MADR A S JOU RNAL

T E B A T U R E AND S C I E H G E.

E DI T E D B Y T H E C OMMI T T E E

OF T H E

M amm fl fiwmw g ammaA ND

A U X L A B Y R O YA L A S l A T I C $ 0 6 E T Y.

V o l V . N ew S eries

V o l XXL 91d S eries .

October 1 859—fl1 arcfi , 1 860 .

M A D R A S

PR INT E D B Y PH A R OA H A ND 00 .

A T H E NE U M P R E S S—MO U NT R O A D .

1 859.

C ONT E NT S .

P age.

I .-On the Power of the Let ter JD . B y R ev . T . Foulkes, C hurch Mis

sionary Society , Madras

I I .—Ou the Photographic delineation of M icroscopic objects. B y Lieut .

J . Mitchel l

I I I .—Ou I ndian Weights and Measures. B y J . W . Breeks, E sq . ,

C . S .

IV.—T he C airns of T innevelly . B y the R ev . J . T . Kearn s, M issionary ,

S . P . G . , Madras .

V .-Memorandum on the S yrian and Jew ish C opper P lates of Malabar.

B y Kookel Keloo Nair, District Moon sifi'

in MalabarVI .—Memorandum on the G eology of T hayet Myo . B y J . R anking , E sq .

Surgeon , Madras A rmyV I L—A lterat ions in thepaper on the G enus Impatien s. B y Lieut. R . H .

Beddome, Madras A rmy .

VI I I .—Notes on various subjects. B y Lieut . H . P . Hawkes, Sub A ssistan t

C ommissary G en eral .

IX.—C oin and C urren cy in A n cien t and Modern t imes. B y Henry K ing ,

A . B ., M . B .

, A ssistan t S urgeon , Madras A rmy .

SELEC TIONS .

L- Lecture on the G eology of the Provin ce of A uckland, New Z ealand.

2 .—Note on the R ed C oloring Matter of the S ea round the Shores of the

I sland of BombaySC IENTIFIC INTELLIGENC E .

1 .- I ndex to G eological Papers in the Madras Journ al of Li terature an d

S cience. 2 .—0 n an E xtraordinary rise in the K istn a in July 1 859.

3 .—A ccoun t of an E arthquake in G un t oor, July 1 859.

PROC EEDINGS OF S C IENTIFIC SO C IETIES .

1 .—Proceedings of the Man aging C ommit tee of theMadras Literary S o

ciety, 1 4th A prilD o . do . do . do . 1 2th May

D o . do . do . do . 9th Jun e4 . D o . do . do . do . 14th J uly 1859.

5 . D o . do . do . do . 1 1 th A ug . 1 859.

6 . D o . do . do . do . 8 th S ept .

7 .—Proceedings of the Photograph ic S ociety . 7th A pril

8 . D o . do . do . do . 5 th May 1859

9. D o . do . do . do . 2d Jun e10 . D o . do . do . do . 4 th July 1 859—Proceedings of the A gri-Hort icultural S ociety . 6 lb A pril 1 859

1 2. D o . do . do . do . 6 th May

1 3. D o , do . do . do . 15th Jun e

1 4 . D o . do . do . do . 22d July1 5 . D o . do . do . do . 3rd A ug . 1 859.

1 6 . D o . do . do . do . 7th Sep t . 1 859.

METEOROLOGY .

E xtrac t fromMeteorological Observations kept at the Madras Observe.

tory, from A pril to September1859.

C O N T E N T S .

On the Report of the Sub-C ommittee appointed to considerthe question of w riting Oriental words in Roman C haracters . By W . H . Bayley, Esq . , M . C . S

XI . Report on the Management during Fush 1 268 of the fiveLaccadive Islands . By E . G . T homas, Esq . M . C . S .

XI I . General Description of the country between Parvatipore andJeypore

.

B y Lieut . J . Vertue, District Engineer“XIII . On T imber i n the neighbourhood of C uddapah. By C apt

J . H . M . Stew art, District EngineerXIV. On the culture of Sorgho and Imphi . By M . Perrottet . .

SELEC TIONS .

1 .—Ou a Method of cooling the A ir of Rooms in T ropical C limates .

B y Professor P iazzi Smith, A stronomer Royal for Scotland .

S C IENTIFIC INTELLIGENC E .

1 .—On H ail Storms in C ochin and

.

T ravancore . By Lieut . GeneralC ullen . 2 .

~ Earthquakes in Southern India . 3 .-Eight

years observations upon the effects of the Groyn o

es (tw entyi n number) With which is an attempted exposi ti on of thetheory of the Madras Surf, submitted to the C ommandantand C hi ef Engin eer . By C aptain J . McKenn ie, DeputyMaster A ttendant . 4 .

—A description of the Buildings 111the Gimj i Fort . By C aptain E . A . Foord, District Engineerof South A rcot .

PRO C E EDING S OF S C IENTIFIC SO C IETIES .

1 .—Proceedings of the Photographic Society , Octr. 6th , 1 859.

2 . Do . do . do . do . Deer . 2 l st, 1 859.

3 . Do. do . do . do. Jany . 5 th , 1 860 .

4 . Do . do do . do . March l st, 1 860 .

5 .—Proceedings of the Managing C ommittee of theMadras Lite

rary Society, O ct . 1 3th, 1 859.

6 . Do . do . do . do . Nov . 1 0th, 1 859.

7 . Do . do . do . do . D ec . 1 0th, 1 859.

8 . Do . do . do . do . Jan . 1 2th, 1 860 .

9 Do . do . do . do . Feb . 9th , 1 860 .

1 0.—Proceedings of the A gri-H orticultural Society , O ct . 5 th , 1 859.

1 1 . Do . do. do do . Dec . 7th , 1 859.

l 2 . Do . do . do. do . Jan 20th, 1 860 .

METE OROLOGY .

Meteorological Observation s kept at the Madras Observatory ,

from Oct . to March , 1 859-60

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MA DR A S J OU R NA L

OF

L I T E R A T U R E A N D S C I E N C E .

NO. 9.

—NEW SER IE S .

A pril—S eptember, 1859.

I . On the Power of the Letter a . B y R ev. T . FOULKE S , C haro]:Missionary S ociety, Madras.

In most languages there i s but one authoritative Wi tness on

such a subj ect as this , namely, prevailing usage. In the case of

Tamil letters,although the same usage

,

is still ‘

our leading evi

dence,it does n ot stand alone we have also other dist in ct modes

of testing the accuracy of the testimony which it offers , and of in

terpretin g that which is equivocal and doubtful in the depositions .

A n appeal to usage alone in the case before us leaves“us in nu

certainty and apparent con tradictibn : weneed therefore the colla;

teral helps referred to in order to reconcile that contradict ion,and, if possible , to arrive at the strict truth respecting the relativeposition and power of this seemingly anomalous letter .T he Tamil noun .g g i a river

’affords an illustration of this

apparent diflicul ty. It woul d be said that the power of the con

sonant in question in this Word is that of a hard r’ ; and unquest ionably it has this pronunciation in common usage . B ut let this

noun be inflected, or compounded with another noun succeeding

VOL . xx . 0 . s. Von. v1 . N . s

2 On the Power of the Letter go. [No . 9, N E W S E R I E S .

it for instance w ith a'm zr a bank ’ ; and after inserting the link

particle“flair, we shall have the form gap e /Enema . In this form

the power of the as would be said to be that of hard t’

s and

yet, from analogy, this doubled form of the letter ought not to be

anything more than an intensification of the power of the single

letter . The obj ect of the present paper is to endeavour to recon

cile this apparent anomaly w ith the usually beautiful philosophical

uniformity observable in similar cases in the structure o f the Tamil

language ; and if possible , to arrive by this means at the true power

of this letter p .

It is perhaps worth remarking thus early, that it is expre ssly

stated in the Nann ool that this letter has no equivalent in the

Sanscrit alphabet ; and when it is remembered that the author of

the Nann ool , by casting so much of his grammar in a Sanscrit

mould, has evidenced an intimate acquaintance w ith that language ,some reliance may be placed on his statement in this respect .

It might be supposed to be conclusive that this letter is a hard

r’ from the fact that it is usually call ed macaw p erm}; by Nativescholars , which expression literally means just so much because

it w ould be tacitly ’ assumed that the converse of this expression

would refer to the soft r’. The fact is , however, that the ex

pression omaaflm J ami; would never be used by a Tamil scholar

for this reason , that the expression maid en p cmb refers only to

the fact that p belongs to the class of letters called msii ailar [hard]while its corresponding w eavers [so ft letter] is air n

’ the a

[soft r’

] being referred to the Qmmuflm or middle letters’ with

out any relation to p .

This threefold division of the consonants of the Tamil alphabet

is highly,scientific

,and speaks well o f the patient investigation of

sounds,the co rrectness of ear, and the powers of classification o f

itsauthor in the far-distant age in which he lived . The names ,however, which he has handed down to us for these classes are no t

precise enough for the present requirements of philology . Le t

us substitute for them the common and more definite terms ,

surds , nasals,‘

and semi-vowels . For our present purpose we need

only to speak of the two former of these . A ssuming this primarydivision to be unexceptionable, we may tabulate the twelve con

A PR I L—SE PT . On the Power'

of the Letter p .

'

3

sonan ts'

w ith Which we have to'

do , so as to represent the ir power

simultaneously w ith their class, as. follow s

G ut turals Palatals D entals Lab ials

w “45

We arrive in this way at the same conclusion as the Tamil Gram

marian,namely

,that the letter a and its corresponding nasal air

are additional letters peculiar to the Tamil language forasmuch

as the ordinary classification of the powers of letters is exhausted

before we reach these particular letters , and we have yet to dis

cover a name to express their pow er .

There is a series of verse s in the early part of the Nan n ool of

very great value to all who w ould acquire a correct pr onuncia

tion of the Tamil language , in which the author indicates what he

expressively terms the birth-place ’ of the different letters .

A mongst them he describe s the proper mode of pronouncing the

letters,as and ear pa and a t w ill c ome forth if the tip of the ton gue

is brought into close contact w ith the ro of of the mouth .

’ If this

be the birth-place ’ of our.mwe must once for all give up the

thought of its having the pow er of an r’ since there can be no

hugging of the roof of the mouth by the tongue in the production

of a tril led sound , the bare idea of whi ch require s the tongue to

be freein the mouth to vibrate thetrill .

There are several reasons for s uppo sing that the true power of

this letter is that of a t,’of some modified pronunciation distinc t

from both the dental t’ (a) and the cerebral t’

1 . Each of the surd consonants undergoes certain modifi cations of its radical pronunciation according to the position '

which

it occupies , and the company in which it is found , in the w ord of

which it forms a part . The forms of pronunciation may be dis

t inguished into hard or radical, soft, and aspirated .

When either of the surds occurs free in the b eginning of aw ord or doubled infthe middle of a word , orWhen it is preceded or

4 On the Power of the Letter a . [No . 9, NEW snnms.

followedby anotherconsonant of the surd class, it bears its hard

pronunciation : for instance , as in such circumstances is. the equi

valent of the English k .

’

When a surd follow s its corresponding nasal , or any other con

sonant of the nasal class , it bears its soft pronunciation : e: in

such a position is equivalent to the English g .

’

Lastly, when a surd follow s a vowel or consonant o f the semi

vow el class, it bears its aspirated pronunciation : our 5 has thena light guttural’pronun ciat ion ,much lighter than theWelsh or even

the G erman ch .

’

T hezdifi'

eren t surds aria susceptible of the aspirated pronuncia

tion, however, in different degrees in the case of the cerebral

the aspirated pronunciation is imperceptible, and undistinguish

able from its soft pronunciation : in the case of the labial u that

aspirated pronunciation begins to grow distinct in some.

w ords in the case of the palatal e= it assumes a more constant

form : while in the cases of the guttural a,and the dental a ,

this aspirated pronunciation is perfect and invariable . The other

two pronun ciations , namely, the hard and the soft, are invariable

admitting of no exceptions and of no degrees .

A pplying these rules to the letters a) and m , we find that a ,

when it occurs doubled in the middle of a w ord , has in common

usage a pronunciation which at present it is sufficien t to say par

takes largely of a t’ sound and when it follows its corresponding

nasal «in it submits to the samerule as the other surds , and softens

itself into a kin d of d.

’ When, however, it follow s a vowel, in

stead of assuming some kind of aspirated,pronunciation of a t,

"

singularly enough common usage gives it the pronunciation of astro ngly tril led r .

’ Is there not in. this exception an, intimation

that popul ar usage has in someway corrupted the, true pronuncia

tion of the p in this po sition ? for it does not seem possible to

suppose that a trilled r’

can be the aspirated pronunciation of

any description of t . ’

2 . Let us put this in a different form . The true radical power

of the Tamil conso nants is to be discovered in the pronunciation

which they bear as the initial letters of w ords, when they are un

influenced by. the fin al letters of preceding words. We shall have

A PR I L—S E PT . On the P ower of the Letter a . 5

greater certainty , however, regarding their power if we assume as

our standard the pronunciatiou which these letters bear when they

o ccur doubled in the middle of a w ord because in such case the

former of the two consonants shuts off all external influence upon

its companion , and also assists in bringing out the radical pronun

ciation of the second letter in its fulness and purity.

In the cases of t, and p , since they cannot o ccur as, initial

letters, we are necessarily obliged to take this second criterion of

their pow er as our only guide.

Judging of our(a by this rule , it w ill be seen that its hard or

radical sound is that of a species o f ‘ t ,’ both as the final conso

nant of the first of the two syllable s of the w ord in which it is.

found doubled , and also as the initial consonant of the se c ond of

such syllables. A nd, according to the analogy of all the surd

consonants,the other two sounds of which p is capable are

to be regarded as soft and aspirated modifications of that radical

sound .

3 . The law s of the euphonic changes of fin al and initial con

sonants (areal) afford us illustrations in the same direction

10 is treated throughout these rules as if it were a member of the

t’ familyi . It i s almost impossible to pronounce correctly either of the

three Tamil n’

s after another n’ of a different pow er pro

vision is accordingly made , when such letters happen to meet, to

change the initial n’ of the second of the two w ords“into an n’

of the same power as the final n’ of the word which precedes it .

Thus Ou /mir 45 63?a become s O u rroirecreérmm; and main(of fi cia ls:

becomes moi remcirsnm.

The same reason influences the change of the initial t’of the

second word into a. surd of the same pow er as the final ‘ n’ of the

preceding w ord . Thus masses, be comes moriww ; and Ou rrair

fi g ! becomes Ou trofirfi ég .

The case of the hardening of the final n’ of the first word into

its corresponding surd is subj ect to the same rule : in that case

also the initial ‘ t’ of the second word is chan ged into tha t par

ticular t’ which co rresponds in power w ith the n’ so changed ,thus producing a doubled t,

’ both of, which take their radical or

6 On the Power of the Letter p l . [No . 9, N EW

’

S E R I E S .

hard pronunciation . Thus . Loebir g em becomes w i tn eznm;

Qu zmfi’

r £ 61911 ) becomes Oumfi fi mm.

,Forasmuch then as these particular. changes are applicable to

the n’s and t

’s alone , with only the doubtful . exception of p to

be determined,these combinations suggest that this AD also is a

surd of the t’ family, leaving its power yet to be ascertained .

ii . When a word ending in the cerebral l’ (er) is followed by

a w ord commencing w ith a dental ‘ t’ this latter letter is

changed into a ‘ t’ of the same power as that of the preceding

final ‘ l ,’ in order that both let ters may be pronounced con secu

tively from the same birth-place ,’ and the hiatus be avoided

which must otherw ise occur : and for further euphonic assimila;

tion of the pronunciation, the final l’ is changed by attraction

into the same ‘ t’ as the changed initial t ’ of'

the second w ord .

Thus (Leer becomes (G i ff—La g . The same process is necessary

in the case o f the second w ord having an initial ’n .

’ Thus cgpdr

p att y becomes (meérmraé’

ry .

The same rules hold g ood when the final consonant of the first

word is the second l’ instead of air. Thus for a s?) we

have a i rm c'

u'

rg u and for s ci) fi g : we have a fi fi g r.

Forasmuch , therefore , as in the instance of the final cerebral l '

(at ) the following initial dental‘ t’ (a )was changed into a celebral

‘ t’ analogy suggests that our letter p into which the same

dental t’ is changed after the other 1’ (so), is likew ise a letter

of the t’ family, and of similar power w ith this 1’

(so).

iii . In the case of a final ‘ t’ occurring before an initial surd

consonant in the succeeding word, this t’—(the dental t

’

(gs) is

the only one that can well occur in such a position , and that almost

exclusively in w ords of Sanscrit origin is changed euphonically

into fi . Thus (5 05 becomes a fi cg qa. This also suggests a

family connexion between,mand a .

4 . The letters a ,and p , w ith their corresponding nasals ,

are the usual sign-letters of the past tense of verbs . We have here

again a corroboration of the suggestion that these three letters be?

long to the same family .

5 . The fact of the surd consonants which correspond w ith the

dental and cerebral n’

s respectively being t’

a further suggests

A PRIL— S E PT . On the P ower of the Letter p . 7

that the corresponding surd of the remaining n’ is likewise

a t,’ and that its pow er corresponds w ith the power of air.

6 . A new consideration is afforded in the direction of No . 2

abOve by the etymological formation of words expressi ng the

l ower numerals .

In each of these numeral words from one’ up to ‘ ten ’ we have

the combination of a root, and a termination ; this termination

being in every instance,excepting in mruitg four ,

’and po ssibly

also in seven,’ some modification of the syllable tu .

’

These forms are divided between the dental g r,the cerebral (D,

and our crucial syllable .nu the radic al form, as we gather from

other analogies , being the first of these three , namely i ] . Thus ,

We have the dental form, w ith its hard sound, in u pfi g ten w ith

its soft sound in gag-g : five and w ith its asp irated sound in

grairu g / nine .

’ Similarly we have the cerebral form, w ith its

hard sound in G T LLG) eight and w ith its soft sound in QM MD

two .

’ The third fo rm,namely g , is found w ith its soft sound

in g ooey three ,’ and—shall it be called its aspirated sound

in .g gr six .

’

Here also , inasmuch as the t erminal syllable in all these ih

stances is the modification of their original 5 1, influenced in each

case by the character of the last letter of the preceding root-sylla

ble, there seems presumptive grounds for concluding that the 4 3:

forms in these numeral-words , have some tu’ power equally w ith

the 0 and forms ; and that, consequently, our go again belongs

to the t’ family .

7 . It may be w ell to add here that on the supposition that the

t rilled sound is the proper pronunciation of p ,the 6551 alone among

the nasal letters stands w ithout a corresponding surd : for a trilled

sound is semi-vocalic, and our he would then have to be classed,not w ith the surds , as it always has been , but amongst the semi

vow el group .

8 . Finally, the only corresponding surd that an n’ of any

power can admit of is a t’ of similar power softened euphonically

into d .

’ Since,therefore

, p is unquestionably everywhere treated

as the surd corresponding w ith car, how can this letter but be re

garded as a t’of the power of this air

, and also of ti)

On the Power of the Letter go . [No . 9,N E W S E RI E S .

Supposing that a probable case has been made out to prove that

the letter mis a surd of the t’ family having some pow er differ

en t from n and it remains (a . ) to account for its present popular

pronunciation ; and then (b . ) to endeavour t o ascertain the parti

cular power of this ‘t . ’

(a. ) W ith regard to the former of these it is not unimportant

to remark that there appears to be a certain definite direction in

wh ich many letters have a natural tendency to corrupt them

selves : and it may be added by the way, that the rules of this

species of cacophony, which may probably be foun d to be appl i

cable to all languages , appear to be well worthy of investigation

w ith a v iew to assist in determining the etymology of words of

corrupted pronunciation whose corruption has been fossilized by

a corresponding spelling—I n the particular case of the aspirated

sound of a t’ (soft th’

) when it occurs in the middle of a word ,

(the circumstances of our doubtful go), there is a considerable

tendency amongst uneducated persons and children to change that

sound into a trilled one. Instances of this might be pointed out

in the English language . In the southern Tamil country, un edu

cated Native C hristians frequently pronounce the dig n Father'

of

the opening sentenc e of the Lord’ s prayer as ‘ Fira z ’ G u n-g : £6,

enough,

’ is very commonly pronounced Porum’ by all classes

and dime seed ,’ is almost universally pronounced Virei’ in con

versation and so also of other similar words .

Since, therefore, there is a tendency to corrupt the aspirated

sound of one t’ into that of a trilled letter, it beco mes not impro

bable that a t’ of another power may also have been subj ected

to the same influence. The less easy the proper pronunci ation of

such a letter, the less likely it would be to save itself from this

influence , especially when used by those who se lips and to n guemake convenience rather than propriety their rule of utterance

and our p , being more diffi cult of pronunciation than the er, w ould

be the more likely to fix itse lf in that convenient form of corrupt

ed pronunciation towards which it naturally tends .

There seem to be reasons for thinking that illustrations of the

position advocated in this paper may be gathered from the Telugu

and C anarese languages, in cases of words of the same original

A rn rn snrr. On the Power of the Letter m. 9

etymology, which are w ritten in Tamil w ith the go , but in the

above two lan guages w ith an unequivocal t .’ I am unable to do

more than indicate this source of corroboration on the authority of

one, who is acquainted w ith these languages .

If the supposition of such a corruption as has been indicated is

accepted,it may not be impossible to trace progressive degrees in

the quantity of the corruption , from its maximum in the case of

the single go after a vowel, through its diminished form in the case

of this re following its nasal, when still , in many ca ses , a trace of

a softened r’ accompanies the d down to its minimum in the

case of the doubled go, when usually, though not always , all trace s

of the r’ quite disappear . It would seem also as if some of the

vowels have a greater propensity than other: to cause the appear

ance of the tril l .

(b . ) It remains , finally, to endeavour to determine for our 19

the peculiar modification of t’ sound which distinguishes it fromfl

and L_ Had the Tamil grammarian been a little more explicit in

assigning the particular part of the roof of themouth whi ch the

tongue has to clip in producing this letter and its correspondingnasal

,his authority might have decided the matter : but his lan

guage is general .

The pronunciation of surd consonants i s the result of the emis

sion of the breath through the mouth and lips modified by the

position of the tongue in relation t o different parts of the mouth,The labial surd u is the only exception . Excluding this last,the articulation of the other consonants is effected either upon

a sudden separation of the root of the tongue from the throat , as

in k ,’5 or upon a similar separati on of the body of the tongue

from the palate , as in the case of ch ,’

(as in as ; orupon

a corresponding separation of the tip of the tongue from different

parts of the mouth which it is capable of reaching , forming the

different t’ sounds .

When the tongue is somewhat curled backwards , and thenmadeto touch the upper part of the palate the cerebral t’ w ill be

produced . This is the extreme position to which the tip of the

tongue can reach backwards in the pronunciation of a ‘ t . ’ Its

extreme position forwards is at the tips of the front teeth in thisVOL . xx . 0 . s; VOL . v 1 . N . s.

I O On the Photographic delineation [No . 9, N E W S E RI E S .

position it pronoun ces'

the dental t’ (at ). There remains a posi

tion midway betw een these two extremes,namely

,the line where

the palate meets the roots of the front teeth : this appears to be

the proper birth-place ’ of our letter p ; and if s o it may con se

quently perhaps not unaptly be assigned the power of a C E B E B R O

D E N T A L‘ t J

Whether the letter in question ever had in popular usage thepronunciation here claimed for it as its true power, this paper

does not profess to enquire much less to decideo n the one side or

the other : nor is it intended to expres s even the whisper of a

w ish to alter in any way the present popular articulation of the

letter . Its sole obj ect has been to endeavour to solve an apparent

anomaly in this remarkably regular lan guage,and to ascertain the

true place of the letter min the classification of the Tamil alphabet . I t is suffi cient if a p robable case has been , made out in sup

port of the position that, philosophically regarded, this letter is to

be classed as a CE RE B RO-DE NTA L t

II . On the Photographic delineation of Microscop ic objects . B y

LI E UT . J . M ITCHE LL .

I was requested at our last meeting to write a paper on this sub

j cet . It is not, I fear, one of very general interest even to Photo

graphers, and I perhaps ought to apologize for troubling you w ith

it . It may however, a s suggested by C olonel Hamilton , serve to

induce others to give us the benefit of their experience, and if so

my labour w ill not have been altogether useless .

.The subj ect is n ot a n ew one, a paper by Mr . Joseph Delves ,On the application of Photography to the representation of Mi

oroscopie obj ects,” having been communicated to the

‘

Microscopi

cal Society of London in O ctober 1 852 , it will be found in the

transactions of that Society for 1 852-5 3 . This was followed by a

paper from Mr . G . Shudbol t , a w ell known Microscopist and Pho

tographer, On the Photographic delineation of Microscopic oh

j oota by artifi cial illumination,”and by another from Mr . S . High

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1 2 On the Photographic delinea tion [Na 9, N E W I E B I E s.

what I have been able to learn, to be still the general practice in

England . The only exception I know of, being the Rev . W . T .

Kingsley, whose paper upon the subj ect of Micro-photography, read

to the Society of A rts , w ill b e found in No . 8 of the London

Photographic Journal .

Mr. Kingsley’ s name is well known to Microscopists as that of

the inventor of a C ondenser which bears his name , and he has , I

believe,some reputation as a scientific man, and it appears to me

very probable , that the complicated additions he thought it neces

sary to in troduce has done much to deter people from the practice

of Micro-photography, of which we n ow very rarely hear any

thing . In his paper he describes as necessary,

l et . A set of collecting lenses .

2nd. A set of condensing lenses , of which a separate set was

to be provided for each power although of no use for any other

purpose .

3rd. Obj ect glasses very much under-corrected for colour,leaving a strong red fringe , using with these a positive eye-piece

w ith an additional (bi-convex) lens to the Field glass—TheMicroscopic obj ect glass is over corre cted for colour , this over

co rrection being rectified by the Huyghenian , or under-corrected .

(i . e . non ~corrected) Negative eye-piece .

The foregoing and some other complications, which I have n ot

adverted to , w ere , if not totally unnecessary, certainly sufficient to

deter the maj ority o f Photographers from attempting what appear

ed so difficult .

T he il lumination of an obj ect when high powers are used is

doubtless somewhat diflicul t , and Mr. Kingsley’ s condensers

would not be obj ectionable wer e they achromatic and less expen

sive but why he meddled w ith the optical part of the Microscope

itself is to me a mystery , for I find that Ross’ s Microscope when

used with the Huyghenian eye-piece is in the best possible state

of correction for Photographic purposes , the visual and actinic

foci being absolutely coincident . In a case of this kind an ounce

of proof is better than a ship load of argument, and when I say

that the pictures I exhibited, and some of which I have brought

for examination were taken at the best visual focus I could oh

A PRIL—I E P T . of M icrow ap ic objects. 1 3

tain,I think you will agree w ith me that it does not seem meces

sary to meddle w ith that part of the instrument .

The latest writer upon this subj ect, Mr . J . R . Traes,has not

,I

think,added anything of value to ourprevious store of knowledge .

The most remarkable thing in his paper is his great dislike to one

of the most valuable adj uncts to a Microscope , vi z . , a mechanical

stage , and his appropriation , w ithout acknow ledgment, of Mr .

H ighley’

s mode of applying the obj ect glas s stage and mirror to

the C amera .

Having alluded , as briefly as the subj ect admitted, to what has

been done by others , I w ill n ow proceed to describe,as w ell as I

can,my method of working w ith the compound Microscope and

an ordinary Photographic C amera, for which the only additional

apparatus required is the follow ing

l st . A boardfi 3 feet 6 inches long , 1 foo t w ide and 6 in ches

thick , has at one end a strip of w ood nailed (or screwed) on at

each side, so as to allow the foot-board , w ith whi ch most Micro s

copes in upright cabinets are supplied, to slide easily between

them,but w ithout any lateral play . This preserve s the true

direction of the axis of the Microscope , the prolongation of which,

when the body of the instrumen t is horizontal , should pass per

pendicularly through the centre of the focusing screen . The

requisite altitude is given to the C amera by erecting at the other

end of the board a table on four legs , which are to be secured,by mortising

,to the board . The table should be as much larger

than the bottom of the C amera as w ill permit a beadin g half an

inch high to be screwed on all round ; the C amera fits tightly

w ithin the heading and is thus prevented from moving . Such a

board as the above c ost me 5 Rupees .

2nd. A cylinder of black cotton velvet, doubled for greater

security,somewhat larger in diameter than the flange of the

C amera lens,and from 4 to 6 inches lon g . The flange is unscrew

ed and loosened sufli cien tly to tuck one end of the cylinder w ell

in betw een it and the front of the C amera, the flange is then

screwed up tight again, the screw s passing through the velvet .

T he size of the board Will depend upon the siz e of the C ameraandMicroscope .

1 4 On the Photographic delineation ENC . 9, N E W S E RI E S .

The other end of the cylinder should be furnished w ith a drawing

string . A new front might be made for this purpose , but it is

n ot necessary, for, if the cylinder of velvet be a little loose , it w ill

not be found at all in the way when the C amera is required for

other work .

3rd. There is a di" "

cul ty about the focusing screen, and I have

not yet found a good material for"

this purpose ; The common

ground glass screen forms an infinity of prisms which , when the

obj ect is strongly illuminated, as by the sun, render a sharp w ell

defined outline impossible . The iodized and washed collodion

plate,recommended by Mr . Shudbol t, is somewhat better, but a

focusing screen for the Microscopic C amera is still a desideratum .

The foregoing is all the additional apparatus required . When

wanted for use place the platform upon a tolerably firm table in

some convenient spot in the open air, as near as possible to the

operating room,and if the place selected be such that either sun

shine or shade may be had at pleasure , by moving the table a footor two , so much the better . Little more than the mirror should

be exposed to the sun, and this only while focusing, or exposing

the plate . A t other times the table should be removed into the

shade, or the exposed portion of the apparatus should be sheltered

by an umbrella held by an assistant, for the intense heat of the

sun for any length of time would, in all probability, injure the

cementing of the obj ect glasses .

The best general position for the table is parallel w ith the

sun’ s rays, w ith the C amera nearest to that luminary . It w ill be

found convenient to place the edge of the board close to the right

side of the table , and the end of the C amera flush w ith the end

of the table .

The platform having been thus fixed,put the C amera into its

place,and then the Microscope . Having turned the body until it

is horizontal , push the foot-board along until the eye-piece is j us t

inside the C amera . Tie the velvet cylinder tightly round the

body of the Microscope , and place the focusing screen at ten

inches from the focus of the eye-piece .

The usual diameter of the field at ten inches from the lowest

eye-piece is five inches, and a square of this size should be mark

A PR IL—I I P T . of M icroscop ic objects. 1 5

ed upon the focusing screen w ith the deeper eye-pieces , the field

is from 8 to 9 inches , and if the C amera admits of a picture of

that size being taken , a corresponding square should also be

marked on the screen .

Now adjust the mirro r so as to throw light into the instrument

if all has been accurately made and put up , the circle of light

will be,

just contained by its proper square the apparatus is n ow

ready for use .

The artist need n ot confine himself to a distance of 10 inches,

but that being the distance at which the magnifying pow er of a

Microsc ope is measured,it is the most conven ient for general use

,

as the amount of amplification will be always known without

calculation .

No correction for actinism being required, the obj ect should be

focused as for Microscopical examination , i . e . the best visual

focus possible should be obtained . The field should be equally

illuminated . With the lower powers this is very easy. Use the

flat mirror, and if the obj ect slide is covered w ith paper, adjust it

so that a circle of light is thrown upon it, the obj ect being in the

centre . If the slide be n ot covered a piece of paper or a card

placed upon it w ill enable you to se e when the light is in the right

place . This adj ustment w ill generally be found sufficient, and, if

n ot quite the thing, w ill require very little alteration .

W ith powers above the half inch it will be generally necessaryto use the achromatic condenser, and here there w ill be some

di i cul ty in illuminating the field p roperly, and for reasons that

w ill readily occur to the Microscopist, on e of which is , that when

a large‘

in strumen t is put up in this way it is very difficult to reach

the mirror and look into the focusing screen at the same time,but

by placing the apparatus close to the side and end of the tube, as

previously directed, and sitting on a chair at the corner,it can be

accomplished w ith a little patience .

The source of light (when that Lis the sun) must not be accurately focused upon the obj ect, as it w ill be reduced by the con

denser to a more po int, but the condenser must be racked up or

down , (usually the latter) until the best light is obtained.It will be advantageous to use a focusing glass to examin e the

image formed upon the focusing screen . A ny positive eye-piece

1 6 On I ndian Weights andMeasures. EN G . 9, N E W S l ams.

w ill do for the purpose . I have found Ross ’ s Micrometer eye

pie c e , w ith the Micrometer removed , answer verywell . The mostdi

r

icul t part Of the business is to know when you have got the

best focus , for the worst image given by the worst Microscope , is

sharper and more free from colour, than any I have yet seen upon

the screen . A R ainey’s light moderator improves the picture

while focusing , but it stops too much light to be used w ith ad

vantage .

I have not kept a record Of the times of exposure Of the few

plates I have had time to take , but I believe the extremes w ere 1 5

seconds and 2 minutes . I think the collodion I used was very in

sensitive and my Pyrogallic acid was Old and had probably lost

some of its power.

I believe I have nothing more to add,I do not attempt to teach

either Photography or the use Of the Microscope , but merely to

describe a simple and inexpensive method Of adapting the two instrumen ts, the C amera and Microscope , for use together .

III . On I ndian Weights and Measures. By J . W . BRE E KS ,E so . ,

C . S .

W ITHOUT attempting a formal review Of Mr . B ayley’ s pape ron Indian W eights and Measures , which appeared in NO . IV . ,

w e desire w ith a view to encourage discussion and stimulate

attention to the subj ect to say something , in defence of a plan Of

assimilating Indian to English w eights, which plan Mr . Bayley

himself has introduced and condemned in the same page .

S O as to arrive collectedly at the point of controversy, we sub

j oin a brief not ice Of Mr . Bayley’ s paper and of his mode of treat

ment . The opening" page states that no system can be speci

fi ed which w ill not be open to some,

Obj ections , and the Obj ect Of

this paper is simply to propose for the consideration of those

interested in the matter,a few different modes Of arranging the

weights and measures , in order that the subj ect may be w ell

Madras Journal of Literature and S cience, vol . II . NO . IV. NewSeries, p . 1 83 .

A PR I L—SE PT . On I ndian Weights a ndMeasures. 1 7

discussedby those qualifi ed to give an opinion before any one

system is authoritatively adopted.”

He divides his subj ect into four heads, and treats them in the

order we have written them down .

1 . Linear Measure .

2 . Superficial do .

3 . Weight .

4 . Measure Of capacity.

Had Mr. B ayley’ s intention been to set forth a system that

would provide a perfect corrective for the metrology Of India and

England, so that w ithout altering the denominations of the weights

and measures in us e in either(country, they might nevertheless be

adjusted in conformity w ith each other and with some known stand

ard,he could n ot have advocated a better system than that ex

plained by C aptain T . B . Jervis Of the B ombay Engineers in his

book entitled A n Essay on the Primitive Universal Standard Of

Weights and Measures . B ut as neither the metrology of England

n or the numerous systems Of India correspond w ith C aptain Jer

vis’Primitive S tandard, n or are regulated by it, the next best

thing to be done is to have some system arranged, which retain

ing as far as practicable the Old Native names and traditionary

standards” w ill admit Of the w eights and measure s of both coun

tries being in some degree assimilated .

In respect to Line ar and Sup erficial measures, the English sys

tems are already (as Mr . B ayley points out) in extensive use among

Natives , and therefore n o difficulty need b e anticipated in their

complete introduction . There is this ,"

moreover,that renders a n ew

system of Linear measure easier Of introduction than n ew mea

sures Of weight and capacity, viz . , that there is no uncertainty n or

mystery about a yard measure . Its exact measure is apparent .

It allow s Of a Native easily comparing its relative length w ith his

own hat’h (cubit), adee (foot) or guz (ell). It creates no doubt

in his .mind . He can readily test its length (more majorum) by hisOwn forearm . Whereas the exact magnitude or otherw ise of

measures of weight and capacity cannot be so determined by

sight or touch and do n ot admit Of such ready test and verification .

Moreover in regard to superficial measure wemay add, that it

VOL . xx . 0 . s. VOL . v 1 . N . s.

1 8 On I ndian Weights'

and Measures. [NO . 9, N E W SE RI E S .

does not hold the same important”

position in respect to the great

maj ority of the people , that the common cOmmercial measures Of

weight and capacity do . Where the convenience,if nothing

more, of every unit Of the people would be more or less affected

by any change in these latter, perhaps'

n ot one in ‘ a thousand w ould

care a straw about the introduction of a new system of superficial

account .

Mr . Bayley next treats ofWeights, (vide p . 1 86 ofNO . IV . New

Series .)He first considers an arrangement on the Tola unit, and gives

the C alcutta and Madras Tables of w eights calculated upon that

in accordance w ith A ct VII of 1 833 , which made the TOl a Of 1 80

grains the unit of a general system of weights in all Government

transactions .” T O both Of these Tables,Mr . Bayley Obj ects chiefly

because they do n ot conveniently accommodate themselves to the

Imperial Weights Of . G reat Britain. A nd it is here , to remedy this

inconvenience that he casually refers to a plan, of which we'

de

sire t o say a word in support .

That it is absolutely necessary to have some standard cannot be

questioned for themagnitude or weight of a body can only be un

derstood by comparing it w ith some other-and w ell known body.

Neither can it .be questioned, but that it is very desirable to fix

upon some standard which is generally accessible and easy Of

comprehension .

In India, w eights have always borne some

‘ relation in each

district to some coin in circulation there, generally to the one most

in repute . In B engal, B ombay'

and most parts Of the Deccan

they conformed to the Rupee . I n Madras to the Star Pagoda .

In Malwa and other States , otherwise . The Rupee; however,

may be said to have been generally the . chief . standard coin

throughout India,and almost everywhere is considered by the Na

tive the standard unit,Of which all his weights are certain multiples ,

and by.which all are to be regulated and tested . The Rupee in

fact is the Indian traditionary standard unit of w eight . A nd this

point is important when we consider that,by the revised A ss ay

Table lately published by the Bombay Government, every con ceiv

able variety Of Rupee in regard to weight has been put into cir

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20 On I ndian Weights and Measures. [No . 9, N E W S E R I E S .

MA D B A S TA BLE .

Grains Tolas Pol lams. Viss . Maund .

1 lbs .5625 3 1

1 20 40 3 2 1 4285 7I

ll

960 320 1

The adoption therefore of the true and original unit of grs .

w ould not, it is evident, lead to such a simple and uniform ponde

rary arrangement as would admit of easy conversion into the im

perial w eights of G reat B ritam.

‘

B ut although a tola of grs . does not answer our purpose in

every g

respect we do not see the obj ection to thead option of an o

ther No . (and especially of one that is foun d to correspond with

the average weight of old Native rupees) which does answer in all

respects . No obj ection at any rate could be made to such a course

on the score of tradition or prejudice or anything of that kind , for

there have been rupees of all weights . A nd the argument se ems

plausible which contends, that where each di strict would seem to

have had its own standard tola it would be our best plan , if

any change i s contemplated, to s elect such a number for our stand

ard as,

l st, would be acceptable to the inhabitants and so conveni ent

that the w eights which are multiples of the unit would be easily

convertible into A voirdupois ,A nd, 2nd, as will most approximate the average weight of o ldNa

tive Rupees , on which the different native systems ofweights hav ebeen calculated, and interfere as little as practicable w ith the pre ~

sent, and existing Native weights which have the prescriptive sanc

tion of long usage.

A s far as the second point goes,the present Tola of 1 80 grs .

would seem to meet all the conditions,but the great obj ection re

mains that the weights calculated therefrom canno t be convenient

ly converted into E nglish weights, and we scarcely think Mr.

A PR I L—S E PT . On I ndian Weights and Measures. 21

B ayley’ s plan of retainin g the pres ent tola w eight and al tering the

seer to 775} tolas satisfactorily removes all obj ection . Firstly, a

seer of 77% tolas w ill not meet w ith ready acquiescence from the

Natives , and therefore w ill n ot be found easy of introduction and

secondly, it is open to minor obj ections which we think might be

avoided by the adoption of another plan . Such for instance as a

plan founded upon the traditionary standard of the country and

which would‘

e‘

njoy these advantages , viz : that it retained the seer

of 80 tolas the best known w eight in India, and that th e present

G overnment Tables of weights (which are now extensively known)calculated thereupon w ould readily conform to Engli sh w eights .Mr . B ayley himself points out some of the obj ections to which a

seer of 77? tolas is open . A t page 1 89, he says a seer of 80

tolas c ould n o doubt be more easily introduced throughout India

than any other w eight .”

A t page 196 referring to the result of a

special enquiry instituted by the Madras B oard ofRevenue in 1 852,he tell us that as a general rule it was found that the seer Weight

was that of 80 tolas .” Now we know the invet eracy of ancient

custom in these kind of things and how difficult it is to introduce

a change . People are always ready enough to admit the change

to be for the better,and. that it is very advisable to put an end to

doubts and. differences and to have on e uniform system'

through

out, and yet these admissions are never acted upon and never ripen

into practice . A nd, thus , we fear that the idea of a seer of 80

tolas has obtained such root in India that on e of 77743 tolas would

haVe a hard chance of any extensive introduction however desirable

on other grounds .

Some years ago the present Tables of the G overment of India

and. of the Madras Government w ere introduced, and. though the

latter corresponds , as Mr . B ayley says, w ith the present Native sys

tems of w eights it is not used to any extent except in G overnment

transactions . Even in England there was occasion for the passing

of innumerable A cts of Parliament to put an end to the confusion

arising from the use of weights of the same name but' di fferent

magnitude , and till of late years the A cts produced little effect .

In India if any change very apparent to the Natives and militating

against mamool is attempted, no number of A cts wil l effect a

22 On I ndian Weights and Measures. [No . 9, N E W S E RIE S .

general introduction of t he change . It becomes therefore a point

of extraordinary importance that in the proposed change every

thing , as far as possible , should run consonant w ith Native notions

of w eights and measures . A ny intelligent Native w ill tell you aseer w eight is 80 tolas, but perhaps not 2 in 20 would agree as to

the exact number of grains that made a tola . But setting aside

this consideration for the present the chief obj ection to a seer of

7723

;tolas is , as Mr . Bayley himself says , that it does not admit of

subdivision, you cannot'

w ell halve it,and any other sub-multiple

is proportionately more intricate and fractional . Besides this as

regards the opportunity of easily testing the seer we scarcely think

a 41? of a Rupee can be considered“j ust as much a doin of defined

w eight as the whole rupee .” It is so at present when it leaves

the Mint, although it has been recommended, and supported by theG overnment, that the smaller coins should be issued in the form of

tokens at a fictitious“value and w eighed in the gross . The two

anna pieces are n ow no longer adjusted individually . But ,”

at any

rate,by reason of the thinness of the metal the Rupee can never

receive so bold an impression as the Rupee , in consequence of

which and the greater circulation it undergoes it wears faster and

lasts a shorter time than the Rupee and (a fortiori) is not so con

ven ien t a standard .

Moreover,Mr . Bayley’ s seer of 771

3 tolas does not conform ex

actly to English A voirdupois . It would be 5 grains short, he

says , (p . 193) of 21bs . , but nevertheless he w ould have it defined

legally equal to 2l . 5 grains is a very small difference,but

whether in practice it would be found immaterial we are n ot pre

pared to say. The best Mercantile Firms dispute over the 1 : l 6th

and 1-20th of a penny in the exchange w ith England . In such

transactions it w ould be difi i cul t to draw a line and say what

fractional difference ceases to be of importance . The following

plan , of Mr . Bayley, of keeping the present tables w ith the

same denominations and relative magnitudes but reducing the

Rupee , the standard unit, to 1 75 grains (retaining the same

amount of pure silver 1 65 grains) appears to us the easiest of

introduction and the most practicable . B y it two objects would

be gained.

A PR I L—SE PT . On I ndian Weights and Measures. 23'

1 . The retention of the present system of weights which are

n ow w idely known, and which corre spond in some degree to

the best known Native systems .

2 . A ssimilation with , and easy convertibility into, English A voir

dupois .

We subj oin the C alcutta and Madras Tables reckoned at 1 75

grains the tola . On the right are the equivalentsof the several

weights in English lbs . On the left are the number of grams the

several w eights are n ow considered to contain w ith the tola equal

to 1 80 grains ; this arrangement is made for easy comparison w ith

the number of grains they w ill severally contain w ith the tola

e qual to 1 75 grains .

Madras T able of Weights w ith T o la equal to 1 75 grains.

T ol as. Pol lum. Man nd.

II

2 1 600 2 1 000 = II

1 72800 1 68000 : 32o=! 8 = 1II

In Southern India a seer of 24 tolas called a Outcha seer is

very prevalent—it is equal to 24-40ths of a lb ; this and the B en

gal seer of 2l . might be introduced into the Table something in

th is way

24 On I ndian Weights and Measures.

”

[No . 9, NEW S E RIE S .

B engal T able of Weights with T ola equal to 1 75 grains.

3 55G rains. Tolas.

1-4oth

5 76000 560000 : 3200 = 80

By this arrangement would equal 2000

the proposed New Ton .

The B engal Table might be w ritten in this way,1 75 grains 1 tola .

5 tolas 1 chittak .

8 chittaks 1 lb .

2 ih 1 Bengal seer .

40 B eng .

'

seers 1 mun .

25 mun . 1 ton .

T he C alcutta and Madras Tables amalgamated make ,

1 75 grains 1 tola .

5 tolas 1 chittak .

8 chittaks 1 lb .

2 lbs. 1 seer, (Bengal)15 Beng . seer 1 viss .

8 viss maund .

3gMaund or 80 tbs. 1 mun .

25 muns . 1 ton .

Mr. Bayley, how ever, says it seems impracticable to reduce the

Rupee to 1 75 grains if this is the case of course all advocacy is

at an end . B ut , p rima facie, it‘

appears to us more feasible to re

duce the unit of weight, which the great bulk of the people know

nothing about, from an arbitrary number selected by ourselves to

a number more in accordance w ith the average weight o f Rupees

ofNative G overnments,than to alter the relative values ofweights

higher up the scale which they do know something about, and have

an obstinate prejudice for, having daily occasion to make use‘

of

A PRIL—S E PT . On I ndian Weights and Measures. 25

them . Practically, whether the Rupee w eighs 1 75 grain s or 1 80

grains,so long as the quantity of pure silver remains the same

,

seems of little importance .“A l l coins in circulation suffer w ear

and tear and diminish in w eight, and. yet people in their every daytransactions never think o f testing the w e ight o f each piece . A t

least it is many years before a co inage w ill arrive at such a stagethat piece s are rej ected as l ight ; and they w ill be light many more

grains than five when such is the case , the remedy allow ed in the

w e ight of the presen t R upee is 15 grains , so it is possible even

w ith the presen t ' co in age when it leaves the M in t that one coin

may be 3 grains heavier or lighter than ano ther . The proposedchange is only 5 grains . I n prac tice no difference w ill be observed

,

that so accustomed are people to attach a particular value to certain coins in circulation .

96 It is only when coins are brought into

exchange w ith the coins and commodities o f a foreign country that

any so slight a deviation (as proposed) from what has existed,

would be taken into account, and in this matter the proposed

change to a R upee of 1 75 grains , of which 1 65 are pure silver,would work in our favor . For j ust as a depreciated currency pro

duces an adverse rate of exchange , a currency o f greater fineness

w ill raise the rate . With a Rupee w eighing 1 75 grains , cwteris

paribus, the par of exchange w ith England (calculated at the

usual rate 6s. per o z . of silver) w ould be raised from l s. 9'29625d,

the present par to l s. 1 0 °29875d, (i. e. ) could be raised more than

a penny.

grs. dw ts. dw ts.

Ex . . G ross w eight . 1 75 i . e. ) are pure out of 240

Pure Silver . 1 65 (i. e. ) 4 28 5? better call it, B .

Formerly , it is t rue, Rupees w ere distinguished by the years inwhich they were coined, that is to say , they bore the impression of theyear of the reigning King of Delhi in which they w ere struck , andafter 4 or 5 years suffered a depreciation and became what , are calledS onat Rupees or R upees qf

‘

years. But the depreciation w as more no

minal than any t hing el se and arose from the acts of money lendersmore than from any intrinsic depreciation in the coin itself. The dif

feren t coins usually passed current indiscrnn inately especially if theimpression of the Sonat Rupee happened to be so effaced. as not to recall

the year in which it was struck.

Von . xx . 0 . S . VOL. v 1 . N . s.

in Standard Silver .

Standard Silver at 60d. peroz . i or° 1 25d. per

grain 1 78 3 9X ' 1 25 l s. 1 0'

29875d.

222) 750 75 (3 39

A s regards prices the trifling alteration preposed w ould have n o

effec t at all probably. For as on one hand a man buying a pound

of sugar for a Rupee would get 200 grains less w eight of sugar for

his Rupee than formerly, which is tantamount to a rise in prices,

so on the other hand the value of the Rupee , by its greater fineness ,being somewhat enhanced in the eyes of the foreigner w ould gra

dually become more appreciated at home and the holder of a R u

pee w ould demandmore than a pound o f sugar in exchange for his

coin,which is tantamount to a fall in prices . T his fall and rise

w ould destroy each other . A distant and defined dateshould benamed upon which the change was to come into effect . O ther

w ise any sudden introduction would w ork as a fraud upon all cre

ditors. A is debtor to B for one viss of sugar to be supplied

on a certain day. Between the contract and its e xecution the

S tandard unit is reduced .

‘

A viss formerly consisted of

grains n ow only of B is defrauded of 600 grams .

Or. some such regulation might be passed that it was no t to affect

existing contracts , but be only prospective in the interim Rupeesof 1 75 grains might be coined at once and issued for circulation

,

the collectors being ordered to shroff their remittances to the Pre

sidency so as to send down none but o ld Rupees'

. I n this way,though it would take some time , R upees of 1 80 grains w ould gradually be drawn out of circulation and Rupees of 1 75 grains be 1n

troduced.

Mr . Bayley lastly considers themeasures of capacity. The most

common measure , he tells us , I S the see r measure , which,when heapedw ill contain a seer weight of rice or non-danium. Setting aside

the arbitrary and undefined kind ef an idea a heaped measure

gl ves one, Government as Mr. B ayley says could not lend a

Sanction to it .” Nevertheless in this a l so it would be as well

to diverge as little as possible fromthe «principle‘

of the

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28 T he C airns qf T innevel ly . [No . 9, NEW S E R I E S .

was an urn about 4 feet in height, and about 3 feet in its greatest

diameter . Each ur'

n had becn'

cl osely surrdunded by a chamber of

unhewn stones , boulders , such as are at present procurable in the

bed'

of the adj oining river .’

The urns were w i thout ornament of

any

'

kind,except that the mouths of them w ere encircled by a bead

moulding . I examined them carefully, hoping to discover some

inscriptions upon them but in vain . The only marks orfi gures

upOn them w ere upon the inside and close to the edge . They

w ere thus,on on e side UM

”—directly opposite 88”The

lines forming these figures were each about 3 inches long . The

manufacture of the urns was c oarse , streng th and not beauty of

finish , havin g been evidently the obj ect of the manufacture . On

turning out the clay w ith which the urns w ere filled , here and

there I discovered small layers of bone completely pulverized , butto my mind entirely forbidding the idea that they had ever been

submitted to fire . If I am right these C airns differ in a very mate

rial point from the C airns which have been discovered in Ireland,w ith which I am better acquainted than w ith any others . H ow

ever I do n o t contend for this . A t the bottom of the urns w ere

discovered several w eapons,all of iron , but from being imbedded

in clay, reduced almost, w ith few exceptions , to bare oxide . Such

as they are , however, they claimfor the age to which they belongconsiderable acquaintance w ith the arts : one o f them , that which

I have denominated in the draw ing a hog spear, is not e xceededin manufacture by w eapons of that kind now in use among the

Natives . T he large oblong pieces o f iron (on e of which is en cir

cled by a moveable ring) marked in the draw ing (XX ) wereaalsofound in the urns, but of their use I am ignorant. I w ould hazard

a conjecture , however, and call them A xes. I n addition to the

weapons , several small earthen vessels of most exquisite manufac

ture w ere also found of their original use it is impossible now to

conj ecture almost, but I w ould observe that, in some of the Irish

C airns,vessels similar to the cup ,have been found

,and are called

by the Irish A ntiqu’

arie s Lachrymatories Whether this vessel

w as appropriated to such a purpose I do not determine .‘

T hc

pottery o f the smal l vessels is exactly like that of vessels which Ihaveseen from C airns on the A nnamalies '

and Nilgiris.

Spearhead.-I n good preservation.

Sword.

Fractured.H og

-Spear.

POT TERY.

s rnrn fl -snrr. T he C airns of T innevetly . 29

My fi rst'

impression on inspecting these C airns was, that they

are the sepulchres of the chiefs o f the A borigines for they closely

resemble the C airns -of the A borigines of Ireland, wanting , how

ever,that which w ould put the ques tion beyond doubt, namely . any

p rimitive w eapon , such as aflin t spear head , w eapons which are ia

variably found in the Irish C airns . Yielding to the doub t which this

ci rcumstance,and the apparently superior finish of the w eapons

and pottery (superior to any thing A borigine s generally are found

to possess) gave rise to , I felt inclined to assign to them a B udhic

or J ain er origin , especially as the urns correspond exactly w ith

others discovered by me at a place about 40 miles N . W . of Tuti

coreen,and of whose B udhic or J ainer origin there can be n o

doubt,as they are found in a place , traditionally spoken o f as

having once been a great B udhist town , but ofwhich , the only ves

tige n ow remaining is an image o f Budh or the JainerM alta Vera .

This image,I w ould remark here , is of enormous size ; in its sit

ting posture it is above the height of an ordinary man , and is hewn

out o f one solid blo ck of mountain granite , it is in a field , exposed

to the ravages of man and o f the w eather, but is u ell w orthy a place

in any museum : there is not the slightest obstacle to its removal .

However, there is an obj ection to the theory that these C airns are

Jainer, namely, the urns , of whose Jairier ' origin there can beno doub t , are n o t surrounded w ith ston e chambers , whereas the

C ourtal lum urns are, in this particular, resembling the C airnsof the

Irish A borigines,and, per consequence , in claiming an early date ;but the absence of primitive w eapons

,as w ell as the superior finish

of those which have been found some '

w aydestroying this claim to

antiquity . I should observe that at C ourtal lum I have n o t foundas yet any traces of the B udhic or Jain worship . Whereas in theNorth o fTinnevel ly, no t far from the place where stands the celebrated image which I have

’

alluded to'

there is a S ooprumaniantemple which abounds in J ainer fi gures cut in

'

the'

solid ro ck inalt o ~rel ievo , though at the present day there isno t a J aimerto befound in these parts . I would observe in

'

conclusion ,"that the”

C ourtal lum,C airns had no

'

perpendicular stones about them‘ if

there ever had been any we should not won der at their removal , asthey are just the thing which Natives w ould appropriate to t hem’

39 On the Syrian and J ewish [Na 9, N EW spams.

selves . I have n ot so much endeavoured to explain to my read;

era» the character, Sac. &c. of these C airns , as to inform them.

that

such have been discovered in Tinnevelly, the first, I bel ieve, which

have been dissgvered so far south.

‘

V . Memorandum on the Syrian and J ewish C opper Plates ofM a labarfi i B y KO OK E L KE LOO NA I R , D istrict M oonsif in

M alabar.

[We have given insertion to the follow ing paper, not more on accountof the interesting nature of the subject to which it relates than in

consequence of the merit attaching to it as the w ork of an entirely

self~ taught Native Gentleman. But, we do not therefore affirm or

support the conclusions he has drawn, as we know that some persons, competent to discuss the matter, are inclined to consider these

to be untenable . We shall be happy to give insertion to any rémarks of our con tributors to the chronological theory h

e

re advocated.

E E p . M. L. S . J . ]

fi rst; narrow but very long strip p f country stretghing along the

soest from C ape C ommit} to G okumom is.ca1_1.ed Kerala. andalas

Pat asco R ama Kshetrorn (Parasoo Ramen’ s country) Qf this , the

tract .oi land intervening from the river G anjarots Pooya (tbs ori

ginal southern bpundary .

0.

f genera) ts T ravancore.. inelnswe,

s eat was one pf the {36 districts of the 9x

H indostan. and egually .w ith the nest .Of it «wassixiliz ed isaper.

.

had began ts besiviliz ed, andever s ince has nexertonce been«dest itutesf s rule's ersf same term Of .p erament ; but the stamtyethemany superstitign aand grass idolatry, (grassed . alike to

their own Vedan taandnatural, reason) .o f the takers and theiras!»

jects, have never. pp to the present date , permitted that early‘fliVil iz afi on to attain rerfcst ispn o T he inhabitants sf Ka elamay

Vide this J ournal N. S . Vo l . IV. 1 52, andalso the O . S . No . 30,

h as Am;

w arm er-

set . 1 8591j dapperPlates“bf Matebar. 31

"

yet however justly claimto be admitted to be a peopleof abilityand intellect .

The whole of the original Kerala was ruled by Parasa Ramen,

and afterwards by the Brahmins established there by him , but the

greater portion , that is to say, the southern part of i t , was after

some time ruled by Peroomals or Viceroys sent at the desire of the

B rahmins by the Raj ahs of Salem , and each of whom governed for

the space of 1 2 years , being subj ect to certain regulations of the

B rahmins , but in fact having the superiorauthority . This species

of mixed G overnment appears from several circumstances and

other proofs,to have commenced

,68 years before . the C hrist ian

era, and ended about A . D . 3 52 . The names of the 3 7 Peroo~

mals who ruled during this period are still to be found in the old

records of the history of the country . From this time till Hyder

A lly’ s usurpation in A . D . 1 766 , the ancestors o f the present

n ominal Raj ahs unquestionably ruled over the country w ith someslight interruptions from the Portuguese subse quently to A : D .

1 498 .

The above narrative (the outline of which may be gleaned,

though ,w ith difficulty it is true , from various o ld w orks , how ever

overlaid the history in those works may be w ith fables) is very

fully illustrated by the fol lowmg trustworthy Deeds on C opper,

'

viz . , No . I . dated as w ill be hereafter shown , w ithout doubt in

A . D . 230 , No . III . apparently dated in A . D . 1 68 , and , No . II . ,which from certain circumstantial evidence it may be concludedw as executed about A D . 321 . It is also corroborated by a Euro

pean n amed . C ona Thoma , who testifies that he saw the'

last

Peroomal at C ranganor‘

e (C odungal ore) in A . D . 345 .

T hese three C opper PlateDocuments‘

are still extant being preserved respectively by the Jew s and byNasaran ies er Syrian C hris

tians ofMalabar . O f these deeds two were executedby the Perocmals themselves w ith the knowledge and cencurrence of the B rah~

minsand C hieftains before alluded to , anagranted—to certain indi~viduals mentioned therein ; and the other was granted by Martin

‘

van Sapi‘rI so to a C hurch cal led T arisaPull‘y’ built by I sodata'

Vee

say, and was executed in c onjunction w ith the then Venaad A die

gi rl orC hief, now called the Travancore R ajah . Fromfear bfmis

32 On the Syrian and J ewish [No . 9, N E W

.

S E RI E S .

construction , the former two have been numbered I and III , and thelast II p recisely as was previously done in the Madras Literary

Journal No . 30 o f June 1 844, page 1 1 5 to 1 46 .

It may be inferred from the Kerala Mahat ingam (a very loose

and vague Sanskrit B ook) that this country derived its name Xc

ra la from on e Veera Kera la , the first Prince who governed it . It

is, though , the opinion of some that as this country abounds w ith

cocoanut trees , termed in Sanskrit Kera , it ow es its name to that

circumstance . But, though v. hat the Kerala Mahatinayam'

relates

might be accepted, seeing that the C opper Plate Document No I .proves that Veera Kerala was t he first Prince o f Kerala ; yet onthe other hand there may be no harm in surmising

,that this name

of Veera Kerala may havehad reference to the said country ofKe

rala which be governed .

It is difficult to learn c learly the history of the family of this

Veera Kerala , but from various Sanskrit and other w orks such as

the Mahatin ayam, U lpati and others , it appears pretty clearly, ifw e rej ect obvious fables , that Parasoo Rama a Brahmin eventuallygained possession of the country from . Veera Kerala

’s descendant,

and after improving it to a great extent , introduced therein his owncaste people , to whom he ultimately committed its government.

I t is very clear, that the Brahmins above alluded to ,soon sepa

rated themselves into two grand divisions , on e the w orshippers ofVarahom (the superstitious incarnation of the Boar) and the other,w orshippers of Sharabhom (a peculiar huge bird). The former

distinguished[ themselves by the n ame of Punn eyoor G ramakar

(Boar-villagers), and the latter by that of C hovo or G ramakar

(Bird-vil lagers), i and they endeavour by all possible means to re~

tain these designations and distinctions up to the present day .

These comprise the Numboori Brahmins of Malabar, as distin

guished from the Brahmin s o f any other district . This division

among the Malabar Brahmins is evident from the C opper Plate

No . I , the Boar-villagers and the Bird-villagers are the principal

w itnesses therein .

B ut at the same time it may easily be gathered from the Scanda

Poran oom and other w orks (after rejecting obvious fables) that the

B rahmin s who lived in the country between C aujarote Pooya

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34 On the Syrian and J ewish [NO . 9, N E W S E RIE S .

the sons thus descended were appointed by successive Peroomalsin various places as petty Chieftains governing

,subj ect to them

selves , the districts thus conferred ou them ; but w ithout the title

that is now assumed of R ajah. This latter fact is proved n ot only

from the C opper Plate No . I , but also from the other two ; for

those plates merely mention the n ames of such Chieftains as w it

n esses thereto w ithout . assigning to them any title which belongs

to a Raj ah .

The popular tradition of the present day,that all the present

Raj ahs of Malabar first derived their origin from the last of the

Peroomals, and that that personage embraced the Mussulman

faith has n ot the least foundation ; though it must be here ad

mitted that the title of Raj ah” w as first given to most of

the former Chieftains by this Peroomal,w ith a view to gratify

and encourage them to oppose Kistn a R ow , the Raj ah‘

of A n a

goomty (situated on the banks of the T oombudra), who was then

making preparations to invade Kerala .

'

T he numerical mottos

which w ere then adopted w ith the view of fixing the dat e of the

assumption of the title o f Rajah , and which are still in existence ,show the date s from which they thus had that title —for instance

R aveeloke Sharajay, i s the motto of the C ochin Raj ah ; Shulbha

gastamsharajay, of the Pal ghaut Rajah ; and D evalokesharajay,is the motto attached to the C alicut Raj ah , the last preferred bythe Peroomal to the dignity of Rajah , and who w as selected to be

the head of the warriors against the above Kristn a R ow . A l l

these dates coincide w ith A . D . 325 , there being a difference o f

only a few days between them . This last Peroomal w as the only

person who was permitted to evade the rule as to 1 2 years resi

dence only in Malabar,and to remain in pow er more than 36 years

in consideration of the services he had rendered to the T al iyadri

mar , and for having defeated and driven out Kristn a R ow . This

Peroomal afterwards resigned the coun try and proceeded toMecca,called in Sanskrit Magadha, in or about A . D . 352 , or 2 1 7 years

previous.

to Mahomet, the founder of the Islam religion being

born,

'and this departure was due chiefly to the religious induce

ments of Majain s called Jainias or B oudhas, who as a people w ere

then settled in A rabia,and many of whom visited Malabar . The

original name of Mahajains became in time corrupted into Magain s

A PR I L—S E PT. C opp er P la tes of Malabar. 3 5

or Magans . T he Hindoos through mistake call . the Mussulmans

also B oudhas, and from that error they fell into . this other,that

the last. Peroomal embraced the, Mussulman faith, and the Mussul

mans in former days taking advantage of this ignorance of the

H indoos,invented several fables about the Peroomals in honor

of their own religion . It may thus be safely concluded that both

the parties are n ow in error on this point . One Z eirroodeen Mo

kadom,an Egyptian Mussulman , who v isited Malabar about the

time of the Portuguese , admits this being an error , in the w ork he

wrote in A rabic about Kerala .

The Peroomal fi rst chosen having been a native of C heram (n owcalled Salem

,and which comprised also C oimbatore)he was there

fore called the C heraman Perooma and this affix w as given to

all the succeeding Peroomal s who came from C heram , till it even

tual ly became a regular title . This fact may clearly be observed

from the C opper Plate No . I , which calls the country C heraman

l okoun (C heraman’

s country) long before the celebrated and ao

know ledged last C heraman even made his appearance in Malabar .

There appears to be some mi stakes in a few letters made by the

engravers o f these C opper Documents and when compared w ith

the present improved system of the language,some inelegancies

in the composition and style also are apparent ; but these have n o t

the slightest material effect upon the real meaning of the contents .

Here follow the Documents .

C opper D ocumen t IVo . I .

Beginning from Sri Veera Kerala,the Earth R uler

,the Man

lord, the Emperor, the Sceptre has been swayed through a regu

lar succession of many hundred thousands of years, when Sri

Veera R aghava C hucravurti (the Emperor Veera R aghava) w as

in possession of the country and was seated in the Royal Palace,

(the follow ing grant was made) in the’

yearwhen Jupiter was inC apricornus , on the 2 l st of the month of Meen om,

Saturday,

when [as it is further implied] Saturn was in Pisces and on theday of R oham, the 4th A sterim.

We have given Manigramom (the village called Maui) . toI ravi C orten (C urten) of the town of Mahadevor, the grandC hettiar [Merchant] o f the Cheraman ’

s country. I ’Ve have

3 6 On theSyrian and J ewish [No . 9, N E W S E RI E S .

also given to him the right of Peelavata,“of having the Pavanatungum house Pillarb and of receiving Puroopcrooma

c and

Kadat oo ,d and further the honor of having Val in chiyem and Ta

n ichet t in Valinehiyemf and moreover of having the privileges

of Moora C hol loo and Moomata,f and Puncha Vaddium,

g and

C hangoo ," and Pakel Velukaj and Pavatafi and A ymtolom,

and C otta C oda,“and Vadoo ca Para," and I dopatio and Tora »a . A cl oth permitted to be worn over the shoulders by people of high

caste alon e .

6. A carved Pillar erected in the south-east corner of the portico ,which, as also the portico were in former days forbidden to Sudras andother people of in ferior caste .

c . A l l the revenue .

d. The fee paid by rich persons and merchants and particularlyfemales, to the Ruler or chief of a district for a guard for their personalprotection when travelling from one country to another, also ferry tollsgenerally .

e. The carved sword and sovereignty or authority w ith the sword.

f . Fore-runners and the recital of praises, the heralds proclaim thetitle and deeds of the person in the State vehi cle, a pract ice still ohserved in the processions of the Zamorin, &c.

i

9.Five musical in struments of Malabar, viz ., Jenta, C hengalam,E ela

talom, Muddal om and Koye] .h . C onch which in former days was used only in the Pagodas , andbefore a Jogee or Sunn yasi .

j. T he lamp by day , i . e . a brass lamp w ith a long tail or handle, alamp of this kind is carried lighted in broad dayl ight the same as if itwas n ight before the idol , when b orne on the head of a NambudryBrahmin in the daily Pradakshana or procession round the temple . Itis also allow ed to be carried lighted before Jogees and Sunnyasies evenin the day time .k. T he cl oth spread on the ground along the streets for the Raja to

w alk upon, when he proceeds w ith all pomp in public procession roundthe city on a fixed day after his accession to the throne .l . A sort of l itter permitted to be used only by Rajas orBrahmins .

m. Royal umbrella w ith a very long handle, which none but a Rajais permitted to use .

n . A drum, such as is used in the Northern T amil and Teloogoo countries

,and which is beaten before the palace of a Raja at the same time

with the Puncha Vaddium, or fi ve kinds of musical instruments, in themorning, at noon, and in the evening.

o . A carved plank to sit upon, whi ch was forbidden to be used bysudras and other inferior castes, andwas placed generally on the southbru, though now occasionally on the western, side of the portico of theS ouse .

Pam—S E PT . C opper P lates of .Malabar. 3 7

norm? and T an iehettfl over the four C heries,r in the city of

Man igramom—moreover w e have given him as slave s the o il

manufacturers and the A inkoody C ummalers.

‘ We have given

to the Lord of the Town , I ravi C orten , the T aragoo t and C hoom

kom“of all that may be meted by the Para,” w eighed by the

balance , or measured by the string , of all that may be counted

or carried, in a w ord , of all from salt to sugar, and from musk

to lamp oil,w w ithin the C odungalore harbour and the town

between the four Talis and the gramoms (villages) adj oin ing

thereto .

We have written and given this C opper Plate w ith water, J

&c . to I raw i C orten the C heraman l okaperroom C hettian ,y and

to his sons and son’ s sons , in regular succession .

W ith the kn ow ledge of the Pann iyoor G ramom and C hovoor

G ramomz we have given it ; w ith the knowledge of Venadoo

p . Furniture and decorations 1n the temporary erection s on the occasion of a marriage, &c. , permitted only to the higher castes .

q. Sovereignty or executive jurisdiction .

r . The four suburbs, streets or bazars assign ed as usual to differentcastes or occupation s .

s. T he fi ve sects or castes of A rtifi cers, viz . , the A shari, Mooshari,Tattan

, Perning C ollen, and T ol-C ollen or C arpen ter, Brazier, Goldsmith, Blacksmith, and T anner . T he term C ummalar signifies, meanor low , but the term is not appl ied to them from contempt of their profession , but because of the order assigned to them 1 11 the grand divisionof castes

,in which they are ranked as A rtifi cers. It may perhaps be

surmised that the sen se of contempt which this term n ow implies aslow

” and mean” w as adopted by the people of Malabar in consequen ce of the fi ve sects comprised under this designation being givento the degrading and shameful custom of marrying one girl amongthree or four brothers .t . Brokerage .a . Dues or customs .v . A measure containing 1 0 dungal ies, but really varying in differentparts of Malabar, sometimes as for salt equivalent to the Indian maund.

. T hese are familiar phrases and signify all and everything.

a . That 1 sw ith water and flowers, for every fee simple or Janumis transferred w ith the ceremony of pouring water w ith somestrew ed upon it into the hands of himwho receives it.

. Grand or chief merchant of the C heraman country .

tz .

y

ghe two grand divisions of the Brahmins of Malabar beforemen

rone

3 8 On Me Sym'

an'

and J ew z'

s/z [No . 9, N E W S E RIE S .

and On adoo ,“have we given it ; w ith the know ledge of Erna~doc and Vulwan adooj) have we given it ; we have given it forthe time that the Sun and Moon shall endure . W ith the

knowledge of the above has this been written and engraved bythe hand of Nambi C hadayen , G rand Goldsmith of the C hera

man country .

”

A ccording to the w ell known and absurd practice of Hindu

authors,the above C opper Plate No . I as a preliminary state s

that'

the country had been ruled by the successors of Veera Kerala,the original Prince , for“many hundred thousands of years .

” It

seems therefore quite unnecessary for me to make any comment

on so vain and foolish a preface .

It is quite clear that this document was given by Veera R aghava

C hucravurti in the year when Jupiter was in C apricornus , and

Saturn in Pisces , and on Saturday, on the 2 1 st of the month Mee

nour (March and A pril) and on the day governed by Rohani the

4th A sterism , therefore to find out the date of the document in

question, it is imperative on us to undertake to ascertain when the

above mentioned phaenomena occurred during the administration

of the Peroomals, or indeed at any other period, either antecedent

or subsequent to it . If this task be patiently persevered in, we

cannot fail to attain the obj ect of our desire .

Previous to the institution of the C ollom Era in Malabar (i . e .

1 030 and odd years ago) by Shunkara A chariar, it was usual to

insert in documents either the number of the days elapsed of the

present age called the Kali-yoogom, or else the Zodiacal sign in

which Jupiter and Saturn then severally stood , adding thereto the

month, date , and the day of the week , and the A sterism of the day .

Moreover it should be borne in mind that in ancient times if inl

any

year Saturn or Jupiter stood for more than on e-third thereof in anyone of the Zodiacal signs , it was usual to call the whole year after

those signs,affixing the names of Saturn and Jupiter . Even after the

C ollom Era had commenced , and that year together w ith months

and date s came into use , the former method also was occasionally

a . T he deputy chieftains of those two districts.6. Deputy C hieftains of those tw o districts now known as the E rnaad

andVulvanad T alooks of Malabar Proper.

A PRIL—S E PT . C opp er P lates of M alabar. 39

used,and though this practice was ultimately dropped , and the

year, month, and date alone appear n ow in deeds , yet in some of

the astronomical writings , &c ., the ancient practice is still employ

ed up to the p resent day .

Now ,therefore

,to find out the date of the Plate No . I , it must

be ascertained from the best astronomical calculations , on what

particular day the above state of the heavens actually occurred , and

to prevent any mistakes creeping in , it behoves us to make the

computation upward from the present date . A ccordingly by re

peated trials I have come to this final conclusion , that such a con

currence of the heavenly bodies happened on the 1,2 1 6

,665 th day

or in the year of the Kal iyoogom. Though it may be oh

jected that Jupiter left C apricornus 5 days and 1 6 astronomical

hours previous to the day in question (that is the date of the deedNo . I . ) after remaining fully 1 1 months and 25 days in it during

that year,yet in accordance w ith the practice above stated, the

year w ould be correctly described as that in which Jupiter was'

in

C apricornus .

Now for the present C ollom year 1 03 1 or A .

'

D . 1 85 5-56 , the

year of the Kal iage is 495 7 from which if we deduct the above

mentioned the remainder w ill be corresponding w ith

A . D . 230 ; which is therefore unquestionably the date o f the

C opper Plate No . I .

T o make this plainer to A stronomers , I subj oin the follow ingMemoranda .

On the 1 ,2 1 6 ,665 th day of the Kali-yoogom, or age , the Sun

stands

20

37—fi nd the month and date by this .

The Moon stands thus . . 01

1 8

28— fi nd the A sterism by this .

Jupiter stands thus .

05

1 6 -fi nd by this the Z odiacal sign in

which Jupiter stood in that year.

40 On the Syrian and J ewish (No . 9, N E W S E RI E S .

Saturn stands thus .24

4 1—fi nd by this , in what Zodiacal sign

Saturn stood on that day .

If the above mentioned be divided by 7, the remain

der w ill give the day of the w eek . For, according to the acknow

ledged A stronomical authoritie s , Friday is the first day of the be

ginning of Kali-yoogom or age , so that the divisor 7 should be

reckoned from Friday to Thursday, and 2 being the remainder

fixes the day o f the w eek as Saturday .

The Nassaram (Nazarene), the chief Merchant who rec eived this

C opper document No . I . is styled“I ravi C ortam”—“I ravi" inT amil or Ravi” in Sanskrit mean s the Sun”— C urten (or C or

ten according to the corruption in Tamil) means Lord or

C hief,

” and when these two words are compounded they becomeI ravi C orten,

” a mere title in which no shadow of a Sy rian name

is to be traced . This same w ord I ravi”

or“Ravi” likew ise

w ill be found to be prefixed to the title of some of the Raj ahs of

the present day as it was also to that of many of the Peroomal s

in former days .

This honorary title I ravi C orten was given to the man in

question by the then ruling Peroomal , and the bare title only is

mentioned in the document in accordance w ith the custom of

persons of high rank, who always omit to state their personal

n ames in such documents , &c . ; a practice which is generally fol

lowed up to the present day . The Peroomal thus promoted him

to the Lordship of the city w ith other privileges and honours , and

that city appears to have been situated somewhere between the

C odungalore harbour, the G opoorom or Gatehouse of C odunga

lore , the 4 Talis , and the adj oining G ramoms or villages .

There is every reason to believe that the city Man igramom,

which I rav i C orten of Mahadeva Patn om (i . e . C odun lagore so

named because the Peroomals resided there) obtained by this

Document No . I . as also A uchoo Vunuom which Joseph Roben, a

J ew , obtained by Document No . III . w ere chiefly inhabited byJews and Naz araines (Syrian C hristians) indiscriminately and n o tto any extent by Hindoos ; for otherw ise the Man igramakar, the

inhabitants of Man igramom,as well as those of A uchoo Vunnom

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On the Syrian and J ewish [No . 9, NE W S E R I E S .

control of the Peroomal s, for he was certainly promoted by the

predecessor of the last Peroomal from his deputyship to be the R aj ah of C herukal in A . D . 307, the numerical mot t o of his title

being Neeradhisamaraya—the reason was no doubt that he was

lo cated at so great a distance from C odungalore.

B ecause the C opper Document No . I . says that Veera Kerala is

the first prince of Keerala, there is no j ust ground whatever to

suppose therefore that he was the first of the Peroomal s, for, such

w orks as the Kerala Pooranom and others , though n o doubt full

of fables , yet coincide in stating that Veera Kerala was the first

prince who governed the country before Paras'

oo Rama had con

quered, and then transferred it into the hands of the B rahmins ;while the various copies of the Keralolputty concur that Keya

was the first of the Peroomals, and from this and many other cir

cumstances I believe t hat Veera Kerala and Keya w ere different

persons .

A gain, there is no ground to supp ose that the C ochin Rajah is

descended from the said Veera Kerala, for, from various authors ,it is clear that the C ochin Raj ah is descended from Mada Peroo

mal , one of the predece ssors of the last Peroomal , and, therefore ,

even up to this day the C o chin Raj ahs are called Mada B hoopatis

or Mada Raj ahs .

D ocumen t No . I I I .

The sceptre has been swayed for many hundred thousands o f

years, of which in this the thirty-sixth year over against the

two , Sri B haskaren I ravi Vurmen , the Royal born personage ,

the C o [the Raj a] living in Mooyeericode was pleased to be

stow thi s deed of gratification to Joseph Roben .

Thereby is granted to him A nchoo Vunnum, (i . e . 5 small

v illage s) together with the privileges of receiving for himself the

Pettia and of re ceiving Vayonamb (or Vainom) and of havingPacootomc and of receiving A n choo Vunaper

d and also of hav

a . Revenue derivable from different ferry boats and vessels calledPetti and Padacoo .

b. A tax on horses, & c .

c The right of taking every six months a handful of all the medicalin gredients exposed for sale 1n bazaars .

d. Every branch of revenue derivable from A nchoo Vunnom.

A PRIL—S E PT . C opper P lates of Malabar.

ing [the undermentioned privileges explained already in thedocument No . I . viz .] the Lamp by day, the spreading of cloth ,the Litter, the Royal umbrella, the drum of the Vadooca caste

,

the trumpet ~shel l , the carved plank to sit upon, furniture in the

wedding room , and [peculiar decorations on the same furniture

called] T ooranaveedanum,C haravoo and Mickoo fl Moreover

,

Oolakoo and T oolacooly,f are hereby relinquished to him [i . e .

to be appropriated forhis benefit] he has n ot to pay the A roog to

the Royal Palace , but on the contrary it should be given by the

Ryots of the village to him ; in a word, the 72 Veedooper" are

hereby by this C opper document granted to him.“Thus it is hereditari ly given to Joseph Roben, theLord of

A nchoo Vunn om, his heirs , his sons and daughters , his nephews“and nieces , and his sons-in-law , and as long as the earth and

moon exist, A nchoo Vunn om is hereditarily given to him.

T he w itnesses are

G ovurthana Martanden o f Venado o Kotai, C herookunden of

Venooval inadoo , Manavepala Manaveyan of E rralanadoo , I rayen

C hatten of Vulwanadoo, Kotai Ravi of Neetoompoorayoorna

doo .

A lso are

Moofken C hatten and Vuntalacherri Kanden, the subordinate

heads of the warriors .

W ith the know ledge of these , this was written by Keeyoovay

Kel luppan of C oonnapooya .

"

T o fix the date of this C opper document No . III . granted byone of the Peroomals and n ow in the possession of the Jew s , a

search should be made into the follow ing phrase therem, V1 z .

I rrundamandek E tirM0 0pputtaranandoo” that is

,the 36th year

over against two centuries , meaning the 236th year since the G o ~

vernmen t of Peroomal s, first began ; but such a search can n ever

be available without first correctly ascertaining when such G overn

e. A kind of bow and arrows carried in the hands of the forerunn ers.

f . That is C hoomkom and T aragoo or the usual customs and brokenage.

9. The fee for bonds executed .

h. T he 72 similar privileges.

44 On the Syrian and J ewish [No . 9, N E W S E R I E S .

ment really began . That such G overnment began about 68 years

before the beginning of the C hristian era,has been already stated

in a preceding page of this paper . So that it i s clear that this documen t was executed in A . D . 1 68 or 62 years previous to the documen t No . I .

The Hindoos as well as the Europeans appear up to this day to

have failed in finding out the correct dates of these documents,

because the former w ithout discretion or'

j udgment are always apt

to accept as true the most remote dates, which -their writers

'

with

out any bounds or limits have introduced into their writings , just

as may happen to suit the measure or the rhyme of their poetical

legends, upon subj ects they are quite ignorant of. Thus t heir cal

culations extend to unlimited periods beyond'

all chance of reality .

On the other hand the views of the Europeans generally fall'

short

o f the real facts , because they have not yet been able ’ ful ly to

comprehend when Kerala first began to be civilized,and also be

cause they find that the civilization of its people has not yet arriv

ed at that perfection which it o therwise should have .

It is no doubt an important question for decision, how it is that

if Kerala w ere so early civilized and possessed of rulers and sub

j ects as well as laws and regulations, they n o t only never appear

to have acquired any other country, but have besides lost th eir

own that they had T o this I answer, it is true that they both

formerly had and still have in their possession some books such

as Kamnutikeeyom,&c. , which treat of different branches of

military arts , &c. , though these w ill by no means vie w ith the

present military skill“of the Europeans but it must be con

cluded that their blind superstitions entirely barred their pro

gress in other countries, for they believe that they cann ot live

amongst others without pollution and the violation of their num

berless castes , and the privileges appertaining thereto . It is

from such foolish notions that they as well as the other Hindoos

of H indostan became like birds in a cage , precluded from passing

into other countries, and acquiring them and of embellishing their

own c ountry w ith the fruit of the sciences and learning of other

kingdoms .‘

A gain , it is not a matter for surprise that a rulingsovereign should lose his own country by exhausting his treasury

A PRI L S E PT . C bpper P lates of rlfa lahar.

in meeting vain and frivolous expenses for comedians, songsters,n autch-girls

,j esters and such like , and so leaving n o means either

to maintain an efi i cien t army for the protection of the country , or

to secure the services of goodand w ise and good min isters . More

over,power and dominion are not of man , and whosoever there

fore converts that power into an instrument of sensuality and in

justice,it is a certain truth w ill be deprived alike of his ,

. power

and kingdom .

’

A mon gst the w itnesses of this Document, Moorhen C hatten and

Vun talacherri Kunden, are n o more than the junior heads.

of the

armywhich then'

existed,and C hatten is the man’ s own name , and

Moorken is the n ame of eithep his father or uncle , or. _ else his

family'

or T urwad name . In like manner Kunden is the name of

the other w itness , and Vun talacherri his T urwad or family name ,&c . Further, as for theword Vun talacherri, there is n ot the least

ground to construe its meaning into Great Telliche‘

rry , a town

in the possession of the Koletteeri or C heruckel Raj ah . B esides

that personage received that territory and title from on e of the

Peroomals only in A . D . 307 or 1 39 years after this Document

had been executed .

Keeyooray Kel luppen of C oonnapooya, the engraver of this C opper Document, is no more than a goldsmith who resided in C oon

napooya, a spot situated on the way from C odungalore (C ranga

nore) to C ochin , and where there is a pagoda called T eroo C oon

napooya. It is true that there is a spot called C oonn apooya in the

C ooroombran adT al ook situated far distant from C odun gal ore ; but

it is therefore improbable that Kel luppen was a resident of that spot .

The name Kel luppen is merely a common n ame amongst the S oodras and other castes below them , and Keeyoovay i s nothing more

than his family or T urwad name , and n o other meaning can rea

sonably and correctly be attached to any of these words .

The person al name of one of the w itnesse s is not mentioned in

thi s Document but only his Royal title , as was the usual practic e

formerly and it often is at present of the Malabar R aj ahs . Tha tRoyal title is Mana Vapala Man a Veeyen

”o f E ralanad, or now

called E rnaad. Though this is omitted in the Documen t No . I.,

there is every probabil ity that this personage received E ralanad

On the Syrian and J ewish [No . 9, N E W S E RI E S .

from one of the Peroomal s before the date of this Document No .

III . , but at what particular date , has n o t yet been ascertained .

B ut the C alicut Raj ah obtained his little district from the last

Peroomal in A . D . 325 , and his immediate successor defeated

Mana Vepala Mana Veeyan and took possession of the E rnaad

country in or about A . D . 365 , on which occasion the C alicut R a

j ah assumed this title changing it into Mana Vul labha Mana

Vicramen” (or the husband of honour, and husband of honorable

power) and added the same to his own title , though both the titles

bear exactly the same‘

meaning . (For further details I must re

fer to the chapter on the Needeeyeeroopoo or C alicut Raj ah in

my unpublished w ork . )0

Venooval inad was afterwards ceded to Travancore and Nee

toompoora Yoornad to C ochin , but it appears that the Chieftainsof those districts under the Peroomal s, as well as the Chieftain or

Deputy of Vulwan aud had not at the date of this Document

received fromthe Peromal the title of Raj a” as is proved by

this Document from their bare names being inserted in it as wi t

nesses w ithout any Royal titlewhatever .Though no other authentic documents are forthcoming to ascer

tain what particular spots are the Mooyeericode and A n choo Vun

n om of this Document No . III , yet from the Document No . II it

may be gathered that A n choo Vunnom must be somewhere near

to the Man igramom of the Document No . I, and from other c1r

cumstan ces there is every reason to believe that Mooyeen code was

a desham or small parish attached to C odungal ore.

D ocumen t No . II .

This document was granted in the time of the last Peroomal to

the T arisa Pally or C hurch by the Travancore Raj a together w ith

Maro ovan Sapir Iso transferring A n choo C undi (i . e. 5 pieces of

land) as a freehold w ith certain privileges to the C hurch People .

This Document appears to elucidate several of the terms in the

two others Nos. I . and III , and it further points out some of the

old customs of Malabar . Though this Document appears to have

some confusion in the arrangement of a few of its sentences and

Words, this does not affect the real meaning of its contents .

(1 )“Hail ! In this the 5th year of the reign of Peroomal

A PR I L-“S E P T . C opper P lates of Malabar.

S tanoo Ravi G oopta C o [King] c omprised in the many hundred

thousands of years in which (his ancestors) ruled, having 0pposed and conquered their enemies , the A yyen A digul Teeroo

vati [i. e. His Excellency the servant of Vishn oo , that is the

Travancore Raj a] granted the follow ing Deed of Vidooper [Privileges] to the T arisa C hurch built by Isodata Veeray of C ura

cani C ollom ,in the presence of the A dicarur (the Ministers)

Pracriti or Sumprati (the Offi cers) A n choovunnom [i . e. the

inhabitants of A n choovunn om the Jew ish Principality] and

Poomatala Pati . [orthe Head man of the village of Poonnatala. ]

(2) The four houses (or branches) of E eyovera and eight

houses of E eyoovakayerb as w ell as the one house of Vun

nanc coming from the same s tock , are to pay (henceforth to the

C hurch) the fetter"l tax , the laddere

‘

tax , the elephant feed

iugr tax, the cloth washingé’ tax, as w ell as the tax on gold

w ashing both from sands as also from streams and also the

Night-meal tax .

h I (i. e. Maroowan Sapir Iso) who also be~

fore this held A n choocundi by Varako le and C aw a ,‘ have n ow

granted these (to the C hurch) on Vidooperak A tti (i . e. in ah~

solute fee simple tenure).

(3) It has been arranged so that those four houses of

E eyoover,"one branch of washerman , two branches of Neeroo

a . Servile caste of toddy drawers generally called T eeyer.

b. A similar caste but of much inferior degree, who could howevermarry into the families of the former .

e. A caste of washermen who can wash the clothesof such inferiorcastes only .

d. A tax upon the foot rope and hand rope used for climbing cocoanut and areca nut trees, & c .

e. A tax upon the bamboo ladder used to mount the trees in gathering pepper and other produce .

f . A tax upon the pay of the elephant keeper .g . A tax on the said w asherman’s w ork .

h . The taxes paid upon different other duties performed by thesecastes, after which only they take their regular meals at n ight.i . A

'

stick and string, that is the ploughshare and the halter ropeof a bullock which as a sign of real transfer are given into the handsof the receiver of the land.

k. These include the other eight inferior branches .

On the Syrian and J ewish [No . 9, N E W snares.

diyar,l one branch of carpenter, together w ith four branches of

Vel laler [the Vellaler are Sudras with certain privileges] who inparticular are the Karaler,

“o f this land (A n choocundi) shouldfor the sake of G od plant that which may be planted and sow

what may be sowed in order that the oil and o ther article s re

quisite, &c. for the C hurch , be not deficient .“Thus regarding this land which Maroovan’

S apir I so

received w ith drops of water," and which he (in like mannern ow) gives w ith drops of water to the T arisa C hur ch (it has

been settled) with the concurrence of the Palace Maj or Vyraku

laver ° and in the presence of A yyen A digul T eeroowat i (T ravan

core Raj ah ,) his Junior Rama T eeroovati, his minister and offi

cers , and the 600, and also o f the head men of Poounatala and

PoolacudiiD that the boundaries thereof lie to the east Vayul

cadoo ,q to the south-east C heroovatilKunmatil , ’ incuding the back

water, to the w est of the sea ; to the north the Torana garden ;

and to the north-east A ntill on garden of Poonatala . A ll the“land comprised w ithin these four boundaries is hereby by thisC opper deed granted in possession to the C hurch for as long as

the earth, moon and sun exist .

A nd it has further been settled w ith the concurrence

(or in the presence) of His Excellency the A yyen A digul H . E .

Rama and the Palace Maj or, that for any offence whatsoever‘ which the inhabitants of this land commit (between themselves)they are to seek for redress from the Pul l iar (C hurch people)alone . Head Price and B reast Prices shall belong to the C hurch

I . Salt makers and fishers comprising the Vettoover and Mookaver

or Mookw a castes derived from the same stock .

m. Trustees .n . T he typical ceremony on the transfer of an estate in fee simple .0 . T hat is the inhabitants of A n choocundy .

p . Neighbouring villages .g. Open waste plain .

r. T he w all near the little gate .s . Revenues derived from the sale of males and females, for serious

caste offences . A high caste man or woman having connection w ith aninferior caste woman or man contrary to caste prohibitions, they areseverally turned out of the caste and used to be sold by the then rulingauthorities, and even in the present day the Numboori Brahmins andother high caste women are for such offences in like manner often soldby their relations, chiefly to the Musselman Mapil las.

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50 On the Syrian and J ewish [NO . 9, N E W sn um.

upon an elephant with Manna and Neer” are also accorded to

them. Thus this C opper Deed is granted in the presence (or

w ith the concurrence) of Viracoo Dever the Palace-maj or H . E .

the A pyen A digul , H . E . Rama, the Ministers and O fi icers, the

600 (Local Inhabitants), and the heads of Poounatala and

Poolacudi, so that it may be executed as is contained therein

for as long as the Earth , Moon and Sun exist .

(9) If any injustice be done to A ncho ovunn om and Mani

gramom, they may w ithhold the Oolacoo and T oolacool iy as an

amendment for the injury done to them ; but if there be any

crime committed among themselves,they are to investigate and

dispose thereof.

(1 0) That which is done in unison by the two C hieftains of

A n choovunn om and Man igramom who have taken the water

(i . e. received possession or livery of seisin) as Trustees of this“town w ill only be valid . Let Mooroovan Sapir Iso who took

the w ater for this town , called A n choocundi, having n ow given

it up to the C hurch together w ith stick (and string), pay a full

compensation to that C hurch to which it formerly belonged .

This also I have given over by unrestricted transfer . I have

granted by this C opper Deed to T arisa C hurch by way of privi

lege and unrestricted tenure/ the Ira, or the feeding tax of every

kind for the time that the Earth , Moon and Sun do exist .

(1 1 ) The E eyoover (Toddy draw ers , &c .) are permitted to

come together w ith their working instruments and follow their

occupations in the bazaar and w ithin the wall . The Vamnan

(the inferior w asherman) may come and do his work in the

bazaar and w ithin the wall . The leader of T eeyen (or E erjoo

ven) and the C aptain (or ON

icer) of the wall or any other per

son whoever it may be , has no pow er to molest them on the

pretext of any charges whatever, but should they commit any

offence the Pul l iar (C hurch people) alone are to try them .

x. Manna, a kind of seat or {howdah and, neer, a kind of water pot ,alluding to the right of thus carrying the bridegroom through thestreet on the marn age day.

y . C ustoms and brokerage which they as above are directed tareceiveandkeep.

A PB I L—S E PT . C opper P lates of Malabar. 5 1

(1 2) I have given this in the manner detailed in this C opper

Deed for the time that Earth, Moon and Sun do last, under the

terms of Vidooper (72 privileges) and U ttiper (unrestricted

tenure . )(1 3) The person who has granted this Vidooper and U ttiper

to the Tarisa C hurch through H . E . the A yyen A digul is Moo

roovan S apir Iso .

(14) May G od bless those who keep this and are careful to

see it observed .

Written by A yyen

T o him“who is equal to the beautiful—that enlightens thew orld—be victory .

”

T o ascertain the date of this Document the following circum

stances must be considered, v iz ., that A yyen A digul , the T ravan

core chief had n ot attained the title Raj ah” on the dates of the

Documents Nos. I . and III . This fact as has already been ex

plained is obvious from the Documents themselves though he

for certain had it previous to the date of this Document No . II .

for it, in contrast to the other deeds , mention s his Royal appella

tion styling him His Excellency (T erruati) the A yyen A digul .”

A nd next the last Peroomal as is already proved was 36 years in

Malabar, and left it in A . D . 3 52, and this personage as is certain

from different old histories was the on e who promoted the younger

brother of the Kol letiri, (or C heruckel Raj ah) to the dignity ofthe Rajah” of Travancore .

So that if we deduct the 36 years from the above 352, the re

mainder w ill be 3 1 6 , and it is thus clear that the last Peroomalbegan to rule the country in A . D . 3 1 6 , and as this document wasexecuted in the 5 th year of his reign , if we add 5 to 3 1 6 it will

give 32 1 . It is thus plain that this document was executed in A .

D . 32 1 and also that Venad A digul or Travancore Rajah received the title of Rajah” from the Peroomal some time between A .

D . 3 1 6 and 32 1 .

It may also safely be asserted that this last Peroomal was cer

tain ly a person of either the Vaisya or S oodra caste, sent as usual

by the Salem sovereigns , who however it appears often sent Peroomal of the C hatrya caste also . For the name of the last Peroo

52 On the Syrian and J ewish [Nos 9, N E W S E RI E S .

mal was Stanco R avigoopten . Now when a Vaisya or S oodra

rises to the dignity of Royalty, G oopten

” is properly always

added to his name j ust as Sharmen is to that of a B rahmin and

Varmen to that of a C het trya ; though in these modern days ,s ome of the S oodra Rajas assume to add to their names the word“Varmen” contrary to the established customs of former days .

There does not though appear to be any peculiar meaning attach

ed to the words Sharmen , Varnen ,and G oopten ; but their sole

use is for the purpose of honorary distinction between the castes .

When a deed of A ttiper(i . e . an Estate in absolute fee-simple) is

executed, it should, according to the custom of the country, be w ith

the know ledge of n eighbours and heads of the vil lages’F—and

the concurrence of the next heir of the granter in the presence o f,or before , the Palace of the then ruling sovereign . Though in the

present day such documents are not executed in the presence of

the local authorities , yet it is almost invariable still to retain the

old phraseology that the deed was executed before the ruling

Sovereign’ s palace .

”

The E eyoover or T eeyer (to ddy drawers) are a section of the

servile class of people who during the time of the B rahmins and

Peroomals came to Malabar from C eylon to earn their livelihood .

It cannot however be accounted for, how they, in many parts ,though not throughout the whole of Malabar, come to adopt the

beastly custom of the Kummalers of the country of a single girl

being married to 3 and 4 brothers and likewise in some parts of

the country, where this sad custom is not so generally prevalent

amongst them,the practice of taking their deceased’s brother’ s

w idow s for w ives as the Mussulman Mapil las do . It is only in

the T al ooks of Needoonganad, C oottanad, C howghaut , and some

parts of Vettutnad and a few adj oining spots in South Malabar

alone , that a woman among the Nairs is kept at the same time by

2 or 3 different men, who are though never brothers . It is though

very possible that the T eeyers may have taken the idea from thi s

l atter error and themselves fallen into the other and more shame

ful on e, or perhaps they observe the custom as they in general are ,

A yal-umpatzyum A yal Vicinity, neighbourhood . P ati-chie, head

A PRIL S E PT . C opp er P lates of JVI alabar.

as this document in the beginning show s , Sprung fromKummalers

or the Kummalers from them, through their then frequent inter

marriages.This document N0 . II . calls them also E eyoovahaiyer,

a w ord equally low and contemptuous in Malabar and of the same

meaning as the word Kummaler.

Moreover,amongst the Nairs of the whole of North Malabar ,

(that is to say from part of C ooro ombranad as far as Mangalore)though sometimes unchaste practices occur in their familie s yet,

I can most confidently assert, that the above abominable custom

of on e w oman being k ept by two or three men at the same time ,never in ancient or modern time was once known . A Nair there

w ill, though occasionally, marry two or three w omen in succession

if the first or second prove barren, or, all the children born, die,or from any other like cause or domestic difference . Many of the

T eeyers also of that part of the country do in some measure fo l

l ow the custom of the Nairs ; but the T eyettees (T eeyer w omen)of the remaining T eeyers there are notorious harlots and become

the concubines of strangers of any caste or religion , and this

without the least prejudice to their own caste , or any loss of

esteem in society ; on the other hand any such act proved against

any females of the other castes , subj ects the person to excommu

n ication from caste , banishment from so ciety, and all religious

advantages . The T eeyer females of South Malabar do n ot , though

so readily as those of the North yield themselves to this disgrace

ful practice . Ow ing to the very great number of castes , and the

peculiar and different manners and customs in various parts of

the country, the superficial enquiries of most foreigners have led

them into error and in their w orks they generally ascribe the

same pernicious practices to all castes and parts of the country

indiscriminately .

However, the Nairs , T eeyers and indeed all the other numerous

castes of Malabar (including the C ochin and Travancore countrie s ,these being indeed the most striking in this respect) are in someway or other in a greater or less degree of error ; and reformation

therefore is indeed much needed amon g them all . It is though

very lamentable to find them dormant in their original state of

depression and not seeking for reformation rather than growing

54 On the Syrian and J ewish [NO . 9, N E W S E RI E S .

blindly proud of their vain and different castes and privileges,

and ready to run any risk even that of hazarding their lives,only

to preserve their castes .

The Jews‘

and Naz aran ies or Syrian C hristians must of course

have come into Malabar a little before the dates of the Documents

No . III . and No . I . Of the latter people , including the pure

Syrians , and Roman Syrians , there are at present souls in

Travancore inclusive of males , females and children , though in

A . D . 1 836 there were only and in C ochin there are at

present souls , making a grand total of souls .

The Jew s , though they came here previous to the Naz aran ies,

are at present only 1 1 4 souls in Travancore,and in C ochin .

Neither the Naz aran ies nor the Jew s ever made their abode

north of C ochin, though there are a few of the former at C how

ghaut (adj acent to C ochin) in the Z illah of Malabar . However ,w ith the exception of their religion , the Naz aran ies have in every

other respect become like other natives of Malabar ; their food,raiment

, (that of the w omen alone excepted) language , man

ners and a few other customs , are similar to those of the Hindoos .

Very few of them only study the Syrian language . The Jews

also in many respects are on the same footing, though they yet

preserve their Mosaic religion . There are a few black Jew s also

amongst them,and they as w ell as the Naz aran ies in general are

country-born . There are many wealthy persons amongst them,

they have also lands and gardens like others , and also follow

various trades in the country they have also their C hurches and

w orship . The Priest of the Syrians usually comes from Syria .

T o my fellow-countrymen I must n ow candidly confess , that in

explaining the above C opper Documents to make them more

plain and intelligible,I have felt it incumbent on me to

make a few slight remark s upon some of our Pooran oms, our

superstitions,caste s

,privileges

, manners and customs , &c .

,

trusting that no offence w ill b e taken thereat ; for, indeed, I have

done s o partly for their own good to induce them to open their eyes

and see our in fi rmities. It is indeed the earnest and heartfelt

prayer of the writer of this paper, that they may be humble and

set themselves to reform , and so growing wise and enlightened

A PR I L—S E PT . On the G eology-

(if T hayet Myo . 5 5

become a people acceptable both in this and the other world, and

so be happy for evermore .

The Rev . H . Gundert, a very distinguished and able gentleman,forwhom I w ould express my highest respect, published a version

of the above documents from old Vutteyoo t , into the Tamil cha

racters this valuable paper I own has proved a great help to me

in my delineation of those documents , and I shall feel that I owe

it in part to him , should my present labours meet w ith any ap

proval .

VI . Memorandum on the G eology of T hayet Myo . B y J . L .

RA NKIN G ,E SQ . ,

S urgeon ,M adras A rmy .

[T he follow ing Memorandum was kindly placed at. our disposal toaccompany a box of specimens on Limestone from Thayet Myo (orT hayetmiew) an important military station on the right bank of the

Irraw addy . Remembering to have seen Limestone brought fromthis place whi le in Burmah in 1 853, we were anxious to procure

specimens of it for the C entral Museum and Exhibition at Madras,and having acquainted C apt. Longcroft , l 6th M . N. I. Brigade Major at Thayet Myo, w ith our w ish, he kindly forwarded the requiredspecimens w ith this Memorandumby Dr . Ranking—E D . L . S . J

T H E Geological features of the immediate neighbourhood of

Thayet Myo have been described by Professor O ldham,and his

report has been published in the l 0th Number of Selections from

the Records of the Government of India, to which I have -not

had access .

A slight referen ce to the subj ect is also made by the same gen

tleman , in a Geological A ppendix to the narrative of a mission to

the C ourt of A va, by C aptain Yule of the B engal Engineers .

Mr . O ldham describes the hills near this station as throughout

composed of sandstones and shaly beds .” In another part ‘

o f

the s ame report he gives a resume of the G eology of the river

valley, and writes that, from the first appearance of the rocks

above the Delta of the river up to Kyoukléloung, not far from the

56 On the G eology of T hayet Myo . [No . 9, N E W S E RI E S .

old capital of A va, nothing but tertiary rocks appear in the river

valley, the main or prevalent strike of which corresponds w ith the

direction of the river valley, that existing upon the broken edge

of these beds is another series of sandstones and conglomerates,

principally sandy, a few calcareous , though w ithout any true lime

stone . Fossil bones are found in some of these beds, which (the

beds) form the flatter expansions between and amongst the ranges

and hi lls of the older tertiaries and the plateaus on their lowsummits .

The G eological age of the older rocks is said to be pretty w ell

established as being '

of the Eocene period,the age of the more

recent group is not determined , but suppo sed to be identical w ith

that of the Sriwal ik group of India .

The corresponding epoch amongst European strata i s not de

termin ed.

Metamorphic and C rystalline rocks begin to appear near A va .

Such is Mr . O ldham’s opinion,and which I have expressed often

indeed almost entirely in his own w ords .

He does not appear to have extended his researches into the

interior of the country— his observations apply entirely to the

immediate vicinity of the river .

My own limited observations in this neighbourhood , made w ith

an almost equally limited know ledge of the subj ect,have fully

enabled me to verify Mr . O ldham’ s observations to a certain extent .

The valley in which Thayet Myo is situated comprises an nu

dulating plateau about 1 60 feet above the sea, and from 40 to

80 above the lowest level of the river, rising to the southward and

westward into l ow ranges of rolling hills , backed by higher and

more broken and precipitous ridges ; the undulatin g plains are

composed of clays and river sands , w ith gravel composed of small

rolled quartzose pebbles . Many of the low est hills are , apparently,entirely alluvial and in the next higher series (especially to thesouthward) sandstones occur, many' abounding in marine shells .

The highest hills to the southward furnish a compact limestone

w ith shales and a vein of coal , which I have not yet visited,‘

but

which was inspected by Professor O ldham . Specimens of the

Shelly rock and of the limestone , are amongst those forwarded,

and are labelled respectively v . vi . and vii .

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58 On the G eol ogy of T hayet Myo . [No . 9, N E W S E R IE S .

it), and which coal , being the immediate obj ect of the j ourney, I

may make a few remarks about .

T w o veins w ere found w ithin 2 miles of each other, but .as no

survey w asmade of the locality, I cannot say whether they w ere

separate beds,or portions of the same vein—each was found near

the w ater Shed of a l ow range of hills, in a ravine , and consisted

of two thin bands of coal associated w ith sandstones and shale .

The two bands of coal w ere , in one vein 2 feet thick,in the o ther

35 feet ; in both the coal and its associated shaly beds dipped at

an almost vertical angle the strike of both was nearly north and

south .

The coal it self is l friabl e, easily frangible and n ot to be obtain ed

in any large blocks . It burns w ith a good flame but much smoke,

leaving a large ash but it has been pron ounced good fuel by the

officers in command of the G overnment Steamers .

I do not give any positive opinion as to the w orkable quality

of the vein, the almos t vertical angle at which it is found renders

it doubtful whether it would be remunerative .

A large nullah runs in the immediate vicinity . which is navigablefor rafts during the rains ; the locality is very feverish , and it is

doubtful whether the European or Native of India could reside

there,except for 2 or 3 of the most healthy months of the year.

The vein ought n ot to be lost sight of, and deserves the inspec~

t ion of s ome competent practical miner and geologist .

I could find n o fossil plants in the shales , and none in the sand

stones but some rolled pieces of limestone w ith organic remains ,

found in the neighbourhood (specimens Nos . i . ii . are

forwarded .

The limestone found in the hills to the southward is extensively

quarried, and furn ishe s the chunam” used at this station .

It is , after being quarried at the top of the hill, thrown over

the hill side and carted away, from the bottom to the kilns which

are at a village abou t equi-distant between this and the hills , viz .

2;miles .T he kilns are of the ordinary Native con structi on ,

and seem to

answer their purpose w ell .

A rmy - SE PT . A lterations on the G enus Impatien s. 59

The stone seems to be w ell calcined , and makes excellent

cement,but possesses no hydraulic propertie s .

The cost at the kilns is 8 Rupees per 1 00 baskets} ?

C arriage from kilns 4

Or if delivered here 1 2

VI I . A l terations in the p ap er on the G enus Impatiens.

Lieut . R . H . BE DDOME , Madras A rmy .

I n the D escrip tions of New Sp ecies.

The description of Impatiens tenuis to be omitted .

I n the Plates.

The figure of Impatiens tenn is to be omitted .

I n theSynopsis.

Instead of the latter 1 4 lines i . e . from the words LE A VE S

RA DI CA L—I nflorescen ce a scape” insert following.

Leaves radical Inflorescence a

scape .

Lower of compoundpetals 2 lobed .

Spur very long curved .

Spur tw ice the length of petals

petals smooth A namal lay hills

(3000 feet) C ourn

tal lum.

Spur longer than petals , petals

w ith ~warts on inner surface . . I . verrucosa . A namal lay hills 6

to 7000 feet .

Three baskets equal to one maund. The country between these

lime quarries and Thayet is thick jungle, but at al l times of the yeara cart road is open. These hills are to the S . W . of, and easily discernible from, the C antonmen t. A narrow ridge runs along the top. Both

the Pvgu and A rracan sides are covered w ith dense jungle . T he kilnsare quite w ithin a morning’s ride, and from their proximity of increas

mg value, now that the redoubt is being erected at Thayet, andMega

z ines, C ommissariat Storehouses, &c. &c. are being puckah buil t .

60 Notes on various subjects. NE W S E R I E S .

Spur short .

Spur the length of lower sepal .

Leaves glabrous cordate,lobes

overlapping . I . scap iflora Neilgherries

8000 feet .Leaves hairy above , cordate, lobes

distant . modesta . .Neilgherries, She

vagherries, A na

mallay 5 to 7000

feet .Spur much shorter than lower se

pal .

Upper sepals crenated . .I . crenata . . A namal lay hills

5000 feet .

Upper sepals not crenated,spur

,

a small knob at the back of se

hills 7

to 8000 feet .Lower of compound petals entire .

Spur long, (incurved , twice the

length of petals . . I . graeilis . . A namal lay hills

5000 feet .

VIII . Notes on various subjects. B y Lieut . H . P . HAWK E S ,S ub A ssistan t C ommissary G eneral .

No . 3 . Ornithology .—Ou a method of constructing a p ortable

aviary .

To those who are fond o f observing the habits and instincts of

birds , a portable aviary is a great desideratum . B irds shut up in

cages a few inches square are neither as healthy, nor as interest

ing as when their abode can be made to assimilate more nearly to

their haunts in a state of nature . The aviary , the construction of

which I am now about to describe , has at one time contained as

many as 64 inmates of various species , all of which kept in full

health and feather . Its first inhabitant is still alive having occu

A PR I L—S E PT . Notes on various subjects.

pied it upwards of seven years . A glance at the annexed figures

will make the following description easily understood .

The floor of the aviary is composed of a platform of dealwood,

5 feet 4 in . long by 2 feet 6 in . broad strengthened by three cro ss

battens,this is surrounded by an upright ledge , three inches deep ,

which in short converts it into a shallow box . To the inner sides

of this upright ledge , the four sides of the aviary (w hich are made

in sep aratep ieces) are screw ed .

The front and back parts of the aviary are of ordinary w ire

work, as are also the side pieces which are furnished w ith doors

the top, which also forms the cover of the box when packed, is of

very thin dealwood. These being all prepared , it only remains to

screw each of the four separate sides into their respective places

inside the ledge of the plat form, and to screw down the top over

all when the aviary is complete . When packed , the four sides

are placed within the ledge of the platform, or in other words , in

side the box, and the cover screwed over all, it thus takes up no

more room than an ordinary camp table . T he whole is supported

on folding legs . In lieu of perches I usually substitute two dwarfshrubs in pots nicely trimmed, as giving the aviary a more natural

and pleasing appearance, a stock of ten or twelve of these shrubs

should be kept to admit of their being occasionally changed . T he

floor of the aviary is covered with a tray of sheet iron, over which

is spread fine sand .

No . 4 . Ornitbology .—T o make a self-feeding apparatus for an

aviary.

A lthough it is scarcely to be w ished that those should e stablish

an aviary, who from press of Work or other causes are likely to be

obliged to delegate the duty of feeding the inmates to their ser

vants , yet still occasions w ill happen when it is inconvenient if not

impossible to attend personally to the w ants of our feathered pets ,and it is to prevent the possibility of their suffering from negle c t

at such seasons , that I have contrived the follow ing plan for a

self-feeding trough which I have found to answer admirably. With

troughs of this sort, for both grain‘ and w ater, a cageful l of birds

may, if necessary, be left for weeks without the slightest chance ofharm.

(‘ C ein and c urrency/ y in: EN G . S E RIE S .

T he grain trough which ismade on the prinmple'

of the m‘

ang'er

is shown 1n,elevat io

‘

n and section at , fi gs; 2 and 3 ; T he‘

l id“a?"

Opens'

with'

a hinge is the reservoir for seeds, c'

, c , c are

holes for feeding ; and d " is the perch . Figsv4 is a grain trough

of the . same sort, but round in form.

The water trough is merely a ~modifi cation of the fountains

used in E ngland,” and constructed of materials most available in

India . It is shown at fig . 5 , and consists of a decanter, bottle or

carboy filled w ith water and supported over a finger glass or suit«

able vessel by a slight framing .

IX . C oin and C urrency in A ncien t.

and M odern times. By

HE NRY KIN G , A . B . , M B . , A ssistan t S urgeon , M adras A rmy .

B mp1r1c1 , farmicae more, congerun t tantum et utun tun : rationales,aranearummore, telas et se con fi ciun t : apis vero ratiomedia est, quae

materiamet fi oribus n'

arti et agri elicit, sed tamen cam propriafacul~

tate vertit et digerit .

”—B acon , A ph. xcv.

T wo subj ect s are exciting considerable attention in the com

mercial worl d'

at the present time , decimal coinage , and the drain

Of silver from Europe to A sia . These may impart to the facts col

l ected in this paper some of the interest which attaches to them

selves . I have brought together, and arranged as systematically

asmy ability permitted , as much information upon C O IN and C U RR E N C Y ,

in ancient and modern times , as my own very limited

library, to which alone I had access , could supply. A l l are fami

liar w ith Lord Bacon’ s celebrated illustration which heads this

paper. I have tried to imitate the B ee I have , at any rate, followed the example of the A n t.

The subj ects which I have endeavoured to illustrate in this paperare ; the MA T E RIA L of MINT , SYSTE MS OF D IV I S ION ,

D E P R E O I A T I ON S , and the E A S TW A RD D R A IN of the precious me“

t als : Any men tion ‘ of paper currencies—has been impossible . To

treat Of them even briefly would”

require an exclusiveEssay.

The first step in civilization is the division of labor ; the second,

the establishmen t of a circulating medium-w ot MON E Y in some

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64 C oin and C urrency . in [NO . 9, N E W S E RI E S .

bona. fi de oxen themselves . I do not think the Marquis’ view

correct but even if it be , it is more than probable that cattle w ere

employed as money at an earlier time ; the name o f a coin, if

Homer did mean a coin , is a confirmation . The most natural and

obvious . design for the earliest coins would be the figure of that

rude medium of exchange which they supplan tedfi t

A s intercourse became more free and commerce more extended

betw een different nations , it became n ecessary to employ some

circulating medium of intrin sic value and universal acceptability .

C attle , it is true , fulfil these two conditions but such money was

too bulky and inconvenient for the purposes of even internal

trade,except in the very rudest stages of civilization , and still

more unsuitable for effecting exchanges betw een different, and

perhaps,distant countries . The close connection betw een even

internal traffi c and the use of a convenient circulating medium

Of coin in short—is illustrated by two facts which Herodotus tellsus w ith reference to the Lydians— that they w ere the first people

who coined money, and also the first who carried on retail trades ,7rp13

'roeman nk o t e

’

fyé vo v'ro (H erod. I . c . A gain, in the semi

mythical account of Lycurgus ’ legislation, we are told that in

order to preserve the Spartans from the corrupting influence of

foreign commerce , he forbad the use Of gold and S ilver : only

permitting a medium of exchange which no on e outside the limits

of the State w ould accept—which was so clumsy, too , and nu

w ieldy, as to restric t considerably or altogether impede internal

traffic . The subj ect of iron money w ill come before us again .

The story of Lycurgus and his very eccentric Mint regulations , if

A lison in his H istory of Europe, gives a curious instance of the rev ival in modern times of the primitive system of barter. In France, in1 796, after the excessw e 1ssue of assignats and their con sequent depre

ciation to so great a degree that nobody woul d receive them at anyvalue, (the metallic currency having almost entirely left the country),all who had any fortune left invested it in luxuries which might command a ready sale . T he richest houses w ere converted into magazines

for silks, &c .

, &c. , and by the sale, or rather exchange of these, the

proprietors managed to subsist. By this means internal trade regainedin some degree its lost activity .

A PRIL— S E PT . A n cien t and Modern times.

mythical,w ill at any. rate Show the feeling in ' the minds of its

inventors that a convenient money was essential to trade and

civilization of any high order . T he Spartans w ere certainly far

behind most of the other peoples of G reece in civilization .-~ I n

the art of war, and everything essential to success in military

matters,they excelled but we know that such excellence is quite

compatible w ith barbarism, or at any rate w ith a condition but

little superior . If the G reek historians sought a reason for Lace

demonian inferiority in civilization , the isolation of the Spartans

and their aversion to commerce accounted for it . If a cause for

these waswanting , they could n ot have invented on emore plausible

than the necessity imposed by their great legislator, o f using ' an

absurdly inconvenient medium of exchange . Indeed we have n o

clearer means Of estimating an ancient nation’ s advance in civiliz ation than that which its coins supply .

‘ On this Mitford re

marks C oins are singularly adapted to convey to late ages and

distant countries exact information of the progress of art andfi ne

taste and his account of the coins of Sybara, describing them

as of a beauty that modern art w ill w ith difficulty rival,” tallie s

w ith the proverbially high civilization which we ordinarily attri

bute to its people .

The universal acceptability of the metals , and more especially

of gold and silver, as w ell as their peculiar fitness for the purpose

in other respects presently to 'be examined,soon led to their -em

ployment in the form Of ‘ coin .

‘ B ut I need scarcely say t hat their

value was antecedent to , and altogether independent of; their

employment in this manner . The demand for .the metals in

general arises part ly from their utility, partly from their beauty.

T heir relative value depends upon demand,scarcity

,and . cost

of production . This last element of . value it . is most import

ant to keep in mind, especially in considering the relative values

of , the precious metals . It is a natural and a common mistake

to suppose that . if S ilver is in a certain proportion more abun

dant than gold , either in the commercial w orld generally or

in any particular country, that it is less valuable in the same

proportion . Speaking roughly,silver is forty times more abun

dant than gold, but is n o t more than . fifteen times -. less . Valu

VOL . xx . 0 . s. VOL . v 1 . N . s.

66 C oin and C urrency in [NO . 9, N E W S E RI E S .

able . The difference in value is due to the difference in cost

of production .

A c cordingly, in the earliest records we possess , not only do w e

find mention of several metals the precious " included—andtraces Of considerable advance in the metallurgy of these as w ell

as of the less valuable , but also evidence of the use of silver as

coin ; while gold holds a position as the most valuable , indeed , of

metals, but more for ornamental than for useful purposes . The

date of the B ook of Job is unknown . Some Jew ish writers

assign to it an antiquity higher than the time Of Moses , asserting

that he translated it from the Syriac for the purpose of consoling

his countrymen in Egypt . B y others Moses is supposed to have

been the author . A l l agree in believing the book not to 1 be of

later date than his time . Whatever the author’ s age may have

been, we obtain from the B ook of Job evidence of two or three

facts connected w ith the foregoing remarks . Before proceeding

to these , I may state that the internal evidence derived from

passages relating to my subject, seems to me to establish that

the book in question is of much greater antiquity than the Pen

tateuch .

The facts I w ish to deduce are these . First, that at that early

period,considerable Skill in metallurgy had been attained .

Secondly, that money was in use . Thirdly, that that money was

S ilver only. Fourthly, that money was not then so highly esteem

ed as a medium Of exchange , and therefore as an evidence Of

wealth as it afterwards became .

For the first, I need only quote the follow ing passages—vi. 1 2,

is my flesh of brass xxviii . 1 , 2 , Surely there is a vein for

the silver, and a place for gold where they fi n e it . I ron is taken

out .of the earth, and brass is mol ten out of the stone. xxxvii . 1 8 ,a molten lookin g glass” (or rather

Secondly : xxxi . 39, If I have eaten the fruits thereof w ith

out money .

” xlii . 1 1 , every man also gave him a piece of money .

”

Thirdly : this latter passage Speaks of a piece of money

{ silver} and an ear-ring Of gold which, taken in connection

w ith o ther fac ts to be mentioned hereafter, seems to imply the

non-existence of gold coin .

A PRIL—S E PT . A ncien t and Modern times. 67

Fourthly : in the enumeration of Job’s. wealth , both before his

troubles and after,there is no mention whatever of money .

I should not have brought forward illustrations of the obviou s

principle that the value of the precious metals is an tecedent to ,

not consequent upon their use as coin , but that I think the facts

I have adduced are curious and in teresting in themselves . I shall

only add that in the Book of G enesis , gold” is first mentioned

in the description Of Eden (ii . 1 1 , money” in xvii . 12 ;7siloer

coin ,in xx . 1 6 . I must not trespass on another division of my

subj ect . My object at present is merely to offer a few remarks

on money in general .

Their permanence , divisibility, and small . bulk in proportion to

their value render the metals , gold and S ilver more especially; the

be st possible material for a currency . A n important . advantagearises from the last quality I have named , viz. , the almost perfect

equalization of value of the precious metals , over all parts. of

Europe at least . Even at a time. when the trade in gold and

silver was almost universally restricted by legislative enactments ,owing to the erroneous principles of the Mercantile System

,

their value in the different European countries remained very

nearly the same . The proportion between their bulk and their

value gave facilities for smuggling more pow erful to en cour

age than law was to repress their transfer : and whenever these

arose from any cause , even a S light difference of value in any two

countries , the mercantile instinct soon found . means Of conveyingthe precious metals from that in which they bore a low er to that

in which they bore a higher price . A t the present day, when in

E ngland,! and I believe in all other European countries,the trade

is perfectly free , an exaltation in value of gold and silver to the

amount of one-eighth per cent . in any place in Europe , is suffi cient

to determine thither such a supply as to restore immediately the

normal level .

B ut a metallic currency, though the best possible is far from

perfect . The fluctuation in the value of the material is a serious

drawback . A nother is the heavy expen se of maintaining a circu

lating medium consisting of the precious metals . The former,

Since 1 8 1 6 .

68 C oin and C urrency in N E W'

S E R I E S .

though~

not tof frequent occurrence, (the relation between v supply

and demand‘

remain ing generally constant), involves, when' it does

occurt o any considerable extent, great commercial disturbance ,

andimuch 'distress both to individuals and to nations . A ny con si

derable rise or fall in the value of the precious metals must exer

cise’

most important influence upon the relation between debtor

and ‘

creditor—whether the latter .be fundholder or mortgagee, or

S imply a retail trader . If a man owes 1 00 rupees , and the disco

very Of .n ew mines reduces silver in value one-half, he can pay-the

debt with~

half the money : that is , he can obtain the amount ' of

silver necessary for the discharge of his debt w ith one-half the

amount of labour which w ould have been requisite before the fall

I have supposed . A rise in value (somewhat less likely to occur)would of course be attended by opposite results .

A S examples I may mention that, after the great influx of the

precious metals into Europe, consequent on the disc overy of A me

rica,in the 1 6th century, their value in the European markets fell

to on e-third of what it had been previously. A gain : when the

revolutionary disturbances commenced in Mexico and South A me

rica,mining operations being interrupted, the supply of the pre

cious metals from those countries was greatly diminished . For

many years the annual importation was only one-fi fth of what it

had been ; sometimes as little as one-tenth , and for several years

no gold or S ilver whatever came from the Mexican mines . On

the whole , between 1 8 10 and 1 830, the average annual supply was

n ot more than one-third of what it had been in the twenty years

preceding . B ut during the same time, while supply was dimi

n ishing,demand was increasing ; the requirements of commerce

and of luxury—the one for coin, the other for plate and ornaments

-w ere becoming more imperious . A n’

attempt made to work '

the mines w ith British capital failed . The value of the precious

metals rose considerably all over Europe, and very great distress

ensued . H ow dreadful the consequences of this fluctuation in

the value of the precious metals appeared-to Sir A . A lison’

s pecu

liarmind is eviden t ~ from his tracing the'

Reform Bill ; what he

calls the R evolution ‘

of 1 832’ to the events I have detailed .

When , at a more recent period , the supply of gold became enor

A PRIL—S E PT . A ncien t and Modern times. 69

mouslyTaugmen ted by impo

’

rtatioris from' C al ifOrn ia and A ustralia,

and increased quantities from Northern A sia, it was feared that

much commercial distress would ensue . Hitherto, S O far as I am

aware , the ill effects SO naturally expected have not resulted . The

immense extension of commerce and increased demand for ‘

gold

for ornamental purposes,have fmost probably hitherto absorbed the

extra supply.

The very serious expense attending upon the maintenance of a

medium of exchange consisting principally of the precious metals ,though perhaps a less Obvious disadvantage , is not less real than

the“other,and scarcely less important . This w ill be evident from

the following calcul ations taken from a Note by Mr . McC ul loch .

The French currency was estimated by Necker

by Pen chet somewhat lower at Taking the mean

of these two estimates , and allowing six per cent . as the]

ordinaryrate of profit, the expense of maintaining as

-coin

w ill be 1 2 1 ,000,000f. T O this must be added the loss by wear

and tear, by fires,shipwrecks , &c . , which must Of course all be

made good by the ‘

publ ic, and which cannot be estimated at less

than one-hundredth of the whole, or 20,000 ,000f. These two sums

make up 1 4 1 ,000,000f. or

Or, supposing fifty millions Of sovereigns to bein circulation inEngland

,Of gold was coined in the reign of George

III), and allow ing fi ve per cent . as the rate .Of profit,the expense

of maintaining in circulation these alone would amount to

annually ; and I think we may w ith McC ul loch fairly

estimate losses at raising the cost to per

annum .

The MA TE RIA L S which have been employed for metallic curreney are—G OLD , generally if not invariably alloyed—naturallyw ith S ilver and copper, intentionally w ith copper ; S ILVE R, pure ,or containing a little gold,or alloyed w ith copper ; E S or BRONZ E ,commonly translated brass” or copper COPP E R ; A U R I OH A LC H UM or (E R I OH A LOH U M ; I R pN ; PLA T INUM ; and e c . Someother materials will be mentioned when I come to speak of Depreciation of C urrency .

The last three materials may be dismissed in a few words .

70 C oin and C urrency in [NO . 9, N E W S E RI E S .

I have alluded to the story of Lycurgus and his IRON coins ;and other states besides the Spartan are said to have adopted iron

as a medium of exchange , whether totally, as in that supposed

case, or only partially, I am unable to say. B yzantium is named

as one of these . A more unsuitable metallic material could

scarcely have been selected . The great tendency of iron to

destructive oxidation deprives it of one of the advantages I have

enumerated as leading to the employment of meta l money ; iron

cannot be permanen t . This circumstance may perhaps account

for a fact which at first view seems calculated to destroy our belief

in iron coin altogether ; no specimen of Spartan or B yzantine or

any other ancient iron coin is extant .

The B ritons in the time of Julius C aesar used iron rings for

money ; and I have seen some curved pieces of wrought iron

which I was told were coins in Western A frica .

These are all the instances of iron currency of which I am

aware .

PLA T INUM was at one time used for coin in Russia . I do not

know whether the practice has been discon tinued . Its hardness,

durability, and high comparative value w ould seem to make it a

suitable material, if these advantages are not counterbalance d

by its scarcity (being only found in two or three places in the

w orld ,) and the great difficulty Of manufacture . It is worth four

or five times its w eight of silver, or about one ~ third of gold . Its

employment for coin w ould of course raise its value .

W ith respect to Z INC , I have seen it stated somewhere that ithas been coined by the C hinese . It offers many advantages for

the purpose . The process of obtaining the metal from the ore

was invented by the C hinese , and surreptitiously obtained.

by an

Englishman long after it had been in use amongst them .

I n the earliest time Of which we have any record, G OLD wasknown and valued ; and early used as an instrument of exchange ,

though not always as“money” in the strict sense of the word .Its beauty and its being most usually found native would naturallymake it known perhap s before any other metal . In the Hebrew

Scriptures it is mentioned in almost every page, but frequently in

such a manner as to confirm B ishop Patrick’ s statement (on G en .

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72 C oin and. C urrency in [NO . 9,N E W S E RI E S .

an Ophir (cal ledby theLXX and bc osephus and by othersf

Opqiijv) in A rabia Felix : but B ochart Shows that this cannot be

the place to which Solomon sen t for gold. His proofs are S imple

and conclusive . First, it was a ’ three years’ voyage to the latter

place ; secondly , the Ships which b rought the gold brought also

ivory—and in A rabia there are no elephants "t

A nother opinion is that of H uctius'

who believes Ophir to be

identical w ith Sophala in Eastern A frica .

Wherever Ophir may have been,the quantity of gold and silver

brought to Palestine in . the time of Solomon must have been

immense . We are told that silver was nothing accounted of in

the time of Solomon that the king made S ilver andg ol d at

Jerusalem as stones . The yearly -

r eceipt of gold is stated at

666 talents (2 C hron . ix . beside that which chapmen and

merchants brought .” 666 talents are considerably over

estimating gold merely at the mint price of the present day, w ith

out reference to . the fall in value .which it has undergone in

years .

In the later books of the O ld Testament we find the words

adarlcon and darlcémon in,connection w ith gold , and translated

drams in our version qL The w ords are evidently closely allied

to the G reek Bpaxnn from .which , through the Latin, our drachm”

or dram” is derived . I mention them here because they form aconnecting link between the subj ect upon which I have been

engaged, and the few facts I have collected w ith reference to PE R

S IA N currency . The w ords are supposed to be connected w ith

Bapemos—the daric”—the most important gold piece in circula

tion amon gst'

the Persians . This coin is said to have been named

after Darius H ystaspes who , we are told by Herodotus , reformed

the Persian gold coinage . Estimated at the present value of

gold, the Daric was equal to £ 1 1 '76f. It circulated freely

in Greece : and Xenophon, in z the A nabasis, informs us that : it

was the monthly pay of the heavy-armed G reek soldiers whom1 Kings x . 22 once in three years came the navy of T harshish,

bringing gold, and silver, ivory elephants’ teeth’ in the,margin], andapes, and peacocks .

”

T 1 C hron. xxix . 7, Ezra 1 1 . 69, viii. 27, Neh. vu . 70, 72.

A PRIL—S E PT . in A ncien t and Modern times. 73

C learchus commanded in C yrus’ expedition against his brother

A rtaxerxes . The piece is n ow r‘

are , having'

been re-coined by

A lexander the Great after his conquest Of Persia .

Philip and A lexander of MA C E DON IA issued gold“statersThese coins contained no alloy except al ittle silver . They were

recently current in G reece at a value of 25s. each .

The LYDIA NS are said by Herodotus to have been the first

people who coined go ld and S ilver . A t’

any rate, the earlie st

gold coinage known in G reece was the Lydian stater , issued by

C roesus . The Oldest gold coins extant are Lydian, and their‘

execution is very elegant . The mountain Imola s , in Lydia,

abounded in gold , which thei

celebrated Pactolus carried down .

To this cause the early rise and prosperity Of Sardis,built at

its foot,are to be attributed . B Ockh says , that the Pactolian

gold w as electrum, which Pliny defines to be four-fi fths gold and

one-fi fth silver . The supply from this source must have been

very considerable . We know that C rce sus, besides his coinage ,deposited large quantities of gold in ingots in the Temple a t

Delphi .

From a very early period the A siatic nations , the G reek citie s

of A sia Minor,and others in Sicily and Magna G raecia had coined

gold . I have already mention ed the Sybarite coinage,probably

derived through Miletus from Lydia . We have extant, coins of

G elon , Tyrant of Syracuse and Of his successor . The former oh

tained his sovereignty B . C . 485,according to C linton’ s dates :

But coming to GRE E C E properly so‘ called,w e find no gold cur-5

ren cy until much more than a century after this . Gold seems to

have been rather scarce in Greece . The supply came from A sia

Minor and the adj acent islands chiefly ; though not entirely, for

the A thenians possessed gold mines in Thrace,though they did

no t coin the produce . The gold coin which was in circulation in

G reece , before the rise of the Macedonian pow er, came chiefly

from the same source in the form of the tribute paid to the A then ian s by their so-called allies .” Persian daric s and Macedonian

staters circulated but (with one exception) the A thenians co ined

no gold until the period I have mentioned— that of Macedonian

supremacy . A t that time gold became more abundant in G reeceVOL . xx . 0 . s . VOL . VI . N . s .

74 C oin and C urrency in [No . 9, N E W S E RIE S .

and other States , as well as A thens imitated the example of the

dominant power and issued gold coins . Previously to this period

when gold money is mentioned, it is in such a manner as to im

ply that it was foreign ; and the genuine A thenian gold coins

which remain to us are evident imitations of the work of the Ma

cedon ian mint .

I have alluded to one exception . Near the close of the Pelo

ponnesian war— in fact in the year 407 B . C .

,the year before the

disastrous action of ZE gospo tamos— the A thenians were reduced

to the necessity of transmuting into coin some golden” statues

of victory. This issue was most debased ; contrasting strongly .

w ith the extreme purity of the regular currency . It was in every

sense an exception .

Pliny gives the year 207 B . C . as the date of the first issue o f

gold coin by the R omA N s. This was 62 years after their first

coinage of silver, and more than a century after the issue of gold

by the States of Greece . The principal gold coin of the Roman

Republic and Empire was the aureus nummus, or denarius aureus .

Of course the w eight of this coin underwent gradual diminution—to be specified hereafter . It still, however, maintained its re

lation in weight to the silver denarius (2 : The latter under

the early Emperors Weighed 60 grains , and conse quently the

aureus 1 20 0

The material was very pure , containing no intentional alloy,and only one three-hundredth part of silver . The coin consistedtherefore of 1 196 grains of gold and 04 grains of silver . The

English sovereign contains 1 1 3 °001,grs . pure gold . Hence the

aureus of the early Roman Emperors = £ 1-1

The most productive gold mines belonging to the Roman R e

public w ere at A quileia, and I ctimul i, and Vercelli .

In EN G L A ND , there was little gold coin in use before the reign

of Edward III nor was it made a legal tender until long after .

I shall state here once for al l , that the value of ancient coins inmodern English money, as given in this paper, are irrespective of thefall in the v alue of the precious metals which has taken place since the

curren cies were in use.

A PRIL— S E PT . A ncien t and ill odern times . 75

The English gold coin has deteriorated “both in weight and material . The latter has undergone two important changes the in

crease of the copper alloy, and the extraction of the silver from the

gold . In the reign of Henry III . the gold standard contained 23

carats 35 grs . of pure gold to1

g gr. alloy. The present standard

was fixed in James I It contains 1

2

°alloy in technical language

it is 22 carats fine .

The other change in material was introduced in 1 8 26 . B efore

that year the B ritish standard gold contained an appreciable

amount of silver . The coins struck previously are , consequently,perceptibly paler than those n ow current . This silver being part

of the alloy—being rated as copper in estimating the mint value

of the coin— it was of course profitable to melt down the gold

pieces in order to extract the silver . On this account the present

system was adopted of extracting all the silver from the gold be

fore coining the latter . This had the desired effect : but the end

might have been gained in a better way, namely, by retaining the

silver in the alloy and making it part of the value of the coin .

The addition of copper to the gold renders the material harder and

more fusible than either constituent ; but the best alloy for gold

for mint purposes is composed of equal parts of silver and copper.

One pound Troy of English standard gold is coined into 463—3sovereigns—(formerly into 44a z

'

neas) ; or 20 lbs . into 934—1 sover

eign s. Therefore one sovereign w eighs 1 23 274 grs . Troy,gold

22 carats fine , and contains grs . pure gold .

A n ounce Troy of pure gold is worth £4-4 1 1 1 5

Gnearly

—of

British standard gold (one-twelfth less), £3-1 7~ 1 01 . T i ns 1s the

mint price” of standard gold .

I subj oin a Table of B ritish gold coin,abridged fromB rande ’s

C hemistry .

[No . 9, N E W S E RI E S .C oin and C urrency infl

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A PRIL—S E PT . A ncien t and M odern times . 77

The French gold coin consists of n ine parts pure gold and one

part copper . The silver is removed as in the English system .

The French Mint allow s a tolerance of ‘002—above and belowstan dard . Their standard gold for medals is finer 0 91 6 , w ith the

same tolerance. There are three standards for jewelry ; 0 750, the

commonest, 0 840 and 0 920 , little used . T he t oleran ce is 0 003

beldw standard . There is n o superior limit-n -Jewellers in Paris ,or

‘

elsewhere, not being likely to put an excess of gold into their

manufactures .

In the British metallic currency gold preponderates greatly .

A dam Smith says it was so in his time , and the preponderance has

increased considerably since he wrote . He also states that in the

Scotch currency before the” Union there was a

'

slight preponder

ance of gold but that in France the largest sums are paid

in silver and gold is very scarce .” We know that in this latter

respect matters are very different in our day .

I add a small Table giving a comparative view of the values of

the principal gold coins in the chief commercial states of the

Quantityof puregold .

89-6 109

z sé-ooo

I shall conclude the subj ect of gold currency w ith a few lines

on the sources from which (independently of C alifornia and A ustral ia) Europe has derived her supply of gold and silver .

‘I in

elude silver here partly for conven ience , and partly from the im

possibility of separating it from gold in some of the statistics

which I shall bring forward .

I have somewhere seen a calcul ation which gives a popular idea ofthe amount of gold currency in the world; For its correctness I w illnot vouch . It estimates the value at and stat es that thiswould weigh tons, and coul d all be contained in a room of the“dimensions of 20 fleet x 1 2 X 10.

78 C oin and C urrency in ENO . 9, N E W S E RIE S .

From the discovery of A merica about the beginning of the l 6th

century until recently, the mines of Mexico and South A merica

w ere the principal storehouses from which Europe drew her sup

plies of the precious metals . A merica supplied 09 of the pro

duce of the entire globe . A s an example I give Humboldt’ s esti

mate of the values of gold and silver derived from A merica and

the other sources respectively in the year 1 809. He also gives

the relative proportions of the two metals to each other, which

I add .

Gold . Silver .

45

Northern A sia 1 8 48

A merica . . 595 1 76 8

193 23

A few figures wil l'

give a clear idea of the enormous quantities

of gold and silver which the A merican mines produced previously

to the revolutionary disturbances in 1 8 1 0 . From 1 545 to 1 8 1 0 ,the gold

.

raised in the C ordilleras,Mexico and S outh A merica

amounted to the silver, (which it is said would

have formed a globe 85 feet in diameter,) to

Total,Potosi was discovered in 1 545 . Between that year and 1 803 it

yielded silver to the value of

Mr . Meggen s, quoted by A dam Smith , gives estimates of the

amount of the precious metals imported into Spain and Portugal

based in the case of Spain upon the average of six years , 1 748 to1 753 , in the case of Portugal upon an average of seven years,

1 747 to 1 753 .

Silver lbs. troy, at per 1h .1 0 0 .

Gold do . at 44% grs . per 14 0 .

Total . 4 0 .

The Mexican mines were twice as productive of both metals as

those o f Peru and Buenos A yres . B etw een 1 695 and 1 803 the

produce of the former multiplied fi ve-fold. In 1 775 , the annual

receipt of coin and bullion by Spain and. Portugal amounted to

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80 C oin and C urrency in [No . 9, N E W S E RI E S .

might be built, they forged coins bearing effi gies of A braham and

Sarah on one S ide and of Isaac and Rebecca on the other: These .

articles do n ot throw much light on the matter . It w ould seem

that whoever issued the Shekels current in C anaan, both before

and after the Hebrew occupation of the country , they did not bear

any certain external evidence of containing the due amount of

silver . The being issued from one w ell known and trustworthy

mint might have conferred,but they evidently did not possess it .

The very w ord sfi elcet is derived from shutout, be weighed, A braham

w eighed the four-hundred Shekels of silver current w ith the

Merchant . Even at so late a period as that of the captivity Je~

remiah“weighs” seventeen Shekels of silver, (Jer . xxxii . 9—cir .

590 B . C . )A s to the value o f the shekel ; Josephus tells us that it was

equal to four A ttic drachma— ’A 7 7mas Bexe

'ra t Cpaxpas rec aapasa

This w ould make it half an ounce of silver . It is generally esti;

mated at 2s. 6d. which is a little less than the mint price of half

an oun ce of silver . B p . C umberland computes the yera/i , (one s

twentieth of the shekel ,) to be equal to the A ttic obolus— eleven

grains of silver . He estimates the Shekel at a little more than

23 . 44d.

From l st Kings x . 22, we learn that Ophir supplied the Jew s in

Solomon’ s time w ith silver as w ell as gold .i

In G RE E CE , silver currency was the oldest .’A p7)vpos (silver) is

used for money” in general—as the Hebrew ceseph, the French

urgen tq-the Saxon or Lowland S cotch sitter. A l l Greek w ords re

lating to money (e . g . usurer, min t} are derived from cipr’vpos.

A ccording to Herodotus (I . 94) the Lydians w ere the first to

coin silver as w ell as gold ; but the evidence o f the most ancient

authors is in favour of the JE gin etan s ; and the date of the first

coinage of silver in j‘E gin a was B . C 869. The oldest E ginetan

coins are very rude and“thick,and have an indented mark , as if

from the blow in striking . G reek coins o f the age of Pericles

and Xenophon are still thick , but much less clumsy than their

predecessors . Later specimens are broad and thin . In fact,there

are three well-marked classes of G recian silver coins .

The material of all is very fine,more especially of those issued

A PRIL—S E PT .A ncien t and Modern times. 8 1

by the A thenians , who w ere very proud of the finenes s of their

coinage .Xenophon tells us that in his day the A thenian cur

reney could be exchanged w ith profit in any market . A nalysis Of

extant specimens has cOn fi rmed this statement . The earlier A the

nian coins contain 51

3alloy ; later, 56 ; at a still more modern

date , 1 1 ,—nearly the same as in our own currency .

The principal Grecian silver coin was the DRA CHMA , and in

this money was counted . There w ere several drachmae in c ircula

tion in G reece , of which the principal w ere , the A TTI C , usuallye stimated (before its depreciation) at 92d ; and the JE G I N E T A N

at l s . laid. The former standard was adopted in Philip ’ s gold

coinage , and afterwards in A lexander’ s silver . I may mention

that the A thenian currency was called in and recoined by Hip

parchus, who died B . C . 5 1 2 .

The A thenians obtained their silver from Laurion in A ttica .

These mines are said by Xenophon to have been the most im

potan t source of A thenian revenue , they were let to contractors on

condition of payment to the state of a per-centage of the ore

raised . This rent varied ; at one time it is said to have been so

l ow as on e-twenty-fourth of the Xenophon speaks of

these mines as having been worked from remote times and as

being inexhaustible . How ever in the 2nd century of the C hris

tian Era they w ere abandoned .

A t ROME , silver coms w ere no t struck until B . C . 269,

five

years before the commencement of the First Punic War. The

principal Roman silver coin was the DE NA RIUS ,1' which was

worth 1 0 ase s , or 1 0 pounds of we, and of which there w ere origi

nally 84 to the pound . A t a later period we find the pound o f

silver coined into 96 denarii , but when this change was intro

duced is unknown . If we suppose it t o have taken place previ

In the silver mines of Peru, until 1 736 , the tax payable to theKing of Spain amounted to onefi f th of the standard silver . A fter thatyear i t was one-ten th, and this was il l-paid . T he tax on gold was original ly onef if th, reduced first to one-ten th, and then to one-twen

tieth. T hese taxes constituted the whole RE NT Of the mines . One-sixth

of the gross produce is the average ren t of the tin mines of C ornwall(there is besides a tax to the Duke of C ornwall of about one-twen tieth)and of very fertile lead mines in Scotland . T he rent of a coal mineis about one-ten th of the gross produce . (A dam Smith and N . )

y T he word is retain ed in the Italian for money”” durum.

VOL . xx . 0 . s. VOL . v 1 . N . s.

82 C oin and C urrency in [NO . 9, N E W S E RIE S .

ously to the year 50 B . C . , we should have to infer, from the

known proportions betw een the silver, gold , and bronze coinage of

that date, that gold bore to silver the ratio of 78 : 1— which is

too l ow to be admissible . In the later C ommonw ealth the dena

r ius was w orth 85d.

The Roman silver coin was never so pure as the best A thenian .

Under the Emperor G allienus 259-268) the natural order

of things was so completely reversed that the silver coinage con

sisted of g silver and g alloy.

The mines near C arthago Nova in Spain,chiefly supplied the

Roman Republic w ith silver . They are said to have been so pro

ductive as to yield drachmae daily .

In EN G LA ND , the Saxons had a silver currency , and n o other .

Tribute, how ever, was paid in kinduntil the C onquest, whenWilliam

ordered it to be paid in money,this money was paid by weight . In

those days a pound was a bona fi de pound . A penny too,Eng

lish and Scots , was a genuine pennyweight of silver . In fact as we

ascend towards the origin of coin in every land,the distinction

betw een coins and w eights vanishes . A dam Smith quotes a pas

sage which proves that the skil liny too was originally a w eight,though before W illiam the C onqueror its proportion to the pound

above and the penny below was not constant . A t one time we

find the Saxon shilling equal to five pence . The penny seems

at all times to ~have borne its present fixed relation (ri

g ) to the

pound,and William fixed the varying shilling , the proportions

between the three denominations have remained the same from

his time to ours .

In the reign of Edward I . the English pound sterling was a

pound,TOW E R VVE I G I I T , of silver of certain known fineness . This

Tower pound was a little more than the Roman—a little less than

the troy-pound, which latter was introduced into the mint in 1 5 ,Henry VIII . The Scots pound from A lexander 1 . t o Robert

Bruce was a pound of silver of the same weight and fineness as

the English . From that day when the troy pound of standard

silver w as c oined into 20 shillings to the present when 66 are

struck from it, the depreciation has been considerable ; but most

or all of it was previous to the reign of Queen Elizabeth . Since

Philip and Mary, both the denomination of the English coin has

A PRIL— S E PT . A ncien t and M odern times . 8 3

undergone no alteration,and the same n umber of pounds , shil

lings,and pence have contained very nearly the same quantity of

pure silver .Until 1 8 1 6 the Troy pound of standard silver was coined into

62 shillings ; the mint price of silver, therefore , was 5s. 2d. an

ounce . T his continues so ; although since that year the pound is

coined into 66 shillings . The additional four are retained as

seignorage .

Many ancient silver coins (I might say most), and many modern

O riental,contain no intentional alloy— their only impurity is a

trace of gold or copper . In the modern European currencies , on

the contrary,every trace of gold is carefully removed and copper

added—the former for economy, the latter to give greater durabil ity to the coin . A lloying for this purpose is even more n eces

sary to silver than to gold ; because the less the value of the coin ,the greater its circulation—a shilling changes hands more than

tw enty times as Often as a sovereign, and is therefore more than

twenty times as exposed to w ear .

C opper added t o silver increases its sonorietyié and hardness .

The maximum degree of the latter is presented by an alloy o f sth

silver w ith -th c opper, but so much hardness is unnecessary

so much depreciation unadvisable . The co lor of the silver is but

very slightly impaired by the alloy— even equal w eights of the

metals giving a white compound .

When any alloy of silver and copper-é—the standard metal for

English or French silver coins , for instance , i s exposed to a red

heat in air , the surfa ce becomes black from the formation of a

film of oxide of copper . If the piece be n ow immersed in hot sul

phuric acid, the superficial black is removed and a beautiful white

surface remains . Blanks for coins are treated thus before being

struck . Hence the whiteness of new silver pieces , as well as their

darker appearance after w ear—the alloy beginning to show itself

when the pure silver surface has been removed .

English standard silver contains 1 1 1 0 silver and 0 90 copper

A pound Troy therefore consists of 1 1 o z . 2 dwts. of silver and

1 8 dw ts. of copper . The metals dilate a little in combination

C opper is the most sonorous of metals.

84 C o in and C urren cy in [NO 9, N E W S E R I E S .

the actual density of the alloy being 1 0 3 , while calculation gives

I stated before that prio r to 1 826 the English gold coinage con

tained an appreciable amount of silver, which is not present in the

later currency . In like manner the silver coin issued before thatyear contained (as the o ld Spanish dollars and some other foreign

coins) a small proportion of gold . The relative value of different

specimens of silver depend upon amount of gold they may include .

The w ell-known Sycee silver contained a (comparatively) largequantity, and was valuable accordingly . But since 1 826 the Eng

lish silver coin has been as free from gold as the gold from silver .

The metals are separated by means of ho t concentrated sulphuric

acid . The silver must amount to not le ss than 25 or 30 per cent .

If the gold preponderate to a greater degree it exercise s a protect

ing influence over the silver,preventing its solution : so that if

the obj ect of the proce ss be to remove S ilver from gold previous to

coinage , silver must be added to the alloy to bring the proportion

up to the necessary standard . Further, there ought n o t to be

more than 1 0 per cent . of copper present, sulphate of copper being

little soluble in concentrated sulphuric acid . Regnault states that

by this process on e-two-thousandth part of gold may be extractedw ith profit .

I subj oin an abridgment o f Brande’ s Table of British Silver

C oinage .

Number of S tandard Fine silver g8 Legalpieces in the pound w eight of in each B 38 T en

T roy . each piece . piece . 5 HB der.

s e

w t dw t . grain L fi jé792 0 7-27 0 8 N S9396 T w open ces 0 0 g g é264 T hreepences. . 0 0

198 Fourpences . . 1 1 3 8 g1 32 1 1963 1 1 36. a66 Shillings . 3 1 5-27 3 gi g

26& 1 s. H alf C rowns . 9 8

1 3& l s.

'

C rown s 1 8 1 6 25 s‘

é

A s might be expec ted the resemblan ce between

Engl ish currencies in early times is very close .

grains .

2 l °8 1 8

29090

436 36

872 72

the French and

The time of

A PRIL— S E PT . A ncien t and Modern times. 85

C harlemagne in France corresponds in respect of coin age w ith

that of W illiam the C onqueror in England . I n ’ his time the livre

(l ibra , pound) was a pound troy of silver of a certain known fi ne

ness and bore the same fixed proportion (240 1 ) to the French

penny—or penny w eight of silver— that the. English and Scots

p ound bore to the English and Scots penny . The sou { so l idus,/

corresponding to the shilling , agreed w ith it in variability until

fixed by C harlemagne . A t different times the sou was w orth 5 ,1 2

,20

,40 , French pennys and from C harlemagne till the R evolu

tion the proportions between the French pound , shilling and penny

remained uniform . The depre ciation , how ever , was 22 times as

great in the French as in the B ritish currency .

The standard silver of France , like her gold , is somewhat infe

rior to that of England . It contains 0900 pure silver, w ith a

legal to leran ce of 0 0 03 above and below standard . Silver medals

contain 0 950 w ith the same tolerance. The standard for plate is

also 0 950, but the tolerance below—no superior limit beingfixed .

The gold is extracted as in the English Mint . The old 3-fr. and

6-fr. pieces , and the still older 5-fr. pieces, were deprived of their

gold by the process above described .

When speaking of gold, I have given the sources from which

the w orld is chiefly supplied with silver . The lead~mines of G reatB ritain and Ireland yield a considerable quantity . It is found

both native , in streaks or threads in the lead ore, and in the formof sulphuret combined w ith the galena. It was formerly separat

ed from the lead by oxidising the latter, which had again t o be

reduced to the metallic state . This process was S O expensive that

none but the most highly argentiferous ore s would pay the cost of

extracting the silver . Latterly, however, it has been found praeticable to extract the silver by a process of crystallisation ; and a

proportion of three ounces in the t on may be separated w ith

profi t .’6

The modern process does not require the oxidation of more thanone-twentieth of the lead, instead of the whole .T he richest argentiferous galena contains no more than 40 oz . of sil

y er to the ton . T he average quantity in the Irish lead-mines is 28 oz .m the t on .

8 6 C o in and C urrency in [NO 9,N E W S E RI E S .

E s was the material of the earliest Italian currency . It w as

a compound metal in which copper w as the principal ingredient .

The Italians translate the w ord by rame, or o toue the French by

airain the English call it brass—or people who wish to be par

t icular say capp er. A l l these w ords are vague ; and w orse— they

are calculated to mislead . Brass is a compound of copper and

z in c, but Obj ects of ancient art, coins or others , to which the term

a s is applicable contain no zinc . Their fundamental composition'

is copper and T IN . To this mixture we give the name bron z e—a

w ord probably derived from the Italian bruno , because the artist s

of the Revival gave that color to their metal w orks .

ZE S or bronze , then, was much and variously used by the

ancients,Greeks as w ell as Romans . Their ingenuity was exer

cised in attempts to vary its color and improve its texture by the

admixture of sundry metals “besides its two principal components .

A nalysis has detected gold, silver, lead , and iron in ancient w orks

of bronze . Perhaps the best known and most highly prized

variety was the C orinthian Bronze— said to have been discoveredaccidentally by the fusion together of various me tals when C orinth

was burned by Mummius, (B . C . We find mention of it

how ever before this date .

-The ancients may have known the compound which we term

brass. Zinc a s a metal is mentioned first by Paracelsus , (whodied 1 54 1 ) but brass might have been , and at the present time

frequently is, made w ithout the intervention of metallic zinc—byheating together granulated copper and lapis calamin am (carbo

nate of zinc). I do n ot think , however, that there are any speci

mens extant of ancient Roman or Grecian brass . C ertainly for

the purposes of coinage bronze is preferable,being harder , and

more fusible though less ‘ malleable . A l l alloys of copper and tin

are hard ; and Often brittle if cooled slowly. It is a curious fact

that“tempering” produces upon brOn z e the contrary effe ct tothat which it has on steel . To make bronze fit for the coining

press it must be heated to redness and plunged into cold water .

The composition of the more ancient G reek bronze (Xakxos)is very uniform . It is 8 8 copper to 1 2 tin . In modern times

compounds of which the basis is copper and tin are used for vari

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8 8 C oin and C urrency in [No 9,N E W S E RI E S .

The sestertius, as its name implies , and as its symbol HS repre

sents was originally equal to 221

7 ases . Large sums were generally

counted in this coin . It w as afterwards made equal to 4 ases and

its material changed .

A t A THE N S , coins of this metal w ere issued in the year 406 B .

C . ,a critical time in the history of the A thenian people . These

,

how ever, w ere soon recalled . It is probable that a coin called

cba lkus (xah o fi s) and equal to one-eighth of the obolus, w as in

c irculation before this period ; and not recalled after it and that

the temporary issue consisted of coins of higher denominations .

The quarter obolus was the smallest silver coin . C onvenience

w ould suggest that pieces of lower value should be made of cheaper

material . We find the chalkus afterwards divided into seven

lepta— the mites of the New Testament .

Finally, as early as B . C . 1 85 , we see mention of whole talents

being paid in bronze by Ptolomy E piphanes .

Before I leave the subj ect of coin made of a combination of cop

per and tin,I may mention that two forms of this compound are

at present in circulation in France . One, averaging 86 copper

and 1 4 tin,is genuine bell-metal and in color yellow ; the other,

refined bell-metal, averages 96 copper and 4 tin . Both these w ere

struck un der the Old Republic . They might perhaps have better

been put under the head of Depreciations but in all countries , so

far as I am aware , copper coins bear a conventional value higher

than the intrinsic , and bell~metal answers the ordinary purpose s

of a token or counter as w ell as copper, pure or,

impure .

C OPPE R w ill not detain us long . Its hardness , durability and

abundance eminently fit it for being the material of the lowest

denominations of coins ; and it is thus used by all civilised nations .

It is overvalued in most currencies,and its conventional value

maintained by the amount of silver to which it is legally equiva

lent ; while the restriction s upon the extent to which it is a legal

tender prevent the evil which w ould result from the payment ofobligations in a depreciated coin . A dam Smith says that in histime half a pound of impure copper

,not worth 7d. was coined

into 1 2 pence and I do not think there has been any improve

ment in the intrinsic value of the copper currency since his time

nor is any necessary .

A PRIL—S E PT . in A ncien t and Modern times. 89

EN G LA ND had no copper coinage until James I . I subj oinBrande ’ s Table .

s:

g-g Weigh t of

g2 each piece.

Denomina“a.-Qtion of com.

<2: I n drs.

T

1“A voir.

roy

z e grs.

Pen ce .24 1 0 66 2916 6

Half-pence. 48 5 3 3 1458 3

Farthings. 96 2 66 7291

i do .192 I '

33 C eylon .

‘

il‘

open ny. 240 I on ian I slands.

5 farthing . 288 0 88 Malta .

i do . 384 06 6 l 8 22 C eylon .

The red sous of the FRE NCH currency are copper, nearly pure .

1 shall conclude the subj ect of material” w ith a few words on

A U R I C H A L C H U M—or more properly (E R I C H A L C H U M . T he'

wOrd

is a remarkable example of the effect of sound in suggesting , first,

false etymology, and then false meaning . The barbarism of de

riving the term from a combination of the Latin for gold w ith the

Greek for bron z e is obvious enough ; but in spite of this the false

derivation has been very generally received , and w ith it the erro

neous signification suggested by the spurious etymology . I have

stated that the ancients employed many different combinations of

metals- bronze being the fundamental constituent, in their w orks

of art : A urichalchum has been supposed to have been one of

these into which gold entered in considerable amount . A com

men tator on Ezra viii . 27 two vessels of fine copper precious as

go ld” —falls into the mistake , and states that these vessels w ere

composed of aurichal chum.

” That these w ere forms of bronze

in which gold was an important ingredient is likely enough ; but

that orichal chumwas not on e of them is quite clear from Pliny’ s

statement,that ‘ in his time the metal was no t found

,the mines

being exhausted. The true etymology is obpos or spas, a moun tain,and the true meaning mountain metal .” The exact composition

is n ot known .

I have introduced this metal for the sake of one coin . When

the Roman sestertius became equal to 4 ases,its material was

changed from ws to orichalchum.

It is obviously necessary that a medium of exchange shouldVOL . xx . 0 . s . VOL. vr. N . s .

90 C oin and C urrency in [No . 9, N E W S E RIE S .

bear a uniform and established value . In the case of a metallic

currency two essentials are requisite—each piece must be of a cer

tain proper/

weight and a certain proper fi neness. The coin should,

if possible , bear upon it somemark significant of its ful fi lmen t -of

these two conditions . This mark a M I N-T supplies , as far as the

thing can be done . Let a piece of money bear upon its obverse,

reverse , and edges evidence of having being struck at some known

mint, the degree of probability of its genuineness—that is , of its

really containing the amount of metal of proper purity which its

denominatio n professes—depends upon the degree of clearness of

that evidence combined w ith the degree of confidence reposed in

the good faith of the managers of the mint .

The weight of a fragment of metal may be ascertained by most

people with a little trouble : but how great a loss of labor and

time would result from having to w eigh every piece of money

tendered in payment,in the intercourse Of modern commercial

and social life , i s obvious . In England even n ow , the fact of

gold coin being payable by weight not tale is productive o f con

siderable inconvenience . But the ascertainment of the degree of

fineness of any tendered coin is altogether beyond the reach of the

great maj ority of mankind . Few possess either the chemical know

l edge or the chemical skill necessary for assaying The evi

dence afforded by color, lustre , hardness , and ring -the only

evidence within reach of the unscientific investigator—goes but alittle way. For this purpose an establishment of known respecta

bil ity and unsuspect ed honesty was necessary ; and these condi

tions seemed best fulfilled by assigning the management or super

intendence of the coinage to the State . C onfidence in the ruling

power in this respect has Often been grievousl y misplaced, as we

shall see ; but on the whole the arrangement appears the best that

can be adopted , and is in modern times the only one.

I need scarcely ob serve upon the importance of securing the

utmost possible genuineness in a country’s currency . The A the

h ian s , from whose institutions the Roman jurisprudence was copied,and on which , through the R omans , much of our own and the

C ontinental law is based, punished adulteration of the coinage

with death . Until recently in England coining” and forgery

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92 C ain and C urrency in [NO . 9, N E W S E RI E S .

and silver, leaving aes to the Senate . This body retained the

remnant of their mint powers until the time of Gall ienus , when

the complete control of the entire currency of the Empire was

monopolised by the Emperor . There were at this time subordinate

mints in Spain , Gaul and other partS‘

of the Empire, but the coin

struck was Roman . In the w estern countries the issue of other

coins than the Roman was given up in the first century of the

C hristian Era in the East the Roman coin did n o t become the

sole currency un t ii t he time-of Gallienus .The earliest coins were cast . We have many specimens . of

Roman pieces of,money w ith marks at the edge where they were

separated from the remainder of the cast . In one case in the

B ritish Museum there are several Roman ases still j oined together .

The n ext step was to cast the piece first and strike it afterwards .

While this was the usual process , coins of the same denominationand value might vary a good deal in breadth and thickness ; and

in many extant specimens of the more ancient coins we find this

to be the case . In the present day the dies for striking com are

made of steel , tempered by heating to a certain degree and

plunging into water cold in an inversely proportional de gree .

Thus,a dull red heat and water at 34° (Fahrenheit)—cherry red

heat and w ater at 50° -orange red and water at 80° all effect

about the same amount of tempering , though a greater degree of

real hardness is produced by the use of cold than of warm water .

A red heat and water at 45° of Fahrenheit form the most desirable

combination of means for hardening coining-dies .

From what I have said above , it is evident that the most import

ant duty of a Mint is the examination into the fineness of gold

and silver about to be converted into current coin . The process

is technically called assaying .

In the English Mint,the assay of both silver and gold is per

formed by cupellation ; in the French Mint the latter' only . The

quantity of metal upon which the testing experiment is performed

is very small, but is called the assay pound .

” In the case of

gold it is divided into 24 caratsfi 6 and each carat into 4 carat

5 carat gr . 75: grs . T roy . T he w eight of diamonds is estimatedin carats

,carat grains

,eighths, S ixteenths and thirty-seconds . A bout

1 50 caratsmake a Troy ounce, or 480 grains. (B rande.

A PRIL—S E PT . A ncien t and Modern times. 93

grains,quarters and eighths . The silver assay pound is divided

into 1 2 ounces, and each ounce into dwts. and half-dwts.

In the French Mint silver is assayed par voie humide . The

specimen is dissolved in nitric acid, and the silver precipitated in

the form of insoluble chloride by a standard solution of chloride of

sodium . From the precipitate the amount of pure silver present in

a given weight of the subj ect of experiment is easily found . The

presence of a little mercury impairs the accuracy of the result

chloride of mercury, the result of decomposition of some of the

chloride of sodium ,being also precipitated . However, the existence

of an appreciable quantity of mercury in the alloy i s known by the

solution in nitric acid not becoming clearer when shaken ; and by

the first deposit of chloride of silver n o t blackening under the

influence of light . The addition of acitate -‘

oi soda to the solu

tion prevents the precipitation of the mercury . This method is

w ith proper precautions more accurate than the English ; but too

complex for an establishment where many assays have to be made

daily.

A n alloy of gold, silver, and copper may be analysed (if S ilver

be present 1 11 sufficient quantity) by dissolving the two latter me

tals in nitric acid . The gold falls in a black powder and may be

fused into a button . The silver is then precipitated from the

compound solution by chloride of sodium or hydrochloric acid,and

’

the copper by iron . The assay of gold is more complicated

than that of silver , as it has first t o undergo cupellation and then

the separation of the silver by nitric acid.

A n important subj ect connected w ith mint regulations is S E I G

N O R A G E— the duty sometimes paid to the State upon the conver

sion of gold and silver bullion into coin .

It is evident that a charge of this kind, whether only equiva

lent to the actual expense of coinage, or in excess of this so as to

afford a revenue , adds to the value of the coin . The value of a

piece .of money as Of any other manufactured article is made up

of that of the raw material and the cost of manufacture . If there

is no seignorage , then, the coin passes for less than its real value .

The stamping in the mint adds to the Value of the bullion as“thefashion to plate” -to use A dam Smith’s illustration with th is

94 C oin and C urrency in [No . 9, N E W S E RIE S .

difference , however, that the fashion of the plate wl l l probably

enhance the value of the constituent metal iri other countrie s besides the place of manufacture ; while the coin of any country is

abroad,‘Only equal to its w eight of bullion .

So early as 1 691 , the question of a seignorage seems to have

attracted some attention . In that year a pamphlet appeared fromthe pen of Sir Dudley North, containing some very sound viewsupon this and otherpolitico-economical subj ects. This Tract

,

notwithstanding its intrinsic merits , was never very w idely circulated and was soon suppressed . The author says that the free

coynage [in England] is a perpetual motion found out , wherebyto melt and coyn w ithout ceasing, and so to feed goldsmiths

and coyners at the public charge .

” Many years after this A damSmith recommended the impo sition of a seignorage as the best

means of preventing the melting down of coin and of ensuring its

return to the country if exported . It is clear that H gold coin

w ere dearer than the same weight of bullion of standard purity,

there w ould be n o temptation to melt it down . A gain, being

money at home only, abroad it would be as completely bul lion as

in a goldsmith’ s crucible . He remarks that even w ithout a seig

n orage, gold coin is a little dearer than gold bullion, because

thrown into a more convenient form, and on account of the delay

in the Mint— the interval between bringing the metal to be con

verted into coin and receiving it transformed . But this enhance

ment of value is very trifling, and necessarily fluctuates w ith the

amount of business waiting to be transacted in the Mint . He

state s that if gold coin ever cease to be payable by w eight—a

system from its in convenience likely to be abandoned—a

seign orage is the only means of preventing the destruction

and exportation of the best and heaviest coins . Previously to

what he calls the“late reformation” of the currency, the gold

coin was more than two per cent . below standard w eight . C on

sequently the current market price of gold bullion instead of being

£46-1 4-6— the mint price—was £47-1 4-0 an d sometimes £48 .

Newly made coins w ould not purchase more of anything than the

old w orn coins—the former w ere therefore melted down and sold

to the Bank as bullion, at a considerable profit to the melters and

a considerable loss to the B ank, who could not understand the

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96 C oin and C urrency in [No . 9, N E W S E RI E S .

o ther countries it should not only maintain itself but also yield a

revenue . A seignorage is in on e respect, as he remarks , a un ique

tax . O ther indireet '

taxes are advanced by manufacturer s or im

porters but finally paid by the consumers . The tax on coined

money is advanced by every on e who receives it but finally paid by

none . In his time Parliament allowed a year for coin

age expenses . Even the saving of this comparatively small sum

is not unworthy of consideration .

A law passed in the reign of C harles II . for the encouragement

of a coinage made it free for a limited peri od . This was extended

by successive enactments until 1 769when it was made perpetual .

Most probably A dam Smith is right in his suspicion , that this was

a j ob for the Bank of England . Her interest is chiefly concerned

as she coins most ; and her w ealth and close connexion w ith

Government in monetary affairs give her suffi cient influence to

effect a considerable saving to her own revenues at the public cost .

In 1 8 1 6,as I have before had occasion to mention

,a seignorage

was imposed upon the coinage Of silver . A pound of standard

silver is coined into 66 shillings, while the mint price is only 62s. ,

43 . or 6& per cent . being retained as seignorage . The gold coin

age in England continues free .

In 1 771 , four years before the appearance of the F irst Edition

of the Weal th’

of Nations, the seignorage in France amounted to

l -l—tg per cent . on gold and ou silver . A dam\Smith r epresents

it as much higher, but erroneously. A t present the seignorage is

I nsuflicien t to cover the expense of coinage . It is not more than

E1

,per cent . on gold and 15 on silver .

We have seen that all civilised nations at a period of improve

ment more or less advanced have employed gold and silver—andmost of them some third and cheaper metal as the material of

their currencies . B ut in the earlier stages of their civilisation

only one metal was used for that purpose and, as we have seen,

silver more generally than gold . The Hebrews, the Greeks , and

the peoples who succeeded to the Roman Empire on the European

continent employed for many centuries an exclusively silver° cur

reney . So the Italian and Roman coinage was exclusively of

bronze until a late period . I have pointed out the traces of this

A PRIL— S E PT .A ncien t and Modern times. 97

exclusion in the languages of some of the peoples I have named

I w ish n ow to call attention to another particular in which the

supremacy of one metal over the others was manifested , after its

exclusive employment had given way to the requirements of

advancing civilisation and increasing commerce .

One metal has almost always been considered as the sole Stand

ard of Value ; and , as a necessary consequence , the sole legal

tender to an indefinite amount . The metal which in each parti

cular country had been the first instrument of c ommercial ex

changes has invariably been the first standard of value—and first

unrestricted legal tender, and silver having been amongst most

peoples the earliest medium Of exchange , it has also been most

generally the standard of value . In England, for instance , this

was the case for a very long time gold was not a legal tender for

many years after it had been introduced into the currency . B ut

as commercial intercourse extended, and as riches increased, men

would soon begin to feel that gold is a more convenient metal for

large payments than silver while its value is n o t more fluctuating

- ih this country the inconvenience of large payments in a silver

currency is often felt . A ccordingly in the two great commercial

nations of the w orld gold has supplanted silver as the S tandard

of Value and as legal tender to an unlimited amount .

But in England and A merica there was—in France there exists

at this present time—eu intermediate , transition , state ; in which

gold and silver are the Standard of Value , and gold or silver in

legal tender to any amount . The English and A mericans soon

felt the exceeding inconvenience of a Double Standard,and took

immediately the obviously necessary steps for their relief. T he

French are suffering now from the consequences of their attempt

to fix by legislative enactment what Na ture has made fluctuatingthe relative value of the precious metals . B ut in accordance

with the celebrated dictum of the first Napoleon,that political

economy”w ould crumble to dust the most powerful empire

,the

French talk of remedies which political economy teaches to be

utterly futile , and refuse to adopt the only means which both

science and experience point out for the remedy of the evil fromwhich they suffer .

VOL . xx . 0 . s . VOL . VI . N . S .

98 C o in and C urrency in [No . 9, N E W S E R I E S .

The possibility of maintaining w ithout injury a D oubleStandard

d epends upon the possibility of fixing, either once for all or from

time to time the relative values of gold and silver . This is simply impracticable . I R the relative values depended upon the rela

tive quantities—and I E law could prevent the transfer of either .

from one

'

country to‘

another, the thing might be done . . B ut as I

have stated before, the precious metals are so easily smuggled as

to render any legislative attempt to limit the supply of either of

them ridiculously unsuccessful . I have also stated the negative

o f the other hypothesis . The relative value of gold and silver

depend upon the relative cost of production, the re lative amount

of labor required to bring them to market . The discovery of a

rich and easily worked mine or vein, the invention of an improv

ed pump,the opening for traffic of a new railway, countless other

results of accident or ingenuity, may lower the price of silver in

a few w eeks . Improved machinery for washing alluvium or . for

crushing auriferous quartz may similarly depreciate gold in every

market in the world .

I have collected a few facts illustrative of the fluctuation in the

relative values of gold and silver at various p eriods in the history

of mankind .

In 1 1 Samuel xxiv . and I C hron . xxi . we have two accounts

of t he same transaction—the purchase of a threshing-floor by

David from A raunah or O rnan . In the former the price i s stated

in our version to be fifty Shekel s of silver” -in the latter six

hundred Shekels of gold . The discrepancy may be reconciled

by supposing the sum named in Samuel to have been the price of

the threshing-floor and oxen only, while the other amount was

the value of all the ground about the floor . B ut if W e adopt

B ochart’

s interpretation} 5 who believes the tw o sums to be iden

H e translates the passage in Samuel“David bought the threshingfi oor and the oxen for money (beceseph) i . e . fifty [golden] Shekels .”I mentioned before that ceseph, properly S ilver’ is frequently used formoney

’ in general. In the chapter of C hronicles to which theseremarks refer (xxi . 24) beceseph ma lo is translated in our version“atits full p rice.

”Now turning to the passage in C hronicles, B Ochart ren

ders David gave to Ornan for the place Shekels of gold (shihte z ahac)in value six hundred [Vulgar or silver shekels] (mishkall shesh mooth.

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1 00 C oin and C urren cy in EN G . 9, N E W S E RI E S .

A gain, not only are the raw materials of the currency liable to

fluctuation in relative value , but the two groups of coins them

selves are subj ec t to unsteadiness in their mutual relation . C oins

of smaller value pass through a greater number O f hands than the

larger denominations—s ilver coins are more used than gold . The

natural depreciation of w ear and tear, therefore , w ill affect the

former much more powerfully than the latter . For instance in

England in 1 695 , a guinea was legally w orth 2 1 shillings in

reality it was equal in value to 303 . of the worn and clipt coin

then in circulation . Now suppose this state of things to have

existed any time between 1 774 and 1 783 , the legal tender Of sil

ver during that period being fixed at £25—(and at that time the

silver coin w as very much deteriorated by wear,’é though not toso great an extent as I have mentioned above) : during those nine

years a man who ow ed £25 w ould be able to pay it w ith silver

w orth £ 1 7-1 0-0 . A fterwards , from 1 783 to 1 798 , there was no

restriction whatever on the amount to which silver was a legal ten

der . I cite these facts merely as illustrations Of the degree towhich the fluctuation in the relative values of the gold and silver

currencies may extend, and the consequent evils which would arise

from the option of discharging liabilitie s in either metal . The

debtor w ill of course pay his debts in the”

cheaper coin : the

other,estimated below its real value w ill be exported by the bul

lion merchants to countries where it bears a higher price ; and

the currency tends to return to its primitive state and to consist

of but one of the precious metals .

I shall conclude this subj ect w ith a brief account of the failure

of the Double Standard System in England, A merica, and France .

In the case of the first and last countries my quotations are taken

from a Note by Mr . McC ul loch .

A ccording to the late Lord Liverpool, T reatise on C oins} ,

gold coins passed current at certain rates fixed from time to time

by Royal Proclamation fi and have consequently been legal tender

In 1 8 1 1 , in the discussions in Parliament upon the Resumption of

C ash Payments , it was stated that during the period mentioned in thetext £25 would vary from 5 lbs . 5 oz . 1 5 dw t . of silver to 8 lbs. 1 5 o z . ,

according as it was paid in the worn sixpences or the n ew crown s .1° I found accidentally in a newspaper the follow ing variation s in

the weight of the gold pound in England. In 1 558 , 1 74 grs. equal to

A PRIL- S E PT . A n cien t and M odern times. 1 0 1

from the time gold began to be coined in E ngland , in 1 25 7, till

1 664 w hen the guinea , which was then first coined , and the other

gold c oins w ere permitted to pass current, w ithout any valuation

according to the relative w orth of gold and silver in the market .

This practice continued till 1 71 7, when the rate or value at which

a guinea should exchange was fixed at 2 1 shillings . From this

period till 1 774 gold and silver coins were equally legal tender

but from the circumstance of g old having been overvalued.

w ith

respect to silver,in the proportion fixed in 1 7 1 7 almost all large

payments w ere made in gold, silver coins of full w eight being ex

ported as soon as they came from the mint, while none but those

that were w orn and debased remained in circulation . In 1 774 it

was enacted,that no tender made in silver coin by ta le should be

l egal for more than £25—and that any tender“for a larger sum in

silver must be made by weight, at 53 . 2d. an ounce . A nd finally,

in 1 8 1 6 , the value of S ilver was raised above its j ust proportion

as compared w ith gold , by coining 66 shillings instead Of 62 out

of the pound troy but in order to prevent this overvalued silver

currency from driving the gold currency out of the country, and

becoming the sole medium of exchange , it was at the same time

enacted that silver should be legal tender to the extent of fortyshil lings only : while to prevent its sinking in value from redun

dancy,the pow er to issue it was placed exclusively in the hands

of Government . Under these regulations silver has become amerely subordinate specie s of currency, occupying the same place

in relation to gold that Copper occupies in relation to itself. Thissystem has been found to answer extremely w ell . In another

Note I find the follow ing passage on the same subj ect . This

overvaluation” [of gold in the mint regulation, of 1 71 7] was

estimated by the late Lord Liverpo ol to have been at the timeabout equal to four pence on the guinea

, or to 1 71

5-1} per cent . , and

as the real value of silver w ith respect to gold continued to in

creaSe during the greater part of last century . The advantage of

paying in gold in preference to silver became more decided ; and

ultimately led as has been previously Observed,to the universal

283 . 3d. in our present coin : 1 601 , 1 71 grs. about 273 . 9d. 1 604, 1 54

grat ; 1 625, 1 40 grs. ; 1675 , 1 29grs . 1 8 1 5 , 1 23 grs. nearly, as at presen

1 02 C oin and C urrency in [No . 9, N E W S E RIE S .

use of gold in large payments , and to the exportation of all silver

coins of full

In the United States of A merica after the discovery of the C al i

forn ian gold-fi elds, the same evil was felt, the same remedy

adopted,and w ith the same success . Gold becoming more abun

dant fell in real value while its nominal value fixed by law , the

amount of silver to which it was equivalent,remained unchanged .

A l l large sums were paid in gold, relatively the cheaper meta l ,and the silver coin was rapidly disappearing

,exported at a profit .

C hange of a 5-dollar piece in silver could scarcely be obtained

anywhere . The U . S . silver dollar contained 4 1 2-5 grs . I n,1 853

Government gave up coining silver dollars altogether,and reduced

the w eight of the half-dollar piece to 192 grs . A t the same time

silver was made a legal tender only to the amount of Sp . drs . 5 .

Before this change the ounce of silver was worth 1 1 6-53 cents ,n ow it is w orth 1 25 cents , or I i» dollars . Since that time the ih

trin sic value Of silver has risen as high as 1 232 cents , showmgthat it is scarcely sufficiently overvalued , and that a re-adjustmentmay be nece ssary at no very distant dat e .

In France at present the same inconvenience is severely felt .

Our pity must be diminished by the fact that this is the second

time the French system of a Double Standard has been attended

w ith unpleasant c onsequences . Experience seems to have lost in

France , the didactic powers attributed to her in our Latin Gram

mar. On the former occasion it was the silver that was over

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1 04 C oin and C urrency in [NO . 9,

.N E w S E RI E S .

duplication of the principal organs of the human frame,naturally

gives importance to the number T W O ; These elements very proba

bly entered into the system of w eights of all nations in the earliest

stages Of c ivilisation, and , as I have remarked before , the original

coins w ere only w eights . Depreciation in coinage might after

w ards alter the numerical relations between the denominations ,and these disturbances might or might not .extend to the w eights

w ith which the coins were originally synonymous . If they did so

extend, this w ould be one cause Of the impossibility of n ow fi nd

ing traces of the original basal numbers in the division s that have

come down to us . A nother element of change might be the rela

tive value of gold and silver ; this ratio might not be expressed

by any of the numbers I have alluded to,and yet might in some

w ay enter into the system of monetary division . O ther circum

stances might be brought forward to account for the occasional

absence of any apparent law of division in ancient or modern sys

tems of currency, I shall just state briefly in illustration Of these

remarks, some facts connected with Hebrew ,Greek and Roman

systems Of monetary division .

A mongst the H E BRE W S forobvious reasons,twelvewas a leading

numberfi 5 S ir , or the multiple of six and twelve , appears in the

seven ty-two selected for the translation of the Hebrew Scriptures

into Greek , commonly, for Shortness,called the LXX .

” Both

these numbers, 1 2 and 72 w ere retained in the foundation Of the

C hristian C hurch . A glance at the Table of Jew ish weights (and

coins) w ill show the prevalence of the national number combinedw ith ten and fi ve.

Gerah .

Maneh .

50 Talen t .

I am not aw are of these Hebrew w eights having undergone any

S E VE N also was a number of greatmystical sacredness, but it doesnot seem to have entered Into thei r system of weights.

A PRIL—S E PT .A ncien t and Modern times. 1 05

alteration.They probably disappeared along with Jewish inde

pendemos .Under R oman sway Roman currency circulated—the

fact is expressly cited in the New Testament as an Obvious proof

o f the extinction of Jew ish liberty . The theocratic institutions of

the people (for the theocratic element w as n ot altogether extin

guished by the adoption of kingly government)had probably much

to do w ith the freedom of their coin from fraudulent depreciation ,and thus one cause of disturbance of the relative proportions of

their weights was avoided . The standard shekel w as preserved

in the sanctuary . It was probably in imitation of this custom that

Justinian ordered the standard w eights andmeasure s to be kept

in the principal church of each town , w ithout, I fear , a similar re

sult . The attachment o f the Jews to their national customs , peou

l iarities,and prej udices also contributed to the preservation Of

their system of w eights unchanged, so long as their power cor

responded to their w ill .

I have only to add that a passage in the book of Ezekiel (xlv .

1 2) twenty Shekels , twen ty~fi ve Shekels,

fifteen Shekels shall

be your maneh”—implie s the existence of coins of those value s

respectively, all multiples of fi ve, and all together making 60

Shekel s , or on e maneh orminah, the maneh itself being a multiple

of 1 2 and 5 Shekels .

In the States of G RE E C E,I have

'

already said, several standards

w ere in use but the relation between the four denominations of

their systems ofWeights and coins remained constant in all . TheTable was

Mina .

60 Talent .

In this system size and ten are the multiple numbers : the for

mer may have come from the Hebrew division ; the connection

between the two Tables being shown by the evident identity of

the min ah (nude) and maneh . B ut twelve seems to have been a

VOL . xx . 0 . s . VOL . V I . N . s .

1 06 C oin and C urrency in [NO . 9, N E W S E R I E S .

favorite number among st the G reeks as.

well as the Jews . C ecrops,

for instance,divided A ttica into twelve districts .

T he i OM A N system of coinage was duodecimal, the A S was

divided into twelve parts . B ut into this system also the number

ten entered . When silver began to be coined , the denarius was

equal to ten ases : sestertii (each of which was originally

equal to two ases and a half) made the sum in

which‘ large amounts of money were counted . What led the R O

man s to a duodecimal system I cannot say . The numbers which

appear prominently in their traditions and institutions are 3,1 0 ,

and their multiple 30 ; but 1 2 i s the,basis of the divisions both of

w eights and measures of extension .

In England, on e of the two greatest commercial empires in the

world, the introduction of a decimal system of comage would be

so obvious an improvement, that one not acquainted w ith the

manners and customs” of the people would be disposed to be

lieve that the mere proposal of such a measure would be imme

diately followed by its adoption . B ut he is a sanguine man who

expects that he will live to see a Decimal C oinage in England .

A century of Parliamentary debates and Select C ommittees must

pass away ; and then our great grand-children may perhap s enj oy

facilities in the w orking of sums in C ompound Division , which

their ancestors only talked of. We must be content w ith the

coinage of the florin , improvement enough for half a century at

least . In England reform is very slow , and I cannot help think

ing that in the matter we are n ow considering , there I S a latent

unw illingness in the national mind to adopt even an improvement

as yet peculiar to A merica and France .‘

D E PRE C IA TION of currency may be unavoidable—the naturalresult of the w ear and .tear of the material by constant use , assist

ed by clipping ,” sweating” and other industrial eflorts of

fraudulent individuals . In England,in the reign of William III .

the gold and S ilver coin contained 30 per cent . less of the precious

metals than they professed . This was principally due to w ear

and was remedied by the re-coinage of 1 773 . Since then the evil

has been little felt, although the silver currency at least has been

at times in a very worn state . A t present the gold coinage is a

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1 08 C oin.

and C urrency in [No . 9,N E W S E RI E S .

the current silver coins , and ordered that they should pass as sil

ver, may, w ith its complete failure in its obj ect , have done more

to inculcate sound economical view s on this subj ect than any num

ber of volumesfi f'

Fraudulent interference w ith the standard of the coin may be

directed to reduction of the w eight (in other w ords , rais ing the

denomination) or to adulteration of the material : or both these

may be combined, as was done in England in the end of Henry

VIII . and beginning of Edward VI .,and in Scotland during the

minority of James VI . The first plan is of cours e open and avow

ed . The second admits of some attempt at concealment and pro

bably escapes discovery for some time . 1' But when the secret

does ooze out the public indignation is considerably more violent

than is ever excited by the raising of the denomination . This is

easily accounted for. When the w eight of the coin is diminished,the individual and the Government start fair .” The private

debtor pays his debts on as favorable terms as the public . In

the other case the Government has the advantage of the interval

betw een the adulteration and its discovery . I may observe that

this greater degree of public indignation produces one very im

portant effect—the standard of purity is almost sure to be re stor

ed, the standard of w eight seldom or never .

A thens and Rome furnish us w ith examples of qualitative de

preciation . B oth cases to which I allude have been mentioned

before . The A thenians , in 407 B . C .,issued a debased gold cur

reney. The Roman Republic,about 90 B . C . ,

adulterated its sil

ver coinage ; the example was followed by private individuals ,

and the evil reached a considerable height . In both these cases ,

purity of standard was restored ; the Roman currency was re

formed— the A thenians recalled their debased gold .

We must not suppose that depreciations have always been due

to the avarice and injustice of princes and sovereign state s .”

Yet we find Mr. Lowndes and a large minority of the H ouse ofC ommons at the time of the re-coinage in William I I I . , proposi ng todegrade the standard of British coinage . T heir

'

proposal was rejected,chiefly owing to the influence of John Locke’s writings .f King John of France swore the mint people to secrecy when hetampered with the material of the coinage .

A PRIL—“S E PT . A n cien t and M odern times .

Interference w ith the currency has sometimes been dictated by

the distress of large numbers of subjects. In ancient times espe

cial ly,the extent of debt and the severity of the law , (when the

creditors w ere also the law makers) rendered relief, complete or

partial,of debtors a necessary preliminary to any consti tutional

reform . No improved system of government could be stable,while the mass of the people was plunged in hopeless pauperism

and inextricable debt . While the constitution remained unchang

ed habit and the conservative principle which exists to a greater

or less degree in every people might preserve the impoverished

masses from taking the law into their own hands , and relieving

themselves simultaneously of their creditors and -their debts . B ut

a w ise legislator or reformer proposing to himself to efi ect exten

sive alterations in the C onstitution of a State, would not risk the

downfall of his new ly-raised political structure , the supervention

of utter anarchy , by leaving large numbers of the people in hope

less misery ; while his very improvements broke their habit of

submission t o government, and impaired the conservative principle

by the exhibition of important and perhaps sweeping reforms .

The example of change w ould soon be follow ed by thousands ao

tuated n ot by enl ightened political view s , but by the pressure of

w ant and the prospect of enfranchisement from their hopeless

pecuniary thraldom .

A ccordingly the great A thenian legislator commenced his poli

tical reforms by the relief of debtors . This he effected by a quant itative depreciation . He coined into 1 00 drachmae the w eight of

silver which had previously made 73 . This is so unlikely a num

her to have been selected that we are justified in believin g that

Solon intended to reduce debts by a quarter, and that 73 was an

accidental substitution in the mint for 75 . The mistake was n o t

corrected ; and even the Macedonian gold coin which was struck

after the A thenian standard retained the A thenian error .

A fter the time of A lexander the Great,the drachma— the G reek

standard coin underwent the ordinary kind of depreciation . The

w eight was reduced from grains to 63 .

The first depreciation in the ROMA N coin was effected by theState shortly after the commencement of the First Punic War.

1 10 C oin and C urrency in [No . 9, N E W S E RIE S .

The as which had hitherto been a pound of bronze was reduced t o

the weight of the sextans— its sixth part . By this ingenious con

trivance the Republic paid 3s. 4d. in the pound” under the ap

pearan ce of a complete discharge of its liabilities . A gain,in the

second a further reduction to one ounce was made . A t the same

time the denarius which had originally been equal to ten ases was

decreed to be henceforth equivalent to sixteen w ith an important

exception in favor of the soldiery. In their pay the denarius was to

retain its original ratio to the as . Soon after this,about 191 B . C .

a law was passed reducing the w eight of the as to half an ounce .

These three changes are reported by Pliny ; but there must

have been several others both intermediate and subsequent . We

possess ases w eighing and even —1 of a pound ; and others

representing intervening depreciations and weighing 1 1 , 1 0 , 9, 8 ,3 , 15

37 and 15 o z . These successive reductions do not seem to have

created any disturbance or even excited opposition . It is proba

ble that the measures w ere proposed by some popular man and

easily carried through the popular assembly . The poorer classes in

Rome , and especially the soldiery, w ere heavily involved in debt .

None of them were state-creditors except the soldiers , and their

interests w ere , as we have seen , not neglected . I t mattered little

to the maj ority in the popular comitia how the State defrauded its

creditors, while they could w ith equal ease discharge , or at any

rate diminish their own obligations .

I must not,however, omit to mention that the Marquis Garnier

asserts that the changes in the value of the as w ere introduced,not w ith fraudulent intention,flbut l n order to adjust in the R 0man currency the relative values of bronze and silver . To this

statement Pliny’ s account of thetransactions in question is expl i

citly opposed . He expressly states that the depreciations w ereeffected by the Republic for the discharge of her debts . Further,had the reduction of the w eight been gradual , the work of suc

cessive ages , as M . Garnier’ s theory would require , the coins

would exhibit in their style of execution differences correspondingto the differences in their value . A l l the various pieces, however,which I have enumerated above , are evidently of the same or very

nearly the same date .

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1 1 2 C o in and C urrency in [No . 9,N E W S E RIE S .

from a very early period been against the West and in favor of theEast . Time w ill not permit me to enter into a full examination

of the causes which have led to this result . I shall simply touch

upon on e or two .

The inexhaustible fertility of the soil of many Eastern countrie s

and the variety of its useful products have be en one cause .

Densely peopled as the East is , its soil has ever produced far

greater quantities both of food and of other articles of commerce

than are suffi cient for the requirements o f its population . While

exportation of this surplus produce was the necessary consequence

of its existence , climate and a l ow state of civilisation combined

t o restrict the wants of the people . There was little demand for

the productions either raw or manufactured of other countries

where among all classes , tastes were simple , comforts little known,and the conservative principle strong , the poor required little

clothing and little shelter . Even the magnificence of the rich

w as simple and demanded little beyond gold, silver and gems .

What I have said w ill account for the preference of the preciousmetals to other articl es of import ; but other circumstances pro

duced a positive demand . For example , the love of ornament of

semi-civilised peoples . A gain, the insecurity of property in a coun

try like India, divided into numerous petty states independent of

each other and often hostile while the moral principle , according

to our ideas , is not very strong—gave a tenden cy not only to hoard

ing but to keeping property as much as possible in a portable and

easily concealable form . For this purpose gold and silver rank

next to precious stones . A gain,an extensive internal trade de

mands large supplies of a precious metal for acirculating medium .

This refers more especially to C hina, whose internal traffic is enor~

mous . But she has never drawn such quantities of the precious

metals from Europe as India . Her own internal supplies of silver

are very large , so much so that for about twenty years previous to

1 8 5 1 , she not only absorbed no silver but exported ne arlyannually .

I must content myself with thus briefly adverting to a few ofthe causes of the Drain .

I have spoken of the precious metals generally but silver has

always been preferred to gold . The former is the great material

A P RIL— S E PT . A ncien t and M odern times. 1 18

of Eastern currencies and the relative superiority in value of

gold has consequently always been much lower in the East than

in Europe . While the ratio in Europe is about 1 5 1, in the East

it is 1 0 (or at most 1 2) 1 . A dam Smith states that in his time ,

while in the C alcutta Mint (as in England) the proportion w as

1 5 : 1 , in C hina it was 1 0 : 1 and in Japan 8 : 1 . O f course un

der these circumstances it is more profitable to bring silver to the

East than gold and accordingly the former has always immense

ly preponderated in the imports . This preponderance has been

so marked that Mr . Meggen s, an authority of considerable w eight

in politico-economical question, and more than once quoted by

Smith , accounted for the difference betw een the ratio of the values

of gold and silver in the European market and that of the quan

tities brought into Europe,by pointing to the large exports of

silver to the East . The proportion of the silver brought annually

from A merica to the gold was 22 : l—q while the relative values ofthe metals w ere as 1 4 (or 1 5) 1 . I have said enough in a for

mer part of this paper to render it unnecessary n ow to dwell

upon Mr . Meggen s’ mistake . I have mentioned him here only to

show the great preponderance of silver over gold, in exports to

the East in his time .

The complaint that the East was taking gold and silver from

Europe is as old as Pliny’ s time . He mentions (Na t . H ist . l ib.

xii . cap . 1 8j the silks , spices , &c . imported into Italy from the

East,and adds Min imaque computation e millies centena mil

lia sestertium, annis omnibus , INDIA et S E R E s pen in sulaque illa

[A rabia] imperio nostro demun t .

” In 1 600,when the East India

C ompany obtained their C harter, the importance of gold and silver

as articles of export to the East was so well known that that body

obtained leave to convey eastwards annually w orth of

foreign coin or bullion . The Mercantile System was at that time

so powerful that this permission was saddled w ith a condition

that w ithin six months of the termination of every voyage,the

C ompany should re-import into England an amount of gold andsilver equal to the quantity of silver exported .

From the time of the discovery of the A merican mines until the

revolutionary disturbances to which I have before referred, theVoL . xx . 0 . s . VOL . v 1 . N . s .

1 1 2 C o in and C urrency in [No . 9, N E W S E RI E S .

from a very early period been against the West and in favor of theEast . Time w ill n ot permit me to enter into a full examination

of the causes which have led to this result . I shall simply touch

upon on e or two .

The inexhaustible fertility of the soil of many Eastern countries

and the variety of its useful products have be en one'

cause .

Densely peopled as the East is , its soil has ever produced far

greater quantities both of food and of other articles of commerce

than are sufficient for the requirements o f its population . While

exportation of this surplus produce was the necessary consequence

of its existence , climate and a low state of civilisation combined

t o restrict the wants of the people . There was little demand for

the productions either raw or manufactured of other countries

where among all classes , tas’

tes w ere simple , comforts little known ,and the conservative principle strong , the poor required little

clothing and little shelter . Even the magnificence of the rich

w as simple and demanded little beyond gold, silver and gems .

What I have said w ill account for the preference of the preciousmetals to other articl es of import ; but other circumstances pro

duced a positive demand . For example , the love of ornament of

semi-civilised peoples . A gain, the insecurity of property in a coun

try like India, divided into numerous petty states independent of

each other and often hostile while the moral principle , according

to our ideas , is not very strong—gave a tenden cy not only to hoarding but to keeping property as much as possible in a portable and

easily concealable form . For this purpose gold and silver rank

next to precious stones . A gain, an extensive internal trade de

mands large supplies of a precious metal for a circulating medium .

This refers more especially to C hina, whose internal traffic is enor~

mous . But she has never drawn such quantities of the precious

metals from Europe as India . Her own internal supplies of silver

are very large , so much so that for about twenty years previous to

1 8 5 1 , she not only absorbed no silver but exported ne arly

annually .

I must content myself w ith thus briefly adverting to a few ofthe causes of the Drain .

I have spoken of the precious metals generally but silver has

always been preferred to gold. The former is the great material

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1 14 C oin and C urrency in [No . 9, N E W S E RI E S .

drain of silver to the East continued steadily to increase . Hum

boldt states that of the Sp . drs . worth of gold and sil

ver annually brought to Europe from A merica before the R evolu

tions,Sp . drs . went to A sia— 4millions by the Levant

,

1 75 round the C ape , and 4 through Russia . McC ul loch says that

in 1 85 1 the drain had ceased,and A sia was even exporting silver

but I think this can only have been true of C hina . New,a t

any rate , large quantities of silver are imported into India and

C hina . I shall quote a recent article in the D aily News, (J uly

to show the present state of the Balance of Trade " between

Europe and A sia .

A s it is certain that the Money Market has of late been

greatly affected by the flow of silver to the East,it may be useful

to glance at the statistics of this movement for the six months

terminating on the 3oth June , 1 8 57 . The subj oined table exhi

bits the aggregate shipments from Southampton by each fort

nightly packetGold . Silver .

Jan . 4

20

Feb . 4

20

Mar . 4

20

A pr. 4

20

May 4

20

June 4

20

Our table proves how essentially this is a silver movement,

for the remittances in gold have amounted to scarcely one-hundredth

part of the total . Supposing that the shipments in the second half

of 1 857 be equal to those of the first half,the drain w ill have as

sumed the astonishing proportions of seventeen millions and a half

sterling per annum, w ithout taking into account the considerable

A P R I L fl sE P T . A ncien t and M odern times . 1 1 5

additional sums despatched by way of Marseilles . Nor,j udging

merely from the figures before us , does the drain present any

signs o f slackening ; for, while the exports in the firs t quarter of

1 8 5 7 were or at the rate of per annum,

those in the second quarter reached or at the rate of

per annum . Last year the magnitude of the ship

ments of silver eastwards excited general remark , yet in the first

six months of 1 85 6,the total was n o t more than

being les s than in the corresponding period of the

present year . In the corresponding six months of 1 85 5 , the ag

gregate amount was only The increase is espe cially

conspicuous in the remittances to C hina, which in the months

n ow ended , has absorbed against only in

the corresponding period of last year . These figures refer to

C hina Proper . The other regions of the East have this year taken

against at the same date last year . Pi

nally, in order to give the clearest possible idea of the rapidity ofthe general movement, we w ill summarise the aggregate figures

for the last seven years, viz .

-The total remittances from Eng

land to the East were

In the whole of 1 85 1

1 85 3

1 8 54

1 8 5 5

1 8 56

In the first six months of 1 8 57, or at the rate for

the year of

The first question that naturally suggests itself when figures

of this magnitude are adduced is, whence are such enormous

quantities of silver derived ?The answer is readily supplied . Great

Britain , we know , does not supply them out of her stock of silver,for enormous though the amount of silver coinage doubtless is

,

each piece of British silver money is merely a token,and w orth ,

at the current price of silver considerably les s than the sum which

it professes to represent . But a different system prevails on theC ontinent

, whence , acc ordingly the Eastern demand for silver is

1 1 6 C oin and C urren cy in EN G . 9,N E W S E RI E S .

mainly satifi ed. From a statement which we have compiled w ith

care , we find that the imports of silver into England by the RoyalMail C ompany’ s Packets from‘ the West Indies

,Mexico

,and the

Isthmus , have amounted this year to about sterling .

A dding an estimated total of say half a million in ‘silver drawn

from other Trans-A tlantic sources, we arrive at a total sup

ply of about two milli ons and three-quarters derived from

o ther than C ontinental States . The shipments of silver alone ,direct from Southampton , havin g amounted in the first six months

of 1 857, as already stated to it follow s that nearly

six millions sterling in silver must have been drawn from the

stocks of that metal, either held by the banks on the C ontinent

or circulating as coin there . In all probability,and especially

j udging from the immense quantities of French and Belgian fi ve

franc pieces which are despatched just as they are received from

the C ontinent, or is chiefly upon the actual stock of C ontinental

coinage that this serious s and never-ceasing draught is made .

French official returns recently published throw a striking

light upon this remarkable movement . During the first fivemonths of the present year

,the experts of silver from France ex

ceeded the imports of that metal by about These

exports w ere doubtless chiefly to England,and in this single fact

w e have evidence as to the source from which is drawn the rest

of the needful supplies of silver over and above those received

from A merica . Nor is this wholesale abstraction of silver . from

the C ontinent a temporary or evanescent process ; it has gone on

for years , in a constantly increasing ratio , and bids fair to continue so long as silver can be procured there

,and is wanted in the

East . In 1 854 the silver exported from France exceeded the imports by in 1 8 55 by and in 1 856 by

making a total drain of in the short

space of three years . Of this a portion w ent to the East , another

large portion has been locked up in the National Bank of Vienna 95

T his B ank was establ ished by Maria T heresa in 1 762, for the pur~

pose of effecting a p ap er circulation ,to which a forced legal currency

w as given . In 1 797, Government prohibited demand“o f exchange incoin above 25 fl . During the w ar gold and silver almost disappeared fromcirculation and instead there w as paper, represen ting sumsas low as 28 . or 38 . Much of the smal ler currency was brass and issuedat double its intrinsic value .

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1 1 8 Lecture on the G eo logy of [NO . 9, N E W S E RI E S .

S E LE C T I ONS .

Lecture on the G eo logy of the P rovin ce of A uckland, New Z ea

land. [D elivered to the [Members of the A uckland M echan ics’

I nstitute, J une 24 , By Dr . FE RD INA ND HOCH-S T E TT E R

,G eo logist on board the A ustrian friga te Novara

,

”and

M ember of the A ustrian S cien tifi c N ouara E xp edition .

Mr . President , Ladies and G entlemen — The members of the

A ucklan d Mechanics ’ Institute havin g done me the honor to

elect me as honorary member of their institution,and the C om

mittee having invited me to give a Lecture upon the Geology of thisProv ince

,I have much pleasure in complying w ith their request .

It is,how ever, w ith some hesitation that I undertake this task

,

fearin g that my imperfect know ledge of the English language w illprevent my making the short sketch I w ish to lay before you asinteresting as it might otherw ise have been . Notwithstanding

this drawback , I am glad to have this opportunity of giving the

inhabitants of this Province , through the members of this Insti

tute,such a résumé as I can of the chief results of the Geological

Survey I have made of tho se parts of the country I have visited .

I feel this , indeed , to be a duty I owe to the community at large,

in return for the very kind reception that has everywhere been

given me—for the ready help that has always been afforded by

all whom I have met w ith— and for the interest that has been

shown by all in the proceedings of the Imperial A ustrian Novara” Expedition .

Having , in the months of January and February, completed mySurvey , and finished a Geological Map

,of the A uckland D istrict

,

which I n ow have the pleasure of showin g you,the necessity

arose for my choosing either the Northern or the S outhern portionof the Province for my farther researches

,my limited stay in New

Z ealand rendering it impossible for me to make a sum cient exa

mination in both directions .

I did not hesitate to choose the Southern districts—for these

reasons : that the country over which I should there proceed,is

A PRIL— : E P T . the Province of A uckland. 1 19

inhabited almost exclusively by Maories , and has hitherto been

almost unknown and totally unsurveyed , both topographically and

geologically.The Northern districts

,on the contrary, are for the

most part better known , and from the number of European set

t lers in them,I w as led to hope I should be enabled to collect some

information through specimens forwarded to me for examination ,

and from the verbal descriptions o f those who are w ell acquainted

w ith the various localitie s .My hope w as not unfounded in either respect .

I have received many specimens of interest from various lo cali

ties : also some valuable information from different settlers , and

especially from my friends,the Rev . A . G . Purchas , and Mr . C .

Heaphy,who in the last few months have had opportun itie s of

visitin g several parts of the Northern portion of this Province,

and of collecting very valuable spec imens . In addition to this

must be remembered the fact,that other scientific men , especially

MM . Dieffenbach and Dana, had already visited and described atlength some parts of the Northern country .

Through the liberality and excellent arrangements of the Gene

ral and Provincial Governments,I have been enabled in a compa

rativel y short time to travel over and to examine the larger por n

tion of the Province South of A ucklan d, extendin g as far as Lake

Taupo and Tongariro Volcano,the boundaries betw een this Pro

vince and those ofW ellington and Hawke ’ s Bay . I have thus ohtainedmaterials which w ill enable me , on my return to Europe , to

construct a Topographical and Geological Map of the central part

of the Northern Island .

My observations have , w ith the able assistance of Mr . Drum

mond Hay, extended from the East to the W est C oast ; and the

numerous peaks and ranges have afforded facilities for fixing, w ith

satisfactory accuracy, by means of magnetic bearings, on the basis

of points previously fixed by the nautical survey of C apt. Drury,on the C oast-line , all the great n atural features of this portion of

the country . A great number of barometrical observations have

afforded’

me the means of ascertaining the heights of mountains

and plains in the interior, which I shall be able to calculate w ithaccuracy by the aid of correspondin g daily observations, taken in

1 20 Lecture on the G eo logy of [No . 9, N E W S E RI E S .

A uckland , by C olonel Mould, who has kindly forwarded me a

copy of his tables .

I have also obtained photographic and other views of great inter

est,many of which w ere taken by the gentlemen who accompan i

ed me on the expedition for this purpose and a large number of

exceedingly valuable sketches have been contributed by the talen ted pencil of our President, Mr . C . Heaphy

,for future publica

tion in a ”geological A tlas . Many of these are decorating the

w alls and others are lying on the table,and I shall be happy to

show them to any ladies and gentlemen who may feel an interest

in seeing them,at the conclusion of the le cture .

My co l lections have been grow ing from day to day,and include

specimens of great interest in most branches of Natural History .

I owe a great deal to the indefatigable zeal of my friend and fel

l ow-traveller,Mr . J . Haast, who assisted me in colle cting during

our expedition . I am also much indebted to Mr . J . C rawford at

W ellington, Mr . A . S . A tkinson of Taranaki,Mr . T riphook of

Hawke ’ s Bay, Mr . H . T . Kemp of the B ay of Islands , to the Mis

sionaries, and to almost innumerable friends in A uckland .

Prelimin ary R emarks .

I cannot suppose that all my audience are acquainted w ith the

first principles o f G eology . I shall therefore be under the n eces

sity, in order to make my report intelligible , of prefacing a few

remarks upon the chief divisions of the Geological formations .

The various rocks,soils

,and minerals

, which occur upon the

surface of the earth , or at various depths beneath it—in one word ,

the materials of the“earth’s crust” —are classified, in the first

place, w ith reference to their different origin ,

or,in other words ,

w ith reference to the different circumstances and causes by which

they have been produced . They are divided into four great classes—P luton ic

,M etamorphic, A queous, and Vo lcan ic rocks . A nother

mode of classification is w ith reference to their age— that is , to the

comparative periods of their formation . Those divisions w ill be

easily understood .

The P luton ic rocks comprehend all the gran ites, syen ites, p or

phgries, diorites— rocks which agree in being highly crystalline ,

un stratifi ed, and destitute of organic remains—which are cousi

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122 Lecture on the G eology qf [No . 9, NE W S E R I E S .

With reference to the fossils it is not so easy to give an explanation in few words ; but some idea may be formed from the w ell

ascertained fact, that certain animals have existed for a certain

period, and then wholly disappeared and been succeeded by other

animals of different specie s , which, in turn, have again given place

to others .

So,as Sir C harle s Lyell truly says , a series of sedimentary

formations is like volumes of history, in which each writer has

recorded the annals of his own times , and then laid down thebook w ith the last w ritten page uppermost . A nd the organic

remains are , as Dr . Mantell beautifully expresses it, the coins of

C reation ,”which give us the means of tracing the history of the

development of the organic kingdoms .

Thus,by superposition and by their organic remains, the aqueous

rocks are divided into groups forming, in reference to their age ,what is termedan ascending series ,

”or beginning w ith the oldest

in the follow ing manner

1 . Primary formations or periods .

2 . Secondary

3 . Tertiary

4 . Quartary

In reference to the word quartary, I may explain that, al

though it is n ot an English word, I take the liberty to use it in

the sense of post tertiary, as following the analogy of the other

terms .

Each of tho se formations is again divided into numerous minor

systems, on which I have no time to enter.

The fourth and last great division of rocks are the volcanic—as

Trachyte,Basalt

,Breccia

,and Tuff -all produced by supra

marine or submarine volcanic eruption . It is ascertained that the

earliest true volcanic eruptions have occurred subsequently to the

secondary period , commencing in the Tertiary, and continuing to

the present time and it is a marked difference between the older

and the more recent eruptions .

I have prepared a diagram which‘

w ill serve to impress these

fi rst principles upon your memory, and so enable you to follow

me in the account I have to give

A PRIL—S E PT . the Province of A uckland.

D IA G RA M .

O rigin . A ge. Organic Remains .

Plutonic and PrimitiveMetamorphic rocks . 6 formation .

NO fOS SflS '

Primary .

A queous c Secondary Fossiliferous .Tertiary .

Quartary .

Volcanic . Trachytic . No fossils .Basaltic .

W ith these preliminary remarks , I now proceed to the main sub

j cet of my lecture .

G E OLO G Y OF T H E PROVINCE OF A UCKLA ND .

The first striking characteristic of the Geology of thi s Provin ce—and probably of the whole of the Northern Island of New

Z ealand— is the absence of theprimitive, p la tonic, and metamorphic

formations,as granite

,gneiss

,mica-slate

,and the like . I have been

informed by Mr . Heaphy, that these rocks are of w ide-spread ex

tent in the Middle Island , forming mountain ranges of great alti

tude,covered w ith perpetual snow , and reaching in Mount C ook

probably to feet . The rocks of these formations contain

the principal metallic riches of the earth . Therefore we cannot

hope to find these riches developed in the highest degree in the

Northern Island but as other fdrmation s also contain metalli

ferous veins,there may be found many mines worth working in

the rocks I am about to describe .

I .—PRIMA RY FORMA T ION .

The oldest rock I have met w ith in the Province of A uckland

belongs to the p rimaryf ormation . It is of very variable charac

ter—sometimes being more argillaceous,of a dark blue colour

,

(when decomposed, yellowish brown, the colour generally present

ed on the surface ,) and more or less distinctly stratified like clay

slate—at Maraitai on the Waitemata) at other times the siliceous

element preponderates,and, from the admixture of oxide of iron,

the reck has a red, jasper-like appearance—(at Waiheki, Manga

n ese Point . ) .

I n other localities it is more distinctly arenaceous ,resembling the old Sandstones of the Silurian and Devonian Sys

tems,‘

called G rauwacke—(at Taupo, on the Hauraki G ulf. )A s no fossils have yet been found in this formation in New Z ea

11 24 Lecture on the'

G eology of [No . 9, N E W S E R I E s.

land,it is impossible to state the exact age : I am, however, of

opinion,that these argillaceous siliceous rocks w ill be found to

correspond to the oldest Silurian strata of Europe .

The existence and great extent of this formation are of con si

derable importance to this Province , as al l themetal liferous veins

hitherto discovered, or likely to be hereafter found, occur in rocks

of this formation .

To these rocks belong the C opp er-pyrites, which has been w orked

for some years at the Kawau and G reat B arrier—the Manganese

(Psilomelan) at Waiheki—and the G o ld-bearing quartz at C oro

mandel .

The go ld which is washed out from beds of quartz-gravel in the

rivers and creeks flow ing down from both sides o f C oroman

del range , is derived from quartz veins, of cyrstal l in e character

and considerable thickness , running , in a general direction from

North to South,through the old primary rocks which form the

foundation of the C oromandel range . In some places these veins

stand up like a wall on the summit of the ran ge to a height of

eight or ten feet . The clay-slate rock itself is exposed only at the

bottom of deep gorges which form the channels of the principal

trachytic tuff and breccia, of which the hills surrounding the Har

bour of C oromandel are composed . The well-known C astle

Hill” —which can be seen from A uckland— is a characteristic ex

ample of the Trachytic Breccia formation . The magnetic iron

sand which , in washing, is found w ith the gold, is derived from

the same source as all the magnetic iron-sand of New Z ealand,

n amely,from the decomposition of trachytic rocks . Small veins

of quartz of amorphous character that is , not crystalline , but in the

shape of chalcedony, cornelian agate , and j asper—are found in nu

merous places on the shores of C oromandel . These veins occur

ring in trachytic rocks,are quit e different from the auriferous

quartz veins in the primary formation , - a fact, I think, of much

practical importance to state,to prevent the fruitless search for

gold where gold does not exist . A l l the gold-bearing gravel in

the creeks is derived , as I have already said, not from the veins in

the trachytic breccia, but from the much thicker and crystalline

yeins in the primary rocks . The surface-deposit in those creeks

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1 26 Lecture on the G eology of [No . 9, N E W S E RIE S .

the true back bone of the Northern Island—w ith peaks from 6000

to 7000 feet, is entirely unknown . (% I n this range the P la tonic

and Metamorphic rocks , yet unknown in the Northern Island, may

perhaps be found

Nearly all the primary range s are covered with dense virgin for

ests, which render them extremely diffi cult of access . It must be

left to the labour and enterprise of future years to discover and

develop the mineral riches , the existence of which appears to be

probable,n ot only from the geological characteristics of the coun

try,but also from some few specimens of Lead and C opper ore that

have from time to time been picked up by the Natives .

It is remarkable that, while on e of the oldest members of the

Primary formation is found so extensively in New Z ealand, the

later strata,as the Devonian, C arboniferous , and Permian system .

appear to be altogether wanting -while on the other hand in the

neighbouring C ontinent of A ustralia these members of the Pri

mary period,together w ith plutonic and metamorphic rocks, eon

stitute, so far as we know , almost the principal part of the c onti~

nent .

1 1 .—SE CONDA RY FORMA TI ON .

A very w ide interval occurs between the primary rocks of the

Northern Island and the next sedimentary strata that I met with .

Not only the upper members of the primary series are absent, but

also nearly the whole of the secondary formations . The only in

stance of secondary strata that I have met w ith , consist of very re

gular and highly inclined beds of marl alternating w ith micaceous

sandstone,extending to a thickness of more than 1 000 feet

which I first saw on the South head of the Waikato , and afterwards met w ith on the Western shore of Kawhia harbour .

These rocks possess great interest from the fact that they con

tain remarkable spe cimens of marine fossils, which belong exclu

sively to the secondary period, especially C ephalopods of the

genera A mmonite and B elemn ite,several Species of B elemnite, al l

belonging to the family of the C anaticulati. These are the first

Specimens of those genera which have been discovered in the re

gions of A ustralasia . Both fossils have been known fo r centuries

by our ancestors in the O ldWorld—the A mmonite as the horn of

A PRIL—SE PT . the Province qf A uckland. 127

Jupiter A mmon , and B elemnite as the bolts of the G od of Thun

der . The latter, though new first seen in the A ntipodes by Euro

peans,have long been known to the Natives of Kawhia by a much

less dignified name,— the old warrior-chief, Nuitone te P akaru

,

having told me that the stones I prized so much and collected so

greedily,are nothing more than roke-kanae

,

’which means the

excrement of the fish commonly known amongst the settlers by

the n ame of mullot . ’ In reality, the Belemnite belongs to a

creature , long since extinct, which was allied to the n ow living

cuttle-fi sh .

Secondary rocks may probably be found 1n some other parts of

the West C oast, and occur , as 1 have been kindly informed by the

Rev . A . G . Purchas , in the Harbour ofHokianga—but every where

of limited superficial extent .

I I I .-TE RTIA RY FORMA TI ON S .

I proceed n ow to speak of theTertiary period,strata of which ,

of very various characters , occupy a large portion of the Northern

Island . The various tertiary strata are found for the most part

in a horizontal position—a remarkable fact, from which we may

conclude that even the numerous volcanic e ruptions which took

place during and after the period of their deposition, had not

power enough to dislocate the whole system, but merely to

produce local disturbances .

The tertiary period must be divided into two distinct formations ,which may perhaps correspond to the European E ocene and M io

cene. There is an older formation which is found principally on

the West C oast, and in the interior, on both sides of the primary

ranges,and a newer one which may be called the A uckland T er

tiary Formation .

You w ill probably be interested to have some more minute des

cription of the different strata o f the older of these formations,as

to this belong the B rown C oal seams, to the discovery of which I

am indebted for the opportunity of investigating the Geology of

this Province,and on the intelligent working of which I believe

very much'

of the future welfare of this Province depends .

The B rown-C oal Formation is of very considerable extent both

1 28 Lecture on the G eology of [No . 9, N E W S E RI E S .

in the Northern and Middle Islands of New Z ealand,and is of

similar character everywhere .

Some months ago I furn ished a Report on the C oalfield in the

neighbourhood of A uckland, in the Drury and Hunua districts,

(f of which I w ill repeat here the principal points . The Drury

coal belongs to a very good sort of brown coal— to the so'

-called

G lan z kohle, w ith conchoidal fracture . I was not able to convince

myself of the existence of different series of seams, o ne above the

other on different levels . I am much rather of opinion that the

same seam , disturbed in its level , occurs at the different localities

in the Drury and Hunua district, where coal is found . The aver

age thickness of that coal seam may be estimated to amount to

six feet . The section of the seam at Mr . Fal lwel l ’s farm can be

taken as a fair average .

The seam consists there of three portions ; the upper part a

laminated coal of inferior quali ty, on e foot ; then a band of shale ,tw o inches ; the middle part coal of a good quality, on e and a

half feet ; then a band of bituminous shale , six inches the l ow

est part coal of the best quality I have seen , two and a half feet .

Thus the whole thickness of the coal itself may be considered to

amount to about five feet . The bituminous shale accompanying

the coal contains fossil plants , principally leaves of D ico tyledones.

It is remarkable that no fossil ferns are found in connection w ith

the Drury coal beds it is the more so , as at the other locality

which I must mention—ou the West C oast, seven miles from

Waikato Heads— on ly fossil ferns , in a most beautiful state of

preservation,are imbedded in grey argillaceous strata , alternatin g

with sandstone and small coal seams of, probably, the same geo~

logical age as the Drury coal . A considerable number of speci

mens from both localities w ill, by a future examination , furnish

the opportunity for determining the principal features of the Flora

of the B rown C oal period in New Z ealand.

The fossil gum found in the coal is a kind of Retinite ,” de

rived from' a coniferous tree,perhaps related to the Kauri,

‘

but it

is by no means identical w ith the Kauri Gum, which is only found

in the surface soil in those localities where there have a kauri

forests . The fossil gum and gauri gum are very different in =their

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1 30 Lecture on the G eology of [No . 9, N E W S E RIE S .

T he localities in which coal has been discovered are the follow

ing -in the H ohin ipanga range , west of Karakariki on the Wai

pa near Mohoanui and Waitaiheke, in the Hauturu range on the

upper branches of the Waipa ; and agaIn in the Whawharua andParepare ranges on the Northern side of R angitoto-mountains .

T H E N E W Z E A LA ND BROWN COA L .

(E T he follow ing are the results of several analysis of specimens

of the D rury B rown C oal , sent to England some months ago by

Mr. Turnbul l . The analysis have been forwarded to me by Mr.

Farmer .

Laboratory,Museum of Practical Geology,

Jermyn-st . , London, A pril 1 3 , 1 859.

Sir, -I have completed the analysis of the coal (lignite) which

you left at the Museum , and herewith furnish you w ith the results

of the examination .

I am,Sir,Your’ s obediently

,

C HA S . TOOKE Y .

B rown, Esq .

cen tage composition of Lignite, from

H Ydrogen o o o o o o o o o o o o o o 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0

The amount o f sulphur is small,and this w ill be a point for

favourable consideration in the application of the coal for smelting

purposes . The whole of the water is expelled at a temperature

of 1 20° centigrade .

A P R I L w —S E PT . the Province of A uckland.

Dundee G as Works,March 1 7, 1 859.

A nalysis of A uckland C oa l .

Produce of gas per ton of coal carbonized , cubic feet.

Illuminating pow er of gas , 1 7 5 .

Durability,length of time that a 4-inch j et requires to consume

a cubic foot of gas , 5 3 minutes .

Specific gravity, 495 .

Produce of coke per ton, carbonized , 9&cwt .

(Signed) JOHN Z . KA Y ,

Engineer Gas C ompany.

Gas W orks , Berwick , March 1 2 , 1 859.

NE W ZE A LA ND C OA L .

G as, in eubie feet, per ton of coal , 76 1 7 .

C oke , per ton of coal , in lbs . , 1 1 5 5 .

Tar and ammoniacal liquor , per ton of coal,in lbs .

,5 71 .

Value of gas , per ton of coal , in lbs . of sperm, 3 84 .

One cubic foot of gas, burned in a No . 2 fi shtail burner (or

union set), equal sperm candles ,Value of one cubic foot of gas , in grains of sperm,

C oke , trable, retains the granular structure of the coal dis

integrates when exposed to air during combustion gives out little

heat ; and leaves a large mass of stone coloured ash specific gra

vity, 1°47 l .

C ombustible matterC omposition . Silica and-alumina .

Protoxide of iron .

100 '

T his coal is well adapted for the purpose of gas manufacture

the quantity produced is not large , but you w ill observe of a high

quality,approaching several of the Scotch cannels in illuminating

power .

The coke is of very inferior quality for heating purposes ; but

the quantity of iron share found in it is so great that it may pos

sibly turn out to be a product of value .

JA M E S PA TT E RS ON ,

C ivil E ngineer .

1 32 Lecture on the G eo logy of [No 9, N E W S E RI E S .

I subj oin comparative average analysis of the three prmcrpal

kinds o f fuel , from which it may be seen that the Drury C oal is

precisely similar to the European brown coals in the proportion of

its three principal con stituents

WoodBrown Black C oalC oal . and A nthracite .

C arbon 5 1 4 to 52 6 5 5 to 76 73 to 96 5 1O xygen . 43 42 26 19 23 3

Hydrogen . 6 5 5 5 5

I embrace h ere the opportunity of saying a few w ords on the

commercial value and app licability of the New Z ealand B rown

C oal .

A lthough of entirely different character,and, g enerally speak

ing, of inferior value , to the older coals of the Primary formations ,

I cannot see any reason why this k ind of coal should not be used

in New Z ealand for the same purposes , as a similar brown coal is

extensively applied to in various parts of Europe , and particularly

in Germany, where it supplies the fuel for manufactures of all

kinds,for locomotives and steamers , and“for domestic purposes . I

am perfectly familiar w ith this kind of coal, and can assure the

people of A uckland, that the brown coal of this country is quite

as good as that which is used in Germany for the purposes I. have

just mentioned . I w ould strongly recommend that any C ompany

which may be formed for the purpose of w orking the coal should

also at the same time establish Po tteries for the manufacture o f

earthenware . Remarkably suitable C lays of every necessary va

riety have been shown to exist in the immediate neighbourhood

of the coal-fi elds, by the borings which have been made by the

Provincial Government at my request .96 By the establishment of

T he follow in g are the results of two borings made in the flats between Drury H otel and the Drury Ranges, under the direction of Mr .Ninn is, to whom I amindebted for the tables subjoined.

B OR I NG No . I .

Dark soil .P lastic clay, yellow and blue .Gravel and pebbles .Yellow clayG rey clay .

Blue clay .

A renaceous clay .

Grey clay .

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1 34 Lecture on the G eo logy of [NO . 9, N E W S E RIE S .

grains,which give these clay marls a similarity to the Gault and

Green sands of the C retaceous formation in Europe . They are

found on the Eastern branches ofWhaingaro , A otea, and Kawhia

harbours .

Of greater interest and importance are the calcareous strata, con

sisting of tabular limestone, sometimes of a conglomerate nature ,sometimes more crystalline , the whole mass of which is formed of

fragments of shells , corals , and foramin i-ferae, interspersed w ith

perfect specimens of terebratulae, oysters and pectens , and other

shells . This limestone , when burnt, makes excellent lime , and

may be w rought and polished for architectural purpose s .

The Beds of Limestone w orked by Messrs . Smith and C OOper,in the Wairoa district, belong to this formation, as do also the rich

fossiliferous strata from the Waikato Heads towards Kawhia Har

bour .

Picturesque columnar rocks of the same nature,looking almost

as if they w ere artificially built of tabular blocks,adorn the eh

trance toWhaingaroa Harbour and the romantic limestone scenery,and the fine C aves of the Rakaunui river—a branch of Kawhia

Harbour- are deservedly prized by the settlers ofKawhia Harbour .

The Limestone Formation attains its greatest thickness (from

400 to 500 feet) in the Upper Waip a and M okau district, between

the R angitoto ran ge and the W est C oast . It has in this country

many remarkable features .

No on e can enter w ithout admiration the Stalactite C aves o f

T ana-uri—uri at Hangatiki and of Parianewanewa near the sources

of the Waipa— the former haunts o f the gigantic M oa .

I went into those caves in the hope of meeting with a rich harvest of Moa skeletons , but I was sadly disappointed . Those who

had been before me in the days of Moa enthusiasm having carried

off every vestige of a bone . Great, however, was my labour, andnot little to my satisfaction

,in dragging out the head-less and

leg-less skeleton of a Moa from beneath the dust and filth of an

o l d raupo hut l—The Maories,seeing the greediness w ith which

the“p akehas” hunted after o ld Moa bones , have long since carefully collected all they could find

,and deposited them in some

safe hiding place—waiting for the opportunity of exchanging them

A PRIL—S E PT . the Province of A uckland. 1 35

for pieces of gold and silver, showing thus how w ell they have

learnt the lesson taught them by the example of the pakeha .

”

The subterranean passages of the rivers in the P ehiop e and

Mairoa district are highly characteristic of the limestone forma

tion . The limestone rocks , fi ssured and channeled , are pen etrat

ed by the water, and the streams run below the limestone upon

the surface of the argillaceous strata, which I have befo re ment ioned as underlying the limestone . This also explains the scar

city of water on the limestone plateau which divides the source s

of the Waipa and Mokau rivers . The plateau is covered w ith a

splendid growth of grass , and w ould form an excellent cattle run

but for the deep funnel-shaped ho les which everywhere abound .

The Natives call them tomo . They are similar to the holes

which occur in the limestone downs in England , and on the Karst

mountain on the shore of the A driatic Gulf, where they are called

do lines.

”

The third and uppermost stratum of the older tertiary formation

consists of beds of fine fossiliferous sandstone, in which quarrie s of

good building stone may be found . There are whole ranges paral

lel to the primary mountains which seem to consist of this sand~

tone . I w ill mention only the T apui-wahine range , about 2000 feetabove the level o f the sea, in which is the pass from the Mokau to

the Whanganui country .

W ithout a map on a large scale , which I have had n o time to prepare

,it w ould be useless to enter more minutely n ow into a des

cription of the various localities in which the differen t formations

occur . I may, how ever , mention that limestone and brown coalhave been found in places to the North of A uckland

,in the dis

tricts from C ape Rodney to the North C ape .

The horizontal beds of sandstone and marls which form the cliffs

of the Waitemata, and extend in a Northerly direction towards

Kawau,belong to a new er tertiary formation , and, instead of coal

,

have only thin layers of lignite . A characteristic feature of this

A uckland tertiary formation is the existence of beds of volcanic

ashes, which are here and there in terstratifi ed w ith the ordinary

tertiary layers .

I must say no more on the tertiary sedimentary formations , in

13 6 Lecture on the G eology of [No . 9, N E W S E RI E S .

order that I may leave some time to devote to the volcan ic forma

tions which, from their great extent and t he remarkable and beantiful phaenomena connected w ith them

,render the Northern Island

of New Zealand, and especially the Province of A uckland, on e of

the most interesting parts of the w orld .

V OLCA NI C FORMA TI ON S A N D PHE NOME NA .

Lofty trachytic peaks covered w ith perpetual snow ,a vast num

ber of smaller volcanic cones presenting all the varied characteris

tics of volcanic systems , and a long line of boiling springs , fuma

roles , and solfataras , present an almost unbounded field of interest

and, at the same time , a succession of magnificent scenery .

It is only through a long series of volcanic eruptions,extending

over the tertiary and post tertiary periods,that the Northern Is

land has attained its present form . It w ould be a di i cul t task to

point out the ancient form of the antipodean A rchipelago,the site

of which is n ow occupied by the Islands of New Zealand . I must

confine myself to a S imple indication of the events which have

given this country the form it was found to have by the South

Sea Islanders.

on their arrival,many centuries ago

,from the S a

moan group,—a form in all main respe cts the same as is n ow be

fore our eyes .

The first volcanic eruptions w ere submarine, consisting of vast

quantities of trachytic lava, breccia, tuff, obsidian, and pumice

stone, which , flow ing over the bottom of the sea, formed an

extensive submarine volcanic plateau . The volcanic act ion

continuing,the whole mass was upheaved above the level

of the sea,and n ew phaenomena were developed . The eruptions

going on in the air instead of under the sea, lofty cones of trachytic

and phon o l ithic lava, o f ashes and cinders , w ere gradually formed .

These eruptions,breaking through the original submarine layers

of trachytic lava , breccia and tuff, raised them , and left them , as

w e n ow find them , forming a more or less regular belt round the

central cones , and having a S light inclination from the centre outw ards . These belts I Shall have occasion to refer tounder the sameof tufl-craters, or cones of tuf s,

” or craters of eleva tion .

” In the

course of time the volcanic action decreased,and we must now

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1 38 Lecture on the G eology of [No . 9, NE W S E RIE S .

met with the following interesting account of an ascent of the

highest cone'

of eruption by Mr . H . Dyson, which was commun icat

ed~to theNew Z ealander by A . S Thomson,M . D

Mr. Dyson’s A ccoun t of his A scen t of T ongariro .

In the month Of March , 1 85 1 , a little before sunrise I commenccdmy ascent alone , from the north-Western side of the R otoairelake . I crossed the plain and ascended the space to the North

ward of the Whanganui river . Here I got into a valley coveredw ith large blocks of scoriae, which made my progress very difficult .A t the bottom of the valley, runs the Whan ganui river . A fter

crossing the river, which at this place was then not more than a

yard broad, I had to ascend the other side of the valley, which ,from the unequal nature of the ground , was very tedious , and I

kept onwards as straight as I could for the top of the mountain . A t

last I came to the base Of the cone , around which there were large

blocks Of scoria which had evidently been vomited out of the crater,

and had rolled down the cone . The most formidable part of my

j ourney lay yet before me , namely the ascent Of the cone , and it

appeared to me from the position where I stood that it composed

nearly on e-fourth of the total height Of the mountain . I cannot

Say at what angle the cone lies , but I had to craw l up a consider

able portion of it on my hands and feet, and as it is covered w ith

loose cinders and ashes , I Often slid down again several feet .

There was no snow on the cone or the mountain,unless in some

crevice s to which the sun’ s rays did not penetrate . There was n o t

on the cone any vegetation, not even the long w iry grass which

grow s in scanty patches up to the very base of the cone . The as

cent of the cOn e took me , I should think , four hours at least but

as I had no watch , it is possible from the laborious occupation I

was at, that the ascent Of the cone looked longer than it was.

But whether it was three hours or four that I was clambering up

the cone , I recollect I hailed w ith delight the mouth of the great

chimney up which I had been toiling . The sun had just begun

to dip,and I thought it might be about 1 p . m. , so that I had

ascended the mountain from the R otoaire lake in about eight

hours . Imust confess as I had scarcely any food w ith me that I

kept pushing on at a good pacei On the top Of Tongariro I ex

l P R I L—S E PT .‘ the P rovinceof A uckland. 1 39

pected to behold a magnificent prospect, but the day was n ow

cloudy and I could see no distance . The crater is nearly circular,

and from afterwards measuring w ith the . eye a piece of ground

about the same size,I should think

'

it w as six hundred yards in

diameter . The lip of the crater w as sharp outside there w as

almost nothing but loose cinders and ashes ; ins ide of the crater

there were large overhanging rocks Of a pale yellow colour, evi

den tly produced by the sublimation Of sulphur . The lip of the

crater is n o t of equal height all round , . but I think I could have

walked round it . The southern side is the highest, and the north

ern, where I stood, the low est . There was no possible way of

descending the crater . I stretched out my neck and looked down

the fearful abyss which lay gaping before me,but my sight was

obstructed by large clouds of steam or vapour, and I don’t think I

saw thirty feet down . I dropped into the crater several large

stones , and it made me shudder to hear some Of them rebounding

as I supposed from rock to rock , —Of some of the stones thrown in

I heard nothing . There w as a low murmuring sound during the

whole time I was at the top , such as you hear at the boiling

springs at R otomahana and Taupo , and which is not unlike the

n oise heard in a steam engine room when the engine is at w ork .

There was no eruption of w ater or ashes during the time I was

there , n or w as there any appearance that there had been on e late

ly. I saw n o lava which had a recent appearance n o twithstand

ing all this , I did not feel comfortable where I sto od in case of an

eruption . The air was not cold— the ascent had made me ho tbut I had time to cool, for I remained at the crater nearly an hour .A t about 2 p . m. , I commenced my descent by the same way that

I ascended . A fog or cloud passed over where I was, and caused

me to lose my way for a short time . When descending I saw between Tongariro and R uapahu a lake about a mile in diameter . I

could see no stream flow ing out of it on its w estern side . A n ex

tinct crater may also be seen near the base of Tongariro . It was

almost dark before I reached the Whanganui river, and , althoughin strong condition and a good w alker

,I felt completely done up

,

and I fell asleep in a dry . water-course . T he night was cold,but

I sl ept soundly until daylight, when I immediately rose and con

1 40 Lecture on the G eology of [No . 9, NE W S E R I E S .

tinned my des cent , and at 1 0 a . m. , I reached my residence at R o

toaire, w ith the shoes almost torn off my feet .

A s far as I can learn , Mr . Dyson, in 1 85 1 , and Mr . Bidwell, in1 839, are the only Europeans who have ascended the highest

cone of Tongariro .

The difficulty of ascending Tongariro is still the same as when

Dr . Thomson published the foregoing account . It does,

” as he

says ,

Not entirely arise from its height, or the roughness of the

scoriae , but from the hostility of the Natives , who have made the

mountain tapu,

”or sacred , by calling it the backbone and head

of their great ancestor . A l l travellers who have asked permission

of the Natives to ascend Tongariro , have met w ith indirect re

fusals. The only way to get over this difficulty is , to asc end the

mountain unknown to the Natives of the place,

“or even your own

Natives . Mr . Dyson did this , but his ascent was discovered by a

curious accident . During his progress up the mountain he took

for a time the little frequented path which leads along the base of

Tongariro to Whanganui. A Native returning from that place

observed his foot-marks , and knew them to be those of a Euro

pean . A s he saw where the footsteps left the path , he , on his

arrival at R otoaire, proclaimed that a European was n ow wander

ing about alone on the sacred mountain Of Tongariro . The Na

tiy es immediately suspected it was Mr . Dyson , and they w ent t ohis house

,waited his return, and took several things from him .

He was n ow a suspected man , and his conduct was w atched .

The sec ond active crater of the Tongariro system, at the top of

a low er cone North of Ngauruhoe, is called Ketetahi. A ccording

to the Natives the first eruption Of this crater took place simul ta

n eously w ith the Wellington earthquake of 1 854 . From Taupo

l ake I saw large and dense volumes of steam, larger than those

fromNgauruhoe, emerging from the Ketetahi crater . The third

active point on the Tongariro system is a great Solfatara on the

n orth-western slope of the range . The hot sulphurous springs of

that sol fat-ara are Often visited by the Natives on account of the

relief they experience in'

respect to their cutaneous diseasesfi ‘)

A grand impression ismade upon the traveller by those two

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”

1 42 Lecture on the G eoloyy‘

qf (No . 9, N EW S E RI E S .

to Karpara . Thi s extensive plateau is intersected by many d eep

valleys,the sides Of which are characterised by a succession of

remarkable terraces . The same plateau is also broken in many

places by more or less regular ' trachytic cones from 1 000 to 3000

feet high . That you may become acquainted w ith the geological

character of such mountains , I will mention several examples , the

names Of which are '

w ell known'

amongst European settlers . To

this c lass of mountains belong Karioi on the West C oast,near

Whain garoa, Pirongia on the Waipa, the regular cone of [ fake

puku between the Waipa and Waikato , M aunyatautari ou —the

Waikato , A roha on the Waihou, Putauaki or Mount Edgecombe

on the East C oast, and many others . The only active mountain

which belongs to this class is Whakari or White Island,in the

B ay of Plenty,a solfatara like the active crater of Tongariro .

(atMr. David Burn , in his account of A Trip to the East

C ape ,” says

In about an hour after passing Flat Island,the snowy vapour

upon White Island began to be discernible . B y 1 p . m . we w ere

I n Immediate contiguity w ith this remarkable island , passing quite

close to its southern extremity. A s we made our gradual ap

proach, itsaspect wasof the most singular description . Except

on its northern point, to which the sulphurous vapour does not

seem to reach,it is utterly destitute of vegetation ; there are

patches of growing underwood but in every other direction, the

islan d is bald,bleak

,and furrowed into countless deep-worn ra

vines . A fter w e had passed it a short distance to the eastward,the capacious basin of the crater, w ith its numerous geysers roar

ing and raging,exposed its sulphurous bosom to our

‘ eyes and

nostrils . . I f the outer and w estern sides ofWhite Island be blank

and furrowed, its inner circle is chased , as it w ere , in a rare and

picturesque manner,—the sides of the bil l s, from their lofty moun

tain summits to the base,being combed into innumerable longitu

dinal ridges of a florescen t bronze of brilliant and variegated hue .

”

Of this island , C aptain Drury, of H . M . S . Pandora,”gives

the follow ing description in the New Z ealand Pilot z”

White Island , orWhakari, is about three miles in circumfer

ence , and 860 feet'

high . The basc ot the crater is on e and a half

A PRIL—S E PT . the Province g" A uckland. 142

miles in circuit,and level with the sea. In the centre is a boiling

spring about 1 00 yards in circumference , sending volumes of steam

full 2000 feet high in calm . w eather . A round the edges of the

crater are numberless smaller geysers sounding like so many high

pressure engine s,and emitting steam w ith such velocity, that a

stone thrown into the vortex w ould immediately be shot in the arr.

Here and there are lakes of sulphurous w ater, dormant ; but

the whole island is so heated as to make it difli cul t to walk . From

the edges of the crater the scene below is only to,

be compared to

a well dressed meadow of gorgeous green , w ith meandering streams

feeding the boiling cauldron ; but on approaching , we find this

green to be the purest crystallised sulphur .

NO animal or insect breathes on this island , scarcely a limpet

on the stones , and 200 fathoms w ill hardly reach the bottom w ith

in half a mile of its Shores . ’

Being under the lee of the island and in smooth w ater, C aptain Bowden, in the most obliging manner, hove the steamer to ,and

,lowering on e of the quarter boats , conveyed us on Shore to

enj oy a personal inspection Of this grand natural curiosity . There

are two Spots at which a landing may be effected, at the openings

of the outer base of the crater by a very little exertion in clear

ing away some of the boulders , the landing may be rendered per

fectly eaSy but although, this day , the water was smooth , still there

was such a swell that judgment and caution w ere requisite to

pick out a spot wherelbest to escape the rollers that tumbled on

the rough and broken beach .

”

Never Shall w e forget the grand displays which we beheld in

this sulphurous cauldron . Its paintings fresh from Nature ’ s hand— its lake of gorgeous green— its roaring j ets of stormy vapour

are things to be w itnessed , difficult to be described ; but surpassing

all these,and as if their central attraction , there was a fountain ,

seemingly of molten sulphur in active play, which shot a column of

w ide spreading green and gold into the scorching atmosphere . The

beauty Of this fountain was surpassing,and we w ere under the

impression , that from its energy, the volcano was more than com

mon ly active in its workings . We w ere very circumspect in our

approaches, as the surface in places was soft and yielding, and we

1 44 Lecture on the G eology of [No . 9, N E W S E RI E S .

knew not to what brimstone depths an unwary step might sink us .

Our difficulty in walking , therefore , aro se less from the heat ,though that in places was great, than from the apprehension of

S inking too far in the soft crustaceous surface , from which diminu

tive spouts of vapour w ould spit forth as if to resent our intrusion .

Whenever w e thought the ground at all doubtful, we sounde d our

w ay by hurling large stones to see what impression they would

make,and we adventured or avoided proceeding accordingly .

Time,to our great regret, would not admit of a minute explora

tion,but all the grand features of the island had passed under

view . We looked in vain for the gorgeous meadow described by

C aptain Drury but we had only to enlarge any of the numberless

miniature vapour holes to Obtain pure crystallised sulphur ho tfrom

the bakery, and at the same time to convert these holes into more

active vapour j ets . The streams that issued in vari ous directions

w ere of boiling heat, limped and tasteless ; but though sulphur

was everywhere strewn around, it did not appear to be in quantitie s

sufficient for shipment . A fter an hour’ s stop , we returned to our

ship greatly delighted w ith the visit, and much indebted to our

obliging C aptain for having put it in our pow er to enj oy it .

Mr . Heaphy has kindly furnished me w ith a map and views of

this singularly interesting islandfi t)If wetake a w ider view of the geological features and the physica l

outline of these just described high plains and plateaus consisting

of regular layers of trachytic rocks , breccia, and tufl'

, we shall find‘ that the steep cones of R uapahu and Tongariro rise from the

centre of a vast tufl'

cone of extremely gradual inclination , the

basis of which occupies the whole country from shore to shore

from East to West—having a diameter of 1 00 sea miles , and form

ing the largest cone of tuj‘

e, or in other words , the largest cra ter of

elevation in the whole w orld .

T he H o t Sp rings.

Intimately conn ected w ith the described volcani c phaenomena of

the active and extinct volcanic mountains,are the S olfataras, Fu

maro les, and H o t Springs . They are found in a long serie s stretching across the country in a N . N . E . direction, from the active

crater Ngauruhoe in the Tongariro system , to“the active crater of

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1 46 Lecture on the G eo logy of [NO . 9, N E W S E RI E S .

5 . A bout twenty-fi ve miles below the outlet of the Waikatofrom Taupo

,at the pa’ Orakei-korako , both banks of the rapidly

flowing river are perforated, in more than a hundred different

places,by fumaroles and boiling springs , most of which are of the

intermittent kind ; and siliceous incrustations of beautiful colours

decorate the banks of the river . T emimi—a-H omait‘

erangF—the

principal geyser- throw s up ~its ~large column Of' bo iling; water at

intervals Of about two hours to a theight from 20 to 30 feet . A n

immense volume Of steam succeeds the jet; and the water thensuddenly sinks into the basin

6 : A t Orakei-korako the line Of ho t springs crosses theWai

kato, and continues along the foot of. the very remarkable P airoa

range on the Easterly side of the Waikato . The almost perpeni

dicularW estern side of this range is caused by an immense fault’

in the volcanic plateau , corresponding to a deep fissure im the

earth-crust,from which sulphureous acid , sulphuretted hydro gen ,

sulphur and steam,are continually escaping , while huge: bubble s

Of boil ing ashe-coloured mud are“rising on the surface .

7 . From the S ame range, the Warm-wat er river Waikite takes

it s origin . On both sides are deep pools of boiling water, on the

margins of Which -we discovered most beautiful ferns , hitherto um

known , One species belonging to'

the genus"

Nephro‘

lep is, the other

to the genus"

G oneop teris. Thes‘

e ferns are remarkable not onlyfo r their elegance , but also from the peculiar circumstances under

which they exist, as they are always surrounded by an atmosphere

of steam.

"

8 ; We n ow come to the Well-known R O T OM A H A N A ,the most

w onderful of all the wonders of the Hot Springs distric t of New

Zealand . I w ill not attempt to describe in a hasty lecture like this

the beauties of this Faery-land . Whoever has once had the happiness to look into the blue eyes of Otukapuarangi and T e T ara tacan never forget their charms and whoever has stood beside the

boiling surf Of the Ngahapu basrn w ill always retain a vivid im

pression of its terrors . The terraces Of siliceous deposit on the

shores of R o tomahan a are unequalled in the world , n or is there any

thing that even bears any resemblance to them .

9. On the R otorua lake the intermittent boiling springs of Wha~

. LP B I L—S E PT . the P rovince of A uckland. 1 47

ka-rewarewaa re the most interesting . Waikite, the principal“nga

wha,” issues from the top Of a siliceous cone some 20 feet high

,

and is surrounded by several smaller geysers , boiling mud-pools ,and solfataras . A t intervals of considerable length , sometimes

extendin g to many months , all these ngawhas’ begin to play toge

ther and form a scene which must be most w onderful and beautiful .

The hot springs Of Ohinemutu form agreeable bathi ng-places,

the fame Of which is already established .

1 0 . The last in the line are the great solfataras on the pumice

stone plateau between Rotorua and Rotoiti— such as T ikitere and

R uahin e.

I w ill n ow say a few words in explanation of these phaenomena .

A l l the w aters of the Springs are derived from atmospheric

moisture, which , falling on the high volcanic plateau , permeates

the surface and sinks into fissures . Taupo— the axis Of which

corresponds w ith the line of the H o t Springs—may also be cousi

dered as a vast reservoir, from which the lower springs are sup

plied .

‘

The water, sinking into the fissures , becomes heated by

the still-existing volcanic fires . High-pressure steam is thus ge

nerated, which , together w ith the volcanic gases , decompose the

trachytic rocks . The soluble substances are thus removed by the

w ater, which is forced up , by the expansive force Of the steam and

by hydrostatic pressure , in the shape o f boiling springs . The in

soluble substances form a residuum of white or red fumarole clay,

Of which the hil ls at T erapa .round R o tomahan a and the Pairoa

consist .

A l l . the .New Z ealand hot springs , like those, of Iceland , abound

in Silica , and are to be divided into two distinct classes—the ‘

on e

alkal ine, and the o ther acid. T O the latter belong the i solfataras

characterised by deposits of sulphur, and never forming intermi t~tent fountains .

'

A l l the intermittent sprin gs belong to t he a lka

l ine class , in which are a lso included the most of the ordinary

boiling springs . Sulphurets of S odium and“P otassium, and‘

C ar

bonates Of Potasha n d Soda, tare the solven ts 'of the Silica, which ,on the deposited in such

quantities as to f orm a striking characteristi c in athe appearance ‘

Of

these springs.

‘

l 48 Lecture '

en the G eology of (No . 9,

'

N E W S E RI E S .

Here I must leave this interesting subj e ct . .T O‘ enter more

deeply into the theory of these phaenomena w ould be out Of pl ace

here . It may be , however , w ell to mention that numerous facts

prove that the action which gives rise to the ho t springs is slow ly

diminishing .

I must also state my conviction that ere long these ‘ hot springs

w ill be visited by many travellers , not only for the sake of their

beauty and interest, but also for the medicinal virtues they have

been proved to possess . A lready many Europeans have bathed

in, and derived benefit from , the warm w aters at Orakeikorako

and R otomahan a .

I am unw illing to Omit the interesting legend current among

the Native s in reference to the origin of these hot springs . The

legend , as told by Te H euheu, the great chief on the Taupo lake ,is the follow ing

The great C hief Ngatiroirangi, afterhis arrival at Maketu at

the time of the immigration of the Maories from H awaiki, set off

w ith his slave Ngauruhoe to visit the interior, and, in order toObtain a better view of the country, they ascended the highest

peak of Tongariro . Here they suffered severely from cold,and

the C hief shouted to his sisters on Whakari (White Island)to send

him some fire . This they did . They sent on the sacred fire they

brought from H awaiki, by the taniwhas Pupu and T e H aeata ,

through a Subterranean passage to the top ofTongariro . The fire

arrived just in time to save the life of the C hief, but poor Ngauru

hoe w as dead when the C hief turned to give him the fire . On

this account the hole through which the fire made its appearance—the active crater of Tongariro—is called to this day by the nameof the slave Ngauruhoe and the sacred fire still burns w ithin

the whole underground passage along which it was carried from

Whakari to Tongariro .This legend affords a remarkable instance Of the accurate obser

~vation of the Natives, who have thus in dicated the true line Of the

chief volcanic action in this island .

Having n ow described the older and more extensive volcanic

phaenomena of the in terior, I '

proceed to notice the later phaeno

mena of volcanic action in the immediate neighbourhood of A uck

land.

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1 50 Lecture on the G eology of [No . 9, N E W S E RI E S .

tions,tufi

'

cra ters or tufi -con es. The excellence of the soil o f

On ehunga and O tahuhu is ow ing to the abundance Of such,for

mations , decomposed strata Of which form the richest ~S 0 ll that

can be met w ith . It is curious to observe how the shrew der

amongst the settlers , w ithout any geological know ledge,have

picked out these tuff-craters for themselves , while those w ith less

acute pow ers of Observation have quietly sat down upon the cold

tertiary clays .

A fter the submarine formation of the tuff-craters , the volcanic

action continuing,the Isthmus of A uckland was slowly raised

above the sea,and then the more recent eruptions took place by

which the cones Of scoria , like Mount Eden, Mount Wellington ,On e Tree Hill, Mount Smart , Mount A lbert, and R angitoto , w ere

formed, (stand great out-flow ings of lava took place . Many p een

liar circumstances, how ever , prove that those mountains have not

been burning all simultaneously . It can' easily be observed that

some lava streams are of an older date than In general

the scoria cones rise from the centre Of ' the tuff—craters , (Three

Kings,Waitomokia, Pigeon Hill near How ick . ) O ccasionally, as

in the instance Of Mount Wellington, they break through the mar

gin Of the tuff crater .

T he C rater System of M oun t Wel lington is one of the most ih

teresting in this neighbourhood, as beautifully shown by the large

map , which Mr . Heaphy has kindly prepared for me from actual

survey . (! There are craters and cones Of evidently different ages . .

The result Of the earliest submarine eruptions is a tuff-crater . The

Panmure road passes through the turf-crater,and the cutting

through its“brim {exhibits beautifully the characteristic outward

inclination of the beds of ashes , elevated from their former ho rizon ~

tal levels by the eruption s,'

which threw up the ‘

tWO'min or crater

cones south l'

o f t he road—one‘

of which is n ow cut‘in to by a scor ia

quarry . A fter a comparatively long period of quiescence , arose

from‘

tha margin of the fi rst '

crater system'

the f

greatfscoriaacon e of

Mount Wellington, fromwhose three craters 'large streams‘

Of 'ba

sal ticdava'

flowed'out in aWesterly direction, extending‘N orth and

South along the existing valleys of the coun try,~one stream -flow ing

into the ol dtuff-crater, and spreading round the'

bases of the small

er . crater cones . The larger masses Of these streams flowed in

A PRIL -S E PT .the P rovince of A uckland. 1 5 1

a South-westerly direction towards the Manukau , coming into con

tact w ith the older and long-before hardened lava streams Of One

Tree Hill .” The traveller on the Great South Road w ill observe

about one mile east of the Harp Inn” the peculiar difference in the

col our on the road, suddenly changing from red to black , where

the road leaves the . Older and more decomposed lava streams of One

tree Hill and passes on to the new and undecomposed lava streams

of Mount Welling ton . T he farmers have been able to avail them

selves of the decomposed lava surface , which is n ow beautifully

grass covered,but n ot Of the ston efi eld of the newer MountW elling

ton and Mount Smart streams .

T he C aves at the Three Kings , Pukaki, Mount Smart,Mount.

Wellington , &c .,are the result of great bubbles in the lava

streams—occasioned probably by the generation of gases and va

pour as the hot mass rolled onward over marshy plains . These

bubbles broke down on their thinnest part— the roof— and the wayinto the caves is always directly downwardfi t )E xample s Of every gradation may be seen— from the simple tuff

crater w ithout any cone , to those which are entirely filled up by

the scoria cones . Especially interesting are those which m ay be

said to represent the middle state , in which there is a smal l

cone standing like an island in a large tuff~crater, and surrounded

by either water or swamp . Perhaps the most perfect specimens of

this kind occur at O tahuhu and near C aptain H aul tain’

s,a map Of

which , from actualmeasurement, has been prepared byMr .W . Boul

ton . You needn otbe alarmed when I tell you, that even the very spoton which we are assembled is the centre Of an Old tuff-crater

,from

which fiery streams once i ssued , and which has thrown out its

ashes towards the hill on which the barracks stand—I n order to

account for these various shapes,it must be borne in mind that

the cones of scoria where once higher, but on the cessation of

volcanic action they sunk down in cooling , and some entirely

disappeared .

Tha t the A uckland volcanoes w ere , in the true sense of the w ord ,burn in g mountains ,

” is proved not Only by the lava-streams,

which are immense in comparison to the size of the con es, but also

from the pear-shaped volcanic bombs which , ej ected from the

mountain in a fluid state, have received their shape from their ro

1 52 Lecture on the G eology of . [NO . 9, N E W S E RI E S .

tatory motion through the air . That the erup tions Of the A uck

land volcanoes have been of comparatively recent date,is shown

by the fact that the ashes everywhere occupy the surface,and that

the lava-streams have taken the course Of the existing valleys .

(% This is beautifully exemplified by the probably S imultaneous

lava streams of Mount Eden, the Three Kings , and Mount A lbert,

which , flow ing through a contracted valley,meet altogether—ou

the Great North Road— and form one large stream to the shore of

the Waitemata, terminating on the .iVel l-known long reefW est of

the Sentinel R ockfi“) But many thousand years may have passedsince R angito to , which is probably the most recent of the A uck

land volcanoes, was in an active state .

I have been frequently asked whether it is true , as a country

man Of mine who some years ago travelled in New Zeal and is said

to have told the European settlers , that New Zealand is a pleasant

country,but that they had come a thousand years too soon . In

answer to this I have to remark that any on e who know s anything

of geological science must be aware , that a thousand years” is

an almost inappreciable space of time in reference to geological

changes . A nd I w ould rather say, that it w ould have been better

for New Zealand if it had been colonized a thousand years ago , as

there w ould then have been no cause for the discussion Of the

Land Question .

”

I should have much pleasure in saying a great deal more on the

Geology Of New Zealand, but time w ill not permit me . Many

subj ects I have been compelled to omit alt ogether—such as the

Quartary formation in the Drury, Papakura , and Waiuku flats ;the Basaltic Boulder formation ; the A lluvial formations in the

Middle and Lower Waikato B asin, and other places and I have

said nothing of the changes which are n ow going on .

The materials which I have accumulated during my six months’

soj ourn in New Zealand w ill , I expect, require several years of

labour to prepare for publication and,unless the war which n ow

threatens my own country should unhappily interfere to prevent

the completion Of the peaceful scientific undertaking of the Ex

pedition to which I belong , it w ill give me great pleasure to for

w ard to A uckland cop ies of our publicationsrespectingNew Z ea

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1 54 On the R ed C o loring Ma tter of the [NO . 9, N E W S E RIE S .

sides red,spots of white , yellow , green , and brown water have

been seen in different parts of the Globe , but those Of red and

white are most common in the A rabian and Red Seas,and O f

these two the red w ill chiefly occupy us’

here . They are of tran

sitory'

duration ,and so far as the latter or red color is concerned

,

receive explanation frOm what occurs at our own doors , viz . , in

the sea-w ater pools left by the reflux of the tide on the shores of

the Island Of Bombay . A person casually looking at one of these

pools would say that a quantity of vermillion had been'

thrown

into it,but on examining the water under a microscope the ‘ color

is seen to be owing to the presence of red animalcules whose

name is Peridin ium. These are not all red however , for there are

many green ones among them, and the fo rmer are further Observed

to be but a transitional state of the latter . This then is the cause

of the red color,and its sudden appearance and disappearance

may be explained as follows

During the first or active part of the Peridin ium’

s life,its green

color , which depends uponthe presence Of a substance closely al

lied to , if n ot identical with , the chlorophyll of plants , is, w ith the

other in ternal'

con ten ts,translucent

,and

,therefore

,reflects . l ittle

or n o light ; but gradually, as the time approaches for its transi

tion to another state called the motionless,

fixed or protococcus

form, a number of semi-translucent, refractive Oil-globules are se

creted in its interior dire ct or through transition from starch ; the

green color disappears , a bright red takes its place ; this mixes

w ith the Oil, and thus the little animalcule finally becomes visible

to the naked eye, and the whole of that portion Of the sea charged

w ith them,Of course

, of a deep vermillion color . This color, how

ever,only lastsfora few days , for they soon assemble together,

become individually capsuled,and in this state sink to the bottom

in themotionless or‘

pro to coccus form mentioned . Here dupli

cative subdivision takes place in several of the capsules, produc

ihg two or four n ew ones from the Old Peridinium, each of which ,

on their liberation , may again become capsuled and undergo a fur

ther division,

‘ and so o n probably until their formative forc e is expended

,and they thus pass into dissolution or a litter of diplo

sil iatedmonadsmay be developed in their interior, which may be

A PRIL—S E PT . S ea round the S hares of B ombay . 1 5 5

the product of a true act of generation , or the final effort to form

o f the protoplasm, to which I have already called attent ion in

many of the A lgae and Infusoria ; while the remainder of the re d

O il .which is not required for the nourishment of the monads be

comes liberated w ith the latter on the bursting of the capsule dfi dthus dispersed in the w ater . A further consequence Of the fi ssi

paration is the constant shedding of their capsules , which are al

w ays presen t w ith them in great numbers , and so brittle that pres

sure of the thinnest piece Of glass bursts them,and again sets fr ee

the P eridin iumwhen they contain on e.

Thus we s ee that the red color is produced by the formation of

Oil reddened at the expense of the green chlorophyll . The same

proce ss takes place in the little P ro tococcus, which I have heret ofore shown to impart the red color to the salt in th e salt-pans of

Bombay ; and again in a freshwater animal cule closely allied to

Peridin ium, viz .

,E ug lena viridis while a more familiar illustra

tion than any is presented to us by the red color which the leaves

Of some trees assume towards death , viz . ,the passing of the green

chlorophyll and Oil into a yellow , brown, and then red , w axy sub

stance , fr om whence we may also infer that like changes in the

Peridin ium give rise to the prevalence of on e or other of these

tints in the coloration of the sea .

T he specie s .Of P eridin ium, n ow more particularly under our

consideration,I described several years since in its fixed form as)

it was submitted to me) undergoing fi ss1paration (see Dr . Buist’ s

paper on Discolorations Of the Sea,&c .

”Proceedings of the

Bombay Geographical Society,1 85 5 , p . but never having

met w ith it again in its active state , until the 26th Nov . last, my

attention was n o t again drawn to the subj e ct, nor did I until

then know what the animalcule really w as. I shall call it animal

cule,though

,like E uglena, and all this class , it real ly bel ongsmuch

more to the vegetable than the animal kingdom : and believing

the species to have hitherto been unrecognised, its description

under the designation Of sanguineum”

.may stand as followsPeridin iumS anguineum, (nae, — Sub-circular when green , be

coming larger and paraboloidal or kite-shaped when red . C om

pressed , sulcated on one side ; surrounded transversely by,

a deep

1 56 On the R ed C oloring Matter cy"the [No . 9, N E W S E RIE S .

groove , the lower lip of which is minutely ciliated . Furnished

wi th a long, large cilium, having a suctorial extremity, which ex

tends backward from the groove on the sulcated side . B ody lined

w ith granular protoplasm and chlorophyll,in which is a hyaline

vgsicle w ith red eye-spot and a nucleus as in E uglena . C hloro

phyll becoming of a golden yellow , then brown ish , and lastly ver

million red , as the an imalcule passes into the protococcus state .

Pro gression w addling the small end forwards , and the large cilium

floating behind . Length , 5 to 8-5600ths of an inch . Found in

salt-water pools , and in the sea on the shores of the island o f

B ombay .

What then accounts for the red colour in the sea ? Water andsalt in the salt-pans at Bombay may account for the red colorgin the

sea-water of other parts , although the animalcules may not be the

same,viz . , the formation of red oil in their interior . It is interest

ing, however, to find Darwin’ s description of the animalcule , which

he found to color the sea red a degree south of Valparaiso (his .

Journ al” on board H . M . S . Beagle ," p . accord exact ly

w ith that of Peridzbn'

um, as may be seen by comparing ourdescriptions ; while it is not less so to find Salt , (Voyage to A byssinia, p .

stating that the animalcules which produced the red color

in the Red Sea (1 5° N . ) during the day, became luminousand

threw out sparks by agitation after dark because , most o f Ehren

bergs marine Peridinea are phosphorescent . In furthe r con fi rma

tion of which , O lafsen and Povel sen’s statement may be adduced

respecting the red color .of the sea on the shores of Iceland, viz . ,

that in 1 649, in several gulfs the night before , the sea appeared

all on fire and the day following as red asblood . But it is not

n ecessary for me to cite here all the observations in M .

‘

D areste'

s

Memoirs” in favor of the red color of the sea being in many in

stances ow ing to the presence of Pem'

dz'

nea , or the white color, to

the same animalcules . Suffi ce it to state that there are many .

W ith the explanation o f the red color then we have that of the

white , which is only seen at night, and appears to be produced by

pho sphorescence generated in the midst of the oil -globules, be

comin g less and less pow erful,probabl y as the Perdz

'

m’

um becomes

redder andmore nearlyapproaches to the fixed or protococcus form .

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1 5 8 S cien tifi c I n tel l igence. [No . 9, N E W S E RIE S

sage from an eye-witness of similar occurrence at Porebunder on the

coast of Khattywar, where red water is extremely common, viz , the

co lor of the sea-w ater on Saturday evening last, the 27th O ctober

was changed from its usual tint to a deep red,emitting a

foul smell ; the fish speedily w ere all destroyed,and w ere

washed upon the beach in large quan tites &c . &c . (Proceedings”

B ombay, Geograph . Soc . , lo t . cit . ) we cannot help ascribing this,

independently of the conj ecture of the narrator that it might be

ow ing to some sub-marine eruption of mud &c ,” to the proce ss of

oleaginous development and change of color abovementioned insome animalcule

,most probably Peridin ium ; and of realizing , at

the same time,the (to me ) previously incomprehensible Mosaic

account of the plague of Egypt, given in the follow ing verses

and a ll the waters that were in the riverwere turned in to b lood.

A nd the fish that was in the river died ; and the river stank ,and the Egyptians could not drink of the w ater of the river ; and

there was blood throughout all the land of Egypt .” E xodus

C hap . VI I , V3 . 20 and

S C I E NT IFI C INT E LLI G E NC E .

I . I ndex to G eological Pap ers in the Madras J ournal of Literature

and S cien ce. By E . G r. BA LFOUR , E SQ .,S urgeon ,

Madras

A rmy .

Vol . Page .

A rcot Northern Division

A mboor— on the C rystalline Strue

ture of the Trap Dykes

in the Sienite of, by

Lieut . Baird Smith .

C umbacum Droog—on the Table

Land of, by C apt . J . A .

Smith,C ivilEngineer

A PRIL—S E PT . S cien tifi c I n tel ligence.

A rcot Southern D ivisionNotes illustrative of the Geology of

Southern India, by C apt . B . Smith

Pondicherry—ou the Fossiliferous

beds near ; and in the District

of South A rcot .

Do . Further Observations on,

by C . T . Kaye,Esq

B anganapul lay— see C eded Districts .

B asaltic District of India—on the,by Dr . Malcolm

s on

on the Fossils in the East

ern portion of the

great, by Dr . Malcolm

son .

B aypoor near C alicut—on the C arboniferous Strata

of,by Lieut . T . Newbold .

Bombay Islands—Sketch of the G eology of, by Dr .

Thompson .

B urmah— C aptain H ann ay’s R oute from A va to the

A mber Mines of the H fi kong Valley on

the S . E . Frontier of A ssam

C alcutta—A ccount of theW ell-boring operations atC arnatic—Notes illustrative of the Geology of S ou

therh India, by C aptain B . Smith .

C eded Districts—B anganapul lay Jaghire- a glance

at , by C apt . Newbold,B ellary—Notes chiefly G eological

on S outhern I ndia,from

the banks of the Tum

budra to those of the

C auvery by C apt . New

bold, .

B ellary—Notes on the ScoriaceousMounds near, by Dr .

1 59

Vol . Page .

1 3

1 60 S cien tifi c I n tel ligence. [No . 9, N E W S E RI E S .

Vol . Page .C eded Distri cts—B ellary. . Some account, Histo

C uddapah , rical , Statistical andKurnool . Geographical of the

C eded Districts,by

C apt . Newbold .

Kurnool—List ofMinerals presented to the Royal A si

atic Society, by C apt .

Newbold ,Kurnool Province—Ka lwa andMa

hanandi , on

the Thermal

Springs of, by

C aptainNew

bold, .

Kurnool—on the C aves containing

O sseous breccia in the

Limestone Rock at

B illa Sorgum,

S audoor—Description of theVal ley of, by Lieut .New

bold,C eylon—Tin

,Iron ore, C hrome , Nickel, Cobalt andKaolin,

C hromate of Iron—Trade in, by Professor Jameson,C oal and Mineral Resources of India

,Report of a

C ommittee on

C oimbatoor—B eryl Mine of Paddioor in,by Lieut .

Newbold,C oorg— see Mysore

C orundum .

C utch—Geology of, by C apt . Grant,”

C uttle Fish—on the Fossil Remains of,byDr. Buckland, o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o

‘

o o o

B ukhun—oh a portion of, and on the Statistics of, by

0 0 1° 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 o 0 0

Earthquakes l n Southern India, by Dr . B .W .Wright 1

6

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1 62 S cien tifi c I n tel ligence. [No . 9, NE W snmns.

Vol . Page .

India Southern—on the G ranitic formation , and di

rection of the Mountains of,by

C apt . A llardyce ,Kalwa—on the hot Sprin gs of, by C apt . Newbold,Kurnool—See C eded D istricts .Laterite

,or Iron C lay formation of Southern India

,

w ith a description of the Rock as it

occurs at the Red Hills near Madras,.

Laterite formation—on the,by Dr . C larke ,

Madras—Geology of the country betw een Madras

and the Neilgherries, via, Salem and Ban

galore,by Dr . Benza,

Mahan addy— on the hot Springs of, by C aptain

Newbol d

Malabar—A ccount of a C arboniferous Stratum at

B eypoornear C alicut, by C apt . Newbold,A ccount of the Gold Mines in the Pro

vince of,

Malacca— C apt . Newbold’ s Z oological and Botanical

C atalogue of,Tap ir—on the

Malayan Peninsula—Sketch of the,by C apt . Newbold

Mergui— C oal of

Mineralogy—on an error inDr . Thompson’

s,by C apt .

C ampbell

Mysore—Bangalore and other portions of—Geologyof by Dr . C larke ,

Bangalore—Geology of the C ountry be

tween Madras and the Neil

gherry Hills via Salem and

Bangalore,by Dr . Benza,

Bangalore—Geology of, by C apt . C larke ,C oorg— C limate of

List of A nimals presented to the A uxiliary

Royal A siatic Society,by C apt . Newbold ,

A PRIL— S E PT . S cien tifi c I n tel ligence.

Mysore—Notes,chiefly Geological on Southern India,

from the Banks of the T umbudra to the

Banks of the C auvery, by C apt . Newbold ,Notes illustrative of the Geology of S ou

thern India by C apt . Baird Smith ,

Nagpore—see Basaltic District .

Neilgherry and Koondah Mountains— G eology, of by

Dr . Benza,

Neilgherry Hills and Madras , v 1a Bangalore and

Salem,Geology of the C ountry be

tween , by Dr . Benza,on the Geology of the

,by Dr . Turn

bull C hristie ,on Dr . Benza’ s Nomenclature of certain Minerals in the

Nellore , C opper Mines— A nalysis of, by Mr . J .

Prin sep .

Northern C ircars—Notes chiefly Geological during a

tour through the,by Dr . Benza .

on Dr . Benza’

s Nomenclature of

certain Minerals in the

Penn aur—oh the River dunes on the banks of the

H ogri and Pennaur, by Lieut . Newbold .

Pondicherry— see A rcot, Southern Division .

Regar , or black C otton Soil— oh the,by Lieut .

Newbold

Salem—Geology of the C ountry between Madras

and the Neilgherry Hills , via B angalore

and Salem .

Notes illustrative of the G eology of South

ern India

on the Indian Iron and Steel , by Mr . Heath .

District— C apt . C ampbell on the

Southern India—G eology of the country betw een

Madras and the Neilgherry Hills ,via B angalore and Salem

1 63

Vol . Page .

1 64 S cien tifi c I n tel l igence. [No . 9, N E W S E RI E S .

Vol . Page .Southern India—Geological Notes on the country

from the Banks Of the Tumbu

dra to those of the C auvery,by

C apt . Newbold

Hyderabad and Nagpore . .

Neilgherry and Koondah Mountains

Notes illustrative of,by C apt . Baird

Smith

on the Laterite of, by Dr . C ole . .

Plain of Madras

Southern Mahratta C ountry .

Syria—Sinai visit to , by C apt . Newbold

Tabasheer C hemical A nalysis of, by Dr . Thompson .

Tinnevelly,Tuticorin—an attempt to form an A rte

sian Well at .

I I . On an E xtraordinary rise in the Kistna in July 1 859. By

W . KNOX,E so .

,C o l lector of Masulip atam.

(C ommun icated by G overnmen t )

I have the honor to report for the information Of the Board ,that there was an extraordinary fresh of the Kistna towards

the end Of last month .

The river rose from 22 feet 6 inches on the 22d to 28 feet

3 inches on the 25 th and thenc e gradually to 3 7 feet 4 inches on

the 30th July which is on e of the highest freshes on record ex

ceptin g that Of 1 853 , which was 37 feet 1 05 inches . O n the 4th

instant, the fresh subsided to 30 feet 4 inches and is still subsiding .

Two vil lages of the B ez oarah talook ,not far from the town o f

B ez oarah , and lyin g between the river’ s edge and the embankment ,

were surrounded by the freshes, which flowed 3 or 3% feet w ithin

the house s . The men and cattle were all saved in time by the

promp t exertions of the Tahsildar . The country to the south Of

the annicuts was se cure from the floods,in fact

,the ryots in the

Delta scarcely knew that there was a high fresh in the river .

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1 66 Proceedings [No . 9, N E W S E RIE S .

not last more than half an hour, and the only result was some Old

walls being thrown down .

C ondaneed is nearly due West of G un toorfi f‘

where the shock

was felt by myself, I was sleeping in an upper room,and was awoke

by it . T he shock , however, w as not severe , and I had in fact for

gotten all about it , till the first report was received from the Tah

sildars. I regret that I did not make a note of the date,and as I

have not heard of the shock having been felt here by others,I am

unable to supply the w anting information from other sources but

it probably was the morning of the 2 l st Instant .

From such reports as I have received as yet,I infer that the di

rection of the earthquake was North and South .

PR OC E E D ING S .

A t a fi deeting of the M anaging C ommittee of the MA DRA S LITERA RY SOC IE TY

, and A uxiliary of the R oyal A siatic S ociety ,held at the C lub H ouse

,on T hursday , the 1 4th A p ril , 1 859,

a t half past 6 o’clock P . M .

PRE S E NT .

The Hon . Walter Elliot, Esq . , H . Nelson,Esq

.

C ha irman . G . F . Fullerton,Esq .

Major W . T . NVilson . H . F . C leghorn,Esq .

,M . D .

E . Maltby, Esq . W'

. C . Maclean,Esq .

,M . D .

J . T . Wheeler,Esq . W . H uddleston ,

E sq.,S ecretary .

The Secretary laid before the Meeting the usual Monthly State

ment Of the Society’s Funds,prepared up to 1 4th Instant .

Resolved,that the foregoing Statement is satisfactory and b e

passed.

Read letters from the H on’

ble Sir H . Davison , Kt . and Sir P .

Grant , K . C . B . , accepting the Office of Vice-President .

O rdered to be recorded .

Read letter from the Private Secretary to.the Governo r convey

ing Sir C . T revelyan’s acceptance Of the Offi ce Of Patron of the

Society,and Offering from him to the Society a Pali Manuscript .

Latitude 1 6° 1 8 ’ North, Longitude 80° 30

’ East .

A PR I L—S E PT . Proceedings. 1 67

It consists Of 63 double C adjan s inscribed on two sides of each

pair,in the Burmese character, and ornamented w ith Mythological

figures executed w ith the style employed in writing . The Manu

script was Obtained in B urmah , by C olonel Trevor of the Madras

Horse A rtillery and given by him to Sir C harles Trevelyan .

Resolved,that the best thanks of the Meeting be offered to S ir

C harles Trevelyan for his present Of the Manuscript, which the

C ommittee w ill endeavour to have examined w ith a view of as

certain ing the nature Of its contents translated in full , or abstract .

Read letter, communicated by Sir C . Trevelyan,from C aptain

Playfair of the Madras A rtillery, A ssistant to the Political A gent

stationed at A den , forwarding a Phot ograph of an ancient Hebrew

Inscription lately discovered in digging the foundation for the n ew

Barracks at Front Bay, w ith a fair copy, Glo ssary and Translation ,as Obtained from a German J ew on the spot .

The interest turns o n the date of the inscription which appears

to be an epitaph,and according to the translation given and inter

pretation placed on it by C aptain Playfair w ould testify to the

presence of Jewish Residents at that Port some 2000 years ago .

Resolved,that the best thanks of the C ommittee be Offered to

Sir C . Trevelyan for this interesting communication and that mea

sures be taken to Obtain a second and independant reading and

translation of the inscription , and that the letter w ith both copies

of the inscription and such elucidation Of its contents as may beobtained be eventually made over to the Journal Sub-C ommitteefor publication .

The President laid before the Meeting a set Of copper plates re

cording a grant by a local chief of the C hola family amongst Whose

titles occurs that of Lord of Nandadurga.

” This fact is of some

value in a historical point of view as confirming a very generally

asserted statement, but which has Often been doubted, that the

W estern boundary of T ondamandalam extended to Nandidrug .

The fact of a chief Of C hola race being designated by the title of

Lord of that place goes far to establish the accuracy of the ancient

tradition .

The grant differs from all those'

of similar description hitherto

observed in the circumstance Of the edges of the copper plates

1 68 Proceedings. [No . 9, NEW S E RI E S .

being bound w ith a brass edging . T he plates which are six in

number are united by a ring bearing a seal w ith the symbol of a

battle axe accompanied by the sun and moon .

The language is Sanscrit w ith a mixture of Tamil in the Gran

donic character . Unfortunately the only date is that of the C ycleyear . Mr . Elliot is of Opin ion that it may be assigned to

the tw elfth or thirteenth century betw een the decadence of the

C hola and the rise of the B ijan agar dynasty .

Resolved , that the thanks of the C ommittee be Offered to the

Pre sident for this interesting communication .

A t a Meeting of the M anaging C ommittee of the MA DRA S LITERA RY SOC I E TY and A uxiliary of the R oyal A siatic S ociety, held

a t the C lub H ouse on T hursday the 1 2th May 1 8 59, a t half p ast

6 o’

clock P . M .

PR E S E NT .

The Hon . Walter Elliot, Esq . , G . F . Fullerton , Esq .

C hairman . H . Nelson, Esq .

E . Maltby, E sq . J . D . Mayne,Esq .

W . C . Maclean, Esq . , M . D .J

. T . Wheeler, Esq .

H . B . Mon tgomery, Esq ., M . D . W . H udleston , Esq .

, S ecretary .

C aptain G . Win scom,

The Secretary laid before the Meeting the usual Monthly State

ment Of the Society ’ s Funds , prepared up to the 1 2th Instant .Resolved

, that the above S tatement is satisfactory and be passed .

Resolved,that application be made to Government for a further

advance towards defraying the cost of the C asts Of Heads orderedfrom the Messrs . S chl agin tweit , w ith reference to Extract Minutes

of C onsultation, dated 3rdMay 1 859, communicating to the S ociety a letter announcing despatch of a further portion .

Resolved, that the Third Series of A nnals of Natural History be

taken in regularly as issued,and that a Second hand C opy Of the

Second Series at half price be obtained if possible .

Resolved, that a Second hand C opy of Vol . 9, of D eC andOl l és

Prodromus Regni Vegetabil is be ordered .

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1 70 Proceedings. [No . 9, N E W S E R IE S .

A t a Meeting of the Managing C ommittee of the MA DRA S LITER A RY SO CI E TY, and A uxiliary of the R ryal A siatic S ociety ,

held a t the C lub H ouse, on T hursday, the 9th J une 1 859, at

6 o’clock P . M .

PRE S E NT .

The Hon . Walter Elliot, Esq . , J . T . Wheeler, Esq .

C hairman . W . H udleston , Esq .

,S ecretary .

G . F . Fullerton , Esq .

The Secretary laid before the Meeting the usual Monthly State

ment of the Society’ s Funds prepared up to the 9th June 1 8 59.

Resolved , that the above Statement is satisfactory andbe passed .

On the recommendation of the Honorable the President .

Resolved , that Dr . Rous t , Principal of the C ol lege o f S t . A ugus

tine,C anterbury, and Messrs . Hermann and Robert S chlagin

tweit Of Berlin , be elected C orresponding Members of the Soc ie ty .

Mr . Elliot read extract of a le tter fromDr . Jameson , S uperin

tendent of Botanical Gardens at S aharunpore, giving an account

of the progress of the culture O f T ea in the Himalayas . Dr . Jame

son states , that Tea C ultivation in the NorthWes t Provincesand Kohistan of the Punjab is n ow a great fact, and must n ow

proceed w ith vigo rr . as numbers Of Natives have commenced this

cultivation,and in a letter rece ived a few days ago from S ir G .

C lerk , who takes great interest in its"

progress , he states that the

Home G overn '

n en t in tend to give'

it their utmost support, this

season the out-turn w ill be l bs. of tea , and in addition I

have planted upwards o f five millions of seedling plants w i thin

the last 8 mon ths t o private partie s I have also given this seasonupwards of millions o f plants and lbs . of seeds . In a

few years,therefore

,I doubt not that the teas of the N . W . Pro

vince s w il l be exported in vast quantity and form an important

export trade,and ere long become one of the staples of this part

of India .

”

Resolved , that Memoirs of C ochin and Travancore by C olon el Horsley, and a series Of Meteorological Observations taken

at A l lepy by C aptain C rawford , from 23d A pril to 6th May last ,”

communica ted by the Honorable the President, be transferred tothe S ub C ommittee on Papers , toge ther w ith Notes on various

subjects” by Lieut . H . P . Hawkes similarly communicated .

A PRIL—S E PT . Proceedings. 1 71

A t a M eeting of the Managing C ommittee of the MA DRA S LITEB A B Y SOC IE TY , and A uxiliary of the R oyal A siatic S ociety,

held at the C lub H ouse,on T hursday, the 1 4th J uly 1 8 59, at

haif-p ast 6 o’

clock P . M .

PRE S E NT .

The H on . Walter Elliot, Esq . , G . F . Fullerton , Esq .

C hairman . W . H udleston , Esq . ,S ecretary .

Major W . J . Wilson .

The Secretary laid before the Meeting the usual Monthly State

ment Of the Society ’ s Funds prepared up to the 1 4th July 1 8 59.

Resolved,that the above Statement is satisfactory and be passed .

Read letter from Monsieur Haidin ger, Director Of the Imperial

G eological Institute of Vienna .

Resolved, that Monsieur Haidinger be referred to the Secretary’ s

letter of 8th February, 1 858 , from which he w ill observe that the

Numbers of the Journal w ere sent to Dr . H ochstitter on board

the Frigate Novara .

”

Read letter from the Director Of the Society of A rts and Sciencesof B atavia .

Resolved , that a set of the new Series of the Journal be for

w arded to the Batavian Society, and that they be informed that

the Old Series is incomplete and out of print .

The Secretary submit s to the Meeting the follow ing con tribu

tions to the Library presented by Sir C . E . Trevelyan .

A C lassified List of Books in store in the Book Offi ce , E xami

n er’ s Department, East India House .

A C atalogue Of A rabic , Persian and H industany Manuscripts of

the Libraries of the King of Oudh .

Discours de Monsieur G arcin de Tassy,Membre de L’

I n stitute.

Resolved , that the thanks Of the C ommittee be offered to Sir

C . E . Trevelyan .

The Secretary also submitted to the Meeting the follow ing con

tribution s to the Library, pres ented by T . O ldham,Esq .

,Superin

tendent of the Geological Survey of India .

A nnual Report of the Superint endent of the Geological SurveyOf India for 1 85 8-59, volume II . part I . Of their published Memoirs .

1 72 Proceedings. [No . 9, N E W S E RI E S .

Resolved , that the thanks of the C ommittee be offered to Mr .O ldham .

The Honorable Mr . Elliot read extract from letter fromMr. H .

Blanford,Of the Geological Survey , communicating the discovery

Of the Remains of a gigantic Fossil Saurian in the Trichinopoly

District .

These consist Of a tooth and some bones of what appears to be

a Megalosaurus, and judging from their position in the group of

the Trichinopoly cretaceous rocks , the relations of which have not

yet been fully worked out , these remains of that gigantic carn ivo

rous sea lizard appear to be much more recent than any that have

been discovered in Europe , where it does not occur beyond the

W ealden .

A t a M eeting of theM anaging C ommittee of theMA DRA S LITE RA RYSOCI E TY andA uxiliary of the R oyal A siatic S ociety, held at the

C lub H ouse on T hursday, the l 1 th A ugust 1 859, at half p ast 6

o’clock

,P . M .

PRE S E NT .

The H on . Walter E lliot, Esq . , Maj or W . J . W ilson ,C hairman . J . T . Wheeler, Esq .

G . F . Fullerton, Esq . W . H udleston , Esq . S ecretary .

The Secretary laid before the Meeting the usual Monthly State

ment of the Society’ s Funds prepared up to 1 1 th A ugust 1 859.

Resolved, that the above Statement is satisfactory and be passed .

Read Letter fromDr . Mackay, Honorary Secretary of the Neil

gherry Public Library, soliciting public aid, and forwarding a List

of C ontributions .

Resolved, that a set Of the n ew Series of the Journal from the

commencement, and further numbers be regularly forwarded for

the use of the Neilgherry Library, to which the Society w ill render

all the aid in their pow er, and that thisResolution be communicated

to the Honorary Secretary .

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1 74 Proceedings. [No . 9, N E W S E RIE S .

Resolved,that C aptain C rawford’ s Le tter be acknow ledged w ith

the thanks of the Society, and that the Observations be transferred

to the Sub-C ommittee on Papers for publication in the Journal .

PHOTO G RA PHI C SO C I E TY .

A t‘

a Meeting of the PH OTO G RA PHI C SO C I E TY, held at the S chool

of A rts on the 7th A pril 1 859.

PRE S E NT .

C ol . Hamilton , in the C hair . Lieut . Mitchell .

C ol . McC al ly, Lieut . C ole .

W . E . Underwood, Esq . Dr. Scott .

A rrangements w ere made for the approaching Exhibition which

opens on the first Thursday Of next month . The C ouncil take the

present opportunity of reminding up-country Members and otherPhotographers of this , and hope the con tribu tions to the E xhibi

tion may be both numerous and liberal . They ought to reach theHonorary Secretary before the end of the present month

,and if

possible,should be mounted on C ard board .

It was also decided that the prints for distribution to Members

for the year 1 85 8 -59, should comprise two negatives kindly placed

at the disposal of the Society by C aptain Tripe , and as it was

thought desirable to issue to Members on e good European photo

graph to show the progre ss o f the A rt at home , it w as decided that

steps be taken by the C ouncil to secure for this purpose the beau

tiful copy by Bingham of A iry Sheffer’s famous picture of Faust

and Margueritte . A s this however w ill entail a considerable out

lay,the C ouncil w ill not be able to g ive Offmore than four pictures

for this year viz ., the three above mentioned , and as they hOpe to

receive a negative of the late C hief Justice Sir C . Rawlinson who

has kindly promised to Sit for one in London, the portrait Of that

gentleman will be the fourth .

A P B I L~—S E PT .Proceedings. 1 75

A t the Meeting of the PHOTO G RA PH I C SO C I E TY held on the sth

May 1 859.

PRE S E NT .

Lieut.Mitchell in the C hair . Mr. Nicholas .

C ol . Mc’C al ly.

Dr . C legho

C ol . Hamilton .C o l . C ongdon .

Lieut . C ole . Dr . Pearl .

Dr . Duff. Dr . Scott .

The Photographs which have been already received for this year’ s

Exhibition w ere laid on the table , consisting of severa l excellent

contributions from different parts of the Presidency, as also a very

fine on e from C alcutta . Besides the above , the Secretary mention

ed that several more w ere still expected . A C ommittee was ap

pointed to arrange the pictures , and it was resolved that the Ex

hibition should be opened on Thursday the 1 2th inst . , at 5 P . M .,

to Members of the Socie ty , and to the public from the follow ing

morning,at the School of A rts .

A s the general impression of the Meeting was that the E xhibi

tion w ould prove to be a very good on e, the C ouncil hope that

there w ill be a large attendance on the occasion of its being

Opened .

R E POR T OF T H E C OMM I T T E E A P PO I NT E D T o A DJ U D I C A T E T H E

PHOT O G R A PH I C S OC I E T Y’S M E D A LS .

T he fol lowing is the R eport Of the C ommit tee appoin ted

to A djudicate Priz es on the A nn ual E xhibition of the Pho

tographic S ociety which Open ed on the 12 th May .

The Madras Photographic Society’ s Exhibition for 1 8 59differedconsiderably from that of last year in more respects than one, con

trasting favorably w ith it more especially as regards the numbe r

and quality of the contributions of Indian Photographers . The chief

attraction in the Exhibition of last year,consisted principally in the

beautiful collection Of European photographs contributed for the

most part by one or two members , whereas in that of this year the

greater part Of the w orks exhibited w ere executed in India , and

chiefly in our own Presidency, there being only a few very fine

1 76 Proceedings. [NO . 9, N E W S E RI E S .

prints of LeG ray, Fenton, Bisson freres, and Bingham,the pro

perty of the Society, and procured for the purp ose Of showing the

present state Of the A rt at home .

It was also gratifying to Observe that the Exhibition of this year

excited a much greater degree of general interest than any which

has yet taken place in Madras , and during the month it remained

Open to the public was visited by all classes Of the community both

European and Native especially on Saturdays afternoon, when the

Band of the 2nd Regt . was in attendance by the kind permission of

the Offic ers of that C orps .

Many circumstances conspire in thiscountry to render the pur

suit of Photographic A rt more diffi cult and less satisfactory than

in the more temperate climate Of Europe . The intense heat, light,and frequently too in some parts of the country, an atmosphere over

loaded w ith moisture , form formidable Obstacles’

to the operations of

the Photographer in the Tropics . The utmost an amateur can gene

rally accomplish here is to Obtain such a picture as the process he

may employ affords , for few can give the time , had they even the in

cl ination to make experiments , and it can hardly be expected under

such circumstances,that much original Observation and researches

in this delightful Scientific A rt should be developed . Should C ol

l odion be the process he selects ; the Indian Photographer very soon

discovers the treacherous nature of the material to which he has to

trust, how rapidly it becomes deteriorated in a temperature of 90°

Fahrenheit, and frequently how uncertain it becomes from day to

day as regards the length Of exposure required to take a picture

whether portrait or landscape . Many kinds of C ollodion which are

found to answer the purpose perfectly at home prove even on their

first arrival in India to be in an unsatisfactory state and decompose

so rapidly when iodize d as to be next thing to usele ss . On this ac

count the only resource the Photographer has is to make his own

C ollodion on the spot from fresh materials, which latter also he

finds that in order to ensure success he has himself to prepare , as

both A lcohol and Ether as well as gun cotton are too frequentlyfound even when prepared with the greatest care in England to be

acid and decomposed, and otherwise unfit for use , on reaching this

country .

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1 78 Proceedings. [NO . 9, N E W S E R I E S .

Socie ty byC aptain Tripe for reasons given by him in a letter,dated 8th A ugust, appended to this Report, was afterwards award

ed to Mr . B utcher, of Palhal ly, as the next successful competitor

S ilver Medal .

For the best collection Of view s and landscapes , open to all

Photographers , to Mr. W illiamson, of C alcutta .

S ilver M edal .

For the best collection Of portraits , open to all Photographers ,to Lieutenant H . Macdonald , 3 5th N . I .

In addition to the above , the C ommittee recommended that Spe

cial medals should be awarded to Lieut . Mitchell for Micro-photo

graphs,and to W . Pearl , Esq .

, for Stereo graphs .

We mus t n ow pro ceed to enumerate the different contributions

in detail,and endeavour to give some idea to up-country Members

of the extent and nature Of the Exhibition . In doing so,some

apology is due for the length of t ime which has been allow e d to

elapse between the Exhibition and the appearance o f this report,but it must be borne in mind that there are few gentlemen at the

Presidency who are at all qualified to draw up a report of this

nature,and these have all other and more important duties to at

tend to,it is therefore a matter of no small di i cul ty to find per

sons w illing to undertake such a task, and who find themselves by

reason of their occupations at liberty to do so . The same apologymust also be advanced for any deficiencies which may be observed

in the report,and for which it is hoped due allowance w ill be

made .

C aptain G irdleston e’s contribution consisted Of 1 3 view s taken

in and around C annanore by the ordinary C ollodion process . These

w ere pleasing pictures and w ere considered by the C ommittee tobe superior as regards manipulation and printing to those of any

other amateur Member of the So ciety, and coming under the condition s laid down in the C oun cil’ s C ircular as being eligible fo r

the gold medal, i . e., for the best contribution of not less than 6

pictures ,” the medal was awarded to this collection .

In C aptain G irdlestone’s pictures the half tones are w ell pre

served,the focussing at the same time being

'

sharp and'

clear, and

A PRIL— S E PT .Proceedings. 1 79

the tone of a pleasing dark color, w ithout being too black . The

skies w ere w ell preserved , being clear and w ithout any tinge o f

yellow .The pictures remained unchanged after ' their receipt,

and gave no indication of fading up to the close of the Exhibition .

They w ere w ith one or two exceptions printed on plain un al bu

men iz ed paper, the best being the Fort Ditch C annanore , which

is an admirable and characteristic picture as are also the Juma

Musj id,a Moplah Musj id

,Tier S awmy houses , and a Sketch ,

C annanore . C aptain Girdlestone was it appears a pupil of Mr .

Hardw ick , of King’ s C ollege

,London , and has evidently profited

greatly from the instruction of his able Master .

C aptain Tripe’ s contribution consisted Of 50 large view s taken

in the neighbourhood of Madura , Trichinopoly and Tanjore . A s

a collection this was undoubtedly the best in the Exhibition , and

the C ommittee regret much they w ere pre cluded from awarding to

it the gold medal, as C aptain Tripe being the Photographer .to

Government could not be looked upon as an A mateur Member of

the Society ; they had much pleasure, how ever, in aw arding him

the silver medal which is open to all Members of the Society. B ut

this even C aptain Tripe as already mentioned declined to accept

from the honorable feelings expressed by him in his letter to

the Secretary herew ith appended . C aptain Tripe ’ s prints are

for the mo st part from Wax-paper Negatives,four only being

from dry C ollodion Negatives . They illustrate admirably thearchitecture of the Hindoo Temples and Palaces of Southern

India, an d in particular the Madura and T anjore S erie s comprise

in this respect all that is most w orthy of re cord in those cities.

The interior Of that part of the Madura Palace which is n ow used

as the Session C ourt Room is an excellent picture and is a very

good specimen of the dry C ollodion , which process has not as yet

been much employed in this part of India,but which promises to

surpass in many respects the wax paper process especially in being betterthan that process for taking view s of interiorsgiving the

clear and sharp definition o f C ollodion,and at the same time per

mitting any necessary amount of exposure . In interiors where

there is a deficiency of light , an exposure of several hours may be

given w ithout any damage to the plate . A nother good specimen

of an interior taken by this process is that marked in the C ata

1 80 P roceedings. [NO . 9, N E W S E RI E S .

logue NO . 2 1 . The C entral Nave of T rimul Naick’s C houltry look

ing east,NO . 26 and 27, are also examples of this process , being in

terior view s in the Great Pagoda Of Madura . The only other

views of interiors in this collection are Nos . 22 , 23 , 24 , 28 and 30

o f the C atalogue . These are marked as taken by the wax-paper

process,and bear comparison w ith the dry C ollodion pictures of

Interiors , but the superiority Of definition given by C ollodion isvery visible when placed side by side w ith them . Nos . 1 , 6 , 35 , 49

and 50 are good examples of Photographs of Trees especially thetwo former, NO . 3 5 is an admirable picture givin g an excellent like

ness of an Umbrella Tree at Trivium . This tree forms an exception to the generality of trees in a photographic point of view ,

in

asmuch as i t is S O rigid and consequently a good subj ect for pho

t ography which cannot be said of most trees which are so readily

blown about by the w ind , rendering it extremely difl‘icul t to Obtainany thing like a good portrait of them

,except in the most perfect

calm,a rare atmospherical condition even in this latitude . A nother

interesting natural Obj ect in the C ollection is NO . 1 6 , the Elephant

Rock , near Madura, and is certainly one of the best photographs

the Exhibition . The configuration of this rock , named from its

resemblance in shape to an Elephant, is admirably delineated , and

forms a very striking Obj ect to the eye . The most remarkable in

the w ay of architectural subj ects are the view of the great Pagoda

of T anjore , and of the Palace in the T anjore Fort . These are all

excellent pictures,being clear and sharp in the minutest details,

and in short giving such an idea of the original as photography

alone can give . The value of this art is undoubtedly here w ell

illustrated,as views of the most elaborate carving are so accu

rately copied at once , in a comparatively short operation and which

could in no other way be Obtained even with the labor O f w eeks ,

months , or even years in some cases . Before leaving the cousi

deration Of this excellent c ollection, we must not omit to notice the

view ofTrichinopoly Rock . It is taken from the west, looking

through a gap in the Fort wall, and is an accurate representation

of this far famed Obj ect .

Mr . A . W illiamson of C alcutta exhibits 26 p1ctu1 es, 1 8 beingviews in the neighbourhood Of the C ity o f Palaces , and interesting

groups Of n ative figures, the remainder being single portraits. T he

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1 82 Proceedings. ENC . 9, N E W S E RI E S .

Lieut . Mitchell exhibits 1 8 Micro-photographs,and at the re«

quest of the President , has given the’

following description of them.

No . 1 .—The Parasite of a Goose . This is a member of the

order A noplura” to which belongs the common louse ; it is thus

characterized .

Feet six ; w ings none ; parasitic , and not undergoing meta ~

morphosis eyes two , simple , or none .

The order is divided into two sub-orders, the first termed

H austel lata, has a mouth w ith a tubular very short haustellum .

The secon d sub-order has a mandibulate mouth placed under

neath the head , there are fi ve j oints in the antennae, and a double

claw to each foot in the Genus Philopterus, to which we believe

the subj ect of our Photograph belongs .

Nos. 2 and 8 .—Represent the proboscis of the Blow-fly. The

two fleshy lobes Of which are kept in a state Of expansion, at thew ill o f the insect

,by means of the beautiful series Of tubes seen

in the Photograph and termed modified trachea, this is a verybeautiful Obj ect for the microscope , and may be very w ell seen

w ith a good Obj ective of 1 inch focus , but higher pow ers are re

quired to display the ultimate structure of the tracheal tubes .

NO . 3 .—The parasite of the common domestic Fow l .

This is an acarus and bel ongs to the same genus as the cheese

mite . It has eight legs , each Of which terminates in a double

claw and has an acetabulum or sucker . The head is said to be

furn ishedf'

w ith two large mandible s , these consist of a soft re

t ractile basal j oint, and a second dilated non-retractile j oint resem

bling the fixed claw Of a Lobster,and a moveable piece working

against the latter, the two last pieces are toothed where in contact

w ith each other ; these mandible s can be advanced either sepa

rately or together, and can be separated o'r approximated .

”

NO . 4 .— A B ut terfly

’s scale . This is a representation of on e of

the minute particles of dust that adheres to the fingers when a

Butterfly is caught . The w ing of a Butterfly consists of a delicate framework of nervures or veins

,enclosed between two trans

parent membranes of great tenuity . To these membranes the

scales are attached by the smal l pedicle or stalk , which fi ts into a

Micro~graphical Dictionary .

A PRIL—S E PT . Proceedings.

cup-shaped depression . They are arranged in rows , but the

scales composing the row are not uniformly placed . In some

Butterflies,each scal e overlaps its neighbour by n early half of its

w idth,like the petals of many flowers . I n others the scales are

placed side by S ide w ithout overlapping , but the points of j unc

ture in on e row are made to fall upon the middle of the scales of

the row beneath . But in either case the several row s overlap each

other as slate s are made to do on a roof.

A w ell selected B utterfly’s w ing is a surpassingly beautiful Oh

j cet when v iew ed w ith a moderate pow er by reflected light , andnever fails to call forth the admiration Of the beholder . T he

scale s have long been favorite Obj ects w ith the Micro scopist, and

the resolution of the ultimate structure Of some of them is stil l

amon g the most di”i cul t feats , the microscope is called upon to

assist in . In structure they very much resemble the w in g , con

sisting Of an exceedin gly delicate framew ork , and two (some saythree) membranes . The scale represented by the photograph is

from a smal l species of Thecla , which are many of them beauti

fully marked,and may be found in great numbers in the cold sea

son of the year . They fly l ow ,and are easily captured in the

morning before sunrise,at which hour they w ill be found on grass

or l ow shrubs .

When this scale is examined w ith a sufficiently high power

(from to diameters) it very much'

resembles an o ld

fashioned w indow ,the delicate framework enclosing a number of

hexagonal areolae,the two opposite sides which form the trans

verse striae of the scale , being much longer than the Other‘ four

sides of the hexagon .

T0 those who have not seen the minute w orks Of the C reator, as

displayed by the beautiful microscopes Of the present day it must

seem like j esting to talk of the framework of an atom,the sur

face Of which measures only —sth of a superficial inch , and

which is quite in visible '

to unassisted vision,there is

,howevcr,

suffi cient indication in the photograph of its existen ce , al though

the pow er used w as only equal to 520 diameters . But these minute hexagonal spaces admit of accurate measurement w ith a

screw Micrometer,and I fi nd that it would require 3 1 1 , 68 1 , 5 10

1 84 Proceedings . [No 9, N E W S E RI E S .

of them to cover one square inch , and that there are about

of them in one scale .

No . 5 .—Is a scale of a slightly different form from the same

w ing, but magnified 820 diameters .

No . 6 .-Is a scale from a small species of Po lyommatus usually

found in the same season and locali ty as the Thecla,scales of this

form are by no means common , and so far as I know ,are confined

to the Polyommati.

No . 7 .—The Parasite of a Turkey, though of a very different

form belongs to the same order as No . 1 .

No . 9.—The house Flea

,Pulex irritans , is w ell known all over

the w orld . Who has not read o f trained fleas draw ing Ivory car

riages in golden harness : or of the enormous leaps they take ,equal to 200 times their own length , and which large figure I be

lieve understates the fact . Of the trophi or partsof the mouth

ever less is known , as they cannot be seen w ithout the Microscope .

95The mandibles are two elongated and flattened setae , w ith a centralrib

,and w ith the J

[edges finely serrated ; the se w ith the lingua

which is of equal length but more slender , are united in the mid

dle of the mouth to form an instrument which from analogy w ith

the mouth of the suctorial Hemiptera is probably employed in

puncturing the flesh . A t rest these organs are defended by the

labial palpi which unitedly form a tubular haustellum . The

maxillae are small, lamelliform, sub triangular appendages at the

sides of the mouth , and the maxillary palpi arise from their base

at the anterior emarginate extremity of the head .

” Such is the

mouth of the Flea . There are few I fancy who have not at some

time or other experienced how well it performs its work .

No . 1 0 .—Represents a part of the mouth of aWasp , the mandi

bles and head having been removed for convenience in mounting .

The broad blade like organs are the maxillae . The subj oined or

gans are the maxillary palpi,that w ith only four j oints is one of

the labial palpi, the other being out of sight, the central portion

! Westwood .

t NOTE—Westwood has overlooked the teeth on the surfaces of thesepieces, of which there is one, if not two

,row s on each side of the central

rib . T he teeth appear raised l ike those of a rasp .

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1 86 Proceedings. [No . 9, N E W S E R IE S .

are imbedded (in a groove) three setae , two of which are more de

l icate than the other and serrated at the extremity .

These seta are only fi fi th of an inch in diameter,and near the

extremity but“lg—6 th of an inch . It is not a little surprizing how

organs of such surpassing delicacy should be able to pierce the

human skin . It seems probable however that the blood vessels

are reached by way of the sudoriparous ducts .

No . 1 7 —The foot of a grasshopper, is seen to be furnished w ith

cushions which break the fall of the insect , when it alights aftera

leaf.

No . 1 8 .—Part of the E xuvioe of a spider .

The mandibles shown in the Photograph are said to be traversed

by a canal,terminating at the apex through which the secretion of

a poison gland is inj ected into any thing held between the pointed

claw s . The mandibles are chiefly used for seizing and holding the

prey,which is crushed betw een the two flat and opposing surfaces

of the maxillae placed just beneath them .

I cannot conclude these brief notes w ithout expressing my regret

that the Microscope should be so little used in India . This neglect

of a valuable instrument cannot be caused altogether by its expense,

because a first class instrument may be bought for the price of a

Manton or Purdy, and w e see no deficiency of these . Indeed a

very trustw orthy instrument w ith which a great deal of work maybe done can n ow be had for from to

In England the use of the Microscope is becoming very general ,and the follow ing extract from the annual Report o f the Society of

A rts,London

, w ill go further to show the estimation in which it is

held than any thing I may say .

The important posi tion which the Microscope n ow holds , not

only in relation to pure , but to applied science , and its great value

i n assisting to form those habits of observation which it is the ob

ject of all sound education to impart, induced the C ouncil to believe

that the promoting the production of a good instrument at a price

which should render it more readily accessible to the many, wasan obj ect w orthy of the Society

,and accordingly under the advice

and w ith the assistance of a C ommittee composed of Mr . Busk ,F . R . s.

,Dr . C arpenter, F . R . s. , Mr . Jackson, Dr . Lankester, F . R . s.

,

A PRIL— S E PT . Proceedings. 1 87

Mr. Quekett , and Mr . W. W . Saunders , F . R . s. the follow ing

prizes w ere offered .

For a school Micros cope to b e sold to the Public at a price

not exceeding 1 03 . 6d. The Society’ s Medal .

For a teacher’ s or student’ s Microscope to be sold to the Public

at a price not exceeding 33 . The Society’ s Medal .

The C ouncil undertook to purchase 1 00 of the smaller and 50 of

the larger for which the Medals should be aw arded .

The members w ill be glad to learn that for these prizes there

have been numerous competitors . A fter much careful examina

tion of al l the instruments by the C ommittee , they unanimously re

ported to the C ouncil that the instruments sent in by Messrs . Field ,85 C o .

, of Birmingham fulfilled all the conditions required , and the

C ouncil have therefore awarded to that fi rm the Medals offered on

Messrs . Field and C o ., entering into the necessary undertakings to

comply w ith the requirements of the prize list . The C ouncil con

gratulate the members on this result .

I have examined on e of the large instruments referred to in this

report, it is an A chromatic compound Microscope , w ith two obj ect

glasses , and two eye pieces w ith some necessary apparatus . Its

performance is unquestionably much superior to the best of the ol d

form of Microscopes , and it has that great convenience a j oint to

incline the body to any angle , a point in which most of the cheap

Foreign Microscopes are deficient, and it is undoubtedly cheap

for the money , still I w ould no t recommend any on e who could

spare more money to buy on e of these .

In India people are compelled to look very much to in -door employment during their hours of relaxation, and this is especially the

case w ith Ladies , n ow I think the Microscope is eminently suited

to a Lady’ s use . The labour is light, and the employment on e of

surpassing interest . The Microscope makes us acquainted w ith a

world unknown , and if it w ere possible to fix a limit to creative

skill,I should say it had been reached in numerous Micros00pic

animals and plants .

The C ommittee recommended a special medal for this most in

terest ing and valuable contribution, probably the first photographs

of the kind exhibited in India . They are well printed, and among

1 88 P roceedings. [No . 9, N E W snn rns .

the most interesting of the Photographs exhibited . The observa

tions made by Mr . Mitchell, on the Microscope , are well worthy of

the attention of members .

Mr . Butcher exhibits 8 excellent view s taken in the neighbour

hoo d of Seringapatam the subj ects ofwhich are very interesting and

characteristic . Mr . Butcher, has proved himself to be a most pro

mising Photographer , but there is room for improvement in his pro

duction s, there being too much contrast in the lights and shades ,and a deficiency of half tone . It is to be hoped that Mr . Butchers

w ork w ill be seen in future Exhibitions . Besides the above 20

view s which he was good en ough to present about a year ago to

the Society w ere al so exhibited . The subj ects of these are all very

interesting . The printing is good and appears to be very perma

nen t, there being as yet no symptoms of fading among them . They

have al l how ever the same defect above noted, which we hope to

see rectified in the future w orks of this Photographer . A s before

stated,the Silver Medal rel inqul shed by C aptain Tripe was awarded

to this collection .

C aptain Dickson exhibits 1 4 view s of the Temple of B oben es

war. This is undoubtedly an interesting series but it is to be

regretted that several of the pictures show a w ant of sharpness in

focussing, while others are more or less deficient in half tone . This

is how ever a valuable contribution and gives on the whole a good

idea of the subj ects it represents . Perhaps C aptain D ickson’ sbest pi cture is a view of the large temple w ith groups o f natives

in the fore-ground . This is a very characteristi c and good picture ,being w ell focussed , and showing greater care in the manipulation ,the half-tone at the same time being better preserved than in othersof this co l lection .

Mr . Minchin has sent to the Exhibition 1 2 C ar d boards con

tainin g a varied and miscellaneouscollection of view s from nature

portraits , groups bo th European and Native , photographs of Sta

tuettes , an d copies of prin ts . These are all of small size , and have

eviden tly been al l taken w ith a small portrait lens . No s. 1 and 2 ,v iz the Pagoda at C o leda n ear R ussel condah

,and a landscape in

the neighbourhood of that town, with groups of Sebundies of the

S umbulpore levy in the foreground, are good pictures , as also the

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190 P roceedings. [No 9, N E W S E RI E S

as it is called by the natives ; a view of the town of A den,the

Mosque of Nidroos, and the Baman temple . These are all admirably clear and sharp , the minutest details being w ell delineated ,and they convey an excellent idea of the interesting obj ects theyrepresent . In the v iew of A den especially

,the peculiar volcanic

character of the surrounding rocks is beautifully brought out,the

half-tones of these pictures are excellent . The portraits though

n ot carefully manipulated are still highly interesting . Those re

presenting the S omalie Warrior and S omal ie female are perhaps

the best . The aval of B raheran is also good .

Four view s of some o f the principal obj ects in Madras,w ere ex

hibitedby Lieut . Mitchell , as also five Vl eWS by Dr . Scott theseprints w ere exhibited solely to show the results obtained by then ew toning process w ith A lkaline C hloride o f Gold which bids

fair to supercede all former methods . Instead“

of C itric acid as

recommended by Mr . Hardw ick,Lieut . Mitchell emplo ys lime

juice . Dr . Scott used nothing else but C arbonate of Soda and

C hloride of Gold . Perhaps it may be advantageous to use the acid

w ith the view of preventing the too rapid toning o f the p i cture,

and the risk thereby of its being destroyed by the blue tinge it ao

quires under these circumstances . The advantages of this process

over the sel d’or is that it is not nec essary to be carried on in a

dark room . That it is much less complicated and that it gives

much better results,any depth of tone may be given from brown to

black,while the whites of the picture are w ell preserve d , and the

risk of yellowness of the skies greatly diminished . The C ommittee

cannot close this report w ithout bringing this process prominently

to the notice of all Photographers throughout the Presidency .

B anga lore, 8 th A ugust 1 859.

MY D E A R SC OTT ,I have received your le tter of the 5 th Instant, informing me that

the C ommittee appointed to adjudicate the Medals o f the late Pho

tographic Exhibition at Madras , have awarded me the Silver Me

dal for view s and landscapes open to all members of the Society ,and you further say that, had I been considered an A mateur , the

Gold Medal would have been awarded me .

A PRIL— S E PT . P roceedings . 191

This flattering notice of the C ommittee upon my contribution isan ample award , and I am perfectly satisfied w ith the view taken

by the C ommittee , as to my position as a Photographer . I cannot

be considered an A mateur , whileI am Government Photographer.

A nd more than that, the advantages I possess in that position are

so greatly in my favor both as to the variety and number of sub

jects I can exhibit compared w ith the other members of your S o

ciety that I do not feel j ustified in accepting the Medal awarded

me . I therefore beg you w ill make my best acknow ledgments for

it to the C ommittee , and replace it at their disposal elsewhere . In

doing this,I beg to say, that my n o t having from the first disclaim

ed the intention of receivin g any medal , if I should be so fortunate

as to have on e aw arded me , is a proof of the value I set on a favor

able report of your C ommittee .

Your’ s very sincerely,

(Signed) L . TRIP E .

List qf P liotograpii s exhibited 6g C A PT . G IRDLE STONE ,1 1 th R egi

men t N . I .— G '

o ldM edal .

Telegraph in the Wyn aad Jungle.—C ollodion A lbumea

Process, Mr . Hardw ick’ s Formula, (untouched )

A Bye Lane , C annanore— same as above , (untouched )The Fort D itch

,C annanore—same as above , (untouched )

The A rsenal C annanore— same process as above , (Papier

Saxe plain salted, (untouched )

A Sketch C annanore— same as above , (untouched )The Tellicherry Road— same as above , (untouched )The Juma Musj id C annanore— same as above , (untouched )The B ackwater B il lapatam— same as above , (untouched )A Moplah Musj id—same as above , (untouched )The B el lapatam road—same as above , (untouched )Tier S awmy Houses— same process as above , A lbumenised

Paper, (untouched )

A S aw Pit C annanore—same as above , (untouched )The Parsonage- Dry C ollodion Process—Dr . Morris’ Plainpaper, (sky touched . )

192 Proceedings. [No . 9, N E W S E RI E S .

List of Pho tographs exhibited by C A PT . TRIP E — S ilver Meda l .

No s.

Tree near R oyaco t tahiE dgah and Tomb R oyaco ttah .

R oyacot tah Hill from S . W .

R oyaco t tah Hill Fort Gate .

R oyacottah Hill Fort S . S . E . from inside

Fort Gate .

S eringham Pagoda Gateway S . Side .

H ierd G opurum on the S . Side S eringham

Pagoda .

Half Front of the Shashan ary A n asawmyMundapum.

S eringhamJumboogashwaramPagoda view

between outer enclosure and 1 000 pil

lared Mundapum.

Trichinopoly Bridge over the C auvery

Trichinopoly Ghaut near S . end of the

Bridge .

TrichinopolyRock from N . looking through

a gap in the FortWall .

Trichinopoly entrance to the Pagoda on

the rock looking outwards .

Trichinopoly street leading to the Fort

from C antonment .

TrichinopolyMusjid ofNutter Owleah

Elephant Rock near Madura .

C auseway acrossVygayRiver near Madura .

Madura Base of one of the Monoliths in

the Raj ah G opurum.

Madura West Front of the Poodoo Mundapum or T rimn l Naick

’

s C houltry .

Madura East Front of the Poodoo Mun

dapum or T rimul Naiek’e C houltry .

Madura T rimn l Naick’

s C houltry central

nave looking E . Dry C ollodion“

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194 Proceedings. [NO . 9, N E W sE E I E s.

Tanj ore Palace , entrance S . Side to Bura

mum

Do . do . do . view by N. side of the do .

Do . do . do . S oobarahman a S awmy’s

C ourt .

Do do . do . Part of S . Facade of

do

Do . do . do . S oobramanah S awmy’s

C ourt, sacred waters from a cistern

Do . do . do . a View looking down one

side of outer w all and arcade .

A view of Banyan Tree near A dman co ttah .

Tree (on the Road S ide) near R oyaco ttah .

List of Pho tographs exhibited by Mr . WILLIA MS ON of C alcutta .

S ilver M eda l .

1 . Kidderpoor, C alcutta 1 859.

Kidderpoor D onghas, or a sort of C anoe scooped out of the

solid Palm,C alcutta

,1 8 59.

Tol lahs Nulla , C alcutta, 1 8 59.

B en galee at C hetpoor Road , 1 8 59.

The Fogapour Town in A l ipoor, 1 859.

T ol lah’s Nulla , 1 8 59.

Hourah , 1 859.

Hourah,1 859.

B aghbayar Street, 1 859.

1 0 . C hinese G orusthan ,1 8 59.

1 1 . Native Bandy, 1 859.

1 2 . Kidderpoor, 1 859.

1 3 . Rajah of A ssam’ s se rvant . T hree Rajahs of C ochan andA ssam

,1 8 59.

1 4 . C hota H az ree at the Gloom,1 859.

1 5 . Six Portraits , viz .

l . A Sikh , on e of the most notorious Dacoits Who in fested

B engal .

3°

A PRIL—S E PT . 1 Proceedings. 195

2 . A Sikh, one of the defenders of A rrah imprisoned at

A l lipoor for 2 years , for having eloped w ith a NativeNon-C ommissioned Officer ’ s wife .

A Thug imprisoned for 30 years .

A notorious Burmese Dacoit imprisoned for life .

A Sepoy of the 43d Regiment imprisoned for desertion .

A Fakeer found tampering w ith the Sepoys at B arracksh

r

e

w

poor .

Burmese Murderer and C onvict .

to Portraits .

2 5 . A Village Scene near Kidderpore .

2 6 . A C argo Boat at G hoosery .

Photographs exhibited by HE RBE RT MA CDONA LD, E sq .

, 35 th R e

gimen t — S ilver M edal .

A Frame of Portraits and copies of Engravings .

List of Photographs’

exhibitedby Lieut . J . MITCH E LL— S ilverMedal .

VIE W S .

fNegatives on unwaxNo . 1 . The Munr o Statue , Mount Road ed paper, NO . 4 E n

2 . The C ollege Bridge . t 0 11 011 6 3“T he skl es

3 . A view at Mamul laipoor (The Seven Sf NOS ‘

5’ .

2 and.

3

Pagodas . )eepene w i th Indi

4 Doveton House The residence of an I nk ' 4 11 tonedby H ardwmk’s n ew

S ir P . Grant . A lkaline processL C hloride of G old.

Nega tives taken w ith the A chromatic C omp ound M icroscop e.

No . 1 . Proboscis of Blow fly, Magnified 484 times . 2 ‘n2 . Parasite of Tame Goose , 484 gi gs3 . Parasite of Fowl , an A carus , 3 969 ga s 0

4 . A B utterfly’s scale (Thecla) 2766 76

mafi fri—E

5 . 672-400 géset

6 ., ,Polyommatus 2766 76 fi gs-0

3mg?7 . Parasite of Pig , 484

8 . Proboscis of Blow fly 28 §2< z

§9. House Flea

, 4849

3 53E55

196 Proceedings . [No . 9, N E W S E RIE S .

Trophi of a Wasp , Magnified 484 times .W ing of Musquito , 484

Mouth of Larva of A n t Lion 484

Scale of Morpho Menelaus ,A rnee Muslin at Rs . perYard

,

C occus Lacca from Mangotree ,Exuvia of Bed bug showingLancets ,Tarsus of a Grasshopper,Exuvia of a Spider shewin gthe Jaw s , L

List of S tereographs exhibited by Dr . PE A RL .—S ilverM edal .

Nos.

1 . Pulney Falls .

2 . B yragee.

3 . C huttrumMadura .

4 . Trichinopoly entrance to Palace .

5 . Trichinopoly Palace .

6 . Do .

7 . D o .

8 . Do .

9. Do .

1 0 . Do .

1 1 . Do .

1 2 . Do .

1 3 . Do .

1 4 . Mussulman Tomb .

1 5 . Native woman w ith chatties .

1 6 . T rivel l ipotoor.

1 7 . Mussulman Tomb , Trichinopoly .

1 8 . Tree Fern Pulney Hills .

19. Group of Officers .

20 . Do .

List of P rin ts exhibited by MR . BUTCHE R .

No . 1 . Mausoleum of Hyder A l i and Tippo Sultan .

2 . The Wel lesly Bridge on the Northwest of the Fort ofS eringapatam .

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198

Nos .

1 .

P roceedings. ENO . 9, N E W S E RIE S .

List of Pho tographs exhibited by Mr . MINCH IN .

Pagoda at G oloda near R ussel condah .

Landscape at R ussel condah ,Sebundies of the Sumbulpore

Levy,in undress in the foreground .

The Engineer’ s C amp near A ska .

The VVead leaf Moth (R ussel condah . )

Bridge on the R oo soocool iah ,A ska .

Three view s of the A ska Sugar Works so taken as to forman entire picture .

The C hittiwal sah Sugar W orks from the South Gate .

O ld Dutch Burial Ground at Bimlipatam .

Portraits from Life .

Dressin g a Bride (from life . )Portrait of an Infant do .

C hess do .

Group of Ladies do .

Bagatelle do .

Native G oomoostahs w eighing Jaggery (from Life . )C oolies packing Sugar do .

View s from a bronze Statuette .

Milton’ s Sabrina” from a Statuette in Parian .

The Greek Slave,

do do .

The Queen ’ s Horses from an engraving in the A rt Journal .

List of Photographs exhibited by C A PTA IN B A RW I S E ,45 th R egi

Nos .men t IV. I .

The Seven Pagodas North view .

Do . South view .

Palmyra Trees.

A PRIL—S E PT .Proceedings. 199

The Village of Moulaveram.

The Pagoda at Moulaveram.

A Village Scene .

Part of the Rock at Moulaveram.

Do . do . do .

Pagoda on the Rock at do .

C houltry at do .

Palmyra Tope .

A Village Scene .

Pho tographs exhibited by Mr . W ILLIA MS , C alcutta .

Princeps G haut , C alcutta .

Mosque C orner of D anramel l , C alcutta .

La Martiniere,C alcutta .

Harding ’ s Statue,do .

Naughty Dog .

The H ugen ot .

The Proscribed Royalist .

Town Hall , C alcutta .

Mosque South C ol ingher, C alcutta .

P layfair’

s View of A den C on tributed by H is E xcel lencySir C HA RLE S TRE VE LYA N .

Mosque of A rdross .

Banian Temple .

Main Pass .

Parsee .

Hindoo of Purva C aste .

A rab of B aherain .

S omal ie Female .

Sultan Fardthel Bin Mohsin .

S omal ie Warrior .Khadim .

Syed Mahomed bin abod R ahenamel Jifi'

eree.

View of A den .

200 Proceedings. [No . 9,N E W sE R I E s.

List (f Photographs exhibited by Dr . SC OTT .

View of G overnment House and Banqueting

Hall Waxed Paper .

View of Government House . do .

View of his own house do .

View of St . A ndrew ’ s C hurch . do .

View of C athedral do .

Proceedings of a Meeting (j the PHOTO G RA PHI C SOC I E TY,

at the S chool of A rts,on T hursday, the 2d J une 1 859.

PRE S E NT .

Dr . Duff in the C hair .C o l . McC al ly. Mr . Underwood .

The Hon . Mr . Elliot . Lieut . Mitchell , and

Mr . New ill . Dr . Scott .Mr . Nicholas .

Read,a letter from Dr . Flynn , intimating the receipt of 1 4

Photographs sent to him for Exhibition by C aptain Dickson, 22d

Regiment N . I .

It w as put to the Meeting whether the se pi ctures should be re

ceived and admitted to compete for the Medals .

Resolved, that under the circumstances this should be allow ed .

Resolved , that the C ommittee for the adjudication of the Medals

should consist of the follow ing gentlemen z—Mr. Nicholas , C ol .

M cC al ly, Mr . C ole and Dr . Scott, w ith Mr . Underw ood as C hairman .

Res olved, that 1 00 copies o f the Photographs intended for dis

tribution for the year 1 8 5 8-59be ordered from England , and thatthey should have printed labels a xed to them .

The follow ing gentlemen w ere proposed and ele cted Members

of the Society —Dr . Macpherson and Dr . Maclean .

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202 Proceedings. [No . 9, N E W S E RIE S .

By the kind permission of Mr . Garrett,Dr Scott e xhibited the

n ew Stereoscope patented by Mr . George C olleton C ooke and ma

n ufactured by Messrs . Nagret ti and d bra of C ornhill . This is

the most perfect instrument of the kind which has been as yet pro

duced, and possesses the follow ing advantages . The eye pieces

are fitted into trumpet-mouthed tubes by which arrangement the

eyes are protected,the field of view is increased

,and larger lenses

than usual can be employed— therefore less impediment than heretofore is offered to the rays emanating from the picture

,and the

eye of the observer is enabled to range more fully over the field of

view . In this n ew form of Stereoscope we have also the adapta

tion to the eye piece of additional moveable lenses adapted to dif

feren t kinds of sight . These lenses are either meniscus , concave ,plano

,convex or double convex as may be required, and they are

adapted to the instrument in such a manner that they are moved

into and out of use by small levers proj ecting through the sides of

the box . The only obj ection to this Stereoscope is that it is expen

sive,the English price being £6-6 . It is fixed on a very substan

tial stand whibh renders it steady, and by an arrangement of brasscylinders contained one w ithin the other it can be elevated or de

pressed between 2 and 3 feet, so as to suit the convenience of those

using it either when sitting or standing .

Those interested in Stereographic art who can afford it,ought

certainly to provide themselves w ith this instrument as the mostcomplete and perfect of the kind n ow obtainable .

A PRIL— S E PT . 1 Proceedings . 203

A G RICULTURA L A N D HORTI CULTUR A L SO C I E TY .

Proceedings of a M eeting of the C ommittee, held on W'

ednesday the

6 th A p ril 1 859.

PRE S E NT .

H on’ble Sir A . B ittleston ,

Kt . , VicePatron .

H on’

bl eW . Elliot, Esq .

,Presiden t .

C olonel A . McC al ly,R . D . Parker , Esq .

,

J . Rhode , Esq .

,C o l . F . A . Reid, C . B . ,

C . Dale , E sq .,

H . B . Montgomery, Esq . M . D . ,

H . F . C . C leghorn , Esq . M . D . , S ecretary .

R . Hunter, Esq . ,

The Secretary informs the meeting,that the proceedings of thé

last monthly meeting . w ere so incomplete , that it was not deemed

advisable to give publicity to them,until the lists then prepared

w ere corrected and approved . The proceedings of the two meet

ings are therefore recorded in those of this date .

It is determined that, in order to enable intending exhibitors to

make the requisite preparations for the A nnual shows,lists of

prizes for each show shall as far as possible be prepared and pub

l ished immediately , after the preceding Exhibition so that 1 0 or

1 1 months w ill be thus allowe d for Exhibitors to prepare for the

competition .

The C ommittee hope by this,and by the arrangements proposed,

a decided success may be expected on every o ccasion .

The C ommittee proceed to examine the account of the late Ex

hibition wherefrom it appears that the receipts amounted to Rs .

6 86 and the expenditure to R S . 675 , leaving a balanceof Rs . 1 1 to

be carried to the credit of the Exhibition Fund for 1 860 .

The C ommittee resolve that the best thanks be recorded to C o

l onel C olbeck , J . T . Maclagan , Esq . ,Dr . Montgomery and Mr .

Brown , who formed the C ommittee ofManagement of the last show .

R esol ved'

al so , that Messrs . A shton , Richardson and C o . , and C .

A ppoocoo t tee Pillay and C o . ,be similarly thanked for their gratui

tous loan of A rticles required by the sub-committee .

204 P roceedings. [Nd 9, N E W S E RI E S .

Resolved also , that the Quarter Master General and C ommissaryGeneral of the A rmy be thanked for the use of the Tents and Ta

bles required on the same occasion .

The Police placed at the disposal of the Sub-C ommittee w ere

mmt diligent in the discharge of their duties , and C O1 . B oulderson

is requested to accept the thanks of the C ommittee for the admira

ble arran gements made by them to prevent any disorder .

Read the follow ing letter from H . C leghorn,Esq . ,

M . D .,C onser

y ator of Forests— T o H . B . Montgomery,Esq . M . Secretary

A gri-Horticultural Society .

Sir , —A mongst other places visited during my late tour in theNorthern C ircars , was A ulapil ly 24 miles South W est fromViz aga

patam,situated in a fertile part of the district

,near enough to the

Vindyan range of Hills , to derive advantage from the proximity .

The H on’bleW. Elliot had formerly mentioned the existence of

an interesting garden here , containing many exotics received fromthe H . C . Botanic Garden , C alcutta, and as Mr . T . Knox

,princi

pal assistant to the Government A gent , w ished me to see it, I di

verged from the usual route for that purpose .

O n the 4th instant, I spent some hours in this remarkable garden

and being much gratified w ith my‘visit, I beg to enclose the list of

plants supplied by Dr . Wallich to the deceased proprietor, w ith afew remarks as to the plants which have succeeded and those whichhave died ; the Garden Gomashta showed me the different trees ,an d generally n amed them correctly . It was not possible during

my short visit to note the numerous varieties of Fruit Tre es ,(Mango , Guava) which at the time w ere just coming into blossom ,

but I may mention that I saw fi ve specie s of the orange family,

which I w as told fruited freely , as w ell as the Litchi , A kee and

Sapodil la , the first of which has never succeeded in the Society ’ sGarden ,

Madras .

I saw a number of seedlin g Fruit Trees an d Graft Man goes,

which w ere ready for delivery to friends of the family .

I was much struck by a fi n e specimen of U ruria Odora ta , the

only on e I have seen south of C alcutta , and by the size of the Oyaputti and Mahogany Trees, which are much larger than we havein Madras . The Jlf elaleuca Leucadendron flowers and fruits abun

dautly and attains a girth of 2% or 3 fee t . O n e Mahogany tre e was

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206 P roceedings. [Na 9,N E W S E RIE S ,

I desire very much to send out to Madras a n ew Plant I have

lately imported from A ngola— the Ife” or San sieve a C ylindrica .

It is highly valued in that part of A frica, where the Portuguese

manufacture from its fibre , admirable cables and c ordage for their

Dock-yards -and this fibre is n ow found to be the best for deep

sea sounding,on account of its strength and pliability . I w ould

ask you if you would kindly take out two or three plants for Ma

dras, where I am sure they w ould succeed w ell and soon increase .

”

Resolved , that the thanks of the Society be conveyedA

to Sir W .

Hooker for his donation,and to Sir C . E . Trevelyan for his kind

ness in bringing the plant to Madras .

Resolved also,that H is Excellency the Honorable Sir C . E .

Trevelyan be requested to accept the office of Patron to this Society, vacated by the departure of the Right Honorable Lord Harris .Resolved also

,that the co rdial thanks of the C ommittee be con

v eyed to the Right Honorable Lord Harris , for the great interest

invariably exhibited by him in the success of the Gardens , and for

his frequent and valuable contributions to the collection of the

Society .

Resolved , that the follow in g seeds be obtained from England

for distribution to Members of the Society in the course of the

pre sent year under the usual arrangements . (This list is n o t pub

l ished in consequence of its length , but copies of it w ill be for

w arded to all Members of the Society, and may be obtain ed gratis

from the Superintendent at the Gardens,or from the Secretary at

his residence . )Resolved

,that all packets of seeds not required by Members are

to be disposed of to the public generally at a moderate charge ,and that application for them may be registered by the Superin

tendent at the Gardens .

The C ommittee having reason to Zbel ieve that the existence of

an entrance fee, prevents many persons from becoming Memberso f the Society, it isResolved, that the entrance fee of 1 0 Rupees shall be abolished .

This rule to have effect fr om and after 1 st A pril 1 859, subj ect tothe confirmat ion of the next General Quarterly Meeting to be heldon 2udWednesday in July .

A PRIL— S E PT .P roceedings. 207

The C ommittee observe that the General Meetings of the Socie

ty as ordered in para . 28 of the Regulations , have not for the past

few years been regularly held , but their revival seems desirable as

affording to the Members generally an opportunity of becoming

acquainted w ith the practical working of the Society and its pro

gress .

The follow ing gentlemen are unanimously elected as Members of

the Society . G . L . Nursin ga R ow ,Esq . , R . S . J . Prendergast, Esq . ,

C aptain A . H . Hope , T . Franck , Esq . , E . R . G . Fane , Esq . , Major

Black,M . A .

,and C apt . J . G . Palmer, 1 5 th Regiment N . I .

Business n o t being concluded at o ’ clock A . M .,

The Meeting was adj ourned to 20th instant at the usual hour .

Proceedings of a Meeting of the C ommittee held on Friday,

6 th M ay, 1 859.

PRE S E NT .

C olonel Reid , 0 . B . ,A . J . Scott, Esq . , M . D .

,

H . F . C . C leghorn , Esq ., M . D . , R . Hunter, Esq . ,

C olonel McC al ly ,H . B . Montgomery

,Esq . , M . D .

,

Read the follow ing, which has been referred to the Society by

order of Government .

E xtract from the M inutes of C on sul tation , under date the 1 0 th

February, 1 859.

Read the following letter from Surgeon EDW A RD B A LFOUR,

Officer in charge of the Government C entral Museum to T . PY

CROF T , Esq . ,C hief Secretary to G overnment Fort Saint George

,

dated 8th February 1 859, No . 41 .

S un—The Members of G overnment are,I believe , aware that

Mr . R . Fortune is n ow for a fourth time in C hina,to gather for

the United States,supplies of plants suitable for introduction into

the Union .

2 . I observe it stated in the Proceedings of the A nniversary

General Meeting of the A gricultural and Horticultural Society of

208 P roceedings. [No . 9, N E W S E RI E S .

India , held on the 1 2th Ultimo and reported at page 2 1 4 , Volume

II , No . 44 of C alcutta I ndian Field New spaper,that the Society

has re-opened communication w ith Mr . Fortune, who has promised

to obtain seeds and plan ts in C hina for th e Society .

3 . A lthough Mr . Fortune in his second and third visits to C hina(see A g . Hort . Soc . o f India

'

s Proceedings for 1 8 54 and 1 8 5 5)sent to C alcutta many valuable plants and seeds

,this part of India

does not seem to benefit by such acts . Of the rarer and finer tea

plants of undoubted value , which he introduced amon gst the

Southern slopes of the Himalayas , I have n o t learned that even

on e variety has ev er been brought to our mountains , and of the

valuable and famed Green Dye Plant o f C hina,a large stock o f

which is available in the C alcutta Society ’ s Gardens,the Madras

Presidency has none .

4 . I have w ritten on the last subj ect to the Board of Revenue ,but address Government on the advantages of some Body or Board

opening a communication w ith Mr . Fortune , on behalf of this

Presidency .

True C opy,(Signed) T . PY C R OF T .

With reference to the foregoing , the C ommitte e regret that, as

all experiments upon Tea should be cultivated in a lat itude very

different from Madras , it is entirely out of their pow er to conduct

under their own observation any investigation into the pos sibilityof propagatin g this useful plant . But fully recognizing the desirability of its introduction into Southern India , they consider thatthe matter is w ell w orthy of the attention of the cultivators whoseestates are situated on the slopes of the Neilgherries and in the

Wyn aad. They therefore direct that Copy of this letter and of

their proceedings to-day be despatched to the Planters’

A ssociation

in the Wyn aad, and to such gentlemen as cultivate large tracts o f

land in these districts . It is further resolved that, should any

Gentleman be anxious to make trial of the Tea plants from C hina ,this Society w ill be glad to assist him in procuring plants .A s concerns the Green Dye , it is resolved, That a letter be

despatched to A . H . B lechynden , E sq .,Secretary of the A gri-H or

ticul tural S ociety o f India for some plants of the green dye plant

(Ruellia) of C hina for culture in these gardens. The C ommittee

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2 10 P roceedings. [No . 9, N E W snmn s .

Proceedings of a Meeting of the C ommittee held a t the G arden s

on Wednesday,J une 1 5 th

, 1 8 59.

H on’bleW . Elliot Esq A . Scott, Esq .

,M . D .

C olonel McC al ly, H . B . Montgomery, Esq . , M . D .

R . Hunter, E sq .

,S ecretary .

C olon el C olbeck ,

The Secretary submits to the C ommittee the follow ing printednotices , (1 ) of the Plants available at the G ardens , (2) of the consignmen ts of Seeds for 1 8 59and (3) Of the lists Of Prizes propo sed

to be given at the next annual show at the G ardens , intended tobe held in February 1 860 . A copy of the list of Members of theSociety and the Rules and Regulations of it is also submitted .

C opies of these tw o Pamphlets have been dis tributed to all Mem

bers of the Society .

R eso lved that copies o f these are to be also sent to all persons

requiring information , to all Gentlemen arrivin g at Madras , and to

al l persons who applied for Seeds last year . They may be had a t

the Gardens from the Superintendent,gratis .

Read the follow in g

C hamber of C ommerce , Madras 25th May , 1 8 59.

T O H . B . MONT G OME RY , Esq .

, M . D . , Secretary A gri-H orticul

tural Society,Madra s .

S I R ,— B y desire o f the C hamber Of C ommerce , I have the plea

sure to transmit copy of a letter from Mr . Thwaites , the Directorof the Botanic Garden at Paraden ia, C eylon , to Mr . G o ldingham,

M . c . s .,on the subj ect of improving the indigenous C otton of I n

dia .

This communication w ill no doubt prove of interest to yourC ommittee .

I have the honor to be Sir ,

Your most obedient servant,H . NE LS ON ,

C ha irman .

Paraden ia, C eylon , 24th March , 1 8 59.

MY DE A R S I R ,— I am glad to hear that a decided effort is to be

made to g ive an impetus to an extensive cultivation o f C otton , for

the English Market, in the Madras Presidency, and I trust it w ill

be attended with every wished for success .

A PRIL— S E PT . Proceedings . 2 1 1

It has occurred to me , as there w ould probably be some diffi

culty in getting the superior descripti ons of A merican C otton ac

climated in any moderate space Of time , that attempts to improve

the Native C otton are w ell w orthy of consideration,and I w ould

suggest that systematic experiments should be made of crossing

the native kinds w ith the Bourbon Sea Island ,” and New

O rleans” varieties . In conductin g the operation the same plan

should be adopted and the same precaution s observed that are ta

ken in crossing valuable flow ers and fruits, w ith such signal suco

cess,in Europe . A n intelligent, active and conscientious person

should be employed, who w ould give the experiment a fair trial :for

,if the result should be the obtain ing a variety of C o tton

hardy , prolifi c and of superior staple, the ben efi t w ould be almost

incal culable whilst, if the experimen t should not end in so favor

able a manner as could be desired , a problem of very great intere st

w ould have been solved , as to the affinity the several varieties of

C otton bear to one another .

The follow in g is the plan I should recommend being adopted in

carrying out the experiment .

A moderate number Of each of the several varieties of superior

C o tton should be planted and carefully cul tivated ; each kind being kept separate . The Native C otton should be planted in a

certain number of rows, and of so many of these row s all the plants

should have their flow ers crossed by one description of superior

C otton — the plants of so many other row s by another description

Of superior C otton,and so on — and each flower , when crossed ,

might be marked by a small piece of coloured tw ine bein g tied to

its stalk .

The ripe seeds obtained from these crossed flow ers should be

sewn in distinct patches ,— that is to say— those resulting from the

cross w ith the Bourbon in one place,those from the New

Orleans” in another, and so on for the rest .

WVhen the plants raised from these seeds come into bearing , a

great diversity w ould probably be exhibited by them respectively,as regards healthy appearance , prol ifi cness and the quality of the

staple . The inferior ones should be pulled up and thrown away,and the better kinds retained and numbered

, and their compara

tive qualities well examined and recorded .

2 12 Proceedings. [NO . 9, N E W S E RI E S .

If it should be found that real progress had been made towards

improvement of the Native C otton, the system of crossing might

be still further carried on , using the plants of the already improv

ed stock , instead of those of the original Native kind , for cro ssing

upon : and this operation might be carried on for several genera

tions of plants until the maximum improv ement should be con si

dered to have been realised .

Believe me,&c .

,

(Signed) G . H . T H W A I'

I‘

E B .

T o J . G OLD I N G H A M ,E sq .

, &c .,&c .

The C ommittee consider the foregoing proposition as exceed

ingly ingenious and likely to prove a means of improving Native

C otton , so as to produce from it an article of good staple .

In recording their thanks to the C hamber of C ommerce , for the

opportunity afforded them Of perusing Mr . Thwaites’ letter , the

C ommittee determine to draw up a brief memorandum Of the best

method of Hybridising (or crossing) C otton this w ill be submit

ted at the next Meeting and w ill be communicated to the C ham

ber of C ommerce and the B oard of Revenue ; and also be pub

l ished in extenso in the proceedings Of the next Meeting of the

C ommittee .

They also determine to make enquiry as to how far the resultsof the experiments in C otton by Dr . W ight can be made known

to,and useful to the public .

Read letter from the Right B ou’ble Lord Harris ackn owledg

ing the vote of thanks passed by the C ommittee in ackn ow ledg

ment of his Lordship ’ s constant interest in this Society .

Resolved,that under Regulation 5

,the name of the Right

H onorable Lord Harris be added to the list Of extraordinary Mem

bers of the Society,and that his Lordship be duly informed of

this resolution .

Read letter from R . D . Parker,Esq .

,resigning his seat on the

C ommittee , in consequence of his final return to Europe .

This vacancy and those occasioned by the departure fromMadras

of S . D . Birch , Esq . ,and J . Young

,Esq . ,

and on e other before

existing, are proposed to be filled up by the n omination of the

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2 1 4 Proceedings . [NO 9, N E W S E RI E S .

In November .

S eeds— H on'

bleW . Elliot .

C . M . Teed E sq .

,

C olonel McMahon .

In December .1 0 0 0

H on’bl eW . Elliot 2 0 O

T rees —J H ow ell , E sq 1 8 O

In the general C ash Book , a number o f items are credited for

seeds and plants which have n o corresponding entries in the DayBook .

By the B ank Pass Book it appears that the C ash balance at

credit was in January, Rs . -3-2 , whilst the balance in the

general C ash A ccount is Rs . -8-2 .

A gain in July by the Bank’ s account , the balance at credit isshown to be -8 -2 , whereas in the general C ash A ccount, it

is stated to be Rs . -8 -2 .

Further on the 3 1 st December, the C ash balance at the Bank isstated to be -8-2 , and the total credit balance including C ash

in hand Rs . -4-1 0 instead of R s.-44 0 . The difference

is perhaps to be accounted for by the omission Of Mr . G oo l den ’

s

subscription o f 14 Rs . in A ugust . The discrepancies above point

ed out w ill probably be explained , and may arise from the imper

fect system in which the accounts are kept ; w e may instance that

no corresponding entries are made in the Books for payments orreceipts from the Bank o f Madras , the balance only being shown

by a note at foot of the monthly statemen t in the general C ash

Book .

We w ould therefore respectfully suggest,l st . That a daily C ash Book be kept in which every tran sac

tion whether of payment or receipt be entered on its proper dateand that it be examined weekly by the S ecretary and signed by him.

That the entries from this Book be posted in to the General

Ledger .

That an abstract o f the monthly wages and petty disbursementsbe submitted to the Secretary and signed by him.

A PRIL— S E PT . Proceedings. 2 1 5

The Title Deeds of the G arden we w ould , in conclusion , suggestbeing deposited for safe custody w ith the Bank of Madras.

J . G OOLDE N,

ROB E R T HUNT E R .

Madras,February 1 5 th

,1 8 59.

Memorandum on Messrs . G oolden and Hunter’ s report on the

accounts of the A gri-Horticultural Society,dated the 1 5th ultimo .

l st . Mr . G oo lden ’

s subscription paid on the 23rd A ugust, was

found to have been omitted when the accounts w ere summed up at

the end of the year, and was entered into the Income account

drawn up for the Secretary, but was not credited to the Society inthe General C ash book

,prior to its being sent for audit .

2 . The accounts mentioned as paid , w ere in arrears at the en d

Of D ecember 1 85 8 , and were paid and marked so in the Bill Book

in Jan uary, which w ill be seen by the Income account for that

mon th .

R . BROW N , Superintendent .

Hort . Gardens,8 th March , 1 859.

The Secretary intimates that he has examined the a ccounts and

finds the foregoing strictly correct He also informs the meeting

that since l st January 1 859, the accounts have been kept in theprescribed form and since examined by him and found corre ct .

The accounts are n ow audited by him every w eek , and w ill be

submitted to the monthly meeting of the C ommittee hence

forward . This arrangemen t is approved .

The Title Deeds have been made over to the Secretary Of theMadras Bank

, whose acknowledgemen t is to be retained by the

Secretary of the Society .

T he C ommittee acknow ledge w ith many thanks the receipt of asmall packet of C hina Peas from C aptain Proudfoot . These are

to be sown in the gardens for experiment .

The follow ing gentlemen are unanimously ele cted Members of

the Society .

T . G . C larke,E sq . ,

R . Sladen,E sq .

,J . W . Mudge , E sq . ,

A . H .

Sullivan , E sq . , C . S .

,T . Pritchard

,Esq . ,

and C aptain Obbard .

Notice is to be given to all Members in,or near

,Madras, that

the A nnual Meetin g for the nomination O f Offi ce Bearers and t o

2 1 6 Proceedings . (NO . 9, N E W sE R I R s.

receive the Report Of the C ommittee , will take place on FridayJuly 1 5th , at 6 A . M . precisely . A full attendance of Members is

earnestly solicited .

The follow ing Members are to be constituted into a Sub-C om

mittee to revise the rules and regulations and to prepare an A nnual

Report .

H on .W . E l l io t,Esq .

,C ol .Mc C ally,H . B . Montgomery , Esq . , M . D .

The Secretary intimates that the Proceedings of the S ociety w il 1

be henceforward re published in the Journal of the Madras Literary

Society .

The next Meeting w ill be held on Wednesday 1 3 th Of July,when the Sub-C ommitt ee w ill present their Report for approval .Until further orders the Meetings of the Society are appointed to

take place at 6 A . M .

WA LTE R ELLIOT,C hairman .

HOWA RD B . MONT G OM E RY , M . D .,S ecretary .

A nnual [Meeting of the A gricul tura l and H orticul tura l S ociety

of z ldadras .

The "

A nnual Meeting Of the above Society was held on Friday

the 22nd July 1 859, and was attended by the following Members .

Sir A dam B it tleston , Kt . ,C aptain Hope ,

C olonel G . W . Y . Simpson,

C . Dale , Esq .,

C olonel R . Hamilton , R . Hunter, Esq .,

A . J . Scott, Esq .

, M . D . , Major Black,

Dr . J . G . Shaw , Dr . Montgomery, S ecretary .

D r . Mudge ,(Before the opening of the Meeting , the Members present sat in

C ommittee to examine the proposed rules which w ere slightlyaltered by them).This having been done , it w as proposed by C olonel Simpson and

seconded by C . Dale , Esq .

, that Sir A dam B itt leston do take theC hair .

S I R A DA M B I T T L E S T ON in the C hair .

T he Secretary, in the unavoidable absence of the President of

the C ommittee (H on’

ble WT Elliot,Esq . ) re ad the following

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2 1 8 Proceedings . [NO . 9, N E W S E R I E s .

A nnua l E xhibitions— T wo have taken p lace , on e in February1 8 5 8 , and one in February 1 859. T he former Of these w as suc

cessful and w ell attended by the Public . Before the Show of the

present year,the C ommittee had submitted to them the desirabi

l ity of preventing , as far as possible , the unnecessary crowding of

the Garden, on these occasions , during the inspection of the

Judges,and while the Members o f the Society might desire to

examine carefully the Flow ers, Fruits and Vegetables exhibited .

It was therefore resolved to issue admission tick ets to Members

and their friends , and to postpone the admission Of the general

public until after 12 o ’ clock .

Ticke ts w ere how ever freely distributed on that occasion to all

persons,but henceforward the rules , on this point , which w ere

passed last January,and which are n ow submitted for approval

, w il l

be enforced .

The last Exhibition was unusual ly successful ow ing to the active

exertions Of C olonel C olbeck , Mr . Maclagan , the Secretary, and

the Superintendent to whom the thanks of the C ommittee and of

the Society are due .

W ith reference to all future Exhibitions , the list Of Prizes to be

offered are to be prepared as long before as practicable . The

C ommittee w ould suggest that at the meeting next succee ding each

A nnual Exhibition, the list of prizes and rules for the following

year shall be determined on as far as possible . This has been al

ready done as concerns the next Exhibition . The Regulation s

for Visitors and E xhibitors in the Show for 1 860 are already in the

possession of the Members of the Society . It is considered desira

ble that these Regulations shall be incorporated in the rules of

the Society, so that all persons anxious to be informed on such

points can be furnished w ith the required information in the same

pamphlet which details the names of Members and the general re

gulation s of the Society .

Proceedings of the-C ommittee.

-The C ommittee consisting of 1 2

Members w ith the President and Vice Presidents of the Society

have continued to meet regul arly on ce a month at the Gardens , incompliance w ith the resolution of the A nnual Meeting of 1 840

,and

the requisite publicity has been given to their Proceedings by the

publication of them in the leading newspapers at the Presidency .

A rR I L—S R P T .Proceedings. 2 19

A rrangements were also made whereby copies Of them in a sepa

rate form w ere procured and forw arded to all Members gra tis .

The Proceedings of the Society have also been included among

those which it is proposed to insert in the Madras Journal of Lite ~

rature and Science where they w ill find a permanent record of easyaccess .

It is hoped that the foregoing ‘ may be productive of increased

interest on the part of the public in the w orking o f the Society,and the C ommittee w ould receive w ith much pleasure for consider

ation at their Meetings any notes or papers treating of practical

subj ects or containing suggestions or facts relative to the cult ivation of useful or ornamental plants .

A lthough it is not possible to recapitulate all the subj ects which

have engaged the attention of the C ommittee during the past 1 8

months,and which may be regarded as of genera l in terest, yet they

desire to allude more particularly to those points relative to the

cultivation of C otton which have come before them . T wo tons of

New Orleans C otton seed , sent out to the Society by the Manches

ter C otton Supply A ssociation , w ere transferred to Government

w ith t he suggestion that quantitie s of seeds might be transferred

gratis at G overnment expense to the C ollectors of the several dis

tricts Of the Presidency w ith a view to their being placed , w ithout

charge , at the disposal of any persons anxious to introduce the cul

t ivation of this valuable specie s Of exo tic co tton . A pamphlet de

tailing the method Of cultivation of it was also recommended to be

published and w idely circulated at Government expense . B oth

these recommendations have been approved by Government and

are n ow being carried out . The C ommittee hope to have the plea

sure Of hereafter reporting favorably upon the result of the attempt ,thus made

,to naturalize on e of the most productive spe cie s of this

valuable plant . On this latter point,the C ommittee desire to refer

to the very interesting letter contained in their Proceedings of the

1 5th of June in which Mr . Thwaites advocates that experiments

should be made systematically of crossing the best kinds of native

C otton w ith“Bourbon,

” Sea Island” and“New O rleans C o t

ton . The C ommittee having given their full consideration to thissuggestion consider it to be o f a most valuable description and

purpose republishing the letter alluded to , togetherwith a memo

220 P roceedings . [No . 9, N E W S E RI E S .

randum of the best method Of carrying it into effect,in the pro

ceedings of the next monthlymeeting to be held on the 3rdproximo .

Managemen t of the G ardens—During the period under notice,

the Society’ s Garden has been much improved in general appear

ance and condition by a strict attention to its internal arran ge

ments,and this w ithout any increase in its fixed establishment, or

current expenses . A dditional walks have been made allow ing of

free access to every part of it . A quantity of brush wood has been

removed from the bottom of the Tope , in the centre of the Garden ,by which the circulation of air has been increased and the pic

turesque appearance of the Garden much enhanced . The hedges

and shrubberies have been thinned and dressed . The o ld tank has

been repaired and several orn amental shrubs planted on the Lawn .

Gates have been erected at all the entrances to the Garden s , and

the formation Of a tree nursery has already been commen ced . A

n ew tank for the exhibition ofWater flowers is n ow in course of

construction and w ill probably prove a considerable attrac tion to

visitors .

4 Specimens of the Manilla Hemp plant [Musa T er til is/ have

b een successfully introduced . These w ere received from C ol . B al

four, 0 . B . , in February 1 8 5 8 . The plants are n ow 20 feet high

and are thriving in every respect as vigorously as the commonplantain . Man y o ther useful and interesting plants have been in

troduced into the Gardens . A mong these may be mentioned the

true W est India Ginger, roots of which were brought from C eylonby Mr . G o l din gham. Plants of these may be had on appl ication

to the Sup erintendent . The Sorghum brought to notice by Mr .

Balfour w as also grown successfully . The Ife { S ansievera C ylindica/ forwarded by Sir W'

. Hooker, F . L . s . , has also been suc

cessful .

Large collections of A ustralian Seeds have been presen ted by

C olonel C . A . Browne and C olon el Lawford and the col lection Of

O rchis has been enri ched by valuable contributions from Maj or

G eneral J ohnson and others . A system of C orresp ondence is n owbeing organized whereby a mutual interchange of plants can beeffected .

F inances of the S ociety .—The accounts for the year 1 85 8

have been submitted to the A uditors and been found by them to

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“222 Proceedings . [NO . 9

, N E W S E RIE S

This amended code of Regulations is n ow submitted for favour

able consideration .

Proposed by C olonel Hamilton , and secon ded by Dr . Shaw , that

the foregoing Report be adopted , printed and circulated w ith a

list of all Members and w ith the Regulations of the Society as revised and approved this day . C arried un an imously .

Proposed by C aptain Hope , and seconded by Maj or Black , thatthe follow ing gentlemen constitute the C ommi ttee for the year

1 859-60 , under the plan proposed in the A nnual Report, and that

Dr . Montgomery be requested to continue his services as Secre

tary . C arried unan imously .

The H on’ble W . Elliot, Esq .

, G . S . Hooper , E sq .

,Lieu t . C ol .

A . McC al ly, A . J . A rbuthnot, Esq ., H . F . C . C leghorn , Esq .

,M . D . ,

Lieut . C o l . H . C olbeck , C . Dale , Esq .

,J . Goolden

,Esq . ,

R . Hun

ter,Esq .

,A . J . Scott, Esq .

, M . D .

, J . D . S im,Esq

, ,H . Fletcher,

Esq . ,Rev . J . R . Mac farlan e , C ol . G . W . Y . Simpson

,and A . M .

Ritchie,Esq .

Proposed by Maj or Black and seconded by Dr . Mudge , thatthe thanks of the Meetin g be offered t o the C hairman for his

obliging conduct in the chair .

A . B I T T LE S T ON, C hairman .

H . B . MONT G OME RY,M . D . , S ecy .

P roceedings of a Fl eeting of the C ommittee held a t the G ardens

on Wednesday ,A ugust 3 rd, 1 8 59.

PRE S E NT .

Hon . Walter E lliot , Esq . Rev . J . R . Macfarlane,and

C olonel Simpson . H . B . Montgomery,Esq .

,M . D . ,

S ecretary .

Dr . G . J . Shaw , Visitor .

The C ommittee unanimously nominate the Hon . Walter Elliot

E sq ., to be C hairman, which Office is accepted by that gentleman

in whose absence , the C ommittee will elect a President for the day .

A PRIL—S E PT .P roceedings. 223

Read letter from Mr . A . T Jaffrey, presenting Six C opie s Of

the C alendar of Operations , being NO . 5 Of his Hints to

Amateur Gardeners .Resolved

,that the thanks of the Society be conveyed to Mr .

Jaffrey.This pamphlet promise s to be useful to Gardeners , and

gives in a convenient form the leading particulars necessary to the

cultivation of the,

ordinary de scriptions of European and Indian

flowers , fruits and vegetables.

Read the follow ing which has been placed at the disposal of

the Society by Government .

Memorandum on the hybridizing of C otton , &c .

A s the improvement and increase of C ot ton cultivation is ocen

pyin g a prominent place amongst the passing events o f the day ,

information from all available quarters w ill undoubtedly be sought

for.

‘

A nd as the theory of cross impregnating the variety cultivated

in this country, w ith exotic varietie s of Gossypium or (vice versa)

has been brought under consideration a few practical remarks at

the present junction may be useful .

It is w ell known to such as are acquainted w ith the H orticul

tural world that imp ortant advantages have been obtained by

cross breeding , the amelioration of fruits,flow ers and vege tables

,

in England and elsew here has proved beyond a doubt that the

vegetable kingdom is susceptible of receiving sexual impressions

when the plants manipulated upon combine a versimil itude of

structure,&c .

, that is to say when species of the same genera areacted upon such as cotton w ith cotton

,apples w ith apples

, &c .

Hybridizing is probably on e of the most important items in

Hor ticulture in a commercial point of view , and w ith all due de

ference to the suggestions of impregnating varieties Of cotton for

the purpose Of improving the staple article of the country,and oh

taining hardier varietie s , a difference of opinion , it is trusted, w ill

not be considered in the light o f attempting to throw cold w ater

upon the theory brought forth by them,no doubt cotton w ill re

ceive sexual impressions equally w ith other genera and specie s in

the vegetable kingdom, and could undoubtedly be multiplied intoinnumerable varieties . What could be accomplished

,w ould no

doubt be invaluable towards proving the affinity of different cot s

224 Proceedings. [No . 9, N E W S E RI E S .

tons un der cultivation in various parts of the w orld,— decided that

the properties of the Native cotton could be improved by inter

mixture w ith exotic varieties , and that a quality of cotton w as produced worth double the value Of that cultivated at presen t . A

query arises that requires an answer ; have the qualities so pro

duced become amalgamated w ith the structure and juices o f the

psuedo-variety so as to ensure a perpetuation o f the improve

ment obtained .

The modes adopted to perpetuate the improved fruits and flow

ers , in other countries raise a doubt . In the generality of cases

the seeds obtained from the improved varieties do n o t perpe tuate

the improvement— they either go back to the original or produc e

inferior sub~varietie s , thus proving that the seed Obtained from the

impregnated plant alone conveys the change , and the only mode of

keeping up the varieties obtained is by cuttings and grafts and

such like operations . Upon this subj ec t information is much w ant

ed,herbs and vegetables have been improved and the improve

ment continues from carefully preserved seeds , but how orwhy the

same do es n o t in flowers or fruits remain in obscurity ; draw ing

conclusions from what has been done by physiologis ts in investigating and eliciting information on the subj ect of cross-impregna

tion,a doubt as to the practicability of produc ing hardy or accl i

matiz ing exotic varieties of cotton certainly exists , at least in so

far as obtaining a permanent improvement ; that cross-impregna

tion has been on e of the triumphs of cultivation c annot be doubted,

a trial of cotton might certainly be made . Science w ould be satis

fi ed and an impulse given to commerce if an improvement which

could be perpe tuated was obtained on an article of so much value

to En gland as cotton .

Whatever planmay be adopted towards the furtherance of increasing the value and cultivation o f C otton in India

,the time has

certain ly arrived to steer by the infallible compass Of truth”

hitherto the subj ect has had sufficiency of ideas expended whether

they were foolish or wise ideas that have not at any rate proved

progressive towards the desired end .

O ther plans might be adopted towards acclimatizing exotic va

rieties of C otton , viz ., grow ing the seed for a year or two on poor

soil in a medium climate , seed might even be raised in Madras or

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226 Proceedings. [No . 9, N E W sE R I E s .

In conclusion the introduction of foreign seed is a w ork t of time,

and.as hitherto proved of doubtful utility . Impregnation is more

doubtful still,but the improved cultivation of the native cotton

can go on at once , Observations can be made if it does not contain

improvable elements w ithin itself, time is money ,” ”and before

a complete change could take place in the cultivation and acoli

matiz ing n ew varieties , years w ill have passed away -and it is very

uncertain, if suc cess w ould be attained at the end .

(Signed) A . T . JA FFRE Y .

In republishing the foregoing, the C ommittee do n o t think it

necessary to enter upon the several questions and Obj ections raised

by Mr . Jaffrey. They consider t he suggestion contained in Mr .

Thwaites’ letter worthy Of a fair trial, andz trust that it may be car

ried into practical effect, so as to -te st the points at issue fully and

satisfactorily .

T oo great care cannot be taken , however , in‘ guarding against

the possibility Of the style being fertilized by the pollen of its own

stamens and to prevent this , the latter should be removed before

the full development of the flower . The pollen which it is desiredto transfer to the ‘

styleof the inferior variety can be easily shaken

Off from the stamens of the better plant, if these are removed en

masse” on the'

perfection of the flower to which they belong . The

New O rleans C otton may be seen grow ing in the G ardens and the

perfect flowers examined by Visitors .

The C ommittee republish the following on the Obj ect to be attained by hybridizing C otton .

Paraden ia, C eylon, 24th March , 1 859,My dear Sir,— I am glad to hear that a

‘

decided effort is to be

made to give an impetus to an extensive cultivation of C otton,for

the English Market in the Madras Presidency, and I trust it w ill

be attended with every wished-for success .

It has occurred to me , as there w ould probably be some diffi cul

ty in'

getting the superior descriptions of A merican C otton'

accl i

mated in any moderate space of time, that attempts to improve theN ative C otton arejwel l worthy of consideration, and I would sug

gest that systematic experiments should be made '

of crossing the

Native kinds with the B ourbon,”

Sea Island,”and New

A PR I L—SE PT . Proceedings . 227

Orleans varieties . In conducting the operation; the same plan

should be adopted and the same precautions observed that are

taken in crossing valuable flowers and fruits , w ith such signal suc

cess,in Europe . A n intelligent , active and conscientious person

should be employed , who w ould give the experiment a fair trial , for

if the . result should be the Obtaining a variety of cotton—hardy,prolific and of the superior staple , the benefit w ould be almost

in calculable , whilst if the experiment should not end in so favour

able a manner as could be desired, a problem of very great inter

est would have been solved , as to the affinity the several varieties

of cot ton bear to on e another .

The follow ing is the plan I should recommend being adopted in

carrying out the experiment .

A moderate number of each of the several varieties of superior

C otton should be planted and carefully cultivated,each kind being

kept separate . The Native C otton should be planted in a certain

number of row s , and of so many of these row s all the plants should

have their flow ers crossed by one description of superior C otton

the plants of so many other row s by another description of superior

C otton ,and so on and each flower, when crossed, might be

marked by a small piece Of coloured twine being tied to its stalk .

The ripe seeds Obtained from these crossed flowers should be

sown in distinct patches ,— that is to say— those resulting from

the cro ss w ith the Bourbon” in on e place , those from the New

Orleans” in another, and so on for the rest .

When the plants raised from these seeds come into bearing , agreat diversity w ould probably bee xhibited by them, respectively,as regards healthy appearance , pro l ifi cness and the quality , of the

staple . The inferior ones should be pulled up and thrown aw ay,and the better kinds retained and numbered, and their comparative

qualities w ell examined and recorded .

If it should be found that real progres s had been made towards

improvement Of the Native C otton, the system of crossing might be

still fur ther carried on , using the plants of the already improved

stock , instead Of those of the,original Native kind, for crossing

upon and this operation might be carried on for several genera.

228 Proceadz ngs. [NO . 9, N E W S E RI E S .

tions of plants until the maximum improvement should be consi

dered to have been realised .

B elieve me , &c . ,

(Signed) G . H . THWA ITE S .

A ny person desirous Of making experiments as suggested above

may obtain from the G ardens a small supply of the New Orleans

C ot ton seed . A nd the C ommittee would feel obliged by any de

tailed accoun t s of such experiments for publication in their pro

ceedings .

The following directions in Mr . Thwaites and Mr . Jaffrey’

s let

ters must be carefully observed in carrying out the.systematic hy

bridz ing of Native C otton .

The C ommittee desire to acknowledge the receipt from Dr .

Mudge O f a packet of seeds said to belong to a bright yellow

Showy C reeper from the woods of Newara Ellia . Some other

seeds , under Dr . Mudge’ s care , have produced healthy plants ,

which have not, however yet flowered .

Resolved, to send some Of the seeds n ow received to the Laul

Baugh Gardens , Bangalore , where Mr . New is requested to give

them a fair trial . Some seeds will als o be forwarded to U taca

mand (O otacamund) to Mr . McI vor. The seeds seem to belong

to a specie s of C rotolaria, but it is feared that they may not be w ell

suited to this climate as the place from which they have been

brought is considerably above the level of the sea .

The monthly accounts are submitted and approved .

The follow ing Gentlemen are elected Members of the Society

w ith effect from 1 st July.

A mir U d Dowlah , Major Lawder, 44th Regt . N . L, Rev . P . Per~.

cival , F . B . Maloney, Esq . , C . S . and Maj or Orr.

The next Meeting w ill be held on Wednesday the 7th Septem

ber , at 6 A . M . , at the Gardens when the attendance of Members

as visitors is requested .

W A LTE R ELLIOT , C hairman .

H . B . MONT G OME RY,M . D . ,

S ecretary .

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230 Proceedings. [NO . 9, N E W S E R I E S .

The S ecretary submi ts papers showing the disposal of the vege

table seeds received in July . By these it appears that all Mem

bers have received one packet of seeds, and those remaining have

been disposed of.

The second supply of vegetable seeds and a consignment Of

flower seeds w ere received by last mail, and these w ill be distrr

buted to Members in a few days .

Several applications already received from private persons will

be then complied w ith , and any pers on anxious to purchase pack

ets of seeds can d o so . Each packet of seeds is s old at 5 Rupees .

A s the Flower seeds received are slightly different from those

ordered , the C ommittee direct the publication of the following

List of

Mign ion et te. Browallia alata .

Balsam (fine mixed .) Brachycome (mixed )Phlox Drummondii (Vain) JE n o thera.

C arnation (mixed ) Larkspur (mixed )C ol liopsis. Indian Pink .

A n terrhinum. Nalana Prostrata (mixed )Petun ea. Helichrysum Bracteatum.

Sweet Peas . Viscoria O culata .

Scarlet Geranium . Martynia fragrans .French Marygold . S anvitatia Procumbens .Mesembryanthemum . E rysium perowskianum.

Nasturtion s . C yanus (n ew varieties . )Maurandya. Z inia elegans do

.

Portulaceae. Salvia (mixed )Holly hock . Lobelia (mixed )Lophospermum Scandens .

A supply of seeds from B angalore has been o rdered and its receipt and varieties included in it w ill be notified in due course .

The C ommittee have to acknowledge w ith thanks the rece ipt of

two packets Of seeds from Dr . C leghorn . One contains whiteHolly hock , Spanish Broom , Lophospermum, C hickrassia tabularisthe other, Indigofera, Pulchella . Swaen son ia

,. Satinwood, C hitta

gongwood, Mauramday B arclayan a, C oonoor Orange (fine variety. )

A PRIL—S E PT . Proceedings. 23 1

The follow ing G entlemen are unanimously elected Members of

the Society .

C . Pelly, Esq .,C . S .

W . B . H ulhed, Esq .

A mir U d Dowlah kindly O ffered to place at the disposal of theC ommittee any fruit trees which they might desire .

The C hairman expressed his sense of the courtesy of this offer

of which the C ommittee w ill gladly avail themselves .

The next Meeting is appointed to be held on Wednesday

O ctober 5 th, when any Member w ishing to attend is invited to do

so .

G . S . HOOP E R , Presiden t .H . B . MONT G OME RY , M . D . , S ecretary .

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MA DR A S J OU R NA L

L I T E R A T U R E A ND S C I E N C E .

NO. 10.

—NEW SER IE S .

October~ March, 1859-60.

X . On the R ep ort Of the S ub C ommittee appoin ted to consider

the question of writing Orien ta l words in R oman C haracters.

By W . H . B A YLE Y , E so ., M .

I HA VE lately received a printed copy of the Report of the Sub

C ommittee appointed to consider the question of writing Oriental

w ords in Roman characters , and as a Member of that S ub-C om

mittee I request the consideration of the Society to a few Obser

vation s which I have to make on that Report . It w as prepared

by Mr . W . E lliot after Mr . Norman and myself left:India, but as

w e had previously consulted together (not as fully as we w ould

have done had health permitted) and had each written a memo .

(mine is in pages 29— 50 of the printed Pamphlet) w e authorised

Mr . Elliot to append our names as soon as he could complete the

Report, which he has most ably accomplished, still there are some

points, which either Mr . Elliot did not recollect, or which did no t

Occur for discussion, on which I cannot quite coincide w ith the

Report as it stands , and as it appears that G overnment have

adopted the scheme set forth in that Report,I beg my remarks

may be laid before them .

Firstly . I Observe that the long accent marks to the San skrit

and H indfi stan i vowels e and O are omitted in page 9. It is true,

as stated in page 1 2,that they are always long ,

and if our scheme

was limited to H indfi stan i, there would not be much (though still

VOL . xx . 0 . s. VOL . V I I . N . s.

236 On writing Orien tal w ords [No . 1 0, N E W S E R I E S .

some) obj ection . But when we desire to frame a romanised al

phabet to in clude Tamil and Telugu , it is absolutely necessary todist inguish the lon g e and 0 from the short, as in the above men

t ioned two lan guages there is a short e , and a short 0 . I think

the error must have arisen from a mis-print, and should at once

be rectified . I made some observations on this point in my

Memo .

”

(p . 33 of the printed Pamphlet . )

Secondly . I obj ect to the same letter and symbol,namely ‘

s,”

being used to represent the Sanskrit I f, and the A rabicU ‘

" T he

Report in p . 7quotes Sir W . Jones , but he only speaks of a p robable resemblance , and I think no O riental scholar of the present

day w ould cons ider the two letters similar in sound . The San

skrit letter has a soun d of sh” in it, which the A rabic letter has

not . It is rendered in H industani w ords byU2 (vide Shak

spear’ s Dictionary and Grammar) never byup

. It is rendered in

Telugu by a”, in which a sound of sh is recognized . It is the

first letter of such words as Shiva ,” Shudra

,

”Shrotriyam,

”

Shaster,” thus exhibiting a sound quite different from

U" I

would therefore retain ‘s foru : as the Report proposes , but ren

der 9] by’

s according to the scheme of Sir,

W . Jones,and mOst

modern O rientalists . I would next point out what I think is an

omission in page 1 1 of the Report . It is admitted that in

Tamil must be rendered, not w ith two ds but as tt ; also((Dr/D as

t'

t ; but no provrs1on i s made for g ar , w hich is decidedly—ch ,

and ng , L ar = t0h . I w ould propose to add these .

I quite admit that theoretically it is a good rule to disallow a

second Roman character for the same O riental letter, and that it is

better to explain in the scheme that such and such a letter is

sounded differently in certain positions , the same as a learner is

taught when studying the original language but still in a Glos

sary for instance, written in Roman character every on e is n ot

supposed to knew what the original w ord is . Thus in the Te

lugu word“pampa” (a fi eld,) the reader would probably pronounce the last p the same as the first, and rightly ; but in

the Tamil word pampu”

(a snake), he would not be aware ,

(unless he knew in what language the word wasm the original,

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238 On writing Orien tal words (No . 1 0, N E W S E R IE S .

I do not quite approve either of x” as an equivalent for the

Sanskrit a, for it ignores the“h” altogether, and both Mr . Nor

man and myself preferred ksh, as the least of tw o evils , for the

l etter does not Often occur .

The Report does not clearly state what equivalents are pro

posed for the Telugu ;5 and 23 . In p . 1 1 Obj ection is taken to

using ch’ and“j” in Telugu w ords derive d from the Sanskrit,

but i t is not actually stated if“ts” and dz” are approved . I

can see no better rendering, though Rule 3’

(p . 3) is broken in

both instances , as w ell as in ch” for kh forc.

, gh” for

and sh for The Report is also silent as to the mode of

writing the H indfi stan i when it follow s A re we to write

Darkhast or“Darkhwast

,or“Darkhwast” ? I prefer the

latter . I conclude that my proposal (p . 43) to render the hamz a

by an aspirate , is approved .

I quite concur in all the rest of the scheme as proposed in the

Report,and admit that in some instances it is an improvement

upon mine , though the differences are only (except in two casesabove named) of minor importanc e .

I trust that l w ith the infra linear mark w ill be retained for

the Tamil(P :and the inverted comma for the A rabic

1A fter

reading all that is written in the Report and A ppendix as regards

the574)I am still of Opinion that it is better represented by 1 than

by r, rl , or z h , B eschi is certainly the best of all the authorities

quoted . The reference (p‘

. 26) to the Sabda manjari’ seems de

oisive . Mr . Elliot I Observe leans to Mr . E l lie’s z h,” but I have

always thought that by English readers this would be pronouncedl ike the z in azure

,and I have found this when I hav e placed

such w ords as kiz hpak”

(the name of a place) Vel laz her”

(the

n ame of a tribe) T amiz h” (the name Of a language) T az hai"

(the name of a shrub) before friends unacquainted w ith any

oriental language . By substituting l for z h” in the above

words , I have found the pronunciation come much cl oser.

A s to thezI see Mr . Elliot leans to the Missionary alphabe t

oath—MA R . 1 859 in R oman characters. 239

(p . 28 of printed pamphlet . ) It is not very cl ear what they propose . I f it is simply a comma above in lieu of the C

C, it is much

the same as what is adopted , namely an inverted or reversed com

ma ; the latter bein g preferable , in asmuch as it cannot be mis

taken for an asp ira te. If the example given in p . 2 8 is rightly

quoted I must think it Obj ectionable . The word ‘

xl i s wri t

t)

Shakspeare w rites it laxn at , and the scheme adopted in the Report

ten l’

n at . But what has become of the z abar before the

w ould w rite it la“nat . A gain if the above case is correc tly quotedthe w ord J ,” (a nail) w ould be w ritten u

’

l for there is no zabar

(or a) between the (an d the J .

It“w ould be a great . convenience if no C apital s w ere used in

w riting the Romanised O riental w ords . The original language s

have no C apital s,and their use is Often inconvenient when the

diacritical marks have to be added .

I pre sume that by the Government order Of 1 2th Sept . 1 859, i t

i s intended that the scheme set forth by the Sub-C ommittee is tobe adopted in o

"

1 cial correspondence , though the w ordin g Of that

order is somewhat Obscure,as it speaks of Sir Wm. Jon es ’ sys

tem as modified by the A siatic Society and Professor W ilson and

the Madras Literary Society, n ow I believe that these three au

thorities do not coincide in their modifications , and it requires to

be distinctly s tated which modification is to be introduced .

I w ould also submit that farther preparatory explanation should

be afforded before it can be expected that the s ervants o f Govern

ment can carry out their orders . Lon g usage in a particular mode

of Spelling is not so easy to’

cast off at once . I find even Mr .

Elliot, in his scheme ,’ constan tly w riting San skrit w ith a c instead

of a k ; and in on e of the printed letters Of 1 8 34, by a distin guished

advocate for pure spel l ing , I find H indfi stan i’ spelt H indnst ’hé n i . ’

A gain in a late order of Government which affects the unusual

spelling taluq,”

(it should be ta‘

al luq) the Old fashioned C olun !

goo” s tands out in broad G ilchristian deformity whilst we haveMirasdér” and C arnum” (it should be Karan am) as a set-off

against fusly” and Sheristadar . ” A gain in the printed copy

of the address of the G overnor o f Madras to Narsingha R at) , I

240 On writing Orien tal words [NO . 1 0, N E W snn l ss

fi nd the old spell ing Kandy transformed in to Kandi whilst in

the same paper Bellary declines to become Bal lari.

It is impossible for the servants of Government,or any body

else , to give the right spelling, even'

if assisted by ap erfect schemeo f translitera tion, unl ess they know how the w ord is written in theorigina l , and it so happens that most Of our Official terms , and

very many proper names of Pensioner , I n 'émdars &c . are H indfi s

tan i or Persian languages which hardly any of our O fficialsknow how to read . For instance— the word commonly w rit ten

Nuzzerana” (and I do not see that we can find an E nglish

equivalent). H ow few O fficials,European or Native , could spell it

rightly even w ith a perfect scheme Of transl iteration set before

them , simply because they do n o t kn ow how it is w ritten in the

origin a l . They w ould hardly guess Naz rana.

’ So w ith such a

name as Meer Z yn oo l A bdeen .

”H ow is a person unacquaint ed

w ith the original vernacular spelling , to know that it is Mir

Z ainu-l-“A bidin”In my humble opinion two preparatory steps should be taken

by Government before ordering a n ew mode Of spelling , l st , a

comp lete scheme should be set forth by authority . 2ndly. Lists of

w ords in most common use , such as O fficial terms , names of Per

sons , Places , Months , Years , Tariff articles &c . should be prepared

w ritten bo th in the original language , and in the authorised

Roman letter or thography .

I submit that n o complete scheme has yet been set forth . That

of the Madras Literary Society is good as far as it goes (w ith the

one or two exceptions I have pointed out), but it would not mee t

many w ords o f constant occurrence .

It is still a question how the hamza’ should be noted in such

w ords as an orchard, will

fit . Should it be amra-i’ and

la-iq ,’or amra’i ’ and la

’-iq

”

For such a w ord as (an Offer)no rule is laid down as

to thejI should write it darkhwast . ’ S O , as to the final h in

H indfi stan i words . There is no rule to show if two such words

as glfj oa. mosque and 5

)l a writin g

,are both to end with h” in

transliteration,or whether one is , and the other not .

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242 On writing Orien tal words [NO . 1 0, N E W S E RI E S .

in tracing the right to an mémfi from confounding Fui z u-lla

Khan” a man’ s n ame , w ith Faz ila Khan am” a w oman’ s name

and A hmad w ith Hamid .

" Surely C howry Moo too

T rimn l acharry” should not be so w ritten this w ould be as

bad as the spell ing Of the name B hon sala” in our Old treaties

,

viz B oun cel lo’

,and the stereotyped spell ing Of T ippOO Saib .

”

In the scheme proposed by myself and printed w ith the Sub

C ommittee ’ s Report,I gave examples (page 46) of 263 w ords of

common occurrence in Offi cial correspondence . The tran sl itera

t ion there given requires to be slightly altered to suit the amended scheme

,and then these w ords w ould form a useful list . There

should also be a list of about 200 most common names Of Persons ,in H indfi stan i

,Tamil

,Telugu

,Mahratta &c .

,and C ollectors and

Paymasters should send Nominal Rolls in the Vernacular to the

Government Office,in order to have every name therein entered

,

written in the authorised manner for their guidance . Native terms

used,in the Sea C ustom House Tariffs should also be formed

into a list ; that is if C undaloo” is to be spelt

,

Kandalu” and

Ghee” G M”and Gunny Ganni , and G odauk G udaku .

The corre ct w riting of names Of P laces requires consideration .

I see by the Governmen t O rder that they speak of certain namesbeing as it w ere stereotyped by long usage and these are to remain . I think the example given O f Negapatam” is un fortu

nate . There w ould be little change in writing it correctly Na

gapatam, and if such a w ord as that is to remain unaltered , it is

diffi cult to see what are to be altered . I see in G overnmen t papersthe n ew spellings o f Kandi ,

” and U ‘

sfi r,” surely these are

greater innovations than Nagapatam. A re w e to introduce a n ew

scheme Of writing O riental w ords,and then remain content with

such barbarisms as

C urcumbaddy. T ripetty .

Pulman air C aran goOly.

Moo lwaggle. C onjeveram,

g22’

5r8

51153G uz z lehutty. C hittoor .

Tel l icherry . C uddapah .

O olundoorpett . S treepermatoor.

all of which are stereotyped enough . But then the question

oer—M A R . 1 859 in R oman characters . 243

arises , as to what n ames Of places are so spelt n ow , but to w rite

them correctly w ould lead to actual confusion and inaccuracy . It

would n o t perhaps be askin g too much o f Government , to expect

them to decide,and give a list Of a l l such names , such -perhaps as

M adras, (the proper spelling of which n o on e knows ,) Pondicher

ry, Tranquebar, Trichinopoly, Triplicane &c .

It should be considered whether Vellore , Nellore , C hingleput ,C o imbatoor, Poonamallee , Seringapatam &c . should or should not

be c orrectly written . A t all events a list should be made of a l l

exceptions .

A correct list of the Muhammadan months shoul d be prepared ,

and such w ords as“Rubbee OO-l aw l ,” forR abicuu l -awal and Ju

madisany for Jamada-'

s-°sanf repudiated . It might at the same

time be made known that the year of the Hijra (vulg H egirah) is

easily reduced approximately to A . D . by deducting 3 per cent .and adding 622 .

T he list should also contain the Tamil and Telugu years and

months ; though as regards the Tamil years , it is a question if the

Sanskrit orthography should be retained, or the Tamil spelling.

adhered to throughout . A re we to w rite Prijé tpati”or Pir

sOrpati If the latter, is the Sanskri t orthography to be adher

ed

.

to throughout ? If so , a correct spelling of each year can only

be made out by some o n e acquainted w ith Sanskrit . The list

should also contain the correct spelling of the Muhammadan and

H indfi Feast days . I have seen extraordinary rendermgs i n

some'

Official orders as to Native Holidays,such as S OO

berat for Shab-i-barat ,”

B uckreed” for B agr

'

id,

”

A udy Pundyga” for '

A di pandagai .” The Madras C on

stables know the Muharram as the Hobson Jobson Feast !”

fromHasan and Husain, the martyrs celebrated therein .

I n ow proceed to n otice the Obj ection taken to interfering in the

present spelling of many w ords on the ground that they are ste

reotyped by language , and are secured by a kind of official gua

rantec in the w ording of the Regulations, G eneral O rders , &c .

Really if we are to retain the orthography in these cases , we may

as w ell give up’

the scheme of transliteration altogether , as far as

official terms are con cerned . If the scheme is .to be adopted at

VOL . xx . 0 . s . VO L . v I I . N . s.

244 On writing Orien tal words [NO . 1 0, N E W S E RI E S .

al l , it w ill be against thos e time-hon oured'

barbarisms that the

crusade must first commence . Take the following

Jagheer . C usbah . Moon sifl'

.

Polygar . Zillah . Mohturfa .

Sunnud . Sudder . Sayer .C utcherry . Foujdarry . Veesabaddy.

C urnum. A dawlut . C utwal .C owle . A meen . Sheristadar

.

Jummabundy. Shrofi'

.

Tal o ok Soucar .

Those must all stand as they are , if long usage and the Regulations are to uphold them .

A gain who is to be the j udge as to whether any particular w ord

is to be considered stereo typed” Opinions w ill differ . Takethe follow ing

Punchayet . Futtah . C utbaddy.

Dufter . Teerwa . C avilgar .D aloyet . O olungoo . (This last word in

Lubbay. Mootah . Trichinopoly Town is

Tindal . A nnicut . known as C ow-karra)?Lascar . Harem .

B an ghy . Turrum .

C utcha . Lac .

Out of 20 persons who had considered the subj ect,1 0 might say

they should all be altered, and 1 0 might say they are stereotyp ed.

I admit there are difficulties , but all I contend for 1 s, that it isfor those who order a new system to be introduced , to declare dis

tinct ly w hat are the excep tions ; that there may be no mistake

Many persons may see no obj ection to changing anna to

ans, who w ould repudiate changing rupee to rupiya .

” Then

again the-coin w e call a p ie. Surely it should be w ritten pai”

thus distinguishing it from the Bengal paisa .

” Its plural should

be pais” for to make the plural p z'

ce is not in accordance w ith

any known language .

There w ill also be some consideration required as to theWeights

and Measures . If“lac” is to be written lak’h,

” then crore”

should be karor .” If“,seer is to be sér,

” then olluck”

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246 On writing Orien tal words, [No . 1 0, N E W '

S E RI E S .

MEMORA NDA .

I have looked through Mr . Bayley’ s obj ections to the Sub-C om

mittee’s Report, and am glad to find that I am able to concur in

almost all of them«“In some instances I have to plead omission

and w ant of sufficient perspicuity on my ovVn part as having led

Mr . B . into error regarding my intention, in others he has over

lo oked my meaning , but on the whole we substantially agree , and

had the draught report received the benefit of his supervision,it

w ould,I am sure

,have appeared in a more perfe ct shape and been

free from the obj ections he has pointed out .

These I w ill notice seriatum

1 . With regard to the long e and o , I certainly never intended

that they should not be distinguished from the short sounds of the

same vowels , and I never fail to note them w ith the accentual

mark in practice . I see,however , that these marks are omitted

in the tabular scheme at page 9, they should be added in the re

vised report,and the following sentence should be added after the

w ords is required for them,

" at page 1 2,viz . the long sounds

being.

dis tinguished by the usual accentual mark .

2 . I n taking ’

s to represent both QT andup I was guided by

Sir W . Jones,but I am free to admit that the sounds do differ

,

and I acquiesce w ith pleasure in Mr . Bayley’ s emendation of ren

dering H by'

s or perhaps better by s as being an anomalous

sound,and as being less liable to be con founded w ith the long

vowel sound, and more in accordance w ith the general principle

of the scheme .

3 . I also bow to Mr . Bayley’ s j udgment with regard to the di

verse sounds o i the same Tamil letter . His argument derived from

the difficulty in which persons unacquainted w ith Tamil would

find themselves has much force . With regard to the initial erI prefer the employmen t of ch to that of s . The former has

the sanction of Dr . C aldwell and is most in accordance w ith general use. I n the even t o f subs t ituting c or c

” for ch” in the

S an skrit alphabe t , the same expedie nt should be followed here .

W ith regard to the use of x” for ksh ,

” this point w as

discussed and forms on e o f the artic les'

agreed to and recorded in

the Memo .drawn up the day before Mr. Bayl ey sailed . Mr . Bay :

C OL —M A R . 1 859 in E bman characters. 247

ley then expressed the same obj ection he does n ow , but conceded

the matter in consideration of the gain on the side of simplicity

of notation .

I consider therefore that this adaptation should stand .

5 . I regret that I cannot give in my adhesion to the use of

ts and dz” for the Telugu {5 and 75 and that for the reasons

adduced in the report . The pe ople themselve s do not make any

such distinctions in their system of notation and have no diffi culty

in catching the proper sound in practice . This case differs , I con

ceive, from the partly analogous use of Tamil, because in the latter

the alphabet is actually deficient in the normal sounds required,

whereas the Telugu alphabet is complete and the circumstance o f

two letter s being liable to certain varying shades of pronunciation

should n o t , in my opinion , lead to the adoption of additional signs

to represent such diffe rences .

6 . I have no obj ection to Mr . Bayley’ s additions in respe ct to

the letter3but I see no advantage in having a diacritical mark

as in the w ord darkhwast .

7 . A reference to the para . at p . 1 3 and to the scheme at p . 1 6

at which the letter59i s discussed w ill show that it is prepared to

be represented by as Mr . Bayley 'desires , and that n o reference

is made to the substitution of z h .

8 . A t p . 1 5 of the Report, Mr . Bayley’ s scheme for writingt

is distinctly recommended for adoption,and it is only added that

the Megsis plan is deservin g of commen da tion . Mr . B ayley’ s re

marks refer to my Memo . which was w ritten long before we had

any discussion or before I had read his or Mr . Norman’ s schemes.

I should have been glad to have seen the continuation of Mr.

Bayley ’ s paper and w ith reference to it and to the foregoing re

mark s to have prepared a revised edition of the report . This I may

perhaps have the opportunity of doing in combin ation w ith him

at home.

WA LT E R JELLro T .

248 R ep ort on the Laccadive I slands . [NO . 1 0, N E W snnrn s.

XI . R ep ort on the M anagemen t during Fasli 1 268 of the fi veLaccadive I slands. By E . G . THOMA S , E sq . ,

M . C . S .

(C ommun ica ted by G overnmen t . )

1 . The follow ing are the few circumstances concerning the

fo rmer state o f the Island and people of Menakoy which I could

l earn from the Islanders , much more might probab ly be learntfrom the Beebee of C annanore or the Sultan Of the Maldives

,if

either of them chose to be communicative a written history of

considerable . antiqui ty was accidentally destroyed in the Island

some years ago by fire .

2 . T he Islande rs areMusselmen of the“Suny or S afy” sect .

3 . Their language is that of the Maldives Islanders , and is

found in no other country though there is a great resemblance

between it and the C ingales e in religion and all d omestic customs

also they say there is no difference whatever between them and the

Maldive people .

4 . In the Maldives there are many songs commemorating the

struggle that took place there when Mahomedan ism first entered

as elsewhere by the sword , and it has n ow been the exclusive

religion there for about 500 years .

5 . There are no recollections of such a religious struggle in

Men akoy, and the Islanders therefore (believing that they un

doubtedly first came from the Maldives the nearest land) date the

occurrence somewhere under 500 years ago .

6 . There are some small subterranean passages in one co rner

of the Island , of the history of which the present inhabitants are

quite ignorant,and which probably served as places of refuge t o a

former race who lived here at an earlier period .

7 . I could obtain no account of the way in which, or the date

when, the Beebee of C annanore got po ssession of the Island she is

said to have assumed the position of proprietor as w ell as Sovereignof the Island on the occasion of the murder o f one of her agents ,

and she n ow owns by far the greater part .

8 .It is said that her sway over the Islanders was more power

ful and oppressive before than since she was conquered by the

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2 50 R ep ort on the Laccadive I slands . [No . 1 0, N E W S E RI E S .

east to w est and from north to south) has risen from the depths of

the un fathomable ocean apparently almost in a columnar form,and

appearing above the w ater in an oblon g shape , forms an I sl and' on

the east side w ith a large lagoon en cirled by a reef to the w est of it;

1 2 . The Island at the broadest part is less than a mile in w idth ,the lagoon is about four miles broad and 5 lon g .

1 3 . The reef for about 5 of its length is visible at l ow water ;over the n orthern of the reef there is never less than 2 or 3 fee t

Of water : near the south end of the reef an I slet ‘f has been formed

on it about 1 00 yards square at the middle of the reef there is a

small barren Islet 20 yards square ; near the north end another

small barren Islet 1 0 y'

ards square was thrown up in 2 fathom

water by the storm of 1 847.

1 4 . The reef consists offlat ro oks, 20 yards in w idth w ith stones ,large and small, loose and connected , sometimes covering , and

sometimes sparingly scattered over it : the w ater very gradually

deepens on the outer side for about 1 00 yards where the coral for-e

mation ends w ith a precipice . On one side of a boat may be seen

the clear white bottom w ith rocks and fish on the other deep blue

sea ; w ithin 1 00 yards of this it is said that frequently there is no

bottom to be found this appears to be still more the cas e on the

east side of the Island .

1 5 . There are 3 entrances to the lagoon only on e of which,that at the w est, is adapted for large vessels over this latter thereis at l ow water 2 fathoms and in ordinary high tides 3 fathoms of

w ater.

1 6 . The depth o f w ater w ithin the lagoon is very various,about 4; of the lagoon is less than 6 feet deep and much of

.

this

only 3 or 4 ; there are large portions w ith 6 -and 7 fathoms of

w ater a white coral sand covers most of the bottom of the lagoon ;small rocks however abound in parts , and here and there rise pre~

cipitously to n ear the surface ; they are composed of living coral

o f numerous shapes and colours,and often spring from the bottom

o f sudden hollow s of 7 fathom w ater where the neighbourhood is

only 1 or 2,and in these cases the an gle at which the san d stands

i s astonishing the sand sides of these pits being frequen tly hard

T here are about 50 C ocoanut trees on it.

eon - M A B . 1 859-60 ] R ep ort on the Laccadive I slands. 25 1

ly out of the perpendicular for 20 or 30 feet the water is so clear

that everv movemen t o f fishes , turtle s , &c .

, even the eyes of large

fish may be seen w ithout difficulty in 7 fathom water .

1 7 . The lagoon abounds w ith turtle , a large skate (called T ea

rendy _on the coas t) and many fishes fit for food .

1 8 . I n 2 hauls of a large drag net yards lon g 53 turtles

and many fi sh w ere taken .

1 9. The usual anchoring ground is outside the w est entrance

where there is a bo t tom o f fla t rocks and sand for a d is tance of

about 200 yards very gradually deepen ing .

20 . It is the opinion o f lhe inhabitants that no chan ges what

ever take place in the dep th o f the various parts of the lagoon and

that no n ew rocks are formed ; I found the coral in secrs however

alive and at work w ithin the lagoon .

2 1 . The Island o f Men akoy is about 5 miles l on g , and in the

broadest part mile w ide , the north é o f the island is a very nar

row s trip very gradual ly w iden in g from 20 yards to the wid th

which i t assumes w ithin 15 miles o f the south end.

22 . T he north end extends in a point considerably beyond the

reef out in to the sea and is therefore con siderably exposed .

23 . No changes in it have been noted by the people .

24 . The accompanying sketch may give some idea of the shape

of the island and lagoon, &c .

25 . The soi l o f the island consists o f coarse powdered coral

with a slight admixture of vegetable matter .

The greater part o f Menakoy is quite flat and so near the

level o f the sea that w ater may usually be found at depths varying1 foot to 6 : the water though a little brackish dOes n o t s eem

be unwholesome , as the people are generally healthy and seem

have an ordinary average o f o ld people among them .

27. The overlying flat rock commonly found in the Laccadives

has been removed at an unknown period from large portions of

the island , and heaped up into a long ridge 25 feet high , and 51 a

mile long parallel w ith and close to the east side of the island ;the material thus removed has also formed numerous other mounds

of which one (about 3 5 feet high)'

is the highest point on the

island . Towards the south endof the island as well as in the north.VI I . N . 8 .

252 R ep ort on‘

the ’Laccadive I slands. [No . 10, n ew snnms.

I am inclined to think this overlying rock never emsted, for thereare -no mounds whatever, yet w ater is w ithin a foot of the top ;there is n o rock to be found on digging and in one part 200 or ‘

300 yards square of land is so damp and marshy w ith a pool in

the middle of it that it is w ith di”"

cul ty traversable.

28 . The cocoanut trees in this part are W eak and not very

produc tive .

29. The overlying rock where found is usually only about 6inches thick and is a kind of concrete composed of sand w ith

bit s o f coral and shells .

30 . I sunk a pit in a part of the island of more recent forma

tion and found loose sand for 1 0 feet , then a stratum of rather

coarser san d and under this at about 1 2 feet from the surface a

layer of detached bits of flat sandstone appare ntly in course of

formation into a flat sandstone rock : there was moisture hereand w ater 2 feet below .

3 1 . There is no part of the island destitute of trees ; in the

south por tion it is thickly covered w ith j ungle and cocoanut

trees ; in the north more sparingly .

32 . There are n o dogs on the island , rats abound t o the des

truction .Of cocoanut plantations ; also cats , 3 o r 4 cow s and as

many goats , no snakes or scorpions , curlew ,sand snipes of various

kinds,a large grey crane and a water hen stay there,

.

andgolden

plovers and teal sometimes come there in flocks .

3 3 . Mosquitoes abound to such an extent as to make sleep

quite impossible to either Europeans or Nat ives except under cur

tains or in a thorough draft, and even then so unusually poisonous

and pertinacious are they, that nothing but the greates t care can

procure one any peace, the moment the sun is down they are out

in such numbers that no sedentary o ccupation can be pursued

unless every limb is covered w ith 2 or 3 folds o f cloth or muslin,

thick trowsers and socks are no defence ; they are bred in the

pits in .which the husk of the cocoanut soaks for 6 months pre

parat cry to being made into coir .

34 . Though no changes have been noticed in the depth of the

lagoon very considerable ones have taken place and are still doing

so on the west shore of the island.

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264 R ep ort on the Laccadive I slands. (No . 1 0 ,n z w u l t ras .

B I d l t l voen om —M9d M“from north and north east . In

( a m

M a rch A p ril May

lWe t lmon oma d

K a rkedaq om

J un e J u ly

n orth west, water spouts frequently in E davomand Midoon om.

monsoon and s torms from west and

3 8 . C urren t -I n E davom, Methoon om and Karkedagom goes

south east passing south of C eyl on andgoing to Pulo Pen ang and

beyond Kan n ee. T ho lam and Vrishigom current les s violen t , anddirec tion un certain close to shore changes w il l be rapid several

w i thin the day ; but not so rapid at sea .

39.In comin g from Maldives to Menakoy in

four points west of Menakoy to hit it .

40 . P opula tion—The inhabitants of Men akoy (about 2500 in

number) bear the differen t class appellations of Mal ikan s, Malum

my Yaekur'

a Kalo , Maylacherry, n o great distinctions however at

tached to al l these n ames .

4 1 . T he real divisions are Mal ikan s,Malummies, Kl asies, May

lacherries .

42 . The Mal ikan s (about 1 1 6 in number) form the aristocracy

of the isl and ; 3 of them have considerabl e lan ded property there ,and own all the tradin g vessels which go to Bengal , &c .

43 . Though n ow consisting of several families they are all conn ected, being sprung from Kambako th Kombaramy who l ived

200 years ago .

44 . They have by n omeans the overw een in g influence exercisedover their coun trymen as by the aristocracy of theLaccadive Islands

,

this is consequen t on the different relative position of the partie s .45 . T he B eebee of C annanore has endeavoured more or less

to iden tify their in terests w ith her own by supportin g their w ishes

occasion ally w ith reference to the conduct of their sailors,and by

usually employing one of them as her agent or Konnakar on the

Island .

4 6 . This Kon n akar collects all the revenues o f the Beebee,

levies fines for trespass , keeps down in a measure theft , &c and

superin tends the Beebee ’ s traffic , i e . on the arrival o f her vessels from C an nanore he gives orders necessary for their careful

preservation and arranges for the embarking of the cargo , crews ,

&c . ,for the voyage to Bengal at the commencement of the season .

ecru—M A I L. 1 859 60 ] R ep ort on the Laccadive I slands . 265

47. Formerly they had the exclusive privilege of w earing goo d

cl oths , caps and shoes and usin g umbrellas, but every one n oww ears what cap and clo th he like s and Malummies use the um

brellas al so the shoes is the only remaining exclusive privilege

of the Mal ikan s .

4 8 .They live w ith their familie s in l arge l ow rambling house s

w i thin court yards and possess En glish Quadrants and C ompass e s ,

C harts and Telescopes .

49. The .l l a lummies are the pilots and mates o f the vesselsthis is no hereditary title but is con ferred by their neighbours forability any man in Men akoymay obtain this rank and is not then

excluded from the socie ty o f the Mal ikan s who w ill even inter

marry w ith them , they numbe r about 1 80 .

50 . The Klasies in number) form the bulk o f the popu

lation,and though in gen eral poor are exceedingly independan t of

the o ther classes : they possess no sea-go ing boats or vessels o f

their own,no thin g fit to use far outside the lagoon ; but they work

the larger vessels and the Massboats of the Mal ikan s, as it is im

possibl e for the merchan ts w ithout their aid to carry on their tradeand as the K lasies

” are n o t landed tenan ts at w ill as in the

Laccadives but w ith very few exception s , smal l land proprietors

themselves and only g-ring to sea fo r regular w ages given for work

done at the time , they enj oy a very comfortabl e independant po sition an dboth o n land and at sea yield by no mean s implicit obedi~ence to ei ther Beebee or Mal ikan s.

5 1 . Besides those who are employed in the Beebee ’ s andMal ikan s vessels many o f them take service in English sh ips and

are absent for man y years together during this period they gethigh w ages but usually spend it all before they re turn to Men akoy ;

they were formerlymore wealthy being gen erally abl e t o lay o ut

a little capi tal in trade on their own account every voyage,but

taking to imitate their superiors , and living and dressing beyond

their means , they have o f late years become thriftless and poor .5 2 . Through these sailors not a l it t le information has found

its way in to Menakoy regarding A rabia, A frica , B engal , Malacca,A ustralia , &c .

53 . Those who follow the occupation of Maylacfi errz’

e: or,tree

2 56 R ep ort on the Laccadive I slands. [Na 1 0 , N E W S E R I E S .

climbers are about 5 83 in number, they climb the trees of the

ryots, and the Beebee for hire and extract the juice fromwhich

sugar is made .

54 .The whole population of the Island is congregated in one

spot and live chiefly in detached en c losures forming long sheets ofcocoanut leaf hedges , and leaf thatched houses the arrangement

is to enable the B eebee to guard the better agains t trespassing on

her cocoanut plan tat ion s .

5 5 . In the North and South portions of this villag e there arehead men who have been e

'

ected by the people and an other overthese two is elected by themselves an d approved by the Beebee ofC annanore .

5 6 . Whenever proclamations have to bemade known to all the

people , or they have to be assembled for any work , these Mop

pans” (head men) are always the persons through whom they arecommunicated w ith and as might be expec ted have considerable

influence w ith them .

5 7 . O ccasionally there have been outbursts in which the usual

tyranny of a mob is shown : those who do not answ er to the pe

cul iar call which is used for assembling them are punished some

times by having their court-yards filled and hous es heaped up

w ith w ild pine apple brought and flung there by all their neighbours

,and it is a labor of many days to them to rid themselves of

the nuisan ce , on more serious occasions of public displeasure , the

house is looted and pulled down .

5 8 . The people of Men akoy while at home are as a rule very

idle . A ctive sailors and traders they come home to take theirease

,and leaving the w omen to soak the coir and pick up cocoa

nuts,cowries , &c .

, they only condescend to bestir themselves when

there is a chance o f catching massfi sh their physiognomy is n o tal l that o f the Malabar Moplahs or that of the Laccadive Islanders : there appears to me something A frican in some of them ;having never seen Maldive people I cannot say whether they re

semble them .

I slanders’

p roperty .

Barque . 1 59. It is w orthy of note how large a numOu

'

7

B aiie

d

s

odies 2her o f the people the Beebee keepsm some

Mass boats .8 measure dependent on her .

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25 8 R ep ort on the Laccadz'

ve I slands . [No . 1 0, n ew sxnrz s .

66 . The Men akoy trade and its profi ts .are both said to have

greatly dimin ished o f late years . Formerly they had 1 0 Odies"

and a ship burnt : n ow they have 7 Odies” and a small er barque

they once traded to Mauri tius , A rabia , the Persian Gulf, Maulmain,and Sin gapore they n ow seldom go any where but t o the Western

C oast , Maldives , G alle , ports on the Eastern C oast and C alcuttathe profit of trade they say has fal len , 400 of the C hittagong

traders n ow themselves bring rice to the Maldives and some

Parsees havin g durin g the last few years set up a shop in those Islands the Monekoy people n o longer h ave the almo st monopolywhich they on ce enj oyed,

Men akoy C oir also by n o mean s main

tain s its character in the market fi’“and the chief cause t he mer

chants say is that the w omen make it more care lessly than

formerly ; old husks are mixed w i th young and they are n o t

thoroughly cleaned ; they mean n ow to a t tempt a revolution in

this .

67 . C owries (the Beebee’ s monopoly) continually rise in price ,

and sugar maintains its ground Men akoy cocoanuts are known

and sought after at (‘

al cutta Maldive and Gal le ones being im

medi ntely detec ted and refused if an at temp t has been made to

mix and pass them al l off as Men akoy, they are sent for inland toB urdwan and elsewhere .

K arkadom68 . Vessels should leave Men akoy in visitMaldives,

J uly

G alle, Ben gal , Eastern C oast and return via Galle or Maldives toMedom.

Men akoy m A pri l .69. T he season opens earl ier at Men akoy than on th e C oast ,

and one vessel canno t make the trip to Goa, &c. and Bengal the

Same year .

70 . The smaller v essels generally do the C oast trip while the

larger ones go to Bengal , &c .

7 1 . The Men akoy merchants are thoroughly alive to the great

loss incurred by them con sequen t on a rig which prevents theiremployin g l ess than 1 7 men in their smallest ves sels and 32 in thelargest Island O dies .

'

.

I t has fallen fromRs . 1 6 permaund to R s . 3 , but is n ow at R s. 5

again .

con—n u t . 1 869 R ep ort on the Laccadive I slands. 259

72 . A l l the Odies ,”

bandodies,” Massboats and smaller

ones are built in Menakoy (the smaller pegge d and the two firs t

nailed) partly of cocoanut and partly of woods brought from the

main land .

73 . Their Massboats sail excellently both before and against

the w ind , but for the larger vessels they complain that they have

no good model , and I know nothing that would tend more to theprosperity of this community of sailors and traders , who already

use English instruments , charts and nautical tables than by open

ing to them a way of awnin g better built, better rigged vessels

they find it hard work in their tubs of vessels w ith large crew s to

hold their own in a trade where they n ow find many competitors,and are most anxious to avail themselves of any means of placingthemselves more on a par w ith others : whether this would best be

done by giving themworking models , or by presenting Hussan‘”

Malikan w ith a small properly built vessel (cutter or schooner) as

a lasting and useful memorial of the sense entertained by G overn

ment of his loyalty, or in what o ther way it is unnecessary for mo

to suggest .

MI S C E LLA NE OU S NOTE S ON ME NA K OY .

P rices on fi re I sland and elsewhere.

Sugar .—7 adubas . . R s. 1

ii its bulk in Bengal rice .

at the Maldives .

1 pot of it superior 1 2 Mass fish

inferior 8 do .

C oin—4 polies 1 Mayna of rice

about 1 A nna .

1 maund : Rs . 3

Rs . 5 in B engali

Menakoy.

See remarks on himin the Report on theMagisterial enquiry.

1 A good market always to be found, also at Galle and in Malabar,but the latter too small

I T hey formerly got Rs . 1 6 per maund, the price sunk to R s. 3 permaund and is now rising again.

VOL . xx . 0 . s. VOL. 7 1 1 . N . s.

260 R eport on theLaccadive I slands. [No . 19, N E W mums .

76 . C owries . i ts bulk in rice .

2 salt .

1 maund Rs . 22 last year at Bengal .

77. Mass—400 pieces(from 1 00 fish) Rs . 8 or 1 0 at Galle

Meen shakrai z its ,bulk in Menac S old at this rate

koy sugar . by the Maldive

2 Bengal rice . men .

6 C hippies (l p basins) of Meen

shakrai Rs . 2% at Pulo Penang .

78 . C ocoanuts—purchased by the merchants at the

rate of 1 R . for 80 .

1 Mayna of ric e 5 C c

coan uts.

1 A nna

sold by the merchants to the people at the rate

Of 50 1 R .

Prices.

79. Rice—1 C andy 2 7 Rs . at Balasore (w ith the husk . )1 Modah (T

l-2of 1 C andy) 2 Rs . on the C oast

(unhusked . )1 Mayna 5 cocoanuts 1 A nna .

2 : 1 Mayna of cowries .4 polies of coir .

80 . A n ordinary boat 20 ft . by 4 may be built of cocoanut

wood in a fortnight for Rs . 50

A mass boat in 4 months for Rs . 200 .

Weights andMeasures.

8 1 . 1 polly (of coir)= 20 Rs . w eight 12 mayn a

60 pollies 1 T holam

3 T hol ams 1 Maund 1

7 Maunds 1 C andy

1 Kotta .—28 Ratels

l Bengal

sher .

2 Ratels

80 R s.w t .

1 Man

galore modah .

1 shak .

1 C andy.

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262 R ep ort on the Laccadive I slands . [No . 1 0, N E W 3 1 3 1 1 3 .

8 8 . O n ce a month the B eebee’ s employees inform the women

of the Island before hand of the day which has been appointed

for the picking up of the nuts , and on the day a w oman or more

frOm every house except those of the Mal ikan s goes at sunrise to

a part of the Beebee’s plantation .

89. The people are n ot admitted into the se at any other times,but for these occasions they are divided off into portions by the

paths which intersect them, in each of these divisions is a rude

storehouse .

90 . The women usually return every month to hunt for nuts in

the same division , and thus at dawn each goes straight to her

usual division, collects what nuts she can find at the foot o f the

trees , and taking them to the storehouse of that division receives 8

cocoanuts for her day’ s work and a per-centage of 4 (nuts) for(every 1 00 she has collected : the nuts are counted at the store

house by the Beebee’ s employees w ith temporary assistants from

among the Islanders (who also are paid for their services in nuts),and the woman is then allowed to return homewards with as large a

bundle of firewood as she likes to collect and carry, and a basket

w ith her cocoanuts in it and a chit of leaf saying how many she

had collected : near the place where all the houses are , the Bee

bee ’s chief agent sits and examines each of the baskets and chits

as they pass ' to prevent robbery .

91 . Of the 8 nuts given to the w omen as cooly, 3 have the

shell broken to prevent their coming into market in competition

with the B eebee ’ s nuts .

Massfi shing .

92 . The profits ofMassfi shing are very unc ertain, as they de

pend entirely on the numbers in which the fi sh themselves arrive

in the neighbourhood,and this is very variable : the 1 4 per cent .

of the daily catch which goes t o the owner of the boats does not

pay them if the numbers caught are small,but it does very hand

somely if they are large .

93 . There are in Men akoy 1 0 Mass-boats , they fish continu

ously for only 6 months in the year, the o ther months being too

stormy,and about fish is the average number taken ;could only be taken in a very fi ne season about

ocr .—)u n . 1 859-60 ] R ep ort on the Laccadive I slands. 263

are used in the Island and the remainder are cut up , dried or

made into meen shékrai , and exported : the fi shes are each cut

into 4 pieces,and the bones and any scraps are boiled into a rich

soup w ith more solid balls of the same substance in it, the dried

fish is sold in the Maldives , Galle , and Malabar C oast at the rate

of from 8 Rs . to 1 0 Rs . for 400 pieces of 1 00 fishes : the soupcalled strangely Meen shakrai

”

(fish sugar) is much used in Me

nakoy and is also sold at Pulo Penang .

D iseases.

94 . The most common disease on the Island is what they call

Vatham” (gout or rheumatism as many as 1 00 have died of

this in one year those attacked by it usually die w ithin a month

of the time of the symptoms becoming observable .

95 . C holera was not known here (as in Malabar) more than

30 years ago . There w ere severe attacks of it 1 0 years ago, and

5 years ago on which last o ccasion 370 died of it at the rate of 1 0

or 1 5 a day .

96 . Small-pox has never been very virulent on the Island the

crew s were attacked one year in Bengal and 1 00 men carried off.The Islanders provide themselves at their own expense with va c

cinators from the main land .

11 7 . When Small-pox appears those attacked by it are sent for

40 days to a small islet at the south end of the lagoon, which is

thus used as a quarantine station .

98 . Leprosy is always in the Island , and those a i icted by it

are restricted to a part of the north portion of the Island wherethey form a small community of their own : they have a smallboat and a few cocoanut trees , and their relatives place food dailyor weekly w ithin their reach till they die .

99. Hussan Malikan and A lly Malikan, the tw o chiefmerchants

ofMen akoy, usually export cocoanuts each annually .

1 00 . A llyMal ikan’s usual export of coir is above 500 Tholams

annually .

1 0 1 . The usual annual export by the whole of the Islanders,

T ho’

lams of coir .

102 . This has been a pretty steady average for 30 years . Last

year T holams were exported, because the previous year hav

26 4 D escrip tion of the coun try between [No . 1 0 , N E W exams.

ing’

been thrown away in rebelling against Government,and the

Bengal trade for that season lost ; the people were in great dis

tress for food,and the merchants only providing them w ith rice

in exchange for coir, they had to make more of it than usual .

1 03 . Export of cocoanuts has decreased , because . 20 years ago

proper attention was not paid to planting , and also theft 'has not

been rigorously checked .

1 04 . There is no such thing in Menakoy as entailed (or Tur

wad”) property .

1 05 . The Islanders state the freight of one candy of rice from

B alasore to Men akoy to be about Rs . 7, and that of one maund of

cowries from Menakoy to Bengal to be about Rs . 5 .

XII . G eneral D escrip tion of the coun try between Parvatip ore and

J eypore. B y LI E UT . J . V E RTUE ,D istrict E ngineer.

The country between these places may be divided into four por

tions .

l st . From Parvatipore to the commencement of the jungle , a

distance of about 4 miles in which the soil is light, gradually be

coming mixed w ith red , and the country w ell cultivated

2nd. The jungle portion , which extends for 237—3, miles , or to the

foot of the reverse slope of the B ijiya Ghaut . The soil in this

portion is uniformly red, and where the jungle is clear ed , seems

productive . The principal villages on the road are '

A lunmdah ,

Kat to olapet t , B undagam and Narrain apatn am ; the last a large

place containing about inhabitants . A bout the first two and

last named villages , the jungle is well cleared , and there is a good

deal of cultivation,principally dry . These villages , as all indeed

o n the road , are si tuated close to the river (C hicacole river) in

which there is water the whole year round . This country is c on

sidered the most feverish and dangerous on the road , and as little

time as possible should be spent in it . The Road or Track, as it

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266 D escrip tion of the coun try between [No . 1 0, l exams.

3rd. T he 3rd portion extends from the foot of reverse slope of

the Ghaut for about 2691 miles . This is an elevated Plateau

averaging about feet above the sea , and of an extremely

undulating nature , becoming more so as we proceed until at length

the country is a perfect chaos of uplands and valleys . The soil ofthis country is uniformly red often mixed w ith gravel , and indurated to such a degree as strongly to resemble laterite , and such be

ing the case,a more favorable soil for road making c ould not be

desired . The natur e of the country too offers every facility formaking a level road, for this could easily be done by making

the line a little longer than the present track,and taking the

greatest advantage of the undulations of the ground . The present

track runs along the gently sloping shoulder of a hill , then de

scends and crosses a valley, ascends another gentle slope and

so on . Generally speaking , the slopes on the present track

are so gradual and easy, that perhaps it would scarc ely be w orth

while to deviate from it . The country from the foot of the Ghaut

for 1 5 miles is perfectly bare of wood, and in most places abounds

w ith iron , w ith which indeed from the 44th to the 4 7th miles the

soil is literally impregnated . There is no iron stone quarry on the

road,but there are several places , and in part icular the place I

have just mentioned Where doubtles s a quarry might be opened

w ith much advantage . The ore is generally either red hematite or a

red earthy oxide of iron . Either of these varieties when pure yield

about 70 per cent . of iron , but allow ing for existing impurities ,it is not probable that this woii ldyield more than 45 to 50 per cent .

which is , however, a large per centage , and equal to that derived

from the clay iron stones of Great Britain . I could see no trace

of lime-stone , and have been told that such is not here met w ith .

The rocks and stones most commonly encountered are of a com

pound and mixed nature , and generally very soft and friable . Their

composition appears to be generally a considerable quantity of sand

stone w ith iron spots intermixed with felspar and mica, the two

latter,and part icularly the former

,generally much decomposed .

Granitic rocks seem to be almost entirely absent, but the ground

is in several places pretty thickly strewed w ith compact quartz, or

quartzite . Through the centre of every valley is a nullah, often

C OL—M A R . 1 859-60 ] Parvatipore and J eyp ore. 267

very w ide and deep , showing that a large body ofwater must pass

through it during the rainy season , and as the Nullah of the main

valley receives supplies of water from the Nullahs of the numerous

smaller transverse valleys , the quantity of w ater sometimes in

them must be great,although the great fall admits of its being

carried quickly off. The soil of the valleys and of the bottoms of

the Nullahs is largely intermixed with black'

soil and a yellow

ochreish earth,giving to the whole a greyish black colour . In

some Nullahs this yellow ish earth is largely predominant, and this

I have observed to be an indication of the presence Of iron in the

vicinity . The cultivation on the uplands is of course entirely dry,as the slope is so great from the undulating nature of the country

,

that the w ater must immediately run Off,and the air is so very dry

,

and the evaporation so great, that unless o n a very vast scale , it

would be unprofitable to make Tanks . I n the valleys and Nullah

beds , how ever, is cul tivated paddy and wheat, and every available

square foot of ground is used by the people for this cultivation .

2 . The climate of this elevated region is extremely dry, and

evaporation is consequently extremely rapid . Water in a goglet

remains all day as though cooled w ith saltpetre,and after standing

al l night it is in the morning extremely cold . The mean tempera

ture appears to be from 1 0 to 1 5 degrees lower than that of the

l ow country, or of the country in the vicinity of Jeypore. In the

niorn in g about sun rise in the beginnin g of A pril the thermometer

is as l ow as 60 ° and the maximum temperature is about this

probably a good deal raised by the ho t w inds , w hich blow w ith

considerable intensity for from 4 to 5 hours during the day .

3 . The country for 15 miles is entirely bare of wood , and eventhe hills have nothing on them , but a very l ow thin jungle . Their

tops are almost universally of the form known as dome shaped,

another proof of the absence of granitic rocks which when present

in hills in any quantities , give to their summits a sharp serratedform . The whole country has an appearance similar to what on e

can conceive caused by the wave of an earthquake having at some

probably very remote period passed over it .

4 . The air is , as I have said , extremely dry, and from the ex

ceedingly undulating nature of the country,rain w ater must run

Off very quickly all this , added to the en tire absence of jungle ,

must render this tract of country entirely free from Malaria, and

VOL . xx . 0 . 3 . VOL . vrr. N . s .

268 D escrip tion of the country between [No . 10 , xnw annu m.

from the fever which it breeds , and indeed I myself should con

sider the climate extremely healthy and well suited to Europeans.

The soil is w ell adapted to the growth of wheat, and I am convin ced that potatoes and other European vegetables might be w ell

and easily raised , considering the very high price paid for potatoes

in this part of the Presidency, and the extreme uncertainty of the

supply . I am sure that w ere it found that potatoes could here be

well reared, their cultivation would be most remunerative , andw ould be a great boon to the European inhabitants of the two Nor

thern D istricts , both as regards constancy of supply,and lown ess

of price . A t all events the experiment is well worth a trial . I twould

also be easy to ext end wet cultivation , and ensure a large supply of

w ater during the dry w eather , by dammin g up one or more of the

valleys on a high level , and leading the w ater to those on a l ow .

S tone for this purpose can be procured in any quantity and easily,and I doubt not that lime-stone w ould be found w ere an active

search made for it . A s regards trees , the country seems almost

entirely bare of them ; but the soil is peculiarly adapted to the

growth of the Mangoe , and that fi ne tree the Jack. There are only

3 small Ghauts encountered previous to arrival at the very steep

Ghaut, whi ch separates this elevated country from that in the vici

n ity of Jeypore, and none of these present any great difficulties .

5 . There are a number of small villages on the line , and 2 of

large size,viz . Mirtchmala, and Madheopotto . The former con

tains about 70 and the latter abbut 100 houses, and in them all or

dinary supplies and coolies can be procured .

6 . A ltogether I consider this an interesting country and one

w ell worthy attention . There is a very great difference between

its climate and that of the l ow country ; I am quite convinced that

it is perfectly healthy,and think that a change to it from the low

country w ould be most beneficial to European constitutions . U n

til , however, a road is made , and the difficulty of procuring sup

plies diminished,the diffi cul ties to be encountered are far too

great to tempt any on e, not obliged to do so , to visit the country .

4th . 1 . The 4th and last portion of country, to which I havealluded

,is the country in the vicinity of the town of Jeypore lying

about feet above the sea . and separated from it by a tre

mendously steep ghaut about 700 feet in height .

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270 D escription of the coun try between [No . 1 0, N E W sna i l s.

inhabitants are so few ,and their requirements so easily satisfied

that every man is his own artiz an . Every man carries a small

sharp hatchet for cutting and felling timber, and when he re

quires any wood for building or other purposes he takes his pair of

buffaloes to the jungle,cuts what he requires,has it dragged home ,

and then fashions it w ith his hatchet . The bazar is n o t w ell sup

plied, and many articles commonly met w ith in the small villagebazars o f the l ow country cannot here be procured .

5 . C attle are plentiful,and though small

,good , but sheep and

goats are rather scarce .

6 . A pair of good buffaloes can be procured for about 25Rupees a pair of bullocks for 1 0 and sheep and goats for about

1 Rupee a piece .

7 . Rice sells at about 1 2 Rupees per Garce ; wheat 25 seers

per Rupee , salt 1 anna per lb, and iron 1 Rupee per maund .

8 . In Jeypore, however, not a single article can a stranger

procure , unless the Rajah give s permi ss i on to the banians to supply him . The country seems to be sadly mismanaged and misgoverned . The Revenue is about a lack of rupees , about one

third of w hat might easily be derived from it,w ere it in better

hands . It is principally derived from the land tax , which is fixed

at 1 Rupee per pair of bullocks,so that a man

, so long as he pay:

at this rate , may cultivate as much land as he pleases .9. The Rajah is an old man

,quite silly and so totally deaf,

that he can only be communicated w ith by means of signs . H e

is surrounded by a set of scoundrels , who plunder him right and

left, and who have of course grown rich in his service . S O desti

tute is the poor Old man,that his head man

,or Manager, who is

a most consummate scoundrel,doles out to him one or two R u

pees a day, to procure for him the common necessaries of life .

1 0 . From Jeypore to Nagpore the distance is about 300 miles ,

and from the information I received,I conceive that a road could

be very easily made as no Ghauts are encountered , and n othing

need be done but clear the jungle,which extends almost the

whole way between the places . The population is said to be

scanty, and water in one or two places not easily procurable .

1 1 . There is also a road from Jeypore to B udrachel lum on the

G odavery, but said to be very difficult, to cross many G hauts, and

to be almost entirely through jungle.

ecru—M A B . 1 859-60 ] Parva t ipore and J eypore. 27 1

1 2 . There are several roads through the Jeypore country to

Nagpore , but the road in question is considerably the shortest , and

as I have said , w ere a road made, as almost a matter of course , allthe traffic w ould be attracted to it . The amount of traffic is n o t

very easily estimated . But I judge that annually from to

Bullocks pass and repass from Nagpore to the Sea C oast,of

which about travel by the route , I have been describing .

1 3 . On their downward j ourney they carry various ar ticles

such as Palagoonda , Sealing-wax, Bee’ s-wax, Turmeric , O il-seeds

of various kinds , Whea t , Rice , the various kinds of grain , C otton,Dammer

,S oapnut , Deer and Buffaloe horns , Skins , and Iron .

1 4 . The article s carried back are principally salt , tobacco, salt

fi sh ,opium and cloths .

1 5 . In my notes I find a Memo . of the places nearest the l ow

country, where Iron-stone is found in large quantity .

l st . A t D z orapukonda, a village 20 miles from Narrain apatam,

and situated in the Kumbariputtee Mootah . A t this place there

is a quarry .

2nd. From Loharguda to D z orapukondah ,1 2 miles

,plenty

iron-stone is found,but there are no quarries w orked .

3rd. In the B origee Moo tah ,at the village of B hittarilotsa, 12

miles , from Narrain apatam there is a good quarry .

4th In the Po imal s Moo tah ,at the village of G ummidikondah

,

1 5 miles from Narrain apatam there is a good quarry .

5 th . A t Riga,1 0 miles fromNarrain apatam,

there is abundance

of good iron-stone .

5 . The last subject to which I shall allude is the importance of

the road,both in a Military and C ommercial point of View . With

regard to the first,it would effect a saving of about 300 miles on

the present route to Nagpore via Secunderabad or in time of about

5 w eeks , a serious consideration when time is of importance .

6 . In a C ommercial poin t of View the advantages derived w ouldat least be equally great . The traffic to Nagpore is , I have shown ,

even n ow very considerable , and there cannot be a doub t that the

making of a road would at once cause an immense increase in the

trade of Salt,and a considerable decrease in its price , which even

at Jeypore is upwards of double that at which it can '

be procured

in the l ow country . The Jeypore country too is capable of very

272 D escrip tion of the coun try betwem [No . 10, N E W snm z s .

great improvement,and it might be made to produce large quanti

ties of rice,wheat, potatoes and other European vegetables , fruits

of various kinds , &c . , while the trade in iron and valuable timber

would also be very largely extended .

7 .There can be no doubt that the j ungle country is very fever

ish and unhealthy, and I should imagine that the town o f Jeyporeand vicinity is in a less degree of the same/ character. The rainy

season is very dangerous and unhealthy rainy weather, when ao

companied by cold more so still , while the cold w ea ther of Decem

ber and January is almost as unhealthy as the rainy season some ,indeed

,consider it more s o . The hot weather is the only season .

in which the jungles can be entered w ith comparative safety, but

even then the chance of escaping fever is very slight , even to E u

ropean s, while Natives are almost certain to be attacked . My own

experience amply confirms this , as I myself did n o t escape , and of

the party which accompanied me , every on e, w ithout a sin gle ex

ception ,was attacked, and two have already died . Malaria is

of course the principal cause of this , but there are several other s

which exercise an important influence , and among these are the

fatigue and exposure,and want of good food, the latter, I believe ,

exercising a powerful influence . A large party going into thi s

country w ith the intention of remaining some time , should take

large supplies and should be accompanied by an A pothecary or

other Medical attendant .

8 . C amels , or, still better, elephants , are most useful , as they

save a number o f coolies , who can only in most places be procured w ith extreme difficulty, and who are constantly running away,and causing great delay and loss of time .

9. I should mention that the B rinjaries do not travel to Nag '

pore through Jeypore, but strike off the road at Madheopo tto and

pass 1 0 miles to the right of Jeypore. The distance to Nagpore

by these routes is about the same, while the respective distances

by them to Jeypore from Madheopot to are 7 and 26 miles . I

examined the lat ter route on my return,and think it w ould be

the more expensive of the two , while it would not pass through

Jeypore , which is of course a desideratum . The only reason for

preferring it to the other is I conceive occasioned by the difficulty

of passing over the very steep Ghaut , which separates the elevat

ed plateau from the plain of Jeypore.

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278 D escrip tion of the coun try between [No 1 0, N E W S E RI E S ‘

.

R EPOR T ON THE JE YPOR E PA SSES .

D escrip tion of th eroute from T afi tap arty to J eyp ore.

T ahtaparty to foot 1 . T ahtaparty, 5 miles fromMadugole, andof the G haut 1 §

2M iles .miles from the foot of the G haut at an elevation of about 250 feet

above the sea level . The ground about it is much broken up by

ravines,the soil being reddish close to the hills

,from which as we

miles from Viz agapatam,is situated 1

315

recede , it becomes more and more mixed w ith black soil,lime

stone in minute nodules being extensively strewed over the sur

face . T here is a road made , so far as earthwork is concerned from

T ah taparty to the foot of the Ghaut , and it is still , though nu

touched for several years , in very fair condition .

Foot of G haut to 2 . The Ghaut may be described in a fewtop Of do . 1 2 Miles .

w ords . It is a v ery steep and exceedingly

stony and rocky ascent,Which to make into a decent road would

be costly,while the maintenance w ould be no less so . The ascent

is almost continuous , there being but few breaks , and these short .

The elevation of the top is nearly feet above the sea level,

and above the foot,and as the distance follow ing the road

,

is exactly 1 2 miles , the slope is , 1 in'

22 nearly— this , inclusive of

level,or comparatively level surfaces , of which there is probably

about 3 mile s , w ith an average slope of 1 in 40 . This w ill leave

9miles of Ghaut w ith an average slope of 1 in 19nearly, very steep

indeed,‘

and, being almo st throughout overlaid w ith bow lders , rock

or stones , both large and small, the road is exceedingly difi icul t ,whether for horsemen or pedestrians , for bullocks laden or unled

en . The fi rst half of the ascent was some years ago clear ed of

j ungle for a w idth of some yards on each side the road , but this

has again sprung up as thick as ever, and in many ‘ places the

branches and foliage overhang the path , rendering the passage dif

fi cul t . The jungle on both sides of the road is in general very thick,

but trees o f any siz e s eem uncommon . The rocks met w ith are all

unstratifi ed, and seem to be principally gneiss and traps , sand

stoneand con glomerate rocks bein g few ,and no traces of n on .

Top of G haut to 3 . From the top of the G haut to MinooM m o o g o 0 1 0 0 r 2

geol oor, a descent of nearly 500 feet, the roadM'

l s .l e

i s stony and'

steep ,

'

but well shaded . Mmoc

O C T .-M A R . 1 8 59-60 ] Parva tip ore and J eyp ore. 279

g ooloor is a small village situated at the base of one of the rangeso f high hills which abut on the main chain and run in a NorthWest direction , and here enclose a very narrow valley , about a mile

in w idth , through the middle of which flow s a stream. These hills,

which recede in height as w e go inland,are here covered w ith

dense j ungle , and rise feet ab ove the valley, theirelevation above the sea being about feet .Min oogool oor to 4 . The commencement of this portion of

H OOkumPett 8 mdes' the route is through a long narrow valley, the

soil of which is black , and covered w ith a long and very coarse

grass , more resembling on e of the rush tribe than the grassy,

very useful and valuable as a thatch , but utterly useless as fod

der s eeing that no description of animal w ill touch it . The

scenery of this valley is very beautiful , hills on each side cc

vered w ith j ungle , and at bottom, w ith large trees rising

feet above it, while through its centre flow s a fine stream of water .

The road crosses 2 or 3 small nullahs , and is in some places rugged

and a little st ony , but practicable for cart traffic . Emerging from

this valley the road enters a much more Open,and very undulating

country, b ounded by small hills , which gradually become bare of

j ungle,and diminish in height the farther we proceed into the

interior . Villages are few and far betw een , and the country has a

bleak desolate appearance , by n o means relieved by the cold

greyish b lack soil which supports an abundant crop of the long

gras s before mentioned . It is no doub t how ever capable of betterthings

,and w ould I think , be well suited to the growth of cotton

,

unless,indeed the elevation of the country be obnoxious to the

grow th of that useful plant . The late season having been one o f

the driest on record , we w ere of cours e prepared to fi nd w ater un ~

u sually scarce , but throughout this region , even in the hottest wea

ther,there is alw ays more or l ess water «to be found in the small

s tream, which flows through the bottom of every valley, and of

:which the high , precipiton s'

banks afford ample evidence of the

torren t'

of water , which must at times swell it . On each side o f

the centre of each valley, paddy might be cultivated for a con

siderable distan ce , but the population is '

so s canty, and their wants‘

so ;easily satisfied, that they are satisfied to cultivate dry grain, or

280 D escription of thecoun try between [No . 1 0, N E W snmns.

at bes t no more paddy than is sufficient for their own con sumption . The road passes through the village of H ookumpett , which

seems to contain 40 to 50 houses , while to the south east, distant

about 3; mile is a river about 20 yards w ide , w ith very steep banks1 5 feet high , and a sandy and gravelly bed .

H ookumpet t to 5 . A fter leaving H ookumpett the roadA urada 20 miles passes over a bleak , s tony, uncultivated coun

try,as before very undulatin g , the valley is of black soil , and bear

ing nothing but the coarse grass before mentioned , which was in

many places on fi re, and burning w ith surprising rapidity and a

loud crackling noise . In the fi rst 3 miles, sev eral small nullahsw ere cross ed , also the river last mentioned , which is like all the

rivers of the plateau , extremely circuitous in c ourse , being co'

m

pel led, as it w ere to follow the course of the valleys . The w ater in

this river we observed to be much discoloured , as though contain

ing much clayey matter , a fac t diffi cult to account for , as the w aterin s imilar streams I had always observed to be beautifully clear .

The most probable explanat ion is that, the water running from the

paddy and other cultivated fi elds , then in a slushy and muddy

state,occasioned the discoloration . The road n ow lay through a

long and very narrow valley , bounded by high hills covered w ith

j ungle . This valley is about 5 miles in length , and does not aver

age more than half a mile in w idth , the soil still principally black ,and w ith little cultivation . On the w est side o f the valley we oh

served two very narrow valleys , very similar to that through which

we w ere passing , bounded by very high hills , covered w ith dense

j ungle,and running far into the interior . The road through this

valley crosses several nullahs , and is partly free of jungle , which,is n ever very thick . Tow ards the head of the valley we . crossed a

tremendously steep and di'

l oul t nullah, through which a considera

ble stream, along the top o f the east steep bank of which the road

which is very rugged and stony, ran . The ground . is n ow

seamed w ith ravines and nullahs,and is C onsequently a succession

of steep ascents , and descents , and difficult,rugged

,and stony .

The head of the valley is shut in to all appearance by a magn ifi

cent hill , upwards of feet above the sea, and quite bare of

jungle for some hundred feet from the top , to the south w est of

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282 D esorzjo tefon of the coun try between [No . 1 0, N E W s nnrns;

dulating plain, bare , and bounded by l ow hil ls, and overwhich

villages , generally occupying the summits of eminences , are spare?

ly scattered . Four miles farther on, crossing several nullahs ,which supply water to considerable breadths of wet cul tivation ,wereached the village of A urada, occupying the summit of an emit,

n cnoc .

A urada to Soogoor, 6 . FromA urada the road lay for twomiles1 0 mdes'

through a narrow valley bounded by low hills

covered w ith thin j ungle and towards the end of which , I Obs

served iron stone in considerable abundance, and tolerable rich-s

ness—this being the only place between T ahtaparty and Jeypore

where it isfound of suffi cient importance to admit of re cord. In

the above distance we crossed several small Nullahs , and , at about

the centre of it, a tolerably s iz ed river, 20 yards w ide , w ith veryhigh steep banks , and a good stream of w ater, running to theWest .

The road, n ow stony and rugged, passes through a narrow defile,

half a mile in length, between two hills covered w ith jungle , andthen enters a perfectly open, and very undulating country, w ith

n o t a single tree, although covered w ith l ow date bushes . T he,

soil is red, and the Nul lahs or concavities of valleys of w hich we

crossed many, are w ell cultivated w ith paddy—7 1 0 miles fromA urada, we reached the village of S oogoor, containing about 60houses, and occupying the summit of an eminence, while situate afew hundred yards to the S outh West and occupying . another, is

an other village, which in fact belongs to the former . T he view

from the village is very fine, a fine undulating plain , quite harembounded by low hill s stretching almost as far as the eye can reach,

split up into a multitude of subordinate longitudinal and tran s

versal valleys well cultivated w ith paddy, while to the North East

and far in the distance appeared a lofty range of hills, possiblythat branch of the main chain which running off N . N. W . is

crossed by the R ij ya Ghaut . The soil is n ow , and indeed from

Wandragedda as far as what is called the Pedda Ghaut, red and

gravelly, admirably adapted for road making, and generally requir

ing nothing more than trenching .

Soogoor10 D adee, 7 . The road between these places paS S fi S1 3 miles . over a c ountry much as last described, thesoil being red and gravelly, and bearing abundance of low data

C OL—M A B . 1 859 Parvatip ore and J eyp ore. 283.

bushes,but no t rees, several nullahs watering a good deal of

paddy ground being crossed , an d several villages of some siz e‘

passed close to our place of encampment a t D adee, we crossed a

'

very steep w ide nullah , w ith a small stream of w ater through it ,’

and w ith much in its banks and b ottom of that peculiar yellowochreish earth , which is so often an indication of the proximity of

iron . S ome years ago there was a village at this place , but it hasbeen abandoned on account of the ravages of tigers , which seem

to be much on the increase .

D adee to Jeypore, 8 . From D adee the top of the Ghaut, dis

1 3 mi les .ta

’

nce 4 miles,the road is a li ttle stony and

rugged,lying betw een l ow hills covered w ith j ungle , the Ghaut is

about 700 feet in height, and 25 mile s in length, the first 15mile exceedingly rocky or stony and difficul t, though no t very;

steep: It is w ell shaded , the jungle being dense on b oth

and containing here and there some fi ne trees . The lastmile of

the descen t is still through j ungle , and a lit tle rugged , but pretty’

free fromrock or stones , and at its termination is reached a fi ne‘

river about 50 yards w ide, and 7-4—1 0 fee t deep , which we crossed"

on a rude ferry boat . The river here w idens out considerably,and seems indeed to have formed a deep pool , but a considerable

volume of water was flowing through it when we cros sed, while

during the monsoon it must carry off a great body of water . From

the'

river to Jeypore 6 miles , the country is better peopled andw ellcultivated , the road some time s rough and stony, but generallypretty good , runs not far from the l ow range of bil ls that on the

S . and S . E . bound the great plain of Jeypore.

C omp arison of the M adugo le and Parvatipore R outes.

1 . Having n ow seen both routes , I have n o hesitation in say

g that I consider that by Parvatipore infinitely the superiorof.

two ,and that for many reasons .

In the first place the highest elevation to becrossedis inr route byupwardsof 400 feet, a serious cousi

arly when it i s remembered that not only has

cended, but. to be'

descended, so that'

in the

7 1 1 . N . I .

284 D escrip tion of the coun try between [No . 1 0, uz w sxnms.

merematter of making a road, there is upwards of 800 feet moreof Ghaut by the Madugole, while for those j ourneying backwardsand forwards there is in ascent and descent combined a differen ceof feet, for it must be remembered that, particularly to beastsof burden, a steep descent is perhaps even more trying than an

ascen t .R oad over Madu 3 . The Madugole Ghaut has a steep asl

‘

h

igt

fdigstifn cent of feet in 1 2 mi les , or a slope of 1and in maintenance. in 225 nearly, while the B ijya G haut on the

Parvatipore route though much steeper is very much shorter , and

has a much smaller elevation , there being a rise of feet in

a distance of 4 miles , or a slope of a little less than 1 in 1 6 . Ishould however mention that the latter Ghaut is considered to

commence nearly 2 miles nearer Parvatipore than I have put itdown , and if this be considered, the B ijya Ghaut w ill be 5-8 miles

l on g w ith an elevation of feet , which gives a slope of l in 21 .

T he length and elevation of a Ghaut are important considerations

in regard as whether they can be traversed during a day. This

the Madugol e Ghaut could not be by loaded animals , at least n otw ithout great diffi culty, and , not to speak of the d an ger from tigers

and w ild animals , which infest these Ghauts , the feverish charac

ter of the atmosphere , that at night surrounds them, renders a.

n ight encampment on them in the highest degree obj ectionable .

A route then w ith a Ghaut easily crossed in one day is verymuch to b e preferred to one that cannot . I may mention that our

party proceedin g with as much expedition as possible w ere 6 hours

in ascending the Madugo le Ghaut . This latter is too,almost

throughout, rocky, or covered w ith loose stones , the latter even

more obj ectionable than rock,while on the B ijya Ghaut compara

t ivel y l it tle of the road is rocky and scarcely any part of i t is

covered w ith loose s tones . The latter then would be less

expen sive to make and maintain , than the former , and it possesses

one great advantage that the other has no t viz . water is plentiful

throughout from the bottom to the top .

D istance of Jey 4 . The n earest Seaport to Jeypore by theIé ziisiii

n

iite

sifi iis

i Madugole route is Viz agapatam and that byboth routes. Parvatipore, C alingapatam, and these dis

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,

286 D escrip tion of the coun try between [No . rtnw swims.

.have thought that disinclined as is the Government of India , during thecon tinuance of the present financial embarrassment

,to re

commend the commencement of the s cheme as a whole , they may

be disposed next year to countenance the under taking of the por

tion of the scheme mentioned above , which under -any circum

stances must be the portion of the line fi rst commenced and com

pl eted.

‘The present amount of traffi c by the Parvatipore route many

times exceeds that by the others—this owing to the former bein g

much easier than the latter , and every on e w ith whom I have conversed on the subj ect, is of opinion that were a roadmade by Par~

v atipore, all other routes w ould be almost entirely abandoned . T he

country through which it passes too is in almost every respect Su

perior to that by the Madugo le route , whether in siz e of villages,1extent of population , capabilities of improvement

, or resources .

A s I have just mentioned , the Parvatipore line is very much moreused than the other , and this alone , in the absence of other cir

cumstan ces, would lead us to conclude it to‘

be a much easier and

'

more 1mprobable route .O bjection raised 6 . The only obj ection I have ever heard13

.2“t Parvat 1pore raised to the Parvatipore route , by those ao

-quain ted with both

,is the number of times must be crossed the

river, which , rising in the B ijya Ghaut, enters the sea at Chicacole ,

and even this they hold to be small and more than coun terbalan

cedby the numerous other advantages ofi'

ere d . To this obj ection

however, even taken by itself I attach little w eight , for m the fi rstplace the crossing

, where obj ectionable , might w ithout doub t often

be avoided by making the road a l ittle longer, and even where this

cannot be done , a bridge (if necessary) can easily be erected, tim

ber,

bein g every where plentiful , and foundation soil excellent . I t

is_ _

on ly however, after a heavy fal l of rain, of one or more days

duration , that the river w ould not be easily passable , as betweenI’arvatipf

ore and the foot of the Ghaut , in which distance it is'

crossed 24 times , the river is generally Wide, and w i th low banks ,nor either from reports, nor from appearances , do I gather that thevolume ofwater is ever for more than a very short time , and that

occurring but seldom during the year, sufficient to cause stoppage

oath—MA B . 1 859-60 ] Parvatipore and J eypore. 2 87

;to traffic . I consider then the quasi obstacles offered by the rivert o be of little consequence , and to be almost counterbalanced

by the advantage present and prospective accruing from the pos

session alon g the greater part of th e route of a fine river,afford

ing a t a l l season s an abundant supply o f water .

In conclusion I w ill me n tion that I have n ow travelled by threeroutes

,from Jeypore to MadheOputtee, a large village , on the

Parvatipore side of that route . T wo of these , in length respectively

1 0 and 26 mile s are mentioned in my accoun t ofmy first expedition

to Jeypore. The remainin g rou te I traversed on my rec ent tour,and consider it preferable to either of the others

,as it is about the

same length as the shorter o f the two fi rst mentioned,and very

much easier, both throughout and as regards the slope of the steep

descent, from the plateau to Jeypore. The above o f course only

tends to confirm the prepossession I have in favor of the Parvatipore route .

M iscel laneous Observations.

C onfi guration of 1 . The Plateau, or elevated re gion be

the Plateau. tw een the Dis trict Vi z agapatamand the plain

country of Jeypore is encl osed on the East by a chain of hills

stre tching N . W . at ta1n 1ng their greatest elevation in the vicinity

ofMadugole, and gradually becoming lower as they approach the

Northern extremity of the District . From this' chain branches

run N . and N . N . E . containing some hills said to be ev en

h igher than any in themain chain , but the general run of thelatter

is as before mentioned . There are several passes over this chaininto Jc;pore , the principal being those already mentioned , othersl essused being by Pachapen ta and S aloor. From the summits of

these passes to the level of the Plateau are slopes of on an average

350 feet in perpendicular height, and little less steep than the opposite ascents , which average about 1 in 20 . The Plateau has a

tolerably G entle fall to the Westward , and is terminated abrup tly

by a range of steep hills which sever it from the plain country

pf Jeypore , and through which to the same are a number of

passes averagin g 700 fee t in height . The Plateau is extremely

undulating andbroken up by numerous longitudinal and transversevalleys

,the general direction of which are respec tively at right

28 8 D escrip tion of the coun try between [No . 10 , N E W exams.

angles , and parallel to the bounding chains of hills . T he hillsgenerally recede in height as we proceed westward, and are eithercomparatively bare of jungle or covered w ith low j ungle .

C limate . 2 . The climate of the p lateau, which ave

rages feet above the sea is aw ay from the immediate vicinityof the high hills very dry and agreeable , the average ran ge of the

thermometer in the beginning of the year being about 28 , the

minimumbeing 50 ,and the maximum In the narrow val leys,

bounded by high hills , the thermometer sinks much low er than

mentioned above , and immediately under the Ghauts , the cold is

very severe . This is owing to the cold air, which at night rushes

down the sides of the hills , and fi lls the valley3 , a phenomenon o f

almost universal occurrence in all parts o f the globe , and partien

l arly observable under mountain chains , as in the pres ent case,

running N . and S . and whose slopes consequently receive the sun’s

rays during only one half the day. It is w ell known that the at

mosphere is but little heated by the direct action of the sun’

s rays ,

and that it principally derives its heat by radiation from the earth’s

sur face , and that, moreover , it is when dry, an extremely bad con

ductor of heat . On these hills covered w ith j un gle , the ground is,

how ever , generally more or less mo ist and so therefore also the air

in its immediate vicinity , and thus the power of conduction being

added to that of radiat ion , these narrow valleys become filled w ith

air'

several degrees hotter than that of the atmosphere free of them.

When therefore that period of the day has arrived , at which the

earth ceases to receive heat , ai1d commences to part w ith that re

ceived, the s trata of air close to the si des of the hills become heated (above the average prevailing temperature)much mero rapidlythan those more dis tant, the intensity of radiation being inverselyas the square of the distance from the radiatin g point . The por

tion of the atmosphere then resting on the hill slopes becomes

gradually lighter, and would ascend but for the cooler andheavier

air, which res ts above the hills , which descends by its superiorw eigh t, and exer ts a lateral pressure on the hotter air, the currents

of which (one from either side o f the valley) gradually approach

on e another, mingle and then ascend their upward passage bei ng

facilitated by a partial vacuum, or quiescent state of the airmedial

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290 D escription of tbe coun try between [No . 1 0, N E W S l ums.

T he inhabitants w ould seem to be aware of this, as their v illages are almost invariably found on the summits ofknolls , oremi

nen ces and never in or near the bottoms of valleys,and as it is

w ell known that the natives of this country have not the smallest

taste for, nor even have an idea of, the picturesque , w e cannot conceive them to have been influenced in their choice of site by con

siderations of this kind . The mean height of the thermometer in

the commencement o f the year is (in doors) and the atmo

sphere which is dry and bracing has an exhilarating effect on those

accustomed to the plains , and more part icularly to those who have

l ived on the coast . The lowes t observed minimum occurred at

H ookampett , 1 0 miles from the Madugo le G haut , where the

mercury sank to and even at 7 A . M . was no higher than

A t Min oogool oor, which is immediately under the G haut,I had no Opp ortunity of taking a morning observation , but there Iam convinced , the thermometer would have been even low er than

just stated .

Best season for 3 . The best season for visiting the countryvisiting country.

seems to be from the middle of January to

the middle of A pril , and the w orst of all , the period between the

monsoons and the cold w eather. This is according to universal

Nat ive testimony, and is also in accordance w ith the experien ce

of the few Europeans who have visi ted the country, as also w ith

the results obtained by our own party, which w ith servants,

sebundees, &c . ,comprised fully 200 men among whom there was

n o fever, nor since our descen t into the low country have any been’

attacked w ith it . A ccording to the conceived origin and causes of

fever,every principle o f logic would point to the hot weather '

as

the bes t season for going up the Ghauts , but from my own ex

perien ce during my first visit, and from what I have n ow gathered,upon extended enquiry I am prone to believe , that the hot weatherafter the middle of A pril is n o t a favorable season for visi tingthese countries.

S oil . 4 .

.

T he so il commonly met w ith on the

Plateau is red , containing often , and indeed generally, a large ad

mixture of gravel , and admirably adapted for roadmaking . In manyplaces I have observed a red indurated clay, which strongly re

O C T .—M LR . 1 859 P areatzpore and J eypore. 291

sembles laterite , except that it does not seem of s o cellular a

structure . I n the bottoms of the valleys the so il is,or is in a great

measure, black cotto n, the most fertile and best . suited for wet

cultivation . The redsoil seems however to be more favourable to

the grow th of trees , both fruit bearing and otherw ise, of which themo st commonly met w ith , the mango and j ack , grow mo st lux

urian tly, and w ithout any artificial irrigation . T his red soil w ill

however, when irrigated produce abundant crops of almost every

description , and it is w ell suited to potatoes and European vegeta

bles , which I feel convinced could be produced in any quantity .

There is throughout the year abundance of w ater, and tanks

o f very large si z e , and great depth could be very easily made .

The soil of the plain country about Jeypore is to the South ,black , and this I believe to be more o r less its nature as far as theG odavery, but little of it is at present cultivated , although ,

yield~

ing fine crops of paddy and native vegetables,the whole country

southwards,presenting to the eye a perfect sea of j ungle . It is

scarcely possible to conceive a country more highly favo red by na

ture,and which presents greater facilities for cultivat ion and irri

gation , and yet, thanks to the primitive habits , supineness andignorance of the inhabitants

,and to their having come so little in

contact w ith Europeans,no more is cultivated than will suffice for

their own consumption , while , w ith thesingl e exception of iron,scarcely an attempt is made to develope the numerous resource s

and natural riches of the country . The plain of Jeypore must re

ceive the greater portion of the drainage of the pl eateau , which is

30 to 40 mi le s in w idth , on which the rain fall must be at least 50

inches per annum,and this coupled w ith the natural fac ilities ex

isting for storing large quantities of w ater , would render the irrigation of the whole plain easy, unexpensive , and most certain . Itw ould be most admirably suited to the cultivation of the sugar

cane, which requires a rich moist soil , free from saline , and rich in

nitrogenous matter . The land might of course be had for a meresong , and as fuel can be had to any amount for the mere cost o fcutting . I doubt not that a sugar factory would w ell succeed .

The hill s in the neighbourhood of the Ghauts seem also to posses sall that is required for the successful growth of coffee , they have a

VOL . xx . 0 . s .

“VO L. v rr. N . s .

292 D esorzjo tz’

on of the coun try between [No . 1 0 , N E W S E RI E S,

red gravelly rocky soil w ith the proper elevation and an easternexposure , these latter a great desiderata .

S tate of country , T hepresen t state of the country seems mi& 0 ‘

serable enough, as mis-management, and cor

ruption,and violence , seems to be every where paramount . The

prin cipalgj'

portion of the cultivated lands are Inam, and the mo st

valuable land on enquiry is almost invariably found to be Inam,

that leased being of comparatively little value . It w ould howeverbe difficult for the R aj ah, even if so inclined , to di scover what is

Inam,and what is not, as no accounts whatever are kept ; each vil

lage appearing to pay a fixed sum, varying from 20 to 200 or 300

R upees . Of the capabilities of the country, and of what can be

drawn from it under proper arrangement, some idea may be fo rmed by a simple statement of facts . The Taluq of G un ipooram has

been for some years under Government management , it having

been taken out of the R ajah’ s hands until the arrears due by him

to Government are paid . While under the R aj ah’ s management

or rather under that of his p eople,who plunder him right and left,the Taluq did not bring him in anything , and on the contrary was,I believe

,a source of loss to him. U nder Governmentmanagement,

the Taluq,I am given to understand , n ow brings in upwards of

R upees, leaving after paying the Government pishcush

R upees and all expenses a profi t of upwards of R u

pees, which I have every reason to believe might under E urop ean

superintendence be doubled , and even trebled by developing theresources of the country . This shows how the R aj ah , a silly o ld

man ,is plundered by the p eople about him

,in who se hands he is

as a mere child .

The inhabitants are a muscular healthy looking race , anythingbut debilitated

,as must be the case , were they much subj ect to

fever ; their customs are primitive , and their wants few and easily

satisfied , and they seem much more docile , uncomplaining andfree from cunning and vice

,than the inhabitants of the l ow coun

try, many of them have a strongly Mongolian physiognomy pro

truding cheekbones, w ith small, deeply sunken eyes, narrow fore

heads and elongated faces . They are generally above the average

height, wel l made, with muscular limbs and appear capable of sup

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294 D escrip tion of the coun try, go .é‘

c . [No 1 0,N E W sn ares .

road must first how ever be made , as before that is done,

the country is comparatively diffi cult of ac

spgfiigiiiing to the cess , and to the speculator is n ot inviting for

a visit, how ever much otherwise it may be

to those who are interested in seeing a n ew and lit tle known

country . Iron alone, w ith which the country abounds , and in

great richness too ,must on e day be a source of great w ealth to it ,

seeing that it can be cheaply produced, and that the demand forit\

is likely day by day to increase .

M emo . show ing the various hal ting p laces anal their respective heights,

above the S ea level and distance, &c.

Name of Place .

T ataparty .

T opM in oogoo l oor .

H ookampettA uradeS oogoor. .

J eyp ore by Parvatipore .

D evoroput tee

M irtchmal

T op of R ijya GhautT en toolabaddrah .

£L3955a4905a783zi 1eg

1 45;1 38

1 3 1

1 2451 2251 1 1

88

C21

c o l t—M A R . 1 859 On T imber in C uddap ah . 29

XII I . On T imber in the n eighbourhood of C uddap ah . By C A PT .

J . H . M . STE WA RT , D istrict E ngineer.

( C ommun ica ted by G overnmen t .)

I have the honor to inform you,that the difficulty experienced

in procuring good Timber in the neighbourhood of Cuddapah,and

its consequent high price,having frequently been forced on my at .

tention , I determined on examining a range of Hills , on which Ihad reason to believe

,that a variety of useful Wood was to b e

found . The range to which I allude,stretches due East andWest

,

between the C heyair and Paupaugn ee R ivers,reaching from the

town of Nundal oor in the C hitwail T alook, a distanc e as the crow

flies , of 45 miles .

2 . It was to the Eastern portion of this range that I dire ctedmy attention . I commenced at G ool cherroo , and spent 4 days onthe top of the Hills . In the valleys near G ool cherroo , I came upona large number of fi n e trees

,principally Muddy’ and Yepi . ’ In

on e of the lowest valleys , and nearest to th e G ool cherroo Ghaut,

several Muddy’ trees had been felle d some years ago , and shaped

into beams , w ith the intention of taking them into Cuddapah . This

however in the absence of any track,along which wheels could be

drawn , w as found impossible,and the beams are still lying where

they w ere felled .

3 . From a careful examination of the valleys , and of the cattle

tracks which lead Westward from them,towards Trunk R oad No .

XI , I am certain that excellent wheel tracks , for the conveyance ofTimber, might be opened out at very small cost . The wheels which

I w ould propose to make for dragging out the Timber would beabout 21 feet in diameter , and about the same distance apart, sothat a track of suffi cient w idth could be cleared at very small cost .B y clearing a track of about 7 mil es in length , several excellent

Timber valleys would be brought w ithin easy reach of the high

road .

4 . I enclose an Estimate amounting to R up ees 650, which provides both for this and for the construction of 4 pair Of wheels,

296 . On T imber in the [No . 1 0 , N E W snn rns .

&c . I would strongly recommend that itmay be immediately sanction ed. It is at present almos t impossible to procure good si z edTimber in Cuddapah , except at exorbitant prices . Ofwell season

ed wood there is none to be had at any pri ce . By opening out

these valleys at once , the Timber can be brought into Cuddapah ,and stored in our Timber yard till required for building purposes

.

5 . The Hills , at the point of which I have been speaking, varyi n height from to feet above the S ea . Further East

ward , however, they are considerably higher . A . point at which

my tent was pitched for two days , in 1 4"1 4 ’ North Latitude

,and

78”76

’ East Longitude was about feet above the S ea, or

feet above the town of Cuddapah . This was in a valley . The

highest point that I reached in the neighbourhood was 500 feet

higher,about feet above the Sea .

6 . In thisvalley, where I was encamped for two days , there issome very valuable Timber . T wo larger plantations of young

Teak trees looked especially promising . Of these the largest hadbeen cut and hacked in a mer ciles s manner by the villagers at the

foot of the H ills and none had been allowed to attain a fair si z e .

I am certain how ever , that if carefully preserved , these plantationsw ould in a few years become most valuable property . There was

also in this neighbourhood a fi n e show of Yepi and other useful

j ungle Timber . A ltogether I think , that considering the scarcityof Timber, which always prevails in Cuddapah , it w ould be well

w orth while to take some steps towards protecting the jungles on

this range ofHills from the w anton spoliation to which they havebeen subj ect .

7 . In one part of the valley, of which I have been speaking ,a good deal of ground has been cleared for cultivation by some

enterpri z ing R yots from the village ofWungymul lah , at the foot of

the Hills . H itherto they have grown only R aggi and Cholum ;

but during the last few months , some of their fi elds have been

under Indigo . They have also at considerable expense sunk a

large Well,and constructed an Indigo Vat

,&c .

'

They are n ow

most anxious to make a Tank , by throw ing a bund acro ss the

valley at a narrow point . They propose to do this at their own ex

pense,and to bring a good deal of land under wet cultivation , on

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298 On the cul ture of S orgho and Imp hi . [No 1 0 ,N E W sn n rns.

XIV . On the cul ture of S orgho and Imphi . By M . PE R R O T T E T .

[T he follow ing paper was received fromM . Perrottet by the Committeeof the Madras E xhibition of 1 859. It w as by them transferred tothe G eneral C ommittee of the A . H . S . by whose kindness we are

enabled to present it to our readers .

T he I—I on ’bleMr . E lliot has kindly added to it some notes which are

valuable additions to the original . —E D . ]

ON the 20th of January last, you did me the honor to send me

a letter for M . Montclar , dated fromMadras on the 2nd idemfi‘

which had through oversight been forw arded to M . Montbrun .

together w ith six small tin boxes containing some grains of tha »c

kind o f Sorgho called Imphi (Imphi-seed) from South A frica .

Subsequently on the 1 4th February you transmitted a farther sup

ply of other six boxes containing the same Sorgho seed , re quest

ing me to sow them as w ell as those first sent, and to w atch the

progress of their development, which ac cordingly I at once proceeded to do .

I n ow beg to report the result of these sow ings tog ether w iththe observations made by the Head Gardener

,t o whom you also

furnished a supply of the same s eed direct .

The whole of the seeds germinated freely but unequally, andthe development of the stalks was completed, although slowly and

very irregularly to theripening of the grain which occupied a pe

riod of from 50 to 60 days after the seeds had been sown .

O n the first appearance of the plants above the ground theyw ere w atered only three times a w eek , but afterwards daily and

more freely in proportion to their grow th , and as they approached

the period of inflorescence . U nder this treatment they attained a

height of from 6 to 8 feet, not more , when the formation and

ripening of the grain was completed .

I w atched the gradual developmen t of these newly introducedplants w ith much interest, examining their structure w ith great

care to ascertain w hether, as had been stated , the‘ r really consti

tuted distinct species or varieties . These observations have led

me to the conclusion that , in a botanical point o f view , they ex

b ibit no appreciable differences whatsoever , that w ill justify the

21 in original .

0 C T .-M LR . 1 859-60 ] On the culture of S orgho and Imphi . 299

establishment not merely of n ew species but even of new varieties,

w ith the exception of on e kind only derived from the see d fur

n ished by you to the H ead Gardener . I w ill describ e the planthereafter which appears to me to b e new or at least to differ insome degree from the o thers .I have

,Sir

,convinced myself that these supp osed varietie s , have

no existence,certainly not among the plants raised from the seed

received from you. They are all assignable to one type , v iz . , the

specie s known as the A ndrop ogon C afi rorum of Kun th or the A .

S accharatus of R oab. to which an A frican origin is also assigned fi ‘

The appearance and disposition of all the flowering panicles i s

the same . In nearly all , th e ramifications are verticel led or sub

verticel led, the branches long , slender, flexible , subdivided intonumerous branchlets , or spikelets , each bearingmany distinct, sessile flowers . The lower flowers some of which are neuter

,others

unisexual , others hermaphrodite are furnished w ith a s ingle pedi

celled valve those higher up on the spikelet have two pedicelledvalves repre senting two narrow lanceolate , acute, downy bractslonger than the grains . Thes e two glumes representing the calyxare concave , beardless and entirely clothed w ith tomentose whitehairs . The stamina are as in the genus , three in number , on

capillary filaments , the anthers yellow inclining to light pink .

The ovary which is of an oval shape terminates in two lon gish

In illustration of M. Perrottet’s remarks, I add the following ex

tract fromKnuth’s A grostographia i . p . 502.

1 1 1 . A ndropogon S accharatus, R oxb. F lor. I nd. i . 274 . E rectus ;

pan icul is verticil latis ; ramifi cation ibus nutan tibus calyce piloso ;corol l is muticis, hermaphrodi te, tri, neutra univalvi . R oxb. Holcussaccharatus Lin . Sp ec. 1484 Wil ld. Sp ec. 4 930 . Sorghum sacchara

turn , P ers. Syn . G ram. 4 t. 4—Holcus Doehne [ar ”5 d]Forsk. E gyp . 1 74, (teste D elile) -India orientalis, A n

planta R oxburghiana certe eademac Linnean a

1 1 2. A . C affrorum, Kun th G ram. 1 65 . G lumis vil losis ; semin ibus

compressis inermibus. T hunb.—Holcus C affrorum, T hunb. P rod. 20.

E iusdemF lor. C ap . i . 41 0 VVilld. Spec . —Holcus cafer, A rduz’

n ,

S aggi di Padov.—1 19t . 1 . f . l .

- SorghumCa" rorum, E cuac . A grost . 1 3 1 ,

Sorghum A rduini, J acg. B cl . G ram. 25 . t . 1 8 . Cap . Bon . Spec .@Sprengel cum precedente conjungit .

VOL . xx . 0 . s. VOL . v 1 1 . N . s.

300 On the cul ture of S orgho and Imphz . [No . 1 0, N EW snnms.

styles w ith diverging feathered stigmas of a deep rose color . The

caryopsis (or seed vessel) is oval somewhat flattened at the base ,of a fawn color, reddening as it ripens, embraced for one-half, or

f or even for its whole length by the glumes , which are , as already Observed , downy on the outside and terminated by the rudi

ments of the two styles which are very distinct,leaving as it

lengthens , a w ell-marked line , which seems to distinguish this

species from its congeners .

A l l the plants raised from the seed sown presented the same

union of characters the only perceptible difference being in the

greater or less degree in which the caryopsis was enclo sed in itslength and breadth by the two glumes . This peculiarity as above

Observed is by no means constant, and is wholly insuffi cient to

characteriz e even a variety.

T he species may be described thus —A ndropogon C affrorum

v . ,8 . (constituting a sufficiently marked variety . ) C ulmo erecto

,

2—3 vel pluris n odis glabris, vagin is cil iatis, folus glabris mar

gine scabriuscul is. Paniculé effusa, samasa, samis verticil latis,

erectis, puberul is, glumis vel losis, muticis, pedicello puberulo ,

semin ibus basi compressis, stylis rudimento coron atis. { Fern }

I have n ot been able to determine w ith precision the exact proportion of the saccharine constituent contained in these p retendedvarieties

,having neither the means of ascertaining the precise

amount, nor having been able to procure a press Of any kind for

extracting the juice . I managed, how ever, w ith a good deal o ftrouble to express a portion from a considerable number of stalks

which enabled me to ascertain the greater or less degree in whichthe saccharine property was found in each .

The follow ing are the results obtained by the process of tasting

Plants raised from the fi rs t six boxes . No . 1 . Imphi-seed—2stalks of 6 to 8 feet high

,of very fair growth , thicker above than

belOW,—very sweet, particularly in the upper part of the stalks .

No . 2 . Imphi~seed — the same as the above .

No . 3 . Imphi-seed of Mr . Brownlee , the same results as theabove

,all being equally sweet .

No . 4 . Do . do . also very sweet .

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302 On the culture of S orgho and Imphi. [No . 1 0 , n ew snares .

maturity, that in the greater number, on the c ontrary, the embryow as ill-developed and the albumen (endosperme) red and destroyed by insects , to such an extent that the germ of some of the

seeds, although s own at the same time , did not appear above the

ground for 4 , 5 or 6 days after the others,thus accounting for the

inequality of grow th above mentioned , and consequently for thedisparity also remarked in their sweetness . I believe that theseare the’

causes which constantly gave rise in all countries to in sign ifi can t differences leading to the establishment and perpetuationof endless varieties which the ignorant delight to recogniz e w ithout defining or being able to defin e them, specifically in any way.

I must add , moreover, that we must no t expect always to find

the same quantity of saccharine matter in herbaceous annualplants even when they are grown under the most favorable circumstan ces, provided that is , that the saccharine product is not ,as in the sugar-cane the principal constituent of the plants , buton the contrary it only show s itself when the formation of the

grain begins to take place,and when the floral panicle is fully de

vel oped. It does not even attain its maximum until all the grainshave been completely matured , and even then it begins to fall off

in quantity . It is especially remarkable that this maximum of

saccharine principle is only manifested distinctly at the top of thestalks , and that the low er portion next the earth exhibits often

nothing more than the slightest trace of sweetness . I must add,

however, that such is the case Only after the grain has become

quite ripe . B efore that period I have found the stalks sw eet,throughout their whole length , but always in an inferior degreetowards the inferior extremity . Hence it follows that it is n ecessary to w atch , so to speak , themos t favorable moment for cuttingthe plants .

With regard to the saccharine richness of the so called varieties of this A frican Sorgho which as I have already sai d are allreferrable to a common type , the A ndropogon Oafi

'

rorum of Kun th,

it would appear according to Mr . Wray to be very remarkable ,

and of a nature to attract the attention of sugar growers . In the .

last number of the Journal of the Imperial Zo ological S ociety of

A cclimatation he thus expresses himself

o er —M A R . 1 859-60 ] On the cul ture of S orgho and Imphi .

I have cultivated says he ,“these 1 5 varieties or species and

have made sugar from them all . This trial has made me ac

quain ted not only w ith the saccharine r ichness of each kind, but

also w ith the conditions of their grow th and th eir yield . My

manufacture has given such successful results that I left Natal toreturn to Europe in order to pursue my dis covery , and to announceto the manufacturing community the importance of these plantsin the production of sugar .

”

A n otherf writer M . Don Jul ien Pel lony R odrigue z states inthe same Journal , that the canes or stalks of these several vari etie s of Imphi weigh from 4 o z . to 3 lbs . , that the canes are fi rmand contain from 50 to 80 per cent . Of sweet j uice , yielding from1 0 to 1 6 per cent . of sugar . If these facts are correct and I haveevery reason to believe they are

,the cultivation“of this plant w ill ,

at no distant period bring about a revolution in the sugar trade .

For if I am not mistaken, the sugar cane which requires a growthOf a year and more in certain localities to arrive at the maximum

of production does not yield much more , if it does exceed that .

In C ayenne for example where I took part in the experimentsof an able sugar boiler w ith the most perfect means of extractionin use at the period

,we cer tainly Obtained 22 per cent . of very

fine sugar,but that was probably an exceptional result .

It must always be matter of surpriz e that although these plants

have been known upw ards of a century (for they had been iden

t ifi ed in Linne ’ s time, who named the one under consideration

H o lcus S accharatus). It must, I repeat be a subj e ct of surpriz ethat no on e had tried to turn them to accoun t or to work them

w ith reference to their saccharine propertie s . Is it because thissugar which is found in the plant in the state Of glycose is ditficult to extract and difficult to obtain in a state of perfect crystal l iz ation that its culture has been neglected ? This is the only conclu

sion we can come to , and in it wemust include the C hinese S orghoof M . Montigny, the A ndrop ogon n iger, which has been equally

well known for a lon g time .

For my own part, I see reason to believe , that the extensivecultivation of these plants highly saccharine , as they are w ithin

any given period, w ill always be attended with great difficul ty ,

304 On the cul ture (j S orgho . an dImphi. [No 1 0, N E W S E R I E S .

inasmuch as their roots which have a constant tendency to riseand to run along the surface of the soil are unable to keep th eplant from bending and inclining towards the ground w ith the

slightest w ind, particularly when the head is full o f grain .

This alone is su”

i cien t , sometimes, w ithout a breath of w ind, to .

drag the plant down to the earth , the consequence of which is

that it throw s out shoots in this recumbent position and becomes

so altered that it is no longer possible to extract the sugar whichin fact is completely destroyed . But even when the sugar is oh

tained it is found to be of a different quality from cane-sugar pro

perly so called . It is found as those who have worked it admit—to crystalliz e w ith diffi culty nor are the crystals themselves w ell:

defi ned . The juice of the S orgho differs entirely in taste from that

of the S accharum Ofi cinarum,being more insipid

,thinner

,the

impression on the organs of taste evanescent or of the shortest

duration and more fi t for conversion into R um than Sugar, such

is the Opinion of those who have tested its qualities by experiment .

The cultivation of these plants w ith a Vi ew to the production

o f grain w ould , I am persuaded prove very remunerative because !

they w ill yield two or three crops a year in this country, especially

as the seeds or corns arelarger than those of other species and

the heads full and much branched . They abound in gluten and.

amylaceous par ticles.

The Natives who have examined these seeds con sider them supe

rior to their own kinds which they have cultivated from generation

to generation,that is those of the Imphi A ndropogon C affrorum. A s

for those o f the C hinese species or A nd. n iger, they seem to'

eare

little about them,and the plan t w il l never enter largely into their

culture,notwithstanding they are very sweet, but notmore so than

the Imphi which is perhaps the sweetest of the two .

The above remarks w ere drawn up entirely w ith reference tothe produce of the fi rst six boxes

,but apply equally to tho se of

the last six which presented no appreciable difference . I have nofurther botanical remarks the refore to add to this part of the subject .

Such,Sir

,are the results of the examinations and discoveries I

have been able to collect up to this time from the seeds you did

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306 On the cul ture of S orgho and Imp i n'

. [No . 10, N E W S E RI E S .

Of these, Sprengel has pronounced the 2nd to be a mere varie tyof the first , and the 7th to be a vari e ty of the 6th .

‘

Persson makes the 4th and 5th variety of the fi rst,and Wil lde

n ow admits the latter (5) to hold only an intermediate place between the 1 st and 6 th . Lastly, R oxburgh in describing the 3rd

calls it a Species or variety of Sorghum(No .

This is the opinion of distinguished botanists,the group is re

duced to two admitted species .

1 . A ndropogon Sorghum, B rotero .

a . Niger , Spreng .

,3 . Bicolor, Pers.

«y R ubens , Pers.

6 C ernuus , R oxb.

2 . A ndropogon S accharatus, R oxb.

a. C affrorum, Sp reng .

In examining a great breadth of Sorghum cultivatio n , it is impossible not to be struck w ith the marked diversities of form

,siz e

and color exhibited by the plant in different lo calities .I had occasion to make a careful examination of the Sorghum

crops in R aj ahmundry in 1 853 , and passed through a succession

of fi elds from the rich deep alluvial lunka lands in the Godavari,to the shallow stony soils on the uplands , exhibiting every varietyof appearance , from the large dense coarchate head to the loosepanicle

,the branches of which sometimes upright

,sometimes

drooping,the colors varying from pure White through every shade

of yellow ,pink ,

red and brown to black ; the height differingfrom 3 feet to 30 .

A large head not selected but taken at random from a lunka

fi eld contained 5 6 1 8 corns and weighed 1 0; o z .

A head from an intermediate field contained 3856 corns and

w eighed 4 o z .

The average heads of the upper lands were not half the siz e of

the last, many were still smaller .In the Exhibition C atalogue of 1 857 we find the common .

R ed Cholum.

White do .

Yellow do .

A langkaru small, milk-white C hingleput and C anara .

C OL—M A R . 1 859-60 ] On the cul ture of S orglt o and Imphi. 807

Shan C holum, a red variety, Tanj ore .

Chella C holum from C uddapah .

A rgudia Jowari from H ydrabad.

1 1 varieties of white ,4 f 11 J owari from do . by C ap t . T ayO ye OW

lor, R aichore Doab .

3 of redf"

Dud-Mogra white and pink , flat grain , by do . do .

Kahkai C holam or black cholam from Tinnevelly , under which

name also the S orgh . niger was sent from Pondicherry .

Mutta Cholam.

Mappa C holam.

Mandaru C holam.

In the Exhibition of 1 859we fi nd from C uddapah besides the

red and white kinds .

Bhat wani—Kal nakki jowar .B aj i wani .

Dud-mogra .

Chandal wani .

Jip i’ir.

VVunga .

From Mysore.

Koluda j ola .

From R aicitore D oab.

M il l ije j ola .

B ilapla—U rinjola.

Kea.

Nir.

From T richinop oly .

Maskata J o lam—(Q . A n A rabian variety ?)From T tnnevel ty .

Karuvi C holam.

If all these varieties could be subj ected to the same careful ex »

amination and analysis as the Imphi plants have received at thehands of M . Perrot tet , we should be able to pronounce w ith pre

cision on the question o f identity of species .B hendya or Lamdi .

Von . xx . 0 . s. Von . vrr. N . s .

30 8 On the-culture:0jfl8 0 7'

gfi o and Imphi. [No . 10, N E W S E RIE S .

I n the presen t ‘

state of our knowledge we are justified in limiting the number of distinct species to two kinds .Wi th regard to the practical part of the subj ect I think the S o

ciety may safely intimate to Government that no advantage w ill b e

obtained from a larger importation of foreign seed that the sugar

yieldingfjspecies is already extensively cultivated in this Presidency,and that persons interested in the sugar trade have ample means

of obtaining material for the manufacture .

M . Perro ttet has observed that the grains or come of the Imphiand of the C hinese variety are larger and fi ner than those of the

common cholam, but that the ryots do not care to sow them.

This remark suggests the importance of employing greater c arein the selection of the indigepous seed . From the remarks noted

above on the Sorghum of R aj ahmundry, it w ill be seen how strik

ing are the diversities in the quality of this grain grown in a single district .I have no doubt that if pains were taken to secure the employ

ment of the best description of seed only, and if seed was supplied

from one province to another, the indigenous grain would berendered equal in every respect to the A frican and Chinese varie

ties . For this purpose the largest and finest corns should be

selected by {pas sing the seed through sieves like those used bypearl merchants which should retain all the larger seeds suffering

the small and imperfect on es to pass through . In the experimentsmade at R aj ahmundry I found that 1 00 selected corns w eighed5 2 grains , another set while similar parcels t aken at random

w eighed 44, and 46 grains .

The subj ect seems to b e worth the attention of the Local Exhibition Committees , who might offer rewards for samples of se ed

cornsin quantities of n ot less than a candy or other measure not

too small,1 00 or corns of which taken at random should

w eigh the heaviest , taking the average of several succ essive par

cels to en surela fair examination .

Pri z es might also be offered for the best produce certified to beraised from such pri z e seed .

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3 10 A method of cooling the A ir of [No . 10, NE W S E RI E S .

employment is in-doors, may get through their business , nearly as

Well as in this c ountry .

B ut it is in tropical climates , especially along the sea-coasts of

continents and on islands , where heat exists in its most banefulform, as high temperature through day and night, summer andw inter ; the sky may be constantly cloudy, or clear by day and

rainy at night, the rain descending in a temperature of 80 ° Fahr .

and upwards . In such a climate the shade of trees or of a roof

brings no alleviation of the heat ; it is felt almost equally allthrough the night, and throughout the w inter as w ell as the summer. A person employed in-doors is working in the same high

temperature as on e out of doors there is n o escape from the heat

either by building houses high up into the air, or sink ing them l owdown into the ground . R ivers, springs , rain, the ground, everything w ill be of the same temperature as the atmosphef'e, and thattemperature is far too high for European constitutions .A gainst a moderate continuance of such an untoward climate as

this,a strong constitution might bear up ; but when this state of

things goes on month aftermonth, and year after year, the humanframe becomes comple tely relaxed ; all energy of mind and body

is destroyed, and disease finds easy victims . We have but to turnto any statistical account of life, or rather death in India, to seethe immense sacrifice that is yearly being made there to the climate . Doubtless many of the deaths may have arisen from in

direct effects of heat, such as miasma, which it i s not w ith

in the province of this paper to touch on ; but still multitudes

w ill b e left amongst both soldiers and officers , and civi

lians of every degree , due merely to the living in too high a

temperature ; which prevents the skin, the lungs , and the liver,from performing their duties , and utterly relaxes the whole com

ponent tissue of the body, producing such diseases as p rolap sus am.

This n ow is the case to be met , and for proofs of its sufficiency

of claim to earnest attention, let any one look merel y to their own

friends or relations who have gone out to I ndia, and let them alsoconsider those who have been so fortunate as to return , w ithmoreo r less grievously shattered constitutions .It may be obj ected, that no plan of cool ing rooms, though

G C T .—M A R . 1 859 R ooms in T rop ical C limates. 8 1 1

ever so effective in itself, can be of avail to by far the greaternumber of cases , where the persons are employed chiefly in theopen air . It is true that it w ill be of no use to them when theyare there

,but if they can be insured, when the day

’s w ork is over,

a cold house to retire to , and a sound sleep in a cool atmosphere ;that may completely reinvigorate their bodies, and make up for

all that has been undone by the heat outside , in the same manner,as in cold countries , men are enabled to w ithstand excessive severities of cold in open air employment in the daytime , if they can

recruit their stock of heat at night in a warm lodging .

In cold coun tries when the air is lower in temperature than isagreeable

,nothing is easier than by lighting a fire in a room,

to

raise the heat to anything that may be desired . B ut when the air

is too high in temperature naturally, and in one of those tropical

climate s where day and night, and summer and w inter, the heat isnever under and where the air being saturated by moisture

,

there is no coolness from evaporation , then the converse of light

ing a fire,that is to say a method of actually lowering the tem

perature of the air, w ithout producing any other change in it, has

never yet been brought about . Some method of this sort, how

ever, seems indispensable to give European life a fa ir chance in

the tropics ; and the method which I am about to detail,is my

contribution to a subj ect , which I trust w ill receive continued at

tention until the problem is completely and satisfactorily solved .

On the methods hitherto adopted , much time need not be spent ;for l et , the fan mat , or punkah,

” is merely a fan which agitates

the air in a room already hot , but does not actually cool it, or produce any regular or salutary ventilation . 2nd. The wet mats in

the w indows for the w ind to blow through , cannot be employed

but when the air is dry as w ell as hot ; and even then are mos t

unhealthy,for although the air may feel dry to the skin, there

generally is far more moisture in it than in our own climate but

the height of the temperature increasing the capacity of the air formoisture

, makes that air at 8 0 ° feel very dry, which at 40°

would

be very damp . Now ,one of the reasons of the lassitu de felt in warm

climates is,that the air expanding w ith the heat, while the lungs

remain of the same capacity, they must take in a smaller quantity

A method of coo l ing the A ir . of [Na 10, N E W S E R I E s .

of weight, though the same by measure of oxygen,the supporter of

life but if, in addition to the air being rarifi ed, i t be also stil l

further dist ended by the vapour of water being mixed w ith it, it

is evident that a certain number of cubic inches bymeasure, or the

lungs full,w ill contain a less w eight of oxygen than ever so

little,indeed

,that life can barely be supported , and we need n ot

w onder at persons lying down almo st powerless in the hot and

damp atmosphere , and gasping for breath . Hence we see

that any method of cooling the air for Indians,instead of adding ,

should rather take moisture out of the air,so as to make oxygen

predominate as much as possible in the combin ed draught o f oxy

gen,az ote

,and a certain quantity o f the vapour ofw ater, which w ill

’

always be present ; and hardly any plan could be more pernicious

than the favourite , though dreaded one by those who have w atched

its results ,— of the wet mats . Cold air, i . e . air in which the ther

mometer actually stands at a low reading , by reason of its density,gives us oxygen , the food of the lungs , in a compressed and con

cen trated form,and men can accordingly do much work upon it .

B ut air which is merely cold to the feelings , air in which the ther

mometer stands high , but merely gives us one of the external sen

sation s of coldness ,— on being made by a punkah or any other blow

ing machine , to move rapidly over our skin ; or on being charged

w ith w atery vapour, or on being contrasted with previous excessive

heat ; such air must nevertheless be rarifi ed to the ful l extent indi

cated by the mercurial thermometer, and gives us therefore our

supply of vital oxygen in a very diluted form, and of a meagre , un

supporting , and unsatisfying consistence . The only other Indianplan to be mentioned, is shutting up the house in the middle cf theday, and opening it only at night or tow ards morning ; but thisevidently w ill not suit the strictly tropical heat, and can only beemployed in the northern and inland portions of India , where theclimate is more nearly like that of the radiation” countries , where

the nights are cool ; for otherw ise , the closing of a room w ill evi

den tly be no safeguard against the heat which has already saturatedthe walls , the roof, and the floor ; and if a human being be enclosed

in that space , he w ill evidently warm up the confi ned air , in addi

tion to contaminating it by his respiration . The sine qua? non,

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3 1 4 A method of coo l ing the A ir of [NO . 1 0, N E W S E RI E S

a certain quantity of air w ill rise , on experiencing a given compres

sion . On this, combined w ith the cost ofmechanical pow er at the

pl ace , w ill depend the expense and the consequent feasibility of

the method . Seeing that that can be accomplished by thismethod,

which has no t yet been brought about by any other, it is probable

that it might be adopted by the w ealthy who are dying from heat,

although it might be very expensive and in hOSpitals, also , where

many subj ects are concentrated together, and are more imme

diat ely in w ant of the benefi ts of cool air -the plan might be adopt

ed,although very troublesome ; but it fortunately turns out that

the thermotic expansi on i s so very great, that the machinery can

therefore be made very simple, and can be w orked so cheaply,that private persons of ordinary means may indulge in the luxuryand a house may be cooled in India for probably about the samethat one can be warmed in England .

The mere fact of compression and expansion having a thermoticeffect on air had long been known , but no one seems ever t o have

thought of applying it to any dec idedly useful purpose,certainly

not this on e ; and for that reason , perhaps , the exact quantity ofthermotic effect had never been investigated w ith precision ; and

when this idea first occurred to me in 1 843 . I could procure n odata which would enable me to calculate its practicability w ithinany moderate limits . The next year, however, I had a small apparatus constructed for testing the matter experimentally ; and thoughn o great exactness was arrived at, still it appeared that suffi cientgrounds w ere ob tained to warrant the communication of the idea

to several friends in 1 845 , as a possible mode of accomplishing theend in view . In 1 847, I had a larger apparatus made, and in the

beginning of 1 849, communicated an account to the R oyal SocietyofEdinburgh .

Experiments , however, w ith small apparatus , are very uncertain,where heat is concerned ; and in this case the results w ere not byanymeans so favourable as theymight have been, on account of

the great radiation and conduction of heat, due to the diminishedsiz e of the metallic vessels, and the consequence preponderance ofsurface to cubical contents. B ut in the latter end of 1 849, I was

oer—M A R . 1 859-60 ] R ooms in T rop ical C limates. 3 1 5

enabled,through the kind intervention of Mr . Stirling , C . E .

, to trythe experimen tgon as large a scale as could possibly be desired .

A t the Kinn iel Iron Works (the nearest w orks of that description to Edinburgh

,) air is pumped into a series of blast furnaces by

a powerful steam-engine,under a pressure of 3 5 l . on the square

inch . The air pumps are two in number, double acting , w ith cy

linders about 5 feet in diameter , and 1 0 feet stroke so that , in so

far as a compression of -lbs . could serve , the volume of air was

prodigious , and completely removed all fear of sensible error aris

ing from the frictional heat of the piston , or from radiation at the

surface . Mr . W ilson , the owner of the w orks , very kindly, on the

application ofMr . Stirling , gave every facility for trying the expe

rimen ts, and I had a n ew thermometric al and mercurial gauge ap

paratus constructed for the purpose .

The observations , which it is needless here to detail in full , asthey w ill appear elsewhere , w eremade in the presence , and w ith the

ass istance of Mr . Stirling, C . E . and Lieut . Driscoll G osset,R . E . ;

and consist-edin determining , by a considerable number of trial s ,l st . The temperature of the air entering the valves of the air

pump .

2nd. The temperature of the air in the large air vessel , intowhich it had been forced by the pumps under a certain pressure .

3rd. The degree of that pressure ; and 4th . The temperature

of the air on issuing out into the atmosphere fromunder that pres

sure . For these last it was necessary to bore a hole into the air

chest, and this Mr . Wilson most freely allowed us to do , and the

hole being above one inch in diameter , the rush of air out of it was

more than suffi cient to completely enclose and fully inpress its

temperature on the bulb of the thermometer .l st . Temperature of enter ing air 63 ° Fahr .

2nd. Temperature o f compressed air

3rd. Compression 72 inches mercury .

4th . Temperature of escaping air 63°

The Barometer was about 30 inches at the time " The tempe

ratures may be considered to be determined certainly w ithin a

degree less ormore, and the pressure w ithin one-tenth of an inch .

H ence we have , w ith a very small probable error, a compressionVOL . xx . 0 . s. VOL . VI I . N . s.

3 1 6 A methodof cooling the A ir of [No . 1 0, N E w S E RIE S .

of 7“2 inches ofmercury—less than i of an atmosphere -raising thetemperature of air 29° Fahr . or from 63

° to and on being

allow ed to escape and expand from that pressure freely into the

atmosphere,the fall of temperature is also

This result ‘

was immensely above what any friends to whom Ihad mentioned the matter had anticipated

,and they w ould have

been inclined to doubt , had not these experiments been so un exception able in the huge scale of the pumps employed . The w ork

men at the place w ere well aware of the heat of the air in the com

pressed vessel and pipes , and the instant that the hand was laid

on the large reservoir into which we bored the hole,the great in

crease of heat was perceived . The men had very absurdly,but

very confi dently, been in the habit of attributing the heat to the

friction of the air in the pipe ; but , in the fi rst place , the air was

almost stationary in that pipe , which was some fi ve feet in diame

ter and , in the next place , when the air was allow ed to escape

through a 1 inch pipe , and so produce incomparablymore friction ,'the fall of 29° was obtained , instead of any further increase .

Professor W . Thomson being employe d on the theory of heat

about this time , and being engaged in preparing an account of

C arn ot’

s theory , I applied to him to know what the increase of heat

w ould be , if air at 70° Fahr . was to be compressed 4 of an atmo

sphere,the barometer being 30 inches . He replied , that some o f

the elements required for the calculation w ere not exactly known ,but that

,as near as he could compute it then , it

'

would be 30 °

Fahr . , which is a remarkable confi rmation of the 29° for 72 inches

derived from experimen t .

Mr . W . Macquourri R ankine , C . E . who las t w inter produced

his mathematicO-mechanical theory of heat, states , that it gives the

same r esult as the above so that, for practical purposes and small

pressures, we may take very safely 4

° Fahr . as being the rise in

the temperature of air for 1 inch pressure of mercury , and 30°

Fahr . for 75 inches , or 31‘ o f an atmosphere ; and Mr . R ankine

further computes that a theoretical Horse-power w orkin g one hour,

w ill be suffi cient to low er cubic feet of air 20 ° Fahr . w ithout

any deduction for friction .

Making a very liberal allowance for friction , for loss of effect byradiation of heat, andfor imperfect cooling of the compressed air, and

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3 1 8 A method of cooling the A ir of [No . 1 0 , N E W S E RI E S .

B ut however specious this application may appear, it fails altogether in practice

,for several reasons ; first, the difference between

the perfect expansive action of the air undergoing compression in

the pump-barrel , and the imperfect expansive action of the same

air in the expanding working-barrel . In order to insure any effectat all

,a considerable degree of compression must be employed , or

the force Of the expanding air w ill not be equal to the friction of

the additional piston , and other apparatus required for its in troduc

tion . The action of compressed air would be very similar to that

of high pressure steam, and that no t being a profi table source of

pow er, until the tension has reached several atmospheres , the airshould not be employed at less . But then the diffi culty is expe

rienced, that the air having been forced into the cooler by the pump

and deprived then of its heat of compression , occupies less space

than before ; and this defi ciency increases w ith the compression ,

as does also defi ciency from leakage . While too the air , in under

going compression , was offering resistance to the power from the

v ery commencement of the stroke , andthat power was not producing any effect that could be considered useful, until when , towards

the end of the stroke , the compression in the cylinder , exceed in g

that in the cooler, the air begins to be forced therein ; it is to be

remembered that ow ing to the imperfection of the best cylinders,

valves,and such apparatus that can be made

,only a small propor

tion of the expansive force of the air or steam can be employed,

and the part so lost, increases w ith the compression adopted .

A gain ; from the excessively varying resistance of air when un

dergoing great compression , such violence is done to all parts of

the pump , that it cannot continue long to work tight and true

and this was the principal reason of the abandonment of the Croy

don atmospheric line ; the air, in undergoing compression , came

so suddenly to a maximum of resistance , as to resemble an explo

sion in its effect . The great inertia and small elasticity of water,render that fluid most appropriate for bein g raised by pumps act

ed on by natural pow ers but the small inertia.

and great elasti

city of air, render it almost impossible to be dealt w ith continually

at high degrees of tension .

B ut themost important obj ection to the employment of a high

degree of compression , which is necessary to the introduction of

O C'

I‘

.—M A R . 1 859-60 ] R ooms in T rop ical C limates. 3 19

the expansive action of the air at all, exists in ,t hez differen ce be

tween the amount of increase in temperature on a certain compres

sion,and decrease of temp erature on the same quantity of expan

sion in air ; a difference not practically sensible in l ow compres

sions,but so very much so in higher ones , as to waste the me

chanical pow er in producing heat, which can never be madeiup‘

for by the small amount of subsequent cooling . In any partienlar compression , a certain per centage only of the acquired heat

can be got rid of in the cooler ; unless therefore the decrease of

heat on expansion notably exceeds the per centage of heat of compression still remaining , no absolute cooling on the initial state of

the air w ill be effected . Thus , let the heat produced by ,a certain

compression be and let 7 per cent . of that heat be got rid of

in the coole r,leaving therefore 5 ° still outstanding , the decrea s e

of temperature consequent on the same expansion w ill be and

the amount of cooling conse quently 1 6—5 , or and only

or 1 7 —1 6 w ill have been produced .

B ut let such a compression be employed as shall produce an in

crease of heat of 7 per cent of this being cooled off, leave

outstanding 5 55 ° ; and the decrease of temperature consequent onthe air expanding from that compression , being only leaves

outstanding still 1 5 7 ° or the air sought to be cooled is , after all,heated to that great exten t above what it was at fi rst , and the enor

mous amoun t of 1 452 ° of heat, or 1 8 50—398 , have been uselessly

produced ; and this , how ever perfect the method or complete the

degree of cooling , and the carrying aw ay the hea t of the compressed

airmay have been .

The effect of this l aw of the differen t results o f compression and

expansion being thus important, it becomes necessary to ascertain

its exact amoun t ;and as this is hardly possible to be done by experi

ment,unless very great expense be incurred , recourse must be had

to theory ; and this may be carried out w ith perfect safety, when onepoint in the scale has been so satisfactorily fixed by the Kinneil

experiment . Both C arnot ’s and R ankine ’ s theories are,however

,

rather difficult in their application , and depend on the Specifi c heat

of air , a quantity by nomeans w ell defined . A n ew theoretical view

has how ever been just produced by my friend ,Mr .W . Petrie,C . E . ,

and has the advantage of being immediate in its result, and de

3 20 A method of coo ling the A ir of [No 1 0, N E W S E R I E S .

pending on no theory of heat, but merely the fact of heat being

the cause of the apparently self-repulsive or expansive power of

gases,and on the w ell-determined amount of this expansion of gas

by heat, viz . E gg—6 for 1° Fahr .

O n this w ell grounded idea he has computed a table , show ing

the decrease and increase of temperature on certain amoun ts of ex

pan sion and compression of air and the truth of the table,and the

idea on which it is founded, are well borne out by the clo se agree

ment w ith the Kinn eil experimental results already detailed . The

table is as follows

Variation of ternperature from60

Variation of temperature from60

9 Variation in thebulk o f a portion

Variation I n the

bulk O

iz portion

Fahr . p roduced fFahr produced

0 1r there by degrees0 air. there by degrees .

E xpanded to 00 508 0 1 2 30 0

1 000 4 572 1 1 1 5 9

500 4440 0 0

200 42 10 C ompressed to 0 9of thevol . 1 7 1

1 00 3980 0 8 391

50 370 0 0 7"r 642

20 3 208 06 943

1 0 2722 0 5 1 32 0

5 2 109 04 1 8 1 5

3 1 5 59 0 3 25 1 0

2 5 1 337 02

2 1 048 0 1 5 864

19 97 9 00 5 8 70 9

904 00 2

823 0 0 1

0 005 .

642 O + 35 24'O

1 4 5 39 4 4572 0

42 5 00

To adopt this table to any other initial temperature than 60

Fahr . add fi gto the tabular quant ity for every degree by which

the temperature is higher,and subtrac t the same for every degree

by which it is lower“The merest glance at this table shows the advantage of using

the lowest compression compatible w ith the quantity of cooling

required ; and further, that this degree of compresson w ill , in all

ordinary cases,be so very trifling that the expansive force of the

escaping air would not overcome the friction of the apparatus on

which it would have to be employed if utilised mechanically . The

machine resolves itself, therefore , into a pump , as simple as could

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3 22 A method of cool ing the A ir of [No 1 0, N E W S E RI E S .

whereverithe supply is drawn from,must be allow ed toitrickle into

the tub , and be conducted by a pipe to the bottom, while an exit

being made at the top , the w ater heated by the compression of the

air, w ill flow off in a {continued stream. I have not yet madeany experiments

'

ou the quantity of cool ing surface of pipe required ,but a few feet more or less w ill certainly accomplish it , and w ill

not much increase the expense of the fi rst apparatus which may be

made .

The proposed formis Shown in fi g . I . , where on the left hand side

is shown the double acting pump,which compresses the air into the

pipe in the tub,where it accumulates until of sufficient elasticity

to raise the loaded piston valve on the right ; a portion then escapes

until the remaining air is less elastic than the pressure on the valve ;and at every succeeding stroke of the pump , a quantity of air

,

equivalent to that forced in at on e end of the pipe , w ill escape from

the other end, after having parted w ith its heat of compression to

the w ater,and expending immediately , and cooling w ill be avail

abl eat once for the sanitary application to rooms“The formof cooler mentioned above

,is but on e of many which

may be variously applicable in different situations ; a flat cooler

may be preferable , and often it may be of advantage to pass the

compressed air through another coil o f pipe , over which w ater is

allowed to drip , or which is covered with a damp cloth , so that the

cold of evaporation may be superadded to any procurable from the

temperature of the w ater .

The next point is the application of the cooled air to a room,so

as to keep it effectually cooled , and at the same time w ell ventilated;and this is , fortunately, very easy to be done , and in the most per

fect manner .

The cold air being heavier than warm air, :cannot be applied to

upper rooms , or even to low er rooms, w ith doors and w indow s

reaching down to the ground ; for it w ill escape there as water would,flow ing away, and diffusing itself every where over the lowest

pl aces . But if a w all , several feet high , be built all round the room

proposed to be cooled, or, still better, if it be sunk that depth inthe ground , the cold air w ill be confi ned as if in a tank, and that

which has last come from the pump w ill occupy the low est place,

while the former supplies , in proportion as they have been longer

C OL—M A R . 1 859-60 ] R ooms in T rop ical C limates. 323

in the room,w ill be w armed up and rise to the higher parts, where

an exit may be conveniently afforded by the opening of an upper

sash o f a w indow . Then , as the air expired from the lun gs of

persons likew ise rises in a r oom, from the high temperature morethan balancing the greater sp ecifi c gravity of the gas , this w ill b e

carried away al so in the general upw ard stream; and thus a per

son placed in the room w ill never have t o breathe the same air

tw ice over , a long sought desideratum in ventilation , and the room

w ill be constantly fi lled,at least towards its lower parts , w ith the

coldest and freshest air which the machine can supply .

Fig . 2 is a vertical section of a room so sunk in the ground ,

and supplied w ith cold air by a pipe coming from the cooler , the

arrow s Show in g the course of the air in passing through the room,

and out at last through the w indow .

This is all that is required for the complete cooling and ventila tion of the maj ority of rooms in India ; but in some , as we hinted above

,additional means are needed for the purpos e of drying

the cold air .

A method of effecting this w ithout heating the air, is by expos

ing it to metallic surfaces at a low er temperature , when the

moisture in the air w ill be condensed and deposited on the cold

metal . This may be brought about by passing th e air , after its

escape from under the spring valve of the cooler , through another

w orm of pipe in a tub where the water is'

kept always at a slightly

lower temperature than the air,either by having a second pump

compressing other air more than the fi rst , and then allow ing it to

bubble through the water of the drying tub , or by dissolving in it

continually large quantities of saltpetre and sal ammoniac , one of

the most useful of free z ing mixtures,as the salts

,on evaporation

,

recrystalliz e separately ; and the same stock may therefore be used

over and over again indefinitely ; besides which they are both

found in great abundance in In dia . It is only n ecessary to have

a.’ person occasionally to throw the salts into the tub ; and drawing off the saturated w ater , expose it to the e vaporating influenceof the sun and the w ind, or, in default of those , to a fi re.

In fi g . 3, a representation of the dryer of the cool and expanded

air is given . It is merely a thin copper tube , open at both ends ,

and immersed as to its middle in a tub of water, to which the re ,

VOL xx . 0 . s . VOL . V I I . N . s .

324 A methodqf cooling the A ir of [No .

’

10, N E W SE RIE S ;

fi 'igeration is t o be applied . A t the lowest bend of the pipe,after

it has left the barrel, is a stop cock , to draw off the water whichmay be condensed under the tube , and the air may then be allowed to enter the room and be breathed by its inmates .This completes the apparatus , and the whole is shown in plan

and section , in figs . 4 and 5 . A light roof is here thrown over the

bullockmill , pumps , and tubs , and is continued over the room to

be cooled , as a second roofw ith a space for thew ind to blow through,is so excellent a defence against the heat of the sun . The mill is

of the simplest form, and such as is n ow generally made in this

country in iron , and of a portable form, under the name of a horse

work ,

” as used for thrashing machines the pump,pipes and valves ,

would of course also be made here , and would not be difi icul t of.

transport ; while the w ater-tubs w ould be easily made on the Spot

by Indian carpenters , and in a form best fitted to the local peculiarities.

T o make all this for the first time , and to add it to a housealready built, may seem somewhat expensive ; but looking at it in

an ap riori sort of view , there does not seem so much t o be done

as if,to a simple house where rooms Should be garnished w ith n o

thing but doors and w indows, it was proposed to add chimneys ,

fi re places , grates , fenders , fi re ir ons and chimney pieces .

The complete proof, how ever, and that which is so much to bedesired

,is in the actual making and applying of such an apparatus ,

and if private persons be afraid of trying n ew experiments,and are

content to lay the flattering unction to their souls , that by mois

tening the hot and rarifi ed air w ith wet mats , or by merely agitat

ing it w ith punkahs, and setting it in motion by w innowingmachines , that they are thereby cooling and condensing it , and

bringing it into a simil ar state w ith the cold and invigorating air

of their native country -then it w ould seem to be a duty of G o

vernmen t , which has established public hospitals in those climate s

for the ‘cure of the sick, to adopt any method, which, while it is

neither expensive n or diffi cult, yet promises certainly to supply one

of the desiderated means of cure, and to meet the very cause whichhas sent almost all the patients to the hospitals . A t present , such

patients must either die there in the hot atmosphere, or are sent

home at great expense . What the number may be of these l atter

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3 26 A method of cooling the A ir'

of [No . 10, N E W S E RI E S .

the air in the tube ; and the result of that is a low ering of the

temperature . But it w ill soon be warmed up again,by the con

duction and radiation of the pipe , to the heat o f the w ater , or to

its original temperature and then , on being extracted by the

pump, and thrown out into the atmosphere , it w ill be c ompressed

to its original den sity : and w ill then rise above the heat of the

surrounding atmosphere , to a degree proportioned to the compres

sion so occasioned . T he w arming is thus produced at once where

it is w anted , and has n o t,as in the former case

,to be communi

cated slowly by conduction and radiation through the copper, from

air on one side to air on the other ; a very slow plan, on account

of the small conductive“power of gases .

C or. 2 .-I n preparing and fi tting the tropical air for the pur

poses o f human life , we have hitherto considered on ly its affections

as to heat and moisture but there may, doubtless ,bemany gases

and fi nely divided substances diffused through it, giving it many

of its unhealthy qualities . Chemical analysis has n o t yet been

able to detail them, but that is rather from the comparative rude

n ess of the methods , than from the non-exis tence of the ex tran e

ous matter for the sense of smell may Often be pow erfully affect

ed,as w ith the scent of plants , and yet a chemist is unable to dis

cover anythin g different in the air immediately round a plan t,and

at a little distance from it . One reas on of the non-success which

has attended analysis of air, w ould s eem to be the small quan tities

of air usually operated upon so small , indeed , that it is fn o t to be

expected that the foreign substances should make themselves ap

preciable in the nicest balance .

O ur cooling machine , how ever, forms at once an apparatus in

which airmay be analysed on as large a scale as may be desired

for it is ’only necessary to half fi l l the w orm pipe in the cooling tub

w ith such chemical fluid as the aerial impurities may be expected

to combine w ith ; and the machine being put to w ork in the usualw ay, w ill pump all the air through the fluid , and to an extent of

several tons w eight of air in the course of the day ; so that then

the smallest admixture of any foreign substance would have so

accumulated its eflect o n the fluid, as to be most probably sensible

t o ordinary chemical examination .

O C T .-M A R . 1 8 59-60 ] R ooms in T rop ical C limates. 327

C or. 3 . If what has been said in the early part of the paper ofthe difference between air, cool merely to the feelin gs , and that

w hich is cold to the thermometerbe true , i . e that the former being

really high in temperature , and merely feeling cool to the skin by

being agit ated by a fan , ormixed w ith w atery vapour, is rarefied to

the full amount of its real tempera ture and so forms a w eak and

diluted susten ance for the lungs ; while the latter being really

l ow in temperature , is dense , and gives , proportionate ly, con cen

trated food to the breathing organs if this be true , which it canno t

but be,then it follow s

, that air mechanically compressed , and

breathed in that s tate , may be very benefi cial in many cases of

disease,when the lun gs may be very small , or may in par t be

destroyed by consumption or other malady ; for by continued com

pression,as much oxygen may be contained in a cubic inch of the

compressed air , as in a hundred of the ordinary pressure and tem

perature of the atmosphere . To carry out the principle in such a

manner as to be adapted to all cases of temperature and pressure

it w ould be necessary to have a small air-t ight room, made proba

bly of iron,connec ted at one end w i th the pip e coming from the

escape-valve of the cooling room, and having a similar valve at

the o ther end . The reason o f not makin g the pump force the air

at once into the room, is , that the temperature would thereby be

too much raised ; but by having a greater compre ssion in the Wo rm

c ooler than in the ro om, the lattermay be supplied w ith air of any

desired temperature and pres ~ure ; and Mr. Pe trie ’ s table , given

above , w ill Show exac tly the pressure to which the two escape-valve s

should be set , for any particular case .

3 28 S cien tifi c I n tel ligence. ENO . 10, N E W SE RIE S .

S C I E NT I FI C I NT E LLI G E NC E .

On H ail S torms in C ochin and T ravan core.

B Y LI E UTE N A NT GE N E RA L CULLE N .

1 . In the R eport for 1 85 5 of the British A ssociation for the ad

vancement of Science is a paper by Dr . G . Buist,of Bombay

, on

H ail S torms in India, and in which it is observed , while HailS torms are frequent along the Western shore of the Bay OfBen

gal ; from S urat south to C eylon in corresponding Latitudes

and A ltitudes on the Malabar Coast, H ail is a thing nearly nu

known .

”

2 . T he subj ect had engaged my attention soon after my arriv

al on this Coast in 1 84 1 . I learnt that, Hail was, in some partsof C ochin and Travancore , of frequent, and in fact of regular an

nual occurrence chiefly in the G reat Break or opening in the

G hats at Palghat lat . 10 ° but also occasionally on other parts

of the Coast nearly as far S . as C ape Comorin .

3 . I experienced a violent Hail S torm in 1 845 while tr avellingacross the Cardamom table lands of Travancore in lat . 9°

45'

S .

hail having fallen on the very same day at O otacamund on the

Neilgherries 80 miles N . W . as (Captain Horsley of the Engineersinformed me) also on the Pulney mountains about 50miles N . E .

on the S irroo Mul lays near Madura, as w ell as in the Palghatopening at Chittoor and other places , all forming one continuous

line from S . E . to N . W .

4 . Hail Storms are also , I understand, of frequent occurrenceon the Table lands of the C o lungodemountains forming the S outh

ern w all of the Palghat Opening ; also on U ttree Mullay in the

chain of G hats in the latitude of T revandrum 8°2 8

’ S . in the

months of March , A pril , and May ; and during the present year

Hail fell at numerous villages in the low country of Travancore

from T hodawul ly in latitude 9°5 5

'to C oo l atoray in latitude

all the localities being from 1 0 to 20 miles or more inland butnowhere 200 feet above the Sea .

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330 S cien tifi c I n tel ligencé . [NO . 1 0, N E W S E RI E S .

1 0 . Of the Hail S torms on the high land of U ttree Mullay , atfeet in the vicinity of T revandrum, the follow ing may be

n oted .

In 1 850 March 3 1 st at 1 0 A . M . lasted 5 an hour , S i z e of grapes .

D ry bulb . Wet bulb . Diff.

1 1 A . M . 69 3°

1 15 65

1 855 February 24 th 35 P . M . This,H ail S tormw as preceded by

a v iv id flash of lightn in g follow ed immediately by a heavy peal

of thunder, an d accompan ied by Hail which lasted 5 an hour .

Hail of all si z es from that of a marble to that of Pepper com.

1 85 6 , March 2 1 st , from 25 to 3 P . M . of various siz es .

Dry bulb . Wet bulb . Diff.

9 A . M . 665°

64°

. 2

4 P . M . 67°

1 858 , February 28 , Hail from 3 to P

'

. M .

Dry . Wet .

9 A . M .

4 P 0 M o 64 -63

1 85 8 March 3rd, Hail from 3 to 4 P . M .

Dry . Wet . Diff.

9 A M . 64°

62°

2°

4 P . M . 64 63 151 1 . O n the Cardamom table lands and on U t tree Mullay at

altitudes of 3 to feet,it w ill be observed that the w et bulb

w as always w ithin i“2 ° or 3 °o f the temperature of the air, whilst

in the Palghat openin g on ly 500 feet above sea , where Hail isstill more frequent

,and al though it is the coo l season on the

E astern C oast, there prevails the most in tense hea t and dryness.

1 2 . O n the 2dMarch 1 85 1 when in Ten ts at Oyacaud about

2 5 miles S . W . of Palghat at 1; P . M .

,w ith a dry and hot Easter

ly w ind , and the Dry bulb at 96 n o deposition could be‘ effected

w ith Daniell’ s Hygrometer at 36 ,1 after an immense expendi ture

O w in g perhaps to at that altitude the prevalence of a moist stratum of air, caused by the ascen t of the mois t S ea breez es at those hoursin the afternoon .

'

l' C ol . Sykes notices a depression of 6 1 ° on the l 6th February 1 828

at D ound in the D eccan . Philosophical T rans . for 1 850.

C OL—M A R . 1 859-60 ] S cientifi c I n telligence. 33 1

of.ZE ther equal to a depression of 60

° below the temperatureof theair. A Wet bulb fell to 62 , equal to a dew point of but itis probable that w ith a more delicate Thermometer it might have

fallen to 6 1 ° equal to a dew point of 24 °

T, a degree o f dryness of

itself almost suffi cient perhaps to produce congelation of the drops

of rain before they reach the ground .

1 3 . Kaempt z adverts to instances of the fall o f hail in the

lower strata of the atmosphere , whilst rain only fell in themore elevated regions

'

of the same locality , and adds these observations,

which seem to establish a presumption that hail is formed or

in creases in the lower regions of the atmosphere,are difficult o f

explanation . Yet passing through any considerable depth of

so dry an atmosphere as that of Oyacaud would probably materi

ally p romote by evap oration if it did not originate the congelationof the drops of rain .

H umboldt C osmos Note No . 203 , Vol . I .,observes that the

drops of rain as they pass through the lower and warmer strataof air have their temperature somewhat raisedbut which is againcompensated by the loss of heat which the drops underg o fromevap ora tion from their surface.

”

1 4 . Nor is the in stance at Oyacaud a very extreme one, for

Dew depressions of the Dew Po in t fromT empr . Po in t . S aus 45

° t eo 50 (equal to Wet bulb de

s e ."a; 3 ) fir, pressions 30 °

to are common

33 8 throughout the.

months of February,

5 38 5 5March ,

and A pril . I subjoin a few oh

9 48 4h servation s for the immediately pre

23 33 5

x

1ceding month of February 1 85 1 , al l

1 8 56 49 5 7 taken nearly in the middle of the

19 5 5 49 58 P l hat 0 enin22 27 47 52

a g p g

25 5 44 48

27 8 43 47

28 l 47 49

1 5 . Humboldt in his A sie C entrale not ices a depression of

50 degrees of Fahrenheit in the steppes of Siberia as l-aplus

Or by Lloyd 3 1°8 .

r 4 5 .

VOL . xx . 0 . S . VOL . V I I . N . S .

332 S cien tifi c I n telligence. [No . 10, N E W snnms.

grande secheresse qui ait eté observé edans les basses regions dela terre .

” I did not record my Saussure$6 at Oyacaud, but 6days previous

,on the 25 th February, and in the same vicinity , I

observed that it stood at 5 P . M . at 48 ° the Dry and Wet bulbsstandin g on the same day at 97

° and.

67 a difference of 30° to

a D ew Point of 47°

1 6 . In fact the heat and dryness of the Easterly w inds in thePalghat opening, in the months of February

,March , A pril , are

fully equal if they do not exceed that of the land w inds at Madrasin the months of May and June ; and they are succeeded here , asthere

,sometimes as early as 10 or 1 1 A . M . by exceedin gly strong

sea bree z es from theW. varying as regards the hour of arrival , in

land,according to the distance from the sea, and to the collision

of.these two w inds so differently constituted in regard to tempe

rature, vapour, and electricity may perhaps in part be ascribed the

thunder storms that so often occur . The natives o f those districts

have a belief of the kind and attribute the thunder storms and

sudden falls of rain to the meeting of the dry winds of the Easternandmoist w inds of the Western countries .

1 7. Whilst the Dry and Wet bulbs at Oyacaud, 35 miles from

the sea, were on the 2md March 96° and 62

° they stood on the

same day at C ochin on the sea shore at 80° and The lan d

or Easterly w ind cont inued on that day, to bl ow at Oyacaud tillpast 4 o ’ clock ; a light sea bree z e setting in only at 6; P . M . ,

but

it had reached T ritchoor 20 miles nearer the sea by nine A . M. ,

thus taking 9hours to pass over an interval of 20 miles . The vast

mass of vapour almost in a state of saturation which in this seasonrolls in from the Western C oast w ith a velocity in general of from

1 0 to 1 5 miles per hour, on meeting w ith the intensely dry air in

the centre of the Palghat opening which has an equal velocity to

theWestward, may w ell be supposed to give rise to those changesin the normal conditions of the atmospherewhich are followed by

thunder storms and falls of Hail .

1 8 . I have a large collec tion of observations of the fall of

rain , and of the state of the Hygrome ter, in the Palghat opening,as well as in many o ther localities in T ravancore and Cochin

,

A n instrumen t received fromParis.

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334 S cien tifi c I n tel ligence. [No . 1 0, N E W samms .

funnel reaching on the N.nearly as far as Madras, but to the S .

terminating w ith the Pulneys.

I find that Of 33 hail storms on my record4 fell in February .

10 March .

1 5 A pril .

1 May .

1 June .

2 A ugust .In February the w inds are E . or N . E . and blow fairly into the

funnel and over no high land ; but in March and A pril draw ingw ell round to the S . , theymust necessarily in great part pass over

the high Pulney, A n imal l i and other groups of mountains expe

rien cing great depression of temperature , w ithout perhaps lead

ing t o actual deposition , but thereby still farther contributing to

the formation o f rain and hail by collision in the Palghat opening

w ith the moist s ea bree z es from the’

westward.

The highest temperature at Madras in March is about wet

bulb a D ew Poin t of In passing over the Pul neys,feet, the temperature would be reduced to 67°

HAIL ST ORMS .

-One atWaddakancherry, 1 0miles N . of T rit

choor. Over a large tract of country,some

of the lumps as large as hens’ eggs,

1 850 .

March 1 6th, 4 P . M .—Prottencherry, Nunnio te, C hol iacaud, B undy,

T havalum in the C hittoor T alook, siz e ofmarbles .

U ttree Mullay Ghats, 25 miles N . E . of Tre

vandrum. H ail storm from 1 1 to A . M .

Siz e of Peas . .Wind N . E . strong .

1 1 A . M . 1 15 A . M .

H ydrometer . .Dry Wet Dry Wet69 65

8 2

O C T .—~M A R . 1 869-60 ] S cien tifi c I n tel ligence. 335

1 8 5 1 .

A pril 1 2th, 5 . P . M .—l yloor, Namari , T eeroowagode, Wal langhy,

Wittanesherry D eshoms in the C hittoor

D istrict, si z e ofmarbles .Dry . Wet .

1 P . M .

6 P . M . 8 5-74-1 1

1 852 .

Feby. 2oth ,5 P . M .

—T rickoqr 4 or 5 miles S . of T ritchoor, siz e of

carbine ball .

May 3 l st , 2 P . M .—T irroovel lamil ly, Pambady, C an aracote, 850 .

Northern frontier of C ochin territory , siz e

of beetle nut, lasted about 8 minutes .

Same day at Muchat and Nel lawye, about 1 0or 1 2 miles N . of T ritchoor.

1 852 .

June 26th , 3 P . M .—Same pl aces as above , siz e of musket balls,lasted 1 2 minutes .

A ug. 29th , 1 1 A . M .—T irroovel lamil ly, Pambady, C anaracote, &c .

siz e ofmusket ball, lasted 6 minutes .—A t Shalacurray, lasted 6 minutes .

1 853 .

Feby. 27th , 5 P . M .-T ripoon tooray, 8 miles from sea and same

level .

A pril l 6th, 35P . M .—T uttamungalum, some , siz e of limes , others

ofmarble s . Winds easterly .

Dry . Wet .1 0 A . M .

4 P . M .-1 2 .

6 P . M .-12 .

E xtract from a rep ort from S urveyor A nderson .

We had the show er of hail stones here on the l 6th A pril

l ast at about a; P . M . , 3 or 4 loud claps of thunder first, and al

most immediately the stones began to drop very fast in succession,some about the si z e of a lime and of irregular form, and othersquite round, and continued about l é hour without ceasing, during

336 S cien tifi c I n tel l igence. [No . 10 , NE W S E RIE S .

which time the ground was strewed all over and appeared on e

mass of white .

U pon further enquiry that I made I was given to understandthat two days previous

if' rain fell towards the

eastern T alooks, viz .

, Woodmulcut ta,Pulney ,

&c .,in the Coimbatore and other adj acent villages when none fell

here . The hail show er extended on ly up to Chittoor 3 miles

on the E . , C odoovoyo or 3 mile s on the W .

, Palnagarum 1 25miles

Ou the N .

,Puttan ehaive 3 miles on the S . The hail show er was

14th A pril.

not felt at C o l injumpan ay, Nul leapil ly, 6 to 8 miles E . or at Moo

laythoray. It seems to have rained w ithin a limited space,and

extending chiefly E . and W. T he people about this place say

they never w itnessed such large siz ed stones .”1 855 .

Feby. 24th, 3% P . M .—U ttree

'

Mul lay.

Thunder stormwith vivid lightning followedimmediately by fall of hail, which lastedfor 5 an hour . T he hail stones of various

siz es , from that of a large lime to the siz e

of peas, DryWet .

—U ttree Mullay.

H ail from 25 to 3 P . M . , 4 siz es, from that of

beetle nut to that of peas .Dry . Wet . Diff.

9 A . M . 1 .

4 P . M . 67 2 .

A pril 1 1 th, Putticaud, 5 P . M .—H ail of various siz es, largest

siz e of a small lime .

Dry

4 P . M . 91 Q

G P . M 89

Valum T havalum, extreme N . of the C hit

toor District , 55 P . M . , for 11,an hour, siz e of

Musquet ball . R ain, but no hail , at Chittoor1 2 miles S . and where the H ygrometerwas at

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S cien tifi c I n tel ligence. [No. 10, N E W S E R I E s .

Wet .

. 80-1 0

-8

1 859.

March 26th , 2 P . M .—C ol injaparah ,

C ool ookaparah , Palan iapul lum,

‘Hail w ith rain for 4 hour, siz e of Marbles .

The larger Hail Stones w eighed 4 to grapee.

28th , 2 P . M .—I n 3 Villages of the C urraco lum A digarom 6

or 7 miles N . of T revandrum.

29th , 5% P . M .—Nadkanee (3000 feet) S . face or R ampart of

Palghat opening , fall of Hail , siz e of smallmarbles .

1 859.

March 30th , 4 P . M .—Hail at C ondoor, E erattipettah , and Poon

j at, 25 miles E . of A l lepey, siz e o fmarbles .

3oth , C hooreeparah , 4 P . M . near the bottom o f the C olun

gode hills , for 6 minutes, siz e of small

'

marbles .

A pril 5th,1 and 2 P . M .

—T hodawul ly, 30 miles E . of C ochin

near the Ghats , lasted half an hour .

1 2th, 4 P . M .—A t Poodishary and Murroo thumparah , about

3 miles S of Chittoor, siz e o f beetle nut.—A bout this date a fall o f hail at C oolato

ray , 22 miles S . E . of T revandrum.

19th , 4 P . M .—Nadkanee on the C olungode mountains at

feet , siz e ofmarbles , white colour .l gth , 3 P . M . C ol injaparah , siz e ofmarble .

S urveyor A nderson thus describes this fall of Hail .I beg leave to inform that on the 19th instant at 3 P . M .

,

there was a strong shower of rain here , w ith a heavy wind, and

after the lapse o f about 1 5 minutes,hail stones abou t the si z e of\

a pigeon’s egg fell in large numbers , w eighing about 1 rupee ’s

weight , and on enquiry I was given to understand that there wasvery little rain at Palghaut , Chittoor, Nel lapil ly, and Moo laytho

ray and other places , and no hail whatever in either of the above

places was discovered . I believe n o hail fell further than about2 miles east of this place. The hail was of a clear white colour

resembling crystal, and of various forms and shapes ; there were

”ob i —M A B . 1 859 S cientific I n telligen ce. 339

also several heavy and loud peals o f thunder, which killed a bul

lock, and struck some large trees which w ere thrown to the

ground . The whole lasted for 2 hours and then ceased . Yesterday there was a pretty good shower of rain , but n o hail .

FromMr . A nderson , 23rd. I beg to state that since I lastWrote , I have learnt that a very heavy fal l of hail occurred on the

2 1 st beyond C odayvoyoor up to the foo t of the C olungode hills,

(south range) an interval of 1 0 or 1 2 mile s , so much so that it

was heaped up in large quantitie s all along . The inhabitantsstated that they never w itnessed the like before. I am collecting

more information on the subj ect, and shall give a more detailedreport .”

1 859.

A pril 2 l st, 2 '

P . M .—Val lakolum, Pul l ian o or Proverty, siz e of

marbl es .

22d, 3 P . M .—I n 3 villa ges of the C urracolum A digarom,

6 or 8 miles”

N . of T revandrum,al so at

A reen aud for 1 5 minutes,also at 4 places

in the Marrooghil A digarom of Neyatten

gherry.

27th,3 P . M .

—On U ttree Mullay w ith strong w ind and

thunder lasted a full hour . Hail fell al sosame day at the A ttyaar feet in the

plains , but not b elow at C aviat ten co odul .In 1 840 a hail storm stated to have occurre d at T rital la w ithin

1 0 miles of Ponany, not 30 feet above the sea, and to have extended as far S . as C howghat, 1 5 mile s South

,a s w ell as many

miles easterly, stones as large as pigeons ’ eggs did great damage .

H ail also stated to fall occasionally as far W . as Pullum Shatan oor, at Mun curry and at several other villages in the Palghat

opening w ithin the B ritish territory, but of which I have no paraticulars.

VOL . xx. 0 . s. VOL . VI I . N . s.

340 S cien tifi c I n tel ligence. [No . N E W snnms.

E arthquakes in S outhern I ndia .

(C ommun icated by G overnmen t . )

Letters fromT . J . Knox , Esq ., O fficiating C ollector of Salem

, dated2oth December 1 859, No . 1 74 , and 27th January 1 860, No . 1 1 .

I have the honor to report for the information of Government,

that I have received a report96 from myH ead A ssistant C ollec tor

,Mr . Boswell

,

that at T ripatore between 5 and 6 A . M . , on the morning of the 1 7thD ecember 1 8 59, there was a distinct and palpable shock of an earth

quake very generally felt . It forcibly shook the house where theH ead A ssistant Collector resides , the doors being j erked somewhat

viol ently and plaster fell from the roof. T he shock was a single

one, and not repeated , but the rumbling sound which accompanied

it lasted for 30 seconds and appeared to the ear to move straightaway unlike the sound of thunder .

2.Mr . Boswell also mentions that a similar sound as of anearthquake w as dist inctly heard there about 5 P . M . on 3oth No

vember, whichmight be compared w ith the roll of a heavy train of

A rtillery passing . On both these o c casions the sky was clear and

Dated 17th December 1 859.

3 . No damage of any kind appears to have occurred .

I have the honor to in form you that 3 shocks o f an earthquakew ere felt. at Salem and Peddin aickenpol l iem on the n ight of the

1 7th instant, Tuesday ; the fi rst shock was felt at. 1 0 P . M ., the

second at 1 2 P . M .,and. the last one at 4 A . M . I have heard of no

accident having occurred .

2 . Peddin aickenpoll iem is 24 miles distant from Salem to the

Eastw ard . I have not received a very particular account, but shouldI hear any interesting facts connected w ith this natural phen ome

non , I w ill duly report them.

”

Letter from J D . R obinson , E sq. , A cting C ollector ofNorth A rcot,datedMahéndravédi, 7th February 1 860, No . 3 1 .

I have the honor to append free translations of two native reports j ust received. T he sho ck therein described appears to have

been very partial , as nothing of the kind was noticed in the Palar

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342 S cien tifi c I n tel l igence. [No . 1 0 , N E W ~ S E RIE S ”

quake was distinctly felt by the European and Native communityat Berhampore . The vibration , which was from w est to east w as

accompanied by a loud rumbling noise , which appeared to last for

some seconds . I have called on the taluq officials to report whether the shock was felt elsewhere in the District , and w ill commanicate the result .”

A dverting to my letterNo . 59of the 29th February last,I have

the honor to informyouthat the earthquake w as felt in many other

parts of the District .On the 24th instant, theHead of Police of Vishamagiri (Chinna '

Kimidi) reported that on the 23rd the country w ithin eight or ten.miles of his station was visited by a hail storm,

when hail stones,

the siz e of Palmyra fruits,fell in great abundance . No damage is

a s yet repOrted, but making all due allowance for exaggeration , asno doubt from the description given

,the stones were o f very large

dimensions . I consider the circumstance worthy of being broughtto notice .

”

E ight years’observations up on the efl

'

ects of the G rognes (twen tyin number} w ith which is an attemp ted exp osition of the theory

of the M adras S urf , submitted to the C ommandan t and C hiefE ngineer. By CA PTA IN J . MC K E NN I E , D eputy M aster A t

tendan t .

1 . T he above stone Groynes (which are s ituated betw een theSouthern extremity of Fort Saint George and North of the boat

men’ s Village at R oyapooram extending over more than a mile ,

North and South of‘ the line of B each) have produced the effect

expect ed o f them by many persons , from the commencement viz .

t o give a greater base of sandy Beach in advance of the coping

stone for operations wrth the shipping ; at the same time , it is myhumble opinion that it w ould have been better had not the stones

been taken away from the inner parts of the Groynes (but j oined

and cemented w ith the Bulwark) as the operations advanced sea~

ward »

C OL—M A R . 1 859-60 ] S cien tifi c In tel ligence. 343

2 . Previous to these useful w orks being sanctioned and com

men ced, oftentimes little or no Beach was left at some places , and

that so abrupt, as to render it diffi cult to, the boats laden w ith

cargo,as w ell as dangerous to the live s of passengers in accommo~

dation boats , by throw ing them off their seats,from the violence

w ith which they w ere impelled on shore against the uneven and

perpendicular hummocks along it, which , it is presumed , w erechiefly formed by the sudden opposition which the waters met

within the erection in 1 82 1 of a Bulwark (consisting of a revet

ment of 1 6 feet by 9 and stones brought from a great distance

being placed over it) by Colonel D eH aviland of the Engineers,

aided probably by the advancing strong sea, meeting and stoppingthe w eak receding one, thereby the former preventing

,

the latter

carrying the sand back again to seaward .

3 . The longest Groyne is opposite Messrs . A rbuthnot and C o .

’3

proj ecting out directly seaward, causing the w idest part of Beach ,

n amely 100 yards and closely approaching the site wher e several

vessels have of late years been w recked (including the ill-fated

S al imany” in 1 850) and which may through this process be

eventually recovered , which is highly desirable , as they are thus

long so many dan gers to the boats . T he 1 00 yards before ment ioned is a clear reclaim of C oast, as it was always remarkable

that before the G royne at that place was erected not 1 yard there

abouts could be depended upon for beaching of the boats .

4 . A lthough at the commencement the experiment was doubt

ed by some offi cers belonging to the Scientific Corps , the great ad

vantages gained by the erect ion of these w orks must n ow be as

apparent to th em as they are admitted by o thers . Not judged byfair weather criterions , but principally from the experience of

no bad effects of the hurricane in 1 846 upon the Groyne previous~

ly constructed opposite the Nawab ’ s palace . A lso from subse

quent gales , the force of which has been felt both perpendicularlyas w ell as obliquely to the shore . The only evil to be apprehend

ed, as far as I am aware , from a severe storm,

is a temporarysteepness of B each , but certainly I do not expect an encroachment ,of the sea .

T he advantages Of the Groynes are as follows.

344 S cien tifi c I n tel ligence. [NO . 10 , N E W S E R I E S .

A sandy Beach as above specified being permanently secured,

enables the Masula boats and Catamarans at all times to be berth

cd and ready w ithin their prescribed limits , which before could

n ot be done .

A ffording a smooth and clear way for taking up and down cat

tle,&c . (landed or shipped) over the Bulwark .

R epairin g and making new boats .

Embarking and disembarking troops and their baggage .

Merchandiz e to o , is n ow no longer exposed to such great risksas hitherto . N0 more pipes of the best w ine are stove in against

the stones ; no more bales of superfi ne cloth damaged by salt

w ater ; nor need we see any of the wholesale destruction gene

rally to miscel laneous property formerly occurring , for want o f

suflicien cy of B each .

By making room for all floatsams and j etsams which for thewant ofmore Beach used to be strewed on the high roadgimuch

to the in convenience and danger Of conveyances and pedestrians .B y affording a w ider ground work and protection to all the n o

ble Beach buildings which are occupied as Court Houses , Publicand Mercantile Offi ces

,Banks

,and private residences

,and which

had previously been endangered by the encroachment of the sea on

a lee Coast , half the year'

; even the B ulwark itself had not been

sufli cien t to prevent the sea washing over the Beach road , and fi nd

ing its way into the lower apartments of houses in its v icinityduring gales of w ind . A nother fact may be here mentioned , name

ly, at a later period"

off the Marine Villa, where the sea at

on e time had encroached so much as almost to undermine the

G overnor’ s Bungalow there ; and to save which,the

,

Master

A ttendant’ s Department was urgently called upon on the

19th December 1 847 to secure a number of laden Masula

boats t o seaward to serve as a temporary barrier . Its elf proveshow incalculably servi ceable the system of Groynes is to the

margin of a coast which is so little above the level of the sea,

(only I believe 6 feet at some places) and in a military point of

view the formation of a n ew Beach outside theFort, answ ers as a

subsidiary means of strengthening the R amparts of Fort S aint

G eorge . If not out of place, I would here refer to the utility of

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4346 S cien tific I n telligence. [No. N E W s-E n l xss

surf and sand95 until they are arrested by the approximating

Groynes,immediately around which , stationary deposits of sand

are thereby formed and accumulate , whilst the w ater by itself unchecked continue to flow and pass on by the ends or heads of

these proj ectors (that is to be the lee side of them) where theyagain stir up the sediment at the bottom and a reaction of all of

them together takin g place , these conj oint movements occurringin the manner, I have attempted to describe , cause , I conceive,those INDE N TA TION S which are visible on the lee side of the

G roynes , but which is n o t the case on the w eather side of them.

The Groynes running out as straight lines too from the Beach , in

s tead of being curved, may also give a facility to the dis turbing

causes above mentioned . H ow far to seaward these lo cal actions

extend before meeting w ith opposition , I could not pretend to se

t imate , neither does it seem necessary at present to enquire . Itmight, however, be supposed that at no great distance from the

shore there is no accumulation of Sand B anks ; on the contrary,

the sand shift s about as it is controlled by the elements above it.

I t is hardly requisite to observe that the w ind , current, tide and

surf all invariably run one way in these roads, that is in the paral

lel where the shipping ride .

8 . It may not be irrel evant to ask the question how these improvemen ts effect the shipping Years ago , it is said by the o ld

est inhabitants that the Beach extended nearly as far out as where

the ships n ow ride (between which and the shore there was a

cocoanut tope) and as the sea encroached upon the land, so the

shippin g anchored nearer . When the Groynes w ere commenced

and advanced , the Beach in proportion increased , thereby in some

degree'

affect ing the safety of the inner anchorage , which does n ot

n ow allow room for a ship to w ear should she cant Wrong when

getting under w eigh , but Vessels can always shift their berths fur

ther out as compelled by circumstances , and the n ew Port R egula

tions n ow allow of their anchoring in one fathomdeeper water ,Without incurring extra Boat hire

,that is to say nine fathoms . Here

I may mention that the ordinary declivity of the Beach was about

I also add tide because it is always under the influen ce of and aocompanies the three forms except in calm w eather when it fluxes andrefluxes E ast and West, ormore correctly to and from shore .

O C T .-M A R . 1 8 59 S cien tifi c I n tel ligence. 3 4177

1 foot in every nine from the shore ; and that fee t distance

from the Coping S tone corresponded w ith 25 fe et depth of water

where the Breakwater Buoy is plac ed being the result of soundings,

and measurement taken by Monsieur Peron , Proj ector of a former

Pier in 1 845 ,and myself w ith a lead and l evelling instrument ; but

since an artifi cial slope has been given to the Beach by the Groynes,

I have found a difleren ce which w ill undoubtedly be experienced inall other relations w ith the shore .

9. A lthough of remote importance perhaps , ye t, before concluding

,it is a theme for speculative opinion what further effe cts

may be cau sed by these Groynes .’

A s the sea has been bodily“

resisted, what course does the forced water take what distance

does it run,and when does it fi nd its level ? Time alone can satis~

factorily decide the point I presume , and must it not be expected ,after allow ing for solar evaporation that the great body of opposed

w ater does find its way hav/c again somewhere ? should it return

over the B ars at Ennore , Pulicat and C oringa during the SoutherlyMonsoon and over those at the A dyar, C uddalore and Porto Novo

during the North,the navigation of those backwaters w ould be con

siderably deepened and improved .

1 0 . The extension of the B each also opens a superior mode of

supplying w ater to the Shipping w ithmore convenience , les s labour ,delay and cost, by havingmore depots or cisterns extending along

the whole line of Beach , so that instead of the former slow plan of

only loading one Boat at a time and part of the year dead‘

to leev’

vard

half a do z en Boats w ith casks could be filling . The ’Navy Trans

ports,English

,C ountry Vessels and Donies all being served at one

time , and from more w eatherly positions . Formerly in times of

war and other expeditionary urgent service , the demand for water

could never bemet fast enough , an evil n ow partially remedied by

the introduction ofmore w atering places , but whichmight bemade

even more complete if more w ere established North and South of

those at present in existence .

1 1 . In erecting any more Groynes , experience has shown thatthe proper length of time is of the first and greatest importance todetermine

,some of those at present in existence are evidently nu

necessarily long,and give an unnatural configuration to the line of

VOL . xx . 0 . s . VOL . v I I . N . s .

8 48 S cien tific I n tel ligence. [No . l O,N E W snmn s.

Coast,whils t theymay have an inj urious effect by turning the cur

rent ou particular points and lead to an error in the calculation o f

the boatmen when crossing and recrossing the surf, which might

prove dangerous to passengers in the boats . O thers again are too

short to be of the use to the extent required , as demonstrated by

some of themhaving been washed away almost as soon as laid down

and part of the Beach w ith them. These opinions w ere entertained

and facts w itnessed especially by the late Master A ttendant in his

time , who remarked that when the sea and surf have been high ,

they have forced themselves round the inner terminus of the.

G roynes , e specially the w eathermost on e, and w ashed away and de

stroyed a large portion of the soil which had been formed round

them.

The form and position o f the G roynes are the next in im

portance for consideration . A lthough I am aware there is still differen ces of opinion upon the former, there need be none . regarding

the latter,as close observation clearly points out where erosions of

the Coast take place and what sites are indispensably neces sary for

the erection o f future Groynes if any be contemplated .

1 3 . In concluding,I have to explain why I have taken upon my

self the self-imposed task of recording these daily observations,

which is simply because I am daily employed betw een on e Groyneand an other , and the offi cer who w as entrusted w ith the Superintend

ence of the G roynes candidly informing me that his urgent dutie s

prevented him doing so himself,and further assured me that he

thought my remarks w ould be interesting to read , and the ex

Chairman of the Chamber of Commerce also considering they would

be more so if published .

A descrip tion of the B uild-ings in Me G in/ i Fort . B y~ C A PTA IN E .

A . FOORD , D istrict E ngineer of S outh A rco t .

(C ommun icated by G overnmen t . )

1 had the honor to acknowledge the receipt , on the 1 5 th of C c

tober last, of the Deputy Chief Engineer

’ s letter to yourself, calling

for precise information regarding the buildings in the G inji Fort .

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8 30 S cien tifi c I n telligence [N0 . 1 0, N E W S E RI E S .

means has been adopted to increase the natural strength of this

rock by the construction of massive w alls along the precipitous

edges and shelves , the utility of many apparently doubtful, whilst

the task could only have been effected by an immense sacrifice of

life . A t the base of this hill is the inner or second Fort w ith walls ,bastions and other w orks quite as formidable

,if not more so than

those forming the outer Fort .

3 . The buildings in the most perfect order are two large rectan

gular granaries built of rubble stone work w ith brick arches , the

whole plastered . On e is a single room 825 by 29 and 46 feet 7inches in height to the crown of the arch . The other building

consists of a spacious entrance passage w ith a room on either side

60 by 28 and a third at the end of the passage at right angles to

these , 8 1 feet by 28 , each of them 89 feet in height . The w alls

are above 531

5 feet-in thickness . A short flight of steps from the

passage leads up to the three doorways and a similar flight on the

inside into the rooms . There are apertures in the roof for filling

these granaries up to the top,after as much grain as possible had

been stored by means of t he doors . The roof which is accessible

byflights of steps from the interior,is surroundedw ith a high parapet

completely loopholed . The present value of the larger building isascertained to be R upees and that of the smaller, of one

room,R upees and my rough estimate for repairing them

amounts to R upees 500 and 200 respectively . There are two or

three S torehouses of this de scription on each of the two hills before

mentioned , and it is w orthy of remark that the brick arched roofs

are in a better state of preservation on the hills also than the flatst one one s .

4 . The most interesting building is a ruined Hindu Pagoda surrounded w ith the usual high wall of cut stone , some very elegant andelaborately carved pillars support the flat stone roof, especially

around the raised places to which the idols were brought upon fes

t ival s as w ell as secluded parts where they w ere kept . The idols ,and a greatmany of the ornamental stones capable of b eing removed ,have at some time or other been taken away, though the removal

must have been attended ith considerable difi cul ty, w ith no road

way except over the stepsof the Pondicherry and T rinamal l ie gates.

T he decay is chiefl y owing to the growth o f banyan and other large

O C T .—~ M A R . 1 8 59-60 ] S cien tific I n telligen ce. 3 5 1

trees and creepers upon the roof and between the j oints of thew alls

,but Pondicherry has done its share in the destruction of this

Pagoda , at what period it is not certain , but the report of Nativesw ould fi x it to w ithin a comparatively recent on e. The plunderers dis

man tl edthe roof, in places,for th e sake o f the handsomely carved pil

lars,some of whichmaybe n ow seen lying on the ground atPondicher

ry. There have been also miscellaneous plunderers from various

petty Pagodas , which have been restored or adorned at the expenseof the G inji Pagoda . In the recent clearing of j ungle , sanctioned

by the Chief Engineer to facilitate the approach to the buildings,

the cutting of some trees and roots only causedmore s tones to fall .In some places the roots have become so interwoven w ith the ma~

soury that it w ould be impossible to separate them, and the onlyhOpe of saving these interesting ruins for a while is to leave them

alone,clearing only the bushes and trees which block up the ap

proaches to them.

0 . Next is an oldMosque , insignificant in siz e, w ith the roof

supported on 25 small brick arches on oct agonal pillars . The cen

t re arches are cracked by the grow th of banyan drops into the inte

rior . In front of the building is a paved court, w ith a basin 9yardssquare in which a fountain formerly played . The w alls are de

faced w ith scribblings , and the building is used frequently for stor

ing Indigo , and it often becomes the resort of cattle, especially durin g show ers of rain . The exterior is the soundest looking part of

the whole .

6 . The most curious structure is a rectangular building of six

s tories,s ituated on one side of a square court which has a covered

verandah all round . The w alls are cracked and the building much

disfigured . Being a singular looking edifi ce,a draw ing of it has

be en prepared .

7 . T wo ranges of buildings close to thelast app ear to be w orthy

of attention , and probably to have been the line s for the troops .

A Plan and Section of these is also submitted . The whole o f the

compar tments are more or less in w ant of repair ; of some , the

roofs hav e fallen in in others , the pillars or w alls have given w ay,

whils t others are sound . I valued the tw o ranges of bui ldings att apoes and my

'

E stimate for-restoring them amoun ts to R s .

352 S cien tific I n tel ligen ce. EN G .

'l O, N E W. S E RI E S .

but they might be rendered w aterproof and useful , if no regard is paid to uniformity of repairs , for a great deal less .

8 . There are a variety of other small buildings and curiouspieces of sculpture (and what is remarkable , free from any thing

obscene) interesting to the visitor but n o t requiring separate men

tion . The tw o tanks shown in the Plan are said to be o f some

fabulous depth . Foundations of houses are to be met w ith in dif

feren t directions , and there is abundant evidence o f the search for

hidden treasure w ithin every building . The village of G inji, at

present very small and about three-quarters of a mile from the

Fort,w as formerly an important village

,situated close under the

eastern w all w ithout the Pondicherry gate . I have never been ableto discover traces of a christian burial ground , though the French

buried so many Europeans at G inji, and I have only found one

small Pow derMagaz ine . Judging from the hollow sound at places ,there must be a number of subterraneous passages and buildings .

I have lately found what I consider must be the entrance to one ofthese passages leading apparently to the old vil lage

‘

outside and

commencing under a modern ruined building of tw o stories , conti

guous w ith the Pondicherry inner gate . This building was proba

bly the French Commandant’ s quarters .

9. A t the foot of the hills , w ithout the For t, are numerous o ld

M andapams, square tanks and pillars , but the only w ork w orthy of

notice , and that is equal to any thing to be seen at G inji, is a strue

ture comprising twelve lofty and elegant columns,each a single

piece of granite . A draw ing of these pillars was forwarded by me

to the Collector nearly two years ago,when suggesting their trans

fer to Madras for the Neill Testimonial .

1 0 . The neighbourhood of G inji un til the last few y ears wasconsidered deadly feverish, a shelter for thieves , and a den for w ild

beasts , but the commencement , fi ve years ago , of a n ew road from

Tindivanam to T rin amal l ie v iaQ inj i passing through the Fort and

t he thickest. part of the j ungle,and n ow forming one of the main

roads o f the District hasmade such a w onderful opening and change

in this part of the country, that the place is no longer feverish .

Whilst more recently the admirable system of Polic e Tannahs and

patrols,introduced by Mr. Taylor and actively carried out by .Mr.

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3 54 S cien tific I n tel l igen ce. [NO . 1 0,N E W S E RI E S .

is by the main road through G injl . Carts , which arrive from the

North and South at Tindivanam would have only 1 7 miles to go

to G inji and be able to s tart again in various directions , instead of

going 22 miles to Markan am which leads to no place . The HeadA ssistant Collector stationed at Tindivan am w ould be midway be

tw een the Pan s and the Depot, or again w ith the re-distribution of

T aluqs, if G inji was included in a Deputy Collector’ s charge

,as the

D epot for the sale of S alt, it w ould claim precedence as his plac e

of residence temporarily,at least, on account of the buildings , as

there are others,besides those named capable of being converted

into a Kachari or dw elling house . But the large granaries,if n o t

required for Salt, might be converted to almost any use ; the thick

n ess o f the w alls w ould allow beams to be inserted for the purpose

of dividing the building into stories .

1 3 . I have the honor to solicit the submission of the above proposition for the consideration of Government . Persons totally un

acquainted w ith the country , w ill urge that G inji is still feverish

but I can , fromfive years experience contradict such assertions . Ihave never caught fever at G inji, though I have come there w ithfever from the den se

‘ jungle of the T rinamal l ie T aluq and thence

proceeded to Cuddalore , the opprobrium thus falling on the fixed

station .

own—M A R . 1 859

PR OC E E DI NG S .

PH O T OG R A P H IC S oc rnrr .

A t a M eeting qf the PH OTO G RA P H I C SO C I E TY ,held at the S chool of

A rts,on the 6 th October, 1 8 59.

Dr . HUN TE R,in the Chair .

It w as resolved that in consequence Of great complaints havingbeen made of the heat during the last A nnual Exhibition in May,

which , from the imperfect ventilation and low situation of theSchool of A rts , the only building in Madras available for the pur

po se , was at times very oppressive and unbearable , the Exhibition

of 1 8 60 should be postponed until the month of December of that

year .

Some di'

len l ty was felt in determining the best season for theExhibition , as the cold w eather being the b es t time for working,it was thought desirable photographers shoul d have the full bene

fit Of it for preparing their contributions . I n fixing December

1 860 as the time for the next A nnual Exhibition , this di' "

i cul ty

w ill -be overcome , and at the same time visitors w ill no t suffer the

inconvenience hitherto complained of.

In accordance w ith the above reso lution , i t was agreed that the .

follow ing Circular should be issued

C IR C U LA R .

The Council of the Madras Photographic Society beg to an

nounce that the 4th A nnual Exhibition w ill be opened in the Ma

dras S cho ol of A rts on the l st Thursday in December 1 860 .

l st .—The Exhibition w ill be open to the productions of all Pho

t ographers .

2 .— Photographs of all de script ions which show useful applica

tions Of the A rt , w ill be admitted for Exhibition as follow s

Positive prints fromWax Paper , C alotype and Collodion Nega

tives. Positive prints from negatives of engravings . C amera

reproductions of the-above , specimens of Micro-photography. PO

sitive C ol lodio types Plain or colored Daguerreotypes and plain

or colored S tereoscopic-photographs .VOL . x x . 0 . s . VO L . VI I N. s .

356 Proceedings. [Na 1 0, N E W serum.

3 .—Members are invited to exhibit any European o r other Pho

tographs they may possess , but in everycase the name Of the A rtist

and the proces s should be given4 . Positive pictures from touched or painted negatives

must be described accordingly .

5 .-A l l pictures should be mounted, and Exhibitors are request

ed to reduce as much as possible the siz e of the margins . The

pictures must bear on the back the name and address o f the Ex

hibitor, and must be accompanied by a signed lis t detailing theA rticles sent, together w ith a statement of the process or variety

of a process by which the pictures have been Obtained . E xhibi

tors up country who may n ot have facilities for mounting their

Photographs,are recommended to apply to the Co uncil , who will

make arrangements for mounting Photographs for the Exhibition

as economically as possible , the expenses being debited to the Ex

hibitor.

'

6 .-W ith the view Of carrying out one Of the chief Obj ects Of the

Society, viz . , the encouragement and advancement Of Photography,

the C ouncil have determined to award Medals to themost successful Contributors as follow s

a—A Gold Medal for view s and landscapes , open to all A mateurMembers of the So ciety .

b—A Silver Medal for view s and landscapes , open to all Mem

bers Of the Society .

c—A Silver Medal for view s and landscapes , Open to all Photographers, whether Members or n o t .

d -A S ilver Medal for Portraits , Open to all Photographers .

The priz e to be awarded to the best Contributions to the E xhi

bition of not less than six pictures , being the bona fi de production

of the Exhibitor .

Special Medals w ill also be aw arded for Novelties,should the

C ouncil think them worthy Of the distinction .

7 .—The priz es w ill be awarded by a Committee consisting Of a

President and 4 Members , resident at Madras, who are not com

petitors for the Medals .

8 .-A rrangements will be made for facilitating the Sale Of Pho

tographs, and all Exhibitors desirous Of selling their pictures are

requested to send with each picture a statement Of its price .

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35 8 Proceedings. [No 1 0, N E w S E RIE S .

T he follow ing priz es w ill be awarded .

1 . For the best series of at least ten photographs, whether por

traits , or landscapes , a Gold Medal . This pri z e to be open only

to . A mateurPhotographers , wh o are members Of the Socie ty .

2 . For the second best series Of at least ten photographs, whe

ther. portraits or landscapes , a S ilver Medal .

This priz e to be open only to Members of the Society .

3 . For the best single photograph whether portrait or land

scape , a S ilver Medal .

This pri z e to be open to all A mateur Photographers,whether

members Of the Society or not .

The pri z es w ill be awarded on the recommen dation of threemem

bers of the C ommittee , who w ill be appointed for the purpose .

T heir decision in all cases w ill be final .

NO contributor can receive more than on e priz e .

No contributor can receive the Gold Medal tw ice , but a contributor who has Obtained the gold medal in one year

, may Ob

t ain the silver medal in another . The succe ssful contributors w ill

be expected to send a negat ive , in order that the Society mayprint the priz e photographs for distribution amongst members .

By order of the Committee,

“

H . S C OTT SMITH ,

H ang . S ecy . B engal Photographic S ociety .

It was b rought to the notice Of the Meeting by Mr . Elliot that

there are many native inscriptions in various parts o f the Presidency at Mysore , Ganjamand other parts of the Northern Circars , also

the Fresco Painting at Seringapatam,which are exceedingly inter

esting in a historical and antiquarian point of view , and he suggested

that it w ould be doing great service to science , . if Photographers

throughout the country would bear this inmind, and take copie s of

any such inscriptions theymight happen to come acro ss in their ex

cursion s, forwarding the same to the Society to be added to their

collection Of photographs, so that they might be preserved as a

record.

Mr. E lliot al so remarked that there are several Of. the,o ld portraits

in .the. B anquet ing H all , which woul d be w ell worthy of beingp ho

tographed, and that some of themwould doubtless behighlypriz ed

O C T .-M A R . 1 859 Proceedings. 359

w ere copies of them printed for distribution to Members . A mong

the rest he instanced a portrait Of the late Duke ofWellington as a

youn g man , when he first came to this country before he attained

his great celebrity,and a portrait of the A bbé De Bois .

Mr . Mitchell mentioned that he had lately been engaged in pre

paring A lbumeni z ed paper for printing , and he w ished to bring to

notice certain difficulties he had met w ith . The chief thing to be

avoided in preparing this paper is the formation Of streaks , and it

has been recommended by some , as the best means Of prevent ing

them, to exclude all currents of air in the room in which the papers

are hung up to dry . Mr . Mitchell ’ s experience however show ed

him that more than this is required . H e at firs t prepared his pa

pers by laying them gently and slowly on the surface of the A lbu

men ,in such a way, as to exclude air bubble s , allowing each to

remain about half a minute,and then raising them slow ly in theman

ner they are put on . Mr . Mitchell found that mainpulat ing in this

way, even w ith the greatest care , most of his papers w ere still spoiltby streaks . It then occurred to him to try the effect of lifting Off

the papers from the A lbumen as quickly as po ssible , and this praetice he found to answ er the purpose p erfectly

,the papers being then

smooth and free from streaks .

Dr . H unter exhibited to the Meeting a large and varie d col lec

tion of E uropean Photographs,among which w ere some fine Land

scapes by G ustave Le Gray, R . Fenton , A . Lauren an t , Lamb of

A berdeen and Morghan of Bristol,Views Of many Of the o ld C a

thedral s,A bbeys , and antiquities Of England and Scotland . A mong

these w ere York Minster,Ely Cathedral

,Bolton A bbey , Lin coln

Cathedral , Melrose and R oslyn , Kenilworth , and a few other fi n e

ruins . A lso a number Of Landscape View s in Wales , A berdeen ,

Dumbarton , S tirling and the Lothians . A fine series Of Botanical

Photographs , some of them of a very large siz e,by R os s and Thom

son , representing chiefly the w il d plant s and w eedy banks of the

neighbourhood Of Edinburgh . Several pic torial bits of nature very

artistically selected by HenryWhite of London . A few of the priz e

l andscape Pho tographs by Lyndon Smith , remarkable for the deli

cacy Of atmospheric effect also an instantaneous picture by Henderson , showing very, delicate gradations Of tint in the sky and foliage . It was' certifi edE that 1-20th Of a second was the time of ex

360 Proceedings. [NO . 1 0, NE W S E RI E S ;

posurew ith dry collodion , but that 90 hours were required for the

development . The collection also contained some fine studies Of

Trees , taken Of a l arge siz e by the waxed paper process by B .

‘ B .

Turner, and smaller ones from collodion negatives by Morghan Of

B ristol and Fenton , one Of the best of these was a group of trees in

Kensington G ardens . There w ere also a few copies of paintings ,draw ings and engravings by ancient and modern A r tists , statues

from the antique , and a few landscapes and views Of celebrated

buildings in France and Italy .

Mr . C ochrane exhibited some very fine architec tural PhotographsfromParis and R ome . C opies of some frescoes and paintings by

R aphael and other A rtists , and a few good Photographs of statuesamong the latter w ere a group Of the Laocoon from the Vatican,and a statue of Eve w ith the apple .

A s the President Of the Society is n ow ab out to leave the countryon his retirement from the Service , it was resolved that a GeneralMeeting should be held on Thursday the 5 th Of January, for thepurpose Of electing a n ew President—when all Members are invited to attend for this purpose . I t was also proposed by Dr . C leg

horn , seconded by Dr . Hunter and carrie d unanimously, that a

special vote Of thanks be given to the Hon . Walter Elliot for his

valuable aid as Pr esident of the Society from its first commence

ment, and that the Society request the favor of his sitting for a

negative portrait t o be printed for distribution to all Members .

Mr . Elliot shortly acknowledged the compliment paid himby the

Society,and kindly acceded to their w ishes in regard to sitting for

his portrait, which it was arranged he should do at one Of the firs t

Photographic establishments on his arrival in London .

A t a Meeting of the PH OT O G RA PH I C SOC IE T Y,held in the S chool of

A rts, on T hursday the 5 th of J anuary 1 860 .

W . E . U nderwood, Esq . was unanimously elected C hairman o f

the Society, in the room of the H on’ble Walter Elliot, who has

left the Presidency on his retirement from the Service.

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362 Proceedings.I [No . 1 0, N E W S E RI E S .

pictures b eing impressed at the same instant of t ime,but when

the obj ect to be copied is remotefit becomes desirable to take the

pictures at a w ider angle , than that of the three or four inches be

tween the lenses ; the Camera then admit s Of the application of Mr.

Latimer Clarke ’ s ingenious arrangement for taking S tereograrn s

w ith a single lens , by this contrivance , after exposing this fi rst side

of the plate , the Camera is removed in a lateral direction , w ithout

disturbing the position Of the image on the ground glas s , Or on the

sensitive surface , by this appliance the utmost S tereoscopic effect

is secured at whatever distance the Obj ect is situated from

the Camera .

The Negatives shown by Mr . Crake , w ere done on dry plates

prepared by Dr . Hill Norris , and although four or fi ve months

have elapsed since the preparation o f the plates , they still continue

to yield satisfactory p ictures , cl ean in their lights , and show ing

no indication of deterioration by keeping . Prepared Plates that

have been subj ected to the influence of sea air , contract a l iabil ity to spot and are much spoiled by it .

Mr . Crake kindly placed at the disposal of the Counci l a selec

tion from his negatives to b e made available for the next distribu

tion of prints .

MA DRA S LITE RA RY S O C I E TY .

A t a M eeting of the M an aging C ommittee of the MA D R A S LI T E

RA RY SO C I E TY , and A uxil iary of the R oya l A siatic S ociety , held

a t the C lub H ouse,on T hursday , the 1 3 th October, 1 8 59, at half

p ast 6 o’clock

,P . M .

PRE S E N T .

E . Maltby, Esq . J . D . Mayne , Esq .

Major W . J . Wilson . W . H udleston , Esq . , S ecy .

G . F . Fullerton , E sq .

T he Secretary laid before the Meeting the usual Monthly State

ment of the Socie ty ’ s Funds prepared up to the 1 2th O ct . 1 859.

R esolved , that the above S tatement is satisfactory and be passed .

R ead letter from J . G . Thompson,Esq . ,

forwarding two copies

C OL—M A B . 1 859 Proceedings. ggg:

a paper named Pointed and unpointed R oman ic A lphabetsmpared.

”

Ordered to be recorded .

R ead letter from R ev . T . Foulkes , forwarding a paper’6 on the

power of the T amil C onsonantyp

.

O rdered to be referred to the Sub-C ommittee of Papers .

R ead letter from G . L . Forbes , Esq . , Deputy Secretary to G O

vernmen t , forwarding copy of the Lecture ou-the 9t G eol ogy Of the

Province of A uckland, New Zealand .

O rdered to be referred to the Sub-C ommittee Of Papers .‘

R ead Extract from Proceedings Of the Madras Government ,dated 27th September, 1 859, NO . 1 492 , containing an order rela

tive to Mr . A cworth’ s letter regarding a piece O f R ock Salt foundnear Kircumbady.

O rdered to be referred to 'the S ub-C ommittee Of Papers .R ead letter from C aptain Puckle , District Executive Eng ineer,

B angalore,forwarding Meteorological Observations and a table of

Experiments on the strength of T imber .

O rdered to be referred to the Sub-C ommittee of Papers .R ead letter from Dr . R ost , Professor Of Sanskrit , at S t . A ugus

tine ’ s C ollege , Canterbury, returning thanks for having been ap

pointed an Honorary Member of the Society .

O rdered to be rec orded .

R ead Circular proposing a continuance of the publication of

Schoolcraft’ s H is tory Of the Condition .and Prospects Of the ' I n

. dian Tribes Of theU nite d States .”O rdered that the copy in the Society’s Library be completed .

Published in our last NO.-E D . M . L.

"

J .

VOL . xx. 0 . s.

"

VOL . VI I . N . s.

364 Proceedings. [NO . 1 0, N E W S E RIE S .

A t a Meeting of theManaging C ommitteeof theMA DRA S LITE RA RY

SO C I E TY, and A uxiliary of the R oyal A siatic S ociety, held at the

C lub H ouse,on T hursday , the l 0th November 1 859

, at half p ast'

6 o’

clock,P . M .

PRE S E N T .

The H on . W . Elliot,Esq . C hairman .

G . F . Fullerton , Esq . E . Maltby,Esq .

Major W . J . Wilson , W . H udleston ,E sq. , S ecretaryJ . T . Wheeler, Esq .

The Secretary laid before the Meeting the usual Monthly State

ment of the Society’ s Funds , prepared up to l oth November 1 859.

R esolved , that the above Statement is satisfactory and be passed .

R ead Letter from General Cullen forwarding C orrespondence Of

the late Mr . A dolphe S chlagin tweit .

R esolved, that the papers in question be published in the Pro

ceedings , but the Committee doubt whether they w ill aid the en

quiries n ow proceeding in Calcutta .

R ead Proceedings Of the Madras G overnment containin g letter

from Mr . O ldham on a piece Of R ock Salt found at Kircumbady,w ith reference to the S ecretary’ s letter of the 1 7th September last,

to the addres s o f the Chief Secretary .

O rdered to be recorded .

The Secretary pointed out to the Meeting the necessity of pro

curin g a n ew Pres s for the Book B inding Department, at a cost Ofabout 1 1 or 1 2 R upees .

R esolved , that the Secretary be authorised to procure the necessary Press .

R ead letter from Sir C . Trevelyan to the Secretary,proposing to

continue the examination of the B udhist remains at A maravati,and requesting the co-operation of the Society .

Mr . Elliot brings to notice that a curious Paper on the subj ect Of

A maravati was published about 1 8 1 8 or 1 8 19 in the A siatic A nnual

R egister by Colonel Macken z ie who fi rst brought these interesting

remains to n otice . By an Extract from his Journal publ ished inthe A siatic R esearches , Vol IX, Page 273 , it appears that he visited

the place in 1 797, and found the whole amass of ruins . There is

good reason to believe that the structure had existed in tolerablepreservation to 9. period shortly an tecedent to the C olonel’s arrival .

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366 Proceedings. [No . 1 0, NE W SE RIE S .

A t a Meeting of thé Managing C ommittee of the MA DRA S LITE

B ARY SO C I E TY , and A uxiliary of the R oyal A siatic S ociety, held

at the C lub H ouse on T hursday, the 10th D ecember,1 859, at half

past 6 o’clock

,P . M .

PRE S E NT .

The H onorable Walter Elliot, C hairman .

G . F . Fullerton , E sq. Major W . J . Wilson .

W . C . Maclean,Esq .

,M . I ) . W . H udleston , Esq .

, S ecy .

H . B . Montgomery,Esq .

,M . D .

The Secretary laid before the Meeting the‘

usual Monthly Statement of the S ociety’ s Funds prepared up to the l oth instant .

R esolved,that the above Statement i s satisfactory and be passed .

R ead letter from the Secretary to the Library and Philosophical

Society of Manchester proposing an exchange of publi cations .

R esolved, that the proposal b e accepte d and acknowledged ao

cordingly.

R ead letter fromMessrs . H ermann and R obert S chlagin tweit,returning thanks for having been elected Honorary Members of

the Society .

O rdered to be recorded .

R ead communication from the H onorable Mr . Elliot relative toletters received by him fromM . Hermann von S chlagin tweit andCaptain Lumsden of the A rtillery at Hyderabad .

R esolved, that the extract from ! Captain Lumsden’ s letter betransferred , w ith the Honorable Mr . Elliot’ s remarks, to the SubC ommittee on Pap‘ers .

A lso that extract fromM. von S'

chlagin tweit’

s letter be laid be;

fore G overnment with a recommendation that Governmen t sub

scribe for a set of the C rania as a fitting and important accompa

nimen t to the Masks already secured .

R ead letter from Capt . Moloney forwarding C opy of a Pam

phlet descriptive of the experiments on Strychnine and Nicotine

made by Mr. Haughton .

O rdered to be recorded w ith thanks , the Pamphlet w ill be transferred to the Sub-C ommittee on Papers for publication .

Will appear in our next —E D . M. L . J .

O C T .—MA R . 1 859 Proceedings. 367

R ead Extract from the New Zealand Government Gaz ette con

taining a Lecture on the Geology of the Province of New A uck

land,by Dr . F . H ochstetter of the A ustrian Frigate Novara

,

”

communi cated by the Madras Government .O rdered to be recorded .

R ead letter on the ! Photographic delineation ofMicroscopic ob

jects by Lieut . Mitchell, Officer in charge of the Government Cen

tral Museum.

O rdered to be communicated to the Sub-C ommittee on Papers .R ead letter from the R ev . Mr . Foulkes on the power of the

T amil C onsonant(m.

O rdered to be communicated to the Sub-C ommittes o n Papers .

R ead letter fromMr . George B idié profferin g his services to superin tend the proposed operations at A maravut ti .

O rdered to be recorded . Mr . Elliot w ill reply to it.R ead letter from Mr . Lew is H . Morgan of New York to the

H onorable Mr . Elliot enclosing a _ printed S chedule and letter in

explanation of an ethnological w ork on which Mr . M . is engaged .

Mr. Morgan who is engaged in certain ethnological enquirie s

regarding the A merican Indian R aces is anxious to ascertain

whether , through their peculiar system of consanguinity and des

cent,any conn ection can be traced w ith A siatic R aces

,and evi

dence thus obtained of a common origin .

The great distinguishing features of this system, which , w ith

minor modification s appears to be universal on the A merican C on

t in en t , amon g the Indian t ribes , are that descen t follow s the femaleline , or passes through the mother, and that the collateral lines

are gradually re-absorbed in the lineal ; while in the Civil and

C anon law exactly the reverse is the case , descent being through

the father, and co llateral line s by each remove from the common

ancestor becoming more distant from the lineal .

The Schedule of questions which should have accompanied Mr .Morgan’ s letter was unfor tunately not received

,but the Pamphlet

w ill be transferred to the Sub -C ommittee on Papers,that copious

Extracts may be published in the Journal, which may it is hoped

draw attention to the subj ect .Publ ished in our last No .

—E D . M . L . J .

36 8 Proceedings. [No . 1 0, NE W S E a s.

A t a Meeting of the M anaging C ommittee of the M A DRAS LITERARY S O C IE TY,

and A uxiliary of the R oya l A siatic S ociety, held

a t the C lub H ouse on T hursday, the 1 2 th J anuary, 1 860, at half

p ast 6 o’clock P . M .

PRE S E NT .

G . F . Fullerton , Esq . W . H udleston , Esq .

, S ecretary .

J . T . Wheeler , Esq .

T he S ecretary laid before the Meeting the usual Monthly Statement of the Society’ s Funds prepared up to the 1 1 th Instant .R esolved , that the above Statement is satisractory and be passed .

R ead letter from J . G . Thomson , E sq., to the Chief S ecretary

forwarding a Copy o f a complete Phonetic A lphabet, and Orders Of

Government thereon .

O rdered to be recorded—several Copies of the Pamphlet having

been already received direct fromMr . Thompson .

R ead letter from the R ev . James Kearns , forwarding a PacketOf Papers con tain ing Inscriptions in ancient Tamil, for presentationto the Society .

Ordered to be acknowledged w ith thanks , and transferre d to the

Sub-Committee on Papers .

R ead three letters from G eneral Cullen relative to Inscriptionsand Specimens of G old Sand forwarded

,and on e letter with Me

moranda regarding Hail S torms on the Malabar Coast .

Ordered to be acknowledged w ith thanks . The Inscriptions tobe transferred to the S ub-Committee , an d the Mineral Specimens ,w ith C opy of the Letter relating to them, to be forwarded to the

Officer in charge Of the Museum.

R ead letter from T . O ldham, Esq ., Superintendent Of the G eo

logical Survey, acknowledging the receip t of No . 8 , New Series of

the Socie ty’ s Journal .O rdered to be recorded .

R ead letter from Walter Elliot, Esq ., presentingto the Society

twelve Numbers of the Journal of the R oyal Society and two Copiesof a Palceographic A lphabet .

T he S ecretary intimates to the Meeting that the H on . Sir C . T re

velyan has presented to the S ociety the follow ing Works .

Memoires de la S ocieteR oyale des A ntiquaires duNord, 2 vols.

from 1 840 to 1 849,

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“3 70 Probeedings. [No . 1 0 , N E W . S E RI E S .

Museum,reporting the result of a Micro scopical examination

,of the '

Gold Sand forwarded by General C ullen .

O rdered that a C opy Of the letter be communicated to General

C ullen , and that the Paper be transferred to the Sub-C ommittee onPapers .

R esolved , that Thursday the 23rd Instant , b e appointed for theA nnual General Meeting , to be held in the Strangers

'

R oom at the

.C lub , at half past 6 o’ clock P . M .

,and that a Notice to that effect

be published in the Fort St . George Gaz ette .

A G RI C ULTURAL A ND H ORTI C UL T URA L SO C IE TY .

Proceedings of theMeeting of the C ommittee, held at the G ardens, on

Wednesday, 5 ih October, at 6 P . M .

PRE S E N T .

Colonel R eid , C . B . ,C . Dale , Esq .

R . H unter , Esq . Colonel Colbeck ,R ev . J . R . Macfarlane

, H . B . Montgomery, Esq . M .

A . M R itchie , Esq . S ecretary .

A . J . Scott, Esq . , M , D .

MEMB E RSG . J . Shaw ,

Esq ., M . D . A mir C dDowlah , B ahadoor.

In the absence o f the Hon .W . E lliot, C olonel R eid, C . B is una

n imously elected Chairman of the day .

The Proceedings of last Meeting are read and approved .

The Monthly A ccounts are examined and found correct .R ead the following

“Proceedings of the B oard of R evenue

,dated

27th September 1 859.

R ead the follow ing letter from P . Grant , Esq . , C ollector of Malabar, to W . H udleston

, Esq .

, A cting S ecretary to the Board of

R evenue , Fort Saint George , dated C alicut, 1 5 th September 1 8 59,No . 228 .

A pplication has been made tome by Mr. B rown of A njeracandy,

well known by hismany successful endeavours to in troduce useful

C OL—M A R . 1 859-60 ] P roceedings. 3 71

products into Malabar,to procure a small supply of theJamaica

Ginger which appears to have been successfully grown in the H or

t icul tural G ardens at Madras .

l st . I need hardly remark that the Jamaica Ginger is likelyto grow w ell and prove a valuable addition to our products in Ma

labar, where hundreds O f tons of Ginger are annual ly grown .

C opy of this letter will be communicated to the C ommi ttee Of

the Horticultural Socie ty w ith a rgquest that they will enable theB oard to comply w ith Mr . Brown

’ s request .

2md. The Board understand that the Director of the Govern

ment Garden at Peridin n ia near Kandy in C eylon, w ill be prepared

to furnish a supply of this article should a further quantity be re

quired for distribution .

(Signed) J . H U D LE S T ON ,

A cting Secretary .

R esolved, that the foregoing be complied w ith and some roots

be despatched to the C ollector Of Malabar for transmission to Mr.

Brown .

R ead the following Extract (para 6) of the Proceedings of G O

vernmen t , dated 1 4th September 1 8 59, relative to the People’ s

Park .

6 . Mr . Brown , the Superintendent of the H orticultural Gardens ,w ill undertake the immediate charge o f these works under the di

rect ions of the Committee , draw ing for this duty an additional al

lowance of fifty (50) R upees a month , and every bill connected

w ith the expenses which may be incurred on account of the Park

must, prior to its submission to Government , be certified by Mr .Brown and countersigned by the S ecretary to the Committe .

Itw ill then be passed for payment from the fund , in the hands of the

Municipal Commissioners aris in g from the sale o f the adj oin ing

allotments on the esplanade of Black Town, which already amounts

to upwards of R s. Mr. Brown’ s additional stipend w ill

b e paid from the same source .

With reference to the foregoing arrangement,then anticipated

,

the orders of the C ommitte e have be en already passed (vide A nnual R eportf)VOL . xx . 0 . s . VOL . v I I . N

'

. s

372 Procéedings. [No . 10, N E W sE R I E s .

R ead the following Memorandum by Mr . A . T . Jaffrey, on the

Nutmeg disease, &c .

ME MORA NDUM .

On the Nutmeg D isease in the S trait: I slands.

A t Page 1 3 1 4 of Balfour’ s Encyclopaedia,” the follow ing re

marks occur anent the culture of these spice-trees . But it is

some consolation for the Proprietor to know that stupidity w ill n otruin him and even at the distance of thousands of mile s , he can

give such directions as if attended to w ill keep his estate in a fruit

ful and flourishing state .

”—S immonds . This quotation would

tend to a belief that it was one of the simplest things in the w orld

to cultivate a Nutmeg Plantation . How ever the most convincingproof, v iz . ocular demonstration

,leaves no doubt but that there is

a real possibility of ruin staring the Proprietors Of the Plantations

in Penang and Singapore,in the face and the chances are

that, unless remedial measures are adopted to arrest the presentdeterioration of the t rees which is almost universal there is a probabil ity that not only ruin is in view,

but there is the extinction of

a valuable article of commerce to be feared c

It was perfectly evident when visiting the Islands a few mon thsago , that some fatal malady had seiz ed upon the trees . What

cause this effect had arisen frommay be difficult to unpractised

eyes to discover ; but j udging from appearances only, not havingeu

”

cient opportunity fairly to investigate the matter, still from

what was seen, the conclusion come to was, that the disease was

local and not constitutional therefore there was a hope that it could

be overcome .

The fi rst supposition was that the disease was canker and there

fore constitutional , but none Of the indications , Of such a disease

being present, could be discovered ; the symptoms of this are the

appearance Of small blisters on the epidermis of the young shoots,

and sometimes , if not always , at the base of the branches . There

was n o cracked or Suberous appearance on any of the trees exa

mined . I t '

was therefore requisite to draw together from former

ascertained facts what the symptoms indicated . These w ere the

yellow sickly appearance of the foliage,the decay of the branches

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374 Proceedings. [No . 1 0, NE W S E RI E S .

in some'

cases amicroscope to discover it . It is plain w ithout entering into chemical details , that a large quantity of green vegetation

,collected round the stem of a tree and covered w ith soil

, is a

suffi cient cause to originate vinous fermentation which is distin c

tive from the elements it produces . One o f the w orst of these w ill

be vinegar,w ill in all likelihood arise from the A lcohol produced ;

another error may arise , from collecting matter too deep around

the stem of the tree , viz . the exclusion Of atmospheric air from the

roots and col let or as T revirainus calls it centrumvegitation is,”

or life kno t .

If these remarks lead to an investigation of this important sub

ject , they w ill have attained their end . It w ould be pre sumptionto propose remedial measures w ith th e present amount Of informa

tion,but w ere the subj ect fairly and thoroughly investigated , there

is every reason to think the disease might be arrest ed, though it

is one about which very little has been hitherto known .

(Signed) A NDRE W T . JA F FRE Y .

In publishing the foregoing Memorandum,the C ommittee de

sire to direct attention to what may be one of the causes Of disease

in the Nutmeg Tree .

The too free use of green manure is a very possible source o f

disease , and is so evitable that the further use Of it might be sus

pen ded . C areful investigation w ill , no doubt, disclose more fullyat once the cause and mode of cure of this disease .

The C ommittee w ill receive w ith pleasure and give publicity to

any further remarks on this disease , by persons having practical

experience in the treatment of it .

The follow ing Gentlemen were unanimously elected Members

o f the Society .

Lieut .-Col . A dye, R . A .,Maj or Worster

,M . A .

,Captain R . F .

O aks .

The next Meeting is appointed to be held on Wednesday, November 2nd, when the Committee w ill be happy to see any Mem

bers who desire to attend . U ntil further orders the Commit tee

will meet at half past six A . M . at the G ardens.

C OL—M A R . 1 8 59-60 ] Proceedings. 3 75

Proceedings of a Meeting of the C ommittee held a t the G ardens, on

Wednesday, D ecember 7th, 1 8 59.

PRE S E N T .

H onorableWalter Elliot, E sq—Presiden t .

J . D . S im, Esq .H . B . Montgomery , Esq . , M . D .

H . F . C . Cleghorn , Esq ., M . S ecretary .

Colonel Colbeck ,

T he Proceedings of the last Meeting are read and approved .

The Committee determine that the day for the next A nnual C om

petitive Exhibition of Fruits , Flowers and Vegetables shall be

Tuesday,February 2 l st ,

The pri z es already Offered and notified in their Proceedings under

date A pril 6 th ,1 859, w ill be then Offered for public competition .

T he follow ing is also added to the list—For the best twelve Dahlias of varieties .

Further particulars w ill be published in the next Proceedings .

A specimen O f a n ew and undescribed species Of I son andra,dis

covered by Captain Beddome,i s exhibited by Dr . Cleghorn .

R ead the follow ing R epor t upon the systematic cultivation Of

the A sclep ias G igan tea, o therw ise known as C alotropis Gigantea .

This R eport was forwarded to the R evenue Board and by them to

the General Committe e of the Madras Exh ibition of 1 8 59,from

whom it w as received by this S ociety .

R E PORT .

On the cul tivation of Ycroceum C o tton in Ching leput .

R eferring to the Board ’ s Pro ceedings , NO . 455,o f the 8 th Fe

bruary last , I have the honor to report, that I immediat ely issueda n o tice in the Distric t Gaz ette , calling upon the Tahsildars to fur

nish me w ith supplies of Yeroocum cotton seed , and acquaint me

whether they w ere willing to look after its cultivation . I believe onlyone Tahsildar replied

,that he w ould attend to one cawney

,if in

struc ted in the way he w as to cultivate the plant , wh ile another re

ported , that, do all he could , he could not induce any ryots to un

dertake the business . Imerelymention this to Show the little interestshown in the cul tivation of the plant by the people of the country .

A s r egards seeds , there was none to be had when the Board

wrote their Proceedings adverted to,and it was not till about July ,

T h is has been since al tered to T hursday 23rd.

376 Proceedings. [NO . 10, N E W S E RIE S .

that I was able to procure any . A t that time , and up to nearly thepresent moment, the plant which is a common w eed came into blos

som,and as much seed could be had as was wanted . I have availed

myself of some spare ground in the R oshun Baugh , to plant about

65 cawn ies, but the plants do not app-ear to me to thrive . There

are about plants , o f which 200 are one foot high , four

inches,and t wo inches high . The plant is a w eed and seems

to grow best in the neighbourhood Of old brick kilns or in un cul ti

vated ground . The little ass istance Offered by the Tahsildars , the

unpromising look of the young plants , and the immense quantitythat is to be

'

found grow ing w ild in all directions,have led me to

stop , any further extensionof cultivation as a useles s , and under the

circumstances extravagant expense . The present plants , that have

been sown , w ill not, I think ,bear fruit before the middle of next

year but the w ild plants grow ing in my neighbourhood , w ill give

as much produce as would probably have been realiz ed from 50

cawn ies, if the Board w ish for any further quantity of cotton as a

specimen than that sent to themw ith mymemorandum,on the 1 4th

Instant .

2 . Had Dr . Shortt,the Zillah Surgeon remained at Chingleput,

he could have undertaken the cultivation in that neighbourhood,but his ill health having rendered it necessary for him to go away,there w as no one there to look after it, and the plantation at the

R oshun Baugh is , therefore , the only one under superintendence

The departure of Dr . Shortt is a great loss for the S cientifi c cul

t ivat ion Of the plan ts , if it was expected to improve under cultiva

tion,as he took an interest in the Obj ects of the Board . Withou t

personal interest in the matter, I do no t think much more , if so

much,can be expected from the plant than in its w ild state .

3 . A s regards the Cotton , it is a mos t diffi cult matter to collectand keep it , it is so very light , that the least breath of air, drives it

about and i t can only be picked from the pod cleaned , and packed

in a room shut off from the w ind . I do not think , therefore , it canever be cultivated for the market , even if a remunerative price could

b e got for it by the ordinary ryots , as they have no places where

they could dry and pick the pods , and it would require an immense

extent of cultivation to produce suffi cient produce to pay for theerection of suitable places of refuge from the w ind .

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3 78 Proceedings. [NO . 1 0, N E W S E RI E S .

is their intention, they must necessarily be very expensive , as alll abour will have to be paid for .

In the R oshun Baugh the two gardeners kept up by G overnment,w ill be suffi cient to look after the plants , and w ith Coolies to col

lect the pods when they ripen w ill be all that are required for the

future , n o w that the fi rst expenses of breaking up the land have

been paid for,but in a plan tation in any other place

,the“charge

for Superintendence w ill become a distinct item and added to thecost Of the raw article .

7 . I f I may venture to give an opinion , I Should say enough

has been done , by way Of experiment in planting 6g cawn ies, and

that the value Of the w ild Cotton had best be ascertained before a

further venture is made in ploughing and sowing any more fresh

land .

If freight, brokerage , insurance and other charges are added tothe present ascertained cost O f the w ild ar ticle

,it appears to me

,

that it would become very expensive , or perhaps nearly half the

price of silk which is R s. 5 per lb , and at this price I do not think ,it w ould be w orth any manufacturers while to purchase it . T he

Board however, w ill be able to j udge Of this through the Chamber

o f Commerce .

(Signed) C . J . S H U B RI C K ,

C ol lector of C hing leput .

R esolved, that the above be brought to notice w ith a view to the

cultivation Of the plant being encouraged by Local Committees and

the Officers of the R evenue Department throughout this Pre

siden cy .

The Yercoom Fibres , both the pappus and the fibre Of the stem

are valuable articles l ikely to become eventually Of considerable

commercial importance .

The follow ing gentlemen are unanimously elected Members Ofthe Society, w ith effect from l st January 1 860 .

J . Kerakoose, Esq .

W . H . Woodhouse , Esq .

,Ceylon .

T . A . Phillips,Esq . C . S .

The Meeting then adj ourned .

oer —M A R . 1 859-60 ] P rocéédingsl

Proceedings of a M eeting.

of the C ommittee held at the G ardens on

Friday ,J anuary 20 th, 1 860 , at half-p ast 6 A . M .

PRE S E N T ,

Colonel R eid,C . B . C . Dale , Esq .

Colonel McC al ly. Colonel S imp son .

J . D . S im, Esq . R ev . J . R . Macfarlane , and

Colonel Colbeck, H oward B . Montgomery, Esq . ,

R . Hunter,Esq . S ecretary .

Owing to the absence of the Pr esident, Colonel R eid is elected

Chairman Of the day .

The proceedings of the last Meeting are read and approved .

The Secretary intimates that,ow ing to the return to Europe of

the Hon . Walter Ellio t, Esq . ,the Offi ce of President of the C om

mittee, must be filled up by a n ew nomination . The vacancy thus

occasioned , in the General C ommittee , absorbs one of themembers

who became supernumerary in consequence of the alterations approved by the A nnual Meeting Of 1 859. (Vide Proceedings dated

22nd July,1 859.

C olonel McC al ly is unanimously elected C hairman of the General Committee .

R eso lved, that the S ecretary be instructed to take an early op

portun ity of conveying to the Hon . Walter -Elliot, Esq . , the ex

pression Of the sincere regret felt by the Committee at his depar

ture from among them,and further

, of acknowledging his warm

interest in,and valuable contributions to

,the G ardens during the

period of his connexion w ith them as a member Of the Society.

The vacancy upon the General Committe e , in consequence of the

return to Europe Of A . J . A rbuthnot, Esq ., absorbs one other

member supernumerary as before explained

The C ommittee proceed to consider the arrangements relative

to the A nnual Competitive Exhibition of Fruits,Flowers , and Veo

getables which was at their last meeting arranged to be held on

Tuesday 2 l st proximo . It has been found on enquiry that the

arrangements Of the Supreme C ourt and C ouncil would probably

prevent the attendance of many Members upon that day . T he

VO L . x x . 0 . s . VOL . V I I . N . s.

380 Proceedings. [NO . 1 0, N E W S E RIE S .

following (A sh Wednesday) being unsuitable, it is finally deter-amined by the C ommittee that T hursday, February 23rd, 1 860, shallbe substituted for the day previously appointed .

The Secretary is directed to circulate , w ithout delay, among theMembers of the Society, a subscription list, to defray the expensesof this Exhibition, themanagement of which i s placed under his

con trol .A . R E ID, C hairman ofB .

F .

H . MONT G OME RY, S ecretary .

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3 86 INDE X.

O rnithology, 60.

Parvatipore and Jeypore, description of the country between, 264.

Photographic delineation of Microscopic objects, on the, 10 .

Ph ~ tographic S ociety, Proceedings of, 1 74 , 355 .

Proceedings of Scientifi c S ocieties , 166, 3 55 .

R ed colouring matter of the S ea round Bombay on the, 1 53 .

Roman C haracter, on the substitution of for Indian—Mr. Bayley on theReport of Sub-C ommittee on

, 235 .

Mr . W . Ell iot’sMemorandumon the same subject, 246 .

Scientifi c Intelligence, 1 58 , 328 .

Sorgho, on the cultivation of, 298 .

Syrian and Jew ish C opper Plates on, 30.

T amil C onsonan trmon the power of, 1 .

Thayet Myo, on the Geology of, 55 .

T innevelly, C airns at, 27.

T ongariro—New Zealand, ascent of, 1 38 .

Volcanic Formations in A ucklandNew Zealand, 1 36.

Weights and Measures, Indian, 1 6.

INDEX T O NA MES IN VOL . V.

A nderson, Mr. , A ccount of Hail Storms by, 337 .

Balfour,E . G . Esq . ,

M . D . , Index to Geological S ubjects in the Madras

Journal ofLiterature and Science, 1 58 .

Bayley, W . H . Esq. ,

on the Report of the Sub-C ommittee on writingOriental w ords in Roman C haracters, 235 .

Beddome,Lieut . R . H . , A lterations in the Paper on the Genus Impa

tiens , 59.

Breeks,J. W. Esq . , on IndianWeights and Measures, 27

C aster, H . J . Esq . , on the red colouring matter of the Sea round Bombay

,1 53 .

C ul len, GeneralW., on H ail Storms in C ochin and Travancore, 328 .

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Dyson, Mr., A ccount of the A scent of T ongariro New Zealand, 1 38 .

E ll iot,Walter, Esq ., Memorandum on Mr . Bayley ’s objection to the Sub

C ommittee’s Report on substituting Roman for Indian

C haracters, 246 .

Notes onM . Perrottet’s culture on Sorgho and Imphi , 305 .

Foord, C aptain E . A . , description of the buildings in G inji Fort, 348 .

Foulkes, R ev . E , on the power of the T amil C onsonant p) , 1 .

Hawkes, Lieut . H . P . , Notes on various subjects, 60 .

Hochstetter,Dr on the Geology of A ucklandNew Zealand, 1 18 .

Kearn s, Rev . J. T . , on the C airns of T innevelly , 27.

King , H . , M . B . B . A . , on C oin and C urrency in ancient and moderntimes, 62.

Knox ,W . Esq . , on an extraordinary rise in the Kistnah , 1 64 .

Knox, T . Esq., on Earthquakes in Southern India, 340.

Kookel Kel oo Nair, on the Syrian and Jew ish C opper Plates of Malabar

, 30.

McKenn ie, C apt . J on the effect of the Groynes on the MadrasBeach , 342 .

Mitchell, Lieut. J on the Photographi c delineation of Microscopic oh

jects, 1 0 .

Perrottet , M . , on the culture of Sorgho and Imphi, 298 .

P layfa ir, C apt , on an an cien t H ebrew Inscription found at’

A den , 1 67.

3 88 mi n .

Rankin , J. Esq . , on the Geology of T hayet Myo , 55 .

Robinson, T . D . E sq. ,on E arthquakesiin iNorth A rcot, 340 .

Smith, Professor Piazzi, on a method of cooling the air of rooms in T ree

pical C limates, 309.

Stewart, C apt. J. H . M . , on T imber m“the neighbourhood of G udda

pah, 295 .

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Vertue, Lieut . J Description of the C ountry‘between Jeypore and

Parvatipore, 264 .

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