506 
VERTEBRATA. 
EAST INDIAN CARRIAGE DRAWN BY ZEBUS. 
destitute of liorns, and otliers wliicli have only the semblance of them, the external covering being 
unsupported by bony processes, and being consequently flexible and pendulous. 
The zebus bear a charmed life among the weak and superstitious Hindoos, who venerate them 
and hold their slaughter to bo a sin, though they do not object to working them. There are, 
however, some particularly sanctified zebus, who lead an easy life, wandering about the villages, 
and even the cities, as they list, and taking their pleasure and their food where they like, if not 
prevented by the contributions of the devout. They may be seen every day wandering at large 
in the streets of Calcutta, eating rice, grain, and flonr in the bazaar ; and the utmost a native does 
when he sees them honoring his goods too much, is to urge them, by the gentlest hints, to taste 
some of the good things on his neighbor's stall. 
Bayard Taylor tells us that "the narrow streets of the city of Benares are obstructed, in the 
vicinity of the temple, with numbers of these sacred bulls. The place swarms with them, and 
they are as great a nuisance to it as the mendicant friars are to Rome. , They are knowing bulls, 
perfectly conscious of their sacred character, and presume upon it to commit all sorts of depre- 
dations. They are the terror of the dealers in fruits and vegetables, for although not always 
exempted from blows, no one can stand before their horns, and these they do not scruple to use, 
if necessary, to secure their end. Sometimes, on their foraging expeditions, they boldly enter the 
houses, march up stairs, and take a stroll on the flat roofs, where they may be seen looking down 
with a quiet interest on the passing crowds below. From tliese eminences they take a survey of 
the surrounding country, calculate its resources, and having selected one of the richest spots 
within their circle of vision, descend straightway, and set oft' in a bee-line for the place, which 
they never fail to find. 
"When the fields look promising on the other side of the Ganges, they march down to the 
river banks and prevent any passenger from going on board the ferry-boats until they are per- 
mitted to enter. They cross and remain there until the supplies are exhausted, when they force 
a passage back in the same manner. The gardens of the English residents frequently suffer from 
their depredations, and the only eftectual way of guarding against them is to yoke them at once, 
and keep them at hard labor for a day or two, which so utterly disgusts them with the place that 
they never return to it. It is also affirmed that they carefully avoid the neighborhood of those 
butchers who supply the tables of the English, having observed that some of their brethren dis- 
appeared in a miraculous manner, after frequenting such localities." 
