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perfect correspondence to one of those descriptions in Bruce which contributed to destroy all confidence in his veracity, is available in his vindication. This fact is no other than the cutting of pieces of flesh from a living cow, by soldiers who then proceeded to drive the animal forward on their march. The testimony, now no longer questionable, to the existence of such a practice, is here produced in the terms of the deposition:

"On the seventh of February Mr. Pearce went out with a party of the Lasta soldiers on one of their marauding expeditions, and in the course of the day they got possession of several head of cattle. They had fasted for many hours, and still a considerable distance remained for them to travel. Under these circumstances, a soldier attached to the party proposed 'cutting out the shulada' from one of the cows they were driving before them, to which the others having assented, they laid hold of the animal by the horns, threw it down, and proceeded without further ceremony to the operation. This consisted in cutting out two pieces of flesh from the buttock, near the tail, which together weighed about a pound: these appeared to be part of the two glutei maximi,' or 'larger muscles of the thigh.' They then sewed up the wounds, plastered them over with cow dung, and drove the animal forward, while they divided among their party the still reeking steaks. The animal after this barbarous operation, walked somewhat lame, but nevertheless managed to reach the camp without any apparent injury, and, immediately after their arrival, it was killed by the Worari (the denomination of the soldiers of the marauding parties) and consumed for their supper."

AN ABYSSINIAN ELEPHANT HUNT.

Among various other curious particulars is a brief notice of a hunt, or rather massacre, of elephants :

"On one occasion a whole herd of these tremendous animals were found feeding in a valley; and the troops having completely encircled them, no less than sixty-three trunks of these beasts were brought in and laid at the Ras's feet, who sat on a rising ground, which commanded the whole scene, directing his soldiers in the pursuit. During the progress of this dangerous amusement, a considerable number of people were killed, owing to a sudden rush made by these animals through a defile, where a large party had been assembled to stop their advance."

MERCANTILE ADVENTURE.

The concluding part of this volume gives an account of a most vexatious, perilous, and ably conducted enterprise, into which Mr. Pearce had been drawn by the urgency of the English agent from Mocha, in spite of his own decided conviction of its being a desperate undertaking. It was that of giving effect to a project of a trading experiment in Abyssinia, by conveying a quantity of rather costly merchandize by a direct route from Amphila Bay, through the country overrun by those villanous Arabs. After a series of the most harrassing plagues, and the narrowest possible escape from being murdered, he accomplished the enterprise, to the astonishment of the Ras and all the Abyssinians.

A FIFTY-TWO DAYS' FAST.

Our author's visit to the court of Tigré happened to be in Lent, which lasts fifty-two days, with a rigorous and effectual prohibition not only of every kind of meat at all times, but of all food till after sunset, so that towards the end of the season "many of the stoutest," he says, "began to look pallid, and to express an anxious desire for its conclusion.' The whole party attached to Mr. Salt had been absolved from the duty by a priest-" a privilege which it appears the priests of the country are entitled to grant to all persons engaged in travelling, or similar pursuits." It is easy to imagine, or rather perhaps not easy to imagine adequately, the ravenous spirit and execution in which the revenge for all this tyranny of their superstition began on the morning of the fifty-third day, the happy hour of their escape from purgatory, to what we should not have wondered to hear that they denominated heaven. Perhaps the most obvious mischief of the austerities of superstition, is the notion of their high religious merit; but we question whether it be not a still greater mischief, that they tend to magnify, to an indefinite degree, the estimate of the felicity of sensual indulgence-an estimate always so dangerously excessive without any artificial aggravation.

ABYSSINIA ESSENTIALLY CHRISTIAN.

This country, surrounded by the immense empire of

ABYSSINIA ESSENTIALLY CHRISTIAN.

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African barbarism, presents a gratifying and memorable spectacle, a people equally invulnerable to the two grand aggressions on Christianity: that from Rome, and that from Mecca. As to the latter we quote our author :—

"The Mahometan power soon overwhelmed all the countries adjoining Arabia, spread to the remotest parts of East, and penetrated across the unsocial regions of Africa; while Abyssinia, unconquered and true to the Christian faith, remained within two hundred miles of the walls of Mecca, a constant and galling opprobrium to the followers of the prophet. On this account, unceasing and implacable war ravaged her territories; the native princes on the borders being supplied with arms and money, and occasionally rewarded with splendid presents by the reigning sheriffes, whose constant attention was directed towards the conquest of the country."

With respect to the advantage possible to be imparted to a remote nation in the most serious of all its interests, that of religion, it is an extraordinary circumstance, that the first statesman and hero in Abyssinia and the first ecclesiastic concur in avowing a conviction that they want our aid in this concern, in words to this effect: "We all say this is right and that is right, but I believe we shall only wander about in the dark until we receive a lesson from you."

CONJEVERAM, NEAR VELLORE.*

CONJEVERAM is a place of peculiar sanctity with the Hindoos, situated about forty-seven miles west of Madras, on the road to Vellore. Mr. Wathen and his friend visited this depôt of shrines and sacred monkeys with merely the ordinary privileges of Englishmen, which of course were insufficient to open to them any of the secrets of the sanctuary. The scene, nevertheless, presented enough to fill and elate our author's imagination, and offered plenty of subjects to his pencil. A succession of objects captivated his attention by the way; among the rest a strolling party of jugglers, who played some frightful tricks with serpents, and one of whom thrust a short sword down his throat to Journal of a Voyage to Madras and China. By James Wathen. 4to. 1814.

the hilt, a performance perfectly free from all deception. A school taught by a Brahmin presented a spectacle of order, liveliness, and, as far as could be judged, as much readiness in literary as in manual exercises. The groves of tamarind and banian trees, imparted the most luxurious sensations. The ground on each side of the embowered road, near Conjeveram, was thickly planted with odoriferous shrubs and the most beautiful flowers; the air was perfumed by their odour, and the scene altogether realized the description of the groves of Shadaski, in the Tales of the Genii.*

MAGNIFICENT PAGODA AND TEMPLE.

"Our admiration was extreme when, on entering the gateway, we saw the great number of buildings, of costly materials, and of more costly workmanship, which glittered before us. One in particular claimed our admiration. It was a monumental pillar, erected by a Brahmin, who was at the time of our visit the chief priest of this pagoda, to the memory of his father. The pillar was made of copper, richly gilt with burnished gold, was thirty feet high, and about six in diameter at the base; it stood on a pedestal twelve feet in height, with steps to the shaft of the pillar. Not far from the golden pillar stood a large, spacious, and beautiful temple, which was the largest of all the numerous buildings within the walls. We ascended into it by a flight of twelve steps. The roof at the entrance is supported by pillars twelve feet high, each pillar being ornamented by grotesque, and some disgusting figures. The interior of the buildings is disposed into four long aisles, or passages extending from the one end to the other. We were permitted to walk through one of the aisles, and had an opportunity of seeing the vast extent, richness, and beauty of the building. It contained one thousand pillars; each pillar, highly ornamented, supports six lamps, which are all lighted at some of the festivals celebrated in honour of Vishnou. These festivals are not permitted to be seen by any but the worshippers of Vishnou."

The town appears to consist chiefly of a regular street, nearly a mile long, with verandahs, and fine trees planted in front of the houses, which, being for the most part inhabited by people who have business with the gods, are, as might be expected, more handsome and commodious than the houses of ordinary towns. The Choultry where the Englishmen

* A series of oriental fictions, written by the Rev. James Ridley, son of Dr. Gloster Ridley, and lately republished in Bohn's Illustrated Library, at 5s.-ED.

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were to lodge, was found in the full occupancy of "white and brown spotted squirrels, and a species of crows, all perfectly tame and familiar." A little less of this familiarity would sometimes have been more agreeable to their visitors, on whose viands they committed alarming depredations. The extensive garden also was found to be inhabited, but by a tribe whose familiarity would have been considerably less amusing. It was in a neglected state, and over-run with long thick grass of luxuriant growth. "Attempting to explore this enclosure, they were soon obliged to relinquish their design, perceiving that at every step they disturbed large snakes and other noisome reptiles, the curse of this in other respects most happy climate."

LOFTY PAGODA DEDICATED TO SEEVA.

Much as Vishnou has to show in this consecrated territory, he is forced to acknowledge himself in the neighbourhood of his betters. The loftiest structure attests the superiority of Seeva. From a basis of great extent, this edifice towers up to its summit by fifteen stories or stages, progressively contracting in horizontal dimensions nearly to the top, and each ascended by a ladder of fifteen rounds. No satisfactory inspection, however, was permitted of the form or contents of the interior. But certainly nothing to be seen there would have deserved a look in comparison with what he was so elated in contemplating from the summit, and has really thrown himself into a little extravagance of language in celebrating.

Το

"Never had I witnessed so beautiful and so sublime a prospect. It so far surpassed every idea which I had or could have formed of its grandeur and effect, that I was almost entranced in its contemplation. I forgot all the world beside, and felt as if I could have continued on this elevated spot for ever. whichever point of the compass I turned, the view was equally wonderful, new, and enchanting. The eye of man, I am persuaded, never could, from any other spot in the universe, survey a scene more grand, beautiful, and interesting. I distinctly saw above forty villages, with their pagodas and temples, embosomed in trees of the most lively verdure, presenting every shade of green according to the distance; each village having its spacious tank, glistening like a mirror. I could even discern the tombs adorned with drooping cypresses, and distinguish some of the villages at the extreme distance of near forty miles."