“We then went to Sersa Gung, seven cos from Huteepoor, in the way to Mynpooree, and put up in an inn. Here we met two travellers, journeying from Juodhpoor to Byswara. As our custom was, we soon persuaded them to join our party; we started in the morning, and as we reached a well, we stopped there on the pretence of smoking, and strangled the two travellers with nooses. Their property, amounting to sixty rupees in cash, and their clothes, &c., we divided. Travelling five cos more, we came to the inn of Mukhan: here two Buggals arrested our attention; they were travellers, journeying from Jeypoor to Lucnow. From their eluding all inquiries, we naturally concluded that they had money in specie with them; we were not mistaken: they started by sunrise, and we followed them. When they reached near a tank, we found the opportunity friendly to our purpose, and with nooses strangled them. In haste, we threw the bodies into the tank, it being broad daylight, and departed. On examining the booty, we found the bags we had taken contained one thousand five hundred rupees; with this money we came to Agra. We then left Agra, and halting at Bhurtpoor, took the road to Jeypoor; on our way, we were joined by a party of twelve Thugs, and passing Jeypoor, we reached the village of Dosa. Here we saw three men, who were travelling from Juodhpoor to Lucnow; we found no difficulty in prevailing on them to join us, and in the night we killed and buried them. The booty amounted to sixty rupees in cash, and some utensils and clothes. We met four more travellers in a village hard by; they were proceeding to Benares; we invited them to warm themselves by the fire we had lighted, and while warming themselves we strangled them with nooses, and their bodies we buried. Our spoil amounted to thirty rupees in cash, and some utensils and clothes. Some miles from this place, in a village, the name of which I do not recollect, we halted: here we found three travellers going from Nusseerabad to Cawnpore; at night we fell upon and killed them; their bodies we buried in the same place. We found on them sixty rupees in cash, and some utensils and clothes. One cos from this place, under a burgut tree, we met with three Buggals, who joined us; and as we set off by dawn, we killed the Buggals by a jhaoo (tamarisk) field; we despoiled them of fifty rupees in cash, and some clothes, &c.; the bodies were afterwards buried.
“On our return, near to Jeypoor, by a tank, we obtained another prey in a person proceeding to Cawnpore; we gained upon him by soft, tender expressions, and then at night strangled him with a noose; his property amounted to ten rupees in cash, and two bullocks.”
I could not omit inserting the above narrative, on account of the quiet coolness with which the Thug Oomeid relates the murders committed by himself and his gang.
Oct. 25th.—The sale of the property of a friend took place to-day. Many valuable works in octavo sold for twopence a volume! The furniture went at about one fourth of its value. We took the opportunity of getting rid of extra sofas and chairs; much furniture is a great inconvenience in this climate; it harbours musquitoes.
Through the stupidity of our servants, some animal got into the quail-house last night, and killed seventy-nine fat quail; very provoking,—but as this is the season for them it is not of much consequence, we can replace them; had it been during the hot winds, when no quail are to be procured, it would have been a great loss in the eating department.
All my finery coming from England has been totally lost, about twenty days’ journey from this place, by the swamping of the boat; all my presents gone “at one fell swoop,” leaving me sans pompons, sans souliers, sans everything; my pen is bad, my knife blunt, and my new penknife is feeding the fish at the bottom of the Ganges, off Monghir.
Nov. 8th.—Last night we dined at Mr. F⸺’s; a Capt. W⸺, who is rather a curiosity, was of the party; he brought us a letter of introduction from Col. Gardner. He is the brother of Sir H. W⸺, the late ambassador in Persia; he wears a native dress, with a long beard that hangs half way down his breast; and his imitation of native style is good. He commenced his travels in 1829, passing through Norway, Sweden, Denmark, Persia, and so on to Allahabad, and will return viâ Constantinople; he is a captain in the navy.
This morning, it being a holiday with the Hindoos, and a great bathing-day at the junction of the rivers, we agreed to meet Capt. W⸺ on the spot before sunrise, to witness the tamāshā. He, having started before us, rode down to the bathing-place, and getting into a quicksand on the banks of the river, had a roll in the mud. Mr. B⸺ and I rode down to meet him, and coming on a daldal (quicksand), my horse sank into it up to his tail, struggling violently, and beating up and down like a boat in a short sea; I rolled off, or rather Mr. B⸺ pulled me from the horse, which, with great exertion and difficulty, at length scrambled out. Mr. B⸺’s grey Cabul horse refused to pass the daldal; he snorted, beat the ground with his fore-feet, and stood firm, evidently alarmed. Remounting my horse Trelawny, we pursued our way to the Triveni, where we met Capt. W⸺, and laughed at our misfortunes. This is the first time my horse and I have parted company; I used to boast of never having quitted my saddle.
Capt. W⸺ went to the bathing-place, to see the junction of the three rivers, the Gunga, the Jumna, and the Saraswati; the two first are above ground, the third joins them underground,—at least, so say the pious Hindoos. Capt. W⸺ keeps a journal; if he publish it, I fear he will immortalize this quicksand adventure, and say, “being unable to discover the river Saraswati above ground, we were searching for it in the regions below.”