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water, and fountains playing near the open saloons, which pro- 
duced a refreshing coolness, and had a pleasing effect; the gardens, 
according to the season, were filled with balsams, poppies, and 
various flowers, of an equal height, closely planted, and so dis- 
posed, as to resemble a rich Turkey carpet; this formality seems 
to be the acme of Mogul taste. The walks are shaded by cy- 
presses, champacas, and cocoa-nut trees; adorned with oleanders, 
myrtles, pomegranates, roses, jessamine, and odoriferous plants 
peculiar to India. 
The method of watering these extensive gardens, and of drawing- 
water for the purposes of agriculture in this part of India, is simple, 
and more efficacious than the soft showers from a watering-pot, 
which would by no means satisfy the parched and thirsty soil. The 
wells at Surat are large, and deep, enclosed with strong masonry; a 
walk of an easy descent is formed from the surface, ten or twelve 
feet wide, its length corresponding with the depth of the well: on 
the circumference, opposite to each other, are stone pillars, sup- 
porting an horizontal beam, from which is suspended a large 
leathern bucket, running by a strong rope over a pulley; to the 
other end of the rope is fastened a yoke of oxen; which, as they 
descend the sloping walk, elevate the bucket containing the water; 
this is emptied into a reservoir, and from thence conducted by the 
gardeners in small streams, to everj^ tree and shrub in the garden. 
Many of the wells and walks are sufficiently large to admit of two 
or three pair of oxen drawing water at a time; and some of them 
are erected for the public use by charitable individuals, at the 
expense of many thousand pounds. 
The haram, or women’s apartment, at Mahmud-a-Bhaug, is a 
