§34 Whe Roads to the feveral Roads- of India, Book I, 
moft part lafcivious, are rarely bought up by Europeans . 
They have a Way in this Town of working in Gold, upon 
Agat, Cryftal, and other bale Metals, which our Gold- 
fmiths and Lapidaries have not. 
13, In your Journey from Agra to Bengal you come 
fir ft to Beruzabad , then to Sarail-Haimal and Satail-Sokan - 
dria to Sanqual : A League from thence you pafs over the 
River Sangeur upon a Stone-bridge, where thofe that are 
palling from Bengal to Surat may leave the Road to Agra , 
and ferrying over the Gemma , ihorten their Journey en 
Days : But, fmce fome of that Way is very ftony, Tra- 
vellers generally chufe to go by the Way of Agra. From 
this Bridge you go on by the Cheourabad and the Town 
Seraily Cbajeada , and Serail , leaning to Aureng-abad. This 
is a great Town, the Capital of a Province, but it has no 
Walls. The Governor, who is a Prince, has his Refi- 
dence there ; and Aurengzeb commanded there, ’as he did 
at Candich in the Reign of His Father : his firft Wife, 
whom he loved dearly, died in this Town, and as a Mo- 
nument to her, he eredled a lovely Mofque, covered with 
a Dome, and beautified it with four Minerets, or Steeples. 
It is built of white polifhed Stone, which looks almoft like 
Marble. 
It hath feveral pretty Mofques, Inns, and Baths. The 
Buildings are, for the moft part, of Free-ftone, and pretty 
high : Before the Doors grow a great many Trees in the 
Streets, and the Gardens are well cultivated and pleafant, 
affording the Refrelhments of the Fruits, Grapes, and 
Grafs-plats. They have Sheep without Horns, that are 
fo ftrong, that being bridled and faddled, they will carry 
Children of ten omtwelve Years of Age. It is a good 
trading Town, and well peopled, with excellent Ground 
about it. It took its Name, by which it is now called, 
from the prefent Monarch Aureng-Zeb . , who overcame Sul- 
tan Sujab, his Brother, who was Governor of all the 
Provinces of Bengal , in that Place. From thence you pafs 
to Alinchan , and two Leagues farther pafs the Ganges , 
which, though famous in Lliftory, is fo fhallow from 
March to June or July , when the Rains fall, that it will not 
bear a Boat. 
The Water being drank caufeth the Gripes, and there- 
fore the Hollanders that live upon the Banks of it, never 
drink thereof till they have boiled it ; but the Natives are 
fo accuftomed to it, that the King and Court drink no 
other, becaufe they account it lighter than any other Wa- 
ter. The Heathen Indians account the Water of this Ri- 
ver to be facred, and have many Pagods by it, the faireft in 
the Indies ; fo that it may be faid, that here Idolatry is 
moft triumphant. The two chief Pagods are at the Towns 
of Jagarnat and Benevrou : Nothing can be more magnifi- 
cent than they are, by reafon of the great Quantity of 
Gold and many Jewels with which they are adorned. In 
thefe Pagods they keep their Feftivals many Days together, 
and many People repair thither from all Parts of the In- 
dies ^ where they carry their Idols in Triumph, and aft all 
manner of Superftitions by .the Encouragement of the 
Bramins, who are numerous thereabouts, and draw much 
Profit by it. The Ganges is full of pleafant Hands, co- 
vered with lovely Trees, fo that it is moft delicious Sail- 
ing upon it. In thefe Hands, and fome other Places of 
Bengal is a Bird called Meina, whofe Colour is like a Black- 
bird, but as big as a Raven *, it will fpeak like a Starling, 
and imitates the Neighing of a Llorfe exaftly. This Ri- 
ver has received an infinite Number of Brooks and Ri- 
vers from the N. E. and W. into it, and difcharges itfelf 
by feveral Mouths into the Gulph of Bengal , which is 
eight hundred Miles over, and reaches from the 1 8 to the 
22 0 of Latitude. 
14. Having paffed Ganges , you arrive at Hallabas , a 
great City, built upon the Point of Land where Ganges 
and Gemma meet j it is the chief T. own of a Province that 
bears the fame Name. It was, for a long Time, one of 
the Bulwarks of the Kingdom of Patans , and is the fame 
Town which Pliny calls Chryfobacra. It was lubdued to 
the Kingdom of the Mogul ' by King Ecbar , who built a 
ftrong Citadel in it Strengthened with three Walls, of 
which the outermoft is of a very hard red Stone. It is 
adorned with a very ancient Obelifk, above fixty Foot- 
highs that has many Infcriptions, but the Letters are not 
legible. The Mogul has a fair Palace here, and under it 
are certain arched Palaces, where the Pagods of Adam 
and Eve are kept, whole Religion they pretend to follow. 
Hither, at certain Times, come an incredible Number of 
Pilgrims from all Parts of the Indies to vifit thofe Pagods, 
becaufe they fay, Adam and Eve were created here ; but, 
before they approach the Place, which they efteem holy, 
they all wafh themfelves in the Ganges. The Pro- 
vince of Hallabas pays the Mogul yearly fourteen Mil- 
lions. 
At Hallabas there are ufually T roops of Faquirs ^ who call 
themfelves a religious Order among the Indians , and many 
of them praftife the Life of Penitents, forbearing to eat 
many Days, Landing conftantly upon a Stone for feveral 
Weeks or Months, holding their Arms a-crofs over their 
Heads as long as they live, or bury themfelves in a Pit 
for a certain Time ; but others wander up and down 
the Country like Gipfies, committing Robberies and all 
forts of Rogueries *, fome of them will threaten to kill 
themfelves, and fome of them have done it, unlefs the Ban- 
jans would give them what they demand, and fo obtain 
confiderable Sums of them ; for the Banjans abhor Murder, 
and will give any thing to prevent it. The Penitents are 
extremely honoured by the Gentiles , and the rich think 
they draw down Bleffmgs upon themfelves when they give 
to them. 
From Hallabas you pals over a River, where Lands a 
Deroga on each Side, to take notice of what Goods are 
tranfported, there being due for every Waggon-load, four 
Rupees , and every Coach one, and flop all that travel with- 
out a Pafs ; and then go through Take- del- fera, Sadan t 
Sarael , and Bourahi-fera to Benarou. This is a large City 
and handfomely built, moft of the Hcufes being of Bricfe 
or Stone, and higher than in any other Indian City, but 
the Streets are narrow. There are many Inns in the 
To wn, and among the reft one very large and handfomely 
built. In the Midft of the Court are two Galleries, where 
are to be fold Calicuts, Silk, and other Merchandize, and 
under them are Cellars where the Workmen live. All 
the Goods are Lamped with the King’s Seal, before they 
are expofed to Sale. 
The Ganges runs by the Walls on the South-fide, and 
in it is one of the principal Pagods of the Idolaters. About 
five hundred Paces from the City northward, there is a 
Mofque, -where are many Mohammedan Sepulchres, en- 
clofed with a Garden, but there are Holes through the 
Walls half a Foot fquare, for Travellers to look into them. 
The moft confiderable is faid to be that of one of the 
Kings of Bout an. It is a four-fquare Pedeftal, forty Paces 
wide, and, in the Midft of it, a Pyramid thirty-two, or 
thirty-five Foot high, with a great Ball at the Top. All 
the Fronts are full of the Figures of Animals cut in Stone. 
It was once very high, but within fifty Years it is l'unk above 
thirty Foot into the Earth. From Banarou you pals on 
to Baterpour , and fo by Satraguy-fera to Maniachy-fera 5 
in the Road from thence you ford two Rivers called Car - 
nafa-fou and Saod fou , and come to Gourmabad , which 
Lands upon the River Goudsrfa-fou. The City Lands at 
the Foot of certain Mountains, near which is a great Lake, 
and in the Midft of it a fmall Hand, with a fair Mofque 
built upon it, wherein is the Sepulchre of a Nahador Go- 
vernor, called Seleim-Khan , who built it for himfelf when 
he was Governor of the Province. There is a fair Free- 
ftone Bridge to crofs over into the Hand ; and on the Side 
of the Lake is a great Garden, in the Middle of which is 
a fair Sepulchre of the Governor’s Son, who fuccedeed 
his Father in the Government of that Province. Leaving 
Sancerou you ferry over the River Son-fou , which defcends 
from the northern Mountains : Here all Merchandize 
pays certain Toll ; and fo you go on to Daud , Nargar - 
fera , and fo fry Palva-fera and Aga-fera to Patna. This 
is one of the biggeft Cities of India ^ being tv/o Leagues 
long, and Landing on the Banks of Ganges weftward ; but 
the Houfes are no better than in the greateff Part of the 
other Cities, being covered with Bamboo’s, or Straw. The 
Hutch Company have an Houfe there becaufe of their 
Trade in Salt-petre, which they buy up here and refine at 
Choupar , a great Town upon the Ganges , ten Leagues di- 
stant from Patna . ' 
• t The 
