ETUNOLOGY OF THE PRESENT DAY. 207 



nata, Telinga, Tamul, Malabar, Maratta, and the Malay, are the five 

 principal languages of the Deccan. 



The decimal system and algebra are said to have originated in India 

 The study of astronomy has been pursued in the East Indies since the 

 earliest times ; but although the Hindoos have made greater advances in 

 this science than many other nations, they still entertain very erroneous 

 and imperfect ideas of the planetar}'- system. They hold, for instance, that 

 the earth stands in the centre, and that the sun, moon, and stars revolve 

 about it ; that the planets are propelled in their orbits by currents of air ; 

 and that the stars, moved by strong whirlwinds, perform their revolutions 

 around the earth with prodigious swiftness in twenty-four hours. 



The Hindoos sacrifice bulls and horses to the gods, white being the 

 preferred color for the victims. Human sacrifices, though not allowed, 

 are yet said to take place secretly. 



Famine, an affliction not of rare occurrence, owing to oft repeated 

 droughts, frequently constrains parents to kill their children, or, more com- 

 monly, to sell them for provisions or money. This traffic in human flesh 

 is, however, said to be carried on also in times of abundance. Suicide is 

 of frequent occurrence in India, and the Brahmins even endeavor to cause 

 and promote its commission. It is an ancient custom for the wife, after 

 the death of her husband, to be burned alive with the corpse ; and if the 

 man has several consorts, some of them not unfrequently dispute who shall 

 have the honor. As a rule, wives desirous of distinguishing themselves in 

 this manner are already advanced in years, and have sad prospects for the 

 future, in case they remain alive, since they would be a burden to their 

 relations. Hence the latter, as well as the Brahmins, try to persuade them 

 to sacrifice themselves. The English have attempted to abolish this cruel 

 custom ; it is said, nevertheless, to be by no means entirely extirpated. 

 {PL 21, Jig. 2, Burning of a Hindoo widow with the corpse of her spouse.) 

 The sick and dying are very harshly treated in India. Funeral solemnities 

 differ according to the castes. The dead are either burnt or thrown into 

 a sacred stream, especially into the Ganges, or buried, the low^er castes 

 especially adopting the last manner. As the dead are considered unclean, 

 they are removed as soon as possible ; not through the usual entrance 

 of the house, but through a particular door, Pariahs carrying them in a 

 sitting posture. It is the same passage through which the latter enter the 

 houses with downcast eyes. 



All Hindoos look upon matrimony a« a sacred state into which every 

 one is bound to enter. Polygamy is lawful, but only distinguished and 

 rich persons make use of the privilege. There are two modes of marriage, 

 one by means of the paria?n, the oiher by means of the kaningadanam. 

 Sums of from twenty to thirty dollars, which the father of the bridegroom 

 pays, before the wedding, as the purchase price to the bride's father, are 

 called " pariam." "Kaningadanam," that is to say, "present of a virgin," 

 is the name of the transaction, when a rich sinner gives a sufflcient sum 

 to a poor Brahmin to enable him to marry, or yields up his daughter 

 as a spouse to a poor relative, who is not in a condition to pay the 



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