44 
NOTE ON A TOUf? IN MYSOEE. 
tile plain, and, at the entrance to tlie village, one is greeted 
by a well carved figure of Ganesa. There being no rest- 
house, the night was past, in the company of owls, beneath 
the shelter of one of the two stone bulls (jSTandi), each of 
which is contained in a large open pavilion. At Halebid 
there are two temples, Hoysaleshwara and Kaitabeshwara, 
between and around which are unromantic castor-oil plan- 
tations. And in the fields between them is a Jain basti, 
which would attract more attention were it not swamped 
by the magnificence of the Hindu temples of these, which 
were built by the same architect, Jakanatha, and on the 
same lines of sculpture as the temple at Belur. The Hoy- 
saleshwara is in good preservation, though many of the 
sculptured figures of the base are broken, and a luxurious 
growth of green a7id white fungi is producing sad disfigure- 
ment. The natives, on the evidence of sasanams, say that 
the temple is 1000 years old j but fact places the building 
of it in the 12th century. The Kaitabeshwara is in a 
partially ruined state owing to the dislodging of many of 
the stones by a Fig tree which took root in the vimanah. 
This tree is figured by Fergusson, in a wood-cut made from 
a photograph, with its roots buried between the stones. 
Lying scattered on the ground are masses of sculptured 
stones in chaotic disorder, which should be preserved iu 
some museum for the benefit of future generations. But, 
even in its ruined state, the temple bears testimony to the 
marvellous skill of the sculptors. 
Journeying on from Halebid 1 went on to Banavar, which 
consists of a series of scattered villages, one of which is 
inhabited entirely by native Christians, in an open country 
iu which an abundance of Pn1m trees of various kinds pre- 
vails. From Banavar tv:iiu n\ as taken to liirur, and from 
there the distance of oo miles to Shimoga, through varied 
hill and jungle scenery, was quickly accomplished by pony 
