000, the average rate, per square mile, exceeds 200. Within this wide range, how- ever, there is a great difference in the rates of population. From the head of the Bay of Bengal up to the west con- fines of Bahar, which comprises, of course, the tract of inundation, a territory of upward of 80,000 square miles, contains a population of more than 300 to the square mile. The tract of inundation itself far exceeds this. Thus, the district of Burdwan has a density of 593 ; that INDIA, —GEOGRAPHICAL AND STATISTICAL. 43 of Hooghly, 548 ; the districts of which Calcutta is the center, 540 ; and that of Moorshedabad above 400. As the country becomes mountainous to the east, the popu- lation diminishes. Thus Backergunge has but 450, Chittagong 235, and Tiperah 200 to the square mile. In the low lands to the south of Bengal, including Midna- pore and Cuttack, the ratio is but 225. From the west- ern confines of Bengal to the confluence of the Jumna with the Ganges, the country is far beyond the reach of inundation, and although very fertile, the population is only at the rate of 220 to the square mile ; but in this is in- cluded the large, hilly and wild district of Rhamgur, which has no higher ratio than 100. The whole of the plain to the west, from the confluence of the Jumna till it terminates in the Great Desert, may be computed to have a density of population not exceeding 180 to the square mile, and the proportion generally diminishes as we proceed westward. The Punjaub, or plain watered by the five affluents of the Indus, probably does not con- tain a population of more than 100 to the square mile, and fifty would be a large estimate for the delta of the Indus. The extensive desert lying between the westei'n limit of the Gangetic plain most probably does not con- tain ten inhabitants to the square mile. History. — The Hindoos, it is now fully admitted, have no history. They do not even possess any rational, con- nected, and authentic narrative of their own afl^airs for a single century. The oldest inscription found in Hindoos- tan, and it is of doubtful authenticity, dates but twenty- three years before Christ : one of the most authentic eras dates but fifty-seven years before that of Christ ; and another, of extensive currency, dates seventy-eight years after Christ, — the origin of both being buried in fable. The earliest of these dates is but three centuries before 4* 44 INDIA, — GEOaRAPHICAL AND STATISTICAL. the invasion of Alexander, and about five centuries more recent tlian the commencement of authentic history in Europe. The temple of Juggernaut is but 640, and a ruin connected with it 1142 years old; the latter being, however, a date which rests on tradition only. In so far then as history is concerned, had it not been for the companions and successors of Alexander, who describe the Hindoos as in many respects resembling what they are at the present day, we might, for all that J;heir own history teaches, be led to believe that they were not an ancient, but a comparatively recent people. Independ- ent of history, however, there remains abundant evidence to show that the Hindoos had been very early civilized. The most remarkable, perhaps, is the existence among them of the literature of at least three languages, which have long ceased to be spoken by any living people. These are the Sanscrit, a language of complex grammati- cal structure, like the Greek, Latin, or Arabic ; the Sar- aswatty, or Pracrit, a language derived from the Sanscrit, but of simpler structure, and bearing something like the relation to it which the Italian does to the Latin ; and the Pali, a language also of a simpler structure, derived from the Sanscrit, but formed in a different part of the valley of the Ganges. The first of these is at the present day the sacred language of all who follow the Braminical religion, as the last is that of those who follow the Boodh- ist worship, whether in India or beyond it. All these languages appear to have been dialects of people who lived in the upper portion of the valley of the Ganges. The Hindoos and their ancient writings point very dis- tinctly to the territory lying west of Delhi, on the right bank of the Jumna, the principal aflSuent of the Ganges, as the seat of the people who spoke the Sanscrit. There are certainly many arguments in favor of the belief that INDIA, — GEOGRAPHICAL AND STATISTICAL. 45 the Braminical worship originated in this quarter, and that the nation that propagated it, and spread civilization over India, inhabited this country. Thus, the upper and elevated portion of the plain of the Ganges is as much the principal scene of all the great events of Hindoo my- thology as Greece was of those of the Greek mythology. Here are the scenes of the wars of the Mahabarat, of the kingdom of Rama, of the localities of the adventures of Krishna, Hastinapura, Ayodha, and Matthura. The principal holy places are also here : as Gya, Allahabad, Benares, Hurdwar ; not to mention the great Ganges itself, the Jumna, and their sacred tributaries. The evi- dence ifforded by language and religion tends to corrob- orate this supposition. Thus, the Sanscrit most abounds, and exists in greatest purity, in the dialects of the upper portion of the valley of the Ganges, and gradually di- minishes both in amount and purity in proportion as we recede from it to the east, and particularly to the south. The distinction of castes is also most strongly marked in this quarter, and diminishes as we recede from it, as already mentioned. The country itself, also, it may be added, from its fertility, salubrity, and freedom from rank vegetation and forest, must at all times have been more favorable to the development and progress of an early civilization than any other portion of India. Although the incursion of Alexander (B. C. 325,) made India known to the European world, its effect upon the people of India was scarcely greater than that of any one of the thirteen expeditions of Mahmoud of Ghizni. It is highly possible, however, that the influence of the kingdom which his successors established in Bactria, and which lasted for 130 years, was much greater. The Greek princes of Bactria appear to have conquered several of the north- west provinces of India ; and from this source, in all like- 46. INDIA, — GEOGRAPHICAL AND STATISTICAL. lihood; the Hindoos derived their knowledge of astronomy. The real history of India commences with the first Mo- hammedan invasion, in the year 1000, between thirteen and fourteen centuries after the invasion of Alexander. The hero of these invasions, for there were thirteen of them, was Mahmoud, sovereign of Ghizni, in Affghan- istan, the son of a man who had been a Turkish slave, but who had raised himself to sovereign power. Mah- moud pushed his conquests, or rather incursions, as far as Canoge, Bundlekund, and Gujerat. , India was at this time divided among many sovereigns, most of them petty ones ; and the resistance made to the con- queror was hardly more formidable than that which the nations of America offered to the Spaniards. Toward the close of the 12th century, the Affghans made their first appearance on the theater of Indian history. A chief of this nation, of the district of Gaur, raised him- self to independent sovereignty, and while the Turkmans seized upon the provinces of the Ghiznian empire, he and his successors seized upon the capital and its eastern provinces, while the second prince of the race, Mahomed Gauri, invaded Hindoostan. His favorite general. Coo- tub, originally a Turkish slave, pushed the Affghan con- quests as far as Gujerat; and Mahomed dying without children, Cootub seized upon the Indian conquests of his master, and fixed the seat of his government at Delhi, in the year 1193. This may be considered as tlie date of the first effectual conquest of Hindoostan. From this period down to 1525, or in 322 years, twenty-six Affghan princes reigned in Delhi. But it is not to be supposed that the Delhi sovereigns of this race ever ruled over all Hindoostan; for, in the Deccan, Gujerat, Malwah, Juan- pore, and Bengal, there were independent Mohammedan princes, who conquered and ruled for themselves, and INDIA, — GEOGRAPHICAL ANT) STATISTICAL. 47 many Hindoo sovereigns continued unsubdued. During the reign of the AfFghan princes of Delhi, in 1398, Timour invaded India, but his expedition was a mere plundering incursion. In 1525, India was invaded by Baber, the fifth in descent from Timour, and the sove- reign of the little principality of Firghana, a territory lying between the Pamer mountains and the river Jax- artes to the south, and Cashgar and Samarcand to the east and west. He had first conquered Cabul and Can- dahar, and from the first of these entered Hindoostan, defeated and killed the last AfFghan sovereign, and seated himself on the throne of Delhi. With him began the race of princes, improperly called Mogul by Euro- peans and Indians, for neither Baber nor his ancestor, Timour, were Moguls, but Turks. All the conquerors of Hindoostan, in fact, who were not Affghans, were Turks, or natives of the great province or kingdom of Transoxiana, whose native tongue was Turkish. Neither were any of them Persians, though the language of the latter people, being a more cultivated tongue than their own, was adopted by both the Turkish and AfFghan races of princes. It will be observed that the last Moham- medan conquest of India took place twenty-seven years after Vasco de Gama found his way to that country. The Mogul empire was consolidated under Aurungzebe, who died in 1707, and it began to decline immediately on the death of his son and successor, in 1712. The Mohammedan power acquired its greatest extent under Aurungzebe ; but even under him, was much inferior, not only in resources but in extent, to the empii-e now held by Britain in the same country. The passage by the Cape of Good Hope opened the way to a new and more formidable race of conquerors. The Portuguese, by whom it was effected, never acquired more than a 48 INDIA, — GEOGRAPHICAL AND STATISTICAL, petty territory on the west coast ; and the continental acquisitions of the Dutch were limited to a few commer- cial factories. The French, at one time, seemed to be on the high road to the establishment of a great Indian sovereignty; but, in the end, they were completely worsted, by the greater resources and superior maritime strength of the English, and by the extraordinary talents, courage, and enterprise of Clive. The first territorial acquisition by the British consisted of a patch of five square miles of land on the Coromandel coast, where Madras now stands. The real foundations of the Indian empire were laid in the interval between 1750 and 1765, when Clive defeated the lieutenants of the Mogul, and the Mogul himself, and acquired Bengal, the richest of all the Indian provinces, the most easily defended, and that which has afforded to Great Britain, throughout, those resources which have enabled it to conquer and to preserve all the subsequent acquisitions. For political divisions, see page 90. Revenue Resources, ^c. — When the British first gained possession of Hindoostan, they found the system of pub- lic finance on precisely the same footing upon which it had remained from the dawn of history, notwithstanding the various dynastic revolutions occasioned by the inva- sion of Alexander, the Mohammedans, and Tamerlane, and the intestine broils of the difierent Moslem princes who figured in its later history. The system which pre- vails generally among Oriental nations consists in taxing the soil to an amount only limited by the will of the sov- ereign, so that rent and revenue may be considered as synonymous wherever it prevails. The desire of the rulers of India to possess the utmost possible portion of the produce of the land, led to minute admeasurements, inspections, and assessments. The land was parceled INDIA, — GEOGRAPHICAL AND STATISTICAL. 49 out in small lots, which were held by the cultivator with a perpetual and transferable title, emanating directly from the supreme authority. Between the supreme power and the cultivators of the soil, there existed a class of middle-men — aptly designated by a native his- toi'ian, "vultures, who grind the very bowels of their country," — who were appointed to collect the revenue, and were responsible for the sums assessed by the gov- ernment, and who, out of the gross receipts, were allowed a per centage, usually of one-tenth part. These middle-men, or collectors, are distinguished in India by the title of zemindars or talukdars, — the actual cultiva- tors, or those from which the tax is collected, by that of ryots. There is a tendency, during each interval between the revolutions incidental to despotic govern- ments, to that settled stability of interests and appoint- ments which merges ultimately in hereditary possession : hence the zemindars — whose office, according to the existing order of things, was indispensable — became, in process of time, a class not less permanently based upon the hereditary system than that of the ryots. It is easy to perceive how, under such a system, the wealth of the country, as it was annually created, found its way into the coffers of certain classes, whence it never again issued but for purposes of misrule and violence. In this state of affairs, Cornwallis, in 1793, remodeled the system of revenue in the Presidency of Bengal, according to a plan denominated the permanent settle- ment, the return of which may be thus briefly described. A fixed assessment, unsusceptible of farther increase, either by progress of improvement or the arbitrary will of government, and amounting to half the produce of the soil, was imposed; from which, as formerly, the zemindars were allowed a tenth part, and after the impo- 50 INDIA, — GEOGEAPHIGAL AND STATISTICAL. sition of which, they were entitled to grant leases to the ryots, upon the principle of perpetuity, so long as the lease-holder or his disposers continue to fulfill the terms of such agreement. This system, though deriving its origin from benevolence, had no claim to relationship with wisdom, and speedily produced a total revolution in prosperity throughout Bengal. The zemindars, thus constituted hereditary proprietors of the soil upon a quit- rent — the amount of which was expressly stipulated, and admitted not of increase — had thenceforward a powerful inducement to wring from the now complete subordi- nate ryots a greater share of the fruits of their industry than was directly allowed by government ; while the 7-yots, opposed by their rapacious masters, and unable to obtain justice in courts, the doors of which were shut against them by their poverty, sunk into the apathy of indolence, and ceased to struggle for more than the bare supply of their natural wants. The rapacity of the zemindars thus ultimately defeated itself; for, in propor- tion as industry became diminished, their means of remitting to government the sums regularly charged to their account diminished also, until, when totally unable to discharge their arrears, summary processes were insti- tuted against them, and their estates exposed to sale ; and, so general was the destruction, that the whole landed property of Bengal is said to have changed hands since the establishment of the permanent system. The Indian government has latterly become the pur- chaser of all estates which have been brought to sale, with the view of abolishing an authority which has stood between itself and the dispensation of that measure of just and benevolent government, which it feels called upon to administer to all its subjects. In proportion as it succeeds in obtaining possession of the estates in Ben- INDIA, — GEOGRAPHICAL AND STATISTICAL. 51 gal, the government substitutes for this zemindary sys- tenfi another which it has always principally followed at the other presidencies, and which, as it admits of no in- tervening authority between its officers and the actual cultivators, the ryots: — known under the name of the ryotwarrj system. The principal feature of this mode of administering the land revenue consists in this, that the government makes its bargain with each individual cul- tivator for the rent of his holding. In fixing these amounts in former years, too much of the old leave of oppression was used by the officers of government, and the assessments were laid at so high a rate, that it scarcely ever has been found possible to adhere to them ; so that a sort of bargain has to be made annually with the ryots, in settling which, a great deal of discretion must neces- sarily rest with the officers. In this manner the legal claim of the government is, with but few exceptions, al- ways greater than can be enforced without ruining the tenant, to whom abatements are made from year to year, varying in amount with the circumstances that influence his capability of paying, but which are generally so regu- lated as to take all he has to give, leaving him barely the means of continuing the cultivation of the soil. The advantage of the ryotwary system is, that it gets rid of the oppression of the middle-men, and brings about a direct connection between the government and the bulk of the people, under which they enjoy a greater security from oppression than accompanied a state of dependence upon their native landlords. The collectors appointed by the East India Company's government, are persons of intelligence and respectability, who are doubtless anx- ious to perform the duties of their office uprightly. Un- fortunately, however, owing to the heat of the climate, and the difficulty they find of transacting business in a 52 INDIA, — GEOGRAPHICAL AND STATISTICAL. foreign language, the collectors are obliged to employ natives under them, upon whom they must, in a great measure, depend for executing the details of the business; and it is too much to be feared that the cultivators do not meet with such consideration at their hands as they would doubtless experience, were the collector himself capable of conducting every part of the business. A modification of the ryotwary system is very com- monly adopted in the Bombay presidency. This plan is known under the name of the village system. It is gen- erally the case in India that, in every village or district, there is a head-man and an accountant, who manage affairs for the rest of the community. The head-man goes by various names in different places. In Bengal, he is called the moccudum or malik ; in Madras and Bom- bay, he is called the potail ; and the village accountant bears the name of the cornum or putwarry. The head- man stands forward to make the engagement, and be- comes answerable to government for the revenue which, on the part of the village, he undertakes to pay. In many districts there are persons who claim to be heredit- ary managers for the villages. As the custom here de- scribed has long prevailed, and as the natives oLIndia always prefer what is customary, simply because it is so, it is probable that the government would have some dif' ficulty in wholly abolishing the village system. A new system, which promises well, has been introduced into the north-west provinces, by which the lands belonging to a village are assessed and settled for periods of twenty and thirty years. The land revenue collected by the East India Com- pany, exceeds £16,500,000 per annum, and forms nearly two-thirds of the whole amount of its income. The secondary sources of revenue are the monopolies of car- INDIA, — GEOGRAPHICAL AND STATISTICAL. 53 tain articles, (among which are salt and opium,) and sun- dry smaller duties, as the abkan-y, or excise on the man- ufactui-e of spirits, licenses, sale of drugs, &c., the cus- toms, canal tolls, and stamp duties. Besides these, there are subsidies or tribute receivable from certain native princes. The following is an abstract of the revenue and charges of the East Indian Government for the year ending April 30th, 1854. The total amount of income was £26,375,197, ($131,875,985,) of which £16,621,230 was land revenue : £1,226,051 customs dues, £2,572,996 tax on salt, and £4,478,653 tax on opium. The expense was £28,419,314, an excess over income of £2,044,117. The cost of collecting was £4,243,986 ; the civil, politi- cal and justicial charges were £4,870,392 ; the military charges were £10,450,899 ; the interest on the Indian debt was £2,504,297 ; the dividends to proprietors of East India stock amounted to £632,970 ; and the sum spent for buildings, roads and other public works was £659,771. The total debt of India, in round numbers, in 1855, was about £50,000,000, ($250,000,000.) Languages. — It has been stated that there are no fewer than twenty-five native languages spoken throughout Hindoostan, independent of the dialects of tribes in a very rude state of society. "The extensive region," says Mr. Colebrooke, "which is nearly defined by the banks of the Saraswatty and Ganges on the north, and by the sea to the east and west, contains, according to some, fifty-seven provinces, and, according to others, eighty-four, and each has its peculiar dialect." The Hindoos of the northern portion of Hindoostan are ac- quainted with three dead languages, viz. : the Sanscrit, the Saraswatty or Pracrit, and the Pali. Of these three, the Sanscrit contains internal evidence of being the old- est. It was the language of a people who, according to 54 INDIA, — GEOGEAPHICAL AND STATISTICAL. Tufted Humming Birds. a very probable Hindoo tradition already referred to, oc- cupied the right bank of the Jumna, a little way to the north-west of the city of Delhi, and with it probably originated the Bramiaical religion, and the first dawn of Hindoo civilization. The Saraswatty, or Pracrit, was the language that succeeded it in the same country, and it seems to bear the same sort of relation to it that the Italian does to Latin. The Pali is a language which sprung up in the province of Bahar. Of this, also, the Sanscrit forms the ground- work, and the relation between them may be supposed to bear a similar relation to that which subsists between the Spanish, or French, and the Latin tongue. With the people speaking the Pali lan- guage, sprung up the religion of Boodh ; and the Pali is, to the present day, the sacred language of all the Asiatic nations who have Boodhism for their national worship. The existence of these three languages, that have suc- cessively ceased to be spoken, affords, as before observed, INDIA, — GEOGRAPHICAL AND STATISTICAL. 55 satisfactory evidence of the great antiquity of Hindoo civilization. One or otiier of thie languages in question, is more or less mixed up, not only with every language of Hindoostan, but also with the languages of most of the neighboring countries. To the north they form the ground- work of these languages as Latin does of Italian ; to the south, on the contrary, they are ingrafted on the language in something like the manner in which the French is ingrafted on the Saxon tongue. The literary Hindoos reckon that there are ten cultivated languages, having a written character and a hterature, viz. : five to the north, called the Jive Gaurs, and five to the south, called the Jive Dravirs. The enumeration, however, is not very clear and distinct, at least as applicable to pres- ent times. The Gaurs are the Saraswatty, Canoj, Gauva or Bengalee, Maithila or Tirutiya, and the Oorissa. The first of these > is the dead language, already mentioned. The Maithila is confined to a small portion of the dis- trict of Tirhoot, the Gauva is the language of the nu- merous people of Bengal, already mentioned, and the Oorissa or Urya, of the people of Cuttack. The Canoj, as such, is an extinct language ; but is considered, on good grounds, to be the parent of the modern Hindee, the most cuftivated and generally spoken of all the native languages of Hindoostan. Upon the language of Canoj has been grafted the Persian, — the court and literary language of the Mohammedan conquerors of India. This language, in fact, is found to exist in the Hindoo, very much as the French is found in the Saxon tongue, its introduction having been effected exactly in the same manner.* Besides the local language of each district, the Hindee is commonly spoken by all persons of educa- * Sir James Mackintosh has pointed out this resemblance in his " Epitome of the History of England. ;^ 56 INDIA, — GEOGRAPHICAL AND STATISTICAL. tion, throughout all parts of India, and almost univer- sally by all persons of the Mohammedan persuasion. Its prevalence, it may be observed, is probably owing as much to the parent language having been, previously to the conquest, the language of a numerous and powerful nation, as to the subsequent influence of the conquerors. Without this supposition, it is difficult to believe that, in the comparatively short period which elapsed from the first permanent conquest of the Affghans, at the end of the twelfth century, until it acquired its existing form, it should have acquired so wide an extension as it is found to possess. The five Dravirs are the Tamul, called by Europeans, very improperly, the Malabar ; the Maharashtra or Mahratfa ; the Carnata or Canara ; the Telinga or Ta- lugu, improperly called by Europeans the Gentoo ; and the Gueatee. The ground-work of all these languages is peculiar; but upon all of them is. ingrafted more or less of the Sanscrit language, or its derivative, the Pra- crit ; the amount of words decreasing, as we proceed south, until, in the ancient Tamul, it disappears altogeth- er. The Tamul, the Telinga, and the Canara are divided into two dialects, an ancient and a modern ; the first containing the national literature, and being nearly unin- telligible to the people at large. Besides these more cultivated tongues, there are at least twenty languages, spoken by nations tolerably civ- ilized, and of considerable numbers : as the Assami, spoken in Assam ; the Nepauli, Rosali, and Dogari, three languages spoken in Nepaul ; the Cashmeri, spoken in the celebrated valley of Cashmere ; the Punjaubi, spoken in the country of the five affluents of the Indus ; the Mooltani, the dialect of the province of Mooltan ; the Sindi, spoken by the Sindians, at the mouth of the In- INDIA, — GEOGEAPHICAL AND STATISTICAL. 57 dus : the Bikaneri, the Marwari, the Jayapuri, the Ode- puri, four languages as spoken in Rajpootana ; the Ha- ruti and the Braja, spoken in the higher portions of the valleys of the Ganges and Jumna, and derivatives of the Saraswatty or the Pracrit ; the Magadhi, spoken in the southern portion of the province of Bahar ; the Malwah, spoken in the province of the same name ; and the Bun- dela, spoken in the province of Bundlecund. Many of these languages are in course of gradual extinction and absorption by the Hindee, as the Celtic dialects of Britain are in progress of extinction by the English, the Armo- rican by the French, and the Basque by the Spanish. To the south we have the Concani, the language of the Concan ; the Tulawa, or language of the country which Europeans call Canara; and the Malayalim, spoken by the inhabitants of the southern portion of coast lying below the western Ghauts, as far as Cape Co- morin. Of the languages of rude or savage tribes, such as the Garrows, Coolies, Catties, Gonds, Coles, &c., not less than thirty may easily be enumerated. Besides the three dead languages, one of them, the Sanscrit, as much studied as Latin is in Europe, there are in India eight lan- guages, each spoken by a numerous population ; twenty spoken by people less numerous, but still civilized ; and at least thirty spoken by rude tribes ; making in all fifty- eight living languages. This simple fact may satisfy us at once that all India never was subject to one govern- ment, or never even thoroughly united in large masses. To the native languages now enumerated must be added the Persian, still as much studied, and much more gen- erally written, than Latin is in Europe ; the Arabic, of- ten studied, from religious motives, although not spoken ; the Portuguese is a good deal spoken on some parts of 58 INDIA, — GEOGRAPHICAL AND STATISTICAL. the maritime coast, especially by the converts of Christianity ; and the English, which has begun to make considerable progress. Literature. — The best and largest portion of Hindoo literature is contained in the dead Sanscrit ; that which is contained in the seven living languages already enu- merated being for the most part little else than transla- tions, or, rather, paraphrases from it. To Hindoo litera- ture, in any language, prose composition is hardly known. Every thing is in verse, from works of imagination to history, to treatises on theology, astronomy, medicine, grammars, and even dictionaries. These facts are at once evidence of antiquity and of rudeness, while they show that, for 200 or 300 years at least, native literature has made little progress. The Hindoos have been said to be, at the present moment, in the condition, in refer- ence to literature, of the Europeans of the middle ages ; who had no books but such as they inherited from the Greeks and Romans. But it is obvious that they are in a much worse condition, inasmuch as their models are incomparably inferior. The two most celebrated works of Hindoo literature are the Mahabarat and the Rama- yana ; the one giving an account of the wars of the sons of Bharat, and the other the adventures of Rama, king of Ayndhya or Oude, a supposed incarnation of Vishnu, the " Preserver of the Hindoo Triad." The scene of both is laid in the upper portion of the valley of the Ganges. Mr. Mill's description of these poems, some of the best specimens of which have been translated into English, is not unjustly depreciative : " These fictions," says he, " are more extravagant, and more unnatural, not only less correspondent with the physical and moral laws of this globe, but, in reality, less ingenious, more monstrous, with less of any thing that can engage the INDIA, — GEOGEAPHICAL AND STATISTICAL. 69 affection, awaken sympathy, or excite admiration, rever- ence, or terror, than the poems of any other, even the rudest people, with whom our knowledge of the globe has yet brought us acquainted. They are excessively prolix and tedious. They are often through long passa- ges, trifling and childish to a degree which those ac- quainted with only European poetry can hardly con- cede."— (History of British India, i. 362, 4to edition.) Science. — The sciences in which the Hindoos have made some progress, are arithmetic, algebra, geometry and astronomy. The first and second are probably the only ones in which, perhaps, they are entitled to lay any claim to originality. They are probably the inventors of the system of notation, which the Arabs borrowed from them, and we from the Arabs. It is not necessary, however, to add that the Hindoos are clumsy arithmeti- cians ; and that, as in the case of gunpowder, certainly invented in China, it is in Europe only that the art has been perfected. In geography, medicine, botany, and the physical sciences generally, the Hindoos, like other Asiatic nations, may be considered as profoundly ignorant. In metaphys- ical and ethical speculations, more consonant to the gen- ius of such a people, they have indulged to much greater degree ; and their speculations in grammar especially, if not distinguished for utility, are remarkable for ingenuity. The Sanscrit language, distinguished for the complexity and variety of its structure, has afforded an ample field for such discussions. It may be remarked that it is the only one of their languages that is subjected to rules, and that they have never composed a grammar of any of the living languages. Geometry is another science, the invention of which is ascribed to the Hindoos; but their earliest treatises are of the 7th century, 1,000 years 60 INDIA, — GEOGEAPHICAL AND STATISTICAL. after they had been in contact with the Greeks of Bac- tria, and at least fifteen centuries after the first knowl- edge of the science in Greece itself In astronomy, the Hindoos make large claims to antiquity, reckoning their tables from the commencement of the Cali-yuga, or iron age of the Hindoo mythology, 3,102 years before Christ. Of such an antiquity, however, there are great doubts ; and the more general opinion seems now to be, that the astronomy of the Hindoos was either derived from the Bactrian Greeks, or intermediately from the Arabs of the middle ages. The coincident between it and the Greek astronomy is, at all events, both remarkable and suspi- cious. Thus, the days of the week are seven in num- ber, and named after the seven planets ; while they fol- low in the same order as they do in the Greek. The ecliptic is divided, as among the Greeks, into twelve signs, with the same names, emblems, and arrangement ; and the signs are also divided into thirty degrees. As these matters are purely arbitrary, they can not but have had the same source. Two things seem to be agreed upon by all parties, viz. : that the Hindoo astronomy is empirical, and not founded on general principles ; and that, among the Hindoos, astronomy has only been used as an auxiliary to astrology, and never applied to any useful, practical purpose ; with the exception, and this in a very rude manner, of reckoning time. Education. — Among the Hindoo females, education seldom extends farther than to the simplest principles of religion, and those domestic duties which are afterward to become necessary. On the education of boys, more care is bestowed. They are taught to read and write by the Bramins, who are the only schoolmasters. The leaves of the palm are used for paper, and a pointed iron instrument in place of a pen. These leaves are not apt INDIA, — GEOGRAPHICAL AND STATISTICAL. 61 to decaj-, nor are the letters formed upon them easily ef- faced ; and, to make -the impi-ession more strong, a black powder is rubbed on the characters. The palm leaves are cut in long pieces, an inch in breadth, and a number of these, fastened together by the ends, forms a book. Sometimes they write on a kind of paper, and for a pen make use of a small reed. Beginners foi'm the charac- ters in sand strewed on the floor. The rules of calcula- tion are performed with small stones. The followincr Statement comes from one whose learning and intelligence entitle all he says to high respect. Civilized nations might lay some of the words of Sir Alexander to heart. " In Hindoo political system, the education of the people has formed part of the business of the government ; and with this view, a certain portion of the produce of the soil in every district is assigned to the schoolmaster ; in Scotland, a similar plan has been followed to a certain extent ; in England, no such provision exists ; while, in India, it is clearly traceable 2,000 years ago. So highly, indeed, is education prized among the Hindoos, that it is regarded with a sort of religious veneration, and this feel- ing of respe'ct extends to those employed in its adminis- tration. The children are brought by their parents, in early infancy, into the presence of the schoolmaster, to whose care they are consigned with something of the solemnity of a public and official act." It was stipulated, at the last renewal of the East India Company's charter, that £10,000 should be annually devoted, from the sur- plus of the territorial revenue of India, to the purpose of education. It appears that the company, although there was no surplus revenue, have in some years expended double, and even treble that sum. Colleges. — The Government Sanscrit College, at Cal- cutta, was established in 1821, and is largely endowed. 62 INDIA, — GEOGRAPHICAL AND STATISTICAL. The establishment consists of fourteen pundits, and one hundred scholars on the foundation. The course of study- in this college comprehends grammar, general literature, rhetoric and prosody, law and logic, and natural and ex- perimental philosophy. A portion of the college funds is assigned to defray stipends to 100 students, who are either strangers or indigent. The Madrissa or Moham- medan College was founded in 1780, by Mr. Hasting, and is also largely endowed by the government. The course of education comprises the Arabic and Persian languages, general literature, law, philosophy of law, traditions of Mohammed, rhetoric, logic, geometry, arithmetic, astron- omy, according to the British system ; to which may be added the regulations of the British government. The Bishop's College, near Calcutta, founded in 1820, for the education of such students as the government, or the religious societies connected with the Church of England may place there, has a principal, two professors, eight missionaries, two catechists, and a printer. In the inte- rior of India, the most important of the government seminaries are the colleges of Benares and Agra : the former founded in 1794, the latter in 1823. A college for the Hindoos and Moslems exists at Delhi. A Hindoo college exists at Poonah ; and an Engineer college has been formed at Bombay. The Medical College of Ben- gal numbered 3,953 native students in 1847. The Bra- mins have several seminai-ies of learning, which have existed during many ages. At Cangiburam, in Carnate, there is still a celebrated Bramin school, which, accord- ing to the testimony of Ptolemy, existed in the first cen- tury of the Christian era. Arts. — The arts in which the Hindoos have made the greatest progress are agriculture, weaving, dyeing, and architecture. The ox, buffalo, horse, ass, elephant, hog, INDIA, — GEOGRAPHICAL AND STATISTICAL. 63 dog, sheep, and goat have been domesticated and used by the Hindoos from the earliest antiquity. The camel, probably, has been equally long known in Upper Hin- doostan. The common poultry is also of great antiquity among the Hindoos ; and is supposed, and most likely with good reason, to have spread from them to the west- ern world. The buffalo and ox only are used for agri- cultural purposes ; the horse generally for war or pleas- ure, now and then for burden ; the elephant for pleasure or burden ; the camel and ass, with few exceptions, for burden only. With the exception of the horse, camel, sheep, and goat, every one of the animals above enumer- ated are still found in many parts of India in the wild state. The agricultural implements used by the Hindoos are simple and rude, such as might natui-ally be expected among poor occupants, cultivating each a small patch of land, upon an uncertain tenure ; and the process is equally rude. It should, however, be observed, that neither the one nor the other are so much inferior to those of the southern part of Europe as a native of this country, accustomed to the more perfect implements and processes of English husbandry would expect to find them. The greatest exercise of the skill and labor of the Hindoos in agriculture is displayed in works of irri- gation ; and the reader will not be surprised at this, when he understands that through means of irrigation the pro- duce of the land is, according to circumstances, always multiplied, never less than fivefold, and often as much as ten. The works for this purpose consist of immense embankments, reservoirs or tanks, and wells. The delta of the Ganges, and the celebrated mound of the Cavery, in Southern India, afford examples of the first description of works ; reservoirs or tanks are sometimes of vast extent, and capable of converting 4,000 or 5,000 acres 64 of what is often a dreary desert of sand into productive corn-fields ; these are most frequent in Southern India. Wells, which are often sunk to the depth of between 200 and 300 feet, afford the principal means of irrigation in the upper portion of the valley of the Ganges. In a few cases, there exist canals for irrigation, resembling those of Lombardy ; but these are of Mohammedan, not Hindoo origin. The articles cultivated by the Hindoos from very early times, are wheat, barley, rice, millet, several pulses, the sugar-cane, sesame, mustard, the cocoa, areca, and other palms ; cardamoms, ginger, black pepper, cotton, the mulberry, indigo, madder, the mango, and the banana. From the Mohammedans they received the vine, the fig, the apple, peach, and pear ; the pomegran- ate, limes, and oranges ; the carrot, onion, and melon, with the opium poppy. From Europeans they have received maize, oats, common potatoes, the batata or sweet potatoe, the ground pulse or arachis, the capsicum, guava, and pine-apple, by way of America ; the shad- dock, from Java ; the lichi, from China ; and most of the common pot-herbs, direct from Europe. The sugar- cane is most probably a native of Hindoostan ; and the art of manufacturing coarse sugar from it is traced, by the etymology of the word gour, to Bengal. The art of granulating sugar, and separating it from the molasses, was most probably introduced into India from China, as the name of the commodity, Chini, would seem to imply. The art of candying or crystalizing sugar, the only mode of refining practiced in the east, was taught the Hindoos by the Mohammedans, who themselves appear to have first practiced the art in Egypt, as the name of the arti- cle, Misri, (that is, Egyptian,) would seem to import. The Hindoos had made a far greater progress in the INDIA, — GEOGRAPHICAL AND STATISTICAL. 65 art of weaving than in any other. It was confined to materials ^v•hich their country either produced in great abundance, or of great excellence ; or of which, in fact, in ancient times, they may be considered to have pos- sessed nearly a monopoly : viz., cotton, silk, and the hair of the Tibetian goat. With the exception of silk, which they had in common with China, India may be considered as the native country both of the material and manufacture of the others. The cotton-plant is grown almost everywhere, from the southern extremity of India up to the valleys of the most northern range of the Himalaya, and it may be traced from India to every warm country by its original Sanscrit name. The qual- ity and nature of the fabric varies everywhere with the quality of the plant ; and hence a vast variety of fab- rics, known by the names of the districts producing the raw material ; thus, the fine textures known in Europe as Dacca muslins, were produced only in that district in which is cultivated, within narrow limits, a variety of the plant, with a staple remarkable for fineness and beauty, not found anywhere else. Silk-weaving, like that of cotton, is an art which has been practiced from remote antiquity in India. In the Sanscrit language there is a peculiar name for the class of persons exclusively employed in the feeding of silk- worms. The variety of the latter bred in India differs from that of China and Europe ; and the species of mul- berry grown for the food of the worm is a distinct one from that used either in Europe or China. But as the Hindoos are much inferior in skill and ingenuity to the Chinese, the silk fabrics of Hindoostan have never equaled those of China ; nor is the raw material, even now, equal to that of the Chinese, though under the superior care and skill of Europeans. The Cashmeri- 66 INDIA,— GEOGRAPHICAL AND STATISTICAL. ans, the manufacturers of the well-known shawls which bear their names, are descended from genuine Hindoos ; and though the shawl goat be not a native of their couh- try, they were the nearest civilized people to the rude nomadic tribes to whom it belonged. They naturally, therefore, became the manufacturers ; and the invention of the shawl manufacture may, therefore, be fairly as- cribed to the Hindoos. From these statements it will appear that the discoveries now described, and the prog- ress in manufacturing industry which they imply, are rather owing to the accident of position than to any superiority of skill and ingenuity. This is at once appa- rent, by the little skill which the Hindoos evince in arts, where they possess no superiority in the raw material, as in woolen textures, iron fabrics, and earthenware, in respect to which there are few nations ruder and more unsuccessful. Orme, who is followed by Mill, ascribes the superiority of the Hindoos in the manufacture of cotton fabrics to the peculiar softness and delicacy of the Hindoo hand ; but this is a fancy for which there seems to be no ground whatever. The Hindoos, com- paring them with other nations in the same state of soci- ety, and to Europeans until comparatively recent peri- ods, had attained considerable skill in the art of dyeing, producing colors that are both fast and brilliant. Here also, however, they had several advantages of the same nature as those already described, such as the possession of indigo, lac, and madder, three of the finest and most durable of all known coloring materials. Inferior dyes, such as the carthamus, moriuga, turmeric, and sapan, are also natives of the country. Their dyeing processes, however, have always been, and are, tedious, operose, and empirical. Nearly the whole architecture of the Hindoos which 6? deserves notice is dedicated to religion. The people have always lived in huts, and even their chiefs and princes were satisfied with very mean accommodation ; and the only palaces have been those of the gods. But even their temples are more distinguished for magnitude, the substantial nature of the materials, and the elaborate character of the ornaments, than for beauty, grandeur, or propriety. Many of the most remarkable consist of caves, or subterranean grottoes ; and the rest have, for the most part, a pyramidal form. One class of religious monuments, which makes so conspicuous a figure in the. architecture of Christians and Mohammedans, is wholly wanting among the Hindoos — those erected in honor of the dead ; a circumstance no doubt arising from the uni- versal practice of burning the corpse, and the belief in the doctrine of the metempsychosis. Of a far higher order is the architecture introduced into India by the Mohammedans, particularly since the time of the Turkish dynasty, the descendants of Timour. These consist of mosques and mausoleums, in the style of architecture introduced by the Arabs into Spain ; and are so remarkable for beauty and chasteness of design, grace of proportion, and excellence of material and workmanship, as to be entitled to be compared with the finest remains of Grecian or Roman art. In these Mo- hammedan buildings white and colored marbles are largely employed, a material never seen in any Hindoo building, though very abundant in many parts of the country. The most remarkable of the Mohammedan monuments, well known to Europeans by the name of the Tajemahal, is situated near the city of Agra, on the right bank of the Jumna. It is a mausoleum, occupying, with its gardens, a quadrangle of forty acres ; the prin- cipal building, with its domes and minarets, being almost 68 INDIA, — GEOGEAPHICAL AND STATISTICAL. wholly of white marble. This was built by the Empe- ror Shah Jehan, about two centuries ago. Even the palaces of the Mohammedan princes, and the houses of the omrahs, were built in very superior style to those of the Hindoos of the same rank. In fact, the Moham- medan architecture exhibits unquestionable evidence of superior science, taste, and civilization. Ifl useful architecture, such as the construction of roads, bridges, and public accommodation for travelers, the Hindoos have made very little progress, as may be seen by an examination of the more southern portion of India, which Mohammedan influence hardly reached. The ancient Hindoos were unacquainted with the arch, and hardly ever built a bridge of any sort. Down to the present day the principal rivers of the Deccan are crossed on wooden floats, or in baskets covered with leather. Now and then a few miles of good road lead to some celebrated place of pilgrimage, and on the ways leading to such places, inns for the accommodation of travelers, called choultries, are not unfrequently met with. These consist of bare walls and a roof, without food, furniture, or attendance. Both these roads and inns have been constructed from religious motives only. In this department of architecture, also, the Mohammedans have made considerable improvements ; the only bridges ex- isting in India are of their construction ; and the same thing may be said of public roads. Effects of British Rule. — The great body of the Indian people had, for six centuries before the commencement of the British rule, been under the dominion of foreign- ers ; but of foreigners more energetic than themselves, and a good deal more civilized. Upon a fair retrospect of what they have lost and gained by the Mohammedan dominion, they must, upon the whole, be considered as 1?^A ^^^ The Goat SuolceT of Central India INDIA, — GEOGRAPHICAL AND STATISTICAL. 71 having been considerable gainers. The conquerors be- ing Asiatics, and approaching to the native inhabitants in complexion, manners, customs, and state of civiliza- tion, assimilated with the latter, and, to a certain extent, adopted their language and customs. Even in matters of religion, where the difference was widest, a consider- able share of toleration was established; and Hindoos, converts to Mohammedanism, and mixed races were in time admissable to the highest offices of the state, and not unfrequently promoted to them. This condition of things was superseded by the British rule, which may now be considered as having been practically constituted for a period of about eighty years. The British govern- ment, as established in India, and as it is now in opera- tion, may be considered an enlightened despotism ; a good deal controlled by the public opinion of English- men on the spot, and to a smaller extent, by parliament and public opinion in England, and possessing some ad- vantages over, but also many disadvantages which did not belong to, the Mohammedan government, which it superseded. It may be divided into three periods : the first being that which intervened between the victory of Plassy, in 1757, and the first effectual interference of par- liament, in 1784, but not practically enforced till 1793, an interval of thirty-six years. This was a period of pretty general anarchy, accompanied by constant, or at least frequent wars. The government was carried on upon the principles of the Mohammedan system, and did not pretend to be bottomed upon any other. The taxes were levied with more than Mohammedan rapacity ; and the administration of justice followed the Mohammedan law with less than Mohammedan intelligence. The only modification in any of these particulars, depended wholly on the moral and intellectual character of a few public 72 INDIA, — GEOGRAPHICAL AND STATISTICAL. functionaries. At the same time the industry of the country was subjected to a commercial monopoly, exer- cised by the government itself, and the aim of which, as of all similar institutions, was to obtain possession of as much as possible of the produce of the country at less than it cost, and to sell it for more than it was worth. It can not be supposed that the British government, during the period in question, could possibly be productive of bener ficial results to the native inhabitants of the country ; and it certainly produced none to the parent country, whose resources were wasted, and whose commerce was not augmented by the possession of India. The next period of British administration embraces the twenty years from 1793 to 1813. During this time the land-tax, the greatest burden of the Indian people, was established in perpetuity throughout the greater part of the Indian territory. Regular courts of justice were instituted, and the judicial and fiscal administrations were carefully and completely separated, after the example of European nations. The commercial monopoly contin- ued as in the previous period, but it was exercised with greater leniency and forbearance, except in so far as concerned the settlement and resort of British subjects to India, the laws against which were more rigorously carried into effect than ever. Parliament never effectu- ally interfered in the affairs of India during this period ; every thing was presumed to be going on prosperously. The wars that were carried on iff India in the meantime nearly doubled the extent of British territory, and raised the territorial debt to £30,000,000 sterling. But, instead of reaping any direct advantage from these acquisitions, parliament was obliged, on the lapse of the charter, to exonerate the East India Company from a long arrear of a tribute of about half a million sterling a year, which INDIA, — GEOaRAPHICAL AND STATISTICAL. 73 it was wholly unable to pay. The entire advantage con- ferred upon the people of India, during the period now mentioned, resolves itself into the permanency of the land-tax, with some meliorations in the administration of justice, and fredom from foreign aggression and invasion. The English derived no benefit whatever from India; their commerce with it, which was but of trifling import- ance, continued stationary ; they paid a monopoly price for every Indian commodity consumed, and were obliged to forego the whole of the paltry tribute bargained for. The third and last period commences in 1814, and comes down to the present time. In 1814, the Indian trade was, in a great measure, thrown open ; and in 1 834, the last vestige of monopoly, and even the company's commercial character, was finally put an end to, — a measure which, with some drawbacks, has been product- ive of much advantage both to the people of India and of England, though in a greater degree to the latter. The exports of India to Britain have more than doubled ; and the people of India and of England respectively, re- ceive each other's productions for about from a half to a third part of what they cost them under the monop- oly. The influx of Europeans into India since 1814, has been followed by a great influx of British capital ; and something like a public and independent opinion has sprung up at the principal seats of commerce, to control the despotism of a virtually absolute government. This public opinion finds a voice in a press formerly under a rigorous censorship, but now thrown open, and which employs itself greatly to the advantage both of the gov- ernors and the governed, in the exposure of public and private abuses. A system, of eflectual native education may be said to have begun in 1814; and the native in- habitants of the principal towns, who before considered 74 INDIA, — GEOGRAPHICAL AND STATISTICAL. all education to be comprised in the study of the Persian, a foreign language, or of the Sanscrit, a dead one, have betaken themselves M^ith great ardor to the study of the language of their conquerors ; and have, in many cases^ made an extraordinary progress in the knowledge, not only of the language, but of the literature. What is wanted in India is, not a system of education that shall make the people acquainted with the niceties of Sanscrit grammar, but a system that shall communicate in them the elements of useful knowledge, and that may pave the way for their emancipation from the gross prejudices and superstitious observances by which they have been so long enslaved. We doubt, however, whether this can be done by instructing them in English. It is true that Eng- lish schools have been extraordinarily successful in Cal- cutta and other large towns ; and the proficiency of many of the natives in the English language and literature is far greater than could have been rationally anticipated. But though no means should be left untried to extend in- struction in English, still we have no idea that it can ever be diffused generally throughout the country, or be made to exert any powerful national influence. To bring about the regeneration of India, the better way, as it ap- pears to us, would be to have proper school and other elementary books compiled in the languages of the dif- ferent provinces, and to introduce them into the native schools and seminaries. This plan, though it would not introduce the language of England, would do what is of still more importance ; it would introduce the rudiments of European science and literature, and would apparently be the most powerful means for promoting the improve- ment and civilization of the natives that it is possible to bring into the field. Since 1814 may also be dated the abandonment, on INDIA, — GEOGEAPHICAL AND STATISTICAL. 75 the part of many of the most wealthy and enlightened inhabitants of the towns, of the gross superstitions of their forefathers, and the adoption of rational opin- ions in matters of religion ; and it may be remarked as extraordinary, that this species of conversion has been most frequent with the Braminical order, where we should least expect to find it. Commerce, in fact, the great engine by which civilization, as well as improved morals, have been produced in Europe, has begun to do its work in Hindoostan also. The value of knowledge and of character has begun to be felt, and already there may be counted among the merchants of Calcutta, Bom- bay, and other places, where commerce is carried on upon a large scale, Hindoo, Mohammedan, and Parsee merchants, as faithful to their engagements, and of as strict probity, as any community can boast of. The disadvantages for carrying on the administration of India are sufficiently obvious. The East Indian gov- ernment, in the first place, is not a national government, nor is it, as yet, a government carried on by conquerors who have made the slightest progress toward naturaliza- tion or amalgamation with the party governed. The Bi'itish are aliens in blood, in manners, in language, and in religion, carrying on the administration of 80,000,000 of people, and exercising a control over 70,000,000 more, at a distance of 12,000 miles. The local government is purely vicarial, and the essential administration rests with men residing at a vast distance, who never saw the country, and who have no accurate knowledge of its manners and institutions. These men themselves are perpetually changing, and look upon Indian affairs as matters of very secondary importance to domestic and European politics. The local governments, instead of being responsible to the parties whose administration 7 76 INDIA,— GEOGRAPHICAL AND STATISTICAL. ^S^ they conduct, are only amenable for their acts to their political friends in Europe, while the affairs of India are too complex, too extensive, and too remote, to be under- stood by, or, for the most part, to excite any interest in, the people and parliament of England. In India, gen- erally the acts of the local government are secretly pre- pared, without consulting or attempting to conciliate the parties for whom the laws are made. One of the great disadvantages of the British govern- ment in India is the vast expense at which it is conduct- ed, and the consequent weight of taxation to which the people are necessarily subjected. In India there are several local governments, and in England two depart- ments connected with the government, all which are paid for out of the Indian revenue, on a scale of expense of which the rest of the world affords no example. Thus, the salary of the governor-general is equal to five times that of the first lord of the treasury, while an Indian secretary is more highly paid than an English secretary of state. There are about 1,000 civil officers engaged in the judicial, magisterial, and fiscal administration of India, every one of whom costs the Indian people, inclu- ding his pension on retirement, more than a puisne judge of the Court of King's Bench costs the people of Eng- land. As they maintain their dominion, not through the affections and good will of the people, but partly through their docility, and partly by the sword, a vast army of 300,000 men becomes necessary. Thirty thousand of these must be cari-ied over the Atlantic and Indian oceans, and, mortality included, are maintained at double the expense of the same force in Europe. The officers of the whole Indian army amount to about 5,000 ; and these, retiring pensions included, cost about three times what the same number would cost in Europe. INDIA, — GEOGRAPHICAL AND STATISTICAL. 77 It ig not, however, to be supposed that the large sala- ries allowed to those engaged in the administration of the Indian government originate in extravagance mere- ly. It ma}', in fact, be doubted whether it be possible, on any reasonable ground, to make any sensible diminution in their amount ; and whether the excess that might be deducted from some departments should not go to balance a deficiency in others. The salaries of Euro- peans in India must be high ; first, because of the ex- pensive style of living in the country, and the immense number of servants and retainers that a person in any prominent situation must keep ; and second, because of the many expenses attending the training and fitting out of a young man for the Indian service. Till one or both of these sources of expenditure be diminished, of whic^ there is but little prospect, it is idle to talk of materially reducing the cost of European functionaries in India. The greatest revenue which a colonial empire ever yielded, and, in fact, the largest public revenue in the world, that of Britain and France excepted, is unequal to meet so enormous an expenditure ; and one of the worst forms in which bad government can present it- self, oppressive and grinding taxation, is the necessary consequence. Nor is it, perhaps, in the power of the best disposed administration much to meliorate this state of things, so long as government js conducted on the principles hitherto persevered in. The Indian revenue is about £25,000,000 ; and, considering the poverty of the people, as indicated by the low rate of wages, and the comparatively small amount of capital and industry in the country, this is said to be equivalent to an annual public revenue in England of over £100,000,000 : and it should be remarked that the Indian revenue never diminishes ; but, on the contrary, may be .considered a 78 INDIA, — GEOGEAPHICAL AND STATISTICAIj. ^ perpetual war taxation, from which there is no relief or abatement. While India is subjected to this amount of taxation, there is reason to fear that her prosperity will not make any considerable advance, nor the people be attached or even reconciled, to the dominion of stran- gers, especially while at the same moment they are care- fully excluded, (vjhich never happened to them under any previous foreign dominion,) from all respectable or respon- sible share in their own government. But, without inquiring whether it be possible material- ly to diminish the amount of taxation imposed on India, it is certainly possible to do what is of equal importance, that is, to change the mode in which it is assessed. We have already given some account of the perpetual settle- §nent adopted under Lord CornwaJlis for the assessment of the land revenue in Bengal ; and, whatever may have been the defects of that settlement, there can be no doubt that, by limiting the amount of the assessment, it has been productive of the greatest advantage. But in the Madras provinces, and in the greater part of India, ex- clusive of Bengal, the land-tax is not only oppressively heavy, but a system has been adopted, in regard to the management of the land and the assessment of the tax, that seems to be wholly subversive of the security of property, and to be calculated only to discourage or rather extinguish industry. But this is not of the essence of a land-tax ; it is an abuse discreditable to tiiose by whom the system was originally recommended, and still more discreditable to those by whom it is maintained, after experience has fully demonstrated its pernicious in- fluence. The first thing essential in India is to establish the security of private property ; to make the occupiers of the land feel that they have an interest in its improve- ment ; and that the produce obtained by superior industry INDIA, — GEOGRAPHICAL AND STATISTICAL. 79 and intelligence will not be wholly swallowed up by fiscal rapacity. The real and, in the case of India, the only way to increase revenue, is to increase the wealth of the people ; and this will be best done by giving them a per- manent interest in the improvement of the soil, and by making the assessment fixed, if not forever, at least for a lengthened period. Notwithstanding the vast demand in Britain and other European countries for sugar, coffee, cotton, hemp, and other staple products of India, and her illimitable capaci- ties for their production, they have hitherto been exported only to a comparatively trifling extent. This is ascrib- able principally to the poverty and ignorance of the cul- tivators in India, arising from the uncertainty of the land tenures and the oppressive amount of the land-tax, and partly to high discriminating duties laid on East India produce in Great Britain and those European states that have colonies in the West Indies. But it is abundantly certain that the adoption of a more liberal system with respect to taxation in India, and of an equal tariff at home, combined with a little judicious encouragement at the outset on the part of the Indian government, might provide for an indefinite increase in the culture of the great articles of Indian produce suited for the European markets. The wonderful extension of the indigo culture shows conclusively what may be expected from a liberal course of policy. But no considerable improvement need be looked for in the greater part of the country while the land-tax continues to be assessed as at present. This forms at once an insuperable obstacle to the invest- ment of British capital in the cultivation of the land, and to the acquisition of wealth by the native cultivator, and is, in fact, destructive alike of the means and the hope of improvement. 80 INDIA, — GEOGRAPHICAL AND STATISTICAL. One advantage the people of India certainly derive from Britisli rule, which they never enjoyed, at least to the same extent, before, — freedom from civil war, and from foreign aggression and invasion. But it must, at the same time, be acknowledged that these benefits have been purchased at no inconsiderable price, — the suppres- sion of all competition and emulation between different parts of the country, and the entire sacrifice of national independence, accompanied with an utter hopelessness of those successful insurrections by which other Asiatic people rid themselves of tyranny, and procure, at least, a momentary melioration of their condition. What prob- ability,. it may be asked, is there of the stability and per- manence of British dominion ? This is a question more easily put than answered. No people, under the same circumstances, ever possessed such an empire before, or any thing resembling it ; and we have, therefore, no pre- cedent to guide us in attempting a reply. We shall, therefore, content ourselves with stating that India appears to be unassailable, except by a nation that has the command of the sea. Her land frontier is fenced by impassable mountains, and by deserts and rivers that could not be traversed by an invading army without great difficulty and loss. No doubt, however, if the British voluntarily cross the natural barriers that protect India, and advance into Central Asia, they may meet Russian troops on ground congenial to them ; and, if so, the prestige that has hitherto attached to the British arms in the East will run a considerable risk of being dissipated. But, so long as Great Britain confines itself within the proper limits of India, and preserves its supe- riority at sea, it has little to fear from foreign aggression. An attack by Asiatic powers is out of the question ; and the danger of French and Russian invasion is far more IXDIA, — GEOGRAPHICAL AND STATISTICAL. 81 chimerical tlian real. The superior national resources of Britain, her commercial enterprise, and naval power, gave it the Indian empire, and maintains her supremacy over it. Any nation that should deprive it of these might possess itself of India without any extraordinary difficulty ; for, in the hour of need, the natives would not certainly render the British any effectual support. But, in so far as can be surmised at present, Britain has noth- ing to apprehend from the superior power of foreign foes or rivals ; and, as to danger from internal insurrection, it has the best security against it in the singular docility of the people, their want of nationality or patriotism, their political ignorance, the innumerable divisions which exist among them, and their incapacity of combination for any great purpose. The greatest danger arises from advanc- ing into Central Asia, from the vast expenditure it would cause to the British government, the frequency of wars, and the grievous taxation to which these lead, a taxation which can not but engender a discontent and disaffection, 'the results of which no one can at present foretell. Bodily and intellectual endoivments. — The Hindoos, as already stated, constitute six-sevenths of the population of Hindoostan ; but the remaining inhabitants, though the stocks were in many cases originally different, are now so much assimilated with them, through a mixture of blood, and the adoption of Indian manners and cus- toms, that for our present purpose the whole population may be considered under one head. In point of race, the Hindoos have been regarded by naturalists as belong- ing to what they call the Caucasian, and even to the same family of that race as the white man of Europe ! But this is a fantastical notion, for which there is hardly even so much as the shadow of a foundation. The only three points in which any analogy has been discovered 82 INDIA,— GEOGRAPHICAL AND STATISTICAL. between the Hindoo and the European are the oval form of the face, the shape of the head, and traces of a certain community of language. In every other respect the points of contrast are incomparably more decisive than those of resemblance. The European is white, the Hindoo black. The European (and his is the only race that is so distinguished) has an infinite variety in the color of the hair, from flaxen to black, and great variety in the color of the eye, from light blue or gray up to dark brown : with the Hindoo, the color of the hair is ever black, and the color of the eye ever dark brown. The European is taller than the Hindoo, more robust, and more persevering. Even in the rudest states of civilization, the European has exhibited a firmness per- severance, and enterprise, which strikingly contrast with the feeble, slov/, and irresolute character of the Hindoo. In the performance of ordinary labor, in those employ- ments where there are means for drawing a just com- parison, the labor of one Englishman is equal to that of three ordinary Indians. Thi'ee Indian seamen will hardly perform the work of one English seaman, and three battalions of sepoys would not, in any case, supply the place of a single battalion of Europeans. There is little doubt but that an equal inferiority would have been the result of a trial of strength with a Roman legion or a Greek phalanx. When the skill required in any par- ticular employment rises in amount, and the European is enabled to avail himself of improved tools, which the Hindoo either can not or will not use, the disparity becomes still greater : thus, — A master shipwright, or a master carpenter, in India, finds it as cheap to employ a single European at £8 per month as eight Hindoos at the same amount of wages ! In physical force and con- tinuity of labor, the Hindoo is unquestionably not only INDIA, — GEOGRAPHICAL AND STATISTICAL. 83 below the European, but below the Arab, the Persian^ and, above all, the Chinese. When, therefore, we hear ot the price of labor being low in India, we must confine it to the roughest and rudest kind, viz.: rural labor ; and even then it must be taken with much allowance. Look- ing at the quantity of labor performed, and the manner in which it is executed, the rate of Indian wages is high ; and it is only the nominal rate, or that paid for laborers employed by time, that is low. In one physical quality there is a striking distinction between the Hindoo and European. The European is born with an inflexible and comparatively rigid fibre ; the Hindoo with a fibre more pliant and soft than that of our women. This distinction, however, is a mere affair of climate, for the quality supposed in this instance to be peculiar to the Hindoo frame is common to that of natives of every warm climate ; even Creole Europe- ans, in the very first generation, are distinguished by it. This flexibility in the animal fibre has been supposed, by some observers, to be accompanied with great sensibility and acuteness in the organs of sense, conferring upon the Hindoo a remarkable advantage in some of the nicest of the manual arts. But there is no truth in this hypothesis, any more than there would be in imagining, contrary to all experience, that the nicer and more pliant fingers of a woman confer upon her an advantage in skilled labor over a man. In the nicer pi-ocesses of mechanic art, habit soon gives to the rigid hand of the European artisan a nicety of touch and dexterity of exe- cution which no Hindoo has ever yet attained : in gen- eral, the Hindoos possess more agility than the Euro- peans, and their nimbleness is assisted by the lightness of their persons. They are, to a remarkable degree, the best runners, the best wrestlers, and the best climbers, 84 INDIA, — GEOGRAPHICAL AND STATISTICAL. of Asia. In these respects the Persians, Arabs, and Chinese are not to be compared with them. Hence it follows that; as ordinary seamen, they are far more dex- terous and useful than any of these nations, yet a certain want of firmness and presence of mind incapacitates them for officers, or even for steersmen, and, in this latter capacity, the natives of the Philippine Islands are so preferable to them that, whenever they can be obtained, they are always employed, to the total exclusion of the Hindoos. A Hindoo can not be urged to any personal exertion for a great length of time without producing failure or exhaustion. Even in their own country and climate, the sepo3^s have been beaten by European troops, in a long succession of forced marches. Among the Hindoo nations, though the common fea- tures of their physical and intellectual character are generally well preserved, much variety exists ; — more, probably, than among the nations of Europe. This variety has been ascribed to difference of latitude and climate, and to diversity of aliment : it has been affirmed that the inhabitants of the south, whose chief aliment is rice, are smaller and feebler than those of the north, whose chief bread-corn is wheat and millet. Experience shows that this opinion is without any foundation. The smallest and the feeblest family of Hindoos are the natives of Bengal, whose locality is between the 21st and 26th degrees north latitude : those living a dozen degrees further south, and upon the same vegetable ali- ment, are taller, more robust, energetic, and hardy. The natives of the table-land, whose vegetable aliment is neither rice nor wheat, are equal but not superior to the inhabitants of the Carnalic, or of the low, damp coast of Malabar. The tallest and most robust, but not the most active or agile, are the inhabitants of the upper INDIA,— GEOGEAl^HICAL AND STATISTICAL. 85 portion of the valley of the Ganges, where a few of those ill easy circumstances live only on wheat ; the majority of the people on barley or millet. It is the quantity and not the quality of the vegetable aliment which has the most material influence in India ; it may be said, that in Hindoostan generally there is a wider distinction in physical development between the classes in easy circumstances and the poor, than in any other country. The Hindoos of the upper and more distinguished classes are almost invariably larger, stouter, and handsomer than the poor and degraded classes. The most inattentive observer can not fail to notice the supe- riority of the military, mercantile, and, above all, the sacerdotal classes, over the common laboring population. The sepoys of the army of Bengal, who are a selection from the numerous yeomanry of the northern and cen- tral provinces, though very inferior in strength and energy, are equal, if not superior, in stature and personal appearance, to the common run of European troops ; and even in the streets of Calcutta, a stranger can not fail to be struck with the disparity in the appearance of the well-fed merchant, or broker, and the squalid, half- starved laborer or artisan. The mountaineers, and gen- erally all the semi-barbarous tribes, are short, emaciated, and ill-looking, particularly those who gain their liveli- hood by the chase, or by collecting the natural products of the forests, such as honey, wax, and drugs. Where slaves are few in number, and this is the case in all the populous parts of the country, they are in personal appearance nearly on a level with the rest of the peas- antry, and not to be distinguished from them. Where, however, they are numerous, and whole tribes are in a servile state, they may be easily distinguished from the rest of the community by their ugliness, small stature, 86 INDIA, — GEOGRAPHICAL AND STATISTICAL. and feeble frame. As a general rule it may be laid down, whatever be the climate, and whatever the gene- ral aliment, that wherever the price of labor is low, and the people consequently compelled by necessity to live upon the lowest description of food, or upon the smallest possible quantity of a better description that will support life, the great mass of the inhabitants are the most de- graded in body, as well as in mind. It is a popular, but erroneous notion, that the Hindoos live almost entirely on a vegetable diet ; such a fact would be inconsistent with the physical nature of man, who, in reality, is omnivorous. The most fastidious of the Hindoos, in point of diet, are great eaters of milk and butter: fish is also extensively used near all the sea- coasts, and on the shores of the principal rivers ; and none of the people of India hold this description of food as abominable, except the inhabitants of the remote interior, who have no means of procuring it. Even flesh, however capricious in the selection, is occasionally eaten by the greater portion of the Hindoo people ; and it is the want of means, rather than religious scruples, that makes them refrain from it. In cases of urgent ne- cessity, even religion authorizes any kind of food ; and in the event of famine, a Bramin may eat the limb of a dog. Upon the intellectual and moral qualities of the Hin- doos, a very few words will suffice : the more educated classes, — and it is from a consideration of the character of these only that any fair conclusion can be drawn, — may be pronounced, without hesitation, to be a shrewd, wary, and acute people. Subtlety, perhaps, more than strength, is the prominent character of their intellect. Good imitators, they have hitherto discovered no original powers of invention. They have little imagination, for the poor distempered dreams of their theology and lite- INDIA, — GEOGKAPniCAL AND STATISTICAL. 87 rature are not entitled to this name. In practical good sense, they are decidedly below the Chinese. In vigor and manliness of mind, they are below the Arabs, the Persians, and those Mohammedan nations of Tartary who sent forth the men that invaded and conquered them. We make no comparison with European nations, because the contrast is too great to admit of any paral- lel. The departments of industry, in which the intel- lectual faculties appear to most advantage, and for which they seem best fitted, are the administration of justice and finances, and such branches of trade as do not imply the possession of comprehensive knowledge and bold enterprise. Orme's account of their character in this respect is strictly just. " They are," he says, "the acutest buyers and sellers in the world, and pre- serve through all their bargains a degree of calmness which baffles all the arts that can be opposed against it." The moral character of the Hindoos is the growth of probably many thousand years of anarchy and oppres- sion. Such a condition of society produces no demand for candor, integrity, or ingenuousness ; and among the Hindoos these qualities can hardly be said to exist. Rapacity, violence, fraud, and injustice characterized the native rulers ; and the usual weapons of defense, viz.: falsehood, artifice, chicane, and deceit, have, conse- quently, sprung up in abundance among the people. In reality, for generations, integrity may be said to have been at a discount in India, and dissimulation at a high premium. Probity and candor are virtues which, in fact, could not be practiced with any regard to personal freedom, life, or property. In such a state of things, such a simpleton as an honest man would have become the inevitable prey of a host of knaves, and would have been laughed at and despised. Generally it may be said 8 88 INDIA, — GEOGRAPHICAL AND STATISTICAL. that the Hindoos seldom speak the whole truth without some natural reservation. Judicial perjury is practiced in Hindoostan, perhaps on a wider scale than in any other country in the world. Our courts of justice have been blamed for encouraging the crime, and, probably, to a certain extent, they do so ; but, upon the whole, they can only be looked upon simply as an arena for the exhibition of this vice upon a great scale. Falsehood and equivocation are inseparable from such a condition of society as that of Hindoostan, and have characterized the manners of the Hindoos from the era when Europe- ans first acquired any authentic information respecting them. The description which Bernidr, one of the most accurate of travelers, has given of the Hindoos under Aurungzebe, is strictly applicable to the present times. Sir William Jones, often their indiscriminate eulogist, declared from the bench his conviction, that affidavits of every imaginable fact might as easily be procured in the streets and markets of Calcutta, as any other article of traffic ; adding, on the subject of oaths, that even if a form the most binding on the consciences of men were established, there would be found few Hindoo consciences to be bound by it. With singular exceptions in favor of the military classes, timidity, and even pusillanimity, characterize a very large portion of the Hindoo population. This opposes the most serious obstacle to their good govern- ment. The great body of the people have neither the spirit nor courage to defend themselves or their property, or to resist oppression in a straight-forward manner; and consequently they become easy victims to every possessor of power, by whatever means obtained. The Arab, the Persian, the Chinese, and the Malay knows how to defend himself from insult and robbery, by some INDIA, — GEOGRAPHICAL AND STATISTICAL. 89 means or other, however rude; but the Hindoo puts up witTi oppression without directly resenting it, and, like the weaker animals that are the natural prey of the stronger and more ferocious, trusts to artifice and cun- ning for his defense. This view of the Hindoo character is not inconsistent with a wrangling and litigious disposition among them- selves. The}' brawl and scold with infinite animation, but rarely come to blows. A very frequent mode of settling, or at least prosecuting family feuds, is an action or suit at law. Among the better qualities of the Hindoos may be reckoned frugality, patience, docility, and even industry. But the first of these virtues makes, in many cases, too near an approach to avarice. This is a quality of the Hindoo character which it is not very easy to explain. The usual effect of bad government, by rendering prop- erty insecure, is to make the people prodigal, and if not indiflferent to possession, at all events careless of accu- mulating. Undoubtedly opposite effects have been the i-esult among the Hindoos. Mr. Orme, endeavoring to account for it, says : "Slavery has sharpened the natural fineness of all the spirits of Asia. From the difficulty of obtaining, and the greater difficulty of preserving, the Gentoos are indefatigable in business, and masters of the most exquisite dissimulation in all affairs of interest." This states the fact very correctly, but leaves the cause wholly unaccounted for ; for, undoubtedly, slavery has produced no such effect on the Arabs, the Turks, the Persians, the Chinese, or even the Mohammedans of India. The docility, too, of the Hindoos, is very much akin to passiveness; they are almost as easily trained to submit to oppression and rapacity as to endeavor to improve and amend their condition. uHa,~StatistintL |HE vast territory governed by the East India Company comprehends an area of 1,309,200 square miles, (about one-half the area of the United States, and more than nine times the area of Great Britain and Ireland.) It is surrounded by a boundary of 11,260 miles in extent, or one-half of the circuit of the globe. Of this immense territory, 816,546 square miles belong to Great Britain, and 508,412 to native rulers. It contains a population of about one hundred and fifty millions, and maintains an army of 300,000 men, of whom, about one-half are, (or were,) in the service of Britain ; the remainder, though in name serving native potentates, are ordinarily as much at British disposal in time of war as those who wear the scarlet uniform. India yields a^gross revenue of nearly £30,000,000 sterling, or double that of any empire in Europe, France and England excepted. Its sea-board commerce exceeds the value of its revenue, and yet the total European population contained in it, exclusive of private soldiers, falls short of 20,000 ; about 7,000 being nearly the whole of Europeans employed by government. The following table exhibits the area and population of the British possessions, and of the native and foreign states. BRITISH POSSESSIONS. Square Miles. Population. Presidency of Bengal, 349,390 50,928,320 North-western Provinces, 85,571 23,800,549 Presidency of Madras, 144,889 16,339,426 Presidency of Bombay, 120,065 10,485,017 INDIA, — STATISTICAL. 91 NATIVE STATES UNDER BRITISH PROTECTION. BENGAL. Square Miles. Population. Hyderabad, 9.5,337 10,666,080 Nagpore, 76,432 4,650,000 Bandelcund, &o., ,56.31 1 5,871, 112 Indore, 15,680 1,415,200 Rajpootana, 119.859 8,745,098 Kohiikund, 720 320,400 Hill States, 12,852 891,007 Sikh protected states, 32,177 2,250,809 Sikhim, 2,504 92,648 Bahwalpore, 20,003 600,000 Cossya and Garrowsliills, 7,711 231,605 Maneepore, 7,584 75,840 Cuttaek Mehals, 16,929 761,805 MADRAS. Cochin, 1,988 288,176 Mysore, 30 886 3,000,000 Travanoore, 4,722 1,011,824 Jeypore and Hill Zemindaries, 13,041 391,230 BOMBAY. Guioowar's Territories, 24,249 1 ,794,426 States tributary to Guieowar, 5,250 388,500 Cambay and Ballasinore, 758 56,092 Sarat 850 62,900 Ahmednuggur, 1,700 125,800 Colnpore,. 3,445 500,000 Saw.int Wan-ee, 800 120,000 Myhee Caunta, 3,400 251,600 Rewa Caunta,. 5,329 394,346 Cutch 6,764 500,536 Sattaraii'jaghirdars, 3,775 419,025 NATIVE INDEPENDENT STATES. BENGAL. TSreoaul 54,500 1,940,000 Bhonal, : ■ ?'';'^ Cholab Singh's Terrjtories, -'ioo Tiperah, Bhotan, 815,300 750,000 632 FOREIGN POSSESSIONS. Pondicherry, Carieal, &e., (French,) 188 171 ,217 Goa, Damauu, and Diu, (Portuguese,) 800 500,000 8* 92 The Presidency of Bengal includes seven Regulation Provinces, (Jessore, Bhaugulpore, Cuttack, Moorsheda- bad, Dacca, Patna, and Uhittagong,) and eight Non- Regulation Provinces, (Saugur and Nerbuddah, Cis-Sut- ledje, north-east frontier, Goalpara, Arracan, Tenassei'im, south-west frontier, and Punjaub, including the Jullimdar Doab and Kooloo territory,) Oude has recently been added to the British territory in Bengal. The North-west Provinces, subsidiary to the Presiden- cy of Bengal, are under a lieutenant-governor, and in- clude six Regulation Provinces, (Delhi, Meerut, Rohil- kund, Agra, Allahabad, and Benares,) and seven Non- Regulation Districts, (Kumaon, Gurwal, and other Hill States.) The Presidency of Madras includes eighteen Regula- tion Districts, (Rajahmundry, Masulipatam, Guntoor, Nellore, Chingleput, Madras, South Arcot, North Arcot, Bellary, Cuddapah, Salun, Coimbatore, Trichinopoly, Tanjore, Madura, Tinnevelly, Malabar, and Canara,) and three Non-Regulation Districts, (Gangard, Vozaga- patam, and Kurnoul.) The Presidency of Bombay includes thirteen Regula- tion Provinces, (Surat, Baroach, Ahmedabad, Kaira, Candeish, Tannah, Poonah, Ahmednuggur, Sholapore, Belgaum, Dharwar, Rutnagherry, and Bombay Island,) and three Non-Regulation Provinces, (Colaba, Sinde, and Sattarah.) The Portuguese were the first nation of Europe which obtained any domination in Hindoostan ; and they still possess Goa, Damaun, and Diu. The Dutch never ac- quired much political power in the counti-y, though at one time they carried on the greater part of the Indian trade. The French, on the contrary, obtained extensive pos- sessions in the Deccan. Their possessions now, however, consist only of Pondicherry, Carical, &c., — an insignifi- cant territory. No other European nation, (except the above two powers.) has now any possessions, in all this broad territory. The physical geography, products, inhabitants, indus- try, &c., of British India, will be found treated of in the foregoing article under the head Hindoostan. The pres- ent article will, therefore, be principally occupied with those topics, such as the general government, the judicial and revenue systems, army, commerce, &c., of British India, that could not be otherwise conveniently intro- duced. Govej-nment. — Previously to 1773, the government of that part of India that then belonged to the British was vested in the East India Company. The body of pro- prietors of East India stock, assembled in general court, elected twenty-four directors, to whom the executive power was intrusted, the body of proprietors reserving exclusively to themselves all legislative authority. A vote in the court of proprietors was acquired by the holders of £500 of the company's stock ; but, to be a director, it was necessary to hold £2000 stock. The directors, with their chairman and deputy chairman, were chosen annually, and subsequently subdivided themselves, for dispatch of business, into ten separate committees. As early as 1707, the three principal presi- dencies into which British India is divided — those of Bombay, Madi-as, and Calcutta, were in existence. Each was governed by a president or governor, and a council of from nine to twelve members, appointed by commis- sion of the company. All power was lodged in the president and council jointly, every question that came before them being decided by a majority of votes. In 1726, a charter was granted, by which the company 94 were permitted to establish a mayor's court at each of the presidencies, consisting of a mayor and nine alder- men, empowered to decide in civil cases of all descrip- tions, with an appeal from their jurisdiction to the presi- dent and council. The latter were also vested with the power of holding courts of quarter sessions, for the exer- cise of penal judicature, in all cases excepting those of high treason, as well as a court of requests for the decis- ion, by summary procedure, of pecuniary questions of inconsiderable amount. Added to this, the powers of justices of the peace were granted to the members of the council, and to them only, the president being at the same time commander-in-chief of all the military force stationed within his presidency. It will thus be readily seen that the officers of the company were recognized as the judges in their own cause in all cases ; and that, not- withstanding the establishment of the mayor's courts, they still held all the judicial as well as the executive functions, both civil and military, in their own hands. An individual who became a member of the council was not debarred from subordinate functions ; and from this circumstance especially it might have been expected that abuses would prevail ; and to the abuses which thence arose, in fact, Mr. Mill attributes the embarrassments in which the affairs of the company afterward became involved. In 1773, the great increase in the territorial posses- sions of the company attracted the attention and excited the cupidity of the government at home ; while the finan- cial embarrassments of the company, and the abuses which had crept into the government of India, furnished ample grounds for interference. In consequence, the ministry introduced two bills into parliament, distinctly asserting the claim of the crown to the territorial acqui- INDIA, — STATISTICAL. 95 sitions of the company, raising the qualification to vote in the court of proprietors from the possession of £500 to that of £1000 stock ; giving to every proprietor pos- sessed of £3000 two votes, of £6000 three votes, and of £10,000 four votes; limiting the annual election of the whole twenty-four directors to that of six only ; vesting the government of Bengal, Bahar, and Orissa in a gov- ernor-general, with a salary of £25,000 a year, and four councilors, of £8000 each ; rendering the other presi- dencies subordinate to that of Bengal ; and establishing at Calcutta a supreme court of judicature, consisting of a chief justice, with £8000 a year, and three puisne judges, with £6000 a year, each appointed by the crown. As subsidiary articles, it was proposed that the first gov- ernor-general and councilors should be nominated by parliament in the act, and hold their office for five years ; after which the patronage of those great offices should revert to the directors, but still subject to the approba- tion of the crown ; that every thing in the company's correspondence from India which related to civil or mili- tary affairs, to the government of the country, or the administration of the revenues, should be laid before ministers ; that no person in the service either of the king or the company should be allowed to receive pres- ents; and that the governor-general, councilors, and judges should be excluded from all commercial specula- tions and pursuits. Mr. Pitt's famous India bill, of 1784, established the board of control, consisting of six members of the privy council, appointed by the king, two of the principal sec- retaries of state being always members. The president of the board is, in fact, secretary of state for India, and is the officer responsible for its government, and for the proceedings of the board. The superintendence of the 96 INDIA, — STATISTICAL. latter extends over the whole civil and military trans- actions carried on in India. It revises, cancels, or ap- proves all dispatches, letters, orders or instructions pro- posed to be sent out by the court of directors to the gov- ernment in India ; it may also require the court to pre- pare and send out dispatches on any given s'ubject, couched in such terms as it may deem fit; it may transmit, in certain cases, orders to India, without the inspection of the directors, and has access to all the com- pany's papers and records, and to all proceedings of the courts of directors and proprietors. It is clear, there- fore, that from 1784, when the board of control was es- tablished, the real sovereignty of British India was taken out of the hands of the company, and placed in those of ministers. Under the act of 1833, (3 and 4 William IV., cap 85,) the company holds, under the superintendence of the board of control, the political government and patron- age of British India, till the 30th of April,* 1854; but its exclusive commercial privileges are no longer in ex- istence. The supreme authority is vested in the gov- ernor-general, who is also governor of the presidency of Bengal. He is nominated by the court of directors, the nomination being subject to the approval of the sover- eign, and is assisted by a council of five members, three of whom are appointed by the court of directors, from among persons who are or_ have been servants of the company ; the fourth is also chosen in a similar manner, but from among persons unconnected with the company; and the fifth is the commander-in-chief, who takes rank * By the new charter of 1853, the number of directors were to be re- duced in 1856 to eighteen, of whom three, (ultimately six,) are nominated by the crown, and it makes the elections biennially, instead of annually, as heretofore. INDIA,— STATISTICAL. 97 and precedence immediately after the governor-general. The other presidencies have also their governors and councils, subordinate to the governor and council of the Bengal presidency ; the north-west provinces, however, comprising the upper provinces of Bengal, is at present administered by a lieutenant-governor only. The gov- ernor-general in council is competent to make laws for the whole of British India, which are binding upon all the courts of justice, unless annulled by higher authority. Parliament reserves to itself the right to supersede or suspend all proceedings and acts of the governor-general ; and the court of directors has also power to disallow them. The foregoing remarks do not, however, in any way apply to Ceylon, which is quite independent of the jurisdiction of continental India, being placed directly under the colonial secretary of Great Britain. By the act of 1833, the salaries of the principal civic officers in India were fixed : that of the governor-general at £24,600 a year ; the governors of the Bombay and Madras presidencies, £11,600; the ordinary members of the head council, £9600 each ; and the members of the other councils, £6000 each yearly. The capital stock of the East India Company is £6,000,000; and, under the act of 1853, which extin- guishes the trading power of the company, it was pro- vided that £2,000,000 should be set apart, as a security fund, to be applied, ultimately, with its accumulated inter- est, to pay off the £6,000,000 stock, at the rate of 200 per cent. The total receipt of this fund, up to October, 1857, amounts to £4,282,594. Judicial System. — " When, in 1793, the Marquis Corn- wallis undertook his reform of the judicial and revenue systems of British India, that territory was in a most de- plorable state. The administration of justice through 98 INDIA, — STATISTICAL. all its departments was most pernicious and depraved ; the public revenue levied upon principles incompatible with the existence of private property ; and the people sunk in poverty and wretchedness ; more than one-thii-d part of the country a desert, and the rest hastening to desolation." — {Mill, v., 428.) Under the orders sent to India in 1786, the same individuals combined the busi- ness both of judicature and finance ; being at once col- lectors of revenue, judges, and heads of the police. Lord Cornwallis endeavored to separate these apparently in- compatible offices, and distributed them among different individuals. He gave to native commissioners power to determine civil suits among natives to the value of fifty rupees, several of whom he established in each zillaJi or district, giving an appeal from their decisions to the zillah court, held in the principal town of the district, of which one of the company's servants was appointed the judge. The latter functionary was assisted by a reg- istrar, and some other members from among the junior servants of the company, and natives duly qualified to expound the Hindoo or Mohammedan law. These courts had jurisdiction in cases to the amount of 1000 rupees. From them appeal might be made to four pro- vincial courts, established at Calcutta, Patna, Dacca, and Moorshedabad. These courts consisted of three judges, chosen from the civil department of the company's ser- vice, a registrar, one or more assistants from the junior European servants of the company, and three expound- ers of the native law — a cauzee, mufti, and pundit. A higher tribunal that of Sudder Dewannee Adawlut, was established at Calcutta, composed of the governor-gen- eral, his council, the head cauzee, two mufties, two pun- dits, a registrar, and assistants. All suits of Europeans were extensively tried in this court ; appeal from it lay 99 only to the king in council, in cases above the amount of 50,000 rupees. Four tribunals were erected in the four provincial courts, for criminal judicature, at which the judges, cfec, of the civil tribunals officiated every month ; the penal judicature was administered in most of the country districts only twice, but in that of Calcutta four times a year. The superior criminal tribunal was the Niza?nut Adawlut, held at Calcutta, and constituted almost similarly to the Sudder Deicannee Adawlut. "But with all this machinery of legislation, nothing like a code of laws was promulgated. The Hindoo and Mohammedan population were governed by th& rules laid down in their respective sacred books — the Shasters and the Koran — as interpreted by the ever-varying opin- ions of the pundits and cauzees. The courts established on the European model were infected with all that mul- tiplication of technical forms, which forms the worst fea- ture of our own legal code, and all that delay and ex- pensiveness of process, which tends to destroy the ends of justice, followed as a matter of course. The errors in the system adopted were great ; but, considering the state in which Lord Cornwallis found affairs, it may be truly said that he effected a vast deal of good. He was actuated by the purest and most benevolent motives ; and wisely endeavored to respect, in as far as possible, the different legal codes of the various sects and nations comprised in the population of India. " Of late years, however, a disposition has grown up to unite again the judicial, magisterial, and revenue authori- ties, which Lord Cornwallis had separated. A consider- able change of this description was introduced by Sir T. Monro in the Madras territories, and more recently by Lord W. Bentinck, in Bengal. — (See Revenue and Judi- cial Selections.) 100 -STATISTICAL. "Within the cities of Calcutta, Madras, and Bombay, and also within the settlements of Penang, Singapore, and Malacca, English civil and criminal law is adminis- tered to both natives and Europeans, with the exception of their own laws of inheritance being preserved to the former. But beyond the limits of the above mentioned cities, on the continent of India, the native laws have been made binding on Europeans as well as natives. The charter of 1833 provides that no one shall, by reason of his nation, color, or faith, be disqualified from holding office under the company ; and that, henceforth, there shall be no distinction of blood or nativity. 'Upon this ground,' says Mr. Crawford, 'the legislative council of India, without waiting for the code of laws which, under direction of the same statute, w'as in course of prepara- tion, passed a law subjecting Europeans to the same tri- bunals to which natives are subject, although these tribu- nals administer their own domestic laws respectively to Hindoos and Mohammedans, are cognizant of no others, repudiate expressly the laws of England, and are pre- sided over by natives, or by unprofessional European servants of the East India Company, the first of whom rarely know a word of English ; while the proceedings of the court are both conducted in the native languages, to the express exclusion of the English tongue. This act, from its unpopular character, is commonly called by Europeans in India, the 'Black Act.'" "There can be no doubt that, under the act of 1833, Europeans gained gi-eat advantages by the abolition of the East India Company's monopoly and trade, the power to possess land, and the comparatively ample field which is thus opened to their enterprise. It is alledged, however, that, in so far as respects their rights, liberties, and laws, they are in a less favorable position than under the old INDIA, — STATISTICAL. 101 system. Under the latter, British subjects, within the special jurisdiction of the king's court, could only, like the native, be tried by their own laws, and the local govern- ment could enact no new law for their government not in accordance with the 'laws of the realm.' But, by the new system, the governor-general in council may enact any laws whatsoever, that shall be binding on British subjects, whether the same be consonant with the 'laws of the realm,' or otherwise. Under the old law, an appeal lay to the privy council, which any individual might institute. The privilege is now, however, cut off; and, under the modern system, nothing short of an act of parliament can repeal a law that has the sanction of the Indian authorities. Under the old system, British- born subjects in the provinces, that is, beyond the special jurisdictions of the king's courts, were, in civil cases, amenable only to the courts presided over by their coun- trymen in the commission of the peace. Under the new system, they are amenable to the extent of £5,000 in value to the pettiest native tribunal, presided over by a Mohammedan or Hindoo — judges equally ignorant of their manners, laws, and language, and, with few excep- tions, viewing their religion with hatred or contempt. The appeal to the king's courts, which was a guarantee for their own laws, is taken away from them ; and it lies to the chief native tribunal — of which the judges, indeed, are Englishmen, but in which the proceedings' are in the native tongue — in which there is no one to advise the judges, and where an English barrister is not even per- mitted to plead. Under the old system, an appeal lay, even from the competent tribunals of the king's courts, to the king in council ; under the new system, no such appeal lies from the native tribunal, unless the value be above twelve times as much as it was before the innovation. 102 INDIA, — STATISTICAL. "We believe, however, that, practically, little incon- venience has arisen, or is at all likely to arise, from most of these regulations. We may be quite sure that the power given to the governor-general and council, of en- acting laws, will not be rashly or capriciously exercised. How exalted soever, these functionaries are not merely responsible to parliament, but to public opinion ; the free press, now established in India, will not fail to advertise them of any error they may be likely to commit ; while the growing attention given to Indian affairs at home, veil! tend to make them wary in their proceedings. We are less able to judge of the expediency of making Brit- ish-born subjects responsible to the native tribunals ; but even this is, we believe, less objectionable than it might appear to be." — McCulloch. Revenue System. — The land-tax constitutes the princi- pal source of revenue of British India, as it has always done of all eastern states. The governments of such countries may, in fact, be said to be the real proprietors of the land ; but, in India, as elsewhere, the cultivators have a perpetual, hereditary, and transferable right of occupancy, so long as they continue to pay the share of the produce of the land demanded by the government. The value of this right of occupancy to the rural popula- tion depends on the degree of resistance which they have been able to oppose to the exactions of arbitrary govern- ments. In Bengal and the adjacent provinces of India, from the peculiarly timid character of the inhabitants, and the open and exposed nature of the country, this re- sistance has been trifling indeed, and consequently the value of the right of occupancy in the peasant, or ryot, (an Arabic word, meaning subject,) has been proportion- ally reduced. This, also, may be considered, though with some modifications, as being nearly the condition, in this INDIA, — STATISTICAL. 108 respect, of the inhabitants of every part of the great plain of the Ganges, comprising more than half the population of Hindoostan. But, where the country is naturally difficult, the people have been able more effect- ually to resist the encroachments of the head landlord, or state, and to retain a valuable share in the property of the soil. This has been particularly the case along the Ghauts, as in Bednore, Canara, Malabar, &c.; the inhabit- ants of which provinces not only lay claim to a right of private property in the soil, but have been generally ready to support their claim by force of arms. There can be no question, indeed, that the same modified right of prop- erty formerly existed everywhere ; and it is indeed im- possible that otherwise the land should ever have been reclaimed from the wilderness. But, in those parts of India which could be readily overrun by a military force, the right of property in the soil has long been little else than the right to cultivate one's paternal acres for behoof of others, the cultivators reserving only a bare subsist- ence for themselves. " Under the Mogul emperors, the practice in Bengal was to divide the gross produce of the soil, on the metayer principle, into equal shares ; whereof one was retained by the cultivator, the other going to government as rent or tax. The officers employed to collect this revenue were called zemindars; and, in course of time, their office seems to have become hereditary. It may be re- marked that, in Persian, zemindar and landholder are synonymous; and this etymology, coupled with the hereditary nature of their office, which brought them exclusively into contact with the ryot, or occupier, as well as with the government, led many to believe that the zemindars were in reality the owners of the land, and that the ryots were their tenants. This, however, it is 104 "now admitted on all hands, was an incorrect opinion. The zemindars in reality were tax-gatherers, and were, in fact, obliged to pay to the government nine-tenths of the produce collected from the ryots, retaining only one- tenth as a compensation for their trouble ; and, so long as the ryots paid their fixed contribution, they could not be ousted from their possessions, nor be in anywise interfered with. " But, notwithstanding what has now been stated, the perpetual or zemindary settlement established by Lord Cornwallis in Bengal, in 1793, was made on the assump- tion that the zemindars were the proprietors of the soil. His lordship, indeed, was far from being personally satis- fied that such was really the case ; but he was anxious to create a class of large proprietors, and to give them an interest in the improvement and prosperity of the country. It is clear, however, that this wish could not be realized without destroying the permanent rights of the ryots ; for, unless this were accomplished, the zemindars could not interfere in the management of their estates. The inter- ests of the zemindars and the rights of the ryots were plainly irreconcilable ; and it was obvious that the former would endeavor to reduce the latter to the condition of tenants at will. But this necessary conseqoence was either overlooked or ineffectually provided against. The zemindars became, under condition of their paying the assessment, or quit-rent, due to government, proprietors or owners of the land. The amount of the assessment was fixed at the average of what it had been for a few years previously, and it was declared to be perpetual and invariable at that amount. When a zemindar fell into arrear with government, his estate might be either sold or resumed. " That the assessment was, at the outset, and still is, INDIA,— STATISTICAL. 105 too high, can not well be doubted ; and it must ever be matter of regret that the settlement was not made with the ryots, or cultivators, rather than with the zemindars ; but, notwithstanding these and other defects, the measure was, on the whole, a great boon to India. Until the in- troduction of the perpetual system into Bengal, the reve- nue was raised in it, as it continues to be in the rest of India down to the present day, by a variable as well as a most oppressive land-tax. We all know what a pernicious influence tithe has had in Britain ; but, suppose that, in- stead of amounting to 10, tithe amounted to 50 per cent, of the gross produce of the soil, it would have been an effectual obstacle to all improvement, and the country would now have been in about the same state as in the days of Alfred, or of William the Conqueror. " In France, Italy, and other parts of Europe, where the metayer system is introduced, the landlord seldom or never gets half the produce, unless he also furnish the stock or farming capital, and, in most cases, the seed. But, in India, neither the government nor the zemindars do any thing of the sort : they merely supply the land, which is usually divided into very small portions, mostly about six, and rarely amounting to twenty-four acres. A demand on the occupiers of such patches for half the produce is quite extravagant, and hence the excessive poverty of the people, which is such as to stagger belief. Still, however, the perpetual system is vastly preferable in principle, and also in its practical influence, to any other revenue system hitherto established in India. It set limits to fiscal rapacity, and established, as it were, a rampart, beyond which no tax-gatherer dared to intrude. The enormous amount of the assessment, and the rigor with which payment was at first enforced, ruined an im- mense number of zemindars. But their lards having 106 INDIA, — STATISTICAL. come into new and more efficient hands, a better system of management was introduced, and the Hmitation of the government demand gave a stimulus to improvement unknown in any other part of Hindoostan. This, in fact, was the grand desideratum. A land-tax that may be in- creased, should the land be improved, is all but certain to prevent any such improvement being made. This has been its uniform operation in every country in the world that has had the bad fortune to be cursed with such a destructive impost. But a heavy land-tax, provided it be fixed and unsusceptible of increase, is no bar to improve- ments, unless in so far as it tends to deprive the proprie- tors and occupiers of land of the means of making them. There is, in such a case, no want of security, and the cul- tivator is not deterred from attempting improvements, or of bringing superior enterprise and industry to operate on his estate, by the fact that the tax will, in consequence, be increased. " The truth of what is now stated has been fully evinced in Bengal during the last twenty or thirty years ; for both the population and the land revenue of that part of the Indian empire has greatly increased. A great deal of waste land has been cultivated, and various works have been undertaken that would not be so much as dreamed of in any other part of this empire. But, with all this, there has been but little, if any, improvement in the condition of the people of Bengal under the English government. They, in fact, are practically excluded from, at least, all direct participation in the benefits resulting from the limitation of the assessment. They have merely exchanged one taskmaster for another. It is their landlords who have been the great gainers. The occupiers still, generally speaking, hold under the metayer principle, paying half, or even more, of their produce as INDIA, — STATISTICAL. 107 Kent ; so that their poverty is often extreme, and their condition not unfrequently inferior even to that of the hired laborer, who receives the miserable pittance of two annas, or about 3d., a day as wages. "It seems, however, as if there were some strange fatality attending the government of India; and that the greatest talents and the best intentions should, when applied to legislate for that country, produce only the most pernicious projects. The perpetual settlement carried into effect by Lord Cornwallis in Bengal was keenly opposed by Lord Teignmouth, Colonel Wilkes, Mr. Thackeray, Sir T. Monro, and others, whose opin- ions on such subjects are certainly entitled to very great respect ; and it would seem that the board of control became, at length, favorable to their views. In conse- quence of this change of opinion, it was resolved to introduce a different system, under the superintendence of its zealous advocate, Sir Thomas Monro, into the Presidency of Madras, or Fort St. George. This new system has received the name of the ryotioar settlement. It proceeds on the assumption that government possesses the entire property of the soil, and may dispose of it at pleasure; no middle-men or zemindars are interposed between the sovereign and the cultivators ; the ryots being brought into immediate contact with the collectors appointed by government to receive their rents. It is impossible, however, to enter fully into the details of this system. They are in the last degree complicated, which of itself would be enough to show their inexpediency. The land is taxed, according to its quality, at rates vary- ing from 6d. up to 70 shillings sterling an acre. Thus, for example, if the land were mere dry field, without artificial irrigation, the land-tax would be about 3s. an acre. If it had a supply of water capable of growing 108 INDIA, — SjTATISTICAL. rice, the tax rises to 23s., or to nearly eight times tli« former rent ; and if the irrigated land be a garden, or an orchard, the tax rises to iOs., or above thirteen times the tax on dry land ! In the first instance, the natural and inherent fertility of the soil only is taxed ; in the second, to that tax is added one on the capital and labor which the peasant or his ancestors laid out in reservoirs, canals, trenches, or wells. In the third, not only are all these taxed, but there is in^posed besides an excise on fruits, garden-stuffs, and pot-herbs. But the radical vice of the system is, that the lands are not fet for a considerable number of years, or for ever. On the contrary, there is a constant tampering and interference with the concerns of the ryots. It is enacted, for example, that 'at the end of each year the ryot shall be at liberty either to throw up a part of his land, or to occupy more, according to his circumstances.' When, owing to bad crops, or other unforeseen accidents, a ryot becomes unable to pay his rent or assessment, it is declared that ' the village to which he belongs shall be liable for him to the extent of 10 per cent, on the rent of the remaining ryots, but no more.' And, to crown the whole, the tehsildars, or native offi- cers, employed in collecting the land-rents, or revenue, have been vested with powers to act as officers of police, to impose fines, and even to inflict corporeal punishment almost, at discretion ! "It is really astonishing how acute and able men should have dreamed of establishing a system in an ex- tensive and only half-civilized country that every one must see would be destructive of the industry of the tenants, and would lead to the grossest abuses, were an attempt made to introduce it in the management even of a single estate in Great Britain." — McCulloch. Mr. Tucker, a gentleman who resided long in India, i» r>" INDIA, — STATISTICAL. , 111 and now occupies a place in the company's direction, has animadverted on this plan as follows: "My wish," says he, "is not to exaggerate; but when I find a system, requiring a multiplicity of instruments, surveyors, and inspectors, assessors, ordinary and extraordinary, potails, curnums, tehsildars, and cutcherry servants ; and when I read the description given of these officers by the most zealous advocates of the system, their periodical visita- tions are pictured in my imagination as the passage of a flight of locusts, devouring in their course the fruits of the earth. For such complicated details, the most select agency would be required ; whereas the agency we can command is of the most questionable character. We do not merely require experience and honesty to execute one great undertaking; the work* is ever beginning and never ending, and calls for a perennial stream of intelli- gence and integrity. And can it be doubted that the people are oppressed and plundered by these multiform agents ? The principle of the settlement is to take one- third of the gross produce on account of government ; and, in order to render the assessment moderate. Sir T. Monro proposed to grant a considerable deduction from the rates deducible^ from the survey reports. -But, if it be moderate, how does it happen that the people continue in the same uniform condition of laboring peasants? Why do not the same changes take plaee here as in other communities ? One man is industrious, economic&l, pru- dent, or fortunate ; another is idle, wasteful, improvident, or unlucky. In the ordinary course of things, one should rise, and the other fall : the former should, by degrees, absorb tlie possessions of the latter, should be- come rich, while his neighbor remained poor ; gradations in society should take place ; and, in the course of time, wc might naturally expect to see the landlord, the yeo- 112 INDIA, — STATISTICAL. man, and the laborer. And what prevents this natural progression ? I should answer, the officers of government. The fruits of industry are nipped in the bud. If one man produce more than his fellows, there is a public servant at hand ready to snatch the superfluity. And wherefore, then, should the husbandman toil, that a stranger may reap the produce ? "There are two other circumstances which tend to perpetuate this uniform condition. The ryots have no fixed possession ; they are liable to be moved from field to field : this they sometimes do of their own accord, for the purpose of obtaining land supposed to be more lightly assessed ; at other times the land is assigned by lot, with a view to a more equal and impartial distribution of the good and the bad among the different cultivators. But these I'evolutions tend to destroy all local attachments, and are evidently calculated to take away one great incentive to exertion. "The other leveling principle is to be found in the rule which requires that the ryot shall make good the deficien- cies of his neighbor to the extent of ten per cent. : that is, to the extent, probably, of his whole surplus earnings. Of what avail is it that the husbandman be diligent, skill- ful, and successful, if he is to be mulcted for his neigh- bor's negligence or misfortune ? A. must pay the debt of B. If a village be prosperous it matters little, for the next village may have been exposed to some calamity ; and from the abundance of the one we exact wherewithal to supply the deficiency of the other. Is it possible to fancy a system better calculated to baffle the efforts of the individual, to repress industry, to extinguish hope, and to reduce all to one common state of universal pau^ perism ?" — {Review of the Financial Policy of the East India Cojnpany, p. 134.) INDIA,^iSTATISTICAL. ^ 113 " It will be afterward seen that, notwithstanding the long period of tranquillity that the Madras territories have enjoyed, the land revenue, instead of increasing, as it should have done under any reasonable system, has been progressively declining. The organization and maintenance of the existing ryotwar system is, in truth, the most discreditable fact connected with the history of British India. The assessment of the land revenue in Madras is, in every respect, quite as objectionable as the assessment established by Mehemet Ali, in Egypt, (See Vol. I., p. 747;) and it would seem, indeed, that the pacha had had the land revenue code of the Madras presidency before him when he framed his code ; if there be any substantial difference between the two, that of the pacha, arbitrary and oppressive though it be, is entitled to the preference . " We have already stated enough to show that a valu- able land-tax is, in all cases, most injurious to a country. It is understood to have been adopted by the authorities of India and England, in the expectation of enabling the government to participate in the advantages resulting from the improvement of the old lands, and from the bringing of new or waste land into cultivation. But it is clear, as well from the experience of Madras itself, as of all other countries in which it has been tried, that a continually varying land-tax is an insuperable barrier to all improvement; and that it is, in fact, a powerful cause, not of advancement, but of poverty and barbarism. But the power of periodically revising the assessment might be retained without perpetually tampering with the occu- piers. The only effect of this is to paralize industry, to make those who are not poor counterfeit poverty, and to hinder any outlay of capital on the land. To obviate these disastrous consequences, the proper plan would be ]0 114 INDIA, — STATISTICAL. to assess the occupiers at a reasonable r-ate, and to make the assessment invariable for a period pf at least forty or fifty years. An arrangement of this kind would give the ryots that security of which they are now wholly desti- tute ; and would, we are bold to say, do ten times more to improve the presidency than all the other measures it is possible to adopt, save that of making the assessment perpetual. This plan is, in fact, beginning to be tried in some parts of India; and it has, we are assured, been attended with the best results. " The land revenue, in most parts of British India, is assessed under one or other of the systems now described ; but, in some parts of the Bengal provinces, in the ceded districts on the Nerbuddah, and in the greater number of the native states, a different plan is adopted, which has received the name of the village system. This system, though defective in many respects, is incomparably supe- rior to the ryotwar system, and, in some points, is even preferable to the perpetual system. It is a settlement made between the government and the cultivators, through the medium of the native village officers, who apportion the assessment, without any direct interference on the part of the government functionaries. It is difficult to state the proportion of the produce of a village paid to govern- ment. The authorities know little of the precise property of any of the proprietors : it is not the interest or the wish of the village that they should ; and, if any member of the community fail to pay his share, that is a matter for the village at large to settle, and they usually come forward and pay it for him. These, however, are private arrangements ; and the mocuddim, or head-man, through whom the government settles with the cultivators, has no power from the government to enforce the assessment on the particular defaulter. The tax to be paid by each INDIA,— ^STATISTICAL. 115 villager is settled by the villagers among themselves ; the total assessment being calculated, after inquiry into the property of the village — what it has paid and what it can pay — regular surveys of the village boundaries, and of its lands, having been previously made by government. The mocuddim or potail, (head-man,) is elected by the villagers ; and, if the latter become dissatisfied with him, they turn him out of office. This system may have, and doubtless has, its disadvantages : the potails may, from various motives, unequally assess the villagers ; and the tendency to cultivate waste lands will not be so strong as under the perpetual settlement ; but the latter effect is much more likely to be brought about under this than under the ryotwar system ; nor does the village system involve the same inquisitorial acts on the part of govern- ment. If the amount of the tax charged on a village under this system were not too high, and if the amount, when once fixed, were made perpetual or invariable, for a period of at least forty or fifty years, it would probably be as good a plan as could be devised for the assessment of the land-tax. " We may, in this place, compare the respective results which have followed under the different revenue systems, but especially where the permanent and ryotwar systems of taxation have been established. In 1793-94, the total gi'oss revenue of the four provinces of Bengal, Bahar, Orissa, and Benares, was £4,129,948; of which £3,012,- 680 consisted of land-tax, only £2,873,714 being, how- ever, actually collected. In 1837-38, the total gross reve- nue amounted to £8,842,723, or to more than double its amount in 1793-94. The land-tax, in 1837-38, amounted to £3,377,903, which was almost all collected. The pro- duce of the other branches of revenue amounted, in 1837-38, to no less than £5,464,820; being nearly ^ye 116 INDIA, — STATISTICAL. times the produce in 1792-93, when the perpetual settle- ment was organized ! It should also be observed that Bengal, which, but a short time previously to 1793, had been the theater of a most frightful famine, has not since been afflicted with even a year of remarkable scarcity ; while both famines and scarcities have been frequent in every other part of our dominions in Hindoostan. In 1793, the highest estimate of the population of these provinces, exclusive of Benares, was 24,000,000; in 1825 it had risen to 37,500,000, or increased by more than a half in thirty-three years. "In the Madras presidency, the land-tax, in 1805^, amounted to £3,469,977; in 1814-15, to £3,439,193; and in 1837-38, to only £3,149,781 ! being a decline of £320,- 000 a year ; whereas the land-tax in Bengal, during the same period, had increased more than half a million ! But how could it be otherwise ? In Madras, the tax, be- sides being assessed in the worst possible manner, is oppressively high ; indeed, the land-tax paid by that presidency is almost equal to that paid by the far richer and wealthier country of Bengal, Bahar, Orissa, and Benares, with moi'e than double its population ! The other taxes in Madras are also more onerous than in Bengal ; and several, such as a monopoly of tobacco, a tax on fruit trees, on cow-dung used as fuel, and on arts and professions, are unknown in the latter. But, not- withstanding, while in Bengal the land-tax amounts to little more than a third, it amounts in Madras to fully three-fourths of the total revenue of the presidency. "In the upper provinces of Bengal, now forming the government of Agra, where both the ryotwar and village systems prevail, and where the population is estimated to be about 18,000,000, or not quite half that of the four provinces of Bengal, Bahar, Orissa, and Benares, the land- INDIA,— STATISTICAL. 117 tax, in the years 1806-7, was £2,103,410; in 1811-12, it was raised to £2,665,484; in 1819-20, to £3,061,932 ; and, in 1829-30, to £3,766,566. In the short space of twenty-two years, the tax had, therefore, been augmented by the enormous sum q/" £1,663,156. But this augmenta- tion proved to have been a great deal too rapid ; for, in 1834-35, the land-tax realized in the upper provinces sank to £3,398,024, at the same time that the other branches of revenue amounted to only £796,867, making the land-tax eighty-one parts in one hundred of the whole revenue. Two years afterward a dreadful famine broke out in the Agra provinces ; and not only was little or no revenue collected, but the tax-receivers had to dole out relief to the tax-payers. In the Bombay pi'esidency, where fluctuating assessments prevail, the land-tax, in 1837-38, amounted to £1,727,717, collected at an ex- pense of £284,717, or about one-sixth part of its gross produce. The gross amount of all the other branches of the Bombay revenue amounted, during the same year, to only £389,119. " These statements conclusively demonstrate the vast superiority of the perpetual settlement, not merely as respects the prosperity of the country and the inhabitants, but also as a financial engine. Had the perpetual settle- ment been adopted in Madras when it was adopted in Bengal, we venture to say that the revenue of the former, instead of remaining stationary, or retrograding, would have advanced quite as rapidly as in the latter, while the population and" wealth of the presidency would have been proportionally increased. "Besides the lands subjected to the foregoing systems of assessments, a considerable extent of land in India is held rent-free. Throughout Hindoostan, and indeed, we believe, throughout Asia, China perhaps excepted, a con- 10* 118 INDIA, — STATISTICAL. siderable portion of the land-tax is assigned to a great variety of parties, and for various purposes. Lands have ■bj%en given to pubUc officers, as the reward of their services ; to men of learning ; to the favorites of sover- eigns ; for the maintenance of civil and military public establishments; and for the endowment of charitable, educational, and religious institutions. The grants, es- pecially those for the use of temples, mosques, and shrines, were in perpetuity ; and others became so through the usage of India. Inscriptions on stone and brass, found in most parts of India, attest the antiquity of these grants. One of them is supposed to be nearly coeval with the in- vasion of Britain by Julius Cassar, and hundreds are of dates antecedent to the Norman invasion. The extent of these free tenure lands throughout India is very great. In the ceded territory under the Madras presidency, comprising an area of 26,000 square miles, they amount, as estimated by Sir T. Monro, to one-fifth part of the entire surface. In the north-west provinces of the Bengal presidency, embracing an area of 66,000 square miles, the free tenure lands were ascertained by the British commissioners to amount to 44,951,770 begahs, the land-tax of which, if assessed in the usual manner, would have amounted to £1,236,000. From an inquiry made in 1777, it appeared that the rent-free lands in Bengal Proper amounted to 8,575,942 begahs, or 2,164,554 acres, which would have yielded a tax of £1,256,390 a year. It is deserving of notice, that the rent-free lands under the north-west provinces were at the very threshold, as it were, of the Mohammedan power ; and the territory in which they are included was in the possession of the Mohammedans for six centuries. But, notwithstanding their bigotry and despotism, they respected the free ten- ures. They also, much to their honor, respected them in 119 a singular degree in Bengal, where most of them had originally consisted of tracts of waste or wild land, re- claimed by the labor and capital of the grantees, or their heirs and successors. Lord Cornwallis, and the Indian council of his day, confirmed the possession of the rent- free lands to their holders, on the same perpetual tenure as the taxed lands ; and it was enacted that those that held under a free tenure prior to 1765, should remain un- taxed 'forever.' It has been said that the present Indian government has manifested a strong disposition to seize upon the rent-free lands, or to subject them to a system of taxation ; but, as a proceeding of this sort would be a flagrant violation of a solemn engagement, we do not be- lieve that there is any real foundation for the statement." ■ — jMcGulloch. The other principal sources of the public revenue are the sea and frontier customs, town and transit duties, (the latter now abolished in Bengal, but still existing in Ma- dras and Bombay,) the salt and opium monopolies, &c. We subjoin the following statement with respect to the revenue of the presidency of Bengal : — ■ ACCOUNT OF THE EEVENUE OF THE BENGAL TRESIDENCY, IN 1845-46, 1846-47, 1847-48, AND 1848-49. REVENUES. 1845-4G. Mint duties P(i3t-0ftice collections, ^tiiinp duties, Excise duties in Ciilcuttu, Judicial fees and fines lyiiscelluneous civil receipts Land revenue, Siiyer and Abknrry revenue, Mi^ef'llaneous receipts in the revenue department Receipts from the territory ceded hy the Burmese. Receipts from Sinde Co'5 rupees, G..53,147 .5,59,310 2:i,73,1.5-i 3,10,402 7,90,314 3,50,48,987 20,79,599 81,448 18,81,473 28,00,817 1846-47. Ct}^s rupees. 5,54,028 5,33,308 23,31,563 2,78,804 7,78,543 13,27,26' 3,5J,I3.8il2 28,01,323 00,681 20,03,310 20,91,870 1847-48. 1848-49. Co^s rupees. Co*s rupees. 4,22,389 5,59,000 .5,11,025 4,89,400 22.93,196 22,78,300 2,80,068 3,24,100 8,04,586 8,27,200 3,93,133 3,50,77,75S 3,51,86,66o 29,16,032 29,19,900 44,772 47,100 ]0,75.230 20,11,400 30.30.230 120 INDIA, — STATISTICAL. TABLE OP THE REVENUE— Continued. REVENUES. Customs Sale of salt, Sale of opium Marine and pilotage receipts Rcvenves of Prince of Wales* Isl- and, Sinffapore, and Malacca. Pince of Wales' Island, Singapore, Malacca Subsidy received from the Nagpore government, Tributes from the Nizam, Rajpoot, and other states Interest on arrears of revenue, . . . Total gross revenues, Deduct allowances and assignments " payable out of the revenues, in accordance with treaties or other engagements. Charges of collecting the Revenues. Charges of collecting the stamp duties Charges of land, Sayer and Abkarry revenue, , Charges of customs Cost and charges of salt, Cost and charges of opium Total nett revenues of Bengal presi- dency, after payment of allow- ances and assignments, and char- ges of collection. 1845-46. Co^s rupees. 82,94,778 1,53,17,711 2,95,99,875 10,26,841 1,76,495 5,18,415 64,130 8,00,000 5,96,132 37,104 10,36,15,141 36,98,615 10,09,16,526 1,02,063 37,42,770 4,73,018 48,45,246 75,22,613 8,42,30,816 1846-47. 1847-48. Co^s rupees. 77,19,709 1,64,40,018 3,06,73,652 9,77,042 1,63,840 4,20,811 61,093 Co^s rupees. 74,35,857 1,58,72,680 2,35,61,02: 9,58,533 1,75,972 3,39,538 73,111 8,00,000 11,09,308 1,38,141 10,70,74,808 36 30,097 10,44,44,711 1,05,228 37,40,457 4,79,072 41,58,685 78,80,265 8,80,81,004 12,99,908 1,56,848 9,84,73,082 26,69,208 9,58,03,874 1,30,772 36,56,848 4,68,786 35,08,707 1,06,45,725 7,73,93,036 1848-49. Co* 8 rupees. 76,06,100 1,35,97,100 2,92,88,006 8,64,000 1,81,800 5,35,900 1,10,450 12,02,220 48,500 9,87,22,476 26,70,795 9,60,51,681 1,06,200 37,66,900 4,84,000 35,78,561 1,08,92,487 7,72,23,533 REVENUE AND CHARGES OP INDIA. INCLUDING THE CHARGES DISBURBBD IN KNGLAND FOR THE YEAR 1851-2. REVENUE. Co*s rupees, Bengal, inoluding Singapore, Prince of Wales' Island, Malacca, &e., 8,26,78,154 North-western Provinces, 5,10,70,100 Punjaub and Trans-Indus Territory, 97,04,600 Madras 3,99,30,971 Bombay, 2,91,62,260 21,25,55,085 At 2s. per rupee £21,255,508 Deficiency, 334,677 £21,590,185 INDIA, — STATISTICAL. 121 TABLE OF KEVENDE AND CHARGES— Continued. CHARGES, Co's rupees. Bengal, including Singapore, &o., 10,20,91,745 North-western Provinces, 1,14,43,100 Punjaub and Trans-Indus Territory, 85,72,200 Madras, 3,46,09,042 Bombay, 3,42,35,023 Total, including war-charges, 19,09,61,110 At 2s. per rupee, £19,095,111 Charges disbursed in England, 2,495,074 £21,590,185 The total debt of the several presidencies, on April 5th, 1851, reckoned at 2s. per Sicca rupee, was £47,999,827, the interest on which was £2,291,134. The revenue of India for the year 1852-3, was £21,196,- 745 sterling ; the expenditure £20,557,208 ; and the debt £48,014,244. MONEYS. In general all transactions in India are made in cow- ries, rupees, pagodas, or Spanish dollars. MONEY USED IN BENGAL AS COMMON CURRENCY. 4 cowries = 1 gun da. 20 gundas = 1 pon. 23 pons = 1 company's rupee. Is. 10|(/. A lack of rupees is 1 00,000. The value of a Bombay rupee is 2s. Zd. sterling ; of a dollar, 5s. ; of a Chinese tale, 6s. Sii. ; and of a pagoda, 8s. The Sicca rupee is rated at exactly 2s., or the tenth part of a pound sterling ; so that the conversion of Sicca rupees into pounds sterling is effected by striking off the right hand figure. The army required for the protection of the East Indian provinces, and for retaining them under due sub- ordination, is, with the exception of Eussia, probably the largest standing army in the world. In 1796, it amounted to 55,000. In 1852, it consisted of the following effect- ive force, in British, native, and contingent troops. 122 INDIA, — STATISTICAL. STRENGTH OF THE EAST INDIAN. ARMY IN 1852. •ft aUEEN's TROOPS. Europeans. company's troops. Europeans. Natives. Total. 321 7,436 469 9,6|8 1,111 243 700 2,428 9,004 30,851 193,942 652 3',424 2,569 16,440 31,320 203,590 1,763 243 4,124 2,569 Artillery, . . . 16,440 Cavalry, Infanti-y, .... Medical, . . . . "Warrant offi'rs, • 3,664 25,816 Included above 34,984 229,406 1,763 243 Veterans, . . . . 4,124 Total, 29,480 19,928 241,121 260,049 289,529 The contingent troops of the native states, com- manded by British officers, and available, under treaties, to the British government, amount to about 32,000 men, viz. : — CONTINGENT TROOPS OF THE NATIVE STATES. Hyderabad (Nizam's) auxiliary force, 8,094 Gvpalior (Seindia's) contingent, , 8,401 Kotah contingent, 1,148 Mysore Horse, 4,000 Gujerat (Guicowar's) contingent, 3,756 Bhopal contingent, 829 Malwah united contingent, 1 ,617 MalwahBheel corps, 648 Joudpore Legion, 1,246 Meywar Bheel corps, 1 ,054 Cblapore local Horse, .- 907 Sawant "Warree local corps, 614 Total, 32,311 Holkar and the rajah of Nagpore are bound by treaty to furnish contingents, the former 3,000 and the latter of 1,000 horse ; but these troops are not commanded by British officers. The military expenses of the East Indian Empire, amounted, in 1849-50, to £12,110,307; a sum more than double the sum actually expended on the Prussian army. INDIA, — STATISTICAL. 123 TROOPS FOR L\D[A. The I'liUowing is a list of the troops which have been sent to India from England since June 18, 1857: — DATE OF ARBIVAL. Tolil. [ Calcutta Ceylon. Bi>rubay. Kurmhee 1 MaJrug;' September 20, 214 300 1,906 288 4,235 2,028 214 300 124 288 3,845 *479 l',782 '390 1,544 .... 1 October 1 , October 15, October 17,- .... October 20, ... ; .... October 30, .... Total for October, 8,757 3,495 879 2,700 1,633 2,610 234 1,216 406 1,276 666 5,086 1,234 879 904 1,633 2,132 3,721 1,629 340 '478 '278 406 '462 '400 '938 '204 632 l',656 '234 .... .... .... November 20 .... 1 976 November 30, Total for November, . . . 15,115 354 459 1,758 1,057 948 693 624 6,782 "135 3,593 '607 1,542 354 201 l",657 647 300 1,922 1,151 'soi 208 624 1,276 258 December 25, Total for December, January 1 , 5,893 340 220 140 220 1,851 607 2,359 340 2,234 258 220 140 220 Total for January, September till Jan. 20,... 920 30,899 12,217 7',92i 340 4,431 4,206 580 2,114 TROOPS DISPATCHED BY THE OVERLAND ROUTE. October October October 2,. 12,. 14,. 285 R. E. 221 Art. 224 R. E. 117 221 122 118 122 Total for October,.. 700 460 240 Total, 31,.599 Men en route from Cape, partly arrived, 1,000 - •• 1 T^ot^l 35,599 124 INDIA, — STATISTICAL. The total forces of the East India company amounted, therefore, to 49,408 European, and 240,121 native troops, in all 289,529 men of all arms. In the Punjaub cavalry, Sikhs predominate ; in the infantry, Mohammedans. In the rest of the territory of British India, more than half of the native army consists of Hindoos; in Bengal they compose 83 per cent, of the Sepoy troops, and are most- ly of the higher castes. In the Bombay army, six-eighths are Hindoos, but chiefly Sudras, or the lower castes. In Madras territory, the Mohammedans are more numerous among the armed force than elsewhere ; in the cavalry, there are from six to seven in proportion to one Hindoo, and in the infantry, about two to three or four Hindoos. The Indian navy consists of thirty-nine steam vessels, of an aggregate of 5,044 horse power, and a burden of 18,360 tons. Each presidency has its separate army, commander- in-chief, staflj &c. ; but the commander-in-chief of the supreme government has a general authority over the armies of all the presidencies. Among the native troops, called Sepoys, (esquires,) there is a complete in- termixture of tribes, castes, and creeds ; but the infantry consists chiefly of Hindoos, and the cavalry of Moham- medans. The Hindoo soldiers of the Bengal army are mostly of high caste, more than 20,000 being Bramins. The soldiers of the Madras army are principally Raj- poots, and are reckoned the most persevering, hardy warriors ; but they observe their religious customs so strictly, that the least deviation from them might have a dangerous effect on their discipline. The Bombay sol- diers are the most easily disciplined, being generally of the lower castes. The troops are not raised by any forced levy or conscription ; military service in India is quite voluntary, and is so popular that each tegiment has INDIA, — STATISTICAL. 125 a number of supernumeraries ready to take the place of such soldiers as die or leave. The men are well paid, clothed, and fed. The corporeal punishment of Hindoos is not allowed ; imprisonment being in the Indian, as in the French army, the principal engine by which disci- pline is kept up. In the former, however, the disgrace attending dismissal from the service, which is acutely felt by native soldiers, tends powerfully to preserve dis- cipline and obedience. Each company has an English captain, lieutenant, and ensign. The latter, however, are under the command of the British officers ; so that, with the title and uniform of officers, they are, properly speaking, only subalterns or non-commissioned officers. The Indian army, when not in the field, is in camp the whole year through ; a system which has contributed, in no small degree, to bring it to its present state of efficiency. A good deal of conflicting evidence was given before the parliamentary committees, as to the real state of the Indian army, and the degree of dependence to be placed on it. On the whole, it would seem to be superior, in respect of discipline and organization to any native army ever previously embodied in India ; and, so long as its discipline and efficiency are maintained unimpaired, it is, no doubt, fully adequate to provide for the tran- quillity of India, and its defense against Asiatic invaders. But the Sepoys are decidedly inferior, both in physical strength and mental energy, to Europeans ; and such being the case, we can not help, how reluctantly soever, agreeing in opinion with those who think that the Indian army could not make any effi3Ctual opposition to any thing like a corresponding force of French, Russian, or other European troops. In 1851, the total strength of the Bengal army wag 11 126 INDIA, — STATISTICAL. 167,199 men, and 225 guns. This formidable army is distributed throughout India, under the orders of the supreme government, promulgated through its political agents. Commencing from the great station in the doab of the Ganges, one corps is stationed at Ajmere, another at Neemuch, and a third at Mhow, all of which stations are supplied from the Bengal army. A force of 66,589 men and 129 guns were mustered in the Punjaub in 1851, and the Sirhind division amounted to 23,408 men. These are succeeded by the Gujerat subsidiary forces, the field porps of Malligaum, and the Punjaub division, fur- nished chiefly by the Bombay army. The circle is fur- ther continued by the field-force in the southern Mah- ratta country ; the Hyderabad and Nagpore subsidiaries, composed of Madras troops ; and detachments from the Bengal establishments, forming the Nerbuddah and Sau- gur divisions. At Meerut, Allahabad, Benares, and Dinapore, strong divisions are maintained. Every offi- cer who has actually served twenty-two years, in India is permitted to retire from service, with £360 pay if a captain, £290 as a commander, £190 as lieutenant or purser. An officer retiring from ill health, after ten years' service, has £200 per annum of retiring allow- ance as a captain, £l70 as a commander, and £I25 as a lieutenant. The officers for the company's artillery and engineers are educated at Addiscombe College, near Croydon, England. Commerce, Internal Trade, <^c. — Throughout the whole of the immense basin of the Ganges there is an exten- sive inland navigation ; and this, also, is the case in the valleys of the larger rivers in the south ; but elsewhere the inland trade is greatly impeded by the want of roads, and the imperfect means of conveyance. The Grand Trunk road from Calcutta, the main artery INDIA, — STATISTICAL. 127 of communication throughout Bengal and the north- west provinces, extends 770 miles, with a generaljbreadth of thirty feet, increased in some places to forty feet. The road from Pooree to Bissimpore, which connects Orissa with Bengal, and which is known as the Juggernaut road, is held to be of the next importance. A road from Sylbet to Gowhatti, across the Cassia Hills. The Deccan road, from Mirzapore to Jubulpore, a distance of 239 miles, has lately been completed. Another road of great importance has been made from the eastern frontier of Bengal, through Cacher, and across the Munipore Jlills, to the limits of the Burmese Empire. Besides these roads which are stated to be the most prominent, a variety of district roads have added greatly to the con- venience of the people. Of railroads, the grand trunk liaes now in progress of construction, are of great extent. From Calcutta, the main line will be laid through the entire valley of the Ganges, for a thousand miles to Delhi, with an eventual extension to Peshawar. Fi'om Bombay, another line has been commenced, and will stretch nearly across the pen- insula of India at its broadest part, through the cotton districts of Candeish, Saugur, and Bundelkund, branch- ing into the great cotton-field of Central India, at Nag- pore, so that goods may be either shipped at Bombay, or conveyed down the Ganges from Mirzapore and Calcut- ta. At Mirzapore, a junction will be formed with the Bengal line. There is also a line extending northward from Bombay, in order to bring down the cotton from Broach, Baroda, and Surat. In the Sinde, there is a short hne projected, to connect the port at Kurachee with the Indus, thence connecting with river navigation with the Punjaub. In the Presidency of Madras, two trunk lines are projected, one to penetrate the peninsula, 128 INDIA, — STATISTICAL. in a longitudinal direction, and to connect with Bombay, passing through the rich cotton-fields of Dharwar and Belgaum ; the other to strike across to the western coast, having its other terminus at Beypore. RAILROADS. The number of miles of railroad in operation and pro- jection are as follows : Opened. Miles proj. From Calcutta to Delhi, 120 1,100 From Bombay to Mirizapore, 49 750 From Bombay to Madras, 71 300 From Bombay to Baroda, 150 Madras to Bellary, 296 Madras to west coast, 90 300 Total, ' 298 2,896 There are about 4,000 miles qf telegraph set up, and in constant use. Many kinds of goods are carriea oy pack-bullocks ; on the north-west frontiers of Hindoostan, camels and horses are used; in the north, small horses, and even goats and sheep are employed ; but in most of the moun- tainous parts of Hindoostan, porters are the chief bear- ers of merchandise. The charge for conveying goods by land is estimated at an average of 100 miles at 5Gs. per ton, being about twenty-eight times as much as the conveyance of the same weight of goods for 100 miles on the Ganges, and equal to more than half their freight by sea from Calcutta to London ! It may hence be easily conceived, that the internal trade of the country is con- fined principally to the necessaries of life. With regard to irrigation canals, the waters of the Jumna and the Ganges rivers have been freely drawn upon. The country bordering the Jumna may be said to be secure against droughts from Saharunpore to Delhi, and branching westward to Hissar; cultivation now. INDIA, — STATISTICAL. 129 over a large surface, being entirely independent of peri- odical rains. The eastern Jumna and the western Jumna canals, with branches, are in all 580 miles in lineal extent, and serve to irrigate a surface of 2,870 miles. The Ganges Canal extends from Hurdwar to Allahabad, 525 miles in length, (this is used as a means of trans- portation,) when entirely finished will be about 900 miles in length, and will irrigate an area of not less than 1,470,000 acres. In the Punjaub, a similar system of canals has been projected, and partially commenced, the total length of which, when finished, will be 450 miles. In Madras presidency another system of canals prevails, which is suited to the features of the country. This is accomplished by throwing dams across the channels of the Godavery, the Cavery, and the Krishna rivers, mak- ing vast reservoirs of water for the purpose of irrigation. Corn, cotton, oleaginous plants, and sugar, are the most important objects of inland commerce. The chief trade in rice takes place within the tract of the inunda- tion of the Ganges ; north of lat. 25°, it is superseded by that of wheat and barley. Cotton is grown in every latitude in India ; and is not, therefore, an article of very extensive internal commerce. Indian cotton is, speaking generally, coarse, and short in the staple ; and is inferior to most other kinds brought to the markets of Europe. But it is believed that this is not owing so much to any natural incapacity on the part of India to produce good cotton, as to the want of care in selecting the seed, and in the culture of the plant. In these respects, too, some very material improvements have been effected of late years ; and a good deal of the cotton brought from India is now greatly superior to what it was a few years ago. But it is still susceptible of much improvement. It has been estimated that the consumption of cotton in India is 11* 130 INDIA, — STATISTICAL. as high as 3,000,000 lbs. per annum. It is certainly used to an enormous extent ; nearly every article of clothing, woven or padded furniture, being made of that material. Cotton goods from Great Britain are now imported to the value of about £6,000,000 a year. The real falling off in the amount of the Indian manufacture, in conse- quence of the import of British cottons, does not, how- ever, amount to a million sterling a year; for we con- sume more than £1,000,000 worth of their cotton wool, and dispose of a million's worth of their fabrics in China. These statements sufficiently evince the fallacy of the often repeated complaints as to the destruction of the cotton manufacture of India by the importation of Eng- lish goods ; and it is necessary to add that, though the latter were imported to a much greater extent, the cir- cumstance would be an advantage, not an injury to India; for they would not be .imported were they not cheaper, and consequently moi-e easily attainable than their own by the great bulk of the "population. The striped and flowered muslins of Dacca were for- merly regarded as inimitable ; and were in great request at the Mogul Court, and other native courts, as well as at the old court of France. The manufacture was heredi- tary in several families, but has been annihilated by the destruction of the native courts, and the wealthy native nobles. The loss has been very generally ascribed to the importation of the cheaper muslins of England, but this is an entire mistake ; it was wholly suppressed before a yard of British muslin or calico found its way to India. The manufacture, in fact, was never carried on upon a large scale ; and, being one of luxury only, it fell with the fall of the wealthy class, who alone purchased its products. Sugar is a principal article of internal culture and 131 trade. It is raised to the largest extent in the great plain of the Ganges. The average annual consumption of sugar in Hindoostan has been estimated at between 11 lbs. and 12 lbs. a head ; which, for the British and tribu- tary states, would amount to upward of 650,000 tons ; but we believe this is a most exaggerated estimate, and that half the quantity would be much nearer the mark, though probably still in excess. The average consump- tion of salt is estimated at 15 lbs. per head, or upward of 877,000 tons annually ; which, at £8 a ton, including the tax, gives a total amount of between £7,000,000 and £8,000,000. This article is everywhere paid for chiefly in corn. The other staples of the inland trade are indigo, opium, silk, tobacco, nitre, oil-skins, drugs, hides, lime, timber, &c. The Malabar coast has some products peculiar to itself, as teak and sandal woods, black pep- per, and cardamoms. With these, and different metals, areca nuts, and spices obtained from other countries, woolen and cotton goods, and various manufactures and products of Europe and China, the corn, cotton, sugar, and other articles of the inland trade are paid for on that coast. But there is no extensive or well-organized system of inland trade in India. The different parts of the country are, in this respect, separate and unconnected. "The merchants of the upper provinces," says Mr. Tre- velyan, "know nothing of the trade of the lower provin- ces ; the merchants of the lower provinces know nothing of what is passing above Mirzapore ; and the maritime trade is a branch separate from both." This is a conse- quence partly of the want of good roads and other easy modes of communication, but more, perhaps, of the internal duties laid on the transit of goods from one part of the country to another. These, however, have re- cently been abolished in Bengal ; and there can be no 132 INDIA, — STATISTICAL. doubt that this measure will be of signal advantage to that province, and is, in fact, one of the greatest boons conferred upon it by the English. "In India, as under most uncivilized governments, the transit of goods within the country was made subject to duties ; and upon all the roads and navigable rivers toll- houses or custom-houses (chokeys) were erected, which had power of stopping the goods till the duties were levied. By the rude and oppressive nature of the gov- ernment, these custom-houses were exceedingly multi- plied ; and, in long carriage, the inconvenience of nu- merous stoppages and payments was very severe. As in all other departments of the government, so in this, there was nothing regular and fixed. The duties varied at different times and different places ; and a wide avenue was always open to the extortion of the collectors. The internal trade of the country was, by these causes, sub- ject to ruinous obstructions."- — Mill. The pernicious consequences, resulting from this state of things, early engaged the company's attention ; though, at first, their efforts were directed rather to obtain an exemption from the transit duties in favor of their own trade, than to effect their abolition. In 1788, however. Lord Cornwallis, who was fully aware of their pernicious influence, adopted the judicious and decisive measure of abolishing the duties. But, unaccountable as it may seem, they were again restored in 180] ; and were "frightfully increased" in 1810! Through the artificial impediments thus thrown in the way of internal com- merce, the country Was split, as it were^ into a vast num- ber of petty states ; each surrounded by a line of custom- houses, and each jealous of the other. Metals, for exam- ple, passing from one town or district to another, were charged 10 per cent, ad valorem, and most other articles INDIA, — STATISTICAL. 133 were charged from 5 to 10 per cent. "Hence, the power of carrying on business on a large scale, of using expen- sive machinery, and engaging numerous laborers, is con- tracted in an infinite degree ; employments can not be subdivided and improved ; industry languishes, and a general tendency exists toward that barbarous state of things in which every body is obliged to produce and manufacture every thing he requires for his own con- sumption." — Trevelyan^s Report. Had the inland transit duties been productive of a large amount of revenue, that \vould have been some set-off against the enormous evils of which they were productive. But such was not the case. The expense of their collection, and the obstructions they threw in the way of communications, were such as to render their produce quite insignificant. At length, however, the pernicious influence of these duties in a commercial, and their inefficiency in a fiscal point of view, were clearly demonstrated by Mr. Trevelyan, then one of the secretaries to the Bengal government, in the able report referred to above. In the course of the year (1836) fol- lowing the publication of this report, the internal transit duties and town duties in Bengal were abolished ; but their abolition in other parts of India, which it was ex- pected would immediately follow, has not yet taken place. External Trade. — In 1853, the value of the principal articles of export from British India were officially re- ported as follows : — EXPORTS IN 1853. Cotton and Piece Gooda, £4,518,5.^4 Indigo, 1,809,685 Sugar and Rum, 1,752,640 Hemp, Gunny Jute, and Oil Seeds, 823,866 Oils, 90,039 Grain, 889,040 Opium, 7,034,075 134 INDIA, — STATISTICAL. Coffee, 99,490 Tea, 58,178 Pepper, 28,238 Lae, '. 150,680 Safflower, 61,566 Spices, Gums, &o., 170,112 Total, 1853, £17,484,133 The whole value of exports in that year, including treasure, shawls; silk, saltpetre, and every other article, amounted to £21,519,861. Indigo grows luxuriantly from the equator to the 30th degree of lat. ; but in India, the best is produced in Ben- gal and Bahar, between lat. 23° and 27° N., and long. 84° and 90° E. : everywhere else the product is inferior. The annual produce of all the Bengal provinces has been estimated at about 12,000,000 lbs., produced on about 1,250,000 acres of cultivated land ; the planters, at an average, farming about 2,500 acres each. The prime cost of the article to the planters has been estima- ted at £1,680,000 ; the gross profit on which, including risk and charges to the port of exportation, amounts to 40 per cent. The production of silk in India is confined to Bengal, and the produce is inferior. Opium was, for many years previously to the recent disturbances, and we believe still is, an article of great and rapidly increasing export to China, the Malay islands, and elsewhere. The poppy may be said to take the place in the Indian agriculture that the vine and olive occupy in that of Southern Europe. Its growth within the British territories has been confined to Bahar and the Benares districts ; but in the province of Malwah, most part of which is included in the dominions of Scindia, it is extensively cultivated, and pays an export duty on being shipped from British ports. "In 1851-52, the exports of opium from Calcutta for China amounted to IXDIA, — STATISTICAL. 135 32,306 cliests. We have not seen any account of the export from Bombay during the same year ; but it may be safely estimated at 17,000 or 18,000 chests." — Mc- Cullocli. The export of cotton to Great Britain is considerable ; having amounted to 118,872,742 lbs. in 1850. This, however, is not more than about one-sixth part of the whole annual consumption of cotton wool in Great Britain. For a long period the East India sugar was greatly inferior to the sugar of the West Indies ; and a heavy obstacle to its introduction into Great Britain existed in the shape of discriminating duties, unfavorable to the East Indian produce. But, since these have been re- moved, the export of sugar from India has rapidly ex- tended, and the manufacture of the article has of late years improved so much as to make it bear a very favor- able contrast for purity, as well as saccharine quali- ties, with the sugar from other quarters. In 1833 the whole import of sugar from India into Great Britain amounted to only 111,731 cwts. ; but it thenceforward steadily increased, and in 1853 the export of sugar from India amounted to 73,883 tons. The corn of India, both rice and wheat, is inferior to that of most other countries, for the same reason that its cotton and sugar are inferior, both being the produce of a rude husbandry and rude preparation. Rice is scalded instead of being kiln-dried ; and wheat is never dried at all, except in the sun. It has been supposed that the latter might be largely imported under a free-corn trade into England ; but we doubt whether there be any real grounds for such an opinion. India wheat is, speaking generally, very inferior to British wheat ; and it could not be imported, in ordinary year;;, at less than from 136 INDIA, — STATISTICAL. 40s. to 44s. a quarter, supposing it to be exempt from all duty. Its price, free on board at Calcutta, may be taken at 15s. or 16s. a quarter ; to which, if we add 16s. or 18s. for freight to England, and 8s. or 10s. for profits and landing charges here, it is abundantly plain that, except in high-priced years, it would not answer to import ' Indian corn. Previously to the recent discovery of nitrate of soda in South America, Bengal and Bahar had a monopoly of the trade in saltpetre ; and in 1852, 297,505 cwts. of saltpetre were imported into Great Britain, of which, 250,334 were from British India. Dyes, shellac, hnseed, safilower, sal-ammoniac, castor-oil, coffee, (recently in- troduced, with much success, into Malabar, Mysore, Ceylon, &c.,) tea from Assam, &c., tin, antimony, cate- chu, and pearl sago, are other exports worthy of men- tion ; and which owe their importance as such princi- pally to the commercial enterprise and talents of Euro- peans. The territories, comprised within the sovereignty of the East India Company, and their dates of acquisition, are seen in the following list : 1688. Bombay. 1757. The twenty-four Pergunnahs 1759. Masulipatam, &c. 1760. Burdwan, Midnapore, and Chittagong. 1765. Bengal, Bahar, and Orissa. 1765. Jaghire, near Madras. 1766. Northern Circars. 1775. Zemindaiy of Benares. 1776. Island of Salsette. 1778. Nagore. 1786. Pulo-Penang. 1788. Guntoor Circar. INDIA, — STATISTICAL. 137 1792. Malabar, Dindigul, Salem, &c. 1799. Coimbatore, Canara, Wynaad, and Tanjore. 1800. Nizam's acquisitions from Tippoo Sultan. 1801. Carnatic, Goruckpore, Lower Doab, Bareilly, &c. 1802. Districts in Bundelkund. 1803. Cuttack, Balasore, Upper Doab, Delhi, &c. 1805. Districts in Gujerat. 1815. Kumaon, and part of Nepaul. 1817. Saugur, Huttali, Darwai-, &c. 1818. Candeish, Ajmere, districts on the Nerbuddah, Sumbhalpore, Patna, Poonah, Concan, Southern Maharatta country. 1820. Lands in Southern Concan. -1822. Districts in Bejapore and Ahmednuggur. 1824. Island of Singapore. 1825. Malacca. 1826. Assam, Arracan, Tavoy, Ye, Tenasserim, &c. 1832. Cachar. 1834. Coorg, Loodhiana and adjoining district. 1835. Jynteeah. 1839. Aden. 1840. Kurnoul. 1841. Jalown. 1843. Sinde. 1849. Punjaub, Sattarah. 1852. Pegu, Sambhulpoor. 1855. Berar. 1856. Oude. 12 Sistariral Slutt| of §ti^i. j|WO hundred years before the seige of Troy, a terrible war was brought to a conclusion in Upper India. The war of the Mahabha- rata was waged between the rival lines of Pandu and Curu for the possession of the ter- ritory of Hastinapura. The former proved victorious ; but, broken-hearted by the death of so many friends and kinsmen, their leaders perished miserably in pilgrimages over the snows of the Himalayas. An equally wretched fate awaited the object of contention, for a sudden rise of the Ganges overwhelmed what was at that time the paramount city in Northern India. According to a-some- what doubtfiil tradition, the next capital was Indraprest'ha, or Indraput, founded by Yundishetira, on the right bank of the Jumna. There is no doubt, however, that this was a place of some importance from the end of the twelfth to the middle of the fourth century before the Christian era, at which period the seat of government was removed to Oogein. It is probable that it recovered some portion of its former greatness toward the close of the fourth century, after the Christian dispensation, for the Iron Lath, or pillar, near the Kotub Minar, records the warlike achievements of a certain Raja Dara, of whom nothing more is known than what he himself has thus handed down to posterity. But its true revival can not be dated earlier than A. U. 782, when Anungpal, the founder of the Tuor dynasty, restored Indraprest'ha to its former preeminence, though he appears to have changed its name to Delhi. The original and real signi- ficance of this designation are veiled in obscurity. One HISTORICAL SKETCH OF DELHI. 139 ingenious etymologist mentions Delip, or Delipa, who lived previously to the Mahabharata. Ferishta talks of Delhu, a prince of many virtues, who was deposed by Phoor, raja of Kumaon — the Porus of classical writers. A still more fanciful interpreter has discovered in the word an allusion to the fable touching the Kheel, or iron pillar of the Pandus, the pedestal of which was supposed to be placed in hell. An infidel prince of the Tuor line, unconvinced of the truth of the ancient saying, caused its foundations to be laid bare to a great depth, when suddenly " blood gushed up from the earth's center, and the pillar became loose {dhille.)" A pertinent objection, however, has been made to this theory, that the word on which so much stress is laid happens to be of Persian rather than of Sanscrit origin, and consequently could hardly have been applied to an Indian city that was in a flourishing condition some centuries before the first inva- sion of the Mohammedans. But, passing over these old wives' fables, we begin to tread on surer ground, when we arrive at the epoch of Mahmood of Ghazni. It is evident that the raja of Delhi was at that time a person- age of considerable influence, for Ferishta particularly mentions him as having joined a confederacy of Hindoo princes to oppose Mahmood's third invasion of India, in 1008. In his fourth incursion that fanatical conqueror, after the capture of Tahnesur, which was under the raja's protection, "was desirous of proceeding to Delhi." But his nobles told him it would be impossible to keep possession of it, till he had rendered Mooltan a province of his own government, and secured himself from all ap- prehension of Arundpal, "raja of Lahore." Again, on his seventh expedition, Mahmood, having marched against Mathura, " and entered it with little opposition from the troops of the raja of Delhi, to whom it belonged, 140 HISTORICAL SKETCH OF DELHI. gave it up to plunder." Some years later, in 1043," we i-ead that " the raja of Dehly, in conjunction with other rajas, re-took Hansi, Tahnesur, and their depen- dencies, from the governors to whom Mahmood had in- trusted them." They then proceeded against Nagrakote, when the Delhi raja pretended that the great idol of Nagra- kote, which had been destroyed by the Mussulmans, had appeared to him in a dream of the night, and promised to meet him in the temple. The rumor of this vision naturally brought a host of zealots to the raja's camp, and the prediction, as usual, fulfilled itself. The Kotub Minar is a celebrated wonder of the dis- trict of Delhi, and is situated nine miles south of the capital. It is thus described by Mr. Thornton, in his re- cently published "Gazetteer of India." It tapers regularly from the base to the cupola, which, according to Franklin, is capable of containing a dozen persons. The exterior is, for a great part of the height, adorned by fluting, there being twenty-seven projections, alternately round and angular. The column is sur- rounded by four balconies or galleries, supported by large stone brackets, and having small battlements, which, while they have an ornamental eifect, afibrd some slight security to those who venture on such a giddy footing. In 1803 the column was injured by lightning and earth- quake ; and either from those causes, or from the more gradual influence of time, many stones on the west side have been displaced, so as to cause a vertical crack in the staircase and central pillar. A British officer of engineers has repaired the damage to a considerable ex- tent, and has performed the task with great architectural skill. According to Bacon, the undertaking was a very bold one, as a very large portion of the masonry, at the base of the pillar, must have been removed before the 19* The Eotub Minar. HISTORICAL SKETCH OF DELHI. 143 rew could be substituted. " The native masons," he ( bserves, " generally a most hardy and adventurous set, were with the greatest possible difficulty brought to put iheir hands to the labor." The last of the Hindoo princes was the Raja Pithora, cr Pirthi Raja, rendered famous by the gratitude of his favorite bard. Pirthi Raja, was, strictly speaking, the hiad of the Choans of Ajmere, but being adopted by his grandfather, the chief of the Tomaras of Delhi, he uni- ted these two states under his sway. The govern- ment, of Delhi, however, was more particularly conducted by his brother-in-law, Raja Chund. In the year 1191, these two princes defeated Shahab-ul-deen, the Ghorian, on the plains of Tirouri, between Tahnesur and Kurnal, the cock-pit of India; but two years afterward fortune was less propitious to their courage ; Chund fell in battle, and Pirthi Raja, being made prisioner, was slaughtered in cold blood. After this decisive victory, the conqueror easily reduced Ajmere, and then returned to his native country, leaving his lieutenant Eibuk to achieve the work of conquest, which was accomplished by the capture of Delhi, Coel, and Meerut. This remarkable man was a Turkoman slave, purchased by the Ghorian ruler, and named by him Eibuk, because of his having a little finger broken. On the assassination of his sovereign, Eibuk declared himself independent by the title of Sultan Kutub-ul-deen, or the " Pole Star of the Faithfi^I " With him commenced, in 1206, the Ghorian, or first Tartar dynasty, and it was in allusion to his origin that Hindoo writers have delighted to affirm that "the empire of Delhi was founded by a slave. A slave, his own brothei-- in-law, also succeeded him in 1210, for his son Aram was too feeble to rule a nation of warriors. Though a slave, Shums-ul-deen Altumsh was descended from a 144 HISTOEIOAL SKETCH OF DELHI. noble family in Toorkistan, and, like Joseph, had been sold into captivity by his brethren out of envy. After various singular adventures, he vs'as purchased by Kootub for 50,000 pieces of silver, and subsequently raised to the highest offices. Shums-ul-deen governed vs^ith a vig- orous hand, and compelled nearly the whole of Hindoos- tan Proper to acknowledge his supremacy. His name is further immortalized in connection with Kotub Minar, a remakable pillar near Delhi, two hundred and forty-two feet in height. On his death, in 1236, he was succeeded for a few months by his son Kookn-ul-deen, a sensual prince, and therefore deposed in favor of his sister, the Sultana Regia. This princess, says Ferishta, had no other fault than that of being a woman, which in her case seems to be a fatal one. She is described as being a fluent reader of the Koran, a rare event with her sex, and a high merit even in men. She was also a just and able ruler, until she became fascinated by an Abyssinian slave, her master of the horse, whom she raised to the highest dignity of the state. As a natural result, the nobles deemed themselves injured and insulted, and un- der the leadership of Altuma — himself a Turkoman slave — broke out in open revolt. In the battle that ensued, the favorite was slain, and the Sultana made prisoner. But her conqueror soon became her captive, and warmly espoused her cause. The nobles, indignant at his treachery, put both himself and his bride to death, and placed her brother Beiram on the throne. His reign was brief, for having endeavored to rid himself of the chiefs to whom he owed his eleva- tion, he was two years afterward thrown into prison, and then deprived of life. The next king of Delhi was Aila- ul-deen-Masand, son of Kookn-ul-deen, and an inheritor of his father's vices. After a cruel and licentious reign HISTOEICAL SKETCH OF DELHI. 145 of five years, frequently troubled by eruptions of the Mogul hordes, he also was deposed and put to death. The throne then reverted to a grandson of Shums-ul- deen Altumsh, by name Nasir-ul-deen Mahmood, whose disposition and habits were rather those of a literary student than a monarch. He affected to regard himself as only the steward of the public revenues, and sup- ported himself almost exclusively by copying the Koran. He had only one wife, who performed all the labors of the household without the aid of a single female-servant. Nasir-ul-deen, however, was fortunate in his wuzeer, Gheias-ul-deen Bulbun, another Turkoman slave, who restored the disputed supremacy of Delhi, and sur- rounded the court with all the pomp and circumstance of Oriental pageantry. On one occasion, when a Persian ambassador was expected, the wuzeer went out to meet him at the head of 50,000 foreign horse in the king's pay, 2,000 elephants, and 3,000 carriages of fireworks. At that time Delhi was the asylum of twenty-five fugitive princes, who had been dispossessed of their territories by the wild hordes of Ghenghiz Khan. The taste for magnificence displayed by Gheias-ul-deen during his wuzerat, was still further developed on his accession to the regal power in 1266. "His state elephants were covered with purple and gold trappings. His horse guards, consisting of 1,000 Tartars, appeared in glittering armor, mounted on the finest steeds of Persia and Arabia, with silver bits and housing of rich embroidery. Five hundred chosen foot, in rich liveries, with drawn swords, preceded him, pro- claiming his approach and clearing the way. His nobles followed according to their rank, with their various equipages and attendants." Like Francis I. of France, Gheias-ul-deen was fortu- 146 HISTORICAL SKETCH OF DELHI. . '*'*■ . . A nate in becoming the patron of poets and historians, driven by the troubles of the times from their native states, and who have exhibited their gratitude in their high-flown panegyrics. It does not appear, however, that his sagacity at all merited such enthusiastic lauda- tion. Having been immoderately addicted to wine in his youth, he subsequently prohibited its use under severe penalties. He also excluded Hindoos from holding office, and enacted game laws of great stringency. In conse- quence of the harshness of his administration, there were frequent rebellions, which were punished with terrible severity. His reign lasted twenty years, during which Delhi enjoyed an eminent degree of prosperity and importance. He also built the small towers of Gheias- poor and Murzaghun, the ruins of which are familiar to all who have resided at Delhi. His successor was his grandson, Keihobad, a licentious voluptuary, and a mere tool in the hands of his wuzeer, Nizam-ul-deen, by whose instigation he invited the principal men of the Mogul settlers to a banquet, at which they were ruthlessly mur- dered. He afterward turned his wuzeer's counsels to such good purpose that he caused him to be poisoned, but was himself assassinated, after reigning only two years. The Khiljee, or second Tartar dynasty, now com- menced in the person of Jelal-ul-deen Khiljee, who also had been a slave. This old man, for he was 70 years of age, inaugurated his accession to the kingly power by putting to death the son of his predecessor ; but with that exception, he showed himself just and merciful. He is best known, however, to Mohammedan writers, as having changed the color of the royal umbrella from red to white. He also removed the royal residence to Kelo- kree, which he enclosed with a wall, and beautified with HISTORICAL SKETCH OF DELHI. 147 « gardens and terraces along the banks of the river. In the seventh year of his reign he vsfas murdered by assas- sins, hired by his own nephew, Ala-ul-deen Khiljee, who then ascended the throne without opposition. The commencement of this reign was as glorious as the latter part was the reverse. One of his generals, after a successful invasion of the Carnatic, is said to have brought back 312 elephants, 20,000 horses, many chests of pearls and jewels, and one hundred millions sterling in gold. However this may be, Gujerat was con- quered and annexed, and the Moguls were defeated on several occasions. His prowess, it must be admitted, was tarnished by his cruelty ; for the common men among his prisoners were butchered in cold blood, while the chiefs were trampled to death by elephants. He was guilty of a yet greater atrocity than this. In a moment of jealousy he discharged all the Mogul converts from his service, and when some of them, in despair, conspired against him, he ordered the whole of them, 15,000 in number, to be massacred, and their wives and children sold into slavery. Toward the close of his reign, his arms experienced many reverses, which, coupled with habitual intemperance, accelerated his death, after twenty- two years enjoyment of the royal title. His son and successor, Mobaruk Khiljee, was as cruel and licentious as himself, though one of his first acts was the release of 17,000 prisoners. In war he was bold and vigorous, and recovered the revolted provinces of Gujerat and the Deccan ; but in time of peace he was dissolute and effem- inate, and went about to the houses of the nobility dan- cing and singing, and attired as a female actress. He was assassinated in the year 1321 by his favorite, Khos- roo Khan, a converted Hindoo, who destroyed every member of the royal family, but was himself speedily * 148 HISTORICAL SKETCH OF DELHI. overcome and put to death by Ghazee Khan Toghlagh, governor of the Punjaub. In the absence of any lawful heir to the throne, Ghazee Khan was unanimously proclaimed sultan by the title of Gheais-ul-deen Toghlagh. He thus became the founder of the third Tartar dynasty, and constructed the castle or fortified town of Toghlaghabad, the ruins of which form one of the most interesting objects in the panorama of desolation viewed from the summit of the Kotub Minar. Gheais-ul-deen was likewise a warrior ; and it was after his return from Tirhoot, that he was killed 'by a wooden pavillion — erected by his son, Juna Khan — falling in and crushing him. Though generally suspected of parricide, Juna Khan encountered no opposition in assuming the title of Sultan Mohammed Toghlagh. This prince affords a memorable example of the insufficiency of great abilities to achieve success, unless tempered and guided by judgment. He is represented as a munificent, devout, accomphshed, and enterprising monarch, but unstable in purpose, and visionary in counsel. Having bought off a horde of Moguls, at a price which drained his ex- chequer, he invaded China with an army of 100,000 men, in order to recruit his finances. He lost his army in the snows of the mountains, and then equally in vain at- tempted to refill his treasury by issuing copper tokens, which completed the ruin of his credit. Not content with massacring the inhabitants of Canonj, he would surround extensive tracts of country with armed men, and narrowing the circle by degrees, would put to the sword every living soul found within. In one of his expeditions he lost a tooth, which he buried with great solemnity, and erected a monument to its memory. Soon afterward, on the impulse of a mere caprice, he removed the seat of government and the people of Delhi to Der- HISTORICAL SKETCH OF DELHI. 149 giri, from which he permitted them to return only that he might a second time transport them t(j his new cap- ital ; in the words of Ferishta, "leaving the noble me- tropolis of Dehly a resort for owls, and a dwelling-place for the beasts of the desert." And it was truly a noble city, if we may credit the report of John Batuta, a native of Tangiers, who traveled through Hindoostan near the middle of the fourteenth century. " We proceeded," he says, " from Masud Abad till we came to Delhi, the cap- ital of the empire. It is a most magnificent city, com- bining at once both beauty and strength. Its walls are such as have no equal in the world. This is the greatest city of Hindoostan, and indeed of all Islamism in the East. It now consists of four cities, which, becoming contiguous, have formed one. The thickness of its walls is eleven cubits." These four towns were Seree, founded by Ala-ul-deen Khiljee, Jahanpanah, Shahpoor, and Kelo- kree — situated at some little distance from the site of the modern town of Delhi. Mohammed Toghlagh died in 1351, and was succeeded by his nephew, Feeroz Toghlagh, who built Feerozabad and Jahanamah, and improved and beautified the me- tropolis. His name, indeed, is identified with a host of public works, thus enumerated by Ferishta, though the round numbers are at least suspicious : — fifty dams across rivers, to facilitate their navigation ; forty mosques ; thirty colleges, with mosques ; twenty palaces ; one hun- dred caravanseries ; two hundred towns ; thirty tanks or reservoirs; one hundred hospitals; five mausolia; one hundred public baths ; ten monumental pillars ; ten pub- lic wells ; one hundred and fifty bridges. The six years that followed upon the death of Feeroz were stained with the horrors of civil war ; but in 1394, his grandson, Mahommed Toghlagh II., was placed upon the throne, 13 150 HISTORICAL SKETCH OF DELHI. though a minor. " The Delhi monarchy appeared totter- ing to its fall, the nobles did what seemed good in their eyes, and no one took thought for the people. In the midst of this weakness and anarchy, a formidable enemy appeared in the field. On the 12th December, 1398, Timour the Tartar arrived before the walls of Delhi, but on the left bank of the Jumna. His first step was to send a division across to the other side to storm Jahan- amah, the site of the palace of the late Maharajah Hin- doo Rao Bahadoor, and the scene of the recent engage- ments when the insurgents, in attempting to carry a battery of British guns, were gallantly repulsed by the Ghoorkas. A few days -afterward, Timour cruelly slaughtered his prisoners, to the number of 100,000, because they were reported to have expressed some exul- tation at the approach of Mahommed's army. He then crossed the Jumna with the whole of his forces, and encamped on the same ground as that now occupied by the army of retribution. A hard-fought battle ensued, in which the Tartars were victorious, and in the course of the following night Mahommed Toghlagh and his vizier, Mulloo Khan, fled to Gujerat. A deputation of the principal inhabitants came out on, the morrow to tender their submission to the conqueror, and were promised pardon and protection. At night, Timour cel- ebrated his triumph by the customary debauch ; and, in the flowery language of Sherif-ul-ali Yeydee — "the tree of pleasure was forthwith planted in the garden of enjoy- ment. The brains of delight and pleasure were per- fumed with the sweet odor of musk-smelling wine. From the splendor of the royal cup the festive meeting was lighted up with joy and ease of heart. A festive meeting is the opener of the heart, and the creator of joy ; and Sahib Kiran (Timour) shed the light of his HISTORICAL SKETCH OF DELHI. 151 countenance on the heads of the princes, and ameers, and pillars of state." But, while Timour and his chief officers were reveling and making merry, his barbarous soldiers had come into collision with the inhabitants of the city, and a general massacre ensued. " A great many of the infidels set fire to their own household property, and burned themselves, together with their wives and children. Then the soldiers, not- withstanding the Hindoos opposed them with great courage and resolution, stretched forth the hand of power and violence in quest of plunder and spoil. At this crisis the nobles ordered the gates to be shut, that the army now outside might not enter, nor any great amount of harm be done. But on this night, (Thurs- day,) about 15,000 troops were in the fort, and through- out the whole night they continued to plunder, and to set on fire the houses of the people, and to feed the flames. In some places the Guches, (Hindoos,) with great resolution stood on the defensive, and blood and slaughter ensued. Early in the morning, when, from the inroad of the King of the Stars, the property of the Hindoo night was entirely plundered, (that is, when darkness was dispelled by the rising sun,) all the army entered the city, and a great noise was created thereby. On that Friday, the 17th day of the month, many of the Mahullas in Jahanpanah were publicly plundered. On Saturday, the 18th, the same state of riot continued; and every man of the army took captive about 150 persons, men and women, and brought them out of the city, so that to the meanest man belonging to the army not less than twenty persons became captive. And the other plunder and spoil consisted of various kinds of jewels and pearls, and particularly rubies and diamonds, vari- ous kinds of valuable cloths, various kinds of costly 152 HISTORICAL SKETCH OF DELHI. things, vessels of gold and silver, and money without count, on which was the impression of Ala-ul-deen Khil- jee. And the amount of this money and the other prop- erty was so great as to defy narration by the two-tongued pen. And amongst the spoil there were female slaves, who wore bracelets on their arms and ornaments on their legs — the very toes of whose feet were adorned with rings of great value. Respecting medicines, simples, and aromatics, no one now inquired. "On Sunday, the 10th day of the month, they turned their attention to old Delhi, (Shahpoor,) whither many of the Hindoo infidels had fled. These being collected in the Jama Musjid, were prepared for battle and slaughter. Ameer Shah Malik, and Alee Sultan Tovachee, having taken with him five hundred tried warriors, went toward it, and with the stroke of the infidel slaughtering-sword sent them all to hell ; and the heaps of the heads of the Hindoos reached to heaven, and their bodies became a prey to beasts and birds. Thus, on the day above men- tioned, all old Delhi was plundered, and the inhabitants who remained alive were made captive. Several days successively were they occupied in bringing the captives out of the city, and each ameer obtained possession of a crowd of slaves. Amongst them were some thousands of tradesmen and artisans ; and concerning these the royal order was issued that some of them should be distributed amongst those princes and nobles who had attended on the royal person, and had not entered into the city ; and also some amongst those princes and nobles who had been appointed to different stations with- out the city. And as the pious resolve of his Highness, Sahib Kiran, according to the proverb that the resolve of a good Mussulman is better than his actions, had written on the tablets of his heart that he should erect a HISTORICAL SKETCH OF DELHI. 153 Jama Musjid of cut stone in his capital of Samarcand, the royal order was issued that all the stone cutters should be kept for the king's particular use. * * * With good fortune and prosperity, Sahib Kiran remained fifteen days at Delhi, and the beams from the crescent of his victorious standard were removing the rust from the looking-glass of the sun and moon, and the excellencies of his government and his victories were such as to have created envy in the souls of Jumsheed and Alexander, had they been^live."* The pious savage, before he " turned his attention to the other provinces of Hindoostan, for the sake of the destruction and extirpation of other infidels," repaired to the mosque at Feerozabad, and "uttered to God the prayer of two inclinations, with perfect sincerity and humility; and thanked God for his mercies, which were beyond the bounds of conception." From the depart- ure of Timour until the advent of the Afghan Baber, the kingdom of Delhi was restricted to a very narrow territory around the walls. Two dynasties in succession occupied the powerless throne — the former known as that of the Synds, the latter as that of Lodi. It was in the year 1525 that the victory of Paneeput laid Hindoos- tan at the feet of the Caubul conqueror, who boasted of being sixth from the terrible Timour. Through one of those singular misapprehensions with which history abounds, Baber and his descendants have been famous throughout the world, under the title of the Great Mogul. There was, probably, not a single drop of Mo- gul blood in his veins. The Moguls were a small but * This curious account is taken from the Zuffernamah of Sherif-ul all Teydee, translated by the late Mr. CargiU, President of the Delhi College, and published by the Journal of the Archaeological Society of Delhi, January, 1853. j_^ 154 HISTORICAL SKETCH 0F_ DELHI. ferocious tribe of barbarians, who marched in the van of the desolating hordes of Genghiz Khan, and by their horrible cruelties spread such a terror of their name, that the trembling natives of Hindoostan apphed the term to all invading hosts that arrived from the north-west ; in the same manner as they now call all white nations Feringhees. It is thus that the early European traders were taught to regard the king of Delhi as the Great Mogul, the only designation by which the last Asiatic dynasty has been known to Europeans. Baber himself died at Agra in 1530, for, the city had now become the seat of government. His son, Humagoon, suffered a series of misfortunes which terminated in his flight into Persia. During his exile, three usurpers successively held the supreme title, and one of them, Selim Shah, of Chunar, built the fort of Selimghur,,at Delhi. Huma- goon was eventually restored, but meeting soon after- ward with an accidental death was succeeded by the Great Akhber, in 1556. This able monarch resided principally at Agra, where he built the present fort ; he also erected a tomb to his father in the neighborhood of Delhi. He is more justly celebrated for having organized a postal system through- out his vast dominions. At every ten miles there was a station-house, with an establishment of two horses, and a certain number of running footmen. The distance of one hundred miles was gone over in twenty-four hours, and the five hundred miles from Agra to Ahmadabad were accomplished in five days. He had never fewer than 4,000 runners in his pay, beside 12,000 horses, 1,000 camels, and from 5,000 to 6,000 elephants. He was also desirous of maintaining one thousand hunting leopards ; but it is said that some mysterious disease carried them off whenever they exceeded the number of nine hundred. HISTOEICAL SKETCH OF DELHI. 155 His son, Selim, who succeeded him in 1605, changed his name to Jehangeer, or Conqueror of the World, but took no pains to merit the appellation. In the early part of his reign he was mild and benevo- lent ; but, after suppressing the rebellion of his son, Khosroo, he impaled in a row seven hundred of his misguided partisans. It was in his time that the first English envoy appeared at the court of the Great Mogul. Sir Thomas Roe, in his narrative of what he saw and did on that memorable occasion, dwells at great length on the meanness and cupidity of the prince royal and the chief nobles, against whom he appears to have been waging continual warfare. Of Delhi he merely remarks that "it is an ancient city, and the seat of the Mogul's ancestors, but ruined." Sir Thomas' antiquarian lore was evidently very limited, for he quietly states that the Kotub Minar was erected by Alexander the Great. In the following reign, that of Shah Jehan, the condition of old Delhi, does not seem to have improved, for Tavenier says of it, — " Dehly is almost come to ruine, and indeed is nothing but a heap of rubbish : there being no other Houses remaining but only for poor people. Neither are there above three or four Lords of the Court that reside at Dehly, where they set up their tents in great Enclosures." However, a new era was approaching. In 1631, Shah Jehan founded the modern city of Delhi, which he called, after himself, Shahjehanabad. This was really a handsome city for those times, as may be perceived from Bernier's lengthened and, perhaps, high- ly-colored description. Tavernier is more calm and prosaic. "Gehanabad — says he — as well as Dehly, is a great City ; and there is nothing but a single wall that makes the separation. All the houses of particular men con- 156 HISTOEICAL SKETCH OF DELHI. sist of great enclosures, in the midst whereof is the place for lodgings. The greatest part of Lords do not live in the city, but have their houses without, for the con- veniency of the water, ^s you enter into Jehanabad from Dehly, you meet with a long and broad street, on each side whereof are vaults where the merchants keep shops, being only platformed on the top. This street ends in the great piazza before the king's house ; and there is another very fair and large street, that runs toward another gate of the same palace, in which live the great merchants that keep no shops. The king's palace takes up above half a league circuit. The walls are of fair cut stone, with battlements. The moats are full of water, paved with freestone. The great gate of the palace has nothing in it of magnificence; no more than the first court, in which the great Lords may enter upon their elephants." He then gives a description of the interior of the palace, too long to transcribe, but which contrast strangely with Bishop Heber's account. The bishop had no opportunity of beholding the peacock throne, valued by Tavernier, himself a jeweler, at six and a half millions sterling. "It was so called, because the canopy was surmounted by a peacock, with his tail spread out, con- sisting all of sapphires and other proper colored stones ; the body is of beaten gold, which is enchased with seve- ral jewels, and a great ruby upon his breast, at which hangs a pearl that weighs sixty carats. On each side of the peacock stand two nosegays as high as the bird, con- sisting of several sorts of flowers, all of beaten gold, enameled." It is too well known to need repetition, how the un- unfortunate Shah Jehan was deposed by his heartless, calculating son, Aurengzebe. The prince, who has HISTOEICAL SKETCH OF DELHI. 157 enjoyed a meretricious fame, was first proclaimed empe- ror in Delhi, which once more became the capital of the empire. After his death, in 1707, the power he had so laboriously built up, rapidly crumbled away. Only thirty years later, the Mahrattas, under Bajee Rao Peishwar, appeared at the very gates of Delhi, and plundered and burnt the suburbs. In 1739, a more grievous affliction overtook the imperial city. A shepherd of Khorassan had risen from being a reckless freebooter to the throne of Central Asia, by the title of Nadir Shah. A messenger whom he had dispatched to the court of Delhi having been murdered by some of the hill tribes above Peshawar, he peremptorily demanded redress from the emperor. His remonstrances being treated with cool indiiference, he suddenly poured down into the plains of Hindoostan, and defeated Mahommed Shah in a pitched battle near Kurnoul. The ill-fated monarch repaired to the camp of the victor, by whom he was kindly received ; and a few days afterward they set out together for Delhi. At first the Persian soldiers of JXadir Shah preserved the strictest discipline, and ab- stained alike from injury and insult. But a report-hav- ing gone forth at night that Nadir was assassinated, the treacherous inhabitants rose upon the unsuspecting sol- diery and murdered 700 of them. The retaliation was speedy and severe, but for a time Nadir endeavored to appease the fury of his followers, until one of his chiefs was shot dead by hh side; He then gave free reins to vengeanc^ aad for several hours the Persian soldiers raged like JiJlacs through the city. Many houses were set on fire, stinTnore were gutted, and thousands of dead bodies encumbered the streets. According to the lowest computation, 8,000 of the citizens were killed, but there is reason to believe that 30,000 would be the truer esti- 158 HISTORICAL SKETCH OF DELHI. mate. Fraser, indeed, who lived in the times of which he was writing, speaks of as many as 120,000 having been put to death. He also affirms that at least 10,000 women threw themselves into wells to avoid a worse fate than death, and that 80,000 Hindoos perished in addition to the foregoing during this Persian invasion. Even when the work of slaughter was stayed, torture was em- ployed to extort confessions as to the concealment of treasure. Many persons of eminence were severely beaten until they ransomed themselves, and outrages of all kinds were perpetrated with impunity. In short, "sleep and rest forsook the city. In every chamber and house was heard the cry of affliction. It was before a general massacre, but now, the murder of individuals." For nearly two months did this dreadful misrule prevail, and when Nadir Shah took his final departure, it was because there was nothing left to plunder. He carried off" with him between eight and nine millions sterling in coin, several millions worth of gold and silver plate, the peacock throne, vast quantities of jewels, precious stuffs, and costly furniture, and a long train of horses, camels, and elephants. A sort of stupor settled down upon the wretched inhabitants of the city, from which they were hardly roused by the necessity of providing their daily food for their wives and children. Again, in 1756, the imperial city became a prey to the fierce Afghan levies of Ahmed Shah Abdallee ; and four years afterward it was plundered by the Mahrattas, under Sedasheo Rao, "the Bahao." In 1761, Shah Allum II. "ascended the throne, and, in an evil hour, declared hiHpS||8he enemy of the British. In 1765, he was glad to (X)tain peace at the cost of his territory, and to accept a pension of £260,000 a year, together with some landed estates and other advantages. But, with the usual fickleness of the HISTORICAL SKETCH OF DELHI. 159 .oriental character, he seized upon the first opportunity to repudiate this treaty, and to throw himself into the hands of the Mahrattas, who failed to protect him even against the Rohillas. A fierce chieftain of that warlike people, named Gholaum Kandir Khan, made himself master of the city, and after heaping all manner of insult on the hapless emperor, thrust out his eyes with his own dagger. He himself ere long received as little mercy from Madhajee Scindiah, who caused his ears, eyes, nose, hands, and fee't to be cut off while he was still alive. Mahratta or Rohilla, it made but httle difference to the blind monarch, who must have hailed, with mingled shame and delight, the victorious entry of the British, under General Lake, in 1803, after the defeat of the French officers in Scindiah's service. This was on the 12th of September ; but, on the 8th of October, Delhi narrowly escaped being surprised by Holkar, who sud- denly appeared before the walls with upward of a hun- dred guns, and perhaps 70,000 men. The British gar- rison consisted of about 800 sepoys, with eleven guns, in addition to a small force of irregulars, horse and foot, who either deserted or fled at the approach of the enemy. Colonel Ochterlony was the resident; but the military command was vested in Colonel Burn, and nobly did he acquit himself of his arduous duty. On the ninth day of the siege, after delivering a murderous assault, Hol- kar was compelled to withdraw with disgrace and loss. At that time the walls were in such disrepair that they crumbled under the concussion of the guns that were mounted on them. Since then, however, they have been considerably strengthened, and could scarcely be breached without heavy artillery. It is probable, indeed, that if a battery could be opened upon the palace walls from the opposite side of the river, an early success might be ob- 160 HISTORICAL SKETCH OF DELHI. tained ; but this could only be done before the rains had swelled the volume of waters. Previous to the present insurrection, the king of Delhi was in the receipt of an annual pension, amounting to £150,000, and the use of the palace or fort, over the 12,000 inmates of which he played the part of a sovereign, excepting that he had no power to take life. From a mistaken delicacy, and partly, perhaps, from an over- weening confidence in our own power, he was permitted to retain the title of king ; but that privilege would in any case have expired with the present occupant of that unreal throne and shadowy dignity. Whether of his own accord, or reluctantly yielding to a pressure he could not resist, the mock king has now sealed the final doom of his dynasty. The last of the Mogul monarchs has taken his seat in the hall of audience ; and — in the words of the Persian poet, quoted by Bishop Heber — the spider shall hang her tapestry in the palace of the Caesars. Let the reader imagine himself advancing from Agra northward to the ancient capital of India. His road is through a wide plain, everywhere covered with ruins. Among prostrate walls and masses of masonry, over- grown with weeds and jungle, here and there rises a broken obelisk, gilt dome, or slender minaret. These are the ruins of ancient Delhi. To the right flows the Jumna, or Yamuna, Daughter of the Sun, and, according to the legend, gentle sister of the dread Yama, the Hin- d6 Minos. On a rocky ridge, at the very edge of a branch from this river/ which leaves the main stream five miles to the north of the city, and rejoins it two miles to the south of the wall's most southern angle, is modern Delhi, built by Shah Jehan, in 1631, it may be, to be razed by the English two centuries later. A wall seal- HISTORICAL SKETCH OF DELHI. 161 loped at the top, and about twenty-five-feet high, runs from the Wellesley Bastion, the point to the south-east entrance, where the city touches the river, five miles in an irregular semi-circle, to Selim Garh, an old fortress which rests upon the stream at the northern extremity. Along the river, or eastern, side of the city, this vs^all is replaced, for one-third of the extent to the north, by the walls of the king's palace, which is about half a mile long from north to south. The interval to the Wellesley Bastion has slighter defenses, but is protected in some measure by the i-iver, or rather its branch, between which and the main stream is an island, more or less sandy, and covered with melon gardens. The ditch beneath the city wall is fifty feet broad and about fifteen feet deep, and the glacis so covers the wall that it can not be seen from a distance. The city has eleven gates. To the south-east is the Delhi Gate, and advancing to the west and north the Turkoman, the Ajaud Gate — outside of which is the vast mausoleum of Ghazi Khan, where the rebels were encamped to the number of 3,000 — then the Furosh Khanah, the Lahore Gate, adjoining the Burn Bastion, so called from Colonel Burn, the gallant de- fender of the city against Holker, in 1804. Next comes the Cabul Gate, close to the canal, the Morea Gate, the Cashmere Gate, and, close to Selim Gahr, the Calcutta Gate. Tracing the river are the Ld and Raj Ghat Gates. The western' side of the city is a sea of houses, many of them strongly built. The mainstreet, the Chandur Chauk, is very wide, and along the center of it runs an aqueduct. Here is the mosque in which Nadir sat during the terrible massacre of the inhabitants by his army. Delhi has many noble buildings worth preserving. 14 162 PRIVATE LIFE IN INDIA. The palace itself ranks next to Windsor as a kingly resi- dence. Its gateway is far handsomer than that of the Great Bazar, at Cabul. The throne-room is matchless. The roof rests on massive columns of white marble, and beautiful mosaics adorn the hall. In the center is the white marble dais on which once stood the famous peacock throne. The king's private chapel is of the whitest marble, and a perfect gem of art. A quarter of a mile to the west of the palace stands the cathedral mosque, vast, massive, grand. |HE fearful notoriety given to individuals of either sex, by the recent course of events in India, may render interesting this plain de- scription of every-day oriental customs among foreign residents. We may add that the rupee is worth about half a dollar, or two shillings English. Lodgings. — The system of lodging-letting is almost unknown in India, and a visitor must not expect to find a furnished house anywhere. Something is done in the boarding-house way, at the chief towns, by respectable widows, and each presidency is provided with respecta- ' ble hotels and club-houses. A stranger, after he has looked about for an empty house adapted to his wants, sends for a sircar, or dubash, or parsee butler, (the name varying with the presidency,) and bidding him procure the necessary furniture, may expect in two or three days to find himself installed in his own domicile. The arti- cles absolutely necessary at first are few, as nothing in PRIVATE LIFE IN INDIA. 163 the shape of fixtures or hangings are required. The ex- pense of life, at one of the presidencies, depends upon circumstances and position of the individual. A man may live on £200 a year, or 170 rupees per mensem ; and he may also spend, without difficulty, £10,000 a year. Servants. — To give an idea of the maximum of expend- itures, we will suppose an establishment at Calcutta on a grand scale. A house of two stories, containing twenty rooms and broad verandas, with halting rooms and out-houses, all inclosed within a garden or com- pound, costs at least 500 rupees per month. The estab- lishment of servants will run as follows : A khansumah, or butler, who markets and attends at table on great occasions. He also makes pastry and preserves, and superintends the kitchen. Two or three khetmutgars, who also attend at table, clean the plate, &.c. A valet, who takes care of the linen and clothes of his master, and looks after his toilet. A cook and a deputy, the latter of whom attends the khansumah at market, and brings home the supplies. A sirdah and bearers — sirdah meaning chief, whose duty it is to prepare the bath, polish boots and shoes, attend to the lamps and candles, and see that the bearers are ready, either to pull the punkah, (a large fan upon an oblong frame, which is suspended from the ceiling of each sitting-room, with a rope attached to it,) or to go out with the palankeen, or waft away flies and insects during the meals, or polish the furniture. A musalchee, who acts the part of a scullion, and likewise prepares the lamps. A bheestie, or water-carrier. He draws water from the wells or tanks, and fills the jars with the water required during the day. He sprinkles the cuscuss tatties, or plaited grass coverings of the doors and windows, during the hot season, and waters the garden or grass-plots. A mihtur, or sweeper, who does 164 PEIVATE LIFE IN INDIA;' all the dirty work of the house. A dhobee, or washer- man — there are no washer-women in Indo-European es- tablishments. The modus operandi, amounting to the beating of linen on flat stones, is performed by a man, and his wife irons the articles. A durzee, or tailor. This functionary is chiefly employed in repairing the damages effected by the dhobees, or in making bed- curtains, hemming sheets and table-cloths, darning stockings, &c. His work is abundant where there is a lady and children in the house, because the lady rarely attends to her household. A durwan, or doorkeeper. He sits at the entrance gates, sounds a gong upon the arrival of a visitor, and throws open the portals of the compound. An abdar, or keeper of the water. To him is assigned the duty of cooling the wines, beer, and water, for dinner purposes ; but the introduction of American ice into India has nearly obliterated his functions. A coachman, whose title announces his duty. Syces, or grooms, (one to each horse, or two to three horses.) They not only groom and feed the horses, but either take their places behind the carriage, or run by its side, or by the side of the equestrian, who may be paying visits, and requires his horse to be occasionally held. A peon, or chuprassy. A belted messenger, who carries letters and messages, or accompanies the coachman upon state visits. An ayah, or lady's maid. A very useful person in a family, for she i-elieves the lady of the labor of dressing her hair, and is most serviceable in shampooing, and performing a number of delicate little offices which the heat of the climate often renders necessary. It is need- less to add that she dresses her mistress, and looks after her wardrobe. A mihturance, or metrannee. A female sweeper, whose services are auxiliary to those of the ayah. A sircar, who keeps the accounts of the es- PRIVATE LIFE IN INDIA. 165 tablishment, receives his master's pay, disburses it, and will endeavor to prevent any one from cheating you but himself. To these domestics are added dooreahs, or dog-boys, where people keep dogs ; chowkeydars, or private con- stables, who patrol the grounds during the night ; naujies and daudies, where a boat is kept ; coolies, to carry burdens ; and hookah burdars, or preparers of the hookah — an office which is gradually becoming extinct under the modern passion for cigars. None of the servants in India will eat of the food cooked for Europeans, consequently they are placed upon a uniform system of wages, which, though small as re- gards each individual, make up a tremendous aggregate. Cost of an Establislimen! . — Not less than 200 rupees per month will pay the establishment of a man of large income. The lowest establishment with which a person can rub on, consists of one khetmutghar, or boy, one cook, and one musalchee, whose united wages at either presidency come to about £25 per annum. The lowest rate at which a very small house (unfurnished) may be obtained is £30 per annum. Clothing. — Cotton clothes are cheap in India, because the supply from England of piece goods is generally much in excess of the demand. Woolen clothes are dear, be- cause the tailors demand high prices for the manufacture of coats, waistcoats, and trowsers. Hats are dear, and boots of English and French make are likewise costly. Excellent boots are, however, made of country leather by boot-makers on the spot, and they cost about half the price of European boots. Style of Living. — The style of life in India corresponds, as regards the table, with that in vogue at home. The breakfast hour is generally from eight to nine A. M. 14* 166 PRIVATE LIFE IN INDIA.'"' Tea or coffee, bread, butter, rice, fish, e^s, or curries, cold meats, jams, honey, or marmalade, grace the break- fast table. Soups, fish, roast, boiled, stewed, Bi-oiled, and curried meats, pastry, game, jelHes, blanc-mange, &c., constitute the dinners. The only distinctive feature of the Indian table is the superiority and variety of the cur- ries and the pilaus. A dish called kitchri — a compound of rice, split peas, fried onions, chillies, small raisins, and curried fowl or mutton, is a favorite breakfast dish. Prices of Various Commodities. — Meat bears a very low price in India, compared with what is paid in Eng- land, although the markets are supplied with beef, mutton, and veal, scarcely inferior to the produce of our native country. From two pence to three pence per pound is usually paid for the best kind of meat. Poultry abounds in India. The game obtained at the presidencies is partridge, teal, snipe, wild duck, and occasionally venison. Bread of good wheat flour is very cheap ; rice ditto. Luxuries. — For all extras and luxuries of the table the Indian resident is, in a great measure, indebted to Eng- land, France, and America. To Europe also the Anglo- Indian owes all his wines and spirits, paying for them less, perhaps, in the aggregate, than he would pay in England, because they do not bear the same heavy duty. The beers, stout, and pale ales of England are in great request. The quantity of these grateful beverages which some men will drink in a single day is almost fabulous. The price of a bottle of beer, if bought by the dozen, is, on an average. Is. 3d. Wines lose nothing by the trip to India ; even champagne and claret are to be had in considerable perfection ; and the best cognac is procur- able at half the price it costs in Great Britain. Soda water is made by the chemists and provisioners of India, PRIVATE LIFE IN INDIA, 167 but nothing else in the shape of a beverage suited to Europeans is manufactured in the East. Fish. — No one who is fond of fish will find himself subject to privation in India. The harbor of Bombay abounds with pomfret, a species of flat fish of so excel- lent a flavor that it has been reported of a celebrated gourmand that he thought it well worth a voyage to India to taste it. Other kinds of fish are very plentiful in the harbors and rivers. Routine of Life. — The routine of European life in India is unavoidably uniform and monotonous. People rise very early, before the dawn of day, for when the sun is up they begin to experience his influence. An hour's exercise, either on horseback or on foot, is sup- posed to be necessary to insure the healthy action of the liver. Returning home, a bath, which consists in having jars of water poured over the body, is taken, the news- paper is read, and every body is at work. In the middle of the day some persons take tiffin, as luncheon is called ; and this, in too many instances, is a sort of miniature dinner, when stews and curries are devoured, and washed down by copious draughts of pale ale. A bath, and a change of dress, precede the evening ride or drive. Everywhere there are strands, courses, beaches, where the denizens congregate to gossip, or listen to the music of military bands. Night closes in, and the gay groups separate to return home and dine. There is much interchange of dinner-giving ; balls are presented at private houses, and military messes. Bil- liards and cards furnish excitement to great numbers ; a few persons cultivate music; and now and then an ama- teur play, a discharge of fireworks, at the expense of some rich native, a regatta, or a nautch, (native dance,) enliven society. 168 INDIAN GLOSSARY. ' INDIAN GLOSSMIY. ^ For the use of English readers, who m^ be unac- quainted with Indian words, we subjoin a brief glossary of the most common Indian vocables, which are now of daily occurrence in the newspapers : — P. shows that the word is Persian ; Port. Portuguese ; H. Hindoostanee ; M. Marathi ; Ar. Arabic ; T. Tartar ; Tarn. Tamil ; S. Sanscrit. Ab or aub, p., water ; used in composition, as Punjaub: five waters, i. e., watered by five rivers. Doab, dis- trict between two rivers. Abad, p., inhabited ; in composition, a town, as Hyder- abad, city of Hyder ; Allahabad, urbs Dei. Ata, H., (prop, ata^ flour ; meal ; the principal food of Hindoostan. Ayah, port., a nurse ; now used for a female attendant on a lady. ' Baba, t., a father ; a child ; used as a term of endear- ment or respect. Baba log, t. s., children ; the preceding word and log, from s. loTi, people. Baboo, a Hindoo title, answering to our esquire. Bag, p., (prop, bagh,) a garden. Kudsiya bagh is the name of a garden spoken of in letters from Delhi. It is just outside the walls. Bahadoor, p., brave ; a common title of respect added to the names of military officers and others. Bakree Eed, ae., (prop, bakari 'Id,) a festival held by Moslems on the 9th of the 12th month, in honor of Abraham's offering up Ishmael, (not Isaac, as we say,) From bakar, an ox ; 'Id, festival. Bamba, h., a well. This word occurs in the plans of Delhi. Bang, p., an intoxicating potion made from hemp. Bazar, an exchange, or market-place. USTDIAN GLOSSARY. 169 Beehee, h., a lady. * Begum, T., a princess, or lady of high rank. Bhaee, s., a brother ; a comrade. Blieestee, p., (prop, bihishti,) a water-carrier. Literally an inhabitant of bihisht, or Paradise, from the pleas- antness of the occupation in such a climate as India. Bobachee, t., (prop, bawarchi,) a cook. BuJgerow, s., (prop, bajra,) a traveling-boat of a larger kind. Bud mash, p. ae., (prop, bad ash,) a rogue; a villain. From bad, bad ; and ma' ash, subsistence. Bud zat, p. AK., a bad character. From bad ; and zat, essence. Bungalow, h., (prop, bangla,) a thatched house ; any house. Burhandaz, ar. p., a matchlockman. From bark, light- ning; andaz, throwing. Cholo, s., come on ; used in the phrase chalo mera bhaa, "Come on, comrade; come on, boys." Cherry, tam., (prop, cheri,) a termination meaning vil- lage, but now often applied to towns, as Pondicherry. Chit, H., (prop, chitti,) a note ; a letter. Chor, s., a thief. Chupatties, p., (prop, chapati,) a thin cake of unleavened bread. Coolie, T., (prop, kuli,) a porter, or carrier. Cutchernj, h., (prop. Kachahri,) a court of justice ; a civilian's ofRce. Dak or dauk, h., (prop.t^a/i:,) a post or post-ofEce ; also a relay of horses or bearers. Decoit, H., (prop, dakait,) a robber ; a gang-robber. Dewan, a prime minister, sometimes an agent. Doab, p., a country between two rivers. Dosf, p., a friend. 170 IKDIAN GLOSSARY. Dour, a., (prop, daur,) a foray ; a raid. ^ Durwazah, p., a door ; the gate of a city. . Eed, AE., (prop. 'Id,) a festival. Enam, ar., (prop, in am) a gift ; land granted in free tenure. Feringhee, corruption of Frank ; a European. Fuqueer, ar., (prop, fakir,) a mendicant devotee ; one who has taken a vow of poverty. Ghazee, ar., {pro^). ghazi,) a Moslem who fights against infidels ; a true believer who takes part in a holy war. Golundauze,T., (prop. ^oZ-aracZaz,) literally, ball- thrower; a native artilleryman. Gujar, H., a tribe in the north-west provinces who pro- fess to be descendants of Rajpoots by women of infe- rior castes. They are now engaged in agriculture, but were formerly robbers and plunderers, and still retain a propensity to their old habits. Havaldar, ar. p., a native officer, corresponding to our sergeant. Jehad, ar., a holy war. Jemadar, ar. p., a native officer, corresponding to our ensign or lieutenant. Jhagdeerdar, p., (prop, jagirdar,) the holder of land granted for services. Jheel, H., a shallow lake. Jut or Jaut, a race of industrious and hardy cultivators, whose original seat is said to have been Ghazni, but who are now found in great numbers in the north-west provinces, particularly at Bhurtpore, (Bharatpur.) Kotwal, p., the chief officer of police in a city or town Lattee and Lath, a., (prop, lath or lathi,) a pillar, a club. Logue, a., (prop, log,) people ; as baba log, children , Sahib log, English gentleman ; gora log, Europeans ; fair people. INDIAN GLOSSAET. 171 Lotah, II., (prop, lota) a small pot, generally of metal. Mohurmm, ar., (prop. Muharram,) literally, sacred ; name of the first Mohammedan month ; the fast held on the tenth of that month, in memory of the death of Husain, the youngest son of AH, and grandson of Mohammed, who was slain on that day at Karbala, in 'Irak, in the forty-sixth year of the Hijrah. Mundee, u., (prop, mandi,) a market-place. Musjid, AR., a mosque. Jumma Musjid, (prop. JunCaah, masjid,) a cathedral mosque. Naigue or Naig, s., (prop. Naik) a native officer, cor- responding to our corporal. Nallah or Nullah, h., (prop, nala,) a brook ; a water- course ; the channel of a torrent. Nana, m., grandfather ; a term of respect. The title given to Dhundu Pant, the adopted son of the peshwa, and son of Chimnaji Appa, his brother. Nuddee, a., (prop, nadi) a river. Nuwab, AR., (prop. Nuioab,) a viceroy, literally vice- roys, being plural of naib, vicegerent ; a nabob. Peon, P., a messenger; a foot attendant. Poorbee, s., eastern. A term applied to the Bengal sipahis by Sikhs and others. Pore or Poor, s., town ; used chiefly in composition, as Bhurtpore or Bharatpur, the town of Bharata. Pultun, H., corrupt for battalion. Puttun, s., {^ro'p. pattanam) a town ; chiefly in compo- sition, as Shiri Ranga Pattanam ; Seringapatam, city of the divine Vishnu : it is the name given to 'Azimabad, and corrupted by Europeans to Patna. Rajpoot, a Hindoo of the military tribe or order. Rissalah, ae., (prop, risalah,) a troop of horse. Rohillas, ar., a people settled to the east of the doab of the Ganges. They are originally, as the name 172- INDIAN POPULATION, RELIGION, ETC. ) "^■"j^"-'-"-^'', implies, from Afghanistan, and now inhabit' the dis- tricts of Bijnour, Moradabad, Bareilly, and Rampur. Ryot, a peasant. Saheb, ar., (prop. Sahib,) a lord ; a gentleman. Shahzadar, p., prince ; son oi a king. Sowar, p., a horseman ; a trooper. Subahdar, ar., a native officer, corresponding to our captain. > Subzee mundee, p. h., (prop, subzi mandi) a market for vegetables. Name of the spot so often taken and retaken by our troops before Delhi. Tuppal, H., (prop, tappal,) a packet of letters ; the post. Zumeendar, p., (prop, zarnindar,) landholder ; landed proprietors. ITS POPULATION, LANGUAGES, RELIGIONS, MISSIONS, &c. ^A TIVE Population, <^c. — The difference in language, manners, &c., of the aboriginal races in Hindoostan is very great. Of these races, eight have been considered as distinguished from the rest by a degree of superiority in civilization, the arts, language, literature, and the richer and more extensive territories which they occupy. They comprise the Bengalee, Oriya, Mahratia, Gujrattee, Telinga, Tamil, Carnata, and Hindi or Hin- doostanee. The Bengalee nation occupies above 80,000 square miles of fertile land, chiefly within the delta of the Ganges, and the population numbers about 25,000,000. The Tamil nation occupies 56,000 square miles at the southern extremity of the peninsula, with a population INDIAN POPULATION, RELIGION, ETC. 173 of about 7,000,000. The Oriya nation extends over 17,000 square miles of the low land which connects the delta of the Ganges with the south peninsula, and num- bers about 4,000,000. , The Mahratta nation extends over nearly 200,000 square miles, between the 22d and 23d degrees of north latitude, and has a population esti- mated at about 12,000,000. The Telinga people occupy 100,000 square miles of the north-eastern portion of the peninsula, with a population numbering from 7,000,000 to 8,000,000. The Carnata or Canara nation numbers about 5,000,000, and occupies the table-land south of the 18th degree of north latitude. The people speaking the Hindoostanee language occupy the upper portion of the valley of the Ganges, and number about 20,000,000. The most enterprising of these nations, it is to be observed, have occasionally passed, as conquerors or colonists, into the territories of each other, or their neighbors. Thus, we find colonies of the Tamils settled in Malayalim, of Telingas in Carnata and the Tamil country, of Mahrat- tas in the Telinga, Tamil, and Carnata countries, &c. These colonies mot unfrequently preserve their national language, their original manners, and their purity of descent, in their adopted countries. The barbarous and savage tribes of India are to be found in the recesses of the mountains, never in the fertile plains or extensive table-lands. The barbarous tribes are considered abo- riginal, in common with others of the plains, and their savage character is ascribed to their unfavorable situa- tion, and the hostility of the powerful occupants of the lower and more fertile regions. Besides the original and peculiar inhabitants of Hindoostan, a number of foreign colonists or settlers of different nations form a consider- able portion of the present population of the country. They are confined to particular spots, or scattered indis- 15 174: INDIAN POPULATION, EELIGION, ETC. criminately over the country, accordiiig to the place of their arrival, or other causes. These several classes of foreign population, following the order of their supposed arrival, are as -follows, viz., Jews, Syrian Christians, Arabs, Armenians, Parsees, Persians, Afghans, Tartars, Turks, Abyssinians, Portuguese, English, Dutch, French, Danes, and Chinese. Religions. — The prevailing religion of 130,000,000 of Hindoostan is Braminism ; the other forms of religion are the Jain, Boodhist, Seik, Mohammedan, and Christian. Braminism prevails chiefly in the great provinces of Gujerat and Talawa, on the western shore of India, but more or less of it is found scattered throughout the country. The Boodhist rehgion is supposed to have originated in Bahar, within the great plain of the Ganges ; but though so prevalent in Ceylon, and in countries to the east and the north, it is nearly extinct in Hindoostan. The Seik form of religion was originated at Nanak, in 1419, and is confined to the north-west part of Hindoo- stan. The Mohammedan religion appeared in India about the beginning of the eleventh century, and its adherents are supposed, for all India, to amount to about one-seventh of the entire population. The Christians abound most in the southern portion of the country. The greater number are Nestorians, who are supposed to have enabraced Christianity, through the labors of Greek missionaries from "Syria, as early as the second and third centuries. Most of the remainder are Catho- lics, the descendants of the Portuguese, and persons con- verted by the Portuguese missionaries. Languages. — There are more than fifty native languages spoken throughout Hindoostan. The Hindoos of the northern portion of the country are acquainted with three dead languages, viz., the Sanscrit, the Saraswatty or IKDIAJSr POPULATION, EELIGIOK, ETC. 175 Pracrit, and the Pali. Of these three, the Sanscrit bears internal evidence of being the oldest. It was the language of a peojale who, according to a very probable Hindoo tra- dition, occupied the Jumna, a little to the north-west of Delhi; and \vith it probably originated the Braminical religion, and the first dawn of Hindoo civilization. The Pracrit was the language that succeeded in the same country, and it seems to bear the same relation to it that the Italian does to the Latin. The Pali is a language that sprung up in the province of Bahar. Of this, also, the Sanscrit forms the ground-work. With the people speaking the Pali language, sprung up the religion of Boodh ; and the Pali is to this day the sacred language of all the Asiatic nations who have Boodhism for their national worship. The existence of these three languages, that have necessarily censed to be spoken, affords evidence of the great antiquity of Hindoo civilization. One or other of the languages in question is more or less mixed up, not only with every language of Hindoostan, but also with the languages of most of the neighboring countries. To the north they form the ground-work of these lan- guages, as Latin does of Italian ; to the south they are ingrafted on the language, somewhat as the French is on our Saxon tongue. The literary Hindoos reckon that there are ten cultivated languages, having a written character and a literature. The enumeration of these languages, however, is not very distinct, as applicable to the present time. The Hindee is the most cultivated and general spoken .of all the languages of Hindoostan. Besides the local languages of each district, the Hindee is commonly spoken by all persons of education through- out all India. Of the dead languages, the Sanscrit is as much studied in India as the Latin in Europe. Then there are eight languages spoken by a very numerous I'o rwDiAisr population, religion, "etc. population, twenty spoken by a people less numerous, but still civilized, and at least thirty spoken by rude tribes, making in all flfty-eiglit living languages. This may be taken as conclusive evidence that all India was never subject to one government, and never thoroughly united in large masses. To the native languages above enumerated must be added the Persian, as much used as Latin in Europe ; the Arabic, often studied from religious motives; the Portuguese, a good deal spoken in some parts of the maritime coast; and the English, which is making considerable progress. Physical and Iniellectvjxl Character. — In respect to race, the Hindoos have been regarded by naturalists as belong- ing to what they call the Caucasian, or European; but this is proved by the best modern writers to be untrue. The European is white; the Hindoo black, or nearly so. The European has an endless variety in the color of the hair and of the eye, while with the Hindoo the hair is always black, and the eye a dark brown. In physical force, the Hindoo is below, not only the European, but even the Arab, the. Persian, and the Chinese. The intel- lectual character of the Hindoos corresponds to their physical. They have subtlety, but n,ot much originality or jDractical good sense. In vigor and manliness of mind they are below the Arabs and Persians. In moral char- acter the Hindoos rank extremely low. Candor, integ- rity, and ingenuousness of mind, can not be said to exist among them. Judicial perjury is said to be practiced in Hindoostan on a wider scale than any other country. The Hindoos are generally credited with frugality, patience, docility, and even industry ; but their frugality is akin to avarice, and their docility to passiveness. They about as readily submit to wrong and oppression, as make an effort to improve their condition. INDIAN POPULATION, RELIGION, ETC. 177 Government. — The great body of the Hindoos had, for six centuries before the commencement of the British rule, been under the dominion of foreigners, and of for- eigners more energetic than themselves, and also more civilized. Their conquerors were Asiatics, with com- plexion, manners, customs, &c., approaching to the natives with whom they to a considerable extent associated. Even in matters of religion, where the difference was widest, a good degree of toleration was allowed, and the Hindoo converts to ilohammedanisrn were admissable to the highest offices of state. So that, on the whole, the Hindoos were rather gainers by their subjection to a for- eign dominion. British rule has been established in India about one hundred years. This government, in its practical operation, may be regarded as an enlightened despotism ; a good deal controlled by the public opinion of English- men residing in India, and to a much smaller extent by parliament and public opinion in England. The British government in India has been divided into three periods, the last of which commenced in 1814, and comes down to the present time. The influx of Europeans into India, since 1811:, has resulted in something like a public and independent opinion of the principal seats of commerce, which serves to modify the despotic character of the government. The press of India, which was formerly nnder a vigorous censorship, is now thrown open, and employs itself in redressing public and private wrongs. Tlie government which England administers in India is in many respects oppressive, and liable to gi-eat abuses. An English writer sa^'s: "It is not a national govern- ment, nor is it yet a government carried on by conquerors who have made the slightest progress toward naturaliza- tion or amalgamation with the party governed. We are aliens in blood, in manners, in language, and in religion ; 15* 178 INDIAlSr POPULATION, RELIGION", ETC. can-ying on the administration of 80,000,000 of people, and exercising a control over 50,000,000 more, at a dis- tance of 12,000 miles. The local government is purely- vicarial, and the essential administration rests with men residing at a vast distance, wno never saw the country, and who have no actual knowledge of its manners and institutions. These men themselves are perpetually changing, and look upon Indian affairs as matters of very secondary importance to domestic and European politics. The local governments, instead of being responsible to the parties whose administration they conduct, are only amenable for their acts to their political friends in Europe, while the affaii-s of India are too complex; too extensive, and too remote, to be understood by, or, for the most part, to excite any interest in, the people and parliament of England. In India, generally, the acts of the local government are secretly prepared, without con- sulting or attempting to conciliate the parties for whom the laws are made." However true and just these state- ments may be, there is another side to the picture more pleasing to contemplate. The American Board, in their report for 1846, say : — " It is a deeply interesting fact, that the British gov- ernment in India is almost every year assuming a more Christian character, and adopting a more humane and liberal policy. The declaration of the government now is, that it is not pledged to support Hindooism ; that the principle which guides it is, that all religions professed by its subjects shall be equally tolerated and protected; and that, contrary to what has, till recently, been the law of the land, the Hindoos may embrace Christianity, and break caste, without the forfeiture of property, or any of his civil rights and immunities. On this principle the government is going steadily forward, suppressing those MISSIONS, RELIGION, ETC. 179 disgusting and inhiuman rites connected with Hindooism which \\ar upon society, correcting the abuses which have grown up under the unnatural state of things which has long prevailed in India, encouraging education, the arts and usages of more eflhghtened nations, and giving Christian truth free scope to exert its purifying and ele- vating power over the mind. In this manner God is breaking down barriers, and opening the way for the spread of the gospel in India." MISSIONARY AND SCHOOL STATISTICS OF INDIA. The following table shows the date of the commence- ment of the labors of each society of India, the number of stations, missionaries, assistants, churches, communi- cants, schools, and scholars. BOCIETIES. Bapt. Jlissionary Society (Eng.,) London Missionary Society, .... American Bo.ii-cl of Missions,. . Church Blissionary Society, .... TVesIeyan Jlissionary Society, . . Society for propagating the gos- pel in foreign ports, General Baptist Miss. Society,. . Church of Scotland, Free Church of Scotland, American Presbyterian Board,. Basic Missionary Society, American Baptist Union, Free-Will Baptist Society, "Welsh Calvinistio Methodists,.. Irish Presbyterian Church, .... Berlin Missionary Society, Leipsio Missionary Society, Methodist Episcopal Church Mis- sion, (American,) Totals, 1793 1804 1812 181.S 1817 1818 — 1822 — ISiSj 3 182'.l! 6 1834 13 1834| 16 18:1, 1836 1810 1811 1843 3.5 184 380 1 B 2 1 i s 3 g a e 1 E < e S CO s:. 1,412 43 2,345 i:!Si 23 1,024 44 8,919 106 16 541 127 3,800 1,002 —. 5,815 526 17,873 21 — 428 20 1,183 1G6 4,629 _ 5,500 10 255 — 2,932 3 — 2,375 4 — — 7,030 28 — 266 — 2,900 .39 — 487 24 3,555 3 1 9 2 63 71 — 47 — 151 , 28 1 _ 1 21 1 GT — 2,152 — 890 — — — 1 .674 40 ., 787 m .. ■ 180 MISSIONS, EELIGieW, ETC. BAPTIST MISSIONARY SOCIETY, (.EnffUsh.) Was commenced in 1793, and the first church was formed at Mudnahatty, in 1795. The following is the number of stations, &c., according to the report of 1853. 4) a u No. of members. s* CALCUTTA DISTRICT. Circular Road,. Lai Bazar, Haura, Colinga, Narsikdaohoke, Khari, .... Lakhyantipore, . Intally, Duwr Dum, Malyapur, BENGAL METRICT. Seramapore, . CatWa, Jessore, Dinagpoor, . . Dacca, Luri, Bursal, Chittagong, . . 1801 1808 1809 1818 1829 1824 1829 1830 1839 1817 1842 1799 1804 1804 1805 181 1818 1828 1817 15 NORTHERN INDIA. Monghir, . . . Benares, . . . Delhi, Agra, Muttra, . . . . Nishturpur, . Cawnpoi'e,. . Totals, 40 121 35 231 18 32 35 65 50 31 230 70 25 30 650 50 112 100 35 85 480 932 1598 43 5 77 THE MISSIONS OF THE AMERICAN BOARD In India have been of long standing, (commenced in 1812,) and have been eminently successful. They now MISSIONS, RELIGION", ETC. 181 occupy seven distinct fields, viz., — Bombay, Ahmednug- GQR, Sattarah, Kolapoor, Maduka, Madras, and Aecot. BosiBAY Mission, (1812.) Ahmednuggue Mis- sions, first occu- , pied December."^ (1812.) Comprises I station, Bombay. 2 missionaries and 2 female assistant missionaries. <" 4 stations, viz., Ahmednuggur, Sevoor Khokar, and Waydale : 1 1 out-stations, Bokhxir, Chanday, Ded- ganus, Bhingar, Shingvay, Shindee, Shergaum, Berdapur, Kinnay, Ne- wase, Kelgaum. 5 missionaries, 6 female assistant missionaries, 2 na- ^tive pastors, and 29 helpers. C 2 stations, viz., Sattarah and Sattarah Mission, J Malcom Peth. 2 missionaries, 2 (1851.) ] female assistant missionaries, and 1 (^native helper. ' 1 station, Kolapoor. 1 mission- ; ary and 1 female assistant mission- i ary. '' 10 stations, viz., Madura, Ma- LUR, DiNDIGUL, BaTTALAGUNDU, Us- ulumputty, Peeiaculum, Trumdn- GALUM, PaSUMALIE, MaNDAHASALIE, TiRUPuvANUM, and Siraguna. 12 missionaries, 12 female assistant missionaries, 2 native pastors, 99 ^helpers, and 74 teachers. f 2 stations, viz., Chintadrepettah J and Royapdram. 2 missionaries, 1 ) male and 2 female assistant mis- l^sionaries, and 3 native helpers. 4 stations, viz., Vellore, Giiit- pooR, Arnee, Coonook, and 1 out- <^ station at Arcot. 5 missionaries, 1 physician, 5 female assistant mis- sionaries, 4 helpers, and 5 teachers. Kolapoor Mission, (1852.) Madura Mission, (1834.) Madras Mission, (1836.) Argot Mission, (1850.) 182 MISSIONS, EELIGIO: t, ETC. LONDON MISSIONARY SOCIETY. Commenced its operations in India, in 1804. Below is a tabular of stations, &c., according to a late report. Madras, .... Visagapatam, Ciiddapah, . . Belgaurrij . . . BcUary, . . . . Bangalore, . . Mysore, . . . . Salem, Combaoonum, Coimbatore, . Nagercoil, . . Neyoor, . . . . Quilon, Trevandrum, Calcutta, .... Chinsurah, . . Berhampore, Benares, .... Mirzapore, . . Mahi Kantha, Almora, .... Totals, . 1805 1804 1892 1820 1810 1820 1839 1827 1830 1830 1806 1828 1821 1838 1816 1813 1824 1820 1838 1844 1850 47I 23 133 34 10 8,919 875 149 261 162 480 370 112 151 365 971 1,669 1,592 281 163 1,225 100 53 502 84 FREE-WILL BAPTIST MISSIONARY SOCIETY. The first mission of this society was commenced in 1836. Ministers. Teachers, Okissa. ' Sumbhulpore,. Balasore, Jellasore, Mldnapore, . . . Sautepur, Totals,'.. 1S36 1837 1810 1841 1852 115 13 13 47 141 MISSIOJSft, KELIGIOX, ETC. 183 CHURCH MISSIONARY SOCIETY. Commenced its labors in India, in 1815. The present number of stations is set forth in the following tabular view. STATIONS OR DISTRICTS. Calcutta district, Burdwan district, Krlslin.Tgur district,. . . Bhagulpur, Benares, Jaunpore, Gorruckpore, Agra, Meerut, Himalaya, Punjaub, Bombay, Nasik, Junia and Malligaura, . Sinde Mad ras, Tinnevelly district, Travancore district, . . . Teloogoo, Totals, . cj .2 ■O 'in !■= O c 2 1 o k4 n « E 1 1 5 " & 1816 3 1 '50 IS 1817 1 — 20 10 1831 S 12 101 49 18,50 1 a 2 4 1817 1 10 38 8 1831 1 2 IS 5 1823 2 2 S 4 1813 9 7 29 10 1815 1 2 9 3 1844 1 2 li 4 1852 1 2 — 1820 1 6 17 20 1832 1 1 3 6 184G 2 2 fi 1850 1 5 — 1815 1 9 23 12 1817 12 29 493 280 181G 6 13 122 76 1841 1 6 23 4 47 119 966 526, 1,978 623 2,181 178 808 428 289 509 98 86 1,433 323 187 540 7,963 2,208 169 LEIPSIC MISSIONARY SOCIETY. The Lutheran missionary society, at Leipsic, has 8 sta- tions in South India; for details of which see table below. Tranquebar, . . Tirumenjanam, Vorreiar, Mayaveram, . . Madras, Pudueottah, . . . Trichinopoly,... Tanjore, Totals,. . . . 184 MISSIONS, RELIGI®]Sr, ETC. WESLEYAN MISSIONARY SOCIETY. Was established in 1817. Below we furnish a tabular view of the stations, &c., according to last report. PRINCIPAL STATIONS OH CIRCUITS, MADRAS DISTRICT. Madras, Negapatam, Manaargoody, ) Trichinopoly, ) Bangalore, (Tamil,) MYSORE DISTRICT. Bangalore, (Canarese,) . . Mysore, Goobbee and Toomkoor,. . Coonghul Totals, Cm fS r.^ Srt b'-S t^ If .2 ffi :Si a H K.S 4 3 3 1 2 . 2 4 — 3 1 4 — 1 1 4 1 1 5 5 2 3 3 — 1 1 1 — I 1 ] — 15 17 20 2 3 O I— r U £•3 250 149 119 123 — 300 106 136 1,183 SOCIETY FOR THE PROPAGATION OP THE GOSPEL. This society commenced its operations in India in 1818. The first great work of the society was the foundation of a missionary college near Calcutta. The missions in the vicinity of Calcutta, in 1850, embraced 113 villages, 26 chapels, 7 schools, 55 readers and schoolmasters, and 2,459 baptized persons. In 1841, a branch mission was established at Cawnpore, — and missions, under the auspi- ces of this society have been established at Madras and Bombay. The missionaries belonging to this society number 48, with 166 assistants. GENERAL BAPTIST MISSIONARY SOCIETY. The labors of this society commenced in India in 1822, and the following are the names of the stations, with the date of commencement. Cuttack, 1822; Poree, 1823; Balasore, 1827; Berhampore, — -; Midnap*re, 1836; Gan- jam, 1840; Khunditta, 1840; Piplee, 1849; Choga, 1843. MISSION'S, RELIGION, ETC. 185 AMERICAN PRESBYTERIAN' MISSION. The missions of tlie Presbyterian Board in India were commenced in 1843. Tiie following are the names of missions, stations, &c., in 1857. LODIANA. Allaha- bad. NAMES OF STATIONS. Lodiana, . . . Saharunpui', Sabathu, Ambala, .. . . .Jalandar, . . . Lahore, . . . . Dchra 1834 183G 1836 1S48 1R4T 18,50 18.i3 Rawal Pindi, ' 1 S5.) Roorkee, Peshawar, Futteghur, Mynpurie, Agra, Allahabad, Futtehguhr, Baada, Totals,. 1856 IS.57 1838 1843 1846 1836 1852 1853 MissionarieG Teachers &c. 51 39 398 86 250 2~9 400 1.55 20 16 475 135 360 863 124 144 3,555 CHURCH OF SCOTLAND. The Established Church of Scotland has three mis- sions in India; viz., Bombay, established in 1828; Cal- cutta, 1830; and Madras, in 1836. FREE CHURCH OF SCOTLAND. Commenced their labors in the missionary cause, in 1830, at Calcutta, and a branch station at Chinsurah. The mission at Madras was commenced in 1835, and has 4 branch schools ; viz., at Treplecane, Conjererane, Chighput, and Nellore. The Bombay mission was com- menced in 1828, and there are stations at Poonah and Nagpore. 16 186 MISSIONS, EELIGION, ETC. BASLE MISSIONARY SOCIETY. The missions under the ^spices of this society were commenced in 1834. The table below will give an idea of the extent of their labors. .1 .A S B ■s o s o JS m 1834 7 5 138 2 1845 1 3 25 — 1845 — — — — . 1837 2 — 25 6 1839 — — 2 7 1841 2 — 2 8 1841 1 2 3 1 1841 2 8 202 — 1839 2 3 26 — 1849 1 2 23 — 1842 2 3 34 — 1846 4 1 7 — 1847 2 1 — — 28 28 487 24 Canarese. South Maiiratta. Malayalim. Catery. . Bengal., Mangalore, . . Mooiky, Honore, Dharwar, . . . . Hoobly, Bettiglierry, . . Malsamoodra, Gannanore, . . Pellioherry, . . Chombala, ... Calicut, Catery, Dayapore, . . . 190 412 330 321 18 220 387 58 336 81 Totals, BERLIN MISSIONARY SOCIETY. The Berlin society for evangelizing the heathen established a mission at Ghazipore, in 1843, with 4 missionaries. AMERICAN BAPTIST SIISSIONARY SOCIETY. This mission was established among the Teloogoos, in 1835, and had, in 1854, 2 missionaries, 2 female assist- ants and 1 native assistant, 2 schools, and 63 pupils. WELSH CALVINISTIC METHODIST MISSIONARY SOCIETY. This society commenced its labors in 1840. It has 2 stations, (north-west from Calcutta;) viz., Cherrahunji, formed in 1840, and one at Sylhet, founded in 1850. IRISH PRESBYTERIAN MISSION. The Irish Presbyterian Church established a mission in India, in 1841, and occupied stations, (north of Bombay ;) viz., Rajkote, Gogo, and Surat. MISSIONS, EELIGION, ETC. 187- METHODIST EPISCOPAL CHURCH MISSIONARY SOCIETY, (Mmericrm.) Established a mission at Bj^reilly, in , and has 3 missionaries connected with it. The present state and future prospects of the missionary ivork in India is graphically set forth in a letter from the venerable Dr. Scudder, extracts from which follow : — "Madras, April 6th, 1854, " * * India, as a field of missionary labor, is very different from what it was a few years ago. * * * Now the missionary may enter any part of India. Within the last few years other changes of a very important na- ture, have also taken place. I. " In the educational department. '• The IMarquis of Hastings' government forms the brightest page in the history of Indian improvement, after a long chapter of dark and dismal proceedings. It gave that impulse to the cause of civilization, of which we are now reaping the benefits. When he first came to India, in 1813, he found the press in the hands of a censor, who struck out whatever he pleased. He found that every attempt to impart knowledge to the people, and to give them the means of mental or social elevation, had not only been neglected, but discouraged ; that the British empire in India was considered stable in exact proportion to the ignorance of the inhabitants. The only educational effort made in the reign of his prede- cessor was a proposal by Lord Minto to set up two or three colleges to teach the Sanscrit language, and the science of the Shasters, and the morality of Hindooism ; but not the remotest idea was ever entertained of un- locking to the natives the treasures of the English lan- guage, or disseminating knowledge through their own tongue. This system Lord Hastings was the first to break through. He gave every encouragement, private "188 MISSIONARY PEOSPECTS, ETC. an;3 public, to the establishment of schools and colleges. Undef his auspices, the -Calcutta School Society, the School-Book Society, the Hindoo College, and other in- stitutions, sprung into being. He also abolished the censorship of the press, with a full knowledge that the general feeling among the directors and proprietors at the India House, was against any relaxation of the re- strictions on the press. That he met with opposition to his views in India, will appear from the following circum- stance. An article appeared in the quarterly series of the Friend of India, on the burning of widows, in which the propriety of abolishing this rite was advocated with a degree of temper and moderation suited to the circum- stances of the times ;, but which gave such offense to Mr. Adams, afterward our temporary governor-general, that he took it to the council-chamber, and insisted on a suppression of the work, which Lord Hastings positively refused to sanction. " After the censorship of the press had been taken off, the court of directors showed their opposition to what Lord Hastings had done by the preparation of a dis- patch, directing the imposition of the censorship again, which, however, George Canning nobly refused to sanc- tion. "I just alluded to the opposition which was formerly made by the India government to the education of the natives. The revei'se of this now obtains. So anxious are they to confer this benefit upon them, that they have offered to contribute their money for the support of those schools which are taught by the missionaries, and ' of course in which Christianity is taught. "When speaking of the Marquis of Hastings, I re- ferred you to Mr. Adams, who thought that the Friend of India should be suppressed, because it had ventured 189 to suggest the propriety uf abolishing the burning of widows on the funeral pile. Ey contrasting his conduct with that of Lord Bentinck and Lord Hardinge, we shall at once see how much the views of the politicians of India have in a short period changed for the better. Lord Bentinck abolished the suttee throughout the British pos- sessions of Lidia, and Lord Hardinge made great exer- tions to have it abolished in the dominions of the native princes, not under British jurisdiction. And his labors were attended with great success. He returned to Eng- land, six or seven years ago, crowned with many worldly honors. But he has other honors — honors of a higher nature than these. He went heme with the satisfaction of having lessened, in no small degree^ the horrors of heathenism, in regions embracing a population of no less than twenty millions. This will appear from the follow- ing notice : 'The Calcutta Gazette contains a proclama- tion by Maharajah Golaut Singh, prohibiting infanticide, suttee, and slavery, throughout his territories, forming the remotest Hindo principality of India. The governor- general, as will be seen, directs his thanks to be con- veyed to a long list — twenty-three in number — of poten- tates, Vk'ho during the last three years, have cordially en- tered into the views of the British government in sup- pressing such practices. Those edicts are estimated to effect not less than twenty millions of human creatures.' " Such innovations as Lord Hardinge has been instru- mental in making on the sacred customs of the Hindoos, among the independent governments of India, will be the rneans of pulling many a stone from that fabric, which they have, in times past, considered to be as stable as the heavens. Under such circumstances, the missionary may go forth and labor among them, Avith a much better pro<5pect of success than he would otherwise obtain. 10* 190 NATIVE SECTS, CUSTOMS, ETC. "As I before remarked, Lord Hardinge left, the country six or seven years ago. He left it much too soon for India's good. Had he remained his full time, to say nothing of any thing else, the burning of widows would perhaps now be unknown here. Previously to his leav- ing, however, he left his protest against the conduct of those powers which had not abolished the rite — a protest which may issue in great good. It is as follows : ' The governor-general abstains on this occasion from promi- nently noticing those states in which these barbarous usages are still observed, as he confidently expects, at no distant day, to hear of the complete renunciation of them in every state in alliance with, or under the protection of, the paramount power of India.' II. "Infanticide has been very extensively suppressed. You can scarcely imagine to what a frightful extent this crime has prevailed. Among the Nairs in Mulwa, in Oude, and the northern provinces, it is impossible to cal- culate what number of infants have, in the times which have gone by, been put to death. A gentleman of the Bengal service, was sent by the government through the northern and independent kingdoms to find out the num- ber. In the provinces through which he passed, the principal chiefs acknowledged that they had murdered many of their children, and that they knew their neighbors had destroyed many of theirs, and that this rite was rooted in the affections of the people. * * * " As you are aware, the Punjaub has lately been brought under British rule. Since this event took place, the fact has been brought to light that infanticide has been practiced extensively there. In the latter part of the year 1851, 'Major Lake found it to prevail in the district of which he had charge. Soon afterward it was found to prevail in Umballa, Ferozepore, Jallundar, XATIVE SECTS, CCSTOilS, ETC. 191 Hooshearpore, Lahore, Mooltan, Jhelum, and Leia dis- tricts. It is not, iiowever, practiced by all the inhabi- tants. It is confined principally to the Bedees and the Rajpoots, among whom the custom is one of immemorial antiquity. The Khetees, however, and even some Mohammedan tribes maintain the practice ; and the higher the rank the more certain are the female branches of destruction. It is believed, also, by the most experi- enced officers, to have infected all classes in a gi'eater or less degree. All over the Punjaub there is a dispropor- tion in the number of female births not to be accounted for by ordinary causes ; and in certain districts this dis- proportion rises to such a height as almost to imply the extinction of the female race.' This subject came under the notice of our present governor-general. Earl Dal- housie, several months ago, and if this practice has not yet been put down, as it has been put down in other places, it must soon come to an end. III. "One of the most appalling religious sects which ever appeared in any country, has been nearly, if not en- tirely destroyed. Allow me to give you a short descrip- tion of this sect, from a work vi'hich now lies before me. Scattered throughout India there is a lawless set of men, whose profession it is to get their food by murder. They are called Phansiagars, or Thugs ; they owe their origin and Ifiws to the bloody goddess Karle ; they say that she directed them to become murderers and plunderers; they are called Phansiagars, from the name of the instru- ment which they use when they murder people. Phan- siagar means a strangle, and they use a phansi or noose, which they throw over the necks of those whom they intend to plunder, and strangle them. These Phansiagars are composed of all castes, Hindoos, IMohamemdans, Pariahs, and Chandellars. This arises from the circum- 192 NATIVE SECTS, CUSTOMS, ETC. «£ stance that they never destroy the children of those whom they rob and mur'der. These children they take care of, and bring them up to their own horrible mode of life. The always murder those whom they rob, acting upon the. maxim, ' that dead men tell no tales.' A gang of these robbers varies from a dozen to sixty or seventy persons. These divide into small parties. Those whom they murder are travelers whom they hap- pen to meet on the road. Sometimes two or three of a gang will take up their station in a choultry, or place where the traveler stops, and while he sleeps they rouse him from his sleep, and cast the noose over his head, and kill him. It takes two persons to kill a man. One casts the noose over his head, and immedi- ately tightens it with all his strength ; the other strikes him on the joints of the knees as he rises, which causes him to fall backward. After he has fallen, they kick him on the temple till he dies, which is usually in a minute. They never commit a murder until they have taken every precaution not to be found out. They will follow a traveler for weeks if necessary, before they destroy him. After they have murdered him, they gash the body all over, and bury it. They gash it that it may not swell, and cause cracks on the ground, which might cause the jackalls to dig down to the body, and thus expose their guilt. If a dog accompanies the person, they always kill it, lest the faithful creature should lead to the dis- covery of the master. They think it a very good act to give a part of the plunder, which they get when they murder a person, to their goddess. If they fail to put him to death, according to tbeir rules, thejr suppose that they have made her angry, and they make offerings to her, that she may be appeased. Thus, their religion teaches them to commit the blackest of crimes. NATIVE SECTS, CUSTOMS, ETC. 1,93 " The reason why this people gash and bury the bodies of those whom they murder is as follows : They say that the goddess used to save them the trouble of buiying the corpses of their victims by eating them, thus securing the murderers from all chance of being found out. Once, after the murder of a traveler, the body was, as usual, left unburied. One of the Phansiagars employed, un- guardedly looking behind him, saw the goddess in tiie act of feasting on it. This made her so angry, that she vowed never again to devour a body slaughtered by them, they having, by this one act of curiosity, forfeited her favor. However, as an equivalent for withdrawing her patronage, she plucked one of the fangs from her celes- tial jaw, and gave it to them, saying that they might use it as a pick-ase, which would never wear out. She opened her side, and pulled out one of her ribs, which she gave them for a knife, whose edge nothing could blunt. Having done this, she stooped down and tore off the hem of her garment which she gave them for a noose, declar- ing that it would never fail to strangle any person about whose throat it might be cast. She, moreover, com- manded them to gash and bury the bodies of those whom they desti'oyed. " The Phansiagars bring up their children to their own profession. To learn this, the boy is placed under the care of a tutor. Sometimes his father is the teacher. By him he is taught that it is just as proper to murder a man, as it is to kill a snake which lies in his path, and would bite him as he passes. He is not permitted at first to see the murders, but merely a dead body ; his mind being gradually prepared for the sight. After this, the dreadful secret of his trade is, by degrees, told him. When he expresses a wish to be engaged in this horrid business, they tell him all about it. In the mean time, he 1&4: NATIVE SECTS, CUSTOMS, ETC. .ff is allowed a small part of the plunder, in order that his desire to commit these murders may be increased, as it is only by mui'der that the plunder is obtained. He is allowed, from time to time, to assist in some things while the murder is taking place ; or is allowed to be present to see how the business is managed. It is not, however, until he becomes a man, that he is permitted to apply the noose. To attain this privilege, he usually devotes eight or ten years. Before he can commit a murder, his tutor must present him with a noose. This sets him loose upon the world, as a licensed murderer. When the tutor is about to give him the noose, he takes him apart, and solemnly enjoins it upon him to use it with skill, as it is to be the means of his earning his food, and as his safety will depend upon the skill with which it is used. After he receives it, he tries his skill in strangling a per- son, the first opportunity that occurs. " By the course of education which the Phansiagars undergo, they become so fond of their dreadful occupa- tion, that nothing can induce them to quit it. Some who have been employed in the East India Company's service have shown this, by returning to their business when an opportunity offered of successful enterprise. When the Phansiagars become old, they do not quit the service, but act as watchers, and decoy the traveler, by some false tale of distress, into some distant place, where he is murdered. " Women are sometimes admitted to the society of these plunderers, and on some occasions are allowed to apply the noose. They select a handsome girl, and place her in a convenient spot, where, by her beauty, or by a false story of distress, she may decoy some unsuspecting traveler, and be the means of his destruction. Should he be on horseback, she will induce him to take her up behind him ; after which, when an opportunity offers, she NATIVE SECTS, CUSTOMS, ETC. 195 throws the noose over his head, leaps from the horse, drags him to the ground, and strangles him. IV. " A stop has been put, in a good degree, to the Meriah sacrifices in the extensive hill-tracts of Orissa. It was not until the military operations of the British took place in Upper and Lower Goomsoor, in 1836 and 1837, and the cruel rite of immolating human beings, in these places, was brought to light ; and it was not until that time that the first victims, destined for sacrifice, were taken from them. Captain Miller was the honored instru- ment in rescuing them. They were twelve in number. His services were acknowledged in the following manner by the Madras government : ' Captain Miller will realize in his own mind an ample reward for his most commend- able conduct, in having rescued twelve victims destined to those horrible sacrifices, as the gratifying reflection of having been the means of saving so many human beings from a cruel and untimely death, can not fail, at all times, to be a source of genuine happiness to him. The dis- cretion, however, with which he continued to eflTect his humane purpose, is entitled to the warmest and most un- qualified approbation of government.' In the year 1838, Captain Campbell rescued a much larger number. He writes, ' I have been most fortunate in my late expedi- tion among the wild Khunds of Goomsoor, and have rescued no less than one hundred and three children of various ages, who were intended for sacrifices by these barbarians. The children are now at head-quarters, and form a most interesting group : happy, such of them as were aware of their situation, in having escaped the fate which awaited them.' I am acquainted with Captain MacViccar, who is one of the British agents ' for the suppression of human sacrifices and female infanticide in the hill-tracts of Orissa.' I learned from him that the 196 NATIVE SECTS, CUSTOMS, ETC. whole number of victims who had been rescued, up to the time when I saw him, from those hill- tracts, amounted to more than 1,900. Of these, no less than 500 were rescued by himself and his assistant, Captain Frye, in the course of a few months. Since my interview with Captain MacViccar, which was in the year 1851, other victims have been rescued. " There are vai-ious tribes inhabiting the extensive hill- districts to which I have been alluding, and their manner of offering up these sacrifices have been various also. Let me give you a few quotations from a little book be- fore me, to show how the Khunds were in the habit of offering up their victims. ' When the day, which had been appointed for the sacrifice, arrives, the Khunds as- semble from all parts of the country, dressed in their finery ; some with bear skins thrown over -their should- ers, others with the tails of peacocks flowing behind them, and the long, winding feather of the jungle-cock waving over their heads. Thus decked, they dance, leap, rejoice, beat drums, and play on an instrument not unlike in sound to the Highland pipe. In the afternoon, tbe priest, with the aid of an assistant, proceeds to fasten a man or a woman, or a boy or a girl to a post, which has been firmly fixed in the ground. Around this post stand hundreds of those Kurds, with knives in their hands. At an appointed signal they rush upon the poor creature, and try who can cut the first piece of flesh from his bones. Great value is attached to the first morsel cut out from his body, as it is supposed to possess greater virtues. This is buried in the earth before sunset.' " In Guddapore a different sacrifice precedes this. A trench, seven feet long, is dug, over which a human body is suspended alive, by the neck and feet, which are fas- tened with ropes to stakes firmly fixed in the ground, at NATIVE SECTS, CUSTOMS, ETC. 197 each end of the excavation, so that, to prevent strangu- lation, he is compelled to support himself with his hands over each side of his grave. The presiding priest, after performing various ceremonies in honor of their goddess, takes an axe, and inflicts six cuts, at equal distances, from the feet to the back of the neck, repeating the num- bers, one, two, three, and so forth, — Rondi, Rendi, Mun- gee, Nalge, Chingi; Sajgi, — and at the seventh, Argi, cuts off his head. The body falls into the pit, and is covered with earth. "Captain MacViccar gave me an account of other districts, where these sacrifices are performed in a differ- ent manner. ' Some destroy their victims by heavy blows from the metal bangles, which they purchase at the fairs, and wear on these occasions. If the poor creature is not killed by two or three of these heavy blows in- flicted on his head, they strangle him with a cleft bam- boo, which they slip over his neck. Others destroy their victims by placing them on the ground, bound hand and foot, with their faces downward, and by throwing large stones violently on the back of their necks, until life be- comes extinct. '' 'In Patna the people do not use much of the flesh of their victims, frequently none at all. In some districts they cut out the liver, in others the lungs, and after chopping them up in small pieces, bury them. It is cus- tomary among some tribes to draw a cup full of blood from the body, and each family takes a little of it, and sprinkles it on the floor of their houses. While doing this they implore blessings on their households, and on their fields.' " The victims whom the Khunds sacrifice are gener- ally bought or stolen from the low country, and sold to them. Sometimes they escape from their owners, and 17 198 NATIVE SECTS, CUSTOMS, ETC. thus are saved from death. After the arrival of the British troops in the Khund country, a-female found her way to the collectors' camp, with fetters on her legs. She had escaped from those who had charge of her, and said that she had been sold by her own brother, for the pur- pose of being sacrified. I will mention the case of an- other individual who escaped from the Khunds, and this case is the more interesting from the circumstance that he had gone back to the hills to assist in estabhshing and superintending schools. His name is Joy Sing. He had witnessed one of these sacrifices by stealth. He had seen a child put in the cleft of a small tree, which had been split for the purpose. He had seen how the child vras held fast in that position, by the split parts of the tree having closed upon its body ; and while it was thus secured, he had seen the flesh cut from its bones. We shall not wonder, therefore, that he was filled with horror at the thought of meeting such a doom. Neither shall we wonder at his determination to make the very last possible effort to free himself from the hands of his intended murderers. The effort was made, but it was, at first, unsuccessful. After traveling for two days through the jungle, he was recaptured by his owners, and put in irons. His courage, however, did not fail. He deter- mined to make another attempt to escape, though he could only crawl along, in consequence of the irons on his legs. Thus fettered, he traveled for two days and two nights, and when he had just reached the foot of the mountains he again espied those who were in pursuit of him. Providentially, Captain Miller, of whom I have already spoken, had encamped near the place where he was. To this encampment he hastened with all the speed which he could command, scarcely daring to look behind him, and happily he reached it in safety. On his KATIVE SECTS, CUSTOMS, ETC. 199 arrival he endeavored to make known his tale of woe by his looks and his tears, and those looks and tears spoke a language which this officer could not misunderstand. His irons were taken off, and he was once more free. " Of the children rescued from the Khunds and others, many have been sent, by the British government, to mis- sionary schools. Connected with a station, about ten fliiles distant from the first range of mountains inhabited by the Khunds, there are two schools, one for the boys and the other for the girls, who have been rescued from this wretched people. * * * V. "The law which declares that a native shall forfeit his paternal inheritance by becoming a Christian has been abrogated. This was a most formidable obstacle to the spread of Christianity in this land, and I need hardly add that this abrogation is a very powerful blow to Hin- dooism. VI. "Caste, the greatest obstacle to the spi-ead of Christianity in India, has in some degree been put down. The government do not acknowledge it in the army. The Pariahs and the Bramins are made to stand side by side when employed on duty. The government also disre- gard it in their educational institutions. Vn. " In the courts the practice of swearing is in some places changed, the Bible being substituted for the water of the Ganges ; or the witnesses make only a declaration that they will speak the truth. I need hardly add that all such changes are undermining the faith of this people. " I have now mentioned a few things to show you that India is in a much better condilion for the promotion of missionary labor than it was when you and I com- menced life ; and if we further take into consideration the patronage and support which missionaries receive in their work from the British government, what greater 200 ' CAUSES OF THE LATE REVOLT. encouragements can Christians at home need to make this land a prominent field for their exertions? This latter consideration should not be overlooked. I ha^v»e again and again said that if we were not under the pro- tection of this government, our lives would not be safe — humanly speaking — for an hour." With regard to the report that the revolt was mainly- caused by the missionaries, The London Quarterly Review, for October, has the following remarks on this subject : — " The rehgious scruple pretended by the mutineers at once gave the handle, so readily seized, for throwing the blame of the outbreak on the Christian missionaries and societies. Lord Ellenborough, backed by Lord Lans- downe, in the House of Lords, pronounced it incredible that Lord Canning should have given his subscription to a mission society, (whose sphere, it turns out, was con- fined to the European Christians of Calcutta,) and implied that it was enough to account for the mutiny had he done so; and that he would certainly merit to be recalled. It was said that we had offended the natives by forcing Christian education upon them, and had brought the au- thority of government to bear upon native conversion. The law lately passed, by which a convert from Hindoo- ism was saved from the entire loss of property, to which he was subject under the old Hindoo law, was alledged by Mr. D'Israeli as 'a pernicious and tyrannous innova- tion. But the course of events soon cleared off this line of argument. Though the missionaries at Delhi, and Cawnpore, and elsewhere, fell in the indiscriminate slaughter of Europeans, there was no special animosity exhibited either against their persons or their quarters. In some places, as at Meerut, the missionary bungalow was spared in the general ruin ; at Jaunpore, it was CAUSES OF THE LATE REVOLT. 201 burnt in cold blood by a roof-maker, to get himself a job. In the Punjaub, and in Benares, the preachers and teach- ers have already recommenced their services and schools, and the natives attend them. So far from the Bengal sepoy being the object of missionary propagandism, the only known baptized sepoy in the army was, in 1819, dismissed on that very account ; neither is there a single missionary station in Oude, the hot-bed of the revolt. The chief fields of missionary effort and success are in the south of India, which is the quietest part of all. The Mohammedans, doubtless, hate as well as fear the advance of Christianity ; but the Hindoo has never opposed our preachers. Our missionaries have never met with such treatment in the native bazars as Wesley and Whitefield did in the market-places of England. It is well known that the ministers of Christianity are generally treated with perfect indifference by the self-righteous Bramins. They wonder rather at the ignorance of the preacher than dread his success. But the mass of the people can appreciate the self-denial and devoted ness of the mission- ary, and only set themselves against the aggressions of force, or fraud, or law, on their faith. No doubt the bigoted Moslem, and even the supine Hindoo, saw symp- toms of advancing light. Even in the government schools the pupils might learn that the earth did not rest on a tortoise's back. The railroads, the electric tele- graph, the gas, — all told of innovation and strange power. The abolition of suttee, of infanticide, of Thuggee, of self-immolation, of Juggernaut abominations, the discon- tinuance of grants to heathen temples, and of salutes in honor of their idolatrous services, the permission of widows to marry, the preservation of their property to converts, — all moral conquests from the strongholds of superstition and injustice, and each, of itself, in the eyes 17* 202 MISSIONARY LOSSES BY THE MUTINY. of old Indians, sufficient , to create a revolution, — had gradually been effected ; the English, and in several cases the Christian, education of native princes was advancing ; Our own Queen had welcomed her royal Indian god- children to her own court ; in a word, for the first time since our occupation of India, British civilization was beginning to tell, and the Bramin and the Moslem might equally see that, unless a blow was now struck, their chance of present power was setting, and their past beyond recovery. It is said that the moolahs had marked a century as the term of English rule : it is certain the Mussulmans have never let go the hope of regaining their ascendancy ; and it is now said tliat prayers have been regularly and constantly offered up in their mosques for the restoration of the royal house of Delhi. Bishop Heber, in his time, said that, if a fair opportunity offered, the Mussulmans would gladly avail themselves of it to rise against us, but more from political than religious feeling." MISSIONARY LOSSES BY THE MUTINY. The Calcutta correspondent of The N on- Conformist gives the following statement of the losses incurred by the Christian missions in Upper India, drawn up carefully from the best sources of information, and though at present but a rough estimate, it is rather under the truth than above it : — MISSIONARIES KILLED. The Rev. J. E. Freeman, Futteghur, American Pres- byterian Mission, and wife. The Rev. D. E. Campbell, Futteghur, American Pres- byterian Mission, wife and two children. The Rev. A. O. Johnson, Futteghur, American Pres- byterian Mission, and wife. MISSIONARY LOSSES BY THE MUTINY. 205 The Rev. R. MaeMuUin, Futteghur, American Pres- byterian Mission, and wife. The Rev. W. H. Haycocit, Cawnpore, Propagation Society. The Rev. H. Cockey, Cawnpore, Propagation Society. The Rev. T. MacKay, Delhi, Baptist Missionary So- ciety. The Rev. A. R. Hubbard, Delhi, Propagation Society. The Rev. D. Sandys, Delhi, Propagation Society. The Rev. R. Hunter, Sealkote, Scotch Kirk. The Rev. J. MacCullum, Shahjehanpore, Additional Clergyman. LADIES AND CHILDREN KILLED. Mrs. Haycock : Mrs. Cockey ; Mrs. Freeman ; Mrs. Campbell, with two children ; Mrs. Johnson ; Mrs. Mae- MuUin; Mrs. Hunter; Mrs. Thompson, of Delhi, widow of the Rev. T. Thompson ; Miss Thompson ; Miss Grace Thompson. MISSION PROPERTY DESTROYED. Chhota Nagpore — Berlin Mission ; loss f 6,000. Bxar and Gyr — Berlin Mission ; loss $500. Azimghur — Church Missionary Society; loss $1,000. Jaunpore — Church Missionary Society ; loss $5,000. Goruckpore — Church Missionary Society ; loss $3,500. Allahabad — American Presbyterian Mission ; loss 805,000. Futtehpore — American Presbyterian Mission ; loss $4,000. Banda — American Presbyterian Mission; loss $1,000. Cawnpore — Propagation Society ; loss $10,000. Futteghur — American Presbyterian Mission; loss $25,000. Mijnpoorie — American Presbyterian Mission; loss $2,000. 206 MISSIONARY LOSSES BY THE MUTINY. Agra — American Presbyterian Mission ; loss $9,000. Bible and Tract Society ; loss #6,000. " Baptist Missionary Society ; loss $3,500. Church Missionary Society ; loss $150,000. Muttra — Baptist Missionary Society ; loss $2,500. Chitaura— Baptist Mission ; loss $6,000. Delhi — Propagation Society ; loss $6,000. Baptist Mission ; loss $7,000. Lodiana — American Presbyterian Mission ; loss $25,- 000. Sealkote— Church of Scotland ; loss $2,000. Bareilly — American Episcopal Methodist ; loss $2,000. Meerut — Church Missionary Society ; loss $2,000. Shahjehanpore — Additional Clergy Aid Society ; loss $1,000. Muttra— Additional Clergy Aid Society ; loss $2,000. Total losses, $354,000. „^fi^l-I'S«^^^''°'^™^V4it^ |uHa — list0rij:aL CHAPTER I. THE ANCIENT AND CLASSIC HISTORY OF INDIA. ||0 the more civilized nations of antiquity, India always appeared a land of mystery, romance, and mythology. We first learn of its existence in the half-fabulous expedition of Bacchus, who, in the remotest ages, was said to have extended his jovial conquests over these distant regions. Traversing the country in a car drawn by panthers, he subjugated the people, less by the terror of his arms, than by the genial ascendancy of the grape. At a later and more historical period, Sesostris, the famed Egyptian conqueror, is reported to have invaded India, but no particular record of his exploits has reached us. Next came the famous expedition of Semiramis, queen of Assyria ; but all accounts of this are so stamped with exaggeration as to be only partially credible. According to Diodorus, having extended her empire over Bactria and all Western Asia, she resolved to attempt the conquest of India, which, even then, was considered the most powerful and wealthy region on the continent. Many vessels were prepared for crossing the Indus, and transported overland to that river ; and a great number of artificial elephants, moved by concealed camels, were constructed for the purpose of terrifying the enemy. After three years spent in these singular preparations, she is said to have gained the shores of the river with a force of nearlv a million of men. Strabro- 208 INDIA, — HISTOEICAL. bates, a powerful Indian monarch, awaited her on the bank. An engagement first took place upon the river, in which the natives were defeated ; and the invader, bridging the stream, crossed with her entire army. In a great battle, however, which soon ensued, the sham ele- phants proved no match for their real and highly-trained opponents. The Assyrian army, in spite of the success of its cavalry, was completely routed, and Semiramis returned with scarcely a third, of her immense forces. Darius, the Persian monarch, afterward subdued some of the western provinces of India, and exacted from them an ample tribute in gold. In the meagre account of Herodotus, Indian customs, almost exactly similar to those now prevailing, are described. Scylax, a distin- guished naval commander, was dispatched by Darius on a voyage of discovery, and in two years and a half sailed down the Indus, and thence followed the coast to Egypt. The expedition of Alexander the Great, who, about the year 326 B. C, commenced his celebrated campaign, furnishes the first authentic and detailed account of this interesting region. He had conquered Persia and Bac- tria, and imagined that India was the only country worthy of his arms. As master of Persia, he founded his title upon the conquests and authority of Darius, though these had long been forfeited by his successors. India was indeed an almost undiscovered region, when the Macedo- nian invader crossed the Indus. Here he encountered no resistance, and was even reinforced by a native prince, named Taxiles. Arriving at the river Hydaspes, he found its opposite bank occupied by a formidable army, composed of the more warlike tribes of India, and com- manded by the brave and magnanimous Porus. By a feigned attempt in another quarter, the invading prince succeeded in transporting his chosen troops, over a INDIA, — HISTORICAL. 209 wooded island, to the opposite shore. The king instantly- attacked him, but, after a fiercely-disputed battle, was defeated and taken prisoner. Being questioned as to the manner in which he wished to be treated, he replied simply, "Like a king." Alexander, struck with his forti- tude, accorded him his friendship, increased his domin- ions, and ever after found him a faithful ally. The conqueror then pressed onward into the heart of India, taking many cities, and putting to death the phi- losophers, (probably Bramins,) who excited the native princes against him. He arrived at last on the banks of the Hyphasis, the modern Sutledge ; and here his soldiers, even the veterans, mutinied, and refused to march any further. Immense numbers of elephants, horsemen, and war-chariots were said to be awaiting them on the banks of the Ganges ; and Alexander, in spite of his grief and despair, could not induce them to proceed. That his expedition might not be fruitless of geographical discov- ery, he resolved to return to Babylon, his eastern capital, by an entirely new route. By the aid of the Phoenicians in his army, he speedily constructed a flotilla of two thousand vessels, with which he commenced his voyage down the river, and soon entered the Indus, of which it is a branch. During his voyage down these great rivers, (which was protracted to nine months,) he attacked and took naany of the native cities. In storming a fortress of the Mali, a warlike nation, he received a dangerous wound, and nearly lost his life. The fleet at length arrived at the Indian Ocean, and the crews, accustomed to the tideless Mediterranean, were astonished at finding their vessels alternately grounded and then floated by the tides. Nearchus, the best naval commander in the army, was now dispatched, with a small fleet, to circumnavigate the coast and effect discov- 18 210 INDIA, — HISTORICAL. eries, while the king, with the main body of his troops, marched homeward by land. Both encountered the greatest privations and distress. Alexander, at last, entering the rich and friendly countries of Gedrosia and Caramania, abandoned all discipline, and gave loose to revelry and frantic enjoyment. The whole army was converted into a sort of Bacchanalian procession, in the midst of which, the king, emulating his predecessor, Bac- chus, rode, surrounded by his favorites, feasting, reveling, and crowned with flowers. All the soldiers followed their example, and nothing was to be seen but flagons, cups, and instruments of music. This triumph had been dearly obtained by the successful invader. Of the splendid army which he had led into India, amounting to an hundred and thirty-five thousand men, hardly a fourth remained. From the very interesting accounts which the histo- rians of that time have transmitted to us, it would appear that very little change has occurred in the manners, cus- toms, and religious rites of the singular people who inhabit the plains of India. The institution of strongly separated castes, the hereditary transmission of employ- ment, the unnatural self-tortures of religious fanatics, and the immolation of widows upon the pyres of their deceased husbands, were all then, as now, distinguished characteristics of the Hindoo race. The Ganges is still worshiped, and the unhappy devotees of superstition still expose themselves, in constrained and unnatural atti- tudes, naked to the burning rays of a tropical sun. Alex- ander took much interest in inquiring into the strange stoicism and self-denial of their philosophers, which cer- tainly surpassed that of Diogenes and the whole school of Cynics. Calanus, one of the most distinguished of the whole number, accompanied the conqueror to Baby- INDIA, — HISTORICAL. 211 Ion, and afterward, in extreme old age, astonished tiie Greeks by terminating his existence, according to the custom of his sect, by voluntarily mounting a funeral pile, and suffering himself to be consumed to ashes. The country then, as now, was highly cultivated, and swarming with life. The natives, judging from the suc- cess of the invader, were, with some exceptions, nearly as peaceful and unwarlike as at the present day. Ag- riculture was held in high honor, and the laboring hus- bandmen were respected even in the midst of hostile armies. On the death of Alexander, and the partition of his vast empire among his generals, India fell to the share of Seleucus. He is said to have made a successful expedi- tion for the reduction of the country, although opposed by Sandracottus, (Chadragupta,) who had already founded a great empire in the east of India. An embassa- dor, whom he dispatched to Palibothra, (supposed to be Boglipoor,) the capital of this powerful native monarch, reported that the city was ten miles in length and two in breadth, and was defended by five hundred and seventy- four towers ; that the army of Sandracottus was com- posed of four hundred thousand men, with twenty thou- sand cavalry, and two thousand chariots. Peace was concluded between the rivals, and cemented by inter- marriage ; Seleucus resigning his claim to all the pro- vinces east of the Indus. After Bactria had become a powerful and independent Grecian state, few and meagre accounts have reached us of the connection which it doubtless maintained with its eastern colonies or rivals. " No portion of ancient history equally interesting is involved in darkness so deep and hopeless. The kings of Bactria certainly invaded and reduced to obedience a portion of India, perhaps 212 INDIA, — HISTOEICAL. more extensive than was subjected by the arms of Da- rius or Alexander. Colonel Tod collected in the western provinces, numerous coins and medals of the Bactrian monarchs. Menander, from the account given by Stra- bo, appears to have reigned over a very powerful empire. In conjunction with Demetrius, he had possessed himself of Pattalene, at the mouth of the Indus, and at the same time pushed his conquests considerably beyond the Hy- phasis ; while in the north, he had subdued all Tartary, as far as the Jaxartes. There appears even to have been for some time a Greek kingdom in India, indepen- dent of Bactria ; nay, it has been supposed by some emi- nent writers, that many features of the Hindoo philoso- phy, which certainly bears a striking resemblance to that of Pythagoras and Plato, were derived from a Grecian source ; that even the Sanscrit, the learned language of India, whose construction has a wonderful affinity to the Greek, may have been an artificial dialect derived from that noble tongue ; but much doubt still encumbers this hypothesis. Suffice it then to remark that, after a dura- tion of more than a hundred years, the irruption of bar- barous conquerors from the north, and the rise of the Parthian empire, put an end to the kingdom of Bac- tria."* A maritime communication with India opened by Eu- doxus, who, about the year 130 B. C., under the reign of Ptolemy Euergetes, sailed around the peninsula of Arabia into the Persian Gulf. Succeeding voyagers es- tablished an important commerce with the coasts of Malabar, and the luxury of Rome was supplied with jewels, spices, and with the beautiful fabrics of silk and cotton in which the natives still excel. Several of the *Histoi'y of British India. INDIA, — HISTORICAL. 213 ports frequented by these early traders have been iden- tified. The navigation of such an exposed and extended line of coast, was necessarily tedious and dangerous in the extreme, until one Hippalus, observing the course of the monsoons, steered from the Red Sea directly across the ocean, and reduced the voyage to a comparatively safe and brief undertaking. Ceylon, with its celebrated pearl fisheries, was already known, and the Ganges, with a great city at its mouth, is described by ancient geographers. As the Roman empire became weakened and dimin- ished, its communication with the East was lessened, and finally became unimportant. The irruption of the ^Mohammedan hordes, in a few centuries, cut of Europe from all communication by the ancient channels of com- merce. The Venetians and Genoese, the most intelli- gent and enterprising nations of the middle ages, made no attempts to ,open a direct commerce with these dis- tant regions ; but contented themselves with trading to the shores of the Mediterranean or the Black Sea, whither the precious commodities of the East were transported overland by caravans, or brought by the Arabian navigators. CHAPTER II. THE EARIT MOHAMMEDAN INVADERS AND CONQUEEOKS frE INDIA. THE AFGHAN DYNASTY. TIMOUE, THE TAETAE. HE Saracens, in their mighty career of con- quest, had overrun all Western Asia, and founded the most splendid, warlike, and civi- lized kingdoms of their time. India, by its remoteness and its peculiar position, had (except in a few partial and temporary forays) hitherto escaped invasion ; but, in the year 997, Mahmoud, the son of Subuktagi, ascended the throne of Cabul and Khorasan, and soon proved one of the most successful conquerors of the day. His dominions, ere long, ex- tended from the Caspian to the Indus ; and reports of the boundless wealth of Hindoostan inflamed his desire for further conquests. After he had made several suc- cessful expeditions across the Indus, a powerful coahtion of the native sovereigns was formed against him, headed by Annindpal, prince of Lahore. Crossing the Indus in their turn, with one of the greatest armies ever assembled in India, they attacked the Moslems, who were intrenched on the plains of Peshawar. But this great and unwarlike multitude could make little impression on the forces of Mahmoud, trained to battle and conquest. Seized with a sudden panic, they broke into confusion and fled, twenty thousand perishing in the flight. The Mxihammedans, assuming the offensive, invaded their country, and re- turned laden with valuable spoils. This campaign taught the Moslems the weakness of their enemies ; and their religious zeal, always alert for the destruction of idolatry, was inflamed by the thirst INDIA, — HISTORICAL. 215 of rapine, when they discovered that the heathen temples, like those of Greece, were the depositories of immense treasures, the offerings of devotees. Having conquered the vale of Cashmere, the way lay open to the interior of India : and, in 1017, with a Tartar army of an hundred and thirty thousand, mostly cavalry, Mahmoud marched in quest of fresh victories and richer spoils. Kanonge, the most powerful city in India, tendered its submission, and his pious crusade was soon rewarded by the plunder of the shrine of Muthra, sacred to Krishna. All w:is carried off — specie of an immense amount, pearls and jewels without number, and gigantic idols of pure gold, with eyes of ruby and of sapphire. In the year 1024, the conqueror, who had already invaded the hapless country eleven times, undertook his last and greatest expedition. With twenty thousand camels loaded with supplies, he marched across the des- ert, and advanced to Sumnaut, the most sacred and the wealthiest shrine on the Indian Ocean. It was strongly situated on a peninsula, and was defended by a multitude of natives, inflamed with religious enthusiasm, and the courage of despair. For two days, Mahmoud vainly endeavored to storm the sacred precincts of the temple ; on the third, an immense army was seen advancing to its relief A doubtful and terrible battle ensued, and the invaders, for the first time, saw themselves vanquished by the fury of the native enthusiasts. Victory at last declared in favor of Mahmoud; the garrison^ disheart- ened by thfe defeat of their allies, abandoned their strong- hold in a panic ; and the victors, entering the temple, were amazed at the grandeur and wealth displayed on all sides. The priests vainly attempted, by offering im- mense sums, to save Sumnaut, the chief idol of the place, from the pious indignation of the conqueror. With a 216 INDIA, — historical; sturdy blow, he dashed it open, and disclosed an immense . treasure of pearls, rubies, and diamonds, which had been carefully concealed in the image. The plunder collected on this occasion greatly surpassed that of any former expedition. These invasions, however productive in a pecuniary view, led to no permanent conquest during the hfe of Mahmoud, who, in 1030, died, at the age of sixty-three. This celebrated man, the first Mohammedan invader of India, appears to have joined a certain natural justice and legislative talent to his avarice and fanaticism. His chief fault was his rapacity, from which even his own subjects were not always secure. Two days before his death, he commanded his immense spoils, coOected from so many distant regions, to be once more displayed be- fore his eyes, and his army, with its long array of cavalry and war-elephants, to defile past him in a last procession. After his death, his descendants, though greatly reduced by the attacks of the Turks, under the dynasty of Seljuk, maintained for an hundred and fifty years their native dominions, without attempting any further exploits in India. Mohammed Ghori, who, in 1174, seized the gov- ernment, revived the ancient schemes of conquest, and, assembling all his forces, advanced into the Indian coun- try. The king of Delhi, supported by other native princes, encountered him with an army of two hundred thousand men, and three thousand elephants. The two leaders encountered hand to hand in the thickest of the fight ; but the native forces for once prevailed ; Moham- med was wounded, and compelled to fly with his defeated army. Undismayed by this overwhelming reverse, he collected a fresh army, and in the following year renewed the war with a fresh invasion. He was opposed by forces more IXDIA, — HISTOEICAL. 217 formidable than before, and all sworn by the sacred waters of the Ganges to conquer or to die. Disarming their vigilance by a pretense of negotiation, he fell upon their camp by night, and so disordered their embarrassed multitude, that he gained a complete victory, and carried off an immense amount of spoil. The king of Delhi fell, and Cuttub, an officer of Mohammed, soon after seized upon his city and throne, and established, for the first time, an independent Moslem sovereignty in India. Ere long, the new monarch, with his ally Mohammed, made an expedition against the sacred city of Benares, destroyed its idols, and loaded four thousand camels with the plunder of its shrines. Mohammed, after having made nine invasions of India, and accumulated treasures equal to those of his predecessor, Mahmoud, was assas- sinated by twenty- two dagger wounds, received from a band of conspirators, whose relatives had perished in his wars. Cuttub, the nominal viceroy of the late emperor, was, at his death, acknowledged as the independent sovereign of Delhi. After a reign distinguished by bravery, justice, and humanity, he expired in' 1210. Altumsh, his slave, and afterward his -son-in-law and chief general, suc- ceeded to the throne. He extended the new empire widely over India, reduced Bengal and Bahar to subject provinces, and made other important acquisitions. By refusing to shelter the defeated prince of the Afghans, he escaped the resistless arms of Zinghis Khan, who was then ravaging Asia, from the Caspian to the Pacific. He died in 1236, and the throne was occupied by his daugh- ter Rizia Begum, whSse talents caused her to be pre- ferred to either of the princes. She was, however, over- thrown, imprisoned, and finally put to death by her brother Byram, To him succeeded his younger brother. 218 INDIA, — HISTORICAL. Mahmoud II., whose virtues and simplicity of life gained him universal popularity. At his death, the grand vizier, Balin, formerly a slave, ascended the throne, putting to death the chiefs who had been instrumental in his eleva- tion, and who were unwilling to see him engross the entire power. This oriental crime excepted, his reign appears one of the most admirable in the annals of Hin- doostan. His justice and generosity were proverbial, and his court was, perhaps, the most refined and splendid in the world. Men of letters and science repaired thither from all quarters, and found ample encouragement. Various unfortunate princes, dethroned and exiled by the conquests of Zinghis and his successors, found a royal support and protection in his palace. He died in 1236. Kei Kobad, his grandson, who succeeded him, was murdered by Ferose, an Afghan usurper, who, in 1295, shared a similar fate at the hands of his own nephew the able and ferocious Allah. The lattei', a man of great military talent, subdued Aurungabad and the Carnatic, and despoiled the conquered nations of greater treasures than any of his predecessors. The Mongols, (or Moguls,) the successors of Zinghis, now commenced their invasion of India, but were at first completely defeated in Lahore. Two years afterward, they again invaded the country with two hundred thous- and men, and Delhi was crowded with fugitives, driven before their successful march. Allah, however, with his forces, sallied out, and so severely repulsed them, that they retreated westward, and the danger was for a time averted. After a reign marked by caprice, cruelty and licentiousness, he died, probably poisoned by one of his profligate favorites. His son, Mubarick I., was placed upon the throne in 1316, and after three years, rendered infamous by his INDIA, — HISTORICAL. 219 vices, was assassinated. Tuglick, a slave, took his place, and after a just and moderate reign of four years, was succeeded by his son Mohammed III., a monster of crime and cruelty. It is related that, with his army, he was accustomed to hunt the inhabitants of any obnox- ious province for his amusement, as beasts of chase. He resolved to conquer the world, in emulation of Alex- ander ; but, of an hundred thousand men, whom he dis- patched against China, the greater part were destroyed in the passes of the Himalaya, and a mere handful re- turned to Delhi. He also made great preparations for conquest in the west ; but all his talents and resources were required to suppress the rebellions which his sever- ities had excited. The Deccan, an important province of his dominions, was erected into a separate kingdom by a Mogul chieftain, who assumed the title of Allah I. Mohammed died in 1331, and was succeeded by his cousin, Ferose III., who in a reign of thirty-eight years, conferred great benefits on the empire by his justice, clemency and public spirit. To him the country was indebted for numerous bridges, reservoirs, and other works of public utility. During the short and precari- ous reigns which succeeded, the provinces began to de- clare their independence ; but, in 1397, the invasion of Timour, the Tartar, decided the destinies of India. This extraordinary man, who had already become for- midable, perceiving the distracted condition of the coun- try, resolved to found a new empire in the East. He left his capital of Samarcand, and, crossing the Indian Cau- casus, with his Scythian cavalry, attacked Moultan. He took Batneir, and massacred all the inhabitants. He then advanced toward Delhi, and, on his way, encumbered with captives,- ordered a hundred thousand of them to be butchered. Mahmoud, the emperor, was in his capital 220 INDIA, — ^HISTOEICAL. with a strong force of elephants, cavalry and infantry, and might, perhaps, have made an effectual resistance ; but, by an artful manoeuvre, was enticed to take the field, and instantly defeated by the more hardy and fero- cious troops of the invader. The city submitted, and was given up to unrestrained pillage, and the natives, vainly resisting, were indiscriminately massacred. Timour, after a campaign in the neighborhood of the Himalaya, re-crossed the Indus, and proceeded on the memorable expedition which resulted in the capture of Bajazet, and the prostration, for a time, of the Ottoman empire. After his departure, the Indian provinces, though ac- knowledging his nominal sovereignty, were each, in effect, independent ; though, in 1413, at the death of Mahmoud, Chizier, a viceroy of Timour, adminis- tered the government of Delhi, Agra, and other pro- vinces, with vigor and prudence.- Various reigns, of little interest succeeded. After the death of Timour, and that of his able son. Shah Rokh, his vast dominions fell to pieces. His great-grandson, a youth of twelve, named ' Baber, inherited the valley of Ferghana, and afterward pursued a most singular career of conquest and adventure. " He was the knight-errant of Asia, and spent his whole life winning and losing kingdoms. The adventures which the romances of the middle ages ascribe to their fabulous heroes were realized in him. At one moment he was ruler of a great kingdom, in the next had scarcely a hut to shelter him ; now he was at the head of a numerous army, and now he was hardly able to muster a hundred adherents." After having won and lost Samarcand, this enterprising prince gained pos- session of Cabul, and began to make incursions into Hindoostan. Resolving to win another* kingdom, with IX DIA, HISTORICAL. 221 only thirteen thousaad horse, he marched upon Delhi. Ibrahim IL, the emperor, with a thousand elephants and a hundred tiiousand cavah'y, sallied out to meet him. These forces, being distributed in a line, were easily broken by the active charge of the Moguls; Ibrahim fell and his army was put to flight. Baber, after this de- cisive blow, ascended at once the throne of Delhi, (1526.) Thus ended the dynasty of the Afghan empe- rors, who for three hundred years had ruled a great part of Hindoostan. Several of them had been originally slaves, and no family had held the throne, in regular suc- cession, for any considerable time. It is said that, not- withstanding some tyrannic?il reigns, and some merciless invasions, the condition of the people was generally, during this interval, prosperous and happy. 19 CHAPTER III. THE MOGUL DYNASTY; BABER, AKBAR, JEHANGfIRE; AUEEKGZEBE, DECLINE OF THE IMPERIAL POWER. HE throne of Baber was yet far from secure. The chiefs of the late monarch and the war- like Rajpoot princes were leagued against him. An arrpy of one hundred thousand men, commanded by Mahmoud, a brother of the late emperor, was assembled in the west ; and even the bravest captains of the invader counseled a retreat toward the Indus. Baber, however, refused to relinquish his brilliant conquest, and animated his army by re- awakening the old Moslem enthusiasm. He had, more- over, a train of artillery and a force of musketeers, novel and formidable assistants in Indian warfare. Battle be- ing joined, his soldiers, arranged in a close square, main- tained their ground, and repulsed the enemy with con- tinued discharges. Watching a favorable moment, he charged with the choicest of his troops, and won a com- plete victory. This event secured his reign, which, how- ever, only lasted till 1530, when he died. The character of this singular man appears to have been more open and jovial than that of other Mohammedan conquerors. He displayed great personal bravery, as well as military skill, and had a passion for adventure and conviviality that seems rather to belong to the gay knight-errantry of Eu- rope, than to the gravity of Moslem despotism. His son, Humaioon, who succeeded him, was defeated by Shere Khan, a chief of the former dynasty, was com- pelled to fly for his life across the desert, and took refuge INDIA, — HISTORICAL. 223 at the court of- Persia. Being furnished with assistance by the Shah, he obtained the sovereignty of Cabul, where he reigned for nine years. Meanwhile, Shere had gained complete possession of the empire, and greatly enlai-ged its boundaries. After an admirable reign of five years, he died, leaving a son of only nine years of age. Hu- maioon, taking advantage of the opportunity, marched to recover his throne, and was encountered by Secunder, a nephew of the late emperor, who had succeeded him. After an obstinate battle, Humaioon defeated his rival, and re-gained possession of Delhi, from which he had been an exile for thirteen years. He died, however, in the following year, (1556,) and his son Akbar, a youth of thirteen, ascended the throne. }Te had already distinguished himself by his heroism in the late contest, and nowj'with equal courage and policy, defended his throne from its numerous enemies. Cross- ing the Ganges with only a hundred horse, he attacked by, night the- camp of the rebellious chiefs of Bengal, completely dispersed them, and killed their leader with his own hand. On another occasion he marched with a select troop of cavalry seven hundred miles in nine days, and suppressed a formidable insurrection in Gujerat. By a succession of these daring feats, more fitted appar- ently for a guerilla chieftain than the sovereign of fifty millions of men, he struck terror into the hearts of his enemies, and established his sway over nearly all the provinces of India which had ever been held by Mo- hammedan conquerors. Like William the Conqueror, he caused statistics of every province and every produc- tion of his empire to be carefully compiled. During his reign, certain Portuguese missionaries, the first whom he had seen, were invited to court, and enter- tained strong hopes of converting the emperor; but. 224 INDIA, — HISTORICAL. after a dispute with the Mohammedan mollahs, wisely refused an insane trial of faith to which the latter invited them. The proposal was made that one of their antago- nists should leap into a flaming furnace with the Koran, if either of the Portuguese would follow him with the Bible; in order that the emperor might judge which of the two volumes would confer the greatest protection on its devotee. Refusing to comply with this fanatical test, they returned, after receiving courteous treatment, to the settlement of Goa. Akbar died in 1605, after a brilliant and successful reign of fifty-one years. His son Selim, who succeeded him, assumed the vain- glorious title of Jehangire, or " conqueror of the world," an epithet to which his achievements hardly entitled him. This prince is chiefly known by his passion for the beau- tiful Noor-mahal, whose husband, Shere Afkun, he treach- erously devoted to death — a striking parallel to the his- tory of David and the wife of Uriah. The brave chief came off victorious in a conflict with an elephant and a tiger, to which he had been meanly exposed ; but after- ward was slain by a multitude of assassins, numbers of whom he killed before receiving his death-blow. The emperor gained his prize ; but, struck with remorse, re- fused to see her, and for four years she lived neglected in a corner of his palace. At length, his passion re- awakening, she became his favorite queen, and held com. plete control over his mind. In the year 1607, an English mission, under Captain Hawkins, and, in 1615, another, under Sir Thomas Roe, were dispatched to attempt the opening of commercial intercourse ; both were dazzled by the splendor of the court, and were treated with tolerable civility, but were unable to obtain any advantageous terms from the monarcji. 225 The latter part of his hfe was rendered miserable by domestic troubles. His son, Shah Jehan, after assassin- ating his own brother, Chusero, who stood between him and the throne, raised a rebellion. This being suppressed by the valor and generalship of Mohabet, an able officer of the court, the emperor's jealousy, stimulated by Noor- maha], alighted on the latter, who soon found himself treated with ungrateful indignity. Enraged, he seized, by a sudden movement, upon the person of his sovereign. Noor-mahal and her brother Asiph, the prime minister, made a desperate attempt to restore his liberty. In the battle which ensued, the queen, fighting fiercely with her own hands, sought the midst of the enemy ; but Mohabet gained the victoi y, and retained his captive. Having released him, and restored him to his position, the rebel- lious chief was for a time compelled to fly. Jehangire died on the 9lh of November, 1G27, bequeathing the throne to Shariar, his son by Noor-mahal. By the support of Asiph and Mohabet, Shah Jehan, the rival heir, gained possession of the kingdom, and in- stanly fortified his title by the murder of his brother, and all his nephews, — leaving none of the blood of Timour, except in the veins of himself and his children. Lodi, a distinguished chief for some time maintained a success- ful opposition, but was finally defeated and slain. Assisted by the wise counsels of his two supporters, the monarch reigned with some justice and moderation. He at one time commenced a persecution of the Hindoo faith, but soon re- sumed the toleration so honorable to his predecessors. He made few acquisitions of territory, but devoted himself passionately to the royal amusement of building. The noblest palaces, mosques, and mausoleums in India were erected by him, and several yet exist, attesting the magnificence of the court of Delhi. ° 19* 226 INDIA, — HISTOEICAL. For twenty years, his reign was prosperous and fortu- nate. At the end of that time, his peace was continually disturbed, and finally his throne itself undermined, by the ambition of his sons. Dara, Sujah, and Morad were openly brave, ambitious, and warlike. Aurengzebe, the youngest, a rigid Mohammedan, was of a reserved and grave deportment, but exceeded them all in political craft and foresight. Taking advantage of the emperor's illness, he formed an alliance with Sujah and Morad against Dara, the heir to the throne. The latter was dis- patched by his father to endeavor to crush the formidable confederacy. With an hundred thousand cavalry, he awaited near Agra the attack of his rebellious brothers, Morad and Aurengzebe. He was completely defeated, chiefly by the skill and courage of the latter, who, Morad being wounded, assumed the entire control of the forces, and marched to gain possession of the emperor's person. This undutiful purpose he effected by a most treacherous stratagem, and the unfortunate monarch was overwhelmed with rage and despair. The artful usurper seized his brother Morad at a ban- quet, to which he had invited him ; but could not feel his power secure while Dara and Sujah were yet at liberty. He first engaged the latter, and routed him, after a desperate battle, near Allahabad. Dara, who was posted in a position of extraordinary strength, in Raj- pootana, deceived by an artful stratagem, admitted the enemy, was defeated, and compelled to fly. Being treacherously delivered to the usurper, he was led in rags through the streets of Delhi, and soon after assassinated by order of the emperor. Sujah, after another unsuc- cessful attempt, in which he was assisted by Mohammed, the son of Aurengzebe, was betrayed, and perished among his enemies. Shah Jehan, the dethroned mon- IXBIA, — HISTORICAL. 227 arch, survived the loss of his empire for eight years, and was treated with every appearance of respect and defer- ence by his usurping son. Aurengzebe, for many years, ruled in prosperity over the vast empire of the Moguls, and included nearly all India, and several neighboring states, within its limits. His revenues amounted to nearly an hundred and fifty millions of dollars, — an income, at that period, unexam- pled. Despite the violence, craft, and injustice which had secured his accession, he reigned, considering the age and the country, with much justice, moderation, and virtue. The lower classes of Hindoos, however, then, as ever since, appear to have been held in a state of serv- itude and degradation. A formidable invasion, menaced by the powerful sov- ereign of Persia, Shah Abbas, was averted by his sudden death ; and a dangerous fanatical insurrection, headed by an old woman, was suppressed, after a formidable demon- stration, by an appeal to the Mohammedan enthusiasm and superstition. In the year 1686, a powerful force was sent into the Deccan, and after meeting a vigorous resistance, took possession of Golconda and Bejapore. About this time arose the formidable Mahratta power, so long the terror of the East. Sevajee, a youth of great courage and enterprise, had commenced a kind of predatory warfare with a company of the fierce natives inhabiting the Maharashta, a mountainous region in the north-west of India. His increasing power having drawn upon him the enmity of the king of Bejapore, he sought and gained the protection of Aurengzebe, by declaring himself his vnssal, and thus retained possession of all his conquests. During the early contests, however, he seized plunder and territory from both the conflicting powers, and was thus enabled to extend his possessions until he 228 IKDIA, — HISTOEICAL. commanded an army of fifty-seven thousand men. The Mogul emperor, resolved to remain the entire master of India, sent a powerful force against him ; which, however, accomplished little against the active and resolute chief He soon captured Surat, the richest city in India, and plundered it of a million sterling. A more powerful ex- pedition at last reduced him to extremity, and he surren- dered himself, on pledge of honorable treatment, to the Mogul. He was nevertheless kept close prisoner, but at last, escaping, once more raised his standard on his inac- cessible hills. Hence he again pounced upon the low countries, collected great plunder, and increased his pos- sessions. He assumed the title of sovereign, and had coin struck in his name. He even took Golconda, and pushed his conquests boldly into the Carnatic. His ad- venturous career was terminated by death in 1680. His successor, Sambajee, at first successfully resisted the Mogul armies ; but on the occasion of the conquest of Golconda and Bejapore, by the forces of Aurengzebe, was taken and cruelly put to death before the eyes of the emperor. His brother Rama, however, long defended himself in an almost impregnable fortress of the Car- natic, and at length the indomitable Mahrattas, mustering in great force, poured down into the plains of India, and made fresh and repeated conquests. The heavy armed cavalry of the Moguls, resistless in a pitched battle, could make little impression upon these light and dexterous horsemen, especially in the difficult passes of their own country. Allured by booty, their ranks continually in- creased, and they gained possession, ere long, of a large portion of Central India. The bigotry of Aurengzebe, in his later years, impelled him to resolve on extirpating the ancient Hindoo religion. The splendid temples of Benares and Muthra were lev- 229 eled to the ground, and Mohammedan mosques were erected in their places. These violent measures excited the detestation of the native population, and greatly aided the spread of the Mahratta power. The emperor's children, following his own example, had already given him much trouble by their rebellious spirit. Mohammed, the eldest, had died in prison ; Akbar, another, was in open rebellion with the Mahrattas ; and the others evidently waited with an anxious eye for the event which should allow a fresh sti'uggle for the empire. The lattas part of his reign was passed in gloom and despondency. He expired on the 21st of February, 1707, in the ninety-fourth year of his age, and the forty- ninth of his reign. His last hours were deeply embit- tered by the remembrance of his crimes and his career of usurpation. He appears to have possessed, in an em- inent degree, the vices and virtues of the Moslem race. Though ambitious, fanatical, and unrelenting, he was nevertheless temperate, impartial, and highly chari- table. At his death. Shah Allum, the eldest son, and heir to the throne, made the most liberal offers to his brothers. They, however, preferred to try the fortune of war, in which they both perished-. The new emperor further secured his peaceful accession by a treaty with the Mah- rattas, who were allowed to receive a share of the reve- nues of those districts which they had been in the habit of plundering. The Sikhs, a religious sect, whose belief was com- pounded of the Hindoo and JMohammedan faiths, had been cruelly persecuted by Aurengzebe, and converted into determined enemies of the crown. Headed by Gooroo Govind, whose father he had executed, they commenced a formidable predatory warfare. Though in 230 INDIA, — HISTOEIOAL. some measure suppressed by the late emperor, at his death they again took the field, headed by a chief named Banda. Sallying from their fastnesses on the borders of the Him- alaya, they committed terrible devastations ; and the emperor, taking the field in person, was enabled, with difficulty, to check their incursions. Shah Allum, instead of imitating the murderous policy of his predecessors, delighted to be surrounded by his relations and descendants. He appears to have been a virtuous and accomplished prince, and to have done much for the peace and prosperity of his empire. He died at Lahore, in 1712, after a reign of only five years. His son Moiz-ud dien, (called Jehander Shah,) suc- ceeded him, being supported by a powerful omrali named Zulfeccar, who defeated and put to death his three broth- ers, rival claimants of the crown. He proved, however, so dissolute and feeble, that ere long, with his adviser, he was defeated and put to death by Hussein and Abdoola, two powerful brothers, who elevated to the throne Fer- oksere, a grandson of Shah Allum. Administering the government with much vigor, they defeated Banda, and put him to death with the most cruel tortures. At the end 'of seven years, they had put to death the emperor whom they had elevated, and re-placed him, within a year, with three others of the royal family — the two first dying almost immediately after their accession to the throne. Mohammed Shah, the last, was desirous, like Feroksere, of throwing off the yoke which left him but a nominal sovereignty : and at length, by a sudden con- spiracy, slew Hussein, seized Abdoola, and entered Delhi in triumph. He soon exhibited, however, the same in- capacity which had already marked the descendants of Aurengzebe ; and his two most powerful supporters, Nizam-ul-Mulk and Saadut Khan, withdrawing his dis- INDIA, — mSTOKlCAL. 231 pleasure, formed independent sovereignties — the first in tiie Deccan, and the latter in Oude. The JIahrattas now began openly to contend for the empire, and advanced to Agra, overrunning the country on their way. They were repulsed by Saadut ; but, un- der the weak rule of Mohammed, renewed their incur- sion, and plundered the envii-ons of Delhi itself. A far more formidable foe, however, was at hand. Nadir Shah, the powerful usurper of the throne of Persia, hav- ing gained possession of Cabul and Candahar, began to cast a covetous eye upon the boundless wealth of Hin- doostan. A pretext for war was easily found in Mo- hammed's refusal to deliver certain fugitives ; and pushing rapidly into India, he arrived within four days' march of Delhi, before the emperor was aware of approach. Has- tily collecting forces, Saadut Khan engaged him, but was easily defeated and taken prisoner. A treaty was then made, and Mohammed, with Nizam-ul-Muck, en- tered the camp of the enemy in confidence. They were, however, treacherously seized by the invader, who at once marched on Delhi. A popular resistance was pun- ished by a general massacre, and the imperial treasury was plundered of an immense quantity of jewels and other treasures, the accumulation of ages. The spoil carried off by the Persian monarch and his officers was estimated at one hundred and fifty millions of dollars. Satisfied with the richness of his plunder, and the ces- sion of all provinces west of the Indus, Nadir Shah re-placed Mohammed on the throne, gave him some sal- utary advice, and departed. Eight years afterward he was assassinated, and Ahmed Abdalla, one of his offi- cers, took possession of Afghanistan. Incited by the success of Nadir, he, in 1757, passed the Indus, defeated the imperial forces, and plundered the city of Sirhind. 232 INDIA, — HISTORICAL. Soon after this event the emperor died, and was suc- ceeded by his son Ahmed Shah, who, after a brief reign, was deposed by an able officer, Ghazee-ud-Dien, who raised to the throne a son of Jehander Shah, under the title of Aulumgere II. The condition of the empire was as weak and dis- tracted as possible when, Ahmed Abdalla, enraged at an act of hostility, again invaded it, marched to Delhi, and renewed the sanguinary scenes of the time of Nadir. After his departure, a contest between Ghazee and the emperor ensued, in which the latter was assassinated and his body thi'own into the Jumna. By this time, how- ever, the Mogul dynasty, as an effective power, had ceased to exist, and the contest for empire lay between the Afghans and the Mahrattas, which latter, assisted by the Sikhs, now made a grand effort for the entire mas- tery of India. With an immense body of cavalry, they overran, not only Agra and Delhi, but the western pro- vinces of Moultan and Lahore, and drove the Afghans beyond the Indus. Ahmed Abdalla, with a formidable army, in turn march- ed into the countiy, and occupied Delhi. In a battle, which soon ensued, the Mahratta army, of eighty thous- and men, was almost entirely destroyed. Undismayed by this disaster, they assembled in the following year, to the number of an hundred and forty thousand, and com- manded by the vizier and nephew of their supreme prince, marched upon Delhi. The Jumna, swelled by rains, separated them from the enemy ; but Abdalla, plunging in with his whole force, swam across, and so alarmed the enemy that they retreated to a strong in- trenchment. At length, risking a battle in the open plain, they were again entirely defeated, and twenty-two thousand of them were taken prisoners. 1 XDI A , — IIISTOKIC AL. 233 Nothing would have been easier than for the victor to have seated himself on the throne of India ; but he re- ])laced the son of Aukimgere, with the still venerated title of " Great Mogul," upon the nominal throne, and retired to his own country. From this time the more in- teresting incidents in the fate of the Indian empire are connected with that wonderful power which, from the ends of the earth, sent its colonists and conquerors to these inviting regions. CPIAPTER IV. EARLY EUROPEAN DISCOVERIES AND CONQUESTS. EX- PEDITIONS OE THE PORTU&UESE AND DUTCH. I HE enterprising genius of the Portuguese once placed them in the first rank of mari- time adventure and discovery. The ventur- ous expeditions fitted out by John I. and Prince Henry, and afterward by John II., had ah-eady, in 1486, acquainted Europe with much of the western coast of Africa. In that year, the last men- tioned monarch resolved on a grand scheme of discovery and commercial enterprise. Bartholomew Diaz, a skill- ful officer, was placed in command of three vessels, with orders, if possible, to double the southern extremity of the African continent. After being driven far to the southward, and encountering storms and severe cold, the daring navigator steered to the north, and found himself, to his surprise, on the eastern shore of Africa. Return- ing by the coast, he discovered that famous promontory, which he named " The Cape of Storms," but on which his patron, more sanguine, bestowed the title of " The Cape of Good Hope." A mission, dispatched to India at the same time, by way of the Red Sea, reported favor- ably of the probable advantages of a direct traffic. The wonderful discoveries of Columbus, made at this time, greatly stimulated the spirit of emulation and ad- venture among the Portuguese. In 1495, Emmanuel, who succeeded John, fitted out another expedition in three vessels, under the renowned Vasco de Gama, who sailed on the 8th of July, 1497. After encountering the storms so terrible to early navigators, he arrived at INDIA, — HISTORICAL. 235 Melinna, a town on the eastern coast of Africa, and procured a pilot. Stretching across the Indian Ocean, with favorable breezes, he beheld in twenty-three days the long-desired coast of India. Landing at Calicut, he commenced negotiations with the zamorin, or native prince, for a commercial intercourse ; but, o^^■ing to the jealousy of the Moorish traders, who represented his expedition as piratical, made no great progress. Some of his officers having been arrested, he captured a num- ber of native dignitaries, and held them as hostages until his men were released. He still detained several to be conveyed to Portugal, as witnesses of the wealth and power of his nation. Finding that great preparations for hostilities were made, he thought it advisable to return ; and, after encountering much difficulty from storms and the ravages of the scurvy, re-entered the Tagus with only half of his crews. The nation lost not a moment in taking advantage of the important channel of commerce which he had dis- covered. A fleet of twelve ships, strongly armed, and manned with thirteen hundred men, was immediately fitted out ; and Alvarez Cabral, an able navigator, was appointed to the command. He embarked on the 8th of March, 1500, and stretching westward to avoid Africa, made the new and brilliant discovery of Brazil. At the Cape of Good Hope, he encountered, for two months, a series of frightful tempests, in one of which perished the renowned Bartholomew Diaz. Having lost four ships, the Portuguese fleet, pursuing nearly the same course as its predecessor, arrived at Calicut. The cap- tives whom Gama had carried off" were restored, hand- somely dressed, and ready to declare to the natives their good treatment. Cabral was admitted to an audience with the zamorin, who received him in barbaric splendor, 236 INDIA, — HISTORICAL. his person being covered with the most precious jewels. The Moorish influence, however, was still such that the Portuguese vessels, after waiting for months, could obtain no cargoes. Irritated at this, the adventurers seized, by- permission of the prince, a Moorish ship, which was about to depart, richly laden with spices. The Moors and natives, enraged at this act of violence, proceeded to the Portuguese factory, and, after meeting a desperate resistance, slew fifty of its defenders. A few escaped to the boats, which Cabral had dispatched to their relief. In retahation, the latter instantly plundered and burned ten Moorish vessels, and then bombarded the city. After this revenge, he proceeded southward to Cochin, with which he opened a friendly intercourse. A cargo of pepper, his chief object, was readily obtained ; and steering homeward, he reached Lisbon in July, 1501. The king, relying on the papal grant which he had ob- tained, as a title to all eastern discoveries, now assumed the pompous title of " Lord of the Navigation, Conquest, and Commerce of Ethiopia, Arabia, Persia, and India." To enforce this sublime pretension, he dispatched a fleet of twenty sail, under Gama, who again set sail to carry out his former undertakings. After murdering many of the natives, whom he had captured at sea, and exercising the utmost cruelty, he was attacked in his single ship by thirty-four proas, and only escaped by cutting his cable and running to sea. He afterward took several valuable prizes, and returned to Portugal. Three expeditions, under the Albuquerques and Saldanha, soon followed ; but, after some hostilities with the zamorin, they returned, leaving a few hundred men to assist their ally, the prince of Cochin, who was hard pressed by the former. Fifty thousand men were on their march against the litt'e settlement of Europeans, yet Pacheco, their com- INDIA, — IIISTOIIICAL. 287 mander, assured his ally of undoubted protection. By the strong position of the city, the aid of artillery, and the undaunted bravery of his troops, he was enabled to defy all the assaults of the enemy; who, after losing great numbers of his men, was compelled to retreat to Calicut. The foundation of the Portuguese power in India was thus laid. Soarez, who succeeded Pacheco, cannonaded with his fleet the cities of Calicut and Cranganor, and reduced great part of them to ashes. In 1505, Francisco Almeyda was sent out with a large fleet, and with the pompous title of viceroy of India. To revenge the mur- der of certain Portuguese, he destroyed the fleet of Cou- lan, a port whither they had been in the habit of trading. The Portuguese power was next exposed to a most for- midable danger. The sultan of Cairo, inflamed by reli- gious fanaticism, and by revenge for real injuries, resolved to extirpate the infidel invaders, and accordingly sent a powerful fleet against them, under Mir Hocem. This admiral, re-enforced by Melique Az, the viceroy of Diu, with a vastly superior force, engaged Lorenzo, the vice- roy's son, who had been sent to intercept him. The Portuguese commander fought for two days with the most determined valor, but was at last defeated and slain. Almeyda, hastening to avenge the death of his son, sailed, with nineteen ships, in pursuit of the enemy. On his way, he stormed the hostile city of Dabul, which, after a terrible massacre of its inhabitants, was reduced to ashes. He then attacked the combined fleets of the enemy in the Gulf of Cambay, completely defeated them, and obtained great spoil. This victory was disgraced by a general massacre of his prisoners. Meanwhile, Alphonso Albuquerque, tvho had gained splendid successes in Arabia and at Orniuz, had ai'rived, 20* 238 INDIA, — HISTOEICAL. and already presented his commission as governor of India. The disappointed Almeyda, though at fii'st re- sisting, was persuaded to yield to the royal authority, and set sail for Portugal. He never reached his native coun- try, being slain in a fight with certain Hottentots on the southern coast of Africa. Albuquerque, strongly re-enforced, now cherished vast plans of conquest and empire in the East. In January, I6IO1 he arrived, with a powerful fleet, before the hated city of Calicut. After a most daring assault, in which the city was for a time taken, he was compelled to retreat, with the loss of his associate, Coutinho, and many other nobles of high rank. Undismayed at this disaster, the viceroy entertained fresh plans of invasion and settle- ment. The zebaim or prince of the strong city of Goa was at war in the interior, and his capital lay unprotected. Albuquerque arrived there with his fleet on the 25th of February, and the city, fearing to lose its commerce, at once capitulated. He immediately instituted a govern- ment of his own, and carefully studied the protection and prosperity of his subjects. The zebaim, naturally enraged and alarmed at the loss of his chief city, immediately took measures to regain it; and concluding a peace with his adversaries, several of whom joined him, marched to Goa, with upward of forty thousand men. His first attack was bafiled, the city being, from its insular position, difficult of access. Nev- ertheless he contrived, during a stormy night, to trans- port over his whole force, and the Portuguese commander was compelled, after hard fighting, to take refuge in the fort, and afterward in his fleet, which was near at hand. He then waged an active and predatory warfare, cutting off" the enemy's vessels, and sometimes landing and car- rying off much spoil. INDIA, — HISTORICAL. 239 Having thus discouraged and intimidated the natives, he resolved to maite a fresh attempt on Goa ; and with only fifteen hundred Portuguese, and a small force of native allies, appeared before the city. He commenced with a long and severe cannonade, and then landing, was enabled, after a desperate contest of six hours, to regain possession. He immediately resumed his efforts to estab- lish a colony and a stable government, and entered into friendly communication with the neighboring powers. The natives were further conciliated by many intermar- riages of the Portuguese with the ladies of the country. Pursuing his conquests, the viceroy next made an ex- pedition to Malacca, the capital of which was taken by storm, and converted into a Portuguese settlement. Dur- ing this time, and after his return, fresh contests ensued with the zebaim, who, though gaining at first consider- able success, was finally and effectually repulsed. The next exploit of Albuquerque was to gain possession of Ormuz, the wealthy emporium of the Persian Gulf His brilliant career was interrupted by the ingratitude of his sovereign, who, probably dreading his increasing great- ness, suddenly deprived him of his post. He survived this blow but a short time, dying of a broken heart, in December, 1515. Plis death was deeply deplored, not only by his own countrymen, but by the native inhabit- ants, to whom he had endeai-ed himself bymany acts of justice and conciliation. After the death of this great commander, the Portu- guese gained few accessions to their eastern territories, though they maintained their empire already established, and their exclusive commerce, for more than a century longer. They were, however, in general, hated by the natives, whom their persecution and rapacity kept in continued hostility. The inquisition was, at an early 240 INDIA, — HISTORICAL. day, established in Goa, and rivaled the worst horrors of that iniquitous institution in Europe. In 1536, the colonies became involved iu a formidable contest with the natives of Gujerat, assisted by a. pow- erful force dispatched by the pasha of Cairo. The Por- tuguese, besieged in the fortress of Diu, defended them- selves with the most desperate courage ; and finally, when only forty-three were fit for duty, the Turkish com- mander, wearied by their obstinate resistance, retired. A few years afterward the siege was renewed ; but, after a war, protracted for some years, Alvaro de Castro, the governor, succeeded in entirely defeating and dispersing the enemy. He re-entered Goa with such pomp that Queen Catharine remarked that he had indeed conquered like a Christian, but had triumphed like a Pagan. In 1570, a far more critical contest awaited the colo- nies. Adel-Khan and Nizam-ul-Mulk, two great officers of the Mogul, united with the zamorin in a strong effort to expel the intruders. The first, with an army of an hundred thousand men, defiled through the Ghauts, and laid siege to Goa. The viceroj^ Ataide, though coTn- manding a feeble garrison, defended the place with great bravery and resolution. His troops fought with their usual courage and ferocity, sending cart-loads of heads into the city to animate and encourage the inhabitants. With fresh re-enforcements, the governor gained fresh advantages, and Adel-Khan, after several months, with- drew, with a loss of twelve thousand men. Nizam-ul-Mulk, with an equally formidable army, had advanced against Chaul, an important settlement near Bombay. Andrada, the commander, with a force of two thousand men, defended the town for a month, at the end of which a general assault took place. The Portuguese, defending house by house, maintained their position ; and 241 after a siege of six months, during which many thou- sands of the besiegers had perished, sustained anotlier attack with such bravery and determination as to com- pel the enemy to withdraw, and soon after to enter into a treaty. Tire zamorin, who had also been engaged in hostilities at another settlement, was baffled, and com- pelled to retreat. By such achievements the Portuguese maintained their supremacy on the coasts of India during all the sixteenth century. But the maritime power of Holland was daily increasing; and in 1599, that state, which had vainly sought a passage to the East, by the north of Asia, dis- patched eight ships to open a new commerce in these distant regions. Their success in trading on the coasts of Java and Sumatra, inspired the Dutch adventurers with fresh enterprise. They soon completely supplanted the Portuguese in the spice trade, and ere long, by their mutual jealousy, became engaged in hostilities. Philip II., who had seized the crown of Portugal, in vain en- deavored to suppress their maritime superiority, and, as vainly attempted by proclamations to deter them from trading in the East. In 1605, they sent out a powerful expedition, and gained possession of the most important station in the Indian Archipelago. While, however, their admiral Matalief, was absent on an expedition against Malacca, the Spaniards, from the Philippines, seized their new conquests, and saluted the admiral with a warm cannonade on his return. He succeeded, however, in overpowering them, and massacred great numbers. In the same year, a Dutch expedition was sent to the .beautiful Island of Ceylon, but without much eftect. The intruders, although supported by the native prince, did not succeed in expelling the Portuguese until 1666. Having gained the complete control of the Indian seas 242 INDIA, — HISTORICAL. and islanHs, they founded the city of Batavia, in Java, and made it their eastern capital. After repeated attempts, in 1640, they gained posses- sion of Malacca, and thus secured still farther their nu- merous possessions in the Eastern Archipelago. They never, however, gained any extensive possessions on the continent of India ; much of which the Portuguese still retained until their contests with the English, when, as will be seen, they succumbed to the superior tact and en- ergy of their rivals. Goa, formerly their capital, is now the only possession they retain of that powerful empire which they once maintained in a great part of India. CHAPTER V. THE EARLY ENGLISH EXPEDITIONS AND SETTLE- MENTS. THE EAST INDIA COMPANY. CONTESTS ■fflTH THE PRENCH. N the reign of Elizabeth, the maritime ascend- ancy which England was destined to acquire, " )■ began first to develop its gigantic proportions. Recognizing at first the barbarous policy which assigned to the first discoverers exclusive pos- session and commerce in the new regions, her enterpris- ing merchants, not to interfere with the Portuguese and Spaniards, made unsuccessful attempts to reach the East by circumnavigating Asia to the northward. An overland traflrc was also vainly undertaken ; and a suc- cession of daring navigators made the attempt, still con- tinued in our own day, to force the north-west passage around the continent of America. Drake, on his celebrated voyage around the world in 1579, had touched at the Spice Islands, and met a friendly reception from the king of Ternate. Cavendish, follow- ing a similar course, brought home accounts of the wealth and beauty of these remote countries, and the friendli- ness of their inhabitants. A small expedition was first dispatched to Goa, but the jealousy of the Portuguese prevented any successful traffic. A great part of India was, however, carefully explored by the enterprising Fitch, who gave, more minute and interesting accounts of the interior than any European who had preceded him. After one or two more private expeditions, a company was formed, in 1600, under the title of the "Governor 244 IKDIA,— HISTOKICAL. and Company of Merchants trading to the East Indies." Their charter granted them a monopoly of eastern traffic, with other exclusive privileges. Captain Lancaster, who ha(^ already commanded an expedition to those parts, sailed, in April, 1601, with five vessels of tolerable size, with the intention of obtaining a cargo of spices, which were principally supplied by the islands of Sumatra, Java, and the Moluccas. Having opened the way for future commerce with the natives, he returned home, enriched by the plunder of a large Portuguese ship. A succession of small expeditions followed, which were in general successful, sometimes by obtaining car- goes of pepper, and sometimes by the most audacious piracy. In 1611, Sir Henry Middleton, an eminent commander, proceeded with his vessels to Surat, and sought to effect an opening for commerce. The Portu- guese fleet immediately commenced hostilities, but were steadfastly repulsed in every attempt, and met with great loss. The native authorities, seeing the superiority of the strangers, no longer hesitated to treat with them. Some commercial interchanges were effected, but the violence and unreasonable conduct of the English com- mander, who seized the person of the governor, was so offensive that he was compelled to depart without estab- lishing a factory. On his way home, he stopped all the Indian vessels which he met, and compelled them to a forcible interchange of goods, on his own conditions — a species of piracy which, however, does not appear to have shocked the commercial etiquette of the day. By subsequeiit expeditions, however, a slight footing was ob- tained at Bantam and elsewhere, and the first adventur- ers produced a large per centage on the investment, the mingled profits of trade and piracy. In 1614, James I., to further the national commerce INDIA, — HISTORICAL. 245 with the East, sent out Sir Thomas Roe, as embassador to the Great Mogul ; but, as has been related, little ad- vantage was obtained. Nevertheless, a regular annual intercourse was now established with the East ; and the Portuguese, although threatening loudly at first, were compelled to succumb to the maritime superiority of their rivals. The Dutch proved far more formidable adversaries. Provoked by the settlement of the English in islands contiguous to their own, they commenced a naval war- fare with the rival company, in which the latter suffered most severely. The dispute was at last adjusted by a mutual compromise, in which it was agreed that the two companies should share in the trade and commerce of the Indian seas, and should be directed by a joint coun- cil of members from each. The Dutch, however, being far the more powerful in these regions, exercised much oppression toward their partners, and finally broke up the entire system by the cruel " massacre of Amboyna," in which, under real or pretended suspicion of a con- spiracy, they first tortured and then put to death a num- ber of English, resident in that place. Some reparation for this outrage was tardily enforced by the British gov- ernment. The principal British factory in Continental India was for a time located at Sural, and considerable trade- was carried on. Exposed, however, to the arbitrary exac- tions of the Mogul, and to the incursions of the Mah- rattas, they removed, in 1887, to the Island of Bombay, which had been ceded by the Portuguese, and which has ever since remained the capital of their possessions in Western India. On the eastern coast, Masulipatam and Madraspatam became important settlements, and Fort St. George, erected at the latter, became the capital 21. 246 INDIA, — HISTORICAL. of the British possessions on the Coast of Coroman- del. In 1651, a physician, named Boughton, having cured the daughter of Shah Jehan of a dangerous illness, was enabled, through the emperor's gratitude, to secure to his countrymen important commercial privileges. A similar service, rendered to the nabob of Bengal, was rewarded in a similar manner, and a factory was erected at Hoogley, on the principal commercial channel of the Ganges. Here was made a first and unsuccessful attempt to es- tablish by arms the foundation of that mighty empire, which now controls all India. In 1686, a force of ten armed vessels and six companies of soldiers was dis- patched to redress certain wrongs sustained by the resi- dents at the factory, and, in effect, commenced a war with the nabob, and the Great Mogul himself The English, however, after performing some brilliant feats, were compelled for the present to evacuate Bengal en- tirely. Aurengzebe, the Mogul emperor, irritated at these and other hostilities, issued orders for a general at- tack on all the company's factories ; Surat, Masulipa- tam, and Vizigapatam, were taken, and Bombay itself was closely pressed. Only the most humble submission procured peace from their powerful foe, who, in consid- eration of the benefit of their commerce, allowed them gradually to resume their former intercourse. Nevertheless, the company, undismayed by these reverses, began to contemplate greater plans of conquest and permanent settlement. In 1689, instructions were issued to their agents to extend their acquisitions of ter- ritory as much as possible ; and they soon acquired, by purchase of the native princes, several small districts, among which was Calcutta, afterward destined to be- INDIA, — HISTOEICAL. 247 come fh3 wealthy capital of British India. Here was erected Fort William, and a flourishing settlement soon sprang up. The establishment proceeded peaceably for some time, increasing its operations until its annual sales amounted to two millions sterling. The French had, in eai-ly times, made a few unsuc- cessful attempts to establish an Indian colony ; but it was not until the reign of Louis XIV., and the enlight- ened administration of Colber, that any really effectual steps were taken for this purpose. In 1664, a French East India Company was formed, with many exclusive privileges, and, after signal failures at Surat and else- where, succeeded in establishing a prospei'ous settlement at Pondicherry. They also gained a footing at Chander- nagore, in Bengal, and some other unimportant places. When the war of 1744 broke out, Labourdonnais, the governor of Mauritus. with a small squadron, sailed for India, and captured the important English city of Ma- dras. Dupleix the able and ambitious governor of Pon- dicherry, now formed the most magnificent schemes for the aggrandizement of his nation. He contemplated nothing less than a complete expulsion of the English, and finally a French empire extending over all India. The nabob of Arcot, who, with ten thousand men attempted to re-take Madras for his allies, the English, was completely defeated by the small force of French- men in that city ; and soon after was induced to form an alliance with Dupleix. An expedition of the latter against Fort St. David was unsuccessful, the English garrison being strongly re-enforced. A powerful squad- ron soon arriving, the English besieged Pondicherry, but were in their turn repulsed. The peace, which shortly afterward ensued between the two nations, left their Indian possessions in the same condition as before the war. 248 INDIA, — HISTORICAL. Both parties, however, began to regard the native ter- ritories with covetous and ambitious eyes ; and the Eng- lish, by interfering in a native quarrel, gained the fort- ress of Devicottah. The French were playing for a far higher stake. Dupleix had espoused the cause of two powerful pretenders, one to the throne of the Deccan, and the other to that of the Carnatic. He dispatched, his officer, D'Antieul, to their assistance, with a small body of troops, who by their desperate valor broke the lines of the enemj^ and secured to the confederate army a complete victory. The rightful inheritor of the Car- natic fell, and Arcot was seized by the pretender. Nazir Jung, the legitimate claimant of the throne of the Deccan, soon after advanced against the allies with an immense army, which has been estimated at three hundred thousand men. He was supported by a small force of British, who had espoused the cause of Mo- hammed Ali, son of the fallen nabob of Arcot. A mutiny occurred among the French officers ; their native allies were overthrown, and the French troops retired to Pondicherry. D'Antieul, however, soon revived the war in the most daring manner, and gained important suc- cesses. Finally leaguing with certain discontented chiefs, the French succeeded in completely defeating Nazir Jung, (who perished in a mutiny of his own offi- cers,) and in re-establishing his rival, Mirzapha Jung, on the throne of the Deccan. The French influence thus became paramount in all Southern India. One or two feeble attempts of the English in behalf of their ally Mohammed, ended dis- gracefully ; and their fortunes were at a low ebb, when the talents and courage of the celebrated Clive gave an entirely new turn to the course of events. Trichin- opoly, the last possession of Mohammed, was closely be- INDIA, — HISTOEICAL. 249 sieged by the French and their native allies, when this able commander, by a bold and sudden movement, seized on Arcot itself. Having garrisoned the fort, he defended it with great bravery against an overwhelming force of the enemy, which was dispatched against him, and com- pelled them to raise the siege. By further assistance from the English, and by judi- cious native alliances, Mohammed soon found himself supported by a force of twenty thousand men; and the French, vastly outnumbered in their turn, took refuge in the great pagoda or temple of Seringham. They were finally obliged to capitulate, and were made prisoners of war. Dupleix, uijdisheartened, used every effort to restore the French ascendency. He sent a fresh expedition against Fort St. David, which, however, was completely defeated by Clive. The English themselves, in attempt- ing to seize the strong fortress of Gingee, were repulsed by the French, and the latter, with their native allies, again laid siege to Trichinopoly, where thfe brave Major Law- rence was still in command. The siege was protracted, after much hard fighting, for a year and a half, without any decided advantage to either party. Meanwhile, the subahdar of Deccan, who owed his exaltation entirely to the French, began to be tired of their control, and disbanded the foreign troops ; but Bussy, their commander, reassembling them, was enabled to dictate his own terms. Much territory on the coast of Coromandel was ceded to the French, making them, including former acquisitions, masters of a country six hundred miles in extent, and producing about four million dollars of revenue. Dupleix, however, in the midst of his artful and ambitious career, was superseded in his station, and compelled to return to France. 21* 250 INDIA, — rilSTOKICAL. ««''?«1 .* - ri' ■ r. * ,;^'>."A'-i-*,"« -at- Aft' . t»*K"' Fortress of Q-ingee. Commissioners were now sent out by the two govern- ments to arrange an amicable settlement of the disputes between the rival companies. It was stipulated that each party should restore all its native conquests — an arrangement highly unfavorable to the French, who had made far greater acquisitions than their rivals. The English, however, still continued to interfere forcibly in the quarrels of the native powers ; and the French, unable to resist this example, were soon again involved in a predatory warfare with their ancient antagonists. When the war of 1756 broke out between the two nations, the French government resolved to make a vigorous eifort for supremacy in Indian affairs. An extensive armament 1>. IJIA,— IIISTOKIOAL. 251 was fitted out, and intrusted to the command of the brave and headstrong Count Lally, a devoted adherent to the Jacobite cause, and an inveterate enemy of the English government. Landing at Pondicherry, in April, 1758, he marched w^ithout an hour's delay against Fort St. David, the capital of the English settlements, took it, and razed it to the ground. Bussy, who retained his complete ascendency over the Deccan, attacked and reduced Vizanipatam ; and the two commanders, joining their forces, laid siege for two months to the city of Madras, which was ably defended by governor Pigot and the vet- eran Lawrence. The appearance of an English fleet, with re-enforcements, compelled them to retreat to Pon- dicherry. After three months of desultory warfare, Lally found himself besieged in the French capital ; and, after a gallant defense, was compelled, in January, 1761, to capitulate. The city was surrendered to Colonel Goote ; and Lally, sailing for France, was made a victim, under an absurd charge of treason, to the anger and disappoint- ment of his employers. CHAPTER VI. THE BEITISH CONQUESTS IN BENGAL. THE WARS WITH HYDER ALT AND THE EEENCH. |HE British establishment at Bengal, though subordinate to others on the coast of Coro- mandel, was destined, from the advantages of its position, to become eventually the seat of general government. It already excited the jealousy of the native princes; arid when Surajah Dowlah, a fierce and capricious youth, became nabob of Bengal, both avarice and alarm incited him to hostility. Marching toward Calcutta, he plundered an English fac- tory on the way, and imprisoned the occupants. He thence proceeded with furious haste to the capital, in- flamed by exaggerated reports of the immense riches of the English. The feeble garrison offered an ineffectual resistance. Part of "the residents made their escape in vessels down the river, and the small force which re- mained surrendered. The officers and men, an hundred and forty-six in number, were thrust forcibly into a low dungeon, only eighteen feet square, called the "Black Hole," — a name memorable for all that is most terrible of suffering and despair. Crowded together, and almost deprived of air, in this burning climat«, their struggles ^arili-aJlgiiisli-^ere fearful until death came to their relief The nabob was asleep, and no one dared to awaken him, or to remove them without his permission. At about eleven in the evening they began to die fast, and when their dungeon was opened in the morning, only twenty- three persons were alive, and these delirious or insensible. The dead bodies were thrown indiscriminately into a INDIA, — HISTOEICAL. 253 ditch. The tyrant evinced the utmost unconcern at the fate of his victims, and seemed only troubled at the small amount of his plunder. The government at Madras hastened to avenge these outrages, and at once dispatched to Calcutta a naval and military force, under the command of admiral Watson and Colonel Clive. The place was easily re-taken, the garrison left there by the nabob surrendering almost without a blow. Surajah Dowlah, with a large force, soon arrived, and intrenched himself in front of Calcutta. Clive sallied out with a force of two thousand men, and engaged the enemy without much success. A treaty was then concluded, by which the English resumed their former stations and privileges, and relinquished their revenge upon the murderer of their countrymen. Clive next undertook an expedition against the French, and in March, 1757, laid siege to their fortress at Chan- dernagore. The garrison made a brave resistance, but being exposed to a cannonade from the squadron of Admiral Watson, were finally compelled to surrender. The English commander, being advised of the secret hostility of the nabob, now resolved on the audacious project of dethroning him, and substituting some native more compliant with the schemes of the British. Intrigues were immediately commenced with the discontented chiefs in his service, and it was finally concluded to place upon the throne Meer Jaffier, his principal military officer; the latter promising large subsidies, (it is said three mil- lions of pounds,) as the price of his advancement. In June, 1757, Clive, with only three thousand men, of whom not a third were Europeans, quitted Chanderna- gore to attempt the subversion of a powerful empire. The nabob, with an arniy nearly seventy thousand strong, was encamped at Plassey. At this place, on the 23d of 22 254 INDIA,— HISTORICAL. June, the British attacked him, relying on the defection of Meer Jaffier, with the forces under his immediate command. A protracted action occurred before ' the latter cooperated with the assailants ; but on learning his desertion, the nabob, as cowardly as cruel, mounted his swiftest elephant and fled, escorted by a large body of his choicest cavalry. This victory, won so easily, and with such inconsiderable forces, transferred, in effect, the sovereignty of India to the British. Meer Jaffier was forthwith saluted nabob of Bengal, Bahar, and Orissa ; and the defeated tyrant, being shortly after cap- tured, was put to death by the equally savage Meeran, the son of Jaffier, a youth of seventeen, who, like another Caracalla, refused the mercy which his father was in- clined to grant. The English received from the plunder of his treasury eight hundred thousand pounds, besides jewels to an immense amount. A claim was now advanced to the government of Bengal by the son of the Mogul, supported by two pow- erful native chiefs, the nabob of Oude, and the subahdar of Allahabad. The new sovereign, however, supported by the British, maintained his position, and Clive, after some further conquests, resigned his command, and re- turned to England with an immense fortune. Hostilities were soon renewed by the prince, who, on the death of his father, had succeeded to the title of Great Mogul, and who was assisted by a French force, under the celebrated M. Law ; and considerable fightins, without important results, took place in the neighborhood of Patna, the chief point of conflict. The rule of Meer Jaffier proving unsatisfactory to the British council, they deposed him without difficulty, and appointed his son-in- law, Meer Cossim, in his place. The latter, by extracting money from the natives, was soon enabled to pay his IXDIA, — HISTORICAL. 255 allies a million and a half sterling, the arrears due, according to agreement, for their services. The Mogul arm}-, which still continued hostilities, was completely defeated by IMajor Carnac, and the brave Law, the chief reliance of the enemy, was taken prisoner. Peace soon followed. The English, feeling themselves the true masters of Bengal, were soon involved in a contest with their vice- roy, Meer Cossim, who wished to govern the kingdom independently. He levied and disciplined troops, and soon commenced open hostilities. The council imme- diately again proclaimed Meer Jaffier as nabob, and Major Adams, commanding the British troops, marched against the refractory chief After defeating his forces at Moorshedabad, the British attacked Meer Cossim, who, with nearly thirty thousand men, was awaiting them in the plain of Geriah. The battle was continued for four hours, the assailants being little more than a tenth of the number of their adversaries. European courage and discipline finally prevailed, . and Cossim, compelled to retreat from fortress to fortress, finally cut off all hope of negotiation by the massacre of an hundred and fifty of the English stationed at Patna. This place, though garrisoned by a strong force, was also, after hav- ing sustained a cannonade for eight days, taken by storm, and the defeated chief took refuge with the sovereign of Oude, Surajah Dowlah, who had already received the Mogul. These three princes, with their united forces, now marched against the English at Patna, and after a pro- tracted contest, were repulsed by Major Carnac ; but, owing to the insubordination of the sepoys, or native troops, in his own camp, he was unable to follow up his advantages. In May, 1701, Major Hector Munro, who 256 INDIA, — HISTORICAL. succeeded to the command, adopted the most fierce and vigorous measures to suppress the spirit of insubordina- tion. A body of sepoys having left the camp, and been captured, he commanded twenty-four of them to be blown from the mouth of a cannon— a merciless pro- ceeding, which completely answered his purpose. Soon after, he attacked Surajah Dowlah, and thoroughly de- feated him, gaining possession of a great quantity of stores, and an hundred and thirty cannon. The confed- eration was soon entirely broken up. By this succession of brilliant victories, the English gained complete control over the great central plain of Hindoostan. Their creature, Meer Jaffier, dying, they appointed his son Nujeem, a youth of twenty, to the nominal throne; reserving, indeed, the entire military force, and much of the domestic government, under their own control. In England, however, these continued ''wars, and the unbridled rapacity of all the Indian officials, excited the alarm of the company ; and in 1765, they sent over Lord Olive, as governor, to reform the numerous abuses of their agents. The Mogul and Surajah Dowlah, who had both been defeated, repaired to the British camp, and learned their fate from the lips of the new governor. The latter, making a favorable impression on the arbiter of his destinies, was restored to his dominions ; the for- mer, receiving a certain amount of territory, ceded, in effect, to the British, the splendid provinces of Bengal, Bahar, and Orissa, — the young sovereign, whom they had recently created, being compelled to retire on a pen- sion. By this treaty, the company gained the title to a great extent of territory, and largely increased its revenue. During the late disturbances, a young adventurer, named Hydef Ali, had been gradually acquiring a power INDIA, — niSTORICAL. 257 Hyder Ali. that was destined to be most formidable t6 the English. After a youth spent in riot and dissipation, he suddenly- evinced high military talent, and attracted to himself a numerous swarm of those depredators with whom India has always abounded. The pillage of this gang was so considerable, that he was soon enabled to enlist an army of six or seven thousand men. By the patronage of Nunjeraj, the minister and real master of Mysore, he was enabled to enlarge his forces still further, and soon aimed at the possession of the throne itself. His patron was embarrassed by the discontentment of his troops ; and Hyder, taking advantage of the opportunity, hast- ened to Seringapatam, seized the public property, and acquired universal popularity by satisfying their de- mands. He gained further influence by defending the 22 258 INDIA, — HISTORICAL. country against a formidable invasion of the Mahrattas, and ere long was enabled, by his influence with the Mysorean army, to wrest the sovereign power from the .hands of Nunjeraj. The youthful raja of Mysore, vexed at seeing the control of his kingdom thus disputed and engrossed' by others, now formed a plan for his destruction ; and Hyder, taken by surprise, was compelled to fly, leaving all his treasures in the hands of his enemies. Having been defeated in an attempt to regain his position by arms, he artfully persuaded Nunjeraj to join him in a scheme for the recovery of their former power. Assembling an army, he again and again defeated the forces of the raja; who, unable to withstand him, was again com- pelled to relinquish the reins of government, and to sur- render nearly all his revenues to the usurper. Nunjer,aj, again deceived, obtained nothing of importance. Once firmly secured in the government of Mysore, Hyder commenced a series of successful hostilities with the surrounding nations. In plundering the accumulated treasures of the capital of Bednore, he was said to have gained the immense sum of twelve million pounds — a greater assistance in his future ambitious career. He was, however, unable to defend his country from an immense swarm of the Mahratta cavalry, who, under Madoo Rao, invaded Mysore ; and, after experiencing several defeats, was compelled to purchase peace by ces- sions of territory, and by the payment of thirty-two lacs of rupees, (nearly two million dollars.) Recovering from this disaster, he, in his turn, made a ferocious and suc- cessful expedition against Calicut. The other Indian states now became seriously alarmed at his increasing power ; and a hostile alliance against him was formed between Madoo Rao, the English, and IXDIA, — HISTORIC.\ L. 259 Nizam Ali, subahdar of the Deccan. Hostilities were commenced by all, but the first-named prince was de- tached from the confederacy by payment of a sum even greater than the former ; and Hyder, taking advantage of the Nizam's jealousy of Mohammed Ali, the ally of the English, persuaded him to enter into an alliance against the latter. Colonel Smith, the English com- mander, thus deserted by his allies, was compelled, after repelling an attack of the enemy, to retreat to Trinco malee; while Tippoo, ("the tiger,") the son of Hyder, a youth of seventeen, made a rapid incursion with five thousand horse into the English territory, and alarmed Madras itself. Smith, having been re-enforced, was soon engaged with a greatly superior force by the allies, whose attack, however, by able generalship, he soon converted into a flight. Disheartened by this and other misfor- tunes, the Nizam was easily detached from the interests of Hyder, and, in 1768, agreed to a treaty, by which the British acquired much pecuniary advantage, and full liberty to appropriate the dominions of their enemy. Of this they took immediate advantage, by prompt movements in several directions ; and Hyder, in a few months, was deprived of half his territory. He suc- ceeded, however, in expelling the British forces, which, being dispatched from Bombay, had taken possession of his western provinces; and then, finding the demands of his enemies too extortionate to be complied with, kept up a protracted warfare with the troops from Ma- dras, and finally gained a signal advantage over them. Soon after, by his superior knowledge of the country, he surprised the British in several of their newly-conquered districts, and, in a few weeks, regained nearly all that he had lost. One detachment of the British troops was made prisoners, and another cut to pieces. Negotiations 260 INDIA, — HISTORICAL. Still failing, he made a daring excursion within five miles of Madras itself, and the council, in alarm, instantly agreed upon an armistice. Treaty was immediately en- tered into, and in April, 1769, it was agreed that both parties should be placed upon the same footing as before the war, and enter into a defensive alliance against any invaders of the territory of either. These brilliant successes of Hyder. however, were more than compensated by a fresh incursion of the Mah- rattas, who, with an army twice as large as his own, commenced a career of alarming conquests and inordi- nate cruelty. Hyder himself, incapacitated for action by a fit of intoxication, saw his army completely routed and dispersed, and with difficulty, on a fleet horse, and almost alone, reached his capital of Saringapatam. A harrassing vi'arfare was protracted for a year and a half longer, when the invaders, on the payment of large sums and the cession of extensive territories, withdrew. Hyder, freed from these enemies, resolved to repair his losses, in some measure, by the plunder of his neigh- bors, and accordingly attacked the district of Coorg, which fell an easy prey. The barbarous victor sat in state, paying a sum of money for every head which his soldiers brought before him, until the pile exceeded seven hundred. The conquest of Calicut immediately followed. On the death of Madoo Rao, in 1772, the monarch of Mysore was enabled to regain much of the territory which he had ceded to the Mahrattas. He met, how- ever, with a most obstinate resistance, in attempting to take the citadel of Chittledroog, the fanatical defenders of which placed implicit confidence in the goddess Doorga, whose shrine was in their walls. Sallying out every Monday with incredible fury, they returned laden INDIA, — HISTORICAL. 261 with the heads of the besiegers, as offerings to their deity ; and when Hyder, by the aid of treason, gained possession, two thousand of these ghastly trophies were found piled in a pyramid before her gate. He had been deeply offended by the conduct of the English, who, contrary to treaty, had left him unsup- ported in his terrible contest with the Mahrattas. For- tune favored his enmity in the war, which, occasioned by the American struggle, broke out between England and France. The latter nation, ever eager to under- mine the eastern superiority of her rival, immediately formed an alhance with Hyder, to which he and his house, fatally for themselves in the end, always faith- fully adhered. The British soon reduced the French settlements of Pondicherry and Mahe ; but their grand enemy, while artfully maintaining a pacific attitude, was making great preparations for a sudden and overwhelming blow. Early in June, 1780, quitting Seringapatam, Hyder Ali placed himself at the head of an army of eighty thousand men, and commenced a career of merci- less devastation in the Carnatic. The smoke of burning villages ascended all around Madras, which strong posi- tion he did not venture openly to attack. A number of strongholds were taken, and Colonel Bailie, who, with nearly four thousand men, encountered the Mysore army, was utterly defeated, and saw the greater part of his corps massacred on the field. The lives of two hundred Europeans were saved by the French, of whom a small force was in the raja's service. Arcot was immediately reduced and other strong places were besieged. Upon the receipt of this disastrous intelligence at Cal- cutta, the governor-general* dispatched Sir Eyre Coote, * Warren H.istings, celebrated for his talents, liis crime!;, and his mem- orable trial (in 1786J before the House of Lords, at the impeachment of tho 22^' 2G2 INDIA, — HISTORICAL. an officer of high reputation, with a feW hundred Eui'o- pean troops, to the scene of action. This general found at his disposal only seven thousand men, of whom scarce a fourth were Europeans ; yet, he at once advanced in pursuit of the enemy through a country which they had converted into a perfect desert.' Though swarms of the light Indian cavalry hovered about them, the English were unable, for some time, to effect a general engage- ment. At last, encouraged by some successes, and by the appearance of a French fleet on the coast, Hyder resolved to give them battle. He had vastly the advan- tage, both in numbers and position ; but the skill of the English commander, and the courage of his troops, carried all before them ; and the defeated prince, foam- ing with rage, was again compelled to trust for safety to the fleetness of his horse. A second engagement, bloody but indecisive, took place at Polliloor, the scene of Bailie's misfortune. Soon af- ter, Sir Eyre Coote, taking the raja by surprise, defeated him at Sholinghur, with a loss of five thousand men, and was thus enabled to relieve the important fortress of Vellore. During the continuance of this war, hos- tilities broke out between Britain and the Dutch, and Sir Hector Munro, with four thousand men, was dis- patched from Madras against Negapatam, the Indian capital of the enemy. Though strongly garrisoned it fell before the impetuosity of the invaders. All the Dutch settlements on the same coast shared a similar Com'moDS. The heaviest charges of cruelty, corruption, and mal-adminis- tration were urged against him by all the eloquence of Burke, Fox, Sheri- dan, and other distinguished orators ; the proof was remarkably clear ; yet, such was the influence of the royal favor, and the exertions of his partisans, that, after the affair had been protracted for many years, the culprit was finally acquitted, and suiTered to pass the remainder of his days in comfort- able obscurity. INDIA, — ^HISTORICAIj. 263 fate, and even their important station of Trincomalee, in the island of Ceylon, was taken by their rivals. As an offset to these advantages. Colonel Braithwaite and his force of two thousand men were surrounded, and after a most gallant defense, defeated and made prisoners by the army of Tippoo. The loss of the alliance of the Mahrattas, who, by the efforts of Hastings, had been lately detached from the interest of Hyder, was in some degree counterbalanced by the arrival of a French force of three thousand men ; yet, even thus re-enforced, he was defeated by Coote, with considerable loss at Arnee. Very considerable ad- vantages were also gained by his enemies on the coast of Malabar. Tippoo, with the French officer Lally, was ad- vancing thither with a large force, when the former was unexpectedly recalled by the death of his father, and the necessity of immediately asserting his claims to the throne. Hyder AH expired on the 7th of December, 1782, at the age of about eighty. This singular man, without even the ability to read or write, with a disreputable early career, and gross personal failings, nevertheless had become, by his talents, perseverance, and dissimmula- tion, one of the greatest sovereigns in India. He transmit- ted his crown, his treasure, and an army of nearly ninety thousand men, to his son Tippoo, an enemy of the Eng- lish, even more inveterate than himself. Various disagreements among the British civil and military authorities prevented them from taking advan- tage of the death of their ancient foe. Moreover, Sir Eyre Coote, their best commander, only survived his old opponent four months. Nevertheless, seizing the oppor- tunity of Tippoo's movement to the west, a strong force, under General Stuart, was dispatched against Cuddalore, 264 INDIA, — HISTOBICAL. at which place the French were principally stationed. Bussy, their commander, however, made an able defense, and the English lost upward of a thousand men in their attack. Moreover, the French admiral, SufFrein, com- manded the sea, and soon re-enforced the garrison with two thousand four hundred men. The situation of the British had become exceedingly critical, when peace was declared between the two nations — an event by which the sultan, Tippoo, lost most of his French auxilaries. Meanwhile, General Mathews, who had taken the city of Bednore, in the west, and gained possession of great treasure, was in his turn compelled to surrender to Tip- poo, and, with his men, subjected to a rigorous imprison- ment. In the south, however. Colonels Lang and Fuller- ton gained most decided advantages; and were even preparing to march on the capital of Seringapatam, when a treaty was again made, by which it was agreed that prisoners should be released, and each party resume its former possessions. o^; ..Jil CHAPTER VII. THE WAES WITH TIPPOO SAIB, AND THE CONQUEST OF MTSOEE. IPPOO SAIB, now the most powerful sove- reign in India, assumed the title of padishah, or sultan, and occupied a position similar to that of the Great Mogul in former times. His reign was first signalized by a furious crusade in behalf of the Mohammedan faith. Vast numbers of the Christian natives of Canara, and others cherishing a belief different from his own, were seized, and forcibly subjected to the most abhorred rite of the Moslem religion. The Mahrattas, now the masters of Delhi ^nd a great part of India, soon began to give him as much trouble as they had his father. Having formed an alliance with the nizam, they resolved upon nothing less than a complete subversion of his empire, and a division of his extensive territories. With a strong force, they again invaded the country; but Tippoo, who possessed a military genius even greater than his father's, maneuvered so skillfully as to compel them to suspend operations. He took the chief fortress of the nizam, near his boundaries, and finally, with his whole force, crossed the river Toombud- dra, swollen with rain, (which had hitherto separated the two armies,) took the enemy by surprise, and gave them a serious repulse. He thus secured peace upon favorable terms, acquired a high military reputation, and was ac- knowledged sovereign of nearly all India south of the Toombuddra. 266 INDIA, — HISTORICAL. Freed from this danger, he immediately recommenced the propagation of his faith by the most cruel and big- oted means. In Malabar, he razed to the ground a vast number of Hindoo temples, and compelled the unfortu- nate devotees to submit to the detested rite of circum- cision. In 1789, he attacked the small kingdom of Tra- vancore, at the southern extremity of India. While attempting, however, to storm the capital, his troops, seized with a singular and unreasonable panic, turned and fled. Great numbers were trampled to death, and Tippoo barely escaped to his camp, after losing two thousand of his men. In the following year, however, he subdued and devastated the country, but soon returned to Seringapatara, alarmed by the attitude of the English, who wei-e in alliance with the injured nation. Lord Cornwallis, the British governor, jealous of the increasing power, and irritated by the aggressions of the sultan, had, indeed, resolved on war, and now took ad- vantage of the attack upon his ally to commence hostil- ities. The Mahrattas and the nizam, eager for conquest, joined in the undertaking. In June, 1790, an attack upon Tippoo's dominions was commenced in several quarters by General Medows, and Colonels Stuart and Floyd, at first with considerable success. The latter officer, however, with a small force, was attacked by Tippoo, and sustained much loss in a disastrous retreat. The sultan, moving with great rapidity, again devastated the Carnatic, and approaching Pondicherry, vainly sought a fresh alliance with the French. In January, 1791, Lord Cornwallis, in person, took command of the forces, and instantly commenced a march into the heart of the sultan's dominions. After a stubborn resistance, the strong fortress of Bangalore was taken by storm; and immediately after, the English governor was re-enforced INDIA, — HISTORICAL. 267 by a large body of the nizam's cavalry, utterly useless, indeed, for want of equipment and discipline. Tippoo had now gained his capital of Seringapatam, on which his enemies, using the greatest exertions, were advancing rapidly. Stimulated by the urgency of the occasion, and the exhortations of his harem, he resolved to give them battle on their approach ; but, after a long and obstinate contest, was compelled to retreat within the walls. The English, however, from their destitution of supplies and their enfeebled condition, were compelled to retreat, leaving behind all their artillery and other heavy equipments. Meantime, the forces of Tippoo had been everywhere defeated in Malabar ; and General Abercrombie, after overcoming the most formidable obstacles, was in full march to join Lord Cornwallis, when he received orders to retreat, which he fulfilled, with the loss of his artillery. The governor, with his army, was still retreating in a most miserable condition, when he encountered a large detachment of his Mahratta allies, under the famous chiefs Purseram Bhow and Hurry Punt. Thus relieved, he succeeded in reducing a number of Tippoo's strongest fortresses, which, throughout the country, were perched on the most inaccessible cliffs. At length, in February, 1792, Cornwallis, with a force of about twenty-two thousand men, again marched on Seringapatam. On approaching the city, the sultan, with a force of about fifty thousand, was seen encamped in front of his capital. In a bright moonlight, the British, in three divisions, moved forward to the attack. The sultan, after fighting bravely, was driven from his posi- tion, and sustained a loss of many thousand men, chiefly from desertion. He made vigorous efforts to regain the ground he had lost, but to no purpose. Abercrombie, 268 INDIA,— HISTOEICAL. with eight thousand men, was about to re-enforce the besieging army ; the Mahrattas were in full march ; and it soon became evident to Tippoo that nothing but a peace, on terms dictated by the victors, could save his capital and his crown. Negotiations were at once com- menced ; and the haughty sultan was compelled to sub- mit to the severest conditions. Half his territory was to be surrendered, a sum of four million pounds was exacted from him, and his two sons were to be deliv- ered up as hostages. The latter, children of eight and ten, were delivered to Lord Cornwallis, and excited the admiration of the English by the propriety and dignity of their demeanor. The allies forthwith commenced : haring the territories of their enemy, and the English gained large and most valuable accessions, especially on the western coast. In 1794, the conditions having all been fulfilled by Tippoo, his children were restored to him. In May, 1798, the Earl of Mornington, afterward Marquis Wellesley, arrived as governor-general. The sultan of Mysore had lately, with inconceivable impru- dence, entertained certain French adventurers from the Isle of France, who, in the fury of republicanism, planted a tree of liberty in his capital, founded a Jacobin club, and hailed their patron as Citizen Tippoo. Though ignorant of the meaning of these mystic novelties, he was induced, by the artful representations of his guests, to enter into a scheme for the conquest and division of all India. The governor-general, aware of these in- trigues, and dreading the French influence, even at this distance, counseled immediate hostilities ; and, as a pre- cautionary measure, compelled his ally, the nizara, to disband a corps of fourteen thousand men, well officered and disciplined by French adventurers. No satisfaction 271 being offered by Tippoo, a force of twenty thousand men, one fourth of them Europeans, was prepared for the invasion of Mysore. The nizam also contributed sixteen thousand, and General Stuart, a veteran in the wars of the East, advanced from Malabar with six thousand. Tippoo, marching with great address and activity, surprised a division under command of the latter, who was only saved from defeat by the superior courage and discipline of his troops. The sultan then hastened to oppose the main army, which was advancing against him from the eastern coast. His troops, however, were unable to resist the English in a pitched battle, and were compelled to retreat at Malavilly, about thirty miles from the capital, though without any serious loss. He then threw himself, with all his forces, into Seringapatam, resolved to defend it to the last extremity. By the 14th of April, both the eastern and western divisions of the British army met under its walls. Two strongly- intrenched outposts were soon carried, one by Colonel Sherbrooke, and the other by Colonel Wellesley, brother of the marquis, and afterward known as the celebrated Wellington. Tippoo now endeavored once more to treat, and was informed that he could only obtain peace by the cession of half his remaining dominions, the payment of two crores of rupees, (about ten millions dollars,) and the delivery of four of his sons, and as many of his principal chiefs, as hostages. He was in despair at these extrava- gant demands, and determined rather to die with arms in his hands, than to become a miserable dependent on the infidel foreigners. In his despair, he resorted to the wildest measures which superstition could dictate, and, like Saul, summoned the abhorred and persecuted Bra- 272 INDIA,— HISTORICAL. mins, who, by their incantations, might furnish a ray of hope that fortune would yet return. All their prognos- tics were unfavorable ; a practicable breach was soon made in the walls ; and, on the 4th of May, 1799, a storming party of four thousand men, divided into two columns, was dispatched to attack the fortress. They met with an easy victory in one quarter ; in the other, where Tippoo commanded in person, the resistance was gallant and determined. The sultan, after killing a num- ber of the enemy with his own hands, was slain by repeated wounds. His body was discovered among a heap of slain, the countenance evincing such a stern and expressive composure, that it was difficult to believe him dead. He was buried with royal honors in the splendid mausoleuni of Lall Band, erected by his father. This able and eccentric prince, so long the chief en- emy of the English, possessed many of the virtues, as well as the bigotry and cruelty, which distinguished the Moslem race. His kingdom was found by the victors to be flourishing, highly cultivated, and apparently well governed. He was fond of literature, and left behind a record of the warlike transactions of his reign. His fall was occasioned by the hostility which his persecutions had excited among the natives, and by the superior skill and disipline of the English, jealous of his power, and covetous of his dominions. The victors again seized a large territory, making their acquisitions extend from coast to coast. The remaining portion of the kingdom of Mysore was settled upon the infant heir of its ancient rajas, who was drawn from ob- scurity, and placed upon a nominal throne. CHAPTER VIII. THE MAHRATTA WAR. CONQUEST OF CENTRAL INDIA. I HE Mahrattas, after the humiliation of the Mogul empire, would have been arbiters of the destinies of India, but for the severe and repeated defeats vchich they sustained from the yet more warlike and enterprising Af- ghans. At a later period, under their celebrated sove- reign, the peishwa Madoo Rao, they had gained great ad- vantages over Hyder, and in a great degree maintained their preponderance on the peninsula. Serious hostilities with the English had already occurred, though they af- terward joined in the confederacy of Cornwallis, for sup- pressing the dangerous power of the sultan of Mysore. The most brilliant exploit of the English, in these early campaigns with the Mahrattas, was the storming of the celebrated hill-fortress of Gwalior, which had been re- garded as one of the most impregnable strongholds in Hindoostan. Under the administration of Hastings, in 1782, a peace had been concluded. For a number , of years, amity and alliance had prevailed ; and, after the fall of the unfortunate house of Tippoo, (which, how- ever, the Mahratta chiefs viewed with alarm and jeal- ousy,) the marquis of Wellesley had offered them a share in the partitioned territory. The reigning peishwa, em- barrassed by the ambitious conduct of two powerful rival chiefs, Holkar and Sindia, had finally embraced the cause of the latter, and with his confederate had been defeated by the former in a terrible and obstinate battle, fought near his city of Poonah. He then threw himself into the arms of the English, who undertook to re-estab- 23* 274 INDIA, HISTOEICAL. lish his supremacy, on condition of occupying a portion of his territory with their forces. By this treaty, which was concluded in 1802, the company became involved in the most severe and successful war which it had yet encountered. The governor-general took advantage of this opportu- nity to prosecute his long-cherished schemes of conquest and aggrandizement. Powerful forces, under Generals Wellesley and Lake, were dispatched from Mysore and Bengal, with directions to reinstate the peishwa, and se- cure a permanent footing for the British. A similar ex- pedition was to be sent from Bombay, the first object be- ing to secure the entire coast of India, and thus cut off all communication between the French and the natives. The peishwa was replaced in his capital without opposi- tion, Holkar retreating before the forces of General Wellesley. Sindia, however, and the raja of Berar, still maintaining a hostile attitude, war was immediately com- menced, and the EngHsh commander seized on the import- ant city of Ahmednuggur. Soon after, he encountered the confederate chiefs, with a force of fifty thousand men, on the plain of Assaye. His own command was less than a tenth of their number ; yet, confident in the superior courage and discipline of his men, he attacked them without hesitation. The result justified his expec- tation. The native forces were put to flight, after a tol- erably stubborn resistance, leaving twelve hundred men and all their artillery on the field. This event estab- lished the military reputation of Wellesley, afterward destined to acquire renown in a far more celebrated scene of action. The chief effect of this victory was upon the minds of the' natives, who from that hour began to deem the British arms invincible, and India a country already van- 275 quished. The great city of Burhanpoor, and the fort of Asseerghur, considered almost impregnable, were soon after taken ; and a fresh defeat on the plain of Argaom still further dispirited the confederates and encouraged the British. The raja of Berar was compelled to pur- chase peace by the cession of extensive territories to the company. In the central regions of Hindoostan, events of still greater importance were enacted. General Lake, in August, 1803, had attacked and easily dispersed the large but inferior forces of Sindia, near Coel. The strong fortress of Alighur soon fell into his hands, and he thence marched at once upon Delhi, the imperial capital, where the Great Mogul, Shah Allurn, aged and destitute, was yet permitted by the Mahratta chiefs to hold the shadow of power. A Mahratta army, officered by the French, was drawn up to oppose the invaders; but, although Lake's force of four thousand five hundred men was scarcely a fourth the number of the enemy, he did not hesitate to attack them. Enticing them from their position by a feigned retreat, he turned and charged them while in confusion, and speedily drove them from the field with a loss of three thousand in killed and wounded. Entering the city without further resistance, the Brit- ish relieved the Great Mogul from his state of scandalous indigence and disrespect, and obtained in return the sanction of a name still venerated throughout Hindoo- stan. In October, the city of Agra was taken, and trea- sure to the amount of more than a million of dollars was divided among the troops as prize-money. A body of fourteen thousand men, well supplied with artillery, which still kept the field, was attacked by Lake, and af- ter a brave resistance, destroyed or taken prisoners. 276 INDIA, — HISTORICAL. Detached expeditions, which had been sent into Cuttack, Gujerat, and Bundelkund, were also eminently success- ful. By December, Sindia was compelled to purchase peace upon the most humiliating terms. A large and valuable territory on both sides of the Ganges, including the imperial cities of Delhi and Agra, was ceded to the victors. Holkar, who, meantime, had been cautiously watching the turn of events, now most imprudently resolved on war, and endeavored to form a confederacy against the common enemy. Governor Wellesley, on the other hand determined completely to overthrow the power of this formidable and hostile chief, and to divide his terri- tory among the native allies. The army of Holkar, in- creased from every quarter, now amounting to sixty thousand cavalry and fifteen thousand infantry. He was also provided with nearly two hundred pieces of artil- lery. General Wellesley, on account of a famine in the Deccan, was unable to advance against him ; and Colonel Monson, who, with a few thousand men, had been left to watch the movements of the enemy, was compelled, in a disastrous retreat to Agra, before the Mahratta chief, to leave on the way his sick and wounded, all the artillery and baggage. Holkar, eluding the advance of the British general, suddenly invested Delhi, which was garrisoned only with a small force of sepoys, under British officers. These, however, made such a gallant defense, that he raised the siege, and commeneed a career of devastation in the newly-acquired territories of the English. A detach- ment of infantry, under General Frazer, defeated that of the enemy at Deeg, but with the loss of their brave com- mander. Lake, after a most rapid march, at length overtook the Mahratta cavalry, under Holkar, and put INDIA,— HISTORICAL. 277 them to flight, with a loss of three thousand men. By in- vasion from various quarters, the Mahratta chief soon found himself shut out from most of his dominions. Bhurtpore, the raja of which still adhered to his cause, was resolutely attacked by Lake ; but, after a most dar- ing resistance, in which the forces of the company were repeatedly repulsed, and lost upward of three thousand men, he was compelled to forego operations, and treat with the raja, who ransomed his capital by the payment of twenty lacs of rupees, (more than a million of dol- lars.) Holkar, who had vainly attempted to relieve his ally, was reduced to an almost desperate condition, when by a sudden alliance, he gained the support and assistance of Sindia. This powerful chief had viewed the exploits of his for- mer rival with admiration, and was determined, at what- ever risk, to emulate them. This fresh confederacy would have produced a renewal of the war, but for an entire change in the policy of the British government, and of the company, alarmed at this continual warfare, and the enormous expense which it entailed. The marquis of Wellesley was recalled, and Marquis Cornwallis, in 1805, was sent to occupy his place. The latter, how- ever, died soon after his arrival, and the council, acting on the pacific instructions which they had received from London, in November, 1805, concluded a treaty with Sindia, by which he gained the strong fortress of Gwalior, and secured other important advantages. Holkar also ob- tained peace upon terms so favorable as to leave him nearly in the same position as at the commencement of the late contest. CHAPTER IX. THE PINDAEEE TVAE. THE PINAL OTEUTHROW OP THE MAHEATTAS. THE AFGHANISTAN WAR AND THE WAR IN THE PUNJAUB. GREAT part of India was at this time overrun by troops of marauders, called the Pindarees. Unlike the Mahrattas, to whose predatory habits their own bore a strong resemblance, they had no national existence or particular place of abode — being simply robbers, whose numbers gave them the formidable ap- pearance of armies. Finding thpir temporary homes in the hufnerous native kingdoms, they were ever ready to join their leaders in any nefarious expedition. Their aim was not the conquest, but simply the complete plun- der of every province through which they passed, and they inflicted the most merciless tortures to extort treas- ure from their unhappy victims. They were the quick- est and most expert riders, and had an almost incredible adroitness in horse stealing. Their chiefs used annually to summon their forces, composed of disbanded soldiers and other desperate characters, on the northern bank of the Nerbuddah ; and, as soon as the rivers became ford- able, commenced a career of indiscriminate plunder and devastation. Another formidable gang was headed by Ameer Khan, a Mohammedan chief, who had fought for Holkar, and now aimed at establishing an independent power. An expedition which he made in 1809, to gain possession of Berar, was, however, rendered ineffectual by the inter- ference of Lord Minto, the English governor. INDIA, — HISTORICAL. 279 The Ivlobammedana. The peishwa, who had been reinstated in his authority at Poonah, soon incurred, by his disaffection, the distrust of the Enghsh government. The latter took advantage of the violation of a safe conduct, to insist on his receiv- ing eight thousand additional troops into his territories, assigning large revenues for their support, and yielding up the strong city of Ahmednuggur. To these and other severe conditions, rendering him a mere instru- ment of the company, he viras compelled to submit (June, 1817.) In 1813, the Marquis of Hastings, an able and active commander, had been appointed the head of affairs in India. His talents w^ere soon called into requisition. The -Gorkhas, a warlike people from the region of the 280 INDIA,-r-HISTOEICAL. Himalaya, had conquered the beautiful valleys of Ne- paul, and had extended their dominion until it comprised nearly all the mountainous regions of Northern India. The British, by their conquests, had come in contact with this formidable race, and negotiation having failed to settle the title to certain disputed territories, hostili- ties were speedily commenced by both parties. The governor-general, in 1814, dispatched thirty thousand men to the scene of action. General Gillespie, who commanded a division of this army, was detained on his march by the strong fortress of Kalunga, perched on a hill, and exceedingly difficult of access. In attempting to carry it by storm, he fell at the head of his column,, which was repulsed with loss. The officer who succeed- ed him, with the aid of heavy artillery, made a similar attempt, but in vain ; and the natives did not evacuate their stronghold until its walls were battered to ruins. At the fort of Jytuk, the British, under General Martin- dale, were also repulsed ; and the division marching through Sarun lost two detachments, which were sur- rounded and cut off. These disasters, though mortifying to the English, pro- duced only increased exertions to repair them. General Ochterlony and Colonel Nichols soon gained decided ad- vantages. Several important fortresses and towns were taken, and Ameer Sing, the Nepaulese general, was com- pelled to quit his principal stronghold. Negotiations were then commenced, but having been broken off, the British again took the field in 1816, and after twice defeat- ing the enemy, extorted a treaty, by which they gained all the points in dispute. The next object of the English governor was to re- press the predatory tribes before alluded to, and to gain such a foothold in the native states as to secure a pre- INDIA, — HISTORICAL. 281 dominance over these marauders. Berar consented to receive a force dispatched by the governor, who was thus enabled, as he supposed, to checli the incursions of the Pindarees. Nevertheless, eluding the British forces, they crossed the Nerbuddah, with ten thousand horse- men, and commenced plundering actively in the compa- ny's territories. They were, however, repulsed in vari- ous quarters, and compelled to retreat with considerable loss. It was now resolved thoroughly to suppress or extir- pate these pests of society, and in 1817, Lord Hastings put in motion by far the largest and most efficient army which had yet taken the field in India. It consisted, in all, of nearly an hundred thousand men, who, command- ed by the marquis in person, and by other eminent offi- cers, marched from various directions to inclose and cap- ture the whole body of the Pindarees. Both Sindia and Ameer Khan were compelled, however reluctantly, to assent to the project, and the latter was forced to dis- band his irregular forces. The opening of the cam- paign was retarded by the ravages of the cholera, which about this time extended over a great part of India. Nearly nine thousand of the troops and camp-followers, (pi'incipally the latter,) of the division under the immedi- ate command of Lord Hastings, died of this new and terrible disorder. In the course of 1818 it spread through all parts of India, and the army, in common with others exposed to its attacks, suffered severely. The Pindarees, seeing hostile forces approaching from all sides, thought only of escape, and Cheetoo, their prin- cipal leader, with eight thousand men, took refuge, evad- ing the vigilance of his enemies, in the territory of Me- war. Kurreem, another chief, attempting to fly, was defeated, and his followers were completely dispersed. 24 282 IKbiA, — HISTORICAL. A fresh enemy now sprung up in the dominions of Hol- kar. After the death of that chief, his officers, attached to predatory warfare, and dreading the permanent occu- pation of their country by a British force, prepared for war. General Hislop, who was dispatched against them, attacked their army at a great disadvantage, yet, by the superiority of his troops, gained the day. The Mahratta army retreated, leaving their artillery and three thousand of their number on the iield. The refractory chiefs were soon compelled to submit to terms dictated by the English. The Pindarees, after sustaining severe defeats in their flight from district to district, wei'e finally dispersed, and most of their chiefs surrendered to the British. Cheetoo, the most valiant and resolute of their leaders, was de- voured by a tiger while lurking in the forests of Asseer- ghur. The peishwa, Bajee Rao, who had been for some time uneasy under the control of his patrons, secretly resolved to throw off their yoke. Having disarmed suspicion by the most profound dissimulation, he suddenly attacked, with a large force, the small body of the company's troops which had been stationed at Poonah, his capital. These, however, defended themselves witii the most undaunted courage until re-enforced, when the peishwa, unable to stand a pitched battle, was forced to retreat. For six months, eluding by superior swiftness the pursuit of his enemies, he ravaged the Deccan ; but was finally comjDelled to surrender his person and relinquish his title, I'eceiving in return a pension of eight lacs of rupees, (about half a million of dollars.) All his territories were seized by the victors. Similar events transpired at Nagpore, where the raja, with an overwhelming force, attacked the small body of INDIA, — HISTOEICAL. 283 English stationed there, who, however, most courageously maintained their ground with the loss of a fourth of their number. This attempt, like that of the peishwa, resulted in the entire subjugation of his territory. After the triumphant termination of this contest with the native powers, no further struggle of importance occurred until 1826, when Bhurtpore, a strong and cele- brated fortress, was attacked and taken by storm by Lord Combermere, with a force of twenty-five thousand men. This expedition, undertaken for the purpose of reinstating an excluded prince on the throne, had the effect of more thoroughly awing the native potentates, and of confirming the supremacy which Britain had already acquired over all Hindoostan. The administration of Lord William Bentinck, who shortly after succeeded to the head of the Indian govern- ment, was distinguished by his attempts to ameliorate the condition of the vast masses of Hindoos who were directly under the British authority. The horrible sut- tees, or burning of widows, were suppressed, and various flagrant abuses were corrected. The Afglianistan War. — The government of India, with a view of frustrating the designs of Russia, became parties to a treaty between Shah-Shuja and Punjit-Singh, of Lahore, which had for its object the re-establishment of the former on the throne of his ancestors. The British troops accordingly entered Afghanistan, to carry the objects of that treaty into effect. On the 20th February, 1839, the Bengal division, under Sir Willoughby Cotton, marched from Ferozepore across the desert toward the Bolan Pass. No opposition was encountered in the pass itself; and on the 26th of April, the division had reached Candahar, where, being joined by the Bombay division, on the 4th of May, the united force amounted to 10,400 284 INDJA, — HISTORICAL. men, with about 30,000 camp followers. The commis- sariat department appears to have been ill-sustained during this rash expedition ; but, on the 3d of June, the last division of troops marched from Candah'ar ; and on the 20th, the whole force was before Ghuzni, 220 miles from Candahar, and the most formidable fort in Asia, which was carried by storm the next day. After the capture of Ghuzni, the British force advanced and took possession of Cabul on the 7th of August; and Shah- Shuja having been replaced on his throne, the principal part of the British forces returned to India. Shah-Shuja soon excited great discontent by different acts of vio- lence, and particularly by retaining a corps of Sikhs, the enemies by blood and religion of the Afghans, as a body- guard. Such was the determined hostility of the natives, the situation of the small British force in Cabul daily became more perilous. A part of the garrison having been detached, under General Sale, to Jellalabad, the division had scarcely entered the passes before it was attacked from all points, and obliged to fight its way, inch by inch ; and on the 2d of November, the city of Cabul, with its 60,000 inhabitants, and all the country around, was in open insurrection. The British envoy. Sir W. MacNaughton, acting with indecision, was be- trayed into a pretended conference, and murdered ; while the ill-health of Major-General Elphinstone, the com- mander of the forces, unhappily, was such as to render him incapable of acting with the energy adequate to the crisis. On the Gth of January, 1842, the British force, consisting of about 4,5C0 men bearing arms, and 12,000 camp followers, besides women and children, commenced a disastrous retreat from Cabul, while its best officers were given as hostages for the evacuation of Jellalabad by General Sale. The cold was intense; and during 285 the whole retreat, through long and difficult passes, the Afghans poured an incessant fire upon the disorganized force, which literally annihilated it. General Sale, how- ever, held Jellalabad, and General Nott maintained him- self in Candahar. On receiving intelligence of these disasters. General Pollock, crossing the Punjaub, dispersed the Afghans before Jellalabad, and relieved Sale : while General Nott marched upon Cabul. Victory now at- tended upon the British arms ; and after destroying the Belahissar, or citadel of Cabul, avenging the disasters of their countrymen, and restoring the prestige of British superiority, the army recrossed the Sutlege in December, 1842. War in the Punjaub. — The country lying between the Indus and the Sutlege, watered by these two great rivers, and the Jelum, the Cherab, and the Ravi, constitutes a rich and important territory, of which the population has been estimated at 1,500,000 souls, about one-half of whom are Hindoos, 500,000 Mohammedans, and 250,000 Sikhs. The Sikhs, though constituting so small a portion of the population, were the governing class in the Pun- jaub. Punjit Singh reduced the wholfe of the Punjaub under his absolute power, conquered a considerable part of Afghanistan, occupied Cashmere, and compelled the chiefs of Little Thibet to pay him tribute, and even came in collision with China. The political confederacy of the Sikhs was destroyed by the power of Punjit Singh; and the religion of Nanak has also ceased to exist in its original character. On the fall of Napoleon, many French and Italian officers found their way into the Pun- jaub, and were taken into the service of Punjit Singh. By this means he organized and disciplined an army of Sikhs, wholly disproportioned to the wants of the gov- ernment, and his successors soon discovered that the 24* 286 INDIA, — HISTOKICAL. army was, in fact, the master of the country, and re- garded itself the State. Every attempt to reduce its numbers was set at defiance. At last, in an evil hour for themselves, these formidable soldiers, encouraged, doubtless, by the disasters which the British sustained in Afghanistan, resolved to measure their strength with that of the rulers of India. On the 11th of December, 1845, the Sikh army, in great strength, passed the Sutledje into the territories protected by the British, with a most for- midable train of artillery, but they found themselves com- pletely worsted after the hard-fought battles of Feroze- shah, Aliwal, and Sobraon. Lahore and other stations were afterward occupied by British troops ; the Julunder Doab, between the Sutledje and the Beas, was perma- nently ceded to the British ; and the dominion of Cash- mere, and other provinces of the Himalaya, was vested in the raja, Ghoolab-Singh. In 1849, a conspiracy be- tween the several disaffected chiefs and the Afghans resulted in other hostilities against the British, Mooltan being the center of their operations. The indecisive, battle of Chillianwalla was followed by the capture of Mooltan, in January, and the victory of Gujerat in Feb- ruary, 1849. Since which period, the former territories of the maharajah, Dhuleep Singh, have formed an inte- gral part of the British emporium in the East. CHAPTER X. THE RELIGIOS, CUSTOMS, INDUSTllY, AND CHARACTER OF THE HINDOOS. RAMA, Vishnu, and Siva, are the three most venerated divinities of the native in- habitants of India. The attributes of crea- tion and preservation are ascribed to them, and their origin and adventures are de- scribed in the wildest flights of mythological fancy. Doorga, their chief lemale deity, the goddess of battle and destruction, is one of the most popular and idolized divinities of India. Her image is represented as adorned with a necklace of skulls, and two dead bodies hang as pendants from her ears. Besides the usual simple offer- ings of the vegetable kingdom, her altars flow with the blood of animals, as anciently with that of human beings. A great number of minor deities are held in veneration ; Indra, the king of heaven ; Surya, the deified sun ; Ag- nee, the god of fire ; Pavana, of the winds ; and Varuna, of the waters. Their rivers have been held sacred from the remotest times, and to die on the banks of the holy Ganges is considered the surest passport to the joys of Paradise. Long pilgrimages are performed for the purpose of bath- ing in its waters, and infants are consigned to them for the purpose of securing their future felicity. In the courts of Bengal, witnesses are sworn upon a portion of its waters as the surest incentive to truthful evidence. The brute creation, especially the cow and the monkey, have their ardent and constant worshippers. The belief in the transmigration of souls is extensively entertained, and is supposed to be the instrument of retri- 288 INDIA, — HISTOEICAL. Brama, the Hindoo Creator. bution in another life ; the virtuous attaining higher rank and caste in their next existence, while the vicious suffer lower degradation, and even inhabit the bodies of ani- mals. Thus, the pillager of grain becomes a rat, and he who steals fruit is metamorphosed into an ape. The Hindoo continually supposes that he beholds in some suf- fering animal a degraded human soul, expiating its sins, and receiving their appropriate punishment. INDIA, — HISTORICAL. 289 ■Vishnu, the Hindoo Redeemer. The idea of a heaven and a hell are also prevalent ; the one resembling in its voluptuous and sensual enjoy- 290 INDIA, — HISTORICAL. ments the Mohammedan paradise, and the other rendered terrible by the most imaginative retributory tortures. The cruel are tormented by serpents ; the drunkard is immersed in liquid fire; and the licentious embraced by an image of red hot iron. ^ Their temples, especially those erected or excavated in ancient times, present the grandest ideas of barbarous magnificence. At Elephanta and Kenneri, whole hills have been formed into subterranean temples and dwel- lings, adorned with colossal emblematic images. Their pagodas are generally of a pyramidal form, composed of numerous stories, and strikingly reminding the beholder of the popular idea of the Tower of Babel. Those of Tanjore, Patun, and Kotah, are among the most remark- able. The edifices erected in modern times are gener- ally far inferior, being adapted to the diminished means of their worshippers, and barely affording accommoda- tion to the gaudy and hideous idols which they protect. The rites and praises offered before them are as absurd and meaningless as the divinities themselves. The penances and self-torture of the Hindoo devotees, sustained by a strange fanaticism, and the hope of future felicity, are almost incredible. No race of men seems gifted with such fortitude and passive endurance. Like their forefathers, in the time of Alexander, they will re- main exposed to a burning sun, and to every vicissitude of weather, in such constrained and unnatural positions that their limbs grow into helpless distortion. A traveler was astonished, on his return to India, after an absence of sixteen years, to find one of these unhappy beings retaining the same posture in which he had left him. At the grand festival of Juggernaut, in Orissa, vast numbers flock from all directions to the scene, and many perish from want and fatigue. The gigantic idol, on a mon- INDIA, — HISTOEICAL. 291 Siva, the Hindoo Destroyer. strous car, is dragged from his temple bythe assembled multitude, and it has been a common scene for his blinded devotees to (ling themselves beneath the pondrous wheels and seal their faith with their destruction. The suttees, or immolation of widows on the funeral- piles of their husbands, were practiced to a fearful extent, until suppressed by the British government. At one place thirty-seven women, the wives of a deceased Bra- 292 IjSTDIA, — ^HISTOEICAL. min, voluntarily underwent this terrible fate; and in Marwar, on the death of the prince, Ajit, fifty-eight of his favorite wives threw themselves into a mighty pile, and were consumed together. Sometimes the unfortunate victim, at the latest moment, would gladly have with- drawn from the dreadful fate; in which case, force was not unfrequently resorted to, to secure a reluctant mar- tyrdom. Infanticides were also deplorably common, the unfor- tunate children being left to their fate, afloat on some sacred river, or suspended in baskets to perish by birds of prey. The division into castes, or distinct classes, has been, from the remotest ages, peculiar to the people of India. The highest and most sacred race is that of the Bra- mins, who are supposed to be entitled to peculiar venera- tion, both in this world and the next. Their persons are considered eminently sacred and inviolable. The Cshay- tryas, or military class, rank next, and the Vaisyas, or men of business, are the third in respect. Last come the Sudras, or laborers, whose condition is that of unre- mitting servitude and obedience. Their employments are invariably transmitted from father to son. In the southern part of India is found a yet more miserable and degraded class, called the Pariahs, or outcasts, who are held in the most utter contempt, and employed only in the meanest services. They are compelled to herd to- gether without the walls of the cities, lest the purer castes should become contaminated by their touch. The character of the Hindoo race, in such an extended re- gion, naturally varies widely ; but the people are in gen- eral distinguished by their temperance and abstemious- ness in living, and by the gentleness and docility of their dispositions. The national tendency to craft and deceit. IXDIA, — HISTORICAL. 293 Sudraa, or people of ttie fourth caste. of which they have been accused, seems but a natural consequence of the long-continued servitude to which they have been subjected by their Mohammedan con- querors, and latterly, to some extent, by their British masters. Such, it is said, is their disregard of the obli- gations of an oath, that native testimony is almost en- tirely unreliable where there is any temptation to pervert the truth. The literature of the Hindoos, so long locked up in their Sanscrit, or sacred language, and known only to 25 294 INDIA, — HISTORICAL. the priests, was first introduced to the knowledge of Eu- rope by the exertions of Sir William Jones, and other eminent oriental scholars. The Vedas, the most sacred and ancient books in the language, consist of voluminous writings in verse, principally of a religious and philoso- phical nature. A very pure and enlightened idea of the Supreme Being is conveyed in some portions of these remarkable works. The following passage is deeply re- vered by the religious natives : — " Let us adore the supremacy of that divine sun, the god- head, who illuminates all, who recreates all, from whom all proceed, to whom all must return, whom we invoke to direct our understandings aright in our progress toward his holy seat. " What the light and sun are to this visible world, that are the Supreme Good and Truth to the intellectual and invisible universe ; and as our corporeal eyes have a dis- tinct perception of objects enlightened by the sun, thus our souls acquire certain knowledge by meditating on the light of truth which eminates from the Being of beings ; that is the light by which alone our minds can be directed in the path to beatitude. ^ " Without hand or foot, he runs rapidly, and grasps firmly ; without eyes, he sees ; without ears, he hears all ; he knows whatever can be known ; but there is none who knows him. Him the wise call the great Supreme Pervading Spirit." With such sublime and elevated views of the divine nature, the Indian mythology mixes all that is wild, ab- surd and degrading. The other celebrated works of the ancient Hindoos are Puranas, the Mahabarat, and the Ramayana — a species of confused epics, in which (doubtless with some original foundation of authenticity) the adventures of celestial beings, heroes, and demi-gods, 295 are detailed at great and sometimes wearisome length. Tiie poetry of these singular productions is often of a high and deeply imaginative character. Dramas and love poems of considerable merit likewise abound. Since the intercourse with Europeans has become peacefully established, considerable attention has been paid by the educated Hindoos to British literature. Many of the best works of the English language have been translated into the native tongues, and works of merit have been composed in the English by native authors. A newspa- per, advocating liberal and enlightened sentiments, has also been established. Although great and persevering efforts have been made for the conversion to Christianity of the numerous native races of India, the results have been less encour- aging to missionary zeal than in many other fields of operation. The Baptist missionaries, who at the close of the last century commenced their pious labors, dis- played the greatest ardor and perseverance in their self- allotted undertaking. In 1801, they published the New Testament in Bengalee, and have since circulated the Scripture, translated into twenty-four dialects, which are vernacular to more than a hundred millions of the native population. The Lolidon and the Church Missionary Societies have also been extremely active and industri- ous in establishing schools and churches, and especially in preparing for the conversion of the generation which is to succeed the present. This latter project appears to offer the most rational prospect of any extensive change in the belief of the in- habitants ; the adults being so wedded to their system of castes and their ancient usages, that the instances of con- version have been extremely rare. The more fanatical among them have even organized societies, (modeled on 296 INDIA, — HISTOEICAL. those of the European missionaries,) for the restoration of their venerated suttees, and other revolting rites of Hindoo superstition. Great blame, and perhaps justly, has been laid upon the East India Company for sanc- tioning, by its authority the pagan ceremonies of their superstitious subjects. It has been customary with the officials of government to levy taxes upon the pilgrims to the various shrines, to pay the salaries of the officia- ting priests and Bramins, to keep the temples in repair, and to put the balance into their own treasury. It has been charged that, in this way, in seventeen years, they drew a sum of one million pounds from the four principal tem- ples of Juggernaut, Allahabad, Gaya, and Tripetty. Whatever may be alledged in regard to preservation of order and the suppression of worse excesses effected by such a system, it seems evident enough that this large revenue, so disgracefully obtained, has been the principal motive with a Christian government in thus extending its countenance and patronage to a system of puerile idolatry. Although, for many years, "the idea of boundless wealth has been connected with the fertile regions of India, yet the great body of the inhabitants, owing to their im- mense number and their condition of subjection, are in a state of much depression and poverty. So little are they in advance of a state of necessity, that a failure of the periodical rains, on which the crops are dependent, at times occasions the most terrible results. By such an event, which occurred in Bengal in 1770, several mil- lions of the unfortunate inhabitants are supposed to have perished of actual famine. The principal production and almost the exclusive food of the laboring classes is rice, of which two crops can be raised in a single year. Cotton, which is largely INDIA, — HISTORICAL. 297 raised, and which forms the entire clothing of the great mass of the people, is very inferior in quality to that of America, and is worth little for exportation. Strenuous attempts have been made by the British government to naturalize the superior species and improve its cultiva- tion, but with questionable success ; and it seems proba- ble that the vast manufactures of this article in England will forever remain dependent on the supply from the southern states of America. Opium, the most seductive and baneful production of the whole East, is extensively prepared, and as exten- sively consumed, both in India and the adjoining regions, to the immeasurable detriment of its unfortunate devo- tees. Silk, though of inferior quality, is produced largely, especially in Bengal. Sugar, which, probably from deficient culture, is unable to compete with the pro- ducts of the West Indies, is raised to a considerable ex- tent, and might, it is supposed, by the employment of proper means, easily supply the whole British empire. Tobacco, from the time of its introduction, has always been largely produced and consumed — the fragrant and soothing influence of the pipe being particularly adapted to the indolence and apathy of the inhabitants of this tropical clime. The most important article of culture, indigo, is of comparatively recent introduction, and owes its present importance entirely to the enterprise and capital of Eu- ropeans. Immense quantities are exported, and all Eu- rope is largely supplied from this source. Pepper and other spices are extensively produced. iManufactures and the mechanic arts, though con- ducted with much pains-taking industry, are, in general, almost entirely destitute of those advantages which cap- ital and machinery so immensely confer. The artisan, 25* 298 INDIA, — HISTORICAL. with rude and indifferent instruments, labors singly and unassisted, with patient perseverance. In this way are produced the most delicate Indian muslins, the finest silks and calicoes, and the splendid and high-priced shawls of Cashmere. In consequence, however, of the increased skill of European manufacturers, and the cheapness of their wares, the demands for these beautiful fabrics has not increased, like that for other luxuries, though exten- sive importations are. still made. The monopoly of traffic, which the East India Company so long main- tained, has been finally suppressed ; and the enterprise and competition of private merchants have proved far more efficacious for advancing the interest of com- merce than the cumbrous and unwieldy system of the company. The British residents in India, though holding com- plete control of the government, and transacting all busi- ness of importance, whether military, judicial, or com- mercial, regard their sojourn generally as a species of exile, and devote themselves eagerly to acquiring the means of independence, to be enjoyed on their return to their own country. Their manner of life, indeed, usually becomes strongly tinctured with oriental feelings and habits. Troops of native servants, high-spiced Indian dishes, and the continual use of the hookah, or water- pipe, become, with many of them, almost necessaries of life. At the principal capitals, and especially at Cal- cutta, the officials and other wealthy residents maintain a state of extreme splendor and luxury. In the latter city, the quarter called Chouringhee is described as a village of palaces — contrasting strongly with the low and squallid habitations of the "Black Town" or district allotted to the native population. The most exciting and manly amusement of the Euro- INDIA, — HISTORICAL. 299 peans is the chase, in which many, especially the mili- tary officers, engage with the most adventurous ardor. The elephant, the royal tiger, and other magnificent denizens of the fisrest and jungle, offer the most atti'active and dangerous sport to the courageous hunter. These sports are attended with much risk, not only from the ferocious nature of the game, but from the burning and tropical sun to which the huntsman is necessarily exposed. The population of India, over nearly all of which the British influence is now paramount, amounts to the enormous number of an hundred and forty millions. " Man in those regions is a weed," says a well-known philosophical writer ; and, indeed, if overwhelming num- ber, combined, with ignorance, political weakness, and individual unimportance, is meant, the simile is true enough. That this gentle, kindly, and somewhat intel- lectual race may be redeemed from their present de- graded condition, and advance in true religion, civili- zation, and freedom, must be the wish of every philan- thropic mind. TRANGE, indeed it would have been, if the fierce spirit of Islam had not stirred in the breasts of the followers of the Prophet, when rank after rank of* our own sip^his, (sepoys,) with bayonets dyed in the blood of their offi- cers, were hastening to uphold the green flag that waves over Delhi. He must know little of India, and still less of the fanaticism which burns within the breasts of the * Communication from an officer in the employ of the East India Com- pany's service. 300 INDIA, — HISTORICAL. disciples of Mohammed, who could suppose that possible. True, in the time of our strength, many a bigoted Mos- lem has pacified his conscience, while serving the infidel, by transferring the reproach to destiny, or repeating the old saw, 'JisM teg, uskd tegh,' ' Whose the purse, his the sword ;' but, with every gathering cloud of misfortune, there have been lightning-flashes of what would befall us in the hour of our need. " The Cabul disasters showed how hot a fire of malev- olence and bigotry burned under the thin crust of allegi- ance to which we trusted- At that season of peril many ofiicers had opportunities of discovering the truth. One of General Nott's staff", returning from the war, continued to wear his Afghan dress as he traversed the north-west provinces, and his acquaintance with the languages and customs of the East disarmed suspicion. He passed thus through the neighboring districts, visiting the chief places of resort, the mosques, and every spot to which a traveler could be attached. Everywhere he heard the same avowal of rancorous hate from the lips of the Moham- medans. At that very time another political officer, the writer of this article, was invited by Saiyid Kardmat Ali, to be. present at the great religious meeting of Moham- medans near Calcutta. Two thousand Moslems of the higher classes thronged the Imambarah, or Hall of Mourning, and among them were many of our native officers. In the costume of a Mogul, the European visi- tor passed unnoticed, and heard on all sides the eager and oft-repeated hope that the star of the Feringis had set. There was not one of our native officials there who remembered the salt he had eaten : that salt had, indeed, lost its savor. The smiling mask had been laid aside in that secure assemblage of the faithful, and beneath it appeared a scowl of hatred and defiance. s *^ INDIA, — HISTOEICAL. become the rule of indiscriminate slaughter. Time, in- deed, seemed only to increase the ferocity with which these miscreants turned against the white men who had so pampered and petted them, and butchered gentle ladies and innocent babes with shameless cruelty not to be de- scribed. Yet, even after there had been much mutiny and bloodshed, many officers could not persuade them- selves that the terrible events which had been announced to them were otherwise than local and accidental, and talked about the loyalty of their own regiments up to the very hour in which the first fatal shot was fired. Others, warned by passing events, took the wise precau- tion of disarming suspected regiments before they broke out into actual revolt. But whether they flocked with all their arms and equipments to the rebel standard, or whether they were disarmed in the presence of an Euro- pean force, backed by irresistible artillery; before the month of August arrived, there was scarcely a sepoy regiment in the Bengal army to fire a shot at the com- mand of its European officers ; and it is not too much to say that, if this immense body of trained soldiers, with the most approved weapons of war, the pillage of our treasuries, and all the resources of the country at their disposal, had been controlled by some leading intelligence, and had moved in accordance with some definite scheme of action, — that if there had been in all those rebellious regiments a few men of military genius, or that such men had come from the native states of India, and their guid- ance had been accepted by the mutineers, — the few scat- tered Europeans, who have so bravely held their ground, might have been swept into the sea." — Edinhurg Review, October, 1857. " It speedily appeared that the outbreak at Meerut and Delhi was no isolated movement.' As the news ran from 369 station to station, tlie bearing of the troops became more independent and insolent, and an uneasy feeling pervaded the whole of the European civilians, though the ofiicers con- tinued to have confidence in their men, or at least deemed it prudent to affect it. Already troops, on their way to the rescue in the immediate neighborhood of Meerut, had gone over to the rebels, when, on May 14th, 200 miles off, at Ferozepore, the 49th native infantry rose in open mutiny. Fortunately, her majesty's 61st fusileers were at hand, by whom the insurgents were at once repulsed — not, however, till they had destroyed the European resi- dences, and burnt to the ground the church, known and dear to ourselves beyond any other in India, as being the one raised to the memory of the soldiers who fell in the Sutledje and Punjaub campaigns. The 10th light cavalry, since disarmed, then stood firm, and made great havoc among the mutineers ; nor did the affair pass off with their momentary dispersement. They were pursued and brought back as prisoners, and sentenced to death by a court martial of native officers. A month after the out- break, twenty-four were brought out for execution ; ten were reprieved on the spot, on a promise to divulge the particulars of the plot. Of the rest, two were hung, and ten blown from the guns, in the presence of the troops and inhabitants. The men met their fate with great steadi- ness, taunting those who saved their lives by submission. The native spectators seemed horror-stricken at the sight, but the effect of the severity did not extend beyond the station. Eerozepore lies on the Bengal side of the Sut- lege river, and its vicinity to our newly-acquired territory of the Panjaub might have led men at a distance to tremble for its effect on the Sikh population — so notori- ously fond of fighting — and to suppose that here the chord of loyalty would be at its greatest strain ; but those 370 INDIA, — HISTORICAL. ■who knew the excellent system introduced, and tlie men that were there to work it, had great reliance from the first that, by force or management, things could be kept right. Among the Bengal troops, however, quartered there, the mutinous undercurrent was >t work, and broke out in great violence at Nooshera. ISTDIA, — HISTORICAL. 371 "But little time was lost. General Eeid, in concert with Brigadiers Chamberlain, Cotton, Edwardes, and Nicholson, immediately organized a moveable column, which placed the whole district under military law, and the work of disarming went regularly on, though with different success. The vigorous dealing with the sus- pected troops, and the general pacification of the Punjaub, reflect the highest credit on Sir John Lawrence and his coadjutors ; and the best compliment that can be paid to the authorities of that district, is the further omission of the name of the Punjaub in the distressing history that ensues. " Every day was now adding strength to the insurrec- tion. The Europeans were helpless in the hands of their soldiers, and their best chance was to fall back upon the old prestige of the English name: but natives are as quick as children in detecting motives ; they saw through the thin mask, and knew who were really masters. Spreading from Delhi north-east through Eohilcund, the mutinous contagion had early reached Bareilly; and though to the 23d of June the authorities went on enlist- ing recruits into the irregular cavalry ^ — -the body deemed most trustworthy— the residents were on their guard. They had sent their wills down to Calcutta, and their children and wives to Nynee Tal, a hill-station in the Himalayas, and they themselves for weeks slept with their clothes on, their pistols loaded, and their horses saddled, ready to start at a moment's notice. The whirl- wind seemed to have passed by them, and the men came to them with most earnest assurances, and begged them to send for their wives and children back from the hills. On Sunday, May 31st, morning prayer was being offered up as usual in the church, when suddenly the cry of the Philistines upon them ran through the congrega- 31 372 INDIA, — HISTOEICAL. tion. The crisis had been so long expected that, when the terrible moment came at last, most of the ofScers and civihans were able to avail themselves of the preconcerted plans. Bach rushed to his house, and pursued by the suwars, on whose loyalty they had most depended, they rode off at full gallop toward Nynee Tal. There were times when one stumble or a moment's breathing-rest would have been fatal to the rider ; but though several horses fell down dead with fatigue just as they reached their refuge, all their riders escaped. Looting, arson and murder immediately succeeded. Dr. Hay and two civil- ians were taken before a native who had been employed in our own magistrates' courts, and, after a mock trial, were sentenced to death and beheaded. A subahdar of the artillery proclaimed himself governor of the province under the king of Delhi, but his authority was of no avail to preserve order ; the suwars and sepoys Moham- medans and Hindoos, had already fallen to blows, and, after fighting among themselves for the treasury, dis- persed for the head-quarters at Delhi. In connection with the troops at Bareilly, were the 29th native infantry of the neighboring station of Moradabad. They seemed to have joined unwillingly ; and to have been more intent on spoil than blood. They made no attack on their officers, but bade them speed to the hills, some of the sepoys and servants accompanying them all the way to Nynee Tal, where the deadly Terai, a forest-jungle at the foot of the hills, acting as a barrier of pestilence, afforded the refugees, with a small Ghoorkha force, their best protection against the rebels of the plain. At Shah- jehanpore, also in the same district, the Englishmen were surrounded while in church. The first accounts reported all killed ; but many were saved by the faithfulness of their native servants and syces, (grooms,) who protected INDIA, — HISTORICAL. 873 them from the mutineers, and assisted them in their escape. " So rapid had been the tide of disaffection that, by the end of May, thirty-four regiments of the Bengal army had been disbanded, disarmed, or mutinied ; but all affirmed that the worst was over. The fall of Delhi, daily expected, would set all things straight; loyal addresses poured in to government; native regiments were volunteered to be led against their mutinous brethren ; and the governor-general, on the 25th, thanked in person the 70th, at Barrackpore, for the loyalty they had so opportunely shown, in giving up some traitors who had attempted to seduce them, and offering at once to be led to Delhi. Nevertheless, from Ajmeer on the one side to Oude on the other, new outbreaks and atroci- ties were reported by every post, and June opened with no very bright prospects. It has been stated that the most considerable of the native rajas were early in the field with their offers of assistance. The time was now come to test their value. "In Central and Upper Hindoostan still lie large states under their independent sovereigns, though subject to the surveillance of English residents, and with contingent corps, ofiicered by Europeans, which they are bound by treaty to bring into the field at the call of the British government. Of these independent states, lying north- ward and nearest to the scene of mutiny, is Gwalior, with its cities, Gwalior and Neemuoh, the dominion of Sindia, the descendant of that Mahratta chief Sindia, to whom, by final treaty in 1805, the country south of the Chumbul was assigned. On the first outbreak, the greatest hopes were entertained of the support of these rulers and their several contingents. Their troops had not been brought in contact with the mutineers, theu- interests might be 374 INDIA, — HISTORICAL. supposed to be different, and the chiefs, though rivals with one another, were known to be favorable and friendly to the British government. For a time they were only heard of as devoted to our alliance, and marching to our support ; but as the evil spirit extended, and it was discovered to be more than mere military dis- content, it was folind that no more dependence could be placed on these contingents than on our men. To this day, Sindia of Gwalior and Holkar of Indore remain firm, and have rendered us considerable service. But with their troops the feeling was far otherwise. As early as the first outbreak at Meerut, a company of the Gwalior contingent had proved false, but it was at a time that they were exposed to great temptation, and the main body of the contingent were still believed to be unin- fected with their spirit. In almost every instance the same feeling was indulged. Partly in fear but more in faith, wherever an European officer was found, he continued to confide in the men by whom he was surrounded. At ISTeemuch, when suspicion of their fidelity first arose, the men were indignant at the thought, and they voluntarily took the oath in the most solemn manner on the Ganges water, that they would prove true to the masters whose salt they ate. On the very next day, the 3d of June, they rose in mass, and the cavalry at once surrounded the houses of the English to prevent their escape. Here the sepoys, though in mutiny, still for a time defended their officers, when, seeing the artillery approach, they told them they could do no more for them, and they must now run for their lives. Those who escaped from the first slaughter had to wander forth into an unknown country in wretched plight. They had left, at a moment's notice, with only the clothes they had on their backs. At each village the people, uneasy at 875 their presence, pushed them onward to the next. Sleeping on the bare ground, attacked by disease and vermin, thankful for the dirty water and unpalatable chupatty which was grudgingly afforded them, daily haunted with, the rumors of the approach of fresh muti- neers, threatened by stragglers, and not knowing whither to flee, many miserably perished, how and where will never be told. To one party of men, women, and children, a timely succcor arrived, and, after a fortnight's wandering, the good Rana of Oudepore — be his name remembered — brought them back in safety to Neemuch. At Gwalior itself, seven officers, with their wives and children, were massacred at the first rising. The 1st and 2d cavalry alone rescued their ofiicers, and, taking them to the outside of the cantonments, bade them go in peace. Some strange feeling of pity even the murderers seem to have liad. After shooting down every Englishman within their reach, they came back to the wretched women, hiding and clinging to their homes, and, after mocking and threatening, they crammed all that remained in a carriage, and sent them away. The whole country was up, and there was little hope of their reaching any place of safety ; but after five days' misery, and living only on grain and water, their lives supported by a spirit which, in great extremity, is never wanting to the most delicate Englishwoman, they got to Agra at last. " The success of the mutineers at Delhi was now beginning to tell at distant stations. But it would be injustice to suppose that there were none who regretted the movement ; none who, if left to themselves, would not willingly have served their old masters. Not only individual sepoys, but whole companies and regiments would doubtless have remained firm, if the outbreak at 31* 376 INDIA,— HISTOBICAL. Meerut had been provided against and crushed on the instant. It is evident that many men were drawn into the stream with reluctance; but the tide was now running at full height, and it required indeed a strong swimmer to breast it alone. Yet all the good qualities of the sepoy were not crushed in a moment. At Azim- ghur, the treasure escort had just started for Benares, and the of&cers, with the ladies, were at mess, when two signal-guns at once warned them that mischief was brewing. Placing the ladies in safety, the officers proceeded direct to the parade ground ; on their approach, the men immediately formed a square about them, assured them that no one should touch them, but begged them to take to their carriages and be off at once. They even fetched the carriages themselves, and one party escorted Major Burroughs and his officers ten miles on their way to Ghazeepore ; while another rode after the treasure escort, some to protect it, others to have their share in the plunder. " The news of this rising reached Benares on the fol- lowing day, and precipitated matters there. This ' holy city ' is to the Hindoo what Delhi is to the Mussulman ; but, while at Delhi the population is equally balanced between the two creeds, at Benares the Hindoos are ten to one. There are more than a thousand sivalas, or Hindoo temples, within the city; but the characteristic feature is that of the numerous beautiful gh^ts, or flights of steps into the river, where the Hindoos come to bathe in the sacred stream of the Ganges. The descriptions of the city by Heber and Macaulay yet hold true. The sacred bulls and devout beggars still crowd up the narrow overhanging streets; and the divine monkeys leap from pinnacle to pinnacle of the temples, round which are posted the hideous fakirs and other ascetics of 377 revolting cliaracter, ' offering every conceivable deformity which chalk, cow-dung, disease, naatted locks, distorted limbs, and disgusting and hideous attitudes of penance can show.' In Benares Braminism is seen in all its completeness. Here suttee and self-immolation made their last stand. To die on its holy ground is to secure a certainty of eternal bliss ; one pilgrimage to it, at least, in his life, every Hindoo hopes to accomplish. The gaudiest and most costly festivals of all India are cele- brated there ; an eclipse would bring a hundred thousand pilgrims to the river stairs, ' where are passed the busiest and happiest hours of every Hindoo's day: bathing dressing, praying, preaching, lounging, gossiping, or sleeping.'* On these ghats the natives combine business, amusement, and religion, all in one. Every encourage- ment has been given by the British government to Hindoo literature and education, and the people generally were believed to feel and acknowledge the benefits of our rule. It only req^uired this city to be brought over to make the mutiny a common cause of both the rival creeds of India. " Most providentially, on the very day of the news of the Azimghur rising reaching Benares, Colonel Neil, with two guns and two hundred and ten men of H. M's. 10th, and of the Madras fusileers, (Europeans,) — the first fruits of the English troops that had been sent for, — arrived from Calcutta. It was determined to disarm the disaffected 37th, though many of the officers still maintained it to be staunch . An ordinary parade was quietly ordered, and a hollow square formed. On. the north were the huts of the native 37th ; on the west a regiment of Sikhs ; on the south the * Prinsep's " Benares," quoted in Thornton's Gazetteer of India, — tho latter a work of great research and accuracy, and invaluable in the present state of Indian affairs. 378 INDIA,— HISTORICAL. IStli irregular cavalry ; on the east the opportune handful of English soldiers. Both the cavalry and the Sikhs had been throughout considered trustworthy, and had been specially called in for the defense of the city against the sepoys. The cavalry, indeed, had begun to be slightly suspected ; the Sikhs were deemed as trustworthy as our own men. When the 37th native infantry saw the artniery and Europeans drawn out, and found that they had been forestalled, they refused to lay down their arms. And now occurred one of the strangest conflicts that history has to tell. The accounts are necessarily confused, perhaps none quite correct, but all agree in the character the fight ultimately assumed. On the first order to disarm, the 37th replied by pouring a volley into their own officers, yet not one fell at the first discharge. Immediately the men retreated into their huts, under cover of which they continued to fire on the Europeans, and Captain Guise, commanding the irregulars, coming upon the ground at this moment, fell riddled by the balls of the sepoys. The Sikhs and the cavalry stood for a while looking on, till Captain Dodgson, of the 37th, seeing the cavalry had lost their leader, rode up, and offered himself to head them. He was yet speaking, when a bullet struck his sword-arm and disabled him ; the man who fired the shot rushed upon him, and Dodgson was only saved by a man of the same troop who came up to the rescue. The Sikhs advanced and placed themselves between the cavalry and the 37th, facing the latter ; but on being ordered to attack, they wheeled round, firing, some on the cavalry, some, it was supposed, on the Euro- peans. From this moment there was no distinguishing between friend and foe. The English guns were turned from the 37th, and opened upon the Sikhs and cavalry alike, who, losing or brought again to their senses, now 879 fired on the 37th. But it was now too late to recover themselves if they had any such intention. The huts of the sepoys had been meanwhile fired, and they were in full flight. The Sikhs and cavalry were not long behind them ; the artillery poured in their grape-shot, and in less than an hour had cleared the parade-ground of all living enemies. Though the English troops were 200 to 2,000, only four men were killed. Such was the m&Ue of Benares. " There is some reason to think that the main body of the Sikhs were faithful. Their subsequent conduct at Benares and Allahabad, and that of their countrymen elsewhere, greatly confirms this view. But still more to complicate the matter, we find, on the evening of the same day, a portion of the irregular cavalry escorting the ladies and civilians to the Mint, a portion of the 37th carrying Major Barrett and another officer, wounded, to the cantonments, and seventy Sikhs defending the treas- ury faithfully to the last. The mutineers, at the first panic, flying and firing random shots in all directions, had spread great alarm among the cantonments and res- idences ; but the civil magistrates on the spot were men equal to the emergency ; the apprehended riots in the city were suppressed ; fugitives from neighboring out- stations, kindly protected for a time by native land- holders, were searched for and brought in in safety; while the most active measures were instantly taken for collecting all the ladies and civilians within the Mint, a building whose succession of terraces rendered it tempo- rarily defensive, and where, on the Sunday following, order was sufficiently restored to allow the church services to be carried on. The native servants, and the citizens of character, all behaved well ; and a Baptist missionary writes from the holy city, that 'the landholders, mer- 880 INDIA, — HISTORICAL. chants, shopkeepers, artisans, and indeed all the well-doing classes, are to a man against the movement.' Crowded up in the Mint, sleeping on the roofs of the buildings under an eastern moonlight, the Europeans yet held their ground up to the end of July. Soorul Sing, a Sikh chieftain, had proved himself so faithful and watchful in his guard, that the, ladies and children in the Mint had already subscribed. £lOO to make him the honorable present of a set of handsome armor. " It has since been discovered that the night of the 4th of June had been agreed upon for a general rising at Benares and the neighboring stations; and the conflict was precipitated by the arrival of Colonel Neil on the eve of the outbreak. At Allahabad the few additional hours for cpnspiracy turned the fate of the day. The town lies higher up the river than Benares, at the very point of junction of the Jumna with the Ganges, which here becomes about a mile in width. These junctions, or prayagas, wherever they occur, are Holy of Holies to the bathing pilgrims of Hindoostan, and Allahabad the most holy of all. The fort stands in an impregnable po- sition on the tongue of land formed by the confluence of the rivers ; and here the very smallest force of Europeans might have kept any amount of Orientals at bay. It lies a quarter of a mile from the station, and was garrisoned by Sikhs. At the station were the ' loyal' 6th native in- fantry, who had volunteered with enthusiasm to march against the insurgents of Delhi, and had been publicly thanked for their spirit, and such confidence was felt in these men that the civilians, trusting rather to the stal- wart hearts and arms of the sepoys than to the stone walls, generally refused to come into the fort for safety. The ofBcers sat down to mess in old English comfort. There was a large muster that day, for six or seven young ninrc of Oi.i d'> INDIA, — HISTOEICAL. 383 ensigns unattached, fresh from their English honaes, had just joined, and the poor boys must have been entering with zest on the new life, as they thought, opening be- fore them. At half-past nine the garrison was roused from their beds by the sound of firing heard at the sta- tion, and the alarm-bugle shortly brought them to the ramparts. So steady was the report of the musketry, that the remark was, ' Well done gallant sepoys ! they are beating oiF the rebels, who are come at last.' But before long, the sad truth was known. The officer in charge of the artillery came galloping into the fort, say- ing that his guns had been seized and drawn toward the station, and that the whole of the sepoys were in mutiny, murdering every European they could find, military and civil, alike. Of seventeen officers at the mess that even- ing, only three escaped — two by swimming the Ganges to the fort. Mockery was added to murder ; for, while this butchery was going on, the band was playing ' God save the Queen.' In all, fifty Europeans fell by the hands of the sepoys that night. Then followed the usual course. The jail broken open, the treasury sacked, house after house plundered and fired, the station a smoking ruin, and the green flag of the pi-ophet raised above the town by a moulvie, who represented himself as viceroy of the king of Delhi. Colonel Neil, pursuing his mission of relief up the valley of the Ganges, bringing retribution in his van and leaving order in his rear, came too late to aid the sufferers, but not too late to punish their murder- ers. By the aid of the Sikhs in the fort under Major Brazier, and supported by a steamer that moved along the river. Colonel Neil, with his little force, attacked and fired the town, drove the Bramins and moulvies to flight, recovered the lost guns, and restored order in the city, and security in the fort. The nephew of the rebel 384 INDIA, — HISTORICAL. moulvie was put to death by the Sikhs, who showed little disposition to spare. The native Christian catechists, who had been made prisoners by the insurgents at the outbreak, were left behind when the city was abandoned by them, having been befriended by a wealthy Hindoo zemindar. Allahabad has now become the base of ope- rations to the north-west, and thither the troops, as they arrive at Calcutta, are at once forwarded with all speed. " At the little out-post garrison of Jhansi, where terri- ble attrocities were enacted, it was said that an English officer, driven to desperation, when he saw the sepoys swarming up the walls of the last stronghold, kissed his wife, shot her, and then himself. Now nothing could justify, nothing but bereavement of senses, excuse, so pagan an act. The descending sword has oftentimes been warded off in its fall ; rescue has arrived at the last moment of the eleventh hour ; and true courage, as well as true faith, would wait God's own time. It is a relief to find that there is no foundation for the story, save that they both miserably perished. " It would be in vain to attempt to follow out the mu- tiny at every station, as it now so rapidly arose. The mind sickens and weai-ies over the narrative of the same forbearing confidence, the same treacherous assassination, the same hair-breadth escapes, the same courageous en- durance of misery in British soldiers and civilians, men and women. But some cases have special features of their own, and not always easy tO' reconcile, or to com- prehend. On the 8th of June, at Fyzabad, in the center of Oude, a regiment of irregulars, combining with the 22d native infantry, took possession of the battery, but allowed their officers to escape ; they protected them from the towns-people, found them boats, gave each his own property and 900 rupees from the public treasury, which INDIA, — HI3T0EICAL. 385 they had looted ; yet, falling in with other mutineers, the fugitives were hunted by them like otters on the river, and many perished on the islands and banks on which they had taken refuge, or owed their lives to the protec- tion of some hospitable raja. On the 12th of June, in the Sonpal district, at Deoghyr, in the midst of a quiet country, Major Macdonald, Sir Norman Leslie, and Dr. Grant, of the 5th irregular cavalry, were at tea; three natives rushed in upon them, and almost before they were aware of their presence, Leslie was murdered, and his companions, who had to fight for their lives with the furniture they could lay hold of, were badly wounded. The 32d, still faithful up to the last accounts, showed great sympathy with the officers, and did all in their power to arrest the murderers. The assassins, proved to be of the 5th irregular cavalry, were soon captured and hung by men of their own i-egiment, who professed great horror at the deed, and who have all since mutinied. By the middle of June, while order was being restored in several places where the sepoys had risen, a general an- archy was extended to places apparently free from the military influence. Petty rajas proclaimed their inde- pendence, and were, in some instances, pounced upon and hanged ; dacoiette and robbery were spreading, and all the evil elements of the lowest classes were stirred up ; roads became unsafe ; disbanded sepoys were rang- ing the country and cutting off unprotected travelers ; but there has been nothing which resembles a national I'ising. " By the end of June, the Bengal army may be said to have ceased to exist. Seventy regiments were gone, and the few that remained were only awed by the presence of European troops, or kept together by local influences so slight that the lightest breath might disperse them. 32 S86 INDIA, — HISTORICAL, Throughout the whole troubles, wherever Anglo-Saxon energy has shown itself, its effect was immediately felt. Lawrence and Edwardes in the Punjaub, and Henry Lawrence in Oude, whether successfully guiding or com- pelling their people, or dying at their posts, were literally in themselves a host — a match for a thousand. "Agra, the capital of the north-west provinces, had, of course, early been brought within the influence of the insurrection now eddying from Meerut, far and wide ; the lieutenant-governor, Mr. Colvin, with prompt decis- ion, hastened to re-assure the sepoys in their allegiance, and on his harangue to the troops, native and European, the cheering of the sepoys outvoiced that of the English, and lasted longer, and the city settled down into confi- dence and repose ; soon, however, to be dissipated. On the 25th of May, in ignorance of what had happened elsewhere, the ill-judged proclamation offering pardon to all who would return to their allegiance was issued, but canceled as soon as known by the governor-general. Meanwhile, the native soldiers, intrusted with the convoy of treasure, had turned on their officers, and murdered them on the road. The fruits of forbearance elsewhere began to be better understood, and, on the 1st of June, all the native regiments within the place were by good management disarmed. The communication between the fort and city was still kept up, but matters looked awk- ward, and none could tell what was coming to pass. There was now no want of energy ; walls were repaired, the old fort was cleared out and put in order, and the whole Christian population were drilled and armed. Our old friend Jotee Persaud, whose commissariat arrange- ments saved us in the Sutledje campaign, but who was prosecuted, though acquitted, for embezzlement, came to the aid of his masters. Perhaps he forgot our ingrati- G-eneral Havelock 389 tude in our justice. Meanwhile, refugees from Gwalior and other parts came dropping into Agra, each with their tale of horror and misery. What days they spent in scorching suns, what perils by day, by night, by robbers, in watching, in fastings, in weariness and faintness, in nakedness — what miraculous escapes, what heartless cru- elty, yet often what consideration and what kindness — it was a relief to tell when the troubles were passed. With such tales did they beguile their countrymen in Agra, who, out of their now decreasing store, continued to give food and raiment to the new comers. Though every fresh arriver had more fearful miseries and deeper hor- rors to relate, and all suggestive of more imminent dan- gers to the listeners, there was no failing of spirit in the ranks of this British company. On the 4th of July, the Kotah contingent, quartered in the cantonments, and be- lieved to be staunch, mutinied and went to join the se- poys who were known to be on their way from Neemuch. On the following day the mutineers united their forces, and were within five miles of Agra. It was determined not to await their approach, but at once to go out and meet them. The English force was 650 men and one battery of artillery, with such mounted volunteer civil- ians as could be spared from the fort. The insurgents numbered 4,000 infantry, 1,500 cavalry, and eleven guns; they had intrenched themselves in the village of Shah- gunge, about three miles distant, and desperately they held their position. A handful of volunteers was all that the English had to meet their cavalry, which kept hovering on both flanks, but once only dared to charge, and wei'e then received by such a volley from H. M.'s. 3d, under Colonel Riddell, as effectually checked a return. After more than two hours' severe fighting, the natives were dislodged from their position, and the 890 , INDIA, — HISTOEICAL. artillery was ordered to be brought up' in front ; it was then discovered that, though the guns were ready, the ammunition was exhausted ; two tumbrils had blown up during the engagement, a casualty which the mutineers had welcomed by a yell which in their ranks has already superseded the British cheer. Had the requisite ammu- nition been at hand, a total rout must have ensued, for already the mutineers' cartridges had come to an end, and they were firing pice and stones. The English had now nothing left but to retire ; this they did in perfect order, though on the enemy finding our guns silent, they again brought their artillery into play. So ended the battle of Agra. Captain D'Oyly, who commanded the British artillery, died of his wounds ; of the whole force, one man in six was killed, and of killed and wounded together, one in three fell. As the survivors passed through the cantonments, on their way to the fort, the work of incendiarism and plunder had already begun, and they- beheld from the ramparts, in the evening, the whole station — churches, colleges, barracks, houses — in one blaze of flame. The mutineers, however, had enough of it ; they were off to Mutrah, probably to swell the throng now pouring on toward Dejhi. The native serv- ants nearly all left their masters at the first panic ; a man who had twenty servants in the morning, had not one at night ; the lower town population was thoroughly disaf- fected, though now awed into submission by the bearing of the holders of the fort. By the latest accounts all is reported ' well,' and there can be little doubt that the danger to Agra is past. " Our narrative now returns to Lucknow and its neigh- bor, Cawnpore. The early disaffection of the capital of Oude has already been recorded ; but in Sir Henry Law- rence, the Europeans, besieged within the fortress of INDIA,— HISTORICAL. 391 Lucknow, had one of the best men in India to defend them. Diminished as his force was by the secession of all the native troops but the artillerj^, he had managed to send succor to Cawnpore, and though opposed by a force of mutineers estimated from 12,000 to 20,000, and a hostile population who alwa3^s carry arms, was holding out with his little band till re-enforcements arrived from below. Pressed at length by want of food and fuel, and reduced to the last extremity, he determined, on July 2d, to make a sortie on the enemy's lines. After two hours of desperate fighting, the armed horde was driven back, and a considerable amount of provisions fell into the hands of the English soldiers, consisting of but 200, part of H. M's. 32d, and with these brave fellows, great as was the odds against them, Lawrence could yet repel the open enemy ; but for the one remaining bit of treach- ery he was unprepared. As his little force was retiring hopeful from their victory, and bearing the fruits of their hard fought battle for the sufferers in the fort, the native artillery, who had accompanied the expedition and shared in and helped to acquire the late success, suddenly wheel- ed round, just as our troops reached the fort, and opened a deadly fire on the unfortunate 32d. Before they were able to recover themselves and face their assailants, sixty men, rank and file, were killed, and worst of all, among the officers severely wounded was the gallant leader him- self, who, four days afterward sank from lockjaw brought on by the wound. This was the heaviest blow that could have befallen the besieged ; but they had fortunately, in Major Banks, a man equal to the emergency. He wrote, on the 8th of July, to say that he was prepared to hold out six weeks, and that the garrison were in good heart. This spirit was doomed to a sudden rise and fall, when, on the 30th of July, General Havelock's relief appeared 32* 392 INDIA, — HISTORICAL. within three miles of the walls of Lucknow, and then had immediately to retire. The fearful suspense which has so long been felt with respect to the garrison is happily abated by the last intelligence, and there is now a confident expectation that it will hold out till it is relieved. "About the 16th of May, the news of the Meerut and Delhi revolts reached 'Cawnpore. They were probably not unexpected by the natives. The garrison, under Sir Hugh Wheeler, one of those Bengal officers whom Sir Charles Napier singled out as a disciplinarian of the first order, consisted entirely of native regiments, the 1st, the 53d, and the 56th. The town of Cawnpore, situated on the doab, or inland peninsula, formed by the conflu- ence of the Ganges and the Jumna, lies on the south bank of the former stream — a low and dusty station, with no remains of antiquity to interest the stranger, and no fort, or even position of advantage, for a beleaguered force to occupy. The old town contains a population of about 50,000 ; the new town, the growth of British rule, which has sprung up around the cantonments, contains an equal number ; and from the grand trunk road, here crossing the river, the place has of late years become one of considerable importance as a mart of inland commerce as well as of military occupation. Before our annexation of the Punjaub, which caused our forces to be concen- trated further to the north-west, Cawnpore was the chief military station pf India, and its balls, its races, and its theatre made it one of the spots of gayest resort for Eng- lish society. Once the harbor of Thuggee, of wolves, and of deadly snakes, few places have more benefited by English colonization ; and in the compounds and gardens of the military station, European fruits and vegetables vied with the mangoes, the shaddocks, the plantains, and 393 the guavas of the East. The cantonments lie for five miles along the river, whose muddy banks will never again bo seen by an Englishman without a remembrance of the treachery by which they have been so deeply stained. On the receipt of the disastrous news of the spreading mutiny, Sir Hugh Wheeler lost no time in making the most of his bad position. With only fifty European artillerymen, he was unable to disarm his gar- rison, and it was solely by judicious management that he could keep things together till he had made arrange- ments for extemporizing such a defense as the place was capable of Sir Henry Lawrence had sent from Luck- now seventy men of H. M.'s. 32d ; but, toward the end of May, they were recalled, and eighty men of H. M.'s. 84th, and of the Madras fusileers, (European,) arrived. The wives and families, however, of the 32d remained behind ; and there was also at this time a large number of lady visitors beyond the ordinary residents of the sta- tions, attracted by the balls of the preceding month. Suspicious symptoms had already appeared. The men of the native 2d light cavalry had sent their wives and families home on some frivolous pretexts ; and the feeling of insecurity that pervaded the Europeans can not better be realized than by the following extracts from the diary letter of the wife of the magistrate of the station : — "'Mmj 13. — You will have seen from the papers that India just now is in a very disturbed state. * * * It seems strange that, at a large station like Meerut, they could have managed to do such mischief without the authorities there having any inkling of what was going "'May 15. — These mutinies are the topic of the day. * * There is no saying where and how all this will end. Disaffection in the army is spreading rapidly. 894 INDIA,— HISTOEICAL. Great fears are entertained for Delhi, for there are no European troops there, and the native regiments are all more or less' affected. * * * Cawnpore is quiet, and the regiments here are staunch. * * * We are very anxious for Lucknow. * * * * * "'May 16. — The news continues still to be very bad. * * * There does not seem to be any immediate danger here, but should they mutiny, we shall either go into the cantonments, or to a place called Bithoor, about six miles from Cawnpore, where the peishwa's successor resides. He is a great friend of C 's, and is a man of enormous wealth and influence ; and he has assured C that we should all be quite safe there. I myself - would much prefer going to the cantonment, but C thinks it would be better for me and our precious chil- dren to be at Bithoor. ***** "'May 17. — It is expected that in about three weeks we shall have recaptured Delhi and blown the place to pieces. We do not expect there will be much fighting, for a few shells thrown into the fort, and a volley or two, will quickly disperse them, and they will probably give in at once. ******* "'May 18. — This is an anxious time, for though Cawn- pore remains quiet, we can not help thinking of the dan- gers which surround us, and of the sufferings of our dear friends and fellow countrymen. * * * There are all sorts of dreadful rumors going about, but I hope they are false. If there should be an outbreak here, dearest C has made all the necessary arrangements for me and the children to go to Bithoor, and he will go there himself, and with the aid of the raja, to whose house we are going, he will collect and head a force of 1,500 fighting men, and bring them into Cawnpore, to take the insurgents by surprise. This is a plan of their own, and is quite a INDIA, — HISTORICAL. 395 secret, for the object of it is to come on the mutineers unawares.' " The night of the 21st of May was settled for a gen- eral rising of the native troops. Information of this having reached Wheeler, he ordered the guns at once within the intrenchments, and prepared for the worst. The ladies of the station and the civilians were hurried into the same place of rendezvous, the barrack hospital ; but the violence of the storm that raged fearfully that night prevented the warning reaching all. The vigilance of the commander, and the bold front still shown, cowed the wavering sepoys, and again each officer, while dis- trusting others, still felt confidence in his own men. While the non-combatants, to the number of 400 or 500, were crowded together in the hospital and little chapel attached, where the heat and suffocation were almost be- yond endurance, the officers still slept in the lines, but with loaded pistols under their pillows. The sepoys asked. What had come to the sahibs to be in such fear ? The diary continues : " ' May 23. — We are now in cantonments. We came here the day before yesterday, about 5 P. M. The night before, the general had so much cause for alarm, that he sent a message to Sir H. Lawrence at Lucknow asking him to assist us with 300 European soldiers; but Luck- now being in a very similar state, he could only spare us 55 men who have arrived here. * * * The rumors were so bad that C , with the consent of Sir H. Wheeler, wrote to the raja of Bithoor to send his force of Mahrattas down here, and all the officers have slept in their lines to show the sepoys that they placed implicit confidence in them. * * * Can you imagine such a state of things — our own troops threatening us with an outbreak, and thenmoodily putting it off for a few nights?' 396 INDIA, — HISTORICAL. " An officer at Cawnpore, writing to Calcutta on the morning of the 5th of June, assured his friend that things had taken a good turn ; the men were returning to their allegiance, and with the 150 European soldiers, and pro- visions for three weeks, they had good hope to hold out till succor came. On the afternoon of the same day, he dispatched a second letter, inclosing his will, and saying that the crisis was come at last, and would be on them in the evening. On that night the men rose on their officers, and many were killed in their attempt to reach the in- trenchment. The usual outrages had of course followed the open mutiny. The treasury was seized ; the jail opened ; the houses plundered and fired ; and, having killed every Christian that fell in their way, the mutin- eers and the mob joined in attacking the barrack-hospital, in which General Wheeler had intrenched himself. The friend at Bithoor, whom they had so eagerly expected^ had at length arrived, and it is time to introduce him to our readers. "Eight miles up the river, above Cawnpore, stands the fortress of Bithoor; it was once the residence of the British magistrate, but had been abandoned for the rising Cawnpore, and assigned to the ex-peishwa of the Mah- rattas. The peishwa, before the Mahratta war, was the sovereign raja of Central India, and was to the Hindoos what the king of Delhi was to the Mohammedans. The late representative of the old dignity, Bajee Eao, lived, largely pensioned, in retirement at Bithoor, where he died about five years ago, immensely rich in jewels, hoarded treasure, and government securities, to the amount of four millions sterling. Nana Sahib, now about thirty-five years old, was the eldest of two adopted sons, to whom these vast possessions were bequeathed. He applied to the British government for the continuation INDIA, — HISTOEICAL. 397 of tlie pension, but this was refused ; and the younger adopted son being a minor, the English law courts stepped in as trustee for his interests, — a proceeding which involved Nana in several costly lawsuits, none of which ended in his favor. He petitioned the government, he sent an agent to England, and altogether had a large nest of real or imaginary grievances to brood over. But he appeared of most hospitable and even jovial disposition, cultivated the English society of Cawnpore, affected many English habits, made up shooting-parties for all his European friends, and entertained all comers in most princely style. On what friendly terms he was with the chief magistrate of Cawnpore is seen in the diary from which we have quoted. On the first outbreak at Delhi, he expressed his great concern and indeed disbelief of the movement, though probably thoroughly cognizant of what was at hand. To the joy of the English he was now approaching Cawnpore. No sooner had he come up to the mutineers than he threw off the mask, hoisted two standards, — one for Mohammed for one Hunaman, — and put himself at the head of their motley force. And now, for twenty days, with his army swelling from 4,000 to 12,000 men, and with heavy guns, increased from two to twelve, he kept up an unceasing firing and continual assaults on the unfortunate Europeans within the intrenchment. Many were wounded, many died of their wounds; but Wheeler, hopeful of relief, still held out, repulsing every attack, and keeping his besiegers at bay. Even his poor stock of grain and sugar, on which they had been for some time existing, failing at last, he resolved to make one desperate effort to replenish his stores. Though the odds were more than twenty to one against him, he drove the enemy for a time before him ; but at length, overpowered by numbers, he was obliged 398 INDIA, — HISTOEICAL. to fight his way back, having lost many of his men, and being himself badly wounded. Two days afterward, the disheartened band, with only two days' provisions left, hoisted on the 26th a flag of surrender. Nana Sahib received the deputation respectfully, and even courteously, and solemnly swore to spare their lives ; to allow them to take their arms, and a lac and a half of fiipees, and to furnish them with boats to proceed down the river to Allahabad. On the 27th, the boats were announced as ready, and the whole remaining body of Europeans were marched down to the river's bank, escorted by a troop of cavalry. Thejmen were crowded into the open boats, the womeif Vnd children still retained on the shore ; but the moment the dinghies pushed off into the stream Nana ordwed his guns to open upon them. Some were sunk, some burnt, some few men reached the shore only to be cut down by the suwars. A single boat managed to get through the dreadful ordeal, and escaped ten miles down the river; it was-pursued and captured, and the unhappy survivors brought back to Cawnpore, where some were cut to pieces inch by inch, while others were stripped and lashed naked together on bamboos, and floated down the Ganges to bear the first news of their massacre to their countrymen at Allahabad, who, seeing the corpses floating by, brought them on shore and buried them. The women and children who were left, to the number of two or three hundred, were marched back to the cantonments, and kept under Nana Sahib's own surveillance, on the miserable rations of a prison diet. But now relief seemed to be approaching. On the 7th of July, General Havelock had left Allahabad, with 1,300 Europeans, in the direction of Cawnpore ; and on the morning of the 13th, he joined Major Eenaud's advanced column, four miles from Futteypore. The INDIA, — HISTORICAL. 401 enemy came out to meet liim ; Captain Maude's artillery- was advanced to the front, and electrified the natives with its fire, who were driven by the skirmishers and columns through the gardens and streets of Futteypore in complete confusion, leaving the whole of their guns behind them. To the rapidity and precision of the artillery, to the power of the Enfield rifle, to British pluck, and ' to the blessings of the Almighty on a most righteous cause,' the brigadier, in the order for the day, attributes the results of a whole army scattered to the winds without the loss of a single British soldier! Havelock pushed on for Cawnpore, and after several engagements with trifling loss, recaptured the ill-fated place on the 17th of July, totally defeating Nana Sahib in person, who, after blowing up the magazine at Cawnpore, retreated in hurried flight to his fastness at Bithoor. The full extent of the massacre was now discovered. On the 16th, when the wretch found that the day was going against him, he ordered the indiscrim- inate butchery of the women and children yet left alive ; and on the English troops taking possession of the place on the following morning, the rooms and yard, in which the prisoners had been confined, were found two inches deep in the blood of the victims. Long tresses of hair, scraps of paper, torn bibles and prayer-books, work- boxes, and unfinished work, and the little round hats <^f the children, scattered about on the red floor, told too well the harrowing tale." — London Quarterly Beview, October, 1857. "We now state the order of events in India as they have been received by mail. The stations, in Eaj pootana, of Kus- seerabad, near Ajmere, and Neemuch, usually garrisoned 33 402 INDIA, — HISTOEICAL, from Bombay, were at the beginning of the year drained of the infantry and guns of the army of that presidency by the pressure of the Persian war. There remained the 1st Bom- bay hght cavalry, (lancers,) cantoned at Nusseerabad ; but that station received, for infantry, the 15th Bengal native infantry from Meerut, and the 30th from Agra ; and for artillery, a Bengal native company, the 2d of the 7th battalion. To Neemuch there came the 72d native infantry and a native troop of horse artillery, (4th of 1st battalion,) both from Agra; and a wing of the Ist' (Bengal) light cavalry from Mhow. The Bengal troops at Nusseerabad, who had long been wavering, broke out into open mutiny on the evening of the 28th of May. The Bombay lancers were weakened by detachments, and drew less than 250 sabres ; but, " faithful found among the faithless, faithful only they," charged again and again the overwhelming numbers of the mutineers in the hope of capturing their guns. But, as may be supposed, their loyalty and courage were not rewarded by success, and they were forced to draw off, with the loss among their of&oers of Captain Spottiswoode and Cornet Newberry killed, and Captain Hardy and Lieutenant F.. Loch wounded. Their colonel. Penny, died the following night from the effects of a fall from his horse. The regi- ments escorting the officers and families of the revolted regiments retired toward Ajmere; but, the mutineers moving off toward Delhi, (which they did with colors flying and drums beating,) and the arsenal of Ajmere being thus out of danger, they joined the camp of Colonel Dixon, of the Mhairwarah battalion, at Bewor. The contingents of Kotah and Joudpore are protecting the district, and a Bombay force from Deesa, formed from the queen's 83d, the 12th native infantry, a squadron of the 2d cavalry, and some artillery, are moving up in support. INDIA, — HISTORICAL. 403 Two native regiments mutinied at Sealkote, Punjaub, on the 9tl)L of July, and massacred Captain Bishop, Dr. Graham, and Rev. JMr. Hanter, with his wife and child. The remaining Europeans were safe in the fort. These mutineers were totally defeated, on the 16th, at Meerut. On the 15th of July, about 4,000 Burdmarhes, led by 300 Rohillas, at Hyderabad, marched upon the residency, to demand the release of the jemidar of the 1st nizam's cavalry. Major Davidson acted with much decision, and fired upon the rebels from several guns, causing them to disperse. The leader of the Rohillas was mortally wounded and captured, several of the Rohillas were killed, and many of them made prisoners. General Neil joined General Havelock on the 23d of July, and was on the full march toward Lucknow. A wing of the 23d infantry had arrived at Bombay from the Mauritius. At Tinbalpore, the 31st native infantry, 40th foot, and 3d irregular cavalry, under the native officers only, attacked on the 7th of August the mutineers, consisting of the 42d native infantry and 3d irregular cavalry, and completely routed them. A plot has been discovered, and amongst the conspirators the son of the well-known Ameer Gundfya and Molire Ally Kursem, who were arrested. A plot has also been discovered at Benares. General Havelock's forces, after reoccupying Cawnpore, finding Bithoor evacuated, burned it to the ground. On the 29th and 30th of July, they found the rebels at Buffer el Gunge, about eighteen miles from Cawnpore, numbering 10,000, whom they defeated with the loss of fifteen guns. They expected to reach Lucknow the next day. The 7th, 8th, and 40 th regiments, which mutinied at Cawnpore on the 23d of July, threatened Benares. The 12th irregular cavalry, which mutinied at the same time, murdered their commanding officer. Major Holmes, and his wife. The 404 INDIA, — HISTOEICAL, disarmed 26th Bengal native infantry mutinied at Mean on the 30th of July, and murdered their commanding officer, Major Spencer. General Havelock's force for the reoccupation of Cawnpore had, in eight days, marched 126 miles, and fought four actions with Nana Sahib's army, against overwhelming odds in point of numbers, and had taken twenty-four guns of light calibre ; and that too in the month of July, in India. On the morning of the 17th of July, the force marched into Cawnpore. The soul- harrowing spectacle which there presented itself to them beggars description. A wholesale massacre had been perpetrated by the fiend. Nana Sahib. Eight officers and ninety men of H. M's. 84th regiment, seventy ladies and one hundred and twenty-one children of H. M's. 32d foot, and the whole European and Christian population of the place, including civilians, merchants, pensioners, and their families, to the number of four hundred persons, were the victims of this Satan. The court-yard in front of the assembly rooms, in which Nana Sahib had fixed his head-quarters, and in which the women had been imprisoned, was swimming in blood. A large number of women and children, who had been cruelly spared, after the capitulation, for a worse fate than instant death, had been barbarously slaughtered on the previous morning; the former having been stripped naked, and then beheaded and thrown into a well, and the latter having been hurled down alive upon their butchered mothers, whose blood reeked on their mangled bodies. Only four escaped — the wife of a merchant, and three others. A heavy loss has been sustained by a detachment from the 10th and 37th regiments, at Arrah, whither it had gone to rescue some Europeans who were besieged by the 405 rebels. A detachment of H. M's. 10th and 37th regi- merits, 300 strong, had made a night attack upon the men of the 8th and 40th native infantry, who had mutinied at Dinnapore, but was repulsed with the loss of 200 killed. This was, indeed, a deplorable transaction. The 10th had acted nobly during the outbreak at Dinnapore. They preserved the station from the savage assault of the mu- tineers, and had executed summary justice on them, hav- ing shot down 800 of their number, not in cold blood, but while the mutiny was taking place. The irregular corps at Segowlie had also mutinied and killed their offi- cers. A plot, too, had been discovered for the wholesale murder of the Europeans at Jessore and Benares. The Shekawatti battalion was wavering, but had not yet been disarmed — a necessary precaution, which had been wisely adopted at Berhampore with respect to the 63d native infantry and 11th irregular cavalry, and at Calcutta with the governor-general's body-guard — men who had every reason to remain true to their colors. The approaching mohuiTum, (a great Mohammedan festival,) had excited considerable uneasiness. It was felt, after the wholesale secessions that had taken place, it would be unwise to permit a body of high caste troops to remain in posses- sion of weapons. They were accordingly disarmed, but were permitted to retain their horses. Berhampore is, as we stated before, within nine miles of Moorshedabad, the raja of which, a pensioner fo.r £120,000, or twelve lacs of rupees, was strongly suspected as an instiga- tor of the rebellion — indeed one of the chief conspira- tors. It would not have been safe to permit men, of whose fidelity the slightest suspicion could be entertained, to retain their arms. Martial law, too, has been pro- claimed in Bahar, and General Outram has been given the command of the Dinnapore and Cawnpore divisions. 33* 406 INDIA, — HISTOEICAL. A-t Jhelum, summary justice was executed on the 14tli Bengal infantry, who had resisted an order to disarm. They were attacked and cut to pieces by a detachment of Europeans. On Wednesday, the 8th of July, Gen- eral Havelock reached Allahabad, from which point we may date the commencement of his more active opera- tions. The main body of the relieving force under his command was composed of the two European regiments recently withdrawn ftom Persia, the 64th and the 78th, mustering together about 1,100 or 1,200 bayonets. As he moved upward, however, from Allahabad, he was joined by a small detachment of the Madras fusileers, which had been pushed on in advance by General Neil, and which raised his whole force to some 1,300 European soldiers. "With these, aided only by 800 Sikhs, he had to trav- erse a country swarming with insurgent sepoys, and to encounter immediately an army of exactly ten times his strength, which, in the full confidence of its superiority, had descended from Cawnpore to meet him. This was the force under the orders of Nana Sahib, and it is not to be forgotten that the mutineers of whom it was mainly made up were troops trained in our own tactics, equipped from our own arsenals, and manoeuvring in all respects like ourselves. Nothing, indeed, in the whole of this unnat- ural contest, is more remarkable than the counterpart spectacles which the antagonist forces exhibit, and which i-ecall the descriptions given by the Eoman poet of those civil wars where similar standards, similar -eagles, and similar bodies of spearmen were arrayed on each side of the field. The very bugle sounds of a British regiment are recognized and acted on by an insurgent battalion, the words of command on one side are heard and under- stood on the other, and, on a particular occasion, our ene- INDIA, — HISTORICAL. 407 mies actually marched against us witli English drums and English trumpets playing, " Cheer, boys, cheer." Such were the forces against which General Havelock and his troops were to advance, under a July sun, and in the heart of Hindoostan. On the 12th of July, after ex- traordinary exertions had been made to overtake the fu- sileers ahead, the whole column came up with the enemy at Futteypore, a town about half way between Allaha- bad and Cawnpore, where the rebels presented themselves in a good position, with twelve guns. In about three hours the entire force was driven in headlong rout from the field, and every gun taken. This success enabled the British commander to augment the efficiency of his own artillery. He had left Allahabad with light six-pound- ers only, but he now availed himself of the captured can- non, and, after a halt of a single day, he followed on the track of Nana Sahib with his own nine-pounders. That morning, the 14th, the column marched sixteen miles. On the next day it renewed its advance, and after five miles of its march had been accomplished, found the enemy again in sight, strongly posted, and protected by a second position against the risks of a first defeat. At each of these points they were attacked in succession, and from each they were driven with the bayonet, the whole of their artillery being again left on the field. On the day following, the 16th, without any repose, our troops continued their advance, and now descried their antagonists collected for a final stand in front of Cawnpore. Their resources had enabled them once more to replace their lost guns by others, and two batteries, well served, presented a formidable appearance to the advancing col- umn. So strong indeed was their position, that it was deemed advisable to turn it, and a short but painful movement was executed for the purpose. Hitherto the 408 INDIA, — HISTOEICAL. march of the forces had lain along the great trunk road, leading from Calcutta to Delhi, but this causeway was now quitted by a detachment of the column, which, in the very heat of the day — it was 1.30 P. M., — toiled through a heavy march, to get on the enemy's flank. " Many men," we are told, " dropped from the effects of the sun," but the task was at length accomplished, and then came the battle and the victory. It was a stubborn fight, for the sepoys occupied a succession of villages, supplying them with exactly such positions as they hold best, but no resistance was of any avail against the little army pressing on to vengeance. Some of the expres- sions used by eye-witnesses recall exactly the descriptions given of the British at the Alma, and the French at the Mamelon. " I never," says one writer, " saw any thing so fine. The men (of the 78th) went on with sloped arms like a wall : till within 100 yards, not a shot was fired. At the word 'Charge!' they broke just like an eager pack of hounds, and the village was taken in an instant." This engagement — ^making the fourth fought in five days — opened the road to Cawnpore, which was promptly occupied, though too late, alas ! for the rescue of its unhappy garrison. In little more than a single week, therefore, these 1,300 British soldiers, with their 800 Sikh comrades, had marched 129 miles along the valley of the Ganges during the heat of July, had fought four fierce actions, had driv- en 13,000 men from position after position, and had found themselves, on the eighth day, masters of Cawnpore, the first object of the expedition. Yet, even after these ex- ertions, the interval of repose allowed was but trifling. On the 19th, the troops had reached Bithoor, Nana Sa- hib's stronghold, resolved that British vengeance should reach the villain through all the defenses he could devise; INDIA,— HISTORICAL. 409 but his heart or his army had already failed him, he had evacuated his palace, and nothing could be done beyond consigning the whole place to the flames. Still the work of the relieving force was but half accomplished, and after fighting from Allahabad to Cawnpore, it remained to fight from Cawnpore to Lucknow. This second part of the expedition has been not, indeed, less glorious, but less fortunate, than the first. On the 21st, General Have- lock announces in a dispatch that he is free to cross the Ganges, and already on the 29th we find him, with a most seasonable re-enforcement received through General Neil, twenty miles advanced on his new route, after hav- ing fought another successful battle, and taken fifteen guns. In this position, with Lucknow only about thirty miles ahead, his army seems to have encountei-ed that dire scourge of Indian armies, more terrible than any human foe, an outbreak of cholera. A general and an army victorious beyond precedent, marching to assured success and the relief of a long-beleagured fortress, within one march of their object, have been sti'uck by the fatal pestilence, and, by our last accounts, Havelock and the remains of his gallant band, encumbered by their sick comrades, were painfully retracing their steps to Cawn- pore by the route on which they had advanced only a few days before, full of hope and confidence, in as holy a cause as ever led men to battle. General Havelock's force made a second advance toward Lucknow, on the 4th of August, but was again obliged to fall back. There have been two more engagements with the rebels, in each of which the latter lost their guns. General Have- lock returned to Cawnpore on the l-3th. The latest advices from Delhi are to the 12th of Au- gust. The insurgents continue to suffer defeat in every encounter with our troops. General Nicholson has 410 INDIA, — HISTORICAL. reached the camp. His column had arrived within one day's march of Delhi. At Agra, on the 7th of August, all remained quiet. There is no intelligence from- Luck- now, but the garrison is believed still to be safe. The maharajah, Gholab Singh, died at Cashmere, on the 2d of August. The 26th native infantry mutinied at Meean Meer, and murdered their commanding officer, Major Spencer. The mutineers had fled, but were intercepted and completely cut up. The mutiny in the 27th Bombay infantry has been entirely suppressed. Only 200 men of the regi- ment had revolted, but another, being stationed at Eut- nagherry, has been disarmed. The 12th Bombay native infantry have been disarmed at ISTusseerabad, in conse- quence of their insubordination, and of the threatening attitude they assumed while endeavoring to protect a trooper of the 1st lancers, who had openly incited his comrades to mutiny. They did not proceed to active violence. Martial law has been proclaimed at Belgaum, and several Mohammedans, who have been convicted of treason, have been executed! A plot to attack the 2d Europeans, on their arrival at Belgaum, has been discov- ered. The traitors were arrested and executed at Mount Aboo. Fifty men of the Joudpore legion mutinied on the 21st of August. They were driven away and had retreated toward Erinpoora. The 8th Madras cavalry, on their refusal to proceed to Bengal, were disarmed. The native artillery at Dundrum has been disarmed. There has been symptoms of disaffection in the 12th Bombay native infantry, forming part of the Rajpootana field force. They refused to give up a mutinous trooper, and formed a square around him. He then fired at Briga- dier Molan, when three or four of the European horse artillery dashed into the square and cut him down. A INDIA, — HISTORICAL. 411 portion of the infantry were disarmed. The mutiny at Colapoor was promptly suppressed; but Lieutenants Korris and Heathfield, and Ensign Stubbs, got astray and were murdered. General Havelock gained his ninth victory on the 16th of August, driving the rebels from a strong position near Bithoor, which they desperately defended. After the battle he retired to Oawnpore, where he awaits re-enforce- ments before advancing to the relief of Luoknow, where the rebels were repelled with great loss, and the garrison are bravely holding out. General Outram arrived with strong re-enforcements at Allahabad on the 1st of Sep- tember, and expected to reach Oawnpore on the 9th. The Dinnapore mutineers have again been defeated by Major Eyre near Sasseran, and are trying to make their way to Delhi. Active preparations have again been re- sumed before Delhi, and on the 26th of August, General Nicholson defeated the mutineers at Nujuffghur, captur- ing thirteen guns and their camp baggage. Lieutenants Lumsden and Gabbett were killed. On the arrival of the siege train, which was expected on the 1st of Septem- ber, it is said that an assault will be made on the city. A small force, which left Agra on the 21st of August, under the command of Major Montgomery, defeated a body of tlje insurgents near Allyghur, and put them to flight. Ensign Marsi and Mr. Tandy, volunteers, were killed. The 10th light cavalry mutinied at Ferozepore, on the 19th August, and murdered Nelson, the veterinary surgeon. The 51st native infantry mutinied at Pesha- war, on the 28th August, but most of them were seized, and will be summarily dealt with. At Neemuch, part of a squadron of the 2d Bombay light cavalry mutinied on the 12th of August, and the troopers were disarmed. The 5th Bengal irregulars mutinied at Bhaugulpore, on 412 INDIA, — HISTORICAL. the 14th August ; the 55th Bengal native infantry were disarmed at Ghazipore, on the 10th August. Seventeen prisoners were executed at Sattarah, for treason, on the 8th of September. The mohurrum has- passed off quietly in all parts of India. "Camp before Delhi, August l'3th, 1857. "On the 8th of June, when we first arrived here, Lbe- lieve by an assault we could probably have taken posses- sion of the city. The enemy, never doubting but they would easily beat us oflT, contented themselves by taking up a very strong position, some three miles in advance of the cantonments, with a strong reserve to fall back upon in and about the cantonments themselves, and, as we have since ascertained, did little toward strengthen- ing the batteries on the city walls ; besides which, their numbers then did not probably exceed 16,000 or 17,000 fighting men. Had we, however, taken the city, our force was at that time so small that we should have had great difficulty in merely keeping it, without being able to render assistance to any other part of the country ; neither have we been able to do that directly from our present camp, but the mere fact of our being here in front of Delhi has attracted all the mutineers to this one spot, without which loadstone they would certainly have wandered all over the country. Our communication with the Punjaub would have been cut off by their get- ting round to the rear. We should have had the great- est difficulty in getting supplies, as, with the numbers their army had swelled to, they could have surrounded the whole city and rendered our foraging a work of great danger, instead of which we have had a daily post in from the north-west ; and, after the first few days, sup- plies of every description have been plentiful. Besides INDIA, — HISTORICAL, 413 this, had a report been spread that the mutineers were on their way to Umballah and the Punjaub, the people would have risen universally with them. Even now it is generally believed that the Putteeala raja, as well as several sirdars in the Jullundur, and other doabs of the Punjaub, are greatly inclined to join the rebels ; but, see- ing all work and business carried on as usual, they have sense enough to feel that our government is not quite at an end, although there is no doubt it has received a great shock. " Our position here is certainly by nature a wonder- fully secure one, and, if the Pandies could not have found a better place than Delhi as the head-quarters of their mutiny, with an unlimited magazine at their disposal, I doubt if we could have been so well off anywhere. Providence has assisted us in every way ; from the be- ginning the weather has been most propitious, and in cantonments I have never seen troops so healthy as they are here now. Cholera occasionally pays us a visit, but that must always be expected in a large standing camp. The river Jumna completely protects our left front and flank, while the large jheel, (water course,) which runs away to the south-west, is at this season quite impassible for miles, and prevents any surpi'ise on our right flank, so that a few cavalry are sufficient as a guard for three faces of our position, and we are consequently enabled to devote our whole force to keep our front from sur- prise ; but to do this whenever we are attacked in any force takes almost every available man in camp. At a moderate calculation, the enemy must muster now nearly 40,000 men, besides guns unlimited, and they certainly work them well ; their infantry also fight well, but their cavalry, both regular and irregular, are not worth one sixpence, they do nothing but run away. 34 414 INDIA, — HISTOEIOAL. " Of all the infantry regiments here, the most distin- guished is the 60th rifles : they and the gallant little Ghoorkhas in the Sirmoor battalion have borne the brunt of the whole affair, and suffered fearfully ; after them come the first fusileers and the guides. This morning we surprised a battery they had recently erected rather too near to our pickets, and in such aposition that our heavy guns could not bear on it, so it was decided to carry it by assault. The 1st fusileers and Coke's Punjaub rifles, (also a fine corps,) did the business well, each regiment capturing two guns. We always suffer immensely in officers. A third of our number has been killed or wounded in the two months ; besides which, cholera has carried off" several ; however, we shall soon bring the business to an end. To-morrow, a re-enforcement, un- der, Nicholson, comes in, consisting of 1,000 European infantry, and about the same number of natives, and a second-class siege train has left Forozepore, en route to this." The Three Actions Before Delhi. — We have also pleasure in presenting to our readers tlie most spirited account of the actions of July the 9tli and August the 2d, before Delhi, and of tbe behavior of the guides in those engagements, that has yet appeared. Although the date of the letter is not the most recent, the narrative is too graphic to have lost a particle of interest, and many new particulars -will be found in it. "Camp before Delhi, July lith to 24:th. "My dear : — Once more I take up my pen to give you an account of our doings since the 12th. I am thankful to say I am quite well and safe. We have had a good deal of fighting on the 14th, 18th, and again yester- day. The guides had an extra day on the 20th ; whilst out on an exploring party, we got close under the city INDIA, — HISTORICAL. 415 wall unperceived, but whilst retiring we were seen and followed by a large party of the enemy ; however, we retired in capital order, and punished the rebels well. From the 9th until yesterday, nothing of any consequence occun-ed ; yesterday, however, at eight o'clock, the Pan- dies came out in great force, and made the same attack as on the 9th — namely — all along our front. Until about two o'clock, the fight went all along the line, sometimes fiercely, and sometimes slackly; on the left, however, just below Hindoo Rao's, in a little fakir's temple, the firing was tremendous, as the whole day the mutineers came up in great force to this place, and tried to force it, in order to get at one of our batteries close by ; they brought up light field guns, too, which they placed within 150 yards of the temple, and fired round-shot and grape into it incessantly. I firmly believe they knew perfectly well that an order had been given to our troops not to move a single inch from their posts, and this is why they brought their guns so close. At about ten o'clock, I had to go down with two of our companies and re-enforce the temple, there being in it then some of the Goorkhas of the Simoor battalion, and some of H. M's. 01st. Shortly after I reached the place, the enemy came up in such force we were completely surrounded ; there being infantry on three sides, and cavalry and guns on the fourth. I was unable to send for more men, as not a soul could have gone ten yards from the temple without being killed ; so, to stay and fight was our only chance. Their cavalry I knew could not do much, and their infantry I did not care for ; but their guns advanced to within one hundred yards of us, and fairly knocked the temple, out- houses, and the front wall, which had been strengthened with sand-bags, about our ears ; every ball that struck the walls wounded three or four men, and we were in 416 INDIA, — HISTORICAL. such a cloud of dust and splinters of stones we could hardly see to fire. Had the enenrjy had one particle of pluck, and rushed in at us, not one of us would hive lived to tell the tale ; as it was they came so close that they pelted us with stones. By keeping up a very sharp fire, and owing to the admirable, coolness of the men, we at last drove the mutineers back to 200 yards. Had I been allowed to act, I would have charged and sent these gen- tlemen back. Knowing them so well now, I know they would have run at the first scream and charge ; but I was fettered with a strict order, so I had to stay and see my poor fellows knocked over like so many rabbits. I could easily have taken the troublesome guns also, but that vile order was in the way. During the time I had two very narrow escapes ; the first, whilst speaking to one of my men next me, and telling him -whei'e to fire, a round shot came and took his head right off, covering me with the poor fellow's blood and brains ; I never saw such a horrible sight. The next minute, whilst standing up to see what was going on, and giving directions where to fire, an eight-ounce grape shot struck me on the should- er, sent me round like a tee-totum, and then knocked me flat down. I don't know how my shoulder escaped being smashed to pieces ; perhaps the fact of my being at the time on tiptoe on a pointed stone, and the shot hitting me in a slanting direction, may account for it. My shoulder is a good deal cut, the muscles much bruised and very painful, and the whole of a very beautiful rainbow appearance. My arm was perfectly numbed for half an hour, and lay useless by my side. I picked up my sword with my left hand, but in the excitement did not feel the pain. The doctor says, had the shot struck an inch nearer the neck my collar-bone would have been smashed, so I think I may consider I have had a most providential 417 escape. Till about half-past one o'clock' the fighting went on thus. Just then I got a small re-enforcement, and whether it was this, or knowing that we were going to advance at two o'clock, I don't know, but the light guns that had been battering us to pieces quietly retired ; and at two o'clock we had a general ad- vance, and drove the enemy like so many sheep into the city. We all got up within SrOO yards of the walls, and were much punished by the grape-shot again. Brigadier Chamberlain, I believe, planned the advance ; why or wherefore no one knows, as the enemy were only in front of us this time, so that we had not the satisfac- tion of seeing them coming round the corner from our rear ; the consequence was, as we advanced, they retired, and though we killed a number of them as they ran, still the loss was almost counterbalanced by ours, which was very great, owing to the heavy showers of grape and cannister-shot. Our musketry, (I don't know why,) was most ineffectual during the advance. I suppose it was owing to the heavy fire on us during this time. Well, we drove the enemy into the city ; then, instead of hold- ing our position for a time, or retiring quietly, owing to some stupid fellow saying the retire had been ordered, and also owing to two of our light field-guns galloping off as hard as they could, instead of retiring quietly, all our infantry and cavalry got panic-stricken, and a force of about 400 Europeans and 500 natives were to be seen in all the delights of a runaway. I do not know what possessed the men, but they would hear nothing and mind nothing; the officers did all they could to stop them. ' Too-too, too-too,' went the bugles for the halt, but halt they would not ; the consequence was, the mu- tineers again rushed out, and peppered us well for about 300 yards. Our guns were stopped, and then the infantry, 34* 418 _ INDIA, — HISTORICAL. and at last order was restored to a tolerable extent. The enemy still advanced, and we retired, but in order ; when we were about half a mile from the city, we made a stand, and as the mutineers came up, our guns opened and drove them back. This brought us to sunset ; and as the city folk appeared to have had enough of it, we came back to our pickets, all of us having had quite enough of it too. Our loss is estimated at 240 killed and wounded ; the guides' loss was eight killed and twenty-six wounded ; I don't believe the mutineers lost more than 500 killed and wounded this day. The officers of all the regiments out were much punished; the Sirmoor battalion, three wounded, not severely; we had three, including myself, not severely ; the Europeans had two or three, and Major Cohen's regiment one rather badly. Brigadier Chamber- lain's arm was badly smashed by a bullet ; he is much condemned for his advance. An old officer, and one who has seen much service, said to me this morning, when I was telling him about the panic, 'You can't expect men, my young fellow, to walk up to the muzzles of guns every day, and get grape hailed into them; no mortal can stand that sort of thing.' Perhaps he is right ; I hope so, for I feel very vexed, though I will say the guides and 60th rifles were last in the retreat. I am glad to say I am still fit for duty, and can go with my arm in a sling ; the fact is, I can't affijrd to lay up. Shibbeare, who is acting second in command, was slightly hit in two places, and is obliged to go down to camp on the sick list, and I am left in command of the infantry, with two young fel- lows of the late 57th, who are doing duty with us ; they know nothing of the men, and the men don't care one straw for them, nor will they mind them. These Putt- hans and Afreedis are a very restive and wrong-headed race, and require very tight holding ; I feel myself, at INDIA, — HISTORICAL. 419 times, quite unable to hold them, although 1 know them all well, and have been with them for a year, and I hope they see, (and I am sure they do,) by this time, they can trust me. The men are all, more or less, confounded, and very angry at the way they and their officers have suffered ; but they are still as ready as ever to fight on, and will not, I feel sure, do discredit to their good name. The loss of officers, whom they have known, has cast a damp on them ; out of eleven officers, (four old and seven new,) we have had one killed, two wounded twice, and five wounded once, and now, out of the eleven, we have fit for duty four only. The loss amongst the men is about 150 or 200 out of 350. The Sirmoor battalion and the 00th rifles^ have suffered severely too. We have been attacked twenty-five times ; twenty-three of which at- tacks have been directed against this picket, and in twen- ty-one of which the guides have been engaged. The attacks on the 18th and 23d lasted from sunrise to sunset. JMy wound has healed wonderfully, and I am very well, though we are all on commissariat beef and rum ; a blanket and ammunition boots our dress in wet weather, and other clothes in fine. "August the 9th. — Again has another fortnight passed since I last wrote, and although the time has been passed in fighting, and all sorts of unpleasantness, still it has passed very quickly. I am thankful to say I am safe up to this day. I had another escape the day before yester- day. Whilst standing in one of our batteries, under a heavy fire, a shrapnell, (which is a small shell filled with bullets,) burst directly over our heads ; one of the bullets hit me between my shoulders, knocking the breath so completely out of me, I was unable to say a single word for three minutes and more ; a tremendous hump on my back which makes me look like a dromedary, is, I am 420 INDIA, — HISTOEICAL thankful to say, the only harm done. I am very stiff and sore, and black and blue. I have been most lucky in all my wounds, inasmuch as I have not been obliged to go on the sick list for them. I verily believe, having to lie on a sick bed, whilst all the excitement was going on, would drive me crazy. I am most anxious to see our tri- umphal rush into Delhi, and I pray that 1 may not be wounded, or obliged to lay up before that. I wish to see these rascally murderous villains all destroyed, for the evil they have brought on all. I have just come up from one of our advanced outlying pickets, which is close to the walls of Delhi — so close, indeed, that the shot and shell that have been flying over our heads the last few days, in addition to the living in trenches, has made it perfectly impossible to write a word. I am writing against time, as I shall have to go down to the picket again to-morrow, and it is nearly sunset. Since my last letter started for England, we have had a good deal of fighting ; but the mutineers have now lost all heart, and do not fight at all in the way they used to do. The only attempt at any thing in the way of a fight was made by them on the night of the 1st. This was their grand day, the festival of the Eed. I was on this night in one of our principal batteries, with a party of my guides, placed there to protect the guns, and I shall never forget the scene that night, for the enemy came up in tremendous force at 2 o'clock in the morning of the 2d; the sight then was a most magnificent one ; all our batteries, and all the city ones, wei-e playing as hard as they could ; the shells bursting, the round-shot crushing and smashing against the rocks, the rockets tearing with a whooshing sound through our embrasures, the carcases, (or large balls of fire,) flying over our heads, the musketry rolling and flashing, made the place as light as day ; the noise INDIA, — HISTORICAL. 421 was terrific, though the roar of cannon was frequently- drowned in the roar of human voices, for when the whole city turned out, there could not have been less than 20,000 voices all sci-eaming at once. The mutineers' yell of •Allah! Allah! Allah Akbar! Allah Akbar!' was an- swered by our jolly English hurrahs, and the din was most frightful. I never remember seeing such a beautiful sight, or hearing such a noise. The mutineers, although they tried very hard to take our batteries, could not suc- ceed, though some of them got up near enough to throw hand grenades into them. The grand attack lasted about two hours, when the enemy gave in a little, though they did not retire. The fighting went on all the rest of the night, and up to two o'clock the next day, when both sides retired. We were all glad enough for a little rest, as most of us had been fighting for upward of thirty hours, as there was fighting all the day of the 1st; from that day until the 6th, all was unusually quiet. On the latter date, however, the enemy again turned out, and have been harrassing us day and night ever since ; they are now trying to tire us out. We, who are on picket duty, are eternally under fire, night and day; and we have so few troops in camp, that we never get a relief; the guides have been perpetually on duty for nine weeks, with only two reliefs, and we are all thoroughly knocked up ; only three of us have been able to stand it ; all the rest are sick, or on sick-leave to the hills. I am just as well as I ever have been, and have only been troubled with a slight cold and sore throat, which is now well. Immense re-enforcements will join us in a day or two, and then for Delhi \" '■'Camp before Delhi, August the 15t7t. " When your note arrived, I had dispatched mine of the 12th instant, giving you an account of our having -±22 INDIA, — HISTOEICAL. captured four of the enemy's light guns that morning. Our loss altogether was 113 killed and wounded, many of the latter only slightly, however. But many doubt whether our loss was not greater than our gain. Briga- dier Showers, who has shown great pluck in this as in former affairs, is blamed for not sufficiently considering how he could save his men ; and seeing that the enemy were all but surprised in the early dawn, and not in a strong position, our loss does seem heavy. Lieutenant Sherriff, of the European regiment, is the only officer who has died of his wounds. Yesterday, H. M.'s. 53d marched in, nearly 700 strong, with a wing of the 61st, and a battery, making altogether nearly 1,100 Europeans. Besides these, there were about fourteen Sikhs, and five heavy guns, two twenty-fours, and three eighteens, stores, and eight lacs of treasure. It was supposed by some that this force, instead of coming into our camp, would at once have taken up a fresh position on the south side of the city. But we are too prudent for that, and they have all come within the intrenched camp,- for it is nothing else. Now we are waiting for the siege train from Fe- rozepore, which ought to be here in a week. And then we shall wait for the commander-in-chief, about whom we know little, except that he is coming up when Oude is settled, and Havelock returns from Lucknow. There is slight but constant firing going on between our pickets and the enemy, with little damage on either side. The enemy's battery on our right occasionally fires a few shot, but when we reply it shuts up. But little news from the city. Two regiments, a bullock battery, and some suwars, are said to have left Delhi in the direction of Muttra, to collect money; and Hodgson, with his Sikh horse and some of the guides, were sent out this morning to look after them. I don't know whether INDIA,— HISTOEICAL. 423 Havelock will make anything of his Sikhs, — I mean as fighting men, — for they were never held in high repute with the Sikh army. Some Mooltanese horse came in yesterday, whom Nicholson thinks highly of. Nicholson appears to have got a brigade consisting of the 1st Euro- peans, 2d Punjaub, some others, and the battery that came in yesterday, about 800 strong. They are fine, handsome men, very martial in appearance, and you can see that they are well drilled. It is considered a better corps than Coke's, and is commanded by an officer of the name of Green. 1 trust that Gholab Singh's death will make no difference in the Punjaub, though a rising there now would be of less consequence than it would have been two months ago. Lawrence has certainly managed it admirably. Two attempts on the part of our engineers to burn the bridge of boats have failed, and they have given it up for the present. In fact, one could, with their plan, only burn a boat here and there, which could easily be repaired, as they have others. But when the place is to be assaulted, we ought to be prepared to destroy the whole at once. We expect 200 of the 60th out from Meerut shortly, and they will be replaced there by Ghoorkhas or Sikhs. We want about 100 more men for our wing of carabineers, but there is no chance of getting them. "August 25th. — Since last I wrote, we have been very quiet in our intrenched position, neither giving or receiv- ing trouble. The Pandies must be heartily sick of fight- ing, and General Wilson will run no risk unless there is some great advantage to be gained, something which will conduce to the final result — the capture of Delhi. He has been made a major-general for special service. Per- sonally, however, he is cautious, placid, and unambitious, and you will find that he will not attempt to take the city, 424 INDIA, — HISTORICAL. if there is risk of serious loss in doing so. It is said that letters have been received from General Neil that we must not expect troops up from Cawnpore for some time, and therefore Wilson will commence in earnest when the siege train, due about the 1st, comes in. There are thirty-two heavy guns in all, twenty-fours, and ten-inch mortars, and howitzers. A regular siege will, perhaps, leave us an empty city to enter. Last night a column of 1,000 Europeans, (infantry,) 1,500 natives, 500 cav- alry, and twelve guns, left camp to try and give some account of a large force of sepoys and eighteen guns which left the city in the morning to intercept the siege train in our rear. Hodgson came in two days ago from the direction of Rohtuck, having cut up some ninety irregulars, and otherwise done good service. I think there has been a little more sickness in camp than there was ; sufficient pains are not taken to keep- the camp and neighborhood clean, and more than half the troops are on duty daily. "August 27th. — I wrote on the 25th, telling you that Brigadier Nicholson had gone out after a large force of the enemy, which left the city the previous morning. After a harassing march of seventeen miles across coun-- try and through jheels, where the infantry had to drag the guns out of the mud, our troops came up with the mutineers, and soon dispersed them, at a place called NujufFghur. They attempted a stand at a serai, but were driven from that ; and, later in the evening, threw them- selves into a village, from which they escaped at night, as it was not thought advisable to continue the fight after dark. Our loss was two officers killed, Lumsden, of Coke's corps, and Gabbett, of H. M's. 61st, and two wounded, with about seventy men killed and wounded. We captured fourteen field-guns in all, four of which INDIA, — HISTORICAL. 425 were the palace guns of former days, native made. Al- together it was a most successful affair, and would have been more so but for the long, tedious march, and night coming on, as it did not commence till half-past four on the 25th. Our troops returned last evening. Yesterday the enemy made a sort of demonstration all along the front of our position, perhaps thinking we might have withdrawn some men, but all was ready for them, and they made no regular attempt against any part. We have been busy the last few days advancing our breast- works on the right, in front of the batteries, about 900 yards from the Moree Bastion, at what is called the Sa- mee ■ House ; and all, I believe, is ready to commence with the batteries on the left, when the fresh guns come up. There is no expectation of troops from Cawnpore, I am happy to say, or there might be a delay of weeks yet. Now w^ trust to ourselves. We must have from 8,000 to 9,000 troops here, and surely that ought to be sufficient force for any thing. Lawrence, I believe, can send no more from the Punjaub ; and the natives here must be as weary of the state of things as we are, and as ready to go into Delhi. " When I closed my last letter, we had heard that the heavy siege train was expected to reach the camp in a very few days, and that works were being erected where- in to mount the guns on their arrival. While the troops were thus busy the enemy were inactive. There were none of those desperate sallies from the city that charac- terized the early days of the siege, when day by day, successive waves of mutiny were shattered againsf the heights of the British position ; and though their artillery was not silent, the only successes attained was on the night of the 1st of September, when a shell from the bat- tery on the further side of the river (of which I wrote in 35 426 INDIA, — HISTORICAL. my last) burst among a picket of the 61st, in front of the Metcalfe house, killing two men and wounding seven. On the morning of the 4th, arrived in camp the long- looked-for siege train of between thirty and forty heavy guns, howitzers, and mortars, with large quantities of ammunition, escorted by the remaining wing of the 8th foot, two more companies of the 61st, and a wing of the 1st Belooch battalion of the Bombay army. On the 6th, came in from Meerut a most valuable re-enforcement in 200 of the 60th rifles and 100 artillery recruits. To the latter were added forty-five men of the 9th lancers. The place of this detachment was supplied at Meerut by the 7th Punjaub infantry. On the following day, the army was further strengthened by the 4th Punjaub rifles, under Captain Wilde, and by some troops of the Jheend raja. On the night of the 7th, the advanced batteries, intended for the destruction of the Moree bastion and the adjacent curtain, were armed with ten heavy guns, at about 650 yards from the bastion, and an inclosure within half that distance of the walls, called the Koodsea Bagh, was occu- pied by a detachment of infantry and artillery. In these operations, we sustained a loss of something under fifty killed and wounded, two officers being among the former, Lieutenants Hildebrand, of the Bengal artillery, and Bannerman, of the Bombay fusileers, attached to the Be- loochees, the latter a promising young officer, well known to myself and to many people here, and by all regretted. The next day was marked by the opening of the ad- vanced batteries on the Moree bastion and by the arrival in camp of the Jummo or Cashmere contingent. Mean- while the engineers were hard at work in the erection of other batteries. On the 1 1th, a mortar battery opened on the Moree from the Koodsea Bagh, a little more than 300 yards, and upon the Cashmere and Water bastions, a fire 427 was commenced from sixteen heavy guns and howitzers, and ten large mortars, planted at two points in front of the inclosure known as Ludlow castle, and so noted in Wyld's map. On the 12th, the attack on the Water bastion was strengthened by four eighteen-pounders and two light (51 inch) mortars (increased afterward appa- rently to eight of the former and twelve of the latter,) planted at 200 and 250 yards from the wall and the cus- tom-house compound near the river. The fire of the enemy was most severe upon the last named batteries, which were exposed not only to the guns of the Water bastion, but to those in the old inner fort of Selimghur, and also to those on the other side of the river. Here Captain Fagan, of the royal artillery, described as a most enterprising and excellent officer, fell, shot through the head. No other fatal casualty occurred among the officers during these days, nor does the general loss ap- pear to have been severe, considering the proximity of the batteries to the walls, and the tenacity of the defense, the enemy keeping up a vigorous fire of musketry from rifle-pits and patches of jungle, even after their heavy guns were I'endered unserviceable. This latter result was rapidly produced by the precision and weight of the constant discharges from our batteries. By the 13th, the Cashmere bastion was in ruins, and had long ceased to return a shot to the fire that was continually kept up upon it. The adjoining curtains on either side were similarly ruined, and from the debris of the Moree bas- tion only a light gun or two at intervals replied to the heavy shot and shell that were poured into it. At the other end of the works the Water bastion had , suffered scarcely less severely, its expense magazine was blown up, and a light gun which enfiladed our batteries had been silenced." 428 INDIA, — HISTORICAL. Official Diary of the Siege. — "Delhi, 4 P. M., Sept. 4. — The siege train arrived this morning, together with a detachment of H. M's. 8th foot, and a wing of the Belooch battalion. "A small force of Europeans, Sikhs, and police, is re- ported to have moved out from Murree, attacked and dispersed an assemblage of the villagers, and destroyed their villages. A few of the villagers killed, and we had one European wounded. "Delhi, 4 P. M., Sept. 5. — Active preparations are going on for offensive operations. Lieut. Tytler, 60th rifles, and Lieut. Somerville, artillery, have both died since last message was sent. "Sept. 7. — The disturbance at -Murree, which was con- fined to the inhabitants of a few villages in the vicinity, incited by the desire for plunder, has been put down. A few of the culprits were shot. Further re-enforcements are not deemed necessary. "The Jummo auxiliary force arrived at Sursowlie yesterday, and must be within two marches of Delhi to-day. "The chief commissioner has, with much regret, to announce the death, at Leia, on the 3d inst., of Lieu- tenant-Colonel David Ross, commissioner and superin- tendent of that division, in which he had served for the last nine years. "The following from Delhi :— Four P. M., Sept. 6.— 200 men of the 6th rifles and 100 artillery recruits from Meerut, arrived to-day. The 4th Punjaub infantry comes in to-morrow. "Delhi, 4 P. M., Sept. 8.— Wilde's rifles and the Jheend raja's troops came in to-day. Last night the new advanced light gun-battery was armed with the loss of one man wounded. To-night further operations will take place toward establishing oflTensive batteries. 429 " Delhi, 5 P. M., Sept. 8. — Last night parties of our troops took possession of the Koodsea Bagh, within 320 yards of the city walls, and batteries for ten guns were established at about 650 yards from Moree bastion, to put a stop to its fire and that of the Cashmere bastion. Every thing was successful, and the batteries are firmly estabhshed in their advanced position, our loss up to this time being under fifty killed and wounded. Lieutenant Hildebrand, artillery, and Lieutenant Bannerman, Be- looch battalion, killed. An accidental explosion took place in our park, but fortunately only four natives were killed. The Jumno contingent arrived to-day. " At Murree, and in the neighboring hills, all is becom- ing tranquil again. "Delhi, 4 P. M., Sept. 9. — Since last message, the Cashmere and Moree bastions have been severely pounded by our near advance batteries, and we shall shortly have more batteries at work much closer to the walls. Notwithstanding that, the enemy have kept up a heavy fire, particularly of grape and musketry ; our casualties have been small since yesterday. "Reports state that some of the 10th light cavalry mutineers had reached Delhi in a somewhat sorry plight ; that they were abused by the mutineers, as being abet- tors of the English, when the first Ferozepore outbreak took place. They were denied admittance within the city gates, and told to remain outside. "From Delhi, 4.30 P. M., Sept. 10.— We have now two batteries for heavy guns constructed in front of Ludlow castle, and ready to open to-morrow morning. We have also a heavy mortar battery completed in the Koodsea Bagh, and have possession of the custom-house, in the compound of which another battery is being con- structed, about 200 yards from the city wall. The en- 35* 430 ISTDIA, — HISTORICAL. emy kept up a heavy fire of artillery and musketry, and have made some unsuccessful demonstrations with their cavalry. Our loss during the last twenty-four hours has been fifty killed and wounded, including Lieutenant Eaton, GOth rifles, wounded. One of our recently erected batteries caught fire to-day, and was rendered unserviceable ; but this is of no consequence, as the guns were to be withdrawn and taken elsewhere to-night. "Delhi, 4 P. M., Sept. 11.— Sixteen heavy guns and howitzers, and ten large mortars, opened this morning on the Cashmere and Water bastions and adjoining cur- tains, and have maintained an effective fire all day. Last night and to-day one or two sorties have been made by the enemy without any result, notwithstanding the proximity of our batteries to the walls. ■ Our losses are not heavy. To-morrow morning eight more heavy guns and 5| inch mortars will open from the custom- house compound. Lieut. Lockhart, 7th native infantry, attached to the Sirmoor battalion, was wounded yester- day afternoon, and Lieutenant Gillespie, of artillery, this morning. "Delhi, 5 P.M., Sept. 12.— Last night the batteries continued their fire at intervals, and have fired all day. The Cashmere bastion and half of the adjacent curtains are in ruins. The Moree bastion is also nearly unser- viceable. At one P. M. to-day. Major Scott was able to open with four eighteen-pounders on the Water bastion within 200 yards, and two light mortars under Major Blunt, about 250 yards, at the same time. The enemy's musketry fire is still kept up with vigor ; but our casual- ties are less numerous than might have been expected. Major Campbell, of artillery, was wounded last night. Yesterday evening a body of the enemy's horse at- tempted to carry off our camels. They were routed by INDIA, — HiSTORICAr.. 431 some of our cavalry, and twenty-five of them killed, in- cluding two native officers. "Lahore, Sept. 14.— From Delhi, 3 P. M., Sept. 15.— Telegraph communication is now open to Delhi. , Our batteries are keeping up a heavy fire on the city, and this morning the enemy's expense magazine in the Water bastion was exploded by our fire, also the wagon of a light gun which enfiladed our batteries from the Tallee- wara suburbs. Our loss was under fifty killed and wounded yesterday. Captain Fagan, of artillery, an officer who has earned the admiration of the whole force by his constant cheerfulness, energy, and courage, was killed at the custom-house battery yesterday evening Captains Chancellor, 75th foot, and Earle, artillery, have been wounded. " (Signed,) J. D. MacPiierson, Lieut. Colonel, " Military Sec. to the Chief Commissioner." Stoemikg of the Citt. — Accordingly, at dawn, on the 14th, a powerful storming party, consisting of three columns and a reserve, were in readiness for the attack. The blowing open of the Cashmere gate was to be the signal for the rush, as the breach was not sufficient to permit escalade without ladders. The duty was commit- ted to Lieut. Salkeld, of the engineers, who approached the gate with three sergeants, carrying powder-bags, un- der a tremendous fire of musketry. One sergeant was killed; Salkeld was shot through the arm, but pushed on with the other two. There were about twenty muskets, through apertures in the gate and loop-holes in the wall, directed upon them. In spite of this they made the bags fast to the spikes on the gate. Salkeld was now shot through the leg and fell; the second sergeant, as he lit the match, was riddled with balls; the third sergeant escaped. A tremendous explosion now ensued, laying 432 INDIA, — HISTORICAL. the gate in ruins, on wliicli the storming party burst in. Almost every one carrying ladders was knocked over. The breach and gate were now forced, and on the resist- less torrent rushed, defying all opposition. They gained possession of the large buildings in the neighborhood, forced their way along the ramparts to the Moree bastion and Cabul gate, in the face of a very obstinate resistance, though our casualties were severe. The whole line of works, from the Water bastion to the Oabul gate, includ- ing the Cashmere and Moree gates and bastions, the Eng- lish church and college, were now in our hands. The enemy, who were intended to have been driven from all points simultaneously, in part recovered heart from the misadventure of the fourth column, and continued to re- tain the Lahore and other bastions, the palace, Selimghur, the magazine and chief part of the city, but no attempt was at any time made by them to recover the important line of works they had lost. The fourth column, under Major Eeed, of the Ghoor- khas, was meant to have cleared the Kishengunge, and entered the city at once by the Lahore gate ; but this un- happily proved a failure, through some misapprehension on the part -of the Cashmere contingent, who could not be got to advance. Our loss was severe. Nine officers were killed on the spot, or died soon afterward. Several, Brigadier-General Nicholson amongst the rest — have since died of their wounds. Fifty-one officers were wounded, most of them severely. 1,178 men were killed or wounded. The enemy had obviously by this time begun to see that their cause was hopeless, and were hastening in multitudes from the town ; we had no means of prevent- ing them escaping by the river, or of pursuing them be- yond it. Our fire was never suffisred to be slackened. liSTDIA, — HISTOEICAL. 433 On tte 16th, the magazine was taken by assanlt through a breach on the college side of the wall. The enemy had six heavy guns loaded with grape, facing the entrance ; but the rush of our men was too sudden to permit them to be fired. On the morning of the 17th, the bank-house was captured, giving our guns, for the first time, complete command of the bridge and palace. The same day the Jumma Musjid was stormed with but little difficulty, and by this time above two hundred pieces of ordnance had fallen into our hands. The Buree bastion, with six guns and one mortar, was captured on the morning of the 19th without loss, and the following morning the Lahore gate fell into our hands. The Ajmere gate and outworks around it had ceased firing, and were supposed to be de- serted. They were occupied immediately afterward with- out opposition. A heavy mortar fire was meanwhile kept up uninterruptedly on the portion of the city still held by the enemy, and, as it appeared afterward, with the most destructive effect. Post after post was carried in the course of the day, and by five P. JI. on the evening of the 20th, the whole city, palace, and suburbs, were in our possession. The enemy's camp still remained standing outside, but apparently empty. It was occupied next morning, when nearly the whole of their baggage was found to have been left behind them. The bridge of boats and the river were now under the command of our guns, so we had the power to prevent further escape in this direction, by which it had hitherto been made. A scene of carnage and desolation was presented by the guilty and devoted city. Women with children, rushing about in wild distraction, everywhere were protected. The rebels had shown no mercy; they looked for, and met with none. 434 INDIA, — HISTOEICAL.. Capture of the King and Queen. — On the morning of tlie 21st, Captain Hodson, witli a light flying detach- ment, went out in pursuit of the fugitives, when the king and queen surrendered, on the promise of their lives being spared. On the morning of the 22d, a strong party of cavalry, under Captain Hodgson, surrounded the tomb of Homaioon, and took prisoners Meerza Mogul, Mirza Khisra Sultan, the king's sons, and Mirza Aboo Baser, his grandson. They were shot on the spot, and their bodies exposed to the public gaze. On the morning of the 23d, two strong pursuing columns, one meant to have been commanded by General Nicholson, who about this time breathed his last, left Delhi. They consisted each of about 1,600 infantry, 500 cavalry, three troops of horse artillery, and eighteen guns. One of these, under the command of Colonel Greathed, crossed over to the west bank of the river, and took the direction of Allyghur, where it arrived on the 29th. On the 27th, they overtook the enemy at Bolundshuhur, where the Jhansi rebels, with their artillery, with a mis- cellaneous assemblage of insurgents, having taken up a strong position, made a stand. After a sharp engage- ment, they were entirely defeated, driven through tljc town, and pursued beyond it. They were scattered in all directions, leaving two guns, two ammunition wagons, and a vast number of bullock carts, loaded with small-arm ammunition, in our hands. About a hundred were left dead on the field, and multitudes of the wounded and dying were seen to be carried away with them. Our casualties amounted to about sixty. Captain Best, of the 8th cavalry ; Lieutenant Sarel and Cornet Blair, of the 9th lancers ; and Lieutenant Edgeworth, of the 8th foot, were all severely wounded. Captain Drysdale, of the 9th lancers, was much hurt by his horse, 435 when shot, rolling over him. The fort of Makghur, in front of the advancing force, was at this time occupied by the enemy in strength; when about to be proceeded against, on the 28th, it was found to have been evacuated, and was taken possession of without resistance. The other column, which left on the same date, moved down by the western bank of the river, toward Agra, and overtook the rebels at Muttra, on the 28th, when they were attacked, and defeated with heavy slaughter. The next event of importance to the cajjture of Delhi is the relief of Lucknow. This was accomplished by General Havelock, on the 2oth of September. The force ■which left Cawnpore under his command was composed as follows :■ — First Infa:ntry Brigade. — The 5th fusileers ; 84:th regiment ; detachments of 64th foot and 1st Madras fusi- leers — Brigadier-Greneral ISTeil commanding. SecOjSTD IxFA^fTRY BRIGADE. — H. M.'s. 78th High- landers ; H. M.'s. 90th light infantry, and the Sikh regi- ment of Ferozepore — Brigadier Hamilton commanding. Third (Artillery) Brigade. — Captain Maude's bat- tery; Captain Oliphant's battery; Brevet-Major Ejrre's battery — Major Cope to command. C.iVALBY. — Volunteer cavalry to the left ; irregular cavalry to the right — Captain Barrow to command. Engineer Department. — Chief engineer. Captain Crowling; assistant engineers, Lieutenants Leonard and Judge, engineers. General Outram gracefully conceded the honor of r jlieving Lucknow to General Havelock, and the following- orders were issued to the troops by the respective generals : — " The important duty of first relieving the garrison of Lucknow has been intrusted to Major-General Havelock, 436 INDIA, — HISTOEICAL. C. B. ; and Major-General Outram feels that it is due to this distinguished officer and the strenuous and noble exertions which he has already made to effect that object, that to him should accrue the honor of the achievement. " Major-General Outram is confident that the great end for which General Havelock and his brave troops have so long and so gloriously fought will now, under the blessing of Providence, be accomplished. "The major-general, therefore, in gratitude for, and admiratian of, the brilliant deeds of arms achieved by General Havelock and his gallant troops, will cheerfully waive his rank on the occasion, and will accompany the force to Lucknow in his civil capacity as chief commis- sioner of Oude, and tendering his military services to General Havelock as a volunteer. "On the relief of Lucknow, the major-general wUl resume his position at the head of the forces." The advance upon Lucknow was a series of skirmishes, during which we killed many of the enemy, and captured a number of guns. Our loss, until we arrived before the city, was very trifling indeed; but here the mutineers made a most determined stand, and the consequence was that General Neil and about four hundred of our brave soldiers bit the dust. Amongst the number of those who fell were — Cowper, artillery; Webster, 78th; Packen- ham, 84th; Bateman, 64th; Warren, 12th irregular cavalry. On the 21st, the enemy were attacked at Mungarwur. His right was turned, and he was driven from his position with the loss of four guns, two of which were taken by the volunteer cavalry, led on by General Outram. Our loss was light; that of the enemy very severe, 120 being sabred. The flight was so precipitate, that the Bunnee bridge, in his rear, was left standing. Our troops INDIA, — HISTOEICAL. 437 this day made a marcli of twenty miles, and tlie next day of fourteen, dispersing the rebels in all directions. On the 22d, the firing at Lucknow could be distinctly heard, and a royal salute was fired from our twenty-four pounders, to make the besieged aware that help was at hand. On the morning of the 25th, the long-besieged and ill-supplied garrison had their eyes gladdened by seeing the relieving force close at hand. Skirting the city, they made their way to the residency against severe resistance, and entered in the evening. They were just la time. Two mines, ready for being loaded, had been run far under our principal works. If sprung, the garrison must have baen placed at the mercy of the rebels. On the 26th, the batteries of the besiegers were assaulted and taken, ths ex king's sons escaping toward Fyzabad. Our loss was heavy, amounting to about 450 killed and wounded. Among the brave who fell was General Neil, of the Madras fasileers; Captain Cooper of the artillery; Captain Webster, of H. M.'s. 78th; Lieutenant Packenham, 8itli; Bateman, 64th; Warren, 12th light cavalry; and Lieutenant Wilde, 40th Bengal jiative infantry. Sir James Outram is said to have been slightly wounded. On the 29th, the right quarter of the town was occupied, and seven guns captured. Man Singh, the Oade chief who undertook to join us with 15,000 men, has sided with the rebels; he has been wounded. The following notification has been issued by govern- ment on this glorious consummation of Havelock's triumphs : — " The governor-general in council rejoices to announce that information has been this day received from Major- General Sir James Outram, G. C. B., showing that the residency at Lucknow was in the possession of Brigadier- 36 438 INDIA, — HISTORICAL. General Havelock's force on tlie 25t]i ult., and ttat the garrison was saved. Earely has a commander been so fortunate as to relieve, by his success, so many aching hearts, or to reap so rich a reward of gratitude as will deservedly be offered to Brigadier-Greneral Havelock and his gallant band wherever their triumph shall become known. The governor-general in council tenders to Sir J. Outram, and to Brigadier-General Havelock, his thanks and congratulations upon the joyful result of which a merciful providence has made them the chief instruments." In the early part of October, Agra, the head-quarters of the Civil Government, and of a crowd of I'efugees, became again the theater of excitement, and the people were unexpectedly summoned to mingle in scenes of war- like confusion that called for decided action. On the morning of the 10th, for the first time in the history of the beleaguered place, the people were of the unanimous opinion that a little season, at least, of rest and security was to be allowed them, which they could pass in the quiet enjoyment of social pleasures, or other employments as they chose. They had certain intelli- gence that the mutineers, after threatening to cross the small Kharee river, ten miles distant, had failed to do so, and retreated, being then six miles on the other side. It was also ascertained that they were unable to transport their guns over the river, and were clearly making off, on hearing of the near approximation of an armed force. With the idea of their enemies' flight, an impassable stream between, and military precautions unrivaled, we might well suppose that all Agra breakfasted that morn- ing in peace and security, and that friend exchanged con- gratulations with friend, with a relieved mind and grate- ful heart. But suddenly, while at the social board, the INDIA, — HISTORICAL. 439 startling sound of a gun, with quick and successive re- ports, aroused tliem from their fancied security, and sent them forth only to discover that the camp was attacked. Among their many ingenious precautions, the authorities of Agra had neglected the very simple and important one of providing a sentinel upon the road, and the enemy taking advantage of this, quietly marched in, guns and all, without any alarm till they had actually opened fire upon the disordered camp, and laid prostrate both men and horses. A scene of wild confusion followed, in which was no command, no order, and camp-followers and horses fled in all directions. If the enemy's cavalry and infantry had been pushed in, the result might have been most dis- astrous, but, native-like, they first waited to see the effect of their big guns, — a delay which proved fatal to them, but one which allowed commanding officers upon the other side an opportunity to come upon the field, and arrange their disordered ranks for action. The vigor and skill with which this was accomplished soon drove the enemy from their guns, and their retreat approached to a flight. Eventually, ten or twelve well-mounted officers made every thing fly from the road, while the cavalry hunted up the fugitives on either side. Never was dispersion more complete. All the guns and baggage were taken, and no six of the infantry went away together, while those who saved themselves did so by hiding in the high fields. There was, in fact, an end of the Mhow and Neemuch brigades, excepting the fugitive cavalry, and, after a ten mile chase, the troops returned to relieve Agra. After this signal chastisement of the rebels, Col.Great- hed and his victorious column pursued their onward march, anxious to reach Lucknow without delay, but an MO INDIA, — HISTOEICAL. ordei- from Sir Colin Campbell stopped him at Cawnpore, where he arrived on the 26th, his whole course having been one continued sweep of triumph. Here he was joined by fresh troops, and his force numbered nine hundred of the 93d Highlanders, three hundred of the 3d Europeans, three hundred of the 9th Lancers, and one hundred and fifty artillerymen, making nearly two thousand British soldiers, to whom were added a nearly equal number of Sikhs and Ghoorkas. Upwards of two thousand men of the re-enforcements from England were immediately expected at the latter place, and Campbell, who was hastening to the front, was to lead four thousand infantry and eight hundred cavalry into Oude in the first week of November.. This place, a new center of rebellion, seemed to be the ground where both parties agreed to fight the great and decisive battle. About this time a " Proclamation " from Nana Sahib, the rebel chief, excited the attention of the people. " It was ascertained that previously to the distribution of the cartridges for the purpose of taking away the religion and caste of the people of Hindoostan, a council was held, at which it was resolved that, as this was a matter of religion, it would be necessary to employ 7,000 or 8,000 Europeans, and to kill 50,000 Hindoostanees, and then all Hindoostan would be converted to Chris- tianity. A petition to this effect was sent to Queen Victoria, and the opinion of the council was adopted. A council was then held, to which the English merchants were admitted, and it was agreed that, to assist in carry- ing out the work, the same number of European soldiers should be allowed as there were Hindoostanee sepoys lest, in the event of any great conunotion arising, the former should be beaten. When this petition was perused in England, 35,000 European troops were embarked with 441 the utmost rapidity, and dispatched to India. Intelhgence of their dispatch was received in Calcutta, and the gen tlemen of that place issued orders for the distribution of the cartridges. Their real object was to make Christians of the army, under the idea that when this was done there would be no delay in Christianizing the people generally. " The ambassador of the Sultan of Constantinople at the court of London sent back information concerning the troops and their object. " The Sultan sent a firman, on receiving this, to the pasha of Egypt, to the effect that he was colluding with Queen Victoria ; that this was not a time for compro- mise ; that from what he learned of his ambassador, it appeared that 35,000 English soldiers had been dispatched to India, to make Christians of the people and soldiers of that country ; that there was still time to put a stop to this ; that if he was guilty of an}' neglect in the matter, what kind of a face would he be able to show to God ; that that day would one day be his, since, if the English succeeded in making Christians of the people of Hindoo- stan, they would attempt the same in his country. " On the receipt of this firman of the Sultan, the pasha of Egypt, before the arrival of English troops, made his arrangements and collected his troops at Alexandria, that being on the road to India, and on the arrival of the army, his troops began firing upon them with cannon from all sides, and destroyed and sunk the ships, so that not a single Englishman of them remained. " The English at Calcutta, after issuing the order for biting the cartridges, and the breaking out of this now spreading mutiny and rebellion, were looking for assist- ance from the arms coming from London; but God, by the exercise of his almighty power, settled their business 442 INDIA,— HISTORICAL. there. When the intelligence of the destruction of the army of London was received, the governor-general felt great grief, and beat his head. At the beginning of the night, murder and robbery were contemplated; in the morning the body had no head, nor the head any cover- ing! In one revolution, the sky became of the same color, neither Nadir nor Nadir's government remained." Such was the paper printed by order of Nana Sahib. The audacious thing is a valuable contribution to the history of the rebellion. It seems to prove that the terror of forcible conversion, so often pleaded by the mutineers, was in fact excited, if excited at all, by native conspira- tors. It will be seen that Nana Sahib makes no allusion to missionary efforts, no reference to the laws of civiliza- tion. He knew that any attempt of the kind would be discredited even by the most ignorant of his followers. He simply invents a falsehood, with a circumstance, which, as no one could by possibility confirm, so no. one of those he addressed could peremptorily deny. He used the one terror which would unite Mussulmans and Hin- doos, as a lever, and to excite it forged the preposterous story inserted in the " proclamation." Grant, of the 9th Lancers, joined Greathed at Cawn- pore, and took the command as brigadier. The column, raised by detachments of European i-egiments to three thousand five hundredmen, crossed the Ganges on the 31st of October, and moved on to the Alumbagh. Campbell crossed on the 3d of November, and took with him fifteen hundred Europeans. Altogether, he would find himself, on joining the two former, at the head of eight thousand men, which was deemed sufficient force, under the cir- cumstances, to meet fifty thousand rebels. The stout and energetic commander-in-chief traveled like a courier from Calcutta to Cawnpore, traversing the distance of INDIA, — HISTORICAL. 443 six hundred and twenty-eight miles in six days. Going at such speed, he could not take an escort, and at one point of the journey he had a narrow escape from falling into the hands of the enemy. When near Shcrgotty, accompanied only by his personal staff, he came upon a body of mutineer.s who were leisurely crossing the Great Trunk road, the men sitting on elephants, and the march flanked by parties of light cavalry. Luckily, they did not discover what a prize lay within their grasp, for the whole party were at their mercy. The astonished staff made "a wild proposal" of fighting; but Campbell, with greater prudence and presence of mind, ordered a rapid retreat for ten miles, until he met a bullock-train coming up with European soldiers, who escorted him to Benares, and enabled him to perform the rest of the journey in safety. His first object on his arrival at Cawnpore was to or- ganize such a force as would enable them not only to relieve Lucknow, but to scatter the besiegers. This was still the place of their hopes and aspirations, for the final capture of this, would secure, as they thought, the sub- mission of Oude, and the destruction of its royalty. On the 9th of November, Campbell, taking with him a -detachment of the 9th Lancers and Punjaub Irregu- lars, the Naval Brigade with six 24 pounders, two how- itzers, and four large mortars, proceeded rapidly to Na- wabgunge. The columns moved up one mile nearer to Lucknow, throwing out a main picket to within three miles of Alumbagh. Here he disposed of 6,000 men eleven heavy guns, two 18 pounders, eighteen field-pieces, and several mortal's. On the morning of the 10th, he commenced operations by clearing tiie place ; and the day closed with the capture of two guns and the reduc- tion of the square fort of Jellalabad, which was subse- quently blown up. 444 INDIA, — HISTORICAL. Having reduced this place and cleared the ground about Alumbagh, up to the canal, he moved eastward to the 15th, and occupied the Dilkhoshe and Martinrere after a running fight of two hours. By noon he held these points in strength. At three in the afternoon, the enemy advanced to attack him there, and were repulsed heavily, the English loss being Lieut. Mayne, R. A. and Lieutenant Wheatcroft, of the Carabineers. On the 16th the commander-in-chief advanced across the canal, and occupied Secunderbagh after a severe struggle, in which the enemy suffered greatly. This po- sition secured, a place called the Samuch, near the Mahals, was attacked with heavy artillery, and battered for three hours. At dusk it was stormed and carried, after one of the severest fights ever witnessed. Early on the 17th, a communication was opened with the resi- dency to the left rear of the canal, i. e. west of the resi- dency. A vigorous cannonade was at the same time kept up on the mess-house, and at three o'clock in the afternoon that very strong position was carried by storm, the troops pushing rapidly on to seize the Motee Mahal, the largest of the palaces, which they did before dark. These important operations had the effect of opening communications to the residency, and in the dusk of evening, on the bloody and hard-won field. Sir James Outram, Sir Henry Havelock, and Sir Colin Campbell met. The latter had been slightly wounded during the day, though not incapacitated for duty. On the 19th, after a se- ries of severe struggles, the garrison of Lucknow was finally relieved, and not only the hearts of captives rejoiced, and their suspense ended, but it went as glorious news to carry relief and joy to many an English home and heart. 445 The next day found the women and children, the sick and the wounded, under an escort, bound for Cawnpore, and what must have been their delight upon leaving the scene of their long trial, and felt that once again they were safe under the protection of their own country. An army of 22,000 men at this time still remained un- der the commander-in-chief, sufficient to commence an attack on Oude, to subdue which promised a severe and protracted struggle. Scarcely had the glad tidings gone forth, when it was followed by those of a far different nature. On the 28th of November the brave and gallant Gen. Havelock fell a victim to disease contracted by weariness and ex- posure, in his faithful discharge of duty. He relieved Lucknow but to die. England will mourn for the intrepid and devoted sol- dier who won for them their first victory in the Indian mutiny, who, marching under the hot sun of an Indian summer, never halted when an enemy was near, but ever pressed onward, defeating forces far exceeding his troops in numbers, until he recovered Cawnpore, crossed the Ganges, and by one of the most bril- liant feats of modern arms, he cut his way through the countless hordes that surrounded Lucknow, and shut himself up with the beleagued garrison, that he saved from destruction. With equal resolution he held the residency against a hundred thousand men, un- til Campbell came to his relief The sense of the great duty to be performed, the neces- sity of sustaining the courage of those around him, in- spired him with force to keep up under every trial, and to bear fatigue and exposure too gieat for his mortal strength, but when the tension was removed, the physi- 446 INDIA, — HISTOEICAL. cal frame sank under the reaction, and within a week of the final relief of Lucknow, he died. It would have been gratifying to the people of Eng- land had Havelock lived to know how his name was honored there; but to the brave and conscientious sol- dier this was little ; for in the hour of fight, or at the last moment of his honorable life, his highest reward must have been the inward conviction that he had done his duty as a soldier, an Englishman, and a Christian. Havelock was born at Bishopwearmouth in 1795, and educated at the Charter-house. His training was to fit him for a military life, and eight years of the earlier part of his life he passed in the service of England, Scotland, and Ireland. His life, almost from the day when his arm could wield a sword, was passed in discharging a sol- dier's duty. For forty years he served his country with- out the intermission of a day, and with nearly every well fought field in India, from the first Burmese war to the relief of Lucknow, his name stands connected. In the annals of the British army or of Indian warfare, no name shines brighter than that of Sir Henry Have- lock, no example fairer than his, for energy, courage, and military genius. The latter part of the month witnessed an engagement between General Windham's division and the Gwalior mutineers at Cawnpore, in which the British troops, re- treated, with the total loss of the tents of three regiments, 3,000 in number, which were burnt by the enemy. The Gwalior mutineers were formidable from their numbers, their discipline, and their powerful field and siege artillery, numbering more than 8,000 men com- pletely organized and equipped. Hitherto, however, as compared with other mutineers, they had exhibited irreso- lution, and want of purpose, notwithstanding Nana Sa- INDIA, — HISTORICAL. 447 hib constantly urged them to active measures of hostility. Campbell, in the present instance, hearing of the disas- ter, quitted Lucknow for Cawnpore. On the 7th of De- cember, he came up with the Gwaliors, and totally de- feated them, capturing sixteen guns, twenty-six carriages and an immense quantity of ammunition, stores, etc., and the whole of their baggage. The British loss in this action was insignificant, only one officer being killed. On this occasion, as on others, the commander is sup- posed to have saved his men by the skillful use of his artillery. The dispersion was considered a very fortu- nate one, — the triumph signal — and the victory not the least brilliant or important of the series of successes won by English arms in India. Campbell still had large forces at command, yet spread over a wide expanse of country, expecting no serious resistance at any point, till he met it at Oude. Before re-entering that province, however, he sought re-enforce- ments that a strong and invincible army might give him sure and certain hope of a triumph. Meanwhile, he remained quietly stationed at Cawnpore. In the early part of January, a public meeting was held at Exeter Hall, in London, for the purpose of consider- ing the future relation of the British government to religion in India. The Earl of Shaftesbury presided, and on the platform were the Hon. Arthur Kinnaird, M. P., Lord Ebury, Sir Culling Eardly, Sir S. N. Peto, Bart., Mr. Hanbury, M. P., the Rev. W. VV. Champneys, the Rev. D. Campbell, the Rev. William Brock, and others. The noble Chairman, on opening the proceedings, said that the time for the meeting, he thought, had been well chosen. Had it been earlier, it would have been said they had waited for more accurate information to be 448 INDIA, — HISTORICAL. obtained ; if it had been delayed, they would have been in the midst of the business and turmoil of the session. He believed there was something of a universal feeling among all classes, that Christianity, to some extent, at least, must be introduced into the many districts of India. He did not say this was the greatest occasion that had ever been offered for the evangelization of India; per- haps it was not ; and a greater still might offer ; but at the same time, this was an opportunity which could not be refused, without extreme peril, or undertaken, without the most unbounded perseverance, and the most implicit faith. He did not think that any one could now be found to assert that the missionaries had done too much, — he had no hesitation in saying it was because they had done so little, the mutineers had arisen. Let the eye but wander over the vast peninsula of India, and see where atrocities had prevailed. It was not in the presidency of Madras, where there was a large concentration of native teachers, or in the presidency of Bombay, where it was said, hundreds of Sepoys willingly attended upon scriptural teaching. The mutinies had not broken out in these places, but in Bengal, where the utmost care had been taken that the natives should never be brought under the influence of the gospel. In that presidency, government put forth all its powers to prevent the extension of Christianity ; and not only so, but had contributed to the spread of the vilest systems among the people. He called upon the meeting to de- clare that henceforth it must be the business, as it had ever been the duty, of the British government and of India, openly, boldly, and unreservedly to proclaim that it is a Christian government, founded for Christian ends, that it will pursue a Christian course, not resorting to any sinister means for preventing the missionaries from INIHA, HISTORICAL. 449 going through the length and breadth of the land, to pro- claim the glad tidings of the gospel. The system of caste was denounced, and in conclusion the government urged to take advantage of the strong feeling on the part of the country to take decided steps for planting the Christian faith in India. At the close, several resolutions vs^ere offered, among which was one by Hon. Arthur Kinnaird, expressing thankfulness to Almighty God for the success of the British arms, and the hope of restoration to peace, order and security. It was followfed by another from Rev. C. Champneys, "that it was the sacred duty of the British government, as the executive of a nation, professing Christianity, to withdraw its countenance from every species of idolatry, and the social evils of the system of caste," Rev. Mr. Smith, in seconding the resolution, said he had resided five years at Cawnpore, and while he would not be an apologist for government faults in India, — and they had committed many — he would give them credit for every good act they had done. When they con- demned the government, they should remember that un- til the outbreak of the mutiny, it had at least, given peace and confidence to 200,000,000 of their fellow subjects in India. Referring to the difficulty of introducing Christianity in India, he said he had often stood up in the beautiful, chief street of Delhi, preaching the gospel to hundreds of idolaters. After he had removed various objections urged against his system, and driven the objectors into a corner, he had always been met with the taunt, "well, but your government supports what you call idolatry, and are you wiser than your laws ?" This was the principal difficulty the missionaries had 37 450 INDIA, — HISTOEICAL. to contend with. While the people in England had subscribed liberally to extend Christianity, the govern- ment had, morally, done every thing they could to destroy the influence of the missionaries. Other resolutions vpere adopted, vehich embodied a determination, if possible, to place the pohtical, and religious policy in India, upon a sound, honorable and Christian basis. "Little, however, as either the chiefs or the people of India have as yet been eoncemed in the insurrection, it demands all the energy of the Indian government, and aU the resources of the British nation, to suppress it ; for it is the revolt of 100,000 well-armed and well-disciplined soldiers. It was not strange that, at the outset, the local government did not foresee the gigantic proportions to which the mutiny was destined to swell. But the seizure of Delhi announced to them, trumpet-tangued, the magni- tude of the danger which threatened them, and the diffi- culty with which they were called upon to grapple ; and from that time we believe there has been no symptom of weakness or indecision in the acts or in the councils of the governor-general and his colleagues. Never, per- haps, has an English statesman been exposed to such a fiery ordeal as that which now tested the qualities of Lord Canning's mind. The tribulation which beset him was unexampled in the history of the nation ;, and many men, only recently transplanted from the bureau of a pacific English department, might have been paralyzed by it. With scanty resources at his command, he was suddenly called upon to contend with a gigantic and ever- increasing danger. He had to oppose force to force ; but where was the force with which he could tread out the mutiny of 100,000 trained soldiers? No sooner had he, by the aid of the railroad, the steamboat, and the electric INDIA, — HISTORICAL. 451 telegraph, made arrangements for the succor or the pro- tection of one important post, than rebellion broke out at another. From every quarter came a call for European troops ; but to strengthen one part of the country was to expose another to danger; and so eccentric was the course of mutiny, so impossible was it to trust existing appearances, that painful doubts and sore perplexities must have disti-acted the mind of the governor-general, when he was called upon to decide in what manner his little European force could best be disposed for the pro- tection of the lives and property of his own of&cers. "Between the seat of government and many of the most important points in Upper and Central India direct communication was cut off, and information came, there- fore, slowly and uncertainly to Calcutta. The command- er-in-chief was at the furthest extremity of the presidency, nearer to the disturbed districts, and was, in all proba- bility, making arrangements unknown to the governor- general at Calcutta ; but the intelligence of his advance from Umballah, was immediately followed by that of his death at Kumoul. Conflicting reports and discordant counsels reached Lord Canning from every side. He had, at the same time, to take in the whole of India, with its foreign relations, in one comprehelisive view, and to make himself acquainted with the feelings of individual regi- ments and the character of individual men. There was nothing more difficult to decide than whom to trust, and whom to suspect — whether to anticipate, and so perhaps to precipitate danger, or whether to await its coming. He was altogether, indeed, in a position in which it was impossible to escape condemnation. He has been con- demned for his undue confidence, for failing to take timely precautions. But we may be sure that, if he had been more suspicious, more eager to meet danger half-way, he 452 INDIA, — HISTORICAL. would have been condemned as an alarmist, creating evil by his over-anxiety to avert it. "If, during these disastrous months, into which more than a century of incident has been crowded, Lord Can- ning did nothing that, wise after the event, we now see that he ought not to have done, or if he left undone nothing which it now appears that he ought to have done, he must, indeed, be not merely a great, but an inspired statesman. Being simply a man, with the infirmities of humanity, we must be prepared to learn that he is charge- able with some errors of detail ; but history will look rather at the general bearing of the man, in a conjuncture of unprecedented difficulty, and, in consideration of the much that has been done well, forbear to dwell upon these smaller failures. It will be recorded of Lord Canning that, when the Bengal army broke out into revolt, he turned to the best account the small available European force on the spot, promptly drew from the other presi- dencies all the 'Europeans they could furnish, and with equal promptitude summoned to his assistance the forces dispatched from England on the China expedition, those released from the Persian war, and those from the nearest colonial stations; and that he made effective arrange- ments for their immediate dispatch to the disturbed dis- tricts. It will be recorded that, knowing how much in such a crisis depends upon the energies and exertions of individual men, he gave large powers to all the foremost officers whom he knew that he could trust, aided them with wise and vigorous legislation suited to so exceptional a conjuncture. He did not show himself in this emerg- ency to be the slave of forms and precedents, but where- soever there was the real pith of manhood to be found, he used it ; and the best men were in the foremost places. It was his misfortune rather than his fault, tliat in some INDIA, — HISTORICAL. 453 instances the service was encumbered by effete and in- competent officers, Avho broke down upon trial. What he could do, in the midst of so much tumult and confu- sion, to soothe and tranquilize the native mind, he did ; he emphatically proclaimed to all the people of India that the British government never had attempted, and never would attempt, to deprive the natives of the coun- try of their right to worship in their own way ; that our system was and is a system of toleration, and that only by false guides and traitors, who would lead them into danger and disgrace, had deceptive stories of the inten- tion of the government to entrap them into acts destruct- ive of their caste, been invented and circulated among them. "There was one measure of precaution, however, forced from the governor-general by a consideration of the mag- nitude of the interests at stake, and of the necessity, in such a conjuncture, of leaving nothing undone to remove every cause of popular irritation, and every source of weakness to the state, one measure, reluctantly taken, but still vigorously enforced, which appears to have suddenly arrested the current of popular applause, which had been setting in so strongly toward him. In what has been called ' an evil hour,' Lord Canning shackled the Indian press. The native journals had, for some time, been un- scrupulously mendacious in their statements, and seditious in their tone ; and even the English newspapers contained much which had tended greatly to irritate the public mind, and to embarrass the government. The English journals published in India are, with a few exceptions, conducted with considerable ability, but they are singu- larly devoid of temper and discretion. We are confident that the violent language they habitually employ would not be tolerated by public opinion in any English peri- 454 INDIA, — HISTORICAL. odical ; and even during this insurrection they have giv- en currency to many extremely false and mischievous statements. It is not long since the Indian journals an- nounced that the home government had authorized the seizure of the Baroda state. More recently it was stated in many Indian, and therefore in all the English journals, that the court of directors had sent out orders for the ■'annexation' of the Eajpoot principalities. The latter statement was of the most mischievous, as, outwardly at least, it was of the most flagitious character ; for the very date of the alledged dispatch was given in the announce- ment, — a circumstance which imparted to it at least an air of truth. About the same time a Calcutta daily paper stated that the stipends of all the deposed native princes, especially those of the king of Delhi, and the newab •nazim of Bengal, were to be materially reduced, and that from this source a saving to the state would be secured sufficient to meet the annual deficit of two lacs. In not any one of these representations was there the least par- ticle of truth. "Other statements have been made, without due con- sideration of the evil consequences of their circulation — one, for instance, to the effect that the government were about to seize the newab nazim of Bengal, under a suspi- cion of complicity in the insurrection — statements which, although put forth with no unloyal intention, might have seriously embarrassed the government, and aided the cause of the insurgents. One of the Calcutta journals, thinking doubtless of nothing but its own proper func- tion of supplying information to its readers, gave cur- rency to one of the seditious Delhi proclamations. '"To show,' wrote the governor-general in his pubhshed letter to the court of directors, on the subject of the press, 'that the necessity of controlling the Enghsh as well as INDIA, — HISTORICAL. 455 the native press is not merely imaginary, it will be enoiigli to state that the treasonable proclamation of the king and mutineers of Delhi, cunningly framed so as to influence the Mohammedan population as much as possi- ble against the British government, and ending with the assurance that the multiplication and circulation of that document would be an act equal in religious merit to using the sword against us, was published in a respecta- ble English newspaper of this town, without comment. For doing the very same thing, with comments, having the outward form of loyalty, the publishers of the three native Mohammedan papers in Calcutta have been com- mitted to the supreme court, to take their trial for sedi- tious libel.' "The fact is, that whilst the native press in India has been used openly to spread sedition, the English press in India chiefly represents the opinions of Europeans settled in the country, or of half castes, not in the company's service. This class of persons is bitterly hostile to the existing government of India, from which they conceive themselves to be excluded; and even the presence of danger threatening the empire and their own personal safety could not restrain them from assaihng the respons- ible agents of the government with a vindictive fory of which we have no experience in this country, unless it be in the Indian pamphlets now before us. At a suitable moment their complaints will be heard, but the attempt to urge their remonstrances at such a crisis proves they were under the influence, not only of irritation, but of fear. " Moved by these considerations, Lord Canning, on the 13th June, attended in person the legislative council of India, and addressed that body in the foUowing terms :— " 'Before the council proceeds to the orders of the day, 456 INDIA, — HISTORICAL, I ask permission to bring before it a subject of pressing and paramount importance. I allude to the quarter from which the evil influences which now pervade so many minds have been industriously put in motion, and to which a large portion of the discontent instilled into our troops and our ordinarily harmless and peaceful commu- nity, is attributable. I doubt whether it is fully under- stood or known to what an audacious extent sedition has been poured into the hearts of the native population of India within the last few weeks by the native newspapers. In addition to perversion of facts, there are constant vili- fications of the government, false assertions of its pur- poses, and unceasing attempts to sow discontent and hatred between it and its subjects. Opportunities have been taken to parade before the eyes of the inhabitants of the capital, and of our soldiery and subjects elsewhere, a traitorous proclamation, put forth by those who are in arms against the goverment in the north-western provinces, crying for the blood of Europeans, offering rewards for rebellion, and denouncing all who shall continue faithful to the government. I am speaking to a body whose members have more experience of the native character and of the working of the native mind than I possess. But it needs little of this to see that it is impossible that all the mischief can be afoot and unrestrained without producing wide-spread disaffection, lamentable outbreaks, and permanent injury to the authority of government. Against such poisoned weapons, I now ask the legislative CouAcil to give the executive government the means of protecting itself, its army, and subjects.' " The standing orders were suspended, and an act was passed, with the unanimous assent of the council, placing the press of India, for one year, under the restraint of a license from the government. No distinction was made INDIA, — HISTORICAL. 457 between the English and the native press, because, as Lord Canning observed, — '•'We do not clearly see bow any distinction of the sort could really be carried into effect; for tbere is more than one newspaper in the English language, written, owned, and published by natives, almost exclusively for circulation among native readers. And although we have no fear that treasonable matter would be designedly published in any English newspapers, we have to guard, in these times, against errors in discretion and temper, as well as against intentional sedition.' " The governor-general ended his observations in these words : — " 'I can not conceal from the council that I have pro- posed this measure with extreme reluctance. It is one which no man, bred in the atmosphere of English public life, can propose to those who are vested with the high authority of legislating for English dominions, without some feelings of compunction and hesitation. But there are times in the existence of every state, in which some- thing of the liberties and rights, which it jealously cherishes and scrupulously guards in ordinary seasons, must be sacrificed for the public welfare. Such is the state of India at this moment. Such a time has come upon us. The liberty of the press is no exception; and now, upon my responsibility as the head of the govern- ment of India, and with the unanimous support of the colleagues with whom I have the honor to act, I ask the legislative council to strengthen the hands of the govern- ment by passing this bill.' " Such was the spirit in which this measure was intro- duced by the governor-general, and we think that there will be a very few persons in this country who will not concur in these sentiments. In Calcutta, however, the 458 INDIA, — HISTORICAL ' Gagging Act,' as it was called, instantly kindled the fury of the noisiest portion of the European community, and they have ever since endeavored to show their power and their patriotism by traducing Lord Canning both in India and in England. To express our own attachment to the liberty of the press would be entirely superfluous ; but like every other right, and perhaps more than any other right, it must be exercised with discretion, and above all, controlled by public opinion. The press of India was unhappily not controlled by these legitimate means of restraint; and, as the native press entirely evaded them, the license it enjoyed became extremely mischievous. It is difficult to combine the principles of a government founded on free discussion with those of a government founded and maintained by conquest. " The collected demeanor and quiet courage of the governor-general formed a remai-kable contrast to the nervous exasperation of his antagonists ; for if any charge can be urged against Lord Canning with any show of truth, it is that, in the presence of very great public danger, he rather underrated the extent of the peril — a noble and an uncommon failing ! No doubt he was led, by the assur- ance of men who had spent their lives in India, and who were ready to sacrifice their lives to their confidence in the native troops, to retain hope in the fidelity of some part of the army longer than the result has warranted. But we do not believe that this hope induced him to neglect any of the precautions it was in his power to take. The same may be said of the home government. The ministers of the crown expressed in parliament hopes which have not been fulfilled. But they lost not a day in pouring into India all the forces of the empire. In less than two months, seventy-seven vessels left our shores for India with 30,000 soldiers ; other detachments IJSTDIA, — HISTORICAL. 459 proceeded to India from the colonies; and when the season arrives which will enable Sir Colin Campbell to take the field, he will find himself at the head of an European army of nearly 80,000 men. The endurance of the gallant band before Delhi, through the most frightful season of the Indian climate ; the heroic efforts of Havelock, Eyre, IsTicholson, and many others, at the head of detached columns, have nobly upheld the honor of our arms, and have extorted the enthusiastic admira- tion of all Christendom ; but it is obvious that the res- toration of the authority of the British government in India must be the result of regular military operations, conducted upon a far more extensive system. For these operations the necessary preparations have been made, and they will commence at the most favorable season of the year for Indian warfare. " We have abstained in these observations from any attempt to assign a positive cause to these extraordinary events, though we have noticed most of the circumstances in which they are supposed to have originated. But these causes appear to us to prove either too little or too much. They do not account for the marked distinction which exists between the conduct of the Bengal army and the Bengal population ; and it is not easy to perceive why the troops should have been wrought to frenzy, whilst the population, to which the native soldiers belong, should remain friendly or indifferent. Moreover, these alledged causes are frequently contradictory; and the highest authorities are at variance on the facts of the controversy. It is scarcely necessary to observe that one of the first duties of the Indian government, when tran- quillity is in some degree restored, will be to issue a commission to collect evidence on this profoundly interesting and mysterious subject. 460 INDIA, — ^HISTORICAL, "One point, however, deserves a more immediate notice. Among the theories started to account for an outbreak, which has impelled the Bengal army to such unwonted acts of treason and ferocity, it has been suggested that the progress of civilization and Christianity in India had become of late so active and apparent, as to rouse to frenzy the dormant passions of oriental supersti- tion: the mysterious power of the electric telegraph already united every portion of the empire by means in- comprehensible to the native mind ; lines of railroad had begun to impart new means of locomotion to the popula- tion ; freedom of trade had opened the country more and more to European enterprise ; the enlightened spirit of Lord Dalhousie's administration was manifestly at variance with the ancient maxims of Indian rule ; and even the law, in its connection with some of the domestic relations of the Hindoos, had undergone changes which seemed destined to inaugurate a period of greater tolera- tion : in short, that the time had arrived when a more active struggle between the progressive spirit of a free and Christian government and the ancient bondage of Asiatic society became inevitable. "We do not doubt these were among the causes which engendered that agi- tated condition of the public mind in Northern India, which undoubtedly preceded and accompanied the military revolt. But whatever weight we may attach to the supposition, there is another consideration to oppose to it, on which we think too much stress can hardly be laid. The progress of civilization and of mechanical invention may have contributed to this explosion of bar- barism ; but it is certain that the arts of civilization and mechanical invention, now at our disposal, are the main instruments by which we shall resist and eventually subdue it. Suppose such a calamity as a general revolt 461 of the Bengal army to have occurred at any period of our domination in India previous to the estabUshment of rapid and direct communication with Europe, and it is no exaggeration to assert that, before the tidmgs of such an event could reach London, every European in Hin- doostan might have perished. Suppose such an event to have occurred when the forces of the crown were engaged in military operations abroad, or when this country was struggling with difficulties or disaffection at home; we might have been the powerless spectators of the dissolu- tion of an empire. But take, on the contrary, our present position: the electric telegraph transmitted information to all parts of India more rapidly than the winged reports of the bazars; and, in the Punjaub especially, Sir John Lawrence was enabled, by this intelligence, to disarm the suspected regiments, and to save the province. Railroads and steam navigation, though still less perfect than they ought to be in India, afford powerful assistance to military operations in the country ; but above all they connect India with England. At no former period in history could this country, or any country, have sent forth a great army with such promptitude, to the East, that, within four months from the occurrence of the outbreak, the stream of re-enforcements will have begun to arrive. Indeed, by a coincidence, which we can scarcely call an accident, the troops destined for China were already within reach of Calcutta. At home we found ourselves with an army too much reduced, no doubt, for so terrible an emergency, but composed of veteran troops, many of whom had recently seen war in its ■ rudest form. The experience of the Crimean campaign, and especially the excellent arrangements by which the British army had been brought back from Turkey in the preceding year, had taught us how to 38 462 INDIA, — HISTORICAL. transport large bodies of armed men, and even of cavalry and artillery, to distant parts of tlie globe. Even our "weapons of combat have recently received improvements which are unknown to the nations of the Bast. The martial ardor of the nation, excited by the late war, is still at a high pitch, though happily our relations with all the states of Europe and America appear to promise a season of lasting peace. In short, whilst we deplore, with our whole heart, this dreadful and mysterious ca- lamity, we retain the conviction that it could not have happened at a time when we are better prepared to meet it, and that it might have occurred at a time when we were destitute of our present resources. If, therefore, we are called upon to restore the British empire in India to its former stability and grandeur by force of arms ; if this contest between the barbarism and fanaticism of Asiatic hordes and the civilized authority of Christian rulers must be fought out on the plains of Hindoostan ; we engage in it, not only with a clear conscience and a bold heart, but with all the means which a well-disciplined and highly-cultivated nation can apply to the chastise- ment of its enemies. The collision was not sought by us, nor was it caused by any act of tyranny or injustice : it has been forced upon us by unparalleled acts of brutality, treason, and wickedness ; 'and if we dare to interpret the inscrutable designs of Providence, this is one of those occasions in which a nation is sometimes armed with every element of superior force, in order to vindicate eternal justice, and to advance the moral government of the world." — Edinhurg Review, October, 1857. tuHr. THE STEAMSHIP LEVIATHAN. ^ MONGr the - many great achievements in science and the arts in our age, navigation, ^ is perhaps the most prominent example of the industry and intelligence of man. It was in 1838, nearly twenty years ago, that a steamship traversed for the first time the Atlantic ocean, between Great Britain and New York. In 1843, an English company made the first attempt to construct the hull of a large steamship entirely of iron. Yery recently, in England, an association has been formed with the view of realizing the most gigantic of maritime enter- prises, such as the world has not hitherto heard of. This company is styled the "Eastern Steam Navigation Com- pany," having a capital of $6,000,000, in $100 shares, with privilege of increasing the amount to $10,000,000. Their main object being to trade to Australia, carrying emigrants and merchandise thither, and to make the voyage direct, without stopping or relaxing their speed, in five weeks at least; and, by the amplitude of the structure, be enabled to convey ten thousand persons over those immense seas which separate England from Australia in a space of time, comparatively, so very short. To this end they have constructed a monster vessel, the planning of which was intrusted to an able engineer of French origin, Mr. Brunei. The Leviathan after much delay and difficulty was launched into her natural element. This vessel was at first named the Leviathan, 466 APPENDIX. wliich was subsequently clianged to the name of Great Eastern, but they haye again changed the idea, and the vessel is now known as the Leviathan. Until the present time, iron vessels were constructed of iron plates, fastened, after being properly shaped, to forged iron ribs. But if the Leviathan had been made after this manner, the structure would not have afforded the strength and solidity required. The following is the plan that was adopted. The sides in their whole extent are double, and formed of plates of iron riveted together like those of common steam boilers. The interval be- tween the two sides or walls is maintained by bulk-heads, crossing each other like the walls of the honey-comb, holding the sides firmly. It is composed, consequently, of a certain number of cells, without communication be- tween them, so that if the vessel should be pierced in auy part, the water which penetrates by the hole could invade only one or two of these cells at the most, and without penetrating beyond. The distance between the two sides is two feet. Each of the iron plates forming the sides were cut with an enormous shears worked by a steam-engine upon a given pattern, and then shaped be- tween cylinders which gave it the required shape. It is divided transversely into ten separate compart- ments of sixty feet each, rendered perfectly water-tight by bulk-heads, having no openings whatever below the second deck. Also two longitudinal walls of iron, thirty- six feet apart, traverse three hundred and fifty feet of the length of the ship. In the construction of the hull 10,000 tons of iron plates, or about 30,000 plates, have been riveted together with 3,000,000 rivets. At the bottom the plates are an inch thick ; in all' other plates but three quarters of an inch. APPENDIX. 467 As there is no wood used in the structure of the hull, we see there can be little danger from fire. As to the danger resulting from the " watery way," we have seen that it havS been provided for in the peculiar construction of the sides. In fact, we may imagine that, should the vessel be broken by a violent shock into two, three, or more pieces, as it has been divided by means of the strong transverse bulk-heads into many compartments, each in- dependent of the others, either of these parts would not be submerged, but would continue to float as a vessel itself. Besides the principal bulk-heads or water-tight com- partments above-mentioned, there is in each compartment a second intermediate bulk-head, forming a coal bunker. These also can be closed in an emergency. There are no openings through the bulk-heads beneath the water-line of the vessel, except two continuous tunnels through which the steam-pipes pass ; and these even can be her- metically closed in a very short time by apparatus af- fixed. The vessel will have ten boilers and five funnels. Each boiler works separately from its neighbor, and can be entirely disconnected from the rest. Each boiler has ten furnaces, making in all one hundred furnaces. Anthra- cite coal will be used as fuel. The funnels are one hun- dred feet in height, measuring from the boiler floor. She is to be put in motion by steam and sails. For the last she has seven masts, two of which will carry square sails, the balance only fore-and-aft sails. , She will spread no less than 6,500 square yards of canvas. Her paddle wheels will be propelled by four engines, the cylinder of each of which weighs 28 tons, or 62,720 pounds. The engines are of 1,000-horse power, and act separately, so that the paddle-wheels may be used independently of 38* 468 APPENDIX. eacli other, as circumstances may render necessary. The diameter of the paddle-wheels will be 56 feet. The engines working the screw-propeller are of 1,600-horse power. The screw is 24 feet in diameter, and is the largest ever made. The shaft is 160 feet in length, and weighs 60 tons. Her speed is estimated as an average for all weathers of fifteen nautical miles per hour. The following is a summary of her dimensions, con- tents and capacity, which will enable the reader, at a glance, to gather the most important facts about this gigantic vessel. Length (rather more than the eighth of a mile,) 680 feet. Breadth, 83 " Depth from deck to keel, .... 60 " Length of the principal saloons, . 400 " Number of decks, 4 Tonnage, 22,500 tons. To carry coals and cargo, .... 18,000 " Nominal power of paddle engines, . 1,000 horses. " - " screw " ' . . 1,600 " Number of cylinders of paddle en- gines, 4 Diameter of cylinders, .... 74 inches. Length of stroke, 14 ft. 6 in. Draft of water, (laden,) .... 30 feet. " (light,) 20 " To carry 800 1st class, i " 2,000 2d " [Total, . . 4,000 P^^®'^" " 1,200 3d " ) ^^^^" " troops, without other passen- gers, 10,000 Weight of iron used in construction, about, 7,000 tons. APPENDIX. 469 By means of the wheels alone it will go, at least, fifteen miles an hour: it will be able to cross the Atlantic ocean in eight days and a half, and to go from England to Australia in thirty-eight days, having no need of stopping to take in coal, as its coal-bunks are capable of holding ten thousand tons of that combustible, or enough for the voyage. The Leviathan will need about five hundred sailors, firemen, &c., of all kinds. This number appears very insufficient, at first sight, when we consider the amount of power required in working a structure so gigantic. But they have added an auxiliary to do all the hard work ordinarily done by seamen, — the steam-en- gine. This engine is independent of those which propel the vessel. It will work the capstan and the pumps, raise the anchors, supply the great boilers with water, and by its readiness and precision dispense with much manual labor. We are naturally much interested to know how the captain of the Leviathan will transmit his orders to his crew. It will be quite impossible for him to make himself heard with the best speaking-trumpet at three hundred feet distance, that is to say, when he finds him- self amidship, which is, we repeat, more than six hun- dred and eighty feet in length. "When we consider the noise of the engines, the whistlings of the winds, and the noise of ten thousand passengers ; and still more, when we reflect that the vessel may be laboring in a violent tempest. It was proposed to transmit his orders by means of signals, and by colored lanterns during the night; but the project of using the electric telegraph will supersede the signals, and with greater promptitude and precision facilitate the transmission of orders to the helmsman, the engineers, or to warn of dangers. We can not reflect on an enterprise so colossal as this, 470 APPENDIX. without being filled witli admiration for tlie varied facul- ties that the Almighty has given to man, and of permit- ting him, weak and insignificant as he is, as contrasted with the power of the elements, to wrestle by his thoughts and by his will against the fury of the mighty ocean. Many see in these remarkable faculties, and in the results which they produce only a su.bject for pride and pre- sumption. They forget that these faculties are only a gift of Grod, and that if it pleased Him to withhold them from man he would be but a feeble, miserable, and above all, a sinful being. For ourselves, we rejoice in the pro- gress of human art and industry, and honor the dissemin- ation of learning ; but we should not forget that the destiny of man is above this earth, that his most gigantic works can not suffice or satisfy him, but that he was created by Grod for a higher and nobler end. >©■£ ^ s>o< ■■^- ./^■'-^p.gi^ Niiii.rnii.'iTiTniiii 70 8,0 f J 1) % 35i /\ '\ ill 85 90 a.5* el alp ■«^, 301 3 l-J. ala '\ /-i ^^ ^ MAP or SHOWING THE MILITARY STATIONS AND PLACESWHERE INSURRECTIOKS HAVETTAKEN PLACE ScMe of mVles to UH* 140 *•« 2Aa aoo aiO -lOO ^O -^^ ; ivs, Ban/xsarrxM'ar 3L. .'T* '■'/< ''/i|' Si :5K^ Araedp O R T H W eJ S/T^^o?a'^s//l'%''''^i*^A^^ ..< '^*./.V^ ,^ p R o V i>k ^pSc:^ r'<^ '-i IMj '-'■^* -i^5>-,d';j-i:W^ **4fr.. ' N'Javsulmeer jeypooro oCA IcHala ■ ^. ^fiHYbRABAD ■ "^\ H 9N; Sishnec c a;aniul;fcej _S. A.a^^^^ ^x „ BQMBA Bombay ►'Atm'edTi P GO (loPoriugal> ^^ O 10 -^ ^ ■^' E ^ PLA N ATIO N S Kail roads liiiislieQ€::r:s>Q.;^^Q.^^^Q^^^Q<;^^^^g,t^^g^