I sent a little seal, on which this motto was engraved, “Toom ghee ka dhye jalāo,” to a lady in England, telling her ghee is clarified butter. When a native gives a feast, he lights a number of small lamps with ghee. If he say to a friend, “Will you come to my feast?” the answer may be, “Light thou the lamp of ghee;” which means, “Be you merry, I will be there.” Therefore, if you accept an invitation, you may use this seal with propriety.
CHAPTER IX.
RESIDENCE AT ALLAHABAD.
1828.—Sinking a Well—Hurriannah Cows—Delhi Goats—The Jumnapār—Doomba Sheep—Buffalo Humps—Water-cresses—Marrowfat Peas—Carrots—The Chatr—The Oleander—The Ice-pits—Cream Ice, how to freeze—Burdwan Coal—Indian Fevers—Mr. Bayley, Viceroy—Fear of the Invasion of the Russians and Persians—Intense Heat—Deaths in the Farm-yard—Chota Jehannum—The Verandah at Noon—Mad Pariah—Trelawny—Châteaux en Espagne—Height of the two Rivers—Death of the Bishop of Calcutta—An Hummām—The first Steamer at Prāg.
Jan., 1828, Leap Year.—I before mentioned we had accomplished one-third of our way to heaven, by planting an avenue; we now performed another portion of the journey, by sinking a well. As soon as the work was completed, the servants lighted it up with numerous little lamps, and strewed flowers upon its margin, to bring a blessing upon the newly-raised water. From Hissar we received six cows and a bull, very handsome animals, with remarkably fine humps, such as are sold in England under the denomination of buffalo humps, which are, in reality, the humps of Indian cows and oxen.
Tame buffaloes are numerous at Prāg. The milk is strong, and not generally used for making butter, but is made into ghee (clarified butter), useful for culinary purposes. Some most beautiful Barbary goats arrived with the cows; they were spotted brown and white or black and white, and almost as beautiful as deer. The Bengālee goats yield a much larger portion of milk. I had also a Jumnapār goat, an enormous fellow, with very broad, long, thin, and silky ears, as soft as velvet. The Jumnapār are the best adapted for marching. Unless they can go into the jungle and browse, they become thin and lose their milk. These goats, bred on the banks of the Jumna, thence called “Jumnapār,” are remarkably fine, and of a large size.
We had a Doomba ram at Prāg. The Doomba sheep are difficult to keep alive in this climate. Their enormous tails are reckoned delicacies; the lambs are particularly fine flavoured.
Jan.—Our garden was now in good order; we had vegetables in abundance, marrowfat peas as fine as in England, and the water-cresses, planted close to the new well, were pearls beyond price. Allahabad is famous for the growth of the finest carrots in India. At this time of the year we gave our horses twelve seer each daily; it kept them in high health, and French-polished their coats. The geraniums grew luxuriantly during this delightful time; and I could be out in the garden all day, when protected by an enormous chatr, carried by a bearer. The up-country chatr is a very large umbrella, in shape like a large flat mushroom, covered with doubled cloth, with a deep circle of fringe. Great people have them made of silk, and highly ornamented. The pole is very long, and it is full employment for one man to carry the chatr properly.
The oleander (kanér), the beautiful sweet-scented oleander, was in profusion,—deep red, pure white, pink, and variegated, with single and double blossoms. I rooted up many clusters of this beautiful shrub in the grounds, fearing the horses and cows might eat the leaves, which are poisonous. Hindoo women, when tormented by jealousy, have recourse to this poison for self-destruction.