424 Account of the Hurricane near [May, 



death to quitting their families, their birth-places and their homes, 

 even for a few days. 



The gomastah used his influence : money was even offered, but it 

 was of no avail ; and we were eventually obliged to abandon the project. 



As much medicine as could be conveniently spared we made over to 

 the gomastah and instructed him how each kind should be used. We 

 then took our leave of the houseless sufferers of Codalea and bent 

 our course towards Bykunthpore village to the west of Codalea. On 

 entering the limit of this village we were of opinion that it had not 

 suffered in comparison with the former, and congratulated some of the 

 inhabitants whom we met, upon it. They invited us to visit the interior 

 of the place when they said we should be better able to judge of its con- 

 dition : we had not proceeded far when we were convinced we had come 

 to a hasty conclusion ; for about a quarter of a mile in length not a house, 

 hut nor tree had escaped the violence of the storm, in fact every thing 

 that opposed its progress was levelled to the ground. Persons visiting the 

 place ignorant of the occurrence of the storm, would suppose the mis- 

 chief, as far as trees are concerned, had been caused by fire ; I had almost 

 come to the above conclusion myself on observing the stumps of trees, 

 withered leaves and here and there posts of houses, &c. Such was the 

 violence of the wind that cocoanut and date trees were twisted out of 

 the ground and hurled to a distance of two or three hundred feet ; 

 granaries out of number have been swept away, and life both of man and 

 beast destroyed. We traversed the whole extent of the village and wit- 

 nessed many shocking sights. In one place a cow was dug out after 

 remaining beneath the ruins four days, and though life was not extinct, 

 crows and vultures were devouring the body. 



When so many lives of human beings and animals have been lost 

 without adequate means for the immediate removal of the bodies, it was 

 to be expected that the stench proceeding from the putrid carcases 

 would become intolerable and deter any one having a regard for his own 

 life from entering the place. But neither the putrefaction nor the repul- 

 sive sight of mangled bodies deterred Mr. Patton from visiting the. 

 place and giving such instructions to those under his authority as the 

 peculiar cases of the village and of the maimed seemed immediately to 

 require*. The humanity thus exhibited contrasts most painfully with 

 the conduct of those villagers who had sustained no injury — they were 

 indifferent to the misery and woe inflicted upon others, and seemed 

 almost indifferent to their own concerns. 



* Mr. Patton has raised a subscription and distributed it among the Survivors. 

 -Ed. 



