dious animal conceals itself among the branches of trees, whence it darts rapidly on the cattle grazing below, generally aiming at the eye. It does not often attack man, but rather glides from his approach. The Hindoos, Mr. Pennant says, have the same notion as the Arabs have, of its being a flying serpent: it is the oëhatulla (i.e. oculis infestus) of Ceylon, the volucer serpens of Lucan, and probably the " fiery flying serpent" of the Hebrews.* Besides these, Mr. Pennant mentions "the poison-snake, two feet long, very slender, and freckled with pale brown or red," the bite of which occasions almost instantaneous death; the Ceylonese ninypolonga, or asp, which kills by inducing endless sleep; and " the burning serpent," so called from its producing by its bite the sensation of “raging fire."+ The rubdira mandali (hæmorrhoïs), a large species, is said to cause the blood to flow through the pores of its victim. A similar effect is ascribed to the bite of the 66 * Isa. xxx. 6; xiv. 29. In Greek, acontias. They are mentioned by Pliny, N.H. lib. viii. 23—“ Jaculum ex arborum ramis vibrari, ncc pedibus tantum cavere serpentes, sed et missili volare tormento." They are described by Niebuhr, and are common to India, Egypt, and Arabia. † Pennant, vol. i. pp. 101, 197-200. This is probably the same species as the leffah of Shaw, a viper so called from leffah, to burn (Shaw's Travels, p. 179); or the " torrida dipsas." "A violent pain and intense burning along the bitten arm, was felt by a man bitten by a small brown snake called visiyen pamboo: on application of remedies, he was restored."-Pennant, vol. ii. p. 279. A fiery bite is ascribed by the ancients to several reptiles; and the saraph of the. Arabian desert, (Numb. xxi. 6. Deut. viii. 15,) probably owed its name to the same circumstance, rather than to its fiery colour. "At Rajamundry, two soldiers were bitten by a small snake scarcely six inches long, and not thicker than a large goose-quill, of a dark stone colour. Its very small eyes shone like diamonds. It did not creep, but sprung forward a foot at a time. The effect of the bite was loss of sight, a sleepiness that nothing could prevent, and a deep stupor which ended in death." This is perhaps the asp of Ceylon. katuka-rekula-poda, which is probably the same species of coluber. The cobra de duas cabeças, or two-headed coluber of the Portuguese, is a snake with a head and tail of similar size and appearance. Other genera (or at least other names of serpents) might be added to this terrific catalogue. Many of the Indian serpents, however, are harmless. Of forty-three species examined by Dr. Russell, seven only were found with poisonous organs.+ The serpents of Gujerat are, Mr. Forbes says, more numerous and varied than even those of Bombay and the Malabar coast. Many are of large size; especially a species which seemed peculiarly partial to the shrubs and creeping plants which overshadowed a large well in the Author's garden. These, the native gardeners would neither destroy, nor suffer to be molested, as they looked upon them to be the genii or guardians of the place, and "often invoked them under the endearing appellations of father, mother, and other respectful and affectionate epithets." It will not be expected, that we should attempt even to enumerate the insect tribes; much less to describe the character and beauty of "the papilios, libellulæ, scarabæi, cicada, cantharides, and other insects which animate the groves and gardens throughout the day," and are succeeded by a similar variety of nocturnal visiters. The fire-flies (lampyris) glitter by thousands in the dark recesses of the banyan-tree; and the spreading tamarind and other trees are sometimes so com * Malte Brun, vol. iii. p, 42. Pennant, vol. ii. p. 278. † Forbes's Orient. Mem., vol. i. p. 45. The outward application of eau de luce, and a quantity of warm Madeira wine taken inwardly, are stated to be generally effectual in curing the bite of the "The Tanjore pill" is recommended as not less most venomous. efficacious.", Forbes, vol. ii. p. 244. pletely covered with them as to appear like "pyramids of light." The creeping-leaf and some others of the mantis class, are extremely curious. India abounds with wasps and bees: the latter build their nests in rocky caverns and hollow trees, and produce abundance of wax and honey, which were in ancient times articles of export, but the best is now imported from Muskat. The true silk-worm (phalana mori) does not appear to be a native of India, and has only found its way into the country in modern times. A strong and useful silk is obtained, however, from the cocoon of the phalana atlas, which inhabits the orange-tree, and a beautiful sea-green worm which feeds on the ricinus, and has received the name of the phalœna ricini. The coccus lacca, and other species of that order, rank also among the insect labourers. Among the predatory tribes, the ants, black and white, form one of the severest scourges of the country. They march in large armies, and in a few hours commit terrible depredations.* The visits of the locust are also much dreaded in some parts of India. Spiders, large and small, butterflies of the most brilliant colours, scorpions, mosquitoes, and myriads of minute winged tormentors; cray-fish, and numberless testaceous animals; corals and polypi; unite to form a list which only a practised naturalist would have courage sufficient to encounter. Forbes, vol. i. pp. 41, 45. Pennant, vol. ii. pp. 272, 275. HISTORY OF INDIA. THE history of India naturally divides itself into three parts; the ancient history, the Mohammedan annals, and the history of the European colonies. India, properly speaking, is only the geographical designation of the country; it has never been the name of an empire: at least, the whole of what now bears the name, has never been permanently united under one monarchy. It has been peopled by distinct races, partially conquered and colonized by various nations; and the differences of dialect, as well as the natural divisions of the country, support the tradition, that it anciently comprehended at least as many as ten independent states. According to the Brahmins, the ten great kingdoms of Bharat-kand were the following: 1. Sareswata ........ Comprehending the Punjaub. 2. Canyacubja ...... Comprehending Delhi, Oude, Agra, and 3. Tirhoot ... Extending from the Cusi to the Gunduk. 4. Bangala or Gaura.. Comprehending Bengal and part of Bahar. Comprising Gujerat and part of Khandeish and Malwah. .......... 5. Grijara 6. Utcala........ Comprehending Orissa, &c. to the Goda very. 7. Maharashta...... Comprising Khandeish, Berar, Aurungabad. 8. Telingana 19. Karnata 10. Dravira ........ Lying chiefly between the Godavery and Comprising all the table-land south of the The Tamul countries, comprising the Pe- Corresponding to these general divisions, Mr. Colebrooke enumerates ten distinct polished dialects, which he supposes to have anciently prevailed among as many civilized nations. These are: 1. the Pracrit, properly so called, or the vernacular Sanscrit, spoken by the Saraswata nation; 2. the Hindee, spoken by the Canyacubjas; 3. the Tirhutiya, or Maithila, which has a close affinity to, 4. the 'Bengalee, or Gaura; 5. the Gurjara, nearly allied to the Hindee; 6. the Utcala, Ooriya, or Orissa;* 7. the Mahratta; 8. the Telinga; 9. the Karnata or Carnara; † and 10. the Tamul. All these are either mere dialects of the Sanscrit, or are considerably mixed with that language. In the Hindee, however, and some others, there are traces of a distinct idiom, having no apparent affinity to the Sanscrit, and thought to be the remains and ground-work of an original language. The Punjabee dialect, spoken by the Sikhs, appears to be either the same as the Saraswata, or to be formed from it. The Brij-bhassa, or Vraja-bhasha, is a variety of the Hindee, containing a larger proportion of Sanscrit : it is spoken in the upper provinces, especially in the Doab.‡ Besides these, Cashmere has a dialect peculiar to itself; and the Magadha or Pali, the learned language of Ceylon and the Birman empire, may be added to the enumeration, as the ancient vernacular dialect of Bahar; but this, too, is Sanscrit, with scarcely any variation. The Hindostanee is a mixed language, varying greatly in different parts: the genuine Hindostanee is apparently a mixture of Hindee with Persian and Arabic; § but the barbarous jargon which * The Serampore Missionaries calculate, that the Hindee, the Brij-Bhassa, the Mahratta, the Bengalee, and the Orissa, the vernacular dialects of Central India, are spoken by upwards of 50,000,000. + The junction of the three languages, the Mahratta, the Telinga, and the Karnata, is said to take place somewhere about the city of Beeder in the Deccan. Asiatic Researches, vol. iv. pp. 219-231. § M. Malte Brun says: "The dialect of Central Indostan " (by which he seems to mean the Hindee), "mixed with that of the Afghâns or Patans, and with that of the Mongolian armies, has given birth to the idiom formerly spoken at the Mogul court, and still prevalent among the Mohammedans of India. It should be called the Mongol-Hindostanee, but is generally known by the name of the Moorish or Moors' language." The Cashmerian, he asserts, makes the nearest approach to the ancient Sanscrit. The |