BENGAL. 



451 



Bengal, those quarters, should such an enemy start up. On 

 * -Y ' the south, is a sea-coast, guarded by shallows and 

 impenetrable woods, and with only one port (and 

 even that 6 s . difficult access) in an extent of 300 

 miles. It is on the west only, that any enemy is to 

 be apprehended ; and, even there, the natural barrier 

 is strong ; and with its population and resources 

 aided by the usual proportion of British troops, in 

 addition to the Sepoy establishment, Bengal might 

 bid defiance to all that part of Hindostan, which 

 might find itself inclined to become its enemy." 

 Rennel's Memoir, p. cxv. 

 Climate. As the province of Bengal lies almost entirely 



within the torrid zone, and borders on several exten- 

 sive sandy wastes, it is subject to great extremes of 

 heat ; and is accounted more unhealthy to Europeans, 

 than any other British settlement in India, except 

 that of Bencoolen. The south-east quarter espe- 

 cially, in which the town of Calcutta is situated, and 

 which is a flat marshy country, was deemed at first 

 almost as destructive as Batavia : and at one period, 

 when the whole Europeans resident in Calcutta did not 

 exceed 1200, MX) burials were numbered in six months. 

 The great and general cause of disease, in this coun- 

 try, is an excess of bile, which occasions fevers, dy- 

 sentery, inflammation of liver, with a long train of 

 nervous affections. These diseases are most preva- 

 lent in the months of September and October, are 

 generally very rapid in their progress, and chiefly 

 attack those, who are newly arrived from Europe ; 

 but the introduction of a more temperate and regu- 

 lar mode of living, and the more intimate acquaint- 

 ance which the medical practitioners have acquired 

 with the peculiar diseases of the country, have con- 

 tributed to render their attacks less frequent and 

 fatal. The varieties of disease are not numerous ; 

 their treatment is extremely uniform ; almost every 

 stage has its appropriate remedy ; and ho where are 

 the prescriptions of the physician more certainly fol- 

 lowed with success. By cutting canals, by draining 

 the offensive marshes, and by clearing the ground of 

 trees and jungle, the climate has been already, and 

 may be expected to be still farther, improved ; but 

 with all that can be done, it must always prove a 

 severe trial to every European constitution. Even 

 those, who are not materially injured by its influence, 

 are scarcely capable of any exertion, and during the 

 hot season, particularly, it is not uncommon to find 

 the whole officers of a battalion, except one or two 

 individuals, utterly unfit for duty ; and this without 

 any extraordinary or alarming complaint- This in- 

 salubrity is supposed to be owing, in a great measure, 

 to the prevalence of the hot winds, which are occa- 

 sionally loaded with sandy particles, which are pecu- 

 liarly pernicious to persons asleep, and frequently so 

 suffocating as to be almost insupportable by the na- 

 tives themselves ; but principally to the stagnate 

 waters and putrescent substances, which are left 

 upon the flat surface of the country, by the frequent 

 inundations of its rivers. The seasons are here com- 

 monly distinguished by the terms hot, cold, and 

 r amy ; but the natives subdivide them into six, com- 

 prizing two months in each. The hot season con- 

 tinues from the beginning of March to the end of 

 May ; and during this period, the thermometer very 

 frequently rises to 100, sometimes even to 110 ; but 



in the middle parts of Bengal the extreme sultryness Bengat. 

 of the weather is greatly moderated by occasional *-"" "V ' 

 thunder storms, accompanied with rain or hail, dri- 

 ven by sudden gusts of north-west wind ; while in the 

 eastern districts, milder showers of rain are still more 

 frequent, and peculiarly refreshing to the heated at- 

 mosphere ; but in the districts contiguous to Bahar, 

 a parching wind from the west, continues during the 

 greater part of the season. The rainy season com- 

 mences in June, and lasts till October ; and during 

 the two first months, the rain is so heavy and con- 

 stant, that frequently three, four, and even five inches 

 of water have fallen in one day ; but during the tw 

 last months, there are frequent intermissions of the 

 rain, the weather is rather close and sultry, and thick 

 unwholesome fogs prevail. The cold season continues 

 from November to February, during which period 

 northerly winds prevail, the sky is clear and unclou- > 



ded, and the weather generally pleasant to an Euro- 

 pean constitution. The dews during the night are 

 abundant and penetrating, and greatly, assist the 

 progress of vegetation ; while, in the more mountain- 

 ous districts, even frost and extreme cold are fre- 

 quently experienced. 



The general aspect of Bengal is that of a cham- Generalas- 

 paign country, intersected by numerous rivers, and pect. 

 surrounded by chains of lofty mountains. That part 

 of the Delta through which the Ganges expands his 

 branches as he approaches the sea, is the lowest dis- 

 trict in the province, and seems as if newly emerging 

 from the waters. It is called the Sunderbunds or 

 woods; lies between the river Hoogly and Chitta- 

 gong ; and is equal in extent to any of the three 

 kingdoms of which Great Britain is composed. It 

 is a labyrinth of creeks and rivers, of jungle and 

 stagnated water, a dreary uninhabited waste, infest- 

 ed by boars and tygers; but its numerous canals are 

 so disposed, as to form a complete inland navigation 

 throughout the Lower Delta. It abounds in quantities 

 of salt, equal to the whole consumption of Bengal and 

 its dependencies ; and it furnishes an inexhaustible 

 store of timber for fire-wood, domestic uses, and boat- 

 building. Some attempts have been made, and with 

 considerable prospect of success, to clear and culti- 

 vate this inhospitable tract ; but, as land in every 

 part of India is yet very imperfectly occupied, there 

 is no sufficient stimulus to make new acquisitions ; 

 and, as it is deemed by some a matter of policy to 

 have such an extensive desart lying between our pos- 

 sessions, and the only point of attack from an Euro- 

 pean enemy, there is not much encouragement given 

 to the cultivation of the Sunderbunds. Within the 

 boundaries of the province, and particulariy in the 

 south-west angle, and on the north of the Ganges, 

 are to be found more elevated tracts of land, remark- 

 able for picturesque scenery, and for the neat habi- 

 tations of the peasantry. These upper regions, how- 

 ever, which are not liable to inundation, and which 

 were formerly called Barendra, are of very inconsi- 

 derable extent, and of very inferior estimation in the 

 views of commerce and finance The principal divi- 

 sion of Bengal, and that which is most valuable for 

 its produce and manufactures, is an extensive and un- 

 interrupted level, through which the Ganges and Bur- 

 rampooter slowly roll their immense volumes of water, 

 and which they annually overflow in the rainy season. 



