Seely's Wonders of Elora. 



576 



rections, Uio smallest boats may pro- 

 ceed with safety, and, by means of the 

 tide, return at almost a fixed honr. 

 These excursions may be extended 

 seaward, inland.orovcr to Ihe Maliratta 

 continent, for several miles, embracinj? 

 in the journey a variety of beautiful, 

 picturesque, and grand scenery. How 

 widely different from the boasted river- 

 parties on the Gauges about Calcutta ; 

 Where you have a muddy, and often a 

 very danijerdus, stream to sail on, with 

 lisht an(f hot sultry airs, impregnated 

 with all the poisonous effects of miasma, 

 the wind hardly sufficiently strong to 

 impel Ihe boat; or else tracking, by 

 means of a dozen poor wretches slowly 

 struggling through the low, marshy, and 

 swampy banks of the Ganges, where the 

 eye is unrelieved by the smallest change 

 of scenery, and not a hill is to be seen in 

 any direction ; in short, where an unin- 

 terrupted view of jungle, flat land, wa- 

 ter, and mud i)resents itself. 



At Madras the scene on the water is 

 widely different from what we see cither 

 at Calcutta or Bombay; and a journey 

 on it, whether for amusement or busi- 

 ness, is any thing but agreeable; for 

 you are often in danger of your life, and 

 always in dread, in passing to and fro 

 through the tremendously high and long 

 snrfs that incessantly roll <)n the Coro- 

 mandel shores, and which commence 

 about a mile inside the roadstead, where 

 ships lie at anchor. There are three 

 surfs; and, after passing over the head 

 of one mountainous roller into the val- 

 ley of water between tliem, you cannot 

 for several seconds see either the city in 

 front or the ships in the rear, till you 

 are forced by the impulse of the first on 

 tlie top of the second roller. On passing 

 over the surf, a stranger's sensations 

 may be imagined, but cannot be de- 

 scribed ; tlie oldest mariners do not like 

 the first trip a-shore. Accidents some- 

 times occur; and for days all communi- 

 cation between the shore and shipping 

 is cut off. When you have arrived on 

 shore, the hent is iutolerahle,with clouds 

 of hot sand flying about; and, to add to 

 the miseries of Madras, tiie musqtiiloes 

 arP the largest and most venomous of 

 any in India; at night they swarm in 

 myriads, nor do they leave a stranger 

 quiet by day. I have bolh embarked 

 and disembarked at Madras (not from 

 choice) twice: I was wet through the 

 first lime, and the people were con- 

 stantly baling the Massoolah boat; the 

 last time 1 Was iu imminent danger, 

 with my family, for several minutes. 



One of the greatest comforts in all 

 countries is to have good domestic ser- 

 vants: unquestionably the Farsees at 

 Bombay are very superior to their 

 brethren at Calcutta both in usefulness 

 and fidelity. Those at Calcutta dress 

 well, will only attend to one particular 

 branch of service, nor will any pnrsna- 

 sion,oreven wages, induce them to use 

 a single exertion beyond a prescribed 

 and very limited duty fixed by them- 

 selves. They are very indolent, very 

 debauched in their habits, consequently 

 not to be trusted ; and the Qui hi me- 

 nials are mighty consequential fellows. 

 This may be from their education and 

 intolerant principles; for they are all 

 Mussulmen. A Bombay servant will 

 do as much work, and do it as well, as 

 five Bengal servants. The domestics at 

 Madras are chiefly of a low Hindoo 

 caste: they are a hard-working, willing 

 set of men, but dirty iu their habits, and 

 greatly addicted to drinking. 



The markets at Bombay are well 

 supplied, and for the most part the arti- 

 cles are all of moderate price. The 

 fish arc excellent ; vegetables are abun- 

 dant and good ; poultry is reared by the 

 Portuguese in great quantities, and sold 

 cheap. The bread is said by strangers 

 to be preferable to that made in any 

 other part of India. As to commerce, 

 revenue, taxes, manufactures, and sta- 

 tistical subjects in general, I have but 

 too imperfect au acquaintance to war- 

 rant my introducing them to the notice 

 of my readers. 



There was great room for improve- 

 ment in the government of Bombay, 

 and in the extensive countries depend- 

 ent upon it. It is well known to be a 

 century behind the other capitals in 

 every thing that has a tendency to make 

 a country flourishing, respectable, and 

 great. It is not for me to investigate 

 or discuss the causes ; I have not the 

 ability, and much less the inclination ; 

 for, being an officer of that eslabli.sh- 

 ment, any observation of mine would, 

 perhaps, be deemed injudicious: but all 

 ranks at Bombay, Europeans as well as 

 natives, rejoice in their present enlight- 

 ened and able ruler, the late British re- 

 sident at Poena* ; who, durhig his long 

 residence in India, filled the highest 

 diplomatic offices with singular success 

 in the most difficult times ; whose energy 



and 



* Hon. Moimtstuart Elphinstone, well 

 knox.n to the literary world by his " His- 

 tory of Cfebool." 



