beatific absorption into the Divine Essence. The same figures are seen in other parts of the temple, and their aspect perfectly harmonizes with the symbols introduced into the purely ornamental parts of its architecture.

This reminds me of the columns supporting the roof, which were unlike any others I had seen. The lower part is square, resting on a plinth, but at about half the height it becomes circular and fluted-or rather filleted, the compartments having a plane and not a concave surface. The capital is a flattened sphere, of nearly double the diameter of the shaft, having a narrow disc, with fluted edges, between it and the architrave. I knew these columns must have some type in Nature, and puzzled myself to find it. On visiting one of the smaller temples on the eastern side of the island, the resemblance flashed upon me at once-it was the poppy-head. The globular capital and its low, fluted crown, are copied almost without change from the plant, and these two symbols -the poppy and the lotus-with the closed eyelids and placid faces of the colossal guardians, give the whole temple an air of mystic and enchanted repose. One involuntarily walks through its dim and hushed aisles with a softer step, and speaks, if he must speak, in an undertone.

There is something in every form of religion worthy of general respect; and he who does not feel this, can neither understand nor appreciate the Art which sprang from he ancient Faiths. Our teachers of religion speak with sincere and very just horror and contempt of all forms of idolatry; yet, under pain of their anathemas, I dare assert, that he who can revile Osiris and Amun-Re, is unworthy to behold the wonders of Thebes. The Christian need not necessarily be an

RESPECT FOR THE ANCIENT FAITHS.

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iconoclast nay more, his very faith, in its perfect charity and its boundless love, obliges him to respect the shrines where the mighty peoples of the ancient world have bowed and worshipped. Besides, there is Truth, however dim and eclipsed, behind all these outward symbols. Even the naked and savage Dinkas of Central Africa worship trees; and so do I. The Parsees worship the sun, as the greatest visible manifestation of the Deity; and I assure you, I have felt very much inclined to do the same, when He and I were alone in the Desert. But let not the reader, therefore, or because I respect the feeling of worship, when expressed in other forms than my own, think me a Pagan.

The walls of the great hall of the temple of Elephanta, are divided into tablets, or compartments, each of which contains, as a central figure, the colossal statue of some god, surrounded by a host of inferior deities. Few of these have escaped the fanatical fury of the Portuguese, but sufficient remains to show the bold and masculine character of the art which produced them. The smaller figures are introduced above and at the sides of the central god, and some of the tablets have a striking resemblance to pictures of the old Italian masters, representing a saint surrounded by a cloud of cherubs. In the absence of all inscriptions, it is impossible to determine at what time the temple was excavated. The architecture, judged by its style alone, appears to be the antecedent of the Egyptian, which would then represent its perfect development, modified somewhat by being transplanted to a different soil. But I believe that most ethnographers now consider that the ancient Egyptians and Hindoos are

kindred branches of one stock, whose seat is to be looked for somewhere in Central Asia.

It

The side chambers of the temple are much smaller, and the walls are covered in the same manner, with sculptured tablets. Some of the figures have been recently smeared with red paint, a sign that they are still worshipped by some of the Hindoo sects. At the foot of a flight of steps which leads to the chambers on the left of the grand hall, two curious figures of dogs seated on their hind legs, which have been very lately excavated, are erected on pedestals. requires an experienced antiquarian to tell whether they are dogs, lions, or dolphins. There are three or four small inclosed apartments resembling the adyta of the Egyptian temples. In the centre of each is a low pedestal, or platform, upon which stands a stone about three feet high, with a rounded top-the Lingam, which is one of the most ancient as well as common of the Hindoo symbols. One of these, in particufar, is still in great repute among the natives, and is resorted to by the Hindoo women, who seat themselves upon it for a certain length of time, as a cure for barrenness. I was told that an English lady of Bombay, whose marriage had not had the desired result, was induced to try the experiment, which, to her great surprise, was successful.

After spending some time in the larger temple, two native boys showed us the way to the two smaller ones, which are higher up the hill, on its eastern side. Other visitors had come in the mean time, and a company of sailors were employed in knocking down the pods of the tamarind trees. The husk incloses a thick paste, wrapped around the seeds, with an intensely acid, but agreeable taste. From the gap

THE SMALLER TEMPLES.

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between the two peaks of the islands, we looked down into a lovely little valley on the opposite side, gradually widening to the water, near which was a native hamlet. I longed to pitch my tent in one of its palm-groves, and to spend a week in studying the strange gods in the caverns above.

The

The smaller temples have been much mutilated. entrances are nearly filled up with rubbish, and the inner chambers are now the abodes of the jackal and the serpent. They were too dark to be properly seen without torches, which we had not, but I could perceive that many of them contained the upright stone, and the usual sculptured tablets on the walls. The outer courts of both were supported by elegant poppy-headed pillars, a few of which have escaped destruction Excavation would no doubt reveal much that is now hidden, but the Government has no taste for such things, and there are few archæologists in Bombay. The most that has been done is to build a cottage and station a sergeant at the entrance of the great temple, in order to prevent visitors from injuring the sculptures.

The afternoon shadows were growing long by this time, admonishing us to return. The wind had risen, and as it was not entirely favorable, we were obliged to run up the bay, past a point of the Island of Salsette, before we could make a tack for the city. Instead of going on to Bombay, however, we landed at the pier of Mazagaun, and drove to the Botanic Garden, near the Governor's residence, at Parell. The garden is laid out with great taste, and filled with a variety of rare tropical trees, among which are several superb Brazilian palms. I there saw the first banyan-tree, but the specimen was too young to justify its fame. The flaming blossoms of the

azalias, pelargoniums and sagittarias first deepened in hue, and then grew dusky and indistinct in the fading flush of sunset, as I wandered through the palmy alleys, breathing of "nard and cassia," and the voluptuous Persian rose. But the short southern twilight sank away, and I rode back to Bombay, with the silvery, meteoric lustre of the zodiacal light gleaming over my path.