97 



The uncultivated tracts in Guzerat are woody, and abound 

 with tigers, leopards, hyenas, wolves, wild-hogs, and a variety 

 of deer, elks, and antelopes, with those large brilliant eyes, so 

 highly extolled in oriental poetry. The Persian and Arabian 

 poets are extremely fond of alluding to these beautiful eyes, 

 which, according to lady Wortley Montague's translation, " are 

 black and lovely, but wild and disdainful as those of the stag:" 

 this idea extends from the gazelle of Arabia to the rein-deer of 

 Lapland, as we find in the songs of those northern regions. In 

 the Song of songs, the enraptured monarch seems to prefer the 

 " doves' eyes, which ravished his heart, as the eyes of doves by the 

 rivers of waters, washed with milk, and fitly set within the locks." 

 But the gazelle, or antelope, is most probably alluded to by his ena- 

 moured princess, when she says, her beloved " cometh leaping over 

 the mountains, and skipping upon the hills ; like a roe, or a young- 

 hart he looketh forth at the windows, shewing himself through 

 the lattice." 



The more I saw of Guzerat, the more I admired its fertility 

 and beauty: to both of which three noble rivers, the Taptee, the 

 Nerbudda, and the Myhi, largely contribute; while the Sabermatty 

 and many smaller streams, water its luxuriant plains. In the 

 reign of Akbar the soubah of Guzerat contained nine sircars, or 

 large districts, which were subdivided into one hundred and 

 ninety-eight purgunnas, of which thirteen were sea-ports. The 

 amount of revenue was forty-three crore, sixty-eight lacks, 2,301 

 dams, together with one lack, 62,628 dams of port duties ; the 

 whole being equivalent to sicca rupees 10,96,123,3,11. The 

 measured lands in Guzerat exceeded one crore and sixty-nine 

 vol. in. o 



