254 ORIENTAL COMMERCE. [Cotcutfa. 



the Old Powder Mills, 10 miles; thence to Raj Gunge, 3 miles; thence to 

 Kidderpore Dock, 7 miles ; thence to Chandpaul Ghaut, S. W. extremity of 

 Calcutta, 3 miles. 



SECTION XXL 

 CALCUTTA. 



CALCUTTA, the principal settlement belonging to the English in 

 the East Indies, and the residence of the Governor-General, to which all 

 their other settlements are subordinate, is situated on the E. bank of the 

 river, in latitude 22° 33' N., and longitude 88° 26' E. 



The town extends along the banks of the river about tour miles and a 

 half ; its breadth in many places is inconsiderable. On landing, and entering 

 the town, a very extensive square presents itself, with a large piece of 

 water in the middle, for the public use. The pond has a grass-plot round 

 it, and the whole is enclosed by a wall with a railing on the top ; the sides 

 of this enclosure ore each nearly five hundred yards in length. The square 

 itself is composed of magnificent houses, which render Calcutta not only the 

 handsomest town in Asia, but one of the finest in the world. One side or 

 the square consists of a range of buildings occupied by persons in the civil 

 service of the Company, and is called the Writers' Buildings. Part of the 

 side towards the river is taken up by the old fort, the first citadel built by the 

 English after their establishment in Bengal. It is no longer used as a 

 fortification ; the ramparts are converted into gardens, and on the bastions, 

 and in the inside of the fort, houses have been built for persons in the service 

 of the Government, particularly the Officers of the Custom House. Between 

 the old fort, and the right wing of the Writers 1 Buildings, is erected a monu- 

 ment in remembrance of the barbarous conduct of the Nabob, on the capture 

 of the fort in 1756. 



There are several churches of the established religion at Calcutta, and 

 also churches for the Portuguese Catholics, another of the Greek persuasion, 

 an Armenian conventicle, a synagogue, several mosques, and a great number 

 of pagodas ; so that nearly all the religions in the world are assembled in 

 this capital. 



