120 PAGODAS AT SIBNIBASHI. but their waist-cloths, like the other peasants; they had, however, the Brahminical string over their shoulders; and Stowe, who, as well as myself, was much struck by their manner, pleasing countenances, and comparatively fair complexions, observed, that the Brahmins seemed really to maintain a certain degree of superiority of intellect over the unprivileged classes. After a few questions, they whispered to each other, and ran towards the jungle, leaving us to pursue our track, which was narrow and winding, through masses of brick-work and earthen mounds, with many tamarind and peepul-trees, intermixed with thickets of cactus, bamboo, and a thorny plant a little like the acacia, on the whole reminding me of some parts of the Roman wall at Silchester. We found four pagodas, not large, but of good architecture, and very picturesque, so that I much regretted the having left my sketch-book on board, and the more so because it was now too late to get it before dusk. The sight of one of the peons, who had followed - me, though without orders, with his silver mace, procured us much respect from the Brahmins and villagers, and the former were urgent to show us their temples. The first which we visited was evidently the most modern, being, as the officiating Brahmin told us, only fifty-seven years old. In England we should have thought it at least 200: but in this climate a building soon assumes, without constant care, all the venerable tokens of antiquity. It was very clean, however, and of good architecture; a square tower, surmounted by a PAGODAS AT SIBNIBASHI. 121 pyramidal roof, with a high cloister of pointed arches surrounding it externally to within ten feet of the springing of the vault. The cloister was also vaulted, so that, as the Brahmin made me observe, with visible pride, the whole roof was "pucka," or brick, and "belathee," or foreign. A very handsome gothic arch, with an arabesque border, opened on the south side, and shewed within the statue of Rama, seated on a lotus, with a gilt but tarnished umbrella over his head; and his wife, the earth-born Seeta, beside him. A sort of dessert of rice, ghee, fruit, sugar-candy, &c. was ranged before them on what had the appearance of silver dishes; and the remaining furniture of the temple consisted of a large gong hanging on the wall, and some Kedgeree pots similar to those which we had noticed. From hence we went to two of the other temples, which were both octagonal, with domes not unlike those of glass-houses. They were both dedicated to Siva, (who Abdullah, according to his Mussulman notions, said was the same with Adam,) and contained nothing but the symbol of the Deity, of black marble. On paying my fee to the Brahmins who kept these shrines, I was surprised to find that they would not receive it immediately from my hand, but that they requested me first to lay it down on the threshold. I thought it right to explain that I meant it for them, and in return for their civility, not as an offering to their god; but they answered, that they could not receive any thing except from their own caste, unless it were thus laid before them. I therefore of course complied, though a little surprised at a delicacy of which I had found no symptom in those Brahmins whom I had previously met with. This was not the only unforeseen circumstance which occurred. As the two temples of Siva really contained nothing to see, I thought one rupee was enough, in all conscience, between them, and told the priests that they were to divide it. No sooner, however, had it touched the threshold, than the two old men began scrambling for it in a most indecorous manner, abusing each other, spitting, stamping, clapping their hands, and doing every thing but striking; the one insisting that it belonged to him, whose threshold it had touched; the other urging the known intentions of the donor. I tried to pacify them, but found it of no use, and left them in the midst of the fray. Meantime the priest of Rama, who had received his fee before, and was well satisfied, came up, with several of the villagers, to ask if I would see the Raja's palace. On my assenting, they led us to a really noble gothic gateway, overgrown with beautiful broadleaved ivy, but in good preservation, and decidedly handsomer, though in pretty much the same style, with the "Holy Gate" of the Kremlin in Moscow. Within this, which had apparently been the entrance into the city, extended a broken but still stately avenue of tall trees, and on either side a wilderness of ruined buildings, overgrown with trees and brush-wood, which reminded Stowe of the baths of Caracalla, and me of the upper part of the city of Caffa. I asked who had destroyed the place, and was told Seraiah Dowla, an answer which (as it was evidently a Hindoo ruin) fortunately suggested to me the name of the Raja Kissen Chund. On asking whether this had been his residence, one of the peasants answered in the affirmative, adding that the Raja's grand-children yet lived hard by. By this I supposed he meant somewhere in the neighbourhood, since nothing here promised shelter to any beings but wild beasts, and as I went along I could not help looking carefully before me, and thinking of Thalaba in the ruins of Babylon; Cautiously he trode and felt The dangerous ground before him with his bow; * * The adder, at the noise alarmed, * * Launched at th' intruding staff her arrowy tongue.” Our guide meantime turned short to the right, and led us into what were evidently the ruins of a very extensive palace. Some parts of it reminded me of Conway Castle, and others of Bolton Abbey. It had towers like the former, though of less stately height, and had also long and striking cloisters of Gothic arches, but all overgrown with ivy and jungle, roofless and desolate. Here, however, in a court, whose gateway had still its old folding doors on their hinges, the two boys whom we had seen on the beach came forward to meet us, were announced to us as the great grand-sons of Raja Kissen Chund, and invited us very courteously in Persian, to enter their father's dwelling. I looked round in exceeding surprise. There was no more appearance of inhabitation than in Conway. Two or three cows were grazing among the ruins, and one was looking out from the top of a dilapidated turret, whither she had scrambled to browze on the ivy. The breech of a broken cannon, and a fragment of a mutilated inscription lay on the grass, which was evidently only kept down by the grazing of cattle; and the jackalls, whose yells began to be heard around us as the evening closed in, seemed the natural lords of the place. Of course, I expressed no astonishment, but said how much respect I felt for their family, of whose ancient splendour I was well informed, and that I should be most happy to pay my compliments to the Raja, their father. They immediately led us up a short, steep, straight flight of steps, in the thickness of the wall of one of the towers, precisely such as that of which we find the remains in one of the gateways of Rhuddlan Castle, assuring me that it was a very good road;" and at the door of a little vaulted and unfurnished room like that which is shewn in Carnarvon Castle, as the queen's bedchamber, we were received by the Raja Omichund, a fat shortish man, of about 45, of rather fair complexion, but with no other clothes than his waistcloth and Brahminical string, and only distinguished from his vassals by having his forehead marked all over with alternate stripes of chalk, vermilion, and gold leaf. The boys had evidently run home to inform him of our approach, and he had made some preparation to receive us in Durbar. His own Musnud was ready, a kind of mattrass laid on 66 |