I remained ten days at Allahabad, waiting the arrival of tents from Cawnpoor. During this time I had the pleasure of confirming twenty persons, two of them natives, and of preaching and administering the Sacrament to seventy or eighty, of whom some were also natives, or at least in the native dress. The residents here are exceedingly anxious for a Chaplain, but that one should be appointed at this time, I entertain but few hopes, though it is very sad, that such a congregation should want one. For the present I hope to procure them one of the Church Missionaries. Amid the other necessary preparations for my land journey, more numerous by far, and more various, than I had anticipated, I had to purchase a horse for my own riding, no elephant being either to be begged, bought, or borrowed in Allahabad, and no reasonable hope being held out of my procuring one in Cawnpoor. Indeed most people tell me that a horse, during the greater part of the journey which I have before me, will be a far preferable conveyance. To procure a tolerable one was not, however, an easy matter. Arabs are excessively scarce and dear, and one which was sent for me to look at, at a price of 800 rupees, was ȧ skittish, cat-legged thing, not worth half the money. I went with Mr. Bird, whose kindness and hospitality were unremitting during my whole stay, to look at a drove of up-country horses, just arrived from Lahore and Turkistân, and was exceedingly amused and interested by the picturesque groupes of men and animals which met the eye in HORSE DEALERS. 445 a crowded serai about nightfall, as well as with the fine forms of some of the colts offered for sale, and the singular appearance and manner of the grazier who owned the "Cofilah," or caravan, and his attendant saeeses. The former was an elderly man, six feet high, and more than proportionally corpulent, with a long, curling, black beard, spreading over his white peyrahoom. The latter were also large-limbed, tall men, with long hair in black strong ringlets hanging down their backs and over their ears, their little turbans set knowingly on one side, and neither they nor their master much darker than Europeans. Indeed, they exceedingly resembled some of the portraits of Italians by Titian; they rode well, and shewed great strength; but what most amused me was the remarkable resemblance between horse dealers all over the world, in turns of expression, in tricks of trade, nay, even in tone of voice and cast of countenance. I had fortunately an excellent judge in Mr. Bird, but even he was perplexed for some time how to advise me. At length I fixed on a very handsome colt, too young, certainly, but strong, and very good tempered, for which I gave 460 rupees. The old man went and came over and over again, before he would take the price, but I was pertinacious; and at last, on Abdullah's suggesting that an additional present of something besides money would please him better, I gave him a piece of Dacca muslin, sufficient for a turban, and worth about eight sicca rupees, as well as a small phial of laudanum and brandy for an ear-ache, of which he 446 FESTIVAL OF RAMA AND SEETA. bitterly complained. This satisfied him, and we parted very good friends, Mr. Bird being of opinion that the price was really a fair one, and the horse extremely promising. It was also necessary to buy five tattoos for my servants to ride in turns, as there were no baggage-elephants to mount them on. This, however, was easily accomplished, and the animals, saddles, bridles, and all, were obtained, though very good ones of their kind, for 16 rupees each. A long string of other necessaries followed, and I had the mortification to find that few of the things I had brought with me from Calcutta could be put on the backs of camels. It was with the greatest difficulty that a carpenter could be found in the whole city to drive a nail, or a blacksmith to make a horse-shoe; it being the festival of Rama and Seeta, all the world was employed in seeing the hero with his army of monkeys attack the giant Ravanu. Many other hindrances and disappointments occurred, but the delay they occasioned gave me an opportunity of seeing something of the Ramayuna festival, which consists in a sort of dramatic representation during many successive days, of Rama's history and adventures. The first evening I went with Mr. Bird to the show, for such it is now considered, and so entirely divested of every religious character as to be attended even by Mussulmans without scruple. I found Rama, his brother Luchmun, and his betrothed wife Seeta, represented by three children of about twelve years old, seated in Durbar, under an awning in the principal street of the Sepoy lines, with a great FESTIVAL OF RAMA AND SEETA. 447 crowd round them, some fanning them, of which poor things they had great need, some blowing horns and beating gongs and drums, and the rest shouting till the air rang again. The two heroes were very fine boys, and acted their parts admirably. Each had a gilt bow in his left hand, and a sabre in his right, their naked bodies were almost covered with gilt ornaments and tinsel, they had high tinsel crowns on their heads, their foreheads and bodies spotted with charcoal, chalk, and vermilion, and altogether perfectly resembled the statues of Hindoo deities, "Except that of their eyes alone The twinkle shewed they were not stone." Poor little Seeta, wrapt up in a gorgeous veil of flimsy finery, and tired to death, had dropped her head on her breast and seemed happily insensible to all which was going on. The Brahmin Sepoys who bore the principal part in the play, made room, with great solicitude, for us to see. I asked a good many questions, and obtained very ready answers in much the same way, and with no more appearance of reverence and devotion than one should receive from an English mob at a puppetshow. "I see Rama, Seeta, Luchmun, but where is Hunimân?" (the famous monkey general.) "Hunimân," was the answer, "is not yet come; but that man," pointing to a great stout soldier of singularly formidable exterior, "is Hunimân, and he will soon arrive." The man began laughing as if half ashamed of his destination, but now took up 418 FESTIVAL OF RAMA AND SEETA. the conversation, telling me that "next day was to be a far prettier play than I now saw, for Seeta was to be stolen away by Ravanu and his attendant evil spirits, Rama and Luchmun were to go to the jungle in great sorrow to seek for her," ("Rama, your Rama! to greenwood must hie!") That "then (laughing again) I and my army shall come, and we shall fight bravely, bravely." The evening following I was engaged, but the next day I repeated my visit; I was then too late for the best part of the show, which had consisted of a first and unsuccessful attack by Rama and his army on the fortress of the gigantic ravisher. That for-` tress, however, I saw,-an enclosure of bamboos, covered with paper and painted with doors and windows, within which was a frightful paper giant, fifteen feet high, with ten or twelve arms, each grasping either a sword, an arrow, a bow, a battleaxe, or a spear. At his feet sate poor little Seeta as motionless as before, guarded by two figures to represent demons. The brothers in a splendid palkee, were conducting the retreat of their army; the divine Hunimân, as naked and almost as hairy as the animal whom he represented, was gamboling before them, with a long tail tied round his waist, a mask to represent the head of a baboon, and two great painted clubs in his hands. His army followed, a number of men with similar tails and masks, their bodies dyed with indigo, and also armed with clubs. I was never so forcibly struck with the identity of Rama and Bacchus. Here were |