the office of collector of the twenty-four pergunnahs, which formed the district surrounding the metropolis. But still he followed the business of a Sirdar, and acted in that capacity to Sir Charles Wroughton. He served others too, such as senior merchants, and young civilians, by himself or through deputies. Whilst to all who employed him, he was the acquiescent, subservient slave, yet in his own house he was quite a different being, living in luxury, and competing with the most exalted members of society in the splendour of his household. The author conducts us to the noble mansion of the Baboo, in the bazaar of Aleepoor, presenting him under the following brilliant circumstances.

'Along the centre of the apartment, a magnificent Brussels carpet was spread the whole way, and upon this again, towards the upper end, a rich Persian rug, on which several silken mattrasses, bolsters, and cushions were scattered, covering about twelve feet square of the floor. Three brilliant chandeliers of cut glass hung down from the ceiling, and couches and ottomans, with furniture of crimson damask, were arranged in all parts about the chamber.

66 6

Ramanund,' said the Baboo, throwing himself luxuriously upon the mattrasses and cushions which his Sirdar had been making up into a comfortable pile; Fill up a cup of water, sweetened as thou well knowest how.'

'Here the Baboo reposed himself from the labours of the day, by lying for half-an-hour in that complete abstraction, which so delights the mind of a reflective Hindoo. The only object, the presence of which seemed to strike his consciousness, was the silver cup brought by Ramanund, the contents of which were as transparent as water, but by the smack of tongue, that succeeded every mouthful, there seemed some secret and very palatable chemistry in the mixture. At last the Baboo returned to animated life, and called for his Sirdar bearer. With repeated salams, the menial came, and proceeded to take off the several folds of fine muslin from his master's person, until he had stripped him to his kumurbund. 'Bring the rice,' said the Baboo; and as he spoke, the Sirdar brought in a huge brazen ewer, filled with water, and placing it by his master's side, departed with the cast-off clothes. After freely applying the water to his face and hands, the luxurious Baboo again stretched his great naked limbs, and placed his broad back upon the soft cushions, which were always at hand, and in this comfortable attitude, he awaited his repast. This was not long in being brought. A string of servants soon entered, bringing numerous flat dishes, which were placed in rows on each side of the mattrass. There were two or three platters of hot rice, some plain, some spiced. There was a dish of fresh mango-fish, another of Italian sardines, and there were numerous small plates of French preserved fruits, as well as native sweetmeats. In short, the Baboo seemed a man, who, if he obeyed the prohibitions of his religion in great things, knew well how to bring the petites delices within the pale. The sole beverage which he sipped during the repast, came from the cup filled, and often replenished by Ramanund.

Slowly and deliberately did this descendant of the self-mortifying

Brahmins of yore, proceed through the enjoyment of eating, so that by the time he thrust his hands into the brazen ewer for the last time, the bearer had lighted up the chandeliers.

"Well, Ramanund,' said the Baboo, when the whole ceremony was finished; call the Sirdar, and ask the hurkarus if any body requires an audience. Yet, Bhye, bring back thy cup again replenished.'

"The Sirdar instantly appeared with an ample jama of the finest Dhaka muslin, as white as snow. This dress was adjusted with care, and along with it, the Baboo seemed to put on a new dignity. Then receiving from the hands of his servant a red morocco case, the Baboo took from it a piece of jewellery, representing a lotus-branch, the flower of which was composed of splendid diamonds, and placed it in the front of his turban." Vol, i. pp, 314—317.

The Baboo was thus in his proper costume for receiving visitors or messengers, and in the scene which follows, he is represented as conducting himself towards a Sepoy, who had been admited to him, like a descendant of Charlemagne.

In the meantime, the Hindoo woman Dilafroz, whom Forester had determined to abandon, went to Calcutta, and hearing of his restoration to the society of Eva, gave vent to her jealousy. She caused her own female attendant to offer herself as a servant in the Wroughton family, in order to act as a spy on the conduct of Eva. The Baboo, however, accidentally becomes acquainted with Dilafroz, and contrives a scheme for carrying her off, and placing her in his own house. The plan succeeded, and she fell into the power of the Sirdar. Forester heard all this, and he interested himself much about the female and the child, but the Baboo never allowed him to put any questions. Forester took the Bengal fever, and having partially recovered, was sent to the Sandheads for the sea air: here he remained for a month, in a pilot schooner. Whilst at this place, he accidently met with a stranger, with whom he conversed, and who began to speak a great deal about the discipline and management of the Arab ships which frequented the port of Calcutta, bound for Mecca, with pilgrims. It turns out that this stranger saw Forester's mistress, Dilafroz, and child, in one of these ships, and from his account, there was reason to conclude, that they had been kidnapped and put on board. Forester hastened to Calcutta, and finding there an uncle of Dilafroz, they resolved to pursue the Arabian fleet. But it had long sailed, and no ship was about to take a voyage in the same direction. The Monsoon threatened, and all hope of recovering Dilafroz was lost. In some time afterwards, an Arab ship returned to Calcutta, bringing a letter from Dilafroz, in which she gave a complete history of all that had occurred since her abduction by the Baboo. She stated, that on the night when she was inveigled to the country residence of the Baboo, she was visited by the accursed proprietor, but wine and drunkenness prevented him from accomplishing his

wicked purpose. She then tried to induce an Islam servant, who gave her her meals, to assist in her escape; he agreed to do so, but finally acted as the agent of the Baboo. The latter became fearful of the consequences to his own character, should Dilafroz remain in India at all, and he resolved to dispose of her. Taking advantage then of the confidence which she put in the Islam servant, he contrived that whilst she believed that she was making her escape, she was only pursuing the course which was most favourable to his plan. In the night-time, Dilafroz and her son, were led out of their prison to a boat, in which they were accommodated with a doolee (a palankeen). Towards morning, the doolee, which she was previously told was to be lifted up on the shore when they came to Calcutta, was certainly raised in this way, but when it was deposited as she thought on the ground, she opened the door and found herself on board an Arab ship, bound for Jedda, in the Red Sea. She describes, in glowing terms, the horrors of her situation, but there was no redress, as the ship was too far out at sea to allow the possibility of her returning. Resigned to her fate she removed to the upper cabins, and sat gazing wistfully on the sea. There was a holy person on board, of great reputation, for sanctity and wisdom. He witnessed her distress and tried to console her. His eloquence and feeling influenced her mind so strongly, that she beheld the errors of her life, and took a solemn vow, by which she renounced her former connexion for ever." My heart," she writes," was immediately relieved from a heavy burthen, and comparative cheerfulness returned unto me, and for the remainder of the voyage, I sat discoursing with the Molavee, on the duties of my situation on earth: my boy, too, talked of the pilgrimage before us, the opportunity of making which had so evidently been given to myself, by the Divine favour. Verily, my mind was at ease on all things, except only for this one, that my boy had not been brought up to the faith of his mother and her ancestor : I consulted the Moolavee on this point, and he proved to me that it was the Divine Will that the child should make the great pilgrimage with me, and that to do so, he must be admitted into the pale of Islam. I thought of his father, and of the place his father holds amongst the chiefs of the land, and it has ever been the fond wish of my heart, that he too should follow in his father's steps. But from this career he was now cut off, and for the present he is known only by the name of Moobaruk; may God accept him hereafter, and keep his heart faithful. Thus was the Almighty's Will declared, during my voyage to Arabia."

It is mentioned by her that the commander of the ship (no doubt by Baboo's commands) made a demand on her for the expenses of the voyage, and detained her until they were paid. All she had to beg of Forester was, that he would bring up their child in her own religion.

Having in this manner disposed of Dilafroz, the author of course concludes by handing over Forester to Eva. The parties are married, but with a degree of privacy well suited to the occasion.

It will be seen that in the conduct of this tale, neither probability nor nature is much consulted, and, therefore, with respect to the merits of the work as one of imagination, we have no reason to speak of it with commendation. We have noticed it merely for the purpose of pointing out a source of information calculated to illustrate our acquaintance with that strangely complicated social system which exists amongst our countrymen in India; for it is not by actual description of realities that we may expect to acquire it, such is its peculiarity. We can only know it by the familiar pictures of domestic scenes, by the representations of individual characters, drawn by persons, as in the present case, experienced in Indian society.

ART. VII.-A Residence in the West Indies and America, with a Narrative of the Expedition to the Island of Walcheren. BY THOS. STAUNTon St. CLAIR, Lieut.-Colonel Unattached. In 2 vols. large 8vo. with Plates. London: Bentley.

1834.

THE uniform good humour, the spirit, and ability displayed by Colonel St. Clair in these volumes, would constitute, by themselves, a very choice attraction for most readers; but, united with the strange and varied history of his adventures, they become perfectly irresistible.

Luckily for the Colonel, the circumstances of his parents offered no obstacle to the gratification of an early passion which he conceived for a military life, and in 1803, young St. Clair found himself gazetted as an ensign in the 1st Regiment, or the Royals. His father was a relation of the Earl of Rosslyn, and he himself, though of Scottish parents, was born in Gibraltar. After his appointment to the ensigncy, he was allowed to remain at home, where he devoted himself to professional studies; and in August, 1804, joined his regiment at Hamilton, near Glasgow, as lieutenant. The regiment into which he was inducted was under the command of the Duke of Kent, who, with all his talents and virtues, was certainly a complete military tartar. History gives him a very unenviable place, indeed, as Governor of Gibraltar. The Duke had a book of regimental instructions expressly for his corps; but it required the attention of officers and men to so many trivial matters, that the work was laughed at. Writing, the Colonel tells us, was the Duke's great hobby: but it was not the only one, for he made his regiment at Hamilton complete Germans, both in dress and discipline. Their hair was commanded to be cut after a most outrageous pattern: a string was drawn from one ear to the other, over

the top of the head, and then all the hair on the forehead-side of this line was cropped as close as possible, while the other section was not only allowed to remain, but was carefully encouraged in its growth for the purpose of ultimately converting it into a queue.

At last an order came down for young St. Clair to go with some other officers to the West Indies, to join the first battalion of the regiment. He was highly delighted at the intelligence, and particularly when he found that his Colonel (the Duke of Kent) had sent him a letter of recommendation, to be delivered by him to Sir Wm. Myers, then the Commander-in-Chief of the Carribee and Windward Islands. This letter, which we extract, is calculated to raise a high admiration of the good sense and benevolence of the late Duke.

"DEAR SIR WILLIAM,

"The bearer of this letter, Lieut. Thomas St. Clair, of my first battalion, is a young man in whose welfare I am most particularly and warmly interested, from the friendship I bear his parents, from whom I received every mark of kindness and attention when first I commenced my services with the British troops at Gibraltar, sixteen years ago, at a time when I landed in that garrison, a stranger to every individual in it, and unaccompanied by any one person on whom I had ever set eyes before I embarked on board of the ship that took me there. You will easily conceive, therefore, how grateful I must feel for the hospitality and friendship shown me at such a time, and how much I must be interested about this young man, then an infant, whom I had almost every day in my arms, and who served, from the amusement his infantine tricks afforded me, to beguile many an hour, which would otherwise have been at least tedious, not to say melancholy, from the particular circumstances under which I first went out there.

Having said this, I will now proceed to mention to you, that for some years past my young protégé has been in a very deplorable state of health, from which, even at this present moment, I can hardly consider him thoroughly recovered; indeed, in my own opinion, he ought still to be regarded and treated as being only in a state of convalescence. I am, therefore, not without some degree of apprehension, that, although it is both to be hoped and expected, from the time in which he will arrive, that he will not suffer from the change of climate while the cool season continues, he may feel some return of his complaint, which has been a pectoral one, when the hot weather sets in, in the month of June next. Should my fears on this head be realised, my request to you is, that you would then grant him immediate leave to come home, in order to escape the unhealthy season, and I will in return, on my part, pledge myself that in October he shall, if his health be re-established, go back to his duty. From what I have said, you will easily understand that I have the case of this young man much at heart, and I am certain I need add no more to ensure your kind attention to him, than that I shall ever most gratefully acknowledge any and every act of kindness done by you to him.

"As I shall have occasion to address you concerning my regiment by the next mail on the first Wednesday in the month, I will not at present