the day had been excessively hot, passed in a shed through which there was no thorough draught of air. At the other end of the village there were four or five very rude places of worship, only one of which was enclosed in a wall, and might be dignified with the name of pagoda. The others were little stone edifices, answering to the virakulls of Colonel Mackenzie, but just large enough to admit one man, and at the further end each contained a particular idol. In one, Shiva, Parvati, Ganesha, the Yoni, Linga, and Nundi appeared; whilst in another, there was only the Nundi, Yoni, and Linga. By these symbols I understood that the inhabitants were Shaivas; and indeed this is the more prevalent sect among the Hindoos in the West of India. The Brahmins of the place asserted these little altars to be very ancient, and they are certainly not of the form or size of pagodas of the present day. On my return to the village, I met with a civility such as I had never before experienced, and which deserves to be recorded on account of its rarity. One of the Brahmins, with whom I had been conversing during the day, was standing at the door of his house, and he beckoned me to enter. I did so, and was there made acquainted with his mother, his wife, and his child, not to mention a calf, which was an inmate in the family. It may seem strange that this should be a mark of such particular attention; but when it is considered that one of these lords of the creation looks upon a European as little better than a Pariah, or outcast, and that he would be polluted even by his touch, the favour will be duly appreciated. This man affected to know something of palmistry, and, probably with, a view of obtaining some money, he proceeded to exercise his art, by examining my hands after the manner of the gipsies, but I put a stop to his prophecies by requesting him to confine his observations to the past, which, I observed, must be an easier task on his part, while there would be this advantage, that I should be enabled to verify his consummate skill by my own experience. He either guessed, or was told, the period when I had quitted Madras, but being quite at a loss for any other event in my history, was very ready, if not to acknowledge his ignorance, at least to avoid its further exposure. We started from this place as the evening closed, and continued travelling through a hilly country, until we arrived at Kattimallalvadi. Here we were forced again to put up at a smokey old choultry, and, what was worse, inhabited by several noisy and filthy beggars. One old woman, in particular, never ceased talking until day-break, edifying my palanquin-bearers with a long history of her misfortunes. The reason why my bearers did not prosecute their journey through the night, was, that the road was so strong and uneven, that they preferred travelling even through the heat of the day to the risk of wounding their feet in the darkness of the night, for their sandals only protect the soles of their feet, and some do not make use of even this defence. On the following morning (March 9th) I saw more clearly the nature of my habitation, which much resembled an English cowshed, except that by the constant use of fires for cookery, the walls and posts had become quite black with smoke. I walked out, and went round the walls of a fort on the left of the choultry, about 200 yards distant. A man of the village joined me, from whom I learned, that when Seringapatam was taken, this fort was destroyed. It was of a square form, and measured by paces 280 yards on each side. It had been built of stone and mud, but was now completely dilapidated, Still, however, the village remained within, and in this case there were no habitations outside the walls. Dry grain cultivation was carried on to a considerable extent in the neighbourhood, and the land looked clean and well dressed. Early in the morning, several bullocks made their appearance near the choultry, laden with merchandise, and some Native tents were soon pitched, consisting of two legs, as of compasses, at each end, united by a cross pole, over which a piece of canvass was thrown, and fastened to the ground. They belonged, as I learned, to itinerant traders, who came to the villages from the larger towns once a week, thus holding a sort of fair or market day. They sold only the more necessary articles of consumption, such as different sorts of grain, curry stuff, cloths, and crockery ware. We were now obliged to travel by day, notwithstanding the heat, as we could no longer move in safety during the night, on account of the wild elephants and beasts of prey which infest the forests on which we were about to enter. Just as I was on the point of setting out, I witnessed a curious family jar, which, had it happened in higher life, would have been productive of more serious consequences. Aman, who inhabited one of the huts near the choultry, for what cause I could not perceive, gave his wife a severe beating, upon which she immediately resolved to quit his house, and return to her relations, as is usual on such occasions in this country. She had no sooner commenced her journey to the next village, than her son, a youth of fourteen, came forth, and earnestly entreating her to return, endeavouring, on the failure of his persuasions, to lead her back by the arm. This only served to excite greater rage on her part, which she vented, after the manner of her sex in India, by beating and scratching him most unmercifully. At this crisis, a separation seemed inevitable, when suddenly a second female came out from the house, flew towards the offended dame, threw herself at her feet, and by this masterly stroke of silent eloquence, succeeded in settling her into perfect tranquillity in a few seconds. From Mallalivadi we journeyed on towards Periapatam. The road still lay over hilly ground, but there was more brushwood on either side as we advanced, and here and there we passed topes of betel-nut trees. About midway in this stage, we passed along the raised bank, or bund, of a sheet of water, about half a mile wide, formed by a river in a valley, which was by this bank arrested in its course. This lake was almost covered with water fowl of all descriptions, more especially geese, ducks, teal, cranes, and flamingos. I endeavoured to approach them with the gun, but they were too wild, or too wise, to allow me to do them any harm. The method of catching them, which, though I have never seen it practised, I have so often heard described, as to entertain no doubt of the fact, is to set afloat a number of globular earthen pots on those parts of the lake which the birds frequent. In the course of a day or two, they become quite accustomed to these, so that a man with one over his head is enabled to approach near enough by swimming to pull them by the legs under water, where he easily fastens them to loops in a girdle worn for the purpose. In the afternoon we reached Periapatam, or rather a choultry, a little to the right of the town. This appeared sufficiently clean, but we had not been in it above a few seconds before we were covered with fleas. Of these rather inappropriate inhabitants of a house of rest there were myriads swarming on the ground, owing to its having been recently used as a cow-shed. It was impossible to exist in this place, so we immediately moved into the village, where, as it was fair-day, there was much bustle and traffic going on. We at first made towards what we thought a choultry, but on entry, found it to be a small pagoda, with a stone idol in it. All I wanted was a habitation free from vermin, and I could have made myself very comfortable with Swami, my hard-hearted fellow-lodger; but the villagers did not deem me worthy so great an honour, and therefore would not allow me to pollute his sanctuary. As they turned me out, however, they thought proper to find me other accommodation, by putting me into a granary, where there was stored the food for about twenty elephants, belonging to the Rajah of Mysore. In each corner of the room there was a heap of paddy, and care had been taken to put the sand seals upon it.* I walked out in the afternoon, and found Periapatam to be of a respectable size, as its name would import. It is the last village on the Mysore territories, and at some distance from it there is a new and well built stone fort, which I did not visit. This night was the anniversary of a celebrated Hindoo festival, called Shiva Ratri, and soon after I retired to rest in my palanquin, I was awakened by the sound of music near the pagoda, close by. On looking forth, I saw a procession pass, headed by two girls, with brazen vessels on their heads, ornamented with white feathers. * See ́Oriental Herald,' vol. xiv. p. 61. Brahmins and musicians marched in front, torch-bearers * were distributed around, and two persons were furnished with long white cloths, which they laid down in succession before the damsels, that they might not touch the bare ground. As soon as the procession reached the pagoda, the Brahmins entered, and a dispute having arisen about some part of the ceremony, a violent altercation ensued, which lasted so long that I was tired of waiting for its issue, and withdrew again to rest. In all religions of mere ceremony, morality seems to be put quite out of consideration, and so long as the enjoined rites are performed, the votary conceives that he has fulfilled his religious duty. A more marked example could not be adduced than the present, where a number of the priesthood sat down, in the temple of their deity, and thought it no dishonour to him to squabble and abuse each other before his face. on Nor yet,-not yet,-we meet not yet! Our separation has been long; caror But time, which teaches to forget When hearts are cold and hope is young, Whose limpid dews oblivion shed; Or pour its opiate o'er the head? None, none who e'er hath felt the bliss,— Thou art to me the twining plant, To shelter thee, when storms arise; Madras Courier, Feb. 20, 1827. * Torches in India are not made of hemp and pitch, but of cotton rags wrapped round a stick. A flame is constantly kept up by pouring oil on the rags, and for this purpose a copper vessel is used with a narrow neck, out of which only a thin stream of oil can run. Comparison of Egypt with Turkey, addressed from Cairo, to a Lady born in Smyrna, and residing in England. THERE is certainly some truth in the general opinion, that the recollections of our early days are among the most agreeable of sensations, and that the return of infant impressions is gratifying even in age. It was while reflecting on the universal influence of this principle, that I thought of its peculiar application to yourself, who, having often talked to me, while in England, with the most passionate fondness of the cypress-groves and mountains of Smyrna, seemed to dwell upon the recollection of Oriental manners, amidst which your infancy was passed, with a satisfaction that proved how sweet these recollections were. The unchanging customs of the East would have furnished nothing new to offer you on the subject of your native city, which has probably seen no alterations, but in the succession of its inhabitants, ever since your departure from it; but in the metropolis of Egypt some variations exist, and as it is still within the range of the Turkish empire, you will not, I conceive, be averse to their delineation. The local situations of Constantinople, Smyrna, and many of the Grecian cities, chosen with intelligence, and improved by art and cultivation, form, unquestionably, their chief beauty; and independent of the imposing effect on all who approach these capitals, procures to their inhabitants the luxury of summer breezes, and the ever-varying pleasure of marine scenery. The pompously titled city of Grand Cairo is destitute of all these advantages, though situated in a climate where the absence of rain, the variety of clouds, the vicinity of burning deserts, and the more than tropical heat of the atmosphere, would seem to court the aid of such auxiliaries, and render them more than usually delicious. It would occupy too long a discussion to inquire into the cause of such an ill-directed choice, however worthy it may be of examination; but such is the fact, that this proud capital of the Caliphs, known among the Arabs by the appellation of the Great, and figuratively styled the Mother of the World, is built upon a dry and sandy plain, at the foot of the Mokattam hills, whose grey or yellowish surface, unenlivened by a single blade of verdure, fatigue the eye, and, like the rocks of Malta, reflect a burning heat, which, in this southern climate, is still more insupportable. At a distance, too, from the delightful scenery of the Nile, and the fertility of its banks, the houses are supplied with water by a wretched canal, which being stagnant for |