Cutwa—Bracelets of the Sankh Shell—Anchor-making at Culwa—The Dying Bengalī—The Skull—The Tides—The “Madagascar”—Mal de Mer—A Man Overboard—Mountains of Africa—Wrecks—Wineburgh—Constantia—A South-easter—Return to the Ship—Emancipation of the Slaves—Grapes—A Trip into the Interior—Captain Harris—St. Helena—Prices at Mr. Solomon’s Shop—The Tomb of the Emperor—Longwood—St. Helena Birds—Our Indian Wars—General Allard—Letter from Jellalabad—Death of Colonel Arnold—The Afghāns—Mausoleum of Shah Mahmoud—The Gates of Somnaut—The Remains of the Ancient City of Ghuznee.
1839, Jan. 1st.—We flew down the river on a powerful wind, until we reached Cutwa, where we moored, to purchase a gāgrā, a brass vessel for holding water; gāgrās and lotas are manufactured at this place, as are also churīs, bracelets made of the sankh, the conch shell which the Hindūs blow. These churīs are beautifully white, very prettily ornamented, and are worn in sets: above them, some of the women wore immense bracelets of silver or of pewter, according to the rank of the wearer; those bracelets stand up very high, and the pewter ones shine like silver, from being scrubbed with sand daily in the river. At this place a number of people were bathing; one of the Bengalī women was remarkably well formed, my attention was attracted by the beauty of her figure; her skin was of a clear dark brown, with which her ornaments of red coral well contrasted; her dress, the long white sarī, hanging in folds of graceful drapery around her; but her face was so ugly, it was quite provoking;—so plain a face united to so well-formed a figure.
2nd.—At Nuddea the tide was perceptible, and the smell of the burnt bodies on the opposite side of the river most annoying.
3rd.—Anchored at Culwa, to get the wooden anchor filled with mud and bound up with ropes; the process was simple and curious, but it took five hours to accomplish the work. Bamboos were tied to the cross of the anchor, which was of heavy wood,—a bit of old canvas was put inside, and filled with lumps of strong clay,—the bamboos were then pressed together, and the whole bound with ropes; a very primitive affair. I had a new cable made before quitting Prāg,—a necessary precaution; for unless you have it done beforehand they will detain you at Culwa to do it, as the hemp is a little cheaper there than in the up-country, and the mānjhīs do not care for the annoyance the detention of three or four days may occasion. At Culwa I saw a shocking sight: a dying Bengalī woman was lying on a mat by the river side, her head supported by a pillow, and a woman sitting at her side was fanning her with a pankha. At a certain time the body is laid in the water up to the waist, prayers are repeated; and at the moment of dying the mud of the holy Ganges is stuffed into the nose and mouth, and the person expires in the fulness of righteousness. My people told me that, if the woman did not die by night-time, it was very likely they would stuff her nose and mouth a little too soon with the holy mud, and expedite her journey rather too quickly to another world! The Hindūs, up-country men, who were with me, were disgusted with the Bengalee customs, and violent in their abuse. Should she recover she will take refuge, an outcast in the village of Chagdah.
We anchored at Santipūr. The water of the river at the ghāt was covered with drops of oil, from its being a bathing-place, and the Bengalīs having the custom of anointing their bodies daily with oil.
A chaprasī of mine, seeing a skull, struck it with a bamboo and cursed it.
“Why did you strike and curse the skull?” said I.
“It is a vile Bengalī skull; and those sons of slaves, when we ask a question, only laugh and give no answer.”
“Perhaps they do not understand your up-country language.”