the same merriment, as would have been called forth by a bonfire in England. I saw no weeping, and heard no lamentations. But when the boat drew near a sort of shout was raised, I believe in honour of Brahma, which was met by a similar outcry from my boatmen. January 15.-Dr. Marshman, the Baptist Missionary from Serampoor, dined with me. Dr. Carey is too lame to go out. The talents and learning of these good men are so well known in Europe, that I need hardly say that, important as are the points on which we differ, I sincerely admire and respect them, and desire their acquaintance. In speaking of the suttee of yesterday, Dr. Marshman said that these horrors are of more frequent occurrence within these few last years than when he first knew Bengal; an increase which he imputes to the increasing luxury of the higher and middling classes, and to their expensive imitation of European habits, which make many families needy, and anxious to get rid, by any means, of the necessity of supporting their mothers, or the widows of their relations. Another frequent cause is, he thinks, the jealousy of old men, who, having married young wives, still cling to their exclusive possession even in death, and leave injunctions either with their wives themselves to make the offering, or with their heirs to urge them to it. He is strongly of opinion that the practice might be forbidden in Bengal, where it is of most frequent occurrence, without exciting any serious murmurs. The women, he is convinced, would all be loud in their praises of such a measure, and even of the men, so few would have an immediate interest in burning their wives, mothers, or sisters-in-law, that they would set themselves against what those who had most influence with them would be so much interested in having established. The Brahmins, he says, have no longer the power and popularity which they had when he first remembers India, and among the laity many powerful and wealthy persons agree, and publicly express their agreement, with Rammohun Roy, in reprobating the custom, which is now

well known to be not commanded by any of the Hindoo sacred books, though some of them speak of it as a meritorious sacrifice. A similar opinion to that of Dr. Marshman I have heard expressed by the senior judge of the Sudder Dewannee Adawlut. Others, however, of the members of the Government think differently. They conceive that the likeliest method to make the custom more popular than it is, would be to forbid and make it a point of honour with the natives; that at present no woman is supposed to be burnt without her own wish certified to the magistrate; that there are other and less public ways to die (on that account more liable to abuse than the suttees) which might be resorted to if this were forbidden; and that if we desire to convert the Hindoos, we should above all things be careful to keep Government entirely out of sight in all the means which we employ, and to be even, if possible, over scrupulous in not meddling with, or impeding those customs which, however horrid, are become sacred in their estimation, and are only to be destroyed by convincing and changing the popular mind. When Christian schools have become universal the suttee will fall of itself. to forbid it by any legislative_enactment would, in their opinion, only give currency to the notion that we mean to impose Christianity on them by force, and retard its progress to an almost indefinite period.

But

January 21.-We had this morning an opportunity of hearing the remarkable phenomenon, not uncommon in the Ganges, called the Bore, or rush of the spring-tide up the river, with a great elevation of wave, and tremendous noise and rapidity. The sound resembled that of a steam-boat, but was infinitely louder; we were awakened by it, but before I could get out it had either passed, or else, as it always runs close to one or other of the sides of the river, the high crumbling bank prevented my seeing it. Nothing at least was visible but the water shining beautifully bright under a full moon in a cloudless sky, though the noise continued to be audi ble for some time longer.

whether, even if he could, he would read them. I was not mistaken, the name was enough for him, and though he made no objection in my presence, I was told that no sooner was my back turned than, with a deep groan, he laid them down, and desired a servant to take them away. Accordingly he passed the greater part of the morning in walking up and down the room, and looking out at the boats on the Hooghly. pitied the poor man, and when I had finished my necessary business, on my return renewed my conversation with him, which got on better than I at first expected. I asked him some questions about Georgia and Armenia, but the most which I got was a list of the different tribes of Caucasus, a specimen of the Georgian vocabulary for the most common articles, and the Georgian alphabet, which he wrote out for me, and which I was surprised to find differ very materially from the Sclavonic, the Armenian, and every other with which I am acquainted. At last dinner came to his relief as well as mine, and he soon began to display the appetite of a hardy mountaineer. I have seldom | seen any one make such quick dispatch with whatever was put on his plate, and he made a no less good use of the three French words with which he seemed most familiar, "à votre santé !" tossing down one bumper of wine after another, laughing all the time with the voice of a lion, till I began to fear some exhibition would follow, not very creditable either to the Church of Rome or to the table of a Protestant Bishop. He was, however, too strong to be affected by what he drank, except that it a little increased his fluency and noisy hilarity; and as soon as the cloth was fairly off the table I thought it high time to call for coffee. I had been all this time expecting to be asked to subscribe to something or other, since, the dinner always excepted, I could not perceive why else the good man should have shown so much anxiety for my acquaintance; and accordingly at length he rose, brought out an immense paper book, and after a short complimentary speech, solicited my patronage to a fund he was employed in collecting, to repair the

temple of Fortuna Virilis, in Rome, which was, he said, appropriated as a hospital and place of instruction for Armenian and other youths, and pilgrims, but had been grievously injured by certain excavations which the French made while in Rome, in order to examine the nature of its substruction and foundations. His paper was to the same effect, but was written in English, and evidently the composition of some of the Calcutta native writers. He then talked. of credentials from Rome; but though I asked for them, both in Latin and Italian, he produced none, but evaded the question. However, had he produced. them, he would not have been at all more likely to gain his object with me, since I neither quite believed the story of the French having committed an outrage at variance with their general conduct, nor did I conceive myself called on to build up churches for the members of a different communion in Rome. when all which I can do is likely to fall so far short of the claims of charity in India. If the poor man, who was very pressing, had asked me for himself, and in the capacity which I suspect really belonged to him, of a mendicant. he would have fared better. As it was

was unrelenting, though civil; and we parted, with at least the satisfaction on my part, that I had given him a good dinner.

February 7.-I went down to Calcutta this morning, to attend a "durbar," or native levee of the Governor's, which all the principal native residents in Calcutta were expected to attend, as well as the vakeels from several Indian princes. I found on my arrival the levee had begun, and that Lord Amherst, attended by his aides-de-camp and Persian secretary, had already walked down one side, where the persons of most rank, and who were to receive "khelâts," or honorary dresses, were stationed. I therefore missed this ceremony, but joined him and walked round those to whom he had not yet spoken, comprising some persons of considerable rank and wealth, and some learned men, travellers from different eastern countries, who each in turn addressed his compliments, or petitions,

or complaints to the Governor. There were several whom we thus passed who spoke English not only fluently but gracefully. Among these were Baboò Ramchunder Roy and his four brothers, all fine, tall, stout young men, the eldest of whom is about to build one of Mr. Shakespear's rope bridges over the Ca

ramnasa.

After Lord Amherst had completed the circle he stood on the lower step of the throne, and the visitors advanced one by one to take leave. First came a young Raja of the Rajpootana district, who had received that day the investiture of his father's territories, in a splendid brocade khelât and turban; he was a little, pale, shy-looking boy of twelve years old. Lord Amherst, in addition to these splendid robes, placed a large diamond aigrette in his turban, tied a string of valuable pearls round his neck, then gave him a small silver bottle of attar of roses, and a lump of pawn, or betel, wrapped up in a plantain leaf. Next came forwards the "vakeel," or envoy of the Maharaja Sindia, also a boy, not above sixteen. but smart, self-possessed, and dandylooking. His khelât and presents were a little, and but a little, less splendid | than those of his precursor. Then followed Oude, Nagpoor, Nepaul, all represented by their vakeels, and each in turn honoured by similar, though less splendid, marks of attention. The next was a Persian Khân, a fine militarylooking man, rather corpulent, and of a complexion not differing from that of × Turk, or other southern Europeans,

I

with a magnificent black beard, and a very pleasing and animated address. A vakeel from Sind succeeded, with a high red cap, and was followed by an Arab, handsomely dressed, and as fair nearly, though not so good-looking, as the Persian. These were all distinguished, and received each some mark of favour. Those who followed had only a little attar poured on their handkerchiefs, and some pawn. On the whole it was an interesting and striking sight, though less magnificent than I had expected, and less so, I think, than the levee or an European monarch. The sameness of the greater part of the dresses (white muslin) was not sufficiently relieved by the splendour of the few khelâts; and even these, which were of gold and silver brocade, were in a great measure eclipsed by the scarlet and blue uniforms, gold lace, and feathers, of the English. One of the most striking figures was the Governor-General's native aide-de-camp, a tall, strong-built, and remarkably handsome man, in the flower of his age, and of a countenance at once kind and bold. His dress was a very rich hussar uniform, and he advanced last of the circle, with the usual military salute; then, instead of the offering of money which each of the rest made, he bared a small part of the blade of his sabre, and held it out to the Governor. The attar he received, not on his handkerchief, but on his white cotton gloves. I had on former occasions noticed this soldier from his height, striking appearance, and rich uniform. He is a very respectable man, and reckoned a good officer.

IN passing Cossipoor, on my return to Tittyghur, I called on Mr. C. Shakespear, and looked at his rope bridges, which are likely to be most useful, in this country at least, if not in Europe. Their principle differs from that of chain bridges, in the centre being a little elevated, and in their needing no abutments. It is in fact an application of a ship's standing rigging to a new purpose, and it is not even necessary that there should be any foundation at all, as the whole may be made to rest on flat timbers, and, with the complete apparatus of cordage, iron, and bamboos, may be taken to pieces and set up again in a few hours, and removed from place to place by the aid of a few camels and elephants. One of these over a torrent near Benares, of 160 feet span, stood a severe test during last year's inundation, when, if ever, the cordage ght have been expected to suffer from the rain, and when a vast crowd of neighbouring villagers took refuge on it as the only safe place in the neighbourhood, and indeed almost the only object which continued to hold itself above the water. He has now finished another bridge for the Caramnasa, at the expense of Ramchunder Narain, whom I met at the durbar, and who may expect to reap much popularity with his countrymen from such a public benefit, not only as facilitating intercourse, but as freeing their religious pilgrims from a great anxiety. The name of the river in question means "the destroyer of good works," from the circumstance of an ancient devotee, whose penances, like those of Kehama, had exalted him to Indra's heaven, having

| been precipitated headlong by Siva, till his sacrifices broke his fall half way, directly over the stream in question. He now hangs in the air, head downwards, and his saliva flows into, and pollutes the whole water in such a manner, that any person who bathes in, or even touches it, loses the merit of all his antecedent penances, alms, and other acts of piety, reserving, however, the full benefit of his misdeeds of whatever description. All Brahmins who are obliged to pass it (and it lies in the way to some of the most illustrious places of pilgrimage) are in the greatest terror. They are sometimes carried on men's shoulders, sometimes ferried over; but in either case, if they are in the least splashed or wetted, it amounts almost to a matter of damnation, without hope or. chance of pardon. The people on the bank who act as watermen, are not influenced by these superstitions; but to Indians in general Mr. Shakespear's bridge will be most valuable. The span of this bridge, which is strong enough to bear a field-piece, is 320 feet in length, its breadth 8: its flooring composed of stout bamboos, connected by coir-rope, with a net-work hand-rail on either side, also of coir. as are the shrouds and principal tackling which support the whole. The appearance of the bridge is light and graceful. and its motion on passing over is not sufficient to be either dangerous or alarming.

My wife tells me a curious circumstance which has occurred in my absence, illustrative of the timid character which seems to belong to the Bengalees. The coachman had asked leave to go