OTEVW OF THE ^ANai^. .m 



from Mdrwar to iJarldwdra. The machine, in which the ^oods and pas= 

 sen<^ers are stowed, is a kind of wooden pannier, ^Ijout three feet long and 

 two feet broad, with alow railing all round, and the bottom laced with 

 cords. One of these Is ,. suspended on each side the camel, and each 

 pannier accommodates two passengers. The Cdfilahs generally assem= 

 ble at Amritsar, about the end of February, and pursue their route 

 through the SWh country. At that place, and at the principal cities in the 

 PfwJ^ 6, .duties are levied, not only on the merchandisej but on the tra« 

 veilers, at a fixed pnce per head; and they complain much of the inter- 

 ruption they meet with from the numerous banditti, who hover about for 

 plunder.. These freebooters are always mounted, and go in parties of 

 twenty or thirty together ; and although the Cdjllahs are sufficiently 

 strong to keep them at a distance, they often succeed in carrying away 

 some of the stragglers. 



After crossing the Satlej, they proceed in security to Haridwdra, and 

 the road from Sehdranpur is a continued line of travellers, from the mid- 

 dle of March till the conclusion of the fair. 



This is the most frecjuented track ; although, towards the end of the fes= 

 tival, every avenue is closed, by the swarms which pour in from all quar- 

 ters. Those who come merely for the purpose of bathing, arrive in the 

 morning ; and, after performing their ablutions, depart in the evening, or 

 on the following day ; by which means a constant succession of strangers is 

 kept up ; occasioning one of the most busy scenes that can be well 

 conceived. To calculate the probable amount of such multitudes would 

 be impossible, and it would be equally vam to hazard a conjecture ; but 

 if we estimate the number at two miUions of souls, we shall probably fall 

 short rather than exceed the reality. During the Maharata government, 

 there were some grounds on which the calculation might have been made ; 



