I 
 
 .-T) 
 
 THE LIBRARY 
 
 OF 
 
 THE UNIVERSITY 
 
 OF CALIFORNIA 
 
 LOS ANGELES
 
 '^^^y^-^-z^-:^-!^ 
 
 (3C.- ^^^€^^^x_^ .
 
 TRAVELS 
 
 KASHMIR AND THE PANJAB, 
 
 CONTAINING 
 
 A PARTICULAR ACCOMT OF THE GOYERNMNT AND CHARACTER 
 OF THE SIKHS, 
 
 FROM THE GERMAN OF 
 
 BARON CHARLES HUGEL. 
 
 WITH NOTES BY 
 
 MAJOR T. B. JERVIS, F.R.S. 
 
 ^3u6It^]bt^^ uulfcr i^c IBntranaqz af ft)t i^oitouraBIe t^c Court of 
 Bitcctaxä of tt)C (Saat Snlria (Campans. 
 
 TOGETHER WITH CHARACTERISTIC ILLUSTRATIONS, AND A MAP OF THOSE 
 
 COUNTRIES CONSTRUCTED BY MR. JOHN ARROWSMITH, FROM THE 
 
 BEST AND MOST RECENT AUTHORITIES. 
 
 Method of cTouing Rivers in the Patijtib, 
 
 LONDON: 
 JOHN PETHERAM, 71, CHANCERY LANE: 
 
 PUBLISHKD ALSO FOR THi: EDITOR AT CALCUTTA, MADRAS, AND BOMBAY. 
 
 1845.
 
 THE EMPIRE OF EUROPE IS NOW EXTENDED TO THE UTMOST BOUNDS OF THE 
 EARTH, WHERE SEVERAL OF ITS NATIONS HAVE CONQUESTS AND COLONIES. THESE 
 AND MANY MORE ARE THE ADVANTAGES DRAWN FROM THE LABOURS OF THOSE WHO 
 EXPOSE THEMSELVES TO THE DANGERS OF THE VAST OCEAN, AND OF UNKNOWN 
 NATIONS ; WHICH THOSE WHO SIT STILL AT HOME ABUNDANTLY REAP IN EVERY KIND ; 
 AND THE RELATION OF ONE TRAVELLER IS AN INCENTIVE TO STIR UP ANOTHER TO 
 IMITATE HIM ; WHILST THE REST OF MANKIND, IN THEIR ACCOUNTS, WITHOUT STIRRING 
 A FOOT, COMPASS THE EARTH AND SEAS, VISIT ALL COUNTRIES, AND CONVERSE WITH 
 ALL NATIONS. LOCKE. HISTORY OF NAVIGATION. 
 
 LONDON:— PRINTED BY HARRISON AVD CO., ST. MARTIN'S LANE.
 
 y^:LV]^'i 
 
 THE EDITOR'S PREFACE. 
 
 The German original of the present publication has deservedly 
 procured for its illustrious author the reputation of a diligent 
 and faithful observer of nature, who possesses the happy talent 
 of expressing his thoughts with a taste and perspicuity which 
 imparts peculiar interest to his narrative. Independent of 
 the entertainment which is derived, by readers of every age, 
 from the varied incidents of personal adventure and foreign 
 travel, the appearance of a work thus recommended, is calcu- 
 lated at the present moment to throw great light on the 
 important question which now occupies the public mind, as to 
 the proper line of policy to be pursued by the Government of 
 India, in relation to the Panjab; and although the principal 
 personages in the scenes, so strikingly depicted in the author's 
 progress, have been swept away by the hand of death, or the 
 murderous contests for supremacy which have followed each 
 other in quick succession, the country itself and its prominent 
 features, which, in a military point of view, are of primary con- 
 sideration — the circumstances and constitution, the habits and 
 peculiar character of the mixed population subject to Sikh rule, 
 are still the same, unaffected as to any ulterior purpose by tlie 
 numerous poUtical changes which have occurred since the death 
 of Ranjit Singh. 
 
 The system of disclaiming all interference in the internal 
 affairs of the Native Powers has invariably had the opposite 
 effect to that which was in the contemplation of the Home 
 Authorities, and in the ordinary course of events provoked dis- 
 sensions, which have occasioned their overthrow and accelerated 
 
 oXci-iC'O-U 
 
 • IB oe L'&
 
 IV THE EDITOR S PREFACE. 
 
 the aggrandizement of dominion so strongly deprecated by the 
 British Legislature, on every ground of humanity and justice. 
 The extension of this mighty Empire, to judge from its history 
 and the experience of modern times, is obviously entailed in the 
 designs of an Alhvise Providence, irrespective of any choice or 
 human councils, by the natural impulse of conflicting interests ; 
 and the great desideratum seems rather to be, how to bring to 
 the administration of a trust of such magnitude all the energy 
 which should actuate an enlightened Christian Government; 
 how to give to every department of the State that increased 
 efficiency which shall ensure the integrity of our territories on 
 any emergency; in what way best to promote the fullest inquiry 
 into their natural resources and capabilities, and admit these 
 possessions to an equal participation in the commercial privi- 
 leges which are enjoyed by other colonies of the British crown, 
 without detriment to the interests of the state. 
 
 The principal objects of the undertaking are succinctly 
 stated in the Preface. The Introduction further specifies the 
 best authorities to which the oriental scholar may refer for 
 information respecting the former state and history of Kashmir, 
 with a brief notice of the several European travellers who j^re- 
 ceded the author. The cost of the original*, independent of the 
 
 * The German edition was published at Stuttgart, in four parts, 8vo., at 
 distant intervals, and is procurable in this country at the high price of 
 21. 10s. unbound. The first and third parts comprise the entire narrative, or 
 journal, of which the piesent volume is a translation; the intermediate part 
 contains a summary account of the ancient and modern history of Kashmir, 
 abridged from Professor II. H.Wilson's papers published in the Transactions 
 of the Asiatic Society ; with sundry miscellaneous particulars, geographical 
 and physical ; also an account of the productions, resources, and inhabitants 
 of the mountain regions. The fourth number is a sort of glossary and 
 gazetteer, including miscellaneous matters relating to the various political, 
 civil, and military affairs of Govemment, the history of India, &c. ; from all 
 which much useful information may be gleaned.
 
 THE EDITOR S PREFACE. 
 
 difficulties of a foreign language, would necessarily preclude a 
 very extensive circulation, and the expensive form* in which 
 Jacquemont's Travels have been published by the Committee of 
 Public Instruction, under the auspices of M. Guizot, will limit 
 the perusal of that work to a very small number of those who 
 are conversant with the French language. Under such circum- 
 stances, the present translation, together with the valuable map 
 which accompanies it, by Mr. John Arrowsmith, will form a most 
 acceptable contribution to the geography of Asia, and be wel- 
 comed by those who have looked forward to its publication, as 
 an earnest of the selection and style of an extended series, 
 which is in abeyance only for want of proper encouragement. 
 In any case the reader will receive it as an additional proof 
 of that spirit of inquiry which is abroad in the world, of the 
 liberality with which every desire for information is met by the 
 Government of India, and the testimony borne by an impartial 
 spectator to the intervention of British rule, and the manage- 
 ment of the East India Company. 
 
 With regard to the Orthography, I have been at great pains 
 to ascertain the true names of every geographical object, and 
 rendered them, as well as all Oriental terms, according to the 
 system observed by the Asiatic Society of Calcutta, and the 
 Royal Asiatic and Geographical Societies in this country, in which 
 I have to acknowledge the friendly aid of its three greatest 
 scholars. Professor Horace Hayman Wilson, the Rev. G. C. 
 Renouard, and the Rev. Dr. John Wilson, Honorary President 
 of the Asiatic Society at Bombay. If the reader does not find 
 every word written exactly according to his taste, I crave his 
 
 * Jacquemont's Voyage dans I'Inde is published in royal 4to., of which 
 the first and second volume only have yet appeared. The want of plates, or 
 maps, of any sort, renders the details of natural history and general descrip- 
 tion far less interesting than they otherwise would be to most readers.
 
 VI THE EDITOR S PREFACE. 
 
 indulgence, and can safely assure him, that it would be far easier 
 to express the varied intonations of the musical notes by literal 
 signs, than the complicated sounds of Oriental alphabets, by the 
 manifold sounds of the English language, varying as Eastern 
 letters do, not only with the great national divisions of lan- 
 guages, but the characteristic distinctions of pastoral, nomade, 
 military^, and agricultural pursuits, as if the several avocations 
 of people and tribes had induced peculiarities, which were the 
 true distinguishing tests whereby all were to be traced up 
 to one ancient original. The vowels of Turkey, of Persia, of 
 Arabia, and of India, in one and the same word, Bokhara, for 
 instance, are perceptibly different in all, and the interchange 
 and sound of the consonants, the Hquids especially, varies inde- 
 fmitely. Whether we should spell Mohammedan, Turkisthan, 
 and such like words, according to one or other system, it matters 
 not, provided it be as near as any other to the true pronuncia- 
 tion and mode of spelling. Where uniformity can be attained 
 without any great departure from received usage, it is better to 
 agree to adopt some standard; and although there are objec- 
 tions to Sir William Jones's system, as well as to Gilchrist's — 
 the two principal authorities with Oriental scholars on such 
 subjects — the learned bodies have decided in favour of the 
 former, to which the reader is at once furnished with a perfect 
 key, by remembering that all the vowels are sounded as in the 
 Italian, the accented vowels, a, i, denoting the broad sounds, 
 and for the rest, the ch only supplying the place of c before e 
 and i, the g being invariably hard; lastly, the j and z pro- 
 nounced simply as in English. 
 
 In respect to the notes interspersed through the volume, such 
 as they are, I am alone responsible for them. They were such 
 as an experience of many years' residence in India, and a long 
 acquaintance with the Hindu character, suggested. Many more 
 might have been added with great advantage, and promoted
 
 THE EDITORS PREFACE. Vll 
 
 some inquiries of much interest. The value of good geographi- 
 cal works, as is the case in an especial manner with respect to 
 Marco Polo's Travels, edited by Mr. Marsden, is, in fact, to 
 elicit inquiries and comparisons — the basis of all exact know- 
 ledge. It is in simphcity and originality of thought that Baron 
 Hiigel's merit as a traveller chiefly consists ; and the playful, 
 unpretending way in which he touches upon any fact gives an 
 expressive] picture of a heart naturally thoughtful, but full of 
 generosity, frank, high-minded, and sincere. To appreciate its 
 worth, the original may be consulted; to divert a leisure hour, 
 the present work, which professes to give the spirit rather than 
 a cold servile translation of the German text, may claim a 
 place by the side of Heber's delightful narrative, and be safely 
 recommended to young people. For any presumable claim to 
 pubhc favour in regard of its style, I would advert with grateful 
 recollection to the unwearied solicitude of the accomplished 
 friend whose assistance I have received throughout. 
 
 I have reserved the consideration of recent PoUtical events, 
 and a detailed description of the Panjab, its resources and prin- 
 cipal Geographical features, for a future volume, the materials 
 for which have been suppHed by those distinguished and intel- 
 ligent persons who are most competent to form a sound and 
 correct judgment of its relations, capabilities, and prospects. 
 
 T. B. JERVIS. 
 
 London, 1st November, 1844.
 
 LIST OF SUBSCRIBERS. 
 
 HIS ROYAL HIGHNESS PRINCE ALBERT. 
 
 HIS ROYAL HIGHNESS THE DUKE OF CAMBRIDGE. 
 
 The Honourable the Court of Directors of the East India Company, 
 
 forty copies. 
 Her Majesty's Commissioners for the Affairs of India, two copies. 
 The Most Noble the Marquis of Northampton, (President of the Royal 
 
 Society.) 
 The Right Hon. Lord Prudhoe, (President of the Royal Institution.) 
 The Right Hon. the Earl of Auckland. 
 The Hon. Mountstuart Elphinstone. 
 The Right Hon. Sir Edward Ryan. 
 
 John Ayrton Paris, M.D., (President of the Royal College of Physicians.) 
 The Royal Asiatic Society. 
 The United Service Institution. 
 
 Captain F. Beaufort, ( Ilydrographer to the Admiralty.) 
 Professor H. H. Wilson, (Director of the Royal Asiatic Society.) 
 W. R. Hamilton, Esq. 
 Major-General Sir Henry Pottinger, 
 Admiral Sir Charles Malcolm. 
 II. T. Prinsep, Esq. 
 Admiral Sir Wm. Parker. 
 Lieut.-Colonel Sir Claude Wade, three copies. 
 James Farish, Esq. 
 Lieut.-Colonel Malcolm. 
 Colonel Wm. Miles. 
 Colonel Dickinson. 
 The Rev. Dr. Wilson, Bombay. 
 Colonel Bonnar. 
 
 The Rev. G. C. Renouard, (For. Sec. Royal Geographical Society.) 
 Louis Hayes Petit, Esq. 
 Colonel Sabine, Royal Artillery. 
 
 Richard Woosnam, Esq., (Sec. to Commissioner, China.) 
 W. H. Medhurst, Esq. 
 Robert Thom, Esq. 
 Gideon Colquhoun, Esq. 
 
 Archibald Sconce, Esq., (Collector and Magistrate, Chittagong.) 
 Thomas Thompson, Esq., M.D., (Bengal Medical Service.) 
 Gideon Colquhoun, Junior, Esq., Bombay. 
 Robert Warren, Esq. 
 G. Young, Esq. 
 
 Captain Crawford, Royal Artillery. 
 J. Stark, Esq., (Secretary East India Board.) 
 Alexander Beattie, Esq. 
 J. Cooke, Esq., Isle of Wight. 
 Mr. J. Gardiner,' Junior. 
 W. Fountain, Esq., 8, Regent's Villas. 
 M. Poole, Esq., 7, Regent's Villas. 
 G. T. Vigne, Esq. 
 Morley's Circulating Library, 27, Park Terrace.
 
 CONTENTS. 
 
 The Editor's Preface 
 
 Baron Charles Hiigel's Preface 
 
 Introduction 
 
 Preparations for the journey-Description of the retinue-Various 
 routes to Kashmir-Visit to Masiiri and Simla-Thc Kahlur 
 Raja-Scene on the Setlej-ImbeciUty of Indian princes- 
 The frontier ferry-boat— Bilaspoor . . 
 
 The Panjab-Bairägis of India-Incidents of Indian travel- 
 Character of the Panjabis-Testimony to the Indian charac- 
 ter-Instance of native artifice-The Temple of J^vala 
 Mukhi— Singular natural phsenomenon— Description of a 
 Hindu festival— Hindii estimate of European character- 
 Difficulties in Hindu geography— Indian devotees-Feats of 
 Indian jugglers-A providential escape-The Nelumbmm, or 
 Lotus of Egypt— Interchange of presents— Indian character- 
 Daybreak hi the East— Character of Indian scenery-Hindd 
 ideas of veracity— Intermittent springs 
 
 Confines of India and Tibet-Kashmlrian characteristics-Terrific 
 mountain roads- An Indian affray-Indigenous vegetation- 
 Asiatic field sports-Pass of Ratan Panjal- Alpine forests of 
 Asia— Distant mountains of Tibet— Legend of the Fir Pan- 
 jal — Oriental simplicity 
 
 \rrival at Kashmir-The traveller's reception-Instance of mutual 
 dependence-Touching recollections-Effects «f chmate- 
 Impressions of nature and art-The proper end of life-In- 
 genuity of the Asiatics-Magnificence of the Moghuls- 
 Scenery of the Lakcs-The Island of Char Chunar-Ascent 
 of the Takht-i-Siiliman— Panoramic view of the valley— An 
 
 Pago 
 iii 
 
 Xlll 
 
 1 
 
 27 
 
 75
 
 X CONTENTS. 
 
 Page 
 
 Eastern court — Public buildings in Kashmir — Religious 
 edifices — Manufactures of Kashmir — Military force of Kash- 
 mir — Tortuous course of the Jelam — Oriental news-writers — , 
 Ventipoor — Kashmirians and Sikhs — The bazars of the 
 East — Atmospherical phsenomenon — Professional mendicity 
 — Mystification of nature — Extensive natural caverns — Korau 
 Pandau — Facility of domesticating animals — A characteristic 
 legend — The dancing girls of India — Inconsistency of tradi- 
 tion — The Saraf or Hindu banker — Hindu mode of negotia- 
 tion — Administration of justice — Character of Hindu govern- 
 ment — Effects of despotism and misrule — Environs of the 
 Wullar Lake — Mountain excursion — Limit of organic vitality 99 
 
 The Guru or Sikh priest — Bararaulla — Transition to the Panjab 
 — Eö'ects of feudatory government — Results of divided autho- 
 rity — Remarkable suspension bridge — Description of the 
 Jelam — River scenery of India — Remarkable geological ap- 
 pearance — Return to a tropical climate — Migration of the 
 Brahmins — Specimen of native altercation — Quiet scenery of 
 a Panjabi village — Interview with a petty chief — Decline of 
 the transit trade — Physical disturbances — Mysterious visi- 
 tors — The Kishenganga river — The Dub Pass — Bridges of 
 the Panjab — The plain and valley of Vergund — Naushera — 
 Pliant temper of the natives — Agricultural productions — 
 Kishengurh — Hussein Abdal — A Mohammedan nobleman — 
 Oriental progresses — Shujanpoor — The pariah dog of India 169 
 
 Approach to Atok — Jellallia and Kemellia rocks — Unknown 
 species of Palm — Interview with Kashmir Singh's Diwan — 
 Sketch of a princely youth — Need of a guide in an open 
 country — Nur Jehan's last resting-place — The Moghul Im- 
 perial roads — First discovery of Bactrian antiquities — Bud- 
 dhist, Bactrian, and Scythian coins — Field of Bactrian 
 researches — Picturesque mausoleum — Tempestuous weather 
 — Manikyala — Camel carriage in wet weather — Changeable 
 course of the rivers — Inclemency of the season — The Sikh 
 irregular troops — Rotas — Limit of the Ficus religiosa — 
 Universal medicine of India — Sameness of the Panjab plains 
 — Site of the ancient Taxila — Public ferry over the Jelam —
 
 CONTKNTS. XI 
 
 Page 
 
 Substitute for fuel— The Cheniib river— Character of Indian 
 servants — Affable manners of a Sikh chief— Eastern gardens 
 — Jehanghir's mausoleum .. .. •• •• ..215 
 
 Approach to the Sikh capital— Noble character and taste of Bäber 
 — The ten principal Sikh Gurus — Powerful sway of Aurang- 
 zib — Decline of Mohammedan power— Vigilant rule of Ahmed 
 Shah— Total defeat of the Mahrattas— Rise of Ranjit Singh's 
 family — Nature of the mud forts in India — Wily proceedings 
 of the Sikhs— The Sikh confederation— Policy of the Sikhs 
 — The Sikh territory defined — British treaties with the Sikhs 
 — Obvious design of the Treaties— Origin of the Mahratta 
 power — Initiatory rite of the Sikh faith — Tenets of the 
 Sikhs 259 
 
 Entrance to Lahor — Presentation at court — Principal dignitaries — 
 Military style of the Sikh ruler — Ranjit Singh's inquisitive- 
 ness — The bazars of Indian cities — Hindu and European 
 tastes — Occasion of Ranjit Singh's ailments-7-Lovely effects 
 of returning spring — The Panjabi troops and horses — The 
 celebrated Kohi Nur, the largest diamond in the world — 
 Ranjit Singh's household — Etiquette of Oriental courts — 
 The Hull festival — The Shalimar garden — Formal testimo- 
 nial deposition — Security of property in despotic States — Im- 
 poverished state of Kashmir — An evening scene in India — 
 Ostensible policy of England — Sir Alexander Burnes' mission 
 to Lahor — Presents — Skilful artillery practice — The Gor- 
 cheli, or household troops — The celebrated horse Laili — Sikh 
 and British interests mutual — The dancing black fakir — Cele- 
 bration of the Basant — Court entertainment — Toleration of 
 slave-dealing — Indian dancing girls — Style and character of 
 the Indian songs — Munificent courtly presents — Recognition 
 of mutual espionage — The farewell interview — Departure 
 from Lahor . . . . . . . . ■ . • • ■ • 285 
 
 Early history of Ranjit Singh's ancestors — Charat Singh's death — 
 Birth of Ranjit Singh — Hateful character of ingratitude — 
 Designs against Ranjit Singh — His early disposition to in- 
 trigue — Holkar's unsuccessful negociation — Procession of the
 
 CONTENTS. 
 
 Page 
 
 Moharram — Unequal contest with disciplined troops — Ranjit 
 Singh's first victory — History of the Kohi Nur — Shah Shuja's 
 duplicity — Stipendiary princes of the East — Native artillery 
 practice — Results of European organization — Personal ap- 
 pearance of the Sikh ruler — Policy of the Panjab court — 
 Ranjit Singh's favourites — Karak Singh .. .. .. 357 
 
 Journey homeward — Amritsir— The great tank— Inscription on the 
 Sikh banners — European abuse of Asiatic names- — Luxurious 
 retreats in hot climates — Route from Kopertela to Felor — 
 The chequered journey of life — ^Conclusion of the personal 
 narrative . . . . . . . . . . . , . . 389 
 
 Brief Political and Geographical remarks on the kingdom founded 
 by Ranjit Singh, and on the Panjab — British policy of non- 
 interference — Order of succession to the Sikh government — 
 Natural boundary of the Indian empire — Military difliculties 
 of the Panjab — Route of Alexander the Great — Extent of 
 Alexander's eifploits — Interesting observations on the British 
 Indian government . . . . . . . . . . 403 
 
 ILLUSTRATIONS. 
 
 Portrait of Baron Charles Hügel to face the title-page. 
 
 Vignette in the title-page, representing the mode of crossing rivers in the 
 Panjab on a charpäi, or cot-frame, supported on inflated skins, and pro- 
 pelled by swimmers. 
 The frontier ferry-boat on the Setlej at Bilaspoor (glyphographed). , -?<? - 
 
 Method of crossing the rivers in the Panjab on inflated skins (glyphographed). ^4^7- 
 Remarkable suspension-bridge at Uri, on the frontiers of Kashmir. - /yS", 
 
 Interview with Kashmir Singh's Di'wan, or Minister, at Atok. Z/^ 
 
 Map of the Panjab and Kashmir, on a scale of 3^ inches to a degree. By Mr. 
 John Arrowsmith ; from the most authentic and recent information.
 
 BARON CHARLES HUGEL'S PREFACE. 
 
 Whether Kashmir was that favored spot, wliere, six thousand 
 years ago, the Almighty Word called the human race into 
 being; whether it was the seat of that Paradise which man 
 forfeited by his disobedience to the first command ever given, 
 or whether, as Hindu mythology pretends, it was there that, 
 countless ages back, the world was again renewed by the creation 
 of the present race, are questions which throw no light either on 
 the history of mankind, or of Kashmir itself. The clearing up 
 of the mystery, indeed, though it could be accomplished, would be 
 of little real importance to the believing mind. Most assuredly 
 there was an earthly Paradise, what matters it where it was, 
 is the simple answer of the reasonable many; yet the excusable 
 curiosity of the few is not, therefore, to be too severely judged. 
 If the labour of years be spent in seeking out the birth-place 
 of some one great individual, may we not extend the endeavour 
 to search for the favoured spot trodden by the common pro- 
 genitor of all? On this subject the valley furnishes no infor- 
 mation. It is almost superfluous to observe, that the idea 
 of making any discovery on this point constituted no object 
 in my own researches; that the same fond fancy, nevertheless, 
 which has persuaded even the Hindu, surrounded on every 
 side ])y the magnificent scenery of his native land, that Kash- 
 mir was in very truth, the Paradise of the newly awakened 
 world, does invest it with a peculiar cliarm, is an undoubted 
 fact, and the indiflferent and most apathetic traveller is full 
 of expectancy when first he views this famous and lovely 
 valley outspread before his eyes. Whatever anticipations I 
 myself had formed of my visit, will be fully and honestly nar-
 
 XIV THE AUTHOR S PREFACE. 
 
 rated in the following pages; I have endeavoured to describe 
 the valley of Kashmir and its inhabitants according to the best 
 of my ability and judgment ; nor have I suffered myself to be 
 led away from this design^ either by the fascinations of the 
 romantic, or the love of the marvellous. 
 
 Nothing seems so unaccountable to the traveller from far 
 distant lands, after a brief sojourn in a place where he looked 
 for nothing but the wild adventures which crowded his waking 
 dreams, as his own want of surprise at surrounding things; 
 he discovers here, as everywhere, that in the manners of all 
 nations there is a certain harmonious congruity which, in spite 
 of national principles, is founded on the same universal laws 
 of nature. After the first impression has passed away, which 
 exaggerated every object, he beholds beings like himself, actu- 
 ated by the same motives, animated with the same lofty spirit, 
 equally moved by like affections and enmities: he no longer feels, 
 that he differs from those around him, since there, as elsewhere, 
 the sports of childhood, the industry of man, the tenderness of 
 woman, and the caution of age, remind him that his fellow men 
 are aU formed in one common image; whether they be the 
 Hindus, whose gentle qualities are not sufficiently appreciated, 
 or the New Zealander, of whose nature we as yet know only 
 the darkest side. Thus it is throughout the earth. The Musel- 
 man buries his dead in gardens rich with fragrant flowers, and 
 under marble tombs; while the Parsi abandons those whom 
 he has loved most fondly to the rapacious vulture and the 
 inclement elements : the Chinese address their gods in mono- 
 syllables; the fire-worshippers turn in silent adoration towards 
 the ocean and the sun: the Jeti of Güjrät, in the one case, 
 covers his mouth with a cloth, lest he should inhale and thus 
 rob some minute creature of life; the New Zealander, on the 
 other, M'ill devour the very remains of his own fellow-creature. 
 Yet one and all these, so opposite, but strongly-marked, charac-
 
 THE AUTHOR S PREFACE. XV 
 
 teristics belong to men who have many thoughts and feehngs in 
 common with ourselves; and the Vedah, the solitary ape-like 
 creature of Ceylon, who flies to trees to avoid us, and scarcely 
 bears the semblance of humanity, is perhaps the only class from 
 whom civilized man turns away with disgust; with him we seem 
 to have nothing in common, we gaze on his appearance with 
 astonishment, and the traveller, in recording his existence, sighs 
 to think of the depths of degradation into which the human 
 race has been plunged by sin. 
 
 With what prolonged delight do we dwell on the breathing 
 form of an animated creature, after amusing ourselves awhile 
 with its picture ; precisely such is the interest called forth by a 
 foreign people ; it commences, in truth, when the first impres- 
 sions of strangeness have worn off. It is the different aspects 
 under which human nature is viewed that exercise the attention 
 of the reflecting traveller. Superficial observers are pleased 
 only with objects so long as they have the charm of novelty. 
 The interest in the latter ceases, in fact, where that for the first 
 commences ; and this feeling of hopeful expectation can alone 
 compensate for all the discomforts of tedious adventure, for 
 years of travel, and that depressing sense of frequent unbroken 
 solitude, amid strangers, which fills the heart, constantly looking 
 forward for something to occupy it, with unavailing anxiety. 
 
 It is often a problem of great difficulty to solve, in what the 
 peculiarities of nations consist and whence they arise ; whether 
 from the religious or civil laws in force among them. It may 
 be either of these; for we know that laws do operate powerfully 
 on the daily current of events, and that the very same system 
 of religion will exercise a mighty influence over the minds of 
 nations whose manners and habits of thinking are widely 
 different. 
 
 It cannot admit of a question that the changes of govern- 
 ment which have taken place in Kashmir must have materially
 
 XVI THK AUTHOR S PREPACK. 
 
 affected many original characteristics of the people. Subju- 
 gated in succession by Mohammedans from Central Asia, who 
 subverted their ancient and patriarchal institutions and govern- 
 ment ; by the Emperors of Delhi, who brought among them, in 
 their search after new pleasures, a voluptuous and luxurious 
 court abandoned to pomp and prodigality; by the fierce 
 Afghans ; and finally, by the half-civilized Sikhs, who now 
 dwell in those long-deserted imperial halls, what can remain 
 of originality to these inhabitants of the valley, after so many 
 changes of rulers, each in turn eager to destroy the works of 
 his predecessor? It is, however, important to notice, that 
 Hinduism, once obeyed, is hardly ever to be eradicated from 
 the minds of its followers, even though they may be compelled 
 to exchange their faith for another; nay, even though their 
 conversion may seem purely voluntar)'^ and unconnected with 
 political events. 
 
 It needs no argument to prove that the civilization of a 
 people depends on a thousand contingencies of place and time, 
 on the mingled influences of external and internal circumstances 
 favourable to its development. Hence the statesman and 
 legislator will exercise little power over institutions and customs 
 unless he has well weighed the causes which have produced 
 what he desires to change or modify; nor will his laws ever 
 endure to after times unless they are framed so as to harmonize 
 with the present state of feeling among those for whose govern- 
 ment they are intended. 
 
 The following pages contain materials for much interesting 
 inquiry on this subject; they were written during a journey 
 which detained me some years from Europe, and as the country 
 of the Sikhs with wliich Kashmir is now incorporated, must 
 necessarily be frequently introduced to the reader's notice while 
 describing it, I resolved to give some account of a kingdom 
 which, as being the only state of importance adjoining British 
 India, cannot fail to interest Europe in general.
 
 INTRODUCTION. 
 
 The great mystery of language, which by one sound can bring before 
 us not a single image only, but a multitude of objects and events, 
 and fill the imagination according to its capacity, in no case exercises 
 its influence more strongly than in words which express the names 
 of diff"erent lands. To the ear of a European, the word England, 
 for example, instantly recals to mind the wealth of that island, and 
 her maritime power; France, is ever associated with the turmoils of 
 ambition and faction ; Italy, with sunny climes and poetry ; and 
 Germany, with our ideas of a staid conscientious people. True, 
 the images conjured up in the fancy of every individual, will lose 
 much of their truth and charms when experience has shewn him 
 how sorely he has deceived himself in many things j but when the 
 land of which he dreams, is situated far ofiF, his ideas, though equally 
 vague, are less likely to be disappointed. We have no remembrances 
 attached to the name of a New Zealander; we revert only to his 
 character with horror, as a cannibal, while the New Hollanders excite 
 our compassion for the scanty gifts which Providence has vouchsafed 
 them. Compared, however, with these countries, Kashmir is an object 
 of especial interest. We behold, in imagination, a delightful valley 
 sheltered on every side by lofty mountains, with streams of the 
 purest water issuing forth from their declivities, which flow gently on 
 till they fall into the mighty rivers which bend their way majestically 
 through the vale. From their summits, crowned with Alpine vegetation, 
 down to the depths beneath, where the luxuriant products of India pre- 
 dominate, there is a succession of plants, which gradually assume as 
 they descend, the lighter and more graceful forms of tropical vege- 
 tation. The same fancy peoples the land with noble human forms, 
 adorns it with the palaces and gardens of the Moghul Emperors, 
 and recals the tales of fairy islets, with their magic lakes and floating 
 gardens. There, exclaims the youthful enthusiast, who is never likely 
 
 B
 
 INTRODUCTION. 
 
 to realize these visions, there, must be happiness ; there, thinks the 
 philosopher, might our first parents have been summoned into being. 
 Indians, no less than Europeans feel the charm of this name. The 
 Mohammedan believes Kashmir to have been the earthly paradise; 
 the Hindu has the same tale in his legends of the last Maha-Yug, 
 descriptive of the revival of the human race. Fiction, in every case, 
 points to Kashmir, as the land of promise. Even the apathetic eye 
 of the Brahmin, and the cold-fixed thoughtfulness of the Mullah, 
 are known to brighten up at the mention of its sweet retreats. 
 
 The last travellers, Jacquemont and Wolff, men of very opposite 
 minds and opinions, have somewhat lessened our favourable ideas on 
 this subject; but the first avows himself nearly blind, and it certainly 
 w^as not the design of the latter to descant on the loveliness of nature. 
 To examine whether Kashmir would bear the uplifting of the veil 
 which has so gracefully and immemorially hung over her, and see 
 whether the first or the last travellers have drawn the truest portrait, 
 to reach the very limit of Indian civilization, were my chief persuasives 
 to pass several months in this celebrated region; and, why should I 
 deny it? the anticipation of beholding the loveliest spot on earth, had 
 power enough to allure one no longer young, to undertake another 
 tedious and toilsome journey. 
 
 Our authorities on Kashmir are very defective before the time of 
 the Mohammedans, though, in fact, there is yet one native chronicle 
 extant, entitled, the Raja Taringini, which has been translated by 
 Professor Wilson, and published in the Asiatic Researches; to this we 
 shall allude further in speaking of the History of Kashmir. The Raja 
 Taringini has always been considered in our times as a complete work ; 
 far otherwise: it is a collection of four separate treatises, by as many 
 authors. The first begins with the creation of the valley of Kashmir, 
 and concludes with the year a.d. 1027 (Saka949). The author of 
 this portion was Kalhana Pandit. The second, or Rajavali, by Jona 
 Raja, carries the history down to a.d. 1412. The third, or Sri Jaina 
 Raja Taringini, was written by Sri Vara Pandit, who brought it down 
 to the year of the Hejira 882 (a.d. 1477). The fourth and last part, 
 called Rajavali Pataka, by Punya Bhatta, concludes with the conquest of 
 Kashmir by Akbar the Great, Emperor of Delhi, a.h. 995 (a.d. 1586).
 
 INTRODUCTION. O 
 
 We shall see elsewhere, how far the Raja Taringini merits that preten- 
 sion to antiquity, to which it has hitherto laid claim. 
 
 The other works are, Baber's Memoirs, which are quite unimportant 
 on this subject of Kashmir. 
 
 Goheri Alem Tohfet us-Shah of Badia-ud-din. 
 
 Abul Fazel Ayin-Akberi. 
 
 A History by an unknown Persian author, containing a long list of 
 princes and legends. 
 
 A History of the Mohammedan Kingdoms of India, by Mohammed 
 Kasim Ferishta. 
 
 Hajus de Rebus Japonicis, Indicis, &c. 
 
 Les Lettres Edifiantes. 
 
 Tarikh-i-Kashmir, by Naräyan Kül. 
 
 The History of Kashmir, by Mullah Hassan Kari. 
 
 Ditto, by Hyder Malek Shad-Waria. 
 
 Wakiat-i-Kashmir, by Mohammed Azim. 
 
 Nawadir ul Akbar, by Mohammed Rafia-ud-din. 
 
 Nur Nameh, written by Shekh Nur-ud-din, in the Kashmirian 
 language, and translated into Persian by Mulvi Ahmet Almeh. 
 
 History of Kashmir, while in possession of the Afghans, in 
 Persian, by Mulvi Khair-ud-din. 
 
 Elphinstone's Kabul, and Burnes' Journey to Bokhara; very valu- 
 able works for the countries they visited in person; but as their 
 information regarding Kashmir was derived exclusively from 
 natives, whose testimony must be admitted with great caution, 
 many errors have crept in. 
 
 The most recent work which treats of Kashmir, and contains the 
 most important documents concerning the last sixteen years, is the 
 History of Ranjit Singh, by Mr. Prinsep, Secretary to the Govern- 
 ment of India, who derived his information from the Honourable Com- 
 pany's archives. I have taken most of my notes on the Panjab from 
 this gentleman's valuable work. 
 
 Bernier's Travels in India; an Essay in Letters concerning his 
 
 Journey in Aurungzib's suite. 
 Forster's Letters, Journey from Bengal to St. Petersburgh. 
 Researches and Missionary Labours, by the Rev. Jos. Wolff. 
 Correspondence of Victor Jacquemont, during his Travels in India. 
 
 B 2
 
 4 INTRODUCTION, 
 
 The Papers in the Asiatic Researches, and in the Journal of the 
 Asiatic Society of Bengal. 
 
 Major Rennel's Geographical Memoirs. 
 
 Hitter's Geography of Asia; a work containing an immense store of 
 information and learning, greater indeed and more important 
 than any other dedicated to the same objects, though perhaps not 
 strictly to be considered as one of the authorities on Kashmir. 
 
 Moorcroft's work, not yet published, though it was sent to me while 
 in the press, I have purposely abstained from reading, that I 
 might keep my mind free from any impressions which I might 
 otherwise in all probability have received from the perusal of a 
 work by another modern author. 
 
 The first authentic information concerning Kashmir, which appears 
 to have reached Europe, was through the Portuguese, whose religious 
 zeal prompted them to promulgate Christianity among the natives ; for 
 we attach little credit to the tales we are told of their king marching to 
 the relief of Porus, when he was attacked by Alexander the Great, 
 although the later Greek authors mention a country they call Kaspapy- 
 rus and Kaspatyrus, and sometimes Kasperia, which would seem to be 
 Kashmir. Setting aside such unsatisfactory accounts, we may repeat, 
 that to Europe, Kashmir was in a measure unknown, till the subjects of 
 Portugal first trod its valleys. The Jesuit Xavier, a Navarese of high 
 birth, is supposed to be the very first European who ever had the glory 
 or the courage to penetrate to this remote region. Another of the same 
 family, Francis Xavier, animated with like fervent zeal to diffuse the 
 light of Christian truth throughout the East, had already gained, and not 
 undeservedly, the glorious title of the Apostle of the Indies. In the 
 year 1572, exactly twenty years after Francis Xavier had fallen a 
 martyr to his high and holy calling, his kinsman landed on the shores 
 where Xavier had been foremost to plant the cross. His apostolic 
 mission carried him first to the residence of the Moghul Emperors, which 
 Father Rudolf Aquaviva had recently visited. Xavier appeared at the 
 court of Akbar the Great at Agra, accompanied by another fellow- 
 labourer, Benedict Goez, a native of the Azores; and by their shortly 
 afterwards attending the Emperor to Kashmir, it would seem that the 
 tolerant spirit of Akbar had actually entertained some thoughts of
 
 INTRODUCTION. 
 
 establishing, or at least of favouring the progress of, the new faith in 
 India. Xavier's remarks on Kashmir, which are published in that very 
 scarce work, Hajus de Rebus Japonicis, Indicis, &c., (Antwerp, 1605,) 
 are of no particular value. 
 
 The second traveller who made us acquainted with this country, 
 was Bernier, whose motives for undertaking the journey were widely 
 different from those of his predecessor. Xavier prosecuted what he 
 beheved to be a high and holy office ; Bernier's sole object was, an 
 increased knowledge of the world; but the bent of his genius as well as 
 the advantages under which he travelled, render his observations on the 
 countries he visited, more valuable than any that had then appeared. He 
 was a young physician, of engaging appearance, of enterprising mind 
 and pleasing manners, qualities which would insure to most travellers 
 a hearty welcome in foreign lands. Urged by an unconquerable desire 
 to see the world, he left his native country, France, in 1654, in his 
 twenty-ninth year, (Voltaire says he was born at Angers in 1625,) and 
 without any settled purpose or plan, wandered first through Syria and 
 Egypt. In the year 1G57, during the reign of Shah Jehan, he came to 
 Surat, then a place of some importance in the commercial world, at the 
 very period when the emperor's four sons were contending for the 
 Moghul throne. Aurungzib was the conqueror, and under the name of 
 Alumgir ascended the throne of Delhi. To that city Bernier repaired, 
 and there entered the service of Danishmand Khan, an Orarah in the 
 court of Alumgir, as his personal physician, with a monthly salary of 
 300 rupees. In 1665, he attended the Emperor and Danishmand Khan 
 to Kashmir, for the purpose of restoring the health of the former, which 
 had lono- been declining. Kashmir at that time was in all the plenitude 
 of its glory. For fifty years it had been the favourite summer resort of 
 Auruiigzlb's grandfather Jehanglr, and his father Shah Jehan, but the 
 latter had more particularly occupied himself in embellishing the valley 
 with palaces and gardens. The wealth thus brought into circulation by 
 the protracted visits of the Court, had produced general abundance; 
 while the grandees vied with their sovereign in every predilection for 
 luxury and extravagance. The patron of Bernier was a friend and 
 protector to science, and afforded him every facility for exploring the 
 country ; but unfortunately, speculative philosophy so pre-occupied his
 
 6 INTRODUCTION. 
 
 mind, that the study of nature and even statistics, had little or no charm 
 for him. This deprived his vpork of much value, notwithstanding 
 which, it is an interesting record of the history of that time, as its 
 pages have the evident impress of truth ; nor is it any slight praise 
 when we say, that Bernier is one of the most faithful writers that ever 
 travelled, a merit the more uncommon in those days, when readers 
 longed to be surprised by the marvellous, rather than instructed by the 
 true, and when, at all events, Bernier had nothing to fear from the 
 superior information of any European. 
 
 After twelve years' abode in India, he returned to his fatherland, 
 and fixed himself at Paris, where his travels were published in 1670. I 
 cannot forbear relating the cause of his end, as it seems to me peculiarly 
 aflFecting and instructive. Befriended by Ninon de I'Enclos, and in the 
 literary coteries where Racine, Boileau, St. Evremond, and other stars 
 of Louis XIV.'s brilliant reign, moved along with him, distinguished as 
 the handsome philosopher, Bernier could not withstand the general 
 corruption around him, and at length died, in consequence of the 
 mortification he experienced at a bitter satire of the President du Har- 
 lay, in 1688, a proof that his philosophy, the Epicurean philosophy of 
 Gassendi, was merely a mask to cover the extreme of folly. 
 
 As a traveller, however, Bernier surely deserves a high place 
 among those who unite courage to talent, and whose enterprises 
 are undertaken, not from any low or sordid motives, but from an 
 honourable thirst after knowledge and truth. His travels are now 
 almost forgotten. It has, unhappily, been too much the habit of 
 most readers, to expect something wonderful and fantastic from writers 
 on India; his work, nevertheless, is not a whit the less valuable, and 
 is entitled to every confidence as an authority, from which modern 
 writers may well derive much information, and may justly find a 
 place in every library. Nowhere shall we read a more faithful and 
 impartial account of the manners and usages of India; his descriptions 
 are, to this moment, as striking and appropriate as when his hand 
 first penned them*. 
 
 • It is the Editor's hope, at no distant period, to give to the public an entirely 
 new and accurate translation of tliese travels, with notes .nnd illustrative comments.
 
 INTRODUCTION. 7 
 
 Father Desideri, a Jesuit, was the third European visitor to 
 Kashmir; he undertook a mission to Tibet, reached the vallev 
 in 1714, and was compelled to remain there during the winter. His 
 observations on Kashmir, contained in a letter from Lassa in 1716, 
 are wholly undeserving of notice. 
 
 Then came George Forster, in the year 1783, a civil servant 
 in the Company's Presidency of Madras, who journeyed through 
 Bengal, Lucknow, Srinagur, Nadaun, and over the mountains of 
 Kashmir, returning by way of Kabul, the Caspian, and St. Peters- 
 burg, home, altogether a most arduous enterprise, at a period when 
 Northern India and Central Asia were overrun with freebooters, 
 and a number of petty states had arisen on the ruins of the 
 Moghul kingdoms, whose very weakness made them suspicious of 
 each other. Kashmir had then been, for some years, rent from the 
 crowni of Delhi, Ahmed Shah Abdalli having conquered the whole 
 province in 1 754, and annexed it to Afghanisthan. Originally Ahmed 
 had been Nadir Shah's armour-bearei-, and had learned the art of 
 government in the Persian court. In the year 1739, as Nadir Shah 
 gazed from the terrace before the little mosque of Rokn-ud-daula, 
 on the burning of the plundered houses of Delhi, he exclaimed to 
 those around him, among whom Ahmed stood, "So will I deal 
 with all the kingdoms of India, until the wealthiest of the land 
 shall beg before seven doors, ere he finds an earthen pot to cook 
 his rice in." His threat was not fulfilled by himself, but his servant 
 Ahmed trod in his footsteps in Hindüsthan, and plundered Kashmir, 
 which even Nadir had spared. When Forster visited the valley, 
 Timur Shah, the son and successor of Ahmed, had been ten years 
 on the throne, enjoying the fruits of his father's conquests, in as 
 much quiet as his restless neighbours to the north and west would 
 permit. A despotic viceroy, Azad Khan, then governed Kashmir, 
 and to avoid persecutions, which had nearly cost him his life, Forster 
 was obliged to have recourse to disguises and concealments which., 
 during his short stay there, under a perpetual dread of discovery, 
 prevented him from making any very important use of his time; 
 his little work is, nevertheless, very attractive, and one cannot help
 
 INTRODUCTION. 
 
 feeling interested in the unassuming kind-hearted man, who relates 
 his adventures and dangers so unpretendingly. 
 
 Forty years passed away before another traveller went to Kashmir, 
 and, during this long period, many changes had taken place in the 
 aspect of affairs in this part of Asia. The English had begun to 
 aspire to universal dominion in India; the sums of money, yearly 
 expended for the shawls of Kashmir had not escaped their attention, 
 and it had become a question, which engaged their merchants, whether 
 it would not be more profitable to manufacture the wool in Hindüsthan 
 or in England, or even, whether it would not be possible to introduce 
 the breed of sheep into their own country, and secure the exclusive 
 produce of that material. Mr. Moorcroft, an enterprising man, who 
 had gone out to India as a veterinary surgeon, was commissioned, 
 by his government, to make a journey through the Himalaya to 
 the table-land of Tibet, and report on this matter. Both regions 
 were then imperfectly known, and made the subjects of many fabulous 
 narratives; but, however important the result of his journey, in a 
 geographical view, he altogether failed in the object of his mission. 
 It is true that he sent a number of goats to Bengal, which were 
 despatched afterwards to England, but they proved to be of a diflFerent 
 breed from the finest shawl-wool goats of Kashmir. In 1820, Moor- 
 croft, then officiating as director of a large stud in Bengal, was 
 commissioned once more to visit Central Asia, and with their usual 
 liberality, the East India Company permitted him to make his own 
 arrangements for the journey, and gave him authority to draw upon 
 them for any sum he might require for his expenses*. 
 
 Accompanied by two young men, named Trebeck and Guthrie, 
 Moorcroft commenced his adventurous journey at Labor. Ranjit 
 Singh, the Mahä Raja of the Sikhs, King of Labor, had just taken pos- 
 session of Kashmir, and Moorcroft found no difficulty in obtaining the 
 Prince's permission to traverse his dominions on his way from Ladäk 
 
 • Tliis account is full of mistakes. Mr. Moorcroft had on neither occasion any 
 appointment or commission from government. He travelled with its sanction, but 
 at his own ri.sk and cliarge.
 
 INTRODUCTION. 
 
 to Bokhara. In his character of a horse-dealer, attended by a numerous 
 retinue, he passed by Bilaspoor and Mundi, to the strong fortress of 
 Dankar, and reached Ladäk in safety. There, however, forgetting that 
 he had nothing to do with politics, he drew up, and signed, in the name 
 of the Company, a formal treaty with the Rajas of Ladäk. Although 
 a stranger in an unknown and dangerous country, he might be excused, 
 if, environed with difficulties, he consented to negotiate where he had no 
 authority, and promised without any power of fulfilment, with the view 
 to gain some specific object. But Moorcroft could plead no such 
 necessity, for he was kindly received, and met with no impediments at 
 all ; and hence, the treaty which he executed in the Company's name, 
 can be defended on no one ground; and during my residence in 
 Kashmir, it caused the Raja of Ladäk to brave the consequences of a 
 war which may cost him the half of his dominions*. 
 
 From Ladäk he journeyed to Kashmir through the Naubuk-Pansal; 
 and after remaining there nearly two years, proceeded, with a princely 
 retinue, towards Balkh. His baggage, worth several lacs of rupees, was 
 carried by 300 bearers, exclusive of all the animals employed; and this 
 parade being displayed in sight of the natives, induced the Sikh Viceroy, 
 Moti Ram, to offer him a friendly warning, while his friend Mahommed 
 Shah Nakshbandi, of a Turkisthan family, sent him a strong escort to 
 serve him in case of danger. From Balkh he proceeded to Andkhoo. 
 There he felt symptoms of a fever gaining on him; but he wrote to one 
 of his Indian friends, full of hope, that the medicines he had taken to 
 remove them, would be effectual. In this hope he deceived himself; in 
 three days from that time he was a corpse, and the same disease 
 speedily cut off his two young English companions. 
 
 * The statements made in the text are wholly erroneous, as a little consideration 
 might have suggested to Baron Hügel. Had any treaty been concluded on the 
 part of the East India Company with the Raja of Ladäk, his dominions would have 
 been effectually guarded against Sikh aggression. Mr. Moorcroft never executed 
 any treaty at all ; he was the channel of a communication from the Raja of Ladäk 
 to the government of India, tendering to it that allegiance which his ancestors had 
 professed to the throne of Delhi. The offer, unhappily for the Raja, was peremp- 
 torily declined, and Moorcroft was severely rebuked for his interposition, even 
 to the limited extent to which it had been exercised. (See Moorcroft's Travels, 
 vol. i., 418.)
 
 10 INTRODUCTION. 
 
 Naturally enough, the premature death of the three Europeans 
 was ascribed to the half civilized people among whom they were then 
 residing, and their plundering habits, joined to the circumstance, 
 that Moorcroft's baggage was entirely lost, certainly favoured that 
 suspicion; but a strict investigation, instituted among his retinue, 
 has proved it to be wholly unfounded, and every well-informed 
 person in Kashmir, and Hindusthan, is now satisfied, that his death 
 was occasioned by fever; the declaration that Trebeck and Guthrie 
 fell victims to the same disease, does not seem to me, however, 
 quite so well substantiated. 
 
 His papers were saved, and transmitted to the Political Agent 
 in Lüdiäna, who sent them forthwith to his superior, the Resident 
 at Delhi. The expectation of the Indian public to know the results 
 of a journey, which had cost such vast simis, and terminated so 
 fatally, was long strained to its highest pitch, but in vain; the non- 
 appearance of the papers was attributed to the narrow policy of the 
 government, which desired not to admit the world to a participation 
 in their unknown treasures, and as all things in India are of brief 
 interest and duration, poor Moorcroft, his travels, and his death, 
 were soon forgotten. A fresh and more tragical event, however, 
 transpired, to shew how unfounded were these accusations of the 
 Company. In March, ] 835, Mr. Fräser, Assistant Resident at Delhi, 
 was basely murdered by an hired assassin of Shams-ud-din, the Nawab 
 of Ferozpoor, and on examining his papers those of Moorcroft were 
 discovered, lying forgotten in his desk, and were then, for the first 
 time, brought to light*. What they may contain, I know not; but 
 certainly the long and uninterrupted residence of Moorcroft, in the 
 valley of Kashmir, must have made him very well acquainted with it. 
 
 Under what different aspects and governments was Kashmir seen 
 
 * This account is not strictly correct. From an opinion very generally enter- 
 tained, that the later and concluding notices of Moorcroft's journey would constitute 
 a very essential addition to those discursive documents digested by Professor Wil- 
 son, Mr. Fräser of Delhi made every exertion for their recovery ; and all, both 
 journals and the notes of Trebeck and Guthrie, up to the period of their departure 
 from Bokhara, were obtained from his executors and sent home in 1836. (See pre- 
 face to Moorcroft's Travels, p. 52.) — Ed.
 
 INTRODUCTION. 11 
 
 by these three travellers ! Bernier knew it as the summer residence 
 of the haughty Moghul Emperors, a retreat they took pride in 
 adorning, though such embellishments could in no way add to its 
 beauty ; on the contrary, throughout the East, the builder of a palace 
 cares little what there may be around and beyond its walls, enough, if 
 within, all is pomp and splendor, and indicative of the lavish prodigality 
 of its wealthy occupant. Hence, too frequently, the road leads to it 
 through a dismal series of ruins, or by a narrow street, bounded by half 
 dilapidated huts, and as no one cares to keep such buildings in good 
 repair, in the course of a few years signs of commencing dilapidation 
 appear. Indifferent soever as Indian monarchs may be, whether the 
 precincts of the royal domain be laid out in gardens or destitute of 
 culture, they are no less so to the condition of their people, whether 
 they dwell in comfort, or languish under the most grievous extortions, 
 nor can any thing be more erroneous, than the opinions of many 
 Europeans, that the dwellings of these Eastern Sovereigns were alike 
 splendid within and without. This is very far from being the case, 
 although Kashmir did, perhaps, more resemble the park-like vicinity 
 of our palaces, than most other tropical regions. 
 
 When Mr. Forster visited Kashmir, he found it in a measure 
 independent; the governor left behind by the plundering Afghans, 
 considered himself as absolved from all authority, sending only to 
 the capital, Kabul, whatever tribute he thought proper to spare, and 
 no more. Though he grievously oppressed the people, the extravagant 
 mode of life of this Mohammedan caused the money collected from 
 the revenue and taxes to circulate again into the hands of the natives 
 indirectly, who derived, also, immense profits by the increased export- 
 ation of their manufactures. The system of government prevailing 
 on the occasion of Moorcroft's visit was much the same as at present, 
 and will be explained in a future chapter. 
 
 Victor Jacquemont was peculiarly favoured by circumstances when 
 his travels led him to Kashmir. He was commissioned by the Jardin 
 des Plantes, to form a collection for them in India, and General 
 Allard, a Frenchman in Ranjit Singh's service, proposing to him 
 to visit Kashmir on his route, he gladly accepted the offer, and 
 obtained Ranjit's permission and every facility for the journey. I
 
 12 INTRODUCTION. 
 
 was personally acquainted with Jacquemont, who had improved his 
 natural talents by the most persevering course of study. What he 
 really did while in Kashmir has not yet been made known to the 
 world; all that we have hitherto perused are his familiar letters 
 to his family and friends, which have been published contrary to 
 his expressed wish. These letters, as we might naturally expect, 
 throw no new light on science; they shew the man of talent, but 
 they have done immense injury to his memory in India. They who 
 assisted him with advice and their good services, now stigmatize 
 him as an ungrateful slanderer, and many, who really liked and 
 esteemed him, feel deeply hurt and disappointed. 
 
 The missionary travels of Mr. Wolff are before the public. 
 Whose missionary was he? From the Propaganda fide? No; first 
 a Jew, then a Papist, converted in Rome, and now a Protestant; 
 Mr. Wolff is not a delegate either from Rome or the Church of 
 England, but according to his own declaration, derives his mission 
 direct from Christ, to spread the knowledge of the Bible among 
 the Jews, and to fulfil this appointment he has undertaken, at the 
 expense of different zealots, various adventurous and hazardous 
 journeys. His conduct is of an extraordinary nature, however, when 
 he finds himself in the midst of those formerly of the same faith 
 with himself; like a meteor he appears, and then deeming it enough 
 to enlighten them with one or two speeches, he straightway departs 
 again. Those who are well acquainted with Central Asia and India 
 find in his little work a good deal of useful information; but, to 
 the uninitiated, it is a confused mass of materials ill put together, 
 in which the ever-present / is mixed up in the most familiar terms 
 with the name of our blessed Lord and Saviour*. 
 
 * But, in extenuation of this celebrated missionary, it is to be observed, that the 
 grand objects whicli he has had in view in his intercourse with liis brethren have 
 been to inquire into their situation and circumstances in the different lands of their 
 dispersion, and to excite them to religious inquiry. He has all along professed to 
 be merely a pioneer, leaving the work of systematic and continuous instruction to 
 his successors. — Ed.
 
 TRAVELS IN KASHMIR. 
 
 Preparations for the Journey. 
 
 "Which, beyond all controversy, was the earthly Paradise," was the 
 half-muttered reply of my Brahmin, Thakür-Das, when I asked him 
 whether he would accompany me to Kashmir, and I understood imme- 
 diately that his words Implied a willing affirmative. In the north of 
 India, a man is considered to betray a total want of respect for the 
 subject, who forgets to add the above-mentioned encomium whenever 
 Kashmir is named in his presence, or the speaker neglects the compli- 
 ment himself. 
 
 I expected, in consequence of what had been told me, to meet 
 with many difficulties in engaging servants to accompany me, at the 
 advanced season when I undertook my journey, but was agreeably 
 mistaken, as not one of the three servants I had brought with me 
 from Calcutta, — viz. a Hindu Sirdar-bearer, a Musselman Khidmatgär, 
 and a Mushalchi,— made the slightest objection whatever. Tlie 
 names and offices of these three important personages in an Indian 
 establishment require some explanation. 
 
 A Sirdar-bearer is a personal attendant. Mine was a native of 
 Patna, an excellent and trustworthy man, whom I always found 
 indefatigable and attentive to his duties. The name Bearer {Kahar in 
 Hindusthani), given by the English to this class, is taken from the 
 palankeen-bearers, from whom the younger or more economical of the 
 Company's officers generally select their personal attendant : they pay 
 them about three or four rupees a month, a rupee is worth about a silver 
 florin, (2*.,) without board or livery; deducting from this sum the 
 value of everything that is lost in the house, or broken by them. But 
 my servant would have been highly incensed if he had been bound by 
 the same terms. The title Sirdar, the real meaning of which is
 
 14 DESCRIPTION OF THE RETINUE. 
 
 officer, pointed out his rank, contrasting strangely enough with bearer, 
 the name always given him by his European master, while every other 
 person in and out of the house called him Sirdar. Many of these 
 Sirdar-bearers lay claim to Rajput descent; and in Upper India the 
 word Singh, or in Bengal, Rup, is not unfrequently prefixed to their 
 name, as a proof of military ancestry. My sirdar usually carried a shield 
 on his back, and a sheathed sabre in his hand, and the expression of 
 his visage was altogether so martial, that I could seldom refrain from 
 smiling as he went about his very unwarlike duties. On the slightest 
 occasion, he would put himself into a violent rage with his companions, 
 and became then, with his dark features, and his black rolling eyes, a 
 proper object to strike terror into his timid countrymen. 
 
 The Khidmatgär Hingam, was the best servant I ever had in India. 
 The Khidmatgär holds the place of a butler in Europe, and is properly 
 the only servant who waits at meals. When his master accepts an 
 invitation he repairs to the friend's house also, and waits upon him 
 there. In a large establishment there are often two or three of these 
 Khidmatgars ; the first is then called the steward, and not only prepares 
 the tea and coffee, but is expected to understand the way of cooking 
 the favourite English dishes. 
 
 The Mashalchi is properly a torch-bearer, and runs before the 
 palankeen or the horse, when the master travels or pays a visit in the 
 night-time; while in the house he is employed as a domestic servant. 
 Our Austrian lackeys would probably look down with great contempt 
 on these slim light-footed messengers; but in no one of their official 
 capacities are they at all to be despised. 
 
 My Brahmin Secretary, or Munshi, Thakür-Däs, was a native 
 of Delhi. He did not understand a syllable of English; but to make 
 amends for this, he was a thoroughly honest person, well acquainted 
 with Sanscrit, and wrote Persian very elegantly. 
 
 I had engaged an interpreter from the Agra College, to accompany 
 me to Kashmir, — a well-educated Brahmin youth, by name Sitaram, 
 perfectly conversant with English, and of most prepossessing exterior; 
 but unluckily he could not bear the motion of the palankeen in which 
 he followed me; and falling ill on the way from Agra to Delhi, I was
 
 NECESSARIES FOR THE JOURNEY. 15 
 
 under the necessity of sending him back. Another interpreter was 
 then recommended to me, a half-caste, who called himself an English- 
 man, and with much expense, in consequence of the highly favourable 
 terms in which he was mentioned to me, I brought him from Meerut to 
 Simla, when I found he was not of the least use, and was only too glad 
 to get rid of him within twenty-four hours, the man himself declaring 
 that he was afraid to encounter the dangers of a journey to Kashmir. 
 He had heard at first that he was to travel on terra-firma, and now 
 finding that we should have to cross mountains covered with ice, he was 
 sure that so timid a rider as he was, would never arrive there. In 
 fact, the very thoughts of it had haunted him all the way from Pahar to 
 Simla, and he humbly besought me to spare his life, and allow him to 
 depart, with which solicitation I was only too happy to comply. 
 
 Purposing that this should be the last journey I should ever under- 
 take, I was additionally anxious to derive every possible advantage from 
 it, and to neglect nothing which could tend to make its results of some 
 value. Unfortunately, I was under the necessity of making the journey 
 alone, and foresaw months of solitude before me, which yet I could not 
 avert. I might readily have found some companions to accompany me 
 among my English friends ; but the Government had strictly forbidden 
 its servants to cross the Setlej without permission, which they would in 
 no case grant. So far as physical comforts could be provided, I resolved 
 to want for nothing, for a traveller's life is not such an easy one that he 
 should spare himself any enjoyments that can be procured. 
 
 Besides tents for my party, preserved meats hermetically sealed in 
 tin boxes, wines and drinks of various kinds, preserved fruits and 
 sweetmeats, I did not fail to provide myself with the hookah, univer- 
 sally used throughout the East; with some Himalayan ghunts, or 
 ponies, which climb the steepest mountains, and tread firmly on the 
 edge of the most fearful precipices, also with a sedan-chair or Jampan, 
 with twelve bearers. Besides my in-door servants, consisting of the 
 three men just mentioned, a Bwarchi or cook, with two assistants, a 
 Hookahburdar, or servant to attend my pipe, an Abdar for the water, a 
 Durzee or tailor, &c., I had a Chobdar or herald, two Chaprasis, or 
 messengers, having my name engraved in Hindiisthanl and Persian on
 
 16 VARIOUS ROUTES TO KASHMIR. 
 
 their breastplates, two Shikaris, or huntsmen, to slay or stuff beasts, 
 two Paharis, or mountaineers, as butterfly-catchers, two gardeners to 
 collect plants and seeds, two tent-bearers, &c., &c., in all thirty-seven 
 servants, sixty bearers, and seven beasts. 
 
 It was in vain that I sought an interpreter, sufficiently versed in 
 English to translate the manifold questions the object of my journey 
 demanded, when my slight acquaintance with Hindusthani might 
 cause me to falter. A lad of fourteen, Mohan Bir, was the only 
 one I could engage ; and although I almost despaired at first of making 
 anything of him, he soon gained my good graces by his quickness 
 and liveliness of mind. 
 
 Three different routes to Kashmir lay before me ; that over the 
 highest mountains of the Himalaya range ; that which passes across the 
 lowest mountains, or a third through the plain of the Panjab. The 
 first road might be taken either through the Berenda Pass, or by 
 Mundi and Dankar ; but for all or any of them, it was necessary for 
 me in the first place to obtain the permission of Ranjit Singh, the 
 Mahä Raja of Lahor, to whom Kashmir is subject, for without it I 
 should not here have found the means of subsistence. I had therefore 
 applied for this in the month of May. 
 
 Ranjit Singh is considered altogether independent of the British 
 Indian Government, and in truth is as much so, as his position as a 
 weaker neighbour can admit of ; but the best way of surmounting any 
 difficulties or delays in obtaining such leave, is to apply to the Political 
 Agent of the Company for the Panjab, who resides at Lüdiäna, on 
 the borders of the Lahor territory. To all the unimportant requests 
 of the Company, Ranjit Singh lends a very willing ear; and in the 
 present Resident, Captain Wade, travellers find a most courteous advo- 
 cate. To him, therefore, I applied, and being already furnished with 
 directions from the Governor-General at Calcutta, that gentleman 
 immediately forwarded an application on my behalf to the Raja. 
 
 I had hoped to receive his permission very shortly, but a dan- 
 gerous illness occasioned me and my petition to be equally forgotten ; 
 meanwhile I remained in the cool climate of the Himalaya. The 
 English have established two sanatariums, for the benefit of health and
 
 VISIT TO MASÜRA AND SIMLA. 17 
 
 of a cooler retreat, in this mountainous region, at Masuri and Simla, 
 I made my arrangements, therefore, while the permission was preparing, 
 to take a journey through the mountains, from the first to the latter 
 place, and thence commence my route to Kashmir. Masuri is the 
 nearest station to the plains of India, inhabited by Englishmen. 
 Simla is on the confines of the British possessions and those of the 
 Mahä Raja. Through this desolate plain, where everything was 
 withered and burnt up, I reached Masuri on the 21st of June, with 
 the intention of remaining there a few days, and on the 22nd, at 
 break of day, I left the hospitable abode of Mr. Hamilton, to view 
 the snowy mountains of Gangotri and Jamnotri from a neighbouring 
 height. Having arrived at the desired spot on the Landor, I had 
 full time to survey the majesty of scenes never to be forgotten. 
 I was riding slowly homewards to enjoy the refreshing shower 
 which fell on the parched land, reviving everything in nature, when 
 finding the rain becoming more and more violent, I urged my steady 
 horse onwards over the mountain paths to Masuri. This rain, with 
 the intermission of a few hours only, lasted eighty-five days, the 
 monsoon prevailing in this part of India with more continuous wet 
 weather than in any other. 
 
 During this long confinement, I heard frequently from Captain 
 Wade, that he was in daily expectation of Ranjit Singh's answer; 
 and no sooner did the season again clear up, than I proceeded to 
 Simla, not over the mountain road as I had intended, for during 
 the rainy season the passage is very insecure and uncertain, but 
 over the plains. On the 19th September I quitted the beautiful 
 and agreeable station of Masuri, and after encountering some terrific 
 storms in the plain, reached Simla by way of Ambala in six days, 
 not without some difl5culty however, for the rains had converted 
 every brook into a torrent, and the roads were completely flooded. 
 The last rain fell as I reached Simla, where I fully expected to have 
 received, from Captain Wade, the long-looked-for reply from the 
 Raja. Disappointed in this, I again wrote in pressing terms. The 
 reply informed me, that I might certainly expect a favourable answer 
 from the Raja, but time pressed and nothing was fixed. Of the three 
 
 c
 
 18 ALTERATION OF PLANS, 
 
 routes, I had taken a fancy to pursue the one which, skirting the highest 
 mountains, led through the Berenda Pass by Ladäk into Kashmir, and 
 had never as yet been trodden by any European traveller. The sea- 
 son also was already far advanced. From Simla, the eye is accus- 
 tomed to look over a splendid panorama, embracing a line of the 
 snow-capped Himalayas, whose average elevation is 15,000 feet above 
 the level of the sea, and vvhich, according to the very lowest cal- 
 culation, is two hundred and forty miles in length. This line, 
 during the summer, in spite of its immense height, is not entirely 
 covered with snow, except where it faces the north. 
 
 One morning I watched a cloud slowly approaching this far- 
 distant chain of hills, and gradually I observed it tracing its onward 
 path with snow, until it disappeared, and the sky was cloudless as 
 before. The sight was beautiful, but it foreboded ill to my con- 
 templated movements. In the course of the following day the snow 
 melted, but the ridges of the Kailas had put on their winter gar- 
 ments. It was twenty-three days' journey to the Berenda Pass ; and 
 long ere I could reach it the snow would have formed an impene- 
 trable barrier against me ; and, even had it not done so, how 
 improbable was my chance of reaching Ladäk or Kashmir, in this 
 season, by an unfrequented route. The prospect of remaining all 
 through the winter in the table-lands of Tibet was as miserable 
 as it appeared inevitable ; and this was all the information I could 
 get at Simla. How far it was well grounded will shortly appear. 
 They told me, also, that the road from the Panjab into Kashmir 
 was usually blocked up in the beginning of December; and here, 
 for the benefit of future travellers in India, let me advise that no 
 report should be acted upon as correct which does not rest on the 
 personal experience of the informant; and that even in that case 
 the greatest caution should be exercised. 
 
 My plans were consequently changed. It was not without great 
 reluctance that I relinquished my purpose of going through the 
 Berenda Pass. A different route was still open to me, and a shorter 
 one, from Bilaspoor through Mandi and Dankar to Ladäk; but 
 all agreed in one fact, that the passes would very shortly be
 
 THE DEPARTURE. 19 
 
 blocked up ; and the fe.ar lest my great object might fail, and that 
 I should not reach Kashmir before this happened, deterred me from 
 following that road. This finally determined me to take the direc- 
 tion of the lowest range of the Himalaya, and to travel by way of 
 Bilaspoor, Jwälä Mükhi, and Narpoor ; from thence, according to cir- 
 cumstances, to move forward to Kashmir either by Kishtwar or 
 the Pir Panjal, preferring this route to the plain country of the 
 Panjab and Bimber. 
 
 My preparations were all made ; but, although I had consulted 
 my comforts as much as possible, I had made up my mind to relin- 
 quish anything which might in the slightest way impede my onward 
 progress, and expected to be compelled to abandon my large tents, 
 and even to leave my ponies to await my return from Kashmir, 
 at the foot of the mountains, making my Jampan render me good 
 service. The Jampan is a solid sedan-chair, supported between two 
 thick bamboo poles, and borne by four men, twelve being the com- 
 plement of beai'ers usually taken on a journey. It is the customary 
 conveyance on a mountain excursion ; but, to my own mind, I relied 
 more on my own two legs than on the twenty-four legs of my 
 bearers. 
 
 The Departure. 
 
 At last, on the 6th October, I received an intimation from 
 Captain Wade that the Mahä Raja had given me leave to travel 
 through his states, and that an officer would be in Bilaspoor on the 
 14th with the perwana, or royal mandate, addressed to the gover- 
 nors of the provinces through which my way might lead me. This 
 perwana is of as much, or more importance in India than our 
 passports in Europe ; for whereas our passports only give permission 
 to travel through the state which grants it, a perwana commands 
 the governors of every place to furnish the traveller with bearers, 
 beasts, provisions, and, in fact, everything he may stand in need of. 
 
 On receiving this notice I sent off my people, with all my bag- 
 gage, on the 10th October, three days previous to my own departure, 
 
 c 2
 
 20 THE ENCAMPMENT. 
 
 in order to give them time to prepare everything properly, ordering 
 them to pitch my tent on the 1 2th, at the third station from Simla ; 
 and, in order to give them as much rest as possible, I did not leave 
 Simla until the 13th, when I rode on one of my kind host's. Major 
 Kennedy's, horses to Saree, breakfasted there, and then proceeded 
 by Kunyar to Sahikoti. Kunyar is the residence of one of the 
 Rajas of the Himalaya, who resides under the protection of the 
 English. It is not my purpose to describe here any place on the 
 left bank of the Setlej ; I shall, therefore, only pause to observe that 
 the situation of Kunyar is charming, that the residence of the Raja 
 scarce deserves the name of a house, that his revenue may amount 
 to a few thousand rupees, and his subjects to the same number. In 
 Sahikoti I found my tents pitched in a picturesque little valley. 
 According to their different religions and castes my suite was formed 
 into small groups ; white and black woollen tents pointed out the 
 spots they had chosen, and each man had kindled his own fire to 
 cook his food himself, according to Indian habits. It was evening 
 when I joined them, and a simple but very well dressed repast, eaten 
 before my tent, under the cloudless canopy of heaven, made me 
 sensible of that independence which is enjoyed by Indian travellers 
 especially. Once having furnished himself with what is absolutely 
 indispensable, the European journeys through the land like a king: 
 he can go wherever his fancy leads him ; and need not trouble 
 himself either about custom-houses, ban-iers, bridges, hedges, or 
 turnpikes. Nobody inquires his name or demands his passport ; no 
 broken wheel stops his way ; no full or intolerable inn by the road- 
 side rouses his choler ; every European he meets with is his friend, 
 and every other being is his humble servant. 
 
 As soon as night came on I strayed out to visit my little encamp- 
 ment of one hundred and fifty men. To a novice in Indian travelling 
 the variety displayed even in this limited area, the difference in 
 features, manners, and habits, arising from the various castes and 
 religions, would have afforded much amusement and surprise. For 
 me, used to all this, the loveliness of night and the surrounding 
 country, now illuminated with a bright moonlight, had more charms,
 
 THE KAHLUR RAJA. 21 
 
 though the thoughts of my home, far distant, but ever near to my 
 heart, weighed heavily on my spirits. 
 
 The next day brought me to Bayoon, under the fort of Malaun, 
 erected on the very highest ridge of a mountain, at least two 
 thousand feet above the valley. Malaun is one of those points in 
 the Himalaya, where, in the Gorkha war of 1814, the English met 
 with a brave resistance. The following evening I reached Bilaspoor, 
 a place under the rule of a Hindu Raja, called Kalur Raja. 
 
 From Simla, where this Raja, and thirty-two of the petty sove- 
 reigns of the Himalaya besides, have kept an agent since the peace 
 of 1815, which placed them all under the protection of the English, 
 Major Kennedy, the Political Agent in these parts, had forwarded 
 a notification of my arrival to Bilaspoor, that my journey might not 
 be impeded by any want of bearers or horses ; and on my coming 
 I found the Raja's own state, or durbar tent, pitched for me, 
 in a lovely garden on the banks of the Setlej river. I was soon 
 honoured with a visit from the Raja in person, attended by his 
 miniature court. Of all the ignorant and unmannered native chiefs 
 on this side of the river, he is, perhaps, the most rude and unpo- 
 lished. The half hour he remained proved a very tedious one to 
 me. His excesses in wine and spirit-drinking have well-nigh robbed 
 him, though still in the prime of life, of the miserable intellect he 
 might once have had. His favourites are two Bengalees, as unworthy 
 as their lord, who speak a little English. According to the custom 
 of the country, he expected me to return his visit, and receive the 
 presents he had prepared for me ; but the impressions I had received 
 were so unpleasant, that through my Munshi, Thakur-Das, I very 
 politely excused myself, and agreed, as a compensation, to accept of 
 seven mules, which were not to be had for any money. The animals 
 were to be sent the following morning ; meanwhile, however, a certain 
 officer of Ranjit Singh's made his appearance, by the command of 
 his master, and brought me a letter from Captain Wade, advising 
 me that Mirza Abdul had orders to attend me to Narpoor, where a 
 Chobdar, or herald, of the Mahä Raja's had received instructions to be 
 in readiness to wait on me also. The Mirza affixed to his name, which
 
 22 SCENE ON THE SETLEJ. 
 
 answers nearly to the Turkish word Effendi, made me instantly 
 suspect that he was a spy, and I was happy to find that he was not 
 sent to remain any length of time a burden to me, through the ill- 
 provided regions I was soon to traverse; for this escort or guard has 
 prevented many travellers from seeing a country under its true 
 aspect ; and it is ever a most serious disadvantage, moreover, in India, 
 to be obliged to increase the number of one's attendants. 
 
 Europeans generally come to India fraught with ideas and expec- 
 tations of finding nature adorned in her richest garb, and a climate 
 which injures health and shortens life, from the very enjoyments to 
 which it tempts you. These anticipations are rarely realized; and the 
 new comer then falls into an extreme opinion directly opposed to the 
 first, that neither the country nor the climate ofi'ers any thing uncom- 
 mon or attractive. Both opinions are erroneous. During the greatest 
 part of the year, Hindüsthan is little better than a wilderness ; the 
 Dekhan is a stony unproductive region, and to Europeans the climate 
 is, in general, very trying. There are many parts of India, parti- 
 cularly towards the south-west, where the continual heat and damp 
 act powerfully on the constitution, enervating the body, and making 
 exertion most painful. In the north, the heat of the sunmier is ter- 
 rific, the short winter is just as cold in proportion, and the transition 
 from one of these seasons to the other, occupies but a few days. But 
 although these remarks apply generally to the country, I allow that a 
 traveller lights often on spots which leave any picture his imagination 
 may have formed far behind; and if the skies favour him on such 
 occasions, he may well exclaim, How beautiful is India ! 
 
 Bilaspoor lies in a spacious valley, through which the Setlej winds 
 its long and fertilizing course, while, in the distance, high and waving 
 hills, crowned with villages, stretched for several miles, the snowy 
 peaks of the Himalaya being distinctly visible on the horizon. The 
 valley is extremely fertile, and every tropical plant flourishes in richer 
 profusion here, than in most other parts of Hindiisthan, as if the 
 Great Author of all Nature had lavished his gifts on it without any 
 reserve. The sun was sinking when first I gazed on this beautiful 
 scene ; the river rolled proudly on beneath the garden where I stood,
 
 THE TRAVELLKR's FIRST NIGHT. 23 
 
 surrounded on every side by a treasury of fragrant flowers, among 
 which, rich orange and citron-trees entangled with jasmines, and 
 groups of magnolias, wafted their exquisite perfume around, in the 
 descending dews. The stars and moon rose one by one; not a breath 
 was felt; the lofty palms rustled, and gently stirred their leaves, as if 
 some spirit breathed upon them ; the trees were lighted up by fire-flies, 
 and within their deep recesses was heard the soft twittering of the 
 birds, and the shriller tones of a kind of mantis, which has its 
 dwelling in the citron-trees ; in the distance bright lamps shining 
 through the night, pointed out the temple, where loud voices and 
 noisy drums were sounding to the praise of their idols ; the fantastic 
 costumes, the dreamy air, all, all combining together, might well have 
 inspired the coldest spectator to exclaim, as he gazed, This is the very 
 India of which I have dreamed ! 
 
 But the old traveller in the East knows well that these fair scenes 
 and calm moments are rarely enjoyed; and I wandered long through 
 the broad terraces of the garden ere I sought my tent. 
 
 There was no repose for me here. This was the last night for 
 a long time that I should pass in a country under European protection ; 
 and bidding farewell to the hope of sleep, I again strayed into the 
 garden, where, except the mantis, everything was now buried in the 
 repose of nature. Long I watched for the first break of early dawn 
 through that lovely night, while all within my tent were sleeping 
 heavily, enjoying the comfort within, and unconscious of the charms 
 without. At length it made its appearance ; the servants were soon 
 up and stirring; and amid the din of packing and lading, I had time 
 to survey leisurely the scene around me. 
 
 Towards the east, the giant form of the Bondelah mountain was 
 faintly illumined by the first rays of the morning; while in the 
 north, Tayuni, crowned with its solitary castle, caught the newly- 
 awakened sunbeams on its loftiest peak. Tradition says, that in a 
 cave on the top of the Bondelah, lives an invisible Bairagi, or 
 Gosain, a penitent hermit who, from time to time, shakes the ashes 
 from his locks, when the whole valley quakes; houses are shaken 
 down, and large masses of stone tumble from the mountain : these 
 are the ashes, according to the inhabitants of the valley.
 
 24 THE OPERATION OF SUPERIOR RL LE. 
 
 At Tayuni, an uncle of the present Raja has been confined for 
 the last twelve years, for having, in the plenitude of his folly, 
 ventured, after Ranjit Singh's treaty with England had changed the 
 order of things, to pursue the same predatory course to which most 
 of the Rajas of the Himalaya owe their possessions; forgetting that 
 what was all right and proper thirty years ago, is now a criminal 
 offence on either side of the river. 
 
 Towards the south, the three fortresses of Bahadurpoor, Futihpoor 
 and Champa i-eminded me vividly of those knightly castles built on 
 the summits of the hills in my native land. Not only is the likeness 
 in situation to be traced: erected during the last century by the 
 Gorkhas, like our own fortresses they served for the security of the 
 little tyrants who plundered both travellers and inhabitants indiscri- 
 minately, and then retreated with their ill-gotten booty within their 
 fastnesses. An end is now put to these robberies in India; regular 
 contributions are enforced by the Company on property on one side 
 of *he Setlej ; and no sooner does an individual give his portion — 
 however small — to the common stock, than he claims the protection 
 of the government as his right. Throughout his own territory, 
 Ranjit Singh is free to levy what taxes he pleases. 
 
 But to return. The shoulders of the bearers, and the backs of 
 the asses were all ready laden, when the Wakil and the Wazir of the 
 Raja of Bilaspoor came to attend me. These Wazirs, as they were 
 called in the Himalaya, are, in point of fact, the real governors of the 
 land, it being looked on as a disgrace for a Raja to concern himself 
 about the administration of his country, or even know how to read or 
 write. His sluggish existence is dragged out in the Zenana, the Indian 
 harem, in eating opium, drinking brandy, and smoking; and in his 
 few sober hours he holds his court or Durbar, or rides from one of his 
 summer-houses to another. 
 
 The Raja of Bilaspoor has now attained his thirtieth year, — a 
 period when the understanding and intellect have reached their prime ; 
 but Nature has been a niggard to him in these ; and the quantities of 
 opium he swallows have rendered him a disgusting object, with staring 
 fyes devoid of expression, and a mouth always half open. The extent
 
 IMBECILITY OF INDIAN PRINCES. 25 
 
 of his capacity may be easily divined, from the questions he asks of the 
 persons who attend his levee, which are usually of the following 
 nature:— "Are you well?" " How can 1 be otherwise than well in the 
 Raja's presence?" To this, his Highness generally rejoins, "How 
 old are you ?" And being enlightened on this point, his next question 
 is, " How many wives have you ?" If, as in my case, the stranger 
 answers that he is unmarried, the conversation suffers a sudden check ; 
 and to all the questions which the latter puts in order to while away the 
 time, the Raja turns to the Wazir, that he may prompt some answer, 
 which by good luck may be brought to light after five minutes' con- 
 sultation between them*. 
 
 The Raja of the Himalaya being thus sunk into a state of stupid 
 imbecility, we need not much wonder if the Wazir is supposed to be an 
 influential favourite of the Rani, or first wife ; but it usually happens 
 in these cases, that if the husband's eyes are opened but once to his 
 wrongs, they are soon closed on all things, and for ever. A case of 
 this kind occurred recently in one of the petty states of the Himalaya, 
 under British protection. After the death of the Raja, however, the 
 Wazir so far overstepped the limits accorded to oriental exactions, that 
 the enraged people burst into the summer-dwelling, then occupied by 
 him and the Rani, and burnt it to the ground. The next morning, 
 long after both they and their attendants had ceased to breathe, came a 
 crowd to wail and lament over the accidental death of the Rani ; but 
 though the real facts were well known to every one, the crime was 
 
 * Shortly after the British had captured the fort of Viziadroog— the famous 
 Gheriah captured in 1756 by Lord Clive and Admiral Watson— I was sent by 
 government in my professional capacity to see to the reparation of its defences, and 
 to take account of its military stores. On entering the inner gateway, I was struck 
 with a little circular flat piece of wood, about three inches in diameter, with a han- 
 dle, on which were cut in rude relief, Shri Angria. The Brahmin near me smiled at 
 my curiosity, and said, that as his master was very ignorant, and unacquainted with 
 writing, in place of signing passports for the egress of his retmue, they presented 
 themselves before him with a pat of soft clay in their hands, which the chief struck 
 with the instrument in question; which credential they exhibited to the guards at 
 the several gates. Such is generally the state of ignorance of all the princes of 
 India. Their females have often far more learning and sagacity.— £rf.
 
 26 THE FRONTIER FERRY BOAT. 
 
 never brought home to any individuals; and the English Government 
 soon gave up the inquiry they had instituted on the subject. 
 
 As my way from Bilaspoor led me through a part of the town, I 
 purposed to follow it on foot as far as it skirted the river ; but I too 
 soon found out that my jampan was never more needed, for the streets 
 are paved with flint stones about a foot in diameter, and as often loose 
 as not, dislodging the unsteady foot of a luckless wayfarer, and knock- 
 ing it violently to one side or the other. I was surprised to see the 
 natives step lightly over these stones without once stumbling, until I 
 discovered that long acquaintance with the loose ones enabled them, 
 without much difficulty, to avoid them. The garden walls and 
 inclosed places are well built with the same large round stones. 
 For a mile onwards, the road adjoined the left bank of the Setlej ; 
 it then led to a rapid brook, and^ thence to the ferry boat, which was 
 nothing more or less than a square box of wood, strongly put 
 together, and having difl"erent partitions a foot high; I had no sooner 
 come up, than I found about twenty persons had already taken 
 their places; in addition to these, Ranjit Singh's two followers, 
 and their horses; my Munshi, on horseback, twenty of my people; 
 and after all, the Wakil and Wazir, with their servants, now stepped 
 in. Against this last addition I stoutly protested, and took the 
 part of the poor natives, who had arrived before us, whom the 
 Wazir was ordering away, to make room for my bearers. It is in 
 such matters that every Indian, invested with power, is an absolute 
 tyrant, and considers all things on earth as made to obey the 
 strongest. The lower classes enjoy a certain degree of independence, 
 attributable to the smallness of their wants, the climate, and their 
 indolent character, which is content with the least possible indulgence; 
 but when a higher than themselves appears, they sink at once into 
 nothingness, and from none do they receive less compassion than 
 from hired servants. On all occasions, indeed, the poor Hindu is 
 made to feel the bitterness of inferiority; and if he sues for the 
 smallest favour, he is often sent back to his miserable hut day after 
 day for many months, before he obtains even an answer; yet he 
 bears all this without a murmur, in hopes of better times.
 
 » 'Aii^m^ 
 
 ■* 
 
 
 a s
 
 THE PANJAJB DFSTKICTS. 'li 
 
 Our heavy cargo was at last set in motion, and we soon crossed 
 the roaring stream, and landed safely on the opposite shore, although 
 our strange vessel was half filled with water. The natives swim 
 across the stream with the help of an ox's skin, inflated with wind, 
 in an ingenious way. Having carried this on their shoulders to the 
 shore, they spread themselves upon it on the water, laying fast hold 
 with one hand, while they strike the water with a piece of timber in 
 the other. The sight of a number of these skins, with the head and 
 feet of the beast left on thera as in life, constantly floating across 
 the river, is very amusing. Higher up towards the mountains, where 
 the Setlej rushes over rocks deeply embedded, and with amazing 
 force, the passage is made in a basket firmly tied on each shore with 
 ropes which are swung across the stream. 
 
 The Panjab. 
 
 We were put on shore near a picturesque temple, where I took 
 leave of the great men, whom the Raja of Bilaspoor had sent as 
 an escort of honour with me. We were now in the Panjab, the 
 dominions of Ranjit Singh, the Maha Raja of Lahor, a vast 
 plain bounded on the north by the Himalaya, and lying between 
 the Indus or Atok, and the Setlej, called in this part, after receiving 
 the waters of the Beas, the Ghara. The other fhree rivers which 
 water the country, Panjab meaning five waters, Panj being the 
 Persian for five, and Ab water, are the Ravee, the Chinab, and 
 the Jelum. The Setlej or Ghara falls into the Indus, which is 
 called also the Sind, and the Atok; into these five laro-e rivers 
 flow several of less importance, of which the Beas is perhaps the 
 most full. 
 
 Each of the districts of the Panjab which lies between two riviTs 
 is called Doab, from Do, two, and Ab, water, and of these there 
 are five, viz.: the Jalander Doab, between the Setlej and the Boas • 
 the Baree Doab, between the Ghara and the Ravee; the Rukna 
 Doab, between the Ravee and the Chinab; the Joteh Doab, between 
 the Chinab and the Jelum; the Doab-i-Sindi Sagur, between the 
 Jelum and the Indus.
 
 28 PROGRESS TO KASHMIR. 
 
 The three first are by far the most fertile districts; the others 
 being hilly, with many deep ravines throughout. The natives, too, 
 are o-enerally inferior in intellect to those in the more fruitful 
 country. The Doab-i-Sindi Sagur is of much greater extent than 
 the others. 
 
 The natural advantages of the Panjab are very great. Large 
 productive plains, watered by the never -failing springs of the 
 Himalaya, which swell into noble streams, capable of bearing the 
 largest vessels, and favoured with a delightful climate, what has 
 nature not done to make it and all its people contented and happy! 
 I need hardly remind the antiquary, that in the days of Alexander 
 the Jelum was known as the Hydaspes, the Chinab as the Acesines*, 
 and the Ravee as the Hydraotes. To give some idea of the various 
 names under which the same place is known in India, I may cite 
 the Setlej, which in the mountains is called by its Sanscrit name 
 Satudra; higher up the country, it receives the various names of 
 Zangti, Naksang, Langzhing, and Samudrung ; and nearer the 
 Panjab it is called Ghara. The Beah is called in Sanscrit Vipdsaf, 
 and in different places by the natives, Beas, Veah, and Beya. The 
 Sanscrit name of the Ravee is Airavadi, and it is known also as 
 the Rhoas. The Chinab, in Sanscrit CJiandrahhaga, river of the 
 Moon, is called by the natives Sandabhaga, Jenab, Jenal, Ghenal, 
 and Ghenab. The Jelum, in Sanscrit Vitasfa, is known also as the 
 Behat; and the Indus is Atok in Sanscrit, Sind in the native 
 dialect, and high up the country, Chu, Sechu, and Lingti. 
 
 Journey to Kashmir. 
 It was early in the morning of the IGth October, when my 
 short passage across the Setlej brought me into the dominions of 
 
 * From the ancient Sanscrit name, Abi-sin. 
 
 f The ancient Hyphasis, from the Sanscrit, Vipasa,— the Hydaspes, from 
 Vitasta, and the Hydraotes, from Ravee,— or in its separate Greek form, iScuf, 
 cMTY,;, may enable us to form some idea of the changes from the originals of other 
 geographical and proper names, where the absence of certain letters in that language 
 was supplied by the nearest sounds of other combinations. — Ed.
 
 SKETCHES ON THE SETLE.J. 29 
 
 Ranjit Singh. My mind was engrossed with the future, which 
 lay before me sad and solitary. Fatigues and dangers seemed to 
 point out the road I had to travel. Though in the midst of a 
 crowd, I was nevertheless a solitary being; in descent and colour, 
 in education and religion, in dress and manners, and more than all 
 these, in mind and heart, in every thought and feeling, I was abso- 
 lutely alone. 
 
 Oppressed with these melancholy thoughts, I seated myself under 
 the shade of a large Indian-fig tree before the temple of Jelakatel, 
 and as my attendants wandered about in the distance, I keenly felt 
 m}'^ own isolated state, without one near or dear to me, not one soul 
 to sympathize with me in sadness, or to participate in any emotions 
 awakened by the sight of nature's grandest scenes; not an individual 
 to bear my last wishes to my distant friends, were I forbidden ever 
 to see them more. 
 
 Although now in the territories of Ranjit Singh, I had not 
 entirely quitted the Raja of Bilaspoor's country, for he is partly 
 under the protection of the Company, and partly under the dominion 
 of the Mahä Raja. To facilitate my observations in travelling 
 through a country so little known, I had begun a small map on the 
 other side of the Setlej, although I was under some apprehension 
 that Mirza, who I hardly doubted had been sent by Ranjit Singh 
 to act as a spy on my movements, would inform his master of my 
 occupation, and receive instructions to stop any further continuance 
 of it. 
 
 As far as the line to which English protection extends, the road 
 is very tolerable for an Indian one, but when the Setlej is crossed, 
 it is hardly possible to conceive that one can be in a country where 
 any communication whatever is carried on. For a mile or more, the 
 only road is over large stones lying loose in the path, which a few 
 workmen might clear away in a day or two, but which are left 
 there as a preliminary torture. On the height of Ladhera, it is 
 alternately up and down slippery black rocks, where at one moment 
 the traveller finds himself precipitated into a deep hollow, at the 
 next, scrambling up the steep sides of the rocks, assisted only here
 
 30 THE BAIRAGIS OF INDIA. 
 
 and there by some steps three or four feet high, hollowed out of 
 the stone. The ghunts, or little ponies of the Himalaya, were here 
 in their element, while the mules and horses belonging to Ranjit 
 Singh's officers were sorely distressed, and repeatedly fell down the 
 precipices. 
 
 From these heights the Setlej, winding in its deep rocky bed 
 through the mountain passes, had a most romantic appearance, and 
 the country is interspersed with groups of buildings, before which 
 the fields are formed into terraces carefully constructed and kept 
 perfectly level. At each turn, the traveller hopes to find himself 
 at an opening into the fine plain which seems so near him, until 
 the continual ravines and steep ascents, the wearisome difficulties 
 of his way, teach him how to bear disappointments. Near Mansala 
 the road improves. Here I found a crowd assembled round a 
 Bairagi, one of those classes of penitents which admit members 
 of all ranks and castes. There are many such throughout India, 
 but the particular rules to which these subject themselves, render 
 them more remarkable than some others. Their disciples, carefully 
 chosen for their natural talent, are subjected to a noviciate of several 
 years, and poverty is the first vow they take. Then alone, and 
 barely covered, with nothing but one small vessel, in which they 
 cook the pittance of rice charitably bestowed on them by the way, 
 they wander about from one part of Asia to another. The one I 
 saw here was in the prime of life. His hair was strewed with ashes, 
 over which a crown of wild flowers had been negligently placed; 
 and another fresh garland hung low from his shoulders. His only 
 garment was a piece of coarse stuff fastened to a rope girt round 
 his loins, and his body was already almost grey from the ashes 
 constantly rubbed on it. On seeing me draw near, the Bairagi 
 beckoned to the crowd to stand back and advanced to meet me. 
 My attendants all saluted him with the deepest veneration, and a 
 Ram Ram Shahji, The blessing of God on thee, my lord, and the 
 bearers stood still, expecting me also to shew the like respect. The 
 penitent took the crown of flowers from his head, and would have 
 sent it to me, but as no one offered to take it from his hand, he
 
 INCIDENTS OF INDIAN TRAVEL. 31 
 
 moved forward himself. I had never seen before, even in the pre- 
 sence of an Indian Bairagi, such an exhibition of religious fanat- 
 icism. After he had held the crown outstretched towards me for 
 some time, he replaced it on his own head, and took the garland 
 from his shoulders, waiting for some one to convey that to me; 
 however, not a soul stirred a foot, and I therefore invited him to crown 
 me himself. He did this after a little delay, and, as I remarked, 
 with a certain repugnance and haughty bearing, as though he were 
 doing something to which his pride could hardly condescend. On 
 inquiring who he was, he answered, " My name was Tamu, and 
 I was the Wazir of the Raja of Nadaun. Now I serve a higher 
 master, and my name is Tamu Shah." 
 
 These Bairagis are philosophers who neither refuse the necessaries 
 of life, nor assume the manners of a Diogenes. They are of inde- 
 pendent habits compared with most other classes, and the traveller 
 who can overcome the first impression of a suspicious sanctity, caused 
 by the strangeness of their appearance, will receive more informa- 
 tion from them in one interview, than if he travelled from one court 
 to another throughout the whole of India. 
 
 Just before we reached the next village, Dukolee, the country 
 suddenly opened on a plain which seemed to extend betsveen the 
 Tayuni and Panauli mountains, as far as the snowy hills in the 
 north-west, and the Bondelah mountain behind Bilaspoor in the 
 south-west. The view over this plain is remarkably fine. In the 
 foreground lies a forest of splendid Indian-fig trees, under whose 
 shadows hundreds of men and beasts might rest, and whose branches 
 are alive with the feathered creation. The high hills are, in many 
 places, crowned with villages, and the eye ranges over an immense 
 variety of plants, the rich natives of an Indian land. Another easy 
 ascent, and then a gentle declivity, and we reached Kumagaheti, 
 the first day's halt, where my little tent was pitched already in the 
 plain. Gaheti, means a Serai or lodging, where the traveller finds 
 what he needs to cook his meals; viz., rice, spices, butter, fruits, 
 peas, beans, and fodder for his beasts, and besides these, some 
 charpdi/s, or beds, are provided. These beds are made of cords
 
 32 THE traveller's rest. 
 
 stretched tightly over a frame of wood, and resting on four low 
 feet; but wo to the unlucky traveller who reckons on a night's 
 rest on one of them; it requires the thick skin of an Indian, or 
 long habit, to support the attack of the hosts of vermin which swarm 
 in every crevice. The distance from Bilaspoor to Kumagaheti is 
 reckoned at eight coss, I calculate it at fifteen miles, which took me 
 five hours to travel, the heat being most oppressive among the 
 black rocks. 
 
 Saturday, October 17th, at six in the morning, the thermometer 
 being at 59° Fahrenheit, there was lightning in the north-west. This 
 day's journey to Meyri was nine coss, about eighteen miles; a cold 
 morning was succeeded by a day, which, by contrast, seemed warm 
 in the extreme. The thermometer, however, at one o'clock, was not 
 higher than 81°, and remained stationary until five. The country 
 was more open than yesterday, but the ascents and descents endless. 
 An invisible stream which rushed through a little forest of pines 
 until it formed a foaming waterfall, seemed, to my fancy, much 
 more romantic than the reality might have shewn it to be. The 
 high chain of hills, called Mori, with its everlasting snows, was not 
 intercepted from my view by any intermediate high ground, but at 
 times, the clouds, which hung over it, announced that rain, perhaps a 
 heavy storm, was visiting that region. The highest point of the 
 mountains is called by the natives Champa. 
 
 At Habliheti, the station for the night, close by Meyri, I found 
 neither wood nor any other provision, and was forced to send the 
 Kotwal two miles, to obtain food for my people; at five o'clock the 
 bearers came up with my baggage. This was a lesson to me to 
 make my attendants always precede me in future, for I felt that 
 my difiiculties would probably increase as I proceeded, and that I 
 must make up my mind, either to travel very tediously, or to dispense 
 with my numerous suite. In the first case, I might certainly reach 
 Kashmir, but it would not be before the next spring, for when 
 once the snow falls in the mountain paths, all intercourse with 
 India is at an end for many months. 
 
 Some persons may conclude, that after five years' experience in
 
 THE traveller's REST. 33 
 
 travelling, distance and solitnde, whether in India or New Holland, 
 wonld cease to be painful. Habit, however, which can bring us to 
 endure so much, has, nevertheless, its prescribed limits, and to some 
 men, every day casts a stone more on the weight that oppresses the 
 heart, until, at length, nature can bear no more. A tombstone, in 
 some sequestered spot, eventually points out the place where the lonely 
 traveller has taken up his last sad earthly rest. 
 
 Had I only followed the plans I had laid down for myself at 
 Bilaspoor, I should have got on much faster ; but now, I was 
 encumbered with the Raja of Bilaspoor's people, and it is always 
 a matter of perfect indifference to these Orientals, whether a traveller 
 is delayed a month more or less on his way on their account. 
 
 By night-fall all my baggage was collected together, except the 
 large tents; my people all cried out, that it was the Munshi's fault, 
 that the bearers would not set out until noon, because they were 
 not sufficiently paid. I was obliged to promise, that I would set 
 the matter right when he arrived. In the mean while I strolled out 
 to watch the sun then going down behind the hills. The scenery 
 was peculiarly wild and romantic. In a deep hollow a stream runs 
 hurriedly along the plain, forming cataracts so closely hemmed in 
 with rocks that it is impossible to approach them; the deep rushing 
 sound betraying their existence long ere they are perceptible. A 
 little further on the river widens ; the rocks rising, as it were, into 
 perpendicular walls, the spectator looks down on the water beneath 
 into a deep abyss. Tropical plants wave on either bank, and all 
 looks picturesque and mysterious, not forgetting some little villages 
 reposing peacefully under lofty trees. It was the season of rice 
 harvest, and I was delighted to hear from a peasant, that it had 
 been a vei*y abundant one. I learnt that in this part five seers, 
 about 12|^ lbs., of rice cost from three to five farthings*; this 
 
 * In the original, "ten German pounds of rice cost from two to three 
 krcutzers ;" here, as elsewhere, the reader will find such quantities reduced to 
 English money and weight respectively, which I thought it better to insert in the 
 text. The kreutzer of Vienna is reckoned at the ordinary exchange of 585 to the 
 pound sterling; the pound of Germany, at the rate of 100 pounds to 123§ English 
 avoirdupois pounds. — Ed. 
 
 a
 
 34 WAYWARDNESS OF PASSING THOUGHTS. 
 
 seemed to me little enough, but I said to my informant, carelessly, 
 " I see you take me for a European, ignorant of your Indian prices, 
 or you would not ask me so much." The man smilingly replied, 
 " You are perfectly right in your conclusion, — I did so." 
 
 My little tent was set up between two citron trees, which were 
 rather insufficient to protect me against the sun while it remained 
 hio-h in the heavens. Towards evening the thunder rolled in the dis- 
 tance, and the hghtning was very vivid; I was afraid that a storm 
 of rain was approaching to deluge our little encampment, but as 
 the night advanced, the clouds gradually dispersed, and the air became 
 most refreshing and delightful. 
 
 Sunday, October 18, thermometer, at six o'clock, 59° of Fahren- 
 heit. Thei-e are certain days in one's life when we seem to ourselves 
 to feel as uncomfortable as man can be, until the issue shews us that 
 our troubles in this world are at least one half of our own creating: 
 such was the result of this day. Apprehension that I should be 
 detained from Kashmir the whole winter, irritated my mind; full of 
 impatience therefore, I was up before dawn, determined to be on my 
 way early. Happily disappointed in my expectation, that the large 
 tents would not be brought during the night, I did not suffer this to 
 interrupt my preparations. In this, however, my followers did not 
 second me, for the bearers and muleteers, mostly the subjects of the 
 Raja of Bilaspoor, one and all flatly refused to accompany me. The 
 latter threw the baggage on the ground, and attempted to drive away 
 the cattle; this I resisted, very uncertain at the same time how the 
 affair would terminate, and very much afraid that, at least, I should 
 have to pass the day where I was. The sixty-four bearers from 
 Bilaspoor had received part of their wages in advance, in order to 
 provide themselves with food; they now demanded the remainder before 
 they quitted the station. 
 
 The Panjäb bearers rarely receive any remuneration in return for 
 their services; on the contrary, they are compelled by the government, 
 without whose permission nobody can travel, to perform their duty 
 gratuitously ; I had engaged, however, to give the poor fellows a sum, 
 which, according to the low price of rice, their only food, would, in one
 
 THE WAY OF UNCIVILIZED SOCIETY. 35 
 
 day, have supplied their whole family for a month. I was now in a 
 critical position. Earlier dangers had warned me, that if these men 
 were at once paid up what they were hired for, they would, most pro- 
 bably, run away to amuse themselves with the money elsewhere, but as 
 my people all assured me, that as soon as they were paid, they 
 would willingly take up their bui'thens, I at last gave in, and desired 
 the Munshi, who strongly opposed my resolution, to satisfy their 
 demand at once. Scarcely was the money in their hands, than what 
 I had anticipated came to pass; they decamped, and with them also 
 the Raja's soldiers. Perhaps there are few things more difficult than 
 to know how to deal with ignorant men; last evening the Munshi 
 had given these bearers an anna, and they had refused, on that plea, 
 to move a step further; now that they were paid their whole wages 
 they ran away. I ordered my Munshi to make a formal complaint to 
 the Raja in my name, and to insist on the punishment of the soldiers 
 who had abandoned their posts, but no good resulted from my appli- 
 cation. At length I found in the little village of Meyri, ten bearers 
 willing to give their services, and with six who had stood to their posts, 
 being, in fact, bound on a pilgrimage to Jwälä-Mükhi, and an addi- 
 tional dozen pressed, with some difficulty, into the service from the 
 country around, we managed to start. This unwillingness to labour 
 only for one day, to earn subsistence for a month, so often found 
 throughout the East, appears extraordinary. These men were all 
 apparently in the most abject poverty, and yet nothing short of blows 
 would make them industrious. Seeing now that all things were in due 
 train, I mounted my ghunt, and desired that ten of the .Jampan 
 bearers would assist in carrying the luggage and follow me. Next 
 came the turn of the five drivers, who refused to budge an inch with 
 the cattle. The foremost, an old man, swore that we might break his 
 head, but that nothing should make him quit Habliheti, and though 
 my servants had tried the effects of blows on all the others, on this 
 stubborn old fellow, being a servant of the Raja's, they dared not lay 
 their hands. I remained, for a long time, a silent spectator of what 
 was going on, but when they all proceeded to seat themselves on the 
 baggage, and thus effectually prevent the packing being continued, I 
 
 D 2
 
 36 TRIALS OF TEMPER. 
 
 thought it high time to interfere, and seizing a very efficient bamboo, 
 I very soundly thrashed the whole five, not even respecting the person 
 of the Raja's servant. This argumentum ad hominem, used very 
 reluctantly, and for the first time in all my travels, immediately put 
 every doubt to flight. I heard not a word more of complaint: the 
 animals were soon in motion; but I observed, with many misgivings, 
 that their strength was quite unequal to their task: in crossing a 
 rivulet, the poor mule, bearing the heavy fly, or outer covering of my 
 large tent, staggered and fell, and the load being made still heavier 
 by the soaking it had received, it became perfectly unmanageable. In 
 vain we essayed the backs of his fellows, not one of them was suffi- 
 ciently strong; leaving one of my people, therefore, to look after the 
 load, I spurred onward, thinking to find sufficient bearers at the next 
 village ; but I was not yet thoroughly acquainted with the Jalander 
 Doab and its inhabitants. Not an individual would stir, out of a 
 very populous village, until he received the orders of the Wazir. I 
 shewed them money, and inquired whether they did not consider a 
 rupee of far greater value than a Wazir's order. They were deaf, 
 notwithstanding, to my remonstrances, till at length the Chaprasis 
 compelled two of them to carry the load. Again I had reason to 
 regret, that I had not hired these bearers by the month, as in some of 
 my former travels. 
 
 All these petty annoyances detained me the whole morning, still 
 they could not entirely rob me of the enjoyment derived from the 
 splendid view of the mountains which towered in majestic grandeur 
 high over the plain we were now in. The country, gradually, became 
 more open, and in this part consisted of spacious valleys or of plains, 
 surrounded and skirted by hills, which were sufficiently steep, without 
 costing such infinite fatigue to surmount them, nor were the streams 
 which hitherto had rushed so furiously over their deep rocky beds, 
 so frequently met with. From several points I caught a fine prospect 
 of the snowy hills, which are connected with the Himalaya by a 
 single mountain range. This chain of hills is known as the Mori. 
 
 Hamirpoor is about ten miles from Meyri. Here I found my 
 tent pitched under a fig-tree, the aspect of vegetation is still tropical.
 
 A CHANGE CF CIRCUMSTANCES. 37 
 
 The magnificent foliage of the mango, fig, and musa paradisaica plan- 
 tain, is intermingled with that of the oak of Simla, berberis aristata and 
 bramble. Monkeys are not common in Bilaspoor, but parrots, the 
 beautiful squirrel of the tropics, and many kinds of the dove and the 
 turtle-dove, are abundant. 
 
 The water is very pure ; in every village, and often in the midst of a 
 wood, I found a spring walled about, generally in a small square, with 
 steps leading down to it, and a paved space, the spring flowing from a 
 niche cut out frequently to represent one of their deities, usually 
 either Ganesha or Lachmi. At these springs the Hindu women are 
 often burnt with the corpses of their husbands. The temperature at 
 six o'clock, A.M., was 59°; at three o'clock it marked 82°; at six o'clock, 
 P.M., 74°. In the course of the evening upwards of a hundred men 
 came to offer themselves as bearers ; fifty were hired to go as far as 
 Jwäla-Mükhi, and twenty were sent back for my baggage to Meyri, 
 and to the brook where the fly of my tent was still left. 
 
 Monday, Oct. 19th. — I was up before dawn, and ready to start. 
 Jacquemont never said a truer word in his life than when he called 
 Ranjit Singh's soldiers the most lazy, good-for-nothing rascals on 
 earth. My tent was standing about three hundred paces from the 
 door of the Gaheti, the caravanserai of this country, where Mirza 
 had passed the night, and whence all my messages and commands 
 could not extricate him. The coolies began to rebel also, and refused 
 to officiate any longer as bearers. I was once more therefore under the 
 necessity of taking the law into my own hands; and entering the 
 Gaheti, dragged Mirza very unceremoniously off his charpay, and 
 sent him to arrange with the mutineers. In customs, form, and dress, 
 these people resemble the natives of upper Hindüsthan; but instead 
 of the gentleness and willingness to oblige, invariably found there, 
 the inhabitants of the Panjab are stubborn and disobliging to a 
 degree I never met with in my life before. Neither entreaties nor 
 threats can make them keep their promises, and this, not from any 
 idea that they shall not be paid, but out of sheer sullenness and 
 stupidity. In three days they can easily earn nine annas, sufficing
 
 38 CHARACTER OF THE PANJABEES. 
 
 to support their families for a month. At first, I inclined to the 
 belief that they were afraid of the weight they had to carry, until I saw 
 one of them refuse to bear a small chair and half of a table on his 
 head, certainly not more than ten pounds' weight altogether ; and my 
 only consolation, amid these scenes of alternate strife and forced sub- 
 mission, was, that when they were hungry they would work. 
 
 I was overjoyed to see my Munshi return with the rest of my 
 baggage from Meyri, and related to him all my grievances, desiring 
 his interference to maintain order among my followers. In truth, it 
 was very disagreeable to me to see the constant and yet perfectly useless 
 ill-treatment practised by Mirza and the soldiers of the Maha Raja on 
 these miserable Hindus. The Munshi walked away, took his seat 
 under one of their sacred trees, and in the course of a short time had 
 congregated roimd him a crowd of the villagers, engaged more men 
 than we absolutely needed, besides cattle to carry the heavier loads ; 
 and I found myself most happily rid of the Raja of Bilaspoor's useless 
 drones, to whom I made amends, however, for the blows I had given 
 them. 
 
 When we were fairly once more under weigh, and I was following 
 the train through a forest of palms, I inquired of the Munshi how he had 
 managed to make these idlers so compliant on a sudden; he answered 
 that he had opened his dress and shown them his brahminical cord*, 
 reminding them that he was their master, and yet a servant of the great 
 king, the Maha Raja, who was close by. " And will you presume," 
 exclaimed he, to them, " to refuse to obey for one day, him whom I 
 always serve, — you, who are cultivators, and I a Brahmin !" 
 
 * The Brabmiiiical cord consists of six or more threads of cotton, called the 
 poita or janwa, with which every male is invested at the age of eleven or twelve 
 years, and constitutes the sacred distinctive badge of that class. On the solemn 
 occasion of their investiture, the youths are first taught the mysterious words 
 entitled the Gayatri, " Let us meditate on the adorable light of the sun, the divine 
 ruler, Savitri, may it guide our intellects." No other class of Hindus is admitted 
 on pain of death, to a knowledge of these mysteries, nor can we wonder at the 
 reverence all others pay to the privileged class. — Ed.
 
 TESTIMONY TO THE INDIAN CHARACTER. 39 
 
 This day's march was only ten miles; at first the road led up a 
 gentle ascent through a wood of pines ; four or five miles further on, 
 it opened suddenly on a temple, the outer walls of which were entirely 
 concealed by some enormous fig-trees. This edifice is called Samnai, 
 and commands an extensive and lovely prospect over the Kunyar, the 
 large temple of Khagul, and on the other side a smiling country, 
 interspersed with villages, and watered by the Beas. Towards the 
 south rises another hill, crowned with two strong forts; and to the 
 north-west towers the snow-capped Mori, the highest peak better 
 known as the Palam Kidar. 
 
 The Khagul temple, lying on the declivity, would be passed by 
 without notice in the south of India, where the immense mass of build- 
 ings sometimes covers a space of not less than a quarter of a mile; but 
 here, in this comparatively poor and desolate country, it is considered 
 quite a curiosity. In the centre of the large court, which is surrounded 
 by high walls, and paved with smooth stones, circular steps lead down 
 to the tank, where a spring gushes forth from the mouth of a sculptured 
 cow. The adjoining edifice is for priests, and for the reception of 
 pilgrims. 
 
 The road continues along the right bank of the Kunyar, which flows 
 calmly along, in a channel which seems about fifty fathoms in width, 
 but when I saw it, it was not more than one-third filled, and in most 
 places fordable, over the huge stones which form its bed. The road is 
 so painful in many parts, owing to the steepness of the rocks, that I 
 chose rather to ford the stream a second time than brave them. At Ril 
 I halted, taking up my quarters for the night in a deserted garde» of the 
 Chiri Raja. In the course of the afternoon some native women came 
 to complain of the depredations committed by my people on their 
 citron-trees, producing, in confirmation, a basket filled with the fruit ; 
 and despairing of my influence over the unruly bearers, I was obliged, for 
 peace' sake, to pay them the estimated value of the fruit on their trees, 
 which amounted to no more than two rupees ; this settled, I suffered 
 the men to finish the demolition of the crop, which was efl'ected in a 
 very few minutes. I must add that this was the first complaint of the 
 kind that I had heard, and that property in general is nowhere more
 
 40 INSTANCE OF NATIVE ARTIFICE. 
 
 strongly respected than in India*. The thermometer, at six o'clock a.m., 
 was at 62°, at noon at 82°, and at six o'clock p.m., at 80°. 
 
 Tuesday, Oct. 20th. — Thermometer in the morning 66°, at 6 p.m. 
 78°. Still along the Kunyar, by a hill called Jelalika Tiba, which 
 forms an important object in the landscape; on its side are eight or nine 
 groups of villages which are called Jelalis. The clay hills here, all 
 broken and washed down by the rains, reminded me on a small scale of 
 those deep defiles near Agra, where an army was once entangled 
 and perished. By Jelali are standing detached masses of buildings, 
 like towers, which so much resemble those time-worn Dhagoba near 
 Anarayapoor in Ceylon, that until I approached quite close to them, I 
 imagined I should discover unquestionable traces of Buddhism. 
 
 Nadaun is four kos, about seven miles, from Ril ; and is a place 
 of some importance, with two hundred or two hundred and fifty 
 houses, and a resident Raja. I chose my station under some fig- 
 trees on the high bank of the Beas, to which was a handsome flight of 
 stone steps. In former times, Nadaun was the residence of a Raja 
 called Gangra, whose yearly revenue was no less than ten lacks of 
 rupees; but Ranjtt Singh very unceremoniously robbed him of the 
 whole of his territory on the right bank of the Beas, and at his death 
 his two sons divided the remainder, acknowledging the supremacy of 
 Ranjit Singh, so that the present Raja Judibeer, a young man 
 not more than twenty years of age, is not supposed to be worth 
 more than forty thousand rupees a year. As soon as I arrived, one 
 of his attendants was dispatched to request that I would cross the 
 river. Naturally concluding that the Raja very politely wished to 
 exchange my present station for a better one, I was on the point 
 of ordering a move, when my Munshi whispered to me, that the 
 other side of the river belonged to a different Prince. On hearing 
 this, I desired him to go and clear up the matter; but Mirza hastily 
 interfered, and bade me remember that he was the person charged 
 
 • What a singularly valuable tribute to the native character, and the influence 
 of British generosity and justice in regulating such feelings, from a German 
 nobleman of high birth and great good sense.— JSrf.
 
 CUniOUS IDEAS OF PHOl'KIETY. 41 
 
 by Hanjit Singh to manage everything relative to my journey. It 
 was in vain to dispute with him, so turning to the poor messenger, 
 who humbly replied to all the impertinence of my people, " Such were 
 the orders I received," I merely intimated my intention of remaining 
 where I was. I notice this as the first act of positive rudeness ever 
 received from an Indian Raja, and I can hardly now persuade 
 myself that it was so intended by the Raja of Nadaun. If it 
 were, I have little doubt that my companion Mirza, knowing how 
 fully alive he must have been to the necessity of keeping his mis- 
 behaviour from the ears of Ranjit, made him pay dearly enough 
 for his promised silence on the subject. 
 
 In the evening I strolled out into the plain, which, from the 
 shores of the Beas, surrounds the little town for about two miles. 
 I soon found myself an object of great curiosity to some armed 
 riders, who had probably heard Mirza speak of the great white 
 lord who was the friend of the East India Company, and had sallied 
 forth to see me. That I must be this lord my complexion told 
 them ; but that I should be walking alone, or walking at all, seemed 
 rather to stagger their belief in the story, and after staring in my 
 face, they hurried away, I dare say, to relate the incredible tale to 
 the Raja. As I returned, I found the whole town in commotion, 
 and waiting for me with curiosity strongly depicted on their faces, 
 and as every one after staring at me followed my steps, I was accom- 
 panied back to my tent by the whole population of the place, my 
 servants all rushing out in the opposite direction, to know what 
 could possibly have happened. 
 
 Throughout all seasons, the Beas, here called Beyah, is full of 
 very pure and rapidly-flowing water. Before the entrance to my 
 tent, I found a mendicant, who made his petitions in a song, and 
 on my orders being given that he should receive no money, he 
 seated himself on the ground, and gave me to understand that there 
 he should i-emain during the night. This was no sooner said than 
 done, and his screams were much louder than before. I was beyond 
 measure annoyed with the fellow's obstinacy, and aware from expe- 
 rience that I must give way, or expect something even worse, I gave
 
 42 THE TEMPLE OF JWALA-MUKHI. 
 
 him a trifle, on receiving wliich, he immediately sprang on his feet, 
 and danced out of sight. 
 
 The stone steps leading down to their rivers, is the best place 
 for a strano-er to observe the manners of the natives of India; for 
 as every Hindu, male or female, must wash three times in the day, 
 it is here that they come, and present to the eye of a stranger a 
 scene of variety which well deserves a more particular description. 
 
 Wednesday, October 21st. — Before dawn I was on the other side 
 of the Beas, in the Baree Doab, the immediate territory of Ranjit 
 Singh. The river winds here in so many different directions, that 
 it is scarcely possible to trace its course with any accuracy. The 
 right bank is level, but the left is very hilly, the Josun and Khola 
 mountains sinking in these parts gradually into the plain of the 
 Panjab. The far-famed Jwäla-Mükhi, the resort of so many fanatical 
 devotees, is near this, and long ere it is reached, temples, tanks, 
 and Fakirs are seen, sure evidences of the neighbourhood of some 
 holy shrine. Before I settled myself in my tent, which was pitched 
 at a little distance from the village, I paid a visit to this remarkable 
 temple. Jwäla-Mükhi is of considerable extent, containing at least five 
 or six hundred houses, and a very large population, among whom a 
 great proportion are Gosains, Bairagis, Yogis, Jats, and penitents of 
 all sorts. To all who die here a grave is set apart, with a Ungarn 
 on it, signifying a worshipper of Siva, and an incredible number of 
 these occupy almost every vacant space. In the midst of a spacious 
 square, shaded with lofty fig-trees, are set the tents of pilgrims of 
 higher rank, and I was rejoiced to find that my attendants had chosen 
 another spot, as the bazaar was close by; the noise and dust on the 
 one hand, and the certainty of losing sight of most, if not of all of 
 them in the passages of this ever irresistible attraction on the other, 
 would have been disagreeable enough. The collection of images, 
 chaplets, and amulets in the shops seemed quite countless. 
 
 The temple stands about one hundred feet up the plain. Two 
 Brahmins, stationed at the door, demanded whether I had received 
 permission to enter, and being answered by Mirza in the affirmative, 
 they escorted me through an outer and high building to the stone
 
 THE PROBABLE ORIGIN OF THE STRUCTURE. 43 
 
 bridge leading to the entrance-gate. It is true I should have walked 
 much quicker and more comfortably into the bargain, if they had 
 taken me over the straight broad path usually followed ; but then I 
 should not have had the honour of hearing the great drums beat in 
 the first building, which are said to be distinctly audible ten miles 
 over the plain. Once through the great gate, the spectator beholds 
 a vast number of little temples scattered over the rocky height, and 
 with the large one inclosed by a high wall. They are one and all of 
 stone, very solidly constructed, many, indeed, are hewn out of a single 
 stone. The cupola of the principal temple is richly gilt ; and before 
 the door stands another tiny edifice, in which I only saw two sculp- 
 tured tigers lying, richly gilt, but horrible in their appearance. This 
 door only admits one person at a time ; and the priests would not 
 permit me to pass through, in spite of the remonstrances of Mirza, 
 who persisted that he had been commanded to take me in. I sided, 
 however, with the priests, to their manifest delight, having attentively 
 surveyed the interior from the entrance. 
 
 The same ideas of profanation do not exist in the Sikh as in the 
 Hindu faith, and they admit Europeans into the interior of their 
 temples ; thus, although Jwälä-Mükhi is a Hindu place of worship 
 and pilgrimage, the commands of Ranjit Singh often compel the 
 Brahmins to be silent, and facilitate the intrusion of Christians. The 
 interior of this great temple is divided in the middle by a stone wall; 
 in the centre of the fore-court is hollowed out a pit, like our graves, 
 having seats at either end, on which the Fakirs place themselves. 
 A perpetual flame arises from this pit, and I observed, where I stood, 
 that from two places in the smooth rock similar flames were bursting 
 to a height of about eight inches, or less. The worshippers, on 
 entering the sanctuary, deliver their gifts, consisting usually of flowers, 
 into the hands of the Fakirs, who first hold them over the flame, and 
 then cast them into the body of the temple. There I perceived, also, 
 several jars filled with ghee, or melted butter, which I imagined to 
 have been brought by some pious devotee ; but I had afterwards good 
 reason to believe this was a little artifice on the part of my friends, 
 the Brahmins. I entered afterwards, without anv hindrance, the little
 
 44 SINGULAR NATURAL PHENOMENON. 
 
 temple of Gogranath, dedicated to the patron deity of the Gorkhas ; a 
 circumstance which convinced me that formerly, at least, it must have 
 been a place devoted to the Buddhist worship, which recognises no 
 distinction of castes. The name of Gogranath, one of the thousand 
 appellations of Buddha, confirmed my first impressions, and I have 
 little doubt that it was once applicable to the whole of the temples 
 inclosed within these walls. I was about to say, that on descending a 
 good many steps I saw flames issuing from two places in the perpen- 
 dicular wall; and, on examining more attentively, I perceived, whei-e 
 the fire was burning, little cavities in the smooth stones, with just the 
 same appearance as when a burning-glass is made to consume wood; 
 the flame issuing, not from any aperture, but from these minute 
 cavities, emits a scent like alcohol burning with an aromatic and most 
 agreeable mixture, which I could by no means identify. Under each 
 of these flames stood a pot of water, of the same temperature as the 
 atmosphere, the condensed residue of the gas thus deposited, takes fire 
 on the application of a light, and burns for more than a minute. The 
 surface of this water I found in continual motion, as though in a state 
 of ebullition, but it is almost tasteless. The fire is of a reddish hue, 
 and gives out very little heat. Altogether this is one of the most 
 extraordinary phenomena I ever recollect to have witnessed ; and, no 
 doubt, in distant ages was one of the spots most thronged by fire- 
 worshippers. The sight of this flame rising out of the earth, perhaps 
 long before any building was near it, would doubtless add much to 
 the influence of their superstition on the minds of the attendant wor- 
 shippers ; for this still seems to be the case, although much of the 
 marvellous is lost by confining the flame within the walls of a temple. 
 In difierent parts of the building are seated Fakirs of most extraor- 
 dinary appeai-ance, clothed with the attributes of their deities, and 
 condemned by themselves to pass their whole life motionless as statues. 
 One of them represented Gogranath himself, but, instead of the folded 
 hands of Buddha, his left arm was outstretched, and resting on a silver 
 pedestal, so cleverly managed that it never can fall off"; another was 
 covered with ashes, and looked exactly as though chiselled out of 
 stone, but as he gazed about him with a fearful stare, it seemed to me 
 that his fanaticism had already, or soon would rob him of his reason.
 
 MEANING OF THE WORD .IW A LA-MUKHI. 45 
 
 That this temple was originally dedicated to the Buddhist worship 
 I think admits of no question ; its proportions within ; the four square 
 pillars which support the roof; the fact that no images are to be seen 
 within or without; and that no difference of castes is observed within 
 its walls ; the name Gogranath ; and, finally, the graves around it, 
 sufficiently evince to whose honour it was first erected. Very dif- 
 ferent are they all from the towers of the temple of Jaggernath, in 
 the desert of Orissa, whose great idol is carried about once a year, 
 on the anniversary of its dedication, on an immense car, drawn by 
 willing thousands; and before whose wheels hundreds fling them- 
 selves, firmly believing that such a meritorious death must insure their 
 eternal happiness. 
 
 Female dancers are very numerous about the temple of Jwälä- 
 Mükhi, and they are rather fairer and prettier than usual. More than 
 twenty, decked out with lilies, made their appearance before my tent- 
 door in the afternoon, but I was ungallant enough to send them away 
 unrewarded, in spite of their tender ditties and the bells they sounded 
 so invitingly on the tips of their fingers. 
 
 In the evening I paid another visit to the temple. The golden roof 
 
 of both the large and small buildings are most tastefully and richly 
 
 executed, and were the gift of Ranjit Singh, in testimony of his 
 
 gratitude to the Devi, goddess, to whom he ascribed his recovery from 
 
 a dangerous illness twelve years ago. They were both executed in 
 
 Jwälä-Mükhi. The temple measures eighteen feet square, and under 
 
 the dome is about twelve feet high. The terra Jwdhi, signifies flame, 
 
 to which they affix either Mukhi, mouth, or spirit, or the syllable ji, 
 
 sir, lord; hence, the place is called indifi"erently Jwala- Mukhi or Jwäläji. 
 
 The whole is built like a fort, and enclosed by a wall about twenty feet 
 
 high. In the streets of the town itself, many Fakirs have grave-like 
 
 narrow niches erected, in which they live and die, and when dead, these 
 
 holes are walled up, and the dwelling of the living fanatic becomes his 
 
 tomb. I did not see a single old man among them; several have pretty 
 
 houses and gardens about the place, not acquired, however, by their 
 
 begging profession, for this barely produces enough to build their 
 
 tombs; and they may be characterized as a class of men who prefer
 
 46 DESCRIPTION OF A HEATHEN FESTIVAL. 
 
 livinor either by begging, or on their previous resources, to occupying 
 themselves with the concerns of their country; moreover, as an Indian 
 Raja never permits a subject to decline more than one offered post, 
 this pretence of serving God is often but an excuse for refusing to 
 serve the prince. Some go about nearly naked, others wear an orange- 
 coloured habit, while a third sect may be seen with long strings of 
 berries about the throat, according as they are bound by the nature of 
 their tenets or vows, and many travel from Kashmir to the Indus, from 
 Persia to the Ganges, from the Himalaya to Ceylon, covered with 
 ashes, and beggars in the strictest sense of the word. I shall speak 
 hereafter of another sect which is I'ichly paid, and constrained to habits 
 of the greatest luxury, in order to show the world how beneficent their 
 supporters are. 
 
 The temple of Jwäla-Mükhi lies on the right bank of a little stream, 
 over which a slender bridge is thrown. Before the building through 
 which they led me to hear the drums, is a spring in the form of a 
 waterfall, and a tank for those pilgrims who desire to bathe. A wish 
 to improve the little design I had made of the whole, led me to follow 
 the open canal which supplies the w^aterfall, when I unexpectedly 
 came into a charming valley between the mountain heights. A Fakir 
 followed me in ray walk, though at first I heeded him not, until 
 seeing that he had no intention of departing, I turned sharply round 
 and desired to know what he wanted; to my surprise he answered, that 
 he was a Naik, or corporal in the Company's military service, and had 
 obtained six months' leave of absence from his corps in Lvidiana, which 
 he meant to pass as a Fakir at Jwäla-Mükhi. The very thought of 
 such a penitent made me smile, and then wonder at the singular cha- 
 racter of the people of this country. 
 
 This day chanced to be one of their great annual festivals, and the 
 whole place, not excepting the holes of the Fakirs, was illuminated; 
 from the mountain on which I loitered until late in the evening, I saw 
 all that was going on ; lamps hung in festoons on, and before the temple, 
 guns were fired, bells were rung, and fireworks discharged in the air. I 
 found the descent from the mountain rather arduous, but I reached my 
 tent without any accident, and had the gratification of finding every
 
 HINDU ESTIMATE OF EUROPEAN CHARACTER. 47 
 
 one of ray attendants, except Mohan Bir the Gorkha boy and Jwala 
 the Chaprasi, gone into the town; indeed, the occasion was one, on 
 which it would have been too much to expect them to refrain from 
 amusing themselves; and having no objection to solitude, I gave these 
 two leave to sally forth also, and amuse themselves amid the din and 
 tumult of the place. Mohan Bir soon returned, ostensibly to know 
 whether I did not want something; but as on receiving my negative he 
 still loitered about, I asked him whether he had anything to say to 
 me; after a little hesitation he said that he should much like to know, 
 why I was so earnest, even to the danger of my life, about things 
 which could not give me any happiness in this world, or any reward in 
 the next. I confess that the boy's question staggered me, particularly 
 as coming from a Hindu ; I felt that his wonder was very natural, and 
 not wishing to evade his inquiry or leave matters unexplained, I 
 replied, that in the mingled web of a European's life, it was not easy 
 to say what might or might not have important consequences; that I 
 might perhaps have cause to envy the simplicity of mind of himself and 
 his countrymen, but that in his present station, whenever he saw any- 
 thing hard to be understood in our characters, he might comfort himself 
 with the reflection, that if we were richer and more learned, we were 
 not for all that a whit the happier. He entreated me then, very 
 earnestly, to go into the town and see the beautiful illuminations, and 
 the hundreds of dancing women accompanying their steps with sonijs 
 and bells; but although he was evidently grieved, that I alone should 
 be in solitude while everything without was so splendid and joyous 
 I was immoveable, and he was obliged to return to more congenial 
 scenes and leave me to myself. 
 
 Thursday, 22nd. — Thermometer, six a.m., 65°; noon, 81°; six 
 P.M., 78°. Before sunrise this morning we were on our way. The 
 people of Jwälä-Mükhi have such an opinion of the importance 
 attached to their town, on account of the presence of the temple, 
 that they conclude the East India Company must be solicitous to gain 
 possession of it, and the Fakirs begged of me the sum of one rupee 
 and four annas, for which they promised to pray the Devi goddess to 
 prosper the English in their wishes ; others were rather more presump-
 
 48 DIFFICULTIES IN HINDU GEOGRAPHY. 
 
 tuous in their demands; — " Give me," they cried; " it is the same as 
 giving it to God himself." This day's journey was through a country 
 tolerably open; for although two lines of hills bounded the valley 
 through which we marched, they were so low as to offer but slight 
 impediments to our view, and none to our progress over them. We 
 were approaching the Mori mountains very perceptibly; in the evening 
 we halted at Kabli, one mile from the fort of Mongir; before the 
 village is a small jungle. In my walk through Kabli, I was amused to 
 see the pheasants running about the cottage doors like domestic fowls, 
 and seemingly quite unconcerned at the loud barking of the dogs. It 
 was dreadfully hot during the day, a scorching wind blew from the 
 west, and reminded me of the intolerable heat I suffered between 
 Lucknow and Agra. With the setting sun, it moderated a little, and 
 the view of the beams of the departing orb, reflected on the snowy 
 mountains before us, induced me, from its beauty, to attempt to carry 
 away the remembrance in my sketch-book. 
 
 Friday, 23rd. — Thermometer, six a.m., 54°; noon, 80°; six p.m., 
 68°. This morning was bitterly cold, less owing to the temperature 
 without, than to the situation of my tent, which was pitched by a 
 brook in a hollow. Our road led by several villages, which were so 
 closely overhung with trees, that they were not visible until we entered 
 them. This was not the greatest difficulty I met with in the con- 
 struction of mv map; for several villages, belonging to the same 
 Pergannah, and yet several miles apart, bear the same name, while 
 those belonging to others are so intermixed with them, that one can 
 hardly guess where the boundary lines terminate. The country was 
 generally hilly, wild, and overgrown with jungle ; but the road is 
 pretty good, though extremely narrow, barely admitting a man with 
 his load. Haripoor lies in a mountain defile, and is a place of some 
 importance. On a hill, which rises from the valley, stands a fort, but 
 the mountain being much higher behind it, makes it useless as a place 
 of strength, though it might defend the town, except against the assaults 
 of artillery. There is a large bazaar in the town, and the heights around 
 are crowned with watch-towers, probably to give warning to the 
 merchants of the approach of an enemy, that they may take refuge
 
 INDIAN DEVOTEES. 49 
 
 with their treasure and valuables in the fort. On the approach from 
 Jwälä-Mukhi stands a little temple, scarcely ten feet square, dedicated 
 to Mahadeo, which seems very ancient ; several decorations on the 
 exterior very much resembling those I had seen on many of the little 
 temples at Salsctte, and EUora*, where the three heads, significant of 
 the Hindu Triad, are found united over the entrance. The other 
 ornaments are representations of sepulchres, significant of Buddhist 
 worship. The Brahmin, who was throwing some of the sacred water of 
 the Ganges over the ornaments within, informed me that the temple was 
 three thousand years old, a date which, coming from one of his class, 
 surprised me by its extreme moderation. Near it are some rocky 
 walls covered with colossal images of the Hindu deities, cut out of 
 sandstone, and evidently by hands unacquainted w'ith sculpture. An 
 incredible number of audacious monkeys abound in Haripoor. I had 
 scarcely entered my tent, when a young Fakir presented himself, and 
 would have forced his way in, had not my Chaprasis unceremoniously 
 pushed him back, I was vexed to see them thus rudely thrusting him 
 away, but they assured me that these Fakirs were the greatest thieves 
 in the world. My strange visitant went away without uttering a 
 syllable, but had no sooner seated himself in the centre of a square 
 than he commenced a series of noises, more like the cackling of a 
 German duck than any thing I can remember. The next moment he 
 was surrounded by monkeys, running from every quarter, in the hope 
 of being fed. Finding themselves deceived in their expectation, three 
 of the largest forthwith attacked the Fakir, who had the greatest 
 difficulty in warding them off with his stick. He was now beset by 
 the people, who began to abuse him for cheating their favourite mon- 
 
 * Sashtee and Verool, changed by the Portuguese and English into other 
 forms. It is worthy of remark, that the very misnomers of ignorant men are 
 calculated to do good service to geography, by pointing out wiiat are the most 
 ordinary transformations, and tlius lead to the identification of places, men, and 
 matters of great interest in history. As here in this instance of Ellora, the letters 
 r and / have manifestly changed places. And other letters, m, b, and v, are generally 
 convertible. — Ed.
 
 50 FEATS OF INDIAN JUGGLERS. 
 
 keys and then maltreating them. Besides these creatures, the trees are 
 covered with parrots ; peacocks also without number parade about the 
 town. 
 
 The costume in these parts differs little from what I had observed 
 elsewhere; the trousers are perhaps rather fuller, the turban always 
 black, and the men invariably wear a long dai*k beard; the women a 
 blue petticoat with a deep red border descending to the knee, and the 
 indispensable veil, which, instead of concealing the face, is worn 
 behind the head, and is always pink. Their houses are clean, par- 
 ticularly the substitutes for inns, called Gaheti, where the traveller 
 finds the wherewithal to cook his meal and lie down; and before them 
 is usually a little garden stocked with lilies, balsams, roses, jasmine, and 
 other flowers. I saw the beautiful China rose growing in the hedges, 
 with the Jasminum grandiflorum, in all its native luxuriance. 
 
 Among the crowd of men and monkeys which pressed forward to 
 stare at the stranger were some jugglers, whom I hired to while away 
 an intensely hot hour or two; they exhibited to me their much 
 vaunted trick of making a shrub, three feet high, grow up in half an 
 hour from the seed of a mango. They first put one into the earth, and 
 in a few minutes show it sprouting up, and then again six inches high, 
 alwavs producing the roots; the last time it is a twig cut oif, which 
 they leave sticking in the ground; but the manner in which two men, 
 two women, and two children, were all employed in trying to persuade 
 me that the trick was really a truth, made me laugh very heartily, and 
 that alone is a great matter for a solitary traveller to accomplish. 
 
 In the evening I strolled through the town, which consists of upwards 
 of two hundred houses, and passing through an exceedingly rude 
 gateway, covered over with huge figures of Hari and Hanuman, I found 
 myself at the top of ninety broad steps, which lead down to a broad 
 river, the banks, generally, of rock scarped perpendicularly. The 
 fortress on this side had a very imposing and regular appearance, 
 being in the form of a square. Figures, and even the holes of Fakirs, 
 are hewn out of the rocks. On the opposite bank were similar steps 
 and a gatewav, and on the stream were several water-mills with hori-
 
 MASTERS AND SERVANTS. 51 
 
 zontal wheels, but they could only be stationed where I saw them, 
 during the dry season, for as both banks are perpendicular, when the 
 stream is full, the entire channel must be filled up. 
 
 The Kiladar, or commandant, invited me to inspect the fortress ; 
 this I declined, not feeling much interest in a strong post without 
 a single gun. After this came a deputation from the merchants, 
 praying me to accept, from their goods, any thing I might want; and 
 on my declining this proffered kindness with many thanks, they 
 insisted on supplying my people, which I was constrained to allow. 
 The horrible noises made by the monkeys kept me awake till very late 
 in the night. 
 
 Saturday, 24th. — Thermometer, morning, 60° ; noon, 82° ; evening, 
 76°. At the usual hour of four I was stirring. The last two marches 
 had been so short that I now detei-mined, if possible, to double them, 
 particularly, as every one in my suite had, by this time, become 
 thoroughly initiated into the duties he had to perform, a knowledge 
 which is acquired very slowly throughout India. In fact, what 
 Europeans require from their personal attendants, their groom, their 
 cook, and, in short, from every man about them, is very different from 
 what a native master would expect. The groom, for instance, lifts an 
 Indian into his saddle, and then, as he runs along, keeps fast hold of 
 his master's rein, while no European would suffer either the one 
 service or the other, although he expects the attendant to be as swift 
 as his horse. Again, the attendant on the person of a native has but 
 to lay his master's clothes before him, and to take away what he has 
 done with ; the cook prepares two dishes, the rice and its spicy sauce ; 
 the table servant takes care to furnish two leaves, one for the plate and 
 the other, generally a banana leaf, for the dish, which is all. What 
 is this compared with the services expected of these poor beings by our 
 vanity, luxury, and fastidiousness ? 
 
 After fording the river, and mounting the steps on the opposite bank, 
 we found ourselves in a small plain, hemmed in by mountains; on it 
 are three small villages, called Bilaspoor, and a temple shaded with 
 fine fig-trees, designated Bilasa; five miles beyond this, is the lowest 
 declivity of the Himalaya, which forms a forest-crowned height. 
 
 E 2
 
 52 HINDU SACRED PRESERVES. 
 
 After passing the brook Koteli, we came once more on the plain, which 
 appears to be divided from the great plain of India by an elevation 
 near Jwali, not much more than sixty or eighty feet in height. 
 Several streams carry off the water from the Mori hills into the plain, 
 and though most of them, owing to their great width, are fordable 
 during the dry season, they were now very full of water. It took me 
 six hours to travel from Haripoor to Jwali, about eighteen miles. 
 
 Here I felt the difficulty of filling in my map, without the assistance 
 of some intelligent native guide. No sooner did the people catch a 
 glimpse of my convoy, than they all set off and hid themselves amid the 
 thickets of euphorbia and opuntia, from which my servants in vain 
 attempted to draw them out. My tent was pitched on the other side 
 of the Gardadi, in the garden of a Fakir at Jwali, and in the 
 afternoon the Thanadar, a venerable old man, came to pay his respects. 
 His rank did not allow of my offering him a seat. I received him, 
 therefore, standing outside my tent, and left the chair within if he 
 were disposed to take it. 
 
 He accompanied me to the hill before Jwali, which is ascended by a 
 good paved road. Forty or fifty feet above the plain stands a little 
 temple, with two Fakirs and two monkeys; and in a very small pond 
 of crystal water, I saw fish of the same kind as I had seen at 
 Aurangabad in the Dekhan. Here, as there, they are considered 
 sacred, and no living man of the place can recollect to have seen one 
 swimming dead on the surface, a presumptive proof of the great age to 
 which they live. They are in such numbers, that they actually appear 
 to take up more space than the water in which they exist. To a 
 weary traveller the prejudice in their favour is extremely provoking; 
 for it is too much, when languishing after better fare, to cast one's 
 eyes upon the very finest and most tempting-looking fish, and while 
 anticipating a delicious repast, to be told that the creatures are sacred. 
 But, in such a case, one resource is left; the palankeen bearers beino- 
 generally expert anglers, you have only to order them to fish, without 
 heeding the exclamations of horrcr uttered by the crowd, who not 
 unfrcquently resist the sacrilege by every means short of actual violence. 
 In their distress they rush to the white lord himself to complain of
 
 A PROVIDENTIAL ESCAPE. 53 
 
 the outrage committed by his orders, and then, sufficient time having 
 passed to enable the anglers to satisfy not only his appetite but their 
 own, he commands them instantly to desist, and on uo account to 
 disobey his orders in future. 
 
 Near Jwali stands a palace, in a dilapidated state, built by the Raja 
 of Narpoor, which commands a very beautiful prospect of the mountains. 
 At present it is only tenanted by the wives of the late Raja, whom 
 Ranjit Singh drove out of his patrimonial territories. The country 
 around is as destitute of plants as the plains of the noi'th of India gene- 
 rally. Birds, on the contrary, of the parrot, bülbül, and maina kind, 
 are exceedingly abundant. Wild beasts are also very numerous, but I 
 have not yet been able to procure so much as one specimen, though 
 several are of a considerable size. One very much resembles our fox, 
 and I pointed it out to my huntsman, and sent him in pursuit. He 
 was away so long, that I got out of my jampan, and, gun in hand, pro- 
 ceeded in the direction the little animal had taken. The bushes being 
 high, I had stooped down, in the hope of getting a sight of him in his hid- 
 ing-place. Presently I heard a rustling sound, and was adjusting my gun 
 to fire, when I saw the red turban of my servant ; he, too, had heard me ; 
 unconscious, however, of this, he instantly lodged a volley of small 
 shot in my clothes. The poor fellow no sooner saw what he had done, 
 than he was ready to swoon with terror, but I cheered his spirits, and 
 expressed my particular satisfaction that he had missed his game this 
 once, at all events. 
 
 In the afternoon I wandered about the neighbourhood, which may 
 be termed one vast wilderness. The soil seems good enough, but the 
 feverish state of this part of India for some years past, has almost 
 depopulated this place and converted it into a desert*. 
 
 Sunday, 25th October, thermometer 59°, 81°, 74°. Last night was 
 
 " There can be no doubt that a deficiency or total neglect of culture is always 
 attended with the production of malaria; and in countries thickly wooded, or 
 where from tropical warmth the growth of vegetation is illimitable, the decay of 
 the autumnal and evergreen shrubs occasions the stagnant waters collected 
 together by falling timbers and accumulated rocks to send forth most pestilential 
 miasmata far and wide. In such cases there is an excess, as in desert tracts a 
 deficiency of oxygen. — Ed.
 
 54 THE LOTUS OF EGYPT. 
 
 no night of sweet repose for me. The Fakir kept a dog to guard his 
 fruits and flowers from thieves, and the dog did his duty, barking with- 
 out one moment's intermission, in spite of the blows he received from 
 all quarters to bring him to reason. After this all the horses set up 
 neighing, the wind rose and blew the leaves of the great fig-trees about 
 my tent, and to finish all, a heavy shower pouring down on my packages, 
 which had been left in the open air, convinced me that the best plan 
 would be to start as soon as possible. The distance from Jwali to 
 Narpoor is ten kos, I estimated it fifteen miles. The road leads into 
 a valley, or rather into a part of that vast plain, which stretches away 
 as far as the distant ocean. The country is pleasant, interspersed with 
 villages here and there, while the immense Mori chain refreshes the 
 eye towards the north-east; the plain is hence very far from being that 
 same dead dull flat, unenlivened by verdure, that one travels over 
 between Khanpoor and the Siwalik mountains ; here, undulating hills 
 rise gradually, and intersect each other, groups of trees also con- 
 tributing to its beauty throughout. At the end of a few miles we came 
 to a pond covered with the nelumbium, and here I tasted the nut for 
 the first time. When unripe it has the taste of a hazel-nut, when ripe, 
 it is too hard to be eaten. That this plant might be much valued in 
 Egypt on account of its majestic flower, as well as its delicate taste, is 
 extremely probable; but we need not go out of our way to seek in the 
 pictures on their walls for a meaning which is very seldom literal ; in 
 them we certainly perceive boats filled with pleasure-hunters, enjoying 
 themselves among the leaves of the nelumbium, which, together with 
 the flower, float gracefully on the water, and with reference to this 
 quality, convey a certain meaning in Hindu mythology. Notwithstand 
 ing it is not to be concluded that it was planted as food for the people, 
 like our peas and beans. It does not flourish like the nymphaea caerulea 
 both in flowing and still water, but grows chiefly in tanks, and hence 
 can be seen but rarely in Egypt, where the water has generally a 
 brackish taste ; but a weightier argument against its general cultivation is 
 the fact, that few flowers of this plant from Ceylon even to the moun- 
 tains of Kashmir, produce any seed which germinates. 
 
 From the tank which has caused this digression, the fort of
 
 POPULAR CURIOSITY. ' 55 
 
 Narpoor, on a neighbouring hill, from two to three hundred feet in 
 height, has a very picturesque effect. To the Himalayan traveller, who 
 is accustomed to see every mountain with a peaked summit, it is strange 
 to meet with one like this, crowned with a tabular space one mile and 
 a half in extent, on which the little town, with its bazars and miserable 
 streets and houses, is situated. I should reckon the population at six 
 thousand souls, of whom two-thirds are Kashmirians, who have been 
 settled here for more than a generation. "Whoever has once seen this 
 race of men, will never fail to recognise them by their white skin, their 
 clear though colourless complexion, their long, projecting, almost Jewish 
 features, with dark brown or black hair and beard, which distinctly point 
 them out. The dress of the common people merely consists of a white 
 woollen shirt, open in front, with long sleeves; a cloth hanging down 
 from the head behind, completes this ungraceful and generally very 
 dirty costume. The rich have adopted the Indian dress. Among the 
 crowd that soon beset me, were some pretty girls, still in the age of our 
 childhood in Europe, and on my tent being pitched, the whole crowd 
 followed the Thanadar who came to pay his homage. To my no 
 small astonishment I learnt from him, that the Chobdar appointed 
 by Ranjit Singh to attend me to Kashmir had not arrived, yet so far 
 from opposing my further progress on that account, he promised to give 
 me two soldiers as a military escort in place of the two, who had only 
 received instructions to accompany me as far as Narpoor. I instantly 
 decided on starting the very next day, without waiting for the arrival 
 of the Chobdar, but had now to make up my mind, whether I went 
 direct by the mountains, from Kishtiwar to Kashmir, a journey of 
 ten days over a lofty chain, which my gardener implored me not to 
 take, he having once travelled by that route, knew full well the impos- 
 sibility of conveying horses or even asses through the paths; or the 
 longer but better road by Jammu. On reconsideration, I chose the 
 latter. 
 
 A crowd of persons of both sexes and all ages surrounded my tent, 
 resolved not to move away, until I had shown myself to them, which 
 at length I was absolutely compelled to do, giving directions to the 
 Chaprasis to drive them otf by force as soon as they had received this
 
 56 t INTERCHANGE OF PRESENTS. 
 
 mark of favour. The fort of Narpoor, like that of Haripoor, is com- 
 pletely commanded by a neighbouring height forming the lowest ridge 
 of the Mori, which terminates to the north of the town. Here another 
 commences. At a short distance from my tent I saw several persons 
 praying in a little mosque situated between two tanks ; and to judge 
 from such instances, there is neither a superabundance of money or piety 
 among the Mohammedans of Narpoor, for it is generally peculiar to 
 the professors of their faith to adorn their mosques and tombs as 
 richlv as their means will permit, though in this instance both were con- 
 spicuously mean. They have also the custom of lighting many of the 
 tombs in their cemeteries, which I would gladly see in Europe, since this 
 constant remembrance of death and the dead is calculated to bring 
 many important truths to mind. 
 
 Monday, 26th. My tent requiring some repairs, the tailors, all 
 Kashmirians, began this morning, but could not complete their work 
 before evening closed. Thus I was forced to rest, whether I would or 
 not. But I had learned to submit to such trifling vexations in that great 
 school, the world, where experience soon teaches a man patience, and 
 the useful lesson, that very few have the good, or rather bad, fortune, to 
 succeed in the attainment of all the wishes and intentions they had 
 entertained. 
 
 One of my Shikaris brought me several very pretty birds, but 
 nothing new ; among them was a diminutive species of hornbill ; on 
 opening its crop I found nothing but vegetable food, conti-ary to the 
 opinion of naturalists, who have always conjectured its large bill to be 
 formed for the greater facility of catching lizards, on which it was sup- 
 posed to subsist. 
 
 About noon the Chobdar's servant, whom the Mahä Raja had 
 appointed to attend me from Lahor, made his appearance ; he brought 
 me a letter from Ranjit, and a bill for 101 rupees, which, together 
 with four others sent, according to his information, to meet me at 
 Jwäla-Mükhi, Hamirpoor, Haripoor, and Jamba, made up the cus- 
 tomary token of welcome appointed by Ranjit Singh to travellers, of 
 505 rupees. I had fully made up my mind not to accept any present 
 whatever in money, unless presented by Ranjit, or his Viceroy in
 
 DEGRADATION OF FEMALES. , 57 
 
 Kashmir, in his name, when I should have expended it in their native 
 shawls ; but as there was no means of declining this bill, without giving 
 great offence, I put it in my portfolio as a curiosity*. 
 
 The man protested to me that his master was following in a very 
 few hours: in the afternoon, however, he admitted that it would pro- 
 bably be four or five days before I saw him ; as the day closed in he 
 confessed that no master was coming at all ; this is a very fair specimen 
 not only of the veracity of the natives of the Panjab, but of their 
 manner of bringing out a disagreeable piece of intelligence. Why 
 Ranjit's agent did not make his appearance, I was not to know : mean- 
 while, Mirza expressed so anxious a desire to proceed with me, that I 
 determined to take him. Since I had been in the territories of the 
 Mahu Raja, he had on many occasions proved himself very useful to 
 me. Were there labourers to be pressed into the service, he was 
 always at hand with money and fair words, and perfectly understood 
 the valuable art of getting rid of the most troublesome of my visitors. 
 
 More than twenty of the dancing girls persisted in hovering about 
 my tent, and at last I agreed to admit a party of four only within, to 
 exhibit their skill in the dance. They were all Mohammedans, and 
 could not sing a word of Persian ; to make amends for this, they were 
 very richly dressed, and had each, besides a ring passing through the 
 left nostril, another at the tip of the nose, suspending a bright, round, 
 golden ornament exactly before the mouth. All with one exception 
 were tolerably fair, and had beautifully white teeth. At the expiration 
 of an hour, I was very glad to send them away, for they sung worse 
 even than in India, though they managed their voices rather better. 
 
 I had already enjoyed a ramble on the nearest hill, on the road to 
 Kangra, which is twenty-six kos distant. They have a peculiar 
 
 • The giving and taking presents among Orientals is a mere matter of form, 
 and is a pretty plain intimation, in most cases, that a much greater and more costly 
 acknowledgment is expected from the subject to his sovereign, or the inferior to 
 his lord : — nor is the present from the inferior tendered, in the first instance, 
 without a like anticipation. The motives of men are every where the same, 
 however disguised by custom or circumstance; and the whole subject, as it frequently 
 comes under the notice of the intelligent Christian, in his relations, public or 
 private, in India, is full of instruction,— Ed,
 
 58 RETALIATION OF WRONGS. 
 
 manner of grinding the clods that the plough encounters here. For 
 which purpose, after the plough, which is made of two pieces of wood 
 of the simplest structure, and without any iron share, has performed 
 its part, four oxen or buffaloes are attached to a board, on which 
 two men stand to steady it, and drive about the field in every direc- 
 tion. There is a considerable quantity of steel manufactured at 
 Narpoor, and a number of forges, but I did not observe anything 
 remarkable ; I was more pleased with the beauty of a young Hindu 
 female, who was walking on the flat roof of one of the houses, wrapped 
 in a splendid gold embroidered veil, and glittering with the golden 
 ornaments in her ears and on her arms. Her black hair, according to 
 the fashion of the country, was perfectly plain, but arranged in a 
 knot behind, and confined to the forehead by a small ornament of 
 gold. 
 
 It was quite dark as I returned dispirited and alone towards my 
 tent, with my gun over my shoulder. Something suddenly flew past 
 me over the roofs of the houses, and being just in that sort of humour, 
 when the chance of killing anything is satisfactory to the feelings, I 
 took good aim, and the next instant, a vampire or large bat fell on the 
 ground at my feet. The report of my gun had brought all the people 
 out of their houses, and on seeing the creature, which was just able to 
 crawl along, they set up a piercing cry. These animals, as I well 
 knew, are considered holy by the native Indians, and I expected that 
 their fanaticism would break out in some terrible vengeance on the slayer. 
 Such an act of sacrilege has cost many a European his life, and I 
 confess that the bowlings set up on this disaster seemed to predict a 
 similar fate for me. The tragical denouement of an affair very similar 
 to this, which had taken place recently at Matra, came to my mind. 
 Two officers were attacked there by an old monkey, and instead of 
 conforming to the custom of the country and driving the disgusting 
 creature away with stones, they shot it without the least repugnance. 
 The people instantly pressed on them, in spite of the interference of 
 the magistrate, who protected them until they were enabled to mount 
 the back of their elephant, and pursued them, hurling stones which 
 wounded them so sorely, that, as the only means of saving their lives.
 
 INDIAN CHARACTER. 59 
 
 they ordered the Mahut to drive their elephant into the Jamna and let 
 it swim across. He did so, but the waters were then at their very 
 highest, and elephant and riders were drowned together. By an equally 
 sad death, two of my friends, Colonel Combes and Black, had given a 
 convincing proof how dangerous it is to rouse the fanatical fury of an 
 Indian mob. The same destiny seemed very likely to be mine within 
 an hour; but the traveller, who wanders in strange countries among 
 stranger people, is habituated to look death steadily in the face in 
 all its forms. As for these things, I had resigned myself, on leaving 
 Europe, to the very probable chance of never seeing it again : at this 
 critical moment I did not feel even a sensation of surprise. They 
 hemmed me closely round, one holding up the wounded creature, whose 
 unearthly cry accompanied the chorus of angry voices, till I gradually 
 gained the shelter of a house, which protected me from assailants in the 
 rear, my gun keeping off the foremost of my complainants. There I 
 remained for nearly a quarter of an hour, until some of the Thanadar's 
 people were seen approaching, as I trusted, to rescue me. Whether, 
 however, they thought their force not sufficient for this purpose, or, 
 that after hearing the crime I had been guilty of, their superstition 
 overcame all compassion, they soon turned their backs on the scene, 
 and left me to my fate. 
 
 The noise then became louder, the threats grew more alarming. 
 Fortunately, there were no stones to be found, but the task of forcing 
 back my assailants with the gun became more and more fatiguing, until 
 the light of day wholly disappeared. It was then that, quickly availing 
 myself of the known inconstancy of feeling in the Indian character, 
 and of the circumstance of darkness concealing the form of my sacred 
 victim, I harangued the multitude with such happy effect on my sorrow 
 for this mishap, and the precautions I would take in future, that their 
 hearts were gradually softened, and to my infinite relief, I was permitted 
 to find my way back to my tent, with life and liberty. 
 
 Tuesday, 27th, thermometer 55°, 80°, 61°. The road led down the 
 hill I had climbed yesterday. There were little gardens on both sides, 
 principally belonging to Fakirs, and now blooming with flowers. At 
 the end of the paved road is a toll-house, where the poor Indian
 
 60 INCIDENTS BY THE WAY. 
 
 traveller Is taxed for his bagg-age; the European passes free. We 
 came next to the small river Behobon, which has hollowed out a 
 deep bed between the mountains, and sweeps in a semicircle round 
 Narpoor. The stream not being fordable, the traveller winds along it, 
 sometimes on a level with the bed, sometimes on the mountain-path 
 above. A.t length, after a wearisome journey of ten miles, we fairly 
 descended into the plain, where my experience was again increased. 
 One of my people shot an eagle. As my bearers were already heavily 
 loaded, I offered a trifling present to a peasant who was working in the 
 field, if he would carry the bird to the next village ; but he refused, 
 because his caste forbade him to do it. Upon which, one of the bearers 
 exclaimed, " Thy caste forbid thee to touch the bird, — but it does not 
 forbid the bird to touch thee;" and so saying, put the bird on his back, 
 which of course was sprinkled with the blood ; his scruples, however, 
 had been overcome by the logic of my bearer, and he walked along 
 without any further demur*. Four miles after we had lost sight of the 
 river we reached Patankota, a stronger fort than any I had before 
 seen, and yet, strange to say, the only one in ruins. It is in the plain, 
 with regular ditches and a glacis, built of brick, and commanding an 
 extensive view; the citadel within is remarkably strong. 
 
 The heat was dreadful, and although the thermometer was not so 
 high as yesterday, I was far more inconvenienced. In the summer, 
 Narpoor, from its position, must be one of the hottest places in India. 
 
 The women of the Panjab are celebrated, and not undeservedly, 
 for the beauty of their shape, their feet, and their teeth. To-day, 
 when I came to the place where my tent should have been already 
 pitched, I found nothing done, and on looking narrowly about for the 
 Kalasi, on whom the superintendence properly devolves, I spied him, 
 in some bushes near, engaged in very animated discourse with one of 
 these fair ones. The man's good taste was as conspicuous as his negli- 
 
 * The use of the singular, is a mark of great indignity in India ; as in this 
 case, "thy" and "thee" arc often coupled with most opprobrious and revolting 
 expressions. How characteristic are such terms of a people, and the associations 
 of thought ; the Arab, the Jew, and the Quaker, in the simplicity of affection and 
 nature, use the same style as a recognition of friendship. — Ed.
 
 SUPERSTITIOUS ABLUTION. 61 
 
 gence, for she most fully bore out the renown of her countrywomen for 
 personal beauty, but I was sorry to be under the necessity of disturbing 
 a conference which appeared to be mutually interesting. 
 
 The fortress of Patankota was built by Shah Jehan, when he made 
 war on Narpoor. This last place, now so insignificant, belonged then 
 to the ancestors of Bir Singh, who considered it worth while to over- 
 awe it by the construction of the strong post of Patankota. Their 
 successor, driven out of his territory by Ranjit Singh, now lives ten 
 kos from hence, in Katawar, in indigence, his only remaining pos- 
 session, as far as I could learn, consisting of a lovely garden on the way 
 to Narpoor, called Srikagur. 
 
 In the evening I obtained the Thanadar's permission to inspect the 
 fort, but on drawing near, the Sirdar positively refused to admit me, and 
 the Thanadar seeing the dispute between us, very coolly ran away; 
 for which he received one of my Munshi's choicest reproofs. A 
 European should never believe one of these people, even on their oath, 
 a precaution not more necessary than disagreeable*. After all, I believe 
 my loss was not very great, for it is now a defenceless ruin, and weeds 
 and rank grass are invading every part of it. But the position was 
 admirably chosen, and it lies in an open locality, where not a spot of 
 ground commands it from above. 
 
 Wednesday, 28th, thermometer 55°, 79°, 74°. The immense plain 
 of India on the left, and stupendous snow-capped mountains to the right, 
 made this day's march a real treat to a lover of nature, nor was the 
 scene we had left behind less delightful. High thick date-trees over- 
 shadowed the spot where my tent was pitched ; behind this stood the 
 fort, and through the dawn of a lovely morning, the majestic form of 
 the mountain chain gradually stood out in bold but uncertain relief, the 
 outline gradually growing sharper as the rays of the yet hidden sun 
 
 " A disregard of veracity is the most obvious and certain test of an unregenerate 
 man of whatever region or religious profession, nor is it confined to India 
 alone. Was it necessary for those who appreciated all that was estimable in the 
 Hindu character, to plead their love of truth in the face of such principles as a 
 distinguished prelate contended for on pure Christian grounds? Those who know 
 most of the Hindus, and regard them most, say one and all : certainly not. — Ed.
 
 62 DAYBREAK IN THE EAST. 
 
 beamed forth and gave new animation to the scenery. All nature was 
 soon awake, day displacing night in a moment of time, contrasted with 
 our long northern twilight. First was heard the sweet greeting offered 
 by the bulbul to the fair morn ; then the mango bird set up his piteous 
 lament, and the variegated mkina with his lively chatter, the screaming 
 parrots, and noisy monkeys swinging from bough to bough, all with 
 one consent filling the air with their joyous cries, were speedily up 
 and alive to the announcement of day. In the surrounding groves the 
 blue thrush warbled in companies ; peacocks strutted about the fields, 
 and skylarks soared melodiously over head, mounting aloft to greet the 
 glorious messenger of light before earth's inhabitants. 
 
 The sun shone forth brightly, soon after I had quitted Patankota; 
 and an immense pyramidal mass of mountains soon made their appear- 
 ance in the north-west, while the country was richly cultivated and more 
 populous than I had seen it for a long time. The people appeared 
 to be chiefly Kashmirians, occupied as tailors and weavers, or in 
 agriculture: it is not possible to exceed them in filth, whether they 
 were poor or not, I really could not decide. They seem well fed, look 
 healthy, and are not wanting in ornaments on their dress. They are 
 very ready to serve as bearers too, but this may be caused either by 
 poverty or the love of gain. The country is amply supplied with 
 rivers and tanks, and the vegetation grows to an enormous size. My 
 evening was passed at Kotoa, where they pitched my tent before the 
 Mohammedan cemetery, under the impervious shade of mango and fig- 
 trees. 
 
 Thursday, 29th, thermometer 55°, 80°, 74°. The Fakirs in the 
 Panjab are quite intolerable; great athletic fellows, and, without ex- 
 ception, the most impudent beggars in the world. This morning one 
 came to my tent with two tamtams or drums; he was accompanied 
 bv three men, each provided with a sort of oboe ; I thought they would 
 have distracted me outright. In vain I commanded the man to desist 
 and take himself off; he was shameless enough to keep his ground until 
 absolutely driven from it by the blows of my servants. 
 
 The road to Jesrod is unvaried, winding among gigantic grasses, 
 which brush the traveller's face as he makes his way through them.
 
 PARALLEL OF THE JOURNEY OF LIFE. 63 
 
 The height may be surmised, from the fact that an elephant may be 
 concealed from view in this grass, and each stem is as thick as an 
 ordinary finger* ; nor is it easy to escape from this forest with a whole 
 skin. The tiger takes up his abode here, roaming even as far north as 
 Tibet. The path is formed of large stones also, not that the soil is bad, 
 but that the rich earth is carried away for the cultivated grounds. 
 The day's march, however, did not lead me through any region so well 
 cultivated as I saw yesterday. Swamps were frequent, and during the 
 rains I should suppose the whole country must be completely under 
 water. 
 
 The palace of the Raja of Jesrod is built on a hill, and the distance 
 from Kotoa about eight coss. The Uts, a rapid stream, flows through 
 the place. Not far from it is a chalybeate spring having a disagreeable 
 taste of iron. At seven in the morning its temperature was 80°, while 
 that of the air was only 56^. The situation of Jesrod is much more 
 romantic than the place itself: the hill on which the Raja's house is 
 situated, is also ornamented with four little towers. The last prince 
 was robbed of his territory by Ranjit Singh, and his son, a child, is now 
 at Lahor. A huge irregular arch leads to the paltry bazar and to the 
 Raja's residence. 
 
 The ßal Dewa, called in the plain Ramnagar, a single lofty snowy 
 mountain, is distinctly visible from hence, although at least thirty miles 
 distant: the shortest way from Narpoor to Kashmir is over this 
 mountain. 
 
 I had imagined that time would have allowed me to do many things 
 
 • In March, 1830, I traversed the country at the foot of the Abu mountains, 
 on the borders of Rajputana, in company with Colonel Sherreff, Bombay aiTny. On 
 our way from the ruins of the celebrated ancient city, Chandrawati — whence the 
 famous gates of Ghazni really carae — in the direction of Girwar, we passi;d through 
 a large tract overgrown with this high grass, the Doorba or Dab grass, which we 
 had the curiosity to measure, and found it fourteen feet high. My friend Colonel 
 SherrefTs perfect indifference, wandering off the unfrequented though beaten route, to 
 admire the beauties of nature and catch a glimpse of the herds of Nilgais, which 
 are very abundant, occasioned me no little anxiety ; as I well remember, both ele- 
 phant and rider were entirely hidden from my view at a little distance by this high 
 grass. — Ed.
 
 64 CHARACTER OF INDIAN SCENERY. 
 
 during my solitary wanderings, for which now I felt every day much 
 too short. First, the journey itself occupied too many hours; then, 
 there was the difficulty of finding a good guide when I arrived in a 
 strange place; and lastly, the hours necessarily employed in preparing 
 ray map, in enriching and arranging ray different collections, to say 
 nothing of certain cares for the supply of the necessaries of life, 
 occupied much valuable time. As a consolation to me amidst this 
 never-ceasing anxiety, this restless movement, and ever-changing scene, 
 unconscious what adventures and dangers the next day might bring 
 forth, I had in it all a sufficient antidote against those fancies with 
 which solitude, and separation from all who are dear to him, are too 
 apt to fill the traveller's mind*. 
 
 Friday, 30th, thermometer, with rain in the morning, 70°, noon 82°, 
 evening 74°. A very ominous rattling on my tent awoke me this 
 morning ; it was the rain, which the oppressive heat of yesterday, and 
 the veil around the Bal Dewa during the day, had given me reason to 
 expect. My people were therefore not taken by surprise, and every 
 thing was under cover. It did not last long, though it prevented us 
 from decamping as early as usual. The road to Aleh is easily missed, 
 and the difficulty we found in following it at all, rendered it more 
 wearisome than nature had made it. A dozen times we got out of the 
 regular track: low jungles like those of the Dekhan, solitary trees of 
 the Butea frondosa, and the most thorny of the Ziziphus species, the 
 Jujube, were among those well known objects, much more familiar 
 than loved. From the mountains of Kashmir to Cape Comorin, the 
 Jujube tree and the turtle dove, the Butea frondosa, and the Maina, 
 the mango and the parrot, with here and there immense fig and cotton- 
 trees, are the surest sign to a traveller that he is in India. The land 
 
 • I do not remember to have met a single passage in the course of my life which 
 so perfectly, beautifully, and forcibly depicts the Christian's lot. No sooner has he 
 begun to appreciate his responsibilities and privileges, tlian he feels life too short, 
 too much straitened for usefulness ; the necessary avocations of life, the cares, 
 the duties, and pressing obligations crowd upon him till he perceives the hand of 
 God thus leading and instructing him, and preparing him for those happy abodes 
 where sin and separatiou shall be no more. — Ed.
 
 CONSTITUTIONAL HAblT. 65 
 
 in this locality is not fertile, and is moreover but poorly cultivated. The 
 people are diminutive,whether from actual want or from the insalubrity of 
 the climate 1 cannot tell; but it often happens that where jungles extend 
 over the low grounds under a high chain of hills, the country is 
 commonly subject to low fevers, and usually unhealthy. The natives 
 dread such a climate more than the Europeans, for, strange to say, 
 they are more liable to catch intermittent fevers than foreigners, and 
 the reason may very possibly be, that the nourishment they can 
 afford to take is not strong enough to ward off its attacks*. Frequently 
 it issues in death within four days from the first attack: and if the 
 physician cannot cure the third paroxysm, the patient's case is given up 
 as hopeless ; he expires generally without pain, from sheer debility. 
 
 Aleh is a small fort surrounded with mud walls, and has an inner 
 inclosure of stone: the whole seems now, just strong enough to ensure 
 the safety of a Thanadar. It is the present residence of a Diwan, or 
 minister of the INIaha Raja, who paid me a visit of ceremony: he was a 
 fine-looking man, in spite of the loss of one of his eyes. 
 
 I accepted the guidance of a Brahmin in my evening's walk, in 
 order to learn from him the names of the different villages visible from 
 the adjacent hill; but the man refused to name one of them, asserting 
 that he should be severely punished by the Diwan if he did so, since 
 strangers had in other times visited their country and inquired the 
 names of all their towns and villages, of which they had on a second 
 visit taken forcible possession. It needed all my persuasion to satisfy 
 the poor man that I had no design on his fatherland. 
 
 The mountains had been dimly hidden throughout the day by thick 
 rain-clouds, and in the evening presented a truly magnificent spectacle. 
 The snow on the Mori had considerably deepened: it now stood 
 dazzlingly forward in its whitest garb, confronting the Bal Dewa. 
 Both mountains described horizontal lines ending in a perpendicular 
 fall, each resembling an immense colossus, while between them the 
 Sansh mountain projected with its countless peaks, covered as far 
 
 • The excitable animal ep!rits of the European may liluwise have somethiug to 
 do with this resistance to the inroads of disease, or rath: t biisci-ptibility. — Ed.
 
 66 FEATURES OF THE COUNTRY. 
 
 as the eye could follow it, with a complete veil of snow, a proof 
 that it must be higher than either of the others. The greater facility 
 of tracing its outline confirmed me in my former opinion that it 
 stands quite apart from the Mori and the Bal Dewa, but very near to 
 both. My tent was pitched under fig-trees in a newly-ploughed field, 
 very near the Diwan's garden, which consists of long alleys of citron 
 and pomegranate trees, having traces of former beauty, but not a 
 flower was to be seen ; the whole place seems encompassed with moun- 
 tains ranging in every direction without any apparent connection. 
 
 Saturday 31st, thermometer 56°, 79°, 68°. This is the temperature 
 as I found it in my tent; but in the morning while it marked 56° 
 within, it was 10° higher in the open air, which I accounted for by the 
 situation of the tent in a newly-ploughed field : thereby absorbing the 
 heat and causing the diffusion of a greater degree of warmth than 
 could penetrate the little protected residence fixed over one nook of its 
 surface. 
 
 The road to Samba was the worst and most disagreeable I had yet 
 met with in India, constantly leading through the fatal high grass, 
 and sometimes passing over heaps of stone, at others tending down- 
 wards into the soft crumbling soil. The villages, too, with the exception 
 of Thakerdoras, were nothing but miserable huts. I reckon this 
 tedious and distressing day's march at twelve miles ; the snow on the 
 mountains was as distinct as yesterday ; Trikota, a high hill, about forty 
 kos from Aleh, and a place of pilgrimage, seemed to serve as a guide 
 to our destination ; and, at a greater distance, peaks covered with snow 
 lifted up their countless heads. 
 
 Meanwhile the Sansh mountain was gradually shut out, and we 
 were rapidly appi oaching the chain before us. I had a very good view 
 of its majestic form. Tanks became more frequent in our path ; but 
 though rain had fallen so lately, they were almost dry. Near one of 
 them they had pitched the tent for the night, several female forms were 
 peering within ; they had been engaged in bathing, an amusement in 
 which large parties appeared to partake together, in this not over pure 
 element, without any inconvenient sense of modesty. With one excep- 
 tion too, they were all particularly ill-favoured in appearance.
 
 MOUNTAIN PKODUCTIOXSJ. 67 
 
 I now became eager to turn my back on the plain, and this I trusted 
 to accomplish on the next day but one : that is, provided I should be 
 able to go as far as from Jamii to Rajaor. The difference between the 
 climate of the morning and of the middle of the day is here so great, 
 that it has a decidedly injurious effect on the health : what a terrible 
 calamity would an illness in such a country as this be to my earthly 
 pilgrimage ? My lodging chanced to be near a fakir's house, where 
 they were unloading a dozen camels, the property of Gulab Singh, 
 the Raja of Jamu, laden with the bark of the Deobasa tree, an 
 article used by the Indian women to redden their gums. This bark is 
 collected not far from Samba, on the mountains ; and is carried into 
 Persia and Multan, as well as the roots of a species of Scutellaria, and 
 the seeds of a plant of which I could learn neither the name nor use» 
 The camel drivers could only tell me, that it belonged to the Persian 
 merchants, who bought it up eagerly in Kabul. 
 
 Sunday, November 1. — Half a mile from Samba is an uninhabited 
 palace belonging to Sushet Singh, Gulab Singh's brother. As we 
 proceeded on our way, the roads led over the partially dry bed of the 
 Desentri, where we completely lost the right road. In vain had I 
 repeatedly desired, that a guide should be hired every day, to show us 
 the best and shortest route ; for, at this time of year, the men are 
 engaged constantly in the fields ; and, in their agricultural avocations, 
 make so free with the usual paths taken by travellers, that it is most 
 difficult to trace them by the ordinary marks. During the day, it is no 
 easy matter to repair the neglect of the morning ; for unless the 
 villagers are actually in want of the reward promised them for guiding 
 us, those who know the road refuse to show it, so that one is compelled 
 to carry them along by force. Such a scene took place to-day, near a mill 
 on the Desentri ; the man's cries of resistance soon brought out a crowd 
 of forty or fifty from the mill and the huts adjoining, who, armed with 
 bamboo sticks, planted themselves on the banks of the stream. But 
 Mirza and the Chaprasis were in no way daunted by this bravado ; 
 and, in spite of their warlike front, they conveyed their friend safely 
 over to the other side. But, alas ! the captive escaped from us, and 
 succeeded in rejoining the knights of the bamboo at last. Then ensued
 
 68 CHARACTERS AND COSTUME. 
 
 a scene of mutual recrimination. My people cast the sand on their 
 enemies, who retaliated with sticks, and others began to advance with 
 spears. As there was no place where my people could fight under 
 shelter, I now judged it high time to retreat. At the next village we 
 were more fortunate, engaging a guide on the promise of a good reward 
 for his services. But this did not make our further efforts more 
 successful ; and the reason may be, that these poor men have often 
 been decoyed away from their homes, under similar pretexts, and then 
 made to bear heavy burdens, without receiving the smallest payment in 
 return for such service. The people have been rendered mistrustful ; 
 and I much fear that Jacquemont, who travelled at Ranjit Singh's ex- 
 pense, through his territories, did not give them any higher opiuion of 
 European honour, than he himself had concerning the Sikh character ; 
 we learnt, we must confess, that he took a long time to consider the 
 propriety of paying his native bearers. 
 
 The road to-day was really terrible j through a thick jungle; 
 neither mountain nor plain, neither forest nor open field; it is a toil- 
 some, dreary journey, over masses of stones, a zig-zag line from one 
 wretched hamlet to another ; little or no cultivation is visible, and what 
 they call fields in tillage are scarcely to be distinguished from heaps of 
 stones. The distance to Ishmaelpoor, a miserable village, is reckoned 
 to be nine long kos ; in a straight line, I should think it ten or eleven 
 miles, but we must have made it at least fifteen. As they pitched my 
 tent close to a tank, I had again an opportunity of seeing a large 
 assemblage of females taking their baths. Their costume here differs 
 from that of the women in the Sikh districts on the left shores of the 
 Setlej ; the younger ones all wear blue trousers, which fit very close to 
 the leg below the knee, while from the calf to the ancle they fall in 
 numerous folds ; over this they wear an ample petticoat, and above, a 
 white cloth hangs down behind, fluttering in the wind. 
 
 In a large fig-tree near this tank, dwelt a colony of those large 
 bats or vampyres I before alluded to. One of my Shikaris took the 
 Ittierty uf shooting one of them ; but as the misdeed occurred some way 
 from the village, its consequences were not so serious as they had nearly 
 proved to me at Narpoor. The fakir, who lived under the tree, took
 
 SKETCHES BY THE WAY. 69 
 
 up the animal, however, and refused at any price to restore it to them. He 
 was, therefore, brought into my presence, and there complained of the 
 death of the creature which belonged to him. I begged to know, 
 whether he could be so silly as to pass his life in looking after vani 
 pyres; and he, in return, asked me whether I considered myself doin*: 
 any better, by permitting my servants to kill one of God's innocent 
 creatures? As I could not give any satisfactory answer to this charge. 
 I solemnly promised him, that neither he nor his dear vampyres should 
 ever be molested again. 
 
 Monday, Nov. 2. — Thermometer, morning 60», noon, 80°, evening, 
 70°. This day, although provided with a guide, it was difficult to get 
 through the thorny bushes which beset us on every side. Happily, we 
 could almost see Jamu from Ishmaelpoor, so that we were in no 
 danger of losing ourselves. Our course lay over the plain, which in 
 one place I found suddenly invaded by the deep bed of a stream, 
 whence a hill rises almost imperceptibly, on the summit of which Güläb 
 Singh has lately built the fort of Bala. It does not speak very 
 favorably of his military judgment, for, however handsome its orna- 
 mented walls may look, rising as it were, out of the river, from his 
 palace on the other side of the Tohi at Jamu ; as a strong place it 
 is quite untenable, being overlooked by other heights most easy of 
 access. Gulab Singh's palace is a pretty white edifice, built like the 
 whole of Jamu, about 150 feet above the river Tohi, which flows 
 with rapidity, and clear as crystal, over its stony bed, in a deep 
 channel encompassed with waving hills. It is fordable, though not very 
 easily, but as no bridge crosses it, men, women, and children must 
 pass from one side to the other by this means, if at all. From Bala a 
 spacious flight of steps leads down to the river, and another takes the 
 passenger up to Jamu, where, in every direction, the sight of falling 
 ruins and decaying edifices bespeaks its former greatness and present 
 poverty ; while the indispensable bazar fills up a large vacant space 
 between the palace and a mass of dilapidated buildings. I sought my 
 tent for some time in vain, and at length discovered it under some 
 acacia trees, in a very filthy neighbourhood of Kashmirian huts. The 
 Thanadar visited me as usual, and promised me impossibilities, but I
 
 70 THE CHOSSES OF LIFE. 
 
 contented myself with telling him that the station was very badly 
 chosen, and requested him to accompany me to the Raja's garden, 
 which is reached through the once celebrated town. The prosperity 
 of Jamu was at its height under Ranjlt Deo, whose mild govern- 
 ment extended equal protection to Hindu and Mahommedan, while the 
 Panjab was overrun with the horrors of war ; but no sooner were his 
 eyes closed by death, in 1781, than Maha Singh, the father of Ranjit 
 Singh, invaded the territories of his feeble son and successor, Brij Raj 
 Deo, and plundered his town ; peace was soon restored, but no part 
 of the territories. 
 
 The Raja's garden is situated on the bank of the Tohi,* at the 
 foot of a hill ; it is prettily laid out in the Indian taste, with a pavilion 
 in the centre, where a variety of animals are kept in separate cages, 
 some on account of their rarity, others for the purpose of being 
 reared. I saw there some enormously fat sheep, and what is almost 
 unheard of among Hindus, some overgrown geese likewise. In this 
 charming garden I was worse off than when close to the wretched 
 hovels; for I had to wait there all day in vain for my large tent and 
 furniture. I had neither table, chair, nor writing materials ; and in an 
 attempt to catch a butterfly, for want of something better to do, was 
 seized with a violent pain in my head, occasioned by the burning heat. 
 At last, after eight hours' impatient waiting, two of my servants, who 
 were also seeking me, gave me the pleasing information that the tent 
 was pitched a full mile lower down the river. On my asking them 
 who had ordered it to be put there, they answered with considerable 
 hesitation, that Khair Singh, one of my chapi*asis, was the delinquent. 
 How often I look back to those trifling grievances, which really make 
 up the sum of the traveller's existence, for dangers or misfortunes, 
 in our transit through a strange country, are far less hard to bear than 
 these daily recurring vexatious annoyances. A wretched repast 
 terminated the events of this day of troubles. 
 
 • Tlic T;iühi or Tohi, rises in the Ratan Panjdl mountaius, flows by Rajaor^ 
 and joins tlic Chcnab above Wazirabad. It must have been between tliis river and 
 the Chenab that Alexander encamped.— Cunninüham's ItKi'OKT.
 
 HINDU IDEAS OF VERACITY. 71 
 
 Tuesday, 3rd.— Thermometer, 63", 82", 70". The situation of my 
 tent was much better in appearance than in reality. The fig-tree gave 
 shade certainly, but no coolness, and the heat was more intense than I 
 had felt it for a long time. In the river, a troop of females, chiefly 
 Kashmirians, were refreshing themselves by bathing ; they are much 
 fairer and more finely formed thau the natives of Jamu. A cer- 
 tain amount of trouble attends the arrival of every traveller in India. 
 In the first place, the servants are impatient to hurry out to the bazar 
 and sit gossipping there, and though I considered myself peculiarly for- 
 tunate in the character and behaviour of mine, j et in this respect every 
 one was a true Indian; what is still worse than this, it is absolutely 
 necessary to pass much of one's time in the different towns, in order 
 to hire men and animals, which can only be taken from one place to 
 another, unless the traveller engages his suite by the month, a precau- 
 tion which I continually regretted not having taken myself. 
 
 In the afternoon the Thanadar came to offer me a present, in the 
 name of the Raja, which I refused. Mirza, who had been in the 
 town, returned presently with the tidings that a European traveller had 
 just arrived at Jamu, and, after some trouble, I found that the 
 stranger was on his way from Kashmir to Lahor, and was merely 
 resting one day at Jamu to provide himself with necessaries. 
 
 I thought this could be no other than Mr. Vigne, an English 
 gentleman, then travelling in India, and as Mirza inclined to the same 
 opinion, I immediately wrote a short note, offering to share my stock, 
 such as it was, with a traveller from Europe, and to pay him any 
 attention in my power. With this note I dispatched Mohan, who soon 
 came back and told me that, instead of an Englishman he had found a 
 Persian, who could neither read nor write. I mention this unimport- 
 ant circumstance to show how cautious travellers should be in trusting 
 to the opinions of the natives of the north of India. Mirza knew 
 perfectly well that this stranger was not a European, but as soon as he 
 observed that I heartily wished it might prove to be a countryman of 
 my own, he framed his measures, not according to the truth, but ac- 
 cording to what he fancied would best please me to hear. In this 
 instance, though he knew I should soon discover my error, he did not
 
 72 A MYSTEKIOUS TALE. 
 
 attempt to undeceive me, and by this my readers will judge how little 
 those people deprecute falsehood, when the case may be really serious, 
 and the truth more difficult to find out. 
 
 Late on the same day I received a letter, very well written, from an 
 Englishman in the service of the Raja, desiring to speak with me, to 
 which, of course, I immediately acceded, and presently a very fine 
 young man, richly attired, made his appearance in my tent. As soon 
 as the servants were out of hearing, without uttering a word, he flung 
 himself at my feet and burst into a passionate flood of tears. In vain 
 I requested him to be seated, and to feel assured that I would do all in 
 my power to alleviate any distress he might be sufi'ering from ; for a 
 long time, I could not draw from him any explanation whatever of 
 this strange conduct, although the sight of a European, after so long an 
 interval, and his evident sorrow, filled me with the deepest interest and 
 pity, to say nothing of the natural curiosity which I felt to know the 
 cause which must have brought a man of his appearance into such a 
 situation. He could hardly be an adventurer, and his emotion did 
 not seem the result of any disappointment ; besides, he wanted some 
 aid from me — and this aid, to judge from his dress, arras, and jewels, 
 could not be gold. What but the consciousness of guilt could pros- 
 trate one man so abjectly before another ? This, however, was no place 
 or time to reproach a supplicant with what might be neither crime nor 
 error on his part. Desirous of hearing something in explanation of 
 his visit, I again addressed hira, saying — " Speak, whatever you have to 
 say, I promise you my best assistance and pity. How long have you 
 been in Jamu ?" — "Many years." — "Are you poor?" — "No, my 
 circumstances are good." — " Then, what brought you to this remote 
 and lonely land ? " — " Pity me," he exclaimed, seizing my hand con- 
 vulsively, " I am miserable, I am guilty, I need forgiveness." — " I must 
 insist on your speaking out more plainly," I said, somewhat impatiently, 
 " how otherwise can I either guess what you may stand in need of, 
 or assist you in any way, as I have engaged, sl.ould it be in my power? " 
 Wringing his clasped hands with evident expressions of terror, he 
 suddenly cast a hurried glance at me, exclaiming mournfully, " I cannot, 
 I canuot explain I '' and so saying rushed out of the tent.
 
 THE NECESSITY OF PRECAUTION. 73 
 
 I asked my [)ooj)le whether they had i ver heard anything of this 
 European before, they all denied any knowledge of him ; and, as I 
 did not like to excite the curiosity of the Thanadar by making any 
 particular inquiries about him, I remained without hearing anything 
 further of this unhappy person. 
 
 Wednesday, Nov. 4. — Thermometer, morning 59°, noon 82°, even- 
 ing 66°. When I wrote the date of this day in my tablets, I re- 
 membered for the first time, that it was a season when, for many years, I 
 had been used to receive testimonies from my friends and family of 
 their love and regard. It is on such days that we think most fondly 
 of those far away; the day was no joyful one for me, and along 
 toilsome march of twelve kos, accompanied by divers petty annoy- 
 ances, contributed to depress my spirits. Strange to say, I seem now to 
 be better acquainted with the character of the Indians than my 
 servants, though part of the same nation. I repented more than ever 
 that I had not bought horses, and hired servants at Simla, as the price 
 I had to pay for these necessaries here was preposterous — I was 
 forced to pay down five rupees for each bearer, and ten rupees for a 
 horse for thirteen days' service, beforehand; I had directed the 
 Munshi on no account to let the old bearers depart, until he had 
 made quite sure of obtaining others, but in the morning, trusting to 
 their promises, he had paid those who, under the pressure of want, 
 had hired themselves at Nadaun for five rupees a-month, they now 
 required an addition of at least one and a-half ; greatly chagrined I 
 ordered them all to be dismissed, as he had procured substitutes. At 
 4 o'clock I was prepared to start, but not a single thing was in readiness, 
 and after waiting until 7, I mounted my Ghunt and ordered the 
 Munshi to follow with the rest as soon as possible. About two, I 
 arrived at Agnur, resolved to bear the long fast I anticipated with 
 becomiug patience, I'or there was no means of providiug for the wants 
 of appetite at that place. 
 
 Tlie road traversed a highly fruitful and well cultivated country, 
 and several clear soft streams meandered through the fields. 
 Jacquemont speaks of the utter destitution of the people, and main- 
 tains that in the Panjab we may beat judge of the great happiness
 
 74 INTERMITTENT SPRINGS. 
 
 enjoyed by the natives of Hindüsthan under British dominion. I 
 confess I saw no such signs of misery. When a stranger can only get 
 bearers at a high price, and is forced to pay down the money in 
 advance ; when he sees the natives well clothed, and evidently well 
 fed, nay, more independent, even proud in their bearing, how can he 
 conclude that they are so wretched ? On the journey, I observed 
 that, instead of carrying the produce of their fields on their heads, 
 as usual, they had horses with them, which were well laden into the 
 bargain. 
 
 Agnur has a petty Raja, who is in the service of Gulab Singh. 
 It lies on the right bank of the Chenab, which is here a strong clear 
 stream, with water of an icy coldness, and is protected by a stately fort, 
 although probably more picturesque than useful. It was built thirty- 
 three years ago by Alum Singh, and plundered by Ranjit Singh, who 
 does not approve of strong places in the territories of his vassals. 
 The palace is in ruins, but the Raja has built a new and charming 
 house behind it. Agnur itself is a place of no importance. The 
 Trikota mountain rises in stately grandeur near it, and a place of 
 pilgrimage lies about half-way up its northern side, with a temple, 
 much celebrated for its beauty and sanctity. It has also a spring» 
 from which the water rises in jerks and falls into a basin ; for nine 
 months of the year this water is cold, but during December, January, 
 and part of February, it is too hot to bear touching without pain- 
 This appears to me to be explained by the fact, that, so long as the 
 snow lies on the Trikota, no water can penetrate the protected spring, 
 which, therefore, keeps its own naturally high temperature. Trikota 
 Devi is eighteen kos, or twenty-seven miles from Jamu, and 1 
 would fain have visited it, but my time was strictly limited. A new 
 snowy mountain here came in view to the south-west, in the direction 
 of the plains of India. Bimber is eighteen kos from hence, and twenty 
 from Jamu. Our march this day was above eighteen miles. 
 The following is the distance in kos from Simla to Jamu, and the 
 names of the stations — the kos of the Punjab is about one mile and a 
 half:—
 
 TiiK vai.uk of expkkience. 75 
 
 Sari 
 
 7 
 
 Kunyar. . . . 
 
 7 
 
 Sahikoti . . 
 
 8 
 
 Bayun 
 
 8 
 
 Bilaspoor . . 
 
 7 
 
 Kumagaheti 
 
 8 
 
 Meyrigaheti 
 
 
 
 Hamirpoor. 
 
 6 
 
 Raili 
 
 5 
 
 Nadaun . . . 
 
 5 
 
 Jwälämükhi 
 
 5 
 
 Habli 
 
 5 
 
 Haripoor . . 
 
 6 
 
 Jwali .... 
 
 10 
 
 Narpoor. . . 
 
 lU 
 
 Patankota 
 
 10 
 
 Katoa 
 
 8 
 
 Jesrod .... 
 
 8 
 
 Aleh 
 
 8 
 
 Samba .... 
 
 8 
 
 Ishmaelpoor 
 
 9 
 
 Jamu 
 
 Total accomplished in 22 days, 164 kos. 
 
 By degrees my servants found their way to Agnur. About 
 eleven o'clock at night, I was able to break my day's fast, and at mid- 
 night to lie down. The servants were the greatest sufferers after all ; 
 for their work is only beginning when the baggage arrives, the bearers 
 alone being at liberty to betake themselves to rest. 
 
 One of my people shot a rare specimen of the stork on the wing, 
 very like one which I obtained in Ceylon ; but not a native could be 
 found to bring the bird to Agnur for us, a distance of three kos, until 
 Mirza resorted to the means, common from Syria to the Himalaya, in 
 such cases — taking off the turban of a countryman, he endeavoured to 
 compel him to lend his services ; but the peasant chose rather to put up 
 with his loss, and consoled himself by repeating that he had another at 
 home ; and I ordered Mirza, therefore, to let him go, and to hang his 
 turban on the next hedge. While in India, and especially in the 
 Dekhan, I had seen numbers of men scrambling to be hired, at the rate 
 of a pice per kos ; here I found it necessary to pay eight annas, or 
 thirty-two pice, for the day's work, surely no proof of poverty in the 
 country. 1 met with another old acquaintance here, a black cor- 
 morant, of that kind so abundant in the South of India. 
 
 Thursday, November 5. — Thermometer, morning 59", noon 80% 
 evening 64°. The inhabitants were unanimous in their information,
 
 76 AN INDIAN DIOGENES. 
 
 that the road was quite level to Rajaor, with the single exception of one 
 ascent near Agnur ; and yet I found the day's journey one of extreme 
 toil and difficulty. The distance was reckoned nine kos, that is, 
 between twelve and thirteen miles. It took us from seven in the morn- 
 ing to six in the evening, and their boasted level road led us over two 
 mountains, comparable with those climbed by the traveller in the Hima- 
 laya, going from Pahar to Subhatoo, over smooth rocks, and mountain 
 torrents. From the bed of the Kotheri, we began our ascent of the 
 first hill ; enormous stones, piled one over another, composed the road 
 to the summit ; there a torrent, which has worn its bed deeply into the 
 soil, with sandstone and limestone in detached masses, somewhat varied 
 the route. About one third of the way, we came to the abode of a 
 fakir, near several little stone buildings, and a spring called Dendrah, 
 round which a considerable party of the dwellers of the mountains 
 were spending their hours of rest from work. Many were carrying to 
 Jamu large bundles of rose-coloured wood of the Deobasa, which 
 is found about this spot also; but I could not find any of the trees, 
 though I went out of my way, with one of the collectors, in search of 
 one. Overcome by the heat, my people lay down by the spring, from 
 which the fakir brought them all water, while multitudes of monkeys were 
 leaping from tree to tree, and flocks of parrots filled the air with their 
 clatter. Gigantic trees, round which climbed many a parasite, rose in 
 the little plain near the spring. When the fakir had administered to 
 the wants of all my servants, I beckoned to him, and he quickly drew 
 near with a vessel filled with water. I then perceived that he was a very 
 aged man — " How old are you ?" said I. " Ninety-two," replied he. "And 
 how long have you lived at this spring ?" " Since I grew to manhood." 
 " And why do you remain here ?" " Why !'' repeated he, " see you 
 not that I refresh the weary traveller with water, and send him strength- 
 ened on his way ?" " But he would find it without you." " And when 
 the sand in this lonely spot chokes the spring, who would find the water 
 then ? By serving the poor I serve God." " But these same poor 
 feed you, otherwise you could not exist.'' " He who has abundance 
 gives to the needy, if he values his own happiness. I am the rich 
 man here ; for the water is mine : and many a great man travelling this
 
 CONFINES OF INDIA AND TIBET. 77 
 
 way is bounteous to me, in order that I may live until another comes. 
 Truly there are such good men in this world ; for many are the years 
 that I have lived without quitting this spring." 
 
 Poor man ! Knowing only one small valley, how narrow and con- 
 fined must God's beautiful creation appear to thee ! To thee a tree must 
 be a forest, a hill a division of the world, the spring thine ocean ; 
 and yet, who would not give all his knowledge, every worldly advan- 
 tage, in exchange for this peaceful mind, this conscientious assurance 
 that he commands everything that constitutes happiness. 
 
 On the hill which we next reached from Dendrah, I had a beautiful 
 view of the country, conclusive enough to me, that I should soon be in 
 the heart of a mountainous region. This was the last glimpse I had of 
 the plains of India for some time : its native inhabitants also, a perfect 
 host of white monkeys, of peacocks and parrots, as if desirous of 
 taking leave of me, screamed in chorus over my head. 
 
 It is curious to observe here, how quickly a little spring becomes a 
 deep stream. At the top of a mountain, it is perhaps like a thread of 
 water, and 100 steps further down, we find it two fathoms across. 
 Over a pretty rivulet called Dalashel, about which are scattered the 
 cottages composing the village of Inghal, we arrived at an extra- 
 ordinary formation of sandstone ; and by clambering first over the 
 great blocks scattered along the bed of the stream, and then up a 
 steep ascent to the second point, and looking back to the first, I became 
 fully alive to the surprising nature of its form. From the valley be- 
 neath, spring up, in multitudes, detached sharp points of rocks, while 
 above, the mountain seems to have no end. Until the summit is once 
 gained, the road to Poni appears to be as steep downwards to the 
 banks of the river, as that just surmounted ; and then there is another 
 great ascent ere one can reach the town, which is on the opposite side of 
 a river. I lingered on the summit a few minutes, and then commenced 
 the toilsome dangerous descent. Fatigued as 1 was, it was necessary to 
 descend on foot ; but how the poor animals or the bearers were ever to 
 reach the bottom, I could not even surmise. What I might have ex- 
 pected soon occurred ; the men would not follow me with the baggage, 
 because they were accustomed to move as slowly as they chose, and to
 
 78 KASHMIRIAN CHARACTERISTICS. 
 
 rest whenever they could find any shade, which did not suit my desire 
 to end the day's march as soon as practicable. I had always taken care 
 to send on the small tent, under the care of the Chaprasi, Khäir Singh, 
 that I might find it ready on my arrival ; and now, when I reached 
 the river, I found them on the point of carrying it over. As the sun 
 went down, I entered the little town on foot, wearied not a little. Very 
 few of my people were with me, and the night came on, finding me 
 without bed or food. I could not help heartily despising the great 
 broad-shouldered Kashmirians, who carried the Jampan, and let both it 
 and its unlucky tenant fall no less than four times this day, until I began 
 to think mv own feet a much safer mode of transport : I am not sure 
 they did not fall purposely. Late at night, when the coldness of the air 
 made me long for warmer clothing, I was favoured with the sight of 
 the Charpai, my Indian bedstead, a Chepati, a kind of unleavened 
 cake made by my huntsmen, and a fire. 
 
 Friday, November 6. — The servants and bearers were not ready 
 until nine o'clock, and then out of humour at the prospect of a fatigu- 
 ing march, the bearers threw the bedstead on the ground, breaking two 
 of the feet and the frame. These Kashmirians I take to be an un- 
 willing, ill-tempered, discontented set ; and their coarse disagreeable 
 manner of speaking is hardly to be endured. Their exterior is far 
 more pleasing, and some of the old men might have served as models 
 for a patriarch. At Simla, and indeed until I arrived at Jamu, I 
 had seen but two classes, the tailors and shawl weavers, and had fancied 
 the whole race diminutive and insignificant like them. But I knew little 
 of them at that time. About noon I was informed, that my large tent 
 was brought as far as the hill ; but that ten men at least were necessary 
 to drag it through paths which were inaccessible to my beasts of 
 burden. Neither fair words nor gold could congregate, out of this 
 populous place, more than half of that number, nor that indeed without 
 great difficulty. I decided, therefore, on climbing the lofty eminence 
 once more, and strengthening the hired force with my eight bearers. 
 Again my trusty Ghunt took me up this arduous ascent, and I was 
 well repaid for my toil ; for I discovered by the way many interesting
 
 TERRIFIC MOUNTAIN ROADS. 79 
 
 plants. My Shikari shot a black pheasant, and I enjoyed the fine pros- 
 pect, and the sweet coolness of the evening. Very lovely was that 
 evening, and the view over the valley of Käs Dhün, at the foot of the 
 Trikota, was magnificent. But I was thoroughly convinced that the 
 road which from fatigue and long watching I had imagined to be 
 more dangerous than it was in reality last evening, was sufficiently 
 perilous : the eye shrinks from the deep yawning chasm below, over 
 which hang grotesque masses of projecting rock, as the road winds 
 round and round, on the very edge of the precipice. One spot we 
 came to, where the rocky wall dropped perpendicularly to a depth of 
 several thousand feet; and, further on, hundreds of steps seem cut 
 out obliquely, and so dangerously projecting over the abyss, that it is 
 almost impossible to descend them. The head swims in passing this 
 fearful place ; and as no animal can turn about, on account of the 
 narrowness of the path, I expected every instant to see one or the 
 other of them stumble, and fall into the depths below. Many did 
 flounder about, and nearly lost their footing, trembling meanwhile in 
 every limb ; but seemingly aware of their danger, they walked with 
 the most surprising care, and arrived at the bottom safe, their loads 
 being taken ofi^, and carried on men's shoulders. 
 
 When I reached my tent again, I found two messengers awaiting 
 me, with a letter from the Thanadar of Narpoor, who sent me, by 
 command of the Mahä Raja, 101 rupees ; for which, as I mentioned 
 above, the bill was given at Narpoor without the money. They now 
 demanded Ranjit's note, which I had kept as a curiosity. I desired 
 not to take the money, if this could be done without giving ofi"ence 
 to the Mahä Raja ; and as part of my suite had already quitted Poni, 
 this gave me the opportunity of declining the money, because the bill 
 of exchange was with my luggage, and could not be returned. I was 
 obliged to remain at Poni another night ; and a good meal and rest 
 were doubly welcome to me, after a very uncomfortable night and two 
 fatiguing days, spent almost without sustenance. 
 
 Saturday, November 7, thermometer, morning 58", noon 70°, even- 
 ing 66°. This morning had nearly seen the last of my earthly excur- 
 sions ; for, while breakfasting as usual before mv tent, and some of
 
 80 PROVIDENTIAL MERCIES. 
 
 the servants were taking it down, the rest being seated round me on 
 the grass, it suddenly fell with a crash, shivering in pieces the table 
 at which I was sitting. Had I been but ever so little to the right, 
 the roof of the tent weighing 600 lbs. and the poles, 25 feet high, 
 would have descended on my devoted head. The poor Munshi, 
 who was reading a letter by my side, lay for some time nearly dead 
 with terror ; and when I bade him go on, and think no more of the 
 accident, he could find no consolation in my coolness for the fright he 
 had received. I found on inquiry, that the Kalasi had wound up all 
 the ropes, except the principal stay ropes, which were not strong enough 
 to bear the weight of the tent. The pegs were forced out which 
 fastened them to the ground, and the whole gave way together. My 
 people saw the impending danger, and tried to rouse me by their cries ; 
 but these things are so commonly heard, that I listened without paying 
 attention to them. The least movement in the direction of the falling 
 load would have brought me under it. 
 
 Poni lies in a narrow deep ravine, and the castle, which, at a dis- 
 tance, looks grand and well fortified, is, on a nearer approach, very 
 insignificant. Two roads lead from Poni to Rajaor, the shortest being 
 twenty-four kos, the longest passing by Bal and Noshera, and both, 
 according to the natives, being over a plain country. As I was 
 told that the shortest would bring me in four days' journey to Rajaor, 
 I proposed it on account of the miserable state of my cattle. I made 
 another discovery here, and not an agreeable one. The fatigues and 
 hunger and want of sleep I had lately suff'ered, made me sensible that 
 I could not, without danger, brave hardships which in younger days I 
 should have laughed at. 
 
 The road passes between two rather lofty hills, and up and down 
 through ravines hollowed out by the streams in the rich soil. At 
 Bethyan, we completely lost our way, and Mirza asked a man who was 
 working in the field which direction we should take. He was about to 
 point it out, when they desired him to show it quickly, upon which he 
 stoutly refused to stir from the spot. The usual snatch of the turban 
 from his head, brought on a skirmish, in which three field labourers 
 engaged on his side, and valiantly defended him ; one seizing the
 
 AN INDIAN AFFKAY. 81 
 
 silver-tipped stick, the sign of Mirza's authority, and another regaining 
 possession of the turban. It was with much difficulty that the stick 
 was wrested from his grasp. During this contest the cowardly bearers 
 had set me down and run off, so that I found myself in the midst of the 
 combatants, quite unprepared to interfere were it necessary, although I 
 looked carefully after my kukeri or knife. My men being provided 
 with sabres, and the peasants carrying mattocks, I expected that blood 
 would be shed ; particularly, when at a loud shout from our four enemies, 
 I saw people rushing out of the village : fortunately the Kotwal was 
 among them, and Mirza laying hold of him without any ceremony, 
 obliged him to guide us to Moghul, the next station. Moghul con- 
 sists of a few houses only, and has no bazar. It is distant from Poni 
 five kos, or between eight and nine miles, which took us five hours to 
 reach. 
 
 Sunday, Nov. 8.— Thermometer 49°, 84°, 68°. The difference of 
 climate was more perceptible from day to day, and I dreaded to think 
 what I should do with my Indians when we reached the P*ir Panjal, 
 on which, doubtless, the snow was then lying, for they were hardly to 
 be driven forth this morning on account of the cold. The road was 
 uninteresting and bad ; the country is intersected in every direction by 
 ranges of hills ; and the people seemed very poor, the villages being 
 paltry and built in valleys, or scattered in small patches about the hills ; 
 the vegetation is still tropical, and the Mango, Banana, Parrots, and 
 Maina, abundant as ever. The Nerium Oleander abounds in the river 
 beds, and the stunted Phoenix farinifera or date palm, on the rocks. 
 
 We were seven hours going eight kos, or fourteen miles, to 
 Dharmsala, a larger station, which has a bazar. Near it we fell in with 
 acompany of Banjaris,* or corn merchants, with 100 or 150 oxen laden 
 with grain. I was forced to pass the evening in the little morning 
 tent, having vainly waited for the larger one. 
 
 " The Wanjaris, or Banjaris, are the great grain and salt carriers throughout 
 India, from Tibet to Cape Coniorin. They claim to Rajput descent, and constitute 
 one of those remarkable aboriginal races, which in the progress of the early 
 Hindu conquests, betook themselves to a wandering life, thus to avoid the tyrannical 
 yoke of their conquerors. — Ed.
 
 82 
 
 COMPARATIVE VIEWS. 
 
 Monday, Nov. 9.— Thermometer 46°, 74°, 66°. A very cold 
 morning-. There was no getting my people up before 7 o'clock, and 
 the day's route was over steep hills and very rugged paths. Here the 
 houses are built close together for security ; each, as in Syria, resembling 
 a little castle. The owner enters his dwelling by a ladder, which he 
 draws up after him, a proof of the fear entertained of the Sikh and 
 Mohammedan troops, and of the few means of defence possessed by the 
 inhabitants, since a day would suffice to pull down every house in the 
 neighbourhood. 
 
 On leaving Dharmsala we had a fine view of the Pir Panjal, covered 
 with snow to a considerable extent ; many streams of cold and clear 
 water descended towards us from the mountain ; of these, the Naritari, 
 dashing over immense stones in its progress, is the most considerable. 
 In order to ford it we were forced to jump from stone to stone, a feat 
 by no means agreeable or easy, on account of their slipperiness and 
 the depth at which they lie. The vegetation still continues tropical. 
 The Barberry and Pine, which commence here and seem to confer 
 their character on this region, are both abundant.* The harvest was 
 just over. The day's journey was six kos, which occupied us five 
 hours. 
 
 Tuesday, Nov. 10. — Thermometer, 42°, 72°, 64°. From yester- 
 day's station, I had dispatched a letter to the Raja of Rajawar, request- 
 ing that six horses might be sent to convey my tent to that place. 
 The night was bitterly cold, and my tent was pitched on the heights of 
 Safedar, in a very unprotected situation, where the wind had full 
 liberty to pierce every cranny. In the morning it was covered with a 
 white hoar frost. From a rising ground by the way, we had a fine 
 
 • If the isothermal lines which determine the vegetation of any region, depended 
 absolutely on latitude alone, we might understand the purport of such expres- 
 sions as the above ; certain plants indicating a determinate absolute degree of eleva- 
 tion above the level of the ocean, taken at the rate of 300 feet for each degree of 
 latitude ; but, as these isothermal lines depend on a variety of ch-cumstances which 
 modify the temperature throughout all parts of the earth, the existence of any 
 vegetation must always be considered in connection with such complicated natural 
 system, or as well established pomts through which the isothermal curves might be 
 traced. — Ed.
 
 VICrSSITUDES OF FORTLNR. 83 
 
 view of the Bimber valley which we were soon to descend. We were 
 met by the horses which I had applied for, and their leader informed 
 me that the Raja himself was only four miles ofiF. By Moradpoor we 
 came to that ancient road by which the Emperors of Dehli went 
 from Lahor to Kashmir, and of which Bernier gives so entertaining a 
 description. Moradpoor was one of the resting-places on the route, 
 and under the Moghul rule was a place of some note, but the Serai is 
 now a very unpicturesque ruin, its narrow rooms are converted into 
 stables, and a fine clump of trees is all that remains of the garden. 
 It is five miles from Rajawar. I had just quitted the village when 
 a party of men rode up to me, and requested that I would there 
 await the Raja's arrival. The idea of standing still at this spot, under 
 a hot sun, was not very agreeable, but politeness demanded the sacri- 
 fice of comfort ; so, taking my glass, I soon espied a gaily accoutred 
 cavalcade engaged in sporting ; as soon as the partridges were on 
 the wing, they threw after them their large sparrow-hawks, but in 
 such a direction that they could hardly have shot the game with- 
 out wounding their hawks likewise ; the gun is, therefore, rarely 
 used: they did not take more than half-a-dozen. The Raja of Rajawar 
 is an extremely prepossessing and honest- looking man. Surrounded 
 by his little court, he received me standing, and I, having alighted also, 
 took his hand. On declining the offer of his horse or elephant, we 
 took our way together to the town, he on his horse, I in my own 
 favourite conveyance. My new friend was evidently very well in- 
 formed, and had a good and fitting answer to give to every question. 
 Originally a Sikh, he had now gone over to the Mohammedan creed, and 
 had acquired Rajawar since the expulsion and imprisonment of the 
 restless Raja Agur Khan, who was seized by Gulab Singh, during the 
 second and fortunate expedition of Ranjit Singh into Kashmir in 
 May, 1320. For this service he received Jamu as a jaghir. The 
 present Raja Sultan Khan was formerly Raja of Bimber, and in 1812, 
 joined the other Mohammedan princes against Ranjit, but they were 
 subdued, and he spent seven years in captivity at Lahor. Ranjit 
 Singh thought that his acquaintance with Kashmir might be useful to 
 his army on his second march, and Sultan Khan being set at liberty, 
 
 G 2
 
 84 
 
 CHARACTERISTIC TRAITS. 
 
 performed services which gained for him, on the return of the expedi- 
 tion, the jaghir or fief of Rajawar. 
 
 The Raja led me into the once beautiful, but now ruined garden, 
 where the Emperors used to rest on their progresses. Its chief orna- 
 ments now are the plane trees, two of which measure between five and 
 six feet in diameter near the ground. There is a fine view from one of 
 the ruined aqueducts over the river and the town, which is protected by 
 walls and towers, and surrounded on all sides with hills. The Raja 
 pointed out to my notice, with great pride, a high point, which is dis- 
 tant about five kos, called Azimgurh, as a very strong fort. After 
 leaving me alone for half-an-hour, which he spent in the garden, he 
 returned to my little tent, where there was but one chair, which he 
 would not accept. After a mutual series of complimentary apologies, 
 we concluded by starting forth again, and seating ourselves on a stone 
 balustrade overlooking the Tohi. I informed him, through the 
 Munshi, that I proposed to return his visit, but he replied, that if I 
 came to his Durbar he should make me a present in money, and that, 
 as he had been informed of my refusal to accept such gifts, he pre- 
 ferred rather to decline receiving me than to endure the affront of 
 seeing his ofi'ering rejected. He stayed the whole day in the garden, 
 and ordered his servants to bring me flowers, fish, and fruit : a sheep 
 and several fowls were, moreover, liberally furnished for the wants of 
 my followers. In the evening he came again, and I assured him that, on 
 mv return from Kashmir, I must disregard his wishes, and pay him a 
 long visit, at all hazards. 
 
 About Rajawar tropical plants are still seen, as, the Cotton and 
 Banana, but the climate is much changed. Snow storms are frequent 
 in January, and the snow often lies two whole days on the ground. The 
 country is generally flat and uninteresting, but there is a torment for 
 every traveller, whether on foot or horseback, or other conveyance : 
 the Ziziphus or Jujube thorn, tears everything to pieces, and renders 
 the journey to Rajawar extremely troublesome and tedious. The thorns 
 of the plant are so curved that when they catch hold of anything 
 it is no easy matter to get clear of them, the damage they occasion 
 both to clothes and skin is by no means trifling.
 
 INDIGENOUS VEGETATION. 85 
 
 I travelled this day about seven kos in five hours. Unluckily, I 
 found ray cook one of the most quarrelsome fellows that I had 
 met with ; notwithstanding the softness of his name, Gulab Khan, or 
 rose-water lord, none of the Musselmans could agree with him, and 
 there was no end to his disputes and quarrels with the Hindus. After 
 I had heard him vociferating loudly for some time, he came and com- 
 plained that he had not time to prepare my curry, and that he was 
 over-worked, his labour consisting of the preparation of my dinner, for 
 the khidmatgär always got the breakfast and tea ready. I soon turned 
 him out of the tent, with an order never to let me see his face or hear 
 his voice again. By the time I had forgotten all about this, Jwali, the 
 most active and useful of my chaprasis, ran in, took off his badge of 
 office, laid it on the table, and declared that he had been too much 
 insulted to feel justified in bearing such a mark of my confidence 
 any longer. I then perceived that his hand was bleeding, and it turned 
 out that in a sore fight, the cook, Gulab Singh, had bitten the hand of 
 the Chaprasi, Jwali Singh, who, on this occasion, had not maintained 
 the honor of his name of \)ciQ fiery lion. I was, therefore, obliged to 
 send the former about his business forthwith, and took on myself the 
 office of doctor to the injured Jwali, whose wound, however, was of 
 no material importance. 
 
 Wednesday, Nov. 11. — Thermometer, 48°. 70°, 59°. Before my 
 departure I took another view of the garden, and admired anew the 
 large Plane trees,* a Plum and Magnolia Champaka, before which were 
 lying, in this Mohammedan garden, some Hindu images ; large rose- 
 bushes, bearing the rosa-semperflorens; Indian crysanthemums, white 
 and yellow, and a number of white jonquils with yellow cups, filled the 
 
 " The Platanus Orieutalis, or plane tree, the Chindr of Persia, has a very 
 extensive geographical range from this elevated region westerly ; and is admirably 
 characterised by its derivative TrXarvy, ample, significant of its palmate leaves, its 
 spreading branches, and shady foliage, the pale green colour of which last contrasts 
 beautifully with the silver bark of its lofty stem. Its value in a hot climate has 
 been appreciated by those who looked no higher, to the beneficent goodness of the 
 Creator, and in this favoured spot, the plane tree attained, under the fostering 
 attention of royalty, to the greatest age and perfection. — Ed.
 
 86 ASIATIC FIELD SPORTS. 
 
 whole garden with their sweet perfume. The road lay along the Tohi, 
 which rushes over rocks and stones, to Thana, a place about twelve 
 miles off. The valley of the Tohi, to judge from its situation, ought to 
 be very delightful ; as it opens to the mountains on the south, and 
 seemingly cultivated ; yet it is not so, the hills, to a great height, are 
 cut into terraces and converted into rice fields, but wherever irrigation 
 is impracticable, the whole country is overrun with briars and wild 
 shrubs. Two of these last, and a very remarkable creeping plant 
 were new to me, the others were all natives of the Himalaya. I am 
 indebted to this day's journey for a large collection of seeds. It is 
 curious to observe the gradual change from the vegetation of the 
 tropics to that of the north, as we approach in that direction. At Berode, 
 the son of the Raja of Rajawar was waiting to receive me, under a group 
 of splendid lime and chesnut trees. The small distance between Ra- 
 jawar and Berode made so great a difference in climate, that these trees, 
 belonging to a northern region, were now substituted for the Magnolia 
 and the Banana. The son was shooting also, and I thought it probable, 
 with the view of having a present to offer me, in the shape of game. 
 To meet a person with a gift is the highest courtesy an Indian can 
 show, and both father and son availed themselves of the pretext of 
 shooting, to do me this honor, without in the least derogating from 
 their own dignity. Falcons were the destroyers employed. Curious 
 to follow the tactics of these little birds of prey, I accompanied the 
 party on their way. They sat as tamely as possible on the sportsman's 
 hand, their feet being fastened together, as in our country, with a 
 silken lace which was held tight, and on each foot was a little bell 
 which betrayed its presence, if the sportsman was not alert in taking it 
 off as he slipped his bird. The falcon usually catches the prey 
 instantly, and seats himself on the ground with it ; but a fine black 
 partridge baffled its pursuer for a long time. At length it was brought 
 to me alive and little injured. I reached Thana before nightfall. 
 The ruined Serai is tenanted by a little colony of Kashmirians. 
 
 Thursday, Nov. 12. — Thermometer, 44°, G0°, 49°. I have traduced 
 nature in this part. As we journeyed northwards to-day she assumed 
 again a richer attire. The majestic form of the mighty trees, tinged
 
 PASS OF RATAN PANJAL. 87 
 
 with the most splendid tints of autumn, reminded me forcibly of the 
 forests of my own country, with their garb varying from the golden 
 yellow to the dark deep brown. Between Thana and Perhamgala 
 we scaled the Ratan Panjal, a mountain more than 9000 feet high, 
 following the banks of the Tohi to its source. The road is not in- 
 variably precipitous. From the summit of the Ratan Panjal the view 
 is splendid, stretching over seven mountain ranges, to the great plains 
 of the Panjab. As we ascended, the vegetation around reminded me 
 of Simla and its neighbourhood. I discovered a stunted Vaccinium, 
 a well-known native of the Himalaya, and in the course of the day ob- 
 served two of the Rhodondendron arboreum. But these grow on the 
 south side of the Ratan Panjal, and on the north side of the Himalaya. 
 There is hardly a foot's breadth of level ground near the summit of 
 this mountain, and Ratan Shahi, not forty feet below its highest peak, 
 is a resting place, consisting of three houses and a tower. A party of 
 soldiers belonging to the Maha Raja are stationed in the pass through 
 out the year. Shaded by the finest oaks, limes and chesnuts, unlike 
 those found in European forests, we descended the northern side, 
 taking our downward course over a hard stony path. The larger 
 pines clothe the highest ridge, and blocks of ice, which the noonday's 
 sun had not power to melt, were lying about. The thermometer at 
 this time marked 60°, but the wind blew keenly, and the cold was very 
 piercing. The unmelted piece of ice was abetter thermometer, in fact, 
 than the quicksilver, a phenomenon to be attributed to the extreme 
 rarity and dryness of the air. 
 
 The Perhamgala on which the little town is built consists of two 
 small streams, over which a bridge is thrown. The principal stream is 
 a clear rapid mountain torrent, which has its source fifteen miles from 
 the town, in the Pir Panjal, where there is a tank and place of pilgrim- 
 age; the Damdara flowing thence to Kashmir, and the Perhamgala 
 taking a southward course. 
 
 My tent was pitched about a mile up the stream, close by the ruined 
 Serai ; the road \vas singularly romantic, the mountains closely hemmed 
 together, and towering aloft towards the sky, scarcely admit one beam 
 of sunlight to pierce the deep and narrow dell below. A beautiful water-
 
 88 PECULIARITIES OF ASPECT. 
 
 fall on the right would have attracted many a traveller in Europe from 
 a great distance to admire this so magnificent a scene. 
 
 Friday, November 13, thermometer 40°, 58°, 50°. The Thanadar 
 made his appearance this morning, and demanded my Perwana, or 
 permission to ti-avel, which I had received from the Maha Raja. I 
 found that the man was only doing his duty, and therefore referred him 
 to my Munshi, that the Perwana might be produced. It was in the 
 possession of the Chobdar's servant, and he was still snugly lodged in 
 a house, whence, however, he was quickly summoned. When he did 
 come forth, I ordered him to take care in future that he produced the 
 Maha Raja's permit whenever it was necessary, that I might not be 
 importuned by such inquiries ; and the man assured me that he had 
 done so the preceding day. The Thanadar then came in for his share, 
 and he was asked what he meant by such impertinence. He could only 
 answer that he was entitled to ask a certain sum from any one who 
 went by this mountain pass, and that he hoped I would not refuse to 
 give the accustomed toll. I desired him to be told that he had chosen 
 a wrong method of asking for a present, and that he might turn his 
 back on my tent as soon as possible. 
 
 The snow, which often lies to the depth of a hundred feet at Per- 
 hamgala, occasions the place to be entirely abandoned during winter. 
 The road continued to wind down to the valley, which is still closely 
 hemmed in by vast overhanging mountains, and is so low that the pre- 
 sence of daylight is in some places almost unknown. Strange to say, 
 the south side of this valley is everywhere wild and dreary, while fine 
 trees grow up to the very summit of the mountain on the north face. 
 The reason may possibly be found in the fact, that, on the south side, 
 the repeated action of alternate freezing and thawing destroys every 
 kind of vegetation, except a few grasses. Wherever a little open space 
 is seen in the valley, it is crowded with chesnut trees of enormous size 
 in which troops of large white monkeys with black faces have taken up 
 their abode; these live on the fruits as they ripen. The chesnut, oak 
 and holly, the pine and the fir, are the only natives of this region. 
 The trunk of the first, which is very unlike the European tree, some- 
 times measures as much as six or seven feet in diameter. When
 
 EARLY ASSOCIATIONS. 89 
 
 the tree is old, the bark peels off in a remarkable way, and stands 
 away from the trunk, in pieces, at a distance of two feet; the outer 
 shell of the fruit has no excrescence. On one spot I saw a tuft of 
 the gigantic lily, and robbed it of as many seeds and bulbs as I could 
 get possession of from the steep rock in which it grew. One stalk 
 measured nine feet, and had six seed capsules. The Shikari was by 
 far the most active of my attendants in climbing the declivities; 
 and as this lily grew on a slippery soil, which gave way under the 
 feet, there was some little difficulty in obtaining it. When he had 
 succeeded, the next feat was to slit off a part of the stem in an oblique 
 direction, which he then formed into a musical instrument, on which 
 he played after the manner of the shepherds of Switzerland and the 
 Tyrol. This rustic pipe is much in fashion among the Himalayan 
 shepherds also. Early recollections made the sound of this wild music 
 so charming to me, that my attendants imagined they could do no better 
 than provide themselves each with a similar instrument; but the dis- 
 cord that ensued was so terrible, that I was obliged at length to put a 
 stop to their trials, not one of them understanding how to draw one 
 proper sound from the reed except the Shikari. 
 
 The pretty village of Dobran is three kos distant from Perham- 
 gala. The women, according to the custom of these mountains, were 
 all on the flat roofs of their cottages, and greeted my arrival with 
 songs. In the valley I was visited by a man, whom I took for a com- 
 mon beggar. I asked him the name of the place ; but misunderstanding 
 me, he told me his own, adding, that he was the Sirdar, or lord of the 
 whole. I made him a present of a rupee, which he thankfully accepted. 
 My next visitors were a large party of monkeys. Two of immense 
 size began fighting together, without taking the slightest notice of us ; 
 and when, I tried to separate them, by throwing stones, they took my 
 mediation very ill, and springing to a rock hard by, amused themselves 
 and us by making the most hideous grimaces. 
 
 Two miles from Dobran, a steep road continued up to the hill on 
 which is the ruined Serai of Poshyan. It is inhabited during the sum- 
 mer by traders in provisions, &c., who betake themselves in the winter 
 to Rajawar. The whole range from Ratan Panjal to Pir Panjal
 
 90 ALPINE FORESTS OF ASIA. 
 
 belongs to Gulab Singh. I found my tent spread on the roofs of 
 several houses, the only level place to be found on the mountain, which 
 as far as the eye can reach, is without tree or bush. I arrived at noon, 
 but the sun gave no warmth, and a chilly west wind which at sunset 
 veered round to the east, and blew direct from the snowy mountains, 
 made the air piercingly cold. 
 
 Saturday, Nov. 14. — It was late when the servants crept out of the 
 
 houses, and I was obliged to have a fire lighted to dispel the chill which 
 
 I also suffered. The thermometer, in a southern aspect, was 50°, at 
 
 7 o'clock ; at one it fell to 45° in the mountains. The day's march 
 
 however, was of much interest ; at every step the vegetation seemed to 
 
 dwindle, until we attained the region of perpetual snow, when it 
 
 disappeared altogether. This was on the north side of the mountain ; on 
 
 the south flank immense naked rocks towered one above the other, in 
 
 whose deep clefts the snow was piled up. The gradual transition from 
 
 the vegetation of South Germany, the chesnut, lime, ilex, elm, and alder, 
 
 to that of Norway, with its stunted firs and birches, as all we met with 
 
 here, differing however in form from the productions of Europe, gave 
 
 room to much and most interesting observation and reflection. My 
 
 company of followers were often forced to quit the straight road and 
 
 follow the devious paths in every direction, that I might satisfy my 
 
 strong desire to possess some plant, insect, or stone. My booty in 
 
 new plants and seeds exceeded my expectation, and the autumn had 
 
 even spared a few rare flowers. Among the firs on the north side of 
 
 the mountain I espied a Daphne, at least so I judge from the bud, and a 
 
 little further on, a Vaccinium, much resembling our own; and, still 
 
 onwards, on the other side of a ravine amid some birches, a new shrub 
 
 like the Rhododendron, whose branches were mostly bent earthwards 
 
 by the snow. Its hardy appearance, however, convinces me that it 
 
 would flourish in our cold climates. With infinite fatigue and trouble 
 
 I reached a clump, but could find neither bud nor seed, and returned 
 
 quite exhausted to the road. Later in the day I perceived a second 
 
 and larger group, growing on a steep place on the opposite side of the 
 
 ravine, and I promised to give a couple of rupees to the man who 
 
 first brought me some of the seeds. In an instant they were all rush-
 
 REWARDS NOT ALWAYS EFFECTIVE. 91 
 
 ing down the precipice, without heed or precaution, springing from 
 rock to rock, until I trembled to look after them ; the steep bank was 
 soon gained. My glass showed me that they were breaking off all 
 the branches at hazard, but they were gone too far for my voice to 
 reach them, and I could only hope that by good luck they might bring 
 me one slip, at least, on which a fruit might be found. On their 
 return a small wood was laid before me, but not what I wished, and I 
 retained the rupees, thinking we might be more fortunate presently. 
 With the Rhododendron was intermingled the Elm, and a species of the 
 Evonymus, or spindle tree, both with trunks lying along the earth, and 
 sometimes reaching to a length of forty feet. The Juniper is the 
 highest bush found on the north flank of the mountain ; the Barberry 
 and Currant on the south. The snow, which had been falling for a 
 fortnight, prevented me from searching for anything higher. Clay 
 and mica schist are found on the west side of the Pir Panjal up to its 
 summit, and single pieces of hornblende are lying about, as thouo-h 
 some way-worn traveller had cast them down, unable to endure the 
 trouble of bearing them along. The ascent is dreadfully steep. With 
 a volume of Bernier in my hand, I gazed around and recalled in ima- 
 gination the time when the gorgeous suite of the Emperor of Dehli 
 clambered up these perilous and difficult paths. In many parts 
 the soil is so loose and crumbling, as to afford no safe footing ; and 
 large masses falling from above, block up the usual road, and force the 
 traveller to find out a new one as he best can. It seems to me im- 
 possible that elephants could ever tread such a pass, not so much on 
 account of their unwieldy size, for they climb steep places with incre- 
 dible facility ; but that their weight is so enormous, and I find in Bernier 
 an account of a number of elephants which were precipitated into the 
 depths below, as they proceeded with the Zenana on their backs. A 
 small tower is built on the highest point, where a party of the Maha 
 Raja's troops are stationed throughout the year ; and hard by is the 
 grave of a Mohammedan fakir, named Pir Panjal, from whom the 
 mountain takes its name. There is a fine prospect in the direction of 
 the Panjab, and the eye stretching over unnumbered ranges of hills, 
 loses all further view in the dimmer and warmer atmosphere of the
 
 92 DISTANT MOUNTAINS OF TIBET, 
 
 south. A little further on, we passed into a gorge of the mountain. 
 On the north, or right side, was a vast wall of snow above us. The 
 south was a naked rock ; in vain I essayed to catch one glimpse of the 
 long-looked-for valley, the limits of my wanderings in Asia in this 
 direction. Towards the east stretched a barren plain, through which 
 flows the Damdam, a river now partly frozen ; and in many spots were 
 deep holes, evidently dug by bears; I saw none of these animals, but 
 their traces were very perceptible. One creature we saw climbing up 
 the naked rock, which I imagine must have been a leopard : it was nearly 
 white, with a long tail, and of large size. Finally, after another 
 hour of toilsome way, my anxious eye descried the huge moun- 
 tain masses of Tibet, beyond the valley of Kashmir, their highest 
 peaks, Mer and Ser being plainly visible. I saw them but for an 
 instant, a turn of the road again hid them from my view, but never 
 rose any more proudly than they, with their two pyramids, the one 
 black, the other white, close to one another, and apparently of the same 
 altitude. The valley itself could not be seen from any point. 
 
 It seems natural to all nations to experience more or less of fear in 
 passing over these wild mountains. After my Indians and Kashmirians 
 had all prayed at the tomb of Pir Panjal the devotee, they sacrificed 
 some cowries and muscle shells to his namesake the mountain ; these 
 represent the smallest Indian money : the bearers also asked me for 
 some little present, as a thank-offering for my safe conveyance through 
 the dangerous mountain pass. Alihabad Sei*ai, or, as it is usually 
 called, Padshahi Serai, is completely hemmed in on every side by high 
 snowy mountains, and is the only abode kept up for the reception of 
 travellers in this part. The desolate tract between Rajawar and Kashmir 
 is so thinly inhabited that, if it were not for this station, which is oc- 
 cupied by a corporal and a few sepoys, who are not relieved until they 
 have passed several years in this wilderness, travellers would, indeed, 
 be sadly off. In October, they lay in their winter stock of provisions^ 
 wood, &c.; at the end of November the snow storms begin, and from 
 that time the men do not even venture into the yard, where the snow 
 remains piled up for months. My little tent was pitched in the middle 
 of this yard, and the cold was certainly most piercing. I wrote and
 
 LEGEND OF THE PIR PANJAL. 93 
 
 amused myself with my map until my benumbed fingers refused to serve 
 me any lont;er. At six in the evening the thermometer fell to 39". 
 
 Sunday, Nov. 15.— Thermometer 4S°, 52°, 46°. The night was 
 dreadful. My poor Indians kept up a chorus of coughs, and some of 
 the stoutest, instead of sleeping, sat up all night round a large fire, and 
 tried to while away the cold by singing. In vain I courted sleep under 
 my thick coverlets. In spite of the fatigues I had undergone, I could 
 not close my eyes, and that painful feeling that generally accompanies 
 want of sleep, brought before me, sad and sweet recollections as if 
 from a past world, of all that 1 had felt and endured in this. How wea- 
 risome such nights appear ! With the dawn my mind became more 
 tranquillized ; images of the future, and hopes all full of home, dis- 
 pelled the troubles and fancies brought on by cold and fatigue. 
 
 From this military post to Hirpoor, the distance is ten long kos,* 
 over the steep side of the Fir Panjal. The road first took us through 
 a deep ravine ; and then, just as I expected to get at last a glimpse of 
 the valley, came another hill, and another. We skirted, for some time, 
 a wall of rock, which was built as a safeguard, by order of Shah Jehan. 
 The superstitious inhabitants of these parts have a tale concerning Ali 
 Merdan Khan, the builder of this wall, and of all the Serais between 
 Lahor and Kashmir. According to this fable, as the architect mar- 
 shalled his workmen along the road, he came suddenly to a tower, which 
 they one and all refused to pass, because a man-eater called Lai Gulam 
 dwelt there, who was accustomed from the tower to seize upon the 
 passengers, as they stole one by one along the narrow path, and hurl 
 them down the precipice, when he devoured them at leisure. The 
 brave Ali Merdan Khan went into the tower first, but Lai Gulam had 
 just quitted it. He found his son there, however, whom he instantly 
 hurled down the precipice. Since that time, nothing more has been 
 
 • The kos of the Hindus, strictly speaking, is about 13,000 feet, or 2 miles, 5 
 furlon"s, 153 yards. The Mohammedans having introduced the itmerary measures 
 of their various native countries, we have a great variety of such measures to which 
 the Hindu term kos is mdiseriminately applied— and this accounts in some measure 
 for the discrepancies between the statements furnished by Hindus and Mohamme- 
 dans. The Mohammedan kos may be taken at 35 to the degree.— ^rf.
 
 94 MOUNTAIN SCENERY. 
 
 heard of Lai Gularn, and the remembrance of the murders he com- 
 mitted is gradually dying away, but the tower still bears his name, and 
 was certainly a fit place for the dwelling of a robber. That the Pir 
 Panjal has ever been dangerous enough, without the needless addition 
 of cannibals, is shown by the countless skeletons of horses and oxen, 
 and the whitened human bones, which remain, melancholy evidences of 
 the fate which has overtaken many a wanderer in these terrific passes. 
 The sudden transition from great heat to excessive cold, had brought a 
 fever on many of my servants ; and as there was no better physician 
 at hand, and I had often seen the beneficial efi'ects of calomel in similar 
 cases, I gave them doses of twelve to fifteen grains on this occasion. 
 Poor fellows ! it was with the utmost difiiculty that they could pursue 
 their way, laden as they necessarily were ; they were forced to lie down 
 for awhile at the top of every level spot, from sheer exhaustion. I would 
 gladly have thrown away a part of my baggage, if that would have 
 availed them ; but they had loaded themselves very absurdly with a 
 weight, on their own account, at least twice as great as what they 
 carried for me. 
 
 Four kos from the Padshahi Serai, we arrived at the picturesque 
 fortress of Inganali Kilah ; two branches of the Damdam river unite 
 here, and the mountain sinking abruptly to a hill, discloses also two 
 detached towers defending the entrance of the mountain, which towards 
 the north, from the right bank of the stream, might be easily mastered. 
 At all other points, it may safely be deemed impregnable. The Serai 
 now in a ruined state, from the frequent falling masses, which have 
 destroyed the former approaches, lies at the base of the mountain, and 
 near the river. 
 
 From this ruin we again directed our steps to the highest of the 
 towers we had previously observed, which is perched 1000 feet above 
 it. The valley of the Damdam was on the route, enriched with beau- 
 tiful firs, pines, &c., and giving somewhat the appearance of a park to 
 the various points where these little forests have long grown and flou- 
 rished, far from all human dwellings. Here nature seems to have 
 reigned perfectly free and uncontrolled by the ingenuity of man, since 
 its first creation. I strolled into the forest for some time ; and, lost in
 
 MISTAKEN DEVOTEDNESS. 95 
 
 the interest of such a scene, gazed untired on the myriads of strange 
 birds which were flying about in this oasis ; and the large squirrels, which 
 were merrily bounding from branch to branch. How much of life, of 
 happy life too, was there in this lonely spot ! 
 
 Hirpoor was a miserable place, over which towers the snowy head of 
 the Pir Panjal. The Thanadar came to see me; but I could procure 
 nothing for my servants, although I tried, by every means, to restore 
 their wasted strength by more generous nourishment, and diligently, 
 though in vain, enquired for a sheep. Hirpoor lies in the mountains, 
 and in an elevated situation ; but from no point is Kashmir discernible, 
 and amid the continued and devious hill ranges, one can only now and 
 then distinguish the outline of the high chain of Tibet. 
 
 In the course of the evening, a fakir, almost naked, crawled to 
 my tent door, and began to sing. The weather had become so bitterly 
 cold, that, wrapped up in vests and shawls as I was, I could not hold a 
 pen in my fingers. Compassionating his wretched appearance, I 
 ordered the servants to give him a rupee, and to bid him shelter himself 
 where he liked, or at least to take as a gift one of ray blankets ; but no, 
 his vow bound him to add nothing to his present scanty garb. His 
 voice was remarkably fine ; and in his song, which was all in praise 
 and honour of God, were mingled wishes for my happiness and peace. 
 He kept me awake till the night was far gone ; and when I awoke in the 
 morning, there was the singer still, his voice only hoarser than before. 
 If I had pitied the poor fakir yesterday, how could I help admiring, 
 at the same time, the firm devotedness, the deep conviction, however 
 mistaken, that he was expiating worldly sins, by this endurance of 
 pain and destitution. 
 
 Monday, November 16, thermometer 20°, 48°, 52°. I had erro- 
 neously anticipated that, on turning ray back on Pir Panjal, I had 
 passed the limit of extremest cold. I suffered much from it this morn- 
 ing, and my uneasiness increased, when I considered that as Hirpoor 
 could not be more than 500 feet higher than Kashmir, the cold there 
 must also have robbed nature of her loveliest charms. At sunrise the 
 fakir ceased, and my people began a chorus of complaints. The 
 water-bearer did not know what he should do, his leathern sack was
 
 96 NOVEL IMPRESSIONS. 
 
 turned into stone, and not a drop of water could he squeeze out ; the 
 khidmatgar brought me a broken bottle, in which the water had frozen 
 hard, as something which he thought as new and strange to me, as it 
 was to him ; and the bearer who attended to my toilet, after he had 
 got water from the river, did not understand what use he could make of 
 it, everything being hard as iron ; gradually, however, the novelty of 
 the sight diverted their minds from these grievances, and a sparkling 
 fire helped to cheer them still more. The cold of northern Europe 
 had never swollen my face and lips as now ; and that we might all have 
 as much rest, and as little travelling as possible, I limited the day's 
 journey to Chupayan, which is not more than seven miles further. 
 Our route was over another hill, to the narrow valley of the Damdam. 
 Everywhere I was reminded of the great difference between the 
 poverty of a warm climate, and of a cold one. Where the heaven is 
 cloudless, and the temperature high or moderate, the very first want of 
 life, warmth, renders misery, if painful, at least endurable ; but when 
 man cannot protect himself against the pitiless climate he inhabits, and 
 wants, at the same time, every proper necessary of life, then indeed is 
 poverty terrible. 
 
 Just before reaching Chupayan, we passed two houses belonging to 
 Pirs, Mohammedan saints, which are surrounded by large plane trees, 
 and decorated with the beautiful iris. I was curious to find in this 
 part the forms of many of our European plants, without recognising 
 anywhere the same exact species.* Except the red clover, the blue 
 chicory and the sweet scented violet, I could gather nothing which 
 grows in Germany. Apples were plentiful, and of many sorts, but 
 neither were they what we cultivate. Gi'afting or improving their trees 
 in any way seems unpractised among them, probably unknown ; hence 
 propagation by layers or offsets is their only means of increasing the 
 
 • In examining the various species of plants on the Nilgiri Mountains of Coim- 
 batoor and Malabar, in company with the Rev. Bernard Schraid in 1833, I was 
 often led to remark the same singular anomaly in some one or other circumstance 
 of about 350 different plants, in their general characters closely resembling their 
 congeners of Europe. The altitude of Dodabetta is 8750 feet above the sea, and 
 the table land about 7300 feet on an average, the latitude between 11° and 12° 
 north. — Ed.
 
 ORtENTAL SIMPI-rCITY. 97 
 
 species. Two small villages preceded the larger one, which cannot be 
 said to lie in the plain, although the declivity is very slight. I sent to the 
 Thanadar for a sheep, which he provided, with an entreaty that I would 
 not allow it to be killed on this day, which was holy ; as it was for my 
 attendants I suffered them to do as they pleased with it ; and they obeyed 
 the request, depriving themselves of the animal food they really stood 
 in need of. Leprosy, which I had seen continually in the Himalaya 
 mountains, and on my route hither, seemed to disappear in the valleys. 
 
 The wind was so piercing, that we were forced to quicken our pace, 
 to keep ourselves from suffering dreadfully from its effects. The sky 
 was clear, with the exception of one little cloud, which seemed to take 
 its stand, seemingly to hide the sun from us until the afternoon, when it 
 had sunk too low to afford us any warmth. In the evening, a change 
 of weather came on ; clouds obscured the sky, and the cold abated. 
 
 Tuesday, 1 7th, thermometer 36°, 52°, 47° . The bed of the Dam- 
 dam at this place is not much less than a mile in width ; but at the 
 present season is a shallow stream, certainly not more than a foot 
 deep, and flows in the middle of the channel. Large stones fill up the 
 bed of the watercourse, on which the drought of last season has fa- 
 voured the growth of a luxuriant vegetation. It was my wish to reach 
 Kanakpoor to-day, and though rain in the morning had somewhat 
 retarded our journey, there was still plenty of time before us; but, at 
 the distance of a few miles. I was met by the Thanadar of Ramu. Our 
 road traversed a beautiful country ; two fine mosques, now in ruins» 
 indicated its former prosperity. His welcome consisted of two de- 
 licious pears, and a few rupees, the first of which I accepted most will- 
 ingly, the latter I declined. He confidently assured me I should do 
 well to spend the night at Ramu, where I should find all that I could 
 require, instead of proceeding to Kanakpoor, where I might solicit in 
 vain, even for water. I took his advice accordingly. Ramii is situated 
 at the foot of a hill, whence they told me that the city of Kashmir or 
 Srinagur, the first being the Mohammedan, the last the ancient Hindu 
 name, was plainly discernible. In anxious expectancy to catch a glimpse 
 of the goal of my long journey, I climbed to the top, but saw nothing 
 
 H
 
 98 APPROACH TO THE CAPITAL. 
 
 but smoke and dust. In the evening I was visited by Mirza Abdui 
 Rahim from Kashmir, a native of Turkestan, who, as my Munshi in- 
 formed me, had been a teacher in the Gymnasium at Agra. His glitter- 
 ing dress and green turban designated a descendant of the prophet, and 
 his first act was to offer me half a dozen rupees, which I touched, ac- 
 cording to custom, and then returned. He next gave me a letter written 
 by Mr. Vigne, an Englishman, who had extended his Asiatic travels as 
 far as Kashmir, to certify that he was an agent of the East India 
 Company. I was surprised that Captain Wade should neither have 
 spoken nor written to me about him, but doubted not Mr. Vignes 
 authority, and accordingly treated him with great distinction, tha» is, 
 I allowed him to take a chair. As he intended to spend the night 
 here, and accompany me to Kashmir on the morrow, I made arrange- 
 ments that he should share my smaller tent with the Munshi. 
 Meanwhile, no less a personage than the Kazi, or Mohammedan judge, 
 made his appearance, to salute me in the Viceroy's name ; but ere he 
 uttered a syllable, forth came a handful of rupees, which, on ray de- 
 clining, he distributed among my people. I was much pleased with his 
 manners, although I did not think fit to take his advice, which was, that 
 I should divide the ten kos which lay between me and the capital, into 
 two days' journey. My bearers, who were all well lodged and pro- 
 vided for by the Thanadar, at first refused to go all the way to Srin- 
 agur in one day; but they, who in the heart of desolate mountains 
 mio-ht have laid down the law with impunity, when they reach well- 
 peopled regions, are forced to yield their will to their master's, unless 
 they wish to quit his service. Wednesday, November 18. — For two 
 miles our path led over gentle hills, whence there was a lovely view of 
 the valley beneath, about five or six miles across and beyond it, to the 
 mountains of Tibet. We passed the ruins of the Serai of Känak- 
 poor ; and thence, winding over another hill, we came to the banks of 
 the Dudh Ganga, ornamented with villages and rice fields, amid which 
 grew the plane and poplar tree, with many others, bearing rich fruits. 
 All round, and as far as the eye could reach, the land appeared highly 
 cultivated and populous. A little way further, a body of soldiers was sent
 
 ARRIVAL AT KASHMIR. 99 
 
 to escort me ; these, with my own suite, and that of the Kazi, formed a 
 considerable, and to me, a most incommodious party, for the dust they 
 raised in the loose soil was perfectly suftocating. 
 
 There is nothing in the approach to Kashmir to remind the tra- 
 veller of the vicinity of a place of note ; the Takht-i-Suliman and fort 
 being the most prominent features. We followed the windings of the 
 Dudh Ganga, and were in Kashmir before we were aware of it. Fine 
 avenues of plane and poplar are the first signs of the former beauty 
 of this favourite and lovely abode of the splendid Moghul emperors ; and 
 then comes the square, where the soldiers of Ranjit Singh practised 
 those European tactics which gained him possession of his large 
 dominions. Two of his regiments, disciplined by Europeans, are 
 stationed here ; their uniform consisted of a red jacket, with yellow 
 facings, and blue trousers and turban, blue being the favourite Sikh 
 colour. The subalterns wear white turbans. The whole would have had 
 an excellent effect, the men being evidently carefully selected for height 
 and carriage, if their fine dresses had not been in so ragged a condition. 
 The muskets are made after the English fashion, and manufactured in 
 Lahor. 
 
 At the same moment that I reached the eastern suburb of the city 
 of Kashmir, near Shaherghur, the viceroy's palace, I saw him coming 
 out at the gates, attended by a numerous retinue, and approaching the 
 spot where I was. The Kazi pointed him out and requested me to stand 
 still till he came up. I was so covered with dust, however, that a 
 basin of water would then have been the most desirable of earthly conve- 
 niences. I therefore insisted on the bearers proceeding. From the left 
 bank of the Jelam, we crossed a bridge erected over a canal, and, 
 passing through a great portion of the filthy ruinous suburbs we came 
 at length to the house which had been allotted for my abode. The 
 exterior, dismal and unclean as it appeared, was anything but satis- 
 factory ; however, I made no remark, but proceeded to take a fuller 
 survey of that part which some of my servants had occupied since 
 the preceding evening. Approaching a lower window, therefore, I 
 discovered that I was a lodger in the second floor of a house elevated 
 far above the river, which it overlooked. The Jelam, at this spot, 
 
 H 2
 
 100 THE traveller's RECEPTION. 
 
 forcibly reminded me of the Arno at Florence, but is much deeper 
 and remarkably still : it winds most picturesquely through the city, 
 and was covered with boats of various form and fashion. 
 
 Exactly opposite, on the left shore, within a walled inclosure, was 
 that quarter of the city containing the residence of the viceroy, and the 
 several retainers of the court, civil and military. The principal en- 
 trance to the viceroy's palace is from the shore, whence a broad flight 
 of wooden stairs leads to a terrace and pavilion, adorned with curiously 
 carved woods. I next visited every part of my new dwelling, which, instead 
 of the spacious clean palace I had too readily anticipated, was filthy in 
 the extreme, and divided into a great number of small mean rooms. It 
 was not in the nature of things that I could fail to express my discon- 
 tent at such a place ; I, therefore, inquired, whether I could not find a 
 garden, in which I might pitch my tent. I recollected the Dilawar 
 Khan Bägh, where Jacquemont and Mr. Vigne had taken up their 
 residence ; and as the wishes of a European are commands in Kashmir, 
 on making inquiry, whether there was not some place for me there or 
 elsewhere, I was quickly provided with a boat, which conveyed me to 
 the Shah Hamedan Masjid, whence I proceeded on foot to the garden, 
 in which, surrounded by fruit trees, vines, and the beautiful syringa 
 Persica, I observed two little low square buildings, erected by the side 
 of a large sheet of water. One had been already taken by Mr. Vigne. 
 Of the other I took possession, and ordered my tent to be pitched in 
 front of it. While everything was preparing for my reception, I 
 quietly took my seat at the window of my apartment, where I was 
 visited by many of the principal inhabitants. A party of Kashmirian 
 females in boats drew up also beneath the window, and sang me their 
 Woniraun, or song of welcome. The men of this country were hand- 
 some. Let me not be deemed ungallant in asserting that the women, 
 on the contrary, in the plainness of their features, were far inferior 
 to any I had ever before cast eyes on in Asia; their singing, moreover, 
 was little better than a dreadful yell. 
 
 After they had all taken their departure, satisfied with a few courteous 
 expressions and some trifling presents, I sat down to write ; but was 
 interrupted again by the entrance of the Munshi, who came to inform me
 
 RESTLESSNESS OF TALENT. 101 
 
 that a man, most wretchedly clad, without doubt some Englishman, 
 desired to speak with me. On being ushered in, he presented the 
 most whimsical figure I ever beheld. His long red and white face, 
 prominent nose and eyes, with matted red beard, constituted his chief 
 personal peculiarities : his filthy tattered garments were partially 
 arranged according to the Tibetan costume. In the strongest Scottish 
 accent, he begged my pardon, and said he expected to find .Mr. Vigne 
 there. I exclaimed involuntarily, " Who on earth are you?" To which 
 he replied, " You surely must have heard of Dr. Henderson ?" I told 
 hiui I had, and immediately ofiiered my hand, bidding him welcome to 
 clothes, or anything with which I could provide him. Di*. Henderson's 
 character is well known in India. His restless mind could not be satis- 
 fied with the quiet routine of his professional duties. Bent on travelling, 
 he had formed various plans, the most important of which, however, 
 was the publication of newspapers and articles, deprecating the policy 
 of the Indian Government. These he edited in so violent a spirit, 
 that the Commander-in-Chief expressly forbad him, as a Company's 
 officer, having any further connexion with the press. Some months 
 ago, he obtained leave of absence from the station at Ludiana, to 
 travel on foot to Calcutta, a journey of some three or four months. 
 The greater portion of his time was taken up i# wandering from Mandi 
 to Ladäk, to trace the Atok to its source ; after which he hurried back 
 on his way to Calcutta, hoping to arrive there in time to escape the 
 heavy consequences of exceeding his leave of absence. 
 
 Meanwhile the Government had received information that an 
 Englishman in disguise had been seen in the dominions of the inde- 
 pendent hill rajahs. All this I had heard in India. I now learnt from 
 Dr. Henderson, that he arrived in Ladäk at the very time that it was in- 
 vaded by Zerawar Singh*, Gulab Singh's general. The Raja of Ladäk, 
 who was still there, received Henderson very kindly, having soon dis- 
 covered that he was an Englishman, in spite of his Mohammedan garb, 
 and his fictitious name of Ishmael Khan, firmly persuading himself that 
 he had come to ratify the treaty which poor Moorcroft had entered 
 into with him, in the name of the Company. Vainly did Henderson 
 " Zerawar Singh — the Lion of Strength.
 
 102 INSTANCE OF MUTUAL DEPENDENCE. 
 
 protest that he was mistaken, the Raja shewed him the original 
 document. When produced, his astonishment evidently satisfied the 
 Raja, that Henderson was hitherto utterly ignorant of its existence ; 
 and that he had no authority, moreover, to confirm it. Determined, 
 however, to turn the appearance of an Englishman to his own advan- 
 tage, he now refused to suflfer him to quit Ladak; hoping thereby to 
 make the invading general, Zerawar Singh, believe that he was an 
 envoy, sent from the East India Company, with profi"ers of assistance. 
 For three months poor Henderson was detained in durance ; and, on 
 making an effort to escape, was seized, wounded, and re-imprisoned. 
 During this interval, Zerawar Singh's military operations were sus- 
 pended, and he advised Gulab Singh of the supposed envoy's arrival, 
 requesting fresh instructions. Gulab Singh, on his part, applied to the 
 Maha Raja, who, without a moment's delay, addressed the political 
 resident at Ludiana, to ascertain the meaning of such proceeding. 
 
 The resident satisfied Ranjit Singh with an assurance, that Dr. 
 Henderson, the traveller, had passed the Setlej in direct violation of 
 the orders of his Government ; and that there was not the slightest 
 idea of interfering with Ranjit's plans of extending his conquests 
 northwards. Zerawar Singh, after this explanation, was desired to 
 proceed with his operations ; upon which, the Rajah of Ladäk sufi'ered 
 Henderson to depart, and he lost no time in making his way through 
 Iskardu, the smaller state in Tibet, usually marked in our European 
 maps, Balti, to Kashmir, where he had just arrived. Thus did three 
 Europeans meet, two of whom had entered Kashmir, almost at the 
 same hour, from exactly opposite directions. 
 
 Dr. Henderson described Tibet much as I had expected, as a 
 remarkably poor country, except in precious stones and metals. His 
 road led him over vast mountain passes, the highest of which marked 
 188° Fahr, boiling point; but these again were so overtopped by still 
 loftier peaks, that the prospect, even from these stupendous heights, was 
 still very limited. On a journey such as his must have been, escaping 
 from Ladak in disguise, and in constant fear of detection, it is not to 
 be wondered at that he did not go out of his way to visit any of the 
 mountain heights around him. But as he was provided with instru-
 
 TOUCHING RECOLLECTIONS. 103 
 
 tnents, and had some tact for observation, we may confidently trust that 
 ne will be able to give us many valuable particulars on a part of the 
 world so imperfectly known as Tibet. 
 
 My tent being ready, I now took possession of it ; and was most 
 reluctantly compelled to accept from the Kazi the 525 rupees sent me by 
 Ranjit Singh. An important question now arose, whether the Viceroy 
 or I ought to pay the first visit. As I had no intention to stay many days 
 in the city, I simply required his permission to see everything remark- 
 able. I resolved not to run the risk of any delay, but to pay him the 
 first visit on the following morning. Mehan Singh, the present gover- 
 nor, is a general in Ranjit's army, and has been in Kashmir about 
 sixteen months. 
 
 Mirza Ahmed, the Munshi, or rather secretary, of Jacquemont, 
 paid me a visit, and brought the testimonial to his faithful services, 
 which he had received from Jacquemont and General Allard, in whose 
 employ he had formerly been. I could not look upon the well-known 
 writing of poor Jacquemont without deep emotion on this identical spot, 
 in this very garden, in which he had passed so many months. Fondly did 
 he look forward to a futurity of happiness and independence in his own 
 native land. He little dreamed, when he penned those lines, full of health 
 and life, how soon he would be called away. Alas ! how nearly are 
 hopes and dreams allied ! The dawning day disturbs our fairest visions 
 as time swallows up the cherished anticipations of earthly felicity; 
 wishes, perhaps, are never, or so late, fulfilled, that the bitter dis- 
 appointment, the hope long deferred, robs them at length of the power 
 of conferring happiness. I felt, myself, the same longings which ever 
 haunted his mind, without expecting the same fruits from my wander- 
 ings ; and who knows whether the yearning of my heart towards home 
 will ever be gratified ; or, if so, under what circumstances ? 
 
 Mr. Vigne had gone to the mountain behind the city, called the 
 Takht-i-Suliman, to take some sketches. I wrote him a few lines ap- 
 prising him of my arrival to share the garden with him, and invited him 
 to dine with me in the evening. I found him an agreeable companion, 
 of alively, open disposition. This invited intimacy from our first inter- 
 view. He had returned from Iskardu about three weeks snice, and
 
 104 SPIRIT OF RESEARCH AND AMBITION. 
 
 prided himself on having accomplished a journey which Jacquemont 
 described as perilous in the extreme. 
 
 None but a traveller can understand the delight of visiting a coun- 
 try which is scarcely marked on our maps. The interest he feels as 
 he treads on this terra incognita, hoping, perchance, to discover some- 
 thing new at every step ; nay more, the very expectation of coming dan- 
 gers and events tends to exhilarate and occupy his mind : to say nothing 
 of the possibility of his name being handed down with honour to futurity. 
 There are few men without their share of vanity. Some such feeling, 
 it may be, accompanies the lonely traveller through the remote moun- 
 tains and valleys of Tibet, and supports him during months of hardship 
 and solitude, in his labours to effect what others have failed to accomplish. 
 
 Ahmed Shah, the reigning prince of Iskardii, is at present in a situa- 
 tion of some embarrassment. The Sikhs, who within the last forty years 
 have sprung up in the north-west of India from comparative obscurity 
 to command the greater part of the country, are now united under one 
 powerful head, to whom all the petty Mohammedan states are subject. 
 The hill chieftains east, west, and south of Kashmir have become his 
 tributaries, and those who refuse his terms are deprived of their posses- 
 sions without any protracted ceremonials. 
 
 The north is now to be the scene of his triumphs. Ladäk has 
 fallen. Ahmed Shah sees the storm gradually advancing towards him, 
 without any means of opposing it ; he is still preparing himself for the 
 worst. Iskardu had so long been at peace; its poverty seemed to defend 
 it so well against the plunderer ; all its neighbours seemed to consider 
 its territories so worthless, that the people are perfectly defenceless 
 against warlike talent. An alliance with the Company would have 
 gladdened Ahmed Shah, and set his mind at rest. Mr. Vigne's visit 
 at this juncture, was highly acceptable. I know not how far he may 
 have given him some hopes of an alliance with England, which assu- 
 redly never will be entered into, but I am well aware that a confidential 
 servant of Ahmed Shah accompanies Mr. Vigno for the purpose of 
 taking a reply to his application for aid from the Governor-fieneral back 
 to Iskardu. 
 
 Ahmed is not an enemy to be despised even by Ranjit Singh, not-
 
 CONTRARY EFFECTS OF CLIMATE. 105 
 
 withstanding his lack of regular troops, or the poverty and scanty popu- 
 lation of his dominions. His subjects are of a hardy frame, expert in 
 the chase, and would soon acquire dexterity in the use of any weapons 
 necessary for their own defence. Their country is protected by deep 
 ravines and lofty mountains. The troops of Iskardii, unaccustomed to 
 war, which they carry on after the oriental fashion on their own account» 
 would not withstand the well disciplined forces of their enemy, Ranjit 
 Singh, in the open field for a single hour. Well acquainted, however, 
 with the inaccessibility of their mountains, they might bid defiance to 
 an advancing army, nay, destroy it to a man, if only they were resolute. 
 The Sikh soldiery, mostly composed of natives from the plains, are 
 l)roof against the heat of the Panjab, or India, but altogether unfitted to 
 resist the variable climate of a mountainous and northern region, or the 
 fatio-ues inseparable; from warfare carried on amid these rugged scenes. 
 The bad effects experienced by the army of a general marching into 
 India from the north, owing to the difi'erence of climate, would be felt 
 equally, though in another way, by an Indian army in Tibet ; possibly 
 even more, for the climate of India, by exciting a new comer to increased 
 activity, often afi"ects him injuriously ; but the cold climate entirely 
 demoralizes those who dwell near the tropics. The easy conquest of 
 Ladäk by Ranjit Singh's army is no proof of anything to the contrary. 
 The faith of the people of Ladak is Buddhism, while that of Iskardii is 
 that of Mohammed. 
 
 The direction of the rivers prove that Iskardu, l.adtik, and Lassa 
 belong to the Indian side of the mountain chain. The valley of the 
 Atok forms the chief possession of the first and second of these states, 
 and the valleys of the Samper and the Goljao that of Lassa. It is not 
 certain whether the highest mountain chain lies midway, or to the north 
 of these rivers, but the highest table-land is certainly on the other side 
 ot them, and is much farther north than we have hitherto supposed. 
 
 In the evening I received a message of welcome by Samed Shah, the 
 deputy of Mohammed Shah Nakshbandi, a person of great consequence 
 in Kashmir, who is said to feed two hundred poor men daily. He 
 requested permission to visit me. In return, I sent him the letter of 
 introduction which Captain Wade had given me to him. All that I saw 
 during my first day's stay in Kashmir, was the ruins of what once had
 
 106 IMPRESSIONS OF NATURE AND ART. 
 
 been palaces, old dilapidated houses, streets of unexampled filthiness ; 
 a population strictly corresponding with them, a large boat full of old 
 fishwomen, who stunned me with their inharmonious voices when they 
 screamed out their wonimun, or song of welcome, from the canal. 
 
 Such were my first impressions of this long-dreamt-of fairy land ; 
 thence, as I gradually turned my disappointed gaze from the works of 
 man to the glorious mountain scenery above, with their thousand peaks 
 of snowy whiteness, their graceful outlines, the harmony and sweet repose 
 which seemed to characterize the calm, motionless valley ; the contrast 
 between simple, majestic. Nature, and enterprising, ambitious Man, filled 
 my heart with emotions which imprinted the beauties of the first on my 
 memory, and made human works lose every shadow of significance . 
 
 Dr. Henderson and Mr. Vigne were my guests ; T begged them to 
 remain with me during their stay, and thus Hingam, my khansaman, and 
 the two cooks hired at Rajawar, had a fair opportunity of displaying 
 their culinary skill. How delightful it was, after so long an absence, to 
 find myself once again in the society of men, who, although strangers, 
 seemed like dear friends under present circumstances. The Governor had 
 sent me a capital dessert of fresh fruit, grapes, apples, nuts, and pears, all 
 excellent, having in the earlier part of the day most liberally supplied 
 me with sheep, fowls, and other provisions. 
 
 That I might feel the cold less severely, I had ordered my bed to 
 be arranged on the carpet of my tent within the pavilion. Unfor- 
 tunately, this pavilion was constructed for a dwelling place during the 
 great heat of summer ; the walls, to the height of two feet, were 
 composed of the beautiful open lattice wood carving for which Kashmir 
 is so celebrated ; through this the air entered at every crevice, and win- 
 dows were pierced on all the four sides. It is superfluous to state that 
 what is delightful in July is exactly the reverse in November, especially 
 to very thinlv clad travellers. I fell asleep, indeed, from sheer exhaus- 
 tion, but the piercing cold soon chased slumber away, nor could I again 
 close my eyes during that long night. How busy was memory the 
 while, calling back the long past events, and the more recent incidents 
 of my pilgrimage, until positive bodily suffering brought up the account 
 to the present. Reluctantly I acknowledge that my arrival in Kashmir 
 had not afforded me any satisfaction. It had neither contributed to my
 
 THK PROPER KNU OK LIFE. 107 
 
 pleasure nor to my repose. Such, methought, is this chapter of my travels, 
 or rather, of my life. I have attained the object of my desire, compared 
 with which every other has appeared insignificant. Have I been suffi- 
 ciently grateful to God, who has permitted me to reach this place ? How 
 great occasion have I for thankfulness as well as for serious reflection ! 
 Here am I, in the very land presumed to be the loveliest spot of the whole 
 habitable earth, by many considered the terrestrial paradise : — crum- 
 bling ruins attest the instability of human greatness ; everything made 
 by man is in course of destruction, without the accompanying loveliness 
 of decay ; while nature blooms on for ever in the same youth, energy, 
 and life, as heretofore. In that life all is truth, every promise fulfilled, 
 every hope gratified, since Earth is the obedient child of the Allwise 
 Creator. Man is governed, how often ! by his own wayward fancies, his 
 mind tossed to and fro, his fears conflicting with his wishes, nor can the 
 wisest of human philosophers rightly explain or understand what moral 
 truth is. That is a knowledge we must discover in our own hearts, 
 and it will address us with a mighty voice ; let us take heed not to 
 turn a deaf ear to it. It tells us that we were made to be the living 
 temples, not of the world, nor the world's vanities, but of our Father in 
 heaven. Does not every situation of life satisfy us of this fact ? When 
 we can no longer enjoy the pleasures of youth ; when the deceitful views 
 of happiness are abandoned ; when man feels how swiftly years roll over 
 his head, never to return ; when many sorrows have bowed his spirit, 
 does he not turn for consolation and hope to Heaven, and search, what- 
 ever may be his creed, for those promises which religion holds out — 
 retribution, reward, forgiveness, in a happier futurity. Yes ! even they 
 whose objects are limited to earth, its fame and honours, aspire to that 
 which they never can attain there — Immortality ! and fools who raise 
 not their thoughts above this transitory scene, vainly flatter themselves 
 that their memory will live for ever on earth ; these lift up the pyramid, 
 ISesostris-like, destroy one of the world's wonders with an Eratostratus,* 
 or themselves, like Cato. Vain man ! thou forgettest that the ever- 
 
 " In the German text it is erroneously ascribed to Eristothenius. Eratostratus 
 was a native of Ephesus, who burned the celebrated temple of Diana in that city, 
 that he might immortalize his name. A decree was therefore passed by his fellow- 
 citizens, forbidding the mention of his name ; nor, indeed, would it have been handed
 
 108 NECESSITY OF FORETHOUGHT. 
 
 rolling tide of time carries away all thy boasted deeds and works — even 
 thy very name also is soon blotted out and forgotten ! 
 
 Thursday, November 19. How strange is the feeling of finding 
 oneself at a place which it has cost much time and trouble to reach. If 
 it is unconnected with any still more distant object, we have at first a 
 sensation of unnecessary fatigue, which might possibly have been 
 spared ; the only remedy for this is activity, whereupon I began my 
 day with employment of various kinds. In the first place, it was an im- 
 portant matter to ascertain the situation of Kashmir for my map. The 
 quadrant to-day gave 72,4, by the artificial horizon for Dilawar Khan's 
 garden. I neglected the index error, as Dr. Henderson had noted it, 
 my visit precluding my taking any observation with the sextant. I 
 reckoned on seeing everything worthy of observation in the course of 
 four days, at the expiration of which I purposed to take my leave of 
 the city. At ten o'clock the Kazi came to attend me to the pi-esence of 
 the Governor, Mehan Singh. He had brought the state boat, an 
 unshapely afi'air, sixty or seventy feet long, and only six feet wide, 
 manned by thirty rowers. The seat was at the upper end, and covered 
 with a Kashmir shawl, or Pashmina, for by that name articles made 
 from their goats' wool are known here. Mr Vigne and Dr. Henderson 
 wished to accompany me, but by the time the breakfast was over, and 
 we were ready to start, it was noon, and the Kazi told me it was then 
 too late. I was vexed that he had not reminded me of the hour before, 
 and declared my intention of not going at all. The Kazi was horrified: 
 he sent an ofiicer off to inform the General that I was coming, and he 
 was only to be pacified on my consenting to pay my visit on the follow- 
 ing morning ; upon this he overwhelmed me with praises and thanks 
 until he was quite out of breath. The fact was, that Mohan, my little 
 interpreter, who thought a vast deal of my dignity, and was not very 
 careful of his expressions, heard the Kazi say it was too late, and hastily 
 exclaimed, " If I were in my master's place, I would not go to visit any 
 man half so uncivil : he should come to me." The Kazi whispered in 
 his ear, that the Governor, desiring that I should see him in all his 
 
 down to posterity, had not Theopompus casually alluded to it in his writings. The 
 reader is referred to Valerius Maxinius, viii. 14.
 
 INGENUITY OF THE ASIATICS. 
 
 109 
 
 glory, had held a grand levee, or durbar, at ten o'clock, and that the 
 company, after waiting two hours, had been dismissed ; the Governor 
 being accustomed daily, at that hour, to drink two bottles of Kashmir 
 spirits.* When Mohan reported this to me, I most readily deferred 
 presenting myself, not wishing to visit a viceroy and find him in a state 
 of drunken insensibility. 
 
 I took advantage of this afternoon's leisure, and with my new Eu- 
 ropean companions, went to see the famous Lake Dal. It is partly 
 surrounded by a ditch, to prevent its waters mingling with those of the 
 Jelam, and causing an inundation, for the houses near the lake are 
 built on the same level with it. Exactly under the Takht-i-Siiliman is 
 the sluice called Drogshuh, the only outlet of the lake, which flows 
 into the Zand, an arm of the Jelam. A channel which is lined with 
 stone, connects this great river with the lake, and is the only means of 
 getting at the latter, without making a circuit of more than two miles 
 by water from the inhabited part of the town. In olden times, the 
 flood-gate was much nearer to the city, but was removed to the place 
 where it now is, in consequence of the water of the lake dischargmg 
 itself too rapidly from the direction it was allowed to take. A large 
 white stone, lying in the great canal which leads to the Shaliraar Bagh, 
 is of much importance as a mark ; when the water covers it, there is 
 dano-er from the waters of the lake, and the flood-gate is so constructed, 
 that it then shuts of itself. It is about two or three miles from the 
 Dilawar Khan Bagh, under the Takht-i-Suliman. 
 
 • This is the only part of India where wine is made from the juice of the grape, a 
 fact to be attributed rather to its acescent quaUty, than to any scarcity of the fruit. 
 It is described by Forster as resembling that of Madeira: and, with what judgment 
 in such matters we know not, he presumes it would be found to improve greatly in 
 quality by age. To the proper radiation of the heat in this elevated region, and its 
 vicinity to the lofty mountains of Tibet, it may be reasonably concluded, much of 
 the acidity would be found in all the fruits which so greatly adds to their taste and 
 flavour in the temperate climates of the north. As there is a hmit beyond which 
 the vine cannot pass, or rather, where the acid properties exceed the limits neces- 
 sary to the perfection of the fruit, there is also an excess of the saccharine principle 
 in tropical countries, which precludes the application of the fruit to the manufacture 
 of wine. In such instances, the vinous particles are concentrated, and fruit of 
 every kind is fit for spirituous liquor only.
 
 110 MAGNIFICENCE OF THE MOGHULS. 
 
 The lake is divided into several distinct parts. Gagribal, the first 
 and least division, is separated from the rest by a narrow tongue of 
 land : the second, called Ropelang, has a little island in the middle, on 
 which we landed. A building, now levelled to the ground, formerly 
 stood on it, and the regular form of the whole certainly shews that it 
 was the work of human ingenuity. In many parts the lake is shallow 
 enough to allow of similar contrivances. 
 
 There is a charming view of the mountains from the first small 
 lake, and in a semi-circle, a branch of the inferior ridge comes down to 
 the very edge of the stream. High up on the first of these hills, going 
 from the city, stands a very extensive building called Kuliraar, founded 
 by Achan Mullah Shah, the major-domo of the Emperor Jehanghir, as 
 a school for Mohammedans. It was never completed, and is now in 
 ruins. The next prominent object is of interest to every Hindu, being 
 a place of pilgrimage called Kali Sangam, built on an eminence 
 projecting far into the lake. Kali signifies Mack, and Sangam the 
 confluence of two rivers. These spots are always sacred to the Hindus. * 
 With this exception the mountains encircling this lake gradually decrease 
 to a gentle plain, on which villages and pretty gardens have been laid 
 out. There is a beautiful garden in the Ropelang lake, called Nishad 
 Bagh, or Garden of Bliss, made by Jehanghir, after his first visit to 
 Kashmir. The garden is entered by a fine terrace near the shore, 
 leading into an avenue adorned with fountains and basins. Over these 
 are raised small and fanciful buildings on large arches, so as not to 
 shut up the view down the avenue, which is so contrived as to appear 
 much longer than it really is. From the highly ornamented pavilions, 
 the view of the more distant buildings in the back-ground is exceedingly 
 picturesque. The beautiful plane trees are the chief ornaments of this 
 garden at present, which is now almost in other respects, a perfect 
 wilderness. The gardener presented me with a bouquet of the Indian 
 chrysanthemum, yellow, white, and pink, for which he asked me a rupee 
 as an enara or present. Mr. Vigne, who was in this garden during the 
 hot season, found among its tenants a fine hooded snake. 
 
 A wealthy Hindu Pandit once built a causeway from Kashmir to 
 this point, which has naturally much impeded the free course of the
 
 SCENERY OF THE LAKES. Ill 
 
 waters, and only a narrow line was left for our boat to be rowed under 
 a bridge from the Nishad Bägh to the most admired division of the 
 lake, where is the island of Char Chunar. Under this bridge the water 
 is twenty-four feet deep ; in every other part it is but from six to eight 
 feet, allowing the majestic Nelumbium to overspread the whole surface 
 of the lake with its expansive foliage, and rich white and red flowers. 
 
 Arrived in the Char Chunar lake, we were first rowed to the Shali- 
 mar garden, which, with its famous palace, v?as one of the great works 
 of Jehanghir. I do not think he chose the prettiest part of the lake, but 
 the high mountains are here softened down to the plain, and a broad 
 valley afforded more space than elsewhere. A canal half a mile long, 
 but now only capable of admitting a small boat, leads from this lake to 
 the wooden entrance of the building. This entrance has been com- 
 pletely disfigured by the successive Patan Governors, who have erected 
 an ugly flat roof over it, for the convenience of smoking their pipes. 
 According to the style of the period, six inferior buildings, in the midst 
 of an avenue of colossal plane trees, lead, at considerable intervals, to the 
 principal, though not very extensive palace. 
 
 A small building is erected over a spring, the roof of which rests on 
 twelve massive black marble columns. The whole forms a square of 
 twelve fathoms, consisting of two covered walks, or terraces, between 
 which are the halls, having on either side partitions of lattice-work, 
 throuo-h which were to be seen the once ornamented chambers. It is 
 kept in good repair, as the governors of Kashmir have always made it 
 an occasional resort. The garden is 376 paces long and 220 broad. 
 Compared with the Nishad garden, the view from the hall is very poor. 
 The fine planes are beginning to decay from age, and one had already 
 fallen to the earth. The wood of this tree is highly esteemed by the 
 natives of Kashmir, who think it the best for their gun-stocks. I ad- 
 mired likewise the corn-flag and jonquil, the syringa Persica and chrys- 
 anthemum, and a wild plum, which, in the spring, has a flower of deli- 
 cious fragrance. A little hamlet is gradually extending itself to this 
 royal wilderness. 
 
 On quitting the Shalimar garden, we found Mohammed Shah 
 Nakshbandi's boat, and his confidential servant, who presented us with
 
 112 THE ISLAND OF CHAR CHUNAR. 
 
 a repast in the name of his master. It was composed of Rewash, or 
 rhubarb from Kabul, red partridges, grapes, tea of different sorts, &c. 
 This Samed Shah is an amusing character, and often cheated me out of 
 a smile, while he keeps the Mohammedans in an incessant roar of 
 laughter with his wit and buffoonery. 
 
 About a mile and a half from the garden, and near the centre of 
 this division of the lake, the island Char Chunar, celebrated by Bernier 
 and Thomas Moore, rises from the waters, a skilful monument of the 
 reign of the Moghul Emperor, who named it from the four plane ti'ees 
 he planted on the spot : two of them are still standing. It has also its 
 building in the centre, surrounded by a deserted garden, and consists of 
 a single open hall, with a little tower, commanding a fine prospect of 
 the lake. Under one of the plane trees is a water-wheel in perfect pre- 
 servation, made of the incorruptible Himalayan cedar, the invaluable 
 Deodara. It raises the water from the lake to the terrace. Ducks with- 
 out number live in this lake, feeding on the roots of the water caltrop, 
 (trapabispinosa),butitisdifSculttocomewithingun-shotdistanceof them. 
 Formerly, the taking of these creatures afforded a livelihood to numbers 
 of men, but for some reason best known to himself, the present Governor 
 has discountenanced the practice ; his protection of the ducks, however, 
 does not extend to a prohibition of the amusement of Europeans, on the 
 strength of which one of the boatmen produced a matchlock, about 
 fourteen feet long, and begged my permission to take one shot for me. 
 With this I readily complied, and furnished him with some powder and 
 shot. At the first discharge, with a single barrel, he brought down 
 eight ducks. 
 
 We did not fail, while here, to visit the beautiful wood of plane 
 trees, planted by Akbar, called Nazim, or Salubrious, to the number of 
 1200 trees. They are still in fine preservation, although planted more 
 than two hundred years, forming beautiful walks, whose refreshing 
 shade in summer must be delicious. Near this is a large garden, built 
 in successive terraces, but now altogether in ruins. They say that it 
 was the fancy of Nur Begum, the wife of Jehanghir. 
 
 The comino- evening warned us that it was time to return home- 
 wards. At a mile's distance, we passed the Hirne Parvat Mountain,
 
 Ascent of the takht-i-suliman, 113 
 
 which terminates the semi-circle round the lake on the west, as the 
 Takht-i-Suliman does on the east, and soon came to the floating 
 gardens, where on a square of about twenty feet, they raise their 
 melons and cucumbers : the surface of earth is scarcely above that 
 of the water. This circumstance alone would seem fully to prove 
 the fact that a perpetual calm must prevail on the lake. So regular 
 indeed, and so gentle, is the movement of the whole body of water, 
 and so very still is the air of the valley, that no flood is ever likely 
 to visit, and consequently to overwhelm, these little islands. 
 
 In spite of the exertions of our fifty boatmen, the evening overtook 
 us, and a bitterly cold evening it was. In our garden I found it impos- 
 sible, even with the assistance of port and sherry at dinner, to make 
 myself comfortably warm. But I preferred sleeping in my tent rather 
 than passing another night of disturbed rest in the pavilion. 
 
 Friday, November 20, was a great holiday in the Sikh calendar, and 
 the Governor sent an apology for not receiving me to-day; I therefore 
 decided on ascending the Takht-i-Suliman, whence the best view of the 
 city and the valley is to be had. At this spot Mr. Vigne took sketches 
 for a panorama, which will doubtless be offered to public exhibition in 
 Europe. The road to the mountain was over the bridge of the flood- 
 gate called Drogshuh, alluded to yesterday, and led by a quadrangular 
 tower called Makabara, and through a splendid avenue of poplar trees, 
 which for their age and symmetry, from the trunk to the topmost 
 branches, are most striking. The avenue begins with a group of planes 
 on each side, and the whole separated from the town by an arm of 
 the Jelam, is seemingly planted for the sake of its beauty alone, leading 
 neither to building nor garden of any kind. Beneath the tower is a 
 wretched mosque, built of wood, and known as the Drogshuh Masjid, 
 near to which is a miserable village of the same name. Not far from 
 the tower Makabara is Rustamghur, an unfinished residence built by 
 the late governor Shir Singh as a place for the burning of the bodies 
 of deceased Brahmins. Having with great difficulty clambered up the 
 mountain pompously styled the Throne of Solomon, the first object 
 which presented itself was an ancient Buddhist temple (Deval) com- 
 posed of masses of rock, with a curious doorway, evidently of very higli 
 
 I
 
 114 PANORAMIC VIEW OF THE VALLEY. 
 
 antiquity. The temple was, in later times, converted into a mosque ; a 
 Persian inscription, of more modern date, gives no information as to the 
 original temple, but to Solomon is ascribed the honour of being the founder. 
 It is said, moreover, that a very ancient Sanscrit inscription is now buried 
 under ground. At present the Hindus call the temple Shankar Acharya. 
 The massive construction and peculiar form of this edifice render it 
 well worthy of a visit. The mountain, divided from the Tibetan chain 
 to which it evidently belongs, is 1200 feet high; the view from it, over 
 the whole valley of Kashmir, is indeed most truly grand and beautiful. 
 Motionless as a mirror, the lake lies outstretched below, reflecting the 
 vast chain of the Tibetan hills, while the extensive city is seen spreading 
 along its shores ; and the Jelam winds slowly like a serpent through the 
 green valleys, and to complete the scene, the lofty Pir Panjal, with 
 its countless peaks of snow, forms on one side a majestic boundary. 
 
 The Mohammedans have a story of that mountain, which they say 
 derives its name from Panj, five, and Pir, saints ; five pious brothers, 
 according to them, having settled on it and performed several won- 
 drous feats around ; but to me it seems more probable that the name 
 came from Pansal, which, in the Kashmirian language, signifies a pass, 
 and Pir, a devotee. I have before alluded to the tomb of a holy man, 
 which corroborates the probability of this explanation. The Europeans 
 and Persians call the whole mountain Pir Panjal, but the natives 
 restrict this name to the pass. To them mountain chains ofifer nothing 
 remarkable, while the passes leading through them are of some import- 
 ance. So also are isolated mountains, when they serve as land-marks, or 
 are deemed holy as places of pilgrimage. In general they give no 
 name to any other. 
 
 Some high peaks of the Tibetan mountains tower aloft beyond 
 that dark chain observable from the Takht-i-Suliman, and fancy is 
 beguiled to follow their wanderings long after any continuous form has 
 vanished from the observer's eye. Our friend Samcd Shah was already 
 on the hill-top, with a repast for us. In order to animate the scene, 
 Mr. Vigne had desired that he would bring several persons with him ; 
 and he took advantage of their picturesque and original appearance, to 
 transfer them to his intended panorama. The Kashmirians had all
 
 AN EASTERN COURT. 115 
 
 donned their winter jrarments, and wore them with a certain air of 
 vanity, peculiar to Mohammedans ; while the simple costume of the 
 natives of Tibet, the dark complexion, sprightly animated features and 
 movements of my southern Indians, were all strangely contrasted with 
 another group of strangers from the distant country of Yarkand, who 
 might have been taken for natives of the north of Germany, with their 
 fair hair and red cheeks : these were pupils or guests of Mohammed 
 Shah Nakshbandi, and will be mentioned again. The days were so 
 short, that we did not get back by daylight ; the two Englishmen were 
 again my guests, and the evening passed away most agreeably. 
 
 Saturday, November 21. — The Kazi and Abdul Rahim, who gave 
 himself out as the Company's agent in Kashmir, came in the state boat 
 to accompany me in my interview with Mehan Singh. The party con- 
 sisted of the two English gentlemen and myself, the Kazi and Abdul 
 Rahim; the Brahmin Thakilr Das, Mohan Bir, Bahadur Singh, and 
 three of my chaprasis. We were more than half an hour on our 
 way to Shaherger, the viceroy's palace, which owes its name to one of 
 the Moghul governors, who belonged to the Shiah sect, called in Kash- 
 mir, Shaher. The chief entrance to the palace is by a broad flight of 
 wooden steps outside, and the whole of our way was lined with troops. 
 We were received in an open pavilion on the terrace, which may be very 
 delightful in summer, but on a very cold day is quite the reverse. 
 In the centre stood a square platform, surrounded by a lattice of fine 
 wood, worked like Brussels lace, in which Mehan Singh was seated in 
 an arm chair. The number of his attendants was considerable ; and in 
 an outer circle stood his body guard, very richly dressed in red and 
 gold, with red silk sashes ; most of them wore a black heron's plume, 
 called in Kashmir a kalga, in their low turbans. 
 
 Mehan Singh came forward himself to receive me, and conducted 
 me to the place appointed for me. He has a thickset unwieldy figure ; 
 and, though still in the prime of life, his dissolute way of living has 
 given him the appearance of an old man : his hair was white as silver. 
 To judge by his countenance, one would pronounce him goodnatured 
 and kind ; but, in many respects, he is not the Governor required in the 
 present critical state of Kashmir. The long undipped beard announces 
 
 1 2
 
 116 DISPLAY OF EASTERN COURTESY. 
 
 him to bo a Sikh ; and his thick lips and but half-opened eyes, indeed 
 every feature, shew him to be an Epicurean in the strictest sense of the 
 word. On this occasion he was wrapped in a yellow silk robe, his 
 head-dress consisting of a simple white handkerchief. On the ground, 
 to his right, sat many of the Mohammedan Rajas, from the Baramula 
 and Mazafferabad mountains, tributaries of Ranjit Singh. One of 
 every family is detained as a hostage in Kashmir, and from time to 
 time, they are obliged to bring large gifts to the Governor, otherwise 
 their tribute is raised : their present condition is mainly owing to their 
 former habits of independence, which made it necessary for Ranjit 
 Singh to lead his troops against their hill fastnesses. The poor princes, 
 coming from warmer regions, were evidently freezing in their Indian 
 garb ; and their eyes sparkled with indignation, at the degradation of 
 sitting at our feet, particularly when Mehan Singh, proud no doubt at 
 showing me the humbled position of half a dozen princes, pointed out 
 each one to me by name. He gave me to understand, with many 
 exaggerated compliments, that the Mahä Rajah had desired my stay in 
 Kashmir to be rendered as agreeable to me as possible, and that I had but 
 to express a wish to make it as effective as a command. In reply to such 
 fine speeches, I said that the advanced season would not permit of my 
 makino- a long stay in Kashmir, that I perceived in what good hands the 
 government of the valley was placed, and had only to request permission 
 to visit Islamabad, a city at the south-east extremity of Kashmir, and 
 to wander about the valley at pleasure. The Governor assured me in 
 return, that I was master of all my actions, and that his permission was 
 altogether unnecessary. 
 
 Besides the princes already alluded to, there were no persons of 
 consideration at this Durbar ; in fact the country is so completely sub- 
 jugated, that the natives, except a few traders in shawls, are nothing 
 better than so many beggars. When the proper time for such visits had 
 elapsed, I took my leave, being accompanied by Mehan Singh to the 
 head of the flight of stairs. 
 
 I spent the rest of the day in exploring the city ; and, among the 
 things most deserving of remark, I visited the seven bridges which 
 span the Jelam, at once the most enduring and the most dangerous I
 
 PUBLIC BUILDINGS IN KASHMIR. 117 
 
 ever saw. The date of their construction and the material are evidences 
 of the first quality, their appearance and the experience of every 
 passenger sufficiently attest the last. The piers are composed of large 
 cedar trees, fifteen or twenty feet long and three feet in diameter, 
 which are placed one over the other, in the form of a funeral pile, while 
 large lime trees, the seeds having been carried to the place by birds, 
 grow from this foundation, and shadow a part of the bridge. The 
 cross-beams on which one treads are everywhere in a condition to afford 
 an excellent view of the river beneath ; and huts and booths have been 
 thrown up, at different periods, on this slippery ground, although no- 
 thing is clearer than that one storm would involve houses, bridges, 
 trees, and piles in one common overthrow. A storm, however, or even 
 a wind of any great violence, is a thing altogether unknown in Kashmir. 
 
 These bridges were found already laid across the river by the 
 Mohammedans, which gives them an antiquity of at least 500 years. 
 Since the dominion of the last Hindu sovereign, or, more correctly, 
 of the last queen of Kashmir, Rani Kotadevi, which, according to 
 the Ayin Akbari, terminated in 13G4, the last partial restoration was 
 undertaken by the governor Ali Merdan Khan, in the reign of the 
 Emperor Jehanghir. The Shah Hamedan Musjid is a modern-looking 
 building, the prototype of every mosque in Kashmir, and if not ex- 
 actly resembling a Chinese temple, is certainly unlike Indian architec- 
 ture in general, though some of the same form may be occasionally 
 seen in the British Himalaya. It is nearly square, and within, the roof 
 is supported by slender pillars. Without, and about half way up the 
 wall, are balconies, ornamented with finely carved wood and small 
 columns. The roof of the temple projects over the outer walls and is 
 finished at the four corners with hanging bells ; while, on the summit, 
 which rises in a pyramidal form, is a golden ball, instead of the Mo- 
 hammedan crescent. This form is common throughout the valley of 
 Kashmir, from the simplest village temple, to the richly ornamented 
 mosque of the capital. This, as well as all the mosques of Kashmir, 
 is built of cedar. 
 
 The fine stone steps, which in every Hindu city load down to the 
 river, are in Kashmir wilhout any extensive ornament ; but I remarked
 
 118 CHARACTERISTIC INCIDENTS. 
 
 one novelty in the river in this city, viz., large wooden cages, for I 
 know no more fitting name for them, which stood in great numbers 
 close to the shore, for the convenience of the female bathers. The 
 Jelam is also covered with boats of every size, which gives a pleasant 
 stirring appearance to the whole city. The numerous canals on the 
 right shore of the river, on the left there is but one, have no commu- 
 nication with it, although so close, except through the Drogshuh gate ; 
 and hence, from the Dilawer Khan Bagh to the Shah Hamedan 
 mosque, the first being on the great canal, and the last on the Jelam, 
 we were 1^ hour going by water, the distance by land being only a few 
 hundred feet. 
 
 Mr. Vigne had left his sketch-book in the Dilawer Khan Bagh, and 
 was obliged to send one of the men back for it ; but, in order that we might 
 not lose any time, he waited in his boat while we were rowed to the 
 mosque of Nur Jehan Begum, which is called the new, or Naya masjid, 
 and is opposite the one before mentioned. It is unfinished, built of 
 white marble in the best Indo-Mohammedan taste, and is now used as 
 a magazine. Just as Dr. Henderson and I turned from our inspection 
 of it, Mr. Vigne arrived, and with his customary eagerness of move- 
 ment sprang from his seat towards us. The next moment he had 
 fallen into the river. A cry of terror burst from the crowd of assem- 
 bled natives on the shore ; the boats were all pushed quickly to his aid, 
 and his own boatmen hastened towards the spot. But he was an excel- 
 lent swimmer ; and although the cramp seized him for a moment, as he 
 fell into the water, the temperature of which was at the freezing point, 
 he soon recovered himself; and, to the astonishment of the Kashmirians, 
 who are quite ignorant of the art, he continued swimming about to 
 warm himself before he re-entered the boat. His progress home- 
 wards, however, was not very pleasant to him after this accident. 
 
 Dr. Henderson and I, acorapanied by a very inquisitive crowd, then 
 proceeded to the mosque, where Seynul-ab-ud-Din lies buried. This 
 second Mohammedan king, or the eighth, according to Abul-Fazl, is 
 worthy, above all others, of a monument to his memory. It was he 
 who first introduced the love of art into the valley of Kashmir : he 
 caused the people to be instructed in that of making glass ; and
 
 RELIGIOUS EDIFICES. 119 
 
 bringing weavers from Turkisthan, ho had them taught the weaving of 
 wool from the goats of Tibet, into the shawls since that time so cele- 
 brated. The natives have now forgotten his real name, and only 
 remember him as the Badsha or Emperor. The mosque is near to an 
 ancient ruinous Buddhist temple, Wihare, the remains of which are 
 still lying about : a few ornaments, at the door and entrance in the 
 courtyard, shew something of what it once was. The interior is dark 
 and devoid of all pretensions to ornament. Several Mohammedan 
 graves stand in the court around it; and from the appearance of the 
 tombstones I should judge that some inscriptions of interest might be 
 found ; but my visit was too hasty to permit any examination into their 
 merits. I was told by a Mullah that Moorcroft lay buried here ; but 
 after a long search, I came to a stately marble slab, with a Persian 
 inscription, stating that the servant of that unfortunate traveller lay 
 beneath. 
 
 At some distance from this is the Jama Masjid. It is a pity that 
 it is now in a ruinous condition, having once been a beautiful edifice 
 built of cedar, so far back as the time of their own native princes. It 
 forms a large square, each side measuring sixty -three fathoms, and in the 
 centre is an open space with a small building upon it. The roof is 
 supported by large columns, hewn out of a single piece, and with a florid 
 capital and base. The small building in the centre of the court is open 
 on all sides and raised a step. In other mosques a tank for ablution is 
 usually placed in such spots. On my observing that the mosque was not 
 built due east and west, the guides produced from a heart-shaped silver 
 and black enamelled box, a modern needle, which points out the Kibla 
 to them, when they pray, or direction of Mecca. Being ignorant of the 
 fact that Mecca does not lie due west of Kashmir, their needle is worth 
 nothing. 
 
 We passed through dirty streets, interminable bazars, and over two 
 canals, to the fort on the Harni Parvat. We observed several large build- 
 ings on our route, tenanted in ancient times by the courtiers of the Moghul 
 Emperors, and Kabul Sovereigns, but, with some few solitary exceptions, 
 where these have been replaced by shawl manufactories, the dwellings 
 are deserted, louelv ruins. At the foot of Harni Parvat the great
 
 120 IMPORTANCE ATTACHED TO FORTS. 
 
 Akbar built another city, which he named Nagarnagar, and inclosed it 
 with strong walls and towers. It was about three miles from Shaher- 
 ghur; the remains, dilapidated as they are, cover a vast extent of what 
 was always considered the loveliest part of the valley. Blocks of stone 
 and large columns, brought from the more ancient temples of Kashmir, 
 lie in desolate grandeur around. A beautiful mosque, built by Achan 
 Mullah Shah, deserves to be mentioned, particularly on account of the 
 finely wrought black marble and stone lavished upon it. The gates are 
 made of one single stone, and polished like a mirror, but the wanton 
 love of destruction during latter wars has torn some out of their places, 
 and others lie perishing on the earth. 
 
 There are but two ways of entering this ruined city, viz : by a little 
 doorway under the walls, just high and wide enough to admit the pas- 
 sage of a short thin man, or through a lofty strong gate. Not a 
 living soul lives in Nagarnagar, but my numerous suite peered into 
 every ruined palace and dilapidated mosque and enlivened them 
 strangely for the time. The picturesque grouping and romantic cos- 
 tume, seen through the fallen ruins, would have been a sight for a 
 painter. Mr.Vigne rejoined our party, and Mohammed Shah, having 
 guessed our purpose, had despatched provisions after us. The fort 
 on the Harni Parvat called Ki Maram, is garrisoned by Sikh troops, 
 but as we drew near it we were challenged by the guard and ordered 
 not to proceed any farther, nor to attempt to ascend the heights. 
 It is built on the perpendicular rock and commands the entire city : 
 it might be rendered unassailable but for the total want of water on 
 the mountain. The fortress was built under the Patans by the Gover- 
 nor Ali Mohammed Khan, when he renounced the authority of Kabul. 
 The Kashmirians and Sikhs presume a great deal on this fort; and even 
 in its present state, it would be a most arduous undertaking to assail it, 
 as the position of the valley ought to preclude the possibility of advance 
 to artillery. On my way homewards I paid a visit to one of the shawl 
 manufactories ; and was conducted through one of the most wretched 
 abodes that my imagination could well picture. In a room at the top of 
 the house, sat sixteen menhuddledtogother at their work, which at this time 
 was shewn to me as a Dushala, or long shawl, valued at three thousand
 
 MANUFACTURES OF KASHMIR. 121 
 
 rupees the pair. I made several inquiries as to the nature and extent 
 of their trade, but the master seemed ill disposed to gratify my curiosity. 
 However difficult it may be to arrive at the truth in India, it is still 
 more so here, though for a very different reason. The Indian always 
 accommodates his answer to the supposed pleasure of the inquirer : the 
 Kashmirian is trained to practise the art of concealment, which naturally 
 leads to falsehood, on every occasion. The workmen handled the 
 threads with a rapidity which surprised me, moving their heads conti- 
 nually the while. Tuey work in winter in a room which is never 
 heated, lest dust or smoke might injure the material. Generally speak- 
 ing, their features are highly intellectual and animated. 
 
 My next visit was to an armourer, the most celebrated in Kashmir. 
 As this is a trade in wliich they are believed to excel, I was disappointed 
 at finding nothing in a sufficiently forward state for my inspection. 
 The appearance of the armourer himself was most venerable ; he 
 reminded me of the days of chivalry, when the trade he followed was so 
 honoured in all lands. With more real politeness than I had met with 
 for a long time, he prayed me to be seated, and brought me several half 
 finished muskets and pistols, an Indian matchlock, and some poignards, 
 all elaborately ornamented. Nothing could be much worse than the im- 
 plements he worked with ; particularly his bellows, which consisted of 
 a little box of wood, that forced the wind in, as well as out. 
 
 The late dinner of which we three Europeans partook in my tent 
 was better than usually falls to the lot of travellers in Kashmir. It 
 consisted of hare soup, fresh salmon, roasted partridges, and a ham 
 from the wild boar of the Himalaya. The catalogue reminds me of a 
 circumstance relating to the adventures of Henderson. He had gra- 
 dually lost all his baggage and horses in his wanderings, and entered 
 Kashmir on foot as a beggar. Latterly, ere he quitted Tibet, the 
 guide given him by Ahmed Shah deserted him ; the mountain paths 
 were all equally strange, and he lost his way, as might be expected. 
 For two days he and his servant lived on chepatis, or thin cakes of 
 unleavened bread, and as he sat at the well furnished table this evening, 
 and ate of the soup, the salniou, and the ehatni, a favourite I'elish in
 
 122 A TRUE TRAVELLER. 
 
 India, consisting of a variety of hot and acid condiments, he sud- 
 denly exclaimed, " Oh ! Chatni, the greatest misfortune that befell 
 me, was when I found my stock of thee exhausted : " this being the 
 only food which has become an absolute necessity to him since his long 
 residence in India. As I was asking some particulars about the Gilpo, 
 or king of Ladäk, he went on pouring the hot sauce into his plate until 
 it covered the salmon like soup, and engrossed in the subject, he laid his 
 fork on the table, and taking up the spoon, drank it all without altering 
 a muscle of his countenance. I was apprehensive that he would feel 
 some bad effect from such an accompaniment to a salmon, for such a 
 perversion of taste must surely prove utterly destructive to the stomach, 
 but Dr. Henderson was made for a traveller, never caring about the 
 wants of the body, and never failing in activity either from hunger or 
 difficulty of any kind, it is all the same to him where he sleeps, or what 
 he eats or wears. He never wants water to wash with, and his skin is 
 now proof against the attacks of the fiercest insects. These last peculiari- 
 ties prevented me from offering him a bed, or any part of my tent, but 
 a pair of Kashmir coverlets, which I afterwards gave away, and a part 
 of the ground floor of my pavilion, were very acceptable to him, so 
 that we were mutually pleased. 
 
 I have omitted a few words on Shaherghur, which dei'ives its name, 
 according to the best authorities, not from Shaher, City, or Shir, 
 Lion, but from Shiah, the Persian sect of Mohammedans. The palace 
 was built by Amir Khan Jehan, and was called Narsing-ghur by the 
 Sikhs. It is nominally a walled fort, but altogether unfitted for de- 
 fence, yet as it has been the residence of the Mohammedan Viceroys 
 for the last hundred years, 1 expected to find much to interest me 
 within, and was strangely disappointed : the japan work and carved 
 wood, with small compartments filled up with the mirrors of Kashmir, 
 or the specular stones of Bengal, being the objects of chief curiosity 
 and ornament. Not far from this is Chinar Serai, the last on the road 
 from Bimber here, built for the convenience of the Emperors. Their 
 zenanas rested here for the night on the way from India, proceeding on 
 tile following morning by boats to the Nishad Bagh or the Shalimar.
 
 iMII.ITARY FORCE OF KASHMIR. 123 
 
 The most ancient of the imperial dwelling places was Nagarnagar ; 
 Jehanghir, who was very frequently in Kashmir, first built Nishad 
 Bagh, and subsequently, the Shalimar. 
 
 Sunday, November 22. The Sikh garrison of the valley consists 
 at present of two regiments of infantry, of some twelve or fourteen hun- 
 dred men. The Governor assured me that he had been charged by 
 Ranjit Singh to raise two regiments in addition to these, in Kashmir, 
 but could not succeed, and I am sure that even Mehan Singh must 
 be sensible how impossible such an attempt would be. The Patans, who 
 had 20,000 soldiers in Kashmir at one time, vainly endeavoured to 
 discipline the natives. They admit their inability, like the Arab of 
 Egypt, and we may easily credit them. Soldiers in India receive three 
 times as much as any workman would earn by his labour, while here 
 and in Egypt their pay is on the same footing as in Europe, their fatigues 
 and wounds being rewarded only by honour. Abul-Fazl relates, that, 
 in 1594, the fortieth year of Akbar's reign, the number of troops in 
 Kashmir was small, being 4892 cavalry, and 92,400 infantry. We 
 must observe, however, that he comprises in this the whole Subah, a 
 great part of which belongs to Afghanistan. At present, the two regi- 
 ments are quite sufficient for all purposes. The people are most patient 
 and inoffensive ; from the north and east there is not the least dano-er 
 of attack ; their only enemies, the petty princes of the Mohammedan 
 states in the mountains, being compelled to give hostages for their good 
 behaviour. Moreover, Kashmir has lost all its charms as a desirable 
 acquisition ; though it may still be made an important and valuable pro- 
 vince. Its riches are all departed, and invaders, such as those ad- 
 verted to, go in quest of wealth rather than new and productive territo- 
 ries. 
 
 At early dawn I broke up my little encampment, preparatory to my 
 excursion to the eastern part of the valley. Three boats were in readi- 
 ness ; one for Dr. Henderson and myself, a second for the guard of 
 honour appointed to attend me, and a third for the Munshi Mirza 
 Ahud. My personal suite was limited to the cooks, a chaprasi, a 
 bearer, Mohan Bir, and the gardener. In the morning an officer paid 
 mo a visit, with information that Kanjit Singh had desired him to give
 
 124 TORTUOUS COURSE OF THE JELAM. 
 
 an account of my journey in the Akbar, or Gazette : in other words, 
 to act as a spy upon me, and to send a detailed narrative of my proceed- 
 ings to Lahor. As he knew nothing of writing, he requested me 
 to allow his pandit, or secretary, to attend me, to which I was obliged to 
 reply in the aflSrmative, determined that the pandit should not take the 
 journey for nothing. 
 
 We started in the afternoon, and, to avoid the long circuit which the 
 boats must necessarily take, owing to the windings of the Jelam about 
 the city, I ordered mine to take me from the canal at the bottom of the 
 garden, and sent the horses to the bridge over the Drogshuh canal. 
 For the first time, I saw that this canal empties itself into an arm of 
 the Jelam, called Zand, and that the majestic alley of poplars men- 
 tioned above is on an island. Any point may be reached on foot in 
 a third of the time that a boat can go by water, owing to its many 
 turns, and as I wished to see everything on the way, I desired that 
 they would proceed as fast as possible, while I took the earliest oppor- 
 tunity of mounting my trusty little nag. 
 
 We followed the route along the inferior ridge of the Tibet Pan- 
 sahl, which, even here, is piled up in huge masses, thrown one over the 
 other. Having passed the Takht-i-Suliman, we soon came to a deep 
 tank, in the middle of which is a small but complete Buddhist temple, 
 called Pandritan. It can only be reached in a boat. This tank, which 
 the natives believe to be unfathomable, may be about six hundred feet 
 in diameter, and the temple itself certainly not more than twenty-five 
 feet square. Some well preserved Buddhist figures are in the interior, 
 but I did not then get into a boat to examine it, as the evening was 
 drawing on. 
 
 From this point we entered the plain. A stone bridge formerly 
 crossed the Jelam at Chok, but, some time back, it fell in. There are 
 many springs in this neighbourhood, all strongly impregnated with iron 
 and sulphur, and which have a temperature something higher than that 
 of the air, at least, during this season of the year. I found the warmest 
 at 70° Fahrenheit, and it seemed as though every frog in Kashmir had 
 found its way to this spot; the whole place literally swarmed with 
 them. The mineral contained in these springs causes them to be over-
 
 ORIENTAL NEWS WRITERS. 125 
 
 laid with a yellow pigment, of a beautiful golden tint. A numerous 
 collection of the smaller Crustacea, larvae of flies, and tiny fish, were all 
 of a similar hue, and were moving about busily in the warm water. I 
 had also opportunities of sport, for the birds, foxes, and jackals were in 
 great abundance, notwithstanding which, I had leisure to be impatient 
 for the return of the boat. Pamper, the destination for this evening, is 
 five kos by water, by land two and a half. Several times I went down 
 to the river side, to inquire if the boats were not in sight, but as I was 
 fated to be disappointed, I decided on going on to Pamper at once, and 
 in order that everything might be prepared for us there, I sent off the 
 Pandit, my spy, or rather shadow, during the whole day, to announce 
 ray approach. 
 
 A mile from Pamper, on a steep place, several huge stones lay 
 about, the remains of a ruined temple. On a closer inspection, I ob- 
 served that the limestone of which they were composed had muscle 
 shells embedded in it, in a state of petrifaction. The first stroke I gave 
 broke my hammer, and I was obliged to send to Pamper for another. 
 It was brought by the Pandit, who looked anxiously at me while I 
 broke off a piece, and put it carefully away ; he then went up to the 
 stone, to see what could possibly have been my object, the result of his 
 observations being an ominous shake of the head, and a speedy record 
 of my misdeeds in his note book. He had a hard day's labour to fol- 
 low me as 1 hunted and fished, botanized, or pursued my geological 
 researches, stopped every passer-by with some inquiry, and put all sorts 
 of interrogatories both to him and Mirza Ahud. I had determined not 
 to spare him, and therefore told him all the nonsense I could think of, 
 very gravely, so that his report of my acts and deeds must have been 
 worth looking over. Above all, the Akbar in India was treated most 
 loyally. The spy, or agent, was continually asking what would be 
 agreeable to have introduced into his account, and, on taking leave, 
 received a present, as a testimony that his behaviour had given satisfac- 
 tion. Pamper is a place of importance, chiefly owing to the saffron 
 which is cultivated in its environs. The fields are laid out with singu- 
 lar care. I made every inquiry into the system of agriculture, and the 
 value of the plant itself. On entering the town, I was received by the
 
 126 RANJiT Singh's liberality. 
 
 proprietor of a large, though scarcely finished house, where I was to 
 lodge, on the first floor of which was a chimney, and a fire without 
 smoke. Chimneys in Kashmir are common enough, but they all smoke 
 so abominably, that no one can breathe in the room, unless he seat 
 himself on the ground. This Pamper fire-place allowed me to work 
 at my table without risk of sufi"ocation, a comfort which made my even- 
 ing pass away delightfully. The real wants of life are very few, but 
 the discomforts of my present journey may be guessed at by the delight 
 I felt here in a bad room, with a tolerable fire, which did not inconve- 
 nience me with smoke. The master of the house brought me some 
 delicious fruit, and not only gave me every information respecting their 
 mode of planting and cultivating, but presented me with a packet of 
 seeds. I found Mirza Ahud also a most useful and intelligent com- 
 panion. He was General Allard's Munshi, and was lent by that gen- 
 tleman to Jacquemont. For his services to him, Ranjit Singh rewarded 
 him, after Jacquemont had quitted the Panjab, with a village in Kash- 
 mir, his native country, which brings him in about a rupee a day. Cer- 
 tainly, this fact is a proof of Ranjit Singh's willingness to give all faci- 
 lity to European travellers through his dominions. I was so warm and 
 comfortable here, that I did not feel inclined to give over my writing 
 and drawing and go to bed until one o'clock. 
 
 Monday, November 23. A thick mist hung over the valley, and 
 scarcely suff"ered me to see half a mile around, and although the sun's 
 rays shone dimly through this troubled atmosphere, and lent to it a 
 warm, yellowish hue, the air was bitterly cold. I left my quarters early, 
 however, much refreshed by the slumbers of the past night, with many 
 regrets on quitting a house which was the most comfortable I had 
 entered for a very long time. Had time permitted it, I should certainly 
 have remained for some days. 
 
 Near Pamper is a bridge over the Jelam, under which we passed. 
 It is built on the same plan as those in the capital. It was so very cold 
 in the boat, that we got out at last, and tried to warm ourselves by 
 walking. Tokena, the end of our day's journey, is ten kos from Pam- 
 per by water, and five by land. We took our breakfast on the banks 
 of the river, and then mounted our horses to visit the former capital of
 
 RUINS OF AN ANCIENT CITY. 127 
 
 Kashmir, Ventipoor. Two falling Buddhist temples are the most inte- 
 resting of the ruins ; the first called Vencadati Devi, is now nearly level 
 with the earth ; the smaller one, called Ventimadati, is still in tolerable 
 preservation. Among the ruins I caught sight of a fox, and as Jwali, 
 who ran in pursuit of it, was soon at fault, I rode forward myself, in 
 hopes of catching it. My horse carried me up a hill, where I gazed 
 in admiration on the labours of centuries back. Up to a considerable 
 height, this hill was cut out in the form of terraces, each presenting a 
 small level surface for cultivation, and these again were supported by 
 walls of immense strength. We must refer a work so stupendous to a 
 time when the population was so vast as to require every slip of land to 
 be made productive, for its support. Now, if we consider that, on ac- 
 count of this redundant population, very little, if any, rice was allowed 
 to be exported, and that, at a time comparatively recent, 800,000 people 
 dwelt in this valley, we shall not greatly err, probably, if we say that 
 when Ventipoor flourished, three millions of people inhabited Kashmir. 
 Vainly I wandered through what remained of the city, to find some 
 monument, pillar, or statue, to remind me of Ventipoor : there was not 
 a trace of former greatness, except the two ruins I have before alluded 
 to. The city was built, according to tradition, by Ven, one of the last 
 Hindu Rajas, the hero of many a native song and legend. They relate 
 of him, that his gentle heart could not endure the thought of accepting 
 either money or work from his people ; and that he lived on his own 
 private inheritance, and distributed all his treasures among the poor. 
 When he had spent all his fortune, he gained his living by making and 
 selling earthen pots, while his wives sold goods in the open market. 
 There is another tradition, which will not bear the light of a too severe 
 criticism; that is, that this Raja Ven, whose name, by the by, is not 
 mentioned in the Raja Taringini, received a letter from the Prophet 
 Mohammed, enjoining his conversion. This letter is said to have been 
 received in the fourth century of the Hegira ; but there is no explana- 
 tion given where it had been so long concealed. Raja Ven, a true 
 worshipper of Siva, is said to have been so indignant at this requisition 
 to change his religion, that he went on a pilgrimage to Gubukar, on the
 
 128 KASHMIIUANS AND SIKHS. 
 
 Gaoribäl lake, and there threw the letter of Mohammed into a well. 
 A mosque was afterwards built on the spot, and it is still a favourite 
 resort of pious Musselmen. Zain-ul-ab-ud-Din led the first Moham- 
 medans into the valley, in the fifteenth century of our era, during 
 the reio"n of Raja Ven. His successor, Raja Ratan, used to converse, 
 it seems, with this Zain-ul-ab-ud-Din, and he told him he would 
 willingly turn Moslem, but did not know how to begin ; whereupon, 
 Zain prayed for him very earnestly, and a noted saint, Bulbul Shah, 
 flew over from Baghdad in a night, and converted not only the Raja, 
 who assumed the name of Ratan Shah, but brought over all his subjects 
 to the Mohammedan faith on the following morning. It is hardly 
 necessary to state, that there is no foundation whatever for this tale in 
 history. 
 
 On a charming height, before which the winding Jelara forms a deep 
 hollow, like a haven, stands a mosque, built by Hassan Man, the son 
 of the first Mohammedan king of Kashmir, Zain-ul-ab-ud-Din ; and 
 adjoining it, is the house in which he lived as a fakir. It is still called 
 Baba Hassan Man Takiä: Baba signifying an endeared object; Takiä, 
 an abode, or sepulchre. 
 
 As I continued to pursue my way on foot and alone, my people 
 having stayed to rest a little, I met a Kashmirian, driving a fellow- 
 countryman before him. The poor fellow stopped every now and then ; 
 and, in a pitiful tone, besought the other's compassion, but his entreaties 
 were only answered by blows. I inquired what was the cause of the 
 quarrel, but could not make out what they said ; however, when Mirza 
 Ahud joined me, I learnt that the suppliant was a thief ; the other, the 
 owner of the stolen goods, who had just apprehended him. The truth 
 being made known, the delinquent waited very humbly to hear what 
 punishment I should decree. Meanwhile, some Sikh soldiers overtook 
 us : the efi'ect was instantaneous : the aggrieved party now stoutly 
 maintained that he had nothing to complain of, the thief put his arn 
 within that of his accuser, and in this amicable manner they hastih 
 walked away together. Mirza Ahud explained to me, that a Kash- 
 mirian would put up with any wrong, rather than seek redress from his
 
 DISADVANTAGES OF DECEPTION. 129 
 
 Sikh masters, as he is invariably obliged to pay the judge a high price 
 for his decision, without the slightest prospect of recovering his lost 
 property. 
 
 Dr. Henderson had changed his Tibetan costume for that of 
 Kashmir ; and, if not very magnificent, it was at least clean. On this 
 same road, I met a man with eight horses well laden, and a servant ; 
 and having asked him whence he came, I learnt that he was a wool- 
 merchant, and had travelled with much labour from Ladak, through 
 deep snow, for eighteen days. I knew that Henderson, who was hoping 
 to see his baggage and two horses arrive by the same route, would be 
 much interested in this news ; and at first was tempted to wait for him 
 and introduce the merchant, but I feared that I should be detained 
 some time, and was sure likewise that the travelling party could not fail 
 lo attract his notice. Accordingly when we met, I expected to hear that 
 he had received even fuller information than myself; but, on the contrary, 
 found out that the merchant had pretended to be from Islamabad, 
 travelling with apples. Henderson was greatly annoyed when he knew 
 the truth ; and I mention this, as a proof that it is not always to our 
 advantage to assume the native dress. In this case, the merchant was 
 afraid that the Kashmirian, as he supposed him to be, would demand 
 some money from him ; he therefore told a falsehood, which it was 
 not necessary to impose on me, a foreigner. 
 
 It was dark when we came to the Jelam, where the boats were to 
 carry us over to Tokena, our halting-place ; and though the road was 
 well known to Mirza Ahud and the Kashmirians, we had managed to 
 lose our way most completely. I had sent on the soldiers, to put the 
 house in order for us and purchase necessaries, such as wood, milk, &c. ; 
 and if I had not, they would have been of no use, for they were as 
 much strangers to the country as ourselves. It was the darkest night 
 I ever remembered, and we were all obliged to grope along with the 
 horses at hazard, sometimes falling over the stones, sometimes into the 
 ditches, and at last, after an hour's wandering through this intense dark- 
 ness, we all slipped down a steep declivity and heard the river at our 
 feet. But we did not know where the ferry might be, and after calling 
 out loudly without hearing a sound in reply, we stole cautiously along 
 
 K
 
 130 EUROPEAN SUPREMACY. 
 
 the shore. But this course was not long open to us, for the bank was 
 high and precipitous, and a false step might have carried us into the 
 stream below ; we therefore bent our way into the fields again, return- 
 ing every five minutes to halloo to the boatmen. In this wretched 
 plight we went on stumbling and groping our way, until one of the 
 party espied a light, which happily for us was near the ferry. At last 
 we were safely put on shore to my great joy, for the darkness was next to 
 total, and the little boat was so laden that a single wave might easily 
 have overset the whole party. The khansaman had only just arrived 
 with the boats, and as nothing was ready in consequence of this delay, I 
 had long to wait ere food, fire, or even a chair was set before me. 
 
 The house where I was lodged was very dismal ; I called out loudly to 
 the guard on finding myself pent up in a square box, the door of which 
 would not admit of my bed being taken through, and which was cer- 
 tainly not half so commodious as my tent, and while deliberating what I 
 should do next, Hingam, the khansaman, came in from a tour of in- 
 spection, and acquainted me that the guard had taken all the best part 
 for their own use. This disrespect was not to be borne ; guided there- 
 fore by Hingam, I ascended to the first floor, and found there two good 
 rooms, with fire-places, where the eiuht Sikh soldiers were fast asleep, 
 wrapped up most comfortably in warm blankets, and reposing on thickly 
 laid straw. I soon waked the impudent sleepers with the butt-end of a 
 musket, and they all started up in terror, when they saw how seriously 
 I took the matter. I then commanded them to clean the room tho- 
 roughlv and give it up to me, nor would I suifer them to impose this 
 ofiice on the Kashmirians, as they proposed, but compelled them to take 
 away the very least morsel of straw from the ground with their own 
 hands. This done, 1 ordered them to go down and keep watch through- 
 out the night in the court-yard, telling them that if they refused to obey 
 my commands, I should make them march back instantly to Kash- 
 mir. This was a very moderate punishment, since they had been so 
 regardless of my orders, that not a single thing was bespoken, and we 
 were suffering severely from cold and hunger. It was ten o'clock before the 
 cook could send us anything to eat, and a full hour later before I retired 
 to rest. I then told the Sikh guard, who had remained in the court-
 
 THE BAZARS OF THE EAST. 131 
 
 yard, all gathered round a large fire, that I forgave them, and permitted 
 them to retire. They expressed many regrets on the occasion, and I took 
 occasion to remind them that implicit obedience was the first duty of a 
 soldier. 
 
 Tuesday, November 24. With the exception of a few pretty glimpses 
 of country, where a turn in the road allowed us to catch a view of the 
 snowy peaks, there was little to be admired in the scenery when first we 
 started, but its character changed in the course of the day, and instead 
 of the dull, endless plain on one side, and the bare heights on the other, 
 without tree or bush, the view became delightful. The Jelam was studded 
 with little islands ; verdant hills sloped down to its banks, and the coun- 
 try was enriched with a number of small streams which flow into the 
 large one. From Bijbahar, (the Sanscrit name of this ancient capital of 
 Kashmir must, I think, have been Vidya Wihara, Temple of Wis- 
 dom,) a fruitful plain stretches along towards the east, between the 
 ranges of hills which announced our near approach to the lofty moun- 
 tains of Tibet. 
 
 The second bridge up the river is thrown over at Bijbahar, which 
 may still be considered the next town in importance to Kashmir. Large 
 lime-trees overgrow the piers of this ancient bridge. I landed at this 
 spot in the hope of finding some ruins of the old capital still in exist- 
 ence, but was disappointed, and obliged to content myself with a few 
 coins, of a date prior to the Mohammedan dynasties, which I collected in 
 the bazar. Bazars are the chief attraction in every place throughout India, 
 there the traveller may make himself better acquainted in a few minutes 
 with the productions, the customs and manners, the riches or poverty, 
 and in fact, the general state of the country, by conversing with the 
 Banyans, or merchants, than he could possibly do by living for months 
 in the court of the ruler or nobles of the country. 
 
 From Bijbahar I rode on horseback over a fertile plain to Islama- 
 bad. About half a mile from the former place, there is a large planta- 
 tion of plane trees on both sides of the river, and on the right shore, a 
 ruin. It is called Badsha Bagh, and was the residence of the luckless 
 Dara, the brother of Aurungzib. A bridge formerly united the spa- 
 cious gardens which were laid out on both sides. It was my intention 
 
 K 2
 
 132 ATMOSPHERICAL PHENOMENON. 
 
 to visit Korau Pandau on my way to Islamabad, but so much time 
 had been lost in seeking for a guide, and the day was so near its 
 close when I arrived at the caves of Mattan, that we judged it more 
 expedient to hasten on to Islamabad, the ancient Anatnagh, as fast as we 
 could. I observed with much interest to-day the optical illusions, at 
 this season almost peculiar to Kashmir. There is so little transparency 
 in the air, that places at a mile's distance only, appear to be removed to 
 four times that distance, and mountains only four miles off seem to be at 
 least fifteen or twenty. If the weather be tolerably clear, one can see 
 to this last distance, but the twenty miles appear twice as much. To 
 these peculiarities of the atmosphere, I attribute the exaggerated terms 
 in which many travellers speak of the extent of this country. It was 
 dark when we reached our halting-place, but every thing was in the best 
 order, and a supper of trout from the sacred tank of Anatnagh, was a 
 great relish after the day's journey- 
 Wednesday, 25. I had an interesting conversation last evening with 
 some Brahmins, who gave me many particulars regarding the belief and 
 tenets of their sect. They promised to ask their brethren several ques- 
 tions which they could not answer for themselves, and bring me the ex- 
 planation this morning. I never expected them to keep this promise, 
 and the morning passed away without their making their appearance. 
 As the Thanadar, who has the management of the iron and lead mines, 
 five or six kos from this place, offered to shew me any attention in his 
 power, I begged that a boat might be prepared immediately, and some 
 of the ore procured from the mines. These I felt to be objects of great 
 interest from the fact of their having been discovered, as Mirza Ahud 
 told me, by Jacquemont. 
 
 The old, dilapidated house I was lodged in, stands between the sacred 
 tank and the spring to which Islamabad, the ancient Anatnagh, owed its 
 celebrity, and which issues from the base of a rock of black marble. 
 The Raja Tarangini has the following legend concerning the spring. 
 About fourteen hundred years B. C. Asoka built Srinagar, his capital, 
 at this day only a heap of ruins. Raja Nara, the twelfth king after 
 Asoka, was one day on his way to the Vitusta or Jelara, for the purpose 
 of bathing according to custom, when he was met by some starving
 
 ABSURDITIES OF HEATHENISM. 133 
 
 Brahmins, who entreated him to give them food. Raja Nara promised 
 them what they asked, provided they waited until he had bathed in the 
 river. To shorten the time which must elapse before they were relieved, 
 they told the king they would bring the Vitusta nearer to him, when in- 
 stantly the river gushed up at his feet. Unmoved by this miracle, the 
 king persisted in continuing on his way to the river. The Brahmins 
 cursed him as he went, and Siva immediately changed him into a ser- 
 pent, under which form he is still seen, from time to time, in Kashmir. 
 But the spring still gushes from the rock, a warning to all to comply 
 with the demands of the holy Brahmins. A temple is built over the 
 hollow in the rock, whence the water springs in great abundance, filling 
 two small ponds, and then flowing into, and irrigating the adjacent plain. 
 The fish in the basin are sacred, and in such vast numbers, that there 
 is not the smallest point in the water where a head may not be seen. 
 On the steps leading from the temple to the tank, I saw remains of 
 deities of all ages, Buddha, Siva, and the Lingam, some several feet 
 high, of shining hornblende. The temple was probably built by Arya> 
 the king who lived at the date of our Saviour's birth, and was called 
 Sahasralingam, or Thousand Lingams, from the number of those repre- 
 sentations of their deity it contained. The Hindu may now approach 
 both the temple and the spring, but in former times, they belonged to 
 the house in which I lodged, and none of that faith were sufi'ered to 
 come near them. 
 
 According to Badia-ud-din, Anatnagh was built by the second king 
 of Kashmir, Kasaligham, 3700 years B. C, an ante-diluvian city ! 
 It seems that the Mohammedans know how to amplify numbers as 
 well as the Brahmins, though they are rather more moderate in their 
 calculations. About the fifteenth century the name Anatnagh was 
 changed into that of Islamabad, City of the Faith. It long remained the 
 second city in Kashmir, but now the well-built and spacious houses in 
 what we may call the principal streets, are all deserted and in ruins. 
 Many have already sunk into decay, exposed to every wind. The 
 beautiful carved work ornamenting the terraces and windows, is nearly 
 destroyed by owls and jackals, who are the most frequent occupants of 
 the place.
 
 134 PROFESSIONAL MENDICITY. 
 
 From Islamabad to Mattan, a place exclusively inhabited by Brah- 
 mins, the road winds along under the hills, and is shaded by the most 
 majestic avenue of plane trees I ever saw. Towards the plain these 
 hills terminate in steep declivities, and heaps of black marble are scat- 
 tered about in fantastic disorder ; sometimes they decline so gently into 
 the valley that the descent is hardly perceptible. When I entered Mat- 
 tan my horse was stopped by a Brahmin who seized my bridle and de- 
 manded alms. But he had in me no stranger to Indian customs to deal 
 with. The manner in which charity is sometimes asked here shews 
 the degree of misery and despair to which the beggar must be reduced, 
 and though by no means certain of the extent of the present case, I 
 thought it was probable that the man might be in want, and therefore 
 offered him a rupee. My gift, however, was rejected with scorn, and the 
 fellow demanded fifty. I saw in a moment that I had to deal with one 
 of those impudent fakirs who have presumed to demand from a prince 
 as much as a lack of rupees, and have occasionally received it ! " Do you 
 tax me so low?" cried I angrily, "drive him away." Another Brahmin 
 now presented his petition to be accepted as my guide to Mattan, and 
 on my consent being given, he ran on before me to his house, whence 
 he brought me a present of fruit, offering it with a very well-turned 
 speech, and then preceded us to the temple of Mattan, under the fine 
 plane trees of Kashmir, which overshadowed the couch where pilgrims 
 customarily rest. I alighted from my horse at the entrance, where sat 
 a venerable old man absorbed in the study of the Veda. Having sa- 
 luted him and put off my shoes, I stepped into a large square building 
 surrounded by smaller ones on three of its sides. The fourth side is 
 open to the valley. There is a large reservoir in the centre which 
 seemed to me about eighty paces broad. A spring of fine water gushes 
 into it from the rock underneath the building, and is afterwards con- 
 ducted by channels to irrigate the plain beyond. Here, as at Islama- 
 bad, the fish are in immense numbers in this basin or tank, and like 
 them are looked upon by the people as sacred. The spring reminded 
 me very forcibly of that of the Orontes in Syria, more especially of 
 that of the valley of Balbek, though in respect of the quantity of water, 
 both these are much surpassed by the spring at Mattan.
 
 MYSTIFICATION OF NATURE. 135 
 
 According to a curious old tradition, it was a European physician, 
 Bernier, who was in Kashmir in Aurungzebe's time, who first disco- 
 vered a spring in the mountains, twenty miles from hence, which was 
 absorbed by the earth. Taking it for granted that the water made its 
 appearance in some other part of the valley, he placed men at all the 
 ditferent springs, and then threw into the one he had discovered some 
 pieces of straw, which came to light again in the Mattan fountain. I 
 was well pleased to find the name of this adventurous traveller still in the 
 recollections of the people of Kashmir. The elucidation of the story 
 is found some way from this spot. Near Buasuan, which lies on the same 
 limestone rocks, and is separated from Islamabad by a bed of clay that 
 unites and partly covers both, are caverns, which serve as aqueducts to 
 subterranean canals. I was particularly desirous to see them on account of 
 the organic remains which it was highly probable they contained. These 
 caves occupy a very conspicuous place in the fables of the timid Kash- 
 mirians, and are supposed to have originated from the following causes. 
 In the year KaU 2108 (993 B.C.) Raja Nara succeeded his father Vi- 
 bhishana. During his reign a certain Brahmin espoused Chandrasaha, 
 the daughter of Susravas, a serpent-god, whose palace was in a lake near 
 the Vitusta, and near a city built and inhabited by Nara. One day, as 
 Raja Nara beheld the beautiful daughter of the serpent on the shore of 
 the lake, moving gracefully through the calm waters, he was struck 
 with the deepest admiration, and endeavoured vainly to inspire the same 
 sentiments he himself felt. At length he resolved to carry her off from 
 her husband, but the plan failed, and the enraged Brahmin called on 
 her father to avenge the insult A storm was accordingly called up, 
 and the earth opened and swallowed up the king and his whole court. 
 The sister of the serpent-god assisted him, and hurled on the city huge 
 stones from the Baman mountain. The caverns of Mattan are said to 
 be on the spot where these rocks were uptorn. The natives believe that 
 they extend to the far depths of the earth, and none will venture within 
 them, lest with the first step they should be seized by the powers of dark- 
 ness. Mirza Ahud assured me that the largest of them extended ten kos 
 inwards ; that from the exterior halls, chambers, and walks, branched 
 in every direction, the walls of which were covered with inscriptions
 
 136 THE INFLUENCE OF SUPERSTITION. 
 
 and representations of various deities. He implored me not to venture 
 where no man had ever been known to find his way out again. Raging 
 torrents, he said, deafened every sound, and an evil spirit called Jin, 
 whose breath smote men to death, had his abode there. I told him, as 
 he was afraid, he might stay where he was, which he agreed to, with 
 many thanks, although he still protested he would follow me if I desired it. 
 
 I entered first the small cavern, which lies at the extremity of a 
 broad valley. At the projecting angle of the range of mountains which 
 terminate at this point, a flight of steps, hewn out of the rock, leads 
 to the entrance gate, which is from 60 to one hundred feet higher than 
 the plain. Here the traveller enters a room about twenty feet long 
 and twelve high and broad. Beyond, is a little temple in the rock, but 
 the wooden gates were shut, and though most curious to know to what 
 deity it had been dedicated, all my efi'orts to gain admittance were fruit- 
 less. One of my Ghorka companions was more fortunate, and at last 
 we entered, but neither image, nor sign of any kind was there. I con- 
 cluded that this must be a kind of vestibule to the deeper caves, but 
 could discover no trace of any communication from the place where we 
 now were. 
 
 From the hill over this cavern, I enjoyed a fine view of the rich plain 
 of Kashmir, and as far as the Shonibal and Kirwan mountains. North- 
 wards flowed the shallow Lidar, over its stony bed ; and, on the heights 
 behind stood the lone fort of Aismokam, while, about a hundred paces 
 below me, was a small square Buddhist temple, in good preservation. 
 I descended from this eminence, and proceeded towards the great 
 cavern. The wild intricacy of the rocks around, together with the 
 dreadful stories I had listened to, induced me to order a great many 
 torches to be lighted. While this was being done I espied some birds, 
 new to me, and desired Jwali Singh, a great fellow, six feet high, and 
 athletic in proportion, to fire at them. One of the Kashmirians stared 
 at me with amazement, and cried out, " Maha Raja, it is impossible." 
 Jwali laughed at his superstition ; and taking one of my double-bar- 
 relled guns, quickly took his aim ; but the gun would not go ofl", and 
 he turned to me with the greatest anxiety in his countenance. He tried 
 again with fresh powder, but with as little success, when, bringing the
 
 EXTENSIVE xNATUKAL CAVERNS. 137 
 
 gun back to me, he positively declared that nothing should induce him 
 to fire while in this place. To cure them of such superstitious fancies, 
 I determined to take a shot myself; but the wily birds had, by this time, 
 made their escape, so that unluckily their credulity could not be over- 
 come by example. I dare say, if I had succeeded in my aim, they 
 would only have believed me a magician, without feeling a whit the less 
 convinced of the mysterious influence of the place. Mirza Ahud volun- 
 tarily offered to follow me into the cavern, the poor Pandit's office 
 compelling him to do the same. We accordingly proceeded to the 
 entrance, which is about thirty feet above the plain, and difficult of 
 access. The first thing that struck us was several little chambers of 
 different forms. I went into all of them but could discover no com- 
 munication whatever between them. In one was a modern tomb, in 
 another a human skeleton ; but when we tried to push forwards into 
 the darkness, we found the roof gradually sloping downwards over our 
 heads ; and after we had gone about sixty paces more, of which twenty 
 had been in the wet slippery mud, caused by dropping water, we came 
 to the end of this celebrated cave of Mattan. Mohan Bir, who had 
 followed in some terror, owing to Mirza Ahud's tales, now laughed 
 heartily at the narrator, who took it in very good part, only ridiculing 
 the superstitious fancies of the Kashmirians, of which country he him- 
 self was also a native. 
 
 I had still Korau Pandau to visit, which is on the high plain that 
 crowns the eminence between the rocks of Buasuan and the mountains 
 of Islamabad. We now travelled along a deep ravine, formed by the 
 violent rains which have gradually washed away the loose soil. This is 
 the only drain for the waters in the plain above. We then ascended a 
 hill, from two to three hundred feet high : it is in some parts perpen- 
 dicular, in others irregular in its descent, composed of loose mud with- 
 out any admixture of stone or sand. We made but little progress over 
 this steep and slippery ground, a dead flat being before us, as destitute 
 of vegetation as a desert. The atmosphere peculiar to the country 
 made its dimensions appear of immense extent, while, almost lost in 
 the far distant east, peered the outline of mountains, relieved in the 
 foreground by a dark point standing forth like a sharp black rock.
 
 138 UNCERTAIN SITE OF ANCIENT CITIES. 
 
 This was Korau Pandau, and my little ghunt soon galloped away to the 
 temple gate. My first impressions were of gloom and heaviness only ; 
 but the dark masses, with their gigantic outlines, are softened down by 
 the slender pillars introduced in many places ; and the large round 
 apertures over the doors must have admitted sufficient light to the 
 interior to dispel much of the obscurity. 
 
 Korau Pandau owes its existence and name to the most ancient 
 dynasty of Kashmir. The great antiquity of the ruin will be acknow- 
 ledged therefore when I remind the reader, that the Pandau dynasty 
 ended 2500 years before Christ, after governing Kashmir according to 
 their historians nearly 1300 years. Here no doubt Sri Nagur, the 
 holy city, was first built ; in fact the Brahmins still call this place by that 
 name. Just as Solomon is celebrated by the Mohammedans, the 
 Empress Helena in the Holy Land, Charlemagne in Germany, the 
 Cyclops in Italy, and Joseph in Egypt ; so every Hindu, from Cape 
 Comorin to Kashmir, ascribes every relic of ancient days to the Pan- 
 dau dynasty, unless the records of their history pronounce directly to 
 the contrary. That the race really did exist, and in much power, can 
 hardly be questioned, because the ancient Madura, in Southern India, 
 according to history, was subdued by them ; and it seems most likely 
 that it was this city to which Ptolemy gave the title Regia Pandionis. 
 Pliny (6. 16) speaks of a city called Panda on the other side of the 
 Soo-dus ; Solinus (c. 49) gives the same name to a town in Sogdiana, 
 beyond the Bactrus ; while, in the same 6th book, Pliny mentions 
 another Panda at the mouth of the Indus. Ptolemy says plainly, " the 
 kingdom of the Pandau is near the Bydaspes,'' or Jelam. (Circa autem 
 Bydaspum, Pandovorum regio). If the histories of Kashmir and of 
 this race are to be relied on, then these cities may all have been in the 
 possession of the Pandau dynasty, at dififerent epochs. But, after such 
 a lapse of time, all these suppositions must rest in doubt, since the 
 identity of the various places can never be made quite evident to us. 
 
 By Korau Pandau is a small house and garden, belonging to a fakir. 
 It is now deserted. The traveller still finds ripe fruit on the trees, 
 which the fakir, who was driven forth by the last famine, will never 
 pluck again. This house was once a place of pilgrimage for Moham-
 
 THE VALUE OF A GOOD HORSE. 139 
 
 inedans ; and a well, called Härat and Marats Baiiri, is yet considered 
 a holy spot. The legend says, that these two good angels were sent on 
 earth by God to reform men by their example ; but, alas ! they could not 
 withstand the beauty of the daughters of Kashmir ; and when con- 
 science awoke, instead of repentitig of their errors and hoping to 
 obtain pardon by amendment, they cast themselves down, with their 
 beloved companions, into this well, which bears their name — the Baiiri, 
 or well of Härat and Marat. 
 
 To the left is the ruined aqueduct, which formerly conveyed the 
 water from the mountains to the plain, but has long been dry. Mirza 
 Ahud informed me, that the water was carried to a distance of twenty 
 miles : I asked him, if his calculation was as exact as the ten kos of 
 the great cave of Mattan. Having sent on my people towards Islam- 
 abad, I turned back again to the great ruin. The more one examines 
 the mighty mass of Korau Pandau, the deeper is the impression it makes 
 on the mind. The time was passing quietly on ; the sun sinking below 
 Islamabad, and the mists of the valley still hanging over the snowy peaks 
 of the Pir Panjal, like vast fleecy clouds, as I gazed attentively on the 
 different aspects presented by these ruins. The short twilight soon 
 faded, and I found myself on the lonely road in utter darkness. My good 
 steed, however, retraced the way he had taken once before, in perfect 
 security ; and in a very short time accomplished the four miles to our 
 halting place for the night. 
 
 No Brahmins came this evening ; and I was glad of it, as it gave 
 me leisure to make out a plan and description of Korau Pandau. I was 
 assisted also by a fire which my people had lit ; and though it smoked 
 abominably, it prevented my fingers from being numbed b}- the cold. 
 
 Islamabad lies near the end of the valley in this direction ; and the 
 Jelam, which flows two miles off, soon ceases to be navigable. Two kos 
 further is Sahibabad, which has a small fort, built by Nur Begam, and 
 three old Buddhist temples, called Wamadevi. Another two kos brings 
 us to Shahabad, a garden of the Moghul emperors ; near to this is 
 Warndgh, which was erected by Jehanghir, and boasts of the finest 
 spring in the valley. All these palaces are now in ruins, and the fallen 
 roofs so block up the interior as to leave little room for a wanderer's
 
 140 FACILITY OF DOMESTICATING ANIMALS. 
 
 observation. Sahibabad and Warnagh are built on eminences ; Shahabad 
 is at the eastern limit of the valley of Kashmir. The Jelam, soon after 
 passing Shahabad, loses its name ; and at Banhal, twelve kos from Islam- 
 abad, is known as the San-dran. I would fain have gone thus far, but 
 the cold increased daily, and I apprehended a heavy fall of snow might 
 entirely frustrate my intention of visiting the mountains of Tibet. I 
 was, moreover, to speak the truth, nearly worn out with the indifferent 
 food, the piercing cold, the fatigue of body and mind, I had now so long 
 undergone, and was tormented by a constant anxiety to terminate the 
 loneliness of my present position, and bring my journeyings to a close. 
 
 Thursday, 26th. The Thanadar was unable to procure me the ore 
 I was desirous of getting from the mountain, and was sadly afraid I 
 should refuse to give him the certificate of good conduct and attention 
 which he was commanded to forward to the Maha Raja. When I 
 assured him to the contrary, his gratitude was unbounded. He in- 
 formed me that a large animal, of the deer kind, came down from the 
 mountains, in the cold season, and committed great ravages in the fields. 
 The natives pursue and attack them with clubs, and frequently succeed 
 in destroying some. One which has been captured alive has been in 
 Islamabad ever since, roaming about the bazar and adjacent fields ; sup- 
 porting itself on any food it chances to take a fancy to. This tame 
 creature I saw : it was about the size of a fallow deer, but of a greyish 
 colour and had longer hair. It had not shed its horns, which, at their full 
 growth, have as many as twelve antlers. This animal is the Barasinghi 
 twelve antlers, or perhaps great-antler deer of the Himalaya. 
 
 The boats were waiting at Kanibal, where the Jelam ceases to be 
 navigable. Thither we proceeded on foot, the coldness of the morning 
 making the two miles' walk very agreeable. The bridge over the Jelam 
 consists of two arches only. It is the last of any importance in this 
 direction. In no country in the world, perhaps, are there so many 
 bridges as in Kashmir. They span every river and brook, great and 
 small, and are all built and kept in repair by the Government, without 
 the levy of any toll. It was eleven o'clock when we pushed off from the 
 shore, and I saw that it would be late when we arrived in Kashmir. 
 The cold, even wrapped up as I was, was so bitter, tliat it was painful to
 
 PLEASING RECOLLECTIONS. 141 
 
 write ; but I persevered, knowing that, in such a journey as mine, what 
 is not set down quickly is lost for ever, and no longer to be recalled to 
 memory. We came up before dark with two vessels loading with the 
 bark of the birch-tree. It is used in Kashmir to pack up the pears and 
 apples which they export to other parts, the larger pieces are shaped 
 into the long winding pipes of the hookah. Men and women seemed 
 equally busy with the load, which they were carrying through the 
 water, the vessels not being able to approach the shore ; they did not 
 appear to be in the least affected with the extreme cold, although their 
 clothing would certainly have afforded them but indifferent protection 
 against it. The bed of the Jelam is everywhere of great depth, but 
 the shores are generally too high to allow of any view beyond them 
 from a boat. Sometimes the river is swollen from twelve to fifteen feet 
 above its ordinary level, and then it overflows, but its motion is so 
 sluggish, that the houses built on the shore are rarely in danger. 
 
 The appearance of Ventipoor, as you approach it from Islamabad, is 
 very agreeable. The few buildings and ruins stretching down to the shore, 
 leaning as it were against the mountains, seem to form a safe harbour and 
 landing-place. A fire was lighted on the ground while I took my dinner at 
 seven o'clock in the evening. We then continued our march, and tried 
 every plan to keep ourselves warm. The night, though freezing cold, was 
 fair ; the boats glided calmly over the waters, and the boatmen beguiled 
 the time with songs, sometimes in chorus, at other times singly, which 
 they managed with much softness and effect. In summer weather this 
 excursion would have been most delightful, but now the contrast be- 
 tween the keen cold atmosphere and these sentimental strains was i-ather 
 painful. The lamp burned dimly on the table on which I leaned, while 
 Mohan Bir slept at my feet. Gradually the chaunt of the boatmen 
 lulled me as I smoked my hookah, and I forgot, all associations of the 
 past, Asia, Kashmir, and every present concern in the reveries of my 
 early youth. The hopes and joyous expectations of boyhood, that hap- 
 piest time, when the heart longs to know a good world, and confides 
 so sweetly in the worth of others; the once-felt sentiments uprose 
 now, as from a better world, in my own heart, and I could have dreamed 
 on, and almost fancied that I was living over again those halcyon days
 
 14^ THE IMPROVISATORI. 
 
 of pleasurable unconcern. The intense cold brought nie back to the pre- 
 sent, and cruelly reminded me of the truth that I was far from home, 
 alone, the hopes of my youth still unfulfilled, the wishes of the man 
 frustrated, a wanderer, perhaps forgotten, in a region so far away as I then 
 was from every associate, from all my kindred. I roused Mirza Ahud, 
 who was in the next boat, and bade him give me some account of Jacque- 
 mont to divert my mind from such idle dreams. By what he related 
 it would appear that he had rather acted a part in Kashmir : he wished 
 to be considered a philosopher, who held money in contempt, and had 
 even been seen to throw rupees out of the window of his lodging; but 
 Mirza Ahud seemed to have seen through this little artifice, and told me 
 that, though his former master did often waste a great deal of money, 
 his first and chief thought seemed always to be, wealth. 
 
 I then asked him whether he could not amuse me with some of the 
 eld tales of his native land, whereupon he instantly began as follows : — 
 The king Chandranand desired to erect a temple to Siva, and had been 
 long in quest of some suitable place. Having acquired his object he 
 set regularly to work. Now it chanced that part of the ground was in 
 possession of a tanner, but as that trade is followed by none except per- 
 sons of low caste, they turned him out of the place without ceremony. 
 When the King heard of it, he punished the officer severely and ordered 
 the work to be suspended till the tanner consented to quit the place of 
 his own free will. 
 
 I then desired Mirza Ahud to think of something more national, as 
 this manner of dealing was common to all countries. He then com- 
 menced a second story. 
 
 The Raja Jayanand was the greatest king on earth, and after sub- 
 duing every country in the seven climates, returned laden with treasures, 
 to his own dominions. Here he lived in the enjoyment of life, forget- 
 ting that his successes were all due to the protection and help of God. 
 He had been carousing one night until very late, witnessing the displays 
 of his three hundred nach girls, who had been amusing him with their 
 songs and dances, and quaffing huge draughts of the forbidden spirit, 
 when he lay down ; but although he desired his servants to leave him to 
 recruit his strength for the next day's pleasures, sleep refused to obey his
 
 A CHARACTERISTIC LEGEND. 14'3 
 
 call. Presently there appeared to him Mäha Padma, a serpent-god, 
 and entreated his aid against a powerful magician of Dravira, who had 
 enchanted him, promising him, as a reward for his assistance, to lead 
 him into a great cavern filled with an incredible mass of gold, 
 which should be wholly at his disposal. The king sent the next 
 morning for the magician, and desired him to point out the ser- 
 pent-god. The magician accompanied the king to the lake, where the 
 god was lying, and having turned the waters into a cloud, the serpent- 
 god became visible to them in the same form as before. The king then 
 commanded the magician to fill the lake again ; and the cloud, at his 
 bidding, sank down, and covered it ten kos in depth ; vivid lightning shot 
 from it, and, within half an hour, the lake was a sheet of water as before. 
 Jayanand then rewarded the magician, and sent him back to Dravira. 
 Mäha Padma appeared again the next night, and reproached Jayanand 
 for the anguish he had occasioned him ; but, in reward for his having 
 sent away the magician finally, he showed him a copper-mine instead of 
 the cavern of gold. The king ordered it to be worked ; and, during his 
 reign, 100 kror (990 millions) were coined. He then sent to every 
 monarch in the world, defying them to surpass him in riches. 
 
 I asked Mirza whether the Mohammedan writers admitted such 
 sheer nonsense as this into the histories of Kashmir ; and his answer 
 was, that if they said nothing about serpent-gods, they related wonders of 
 another kind, but quite as surprising. For instance, they say, that in 
 Daulut Jang's reign, a violent earthquake in Kashmir removed the city of 
 Husanpur from the right to the left bank of the river, and caused it to 
 change places with Huseinpoor ; but I stated to him, that this was but a 
 false statement of a true event, which turned the course of the winding 
 Jelam. The Auk, before which we now found ourselves, comes from 
 the mountains of Tibet. Should the rain fall heavily for a few days, 
 it brings down pieces of timber, which the natives pick up ; these shine 
 in the dark as long as they continue moist. 
 
 Friday, November 27. It was six o'clock in the morning when we 
 were put ashore at the Hamedan Masjid in Kashmir, so benumbed with 
 cold, that I was obliged to hurry to the garden as fast as I could, to 
 warm my frozen limbs. Early in the day I assembled my attendants.
 
 144 EUROPEAN VANITY. 
 
 and desired that every preparation should be made for my departure, 
 and at the same time I despatched the munshi to the Kazi, and begged 
 that the Governor might be informed of my intention to leave Kashmir 
 on the 29th, the day I had appointed before I quitted for Islamabad. 
 The Kazi came an hour after, to tell me that it would require four days 
 to hire the hundred and twenty bearers that I required, but I answered 
 that my munshi would do it in less time, and that I left that charge 
 to him. This had its effect, and the Kazi promised that everything 
 should be ready on Monday. My next visitor was Samed Shah, the 
 confidential servant of Mohammed Shah Nakshbandi, who came to 
 remind me of my promise to pay his master a visit. It was agreed, 
 therefore, that I should partake of a supper at his house on the next 
 day, and I was glad of the opportunity of seeing something more of the 
 manners and customs of the country. 
 
 I had brought several baskets of potatoes to Kashmir, with the 
 hope of being able to introduce this valuable article among the natives. 
 Mr. Vigne had already spoken of its great utility to Ahmed Shah, the 
 Raja of Iskardu, and I hoped to extend its cultivation to Tibet also. 
 With a view of smoothing the way, I thought of sending the Raja, 
 together with the potatoes, several presents which I judged would be 
 acceptable, among which were three bottles of cognac and some drugs : 
 these were accordingly dispatched to Iskardu, with our letters, in a 
 gold embroidered bag. 
 
 I now proposed to my two English friends, that we should erect 
 something like a monument to the travellers who had preceded us in 
 Kashmir ; and, at the same time, leave a memorial of our having met, 
 on the present occasion, at this spot. We agreed to carve the following 
 inscription on a black marble tablet, and set it up in the little building 
 on the Char Chunar island : — 
 
 "Three travellers in Kashmir on the 18th November, 1835, the 
 Baron Ch. Hügel, from Jamii ; Th. G. Vigne, from Iskardu ; and Dr. 
 John Henderson, from Ladak, have caused the names of all the travel- 
 lers who have preceded them in Kashmir to be engraven on this stone. 
 
 " Bernier, 1663. Forster, 1736. Moorcroft, Guthrie, and Trebeck, 
 1823. Victor Jacqucmont, 1831. Joseph Wolff, 1832.
 
 THE DANCING GIRLS OF INDIA. 145 
 
 " Two only of all these, the first and last, ever returned to their 
 native country." 
 
 I need not remark, that in the list I have included no Catholic 
 missionaries ; Förster did, strictly speaking, return home, but he came 
 out again, and died at Madras. 
 
 Vigne and Henderson accepted the commission with pleasure ; and 
 as it was necessary to get the stone at a short notice, I thought of one 
 of the doors at the mosque of Nagarnagar. This plan I proposed to 
 the Kazi ; but he looked grave, and said he must consult the Governor 
 about it, which I desired him to do forthwith. He came back in an hour 
 or two, and informed me that Mehan Singh had thought it right to 
 send off and request the permission of Ranjit Singh before we did 
 so. I expressed my hope that the Governor would not object to the 
 stone being got ready, on my promise being given, that all subsequent 
 proceedings should depend on the Mahä Raja's answer. This was ac- 
 ceded to, and the Kazi said we might take away as many of the stones 
 as we wanted. To guard against any further interruption, Vigne under- 
 took to remove the door at sunset. To another message from Mehan 
 Singh, asking whether it would not be agreeable to me to see the Nach 
 girls, I replied in the affirmative, and they were accordingly ordered to 
 attend and exhibit before us in my tent. Towards evening I went to 
 the bazar, to see whether it had anything particularly worthy of attention, 
 while Vigne proceeded to the ruinous mosque to fetch away the marble 
 tablet. But he had forgotten to take any ropes or poles with him, and 
 the stone was too heavy to be removed without such helps. He had to 
 come back therefore, after making many fruitless efforts, without having 
 advanced our object. 
 
 Just before it was dark, a number of the Kashmirian beauties made 
 their appearance, accompanied by musicians, duennas, and divers hideous 
 wretches who usually attend on them, and whose monstrous ugliness 
 makes the features of the dancers, who are almost invariably unsightly 
 in appearance, shew off to greater advantage. After dinner was over, 
 the tents were cleared and lighted, and the whole of our attendants were 
 admitted to view what was going on. There was one among the dancers 
 whose animated cast of features made her much more prepossessing than 
 
 I-
 
 146 NECESSITY OF CEREMONIAL RESPECT. 
 
 the rest. The passion of the Sikhs for this amusement is so great, that 
 my chief pleasure was really derived from attending to them, and I 
 believe there is much truth in the proverb, that you may take away the 
 wife and child of a Sikh while he is listening to the adventures of Rus- 
 tam and Süräb, and he would not miss them. I shall have more to say 
 in another place, on the dancing and song peculiar to Kashmir. 
 
 The Nach girls are called sometimes Kanchni, but not by polite 
 speakers ; and sometimes Nachwali, dancers, which is more cour- 
 teous. They are throughout India under the surveillance of the Govern- 
 ment, and are, in fact, little better than slaves. These poor creatures 
 are doomed to a hard fate ; they are not allowed either to sing or dance 
 without permission, and if they get this, an officer of the Government 
 always accompanies them, who grasps whatever they receive. When 
 I had dismissed the troop, they demanded one hundred rupees for the 
 evening's performance. 
 
 Saturday, 28th November. If I had anticipated so long a stay 
 here I should have insisted on Mehan Singh visiting me in the first in- 
 stance, and I advise every traveller who purposes to remain in Kashmir 
 for any time to do the same, and in case of a refusal, not to visit him at 
 all. He should insist moreover on his own visit being punctiliously 
 returned. For the sake of those who may follow me here, I reproach 
 myself for having swerved from this rule, which I did from my 
 aversion to this ceremonial, which always costs a morning, but prin- 
 cipally because I never intended to stay in Kashmir more than a few 
 days. 
 
 It was known that I was forming collections of every thing rare, 
 and this whole day I was pestered with men having all sorts of things to 
 sell. About noon came Ganesh Pandit, the first interpreter of the Go- 
 vernment, and a Brahmin of some consequence in the place ; after a con- 
 versation of greater length than learning, he laid an immense roll of paper 
 at my feet, a history of Kashmir, which he presented to me, having 
 hoard much of my wisdom and learning. I opened it, and found a list 
 of names, neatly written on the finest Kashmir paper, in the Persian 
 character, which Ganesh Pandit explained to be the names of the differ- 
 ent Rajas who reigned in Kashmir before the Mohammedan conquest. 
 I asked, how many kings were there? "Six thousand nine hundred and
 
 INCONSISTENCY OF TRADITION. 147 
 
 forty," he replied, evidently with a tone and look of triumphant pride at 
 being born in such a country. His catalogue finished with the year 864 
 (Hegira 250), to which period he incorrectly assigned the first arrival 
 of the Mohammedans in the valley. '' But," said I, " how many years of 
 the Kali Yug had passed when this event took place ? " After a long 
 reckoning he said 3938. This again was a mistake, for the year 250 of 
 the Hegira is the 3966 of the Kali Yug, an epoch which begins 3102 
 years before Christ. "Then," said I, "how is it possible that in 3938 
 years 6940 kings could reign ?" To which he replied, that in his list he 
 had included 400 years of the Dwapar Yug, the epoch which preceded 
 the Kali Yug. So that his 6940 kings had 4338 years to reign in. I 
 said only in reply, that as Kasyapa, according to their histories, had 
 drained the lake which covered the valley 612 years before the Kali 
 Yug commenced, he had forgotten the kings of the first 212 years 
 altogether. I however took the list as a curiosity. 
 
 At 6 o'clock, Mohammed Shah's state boat was sent to fetch 
 Vigne, Henderson, and myself to dinner. When we had finished, the 
 Shah took us into a room apart ; but as the Indian fashion usually 
 demands some appearance of mystery to be displayed in all things, I 
 took this for some empty form, and was rather surprised when the 
 Shah solicited me to do him a great favour. I must premise that the 
 Shah is a Syad — a descendant of the Prophet, and that his surname 
 Nakshbandi is taken from a mystical sect founded by one of his 
 ancestors. His family is of the royal house of Tashkend, whence his 
 ancestors went to Turkisthan, and his grandfather, Khoja Shah Niyas, 
 more recently wandered as far as Kashmir, where he assembled some 
 hundred disciples of his sect around him, from Iskardu, Yarkand, and 
 Turkisthan. Family afi"airs now render the presence of Mohammed 
 in Turkisthan very advisable, but as the governor declines to allow of 
 his departure on his own responsibility, he has decided on going him- 
 self to Lahor, personally to request leave to travel of Ranjit Singh. 
 He had already besought Mr. Vigne to allow him to make one of his 
 party, being influenced in this by another and a very justifiable motive. 
 Every European who had travelled in Kashmir had largely shared in 
 his attentions, and they were particularly useful to Moorcroft during his 
 
 L 2
 
 148 HOSPITALITY WELL REQUITED. 
 
 long sojourn in the valley. He seems naturally to hope now, that the 
 Company may repay this hospitality to him in some way or other ; and 
 it is his present object to go from Lahor to Ludiana, whei-e Captain 
 Wade resides, and get some acknowledgment, from the official resident, 
 of his services to English travellers. 
 
 It so happened, that one of the Shah's kinsmen, holding some post 
 in Kishtewar, had fallen under the displeasure of Gulab Singh, and had 
 made his escape to Kashmir ; the Shah now begged me to take him as 
 my miinshi, and thus smuggle him out of the country. This was not 
 agreeable to me, for I did not know what fault he had been guilty of, 
 nor what I should do with him in Hindüsthan ; my answer was therefore 
 evasive, and I told the Shah that I had no power to protect all the 
 suite accompanying me, and that he would be quite as safe and less 
 noticed in his own company. He understood me, and pressed the 
 matter no further, merely asking my leave to introduce his kinsman, 
 which I could not refuse. The young man, on entering, prostrated him- 
 self at my feet. His face was remarkable for its expression of stupidity, 
 relieved only by anxiety for the consequences of an offence for which I 
 could not offer much comfort, as I was perfectly ignorant of its nature. 
 
 Mohammed Shah has a great many of the natives of Yärkand about 
 him, pilgrims who are on their way to Mecca, which they reach more 
 speedily and safely by way of India and Bombay, than by the consider- 
 ably shorter route of Central Asia and Persia. This circumstance 
 ought to sm.ooth many difficulties in the path of Europeans travelling 
 in Central Asia; for when the natives return full of the kindness and 
 hospitality they have received from the Company's officers, they will 
 surely requite their generous feeling in the only way they have in their 
 power, by showing them the like. Most of the pilgrims I met in Bom- 
 bay were men of wealth, and therefore naturally of influence in their 
 own country, and it is to be hoped they will use both for the benefit of 
 fellow-wanderers. 
 
 The productions of Yarkand, which were all spread out before me, 
 were highly interesting ; thirty-two species of tea brought from the 
 interior of China by way of Axor and Turfan were also shown me. 
 The natives of Yärkand told me, that the caravans go in twenty-eight
 
 A DISSOLUTE INDO-BRITON. 149 
 
 days from Kashgar to Samarkhand ; from Kashgar to Yarkand in five 
 days ; from Samarkhand to Bokhara in ten days. The tea comes from 
 Hi, the Chinese place of exile, by Turfan to Axor. Turfan is on the 
 confines of Turkisthan towards China. It was 10 o'clock when I took 
 leave of my host. 
 
 Sunday, November 29. — Mr. Vigne had sent his servant, Mitchell, 
 last evening, with twenty men, provided with every thing requisite, 
 except common sense, to bring the stone away from the ruined mosque. 
 On our return, we heard from him that the guard had threatened to 
 shoot him if he remained there, and that a large crowd had assembled 
 •n Nagarnagar to prevent the stone being taken away. This Mitchell 
 was a half-caste, and a confirmed drunkard, and I have some notion that 
 he never went at all, and fabricated the whole story. This morning the 
 Kazi came from Mehan Singh to request that I would visit him, for the 
 purpose of receiving the khilat, or garb of honour, the Maha Raja's 
 parting gift to travellers. This I would gladly have avoided, for I felt 
 quite sure that Mehan Singh would select some worthless shawls, and 
 expect me to return the gift with something of real value, but I did not 
 wish to ofi'end him, so promised to go speedily. Vigne and Henderson 
 were also invited. 
 
 We were received by the Viceroy in a room in the first story in 
 bhaherghur, without any furniture or ornaments suited to an inhabited 
 apartment. A few officers only were present, who retired as soon as 
 we were seated. After the usual oriental fine speeches, I thanked the 
 Governor for the facilities I had enjoyed for seeing Kashmir. He 
 answered that it was nothing more than the Maha Raja's order. I 
 then told him that it was my intention to travel through the BaramuUa 
 pass to Atok. He stared in astonishment, and remarked that the road 
 was a very bad one. I had heard however from many people in Kash- 
 mir, that it was the very best, and that the Sikhs always describe it as 
 dangerous, to deter Englishmen from taking that route. I merely said, 
 therefore, that I was prepared to find it so, but wished to travel that 
 way, unless it were displeasing to the Maha Raja. " Here is a letter 
 to the Maha Raja," I added, " in answer to one lately received from 
 him. I have informed him that I purpose to enter the Panjkb again at
 
 150 THE SARAF, OR HINDU BANKER. 
 
 Hussein Abdul." I stated further that Mohammed Shah Nakshbandi 
 would travel with me. He again enforced on my mind the danger of 
 meeting with parties of Mohammedan robbers by the way ; but seeing 
 that he could not move me, he turned the conversation on the beautiful 
 shawls which I had bought. " If you wish for any more," he added, 
 " when you go to your own country, I hope you will commission me to 
 buy them for you." 
 
 I now spoke of our inscription, of which we had prepared a Persian 
 translation, and Mr. Vigne obtained his promise that we should not be 
 called to any account if the stone did disappear from Nagarnagar that 
 evening. The khilat, composed of eleven dirty old shawls, was next 
 brought in. I had an opportunity here of observing how well Dr. 
 Henderson had studied the character of this people. When he gave 
 Mehan Singh a gold coin as a mark of his subjection, the features 
 excepted, he might have been taken for one of themselves. When a 
 trifling present was offered him, he declined it, calling himself a poor 
 fakir, and I would have done the same, if my travelling arrangements 
 had been quite secured. Mehan Singh was not so tipsy as at our first 
 interview, but most assuredly was not sober. We took our leave with 
 an embrace. 
 
 I had brought letters of credit from Ludiana on a saraf, or money- 
 changer in Kashmir ; and when first I arrived in the city, he had paid 
 me a visit in my tent. I told him before several persons, that when I 
 wanted money I should apply to him, not being then aware that the 
 possessor of ever so little wealth makes the greatest mystery of it, on 
 account of the cupidity of their Sikh masters ; and I remember being 
 surprised at the faltering tone in which he answered that he did not 
 know how it would be possible for him to collect even one thousand 
 rupees ; when however he paid me a second visit, he explained the 
 reason why, and told me that any sum I wanted was at my command. 
 I commissioned him to buy the best shawls he could find for me, and 
 to-day he brought me some unfinished, which were not of the first class. 
 I suspected at first that this was a trick to impose upon me, but on 
 stricter inquiry I found that it was a very difficult thing to get these 
 shawls complete in Kashmir. More of this, however, hereafter.
 
 GENEROSITY AND CONCILIATION. 151 
 
 Dr. Henderson's servant arrived to-day from Ladäk, and alone, 
 having, as he said, lost the horses and every other article in the snow 
 in the Naubak pass. He was dismissed, together with the servant who 
 had come to Kashmir with him: they had subsisted for three days on 
 two chepatis. As I could not find that there was any fault in either, I 
 agreed to take them into my service. The Doctor proposed bending 
 his course now to the Hindu Khosh, and ßalkh, and though I tried to 
 dissuade him from such a step at this season, he was bent on it. I there- 
 fore fitted him out with such things as instruments, and a second watch, 
 &c., as well as I could, and in this remote land, where a few days passed 
 together make men more familiar, than years would under other circum- 
 stances, we both felt much at parting. It was arranged that we should 
 leave Kashmir the same day, the 1 st of December, travel westward to 
 the confines of the country together, and there part, hoping to meet 
 early in the following year at Lahor. The rest of the day was spent in 
 packing up the dififerent collections I had made at this place. 
 
 Monday, November 30. — My people all informed me, that the 
 whole city was up in arms at the idea of our removing the stone from 
 their mosque, and that nothing but our robbery was talked of in the 
 bazar. We judged it as well therefore to have the Governor's authority 
 for what we were going to do ; and when the Kazi came to tell me that 
 every thing would be ready for my departure in two days, Mr. Vigne 
 pressed him for the order, but this he would not give, repeating that if 
 we chose to remove the stone, no notice would be taken. I saw how 
 many difficulties were in our way, and that the Sikhs did not wish 
 openly to offend the prejudices of the Mohammedans, I therefore recom- 
 mended that we should look out for another tablet, and Mohammed Shah 
 succeeded in getting us a beautiful slab of black marble out of the Shali- 
 mär garden. 
 
 Several dozen pair of shawls were sent to-day for my selection ; I 
 purchased two blue and two white ones, but neither of them was 
 finished. The conduct of Mirza Abdul Rahim highly disgusted me on 
 this occasion, and I was the more confirmed in my original opinion of 
 the man. The first time that Mr, Vigne visited the Governor, he was
 
 152 ' FORCE OF CONSTITUTIONAL HABIT. 
 
 accompanied by this Mirza Abdul Rahim, who demanded a seat as the 
 Company's agent. It was at first refused, but at last his demand was 
 complied with, although he had no right whatever to the privilege in 
 question. The giving or withholding of this seat, is a matter of vast 
 importance in India, and every European must not only stand firm on 
 his rightful pretensions, but even in his own solitary tent keep up all the 
 etiquette of a court. I passed the day in packing and purchasing, 
 while Mr. Vigne went to complete his drawing on the Tahkt-i-Suliman. 
 I regretted that time would not permit me to ascend this mountain again, 
 for the great antiquity of the ruin gave it additional interest. The 
 erection of the temple is ascribed to Gopaditya, of the Gonerdya 
 dynasty, b.c., 370. Dr. Henderson spent the whole day in the bazar 
 in preparing for his journey. In the evening we all dined together in 
 my tent. 
 
 Tuesday, December 1. — The Lieutenant and his guard, who had 
 been stationed before ray tent during my stay in Kashmir, were 
 appointed to escort me to Lahor. This was against my will, for such a 
 thing as a guard had never occurred to me during my wanderings from 
 one end of India to the other, and I had no inclination to avail myself 
 of this novel protection. 
 
 The servant of Ranjit Singh's chobdar had been dangerously ill in 
 Kashmir, and so had the havildar ; several of my attendants had also been 
 attacked with fever. I administered to, and succeeded in curing, them all. 
 Strange to say, the natives of Bengal were of all the least afiected by 
 the cold and the fatigues of our journey, and my only sui'prise still is, 
 how one of the Hindus survived it, seeing that, while they ai-e pre- 
 paring their food, they throw off every thing except the cloth which is 
 tied round their waist, and that the highest castes all eat in this state of 
 nudity. My munshi, a Brahmin, never failed to eat his rice thus 
 unclad, even when the glass was at the freezing point, and his health 
 was much better than that of the Mohammedans from the north of 
 India, who could not clothe themselves too warmly. Among others 
 who had heard of my success as a physician, was the Kazi, who came 
 to consult me, but I saw that he suffered from confirmed asthma, so I
 
 HINDU MODE OF NEGOTIATION. 153 
 
 made him over to Dr. Henderson, his case not being one by which I 
 could hope for any credit*. 
 
 Mr. Vigne made a drawing for me to-day of the Dilawer Khan Bägh, 
 and every inhabitant at present in it, servants, horses, dogs, goats, and 
 poultry. My dealings with the shawl merchants harassed me beyond 
 endurance ; indeed no patience can stand out against the torments of 
 making ever so trifling a bargain with these people. The mode of their 
 negotiating business is altogether peculiar : the two parties seated on 
 the ground, give their right hand to each other, under a large cloth, 
 without a word being uttered by either of them, the ofiFer and answer 
 are signified by difi'erent ways of pressing the hand. Several days 
 frequently elapse in such dealings, without any thing being concluded. 
 My deputy, Abdul Rahim, I had reason to believe equal to any species 
 of knavery ; Mirza Ahud however had always proved himself strictly 
 honest and disinterested. 
 
 My Indian servants assisted me to-day in packing up my collection 
 of the fishes of Kashmir ; and I may remark here, that I found them 
 on all occasions unsparing in their attention and most willing ; quite 
 undeserving of the contempt they sometimes receive from their English 
 masters, because they do not comprehend, as it were by instinct, all the 
 petty wants and desires of European fastidiousness. 
 
 • The natives of India, generally speaking, have very little faith in the medical 
 skill of Europeans. In extreme and desperate cases they will gladly apply, but not 
 till every other resource has failed them. Many such have come to my know- 
 ledge during my residence in India, where the most consummate skill, patience, 
 and every benevolent feeUng were generously proffered to parties beyond the reach of 
 ordinary cure. In cases of cholera, application was rarely deferred, or in any 
 serious affections of the sight ; but in the most dreadful maladies there is a decided 
 aversion to European practice, even with those classes, our soldiery and menials, 
 who come more directly under the influence of authority. Narratives of cases in 
 which diseases of the eye have been successfully treated, would fill a volume with 
 matter of the deepest interest, and discover much of the good quality of the 
 Asiatic — neither wholly destitute of gratitude, good sense, nor feelings of a yet nobler 
 kind. The record of acts of disinterested skill performed by Kemball, Marshall, 
 Duncan, Graham, Jefferson, and many such benevolent members of the medical 
 profession, do honour to this distinguished body, and will long be remembered 
 throughout Western India.
 
 154 THEFT TRACED TO DEPENDENTS. 
 
 Dr. Henderson and I had reckoned on starting to-day, but the 
 servants he had engaged refused to go when they found that he was 
 journeying to Atok, the bands of robbers being so numerous and 
 daring, that it has at times required the whole power of Ranjit Singh 
 to oppose them. He was therefore compelled to look out for others, 
 while my tents underwent some repairs, and the boats had not yet left 
 the city. The days were so short and so cold, that we did not get 
 through much business. 
 
 Wednesday, December 2. — The Dilawer Khan Bagh was like a 
 bazar to-day, not only for me but for my attendants, every one being 
 desirous of taking something to India from Kashmir. Then came the 
 task of examining the munshfs accounts ; and the writing of testi- 
 monials of good conduct for all Ranjit Singh's officers, from the Viceroy 
 down to the spy. In the evening a robbery, the first that had befallen 
 me in India, and which was instantly laid to the Kashmirians, was 
 efi'ected in my little territory, the object stolen being a coverlet that 
 Jwali Singh had bought in Rajawar. It was soon discovered, cut into 
 two pieces, in the possession of the Mali, my gardener. He vowed that 
 he had purchased it of a Kashmirian, but the secrecy with which he had 
 offered to sell one half to my bearer as soon as it was dark, proved his 
 criminality. My servants wanted to complain to the Kazi, but I would 
 not permit this, telling them that in my tents I was lord, and entitled 
 to punish any crime committed by my servants ; and late as it was, I 
 ordered a formal hearing of the case, assisted by Mr. Vigne. But the 
 evidence was so contradictory and so lengthy, that I was soon glad to 
 break up my court and pay Jwali Singh the value of his property. I 
 must admit that the gardener was too easily let off, as he still had the 
 stolen article in his possession. 
 
 The evening was employed in carving our inscription on the stone, 
 Mirza Ahud received thirty rupees to give to the sculptor, and he was 
 to be charged with the care of the stone until permission came from 
 Lahor, with authority to put it up in the Char Chunar island. 
 
 Dr. Henderson set off this afternoon, but divers disagreeable affairs 
 obliged me to remain another night in Kashmir. 
 
 Thursday, December 3. — The tents were packed by dawn, and my
 
 DEPARTURE FROM THE CITY. 155 
 
 baggage, which was greatly increased by the collections I had made at 
 this place, was all carried off to the boats. My stock of provisions was 
 very low, compared with what it had been when first I arrived in 
 Kashmir ; the potatoes, wine, and beer, were nearly exhausted, the 
 remains of my cellar consisting of half-a-dozen bottles of port wine, one 
 bottle of brandy, and a very few of other kinds of wine. From Narpoor 
 I had written to Ludiana for a fresh supply, but it had not arrived. I 
 was obliged in consequence to leave a request with the Governor that as 
 soon as it should find its way to Kashmir, it should be forwarded to me. 
 It was not till two o'clock that we left the garden. The shawl mer- 
 chant promised that my unfinished purchases should be sent to Ludiana 
 within four weeks, and took a bill of exchange payable at Calcutta. I 
 mention this as a proof of the facility with which Europeans can 
 receive money in any part of India. 
 
 Neither Vigne nor I quitted the Dilawer Khan Bagh without 
 emotion, but it was caused by very opposite feelings : he had many 
 pleasant remembrances connected with his abode in that garden ; I had 
 none, and the sufi'erings of my body almost annihilated every senti- 
 ment of pleasure which, in a more genial season, the many beauties 
 around me must have kept alive. At the Hamidan Masjid a little 
 fleet of seven boats was waiting for us, and threading the crowds which 
 were assembled on the shore and the bridge, we found ourselves gently 
 gliding down the stream, and taking our last farewell view of the city. 
 The architecture of the wooden edifices situated on its shores, is 
 peculiar. They are two, three, and sometimes four stories high, but 
 only one window in breadth; being built moreover detached, they 
 appear to invite the wind, if perchance it should ever blow hard in 
 Kashmir, to overthrow them. 
 
 When we had left the city behind us, the motion of the boat seemed 
 too slow and tedious in my present frame of mind, and I desired to be 
 put on shore and see whether exercise would not divert my thoughts 
 from melancholy. It was bitter cold, and long ere by dint of hard walk- 
 ing I could get any warmth into my frame. The country is generally 
 marshy, and in many parts uncultivated. The most romantic part of the 
 valley is evidently in the south and south-east, although further west
 
 156 ADMINISTRATION OF JUSTICE. 
 
 there is a point which the Kashmirians consider by far the most beau- 
 tiful part of this region, and which has gained the appellation of the 
 Village of Roses, or Gul Mari. I had heard of it before, but it lay far 
 out of my way, and the season of the year altogether precluded my wish 
 to see it. After we left Kashmir, not a flower was to be seen ; and the 
 native whom I appointed to search for some, brought me nothing but a 
 few evergreen leaves, the frost having completely destroyed every 
 other description of vegetation. 
 
 We came to Koshpara, a village remarkable only for having the 
 largest plane-trees in Kashmir. This tree, as I have often mentioned, 
 is considered of much importance by the natives, who call it the end of 
 misfortune. On its branches criminals are hanged, a punishment of 
 constant occurrence under the Patau sway, when the smallest offence was 
 visited with death, but now only inflicted in cases of murder. Men are 
 too valuable to the present ruler of Kashmir to be lightly spared : penal- 
 ties and stripes are therefore the usual punishments. The people seem 
 contented with the justice dealt out to them, and admitted to me that 
 not more than one guilty person in every twenty is ever visited with the 
 reward due to his crimes. The dreadful cruelties perpetrated by their 
 earlier rulers, who, for the smallest offence, punished them with the loss 
 of their noses or ears, make the poor Indians well satisfied with their 
 present comparatively mild government ; and, in truth, there is very 
 little oppression on the part of the governors or thanadars. The ideas of 
 the Indians on this and many other subjects are also, it may be observed, 
 very different from our own. As an example, I may mention that I 
 had delayed my departure from the Dilawer Khan Bägh until noon, in 
 order to take the sun's altitude once more. The sky was unclouded, 
 and not to lose a moment, I began my observation at half-past eleven. 
 Mr. Vigne meanwhile was sketching in the garden, which was crowded 
 by the natives, who gathered around to see what we were doing. My 
 English friend thought that they must be much impressed with our 
 skill ; I, on the contrary, had always remarked throughout India a total 
 want of appreciation for any of our occupations, and rather a contemp- 
 tible idea of those who were thus engaged. To settle this difference of 
 opinion, Vigne called Mirza Ahud, and asked him what the Kashmirians
 
 SPECULATIVE GEOGRAPHY. 157 
 
 said of us. Being told that he would not give us any offence, he 
 frankly acknowledged that we were both looked upon as two madmen, 
 who were troubling our heads about nothing better than stones and 
 plants. Even the Governor concluded Mr. Vigne must be a downright 
 idiot, to waste his time in drawing the likeness of an old ruin or a poor 
 native. The Orientals only concern themselves about those treasures 
 which will procure them the enjoyments of this life, or the religion 
 which promises them the pleasures of the next. 
 
 At six o'clock the boats stopped, for it was quite dark ; and as ray 
 people wished to spend the night in Shadipur, I landed, in order to take 
 a survey of the place, which Abul Fazl calls the city of Shahabadipur, 
 the ancient Phalapur. I found it a wretched village, oflFering no 
 shelter except that of a plane-tree ; but as they told me that there was 
 a beautiful garden on the other side of the Jelam, I desired that I 
 might be taken over to it. This garden. Dab Bägh, Surij Bägh of the 
 Hindus, lies at the confluence of the Siund and the Jelam, the first a 
 small stream, called by us the Chota Sind, or little Indus, a name as 
 little known among the natives as the Indus, which in Kashmir is called 
 Atok, and in northern India, Nilab. The little Indus has been 
 extolled by many writers as one of the chief sources of the Indus, and 
 many have divided this into two branches, and made one of them to 
 flow through Kashmir, the reason of this being the similarity between 
 names, a most prolific source of error, and an occasion of the most absurd 
 theories. In the history of Kashmir it is said, that Sujjya, whose 
 birth and life were both most marvellous, ordained the course of this 
 river about the year 880. The junction of the Siund with the Jelam, 
 which before this, took place further down the stream by the temple of 
 Vainya Swami, was then removed higher up, namely, between the 
 cities of Parihasapur and Phalapur. The junction of the Siund and 
 Jelam does occur almost at a right angle, which accounts for the story. 
 At the point of confluence is a little island, on which stands a small 
 Buddhist temple. 
 
 The garden appointed for our night station, is three-quarters of a 
 mile from the shore; the night was dark, and there was no beaten 
 path. When we reached it, we saw and went over several buildings,
 
 158 CHARACTER OF HINDU GOVERNMENT. 
 
 until I found at last a very convenient room in a pavilion of marble. I 
 desired one of the Kashmirians to light a fire there, while I went forth 
 again to seek for Vigne ; and when we returned together, the fire was 
 kindled on the marble pavement; but the smoke was so unbearable, that 
 we were obliged to throw open every door and window, and the cold was 
 sharper than without. We did not get our dinner until midnight, and 
 then I went to bed perfectly exhausted. Thus ended our first day. 
 
 Friday, December 4. — The Surij Bägh, or Dab Bägh, is a large 
 pleasure-ground, laid out in the Indian taste, the chief art of which 
 consists in giving a full view of the whole garden and buildings in it 
 from the entrance gates, which are always of considerable elevation. 
 From these a broad way leads to the basin, where fountains play in 
 abundant variety : large beds of flowers ornament the garden, and the 
 buildings are adorned with all that caprice could desire, or money pur- 
 chase. The Surij Bägh was made by Surij Bähri, who was summoned 
 to Kashmir by Moti Ram, the first viceroy under Ranjit Singh, to super- 
 intend the new partition of the lands into portions of greater or less 
 size. Several parcels of land were given to him, for which he paid a 
 tribute, and gradually he had charge of eighteen pergannahs, for which 
 he had to pay not less than six lacs of rupees. During the famine he 
 received only five lacs, and prayed therefore to be excused the sixth, 
 but Ranjit Singh refused this, telling him that if he had lost something 
 this year, he had gained largely in the last. On the tribute failing 
 altogether, Surij Bähri was deprived of every thing, and received for his 
 maintenance two villages, which keep him poorly enough. The con- 
 sequence of such arbitrary proceedings on the part of their ruler, is, 
 that no man feels quite sure of his own, and that neither in the Panjab 
 nor in Kashmir, have individuals much credit. For, who would lend 
 his richest subject money, unless at enormous interest, when the 
 Maha Raja may, by a word, reduce him to beggary*. The garden is 
 
 • Such is a correct picture of the proceedings of every native government 
 which, during the last two centuries, has arisen out of the dismemberment of the 
 more ancient Hindu and Moghul sovereignties throughout the whole of India. In 
 contrasting the advantages and comparative immunity from oppression, which the
 
 RESULTS OF SUPERSTITION. 159 
 
 falling to ruin, though never completed, and many a lac of rupees must 
 all this carving and marble undoubtedly have cost. 
 
 The pavilion where we slept, consists of several little rooms, all of 
 marble. The windows are most tastefully ornamented with the glass of 
 Bengal ; in the midst of the large square forming the garden, is an airy 
 edifice of wood, with beautiful columns and lattice-work, where the cool 
 of the evening is usually passed by the natives ; and the largest of the 
 buildings is close to a piece of water brought from the Siund; the 
 water, when high, reaches to the walls of the buildings, although they 
 are built at a height of forty or fifty feet above it. There are three 
 species of the beautiful rose of Kashmir in the garden, and in defiance 
 of the season, one of the bushes yielded me a flower. 
 
 The Surij Bagh is probably on the site of the once famous, city of Pari- 
 hasapur, of the marvels of which the native legends speak so highly . This 
 city was built by the great conqueror Lalitaditya, who reigned from 
 A.D. 714 to 750, and was adorned with many fine temples and monu- 
 ments ; among others, with a pillar cut out of one stone, twenty-four 
 yards high, at the top of which stood the image of Garuda, half-man, 
 half-eagle. Sikandar Budh Shikan probably destroyed it, but several 
 fragments were seen in 1727 by Mohammed Azim. Immense images 
 of gold, silver, and other metals, also adorned the interior, but all 
 traces of this splendour have disappeared. The point where two rivers 
 meet is called Prayaga, or Sangam, and is always holy. The island at 
 the junction of the Jelam and Siund has been the scene of many a self- 
 immolation, and the Raja Taringini relates that Mitra Serma, the faithful 
 
 population enjoy under British sway, with the misery attendant on such a disregard 
 of all the higher concerns of legislation by their own princes, there can be no 
 question that the condition of all the industrious classes has been much improved ; 
 but this is rather to be ascribed to the concentration of such authority under one 
 head, than to any superior system of administration ; as is evident from the mere 
 consideration, that established practice and ancient institutions, are preferred to 
 European ideas of legislation, whenever circumstances will admit of it. The for- 
 mer Hindu, and indeed the Moghul governments, were very much better adapted 
 to the state of Indian society than our own. It was the debasing, destructive, and 
 iniquitous character of their religion, which precluded the full benefit of the former, 
 as Christianity alleviates the bad, and fosters any measure of good in the present 
 administration of this great empire. " Sit Deo laus." — Ed.
 
 160 LEGENDS FOUNDED ON NATURE. 
 
 diwan or minister of the great King Lalitaditya, terminated his life 
 here. The sacrifice is made a matter of much ceremony. The man 
 tired of his life, makes his prescribed ablutions before a vast multitude, 
 repeats the prayers required of his sect, and then seats himself in the 
 water, praying all the while, and remaining there uncovered until he is 
 drowned. The most holy stream for these suicides is the Ganges, 
 where the alligators sometimes destroy the victim before the waters. 
 In the Shastras, suicide, on account of grief or illness, is only allowed at 
 the sacred Prayaga at Allahabad, where the Ganges and Jamna unite 
 with the invisible Sareswati. 
 
 We breakfasted in the boat, reached Sambal, where is a bridge near 
 the Jelam, in two hours, and there landed. The natives say that a 
 fine city is here buried under the river, the summits of temples and 
 other buildings having been often distinctly seen. There is no likeli- 
 hood of this. The deepest part of the river is not more than twelve 
 or fifteen feet, the sounding line finds nothing but earth and slime, and 
 the Jelam carries so much mud along with it, that it would long since 
 have filled up any inequalities of the bed. But the Kashmirians have 
 a legend of this wonderful city, which is sinking deeper and deeper into 
 the earth. I will repeat the story as told me by Mirza Abdul. The city 
 was called Narapoor from its founder. Buz Nära, a Hindu Raja, 
 who lived 1000 years before Christ, and being on the Jelam, and near 
 the beautiful lake, it soon became the favourite abode of the chief 
 Brahmins, one of whom, Chandrabaha, so pleased Karkota, the serpent- 
 god, that he gave him his sister Nila Banu to wife. Her greatest 
 pleasure, however, was to visit her brother, and linger for hours beneath 
 the clear waters. It chanced that one day, the King Buz, who often 
 visited Narapoor, beheld the charming Nila Banu on the shore, and 
 became desperately enamoured of her. Failing in every attempt to 
 obtain a return of this passion, the king determined to carry her away 
 by force, and accordingly followed her steps with two of his trusty 
 attendants. They were just about to seize her, when her brother 
 Karkota appeared ; he hurled a huge wave on the head of the king's 
 servants, drew them into the lake and stifled them. Finding that even 
 this did not put an end to the king's presumptuous hopes, Karkota's
 
 EFFECTS OF DESPOTISM AND MISRULE. 161 
 
 rage became unbounded, he raised a storm so terrific, that the king and 
 all his subjects dwelling in Narapoor, were carried away, and he and his 
 sister even still unsatisfied, took huge masses of rock from the Romanya 
 mountains, and hurled them on the city, causing it to fall in ruins into 
 the Jelam. When all was still as death, Karkota began to be rather 
 ashamed of his anger, and gave the country to his sister and her 
 husband Chandrabaha, after he had turned the lake where he dwelt 
 into milk : hence, the Mansbal Ser is called also Jamatri Saras. The 
 place is still to be seen where the serpent-god dwelt ; it is called 
 Amantri, and the milk-white colour distinguishes it from other 
 points. I desired Mirza Ahud to point it out to me as soon as he 
 saw it. 
 
 We sent our boats forward from Sambal, with orders to wait for 
 U3 at the point where the Mansbal Ser runs into the Jelam, our 
 object being to visit the lake. On the south side it is bounded by a 
 sedgy marsh, but in other parts the shores are steep and bare, and the 
 oval form is clearly marked throughout. We strolled along the western 
 shore, which is completely encircled by swelling hills, and reached a 
 lovely point where was a garden inhabited by a fakir. We then 
 passed Sofapoor, and the palace of the Empress Nur Jehän, the beloved 
 wife of Jehanghir, whose name is still revered in Kashmir and through- 
 out northern India, for her virtues and for the noble monuments which 
 she has left of her taste and munificence. 
 
 The lake is deep, the mountains of Tibet towering proudly above 
 it, and their deep shadows darkening the waters far beyond the shore. 
 The large building, never quite completed, is now destroyed to the very 
 foundations ; but there are remains of three terraces, fifty fathoms in 
 length, which were constructed one above the other. 
 
 While Mr. Vigne took a sketch, I hailed a boat, and with some 
 trouble made them take me across to Kondebal, to see the only lime- 
 pits in Kashmir. Their kilns are eight feet in diameter, and it takes 
 sixteen days' labour, and requires 2000 logs of stout wood to heat them 
 thoroughly. The wood, which is from a species of the fir called kair, 
 is brought from a distance of twelve kos. There were twenty men, at 
 the charge of the government, working under the superintendence of 
 
 M
 
 162 THF, lUCII HAVE MANY FRIENDS. 
 
 three sepoys. One hundred and ninety-two pounds (a kurwar) of 
 burnt lime, sells on the avei'age for one rupee. 
 
 A small stream, called the Amrawati falls into the lake at the 
 northern extremity. The ground over which it flows is so white, that 
 it looks at a distance like a foaming cataract, and this is the very spot 
 where Karkota is said to have turned the waters into milk. The 
 Hindus smear their bodies with the chalky soil, supposing it to be a 
 means of religious purification. 
 
 From the palace a gentle declivity stretches down to the Jelam. 
 This, like the Korau Pandau, only wants irrigation to make it very 
 fruitful. A few little streamlets flow from the mountains and fertilize 
 a small tract, but the rest is a complete waste. In the deep soil of this 
 plain, not a field was cultivated last year, and the blame of this may be 
 charged equally to the indolence of the people, and the carelessness of the 
 government. We saw several villages in the distance, but the popula- 
 tion is too scanty in this place to keep the ground in order. We found 
 our boats at Jinpur, which we reached, after many delays and wind- 
 ings, an hour before nightfall, exhausted almost to death. In Hayapur 
 the Thanadar and the most considerable of the natives came out to meet 
 me. I wanted shelter ; the Thanadar led me into a palace (for so it 
 might be called in Kashmir) where a man of some consequence was 
 residing with his family, and desired him to make room for me. Luckily 
 for him, neither his doors nor windows would admit my portable bed- 
 stead ; and though I perambulated every house in the town, not one 
 could accommodate my simple furniture. The way in which a stranger 
 finds lodgings in Kashmir is cei-tainly very strange. He walks through 
 the town and chooses the most convenient quarters, it being a matter 
 of course that the owner moves out for him, without receiving either 
 payment or thanks. At first I felt ashamed to treat any man so, but 
 learnt that it is considered as great an honour to be turned out of 
 one's house here, as it is in Europe to a subject to be put to the immense 
 expense and trouble of a royal visit. In this place there was literally 
 not a house where I could rest for the night ; I therefore gave orders 
 for my tent to be made ready. 
 
 Mohammed Shah arrived with his suite, and as there was some
 
 ENVIRONS OF THK WALLAH LAKE. 163 
 
 difficulty in purchasing food for so many people, I was forced to levy 
 subsidies in the town. Indeed, along this route, the country is so 
 thinly peopled, that a large party cannot expect the villages to supply 
 their wants. They tell me that this state of things will continue as far 
 as Mazafferabad. In other parts of Kashmir, and generally throughout 
 India, every servant and bearer buys his provisions daily in the markets; 
 and a walk through the bazar is always a treat for an Indian, no matter 
 how tired he may be. 
 
 The tent was pitched in the tall grass, which at this season is very 
 dry ; well remembering how often fires break out in New Holland, and 
 destroy every thing near, 1 ordered that it should be cut close all about 
 my tent. Vigne thought it would be a more expeditious way to set fire 
 to it at once : it instantly burned with violence, nor was it without the 
 utmost trouble that the destruction of his entire baggage was prevented. 
 
 Saturday, December 5. — We followed the course of the Jelam for 
 two hours through an uncultivated district, ending in a marsh, and 
 finally entered the Walhir Lake, into which the Jelam flows in two 
 places. Not far from the shore is a little island called Lankh, a name 
 which might lead us to imagine that the Kashmirians once had an 
 observatory on it, where all their astronomical calculations were made. 
 Here is an extensive building in ruins, formerly, no doubt, a Buddhist 
 temple, which was overthrown by the fanatical Musselman Sikander 
 Budh Shikan. Like the temple of Koran Pandau, it was of a square 
 form, and surrounded by a flight of stone steps leading down to the 
 lake. The view from this island, including the ruins of a mosque built 
 by Bäb Hassan Khan, the grandson of Zeynal ab ud Din*, and of 
 a palace called Zeynlankh, erected by Zeynal himself, is particularly 
 romantic. I observed several boats engaged in collecting the Singhara 
 or water-nut, which is found in abundance in the muddy bottom of the 
 lake, and serves the natives as food in India: it is eaten by the Brah- 
 mins on one particular day of the year only. 
 
 A veil of mist hung over the motionless lake, and flocks of water- 
 fowl, from the gigantic pelican to the little sea-swallow, were flying 
 
 • Zeynul ab ud-din, or Zaiii ul ab-ud-din. The glimniCT of the water of religion. 
 
 M 2
 
 164 INSICiNlFICANCE OF MOGHUL OFFICES. 
 
 slowly through the heavy atmosphere. When Mr. Vigne had finished 
 his sketch of the lake, and I had obtained all the information I could 
 from the fishermen, we pursued our way by water to Banderpoor, whence 
 we were to surmount one of the loftiest passes to Tibet. Banderpoor 
 (Haven City) lies a mile away from the shore in a marsh, which the 
 retiring waters of the Wallar Lake have left. We stepped from the 
 boats on planks, which supported us until the soil became firm enough 
 to bear our feet, but owing to its nature, we were forced to take a very 
 circuitous road to the town of Banderpoor, which, from being a large 
 and well-peopled place, is now a comparatively deserted heap of ruins. 
 The Thanadar met me, with the few remaining inhabitants, and brought 
 me a horse, which I very gladly mounted. The saddle was made in the 
 fashion of Central Asia, and very richly ornamented with silver and 
 mother-of-pearl ; the seat was embroidered with velvet and gold. In 
 fact, it was a piece of magnificence which was quite fit for a cabinet 
 or a museum, but the pommel being a foot high in front, and half that 
 height behind, it was so very unlike what I had ever been used to, 
 that I much preferred entering the town less ostentatiously on foot, 
 to the honour of feeling so very uncomfortable. The more ambitious 
 Mohan Bir mounted the animal, and soon had a very serious fall. 
 The Thanadar showed me a house which would have suited me for a 
 night's lodging, but time was too precious to me to allow of my stopping 
 so early ; I therefore continued my way on foot to Bonikut, the abode of 
 the Malik of Banderpoor. I was met half way by his son, and a 
 number of his followers. Bonikut lies on the banks of a charming 
 rivulet, completely shut in by a range of high mountains. They soon 
 spread out a carpet for me under some large poplar-trees, by a gurgling 
 spring, a delightful spot for a weary traveller in summer, though any- 
 thing but inviting at the present time. I accepted it nevertheless, as 
 my servants had not yet arrived, and I was thoroughly exhausted. 
 
 The Malik, whose office answers to that of a commandant on the 
 frontier, is a fine venerable-looking personage. He had just built a 
 house which was yet unoccupied, and he invited me to lodge in his old 
 one, why I do not exactly know, but I fancied that I should prefer the 
 place where I was. One by one of my party came up, first Vigne, then
 
 A MOUNTAIN EXCURSION. 
 
 IG5 
 
 the attendants. The Khansaman, a Mohammedan, took possession 
 of the mosque, and cooked in the entrance; while the Hindus lighted 
 their fire, and gathered round it in groups. The cold was additionally 
 trying after the previous fatigue I had undergone. Before I settled 
 myself to sleep I ordered some of my people to watch during the night 
 that the tires did not go out. 
 
 The place of Malik of Kashmir, first appointed by Akbar, was 
 formerly one of considerable power and influence, and the Malik was 
 almost independent, being subject only to the authority of the distant 
 Emperor of Delhi. By degrees this place has sunk into insignificance, 
 although the present oflScer, living on the borders of the yet uncon- 
 quered Ahmed Shah's territory, is a person of some consequence, but 
 his office would speedily be suppressed altogether, if Ranjit Singh were 
 to seize on Iskardu. The Maliks were intended to keep watch on the 
 frontiers ; but as Ranjit has already extended his dominions on every 
 side beyond them, this single conquest would render the office quite 
 superfluous. There are nominally 500 armed men in the district of 
 Banderpoor; but here, as in most places about the country, famine and 
 sickness have so depopulated the town, that the Malik could not muster 
 the half of that number. Henderson travelled through this pass, but 
 he did not praise the reception given him by the Malik, nor could he 
 expect any thing better in such a garb as his. He ought to have taken 
 the coldness of his reception as a compliment to the skill with which 
 he played the part of a fakir. 
 
 Sunday, December 6. — My attendants were indefatigable in keeping 
 up a good fire during the night; and whenever I waked, I saw the 
 Indians seated about it, and doing their best to maintain the heat on the 
 side where I was lying. We began our preparations for departure at 
 dawn ; and yestei'day's lesson made me cautious in choosing a horse for 
 the mountains, provided with a saddle-cloth instead of the more pic- 
 turesque but very inconvenient saddle of Turkisthan, which, at best, 
 is only adapted to a level country : the Malik's son was deputed to be 
 our guide. We commenced our journey by several steep mountains 
 inferior only to the Pir Panjal, to a height which is reckoned to be 
 4000 feet; here we first entered the pine forests. Through these we
 
 166 SUBLIMITY OF NATURE. 
 
 continued 1000 feet further until we stopped at a narrow slip of level 
 ground, which was scarped perpendicularly on either side. At 6000 feet 
 we could distinguish the highest summits of the Nanenwara mountain 
 before us. We had still 1000 feet to climb. The ascent was made on 
 horseback, until we were within 300 feet of the top, and thus far I 
 observed the juniper and saxifrage growing, but the peaks were quite 
 destitute of vegetation, and in the clefts snow was still lying in small 
 quantities. 
 
 I never shall forget the cold I felt on the summit of that mountain. 
 The north wind cut my face as with a knife, and my very bones seemed 
 turned to ice ; my thermometer, notwithstanding, was not lower than 
 31°. All around me was utter desolation, not a living creature, not a 
 tree, nor sign of vegetation, as far as the eye could reach. Nought 
 else in fact but rocks and ice, and masses of snow-clouds. I had 
 brought every thing necessary to kindle a fire, that I might ascertain 
 the boiling point; and while they were preparing it under a rock 100 
 feet below the highest peak, I ascended it again to look around me. 
 Diaraal, or Nangaparvat, the highest of the chain, rises out of it like a 
 vast pyramid, and was now veiled in clouds, showing little more than its 
 prodigious base. This bounded the prospect towards the N.N.W. and 
 N.E. ; further west, and W.S.W. the Gosieh mountains stretch to the 
 Baramulla chain, and beyond this again was the snowy ridge which 
 joins the Hindu Khosh. Southwards and S.W. lay the valley, only 
 distinguished by a low stripe of mist, above which appeared the snowy 
 peaks of Pir Panjal, which seemed to form but one part of the great 
 Panjal of Tibet. Between 34° and 35° of latitude, the air is generally 
 most transparent, and this, together with the great elevation of my 
 present position, may account for the apparently interminable distance 
 to which the view reached. Towards the S.W. the prospect was 
 bounded by the Pir Panjal : of course the Indian plain beyond it cannot 
 be reached by the naked eye. In every other direction, mountains 
 towering above mountains were seen to an immense distance. 
 
 Standing thus on the northernmost point of my wanderings in Asia, 
 my eye involuntarily sought to pierce the veil far beyond those snowy 
 barriers in the west, where Europe and Austria were now so far away.
 
 LIMIT OF ORGANIC VITALITY. 
 
 167 
 
 and my heart dreamed of the beloved ones never forgotten there. The 
 mountain tops rose one above the other, like the billows of a stormy sea, 
 and seemed to shut out all hope of escaping from their dreary wastes. 
 How fondly did my thoughts then revert to my much-loved home, with 
 prayer, that this day, hallowed in my recollections as the birth-day of 
 my honoured mother, now in her 66th year, might be blest to her, as 
 well as to her absent, though not forgetful son. 
 
 A dreadful headache came on while T was on this high point, but I 
 could not make up my mind to leave it until 1 had ascertained the 
 height of the boiling point. For this purpose I descended 100 feet, 
 where my people had lighted a fire under a projection of the rock. It 
 was a long time ere the ice in our iron pot would melt at all ; the rarity 
 of the air causing it to evaporate, without dissolving into water. At 
 last the boiling point reached 188°, or, by the rectification of the instru- 
 ment + 1-2 ° 186-8°. The pains in the head, which had seized Vigne 
 also, and all my people, were now so intense, that we hastened to leave 
 our present situation, and 1 thought that the horror of the people of 
 Kashmir for these mountain passes, which they suppose haunted by 
 evil spirits, was not so unaccountable after all. This was the farthest 
 limit of my travels, and it seemed a consolation that every step hence- 
 forward would take me nearer home. 
 
 As soon as we again reached the region of birches, I looked about 
 for the rhododendron, but could not see one ; in the pine-woods, how- 
 ever, I saw the titmouse and other birds of our climate. 
 
 The descent was even more painful than the ascent, for the poor 
 horses stepped so cautiously down the precipitous paths, that we chose 
 rather to walk, that we might reach Banderpoor before nightfall. It is 
 to be remarked, that neither plant nor bird did we see, except in the 
 pine-forests, and in some ravines where water was heard foaming over 
 
 rocks. 
 
 Three miles before Bonikut, we struck into a foot-path, generally 
 taken by the lime-burners of Kondibal with their loads of fir ; it led us 
 over a narrow shelf of rocks as slippery as ice, over which I fell several 
 times. As soon as we were once more in the plain, I dismissed the 
 Malik's son and went on to Banderpoor, where I passed the night in
 
 168 EXQUISITE PLEASURE OF NOVELTY. 
 
 my tent distracted with headache, and unable to swallow a morsel 
 of food. 
 
 Monday, December 7. — Later than usual, and long after the 
 attendants and baggage were on their way to the lake, Mr. Vigne and I 
 began our day's work. I gave Mohan a horse to-day, and his rapture 
 was shown in galloping about the marshy plain, and dashing into the 
 canals, unmindful of several tumbles. Vigne stayed behind with his 
 boat, while I crossed the lake in mine in six hours, and in a short time 
 afterwards arrived in Sopoor, There I declined the Thanadar's invita- 
 tion to his Darbar, and went on to Tuilibal. To this point both 
 shores of the river were covered with muscles, which supply the natives 
 with plenty of unwholesome food. 
 
 The Jelam flows rather more briskly on this side of the Wallar 
 Lake. The sun had set sometime before we reached Baramulla. I 
 chose my night's abode in an open hall of the Dharamsala, seeing that 
 the room in which my people had kindled afire was enveloped in smoke. 
 I was welcomed by the Thanadar of the place, a Brahmin from Delhi, 
 and received letters from Dr. Henderson, whose journey had prospered 
 hitherto, and from Mehan Singh, who wrote to wish me a happy 
 journey, and to express his hope that the arrangements for conveying 
 my baggage and supplying my party wnth provisions, had given me 
 satisfaction. This they had certainly done hitherto, but the Thanadar 
 assured me now that it would be impossible for him to find the requisite 
 number of bearers (coolies), and carriage (tattoos), by to-morrow morn- 
 ing. I was reluctantly compelled to wait, as the cold became daily 
 more insupportable, and my people sutfered much from sickness. 
 
 The open hall where I was lodged was spacious, adorned with 
 marble pillars, and paved with squares of the same. True, I fancied 
 more than once that I should have died of cold; but I must admit that 
 I had been most incautious with regard to my wardrobe, and that I 
 possessed neither cloak nor great coat. I drew and wrote until I was 
 quite W'Orn out, and lay benumbed with cold in my charpäi. I would 
 not positively affirm that I had not occasionally some dreamy idea how 
 pleasant it might be to be spared ever again awaking to the sorrows, 
 miseries, and labours of this nether world.
 
 THE GUKU, OR SIKH PRIEST. 
 
 169 
 
 Tuesday, December 8.— I was roused before daybreak, by a strange 
 kind of singing. The Dharamsäla was properly a Sikh temple, or the 
 residence of a Sikh priest, who is bound to offer a lodging to every tra- 
 veller of his own faith, and is paid for this hospitable shelter by different 
 sorts of gifts ; this is the chief source of his revenue. I had taken pos- 
 session of the audience hall of a priest of some consequence in Bära- 
 mulla, and in an open court before it, I remarked a very tasteful build- 
 ing of stone, in which was erected a throne, adorned with red and 
 yellow silk carpets, and hung with richly-ornamented curtains. On 
 this throne was seated the old priest : his beard was as white as snow. 
 In his hand he held a chduri or fly-fan, made from the tail of the Tibet 
 yak. The handle, which was of silver, he moved to and fro incessantly. 
 Over his head there was an oil lamp burning, and before him the 
 Grunth, or Book of the Sikh Law, open, from which he was chaunting 
 in a loud voice. When first I was roused from sleep by the noise, and 
 looked out on the elegant throne, and the venerable old man upon it, I 
 could hardly persuade myself that the whole was not a vision ; but the 
 continued pains in my head too soon reminded me of the reality of the 
 scene. The severity of the cold was excessive, yet the old man had 
 been at his religious duties since four o'clock, and every now and then 
 the Sikhs came to ask his advice : he seemed in fact to hold a continuous 
 Durbar. 
 
 I was shortly interrupted in the writing I had resumed, by the 
 entrance of Mirza Ahud, who had talked to me so much about a giant's 
 tooth, which was under the care of the Brahmins of Baramulla, that I 
 desired to see it. He now ushered in a deputation from a Brahminical 
 temple near, who straightway seated themselves on the ground, and 
 drawing a large parcel out of a heap of cloths, laid it at my feet. This 
 was the relic : they then commenced a long story about the Jin, to 
 whom it had belonged. It is related that while Kasyapa was living by 
 the Satiser, which formerly covered the whole valley, he happened one 
 day to be praying to the goddess Mata. The Jin tried to disturb his 
 devotions, but he was reproved by the holy man, who desired him to 
 quit the place. Instead of doing this, he made a snatch at the devotee's 
 pagri or turban, whereupon Kasyapa gave him so severe a blow, that it
 
 170 MISHAPS IN THE JOURNEY OF LIFE. 
 
 knocked out one of his teeth, and sent the evil spirit howling away : 
 this tooth has been preserved in the temple, and shown to pilgrims for 
 thousands of years since*. I begged they would let me see this relic, 
 when, after much unwrapping and ceremonious manoeuvring, they pro- 
 duced the upper tooth of an elephant. I ventured to insinuate that the 
 Jin must have been an elephant, to judge by his teeth ; but one and all 
 stoutly maintained it was no such thing, but a real giant's, and that this, 
 to boot, was not one of his largest teeth. The tooth was bona fide that 
 of an elephant of India, and of no great age, to judge from its appearance. 
 While we were together, in rushed Mohan Bir to tell me that my 
 favourite Ghunt had been stolen, and Osman Khan, to inform his 
 master, Mr. Vigne, that the finest of his Yaks or Tibetan bulls was 
 defunct. I held the Thanadar responsible to me for my horse ; and 
 as there was no longer any hope for the bull, I begged Vigne to have 
 his head cut off, and let me take it to Europe. Well versed now in 
 Indian habits, I was curious to see their force on my Shikari Jonki, 
 who was a native of the Himalaya, and of a good caste ; so I sent for 
 him, and desired him to go to the place where it lay, cut the animal's 
 head of, and bring it to me. I shall never forget the expression of the 
 man's visage. He stammered out that he would die for me if necessary, 
 but that this order he could not possibly obey, for that if he only 
 touched the creature, he should assuredly lose his caste. The com- 
 mission was therefore given to a Mohammedan, to the great satisfaction 
 of poor Jonki, who thanked me very earnestly for not insisting on his 
 obedience. 
 
 I could not imagine how my little Ghunt could have been stolen. 
 The stable where he stood, was in an inner court, accessible only 
 through the place where all my servants were lodged, with one 
 entrance door, where a guard was posted. The Thanadar set the 
 whole population on the look out, to get intelligence of it ; and though 
 its appearance was so remarkable, no one observed it. At last, how- 
 
 * The history of all relics is much the same ; idle, fanciful, and characteristic 
 of the unsoundness of a faith, which needs such testimonies to the strange marvels 
 of a corrupt and idolatrous superstition. — Ed.
 
 A FOKTUNATE RECOVERY. 171 
 
 ever, it was brought back to me to my great joy ; the fact was, that the 
 groom had left him unfastened in the stable, whereupon the poor beast 
 had sagaciously availed himself of the opportunity to take a stroll in the 
 fields. The Thanadar had offered me another horse as a substitute 
 before mine was found, but I refused to take it, which convinced him 
 of the necessity of exerting himself. 
 
 Baramulla is the boundary of Kashmir to the westward. On the 
 left bank of the Jelam, near the bridge, and on the road to Prunsh, is 
 a small fort. A gate, close to the town, where the hills approach each 
 other, marks the limit of the territory: here the character of the Jelam 
 changes; from a gentle stream it becomes a broad and rapid river*. 
 
 Wednesday, December 9. — We began to move on at daybreak, but 
 I purposed to remain here until noon to take the sun's altitude, and 
 afterwards to follow the people. The day, however, did not promise 
 to be any clearer than yesterday, and I lost my patience and deter- 
 mined to set off at once. The bull's head not having arrived at 8 o'clock, 
 the Thanadar assured me that it should be sent after me, but I put no 
 faith in his promises, and declared my purpose of remaining at Bara- 
 mulla until it was ready. As the table and chairs had been taken 
 away, and the Dharamskla was bitterly cold, I strolled to the Juma 
 Masjid, a building now in ruins: four magnificent columns of cedar wood 
 are yet standing, which alone are well worth a visit. As I returned, 
 I met a man with the bull's head, and would have made him strip off 
 the skin for the convenience of packing it, but he refused, although I 
 offered him a rupee for the job. W^ith much trouble I found a Moham- 
 medan, who agreed to do it, and for an additional rupee, to carry it to 
 our next station. Such is a specimen of the impediments in the way of 
 those who are forming collections of natural history in these remote 
 countries. 
 
 Mirza Ahud accompanied me to the gate of the valley. It was a 
 
 * The great increase of fall at this point of the valley, gives to the accumulated 
 waters of the Jelam and its tributaries, this prodigious velocity, and fully accounts 
 for the natural passage thus enlarged in the course of many ages, which in earlier 
 times was probably much less considerable. The Kashmirians ascribe the work to 
 Solomon. — Ed.
 
 172 TRANSITION TO THE PANJAB. 
 
 real grief to me to part for ever in this world from this excellent man ; 
 he wept bitterly, while the tears stood in my eyes. Mirza Abdul 
 Rahira also ran after me to beg that I would forgive him if he had been 
 remiss in any thing. I walked on with the cold reply, " Ucha hy," all 
 is well, I am satisfied. 
 
 And thus leaving this Indian paradise, I passed through a rock, 
 which together with the river forms a strong banner : northwards, the 
 steep rocks of the Gosieh slant down to the Jelam ; southwards, the 
 Pir Panjal stretches on the other shore as far as the Jelam also, where 
 it forms a steep declivity, the snow-capped peaks of both mountains 
 being but a few miles distant from the river. 
 
 If there were any truth in the tradition that the valley has been 
 drained by human ingenuity, that Herculean work must have been 
 undertaken at this part. But the height of the mountain, and the 
 breadth of the bed of the river, preclude the possibility of such a con- 
 clusion, except in legendary presumption : others attribute its execution 
 to their gods. 
 
 Mounted on my trusty Ghunt, I began my long journey homewards, 
 following the windings of the river, and pondering over the many 
 thousand miles which lay between me and my fatherland, and over all 
 the troubles which might occur during the weeks and months which 
 must necessarily elapse before I could reach that spot. But there 
 is very much to encourage hope and patience in the thought that 
 we are gradually approaching the haven of our hopes, however slowly ; 
 it is only when we stop to reflect, that our fatigues are removing us 
 daily from it, or even worse, when we have nothing to look forward to 
 in life, that our hearts sink : we too often forget that when all else in 
 this world shall have lost its charms, there is an eternity beyond it, to 
 which we must inevitably come. 
 
 I took my departure from the valley of Kashmir with a heavy heart. 
 The fatigues of mind as well as of body which I had undergone during 
 my residence in this region, had been almost too much for my strength ; 
 the extreme cold of my inconvenient dwelling-place, was enough to 
 counteract any benefit from relaxation. Long residence in India had 
 made me doubly sensitive in this colder clime, and I suffered so
 
 KFFECTS OF FEüDATOllY GOVEHNMKNT. 173 
 
 intensely from pain in the soles of my feet and palms of my hands, 
 that it was a misery to me to walk. When able to add a little to my 
 diary, it needed much care to keep my enfeebled hands under proper 
 control. But I neither experienced uneasiness nor pain when the 
 boundaries of this little kingdom were once passed and we were fairly 
 journeying westward. While ray escort loitered behind, I followed 
 for a time the banks of the Jelam; and my attention was gradually 
 called off to the objects around me, and to the impetuous stream, which 
 heretofore, while watering the valley of Kashmir, glided on so gently; 
 now turbulent and rapid, hemmed in by protruding mountains, it 
 brawled under huge masses of rock, or dashed hurriedly over the 
 cataracts. This day's journey was easy, the descents and acclivities 
 being alike inconsiderable. About two miles from Baramulla there is 
 a Buddhist temple in ruins, in a small tank; I judged it to be, most 
 probably, that of Panditran. The plane grows indigenously by the 
 wayside, though in Kashmir this tree can only be propagated from 
 layers. Here, as in the valley, the exhalations and dust obscured the 
 view of the heights, and I could only make out the outlines with 
 extreme difficulty at the distance of a few miles; when at length the 
 sun made its appearance it was just half an hour too late to take 
 corresponding altitudes. 
 
 Three buildings in Jempura attracted my curiosity. The first, in 
 the form of a sepulchral monument, was a circular edifice about thirty 
 feet in height, on which stood a square chamber; but to what time or 
 faith the monument belonged, I had no means of discovering, nor had 
 I seen anything at all resembling it elsewhere. The walls were massive, 
 and the whole structure seemed to refer to a race whose monuments 
 were all of the same solid proportions. I examined this mysterious 
 fabric on all sides with great attention, in expectation of finding 
 some inscription which might indicate either the builders or the people 
 to whom it once belonged, or at least its purpose, but could discover 
 nothing to help out my ignorance. 
 
 A few miles onward we came to three small forts, Atalgurh, Shen- 
 kergurh, and Messekur, which, together with a fourth already passed 
 near Kizenhama, and another by Jempura, were evidently constructed
 
 174 RESULTS OF DIVIDED AUTHORITY. 
 
 to protect the natives against the attacks of predatory bands. There 
 is a Buddhist temple which is in good preservation, near Guniar, but 
 unluckily it is situated on the left bank of the Jelam : as there was no 
 bridge, and the stream was far too strong to allow a boat to cross, 
 I was obliged to content myself with the view from the opposite bank. 
 At Tätmulla, or Menä, seven kos, about fourteen miles, from Bära- 
 mulla, I found my sleeping tent pitched, the sun having gone down. 
 The Jelam at this place is 1200 feet lower than at Banderpoor. 
 Thermometer at six in the evening, 52°. 
 
 Thursday, December 10, thermometer, 7 a.m. 48°, noon 64°, 6 
 P.M. 52°. The route continued to skirt the rapid Jelam, and the hills 
 throughout the day's march were of no great height. About five miles 
 from TatmuUa we saw a pretty waterfall, called Shula. The land 
 between BaramuUa and Mazafferabad, was formerly worth six lacks of 
 rupees annually to the Pathans ; its value at present is altogether 
 nominal. It is partitioned out between a number of petty Mohammedan 
 chiefs, who style themselves rajas, with the further dignity of khan. 
 This part of the country is thus reduced to the lowest stage of wretch- 
 edness, and the unhappy people see themselves stript of everything 
 they possess, that is worth taking. One of these petty chiefs, called 
 Sarfaraz Khan Käker, whose territory extends along the left bank of 
 the Jelam from Kashmir, resides in the fort of Messekur, and as they 
 usually take the designation of their place of residence, he is called the 
 Messekur-raja. Another styles himself Dushina-raja, from the 
 place called Dushina, and bears in addition the title of Zaberdast 
 Khan Ginghel. His country commences on this side of Jempura. 
 Zaberdast Khan is still in his childhood, and is now retained in Kash- 
 mir as a hostage for the government of his mother, who resides at 
 Ginghel. 
 
 I found my tent pitched five kos from Menah. The ruins of a 
 once important town and temple are visible for some distance along the 
 bank of the river, but at present Dianun cannot boast of so much as 
 one solitary inhabitant. The bed of the Jelam increases in depth, 
 Opposite to Dianun is a Buddhist temple still in good repair, and built 
 in the same style as those of Kashmir. Its situation is its best defence;
 
 Remarkable Suspension BridJ.? at Uri. 
 
 Binu Hiigrl'a 7'ravfli, p'lg' 17.5
 
 REMARKABLE SUSPENSION BRIDCJE. 175 
 
 its name is Brangutri. Dianun lies 600 feet lower than Menah. At 
 the close of the day my fellow traveller, Mohammed Shah Nakshbandi, 
 paid me a visit of some hours. 
 
 Friday, December 11. — The comitry from Dianun is highly pic- 
 turesque. The Jelam has hollowed out its bed many hundred feet deep, 
 and roars over huge fragments of rock : it made us quite dizzy to look 
 down from the pathway, as it winds along the course of the lofty pre- 
 cipitous bank. Three miles beyond Kho, the river has forced a passage 
 through the rocks, which hang several hundred feet over it, and almost 
 form a natural bridge. Uri Serai is very near this, and the ruins of 
 its stone bridge are still discernible. These ruins, the bridge, and the 
 serai for travellers, induce me to believe that the high road from India 
 formerly passed by Ilajawar, Uri, and Baramulla. What were the 
 stations between Rajawar and Uri, I know not, but the road must 
 certainly have passed Punsh, which is not more than five kos distant. 
 Had I not been deterred by the winter season, I would gladly have 
 explored this road, which at Punsh joins that from Baramulla, direct to 
 Rajawar, and there meets the high road from the Panjab to Kashmir. 
 I should thus have confirmed my conjecture, that the best route from 
 India to Kashmir must be by Punsh and Uri, so that by avoiding the 
 Pir Panjal, it would be found practicable throughout the year. 
 
 The road now led over a mountain, at the foot of which winds the 
 Jelam. On the bank of the river is the fort of Ghorigurh, and over 
 against it, on the perpendicular height, is Uri Kilah ; a rope bridge, or 
 sort of ladder, is thrown over the roaring flood, stretching from the 
 deep abyss to the mountain above. I dismounted in order to witness 
 some men pass over this bridge, which in reality is an enterprise attended 
 with considerable peril, it being nothing better than a thick rope twisted 
 together, made out of horse hides. At the distance of every third foot 
 is a loop or knot, which connects the skins together, and prevents the 
 passenger from slipping off; but as it would be impossible to strain 
 this material tight, he finds himself occasionally receding from the 
 mountain across the deep abyss. On each side, however, there is 
 another rope, about four feet above the footway, to lay hold by. In 
 descending as well as ascending this contrivance the utmost precaution
 
 176 DESCRIPTION OF THE JELAM. 
 
 is necessary to grasp the hand ropes firmly, and to plant the foot 
 securely on the loops or knots ; the weight causing the bridge to fall 
 from Uri as nearly perpendicularly as possible, it requires the greatest 
 presence of mind. Its length is from 500 to 600 feet. The danger 
 when two persons meet is not so great as might be imagined, unless 
 they are both laden with some burden, which certainly increases the 
 difficulty; but I need hardly say that such a bridge is incapable of 
 bearing the weight of any animal, though I did, to my no small 
 astonishment, see one man carrying a sheep on his back across this 
 frail construction. 
 
 Beyond Uri Kilah, lie Uri and Dilawara, on a mountain, the surface 
 of which is formed into numberless terraces, which are planted with 
 rice. Behind this, again, one of the loftiest peaks of the Pir Panjal 
 projects aloft, and in every direction the eye follows the line traced out 
 by this snowy ridge. A small river, the Gota, dashes down the steep 
 declivity, losing itself in a deep hollow on one side of the terraces ; 
 while the other is bounded by a mountain brook. The whole scene is 
 one of the wildest and most romantic I ever remember to have seen, 
 and the smiling green fields in the midst of the stern natural features 
 around them, render the entire landscape doubly imposing. 
 
 From this point the traveller journeys for some time by the moun- 
 tain side. The masses of rock crumble and fall into the valleys below 
 on the occurrence of every storm of rain, thus perpetually obliterating 
 the road tracks, and making them altogether impassable, till eventually 
 some new path is formed, either above, or often below the former. One 
 horse can only pass at a time, and there are places where it might not 
 unfrequently be supposed to be quite impracticable to proceed a step 
 further. The ground trembles under foot, and the stone which had 
 just borne one's weight, falls heavily into the depths below; sometimes 
 the traveller stumbles and slides downward several feet; my brave 
 horse, as if conscious of the danger, summoned all his strength to 
 extricate himself and his rider from this most imminent peril. The 
 eye has ample opportunity to measure the deep chasm beneath, where 
 the Jelam roars along, a certain grave if once the traveller should miss 
 his footing.
 
 RIVER SCENERY OF INDIA. 177 
 
 About half way up this high mountain is a village called Nogrant, 
 furrounded on every side by terraces. Some rain had fallen during 
 the night, and the temperature was warmer; a few tropical plants also 
 made their appearance. The whole way from Uri the road was bad 
 and uneven, and I had an excellent opportunity of ascertaining how 
 very contrary to fact is the assertion of the natives of Kashmir, that 
 the Sikhs have given a bad name to the road, solely to serve their 
 own political ends. The Jelam at this place is so deep and contracted 
 by the mountains, that approach to the brink is impossible. Shah 
 Dera, my station for the night, was fourteen miles from Dianun. It 
 has a mosque with a beautiful doorway, the cai'ving of which was 
 executed in Kashmir. The thermometer was 58°, 75°, and 52°. 
 
 Saturday, December 12. — On leaving this morning, I had been 
 warned to expect a difficult mountainous road, and truly it was so, but 
 diversified with many majestic scenes. The Jelam flowed along under 
 high rocks, so precipitous and deep, that the natives dwelling on its 
 banks cannot avail themselves of the water, and in Shah Dera my 
 people suffered much inconvenience from the want of this necessary, 
 though close to the very stream. 
 
 Vigne was very busy with the pretty mosque above alluded to, and 
 its carved work ; while I found myself encircled by the sick and poor, 
 to whom, in spite of my best wishes, I could only administer partial 
 relief with my medicaments. We began our long dav's march some 
 hours after the tents were struck, and on their road. As for my large 
 tent, we found it a hard matter to light on an even spot of ground 
 sufficiently spacious to pitch it, the mountain on which Shah Dera is 
 built being formed for the most part into terraces, which were too 
 narrow to allow of this accommodation. 
 
 About three kos from Shah Dera the river has broken through 
 the hills in a very remarkable manner, and in order to behold the scene 
 I drew as close as I could to the edge of the precipice, and there gazed 
 on the snow-capped mountains on either side, totally destitute of vege- 
 tation ; and on the perpendicular wall springing upwards of a thousand 
 feet above the river. In the middle of the narrow bed was a solitarv rock 
 of the same height as the bank on either side. It resembled the gates 
 
 N
 
 178 REMARKABLE GEOLOGICAL APPEARANCE. 
 
 of a huge sluice : on the summit of this rock, which is about thirty or 
 forty feet in circumference, lie two enormous blocks of stone, one upon 
 the other, to all appearance brought there in sport. One might almost 
 imagine that the power of the waves had flung them where they are, 
 ages since ; for they stand on the very extreme edge of the chasm, as 
 though there needed but a breath to precipitate them from their present 
 situation. 
 
 Let not the reader, in transporting himself in idea to this spot, be 
 misled by the legend of the valley mentioned in the former part of this 
 work, nor believe for a moment in the theory that human power ever 
 could succeed in drying the valley. This is one of the spots named 
 as the scene of action ; but to form such theories is an easy matter, 
 and many love to entertain them, and to ascribe the works of an 
 Almighty power to ordinary agency. It is very certain that no human 
 exertions ever produced this wonderful scene, nor could the drying up 
 of the Kashmirian lake have contributed in the slightest degree to the 
 formation of such a mighty breach ; for the fall of the Jelam is so 
 great, that if the river ran here as high as the road itself, there would 
 be no perceptible difference in its height even at Tatmulla. 
 
 Not far from this spot there is a large place smoothly hewn in the 
 rock, evidently intended for an inscription ; they told me that it had 
 once borne the name of the Emperor Akbar. The superstitious people 
 of Kashmir believe this spot to be the especial resort of evil spirits, 
 and a Sikh soldier related an adventure of his own which proved to 
 what lengths superstition can carry its votaries. This shall be noticed 
 elsewhere. Another assured me that in this same place, as soon as 
 night draws on, a spirit called Jeja takes his seat, having 5000 leeches 
 on his breast. 
 
 This was the place, moreover, where the battle was fought between 
 the sons and successors of Timur Shah and the Viceroys of Kashmir, 
 when the last declared their independence of the throne of Kabul. 
 These viceroys were unable to maintain their freedom, and the inevit- 
 able consequence was, that the fall of the Afghan kingdom, begun by 
 the folly of the brothers, was more and more accelerated. 
 
 From this narrow pass the road led through deep ravines and over
 
 RETURN TO A TROPICAL CLIMATE. 179 
 
 heights nearly inaccessible to a place where the valley widens, and the 
 traveller arrives at a spot where traces of the most careful cultivation 
 are still perceptible. From the foot to the summit the mountains are 
 formed into terraces, and laid out into rice fields, which in former 
 times were irrigated artificially ; but these are now overrun with grass, 
 and bear no vestige of any sort of culture. In truth, anything like 
 agriculture in this region seems quite out of fashion. On every side 
 are mountain torrents gushing from the rocks, and many streams have 
 ploughed so deep into the earth, in imitation of the great river, that it 
 is scarcely possible to conceive anything more laborious than the task 
 of clambering down to wade through them, and then again struggling 
 upwards to reach the level of the wall of rock. At the end of eight 
 long kos from Shah Dera is Kathai. The vegetation on the way, and 
 in the country itself, frequently brought the Apennines to my remem- 
 brance. There was the olive and the vine, the pinus longifolia in lieu 
 of the common fir; the myrsine instead of myrtles; the laurel and 
 oleander; about Kathai especially are many olive trees, but the fruit 
 yields no oil ; they are very much like the wild olive of Europe, and 
 are probably of the same species. Tropical plants are more and more 
 commonly met with, and the climate was evidently milder, but the con- 
 sequences of the cold experienced in Kashmir, began now, especially to 
 shew themselves ; my hands were inflamed and swollen, and the blood 
 would frequently gush out from the broken skin. My feet were in the 
 same miserable predicament, and both were nearly as large again as the 
 natural size. But worse than this, I suffered from an inflammation in 
 the throat, which had prevented me from taking nourishment since we 
 left BaramuUa, and which now extending itself to the ears, rendered me 
 entirely deaf. I had already resorted to calomel, and this morning I 
 repeated the dose of twelve grains. I felt better towards the evening, 
 whether from tlie remedy employed or the gradually increasing tem- 
 perature, I could not rightly say. My tent was pitched at Kathai. 
 The fort, or kila, if such a name be permitted, is a simple square 
 inclosure with mud walls, built near to the wretched town, Kathai, and 
 belongs to a Mohammedan prince called by the pompous title of Sultan 
 Zaberdast Khan. Neither houses nor walls can boast of any material 
 
 N 2
 
 ISO isELF-IMPORTANCE OF RETAINERS. 
 
 more durable than mud and wood; nor is the situation well chosen. A 
 few impudent dependents were seated about the gate, who regarded 
 both the Sikhs and ourselves with the most marked contempt. There 
 was no difficulty in returning this, and I begged to know, as we drew 
 near them, where this Sultan Zaberdast Khan might then be. The 
 soldiers taking my question as an insult, their Sultan being detained in 
 Kashmir as one of the Mohammedan hostages, made me no reply, but 
 immediately retired within their fort, and barricadoed the gate. My 
 people entreated me to break up the encampment forthwith, and journey 
 onward some miles; they fancied the jinjals, or musketry of the place, 
 were already turned against us, and the Mohammedans sallying forth ; 
 but I assured them that the affair would have no such fearful conse- 
 quences, and remained very unconcerned within range of their artillery, 
 without anything occurring to disturb our quiet, unless it were the 
 hideous screams they favoured us with from time to time. 
 
 Kathai is the name borne by the Chinese empire in Central Asia, 
 and when I heard in Kashmir that my road would lead me through 
 Kathai, [ could not help fancying that it must be a powerful state to 
 which the name had been given for some evident reason. I soon 
 discovered that the place had nothing in common with the Celestial 
 empire, being, in fact, a most insignificant possession, which scarce 
 produces to its king so much as the pay of a captain in the Company's 
 service. 
 
 The Deodara, literally, gift of God, the cedar of the Himalaya, is not 
 seen at 4000 feet above the level of the sea, and the Pinus longi- 
 folia takes its place; huge masses of petrified or opalized wood 
 are seen on the road between Shah Dera and Kathai, and at the 
 former place the limestone ceases. Kathai is 2200 feet lower than 
 Kashmir. 
 
 Sunday, December 13. — Feeling much better this morning, I began 
 to hope that the warmer climate would soon set me free from the ail- 
 ments brought on by cold. 
 
 The garrison within the fort seemed determined to insult us, and 
 took occasion when the Jemidar, or Sikh officer in command of our 
 guard, was near the gate, to hail him with an order not to show himself
 
 AN EFFECTUAI, EXI'OSTULATION. 181 
 
 again at so short a distance. The officer brought his complaint to me, 
 whereupon I dispatched one of my Chaprasis to desire the presence of 
 the Thanadar, who sent me word, with many civil apologies, that he 
 dared not quit the fort. I betook myself, therefore, to the gate, and 
 summoned him to appear, which he did immediately. I assured him 
 that I should be very sorry to receive a bad impression of his behaviour; 
 that being an independent European, and not connected either with the 
 East India Company or Ranjit Singh, but merely travelling for my 
 own pleasure, I was surprised to find a want of hospitable feeling, new 
 to me in this country. The Sikh Jemidar, I added, commanded the 
 guard of honour given me by Ranjit Singh, and without which a man 
 of my rank could not travel at all in India; I was much surprised on 
 my arrival, to find that he had not been apprized of this, in order to 
 strengthen my escort by a party of his own people. Mohan inter- 
 preted my harangue so effectually, that the Thanadar immediately 
 poured forth a volley of excuses, begged me to enter the fort, and on 
 my refusal attended me to the tent. I shortly after quitted the place 
 for Khanda, the next station, which was seven kos, or about fifteen 
 miles, ofi". The Jelara flowed along in a more tranquil stream, and 
 once we found ourselves on its shore ; the vegetation on the bank 
 consisted of evergreens. Oleanders grew close to some of the smaller 
 streams ; the Linum trigynum * grew in the ravines ; the Justicia in 
 drier spots; the Caesalpinia Sappan covered the bushes, and the 
 maina and bulbul warbled in the deep thickets. 
 
 I was once again in India, and the thermometer, which, at six in 
 the morning, was at 58°, rose at noon to 72° in the shade, not falling 
 lower than 64° towards evening. On both sides of the Jelam were 
 deserted villages with their terraces all lying waste. I did not see a 
 single native all the way, although this was no proof that the country 
 was uninhabited, for the people invariably flee at the approach of such 
 a train as mine. The rivulets which fall into the Jelam, in some places 
 rush down in cascades; at others, hollow out channels to a vast depth. 
 
 Or probably some other plant, closely resembling it. — Ed.
 
 182 MIGRATION OF THE BKAHMINS. 
 
 The village of Täni affords an example of the highly cultivated state 
 of this country in former times, the mountain on which it stands, to 
 an elevation of nearly 3000 feet, being cut into terraces for rice fields, 
 now almost entirely abandoned. 
 
 In the evening the Shah visited me, and I availed myself of his 
 long stay to make many inquiries about Kashmir and the country 
 I was now passing through. This Mohammedan was evidently a 
 conscientious person, and would admit his ignorance of a fact rather 
 than tell an untruth. 
 
 Monday, December 14. — To-day to Hätia, seven kos. The shores 
 of the Jelam are becoming more flat ; they are, notwithstanding, very 
 rarely accessible. To the south-east the valley widens, and the eye 
 glancing over the nearest high lands, rests on the snowy mountains 
 which lift their heads beyond in every direction. At Hätia we saw 
 two Hindus, the first we had met with for a long time, and my Brahmin, 
 Thakur-das, accosted them quickly. It was of great importance to him, 
 as a Brahmin, to ascertain to which class they belonged, and my 
 curiosity was not less than his. When they told him that they also 
 were Brahmins, I bade him get all the information from them that he 
 could, and particularly I wished him to find out how long they had been 
 settled in this place ; they were very sparing in their answers, and we 
 could only understand that their forefathers had come there about 
 150 years since. But it was interesting to see the deep respect with 
 which they received my Brahmin, the first of a rank superior to their 
 own, whom they had ever met with. Hätia is the most northerly point 
 in this direction to which the Hindus are known to have migrated, after 
 their subjection to Mohammedan power, and at present fifteen families 
 are settled in this place. It has a fort, Topata Kila, built of mud 
 only, and garrisoned by Sikhs; a second to the south-west, Shekara 
 Kila, stands on a mountain on the left bank of the Jelam. Near 
 Hätia is a bridge made of goat's skins, one rope serving for the feet, 
 and two others for the hands to lay hold by, like the bridge of Uri; 
 the three ropes are kept at an equal distance from each other by pieces 
 of curved wood, but with this precaution there is no little risk in passing 
 over. At Hätia the banks of the Jelam are low.
 
 SPECIMEN OF NATIVE ALTEKCATION. 
 
 183 
 
 Near it stands Petidra, governed by a Raja of its own, called 
 Nasir Ali; this personage, when requested by the Jemidar to see that 
 we were supplied with provisions, refused with the utmost insolence, 
 whereupon my guard proceeded to load their firelocks and direct them 
 against the Raja's house, who took to instant flight, leaving us at 
 liberty to help ourselves. This, however, occasioned a violent dispute 
 between my favourite Mohan and the Jemidar, the former drawing 
 no flattering comparison between the Jemidar 's behaviour in the morn- 
 ing towards the Kiladar, and his present violence against the defenceless 
 Raja, reproaching him with not having revenged himself on the man 
 who had really insulted him, but complaining to me instead, like an old 
 woman, and getting out of the way while I conferred with the Kiladar. 
 The Jemidar very stoutly denied this imputation on his bravery, and 
 Mohan getting more and more enraged, gave him a blow on the face, 
 when his antagonist brought his complaint formally to me, and I was 
 obliged to reprove Mohan very severely. In the midst of my lecture 
 he exclaimed, "Is not the Jemidar a cowardly rogue?" "If he were, 
 you have no right to tell him so," I said, " and still less to strike him." 
 " Perhaps not," answered Mohan, " but if he were not a poltroon, he 
 would have killed me rather than come to you with his complaint." 
 
 Rain fell to-day for the first time for a long period, but happily for 
 my baggage, it was of no great continuance. My suite enjoyed the 
 unwonted pleasure of a bazar in this place, for so they called two little 
 houses where provisions were sold in such moderate quantities, that ten 
 of my people would have consumed the whole stock; still it was 
 entitled a bazar, and for the first time since they left Kashmir, they 
 sat and smoked for an hour within ; most gladly I gave them this treat, 
 for the poor fellows had sufi'ered fearfully from fatigue and cold 
 together, more especially those who were from the Himalaya; my 
 Bengalees were all in perfect health. 
 
 Tuesday, December 15. — The distance from Hatiato Mazafl"erabad 
 is reckoned ten kos, and on the way we passed several villages, but they 
 were either quite deserted or very thinly peopled. There seemed an 
 abundance of the purest water flowing in every direction ; the ascents 
 were numerous and steep; but the banks of the Jelam were mostly
 
 184 QUIET SCENERY OF A PANJABI VILLAGE. 
 
 accessible, and in many places we came to small plains. The country, 
 hitherto uninteresting in its general character, near the somewhat 
 important town of Kosoli, became very pleasing. The Jelam forms a 
 sudden bend, and a pretty island starts from its waters. Kosoli stands 
 in a very favourable situation on an elevated plain on the left bank, 
 and seemed to have several well-built houses ; the whole aspect of the 
 place greatly reminded me of an Italian village. From hence the road 
 was very steep as far as Mahra, which is remarkable only for its huge 
 cypress trees and its acacias. The banks of the Jelam continue very 
 precipitous until it meets the river Kishen Ganga, which runs onward 
 to MazafFerabad, having about one third less water than the Jelam. 
 There is a point, about half a mile up the Kishen Ganga, whence we 
 can see the valley in which the united rivers flow into the Panjab. 
 This valley is surrounded with mountains, and the Jelam flows along it 
 for some distance, in a totally contrary direction to that of the com- 
 bined streams. 
 
 The Kishen Ganga is about twenty-five fathoms broad, and is 
 passed first by a rope bridge, and at a point further down the stream 
 by a ferry. Not far from the right bank lies the Zehela Serai, built 
 by Shah Jehan, and near it the building which tradition calls the palace 
 of Nur Jehan Begum, but which, in truth, was a mausoleum, now 
 in ruins. 
 
 Near Thandu I observed granite in large blocks, hurled, as it were, 
 over the trap rock, and about Mazafferabad a considerable quantity of 
 petrified wood. This town lies on a plain about 150 or 200 feet above 
 the Kishen Ganga. The houses, built on this plain beside a wild 
 stream, are surrounded by groups of trees, and have a very pretty, 
 romantic appearance ; while behind the plain rises the majestic snowy 
 mountain Kahori-Kataka, a range of stupendous hills forming an am- 
 phitheatre around it. My camp was pitched on a natural terrace 150 
 feet higher than the river, under some large olive trees. The whole 
 population soon collected round my retinue, di-awn together by the 
 unusual and no doubt attractive sight of so many strangers in this 
 remote place : curious also to witness the bustle of unpacking and 
 arranging the tents, the various costumes of my followers, and their
 
 INTERVIEW WITH A PLTTY CHIEF. 185 
 
 strange features. There soon came a message from the Raja, begging 
 me to command his services. I thankfully declined accepting any- 
 thing, however, as Mazafferabad boasts a regular bazar, and I strictly 
 charged the men not to take anything without paying for it. The 
 bearers and animals laden with my baggage had accompanied me thus 
 far from Kashmir. I now directed the Munshi to hire others to-day, 
 that we might be all ready to start on the morrow. In the evening 
 the Shah came; after which I was occupied in writing my journal till 
 midnight. 
 
 Wednesday, December 16. — MazaflFerabad is nearly 3000 feet 
 lower than Kashmir, and contains 2100 inhabitants, of whom 700 are 
 Hindus of the three higher castes. Brahmins, Kshatriyas, and Shu- 
 dras. Early this morning the Governor of the place. Sultan Zaber- 
 dast Khan, literally, the mighty prince, sent to announce that he was 
 coming to pay me a visit. Shortly afterwards he appeared in person, 
 dressed in the costume of Kabul, with a mantle of fur, ornamented 
 with gold. His suite was but small. 
 
 As he entered the tent I observed, notwithstanding his apparent 
 strength, he needed the help of a servant to reach the chair set ready 
 for him. When we were seated, I inquired the cause of this infirmity, 
 and heard that his eyes were so affected that he could not discern any- 
 thing in a very strong light. 
 
 Having heard that I had great skill as a physician, he hoped I 
 might be able to do him some good. 1 had the kanat, or wall, of the 
 tent taken down, that I might examine his state more narrowly. I 
 have rarely seen handsomer features ; the nose slightly arched, the 
 curved brows, and the lofty forehead, all harmonized with the look of 
 gravity, and with the grey beard which covered the lower part of his 
 careworn face. The light of the eye was nearly quenched, and the 
 optic nerve was evidently fast failing. As the eyes were rather in- 
 flamed, I prescribed leeches and abstinence from spirituous liquors, to 
 which the Mohammedans are much addicted in this country. The 
 Khan seemed to have great faith in me, and consulted me about 
 another, but an incurable malady, which must soon put an end to his 
 existence, and for which I could only recommend a temperate course of
 
 186 DECLINE OF THE TRANSIT TRADE. 
 
 life. Sad as were his bodily ailments, those of his mind were even 
 more pitiable. He had lost his only son not long before, and the last 
 relative now left, a youth, was detained as a hostage in Kashmir. 
 The poor old grandfather's sole wish was to see and embrace this lad 
 once more ; but all his entreaties to Ranjit Singh to grant him this 
 favour were in vain. I promised to add my petition to his own, and 
 during ray stay in Lahor to bring the matter before the Mahä 
 Raja. 
 
 As the little state possessed hereditarily by Sultan Zaberdast Khan 
 is situated on the high road between Kashmir and Kabul, it is an inde- 
 pendent territory of some importance. The ferry over the Kishen 
 Ganga used to bring him in a yearly sum of a lac of rupees ; but since 
 the decrease of traffic and the separation of Kashmir and Kabul, but 
 especially since the population of this country has fallen off at least 
 one-fifth, the number of passengers has of course diminished in the 
 same proportion, and the whole revenue of the country is estimated at 
 little more than 30,000 rupees, from which we must deduct 6000, the 
 tribute paid to Kashmir, and at this time Mehan Singh contemplates 
 exacting double this sum. I asked the Khan to whom the small house 
 belonged, which is erected high above the wild rivulet, and which was 
 clearly visible from the plain where we were, and seemed inhabited by 
 females, whose forms we were able to distinguish in the distance. It 
 was his new residence, built of wood, the former abode of his ancestors 
 being in a ruinous state, but he was too poor to build another. There 
 was a bitterness in the tone of the poor old man whenever he spoke, 
 which shewed how deeply his feelings had been outraged. I considered 
 which among the trifles I still had in reserve would best please him, 
 and soon excited his amazement by presenting him with some of the 
 little instantaneous lights, which are kindled by a touch, and which he 
 firmly believed to be the fruits of some magical device. 
 
 Mazafferabad, or Musafirabad, the abode of travellers, is the 
 modern name of the ancient Hindu-Shikri, and was given to it, ac- 
 cording to the Brahmins, 200 years ago by the Mohammedans. A 
 footway along the bank of the Kishen Ganga leads from the town to 
 the Cures, or Dures, one of its tributary streams, which rises near
 
 PHYSICAL ÜISTUKBANCES. 187 
 
 Diosay; from this place one road leads to Iskardii*, another for horses 
 from Mazafferabad to Derband on the Atok, and a third goes to 
 Pakeli. Derband is said to be fifty kos from this place, the first ten of 
 which are over a chain of hills. I have no faith, however, in this 
 estimate. Mazafferabad itself offers a rich field for the researches of 
 a geologist; mountains of tertiary formation rise up to the limit of 
 perpetual snow, and on them are piled, in wondrous masses, broken 
 and dismembered heaps of stone. In many places whole mountains 
 look as if they had been riven through and through, and the spectator 
 beholds the vast clefts, one or two thousand feet in depth, as fresh as 
 if the violent convulsion of nature had taken place only yesterday. 
 Nanga Parvat, the famous pyramid, which I observed at Nanenwara, 
 is only thirty kos from this spot. 
 
 We were occupied half the day in settling terms with the bearers 
 and drivers; the price they agreed for to go to Lahor was nine rupees. 
 I had only given eight from Kashmir to this place, and as the very 
 same bearers hired themselves again, I was fairly taken in. I might 
 by a little patience have soon found men who would have taken half the 
 money, but time had now become very precious to me ; I longed most 
 eagerly to see my own home once more, and therefore I hurried on my 
 departure, until noon saw the bearers on the opposite side of the river 
 in the Zehela Serai. While they were moving off, I strolled about the 
 neighbouring parts, and up the hill where the Sultan's new residence 
 stands, whence I could perceive the kila of Mazafferabad, a regular 
 fort, one mile north of the town, and garrisoned by Sikhs. Having 
 returned from my walk, I had a great desire to shew some little atten- 
 tion to the poor Sultan ; but this was not easy, for a visit paid to him 
 would have obliged him to offer me some present or other. I therefore 
 sent the Munshi to tell him I would come and see how he was, if he 
 would dispense with the nazar. The Munshi soon returned with many 
 compliments, but the Sultan excused himself, at the same time assuring 
 me that his house was too wretched to receive me. 
 
 * Iskardu is variously written Iskardo, Iskardoo. The Barou's mode is probably 
 most correct. See also Attoek, Atok, «ie. — Ed.
 
 188 MYSTEKIOUS VISITORS. 
 
 Two boats, constructed of the trunks of trees rudely hollowed out, 
 convey travellers across the river. Each passenger pays a pice for 
 himself, and as much for every load carried either by man or beast. 
 The animals swim across the stream, which is deep and hurried: there 
 are certain fixed places where only it is practicable to land; the bank 
 further down is inaccessible from the steep falling rocks, and our little 
 boats wheeled about in a manner which inspired no great confidence of 
 our reaching the opposite side either safely or expeditiously. After all, 
 considering how they were stranded, the only wonder is that we did 
 not find our way to the bottom. I desired to have one entirely to my- 
 self and Mohan, but while the boat was pushing off, and after it had got 
 fairly into the rapid current, three men sprang in, giving it a sudden 
 shock, and half-filled it with water. I sat perfectly still until we came 
 to the other side, and then discovered that our unwelcome companions 
 were ferrymen, who were resolved on crossing with me, that they might 
 share the present, expected as a matter of course. 
 
 The Serai is situated on a height a few minutes walk from the shore, 
 and was built by Ali Merdan Khan, by command of Shah Jehan. It 
 forms a large square, and is kept in excellent repair; but my tent, 
 pitched under a thick clump of trees, was far more inviting to me 
 than the closer apartments of the building. Just as I had made myself 
 comfortable, and it began to grow dark, the Shah came to tell me that 
 a party was desirous to see me. His cautious and mysterious manner 
 excited my curiosity ; accordingly I requested him to admit them. But 
 he would not bring them through the front entrance where they would 
 be seen, but requested permission to usher them through the back 
 way. Having ordered that no one should obtrude, the Shah went out, 
 and returned shortly with three Mohammedans, who threw themselves 
 at my feet, and laid some trifling presents on the ground. I had the 
 utmost difficulty in finding out from amidst a mass of words, compli- 
 ments and repetitions, who they could be. I guessed rather than heard, 
 for in spite of my manifold questions as to the name of their master, I 
 could gather nothing but, Malik, Mir, Hakim, Sirdar, &c., which may 
 all be translated, king, prince, lord, and master, that they had been sent 
 to me from Sultan Zaberdast Khan, and described his unhappy situa-
 
 DESIRE FOR BRITISH PROTECTION. 189 
 
 tion — the iron yoke imposed on the Mohammedans by Ranjit Sin^h — 
 the beautiful hind of Kashmir — and the peculiar advantages of the 
 Mazafferabad route. 1 conjectured their object at last; and after they 
 had gone on for half an hour, told them that I was no servant of the 
 East India Company, and that if the Khan wished to enter into any 
 treaty with the British, which would certainly be his best policy, in fact 
 his only chance of preserving his independence, the present time was 
 not the most favourable for such an attempt. They looked at me with 
 amazement; and when I had spoken out thus freely, they drew back, 
 and, perhaps, fearful of compromising themselves, told me that I had 
 not understood their meaning. I answered, that in that case the error 
 was mine ; and begging them to assure the Khan of my deep sympathy 
 with him, I dismissed them, whereupon they quitted the tent as 
 mysteriously as they had entered it. Having called my people, Jwala 
 ran in to tell me of the arrival of a fakir, with a letter to me from a 
 European. It was from Henderson, written in Mazafferabad the very 
 day before my arrival there, and telling me that he had been most 
 kindly received by the bearer, and now was thinking of resuming his 
 journey to Derband by an unfrequented path, the route through the 
 valley of Vergund being insecure on account of predatory bands who 
 infested it. Many obstacles threatened to thwart him in this project. 
 He begged me to give the fakir two doses of four grains of calomel, for 
 his sick child, and as the disease was an obstinate ague, I was to order 
 that one of the powders should be administered each day when the fever 
 left him. Unfortunately I had disposed of all my medicines in Mazaffe- 
 rabad, reserving for my own use only a single powder of eight grains, in 
 case of need ; but after a moment's hesitation, I handed this to the poor 
 fakir, who had brought me a nazar of a little basket of the pistachio- 
 nuts of Kabul. 
 
 It was midnight before all my retinue crossed to the right bank of 
 the Kishen Ganga, a circumstance which explained to me more con- 
 clusively than any mere assertion, how very possible it is for a caravan 
 to be a whole month crossing the Euphrates. 
 
 Thursday, December 17. — The last party arrived with my luggage 
 before daylight, just as I sallied forth to superintend the breaking up of
 
 190 APPEARANCE OF THE COUNTRY. 
 
 my encampment, but many of the men had loitered behind in the bazar 
 of Mazafferabad, and I was obliged to send the Munshi back, with 
 positive orders not to quit the place until he had seen the last of them 
 out of it. This delayed me till nine o'clock, trying my patience most 
 sorely. At last, our long retinue was in motion. The banks on either 
 side of the Kishen Ganga are very steep about this place; and at the 
 narrowest point a bridge formerly stood, which was torn away in a 
 moment by a heavy flood which occurred in 1823, while Hari Singh 
 Nalwa was endeavouring to get possession of the town for Ranjit Singh. 
 It has not been rebuilt. This bridge was a subject of much interest 
 in the war of 1803, between Mukhtyar ud Daulah and Abdullah 
 Khan. 
 
 Below Mazafferabad, exactly opposite the kila, the country is 
 rather flat, and a second ferry crosses the river, but is seldom used ; 
 for travellers would not be much disposed to trust themselves so near 
 the Sikh garrison, who are usually not over-nice in taking away what 
 little the defenceless natives may have with them. From this point 
 the Kishen Ganga may be traced for a great distance, until it is lost to 
 the eye behind precipitous hills. The gypsum, here seen in gigantic 
 masses, gives a peculiar character to the landscape. In many places I 
 observed the perpendicular walls of dissevered mountains of a dazzling 
 whiteness, and as often the ground in rear of this is a snowy moun- 
 tain ; the whole resembling in effect a vast avalanche that has slid from 
 the higher range. 
 
 From the Kishen Ganga we entered a deep defile leading to the 
 bed of a mountain torrent now dry; thence we proceeded along an 
 immense hill, full 3000 feet above the river. I saw a solitary cow 
 licking the ground on one spot, and alighted to see whether she had 
 found salt there, which turned out to be the case. 
 
 While the bearers were toiling up this mountain I stood to gaze at 
 the ruins of a once important fort, called Fatihgurh, or citadel of 
 victory, which lies below the highest point of the hill. At the summit 
 of this is the pass called Dub, formerly the resort of bands of robbers, 
 who struck universal terror throughout the country. Hari Singh 
 Nalwa sent a large force against them, but the robbers knew that they
 
 UNSETTLED STATE OF THE PANJAB. 191 
 
 had partisans among the natives who, as Mohammedans, abhor the 
 name of a Sikh. The commander therefore did not succeed without 
 infinite trouble in extirpating a number of the band, and then only by 
 setting fire to the grass in which they lay concealed; thus forcing 
 them to come forth and meet his troops, who slaughtered them without 
 mercy. The bands therefore are destroyed, but for a single traveller 
 the security is not much greater than before, and to-day six of the 
 Sikh soldiers remained at the lop of the hill until my bearers had all 
 mounted. There is no great cause of alarm to a traveller with a 
 numerous retinue. It is here indeed as in Europe ; to the rich man 
 every trouble of this kind is made light; while the poor, with his cares 
 and sorrows, has to await the just equalization of all things in another 
 world. 
 
 At the summit of the Dub pass I saw many birds which were quite 
 new to me, harbouring in the scattered pine trees. I took aim at some 
 of them, but the difficulty of clambering up the steep ascents soon 
 fatigued me, particularly when, after having shot them, there was 
 little possibility of reaching the deep ravines into which the birds fell. 
 Arrived at the highest part, we could see Gärhi, our place of rest for 
 the night, as it lies in the valley of the Konyar. We had no sooner 
 reached it than the natives, who bear the very worst character in the 
 world, surrounded my tent, and as I had heard that their sole occu- 
 pation was thieving, I made bold to keep their chief as a hostage for 
 their good behaviour, and moreover desired the Sikhs as well as mv 
 servants to keep on the alert. The place is situated in a small uncul- 
 tivated plain: there are neither artisans nor agriculturists to be seen, 
 which was quite conclusive to me that they supplied themselves from 
 other men's property. 
 
 Judging by the acclivities from the Kishen Ganga, and the descent 
 into the valley of the Konyar, I should say that the last is at least 600 
 feet lower than the great river. It was an important point for my map 
 to ascertain whether the Konyar united near this part with the Jelam 
 or not. My observations brought them both to the same level ; hence 
 I suspected that such junction must take place somewhere near, and 
 the natives of Gärhi confirmed me in this opinion. A number of these
 
 192 A PRESUMPTUOUS DEMAND. 
 
 people live in natural caverns hollowed out of the mountains by the 
 waters ; others in the filthiest dwellings perhaps in the whole world. 
 
 Friday, December 18. — This morning, when I desired the coolies 
 and drivers to take on my small tent as usual, they refused to go 
 without a guard; and as the Sikhs would not divide their party, and 
 Mr. Vigne, who was always tardy, could not be left alone, I was obliged 
 to make a virtue of necessity, and wait patiently until the tents were 
 packed up, the breakfast eaten, and the entire company ready to proceed 
 together. Bearers and natives of the place all agreed that the road to 
 the next night's station was sadly infested with robbers, and that the 
 inhabitants of the different villages by the way, carried on the same 
 profession. The Sikhs seemed to think we were rather in a serious 
 dilemma; they loaded their guns, therefore, and begged me to arm all 
 my servants, intimating at the same time that they could not go on 
 without a present of nine rupees to each man, and double that sum to 
 the Jemidar. I told them that my people wanted no arms, that they 
 themselves were the greatest thieves, and that they might all march 
 back to Kashmir together if they thought proper. Upon this, the 
 Jemidar humbly craved my pardon, and excused the conduct of his 
 soldiers, who he declared were quite unprovided with money. Not- 
 withstanding I had made up my mind beforehand to give them even 
 more than they now demanded, I did not approve of their prescribing 
 to me, and especially as they had made their claims at a moment when 
 my anxieties were sufiSciently pressing without any additional cause of 
 trouble. I therefore gave the Jemidar to understand that I remembered 
 quite well how two days before we left Kashmir, he had borrowed from 
 Mr. Vigne a kalga, or plume of heron's feathers, in order to appear in 
 state before the Governor when his services were hired, and that I had 
 also given him 300 rupees, which he could not possibly have spent 
 since we quitted that valley. Until we reached Mazafferabad both he 
 and his men had received rations, and therefore, knowing that he must 
 have money, I could not understand why he should tell me such a 
 falsehood. Not a word more did he say, but got ready to proceed 
 forthwith. 
 
 There is a bridge over the Konyar, close to a fort, also called
 
 WRETCHED CONDITION OF BUID(iKS. 193 
 
 Futihgurh, where there is a strong Sikh garrison, but some robbers 
 had burnt down the bridge not long before. This in Europe would 
 seem almost incredible, but in Asia it is not the custom to post sentinels 
 on guard, and thus they ventured on tliis enterprise without much 
 danger. Travellers are forced to cross the remains of this bridge on 
 foot, and it is well for those who do so, not to be subject to giddiness if 
 they ever expect to see the other side ; for we found it necessary to 
 stride over half-burnt beams of wood, thirty feet above the surface of 
 the stream, a very perilous undertaking at any time. We got the 
 horses and beasts of burden across the stream not far from Gärhi 
 with much difficulty, as the water reached to the chests of the animals. 
 We then marched on in close column through a narrow valley to a 
 small stream, and there observed some most remarkable natural caves, 
 which I entered, in spite of the remonstrances of my attendants, who 
 assei'ted that they were full of robbers. Divers kinds of stone, bound 
 together in one mass as though with the strongest cement, form the 
 walls and roof of these caves, the largest of which might hold from 
 forty to fifty people. The height of this cavern in particular was about 
 twenty feet. 
 
 The road is diversified at intervals by the Pinus longifolia, fre- 
 quently a mile apart from each other. On the left bank of the 
 Konyar is the territory formerly held as a fief by Hari Singh Nalwa, at 
 one time Governor of Kashmir. Ranjit Singh took it from him, and 
 granted him another and far more valuable one. By the village of 
 Doga the road branches oflf into two ; one taking the direction of 
 Monsiir to Mangli, the other going direct onwards. I purposed 
 reached Mangli this evening, having computed the distance at ten 
 kos, but the bearers declared that if they travelled without a halt, they 
 could not get there before next morning. In this state of uncertainty I 
 perceived a horseman approaching, who was sent by the Thanadar of 
 Monsur, to attend me to that town. In consequence of the letters I 
 had written to Ranjit Singh, all the Thanadars in these provinces had 
 been commanded to receive me on the frontiers, as I had announced 
 my desire to return into the Panjab by way of Mazaff'erabad and Atok. 
 The man told me he had been expecting me for three days, and that the
 
 194 DISTURBED STATE OF SOCIETY. 
 
 direct road to Mangli was so bad, that I could not venture to pro- 
 ceed by it with my baggage. Much against my will, I was therefore 
 compelled to relinquish all hope of reaching it this evening ; and on his 
 assurance that the road by Monsur was the safest and best, I deter- 
 mined to follow his advice. I was much vexed, however, at the idea of 
 not being able to arrive at Mangli before the following day. The 
 fact is, the difficulties, the discomforts, and above all the loneliness of 
 my present situation had completely worn me out ; and when I reflected 
 on the 2000 miles which yet lay between me and Bombay, through a 
 country where every mile is accomplished with fatigue and trouble of 
 some sort, and then on the long sea voyage of 13,000 miles to Europe, 
 my heart quite sank within me, and I often felt so ill and exhausted, 
 that I threw myself down, and thought it madness to believe I could 
 ever live to meet my friends again. 
 
 From Doga the route continued over high lands. The pines were 
 more numerous, the ground seemingly very productive, and the ravines 
 more richly studded with plants, while beautiful cascades fell from the 
 rocky heights. Many birds flew by, which were quite new to me. 
 While the baggage moved forward I remained with Jwala and Mohan 
 only in search of a little sport, though among these abrupt ridges it 
 was attended with much difficulty. Two miles from Doga the road 
 leads over an eminence, whence I had a fine prospect down the valley 
 of Vergund. We descended into it, and found several paths branching 
 oif into the thick wood. We ought to have provided ourselves with a 
 good guide, but none was to be found. Our only alternative, therefore, 
 was to march in close column, and not suffer any of the party to 
 straggle or fall in the rear. Following a path which runs in the same 
 direction as that we had been pursuing hitherto, we found, after pro- 
 ceeding a mile, that it terminated at a spring ; we then chose another, 
 which took us to a deserted building; finding again that we must have 
 taken the wrong route, we were compelled, finally, to retrace our steps. I 
 was apprehensive that we should have to pass the whole night in this 
 dreary spot, in consequence of the approaching darkness. It set in to 
 rain, and I was already much fatigued, having most unluckily sent my 
 horse on from Doga, that by so doing I might get rid of my anxious
 
 NECKssrrv of guides in india. 195 
 
 thoughts by sheer bodily exhaustion. Thus circumstanced, I was quite 
 at a loss how next to proceed to discover the right road, and at last my 
 companions and I, one and all, sat down thoroughly dejected, to recruit 
 our strength. Jwala alone made an effort to find out some human being 
 in this wilderness. I desired him not to go far way, otherwise he might 
 never find us again ; but at the end of half an hour, seeing nothing of 
 him, I felt assured that he had lost his way, and fired off my gun to 
 give him intelligence of our position. Nevertheless he did not make his 
 appearance. It was useless to wait any longer, and with Mohan I 
 struck into the path, which from its being the most beaten, I trusted 
 would lead us to Monsur. In the course of half an hour we met with 
 Jwala, who had been fortunate enough to get information as to our 
 road, but after receiving this, he could not make his way back again to 
 us to communicate the glad tidings. 
 
 Being now in the right track, we proceeded, and soon came to a 
 herd of camels, a glad announcement that we were nearing the plains 
 of India, and almost clear of the toilsome and difficult mountain-roads. 
 There were several hundreds of them, and they presented a curious 
 appearance as they browsed on the acacia and ziziphus thorn. I tried, 
 by shouting and firing off a gun, to bring their keepers to a parley ; but 
 no one made his appearance, and they probably kept out of sight from 
 some misgivings of our purpose. 
 
 The south side of the plain of Vergund is full of deep and almost 
 perpendicular ravines, hollowed out by the torrents in the soft loamy 
 soil. We came upon them so unexpectedly, that it made the journey 
 excessively laborious. Some of these ravines form, as it were, a valley 
 within a valley, and must furnish a secure retreat to robbers, as no 
 troops could venture to follow them to such coverts. On account of 
 the intricacies of the road. I had joined my party, and for some time 
 marched at the head, entertaining no doubt that the place was a haunt 
 for plunderers. The whole population in fact, must have learned the 
 trade of their Patau masters, as they now carry it on indiscriminately 
 against their Sikh rulers and neighbouring tribes. No village is secure 
 against these inroads, hence every one is defended by abroad thick fence 
 of the thorny ziziphus, through which is an opening that is carefully
 
 196 RETREATS OF THE DISAFFECTED. 
 
 closed every evening. Nothing can be a more efficacious protection. In 
 the centre stands a little court or building, surrounded with high mud- 
 walls, in which the natives deposit all their valuables. 
 
 Another reason for the insecurity of this country may be, that dis- 
 affected persons from Kabul and Lahor have often fled hither, and 
 carried on their petty warfare until some favourable opportunity per- 
 mitted them to return to the plain. Pretenders also to the throne of 
 Delhi, have made it their refuge when fortune has proved adverse, and 
 from these mountains have witnessed the renewal of operations. It was 
 here the fanatical Syud Ahmed stirred up the Mohammedan popula- 
 tion against their new masters the Sikhs ; and although he fell in battle 
 against Shir Singh, in 1831, not a year has passed since, without some 
 prince or other having been brought to reason, by force of arms, by bodies 
 assembled in this locality. These continual seditions fully justify the 
 recent measure adopted by Ranjit Singh, of keeping one member of 
 each of these petty royal families as hostages in Kashmir. When the 
 princes are reduced to submission, their subjects are equally ready to 
 maintain the same perpetual strife with each other ; and no defenceless 
 traveller is secure from their depredations, nor any incautious neigh- 
 bour from their aggressions. Often as I drew near their villages, I 
 observed the whole population taking up arms, fearing that my suite 
 might turn out to be a troop of enemies in disguise. Yet the land does 
 not seem poor, and I heard with surprise, that many of these scattered 
 villages produced to their proprietors a revenue of 2000 or 3000 rupees. 
 The country is watered by many streams, among which the Sarn is of 
 some importance, receiving all the tributary mountain rivulets, and 
 supplying in its turn the Atok, or Arub as it is called here. One 
 mile from Monsur we came to two of those gigantic tombs, so com- 
 mon in Afghanistan. These were fifteen feet long, and nine broad. It 
 was almost dark when I reached them, or I should have examined one 
 or both. Night brought us to Monsur, where, according to the 
 directions 1 had given the man who met me at Doga, I expected the 
 two important requisites — wood and milk, would be got in readiness for 
 our party ; neither of these however did I find. The drizzling rain 
 which had fallen at intervals during the day, set in faster, and no tent
 
 FRONTIERS OF THE PANJAB. 197 
 
 was as yet ready for my accommodation. Completely exhausted, wet 
 through, and heated with the fatigues and haste in getting over our 
 hurried march, I felt that in this state the piercing wind blowing over 
 the snowy mountains had given me a severe chill, my every limb faltered 
 and shivered with cold. The ground was nearly under water ; and it 
 took a full hour to get a fire properly kindled ; not a stick of wood was to 
 be found in the wretched village, and we did not well know where to pitch 
 our tents. It was, as may be imagined, in no enviable frame of mind, 
 that I stood for nearly three hours in the dark night, leaning against a 
 stone, without so much as a cloak to shelter me from the rain and wind. 
 The Shah was no better off than myself, and his servants were all so dis- 
 contented, that I invited him into my tent as soon as I had one. At 
 length matters improved, the rain abated, the fire gave out a little 
 cheering warmth ; and the clean tent with its pair of lights, seemed to 
 me a perfect palace, in which, after changing my wet garments, I felt 
 myself comparatively happy and comfortable. 
 
 Saturday, December 19. — We were now near the frontiers of 
 Ranjit Singh's territories. Arub, a fort about five kos westward, is 
 the entrance to Penda Khan's country. Organized bands of robbers, 
 to the number of two or three hundred, are frequently met in these 
 parts. They plunder the diff'erent villages, and have hitherto met 
 with no effectual check; in fact, the power of Ranjit Singh has never 
 been able to keep this country in order, even for a few months at a 
 time. I was greatly alarmed lest Henderson* should fall into the hands 
 of one of these gangs, who, however, in their depredations, rarely pro- 
 ceed to deeds of blood. For my own part, I congratulated myself 
 that I had entered Monsur at this late hour, as I contemplated leaving 
 it early in the morning, before Penda Khan had received intelligence 
 of the route I had taken, which might have offered a temptation far 
 too great for his cupidity to withstand. 
 
 • The melancholy termination of this adventurous man's career, by cholera at 
 Lüdiana, while under arrest, pending the determination of Government, has 
 deprived the public of much information respecting Panjäb and Tibet, which at 
 this juncture would have been particularly valuable. — Ed.
 
 198 RETINUE OF AN EASTERN CHIEF. 
 
 The valley of Vergund, though it cannot be seen from this miser- 
 able village, is, after Kashmir, the largest in the Himalayan range 
 north or west of the Setlej ; the mountains, on either side, are low and 
 covered with thick forests ; properly speaking, it belongs to the valley 
 of the Atok, or Indus. The heights, by which I had lost my way 
 in descending, divide the waters of the Jelam and Atok. 
 
 Vigne had sprained his foot the day before yesterday, in coming 
 down the Dub Pass; and as he could not ride without pain, I had 
 given up my jampan for his use. His ailment was not likely to be 
 cured for several days, an evil which my present condition rendered 
 extremely untoward. In the side pocket of this jampan I always 
 kept my kukeri, one of the most fearful weapons I know, and peculiar 
 to the Ghorkas. They talked so much about thieves, that I resolved 
 if they did attack us, I would not be taken alive, and therefore com- 
 mitted my arms to the charge of Mohan. 
 
 At eight in the morning we struck our tents. Long before this, 
 the Thanadar of Kota, whose district I expected to reach in two days, 
 had arrived with a large company to welcome me. The road led about a 
 mile away from the fort of Monsur, a paltry mud inclosure; the instant 
 we were close abreast of it the gate was suddenly flung open, and the 
 Thanadar issued forth with his followers, all bedizened with the fine 
 trappings of which the Sikhs are so fond; he galloped forward in 
 advance of his troop,, and in a moment was at my side, and alighted 
 from his horse to salute me. My party was now as numerous as 
 it was picturesque, the Thanadar of Kota being among us also. Many 
 of the horsemen carried spears fifteen feet long; some wore their 
 Indian costume with the most dazzling colours, burnished weapons, 
 and gorgeous coats of mail ; all were splendidly mounted. The Ghunt, 
 on which I was mounted amid this glittering throng, did not look 
 to much more advantage than I myself did, dressed as I was in my 
 plain black suit. While the high -mettled coursers were prancing 
 and neighing about him, he went soberly on his way with the most 
 perfect unconcern, seeming to care very little how ugly or insignificant 
 he might look. I saw the Sikhs looking with infinite contempt on the 
 queer form of my little steed, but ere the day wa:< done they had
 
 APPEARANCE OF THE COUNTKY. 199 
 
 learned to respect his admirable qualities; the first half of our way 
 lay through a succession of ravines which yesterday's rain had made 
 extremely dangerous to travel, across these my sturdy little Ghunt 
 clambered up and down without making one false step. The Sikhs, on 
 the contrary, were frequently forced to dismount : many of their horses 
 fell down the steep banks, and their splendid dresses, moreover, looked 
 all the worse for the day's journey. 
 
 Isolated hills are scattered over the face of the country in every 
 direction, and what in the far distance appears to be a plain, is in fact, 
 a succession of ravines, which begin suddenly with an abrupt fall of 
 100 feet, and are continued down to a small river. These ravines 
 must have originated in some violent inundations of the plain. Large 
 quantities of water issue from all the rocky eminences. 
 
 The famine which desolated Kashmir extended as far as Garhi only; 
 it is remarkable, that although the cholera did not reach this district, 
 yet all those Kashmirians who fled hither from their own country, fell 
 victims to it. The mountains which had been hitherto clothed with 
 the solitary Pinus longifolia, are here quite bare, reminding me forci- 
 bly of the interior of Syria, only that in this place those scattered 
 green patches which grow around the Syrian fountains, are wanting, 
 and the hills are composed of the grey limestone in stiff formations. 
 
 About half way on to-day's march we came to a Buddhist monu- 
 ment, called by the natives, Budh, or Dhagoba, the first we had seen 
 in this direction. Vigne got out of the jampan at my request, to take 
 a drawing of it, while I examined it on every side. One of his servants, 
 a silly fellow, a Patau, called Osman Beg, no sooner saw his master 
 commence drawing, than he seated himself close by to watch his 
 proceedings. The Sikhs followed his example, and gathered round to 
 see what the stranger could be doing with this old ruined edifice. 
 The Thanadar of Monsiir even laid his hand on the piece of paper on 
 which Vigne was sketching. " If you had any manners," cried Osman 
 Beg, " you would know how to be ashamed of such impudence." The 
 Thanadar sprang back in a towering rage, crying out, " Siir, hog," 
 the deepest affront he could offer to a Mohammedan. " Down with 
 you, unbelieving dog," cried the Patau vehemently, and at the same
 
 200 QUARKELSOMK SPIKIT OF THE PATANS. 
 
 moment his sword sprang from its scabbard. The Thanadar and his 
 followers, numbering more than fifty, rushed to their horses, mounted 
 in a trice, and made ready for the strife; some armed with sabres, 
 others with spears or matchlocks. My anxiety may be readily imagined. 
 Their frightful cries made me look every instant for the attack which 
 was impending over Vigne and Osman, but it was quite impossible either 
 to give them any help, or even share their danger. Presently, the whole 
 party dividing itself to the right and left, rushed by the two in the 
 direction of the fort of Monsur, and the next minute they wheeled round 
 again, and with the Thanadar at their head, rode straight up to me. 
 At a little distance the Thanadar dismounted, strode up to me, and 
 made a low obeisance, I nätti,rally enough concluded that he was going 
 to say something to me, but no; he drew himself up, remounted 
 his horse, and galloped off, quitting the plain with all his cavalcade. 
 Probably he intended to show me that at least he had some idea what 
 good manners were, in spite of the quarrel that had taken place 
 between him and my dependents. 
 
 In Amritpoor, a town of some importance, we had the first oppor- 
 tunity of enjoying a bath; bathing is a general custom throughout the 
 Panjab. The villages we passed were but thinly peopled by Hindus. 
 The broken skin of my face and hands was now almost replaced by a 
 newer and smoother surface, but the absence of bodily heat from which 
 I suffered so much, made me feel the want of wine or brandy most 
 sensibly. 
 
 We slept at Naushera; upon my arrival I found my tents already 
 pitched in a wretched situation, in a field as level as a floor. I pointed 
 this out to the Kalashi, and bade him be more careful another time in 
 selecting his ground. But as the night was clear, and there appeared 
 to be no probability of its raining, which would have fairly imbedded me 
 and my tent in a morass, I spared my servants, already jaded with the 
 march, the trouble of removing the whole baggage to a more suitable 
 spot. A tent should be always fixed on high ground if possible, or at 
 least on sloping ground, to prevent the possibility of water making its 
 way to the interior, in case of rain lodging there. 
 
 Sunday, December 20. — With too presumptuous confidence I had
 
 TRAITS OF HINDU CHARACTER. 201 
 
 appointed the time when I should be in Atok and Lahor. Spoiled by 
 the continuance of two months' fine weather, I had not anticipated the 
 possibility of rain setting in at this season, and was therefore quite 
 unprepared for the torrent which poured down during' the night. If 
 the pelting of the storm on the roof had not aroused me, the disturb- 
 ance made by the servants would have soon done so ; driven by the water 
 from place to place, they at last took refuge just within my tent, 
 though there it was likewise making its way. Towards morning the 
 rain abated, but when I prepared to rise as usual, I stepped from my 
 bed into a complete pool which had collected under the carpet. 
 Having made my way out, I looked abroad on the country, and 
 saw it overspread with a dense fog. It was absurd to think of march- 
 ing, nor did there seem much prospect of immediate extrication from 
 our situation; the tents were soaked completely through, this added 
 considerably to their weight, and they would moreover require a long 
 time to get dry again. The dismal state of a person travelling with 
 tents in India when these violent rains set in, can only be understood 
 by those who have experienced such a misfortune. The misery, indeed, 
 is aggravated tenfold, when sach a mishap befalls him after a long 
 course of dry weather. Indian servants never provide against any 
 accident of the kind ; believing that the elements must be as obedient 
 to the Sahib as to themselves. Hence, all my luggage was in the open 
 air, the tent under which they should have been stowed away every 
 night, remained unpacked ; and even the rduti, or large tent, intended 
 specially for the accommodation of the servants, was very rarely pitched, 
 as they usually preferred passing the night in the open air with merely 
 some light coverlets over them. This want of energy is the great defect 
 of the Indian character, and in such cases their patience becomes a 
 vice. They will sit, for example, for hours together in a pelting 
 shower, in hopes that it will soon clear off, and then, when they are 
 really in earnest to repair their own want of forethought, and to 
 unpack their tent, it frequently happens that the rain has made 
 it no easy matter to remove the packing cloths, without tearing them 
 to pieces. The water, as I have already said, had made its way 
 through the four-fold covering of my tent, owing to their having
 
 202 CAMPAIGNING IN THE RAINS. 
 
 calculated on fine weather, and therefore not having tightened the ropes 
 enough to allow the water to run off. The Kalashis now strained the 
 ropes and drove the wedges deep into the ground, but it was so saturated 
 by this time, that the pegs would not hold, and we were forced to let 
 the tent remain as it was. To increase our raiseiy, the field became 
 one large sheet of water, and our sole resource now was, to dig a 
 trench round the tent. Fain w^ould I have gone elsewhere if possible, 
 but knowing the difficulty of removing such a heavy mass, I made 
 up my mind to bear my misfortune with true Indian patience, and 
 lamented not so much the fact of being wet through, as the loss of one 
 day. Assuredly, if vexations are more easily borne, when one observes 
 others worse off than one's self, this consolation was mine; in my large 
 tent I was certainly more comfortable than poor Vigne in his smaller 
 one ; his tent, in short, was not habitable after ten in the morning, and 
 his servants not being of the best, he could get nothing done to 
 alleviate his discomfort. Nothing impeded the free entrance of the 
 water, and he was altogether in a worse plight than if he had remained 
 in the open air. When I heard how he was situated, I ventured 
 through the rain to see how he bore it, and found him lying in 
 bed, or rather in a cold bath. I invited him to change his quarters 
 forthwith, and presently he was lodged with all his moveables under 
 my own canvass. 
 
 The Shah, unhappily, had nearly thirty men in his company, all 
 crammed into a tent which was scarcely spacious enough for ten. He 
 had gathered them all about his little crib, and there they sat in the 
 water, until a violent gust of wind overturned the whole concern. 
 Nobody was hurt, but it was a very inconvenient accident at such a 
 time, and in spite of my good feeling and sympathy for them, I could not 
 help laughing, as I saw these grave Mohammedans crawling out from 
 under the soaking canvass. The Shah took shelter with me until they 
 had put it in some sort of trim again. 
 
 About noon the sky looked somewhat more promising, but the rain 
 still poured down. We could, however, see the mountains covered with 
 snow in the direction of Naushcra, which lies in a plain encompassed 
 with hills of no great height. Several small streams intersect this
 
 DIFFICULTIES TO THE PROGRESS OF AN ARMY. 203 
 
 plain, which is quite bare of trees and uncultivated : at this moment it 
 was nothing better than a bog-. They told me that it would most pro- 
 bably be quite impassable in a few days, and as my road led through it, 
 this piece of information was not calculated to cheer my spirits. 1 
 comforted myself, nevertheless, with the hope that this might be a little 
 Indian exaggeration, and in the evening I interrogated the Thanadar 
 belonging to the fort of Naushera; but he also declared that at this 
 season of the year, travellers were often detained for a whole fortnight 
 together after heavy rains, before the country was practicable. Mean- 
 while he offered to entertain me in the fort, but I declined his invita- 
 tion, and not over courteously; for, to confess the truth, I was quite 
 overcome by the intelligence he had just communicated. During the 
 night the rain fell in torrents, and my servants all came to shelter 
 themselves in the outer division of my tent, their own having fallen in 
 at eleven o'clock.. 
 
 Monday, December 21. — The weather was better than I had dared 
 to anticipate, though the rain had not entirely abated, and at nine 
 o'clock the sky became still calmer. The tents, however, were in such 
 a plight that there was no chance of our departure then, but when the 
 sun came forth at noon, I ordered them instantly to pack up, being 
 most anxious to quit our present position; for it seemed to me that the 
 inclination of the ground towards this plain, must render it liable to 
 frequent rains, and a very few days like the last would detain us 
 prisoners for a long time in this marshy field. 
 
 My people knew that I was not to be moved from a resolution once 
 firmly taken, and though my command to quit Naushera directly, seemed 
 to them most extraordinary, they were soon in motion. I had a little 
 more difiiculty with the bearers. The Shah also succeeded in stirring 
 up his retinue, though with much trouble ; but Vigne, who was so kind 
 and indulgent to his servants, that they did just what pleased them, 
 could not rouse a man from the place. He followed me, therefore, 
 with a single bearer carrying his bed, in the hope that the rest would 
 come after him. I had named Siilat as our night's post, being but 
 three kos from Naushera, or about four miles. For one mile and a 
 half of this distance wc had to wade through the marshy valley, which
 
 204 PLIANT TEMPER OF THE NATIVES. 
 
 cost US a vast deal of labour and fatigue. After this, the road became 
 higher, and from the plain we came suddenly to the steep declivity 
 on which Salat is built. The night had come on ere we reached it, nor was 
 it easy for us to find a place of encampment; for Salat lies, as I have 
 said, on a stony declivity, which leads down to a steep ravine, ending 
 in a rivulet. I examined the vicinity for some time to find a suitable 
 position for the tents, or some dwelling place where we could pass the 
 night ; but the night fairly closed in without any successful issue. We 
 were forced, in consequence, to encamp on a height on the other side 
 of the river, at some considerable distance from the village. While 
 here, I was obliged to give Mirza a very severe reprimand. My Sikh 
 lieutenant suggested to me that in the mosque of the town there was a 
 very clean place of shelter at my service. Knowing his religious 
 creed, I asked him whether it was customary in the Panjab for a 
 traveller of another faith to enter a mosque set apart for Moham- 
 medans, and he assured me that the Sikhs always did it, when there 
 was no Dharamsala in the place. I was just about to decline the 
 ofi'er, when Mirza, who was a Mohammedan, stepped forward, and said 
 that he would not permit the mosque to be so profaned. I desired 
 him to be silent, and to remember that while in my service his duty 
 was to make me as comfortable as possible, instead of starting difficul- 
 ties, and if this was not consistent with his duty as a good Mussulman, 
 he must cease to be my servant. He understood me, and in order to 
 shew that he was sensible of having manifested his religious zeal at a 
 most unseasonable time, prepared to pack up my baggage himself, and 
 take it to the mosque. I desired him, however, to leave it where it 
 was, as I was quite contented with the tent. Mr. Vigne's people did 
 not make their appearance, neither did the bearer of his bed, and with 
 a little trouble we found a place for him among us. I observed, on 
 this occasion, that the higher castes did not consider themselves defiled 
 by allowing the inferior orders to come into contact with their gar- 
 ments, and my people gave their best shawls and coverings to furnish a 
 bed for my guest, without making the slightest objection. 
 
 Tuesday, December 22. — Salat is 1200 feet higher than Mazaffer- 
 abad. This morning the weather was tolerably clear, but my limbs
 
 PICTURESQUE BURYING PLACES. 205 
 
 were perfectly benumbed with the cold. The thermometer was at 45°. 
 The country for the last few days had been generally bare of trees, but 
 at some distance from every village is a thick grove, which affords a 
 most delightful variety to the general monotony. These usually 
 consist of olive trees, here most appropriately dedicated to peace, for 
 they adorn the graves which lie beneath their shade. Many are famed 
 for encircling the tomb of some Pir, or saint, and surviving friends 
 often bring their dead from a considerable distance to deposit them 
 near the holy man's grave. One of these sacred groves was near 
 Salat, and afforded us for one night that rest which so many of the 
 inhabitants had taken up for a much longer period. As in other 
 Mohammedan cemeteries, so these are ornamented by the surviving 
 relatives in various ways. At several of the graves there were lamps 
 kept constantly burning. 
 
 I was up and out at break of day, and strolled to the nearest high 
 ground, in hopes of seeing the plains of India, but nothing was visible 
 beyond the range of hills, piled one over another. We started soon 
 after, as I wanted to make up for our lost day by a long march. Our 
 route lay through a narrow pass, hemmed in by detached hills, to a 
 wide valley, in which the river Dor, or rather its stony bed, takes its 
 course for half a mile. The rest of the valley is torn up by deep 
 ravines, caused by the rain floods in these low grounds, which force the 
 natives to build their villages on the heights that bound the valley like 
 a wall to the north-west. One may well suppose that a mighty stream 
 has once filled the whole valley, having these steep heights for its 
 shores ; at present, no swelling of the waters could ever carry 
 them so far. A species of aqueduct distributes the waters of the 
 Dor at a tolerable elevation ; indeed, no region in the world can be 
 oetter supplied than this valley, called the Dhumtur district. The town 
 itself, which I saw only from a distance, is between five and six kos 
 from Näushera, and there is a second very near to Hussein Abdal, our 
 next station, which leads by it, but I had chosen the shorter route bv 
 Salat. Many books and maps have raised Dhumtur to the rank of a 
 large city, giving its name to a province, or even to a state ; but it is, 
 on the contrary, a very insignificant place. Many small forts are
 
 206 AGRICULTURAL PRODUCTIONS. 
 
 scattered about, with a view to protect the frontiers and villages. Tlie 
 valley of the Dor introduces one to the vegetable forms of Northern 
 India. The Justicia and Dodonea, with some species of the Mimosa, 
 are seen in the low jungles ; the Bombax heptaphylla is in the plain, 
 but the stunted form of the last renders it very unlike the majestic 
 tree which astonishes the traveller in Ceylon. We also passed to-day 
 some specimens of the Asclepias gigantea and the Caesalpinia sappan. 
 Near Salike Serai commences the cultivation of a peculiar species of 
 the ginger, scarcely as large as a pigeon's egg; but abundantly exported 
 from this country into China by way of Tibet. The valley of the 
 Dor also produces the sugar-cane in such luxuriance that they feed. the 
 horses with it, as they do in the Panjab; and the village chieftains 
 usually meet travellers with a present consisting of sugar candy. The 
 majestic plantain appears now in solitary places ; but the transition 
 from a northern to a southern vegetation, so delightful in most coun- 
 tries, has here no charm whatever. 
 
 Salike Serai, our halting-place for the night, is about twelve kos, or 
 eighteen miles, from Salat. It is a populous place, where my Indians 
 had the satisfaction of finding a large bazar. Close to the town is a 
 strange-looking building belonging to a fakir, opposite to which, 
 on the right bank of the Dor, is the temple of a Hindu Devi, or 
 goddess. 
 
 Wednesday, December 23. — As we had no more than six kos to 
 journey to Kota, we did not begin our travels this morning until nine 
 o'clock. The fort of Kishengurh, built twelve years ago in a regular 
 form, though only of mud, is two miles from Salike Serai, on the left 
 bank of the Dor. The town is half a mile further on, and is the 
 residence of Hari Singh Nalwa, one of Ranjit's best generals, and 
 formerly Governor of Kashmir. He received Kishengurh, his present 
 territory, in fee from his master. Hari Singh was at this time away, 
 but he had ordered his Diwan to meet me, with the offer of anything I 
 might stand in need of. This was done as far back as IMonsiir, the 
 Minister pressing me to remain a few days at Kishengurh and rest, but 
 which of course I declined. 
 
 As I came opposite the gates, they were opened, and a boy, attended
 
 HEREDITARY PRIDE OF RANK. 207 
 
 by a numerous suite, issued from within them, bringing me a similar 
 invitation, and a nazar also of 101 rupees. I touched the money with 
 my hand, according to the prescribed custom, and gave it back, at the 
 same time declining his hospitality, and requesting to know his name. 
 It was Chatar Singh, the son of Hari Singh Nalwa, and the child was 
 not more than ten years old. His features were very noble and 
 expressive. His dress was covered with gold, and he wore a turban 
 adorned with a sable plume of heron's feathers ; while his arms, richly 
 inlaid with gold, dangled at his side. The large white horse he rode 
 with perfect grace, capered and curvetted before me, the saddle and 
 bridle being ornamented with gold and enamel ; the housings, of Pash- 
 mina, or Kashmir shawls, were also fringed with gold. 
 
 I could see that my refusal of his present gave him great offence, 
 though he did not express it in words, and soon afterwards he held out 
 the purse again, which 1 still declined to take ; upon this, he took his 
 leave abruptly, saying as he rode awaj"^, " The Sahib will not take the 
 present from me because I am a child ; he would not dare to refuse it, 
 were I a man," I was sorry to offend him, and therefore despatched 
 the Munshi after him, to explain that I never accepted money from 
 any one. 
 
 Half a mile from Kishengurh is Haripoor, surrounded by mud 
 walls, which are fast falling to decay : it seems a place of no great im- 
 portance from without, yet it has a large and densely-crowded population, 
 and a respectable bazar, and was the largest town I had seen in Ranjit 
 Singh's territories in this direction. The streets were full of life, and 
 the shops glittered with every thing to delight an Indian's taste. 
 Every step diminished the number of my followers. One sat down at 
 one of the stalls to smoke the pipe presented to him ; another bought 
 spices for his noonday meal ; while their fellows supplied themselves 
 with sweetmeats baked in grease, or listened to the noisy music before 
 the Hindu temple. I rode slowly through the great street, and seeing 
 that it branched off into others, I turned round to inquire of some of 
 my attendants which way we should take. To my surprise every man of 
 them had disappeared, and were replaced by a vast crowd of inquisitive 
 natives who were running after me. As I had forgotten the
 
 208 INQUISITIVE DISPOSITION OF THE NATIVES. 
 
 name of the place where we were to be lodged for the night, I had 
 no resource but to wait patiently till some of my suite returned. I dis- 
 mounted hastily, and seated myself on a stone by the side of a spring, 
 and held the rein of my horse. They did not make their appearance 
 for about an hour ; and remembering the days of hard toil they had 
 gone through with me, I could not find it in my heart to scold them for 
 leaving me alone, while they were snatching at these, to them, so very 
 unusual pleasures. 
 
 Here we quitted the Dor, which winds along through the mountain 
 chain, falling into the Atok, seven kos from Haripoor. Three different 
 ways lead from this place to the town of Atok, two of them being 
 shorter than the road by Hussein Abdal, but more hilly, and quite 
 unprovided, according to the information of Hari Singh, who accom- 
 panied me, with provisions sufficient for my large company. For that 
 reason only, I decided on going by Kota and Hussein Abdal. The 
 road led at first through deep ravines, where the Haro springs, a river 
 which is at present quite dry, the whole way to Kota. 
 
 I desired my tent to be pitched at a short distance from the town, 
 under the walls of a little fort close by the Haro, and where was a 
 mosque shaded by some fine trees. There was a little water in the bed 
 of the Haro at this place in the deepest parts. During my accustomed 
 walk, I examined both the neighbouring heights and the banks of the 
 stream, where I saw many curious caves, as though the Troglodytes had 
 once settled there. 
 
 At noon we were met by Khan Singh, an agent from Ranjit Singh, 
 who brought me a most friendly letter from his master, in which 
 neither sun nor moon were spared to attest the stability of his friend- 
 ship, and no compliments forgotten. He recommended Khan Singh to 
 me as a man who had been of important service to him, and assured 
 me moreover that he was ordered to provide me with every thing I 
 could wish for. To this letter I sent an immediate reply, thanking the 
 Mahä Raja for this additional proof of his kindness, which could only 
 proceed from the firm friendship subsisting between himself and the 
 East India Company, whose friend I also was proud to consider myself. 
 Thursday, December 24. — As we passed through Kota, I took notice
 
 ANOMALOUS CHAKACTER OF TUli FAKIKS. 2U9 
 
 of a house, by far the best built in the place; and inquiring to whom it 
 belonged, I found that it was the property of a fakir, the poor man of 
 the town, and soon after we happened to meet this person clothed in 
 silks, and carried in a palankeen, I thought I must have been mis- 
 taken, but no, he told me himself that he was the fakir of Kota; and 
 upon stricter inquiry whether I could rightly have understood the real 
 meaning of the term, I heard further that fakir did actually signify the 
 poor man of the place. What a strange contradiction of things ! 
 Every village owns a beggar of this species, who receives something 
 from each inhabitant, or sometimes there is one fakir to so many small 
 villages. I have heard it said, " We are too poor to have a fakir here ;" 
 but wherever there is one the people have generally a pride in taking 
 care that he is properly supported. The Kota fakir subsisted on the 
 charity of thirty villages. There is often a spirit of contention between 
 dififerent places most ridiculously carried on, to see which fakir is the 
 best kept; and they seem most desirous that strangers should consider 
 them benevolent in proportion as their own particular object is seen 
 well maintained. 
 
 Leaving Kota, I observed some detached mountains, running all in 
 one direction, and evidently members of the same dissevered chain. 
 The formation is singular, and imparts a peculiar character to the 
 locality. They appear like the backs of hills joined together, and like 
 islands in a sea: they lie in the great plain, intersected with innumer- 
 able ravines. We passed numerous streams and forts, and the ground 
 seemed remarkably productive. 
 
 I eagerly looked out for Hussein Abdal, which is about nine kos 
 from Kota, the spot celebrated by Moore in his Lalla Rookh, and 
 described by Hamilton, whose work has nothing of poetry in it, as a 
 lovely valley, and which in sober truth is neither lovely nor a valley. 
 The place certainly has a mountain behind it; but the elevated lands 
 in all other directions are much too insignificant to give the plain the 
 character of a valley, and too far apart to encompass it. The ruinous 
 Serai, built by Akbar, is striking, not by nature but from the state of 
 the ruin itself, and the cypresses and date-trocs, the Phoenix farinosa, near. 
 A tepid spring rises in the neighbourhood, in which a great many sacred 
 
 p
 
 210 A AfOHAMMEDAN NOBLEMAN. 
 
 fish arc kept under the protection of a fakir ; he had also in charge a 
 couple of white-headed eagles, which my huntsman shot at, to the con- 
 sternation of the whole place. 
 
 A palace of Jehanghir's, now in ruins, lies a mile from this; it was 
 too late to visit it to-day. The huntsman was guilty of the death of a 
 parrot this afternoon, which excited the rage of the people, though 
 happily it did not explode in any thing worse than abuse. I cannot say 
 whence the erroneous opinion is derived that the Emperors of Dehli 
 alwavs passed through Hussein Abdal on their way to Kashmir. Akbar 
 may have done so, but his father Hamayun was compelled to relinquish 
 his design of reaching the valley by this route, and none of his prede- 
 cessors ever proceeded by any other road than that of Rajawar, and the 
 Pir Panjal. 
 
 I had made up my mind to see Atok, the most northern point to 
 the west where the Hindu faith is found. It is two days' march from 
 Hussein Abdal. As I found that I should be obliged at all events to 
 return again to Hussein Abdal from Atok, in order to travel the 
 faster, I resolved to leave my tents here, to proceed to Shujanpoor on 
 the morrow, and thence on the following morning to go on very early to 
 Atok, see the place, and return the same evening to Shujanpoor, thus 
 finding my way back to Hussein Abdal on the third day, and giving 
 mj- bearers and escort a rest of three days. 
 
 There are certain times in one's life, when remembrances of the 
 past are so vivid, as to preclude every consideration of the present. 
 This was the case with me to-day. My situation, as may be readily 
 imao'ined, is certainly most cheerless, compared with the time, when in 
 the circle of my kinsmen, brothers, and sisters, I customarily spent 
 such anniversaries in the home of my childhood, happy in all the ties 
 of friendship and of love ; whereas, now, I am alone in a dreary dwelling- 
 place, with fingers so benumbed, that I can scarcely contrive to trace a 
 few lines by the wretched light of the lamp. 
 
 Friday, December 25. — Although I have not mentioned the Shah's 
 name very often of late, I have seen a great deal of him, enough to make 
 me admire and appreciate his true nobility of character, and feel grateful 
 for the repeated proofs he has given me of his kindness and attention, and
 
 A traveller's associations. 211 
 
 for the readiness with which he has thought of everything I was most 
 likely to stand in need of. For one thing he would send to Kashmir, for 
 another to Peshawur ; and if I asked for information on any subject, 
 every man in the place was employed to procure it for mc. Such infor- 
 mation, in a country like this, peopled by Mohammedan fanatics, was 
 only to be had through Mohammed Shah Nakhsbandi, whose charac- 
 ter for the promotion of the faith made that easy for him to acquire, 
 which to a Sikh would have been impossible, although it were from his 
 personal friend. Probably, I was mainly indebted to the protection of 
 his name for the immunity I experienced in my journey from Mazaffera- 
 bad to Hussein Abdal, through a country infested with parties of 
 infuriated Musselman bigots. His little tent was always crowded with 
 his retainers, and pitched near mine. When he paid his morning visits 
 to inquire after my health, he never failed to ask my permission to 
 return in the evening. A Mohammedan in the noblest sense of that 
 faith; he was grave, sincere, pious, fearless of men, obliging and polite; 
 always ready to assist others ; to feel for their sufferings ; and to 
 bear his own with a submissive trust in God, his conduct was truly 
 worthy of admiration. 
 
 I set off with a small party of fifteen, at daybreak, on my way to 
 Atok. Near Hussein Abdal we passed over some mounds of a soft 
 slimy earth, which, I think, have been deposited there by the waters, as 
 they were usually preceded by a declivity to a rapid stream. Ten or 
 twelve miles further, brought us to Kokur, and the plain of Atok 
 called Shush, which, although on a larger scale, reminded me of the 
 Dera Dhun, or valley of Dera, in the Himalaya. A range of hills, 
 broken at intervals, shuts it in towards the south, where the valley is 
 inclosed by the Sivalik mountains. The plains of Hindüsthan ap])ear 
 to commence with that of Atok, and from Kokur the mountains 
 terminate entirely in a southern direction. These mountains are of 
 limestone, and the marbles are of every shade of colour. 
 
 There is not a single tree on the plain of Atok, which is as level as 
 a sheet of water. Ruinous villages are situated on eminences arti- 
 ficially thrown up, like those of the Egyptian Delta. The Indus 
 
 p 2
 
 212 ORIENTAL PROGRESSES. 
 
 frequently inundates the whole plain, though not with the same regu- 
 larity as the Nile. Shujanpoor is eighteen miles from Hussein Abdal, 
 and is a wretched place by the side of a rivulet, with morasses in its 
 immediate vicinity. The course of the Indus may be distinguished 
 thence as far as the mountains, and to the point where it is lost in them, 
 a distance of nineteen miles or thirteen kos from Shujanpoor. The view 
 would be splendid were the plain well cultivated ; as it is, however, the 
 scene is devoid of interest, and one only feels surprised at the endless 
 range of mountains seemingly one above the other. 
 
 On the plain of Atok, the contest for the possession of that city, 
 and the influence of the Afghans and Mohammedans of the west, was 
 finally decided. It was neither one battle, nor the superior talent 
 of Ranjit Singh, which put an end to that singular train of circum- 
 stances which had enabled an insignificant branch from the richest and 
 most populous race in the world, renowned for bravery as well as 
 descent to prescribe laws thus long ; the Mahmood power was 
 already on the decline in India, and the unimportant battle of Atok 
 only drove the last bands over the Indus, according to the object always 
 kept in view by Fattih Khan, the Wazir of Mohammed Shah, the last 
 king of Kabul, before Ranjit made his appearance on the scene ; Ranjit 
 has now in view to penetrate into the heart of Afghanistan, and annex 
 the capital, Kabul, to his own territory ; but no one informed of the 
 hatred and contempt felt for the Sikhs by these wild Afghans, could 
 ever dream of the possibility of Kabul professing allegiance to Ranjit 
 Singh. Nevertheless he has already reached half way from Atok to 
 Kabul, and got possession of the whole country as far as Jelalabad. 
 I am firmly persuaded that nothing but death or some change in the 
 policy of the East India Company, will deter him from attempting the 
 conquest of Kabul itself. 
 
 Ranjit Singh has been in this part of the country several times, 
 and on such occasions they have thrown up small buildings for his 
 reception, miscalled houses, of one story, consisting of a single room. 
 These houses are rudely built of wood, plastered over with clay, with a 
 single entrance, but without window or other opening of any sort,
 
 A QUESTION OF I'KOI'EKTY. 213 
 
 forming altogether a strange contrast with the magnificent serais of the 
 former Moghul sovereigns*. 
 
 Shujanpoor is seen at a great distance, and is remarkable for the 
 six date-trees in its cemetery, where I took up my quarters. I ordered 
 my bed to be put into a mosque most conveniently near, while my 
 dinner was being cooked in another. This caused a violent altercation, 
 for it turned out that the spot we had chosen belonged to the fakir of 
 the town, one of those mendicants who subsist on the bounty of the 
 simple natives. He had just made preparation to feed his falcons on 
 some tame fowls, and was looking forward to the gratification of wit- 
 nessing the ease with which his birds of prey would kill and tear the 
 poor fowls, when he caught sight of my people kindling a fire with his 
 wood, which the coldness of the evening compelled us to have recourse 
 to. Backed by a number of the inhabitants, who had armed themselves 
 with spears and sticks, the fakir assailed my servants with a volley of 
 imprecations, and soon put them all to flight, I had the greatest diffi- 
 culty to make myself heard amid this uproar. At length the fakir 
 came up to me, and complained bitterly of the depredation committed 
 on the store of wood he had laid up for the winter's consumption. I 
 told him that we could not possibly remain there all night without a 
 fire, but that he should be amply repaid for what we had consumed. To 
 this arrangement, however, he would not accede, but said he wanted 
 his wood, and remained immoveable in his purpose to keep his property 
 
 " The above is an excellent epitome of the Hindu and Mohammedan character. 
 The former, parsimonious, exclusive, bigoted; the latter, thoughtless, extravagant, 
 bold, and luxurious, from the prince to the peasant; or indeed to the very befjgar 
 the portraiture is equally applicable; yet let us not therewithal refuse them their 
 proper meed of praise. The Hindu possesses many redeeming qualities,— extreme 
 forbearance, submissive cooeideration, and a liij^h degree of attachment to his 
 kindred, his relations, his paternal property, and his benefactor. The Moham- 
 medans are brave to a fault, studiously concerned for their faith and its extension, 
 chivalrous and hospitable. These are the necessary results of their political and 
 religious institutions combined. Alas ! what a balance is set off against them in 
 the united evils of a demoralising superstition and a naturally depraved heart. In 
 such qualities they are alike; the grossest inunorality, the most lax ideas of the 
 sacred obligations of truth, and an utter unconcern for the happiness or eternal 
 interest of the fairest and noblest portion of the liuuiaii race.
 
 214 THE PAKIAFI DOG OF INDIA. 
 
 to himself; at length, seeing that words were unavailing, I directed the 
 men to follow me, and proceeded without further to do, to the stack of 
 contested fuel ; the fakir standing by and uttering not a word, while we 
 were helping ourselves to the quantity we stood in need of*. 
 
 We could get nothing to eat until night, and then partook of our 
 Christmas dinner dismally enough; the cold in the mosque was most 
 intense. For ten days past we had subsisted on rice, mutton, and 
 occasionally a fowl ; all other provisions, including wine, being entirely 
 expended. 
 
 Saturday, December 26. — The complete subjection of the Moham- 
 medans in this country may be readily inferred from the circumstance 
 of an unbeliever like myself being suffered to sleep in one mosque and 
 use another as a kitchen. Not that I once closed my eyes in reality, for 
 the dreadful bowlings of the village dogs altogether prevented my getting 
 a wink of sleep. In Mohammedan countries these animals have no 
 owner; neither have they in the Panjab. Superstition, therefore, has 
 nothing to do with their preservation ; but it would be thought very 
 cruel to injure these inoffensive, watchful brutes; no native could be 
 persuaded to kill one ; he would merely content himself with taking up 
 a stone, or possibly stooping in a menacing attitude, when the animal 
 approached too near him. These dogs never become attached to any 
 person or house, however young they may be taken, but associate them- 
 selves in a wonderful manner to each other. Woe to the stranger who 
 
 * The dilemma in which the traveller often finds himself in India, under 
 similar circumstances, would perhaps demand a larger charity than some might be 
 disposed to allow for this mode of procedure. While the benevolent authorities 
 at the head of affairs in India strictly enjoined that no European officer or subject 
 should compel the natives to serve or supply them with the necessaries of life, the 
 intimation was pcrveisely construed into an opinion that the life and comfort of 
 their own servants was a matter of less concern than the fear of native displeasure, 
 and has always operated most prejudicially to the best interests of Government. 
 Proper and effectual regulations for the supply of everything they might stand in 
 need of by the village officers, and for the fair equivalent in money, would have 
 been the surest means of inculcating the paternal and vigilant concern of a wise 
 administration for all its subjects equally. This, above all other measures, would 
 have had the most salutary effect in conciliating the native army, and raising 
 them and our own Government in the estimation of tlie people generally. — Ed.
 
 THE VANTAGE BATITE FIEI-D. '215 
 
 should attempt to obtrude into the village compact of this species. 
 With the wolves and jackals they live on a footing of toleration ; but 
 the former usually abide in deserted villages or solitary ruins, while the 
 latter prefer the old tenements of inhabited places. The instinct 
 peculiar to dogs which are the companions and friends of men, distin- 
 guishes them in every respect from these treacherous and dastardly 
 animals, who can neither defend themselves nor their young ; the only 
 quality they possess in coinnion with the domestic dog, is that of watch- 
 fulness. As soon as a traveller arrives in a village, half a dozen of 
 them will seat themselves a little way off, and keep up an incessant 
 howl from their mangy wasted skeletons, the prototype of famine and 
 desolation*. 
 
 The distance from Shujanpoor to Atok is reckoned five kos. We 
 broke up early to gain time enough to visit the latter place and return 
 before nightfall. The plain of Shush (for so they call the plain of the 
 Atok here) is intersected by some small streams, one of which has been 
 better known since the battle between Ranjit Singh's general, Mokham 
 Chand, and Fatih Khan. By following its course, the Sikhs were 
 
 • The Pariah dog of India is, properly speaking, a half-domesticated hybrid 
 animal, and is faithfully described in the above account. A number of these used 
 to come about the Cuteherry at Kaira, where I was then residmg (1810), with 
 the Collector, the amiable Mr. Byram Bowles, and his assistants, Captain A. 
 Robertson and Barnwell. The doors of our bungalow beiug invariably open at 
 all hours, the dogs would come in and receive an occasional bone or piece of meat: 
 and one, a favourite of Captain Robertson, deposited a number of puppies near 
 the house. One of these, when I removed into my own residence in the canton- 
 ment, I took away, as most young officers have some such attendant to beguile 
 their loue hours and rambles, and brought it up with great care. Nothing, 
 however, would do; it invariably found its way back to the Cuteherry, and if at 
 any time detained by a chain, would set up such a lamentable howl, that I was 
 obliged eventually to let it go. A number of these troublesome watchful creatures 
 used to collect round the Residency of Baroda, and keep up such an incessant 
 howl as people passed in and out of the town, that at length an officer, who then 
 occupied the corner house, resolved on a general deporUvtion, and sent olf two or 
 three cart-loads some eighteen miles away across the Mähi river, rather than 
 offend the natives by killing them. They all found their way back in the course 
 of a week or ten days, and resumed their old station and habit. They have none 
 of the noble traits of the domestic dogs of Europe.— AV.
 
 216 APPKOACH TO ATOK, 
 
 enabled to recruit themselves constantly throughout the heat of the 
 day, by which great advantage the contest was decided in their favour. 
 As we drew nearer to the Indus, we met with large blocks of granite, 
 thrown up and left on the plain by the waters, at the period of its 
 inundations. I longed to behold this great stream, and looked out 
 impatiently from the jampan in which I had remained, in order to have 
 my sextants and other instruments ready for observation, pressing 
 the bearers now and then to hurry on, that I might reach it before 
 noon. One mile and a half from the city we came to the height on 
 which Atok is situated, and soon after to a small valley, where the 
 Hindus usually burn their dead. According to Hindu law, this people 
 are not permitted to reside beyond the Atok, but many Hindu families, 
 nevertheless, are to be found residing both in Peshawur and Kabul, 
 and there can be no doubt of the existence, in former times, of a great 
 Hindu empire on the western shore of the Atok. 
 
 There is a remarkable Mohammedan mausoleum with a lofty dome 
 about a mile west of the city, where I took my last observation with 
 the sextant. The map taken by the English officers in Mr. Elphin- 
 stone's suite being complete as far as Atok; I was delighted to put 
 away my ow^n chart, which occupied me two hours every evening, 
 besides much time spent on it on the journey itself. 
 
 The suburbs of the city extend as far as this building, though 
 recent wars have laid everything waste to the very walls of the fort. 
 The Indus at this spot is a clear, rapid, but unimportant stream, seven- 
 eighths of its sandy bed being quite dry at this season of the year. 
 Both banks are steep ; on the north they soon become nearlv level, but 
 on the southern side, on the contrary, they increase in steepness, and 
 lofty hills arise, to all appearance, from the river itself. 
 
 At the distance of half a mile north the point is visible where the 
 Länder, or Kabul river, flows into the Atok, in the plain of Shush ; 
 while, on the left shore of the Länder, another plain stretches towards 
 the west, where the fort is situated; the bed of the river is strictly con- 
 fined between mountains of black clay-slate, and at a little distance 
 beyond the fort is the bridge of boats, formed of nineteen immense 
 vessels, built singularly enough, with fine carved work both fore and
 
 JELLALIA AND KEMELLIA ROCKS. 217 
 
 aft, in imitation of what we might fancy the ships of the Argonauts to 
 have been when they sailed towards Colchis. 
 
 I was greatly surprised indeed at the scene which presented itself. 
 In order to enjoy the view more leisurely, I had mounted the stony 
 bank, raised against the wall of the fortress, where some Sikh soldiers 
 had drawn up respectfully to make room for me. My attention was at 
 first more particularly attracted by the fantastic richly-ornamented 
 entrance to the fort, where I stood for some time, waiting for permis- 
 sion to enter. I was stepping forward to get a better idea of the 
 whole, when the officer on duty advanced towards me, and requested I 
 would not attempt to go further ; " And why not ?" I inquired. " Bo- 
 cause Ranjit Singh has given the Diwan orders to introduce you with 
 all due ceremony to the interior." I was therefore content to look 
 leisurely around me. 
 
 Very near the fort was a ruin on some high ground; it was a 
 Serai built by Akbar the Great, which Elphinstone calls a fort; a 
 broad paved road, for cattle, leads down to the Indus between this 
 and the fort, which was also the work of that emperor. From its 
 position on precipitous rocks, it commands a view of the river below; 
 the rapidity of the stream has polished the surface of these rocks 
 like marble. The clear stream itself, its broad bed, with the two 
 huge masses of rock called Jellalia and Kemellia, now standing up 
 dry, and presenting all their dangers, which render the passage of 
 the Indus so perilous when the waters are high, on account of the 
 terrible whirlpools about them; the bridge of boats; the small plain on 
 the right shore, on which stands the fort of Kairabad; the mountains 
 forming a half circle beyond, with their watch-towers on the highest 
 summits ; and finally, the strange medley of Hindu and Persian cos- 
 tume and features of the various parties bathing, the very lowest degree 
 of Hindu wretchedness, to the highly polished and richly dressed 
 Persian horsemen with their long lances; composed altogether a 
 very animated and striking scene. But I wished to get down to the 
 brink of this holy stream, the limit of my journey, as it is of many 
 a Hindu pilgrim. 
 
 Well, here was I, the first European who had hitherto wandered
 
 218 UNKNOWN SPECIES OF PALM. 
 
 through this vast empire, from its most southern point at Cape 
 Comorin, to its northern boundary at Atok. I was at the farthest 
 extremity of India, and yet at the nearest point to my own land, had I 
 been but blessed with the wings of a bird to direct my flight thither. 
 Arrived on the shore of the Indus, I looked across to the mountains in 
 the west, and thought of the country hidden beyond them, and of the 
 dangers which attended my homeward return. This feeling of despon- 
 dency, however, soon left me, and gave place to my customary equani- 
 mity as to coming events, the tears which had started unconsciously to 
 my eyes, were dried up, and I hastily crossed the river. The banks, which 
 rise abruptly on both sides from the sandy bed, are about eighty feet 
 high above the level of the water. The bridge and the river in its 
 present state, may be from forty to forty-five fathoms across, and the 
 stream in the middle about three deep, but the breadth between the two 
 shores must be at least 300. 
 
 During the rainy season, this river is filled up from bank to bank, 
 the waters at this time rise as much as fifty feet, when the bridge, 
 which is admirably contrived, and made of the very best timber, is 
 taken to pieces, the boats being employed in navigating the stream; 
 the lower classes sometimes make use of the distended ox-hides, which I 
 have already mentioned, but not frequently, because the passage from 
 one shore to the other in the regular boats costs nothing. They have 
 ropes formed out of leaves of some species of palm-tree, unknown to 
 me, twisted together. They told me that this palm grows near Atok. 
 I took away one leaf with me, promising five rupees to any one who 
 would bring me a flower or some of the seeds. Mr. Vigne had taken 
 his post and was sketching on the Kabul side of the Indus, when 
 presently we both saw a showy troop of horsemen ride down the 
 opposite shore, cross the bridge, and approach the spot where we stood. 
 It was Khan Singh, who was deputed by Ranjit Singh ; he came with 
 the Thanadar, in the name of Kashmir Singh, Ranjit's son, who was 
 then governor, to i*equest me to visit the fort. He had ridden forth 
 in another direction in search of me. I accepted the invitation, and 
 quitted Afghanistan, where I had been some five minutes only, and 
 with Mr. Vignc returned to India. The fortress is built on the
 
 Kashmir Singh's Diwan at the Gate of Atok 
 
 Baron Hugel'i Traveli, page »19.
 
 INTERVIKW WITH THE MINISTER. 219 
 
 declivity of a mountain, and is very spacious, forming a parallelogram, 
 or rather a polygon, on most uneven ground, in sonic places reduced 
 to a rectilinear shape, one side of it stretching along the river from north 
 to south. The principal gate is on the north; the walls are high and 
 strong, and surmounted with battlements, but there are no advanced 
 works. In the interior, a third part is rendered habitable for four 
 thousand people, and contains a bazar. 
 
 I was received by the prince's Diwan, a Brahmin from Dehli, 
 who came forth on an elephant, from which he dismounted when near 
 to me and in the name of the Maha Raja proffered me a bag of 
 rupees ; in his own, a branch with honey from the wild bees. He was 
 an old man, advanced in years, and could not stand upright without 
 the assistance of two persons. I could not bring myself to give utter- 
 ance to the usual salutation of "are you well," it seemed so like 
 mockery rather than any compliment. I requested permission to see 
 the building more minutely, and the Diwan declared that he would 
 conduct me wherever I wished to go, but as the day was much too 
 short to admit of such a mode of observation, I begged him to resume 
 his seat on the elephant, while I proceeded on foot. 
 
 The reservoir belonging to this fort is well worthy of remark. Its 
 depth is from forty to fifty feet, its circumference about twenty-five 
 feet, and the river fills it as it flows. On the side of the river, the 
 walls are only eight feet above high water; at present they are as 
 much as fifty-eight above the dry bed. I wished to see the largest 
 guns of the place, as in all Mohammedan strong places they are of 
 great beauty; those in position at present were of brass, cast in Lahor, 
 and answering, as I should judge, to the French sixteen-pounders; 
 they are without ornament, but their construction, and the carriages on 
 which they are mounted, seem both very skilfully designed; they 
 are kept under shelter, a necessary precaution where the heat of the 
 sun would otherwise split the wood. I at last completed my survey 
 of this now partly dismantled fort, and not without considerable 
 fatigue. The day was drawing to a close, and Kashmir Singh had not 
 yet returned, but resolving to pursue my original plan, I had declined 
 the invitation of the Diwan to pass a day in Atok, or even to delay
 
 220 SKETCH OF A PRINCELY YOUTH. 
 
 my journey for an hour, from the same impatience which had made me 
 refuse the invitation of Ranjit Singh to go on as far as Peshawur. 
 
 There was a crush of men and beasts in the bazar, camels terrified, 
 asses kicking, horses prancing, and all this in a place where the closely 
 built stalls scarcely permitted three men to walk abreast. The first 
 sight of the Diwan's elephant put all the other animals to flight, and 
 the boards on which the merchants had displayed their wares were all 
 overset in the tumult; among them were many things which I parti- 
 cularly coveted, and ordered my people to buy for me. The bazar of 
 Atok is excellently furnished with the productions of Peshawur, 
 Kabul, and Persia, and those of India are to be had in great abundance. 
 My Munshi, Thakur-das, a Brahmin from Dehli, found in the Diwan 
 a countrvman of the same sect as himself, and he requested my leave 
 to eat with him. The longer I travelled in India, the more I was 
 conscious of the great advantage of having a high-caste Hindu in my 
 suite. Almost every business and occupation in the service of the 
 higher orders, being transacted by the agency of Brahmins, the 
 stranger will succeed in whatever he wishes or requires much more 
 readily, should the Munshi be a Brahmin, especially in all communi- 
 cations with other Brahmins, notwithstanding the difference of rank, 
 than if the servant were of any other class. 
 
 I had scarcely passed the fort in my jampan, when a man rode up 
 to tell me that Kashmir Singh was approaching, and we met near the 
 field where the Hindus burn their dead to which I before alluded. 
 He was a youth of fifteen or sixteen, with a very clever and animated 
 expression ; he was mounted on a white charger very richly caparisoned, 
 and dressed in a long jacket of pink silk, with a belt, in which he 
 carried a pair of English pistols, and a dagger; a loose robe wadded, 
 and made also of pink silk, gave him an appearance of extreme com- 
 fort; his trowsers were of blue and white, fitted tight to the leg; his 
 shoes embroidered; his head dress was a low red turban. The com- 
 plexion of this youth was olive, and the dark beard was just beginning 
 to adorn his chin ; a pink umbrella was carried over his head. " You 
 would do well to remain here," he said ; I answered, that had I been 
 aware of his presence in the city, I should have asked permission
 
 NEED OF A GUIDE IN AN OPEN COUNTRY. 221 
 
 to come with all my people, and brought my tents. « They can be sent for ; 
 where are they ?" " In Shujanpoor," answered I, " and though grateful 
 for the invitation to remain, I must proceed on my way." " I intreat you 
 to stay, the Mahä Raja has commanded me to do everything to make 
 Atok agreeable to you, and I wish to be able to do it." Still I 
 persisted. " You should stay with me two days, then go to Peshawur, 
 and make acquaintance with Avitabile Sahib; after that, the Mahä 
 Raja has written to me that you will certainly stop at Akora to visit 
 Court Sahib, who is stationed there with the French legion, and if you 
 do not like to go as far as Peshawur, you can travel easily to Akora 
 and back in one day*." 
 
 I exhausted myself in thanks but took my leave. Kashmir Singh 
 is the only Indian I ever heard speak in short sentences, and he seems 
 to possess more talent than it has hitherto been my good fortune to 
 meet with. 
 
 I very soon alighted from my jarapan, mounted my ghunt, and 
 attended only by Mohan, galloped over the plain in order to reach 
 Shujanpoor before night -fall. Unluckily, one village is here so exactly 
 like another, that I missed ray way, the six palms which distinguish 
 Shujanpoor, being only discernible from this side when one is very 
 near to them. The sun went down while we were crossing the plain, 
 but I had far outridden Mohan, and not another human creature was 
 to be seen. In the distance some villages crowned the small eminences 
 which rise from the level surface at intervals, and I decided on making 
 for one of these and asking my way. While I was considering what 
 I had best do, Mohan came up and assured me we were all right, but 
 I felt equally sure to the contrary, we rode on a little way until the 
 much-longed-for palms started up before our eyes. The darkness 
 soon hid them from us, and we reached Shujanpoor after every ray of 
 light had disappeared. I waited three hours for Mr. Vigne before I 
 began my supper. Just as I had commenced he came in dreadfully 
 
 • Kashmir Singh and Peshawur Singh, the two illegitimate sons of Ranjit 
 Singh, aUied themselves with Ittar Singh's party. The former met with a cruel 
 death, in the sanguinary contests for supremacy in the Panjäb, in May, 1844.
 
 222 THE SPIRIT OF MAn's LABOUR. 
 
 fatigued. He had stayed behind to sketch, and like me, had lost his 
 way ; after many attempts to set himself right, he had been obliged at 
 last to take a guide from one of the villages, which occasioned this 
 long delay. 
 
 The plain of Shush produces a species of the goat, which grows to 
 a great size : they have long tails, which they carry horizontally, and no 
 horns : they have a roman nose, and eyes of an uncommon size : their 
 hair is quite black. I purchased the largest male I could meet with, 
 and amused myself, while waiting for Vigne, with watching the motions 
 of this strange caricature of nature by torch light. An old donkey, 
 belonging to the fakir, stood near him, but my goat over-topped him by 
 at least two hands, and the creature at length appeared in my sight like 
 something mysterious. I fancied some Mephistopheles shining out of 
 his great eyes, and turned round to my writing again, the labours of the 
 Danaides to me. For will it ever attain the object I desire ? It is 
 true, that is not the meanest design, which expects neither thanks nor 
 reward. To many, labour of any kind is the creative and spiritual life 
 working within them, or the light play of their fancy, assuming form 
 and reality ; to others, it is the dull heaving of the heart, in which fate 
 has laid a painful burthen, but which still heaves on for mere existence, 
 which is not unfrequently laid down in this struggle. But after the grave 
 and forgetfulness have long been our portion, when another people are 
 ploughing the field under which we lie mouldering, if no remembrance 
 of ourselves or our actions be left behind, yet will something remain of 
 our labours, if they have been exercised on the realities of life. Such 
 works, however unimportant, contribute to the formation of the minds 
 which succeed their author. Under the most favourable circumstances, 
 mine will repose in my chest, and no kindred spirit will learn a lesson 
 from the sharp experience of these pages*. 
 
 * The amiable and instructive spirit which dictated this work, will, we trust, 
 even in the more unpretending garb of a translation, contribute largely to the 
 entertainment of those who are interested in the condition and history of their 
 fellow-men hi Asia, and serve, with other travels of a like stamp, to commemorate 
 the parties spoken of, and the author who has so faitiifuUy described the countries 
 he visited, — Ed.
 
 PURCHASE BETTER THAN COMPENSATION. 223 
 
 More than 2000 years ago, Alexander the Great crossed this plahi 
 with his splendid army, and will not this grand idea raise the mind and 
 withdraw it from the every-day repetition of life's toil? Surely it 
 would, if any loftier thought than that of conquest had moved the 
 heart of Alexander, if he had marched to spread benefit instead of ruin 
 over his path. Even then it is not the will that ennobles the deed, but 
 the accomplishment of that will ; and what was the great result of 
 Alexander's campaign in India ? The death of thousands, the misery of 
 the inoffensive inhabitants, and in the place of tranquillity and order, the 
 unmitigated calamities of war. To me, the idea that brave and adven- 
 turous men carried the productions of India over this plain to the west, 
 long before Alexander lived, is far grander than all the brilliant victories 
 of this conqueror of worlds. Their journeys bound nations together in 
 amitv, softened the rude manners of the west, and' improved all things. 
 Sad is it to think that this same plain has been for the last 800 years the 
 territory where fanatical and furious barbarians, whose faith is a cloak 
 for every crime, have held uncontrolled sway. But these days are now 
 almost at an end, and we may look hopefully forward to the time when 
 expeditions from the east to the west will finally subdue the remains of 
 so baneful a power. To the Sikhs now stretching to the Indus, will 
 succeed the hosts of England, who will unite this country to their 
 enormous empire. 
 
 Sunday, December 27.— We started at eight in the morning. I 
 was benumbed with the cold, which had kept me awake all night in 
 an open mosque ; and in spite of the fakir's wood, I shivered in every 
 limb. I expected that he would demand some large compensation for 
 his loss, but his pride was too great for this ; I therefore told tlie people 
 to o-ive him five rupees, a sum which would have purchased for me 
 either in London or Paris, a most warm and comfortable apartment. 
 
 I began by making use of my feet to bring some warmth into them; 
 but yesterday's journey had so fatigued me, that I soon had recourse to 
 my ghunt, and cantered onward to Hussein Abdal, thinking the day's 
 march would never come to an end. The road itself is altogether 
 uninteresting, and I was obliged to stop in many places and wait for 
 the guide, the path through the ravines being very difficult.
 
 224 SUPPLIES NECESSARY TO COMFORT. 
 
 I had no sooner arrived at Hussein Abdal, but I set off at once to 
 visit the ancient palace and garden built by Jehanghir, which is one 
 mile and a half from the town ; it is called Wah, the Indian cry of 
 astonishment, It was not a serai, but a regular palace, situated in the 
 best part of the country around, and is now an extensive and imposing 
 ruin. No doubt the great inducement to build a palace here arose from 
 the presence of three beautiful springs, which gush out from the earth, 
 and are encircled by slabs of stone : they spread into large sheets of 
 water, which are full of fish of various kinds. I wandered long about 
 these once splendid rooms, some adorned with specimens of the finest 
 stones, others with rich carvings, but now abandoned to the most per- 
 fect solitude. The entrance is still worthy of the residence of an 
 Emperor. At the bottom of the garden stands a little building, the 
 use of which I could not understand ; having a beautiful spring issuing 
 from within, and flowing all round it. It is the most richly ornamented 
 part of the grounds, but I looked in vain for some way to enter, and as 
 usually happens, my imagination became vivid in proportion as it 
 remained unsatisfied. I peered into the bushes which surrounded it, 
 and even climbed to the height above, to look for the entrance, but 
 neither door nor window, nor any aperture whatever was visible ; and with 
 curiosity ungratified, I was forced to retrace my steps. On my return, 
 I was overjoyed to hear that the long-looked-for stock of provisions 
 from Ludiana had arrived : they had been sent round by Lahor, Jamu, 
 Kashmir, and Mazafferabad. It was with no little pleasure that I 
 received a supply of wine and brandy, after twelve days' deprivation, 
 replaced my wretched tea and sugar with something far better, and 
 chepatis with biscuit. Instead of the tallow candles of Kashmir, 
 always covered with black grease, I welcomed some wax lights ; even 
 the preserved soups and meats had come safe to hand, allowing us a 
 brief respite from the eternal mutton and fowl to which we were latterly 
 restricted *. 
 
 • Some idea may bo formed of the predilection most men li.-ive, especially Euro- 
 peans, for what comes from their own country : the very name is so associated with 
 early recollections and tastes, that a preference is given at any cost for provisions, 
 which otherwise would be regarded with indifference. — Ed.
 
 NUR .[EIIAN's last RESTING-PLACE. 225 
 
 Near Hussein Abdal stands the ruined Serai of Akbar, in one end 
 of which a Sikh Guru has established himself. Hussein Abdal owes 
 its name to the grave of a Pir or devotee, who lived in the eminence 
 where the place now stands, and his tomb is still to be seen. This Pir 
 was called Shekh Hussein Abdal ; Abdal means fanatic, and is applied 
 to a particular tribe among the Afghans *. This individual is a very 
 celebrated person at Kandahar, where he was known as Bäba Wali. He 
 chose the place of his abode because a spring comes forth from its sum- 
 mit, and was the resort of pious pilgrims of many creeds. After his death, 
 a fakir took up his place, as is usual, in the case of all the Mohammedan 
 saints. Guru Naiiak, the founder of the Sikh religion, coming one 
 day to the hill as a pilgrim, much heated and tired, requested some 
 water of the fakir. The unbeliever's demand was refused ; and Nanak, 
 laying his hand on the rock whence the spring issued, it ceased to flow, 
 and on the very spot was a bas-relief of that hand in stone, which as soon 
 as the Sikhs became lords of the country, was taken away from the 
 mountain, and placed in the building erected in the middle of the Serai, 
 and there raised as an object of veneration opposite the entrance. The 
 Guru sings some passages out of the Grunth, or holy volume of the 
 Sikhs, every morning before it. 
 
 A tomb, now almost destroyed, stands near this Serai, overshadowed 
 by two large cypresses which, as is frequently the case in Mohammedan 
 countries, grow in a place quite surrounded with massive stone walls. 
 Every account agrees that this is the last resting-place of the well- 
 known Nur Jehän, the wife of Jehanghir. The frame-work of the 
 door retains some vestiges of former grandeur : it is of black marble, as 
 was the door itself, which has been carried offf. 
 
 • The meaning of the term is referred by others to Abdal, siL;nifvin|; Servant of 
 God ; but it is very generally supposed that this race is of far more ancient origin 
 — a tribe of the Huns, known as Abtelites. — Ed. 
 
 -)■ The tombs and palaces of the once mighty princes and nobles of the East, are 
 highly instructive and affecting as memorials of the character of Asiatic sove- 
 rei'^nty, the instability of all human greatness, and the infirmities of humanity. De- 
 sirous to stand alone in their lives, they are in the sad trophies of death peculiarly 
 solitary and dishonoured. The rank weed twines carelessly round the fntted 
 
 Q
 
 226 THE MOGHUL IMPERIAL ROADS. 
 
 Monday, December 28. — The nights were now extremely cold; the 
 water froze in the bottles, and the ground was covered every morning 
 with hard frost. At noon, however, we had our Indian sun. I had 
 appointed the morning for my visit to the Sikh Guru, at which cere- 
 mony the whole population of Hussein Abdal was present. When I 
 came to the marble steps leading to his Durbar, which was held before 
 the celebrated stone, and saw him there seated on carpets, I took off my 
 shoes, a courtesy which gained for me the loud praises of all present. 
 The Guru received me with every mark of dignity, and accepted a 
 present, which was certainly well bestowed, if only for the sight of the 
 stone, on which the above-named marvel still remains imprinted. 
 
 The great imperial route formerly leading from Hindüsthan to 
 Kabul passes from Hussein Abdal to Lahor, and Serais were built 
 along it at intervals of every six kos from each other. There were 
 three between the former town and Rawal Pindi, but 1 purposed making 
 the journey in two days, and started at once therefore from the Guru's 
 Durbar. Near the first Serai is a small eminence, which has the 
 advantage of a paved road, not remarkable in any way ; indeed, why it 
 is there at all is the only singulai'ity, as there are many places where it 
 would be far more useful than here. Perhaps it is owing to its being 
 the only rocky hill between Atok and Lahor, that the honor of a paved 
 road has been given to it ; at all events, it is called Miilgala, and an 
 inscription, not very intelligible, ascribes it to Akbar. Just previous to 
 this, I saw a stone bridge in ruins, which is an evidence of the change- 
 ableness of the soil in the Panjab. This bridge spans a rivulet, and is 
 constructed against a hill from sixty to eighty feet high, the formation 
 
 column, or depends from the massy dome which shelters the owls, and the bats, or 
 affords a temporary refuge to the traveller from the inclemency of the noonday heat 
 or tropical raiu. Stone after stone falls, and is carried away with impunity, till at 
 length the name of the tenant perhaps is lost, and the wild beast of the forest, or 
 the scorpion and snake, take up their abode in the ruins,— fit representatives of the 
 court of death. Just such is the history of their illustrious occupants. Fancy 
 throws its ideal charms over the last recollections of Eastern celebrity; till the 
 destructive process of time obliterates the few faint traces of truth, and super- 
 stition concurs with fanaticism to supersede reality by iMe.—Ed.
 
 USUAL I'KESENT TO STRANOEHS. 227 
 
 of which must have originated from the water beneath it. There is 
 another bridge very close to this, which is also nearly destroyed ; the 
 traveller is now left to find his way through the ravines and the stream, 
 as he best can. My camels, however, had not learned the secret, con- 
 sequently their burdens were all cast on the ground. Janikasang, 
 where we halted, is a wretched place, nine kos from Hussein Abdal. 
 
 Tuesday, December 29. — The way continued through the plain, 
 where there is very little cultivation, though the soil seems excellent, 
 and must be of a most extraordinary depth, of which I could judge from 
 several parts where it has been torn up by occasional wild torrents. 
 The absence of cultivation is attributable perhaps to the very superiority 
 of the soil ; for in this part of Asia, where rain so seldom falls, agri- 
 culiure depends almost exclusively on irrigation. The country is 
 intersected throughout by numerous streams, which flow from the high 
 mountains, and are so deeply embedded in the earth, that the water cannot 
 be conducted along the plain ; hence the country is in many parts a 
 wilderness, producing nothing except stunted acacias and the ziziphus. 
 When the rainy season sets in, the numerous deep ravines must put a 
 stop to all travelling. There is no bridge near at hand, and the water 
 in many places stands sometimes from twentv to thirty feet deep, 
 there is, therefore, no remedy that I know of but patiently to await a 
 change of weather. The ravines being formed by the streams, many 
 of them are well supplied with water in the very driest season- 
 Just before Rawal Pindi, there is a river called Sawan, the Swan of 
 the maps, whence a small plain extends to the town itself. By this 
 river I found the Thanadar, with the Sirni, (Persian,) or ßl/thcn, (Hin- 
 dusthani,) the present of welcome, consisting of twenty-one pots of 
 sweetmeats, each enough for one man to carry, a basket of eggs, one 
 of fowls, two sheep, and a bag of rupees. 
 
 I went to look about me in the adjacent parts, and then to my tent, 
 which was pitched by the only well in the town, and about a musket- 
 shot from the nearest houses. Rawal Pindi is called a fort, but it has 
 not even a wall of defence. The place is very populous, and has a large 
 bazar. 
 
 Not far from my tent stood a little building, the environs of which
 
 228 FIRST DISCOVERY OF ANTIQUITIES. 
 
 were ornamented with a few acacias, the only trees near. On one of 
 these I observed a bird, which was quite new to me, sitting quietly ; 
 and sending for the huntsman, Jonki, I desired him to shoot it ; but the 
 natives would not permit it, because the house was the residence of the 
 Guru. On hearing this, I ordered the people to get ready instantly to 
 depart, not because, as I told them, my servants were not permitted to 
 shoot, but because they had entered into a dispute with religious per- 
 sonages. As soon as these last heard my reasons, they came out in a 
 body, and begged me to remain where I was, and shoot whatever I 
 liked. I did remain therefore, but prohibited the shooting. 
 
 The same evening I received a letter from General Ventura, and 
 two baskets filled with choice European dainties, an attention not to be 
 forgotten. They were escorted by a Jemidar, who was directed to 
 follow me. I had also to thank the General for some English powder, 
 which he sent me by a Sowar, and for which I had written to him from 
 Baramulla. The man had travelled on a dromedary ninety-six kos from 
 Lahor in three days. 
 
 Wednesday, December 30. — It often happens that recent occur- 
 rences, however unimportant in themselves, will elucidate questions 
 long put aside from history as something inexplicable. This has more 
 particularly happened in modern days, and perhaps the most striking 
 proof has been afforded by the discovery of the famed Damietta stone, 
 which solved the long-existing enigma of hieroglyphics. Something 
 similar may be found in the journeys of Europeans to the part of Asia 
 where I now am, which have cleared up much difficulty concerning 
 Alexander's Indian expedition, and thrown a broad light on many 
 shadowy paths of history. 
 
 It happened one day that an Englishman being in the bazar at Delhi, 
 received in change some of the copper coin called pais, a circumstance 
 only singular in this, that however small the purchase may be, a native 
 always makes the bargain for these lords of India, and is usually paid 
 in larger amounts. It was still more curious, that the Englishman 
 took notice of these small coins, thinking there was something uncom- 
 mon in their appearance ; and I mention the circumstance without any 
 idea of covertly reproving the indolence usually seen in India. Every
 
 BUDDHIST, BACTUIAN, AND SCYTHIAN COINS. 229 
 
 new comer gazes with more or less curiosity, but always with curiosity, 
 on objects which have all the charm of novelty to him ; but this at last 
 wears out, and generally long before the presidency of Bengal is quitted 
 for the upper provinces. I can vouch for the truth of this sensation. 
 Many things on which years ago I should have made an infinity of 
 inquiries, have ceased to awaken the least interest in my mind, and if 
 I, as a traveller, feel thus in matters of immediate inquiry, how much 
 more those whose pursuit is the pleasure to be attained by their large 
 income, or the readiest means of acquiring one. The little copper 
 coins I have alluded to differed from those of India: instead of some 
 legend, as on the Mohammedan ; some idol, as on the Hindu coins, 
 they more resembled the money of the West, bearing a bust, a whole 
 figure, and sometimes an inscription engraved round them. A super- 
 ficial examination pointed them out as Greek coins, or as exact imita- 
 tions ; and a more rigid scrutiny proved them to be either Bactrian or 
 something nearly related to that country. The discovery was no 
 sooner made known than many Englishmen in Upper India hastened 
 to collect as many of the coins as possible, and an immense number 
 were brought in, and at the same time others of silver and gold : 
 the fact was simply this; the workers in those metals had been 
 hitherto in the habit of melting them down, they now kept them to sell 
 to the English. In a short time these ancient coins were all classified, 
 and divided into the ancient Hindu, or Buddhist ; the Bactrian, which 
 have been most valuable in illustrating the history of Central Asia; 
 and the Indo-Scythian, which are as precious as the rarest documents. 
 
 The last two might be subdivided into dynasties, shewing that 
 Alexander's generals, who shared among them the mighty empire he 
 had conquered, had retained possession of the country of the Indus 
 much longer than history supposes, nay, that it is very possible that some 
 of the dynasties survived to the appearance of the victorious Moham- 
 medans. The ^tkst- division, forming the transition from the Bactrian 
 to the Hindu, are by far the most remarkable. Like the coins of the 
 West, which during the sway of the Christian Emperors of Constanti- 
 nople, departed from the noble Greek form to assume the likeness of 
 so many tasteless caricatures; so these degenerate still more, and the
 
 230 FIELD OF BACTRIAN RESEARCHES. 
 
 beautiful proportions of the original coin are lost in an unconnected 
 jumble of points and lines. In the same way we find, first the Greek 
 Basileos, then the same with Sanscrit letters, then Basileos Raja, then 
 the last only, until, finally, both name and title disappear. This part 
 of India, before the invasion of the Mohammedans, like Italy in the 
 middle ages, had survived all the beauty of the arts. 
 
 The strip of country in which the gold and silver coins of Bactria 
 are found is not extensive. It runs down from the bank of the Sawan 
 at Rawal Pindi as far as the Indus, and from the description as given 
 by the ancient Greek writers, I conclude that Rawal Pindi may be 
 built on, or near, the site of Taxila. The coins which form the link 
 between the Bactrian and Hindu are found there, and in greater num- 
 bers still at Kanoj on the Ganges ; the copper money is found from 
 Delhi to Agra. I postpone the inquiry whether there were an Indo- 
 Bactrian kingdom existing in the Panjab and in a part of Northern 
 India; or whether the coins discovered there were brought by the 
 conquei'ors, and exchanged for gold and precious stones. I purchased 
 a great many of the Bactrian coins while in Rawal Pindi, which are 
 called Sitaram Pais, from Sita and Rama, the first being the name of a 
 goddess, the second that of her celestial lover. 
 
 The well-known truth that no place is more unpleasant to a Euro- 
 pean traveller than one of importance, was quite substantiated here. 
 The bearers refused to go any further ; those who carried the jampan 
 left me, the camel drivers demanded their raza, discharge, and I was all 
 impatience to get away. I sent therefore for the Thanadar to provide 
 me the means of proceeding on my journey, even should he have 
 recourse to compulsory measures, menacing him with the anger of 
 Ranjit Singh, if I found myself necessitated to pass another night in 
 Rawal Pindi. Happily Ranjit has given European travellers prodigious 
 power over his functionaries, from the governor of a province down to 
 the village justice. Every man of them was obliged to send in a 
 certificate of my satisfaction to the Mäha Raja, and for this, if neces- 
 sary, they would have given large presents. The consequence was 
 visible in my preparations being completed to-day at 1 2 o'clock. I 
 was in too great haste to wait for the whole party, and therefore left
 
 PICTURESQUE MAUSOLEUM. 231 
 
 the Munshi behind to look after the baggage, while I myself journeyed 
 on as far as a ruinous Serai, seven kos distant from Rawal Pindi, where I 
 halted to give the bearers time to join me before night, A good many 
 travellers were already assembled there. Nothing is left of ancient 
 splendour in this serai, except some portions of the outer walls ; but in 
 earlier times there were here, as in most other serais, shaded walks in 
 which persons of the lower ranks found shelter, but the smallest of them, 
 which still afforded some trifling protection against the cold, were all 
 occupied. Although there was room enough to spread my tent in the 
 inner court, the wind whistled round it in every direction, and the walls 
 afiForded no defence against the weather; the filthiness of the court-yard 
 was disgusting. I therefore preferred occupying my small tent, which 
 made its appearance towards evening, and pitched it before the entrance 
 to the building, where it was screened from the strong north-west wind ; 
 while my servants all lodged near me, in the only unoccupied apart- 
 ment. 
 
 The view from this point was very delightful. Before it lay a large 
 Mohammedan mausoleum, surmounted by a lofty cupola, and surrounded 
 on every side by a multitude of other tombs. The square in which 
 they were erected contained also a mosque and an asylum for pilgrims. 
 The large building was already falling to decay; the cupola admitted 
 the light of heaven through many a rent, and the whole structure had 
 a threatening aspect. Surrounded by rocks of remarkable form, some 
 towering one above the other, some standing out singly and dark from 
 the horizon, this funeral monument is the highest point in the vicinity. 
 In the far distance, and over the lofty mountains, above all these 
 objects, rose the snow-capped chain of which the Pir Panjal is the 
 monarch. The rocks are of sandstone ; the direction N.VV. and S.E., 
 the strata vertical. 
 
 From this elevation there is but one solitary mountain discernible 
 in the south-west, the plain of the Panjab seeming to extend uninter- 
 ruptedly in that direction. This appearance however is deceptive, for on 
 a nearer examination the surface is found deeply intersected with ravines 
 and water- courses. Before dinner Vigne and I wandered about the 
 neighbourhood, and soon came to a large tank, round which were some
 
 232 TEMPESTUOUS WEATHER. 
 
 fragments of rock. Here we did our best to furnish ourselves with an 
 extra dish, in the shape of some wild fowl, which were swimming about 
 the water very temptingly. But we were unsuccessful, and on our 
 return I found the Munshi had arrived, with information that my 
 baggage had left Rawal Pindi on the backs of coolies, in default of 
 proper carriage; that he had seen the large tent poles, usually carried 
 by four men, lying down on the road, and half a dozen other packages 
 belonging to me also strewed about, the bearers having, of course, run 
 away. I immediately dispatched people for the packages, but the tent 
 poles were too far off and much too heavy for the men to fetch them 
 this day; the bearers of the Panjab, like their fellows in Kashmir, 
 being immoveable at any price after nightfall. The Shah had arrived 
 also, and pitched his tent near mine. 
 
 As the sun went down, I saw symptoms in the sky which made me 
 anticipate rain, although I hoped that it might prove only a passing 
 shower. As a precautionary measure, however, I had those things 
 most likely to be injured by wet, brought within the small tent where I 
 was lodged. In the evening I visited the Shah, and seeing that his 
 tent was pitched in a piece of low ground, I warned him of the likeli- 
 hood of rain ; but he did not think there would be much, and so left 
 the tent where it was. 
 
 Thursday, December 31. — I had erred in my reckoning as to the 
 time when I made sure of reaching Lahor. A violent sirocco came 
 on last night, accompanied by storms of rain ; the wind shifted, and 
 my tent now suffered the fiercest attacks of the tempest. I heard the 
 rain pouring down during the night, and when I left my bed after 
 lying awake for hours, everything in my tent was swimming. My 
 clothes were all saturated with water, and my only comfort in putting 
 them on, in this state, arose from the feeling that it was only an anti- 
 cipation of what they must be very shortly, at all events. I looked out 
 upon a deluge. The whole country had become one interminable swamp, 
 and the things which had been left outside the tent were scarcely 
 distinguishable. A fire to make our breakfast seemed quite out of the 
 question, and some change of situation absolutely requisite ; but where 
 wore we to find a better? The ruinous old Serai was filled with a
 
 THE traveller's REFUGE. 233 
 
 motley assemblage of travellers ; and though in my capacity of White 
 Lord, I might have turned them all out of their quarters, without the 
 smallest apprehension that they, though many hundreds in number, 
 would think of disputing my right to rob them of their shelter, backed 
 as I should have been by the Munshi and Khan Singh's authority, 
 humanity prevailed with me, to waive any such method of bettering 
 my own situation. Whereupon I sallied forth to look about me, and 
 about a quarter of a mile in the direction of the cemetery, I found out 
 a place where we could remain for a day defended from the weather, 
 the ruins being surrounded by walls, and having several small vaulted 
 niches, which are still in tolerable repair, the destructive fury of the 
 Sikhs having exhausted itself on the larger tombs and the mosque. 
 Into these niches, therefore, I had all my goods conveyed, and 
 selected a corner cell for myself, very like a dungeon of the age of 
 chivalry, without any window. The entrance was narrow, dark, and very 
 hard to find. There I established myself for the day with my carpet, 
 kanat, and a few immediate necessaries; it was so dark that candles 
 were indispensable, but my greatest discomfort arose from the loss of 
 an entire day, or perhaps many days while this rain lasted. In truth, 
 I could not make sure that I might not be detained in this part of 
 India so long as even to miss the steamer which left Bombay for 
 Egypt, and in this case, it was a question not only of days but of 
 months. So little had I thought of these rains, that I had announced 
 to General Ventura my intention of being in Wazirabad on the 4th of 
 January; an additional proof, if any were needed, of the extreme folly 
 of laying down any definite plan for the future, particularly in a country 
 like this, where a man travelling alone on horseback may get on well 
 enough, but when obliged to have a number of people with him, he is 
 dependent on a thousand contingencies. 
 
 After making my own arrangements, I sallied out again to look 
 after my companions in misfortune. I found Vigne in bed, with water 
 all about him, and rain pouring in on all sides. I could not help 
 laughing at his philosophy, and with some trouble persuaded him to 
 get up and share my strange lodging. As for the poor Shah, he was 
 sitting amidst his twenty-five attendants, drenched through; he had
 
 234 REVIEW OF THE PAST. 
 
 lost all his energies, and declined even the trouble of moving when 
 I invited him to share my dry prison-house. 
 
 And thus passed the last day of a year which I had purposed to 
 spend on the broad sea. On looking back, I confess that more extra- 
 ordinary to me than even the wondrous scenes of nature, was the great 
 diversity existing in manners and habits among the various people 
 with whom my travels had brought me acquainted. The last day of 
 the year 1834, I passed on my voyage from Manilla to Canton, upon the 
 stormy waters of the Yellow Sea; and during the succeeding twelve- 
 months, how much had I been allowed to seel China and India; the 
 most extensive empires in Asia, the most beautiful by nature, offering 
 new evidences of the majesty of creation, and of the high refinement of 
 ancient civilization. From China in the East, where the vast ocean is 
 the only boundary of this mighty continent, to China in the West, or 
 Tibet, I travelled in a very wide and devious course. I had visited 
 the flourishing settlement of Singapoor ; the Muluccas now declining ; 
 the rich island of Penang; Madras, the theatre of many a European 
 contest ; Calcutta, the famous city of palaces ; the ancient Brahminical 
 retreat of Benares; Allahabad, Oude, Agra, Gwalior, and Delhi, still 
 magnificent in its fallen greatness; the Himalaya, those giants of our 
 earth; the beautiful but melancholy valley, not impossibly the cradle 
 of the human race; finally, I had had a glimpse of Tibet, finishing with 
 a toilsome journey to the ancient Taxila and the modern Atok. The 
 whole year was fraught with events well deserving my remembrance; 
 and though I had at times experienced a deep sensation of loneliness, 
 I had many days to dream of, full of peace, tranquillity, and friendly 
 intercourse ; my strength of mind and of body were unimpaired ; yet 
 fatigue and occupation generally silenced evei*y half-suppressed wish for 
 more comforts than I could procure. 
 
 And thus, also, ended my fortieth year, without a wish to live over 
 again one of its days, or even hours; that year which, beginning with 
 a storm, and ending in a tomb, presented a true image of our life on 
 earth. 
 
 Friday, 1st January, 1836. — Floods of rain ushered in the first 
 day of the new year. I was left alone to welcome it; Vigne had gone
 
 A CHANGE OF WEATHER. 235 
 
 early to bed, overcome with fatigue. Some future traveller will perhaps 
 inhabit this same little nook, and should curiosity lead him to creep 
 about it, he will wonder whether he has got into the den of a hyena or 
 a wolf, or if serpents ever made it their abode. But when his researches 
 have led him from the narrow entrance to the dark round tower, and the 
 light of his torch discovers to him the murky walls, and his own laboured 
 breathing tells him of the heavy damp air within, he may with difficulty 
 comprehend how it was possible for a European travelling with a large 
 suite of natives, ever to dream of remaining in such a place for two whole 
 days. The unfortunate conjuncture of circumstances, which brought 
 my tent poles into the power of bearers who were pressed into my 
 service without wages, contrary to my express orders; the folly of 
 leaving them without any one to look after them, solves the riddle 
 but too plainly of their flight and throwing down their burden at four 
 miles distance. 
 
 The sky cleared in the afternoon, and I desired them instantly to 
 get ready for a move ; the old Serai had not proved a very desirable 
 residence for any of us, for there was no bazar for the natives, and 
 no wood procurable ; as for the bearers and camel drivers, they had 
 all taken to flight. Luckily, six camels that my Munshi had picked 
 up somewhere in Rawal Pindi, arrived about noon ; very suspiciously 
 answering to the beasts that had been driven away, and wanting drivers 
 into the bargain ; I was anxious, if possible, to get on to Mänikyäla 
 to-day, to bring all our affairs into a due train once more, and 
 give the natives the opportunity of thoroughly drying themselves ; for 
 this short journey we had yet abundant time. 
 
 My first visit, on emerging from my cell, was to the Shah, whom I 
 found in a miserable plight, shivering like a patient in an ague fit, 
 while his servants were so completely soaked with the rain, that I 
 looked forward to nothing else than their serious illness. I ofi"ered to 
 administer some brandy to them all, but as staunch Mohammedans they 
 would not listen to such a proposal. The Shah was quite amazed at first 
 when he heard of my intention to recommence our journey to-day, but 
 he soon found himself able to follow my example and get ready, and 
 this being done we started, and after a short progress through a flat
 
 236 BUDDHIST RUINS OF MANIKYALA. 
 
 country, reached the end of our day's n^arch, a grand monument of 
 ancient times, called by the natives Mänikyäla Top, or Burj. According 
 to Elphinstone, this Dhagoba"** is 72 feet high, and 450 in circum- 
 ference. While in Ceylon, where these Dhagobas are frequently seen, 
 I took much pains to find some way of admission into them. They 
 are always strongly built, the exterior being in the form of cupola, but 
 there is nothing else but this; the Dhagoba being, in fact, an edifice 
 raised over some relic, a tooth, a lock of hair, &c., considered sacred, 
 in the Buddhist faith. Near it is generally some Vihara or Temple, 
 and in the neighbourhood of this Mänikäyla Dhagoba, I observed, 
 towards the west, the foundation walls built in the form of a large 
 square, all that remained of a former Vihara. Compared with others 
 which I have seen, this Dhagoba is the smallest in proportion to its 
 elevation that I have ever met with, and the drawing in Elphinstone's 
 work does not give any correct idea of its proportions. It is built of 
 Kankar stone, which is the produce of water, and the softest stone 
 known; the base is constructed of coarse sand-stone, and about six 
 or eight feet high, ornamented with pilasters four feet high, and with 
 decorative capitals. These pilasters are six feet apart. Above this, 
 and about fourteen feet higher than the ground, runs a projecting 
 cornice whence the cupola rises. The building was first opened by 
 General Ventura. From the highest point which I reached, a well 
 descends, twelve feet square and eighteen feet deep, but as the work 
 of opening proceeded, this was soon filled up with stones ; and another 
 attempt to penetrate by the lower part of the building was found 
 impracticable. He therefore ordered the workmen to begin at the 
 upper part. In a short time, they arrived at the middle of the shaft, 
 where they met large masses of stones; these were broken through, 
 and near the foundation appeared a small vaulted recess containing 
 
 • Or Dagop, {Dhatugarhha, Sanscrit), Dagonpa, Tibetan ; a name given to all 
 buildings in which relics of Buddha are deposited ; generally a hair, a tooth, &c. 
 The remains of these edifices are found extensively scattered throughout the 
 Eastern continent and islands of Asia. The term Top {Stupa, Sanscrit), also sig- 
 nifies a Buddhist edifice of like character. — Ed.
 
 CAMEL CARRIAGE IN WET WEATHER. 237 
 
 a gold cylinder, with some fluid in it, and some Buddhist coins. Mr. 
 James Prinsep has given a description of these in the Asiatic Journal. 
 According to the natives, 500 men worked for a whole month at the 
 opening of this monument. 
 
 Whether owing to their increased weight by being wet, or to 
 the slipperiness of the ground, which always distresses these animals, 
 the camels had carried the tents as far as Manikyala with the utmost 
 difficulty ; they were still too damp to be pitched, and I was obliged 
 to look out for a lodging in the wretched village. The Hindu and 
 Sikh have always their temple to resort to, and the Mohammedan his 
 mosque, the first had often been my refuge, the last but seldom, owing 
 to my unwillingness to shock the Mohammedan prejudices, but on the 
 present occasion it happened that the mosque was the only place large 
 enough to hold my bed. I was, therefore, obliged to take possession of 
 it. Manikyala is ten kos from Rawal Pindi, and two and a half kos 
 from the Serai. 
 
 Saturday, January 2. — I purposed making the journey to Rotas, 
 twenty-five kos, in two days, Taraak being about half-way. But the 
 poor camels had arrived at Manikyala very much fatigued, and though 
 I expected that the road would be somewhat drier to-day, yet I feared 
 for the success of ray plan. Taniak, therefore, was fixed upon for the 
 end of this day's journey, and after waiting at the Top until my people 
 had all departed, I followed. The first glance at the unfortunate 
 camels, slipping along the ground, and tumbling down with their 
 burdens, while nothing but heavy blows could induce them to rise or 
 move at all, satisfied me that no baggage would reach Tamak that 
 night, and that if I wanted to keep my people along with me, I must 
 shorten the march. Bisentaur was therefore appointed as the night 
 station, about three kos nearer than Tamak, but this new order only 
 reached a small number of the suite. 
 
 About half-way to Bisentaur stands a Serai of large dimensions. 
 I have already said that these buildings were erected at certain distances, 
 and served as lodging places for the Moghul Emperors when they 
 travelled from Delhi to Kabul. They are not always on the modern 
 traveller's route, nor must the reader even suppose, when I speak of a
 
 238 CHANGEABLE COURSE OF THE RIVERS. 
 
 road, that this is always a broad path kept in constant repair ; it is, on 
 the contrary, a mere beaten track, usually found with much trouble, 
 altered by every accident of nature, and, in this part of the Panjab, 
 constantly broken up by the ravines and hurried waters, and com- 
 pelling the traveller, no longer invited to shelter himself in the Serai, 
 to swerve very far from the original line. I never passed through 
 a country so devoid of any pretension to beauty. The water has 
 ploughed deep furrows in every direction, and probably owing to the 
 summer droughts, the ground is left without cultivation. Our march 
 was so toilsome that I almost despaired of seeing Bisentaur at all this 
 night, the last hour being consumed in labouring through the deep 
 sandy bed of the Kähan, with precipitous banks on either side of us, 
 Bisentaur lies on one of the highest points, but whether of the right 
 or left bank I cannot say, for the now dry river winds in a thousand 
 directions, and I was so entirely exhausted, that it was with difficulty 
 that I climbed the bank which led us to the miserable dirty village, 
 where the only decent house was the Zenana of the Thanadar. He 
 oifered to send his wives elsewhere if I would take up my quarters in 
 it, but this T felt bound to decline. It was in vain to think of waiting 
 for my tent, and I was really at a loss where to go, for neither bearers 
 nor servants were there to assist me. The wretched huts were full 
 of vermin, the whole place seemed under water, in the so-called street, 
 the mud was over my feet ; and without warm coverings, or cloak, to 
 pass the night in the open air would have been death. At last, I found 
 shelter in the Dharamsala, the house of the Sikh Guru, who, seeing 
 me seat myself quite worn out at the threshold of one of the huts, 
 invited me in, on the condition that none of my Musselman servants 
 should enter; to this, however, I refused to accede, and the Brahmin, 
 who joined me at the moment, was eminently useful to me, as the 
 Sikhs hold them in great veneration. He told the Guru that if he 
 put up with the contamination of the unclean Musselman out of affec- 
 tion to me, a Sikh might safely do the same, and the other being 
 reassured by his tone, opened his dwelling to me, which consisted 
 of one apartment, inclosed on three sides, the other left open. I had 
 neither bed nor chair, and was forced to lie on the ground, so weary and
 
 INCLEMENCY OF THE SEASON. 239 
 
 heartsick that life itself seemed a burden. Some of the servants 
 arrived at eight in the evening. For the first time since our companion- 
 ship, I left the care of providing food to Vigne, but neither khansaman 
 nor bawarchi had arrived. Nazim Khan, Ahmed Shah's deputy 
 from Iskardu, prepared for us a dish much eaten at Kabul, and which 
 they called kubebi. It consisted of mutton cut into small pieces and 
 roasted; Mohammed Shah sent us a mess of reivash, rhubarb, the 
 Brahmin baked some chepatis, and when a bottle of Bordeaux was 
 discovered, though I could not touch a morsel, Vigne's hunger was 
 quite satisfied. The night was cold and rainy, and as the bearers, 
 who had the very things I wanted to protect myself against the 
 weather, were still absent, it passed uncomfortably enough with me. 
 The men who had come, pressed me to take whatever warm covering 
 they had, but I could not deprive them of it, and only entreated to be 
 left undisturbed. Trembling with cold, 1 watched through the greater 
 part of that wearisome night. 
 
 Sunday, January 3. — Long before daybreak I was awakened by the 
 chanting of the Guru ; and suffering from severe headache and cough, 
 I wanted to start ; but it was no easy matter to rouse up the poor tired 
 creatures, and I felt how much it costs to put one's self in motion. I had 
 not the least idea what had become of the bearers, the camels, or two- 
 thirds of my attendants. The Brahmin fulfilled his duty of presenting 
 a handsome present to the Guru, on my part, which he acknowledged 
 with the most profound gratitude, in words and gestures, blessing me in 
 God's name, and wishing me a happy journey. We were passing 
 through the filthy streets, when the confidential servant of the Shah 
 met us with the news that his master was very ill. I reproached my- 
 self for having quite forgotten him, since it was to be expected that the 
 cold and damp together would be attended with some injurious conse- 
 quences to his health. I now dismounted quickly, and went on to see 
 how he really was. I found him very feverish; and after giving him 
 my usual prescription — calomel, advised him to wrap himself well up in 
 his arm-chair, and keep as much warmth in him as possible, until we 
 reached Makreli, eight kos from hence, which place I had fixed on as the 
 station for the night. As soon as we were finally out of Bisentaur, we
 
 240 MARCHING IN THE RAINS. 
 
 entered a country entirely composed of lulls, running for a long time 
 in every possible direction ; and as if to put a negative at once on the 
 Guru's friendly wishes, a storm came rolling onwards from the south- 
 east, the direction we were taking, and whence, for the last two days, 
 we had heard occasional claps of loud thunder resounding. The hail 
 storm now came on in good earnest, accompanied by repeated and 
 terrific peals, which reverberating from hill to hill, made the noise quite 
 deafening. Not a tree was visible, and my sedan being uncovered, 1 was 
 wetted to the very skin. The bearers ran as fast as they could to a 
 building at some distance, where the coolies had already taken refuge ; 
 but I did not allow them to remain there long, for the place was too small 
 to admit my jampan, and I was consequently exposed all the time to 
 the incessant rain. Our progress now became truly difficult, for the 
 way was so slippery, that the bearers could scarcely keep on their feet ; 
 the ravines were all filled with water, foaming and tearing along, and 
 there was not a spot of level ground. It may be guessed that we were 
 by no means in a state to be envied, nor did the piercing wind and rain 
 improve my cold or cough. At length, the road became so bad, that I 
 was obliged to get out and walk. The bearers had chosen to take a 
 bye-way which shortened the distance by three kos, but which was 
 only practicable for pedestrians and horses without any burden, 
 and does not lead by Tamäk. Before we reached this place, it was 
 necessary to descend into the bed of the Kähan ; and after this we found 
 ourselves more than once in the midst of some swollen mountain torrent; 
 and I was constantly slipping down the deep and insecure paths which 
 skirted the banks. The formation of these is sandstone, of a light 
 grev, very brittle, covered with a red ferruginous earth; the stratum 
 of the sandstone is perpendicular; and on the summit of the hills 
 insulated rocks projected in the most remarkable shapes, the inter- 
 vening spaces being filled up with the earth above alluded to, which is 
 frequently indurated to stone, and covered with another surface four or 
 five inches thick. Pieces of chalcedony, measuring a quarter of an inch 
 in thickness, are embedded in it ; quartz in small crystals, and a whitish 
 substance, unknown to me, is also found in the sandstone. Before we 
 arrived at Makreli, we entered the bed of the Kalian, where the red.
 
 THE SIKir IRREGULAR TROOl'S. 1241 
 
 yellow, and grey formations towering above each other in masses, were 
 most remarkable. The place is miserable, and very small. 1 was sur- 
 prised to see the people and baggage coming in during the evening, but 
 the poor camels were not to be driven so fast. I slept in my little tent, 
 which they pitched in the Mohammedan cemetery, although it was not 
 yet quite dry. For the first time for several days I enjoyed the genial 
 warmth of a fire. Towards evening the Shah arrived : he was much 
 better than when we parted, at least so he assured me; but I think his 
 politeness to his physician carried him a little too far, for he still had a 
 good deal of fever. 
 
 Monday, January 4. — I feel as if I ought to be nearer home ; for 
 my late exposure to bad weather has given me such a catarrh as I never 
 had before, and my health is evidently affected. A fine sunshiny morn- 
 ing succeeded the stormy weather of yesterday; and before starting, I 
 sent to inquire after my patient, who came to thank me in person, and 
 to assure me that he was quite cured. I was as much astonished as 
 many other doctors are occasionally at the success of their own pre- 
 scriptions, though I had not quite so many scruples in testifying my 
 surprise. 
 
 Our road, in point of hillocks and ravines, was little better than that 
 of yesterday. We had gone about three kos, when we fell in with two 
 Sikh battalions marching towards Peshawar, fine well dressed men, 
 with long blue coats and turbans. They were irregular troops, and 
 formed no part of the French legion. They marched in good order, 
 and were followed by a body of camp-followers with their tents, also in 
 close column ; but I did not think it at all agreeable nevertheless, to be 
 stopped by half a hundred camels in this narrow pass, where it was 
 quite impossible to get out of their way. It was really a pitiable thing 
 to watch these poor beasts trembling with fatigue, toiling up the steep 
 way with their heavy burdens, which threatened every instant to over- 
 set them. About a dozen women followed the troops, and one group, 
 consisting of a little woman riding a small pony, with a young girl in 
 front, and a taller one behind her, struck me as quite original. The 
 fort of Rotas, one of the most extensive in the north of India, is visible 
 from a high point at four kos' distance, and encircles, as it were, an 
 
 R
 
 242 THE ANCIENT FORTRESS OF ROTAS. 
 
 isolated hill between 200 and 300 feet high. It is separated into two by 
 a deep cleft in the rock. The fort has an imposing appearance at the 
 end of a fruitful plain, one of the first seen in this part of the Panjab, 
 with the further advantage of being able to protect the harvest; and it 
 is bathed by the waters of the Kähan, which winds round Bisentaur and 
 Makreli ; that is, when it has any water. The Mohammedans have 
 sunk deep wells to supply the plain during the summer season, when the 
 river is always dry ; one of these, about two kos on this side of Rotas, is 
 really an immense work. The fortress has long been abandoned as 
 too extensive, and is now all but in ruins, one large portion of the 
 walls having fallen into the depths below. The house of a fakir near 
 the river, was fixed on as my resting-place, but on one side it lay 
 entirely exposed to the wind, which at this season is piercingly cold 
 throughout the Panjab ; I wished, moreover, to visit the fortress, and 
 therefore desired to be conducted to the lodging which Khan Singh 
 told me had been got ready for my accommodation within it. The 
 walls rise in the most singular forms above the river ; the entrance 
 gate, 200 feet high, seems to be quite lifted up in the air, so gigantic 
 are its proportions. Other divisions of these immense works, are on a 
 scale equally vast. There are but three gates in the whole fortress : 
 two are almost concealed from view by the ravines and steep eminences 
 close to them. The way to the third is more open towards the river, 
 but still well defended by large towers, which protect the chief entrance, 
 formed by two gates, one within the other. On the second, which is 
 reached by a winding path 1 00 or 1 30 feet higher than the first, is an 
 Arabic inscription, which makes known the year of the Hejira, and that 
 of the builder, Shir Shah Lodi Patan, who for five years, until his 
 death in 1545, sat on the defeated Humayun's throne of Delhi. 
 When Humayun fled to Afghanistan and Persia, in order to levy forces 
 to recover his kingdom, Shir Shah raised this formidable obstacle in 
 his way. The interior is highly interesting. The ruins of buildings 
 are scattered in every direction. The angular pillars yet standing; 
 the one window in each direction, still traced in the solitary fragment 
 of the ruined palace, struck mc forcibly. It seemed unaccountable how 
 it could have survived the ravages which have laid all waste beside it.
 
 LIMIT OF TUE FICUS RELIGIOSA. 243 
 
 But northern India is more fortunate in this respect than the southern 
 parts, where nature soon destroys the most substantial edifices. Here 
 the vegetation is more feeble, and they have not the Ficus religiosa in 
 such luxuriance, as in the more tropical regions, where it frequently 
 takes root in the crevices of the walls. I did, indeed, see one tree of 
 this species growing in Rotas, at the door of a fakir, near the bridge 
 which leads over the ravine to the interior of the town, but tiiis was 
 among the earliest symptoms of my approach to India, and during the 
 cold months of winter the tree is always sickly- The portion of wall 
 above noticed, now standing has been rendered really habitable. Where 
 the deep chasm has parted the mountain in two, a gate and bridge have 
 been erected, which connect the two divisions of the fortress; and on 
 the southern side of the gate a large Indian fig has flourished nearly 
 long enough to overshadow the whole of the entrance in the most 
 picturesque manner. Here the Jemidar deputed by General Ventura 
 to provide for me, had prepared a very convenient little dwelling, and a 
 stock of wood for our use; a necessary article which it occasioned us 
 considerable time and trouble to procure at every station. As I was 
 about stepping in, I was saluted by a puff of smoke, and presently saw 
 three dirty girls squatting round the fire, and warming some bread by 
 it. The poor Thanadar, who was expecting a great many eulogiums on 
 the excellent state of the house, was struck dumb on seeing the children, 
 who had taken the liberty of appropriating to their own use both the 
 wood and the house, calculating that I should not make my appearance 
 for some days to come. He gave the first who came within his reach 
 a slap, which sent her squalling away in a moment, but the others who 
 echoed her screams, did not attempt to move, or to desist from their 
 occupation, in spite of all I could say or do. I really could not help 
 laughing at their horrid noises, and this seemed to have more effect 
 than scolding, for as soon as their bread was done to their liking, they 
 took themselves off. 
 
 According to the Thanadar, the detached building which I had 
 been observing with so much interest, is called the palace ; Raja Mehan 
 Singh ka Mahal; the people called it Mali Taj or Mali Burj, the Gar- 
 dener's Tower, and ascribe its construction to Mehan Singh, Shir 
 
 r2
 
 244 UNIVERSAL. MEDICINE OF INDIA. 
 
 Shah's wazir. The Thanadar told me that the fortress, as it now 
 stands, was built in three years, and cost 150 lakhs of rupees. I could 
 believe the last account more easily than the first ; but as Shir Shah 
 did not occupy the throne of India more than five years, meeting his 
 death at Kalingarh by the bursting of a bomb from one of his own 
 guns, which rebounded from the walls of the fortress, it is not probable 
 the construction of this great work could have taken a much longer 
 time. It was not until the reign of the third prince in succession to 
 Shir' Shah that Humayun led an army into India to reconquer the 
 throne of his father. The governor of this fortress, Tatäi Khan, 
 evacuated it without striking a blow, and gave Hamayun a good oppor- 
 tunity of seeing to advantage what his enemies had done for him. 
 This fortress has never been well defended. We read in Ferishta's 
 History of India, that there was at Rotas an impregnable fortress four 
 centuries before the Christian era, a proof of the high antiquity of 
 the place. 
 
 This day General Ventura sent me two packages, one containing 
 some excellent claret, the other some beer, a kindness which I felt 
 most gratefully, and which I quickly acknowledged; for I had caught a 
 severe cold in the late hail-storra, and my poor Brahmin was worse 
 than myself. For his fever I recommended a strong dose of calomel, 
 and I got to his lodging to see him, but no further; for I had no 
 strength left me. In the room where I had to sleep there was no 
 window, and the walls were blackened with smoke, so that as I looked 
 at the bed, and the lights burning near it, the whole had a most 
 funereal aspect. 
 
 Tuesday, Januarj»^ 5. — I was very glad when the night was fairly 
 gone. In the morning several sick persons came to ask my advice and 
 aid as usual ; among these were two sepoys belonging to the corps we 
 had met yesterday on their march. One who was borne along by two 
 comrades was past all human help, and as my store of medicines was 
 exhausted, I could do little or nothing for any of them, however com- 
 passionately disposed towards them. During my journey to Kashmir 
 I was so frequently called upon to act the part of a physician, that I had 
 abundant opportunity of observing the benefits arising from the use of
 
 SAMKNKSS OF TUE I'ANJAB PLAINS. 245 
 
 calomel, and in this country 1 should consider it the only medicine 
 of any service. We passed through a variety of climates in our long 
 marches; sometimes we travelled in companies of some hundreds of 
 persons together ; and scarcely a day passed without one or more cases 
 of sickness, and yet, with two solitary exceptions, (where jaundice had 
 preceded the attack of fever,) none of them lasted more than a single 
 day, nor did I lose so much as one of my followers' during the whole 
 five months of my travels, neither was I obliged to leave any of them 
 behind me. 
 
 The whole company now started for Wazirabad, where a vehicle 
 an<l four horses, sent by Ventura, awaited my arrival. The distance is 
 thirty-one kos, and we learnt from Ranjit Singh's guides that it was 
 not an easy matter to divide the journey; for, except near the Jelam, 
 there was no house to be met with in those parts, and if I had my 
 tent pitched, it would be necessary to make very short marches. Every 
 six kos there had been serais, and to these Khan Singh proposed to 
 direct me, dividing the journey into five days. To this, however, I 
 objected, determining to put up with any inconvenience rather than 
 thus linger by the way; and for the same reason I declined to take the 
 other but longer route by Jalalpoor, though the country was much 
 better peopled. 
 
 I was induced afterwards to let Khan Singh do as he pleased 
 to-day; for I anticipated great delay at the Jelam. He assured me 
 that we could only march six kos. Our first essay brought us into a 
 deep ravine, ending in the bed of the Kahan, through the heavy sand 
 of which we struggled for some considerable distance. After marching 
 four miles, we turned our backs on the high lands, and the plain of 
 India lay stretched before us, without the faintest perceptible swelling 
 in that broad and interminable vista; while behind us lay the grand 
 mountains of Kashmir. 
 
 The lofty passes of the Tose Maidan and Pir Panjal glistened and 
 towered upward, like so many giant forms, their snowy mantles con- 
 trasting with the dark mountains in the vicinity of the plain. While 
 the eye of the weary traveller rests with satisfaction on this plain, 
 the surface seeming to threaten no further impediment to his onward
 
 246 SITE OF THE ANCIENT TAXILA. 
 
 course, he glances with some surprise in the direction he has just been 
 following, and sees none of those obstacles which made the latter part 
 of his journey so tedious. Scarcely an eminence diversifies the 
 uniformity of the general surface. The salt hills, which occupy much 
 of the distance between this and the Atok, are here lost to the eye 
 towards the south-west, the place where the mineral is found in the 
 greatest abundance. Dadan Pindi Khan is about six kos distant, the 
 natives saying that no salt is found further east. The last hilly ground 
 in this direction is a detached group south-west of Rotas, which is not 
 visible for any distance on the other side of the Jelam. 
 
 The town called Jelam is five kos from Rotas, and there we quitted 
 the Doab-i-Sindi Sagur, which lies between the rivers Atok and Jelam, 
 and is here about ninety kos, or from 135 to 140 miles in breadth : a few 
 words on this country in its earlier days before 1 leave it. Arrian and 
 Strabo call the region between these two rivers, — Taxila, the chief town 
 of which bore the same name. This capital might have been where Rawal 
 Pindi now stands, in a fruitful plain, no other town being met with 
 further east until we come to Rotas, nor further west until we reach 
 the plain of Atok. Manikyala, with its vast ruins, which will be moi'e 
 fully dwelt on elsewhere, was fixed on by Burnes as the site of Taxila, 
 but this lies in a poorly watered and unproductive country; whereas 
 the Sawan, which fiows by Rawal Pindi, has some water, even in the 
 driest season. After all, it is not very easy to decide where the course 
 of a river may have been two thousand years ago, in a country where 
 everything shows such amazing changes to have taken place in the soil. 
 But the variety of ruins found in the neighbourhood of Rawal Pindi is 
 an evidence of the former existence of some large city in its vicinity. 
 In the time of Alexander, Taxiles was the sovereign of Taxila, and when 
 the conqueror passed the Indus, he sent an embassy consisting of 700 
 persons, all horsemen, to meet him, and attend him to his city, which he 
 surrendered at once, Alexander loading this peaceloving Hindu monarch 
 with presents and favours. Above Taxila in the mountains, Arrian 
 places the kingdom of Abisarus, but whether this stretched to Kashmir 
 we know not. From the accounts given us of Alexander's march, we 
 shuulil believe that he penetrated further into the numntains called
 
 a "^
 
 PUßMC KEUUY OVKK TlIK JKLAM. 247 
 
 Eraoda, since we read that, having passed the Jelam, he had the trees 
 of the pine forests cut down to supply the river with shipping : these 
 forests never extended to the plains. His fleet was composed, in part 
 of the vessels which he had transported from the Indus, in part of 
 those ships built at that city which he founded on either side of the 
 Hydaspes or Jelam, and called Bucephalia, after his horse, and Näikia 
 (victory), from his victory over Porus. Burnes believed Jalalpoor to 
 be the most probable site of these cities. 
 
 At least, there is no doubt of one fact, that when Alexander was in 
 this country of Taxila, the people belonged neither to the Hrahminical 
 nor to the Buddhist faith ; for the priests ate at his table, and did not 
 burn their dead, giving them to be devoured by vultures : who would 
 not at once decide from this to what religious community they belonged ? 
 I purpose resuming the subject when I have traversed the whole country 
 of Alexander's conquest. 
 
 Jelam is a town of some importance, and the streets are clean, 
 though narrow. At the entrance stands a group of trees and a fakir's 
 dwelling. The whole reminded me of the Delta of the Nile, the 
 Phoenix farinosa, which grows as tall here as the date palms, and the 
 acacias, being of the same species as in Egypt. The boiling point 
 was 211 (209f = 1620 feet above the level of the sea). The inha- 
 bitants met me in a body, with an invitation to take up my abode there 
 for the night, while the shopkeepers requested that I would take every 
 thing that I wanted, without thinking of any payment. But for no 
 consideration would I have prolonged my stay in the Panjiib for a 
 single day longer than was necessary. 
 
 Twenty large boats, excellently built and managed, convey travel- 
 lers gratis across the river. This river is much wider than the Atok by 
 its town of the same name, but less deep and rapid. 'I'he right bank is 
 rather high, the left is flat, and in ihe rainy season, no doubt, the water 
 overflows it to a considerable extent. One kos from the Jelam lies 
 the ruinous Serai called Narangabad, the outer walls of which are yet 
 standing, and within them a population of filthy people in still filthier 
 huts. I could not find any place to put up, and though the (Juri'i of 
 the Dharamsala was ready to receive me, his house was so small, that
 
 24S FREQUENT OCCASIONS OF DELAY. 
 
 there was no standing room for ni}' bed. I had therefore to choose, 
 my tent being too wet to be put up, whether I would sleep in the open 
 air, or on the ground. On account of the season I preferred the latter; 
 but the loss of my tent entailed on me so much inconvenience, that I 
 ordered the people, even at the risk of tearing it, to spread it out 
 somewhere, that it might dry the sooner. 
 
 The Guru and his wife reminded me of Philemon and Baucis. 
 They could not have numbered much less than two hundred years 
 between them, and their feebleness prevented either of them from 
 standing on their feet. I confess that I envied the man, not the length 
 of life, for a long life is not always a happy one, but that, having 
 witnessed the humiliation of his countrymen, he now lived to see them 
 amply revenged. 
 
 The authorities of Jelam came to request that they might be allowed 
 to supply my people with everything needful, to which I most willingly 
 agreed, well assured that there was nothing to be purchased for any 
 money in the Serai. 
 
 Wednesday, January 6. — Having risen from my comfortless sleeping 
 place, and reached the open square, where I had ordered ray tent to be 
 spread out, the first thing I saw was my unfortunate tent lying on the 
 ground, and the Kalashis all fast asleep. It was evident that their 
 laziness had lost me another night's rest, besides increasing the chances 
 that the tent would be entirely spoiled ; and more vexed at their neglect 
 of my orders than I ought to have been in reason, I desired them 
 instantly to get up, pitch the tent properly in my presence, and then 
 wait until the heat of the sun had thoroughly dried it, after which they 
 were to pack it properly and follow me. This naturally caused so 
 much delay that I knew I must not expect to be able to sleep under it 
 this night; but it was, at all events, quite useless to me while so wet. 
 Besides, I did not think it was likely that I should have any occasion 
 to pitch the tents again after to-night, and felt anxious to take a farewell 
 look at them as companions with whom I had passed many solitary 
 hours. 
 
 Although Khawas Khan is not more than twelve miles, we had a 
 long march, and some ravines which I had not at all expected. The
 
 ORDINARY SUBSTITUTE FOR KUEL. 249 
 
 country is indifferently cultivated, but it seems to support a vast number 
 of horned cattle. The flocks of sheep and goats also were numerous, the 
 last growing to an enormous size. We can now perfectly understand 
 a remark of Ctesias, that the Indian goats arc as large as asses, an 
 assertion which is quite correct, taken in the sense of Strabo, who by 
 the term India means the Panjab. The Serai Khawas Khan, which 
 we did not reach till nightfall, was surrounded by high walls smeared 
 with upla, or cow dung, which also is the only fuel used by the natives. 
 The town on the plain is built in the form of a fort. It is populous, 
 but has a singular appearance, all the walls and roofs of the houses 
 being covered with upla drying in the sun : stores of the same are also 
 heaped up in the open square in large quantities. 
 
 The only resting-place to be found, was an open mosque; and with 
 much difficulty I had obtained a supply of fuel, which I knew would be 
 indispensable during the long cold night. For a rupee each, I had also 
 hired two men to keep it alive while I slept. The cold, however, soon 
 awoke me ; nor was I much surprised to find the fire all but out, and the 
 men fast asleep. This would not have happened had they been Hindus. 
 I made them get up, went with them to the nearest houses in search of 
 more wood, got a small supply, and again kindled a fire, by which I 
 remained sitting all the rest of the night, finding it impossible to keep 
 myself warm. 
 
 Thursday, January 7. — From Serai Khawas Khan to Wazirabad is 
 twelve kos, through an open, level country, with a fertile though little 
 cultivated soil. Gujrat, a town inclosed by mud walls, is about half 
 way, and is a place of importance to the family of Ranjit Singh. His 
 father, Mahä Singh, whose fortune it was to lay the foundation of that 
 power, which his son afterwards extended over the whole Panjab, was, in 
 his twenty-seventh year, engaged in an attempt to gain possession of 
 this Gujrat, being at the time in the neighbouring and opulent city of 
 Sohdera. Ranjit Singh possessed himself of it in a manner which I 
 shall refer to elsewhere, but certainly not much to the increase of his 
 honour. Indeed, it was always the policy of this wily chief to press 
 his demand on those who had no power to resist his claims ; the help-
 
 250 DESCRIPTION OF THE CHENAB. 
 
 less, the orphan, and the widow, have ever been the objects he has 
 more peculiarly oppressed. 
 
 Between the Jelam and Chenab, is the Jinhat Doab, twenty-six kos 
 broad in the direction I took across it. The Chenab is shallow and 
 rather sluo-gish, but nowhere fordable ; the low bank is no obstacle to 
 its overflowing, and at present it is a good half mile broad, though the 
 waters are not at their usual level. From the left bank it is about an 
 hour's march toWazirabad; and shortly before our arrival at that place, 
 the authorities made their appearance, with a party of horse sent by 
 Ranjit Singh, and with a carriage and four, for which I was indebted 
 to the kindness of General Ventura. I felt infinitely happy to think 
 that I was at the end of a tedious journey, which requires at this 
 season more strength than I could boast ; and had I halted even for one 
 day, so excited was my nervous system, that I doubt not I should have 
 been quite laid up. It seemed like a dream when I found myself really 
 seated in this vehicle, and drawn by four horses to Wazirabad. There 
 the Maha Raja has built a palace in the midst of a lovely garden, which 
 is a singular edifice, both in its exterior form and its internal decora- 
 tions. It has two stories, and in the centre is a sort of tower which 
 divides the wings, while the outside walls, as well as the apartments 
 within, are adorned with fresco paintings illustrative of the religion of 
 the Sikhs. Among them are the portraits of the ten Gurus from 
 Nänak the first to Govind the last, the size of life ; the chief painter 
 of Ranjit's court is certainly not a Raphael. I preferred taking up 
 mv quarters for the night in a small pavilion, containing one large and 
 four small rooms, which appeared to me more comfortable than the stately 
 palace. We had to wait for our dinner a long while, for the bearers, 
 who were far in the rear, had all the cooking apparatus and provisions 
 with them. In truth, the distance was too great for them ; hencefor- 
 ward, as I had little need of their services, they travelled as leisurely 
 as they pleased. 
 
 Avitable, an officer high in Ranjit Singh's favour, and now com- 
 manding in Peshawar under Shir Singh, was for some time Governor 
 of Wazirabad ; while he resided here he almost rebuilt the town in the
 
 BENEFrr OF EUROPEAN INf PKO VEMENTS. 251 
 
 European style, and pulled down the old bazar, making the streets wide 
 enough to admit a carriage and four horses, to the astonishment of the 
 natives, the streets being so excessively narrow in most Indian towns, 
 that a pedestrian can hardly force his way through the bazar. The 
 people are enraptured with the present beauty of the bazar of Wazir- 
 abad, and its charms were boastingly represented to me long before I 
 saw it. 
 
 Friday, January 8. — I was so apprehensive of coming clouds, that 
 yesterday I took the direction of the mountains with the magnetic 
 needle, for the proper completion of my map. There is no place on 
 the plain whence the foi*m and position of the mountains can be so well 
 ascertained as this ; the snow which covered a large portion of them, 
 rendered the task of fixing their relative heights much easier ; this, 
 together with my knowledge of the distances between each of the most 
 prominent, combined to make the present a very interesting attempt. 
 My fears concerning the weather proved groundless, the mountains 
 standing forth in all their majesty to-day, though not appearing to the 
 eye so towering as by the twilight of last evening. The prospect from 
 the terrace round the pavilion is a very lovely one. Below lies a soft 
 meadow, covered with the verdant green of the early year ; the Chenab 
 winds along the plain to an immense distance, bathing the feet of the 
 mountain chain, which, with the gentle undulations of the nearest ridge, 
 softened by distance, now forms the misty limits of the plain. From 
 these, the eye is attracted to the mountains rising high behind each 
 other, covered with snow, and seemingly very much nearer than in 
 reality. The plain, without tree or village on that side, stretches out to 
 an interminable extent, contrasting very powerfully with the diversity of 
 form so remarkable in these mountains. I could plainly recognise the 
 double pyramid called Mer and Ser, which is further off than the valley 
 of Kashmir, and could even discern by the distinction of colour, that in 
 that region no snow had fallen very recently. 
 
 I had determined on taking only a small number of attendants to 
 Lahor, and sending on the greater part direct to Li'uliana ; for at 
 Wazirabad the road branches off to both places, the way to Ludiana by 
 Lahor being one-third longer than the direct road. This plan required
 
 252 CHARACTER OF INDIAN SERVANTS. 
 
 a division of the baggage, a most disagreeable occupation for the whole 
 morning. Indian servants are utterly useless, except as machines; 
 literallv obeying their master's orders, without exercising a particle 
 of their own intellect*. I therefore imposed on myself the penance 
 of packing those objects which had cost me much money and trouble, 
 and which their negligence might have entirely spoiled. 
 
 The servants having taken their departure at eleven o'clock, I 
 strolled, for the last time, ere I went my way, into the grounds which 
 surround the pavilion ; and after my last month's experience of a wild 
 and uncultivated country, I cannot express the delight I felt at seeing 
 this Indian garden, with its regular little flower-beds and fountains. 
 There is something very tranquillizing in these scenes, where the desire 
 of embellishing life is displayed so tastefully ; whereas the love for 
 the darker and more terrible in nature, whether occupied by the beasts 
 of the forest, or men scarcely less savage, is one of those uni*eason- 
 able fancies indulged mostly by persons who have never experienced 
 the dreariness of regions unimproved by industry and civilization. 
 When one gazes from some eminence on such a country, and beholds 
 nothing but forests, unrelieved by field or human habitation, it is then 
 only that a correct idea can be formed of an Indian wilderness. It may 
 be very pleasant to dream of wild countries and simple people, in a well- 
 furnished house or a beautiful garden, surrounded by pleasures, and 
 comforts, and friends: but the reality is very different. For myself, 
 who have seen enough of solitude, sublimity, and the more terrific beau- 
 ties of nature, I admit that the lot of a European labourer seems to me 
 
 • Perhaps there is no more valuable trait in the character of the Hindu ser- 
 vants than that of implicit obedieuce. This is just what a good servant should do 
 —simply and unhesitatingly obey. It would be well for European, for English 
 society especially, if such were the failing of our servants. A long residence among 
 the people of the East, and a thorough and most intimate acquaintance with their 
 character led me, as indeed it has led all those who have been similarly circum- 
 stanced, to appreciate the forbearance, fidelity, laborious zeal, and good-will with 
 which our Indian domestics and all classes serve those who employ them. They 
 have their failings, it is true, but their good qualities, irrespective of their supersti- 
 tion, will bear comparison with those of any of the most civilized nations in the 
 world. — Ed.
 
 HINDU TASTE FOIl GARDEN'IXG. 253 
 
 more enviable than that of the greatest among Indian princes ; and a 
 small garden laid out and ornamented by the owner's taste, more 
 charming than the gigantic scenery of the Himalaya, or the finest 
 view in Ceylon. Perhaps, nevertheless, I may think otherwise, after 
 enjoying for some time the safety and peace to be found in the every- 
 day life of Europe. 
 
 In the neighbourhood of Kashmir I had found the Liiuim trigynum 
 in the ravines where waters were flowing; in this garden the same plant 
 grew as a beautiful shrub four or five feet high, of a spherical form, and 
 covered with a profusion of flowers. 
 
 We soon get used to luxury ; and in this delightful English carriage 
 1 could fancy myself, if not in Europe, at least very near it, and forget 
 that I had ever travelled by a less comfortable conveyance. The dis- 
 tance to Guseraoli is reckoned twelve kos, about twenty miles : the 
 country is poorly cultivated. This is one of the possessions of Hari 
 Singh Nalwa, commander-in-chief of all the Maha Raja's troops, the 
 French legion alone excepted. Originally it was the property of llanjit's 
 family, which can be traced no further back than to his grandfather, 
 Charat Singh, the descendant of a common trooper, or Dharwitri. 
 Hari Singh Nalwa has a palace and garden in Guseraoli, which are 
 protected by a mud fort. As we drew near the town, a troop of horse 
 was deputed to escort me ; and presently the Diwan rode up, mounted on 
 an elephant. The splendour of the rooms in the palace did not excite my 
 admiration nearly so much as the garden, which was the most beautiful 
 and best kept I had seen in India. The trees were loaded with 
 oranges, of the same kind known in China as Mandarin oranges, but 
 much larger and finer, here called the Santreh orange*; Hari Singh has 
 
 • This orange is probably the Cintra orange of Portugal, introduced by the 
 monks, with many other plants, now extensively cultivated, and to which India is 
 indebted for its revenues. Among others may be instanced the tobacco, and 
 various kinds of grain, cotton, maize, onions, and sugar-cane. On the mountains 
 of Aboo, at the extremity of the Arawalli range, at an elevation of 4700 feet, 
 (lat. 25°), I have gathered several varieties of the wild orange, one of which 
 approaches very much in character, size, and external form, to the Cintra or Son-
 
 254 AFFABLE MANNERS OF A SIKH CHIEF. 
 
 also transported the plane-tree from Kashmir, which seems to flourish 
 exceedingly well in its new locality. An odour almost overwhelming 
 ascended from the jonquils, which were in immense abundance, and of 
 an incredibly large size. Nothing, in fact, could be more carefully 
 adorned with lovely flowers and plants of various kinds, than this 
 garden, which evidently formed one of the chief delights, and some- 
 times the occupation of its owner : it reminded me of my own at home. 
 As I approached the terrace, where I saw luxurious carpets spread, 
 Hari Singh came to meet me, with a present, consisting of twenty-five 
 plates of sweetmeats, and a dozen baskets of fruit, &c. I tasted some 
 of the former, and found them very good. He then conducted me 
 over the palace, every room of which was hung and covered with the 
 richest carpets of Kashmir and Kabul, a sight promising comfort and 
 repose, and most inviting in this cool season. When I mentioned the 
 coldness of the last few days, he immediately ordered two portable 
 stoves to be taken to my apartments. Hari Singh's manner and con- 
 versation are very frank and aff'able ; and having acquainted myself 
 beforehand with the history of this most distinguished member of 
 Ranjit's court, I surprised him by my knowledge whence he had gained 
 the appellation of Nalwa, and of his having cloven the head of a tiger 
 who had already seized him as its prey. He told the Diwan to bring 
 some drawings, and gave me his portrait, in the act of killing the beast. 
 Hari Singh Nalwa was the person sent by Ranjit to invite Lord 
 
 tra, and, wliat is most unusual in the wild state, the fruit was very pulpy ; but sour, 
 and in taste coming nearer to the Seville orange. From one bough I gathered nearly 
 two Imndred oranges. The trees, which grew out of the clefts of the rocks, were 
 loaded to excess with fruit, in March and April. On the Nilgiri mountains I gathered 
 and described seven perfectly distinct varieties, growing in and near the beautiful 
 dell called the Orange Valley, five miles from Dimhatti. Many persons have con- 
 cluded that the wild peaches and oranges, have originated in some seeds casually 
 thrown down, or brought hither by birds ; but if so, how could they account for the 
 numerous kinds of wild citron, lime, lemon, and orange, found throughout the 
 forests and mountains of Malabar, and other localities in Nipal and Eastern India. 
 The graft of the Portuguese, Spanish, and Chinese fruit on the Indian species, has 
 contributed to the improvement, as in fact the finest Italian fruit is produced from 
 grafts on the bitter wild species. — Ed.
 
 EMBELI.KSHMENTS OF EASTERN GARDENS. '255 
 
 William Bentinck to confer with the Maha Raja at Simla; and as I 
 happened to know most of the persons he had met there, our conversa- 
 tion was very different from the majority of such interviews in India, 
 and really consisted of a due exchange of ideas, and of references to 
 events which had actually taken place. His questions proved him to 
 have thought and reasoned justly : he is well informod on the statistics 
 of many of the European States, and on the policy of the East India 
 Company, and, what is very rare among the Sikhs, he can both read and 
 write the Persian language. 
 
 As my stores had not arrived at Guseraoli, I was very glad to 
 accept Hari Singh's offer of providing us with a dinner, which both 
 Vigne and myself dispatched with an excellent appetite. 
 
 Saturday, January 9. — The warmth of the rooms procured me the 
 great comfort of rest last night, and for the first time for a verv long 
 period, I would willingly have indulged myself with more sleep. While 
 the carriage was being packed, I strolled out into a part of the garden 
 which I had not yet visited, and wondered at the variety of little build- 
 ings scattered about it ; one of these, called San Padre, is in the form 
 of a square with one side open, and a fountain in the middle, which 
 falls into a broad thick sheet of water. In the three walls I observed 
 several niches made for lamps. 
 
 I wished to take leave of Hari Singh, and thank him for his kind 
 reception of us ; and on inquiring for him, was conducted to the 
 terrace, where he was seated in the sun, having caught a cold and 
 slight fever. He was able, notwithstanding, to keep up a very lively 
 conversation, and put a variety of questions. He had all my answers 
 taken down on paper. On my departure, he presented me with a beau- 
 tiful Khilat, accepting in return some trifles as a remembrance of me. 
 He was pleased greatly to magnify their value. Our station for to- 
 night was only six kos from Guseraoli; I had tliereforo time enough 
 to see the garden and house which was formerly the residence of 
 Ilanjit Singh, but it contains nothing remarkable; except a small build- 
 ino- erected over the spot, where the remains of his father Maha Singh 
 were burnt, and another over the ashes of his mother. 
 
 Not far from Guseraoli, I was met by Juni Lul, the same Iirali-
 
 256 GENERAL lONORANCE RESPECTING INDIA. 
 
 min from Delhi who had accompanied Biirnes, and was now sent to me 
 by the Maha Raja ; two elephants, with rich housings and silver how- 
 dahs, and thirty men on horseback, attended him. On my approach, 
 they saluted me with military honours, and two trumpeters struck up, 
 " God save the king." The large tent of General Ventura was pitched 
 at a small place called Kämüki. It was a singular-looking Bechoba, 
 (a tent fixed without tent-poles,) which is peculiar to the Panjab. The 
 servants and baggage all arrived in due time, and we got our dinner 
 befoi'e nightfall, which had not been the case very frequently of late. 
 
 Sunday, January 10. — The country still remains but poorly culti- 
 vated. To-day we had a short march of seven or eight kos to Nangel, 
 where another tent belonging to this General was pitched : this had 
 three separate divisions. We had for several miles enjoyed the view of 
 the lofty mountain chain, and behind the snowy range and the Baldewa, 
 at an immense distance, the Mer and Ser were seen proudly rising. 
 
 I can hardly describe how delightful the present mode of travelling 
 seemed to me. Everything appeared to go on with so little trouble, the 
 only drawback being, that I did not come into contact so frequently with 
 the natives, nor learn so much about the country through which I was 
 passing. My present experience taught me how it happens that so few 
 Englishmen know any thing of the manners or customs of that part of 
 India which they have perhaps ti'avelled over the best part of their 
 lives. The truth is, they move from place to place, without giving 
 themselves any concern, and generally by night, unlearning whatever 
 correct ideas they may have brought out with them from their own country 
 respecting India, and in their solitary tents kill time, which with them 
 passes so slowly, by inventing sundry theories, which a just examination 
 of things as they are, would speedily dispel from their minds*. 
 
 * This is a most erroneous opinion. The intelligence, attention to every thing 
 that passes, tlie acquaintance that tlie officers of the army, and indeed a very great 
 many even of the humbler grades of the soldiery possess, of the countries, resources, 
 and people they come in contact with, is far greater than that of any other body of 
 men of like rank and pursuits elsewhere ; and that because each individual is thrown 
 upon liis own intellectual resources and common sense ; Jtut tlioy have not those
 
 ANTICIPATIONS OF KIVDRED MINDS. 2Ö7 
 
 The arrival of the Brahmuj Juni Lai had cured Thaki'ir-Das of 
 all his indisposition, and while some of the officers took possession of 
 one elephant, the two new friends occupied the howdah of the second. 
 I proceeded meanwhile at a rapid pace, escorted by the party of horse- 
 men, having taken leave of the Shah at Wazirabad until we should 
 meet at Lahor. He had entreated to be allowed to live with me in 
 that city, but as I did not myself know where I should be on my 
 arrival, it was settled that he should at all events see me often while 
 there. I had determined to do all I could for him in Lahor, but I 
 did not like to promise anything. 
 
 Monday, January 11. — This morning I received a letter from 
 General Ventura, telling me that he had the Maha Raja's orders to 
 come and give me the meeting. It was the wish of Ranjit, that I 
 should halt at Shah Dera, the celebrated mausoleum of Jehanghir, 
 where the General was to announce my arrival to Khalifa Sahib, the 
 marshal of the court, who would forthwith receive me; and I was 
 likewise to remain a day at Shah Dera, that everything might be 
 prepared for my reception in Lahor. Shah Dera is but three miles 
 from that city, on the right bank of the Ravi. I replied to this note 
 directly, that nothing was likely to prevent me from reaching Shah 
 Dera at twelve o'clock, and that he could hardly err in announcing my 
 arrival at that town without waiting for me to address him again. 
 The expectation of residing in Ventura's house while at Lahor, gave 
 me more pleasure than any honour the Mahd Raja was likely to 
 pay me. 
 
 advantages of carrying out, or studying any subject, that every man can freely com- 
 maud in Europe. With few scientific or literary institutions, with few appliances 
 for investigation, witli few experienced master-minds to associate or compare notes 
 with, they do nevertheless frequently nmke great and most important observations; 
 and what they want in taste or learning, is amply made up by honesty and origi- 
 nality. The civil service was never surpassed for all the high qualities of an 
 effective executive body by that of any state. One and all labouring under the 
 heavy disadvantages, in some respects, of coming out to India when very young ; 
 and in point of fact, before the mind is perfectly formed, all the after-work, 
 therefore, is self-teaching, or dear-bought experience — a severe but excellent 
 school. — Ed. 
 
 s
 
 258 THE EMPEROR JEHANGHIR's MAUSOLEUM. 
 
 The nearer one approaches the Ravi, the more desolate and uncul- 
 tivated is the country about it. The distance from Nangel to Shah 
 Dera, which lies somewhat to the left of the great road to Lahor, is 
 not more than eight kos, but we arrived before twelve o'clock, though 
 the Basanta, a small river, which was very deep, and had no bridge 
 across it, detained us for some time. Indeed, I was forced to betake 
 myself to the back of an elephant, and the carriage was brought 
 across with a great deal of difficulty. I was surprised to see with 
 what ingenuity the Indians surmounted it, and particularly as they 
 were not at all accustomed to the sort of work now required at their 
 hands. 
 
 Shah Dera is a splendid ruin, its beauty consisting not so much 
 in the plan or arrangement of the building, as in the details. Marbles 
 and precious stones were there in profusion. The chief building, 
 placed in a fine garden, forms a square with a beautiful minaret at 
 each corner; these are covered with pietra dura, and appear from a 
 distance as though painted with a variety of colours; they should be 
 seen very near, for the colours have a very poor effect when viewed 
 from any point distant enough to embrace a proper view of the gigantic 
 edifice itself. The ground floor consists of an arcade, raised on several 
 steps, and a lofty terrace, whence, towards the west, the highly orna- 
 mented entrance leads to the small vaulted chamber, the tomb of 
 Jehanghir, which is very similar to that in the Taj Mahal at Agra. 
 The light falls on it from above. 
 
 There is nothing of the same kind in India more elegant, than 
 the terrace which runs round the roof of the building, fonned entirely 
 of pietra dura, and having an open balustrade of marble. I ascended 
 one of the minarets, to gain a view of the long-desired Lahor, which 
 has a goodly appearance from this distance, with its high walls and 
 stately minarets and houses. In the foreground, are the buildings 
 belonging to Shah Dera, which extend down to the Ravij then 
 comes the river; next, a long line of fields, intermixed with groups 
 of trees, now clad in their fresh livery of spring; beyond these are the 
 handsome edifices built by Jehanghir in Lahor. I had hardly time to 
 gaze on all these attractive objects, when a cloud of dust rolled onwards
 
 AFPHOACH TO THE SIKH t'AlMTAL. 259 
 
 from the river, eoncealing for a time a party of horsemen and bearers, 
 the deputation sent by Kanjtt Singh to welcome me. 
 
 Fakir Khalifa Sahib was accompanied by the commander of the 
 forces in Labor, and in the name of the Mahä Raja, addressed me in a 
 speech full of the flowers of rhetoric, assuring me that he had made 
 daily inquiries where I was, and had waited for me with the utmost 
 impatience; that now I was in my own country and had only to com- 
 mand; the Maha Raja desiring that my residence might be made as 
 agreeable to me as possible. After this, Mr. Vigne and I, with the 
 commandant and Khalifa Sahib, entered the general's carriage; the 
 ferry over the Ravi is about a mile beyond Shah Dera, and even in 
 this dry season, there is now in many places not less than eighteen feet 
 of water. On the shore is a large garden made by the Moghul Emperor 
 Dilkusha, with buildings on both sides of the river; the waters have 
 long destroyed everything that stood on the left bank, and carried 
 the massy walls into its soft bed. One side of the great square 
 surrounding the monument at Shah Dera, has met with the same fate, 
 and here the right bank is giving way before the river in a similar 
 manner. 
 
 The approach to Lahor by this road is very striking. The fortress 
 repaired by Ranjit Singh, and garrisoned by regular cavalry, is in 
 excellent repair; its great extent notwithstanding, would utterly pre- 
 clude its defence against the assaults of regular artillery. It was with 
 the most pleasurable feelings that I contemplated meeting General 
 Ventura in his own residence, for his continual attentions to me since 
 I had entered the Panjäb, made me consider him as an old friend. I 
 was heartily tired of solitude, and longed moreover for a few days' rest 
 in a house, and the company of a European host. He met me in the 
 tent which forms the entrance to his beautiful garden, and though we 
 had never seen each other before, we shook hands most cordially, and 
 I attempted to convey all my thanks for his kindness, and to assure 
 him that the pleasure of making his acquaintance, made me less averse 
 to the idea that I should trespass on his hospitality for some days to 
 come. He replied most obligingly that the Mahä Raja expected rac to 
 remain at least one month in Lahor; but I had already resolved to limit 
 
 s2
 
 260 JUDICIOUS SELECTION OF BRITISH AGENTS. 
 
 my stay there to four days, on account of ray desire not on any account 
 to miss the steamer which left Bombay in March. 
 
 The fakir Sahib now took his leave of me, and was straightway 
 succeeded by his elder brother, Aziz ud Din, the minister for foreign 
 affairs and confidential secretary, who came from the Mahä Raja to 
 acquaint me, that he had been informed of my arrival l)y General 
 Ventura, and had laid aside all occupations to rejoice at it. I cannot 
 repeat the fine speeches that followed; soon after this, fifty bearers 
 made their appearance with presents of fruit and sweetmeats, a bottle 
 of his own wine, of which I shall have something to say presently, and 
 a bag with 700 rupees. 
 
 The general now introduced me to Mr. Mackeson, the Company's 
 political agent at Bhawalpoor, and to a Frenchman, named Dubuignon. 
 The first is a most intelligent young officer, who has accepted a place 
 in a desert, 300 miles from Ludiana, where he will have to super- 
 intend and protect the English vessels in the navigation of the Indus, 
 a privilege lately conceded to them by a treaty with the Amirs of 
 Sind. I had nearly forgotten to name an old acquaintance whom I also 
 met with. On the left bank of the Ravi, I was accosted by a man 
 with a grey beard, and a uniform somewhat French in its cut, whom I 
 perfectly recollected to have seen befoi'e, but could not think where nor 
 when, until he began to talk of Bombay. I then recognized Mr. 
 Forni, the manufacturer of saltpetre, who had come from Bombay 
 to Egypt while I was there. At our richly-covered board in the 
 evening, we were joined also by Mr. Fox, an Englishman lately 
 enrolled in the service of the Mahä Raja. 
 
 Before I give any account of my own residence at Lahor, I shall 
 introduce a brief notice of the Sikhs and their king, whose energetic 
 mind has embodied a multitude of disjointed materials, which he, and 
 only he, could ever have succeeded in compacting together. His 
 standard is planted upon the ruins of the Moghul Empire, and he 
 now holds his court in their second viceregal city. 
 
 By the victory obtained over the Emperor Ibrahim Lodi, at Paniput, 
 in 1525, India was subjugated, and the dynasty of the house of Timur 
 established on the throne of Delhi in the person of the illustrious
 
 NOBLE CIIAKACTEK AND TASTE Ot BABER. 201 
 
 Haber, whose intellectual accomplishments were in no respect inferior 
 to his genius as a soldier*. Driven from his hereditary possessions, 
 he worked his way by personal exertion, to the sovereignty of his 
 native kingdom, Ferghana, and when he lost this by the treachery 
 of his nearest kinsman, proposed another and a bolder expedition to 
 the south, and, after a sanguinary struggle for the richest prize in 
 the world, ascended the throne of Delhi. All his actions evinced the 
 working of a bold and comprehensive genius, whether we consider his 
 plans of conquest, or his forbearance towards the followers of tin- 
 different religious persuasions throughout his kingdom ; the latter qua- 
 lity was not less extraordinary than honourable, when we take into 
 consideration the age in which he lived. His toleration enabled the 
 sect of the Guru Nänak to spread its doctrines very widely throughout 
 his empire. At first they were but few in number, and assumed the 
 title of Sikhs or Sikhsha, a word which in Sanscrit signifies instruc- 
 tion; yet it is worthy of remark, that the government never considered 
 either Nänak, or the Gurus who succeeded him, in any formidable 
 light. It is, in truth, a peculiarity belonging to the many sects in 
 India, that they rarely have anything to do with politics, and that the 
 sectaries care as little what may be the faith of their ruler, as the ruler 
 concerns himself about the creed of his subjects. Very different were 
 the opinions of the Mohammedans in this respect; the propagation 
 of their religion always served as a decent covering for their love of 
 conquest, and they pretended to justify all the misery they brought on 
 India, all their oppressive deeds for centuries, by an ardent zeal for the 
 faith of their prophet. Whatever change the Mohammedan religion 
 may have undergone in these revolutions, experience has always shown, 
 that very few of its followers have been free from that fanaticism 
 which seems an integral part of Islamism. The governing powers 
 
 • The autobiography of Babcr is cliarat-toristic of his talent, aii.l d.riv.s aildi- 
 tional interest from tlic taste and fi.iehty with whieli it hjis been translated by Mr. 
 Erskinc. To appreciate the cliaraeter of tliis great prince, we must r.ad what he 
 has written, and bear in mind tlie period at whicii he wrote, tlie people amongst 
 whom he was living, and the sovereignty he exercised.— iirf.
 
 262 THE TEN PRINCfPAL SIKH GURUS. 
 
 of India take care that the taxes are regularly paid ; so that they have 
 his money, they do not trouble themselves about what deity the payer 
 may believe in; in like manner also, the subject does not inquire to 
 whom he pays the impost; and thus matters proceed quietly, except 
 when the fanatical members of a sect, from some real or fancied injury, 
 seek for redress or revenge on their rulers, and thereby attract more 
 particular notice. 
 
 The immediate successors of Guru Nänak were: Angad, Amira 
 Das, Ram Das, and Arjun Mai, whose very existence was disregarded 
 by the government. The maxims of the new doctrine, which I have 
 endeavoured to explain in another place, were at first of an ambiguous 
 nature, and chiefly directed against the polytheism of the Hindus, 
 in the same manner as the Iconoclasts of the eighth century sought to 
 purify the Christian religion from the abuses which had sprung up; 
 but they soon began to assume a more definite form, until, under the 
 last-mentioned Guru, they were sufficiently arranged to allow him to 
 write them down in a book called the Grunth. 
 
 Hargovind, Hari, Harkrishna, and Tegh-Bahadur, succeeded each 
 other as ministers of this sect, and it was in the lifetime of the last 
 that Aurungzib dethroned his father Shah Jehan, (that Emperor of 
 Delhi who, of all the Moghul rulers, has left the most enduring 
 memorials of himself in the buildings he erected,) and caused the 
 desti'uction of his brothers and their families, who perished in warring 
 against the usurper. Religion was the pretext used by Aurungzib in 
 this unnatural contest with those of his own blood : totally destitute as 
 he was of every pretension to it, he invariably proclaimed his ardent 
 zeal for the faith of the prophet, urging on its reception, among other 
 means, by persecuting each separate sect of the Hindus. In the year 
 1675, Tegh-Bahadur was put to death in Patna by his commands. 
 His son Govind thereupon swore eternal enmity to all Mohammedans, 
 and changing his religious appellation of Sikh, which, in common with 
 all of his own faith he had hitherto borne, for the name of Singh, 
 or Lion, which is peculiar to the military castes of India, he thus 
 proclaimed openly his change of mind, and was imitated by all the 
 professors of his faith, who assumed a similar title. Govind Singh
 
 I'OWEHFUL SWAY OF AURUNG/IB. 2(J3 
 
 lost no time in forming a baud of predatory troops out of the multitude 
 of religious devotees who flocked to him, whose watch-word was 
 " eternal enmity to the Mohammedans." Neither did they long want 
 a token of recognition ; as an open defiance to the Mohammedans, they 
 suffered the hair of their heads and beards to grow, and followed up 
 these conspicuous signs of their altered profession by entering on their 
 new career. Predatory excursions were first undertaken, and when the 
 Mohammedan commanders in the different provinces aroused them- 
 selves to check these disorders, Govind Singh summoned every 
 member of his sect to join him in carrying on the contest with energy 
 and determination. The time indeed was not favourable for the success 
 of such an enterprise, for Aurungzib held the reins of power with no 
 feeble hand, his armies, by uninterrupted exercise, were well trained to 
 battle, and had every advantage against these inexperienced zealots. 
 After a few unimportant skirmishes, the revolters were dispersed, and 
 Govind Singh obliged to flee to the Dekhan, where he is supposed to have 
 died in the year 1 708. His followers returned to their former peace- 
 able condition, and resumed those occupations from which the martial 
 ardour of their leader had withdrawn them. The ofiice of the (iurii, 
 however, was not filled up; first, because the Sikhs long expected the 
 return of Govind Singh, of whose death they never received any 
 certain information ; and also, when after so long a time had elapsed 
 since his escape, that the fact of his death could no longer be doubted, 
 the whole frame of their society, if I may so express it, had undergone 
 a change. Govind Singh has remained, therefore, up to this time, 
 the last acknowledged spiritual head of the Sikhs. 
 
 A Hindu Bairagi, or penitent, called Banda, assembled together 
 a small band of Sikhs soon after the flight of Govind Singh, and com- 
 menced a series of hostilities against the Mohanmiedans by destroying 
 Sirhind. But he was quickly overpowered, taken prisoner, and by 
 command of Shah Alam, the son and successor of Aurungzib, openly 
 put to death. Delhi was soon the theatre of civil war for the succes- 
 sion to the imperial throne, and the Sikhs ceased for the time to be 
 the objects of much attention or of persecution. Once more they 
 resumed their habits of predatory warfare, but with more impu-
 
 264 
 
 DECLINE OF MOHAMMEDAN POWER. 
 
 iiity than heretofore, and the sect gradually and quietly extended its 
 numbers. 
 
 Thirty-two years after the death of Aurungzib, under whom the 
 Mohammedan empire in India attained its highest pitch of glory, and 
 four years after the Mahrattas from the south had burnt the suburbs 
 of Delhi, a warning so to speak to the great Mohammedan States in 
 the west, not to let the treasures of the Moghul Emperors fall into the 
 hands of the unbelievers, the imperial capital was plundered and 
 reduced to ashes by Nadir Shah, who, however, made no long stay 
 there, but left India most precipitately, returning laden with treasures 
 to his own land, after uniting to his empire that part of the Moghul 
 dominions lying on the light bank of the Indus. Notwithstanding the 
 throne of the house of Timur was undermined, an able and independent 
 prince had succeeded in propping up the tottering edifice, strengthen- 
 ing and restoring it to something of its original order. Bat it wanted 
 real stability, and the two powerful governors of the provinces watched 
 their opportunity to avail themselves of the weakness of their masters, 
 who now followed each other in quick succession, and established their 
 own independence. 
 
 There was still, however, a spell in the name of the Emperor of 
 Delhi, which averted the breaking out of an open rebellion; nor were 
 there wanting many men of ability who were willing to devote them- 
 selves and identify their fortunes with that throne to which they were 
 indebted for their own power ; but their loyalty was for the most part 
 but very ill rewarded by the feeble successors of Baber. 
 
 Nadir Shah was murdered in the year 1743; his servant and friend 
 Ahmed Khan Abdalli, an Afghan, taking advantage of the confusion 
 consequent on his death, subdued and took possession of that portion 
 of his vast dominions, Afghanistan, which Nadir Shah had united to 
 Persia. He assumed the title of Ahmed Shah, made Kandahar his 
 capital, and undertook the invasion of India, in order to chastise the 
 infidels. A dispute between two brothers for the governorship of 
 Lahor, in 1747, gave him an opportunity of declaring himself the 
 protector of one, and brought him into the very heart of the falling 
 empire. He speedily conquered Lahor, and resolved not to lose sight
 
 VIGILANT UULE OF AHMED SHAH. 265 
 
 of his good fortune. He then hastened towards Delhi, but without any 
 successful result, for the brave Mir Manu gave him battle near Sir- 
 hind, and compelled him to retrace his steps beyond the Indus. The 
 second invasion, in 1748, was bought off by Mir Manu, who, as a 
 reward for his military conduct, had been invested with the Governor- 
 ship of Lahor ; but the third, which took place in 1751, made him 
 master of the city, after a very sharp struggle. The rainy season soon 
 obliged him to recross the Indus, but he left Mir Manu, who had so 
 well defended Lahor against him, as his representative there ; and on 
 the death of this brave viceroy, which happened soon afterwards, his 
 son, a child, and at his death, his widow, were permitted to succeed as 
 governors in his room, a plain proof of the miserable state of affairs at 
 Delhi, that in such difficult times children and women were thought 
 capable of being intrusted with places of such high importance. 
 
 In 1755, Ahmed Shah appeared for the fourth time in India, and 
 without encountering any opposition, he advanced from Lahor to Delhi. 
 There he espoused a princess of the house of Timur, laid the city under 
 a heavy contribution, and returned homewards again, leaving the feeble 
 monarch, who had given him so little trouble, on his ancestral throne. 
 He united Sirhind and the Panjab to his own dominions, appointed 
 Timur his son, then only eleven years old, as his viceroy in Lahor, and 
 recrossed the Indus. 
 
 In the Panjab, confusion was now at its height, and the Sikh sect 
 enlarged itself almost unnoticed, and carried on with impunity the pro- 
 fession of regular highway robbery. In order to put a stop to this state 
 of things, and make the Government more respected, the Viceroy Timur 
 was directed by Ahmed Shah, to require the presence of all his vassals 
 at court, and in particular, Adina Beg, the most powerful Jaghirdar 
 in the new provinces, was commanded to repair to Lahor, and do homage 
 to his new sovereign. Adina Beg, who had long enjoyed his indepen- 
 dence in the Jalander Doab, excused himself on this summons; and 
 when Timiir would have compelled his appearance, he imagined a 
 terrible means of insuring the continuance of his own power; he 
 invited Mulhar-Rao Holkar, the cliief of the Mahrattas, who con- 
 sidered all India as their prey at that period, and promised him a large
 
 266 TOTAL DEFEAT OF THE AIAHRATTAS. 
 
 sum of money for every day that he would make the Panjab the field 
 of his incursions. 
 
 Holkar was not slow to profit by this invitation, and the Sikhs 
 served as auxiliaries in Holkar's army, as they had before served in the 
 Persian army against the Moghuls. The Mahrattas entered the Pan- 
 jab, expelled the Viceroy, plundered Lahor, captured the baggage of the 
 fugitive Timur, and retraced their steps towards Hindüsthan, leaving a 
 garrison behind them to keep possession of Lahor, while the Sikhs 
 carried on their robberies unmolested. 
 
 Meanwhile, Ahmed Shah, assembling a force more numerous than 
 any with which he had hitherto entered Hindüsthan, resolved to chastise 
 Adina Beg ; the death of this chief, however, precluded the meditated 
 vengeance of the Abdali. The Mahrattas at this period were at the zenith 
 of their power ; and intelligence of Ahmed Shah's advance with a large 
 army, was received by the Mohammedan princes of India with a feeling 
 of universal satisfaction. All prepared themselves forthwith to join 
 him with their troops, and make war against the common enemy. Nor 
 was the Peshwa, the chief of the Mahrattas in the Dekhan, indifferent 
 to the gathering storm. He mustered all his forces, well aware that the 
 question now to be determined, was not merely which Mohammedan or 
 Hindu prince was to occupy the throne of Delhi, but which power was 
 henceforth to preponderate throughout India, — which of the two in fine 
 was to be the lord, and which the servant. 
 
 On the 7th of July, 1761, the fate of India was once more contested 
 at Paniput ; the Mahrattas were utterly defeated ; and in the battle and 
 subsequent flight to the Dekhan, they are said to have lost not less 
 than 200,000 men*. 
 
 * The carnage and desolation which ensued on all these great revolutions, arc 
 very imperfectly measured by the numbers actually slain in the field of battle. lu 
 modern warfare artillery has effected a great change — the discipline and skill of 
 military tactics a yet greater diminution of the horrors of war. Medical skill also 
 comes in aid of the claims of civilization and humanity. But in all these early 
 contests, the hatred of the Shiah and the Siini, the rival sects of Mohammedanism ; 
 the rooted aversion of the Hindus of every class to the followers of the prophet; 
 inspired the contending parties with motives to implacable revenge and unheard-of
 
 AHMED shah's OVERSIGHT. 267 
 
 After remainintr a few days only in Delhi, Ahmed Shah recrossed 
 the Indus, leaving Zain Khan in Sirhind, and Khaja Obeid in Lahor, as 
 his Viceroys. At first sight, it appears unaccountable that Ahmed 
 Shah should not have declared himself at once Emperor of Delhi, as he 
 might then so easily have done. Perhaps he was deterred by the con- 
 viction that the separate portions of the Empire had become too 
 powerful to be governed from one great central point. This obstacle 
 chiefly proceeded from the preponderating influence of the Orarah or 
 nobles, who had long considered themselves as so many sovereigns, and 
 hence offered so much opposition to the different Emperors, that the 
 imperial government had scarce more than the shadow of authority over 
 them. The alliance of Ahmed Shah with the house of Timiir, might 
 also tend to predispose him in favour of its fallen greatness, as well as 
 his own disposition, which had more of humanity in it than had been seen 
 in any conqueror of India who had preceded him. 
 
 This explanation of the early events which occurred in the north of 
 India, though not strictly connected with the Sikhs, was necessary in 
 order to show the degree of confusion existing there, which was so 
 favourable for the growth and projects of that religious sect. At this 
 same period, the great majority of the Sikhs were agriculturists, or 
 owners of one or more wells, by which the value of property is calcu- 
 lated in their country, and were without exception men who were 
 sighing for an opportunity of taking the spear in hand, and mounting 
 their steeds to endeavour by robbery to increase their scanty means. 
 Whenever the Mohammedans were at war with each other, they 
 
 cruelties. It is calculated tliat 4,.'?47,000 persons, perished in the destmction of 
 three principal cities of Khorasan by Timür, and a very much larger number in 
 the irruption of Clmiigcz Kliun into China. The British supremacy in Üie East 
 has certainly been effected at a comparatively small sacrifice of life ; and if it has 
 not accomplished all the good that its advocates might desire, it is xvoU to advert 
 to the discontmuance of such unmitigated atrocities a.s were perpetrated in Asiatic 
 wars, under the cloak of religion ; also to the resources of nKHÜeal skill and 
 Christian principle in abatement of the disease, suffering, and injusüeo, which, 
 in the sequel, had heretofore proved more destructive than the «word itself. 
 —E(L
 
 268 RISE OF KANJIT SINGH's FAMILY. 
 
 engaged a number of these marauders in their service: they fought 
 against each other in the opposite ranks without the least scruple, being 
 in fact mere mercenaries, using religion as their watchword, when no 
 other pretext served as a decent cloak for their atrocities. The fact of 
 a separate sect of these zealots, called Akali, having brought themselves 
 into notice from the main body of the Sikhs, shows how greatly they 
 must have degenerated from their original institutions. These Akali, 
 when fighting for their faith, threw aside their garments with the 
 exception of their turban, and urging on their fleet coursers, bran- 
 dished their sabres, and with a shrill war-cry compelled their fellow 
 believers to proceed against the enemy. 
 
 Ahmed Shah was too much occupied with his conquests in other 
 countries to keep these new provinces constantly in view ; and so long 
 as the taxes could be raised, the Governors of Lahor and Sirhind gave 
 themselves very little concern about those disorders, occasioned every- 
 where by the growing power of the Sikhs ; hence, nothing could be 
 more favourable to these fanatics than the posture of affairs at that 
 period. Their confidence and expectation of success augmented in 
 proportion to the impunity with which they were allowed to carry on 
 their depredations, while the peaceful inhabitants of the Panjab became 
 aware that nothing but their conversion to the new doctrines could 
 insure to them the quiet which they would have purchased at any price. 
 Whenever the opportunity presented itself for an incursion, a small band 
 of horsemen suddenly swelled into an army ; and on the approach of an 
 overwhelming Mohammedan force, this army was suddenly transformed 
 again into a body of husbandmen, quietly occupied in the cultivation of 
 their fields. The day of vengeance had arrived for the long-oppressed 
 Hindus against their hard task-masters the Mohammedans, nor could 
 it be expected they would neglect to take advantage of it. The Sikhs 
 wanted some places of security to lodge their booty in, to preserve it 
 from the dangers of a sudden surprise. At this time Nodh Singh 
 became distinguished among the many leaders of the various parties 
 who were carrying on war on their own account. He was the great- 
 grandfather of Ilanjit Singh, and the son of üisu, a Jat, whose property 
 as a peasant was very trifling. Nodh Singh was tlie first of the family
 
 NATURE OF THE PETTY FORTS IN INDIA. '2G9 
 
 who made profession of the Sikh religion. Hv died in 1 750, and his son 
 Charat Singh formed a party of his own . A s ho was favoured by fortune, 
 he was very soon in a situation to erect a Garhi, or fort, at Guseraoli, 
 which he surrounded with mud walls, and made the storehouse for his 
 booty. In every respect, the place was well chosen : it was situated 
 in the vicinity of Labor, and in the midst of the Sikh population, to 
 whom, on emergency, it might serve as a rallying-point. From the 
 period when the Mahrattas entered the Panjab by Hindusthan, this 
 population had been gradually moving towards the most northerly point 
 of Hindüsthan and the Panjab, where the prevailing disorders seemed 
 to offer them a much wider field of booty than any other part of India. 
 In the year 1762, the perpetration of some daring acts of robbery, 
 undertaken from Guseraoli, first drew the attention of the Viceroy of 
 Labor, Khaja Obied, to the place. He marched forthwith to destroy 
 it ; but it was a post of great importance to the Sikhs, and they had in- 
 timation of the Viceroy's design in sufficient time to throw a strong 
 force into the Garhi. These forts, however unimportant, have at all 
 times been sufficient to present great impediments in the way of Indian 
 armies, and prolong their wars to an indefinite period. The military 
 equipments of Khaja Obied were on too small a scale for him to capture 
 this petty fortress within a short time, and the composition of his army 
 caused him infinite embarrassment during the prolonged siege. In his 
 expeditions against the Emperor of Delhi, in Hindusthan and the 
 Panjab, Ahmed Shah Abdali, like other Mohammedans, had enlisted 
 Sikh soldiers in his service ; his Governor, Khaja Obied, followed his 
 example, and had a large body of them among his troops. This fact 
 proves plainly enough that the Sikhs thought much more of plunder 
 than of spreading their faith, and were ever ready to take the field with 
 friend or foe, where they had any prospect of acquiring it. So long as 
 the Moghuls had a higher remuneration to offer, they served them; but 
 as soon as Ahmed Shah had become master of the country, several of 
 the Sikhs amassed considerable wealth, and the poorer classes of this 
 sect joined the Mohammedans in hope of spoiling their more fortunate 
 brethren, and dividing the plunder among them. 
 
 While Khaja Obied was carrying on his slow operation«; before
 
 270 AHMED shah's VIGILANCE. 
 
 Guseraoli, the Sikhs in his service began to negotiate with their 
 brethren in the fortress. On a day appointed, they forsook their posts 
 simultaneously ; the other troops, on hearing of this desertion, took 
 to flight ; and the combined Sikhs, without striking a blow, got pos- 
 session of the camp: meanwhile Khaja Obied escaped with difficulty 
 to Lahor : nor did he venture to leave the walls of that city. For the 
 first time since the foundation of their religion, the Sikhs found them- 
 selves strong enough to have a public assembly, Sarhat Kalsa, in 
 Amritsir. This place, the ancient Chak, was of great importance in 
 their estimation ; for it was there that the fourth of their Gurus, Ram 
 Das, constructed that celebrated tank in 1521, which he called Amrit 
 Saras, or the Spring of Immortality, because they who bathed in its 
 waters were cleansed from their sins. Thence was derived the name 
 of the city Amritsir. 
 
 As soon as Ahmed Shah learned what had befallen his general, he 
 prepared, in November, 1762, to recross the Indus, chastise the rebels, 
 and liberate Khaja Obied. His approach was the signal to the Sikhs to 
 disperse themselves in different directions, the majority taking refuge in 
 Hindüsthan. Ahmed Shah arriving in Labor without encountering an 
 enemy, commanded Zain Khan, his Viceroy in Sirhind, to observe 
 the movements of the fugitives, and summoned all his Mohammedan 
 vassals or Jaghirdars to send him their contingent of troops. He soon 
 received notice that the Sikhs had assembled in vast numbers at Kos 
 Rahira, in Hindüsthan. Whereupon, he left Lahor secretly, at the head 
 of a select division of his army, and in the course of thirty-six hours 
 was at Ludiana, on the other side of the Setlej, a surprising march. 
 Here he allowed his troops a few hours' rest, and the next morning 
 reached Kos Rahira, where the Sikhs, trusting to their superiority 
 in numbers, had just attacked the governor of Sirhind. The appear- 
 ance of the black fur caps, the well-known uniform of the flower of the 
 army of the Abdali, suddenly changed the aspect of affairs. Seized 
 with a sudden panic, the Sikhs never thought of offering them any oppo- 
 sition, and Ahmed Shah took a bloody revenge on them for all the 
 trouble they had given him. From twenty to thirty thousand Sikhs 
 are said to have fallen on this field of battle, and it was only when his
 
 ENERGY OF THE MOM ANr MEDANS. J?! 
 
 soldiers were tired of slaughtering, that the survivors were enabled to 
 save themselves by flight. The battle is known to the Sikhs by the 
 name of Ghalii Ohara, or the bloody massacre. 
 
 An honourable trait in Ahmed Shah's character may be mentioned 
 here. Ala Sing, Sirdar of Patiala, was brought a prisoner to Lahor, 
 and his valour in the field and courage when brought into Ahmed's 
 presence so gained the admiration of his conqueror, that he not only 
 received a pardon, but with it the khilat, or dress of honour, and the 
 title of Raja. 
 
 Ahmed Shah then marched towards Amritsir, ordered the temple 
 of Hnrmanden (Hari), which stood in the centre of the sacred tank, 
 to be blown up with gunpowder, the water to be choked up with sand 
 and stones, and rendered unclean by throwing in the blood and 
 carcasses of cows (a profanation even more terrible, according to the 
 maxims of the Sikh faith, than in the estimation of the Brahmins 
 themselves); and finally, appointing Kabuli Mai, a Brahmin from 
 Kabul, his deputy in Lahor, he returned at the end of the year 17G2 
 to Kandahar. But he had scarcely time to cross the Indus, ere he 
 received the news that the Sikhs had again broken out into open revolt, 
 seized the fort of Kasur, and appeared before Sirhind with 40,000 
 horsemen. The governor, Zain Khan, accepted the battle offered 
 by them, which terminated in his death, and the defeat of his army. 
 Sirhind itself, one of the handsomest and richest cities in Hindüsthan, 
 fell into their power, and after having suffered much from their 
 devastations so far back as 1707, was now made a heap of ruins. 
 This rage for its destruction proceeded from the remembrance, that in 
 the time of Aurungzib, the wife and child of Govind Singh had been 
 put to death there, and its ruin was therefore, in their eyes, merely an 
 act of just retribution. Even at the present time, it is considered a 
 most meritorious action for a Sikh to tear out the bricks from some 
 detached piece of wall yet standing, and throw them into the Setlej or 
 the Jamna. 
 
 Ahmed Shah entered India in 17G4, for the seventh time, and the 
 rebels took refuge in the desert bordering on Itajpiitana, and escaped 
 the meditated vengeance of the Alxlali. who wa- compelled to return
 
 272 WILY PROCEEDINGS OF THE SIKHS. 
 
 homewards without having seen one Sikh. No sooner did the insurgents 
 hear of his departure, than they found their way back to the Panjab. 
 Their first exploit was the capture of Labor, which Kabuli Mai, feeling 
 himself too weak in troops to hold out against them, evacuated on their 
 approach. The indefatigable Ahmed moved back, marched through 
 Labor and as far as the Setlej, the cunning Sikhs as usual dispersing 
 before his army. On this occasion, strange to say, a Sikh Sirdar called 
 Amar Singh, the son of the before-named Ala Singh, of Patiala, 
 received from Ahmed Shah the investiture of Sirhind, which his father 
 had exchanged with the Sikh conquerors for a few villages. He was 
 now established in it with the title of Maba Raja. It is said that 
 Amar Singh appeared dressed for the ceremony in the presence of the 
 Abdali, with the long hair and beard, the requisite distinctions of a 
 Sikh. He was commanded to cut them off directly, and only obtained 
 the privilege of retaining them by paying down a lakh of rupees to 
 Ahmed Shah. 
 
 Without waiting for the orders of the Shah, twelve thousand of his 
 soldiers suddenly decamped at this time, and marched back to Kabul, 
 Ahmed being compelled to follow them. With much difficulty and the 
 loss of his baggage he reached the Indus, pursued by the Sikhs, whom 
 he thus left in undisturbed possession of the Panjab and of Sirhind, 
 with the exception of some few Mohammedan principalities, which were 
 too well defended to give any hope of their sudden alienation. 
 
 The Sikhs were not governed at this period by any one prince, but 
 were divided into twelve fraternities, called Misal, each one acting 
 according to its own interest and ways of thinking. Twice in the year, 
 at the anniversary of great festivals, at the Bysakhi, in April, and at 
 the Diwali, in October, the Sikhs assembled in Amritsir and held a 
 Gurmatta, or general council, where everything relating to their affairs 
 was deliberated, their future enterprises resolved on, and according to 
 their importance, the co-operation of the whole brotherhood or of one 
 or more divisions called for. Without much regard to unity of 
 purpose in such enterprises, every Sikh Sirdar was accustomed to live 
 at the expense of his Hindu and Mohammedan neighbours. When 
 Ahmed Shah ceased finally to interfere in the affairs of the Panjab, in
 
 I'HE SIKH CONFEDERATION. '27-i 
 
 the year 17G4, the twelve Misals numbered as follow: — 1. P.aiigi 
 Misal, 10,000 armed horsemen; 2. Kamffarhia Misal, 3000; 3. Ghania 
 Misal, 8000; 4. Nakia Misal. 2000; 5. Aluwala Misal, 3000; 6. 
 Daliala Misal, 7500; 7. Nishanwala Misal, 12,000; 8. FaizuUapuria 
 Misal, 2500; 9. Khora Sinphia Misal, 12,000; 10. Shahid and Nihang 
 Misal, 2000; ll.Phalkia and Bhekia Misal, 5000; 12. Sukcr Chakia 
 Misal, 2500: making a total of 69.500 horsemen. 
 
 The chiefs of these Misals were, properly, only the commanders of 
 the troops in their general enterprises, but they were always the most 
 considerable men in the Misal. Each individual horseman, however, 
 had some property, whether small or large, and was, in truth, an arbitrary 
 chief, who formed a member of the Misal, just as it suited his own 
 pleasure, or when some common interest was at stake; we need not 
 dwell on the impossibility of any State, governed by 69,500 tyrants, 
 being either supportable to others, or lasting in itself. Its existence 
 was protracted only so long as there was a foreign enemy to oppose, 
 the baggage train of an Ahmed Shah to plunder, or the territory of a 
 Mohammedan prince to enter for spoil and devastation. Peace brought 
 its unfailing consequences; divisions and strife between the different 
 Misals. Ahmed Shah died in 1773, and his son, Timur, more 
 peaceably inclined by nature, never seems to have contemplated the 
 subjugation of the PanJ£ib. During his reign of twenty years, the last 
 of the above-named Misals, the Suker Chakia, had advanced in 
 number and power beyond most of the other fraternities. Its founder 
 was Charat Singh, the grandfather of Ranjit, a common trooper, to 
 whom fortune was so kindly disposed, that at his death he left behind 
 him a revenue of three lakhs of rupees. He fell a victim to the 
 bursting of one of his own guns at the assault on Jamii, in 1747, 
 leaving a son, Maha Singh, only ten years old. The widow placed 
 herself and the lad under the protection of Jai Singh, the chief of the 
 powerful Bangi Misal, until Mahä Singh was old cMiough, in 1778, to 
 marry the daughter of the Sirdar of Jhind, and maintain his own inde- 
 pendence. His life from that period was one unbroken series of 
 audacious robbery, the plundering of Jamu being the most profitable 
 of his enterprises, though it nearly caused his ruin. 
 
 T
 
 274 ORIGIN Ol' KANJIT SINGh's POWER. 
 
 Jamii was at this time one of the richest towns of India, the inha- 
 bitants of the Panjab having made it their usual place of refuge, where 
 they conveyed all their treasures*. It belonged to a Hindu Raja called 
 Ranjit-Deo, a friend of Jai Singh, who was naturally very much 
 incensed when Mahä Singh, who owed even his territories to his 
 protection, now made war without first consulting him, and that, against 
 his own friend, terminating it with the plunder of Jamu, and the 
 exaction of contributions from the richest Sikh Sirdars. The more 
 particular details of this contest, with which the present pov^er of 
 Ranjit Singh's house originated, will be given in the sequel. It produced 
 a war between Mahä Singh and Jai Sing, which terminated in a battle, 
 the rout of Jai Singh's army, and the fall of his eldest son, Gur 
 Bakhsh Singh. This disaster humbled the pride of this chieftain. Old 
 and infirm, he saw himself prostrated before the man who was his debtor 
 for all he had, and forced to accept the terms of peace prescribed to 
 him. The articles of this treaty prove how little the Sikh chieftains 
 of that time understood their own real interests. One of Mahä Singh's 
 allies was a Hindu Raja, called Sansar Chand, who, some years before, 
 had surrendered to Jai Singh the very important hill-fort of Kängra. 
 According to the treaty now imposed on him, this place was restored 
 to Sansar Chand, to the evident injui'y of the whole Sikh nation. 
 
 An important alliance was early formed for Ranjit Singh, who when 
 five years old was betrothed by his father to Mehtab Kunwar, a female 
 of high lineage, the daughter of that Gur Bakhsh Singh slain in 
 battle against him. Her mother, Suda Kunwar, was a woman versed 
 in cunning and intrigue of every kind, and laid the foundation for much 
 of the future greatness of Ranjit, by artfully causing the two remain- 
 ing sons of Jai Singh to be deprived of their heritage in the Bangi 
 Misal, and herself to be made the guardian of her young daughter. 
 
 * Jamii, or Junimoo, as it is frequently written, was a place of great note, and 
 the resort of the principal merchants in the Panjab, who made it the great entre- 
 pot for the trade of Kashmir, till the town was plundered by Mt.hä Singh, when 
 the current of the great shawl trade was distributed in other quarters, chiefly be- 
 tween Amritsir and Lahor. — /tr/.
 
 POLICY OF TMK SIKHS. '275 
 
 Maha Singh died in 179'2, Jiii Singh the following year, when this 
 aspiring woman instantly prepared to govern the two powerful Misals, 
 until her son-in-law should be of age to take the reins of power into 
 his own hands. 
 
 The intrigues of Hanjit Singli himself, and his fortunate exploits 
 are related elsewhere. Here, it will be sufficient to remark, that the 
 three first years of his minority passed quietly, and that the three 
 following years were distinguished by the renewed incursions of the 
 Afghans. On the death of the peaceably-disposed Timur in 1793, 
 Shah Zeman ascended the throne of Kabul. Thirty-one years had 
 elapsed since the Panjab was disturbed by foes from without, when in 
 1795, Shah Zeman crossed the Atok, with the avowed object of retaking 
 those Indian provinces which had succeeded in separating themselves 
 from the dominion of his grandfather, Ahmed Shah. But this expe- 
 dition, as well as a second in 1797, only proved the utter ignorance of 
 this prince as to the real state of affairs. They both occasioned great 
 disorders in the country, where neither glory nor riches were at that 
 time to be acquired ; but the invaders had never the opportunity given 
 them to combat honourably, and each separate division, as it marched, 
 found itself encompassed by vast bands of plunderers. Instead of one 
 king, Shah Zeman had to oppose 69,500 chiefs, and as the power was 
 thus subdivided, so was also the wealth of the country : the soldiers 
 of course had little chance of enriching themselves by booty; for the 
 Sikhs fled, each man with his property before the advancing foe, ready 
 at a moment's notice, to turn and fall on them, when he felt himself 
 strong enough, and plunder their baggage or cut off their provisions. 
 Many of the Sikh Sirdars did outwardly submit to the Shah, either for 
 the promotion of their own interests, or in order to be ready for anv 
 moment of peril. 
 
 In 1798, Shah Zeman made his appearance again in the Panjab 
 with a powerful force, and possessed himself of Lahor without meeting 
 with opposition. Most of the Sirdars of the Panjab did him homage 
 in person ; others, among whom was Kanjit Singh, who was then 
 governing his own Misal, performed this duty by deputy. A temporary 
 residence there, however, was sufticient fo ronviiue Shah Z('ni;iii that 
 
 T L'
 
 276 INVESTITURE OF RANJIT SINGH. 
 
 there was no good reason to believe that the provinces of the Panjab 
 and Sirhind would ever again form part of his empire. He was forced 
 to return to Afghanistan with all possible dispatch, having received 
 information that his brother Shah Mahmud had established himself in 
 the western provinces of his kingdom, and had called on Persia to assist 
 him in his projects. 
 
 When Shah Zeman captured Lahor, Ranjit Singh withdrew to 
 Sirhind, but had no sooner ascertained that the conqueror was about to 
 leave the country, than he instantly retraced his steps to the Panjab, and 
 followed the retreating army, undecided how to act, as a friend or as a foe, 
 but quite resolved to be guided according to his own interest, and the 
 circumstances which should present themselves. His ambition grasped 
 at the possession of Lahor, then divided between three Sikh Sirdars. 
 
 Shah Zeman arrived at the Jelam on his return homewards. The 
 river was much swollen by the rains, and twelve of his guns sank down 
 deep in the soft muddy soil ; but the Shah did not consider this accident 
 of sufficient moment to induce him to wait until they could be extri- 
 cated ; he contented himself with offering Ranjit Singh the investiture 
 of Lahor, if he would send them after him. Lahor, however, as we 
 have observed, had been partitioned between three Sikh Sirdars, both 
 before the invasion of the Abdalis and also after their departure ; the 
 proposition of the Shah, in point of fact, simply admitted the right of 
 Ranjit Singh to conquer it on his own account, if he were able; and 
 Ranjit believed that this investiture might be useful to him, not so 
 much to give his conquest a certain apparent right in the minds of his 
 fellow Sikhs, as to bring over the Mohammedan population of Lahor 
 more effectually to his party. He forthwith sent eight guns to the Shah, 
 and in reward received the investiture of Lahor, with the title of Raja. 
 Not tarrying to make his right good by intrigue, he entered the city in 
 1799 by a gate opened for him by the Mohammedans, took possession 
 of this important post, and forced the three Sikh Sirdars to accept some 
 trifling jaghirs or fiefs, as a compensation for their loss. 
 
 The contests which took place for the throne of Kabi'il among the 
 sons of Timur, who had transferred the seat of government to that 
 citv, allowed them no time to think of reconquering the Panjab, and
 
 THK SIKH TKKKirOKY ÜEFINKU. 277 
 
 their unhappy dissensions so enfeebled their country, that it assumed 
 towards its powerful neighbour an aspect purely defensive. On this 
 side, then, Ranjit Singh, whom we may henceforth consider as the 
 King of the Sikhs, was quite secure; while the British had too many 
 weighty affairs on their hands to interpose any hindrance in his path. 
 When his power had grown to an unlimited height in the Panjab, 
 through the suppression and subjugation of the Mohammedan princes 
 and the Sikh Sirdars, who could not comprehend their obvious policy 
 of union against the common enemy; and lastly, through his conquests 
 over the Hindu and Mohammedan Rajas in the mountains between the 
 Panjab and the Himalaya, then at length the Sikh Sirdars on the left 
 bank of the Setlej saw but one means of saving their possessions, 
 namely, by placing themselves under the protection of the East India 
 Company, lately become their near neighbour. Accordingly, an em- 
 bassy from these Sikhs arrived at Delhi in 1807, with proposals for a 
 treaty, which was concluded in 1809, and the Setlej declared as the 
 boundary of the British territories towards the north-west. 
 
 This treaty was the cause of Ranjit Singh's just displeasure to his 
 brethren of that faith, and it was long ere he could bring himself to 
 yield his pretensions to the command of the whole Sikh nation, or 
 reconcile himself to his territorial limits being removed to the 
 Setlej instead of the Jamna as heretofore. In vain he strove to gain 
 time; the movement of a considerable body of English troops on 
 Ludiana shewed him that the diplomatic negotiations were brought to 
 a close. Presently he sent a detachment over the boundaries, who 
 occupied Bilaspoor, but was obliged to countermand it on the advance 
 of the British force, and admit the hard condition, that his territories 
 should not be extended to the left bank of the Setlej. 
 
 Angry as the INIaha Raja was, he was aware of the necessity of 
 coming to terms with the British Government, whose territories actually 
 bordered on his own ; and, after some hesitation, he accepted the treaty 
 proposed to him by their plenipotentiary, Mr. Charles Metcalfe, the 
 conditions of which were as follow : — 
 
 " Article I. Perpetual friendship shall subsist between the British 
 Government and the State of Lahor, and the latter shall be considered
 
 278 TREATIES WITH THE SIKH STATES. 
 
 with respect to the former to be on the footing of the most favoured 
 Powers; and the British Government will have no concern with the 
 territories and subjects of the Rajas to the northward of the river 
 Setlej. 
 
 " Article II. The Raja Ranjit Singh will never maintain in the ter- 
 ritories which he occupies on the left bank of the Setlej more troops 
 than are necessary for the internal duties of the territory, nor commit, 
 nor suffer any encroachment on the possessions or rights of the chiefs in 
 its vicinity. 
 
 " Article III. In the event of any violation of the preceding articles, 
 or of any departure from the rules of friendship on the part of either 
 State, this treaty shall be considered to be null and void." 
 
 [The fourth and last article provides for the exchange of ratifications.] 
 
 "Lahor, 25th May, 1809." 
 
 The following is the proclamation (Itälanäma) issued in the name 
 of the general Government on the arrival of the British corps at 
 Lildiana, the northernmost point on the Setlej, and addressed by their 
 commander to the Sikh Sirdars. 
 
 This is to make known : — 
 
 First. That the territories of Sirhind and Malooa, (the designation 
 assumed by the Sikhs of Puteeala, Naba, Jheend, and Kythul, have 
 been taken under British protection, and Ranjit Singh has bound him- 
 self by treaty to exercise in future no interference therein. 
 
 Second. That it is not the intention of the British Government 
 to demand any tribute from the Chiefs and Sirdars benefiting by this 
 arrangement. 
 
 Third. That the Chiefs and Sirdars will be permitted to exercise, 
 and are for the future secured in, the rights and authorities they pos- 
 sessed in their respective states, prior to and at the time of the 
 declaration of protection by the British Government. 
 
 Fourth. That the Chiefs and Sirdars shall be bound to offer every 
 facility and accommodation to British troops and detachments employed 
 in securing the protection guaranteed, or for purposes otherwise con- 
 nected with the general interests of the state, whenever the same may 
 bo marched into, or stationed in their respective territories.
 
 OBVIOUS DESIGN OF TlIK TREATIES. 279 
 
 Fifth. In case of invasion or war the Sirdars are to join the 
 British standard with their followers whenever called upon. 
 
 Sixth. Merchants conveying articles, the produce of Europe, for 
 the use of the detachments at Ludiana, or of any other British force 
 or detachment, shall not be subject to transit duties, but must be pro- 
 tected in their passage through the Sikh country. 
 
 Seventh. In like manner horses for the cavalry, when furnished 
 with passports from competent oflScers, must be exempt from all tax. 
 
 This proclamation, favourable as it certainly was to the Sikh chiefs, 
 ensured the safety of their country from the invasion of Ranjit Singh, 
 and appears to the uninitiated an instance of the rarest disinterested- 
 ness on the part of the British Government. He is inclined to believe 
 that the sole object of the rulers of Hindüsthan was to bring about a 
 general state of peace, and the extension, nominally, of their frontier 
 to the Setlej. But those better informed on Eastern politics, will soon 
 see how this treaty, according to Indian usage, gave the Company the 
 right to possess themselves of any of those territories when the ruler 
 happened to die childless, a case which, in consequence of the excessively 
 dissolute manners of the Sikhs, cannot fail within a short time to 
 happen in most of the ruling families. The twenty-five years which 
 have elapsed since this proclamation was issued, have already put the 
 Company in possession of a large portion of these provinces. 
 
 This cursory notice of the history of the Sikhs may serve to explain 
 the present condition of the Panjab. Ranjit Singh has now gradually 
 become master of every district on the right bank of the Setlej, except- 
 ing some few belonging to petty chiefs, who have possessions also on 
 the left bank. These have been spared out of mere policy. The rest 
 of the Panjab is subject to his sovereignty, and the Sirdars and chief- 
 tains do homage to him as their liege lord. 
 
 The ephemeral power of the Mahrattas arose on the ruins of the 
 gigantic monarchy of the Emperors of Delhi, which, as often as it 
 shewed symptoms of decay, seemed destined to rise again. One dy- 
 nasty succeeded another, but the throne was still filled; institutions 
 and usages remaining unalterably the same. In default of any judi- 
 cious system of govornnicnt, and supported by mere individual supe-
 
 280 ORIGIN OF THE MAHKATTA POWER. 
 
 riority of intellect, the empire at length went to decay. The more 
 powerful men in the state never contended for the crown in fair open 
 warfare, but had recourse to poison or the dagger to rid themselves of 
 every obnoxious rival. The Mohammedan religion, and the system of 
 invasions and conquest then in vogue, rendered it necessary to depart 
 from the natural order of hereditary succession ; the most powerful, 
 enterprising, or favoured prince succeeded to the throne ; and these 
 changes necessarily produced in all classes of the people a restless 
 unquiet spirit. The moment that their monarchs ceased to be con- 
 querors, the empire began to languish, and the stronger the single 
 portions of it became, the more irretrievable was the general ruin. The 
 Mohammedan system had, notwithstanding, the spirit of continuance in 
 it ; there were among them many deeply-thinking men, who strove for 
 the possession of the world, and took due measures to ensure success ; 
 thev introduced their laws into the conquered provinces ; regard was 
 had to ancient usages ; the viceroys upheld the laws of the land ; one 
 regular system embraced the whole empire, and the dispositions made 
 by the great Akbar evince a high degree of administrative sagacity. 
 Nothing of this kind can be instanced in the Mahratta Government. 
 Hosts of robbers, like birds of prey, swept over India without any 
 systematic plan, suddenly invading those points where the vast distance 
 might have precluded the least probability of attack. Their sole rule 
 of government seeming to consist in the exaction of the Chout, or 
 tribute, which amounted to the fourth part of the revenue of the 
 country, cruel to the defenceless, overbearing to the humble, dastardly 
 where they met with a brave resistance, their power lasted no longer than 
 the alarm occasioned by their inroads. Their nominal dominion, con- 
 sequent on the disorders which had eflFected the ruin of the overgrown 
 empire of the Moghuls, was entirely subverted on the first rencounter 
 with a regular power. This also would have been the case with the 
 Sikhs, had not natural limits been set to their territories. 
 
 The power of Delhi, which otherwise might have directed all its 
 energies to restrain the growth of the new state to the north-west, was 
 assailed by foes from within as well as without. The Mahrattas in 
 ♦ he south were imolvcd in wars which ended in their downfall; under
 
 INITIATORY KITE OF TIIK SIKH FAITH. 281 
 
 any circumstances it was a matter of indifference to them whom they 
 plundered, or who governed India. Terror of the Afghans kept them 
 away from the north, as well as the conviction that their first appear- 
 ance in the Panjab would leave little enough for any after-gleaning, 
 and that they could be no gainers by interfering in the affairs of the 
 Sikhs and Mohammedans. The new Durani, or Afghan monarchy, 
 was too insecurely established to make any opposition to the formation 
 of the neighbouring empire. The field, therefore, on which the Sikhs 
 carried on their operations was open, though at the same time com- 
 paratively limited. Defined by the right bank of the Setlej, the 
 policy of the British Government had excluded a third part of the 
 Sikh nation from the establishment of the new monarchy. To the 
 west were various warlike tribes who had only to confederate together 
 to crush the rising state at a blow : the boundaries, in fact, were so 
 prescribed both by nature and the state of the surrounding provinces, 
 that no power could have overpassed them, but that peculiar military 
 talent which promptly avails itself of circumstances. Ranjit Singh 
 nevertheless, however ably he went about the work, either did not 
 understand, or did not concern himself to take any further measure to 
 fortify or insure the integrity of his newly-acquired kingdom. 
 
 And here I may be allowed to say a few words on the Sikh religion. 
 The Sikhs, not excepting those in high station, make no pretensions to 
 education. Generally speaking, they are the descendants from all the 
 lowest castes of Hindus, from which they have been proselyted. There 
 are few among them to be found who can either read or write: the only 
 language spoken from the prince to the peasant, is a corrupt Hindiis- 
 thani — the proper provincial dialect of the Panjab. 
 
 In order to give some notion of the principles of this sect, we may 
 briefly instance the prescribed form of initiation into tlieir religion, which 
 consists in drinking the Pahul, a rite established by (iurii (iovind. 
 The neophyte and the officiating priest first wash their feet in water, 
 then put some sugar into a basin of water, stir it with a sword or 
 dagger, and pronounce five nldokas, or verses, the first of which runs 
 thus: —
 
 282 PRINCIPLES OF THE SIKH FAITH. 
 
 Sarawak sidh samoh sidhanak dekh phiriyo ghur Jogi Jatike. 
 Siir Sarawak sidh Sarawak sant samoh anek matike. 
 Sare lii desko dekh phiriyo mut kohu nu dekhat pranpatike. 
 Shri Bhagwänki Bhäi kripa bin ek rati bin ek ratike. 
 
 Which may be thus translated: — 
 
 I have traversed the world, Jogi and Jeti, in short all sorts of devotees have I seen. 
 Holy men and hermits, absorbed in the contemplation of God, of every sort and form. 
 I have traversed every land, but a truly God-fearing man have I never seen. 
 Without God's grace, brother, the works of man are not of the least possible merit. 
 
 The other verses are all to the same general effect. 
 
 In what, then, it may possibly be asked, does the Sikh religion 
 consist, beyond the above ceremony of partaking in the Pahul. 
 It would be difficult to answer this question properly without entering 
 minutely into the history and tenets of Hinduism — or the Brah- 
 minical faith, as it is commonly termed by Europeans. The Hindu 
 considers none but the Brahmin privileged to discuss spiritual matters. 
 He only may read the Veds or Holy Books, which raise the devout 
 mind thus occupied and withdrawn from the sublunary affairs of this 
 world, to a state of blissful abstraction. The Brahmin alone may 
 presume to supplicate the Deity, or enter within the innermost court 
 of the temple, where no other image is seen but the mystical symbol of 
 their divinity. Hindus of every other caste have only to look forward 
 to their transmigration, and to strive by moral rectitude to emulate 
 the holy character of the Brahmins in this state of being, that they 
 may thus have an opportunity afforded them of advancing their 
 immortality in a new birth. They can worship one only among the 
 particular attributes of God, which are displayed under the strangest 
 forms in the outer temple. 
 
 The Sikh faith, therefore, is a modified Hinduism, chiefly differing 
 from the latter in rejecting all distinctions of caste, and the worship of 
 images ; in admitting proselytes of every religion, and allowing each 
 individual to work out his own eternal reward, which, in the Brahmiiiical 
 faith, is the prescriptive right of those only who are twice-born Hindus. 
 
 Nanak, the founder of the Sikh religion, probably desired to divest
 
 RELIGIOUS TENETS OF THE SIKHS. '283 
 
 Hinduism of its exclusiveness, and to lay down the principle, that every 
 man, no matter how humble his birth, is entitled to address the only 
 Creator in prayer. This idea, in fact, is inculcated by the Brahminical 
 religion, with this only difference, that those who do not belong to that 
 faith, can never attain to the new birth, or in other words, make any pro- 
 gress to the divine character, but by the most excessive ascetic practices. 
 This last was unquestionably the discipline which Nanak inculcated on 
 his followers, and which distinguished them from those of other Hindu 
 sects, such as the Yogis, Gosains, &c. His precept was to be constant 
 in prayer, and to maintain peace with all men. Subsequent political 
 events, however, have given to the Sikh faith its present notoriety. 
 
 The Sikhs are not restricted to certain food and water, like the 
 Hindus, but they are forbidden to eat the flesh of beef, or of tame 
 swine, nor dare they smoke tobacco or any substitute for it, — a most 
 salutary prohibition, as the pernicious habit of smoking sufficiently 
 accounts for the want of talent, and indolence so generally observable 
 among all classes of Mohammedans and Hindus. 
 
 The Grunth, or sacred book of the religious laws of the Sikhs, is a 
 compound of mystical absurdities ; like every other religion grounded 
 on pure deism, the faith of the Sikhs is already deteriorated ; image 
 worship and distinction of castes are gradually taking place of the pre- 
 cepts enjoined by their original institutions. 
 
 Tuesday, January 12. — The first night which I had passed in the 
 house of a European, for a very long time, was now over. I had scarcely 
 awoke from a profound sleep, when a messenger arrived from the Maha 
 Raja, to make inquiry after me. I was soon dressed, and found Khalifa 
 Sahib with the commandant of the garrison. They acquainted me that 
 the Mahä Raja greatly regretted he could not see me on that day, 
 which happening to be a grand holiday among the Sikhs, rendered it 
 impossible for him to receive any stranger with due ceremony. He 
 sent me as a present a bed and its furniture, consisting of silk and 
 shawls. 
 
 General Ventura's house, built by himself and General Allard. 
 though of no great size, combines the splendour of the East with
 
 284 EUROPEAN OFFICERS IN THE SIKH ARMY. 
 
 the comforts of a European residence. On the walls of the entrance 
 hall, before the range of pillars on the first story, was portrayed the 
 reception of the two French officers at the court of Ranjit Singh, con- 
 sisting of many thousand figures. The second room is adorned with a 
 profusion of small mirrors in gilt frames, which have an excellent effect; 
 the third is a large hall, extending the entire width of the house, and 
 terminating in the sleeping apartments. At a short distance behind the 
 house stands an ancient tomb, crowned with a lofty dome. This is now- 
 tenanted by the families of the European officers. Standing in the 
 midst of the garden, which has been laid out with great taste, it forms 
 a very striking contrast to the surrounding sandy plain. This spot 
 overlooks an arm of the Ravi, and eastward the old city and necropolis, 
 with countless dilapidated buildings and tombs, which in parts form small 
 hillocks, without any apparent vestige of regular edifices. The neighbour- 
 hood of Lahor abounds in saltpetre, which soon destroys any walls that 
 may be left standing ; and not only these, but covered buildings, crumble 
 beneath its influence, and frequently become an unshapely mass of 
 rubbish. Among these ruins, a square has been cleared for the troops 
 to exercise, in front of General Ventura's house ; and the bricks which 
 have been dug out from them, have been used not only to erect his 
 dwellino-'house, but the barracks for the French legion. These are now 
 unoccupied, as the legion is at Peshawar, nominally under the command 
 of Shir Singh, Ranjit's son, though actually under Avitabile, formerly 
 an officer of Murat's army and court, a pupil of the Polytechnic School 
 at Paris, who is in the Mahä Raja's service. There are very few 
 Europeans in the Panjab. Generals Ventura and Avitable, (besides Allard, 
 who is in Europe on leave,) Colonel Court, and Mr. Fox, an English- 
 man, with some few holding subordinate situations, sum up the entire 
 list. All the troops, regular and irregular, excepting the irregular 
 cavalry, have the French words of command on their being armed with 
 muskets ; and the French legion has the eagle and the tri-coloured flag, 
 with the inscription Govind Singh. Each private has eight rupees a month, 
 a red coat and his arms, but he has to feed and clothe himself. The 
 w hole army is generally kept a twelvemonth in arrear, Ranjit thinking 
 this a good means of securing their subservience to him. The Jemidars,
 
 ENTRANCE TO LAHOR. 285 
 
 or lieutenants, have thirty rupees ; and with the exception of the French 
 legion, all are allowed to dress as they please, so that there is a strange 
 medley of European costumes with those of the Panjab. 
 
 The house was illuminated in the evening, and twenty-five female 
 dancers made their appearance before us, witli their plaintive music. 
 Fireworks were also displayed; and at a late hour another dancer 
 camo with her ])arty: she was specially sent for my entertainment, by the 
 Mahä Raja himself, with many eulogiuras, as a performer of no ordinary 
 merit. She had performed at the Conference between the Governor- 
 General and Ilanjit Singh, from the latter of whom she had received 
 marked testimonies of favour ; but this famed beauty of Lahor, though 
 not more than twenty years old, was already faded, if such an expres- 
 sion can ever be applied to a Hindu. 
 
 Wednesday, January 13. — At nine o'clock, Khalifa Sahib came to 
 conduct me to the palace. He brought with him three elephants, with 
 European howdahs, in which a person can sit upright and stretch out 
 his feet ; a numerous escort was likewise in attendance under the com- 
 mandant of Lahor. Mr. Mackeson had also received an invitation. 
 We entered Lahor by the south gate. When we arrived at the outer 
 ward of the old imperial palace, the Mahä Raja's oflBcers who formed 
 our escort, all alighted from their horses, while the elephants marched 
 up some steps through a second gate into a garden, in an excellent state 
 of cultivation, and where I observed one of those beautiful little marble 
 buildings, belonging to the pure taste of the Akbar dynasty. The 
 exterior is ornamented with flowers worked in high relief in the marble, 
 and the floor and inner walls are of pietra dura. On making some 
 inquiries, I was told that the Maha Raja had built it, which is evidently 
 incorrect. A more modern structure of white brick, which has an 
 upper story, abutting on one comer of this pretty edifice, has gained 
 for him the reputation of having built the whole. To the left of this 
 garden, but not accessible from it, stands the great Juma Masjid of 
 .lehanghir, with its three domes of marble. The warlike Ranjit has 
 turned it to the best advantage, the north side of this strong buihling 
 being made a portion of the city wall, and the mosque itself converted 
 into a barrack. We proceeded through a wide gate straight before us,
 
 286 PRESENTATION AT THE SIKH COURT. 
 
 and opening on a small square, where a company of soldiers was drawn 
 up, and presented arms to us. The Mahä Raja was sitting in a small 
 arm-chair with a low back, in a little pavilion ; the walls were covered 
 with gold brocade, and the floor with a large Kashmirian carpet. I had 
 no sooner put my foot on the carpet, than he rose and received me at 
 the entrance, taking my hand and leading me to an arm-chair close to 
 his own. Before I had seated myself, I took a bag containing 750 
 rupees out of my Munshi's hands, and giving it a preliminary wave over 
 his head from left to right, handed it to his dependants. This cere- 
 mony is considered necessary whenever the Mahä Raja is ill, in order to 
 drive away evil spirits, who are esteemed the sole cause of the royal 
 infirmities. 
 
 My uniform had not arrived, and I had no boots with me ; I had 
 therefore to appear in shoes : to cross a carpet in them, is considered 
 in India not so much an offence against the king's majesty as the 
 English suppose, as a mark of extreme ill-breeding and rudeness, and 
 the king himself would be considered wholly deficient in politeness, if 
 he were to walk over the carpet of a room with his shoes on, no matter 
 how inferior to himself the owner of the house might be. Knowing 
 this, I left mine outside the border of the carpet. It is the English 
 custom to offer their presents through a Miinshi ; but as I knew that 
 the Mahä Raja would feel flattered if I performed that ceremony my- 
 self, and I saw no degradation in it, I determined to do so. He asked 
 me if I had served as a soldier, to which I answered in the affirmative, 
 upon which he questioned me about our Austrian army, and our wars 
 with France. Mr. Mackeson was a capital interpreter. Seeing Mohan 
 standing behind me, he inquired about him, and finding that he was my 
 interpreter, and that my former one, the Brahmin from Agra, had fallen 
 ill, he desired Mohan to sit down at my feet, and inquired who he was. 
 Mohan told him that he was a Ghorka, a kshatriya, (of the military 
 caste), and the son of a Subhedar, or captain. The Mahä Raja then 
 turned to me, and asked me whether Mohan was able to translate every 
 thing that I wished to say ; and on my replying that he was, he said he 
 would try him, and forthwith ordered the youth to ask me what I 
 thought of his army, and whether it was in a state to encounter a
 
 PRINCIPAI. OFFICERS OK TUF. COURT. "iS/ 
 
 European force. I answered that the Sikhs had long been remarkable 
 for their bravery, and the discipline now introduced must no doubt have 
 rendered them quite equal to such an encounter ; "' With equal forces?" 
 he asked, " Doubtless," said I. " You have seen the whole world, 
 which country do you like best ?" — " My own native land." " You 
 have seen Kashmir, what think you of it?" — "That sickness and 
 famine have of late years so depopulated it, that it must produce a 
 revenue of small amount." " I have ordered Mehän Singh to give 
 money to the poor. Think you that he robs me ?" — " I think not." 
 " Do not you think that I should do well to remove him from the 
 government ? he has no intellect. " — " I think the Governor a worthy 
 man, and that you will not easily find a better. The country needs 
 indulgence, in order that it may recover itself." 
 
 During the time this questioning was going on, and while Mr. 
 Mackeson was translating it into Persian and Khalifa Sahib into the 
 Panjabi, I took the opportunity of surveying the company. On a chair 
 near the Mahä Raja, sat Htra Singh, a youth of sixteen, the son of the 
 favourite, Raja Dhyan Singh, the Prime Minister ; all the other 
 great officers of state were seated on the ground. Everv one had his 
 eyes fixed on me to guess at the answers I was giving, before thev were 
 translated for the Mahä Raja's information. The court colour of the 
 Durbar is yellow or green ; and the chiefs and officers were all clothed 
 in yellow garments of the wool of Kashmir, except Hira Singh, who 
 wore a satin dress of light green and pink. There were also present 
 there, Raja Suchet Singh, the brother of Dhyan and Gulab Singh, 
 Miyan, or Lord of Jamu ; Kushal Singh, called the Jemidar, a Brah- 
 min, who has been converted some time since to the Sikh faith; this 
 man was formerly a cook in the Maha Raja's household, and then a 
 Jemidar, or Lieutenant, equivalent to the house-steward in a palace. 
 He has retained this latter appellation, though now next to Dhvan 
 Singh, the most powerful of Ranjit's vassals. The eldest son of the 
 Mahä Raja, Karak Singh, resides at Labor, but is always overlooked, 
 as his intellect is too feeble to afford any probability of his ever ruling 
 over the scarcely united empire of the Sikhs. His son, Nihal Singh, 
 promises to be a clover active vnuth, but as he is no more than fifteen,
 
 288 MILITARY STYLE OF THE SIKH RULER. 
 
 it depends much on llanjit Singh's health, whether he will be able to 
 consolidate a party strong enough to enable him to succeed his grand- 
 father, in supersession of his father's right. Shir Singh and Tara Singh 
 are twins, who have never been acknowledged by Ranjit as his sons; 
 the former has distinguished himself as a soldier, but was found very 
 unfit for his appointment as governor of Kashmir. He is at present 
 in Peshawar, with the title of governor; General Avitabile, however, 
 has the entire direction of the affairs and administration of the country ; 
 Tara Singh is not of any importance. Kashmir Singh and Peshawar 
 Singh, are also called sons of Ranjtt, but of them I know nothing. 
 One of the great obstacles to the duration of the empire founded by 
 Ranjit Singh, consists in the imprudence of suffering so much power 
 to accumulate in the persons of his vassals, Gulab Singh, for example, 
 in Jamvi, with his brothers, Dhyan Singh and Suchet Singh, possess 
 a large district, which extends over inaccessible mountains from Atok 
 to Narpoor* in the south-east, and thence north to Ladak, besides 
 other large estates in the Panjab. These brothers, who are powerful 
 in money, troops, cannon and fortresses, would with great difficulty 
 be brought into subjection by the arm of the feeble successors of 
 Ranjit, and several others are similarly circumstanced. Nothing can 
 establish this prince's dynasty firmly, except an alliance with the Com- 
 pany, which his pride and the policy of the latter have hitherto 
 precluded. The Maha Raja has no throne. " My sword," he observed, 
 "procures me all the distinction I desire; I am quite indifferent to 
 external pomp." 
 
 Ranjit Singh is now fifty-four years old. The small-pox deprived 
 lam, when a child, of his left eye, whence he gained the surname of 
 Käna, one-eyed, and his face is scarred by the same malady. His beard 
 is thin and gray, with a few dark hairs in it: according to the Sikh 
 religious custom, it reaches a little below his chin, and is untrimmed. 
 His head is square and large for his stature, which, though naturally 
 
 » Narpoor or Nürpoor, according to others. The former is probably the true 
 Hindu name. — Ed.
 
 UANJiT Singh's inquisitiveness. 289 
 
 short, is now considerably bowed by disease; his forehead is remarkably 
 broad. His shoulders are wide, though his arms and hands are quite 
 shrunk; altogether, ho is the most forbidding human being I have ever 
 seen. His large brown, unsteady and suspicious eye seems diving into 
 the thoughts of the person with whom he converses, and his straight- 
 forward questions are put incessantly and in the most laconic terms. 
 His speech is so much aifected by paralysis that it is no easy matter to 
 understand him, but if the answer be delayed for an instant, one of his 
 courtiers, usually the Jemidar, repeats the question. After I had been 
 subjected to this examination for a whole hour, without one moment's 
 intermission to put a single question in return, he turned to Mr. Vigne, 
 and asked : " And what can you do?" To which my fellow traveller, 
 with his usual simplicity, replied, " I can draw." The Maha Raja did 
 not seem to comprehend how an art so little esteemed by himself, 
 could possibly occupy the time of a great white man, one of the Sahib 
 Log. I now took occasion to thank him for the protection afforded me 
 throughout his territories, which made travelling as safe under his 
 vigorous government, as in the dominions of the East India Company. 
 " The strict friendship between the two countries," I added, "is a great 
 source of satisfaction both in Hindüsthan and the Panjab." This was a 
 remark particularly agreeable to him, and in answering his first letter, 
 I had instinctively let fall a few flowers of oriental rhetoric on this 
 same friendship, which procured mo in a short time a most flattering 
 epistle, enlarging on my amplifications. He now asked me, '• Who 
 writes your letters?" I named Thakur Das. He praised him much, 
 adding: "I hope Lahor will please you. Issue your commands, every 
 thing here is yours." A company of soldiers were stationed in the court, 
 and he asked me if I should like to see them go through their manoeuvres. 
 To this I bowed assent; ho then stood up, took my left hand, and 
 Mohan's right, and stationed himself at the entrance while the men 
 marched past; the word of command was given in rrench, and the 
 exercise was gone through witli much precision. He begged mo to 
 excuse anything amiss. I observed, that I was surprised to find his 
 troops so proficient in European tactics. " Arc the troops of your 
 Emperor exercised in this niaunor ? " ho enquired. I answered, that 
 
 u
 
 290 DESULTORY INTERROGATORIES. 
 
 there was a great similarity in the discipline of all the European States, 
 although in the Austrian army there were some essential points of 
 difference; we, for instance, execute in three manoeuvres what the 
 French do in two. "What is your pay?" said he. I replied, that 
 I received none, having quitted the service ten years ago, peace having 
 deprived it of every attraction, and as none but officers on active 
 service and invalids had any pay, I now lived on my own income. 
 " What is the pay of an Austrian Colonel?" said he. I told him that 
 it was less than that of an English Colonel, but that, as they have not 
 to purchase their steps, they do in reality receive more money. " Have 
 you seen Lord William Bentinck?" — " No; he had left Calcutta before 
 I arrived there," " Do you know Mr. Burnes?" — " Only through his 
 works*." " Do you wish to see my troops exercise ?" This, I told him, 
 I should consider a great mark of his Highness' favour. 
 
 While the soldiers were marching about the little court, he con- 
 tinued his endless questions about the military resources of Austria, 
 France, and England, and the number of disposable troops kept up by 
 the different states of Europe. He then asked me what I meant to 
 do with Mohan when I left the Panjab and prepared for my return to 
 Europe. I answered that I had not yet decided, but that I would take 
 him with me, if he liked to go, adding that I believed he had a great 
 wish to do so. I guessed what the Mahä Raja was thinking of, and 
 presently he said, " You can make his fortune if you will but leave him 
 behind ; send the youth to me, and I will take care of him." 
 
 * The memory of Lieut. -Colonel Sir Alexander Burnes will be immemorially 
 associated with the fatal occupation of Afghanistan. In the early part of his 
 promising career, the Commauder-in-Chief, General Sir Thomas Bradford, whose 
 concern extended to every soldier in the army, was solicitous that the utmost 
 facility should be afforded to Lieut. Burnes for extending our geographical know- 
 ledge in the regions he was about to explore, and desired I would instruct him, as 
 time permitted, in surveying and reconnoitring. The service thus rendered for 
 the cause of science, was frequently adverted to with grateful pride by Sir Alex- 
 ander Burnes, who exultingly exhibited his papers to me on his return, when 
 proceeding by the way of the Nilgiri Hills to meet Lord William Bentinck. 
 " Tliis," he said, " is the highest proof I can give you of my attention to your 
 instructions." In all his change of fortunes, he was never known to overlook a 
 kindness, or forgot his early friendships. — Ed.
 
 FlJr-S()\rE OIUENTAL COMPLIMENTS. Opj 
 
 After we had seated ourselves again, he observed that I must be 
 tired with answering all his questions. That, I replied, was impossible, 
 but taking the hint to leave him, I departed, the Maha Raja accompany- 
 ing me to the door. 
 
 I had nearly omitted the flowery discourse of the Fakir Sahib as 
 
 we went along. It began to rain, and his elephant marched close to 
 
 mme. " This will be a rainy day," said I. " When princes meet in 
 
 the garden of friendship," said the Fakir, " the water-bearers of heaven 
 
 moisten the flowers, that they may give out all their perfume." I 
 
 expressed my disappointment at being obliged to appear in a dark suit, 
 
 on account of the non-arrival of my uniform from Ludiana, which 
 
 I had ordered to be sent on to me to Lahor. He then began to tell 
 
 me a long story about a tiger, who had made his appearance in a city 
 
 to the terror of everybody, and how the king of the country having 
 
 heard what the tiger was doing, and found that his actions were all 
 
 very noble, discovered his real nature in spite of his disguise, and 
 
 sending for him to his palace, recognised in the tiger a great prince. 
 
 " What," said I, " do you compare me with a tiger ?" — " Under this 
 
 disguise," he answered, " your noble actions and your talent will betray 
 
 you." Such, in brief, was the meaning of his prolix tale. 
 
 When we returned from this interview I desired to see something 
 of the city, for in going to the palace, which lies in the south-west or 
 west end, we had passed through the south gate and had seen nothing 
 but one very uninteresting street. Throughout India one remarks the 
 strange contrast presented by majestic buildings, round which are 
 huddled together ruins, rubbish, and wretched huts of every descrip- 
 tion. Lahor may claim a pre-eminence over all other cities in these 
 contrasts. Close to the palace are mounds of dirt and pits of consider- 
 able depth, mud walls crumbled down, and unshapely heaps of stones, 
 over which the traveller and his elephant move on wearily, coming 
 oftentimes in this chaos of destruction on the apparition of an elephant, 
 rhinoceros, tiger, or chita, which the elephant passes very timidly 
 without the slightest token of recognition. Beyond these you at leno-th 
 reach the bazar, where goods of great value arc displayed, in streets 
 which form, from one extremity to the other, a perfect slough after 
 
 i; -2
 
 29-2 THE BAZARS OF INDIAN CITIES. 
 
 a heavy fall of rain ; through these the luckless pedestrian is obliged to 
 paddle, and looks in vain for a spot of dry ground on which to rest his 
 foot, his white dress bespattered by every one passing by on horseback, 
 and himself splashed all over from head to foot long before he gets 
 out of the place again. Very strong and moveable awnings project 
 over the shops, and nearly occupy the entire breadth of the narrow 
 crooked roadway, which makes it a matter of no little difficulty to 
 retain one's lofty position on the elephant's back, however desirable in 
 many respects. Stuffs hung out to dry, carts with oxen, horsemen, 
 camels, an elephant coming from the opposite direction, and an endless 
 diversity of objects, fully engage the thought how to contrive to pro- 
 ceed, or get out of their way; while on the finely-carved balconies, 
 almost within arm's length on either side, the wealthy Banyans with 
 their painted faces and red turbans present their low obeisance occa- 
 sionally, or some of the dark beauties of the place salute the traveller 
 with a "Salam! Maha Raja!" The streets of this bazar are intricate 
 beyond measure, and I was rejoiced to find myself once more issuing 
 forth from another gate into the external fresh air. 
 
 On my arrival at General Ventura's house, I found a messenger of 
 the Mahä Raja's, Aziz-ud Din, the elder brother of Khalifa Sahib, 
 a diplomatic Minister, who informed me that the Mahä Raja had been 
 highly pleased with my visit, and hoped I should make a long stay in 
 Lahor. He brought me also twelve baskets filled with the finest fruits 
 of Kabul, Kashmir, and Lahor, and 225 rupees, for the daily pay of 
 my people. 
 
 The three brothers, Aziz-ud Din, the confidential Secretary; 
 Khalifa Sahib, the Marshal ; and the Governor of Amritsir, were often 
 in my company ; and I may observe here that the Maha Raja places great 
 confidence in these Mohammedans, who by their talents and honourable 
 character, seem well to deserve it. They arc usually styled Fakir 
 Sahib, and seem proud of the poverty nominally assigned them, though 
 they are all wealthy men. Their master, Ranjit Singh, is in every 
 point of view so remarkable a character, for an Indian, that I have 
 elsewhere devoted a considerable space to my description of him. 
 
 The days were short, and the evening came on soon after my
 
 NJOTIVES OF A TRAVELLER. 293 
 
 visitors had taken their leave. A walk in the plain by the river side 
 and in some charming green fields occupied me till sunset. 
 
 Wednesday, January 14. — I was awakened with the intelligence that 
 Aziz-ud Din had been waiting for me half an hour, with a message from 
 the Mahä Kaja. I quickly dressed and hurried into the apartment, 
 when the following conversation took place, after the customary extra- 
 vagant compliments. The fakir assured me, first, that the Mahä Raja 
 had never conversed with any person, whose talent had caused him so 
 much surprise, and he wished I would consent to remain with him. 
 He was aware that neither money nor any lucrative otfice could influ- 
 ence my actions, but as he did not wish me to reside in Lahor, and be 
 obliged at the same time to draw any sums of money from my own 
 country, he requested me, supposing that I did make up my mind to 
 reside there, to accept a monthly allowance of 6000 rupees by way of 
 compensation. 
 
 I answered, that the Mahä Raja's offer was most flattering to me, 
 and if I had been a younger man, I should certainly have accepted it ; 
 but that family reasons made me anxious to return without loss of 
 time to my own home, and that I must be at Bombay in six weeks, or 
 I should most likely be detained in India for another year ; in other 
 words, I should lose a year of my life. The fakir strove to persuade 
 me to remain, but finding me resolute, ceased to importune me further, 
 and said that he would take my answer to the Mahä Raja, and that his 
 master had given him a list of questions to put to me, dictated by 
 himself, which he thereupon took from his pocket and read : — 
 
 1. The Mahä Raja knows you have travelled over the world; he 
 wishes to hear what in all these countries has seemed to you most 
 remarkable ? 
 
 I answered, that the object of ray travels was manifold; my chief 
 purpose was to make myself acquainted with the most remarkable 
 phenomena, moral and physical, of distant countries : that as edifices, 
 the Egyptian Pyramids and the Taj Mahal : as countries. New Holland 
 and Kashmir: lastly and above all, the manners and customs of the 
 Malabar coast, the greatness and power of the Kast India Company, 
 the Mahä Raja's ally, and more recently, the kingdom founded by
 
 294 HINDU AND EUKOPEAN TASTES. 
 
 Ranjit Singh, who, like a skilful architect, has formed of so many 
 insignificant unpromising fragments, one majestic fabric, seemed to me 
 the most wonderful objects in the whole world. 
 
 The fakir wrote down my answer, with sundry Wah ! Wah ! as 
 tokens of his amazement. 
 
 2. The Mahä Raja is aware that you did not travel for profit, and 
 that in your own country your position is honourable and important. 
 What was your motive for travelling so far ? 
 
 I answered, that my reasons were already in part explained, and 
 that it was most difficult to make a native of the East comprehend the 
 mind of a European : life in India being limited to two pursuits, namely, 
 physical or moral enjoyments through the attainment of power, which 
 ensures the fulfilment of a man's desires; or, the hope of attaining 
 greater happiness in another world by self-denial and holy deeds in the 
 present. In Europe, the human mind is directed also to a third pur- 
 suit, that of scientific inquiry, which affords full occupation on subjects 
 which to the mind of an Asiatic appear altogether unimportant. To 
 this inclination for mental activity must be ascribed all the useful and 
 extraordinary discoveries made by Europeans, and to this may partly 
 be ascribed also my own wanderings, besides other reasons still less 
 comprehensible to men of different habits. It will be well to give the 
 Mahä Raja this answer, that my chief object was to observe the most 
 remarkable customs of difi^erent lands, and where such was possible 
 to make these observations subservient to the interests of my own 
 country. 
 
 3. The Mahd Raja cannot think it possible, that you undertook 
 such a dangerous journey, without something to protect you against 
 disease. Probably you have brought some life-preserving medicine 
 with you ; the Mahii Raja wishes to know what it is, provided such 
 communication should not weaken the force of the spell on yourself ? 
 
 Without even smiling at this question, which doubtless had occa- 
 sioned all the others to be introduced, I answered, that in Europe we 
 no longer believed in the power of particular medicines to prolong life, 
 but that 1 was fully persuaded I owed the preservation of my health to 
 a medicine which I had always successfully used in two forms, either
 
 CiENERAL STYLE OK HINDU COURTIEKS. 295 
 
 as a pill, and more promptly and efficaciously in a white powder. The 
 fakir wrote ray answer down verbatim. 
 
 4. The Maha Raja is aware that Europeans are accustomed to eat 
 a variety of food. How have you been able to obtain this necessary 
 on vour travels, and particularly, how did you contrive to get beef? 
 
 I answered, that I cared very little about any particular kind of 
 diet, and subsisted on whatever I could get ; but that we had a method 
 in Europe of preserving food in tin boxes, which was thus kept fresh 
 for years. 
 
 5. What is the surest means of being victorious over an enemy? 
 In answer to this, I stated it to be my opinion that the best policy 
 
 of the Panjab state would be to keep its soldiers under the strong arm 
 of discipline, and when the General had once brought the army to this 
 point, that the whole mass moved like his own sword, as one spirit with 
 ten thousand arms, he might then make quite sure of victory. The 
 Fakir Sahib exclaimed *' Wah ! Wah ! Wah ! Amazing ! Wonder- 
 ful !" and turning round, inquired of Mr. Mackeson whether this was 
 my own idea; upon hearing that it was, he again repeated "Wah! 
 Wah !" Having straightway recorded the reply in due form, he 
 begged to take his leave, departing with a torrent of the most exag- 
 gerated oriental compliments. 
 
 I had made arrangements to remain here until I was satisfied that 
 all my people were in Ludiana, which place 1 should reach from Lahor in 
 three days. There all my collections were to be packed up, and I intended 
 to hire relays of bearers to convey them with all dispatch to Delhi, and 
 thence to Bombay. To-day I heard that my people had not even 
 arrived at Amritsir, which place, according to the route laid down 
 for them, they ought to have reached the same day that I arrived in 
 Lahor. From Amritsir to Ludiana is eight marches, consequently I 
 had to make up my mind to stay in Lahor until the 22nd, that I might 
 not have to wait for them at Ludiana. 
 
 A deputation from the family of Mehän Singh, the Governor of 
 Kashmir, with his son at the head of it, came to-day to thank me for 
 the manner in which I had spoken of his father to Ranjit Singh. 
 This was in reference to the Mahä Raja's question, whether he ought
 
 296 A TEMPTING OFFER OF EMPLOYMENT. 
 
 not to remove Mehän Singh from Kashmir. As I observed, while in 
 that province, it would be very desirable to have a more active Gover- 
 nor there, but the difficulty would be to replace him with a better. 
 Since his intentions at least are good, I told the youth, who was about 
 thirteen or fourteen years old, that he might assure his father that I 
 should never prejudice Ranjit Singh against him. I had also a visit 
 from the son of the Jemidar, a General of fourteen ; notwithstanding 
 his youth, his talents, vivacity, and desire for information promise great 
 things. 
 
 The day was bitterly cold, and my fingers were almost frozen as I 
 arranged my papers. I paced the terrace very often to warm myself in 
 the sun's rays. In the evening we had a Nach, and the Maha Raja 
 did not forget to send his presents, and three of his dancing girls. 
 
 Friday, January 15. — The fakir Aziz-ud Din was here early this 
 morning, to thank me from the Mahä Raja, for my answers to his 
 questions. According to the Eastern fashion, he repeated these thanks 
 three times, adding also that the Mahä Raja wished that I would 
 remain for some time in Lahor ; and even if the Em^peror of Austria's 
 permission was necessary, he was quite ready to apply for it himself. 
 At all events he hoped I should not quit Lahor for several months, and 
 that I would organize some regiments for him according to the plan I 
 had laid down. If it were not agreeable to me to receive regular pay, 
 some other arrangement might be entered into between us. 
 
 The earnest repetition of this offer, which at first I had taken as a 
 mere courtesy, convinced me that the Mahä Raja was serious ; and I 
 candidly confess that I reflected for a moment on the opening now 
 aiforded to me, so far beyond my utmost expectations. Had I desired 
 to undertake an expedition into Central Asia, it seems it would not 
 have been difficult for me to lead an army formed by myself in that 
 quarter ; and the various, though perhaps not profound information I 
 had acquired, would suffice to render me very useful to the Mahä 
 Raja. All things needful were at hand, money and the consent of the 
 reigning authorities : by one man's efforts, civilization might be 
 mightily advanced. But then the image of my mother, aged and 
 expecting my return to her, would obtrude itself. I therefore repeated
 
 OCCASION Ol' UAS'.flT SfNGflS AILNfENT. 297 
 
 my thanks, adding, that the Maha llaja mioht be assured that nothing 
 but considerations of the most pressing importance would have induced 
 me to decline his proposals. The fakir now informed me, that my 
 answers yesterday had given him so high an idea of my penetration, 
 that he had charged him to ask my advice respecting his health. I 
 replied that I could not but be highly flattered, and though no physi- 
 cian, that I had, like most intelligent Europeans, occasionally turned 
 my attention to the science of medicine. 
 
 The Mahä llaja was suffering, as I have said, from a paralysis, which 
 appeared to me, from his general appearance, not so much the conse- 
 quence of a ruined constitution, as the effect of a temporary state of ill 
 health. I expressed this opinion to the fakir, and questioned him as to 
 the condition of his health prior to the attack. He informed me, that 
 on a very sultry day, just before the rainy season set in, which in the 
 past year was preceded by heats which wore unusually great, the Maha 
 Kaja had ridden the whole day on horseback, and had greatly exhausted 
 and overheated himself. With his usual carelessness with regard to 
 food, he took nothing that day but water melons, of which he partook 
 very freely. A heavy storm fell in the afternoon, the rain poured down 
 in torrents, and the piercing wind from the mountains of Kashmir 
 suddenly lowered the temperature to a degree inconveniently cold. The 
 Mahä Raja rode for a long time, and at a foot's pace through this storm, 
 until he reached a hut. There, however, the walls aflbrded him little 
 protection against the wind, and he sat in his wet clothes, the draughts 
 of air penetrating to him, and of course contributing to chill his frame. 
 He did not reach his tent until nightfall, and nothing could persuade 
 him to take any medicine, or use any sort of remedy. A violent pain in 
 the stomach occasioned him very disturbed sleep ; and when he would 
 have called for assistance, his tongue felt heavy in his mouth, and he 
 found his left hand quite powerless. When a servant came and saw him 
 in this state, he called immediately for Aziz-ud Din, who found him with 
 his face much drawn up, and next to speechless. I could not under- 
 stand what means were employed to restore him, but according to the 
 Hindu custom, musk was probably administered in large doses. He 
 svas brought back to Lahor, and became something better, and Dr.
 
 298 CONSEQUENCES OF INTEMPERANCE. 
 
 M'Gregor being called in from Ludiana, he was placed under his care. 
 He can now mount his horse again, but the motion is painful to him, 
 and causes the hesitation in his speech to increase perceptibly : his eye 
 has also suffered, and is still distorted, giving a stranger an idea that the 
 sight is quite gone. If he wishes to examine any object, he brings it 
 within two inches of his eye in an oblique direction, but at the distance 
 of eight or ten paces he can guess the thoughts by the expression of the 
 face. This account confirmed me in my opinion that the evil was not 
 so deeply seated as is usual in such cases. Aziz-ud Din requested me to 
 write a prescription for the Mahä Raja. I inquired as to the regimen 
 he pursued, and found it a most pernicious one ; for though what he 
 ate was simple enough, and not too much in quantity, he drank spirits 
 in ruinous draughts. He gave me the receipt for a brandy prepared 
 for him, in which were the strongest sauces compounded from the flesh 
 of every kind of animal, beef excepted, pearls and jewels, musk, opium, 
 plants of various kinds, all mingled together into a beverage, which must 
 be nearly as strong as alcohol itself. This devil's drink I had myself 
 tasted the evening before, and found the flavour good enough, but the 
 following morning my spirits were exceedingly depressed. I asked 
 whether he often drank of this royal wine, as it is here called, and he 
 said yes, but that the Mahä Raja had desired him to inquire what I 
 thought of it. I answered, that I considered it a most noxious potation, 
 not improbably the cause of his last attack of illness ; but as he had 
 been in the habit of drinking it for many years, I considered that it 
 would be very hazardous to leave it off suddenly, and likely to produce 
 an alarming prostration of strength. The fakir told me that Dr. 
 M'Gregor had forbidden the liquor altogether, but that the Mahä Raja, 
 while obeying the prescription, had been so enfeebled, that he had taken 
 to it again. The fakir asked me how much I thought he could drink 
 without injuring his health, but I confessed my inability to specify any 
 quantity. One wine glass had been a powerful dose in my own case, 
 but as the Mahä Raja had accustomed himself to a larger allowance, 
 perhaps this might do to begin with. The less he took, however, the 
 better. 
 
 Ranjit also wished to have some of the medicine I had spoken of
 
 I.OVELV EFFECTS OF KETLKNlNti Sl'KING. 2'JO 
 
 as having brought and used; for, whatever I might say, it was evident 
 that I must consider it as a life preservative, or I should never be 
 so foolish as to hazard my existence for no other purpose than the 
 mere gratification of curiosity. I know that I could not persuade 
 either Ranjit or the fakir that I had nothing like an ehxir of life, and 
 therefore answered, that I had sent my stock with my servants to 
 Ludiana, except a few pills, but that I would send for it thence, and 
 in the mean time, the little I had, was at the Maha Raja's service. 
 He then wanted some of the hermetically sealed provisions, but of these 
 I had none remaining. I gave him half a dozen blue pills, the last I 
 had, and Mr. Vigne produced a packet oi calomel. I explained the 
 dose to him. 
 
 The fakir then informed me that the Mahä Raja had ordered a 
 review to take place that day, which he hoped I would attend; that at 
 noon a salute of artillery would give notice that he had left his 
 palace, and Khalifa Sahib would then come to escort me. I told the 
 fakir I should be ready to accompany his brother, and he requested my 
 permission to withdraw, taking his leave with a profusion of com- 
 pliments. 
 
 Long before twelve the fakir arrived with three elephants, two 
 valuable richly clad horses, palankeens, &c. I preferred mounting the 
 elephant's back, for the dust on horseback, or in the palankeen, sur- 
 rounded by a party of forty or fifty horsemen, would have been quite into- 
 lerable. General Ventura rode on horseback, and as the salute was fired, 
 Mr. Mackeson and I took our seats in one howdah, the fakir and Mr. 
 Vigne in another, when we proceeded by the outer walls of the city, by 
 the splendid building, formerly the mosque of Jehdnghir, and through a 
 gate which led to the entrance of the palace, with its small fort guard- 
 ing it, on to the large cxercishig ground. The warmth of the sun and 
 the opening spring, had given the country the most enchanting appear- 
 ance; the inimitable green of the earliest Indian vegetation adorned the 
 plain, which was thinly scattered with trees now in blossom; these trees 
 being planted in the European taste, together with a number of pleasure 
 houses here and there visible down to the banks of the Ravi, com- 
 bined altogether to produce a scene most beautifully diversified. The
 
 300 BEAUTIFUL CONTRASTS OF LIGHT AND SHADE. 
 
 whole neighbourhood is intersected by canals, which preclude the assem- 
 blage of any vast concourse, and it now presented to my gaze, the most 
 brilliant, magnificent, and imposing spectacle which I had ever beheld 
 in my life. Before I proceed to describe the living actors in the scene, 
 I may be allowed to say a few words more on the inanimate features. 
 And first, as we approached towards the city, were seen those pic- 
 turesque and beautiful buildings erected by Jehanghir, for the winter 
 residence of the empress, and executed with the lavish profusion of a 
 man, who had only to will, and forthwith to show before her whom he 
 loved a perfect world of treasures. Jehanghir bviilt this splendid 
 palace because Lahor was a favourite residence of Nur Jehan: the 
 walls are chiefly of marble, and the different buildings tower one above 
 the other in the form of an amphitheatre. Ranjit Singh has added to 
 it other buildings not less extraordinary or expensive, though in very 
 bad taste. Even this inconsistent work of modern times, corresponding 
 as it does with the uncultivated taste of the suddenly-raised Lord of 
 the country, serves to bring out the back ground, formed of palaces 
 built in the noblest styles. A view of the fa9ades to the west, and 
 the light thrown on them at this hour, mingled with deep masses of 
 shade, formed one of the most enchanting and picturesque sights that 
 it is possible to imagine. Vigne was in raptures, and I urged him not 
 to let a single day pass while he remained at Lahor, without committing 
 to paper some part of this splendid picture, which it would require 
 several days to complete. 
 
 Meanwhile we had arrived at the scene of the review. Several 
 regiments of infantry were drawn up in line, having on the right 
 wing two batteries of horse artillery. These began marching upon 
 us, and our elephants were, as nearly as possible, caught by the 
 wheels of the gun-carriages, the clumsy animals having placed them- 
 selves in the way, and all the exclamations of the Mahuts were 
 ineffectual to coax them out of their customary step. When we got 
 within thirty paces of the Mahä Raja's open tent, the elephants were 
 ordered to kneel down ; this tent was of yellow Kashmir shawl stuff, 
 supported on columns of silver, the inside was covered with a large 
 carpet, another being spread without. Both were the produce of
 
 THK I'ANJABI TROOPS AND HOUSES. 
 
 301 
 
 Kashmir. Several other tents were pitched behind the royal tent. 
 Ranjit Singh himself was seated in the European manner in a plain 
 arm chair, and by him was Raja Hira Singh; the first was dressed 
 in a simple riding-dress, while the latter was clad in white muslin and 
 pink satin, with bracelets of diamonds, pearls, and other jewels; his 
 accoutrements, turban, and other habiliments were covered with 
 the most expensive stones. Kushal Singh, the Jemidar, and Raja 
 Sushet Singh, were the only state officers present. The last, a very 
 fine distinguished man, wore a black and gold enamelled helmet with 
 the visor open, and ornamented with three large black herons' feathers. 
 His dress was a green robe of Kashmir shawl, trimmed with red, over 
 which he wore a shirt of mail of glittering steel; an armlet inlaid with 
 gold was fastened on his right arm. The Mahä Raja rose up, came to 
 the end of the carpet, and received me with a clasp of the hand, leading 
 me to an arm chair placed beside his own. Mr. Mackeson and Vigne 
 sat near me, and Mohan stood behind Ranjit's chair. 
 
 The troops consisted of some regular infantry; they wore red 
 jackets, and carried matchlocks ; they marched by in order. But what 
 particularly attracted me, was the sight of the Mahä Raja's favourite 
 horses, drawn up between the tent and the troops, twenty-five or thirty 
 in number. The breed in the Panjab is very peculiar, and not unlike 
 that of Spain, but with straighter noses. The animals are large, and 
 their movements are very gentle; they may be trained to execute the 
 most graceful curvettings, and the Sikhs value them according to their 
 proficiency in their movements. But I suspect that they have not much 
 spirit, owing to the state of repose in which they are habitually kept, 
 being from their very birth consigned to the care of a groom, and 
 fastened by means of two ropes round the head, and two on the hind 
 feet, to small pegs. In this manner their life is passed in the open 
 air, and they are very rarely mounted. Many are born white. To the 
 artist, who is not a painter of horses, these animals present a beautiful 
 appearance, with their small bones, flowing mane and tail, and their 
 proud and fiery action, and lofty heads. The passion of Ranjit Singh 
 for horses has passed into a proverb in the East. The bridle, saddle, 
 and other ornaments of these creatures are most costly. The first is
 
 302 DECISION A TRAIT OF MILITARY GENIUS. 
 
 overlaid with gold or enamel, and at the top of the head, or else on 
 either side, waves a plume of heron's feathers ; strings of jewels are 
 hung round the neck, under which are the Sulimans, or Onyx stones, 
 very highly prized on account of the superstition attached to them. 
 The saddle is also of enamel or gold, covered with precious stones, the 
 pommel being particularly rich. The housings are of Kashmir shawl, 
 fringed with gold; the crupper and martingale ornamented very highly, 
 and on each side of the favourite usually hangs the tail of the Tibetan 
 yak, dyed of various hues; the saddle, moreover, is covered with a 
 velvet cushion. 
 
 After a profusion of compliments, the Mahä Raja poured out a 
 torrent of questions of every kind, and it became quite evident to me, 
 that he was throwing off gradually a preconceived idea that my entire 
 journey had him for its object, and that though I might not have intended 
 to enter his service, I was bound on some commission either open or 
 mysterious in its nature. I usually availed myself of Mr. Mackeson's 
 complaisant offer to be my interpreter, and this must have assured him 
 very soon that I had no designs of that nature. He rarely spoke of 
 India or the English territories there, but chiefly asked my opinion of 
 his own country, his army, the European officers in his service, and 
 the designs of foreign countries and very distant lands of which he 
 had hitherto heard nothing. Nor did he omit some very odd questions 
 about my own circumstances; for instance, whether I belonged to the 
 caste of the Raja or the Wazir ? Each question was conveyed in the 
 fewest words possible, and one followed upon another in such rapid 
 succession that it seemed as though his mind required continual 
 nourishment; that he did not wish for any details, but simply a reply. 
 In this spirit I framed my answers to them, and as I had those answers 
 already at hand, I took care not to delay a moment in uttering them. 
 Short sentences and quick replies are likewise especially needful 
 wherever an interpreter is used, to prevent a conversation becoming 
 intolerably tiresome. He asked me at last whether I should like to 
 see the horses nearer, and on my request so to do, he rose and taking 
 my hand, walked out of the tent, and ordered them to be led up one 
 after the other. A pommel of one of the saddles struck nie as parti-
 
 THE LARGEST DIAMOND YET KNOWN. 303 
 
 cularly worthy of remark, having a ruby two inches square, bearing on 
 it the name of Jehanghir. Dow, in his History of Hindosthan, tells 
 us, that when Jehanghir had his name engraved on this beautiful stone, 
 the celebrated Empress Nur Jehan told him that she thought it a 
 pity; to which he answered, "This jewel will more assuredly hand down 
 my name to posterity than any written history. The House of Timur 
 may fall, but as long as there is a king, this jewel will have its price." 
 Many other names are now engraven on it, the best known being 
 Ahmed Shah's, who found it in the famous peacock throne (Takht-i- 
 Taus), made by Shah Jehan in 1635, at Agra. This stone was stolen 
 from Timur in the year 1398, at Delhi, and Jehanghir repurchased it. 
 Ranjit Singh told me he had received a splendid pair of pistols from 
 Lord Amherst, and desired that they might be brought. His people 
 searched in various holsters without finding them, until he called out 
 and named the horse on which they were eventually found, a proof of 
 his good memory, and of the bad regulation of his stables. The 
 pistols are studded with gold, and set in bad diamonds; but Ranjit 
 Singh seemed very proud of having received them, as a present from 
 Lord Amherst, and said to me, "When you get home, send me a pair 
 of pistols from your country," which I promised, and, God willing, will 
 not forget to do. As we returned to the tent, I told him I had not 
 seen the most celebrated of his horses, and on his asking which that 
 was, I named Laili, which had made his name almost as well known in 
 Europe as the foundation of his extensive dominion had done. He 
 promised that I should see it on the morrow. As we seated ourselves 
 he went on: "I was sure you would like to see the famous diamond. 
 Will you look at it now ?" for they had brought before us four shields, 
 on which was laid the most superb assortment of jewels; but the 
 celebrated Kohi-nur, or Mountain of light, the largest diamond in the 
 world, attracted my admiration above all. It is of the shape and 
 size of a hen's e^^, exquisitely white, and brilliant beyond description. 
 It is set in an armlet, having a diamond on either side, for which the 
 Maha Raja told me he gave 130,000 and 100,000 rupees (13,000/. and 
 10,000/.) in Amritsir. Both of these had belonged to Shah Shujah. 
 The history of the Kohi-ntir deserves to be related, showing as it does
 
 304 REMARKABLE COMPARISON OF POSSESSIONS. 
 
 the character of Ranjit Singh, if not to advantage, at least so truly that 
 it will be worth while to devote a few words to it in the chapter dedicated 
 to him. Ranjit put this treasure into my hand that I might examine 
 it more narrowly, and I must confess that the thought of the enormous 
 value set by fancy on this single jewel caused me many a deep 
 reflexion. How many thousand poor families might be made happy 
 for the price at which this diamond was estimated ! In an instant I 
 looked on it as something of more than earthly value, as the means of 
 happiness ; but it could only bless by being parted with, and then it 
 would become so much dead capital in the hands of another; its exist- 
 ence only becoming really valuable while it is being transferred from one 
 to another party, like a bank-note or a bill of exchange. Perhaps, as 
 kings of every age have taken delight in the accumulation of treasures, 
 it is well that they hoard precious stones instead of keeping away gold 
 from the trade and prosperity of their kingdoms, for that is distributed 
 without diminution of its value. This idea brought me to a com- 
 parison between jewels, which require a connoisseur and admirer to 
 prize them at their real worth ; and gold, which has an intrinsic worth 
 to all men : these in their respective value appeared to me to resemble 
 the nobler gifts of genius and talent. How few can estimate the 
 former, while talent is recognized by all. 
 
 Ranjit Singh was much pleased with my long examination of this 
 treasure, and roused me from my reverie by asking me how I liked it. 
 He then pointed with gratified vanity to each particular stone, and 
 gave me its history, particularly that of the great emerald, which in 
 the above-named peacock throne of Delhi, formed the body of a 
 parrot. 
 
 Thirty elephants, gaily dressed out, now passed by. The largest, 
 of an immense size, and named Sirdarji, had been lately sent to Ranjit 
 by the King of Nepal, and was ornamented with a splendid gilt howdah 
 and crimson velvet cushions. Red velvet housings fell as low as his 
 knees, trimmed with a gold border and fringe. The long tusks were 
 cut at the end, as is the case with all tame elephants ; but this defi- 
 ciency was supplied by tops of silver gilt, united by a golden chain. 
 Round his ancles were heavy gold bangles, such as the Hindus wear,
 
 THE HOUSEHOLD OF RANJIT SINGH. 305 
 
 curiously wroufrht. The price of this elephant's ornaments, according 
 to the Maha Raja's account, was 130,000 florins*. The animal was 
 quite black, except the face and trunk, which were painted with various 
 colours. Unluckily, however, his pedigree is ignoble; he does not 
 carry his head high, and instead of feeling proud of his finery, or 
 playing with his chains, he behaves like a plebeian decked out in a 
 court suit. 
 
 The Mahä Raja told mc that he had 101 elephants, the same number 
 that attends the Governor-General whenever he travels; 1000 saddle 
 horses for his own use, 27,000 for his infantry; for the troops in armour 
 15,000; for the cavalry 27,000; apprehending that I might not have 
 fully understood him, he went over his story again, which I learnt 
 afterwards was strictly correct. He then told me that he thought I 
 should like to see some of his finest tents, and that he had ordered 
 them to be pitched. I accordingly visited them while he remained 
 seated. Some were made of the wools of Kashmir, others of stuffs 
 woven with silver threads, and I observed that one had a border of 
 pearls, but there were none of any considerable size. A Kashmir 
 shawl was laid down as a carpet for every one. When I returned from 
 my inspection, horses were led up for our use, that we might see the 
 troops to advantage; the seat on one of these inestimably costly sad- 
 dles is very uncomfortable to a European. Ranjit Singh was quickly 
 on the back of his steed, his shield at back, his like a common Sikh, 
 and his face half hidden by the lower part of the turban which was 
 wrapped over his chin. As we rode towards the troops, we were 
 saluted by the most barbarous and discordant band of music, so called; 
 every musician sounded his instrument as loudly as possible, and no 
 two sounded them in tune. It was lucky for my ears that the drums 
 exceeded them all in loudness, and in front of these the Maha Raja 
 took his station. 
 
 " About 13,000/., reckoning tho Horiii in round numbers at two shillings English 
 or one rupee. The average exchange of Vienna is nine florins, fifty-two creuzers 
 to the pound sterling of England. The silver florin is i((uivalinf to sixty 
 creuzers. — Ed,
 
 306 ABJECT CONDITION OF A DEPENDENT PRINCE. 
 
 I never heard so horrible a noise before, and with much difficulty 
 repressed my inclination to laugh outright, it did seem such utter folly 
 to stand where I did, instead of taking to instant flight with my hands 
 to my ears ; but I suppressed my own feelings on the occasion as well as 
 I could, and looked straight before me until at a signal from the Mahä 
 Raja, the unearthly din ceased. He then turned to me, his features 
 plainly saying, "There, I am sure you never expected that; you had 
 no idea how great proficients we are in European harmony." He 
 inquired what I thought of his music, and as the i*eader may suppose, 
 I said it was surprisingly good. 
 
 After we had passed the lines, the men presented arms, and the 
 commanding officer dropped his sword. The Mahä Raja inquired for 
 Sultan Mohammed Khan. He was told by one of his suite, that he 
 had been waiting for some time ; presently he appeared with his son on 
 foot, and was presented to me by the Mahä Raja in this style: — 
 " This is Sultan Mohammed Khan, the Sirdar of Peshawar, and 
 brother of Dost Mohammed Khan. At this time I am giving him 
 three lakhs of rupees as Jaghir." Sultan Mohammed Khan is about 
 thirty-six years of age, and was clothed according to the fashion of 
 Kabul, in long garments of gold brocade, and a yellow shawl wound as 
 a turban about his head. He made a low bow, without uttering a single 
 word, and thus ended the introduction. Sultan INIoharamed Khan was 
 one of the fifty brothers of Fatih Khan, the Wazir of Mohammed 
 Shah, who conquered the kingdom of Kabul for his master, which was 
 occupied by Shah Shiija, the brother of Mohammed Shah. Mohammed 
 Shah, however, put Fatih Khan to death, and thereby lost his throne, 
 the brothers of Fatih Khan immediately breaking out into open rebel- 
 lion, and dispersing themselves in every part of the kingdom. The 
 most powerful of them is Dost Mohammed Khan, who lives in Kabul. 
 Two of these brothers have already felt the power of Ranjits arms, 
 viz., Jabar Khan, who had appropriated to himself Kashmir, and Yär 
 Mohammed in Peshawar ; the first was forced to quit the country 
 where he had taken up arms ; the last, unable to defend himself against 
 the men of his own faith, the savage Juff Yusufzei, dwelling in the 
 mountains north of Peshawar, entered into terms with Ranjit Singh, by
 
 AN AMUSING CONTRE-TEMPS. 307 
 
 which, in return for protection given him against these enemies, he 
 became his vassal. When Yar Mohammed died, General Ventura was 
 in Peshawar, whither he had gone to receive the horse, his tribute to 
 the sovereignty of Ranjit Singh, and he obeyed the command of the 
 Mahä Raja to put the deceased's brother, Sultan Mohammed Khan, in 
 possession of Peshawar. Disturbances, however, broke out quickly» 
 and Sultan Mohammed Khan favoured them, in order to get from 
 Ranjit Singh something in exchange for his resignation of Peshawar. 
 The fact is, that Peshawar is on the borders of his eldest brother's. 
 Dost Mohammed Khan's territory, and during the latter war of 
 Ranjit Singh against him, the theatre of operations was precisely in the 
 neighbourhood of Peshawar, rendering the position of Sultan Moham- 
 med Khan, obliged, though a brother and a Mohammedan, to join the 
 standard of Ranjit Singh, one of peculiar difficulty. In return for 
 the resignation of Peshawar, of which he took immediate possession, 
 Ranjit amused Sultan Mohammed Khan with promises for a long 
 time; and it is but this very day, that Mohammed Khan, after inces- 
 sant exertions, has obtained a territory, which brings him in a revenue 
 of about three lakhs of rupees. Perhaps, but for my arrival, he would 
 have had to wait still, for the recompense was given to-day, with the 
 evident design of displaying the greatness and generosity of Ranjit 
 Singh before foreign visitors. 
 
 Having stationed ourselves in front of the battalions and the 
 artillery, the exercises and manoeuvres began, the firing being very 
 regular. The men loaded and fired five times in the minute. An 
 accident then occurred, which was truly original in its nature. The 
 elephants, carrying different persons of the suite, stood in front of the 
 guns. After the first firing, they began to show great symptoms of 
 inquietude, and spreading wide their legs, they trembled all over, and 
 roared in a frightful manner. Presently, in spite of the blows given 
 them by the driver in the face, the Aukush causing the blood to follow 
 at every stroke, they wheeled about, and rushed over the plain in all 
 directions, with their tails distended, and trunks lifted high up in the 
 air, putting the assembled multitude to instant flight. 
 
 The manoeuvring was very indifferent, and consisted chiefly in 
 
 X L>
 
 308 HOSPITALITIES AND COURTESIES OF INDIA. 
 
 firing off a quantity of blank cartridges. When the troops had 
 marched away, I took my rukhsut, or leave, of the Mahä Raja, and 
 returned to the house highly delighted with the brilliant spectacle I 
 had witnessed, which in originality, splendour of costume, and the 
 addition of the beautiful natural scenery, surpassed anything of the 
 kind I had ever witnessed during the last twenty years of my life. 
 
 On my return, I found letters from India, with good wishes for my 
 safe journey, and an invitation from Captain Wade, inviting me to 
 Firozpoor, and thence to travel with him to Ludiana. Firozpoor was 
 in a Sikh state, on the left shore of the Setlej, but has lapsed to the 
 East India Company lately, in consequence of the demise of the last 
 possessor without direct heirs. The captain had been sent to take pos- 
 session of it, Mr. Mackeson having been despatched to Lahor, to settle 
 some differences which had arisen in consequence of Ranjit Singh 
 claiming Firozpoor as his property. I would have accepted the invita- 
 tion gladly, as a means of taking me more speedily to Ludiana, but then 
 I should have missed seeing both Govindgurh and Amritsir, which lie 
 on the direct road between Lahor and Ludiana. I therefore declined 
 the offer, with suitable acknowledgments. 
 
 In the afternoon Fakir Khalifa Sahib came with another message 
 from the Raja. He inquired, first, whether the review had not 
 fatigued me, to which I answered, that the last five years had pretty 
 well hardened me against fatigue, and that I had brought away with 
 me an impression of surprise at the splendour of Ranjit Singh's court. 
 He then said that the Mahä Raja had desired him to request me to 
 give him some of the medicine I always carried about with me, if it 
 were not asking too great a favour, for he had learned that the powder 
 was sent yesterday by Mr. Vigne, and not by myself. I promised to let 
 him have some as soon as I should get back to Ludiana. 
 
 He told me that the Mahä Raja had given a dose of the pills in the 
 morning to one of his officers, who had not as yet been sensible of any 
 effect from them. I answered, that the mildness of the remedy would 
 perhaps only occasion a slight feeling of improvement, and that if the 
 officer were already in good health, he might not be sensible of any 
 change whatever.
 
 ETIQUETTE OF ORIENTAL COURTS. 309 
 
 I omitted to mention before, that Ranjlt had consulted me in the 
 morning about his own state, complaining of weakness in his right side. 
 His pulse was natural for an old man. I inquired whether the skin 
 were insensible, and hearing that such was the case, I advised him to 
 have some powerful ointment rubbed into it, to excite and invigorate the 
 powers. He then complained of his tongue, over which he has not 
 perfect command, and which feels at the root hardened like wood. I 
 cheered him with the hope that this proceeded from want of activity in 
 the muscles, and would be remedied when the side was irritated. 
 
 In proof of his courtesy, I may add here, that while at the review, 
 a plate with about a dozen of the grapes of Kabul, was brought to him. 
 He asked my permission to eat them ; and the manner in which the 
 question was interpreted, made me suppose that in consequence of my 
 advice as to his diet, he was asking my medical opinion. I said, there- 
 fore, that I did not think a few grapes could hurt him, He saw where 
 the mistake had arisen, and quickly added, " An invalid must ask pardon 
 whenever he does any thing disallowed." 
 
 I had omitted to take a present with me on my first interview, a 
 compliment expected from every visitor, for I could find nothing that I 
 thought likely to be at all valued. General Ventura gave me an opera 
 glass to-day, and I filled an ornamented silver inkhorn, which shut fast 
 with an India rubber stopper, with some " bouquet du Roi." These I 
 carried to him, recommending the last as a remedy for the headach. 
 But the first attracted his attention directly, and he looked through it 
 at the troops. His eye was too weak, however, to enable him to make 
 any use of it. 
 
 In the evening we had the dancers again, and among them was a 
 girl of thirteen, who amused us a good deal with her jokes, at the 
 expense of Mr. Forni, who sat there with his grey beard and his 
 foraging-cap, caring nothing about us, or the jests mostly levelled at 
 his beard, and which his bad sight only allowed him to understand very 
 imperfectly. There were also present some dancers of the Mahä 
 Raja's, and they drank an incredible quantity of spirituous liquors, 
 without becoming intoxicated. It is singular, how much of the 
 strongest brandy these girls will swallow, without any effect ; the fact
 
 310 CELEBRATION OF THE HULI FESTIVAL. 
 
 is, they are so completely deadened by their course of life, that they 
 seem no longer alive to any excitement. 
 
 Saturday, January 16. — The Mahä Raja sent this morning to say, 
 that if I would not remain in Lahor altogether, he hoped at least that 
 I would not go away before the Huli, which falls about the end of 
 February, and draws to Lahor every dignitary of the empire in 
 all their glory. The Huli is a festival celebrated in honour of the god 
 Krishna by Hindus of all classes, and with the wildest sports and dissi- 
 pation. I had heard throughout Hindüsthan of the splendour with 
 which it is always kept at Lahor, and was therefore sorry to miss the 
 chance of seeing it. The fakir came back in two hours, and told me 
 that as the Mahä Raja thought I must be curious to see the festival, 
 he would send the dancing girls with everything necessary, to show me 
 the manner of its celebration. I expressed my obligations ; General 
 AUard's garden was fixed on as the locality, and it was agreed we 
 should meet at one o'clock. At the hour appointed we repaired to the 
 spot, the Mahä Raja having already sent everything necessary, not for- 
 getting silver and gold tinsel. 
 
 This Hindu festival, as I have said, is in honour of Krishna, and 
 represents the manner in which he and his beloved Sita, with their 
 companions, amused themselves. A quantity of S'mghdra meal dyed 
 yellow, green, red, and blue, is put into large baskets, and mixed up 
 with little pieces of gold and silver tinsel, a number of large pots of 
 water dyed with the same colours, and little water-engines being set 
 near. Every one appears in white garments, and the festival com- 
 mences, by the dancing girls sitting down, and breaking forth into a 
 song in honour of the feast. The baskets of coloured meal are then 
 introduced, and thin glass balls full of Singhara powder, are distributed 
 to the assembly, which they throw at each other, and being broken with 
 the slightest force discharge their contents on the white dresses, and 
 stain them. Like all games of this description, these begin gently, but 
 soon assume a rougher aspect, each player seizing as many balls as he 
 can, and Hinging them at one another. When the glass balls are 
 exhausted, they take the coloured meal, first, as much as the fingers 
 can hold, then by handfuls, and at last they empty the baskets over
 
 KKMAKKABLt: IIOYAL GAltUIiNS. 311 
 
 each other's heads, covering the whole person. The dirtiest part of the 
 entertainment consists in the sprinkling with the coloured waters, la 
 great houses the Huli is often held in the Zenana, and on those occa- 
 sions the women are allowed to be present. Spirits are drank, and 
 the amusements are then carried far beyond our European ideas of 
 propriety, but the Hindu thinks no harm of them. 
 
 In General AUard's garden, built by himself, is a pretty little build- 
 ing. The eagle and Napoleon's flag are displayed on every wall, and 
 here and there are figures representing the soldiers who served under him. 
 In the upper story are a few rooms, adorned with mirrors, and set apart 
 for the females of his family. Before the main building is the tomb of 
 his young daughter, a singular but durable monument, in the Moham- 
 medan taste, but embellished with the cross, the sign of the father's 
 faith, while the style of the tomb shows the mother's. 
 
 In the evening the dancers who had performed the Huli all came : 
 they are always carried about in Garis, or covered vehicles drawn by 
 oxen, and usually escorted by a party of armed police, whom they pay 
 for fear of being robbed of the costly jewels with which they are 
 usually decked. To a European's eye there is nothing more singular 
 than one of these processions going or returning. 
 
 Sunday, January 17. — The Shalimar garden is one of the sights of 
 Lahor. There are three famous gardens of this name. One at Delhi, 
 the original from which the others are copied, and which cost, they say, 
 ten millions of florins ; a second at Lahor, made by Nur Jehan ; and 
 the third and most celebrated of all, at Kashmir, laid out by Jehanghir. 
 Having a leisure day, I begged General Ventura to lend me his carriage 
 to take me there ; and accompanied by his bi*other-in-law Mr. Dubuignon, 
 and Vigne, I set ofi". The garden is five miles from the city, and the 
 road to it carries one past serais, palaces, and ruins, so numerous and 
 extensive, that they must be seen to be believed. In Europe, the sight 
 of a ruin creates in the mind a feeling of curiosity and surprise, imagina- 
 tion is set to work, and we retrace the strange existence formerly per- 
 haps passed within the walls. The reason is, that ruins are not often 
 seen there, and they carry us back to bygone days and the traditions of 
 history. In India, their great numbers make us pass thousands without
 
 312 THE SHALIMAK ROYAL GARDENS. 
 
 any emotion. True, scarcely any of tliem, except those belonging to the 
 pre-Mohammedan times, are without a history, and the Hindu ruins 
 are stored with the most fanciful of legends ; but their number, and 
 sometimes their modern date, interest the spectator otherwise than with us. 
 There may be inhabitants of Lahor now living, who have seen most of 
 those buildings, whose walls are now crumbling in unshapely masses, in 
 their day of pride : here the mind has to reflect on the fallen greatness, 
 the rapidity of time's destructiveness, the swift departure of men and 
 their works ; while we, in Europe, look on ruins which are monu- 
 ments of an age of power, to which nobler and better things have 
 succeeded. 
 
 Some bold eminences start up from this chaos of ruins, and inter- 
 rupt the monotony of the plain. Not that nature has had any thing to 
 do with them, whatever their height or extent may be; they owe their 
 existence to the burning of bricks, and a view of the numberless ruined 
 edifices constructed with this material at once accounts for their 
 appearance here. Near them is a crowd of new palaces, built in the 
 worst taste, the largest of which, belonging to Kripa Ram, (not the 
 former governor of Kashmir,) looks over the midst of this scene of 
 desolation, like a house of cards built in the Colosseum of Rome. 
 Four miles from Lahor the road to the Shalimar leads through the Serai 
 of Nur Jehiin, a large building like a fortress, but now entirely in ruins. 
 
 The Shalimar is a large building, for the entire garden, about a 
 mile and a half long and a quarter of a mile broad, is in fact an 
 edifice, and not a pleasure ground. The entrance of the building, 
 which is constructed of fine marble, is the prettiest part of it, and is at 
 present occupied by the family of a poor gardener. From this spot the 
 ground falls, and at a quarter of a mile further on is a large reservoir, 
 which is nearly as extensive as a lake. Close to it are several buildings 
 huddled together, some tasteful enough ; indeed, the whole might well 
 have served as a model for the pleasure gardens of the age of Louis 
 XIV, The Shalimar is well kept, and many very fine fruits, parti- 
 cularly the Santareh oranges, thrive abundantly. Ranjit Singh fre- 
 quently passes a day or two in this place. 
 
 The Mali laid a beautiful basket of fruit at my feet. I perambu-
 
 TASTK FOR ARTIFICIAL EMBELLISHMENTS. 313 
 
 lated the garden in all directions, and the buildings in like manner; 
 I determined to have a brisk walk, for my present inactivity, after the 
 constant exercise I had been long accustomed to, caused me sensations 
 of great disquiet, and was even painful to me. 
 
 In this garden Niir Jehan was wont to hold yearly fairs, where 
 pleasure became madness. A straw hut, built by Kanjit Singh, has a 
 strange appearance in the midst of so much that breathes of royal mag- 
 nificence. As we came back I expressed my wish to see General Ven- 
 tura's garden. The road is dreadful, being over the ruins of the old 
 city, which extended in this direction, from the ancient citadel, the present 
 city, four or five miles in a semi-circle round the Ravi. Large as 
 Lahor is at present, it must formerly have been at least ten times as 
 extensive. We reached the garden with some trouble, a Sikh General 
 having taken a fancy to the place, had pitched his tent there, and his 
 horses prevented our carriage from getting near the gate. The garden 
 is prettily situated ; the entrance-hall in the first division is large and 
 handsome ; the rooms in the second, or the Zenana, are also pretty ; but 
 Jacquemont indulged his fancy very largely, when he wrote that this 
 was one of the fairy palaces of the Thousand and One Nights. 
 
 We rode back for a mile along the city wall, and when not far from 
 home, I descried a black fakir dancing with his guitar, and singing 
 praises to Govind Singh. He was standing on a lofty terrace before a 
 handsome tomb, in which he had taken up his abode. His long black 
 robe was lined with red; a black and white belt with astrological signs 
 hung from his right shoulder across the left side, and a high magic cap 
 completed his fantastic array. He had a circle of female auditors. I 
 alighted from the carriage to view this novel spectacle somewhat 
 nearer, and was surprised at the manner in which he danced to the 
 melody of a very fine voice. 
 
 On my return home, I found the Fakir Sahib waiting for me, with a 
 request from Ranjit Singh that I would give him a testimonial. After 
 some trouble, I made out that he wanted a writing, in which I was to 
 congratulate both the Maha Raja and the Company on the strict 
 friendship existing between them, and acknowledge the handsome 
 reception given to myself. I could not help laughing at the idea, and
 
 314 RECOGNITION OF FAVOURS. 
 
 asked the fakir what possible use such a testimonial from an insig- 
 nificant foreigner, who had nothing to do with the English Government, 
 could be to Ranjit Singh. Nevertheless, without waiting for any further 
 request, I promised to draw up something of the kind, and take his 
 opinion of it on the following morning, when he was to return. In 
 the evening we had a nach again, an entertainment which has no 
 attractions for me, but which they think necessary for the proper 
 reception of every stranger. 
 
 Mr. Mackeson started this evening for Firozpoor, taking with him 
 some letters for me for my European correspondents. I saw him 
 depart with much regret. He is a very amiable, prudent man, and I 
 foresee that my intercourse with Ranjit Singh will not be carried on so 
 easily without him. 
 
 Monday, January 18. — I rose early to draw up the paper for Ranjit 
 Singh, and after pondering a little, I wrote down as follows, but, 
 before I had it translated into Persian, I intended to show it to Ventura 
 and the fakir. " When I left my own country to visit the different 
 kingdoms of the world, I made every inquiry how far it would be 
 possible for me to travel. The kingdoms of Lahor and Kashmir, so 
 little known to Europeans, were peculiarly interesting to me. I had 
 heard of the great Mahä Raja of Lahor, who, living in peace and 
 amity with the English East India Company, protected travellers with 
 his power, and received them with distinction at his court, much 
 spoken of in Europe. In consequence of my information, I journeyed 
 to Hindiisthan, and finding that the friendship between the two powers 
 was much stronger than I had believed, I asked and obtained the 
 Mahä Raja's permission to visit Kashmir. Throughout my journey I 
 was loaded with kindness by the Maha Raja ; but I was chiefly im- 
 pressed by the evident confidence and good understanding subsisting 
 between the Company and the Mahä Raja, which is for the happiness 
 of the world, and, like the tree of life, protects and gives security to 
 the whole of India." 
 
 When the fakir came, Ventura translated these words to him. He 
 said that the Mahä Raja would like to hear something more about the 
 great friendship between the two countries, and would be pleased to
 
 FüUMAL TESTIMONIAL DEPOSITION. 315 
 
 have it written in English by my own hand, so that the Persian 
 translation might be made on the same page. I then wrote these 
 lines : — 
 
 " Previously to leaving my own country with the intention of visiting 
 foreign kingdoms, I made inquiries how far a European might be able 
 to penetrate, and hope to enjoy the protection of the sovereigns ruling 
 over them. The kingdom of the Panjab and Kashmir had particular 
 attractions and interest for me as being, especially the latter, countries 
 little seen by, and still less known to the inhabitants of the western world. 
 Ill Europe, I had heard of the most powerful Mahä Raja of Labor, 
 who, living in peace and friendship with the Company Sirdar, not 
 only aflForded protection to travellers visiting the Panjab, but received 
 them with distinction at his court. Upon my arrival in Hindüsthan, the 
 accounts which I had heard in the course of my travels, of the friend- 
 ship subsisting between the two governments were not only confirmed, 
 but proved to me to be much stronger than I had even imagined. 
 Thus encouraged, I asked and obtained the permission of the Mahä 
 Raja to go to Kashmir, and afterwards to present my respects to his 
 Highness at Lahor. From the Mahä Raja I experienced not only 
 the protection and munificence becoming a great king, but his kindness 
 has left a lasting impression upon me. This, as the first Austrian who 
 had ever visited these countries, was particularly gratifying to my 
 feelings, and it was with equal surprise and pleasure, that I observed 
 the close and unreserved friendship established between the Mahä 
 Raja and the British government, which happily spreads its branches 
 over the whole of Hindusthan and the Panjab, and will every day 
 acquire strength and soHdity." 
 
 The last words " and will'' were added at the urgent request of the 
 fakir. The whole looked rather strange to me, and if it should ever 
 be found among Ranjit's papers, will not be very easily understood. 
 Perhaps the testimonials which were asked of me by all his subordinates, 
 from the governor of Kashmir down to the most humble Thanadar, 
 were sent to him for the purpose of keeping them for a similar motive. 
 To gratify his childish whim, I wrote this in English in my best 
 manner, and affixed to it my large European seal. The fact is, that
 
 316 SECURITY OF PROPERTY IN DESPOTIC STATES. 
 
 time hangs heavy on Ranjit Singh's hands ; he has always been accus- 
 tomed to visit all parts of his dominions on horseback, which exercise is 
 now painful to him. Nor can he amuse himself any longer in the Zenana, 
 his feeble health preventing him from occupying his leisure hours with 
 the trifling diversions of the women. Not being able to turn to any 
 mental recreation, he is forced to seek amusement, therefore, from 
 external sources, for the speculations of thought have no charm for 
 him, and to seek amusement in reading, or in being read to, is a thing 
 quite unheard of in India. 
 
 I informed the Fakir Sahib to-day, of my wish to leave Lahor on 
 the 20th, and to take three days for my journey to Liidiana. From 
 Kopartela, the second day's resting-place, I had my dhäk arranged by 
 Captain Wade, that is, I had bearers ready at the appointed stations 
 in such relays, that I should make one day's journey of several. 
 General Ventura was to take me to Amritsir in his carriage, and I 
 desired to be furnished by the Mahä Raja with elephants to convey 
 me from Amritsir to Kopartela. The fakir said that he would 
 acquaint Ranjit with my wishes, and that it would take four days to 
 arrange the matter. In the Panjab every thing is transacted through 
 Ranjit's orders, and nothing can be done without them. 
 
 I had hitherto been waiting for my palankeen, which contained the 
 trunk enclosing my uniform. Captain Wade had sent me word that it 
 had left Ludiana on the 8th, and I could not conceive what could have 
 detained it so long. Anything like a robbery was most improbable, for 
 I have before remarked that, in this respect, the Panjab is much safer 
 than Hindüsthan, the Mahä Raja calling every village near which the 
 robbery takes place, to a very strict account, and making the inhabitants 
 pay the value of things stolen to the loser. 
 
 I have forgotten to mention the Shah for a long while. I intro- 
 duced him to General Ventura, who assigned him a dwelling near his 
 own, and promised, in my presence, that he would take his cause 
 in hand when I left Lahor. Perhaps I shall do well to describe in 
 this place, Ventura's position in the Panjab, as well as that of the 
 other Europeans in Ranjit's service : the General has been of great 
 service to the Mahä Raja, both in the field and in the training of his
 
 AVERSION TO KETRIBUTIVE JUSTICE. 317 
 
 forces, but he is blamed for not being sufficiently pliant and refined for 
 a court. None but minions have any influence over Ranjit Singh, 
 and it is to Ventura's honour that he is not one of these. Here and 
 in India he is acknowledged to be a man of high honour, and during a 
 journey he took not long since in Hindüsthan, the English Generals 
 and other officers, testified their respect to him most cordially. He has 
 been appointed by the Mahä Raja, Kazi and Governor of Lahor, which 
 gives him the third place at his court. He has to attend the Maha 
 Raja soon after sunrise every morning, and during the day all sorts of 
 grievances are brought before him. General Avitabile is a Neapolitan, 
 who served some time in Persia, and has lately entered Ranjit's service. 
 A longing after his native land urged him some time ago to revisit 
 Europe, but disgusted by a variety of circumstances which seemed to 
 make his home distasteful, he soon returned to the East, and entered 
 the service of an independent prince. The Maha Raja gave him at first 
 the post of Governor of the Rekhna Doab, and the capital of Wazira- 
 bad, where he distinguished himself so much by the strong measures he 
 took, that when the difficult post of Peshawar required the presence 
 of an independent resolute man, inaccessible to the influence of the 
 incapable Shir Singh, the Maha Raja sent him there against his own 
 inclination. The following anecdote will give an idea of his character. 
 The Maha Raja is always unwilling to inflict the punishment of death 
 or mutilation, but he knows not how to reconcile mildness with the just 
 reward due to crime. While Avitabile was at Wazirabad not long ao-o, 
 six robbers were taken, professors of the Sikh religion, to whom Ranjit 
 Singh thought himself bound to show forbearance. It was an embar- 
 rassing circumstance, this being the second apprehension of the thieves. 
 They were sent to Avitabile, with a command that they should not be 
 allowed to escape again, and the same hour they were handed. The 
 Maha Raja sent for Avitabile in high wrath ; all his friends trembled 
 for him, and when he appeared before Ranjit, he was asked how he 
 had dared to hang six Sikhs, who had been given into his safe keeping. 
 Avitabile answered, that he thought it the surest means of preventing 
 their escape, and obeying the Mahä Raja's command. The king 
 laughed at this answer; the event was not taken anv further notice of:
 
 318 IMPOVERISHED STATE OF KASHMIR. 
 
 the Sikh who told me the story seemed to think it a good joke, and all 
 the people regard him with much reverence. Colonel Court quitted the 
 Polytechnic Institution of Paris, of which he was a pupil, in the year 
 1815. He is a good officer, and well informed, commanding two 
 battalions of Ghorkas in the service of the Mahä Raja, and likewise at 
 this time the French legion at Akora, near Atok. 
 
 In the evening we again had a nach, and there was a feast at 
 the Fakir Sahib's, which gave him the opportunity of sending to General 
 Ventura a repast consisting of about 100 lbs. of boiled rice, with 
 butter and sweetmeats in proportion. This, and the daily present of 
 fruit and pastry sent by the Raja, namely, twelve boxes of grapes, baskets 
 of oranges, pears, apples, &c., made up the supper of the dancers, which 
 they ate while squatting on a carpet, over which a cotton cloth was 
 spread. 
 
 Tuesday, January 19. — I remained at home all the day and wrote, 
 but not without many interruptions. The Jemidar's son came with his 
 tutor, a well-bred and well-educated man from Kashmir. I have said 
 that this Jemidar is a Brahmin; the tutor is a Mohammedan, and the 
 youth can read and write the Persian, the Panjabi, and the Hindu 
 languages. He wishes much to learn English, and has applied with 
 that view to a man who calls himself an American, but who is really 
 an Irishman, and not belonging to that class called gentlemen, to judge 
 by appearances. He is an officer in the Mahä Raja's artillery. Then 
 came the son of Mehän Singh, with a letter from his father, complain- 
 ing that the Maha Raja required, for the ensuing year, a tribute of 
 twenty-two and a half lakhs of rupees from the valley, which, as I very 
 well knew could not be raised in the country; he therefore begged me 
 to intercede with Ranjit for some diminution of the sum demanded. 
 I desired the Munshi to answer this request instantly, saying, that 
 the Governor must have learned by this time, in what manner I had 
 spoken of him to the Mahä Raja; that if he questioned me again, 
 I should repeat the same opinion. I was also convinced that the 
 country could not pay twenty-two and a half lakhs of rupees this year, 
 and Mehän Singh was at liberty to show my letter to Ranjit Singh, or 
 make use of it as he thought best.
 
 AN EVENINC; SCENE IN INDIA. 319 
 
 In the evening I took a walk with Mr. Fox, and we strolled to a 
 fine monument, one side of which, undermined by an arm of the Ravi, 
 which flows along by the exercising ground, is disjoined from the 
 building, and open towards the west. Of the three lofty cupolas, tlu- 
 one on this side was rent asunder in the middle, and the chasm yawned 
 like some revengeful monster crying towards heaven. The colours were 
 quite fresh, and do one would have supposed that paint could have 
 so well withstood the winds and storms of centuries. We visited many 
 more of such monuments, and the dwelling of a fakir, who has a fancy 
 for sitting by a well, and in this artificial wilderness can always assist 
 the wanderer with a refreshing draught. The sun was just sinking, 
 and the awakening spring filled the breast with those sensations which 
 make the first appearance of the same season so like the commencement 
 of a new life to a European. The feeling is stronger here, in propor- 
 tion as the powers of vegetation spring up to a renewed existence more 
 swiftly from the slumber in which they have been buried for a briefer 
 space. Here the winter never kills the buds : it merely bends their 
 heads for some days, until the next soft breeze unfolds them into full 
 leaf. With us winter is the death of the year, and spring a tedious 
 regeneration; here, nature is immortal, and her sleep is so light, that 
 the first warm day of sunshine suffices to arouse her. 
 
 On my return, I betook myself to the platform in front of the 
 house, and watched the vapours of evening as they veiled the setting 
 sun, and the great city with its brilliant palaces. The horizon was 
 clear in one direction only, viz., where tombs and monuments, 
 minarets and domes, were piled up, a mass of ruins in the artificial 
 desert they have made around them, reminding one of the Egyptian 
 monuments in their natural sands: in both, the quiet abiding-place of 
 those who have gone to their long last rest. The sun was yet red in the 
 heavens, but the eye can gaze on its disk unharmed as it approaches 
 the straight horizontal line formed by the vast Indian waste, which 
 has the effect of a sunset on the boundless surface of the ocean. Single 
 elephants and long trains of camels were bringing for themselves and 
 their working comrades large branches of the fig-tree to the city, and 
 moving along with a measured regular tread. Horses and asses laden
 
 320 DEPRESSING RETROSPECT OF LIFE. 
 
 with grass were following these, or marching past them at a more rapid 
 pace. Here, a cloud of dust follows a finely dressed Sikh, who was 
 hastening forward on his proud steed, attended by a numerous suite, to 
 a once imperial dwelling ; there, Indians were driving their small flocks 
 towards the city, some bearing a new-born kid, others helping onward 
 some aged animal over the uneven ground. They were seeking a refuge 
 against the nightly depredations of the wolf and the hyena, or against 
 man, even worse than these. The poor man has neither friend nor 
 protector in India, he has but hope and patience to bear him onward to 
 a better world. Large parties of crows and jackdaws were flying towards 
 the towers of the city. Everything was seeking rest for the night — all, 
 but the parrots chattering among the trees in the garden, and the sound 
 of the water-wheel worked by oxen, which is accompanied by the cry 
 of the industrious peasant, as it turns heavily round day and night 
 without intermission, — announced departing day. In the distance, the 
 songs of the dancing fakir in honour of the great Govindji, and the 
 accompaniment of his guitar, were still audible. 
 
 Such was the scene which I quitted only when night rendered all 
 objects invisible to me, and the cold reminded me where I stood. For 
 some inexplicable reason, my mind has been more depressed to-day 
 than usual. Perhaps this is the effect of rest and leisure, after the 
 necessary labour of my continual journeyings. If so, it is a bad 
 omen for that rest, which, God willing, I trust to enjoy in my own 
 country. It would be well to depart at once, and forget my present 
 temper of mind in trouble and deprivations. But there is a sort of 
 enjoyment in the expression of one's feelings which I cannot i*esist. 
 Age is always selfish, and I feel life advancing. Should these lines 
 reach home without me, they will suffice to prove how much years 
 must have stolen upon me. I force myself to recollect that there was a 
 time when life was dear to me for the sake of others, and when I 
 looked forward only to home with peace and joy. The stranger, far- 
 distant in place, time, and feeling; the self-banished one, has long 
 given up all claims to happiness for himself, and against his expectation 
 he finds that five years of solitude, toil, and exertion are gone, and 
 that, however outward circumstances may have changed, he is the same
 
 PETITIONERS FOR ROYAL FAVOUH. 321 
 
 in heart as when he once bade a long farewell to Vienna, his fatherland. 
 The past started up to-day like a spectre in the darkness, weighing 
 down my soul with the consciousness that it had destroyed all hope and 
 gladness in me. I must look back to a remote period ere I can forget 
 the long interval of sadness which has intervened ; may it have passed 
 for ever, and for that I would gladly reUnquish all that 1 have learned, 
 my travels, my collections, my writing, everything for forgetfulness. 
 A partial forgetfulness, however, is painful, bringing from the past, 
 only what we would most wish blotted out, as the sun shines on the 
 bleached bones of the famine-stricken people of Kashmir, where they 
 lie among the green herbs. 
 
 Wednesday, January 20. — The Mahä Raja deputed the Fakir Sahib 
 this morning to express his disappointment at having seen so little of 
 me during my stay in Lahor, more particularly as he heard that my 
 departure was so near at hand. He had not sent for me, because he 
 hoped I should visit him whenever I found it agreeable, and he knew 
 that I desired to see the curiosities of the city. If I had already done 
 this, he trusted that I would not refuse to devote the next fortnight to 
 him. I thanked the Raja for his invitation, but repeated my wish to 
 pay ray visit, and take leave of him to-day. 
 
 I introduced Mohammed Shah to the Fakir Sahib, and recommended 
 his business to him as well as I could. But I had been in Lahor long 
 enough to see that every man there thinks and acts for himself, and there- 
 fore was determined to name the subject to the Mahä Raja himself. 
 Every thing depends on a petitioner seeing the king, wherefore I now 
 begged the Fakir Sahib, who is a most honourable and independent 
 man, and, in this respect, stands almost alone in Lahor, to request an 
 audience for the Shah. In a few hours he returned to me with the 
 information that the Mahä Raja wished to see me on the following 
 day. He had spoken of the Shah, but had received no answer. 
 
 Yesterday, I had regulated my watch after taking an observation 
 with the sextant in the presence of the Jemidar's son, who asked me 
 the meaning of what I was doing. I explained it, adding, that I wished 
 to know the distance from Lahor to Calcutta. This morning he 
 visited me again, bringing the astronomer and astrologer of Lahor 
 
 Y
 
 322 THE HINDU ASTROLOGER. 
 
 with him, the last having a large astrolabe and a Sanscrit book in his 
 hand. He seemed very earnest and thoughtful. I had long desired to 
 meet with an individual of this class, and presently asked him if he 
 knew how to use the instrument. He did not understand my question, 
 and I soon discovered that he carried it about with him only as an 
 external sign of his rank. On inquiring the subject of the book, he 
 informed me it was the Shaster ; I pointed out a passage and requested 
 him to read it, this however he could not do; all he knew, in short, 
 was to repeat a few passages which he had got by role and could point 
 out. These people know the latitude of the ancient cities from the 
 Shaster; for instance, they know that Lahor is 32° from Lanka, but 
 where that point commences, or what was the measure of each degree, 
 they were quite ignorant, as also of the number of degrees to the 
 circle. Now, it is quite unimportant from what place the degrees 
 of latitude are reckoned, the Hindus reckon from the middle of the 
 sea, but the reckoning can be worth nothing, if the length of the 
 degree is unknown, and I could not at first understand what made this 
 man come to display his ignorance before me. After a while I found 
 that he wanted to ascertain the latitude of Amritsir for astrological 
 purposes. This, as a city of newly acquired importance, is not men- 
 tioned in the Shaster. 
 
 The American Irishman came a little later, and brought me a plan 
 of Kandahar. I thanked him for the attention, but observed that I 
 should not make use of any plans, except the map I had myself taken. 
 Besides these, I was honoured with many other visitors, all with 
 petitions of some sort to the Mahä Raja. Having determined to speak 
 for no person who was unknown to me, I was obliged to decline any 
 interference on their concerns, even in the affair of Mr. Forni, which I 
 knew that I could not further. The Mahä Raja had offered him 700 
 rupees a month if he would manage a powder-mill for him, but Mr. 
 Forni demanded 3000 rupees, and had already been here several months, 
 executing various little services, for which he had never received 
 the smallest recompense. He would be glad now to be dismissed 
 altogether with a sum of a few thousand rupees, but cannot succeed 
 in getting any payment at all. lie was very desirous to travel with
 
 OSTENSIBLE POLICY OF ENOLAXD. 323 
 
 me, and wished me to speak to the Maha Raja on the subject, but I 
 assured him that the first was quite impossible, and that I could not 
 do the last. He travelled to Lahor up the Indus, in the company of 
 a German adventurer who wished to enter the service of Ranjit, but 
 could not obtain anythir.fr, and is now at Kabul, whence he wrote the 
 most absurd letter to General Ventura that I ever read, giving himself 
 out for a Russian spy, and offering to perform the same service for him 
 on payment of a salary equal to what he now receives. 
 
 Yesterday we had no nach. I was out of spirits, and having 
 generally contrived to animate the evening's conversation, the hours 
 passed heavily on that account. General Ventura thought that I 
 missed the usual amusement, and though I assured him to the contrary, 
 he ordered the performance this evening, and I regretted the repetition 
 of the monotonous, and to me unpleasant noise, not to speak of the 
 unnecessary expense to which it put my kind host. 
 
 Thursday, 21st January. — At noon the Fakir Sahib came, with 
 saddle horses and the Mahä Raja's carriage drawn by four horses. The 
 equipage was by no means splendid, though he had received it as a pre- 
 sent from the King of England. Lieut. Burnes brought it over for him, 
 and with it five horses. It had become of much importance to England 
 to survey the Indus, and ascertain the possibility of navigating it. 
 That it was navigable in the time of Alexander is evident, but we hear 
 nothing about it in any other age, and the information drawn from the 
 accounts of that time is of the most meagre description. All men 
 acquainted with the history of the last forty years, will understand the 
 humane intentions of the English philanthropists, who desire to give 
 an outlet to the productions of the upper provinces of India, and enable 
 the poor inhabitants to exchange their coarse home-made stuffs for the 
 far better and cheaper goods of England. The Indus has several 
 mouths, and the channel is not only very shallow, according to the 
 last survey, (in fact it has only three feet of water before the rainy 
 season, in the shallowest places of the deepest among its arms,) but the 
 sand is constantly shifting, thus altering the water-way, and in a short 
 time blocking up one arm and forming a new one. The lower Indus 
 is in the possession of tln«'i' small states, whose princes are railed 
 
 y2
 
 324 KOUTE OF THE MISSION TO LAHOR. 
 
 Amirs of Sindh, viz., Hyderabad, Khyrpoor and Mirpoor. These 
 are Mohammedans, and were it rendered serviceable to them, the 
 Company could no doubt easily induce them to enter into a commercial 
 treaty, when the survey of the Indus shall be completed. 
 
 Ranjit Singh had sent a present to the English king, and the occa- 
 sion of returning this courtesy by a gift, the very nature of which 
 rendered it essential to take advantage of the river, was an excellent 
 pretext for sailing up the Indus. Four large cart-horses, some mares, 
 and one of those huge dray-horses which are sometimes seen in the 
 London streets, and appear to carry death and destruction at their heels, 
 were embarked accordingly, and despatched to Bombay. What, 
 indeed, could be more flattering to Ranjit Singh, than a present so 
 exactly in accordance with his well-known predilection for fine horses; 
 •what more natural than that care should be taken not to expose this 
 expensive present to a fatiguing land-journey ! To add to the impro- 
 priety of such a risk, the Governor of the Bombay Presidency, Sir 
 John Malcolm, added an old coach, lined inside with blue velvet, and 
 coarsely painted without. In 1830, Lieutenant Burnes was commis- 
 sioned to convey this splendid gift up the Indus to Lahor, and to survey 
 the river on his way. But the Amirs of Sindh were as little to be 
 deceived by the pretext as Ranjit Singh himself; and it certainly did 
 evince great ignorance of the circumstances and affairs of India, not only 
 on the part of the authorities in England, but of those also in Bombay. 
 It would seem almost incredible, indeed, if it stood alone ; but, unhappily 
 for the Indian population, there are not wanting evident and repeated 
 proofs how imperfectly acquainted the English Ministry is ; nay more, 
 how uninformed with Indian politics even one Presidency is with the 
 affairs of the others. 
 
 It was considered most advisable to sail up the Indus, without 
 obtaining the previous permission of the Amirs ; hence, when the expe- 
 dition entered their territories thus unexpectedly, they at first refused 
 to suffer it to proceed, but were at length induced, though against their 
 convictions, to give up their opposition. Now it is most incumbent on 
 such a power as that of the English in India that it should act with 
 vigour, instead of having recourse to subterfuge which everybody can see
 
 PltESENTS FROM THE KINO TO ENGLAND. 325 
 
 through, and in this case it would have been far better to have entered 
 into an open negotiation, and communicated its purport to Ranjtt Singh. 
 By the method adopted, they ran the risk of provoking Kanjit to take 
 possession of these small states, or at least to impede the whole plan, 
 as for as he could do so. After all, the treaty with the Amirs ended 
 with the usual " I will " of the Company, and therefore it would have 
 been better to have pronounced it at first. What must Ranjit Singh 
 have thought of this way of conveying his presents? The English 
 Ministry could not have been made aware, that thousands of horses are 
 conveyed to and from India through the Panjab every year; that 
 scarcely a day passes that horses do not leave Calcutta for Ludiana and 
 Lahor, and that there is not a station in Northern Hindustan where 
 vehicles of various kinds are not kept, which during the fine season 
 travel from Calcutta to the Setlej, drawn by horses, and mounted on 
 four wheels. The Company must have known this, because so far 
 back as 1810, Lord Minto sent a state carriage to Ranjit Singh all the 
 way from Calcutta to Lahor. The Begam Samrii, that extraordinary 
 woman, who rose from a dancing girl, to have the government of an 
 independent principality, bringing in a revenue of 700,000 florins, in 
 like manner sent from Serdhana, her chief town, a present of a state 
 carriage of glass, with four horses, to General Ventura, which as far 
 surpasses in beauty the lumbering vehicle of the Company as the 
 Medicean Venus surpasses the Begam Samru. 
 
 But to the selection made: to send four brewers' horses and a mon- 
 strous dray horse to a prince who has a peculiar fancy for the most 
 elegant saddle horses, is something like giving a man who loves the rare 
 flowers which adorn his beautiful hothouse, a cart-load of potatoes. Had 
 it been possible to make a more extraordinary present, Ranjit Singh 
 must have been flattered, nevertheless, by the very idea that it came 
 from the King of England. The mares were forthwith sent to graze, 
 without receiving any further notice, as these animals are very rarely 
 used in the Panjab. There the plough is drawn by oxen and butfalocs, 
 and horses are never harnessed to waggons. The other gigantic horse 
 was sent to the schoolmaster, to be instructed in the art of dancing 
 with other Panjabi horses; he was found so uulractable, however.
 
 326 IMPORTANCE OF GOOD MILITAUY ROADS. 
 
 that all hope of his improvement was eventually relinquished, and he 
 was dressed up like an elephant, and stationed before Ranjit's palace, 
 where at the expiration of a year he departed this life. 
 
 Into this state coach I now stept, with Vigne and the Fakir Sahib, 
 while Mohan, whom the Mahä Raja distinguishes on all occasions, stood 
 behind with some officers. Some of the straps had given way, and the 
 coach swung about in the most uncomfortable manner. It happened 
 most unluckily that the place where we were to meet the Mahä Raja 
 was five miles off, the exercising ground extending that distance along 
 the shore of the Ravi. The road was good and well watered : Ranjit 
 Singh's rich and beautiful tents added greatly to the ornamental 
 character of the fine groups of trees which studded the park-like 
 ground. A large Kashmir carpet was spread on that part where the 
 river forms a bend, and four arm-chairs were placed on it. Ranjit 
 Singh was occupied in overlooking the troops while they threw up a field- 
 work. He took my arm and asked me whether they were working pro- 
 perly, to which I replied in the affimative. Perhaps my looks were not 
 quite in unison with my words, as their want of order and regularity 
 made them resemble some seditious multitude, collected for the purpose 
 of destroying rather than constructing field works. Ranjit Singh 
 informed me that he was making a carriage road onward to Amritsir, 
 similar to that which was carried through the ground where we then 
 were. I observed, that he could not possibly do better than make 
 good roads, which would facilitate the movements of his troops, and 
 render their progress from one place to another so rapid and easy, that 
 their numbers would be apparently doubled. Mohan, who acted as my 
 interpreter, caught my idea immediately, but had some difficulty in 
 making it intelligible to Ranjit Singh; when at length he compre- 
 hended its purport, after many interrogatories, he answered : " Yes, 
 but I should make it also more easy for an enemy to advance against 
 me." I reminded him that the want of roads had never prevented the 
 subjection of any part of India hitherto, but that it might in like man- 
 ner have impeded the advance of any force desirous of relieving a 
 threatened point, and in order to act with any efficiency, a regular army 
 must have regular roads. " I wish," he exclaimed, " that you could
 
 STATE COACH PRESENTED TO KANJIT SINGH. 327 
 
 remain with mc. Could you not, at least, postpone your journey for 
 three months ?" I said that I appreciated his kindness most sincerely, 
 but that my arrangements were finally completed, and that it was a 
 twelvemonth since I had received any letters from my native land. 
 Very little, moreover, could be accomplished in three months towards 
 the reorganization of his troops. 
 
 We now proceeded to a small palace, before which some troops were 
 drawn up, and Ranjtt Singh, fatigued with walking, though he leaned 
 on my arm, stood still, and said to Vigne : " Do you understand how to 
 restore a country which is much impoverished ?" Vigne did not quite 
 understand Mohan, and I repeated the question, adding in English : 
 " Take care, he means to appoint you his viceroy in the country we 
 have recently quitted." Vigne took my words in jest, and made some 
 reply in a jocular way, which expressed nothing. Mohan, however, 
 translated it into an affirmative, and the Mahä Raja continued : " Do 
 you understand how to govern a country ?" This seemed so absurd to 
 Vigne that he laughed outright in Ranjit's face, who asked him again : 
 " What would you do in Kashmir to make it more prosperous ?" Vigne 
 was quite unprepared with an immediate reply, and desired Mohan to 
 say as much. The boy not well understanding this, the conversation 
 dropped, as the thoughts of Ranjit had wandered to other subjects. 
 He presently addressed me: "I begin to feel old; I am quite exhausted 
 now, and must be taken to the battery in my palankeen. You will ride 
 in the carriage. What is that carriage worth ?" I said that I knew its 
 history, and should like to have the sum it had cost ere it came into his 
 possession. He and the young Raja Hira Singh got into the palan- 
 keen, and I mounted the carriage, that he might not be kept waiting, 
 but I ordered that it should remain in the rear of his palankeen. This 
 he would not suffer, but commanded the coachman to proceed. An 
 open tent was pitched for the Raja in front of the building. Two nine- 
 pounders were set on the bank of an arm of the Ravi, and on the 
 opposite side a white spot was painted on an acacia tree; while behind 
 the guns was stationed a company of infantry and a pultun of Gorcheli*. 
 
 • Captain Murray, in his Political liiports, chills tlioni Gliorduirs. 'I'Ik' alxivi' 
 is the uiorc iirobable nanu-, or jitrliaiis Gliorcliolaa. — Ed.
 
 328 SKILFUL ARTILLERY PRACTICE. 
 
 The palankeen being some few hundred steps behind, I went up to the 
 guns. Both were cast in Lahor, and seemed in excellent order ; their 
 carriages were made after English models. I carefully examined every 
 part, and as I stooped to see whether the aim was good, Ranjit Singh 
 came up, and inquired of me if they were good guns. " Very good," I 
 answered. — "Are they properly adjusted?" he inquired. "No," an- 
 swered I; "they will not hit the tree unless the sight be wrong, and 
 the gunners are perfectly aware of it." He ordered the pieces to be fired, 
 but they hit nothing ; two shots more were equally unsuccessful. He said 
 that he should like much to know where the fault lay, and requested me 
 to point them. The fault, I observed, must always rest with the man who 
 laid the guns, and who ought to know better; but I made no doubt if 
 he would allow me three shots, that I should succeed in hitting the 
 mark the third time. I then pointed the piece, stepped aside, and my 
 excellent eyesight did me good service. The tree was about 800 yards 
 distant, and following the ball, I saw it fly straight over the tree; while 
 the other gun, discharged by an officer, dropped the ball in the ground 
 just in front of the tree. My second ball fell in the branches a little 
 too far to the right; while that from the other gun flew away over 
 them. I then pointed the gun the third time, and stepped behind the 
 Mahä Raja. It went off", the ball passing through the trunk, and 
 splitting the tree. " I knew this would be the result," exclaimed Ranjit 
 Singh; while the Gorcheli, who had all drawn near, cried: "Wah! 
 Nur unallah nur !" To explain the Mahä Raja's words, I must add, 
 that, though without any real faith, he considers it necessary to pretend 
 great devotion to the Sikh religion, and is, moreover, exceedingly 
 superstitious. 
 
 Not long ago a Frenchman came to Lahor, and giving himself out 
 for an officer of artillery, desired to enter Ranjit's service. The Mahä 
 Raja, to test his skill, appointed as a trial the same tree, which was to 
 be hit by these guns in three shots. General Ventura clearly explained 
 that success in this trial depended more upon chance than upon the 
 talent of the officer, and therefore endeavoured to dissuade him from 
 requiring such a test, as he might thereby, on the one hand, lose an 
 officer whose services in his army might be very useful ; or on the other.
 
 DESTRUCTIVE NATURE OF SPHERICAL CASE. 329 
 
 he might give some post to a man whose only merit consisted in having 
 luckily hit a tree. But the Maha Raja adhered to his own opinion ; the 
 experiment took place; the officer missed the tree, and lost his hope 
 of emolument. It was evident that Ranj it Singh had entertained an idea 
 that fate would pronounce to him whether I was to be useful to him or 
 not, by the success of my aim at this same tree ; his exclamation, " I 
 was certain of it," verified the correctness of my opinion. 
 
 When we were seated, both pieces were discharged in our presence 
 several times, but without success. This reminds me of the manage- 
 ment of Ranjit Singh's artillery, which is divided into so many Daroga, 
 or batteries, each commanded by an officer, but deficient in regular 
 gunners or carriages; hence, when their service is required in the field, 
 the officer has to find both men and horses. This prevents the artillery 
 from being well served, and the only duty they seem to perform is that 
 of loading and firing as well as they can. The officers of the French 
 legion have drawn the attention of the Mahä Raja to the necessity of 
 keeping this, as well as all the other branches of the array, in an 
 efficient state of equipment and training; at present, those trains only 
 which are attached to the French legion, besides the two batteries of six 
 guns, now in Lahor, are regularly organized. 
 
 The guns now fired spherical case, which burst too soon. These 
 had astonished the Mahä Raja beyond measure when he first saw 
 them at a review at Rupar, during his conference with Lord William 
 Bentinck : after every shot, he rode up to the target, and counted the 
 holes which the balls and fragments of the shivered shell had torn in 
 it. He then observed the fearful havoc such missiles would occasion 
 amontr irregular troops. He ordered his European officers to provide the 
 same for his artillery, and the first shell which exploded was worth 30,000 
 rupees to Colonel Court. Ranjit asked me whether 1 understood anything 
 about them, and on my telling him that I did, he inquired further, 
 perhaps in order to prove my knowledge, how it happened that the 
 shells did not all burst in the same way ? I answered, that in a manu- 
 facture which was by no means simple and which required the utmost 
 nicety, the fault might lay either in the fuzes being of difiFerent lengths, 
 f>r in the powder being badly made, or of indifferent quality; and then.
 
 330 THE GORCHELI, OR HOUSEHOLD TROOPS. 
 
 thinking it a favourable moment to speak a word in behalf of Forni, I 
 told him that he would soon find it necessary to build a regular and 
 well-organized powder manufactory, where the powder might be pre- 
 pared of the proper strength and quality, and that there was already a 
 man called Forni in Lahor, who thoroughly understood the process. 
 Without answering me, Ranjit ordered a ball ready primed to be 
 brought to us, and I told him that it was very coarsely made. He 
 begged me particularly to say what I thought of the spherical case. I 
 said that this was one of the rarest inventions of modern days, but that 
 one of the most difficult points in gunnery was the management of 
 mortars. It might not only be most dangerous but perfectly useless 
 without a proper knowledge of the due strength of the powder, and 
 the exact measure of the fuze. " Stay with me here," he exclaimed, 
 " a few years to you can signify but little. You are still young : I 
 wish you to go to Amritsir and visit the laboratory, and 1 will write to 
 the Commandant at Govindgurh, that he must meet you and show you 
 everything there." As I made no reply, he continued, " You must, at 
 all events, go to Amritsir ; will you write to me there ?" I promised 
 to do so. "I know," he said, "that you came to take leave to-day; 
 but you must give me a few days longer. You must remain until 
 the Basant*." This, I knew, would take place on the 22nd. I there- 
 fore told him how happy I was at all times, when it was possible, 
 to comply with his wishes, and that I would remain at Lahor until that 
 time. 
 
 " Those are the Gorcheli," he said, pointing to the troops, "of whom 
 I told you that I had 4000." I asked him the meaning of the word. 
 He told me that they had territories which brought them in a revenue 
 of 3000 or 4000 rupees a-piece, and that their horses and entire 
 equipment weie also their own. They are, in fact, the remainder of 
 those 69,500 Sikh lords of the Fanjab, brought under the power of 
 Ilanjit's authority, and receive from their despotic master an assign- 
 ment of property which he can take from them whenever he sees fit. 
 I requested leave to inspect them, and never beheld a finer nor a more 
 
 Tlic festival of opening spring.
 
 STEADINESS OF AIM WITH THE MATCHLOCK. 331 
 
 remarkably-striking body of men. Each one was dressed differently, and 
 yet so much in the same fashion, that they all looked in perfect 
 keeping. 
 
 The handsome Raja Sushet Singh was in a similar costume, and 
 reminded me of the time when the fate of empires hung on the 
 point of a lance, and when the individual whose bold heart beat fear- 
 lessly under his steel breastplate, was the sole founder of his own 
 fortunes. The strange troop before me was most peculiarly Indian. 
 The uniform consisted of a velvet coat or gaberdine, over which most 
 of them wore a shirt of mail. Others had this shirt made to form a 
 part of the tunic. A belt round the waist, richly embroidered in gold, 
 supported the powder-horn, covered with cloth of gold, as well as the 
 Persian katär and the pistols which many of them carried in addition 
 to those weapons. Some wore a steel helmet, inlaid with gold, and 
 surmounted with the kalga or black heron's plume ; others wore a cap 
 of steel, worked like the cuirass in rings : this cap lies firmly on the 
 turban, and covers the whole head, having openings for the eyes. The 
 left arm is often covered from the hand to the elbow with a steel cuff 
 inlaid with gold. The round Sikh shield hangs at the back, fastened 
 with straps across the chest, a quiver at the right side and a bow slung 
 at the back being carried as part of the equipment ; a bag made in the 
 belt holds the balls, and a tall bayonet, frequently ornamented with 
 gold, held in the right hand when the man is on foot, and carried over 
 the shoulder when in the saddle, completes the dress. One would 
 suppose that the arms that each man carried would be enough to weigh 
 him down, but this is not the case, and though the Sikhs are anything 
 but strongly-built men, they seemed to bear them with the greatest 
 ease; the black curly beard which hangs as low as the chest giving 
 them an appearance of power which they do not in reality possess. It 
 is a strange sight to a European to see their slippers embroidered in 
 gold covering their naked feet. Some few among them wear high jack 
 boots. When I returned to Ranjit Singh he asked me if I should like 
 to see them fire, and on my requesting to do so, a brass pot was fixed 
 about 100 paces' distant, and one (Jorcheli after the other stepped 
 forward to shoot at the mark. One of them hit it every tiuK-, and very
 
 332 COMPAKISON OF THE SIKH AND BRITISH TROOPS. 
 
 shortly the poor brass pot was perforated in every part. A fresh one 
 was then set up and the company of regular troops advanced, and were 
 ranged into rank and file, evidently to disadvantage. The number of 
 regular troops which fired were three times that of the Gorcheli, and 
 the Mahä Raja was much amused when in three rounds a few balls 
 only hit the mark ; for the men at the wings could scarcely aim at the 
 pot at all. Ranjit Singh saw me smiling, and he observed : " This is 
 the way that regular troops fire, a great inducement, is it not, to turn 
 old warriors into disciplined soldiers ?" I said that the Gorchelis 
 would not fire so well if they were in rank and file; the adversary was 
 not the target but the line. 
 
 " You have now seen divisions of all my troops," observed Ranjit to 
 me ; " tell me what you think of them ?" I answered that what I had 
 seen exceeded any thing that I could have anticipated. He still pressed 
 for a more definite answer, and I continued : " The world knows what 
 these troops have done under you. The answer to your question has 
 been given by your cannon from Ladäk to Multan, from the Setlej to the 
 heart of Afghanistan." " You evade my question," said Ranjit Singh. 
 I answered that he was a much better judge of soldiers than I. — " Tell 
 me," he persisted, " what you think of my troops compared with those of 
 the East India Company?" " You require me to do so?" — " Yes," he said. 
 Mohan had on an imitation Kashmir shawl of mine, while one of his suite 
 wore a genuine and very beautiful one. I showed him both, saying, " This 
 is genuine, the other an imitation, — which of the two is the best ?" He 
 looked at me, and said, after a short pause, " You have expressed my 
 own opinion ; but do you believe that a battalion of my army could 
 engage with one of the Company's battalions?" " My answer is already 
 given in my last question. I do not." — " Do you believe," he went on, 
 " that my troops could stand against an attack of a body of Russians." 
 1 replied that I thought them able to withstand any force likely to 
 appear west of the Indus at present. Upon which he said, " It is 
 growing late ; the sun is low on the horizon, and we are far from the 
 city. I take you at your word, that you will remain for the Basant." 
 
 I then left him, and our carriage drove rapidly over the ground, 
 escorted by a party of horsemen, while Ranjit followed slowly in his
 
 THE CELEBRATED HORSE LAILl. 333 
 
 palankoen at the head of a lartre division of his troops. He soon dis- 
 missed the Gorcheli and his suite, and at once, with a wild and loud 
 cry, the armed horsemen sprang forward, firing off their pieces, and 
 rushing over the plain : they were followed by the guns, which sent 
 forth a salvo as they advanced ; next came the elephants in their 
 trappings striding along, and a cloud of dust soon after veiled the whole 
 from sight. Before I reached the house, night had completely en- 
 veloped every object in thick darkness. 
 
 Friday, January 22. — I forgot to notice yesterday, that I received 
 intelligence that Dr. Henderson was at Atok } I rejoice to learn that the 
 journey had not been too fatiguing for his enfeebled frame, and that there 
 was some probability of ray even seeing him in Lahor. The morning 
 brought the Fakir Sahib, and the large elephant to be drawn by Vigne, 
 and the famous horse Ljiili, that I had inquired for. The Maha liaja 
 let me know that this horse had cost him 60 lakhs of rupees*, and 
 12,000 soldiers, having been the occasion of several wars. It was the 
 property of Yar Mohammed Khan of Peshawar, and Ranjit Singh 
 made the delivery of the animal to him one of the conditions of 
 peace. The cunning Mohammedan, however, who considered this 
 article humiliating to him, evaded it several times by sending another 
 horse under the name of Laili, and it was owing to a plan devised by 
 General Ventura, that it was eventually obtained. He took a company 
 of soldiers as his guard on one occasion when he went to Peshawar to 
 receive the horse. The Khan would have temporised as before, but he 
 was taken suddenly ill and died, whereupon Ventura put his brother 
 Sultan Mohammed Khan, the same whom I have spoken of as being 
 present at the first review, by the Maha Raja's command, in possession 
 of Peshawar, but on condition that Laili should be given up. Sultan 
 Mohammed Khan tried also what evasions would do ; but General 
 Ventura made his appearance one morning, attended as usual by his 
 troops, to press the fulfilment of the conditions of his investiture. He 
 entered the reception room, and demanded Laili ; and when Sultan 
 Mohammed interposed some fresh obstacle, Ventura suddenly called out 
 
 Six liuntlrcd tlioiisaiul |)(iuiiils stcrliii!; in roiiiid numbers. — Kd.
 
 334 DOCUMENTARY RECORDS OF FRIENDSHIP. 
 
 to the soldiers, who were posted ready in the courtyard, to come up to 
 him in the palace, and on their appearance he pronounced Sultan Mo- 
 hammed a prisoner in his own capital, until he chose to surrender Laili. 
 Mohammed was so astounded at this hold step, that he ordered the 
 horse to be brought immediately, and Ventura quitted Peshawar with 
 his costly booty. It is the finest horse belonging to the Maha Raja, 
 and I could not help mounting a steed that had cost six millions of 
 florins. The bridle and saddle was splendid, and round his knees he 
 has gold bangles : he is a dark grey, with black legs, thirteen years old, 
 and full sixteen hands high. I have heard that at Rupar, Ranjit Singh 
 showed a brown horse as Laili, but General Ventura assured me that 
 this was the true Laili. 
 
 The Fakir told me that the Maha Raja wished to have another 
 paper from me, and that he would have spoken about it yesterday, but 
 feared that I should not understand what he wished. I had seen since my 
 first writing, he said, a great many things, and moreover, I had not said 
 any thing about the friendship of the Company towards him. Several 
 articles had appeared of late in the newspapers of Hindüsthan and of 
 Calcutta, which went to show that the English must of necessity soon 
 march to the Indus, and make that river the western boundary of 
 British India, and I fancied that Ranjit Singh had thought a good deal 
 of these articles. Further, he added, the Maha Raja had permitted me 
 to visit the Durbar in Amritsir, and begged that I would take notice of it, 
 as though I had been there already. Finally, I had said nothing before 
 of my friendship for the Maha Raja, nor of his for me. I told the Fakir 
 Sahib that I would draw up the memorial without loss of time, make the 
 Munshi translate it into Persian, and send it to him, that it might be 
 brought into a proper form, requesting him to leave out any thing 
 likely to displease Ranjit Singh, and to assist me with his talent for the 
 most acceptable compliments. The following was the result* : — 
 
 " During my stay at Lahor, his Highness the Maha Raja has honoured 
 me with a review of those regiments which were here by chance, and 
 
 • These, and otlier documents, are copied from tlic Baron's English originals, 
 with some triHing verbal alterations. — Ed.
 
 THE SIKH AND RRITISII INTERESTS MUTUAL. 335 
 
 which, although soldiers only of a year's standing, astonished me by 
 their good appearance and their quick fire : they are decidedly more 
 advanced than recruits of the same standing are in Europe. If I had 
 to proffer my opinion upon the service which may be expected from 
 them, I should say that the troops of the Maha Uaja are fully prepared 
 to dispute the palm of victory in the plains of the Panjab with any 
 army crossing the Atok. Yesterday the Mahä Raja showed me the 
 practising of artillery, and of his troops at the target. The most dis- 
 tinguished feat of this day, there is no doubt, was the firing of the 
 Corchelis armed with matchlocks. The Austrians are celebrated for 
 their shooting at the target, but there cannot bo a better shot than one 
 of the Gorchelis, who, every time he fired, shot through the vessel 
 placed as the target. 
 
 " I must confess that I have been very much surprised at all that I 
 have found in Lahor, notwithstanding I had heard very much of it in 
 India, and if, on my return to Europe, I should give an account of what 
 I have seen of the magnificence of the court and of the armv of the 
 Maha Raja, to his Majesty the Emperor of Austria [this was put in by 
 his expressed wish], he will be very much pleased and astonished 
 with it. 
 
 " I have to acknowledge, moreover, the gratitude I feel to the 
 Maha Raja for having had the kindness to allow me to approach the 
 place known to the whole world for its holiness, and envied to the 
 Panjab by the whole of Hindüsthan, namely, the holy reservoir at 
 Amritsir. For the permission to see it, I feel no less gratitude to the 
 Mahä Raja than for his other numerous favours. 
 
 " I have to add, that having spoken in my first letter of the friendship 
 between the Maha Raja and the Honourable Company only by report, 
 I must now state, that I was long enough in India and the Panjab to 
 form an opinion of it for myself, and that I am convinced tliat it is 
 strong, sincere, reciprocal, full of confidence, and without reserve. If 
 it is the wish of the Maha Raja to preserve it, it is the interest of the 
 British (lovernment to do so also ; and whatever the liberty of the 
 press may allow to appear in the newspapers against it, I am sure that 
 it is the desire of the English (lovernnu'ut to maintain and fortify it, and,
 
 336 THE DANCING BLACK FAKIR. 
 
 if it were possible, still more to consolidate it. How sincere the Mahä 
 Raja was, I, who experienced the benefit of it, had the clearest proof, 
 since the friendship of Austria with Great Britain caused me to be 
 treated as the friend of a friend. May this friendship always increase 
 for the happiness of the world. 
 
 " I have lastly to return my sincere thanks for the friendship of 
 which the Mahä Raja gave me a proof in his wish to retain me at 
 Lahor ; and I have only to add, that I hope the Mahä Raja's friendship 
 for me will last as long as mine for him, which is to say, for ever. 
 
 "Baron Ch. Hugel. 
 "Lahor, January 22, 1836." 
 
 The Fakir Sahib finding this testimony very good, it was written 
 out in Persian and English, and sealed up, and committed to a very 
 fine bag which I had brought from Kashmir. Yesterday the Maha 
 Raja having commissioned the Fakir Sahib to make the request, Vigne 
 began a drawing of an English soldier. This morning he went on with 
 his task, and finished a representation of an officer holding the English 
 flag in his left hand, and giving the right to a Sikh, who holds the flag 
 of the French legion, tri-colored, with Govind Singh on horseback, 
 carrying the falcon on his right wrist, as a testimony of friendship. 
 This being quite ready, I waited while my paper was being written out 
 in Persian, that I might present both to Ranjit Singh. 
 
 Vigne had much wished to take a drawing of the black fakir ; and 
 that no time might be lost, I sent to him while my letter was being 
 transcribed. A droll scene took place when he arrived. The black 
 fakir, or Hindu converted to the Sikh faith, looked with very jealous 
 eyes on the Mohammedan Fakir at the court of the Sikh Mahä Raja. 
 The Fakir Sahib began with all the politeness of a courtier, by telling 
 him that the Mahä Raja not only permitted, but wished the European 
 gentleman to take a portrait of him, the fakir. '' The Mahä Raja !" 
 said the black fakir; " and who is he ?" — " The holy (Sri) Mahä Ranjit 
 Singh," answered the Fakir Sahib. " I do not know him," continued 
 the other ; " and if I did, how can he wish or command as you say ? I 
 have nothing to do with him, and have no need of him." The Fakir
 
 THE UAN{MVG BLACK FAKIK. 337 
 
 was astonished and very indignant, but still exceedingly polite. " The 
 Mallei Raja thought that you would not be the only one of his subjects 
 to refuse to treat his friend, a European gentleman, with the courtesy 
 that he himself shows to him." 
 
 Mohan, who stood behind my chair, whispered to me, " The 
 beggars are beginning to squabble." " I am not Ranjit Singh's subject," 
 cried the black fakir, " I am a saintly personage, and belong to God, 
 and to nobody else, and you call yourself by a name that you have 
 no title to. You are the Mahä Raja's servant, I shall not do any 
 thing at your bidding, either to go or to stay : I am very angry now, 
 but perhaps I may let him draw me bye-and-by, not because the Maha 
 Raja wishes it, but because it pleases me." — " It is the same thing on 
 what account you consent, so that you let it be done," returned the Fakir 
 Sahib. And the black devotee soon complied with our requests. 
 When at length the copy was ready, Vigne and I rode out on horse- 
 back to the same place where we had met the Maha Raja yesterday. 
 They were firing away at a tree near the mark of the preceding day, 
 and Ranjit Singh pointed it out directly to me, already shivered in 
 pieces. I had not seen Ranjit looking so well, or so young, as on this 
 occasion. He was in high spirits too, and his hand, before almost 
 lifeless, was to-day quite warm. When the Fakir Sahib presented my 
 letter, he examined the seal carefully, to see that it was unbroken ; and 
 having had the contents read over to him, he expressed himself much 
 gratified with it, and ordered it to be given into the custody of the Fakir 
 Aziz ud Din. 
 
 Vigne now produced his drawing, and the Mahä Raja was delighted 
 when he found that the Setlej, with Filor on the one side, and Liidiana 
 on the other, were represented in it. These are the boundary towns of 
 his own and the Company's territories. Calling one of his grandees to him 
 after the other, he explained to each the allegory of his friendship with 
 England. This thought seemed more flattering to him than anv other, 
 and is a good proof of the influence of the Company's empire in India. 
 A better explanation of this will be seen, when we come to treat of 
 Ranjit's power, which, although great in itself, is naturally overrated 
 by the founder of it. 
 
 z
 
 338 CELEBRATION OF THE BASANT, OR SPRING. 
 
 The Fakir Sahib had told me in the morning, that the Mahä Raja 
 had postponed the Basant for a day, in order to prolong my stay. I 
 therefore did not remain long there on the field, the evening drawing 
 on when I first came on the ground. My large suite not allowing me 
 to ride fast, Ranjit Singh gave me his carriage on my return ; he himself 
 was carried in a palankeen. In the evening we had the dancing girls again. 
 
 Saturday, January 23. — The Basant, literally the spring, is a 
 festival celebrated yearly at this season in Upper Hindüsthän and the 
 Panjab, the Sirsya then covering the whole face of the country with its 
 blossoms. This is the first sign of the opening of the year, as the snow- 
 drop is with us. On this day the Mahä Raja betakes himself to a 
 small building not far from the Shalimar, and the whole population of 
 Lahor have orders to show themselves on the road to it. I never saw 
 a more singular-looking assemblage. The Sikhs are the only Hindus 
 of the plain always ready for amusement, and the people of Lahor are 
 especially known for this disposition. I took this road at twelve 
 o'clock, with Khalifa Sahib and Vigne ; and as we went on remarked 
 them in succession, some collected in groups, others idly loitering among 
 the ruins, and many moving along on camels, oxen, horses, or elephants, 
 according to their means. On the camels, which were dressed out with 
 collars of shells and little bells, mingled with large tassels, formed of 
 party-coloured wools, and the tails of the Tibet cow, sat three or four 
 men ; while from eight to twelve persons were seated in the Munjil, 
 Amäri, or Howdah on the elephant's backs. Nor were the palankeens 
 less numerous, or less strange in shape and colour. Large crowds had 
 formed round a talking or a singing fakir; a juggler or an astrologer; 
 a vender of toys or sweetmeats. At another spot, grown-up men were 
 running about the fields with kites, and multitudes of persons were seen 
 following some musicians who were beating their tam-tams, and blowing 
 horns. About half way along, at the balcony of a first story, sat a 
 Sikh Guru, such as I have already described at Baramulla ; and not a 
 Sikh passed him without his " Salam, Mahä Raja," while some 
 bestowed on him a few rupees. All was bustle and mirth, and in every 
 direction we heard the Sikh greeting, "Wah ! Guruji-ke fatih !" Hail 
 to the conquering Guru !
 
 CELEBHATION OF THE BASANT, OK SPHI\(;. 339 
 
 Tlu' hursemen attending on mc were all in light yellow, as well as 
 the whole court : this being the colour of the spring in the Panjab. 
 We missed our way at one time and got entangled among the ruins, 
 whence we had so much trouble in recovering the direct path, that the 
 Mahä Raja was kept waiting some time for us. On the last mile, three 
 regiments, dressed in yellow, were drawn up like a close fence on both 
 sides. In Europe, this change of uniform would cost a large sum of 
 money, but here the expense is trifling ; the white linen is coloured 
 with saffron for the day, and then washed again. The unsightly build- 
 ing where Ranjit Singh held the Basant stood at the end of a close 
 alley. " And why here ?" I inquired. '* Because it is the will of the 
 Mahä Raja," said the astonished Fakir Sahib. Before it, in two lines, 
 stood thirty elephants, so close to one another that, in order to gain the 
 entrance we were obliged to squeeze in under their trunks, or just 
 before them ; but they were so tame and gentle, that there was not the 
 least danger in this. The elephant is a very social animal, and 
 behaves himself in company whether with his equals or with men, with 
 the greatest discretion. It is to be supposed that the Sirdar Hati was 
 among them. We crowded in through a narrow doorway into the 
 interior, for the greatest freedom reigns during the feasts and cere- 
 monies in India, and the people were all pressing forward together. 
 One part of the court was divided from the rest by a kanat, or canvass 
 screen, and there sat Ranjit Singh in an arm-chair under a large tent of 
 Kashmir stuff, yellow like the carpet, himself, and every thing about it. 
 It gave him a look of additional ugliness. Large quantities of the 
 Sirsya, and other yellow flowers were scattered about here and there. 
 Vigne and I were the only persons in dark clothes, Mohan being in 
 yellow, according to the prevailing fashion. Here I saw Karak Sing, 
 the Maha Raja's eldest son, whose exterior promises very little. I 
 was presented to him, but could hardly find time to speak a word, for 
 the Basant began as soon as we had taken our seats, and I found that 
 it was in reality a levee, each person being expected, as at every oppor- 
 tunity here, to offer some present to the M;iha Raja. On his right 
 hand sat Karak Singh ; on the left, his favourite. Raja Hira Singh ; 
 directly opposite sat Vigne aiul 1 on arni-cluiirs, and more to the left 
 
 z 2
 
 340 GENERAL APPEARANCE OF THE SIKH COURT. 
 
 Sultan Mohammed Khan and his son, who came in after us, and 
 brouo-ht with him a present in gold. Behind the king stood the Jemi- 
 dar, Sushet Singh, and General Ventura, while in the background were 
 a number of the inferior state officers. The Fakir Sahib, Mohan and 
 the Munshi stood near me. Next came Sirdars, Rajas, and Khans, 
 from different provinces, all bringing gold, among whom I recognised 
 my friend Rähim Ullah Khan, the Raja of Rajawar. The most 
 remarkable figure was Zulfikar Khan, one of the sons of the brave 
 Mozaffer Khan, the former possessor of Multan, who entered with a 
 proud bold bearing, and then squatted down immediately like the 
 others, his forehead and cheek being marked with a deep scar, which 
 somewhat relieves his excessively plain features. A descendant of one 
 of the Mohammedan Emperors, who strove with Humäyün for the 
 throne, a young man, and now a Sirdar under Ranjit Singh, Zulfikar 
 Khan appeared to-day before his lord for the first time : he stood for a 
 little while upright, and looked about as much as to say that some of 
 those Sikhs ought to give him one of the arm-chairs. I thought we 
 should have had a scene, for his eyes began to flash, and he did not 
 even incline his head before Ranjit Singh, until two of the masters of 
 the ceremonies, who had their eyes upon him, pressed him down very 
 roughly. As I gazed round the circle, their various forms did not 
 inspire me with much confidence. Most of the Mohammedan Sirdars 
 sat with their left hand resting on the ground, their right grasping 
 some weapon, which hung at their girdle ; and as I watched their eyes 
 sparkling with rage, and their compressed lips, I thought how speedily 
 one cry to arms would have converted this peaceful festival into a scene 
 of blood. The garments they wore were most expensive and gorgeous, 
 those of Ranjit Singh only excepted, who, as usual, was dressed in his 
 plain wrapping-gown. The dancing girls were introduced, all in yellow, 
 and to them the Mahä Raja sent the silver money which had been pre- 
 sented to him. 
 
 Presently he ordered silence, and beckoning to Mohan, spoke to 
 him in a low voice : this was a request that I would relate some anec- 
 dote of military life. I sent back for answer, that had I known his wish 
 earlier, I would have prepared myself and Mohan, but that with such
 
 COURT ENTERTAINMENT. 341 
 
 an inexperienced interpreter, it would be a very tedious undertaking. 
 Ranjit then applied to Zulfikar Khan, who, without rising, told us a 
 story with the greatest vivacity and eloquence, of being once surprised 
 with thirty men, by a party of five hundred, whom he at last drove 
 back, " carrying away with rae this" he said, pointing to his scar. 
 
 We then broke up, and as Ranjit Singh had heard that the carriage 
 had made its way with some difficulty, he begged me to mount the 
 Sirdar Hati, but I preferred the former conveyance, being well 
 acquainted with the uneasy movements of a plebeian elephant. 
 
 On our return the crowd was ten times greater than before, and I 
 cannot give an idea of the pressure caused by horses, oxen, carts with 
 women, camels and elephants, mingled with thousands of men, and 
 threading the ruins which encumber this part of the city. Every 
 moment, as the masses moved along the narrow ways, I expected to see 
 men trodden down and crushed beneath an elephant's foot. But I did 
 not witness any accident at all ; and the clouds of dust which were 
 raised by all this throng, can hardly be described. On the road we met 
 one very fine Bactrian camel, here called Baghdädi, and a white drome- 
 dary. They were the property of the young Raja Hira Singh ; and on 
 Vigne expressing a desire to take a drawing of them, the Fakir Sahib 
 ordered them to General Ventura's house, 
 
 I received tidings that Dr. Henderson might be expected to-day, 
 and accordingly he made his appearance in the evening. I most gladly 
 welcomed and presented him to the General, and to the rest of the party. 
 His costume, though difi"erent, was not less extraordinary than the garb in 
 which he introduced himself to me in Kashmir, consisting of a species of 
 Polish garment, evidently intended for a figure the reverse of his tall, 
 gaunt stature. I asked him the meaning of this dress, and he told rae 
 that his intention had been to proceed from Mozafferabad to Derbund 
 on the Atok, thence to cross that river, and reach the highest pass of 
 the Hindü-khüsh. 
 
 This plan he found impracticable, on account of the bands of 
 robbers who infested the country between the two towns ; he was 
 therefore obliged to take nearly the same road that I had travelled, and 
 cross the Atok near Ghtiri, some fifteen miles from the city of Atok.
 
 342 UNSETTLED STATE OF THE N.W. FRONTIER. 
 
 Thence he wandered to the mountain chain^ but the snow prevented 
 him from reaching the point he had contemplated; and he soon found, 
 that in the country of the Yusufzais he was not in the best of company. 
 He was attacked by a party as he was on his road to Peshawar, and 
 stripped of everything ; but what grieved him most, of the watch and 
 instruments I had lent him. I told him that I had not given them to 
 him with the idea of ever seeing them again, and that he must therefore 
 count them among his own losses. It was lucky for him that he had 
 sewed some gold pieces in a piece^ of cloth, which he held in his hand 
 while he was being robbed, and with one of these he was able to pur- 
 chase a woollen coverlet and a coat to protect him from the cold. Thus, 
 he entered Peshawar, where M. Avitable received him most kindly, 
 and gave him one of his own suits, which as he is short and stout, did 
 not become Henderson particularly well. His throat and arms were 
 thrust out far beyond his clothing, and all the rest would have contained 
 two such men. The pretension to elegance in the whole costume 
 rendered it still more absurd when contrasted with the form and carriage 
 of the poor Doctor. 
 
 The Fakir Sahib came again with a message from the Mahä Raja, 
 which he would not deliver until we were alone in a private room. It 
 was to say that he did not know who Dr. Henderson was, he having 
 travelled without his permission in the Panjab as a fakir. I told him 
 that he was a physician in the Company's service, of the same rank as 
 Mr. M'Gregor, who had lately attended him, and that he was a clever 
 enterprising man, and skilful in his profession. 
 
 " But the Mahä Raja desires to know what he travels for ?" — " The 
 reason will surprise you ; it is that he wishes to discover the sources of 
 the Atok." " What good would it do him if he did find them ?" — 
 " Not any, but his vanity would be gratified if he should be the first to 
 do so." The Fakir Sahib seemed to think that Europeans were guilty 
 of many unaccountable follies; but he merely said that the Mahä Raja 
 desired to know how he was to receive him. I answered, " 1 think it 
 would be best to receive him as though he had travelled with the Mahä 
 Kaja's leave," — " But he has not the leave of the Company, the Mahä 
 Raja's friend." " On that account, I think the Mahä Raja should
 
 POLITICAL SCRUPLES OVERRULED. 343 
 
 receive him well." — " Why ?" «' The Company do not allow their 
 servants to pass the Setlej, under the impression that it might be 
 against Ranjit Singh's will, but Dr. Henderson came in full confidence 
 of the good will of the Mahä Raja towards Englishmen ; and if he were 
 not kindly received, it would show a want of generosity, and give an 
 idea that Ranjit Singh's friendship was merely a political one. The 
 Company are bound to try Dr. Henderson on the charge of having 
 crossed the Setlej ; but I think the Mahä Raja should not make him 
 feel that he is here without leave." — " The Mahä Raja has heard that 
 there is an order to put Dr. Henderson under arrest as soon as he 
 arrives on the left bank of the Setlej ;" (this was true, but 1 was sur- 
 prised that he had heard it;) "and he wishes to know whether as the 
 Company's friend, he ought not to be angry with those who have 
 angered them, and whether it would not be thought a want of attention 
 towards them, if he took no notice of the matter." " The Company 
 must affect displeasure, but in reality they are very glad that Dr. Hen- 
 derson undertook this journey ; and to notice the order at all, would 
 show, that the spies of the Mahä Raja have been a little too active on 
 the other side of the Panjäb." — " You are right," he said, " I will take 
 your answer to the Mahä Raja." 
 
 In the course of an hour he retui-ned, bringing Dr. Henderson the 
 customary present of welcome. I repeated to the Doctor the conver- 
 sation I had had with the Fakir respecting him, and this present 
 relieved the anxiety he had begun to feel as to his reception. 
 
 I reminded the Fakir Sahib that the Basant being over, I wished 
 to pay my farewell visit to Ranjit Singh, and also to bring Mohammed 
 Shah with me. He answered, that the first would be bad news to 
 carry to the Mahä Raja. 
 
 After the dangers and the want to which Dr. Henderson had been 
 exposed, our cheerful mode of life seemed to give him the idea of a 
 fairy world. He was suddenly transported from toil and need, from 
 solitude and deprivations, to a house with beautiful rooms glittering 
 with lights and mirrors ; he was welcomed by friends and acquaintance, 
 and in addition, a richly-furnished table and a dozen dancers invited 
 him to share in the gaiety and amusements of India.
 
 344 TOLERATION OF SLAVE DEALING. 
 
 I have not yet said much about these Indian dancing girls. Lahor 
 is the only place where they seem to have any beauty, and where the 
 lavish profusion consequent upon the residence of a court causes their 
 art to be more valued and better paid for. They are not, as sometimes 
 happens in Calcutta, stolen children or slaves*; but the daughters or 
 near relatives of dancers, and their education for their profession 
 usually begins at five years old, and requires an apprenticeship of nine 
 years to perfect them in the song and dance. Although this two-fold 
 art is not in accordance with European tastes, there is certainly a 
 clearness in the voice, and a precision in the step, which surprises, 
 where it does not please, and there is in the Nach of Lahor something 
 peculiarly striking. The women of the Panjab are renowned through- 
 out India for the singular whiteness of their teeth, which are perfect 
 both in form and regularity. This gives a great charm to the coun- 
 tenance, and they are generally finely formed, with beautiful hands and 
 feet, though their dress does not display their figure to advantage. 
 Their dress consists of coloured silk trousers, fitting tight below, and 
 fastened round the waist by a band and tassels which hang as low as 
 the knee. Over this falls a tunic of white muslin, reaching only half 
 way down the leg, and a shawl is thrown over the figure in coming and 
 going away. Such, in short, is their house costume. When dancing 
 they put on a very wide garment of various colours, mingled with gold, 
 which covers them from the shoulders to the ankles. According to 
 our European ideas, the dancers from Kashmir were the prettiest, with 
 their fair and florid complexions, and their symmetrical forms peculiar 
 to the people of that land. The others were darker skinned, but in 
 
 " This continues, in spite of every exertion of the authorities throughout India, 
 to be the most prolific source of slavery, and attended with unmitigated evil. If, 
 however, we look narrowly into the history of the class of persons by whom this 
 iniquitous traffic is kept up, it is melancholy to advert to the multitudes, reduced 
 by a far more grievous procedure in the metropolis of the most civilized nation on 
 the face of the earth to the condition of slavery — no less abject — infinitely more 
 destructive of every right principle, under the very eye and cognizance of a great 
 Christian government. The beginning of all good legislation must be at our own 
 doors. — Ed.
 
 DRESS OF THE INDIAN DANCING GIULS. 
 
 345 
 
 regularity and beauty of features they far surpassed the Kashmirians. 
 One of them we called Heloise, on account of the enthusiastic expres- 
 sion of her countenance; and she and her aunt had ornaments on them 
 worth from 10,000 to 12,000 rupees; their clothes were sumptuous in 
 proportion, and over them was thrown a Kashmir shawl valued at 
 1000 rupees more. To destroy the charm of all this, I must add, that 
 there was not a sufficient attention to cleanliness manifested to render 
 a nearer examination of their finery at all desirable. A dancer called 
 Käira, the same whose beauty had caused her to be chosen as a per- 
 former on the occasion of the Mahä Raja's interview with Lord William 
 Bentinck, had really a beautiful voice : she sang and danced with most 
 expressive grace, carriage, and sweetness of voice. When one has got 
 over the strangeness of the combination, there is a certain charm in 
 this manner of singing poetry. 1 shall not soon forget the expression 
 with which the girl sang the words* : — 
 
 Thou art my soul ; thou art my world. 
 I who please thee here am thy slave. 
 
 Throwing herself at the same time at the listener's feet, her features 
 
 lighted up as though beseeching for a hearing, and her hands clasping 
 
 his knee, then abruptly starting up with the exclamation : — 
 
 But thou art silent; thy heart is of stone. 
 It is cold for me; it will never be mine. 
 
 She moved away, her hand raised, and her head thrown back; while 
 she threw an expression of despair into the last line, and seemed to sob 
 out the words. The continued movements of the musicians are also 
 
 • The Baron's German conveys far more beautifully the style and taste of the 
 
 original. 
 
 Du bist meine Seele, 
 Du bist meine Welt: 
 Ich bin Deine Sklavin, 
 Die hier sich gefällt. 
 
 Allein Du schweigst, 
 Dein herz ist von stein, 
 Für mich ist es kalt, 
 Ach nie wcrd ich Dein !
 
 346 STYLE AND CHARACTER OF THE INDIAN SONGS. 
 
 in character with the rest of the performance, which begins with the 
 amatory songs, the dancer standing at the far end of the room, having 
 the musicians behind her. She presently steps forward, the soft slow 
 music becomes louder and quicker, as the expression becomes more 
 impassioned; the dancer, describing either hope or fear, moves rapidly 
 from side to side, and the whole usually concludes with an imitation 
 of despair. Their epic poems are always sung seated, and the motion 
 of the dancers is indicative of the vivacity of a narrative. The only 
 songs which require dancing as a part of them, are those of a jocular 
 character, where the joke borders on the verge of impropriety without 
 overstepping it. It is but very seldom that these dancers have the 
 talent of Käira ; in general they are, on the contrary, very stupid, and 
 do not properly suit the action to the word, or else act like puppets set 
 on motion by clockwork. Their greatest beauty is the delicacy of 
 their feet and hands, which seem quite peculiar to themselves, and the 
 freedom and grace of their action are inimitable. 
 
 I have not mentioned the Shah often, but I saw him daily, and 
 from time to time sent him some of the Mahä Raja's presents. Every 
 morning his confidential servant was despatched to inquire after my 
 health, and I went through the same ceremony of daily asking how he 
 was. Still, I fear, that the ground is too slippery for him to succeed in 
 his object at Lahor. 
 
 Sunday, January 24. — This morning the Fakir Sahib came to say 
 that the Maha Raja wished me to write to him my opinion of the son 
 of the Jemidar Kushal Singh, who has been, as I have already said, 
 appointed a general. This I soon did. The youth has unquestionably 
 a great deal of natural talent, but he wants much instruction, and in 
 my letter I pointed out to Ranjit Singh the danger of raising such 
 a mere stripling to this high rank before he had any sort of 
 experience. 
 
 I asked the Fakir whether I could take leave of the Mahä Raja 
 to-day. He could not tell, but he knew that Ranjit Singh wished to 
 see me. I inquired whether I might take Dr. Henderson with me, and 
 he answered, that the Maha Raja expected his visit. The Com- 
 mandant of the Artillery in Lahor came in the course of the mornins:
 
 q47 
 
 INDIGNITIES ATTENDANT ON VANIT\. 
 
 to introduce himself, dressed in the European fashion, with a bhie frock 
 coat and pantaloons. Mohan, who came to announce him, told me that 
 the black fellow was dressed out like a nobleman, an odd remark enough, 
 his own skin being very dark, but conveying a great deal of meaning, 
 and explaining much that strikes the observing man as enigmatical in 
 the relation between Indians and Europeans. The Commandant, a 
 Mohammedan in Ranjifs service, who had picked up a few words of 
 English, stepped into the room like some affected dandy, which roused 
 the ire of Mohan, and when he laid hold of a chair and seated himself 
 without waiting for my leave or offer, he cried out: *' Why do you 
 dress yourself so like a fool? the tailor cannot make a nobleman of 
 you." The Commandant looked at the boy in astonishment, and 
 though not a little amused at his rudeness, I was obliged to reprove 
 him for it. Mohan wished me much not to leave him behind, but to 
 take him to Europe with me, and the boy's uncommon acuteness would 
 have enal)led him to make his way very well. But though much 
 attached to him, I was bound to consider what would be for his real 
 interest. He could not travel to Europe with me without losing his 
 caste for ever, and whatever situation I might afterwards be able to 
 provide him with in India, he would feel himself humbled by his 
 inferiority to Europeans. There is nothing more sure to make a man 
 unhappy than to have a consciousness within him of his own powers, 
 and the inability to make them available. In India, as with us, the 
 conscious superiority which suffers by neglect is generally considered as 
 nothing more than romance. I decided then on recommending him to 
 llanjit Singh, and on sending him to his court after he had passed a 
 couple of years at some good school. The idea of our separation was 
 very painful to myself. He had greatly contributed to render my 
 journey of some use to me, and often when the wants and discomforts of 
 a fatiguing day had exhausted me and all the rest, his good temper and 
 ' manner of silencing complaints sufficed to make us all right again. He 
 was very fond of travelling, and the distance of Europe from his home 
 and family made him feel very proud. Youth, with all the hopes of 
 life spread out before it, bears such separations very easily, and looks 
 forward to a certain reunion ; while an older man always looks back to
 
 348 PARTING TESTIMONIALS IN INDIA. 
 
 what he has lost, and never can regain, and every parting seems to him 
 a final one. 
 
 All sorts of testimonials were now required from me. The Shah 
 and his confidential servant, Juni Läl, and various others asked for 
 them, and even the Jemidar Kushal Singh required one from me. 
 The Fakir Sahib came at noon to fetch me in Ranjit Singh's carriage, 
 which conveyed us both, with Henderson and Vigne. My hussar uniform 
 having arrived last evening, I put it on for the occasion. Mohan, 
 Mirza, an escort of soldiers and a numerous suite, attended me. I had 
 sent my Jemidar three days before with some of my baggage and 
 servants to Ludiana, that 1 might not have to wait for them there. 
 When we had proceeded a little way, I felt that the single spring was 
 broken, and instead of the coach jolting as before, it had changed even 
 for the worse, and rested entirely on the pole. I told the Fakir Sahib 
 that it would be much better for us to take General Ventura's carriage 
 at once. But no one dared to act against the command of Ranjit 
 Singh, and he had said that they were to bring me in his carriage. 
 What I anticipated, soon happened; ere we reached the city, one side 
 fell down on the wheel so low as to prevent it from turning. It was 
 in vain that I expressed a wish to alight; the horses were forced to 
 drag us onwards with the wheel thus stopped ; at length the axle-tree 
 broke, but still we kept our seats. The wheel was tied on, the coach 
 held up by a dozen men, and in this plight we were drawn into the city, 
 and to the palace, where another carriage holding but two persons, and 
 which the Raja had bought of some adventurer, was got ready for us. 
 Vigne and the fakir had recourse to an elephant, Henderson and I got 
 into the carriage. Ranjit Singh was in the same tent, at the end of the 
 exercising ground, where he had received me two days before. As soon 
 as he saw me, he came out to meet me, and surveyed my uniform with 
 much attention, bringing every part within three inches of his eye. 
 He was particularly curious to know what the furred jacket was for, 
 and I told him that where these were worn the weather was so 
 changeable that we were obliged to carry a second coat with us. " How 
 strange," he said, " to carry your wardrobe about with you. Why don't 
 you give this to a servant, instead of troubling yourself with it ?" I
 
 THE hussar's SMNG JACKET. 349 
 
 told him it belonged to the uniform, and that servants were not always 
 at hand; that private soldiers wore the same, only ornamented with 
 worsted instead of gold, and they could not transfer their jacket 
 to anybody. "They might fasten it on their horses," he answered; 
 " do you appear so before your Emperor ?" I told him I dared not 
 appear otherwise. 
 
 It always strikes an Oriental as unaccountable, that our dresses so 
 often reach no lower than the waist, and Ranjit Singh was puzzled at 
 my present costume, not being able in this instance to attribute it to 
 meanness. He turned me round and round, and seemed to be much 
 pleased with the richness of the uniform. I then presented Dr. Hen- 
 derson to him. He told him he was glad to see he had arrived safe, 
 asked him some questions about Peshawar, and observing his odd dress, 
 said : " I hear that you are an officer of the East India Company." — 
 " Yes," replied Henderson. " But how is it," inquired Ranjit Singh 
 jocularly, "that you have no other uniform?" I interposed, saying 
 that he must have heard how Dr. Henderson had been plundered. 
 " That," said he, " is the consequence of your travelling as a fakir. 
 But where is your proper uniform ?" — " In Ludiana." " Do me the 
 favour of sending for it, that I may see you in your usual dress. Stay 
 here eight days that you may recruit yourself, and then cross the 
 Setlej again." He then turned to me, saying, " You wish to leave 
 me?" — " I am compelled," I said, " though with much regret." " Stay 
 another week. There are many things in Lahor which you have not 
 seen yet. The French Legion will soon return here. Do not leave 
 me in such haste." I assured him it was a matter of great grief to 
 me, to make so short a stay. — " After travelling for five years," he 
 rejoined, " a week more or less can make no difference to you." " The 
 question does not concern one week but a whole year. If I am not at 
 Bombay in six weeks from this time, I shall be too late for the steamer, 
 and shall be detained a year." — " But as you cannot reach Bombay in 
 six weeks, you had better remain for a year with me than in Bombay." 
 The Fakir Sahib here reminded him of a Persian proverb, " It is no 
 favour to detain a man against his will." — " That is true," said Ranjit 
 Singh, turning towards him, and then presently beckoning, two shields
 
 350 MUNIFICENT COURTLY PRESENTS. 
 
 were brought loaded with presents. First, he gave me a musket, 
 saying; "You showed great interest for the corps of Gorcheli*, I hope 
 you will remember them when you return home." He then presented 
 me with a powder flask made of the horn of tlie bufi"alo, covered with 
 cloth, and highly ornamented with gold. The Gorcheli carry these at 
 the right side; then the small cartouch-box containing the balls, bullet- 
 mould, and matches, &c. Vigne, who took his leave at the same time, 
 intending to go with me to Ludiana, received presents also very much 
 like mine. 
 
 I had already furnished myself with some of the weapons peculiar 
 to northern India and the Panjab, namely; the crooked mountain 
 sword; the battle-axe; the short dagger, having a hilt of ivory orna- 
 mented with precious stones; the fearful sabre, wielded with both 
 hands; and finally, for the embellishment of the turban, two kalgas, or 
 black heron's plumes, set in gold according to the fashion of the 
 Panjab and Kashmir. A beautiful horse was now led forward with an 
 enamelled bridle and saddle, and a rich Kashmir saddle-cloth. " What 
 do you think of doing with this horse?" he asked. "I shall ship it for 
 Europe, if possible," I said. — " So I expected, and therefore sought for 
 a Persian horse, because the horses of the Panjab do not bear the sea 
 voyage." Then lifting up the presents one after the other, he con- 
 tinued: " Here is a khelat and eleven pieces of Pashmina," and first 
 he fastened an ornament of emeralds in my shako, and then gave me 
 a string of pearls, a pair of gold bracelets set with jewels, and 1300 
 rupees. Then taking up a Persian sword ornamented with gold, he 
 said : " What I have off"ered you already, was a present made by the 
 Mahä Raja befitting your rank, but I want to give you some memorial 
 of a friend. The King ought to have given a sabre set with precious 
 
 • This noble body of household cavalry were divided into two classes by Ranji't 
 Singh, — the Ghorchar Sowars and Ghorchar Khäs, as they are designated by 
 Captain Murray in his political reports to the Supreme Government; the first 
 being paid in money, and the latter by jaghirs: both classes, however, were 
 mounted on the finest horses procurable, the property of the state. The Ghor- 
 char, or Gorcheli, of all classes at Ranjit Singh's death amounted to about 12,800 
 picked men. — Ed.
 
 RECOGNITION OF MUTUAL ESPIONAGE. 351 
 
 Stones, but I know it will not be less acceptable to you if I give you 
 one which I have drawn and used myself. Take this, show it to all, 
 but never part with it. It is the gift of a friend." I was deeply 
 affected, and answered that I needed nothing to remind me of his 
 generosity, but that his words had given the utmost value to this 
 
 munificent gift. 
 
 He then called Mohan, and said : " Whenever your master leaves 
 you, come to me." I told him that I had made up my mind to consign 
 'the boy to his care, knowing that he could reward his merits much better 
 than I, that I had every cause to be satisfied with him, and felt assured 
 that he would be found a most useful servant to the Mahä Raja. But, 
 as he wanted much instruction, I proposed to place him for at least 
 a year, in Captain Wade's school in Ludiana. " You are right," said 
 the Mahä Raja, "and when he has finished his studies, he shall come 
 back to me. I will not forget him." He gave xMohan two shawls, a 
 turban, and 100 rupees, and delivered a similar present to his care for 
 the Miinshi, who had set off before this for Ludiana; then calling to 
 a one-eyed iU-looking man whom I had not seen before, he gave him 
 a pair of shawls, observing to me: " This is the Company Sirkar's spy, 
 who gives information about you. He furnishes the Court Akhbär. 
 It is customary to give hhn a present whenever a stranger is going 
 away." I remarked that this seemed to me a most absurd custom, as 
 the Company and not he, ought to pay him.-" The very same thing 
 happens in Ludiana," be said, "when a Sikh is sent there by me; 
 it is a mutual understanding, and signifies that we do not feel annoyed 
 at these spies being employed.— Have you anything to ask of me for 
 any person ?" I answered, that I felt quite ashamed to have omitted 
 hitherto all mention of the travelling companion who had come with 
 me from Kashmir to Labor, my friend Mohammed Shah Nakshbandi, 
 but had I recollected that this was the day of my final leave-taking of 
 the Maha Raja, I would have brought him with me and presented him. 
 « He is a most honourable man," I added, " and was the means of 
 saving some thousands of your subjects, by feeding them during the 
 raging of the famine in Kashmir.' —" What does he want?" he 
 inquired. " I will hear his petition," he replied, " and I promise you
 
 352 THE FAREWELL VISIT. 
 
 also to do what I can for him." I thanked him, and beckoning to 
 Mirza to come near ; he made his salam to the Mahä Raja, and 
 according to custom offered him two rupees. Ranjit Singh turned to 
 me, " Shall I increase his pay ?" This is the usual expression for pro- 
 motion. I begged him to do so, upon which he summoned his secre- 
 tary, and ordered him to prepare his commission as a lieutenant. 
 "Here," said he, handing him 100 rupees, "that is for your equip- 
 ment, and this is your appointment." I then told him that I had 
 learnt the day before that his son, Karak Singh, was here, and that 
 I wished to pay him a visit before I quitted Lahor. "Why?" he 
 asked. " Because," I replied, " I think the eldest son of the Mahä 
 Raja has a right to this mark of respect from me." — "Good; then 
 you must stay here a few days longer." " If it is not agreeable 
 to the Mahä Raja, I will give up my purposed visit." — " Not so, 
 not so, visit him to-morrow morning, before you set off, and now, 
 I will not detain you any longer. Farewell. You will hear from 
 me at Amritsir, for I wish you to visit my laboratory for the 
 artillery there, and the commandant will call on you. Write to 
 me when you get home, and as often as you can." He stood up, 
 took my hand, and i-eturned to his palankeen. Vigne had long 
 wished to take the Mahä Raja's portrait, and I told him when first 
 we came here, that it would be best to choose a day when we visited 
 him, and then to request permission to sketch him while we conversed. 
 He was of opinion that it would be better to ask permission through 
 the fakir ; and the natural result of this was, that nothing more was 
 heard of it. He now felt mortified at the idea of leaving Lahor with- 
 out succeeding in his wish ; and at the moment when the Mahä Raja 
 got to the palankeen, he begged Henderson to ask leave for him to take 
 his likeness. Henderson had declined, as being too late to ask the 
 favour, but Vigne exclaiming, " Mahä Raja," and Ranjit turning 
 round, Henderson was obliged to speak out. Ranjit thought for a 
 moment, and then asked how many days he required. " Half an hour 
 only, before I set off to-morrow." — " That is too short a time. Go to 
 Amritsir, and take it there." " How is that possible ?" said Vigne. — 
 " The Governor-General has my portrait, and nobody wishes for it.
 
 JACQUEMONT's reception at LAHOR. 
 
 353 
 
 If you wish to take one, bring me first as an evidence of your skill a 
 likeness of the King of England." Then turning round to us, he 
 said, " Remember that you have always a friend in the Panjab." I 
 was too much moved to make any reply. 
 
 We were soon on our way back to General Ventura's house. I 
 had seen, for the last time, that extraordinary man who acquires such 
 influence over all who approach him, and who had shown to me, since 
 my first appearance in his dominions, continual marks of attention. 
 All that I had heard before had prepared me for much flattery, and 
 Jacquemont's letters had not caused me to set much value on it. In 
 them he represents it to have always been the Mahä Raja's custom to 
 overwhelm Europeans with flatteries, perhaps for the purpose of making 
 himself respected or loved by them, and then to amuse himself with the 
 ridiculous figure they make. But it seemed to me that it would have 
 been a very useless and troublesome comedy to carry on this dissimu- 
 lation all the time I stayed in Lahor. Jacquemont, though always 
 boasting of Ranjit Singh's friendship, was even disliked by him ; and 
 during his residence in Lahor, he was not allowed, whenever my 
 informant was present, to sit in his presence. This happened as a 
 thing of course. Jacquemont's friend, General Allard himself, not 
 presuming, as one of Ranjit's servants, to sit in his presence, except on 
 the ground, always therefore chose rather to stand than thus demean 
 himself. 
 
 The Fakir Sahib soon came to me to say, that Ranjit Singh would 
 see the Shah on the following morning, and invited Dr. Henderson to 
 accompany him. I was asked whether the Shah should be offered an 
 arm-chair. I answered that there were no doubt certain rules followed at 
 the Mahä Raja's court, which I should be sorry to infringe through 
 any partiality of my own, but that probably the sanctity of his person 
 might entitle him to the privilege. " The Mahä Raja wishes to know 
 whether you would like him to receive a dress of honour ?" — " I think 
 him worthy of the distinction, for he has ever shown himself a friend to 
 Europeans, believing that in so doing, he was gratifying Ranjit Singh." 
 " The Mahä Raja has assigned him a Jaghir." — " Allow me to send for 
 the Shah Sahib," I replied with exultation. 
 
 2 A
 
 354 LIBERALITY OF THE SIKH RULER. 
 
 The Shah entered, and the Fakir addressed me again : " The Mahä 
 Raja has assigned to the Shah five villages in Kashmir, and he wishes 
 to know whether the formal assignment shall be prepared in your 
 name." — " I am sure," I said, " that the Shah would rather receive it 
 from the Mahä Raja's hands ; but as he cannot forget him, I request 
 that it may be made out in my name, whom otherwise he might forget." 
 The Shah stood up, ready to kiss my hand ; I embraced him with 
 feelings of emotion, saying, " The Mahä Raja desires to see you 
 to-morrow. Do not forget to make him every acknowledgment." 
 
 As soon as he had left us, I told Ventura and the Fakir that I 
 feared the Mahä Raja might forget his engagement: they promised 
 to do all they could to prevent such a case. The evening drew on, 
 and when my things were nearly packed, the Fakir came again to ask 
 me in Ranjit Singh's name what present I wished to receive from 
 Karak Singh on the morrow, whether a horse for myself, or shawls for 
 Mr. Vigne and myself. I answered, neither ; but the Fakir said this 
 was impossible, and as Vigne had told me that he should be busy 
 finishing a drawing, and could not visit Karak Singh, I told the Fakir 
 that I should go alone, and would accept a shawl as a remembrance. 
 We had a nach for the last time. Henderson was enchanted with 
 his reception by Ranjit Singh, and with the conversation he held 
 with him. 
 
 Monday, January 25. — The Fakir came at seven o'clock to attend 
 me to Karak Singh ; and as Vigne had finished his drawing, he 
 wished to be of the party. The breakfast was ordered at eight, and 
 Henderson came back from his audience in time for it. The Shah had 
 been well received by the Mahä Raja. Henderson soon left us again 
 to pay some visit, and hoped to return shortly ; but I did not see him 
 any more. Forni, I was really sorry for ; he cried like a child wlien I 
 took leave of him, at the thought, as he said, of his own ill luck at 
 being compelled to stay behind ; but my compassion was much lessened 
 when by his own confession I learned that he possessed 60,000 
 rupees; a sum quite sufficient to keep him at home; it is clear there- 
 fore that he remains here by his own free choice. At the gate I parted 
 from Fox and Dubuignon, the last was in the service of the Begam
 
 THE NATIVE ARTISTS OK JNDIA. 355 
 
 Samru. There he was picked up by General Ventura, who offered him 
 his wife's sister, and, I believe, 500 rupees a month, until he found a 
 situation of the same value, or could gain as much himself. Hitherto, 
 no prospect of either has awaited him, and for nearly a year he has 
 been living on Ventura's hospitality. He is a very pleasing good 
 young man. General Ventura is rich, though his salary is in arrear 
 some 150,000 rupees. Whenever he asks for money, the Mahä Raja 
 says, " What do you require it for ? Is not all I have yours ?" When 
 Allard quitted the Panjab, there was also a large arrear due to him, 
 and this may possibly induce him to return*. 
 
 One of the commissions with which the Mahä Raja charged the 
 Fakir Sahib yesterday evening, was to ask for a piece of my uniform. 
 I offered him the whole of it, but this he would not accept. He sent 
 an artist at daybreak this morning to paint it, and in writing requested 
 that I would send him, as soon as possible, a dozen ells of the same 
 stuff, or one complete uniform. This artist had a portfolio filled with 
 drawings, some very good. Vigne's was among them, and the artist 
 had been directed to paint a fine Govind Singh on the flag. I was 
 surprised to see how accurately and with what facility he had executed 
 his task. 
 
 Karak Singh's residence was in the city. A regular Durbar was 
 held for my visit, and his brother-in-law receiving me at the gate, led 
 me up three flights of stairs to the roof of the house, where Karak 
 
 * General Allard served with much distinction in the Imperial army of France, 
 and was regarded as an officer of great personal bravery, high qualifications, and 
 most conciliatory temper. He served under Napoleon hi the army of Italy and 
 Spain, in which last country he followed the fortunes of .loseph Buonaparte. Bein» 
 excluded by his poliiical views from all participation in the Royalist amnesty, he 
 embarked with other officers for Egypt, whence he shortly proceeded to the court 
 of Persia, and was prevailed upon by General Ventura to quit a country where a 
 ten months' residence had satisfied them there was no immediate prospect of 
 emplojTuent under Shah Abbas, and finally travelled through Kandahar to Lahor. 
 For some time Ranjit Singh was indisposed to entertain them, from a suspicion 
 that they were not what they represented themselves to be, but English spies. 
 Ilis scruples, however, were at length overcome, and their services engaged in the 
 first instance at a very inadequate salary. How faithfully and ably they have 
 discharged their trust our own countrymen will be ready to testify. — Ed. 
 
 •2 A 2
 
 356 DEPARTURE FROM LAHOR. 
 
 Singh sat under a canopy, surrounded by a group of Sikhs squatting 
 on carpets. They all stood up as he welcomed me at the head of the 
 staircase and led me to the arm-chair set out for me. Karak Singh 
 is almost imbecile. As soon as he was seated, General Ventura would 
 have withdrawn, but he grasped his right arm with both hands and 
 begged him to stand by him. " Say something," said General Ven- 
 tura, " this stupid fellow will not speak a word." Our conversation 
 was silly enough. I had nothing better to say, and therefore admired 
 a carpet worked in gold. He said it was from Herat, and desired that 
 it should be packed up for me directly. As soon as the allotted time 
 for the visit was over, and the presents received, I took my leave, glad 
 to have seen and spoken with Karak Singh, in order to judge what 
 might be expected from him, particularly with regard to Ventura. 
 Throughout India the General is supposed to be not on good terms 
 with this Prince, whose poverty of intellect is rarely adverted to ; but 
 I was convinced during my visit this morning that this opinion is 
 erroneous. 
 
 We left the palace on the elephants which had carried us there, 
 and soon reached the carriage. Mohan had received a present, and 
 was in high spirits at the prospect of his journey homeward. I had 
 now the painful task of bidding farewell to General Ventura, who had 
 acted so friendly a part by me, and to whom I could hardly expect ever 
 to have it in my power to make a suitable return. He is a man of the 
 highest honour: unhappily, as a Modenese, he was not included in the 
 capitulation of the Italian army, which placed all the officers on an 
 equal footing in the Austrian service ; young and unemployed, he con- 
 sidered it a duty incumbent on him to enter upon active occupation of 
 some sort, and was thus led to his present station. 
 
 The Fakir Sahib embraced me with tears in his eyes, and entreated 
 me to write a few words of remembrance to him, whenever I should 
 find time, which I engaged to do. And now, ere I close the narrative 
 of my travels in the Panjab, and give an account of my journey from 
 Lahor to Ludiana, the last military station on the frontiers of British 
 India to the north-west, I shall insert a brief historical sketch of Ranjit 
 Singh and his predecessors, chiefly derived from information commu-
 
 EARLY HISTORY OF RANJIT SINGIl's ANCESTORS. 357 
 
 nicated by Mr. Prinsep. As the history of this family is intimately 
 connected with that of the Sikhs in general, there are many particulars 
 which have been already alluded to; repetitions, however, have been 
 avoided as far as possible. 
 
 Ranjit Singh cannot lay claim to any noble pedigree. Like most 
 Sikhs whose families have distinguished themselves in the field against 
 the supremacy of the Mohammedans, his forefathers are unknown, at 
 least, before the beginning of the eighteenth century. It is only of 
 late and with great difficulty that the Mahä Raja has been able to 
 persuade some of the descendants of the higher castes to embrace the 
 Sikh faith, and we shall show further how much trouble this has 
 occasioned him. 
 
 It is not to be wondered at, if we cannot trace the history of Ranjit 
 Singh's ancestors beyond the last pages of history. The first of his 
 family, of whom he knows anything, having been a common Zemindar, 
 or more properly a small farmer, named Disi'l, a Hindu of the Jat 
 caste, of the Sansi race, whose entire fortune, at the beginning of the 
 eighteenth century, consisted of three ploughs and a well, the usual 
 method of estimating a cultivator's possessions in the Panjab, where 
 the rivers are not made available for irrigating the fields, and where 
 without water the best ground is valueless, bearing no crops, in fact 
 nothing but briars. Disu lived in a village called Sukerchak, in the 
 district of Manjha, in the Jinhat Doab. Nothing more is known of 
 him, than that he was the father of Nodh Singh, who embraced the 
 Sikh faith; the inducement being his love for Gulab Singh's dauo-hter, 
 a Zemindar of Mejethia, who made the conversion of Nodh Singh to 
 his own persuasion the condition of his assent to the alliance with his 
 daughter. Nodh Singh, in nowise discouraged, drank the initiatory 
 Pdhul, and thereupon took the name of Nodh Singh, sold his ploughs 
 and his hereditary patrimony, with which he purchased a horse, and 
 enrolled himself in the Faizulapuria Misal, the chief of which division, 
 Kapur Singh, resided in Gujnit. 
 
 Nodh Singh died in 1750. His son, Charat Singh, married a o-i,-! 
 from Guserjioli, a village thirty miles north-west from Lahor, and 
 uniting with liis brothers-in-law, Dal Singh and Jodh Singh, who dis-
 
 358 EARLY HISTORY OF IIANJIT SINGH's ANCESTORS. 
 
 dained to serve in any subordinate capacity, he formed a band of 
 robbers, whose depredations were so successful that in a short time 
 they required some place of security wherein to stow away their booty. 
 Having therefore the permission of his wife's family, Charat Singh 
 built a garhi, or mud fort, at no great distance from Guseraoli, an 
 excellent situation near the high road to Atok, and not very far from 
 Lahor. Their booty increased so rapidly that the attention of Khaja 
 Obied, whom Ahmed Shah Abdali had left as his Viceroy in Lahor 
 during this period of general disorder, was drawn to the band. He 
 felt how important it would be to seize the first-built stronghold of the 
 Sikhs, and judged that his presence would render the enterprise more 
 effective. In 1762 he led a considerable force in person against the 
 garhi, purposing to drive out Charat Singh, and level the fort with the 
 ground. The design failed, Khaja Obied was forced to flee towards 
 Labor, and Charat Singh remained in possession of his fort. This 
 result, mainly owing to his own activity and talent, drew so many Sikhs 
 into the service of the successful leader, that he soon found himself 
 strong enough to found another Misal, which he named Sukerchakia, 
 the last in the list of twelve, and registered as having 2500 horse. 
 
 In 1764, Ahmed Shah gave up all pretensions to India, and Charat 
 Singh, with all the other Sikh Sirdars, extended his dominion unop- 
 posed, among the Mohammedan and Hindu population. In 1774, an 
 opportunity presented itself to the ambitious Charat of still further 
 increasing his power, and he did not fail to seize it. Ranjit Deo, the 
 Hindu Raja of Jamii, enraged at the shameless conduct of his eldest 
 son Brij Raj, disinherited him in favour of his younger brother Miyan 
 Dalel Singh. Brij Raj withdrew to the enterprising Charat Singh, 
 and promised to pay him a yearly tribute if he would help him to 
 dethrone his father, and gain possession of the masnad, or throne, of 
 Jamu. Charat Singh gladly agreed to these terms, strengthened him- 
 self by an alliance with Jai Singh, the Sirdar of the Ghania Misal, and 
 marched to Jamu. Ranjit Deo collected together all the troops of 
 Cham or Kangra and of Narpoor, the Sikhs of the Banghi Misal, with 
 their Sirdar, Jhanda Singh, co-operating with them. The opposing 
 forces met at the Bassanta river, where Charat Singh lost his life in his
 
 ACCIDENTAL DEATH OF CHARAT SINGH. 359 
 
 forty-fifth year (1774) by the bursting of his own gun. He had raised 
 himself from a common highway robber, or Dharwari, to be the leader 
 of a IMisal. He left a widow, Disan, two sons, Mahä Singh and Sahaj 
 Singh, and one daughter, Raj Kunwar. His territories brought in a 
 revenue of 300,000 florins a-year. The eldest son, Mahä Singh, was 
 ten years old when he succeeded to the chieftaincy, under the guardian- 
 ship of his mother Disan and Jai Singh. As a trait of Sikh morals 
 we may mention that this Jai Singh, Charat's ally, and the widow, 
 found it the surest means of extricating themselves from the difficulties 
 into which his death had plunged them by causing the Sirdar of the 
 Banghi Misal, who was the most powerful enemy of the orphans, to be 
 murdered. They therefore bribed a Mihtar (the lowest servant in a 
 house), who fired at and mortally wounded Jhanda Singh, with a gun, 
 and then the two Misals under Jai Singh and Disan retired, unmolested 
 by the Banghi Misal, leaving Brij Raj to his fate. The boy Maha Singh, 
 however, on the occasion of Brij Raj leaving his presence, went through 
 the ceremony of the Dosterbadi, which consists in exchanging turbans 
 as a sign of fraternal union. The extreme youth of this Mahä Singh 
 had nearly proved the ruin of the growing power of his house. The 
 chiefs subject to him were mistrustful, and fancied that under Gandha 
 Singh, the successor of the murdered Jhanda, they should have a 
 better chance of enriching themselves. Dharam Singh was the first 
 rebel, and the widow Disan succeeded in driving him out of his pos- 
 sessions, which she immediately confiscated before Ghanda Singh could 
 come to his aid. This success alarmed the other chiefs, and the time 
 appearing favourable, the same year (1776) the marriage of Mahä 
 Singh was celebrated with the daughter of Gajpat Singh of Jhind, the 
 betrothment having previously taken place. Jhind, lying at some dis- 
 tance from Guseräoli, on the left bank of the Setlej, Jai Singh, the 
 guardian of Mahä Singh, appeared in the bridal procession (Barat) 
 with a formidable attendance, invited from among those Misals which 
 were friendly to him. This marriage was the origin of Ranjit Singh's 
 present claims on Jhind, which the Company have lately taken pos- 
 session of as their right, by lapse of heirs. 
 
 In 1778 Mahä Singh began his military exploits by storming a
 
 360 BIRTH OF RANJIT SINGH. 
 
 fortress, called Rasulnaggar, belonging to a Mohammedan, and which 
 he thenceforth called Raranaggar. This conquest so increased his 
 fame that many chiefs, unattached to any of the Misals, ranged them- 
 selves under him. Ranjit Singh was born of this Jhind wife on 
 November 2, 1780. Soon after his birth he was attacked with the 
 small-pox. Mahä Singh, to avert the threatened calamity, sent rich 
 offerings to Jwälaraükhi, the place of pilgrimage, and the boy recovered, 
 but lost his left eye by the disease; hence he was called Ranjit Singh 
 Käna, the one-eyed; his face was altogether much disfigured. 
 
 The warlike spirit of Maha Singh sought another opportunity for 
 display, and soon found it at Jamu. Brij Raj being reconciled to his 
 father, ascended the masnad, or throne, at his death, and Mahä Singh 
 demanded the fulfilment of the treaty made with his father Charat 
 Singh, one of the stipulations binding Brij Raj to the payment of a 
 yearly tribute. This unreasonable demand Brij Raj refused to accede 
 to. Mahä Singh forthwith led an army against Jamu, and Brij Raj, 
 unprepared for resistance, fled to Trikota Devi, a celebrated resort for 
 pilgrims near .Jamu, and left that city to its fate. It was then the 
 richest city of the Panjab; for under the paternal sway of Ranjit Deo, 
 who united to personal bravery a large share of prudence, the richest 
 among the Hindus had all taken refuge there from different parts of 
 the country, to protect their property more effectually against the Sikh 
 robbers and their Mohammedan rulers. Maha Singh entered the city 
 without meeting any obstruction : this, however, deterred him just as 
 little from plundering it, as the exchange of turbans (the Dosterbadi) 
 had deterred him from making war on Brij Raj. Laden with booty, 
 he returned at the end of a few days to Guscraoli, the wealth he had 
 acquired gaining him more than adherents sufficient to protect him 
 from his enemies, though not from the reproaches of his old patron 
 and benefactor, Jai Singh, who had preserved his orphan's inheritance 
 in times of no common difficulty. Brij Raj, also the friend of Jai 
 Singh, was highly incensed both at the unreasonable pretext invented 
 by Mahä Singh for his invasion, and at his disregard of the Dosterbadi. 
 When therefore Mahä Singh returned from his incursion and entered 
 Ainritsir, in order to purify himself from his sins in the holy reservoir,
 
 HATEFUL CHARACTER OF INGRATITUDE. 361 
 
 and have an intervifiw with this powerful chief, Jai Singh loudly 
 reproved him for his faithless breach of the ceremonial compact. 
 Mahä Singh was perfectly conscious of his criminality, and being 
 deeply sensible also of his numerous enemies, was anxious to be for- 
 given by the head of the Ghania Misal. He did not think it beneath 
 his dignity to appear as a supplicant before the old man who had 
 protected his childhood, and leaving the chamber where Jai Singh lay 
 stretched on a charpai, he presently returned with a tray of sweetmeats, 
 knelt down before him, and besought him to name the conditions on 
 which he would again receive him to his friendship and protection. 
 Jai Singh drew the shawl which covered his feet over his head, and 
 turning himself about, said disdainfully, that he desired to hear no 
 more of such Bhagtia, romantic nonsense. Maha Singh left the 
 presence of the implacable chief in a rage, denouncing vengeance. 
 Reinforced by his allies, he appeared suddenly close to Batala, Jai 
 Singh's capital, and prevented his junction with the troops of Ghanda 
 Singh, Sirdar of the Banghi Misal, which, united together, would 
 have been six times more numerous than any force he could have 
 mustered. 
 
 When Jai Singh was informed of Mahä Singh's advance, he sent 
 his eldest son Gur Baksh in all haste against him with a body of 8000 
 chosen cavalry; but this daring young man fell at the first charge, and 
 his soldiers took to instant flight. It frequently happens that the very 
 accidents which seem to threaten the speedy downfall of a family serve 
 only to increase their power. It was thus with Mahä Singh, whose 
 defeat would have been inevitable, if the forces of the two powerful 
 fraternities, the Banghi and Ghania Misal, who mustered together 
 some 18,000 horse, had united. The rapid advance of Maha Singh 
 determined the struggle in his favour, and the aged Jai Singh, whose 
 pride was broken by the death of his son, was driven to the humiliating 
 necessity of suing for peace of the youth who owed even his inheri- 
 tance to his care. 
 
 Jai Singh had two younger sons, but all his love and hopes had 
 centred in the eldest; he now transferred his affection to his son's widow, 
 Sada Kunwar, whose power over him soon became unlimited. Her
 
 362 THE [NFLUENCE OF A CLEVER WOMAN. 
 
 only child was Mehtab Kunvvar; and Mahä Singh, to gain over the old 
 Jai Singh and Sada Kunwar to his interest, proposed the betrothment 
 of his son Ranjit Singh, then five years old, with Mehtäb Künwar. 
 This ceremony, called the Mangni, took place in 1785, and the alliance, 
 together with the influence of Sada Kunwar, insured to Mahä Singh 
 the assistance of one of the most influential Sirdars; while his 
 bold enterprises procured him the ascendancy over all the Sikh 
 confederacy. 
 
 In 1791 Mahä Singh was tempted to undertake an expedition, which 
 had well nigh ruined the hopes of his family for ever. His sister, Raj 
 Kiinwar, was married to Sahib Singh, who succeeded his father in the 
 Sirdaree of Gujrat in 1791. The moment seemed propitious for Maha 
 Singh to get his supremacy over this important place acknowledged, 
 nor did his ambitious mind hesitate on the score of any relationship. 
 He thereupon required his brother-in-law to send him a sum of money 
 in token of his subjection to him. Sahib Singh sought time to prepare 
 himself, aud offered to prove that as his father had belonged to the 
 Banghi Misal, Maha Singh could have no possible right to demand 
 tribute from him. On hearing this, Maha Singh marched to Sodera, 
 the chief stronghold of Sahib Singh, and invested it. Sahib Singh, 
 notwithstanding, had time to solicit assistance of the Banghi Misal, 
 who came to relieve the place, but being too weak to succeed, were 
 eventually repulsed. During the siege Mahä Singh fell sick, and 
 expired in his own city of Guseraoli in 1792, in his twenty-seventh 
 year. His death called into action the talents of Sada Künwar, which 
 had an important influence on the destinies of the Panjab. His only 
 son, Ranjit Singh, was twelve years old, and the numerous enemies of 
 his father seemed only to have awaited his death to seek their revenge; 
 while, in spite of the Sikh custom which made his widow regent of 
 the kingdom mider the superintendence of the Diwan Lakhpat Singh, 
 the Minister of her late husband, Sada Künwar, the mother-in-law 
 of the young Raja, managed to get the direction of affairs into her 
 own hands. 
 
 The year following, 1793, Jai Singh died. He disinherited both his 
 sons, Btigh Singh and Nidhän Singh, and appointed his daiighter-in-law,
 
 [HDITATED DESIGNS AGAINST RANJIT SINGH. 
 
 363 
 
 Sada Kunwar, regent for his grandchild, Mehtäb Künwar, the wife of 
 Ranjit Singh, to whom he bequeathed his territorial possessions and 
 treasures. The sons had neither talent nor courage to oppose this will. 
 Sada Kmiwar seems to have designed so completely to surround Ranjit 
 Singh, scarcely arrived at boyhood, with the pleasures of youth, that his 
 mind should be rendered almost incapable of being roused to the affairs 
 of government. During her guardianship, he was married for the 
 second time to Raj Kunwar, the daughter of the Näki chief Khuja 
 Singh. But the pleasures in which he lived had their usual effect of 
 satiating, and the youth turned from them to enter on the sterner duties 
 of the man. This ambitious woman was not only scheming against his 
 health, but she also prevented him from receiving any of the benefits 
 of education; and Ranjit Singh, too late, found himself as ignorant, 
 untutored, and inexperienced, as if he had grown up among brutes. At 
 seventeen years of age he awoke from the stupor in which his senses 
 had been lost ; seized on the reins of power, and began his government 
 by sending his guardian Diwan Lakhpat Singh in command of a 
 perilous attempt against Khytal, where he lost his life, not without a 
 suspicion that Ranjit Singh had formed this plan to be rid of him. His 
 own mother was accused of improper conduct, and Lakhpat Singh was 
 supposed to be neither the first nor the last of her admirers. Ranjit 
 Singh having had proof of her guilt, either commanded or at least per- 
 mitted her to be put to death, and the aged Dal Singh is thought to 
 have been her poisoner. From that time Ranjit Singh carried on the 
 government under the guidance of his mother-in-law. 
 
 The two first incursions of Shah Zeman into the Panjab, took place 
 during his minority, but the third, in 1798, found Ranjit Singh govern- 
 ing his own Misal. He was one of those Sikh Sirdars who retreated 
 as the other advanced, but did homage through a deputy at Lahor. 
 Meanwhile Ranjit Singh withdrew to the left bank of the Setlej into 
 the province of Sirhind, and took advantage of this time, when appre- 
 hension of the Afghans was universal, to overrun every town or village 
 which he found too weak to resist him. As soon as the Shah was 
 compelled to hasten homewards to Kabul, Ranjit Singh returned 
 quickly to his own territories, following the Shah's army without any
 
 364 HIS EARLY DISPOSITION TO INTRIGUE. 
 
 settled design except that of availing himself of circumstances. The 
 service which gave him Lahor, has been related in another part of this 
 work, as well as the manner in which he possessed himself of the city. 
 His success excited the jealousy of the other Sirdars, and an allied 
 force was levied against him; but a "few months saw them dispersed 
 without their having undertaken anything, and Ranjit Singh, whose 
 forces were far inferior, was allowed to breathe freely. This was the 
 last attempt of the Sikh Sirdars to withstand the growing power of 
 Ranjit Singh. They saw that their independence was at an end ; 
 but instead of uniting against this artful and powerful prince, each one 
 was in hopes of escaping, by some lucky chance, that ruin which had 
 overtaken the others. 
 
 While Ranjit Singh's influence was thus increasing, the Panjab was 
 divided between Sikh and Mohammedan rulers, the last being as dis- 
 united as the former, with regard to any plan for resisting the common 
 enemy of all. Before his cunning policy therefore, without any other 
 warlike enterprise on his part, they all succumbed. Ranjit Singh has 
 always shown an unwillingness to have recourse to arms, not from any 
 want of personal courage, but from his consciousness that while the 
 success of a battle depends on the joint will of a number, that of 
 negotiations depends on the preponderance of one man's talent, and 
 every stratagem is good to him that conduces to his own private ends. 
 His conscience never troubled him whether he robbed the widow or 
 orphan ; deprived some unfortunate dependent on his honour of all his 
 property ; seized the treasures confided to his care, or claimed the 
 whole fortune of his friend, or even the inheritance of his own son. 
 
 In 1805, a storm came from the south, which might have annihilated 
 the precarious power of Ranjit Singh. A battle was fought between 
 the British army in Hindusthan under Lord Lake, and the Mahrattas 
 under their general Jaswant Rao Holkar, who, after his defeat, betook 
 himself to flight in the direction of the Panjab. Ranjit Singh had now 
 to choose the lesser of two evils. It might be impossible to oppose 
 Holkar, without much preparation ; or a friendly reception might 
 transfer the seat of war to the Panjab, and the British, once there, 
 might be rather more difficult to remove than any other enemy.
 
 holkar's unsuccessful negotiations. 365 
 
 Holkar reached Lahor, and endeavoured by every argument to pre- 
 vail with Ranjit Singh to join the Maharatta confederacy in hostilities 
 against the British, pleading that the Hindu population had at that 
 time nothing more to fear from the Mohammedans, and that such a 
 powerful coalition might probably decide the fate of India. Ranjit 
 Singh delayed his final answer, in expectation that Holkar's impetuosity 
 would cool down ; and the Maharatta leader saw at length that while no 
 partial aid would avail him, it was vain to expect the Sikh nation to 
 espouse his quarrel en masse. He therefore concluded a peace with 
 Lord Lake in December, 1805, and both armies retired to Hindiisthan. 
 
 The history of the three following years ofi"ers little matter of 
 interest for Europeans, important as they were for the country, then 
 being gradually overrun by the Sikhs, whose conquests included, 
 besides the north of the Panjab, the strip of country from the Jarana 
 to the Setlej, called Sirhind and Malwa, of which Ranjit Singh made 
 himself undisputed master. The means by which he gained this large 
 territory were little to his honour, although every praise may be con- 
 ceded to the views he entertained of reducing the disembodied provinces 
 and tribes to one consistent government. The independent Sirdars, as 
 if under the wand of some enchanter, inevitably implicated Ranjit 
 Singh in their quarrels, and the result invariably turned to the sole 
 aggrandizement of the Sikh. If one of these Sirdars died, so surely did 
 Ranjit seize a part or the whole of the inheritance, whether cities, 
 treasures, or lands. This indeed was a period in the annals of Indian 
 history, when no feeble prince had any prospect of immunity, nor were 
 prescriptive rights, however ancient, secure against the presumptive 
 claims of a self-confident and powerful usurper. 
 
 We have already spoken of the treaty between the East India Com- 
 pany and Ranjit Singh, appointing the Setlej as the boundary of their 
 respective states. If it set narrower limits to his kingdom in this 
 direction than he had proposed, the embassy which concluded it was the 
 indirect means of extending his sway in another quarter, and taught 
 him, moreover, the useful lesson of avoiding all contention with the 
 British Government. I allude to the event which took place in the 
 camp of the envoy Mr. Metcalfe, (the present Sir Charles Metcalfe,
 
 366 THE PROCESSION OF THE MOHARRAM. 
 
 Governor of the newly-formed presidency of Agra, and now of 
 Canada,) which, however unimportant in itself, made a deep impression 
 on the sagacious mind of Ranjit Singh. The following was the occa- 
 sion of this bloody scene : The Mohammedans of the sect of the 
 Sunis in India, have an absurd and superstitious ceremony which con- 
 cludes their Moharrara, during the last ten days of which they erect 
 canopies or tdbuts of different colours, ornamented with gold and silver, 
 and illuminated by multitudes of lamps, which are carried about on the 
 last day of the feast, in joyful procession, and with loud cries are then 
 burnt or thrown into the water. The ceremony is to commemorate the 
 martyrdom of Hasan and Hüsäin, the sons of Ali. The Shiahs consider 
 this as heretical, and use all their influence to prevent the Siinis from 
 holding the procession at all. The spirit of animosity with which the 
 opposite parties are inflamed, is frequently the occasion of loss of life 
 in the more populous Indian cities. 
 
 In 1809, the Moharram fell at the end of February, at the same 
 time as the Hindu feast of the Huli, and the Envoy's camp happened to 
 be then in the holy city of Araritsir, Ranjit Singh having made that 
 the residence of his court during the celebration of the Huli. Through 
 some misunderstanding of the orders issued by Mr. Metcalfe, pro- 
 hibiting his Mohammedan escort from carrying about the Tabut, the 
 procession was proceeding with every demonstration of joy, when the 
 Akali, enraged at the spectacle of this Mohammedan ceremony pro- 
 faning the vicinity of their holy reservoir, stirred up the people of 
 Amritsir against the enemies of their faith. Phula Singh headed the 
 fanatical multitude, and with a discharge of fire-arms and fearful cries, 
 they blindly rushed on Mr. Metcalfe's escort, which consisted of two 
 companies of regular sipahis, and sixteen horsemen only. This small 
 force received the onset of the populace steadily ; they soon brought the 
 fanatics to their senses by a close fire ; and forming into a line, they in 
 their turn attacked the Akalis, and forced them to seek safety in flight. 
 Ranjit Singh meanwhile had been informed of the accident, and hasten- 
 ing to the spot just in time, as he thought, to stay the massacre of 
 every Englishman, beheld the final charge, and the dispersion of the 
 vast crowds of his own subjects. He rode onwards to the Envoy's tent, to
 
 UNEQUAL CONTEST WITH DISCIPLINED TROOPS. 367 
 
 request his pardon for the occurrence, and to express his admiration 
 of the conduct of his soldiers. From that time he set about the 
 organization of his own army, perceiving the vast superiority of 
 implicit obedience in the British soldiery, over the fanatical rage and 
 enthusiasm of his irregular troops. He strove to obtain subalterns 
 from the Company's army to discipline his own, but the plan succeeded 
 but very partially among his native army, hitherto unaccustomed to the 
 least control. He perceived now that it v?as the order and discipline 
 more than the number of the Company's soldiers, which made them so 
 formidable. From finding himself at that time too feeble to act 
 against them, he entertained the thought of connecting himself closely 
 with them, and of enlarging his own power in another direction than 
 Hindüsthan. He signed the treaty which bound him to non-interference 
 in those territories on the left shore of the Setlej, or " the golden 
 harvest of Sirhind and Malwa," as the Sikhs call that country, which, 
 but for British interference, could not have eluded his grasp. The 
 extent of this deprivation may be measured from the fact, that of the 
 many Rajas and Sirdars who bear rule there, one only, the Raja of 
 Patiala has a yearly revenue of three millions of florins. 
 
 Ranjit Singh being thus shut out from this rich conquest, turned 
 towards the north for his future prey, where several powerful Hindu 
 princes still exercised the sovereign power. He interfered in all their 
 disputes, generally invited by the contending factions ; the first act of 
 the drama being opened at Kängra, a fortress considered impregnable 
 by the natives. In 1809, the old Raja Sansar Chand requested his 
 assistance against the powerful Ghorka chief Amar Singh Thapa, pro- 
 mising to receive a body of Sikhs into his fortress. No sooner, how- 
 ever, did these Sikhs make their appearance, than Sansar Chand began 
 to repent of his engagement, and sought a pretext for delay, in the hope 
 that while the Sikhs and Ghorkas were encamped before the place, they 
 would turn upon each other, and relieve him at once of his open 
 enemies, and still more dangerous friends. Ranjit Singh, however, saw 
 through this plan, and therefore ordered his troops, on the refusal of 
 Sansar Chand to admit them, to advance against Kängra. The fire of 
 his batteries was opened on the Sikhs, of whom many were killed and
 
 368 RANJiT Singh's first signal victory. 
 
 many wounded while climbing the precipitous ascents ; but, on reaching 
 the gate of the fortress, to their astonishment it was opened to them, 
 and thus Ranjit Singh became master of Kängra. 
 
 From thence he marched into the Jhalandar Doab, where he robbed 
 the widow of the lately deceased Bhaghäi Singh of her Jaghir or fief, 
 while his Diwan appeared before Faizulapura, invited the Sirdar, Bhiip 
 Singh, to an interview, seized him and took possession of his country 
 for Ranjit Singh. And by such enterprises he gained, in addition to 
 their territories, the hoarded treasures of the unfortunate Sirdars, whom 
 he generally left to beggary. So long as this system injured the Sikhs 
 only, it was looked upon by the Hindus as a robbery of one thief by 
 another; and Ranjit Singh was deemed an instrument sent to punish 
 them for their crimes ; but when Hindu Rajas lost their lands, and 
 ancient dynasties came to beg their bread, his transgressions began to 
 be viewed in a very different light. 
 
 Ranjit Singh was now organizing his army : he divided his infantry 
 into battalions of 300 or 400 men each : he made the artillery a sepa- 
 rate corps under a commandant or Darogha ; while the cavalry 
 remained under his own command, divided into Ghorchar Khas and 
 Ghorchar Sowar, the last receiving pay and horses from the Govern- 
 ment, the former having possessions in land assigned to them. 
 
 In 1810, the failure of his attempt on Multan satisfied him that his 
 army was still very imperfectly disciplined, and the remainder of that 
 year was devoted to its improvement, and to the confiscation of the 
 property of the helpless, which took place even with more faithlessness 
 and less assignable pretext than before. One example out of many 
 may here be cited. Ranjit Singh repaired to Ramnaggar, and 
 summoned Nidhän Singh Atha before him. The chief, remembering 
 how treacherously many of the independent Sirdars had been made 
 captive, answered that he would not come without the security of a 
 Sodi, (Sikh priest), upon which Ranjit Singh forthwith invested his 
 fort of Daskas ; but his artillery could do little against it, nor did his 
 shameful impositions on the family of the besieged, who accidentally fell 
 into his hands, avail him more. He therefore sent the Sodi priest, 
 who gave him his word that Ranjit Singh had no design whatever
 
 SHAMELESS DISREGAKD OK A PLEDCJE. 369 
 
 against the freedom of the brave Nidhan Singh Atha, declaring that 
 he only wanted the fortress, for which he would give him a Jaghir in 
 exchange. On this assurance, Nidhan Singh came over in perfect 
 confidence to the enemy's camp, where, in utter disregard of the 
 solemn promise given, he was thrown into chains, and detained six weeks 
 in prison, until the Sikh priests, whose honour was implicated in this 
 affair, sat before Ranjit Singh in Dharna till he had released the pri- 
 soner, and given him the stipulated Jaghir. No sooner was Nidhän 
 Singh Atha restored to liberty, than he refused to accept the Jaghir, 
 but avowed to Ranjit Singh that as an honourable man he could not 
 swear fidelity to one so devoid of principle, and quitting the Panjab, 
 entered the service of Ata Mohammed Khan in Kashmir. 
 
 Ranjit Singh felt himself henceforward strong enough to act as 
 master of the whole of the Panjab. Every Sirdar, no matter what his 
 faith might be, had to pay him tribute, and if he refused to obey a 
 summons to the camp, was deprived of his territory, sent in chains to 
 Labor, and there detained until the festivals of the Huli, or Da- 
 sara, loosed his bonds. In no instance, however, did Ranjit Singh 
 restore the property. Whenever a Sirdar died, Ranjit Singh, accord- 
 ing to the Indian usage of supremacy, claimed to be heir to his posses- 
 sions, and in case the son had not made himself friends beforehand, 
 he never recovered his rights. Under any circumstances, he had 
 to pay a large sum by way of nazzerdna, for the investiture of the 
 turban at court. The same causes which operated in favour of the 
 extension of the East India Company's dominion, contributed also 
 to give Ranjit Singh unlimited power in the Panjab. His weaker 
 opponents, by their improvident divisions overrated their own strength, 
 and began hostilities ; the alliance of the lesser chiefs was soon broken, 
 who then in cowardly despair, submitted themselves unconditionally to 
 Ranjit Singh, whose sole dependence was on intrigue, the most prompt 
 measures, and an unshaken confidence in his own resources. 
 
 About this time, one of the Sirdars gave an answer to him, which 
 shows that his designs were penetrated, and that he could sometimes 
 tolerate bold words. In 1811, he had taken possession of the land 
 belonging to his uncle Nidhun Singh Ghania, nominally for his wife, 
 
 2 B
 
 370 BOLD BEARING OF A SIKH CHIEF. 
 
 Mehtäb Kiinwar, but really for himself, Nidhän Singh being taken 
 captive and shut up in Lahor. Jodh Singh, a Sikh Sirdar, to whom 
 something very similar had already happened, came to Lahor with 
 a body of soldiers, with which he was to attend the Diwan to Mültän, 
 and on taking leave, Ranjit Singh ordered a turban to be given to him 
 as a token of the Mahä Raja's favour. But Jodh Singh begged to 
 be excused, saying, that these were times when every Sirdar must 
 esteem himself favoured by the permission of Ranjit Singh to keep his 
 own turban, and his head into the bargain. 
 
 The blind Shah Zeman, came at this same time to Lahor, to 
 interest Ranjit Singh in the affairs of his brother. Shah Shuja, in 
 Kabul, but he found himself so entirely neglected, that he soon 
 returned to Rawal Pindi, where they had both taken up their residence 
 temporarily. Shah Shuja made an attempt on Peshawar, in the same 
 year that he had ineffectually sought the aid of Ranjit Singh. The 
 invitation shows how little he could have known Ranjit Singh's 
 character, to suppose that he would be so egregiously foolish as to 
 assist him in uniting the Afghan power under one chief. Neither 
 a yearly tribute, nor the cession of a large province, could offer him any 
 recompense for the prospect opened to him by the civil discords of 
 Afghanistan. These discords made it impossible for the Afghans to 
 assist their co-religionists on the left shore of the Indus, where one 
 small kingdom after the other fell before Ranjit Singh. Shah Shuja's 
 attempt to reconquer his crown was equally unfortunate; he narrowly 
 escaped his enemies on the right shore of the Atok, and when he arrived 
 on the left shore, was made prisoner by Juhan Dad Khan, and sent 
 by him to his brother, Ata Mohammed Khan, in Kashmir. Shah 
 Zeman, the unhappy blind brother of the captive king, had remained in 
 Rawal Pindi awaiting the issue of the attempt, and had now no better 
 course to take, than to flee to Lahor with his own and his brother's 
 family. 
 
 Shah Shuja found means to escape from Kashmir, and in 1813 he 
 came also to Lahor with the Diwan Mokham Chand, Ranjit Singh 
 having told his wife, Vafa Begam, who had accompanied Shah Zeman 
 to Lahor, that it was the best thing her husband could do. Shah
 
 EARLY HISTORY OF THE KOHI NUR. 371 
 
 Shüja was infatuated enough to believe that Ranjit Singh meant to 
 grant him some assistance, but he had scarcely entered his own 
 dwelling when the Mahd Raja sent to require him to deliver up the 
 famous Kohi Nur diamond. The early history of this jewel is not 
 known. According to the Hindus, it belonged, before the Moghul 
 Emperors owned it, to the Pändüs, whose legends remind one of the 
 Cyclops of Roman Mythology. Many believe that it was presented 
 to Shah Jehan by the Amir Jemla, who was at one time a jeweller, and 
 who afterwards farmed the diamond mines in the Dekhan, and that the 
 present had a great influence in making him a Wazir. The French 
 traveller, Tavernier, saw the Kohi Nur in Aurangzib's possession, 
 ornamenting his small throne, and gives its weight as 420 carats, 
 I believe. The largest diamond in Europe is in the crown of Russia, 
 and weighs 194 carats*. 
 
 Nadir Shah seized this with all the other treasures in Delhi, and 
 carried it to Persia, where it became the property of Ahmed Shah 
 Abdali, when Nadir Shah's tent was plundered after his murder. It 
 remained with the kings of Kabul until the accession of Shah Zeman ; 
 but that unhappy monarch was obliged to flee before his victorious 
 brother, and confiding in the fidelity of Mulla Aushik, took refuge in 
 his castle (1800), and when there he found himself a prisoner, his 
 former friend keeping him until he could deliver him up to his enemies. 
 Shah Zeman havinsr in vain shown the Mulla the baseness of his 
 
 * The celebrated Kohi Nur diamond is cut in the rose form, and, when rough, 
 is said to have weighed 900 carats. It is believed to have been found at the 
 Golconda mines about the year 1550. The magnificent Russian diamond is about 
 the size of a small pigeon's egg, and was at one period the eye of a Hindu image, 
 whence it was purloined by a French soldier. After passing through several hands, 
 it came by purchase, eventually, into the possession of the Empress Catherine of 
 Russia, who gave the vendor 90,000^. in money, and an annuity of 4000/. But the 
 most beautiful, and probably the most perfect diamond hitherto found, is a brilliant 
 brought from India by a Mr, Pitt, which weighs rather more than 130 carats, and 
 was purchased by the Duke of Orleans for 100,000/., who placed it among the 
 crown jewels of France. The average price is 21. per carat in the rough, or 8/. 
 when wrought, exclusive of the workmanship ; but the values increase as the 
 squares of the weight ; diamonds of 1, 2, and 3 carats, being respectively 2, 8, and 
 1 8/. in the rough ; the carat is equal to the 150th part of an ounce troy, — Ed. 
 
 2 B 2
 
 372 RANjiT Singh's cupidity. 
 
 treachery, concealed all his treasures, and among- them the Kohi Nur, 
 in the wall of his chamber, where they remained until the accession of 
 Shah Shuja, in 1803, when he punished Mulla Aushik, and drew the 
 Kohi Nur from its hiding-place. He always carried the stone wherever 
 he went, and had it with him in his flight. 
 
 Ranjit Singh now offered him a considerable jaghir for the stone, 
 but the Shah denied having it with him, and the Vafa Begam declared 
 that it had been pledged to a Saraf, or money-changer, for a loan of 
 money. Ranjit Singh was not to be imposed upon by this shallow 
 pretext, and to prevent the jewel being sent away, he instantly ordered 
 guards to be set round the Shah's house, who allowed no one to quit it 
 without submitting to a rigorous search. To bring the unlucky Shah 
 to confession, other means were soon resorted to, and for two days no 
 food was suffered to enter the house ; yet even hunger could not make 
 him betray the secret, and Ranjit Singh determined to go more cun- 
 ningly to work. Letters were brought forward purporting to have 
 been written by the Shah to Fatih Khan in Kabul, inviting him to 
 invade the Panjab and liberate him. In consequence of this discovery, 
 instead of the guards hitherto appointed, two companies were posted 
 round his house, and he was informed that he was to be taken to 
 Govindgurh as a state prisoner, every means being taken to alarm and 
 distress him. Shah Shuja saw that he should never regain his liberty, 
 but on condition of giving up this precious stone, and demanded two 
 months, in order to find time, as he said, to redeem it from the Saraf. 
 Ranjit Singh was reluctantly compelled to accede to his terms, and the 
 Shah for a time was left unmolested. Before the expiration of the 
 term, however, his treatment became more harsh, that he might be 
 reminded of the necessity of keeping his word. The Shah saw then 
 that no further delay was possible, and that Ranjit Singh was resolved 
 to have the jewel, even if he put him to death to obtain it. On the 
 last day of the two months he invited the Mahä Raja to come and 
 receive the diamond, and when he appeared with a few attendants, the 
 Shah received him with the dignity peculiar to him, and being seated, 
 remained profoundly silent for an hour. It is not to be wondered at, 
 that Ranjit Singh at last lost all patience, and softly bade one of his
 
 SHAH SHUJA'S duplicity FOILED. 373 
 
 attendants to remind the Shah of the purpose of his visit. The Shah 
 did not make any answer, but beckoned to a eunuch, who quitted the 
 room and presently returned with a small packet, which he laid on a 
 carpet spread out between them. Ranjit Singh ordered one of his 
 attendants to open it, and having satisfied himself that it really was 
 what he came for, he instantly left the place, without speaking a word 
 or even saluting the Shah. 
 
 This account of the event came from the Shah's own lips, and is 
 naturally given in the darkest colours. It may be perhaps much 
 softened down. It is always excusable to deprive an enemy of the 
 means of creating fresh disturbances. Certainly Shah Shuja was 
 invited to Lahor by Ranjit Singh ; he did not come as an enemy but 
 as a guest, and generosity would have required a fallen man to be 
 spared. But at this very time Ranjit Singh had been deceived by the 
 Afghans in the reward promised for his co-operating with them against 
 Kashmir, and it demanded more self-denial than was to be expected in 
 the ignorant enemy of the Mohammedans, had he disregarded the 
 opportunity of seizing this famous stone, which it is pretty sure that 
 the ex-Shah would have applied to some warlike enterprise. 
 
 The offer of a jaghir from a Sikh to the former monarch must not 
 be considered according to our European ideas. A rightful, though 
 dethroned king, will be always respected as such in Europe, and parti- 
 cularly so long as there is any chance of his reinstatement ; but in 
 India the possessor alone has any claim on respect. Shah Shuja 
 thought to outwit Ranjit Singh, and only irritated him. Sooner or 
 later he must have lost his jewels, which were so well known in India, 
 that every Sirdar, whose country he traversed, would have been on the 
 look-out for them. Once before they had nearly cost him his life. 
 When he was obliged to fly from Peshawar, in the year 1809 (when 
 Mr. Elphinstone first saw him), the Vafa Begam fled to Mozaffer Khan 
 at Mültän, who invited Shah Shuja to repair to him also, and give him 
 counsel how he could best withstand Ranjit Singh. The Shah soon 
 appeared, but to his astonishment he and his escort were fired on from 
 the fort which he was approaching without the smallest suspicion. It 
 is supposed that the Nawiib acted thus in order to kill the Shah and
 
 374 ARBITRARY PROCEDURE OF RANJIT SINGH. 
 
 steal his jewels, or to take him prisoner and deliver him up to 
 Mohammed Shah. Shah Shuja withdrew out of the reach of the 
 guns, and waited until Mozaffer Khan thought better of it, and this 
 soon happened. He came out to the Shah, welcomed him as his guest, 
 and gave him a Jaghir which produced a revenue of 20,000 rupees. 
 
 As soon as Ranjit Singh had got the Kohi Nur, he allowed the Shah 
 more liberty; but instead of taking advantage of it instantly, and 
 making his way to the frontiers with the jewels still left to him, he 
 began the same course of intrigues which had occupied his whole life. 
 A letter was very shortly intercepted, written by his Kazi, Shir 
 Mohammed, to Mohammed Azim Khan, the Governor of Kashmir, in 
 which the Kazi proposed to him to murder Ranjit Singh, and unite 
 with his brother Fatih Khan of Kabul, in a combined attack on Lahor, 
 Ranjit Singh had the writer and the letter both seized and carried 
 before Shah Shuja, who sent them back, desiring that the Mahä Raja 
 would punish the writer as he thought proper. Persuaded that pain 
 would draw a confession from the Kazi that he had acted by the Shah's 
 orders, the guards were commanded to beat him with their shoes and 
 sticks. Fainting under their blows, the poor wretch still took the 
 whole blame upon himself, and was carried to prison, whence the 
 Shah was forced to procure his release by a mulct of 20,000 rupees. 
 
 The year following fresh intrigues came to the knowledge of Ranjit 
 Singh, who, knowing that they could only be carried on by the sale of 
 the Shah's remaining jewels, resolved to deprive him of all opportunity 
 of concocting any further mischief. He demanded them; but Shah 
 Shuja, who ought to have known with whom he had to deal, assured him 
 that he had none left. In consequence of this, Ranjit Singh was 
 determined to convince himself of the truth of his statement, and sent 
 Bhäi Räm Singh with one of his own wives to the Shah's house, with 
 orders to search it throughout, and to bring him every box and parcel 
 which contained anything of value. His wife penetrated into the 
 innermost recesses of the Zenana, and searched even the wives of the 
 Shah. Everything of value was packed up and carried to Ranjit 
 Singh's palace, where the packets were opened in his presence; he 
 appropriated to himself all articles that took his fancy. But although
 
 STIPENDIARY PRINCES OF THE EAST. 375 
 
 Shah Shiija had reason enough to complain of the rapacity of Ranjit 
 Singh, nevertheless this prince did not find all he wanted, the Shah 
 having up to the present time continued occasionally to dispose of 
 jewels, and as lately as 1 834, sold one at Amritsir, which the Maha 
 Raja purchased for 80,000 rupees. 
 
 In 1814 the Shah succeeded in sending Shah Zeraan and his own 
 wives to Ludiana in disguise; he soon after made his escape and joined 
 them. He ascribed his success in this plan to his own talents, while 
 Ranjit Singh was very glad to be rid of a guest who cost him a good deal 
 of money, and from whom he thought he had wrested all that he had to 
 give. Shah Shiija and Shah Zeman took up their residence in Ludiana, 
 where the East India Company allowed the first 50,000 and the last 
 30,000 rupees a year, and why? their newspapers say, that it seemed 
 to them too hard that the poor Hindus should have to support two 
 kings who had no territories in India. But there is probably some 
 political object in this protection of the kings of Kabul. Shah Zeman 
 has found consolation for his misfortunes in his religious observances, 
 while Shah Shuja entertains a distant hope of recovering his empire, 
 and squanders large sums in spies, and the hire of soldiers. Since 
 1814 he has undertaken two expeditions, the first in 1818, a second 
 more recently: both of which have, however, signally failed*. 
 
 * It is quite impossible for any dispassionate man to read the above account of 
 the character of Shah Shuja and Ranjit Singh, without recurring to our want of 
 better information on questions of vital Political importance to the British Govern- 
 ment, on which the issue of great public measures so materially depended. It may 
 be said, that subsequent events, and the fatality which seemed to attach to all the 
 events of Shah Shuja's life, have verified this historical estimate of his vacillating, 
 treacherous, and imbecile mind — and the bloody scenes enacted in the Panjäb, since 
 Ranjit Singh's death, give us likewise an insight into the real nature of the elements 
 compacted together by the faithless procedure of a self-confident individual, 
 regardless of the mode by which he effected his purpose. It cannot be doubted 
 that the publication of this work at an earlier period, coming as it docs from 
 an intelligent foreigner, who had no bias or preconceived ideas of necessity to 
 disturb his review of past events, would have exercised a most salutary influence 
 in the highest quarters, and possibly have deterred us from espousing the cause 
 of a prince so utterly destitute of every qualification for the sovereignty to which 
 he was advanced by the powerful aid of the British Government, and in every
 
 376 RANjiT Singh's disregarq, of scruples. 
 
 I have already spoken of the ill success of the expedition against 
 Kashmir, and the part taken in it by Ranjit Singh, who, although a 
 man of great personal bravery, has never been a successful general. 
 A few words on the siege of Mültän in 1818, will give an idea of the 
 quality of his troops, where he considered himself at the head of a 
 disciplined army, and was moreover reinforced by the brave Ghorkas, 
 or Nepalese troops, who were dismissed after the peace with the East 
 India Company. 
 
 The control of the force destined for this expedition was given to 
 the Diwan Misar Chand, who had risen to that rank from a very 
 inferior station. Hira Singh, the Mahä Raja's eldest son, was invested 
 with the nominal command, to avoid giving offence to the Sikh Sirdars 
 by this appointment. After Ranjit Singh's former enterprises against 
 his neighbours, it was unnecessary to make any pretence for attacking 
 Multan; he proceeded, therefore, on the presumption which gives 
 right to the strongest party, without attempting to palliate his conduct. 
 The army having approached Multan, Mozaffer Khan, the Nawab, was 
 required to give a large sum in gold, and five of his best horses, as a 
 tribute. This, however, he declined, clearly seeing that a scene of the 
 same kind would soon be repeated, and, in fact, he had been twice laid 
 under contribution already, (in 1804 and 1807,) and in 1810, he was 
 besieged, though ineffectually, and bought off his enemies with a heavy 
 fine of 180,000 rupees. 
 
 According to another account, Mozaffer Khan complied with Ranjit 
 Singh's demand, and as soon as the army had retired with his money 
 and horses, rode after Ranjit Singh, and did him homage as a Zemin- 
 dar. Ranjit Singh admired the horse he rode very much, and one of 
 his suite in a very uncourteous manner, demanded it for his master. 
 
 respect so little disposed by previous habits of life or nature to refrain from 
 dabbling in political intrigues with the enemies of his best and greatest friends. 
 Such, no doubt, was the true and proper cause of the fatal insurrection at Kabul. 
 The whole tenor of Ranjit Singli's conduct to his associate chiefs; their mutual 
 want of faith, and the lawless cunning and heartless disposition of all who exercised 
 any share of power or authority, sufficiently prove tiic futility of treaties with such 
 parties, however solemnly they may be pledged. — Ed.
 
 INEXPERIENCE OF NATIVE ARTILLERY. 377 
 
 The Zemindar, enraged at this insolence, rode up to the Mahä Raja's 
 elephant, and with his sabre endeavoured to strike him, but the seat 
 was too high to enable him to reach his person. Ranjlt Singh's suite 
 soon came to his help, and forced the Zemindar to defend himself. 
 Many of the Sikhs attacked him, but so dexterously did he manage his 
 horse, that they were all struck to the earth, and they then had recourse 
 to the cowardly expedient of shooting him from behind, when the 
 horse from which he fell was seized by the Mahä Raja's command. 
 This was probably the origin or pretext of the enmity which brought 
 about the siege of Mültän. Mozaffer Khan, aware of the inefficiency 
 of his enemy's guns, and confident in his own bravery, hoped to have wit- 
 nessed the failure of this attempt against him also. But, like Mohamme- 
 dans in general, he never thought of inspiring his soldiers with a similar 
 spirit, or of strengthening his fortress. In India, the Mohammedan 
 garrison defending a fortress, believe themselves, each man individually, 
 capable of firing ofl" the guns, and without any precise orders, usually go 
 about from one station or tower to another, serving any of the guns, while 
 the rest of the party seat themselves quietly behind them, and begin 
 talking and smoking. From time to time one gets up, loads the guns 
 chiefly with balls which are not fitted for them, and when they go off, 
 exclaim, Wah ! Wah I and sit down again to smoke, until another thinks 
 fit to reload and fire. Miiltan consists of the town and the fortress or 
 citadel, which is furnished with outworks and a double wall. The 
 former being taken without any bloodshed, the kilah, or citadel, was 
 invested. Each Sirdar and Jaghirdar in Ranjit Singh's army, brought 
 his own arms and ammunition, and fired whenever and at whatever 
 he pleased. Guns and muskets were therefore being discharged on all 
 sides night and day. In two months' time the outer wall of the kilah 
 was nearly destroyed, and several breaches were effected in the inner 
 one, which the besieged were too careless even to repair. Ranjit 
 Singh, though absent, directed the operations of the siege. In May 
 the army was intrenched behind the outer wall, but the Maha Raja 
 forbad the Diwan Misar Chand to run any risks, for he had not yet 
 recovered the losses he had sustained by his Kashmir expedition, and 
 felt that another check might be productive of the most serious conse-
 
 378 FORT OF MULTAN CARRIED BY ASSAULT. 
 
 quences. He even offered to give the Nawab of Mültän a Jaghir if 
 he would surrender his fortress, a very liberal offer considering that he 
 had nothing left him now, except this citadel badly defended. But 
 Mozaffer Khan refused it, rather than be dependent on Ranjit Singh. 
 On the 2nd of June, a Sikh Akali called Sadhu Singh, with a few 
 comrades, attacked the Afghans keeping guard between the inner and 
 outer walls, overpowered them, and took this advanced work. He was 
 followed by the Sikh troops, who took the outworks without any loss 
 on their side ; those Afghans who made the least resistance were 
 instantly put to the sword. Encouraged by this easy victory, the 
 troops pushed forward, forced their way through the breaches in the 
 walls, and penetrated to the interior, where the besieged were quite 
 unprepared for any attack. The Nawab, his four sons, and his attend- 
 ants, valiantly defended his own house : two of the sons fell with their 
 father; the third, Zulfikhar Khan, lay severely wounded by a sabre; 
 the other, the eldest of the family, whom his father had made Governor 
 of Miiltan, was found concealed in a cellar. This rich fortress was 
 thereupon abandoned to indiscriminate pillage. 
 
 Ranjit Singh received the news of its surrender with the liveliest 
 expressions of satisfaction, and soon resolved that he would be no loser 
 by the sacking of the fortress. It was well known that great treasures 
 were concealed there, and recollecting how Nadir Shah made every 
 one of his soldiers deliver up the booty he had taken in India at a 
 certain station on the Atok, including all the treasures of Delhi, Ranjit 
 Singh commanded his troops, with the exception of one company left 
 to garrison Miiltan, to return to Lahor, where he made officers and 
 soldiers alike give up the spoil. Each of the Nawab's two sons 
 received a Jaghir. 
 
 This year, 1818, Fatih Khan, the faithful servant of Mohammed 
 Shah of Kabul, was first blinded and then put to death at the command 
 of his ungrateful master. On the death of this great man, whose 
 distinguished talents alone had raised the Shah to the throne of Kabul, 
 the dynasty of Ahmed Shah fell likewise, principally through the 
 instrumentality of his grandson. By this event Ranjit Singh was freed 
 from the only man whom he had to fear in the west, and he had no
 
 RESULTS OF EUROPEAN ORGANIZATION. 379 
 
 sooner heard of it than he marched by Atok to Peshawar, whence, 
 after several smart skirmishes, he compelled the independent Governor, 
 Yär Mohammed Khan, Fatih Khan's brother, to seek refuge in the 
 mountains. Ranjit Singh, who commanded in person, appointed Juan 
 Dad Khan, to whose perfidy he was indebted for the acquisition of 
 Atok, to be Governor of Peshawar, and returned to the Panjab; but 
 Yar Mohammed soon came down from the mountains, and appearing 
 before Peshawar, obliged Juiin Dad to make his escape. He happened 
 during his flight to meet with Shah Shuja, brought by the events in 
 Kabul to the shores of the Atok, and remained with him so long as 
 there was any prospect of the Shah's reinstatement on his throne ; but 
 when the latter was forced to retire to Ludiana, poorer than before, 
 Juan Dad Khan repaired to Herat, where he was received by Mahmud 
 Shah. 
 
 The power of the Afghan empire terminated with the death of 
 Fatih Khan. It thereupon fell into the separate parts from which it 
 had been formed; one province only, Herat, being left to Mahmiid 
 Shah, a grandson of the great founder, and on this Ranjit Singh first 
 commenced his aggressions. The year following he was engaged in the 
 conquest of Kashmir ; and the next in extending his dominion over the 
 Indus to Jellalabad, half-way between Atok and Kabul. This increase 
 of power was chiefly gained by the soldiers of AUard and Ventura, 
 who both came to Lahor in 1822, and entered the service of the 
 Mahä Raja. The events which occurred from that period up to 1835, 
 are of no particular interest, and some have been touched on elsewhere. 
 In 1835, the army of Dost Mohammed Khan, the brother of Fatih 
 Khan, who had seized on Kabul, and that of Ranjit Singh, under the 
 command of Ventura, faced each other for some time on the Kabul 
 river, but neither general desired an engagement. Dost Mohammed 
 Khan soon retreated, and Ranjit Singh contented himself with strength- 
 ening his power in this direction, without extending it. 
 
 Before I enter into a detailed statement of Ranjit Singh's power, 
 I will say a few words of his person and character. In person he is 
 short and mean-looking, and had he not distinguished himself by his
 
 380 PERSONAL APPEARANCE OF THE SIKH RULER. 
 
 great talents, he would be passed by without being thought worthy of 
 observation. Without exaggeration, I must call him the most ugly and 
 unprepossessing man I saw throughout the Panjab. His left eye, 
 which is quite closed, disfigures him less than the other, which is 
 always rolling about, wide open, and is much distorted by disease. The 
 scars of the small-pox on his face, do not run into one another, but 
 form so many dark pits in his greyish-brown skin ; his short straight 
 nose is swollen at the tip ; the skinny lips are stretched tight over his 
 teeth, which are still good ; his grizzled beard, very thin on the cheeks 
 and upper lip, meets under the chin in matted confusion; and his head, 
 which is sunk very much on his broad shoulders, is too large for his 
 height, and does not seem to move easily. He has a thick muscular neck, 
 thin arms and legs, the left foot and the left arm drooping, and small 
 well-formed hands. He will sometimes hold a stranger's hand fast 
 within his own for half an hour, and the nervous irritation of his mind is 
 shown by the continued pressure on one's fingers. His costume always 
 contributes to increase his ugliness, being in winter the colour of 
 gamboge, from the Pagri (the turban or Sikh cloth, on his head,) down 
 to his very socks and slippers. 
 
 The Sikh pagri consists of a long narrow piece of linen, in which 
 the hair is wrapped up ; and it is so fastened either in the front or a 
 little on one side, that one cannot see either end or knot. It lies down 
 smooth on the head, one end hanging half way down the back. Ranjit 
 Singh hides this end under his upper garment. The Angraka (coat) is 
 tied over the chest, and reaches to the knee, and the trousers fall in many 
 folds down to the ancle. Over the whole is worn a mantle lined with 
 skins. The entire costume is, as I have said, of yellow Pashmina, 
 green being worn sometimes by him, but not commonly. In summer 
 he wears white muslin. At the festival of the Basant, he was particu- 
 larly disfigured by the straw-coloured dress he wore with a slight 
 intermixture of green in it. In earlier days he used to appear in divers 
 ornaments ; but this custom he has long discontinued, and I never saw 
 him wear any embroidery, brocade, or rich ornament of any sort. 
 
 When he seats himself in a common English arm-chair, with his 
 feet drawn under him, the position is one particularly unfavourable to
 
 BELIEF IN THE INFLUENCE OF CHARMS. 381 
 
 him ; but as soon as he mounts his horse, and with his black shield at 
 his back, puts him on his mettle, his whole form seems animated by the 
 spirit within, and assumes a certain grace, of which nobody could 
 believe it susceptible. In spite of the paralysis aflfecting one side, he 
 manages his horse with the greatest ease. 
 
 If nature has been niggardly to him in respect of personal appearance, 
 denying him the privilege of thereby making a favourable impi-ession on 
 strangers, she has recompensed him very richly by the power which, in 
 common with all remarkable men, he is enabled to exercise over every 
 one who approaches him. He can in a moment take up a subject of 
 conversation, follow it up closely by questions and answers, which con- 
 vey other questions in themselves, and these are always so exactly to 
 the purpose, that they put the understanding of his respondent to the 
 test, and satisfy him whether the subject is as fully apprehended, and as 
 quickly followed as by his own mind. 
 
 With a voice naturally rough and unpleasant, he can assume a tone 
 of much fascination whenever he wishes to flatter ; and his influence 
 over the people of northern India amounts to something like enchant- 
 ment. They believe that he can do whatever he pleases, because higher 
 powers are at his command. For example, I observed a spot on the 
 Atok above the city, the time being at low water, where the river 
 seemed particularly shallow, and I inquired whether it was fordable at 
 any season of the year. They answered that it never had been found 
 practicable. " Why," said I then, " I have been told that the Mahä 
 Raja passed the Atok with an army, and without making use of abridge. 
 Where about was this?" — "At this very spot." "Is not this then a 
 proof of such possibility?" I inquired. — " The Maha Raja can do what- 
 ever he pleases." " But how came he by this influence ?" I asked, and 
 heard a long story about an inestimable jewel, on which was a powerful 
 Mantram or magic prayer engraven, buried under the skin of his right 
 arm, and which gave him power to do whatever he had a mind to efl'ect. 
 
 When I smiled at this superstitious fancy, the following instance of 
 the power of a similar Mantram was given me, as having happened in 
 the Dekhan. A Rämüsi Näik, or head of the Ramusis, a warlike tribe, 
 named Dadji, had dishonoured a female Brahmin. This was in the time
 
 382 OSTENSIBLE POLICY OF THE PANJAB COURT. 
 
 of the Peshwa, or chief of the Mahrattas, Mädhu Rao. The injured 
 party hastened to the Peshwa's wife, Ganga Bhai, related the grievance, 
 took an oath of her that she and her caste should have vengeance on the 
 Ramusi Näik, and then, not willing to survive dishonour, bit off her 
 own tongue, and expired in the presence of her mistress, who vowed 
 never to perform her ablutions or taste food until Dadji was punished. 
 The youthful Peshwa depended much on this Dadji to support him 
 against his uncle; but the vow must be redeemed; Dadji was there- 
 fore summoned under the pretext of some affair of importance to the 
 fortress of Purander, lulled into security by presents, and separated 
 from his suite. The Peshwa directed his people to seize him, and 
 put him to instant death. The executioner tried to perform his duty, 
 but in vain ; he could not even raise a mark on the skin, and knowing 
 from experience that his prisoner's fate could not be sealed so long as 
 this lasted, he sent for a saw, and proceeded to cut off the delinquent's 
 hands and feet. The prospect of such a frightful death made Dadji 
 beg for a knife ; having been furnished with one, he slit up the skin of 
 his left arm, and took out a talisman, and then submitted his neck to 
 the executioner, which was completely severed from the body at the first 
 stroke. 
 
 The sole aim of Ranjit Singh is the preservation and extension of 
 his own unlimited power ; and though his ambitious mind considers all 
 means perfectly allowable to this end, he has never wantonly imbrued 
 his hands in blood. Never perhaps was so large an empire founded by 
 one man with so little criminality ; and when we consider the country and 
 the uncivilized people with whom he has had to deal, his mild and prudent 
 government must be regarded with feelings of astonishment. This 
 alone has prevented the necessity of putting to death those numerous 
 independent Mohammedan, Hindu, and Sikh princes, whom he has de- 
 throned, and in most cases beggared, and who might have attempted to 
 regain possession of their territories. It is very remarkable that no 
 attempt of the kind has been made in the Panjab ; and it proves not 
 only the talent of Ranjit Singh, but the little attachment borne by the 
 Indians to their rulers. They can depend on their troops only, and not 
 always on them, for they are mercenaries in the fullest sense of the
 
 RANJiT Singh's favourites. 383 
 
 word, and betake themselves from one service to another without 
 the slightest scruple. 
 
 In estimating the character of Ranjit Singh, we must lay aside in a 
 great measure, our own European ideas. Born in a country where 
 everything is permitted to the powerful, and belonging to a sect whose 
 followers are proverbially distinguished by their ignorance and licentious 
 habits, and indulged in every kind of dissipation from his tenderest 
 years by his own mother-in-law, we can hardly wonder at occasional 
 severities. The first use he made of his accession to power, in imitation 
 of his father Maha Singh, was to poison his own mother, who forfeited 
 her life as a punishment for her dissolute conduct. This was in accord- 
 ance with their usages; but, after all, we must add, that the story of 
 the poisoning rests entirely on report, and in a country where all the 
 affairs of the Zenana are veiled under the greatest secresy, it is impos- 
 sible to ascertain the exact truth. The action does not agree with the 
 further development of Ranjit Singh's character, which is assuredly 
 not a barbarous one. I may add, that I never heard the event mentioned 
 with any reprehension in the Panjab ; on the contrary, her punishment 
 seems to have been thought perfectly justifiable. 
 
 The extravagances of his early youth must be ascribed to the 
 character of the people around him; nor could it be expected that at 
 such an age he should refrain from indulging in habits which heathen 
 usage is thought fully to justify. Of his favourites at this period, one 
 only is of sufficient importance to be mentioned. This was a Kanchni, or 
 dancer of Lahor, named Mora. During the Huli, when all business is 
 laid aside, and the Hindus of Northern India are sometimes inebriated 
 for weeks, and give themselves up to all kinds of revelry in their 
 Zenanas, Ranjit Singh had as little scruple as any other Sirdar of the 
 Panjab, to appear openly viash, or drunk, and exhibited himself in the 
 streets of Lahor with several females riding on an elephant; while the 
 people thought none the worse of him for this, and set it down as his 
 manner of celebrating the Hiili. 
 
 This Mora understood the art of pleasing so well, that Ranjit Singh 
 had coins struck in her name, an act of great importance in India, 
 though perhaps done by him as a jest against the Company Sirkar, or
 
 384 CONSTRAINED PROSELYTISM TO THE SIKII FAITH. 
 
 East India Company, who are generally represented in India as an old 
 woman, — the wife, widow, or mistress of the king of England. Sud- 
 denly, however, in August, 1811, Mora was carried off in a palankeen 
 to Pathankot, where she still resides ; and this is probably the reason 
 why travellers are not allowed to visit that fortress. 
 
 Another favourite of Ranjit Singh, is a young Gaur Brahmin, 
 called Küshäl Ram, who was persuaded by him to embrace the Sikh 
 religion, and take the name of Küshäl Singh. Originally a cook, he rose 
 by degrees to the office of a Jemidar, or house-steward, and finally, to 
 be a Deoriwalla, or great chamberlain, with large estates. With the 
 single exception of a part of the year 1817, he has always preserved the 
 favour of his master. At that period Kilshal Singh was visited by 
 his brother, Ram Lai, from Hindüsthan, and Ranjit Singh took the 
 latter into favour also ; but when he demanded the abandonment of his 
 faith. Ram Lai escaped beyond the Setlej. In order to draw him 
 back, Ranjit Singh deprived Küshäl Singh of his office and threw him 
 into prison. This had the desired effect, and he returned and assumed 
 the name of Ram Singh. I have written of Küshäl Singh more in 
 detail in my journal, as the absence of Dhyän Singh obliged him to be 
 constantly in attendance at the court during my stay in Lahor. 
 
 Raja Hira Singh also is at present in high favour. He is the son of 
 Raja Dhyän Singh, the Deoriwalla, or first chamberlain, who, with his 
 brothers, Guläb Singh and Sushet Singh, received the investiture of 
 Jamu in 1820, when Guläb Singh acted so brave a part in the moun- 
 tains of Kashmir. The favour he had transmitted from father to son, 
 induced Ranjit Singh, in 1827, to think of procuring a suitable alliance 
 for the youth, then only twelve years old, who was called Raja as well 
 as his father and uncles, the Miyan, or lords, of Jamu. About this 
 time Raja Aurodh, a son of the late Sansar Chand, the Raja of 
 Kangra, a member of an ancient, but since Ranjit Singh's conquests, 
 deeply humbled dynasty, came to Lahor, accompanied by his mother 
 and two sisters. One of these Ranjit Singh demanded as a wife for 
 Raja Hira Singh, which kindled all the pride of the old Brahmin 
 family; but Ranjit Singh had procured a written engagement from 
 Aurodh Chand, promising the hand of both his sisters to whomsoever
 
 CHARACTER OF KARAK SINGH. 385 
 
 Ranjit Singh pleased to grant them. The mother left Lahor secretly 
 with her daughters, and escaping over the Setlej, placed herself and them 
 under the protection of the British authorities, Aurodh Chand soon 
 following them. In order to punish him, Ranjit Singh immediately 
 confiscated his lands on the right shore of the Setlej ; and a Khawas, 
 or mistress, of Sansar Chand being induced to leave the family with 
 her children, Ranjit Singh granted the title of Raja to her son, and 
 a part of her father's possessions as a Jaghir, and gave both his sisters 
 away in marriage. 
 
 Ranjit Singh has an only son, Karak Singh, born in 1802, his mother 
 being Raj Kunwar, the daughter of the Sirdar Khujan Singh of Näki, 
 and the second wife of Ranjit Singh, whom he married in 1792, while 
 in his minority. In 1812, Karak Singh was married to the daughter of 
 Jaimal Ghania, the Sirdar whom Ranjit Singh had deprived of his 
 fortress of Pathankot, at whose death, soon after the marriage, he 
 became master of all his territories and large treasures. Ranjit Singh 
 endeavoured early to accustom his son to lead an army and to govern 
 a kingdom ; and for that purpose, when ten years of age, he was not 
 only placed at the head of a large force, but received after his expe- 
 dition against Jamu, the districts of Akhnur and Bimber as a jaghir, 
 which he governed under the control of his mother Raj Kunwar and 
 the Divt'an Bhuj Ram Singh. Karak Singh, notwithstanding, did not 
 fulfil his father's expectations. The contingent of troops which he was 
 bound to furnish were found to be in such a miserable condition, that 
 Ranjit Singh sharply reproved his son, and as repeated complaints of 
 oppression were brought before him for the space of four years, and the 
 troops looked worse and worse, the Diwan was brought to an account, and 
 put in confinement until Ranjit Singh had made the greatest part of his 
 fortune answer for his delinquencies. This event was hastened by the 
 discovery of the too great intimacy existing between the Diwan and 
 Raj Kunwar, who was placed in restraint in the fortress of Shekopoor, 
 on the ground of her immoral conduct. 
 
 Karak Singh has an only son, Nao Nihal Singh, born in February, 
 1821, and at present in command of Multan. He is a fine, promising, 
 high-spirited youth. Sada Kunwar, the mother of Ranjit's first wife, 
 
 2 r
 
 386 INIQUITIES OF -EASTERN ZENANAS, 
 
 Mehtäb Kunwar, of whom I have already spoken, as the chief accessory 
 to his fortunes, thought that her influence over him would be greater 
 than ever, if her daughter had children, but of this there was little pro- 
 bability. What Providence had denied, Sada Kunwar thought to obtain 
 by artifice, and when Ranjit Singh quitted Lahor in September, 1807, 
 on one of his expeditions for conquest, she set about her projects. 
 Mehtäb Kunwar, on suspicion of some impropriety of conduct, had 
 been sent to her mother, which facilitated the scheme. On his return 
 in December, Sada Kunwar presented him with twin sons, as the 
 offspring of Mehtäb Kunwar, Not one observation escaped Ranjit 
 Singh's lips about the children, whom Sada Kunwar carried away with 
 her again. It is commonly believed that Sada Kunwar bought these 
 children of the wives of a carpenter and a weaver, having previously 
 prepared the minds of those within the palace for the accouchement of 
 Mehtäb Kunwar by a fictitious tale. The children were called Shir 
 Singh and Tara Singh, and the first was adopted by Sada Kunwar, 
 who had a large independent fortune. When he was thirteen years old 
 he demanded of her, at Ranjit Singh's instigation, a sufficient jaghir, 
 and on Sada Kunwar referring him to Ranjit Singh, who was bound to 
 provide for him and Tara Singh as his sons, the Mahä Raja answered, 
 that she must take care of them, her large property being amply suffi- 
 cient to provide for both. On Sada Kunwar's refusal, Ranjit seized 
 the opportunity of humbling one whose imperious demeanour had long 
 been insupportable to him, and she was ordered to settle the half of 
 her whole fortune on the youths. She refused to obey, but finding 
 herself at this time in a Sikh camp at Shah Dera, not far from Lahor, 
 on the right arm of the Ravi, she had no resource but to have the deed 
 got ready. Scarcely was it executed, when she thought of a way of 
 eluding the promise into which she had been forced, and as a preli- 
 minary step to escape from the Maha Raja's power. This she designed 
 to efi"ect by means of a covered waggon on the following night; but her 
 intentions were betrayed, and she had hardly left the place, when 
 Ranjit Singh's horsemen overtook and brought her back. She was 
 instantly sent into close confinement, from which she has never since 
 been released; while an armed force was despatched to her territories
 
 SUPPOSITIOUS SONS OF RANJIT SINGH. 387 
 
 to take possession of all her riches. As quite characteristic of the 
 Panjab, we may observe, that the only strong fort belonging to Sada 
 Kunvvar that liad held out against Ranjit Singh, was Atalgurh, which 
 was defended for some weeks by one of her female attendants. Her 
 territories on the left shore were not surrendered to Ranjit Singh by 
 the Enghsh Government until 1828. Had these belonged to her own 
 inheritance, it would not have been so, nor would her deed of transfer 
 have been legal; but as they were given to her in 1808, by Ranjit 
 Singh himself, it was decided that, according to Indian law, he might 
 claim them again, a very erroneous judgment, and one which opens the 
 way to many difficulties, since no right of supremacy can continue thus, 
 as it were, in abeyance. In the affair of Jhind, for example, the 
 English laid it down as a maxim, that by the treaty of 1808, Ranjit 
 Singh had lost all right of sovereignty in Hindüsthan, against which 
 decision he appealed to the above judgment of the year 1828. 
 
 We have seen Shir Singh as Governor of Kashmir, and the lucky 
 accident which caused the chief Syud Ahmed to fall into his hands, 
 gave him favour in Ranjit Singh's eyes. He is now the nominal 
 Governor of Peshawar, while Tara Singh lives quite neglected in 
 Lahor. 
 
 Two other sons are given to Ranjit Singh, namely, Kashmir Singh 
 and Peshawar Singh, youths of fifteen or sixteen years old, who enjoy 
 independent commands. Nothing is known of them, except that they 
 were born in the Mahä Raja's Zenana. The natives, in fact, give 
 themselves no further concern about them. 
 
 The men, or rather the machines, about the Mahä Raja's court, 
 according to their rank, are: 1. Raja Dhyän Singh, whom I did not 
 see; he was on his own property near Jamu, hog hunting. 2. Kushiil 
 Singh, of whom I have already spoken. 3. Raja Sushet Singh, the 
 brother of Dhyän Singh. 4. Hakim Aziz-ud Din, the fakir, Ranjit's 
 confidential secretary, through whom all business is transacted. He is 
 a prudent, sagacious Mohammedan, who is employed by him in all 
 difficult affairs. 5. Khalifa Sahib, a fakir, the marshal of his house- 
 hold, an upright and yet versatile courtier, who has acquired the respect 
 both of natives and strangers. 
 
 ■2 c 2
 
 388 STRIKING FEATURE OF THE SIKH POLICY. 
 
 The other grandees of the Sikh court are some with the array and 
 some in their own territories, the feasts of the Huli and the Dasera 
 generally bringing them all to the presence of their prince. The most 
 distinguished among them are, Fatih Singh Aluwala and Hari Singh 
 Nalwa, both of whom I have described more circumstantially in the pre- 
 ceding pages. None of them influence the actions of Ranjit Singh, and 
 though he squanders vast sums on his favourites, they have no power 
 over him. Neither have the foreigners in his service any influence. 
 Their advice is followed when it is good; but it is never taken without 
 trial of its value. Ranjit Singh is always very polite, and when most 
 angry, the object of his displeasure learns it for the first time by his 
 punishment. In this respect he is a master of dissimulation, and many 
 a Sirdar who has left him believing him his friend, has found himself 
 transferred suddenly from the Durbar to a palankeen, carried oflF to his 
 estate, and there met by an officer appointed by the Mahä Raja to take 
 possession of all his treasures. 
 
 There is nothing pleasing in the expression of Ranjit Singh's 
 features ; and, though he often laughs, there is nothing of inward 
 gladness in the sound, but rather the expression of something which 
 has just crossed his mind, — a recollection of some past occurence. 
 
 Ranjit Singh's policy is to overthrow everything which existed before 
 his time ; to raise all the people of the Panjab to the same social level, 
 and to assign to every Sikh his separate position and estate. Every- 
 thing must proceed from him : he treats all who lay claim to rank or 
 hereditary estates as his enemies, and has reduced most of them to 
 beggary; while on the other hand he promotes those who have served 
 him well, or with whom he has at some time or other been pleased. 
 
 Among a people like the Hindus, there is a great spell in the idea 
 that they may be elevated in a moment to high rank; and the profusion 
 of Ranjit Singh is sometimes as excessive as his covetousness. In his 
 youth treasures were his means, not his end ; now he has grown 
 miserly in the extreme. He has laid down a strange principle, that 
 the fortunes of all who are slain by his enemies belong to him. " The 
 man has injured me ; his death deprives me of his services," he said, 
 on hearing of the fall of one of his officers. " I must make myself
 
 THE JOURNEY HOMEWARD. 389 
 
 amends." Such a way of proceeding would operate most injuriously 
 on any other people ; but it only teaches the Sikh, daring to a fault by 
 nature, to be more circumspect. Other nations need to be spurred 
 on to bravery, the Sikh requires a curb to restrain his reckless 
 impetuosity*. 
 
 CONCLUSION OF THE JOURNAL. 
 
 I now return to the last page of the journal of ray travels in the 
 Panjab. It was nearly 12 o'clock when we quitted Lahor, a party of 
 horse escorting us, while Juni Lai and Khan Singh had gone on to 
 Amritsir to prepare everything for our reception. Ventura had likewise 
 despatched some of his household to make me comfortable while there, 
 and my servant Hingamf waited for my arrival. The distance between 
 Lahor and Amritsir is twenty-five kos, or thirty-two miles. Two relays 
 of four horses had been stationed for me on the road by order of the 
 Mahä Raja. 
 
 Seven miles from Lahor the ruins terminate, giving place to a desert 
 plain, which gives place, when close to Amritsir, to finely-cultivated 
 land. It was already dark when we arrived in the city ; and we 
 alighted at a pretty garden of the Mahä Raja's, where the sight of a 
 dinner was not unwelcome, for I had fasted all the day. In the evening 
 the Thanadar of Amritsir came to pay his respects, and brought with 
 him some fruit and sweetmeats, and 700 rupees, in the name of the 
 Mahä Raja. I dismissed him, after giving him notice of my desire to 
 
 • Such is the individual spirit of all the nobler families of India. Whether they 
 refer it to Nasib, their proper destiny, or to fate, they have frequently exhibited 
 instances of personal gallantry, moral courage, and heroism, worthy of the most 
 patriotic cause ; and under a better discipline of mental and moral culture, such as 
 Christianity, and a just, paternal government might ensure, would furnish many 
 bright and beautiful examples of true greatness. These can never be disjoined 
 with any prospect of success or honour to Great Britain. — Ed. 
 
 ■Y The proper name is more probably Hingan; but this is not very material. 
 —Ed.
 
 390 FORMIDABLE ASPECT OF AMRITSIR. 
 
 visit the sacred reservoir at daybreak on the morrow. Then came a 
 shawl merchant, who showed me some letters with orders from London 
 and Paris, and promised to bring me some beautiful shawls at day- 
 break, to look at. 
 
 Tuesday, 26th January. — As I had to travel to-day a distance of 
 thirty kos, from forty to forty-five miles, on elephants, we got up at early 
 dawn, and left the garden at seven o'clock. Khan Singh having to 
 go back to-day, I gave him a testimonial of good conduct, and a present 
 which General Ventura had fixed beforehand ; and as I had to give 
 something to everybody, the amount was a very important consideration. 
 In order to reach the city, we were taken round by the external wall of 
 Govindgurh, the famous fortress built by the Mahä Raja. I was 
 sorely afraid that the commandant would have orders to detain me 
 while I explained the manner in which the howitzers should be loaded 
 and prepared, and I was all impatience to quit the spot, greatly as I 
 prized the liberty of being the only European who had been suffered to 
 enter there. It was very possible, however, that some danger might be 
 apprehended by the Mahä Raja, in suffering a European to visit a for- 
 tress from which he had hitherto so carefully excluded them, and that 
 this might have caused him to think no more about spherical case-shot 
 and shells. 
 
 Govindgurh is a strong post, as it is built in a plain 5 any other 
 situation would have done quite as well for a fortress, but it owes the 
 present one to Amritsir ; the holy tank, and the pilgrims who flock to 
 it, wanted a protection against the pei'secutions of the Mohammedans, 
 and Ranjit Singh began the works in 1807. It was to have been built 
 on the plan of Ramgurh, with the view of flattering Jodh Singh, the 
 grandson of Jai Singh, whose co-operation in the conquest of Kasur 
 was required by Ranjit Singh. The protection of the holy tank and of 
 the pilgrims, was a good pretext for erecting a strong place for himself. 
 In 1809, he ordered it to be put into the best state of defence, and 
 continual improvements have made it now a very strong post: rising to 
 a lofty height above the plain, it presents, with its tiers of guns, one 
 over the other, a remarkably imposing aspect. The Indians say that the 
 Mahä Raja's treasure is kept here, and that it consists of 30 lakhs of
 
 ORIGIN OF THE TERM AMRITSIR. 391 
 
 rupees, or 300 millions of florins, but I suppose this to be an idle fable. 
 I dare say that some treasure of importance is hoarded here, though 
 persons very well informed on the subject have assured me that Ranjit 
 Singh's revenue hardly covers his expenditure. It was in some respects 
 a great error to build this fortress so close to Amritsir. There are no 
 outworks; and vast ruins, of the origin of which I could not gain any 
 satisfactory account, extend to the entrance gate. The very thing 
 which would be an impediment to the settlement of merchants in 
 Europe, has exactly the contrary effect in India. In Europe a mer- 
 chant would carefully avoid the vicinity of a fortress, which naturally 
 attracts the foe ; and in case of a siege, as surely endangers the safety 
 of his property, and the existence of his house. In India it is other- 
 wise. Whenever the fate of the country is in the balance, the property 
 of individuals is destroyed; for a change of rulers invariably brings 
 about a similar change of owners. The object of most importance is 
 to secure property against the bands of robbers, who avoid the neigh- 
 bourhood of a fortress like Govindgurh. The stronger this point, the 
 more difficult the Indians suppose it of access, and the greater the 
 security it affords them in Amritsir, which is now the richest city in 
 northern India. I felt agitated with various emotions, as my elephant 
 passed the city gate, where the Thanadar was waiting with a numerous 
 deputation of merchants to receive me. How much blood had flowed 
 round the spot upon which I was now treading ! 
 
 Amritsir is a larger city than Lahor. The wealth of the whole 
 Panjab seems collected in it, and the great merchants have made it 
 their abode. Under the Mohammedans it was an unimportant place 
 called Chak. It became the holy city of the Sikhs, when their fourth 
 Guru, Ram Das, dug a large tank, or tuldo, here in the year r581, which 
 he called Amrita Saras, or the spring of immortality. It was also a 
 place of pilgrimage for all the Hindiis, and called Rämdaspür and 
 Amritsir. But it was only in the latter half of the past century that it 
 acquired importance by the events which occurred in its neighbour- 
 hood. Places of pilgrimage are so numerous in India, that they are 
 only noticed by the government for the sake of the tax levied on each 
 pilgrim ; and here the assembled crowds being of the lowest classes,
 
 392 PKOFANATIÜN OF THE HOLY SPRING. 
 
 they had nothing from which any tax could be levied. It was not 
 until the Mohammedans clearly saw of what importance Amritsir was 
 in the religion of the Sikhs, that they fancied themselves able, by 
 destroying the town, to aim a fatal blow at the faith. The opinion was 
 an absurd one ; for persecutions are the very means by which the force 
 of any faith is established ; let the mind once embrace the belief of an 
 eternal reward for actions done, and whether in truth or in error, no 
 earthly event can tear it away from the soul. Ahmed Shah Abdali 
 wanted to chastise the unquiet spirits who called him so often over the 
 Atok, and thought it possible to eradicate the evil by destroying the 
 holy city, where the first open assembly of the Sikhs took place, after 
 the expulsion of his viceroy Khaja Obied, in 1762. This assembly or 
 ceremony, called Sarhat Kalsa, was held with great rejoicings. After 
 every Sikh had bathed in the holy purifying water, they met to hold a 
 Gurmatta or council, for the organization of the Sikh confederacy. 
 Their proceedings being carried on with the proper forms, the Aluwala 
 Sirdar carried the battle-axe of the people, called Kalal ; the chief of 
 the Nishänwäla Misal carried the banner of the faith, or Nishan. 
 These officers, like those of the holy Roman empire, have now ceased 
 to exist. Ranjit Singh did not want them ; he has no idea of the 
 policy of keeping the most formidable chieftains near his throne by the 
 concession of such privileges ; he is on his own throne, and cares nothing 
 for what may happen after him. 
 
 The first general assembly had hardly broken up, ere Ahmed Shah 
 appeared to take a bloody revenge on them. The Sikhs fled in all 
 directions ; and after encountering and slaughtering a great part of 
 their number at Kos Rähira, he returned towards Amritsir. The 
 temple of Harmander (Hari Mander, the temple of Hari or Vishnu) 
 was blown up with gunpowder, the broad stones round the holy tank 
 were torn up and flung into the water, which was choked up with 
 masonry and rubbish ; and not content with this profanation, they 
 brought cows to the place, slaughtered them on the heaps of ruins, 
 sprinkled the stones with their blood, and flung their entrails about. 
 
 Ahmed Shah had not reached the Atok before a second Gurmatta 
 was held in Amritsir, where the profanation of this sacred spot ani-
 
 THE GREAT TULAO OF AMRITSIR. 393 
 
 mated all the spectators to deeds which brought about, perhaps sooner 
 than might otherwise have happened, the downfall of Mohammedan 
 power in the north of India. At the same time the Sikhs began to 
 cleanse their dishonoured tank, and (a rare example for Hindus) it was 
 restored to greater splendour than ever. 
 
 Amritsir is the most bustling of all the cities of the Panjab ; in 
 every street the most beautiful productions of India are seen exhibited 
 for sale ; and it seemed to me, though the elephants moved on briskly, 
 as though there was no end to the streets. At length I arrived at 
 the chief entrance to the temple, which is very unpretending, and sur- 
 rounded by houses. Here I pulled off my shoes, and waited some time 
 until Vigne had disengaged himself from his boots. I gave 125 
 rupees to Jiini Lai for distribution in the temple. 
 
 The Tuldo, or pool, struck me with surprise. It is about 150 paces 
 square, and has a large body of water, which to all appearance is sup- 
 plied by a natural artesian well. There is no sign of the spring to be 
 seen. It is surrounded by a pavement about 20 or 25 paces in breadth. 
 Round this square are some of the most considerable houses of the city, 
 and some buildings belonging to the temple, the whole being inclosed 
 by gates : although one can look very conveniently from the windows 
 of the houses into this inclosed space, and some of the doors even open 
 into it. There are several stone steps by which the bathers descend 
 into the water, which is as clear as a mirror, a rare occurrence in such 
 places in India. I went entirely round the basin. In the midst of the 
 Tulao stands the temple of Hari Mander, built on an island, and 
 reached by a bridge on the west side. The holiest spot for bathing is 
 on the east side, as they step out of this temple ; but before the pilgrim 
 is allowed to bathe there, he must have performed his ablutions in 
 another part of the pool. Opposite to this revered place stand some 
 small buildings, in which Gurus and Fakirs are seated; another which 
 is untenanted is shown as the place where Guru Ram Das, the excavator 
 of this bath of immortality, passed his whole life. 
 
 Several fanciful-looking structures stand before the western entrance, 
 a lugubrious sound of music proceeded thence, and a Guru clad in silk 
 appeared seated under the canopy belonging to a throne in the first
 
 394 INSCRIPTION ON THE SIKH BANNERS. 
 
 story, surrounded by a sort of court or levee. The Sikhs in my suite 
 did not treat these Gurus very reverently, though Juni Läl gave one 
 of them a handful of rupees in a platter he held out for them, receiving 
 in return a muttered blessing. Every bather, on returning from his 
 or her ablutions, brings a present for these Gurus, chiefly of fruit or 
 flowers, but I also saw some very large pots containing 200 pounds of 
 Ghi, or clarified butter, and rice standing before their houses, offerings 
 made this morning. The Guru presented to me and to the superior 
 persons in my suite three leaves of the Pan, or Piper betel, to chew, 
 but without the Areca nut : this is a general custom in India. The 
 three-storied house near the Guru's and before the bridge, is the place 
 of consecration. I inquired whether this ceremony took place often, 
 and with true Indian accuracy, I received for answer, "a thousand times 
 every day." I said that I should like much to see it, and would wait 
 until a neophyte came, but on being told that perhaps on that very day 
 none might come, I understood at once that the thousands were by no 
 means to be taken literally. 
 
 All Indian temples have something in them which appeals forcibly 
 to the imagination, and the Hari Mander is particularly mysterious and 
 romantic in its character. It is surmounted by a golden roof, very 
 beautifully and skilfully contrived, and is inlaid with marble, a large 
 door of gold opening into the temple, which is surrounded with little 
 vestibules, the ceilings being supported by richly ornamented pillars. 
 Before the entrance to the bridge are two large banners of red; on one 
 is written, " Wah! Guruji-ke fatih!" in white letters; and on the other, 
 the name of Ram Das. These banners are from thirty to forty ells 
 long, and are stretched on masts and confined with iron chains. 
 Having crossed the bank I entered within the temple; in the centre 
 sat the first Guru of the Sikh faith on the masnad, or throne of 
 cushions, the wall of the building being ornamented with a handsome 
 carpet worked in gold, while before him lay another of Kashmir shawl 
 stuff. A large circle of devotees and followers had fonned around 
 him, leaving an open space which is never encroached upon, it being 
 customary that the Guru should be viewed from a certain distance 
 with due reverence. Jilni Lai laid before me a bag of rupees, that I
 
 FORMALITIES OF THE SIKH PRIESTHOOD. 395 
 
 might present it to the Gurii. The stillness was quite unbroken, and 
 I had time to gaze on the venerable features of the aged man, as his 
 Chaori-burdar waved the fan, made of the Tibet cow's tail, before 
 him. At first, there was to me something striking in the whole scene, 
 but it became wearisome as the silence continued unbroken, the 
 Guru keeping his eyes intently fastened on the Granth, or Holy Book. 
 I asked Juni Lai whether he would not speak to us, and thereupon 
 the Guru's master of the ceremonies asked who the great king was, 
 whose good fortune had brought him to the Sri Guriiji, the holy 
 Guru, (I have forgotten his name.) An agent from Ranjit Singh, whom 
 I had not seen before this, now handed to the servants of the Guru the 
 bag of rupees, beginning at the same time a long-winded oration, 
 comprehending the creation of the world; the ancient history of India; 
 the great Mahä Raja; the holy Guru; the Company Sirkar; myself, 
 as the Lord Mahä Raja and the friend of the king; the beloved and 
 holy Guru Govind Singh ; and in short all things possible to be talked 
 about. The speech, uttered with the most rapid and sonorous voice, 
 lasted a whole hour, and as he was then beginning afresh, I told Juni 
 Läl that the day was much too short for such a harangue, and Juni 
 Läl hinted to him to leave off. The Guru's master of the ceremonies 
 then opened his speech in the fashion of a herald: "Know all men 
 that on this day, the Mahä Raja, Lord Baron Hügel Sahib Bahadur, 
 a friend of the Sri Mahä Raja Ranjit Singh, whose friendship with 
 the Company is as eternal as the Sun, which causes the Moon to hide 
 her face in envy, has appeared at the Durbar of the beloved and holy 
 Guru, receiving from him his blessing and numberless valuable pre- 
 sents." The Guru then uttered a prayer out of the Granth, still 
 sitting, the gifts were brought, and during the performance of some 
 soft music, I left the Durbar. The valuable gifts consisted of a turban 
 and another cloth, which both together might be worth five rupees. 
 While there, I had heard a strange knocking and hammering, for 
 which I could not at all account, and desirous of seeing what it 
 meant, I took the paved way round the temple on the little island. 
 On the sacred bathing-place was a small vestibule, in which I observed 
 workmen employed in ornamenting it with a pietra dura floor.
 
 396 EUROPEAN ABUSE OF ASIATIC NAMES. 
 
 The marble walls were smeared with glaring colours representing 
 flowers. 
 
 I quitted the temple of Amritsir, and returned to my elephant. 
 The Thanadar, Lena Singh, accompanied me on his elephant a good 
 way out of the city, attended by a servant carrying a double-barrelled 
 gun, and to my surprise on taking it in my hand, I found a new and 
 beautiful Joe Manton, which he, according to custom, offered to me, 
 and which I, of course, refused. Before the gate lay an immense gun 
 formed of metal cast from iron bars. I asked how old it was, and how 
 it came there, and was told by the Thanadar that he had only recently 
 manufactured it, and expected to receive the carriage for it from Labor. 
 Ranjit Singh's mint is in Amritsir, but I had no desire to visit it, as, 
 to judge from its productions, it must be still in the lowest rank of 
 manufactures, and my time was precious. Ranjit Singh has introduced 
 the standard money of the Company, viz., the rupee, which is the 
 largest silver coin, of equal value to the Calcutta sicca rupee, and the 
 gold mohur of sixteen rupees. 
 
 It is thirty kos, or forty miles, from Amritsir to Kopertela, and 
 this distance I travelled on three elephants, which were stationed at 
 certain intervals; the country was well cultivated, and the animals 
 moved along swiftly, but very uneasily for the traveller who is seated 
 on their back. Mohan, Hingam, and Vigne wei'e with me: Juni Lai 
 had another elephant. At each post I was received by the Thanadar 
 with a party of horsemen, who escorted me to the next station. Not 
 far from Kopertela we reached the Beyas or Bdas, as it is here called, 
 the Hyphasis of the Greeks. The English have been as unmerciful 
 to many of the Indian names as the natives to this. The ferry-boats 
 were so small, that I thought it advisable to appropriate one to my own 
 use, particularly as the over-heated elephants were not to be restrained 
 from amusing themselves continually with the water, which did not 
 tend to increase the safety of the vessels. When these animals are 
 once in the boats, they know they must not venture to move their feet, 
 and they stand, therefore, as though riveted to the spot, but so long as 
 the Mahut allows them, they never cease filling their trunk with water, 
 and sprinkling themselves all over. I also observed to-day particu-
 
 LUXURIOUS RETREATS IN HOT CLIMATES. 397 
 
 larly, that when heated by a long march, they can pump the water out 
 of their stomachs by means of their trunk, and refresh their skin with 
 it. They do this so often and so long, that it is inconceivable how 
 they contrive to carry so much water. 
 
 The evening had not drawn in when we reached Kopertela, the 
 territory of Fatih Singh Aluwala, a brother of the turban to Ranjit 
 Singh, who has been spoken of in another place. He has some lands 
 under the protection of the British, which are worth about four lakhs 
 of rupees yearly, and others under the dominion of Ranjit Singh, which 
 produce a revenue of three lakhs. In 1825, for a reason which I shall 
 presently explain, he fled from Ranjit Singh to the left shore of the 
 Setlej; but I must first speak of the town through which my road led. 
 Since Avitabile built the Bazar in Wazirabad, a taste has arisen for 
 broad streets, and Fatih Singh has built one in Kopertela, which, 
 if not quite comparable with the Regent's quadrant in London, is at all 
 events, very wonderful for the Panjab. Some hundreds of masons are 
 still busy with a portion of it. Above the whole, towers a large 
 temple just completed near the palace, and looking very fanciful and 
 picturesque. Half a mile from the place, I observed an unfinished 
 building in the English taste, intended as a substantial summer-house 
 for Fatih Singh, and the subterranean vaults form a Tikäna, not unlike 
 the casemates of a fortress. A Tikäna is a subterraneous abode for 
 the summer, usually from twenty-five to thirty feet beneath the surface, 
 and therefore always cool*. Fatih Singh's house was roofed in, and 
 only wanted the doors and windows, when Ranjit Singh heard that he 
 was erecting a fortress between Labor and Ludiana. He was instantly 
 summoned before the Maha Raja, but Fatih Singh called to mind how 
 often, under a similar pretext, Ranjit had availed himself of the oppor- 
 
 " In all the old Mohammedan cities there are still many splendid subterraneous 
 structures of this description. After the city of Ahmedabad was ceded to the 
 British Government in 1818, numerous beautiful halls built of stone, with large 
 reservoirs of water, from 100 to 200 feet in length, and from 50 to 100 in breadth, 
 with broad corridors all round, supported on massive stone pillars richly carved 
 and ornamented, were found beneath the suburbs, which I was informed, served 
 as a luxurious cool retreat to its former wealthy occupants. — Ed.
 
 398 SUSPICIONS ENTERTAINED OF RANJIT SINGH. 
 
 tunity to plunder the possessor of a rich inheritance; he therefore 
 escaped to his lands over the Setlej, though with the utmost difficulty, 
 and only with the guarantee of the British agent for his safety, was he 
 persuaded to return to the Panjab, where Ranjit Singh gave him a very 
 good reception. They are now quite reconciled, but Fatih Singh is 
 always on his guard. He is reckoned an able tactician, and Ranjit 
 Singh may thank him for that portion of his kingdom, which stretches 
 in a southerly direction across the Panjab. 
 
 On my arrival at Kopertela I found the servants whom I had 
 despatched from Lahor with ray beds, &c., &c. The unfinished palace, 
 not touched by Fatih Singh since 1824, was made, with the addition 
 of kanats and carpets, to all appearance tolerably habitable; but a 
 piercing wind blew through it in all directions, and the indefatigable 
 Jwala, with all the pains he took, could hardly succeed in making it 
 sufficiently comfortable. Presents, like those I had received in Am- 
 ritsir, and provisions of all kinds, were brought to me ; but it was late 
 ere I could taste the various productions of my own cook. I had not 
 done so before for some time, and I reckoned on this being the last, 
 intending to dismiss my establishment in Liidiana, and find my way to 
 Bombay without any attendants, 
 
 Wednesday, January 27. — Impatience deprived me of rest. This 
 day was to terminate my Kashmir expedition, and bring me once more 
 to English ground; the change seemed to take me so many months 
 nearer to my own home. 
 
 Fatih Singh had sent me word that he should come and visit me 
 this morning ; but then I should have had to wait for him, and a long 
 experience had informed me that it was by no means easy to get over 
 an interview appointed by a native Indian of high rank. I therefore 
 rose long before day, and waked Vigne, to whom I would not allow a 
 moment's delay on this occasion. We were both ready before sunrise, 
 but had to wait some time for the elephants, which naade it seven 
 o'clock ere we took our way to the fine palace in the centre of the city. 
 I offered some trifling presents to Fatih Singh, who received us with 
 his two sons, and after a short and lively conversation wo parted, and I 
 returned to the unfinished palace.
 
 ROUTE FROM KOPERTELA TO FELOR. 399 
 
 The distance between Kopertela and Felor is thirty-seven kos. 
 We ate our breakfast in haste, and I then got into a palankeen, thinking- 
 that I should bo conveyed more quickly by that means than on the 
 slow-pacing elephant; but finding myself quite mistaken on that point, 
 I had recourse to the first of three which were stationed in relays to 
 carry me to Felor. The first town we reached was Jhalander, the 
 ancient Jala or Jhil-Indra*, situated in a richly-cultivated region, where 
 I saw for the first time since we had left the Indus, plantations of 
 mangoes. A crowd of majestic tombs shewed that Jhalander was 
 anciently the residence of a dynasty, namely, that of the Lodi Afghans. 
 The city still numbers 40,000 inhabitants. The Thanadar, who wel- 
 comed me with a party of horsemen, desired to escort me through the 
 streets of the city, and as he assured me that it was the nearest way, I 
 could not help myself. My elephant could hardly make his way 
 through the trees in the main street, and when we came to the gate of 
 egress, the large animal could not pass through with the howdah. We 
 dismounted, and as it would have cost me an hour to send him through 
 the city again, I desired the Mahut to try whether the elephant would 
 not bend down in some way. The man brought the creature up to the 
 gate, made him feel it with his trunk, to ascertain its height, and then 
 urged him onward. The elephant really seemed to understand all 
 about it, for bending both his knees as he walked along, he passed 
 safely through with the howdah on his back. Here another elephant 
 was stationed, but it was so much smaller that the howdah would not 
 fit him, and I determined to proceed a little further with the same, 
 which had walked the day before without any burden twenty-seven 
 miles from Amritsir, carrying me the other thirteen miles to Kopertela. 
 To lighten the weight for him now, I made Hingham and Mohan ride 
 on the little elephant with our baggage. 
 
 The country hereabout is well cultivated, and after a three hours 
 march, we reached a town called very appropriately Baghwara. It has 
 
 " Jala is tlie Sanscrit expression for water. Jhil signifies a tank, or more 
 correctly, the water which a swollen river leaves behind after retiring; or the bed 
 of a dry river, with occasional deep hollows. Indra is an Indian god.
 
 400 ELEPHANTS FIT ONLY FOR STATE. 
 
 15,000 inhabitants, and its gardens, which are very extensive, are suc- 
 ceeded by fields, which, like them, are interspersed with fine trees. 
 An elephant was waiting for me there, but its pace was so tiresome, that 
 I was glad to take on my old friend, who performed seventy kos in two 
 davs, the greatest distance ever travelled by an elephant in the same 
 time out of charity to a gentleman. The day's journey with these 
 animals is generally very short, eight or ten English miles being con- 
 sidered a very hard day's work for them. Hence, as beasts of burden, 
 they are of all others most unsuited to the movements of an army. If 
 we consider also the immense quantity of food they require, and the 
 great value of provisions, it will convince us, that in these days, when 
 fire-arms are quite common in India, elephants, whether in peace or in 
 war, are only useful to keep up the state of a prince*. 
 
 Just as the sun went down, Felor appeared in the distance with its 
 towers and gate. I observed several Jhils, or pieces of standing water, 
 relics of the ancient bed of the Setlej, which unite with the present 
 stream at the period of extensive inundations. The fort of Felor, 
 built in 1809, by Ranjit Singh, is of little importance, and is garrisoned 
 by 150 men. It stands on the elevated shore of the Setlej. Juni Läl 
 wished me to pass the night there, as the sun had set, but I laughed at 
 such a ridiculous proposal, and alighting from my elephant, mounted 
 another got ready for me, and receiving from the ofiicer who com- 
 manded Captain Wade's body-guard, some letters from that gentleman, 
 I resumed my journey and was soon on the left sandy shore of the 
 Setlej. 
 
 I took a farewell look at the Panjab, while the elephant dragged 
 slowly onward through the deep sandy path, and before the darkness 
 overshadowed all things. In thought I bade farewell to the land 
 which had occupied my mind for the last three months, and to the 
 many kind inhabitants who had received me with so much friendly 
 
 * The ordinary progress of an elephant is three miles an hour, the quickest 
 rate five ; that is, for a continuance : and a great deal of this tardiness is probably 
 due to the unwillingness of the mahuts, or drivers, who, to say the truth, have not 
 a very easy task to coax and urge on their charge. The motion of the best 
 elephants at a good pace is like that of a boat in a tumbling heavy sea. — Ed.
 
 THE CHEQUERED JOURNEY OV LIFE. 401 
 
 attention. As the surroiuuling objects gradually faded into indistinct- 
 ness with the parting day and distance, so this portion of my life will 
 gradually become less vivid in my remembrance. There are but few 
 indelible impressions graven on the heart, and if men are sooner 
 forgotten than events, feelings vanish before all. I had ample leisure 
 while pacing towards Ludiana, which is three kos from Felor, to think 
 over that episode in my travels, which had taken me in so wide a circle, 
 from the shore of this river, back to it again. But where were the 
 waves which carried my boat from BiUispoor to Jelakatela ? They 
 have disappeared in the ocean, in the gulf of Oman, as the days spent 
 in my journeyings have also gone into the sea of eternity. The fields 
 watered by this stream have borne their fruits meanwhile, and what 
 those davs have matured for me in life, is laid up in these pages. As 
 the laws of nature command these waters to roll on continually, till they 
 meet with their equilibrium in the great deep, so does a higher law 
 command man to exercise the power of his mind, until he reposes on 
 the level surface of the bier. Whether I follow this law, or waste my 
 time in idle pursuit, must and will be pronounced by a higher Judge. 
 My own conscience acquits me of reproach on this point. 
 
 The spring originating in the dark bosom of the earth, gushes pure 
 and joyful into light; to many a one is it permitted to meander in 
 company through fertile regions, slowly and undisturbed towards the 
 sea; others again there are, whose stormy course carries them over 
 rocks, their appointed destiny being one of continual agitation ; some 
 rush down the mountain side, and are soon lost in vapour, after a brief 
 existence and a hurried fall; others creep along the burning desert 
 alone, and disappear without leaving a trace behind them. Some are 
 troubled by the vicinity of a great city, and instead of the pure river, 
 the rich produce of an abundant spring, terminate their existence in 
 a marsh. Only a small number are allowed to purify themselves in 
 the middle of their course in some gentle lake; to rest there awhile 
 after their rapid journey; and then pursue their wanderings softened 
 and improved by its grand quiet m;ijesty. To still fewer is it given 
 to beautify, to fertilize, and to enrich the countries through which they 
 
 2 D
 
 402 A LAST GLANCE OVER LIFE's CAREER. 
 
 flow. How closely do the various incidents of man's brief and 
 chequered career, resemble the springs in their courses ! 
 
 Whether, in the designs of Providence, this last blessing was ever 
 awarded me, whether a wide sphere of activity was open to me in 
 the north of India, and whether I have done wrong to decline the 
 chances of promoting a far better order of things which may be in 
 store for millions of our fellow-creatures, it is not for me to decide. 
 Neither vanity, pride, cowardice, idleness, nor any selfish feeling 
 deterred me from embracing the opportunity then offered, and hence I 
 have no cause for regret. At eight o'clock in the evening I was in 
 the hospitable house of Captain Wade at Lödiana.
 
 403 
 
 BRIEF POLITICAL AND GEOGRAPHICAL REMARKS 
 ON THE KINGDOM FOUNDED BY RANJIT SINGH, 
 AND ON THE PANJAB. 
 
 To Europeans, the kingdom founded by Ranjit Singh may seem of 
 little importance, compared with the vast territory of Britain in Asia ; 
 but it is by no means insignificant in reality. It extends from the 
 highest chain of the Himalaya, in 35° north latitude, to 28°. and from 
 the 70th to the 79th degree of longitude west from Greenwich. The 
 Setlej and the Ghära are its boundaries to the south and south-east ; 
 on the north-east, north, and north-west tower the inaccessible summits 
 of the Himalaya, and the thinly-peopled mountain chains of the Hindu 
 Kush ; the western boundary is advanced as far as Jellalabad, into the 
 heart of Afghanistan, while on the south-west is the waste on the right 
 bank of the Indus, and mountains almost as desolate. Besides this 
 independent kingdom, Ranjit Singh has large territories on the left 
 shore of the Setlej, which have acknowledged the supremacy of Eng- 
 land since the proclamation of May 6, 1809. 
 
 Captain Murray calculated the income of the Khälsa or Exchequer, 
 in 1832, the land revenues and tribute from the different territories be- 
 longing to Ranjit Singh, to be - - - 124,03,900 rupees. 
 From Peshawar and the territory, as far as Jellala- 
 bad, in round numbers - - - 10,00,000 „ 
 The customs of the Panj ab - - - - 19,00,600 „ 
 The Moharana, a tax on every paper laid before 
 the Mahä Raja for his signature, Moharana 
 signifying the impression of a seal - 5,77,000 „ 
 
 158,81,500 „ 
 Or about 159 lakhs. 
 2 D 2
 
 404 REVENUES AND MILITARY FORCE. 
 
 Captain Murray calculates, moreover, that in the Panjab there are 
 fiefs which either belong to the ancient families, or have been granted 
 by Ranjit Singh, producing a revenue of 109 lakhs 28,000 rupees, 
 which may be withdrawn at any time by his arbitrary will or command, 
 making his revenue to amount to the large sum of 268 lakhs 9500 
 rupees, or about two millions seven hundred thousand pounds sterling. 
 His army is organized thus : — 
 1. The French legion, clothed and exercised in the European 
 
 manner 8000 men 
 
 To these were added some regiments of cavalry, 
 who, not receiving their pay regularly, all 
 deserted. 
 Gorchells and Gorcher Khas, cavalry armed 
 with muskets, wearing armour, and paid 
 either in money or lands - - - - 4,000 
 
 Disciplined battalions 14,941 
 
 Cavalry in various fortresses - - - 3,000 
 
 Infantry Pultuns (Regiments), equipped variously 23,950 
 Contingent of the Sirdars in cavalry - - 27,014 
 
 80,905 men 
 To this we may add 34,014 horses, and 101 elephants. 
 
 The artillery of Ranjit Singh is considerable, though, with the 
 exception of that portion which is attached to the French legion, it is 
 miserably organized and served. 
 
 Captain Murray calculates that there are 376 cannon and 370 
 jinjdls, or long narrow pieces of ordnance which are carried by 
 camels. Of the whole number, probably not fifty would be reckoned 
 serviceable by us. From 4000 to 5000 men are employed in this 
 service ; but they are enlisted and discharged, according to the position 
 of affairs, particularly in the case of the Jinsi or heavy artillery. In 
 the field each corps has a battery assigned to it. 
 
 Ranjit Singh's kingdom being exclusively his own work, nothing 
 takes place throughout its whole extent without his express com- 
 mands. He is the soul which animates the entire body. The govern-
 
 LIMITS SET TO EXTORTION. 405 
 
 ment of the separate parts, whether they form large provinces or small 
 districts, is very simple. Here, as in every part of India, the produce 
 of the smallest strip of country is regularly estimated, and the Gover- 
 nors and Thanadars have to account for the stipulated sums. How the 
 taxes are levied, matters not to Ranjit Singh ; and this, as well as all 
 other duties in their respective districts, is left entirely to the discretion 
 of these Governors. As one may well suppose, they extort as much 
 as possible for themselves into the bargain. If they do not deliver the 
 required sum, they are dismissed, forced to pay the money in arrear out 
 of their own pockets, and on any failure on this point, imprisoned, and 
 often very ill treated. These Governors resort therefore to any method 
 of extortion to raise the required sum ; and when it does come to that 
 pitch, that a Governor cannot by any means send in the necessary 
 amount, it may be confidently assumed that the province has been, and 
 is really in a state of utter ruin. To a European such a system of 
 government seems, on a cursory glance, to be framed only for a very 
 brief duration, but the conclusion is erroneous. The exactions are 
 carried to a certain point, and if they exceed this, the people 
 emigrate, and the land is left uncultivated. Hence, the inhabitants, 
 although never meeting with indulgent forbearance, have their capa- 
 bilities of endurance estimated by the selfish economy of their masters, 
 as a driver takes care not to lay a heavier burden on his beast than he 
 thinks it able to carry. If no particular event happens, this state of 
 things lasts for a long time ; but a calamity, like the famine which has 
 visited Kashmir, at one swoop so reduces a country, that it never again 
 recovers its former state of prosperity. We may easily imagine that 
 the produce of each province has been brought down long since to the 
 minimum. 
 
 What will become of the Sikh empire after his death, has never 
 occasioned Ranjit Singh a moment's anxiety. W^ithout any religion 
 himself, he has always outwardly conformed to the faith in which he 
 was born, and which happens to suit his plans very well. For this 
 life, for his own life only, he acts and builds up ; only desiring that the 
 heterogeneous parts which he has thus bound together, may continue 
 compact while he is alive, and whether the future mav see the overthrow
 
 406 SUCCESSION TO THE SIKH GOVERNMENT. 
 
 of his kingdom, and he may be the first and the last Mahä Raja of the 
 Sikhs, he cares not, so that he may die the king over all his brethren 
 of the faith. His mind is as indifferent to the earthly immortality of 
 fame as to the real immortality of his soul, nor does he take any thought 
 as to who may be his successor. All his sons must be considered as 
 fully adopted, and nothing but his express denial of them can deprive 
 them of the rights acquired by being born in his Zenana. The laws 
 of succession of the Sikh branch to which he belongs, clearly make 
 Karak Singh, his eldest son, the sole heir to his throne. 
 
 These Sikh laws of succession are different in different families; 
 but the Sikhs themselves may be divided into two principal classes: 
 the Manhi and the Malna Sikhs; the Manhi Sikhs came from the 
 northern part of the Bari Doab, between the Beas and the Ravi, and 
 have spread themselves over the Panjab and Sirhind. Their laws of 
 succession are the Bhaiband and the Chandaband; the first dividing 
 property equally among brothers, or giving a larger share to the eldest; 
 the last, giving equal portions to the wives of the survivor, when they 
 have sons. The Malna Sikhs, to whom Ranjit Singh belongs, acknow- 
 ledge the rights of the first-born, giving Jaghirs or fiefs to the younger 
 children. 
 
 According to this, Karak Singh's right to the throne is unques- 
 tionable, but Ranjit Singh has granted such large estates to his 
 favourites, that it would demand more prudence than Karak Singh 
 possesses, to establish his own power firmly, and at the same time keep 
 the great men of the kingdom obedient to him. These men, however, 
 will probably prefer a simple prince to one more clever and powerful, 
 in order that they may feel, or make themselves quite independent. 
 Kushal Singh, accustomed to obedience, will always serve the successor 
 faithfully, but the three brothers. Rajas of Jamu, who have an army, 
 fortresses, and treasures, with vast territories defended by difficult 
 passes, will no doubt avail themselves of the first opportunity to throw 
 off their yoke. They will seize on Kashmir, which is most accessible 
 from their lands. Shir Singh, on the other hand, will most probably 
 take possession of that portion of the kingdom, where he may happen 
 tobe in the command of ihe army, when Ranjit Singh's death takes
 
 BRITISH POLICY OF NON-INTERFERENCE. 
 
 407 
 
 place, and thus this disorder and anarchy will prevail, until the whole 
 empire becomes a portion of the vast dominions of British India. 
 Should Ranjit Singh outlive Karak Singh, or should the son of Karak 
 Singh, Nao Nihal Singh, have time to ingratiate himself with the army, 
 it is possible that he may be able to confirm and continue his dominion 
 over the new kingdom. 
 
 During the last few years a great change has taken place in the 
 policy of the British in India. The former practice of directly inter- 
 fering with all the concerns of the nominally independent princes 
 of India, has produced its results; and besides their already acquired 
 dominions, they have made themselves heirs of every man, from the 
 king to the humblest jaghirdar, who dies without male heirs, thus, in a 
 short time annihilating every great family, which would otherwise have 
 been carried on by the practice of adoption. The course of life usual 
 among the rich natives, forbids the long continuance of any lineage, and 
 there is scarcely one Hindu or Mohammedan prince, whose masnad, 
 or throne, is not on the point of lapsing for want of heirs. The 
 Company have now adopted the system of non-interference in the 
 domestic affairs of the native princes, perhaps with the liberal inten- 
 tion of giving them more liberty ; but more probably with another end in 
 view. Whoever is well informed on the character of Indian princes, is 
 well aware, that, with very rare exceptions, they are like so many 
 grown-up children who must be guided with leading-strings; and 
 if non-interference with neighbouring states is difficult in Europe, in 
 Asia it is a thing impossible. Such a neutrality in the affairs of the 
 native princes must infallibly, and very shortly produce disorders, 
 which will in a very brief space lead to consequences otherwise 
 requiring the efforts of a whole generation to bring them to maturity. 
 To most of the Indian princes, their present liberties are anything but 
 acceptable, and they are always entreating the English Resident at their 
 court, to prescribe to them, as formerly, all their political and adminis- 
 trative duties, having more confidence in the character and intelligence 
 of the British than in their own Diwans, or Wazirs, but the Residents 
 have such strict injunctions to the contrary, that they dare not give 
 their opinion. The liberties granted to these native princes will end
 
 408 IMBECILITY OF THE HINDU RULERS. 
 
 in such an amount of insolence, that disorders will arise calling for the 
 interference of an armed British force. The unquiet land is then 
 impoverished by the forced payments for their maintenance, and the 
 Company finally assume the government, and grant a pension to 
 the imbecile rulers. 
 
 This system will explain their different transactions with Ranjit 
 Singh. There would have been no difficulty in concluding with him an 
 offensive and defensive treaty, but during his interview with Lord 
 William Bentinck in 1831, on the English side of the Setlej, such 
 a thing was never suggested. Ranjit Singh invited both the persons 
 to his tent, whom he believed to be agents for the Company, and after 
 much circumlocution, requested that he might be authorized to attack 
 the Amirs of Sindh, who had just before detained Lieutenant Burnes, 
 when on an embassy to him, or that they would join him in a common 
 expedition against them. Envoys from Sindh were then in his tents, and 
 he received permission to remonstrate with them, but no notice was 
 taken of the hints he gave of the riches, the weakness, and the inso- 
 lence of the Amirs, and a document asked for by himself, setting 
 forth the eternal friendship of the British Government for him, was 
 the only written evidence of the meeting between these high person- 
 ages. Ranjit Singh had joyfully accepted Lord William Bentinck's 
 proposal for the interview, and he soon surmounted the difficulties 
 which arose on certain points of etiquette, by relinquishing all his 
 claims. The British authorities imagined shortly after this, that 
 Ranjit Singh entertained some apprehension of treachery on the part 
 of the East India Company, and in fact, on the eve of the meeting, 
 the astrologers were ordered to cast his Sähet, or horoscope, with 
 a view to discover whether he ought to pass the Setlej or not. They 
 pronounced, that Ranjit Singh should take in his hand an apple for an 
 omen, and offer it to the Governor-General as soon as they met; if 
 he accepted it, it would be a certain sign of his friendly dispositions, 
 but if not, Ranjit Singh was instantly to return to his own tents on 
 the right bank of the Setlej. Ranjit Singh did make his appearance 
 accordingly with an apple in his hand, an incident which caused no 
 little surprise among the English, amidst the splendor which charac-
 
 SUPERSTITIOUS APPREHENSIONS. 
 
 409 
 
 terized this above all former spectacles of a similar kind, when they 
 saw him alight from his elephant, and offer their Governor- General 
 an apple. We may suppose that this singular present was accepted, 
 particularly, when we hoar that the predictions of the astrologers had 
 been already made known to Lord William Bentinck. Ranjit Singh 
 may have acted this farce with the apple, partly in compliance with 
 Indian usages, which require that some present be offered each time a 
 superior is approached; and though he would not acknowledge the 
 Governor-General as superior to himself, he may have wished to 
 ingratiate himself by flattery, and hence devised the present of a 
 friendly apple. Another peculiarity of this first meeting was, that 
 Ranjit Singh, seeing the eyes of every one fixed on him, pointed to the 
 great jewel, Koh-i-Nur, which he wore on the occasion, and exclaimed, 
 " This is the Koh-i-Nür," eager in his superstitious fancies to avert 
 from himself to the jewel the gaze which, according to their belief, 
 may bring mischief on the observed. This superstition is like that of 
 the Neapolitan gittatura and contra-gittatura. 
 
 A treaty offensive and defensive with the British Government, 
 having a guarantee for the integrity of his possessions, was the only 
 thing that could ensure the dominion of Ranjit Singh. But this would 
 have prevented England from taking immediate advantage of any 
 sudden occurrence which might fall out. 
 
 Ranjit Singh's power is not of that nature, that in the event of a 
 war breaking out between two European Governments near or in India, 
 he could turn the scale in favor of either party, but in petty warfare, 
 his cavalry acting as auxiliaries, might serve as the Cossacks in attend- 
 ance on the regular Russian army. 
 
 There can be little doubt, which part Ranjit Singh would embrace, 
 supposing an event, which, however, cannot occur during his lifetime, 
 viz., that two European armies were fighting in the plains of India for 
 the brightest jewel in the crown of England. He would never fight 
 under the banners of England, unless he were quite sure that they 
 would be victorious without his help. 
 
 We must not think more meanly of the spirit and talent of Ranjit 
 Singh, because we find his kingdom occupying so small a portion of the
 
 410 OVERSIGHT OF THE GREAT NAPOLEON. 
 
 vast regions of Asia, nor can we make any comparison between it and 
 the empire of the Mohammedans in India, or the Mahratta power, 
 still less with that of the British. The last, the slow and laborious 
 development of two centuries of government, owes its present supre- 
 macy to the folly of Napoleon, who, eager to ruin his opponents, shut 
 out from England a part of Europe, and gave her in return the world 
 for her prize ! The Mohammedans invaded a peaceful nation ; the 
 Mahrattas burst in upon a divided and unhappy country, like so many 
 robbers, ruined every thing and restored nothing. Hemmed in 
 between the colossal power of England, and the brave Afghan nation, 
 who had so recently pulled down the sovereignty of Delhi, and lifted 
 up themselves into mighty kingdoms, struggling against the hatred of 
 the Hindus, and the contempt of the Mohammedans, Ranjit Singh 
 worked alone, raising by his genius a throne, on which he still reigns, 
 and undisturbed too, over both Hindus and Mohammedans. A few 
 strides more, and he will succeed in extending his kingdom to the 
 deserts of Persia, taking possession of Kabul, Kandahar, and Ghizni, 
 and will thus revenge the native Hindus, by means of a native-born 
 heathen, on those arrogant and orthodox believers, who have brought 
 so much misery and poverty on their great and beautiful country. 
 
 This seems to me the most suitable place for a few remarks on the 
 western boundaries of British India. This splendid inheritance of the 
 British people, founded by bold adventurers, has natural limits in every 
 direction, and only towards the west has any doubt ever been enter- 
 tained on the subject. Bounded on the south by the vast ocean, on the 
 east and north by impenetrable mountains and forests, towards the west 
 by the Thar, or great Indian desert, there is but a somewhat narrow 
 stripe in the north-west, where the question assumes any difficulty. 
 The perseverance of England has worked its way so far now, that a 
 few thousand square miles more or less, in fixing the limits of her 
 Asiatic dominions, do not seem of much importance. 
 
 They who are conversant with the world's history, or who merely 
 cast one glance over the map, will at once appoint the Indus for her 
 boundary. For geographers there is nothing so convenient as a river 
 for a boundary, though two nations are often separated quite other-
 
 NATURAL BOUNDARY OF THE INDIAN EMPIRE. 411 
 
 wise; very different, also, must be the line of demarcation in the 
 north-west of British India, the only point accessible to an enemy. 
 A river boundary is often a very good one, because it frequently seems 
 not so much to divide, as to unite two people together. So far as we 
 vet know of the world, the opposite shores of the same river are 
 always inhabited by the same race of people, and the same language is 
 spoken by them. It may therefore be worth while to inquire more 
 precisely, whether the Indus answers or not to the ideas we have 
 formed of the best boundary to the Anglo-Indian empire. 
 
 We trace the Atok, or Indus, from the high mountain chain, 
 rushing like the Jelam in various forms from rock to rock, until it 
 arrives in the plain of Shush, at the further extremity of which, near the 
 junction of the Indus with the Kabul river, the city of Atok is situated. 
 Thence, it re-enters the mountains, and after traversing the salt-hills, 
 it flows through a sandy wilderness and towards its Delta, arrives in a 
 country more or less fertile. From the mountains to the sea it is the 
 Indus which gives life to the whole country ; even in the desert a small 
 line of cultivated land appears on its banks, but on the right bank the 
 sandy wilderness soon encroaches on this line, stretching far towards the 
 west; and if the signs of cultivation extend somewhat further on the 
 left bank, the Ravi which is 150 miles broad, enlarges the expanse of 
 desert-land, until in 28° lat. it covers a surface 360 miles broad. 
 
 It would be a useless task to enumerate the reasons why the Indus, 
 from its mouths to the junction of the various streams of the Panjab, 
 cannot form either a line of demarcation or a military boundary. They 
 might be briefly summed up in these two : — 1 . That an army could not 
 fall back upon its line of operations, which must be on the other side of 
 the desert ; and 2. That an army stationed there, would leave all Hin- 
 dusthan to the enemy's mercy. Nor is any enemy to be reasonably 
 expected in this direction ; for though the first Mohammedans from 
 Kandahar and Ghizni marched by this route to Gujerat, they came 
 in detached bodies, while the large armies journeyed to cross the Indus 
 near Atok. 
 
 From the meeting of the Panjab rivers upwards, the right bank 
 forms the termination of a precipitous mountain-chain, scarcely culti-
 
 412 ACCESSIBILITY TO THE INDIAN FRONTIERS. 
 
 vated, and inhabited by wild Afghan tribes. Over these mountains 
 some solitary caravans, but no host could possibly travel ; and this part 
 of the Indus would be a very ill-chosen boundary, because it must be 
 left unguarded, in order to unite the troops at whatever point the enemy 
 might make his appearance. This would be Atok, a distance of 300 
 miles from the junction of the Panjab rivers. It is the certainty that 
 Atok would be this point, which makes the idea of the Indus being 
 fixed on as the boundary entertained by so many ; but the chief thing 
 to be thought of is, how to make it most difficult for an enemy, and 
 most easy for a friend, to arrive at this boundary. Now, it would 
 assuredly be much easier for any detached party to reach the Indus 
 from the west than from the east, from the mouths up to Atok. In 
 fact, the Indus may be called in a measure inaccessible from the 
 Indian side to any troops ; the only means of communication open to 
 any large force stationed there, would be by steamers to Bombay, by 
 which it might be made useful in a diversion on the enemy's line of 
 communication. If, however, the fate of India were in the balance, a 
 general would hardly decide on despatching his troops up and down the 
 Indus in steam-vessels, and thus deprive himself of their co-operation in 
 Hindusthan. 
 
 History looks with wonder at the fact of Alexander the Great not 
 only finding his way into India, but also having the penetration to fix on 
 the very point from which to depart, whence he could reach it most easily. 
 Just in like manner have other historical writers marvelled, how Vasco de 
 Gama from Mozambique on the east coast of Africa, ever found his way 
 to Calicut, on the coast of Malabar. There is nothing more surprising 
 in such expeditions than in the means by which a humble journeyman 
 finds his way from Vienna to Paris ; for in the days of Alexander, the 
 produce of India was carried into Persia and Greece, and the merchant 
 chose not the best and easiest, but the only route. So Vasco de 
 Gama found a pilot, who brought him from Mozambique to the com- 
 mercial city of Calicut, which was well known there, although the 
 Western World knew nothing about it. We are to wonder at the 
 genius which urged onward those great men, of whom Vasco de Gama 
 was one of the noblest, to enterprises such as this, but not at the con-
 
 MILITARY DIFFICULTIES OF THE PUNJAB. 413 
 
 sequences which naturally followed them. Many writers have enlarged 
 on these expressions of surprise, finding- a vast deal to marvel at in the 
 fact that subsequent conquerors, Sabaktagi, Mahmud Ghiznavi, Timur, 
 Baber, Nadir Shah, and Ahmed Shah, all followed Alexander's route to 
 India. The reason cannot be made simpler than we find it. It is the 
 only road that an army could have taken. 
 
 But granted that the Indus is the boundary of India, that general 
 would indeed be rash who struck his final blow there. No finer field 
 could possibly be chosen for such a purpose, than the plain of the 
 Atok, which is spread out like a vast exercising ground, fifteen or 
 twenty miles in every direction. But what would be the consequences 
 of a battle won there, to the defenders of India ? The enemy would 
 retreat to the strong positions in his rear, through a country never cut 
 up by rains, and very difficult to exhaust by any means; and where, if it 
 pleased the conquering army to remain quietly stationed for a twelve- 
 month, it might do so while the rainy season on the other side of the 
 Indus prevented any supplies being transported. What would be the 
 consequences of a lost battle to the British troops ? The defeated 
 army would have to make their way through a difficult and most 
 unfruitful country, where one storm of rain might make it quite impos- 
 sible to send the requisite reinforcements or even beasts of burden 
 through the interminable ravines. The Jelam might be made a rallying 
 point for the army, but from thence, the rivers are so near to one 
 another, and so subject to fearful and sudden inundations, that there 
 would be great danger of losing by a second attack any succour that 
 might have arrived. From the Indus to the Sctlej, a retreating army 
 would be at a great disadvantage ; every one of their positions might be 
 turned, while in one only direction is there any means of retreat. The 
 difficulty of passing a river with an Indian army, is greatly increased 
 bv the number of unarmed men over those who are fit for action ; the 
 difference being as ten to one. 
 
 Let us now compare this greatly-prized natural boundary of the 
 Indus, with the artificial and despised line of the Sctlej. Along both 
 rivers the Indian desert extends as far as Firozpoor. rendering it all 
 but impossible for any army to traverse it. a few Rajpoot states alone
 
 414 THE SETLEJ AS A MILITARY BOUNDARY. 
 
 having small outposts there. The natives of these states have been at 
 all times renowned for their courage and ardent love of liberty ; and 
 they are quite capable of coping with any force bold enough to attempt 
 the passage of this desert. From the end of this desert and of the 
 arid country near Firozpoor up to the Himalaya, the line is not above 
 100 miles, and an army posted behind the Setlej could march more 
 speedily from one point to another than the enemy could on the right 
 bank, who could neither move by the Himalaya nor through the desert. 
 Whichever may be claimed as the boundary of India, the great struggle 
 must be fought in the plain of Sirhind, where the advantages are all 
 on the defending side, and where a battle lost would expose the 
 assailants to as imminent peril as on the banks of the Indus. Of this 
 we have a striking proof in Ahmed Shah, who lost a battle in this same 
 plain of Sirhind, when he first invaded India, and who forthwith escaped 
 over the Atok without stopping to assemble his forces at any other 
 point. 
 
 Again, historians wonder that the destinies of Hindüsthan should 
 have been decided so often on the plains of Paniput, when they might 
 soon have accounted for the fact, had they traced it to the cause. Much 
 information is to be gained by comparing together events in history 
 which are of a similar nature, for it is not chances which resemble one 
 another, but similarity of causes which bring forth a correspondence 
 in the deeds performed. 
 
 When events shall have stretched the boundary of the British 
 dominions to the Indus, their line of defence must necessarily be 
 advanced further westward, into the mountains between Kabul and 
 Herat, probably as far as Herat itself. But to dwell on this would 
 be to transgress the limits traced for the present work, which has to do 
 only with Kashmir and the Panjab. 
 
 Ere I close my volume, a few words on Alexander's expedition to 
 India may not be out of place. From Central Asia, Sogdiana (Bo- 
 khara), and Zariaspa or Bactria (Balkh), he advanced by Bämian to the 
 foot of the northern side of the Hindu Kush, the Paropamisus of the 
 ancients, and called by the Macedonians Caucasus. Crossing the Kalu 
 Pass, which is 13,400, and the Gajigak, which is 12,400 feet above the
 
 CONJECTURES AS TO ALEXANDER'S ROUTE. 415 
 
 level of the sea, inountiug then to the Una Pass, 11,000 feet high, to 
 the east of the Koh-i-Baba, which towers 18,000 feet in height, he was 
 then in the region of the sources of the Indus. Aristobulus (Strabo 
 XV. 691,) says in express terms: "After the setting of the Pleiades, 
 Alexander left the country of the Paropamisadae, and passed the winter 
 partly in the mountains, partly among the Aspii and the Musicani. 
 The array saw snow continually, and rain for the first time in Taxila." 
 In other words, Alexander began his march from Balkh in the begin- 
 ning of winter, and crossed the Hindu Kush during that season. But 
 from Burnes' Travels, (vol. i., pp. 166, 177.) we find that the passage is 
 closed during the six months of winter, and we shall therefore be more 
 safe in following Arrian, who tells us (vol. iv., pp. 7, 22), that Alex- 
 ander spent the most severe part of the winter in Zariaspa, quitting 
 Bactria in the beginning of spring to proceed to the conquest of 
 India. 
 
 He had already, on his march towards Bactria, journeyed over this 
 same route in an opposite direction, and founded a city called Alex- 
 andria, not far from the base of the Paropamisus : the site of this city 
 is now uncertain. Arrian says, without hesitation, that it lay on the 
 south side of the Paropamisus, and we should plainly identify it with 
 the site of the present Kabul, had he not written further (iv. 22), 
 " that Alexander moved forwards from Alexandria to the city of Nicea 
 and the Kophenes.'' Kabul being built on both sides of the Kophenes 
 or Kabul river. To transfer Alexandria as Diodorus does (xvii. 83), 
 to the north side of the Paropamisus towards Media, and near the 
 present Bämian, is in direct opposition to Arrian (iii. 28), who ex- 
 presses himself thus, when writing of Alexander's expedition against 
 Bactria, and his passage of the Indian Caucasus in a northerly direc- 
 tion : — " About this time Alexander moved towards the Indian 
 Caucasus, where he built a city, calling it Alexandria. After he had 
 sacrificed to the gods, he went over the Caucasian mountains, &c." 
 Further on (iv. 88), when relating the expedition from Bactria to 
 India, he writes : — " After he had crossed the Caucasus in ten days' 
 march, he arrived at the city of Alexandria, which he had founded on 
 his first expedition against the Bactrians and the Paropamisatae." It
 
 416 arrian's account of the route. 
 
 does seem therefore more probable and agreeable to the truth, to con- 
 clude, that Nicea was only at a short distance from Alexandria 
 (Kabul), and was situated on the Logur, the main branch of the Kabul 
 river, comhig from Ghizni. If we call, as Strabo does, (xv. § 12,) the 
 one source of the Kabul river Kophes, (the Kophenes of Arrian,) and 
 the other Choaspes, transporting Alexandria to the Choaspes or Kabul, 
 (which is not named by Arrian,) and Nicea to the Kophenes, the 
 difficulty will vanish. 
 
 Alexander marched from the Kophenes eastward, having been told 
 that the most fruitful and best populated countries of India were to be 
 sought in the mountains and towards the north ; the south and the 
 plain being, on the contrary, parched with heat and infested with wild 
 beasts (Strabo xv. § 12). Arrian does not say anywhere that when 
 Alexander moved along the left bank of the Kophenes, he had crossed 
 the stream; but we find it in Strabo (xv. 697), although he confounds 
 the Choaspes in this passage with the Kophenes; and it is clear that he 
 must on his way to the Indus, have crossed the Gurband, the Kama, 
 and the Länder. We find in Arrian the passage of three river men- 
 tioned, the Kophenes, the Euaspa, and the Gurceus. 
 
 We cannot, at present, ascertain the position of those cities, which 
 are mentioned by the above-cited authors, by Megasthenes, a Greek, 
 who lived at the court of the Indian King Sandracottus, and by all the 
 Grecian and Roman geographers and historians after them, as having 
 been founded in Alexander's time in the region of the Indus. With 
 rare exceptions, rivers have kept on in one course unmoved; while 
 cities have crumbled near them without any successor rising up over 
 their ashes. The Grecians did also alter names in such a manner, that 
 scarcely one is to be recognised in the original language, and one 
 chief cause of this may be, that the most trustworthy accounts of 
 Alexander's exploits were not composed, as Arrian informs us, until 
 after his death. 
 
 The conquest of the city of Nyssa, on the right bank of the 
 Indus, gives us the first instance of an Indian name. It belongs to 
 a mountain in the vicinity of the city called Meros, and although 
 Arrian (xi. 125) nss^urcs us that this is a Greek word, we can
 
 SIR A. BUHXES CON JECTIJKES. 417 
 
 hardly fail to see that the Greek Meru has been clipped and made up 
 from it. 
 
 Alexander moved onwards towards the city of Peucelia, where he 
 crossed the Indus into the plain of Shiish, and probably in the vicinity 
 of the city of Benares (Atok), above where the Kabul river joins the 
 Indus. Thence he advanced to Taxila, a city seated in a fruitful plain, 
 between the Indus and the Hydaspes, perhaps the modern Rawal Pindi. 
 On the left shore of the Hydaspes, or Jelam, was Porus and his army; 
 Alexander forced this passage and built a city on each shore of the 
 river, naming the one Niki, or Victory, the other Bucephalia, in honour 
 of his horse Bucephalus (Ox-head), who died after the battle. Sir 
 A. Burnes thought he had found this double city in the modern Jalal- 
 poor. We have no means of ascertaining where Alexander passed the 
 Acesines, or Chenab; for the rock in the bed of the river is no more to 
 be found. The crossing of the Hydraotes, or Kavi, is only mentioned 
 generally, but it may have been in the country of Lahor, since, as we 
 shall presently see, Alexander's progress was in a south-easterly direction . 
 As he pursued his march, it might have happened that if the enemy 
 were stationed near, or some great city presented itself, he was some- 
 times necessarily compelled to change his route. Now, according to 
 the Greeks, of all the cities in the Panjab, Sangala was the largest and 
 most formidable. It lay three days' march from the Hydraotes, or 
 Ravi, the distance of Chak, or Amritsir, from Lahor. After storming 
 this city, he proceeded to the Hyphasis (Setlej). That the Hyphasis 
 must be the Setlej and not the Beas, is clear from Diodorus (xvii. 93), 
 who says: That from the Hyphasis to the Ganges (or rather the 
 Jamna) extends a desert of eleven days' march, behind which the Kino- 
 Xandranes stationed himself with an immense force. This is true of 
 the Setlej, or the Ghara rather ; but the country on both sides of the 
 Beas is the most fruitful district throughout the Panjab. Arrian 
 speaks (vi. 14) of the meeting of the Hyphasis with the Chenab. 
 Alexander was compelled to retire after some sharp combats on 
 the left bank of the Setlej, his troops being overpowered with the 
 fatigues and dangers consequent upon their march through the Panjab, 
 which took place (a fact scarcely credible) during the rainy season. 
 
 2 E
 
 418 THE STATURE AND STRENGTH OF THE ANCIENTS. 
 
 Ere he crossed the Hyphasis, however, which he probably did not far 
 from Hari, he raised a monument to the divinity he served most con- 
 stantly, — his own vanity. Ordering his tent to be enlarged to the 
 double of its original size, and a ditch, fifty feet broad and forty deep, 
 to be made around it, he had weapons, much larger than any man 
 could carry, manufactured for his purpose, with harness for horses far 
 beyond the common weight, and commanded that they should be left 
 behind to astonish and alarm his enemies ; and, finally, building up 
 twelve altars fifty yards high, and the same width at the base, in the 
 form of pyramids, he sacrified on them to the gods, and forthwith 
 crossed the Hyphasis*. Thence he pursued his course, crossing the 
 Hydraotes and the Acesines, and then pitched his tents near the double 
 city of Nicea and Bucephaiia on the Hydaspes, or Jelam. 
 
 He remained there for some time, repairing the injuries which his 
 towns had suffered from the rains, and occupied with the construction 
 of a fleet destined to convey him down the Hydaspes. To this project 
 Alexander was moved by an expectation that the Hydaspes was one of 
 the branches of the Nile, in which belief he was confirmed by seeing 
 the lotus, or nelumbium, in the Jelam, and the crocodile, or alligator, 
 which is very frequently met with in that river. This made him hope 
 to reach the Mediterranean Sea by means of his ships. Nor should 
 such an idea be considered by us as unworthy of the intellect of Alex- 
 ander, but rather as a proof of the ignorance of his time in point of 
 geographical knowledge. The opinions of modern days regarding the 
 source of the Nile were not less extraordinary, and especially one 
 theory among many, which made the Nile and the Niger have their 
 rise from the same lake. 
 
 As soon as his fleet, which was composed of eighty vessels of thirty 
 rowers each, and nearly 2000 other ships, was ready, he divided his army 
 into three parts, of which one was to march along the right, the second 
 along the left shore of the river, while the third and smallest division 
 
 ■ Plutarch says that in his time the Iliiulus were wont to come from tlie other 
 side of the Ganges, to sacrifice to tlie gods on these altars, after the manner of the 
 Greeks. — Orig.
 
 OKüEu OF Alexander's march. 419 
 
 embarked with him. While attacking the city near the junction of the 
 Acesines and Hydraotes, Alexander received that dangerous wound in 
 the breast, which was probably the remote cause of his subsequent 
 death; but no sooner had he recovered from its first effects than he 
 resumed his march, and near the spot where the streams of the Panjab 
 all unite, he founded a large city and harbour, which he also called 
 Alexandria. 
 
 As a further detailed account of Alexander's expedition would have 
 no connexion with the design of the present work, I shall merely add a 
 few observations on that portion of it already described. The whole 
 expedition took place between the spring of the year b.c. 327 and the 
 winter of the year b.c. 326, or eighteen months from the first passage 
 of the Indus until the final departure from that river at Patalene. 
 Everything, both in Arrian and Strabo, which relates to the difference 
 of temperature and climate between the upper provinces and the lower 
 Indus is admirably described; but when they write of the religion, 
 government, or manners of the country, their accounts are by no means 
 applicable to any Hindu nation. 
 
 I must here take notice of a passage in Arrian (vi. 21), because 
 that author has made a signal mistake in writing of the Etesian winds. 
 The south-west monsoon, which is by them intended to be understood, 
 renders the passage from the mouths of the Indus to the coast of 
 Beluchisthan impossible; the context would explain this to be the case, 
 but at the beginning of the chapter we read that this is the most 
 convenient season for the voyage. Impossible should have been 
 substituted for convenient, in order to make what comes after in- 
 telligible. 
 
 I am convinced, from a careful perusal and examination both of all 
 that Arrian and Strabo have written, and of that also related by 
 Ptolemy, Aristobulus, and the mendacious Onesicritus, either that in 
 Alexander's time, neither the Brahmin nor Buddhist faith was 
 known in the Panjab, or that Alexander and his captains never 
 crossed the Indus, unless we can believe that when their accounts 
 were set down in writing, they had already forgotten all that had 
 been seen and experienced there. Thus, Strabo divides the Indians 
 
 2 E 2
 
 420 THE ANCIENT FAITH NOT BRAIIMINICAL. 
 
 into seven classes, namely: the Brahmins, the peasants, the shep- 
 herds and huntsmen, the handicraftsmen, the warriors, the police, 
 and the courtiers. According to Arrian, the system of castes had 
 no existence (xv. § 44), and the Brahmins ate with Alexander at 
 night, and drank wine. The following passage from Strabo (xv, 
 § 44, p. 714,) shows plainly enough to what faith the natives of 
 the Panjab belonged at that time. " Aristobulus relates some singular 
 customs of the natives of Taxila. Among these is the custom of 
 casting the bodies of the dead to vultures." Here we have at once a 
 clear proof of the nature of the faith professed in the Panjab; the 
 worship of the elements, the religion of the Medes, still existing 
 according to the regulations of Zertusht, or Zoroaster, among the 
 Parsees, or fire-worshippers, which declares that the elements are too 
 pure to take up or to destroy a dead body. Arrian says nothing of 
 the Indian funeral rites; for in his accounts of the burning of 
 Kalanus, which nobody would suppose to mean a Brahmin, we cannot 
 understand that he means to describe the burning of the dead as a 
 common custom in the Panjab. Diodorus (xvii. 104), speaking of a 
 free nation of Indians on the left bank of the Indus, the Oritoni, 
 says: "In regard to their habits, they are like the Indians, but they 
 have one very strange custom; the relations of a dead person carry his 
 corpse naked out of his dwelling, with spears in their hands, set it 
 down in a wood, take away his ornaments, and then abandon it to 
 the wild beasts." This passage would show that all the Indians had 
 not the custom in common; but as Alexander, during his progress 
 through Asia, must have met with it many times, and pi-ecisely among 
 the people inhabiting the provinces west of the Panjab, it would have 
 been a strange thing, had the narratives of Alexander's companions 
 said nothing about a custom existing among the Hindus which so 
 much resembled the Greek funeral rites. In another place (Strabo 
 XV. § 44), Aristobulus says that he has heard how, among some Indian 
 nations it is customary for the women to be burned with the bodies of 
 their deceased husbands; another evidence that this usage, peculiar 
 to the Brahmins, did not exist in the Panjab. 
 
 There are writers who believe that Alexander reached the Ganges.
 
 EXTENT OF ALEXANDER'S EXPLOITS. 4*21 
 
 The story rests upon a letter, which one of his warriors, Kraterus, 
 wrote to his mother Aristopatra, where he tells her that he has seen 
 the Gano^es, describes its enormous breadth and depth, and the huge 
 cetaceous animals which live in its waters. It is unnecessary to prove 
 that the whole is a fable, and the letter suppositious. Before he could 
 have reached the Ganges, Alexander must have crossed the Jamna, 
 which has never been asserted. 
 
 In order to give some idea of the absurdities invented by the Greeks 
 and Macedonians about the Panjab, I have here collected the statistical 
 accounts of Arrian, Strabo, and Diodorus. Where the Chenab and 
 Indus unite, there dwelt the Abastana;, Xanthse, Sodrae, Ossadae, and 
 Massanae. South of these were the Sogdi, Arachotii (Osii), Drangi, 
 and Subracae, the last alone opposing Alexander with 60,000 men. 
 Where the Ghara and Chenab unite in the Bäree Doäb, were the 
 Ambra? and Sugambrae, with 80,000 foot and 60,000 horse. Furtlier 
 north on the Hydraotes, or Ravi, were the Oxydracae, Malli, and 
 Brachmani. In this country dwelt also the Agalassi, who marched 
 against their forces with 40,000 men on foot and 3000 horse. Towards 
 the north, again, were the Sibae, Sobii, Hiacensi, and Silae. The 
 Adrastae, Kathai, Glausae, or Glausanidae, inhabited the north-eastern 
 countries of the Panjab, the Jhalander Doäb. To the east of these, 
 between the Setlej and Jamna, was the King Xandranes with 30,000 
 horse and 200,000 foot soldiers; 2000 war chariots, drawn by four 
 horses (no Indian custom^ ; and 3000 elephants. Finally, Porus 
 reigned over the great Indian nation, to which no one author has ever 
 given a particular appellation, and who inhabited 300 cities in the 
 Jinhat Doab, between the Jelam and the Acesines ; (the Jinhat Doab 
 contains about 120 square German miles). The nearest neighbour of 
 Porus on the north was Abisares, King of the Bergindii, whose power 
 was but little inferior to his. King Taxila reigned over the northern 
 part of the Doab-i Sindi-sagur, which Strabo describes to be as large 
 as Egypt. On the right shore of the Indus reigned the Indian Kings 
 Erix (Curtius viii. 12); Afrikes (Diodorus xvii. 86); Kofacus and 
 Assagetes (Arrian iv. 28) ; in Strabo occurs the name of the country 
 Bandobene, Gandaritis (Kandahar ?) xv. ^ 12 ; and about the Kophcnes
 
 422 NUMEROUS CITIES INSTANCED BY STRABO. 
 
 and its tributaries dwell the Acinacae, Bazirse, Nicaae, Hypasii, Aspii, 
 Thyraei, and Arsaei. Strabo (xv. 686) reckons 5000 cities between the 
 Hyphasis and Hydaspes, in the Bäree, the Rekhna and the Jinhat 
 Doabs ! 
 
 For more than two thousand times the earth has performed her circuit 
 round the sun, a period amounting to nearly one-third of the time which 
 has passed since the first creation of mankind ; more than 2000 years 
 have elapsed since Alexander crossed the Indus, and we still justly 
 wonder at the undaunted spirit of enterprise which prompted him to the 
 thought of making India pay tribute to Greece. That vast design mis- 
 carried, not because the conquest was incomplete — not because the 
 Macedonian hero was too quickly hurried from the world, but because 
 his victories, instead of increasing the power of his kingdom, diminished 
 it ; and because he thought that his single will was all that was needed 
 to unite distant empires, each one of which was more powerful than 
 his own hereditary dominions, under his sceptre. Alexander learned for 
 the first time, when the lesson was too late to be of use, that it is 
 easier to conquer a kingdom than to keep possession of it. For it 
 requires, and ever has required, some strong bond of union to keep 
 together a vast monarchy, formed of various nations, when the govern- 
 ment has not succeeded, either by power or the right of prescription, in 
 blending the several portions into one whole. In Europe, whether in 
 ancient or modern times, as well as in other countries enjoying Euro- 
 pean civilization, this union lasts as long as the mutual interests of the 
 individual states require it. But it is otherwise with remote con- 
 quered provinces, or with such as stand in a similar degree of subjuga- 
 tion to the mother country. A regularly formed system is there quite 
 necessary to ])ring the provincial into harmony with the supreme 
 governments ; there must be a spirit of order, a careful survey of every 
 addition made to the empire ; there must be a central point of real 
 strength ; and finally, confidence and persuasion in the power not only 
 of the state, but in each individual part of it. There was nothing of 
 all this to be found in the government of Alexander ; his vast conquests
 
 INTERESTING OBSERVATION IN CONCLUSION. 423 
 
 only shattered the powers of his kingdom, which on his death fell to 
 the share of different princes, each one more powerful than his succes- 
 sor on the throne of Macedonia. 
 
 Two thousand years after Alexander, a people whose native land 
 differs but Uttle from Greece in extent, unconsciously following out 
 his plans, have subdued India. England owes this immense possession 
 neither to her great talent in managing her affairs in Asia, nor to the 
 bravery of her sons in battle against overwhelming numbers; nor to 
 the boldness with which her plans have been carried out. No, it is to 
 the union of intellect and force; the perseverance which followed 
 up the aim, far distant as it often was; their respect for the rights 
 of the vanquished; the co-operation of every individual in the interest 
 of all; the honourable resolution to grant to every British subject 
 without any paltry jealousies, some participation in the riches acquired ; 
 India does not belong to the crown alone, nor to the East India Com- 
 pany ; it is the property of the British nation, and the foundations of 
 their gigantic empire were laid by their unfailing courage in reverses of 
 fortune, and their bravery in following up success. The power and 
 stability of this Empire are maintained by the strong links uniting the 
 highest powers in the state with the covenanted servants; through 
 the system by which individuals receive regular promotion, the humblest 
 functionary clinging to existing institutions in the sure hope that he is 
 likely to gain much more under the established order of things, than any 
 usurper in a distant land could offer him; and where the highest 
 individual to whom a distant empire in Asia is confided, feels assured, 
 that his commands will be executed so long only as they shall 
 be found in accordance with the principles of the Government at home. 
 This Empire bears the promise within it of a long continuance, 
 inasmuch as the exercise of justice and moderation, the maintenance 
 of law and authority, are qualities peculiar to that mighty race, to whom 
 Divine Wisdom has entrusted the government and happiness of millions 
 of his creatures.
 
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