715 
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rain commences a little earlier, and fets in from the fouth- 
eall quarter: it is ufually very copious, and ends towards 
the middle of Oftober, arid at this time the rivers are 
very fubjeft to overflow' their banks. On the Tides of the 
mountains there is a confiderable variety of temperature; 
and in three or four days the traveller may exchange, by 
moving from Noakote to Khenoo, the heat of Bengal for 
the cold of Rufiia. The falubrity of the more elevated 
fummits is indicated by the afpeft of the inhabitants. 
The guttural tumours, fimilar to the goiters of the Alps, 
and called in Hindooftan ghaigha, and in Nepaul gunoo, 
to which the inhabitants are fubjeft, are afcribed by many 
of them to the imagination of their pregnant women, 
who conftantly fee the protuberant pouches of monkeys, 
with which part of the country abounds, and which, ac¬ 
cording to a prevalent fuperftition, it w'ould be an aft of 
the greateft impiety to dislodge. 
It was formerly thought that Nepaul contained gold 
mines; but, although this is not the cafe, it produces 
almoft every other metal; its iron is admirable; but copper 
fcarce and dear. Near Ghoorka there is faid to be a con¬ 
fiderable mafs of rock-cryftal; and limellone, as well as 
Hate, abounds every-where. However, here are no lime¬ 
kilns ; and the cement employed is mud, which is preferred 
for their buildings. The cattle, generally fpeaking, are 
not much fuperior to thofe commonly met with in Bengal 
and the upper provinces. The honey is excellent; but 
the vegetables are of the word kind. A lpecies of yam, 
called tooral, and a kind of wild afparagus, denominated 
Jturaila, form a conliderable part of the fubfiftence of the 
poor. 
The inhabitants confift principally of the two fuperior 
claffes of Hindoos, and of a race called the Neivars, who 
are probably of Tartar or Chinefe origin. The former 
are generally difperfed ; but the latter are confined almoft 
entirely to the valley of Nepaul Proper. The DJienwars 
and M/ianjees are the hufbandmen and fifliersof the weftern 
diftrift; and the Blwotias occupy, generally fpeaking, fuch 
parts of the Kucha as are included in the Nepaul territo¬ 
ries. The Bhanras are a fort of feparatifts from the 
Bhootias, and are fuppofed to amount to about 5000. 
They Ihave their heads, like the Bhootias; obferve many 
of the religious rites, as well as civil cuftoms, of thefe 
idolaters, in a dialeft of wliofe language they are faid to 
preferve their facred writings. The total population is 
cftimated at about half a million. 
As Nepaul has been governed for many centuries paft 
by Rajapoot princes, and as Hindoos in their various 
claiTes have conftituted their chief population, it is natural 
to expeft that a general refemblance fliould fublift, with 
regard to cuftoms and manners, between this portion of 
its inhabitants and the kindred lefts eftablilhed in the 
adjacent countries. The differences are flighter than 
might be expefted, when it is confidered that Nepaul is 
the only Hindoo country that has never been difturbed 
by any Muflulman power. The Hindoos, however, and 
the Newars, differ very confiderably : the latter are rarely 
employed in their armies; their occupations are agricul¬ 
ture, arts, and manufaftures; they are capable of great 
labour, and evince a very confiderable degree of Ikill in 
their mechanical operations. They are, in general, of 
middle fize, with broad flioiilders and chefts, very flout 
limbs, round and rather flat faces, fmall eyes, low and 
fomewhat fpreading nofes, and open cheerful counte¬ 
nances. At Bhatgong feme of the women have a florid 
tint upon their cheeks; but, for the moft part, their com¬ 
plexion, like that of the men, is between a fallow and a 
copper-colour. The Newar women (like the Nairs) have 
as many hulbands as they pleafe, being allowed to divorce 
them often on the flighteft pretences. 
In a work lately publilhed, called “ Sketches in India, 
written in 1811-14,” we meet with an account of a very 
lingular clafs of people, in the hilly part of the country, 
which does notfeem to be included under any of the de¬ 
nominations we have given from other authorities, “ The 
A U L. 
moft extraordinary objefts I witneffed in thefe mountains 
(fays the author) were the Troglodytes, or dwellers in 
caves, with the natural excavations in which they refided. 
Often while in the midft of lavage nature, and furrounded 
by nearly inacceffible mountains, have 1 been aftonifhed 
by the appearance of thefe people, who, creeping from 
their holes, with fmall ladders of ropes delcend and mount 
with rapidity the moft dangerous precipices. I had feverr.l 
times the curiofity to enter thefe fingulardwellings,formed 
and fafhioned in the hard rock. In feme I could ftand 
upright, and take four or five fteps each way. The gene¬ 
rality, however, were very fmall, and but miferably fup- 
plied the convenience of a hut. I found their inhabitants 
invariably civil. They are, I furmife, of the ancient Gym- 
nofophifts, or naked wanderers : not that all of them par¬ 
took of this diftinftion, but that the generality bore a 
ftrong refemblance to this feft, of which the members are 
met with oftener in the northern parts of India than elfe- 
where. The natives will, however, affure you, that con¬ 
fiderably farther in the interior they exift totally uncivi¬ 
lized ; and, without entertaining the remoteft idea of a. 
God or a future ftate, alternately live in trees or caves, 
crawl as beafts, and feed on roots and other fpontaneous 
produftions of the earth. But, if the human fpecies exift 
at all in fo degraded a ftate, (and I think it very doubtful,) 
it furely cannot be in Thibet ; or at leaft if the remainder 
is in any way fnnilar to the parts through which my friend 
and myfelf travelled : for, even in the midft of the fecond 
range of mountains into which we penetrated, large vil¬ 
lages were frequent, and every thing befpoke civilization, 
if not much refinement. The file of the beautiful women 
born in thefe hills forms a lucrative trade to their relations 
and friends. Of matchlefsfymmetryof body and regularity 
of features, their countenances in clearnefs and delicacy 
rival thofe of Europeans. A hundred and fome eighty 
rupees will purchafe a fine girl of twelve or fourteen, juft 
riling to maturity. Such have I often feen both bought 
and fold, even within the limits of the company’s pro¬ 
vinces ; and the jealous reftriftions impofed on their traffic 
are eafily eluded by the joy of the (lave to efcape from a 
ftate of ftarvation and the bittereft diftrefs, to the comforts, 
kind treatment, and luperfluities, attendant on European 
proteftion.” 
The popular religion of Nepaul differs in no refpeft 
from the Hindooifm eftablifhed in Bengal, except fo far 
as the fecluded nature of the country may have tended 
to preferve it in a ftate of greater purity. Father Giufeppe 
fays, that the religion of Nepaul is of two kinds; the one 
ancient, profefled by many people who call themfelves 
BaryeJus; thefe pluck out all the hair from their heads; 
their drefs is of coarfe red woollen cloth, and they wear 
a cap of the feme; they are confidered as people of the 
religious order; and they are prohibited by their rel^ion 
from marrying, as it is with the lamas of Thibet, from 
which country their religion was originally brought; but 
in Nepaul they do not obferve this rule, except at their 
own difcretion. They have large monafteries, in which 
each has a feparate apartment; they alfo obferve particular 
feftivals, the principal of which they call Yatra, which 
continues a month, or longer, at the pleafure of the king. 
The ceremony conlifts in drawing an idol, called Baghero, 
in a large and richly-ornamented car, covered with gilt 
copper; round the idol ftand the king and the principal 
Baryefus; and thus the vehicle is drawn almoft every day 
through fome one of the ftreets by the inhabitants, who 
run about beating and playing upon every kind of in- 
ftrument their country affords, which makes an incon¬ 
ceivable noife. The other religion, which is the moft 
common of the two, is that of the Brahmins, or Hin- 
dooilm, as already ftated. 
The government of Nepaul is defpotic. The choutra' 
is the prime minifter of the rajah, to whom he is invariably 
a-kin. He tranfefts the bufinefs of the country; and for 
his fervices he has, befides his jaghires, eight annas on 
every kaitli or rice-plantation throughout the country; 
and! 
