LIBRARY OF CONGRESS.; 
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 UNITED STATES OF AMERICA.! 
 

 
 SIX YEARS IN INDIA 
 
 SKETCHES OE INDIA AND ITS PEOPLE 
 
 AS SEEN BY A LADY MISSIONARY. 
 
 GIVEN IN A SERIES OF LETTERS TO HER MOTHER. 
 
 By Mrs. K J. HUMPHREY. 
 
 EIGHT ILLUSTRATI OrN 5, 
 
 •♦♦♦- 
 
 PUBLISHED BY CARLTON & PORTER, 
 
 SUNDAY-SCHOOL UNION, 200 MULBERRY-STREET. 
 
Entered according to Act of Congress, in the year 1866, 
 
 BY CARLTON & PORTER, 
 
 in the Clerk's Office of the District Court of the United States for 
 the Southern District of New- York. 
 
 3A o/^> 
 
 -\v5> 
 
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INTRODUCTION. 
 
 The vast peninsula of Hindoostan is located 
 near the center of the Eastern Hemisphere. It 
 is bounded on the north by the Himalaya Mount- 
 ains, on the east by Burmah and the Bay of 
 Bengal, on the south by the Indian Ocean, on 
 the west by the Arabian sea, Afghanistan, and 
 Beloochistan. 
 
 The name Hindoostan signifies literally the 
 place, that is the country, of the Hindoos, 
 stan simply signifying place or locality. In like 
 manner Afghanistan signifies the country of the 
 Afghans. 
 
 Hindoostan is a magnificent country. Its 
 vast area of one and a half millions of square 
 miles contains every variety of scenery and 
 climate. There are long ranges of lofty moun- 
 tains, some of which are of immense height 
 and covered with perpetual snows ; and large 
 rivers, which irrigate extensive valleys and 
 plains. On these prairie-like plains snows 
 
6 INTRODUCTION. 
 
 never fall. During the entire year they are 
 clothed with verdure. 
 
 No fences or walls divide the land into farms. 
 In the center of each section or township of 
 from two to six hundred acres, stands a village 
 where the farmers live, and from which they go 
 out and till their small fields. 
 
 Probably the chief reason of this practice is 
 the tenure on which the lands are held, which 
 precludes the ownership of the farms by the 
 farmers. The lands are all held by the British 
 government, except some small states which 
 native nobles are allowed to retain on condition 
 of fealty to the Queen of England. They are 
 leased in townships by the government to Za- 
 mindars, who sub-lease them in small parcels 
 to the farmers. Consequently, the country is 
 dotted with large cities and multitudinous 
 villages. 
 
 The houses of the poorer classes are built of 
 sun-dried brick and are thatched with straw ; 
 but the nobles and native gentry have dwellings 
 of kiln-dried brick, ornamented with arched 
 verandahs and frescoed ceilings. They are 
 generally, however, entirely destitute of glass, 
 doors, and windows, and, except in the case of 
 the houses of those who have something of an 
 English education, they are wholly without 
 chairs, and tables, and the other articles of fur- 
 niture which we deem so indispensable. A few 
 
INTRODUCTION. 7 
 
 brass dishes, a kettle or two, an iron plate on 
 which to bake their chappattees, or graham 
 bread, one or two hookahs or pipes, two or 
 three light bedsteads (charpoys) covered with 
 woven cords, constitute the usual array of house- 
 hold goods. 
 
 The people usually build their houses in quad- 
 rangular form, with a wide entrance to a court- 
 yard in the center of the building. In this 
 courtyard there are usually a well and a few 
 shade trees, and there they usually sit and 
 smoke their hookahs, and sometimes sleep 
 and take their meals. In the older cities, like 
 Lucknow, Delhi, Agra, etc., there are noble 
 structures — temples, mausoleums, and palaces — 
 the remains of past grandeur, power, and 
 oppression. \ 
 
 The population of the country is reckoned at 
 about two hundred millions. 
 
 "But little is known of the first inhabitants 
 of the country. The Bheels of Central India, 
 the Gonds of ISTerbudda, and some of the tribes 
 of the Himalayas, are supposed to be their 
 descendants. 
 
 " The next settlers were the Hindoos, who are 
 of the Indo-Germanic family. Bodies of this 
 people went off to the west from Central Asia, 
 and settled in Europe. The Germans and En- 
 glish are descendants of this great shepherd 
 race. Other bands passed into the plains of the 
 
8 INTRODUCTION. 
 
 Indus and gradually subdued the tribes of Scyth- 
 ian descent, and spread themselves over the 
 whole country." 
 
 The Hindoos are well formed and athletic, 
 with regular features and oval faces like Euro- 
 peans. In some sections of the country, where 
 they subsist largely upon rice, they are weaker 
 and more effeminate. 
 
 The history of India is divided into three 
 parts : the Hindoo, Mohammedan, and Christian. 
 The history of the Hindoo period is extremely 
 vague. We have no reliable information con- 
 cerning the dynasties that rose and fell. It 
 is clear, however, from memorials that remain, 
 and upon which we can rely, that civilization 
 and literature of a certain kind flourished 
 in ages long since past. The people made 
 important discoveries in several branches of 
 science, particularly in mathematics and as- 
 tronomy. 
 
 The Hindoos invented the decimal system of 
 notation. Many centuries ago they made dis- 
 coveries in algebra and geometry that were not 
 known in Europe until the last century. 
 
 In astronomy they ascertained the courses of 
 eclipses, and constructed tables for calculating 
 them, and some of their sages discovered the 
 diurnal revolution of the earth, and calculated 
 its diameter with considerable precision. 
 
 All the subtleties of logic and the refinements 
 
INTBOEXJCTIOST. 9 
 
 of grammar are to be met with in Sanscrit works. 
 In the copious poetic literature of India the 
 niceties and varieties of meter are as numerous 
 as in that of ancient Greece. 
 
 It should be remembered that the Hindoos 
 acquired their knowledge by their genius, while 
 the present nations of Europe are largely in- 
 debted for theirs to the ancient Greeks and 
 Eomans. 
 
 The invasion of the country by the Moham- 
 medans crushed the spirit of inquiry and im- 
 provement among the people, and the Hindoo 
 mind has for centuries lain dormant. The 
 Mohammedans invaded the land about A.D. 
 1000. The history of their supremacy is made 
 up largely of war and oppression. Thousands 
 of Hindoos were carried into captivity. During 
 their reign, life, property, and honor were not 
 secure. As a native writer says, u the effect 
 of their government on the country resembled 
 that of a scorching blast upon a plant." Their 
 reign extended until the battle of Plassey, in 
 1737, from which time British power in the East 
 takes its date. 
 
 The English government in India is a great 
 blessing to the people. The Mohammedans 
 would doubtless rejoice if they could regain 
 their former sway, and they have at times 
 laid schemes to that end ; but their successive 
 failures have given them the impression that 
 
10 USTTEODUCTION. 
 
 the British power is sustained by G-od and 
 cannot be overthrown. Some of their most 
 learned moulvais now say that the Christian 
 religion must spread over all the world, con- 
 sequently the world must be governed by 
 those who will not hinder its progress. 
 
 Protestant missions were commenced in 1706, 
 by Schwartz and others, and were encouraged 
 by the King of Denmark, who had previously 
 formed trading settlements in various places in 
 India. Those missionaries, however, failed of 
 achieving great results, by allowing heathen 
 customs to intermingle with the Christian ob- 
 servances of their converts. 
 
 The British government for many years made 
 no effort to introduce Christianity, and even 
 forbade missionaries to settle in the country ; 
 and when at the close of the eighteenth century 
 Carey, and Thomas, and others of the English 
 Baptists, sought to establish a mission, they 
 were compelled to seek an asylum at the 
 Danish settlement of Serampore, on the 
 banks of the Hooghly, fifteen miles above 
 Calcutta. 
 
 " The Marquis of "Wellesley gave encourage- 
 ment to devout missionaries of every Christian 
 persuasion ; but during the administrations of 
 Lord Minto and the Marquis of Hastings there 
 was direct opposition to the ministers of the 
 cross, who were obliged to proceed from En- 
 
INTRODUCTION. 11 
 
 gland to the United States, and sail in an Amer- 
 ican vessel to their destination. " Some were 
 not permitted to land on British ground, others 
 were obliged to re-embark. Ships were refused 
 port entrance if they had missionaries on 
 board as they were deemed more dangerous 
 than the plague, or the invasion of a French 
 army. 
 
 " The governor of Serampore, when desired 
 by the Calcutta authorities to expel Drs. Carey, 
 Marshman, and others, nobly replied, they might 
 compel him to pull down the flag of the Danish 
 king, but he would not refuse a refuge and a 
 home to those whose sole object was the tem- 
 poral and spiritual welfare of their fellow- 
 beings. 
 
 " Despite the most powerful official discoun- 
 tenance, the missionary cause ultimately tri- 
 umphed. The Church of England became an 
 effective auxiliary. Calcutta in 1814 was made 
 the see of a bishop, under Dr. Middleton ; and 
 his amiable successor, Bishop Heber, removed 
 many prejudices, and paved the way for a gen- 
 eral recognition of the necessity and duty of 
 affording to the people of India the means 
 of becoming acquainted with the precepts of 
 Christianity. 
 
 "The thin edge of the wedge being thus 
 fairly inserted in the stronghold of idolatry, the 
 force of truth drove it home ; point by point, 
 
12 INTEODUCTION. 
 
 step by step, the government was fairly beaten 
 from positions which became untenable. 
 
 " It was tardily admitted that some missiona- 
 ries were good men, and did not intend nor de- 
 sire to overthrow the dominion of England in the 
 East ; next it was acknowledged that they had 
 a direct and immediate interest in upholding 
 the authorities, as the most effectual security for 
 the prosecution of their pious labors. " Soon 
 the government ceased to dismiss civil and 
 military servants because they had become 
 Christians ; then came the public avowal of their 
 faith by many of the Europeans in India, and 
 the open celebration of its rites. 
 
 " When this vantage ground was gained, other 
 triumphs necessarily followed. " The Scrip- 
 tures, which the British and Foreign Bible 
 Society, and also the Baptists, had been en- 
 gaged in translating and printing, were now 
 freely distributed. " Toleration was no longer 
 conceded to Hindooism and other idolatries 
 only : it was extended to Christianity ; and 
 the principle was urged boldly that the state 
 should renounce all countenance in the shame- 
 ful orgies of Juggernaut and other pagan 
 abominations ; that the car of this idol and its 
 obscene priests should cease to be annually 
 decorated with scarlet cloth and tinsel, specially 
 provided by the East India Company ; and that 
 the troops, English and Mohammedan, should 
 
INTRODUCTION. 13 
 
 no longer have their feelings outraged by being 
 compelled to do honor to disgusting rites which 
 were a mockery to the true and living 
 God."* 
 
 The missionary cause, thus " tolerated," ex- 
 tended and widened from year to year, until in 
 1862 there were in Hindoostan 519 foreign mis- 
 sionaries, 140 native catechists, and 153,816 
 native Christians. 
 
 There were 70,709 boys and 19,997 girls in 
 mission schools. Since the Mohammedan's law- 
 less reign, the Hindoos of high caste have kept 
 their wives and daughters closely secluded ; and 
 this custom, with the Mohammedan plan of keep- 
 ing their females closely confined in zenanas? 
 forms a very great barrier in obtaining access 
 to women of the higher classes ; nevertheless 
 these obstacles are yielding to the persevering 
 efforts of Christians, and the prejudices of the 
 natives in regard to female education are fast 
 vanishing. 
 
 Our own mission was commenced in 1856 by 
 Rev. ¥m. Butler, who settled in the city of Ba- 
 reilly, Rohilcund. Our field of labor extends 
 over a good part of the valley north of the 
 Ganges, and embraces the provinces of Oude 
 and Rohilcund, and part of the contiguous sub- 
 Himalayan Range. It is nearly four hundred 
 
 * See " British Possessions in Asia," by R. Montgomery 
 Martin, Esq. 
 
14 INTRODUCTION. 
 
 miles in length and seventy-five in breadth, with 
 a population of about thirteen millions. 
 
 Until our mission was established this part 
 of the country had been entirely neglected, so 
 that we have had to meet the prejudices of 
 the people and the discouragements incident to 
 the work in full force ; but God has graciously 
 given us even thus early many tokens of his 
 favor. 
 
 In February, 1865, we had 26 native preachers 
 and catechists, 209 native Christians, and 208 
 orphan children, wholly in our charge. We 
 had 15 stations, 10 chapels, and 1,231 scholars in 
 our mission schools. 
 
 The work is now opening in every direction. 
 People of all classes are willing and anxious to 
 be taught secular knowledge, and for the sake 
 of this will receive religious instruction. Even 
 the "purdah" is withdrawn to admit female 
 missionaries to the charmed precincts of the 
 zenana. 
 
 We can ask no more of them ; the rest must 
 be accomplished by the Spirit of God and the 
 faithfulness of the Church. Let the Church 
 then continue to send out the missionaries of 
 Jesus, and not fail to speed their efforts for the 
 salvation of men by her prayers. 
 
 It is not a service of ease and luxury, and if 
 any make it such they are unfit for their respon- 
 sible position. It is a work for which culti- 
 
INTRODUCTION. 15 
 
 vated, earnest, self-denying, consistent, humble, 
 and industrious men and women are needed. 
 There ought to be many such in the Church, 
 willing to devote themselves to this work. Let 
 them be sent forth and heartily and prayerfully 
 sustained. 
 
 It is not because of any supposed literary merit 
 in these letters that they have been prepared 
 for publication, but in the hope that they might 
 ' give some" items of information in regard to a 
 people of whom but little is known, but toward 
 whom, at the present time, the attention of the 
 Christian world is directed. If they shall in 
 any degree contribute to increase the interest 
 felt in the missionary work, they will not have 
 been written in vain. 
 
 I have not aimed to give in them an historical 
 sketch of our mission, but merely to relate our 
 own every day experience, thinking that I could 
 thus best give a correct idea of our work in In- 
 dia, and if at times they seem dry and uninter- 
 esting they are no less matter-of-fact. 
 
 Missionaries do not always live on the 
 mountain top, full of hope and enthusiasm; 
 they are often buffeted, depressed, and anxious, 
 like those in the work at home. So also with 
 their work : it is not all prose, but neither is 
 it all poetry ; and in order to carry it on suc- 
 cessfully, a calm, steadfast reliance upon God is 
 indispensable. 
 
16 INTRODUCTION. 
 
 It is a glorious work ! It is a blessed privi- 
 lege to go to the regions beyond, to be pioneers 
 in the work of evangelization ; but those that 
 go need to be girt with the " armor of right- 
 eousness on the right hand and on the left." 
 
 E. J. Humphrey. 
 
CONTENTS. 
 
 LETTER I. 
 
 Sailing from Boston — Atlantic Ocean — Services on board 
 Ship — South American Coast — Off the Cape of Good Hope — 
 Storms — Bay of Bengal — Danger off Sandheads — Pilot — 
 Terrible News — Natives of India — Hooghley River — Cal- 
 cutta Page 23 
 
 LETTER II. 
 
 First Impressions of Calcutta — First Dinner on Shore — Na- 
 tive Servants — Punkahs — Curry — Housekeeping — Studying 
 the Language — A Native Christian — Dr. Duff — Mr. Poorie — 
 Palanquins — Buksheesh — The Mutiny — The Climate. . . 39 
 
 LETTER HI. 
 
 Calcutta — Its Early History — Public Buildings — Botanical 
 Gardens — New Tear — An Ayah — Mr. Lacroix — Visit at 
 Examination of a Native School — State of the Country — 
 
 Preparations to leave Calcutta 48 
 
 2 
 
18 CONTENTS. 
 
 LETTER IV. 
 
 Leaving Calcutta — Mr. Parry — Manner of Traveling — 
 Vin&hya Hills — Hindoo Legend — Progress up the Gountry — 
 Impressions of Benares — Mr. Heinig . Page 58 
 
 LETTER V. 
 
 Departure from Benares — Arrival at Allahabad — Separation 
 there — Our Visit with Mr. Munnis and Family — Indian Bail- 
 way — Traveling by Horse Dak — Cawnpore — Agra- — Taj- 
 Mahal — Port — Journey to Meerut 65 
 
 LETTER VI. 
 
 Departure from Meerut — Saharunpore — Deyrah Doon — 
 Rajpore — Himalayas — Hill Vehicle — Hill Journey — April 
 Pools — Acquisitions — Snowy Range — Rope Bridge — Tee- 
 ree — Visit at the Rajah's Court — Scenery — Arrival at Ny- 
 neeTal T5 
 
 LETTER VIE. 
 
 Nynee Tal — Nynee Davee — Mount Chenar — Daily Rou- 
 tine — Girls' School — Boys' School — Mrs. Parsons — Blun- 
 ders — Orphan Boys 91 
 
 LETTER VIDE. 
 
 Rainy Season — Laying Corner-stone of First Mission Chapel 
 — Removal of two Families to Lucknow — Eurasian Moonshee 
 and Wife — Mr. H. begins to Preach in Hindoostanee — 
 Laughable Mistake. , , 103 
 
CONTENTS. 19 
 
 LETTER IX. 
 
 Journey to Moradabad — Garden — Bazar Preaching — Call from 
 the Sikhs — Yisit at their Villages — Mission House pro tern. — 
 Mr. H. goes to Bareilly — Removal there — Servants — Cash- 
 mere Kotee— Native Assistants — Hindoo Festivals.. .Page 114 
 
 LETTER X. 
 
 Acquaintances in Bareilly — Orphan Boys and the Tiger — 
 Effect produced by Bazar Preaching — School — Inquirers — 
 Rumors in regard to the Mission — Zahoor-ul-Huqq — Hot 
 Season — Dust Storm — Fruit . . 128 
 
 LETTER XL 
 
 Rainy Season — Its Accompaniments — Beetles — Reptiles, 
 etc. — Masih Buksh — Arrival of Missionaries — Journey to 
 Lucknow — Items in regard to the City — Annual Meeting 
 No. 1 — Return to Bareilly — Death of Mr. Downey 143 
 
 LETTER XII. 
 
 Visit with Friends — Arrival of Mrs. Downey — Hindoo Fes- 
 tival — Arrival of Dr. Butler and Family — Commence Itinerat- 
 ing — A Peep behind the Purdah — Journey to Budaon — 
 Lieut. Governor — Nawab of Rampore — Robbery — Budaon 
 to be a Mission Station — Baptisms — - Removal 152 
 
 LETTER X3H. 
 
 Epitome of the Hindoo Religion — Natal, Marriage, and Fune- 
 ral Ceremonies — Seasons — Products of the Country 163 
 
20 CONTENTS. 
 
 LETTER XIV. 
 
 Missionary Work in Budaon — Girls' School — Itineratings — 
 Hot Season — Tattees — Small Pox — Journey to Nynee Tal — 
 Sickness in the Mission — Death of Jesse R. Pierce — Return 
 to Budaon Page 182 
 
 LETTER XV. 
 
 Unusual Heat — Drought — Famine — Strange Vagaries of 
 Hindooism — Service of the Church of England — Anglo- Ver- 
 nacular School — School for Boys of the Sweeper Caste — 
 Illness — A Friend in Need — Convalescence — Hindoo Fair — 
 Cold Season — Famine Orphans — Christmas Observances — 
 Annual Meeting — Removal to Bareilly 193 
 
 LETTER XVI. 
 
 Startling News from Home — Girls' School — Arrangement 
 of Native Work in Bareilly — Effect of Preaching — Inquirer — 
 His Persecutions — Conversion — Narrowly escapes Martyrdom 
 
 — Liberality of English Residents — Building — Heavy Rains 
 
 — Wesleypore Colony — Removal to Shahjehanpore 207 
 
 LETTER XVn. 
 
 Marriage of Mr. Thoburn to Mrs. Downey — Translating 
 Hymns — Mr. Ulman — Reminiscences of the Mutiny in Shah- 
 jehanpore — Luckimpore — Mrs. Pierce — Dr. Kareem Buksh — 
 Baptisms — Persecution of Native Christians — Visit to some 
 Native Women — Journey to Nynee Tal — Illness — Return 
 Home — Death of Mrs. Jackson — Death of Mrs. Thoburn — 
 Journey to Bareilly — Death of Mrs. Pierce 220 
 
CONTENTS. 21 
 
 LETTER XVHI. 
 
 Moradabad — Native Christians — Dr. Mullens — Journey to 
 Lahore — Girls' School — Annual Meeting — Arrangement of 
 "Work — Effect of Preaching — Boys' School — Translations — 
 Preparations to return Home — Meela — Interesting Aspect of 
 Native Work — Zahoor-ul-Huqq — Umbeeka Churn.. .Page 240 
 
 LETTER XIX. 
 
 Parting with Native Christians — Journey to Calcutta — 
 Screw Steamer Golden Fleece — Madras — Illness — Cape of 
 Good ' Hope — Equator — Fright — Land's End — England — 
 Ireland — Atlantic — New York. 
 
 Appendix ...„ 284 
 
llIttstratijirM, 
 
 PAGE 
 
 Printing Office at Baeeillt 2 
 
 An Indian River 35 
 
 Mission Premises at Ntnee Tal 90 
 
 Native Christians of Nynee Tal 109 
 
 Mission Premises at Bareilly 142 
 
 Mission Premises at Budaon 183 
 
 Mission Premises at Shahjehanpore 223 
 
 Cemetery at Nynee Tal 249 
 
SIX YEARS IN INDIA. 
 
 LETTER I. 
 
 Sailing from Boston — Atlantic Ocean — Services on Board 
 Ship — South American Coast off the Cape of Good Hope — 
 Storms — Bay of Bengal — Danger off Sand Heads — Pilot — 
 Terrible News — Natives of India — Hooghly River — Calcutta. 
 
 Calcutta, Oct. 12, 1587. 
 
 My Dear Mother, — As we are. now com- 
 fortably settled in Calcutta, I have leisure to 
 write you of our voyage and arrival in India. 
 We sailed from Boston, as you know, on the first 
 day of June, in the good ship Mobe, Captain 
 Storer. 
 
 It was a rainy, unpleasant morning, but a 
 large number of people came on board. Dr. 
 Durbin, the corresponding secretary of our Mis- 
 sionary Board, Kev. D. Terry, and Dr. and Mrs. 
 Peck of New York, were also with us. 
 
 We met in the ship's cabin, where Dr. Durbin 
 delivered a parting address and commended us 
 to the keeping of God. We then bade our 
 
24 SIX YEAES IN INDIA. 
 
 friends good-by, the anchor was weighed, and 
 the Niobe bore us seaward. 
 
 Our party consisted of Mr. and Mrs. Pierce 
 and their little babe, Mrs. Owen, of the Amer- 
 ican Presbyterian Mission in India, and our- 
 selves. We remained on deck gazing upon those 
 lovely and beloved shores till they could no 
 longer be distinguished. " Shall we never see 
 this dear land again ? " we involuntarily asked 
 ourselves as the last point disappeared, and we 
 felt ourselves cut adrift from the safe moorings 
 of home and country. 
 
 Our gallant ship sped boldly on her course, 
 away, away into the dim distance of angry 
 waters. I forgot all my fears in the sublimity 
 of our surroundings, there was something so sol- 
 emn, as well as so grand, in the isolation and 
 danger of our position, cut off entirely thus from 
 all human aid. 
 
 It soon became necessary for us to arrange 
 our state-rooms, for sundry sensations warned us 
 that a time was fast approaching when exertion 
 would not be practicable. 
 
 Our apprehensions were more than realized. 
 For over a week, all our company, except Mrs. 
 Owen, kept mostly to their rooms, and woful 
 sounds and lamentations were often heard. Day 
 after day the ship rolled and pitched about on 
 the heaving sea, a provokingly fine wind giving 
 us little chance to rest. 
 
SIX YEAKS IN INDIA. 25 
 
 The latter part of the second week we all 
 began to rally, and as the Sabbath was calm and 
 pleasant, we were able to be present on deck at 
 the service which Captain Storer kindly permit- 
 ted to be held. The officers, and all the sailors 
 that could be spared from duty, were present. 
 The capstan served for a pulpit as well as an 
 anchor for the speaker, and seats were spirited 
 up from parts unknown to us, and ranged around 
 it for the little congregation. The precious 
 words of divine truth, the singing, the prayers, 
 all sounded very sweetly to our ears, mingled as 
 they were with the low murmurings of the At- 
 lantic waters. 
 
 We had morning and evening prayers regu- 
 larly throughout the voyage, and a Bible-class 
 every Thursday evening. Many a time when 
 we knelt we were obliged to cling to the sta- 
 tionary sofas by the dining-table to keep our 
 balance, on account of the rolling of the vessel ; 
 but this did not prevent our enjoying the pre- 
 cious privilege of prayer. 
 
 "We had a very uneventful voyage down the 
 Atlantic, but the novelty of sea-life kept us from 
 being lonely. Toward the last of June the 
 winds bore us too much in a westerly direction, 
 and on the fourth of July we found ourselves in 
 the vicinity of the South American coast, near 
 Cape St. Eoque. The main land could be only 
 faintly discerned with the aid of a telescope, 
 
26 SIX YEARS IN INDIA. 
 
 but an island was plainly visible all day. It 
 was the Fernando Koronha Island, used by the 
 Brazilian government as a place of banishment 
 for convicts. 
 
 The easterly winds and the lee shore were 
 not very pleasant ; but after a great deal of 
 "tacking ship" we succeeded in getting fur- 
 ther out to sea. We were detained in the torrid 
 zone for a number of days by light variable 
 winds and calms, and suffered extremely from 
 the intense heat. The calm weather continued 
 for some time, and we were only able to make 
 about seventy-five miles daily until we crossed 
 the tropic of Capricorn and entered the south 
 temperate zone. The wind then increased until 
 it culminated in a grand gale, broken by occa- 
 sional squalls of hail. The waves ran mountain 
 high, and when bursting in the sunshine, threw 
 out innumerable rainbows of brightest hues. 
 
 As we were approaching the Cape of Good 
 Hope in the winter season (the seasons are in- 
 verted south of the equator you know) we had 
 reason to expect very severe storms. Sea-pig- 
 eons, cape-hens, and occasionally a beautiful 
 albatross, came circling round our ship, and the 
 sailors had much amusement in catching them. 
 The albatross is a very large bird. Some of 
 those we caught, when both wings were ex- 
 tended, measured over three yards across. 
 
 Off the Cape the weather was very cold ; but 
 
SIX YEARS IN INDIA. 27 
 
 we had no storms except squalls of wind and 
 hail. We saw the phosphorus in the water in 
 the vicinity of the Cape. For several nights 
 the ship seemed to be sailing on a sea of fire, 
 arid her wake a track of brilliant sparks. 
 
 On the eleventh of August a brisk west wind 
 carried us quite out of the neighborhood of the 
 Cape, and increased to such a gale as we had 
 not previously experienced. 
 
 For nine days the wind blew with terrific 
 violence. Our ship was " hove to " several 
 times, heavy waves broke over her and came 
 into the cabin in showers. We had great diffi- 
 culty in getting our meals, on account of the 
 violent pitching of the vessel, which made it 
 almost an impossibility to move about at all. 
 During the remainder of our voyage we were 
 continually threatened with storms, but were 
 really overtaken by nothing worse than violent 
 squalls. 
 
 We reached the light-ship off Sandhead Sep- 
 tember 17, and fully expected to receive a pilot 
 on board then and there. We came up along- 
 side the vessel at ten o'clock P. M., and were 
 received, according to usage, with a splendid 
 blue light, and a rocket ; but no pilot came on 
 board, and we were obliged to cast anchor and 
 wait quietly till morning to ascertain the reason 
 why. 
 
 The morning brought great anxiety. There 
 
28 SIX YEAES IN INDIA. 
 
 was no pilot-brig in sight, nothing but the soli- 
 tary light-ship. She was very tardy in answer- 
 ing^ onr signals, but finally told us that the 
 pilot-brig usually there had been driven ashore 
 in a recent storm, and we must go to another 
 point for a pilot. The question then was, 
 "What is to be done?" We had consumed 
 the greater part of the day in obtaining the 
 intelligence that we must look elsewhere for a 
 pilot. We were anchored in an exceeding dan- 
 gerous position, being very near some invisible 
 sandbanks, and exposed to the force of the cur- 
 rents which set in toward the land in the 
 morning, and changing about mid-day, set 
 strongly seaward. The other light-ship was 
 about iive hours' sail from us with the light 
 wind we then had. The turbid, angry waters 
 lashed the sides of our good ship with a mourn- 
 ful sound, and the clouds betokened an ap- 
 proaching storm. 
 
 All our sails were furled, and two of our 
 anchors imbedded in the sand. The captain 
 decided to weigh the anchor, and gave the 
 necessary orders. He appeared extremely anx- 
 ious. The oldest sailor on board was placed at 
 the helm, and others were directed to stand 
 ready by the ropes in order to unfurl the upper 
 sails the moment the order should be given. 
 If the sails had been unfurled too soon, we 
 might have lost our anchors ; but if, on the con- 
 
SIX YEAES IN INDIA. 29 
 
 trary, they had not been spread soon enough, 
 the current would have sent us aground, and 
 our gallant Niobe, which had borne us safely 
 over so many thousands of trackless miles, would 
 have capsized, and probably every soul of us 
 would have been lost. 
 
 The anchors were weighed, and rapidly as 
 possible the sails were being unfurled. We stood 
 in breathless suspense on the deck, the mission- 
 aries were hard at work with the sailors, when 
 the captain, who stood bareheaded in the hot 
 sun, watching every motion of the sailors and 
 the ship, while heavy perspiration poured off 
 his face, exclaimed in a frenzied manner, as he 
 saw we were being drawn near a sandbank, 
 " My God, we are lost ! " It was a terrible 
 moment ; but almost immediately another sail 
 was set, and the ship righted on her course 
 toward the other light-ship. 
 
 At nine o'clock that evening Captain S. came 
 down into the cabin where we were all sitting, 
 and said smilingly, " My good friends, I am 
 happy to inform you that we have reached the 
 light-ship." We hastened on deck and beheld 
 a delightful sight indeed. ISTot merely one, but 
 a dozen or more ships were about us. We felt 
 restored to the world of mankind again, and 
 rejoiced that our long solitary voyage was in- 
 deed over. Alas, we little knew what terrible 
 tidings would reach us on the morrow ! 
 
30 SIX YEAES IN INDIA. 
 
 The morning of the nineteenth of September 
 dawned clear and lovely. The threatening 
 storm had passed over. About eight o'clock a 
 boat pnt off from one of the ships and came 
 alongside with a pilot. " There," said Captain 
 Storer to us, " there are some of the people you 
 have come to benefit." We looked over the 
 bulwarks with intense interest to obtain our 
 first sight of the natives of Hindoostan. There 
 they were, six small well-formed men, with 
 shining brown skins, straight black hair, and 
 regular, pleasant features. They were bare- 
 headed, and wore ever so little clothing, merely 
 a strip of cloth wound about their loins. The 
 pilot, although well dressed, looked nearly as 
 dark as they, and Captain S. remarked that he 
 was evidently of mixed descent. He came on 
 board at once, and upon Captain Storer's invi- 
 tation followed us down into the cabin, bring- 
 ing with him a bundle of newspapers. 
 
 "You have heard the news, I suppose," he 
 asked. " I don't know why you should suppose 
 so," said Captain S. " We left the port of Bos- 
 ton June 1, and have not made land since, nor 
 spoken a vessel for over two months." 
 
 The pilot looked round upon us as if to 
 note the effect of his words as he said, 
 "Well, the Sepoy army has mutinied through- 
 out all Northern India, the people have gen- 
 erally assisted them, and they have massacred 
 
SIX YEARS IN INDIA. 31 
 
 most of the European residents in the different 
 stations." 
 
 Mrs. Owen, whose husband had remained at 
 his work while she made the home visit, sank 
 into a seat in great agitation. "Are the mis- 
 sionaries at Allahabad murdered ? " she asked. 
 " JSTo," said he, " I think not ; some of them I 
 know are in Calcutta, and perhaps all; I am 
 not certain on that point." 
 
 Then it was our turn. " What about Bareil- 
 ly ? " we asked with sinking hearts. 
 
 "There were several murdered there," he 
 answered ; " but most of the residents escaped 
 to Nynee Tal, a station in the Sub-Himalayas, 
 about seventy-five miles from Bareilly, where 
 they are comparatively safe, as the hill-men 
 have not mutinied, and the nawab of Kampore, 
 a small native state, which lies between the two 
 places, is loyal to the government." He gave 
 us the newspapers, saying we would learn from 
 them all we wished, and much more, and then 
 he went on deck to his duties. 
 
 What a sudden crushing of all our hopes and 
 plans was this terrible intelligence ! We looked 
 at each other in blank silence when we were 
 left alone, half paralyzed by the shock we had 
 received. Not until we had talked the matter 
 over, and read some of the newspaper accounts, 
 could we realize the extent of the calamity that 
 had befallen us. 
 
32 SIX YEARS IN INDIA. 
 
 Befallen us indeed ! Why, what reason we 
 had for gratitude to God that calms and contrary- 
 winds had hindered onr earlier arrival. But 
 the European residents of India, how our hearts 
 ached for them as we read of the successive 
 outbreaks and massacres at Meerut, Delhi, Ba- 
 reilly, Shahjehanpore, Allahabad, Futteghur, 
 and the horrible butchery at Cawnpore ! Our 
 tears fell fast as we read of the devoted band of 
 missionaries from our own land who were mar- 
 tyred there. Of four families but one child 
 escaped. He was the sou of Mr. Campbell, and 
 being an invalid had been sent to a hill station 
 in the care of a chaplain of the Church of En- 
 gland. 
 
 What indignities they suffered, what agonies 
 they endured, no one knows ; nothing further 
 than that, having left their home in Futteghur 
 in company with the surviving residents, they 
 came down in boats near Cawnpore, where they 
 were captured by a party of troopers belonging 
 to the infamous Nana Sahib, and taken to Cawn- 
 pore, where they were shot a few hours after 
 their arrival. 
 
 The lists of murdered and escaped residents 
 of Bareilly were given; but as Mr. Butler's 
 name was omitted in both lists, we were left in 
 uncertainty regarding his fate until we reached 
 Calcutta. That place also had been in great 
 danger, and but two weeks previous to our ar- 
 
SIX YEABS IN INDIA. 33 
 
 rival indications of an outbreak were so marked 
 that the frightened residents took refuge on 
 board the shipping. It was safe at this time, 
 however, as the citizens had armed and organ- 
 ized themselves into a military corps, and the 
 Sepoy regiments (that is, native soldiery) had 
 been disarmed. 
 
 We anchored off Saugur Island, just at the 
 entrance of the Hoogley river, the night after 
 taking the pilot on board. The next morning, 
 which was the Sabbath, dawned brightly upon 
 scenes strange to us. The land lay on either 
 side of us, flat and marshy ; south was the open 
 sea, north the turbid river. 
 
 A boat full of natives came alongside early 
 in the day, and after considerable bargaining, 
 remained to help work the ship, as the frequent 
 casting of the lead, changing of the sails, weigh- 
 ing and casting anchors, etc., was very fatiguing. 
 These boatmen are called "lascars." They 
 fastened their boat to the stern of our ship, and 
 prepared and ate their food on it, so that their 
 caste should not be injured by too close contact 
 with " Feringhees," as they call white for- 
 eigners. 
 
 Their curry, which we watched them pre- 
 pare over a little fire built on an iron plate, was 
 composed of fish cut up in pieces and cooked 
 with a finely powdered mixture of spices, garlic, 
 and onions, with sufficient oil to make a rich 
 3 
 
34 SIX YEARS IN INDIA. 
 
 gravy ! Captain S. had some prepared for the 
 table, but it was so hot with cayenne pepper 
 that we could not eat it. 
 
 ¥e passed up the river some distance that 
 day, and anchored just above the bar James and 
 Mary. We thought the scenery very tame and 
 dreary, although the " feathery palm trees " rose 
 thickly in occasional groves, and little villages, 
 or collections of mud and straw huts, dotted the 
 fields. Several kinds of fruit were brought on 
 board during the day. We liked the bananas 
 better than any other kind we tasted. 
 
 With the morning tide we recommenced our 
 course up the river. We saw some singular 
 looking objects floating past our ship at different 
 points during the day, and upon inquiry learned 
 that they were corpses ! Had we not a strangely 
 disagreeable reception in India ? First, tidings 
 of the cruelty of the people, and second, these 
 silent loathsome witnesses of their superstition ! 
 We learned from Mrs. Owen, that away from 
 the sea in the inland portion of the country, the 
 Hindoos burn their deceased friends, and scatter 
 their bones and ashes on the Ganges, of which 
 the Hooghly is a branch, but near the sea they 
 sometimes cast them in without burning. 
 
 We anchored at evening, September 21st, op- 
 posite the ex-king of Oude's palace, near our 
 proper moorings in the port of Calcutta. 
 
 The tide turned too early for us to reach our 
 
SIX YEARS IN INDIA. 37 
 
 proper position, as we had expected ; but we 
 were, after all, but a short distance down the 
 stream. 
 
 Ton are aware that we had letters of intro- 
 duction to Messrs. Stewart and Young, of Cal- 
 cutta. We were doubly glad that was the case 
 when we learned the state of the country, and 
 were especially grateful to Mr. Young for hast- 
 ening on board that evening to relieve our anx- 
 iety. To our great joy and relief we learned 
 that Mr. Butler and family were safe in Kynee 
 Tal. By his directions Mr. Young has rented 
 and furnished a house for us in Calcutta, as we 
 cannot possibly go to our mission field now, and 
 probably will not be able to for a long time to 
 come. 
 
 The last night we spent on the Mobe was 
 very trying. The heat was almost stifling, the 
 musquitoes almost maddening, and the incessant 
 shrieks and mournful cries of the jackals almost 
 terrifying ! What fancy could have taken Bishop 
 Heber, who wrote so many sensible things, that 
 he should ever say so absurd a thing as the 
 " Jackal's sylvan notes % " 
 
 The morning of the 22d was necessarily a 
 busy time, as we expected to land quite early. 
 While in the midst of our labors a tall gentle- 
 man rushed down the stairs and inquired for 
 Mrs. Owen. It was her husband, and you may 
 imagine her joy at seeing him safe and well. 
 
38 SIX YEAES IN INDIA. 
 
 Messrs. Stewart and Young came for us about 
 two o'clock P.M. We were not sorry to leave 
 the ISTiobe. Nearly four months of sea life had 
 thoroughly wearied us of its sameness, and yet 
 as we thought of the state of the country and 
 the uncertainty of our prospects, the ship seemed 
 like a refuge to which we might be glad to re- 
 turn, where we should have only the elements to 
 battle with. 
 
 We were assisted into a native boat, called a 
 dinghy, and were soon rowed ashore, where we 
 found two cabs in waiting, and we were soon set 
 down at the residence of our good friends Messrs. 
 Stewart and Young. 
 
 As there are so many things that strike us as 
 strange all about us, I will defer all descriptions 
 till my next. 
 
SIX YEAES IN INDIA. 39 
 
 LETTEE II. 
 
 First Impressions of Calcutta — First Dinner on Shore — Native 
 Servants, Punkahs — Curry — Housekeeping — Studying the 
 Language — A Native Christian — Dr. Duff— Mr. Poorie — Pa- 
 lanquins — Buksheesh — The Mutiny — The Climate. 
 
 Calcutta, Nov. 1, 1857. 
 
 My Deae Mothee, — In order to give you some- 
 thing of an idea of the strangeness of everything 
 that met our eyes upon our arrival, I will com- 
 mence my descriptions at Garden Keach, the 
 landing place, where we took carriages. 
 
 As we drove through the suburbs and streets 
 of the city we were astonished at the swarming 
 population. The shops were open to the streets, 
 and full of half naked men and boys. The 
 streets, also, were teeming with life, and from 
 the mud and straw huts came the sound of many 
 voices. We came to the European residences, 
 and although they did not quite meet our expect- 
 ations of the " City of Palaces," they certainly 
 were lofty and airy-looking dwellings. 
 
 We soon arrived at the house of our friends ; 
 for although Mr. Stewart's family is in Scotland 
 and Mr. Young is unmarried, they yet keep 
 house. We were at once shown up a wide 
 staircase, as they and most Europeans use the 
 
40 SIX YEARS IN INDIA. 
 
 first floor only for storage, offices, etc., on account 
 of its dampness. 
 
 At four o'clock we were summoned to dinner, 
 and were gratified with the evidence it afforded 
 us that Mohammedan cooks can prepare ex- 
 tremely palatable dishes. The servants are 
 very different from the boatmen and common 
 people of the streets in dress and manners. 
 The table servants dress with great neatness in 
 long loose white cotton trousers, long half-fitting 
 coats, and white muslin turbans. The custom 
 in Calcutta is to have a waiter or khidmatgar for 
 each member of a family, a khansamah, or stew- 
 ard, to oversee everything relating to the table, 
 and a cook, or vawurchee. This latter individual 
 never appears to public view, but leads a retired 
 life among the pots and kettles of the cookhouse. 
 
 The Hindoos cannot become our cooks or 
 table servants, as their religion forbids their 
 touching meat. They pull the punkahs, keep 
 the house in order, run on errands, and are dur- 
 bans, or gatekeepers. Their dress is composed 
 of a smaller turban than the Mohammedan 
 sports, or else a small white cotton cap called 
 a topee, a short coat which opens on the right 
 side, in contradistinction to the Mohammedans,- 
 which opens on the left, and a long piece of 
 copperas-colored cotton folded about the loins 
 in such a manner as to form long lappets falling 
 down to their knees. This cloth is the only part 
 
SIX YEARS IN INDIA. 41 
 
 of their attire which they wear while taking 
 their food, as every other article of their apparel 
 has been rendered unclean by having been in 
 the hands of men of a lower caste to be washed ; 
 but this article is washed daily by themselves, 
 and so kept holy ! 
 
 But I must not fail to describe the punkahs. 
 They form too important an accessory to our 
 comfort to be forgotten. There is first a frame 
 of wood about twelve feet in length and one 
 foot in width, which is covered smoothly with 
 coarse cloth, which is afterward painted, and 
 ornamented so cleverly as to look quite like 
 wood. This is suspended from the ceiling by 
 ropes, just low enough to allow people to pass 
 under after a heavy double frill, about ten inches 
 in width, has been attached. In the center is a 
 ring of iron, to which is fastened a rope. This 
 passes through an aperture in the wall left for 
 that purpose, and is pulled steadily by a servant 
 sitting in the hall or verandah. The air of the 
 room is thus kept continually in motion by the 
 punkah, and a certain degree of coolness is 
 obtained. 
 
 The European residents do not generally 
 have the punkahs swinging at night, as a fresh 
 sea-breeze makes the nights in Calcutta far 
 more tolerable than the days. 
 
 But to return to our dinner at Mr. Stewart's. 
 It was very like an ordinary dinner at home, 
 
42 SIX YEARS IN INDIA. 
 
 with the addition of ale and wine. The meats 
 and vegetables were served on double plates 
 filled with hot water. This is necessary on 
 account of the punkah, which cools the food too 
 much if these plates are not used. The second 
 course consisted of rice and curry. The rice 
 was beautifully cooked, every kernel distinct 
 and dry, though perfectly tender. The curry 
 was dressed with clarified butter, called " ghee," 
 instead of oil, and looked very inviting. As 
 our friends assured us we would like it, we at- 
 tempted to eat a little ; but the pungent taste 
 made us glad to relinquish the undertaking. 
 
 After dinner, and an early cup of delicious 
 Assam tea, we drove over to our own house. 
 We found it to be similar to Mr. Stewart's in 
 most respects. The one great necessity — cool- 
 ness — makes much variety in architecture im- 
 possible. 
 
 There seems to be but one material used for 
 buildings, namely, brick, and the walls are 
 always plastered on both sides. The floors and 
 roofs are also of brick and mortar, the latter 
 being made over wooden beams. The rooms 
 are high, varying from sixteen to twenty-five 
 feet, and are all large, and abundantly supplied 
 with glass folding-doors instead of windows. 
 There are also green blinds, which quite exclude 
 the intense glare of the sun. At night we 
 fasten the blinds and open the glass doors to 
 
SIX YEAES IN INDIA. 43 
 
 admit the air. The floors are covered with a 
 fine matting. 
 
 The trials of housekeeping under such un- 
 usual circumstances were much lightened by 
 the kindness of our friends. They gave us for 
 our khansamah one of their own servants, on 
 account of his being able to speak a little 
 broken English. We would find it a difficult 
 matter to get on comfortably without him, as 
 we cannot well always have a dictionary at 
 hand. This language looks like a great 
 mountain; shall we ever scale it? We are 
 studying almost constantly now, as we have 
 the long-coveted helps. We use Forbes's Gram- 
 mar, and have Forbes's, Shakspeare's, and 
 Yates's dictionaries. 
 
 Our teacher or moonshee is John Caleb, a 
 native Christian catechist, who belongs to the 
 American Presbyterian Mission in Allahabad. 
 He was educated in that mission from a child, 
 and was so well known for his earnest piety 
 that when the mutiny occurred in Allahabad, 
 and the Sepoys did not succeed in finding him, 
 they offered a reward of five hundred rupees 
 (|250) for his head. When Mr. Owen came to 
 Calcutta he brought Caleb with him. We have 
 engaged his services as moonshee, and he occu- 
 pies a room in our house. He speaks English 
 very well. 
 
 Although we have been but a few days over 
 
44 SIX YEARS IN INDIA. 
 
 a month in Calcutta we have made quite a large 
 number of acquaintances. 
 
 We were invited to tea by the Eev. Dr. Duff 
 soon after our arrival, and passed a delightful 
 evening at his house. 
 
 Dr. Duff is a veteran in the missionary serv- 
 ice. He is at the head of the educational 
 department, and has a college for native youth 
 in charge, which is said to be a very fine insti- 
 tution. He is from the land of Bruce, and is a 
 fine scholar, a very eloquent preacher, and an 
 earnest and devoted missionary. He is very 
 genial in liis manners, and gives one an exalted 
 idea of Scotchmen in general. We were also 
 invited a few evenings since to the house of the 
 Rev. Mr. Poorie, where we met Mr. and Mrs. 
 Owen, and quite a large company of Calcutta 
 missionaries. 
 
 Mr. and Mrs. Poorie are in charge of an or- 
 phanage for native girls, which now has fifty 
 inmates. Mrs. P. superintends the establish- 
 ment mostly, and has several classes in the 
 school. Mr. P. is associated with Dr. Duff in 
 the college. 
 
 Instead of always calling a garee or cab when 
 we wish to go out, we occasionally use the pal- 
 kees, or palanquins, as the Europeans call them. 
 They are very like the pictures we have seen of 
 them. A palkee is made of nicely painted 
 wood, shaped like a trunk, long enough to lie 
 
SIX YEARS IN INDIA. 4:5 
 
 down in, high enough to sit in, comfortably 
 cushioned, with sliding-doors at the sides. Two 
 short poles are firmly fastened at each end near 
 the top, by which natives carry the vehicle on 
 their shoulders. There are feet at each corner 
 which prevent it from being quite level with 
 the ground when set down. It is usually only 
 large enough for one person. 
 
 Four men, two at each end, carry it, and if 
 the distance is great, two or four men go along 
 to change. These men are Hindoos, of the caste 
 called kahars. A number of them club to- 
 gether, buy a palkee, and carry people for their 
 living. There is rarely any difficulty in calling 
 one when we wish to go out. 
 
 There is one objection to them, and that is 
 the fact that when you lie down in one you 
 cannot be certain that your predecessor was the 
 kind of person you would like to follow. Per- 
 haps it was a drunken soldier or a half-crazed 
 sailor, (Calcutta is thronged with them,) per- 
 haps an oily Hindoo gentleman, a " baboo," as 
 he is called; anybody who possessed money 
 enough to pay the fare. 
 
 The kahars are never satisfied with the usual 
 fare, but always clamor for a gratuity, "buk- 
 skeesh," as they term it. You were either very 
 heavy, and they had a hard time of it, or you 
 were so thin and feeble looking that they car- 
 ried you with extraordinary care. For some 
 
46 SIX YEAES IN INDIA. 
 
 plausible reason or other you certainly ought 
 to give them buksheesh. They travel with a 
 sort of half-trotting step, accompanying each 
 motion with a shrug of the shoulders and a 
 lugubrious " ugh." 
 
 It is said that they often indulge in remarks 
 to each other not at all complimentary to the 
 occupant of the palkee, such as, " He is a heavy 
 fellow, my brother ; let's throw him down ;" 
 and another will answer, " O but he has a 
 terrible temper, he will beat us," etc. 
 
 The country remains in much the same state 
 as when we landed ; but when the troops that 
 have recently arrived shall reach the upper 
 provinces the mutiny will probably be put 
 down immediately. Generals JSTeal and Have- 
 lock, with their small band, forced their way 
 into Lucknow to the relief of the beleaguered 
 garrison, but they are still too few to free the 
 place. General JSTeal was killed when they 
 were entering the city. A mine was found by 
 the relieving party which would probably have 
 destroyed the fortifications if it had not been 
 thus fortunately discovered. 
 
 The weather is very oppressive, hot and close. 
 The rainy season is considered closed, although 
 we have occasional showers. 
 
 The houses are much discolored by the long 
 rains, and in many places are covered with fine 
 green moss. Little shrubs have sprung up on 
 
SIX YEARS IN INDIA. 47 
 
 the roofs and in crevices of the walls. The 
 atmosphere is stormy and malarions. Cholera 
 is said to be very prevalent, but not unusually 
 so for this season of the year. Europeans do 
 not seem to be very much afraid of its ravages, 
 I suppose because they are so accustomed to its 
 presence, as there is more or less of it in the 
 city all the year round. 
 
48 SIX YEAES IN INDIA. 
 
 LETTEE III. 
 
 Calcutta — Its Early History — Public Buildings — Botanical 
 Gardens — New Tear — An Ayah — Mr. Lacroix — Visit 
 at Examination of a Native School — State of the Country — 
 Preparations to leave Calcutta. 
 
 Calcutta, February 20, 1858. 
 
 My deab Motheb, — While war, with all its 
 attendant horrors, has been ravaging the land, 
 we have dwelt securely in this city, and been 
 busily preparing ourselves for our future work 
 by studying the language and, so far as we can, 
 the ftanners and customs of the people. 
 
 Calcutta is situated on the east bank of the 
 Hooghly River, about one hundred miles from 
 its mouth. It was a small village when ac- 
 quired by the English in 1700, in the center of 
 which stood an old black building called by the 
 natives "kalee kotee," that is, black house, 
 hence the anglicized name Calcutta. 
 
 Beyond the Mahratta Ditch (an intrench- 
 ment intended as a defense against the incur- 
 sions of the Mahratta tribe) are the suburbs of 
 Chitpore, Bhowaneepore, Alipore, and others. 
 On the opposite side of the river are the villages 
 of Seebpore, Howrah, and Sulkeah. The city 
 is defended by Fort William, which is built of 
 
SIX YEAKS IN INDIA. 49 
 
 an octagonal form, and mounts six hundred and 
 nineteen guns. Among the public buildings 
 are the Government House and the Town Hall, 
 both fine structures, the Mohammedan and 
 Hindoo colleges, Metcalfe Hall, and the Och- 
 terlony Monument. 
 
 About three miles below the city, on the 
 Howrah side of the river, there are extensive 
 botanical gardens, laid out with good taste and 
 effect. 
 
 The most elevated part of Calcutta is only 
 thirty feet above the sea level. It is thought 
 probable that some day the city may be wholly 
 submerged. In May, 1850, the population of 
 Calcutta, exclusive of suburbs, was 413,182. 
 
 We visited the botanical gardens on Christ- 
 mas Day and saw many brilliant flowers and 
 magnificent trees. Messrs. Stewart and Young, 
 also Mr. and Mrs. Owen, accompanied us. Our 
 khansamah carried a basket of refreshments, and 
 arranged them very nicely on a table-cloth 
 spread on the grass. 
 
 We sat around on shawls, quite in oriental 
 fashion. The Banian tree was the most re- 
 markable object we saw. It covers an area of 
 about half an acre. The ground under it is 
 paved, and seats are placed at convenient dis- 
 tances. 
 
 Another very great attraction to foreigners is 
 a beautiful scarlet-leaved tree, which is about as 
 4 
 
50 SIX YEAKS IN INDIA. 
 
 high as our own Mountain Ash. The leaves 
 are long and grow in clusters, in the centers of 
 which are several tiny pale green bnds. There 
 is not a green leaf on the tree, and the effect of 
 the sunlight upon the red leaves is most 
 gorgeous. 
 
 On New Year's eve we dined with our gen- 
 tlemen friends. Our thoughts often turned 
 homeward, and I presume theirs did also; but 
 we nevertheless passed a very pleasant evening. 
 
 "We recently attended a very interesting ex- 
 amination of the Mission School of the Lon- 
 don Missionary Society at Bhowaneepore. It 
 is at present in the charge of Rev. E. Stor- 
 row. There are more than four hundred lads 
 in attendance. Essays were read upon the ne- 
 cessity and obligation of maintaining family 
 prayer, and similar subjects, by nominal Hin- 
 doos. To all appearance they were thorough 
 believers in the Christian religion, and probably 
 it is so ; but the strong bond of caste keeps them 
 within the pale of Hindooism. The Asiatic 
 Museum, which we have visited twice, contains 
 a fine collection of works of nature and art. 
 
 We occasionally drive out on the "strand," 
 which is a broad road on the bank of the 
 Hooghly, and is a place of general resort every 
 evening. Hundreds of carriages, drawn by 
 spirited horses, with gayly-dressed natives in 
 attendance, together with humbler equipages, 
 
SIX YEAKS IN INDIA. 51 
 
 and ladies and gentlemen on horseback, throng 
 the street. Often a party of sailors, intent on 
 making the most of their stay in port, hire a 
 couple of ponies, and, with two or three on each, 
 mingle in the crowd. 
 
 I have not yet told you of our female servant. 
 She is an ayah, or nurse for Mrs. Pierce's babe, 
 and is a very agreeable addition to our house- 
 hold. With her came our first knowledge of 
 native women, except so far as we could judge 
 by the Bengalee women of low caste whom we 
 see in the streets. She is a Mussulmanee, as the 
 female followers of Mohammed are called. She 
 wears muslin trowsers, and over them a long 
 skirt of the same material, and a short loose 
 jacket with short sleeves, which leave her arms 
 free to be decorated with bracelets. She always 
 has her head, shoulders, and waist enveloped in a 
 chuddur, which is a piece of muslin about three 
 yards in length and one and a half in width. 
 She puts this over her head, and crossing her 
 chest, throws one end of it gracefully over one 
 shoulder. She wears bracelets, earrings, finger 
 and toe rings, of silver. 
 
 The missionaries of different denominations 
 are very much united here. Every month they 
 meet on an appointed morning and breakfast 
 together, after which they discuss the interests 
 of the missionary work, read essays, hold dis- 
 Mr. Lacroix stands at the head 
 
52 SIX YEARS IN INDIA. 
 
 of the preaching department. He is a native 
 of Switzerland, but is in the employ of the 
 London Missionary Society. He has been over 
 thirty years in India engaged in the missionary 
 work. His head is now sprinkled with silver, 
 but his form is erect, and his face beams with 
 kindly feeling. He is a noble man, and a most 
 laborious missionary. He is said to be remark- 
 ably proficient in the Bengalee language, as is 
 also his eldest daughter, Mrs. Mullens. Dr. 
 and Mrs. Mullens are also engaged in the mis- 
 sionary work. 
 
 We have spent several delightful evenings at 
 Mr. Lacroix's home, in the society of his charm- 
 ing family and invited guests, and our memories 
 of those occasions will always be pleasant. We 
 feel very grateful indeed to all the missionaries 
 and other Christian friends in Calcutta for the 
 kind courtesies and sympathy they have ex- 
 tended toward us. 
 
 Caleb has returned to Allahabad, but he re- 
 mained long enough with us to render very 
 valuable aid in commencing our studies. We 
 held religious services every Sabbath morning 
 while he remained with us. Our servants, at 
 our request, were always present, and the mis- 
 sionaries preached to them in turn, with Caleb 
 as interpreter. All behaved very well, except 
 the cook. We were quite astonished indeed to 
 find we had so zealous a Mussulman in our cook- 
 
SIX YEAES IN INDIA. 53 
 
 house. He often interrupted Caleb, saying, 
 " Jesus is not; the Son of God, he is only a 
 prophet, and not so great a prophet as Moham- 
 med either." Caleb always answered him with 
 admirable patience. 
 
 The missionaries have also had many oppor- 
 tunities to preach in English in various parts of 
 the city, owing to the frequent vacancies caused 
 by sickness, absence, etc. 
 
 For several weeks past we have had social 
 meetings in our parlor on Wednesday evenings. 
 Mr. Stewart and two other gentlemen of our 
 acquaintance, who are Wesleyans, meet with 
 us. A Wesleyan soldier who landed one Wed- 
 nesday, and had but one evening to spend in 
 Calcutta, inquired for a Wesleyan prayer-meet- 
 ing, and was directed to our house. He came 
 in and seemed to enjoy meeting with us ex- 
 ceedingly. 
 
 Our stay in Calcutta is fast drawing to a ter- 
 mination. We expect to leave in a few days. 
 Whether we shall succeed in joining Mr. Butler, 
 who has come down to Meerut, is somewhat 
 doubtful ; but it seems best to try. If we suc- 
 ceed we shall go to !Nynee Tal, and remain 
 until the country is sufficiently settled for us to 
 commence our work on the plains. It would 
 be very desirable for us to be in ISTynee Tal 
 during the ensuing hot season, as the mountain 
 climate is delightful. The prospect of peace is 
 
54 SIX YEARS IN INDIA. 
 
 brighter because the war is waged more vigor- 
 ously. 
 
 A large number of women and children from 
 Lucknow, with the remains of the worn-out 
 garrison who held out so long against fearful 
 odds, have safely arrived in Allahabad, and will 
 soon arrive in Calcutta. They were got away 
 by a very clever stratagem of Sir Colin Camp- 
 bell's, too late, however, to save the brave and 
 good Havelock, who had been ill for some time. 
 He was brought away in a dying state, and lies 
 buried a short distance from Lucknow, toward 
 Cawnpore. It yet remains to conquer the im- 
 mense native army still in possession of Luck- 
 now, and to retake Rohilcund. 
 
 Another battle at Lucknow is imminent. 
 
 If we go further up the country than Benares 
 we must go quickly, as immediately upon the 
 dispersion of the army at Lucknow the country 
 will be overrun by marauders. 
 
 Delhi, Meerut, Agra, Cawnpore, and Allaha- 
 bad are quietly in possession of English troops. 
 Benares is considered so safe that people are 
 permitted to go there from Calcutta if they can ; 
 but as the steamers, horses, and kahars are 
 all monopolized by government to transport 
 troops and stores up the country, it is not an 
 easy matter for civilians to travel. "We are to 
 go in private carriages drawn by kahars. We 
 know it is extremely doubtful about always 
 
SIX YEARS IN INDIA. 55 
 
 finding enough of them unemployed to take us 
 along, but there certainly is no other way. Mr. 
 Pierce's family will travel in a phaeton, and 
 we have engaged what is called a palkee-garee, 
 belonging to a gentleman in Allahabad, who is 
 agent for a horse dak, that is, staging company. 
 He is to give us passage by horse dak from 
 Allahabad to Meerut if we take his garee safely 
 to the former place. Mr. Parry, an old resi- 
 dent in the country, is to take charge of the 
 expedition, as he speaks the language fluently 
 and understands the native character. He and 
 his family have but recently escaped from 
 Lucknow. 
 
 We were at a loss to know what to do with 
 our house, which was rented for a year ; but 
 that, with all our furniture, was taken off our 
 hands by the Relief Committee, and some of 
 the tired refugees from Lucknow will soon find 
 shelter here. 
 
 But one more problem remained unsolved: 
 how could our baggage be conveyed up the coun- 
 try ? The missionaries resolved to make one more 
 attempt to procure a passage for it by the steam- 
 ers, and this time they were successful. They in- 
 terested one of the captains in our enterprise, and 
 he agreed to send our boxes up to Benares by the 
 three next steamers, four boxes to go by each. 
 Thus the last obstacles have vanished, and in so 
 signal a manner as to leave no doubt in our 
 
56 SIX YEAKS IN INDIA. 
 
 minds in regard to our duty. So we go forth in 
 the name of the Lord, not knowing what may 
 befall us. We see our way clear to Benares. A 
 friend there has invited us to his house, where 
 we can remain until our way shall open to go 
 on. Do not be anxious about us. Whatever 
 may come, we are sure that we go forth under the 
 direction and with the blessing of God, and you 
 know we are not our own, to do our own will 
 and pleasure, but we are bought with a price, 
 even the precious blood of Jesus. We would 
 " own him Lord, and in his footsteps tread." 
 
 We are none of us in robust health. I have 
 had the severest illness this season that I ever 
 had, and am still far from well. I think it pos- 
 sible the journey may do me good. We have 
 so arranged our carriages that we can sleep quite 
 comfortably, and thus we can travel night and 
 day without great weariness. 
 
 We have made several shopping excursions to 
 look up hot water plates and other things in 
 which we find ourselves deficient. We visited 
 the old and new China bazars in our search. 
 The shopkeepers are not all Chinamen, as the 
 name would seem to imply; but there are many 
 who, with the Hindoostanee merchants, quite be- 
 wildered us with their jargon. The bazars are 
 crowded constantly, and the tumult is some- 
 thing overwhelming. The shopkeepers spy 
 new-comers very quickly, and with every imagiii- 
 
SIX YEARS IN INDIA. 57 
 
 able piece of merchandise in hand they crowd 
 around, shouting in broken English, " Buy this 
 box, mem sahib % Yery fine picture ! you buy ? " 
 "Here is lovely bonnet, mem sahib." "What 
 else you buy, mem sahib ? See, very fine book, 
 magnificent combs, mem sahib," etc., etc. We 
 could scarcely endure the noise long enough to 
 buy what we wanted, and were glad to leave the 
 busy scene. 
 
 The hot season is fast approaching, and we 
 are told that punkahs will be swinging again in 
 two weeks. But we shall find it as cool in Mee- 
 rut the last of March as now in Calcutta, so 
 we hope the heat will not be overpowering 
 during any portion of our journey. 
 
58 SIX YEAES IN INDIA. 
 
 LETTEE IY. 
 
 Leaving Calcutta — Mr. Parry — Manner of Traveling — Vindhya 
 Hills — Hindoo Legend concerning them — Progress up the 
 Country — Impressions of Benares — Mr. Heinig. 
 
 Benares, March 6, 1858. 
 
 My Dear Mother, — We left Calcutta on the 
 24th of last month, crossed the Hooghly, and 
 took the cars at Howrah for Raneegunge. We 
 slept on the floor of the station house at Ranee- 
 gunge, about one hundred and twelve miles from 
 Calcutta, the night of the 24th. 
 
 The next morning our carriages, which had 
 been sent up by rail the day previous, were 
 drawn up by the station house, and our baggage 
 arranged. Ours was a small garee with two 
 seats opposite each other, like a cab. 
 
 Our most valuable luggage was first placed 
 in the space between the seats, and over it some 
 small boxes of provision ; then two boards were 
 fitted over the place, even with the seats, and 
 our mattress placed over the whole, with 
 blankets and pillows. Our trunks occupied the 
 top of the garee. Mr. Parry called some ka- 
 hars, and engaged a sufficient number to draw 
 our carriages one stage, about ten miles. One 
 man was sent ahead to gather the same number 
 
SIX YEARS IN INDIA. 59 
 
 at the next chowkee or changing place. In this 
 way we traveled both day and night, merely 
 stopping an hour morning and evening to pre- 
 pare food. 
 
 We sometimes stopped at the small houses 
 called dak bungalows, erected by government 
 for the accommodation of travelers ; but these 
 were so often found half destroyed that we 
 placed no dependence upon them, but prepared 
 and ate our simple meals under the beautiful 
 mango and tamarind trees that stand near the 
 road. 
 
 But I have not told you of the road, and it 
 truly deserves mention ; for of all the roads I 
 ever saw, natural, macadamized, plank, or cor- 
 duroy, the Grand Trunk Road, extending from 
 Calcutta to Peshawur, a distance of eighteen 
 hundred miles, is certainly the best. It is broad, 
 smooth, and hard, being covered with a " calca- 
 reous concretion" called kunkur, and beaten 
 down very thoroughly. 
 
 The country appears so flat, sandy, and bar- 
 ren, that it would have seemed inconceivably 
 desolate to us, but for the beautiful groves of 
 mango and tamarind trees that dot the fields. 
 
 The little villages, with their mud huts and 
 thatched roofs, looked very dirty and poor. 
 The villagers, however, seemed contented, and 
 easily industrious, and were invariably respectful 
 and obliging. 
 
60 SIX YEARS IN INDIA. 
 
 8 
 
 On the fourth day we crossed the Yindhya 
 Hills. The Hindoos have a curious legend in 
 regard to their origin. 
 
 They say the Eajah of Ceylon stole Seeta, the 
 wife of Earn, one of their gods. Earn at once 
 summoned Hanooman, the king of apes, to his 
 relief. He sent an army of apes, who came 
 flying (!) from the Himalaya Mountains, laden 
 with large stones, to construct a bridge from the 
 continent to Ceylon, so that Earn might be en- 
 abled to go over and recover his lost bride. 
 They went back and forth several times for sup- 
 plies; but finally, as they came flying along fully 
 laden, word came from Eaur that the bridge 
 was complete, so they dropped their burdens by 
 the way, which formed this chain of hills. 
 
 The Sabbath found us at a small place called 
 Shergotty. "We found there a good dak bunga- 
 low, and resolved to stay in it through the day, 
 although we knew we were running some risk 
 in doing so, as bands of rebels from various di- 
 rections were hurrying toward Lucknow, and 
 by remaining long in one place we were, of 
 course, in more danger than when we were 
 traveling. 
 
 Toward night some English officers came to 
 the bungalow, and a body of soldiers encamped 
 near it. We were glad to see them, and wished 
 we might have their company all the way to 
 Meerut. Their coming, however, necessitated 
 
SIX YEAKS IN INDIA. 61 
 
 our departure, and as the evening shades gath- 
 ered we lay down in our carriage-beds, and 
 proceeded on our journey. 
 
 We had heard rumors during the day that 
 Sepoys were lurking about in that part of the 
 country, and we were therefore a little more 
 fearful than usual. 
 
 Throughout the night we often fancied we 
 saw stalwart forms starting out from the dim 
 groves, and that we * heard strange voices shout- 
 ing in the distance. But the morning dawned, 
 and we were still unharmed. God had taken 
 care of us. 
 
 "We crossed the river Soane toward morning. 
 During and immediately after the rains it is a 
 wide stream ; in the month of February it is but 
 a rivulet, and so continues until the ensuing 
 rainy season. The bed of the river, however, 
 was no trifle. We were obliged to have an 
 extra number of men to drag our carriages 
 through the deep sand. 
 
 Early on Tuesday morning we approached 
 the so-called holy city of Benares. But first 
 was the Ganges, that stream of fearful memo- 
 ries, whose waters are supposed by the deluded 
 Hindoos to be efficacious in cleaning the soul 
 from sin. It was our first view of the " sacred 
 Ganges," and it did not strike us favorably. 
 Although broad, the river is a sluggish, muddy 
 stream, with an appearance strongly suggestive 
 
62 SIX YEAES IN INDIA, 
 
 of alligators and Hindoo ashes ! Onr kahars 
 shouted and gesticulated to make way for us as 
 we crossed the river on the long shaky bridge of 
 boats. The bridge is a rude affair ; but as it is 
 often carried away by the rise of the river in the 
 rainy season, I suppose it would not pay to have 
 it look finer. 
 
 The native part of the city, through which 
 we passed, looked decidedly Hindooish, much 
 more so than does Calcutta, Calcutta is more 
 anglicized than I realized when there. When 
 I saw the numerous temples of Benares, the 
 ghauts, and frequent groups of fakeers or devo- 
 tees, I realized that we were just beginning to 
 see heathenism in its real hideousness. 
 
 We went directly to the house of Mr. Hienig, 
 a Baptist missionary, now living quite alone in 
 his large bungalow, his wife having gone to En- 
 gland with their children. We met her in Cal- 
 cutta just before she sailed, and through her 
 kindness received the invitation from Mr. Hie- 
 nig to occupy rooms in his house while we should 
 wish to stay in Benares. 
 
 Immediately upon our arrival we were shown 
 to some pleasant rooms, and told that Mr. Hie- 
 nig's servants would procure us anything we 
 might require. After breakfast we unpacked 
 fresh clothing and bedding, and gave our soiled 
 clothing over to the tender mercies of a Benares 
 dhobee or washerman. After bathing and dress- 
 
SIX YEARS IN INDIA. 63 
 
 ing, we enjoyed ourselves in looking about the 
 premises. O how delightful it seemed to be 
 safe and quiet once more ! 
 
 Mr. Hienig's house is a bungalow one story 
 high, on- a very low foundation. The roof is 
 thatched with straw, put on a light framework 
 of bamboos in four compartments running up to 
 a point. This kind of roof gives a building a 
 Yery singular appearance, but it is said to be the 
 coolest kind that can be used in India. The 
 only objections to it are its inflammable nature, 
 and the necessity of renewal every three or four 
 years. The floors and walls are of brick and 
 mortar, as in Calcutta, but not so neatly finished. 
 Overhead cotton cloth is closely fastened in 
 each room, and then whitewashed. These ceil- 
 ings are called chuts. They look very well, but 
 when the wind blows wave considerably. 
 
 There were a great many lizards about the 
 house, which annoyed us somewhat. They fell 
 on the beds and tables, and sometimes on us ; 
 but as they are perfectly harmless we were not 
 alarmed, although it was unpleasant to have 
 them make so free. 
 
 We enjoyed our visit with Mr. Hienig, and 
 were much interested in his accounts of mission- 
 ary work. 
 
 Benares is situated on the east bank of the 
 Ganges. It is three miles long and about one 
 mile in width. The streets are narrow and 
 
64 SIX YEARS IN INDIA. 
 
 crooked. The houses are generally built of 
 sun-dried brick thatched with straw. 
 
 Access is gained to the river by ghauts, built 
 at convenient intervals along the banks. " But 
 what are ghauts ? " you ask. They 'are small 
 buildings, something like a pavilion, and are 
 built as near the water as possible. Under 
 them are stairs that go down into the water. 
 The whole affair is built in the most substantial 
 manner, with arches and pillars highly orna- 
 mented. In the morning these ghauts are 
 thronged by devout Hindoos as they go down 
 into the sacred waters to bathe. 
 
 Benares is a celebrated place of pilgrimage, 
 as its numerous temples and pundits, that is, 
 learned brahmins, render the place very holy in 
 the estimation of the people. 
 
 We are to leave to-morrow for Allahabad, 
 thence to Meerut, from which place (if it please 
 God to take us safely there) I will write you. 
 
SIX YEARS IN INDIA. 65 
 
 LETTEE V. 
 
 Departure from Benares — Arrival at Allahabad — Separation 
 there — Our Visit with Mr. Munnis and Family — Indian 
 Railway — Traveling by Horse Dak — Cawnpore — Agra — 
 Taj-Mahal — Fort — Journey to Meerut. 
 
 Meeeut, March 20, 1858. 
 
 My Dear Mother, — Friday morning we left 
 Benares, and Saturday morning, thoroughly 
 wearied, arrived in Allahabad. The heat had 
 increased considerably during our stay in Be- 
 nares, and traveling became more exhausting 
 every day. 
 
 Allahabad (City of God) is situated at the 
 confluence of the Ganges, here one and a half 
 miles in width, and the Jumna, three fourths of 
 a mile in width. The fort, on the east and 
 south, rises directly from the water, and is of 
 great size and strength. The city extends along 
 frhe Jumna to the west of the fort. 
 
 Notwithstanding its advantageous position, it 
 is an ill-built, wretched looking place. It has 
 a population of about seventy thousand. The 
 only building worthy of note is the Jumna 
 Musjed. 
 
 We crossed another long villainous bridge of 
 boats, that creaked and swayed as if it greatly 
 
66 SIX YEARS IN INDIA. 
 
 wished to let us through, passed some barracks, 
 and then by dint of inquiry went through the 
 city to the premises of the missionaries of the 
 American Presbyterian Board. There we found 
 Mr. and Mrs. Munnis, whose acquaintance we 
 had formed in Calcutta. 
 
 Mr. H. took the garee over to its owner, and 
 received the promise of a " horse dak " to Agra, 
 to be ready for us at Caugor, which was then 
 the terminus of the strip of railway just got 
 into operation from Allahabad. Messrs. Pierce 
 and Parry, with their families, went on the 
 same day, as waiting only increased the danger. 
 
 As for us^, we had no choice ; we must wait till 
 Monday. So they went on weary as they were, 
 but we remained and rested. "Without that rest 
 I think I could not have lived to reach Meerut. 
 The heat, dust, weariness, irregular meals, and 
 constant uneasiness, had brought on a low nerv- 
 ous fever, which reduced me greatly. Sunday 
 I was better, although still suffering. 
 
 We went in the evening to an English service 
 in the mission chapel, at which Mr. H. preached. 
 After the service we were introduced to several 
 gentlemen of the civil service, who gave us 
 some advice about our journey, and expressed 
 much sympathy for us and interest in our 
 mission. 
 
 As we walked back to the mission house, we 
 remarked the havoc made on the premises by 
 
SIX YEARS IN INDIA. 67 
 
 the mutineers. The chapel was built so solidly 
 that it could not easily be destroyed, but by 
 dint of great labor some of the pillars had been 
 dislodged. Mr. Munnis's former house had been 
 burned, at least the roof had, but the defaced 
 and blackened walls were still standing. 
 
 When we arrived at the mission house, which 
 was formerly occupied by Mr. and Mrs. Owen, 
 we went to look at a great heap of broken fur- 
 niture, demolished ware, etc., in fact the debris 
 of Mr. Owen's once comfortable home. It was 
 a gloomy sight ; here a valuable book, now 
 blackened and torn, there fragments of china 
 and glass, and even part of the key-board of 
 Mrs. Owen's piano, came to view. 
 
 Monday morning Mr. Munnis drove us down 
 to the starting point of the cars, for as yet 
 there was no station-house, but through a mis- 
 take we arrived just in time to see the train 
 move off, so slowly, however, that if we had 
 chosen we could have got on board without our 
 baggage, which of course we did not choose to 
 do. So we returned to the mission house, and 
 improved the day in learning something of mis- 
 sionary work, and in listening to an account of 
 the mutiny at that place. One incident occa- 
 sioned us some amusement. 
 
 An engine stood alone on the railway, and 
 the sepoys wishing to demolish it as something 
 essentially feringhee in its character, yet being 
 
68 SIX YEARS IN INDIA. 
 
 a little afraid of it as well, gathered some bricks 
 and clubs, and commenced pelting the luckless 
 engine with right good will. But conceive their 
 alarm when it fairly began to move ! They 
 ran away, shouting, " Wuh Shaitan hai," (it is 
 Satan.) 
 
 The engine, which only moved from the im- 
 petus their assault gave it, remained stationary 
 thereafter, but they dared not touch it, and it 
 was found uninjured when the English troops 
 arrived. 
 
 Tuesday morning we were in time for the 
 train, and did as we had been told, that is, took 
 possession of some seats, saying "nothing to 
 nobody." 
 
 Do you ask why we did not buy tickets like 
 honest people ? For this reason : the conductor 
 had no right to sell us tickets, as none but peo- 
 ple in government employ are allowed to go up 
 the country further than Benares at present. 
 The conductor, however, seemed to understand 
 that we were to be smuggled up the country, 
 and did not question us. 
 
 "We found our horse and garee ready for us 
 at Cangor. The coachwan (as the natives have 
 corrupted it) went up with us on the train, so 
 having placed our baggage aboard, we were 
 soon rattling again over the Grand Trunk Road. 
 
 This was our first experience of a horse dak, 
 ind we did not find it particularly pleasant. 
 
SIX YEAES IN INDIA. 69 
 
 The horses were exceedingly fractious, and no 
 wonder, for they were jaded and bruised in a 
 manner painful to behold. Upon first starting 
 out they would balk and kick, back and rear, in 
 the most frantic manner. The coachman and 
 groom would first coax the animal, saying, " O, 
 my brother, my brother, go forward ; " but when 
 moral suasion failed, (as it always did, I am 
 sorry to say,) they would drag the wheels on to 
 the horse's heels, then apply the whip with loud 
 cries, until the poor creature, maddened with 
 pain, would leap forward and run the whole 
 stage, a distance of six miles. Then the same 
 programme would be gone through with by the 
 next horse. 
 
 We reached Cawnpore at two o'clock "Wed- 
 nesday morning, and told the coachman to take 
 us to a hotel. We had eaten nothing but dry 
 biscuits and sandwiches since Tuesday morning, 
 and began very strongly to desire that delight- 
 ful beverage " that cheers, but not inebriates." 
 We were taken to a hotel kept by a native, and 
 a bearer, with a most repulsive face, brought 
 lights and showed us a room. The khansamah 
 was called, and we ordered tea and toast. 
 Meanwhile we relieved ourselves of the dust 
 somewhat, and walked about. At four o'clock 
 we again set forth. 
 
 I shall never forget the long, dreadful day 
 that followed. The heat was intense. The 
 
70 SIX YEAES IN INDIA. 
 
 roads were dusty, and crowded witli bullock-carts 
 piled up with cotton, military stores, etc., and pe- 
 destrians and every variety of native vehicle. 
 
 Occasionally, too, we met parties of rough- 
 looking natives armed with tulwars, that is, 
 native swords, and old muskets. Whenever we 
 saw them coming we drew the garee doors 
 closely together, and kept perfectly quiet. 
 
 Near evening we came to Mynpoorie, where 
 we stopped and procured some refreshments, 
 although it was a most dangerous locality ; but 
 we felt as if we should perish without. Again 
 on and on through the long weary night. We 
 expected to reach Agra early in the morning, 
 but it seemed as if the horses had combined to 
 prevent our doing so. The whole programme 
 of kicking, plunging, etc., with variations, was 
 gone through with by each horse in succession. 
 
 About mid-day, however, we approached the 
 long, wretched bridge of boats which spans the 
 Jumna. Mr. Butler was to meet us in Agra, 
 and had directed us to a palace called the Taj 
 Mahal, and its dazzling dome and minarets soon 
 blessed, our vision. There we found not only 
 our superintendent, but Mr. and Mrs. Pierce also. 
 
 Some well-furnished rooms in a building to 
 the right of the Taj, called the Juwab, had been 
 kindly vacated for us by the Rev. Mr. Evans 
 and lady, who had meanwhile gone to stay with 
 some friends in the fort. They left their serv- 
 
SIX YEARS m INDIA. 71 
 
 ants and a nice dinner cooking for us. How 
 we ate, rested, and refreshed ourselves generally 
 I leave to your imagination. But I cannot for- 
 bear an attempt to describe that surpassingly 
 lovely spot to you. 
 
 On the bank of the Jumna, just outside the 
 city, and about a mile east from the fort, stands 
 the " Taj Mahal," or crown palace, built by 
 Shah Jahan, a celebrated Mogul king, who 
 flourished about two centuries ago, for his 
 beautiful queen Mumtaz Mahal, that is, the 
 chosen of the palace. She was first buried in 
 it, and afterward the king by her side. The 
 building stands on an elevated platform, paved 
 with marble laid in forms and smoothly joined. 
 It is surrounded by a handsome balustrade, and 
 there are two large marble basins for fountains ; 
 but they were not playing when we were there. 
 There is a dome of purest white marble rising 
 from the center of the palace, beneath which is 
 the principal room containing the tombs. The 
 floor of this room is of white marble, as are also 
 the walls and the tombs; but all, except the 
 floor, is closely inlaid with precious stones in 
 vines and flowers. I counted in one small 
 flower on one of the tombs twenty-seven differ- 
 ently colored stones. 
 
 You cannot imagine the singular beauty and 
 brilliancy of this room. Words seem poor and 
 tame when I attempt to describe it. At the 
 
72 SIX YEAES IN INDIA. 
 
 entrance there is an arch, over and around 
 which is also the inlaid work in precious stones. 
 Besides every imaginable device and flower, it 
 is stated that the whole of the Koran is thus 
 inlaid upon those walls. 
 
 There are minarets at the outer angles of 
 the walls, and many other ornaments that I 
 need not describe. The dome, the room be- 
 neath it, and the entrance are the main objects 
 of interest. 
 
 In the evening after our arrival Messrs. Scott 
 and Williams, of the American Presbyterian 
 Mission, came over from the fort, where the 
 European residents still remain. They sug- 
 gested that we all should go into the central 
 room of the Taj and have an illumination, so 
 we went over and ranged ourselves around the 
 room. There are niches in the walls, in which 
 were placed some wax candles. These were 
 lighted simultaneously by native attendants, 
 and the answering blaze of light from the walls 
 and tombs was magnificent. 
 
 After we had admired the effect sufficiently 
 we gathered around the tombs of the Mogul 
 king and queen and sang the doxology. What 
 would they not have done in the days of their 
 power to one who dared to praise " Father, Son, 
 and Holy Ghost " in their august presence ? 
 
 To the left of the Taj stands a beautiful 
 mosque, built of the red sandstone which is so 
 
SIX YEAES IN INDIA. 73 
 
 much used in Agra. The building we occupied 
 was built on the right of the Taj merely to pre- 
 serve the symmetry of the whole, hence its 
 name — the Juwab, or answer. The grounds are 
 laid out with great care and skill, and present a 
 great variety of trees, shrubs, and flowers. 
 
 Friday we all went over to the fort and ex- 
 amined the small space which the European 
 residents of Agra fled to, and in which they 
 remained during the fearfully hot and rainy 
 seasons of 1857. It seems marvelous that 
 no pestilence broke out among them. There 
 was great suffering indeed, but it was in con- 
 sequence of the lack of those conveniences and 
 comforts which in this climate are necessities to 
 Europeans. 
 
 There are some beautiful structures within 
 the fort : the palace of Shah Jahan, his hall of 
 audience, the Motee Musjid, or pearl mosque, 
 and others. I was not able to visit these build- 
 ings, but the rest of our party did so, and re- 
 turned in raptures. 
 
 Agra was formerly a large city. The old 
 walls still remain, and extend along the Jumna 
 about four miles in length, with a breadth of 
 about three miles ; but not even half of this 
 space is occupied at present. 
 
 Toward evening our garees came to the gate- 
 way, and we again delivered ourselves over to 
 the tender mercies of the coachwan and the 
 
74 SIX YEAES IN INDIA, 
 
 redoubtable horseflesh of the Northwest Dak 
 Company. "We went forth without fear of Se- 
 poys, however, for we had flanked the enemy, 
 and emerged into comparative safety. The 
 horses, too, seemed to feel better disposed 
 toward us, and we went on without hinderance. 
 
 At early dawn we were roused from our 
 slumbers by a confused mingling of shoutings, 
 groanings of camels, neighing of horses, etc. 
 One of our number seized his pistol before 
 opening the door of his carriage, thinking it 
 possible that the Sepoys had found us after all. 
 He opened the door carefully, holding the re- 
 volver in advance, and confronted a twenty-four 
 pounder drawn by a couple of huge elephants. 
 
 We soon discovered the cause of so much 
 tumult. "We were in the midst of General 
 Penny's division, marching in to assist in 
 the reoccupation of Rohilcund. We certainly 
 wished him success, and that right speedily. 
 After a fatiguing and monotonous day's journey 
 we reached Mr. Butler's temporary residence in 
 Meerut about eight o'clock P. M. 
 
 We are to remain here two or three weeks 
 until the direct road through Rohilcund to 
 iNynee Tal shall be open, and I seize this, the 
 first leisure I have had since we left Benares, to 
 write to the dear ones at home, who are, I know, 
 anxiously waiting to hear of our welfare. 
 
SIX YEAES IN INDIA. 75 
 
 LETTEK VI. 
 
 Departure from Meerut — Saharunpore — Deyrah Doon — Raj- 
 pore — Himalayas — Hill Vehicle — Hill Journey — April 
 Fools — Acquisitions — Snowy Range — Rope Bridge — 
 Teeree — Visit at the Rajah's Court — Scenery — Arrived at 
 Nynee Tal. 
 
 Ntnee Tal, Mam 12, 1858. 
 
 My Dear Mother, — ¥e concluded not to wait 
 for the direct road to Nynee Tal to be opened, 
 but determined instead to take a circuitous 
 route by way of Saharunpore, Deyrah Doon, 
 and Mussoorie, thence over the Sub-Himalayas, 
 sixteen days' journey to Nynee Tal. 
 
 We left Meerut on the evening of the twenty- 
 fourth of March. We journeyed by horse dak 
 to Mozuffernugger, where we found a "kut- 
 chah " road, and were consequently obliged to 
 travel in doolies the remainder of our journey 
 to Deyrah Doon. A dooly is a substitute for a 
 palkee. It is a frame covered with cloth instead 
 of wood, which renders it much lighter than a 
 palkee. 
 
 Our dust-covered doolies stopped at the prem- 
 ises of the American Presbyterian Missionaries 
 in Saharunpore about mid-day of the twenty- 
 fifth. We received a hearty welcome from 
 
76 SIX YEAES IN INDIA. 
 
 "Rev. Dr. Campbell, a veteran missionary, and 
 Mr. and Mrs. Calderwood. The latter have 
 been in the country only about three years. 
 Dr. Campbell's wife and children are on a visit 
 to America. 
 
 We left Saharunpore at sunset, traveled all 
 night, and at dawn crossed the Sewalik range 
 of hills by a narrow, rocky defile, and emerged 
 upon a level plateau called the Doon, or valley, 
 a thousand feet higher than Saharunpore. 
 
 As the sun rose the high towering Himalayas 
 were disclosed to our view, rising abruptly far 
 up into the sky. They were truly magnificent, 
 and there was something peculiarly pleasing in 
 the contrast between their fresh green appear- 
 ance and the dusty, parched plain. 
 
 We arrived at Deyrah Doon about mid-day, 
 and found comfortable rooms ready for us at 
 Mr. Williams's hotel. Mrs. Pierce and her 
 babe (which was quite ill at Meerut) were both 
 suffering from the fatigue of the journey, and 
 Mr. H. and myself were both so ill that we were 
 obliged to call a physician. It was therefore 
 thought best to remain a few days and recruit 
 our failing strength. 
 
 Those of our party who were able to go out 
 attended service at the house of the American 
 Presbyterian Missionaries on the Sabbath. The 
 next day Mr. and Mrs. Woodside of that mission 
 called and invited us to spend the day with 
 
SIX YEAKS IN INDIA. 77 
 
 them. As we were all improved in health we 
 accepted the invitation, and spent a delightful 
 day at the Mission-house. They have a fine 
 site, and a commodious double house, occupied 
 by two families — Mr. and Mrs. Woodside, and 
 Mr. and Mrs. Herron. 
 
 Tuesday we drove up to Rajpore, a distance 
 of six miles. It is merely a cluster of buildings 
 quite at the foot of. the mountains, the property 
 of Mr. Haseltine. He was formerly a sergeant 
 in the English army, and was in the expedition 
 to Burmah at the time of the imprisonment of 
 Judson and others, and saw those missionaries 
 and the heroic Mrs. Judson after their release. 
 His hotel is much frequented by people on their 
 way to the hills, as just above it on the mount- 
 ain slopes are the Sanitaria, Landour, and 
 Mussoorie. 
 
 We had a busy time at Eajpore engaging 
 hill men and hill vehicles to transport us to !N"y- 
 nee Tal. The former are shorter and hardier 
 in their appearance than the people of the plains ; 
 the latter, called jhaumpauns, are very comforta- 
 ble, and admirably adapted to hill traveling. A 
 jhaumpaun is a chair with cane seat and back, 
 and a platform with a railing round it for the 
 feet. On either side are long poles fastened on 
 with iron hooks. Straps of strong leather con- 
 nect these poles near their ends, and in the mid- 
 dle of these straps a strong piece of wood, flat 
 
78 SIX YEARS IN INDIA. 
 
 and about two feet in length, is securely fasten- 
 ed. Two men in front and two behind the 
 chair stand either side of the cross pieces of 
 leather, and each places one end of the flat stick 
 on his shoulder. Their hands are left free to 
 hold on to the poles, and thus they carry the 
 vehicle. Four men more are always required 
 on a long journey, in order to relieve the others. 
 There is a top with curtains over the chair. 
 
 There were some dandas along, too, for some 
 of the women servants. A danda is composed 
 of a piece of strong cloth about two yards in 
 length, fastened at either end to a strong pole. 
 The cloth is gathered into a small compass and 
 bound with leather, and fastened with rings of 
 iron at either end of the pole. In the center of 
 one side of the cloth another piece is sewed on 
 endwise. On the opposite end of this piece is a 
 strap, which also is fastened to either end of the 
 pole. The person sits in the main piece of cloth, 
 the smaller piece forming a place for the feet, 
 and the straps being then buckled tightly, brings 
 the cloth up as a covering to the feet and limbs. 
 The pole comes front to the chest, and there are 
 strong iron hooks in it, to which one may cling 
 when the path is more perpendicular than pleas- 
 ant. There is another broad strap which sup- 
 ports the back. It has a swinging motion, not 
 very pleasant at first, but to which one soon be- 
 comes accustomed. It is safer than a jhaum- 
 
SIX YEARS IN INDIA, 79 
 
 paun, and is carried by two men, with two for 
 relief. 
 
 We were quite a cavalcade when we left Kaj- 
 pore the last day of March. First went fifty or 
 sixty men with baggage, that is, tents, cooking 
 ntensils, boxes of provisions, etc. Next the 
 three " sahibs " on hill ponies, then the three 
 jhanmpanns containing the " mem sahibs," and 
 lastly the ayahs, or native woman servants. 
 
 Joel, onr native preacher, was with ns. He 
 had a marvelous escape in the mutiny. He 
 and his wife fled from Bareilly to Lucknow, and 
 finding the mutiny had spread there also, they 
 made their way as best they could to Allahabad. 
 They were stopped several times and questioned. 
 Joel was asked, "Are you a Mussulman or a 
 Hindoo ? You do not look like either." He 
 invariably answered, " I am neither a Hindoo 
 nor Mussulman, I am a Christian." Strange to 
 say, they were not molested, but arrived safely 
 in Allahabad and gained the fort. 
 
 Joel left his family in Allahabad and joined 
 us in Meerut. He is a noble man, tall, and of 
 pleasing person and manners. He is a good 
 representative of Hindoostanee Christians. May 
 there soon be many like him ! 
 
 I have not mentioned the acquisitions we 
 made at Deyrah-Doon. We found a native 
 Christian woman there in distress. She was a 
 faithful ayah or nurse in a gentleman's family, 
 
80 SIX YEARS IN INDIA. 
 
 but her husband was intemperate and had in a 
 fit of intoxication beaten her, and consequently- 
 had been forbidden the premises. The mis- 
 tress of the poor woman allowed her to leave, 
 that she might go with her husband, who will, 
 we hope, "turn over a new leaf" in our mission. 
 Samuel and Bella had been baptized by a 
 missionary of the English Church, but it is 
 doubtful if they understand much of Christian- 
 ity. We hope they may be led to understand, 
 and be made partakers of its spirit. 
 
 Imagine us winding up the narrow mountain 
 paths, with the steep hill on one side, and the 
 dark ravine on the other. The scenery was 
 grand, magnificent, the grandeur and magnifi- 
 cence of nature lifting the thoughts of the Chris- 
 tian beholder directly up to the great Creator. 
 Man had no part in piling those lofty summits 
 and clothing them with beauty ; it was the work 
 of God! 
 
 We passed through the single street or bazar 
 of Landour about mid-day, and admired the 
 pleasant houses situated on the adjacent slopes. 
 We had left the place well in our rear, when our 
 coolies halted and requested us to have our tents 
 pitched in a fine situation which they pointed 
 out. True, it was not yet night, but they had 
 not purchased sufficient flour, etc., to meet their 
 wants until they could be able to procure 
 more. 
 
SIX YEAKS IN INDIA. 81 
 
 Their story, however, was not credited, and 
 they were bade to go on. Our tents were pitched 
 at last in a most exposed situation on the brow of 
 a mountain. In the night the winds blew terrif- 
 fically, and threatened to carry off our tents; 
 but by dint of great care they were kept in their 
 places. 
 
 April 1st dawned cold and rainy, and we 
 arose to find ourselves as precious a set of 
 April fools as need be. Not a coolie could 
 be found! all had gone quietly back to Lan- 
 dour to purchase their provisions, and we 
 could do nothing but await their return with 
 what patience we might. It was a dismal 
 day, followed by a most wretched night. The 
 next morning the coolies were in readiness to 
 attend us, and when reprimanded for leaving 
 the day previous only laughed, and said, " You 
 could not expect us to carry you and your goods 
 if we had nothing to eat." Ah ! I can never 
 forget the discomforts of that terrible journey. 
 We became accustomed to the rugged heights 
 and deep valleys ; to climbing the one and being 
 suspended over the other ; to cold chilling winds 
 on the one, and steamy, stifling heat in the 
 other. We became familiar with early break- 
 fasts, cold luncheon at mid-day, and dinner at 
 nine o'clock P. M. 
 
 Now that I have given you a passing glimpse 
 of the shady side of our journey, I must try and 
 6 
 
82 SIX YEARS W INDIA. 
 
 show you the sunny side as well. We certainly 
 had some magnificent views, and none were 
 more so than those of the snowy ranges of the 
 Himalayas. 
 
 The average elevation of the Himalayas is from 
 eighteen to twenty thousand feet above the sea 
 level. The limit of perpetual snow on the south- 
 ern slopes is from fifteen to eighteen thousand 
 feet. Some of the highest peaks are from twenty- 
 five to twenty-eight thousand feet above the level 
 of the sea. The white glistening glaciers seemed 
 to lose themselves in the heavens, and could at 
 times be distinguished from the clouds only by 
 their superior brilliancy. Sometimes the clouds 
 concealed them wholly from our view, then, part- 
 ing suddenly, disclosed an apparent city of glit- 
 tering pinnacles and towers of dazzling white- 
 ness. I was often reminded of Revelation 
 xxi, 10 : " And he carried me away in the spirit 
 to a great and high mountain, and showed me 
 that great city, the holy Jerusalem, descending 
 out of heaven from God." 
 
 The first Sabbath was a welcome day, and we 
 all improved it by resting. Toward evening we 
 met in the largest tent and held a class and 
 prayer meeting. 
 
 The succeeding week we entered the little 
 native kingdom of Teeree, and crossed the 
 stream, that flowed through a deep gorge near 
 the capital, on a rope bridge. We found some 
 
SIX YEARS IN INDIA. 83 
 
 European gentlemen measuring the distance 
 across the stream, and making plans for a sus- 
 pension bridge, so -we presumed the ropes 
 had not been very recently renewed. 
 
 We went over on this wise. A man went 
 ahead to open the bridge, which had railings of 
 woven ropes, floor ditto, interlaced with sticks. 
 One at a time we were carried over in a danda, 
 the bridge closing behind us. When in the cen- 
 ter, the swaying motion was extremely unpleas- 
 ant ; but the hill men did not seem to mind it 
 at all. They almost ran back each time with 
 the empty danda, but they were very careful 
 with us. 
 
 Having safely crossed, we turned from the 
 road to the left, and passing through the little 
 village, pitched our tents on the bank of the 
 river, which at that point forms a bow. Close 
 by our tents stood a large hollow tree. Fifteen 
 men could stand in the cavity at once. Our 
 servants used it for a storeroom for our boxes of 
 provisions, kettles, etc. Soon after our arrival 
 there came a deputation from the Rajah of Tee- 
 ree to present a nuzzer, (gift,) according to east- 
 ern custom. It consisted of a large number of 
 rupees, some sugar, rice, and a large goat. We 
 only retained the goat, which was at once slain, 
 and distributed among our servants. We touched 
 the money and the other articles with the tips of 
 our fingers, to signify that we accepted the cour- 
 
84 SIX YEAKS IN INDIA. 
 
 tesy of the rajah, and they were taken back. 
 Joel was of course our interpreter and master 
 of ceremonies upon this occasion. Afterward 
 the gentlemen and Joel went up to a little round 
 open pavilion on the brow of a hill near us, and 
 paid their respects to the rajah. There was 
 considerable attempt at display on his part, in 
 a ludicrously impoverished and barbaric style. 
 Little bells were rung, speeches were made, 
 questions asked and answered, and profound 
 salams made upon parting. 
 
 We went on our way next morning and met 
 new objects of interest as we proceeded. The 
 mountain slopes were more generally cultivated 
 than at first, and were occasionally dotted with 
 small villages. The houses were built of stone, 
 roofed with saplings, over which thin flat stones 
 were put on in layers, the edges overlapping 
 like shingles. 
 
 Men, women, and children often ran out to 
 look at us. Their clothing looked warm, but 
 was very dirty, and their tangled and matted 
 hair hung loosely about their necks. I noticed, 
 however, that their features were very good, 
 and their forms strong and well developed. 
 
 The chrysanthemum and cactus that we 
 cherish so carefully in America grow wild on 
 these hills, and in great profusion. The cactus 
 grows to a mammoth size, forming awkward- 
 looking shrubs and trees. 
 
SIX YEARS IN INDIA. 85 
 
 But the rhododendron bears the palm among 
 the trees of the mountains. It is large, and 
 rather ungraceful in shape, with its trunk and 
 branches generally covered with silvery moss. 
 The foliage is of a rich dark green, and very 
 luxuriant. The rhododendrons were now in 
 blossom, and the flowers were splendid. They 
 are more like the peony than any other flower 
 I can think of. 
 
 We expected to be obliged to cross the 
 Ganges at Seereenugger on another rope 
 bridge, but found to our great delight that 
 an iron suspension bridge had just been com- 
 pleted there. As we passed over the beauti- 
 ful structure we called Teeree to mind, and 
 felt most sensibly our indebtedness to civili- 
 zation. 
 
 Another Sabbath of quiet rest and worship, 
 another week of toilsome journeyings. We 
 often found the road quite swept away by 
 the rains of the preceding year, since which 
 the usual repairs had not been made, and 
 we were several times obliged to leave the 
 main road and go by the "pug dundees," or 
 by-paths. 
 
 Saturday evening came, and we were still 
 some distance from Nynee Tal. The darkness 
 increased, and the men who carried the jhaum- 
 pauns were in great trepidation lest by some 
 misstep they should precipitate the mem sahibs 
 
86 SIX YEAES IN INDIA. 
 
 into the yawning depths. I leave you to imag- 
 ine the frame of mind enjoyed by the mem 
 sahibs themselves. The gentlemen, foot-sore 
 and weary, clambered along on the edge of the 
 road and steadied the jhaumpanns. The ponies 
 had long since given ont, and were either left 
 behind or were scarcely able to drag themselves 
 along. The darkness increased, and the coolies 
 attempted to improvise torches, but did not 
 succeed. 
 
 Finally, after several " hair-breadth escapes," 
 we gained the top of the mountain, and looked 
 over into a valley that just then seemed to us 
 the most desirable spot on earth. From various 
 points lights were gleaming in the windows of 
 white cottages, now dusky in the overshadowing 
 forests, and far down below we could discern 
 the still waters of Nynee Tal. 
 
 We were met by Mr. Parsons, a member of 
 our mission, whom we had not previously seen. 
 He came to us from a mission of the Church of 
 England in this country. We remained at his 
 house that night. Mr. Pierce and family went 
 home with Mr. Butler, whose two little boys 
 had been left in the hills when they went down 
 to Meerut, so that they had a home in readiness 
 to receive them. 
 
 The next day was the first Sabbath which 
 we spent within the limits of our mission 
 field, and as we looked back and reviewed 
 
SIX YEAES IN INDIA. 87 
 
 the anxieties, troubles, and dangers of the 
 previous six months, our hearts were filled 
 with gratitude to Him who had delivered us 
 out of them all. 
 
 In the evening we attended an English service 
 in Mr. Butler's parlor. The room was filled 
 mostly with ladies. There were only two or 
 three gentlemen present, besides those of our 
 own party, as the officers who took refuge here 
 last year have rejoined the army. Mr. Butler 
 had rented houses for us, and we immediately 
 addressed ourselves to the task of setting them 
 in order. They were furnished, and the floors 
 were covered with the thin cotton carpeting 
 manufactured in the North-west. 
 
 We found it a difficult task to procure suit- 
 able servants, and teach them to perform their 
 duties, for there are no trained servants here, as 
 in Calcutta. We are obliged to keep four men 
 as jhaumpanees, that is, men to carry me in 
 the jhaumpaun, or danda, as I cannot walk 
 .very far up hill, and we cannot go out to 
 walk without having a hill to climb. They 
 also fetch our wood and water, and grass for 
 the pony. 
 
 I will not attempt to tell you anything more 
 of Nynee Tal at present, except to say that it is 
 a delightful little eyrie-like place, but will wait 
 till I shall have seen more of it. 
 
 Rohilcund has been retaken, the principal 
 
88 SIX YEARS IN INDIA. 
 
 cities occupied by English troops, and the 
 postal and transportation arrangements re- 
 organized. 
 
 We heard yesterday that our boxes have all 
 safely arrived at Kaleedoongee, at the foot of 
 the hills, so we shall soon have a busy time in 
 unpacking. 
 
SIX YEAES IN INDIA. 91 
 
 LETTEE YIL 
 
 Nynee Tal — Nynee Davee — Mount Chenar — Daily Routine 
 
 — Girls' School — Boys' School — Mrs. Parsons — Blunders 
 
 — Orphan Boys. 
 
 Nynee Tal, June 15, 1858. 
 
 My dear Mother,— Nynee Tal is a little un- 
 dulated valley completely encircled by mount- 
 ains, itself six thousand five hundred feet above 
 the level of the sea. The mountains around it 
 rise two thousand feet higher. The little lake 
 which gives the place its name occupies the 
 lower part of the valley, and is only three 
 fourths of a mile in length, and scarcely half a 
 mile in width. The higher part of the valley is 
 occupied by the native bazar, beyond which 
 it extends but a short distance, and ends in a 
 low hill, on the top of which stands "St. John's 
 in the wilderness," the picturesque English 
 church. 
 
 There is just room sufficient for a road eight 
 or ten feet wide around the lake, part of which 
 was made by excavating the hill-slopes. - 
 
 All around on the mountain sides are tasteful 
 white cottages, built of wood and stone, and 
 much more resembling our dwellings at home 
 than the houses on the plains. 
 
92 SIX YEAES IN INDIA. 
 
 At the head of the lake, embowered in large 
 willows, stands a tiny Hindoo temple, dedicated 
 to the worship of a goddess whom they call 
 Nynee Davee. She is represented as the wife 
 of Sheev, or Mahesh the destroyer, the third 
 person in the Hindoo triad. Nynee simply 
 means little. She, or rather it, is a little in- 
 ferior figure, about ten inches in height, clothed 
 with a woman's dress, the figure and dress both 
 being carved out of stone. "We went to see it" 
 one day. A well-to-do-looking priest met us at 
 the doors of the temple, and when we asked 
 permission to see the idol replied in the affirm- 
 ative with profound salams. I could not for- 
 bear saying to him, "Will you please ask the 
 idol to come to the door ? " 
 
 The Brahmin only laughed ; but upon my 
 repeating the question he said, " She cannot 
 walk to the door." 
 
 " Not walk to the door ! " I repeated. " Can 
 she walk at all?" 
 
 " "No, mem sahib," said he with a conscious 
 leer. 
 
 " She is not a very powerful being I should 
 think," said I, " and I think it is great nonsense 
 to worship any being who is weaker than we 
 are." 
 
 He only laughed as before, and we went in 
 and saw the idol in its place of honor. Wor- 
 ship had just concluded, I suppose, as the little 
 
SIX YEAES IN INDIA. 93 
 
 figure had a yellow skirt tied on over its stone 
 dress, and its head was wet, as if water had just 
 been poured over it. There were some remains 
 of rice and flowers lying in front of her, probably 
 part of the morning offerings. 
 
 To the right of the temple the road leads 
 through the bazar, and on past several cottages 
 till it terminates by the church. There are 
 smooth, hard roads winding about the beautiful 
 mountains quite to their tops, and the loveliness 
 that meets the eye at every point cannot be 
 adequately described. 
 
 The dells are rich in many varieties of fern 
 and moss, interspersed with wild flowers, and 
 the slopes are covered with trees— firs, oaks, 
 maples, rhododendrons, and many others. Black 
 and orange raspberries grow in some localities 
 in profusion. 
 
 Till the last of June the climate of the hills 
 is delightful. We improved it this season in 
 taking long walks and rides every morning, 
 gaining in health and vigor daily in the clear, 
 bracing atmosphere. 
 
 Occasionally we all met at some appointed 
 place and breakfasted together in the open air. 
 We breakfasted one morning on the top of 
 Chenar, the highest point near Eynee Tal. It 
 is eight thousand seven hundred and fifty feet 
 above the sea level. From the top we could 
 look down on the far-reaching plains on the one 
 
94 SIX YEAKS IN INDIA. 
 
 hand, and up to the towering snow-mountains 
 on the other. The first glaciers are about one 
 hundred miles distant from JSTynee Tal by the 
 mountain road, but much nearer in a straight 
 line. 
 
 As they are from fifteen to twenty thousand 
 feet higher than Chenar, they seemed that 
 morning to be within a day's journey. We 
 remained wrapt in admiration, gazing upon the 
 glittering domes and spires of an apparent city 
 of light up there in the clouds, until the morning 
 sun vailed its supernatural loveliness with a 
 curtain of amber haze. Just then, too, our 
 khansamah announced the fact that breakfast 
 was ready, and although it seemed too magnifi- 
 cent a spot to desecrate by the commonplace 
 act of eating, yet as our appetites were keen 
 after our long ride in the bracing morning air, 
 when we found an inviting repast spread on a 
 snowy cloth over the grassy table, we did not 
 hesitate to do it full justice. 
 
 On our way down we saw a few large ba- 
 boons sitting on the lower branches of some 
 trees, and gravely regarding us. "Whether 
 they were considering how long it would be 
 in the ordinary course of transmigration be- 
 fore they could dwell in similar forms to 
 ours, or wondering at our intrusion, I really 
 cannot say. 
 
 Another favorite place of resort is called the 
 
SIX YEARS IN INDIA. 95 
 
 landslide. Part of a mountain seems to have 
 slidden down through a deep chasm. On the 
 bank overlooking this chasm the view is sub- 
 lime; but we can only spend a little time in 
 explorations, merely enough to insure ourselves 
 needful recreation. 
 
 The language still looms up before us as a 
 great mountain that we have just begun to 
 climb. 
 
 We have not had an efficient moonshee since 
 we came to Nynee Tal. Joel assists us all he 
 can; but as he and Mr. Parsons are the only 
 ones to carry on the boys' school, which was 
 opened in May, and to preach to the natives, 
 we do not like to call on him very much. This 
 has been a great drawback to our progress, 
 since, study as we may, we cannot be sure that 
 we are always pronouncing the words of our 
 lesson right. 
 
 Now shall I give you an account of our daily 
 routine ? We rise at half past five, and as soon 
 as we are dressed have our chotahaziree, or 
 little breakfast, which is composed of tea and 
 toast. We then walk down to the foot of the 
 lake, probably a mile from our door ; then Mr. 
 H. on his hill pony, and I in my danda, climb 
 some one of the hill paths, and make our way 
 home about seven o'clock. We then have 
 prayers, after which we study our Hindoo- 
 stanee lessons until nine o'clock, when the cook 
 
96 SIX YEARS IN INDIA. 
 
 comes to the study door and says, "Haziree 
 taiyar hai ;" that is, Breakfast is ready. 
 
 One table is supplied with good beef, mutton, 
 fowls, vegetables, bread, milk, and butter. This 
 last is peculiar to the hills. We can also gen- 
 erally procure fruit. 
 
 After breakfast I give out material for dinner 
 from the storeroom, and directions how to have 
 it prepared. This course is usually practiced 
 here to prevent the cooks from using more than 
 is needful ; but they frequently take revenge by 
 tolling what is given them quite heavily, and 
 sometimes they make a great mistake, and cook 
 the toll for our dinner, while they keep the prin- 
 cipal themselves. 
 
 I always remonstrate when such a mistake is 
 made, and the worthy Mohammedan says in re- 
 ply, as he piously folds his hands, " Mem sahib, 
 I am astonished you should think me capable of 
 such baseness ! I, who eat your honor's salt ! " 
 that is, who get my food by your honor's service. 
 I then admonish him that if he does not keep 
 to his salt and let superfluities alone I shall 
 surely subtract the price of whatever is taken 
 from his wages. After such a scene he generally 
 walks warily for about ten days. 
 
 After the giving out of dinner is completed 
 1 join Mr. H. in the study, and we read our 
 lessons and translate them till twelve, when I 
 usually go to the girls' school, which is held in 
 
SIX YEARS IN INDIA. 97 
 
 a room of Mr. Pierce's house. I suppose you 
 may think we cannot teach native children 
 much about their own language yet, but you are 
 mistaken ; they often speak their own language 
 very incorrectly, and scarcely ever know a sin- 
 gle letter. 
 
 There are fifteen girls in the school, the chil- 
 dren of our own servants and those of European 
 residents. Besides these there are several 
 women, servants and wives of servants, who are 
 learning to read. We teach them the Ten Com- 
 mandments, the Lord's Prayer, and various 
 hymns, by rote ; also explain to them portions 
 of Scripture daily. Some of them learn to read 
 Hindoostanee, others Roman-Urdu, or Hin- 
 doostanee in the Roman character, and others 
 Hindee. The last hour of school is devoted to 
 sewing, knitting, crocheting, etc. 
 
 We use the hymn book of the American 
 Presbyterian Mission, which is in the Roman- 
 Urdu, as are also the few copies of the New 
 Testament which we have been able to procure. 
 Of course there was wholesale destruction of 
 Christian books during the mutiny, and now 
 but few copies can be obtained, but there will 
 soon be plenty of them again. 
 
 I am obliged to give the children many whole- 
 some admonitions to keep quiet and look on 
 their books. A class sits around me in a half 
 circle, and the little curious black eves are con- 
 7 
 
98 SIX YEARS IN INDIA. 
 
 tinually glancing at my feet, dress, hair, and 
 eyes, anywhere in fact bnt on the book which I 
 hold in my hand. I sometimes say to them, 
 " Here in this book are the letters, not on my 
 head, nor dress ; now observe this letter closely 
 and see how it looks, what is it % " Their at- 
 tention is thus gained for a few moments. I 
 return home in time to dress for dinner, (a pro- 
 ceeding doubly necessary after contact with the 
 children,) which is served at three o'clock. 
 
 After dinner we write letters, and study 
 Forbes's grammar until near evening, when we 
 again sally forth to " eat the air," as the Hin- 
 doostanee phrase is. In the evening we fre- 
 quently have religious services, either in Hin- 
 doostanee or English, and sometimes meet for a 
 social visit. Every Monday morning we meet 
 and breakfast together, the missionaries first 
 discussing matters supposed to be too deep for 
 us ; but usually they bring up again at the break- 
 fast table the questions they have discussed and 
 settled. 
 
 On the Sabbath we have Hindoostanee serv- 
 ices in the morning, and an English sermon at 
 five o'clock P. M. At the former Mr. Parsons 
 and Joel alternate, and the other missionaries at 
 the latter. The Hindoostanee services are held 
 in a room which we have fitted up for that pur- 
 pose, but which was formerly a sheep-house. 
 Two services during the week are held at the 
 
SIX YEARS IN INDIA. 99 
 
 barracks for the benefit of the invalid soldiers. 
 Several among them are Christians, and others 
 are seeking the Savionr. We have very inter- 
 esting meetings with them. 
 
 There are about twenty boys in attendance at 
 the bazar school. There were many objections 
 made by the boys' parents to prayers being held 
 in the school. One man, more alarmed than the 
 others, came to Mr. Parsons and said he should 
 take his boy out if the Bible were read and 
 prayer offered in the school any more. " Do 
 you suppose," asked Mr. Parsons, " that we are 
 such ungrateful people that we will commence 
 our daily labor without thanking God for taking 
 care of us, and asking his blessing upon our 
 work. You Hindoos are very scrupulous about 
 your daily worship, and do you think Christians 
 should be less so ? " No, the man thought not, 
 but the teachers might have their worship at 
 home before coming to school. Mr. Parsons 
 told him they did have family worship, but they 
 considered it also their duty to have prayers in 
 the school. The man went away dissatisfied, 
 but did not withdraw his son. 
 
 Mr. Parsons terrified a rather unruly boy one 
 day by telling him that if he behaved so badly 
 again he should " kill him outright." He meant 
 to say he should beat him. 
 
 We all make ludicrous mistakes at times. 
 One told a bearer to fetch a "little girl," and 
 
100 SIX YEAKS IN INDIA. 
 
 put her on the fire! The servant stared in 
 amazement, and the gentleman perceiving his 
 error, called for a little " lukree," wood, instead 
 of " lurkee," a girl. A lady told her servant 
 to give her little daughter a small " basket " of 
 chicken for dinner ! instead of a small " piece." 
 She used the word tokra instead of tukra. 
 
 Another told her cook to boil some goorgas 
 (a class of warlike people) for dinner, meaning 
 gajars, that is, carrots. So we must go on, blun- 
 dering and rectifying blunders, until the thick 
 darkness that envelops the language shall wear 
 away. We begin already to see through the 
 intricacies which have perplexed us so much, 
 and with " sabar karo " (literally, make patience) 
 for our motto, we hope to emerge into the light 
 by and by. 
 
 Mr. Parsons and Joel preach in the main 
 street of ISTynee Yal and at the foot of the lake 
 every week. They have many hearers, who 
 listen with apparent eagerness and delight to the 
 message of salvation ; but at this date only one 
 has decided to break the chains of heathenism 
 and become a disciple of the Lord Jesus Christ. 
 
 Meanwhile we hope the work of grace is 
 going on in the hearts of the few native Chris- 
 tians with us. Joel declares that he has recently 
 experienced such a change in his heart, and 
 obtained such light and joy in the Lord, as he 
 never had before. Samuel and Bella are im- 
 
SIX YEARS IK INDIA. 101 
 
 proving also, and seem to apprehend more fully 
 the power of the Christian religion to pnrify the 
 heart and life. 
 
 We have three orphan boys in charge. The 
 oldest, who is about twelve years of age, is 
 from the plains. He is the son of a Sepoy 
 who was slain in the mutiny. He was found 
 wandering about a village by Captain Gowan, 
 who took him in charge and made him over 
 to Mr. Butler while he was in Meerut. Cap- 
 tain Gowan is to support the boy so long as 
 it shall be necessary. He is called James 
 Gowan, after his benefactor. Such " loot," 
 that is, plunder, is surely far preferable to 
 the diamonds and cashmere shawls taken in 
 Delhi. 
 
 The other two boys are paharees, bright and 
 keen as their own mountain air. They were 
 original specimens of humanity when they were 
 first brought to our mission by a poor leper 
 woman. Their clothing consisted of a tattered 
 black woolen blanket each, their long hair was 
 thickly tangled, and they were, of course, cov- 
 ered with vermin. They are considerably more 
 civilized in appearance now. Their heads have 
 been shaved, and comfortable though coarse 
 garments provided for them. 
 
 The elder boy is supported also by Captain 
 G., and is named Thomas Gowan. The other 
 is called William Wheeler. He is a remarkably 
 
102 SIX YEARS IN INDIA. 
 
 bright-looking and sweet- voiced lad, and bids 
 fair to be a great favorite. Bella has them all 
 in charge, and assists them to cook their simple 
 meals. 
 
 It is full time for the rains to begin falling. 
 Ominous lowering clouds hover about the 
 mountain tops, in apparent readiness to dispense 
 their favors, and we must soon exchange this 
 bright sunshine and balmy air for fogs and 
 showers. Ah! well, 
 
 "Into each life some rain must fall, 
 Some days must be dark and dreary." 
 
SIX YEARS IN INDIA. 103 
 
 LETTEK YIIL 
 
 Eainy Season — Laying Corner-stone of First Mission Chapel— 
 Removal of two Families to Lucknow — Eurasian Moonshee 
 and wife — Mr. H. begins to preach in Hindoostanee — A 
 Laughable Mistake. 
 
 Nynee Tal, Jan. 20, 1859. 
 
 My Dear Mother, — The rain commenced fall- 
 ing the last week in June, and spoiled our de- 
 lightful home-like summer weather. It contin- 
 ued for nearly three months with but little 
 intermission, and we were in consequence 
 obliged to stay within doors most of the time. 
 Of course our health was affected by such 
 close confinement. All of us, indeed, suffered 
 more or less in the course of the season, and two 
 or three of our number were quite seriously ill. 
 
 We have, however, made considerable ad- 
 vancement in our studies. We can read quite 
 readily now in the Persi- Arabic character. There 
 are thirty-five characters in all. Twenty-four of 
 these have three forms — the initial, medial, and 
 final. Three have but two forms, and eight do 
 not change at all. 
 
 We have also learned the Hindee alphabet, 
 and commenced reading short stories in that 
 language. As the verbs are like the Hindoo- 
 
104 SIX YEARS IN INDIA. 
 
 stanee, of which it is the basis, I think we can 
 learn it quite readily. The Urdu, or Hindoo- 
 stanee, is made up from the Hindee, Arabic, and 
 Persian languages, and makes, as was its design, 
 a sort of universal language throughout a large 
 part of India. 
 
 During the season a subscription paper was 
 circulated among the European residents of 
 Nynee Tal, in order to procure means to build 
 a chapel and school-house on a lot which had 
 been secured for mission premises, and a suffi- 
 cient sum having been realized to warrant us in 
 commencing work, we all met one morning in 
 the first week of October to lay the corner- 
 stone of our first mission chapel. 
 
 Major Kamsay, commissioner of this district, 
 who takes a deep interest in our work and has 
 subscribed liberally for it, laid the corner-stone, 
 after which the masons prepared several stones, 
 and each member of the mission laid one in the 
 foundation. We then sang a hymn, prayer was 
 offered, and we went away. The natives looked 
 wonderingly on, and must have thought an un- 
 usual building was to be erected. ¥e hope it 
 may be a place to which many of them shall 
 love to resort. 
 
 Immediately after this incident Mr. Butler 
 and Mr. Pierce, with their families, and Joel, 
 removed to Lucknow, in the province of Oude» 
 to commence a mission in that city. It was a 
 
SIX YEARS IN INDIA. 105 
 
 long and trying journey for them all, but par- 
 ticularly so for Mrs. Pierce, who had but just 
 recovered from a severe illness. They arrived 
 safely at Lucknow, and are now occupying a 
 large building which was formerly the residence 
 of a begum or native princess. It is called As- 
 fee Kotee, and although built in native style, is 
 quite comfortable. In November the house on 
 our recently purchased mission premises in Ny- 
 nee Tal was vacated, and we moved into it. It 
 is a long low building, evidently intended for 
 two families. In the center are two parlors 
 exactly alike. The front of each room is cov- 
 ered with glass put in sashes quite down to the 
 floor. Either side of the parlors are two large 
 and two small rooms. 
 
 The house is very comfortable this winter, but 
 I fear it will not be waterproof in the rainy 
 season. It is known as " The Euin." We are 
 told that it was built by contract, and when fin- 
 ished was condemned. It certainly has not 
 grown more substantial since. We occupy half 
 the house, and the other part is occupied by Mr. 
 Knowles and family, who have recently come 
 up from Meerut and joined our mission. Mr. 
 Knowles was in the English army, but has been 
 led to devote his life to the missionary work. 
 
 Our girls' school was given up in October, as 
 most of the children left with their parents 
 either for the plains or the teraee about that 
 
106 SIX YEAES m INDIA. 
 
 time. The teraee is a belt of jungle or wild 
 land at the foot of the mountains. 
 
 Many of the paharees go down and cultivate 
 fields in the teraee during the winter months, 
 while their own mountain lands are covered 
 with snow. On this account our boys' school 
 is very small. Probably, when our mission here 
 is firmly established, the school will be removed 
 during the winter months to some point adjacent 
 to the teraee. 
 
 December 1st we had a fine snow-storm, 
 which seemed quite home-like of course. The 
 snow has not wholly disappeared from the 
 mountains since, but we have bright pleasant 
 weather. We have fireplaces in our rooms, and 
 as wood is abundant we keep very comfortable. 
 My health is greatly improved since the close 
 of the rainy season. I walk a mile and a half 
 often, and feel nearly as strong as ever. 
 
 We have had an excellent moonshee for about 
 two months, but he has just left us for govern- 
 ment employ. He is a Eurasian, that is, of 
 mixed descent. In 1857 he became a Mussul- 
 man to save his life. He went to a place called 
 Casseepore, in an independent native state, and 
 while there he became very intimately acquaint- 
 ed with a wealthy Mohammedan physician, who 
 even admitted him to his house and allowed him 
 to see his wife. She was his only wife, and re- 
 markably intelligent and lovely. 
 
SIX YEAES IN INDIA. 107 
 
 After a while the physician suddenly died, and 
 the wily Eurasian managed to appropriate both 
 his widow and wealth. The latter, however, 
 seems either to have been inconsiderable, or 
 else has taken to itself wings and flown away, 
 but the lady (for she is a lady) was here with 
 her husband. She is a finished Urdu scholar, 
 and a most efficient teacher. She has assisted 
 me while here in the Hindoostanee, and in re- 
 turn I have taught her to read in Roman-Ur- 
 du. She wishes to become a Christian, and is 
 a constant student of the Bible. I was deeply 
 interested in her, and regretted that she was 
 obliged to leave. She is altogether quite a dif- 
 ferent specimen of womanhood from those I 
 have hitherto met in India. She is no darker 
 complexioned than many American ladies, and 
 has the beautiful almond-shaped eye and soft 
 dark hair which belong to Oriental countries. 
 She is of medium height and good proportions, 
 and moves with a singularly graceful air. I 
 suppose she is a type of those ladies who are so 
 closely secluded from observation by the high 
 walls which form so prominent a part of every 
 Mohammedan gentleman's residence. 
 
 A few days after they left us we received a 
 letter which explained the reason why he had 
 felt so ill at ease in our mission. The letter 
 was from one of the missionaries at Deyrah 
 Doon, and informed us that Thomas Orr (for 
 
108 SIX YEAES IN INDIA. 
 
 that was his name) had rather an aged wife in 
 that place ! He had left her wholly without 
 means, judging rightly that the missionaries 
 would not allow her to suffer ; but since he was 
 in our employ they desired a portion of his sal- 
 ary to be forwarded regularly for her support. 
 
 Mr. Humphrey has been preaching in Hin- 
 doostanee occasionally for some time; on a very 
 small scale, he says, but still it is a beginning. 
 I hope by spring, when we expect to open a 
 mission in Bareilly, he will be able to preach 
 without much embarrassment. Experienced mis- 
 sionaries tell us, however, that we cannot be- 
 come proficient in the language in less than four 
 years. 
 
 On the first week of January Mr. Parsons 
 moved down to Moradabad, and as he could not 
 obtain a house, is living in tents. We are to 
 join him there soon, and remain until a house 
 can be obtained in Bareilly. 
 
 Ladies are still prohibited residing in Rohil- 
 cund ; but it is expected that the prohibition will 
 soon be removed, as it is quite safe to live in any 
 station in the province. 
 
 It is indeed wonderful with what rapidity the 
 country becomes quiet. No sooner are English 
 troops in possession of a city, and the rebel Se- 
 poys dispersed or imprisoned, than law and order 
 resume their wonted course throughout the entire 
 district. 
 
SIX YEAES IN INDIA. Ill 
 
 There is some dismay on the part of our 
 servants, as they do not like to go to the plains, 
 they are so afraid of the heat, nor do they like 
 to lose their situations. 
 
 Nundoo, a strict Hindoo, who came to us as 
 jhaumpaunee, has risen to the post of house 
 bearer, and as his wages are increased a little 
 thereby he does not like to fall from the height 
 to which he has attained. I had a vast deal of 
 trouble in teaching him to dust furniture, trim 
 the lamps, etc., for which he seems very grate- 
 ful. He tells us often we are his ma-bap, that 
 is, parents. Ma-bap is a title often bestowed by 
 natives on Europeans who are kind to them or 
 whom they wish to propitiate: 
 
 Nun do being wholly unaccustomed to Euro- 
 pean houses, sometimes makes egregious mis- 
 takes about the nature of things. He places 
 the books back on the shelves, after dusting 
 them, wrong side up with care ; and after he has 
 arranged the beds, the flowers on the counter- 
 pane all point gracefully toward the foot ! 
 
 When we moved into this house he managed 
 everything very well, but after some days I 
 recollected that a china spittoon was missing. 
 It had never been used, and as it generally stood 
 on the window-sill in my dressing room, ~Nutl- 
 doo supposed it to be a rare sort of vase, so he 
 had placed it carefully in my bonnet-box, under 
 my best bonnet ! When I made inquiry, and 
 
112 SIX YEAES IN INDIA. 
 
 lie gravely disclosed its safe lodging place, he 
 was greeted by a burst of laughter that greatly 
 embarrassed him. He looked at us in surprise, 
 which was not diminished when we informed 
 him of the designed use of the article. 
 
 We have another orphan boy, whom we obtained 
 in a singular manner. A gentleman was riding 
 leisurely along by the lake one day, when he 
 heard some unusual noises, as of crying or 
 groaning. They seemed to proceed from under 
 the road, so he called his sais, or groom, to see 
 if there were a channel under the road, as there 
 often is for the rills that run down the mountain 
 sides to reach the lake without flooding the 
 road. He found a channel, and in it a little 
 boy bent almost double. He pulled him out 
 and tried to ascertain who he was, and how he 
 came there ; but the child did not utter a word, 
 and seemed paralyzed with fright. The gentle- 
 man brought him to us, and we handed him 
 over to Bella's kind care. For two weeks he 
 remained speechless, although he often seemed 
 to wish to speak. Meanwhile we ascertained 
 that he was an orphan, with no friend who cared 
 to claim him, and that his name was Gulab 
 Sing, a very common Hindoo name. He had 
 been living with a married sister who treated 
 him harshly, and it was through fear of her that 
 he took refuge in the channel. 
 
 Soon as it became evident that he would re- 
 
SIX YEAKS m INDIA. 113 
 
 main with us, I made him some new clothes. 
 Till then he had worn some old clothing of the 
 other boys. When he first saw his new suit he 
 spoke right out, " These are mine," and since 
 that time he answers whenever spoken to, but 
 rarely speaks of his own accord. 
 
 On Christmas day we thought we would like 
 to attend the communion, service at the English 
 Church, but were refused permission to do so 
 by Mr. Hinde, the present chaplain. Is it not 
 astonishing that such bigotry still exists in the 
 Christian Church ? 
 
 Before this letter shall reach you we expect 
 to be settled in Bareilly. You shall be duly 
 informed of our progress in the work, and of all 
 incidents of sufficient interest to write, if my 
 health continues good. 
 
 8 
 
114 SIX YEARS IN INDIA. 
 
 LETTER IX. 
 
 Journey to Moradabad — Garden — Bazar Preaching — Call from 
 the Sikhs — Yisit at their Yillages — Mission House pro tern. — 
 Mr. H. goes to Bareilly — Removal there — Servants — Cash- 
 mere Kotee — Native Assistants — Hindoo Festivals. 
 
 Bareilly, April 10, 1859. 
 
 My Dear Mother, — We left Nynee Tal Jan- 
 uary 25th, and reached Moradabad the next 
 morning. We found the distance from JNynee 
 Tal to Kaleedoongee, at the foot of the hills, 
 to be fourteen miles of romantic mountain 
 scenery. 
 
 We stopped at the little dak bungalow at Ka- 
 leedoongee for an hour or two, and then arranged 
 our palkees for the night journey. Mine was a 
 comfortable hired palkee, but Mr. Humphrey's 
 arrangements in that line were rather unusual. 
 He took a light bedstead, (our only one,) which 
 was innocent of posts, merely having four feet 
 and frame covered with wide cotton tape woven 
 like basket work, placed it on the ground in an 
 inverted position, bound four strips of wood to 
 the four feet and fastened them together, form- 
 ing a gable at each end. A strong pole was 
 then fastened across to the top of each gable, 
 and the ends left projecting like the handles of 
 
SIX YEARS IN INDIA. 115 
 
 a palkee. Over this frame my album quilt was 
 placed, and being duly sewed together at the 
 ends, with the exception of a small opening for 
 ingress and egress, formed a miniature movable 
 tent. Altogether it looked so comical that we 
 fairly astonished the misty jungles with our peals 
 of laughter, and their leafy labyrinths rang again 
 with the echoes. 
 
 We found our kahars all present at each sta- 
 tion, and so went on right merrily. As night 
 waned toward the small hours, my kahars ran 
 so far ahead with me that my husband's crazy 
 vehicle was wholly lost sight of. I knew nothing 
 of it, however, until my palkee stopped suddenly, 
 and I heard voices in altercation. 
 
 " "We have a mem sahib inside," were the first 
 words I distinguished. 
 
 " No you haven't," said several voices at once, 
 " a mem sahib wouldn't be traveling alone now- 
 adays." 
 
 " She is not," replied my men ; " the sahib 
 himself is only a little way behind." 
 
 " Well," said the others, " you can't go on 
 until he comes." 
 
 My kahars were loth to wait, as they were 
 anxious to arrive at the end of the stage, and 
 have a good smoke together before the other's 
 arrival, so they sent one of their number to con- 
 fer with me. He came to the palkee door and 
 said, " Mem sahib, will your honor please to look 
 
116 SIX YEAES IN INDIA. 
 
 out and let the soldiers see that you are really an 
 English mem sahib % " 
 
 I confess I was a little startled, for I could not 
 hear the name " sepoy " without a shudder. I 
 slid back the door, however, and inquired boldly 
 of the kahars if the sahib were near. They 
 answered, "Eot far off." 
 
 Just then a band of armed native soldiers 
 pressed up to my palkee, and looked sharply 
 at me. 
 
 I said to them, " Why have you stopped my 
 palkee ? " 
 
 One of the soldiers, who seemed the leader, 
 stepped forward and replied that they were sol- 
 diers of the Nawab of Rampore, and were 
 watching for Nana Sahib, who was supposed to 
 be about making an attempt to escape to the 
 interior by way of the nawab's territories, on 
 the borders of which we then were. I was 
 quite reassured at this, and waited very patiently 
 till Mr. H. came up, when we were allowed to 
 go on. 
 
 By and by we came to a river, and were taken 
 through it by the kahars lifting the palkees on 
 their shoulders high and dry. I supposed our 
 trials for the night were all over, and was com- 
 posing myself to sleep when I heard again the 
 low plash of water. The men seemed to go in 
 deeper and deeper, so I sat up and opened the 
 doors. 
 
SIX YEARS IN INDIA. 117 
 
 A scene of singular loveliness met my eyes. 
 Water was all around, placid and quiet as an 
 infant's sleep. Far in the dim distance I could 
 discern the shadowy shore, and there in the 
 midst of the waters was my insignificant palkee, 
 myself and kahars being apparently the only 
 living objects on the scene. All was lighted up 
 by the peculiarly soft moonlight of the Orient. 
 Soon the water was so deep that 1 could reach 
 it from the palkee, and the kahars kept shout- 
 ing to each other, " Be careful, my brother ; step 
 carefully," etc. Soon they raised the palkee to 
 their shoulders, and at last upon their heads. I 
 did not feel very comfortable to be out at sea in 
 such a guise. I prefer a ship for water-travel- 
 ing decidedly. In a little while the men landed 
 me safely on the "other shore," and set me 
 down on the sand. 
 
 I then saw that Mr. Humphrey's dooly had 
 not left the shore, but was set down on the 
 opposite bank while his men assisted mine in 
 bringing me over. My kahars then returned 
 with his, and brought him over in the same 
 manner. 
 
 I could not help indulging in another hearty 
 laugh at the little three-cornered dooly as it 
 loomed up so fantastically through the moon- 
 light, perched on the kahars' heads. As soon 
 as Mr. H. was set down by me the kahars ran 
 together to a spot near by and kindled a fire 
 
118 SIX YEARS IN INDIA. 
 
 with some dry twigs which they must have 
 smuggled over somehow, perhaps on the top of 
 my palkee. As the flames rose they all thrust 
 their legs (they were not troubled with trowsers) 
 right into them several times, withdrawing them 
 dexterously, so as to dry but not burn them. 
 We then proceeded on our way without further 
 interruption. 
 
 The morning sun was pouring down floods of 
 light, dispelling the mist that settles over the 
 plains at night during the cold season, as we 
 entered Moradabad. 
 
 Our kahars took us across the fields direct to 
 cantonments, thus avoiding the long bridge, the 
 dusty, noisy city, and the increasing heat. We 
 arrived at Mr. Parsons's tents about nine o'clock 
 A. M., where we found breakfast in waiting. 
 A new era dawned upon us then and there. 
 Delicious sweet potatoes, cauliflowers, oranges, 
 and lemons, all showed us that we were again 
 in India. It is strange that twenty-four hours' 
 traveling can ever make such a difference, but 
 so it does sometimes. We left midwinter in 
 the mountains and found golden autumn in the 
 plains. 
 
 We noticed, too, such a change in the appear- 
 ance of the people. In Nynee Tal the natives 
 were gloomy and stupid. Wrapped in large 
 black woolen blankets, they passed most of their 
 time in the enjoyment of the inevitable hookah, 
 
SIX YEAES IN INDIA. 119 
 
 and seemed almost to have forgotten that work 
 is a necessity. 
 
 The plains' folk, on the contrary, were all 
 about the streets, alert and brisk, and intent 
 upon prosecuting their several crafts. Here a 
 cloth merchant, with a white mark on his fore- 
 head, to show that he had performed his pooja 
 (idol worship) that day, was striding proudly 
 along, while several kahars were carrying his 
 huge bundles of dry goods to supply the wants 
 of the mem sahibs ; there a Cashmere merchant, 
 looking every inch a Mussulman, with a large 
 bundle of embroidered shawls and cloaks ; here 
 a gardener, with a flat basket covered with 
 vegetables, fruit, and nuts, hastening to present 
 his offering at the feet of some potential sahib ; 
 there a box- walla, or yankee-notion peddler; 
 while fowls in baskets, game in netted bags, 
 curiosities in carved wood and ivory, all had 
 representative venders in the streets. 
 
 The evening succeeding our arrival in Morad- 
 abad Mrs. Parsons and I walked in a beautiful, 
 though neglected garden, which, previous to the 
 mutiny, had been kept up by the government 
 authorities. This was the first time I had seen 
 oranges and lemons on the trees, and certainly 
 the sight was most lovely. 
 
 There were long rows of orange trees, each 
 loaded with delicious fruit, though no two trees 
 seemed to bear precisely the same kind. We 
 
120 SIX YEAKS IN INDIA. 
 
 found one tree that bore a very peculiar orange, 
 to which we voted the palm. It was rather 
 long, with a thin, smooth rind, and a strip of 
 brown mossy bark around its center. 
 
 There were both sweet and sour lemons in 
 abundance, but no other fruit was then ripe, 
 although the peach, pomegranate, pear, fig, 
 guava, custard-apple, and mango trees gave 
 promise of great variety in the hot season. 
 There was also a long row of plantains, which 
 are perhaps more properly plants than trees. 
 The plantain grows to the height of twelve or 
 fifteen feet. There are usually several stalks 
 growing close to each other, on which are im- 
 mense leaves, often three or four feet in length 
 and one or two in width. The strong fibers 
 that vein the leaf keep it from being blown to 
 fragments by the wind. As it is, they are 
 often slit up so as to resemble a huge green 
 feather. The leaves as well as the stalks droop 
 considerably, which gives the plantain a singu- 
 lar and peculiar tropical appearance. On each 
 of the large stalks there is a fruit. A smaller 
 stalk leaves the main one at about two thirds its 
 height, and droops over toward the ground. 
 It is leafless, but at the end is a large red bud. 
 The clusters of plantains form around this 
 stalk in several places, perhaps four or five. 
 They are about four inches in length and two 
 around, of a sweet, mealy substance. The 
 
SIX YEAES IN INDIA. 121 
 
 smaller kind, called the banana by Europeans, 
 and which is so plentiful in Bengal and South- 
 ern India, is much superior in taste. 
 
 The missionaries were busy for a few days in 
 looking up a house, and at last succeeded in 
 finding one that could be rented. 
 
 Mr. H. accompanied Mr. Parsons to the city 
 for bazar preaching several times, and found he 
 could express his thoughts in Hindoostanee even 
 in the crowded, busy streets. 
 
 One day, to our great surprise, a deputation 
 of men from some villages about twenty miles 
 to the south of Moradabad visited us, and re- 
 quested the missionaries to visit their people, 
 and teach them the doctrines of the Christian 
 faith. They were of a class of people called the 
 Muzhubee Sikhs. They stated that there was 
 a desire among their people to forsake the Hin- 
 doo religion wholly and worship the true God. 
 We asked them how they knew anything about 
 the true God. They answered that they had 
 heard the Padre sahibs from the southern side 
 of the Ganges preach the Gospel at the annual 
 melas, or religious fairs, on the banks of that 
 river ; and that many of their learned men had 
 received small books from them that told of a 
 Saviour, one both divine and human, who had 
 of his own free will made atonement for the 
 sins of men in his own person by suffering and 
 death ; that he rose from the dead, and that all 
 
122 SIX YEAES IN INDIA. 
 
 who believe in him shall be saved from their sins 
 and inherit everlasting happiness. " We feel," 
 said they, " that this is just what we want ; this 
 religion is exactly suited to our case." 
 
 Probably the missionaries referred to were 
 those of Futteghur, who were slaughtered at 
 Cawnpore. They have gone to join those who, 
 like themselves, were slain u for the word of 
 God, and the testimony which they held ;" but 
 their memory is precious, and the seed they 
 sowed in tears is now springing up in beauty 
 and promise. 
 
 Mr. Parsons and Mr. Humphrey went out to 
 the villages on an appointed day. They arrived 
 in the evening, and found about forty people 
 present. Sixty others had been present in the 
 morning to meet them, but were obliged to 
 return to their homes before night. 
 
 The missionaries took a small tent with them, 
 which during the evening and ensuing morn- 
 ing was filled by the Sikhs. Some even 
 brought their wives and daughters to listen. 
 
 Late in the evening Mr. H. had them all sit 
 down on the rug of the tent in a circle, while he 
 read and explained a portion of one of the Gos- 
 pels. When he afterward knelt to pray they all 
 of their own accord knelt with him, and, to his 
 surprise, repeated every petition he uttered. 
 There are very few among them who are able 
 to read, and so many expressed a desire to 
 
SIX YEAES IN INDIA. 123 
 
 learn that we coiild but lament our inability to 
 open a school among them at present. 
 
 Soon after Mr. Humphrey's return from the 
 Sikh village he laid his dak for Bareilly, where 
 he was to meet the superintendent, now Dr. 
 Butler, and see what could be done toward 
 securing a house there for mission premises. 
 
 Before he left we all removed to the house 
 we had rented in Moradabad, although it was 
 scarcely habitable. There was neither a glass 
 window nor door in the house, and we were 
 therefore obliged to keep some of the doors 
 open in order to see. The owner commenced 
 repairing at once, however, and the house soon 
 began to have a more comfortable appearance ; 
 but it was after all an unpleasant building, rife 
 with bloody legends of the mutiny. 
 
 Mr. H. found that a large mansion could be 
 obtained in Bareilly for our mission. It was 
 situated two miles west of the city, while the 
 English cantonment is on the other side. It is 
 too far from the city to be a suitable site for our 
 mission premises, neither do we fancy living so 
 far from the cantonment while the frightful 
 tragedies of 1857 are yet fresh in our memories; 
 but there was no alternative, as it was the only 
 available house at that time. So it was settled 
 that Cashmere kotee should be rented a year at 
 least. 
 
 Mr. Humphrey returned to Moradabad, and 
 
124 SIX YEARS IN INDIA. 
 
 in a few days started off our few goods to Bareilly 
 accompanied by the servants we had engaged m 
 Moradabad. Foremost among them was a na- 
 tive Christian man, Masih Baksh by name, whom 
 we were so fortunate as to secure for house 
 bearer. We also engaged a khansamah, a tall, 
 fine-looking, heavily-bearded Mussulman, who 
 rejoices in the name of Peer Buksh, and we 
 consider him really a peer among his fellows. 
 
 We left Moradabad ourselves the evening of 
 the twenty-fifth of February, and early next 
 morning reached Cashmere Kotee. It stands in 
 the center of a large plat of ground, surrounded 
 by a ditch and tall Indian grass. On three sides 
 are entrances, marked by high plastered brick 
 pillars. 
 
 The Kotee has a foundation wall ten feet in 
 depth, filled in with earth under the main build- 
 ing, but finished off in store-rooms under the 
 verandah. The body of the building is fifty 
 feet long and seventy-five wide, including deep 
 verandahs both in the front and rear, from which 
 broad stairs descend to the ground. 
 
 On either side are wings of nearly the same 
 width as the main part, and thirty feet in length. 
 There are no chambers. The roof is fiat, and 
 we find it an agreeable place to sit at evening 
 whenever we can muster strength enough to 
 climb the stairs. That these are tiresome you 
 will believe when I tell you that the rooms are 
 
SIX YEARS Itf INDIA. 125 
 
 twenty-five feet in height. We cannot have 
 paper on our walls on account of the white 
 ants ; but we color them light green, blue, straw 
 color, etc. 
 
 There are also fine cornices in each room, and 
 very pretty mouldings around the doors and 
 fireplaces. There are glass folding-doors placed 
 directly opposite each other, so that the house 
 can be aired quickly and thoroughly ; but there 
 are no windows, except in the dressing and bath 
 rooms. 
 
 The house was not in very good condition 
 when we entered it. The mutiny had left its 
 traces even here. The buildings were defaced, 
 glass broken, and walls blackened; but under 
 the transforming power of mortar and white- 
 wash, together with the handicraft of native 
 masons, something of the original state of things 
 is regained. 
 
 The garden attached to Cashmere Kotee is 
 even now very beautiful. It is surrounded by 
 a double row of hedge, between which we often 
 walk and drive, and is laid out in walks and 
 beds, interspersed with fruit trees. There are 
 two varieties of the peach, two of the mango, 
 guavas, custard apples, and several inferior kinds 
 of fruit indigenous to the country. 
 
 We have an excellent moonshee living with 
 us. His name is Azim AH. He was a member 
 of the band of native Christians that was gath- 
 
126 SIX YEARS IN INDIA. 
 
 ered in Futteghur, and with them endured per- 
 secutions during the mutiny. His wife is a 
 former pupil of Mrs. Poorie's school in Calcutta. 
 
 We have also a Eurasian preacher and his 
 family with us. His name is Joseph Field- 
 brave. His wife Sophia is an intelligent Chris- 
 tian woman. .Rose Anna, the eldest child, is a 
 pretty, bright little girl nine years of age. 
 Isaac, the son, is a year or two younger, and the 
 third is a babe. 
 
 We are much interested in -these natives of 
 India who bear the name of Christ, especially as 
 this is our first mission station, and these our 
 first associates in the missionary work. 
 
 The Hindoos celebrated the last days of Feb- 
 ruary and the three first of March as the Holee 
 festival. Its origin is said to be on this wise. 
 A certain man had a sister who was a monster 
 and killer of children, and who troubled many 
 people. He also had a son whose name was 
 Prahlad. This son was a worshiper of Ram, 
 but the father was this god's greatest adversary, 
 and was highly displeased at his son's devotion. 
 His sister, Doonda, the monster, said to him one 
 day, " You make a pile of wood and I will take 
 Prahlad in my lap and sit on the pile ; when I 
 am seated you must ^set fire to the pile ; I will 
 escape and Prahlad will be destroyed." The 
 plan was carried out, but, contrary to her expect- 
 ations, she was consumed and Prahlad was saved, 
 
SIX YEAES IN INDIA. 127 
 
 doubtless through, the aid of Ram. Ever since 
 this event the people have held this festival in 
 its commemoration. 
 
 Upon the great day of the festival they have 
 pooja in the morning and make bonfires at mid- 
 night. At this hour they march round their 
 fires seven times with ears of barley-corn in their 
 hands, which they afterward throw into the fire. 
 The next day they throw a red powder over 
 each other, and have great feasting and rejoicing. 
 Friends visit each other and exchange congratu- 
 lations that they are all alive to witness another 
 Holee festival. 
 
 The Ram-Numee festival was held the last of 
 March, in commemoration of the birth of Ram, 
 who is the seventh incarnation of Yishnoo. This 
 god became incarnate in order to destroy the 
 monster Rawan, the king of Ceylon, which he 
 effected by the help of Hanooman, the head of 
 the apes. On this day the Hindoos fast, and repair 
 to their temples, beat drums, and sing the praises 
 of Ram. They also bathe his image with a mix- 
 ture of both sweet and sour milk, butter, sugar, 
 and honey. At midday they burn incense, and 
 offer it flowers and food !- 
 
128 SIX YEARS IN INDIA. 
 
 LETTER X. 
 
 Acquaintances in Bareilly — Orphan Boys and the Tiger — Ef- 
 fect produced by Bazar Preaching — School — Inquirers — 
 Rumors in regard to the Mission — Zahoor-ul-Haqq — Hot 
 Season — Dust Storm — Fruit. 
 
 Bareilly, June 1, 1859. 
 
 My Dear Mother, — Among the first to wel- 
 come us to Bareilly were Mr. Ross, chaplain of 
 the Forty-second Highlanders, Mr. Cowie, the 
 civil chaplain, Capt. and Mrs. Unwin, Lieut, and 
 Mrs. Hoggan. The Commissioner of Rohil- 
 cund also, and several other civil and military 
 officers, have called and expressed an interest in 
 our work. 
 
 We have indeed been agreeably surprised by 
 the feeling manifested among Europeans in the 
 cause of missions. The experience of 1857 has 
 not been in vain. It is now realized, somewhat, 
 that the only sure foundation on which English 
 power in India can rest is the Christian religion. 
 The time for forbidding missionaries to preach 
 and teach the Gospel is past, and native Chris- 
 tians are no longer cast out from government 
 employ, but are preferred instead. 
 
 The Commissioner has subscribed five hund- 
 red rupees to our general mission fund, and 
 others have aided us liberally. 
 
SIX YEARS IN INDIA. 129 
 
 Here is the copy of a note received from the 
 principal of the Bareilly Government College, 
 which has been lately reorganized. I presnme 
 it is a fair exponent of the views of onr English 
 friends as to what sort of people missionaries 
 should be. 
 
 My Dear Sir, — I have much pleasure in 
 sending you rupees one hundred. I appreciate 
 the character of an honest Christian missionary 
 as one of the noblest on earth, and am desirous 
 to support his efforts ; and I am of opinion that 
 as long as he is honest and simple-minded, and 
 keeps himself " unspotted from the world," (im- 
 pure as is our Anglo-Indian world,) that the na- 
 tives will appreciate him too. 
 
 "Wishing you Godspeed, I remain yours, etc., 
 
 M. Kempson. 
 
 Bareilly is situated about sixty miles south- 
 east from Moradabad, near the Ramgunga river, 
 which is a tributary of the Gunga or Ganges. 
 The main bazar is over two miles in length. It 
 is now undergoing extensive repairs under the 
 direction of the English magistrate. The shops 
 have similar fronts of hard plaster in mouldings 
 and flowers, which are very pretty and unique. 
 At intervals there are beautifully ornamented 
 gateways arching over the streets. Furniture 
 of superior finish and quality is manufactured 
 9 
 
130 SIX YEAES IN INDIA. 
 
 in Bareilly ; also jewelry, vessels of copper, brass, 
 etc. The population is about 100,000. 
 
 We received a visit one day from three Hin- 
 doo gentlemen, with one of whom, Girdhara 
 Sing, we were previously acquainted. They sat 
 some time conversing with Mr. H., until he was 
 called from the room. When he had left, one 
 of the gentlemen said hurriedly to Girdhara 
 Sing, " Ask the mem sahib." Girdhara turned 
 to me and said, " Mem sahib, I cannot make my 
 friends believe that you and the sahib never 
 drink wine and brandy except as a medicine : I 
 know you don't, for your servants told me so, 
 but my friends think an Englishman could not 
 live without their daily use." I said to them, 
 " We certainly do not use them except as medi- 
 cines." 
 
 " Does your religion," they asked, " prohibit 
 their use." 
 
 I answered, " We think that the word of God, 
 which is our guide, does prohibit the intemperate 
 use of any blessings we have, and many people 
 cannot use wines temperately ; if they taste them 
 they drink so much as to ruin themselves, soul 
 and body ; and as we are also taught to be 
 watchful over each other, to bear the infirmities 
 of the weak, etc., we think it is our duty to re- 
 frain from these intoxicating beverages, so that 
 our influence may not make others to offend, 
 but keep them from sin instead." 
 
SIX YEARS IN INDIA. 131 
 
 Just then Mr. H. came in and added, "We 
 find that wines do us more good as medicines 
 than they would if we used them daily." 
 
 " Doubtless it is so, sahib," they answered, and 
 turning to Girdhara Sing remarked, " we are 
 convinced." 
 
 Soon after our arrival we dispatched Masih 
 Buksh to Nynee Tal to fetch the three orphan 
 boys still remaining there, James Gowan having 
 gone to Lucknow. When coming down the hill 
 they were attacked by a tiger, but through Masih 
 Buksh's courage and presence of mind escaped 
 without injury. 
 
 Mr. Humphrey and his two helpers com- 
 menced preaching regularly in the city as soon 
 as we became settled, and there was always an 
 eager, and sometimes an angry multitude to 
 listen. 
 
 The city was surveyed and a regular plan of 
 appointments made out ; Monday at such a 
 well, Tuesday at such a bazar, etc. Wells 
 seemed to be the favorite pulpits, as people 
 gather about them at eventide ; and as they come 
 to draw water, the preachers tell them, as did 
 the compassionate Saviour, of the water of life, 
 " of which if a man drink he shall never 
 thirst." 
 
 The Mussulmans were furious at this invasion 
 of their faith ; the Hindoos quite as much so, 
 but a little quieter in their demonstrations. 
 
132 SIX YEARS IN INDIA. 
 
 One evening a Mussulman said to Mr. Hum- 
 phrey while preaching, " yes, you can say 
 what you like now, sahib, for it is your reign ; 
 but if it were ours we'd put a stop to such talk 
 very quickly,' 5 and his eyes glittered with 
 malice. 
 
 "We don't doubt that in the least," replied 
 Mr. H. "You have just shown us by your 
 fiendish cruelty during the mutiny what you 
 would do if you could ; but it is our reign now, 
 and why ? Because the Christian religion is to 
 be spread everywhere, and since you will not 
 allow it to be preached under your rule, God 
 has placed the British power in authority over 
 this land." 
 
 Weeks passed on. We organized a school in 
 a spare room of the kotee composed of our three 
 orphan boys, Joseph's boy and girl, Masih 
 Baksh, and two young men who came to us 
 from the Sikh villages south of Moradabad. 
 
 These last were twin brothers, Minepul and 
 Gurdial Sing. They seemed from the first ac- 
 quaintance we had with them to be much im- 
 pressed by the truth, and after the spring har- 
 vest had passed (for they were farmers) they 
 left their home, journeyed eighty miles to us, 
 and begged permission to work sufficiently to 
 pay for their food, and to be allowed to give 
 the rest of their time to study. 
 
 They wished to learn to read the word of 
 
SIX YEAES IN INDIA. 133 
 
 God for themselves, and to find the way of life, 
 and walk in it. They proved to be industrious 
 and singularly free from guile, and are making 
 good although slow progress in knowledge. 
 
 Several men from the city have come to us as 
 inquirers; but after long conversations with 
 them we ascertained that their chief anxiety 
 was to obtain recommendations to the civil 
 officers, that they might obtain government 
 employ; accordingly we dismissed them with 
 the assurance that we could not recommend 
 them to the magistrates and judges, as we were 
 in no way connected with government. Our 
 only object was to lead them to the true God. 
 
 The natives are slow to comprehend disinter- 
 estedness, as they have so little in their own 
 character ; therefore they persist in saying that 
 we are to be paid for our converts by govern- 
 ment, so much per head. The report has been 
 rife in Bareilly that we are to receive one thou- 
 sand rupees ($500) apiece for all the Christians 
 we make, and they suppose the process of mak- 
 ing Christians to be a supernatural one, a kind 
 of incantation. 
 
 These prejudices we must of course live down, 
 and I think on this account, if for no other 
 reason, our " only two years in a place " rule is 
 not suited to India. 
 
 June 10, 1859. 
 
 One Sabbath morning, at our early service 
 in the long central room of the kotee, I no- 
 
134 SIX YEAES IN INDIA. 
 
 ticed a stranger. He was evidently a Mussul- 
 man and a scholar, and his keen eye and com- 
 posed demeanor showed that he possessed more 
 than an ordinary amount of intelligence and 
 culture. 
 
 The thought came into my mind, " There is 
 a conceited Mussulman come down from the 
 city to hear the preaching, that he may contro- 
 vert it afterward." After service I remarked 
 something of the kind to Mr. H., but he replied 
 earnestly, "No, he did not come to provoke 
 controversy, but to inquire into the truth ;'" and 
 added that he believed him to be an intelligent 
 and sincere inquirer. 
 
 Zahoor-ul-Haqq, for that was his name, came 
 to us daily throughout that week, and at its 
 close evinced a strong determination to identify 
 himself with us as a Christian believer. He 
 asked no favors, needed none, as he was in the 
 service of some Mohammedan gentlemen as a 
 teacher of their sons, and thus earned a com- 
 fortable livelihood ; but he had felt uneasy in 
 regard to his prospect for eternity for a long 
 time. He felt that the Mohammedan creed 
 was not sufficient for his need, and he believed 
 that he recognized in the Christian religion a 
 fitness to the wants of man that spoke its origin 
 divine. He therefore asked Mr. H. to baptize 
 him on the ensuing Sabbath. But Mr. Hum- 
 phrey thought best to have him wait a week, 
 
SIX YEARS IN INDIA. 135 
 
 and said to him, " I should very much dislike 
 to baptize you before you are fully decided, as 
 it would have an injurious effect upon others 
 should you afterward return to Mohammedan- 
 ism, so we will wait one week, and if at its close 
 you still desire it I will receive you into the 
 Church of God by baptism." 
 
 Zahoor-ul-Haqq acquiesced pleasantly, al- 
 though he was evidently disappointed. He re- 
 marked, " You'll find me of the same mind next 
 Sabbath." 
 
 We then held our usual morning service, and 
 afterward the Sabbath-school. Mr. H. explained 
 the eighth chapter of Mark to the native preach- 
 ers, Masih Baksh, Zahoor-ul-Haqq, and others. 
 After reading that verse, " "What shall it profit a 
 man if he gain the whole, world and lose his own 
 soul," etc., Mr. H. remarked on this wise : " When 
 a man dies his soul enters upon a new sphere ; 
 none of the accompaniments of this life can be 
 taken with him, therefore all he has gathered 
 here of this world's wealth will be of no use to 
 him in that new state of existence. If he has 
 fully believed on the Lord Jesus Christ, and 
 manifested his belief by a good life, his soul will 
 enter into the joys of heaven ; but if he has not, 
 if all his energies have been employed in the 
 acquisition of wealth, or any merely worldly 
 object, his soul will be cast out of that happy 
 place into darkness and banishment from the 
 
136 SIX YEARS IN INDIA. 
 
 presence of God for evermore. He will lose Ms 
 soul ! "What shall it profit him then -that he 
 possesses even the whole world ? " 
 
 " Nothing," said the listeners simultaneously ; 
 and Zahoor-ul-Haqq added with energy, "Sa- 
 hib, why not baptize me now ? I may die 
 before to-morrow without having manifested 
 my belief in the Lord Jesus Christ." 
 
 He spoke so earnestly that we all started 
 with surprise. Mr. H. replied, " Be patient till 
 next Sabbath, and give your time meanwhile to 
 prayer and the study of the Scriptures. God 
 sees your willingness to honor him before men, 
 and will as surely accept it as if really shown 
 forth in deeds, should you die before an oppor- 
 tunity to do so is given you." 
 
 The question dropped, but our hearts were 
 filled with joy at his intelligent earnestness in 
 the matter. 
 
 During the week all the arts and influences pos- 
 sible were brought to bear upon Zahoor-ul-Haqq 
 by his Mohammedan relatives. His father came 
 more than thirty miles to see him, to beseech, 
 threaten, or bribe, as he might find necessary. 
 He tried the three methods in succession with- 
 out the slightest effect, and in despair gave up 
 his son to his dreadful infatuation. His wife 
 sent him word that he should never live with 
 her more, nor ever have possession of his two 
 children if he forsook the faith of Mohammed : 
 
SIX YEAES IN INDIA. 137 
 
 but when the Sabbath dawned Zahoor-ul-Haqq 
 was ready and waiting for the simple ceremony 
 that typifies so marvelous a change in man — the 
 deliberate turning from error to truth, from 
 darkness to light, from Satan to God. 
 
 I have seen scores in our own land take the 
 vows of Christ upon them by baptism, and have 
 always regarded the sight as one of the most 
 beautiful which earth can afford, causing saints 
 and angels to rejoice with great joy ; but I 
 never realized the full import of that precious 
 sacrament as I did that lovely Sabbath morning 
 when this first convert in our mission renounced 
 the faith of the false prophet for that of the Son 
 of God. 
 
 Zahoor-ul-Haqq's daily life since that time has 
 been all we could wish. We have engaged him 
 as a teacher in our school at the same salary he 
 was receiving in the city. "We disliked to set 
 the precedent, but our need was urgent, as 
 Azim Ali and his wife have been removed to 
 Moradabad. 
 
 The hot wind is now having full sway over 
 these plains. It commenced the first of April, 
 and has blown regularly ever since. It rises 
 daily about eight o'clock A. M., and falls about 
 five in the evening. We keep the doors closely 
 shut during the intervening hours and the pun- 
 kahs swinging, and strive to forget our lassitude 
 and discomfort in study. 
 
138 SIX YEARS IN INDIA. 
 
 The school is held in the early morning. It 
 has been increased lately by the arrival of two 
 more Sikhs and one more orphan ; the latter 
 was sent us by the magistrate. 
 
 Our bazar preaching is held at evening, and 
 all the livelong day we remain shut up in this 
 large cool mansion. Cool, did I say ? I fancy 
 you would not call it so were you to step inside 
 it just now, as the punkah-walla, that is, the 
 man who pulls the punkah, has just managed 
 to break the slender bamboo to which the pun- 
 kah rope is attached, and while he is fastening 
 on a new one the atmosphere of the room re- 
 lapses into a dead heat. 
 
 We have had several terrific dust-storms 
 lately. During one of them the darkness was 
 so intense that we were obliged to light candles 
 at mid-day ; but the " chota barsat," or little 
 rainy season, is close at hand, and then we shall 
 probably have some relief from this intense 
 heat. 
 
 "We have now an abundance of fruit, man- 
 goes and peaches, guavas, etc. ; but we are 
 obliged to exercise great caution in regard to 
 eating fruit of any kind. 
 
 The mango is a large oval-shaped fruit, of a 
 green color ; but when fully ripe slightly tinged 
 with yellow. Beneath the rind is a soft pulpy 
 substance of a bright orange color, and very 
 delicious flavor. The guavas resemble large 
 
SIX YEARS EST INDIA. 139 
 
 pears in appearance. Their taste is pleasant ; 
 but we do not eat them unless cooked, as they 
 are said to be hurtful. 
 
 We have both suffered in health somewhat of 
 course, but our English friends and physician 
 say that we bear the heat very well indeed. I 
 think our lonely situation helps to make us low- 
 spirited at times, as well as the heat ; but as we 
 are pioneers in this part of the great field we 
 must bear this patiently. I hope, however, that 
 the time will be brief, as we hear that a large 
 party of missionaries sailed from Boston in April 
 for India. May God protect them on the great 
 deep and bring them safely to us. "We regret that 
 they sailed so early in the year, as they will be 
 obliged to come up the country in August, and 
 we fear some among them may not be strong 
 enough to bear the fatigue of traveling in such 
 oppressive weather as we are sure to have dur- 
 ing that month. 
 
 But I must close ; and just now as I think of 
 the long journey these pages will make, my 
 mind's eye glances at their destination, the 
 white farm-house in old St. Lawrence, where 
 my mother and my brothers dwell, and I long 
 to open wide the door that I may catch a 
 glimpse of the familiar forms within. I see 
 the blooming garden, and the waving grass 
 of the meadow just beyond ; but hark ! what 
 dissonant voice is that: "Khana taiyar hai," 
 
140 SIX YEARS IN INDIA. 
 
 (dinner is ready,) and my beautiful mirage 
 vanishes, and in its stead is ray matted floor, 
 the high bare walls, the swinging punkah, 
 and the dusky form in the doorway with a 
 hand gracefully waving toward the waiting 
 dinner, so I must bid adieu to day-dreams for 
 the present. 
 
SIX YEARS IN INDIA. 143 
 
 LETTER XI. 
 
 Rainy Season — Its Accompaniments — Beetles — Reptiles, etc. 
 — Masih Buksh — Arrival of Missionaries — Journey to 
 Lucknow — Items in regard to the City — Annual Meeting 
 No. 1 — Return to Bareilly — Death of Mr. Downey. 
 
 Bareilly, September 25, 1859. 
 
 My dear Mother, — On the fifteenth day of 
 June 
 
 " God sent his messenger the rain, 
 And said unto the mountain brook, 
 ' Rise up, and from thy caverns look, 
 And leap with naked snow-white feet 
 From the cool hills into the heat 
 
 Of the broad arid plain." 
 
 Never did we give rain snch a welcome as 
 then. It poured, it sparkled, it bubbled, and O 
 how both vegetable and animal life were re- 
 freshed ! The hot wind was banished, and a 
 delicious coolness pervaded the atmosphere; 
 but after a few days the rain ceased, and for a 
 week the weather was hot and close. The sun 
 poured its heat upon the saturated ground, and 
 a steamy, malarious atmosphere was the conse- 
 quence. Then the burra barsat (big rainy sea- 
 son) set in, and we had alternate rain and sun- 
 shine for two and a half months. 
 
 On the whole we found the rainy season more 
 
144 SIX YEARS IN INDIA. 
 
 trying than the hot, as the sudden changes oc- 
 casioned chills and colds. The ground and air 
 became alive with reptiles and insects ; serpents, 
 centipedes, scorpions, toads, lizards, and worms 
 on the ground, and every imaginable kind of 
 beetle and butterfly in the air and in the 
 houses. The cobra-capello, or hooded snake, is 
 very common. An officer in Bareilly found one 
 in his sleeping-room soon after the rains com- 
 menced, and had some difficulty in dispatching 
 him. It is no unusual thing to find a scorpion 
 on the wall, or behind a door, or even in a shoe. 
 But the reptile most dreaded by the natives is 
 the large black snake. I knew of three deaths 
 resulting from their bite last season. 
 
 The seventeenth of August is observed by 
 Hindoos as a day of prayer to be preserved 
 from the bites of serpents. Religious (?) cere- 
 monies are performed, and a certain great ser- 
 pent is worshiped. 
 
 We have lost Masih Buksh, our Christian 
 bearer. His wife's father, who is in a Roman 
 Catholic mission near Meerut, has succeeded in 
 getting his services for a while. He went only 
 to keep peace with his wife, and will come back 
 to our mission as soon as possible. I do not 
 think there is any fear of his becoming a Ro- 
 manist. We have Minepul Sing as house-bearer 
 now, and he really does very well. 
 
 During the last days of August we heard of 
 
SIX YEARS IN INDIA. 145 
 
 several cases of fever and cholera in the city, 
 bnt were mercifully spared all serious illness 
 ourselves. 
 
 We rejoiced greatly when we heard of the 
 safe arrival of our missionaries. The reinforce- 
 ment consisted of Mr. and Mrs. Baume and 
 their little son, Mr. and Mrs. Parker, Mr. and 
 Mrs. Judd, Mr. and Mrs. Waugh, Mr. and Mrs. 
 Downey, and Mr. Thoburn. We were only 
 waiting their arrival to hold our first annual 
 meeting in Lucknow, so we left Bareilly about 
 the time they left Calcutta in order to have a 
 little visit in Lucknow before their arrival. As 
 we traveled in palkees, and Mr. Knowles and 
 Mr. Parsons were in company with us, we 
 formed quite a procession. All the long night 
 and till near the succeeding midday we endured 
 the shaking of the palkees. 
 
 We should have arrived in Futteghur in the 
 morning had the Ganges been in its normal 
 state ; but it was much swollen from the recent 
 rains, and the rude boats that took us across 
 were almost unmanageable. The heat was in- 
 tense, and it seemed to us that we were baked to 
 the full extent of endurance ; but when we were 
 set down by the cool-looking dak bungalow in 
 Futteghur our spirits came to us again, and we 
 sang out with some energy, considering our 
 recent feeble condition, for the khansamah, and 
 
 ordered refreshments. 
 
 10 
 
146 SIX YEARS IN INDIA. 
 
 "We went on in the evening by horse dak. 
 The horses had changed for the better since our 
 memorable ride in 1858, but still the journey 
 was very fatiguing. I look back and wonder 
 that I dared to make that trip at that season of 
 the year ; but I was famishing for society, and 
 thought the joy of meeting our friends would 
 compensate for the fatigues of the journey, and 
 so it did a hundredfold. 
 
 We reached Cawnpore about ten o'clock 
 A. M., rested three or four hours, and then 
 hastened on to Lucknow, where we arrived 
 about nine o'clock in the evening. I shall not 
 soon forget the welcome we received there, 
 and the delightful visit we enjoyed with our 
 friends. 
 
 We were glad to find Joel and his family 
 (which had joined him in Lucknow) well and 
 happy, also James Gowan and several orphan 
 girls looking happy, and evidently making 
 progress in the right way. 
 
 We spent Saturday and Monday in driving 
 about the ancient and once regal city of Luck- 
 now. We saw the fort, the splendid Imam- 
 barah, a moslem cathedral, the yet beautiful 
 temples, the still magnificent palaces ; but from 
 them the glory has departed. 
 
 No wonder the native nobles mourn the decay 
 of so much grandeur. One of the king's pal- 
 aces is now occupied by missionaries of the 
 
SIX YEAKS IN INDIA. 147 
 
 Church of England. "We saw the gateway 
 where the gallant ISTeill fell, and the battered 
 and frowning residency, now so well known as 
 the scene of the fearful siege of 1857, and where 
 the noble Sir Henry Lawrence died. 
 
 Lucknow extends about four miles along the 
 bank of the river Goomtee. Aside from the 
 numerous palaces and temples, the buildings 
 are very wretched. The city is now undergo- 
 ing extensive repairs and changes. Many of 
 the huts have been leveled, and the streets 
 widened. The population in 1853 was three 
 hundred thousand. 
 
 Monday evening we all met in Dr. But- 
 ler's parlor to await the arrival of our friends. 
 They came at last, and O what a meeting it 
 was ! Probably never again will missionaries be 
 received among us with such joy, because never 
 again will circumstances be the same. The 
 mutiny, and our consequent discouragements 
 and dangers, our long and lonely waiting, all 
 had wrought up our feelings to an unusual 
 pitch. They were all in pretty good health, 
 except Mr. and Mrs. Downey, who seemed to 
 have suffered much from exposure to the 
 heat. 
 
 Our first annual meeting commenced next day 
 in the newly-finished mission chapel, and con- 
 tinued till the Wednesday of the succeeding 
 week. The appointments were as follows : 
 
148 SIX YEARS IN INDIA. 
 
 Lucknow, Kev. R. Pierce, J. Cawdell. 
 
 Shahjehanpore, Rev. J. W. Waugh. 
 
 Bareilly, Rev. J. L. Humphrey, Rev. J. B. 
 
 Downey. 
 Moradabad, Rev. C. W. Judd, J. Parsons. 
 Bijnour, Rev. E. W. Parker. 
 Eynee Tal, Rev. J. M. Thoburn, S. Knowles. 
 
 You notice one other name in the list besides 
 the missionaries with whom I have made yon 
 acquainted. Mr. Cawdell came ont to Calcutta 
 as a Bible reader, I believe. He has joined our 
 mission at Lucknow quite recently. 
 
 A boys' orphanage was located at Bareilly, 
 and one for orphan girls in Lucknow, Mr. 
 Downey to have charge of the boys, and Mrs. 
 Pierce of the girls. 
 
 During the last days of the meeting Mr. and 
 Mrs. Downey were both ill, and had the advice 
 of a physician. On the day it closed Mrs. 
 Downey was better, but he seemed worse, al- 
 though we did not anticipate a fatal termina- 
 tion to his illness. We hoped soon to welcome 
 them both to Bareilly. 
 
 Wednesday evening Mr. and Mrs. Judd and 
 ourselves bade our Lucknow friends good-by 
 and commenced our homeward journey. They 
 were to spend a fortnight with us, as the mission 
 house at Moradabad (a recent purchase) was not 
 yet vacated. Mr. and Mrs. Parker remained a 
 
SIX YEARS IN INDIA. 149 
 
 while in Lucknow, as they were somewhat in- 
 disposed. 
 
 We had a more trying journey home than 
 when we went to Lucknow, if that were pos- 
 sible. On Saturday, instead of reaching home 
 by ten o'clock A. M., as we expected, we were 
 exposed to the heat all the livelong day on 
 the long dak from Futteghur to Bareilly. 
 Twenty-two hours we lay in our palkees, only 
 leaving them once for the purpose of procuring 
 refreshments, in which undertaking we entirely 
 failed. 
 
 About eight o'clock Saturday evening Cash- 
 mere Kotee again blessed our vision. Our native 
 Christians and servants were on the look-out, 
 and gave us a hearty welcome. We were so 
 thoroughly fatigued that we kept our beds 
 nearly all the next day, merely exerting our- 
 selves to go out to our meals, and to hold one 
 service in Hindoostanee. 
 
 The week succeeding we devoted ourselves to 
 showing up the place, country, and people round 
 about to Mr. and Mrs. Judd, not forgetting 
 sundry reading lessons in Hindoostanee. 
 
 One morning we went by invitation to break- 
 fast with some of our English friends, and while 
 at their house we received a letter from Luck- 
 now informing us that Mr. Downey was dead. 
 It was a great blow to us. We could scarcely 
 believe it possible that he was indeed thus cut 
 
150 SIX YEAES IN INDIA. 
 
 down on the very threshold of the missionary 
 work. He was so amiable and talented that we 
 had formed high expectations of his future 
 usefulness. 
 
 A letter from Sister Pierce, written a few 
 days after his death, reads as follows : 
 
 " Brother Downey was buried last Saturday 
 evening in our little cemetery, where his body 
 will await the resurrection, while his glorified 
 spirit is rejoicing in the light of God's counte- 
 nance. He has truly given himself for India. 
 O that this death may accomplish more for this 
 unhappy people than his life would have done ! 
 
 " Dear Sister Downey exhibits in a wonderful 
 manner the sustaining influences of grace. I 
 remained with her during the night after his 
 burial, and I shall never forget it. She said at 
 one time, ' O how desolate I am, and yet how 
 my comforts abound ! ' She will go to Bareilly, 
 and as far as she can will do the work Brother 
 Downey would have done. She told him when 
 he was dying, 'My own love, God being my 
 helper, I will live and die for India, and the 
 people for whom you have prayed so much.' 
 She will go to Bareilly in company with Brother 
 and Sister Parker, who expect to leave soon for 
 Bijnour." 
 
 Three Hindoo holidays occur in the month of 
 September. One is in remembrance of the fifth 
 incarnation of Yishnoo to prevent the king Balee 
 
SIX YEAES IN INDIA. 151 
 
 from obtaining dominion over the three worlds 
 — heaven, earth, and the region below the earth. 
 Another is in honor of the birth of Janesh, the 
 god of learning and prudence. This god is 
 invoked by all students and authors before 
 they commence their respective labors. On 
 the third holiday " pooja " is performed for 
 the benefit of the souls of departed ancestors, 
 among whom they reckon crows ! This notion 
 is in accordance with their theory of the trans- 
 migration of souls, which is an important part 
 of the Hindoo religion. According to their be- 
 lief, heaven consists in a soul being absorbed in 
 the divine nature, just as a river becomes one 
 with the ocean by falling into it. Hell consists 
 in a soul being sent into the body of a very infe- 
 rior animal. 
 
 The weather is growing decidedly cooler, al- 
 though still very oppressive. Custard apples 
 are ripe now, and are very delicious as well as 
 wholesome. They are about the size of an ordi- 
 nary apple, and are covered with a thick scaly 
 rind. The pulp is white and sweet, something 
 like custard, hence its name. 
 
 We are feeling stronger since the rains entirely 
 ceased, and hope to be able to itinerate among 
 the villages in the district of Barielly in a few 
 weeks. 
 
152 SIX YEARS IN INDIA. 
 
 LETTEK XII. 
 
 Yisit with Friends — Arrival of Mrs. Downey — Hindoo Festi- 
 val — Arrival of Dr. Butler and Family — Commence Itinerat- 
 ing—A Peep behind the Purdah — Journey to Budaon — 
 Lieut. Governor — Nawab of Rampore — Robbery — Budaon 
 to be a Mission Station — Baptisms — Removal. 
 
 Budaon, Jan. 30, 1860. 
 
 My Dear Mother, — Mr. and Mrs. Parker, with 
 Mrs. Downey, came to Bareilly the first of Oc- 
 tober. On the evening after their arrival Mr. 
 and Mrs. Judd left us for Moradabad. Mrs. 
 Downey bears her great sorrow with meekness 
 and resignation, but her grief preys upon her 
 spirits and health. She calls forth our tenderest 
 sympathy. Mr. Downey was to have charge of 
 the boy's orphanage, and it is thought best for 
 Mrs. Downey to occupy that position now. 
 
 Thomas C alien, a native Christian catechist, 
 is to assist her, and there are several teachers 
 and servants, so that we trust the care will not 
 be too much for her to undertake. 
 
 Mr. and Mrs. Parker remained with us a fort- 
 night, and we enjoyed many walks and drives 
 together in the country round about. 
 
 There is a beautiful garden, owned by a 
 wealthy Hindoo gentleman, very near us, and 
 our friends were charmed with it as well as with 
 
SIX YEARS IN INDIA. 153 
 
 our own more unpretending grounds. Just out- 
 side this garden a great annual jubilee was held 
 on the twentieth of October, in commemoration 
 of the victory of Ham over Rawan, the ten- 
 headed monster and King of Ceylon. 
 
 An immense figure of wicker work was raised 
 and filled with fireworks. This was the effigy 
 of the King of Ceylon. A fine looking Hindoo 
 lad, on a gayly caparisoned elephant, represented 
 Ram. 
 
 An immense concourse of people, all arrayed 
 in bright colors, assembled to witness the de- 
 struction of the figure. A confused clangor was 
 kept up with great zeal on drums and odd- 
 looking tin and brass instruments. At the ap- 
 pointed time the representative Ram set fire to 
 the wicker monster, which, amid the frantic 
 cheers of the multitude, exploded, and blazed 
 away till it was consumed. 
 
 Soon after Mr. and Mrs. Parker left, Dr. But- 
 ler and family arrived from Lucknow, together 
 with the orphan boys that had been gathered in 
 that place. 
 
 As soon as the orphanage was made over to 
 Mrs. Downey, and we were free from the care 
 of the school, we thought best to commence 
 itinerating, a course that is generally pursued 
 by missionaries in the cold season. We started 
 in primitive style. A bullock cart was loaded 
 with a tent, table, bed, chairs, cooking utensils, 
 
154 SIX YEARS IN INDIA. 
 
 and a box of provisions, and with two or three 
 servants was sent in advance. Mr. H. and I 
 made onr march of ten miles on horseback. 
 
 We stopped at midday and ate our luncheon 
 under a wide-spreading mango tree in the midst 
 of a fine grove or " tope." As we admired the 
 luxuriant foliage of the trees we could but con- 
 trast it in our minds with the appearance of our 
 trees at home at that season of the year. 
 
 Our trees here are never leafless. All the 
 year round their thickly-clothed branches give 
 welcome shade to man and beast, but during 
 the spring months leaves are falling continually 
 and new ones shooting forth, until the whole 
 mass of foliage is silently and almost impercep- 
 tibly renewed.' The natives use the dry leaves 
 for fuel. 
 
 The road was so terribly "kutchah" that 
 when we arrived at Futtegunge, the village 
 where we were to encamp, we found our cart 
 had but just arrived. A site was selected in a 
 grove just outside the village, the tent was soon 
 put up, and we commenced tentkeeping. 
 
 We staid there several days. Joseph was 
 with us, and accompanied Mr. H. in his frequent 
 trips to the village to preach to the people, to 
 converse with them and give them books. 
 Numbers came to our tents asking for books 
 and tracts, and all appeared to be curious and 
 interested. 
 
SIX YEAKS IN INDIA. 155 
 
 I went one evening into the village and en- 
 tered the courtyard of a Mohammedan family. 
 The family dwellings were around it on three 
 sides, and the women of the household, twenty 
 or twenty-five in number, being the daughters, 
 daughters-in-law, and granddaughters of the 
 heads of the family, were scattered over the yard, 
 spinning cotton, cleaning brass cups and plates, 
 taking care of babies, etc., etc. They gathered 
 round me with great apparent interest, gave me 
 a comfortable morha (cane stool) to sit on, and 
 overwhelmed me with questions. 
 
 "When they ascertained that my husband was 
 neither a magistrate nor judge, colonel nor cap- 
 tain, but a padre sahib instead, they asked why 
 we had come out to their village. I explained 
 that he is a different padre sahib from the chap- 
 lains, that we were not from Europe but from 
 the new world, " America des see," and that we 
 came to teach the Hindoostanee people about 
 the true God, and how they might obtain for- 
 giveness for their sins, and secure everlasting 
 life and happiness. They asked many questions, 
 which I answered as best I could, and when I 
 left they urged me to come again. 
 
 The succeeding night considerable rain fell, 
 and our tent was flooded. We made an inglo- 
 rious retreat next morning to Cashmere Kotee, 
 as the weather was changeable and our tent was 
 not a good one. The exposure brought on an 
 
156 SIX YEARS IN INDIA. 
 
 attack of neuralgia, which obliged me to remain 
 at home for a fortnight, and Mr. H. and Joseph 
 had the itinerating all to themselves. 
 
 Zahoor-ul-Haqq accompanied Mr. H. on one 
 trip, and one evening preached for the first time 
 in a large village near Shahjehanpore. Mr. H. 
 noticed that he appeared agitated at the time, 
 and learned afterward that it was his native 
 village ! 
 
 Zahoor-ul-Haqq did not set himself to preach- 
 ing. He is too modest for that. But his words 
 in our social meetings were so well chosen, and 
 were uttered in so convincing a manner, that we 
 urged him to go forth and bear witness to the 
 truth among the people. He bids fair to become 
 a very useful preacher. 
 
 About the twelfth of December we started 
 again in company, determined to have a long 
 tour. This time we journeyed in a covered 
 two- wheeled vehicle called a shigram, drawn by 
 oxen. We were bound for Budaon, a city about 
 twenty-eight miles from Bareilly in a southerly 
 direction. 
 
 We were two nights on the road. Mr. H. and 
 Joseph preached in several villages as we went 
 along, and distributed tracts and gospels to all 
 who could read. 
 
 We reached Budaon on the evening of the 
 third day, and pitched our tents (we had two) 
 on an open space a little out from the city, near 
 
SIX YEARS IN INDIA. 157 
 
 the European residences. Before we were set- 
 tled two natives came and welcomed ns to Bu- 
 daon, saying they were Christians and had long 
 been praying that missionaries might come into 
 the place. We had heard of them previously, 
 and knew something of their history. They 
 were members of a small society of native Chris- 
 tians that was formed in Bareilly before the mu- 
 tiny by a zealous chaplain of the Church of 
 England. 
 
 I say native Christians, although it is proba- 
 ble that very few of them know anything of a 
 change of heart. They have, however, been 
 baptized and initiated into the use of the Prayer 
 Book. A school has been kept up among them 
 most of the time, and they are therefore far in 
 advance of their heathen neighbors in intelli- 
 gence. 
 
 Three brothers from this little band, with 
 their families, had removed to Budaon previous 
 to the mutiny, and procured government em- 
 ploy. When the Sepoy regiment stationed at 
 that place mutinied they fled to an obscure vil- 
 lage, where they remained unmolested until Bu- 
 daon was reoccupied by the English, when they 
 immediately returned. 
 
 We arranged our tents comfortably, and con- 
 cluded to make something of a stay in Budaon. 
 Mr. H. and Joseph preached often in the city 
 to multitudes of eager listeners, and could 
 
158 SIX YEARS m INDIA. 
 
 scarcely supply the demand for tracts and 
 gospels. 
 
 The native Christians urged us to commence 
 a mission in the place at once, and pointed out 
 an unfinished kotee nearly opposite our camping 
 ground, which was for sale, and would make a 
 suitable mission house. 
 
 Mr. H. wrote to Dr. Butler a report of our 
 reception, and the favorable opinion we had 
 formed of the place, and asked him to join us 
 if he should judge best to entertain the project 
 of commencing a mission there immediately. 
 In a day or two he arrived, and was so well 
 pleased with the prospect at Budaon, that he 
 concluded to purchase the kotee and have us 
 remove there as soon as possible. 
 
 About this time Mr. Edmonstone, the Lieuten- 
 ant-governor of the Northwest Provinces, with 
 his suite, arrived in the place on his usual winter 
 tour, and encamped a short distance from us. 
 Their tents were arranged in streets, and formed 
 quite a little village. 
 
 The nawab of Rampore also, who since his 
 staunch championship during the mutiny is 
 quite a favorite with the government, came to 
 Budaon to meet the lieutenant-governor, and his 
 large and irregular cluster of tents was resplen- 
 dent with barbaric finery. 
 
 On the twenty-fourth of December we re- 
 ceived tickets of invitation to a Christmas din- 
 
SIX YEAES IN INDIA. 159 
 
 ner to be given at the lieutenant-governor's tent 
 the next evening e We retired to rest later than 
 usual that night, as Dr. Butler and Mr. H. were 
 busy looking about the city until evening. We 
 noticed an unusual number of natives lurking 
 about, but did not take any more precautions 
 than usual. Our bullocks were fastened near 
 the tents, and their drivers slept in the carts 
 near them. Our servants slept under a tree 
 near the tents, and one lay across the main en- 
 trance to our tent. 
 
 It is the custom in India to have a watchman, 
 a chowkeedar as he is called, to keep watch 
 throughout the night whenever a house is out of 
 military cantonment, and when itinerating, on 
 account of the great number of robbers in the 
 country. But we had never had one when itin- 
 erating, and had never been disturbed in any 
 way. Upon that night we did not even take 
 the precaution to keep a lamp burning. 
 
 We slept quietly until about four o'clock in 
 the morning, just that darkest time that pre- 
 cedes the dawn, when I was wakened by a 
 clicking sound. I listened, and distinctly heard 
 a noise as if a dog ran across the tent just beyond 
 the head of our bed. I waked Mr. H. and 
 asked him to light the lamp quickly, as I thought 
 there were dogs in the tent, a not unusual thing 
 by the way. He struck a light and looked 
 around the tent, but saw nothing unusual. I 
 
160 SIX YEAKS IN INDIA. 
 
 then glanced around and saw that our two trunks 
 were missing. 
 
 " Our trunks ! " I exclaimed, " where are 
 they?" 
 
 " Where, sure enough !" said Mr. H., and just 
 then we saw the tent was open on either side 
 in a line with the place where the trunks had 
 stood. 
 
 " There have been robbers here," we said 
 simultaneously, and we awakened our servants 
 at once, and dressed quickly as possible. Peer 
 Buksh and the other servants came in directly. 
 We told them what had occurred, and giving 
 them a lantern sent them off to chase the rob- 
 bers, while Mr. A. should call the police. Be- 
 fore he had started, however, a servant came 
 running back with the intelligence that they 
 could discern the robbers making off across the 
 fields toward a grove. 
 
 There was a grand chase for a while, and then 
 the robbers seeing they would soon be overtaken, 
 stopped, opened the trunks, and turned every- 
 thing out upon the ground. They then sought 
 and took what money happened to be there, 
 (only about sixteen dollars,) tore off the brass 
 clasps from a memorandum book, and last, but 
 not least, my broche shawl, and ran away, leav- 
 ing everything else strewed on the grass. 
 
 Christmas evening we dined at the lieutenant- 
 governor's tent. His suite, and all the English 
 
SIX YEAES m INDIA. 161 
 
 residents of the station, were present. These 
 last were not many, only three families. 
 
 Mr. Edmonstone is a fine-looking gentleman, 
 apparently about fifty years of age. The offi- 
 cers of his suite were quite social and agreeable, 
 and so were the ladies and gentlemen of the 
 station. I noticed that the gentlemen drank 
 wine quite freely, especially two or three of 
 them, and were quite hilarious in consequence. 
 After dinner a short time was spent in conver- 
 sation, and the party broke up. 
 
 The next day we returned to Bareilly, and 
 soon as the purchase of the house in Budaon 
 was completed, made preparation to remove. 
 The evening previous to our departure from Ba- 
 reilly Mr. H. baptized Minepul Sing, Khan Sing, 
 also a Sikh, and Hosain Buksh, a young man 
 from Lucknow. Gurdial Sing, the brother of 
 Minepul, had previously gone to Bijnour to Mr. 
 Parker. 
 
 The fatigue consequent upon our removal was 
 too much for me, and I have been ill ever since. 
 I am but just beginning to study again, but there 
 is so much confusion and discomfort on account 
 of the work which is being done on the house 
 that I find it a difficult matter to keep my atten- 
 tion fixed upon any subject. I hope, however, 
 that this delightful cold season will so invigorate 
 me that I shall soon recover my balance both of 
 mental and physical strength. 
 11 
 
162 SIX YEARS IN INDIA. 
 
 We left Minepul Sing in Bareilly, as bearer 
 for the Boys' Orphanage, and I miss him very 
 much, as we have not been able to supply his 
 place, and I have consequently been obliged to 
 do many things for which I have not sufficient 
 strength, and do not wish to spare the time, for 
 I count every moment lost, aside from needful 
 duties and recreation, that is not spent in the 
 study of the language or in direct intercourse 
 with the natives. 
 
SIX YEARS IN INDIA. 163 
 
 LETTEE XIII. 
 
 Epitome of the Hindoo Religion — Natal, Marriage, and Fune- 
 ral Ceremonies — Seasons — Products of the Country. 
 
 Budaon, March 20, 1860. 
 
 My Dear Mother, — I received a letter from 
 you a few weeks ago, in which you asked me to 
 give you an epitome of the Hindoo articles of 
 faith and an outline of their customs, etc. The 
 reason I have not done so ere this is, that I have 
 not known the one nor the other sufficiently well 
 to do so, nor do I now except in theory. That 
 theory has been furnished us in a very interest- 
 ing little work entitled " Domestic Manners and 
 Customs of the Hindoos of Northern India," by 
 Baboo Ishuree Dass, a native Christian Catechist 
 of Futteghur. 
 
 The most ancient of the Hindoo scriptures, 
 according to him, teach the worship of one su- 
 preme being. In later times, when the people 
 sunk into gross idolatry, other books were writ- 
 ten called the " Veds." These inculcate the 
 worship of gods, goddesses, images, animals, 
 rivers, and almost everything a Hindoo likes or 
 fears. 
 
 According to these later scriptures, the deity 
 
164 SIX YEAES IN INDIA. 
 
 has resolved himself into three forms, called 
 Brahma, Yishnoo, and Mahesh. The work of 
 the first is creation, of the second preservation, 
 and of the third, destruction. A female princi- 
 pal is joined to each, called respectively Saras- 
 watee, Lakshmee, and Doorga or Devee. Brah- 
 ma, the first person of this triad, was cursed by 
 a god on account of his sins, and his worship 
 ceased throughout the country long ago. Ac- 
 cording to their Yeds, Yishnoo and Mahesh, or 
 Shiva, as he is called sometimes, have been 
 guilty of great sins too ; but the Hindoos, with 
 characteristic inconsistency, continue to worship 
 them. 
 
 The worshipers of Yishnoo are more numerous 
 than those of Mahesh. They believe he became 
 incarnate several times, and in several different 
 forms. He became a fish to fetch up the four 
 Yeds, or principal scriptures, from the ocean in 
 which they had been lost ; a tortoise to support 
 the earth during a deluge ; once he took the 
 form of a lion to kill a man ; and again he be-- 
 came incarnate, by the name of Ram, to kill the 
 King of Ceylon. The last time he will come, 
 the Hindoos say, to punish all the wicked. 
 
 Besides these two persons of the Hindoo 
 triad, their wives, and incarnations, there are 
 thousands of other gods, goddesses, and various 
 objects of worship. The sun, moon, stars,* he- 
 roes, mountains, rivers, trees, beasts, and reptiles 
 
SIX YEARS IN INDIA. 165 
 
 are their gods. Even pens and instands are 
 worshiped at certain times ; because, as they say, 
 they obtain knowledge by them. 
 
 Bathing is one of the most important duties 
 Hindoos have to perform. "Without it, they 
 will neither eat nor worship. 
 
 At the time of bathing they worship the sun, 
 by offering it water in both hands and address- 
 ing it with prayers. There is a peculiar prayer 
 which every strict Hindoo is bound to repeat 
 three times a day. There is one for each of the 
 four general castes, but that which is for the 
 Brahmins is said to be the most efficacious. It is 
 considered very sacred ; and a Brahmin will never 
 repeat it before people of a lower caste. This 
 prayer is said to procure the forgiveness of all 
 sins and to make the heart perfectly holy. 
 
 The following is a translation : " O earth, 
 firmament, and heaven, we meditate on the 
 great light of the sun ; may it enlighten our 
 hearts." It has one merit at least, that of 
 brevity. 
 
 The worship of the gods through their repre- 
 sentative idols is performed on this wise. The 
 image, which is usually either of stone, brass, or 
 clay, is set before them on a stand, when water 
 is poured over it, that the god maybe bathed as 
 well as the worshipers. They then make marks 
 on its forehead with a sweet smelling colored 
 wood, and also on their own foreheads and 
 
166 SIX YEAES IN INDIA. 
 
 chests. They then place fragrant leaves and 
 flowers before the image, and bnrn incense before 
 it in a little brass cup. The incense is composed 
 of the sweet smelling wood before mentioned 
 and one or two other kinds, also camphor and 
 butter. They then light a lamp and move it in 
 a circular way three or four times before the 
 image ; then present it offerings of sweatmeats, 
 fruits, rice, etc. Before these offerings and the 
 image they draw a curtain for a few moments, 
 that the god may eat without embarrassment. 
 Meanwhile a little bell is tinkling, and the peo- 
 ple repeat hymns and count beads. 
 
 After the worship, or "pooja," is over, the 
 image is removed and put in a safe place, and 
 the offerings (all that the god did not eat) are 
 eaten by the officiating priests and their families. 
 
 In the temples the idols are usually larger 
 and stationary. Many, especially women, de- 
 vote themselves to the worship of goddesses, 
 especially that of Kalee and Doorga, or Devee, 
 the wife of Shiva. The goddesses are said to 
 be very bloodthirsty and cruel. In one of their 
 Yeds, Kalee is said to be pleased for a thousand 
 years by a human sacrifice, and for one hundred 
 thousand, if three human beings are offered her 
 at once. Male buffaloes are sacrificed to Door- 
 ga, but she is far better pleased if a human head 
 be offered her. Children were formerly kid- 
 napped and sold for sacrifices. At the ordinary 
 
SIX YEARS IN INDIA. 167 
 
 family pooja the women are not present, but 
 hold service by themselves. On their holidays, 
 however, and all extraordinary occasions, the 
 women and children are mute observers. 
 
 The most marked feature of the Hindoo re- 
 ligion is caste. There are four principal castes : 
 the Brahmins, or priests ; the chutrees, or sol- 
 diers ; vyshees, or merchants ; and soodras. 
 Each of these castes is subdivided into scores of 
 others. Of the soodra caste are first the ky- 
 arths, or writers, then farmers, shoemakers, 
 blacksmiths, and many others. 
 
 The Brahmins claim to be gods, and are so 
 considered by others. People frequently pros- 
 trate themselves at their feet, and they receive 
 their worship with the greatest complacency. 
 Many of the Brahmins do not eat any animal 
 food, and are very strict in the observance of 
 religious duties. These are called " bhauts," or 
 saints ; others eat goat's flesh, fish, birds, etc. ; 
 but on no account would a Hindoo of any caste 
 eat beef. They consider the cow to be a very 
 sacred animal, and they will not even touch a 
 piece of its flesh. 
 
 One of our missionaries was once reasoning 
 with some Hindoos about their absurd notions 
 in regard to the cow. " You drink her milk," 
 said he, " and eat butter made from it ; why, 
 then, should you not eat her flesh % " A Brah- 
 min replied with a sarcastic sneer, " You drank 
 
168 SIX YEARS IN INDIA. 
 
 your mother's milk, but did you also eat her 
 flesh?" You perceive these people are not 
 wanting in shrewdness. 
 
 The different castes will by no means inter- 
 marry, nor even eat with each other. The dis- 
 tinction of caste is kept up with so great strict- 
 ness that a man of low caste might be dying 
 and one of a higher caste would not allow him 
 to drink from his cup, as it would thereby be 
 defiled. 
 
 According to the claims of caste the son is 
 not at liberty to follow any trade or profession 
 that he likes, but must adhere to that which his 
 father and forefathers have practiced before 
 him ; doing otherwise would be followed by 
 excommunication. This is the main reason 
 why families are obliged to have so many serv- 
 ants. A man of the kahar caste will carry a 
 palkee, dust furniture, brush clothing, carry 
 letters, etc. ; but he will not sweep the floors 
 nor serve at tables, where, terrible to imagine, 
 he might touch a plate that had beef on it. A 
 dhobee also will wash and iron your clothing ; 
 but he will not do any other work. 
 
 The bheestees, or water-carriers, and the 
 whole staff of table servants, are Mussulmans, 
 who, although they have no caste, have never- 
 theless plenty of custom, " dustoor " they call it, 
 which will not allow them to do anything but 
 their regular work. 
 
SIX YEAES IN INDIA. 169 
 
 Mohammedans, you are aware, are as deadly 
 enemies to pork as are the Jews ; however, the 
 bheestees fetch water to the houses in swine 
 skins. These are neatly tanned and sewed up, 
 and when filled with water and slung across the 
 bheestees' backs, look marvelously like a new 
 order of pigs. 
 
 In India the patriarchal system prevails in 
 regard to families. When the daughters are 
 married they go, of course, to live with their 
 husbands; but when the sons marry they do 
 not leave their father's house ; they live with 
 him, and continue under his direction and gov- 
 ernment. All the earnings of the sons are 
 handed over to the father, and he provides for 
 all the wants of the household, and has the 
 general oversight and management of it. 
 
 The condition of females in India is truly 
 pitiable. A Hindoo girl is never regarded as a 
 member of her own father's family, but as be- 
 longing to that of her future husband, so that 
 in reality she has no home until she has fulfilled 
 her chief end in life, that is, until she is mar- 
 ried. That event, however, occurs early in her 
 history. Betrothal takes place usually when 
 the children are both young, and when the girl 
 is thirteen or fourteen years of age the "puckah" 
 marriage is celebrated. The bridegroom is 
 usually a few years older than the bride. 
 
 Of course where marriages are wholly planned 
 
170 SIX YEAES IN INDIA, 
 
 by the parents, without the interested parties 
 having even seen each other, happiness in that 
 relation is the exception instead of the rule. 
 The wife, however, is bound to her husband by 
 strong ties, as her happiness in this world and in 
 a future state is based upon her obedience to 
 him. 
 
 The Hindoo religion requires that if the hus- 
 band die first the wife shall be burned with his 
 corpse. In one of their sacred books is the fol- 
 lowing proverb : " As many hairs as are in the 
 human body multiplied by a crore and a half 
 crore,* so many years will she live in heaven 
 who dies with her husband." 
 
 Although so very desirable a rite to Hindoo 
 women, widow-burning, or "suttee," is prohib- 
 ited by the British government, and Hindoo 
 widows are now compelled to live on in a state 
 of great unhappiness, not only because they 
 cannot marry again, but because they are looked 
 down upon with contempt, and have also the 
 melancholy prospect of transmigrating into the 
 body of some ill-favored bird or beast whenever 
 they shall " shuffle off this mortal coil." 
 
 A Hindoo girl receives no mental culture. 
 She cannot even read in her own language. 
 Learning is not considered necessary for her, as 
 she is not expected to be a companion to her 
 husband. Her duty is merely to attend to house- 
 
 * A crore is equal to ten millions. 
 
SIX YEAKS IN INDIA. 171 
 
 hold matters and sew on very plain garments. 
 Most of the sewing, however, is done by men of 
 the tailor caste. 
 
 The family washing, too, is usually given out 
 to men of the dhobee caste, and as the houses 
 are destitute of windows and nearly so of furni- 
 ture, and as their food is extremely simple, 
 Hindoo women are spared much of the toil 
 which wears upon the wives and mothers of our 
 own land. 
 
 Hindoos generally have but two meals a day, 
 taking the first at mid-day. They pursue their 
 various callings until eleven o'clock A. M., 
 when they adjourn to a river, tank, or well, as 
 the case may be, to perform their morning ab- 
 lutions. They then have their pooja and their 
 breakfast ; and after a comfortable time with the 
 native pipe, or hookah, they again go forth to 
 their labors till the evening. Then they have 
 dinner, another peaceful season with the hookah, 
 and betake themselves to their simple bedstead. 
 They have no beds, but merely a fine cording 
 over their bedsteads and a blanket on it. They 
 often sleep in the open air. The women do not 
 eat with the male members of the family, but 
 serve them first, and then have their own 
 meals. 
 
 A Hindoo never mentions his wife by that 
 term, nor by her name. He speaks of her if 
 she have children, as the mother of the oldest 
 
172 SIX YEAES IN INDIA. 
 
 son, as "Nundoo kee ma," that is, Nundoo's 
 mother. If she have no children he simply says 
 "she" or "my family." The wife likewise 
 never mentions her husband's name, but speaks 
 of him as the "child's father," or "he" or 
 " mine." 
 
 I have mentioned the native dress in my pre- 
 vious letters, so that I need not say much on 
 that subject. I will merely add that the women 
 I have met in this section of country wear more 
 ornaments than those I have formerly seen. 
 Sometimes there is a ring entirely round the ear, 
 from which clusters of pendants fall, quite con- 
 cealing the entire ear. Their arms are often 
 literally covered with bracelets. They wear 
 rings in their noses varying in size from a dollar 
 to the rim of a saucer; necklets, anklets, and 
 toe-rings. On these last there are sometimes 
 little bells, and the dusky wearers "make a 
 tinkling as they go." Sometimes these orna- 
 ments are of gold and silver, but oftener they 
 are of a white metal of inferior quality, and 
 even of glass and tinsel. 
 
 Women sometimes smoke the hookah, but 
 chewing "pawn" seems to be their grand re- 
 source against lassitude. 
 
 Pawn is put up in packages and sold in the 
 market all ready for use, as regularly as rice or 
 any article of food. It is composed of a piece 
 of betelnut, cardamoms, cloves, and a little lime, 
 
SIX YEARS IN INDIA. 173 
 
 all nicely wrapped in a pawnleaf and pinned 
 together with a thorn. One of these suffices for 
 the whole space between meals, and the use of 
 it dyes the teeth a bright red, which is thought 
 to be so becoming that the Hindoo women also 
 dye their finger and toe-nails, the palms of their 
 hands and the soles of their feet the same color. 
 
 In consequence of their utter lack of educa- 
 tion, native women are necessarily frivolous, and 
 childish in the extreme. Their tempers are un- 
 governable, and when angry they sometimes 
 attempt to commit suicide. 
 
 I will now give you some description of their 
 marriage, natal, and funeral ceremonies; but 
 there are many meaningless rites not worth a 
 full description. 
 
 According to the Hindoo Shasters (sacred 
 writings) a girl is marriageable when she is 
 seven years old. When parents wish their 
 daughter to bs married they call together their 
 nearest relatives, and request them to select a 
 boy for her from some desirable family. 
 
 The friends consult together and fix upon a 
 boy. The family priest then procures the boy's 
 horoscope and compares it with that of the girl, 
 and if he considers the marriage will be an au- 
 spicious one he is sent with the family barber 
 to the boy's house with presents, and if they are 
 obliged to pay a certain sum, one fourth of the 
 amount is also sent at that time. If the boy's 
 
174 SIX YEAKS IN INDIA. 
 
 parents are agreed they all perform " pooja " 
 together, after which a mark is put upon the 
 boy's forehead, and his father makes small 
 presents to all in the house. This ceremony is 
 called "teeka." 
 
 In a few days the priest of the bride's family 
 makes out a paper, on which the days for the 
 wedding ceremonies are written. A duplicate 
 is sent to the boy's father, who proceeds at once 
 to make preparations, issue invitations, etc. 
 When the first day arrives the bridegroom, with 
 a procession of his male relatives and friends, 
 proceeds to the bride's house. They are gen- 
 erally accompanied by several musicians, so 
 called, and one or two dancing girls. They 
 also take fireworks, which are let off when they 
 arrive at the bride's house. 
 
 The bridegroom then sends his barber on 
 before with a small present. The barber is en- 
 tertained with sweetmeats, and sent back again. 
 The father of the bride, with some near rela- 
 tives, then goes out to meet the procession, and 
 when they meet the father touches the feet of 
 the bridegroom, puts a yellow mark on his fore- 
 head, and makes him presents. He then washes 
 the bridegroom's feet, and gives him and those 
 who are with him "sherbet," that is, lemonade, 
 to drink. 
 
 When the auspicious moment arrives the 
 bridegroom and his friends are received by the 
 
SIX YEAES IN INDIA. 175 
 
 bride's father, the bride, and her near relatives 
 in a rude shed that has five props. One of these 
 props is in the center and is very important. 
 After several very trifling rites the priest burns 
 incense, and the bride's father presents the young 
 couple with a piece of yellow cloth each. After 
 several other ceremonies the upper garments of 
 the bride and bridegroom are joined with a 
 knot. Then follows "pooja" and making of 
 presents. The priest then builds a small altar 
 between the central post of the shed and the 
 young couple, and after repeating the names of 
 the sun, fire, water, etc., he burns incense upon 
 it. A near relative of the bridegroom now 
 throws a large cloth over the bride and bride- 
 groom, and quite a round of puerile observances 
 is gone through with. After this the priest of 
 the bride's family addresses the bridegroom as 
 follows : 
 
 " The bride says to you, ' If you live happy, 
 keep me happy also ; if you are in trouble, I will 
 be in trouble too; you must support me, and 
 must not leave me when I suffer ; you must al- 
 ways keep me with you, and pardon all my 
 faults, and you must not perform your religious 
 duties without me; you must not defraud me 
 regarding conjugal love ; you must have nothing 
 to do with another woman while I live; you 
 must consult me in all that you do, and you 
 must always tell me the truth; Yishnoo, fire, 
 
176 SIX YEARS IN INDIA. 
 
 and the Brahmins are witnesses between you 
 and me.' " 
 
 To this the bridegroom replies: "I will all 
 my life do jnst as the bride requires of me. But 
 she must also make me some promises. She 
 must go with me through suffering and trouble, 
 and must always be obedient to me ; she must 
 never go to her father's house unless she is asked 
 by him, and when she sees another in better cir- 
 cumstances or better favored than I am she must 
 not despise or slight me." 
 
 To this the bride answers : " I will all my life 
 do just as you require of me ; Yishnoo, fire, and 
 the Brahmins are witnesses between us." 
 
 After this the bridegroom takes water and 
 sprinkles the bride's head, while the priest re- 
 peats invocations. They then both bow before 
 the sun in worship. 
 
 After a few more trifling ceremonies the 
 " shadee," as it is called, is completed, and the 
 priest puts a mark on the foreheads of the young 
 pair, blesses them, takes his dues and his de- 
 parture. The bride and bridegroom then return 
 to their separate homes and live as before, with 
 their parents. 
 
 The concluding ceremonies are performed in 
 the third, fifth, seventh, or ninth year succeed- 
 ing the " shadee." These latter ceremonies con- 
 stitute the " gauna," or puckah marriage. They 
 are only two in number, and are very simple. 
 
SIX YEAES IN INDIA. 177 
 
 The bride and bridegroom are presented each 
 with a small smooth board ; the bride sits on 
 the bridegroom's, and he on that belonging to 
 the bride ; then women relatives of the bride 
 put little tinkling bells on her toes, and also 
 place a chudder over her. The bride is then 
 taken away in a little covered vehicle, drawn by- 
 two bullocks, to the residence of her husband. 
 When she leaves her friends she is expected to 
 cry bitterly, else it will be said of her that she 
 has no affection for them. I have myself list- 
 ened to the bride's strange made-up cries as she 
 was being driven off to her new home. 
 
 Another tedious round of ceremonies is gone 
 through with upon the arrival of the newly 
 wedded pair at their future residence. 
 
 NATAL CEKEMONIES. 
 
 These begin immediately upon the birth of 
 a child. The family priest is called for at once, 
 who foretells the future of the child without 
 seeing either it or the mother. 
 
 After this " Granesh " and the planets are wor- 
 shiped, and the father of the child makes pres- 
 ents to the priest and to his relatives. On the 
 sixth day a certain god is believed to come and 
 write the child's future or fate (" kissmat ") on 
 its forehead, and they consequently have several 
 ceremonies and a feast for the friends of the family. 
 12 
 
178 SIX YEARS IN INDIA. 
 
 At night the women of the family make an 
 image of clay, fasten it against the wall, and 
 worship it. They then put one or two garments 
 on the child, (it has heretofore been merely 
 wrapped in a cloth,) and some rings on its wrists 
 and ancles. 
 
 On the twenty-seventh day after the birth of 
 the child they take water from twenty-seven 
 different wells, and twenty-seven different kinds 
 of leaves, and place in an earthen vessel in 
 twenty-seven different compartments. After 
 this, incense is bnrned, and a blanket is held up 
 over the mother and child and the water from 
 the earthern vessel is poured on the blanket, 
 when it runs through, of course, on to them. 
 
 FUNERAL CEREMONIES. 
 
 "When a person dies his friends present a 
 black cow, or its equivalent in money, to a cer- 
 tain Brahmin whose duty it is to attend to the 
 corpse. Sometimes when a person is dying the 
 leaves of the sacred toolshee tree and some 
 Ganges water are put in his mouth, and a small 
 image of a god called Saligran, on his breast. 
 The dying man then repeats "Ram, Ram." 
 
 The Hindoos of Northern India burn their 
 dead. On the death of a man his son, or whoever 
 is to set fire to the funeral pile, makes a ball of 
 some dough of barley-flour and puts it into the 
 
SIX YEARS IN INDIA. 179 
 
 right hand of the corpse. The body is wrapped 
 in cloth, placed on a bamboo frame-work, and 
 four men carry it to the place for burning, 
 which is usually by a stream. As they go along 
 they keep repeating " Earn sach hai," " Earn 
 sach hai ;" that is, " Earn is true." 
 
 When they place the body on the funeral pile 
 they put a little gold and clarified butter into 
 its mouth, and then lay a piece of chandan wood 
 on its breast. The person that sets fire to the 
 pile shaves his face and head, except the tuft of 
 hair on the top, and for ten days must not touch 
 any one. 
 
 When the body is half consumed they pour 
 a little ghee on the head and break it with bam- 
 boos, and when the flesh is quite consumed, they 
 quench the fire and throw the bones into the 
 Ganges, or if they are at a distance from that 
 stream, they gather the bones and keep them 
 till some member of the family goes to bathe in 
 the " sacred river," when he carries them and 
 casts them into its waters. They clear off the 
 spot where the burning took place, and write 
 Earn, Earn in the sand. 
 
 I have made this sketch brief as possible, but 
 I hope not too much so to be uninteresting to 
 you. Please bear in mind that Hindoo cere- 
 monies vary among different castes and locali- 
 ties, and you may meet with descriptions of them 
 differing from these, which are still just as cor- 
 
180 SIX YEAES IN INDIA. 
 
 rect. We have never witnessed all the marriage 
 or funeral ceremonies, but wedding processions 
 and burning of corpses are matters of daily 
 occurrence. 
 
 SEASONS AND OEOPS. 
 
 We have, in reality, only three seasons in In- 
 dia, the hot, rainy, and cold; but the terms 
 spring and autumn are often used. 
 
 The hot season extends from about the mid- 
 dle of March till the latter part of June, when 
 the rainy season commences and the hot wind 
 subsides. The grains which were sown in Octo- 
 ber and November are harvested in March and 
 April, and this constitutes the "rubbee," or 
 spring harvest. Wheat, potatoes, peas, etc., 
 ripen at this time. 
 
 The trees renew their leaves during these 
 months, but the change is so gradual that it 
 would scarcely be noticed but for the large quan- 
 tities of dead leaves that are gathered up daily 
 in the groves and used for fuel. 
 
 During the hot season dust storms are of fre- 
 quent occurrence, and are sometimes of great 
 violence. Large trees are split, and even torn 
 up by the roots, and carried some distance. Some 
 years the rains are withheld, and the merchants 
 raise the price of grain till there is much distress 
 among the people. A fine shower will often 
 lower prices considerably. Other years the rains 
 
SIX YEARS IN INDIA. 181 
 
 are so plentiful that rivers, tanks, and ponds 
 overflow large tracts of country, and render 
 traveling difficult, and even dangerous. Villages 
 are sometimes swept away, and great destruction 
 of life and property ensues. Reptiles and insects 
 abound, and many die from their bites and stings. 
 
 In August and September is the " khareef," 
 or autumn harvest, when Indian cereals, rice, 
 etc., are gathered in. The rains sensibly lessen 
 during these months, and close about the last of 
 September. The sun shines almost continuously, 
 and with great heat, and from the steaming 
 vegetation there rises a malaria that causes much 
 sickness among the people, Europeans as well as 
 natives. 
 
 The intervening months between the rainy 
 and hot seasons constitute our cold season, which 
 is delightfully cool and invigorating. Cool 
 bracing nights, and bright sunny days, render 
 existence a luxury and renovate the physical 
 system. 
 
182 • SIX YEARS IN INDIA. 
 
 LETTER XIY. 
 
 Missionary "Work in Budaon — Girls' School — Itineratings — 
 Hot Season — Tattees — Small Pox — Journey to Nynee 
 Tal — Sickness in the Mission — Death of Jesse R. Pierce — 
 Return to Budaon. 
 
 Budaon, April 20, 1860. 
 
 My Dear Mother, — I must tell you in this 
 letter something of our work in this place. Our 
 native catechist is Joseph Angelo, a member of 
 the little society of native Christians belonging 
 to the Church of England at Bareilly. He was 
 formerly a Roman Catholic, but concluded that 
 was but little better than to be a Hindoo, so he 
 became a Protestant. He is a very efficient 
 helper in many respects, but does not possess so 
 much influence among the natives as is desira- 
 ble. Mary, his wife, is an energetic, capable 
 woman, and a very good teacher. 
 
 I commenced a school soon after we came 
 here, on what is called by some the "bribing 
 system," as an experiment. It is extremely dif- 
 ficult to persuade the natives to let their daugh- 
 ters come to us to be taught. They think it 
 wholly unnecessary for women to be able to 
 read, and even regard it as a disreputable ac- 
 quisition, since dancing girls and others of ques- 
 
SIX YEAES IN INDIA. 185 
 
 tionable character, are the only ones among 
 them who are possessed of this knowledge. 
 
 We try to convince them that their daughters 
 will make better wives and mothers if they are 
 more intelligent ; bnt they answer, " It is all very 
 well for the sahib logue," that is, the white peo- 
 ple ; " it is your custom, but it is not ours, and 
 we don't wish to change." They object, too, 
 that their girls earn one or two anas a day by 
 picking cotton or gathering sticks, or whatever 
 it may be, and they cannot afford to have them 
 lose two hours every morning for school. So I 
 said to them, " I will pay your girls one pice 
 each for coming to school two hours regularly 
 every day." 
 
 I engaged twelve young girls in that way, and 
 could have engaged fifty more, I dare say, but 
 that number was sufficient for the experiment 
 and for the means in hand. 
 
 There are also six Christian children, two 
 from one of the Christian families we found 
 here, and four belonging to our native catechist ; 
 so I have a school of eighteen children, all girls 
 except three. 
 
 We, that is Mary and I, go into the school- 
 room every morning at seven o'clock. We first 
 read and explain a few verses from the Bible, 
 then all join in singing a verse or two and kneel 
 in prayer. After the leading prayer all join in 
 repeating, " Our Father, who art in heaven," etc. 
 
186 SIX YEARS IN INDIA. 
 
 We then teach the children hymns, and the sim- 
 plest questions of the catechism,, These opening 
 exercises occupy about half an hour. 
 
 For one hour we then teach them to read and 
 spell, and two or three of the Christian children 
 to write ; then half an hour is spent in plain 
 sewing, which they very soon learn. I pay them 
 every Saturday morning six pice each, which 
 make one and a half anas, or four cents and a 
 half! 
 
 This sum, though small, is of considerable im- 
 portance to them, and will help them a great 
 deal, as the cloth and grain they buy are of cheap, 
 coarse quality. 
 
 Several of them have paid so much attention 
 to my remarks about cleanliness and neatness in 
 dress, that instead of spending their money for 
 sweetmeats they save up their anas until they 
 have enough to purchase themselves some new 
 article of dress. One appeared in a spotless 
 new chudder, another in a new skirt, etc. 
 
 The Christian children learn rapidly, but the 
 twelve little Hindoo children were wild as hares 
 when they began to attend school, and I have 
 found it very difficult to interest them in books. 
 Two or three of them are very bright, and will 
 soon become good scholars ; but the others are 
 rather dull. 
 
 One morning several of the girls came very 
 late, and when they entered the school-room 
 
SIX YEARS IN INDIA. 187 
 
 looked very serious. When I asked what had 
 delayed them, they all came right to me leading 
 one of their number along rather forcibly. They 
 said, " Mem sahib, this girl got very angry and 
 behaved very wickedly ; she tried to throw her- 
 self in a well ! " One of them ventured to say 
 that she would have gone to a very bad place 
 indeed if she had succeeded, didn't the mem 
 sahib think so ? I talked with them some time, 
 until the little culprit said she should never, 
 never try to do so wicked a thing again. 
 
 Mr. H. and Joseph have a boys' school in the 
 city, with over sixty boys in attendance ; but we 
 lack in efficient teachers. Joseph does very well 
 for young boys, but is scarcely advanced enough 
 himself to teach those who, having already 
 learned to read, are ready to take up mathema- 
 tics, geography, etc. 
 
 We have commenced a mission chapel near 
 our house, quite a large sum having been sub- 
 scribed by the English residents of Budaon for 
 this purpose. This, of course, involves more 
 labor for Mr. H. ; but we must have such buildings 
 at our mission stations, and much work of this 
 kind falls necessarily on the pioneer missionary. 
 
 The interest manifested in the preaching by 
 the people in the city still continues. They 
 gather by hundreds whenever Mr. H. and Jo- 
 seph take their stand and commence reading or 
 talking. Often two, three, or four men come 
 
188 SIX YEAES IN INDIA. 
 
 up to the Sabbath services on the mission prem- 
 ises. But they all seem very wary, and do not 
 intend to become Christians, nor to be made 
 such by any arts of legerdemain. 
 
 The hot wind commenced earlier than usual 
 this year, and we expect a most trying season in 
 consequence. It fairly shrieks around the house, 
 and if by any mischance I catch a stray breath 
 as the servants come in, it seems to scorch my 
 face and eyeballs like the heat of an oven. 
 Night and day the punkahs are kept in motion, 
 and we have also put up what is called a tattee. 
 It is a mat of the fragrant kuskus grass, made 
 on a frame and fitted in a westerly doorway, the 
 door itself being fastened back. 
 
 The bheestee keeps this wet by throwing 
 water on it from the outside, and the hot wind 
 rushes through it, transformed into a cool re- 
 freshing breeze. The punkah then sends this 
 cooled air all over the house. 
 
 This plan would seem to be very desirable, 
 but in our case we found it to be most perni- 
 cious. We had colds, catarrhs, and neuralgias 
 in abundance, and were obliged to give it up. 
 
 Small-pox broke out in Budaon the first of 
 this month, and spread rapidly among the 
 swarming multitudes in the city. An English 
 gentleman in the house next to us had it quite 
 severely, and it also made its appearance on our 
 own premises in the family of the sweeper. He 
 
SIX YEAES IN INDIA. 189 
 
 continued, however, to come to his work daily, 
 until we learned of the state of affairs from our 
 catechist, and forbade him the house. 
 
 Europeans are not so fearful of this dread 
 disease as our people at home, or else, like the 
 Orientals, they have learned to submit patiently 
 to their u kismat." No one seems to think of 
 taking any further precaution than to see that 
 every member of the family is vaccinated. 
 
 Native vaccinators are also sent forth from tjie 
 hospitals into the cities and villages to vaccinate 
 the people, and thousands submit to the opera- 
 tion, although they are somewhat afraid of it. 
 Some are suspicious that in some mysterious 
 way the Christian - religion may be infused ! 
 Others suspect it is to test people's loyalty, and 
 suppose that the vaccinators can tell from the 
 quality of the blood who are friends to govern- 
 ment and who are foes ! We hear of some sick- 
 ness in our mission even so early in the season. 
 
 When we removed to this place Mr. and Mrs. 
 Waugh removed from Shahjehanpore to Ba- 
 reilly, and Mr. Baume and family removed from 
 Lucknow to Shahjehanpore. A daughter was 
 born to them in February, and has recently 
 died. They are alone in the mission at S., as 
 are we here. So long as we remain well we do 
 not mind being alone so very much, as constant 
 occupation keeps us from loneliness ; but there is 
 always a trembling anxiety when illness comes, 
 
190 SIX YEAKS IN INDIA. 
 
 and a strong desire for the presence of other 
 missionaries. 
 
 Mrs. Parker, of Bijnour, has been suffering 
 from severe illness, and has already been obliged 
 to take refuge in Nynee Tal. My own health 
 begins to suffer from the intense heat, and we 
 have concluded that I ought to spend May and 
 June in the hills, and so escape the debilitating 
 effect of the hot wind. 
 
 Nynee Tal, June 11, 1860. 
 
 You perceive, dear mother, there is quite a 
 gap in my dates. My health failed so rapidly 
 that I left Budaon sooner than I expected. Mr. 
 H. took me over to Bareilly in his buggy, and 
 after a delightful visit with our friends, sent me 
 alone from there to Nynee Tal. 
 
 I left Bareilly at nine o'clock P. M., and had 
 a lonely journey in my palkee to Pampore, which 
 I reached in about twelve hours. I stopped at 
 the little dak bungalow which the nawab of 
 Pampore keeps open for the accommodation of 
 European travelers. The heat was so intense I 
 could only remain quietly in the bungalow all 
 day, till the evening coolness should enable me 
 to go on. 
 
 The servants were very respectful and attent- 
 ive, but I could not help feeling ill at ease 
 through the day. 
 
 The khansamah brought me an excellent din- 
 ner, and a cup of tea just as I was about to 
 
SIX YEARS IN INDIA. 191 
 
 leave, but would accept no payment, it was 
 against " his highness's " orders ; and, wonder of 
 wonders ! the ever-ready cry of " buksheesh " 
 was also missing. The servants, however, did 
 not refuse a small present each, and made me 
 profound salams when I departed. 
 
 I traveled the ensuing night without further 
 incident than the requests for buksheesh when- 
 ever the kahars changed, and the screams of 
 jackals. I reached Kaludoongee, at the foot of 
 the hills, about eight o'clock in the morning, 
 where I found nine paharees and a jhaumpaun 
 waiting for me. Half way up the hill I found 
 our bachelor missionary, Mr. Thoburn, who had 
 kindly come down to meet me. 
 
 I was glad to see the cheerful green little val- 
 ley and grand old hills of JSTynee Tal again, and 
 O how invigorating were the deliciously cool 
 mountain breezes ! The lake looked greener 
 and smaller than ever, and the cottages on the 
 mountain slopes were resplendent with new 
 paint. The lieutenant-governor and his suite 
 are spending the season here, and the buildings 
 have been put in better repair than usual, per- 
 haps on that account. 
 
 Mr. Knowles and family occupy half the mis- 
 sion house, and the other half has had quite a 
 number of occupants since I came up. Mr. and 
 Mrs. Parker, Dr. Butler and family, Mrs. Pierce 
 and children, Mr. Humphrey and myself, have 
 
192 SIX YEARS IN INDIA. 
 
 helped to keep the rooms well filled. Dr. But- 
 ler's family remained only a week, with the ex- 
 ception of their two boys, who are still in my care. 
 
 Mrs. Pierce came the sixteenth of May, in the 
 vain hope of saving the life of her little boy of 
 eighteen months. He had been very healthy 
 until he came to the ordeal of teething, and 
 even then kept pretty well until the hot weather 
 came on, when he was seized with fever. The 
 sweet little sufferer was too far gone to rally. 
 He lived only nine days after they arrived. 
 You can understand somewhat how sad it was 
 for Mrs. Pierce to bury her darling here alone. 
 She suffered much in her own health from her 
 unremitting care of the child, and after he was 
 buried she was ill for several days. She was 
 able to acquiesce sweetly in the divine will, al- 
 though her heart was sorely stricken by the be- 
 reavement. She and little Rilla have returned 
 to Lucknow. Mr. and Mrs. Parker have also 
 returned to Bijnour. 
 
 Mr. Humphrey came up the last of May. We 
 intend to return to Budaon so soon as the " chota 
 barsat " shall have quenched the scorching rag- 
 ing winds that are sweeping over the plains. 
 
 I am advised to remain here through the sea- 
 son, but I do not like to be separated from my 
 husband longer than is absolutely necessary, and 
 my health is so much improved now that I hope 
 to remain well throughout the season. 
 
SIX YEAES IN INDIA. 193 
 
 LETTEK XV. 
 
 Unusual Heat — Drought — Famine — Strange Yagaries of Hin- 
 dooism — Service x)f the Church of England — Anglo- Ver- 
 nacular School — School for Boys of the Sweeper Caste — 
 Illness — A Friend in Need — Convalescence — Hindoo 
 Fair — Cold Season — Famine Orphans — Christmas Observ- 
 ances — Annual Meeting — Removal to Bareilly. 
 
 Btjdaon, August 15, 1860. 
 
 My Dear Mother, — Immediately after the 
 first rain fell in June we left Nynee Tal for 
 Budaon, where we arrived on the morning of 
 the 27th. Instead of the usual rains through 
 July and August, we have only had occasional 
 showers, which cool the atmosphere temporarily, 
 but have little effect upon the earth. 
 
 There is, therefore, much distress among the 
 people, as the grain merchants promptly brought 
 the prices up to famine rates. Many poor peo- 
 ple have sold their children to rich meu, for two 
 and three rupees each, openly in our streets ! 
 There have also been cases of robbery and com- 
 mittal to jail, when the only motive of the of- 
 fender was to get into a place where he would 
 receive food ? 
 
 Our mischievous neighbors, the apes, make 
 frequent forays into the blighted crops to appease 
 their hunger, although, wonderful as it may 
 13 
 
194 SIX YEARS IN INDIA. 
 
 seem, the grain merchants bring bags of wheat 
 to the groves inhabited by these creatures, and 
 feed them, while men, women, and children are 
 starving all around. They are under no obliga- 
 tion to feed people of low caste, but apes must 
 not be allowed to suffer ! They also place grain, 
 sugar, and salt by the ant hills for the benefit of 
 ants ! 
 
 I have not been able to recommence my school 
 since my return, as my health is so unreliable at 
 this season. 
 
 Mr. H. holds the boys' Anglo-vernacular 
 school in our chapel now, which is finished and 
 dedicated. It is a small " puckah " building 
 with a portico in front. We hold Hindoostanee 
 services in it every Sabbath morning, and En- 
 glish services in the evening. I have not men- 
 tioned to you, I think, that we have held a 
 service in English ever since we have been 
 here. The occasion of it is this : there is no 
 chaplain stationed here, and the few European 
 residents wished Mr. H. to hold one service on 
 the Sabbath for them. He reads the service of 
 the Church of England and delivers a short 
 discourse. 
 
 We have a boys' school in the city, pupiled 
 wholly by boys of the mihtar, or sweeper caste, 
 the lowest strata of Hindooism. The poor lads 
 have had much difficulty in getting into mixed 
 schools on account of their degraded condition, 
 
SIX TEARS IN INDIA. 195 
 
 so they have come into this school in numbers so 
 large as to monopolize it. 
 
 Joseph Angelo has returned to Bareilly, and 
 we have in his stead Enoch Burge, a native 
 preacher, formerly of the American Presbyterian 
 Mission in Futteghur. He has an excellent 
 wife, three intelligent sons, and one little 
 daughter. 
 
 Babielly, May 21, 1861. 
 
 My Dear Mother, — I am grateful to my 
 heavenly Father that I am permitted to write 
 you again. He has raised me from the bed of 
 sickness, and restored me to a good degree of 
 health again. I suffered from fever most of the 
 early part of September, I860, and was in con- 
 sequence prematurely confined of a son on the 
 13th. He remained with us only a few days, 
 and then the little pure spirit returned to Him 
 who gave it. 
 
 This deep disappointment and sorrow, added 
 to the depressing influence of the intense heat, 
 was of course unfavorable to me, and to my 
 husband's grief at our loss was soon added great 
 anxiety on my account. 
 
 The day our little one was buried I began to 
 suffer excessively from faintness and difficulty 
 of breathing, and at one time I was so very low 
 that I gave up all hope of recovery. For sev- 
 eral days I hovered on the borders of the spirit- 
 world ; but it pleased God to so bless the reme- 
 
196 SIX YEARS IN INDIA. 
 
 dies used, and the tender care I was favored with, 
 that I began to rally, and after a tedious con- 
 valescence recovered my strength. 
 
 Our dear, kind friend, Mrs. Waugh, came over 
 from Bareilly immediately upon hearing of my 
 illness, and remained until I began decidedly 
 to mend. You may well believe she was 5 a 
 great comfort to us both through this trying 
 season. 
 
 Clara, Enoch's wife, was also very kind, and 
 manifested so much love and sympathy that I 
 felt my heart not only drawn out more strongly 
 toward her, but also toward native women gen- 
 erally, since I had such proof of their true 
 womanliness and capacity for good. 
 
 Toward the last of November the usual 
 melas, or fairs, were held by the Hindoos at dif- 
 ferent points on the Ganges. 
 
 Mr. Knowles, who removed to Bareilly in 
 October last, and Joseph Fieldbrave, came over 
 and accompanied Mr. H. and Enoch Burge to 
 that point on the Ganges where the people as- 
 sembled from this region of country. They had 
 a stirring time at the great mela, preaching to 
 multitudes and distributing tracts and gospels. 
 It was estimated that at least one hundred and 
 fifty thousand people were present. 
 
 The cold season was delightful, and but for 
 the continued famine our surroundings would 
 have been so ; but it was very painful to witness 
 
SIX YEARS IN INDIA. 197 
 
 so -much suffering that we could do but little to 
 alleviate. The English residents have raised a 
 relief fund, from which distributions of rice, 
 flour, etc, are made daily; but as these distribu- 
 tions are in the cities, the poor villagers in the 
 district cannot profit much by it, and many have 
 died from starvation. We are beginning to 
 gather famine orphans into our orphanages. 
 Two boys have been recently forwarded to Ba- 
 reilly by us. Their case is quite interesting. 
 They came to our verandah one cold bright 
 morning in December, and startled me, as I was 
 reading quietly by the fire, by a sharp plaintive 
 call, " Mem sahib, we are dying from hunger | 
 please give us food." I went out and found two 
 boys, evidently not professional beggars, shiver- 
 ing in the keen air. The elder boy looked about 
 ten years of age, and had a frank, earnest coun 
 tenance. A bundle of tattered garments was 
 tied to his neck, in order that his arms might be 
 free to carry the other boy, a poor emaciated 
 child apparently about two years of age. The 
 hungry look in their eyes went to my heart. 
 
 " Will you eat some bread ? " I asked, for I 
 saw they were Hindoos, but I could not tell 
 their caste. 
 
 " O yes ! " said the elder boy, " I will be very 
 glad to, and so will my brother, for he can't eat 
 the coarse bread which the people sometimes 
 give us." 
 
198 SIX YEARS IN INDIA. 
 
 I gave them each a slice of bread, and told 
 them to sit down and eat, and afterward they 
 conld tell me why they came to the mission honse. 
 They had said they were from a village ten miles 
 away. 
 
 " We want to stay here," spoke up the elder 
 boy at once. 
 
 The little boy scarcely knew whether the 
 strange, light white substance was designed to 
 be eateu or not. He ate a small piece, and find- 
 ing it to be very good, stuffed his mouth so full 
 that he could not chew it. So his brother kind- 
 ly broke off small mouthfuls, and fed him the 
 whole piece before he ate his own. 
 
 Their story was a sad one. " A long time 
 ago," said the elder boy, " I don't know how 
 long, my father and mother died of starvation. 
 They had been weak and ill for some time, and 
 then there was no one to go begging for food 
 but me, and I did not get much, for the neigh- 
 bors were all so poor. One morning, when my 
 little brother and I awoke, they were both dead. 
 I carried my brother to a neighbor's house, and 
 used to take him all around to the villagers and 
 beg for food. The people were very kind, and 
 always shared their food with us, and, till the 
 grass dried up so that the cows gave no milk, 
 they gave my brother milk occasionally. When 
 we could no longer get a little milk, I sometimes 
 got rice or a little dal, and boiled till very ten- 
 
SIX YEARS IN INDIA. 199 
 
 der, and fed him, but now for many days I could 
 get only coarse bread, and so be bas become 
 very tbin and ill. Two days ago a man told 
 me that there was a padre sahib in Budaon who 
 took orphan children and provided for them, so 
 I have brought my brother all the way in my 
 arms, and we may stay here, mayn't we?" I 
 assured him that he might, if his story proved 
 to be true, and I sent a servant with them at 
 once to make inquiries at the police station. 
 He ascertained that they were really orphans, 
 and wholly destitute of friends, so there was 
 nothing to prevent our taking charge of them. 
 We kept them over a week in order to make 
 up some clothes for them, and to give the little 
 one time to recruit. It was touching to see the 
 rare unselfishness of Gtulab, the elder boy. He 
 seemed grateful for his own good food and cloth- 
 ing, but appeared to take far more delight in 
 his brother's bettered circumstances. "In a 
 few days," said he, " he will be able to walk 
 again, and then he will grow fat and strong. 
 When they left for Bareilly he could walk a 
 little, and the starved expression was gone from 
 his eyes ; but he will probably never be very 
 strong. 
 
 Christmas morning gifts came pouring in 
 from our Hindoostanee teachers and friends in 
 the city, and we learned that the natives, know- 
 ing this to be a " burra din," that is, a great 
 
200 SIX YEARS IN INDIA. 
 
 day with Europeans, usually make them presents 
 and pay them their respects on that day. The 
 gifts are generally flat baskets tastefully covered 
 with lemons, oranges, pomegranates, raisins, 
 almonds, grapes, and small cones of white su- 
 gar. A servant bearing the presents usually 
 precedes the donor, who, having deposited the 
 basket on the floor near the " sahib," quietly 
 retires. The native gentleman then comes to 
 the door, where he takes off his shoes and en- 
 ters the room barefoot. He does not uncover 
 his head, however, as that would be considered 
 a mark of disrespect. He then bows nearly to 
 the floor, at the same time raising his right hand 
 to his forehead, and says, " Salam, sahib," that 
 is, Peace be with you, sir. After he is seated he 
 inquires, " Is your honor's temper good ? " after 
 which they chat on various subjects. It is not 
 allowable to ask after a person's health unless 
 he is ill, and on no account may you ask a native 
 gentleman if his wife and children are well. If 
 on very intimate terms with him you may in- 
 quire if his house are well, meaning of course 
 its inmates. Indeed, there is no word in the 
 Hindoostanee language to express the relation 
 of wife. 
 
 Just here let me explain. As a general rule 
 a native does not make a present from mere 
 good-will. He has usually some good to him- 
 self in view. Give, " hoping for nothing again," 
 
SIX YEARS IK INDIA. 201 
 
 is no part of his creed. It would rather run, 
 " Give, hoping to receive threefold." 
 
 Our teachers would like higher salaries, our 
 servants higher wages, or, what they value more, 
 " buksheesh." Our native acquaintances see 
 that we are on friendly term with the magistrates 
 and judges, and so think it politic to propitiate 
 us, as they may some time wish to have the ben- 
 efit of our influence with those magnates. There 
 are, however, exceptions to this rule. Many 
 natives undoubtedly are sincerely attached to 
 the missionaries, and believe them to be promot- 
 ing the welfare of the people. 
 
 We held service about midday, and in the 
 evening all met in the chapel again and had a 
 little entertainment, designed more particularly 
 for the six children of our little community, 
 but which the adults seemed to enjoy as well. 
 
 The doors of the chapel were festooned with 
 wreaths of green leaves, and some presents for 
 the children were hung on a small tree which 
 had been purloined from a grove hard by. 
 Oranges, lemons, and confectionary helped to 
 give the tree a very captivating appearance to 
 the eyes of the children. 
 
 We all partook of cakes and tea first, after 
 which Enoch went into the altar, and, with many 
 witty remarks about the singular tree which 
 bore so many kinds of fruit, distributed the 
 gifts. As there were several presents for each 
 
202 SIX YEABS IN INDIA. 
 
 of the children, they had quite a merry time 
 going to the altar to receive them, and then 
 making their salams in acknowledgement. 
 
 When the distribution was over, Enoch's two 
 eldest boys repeated some hymns and portions 
 of Scripture, and we all joined in singing a 
 Christmas hymn to the tune of " Happy Day," 
 which, with a deal of trouble in the selection of 
 words, I had composed for the occasion. 
 
 After prayer we separated, well pleased with 
 the result of the little effort put forth to com- 
 memorate the day. 
 
 January passed away without note, except 
 that Mr. Cowie, the chaplain of Bareilly, came 
 over to Budaon and held communion service for 
 the English residents. It was a very pleasant 
 season. We were allowed to join with mem- 
 bers of the Church this time, in commemorating 
 the death and sufferings of our common Lord. 
 Mr. Cowie handed over the sacramental collec- 
 tion to Mr. Humphrey for the mission school. 
 
 We visited a famous temple one day, the only 
 one of note in the city, which is now used as a 
 mosque by Mohammedans. It is said to be a 
 very ancient edifice, built by the Hindoos, but 
 wrested from them by the Mohammedans. Out- 
 wardly it is merely a plain large temple, brown 
 and mossy with age, but the interior is beautiful. 
 
 Under the immense dome is a large room en- 
 closed only on three sides, the fourth opening 
 
SIS YEARS IN INDIA. 203 
 
 on a spacious platform, which, with the floor of 
 the room, is paved with marble. The walls are 
 covered with quaint and beautiful mouldings 
 and frescoes, and in numerous places are inscribed 
 with the name of God — Allah. 
 
 The Mohammedans shame us by their open 
 attachment to their religion. Eo matter what 
 a faithful Mussulman is doing, when the muez- 
 zin's cry sounds out from the mosques he drops 
 his work or ceases to bargain, and turning his 
 face toward Mecca, bows humbly to the ground 
 and repeats a formula of prayer. 
 
 Many things indeed meet our eyes daily that 
 remind us that the Bible is an Eastern book. 
 This Mohammedan custom of praying in the 
 streets and shops is very like that of the proud 
 Pharisees, who prayed to be seen of men. 
 
 All the grains are ground by hand-mills, and 
 the work is mostly done by women, the aged 
 mothers and widows. We hear the " sound of 
 the grinding " early in the morning as we pass 
 the houses of the natives, and we are reminded 
 of the passage, " Two women shall be grinding 
 at the mill, the one shall be taken and the other 
 left." 
 
 Then, too, the women of the lower castes 
 come to the wells to draw water, bearing their 
 curiously- shaped pitchers (ghurrahs) on their 
 heads, like Rebekah of old. The flat roofs of 
 the " puckah " houses — whither the natives, espe- 
 
204 SIX YEARS IN INDIA. 
 
 cially the women, resort in the evening — the 
 bridal processions, all seem strangely natural to 
 us, so like are they to the scenes delineated in 
 holy writ. 
 
 The first of February we started for Bareilly, 
 where our annual meeting was to be held. We 
 traveled by marches, making but ten miles a 
 day, Mr. H. and Enoch preaching by the way. 
 We reached Bareilly the third day, and pitched 
 our tent on the new mission premises near can- 
 tonments which are now adorned by a very fine 
 kotee occupied by Dr. Butler. Another house, 
 a bungalow, was in process of erection, and also 
 some buildings for the boys' orphanage. 
 
 On the mission " compound," as such inclos- 
 ures are called here, several tents were standing, 
 for we were each to " keep house," and meet in 
 Dr. Butler's library for our sessions and religious 
 services. Our missionary band were all present 
 except Mrs. Judd and Mr. Thoburn. Mr. Par- 
 sons had gone out from us. He left early in the 
 year and joined a Baptist mission. 
 
 The annual meeting was very interesting. 
 Joel, Enoch, Thomas, Zahoor-ul-Huqq, and two 
 or three other native catechists preached, and 
 several orphan boys were baptized-. Mrs. Pierce 
 and Mrs. Downey gave very favorable accounts 
 of the state of the orphanages. The missiona- 
 ries reported their fields of labor, schools, con- 
 verts, inquirers, etc. 
 
SIX YEARS IN INDIA. 205 
 
 When we broke up it was with a feeling of 
 deep sympathy for each other and of united 
 interest in our work. 
 
 As we were appointed to Bareilly, I did not 
 return to Budaon. I spent most of the interim 
 between the annual meeting and Mr. Hum- 
 phrey's return with our goods, at Cashmere Ko- 
 tee. "When he arrived we pitched a large tent 
 and occupied it till the first of March, when Dr. 
 Butler removed his family to Nynee Tal, and 
 we took possession of part of the house they 
 had occupied. 
 
 The first week of April Mr. and Mrs. Waugh 
 and Mrs. Downey, with the orphan boys and the 
 whole staff of native teachers and servants, 
 moved over from Cashmere Kotee. 
 
 Mrs. Downey caught a severe cold while mov- 
 ing, which speedily brought her down with in- 
 flammation of the lungs. For two weeks she 
 lay very ill, and then was just able to be placed 
 in a palkee and taken to Eynee Tal. We feared 
 when she left that she might not live to reach 
 there. 
 
 Mrs. Waugh accompanied her, and remained 
 by her a fortnight. She then returned home, 
 leaving Mrs. Downey, who was slowly recover- 
 ing, to spend the season. 
 
 Mr. H. and I each had an attack of fever in 
 April. He recovered very quickly, but I re- 
 mained so weak, and had symptoms so alarming, 
 
206 SIX TEARS IK INDIA. 
 
 that our physician hurried me off to Nynee Tal. 
 I recovered very rapidly there, and returned 
 home after a stay of three weeks. 
 
 I found still another bungalow in process of 
 erection on my return, and was informed that it 
 was to be our house. 
 
 The season is now in the very zenith of its 
 heat, but we do not find it so very difficult to 
 keep comfortable as we did last year. We 
 study a great deal, and Mr. H. is kept very busy 
 in superintending the workmen on the orphan- 
 age and printing office and the new bungalow, 
 and in preaching in the city. 
 
 This place seems strangely home-like, I pre- 
 sume because here we first launched out into the 
 native work. If another Zahoor-ul-Huqq be 
 granted us this year we shall rejoice. 
 
SIX YEARS IN INDIA. 207 
 
 LETTEE XVI. 
 
 Startling News from Home — Girls' School — Arrangement of 
 Native Work in Bareilly — Effect of Preaching — Inquirer — 
 His Persecutions — Conversion — Narrowly escapes Martyr- 
 dom — Liberality of EngHsh Residents — Building — Heavy 
 Rains — Wesleypore Colony — Removal to Shahjehanpore. 
 
 Shahjehanporb, Nov. 21, 1861. 
 
 My Dear Mother, — Before I resume my ac- 
 count of our life in Bareilly I must notice the 
 startling news from home. 
 
 "We received news of the outrage at Fort 
 Sumter by telegraph about the middle of May ? 
 and the last papers we received in June brought 
 the terrible news that war with the South is in- 
 evitable. How strange it seems ! Our own 
 peaceful land at war, brother with brother ! It 
 seemed to us when we first read the news, that 
 the foundations of the earth were being moved ! 
 It appears to us here that this struggle involves 
 more than it purports to at present ; in fact, that 
 it will not cease until that deadly blight upon 
 our fair land, that shameful stigma upon our re- 
 publican institutions, slavery, is removed. 
 
 The Christian world has been looking for this 
 eruption. It could not but come, since God 
 hears the cry of the oppressed and will avenge 
 them. 
 
208 SIX YEARS IN INDIA. 
 
 You may well believe that we are, and shall 
 be, very anxious. The mails will be impatiently 
 waited for, but when received will be, alas! two 
 months old. But I will go on with my narrative. 
 
 Soon after I returned from Nynee Tal I com- 
 menced a girls' school, in which were some twelve 
 pupils, including the native preacher's and serv- 
 ant's girls and three or four young Sikh women. 
 I commenced the school the first of June, and 
 kept it up till October. I did not pay any one 
 for attending, but during one hour each day I 
 had them sew on garments for the orphan boys, 
 and paid them according to their work. 
 
 The girls improved fast in sewing, with this 
 incentive before them, and several of them earned 
 eight or ten annas per week. An anna equals 
 three cents. Minepul Sing's young wife excelled 
 the others. She was an ignorant young girl 
 when Minepul brought her to the Mission the 
 previous winter, and he was very anxious to have 
 her learn to read and sew, and more than all 
 he strongly desired her to understand and be- 
 lieve the Christian religion. She was very awk- 
 ward at first, and I often despaired of her learn- 
 ing the alphabet of her own language ; and as to 
 sewing, her needle went in every direction ex- 
 cept the right one. I doir't really know whether 
 she or I had the harder time of it during the 
 first month of the school, but she came up all 
 right at last, and earned three annas a day, by 
 
SIX YEARS IN INDIA. 209 
 
 sewing, a good part of the season. Her mind 
 expanded proportionately. She learned to read, 
 and seemed in some measure to comprehend and 
 feel the force of the truths of Christianity. 
 
 The first hour of school was always deeply 
 interesting. The women and elder girls sat on 
 low cane seats on one side, and the younger girls 
 on a rug on the other, forming a three-quarter's 
 circle around me. 
 
 The lesson was always something about the 
 life of our Saviour, but often, through their nu- 
 merous and curious questions, extended back to 
 the deluge and forward to the resurrection day ! 
 After this we all joined in singing a simple 
 hymn, and in learning two or three others. 
 Then we all knelt in prayer, and in conclusion 
 all joined in repeating our Lord's prayer. 
 
 My school hours, from six o'clock till nine 
 A. M., were the happiest of the day. I became 
 greatly attached to my scholars, and had the 
 satisfaction of seeing them improve very much. 
 One little girl, named Gunguah, is the daughter 
 of our sais, and was so destitute of suitable 
 clothing that, in order to have her fit to attend 
 the school, I gave her a school dress, and re- 
 quired her to wear it only during school hours. 
 Her parents are Hindoos, and do not like to have 
 her learn to read, as they fear she will become 
 tainted with the " new religion." 
 
 Another bright little girl, daughter of a native 
 14 
 
210 SIX YEARS IN INDIA. 
 
 preacher, had always been very wild and averse 
 to school. She commenced coming, bnt her 
 mother told me she presumed I would find it 
 quite impossible to interest her, and that proba- 
 bly she would only attend a few days. But no ! 
 she applied herself diligently, learned to read 
 and sew, and became so attached to the school 
 that she would linger - about the hall door an 
 hour before the time for opening. 
 
 I did little else through the season but attend 
 to my school, as my health remained unsettled. 
 Still, I was conscious of making rapid advance- 
 ment in the language. I usually listened while 
 Mr. H. read with the moonshee, and thus re- 
 ceived some of the benefit of the lesson without 
 the labor. He was so well known in Bareilly, 
 too, that he received many native visitors, and 
 I found great pleasure in listening to their con- 
 versations. I was often surprised at the clear- 
 ness with which the intricate distinctions laid 
 down in the grammars were brought out in 
 them. 
 
 I gave as much attention as possible to the 
 translation of hymns, bat found it exceedingly 
 difficult to accomplish anything satisfactorily. 
 However, I succeeded in changing the dress of 
 sixteen of our standard hymns during the year. 
 
 The native work, as a whole, was more inter- 
 esting this year than we had ever known it be- 
 fore. We had a very efficient staff of native 
 
SIX YEARS IN INDIA. 211 
 
 helpers, who, although engaged in different de- 
 partments of the work, were able to alternate 
 in bazar preaching and visiting among the 
 natives. 
 
 Enoch Burge was the native preacher. Caleb, 
 whom we knew in Calcutta, and who is an ex- 
 cellent preacher, had come to us as an assistant 
 to Mr. Waugh in the work of the mission print- 
 ing press. Thomas Cull en was engaged in the 
 boys' orphanage. 
 
 Every Monday morning these native preach- 
 ers met with the missionaries, and a plan for the 
 week's preaching was made out and a copy 
 given to each. Every evening in the week 
 there was preaching at some point in or about 
 the city. A system of visiting native gentle- 
 men at their houses was also begun, and adhered 
 to during our stay in Bareilly. 
 
 Mr. Cowie also placed the little society of na- 
 tive Christians under his care in our charge, 
 with a view to their being permanently included 
 in our mission. Joseph Angelo alternated with 
 our preachers in the city work, and some one of 
 our staff held service in their little village every 
 Sabbath morning. There was also a band of 
 Eurasians, attached to a native regiment sta- 
 tioned in Bareilly, with whom we held service 
 once a week. 
 
 This constant stirring up of the native mind 
 necessarily produced some effect. The preach- 
 
212 SIX YEAES IN INDIA. 
 
 ing in the bazars was very largely attended, and 
 many discussions were held. The large number 
 of college students, some of whom were very 
 regular attendants upon the preaching, rendered 
 the congregations unusually intelligent. There 
 were many who seemed convinced of the truth 
 of Christianity, but yet could not make up their 
 minds to break away from their friends, and the 
 ties of caste and superstition. 
 
 One young baboo, (Hindoo gentleman,) how- 
 ever, was led to " count all things but loss," that 
 he might "win Christ." He had listened to 
 the preaching several times the first year we 
 were in Bareilly, and when we returned he be- 
 gan to call on Mr. H. and converse with him 
 freely about the way of salvation. He then 
 commenced attending the Hindoostanee services, 
 although, in order to elude the vigilance of his 
 father-in-law, who was bitterly opposed to Chris- 
 tianity, he was sometimes obliged to come in 
 undress* He was not watched so closely before 
 dressing, as his father-in-law supposed he would 
 not think of visiting the " Padre sahib " with- 
 out being properly clothed. I have seen him 
 tremble with emotion during the sermon, and it 
 was evident that the spirit of God was striving 
 with him, and what a struggle it must have 
 been ! How little do those in our own land 
 who talk about giving up the world and sacri- 
 ficing their pleasures, etc., know about real self- 
 
SIX YEAKS IN INDIA. 213 
 
 denial ! Umbeeka Churn, the young baboo, 
 finally resolved he would be a Christian at all 
 hazards. His praying and reading of the Bible 
 soon raised his father-in-law's wrath to such a 
 pitch that he could not endure it. Several 
 times he was severely beaten, and he resolved 
 that as he could not serve the Lord in peace at 
 home he would flee to the mission. He rea- 
 soned with his young wife, and prevailed upon 
 her to accompany him. One morning they fled, 
 but were discovered and followed. The timid 
 young wife was forced to return by her father, 
 but the baboo came to the mission. The same 
 night a part of his friends came and demanded 
 him, but he was not forthcoming. Early the 
 next morning the father-in-law came to our 
 house and desired Mr. H. to allow the baboo to 
 come on to the verandah and converse with 
 him. As he was alone, and seemed very calm 
 and dispassionate, Mr. H. sent for the baboo 
 and two native Christians. They came, sat 
 down in the verandah, and began to converse 
 quite amicably. After a few minutes Mr. H. 
 came into the house for the customary cup of tea. 
 We were scarcely seated at table when a loud 
 blow and a fall resounded from the verandah. 
 We ran out and saw the young man just rising 
 from the floor. Blood was streaming over his 
 face from a wound just over one of his eyes. 
 His father-in-law was running away from the 
 
214 SIX YEARS IN INDIA. 
 
 premises. He had first urged the baboo to return 
 home, and upon his refusing, suddenly shrieked 
 out with ungovernable fury, " I am ready to be 
 hung for you," and attempted to strike him on 
 on the temple with a heavy cane. Fortunately 
 the baboo turned his head, and so received the 
 blow on his forehead. 
 
 Toward night a rajah from the city, a Hindoo 
 of considerable wealth and influence, and quite 
 a friend of Europeans, came to us, being sent 
 by the baboo's friends, to persuade him to spend 
 the night at the rajah's house in order to hold a 
 discussion with the best pundits the city affords. 
 Mr. H. is acquainted with the rajah and knows 
 him to be at least outwardly honorable. He 
 gave his word that no violence should be used, 
 and that the young man should be returned to 
 the Mission the next morning safe and sound. 
 " I will not deceive you," said the rajah ; " we 
 shall do our best to convince the young man 
 that it will be better for him to remain a Hin- 
 doo, and we shall probably succeed." He knew 
 well the avarice of the native character, and 
 thought to buy the youth easily ; but he did not 
 understand how valueless money looks to a 
 Christian when hung in the balance against his 
 soul. 
 
 Mr. H. called the baboo, explained the rajah's 
 design to him, and asked him what he would 
 do. " Sahib," said he, " I do not wish to go ; it 
 
SIX YEAES IN INDIA. 215 
 
 will be very trying, though I am not afraid that 
 anything they can say will influence me in the 
 least. I will do as yon think best." 
 
 He went, and that night we all prayed earn- 
 estly that God would strengthen him in his hour 
 of trial. We slept but little that night, and 
 next morning all watched anxiously for the ra- 
 jah to keep his promise. At last his fine horses 
 and carriage were seen approaching bringing 
 the baboo, accompanied by the rajah's son. 
 
 We received the baboo back joyfully. He 
 seemed weary, but there was no mistaking the 
 look of satisfaction and peace on his face. 
 
 " Are you going to be a Christian, baboo ? " 
 asked Mr. H. 
 
 " I am," he replied, " the grace of God help- 
 ing me." 
 
 " So, then, you failed to convince the baboo 
 that it would be better for him to remain a 
 Hindoo," said Mr. H. to the rajah's son, who 
 remained in the carriage. 
 
 " It is very wonderful," he replied, throwing 
 up his hands with a gesture of astonishment ; 
 " who can tell what has got hold of him that he 
 thus throws himself away ! " and with a hasty 
 salam he drove off. 
 
 All that night had the baboo been assailed 
 by entreaty, argument, and temptation. A de- 
 sirable situation with a large salary, and with per- 
 mission to be a Christian privately, was offered 
 
216 SIX YEAES IN INDIA. 
 
 him, but he never once wavered, and the rajah 
 himself admitted that he must be sincere in his 
 belief. 
 
 The baboo tried every available means to ob- 
 tain his wife, but in vain. "When she was forced 
 to appear in court and declare before the magis- 
 trate whether she would go with her husband or 
 not, she said she would not live -with him if he 
 would be a Christian. She was probably over- 
 awed by her father's threats. 
 
 The fact that a baboo had actually broken 
 through the bonds of caste, and, in spite of the 
 determined opposition of his friends, identified 
 himself with the mission, and received Christian 
 baptism, speedily became known throughout the 
 city, and created great excitement. 
 
 The people, however, were more attentive to 
 the preaching than ever, and many inquiries were 
 made of the missionaries and native preachers. 
 
 There seemed indeed to be an unusual influ- 
 ence moving upon the native mind. The native 
 preachers remarked it, and were led themselves 
 to a greater degree of earnestness and zeal in 
 their efforts to enlighten the people and lead 
 them to the Saviour. There was a depth and 
 fervor in our services on the mission premises 
 that reminded us of seasons of revival at home, 
 and we could but believe that the Spirit of God 
 was working among the people. 
 
 We were abundantly supplied with means to 
 
SIX YEARS IN INDIA. 217 
 
 carry on our schools and work in Bareilly by the 
 liberality of the English residents. Several 
 gave us handsome donations, and others gave a 
 certain sum monthly, especially to carry on the 
 local work in Bareilly. 
 
 We observed the fast of August fifth, appoint- 
 ed by President Lincoln. Our national flag was 
 raised, as it is indeed every Sabbath. It was 
 very gratifying to us to witness the interest man- 
 ifested by our native Christians and preachers 
 in the fearful struggle which is going on in our 
 own beloved land, and to listen to their fervent 
 prayers that the right may prevail and peace be 
 speedily restored. 
 
 We received notice in September that we 
 must remove from Bareilly to Shahjehanpore 
 the first of November. We had fully expected 
 to remain much longer in Bareilly, and were 
 very sorry to have our relation to this interest- 
 ing work so soon broken off. We are strongly 
 attached to Bareilly as it was our first mission- 
 field, and we have labored there longer than in 
 any other place, and formed many acquaintances 
 both among Europeans and natives. 
 
 There, too, we have seen Zahoor-ul-Huqq, 
 Umbeeka Churn, and several others, break 
 through the time-honored chains of darkness, 
 and emerge into the light of Gospel liberty, and 
 it seemed to us that many others were about to 
 follow their example. 
 
218 SIX YEAES IN INDIA. 
 
 In October Mr. and Mrs. Parker removed to 
 Luckempore, in Oude, about sixty miles from 
 Shahjehanpore, which is the last mission station 
 in Rohilkund. 
 
 About twenty miles from Luckempore a set- 
 tlement has been formed of some of the Sikh 
 inquirers from Moradabad, which is under Mr. 
 Parker's care. These people have continued to 
 manifest a spirit of inquiry, and many among 
 them have become Christians, some of them 
 very earnest ones. 
 
 About one hundred people went to this settle- 
 ment, which is named Wesleypore. Among 
 them were most of the Sikh families we had 
 employed in Bareilly, including Minepul Sing 
 and his wife. Minepul's twin brother, Goordial, 
 and his wife, were also of the number. The 
 object of this is to have a village where, free 
 from the influence and interference of Hindoos 
 and Mohammedans, the people can be Christian- 
 ized and civilized. Our only fear is that the 
 site is a bad one. It is too near the belt of jun- 
 gle or wild land that skirts the Himalayas to be 
 a healthy location. 
 
 Soon after we removed to Bareilly our mis- 
 sion was reinforced by the arrival of six mission- 
 aries : Mr. and Mrs. Hauser, who went direct 
 to Bijnour; Mr. and Mrs. Jackson, who were ap- 
 pointed to Luckempore ; Mr. Messmore and Miss 
 Husk, who were both stationed in Lucknow. 
 
SIX YEAES IN INDIA. 219 
 
 Soon after their arrival Mr. Gracy, with his 
 wife and child, arrived, and was located at 
 Seetapore, midway between Lucknow and Shah- 
 jehanpore. Luckempore is but twenty miles 
 from Seetapore in a northerly direction. Mr. 
 Jackson has now removed to Bareilly, and as- 
 sumed the duties of treasurer to the mission. 
 
 We came to Shahjehanpore by palkee dak, 
 and arrived late in the evening. We had heard 
 much of the fine mission house here, and when 
 we saw walls striped with black mould, and torn 
 and musty cloth chuts over the rooms, we began 
 to think there must be a mistake somewhere. 
 An examination into the state of affairs, however, 
 showed us that the trouble was all caused by a 
 leaky roof, so we are again involved in all the 
 trouble of repairing a house while we live in it. 
 
 Fortunately this is a double bungalow, and 
 while one part is being repaired we can live in 
 the other ; but of course the whole house will be 
 strewn with mortar and whitewash, and be re- 
 dolent of the odors of new tiles and bricks. 
 
 The fatigue of moving, and our uncomforta- 
 ble situation here, have had an unfavorable in- 
 fluence upon my health. I can keep up only 
 part of the day, but I hope to rally soon in this 
 invigorating weather. The delightful cold sea- 
 son is again here, and day after day we rejoice 
 in cold bracing nights and mild balmy days. 
 
220 SIX YEAES IN INDIA. 
 
 LETTER XVII. 
 
 Marriage of Mr. Thoburn to Mrs. Downey — Translating 
 Hymns — Mr. Ulman — Reminiscences of the Mutiny in 
 Shahjehanpore — Luckimpore — Mrs. Pierce — Dr. Kareem 
 Buksh — Baptisms — Persecution of Native Christians — 
 Visit to some Native "Women — Journey to Nynee Tal — Ill- 
 ness — Return Home — Death of Mrs. Jackson — Death of 
 Mrs. Thoburn — Journey to Bareilly — Death of Mrs. Pierce, 
 
 Shahjehanporr, Oct. 25, 1862. 
 
 My Dear Mother, — On the fourteenth of De- 
 cember, 1861, Mr. Thoburn was married to Mrs. 
 Downey at Mr. Waugh's residence in Bareilly. 
 She has given up her connection with the boys' 
 orphanage, and returned with her husband to 
 Eynee Tal. "We hope the hill climate may 
 permanently restore her health, which is far 
 from being re-established. 
 
 I gradually grew stronger as the cold season 
 advanced, and although suffering constantly, I 
 was able to give some attention to translating 
 hymns. I first revised the sixteen I had on 
 hand, and sent them to Mr. Ulman, of the Amer- 
 ican Presbyterian Mission, for criticism. He 
 has been engaged in Hindoostanee hymnology 
 for over twenty years, and is the best authority 
 on the subject in Northern India. He very 
 kindly criticised my hymns freely, pointed out 
 
SIX YEAES IN INDIA. 221 
 
 defects, and gave me some very grateful words 
 of commendation and encouragement. Mr. 
 Scott too, of the same mission, was so kind as 
 to read the hymns, and to send me words of en- 
 couragement to go on in the work of trans- 
 lating. 
 
 Mr. Ulman also gave me some hints in regard 
 to the styles of rhyme peculiar to this language, 
 etc. I have since worked with much greater 
 facility, as I have a more definite idea in regard 
 to what I wish to attain. 
 
 Enoch Burge and his family accompanied us to 
 Shahjehanpore. We found here threemen who pro- 
 fessed to be Christians. One was in the police, and 
 made an open profession of his belief. The other 
 two were endeavoring to be Christians by stealth. 
 
 There was a boys' school, with an average at- 
 tendance of fifteen, in the little chapel Mr. Caw- 
 dell built in 1861. A young native Christian 
 from Lucknow was in charge of it. Mr. H. 
 soon removed the school to the city, where he 
 obtained a fine large building in a good situation 
 for it. The number of scholars increased so 
 rapidly that he had no Christian teacher, capa- 
 ble of managing so large a school, who could be 
 spared for that work. He engaged a young ba- 
 boo, who proved to be an excellent teacher. This 
 young man has a large salary, which, with the 
 rent of the building, etc., makes the expenses of 
 the school quite heavy, and in order to meet 
 
222 SIX YEARS IN INDIA. 
 
 them Mr. H. sent a subscription paper to the 
 English residents of the station. They sub- 
 scribed handsomely, and thus enabled him to 
 bring the school up to a high degree of excel- 
 lence, and to carry on the work without embar- 
 rassment. 
 
 Shahjehanpore is a rambling city of about 
 seventy thousand inhabitants, many of whom 
 are Mohammedans. There are no temples or 
 mosques of particular note, although several are 
 of very showy architecture. The outside of 
 one temple is covered with caricatures of fish 
 moulded in plaster and gilded. 
 
 The mission house stands very near the city. 
 It is a large commodious bungalow, and stands 
 in an extensive compound, which includes a 
 beautiful garden. There are lemons, oranges, 
 custard apples, pears, peaches, mangoes, and 
 guavas in their season, and a variety of flowers. 
 The roses are finer than any I ever saw before, 
 even at home. There are numbers of the large 
 double roses, several of the scarlet velvet-leaved 
 monthly that we cherish so carefully in-doors at 
 home, and one immense bush which bears a 
 profusion of the loveliest white roses imaginable. 
 
 There are also two or three flowering trees 
 that are magnificent. On one, the leaves grow 
 in clusters, in the centers of which are six or 
 eight flesh-colored lily-shaped wax flowers of pe- 
 culiar fragrance. Another tree has large white 
 
SIX YEARS IN INDIA. 225 
 
 flowers similar to the double hollyhock. Clus- 
 ters of large oleanders stand in rows on two sides 
 of the garden. 
 
 We spent Christmas at Luckempore with 
 Mr. and Mrs. Parker and Mr. and Mrs. Pierce. 
 Mrs. Pierce thought the journey might be ben- 
 eficial to her health, and it was in like hope 
 that I made the tour, as well as to see our 
 friends. 
 
 The missionaries all went out to Wesleypore, 
 and were highly pleased with the prosperity of 
 the little Christian community, and much grati- 
 fied at the indications of improvement which 
 they saw among them. 
 
 After a day or two we all went up to Seeta- 
 pore, and spent several days, in company with 
 Mr. and Mrs. Gracey, at a large fair which was 
 held near Seetapore, at the city of Khairabad. 
 
 The missionaries preached daily, and distri- 
 buted tracts and gospels. It was not a religious 
 but an industrial fair, something after the style 
 of our county fairs at home, and samples of 
 every kind of native growth and manufacture 
 were present in abundance. 
 
 There were some famine orphan girls waiting 
 in Seetapore to be taken to Lucknow, and as 
 they were ill Mrs. Pierce was obliged to leave 
 with them before the fair closed. She left in a 
 buggy with 'Killa and her little sou a few months 
 old, and his nurse. The orphans were in doo- 
 
 15 
 
226 SIX YEAKS IN INDIA. 
 
 lies. She^went in this way to Lucknow, a dis- 
 tance of sixty miles, with but two servants. I 
 felt strangely moved as I saw her leave, she 
 seemed so fragile and spiritual, and so forgetful 
 of self; but I little thought I should not look 
 upon her face again. 
 
 Soon after our return home, Mr. H. and Enoch 
 made a tour of thirty miles to visit a Christian 
 zamindar, or landed proprietor. He was also a 
 surgeon, and had formerly been employed in 
 that capacity by the East India Company. In 
 one of the regiments where he served he be- 
 came acquainted with a pious officer, who in- 
 structed him in the principles of the Christian 
 religion and urged him to study the Bible. He 
 told Mr. H. that for years he had been fully 
 convinced of the truth of Christianity, but that 
 he had been deterred from making a public 
 profession of his faith on account of his numer- 
 ous and bigoted Mohammedan friends, who 
 would not have hesitated to take his life if he 
 had done so. But as the strong arm of the law 
 is now pledged to protect the life and property 
 of such persons, he did not wish to delay any 
 longer. He desired to serve the Lord with all 
 his house. 
 
 Dr. Kareem Buksh had himself been bap- 
 tized some time previously by Mr. Mengee, of 
 the Church Mission in Lucknow. He invited 
 Mr. H. to visit him at this time to baptize his 
 
SIX YEAES IN INDIA. 227 
 
 aged mother and a little son who was in delicate 
 health. A crowd of people gathered about the 
 door while the ordinance was being administer- 
 ed. The doctor shed tears of joy while he fer- 
 vently thanked God that his mother had been 
 enabled to profess her faith in Christ by holy 
 baptism. Afterward Mr. H. and Enoch preached 
 in a large village near by to an attentive multi- 
 tude. Many among them could read, and were 
 eager to obtain books and tracts. They visited 
 the ancient city of Shahabad, about sixteen 
 miles from Shahjehanpore, on their way home, 
 where they preached to large and deeply inter- 
 ested congregations. 
 
 In February our quiet was broken by the 
 welcome arrival of Mr. and Mrs. Thomas from 
 home. They remained six months at Shahje- 
 hanpore. Mr. and Mrs. Brown, who came with 
 them, went on to Moradabad. Mr. and Mrs. 
 Hicks, also their fellow-passengers over, were 
 stationed at Luckempore. As the cold season 
 wore away (all too quickly) there seemed to be 
 a general and increasing interest in the preach- 
 ing among the people. Many incidents oc- 
 curred from time to time during the bazar 
 preachings that would be amusing, did they not 
 show in so striking a manner how dark and ig- 
 norant are the minds around us. I will relate 
 one of them. 
 
 One evening, after Mr. H. and Enoch had 
 
228 SIX YEARS IN INDIA. 
 
 been preaching to a large and attentive crowd 
 in the bazar, an aged man came to Mr. H. just 
 as he was abont to leave and said, "Yon have 
 preached God to ns good." 
 
 Mr. H. replied, " It is necessary that we should 
 obey him." 
 
 " Yes," said the old man, " and his prophet 
 also." 
 
 " Who is his prophet % " Mr. H. asked. 
 
 " It is Mohammed," was the answer. 
 
 Said Mr. H., " Mohammed was an impostor, 
 a wicked man, and no prophet ; if you trust to 
 him for salvation you will be lost ;" whereupon 
 the venerable Mussulman was displeased and 
 looked very sad. 
 
 Two of the native Christians are suffering 
 a series of petty persecutions which are very 
 annoying. They have kept very quiet, and are 
 determined to retain their homes and their fam- 
 ilies, and not be driven forth from them. One 
 evening a number of Mohammedans came with 
 one of the Christians to our house and asked 
 Mr. H. if the man had drunk wine and eaten 
 pork, and so become a Christian. Mr. H. as- 
 sured them that he was not aware of his having 
 done either of those terrible things, but that he 
 hoped he was a Christian. He then explained 
 to them what it is to be a Christian, and said he 
 wished they might all become Christians imme- 
 diately. Their temper cooled at once, and when 
 
SIX YEARS IN INDIA. 229 
 
 they left they assured Mr. H. that they were 
 delighted with his kindness, and should certainly 
 visit him again. 
 
 The school attracted much attention, and had 
 many visitors. The Scripture lessons became 
 very prominent, and were regarded by Mr. H. 
 as a means of great good not only to the schol- 
 ars, but, indirectly, to their parents. 
 
 If my health had been sufficiently good to 
 persevere in the attempt, I have no doubt I 
 should have been able to obtain ingress to many 
 families connected with the school, through the 
 scholars ; but I could do nothing more than spend 
 a few hours each day in study and translating, 
 and an hour morning and evening in instructing 
 the lave or six children on the premises. 
 
 I went one day with Mr. H. to visit the Chris- 
 tian policeman. His house stood upon a high 
 terrace overlooking the street. He brought 
 seats for Mr. H. and himself, but asked me to 
 go in and see his wife. I went in gladly, and 
 found a pleasant young woman, with whom I 
 was soon engaged in conversation. I found she 
 had but little idea of Christianity, except that 
 it is a different belief from Mohammedanism. 
 Of its inward, spiritual nature she had no con- 
 ception. She said to me that a large family 
 lived next to her, and as they never saw a mem 
 sahib, they would be delighted to have me con- 
 verse with them a few moments. I signified my 
 
230 SIX YEARS IN INDIA. 
 
 willingness to see them, and soon about thirty 
 women and girls made their appearance. The 
 eldest was an aged woman, the great, great 
 grandmother of the young children. She said 
 she was nearly one hundred years old. Poor 
 creature ! all those long years she had never 
 heard of the Saviour of sinners ! I had an in- 
 teresting conversation with them, and promised 
 to visit them often ; but, alas ! the hot wind began 
 to blow, and my health failed so fast that I was 
 obliged to leave these interesting openings for 
 Kynee Tal. 
 
 I left Shahjehanpore on the evening of the 
 thirteenth of May, and reached Bareilly the 
 next morning. In consequence of some delay 
 in laying my dak from there to Kaleedoongee, I 
 remained in Bareilly two or three days. By so 
 doing I made the acquaintance of Mr. and Mrs. 
 Jackson, whom I had previously seen for a few 
 hours only as they passed through Shahjehan- 
 pore on their way to Bareilly. I found Mrs. 
 Jackson to be one of those amiable spirits that 
 endear themselves to every one with whom they 
 come in contact. It was emphatically true of 
 her that 
 
 "None knew her but to love her, 
 None named her but to praise." 
 
 The day before I left Bareilly there was a 
 violent storm of wind and rain, which, although 
 
SIX YEARS IN INDIA. 231 
 
 it lasted but a short time, did much damage. 
 Thatched buildings were unroofed, and trees 
 broken and uprooted. We rode through can- 
 tonments after the storm ceased, and counted 
 over thirty fine trees that were entirely ruined. 
 
 I visited the orphanage and spoke with the 
 children, especially with the boys who had been 
 in our care. There was a fine class of these 
 older boys in Mr. "Waugh's charge. I heard 
 them recite to him one day, and found they had 
 improved rapidly. Gulab, the famine orphan 
 who came with his brother to us at Budaon, 
 now brought the little fellow forward with great 
 pride, and showed me what a fine strong lad he 
 had become. Poor Gulab ! he saw his brother 
 sicken and die that season, and the only minis- 
 tration that was left him was to plant flowers on 
 his grave. 
 
 The night was pleasant during my solitary 
 journey from Bareilly to Rampore ; but on the 
 succeeding night, during my journey from that 
 place to Kaleedoongee, there were severe dust 
 storms. The first one came on before midnight, 
 quite suddenly. An immense volume of dust 
 from the west swept over earth and sky, envel- 
 oping both in a sable shroud. 
 
 My kahars hurried me to a village near the 
 roadside, and carried me, palkee and all, right 
 into the house of a venerable Mussulman who 
 sat on his charpaee (bedstead) in the doorway. 
 
232 SIX YEARS IN INDIA. 
 
 After waiting a long hour, during which the 
 wind blew terrifically, we again ventured to go 
 on. I slept for an hour or two when the kahars 
 wakened me with the intelligence that another 
 dust storm was fast approaching. That time 
 they took me into an open shop that stood by 
 the road. We remained there an hour, and 
 then went on, without much interruption, until 
 we reached Kaleedoongee, where I found a 
 jhaumpaun and bearers which had been sent 
 down from ]STynee Tal to take me up. 
 
 I reached the mission house at JSynee Tal 
 about four o'clock P. M., and had the pleasure 
 of meeting Mr. and Mrs. Thoburn, whom I had 
 not seen since their marriage. 
 
 I found Mrs. Thoburn apparently enjoying 
 good health, and busily engaged in a girls' 
 school. There were thirty names on the roll, 
 with an average attendance of twenty. 
 
 The scholars seemed quite in earnest about 
 learning to read, but the chief attraction was 
 crocheting in worsteds. Those who attended 
 regularly received two pice daily. The articles 
 they manufactured, which found a ready sale in 
 Eynee Tal, helped to defray the expense of the 
 school considerably. 
 
 Mrs. Thoburn's health began to fail in June, 
 and she was obliged to give up her school duties 
 in consequence. I kept the school up a few 
 weeks with the aid of the catechist's wife, but 
 
SIX YEARS IN INDIA. 233 
 
 after the rains fairly set in my health was un- 
 equal to the task. 
 
 During July and August the rains were al- 
 most incessant. Mrs. Thoburn and I were 
 obliged to keep in-doors, and, most of the time, 
 to our couches. I have no doubt the dampness 
 and ill ventilation of the house contributed 
 greatly to our illness. 
 
 The last of August there was a slight cessa- 
 tion of the rains, and I seized the opportunity 
 to lay my dak to Shahjehanpore. 
 
 My journey home was a series of exposures. 
 Part of the time the rain fell in torrents, and 
 for many a weary mile the water was so deep 
 that the kahars carried the palkee on their shoul- 
 ders and heads. 
 
 I stopped in Bareilly over the Sabbath. Mr. 
 and Mrs. Jackson had just removed to Budaon, 
 and Mr. and Mrs. Thomas had just arrived and 
 were about to take possession of the vacant 
 bungalow. Intelligence had just been received 
 from Lucknow that Mrs. Pierce was lying in a 
 most critical state, and that it was feared she 
 had not long to live. 
 
 I reached home on Tuesday morning, and for 
 several weeks suffered extremely from the effects 
 of the journey and the heat. My physician 
 told me that I could not live much longer in 
 this country, and advised me, if I could not go 
 home at once to try a sea voyage, but we could 
 
234: SIX YEARS IN INDIA. 
 
 not think the case so desperate as to demand 
 either. 
 
 Bareillt, Not. 4, 1862. 
 
 The fall of 1862 will long be remembered in 
 onr mission. On the fifteenth day of Septem- 
 ber we received a telegram from Mr. Waugh, 
 stating that Mrs. Jackson had been confined of 
 a son on the thirteenth, and that both mother 
 and child had died ! There was sincere mourn- 
 ing throughout the mission for Mrs. Jackson. 
 A native Christian woman who knew her well 
 said to me, " We are all sad on account of the 
 death of Jackson mem sahib ; she was a true 
 Christian and loved us greatly." 
 
 Mrs. Knowles wrote me in regard to her death 
 as follows : " Sister Jackson received the tidings 
 both of her own approaching death and of 
 the departure of her little babe before her, with 
 great calmness. Mr. K. went in to see her ere 
 she left us for heaven, and tried to point her to 
 the precious Jesus and his all-atoning blood, and 
 to the sweet promises of God in Christ. A 
 holy radiance lit up her dying face as she re- 
 sponded, c Yes, blessed, blessed, blessed promises.' 
 Her soul was resting upon them as upon a rock, 
 and she was happy and fully prepared for the 
 great change. She soon became insensible, and 
 remained so till her death." 
 
 Mrs. Thoburn wrote me : " How sad the death 
 of dear Sister Jackson ! A purer spirit could 
 
SIX YEARS IN INDIA. 235 
 
 not have left our midst. I feel to mourn a sis- 
 ter beloved." Mrs. Jackson- left one child, little 
 Bessie, not yet two years old. 
 
 As we could not telegraph to Seetapore, we 
 wrote the news of Mrs. Jackson's death to Mr. 
 and Mrs. Gracey. When they received it they 
 were in a very anxious state about Mrs. Parker, 
 who had been taken there by her husband in 
 the hope that a change of air might be benefi- 
 cial. The rainy season had developed the un- 
 healthiness of Wesleypore most fearfully. The 
 poor Sikhs suffered greatly, and many died, some 
 of them happy in the Lord. Muassee Sing, a 
 catechist, refused to leave when permission was 
 given him unasked, saying he preferred to re- 
 main with his people till they could all go to- 
 gether, and if the Lord should call him mean- 
 while he was ready. He shortly heard the 
 summons, " Come up higher," and died rejoic- 
 ingly. Mall ah, Minepul Sing's wife, also died. 
 Her last words were, " Lord Jesus, receive my 
 spirit." 
 
 In the midst of our sicknesses and bereave- 
 ments have we not abundant encouragement in 
 such deaths ? 
 
 Mr. and Mrs. Parker, who were living in the 
 village, remained at their post, dealing out med- 
 icines and rendering all possible aid, until both 
 were seized with the fever, and Mrs. Parker 
 became so very ill that they were obliged to 
 
236 SIX YEAES IN INDIA. 
 
 leave. She recovered slowly ; but they are both 
 poorly, and suffer a great deal at times with chills 
 and fever. 
 
 Meanwhile the tidings from Lucknow were 
 to the effect that Mrs. Pierce could not long 
 survive. My health improved somewhat, and I 
 exerted myself to revise mj latest hymns, as 
 Mr. Waugh wished to get out a small mission 
 hymn book. I succeeded in getting thirty -three 
 ready for the press, which, with seventeen selec- 
 tions (by permission) from the Presbyterian 
 Mission Hymn Book, made us a little book of 
 fifty hymns. 
 
 The last week of October was spent in pack- 
 ing our goods, as we had again received march- 
 ing orders, this time to Moradabad. In the 
 midst of our labors one day, our bearer brought 
 us a telegraphic dispatch that had just been left 
 at the house. " Dear Sister Pierce is gone," I 
 said involuntarily. Mr. H. did not reply, but 
 stood reading the telegram over and over, as if 
 he doubted the evidence of his senses. Finally 
 he said, " ISTo, not Sister Pierce, but Sister Tho- 
 burn, died this morning." The shock was so 
 great that I could not speak for a few moments, 
 and my heart seemed to cease beating. I could 
 not realize that she was indeed gone. We knew 
 she had given birth to a son, and was not recov- 
 ering her health so fast as was desirable, but 
 did not know that she was considered to be in a 
 
SIX YEAES IN INDIA. 237 
 
 dangerous state. By a letter received from Mr. 
 Thoburn a few days afterward we learned that 
 her death was most triumphant. " It is sweet to 
 die," was her testimony as she passed through 
 the river to the "beautiful land" she had so 
 long regarded as her home. She loved the mis- 
 sionary work, O how intensely ! Her labors, 
 amid illnesses and weariness oft, bear witness to 
 her affection for these degraded, these perishing 
 souls. But when she heard the voice of her 
 Saviour calling her to rest and glory, she joy- 
 fully obeyed the summons. 
 
 ; may I triumph so, 
 
 When all my warfare's past ; 
 And, dying, find my latest foe 
 Under my feet at last ! " 
 
 Mr. H. felt the parting from his teachers and 
 scholars in the Shahjehanpore school very much. 
 On the last day he met with them the boys ex- 
 pressed much regret that he was to leave them, 
 and many of the larger ones, some of whom 
 were Mohammedans, wept freely. He rose soon 
 after the midnight preceding our departure, to 
 prepare some papers which he had not been able 
 to write previously, on account of the constant 
 press of work and company, but he had only got 
 well to work when he was interrupted by a low 
 rap at the door, and one of the under teachers 
 of the school came in. He was struggling with 
 deep convictions of duty. He felt convinced 
 
238 SIX YEARS IN INDIA. 
 
 that Hindooism is false and Christianity is true, 
 and that he ought to renounce the one and 
 embrace the other ; but he did not feel able to 
 meet the remonstrances and persecutions of his 
 friends. 
 
 Mr. H. prayed with him, and in the long con- 
 versation that ensued, tried to show him the su- 
 periority of those things that are not seen, but 
 are forever sure, over those that are temporal 
 and transitory. 
 
 The first intelligence we received, when we 
 reached Bareilly, was that Mrs. Pierce was dead. 
 Her death did not take us by surprise, as did 
 the former visits of the dread reaper to our mis- 
 sion ; but we all felt that our mission had sus- 
 tained a great loss in Mrs. Pierce. She had 
 always seemed particularly near to me on account 
 of our long companionship. We had always 
 been sincerely attached to each other, and had 
 kept up a close correspondence until within a 
 few months of her death. 
 
 But she has gone to join the bright band on 
 the other shore ; gone from her family to whom 
 she was tenderly attached, from the mission cir- 
 cle of which she was a loved and honored mem- 
 ber, from the orphan girls who for nearly four 
 years had been the objects of her incessant care 
 and love ; but the memory of her beautiful and 
 self-denying life will ever be precious. 
 
 Hers was the death of the righteous. Mrs. 
 
SIX YEAKS EST INDIA. 239 
 
 Baume, who was with her all through her last 
 sickness, wrote me as follows : " I often thank 
 God for the precions privilege of being with Sis- 
 ter Pierce during her illness, and especially her 
 last days, which were days of triumph in Jesus. 
 She was indeed filled with love, perfect love 
 which casteth out all fear. I said to her, i Have 
 you any special message for Sister Humphrey % ' 
 She answered, ' O tell her to be holy, and do 
 all she can for the poor degraded females of In- 
 dia, but tell her to be very careful of her health 
 and live as long as. possible.' These were her 
 messages to all the sisters in the mission, and 
 nothing more." 
 
 "We shall go on from here to Moradabad in a 
 day or two, and you will hear our report from 
 that place in good time. 
 
240 SIX YEARS IN INDIA. 
 
 LETTER XYIIL 
 
 Moradabad — Native Christians — Dr. Mullens — Journey to 
 Lahore — Girls' School — Annual Meeting — Arrangement 
 of Work — Effect of Preaching — Boys 1 School — Transla- 
 tions — Preparations to return Home — Meela — Interesting 
 Aspect of Native Work — Zhoor-ul-Huqq — Umbeeka Churn. 
 
 Moradabad, Feb. 8, 1864. 
 
 My dear Mother, — We arrived in Moradabad 
 in due time, and received a real home-like wel- 
 come from Joseph Fieldbrave and family, who 
 with the other native Christians was in charge 
 of the mission premises. He had prepared a 
 nice breakfast for us in the dining-room of the 
 mission house, which thoughtful attention was 
 duly appreciated and improved by us. 
 
 You perceive from this incident that these 
 people are just like the rest of mankind. False, 
 corrupt systems of belief make men vile, super- 
 stitious, and cruel ; but the religion of Jesus 
 makes them virtuous, intelligent, and courteous. 
 
 "We were glad to meet Joseph and his family 
 again, and to have them associated with us, but 
 we were sorry to find Sophia out of health. 
 Rose Anna had changed very much, and had 
 grown to be a pretty-looking, intelligent young 
 woman. Mr. Jackson was stationed here with 
 
SIX YEARS IN INDIA. 241 
 
 us, but after three or four weeks he left for Cal- 
 cutta, in order to send his motherless little Bes- 
 sie, who was very delicate, to England. 
 
 After the usual amount of labor and confusion, 
 we again became settled at our work. We found 
 quite a large boys' school in operation. Besides 
 Joseph, we had Andreas, a catechist from a mis- 
 sion of the Church of England. His wife Pris- 
 cilla is' an amiable, quiet little woman, who sin- 
 cerely desires to be a humble, useful Christian. 
 He has also a father, brother, sister, and uncle, 
 and these, with two other nominal Christian 
 families that live on the premises, make quite a 
 little community. 
 
 There were also three inquirers here when we 
 came ; one was an intelligent man of the kyasth, 
 or writer caste, and the other two were priests 
 of the chumar, or shoemaker caste. Mr. H. 
 baptized them a few weeks after our arrival. 
 The kyasth, whose name is ITmmed Sing, has 
 some education, and bids fair to become a useful, 
 consistent laborer among the people. The other 
 men did not remain with us long after their 
 baptism, but we hope they will advance steadily 
 in faith and knowledge wherever they are. 
 
 Just before Mr. Jackson's departure, we re- 
 ceived the very pleasant surprise of a visit from 
 Dr. Mullens, of Calcutta. He was on his way 
 to the hills for a change of air. His talented 
 and devoted wife has been called to her glorious 
 16 
 
242 SIX YEARS IN INDIA. 
 
 and eternal home. We were much interested 
 in his accounts of her literary labors, and her 
 successful efforts to gain admittance to zenanas. 
 Her books, " Phulmane and Karuna," " What is 
 Christianity," etc., are most interesting. The 
 first named work especially must eventually be 
 a great favorite with native women of all classes. 
 It has been translated into several native dia- 
 lects. 
 
 The zenana mission in Calcutta is of recent 
 date. The mutiny, instead of injuring the 
 cause of Christianity, as its instigators hoped 
 and expected, was used by Him who " turneth 
 the hearts of men as the rivers of water are 
 turned," as a means of advancing public opinion 
 in its favor. Among other subjects, female edu- 
 cation came to be regarded with greater com- 
 placency. Mrs. Sale, a lady resident of Cal- 
 cutta, first gained admission to two zenanas, 
 which she visited regularly until her return to 
 England, when Mrs. Mullens, who had just re- 
 turned from a visit to that country, took them 
 in charge. Soon after a third family was add- 
 ed, and Mrs. Mullens disengaged herself from 
 other duties and prepared to give her whole 
 time to this work. Two other houses near her 
 own residence were opened to her, and letters 
 were received from native gentlemen asking for 
 her services in their families. In a few months 
 she had under visitation and instruction eight ze- 
 
SIX YEAES IN INDIA. 243 
 
 nanas and three girls' schools, containing eighty 
 ladies and seventy girls. She was assisted in 
 this work by native teachers. They visited the 
 scholars daily, while Mrs. Mnllens visited every 
 honse personally once a week, to give instruction. 
 
 Her scholars were taught reading, writing, 
 wool-work, and crochet. Her eldest daughter 
 took charge of the work department, while her 
 own time was devoted exclusively to hearing 
 her scholars' lessons and holding conversations 
 with them. She gave them her own books to 
 read, but did not at first introduce the Bible. 
 Before long, however, the Gospels were given 
 to all that could read, and the teachings and 
 character of our Saviour began to be the fre- 
 quent subjects of conversation. Meanwhile 
 Miss Sandys and others were successful in gain- 
 ing admission to native women of the higher 
 classes in the very heart of the city, and had 
 established schools among them. 
 
 Mrs. Mullens died very suddenly, soon after 
 the decease of Mr. Lacroix, her gifted and apos- 
 tolic father. What a happy meeting must 
 theirs have been in that City of Light, " beyond 
 the tide." 
 
 The work commenced by Mrs. Mullens is now 
 carried on by her daughter and others in whose 
 hearts God has planted a desire to benefit the 
 women of India. 
 
 Soon after the departure of Mr. Jackson, 
 
244 SIX YEARS IN INDIA. 
 
 Mr. Cawdell and family arrived, and occupied 
 half the mission house. 
 
 My health improved so fast as the cold season 
 advanced, that I was able to commence a school. 
 Priscilla and Lydia, her sister-in-law, Rose Anna 
 and Piyare, Gungeeah, our sais's daughter, who 
 had not only been kept at her reading, but had 
 been drawn into the Sabbath-school while we 
 were in Shahjehanpore, with two or three oth- 
 ers from outside the mission, made up the school, 
 which, although small, was quite as large as I 
 felt able to manage. 
 
 The first hour of school was devoted to read- 
 ing in the Bible, singing, prayers, reciting hymns, 
 catechism, etc. During the second hour read- 
 ing and writing in English and in the Roman- 
 Oordoo, and reading in Hindee, were taught. 
 The third hour was devoted to knitting and 
 crocheting in wools. I purchased assorted Ber- 
 lin wools, and taught them to crochet children's 
 socks, mittens, neckties, hoods, etc., and when a 
 dozen or so articles were completed I sent them 
 to the ladies of the station for sale. In this way 
 I paid for the wool, and also gave the girls a fair 
 price for their work. 
 
 In December Mr. H. accompanied Dr. But- 
 ler and Mr. Hauser to Lahore, to attend a gen- 
 eral missionary conference. Lahore is about four 
 hundred miles from Moradabad, in a north-west- 
 erly direction. 
 
SIX YEAKS IN INDIA. 245 
 
 They visited the cities of Delhi, TTmbala, 
 Lodianah, and Kuppurthala on their way. This 
 last is the capital of a small state of the same 
 name, under the dominion of a Sikh rajah who 
 is a Christian in belief, although he has never 
 been baptized. There is a mission at Kuppur- 
 thala which is largely supported by the rajah. 
 It was indeed established at his solicitation. 
 One of the missionaries is the Eev. Mr. Wood- 
 side, whose acquaintance we made at Dayrah 
 Doon ; the other is the Eev. Mr. JSTewton, M.D. 
 The rajah has provided houses for the missiona- 
 ries, as well as school buildings and a dispensary, 
 and is building a beautiful church. He is in 
 constant communication with the missionaries, 
 attends their services, and sends his sons to them 
 to be taught. All public work is stopped 
 throughout the estate, on the Sabbath, and thus 
 the rajah's example, as well as the instructions 
 of the missionaries, is brought to bear upon the 
 people. The rajah's present wife is a Christian, 
 the daughter of the English manager of his 
 estates. He was present at the conference, 
 which was largely attended by missionaries from 
 nearly all the Protestant missions in that section 
 of the country. 
 
 Questions of deep interest and important 
 bearing upon the missionary work were dis- 
 cussed. The rajah spoke strongly in favor of 
 female education. 
 
246 SIX YEAES IN INDIA. 
 
 At Umbala and Lodianah, as well as at Urn- 
 ritser, which city they visited after leaving Kup- 
 purthala, our party visited the missions, and 
 inspected their schools. At Umbala there is an 
 extensive American Presbyterian mission, a 
 printing press, city school, and girl's orphanage, 
 all of which seemed to be in a flourishing con- 
 dition. 
 
 They also visited the ancient temples and 
 palaces of Delhi, the once famous city of kings, 
 and of the other cities. In Umrister they vis- 
 ited a large establishment for making up the 
 cashmere wool into shawls and cloths. 
 
 During the conference week the whole body 
 was invited to several entertainments at the 
 residences of the civilians, and also to a large 
 party given by the rajah of Kuppurthala. 
 
 The sacrament of the Lord's Supper was ad- 
 ministered to the conference on the evening of 
 the twenty-eighth of December by the Eev. Mr. 
 Janvier.* Seven different denominations, and 
 as many nations, were represented. It was an 
 impressive season. 
 
 While Mr. H. was absent I pursued the even 
 tenor of my way, attending to my school and 
 studies. Mr. Cawdell was ill during the time 
 with chills and fever, or, as we call it here, jun- 
 gle fever, as it is caused by the malaria from the 
 jungles. 
 
 * Mr. Janvier has since been murdered by a Hindoo fanatic. 
 
SIX YEAKS IN INDIA. 247 
 
 On Christmas day lie exerted himself to 
 preach, and we had a pleasant service with the 
 native Christians, interspered with Christmas 
 hymns in Hindoostanee. 
 
 During the day the usnal " nuzzers " from 
 the city came pouring in, but as it was known 
 that Mr. H. was absent, the donors did not ac- 
 company their gifts. 
 
 During Mr. H.'s absence I had the pleasure 
 of a visit from Eev. Mr. Sherring and family, 
 of a mission in Benares. They had been spend- 
 ing several months in the hills on account of 
 Mr. Sherring's health. 
 
 Soon after Mr. H. returned he visited the 
 Sikh villages, and made arrangements for a 
 school at Babookera, and for religious services 
 to be held regularly there and at Jua, a small 
 village just beyond. Some of the survivors of 
 Wesleypore had returned to their homes, and 
 with other nominal Christians, formed quite a 
 little community. 
 
 Ummed Sing was located at Babookera as a 
 teacher. 
 
 The first week of February we went over to 
 Bareilly to attend our annual meeting. It was 
 a memorable occasion. A large reinforcement 
 had just arrived, consisting of Dr. and Mrs. 
 Johnson, Mr. and Mrs. Scott, Mr. and Mrs. 
 Man sell and child, Miss "White, Miss Porter, and 
 Mr. Wilson. 
 
248 SIX YEAKS IN INDIA. 
 
 In the midst of the accumulated business of 
 two years, and the pleasant excitement of meet- 
 ing each other, we did not forget those who had 
 gone from among us the past year. Mr. Baume 
 gave us a sermon in which he rendered a tribute 
 to their worth, and exhorted us to live in the 
 enjoyment of a like precious faith. 
 
 I felt very grateful to my heavenly Father 
 for the privilege of meeting our missionaries at 
 this time. It was a pleasure I scarcely expected 
 to have, and that I knew I might be enjoying 
 now for the last time. 
 
 Although my health was greatly improved, 
 yet I knew it was not firmly established, and 
 the coming season might again bring me low. 
 
 I was glad to see that most of the missionaries 
 seemed to be in good health, and had a fair 
 prospect of usefulness before them. 
 
 Mr. Hicks and his wife were obliged to leave 
 the country on account of the failure of his 
 health. They left during the meeting, bearing 
 with them the sympathies and prayers of all. 
 
 I met at this time Mr. and Mrs. Hauser, and 
 Mrs. Messmore, (formerly Miss Husk,) whom I 
 had not previously seen, and I also saw the dear 
 little babe left by Mrs. Thoburn, who is in Mrs. 
 "Waugh's charge. Mr. Messmore, Mrs. Baume, 
 and Mrs. Judd were not present. We were, of 
 course, appointed to Moradabad. Mr. and 
 Mrs. Parker were appointed our colleagues, 
 
SIX YEARS IN INDIA. 251 
 
 and so were to continue their work among the 
 Sikhs. 
 
 Soon after our return home the remnant of 
 the Wesleypore colony came back to their na- 
 tive villages. We felt a great deal of sympathy 
 for these people, as they had suffered severely. 
 Several of them died on the way to their homes, 
 and others died soon after reaching them. Mine- 
 pul Sing came back quite out of health. Gur- 
 dial was well, and commenced service with us 
 as house bearer at once. 
 
 Joseph was removed from Moradabad at the 
 annual meeting, and Zahoor-ul-Huqq and TJm- 
 beeka Churn were appointed as our native help- 
 ers. The former had taken a wife previously 
 from the Christian village in Bareilly. 
 
 Mr. H. went to work with his new staff of 
 helpers with increased energy. Every morning 
 he spent two hours in the school, and after pass- 
 ing the intervening hours until evening in study, 
 writing, etc., he went to the city or to a village 
 to preach. He always called Zahoor-ul-Huqq 
 Umbeeka Churn, and Andreas into his study 
 before leaving, when they arranged their plan 
 for the preaching, selecting a subject, and each 
 one having a certain phase of it to lay before 
 the people. They then prayed together for the 
 Divine Spirit to accompany the gospel message. 
 The people became aroused and alarmed, and 
 spirited disputations increased upon every sue- 
 
252 SIX YEARS IN INDIA. 
 
 cessive raid upon their false systems of belief. 
 Often when Mr. H. or Zahoor-ul-Huqq was 
 preaching, a Mohammedan would cry out, " Ko- 
 ran bar-huqq hai, Mohammed sacheha hai ;" 
 that is, " the Koran is true, Mohammed is true." 
 
 They often asked, " Why do you say so much 
 about Jesus and so little of the other prophets % " 
 whereupon Mr. H. would tell them that Jesus 
 was greater than the prophets, and then give 
 them yet another lesson upon the office and 
 character of our blessed Saviour. 
 
 One evening the Mohammedans were more 
 excited than usual, and when the preachers had 
 finished talking and turned to leave the bazar, 
 some one raised the cry, " Mohammed kee deen," 
 that is, " The faith of Mohammed," when instant- 
 ly it was caught up by scores of " the faithful," 
 accompanied by clappings of the hands, and 
 thus in a most violent and contemptuous man- 
 ner they followed them out of the city with the 
 din. 
 
 I was really frightened when they came home 
 and told of being sent off with such acclaim, and 
 said, " They will murder you some time when 
 they are so excited and angry ;" but Mr. H. only 
 laughed, and said they had pretty good evidence 
 that the people understood the preaching and 
 felt the force of the truth. 
 
 Mr. H. and Zahoor-ul-Huqq alternated in 
 going out to the Sikh villages once a fortnight. 
 
SIX YEARS IN INDIA. 253 
 
 The school at Babookera prospered well. Um- 
 med Sing was very acceptable to the people and 
 seemed to be doing them good. Zahoor-ul-Huqq 
 remarked of him, " Uska dil saccha hai," that 
 is, " His heart is true." 
 
 Mr. Parker, who has tried faithfully to labor 
 both at preaching and in the school, but found 
 his health unequal to such exertion, became so 
 much worse as the hot weather advanced, that 
 it was evident he must go to Nynee Tal. Just 
 before he and his wife left we received a visit 
 from Mr. Woodside, of Kuppurthala. ¥e en- 
 joyed his short stay with us very much. 
 
 The boys' school occasioned us much anxiety 
 at one time, as we had not funds sufficient for 
 its support this year. Mr. H. had recourse to 
 his usual expedient for raising funds for such 
 purposes, and was glad to find the English resi- 
 dents in Moradabad as ready and generous in 
 giving aid as those in Bareilly, Budaon, and 
 Shahjehanpore. 
 
 The judge and magistrate of the station, after 
 subscribing liberally, sent him word that if more 
 should be needed at any time it should be forth- 
 coming. 
 
 It occasions some surprise here, that with such 
 a War in the United States, and consequent 
 financial pressure upon the people, our mission- 
 ary board can yet sustain its agents in foreign 
 fields. 
 
254: SIX YEAKS IN INDIA. 
 
 Mr. H. held a public examination of the school 
 in June. Several of the civilians, as well as 
 native gentlemen, were present, and expressed 
 much pleasure at the efficiency and good man- 
 agement of the school. 
 
 When Mr. Parker left for Nynee Tal, Mr. EL, 
 with the native helpers, was left to carry on the 
 work alone — the preaching, the school, and the 
 work among the Sikhs. It was evident that all 
 this would be too much for him during the hot 
 season, so, after some preliminary writing, Mr. 
 Mansell, who had been appointed to Lucknow, 
 came to Moradabad. 
 
 The hot season soon came on in all its intens- 
 ity, but the mission house was very comfortable, 
 and we felt the heat less than usual, at least so 
 it seemed to us. But in spite of all our com- 
 forts and appliances for coolness, my strength 
 failed in a most unaccountable manner. I gave 
 up my school and tried to save myself, but all 
 was of no avail. A low fever set in, my side 
 became increasingly painful, and my throat and 
 mouth were inflamed and filled with canker, 
 until I could scarcely take food sufficient to sus- 
 tain life. I finally became so much reduced, 
 that our physician said there was no other chance 
 for life, I must go to Nynee Tal, so with much 
 reluctance we made our preparations for another 
 long separation. 
 
 I commenced May in Nynee Tal. The cool 
 
SIX TEARS IN INDIA. 255 
 
 hill climate acted like a charm upon me. In 
 one week after my arrival the fever had left 
 me, and the canker in my throat had disappeared. 
 
 I hoped for a while to be able to return to 
 Moradabad immediately after the rains should 
 set in, but I was attacked by my old antagonist, 
 chronic dysentery, and was told by my physician 
 that if I went down into the heat I would prob- 
 ably forfeit my life. 
 
 I think if I had occupied dry, comfortable 
 rooms all the time I was in Nynee Tal I might 
 have been spared the severe sickness that fol- 
 lowed ; but the mission house was crowded, and 
 part of the time some were not accommodated 
 even so well as I was. 
 
 My room was dark, damp, and poorly venti- 
 lated, and, although there was a fireplace, a fire 
 was an impossibility on account of the smoke. 
 The last of June my health failed so fast that 
 my physician said I must have better rooms if 
 possible. 
 
 I removed accordingly, and took up my quar- 
 ters in two small, but very comfortable rooms 
 in the wing of a house occupied by Dr. Butler 
 and family, but the change was too late to avert 
 the consequences of former exposure. % 
 
 I was taken very ill, and grew worse so rapid- 
 ly that Mr. H., who had but just returned home 
 after making me a short visit, came up again in 
 great haste, fearing it was to see me die. 
 
256 SIX YEARS IN INDIA. 
 
 I thought myself at one time that I might 
 soon be laid by Mrs. Thoburn in our lovely cem- 
 etery on the hill-side, but it was our Father's 
 will and good pleasure to raise me up again. 
 
 Through July and August Mr. H. remained 
 by me, and I have no doubt his care contributed 
 in a great measure to my recovery. But my 
 system was so debilitated that I could no longer 
 rally as heretofore, and it soon became evident 
 that unless a great change should take place 
 we must indeed return home for a while. We 
 did not wish to do this, however, unless there 
 were a fair prospect that by doing so my health 
 might be restored. I have no wish to return 
 home to die, I would much rather die in India. 
 
 We consulted several physicians, who gave it 
 as their opinion that I might regain my health 
 in our home climate, and be enabled to return to 
 our work in India. Under these considerations 
 we applied to our missionary board for leave to 
 return home. 
 
 Mr. H. returned to Moradabad the last of 
 August, but I remained a month longer. Mrs. 
 Hauser and her little daughter were with me, 
 which prevented me from being lonely. I was 
 able to study and translate a little every day, 
 and began my walks and rides again about the 
 hills. I even began to cherish the hope that we 
 might after all remain at our work. 
 
 But during the journey down from the hills 
 
SIX YEARS IN INDIA. 257 
 
 I met with a long detention on account of the 
 breaking of my jhaumpaun, during which I 
 caught a severe cold. Soon after my arrival 
 home I was again seized with low fever and 
 pain in my side, which, instead of being tempo- 
 rary as heretofore, has never left me wholly dur- 
 ing the season. 
 
 It seemed hard not to be able to reopen my 
 school nor to visit the Sikh villages, as I hoped 
 to do these pleasant months. I feel particularly 
 interested in these people, as we have free access 
 to their families, and the young women and 
 girls among them are generally anxious to learn. 
 
 O how I longed for strength to go among 
 them and tell them of my Saviour and theirs, 
 and teach them to read his word. But now 
 that I had attained sufficient fluency in the lan- 
 guage to do this with ease, my strength would 
 not admit of the exertion. So I gave my atten- 
 tion, whenever I was able to do anything, to 
 what I could do, namely, to instructing the 
 Christian and Sikh women on the mission pre- 
 mises and to translating. 
 
 During the year I gathered some fugitive 
 translations of previous years, and prepared 
 them for the press in the form of a small book, 
 entitled " Akhlaqi Kahanian," that is, Moral 
 Stories. There were ten in all. Seven of them 
 were gleaned from the " Ladies' Bepository" and 
 the "Northern Christian Advocate," and the 
 17 
 
258 SIX YEAES IN INDIA. 
 
 others were the first three chapters of Dr. "Wise's 
 " Precious Lessons." To each of the stories I 
 added a few stanzas. It is being published in 
 Eoman-Oordoo. 
 
 I also translated a beautiful allegory, called 
 " The White Dress," from an English publica- 
 tion. It is being published in Persi- Arabic, in 
 tract form. I succeeded, too, in translating 
 several hymns, which brought the number, in- 
 cluding those already published, to sixty. 
 
 While I am truly grateful that God enabled 
 me to do even this work, I am not blind to the 
 fact that these translations are necessarily im- 
 perfect, and will doubtless soon be superseded 
 by worthier productions. 
 
 Still, there must be a beginning, and I am 
 glad to have contributed my mite to it. I sin- 
 cerely hope there will be great and rapid prog- 
 ress in these and all matters pertaining to our 
 work, and if it please God to grant me an 
 opportunity to share in it I shall be most 
 thankful. 
 
 In November Mr. Mansell and Mr. Hum- 
 phrey, accompanied by Zahoor-ul-Huqq and An- 
 dreas, visited the great annual Ganges mela at 
 Ghurmuckteeser, about forty miles distant from 
 Moradabad. They pitched their tent on a re- 
 served space occupied by the police, having 
 obtained permission of the officer present to 
 do so. 
 
SIX YEAKS IN INDIA. 259 
 
 The mela was attended by a vast multitude, 
 estimated at about one hundred thousand. The 
 people arranged rude tents in streets, where 
 they ate and slept. During the day they first 
 bathed in the Ganges and celebrated pooja, 
 after which they assembled in groups to listen 
 to the vagaries of the priests, jugglers, and 
 dancing girls. 
 
 Some shrewd ones drove bargains at some of 
 the numerous stalls, where fabrics and wares of 
 native manufacture were displayed in abundance. 
 
 As the sun declined, the rajahs and raees who 
 were present paraded the streets on richly ca- 
 parisoned elephants and horses, and the entire 
 male portion of the assemblage, in their gayest 
 apparel, either joined the motley procession, or 
 formed groups of entranced admirers of the 
 show. Music of course held a prominent place 
 in the entertainment. The Hindoos think they 
 have a peculiar faculty for producing sweet 
 sounds, and say that although the English sur- 
 pass them in most things, they cannot go beyond 
 them in music I 
 
 They allow their women to be present at these 
 gatherings, but the purdah or curtain is not 
 left behind. The high caste women, closely 
 covered with their chudders, keep in the back- 
 ground at the public exhibitions, and at other 
 times remain in their tents. 
 
 Of course these melas furnish fine opportu- 
 
260 SIX YEARS IN INDIA. 
 
 nities for sowing the good seed of the kingdom 
 broadcast, both by preaching and distribution 
 of books, as the people are away from their 
 business and have leisure to see and hear. 
 
 At this mela the people listened attentively, 
 and frequently opened discussions which showed 
 that they understood what was said to them. 
 One brahmin thought that every religion was 
 good and would save all who believed in it. 
 Another wished to know if all that worshiped 
 God would not be saved, intending of course 
 to affirm that all Hindoos did so. Mr. H. told 
 him that all depended upon the spirit in which 
 the worship was rendered, etc., etc. 
 
 After the preaching one day a young pundit 
 asked for one of the Gospels, which was given 
 him. He seemed very well disposed, but as 
 soon as he had received the book he shouted 
 out derisively, " Gunga kee jai," that is, victory 
 belongs to the Ganges. The multitude joined 
 instantaneously, and the air was rent with deaf- 
 ening shouts, " Gunga kee jai, Gunga kee jai ! " 
 
 The months of December and January were 
 spent by the missionaries in the school and city 
 work, and an occasional tour into the district. 
 They visited the Sikh villages several times, and 
 baptized at one time six adults and eight 
 children. 
 
 The work among the Sikhs seemed to be 
 prospering well. Minepul Sing had begun the 
 
SIX YEARS IN INDIA. 261 
 
 practice of calling his neighbors together at 
 eventide and reading the Bible and praying 
 with them. 
 
 At the city of Sambhal they met with a very 
 kind reception from the tehsildar in charge of the 
 pergunna of Sambhal. This native gentleman, 
 who is a frequent visitor at the mission house, 
 supports a school in Sambhal taught by a Hin- 
 doo, formerly one of the pupils of the mission 
 school in Moradabad. It was told us that this 
 teacher upon removing his family to Sambhal 
 broke up his household gods and cast them 
 away, saying he would have no more of such 
 nonsense. 
 
 The tehsildar wants a Christian teacher, and 
 as soon as one can be spared from the mission he 
 will be located there, and will take charge of 
 the school. 
 
 The Hindoos have a tradition regarding Sam- 
 bhal that the last and holiest incarnation will 
 take place there, and this event is constantly 
 expected. 
 
 As the time drew near for our annual meet- 
 ing in Bareilly, when we were to leave India 
 and turn our faces homeward, the work in Mo- 
 radabad seemed to increase in interest daily. 
 It is perhaps true that " blessings brighten as 
 they take their flight ;" certainly to us the mis- 
 sionary work never seemed so dear as it has this 
 season. 
 
SIX YEARS IN INDIA. 
 
 Our relations with the people are most pleas- 
 ing. There are frequent visitors and inquirers 
 who seem almost ready to embrace Christianity. 
 The natives indeed seem to regard us as their 
 friends, and come to us often for advice and 
 sympathy in their troubles. 
 
 The school is in a high state of efficiency and 
 prosperity. Government grants were made this 
 year to several of our mission schools, and among 
 them one of eighty rupees per month to the 
 school in Moradabad. 
 
 It was gratifying to us to have Zahoor-ul- 
 Huqq and Umbeeka Churn associated with us 
 this last year of our stay, and to witness their 
 consistent walk and usefulness. 
 
 Zahoor-ul-Huqq is a good preacher, quiet and 
 candid, but bold and zealous in the discharge of 
 his duty. He is a good singer, and many a night 
 his voice, tuned to our own hymns, was the 
 latest sound that fell upon our ears. The native 
 Christians' houses stand very near our own, and 
 we could hear their voices very distinctly in the 
 still night. 
 
 Umbeeka Churn was converted a Methodist 
 in its true signification, that is, an earnest Chris- 
 tian. He sometimes frightens the people in the 
 bazars, by preaching to them in terrific strains of 
 the sure wrath of God that shall be poured out 
 upon those nations who will not forsake their 
 idolatry and seek the living and true God. He 
 
SIX YEAES IN INDIA. 263 
 
 prays with power, and those who listen are con- 
 vinced that he is in earnest, that he feels his 
 need of the blessings he asks. His voice is heard 
 in the morning usually before any one else on 
 the premises has risen, calling upon God in 
 prayer. He was married in October last to 
 Ellen, the eldest of our orphan girls. She is an 
 intelligent, pious young woman of pleasing man- 
 ners. We trust they will both be very useful 
 laborers in this great and blessed work. 
 
 I was not able to attend the annual meeting, 
 and thus I lost the privilege of seeing the dear 
 band of missionaries again before leaving. Mr. 
 H. went over to Bareilly, but could not remain 
 till the close of the meeting, as our passage was 
 engaged in the screw steamer Golden Fleece, 
 which was advertised to sail on the seventeenth 
 of February. 
 
 The members of the mission gave us many 
 assurances of their affection and sympathy. 
 How near they seem to us, and how strong and 
 blessed are the ties that unite our hearts. 
 
 May the choicest blessings of heaven be richly 
 shed upon this little band of reapers, and may 
 they gather many sheaves, from the whitening 
 fields around them, into the garner of our Lord ! 
 
264 SIS YEAES IN INDIA. 
 
 LETTEK XIX. 
 
 Parting with Native Christians — Journey to Calcutta — Screw 
 Steamer Golden Fleece — Madras — Illness — Cape of Good 
 Hope — Equator — Eright — Land's End — England — Ireland 
 — Atlantic — New York. 
 
 New York, June 8, 1864, 
 
 My Dear Mother, — On the morning of the 
 tenth of February we gathered in the parlor of 
 the mission house at Moradabad to hold our last 
 religious services with our Hindoostanee breth- 
 ren and sisters. Minepul Sing and his newly- 
 married wife and sister had walked twenty miles 
 on the previous evening in order to see us before 
 we left, and now his wife wished to be baptized. 
 It was very pleasing to us that this rite should 
 be performed at our parting interview. 
 
 After the baptism Mr. H. addressed the lit- 
 tle company a few moments, then read and 
 prayed. We sang a hymn together, and then 
 we bade them each and all good-by. I shall 
 never forget that scene. How exceedingly pre- 
 cious those few disciples of our Lord seemed to 
 us as we gazed upon them, perhaps for the last 
 time, and commended them to the care of the 
 " Good Shepherd." The tears coursed down 
 their cheeks freely as they assured us they should 
 
SIX YEARS IN INDIA. 265 
 
 not cease to pray that my health might be re- 
 stored, and we be able to return to them soon. 
 
 "We traveled by horse dak to Allyghur, which 
 we reached the next morning, after a day and 
 night of excessive fatigue. 
 
 From Allyghur we took the cars for Allaha- 
 bad. Western civilization is indeed making 
 great changes in India, and western Christian- 
 ity should be advancing more rapidly. 
 
 We found Allahabad so much improved as 
 almost to rival the " City of Palaces " itself. 
 Where desert-like sand plains met the eye in 
 1858, stately dwellings and public buildings had 
 risen as if by magic ; and on the spot where we 
 took the cars in March of that year, stood a fine 
 large station house. The seat of government 
 for the Northwest provinces has been changed 
 from Agra to Allahabad, which partly ac- 
 counts for the change in the appearance of the 
 place. 
 
 We stopped through the day at one of the 
 splendid hotels which stand near the station, 
 and at early evening left in a dak garee for 
 Benares* 
 
 The railway bridge across the Jumna is in 
 process of erection, and when it is completed 
 there will be no such break in the journey to 
 Calcutta. The line of railway keeps to the 
 south of the Ganges, and thus does not intersect 
 Benares ; but a branch runs up to that city, the 
 
%6(> SIX TEAKS IN INDIA. 
 
 station of which is just opposite on the southern 
 bank of the river. 
 
 We arrived in Benares on Saturday, and re- 
 mained over the Sabbath at the house of the 
 Rev. Mr. Sherring, of the London Missionary 
 Society mission in that city. 
 
 We attended service in the mission chapel on 
 Sabbath morning, and heard Mr. Sherring 
 preach. He speaks the Hindoostanee language 
 very fluently, and it was a pleasure to hear him. 
 
 There was a fine congregation of native Chris- 
 tians and scholars from the mission schools. At 
 a service held later in the day Mr. H. preached. 
 In the evening some other missionaries called, 
 and Mr. Sherring and Mr. Humphrey accom- 
 panied them to a general missionary prayer 
 meeting. 
 
 Early on Monday morning Mr. Sherring took 
 us in his carriage across the Ganges to the sta- 
 tion house. 
 
 The cars on the Indian railway are in com- 
 partments, as they are in England. We were so 
 fortunate as to have a compartment to ourselves, 
 and Mr. H. was thus enabled to arrange a com- 
 fortable place for us to rest during the night. 
 
 Tuesday morning, the sixteenth, we arrived 
 in Calcutta, and soon after leaving the train at 
 Howrah, we saw Mr. Young advancing to meet 
 us. How the sight of him recalled our arrival 
 in 1857, and our life in Calcutta. One other 
 
SIX YEARS m JKDIA. 267 
 
 kind friend of those days, Mr. Stewart, has re- 
 turned to Scotland. 
 
 "We learned from Mr. Young that we must go 
 on board the Golden Fleece that night, so we 
 had only a few hours in which to make the 
 necessary arrangements for the voyage. It was 
 a busy day, but, with Mr. Young's assistance, we 
 were ready in time. 
 
 "We drove down to Garden Eeach about sun- 
 set, and once more went on board a dinghy. 
 We found that the Golden Fleece had dropped 
 down the river some distance, and we had a 
 long row in prospect to reach her. 
 
 Mr. Young accompanied us, and thus the 
 first friendly face we met upon our arrival in 
 India was also the last we gazed upon when we 
 left her shores. "We bade him good-by in the 
 saloon of the steamship, and then slightly ar- 
 ranged our cabin and retired for the night, but 
 not to sleep. The night was unusually sultry 
 for that season. The jackals had not forgotten 
 how to make "night hideous" by their " sylvan 
 strains." Passengers were continually arriv- 
 ing, children crying, and the nurses making 
 drowsy and worse than useless attempts to quiet 
 them. 
 
 In the morning at breakfast we met our fel- 
 low-passengers, but the officers were not present. 
 There were, including ourselves, fourteen adults 
 and twelve children. 
 
268 SIX YEARS m INDIA. 
 
 Three ladies were going to England on account 
 of ill-health, leaving their husbands in India ; 
 and one entire family, also on account of dis- 
 ease. One single lady, a Miss Rocke, was re- 
 turning from a visit to some friends. The com- 
 plement was made up of young officers who 
 were returning either on account of ill-health or 
 ill-conduct. Of the former number was a son 
 of General ISTeil. 
 
 The Golden Fleece is an iron ship of two 
 thousand seven hundred tons burden. She is 
 a full-rigged sailing vessel with a small steam 
 power attached, which is sufficient to take her 
 along at the rate of seven knots an hour in 
 calms and variable winds. 
 
 "We glided easily down the Hooghly, over the 
 bars and sands that caused so much alarm in 
 the Niobe, and long before evening the last 
 point of S augur island disappeared from our 
 sight. 
 
 With far greater regret than when the shores 
 of our native land faded from our view, we 
 asked ourselves, " Shall we never look upon 
 these shores again ? " 
 
 Captain Bird, the commander of the ship, is 
 a fine-looking gentleman past the prime of life. 
 He is a member of the Church of England, and 
 believes in keeping up at least the forms of re- 
 ligion. He desired Mr. H. to always ask a 
 blessing at dinner, and to read the Church serv- 
 
SIX YEAES IN INDIA. 269 
 
 ice and preach a short sermon on deck every 
 Sabbath morning. 
 
 The rules of the ship were very strict in re- 
 gard to the Sabbath. The decks were scrubbed 
 every morning except on that day, and they 
 were washed twice on Saturday. All the sail- 
 ors except those on duty were required to be 
 cleanly dressed and marched forward to the 
 seats arranged for them. The capstan, which 
 served for a pulpit, was always covered with the 
 British flag. There was a large awning over a 
 portion of the deck, which made it a comforta- 
 ble place to sit. 
 
 We anchored off Madras on the Saturday 
 evening after sailing, and remained there till 
 the sixth of March, in order to take on board 
 cargo and passengers. 
 
 There is no bay at Madras. The ocean waves 
 break with full force upon the beach, and are 
 crested with snow-white and angry-looking surf 
 through which ordinary boats cannot pass. The 
 natives have contrived peculiar boats, the planks 
 of which are fastened together with strong cords 
 yielding somewhat to the action of the waves. 
 They are called Masulah boats, and are always 
 used for the transportation of cargoes and pas- 
 sengers to and from the ships. We saw also very 
 singular-looking crafts, apparently made of a 
 single plank, or half the trunk of a tree, bearing 
 one man each. They are called catamarans. 
 
270 SIX YEARS IN INDIA. 
 
 Our vessel was besieged with boats filled with 
 dealers in fruit, ornaments, curiosities, embroi- 
 deries, silks, etc. Among them were silk robes 
 embroidered with cotton, and the most exquisite 
 embroidered muslins and laces I ever saw. 
 
 Most of the passengers went ashore at Ma- 
 dras ; but the ladies were so utterly terror- 
 stricken, and told of such marvelous escapes, 
 that I concluded to remain quietly on board. 
 Mr. H., however, went ashore twice and looked 
 about the city, and visited the Eev. Dr. "Winslow 
 and Mr. Hunt of the mission of the American 
 Board. There were some other American 
 missionaries there from a station some dis- 
 tance in the country, and one of them accom- 
 panied Mr. H. to the ship and made me a 
 short visit. 
 
 A crowd of people came on board at Madras, 
 so that when we left we had nearly a hundred 
 adult passengers and forty children. There 
 were over one hundred and thirty of the ship's 
 crew, which made the whole number of souls 
 on board about two hundred and seventy. 
 
 The weather was intensely hot while we were 
 off Madras. I was taken very ill the day before 
 we sailed, and for two weeks was confined wholly 
 to my berth. Some of the time it seemed 
 doubtful if I could rally ; but in two or three 
 weeks, as we gained the colder latitudes, I began 
 to recover. As soon as I was a little stronger, 
 
SIX YEAKS IK INDIA. 271 
 
 the pliysican ordered me to be carried out daily 
 to the sofa of the stern window for fresh air, and 
 many an honr I lay there quaffing the pure sea 
 breezes and watching the heaving sea. 
 
 As the stern window was a favorite resort for 
 the lady passengers, I made their acquaintance 
 under rather disadvantageous circumstances ; 
 but before we had been a month out from Madras, 
 I was able to resume my seat at table and min- 
 gle with the passengers. 
 
 One gentleman, who came on board at Madras 
 quite out of health, died in about three weeks, 
 and was buried in the ocean. 
 
 Among the passengers were a general and his 
 family going home to England for life, with 
 whom we formed a very pleasant acquaintance. 
 Perhaps one reason we liked them so well was 
 that they sympathized with the North in the 
 great struggle for the right. 
 
 Several of the company asked Mr. H. to con- 
 duct an evening service on the Sabbath, and 
 also to have prayers every morning in the sa- 
 loon. After consulting Captain Bird and find- 
 ing he had no objections, he consented to do so, 
 and throughout the voyage he held two services 
 on the Sabbath and morning prayers throughout 
 the week. 
 
 There was a piano on board, and as there 
 were several good players and singers, the 
 hymns and chants were rendered in good style, 
 
272 SIX YEAES IN INDIA. 
 
 and added very much to the interest of the 
 services. 
 
 Off Mauritius and Madagascar the weather 
 was cold and squally, but we had no severe 
 storms. As we rounded the Cape of Good 
 Hope, we met heavy seas that made our good 
 ship tremble. There had evidently been a tem- 
 pest, and the waves had not yet subsided. The 
 wind was fair, and we plowed through the 
 advancing billows at a fearful rate. 
 
 When we got into the current off Point Agul- 
 has, which took us along at the rate of four knots 
 an hour, we were making thirteen by our sails ; 
 and seventeen miles an hour made even the 
 Golden Fleece " reel to and fro and stagger like 
 a drunken man." 
 
 The night previous to our reaching Cape 
 Town the phosphorus in the water was magnifi- 
 cent : the waves " mountain high," and the 
 whole vast expanse, far as the eye could reach, 
 gleamed with red light, and on, and on, right 
 through the blazing element, our good ship 
 plowed her way unharmed. I am sure none 
 of us can ever forget the sublimity and super- 
 natural beauty of that scene. 
 
 Captain Bird was running for a prize. Five 
 hundred pounds sterling extra were to be his if 
 he made the voyage from Madras to Cape Town 
 in thirty days, and thence to England in forty 
 days. We barely succeeded in casting anchor 
 
SIX YEARS IN INDIA. 273 
 
 in Table Bay on the evening of the fifth of 
 April, which was reckoned to be just within the 
 fixed time. 
 
 Next morning the bold green mountains of 
 the Cape loomed majestically up before us. As 
 we could not discern them the previous night, 
 the change seemed almost magical. In the 
 center stands Table Mountain, so called from 
 its flat top, which is three miles across. 
 When the storm cloud lowers, it falls down 
 the sides of Table Mountain in such a manner 
 as to gain from mariners the cognomen of " The 
 Tablecloth." 
 
 There are two other large mountains, one on 
 either side, with conical peaks and green grassy 
 slopes ; but the three mountains are not beauti- 
 fied very abundantly with trees. 
 
 At their foot lies Cape Town. Its home-like 
 houses and churches form a very agreeable view 
 to the eyes of voyagers from the East, and very 
 pleasant to the taste are the apples, pears, and 
 grapes, which are abundant at this season of the 
 year. 
 
 Excellent wine is made at Constantia, a vine- 
 yard but a few miles from the town, and a large 
 supply was taken on board by our fellow-pas- 
 sengers. 
 
 Mr. H. went ashore several times, but I only 
 succeeded in getting on deck once, the first time 
 since leaving Madras. We would have enjoyed 
 18 
 
274 SIX YEAES IN INDIA. 
 
 a few days on shore to visit the missions, etc. 
 "We had hoped to meet Dr. Duff at the Cape, 
 as we knew he was making a stay there on his 
 way to Scotland, bnt he had gone inland a few 
 miles. 
 
 Some of the missionaries hearing of ns, kindly 
 sent us an invitation to visit them, but we did 
 not receive it in time to do so. About fifteen 
 passengers, adults and children, came on board at 
 Cape Town. 
 
 The climate of the Cape must be very like 
 home, although not so severe. "We learned 
 from the passengers that snow falls occasionally 
 during three months of the year, June, July 
 and August, but never to any great depth. 
 
 I should suppose it would be a better climate 
 for invalids from India to recruit in than that 
 of America or England, and what a saving of 
 time, money, and exposure it would be if mis- 
 sionaries could avail themselves of it. How 
 gladly would we have been spared the remain- 
 der of the voyage, if we could have remained 
 there and been comfortably situated. 
 
 "We were told that before the Overland Route 
 shortened the journey to England, the East In- 
 dia Company sent all its invalids there to recruit. 
 
 We sailed on the tenth, and with favoring 
 winds made our way rapidly toward the Equa- 
 tor. As we neared it the wind left us, and we 
 steamed for a week ; then again we depended 
 
SIX YEARS IN INDIA. 275 
 
 upon our sails. How different from our voyage 
 out ! Then we lay becalmed for weeks in the 
 torrid zone, now we had only a week of hot 
 weather. 
 
 "When off the coast of Guinea we had quite a 
 fright. The funnel burned out one Sabbath 
 evening. We were drinking tea in the saloon, 
 when we heard confused noises overhead, and 
 looking up saw a shower of sparks falling down 
 the main hatchway ! 
 
 The awning caught fire, and the lower sails 
 were endangered. The ropes which fastened 
 the awning were cut in order to remove it more 
 speedily, and in a short time the danger was 
 averted. 
 
 On the eighteenth of May we sighted Land's 
 End, the point where Charles Wesley is said to 
 have composed, 
 
 " Lo ! on a narrow neck of land 
 
 'Twist two unbounded seas I stand," etc. 
 
 It was a time of thrilling excitement to all, 
 especially so to those whose homes were near. 
 
 We took a pilot off Plymouth the next morn- 
 ing. On the succeeding night Captain Bird re- 
 tired, leaving the ship in his charge. Toward 
 morning an invalid gentleman passenger was 
 restless, and rose and went on deck. He ob- 
 served something just ahead that looked like 
 land, and at once called an officer, who no sooner 
 
276 SIX YEARS IN INDIA. 
 
 saw it than he shouted an order to turn the ship 
 about. We were driving right ashore, and so 
 near had we approached, that in turning the 
 ship the proximity to land was hazardous. We 
 were greatly shocked in the morning when we 
 learned what danger we had escaped. The 
 pilot was put off the next day and another taken 
 on board. 
 
 Early on the morning of the twenty**third we 
 were all astir gazing on the " white cliffs of Al- 
 bion," which, in the vicinity of Dover, present a 
 very imposing appearance. "We could see the 
 town and the renowned Castle of Dover quite 
 distinctly. 
 
 On this, the last morning of our remarkably 
 pleasant voyage, we all met for prayers as usual. 
 Just as they were concluded, Mrs. Cotton, a 
 most lovely and amiable Christian lady, remark- 
 ed that the lady passengers had deputed her to 
 thank Mr. H. for what they were pleased to 
 term the kind and acceptable manner in which 
 he had conducted religious services on board, 
 and announced that a Bible and Prayer Book 
 would be presented to him in London " as a 
 token of regard, and in remembrance of his 
 kind services." She added that they should 
 always regard our companionship on board with 
 much pleasure, and that it was the wish of all 
 that we might be blessed and prospered in our 
 visit to our native land, and be enabled to return 
 
SIX YEAKS IN INDIA. 277 
 
 to our work in India. This incident took us by 
 surprise, but was no less grateful to our feelings. 
 
 We steamed up the Thames to Gravesend, 
 where most of the passengers left the ship. We 
 were all glad that the voyage was over, and yet 
 there were many regretful feelings that we must 
 now part with but very little prospect of meet- 
 ing again in this world. 
 
 We had become much interested in several of 
 the passengers, especially in Miss Eocke, Mrs. 
 Cotton, and others. Mrs. Thompson, of Cape 
 Town, an estimable Christian lady, seemed like 
 a mother to us. She was on a visit to England 
 and Ireland with her son and daughter. When 
 we landed at Gravesend, they, with us, joined 
 Mr. Fletcher's family party, who were intending 
 to take rooms at Ship Hotel, Charing Cross. 
 After a slight detention at the custom-house we 
 took a cab to the railway station. 
 
 How delicious was the land-breeze as we drove 
 along ! and how lovely were the lilacs blossom- 
 ing up against the pleasant English homes! 
 How delightful it was again to glide swiftly 
 along the iron track ! 
 
 We entered London, vast London, in the even- 
 ing, and at nine o'clock were taking tea together 
 in a private parlor at Ship Hotel. 
 
 It was very pleasant to have the company of 
 these fellow- voyagers while in London. Several 
 others called on us at the hotel, and among them 
 
278 SIX YEAES IN INDIA. 
 
 came Judge Cotton with the ladies' remembran- 
 cer, a beautiful Bible and Prayer Book, with the 
 names of the donors written on a blank leaf in- 
 side, and Mr. Humphrey's name in gilt letters 
 on the outside of each book. 
 
 Our friend, Miss Rocke, called and generously 
 gave us ten sovereigns, equal to fifty dollars in 
 gold, for our missionary treasury. Mrs. Thomp- 
 son also gave us three sovereigns for the same 
 purpose. 
 
 As we had but three days in which to make 
 our preparations for the remaining voyage, 
 we had not much opportunity for sight-seeing. 
 For my part, I was so fatigued that I was 
 quite satisfied with what we saw from our par- 
 lor windows. Westminster Abbey was close 
 by, and near us, standing by a fountain in full 
 play, was a full size equestrian statue. 
 
 The shops opposite the hotel were resplendent 
 with richly-hued fabrics, the sidewalks were 
 crowded with well-dressed people, and the 
 streets with beautiful carriages. 
 
 Mr. H. visited City Road Chapel and "Wesley's 
 house and tomb, and explored the subterranean 
 railroad which tunnels the great city. 
 
 We fully intended to see the interior of West- 
 minster Abbey the day we left London, but 
 when we had walked around the venerable pile 
 and were about to enter, we found the evening 
 service was just commencing, and if we went in 
 
SIX YEARS IN INDIA. 279 
 
 we could not leave until it should conclude, and 
 as we had but two hours in which to bid our 
 friends good-by and reach the station, we dared 
 not risk the detention. 
 
 We had a charming bird's-eye view of the 
 mother country as on the fleet wings of steam 
 we sped across the country to Liverpool. Two 
 points in relation to Euglish scenery will ever 
 be distinct in my memory. One is the absence 
 of the unsightly board and rail fences which 
 mar the beauty of our home scenery ; and, second, 
 the intense green of the landscape. The smooth 
 cosy meadows, with the enclosing hedges, the 
 shrubs, the trees, all are of the deepest richest 
 green. 
 
 We saw many of the " stately homes of En- 
 gland " as well as the " cottage homes," stand- 
 ing embowered in groves, and looking the very 
 personification of home comfort. Still I think 
 many parts of our own fair land rival England 
 in this respect, while in extended and varied 
 scenery it, of course, far surpasses her. 
 
 We reached Liverpool at eleven o'clock P. M., 
 and went to Queen's Hotel, as we had been ad- 
 vised by our London friends. In about half an 
 hour we were sitting in a nicely furnished room 
 far up skyward, with steaming tea, hot muf- 
 fins, etc., before us. Really, English hotels 
 are marvelously comfortable places for tired 
 travelers. 
 
280 SIX YEARS IN INDIA. 
 
 On entering the breakfast room next morning 
 we were shown to one of the many small tables 
 that filled the room, where we were served to a 
 delicious breakfast. 
 
 We drove through the busy streets of Liver- 
 pool for an hour before we made our way to 
 the docks. At one o'clock we went on board 
 the steamer Etna, and glided down the Mersey. 
 
 Immediately we found ourselves among our 
 own people once more. Two young gentlemen, 
 two young ladies, and a missionary from Tur- 
 key, formed, with ourselves, the American party, 
 which was enlarged at times by sundry others 
 who claimed the United States as their adopted 
 home. 
 
 We were a mixed multitude on board the Etna. 
 There were about eighty cabin passengers and 
 six hundred emigrants. All the latter, and 
 some of the former, came on board at Queens- 
 town, Ireland, where we stopped for a few 
 hours. 
 
 We saw there the ill-fated " City of York," 
 lying helplessly on the rock which stopped her 
 course forever. It seems that the captain of 
 the unfortunate vessel attempted to pass be- 
 tween the rock and the shore, in order to save a 
 few moments of time, and being deceived by 
 the apparent nearness of the shore in the moon- 
 light, did not allow the rock sufficient latitude. 
 She struck on it, and could not be got ofi\ 
 
SIX YEAES IN INDIA. 281 
 
 All the passengers were saved, but of course 
 they were much terrified, and sustained great 
 loss. 
 
 "When we left Queenstown, and were fairly 
 out to sea, we began to feel impatient for the 
 first time during the entire journey. Home 
 seemed so near, and yet so far away. 
 
 The voyage to New York was only twelve 
 days in length ; but O what tedious days they 
 were ! Sea-life became almost intolerable, and 
 it was only when we thought of the poor emi- 
 grants below, stowed in like baggage as they 
 were, that our own close quarters seemed en- 
 durable. 
 
 We had gray lowering weather all the way 
 over, but no storm. 
 
 On the two Sabbaths we had religious serv- 
 ices. Mr. Walker, the missionary from Turkey, 
 preached on one Sabbath and Mr. H. on the 
 other, after the reading of the Church service 
 by the physician on board. 
 
 The second Saturday evening a lamentable 
 accident occurred. A young German woman 
 fell down the ladder which led below, and rup- 
 tured a blood vessel. She died in a few min- 
 utes. On Sabbath morning she was placed in 
 a coffin and cast out into the broad Atlantic. 
 
 Just before midday a large ship bore down 
 toward us and signaled us to stop. Our captain 
 declared he would not, and went below; but 
 
282 SIX YEARS IN INDIA. 
 
 he had scarcely reached his room when a shot 
 came darting over the water toward ns. 
 
 There was no escape, we must stop and learn 
 the will of the stranger, so with an ill grace 
 the captain gave the necessary orders to stop 
 the steamer. 
 
 The strange vessel, a splendid man-of-war in 
 fnll sail, bore down so closely that it seemed as 
 if she meant to crush us ; but she merely ascer- 
 tained who we were, and then, without deigning 
 to answer our question, " What is the news % " 
 made off. 
 
 Sabbath evening a heavy fog came on, and 
 all night long the portentous fog-bell rang out 
 its warning peals. Toward noon on Monday 
 the fog cleared away, and when the bay, with 
 its lovely islands and stately cities met our gaze, 
 the bright sunshine beamed forth. 
 
 Just as we left the steamer, however, clouds 
 overspread the sky, and amid pouring rain we 
 landed, stopped at the custom-house, bade our 
 little party of friends good-by, entered a carriage, 
 and drove to the missionaries' home, the house 
 of the kind and excellent Recording Secretary 
 of the Missionary Board, Rev. D. Terry. 
 
 It seems like a dream that we are here again 
 in New York, and that in a few days we shall 
 mingle with the friends we thought never to see 
 again in the flesh. 
 
 We do not have a single thought that our 
 
SIX YEARS IN INDIA. 
 
 work in India is done. We consider that we 
 are merely home " on furlough," and soon as 
 the purpose for which we returned shall be ac- 
 complished, we will gladly return to " the front," 
 if God permit us. 
 
 My health is much improved, and we have 
 strong hope that we have yet many years before 
 us to labor in heathen India. 
 
APPENDIX. 
 
 Theee were a few errors in the manuscript of this 
 work which I would have corrected in the proofs, 
 but I did not receive them in time to make the 
 necessary alterations ; I therefore note them here. 
 
 On page 6 1 the Soane river is said to be " but 
 a rivulet " in the dry season ; but instead of this 
 being the case, it is broken into several shallow 
 streams, which thread the deep yellow sand of the 
 bed of the river, which is over three miles wide. 
 While on our journey from Calcutta to Nynee 
 Tal in 1858, we crossed the Soane in the night, 
 and, in fact, did not see it at all. Our kahars 
 complained of the deep sand, but said there was 
 very little water. 
 
 On page 60 a sufficiently clear idea of the 
 Vindhya Hills is not given. The Vindhyan range 
 comprises all the mountains and hills between the 
 twenty-second and twenty-fifth parallels of lati- 
 tude, from Ouzerat on the west to the Ganges; 
 but the first hills north of Calcutta are usually 
 termed the Bahar Hills, because they are in the 
 
SIX YEAKS IN INDIA. 285 
 
 province of Bahar. The fact is not mentioned, 
 either, that the singular ledge of rocks called 
 " Adam's Bridge," which connects the two small 
 islands of Kameserum and Manar, in a direct line 
 between the continent and Ceylon, is supposed by 
 the Hindoos to be the remains of the bridge which 
 was constructed by the apes for the recovery of 
 the goddess Seeta. 
 
 On page 72, also, in the description of the " Taj 
 Mahal," the impression is given that the whole of 
 the Koran is inlaid upon the walls in precious 
 stones ; but this is not so ; the letters are formed of 
 black marble. The Sarcophagi are inlaid with 
 precious stones, and so are the other portions of 
 the edifice, as mentioned. The description is, how- 
 ever, very incomplete, owing to the little time we 
 had to examine it. 
 
 The best description of the Taj Mahal extant, 
 at least in this country, is in Bayard Taylor's 
 " India, China, and Japan," but even that usually 
 correct writer falls into a very great mistake in 
 regard to the personage for whom the mausoleum 
 was erected. He says : " The history and asso- 
 ciations of the Taj are entirely poetic. It is a 
 work inspired by love and consecrated to beauty. 
 Shah Jahan, the ' Selim ' of Moore's poem, (The 
 Light of the Haram, in Lalla Rookh,) erected it as 
 a mausoleum over his queen, Noor Jahan, the light 
 of the world, whom the same poet calls Noor 
 Mahal, the light of the haram, or, more properly, 
 
286 SIX YEARS IN INDIA. 
 
 palace. She is reputed to have been a woman of 
 surpassing beauty, and of great wit and intelli- 
 gence." 
 
 Now Moore himself declares his hero to be 
 " the magnificent son of Akbar," in the opening 
 lines of " The Light of the Haram," and also states 
 in the margin that his name was Selim, but at his 
 coronation he assumed the title of Jahangeer, or 
 Conqueror of the World, which is also an historical 
 fact. The favorite sultana of Jahangeer, whom he 
 named first Noor Mahal, and afterward Noor Ja- 
 han, survived him several years, and at her death, 
 in 1646, was buried in a tomb which she had her- 
 self erected close to that of Jahangeer at Lahore.* 
 
 Khoorum, the favorite son of Jahangeer, (but 
 not the son of Noor Mahal,) was crowned soon 
 after his father's death, and the title of Shah Ja- 
 han, or King of the World, was conferred upon 
 him. He built the Taj Mahal in memory of his 
 favorite wife, Mumtaz Mahal, that is, the Chosen 
 of the Palace, and was afterward buried by her 
 side in the vault of that inimitable structure. 
 
 E. J. H. 
 
 * See "British Possessions in Asia," by R. Montgomery 
 Martin, Esq. 
 
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