CHRONICLE. 



253 



consecrated water. On returning 

 the loote to one of the officiating 

 Brahmins, he found a little left, 

 which he swallowed with great avi- 

 dity ; she then received a few rupees 

 at two different times from her son, 

 and presented them as offerings to 

 the priests. Three female relations 

 were then allowed to approach her ; 

 they threw themselves at her feet, 

 and seemed imploring for some- 

 thing ; she touched all their fore- 

 heads, and gave each some grass, 

 rice, and flour, and they departed. 

 I must not omit mentioning that 

 blades of grass were invairablyused 

 even in the most trifling ceremo- 

 nies. 



She was then decorated with a 

 necklace of camphire, and brace- 

 lets of the same — as also a wreath 

 forming a turban, indicative of her 

 throwing off the nature of woman- 

 hood, andassuming that of the man; 

 all these mysteriesbeingconcluded, 

 she arose and prepared to walk 

 round the pile seven times. The 

 first round two Brahmins laid hold 

 of her to support her ; she, in an 

 audible voice, declined their assist- 

 ance, and said she could walk alone ; 

 and indeed the oftener she went 

 round, her step appeared the more 

 firm and determined. This cere- 

 mony being completed, she entered 

 the inclosure, and seated herself on 

 the pile in an upright posture, and 

 placed the head of her deceasedhus- 

 bandinherlap. Ghee, in large quan- 

 tities, had been previously poured 

 on her head and garments ; pieces 

 of camphire, cow-dung, plantain- 

 grass, rice, flour, &c. were then 

 strewed over the body of the dead 

 man. Billets of wood were then 

 placed by the officiating Brahmins in 

 a pyramidical form around her, and 

 afewbundles of very drybrush wood 



were placed at the top near her 

 head; the sacred fire was then 

 given by one of the Brahmins to 

 her son, who presented it to his 

 mother. The head Brahmin re- 

 mained in conversation with her for 

 a quarter of an hour, during which 

 period she held the light in her 

 hand ; a leaf of the shaster was al- 

 so carried in, and as the Brahmin 

 did not bring it out again, I sup- 

 pose that this was also placed on 

 the pile. The Brahmin then took 

 leave of her, and when he came to 

 the door (as if anxious that an Eu- 

 ropean should be a witness of her 

 setting fire to the pile with her own 

 hands), he beckoned me to ap- 

 proach, when immediately I saw 

 her bow her head on that of her 

 husband, and on raising it, set fire 

 to the brush wood above her. It 

 did not burn as quick as was ex- 

 pected, during which time she sat 

 as composed as if she had no in- 

 " terest in the affair. The Brahmins 

 close to me seeing this, threw some 

 fire on the pile, and in two seconds 

 the whole was a complete conflagra- 

 tion. While the bodies were burn- 

 ing, the Brahmins kept dancing 

 round the funeral pile with enthu- 

 siasm and apparent satisfaction. 



The officiating Brahmins, so far 

 from opposing my approach, ap- 

 peared anxious that I should see 

 the whole minutely, that I might 

 relate that every thing had beea 

 conducted withoutdeceit or persua- 

 sion. I accordingly took my sta- 

 tion at the angle post at the door, 

 where I remained the whole time ; 

 the Suttee at not more than three 

 feet distance from me. She ap- 

 peared so totally absorbed in her 

 prayers, and performing the neces- 

 sary ceremonies, and in conversa 

 tion with her son, that she paid not 



the 



