SPORTING.
A little while ago a party of officers went out from Cuttack to shoot. Their men were beating the jungle, when suddenly all the wild cry ceased, and a man came gliding to where all the sahibs were standing to tell them that there was a tiger lying asleep in his den close at hand. A consultation was instantly held; most of the party were anxious to return to Cuttack, but Captain B. insisted on having a shot at the animal. Accordingly he advanced very quickly until he came to the place, when he saw—not a tiger, but a large leopard lying quite still, with his head resting on his fore paws. He went up close and fired, but the animal did not move. This astonished him, and on examination he found that the brute was already dead. One of his companions had bribed some Indians to place a dead leopard there and to say that there was a tiger asleep. You may imagine what a laugh there was, though it was very wrong of the Europeans to encourage the natives to say what was not true.
Since then a large party has been out from Cuttack on a shooting excursion: they found five leopards, two sambres (the largest species of deer), and four of the Indian bisons or ghyal, of whose horns I have preserved a specimen. They however killed only one leopard.
But I must hasten on with my description. Captain R. and I proceeded into the jungle, where we heard several peacocks; we separated, creeping along in different directions. Presently I came to an open space where some pea-fowls were feeding, but we did not succeed in killing anything. The next evening we went to the same place, when Captain R. shot a peacock. Towards dusk I was creeping along, when suddenly I saw what appeared to me a fine peahen. I signed to my men to be quiet, got as near as I could, fired, and shouted to my followers to run and pick up the bird, for it was dead. An Indian servant rarely loses his gravity; but in this instance they could not restrain themselves when they found that instead of a pea-fowl I had knocked to pieces the skull of an old cow which had been half-picked by the vultures; in the dim light I had mistaken it for a bird.
BHOHONESWAR.
The next day we proceeded about ten miles farther to Bhalmacottee; and on the day following, that is Friday, we started at five o'clock in the morning for Bhohoneswar. On the way we passed the remains of a very large old fort built of hewn stone. In one of the moats, which was still full of water, I saw the remains of a pier of a bridge. Bhohoneswar is a very ancient town, much more so than Pooree: it is celebrated for containing nine hundred and ninety-nine temples. The natives say that, had there been a thousand, Juggernat'h would have taken up his abode here; but as there were not he preferred having a new temple for himself at Pooree. The ancient city has disappeared, and the town only consists of a few hundred mud huts. The temples however remain—some perfect, others in ruins; some facing the street of the modern town, others half hidden in the surrounding jungle. It is a wonderful place, and I hardly know how to describe it.
At one extremity of the town is a tank, about half a mile square, and of a great depth, entirely faced with huge blocks of black iron-stone. In the centre of this stands a small temple, whilst the sides are surrounded by others of greater or less size. At the end next the town an enormous flight of steps leads down to the water, where hundreds of pilgrims were hastening to wash themselves before entering the great temple. The farther end is bordered by a dense and lofty jungle, and in the distance is a splendid background of rugged hills.
After leaving the burrah tellores (great tank) we walked through a lane of temples, many of which were ruinous, until we came to the grand sacred edifice of the place. The form of this, as indeed of most of the others, is similar to that of Pooree. The temple of Bhohoneswar is however larger, the principal tower being about two hundred feet high. Like all the others, it is built entirely of stone, and every block is most elaborately carved. The various cornices, of elephants, horses, &c., are as beautifully executed as if they had been done by the best European artists. The fretwork is most delicate in its livery, and the many images, though representing grotesque figures, are admirably carved. The whole forms one mass of most splendid sculpture.
No description would enable the reader to form any idea of the magnificence of this building. Many of the blocks of stone are fifteen, twenty, and twenty-five feet in length, and thick in proportion. It would be curious to discover by what means they were ever raised to the height of above one hundred feet. This temple is still sacred, and we were therefore not allowed to enter it, but we examined the interior of several of the others. The lofty domes were evidently constructed by a people who were ignorant of the use of the arch; they are formed of overlapping stones, approaching nearer and nearer together until they reach the top, where the whole is surmounted by one enormous block.
CUNDEEGURREE.