'U»v Ihh'.i *Kn;14 be jwrneH t« tit'- hbr?t> on ex
btfo?£ the o-stc It'? iLwp-d I'i'.nv*, Cfihnp fthscf- fine p*
fc: ! sb:>t) Hu Srs t»i!t btdmj'cO.

sms*

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%

K A J AS I H AN,

OR THE

AL AND WESTERN RAJPOOT STATES

OF

INDIA.

LIEUTENANT-COLONEL JAMES TOD,

.ate Political Agent to the Western. RajpootStates, r

THIRD REPRINT,

WITH MEMOIR AND A MAP.

VOL. II.

• . -,'y - MADRAS : v

HIGGINBOTHAM AND CO.

' I3n Spi'ointmciU in EttHiaio Jilts -Kopl jiHrjTjtussifjc prince of ©Hal
a»H la % IHaSras tHni&crsttg.

1880

TO

HIS MOST GRACIOUS ^STY

WILLIAM THE FOURTH.

+

SIRE,

Your Majesty lias graciously sanctioned the
nesentation of the Second Volume of the Annals of
H-ajpootana to the Public under the auspices of Your
Majesty’s name.

In completing this work, it has been my endeavour to
Iraw a faithful picture of States, the ruling principle of
vhich is the paternity of the Sovereign. That this patri-
archal form is the best suited to the genius of the people,
nay be presumed from its durability, which war, famine^..
Jid anarchy have failed to destroy. The throne has always
>een the watch-word and rallying-point of the Rajpoots,
lly prayer is, that it may continue so, and that neither the
ove of conquest, nor false views of policy, may tempt us to
ubvert the independence of these States, some of which
lave braved the storms of more than ten centuries.

' It will not, I trust, be deemed presumptuous in the
•Annalist of these gallant and long-oppressed races thus to
olicit for them a full measure of Your Majesty’s gracious
Jatronage ; in return for which, the Rajpoots, maldng Your
Majesty’s enemies their own, would glory in assuming the
mffron robe,’ emblematic of death or victory, under the
nner of that chivalry of which Your Majesty is the head.

< That Your Majesty’s throne may ever be surrounded by
hiefs w v ho will act up to the principles of fealty maintained
t all hazards by the Rajpoot, is the heartfelt aspiration of,

/ SIRE,

Your Majesty’s

Devoted subject and servant,

JAMES TOD.

INTRODUCTION.

In placing before tbe Public the concluding volume of' th
Annals of Rajpootana, I have fulfilled what I considere
to be a sacred obligation to the races amongst whom I havi
passed the better portion of my life ; and although no ma!
can more highly appreciate public approbation, I am fa,
less eager to court that approbation, than to awaken >t
sympathy for tile objects of my work, the interesting peoplv
of Rajpootana.

‘ I need add nothing to what was urged in the Intro dud
tion to the First Volume on the subject of Indian History '
and trust that, however slight the analogy between +
chronicles of the Hindus and those of Europe, as historic
works, they will serve to banish the reproach, which In
bias so long laboured under, of possessing no records of pa.
events : my only fear now is, that they may be though
redundant. j

I think I may confidently affirm, that whoever, withoi -
b eing alarmed at their bulk, has the patience attentively tj
p erase these Annals, cannot fail to become well acquaintef
y dtk all the peculiar features of Hindu Society, and will l|
e, nabled to trace the foundation and progress of each stai r
fi r Rajpootana, as well as to form a just notion of tt<]
c baracter of a people, upon whom, at a future period, oiy
e xistence in India may depend. ’ j i

* ^

Whatever novelty the enquirer into the origin of natioi [
lay find in these pages, I am ambitious to claim for thei f
higher title than a mass of mere archaeological data, Li
? Jee humanity under every aspect, and to observe the inflifif
£ ifnce of different creeds upon man in his social capaeit. J

A

CONTENTS.

— Mcor Klmn's conduct causes n division, — His "flight from
0 D^ursued by the Joipoor commander. — Battle. — Jeipoor force
fttid the city invested.— Dismay of the Raja.— Breaks up the
f c^ipoor.— Bays £200,000 for a safo passage to Jeipoor.— The
/ jodpoor intercepted by the Rahtores, and wrested from the <

- /fas.—Meer Khan formally accepts service rvitli Baja Maun, and

j bolds^' j 0 dpoor with the four Baktoro chiefs

' p® w CHAPTER XV.

r " Khan’s reception at Jodpoor.— Engages to extirpate Sowad’s faction,
-Interchanges turbaus with the Baja.— The Khan repairs to Nngore.—
iterview with Sowad. — Swears fco support tho Pretender. — Massacre of
Rajpoot chiefs. — Pretender flies.— The Khan plunders Nngore.—
ieives £100,000 fiom Baja Maun— Jeipoor ovor-run,— Bikandr
tacked. — Meer Khan obtains tho ascendancy in Marwar.— Garrisons
fagoro with his Pat'hnns. — Partitions lands amongst his chiefs. —
’ommnnds the salt lakes of Nowak and Sambhnr.— Tho minister Indu-
aj and high priest Deonat’h assassinated.— Baja Mann’s reason affect-
d. — His seclusion. — Abdication in favour of his sou Ohuttur Sing. —
Who falls tho victim of illicit pursuits.— Madness of. Kajn Maun
ncreased. — Its causes. — Suspicions of the Baja having sacrificed Indur-
aj. — The oligarchy, headed by Salim Sing of Pukurn, son of Sowae,
assumes the charge of the government.— Epocn of British universal
inpremacy. — Treaty with Marwar framed during tho regency of Ckuttur
Sing. — The oligarchy, on his death, offer the gadi of Marwar to tho house )
jf Edur. — Rejected. — Reasons. — Raja Maun entreated to resume the
eius of power. — Evidence that his madness was feigned. — Tho Raja
dissatisfied with certain stipulations of the treaty. — A British officer sent
to Jodpoor. — Akin Ghund chief of the civil administration. — Salim Sing
of, Pokurn chief minister. — Opposition led by Fntteh Raj. — British
troops offered to be placed at the Raja’s disposal. — Offer* rejected. —
Reasons. — British agent returns to Ajmer. — Permanent agent appointed
to the court of Raja Maun. — Arrives at Jodpoor. — Condition of the
'capital. — Interviews with the Raja. — Objects to be attained described. —
Agent leaves Jodpoor. — General sequestrations of the fiefs. — Raja Maun
apparently relapses into his old apathy. — His deep dissimulation.—
Circumvents and seizes the faction. — Their wealth sequestrated. — Their
ignominious death' — Immense resources derived from sequestrations.— L
Raja Mann’s thirst for blood. — Fails to entrap the chiefs.— The Neeirmj
chief attacked. — His gallant defence. — Slain. — The Pokurn chief

escapes. — Futteh Raj becomes minister. — Raja Maun’s speech to him.

Neemaj attacked. — Surrender. — Baja Maun’s infamous violation of ins
pledge. — Noble conduct of the mercenary* commander. — Voluntary exile
^lL fc k e ^kole aristocracy of Marwar.— Received by the neighbouring
“mces. — Maun’s gross ingratitude to Auar Sing.— The exiled chiefs
Jy to the British Government, which refuses to mediate.— Raja Maun
j fs the opportunity of fixing the constitution of Marwar.— Reflections.

CHAPTER XVI.

Extent and population oE Marwar.— Classification of inhabitants.— Jits.—

1 Rajpoots, sacerdotal, commercial, and servile tribes. — Soil. — Amicul-
tural products.— Natural productions.— Salt lakes.— Marble and lime-
. ® fcone quarries.— Tin, lead, and iron mines.— Alum.— Manufactures —
Commercial marts.— Transit trade.— Palli, the emporium of Western
India. Mercantile classes. — Kbartias and Oswals. — Kntdrs, or cara-
e' vans— Imports and exports enumerated.— Chamns ,' the guardians of
lcfe ™^ ara ^ n8> ~ Co ? , “ercmldecline.— Causes — Opium monopoly.— Fairs
7 f MoondhwaandBalotra. — Administration of justice.-Panfshments -
1 ot ujaBeeyybing.s clemency to prisoners, who are maintained by private
6 ^^irSf'r 63 ? n e °hpses, births, and accession of princes-^
collects ° r \ deals: fire > "water, burning oil.-Punchaets.-Fiscalrevenuijf

n«rl in I ' ^

CONTENTS.

XVU

and regulations.' — Buitae, or corn-rent . — Shenahs and Kitntoarris . —
Taxes. — Anga, or capitation-tax. — Gaswali, or pasturage. — Keivdii, or
door-tax ; how originated. — Bayer, or imposts ; their amount. — l)han-
nis, or collectors. — Revenues from the salt-lakes. — Tanclas, or caiavans
engaged in this trade. — Aggregate revenues. — Military resources. — ’
Mercenaiies. — Feudal quotas. — Schedule of feoffs. — Qualification of a
cavalier. 142

ANNALS ON BIKANER.

CHAPTER I.

Origin of the state of Bikaner. — Beeka, the founder. — Condition of the
aboriginal Jits or Getes. — The number and extensive diffusion of this
Scythic race, still a majority of the peasantry in Western Bajpootana,
and perhaps in Northern India. — Their pursuits pastoral, their govern-
ment patriarchal, their religion of a mixed kind.— List of the J it can-
tons of Bikaudr at the inuption of Beeka. — Causes ot the success of
Beeka. — Voluntary surrender of the supremacy of the Jit elders to
Beeka. — Conditions. — Characteristic of the Getic people throughout
India. — Proofs. — Invasion of the Johyas by Beeka and his Jit sub-
jects. — Account of the Johyas. — Conquered by Beeka. — He wrests
Bhagore from the Bhattis, and founds Bikandr, the capital, A.D. 1489. —

His uncle Kandul makes conquests to the north. — Death ol Beeka. — His
son Noonkurn succeeds. — Makes -conquests from the Bhattis. — His son
Jaet succeeds. — Enlarges the power of Bikaner. — Rad Sing succeeds. —

The Jits of Bikaudr lose their liberties. — The state rises to importance. —

Rue Sing’s connexion with Akbdr. — His honours and power. — The Joh-
yas revolt and are exterminated. — Traditions of Alexander the Great
amongst the ruins of the Johyas. — Examined. — The Pooniah Jits van-
quished by Ram Sing, the Raja’s brother. — Their subjection imperfect. —

Rad Sing’s daughter weds prince Selim, afterwards Jehangir. — Rad Sing '

, succeeded by his son Kurrun. — The three eldest sons of Kurrun fall in
1 the imperial service. — Andp Sing, the youngest, succeeds. — Quells a re-
bellion in Cabul. — His death uncertain. — Suroop Sing succeeds. — He is
killed. — Sujaun Sing, Zoorawur Sing, Guj Sing, and Raj Sing succeed.

— The latter poisoned by his brother by another mother, who usurps the
throne, though opposed by the chiefs. — He murders the rightful heir,

, his nephew. — Civil war. — Muster-roll of the chiefs. — The usurper
i attacks .Jodpoor. — Present state of Bikandr. — Account of Beedavati... 156

' ' CHAPTER II.

Actual condition and capabilities of Bikaner. — Causes of its deteriora-
tion. — Extent. — Population. — Jits. — Saraswati Brahmins, — Charuns. —
Mallis and Naes. — Chooras and Thaories. — Rajpoots. — Face of the
country. — Grain and vegetable productions. — Implements of hus-
bandry. — Water. — Salt lakes. — Local physiognomy. — Mineral produc-
tions. — Unctuous clay. — Animal productions, — Commerce and manu-
factures. — Fairs. — Government and revenues. — The fisc. — Dhooah, or
, hearth-tax. — Anga, or capitation-tax. — Sayer, or imposts. — Pusaeti, or
plough-tax. — Malbah, or ancient land-tax. — Extraordinary and irregular

resources. — Feudal levies. — Household troops 173

CHAPTER' III.

Blmtnair, its origin and denomination. — Historical celebrity of tbe Jits
of Bliutnair, — Emigration of Bdrsf. — Succeeded by Bhiroo. — Embraces
, Islatnism. — Rao Duleech. — Hoseiu Khan, Hosem Mahomed, Emam
> Mabmood, and Buhader Khan. — Zabta Khan, the present ruler. — Con-
dition of the country. — Changes in its physical aspect. — Ruins of
'ancient buildings. — Promising 'scene for archaeological inquiries . — ■/
Zoological and botanical curiosities. — List of the ancient towns. — Relij^j

of the arrowhead character found in the desert..., 186

r [Yon. II.] ~ y

e <L

v

C'O-N'T B N'T S.

xvin

annals op jbssolmeb.

CHAPTER L

, . .. , nunc — Tho Rajpoots of JcssulmGr

Jessulmcr. — The derivfttwn ^ ^ • d od lVom Bharat, king of
called Bhattus, ai \°L ScItV.a ^Restricted bounds ot India of modern
Bharntvershn, or Indo-Seytl • a people— First seats of the

invention. — The ancient Huidyis in Ds * iU .i c a.— Their International

Yadus in India, I ram. Mai , hn . , ^ d F lcadcr 0 f the Yadus.— Dm-
wars.-Heri.kmg o Mat hu ȣ n&BOi [ B flfiba and Khlru.-NAba
persion ot bis familj.-His ie g o{ Maroost’liali, conjectured to bo

driven from Divarica, becomes pin nnd , Tud . b hAu, the eons of

the Maru, or Merve of Lai . inmma dynasty, and Jild-blmn-

Hhira.— The former t he°p5ni&b ’— PritliibAhu succeeds to Naha

becomes prince of Bekora in t “J rft Ro j tt Guj founds Gujni.—
in MAroo. — His son Bahu. 11 P Kborasan, who are repulsed. — Raja

Attacked by the kings oE ^’ r marriage —Second invasion from Ivhora-

Guj attacks Cashmere.— His mar g°- JA ntiocbus —Oracle predicts
sail. — The Syrian- king coniectuicd to bo a Salbabau arrives

the loss of Gujni^Gu] S. Y. 72.-Conquers the

‘in the PunjAb.-Founds , the «ty f ^ Tuar 0 f E

in'tbe'' P unjAb.' 1 — Founds of Dehli.-Ro-conquers

Punjab.— Marries the daughtei o^P numel . ous dilspring.-Tbcir con-
Guiui.— Is succeeded by Baiun . , , tr j bc of'Eusofzye, that the

quests.— Conjecture regarding ^ ^ Jews.— Balund resides at Salba-
Afgbaus are Yddus, H°* Mandson Ohakito, who becomes a convert --
haua.— Assigns Ga 3“l t ?'?'^ n ^hc CUnkito Moguls descended from
“* "* v* nnd IcillGT OI i-VUOril * —.O.Vinnrrnc t.L n nntirAnr#

Afghans are xaaus, ^ nf ' grandson Cbakito, who becomes a convert
haua.— Assigns Gujui to ™san— The Cbakito Moguls descended from
to Islam and king of KhOT BUCCee dB.— Changes the patrony-

him.— Balund dies.— His b . __s‘ u cceeded by Mongul Rao— His

inic of Yadu, or Jadoo, g cr0 * s3 the Garab and take possession of
brother MuBOor ^ a Qn of the sons of Mungul Rao.— They lose

the Lakln jungle. U o . offspring styled Abhonas and Juts. —

vn Tllf! flS Kai p 00 b • /lionnTrornr^' — TVfnnnTil TJnn nvmtrnn

brother Musoor nao -^— - q£ the son8 of Mungul Rao.-Tboy lose
the Lakhi jungle. “_ Tlieir offspring styled Abhonas and Juts. —
their rank as Baipoc ^ • q£ Tas ii es discovered.— Mungul Rao arrives
Tribe of J.a,K.— -tue ^ tribes. — His son, Majum Rao, marries a
in the -Indian des ■ __. B gou Aehur.— Alliance with the Deora of
princess of AmerK . thanote laid.— Kelmr succeeds.— Thanote
J haler e. — The h °Baraho°tribe. — Thanote completed S. 7871 — Peaeo with

the BarahL.-^Kefleotions

the CHAPTER II.

„ inmnnrarv of the Caliph AlAValid.— His offspring become

RaoHehur. cotempor ry tbe firsfc who extended bis conquests to tho
’ eihna. Hen » enr.ceeds. — He assails the Barahn's

191

ELU JAcu u»)

heads o^ db -^f^ a ^o U sucoeeds.-He assails the Baraka's and
plains.— He is sla> - b the prince of Mooltau, who is defeated.—

Langas.— Tunno to mv J bter ^ the Boota ohief.— His progeny —

Rao Tunno espouses the ds gh Brecfcs the castle of Beefnote’-.

Tu»»« «* vSS35*w% iw.-a.j-fl. fc b.„CS,7

jilts unable OI npp-iri,

■l-unuu u ; — ^q.iceTede^hy ^Beeji Rae.— He assails the Bavaha tribe.
Tunno dies.— Succeed t0 J a ttack tbe Bhatti prmce.— ' Treacher-

who conspire with p nd ° aI1 d his kindred.— Deoraj saved by a Brah
0«« put to tho

dltoipl. ho bpoomo^-Titt.

, Jogi, whoso discipie u«

prince m — o mnssaci'es the Langas, who

from Rao to Rawul. He 1 , e Langa. tribe. — Deoraj counn?° •

his supremacy.— Account^^^ Rajpoots.— Avenges an insult the

Lodorva, capital of t . patriotic devotion. — Assaults Dhiir

-■< E“““ b - sfo ° f *“““

CONTENTS.

XIX

Ootemporaries of Mahmoud of Gujni. — Captures a caravan of horses. —

Tho Pahoo Bhattis conquer Poogul from the Jobyas. — Doosaj, son
of Bacbern, attacks the Kheeehies. — Proceeds with his three brothers to
land of Khdr, where they espouse the Gokilote chief’s daughters. —
Important synchronisms. — Bachera dies. — Doosaj succeeds. — Attacked
by the Soda prince Hnmir, 4n whose reign the Caggar ceased to flow
through the desert. — Traditional couplet. — Sons of Doosaj. — The

• youngest, Lanja Beeji Rae, marries the daughter of Sidraj Solnnki, king
of Auhnlwarra.— The other sons of Doosfij, Jesul, and Beeji Rae. — Bhoj°
deo, son of Lanja Beeji Rae, becomes lord of Lodorva on the death of
Doosaj. — Jesul conspires against his nephew Bliojdeo. — Solicits aid
from the Sultan of Ghor, whom he joins at Arore. — Swears allegiance to
tho Sultan. — Obtains his aid to dispossess Bhojdeo. — Lodorva attacked
and plundered. — Bhojdeo slain. — Jesul becomes Rawul of tbeBhattis. —
Abandons Lodorva as too exposed. — Discovers a site for a new
capital. — Prophetic inscription on the Brimsir-eoond, or fountain. —

Founds Jessultner, — Jesul dies, and is succeeded by Salbahau II 208

CHAPTER III.

Preliminary observations. — The early history of the Bhattis nob devoid of
interest. — Traces of their ancient manners and religion. — The chronicle
resumed, — Jesul survives the change of capital twelve years. — The heir
Kailun banished. — Salbahnn, his younger brother, succeeds. — Expedi-
tion against the Catti or Cat’hi. — Their supposed origin. — Application
from the Yndu prince of Badrinat’h for a prince to fill the vacant
gadi — During Snlbnhan’s absence, his son Becjil usurps the gadi . —
Balbahan retires to Khadal, and falls in battle against the Baloches. —
Beejil commits suicide. — Kailun recalled and placed on tho gadi — His
issue form clans. — KhizznrKhan Baloch again invndes Kbadai.— Kailun
attacks him, and avenges his father’s death. — Death of Kailun. — Suc-
ceeded by Chachik Deo.' — He expels the Ohunna Rajpoots. — Defeats the
Sodas of Amerkote.—The Eahtores lately arrived in the desert become
troublesome. — Important synchronisms. — Death of Chachik. — Ho is
succeeded by his grandson Kurrun, to the prejudice of the elder, Jaetsi,
who leaves Jessulmdr. — Redresses the .wrongs of a Baraha Bajpoot. —
Kurrun dies. — Succeeded by Lakhnr Sdn. — His imbecile character. —
Replaced by liis son Poonpal, who is dethroned and banished. — His
grandson, Ra'ning-deo, establishes himself at Mnrote and Poogul. — On
the deposal of Poonpal, Jaetsi is recalled and placed on the gadi. — He
affords -a refuge to the Purihar prince of Mundore, when attacked by
AJla-o-dfn. — The sons of Jaetsi carry off the imperial tribute of Tat’ha
and Mooltan. — The king' determines to invade Jessnlmdr. — Jaetsi and
his sons prepare for tho storm. — Jessulm6r invested. — First assault
repulsod. — Tho Bhattis keep an array in the field. — Rawul > Jaetsi
dies.— Tho siege continues. — Singular friendship between his son
Rufctun and one of the besieging generals. — Moolraj succeeds. — General
Assault. — Again defeated. — Garrison reduced to great extremity. — Coun-
cil of war. — Determination to perform the Balia. — Generous conduct of
the -Mahomedan friend of Ruttun to his sons. — Final assault. — Rawul
Moolraj and Ruttuu and their chief kin fall in battle. — Jessnlmdr taken,

m dismantled, and abandoned 221

CHAPTER IV.

The Eahtores of Meliwo settle amidst the ruins of JeSsulmdr. — Driven out
by the Bhatti chieftain Doodoo, who is elected Rawul.— He carries off
the stud of Feeroz Shah. — Second 6torm and salca of Jessnlmdr. — Doodoo
slain.— Mogul invasion of India.— Tho Bhatti princes obtain their
liberty. — Rawul Gursi re-establisbes Jcssulmdr. — Kehur, son of Deoraj.
Disclosure of his destiny by a prodigy. — Is adopted by the wife of Rawul,.
Gursi, who is assassinated by the tribe of Jesur. — Keliur proclaimed^ .
Beomlade becomes sail. — The succession entailed on the sous of Harm*.

[Von. H.] - c h Y

XX

CONTENTS,

Matrimonial overture to Jaitft from Mdwrtr.-Bnsngemenl broken off.

The brothers slain.-Penitential act of Rao Hanjng.-Offsriu g ^
Kehur.— Soma the elder departs with his bus sic and settles j.tbu aup-
Sons of Rao Railing become Mooslems to avenge their fat her si death, .
Consequent forfeiture of their inheritance.— They mix with the Abhoria
Bhattis.— Kailun, the third son of Kehur, settles in the forfeited liuids.

Drives the Dahyas from Kbddfil — Kailun erects the fortress of Ken Ola
on the Behah or Gara.— Assailed by the Johyns and Langas under
Ameer Khan Korai, who is defeated. — Subdues 'the Ghninis and
Mohils. — Extends his authority to tho Pnnjnud. — Rao Kailun marries
into the Samma family.— Account of the Samma race.— He seizes on the
Satnma dominions. — Makes the river Indus his boundary. Kailun
dies.— Succeeded by Ohachik.— Makes Marote his head •quarters.

League headed by tlie chief of Mooltan against Chachik, who invades
that territory, and returns with a rich booty to Marote. — A. second
victory. — Leaves a garrison in the Punjab. — Defeats Mainal, chief of tho
Doondis.— Asini, or Aswini-Kote. — Its supposed position. — Anecdote. —

Feud with Satilmer. — Its consequences. — Alliance with AybntKlian. —

Rao Chachik invades Peeteebungn. — The Khoknrs or Ghikers. des-
cribed. — The Langas drive his garrison from Dhooniapoor. — Rao Chachik
falls sick. — Challenges the prince of Mooltan, — Reaches Dhooniapoor.—

Rites preparatory to the combat. — Worship of tho sword. — Chachik is
slain with all his bands, — Koombho, hitherto insane, avenges his father’s
feud. — Birsil re-establishes Dhooniapoor. — Repairs to Kerot'C. — Assailed •
by the Langas and Baloches. — Defeats them. — Chronicle of dessulmer
resumed.— llawnl Borsi. meets Rao Birsil on his return from liis expedi- .
tion in tho Punjab.— Conquest of Mooltan by Baber. — Probable conver-
sion of tlie Bhattis of the Punjab. — Rawul Borsi, Jnit, Noonkurn,
Bheera, Munohur-das, and Subbul Sing, six generations 229

CHAPTER V.

Jessnlmer becomes a fief of the empire. — Changes in the succession. —
Subbul Sing serves with tbeBhatti contingent. — His services obtain him
the gadi of J essnlmer. — Boundaries of Jessulmdr at the period of Baber’B
invasion. — Subbul succeeded by his son, Umra Siug, who leads the W;a-
dour into the. Baloch territory. — Crowned on the field of victory. —
Demands a relief from his subjects to portion his daughter, — Puts a chief
to death who refuses— Revolt of the Chun 11 a Rajpoots.— Tbo BUatti '
chiefs retaliate the inroads of the Rahtores of Bikaner. — Origin of fron-
tier-feuds. — Bhattis gain a victory. — The princes of Jessulmdr and
Bikandr are involved in the feuds of their vassals.— Raja Anop Sing
calls on all his chiefs to revenge the disgrace. — Invasion of Jessulmdr —
The invaders defeated.— The Rawul recovers Poognh— Makes Barmair
tributary.— Umra dies. —Succeeded by J eswunt.— The chronicle closes —
Decline of Jessulmdr.— Poogul.— Barmair.— Filodi wrested from her ’bv
the Rahtores,— Importance of these transactions to the British Govern-
ment. Khadal to the G&rah seized by the Ddodpotras.-Akhi Siimsuc-
ceeds.-His uncle, Tej Sing, usurps the government.-The usurper
assassinated during the ceremony of Ms,— Akbi n j, pel

Reigns forty yearst-Bahwul Khan S ei Ze80 nS Z v
Suroop Sing -Mehta made minister.-His hatred of
Conspiracy against him by the heir apparent Red a' 6 ® la ^ x n °bjes.; —
confinement of the Rawul. — The prince prod-dmed ^ ® e P osa l and
the gadi — Moolraj emancipated 'by a Rainnnfvd ' „ Rinses to occupy ,
gadi. — Tbe prince Rad Sing receives oE

Retires to Jodpoor-Ontlawry of tb 0 J
^equestrated, and castles destroyed. -Afier twelve years, Sstoredto

•^eir lands -Kni , Sing decapitates a merchant.-Retnrnsto Jessnlmdr
Sen^ to the fortress of Dewoh. — Salim .

Sing becomes minister .-

chanb^tcr. Falls into the hands of his enemies, but is saved by

\

CONTENTS.

XXL

magnanimity of Zoovavrur Sing. — Plans his destruction, through liis own
brother’s wife.— Zoorawiu- is poisoned. — The Mehta then assassinates
her and her husband. — Eires the castles of Dewob. — Rae Sing burnt to
death. — Murder of his sons. — The minister proclaims Gnj Sing. — Younger
sons of Moolroj fly to Bikandr. — The longest reigns in the Rajpoot annals
are during ministerial usurpation. — Retrospective view ol the Bhatti
history. — Reflections 287

CHAPTER Yl.

Rawful Moolraj enters into treaty with the English. — The Raja dies. — His
grandson, Guj Sing, proclaimed. — He becomes a mere puppet in the
minister’s hands. — Third article of the treaty. — Inequality of the
alliance. — Itsimportanceto Jessulmer. — Consequences tobe apprehended
by the British Government. — Dangers attending the enlarging the circle
of our political connexions. — Importance of Jessulmdr in the event of
Russian invasion. — British occupation of the valley of the Indus con-
sidered. — Salim Sing’s administration resumed. — His rapacity and
tyranny increase. — Wishes his office to be hereditary. — Report of the
British agent to his Government. — Palliwals self-exiled. — Bankers’ fami-
lies kept as hostages.” — Revenues arising from confiscation. — Wealth of
the minister. — Border-fend detailed to exemplify the interference of the
paramount power. — The Maldotes of Baroo. — Their history. — Nearly
exterminated by the Rahtores of Bikaner. — Stimulated by the minister
Salim Sing. — Cause of this treachery. — He calls for British interfer-
ence. — Granted. — Result. — Rawul Guj Sing arrives at Ordipoor. —
Marries the liana’s daughter. — Influence of this lady 246

CHAPTER YII.

Geographical position of Jessulmer. — Its superficial area. — List of its
chief towns. — Population. — Jessulmer chiefly desert. — Muggro, a rooky
ridge, traced from Hutch. — Sirrs, or salt-marshes. — Kanoad Sirr. — Soil.

— Productions. — Husbandry. — Manufactures. — Commerce. — Kuttdrs , or
caravans. — Articles of trade. — Revenues. — Land and transit taxes. —
Dhanni, or Collector. — Amount of land-tax exacted from the Culti-
vator. — Dhooa, or hearth-tax. — T’halt, or tax on food. — Dind, or forced
contribution. — Citizens refuse to pay. — Enormous wealth accumulated
by the minis ter by extortion. — Establishments. — Expenditure. — Tribes.

■ — Bhatlis . — Their moral estimation. — Personal appearance and dress.' —
Their predilection for opium and tobacco. — Palliivals, their history. —
Numbers, wealth, employment. — Curious rite or worship. — Palli
coins. — Pokurna Brahmins. — Title. — Numbers. — Singular typical wor-
ship. — Race of Jut. — Castle of Jessulmer 263

•SKETCH OP THE INDIAN DESERT.

CHAPTER L

General aspect. — Boundaries and divisions of the desert. — Probable etymo-
logy of the Greek oasis . — Absorption of the Caggar river. — The Looni,

.or salt-river. — The Runn, or Riu. — Distinction of t’hul and rooe . — T’Jml
of the Looni. — Jhalore. — Sewanchl, — Macholah andMorseen. — Beenmal
and Sanchore. — Bhadrajoon. — Mehwo. — Bhalotra and Tilwarra. — Eeudo-
vafcl. — Gogadeo-ea-t’hul. — T’hul of Tirrnroe. — T’hul of Khawur. — Malli-
natfh-ca-t’hu),orBarmair. — Kherdur. — JunahChotun. — Nuggur Goorah. 263

CHAPTER II.

(

Chohau Raj. — Antiquity and nobility of the Chohans of the desert.—
Dimension and populatiou of the Raj. — Nuggur. — Bankasirr. — Theraud.

— Eace of the Chohau Raj. — Water. — Productions. — Inhabitants.

Kolls and Bhlls. — Pithils. — T’huls of Dbal and Omursoonira. — Depth of/
wells. — Anecdote. — City of Aroro, the ancient capital of Siude,' — Dynas-

xxu

CONTENTS.

of t v>e Soda, the Soomurn, and the Samroa princes. Their an i-
u5fcv —Inferred to be the opponents of Alexander the Great, and e-
nander— Lieutenant of Walid takes Aroro.— Omurkote, its hi story.

Tribes of Shade and the desert.— Diseases.— Narooa, or Guinea-Worm-
Productions, animal and vegetable, of the desert.— Daodpotra. Itine- ^

annals of amber, or dhoondar.

CHAPTER I.

Designations given by Europeans to the principalities of Rajpootnua—
Dhoondar known by the name of its capitals, Amber or Jeipoor. Ihe
country of the Cutchwalias an aggregate of the conquests by the rnco sc
called. — Etymology of ‘ Dhoondar.’ — Origin oE the Cutchwalias. — Ra]f
Nal founds Nurwar. — Dhola Rad expelled, and founds Dhoondar,-—
Romantic legend of Dhola Rae. — His treachery to his benefactor* th<
Meern lord of Khogong, — Marries a daughter of a Birgoojur chief, ana
becomes his heir. — Augments bis territories, and transfers his govern-
ment to Ramgurb. — Marries a daughter of the prince of Ajmer. — Is
killed in battle with the Meenas. — His son Kankul conquers Dhoondar.

— Maidul Rae conquers Ambdr, and other places; — Conquests of Hoon-
deo. — OfKoontul. — Accession of Pujoon. — Reflections on the aboriginal
tribes at this period. — The Meena race. — Pujoon marries the sister of
Pirthi Raj of De'nli. — His military prowess. — Is killed at the rape of the
princess of Ganonj. — Males! succeeds. — His successors. — Pirthi Raj
creates the lava-katris or twelve great; fiefs of Ambdr — He is assassi-
nated. — Baharmull. — The first to wait on the Mahomedan power. — Bbng-
wandas the first Rajpoot to give a daughter to the imperial house. — His
daughter marries Jehangir, and gives birth to Khoosroo. — Accession of
Maun Sing. — His power, intrigues, and death. — Rno Bbno. — Maba. —
Mirza Raja Jey Sing, brother of Raja Maun, succeeds. — Repairs the dis- .
graces oE his two predecessors, and renders immense services to the
empire, — Is poisoned by his son. — Ram Sing. — Bisben Sing 318

CHAPTER II.

Sowae Jey Sing succeeds. — Joins the party of Azim Shah. — Amber sedues-
,trated— Jey Sing expels the imperial garrison. — His character. — His
astronomical knowledge. — His conduct during the troubles of the
empire.— Anecdote illustrative of the evils of polygamy.— Limits of the
vty of Amb6r at the accession of Jev Sing. — The new city of Jeipoor. —
Conquest of Rajore and Deoti. — Incidents illustrative of Rajpoot cha-
racter. Jey Smg s habit of inebriation. -The virtues of his character -
Contemplates the rites of Asivamedha.— Dispersion of bis valuable
manuscripts. His death.— Some of bis wives and concubines become
satis on ms pyre _

- CHAPTER HI.

r l he Rajpoot league. Aggrandizement of Amber. — Eesuri Sing succeeds

lutestme troubles produced by polygamy— Mabdu Sing— The Jilts—
Their Rajas, Ymlahon of the Ambdr territory by the J fits— Battle

o£ Outchwaha power after the death of

Madbu Smg. Pirthi Smg, — Per tap Sing— Intrigues at bis court The

stratagems of Cooshialiram and'tbe Maeherri chief— D'eath of

the feelban,' paramour of the Pat-rani— Broils with the MabratH

Pertap attains the majority, and gains the victory of Ton« a — w;* j-bT
culties— Exactions of the Mahrattas— Juggut Sing— His f n i,- ci!th ;-

g icable character— Makes Ras-caphoor, liis concubine anpo? f, ,
ier— Project to depose him prevented by a timely sacrifien , lf

elected his successor e> ■'uobun

34

XXV

C 0 N.T’E Si

X.

CHAPTER IV.

Jeipoor'the last of the Rajpoot states to embrace the proffered alliance of
the British. — Procrastination 1 habitual to the Raj noots, as to all Asia-
tics— Motives and considerations which influenced" the Jeipoor court in

declining our alliance.— A treaty concluded.— Death of Jugguc Sin".

Effects of our interference in the intrigues respecting the succession!—
Law of primogeniture. — The evils attending on ignorance of Rajpoot
customs.— Violation of the law of succession in the placing of Mohun

Sing on the gcidi . — Reasons lor departing from the rale of succession.

Conduct of the British authorities.— The title of Mohun Sing disputed

by the legal heii^presumptive.— Dilemma of the Nazir and his faction.

The threatened disorders prevented' by the unexpected pregnancy of one
of the queens of Juggut Sing. — Birth of a posthumous son

34S

SHEKHAWUT FEDERATION.
CHAPTER V.

-Its constitution. — Descent

of tho

i

Origin of the Shekhavati federation.

chiefs from Baloji of Ambdr. — Mokulji. — Miraculous birth of his son.-4
Shdkhji. — Aggrandizes his territory. — Raemul.— Sooja. — Raesil. — His
heroism, — Obtains grants from Akber: — Gets possession of Khuudaila
and-Oodipoor. — His exploits and character. — Ghirdhurji. — la-cut off bjy
assassination. — Dwarcadas. — His extraordinary feat with a lion. — Palls
by Khan Jehan Lodi. — Birsingdeo. — His authority usurped by his son. —
Buhadoon Sing. — Arungzdb directs the demolition of the temple of
' Khundaila. — Buhadoor deserts bis capital.— Shujaun Sing Raesilobe
flies to its defence. — He is slain, the temple razed, and the city garri-
soned. — Kesuri. — Partition of the territory between Kesuri an
Putteb Sing. — Putteh Sing assassinated: — Kesuri resists the regi
authority. — Is deserted in the field and slain. — His son Oodi Sin
taken to Ajmdr. — Khundaila retaken, and restored. to Oodi Sing, wh
is liberated. — He resolves to punish the Munohurpoor chief. — Is baffle
by that chief’s intrigues. — Is besieged by Jey, Sing of Amber. — Khun

'daila becomes tributary to Amber

CHAPTER VI.

Bindrabau Das adheres to Madhu. Sing- in the civil warsmf AmbtSr.— Par-
tition! of lands annulled; — Self-immolation of the Brahmins. — Conse-
quences to Bindrabun, in his contest witblndur Sing; the other chief of
Khundaila. — Civil' war. — Prodigal expiatory sacrifice of- Bindrabun. — '
He abdicates. — Govind Sing is assassinated.— Nursing Das. — Rise
and devastations of the Mahrattas. — Siege of Khundaila. — Terms of
redemption, — Murder of deputies by the Mahrattas. — Indur Sing
perishes in the attempt to avenge them. — Pertap Sing. — Rise of theO
Seekur chief.— Transactions between Pertap and Nursing, his co-
partner. — Pert&p obtains the whole of Khundaila. — Nursing recovers
by stratagem his share of Khundaila. — Domestic broils and fends.—
General assembly of the Sadhani and Raesilote chiefs, to counteract tin
encroachments of Amber.— Treaty between the Sliekhawuts and th .
court of Amber.— Violated by the latter* — The confederacy assault the
town of the Huidea faction.— Nursing refuses tribute to the court, and
Khundaila is sequestrated.— Nursing and Pertap treacherously made ^

captive," and conveyed to Jeipoor. — Khundaila annexed to the fisc ST

CHAPTER VII.

Bagh Sing opposes the faithless court of Amber. — He is joined by the_
celebrated George Thomas. — Desperate .action. — Bagh. Sing placed -
the fortified palace at Khundaila. — His garrison, with his brother,
by Hunwunt Sing, son of Pertap, — Bagh regains the palace. — The

Y

COHTENIS.

SSI

nF v-Unndaila farmed bv Amber to two Brahmins.— They aro expelled
by the feudatory Bahmittias, who resist the court.— They become a
banditti — Sinsiam Sing, cousin to Pertap, their leader— He avoids the
treachery of the court.-His death.-The confederacy ^‘"te inthe league
against Jodpoor.— New treaty with the Ainbdr court.— Liberation of
Pertap aud Nursing.— Grand uuiou of the Shekhawuts. Abh6 Sing
succeeds in Khundaila.-Treachery of the courk-Hunwunt regains
Govindgurh, Khundaila, &c— Restoration of Khoshialiram to the
ministry of Jeipoor.— New investitures granted, to the feudatories ot
Khundaila. — Abhe aud Pertap inducted into their ancestral abodes.
Incident illustrative of the defects of the Rajpoot feudal system.
Khundaila assailed by Luchman Sing, chief of Sepkur. Gallant defence
of Huuwuut. — His death, — Surrender of Khundaila to Luchman Sing.
The co-heirs exiled. — Power and influence of Luchman Siug. — Foils the
designs of the Purohit. — Present attitude of Luchman Sing. — Subor-
dinate branches of the Shekhawuts. — The Sadhanis. — Their territories
wrested from the Kaimkhanis and Rajpoots. — The Keytri branch of the
family of Sadhoo attains superiority. — Bagh Sing of Keytri murders
his own son. — The Larkhahis. — Revenues of

380

CHAPTER VIII.

Reflections.— Statistics of Ambdr. — Boundaries. — Extent. — Population. —
Number of townships. — Classification of inhabitants. — Soil. — Hus-
bandry. — Products. — Revenues. — Foreign Army. — The feudal levies... 395

ANNALS OF HARAVATI.

•

BOONDI.

CHAPTER I.

ori £ ln the A gnicula races. — Mount Aboo. —
Chohaua obtain M&cavati, Golconan, and the Konkan. — Found

Ajipal.— MamkRae, — Firstlslamite invasion. — Aimdrtaken

nbbur founded ;-its salt lake.— Offspring of Manik Rae.— Establiab-
ats in Rajpootana. Contests with the Mahomedans. — Beelundco of
n<$r ; Goga Chohan of Mehera ; both slain by Mahmoud.— Beesuldeo
neralissvmo of the Rajpoot nations; his period fixed ; his coin™*?
hli ; his alliances.-Ongm of the Hara tribe .-Aniir&i obtains b

^possessed. — Ishtp&l obtains Asdr.— RaoHamir — Rao OK u A
taken b, JJWdinj-Prince Eain.i toOb^g^™;-

Bbynsror, in Md war. -His son Kolun declared lord of p’ o^ 03

CHAPTER II. lb ° PatMv - 405

pitulation of the Hara princes from the founder i^.v ^
•wa.— He erects Boondi.— Massacre of the Oosarris 3 to Rae
es.— Ceremony of Yugaroj, or abdication.— Succeeded’ hA<? Wa - abdi *
tends his sway east of the Ohumbul.— Massacre of v J , ® ar . 81 -—

gin of Kotab.— Napooji succeeds.— Feud with thAAA'A 3- "
da. — Assassination of Napooji.— Singular Satl.— Hamnr, f 01an3si
Tin Rana asserts his right over the Pathar.— Hatnoo —

ttneks him. — Anecdote. — Birsing.— Biroo. — Rao Bando J_T? •’ and
inecdote. — Bando expelled by his brothers; converts to Tt?!. 110- — '
lanism.— Narayndas puts his uncles to death, and recovers I,- 01nu -

nony. — Anecdotes of Narayndas. — Aids the Rana of Cheetore Ar^- atr3 '
•ictory. — Espouses thenieceof Rana Raemull.— Hispassionfoj • nB a
Ieath.-4-Rao Soornjmul.— Marries a princess of Cheeto're^p 1 —
" "i.-\Ahairca, or spring-hunt.— Assassination of the ;R n ‘ * 5$ a3
-Two-fold Sati.— Rao Soortan.— His cruelty, deposal tm'Tu a
— Rao Arjoon elected. — Romantic death. — Rao Soorj\{ n a( T ban '

ibA

CONTENTS.

XXV

' 1 CHAPTER III.

.lao Sooi-jun obtains Hinthnmbor, — Is besieged by Akber. — The Boondi
prince surrenders the castle. — Becomes a vassal of the, empire. — Magna-
nimous sacrifice of Sowunt Hara. — Akber bestows the title of Rao Raja
on the Hara prince. — He is sene to reduce Gondwana. — His success and
honours. — Rao Bhoj succeeds. — Akber reduces Gnzzerat. — Gallant con-
duct of the Haras at Surat and 'Ahmednuggur. — Amazonian band. —
Disgrace of Rao Bhoj.— Cause of Akber’s death. — Rao Ruttuu. — Rebel-
lion against the emperor Jdhauglr. — The Hara prince defeats the rebels.

— Partition of Harouti. — Madhii Sing obtains Kotah. — Rao Ruttuu
slain. — His heir Gopinath killed. — Partition of fiefs in Harouti. — Rao
Chutter Sal succeeds. — Appointed governor of Agra. — Services in the
Dekhan. — Escalades Doulutabad. — Calberga. — Damounee. — Civil war
amongst the sons of Shah Jehan. — Character of Arungzdb by the Booudf
prince. — Fidelity of the Hara princes. — Battles of Oojein and Dhol-
poor. — Heroic valour of Chutter Sal. — Is slain, with twelve princes of
Hara blood. — Rao Bbao succeeds. — Boondi invaded. — Imperialists de-
feated. — Rao Bhao restored to favour, — Appointed to Arungabad. —
Succeeded by Rao Anurad. — Appointed to Lahore. — His death. — Rao
Boodh. — Battle of Jajow. — The Hara Princes of Kotah and Boondi
opposed to each other. — Kotah prince slain. — Gallantry of Rao Boodh, —
Obtains the victory for Buhadoor Shah. — Fidelity of the Boondi prince.

— Compelled to fly. — Feud with the prince of Ambdr. — Its cause. —
Ambitious views oT Amb6r. — Its political condition. — Treachery of
Amber. — Desperate conflict. — Rao Boodh driven from Boondi. — Boondi

territory curtailed. — Rao Boodh dies in exile. — His sons..., 435

CHAPTER IY.

lao Omdda defeats the troops of Ambdr. — Conflict at Dublana. — Omdda
defeated and obliged to fly. — Death of Hunja, his steed. — Takes refuge
amidst the ruins of the Chumbul. — Redeems his capital. — Is again ex-
pelled from it. — Interview with the widow of his father ; she solicits aid
from Holcar to reinstate Omdda. — The Amber prince forced to acknow-
ledge the claims of Omdda. — He recovers Boondi. — Suicide of the Arnbdr
prince. — First alienation of land to the Mahrattas. — Madhii Sing of
Ambdr asserts supremacy over Harouti. — Origin of tributary demands
tbereon. — Zalina Sing. — Mahratta encroachments. — Omeda’s revenge on
the chief of Indurgurh; its cause and consequences. — Omeda abdi-
cates. — Ceremony of Yugr&j, or abdication. — Installation of Ajit. —
Omdda becomes a pilgrim ; his wanderings ; cause oE their interrup-
tion. — Ajit assassinates the Rana of Mewar. — Memorable Satf impreca-
tion. — Awful death of Ajit. — Fulfilment of ancient prophecy. — Rao *
Bisben Sing succeeds. — Omeda’s distrust of his grandson ; their recon-
ciliation. — Omeda’s death. — British army retreats through Harouti,
aided by Boondi. — Alliance with the English. — Benefits conferred on
Boondf. — Bisheu Sing dies of the cholera morbus; forbids the rite of
Sait . — His character ; constitutes the Author guardian of his son, the
Rao Raja Ram Sing 450

KOTAH.

CHAPTER YI.

Separation of Kotah from Boondi. — The Koteah Bhils. — Madhu Sing, first
prince of Kotah. — Its division into fiefs. — The Madhani. — Raja Mokund.

• — Instance of devotion. — He is slain with four brothers. — Juggut Sing. —
Paim Sing. — Is deposed. — Kishore Sing. — Is slain at Arcat. — Law of
primogeniture set aside. — Ram Sing. — Is slain at Jajow. — Bheem Sing.— -
Chuker-sdn, king of the Bhils. — His power is annihilated by Raja a-
Bheem. — Omut tribe. — Origin of the claims of Kotah thereon. — Rar
Bheem attacks Nizam- ool-Moolk, and is Bloin, — Character of R
CVoi. H,] D

XXVI

CONTENTS.

Bbeem. — His enmity to Boondi.— Anecdote.— Title of Ttinhti Rio be*
flowed on Rain Bheem.-Jlao Arjoon.-Civil contest for PUccOTswn.-
Siam Sing slain.-Mnhnrao Doorjiu. Sal.-I irst nruptmn of tlm M*b-
rattas. — League against Kotnh, which is hcstcged.-Defonded by H .m-
rant Sing Jhala.-Zalim Sing born -Siege raised — kot.ob bwomc- tribu-
tary to the Malirattas. — Death of Doorjun Sai -Iiis clmnu'ter -Hm
hunting extieditions. — His queeus.-llr.iycry of thotflmla ohief.-Ordcr
of succession restored. — Mnhnruo Ajft. — Hao Chutter Sat.— •.duujiti
Sin" of Ambdr claims supremacy over the Hum princes, and invanes-
Hnrouti.— Battle of Butwarro.-Zahm Sing Jhftln.— Tim Ilaras gum ft
victory.— Flight of the Amber army, and capture of the “ five coloured
banner”, — Tributary claims on Kotah renounced. — Death of Chutter Sal.

CHAPTER VII.

-ICO

Malm Rao Goman Sing.— Zalim Sing.— His birth, ancestry, and progress
to power. — Office of Fonjtlnr becomes hereditary in hi« family. — Jim
office and estate resumed by Goman Sing. — He abandons Kotnh. — Pro-
ceeds toMdwar. — Performs services to thnltnnn, and receives tin- title
of Raj iihma, and estates. — Serves against thcMnhrattns. — Is wounded
ana made prisoner. — Returns t.o Kotah. — Mahrntta invasion, — Storm of
Bukuduie. — Its glorious dcfcitco. — Sacrifice of a clan. — Oarrisoti of
Sukeib destroyed. — Zalim Sing employed. — His successful negotiation.-—
Restoration to power. — Rao Goman constitutes Zalim guardian of hit
son Omed Sing, who is prociamed. — Tho Tika-dour, or* raid of acces-
sion.’ — Capture of Knilwarra. — Difficulties of the Protector’s situation. —
Cabal against his power.— Destruction of the conspirators. — Exile of tho
nobles. — Sequestration of estates. — Conspiracy of Athoon, — Predatory
bauds. — Athoon surrenders — Exile of the Ilnra nobles. — Curtailment- of
the feudal interests.— Conspiracy of Mosnin. — Plan for the destruction
of tho Regent and family.— Mosnin chief takes sanctuary inThe temple. —

Is dragged forth and slain. — Mr.hurno's brothers implicated in tho plot.—
Their incarceration and death. — Numerous projects against the Ufa of
the Regent. — Fomnlo conspiracy, — How defeated. — The Regent’s pre-
cautions ..... 476

CHAPTER VIII.

Zalim regarded as a legislator.— HispoVitical views on life war. — Not ah
sacrificed thereto.— His tyranny.— His superstition.— Makes a tour of
his dominions.— Establishes a permanent camp —Trains an army

*"* 4J sc *P]j n ®‘ Revises the revenue system of

Harouti. — itie Patel system described.— Council of Pour rbm.t nt

jurisdiction, — Tho Bobo, ns described.-Their uti kv in
•!‘>T usurp tlioir iunu.^Sp ", 1” “ ft

santry.— Patdls circumvented, imprisoned, and flL/i r. ?», 0

destroyed. — Return to the old system.-Mo alestimmfo'rJrln Byston !
of Rajpoofcana. — Modes of realizing the land rovemm v ^ P™ snnt

tages and disadvantages ° ....7.!^ descnbcd.-Advan-

. ‘ CHAPTER VIII. t

Farming system of Zalim Sing.— Extent to wind, n ,

prosperity fallacious and transitory.— Details 7 , . t '7. s been earned. — Its
Kotah.— The Regent introduces foreign nlcnd.o , s T ster n.— Soil of

Net produce.— Value.— Grain pits.— Prices in nl 4 rea cu bivated. —
Zalim sells in one year grain to the amount n? ! -’,,7”^ famine. —
Monopoly. — The tithe, or new tax on exported ara' 'an Bter b"g. —
tax gatherer.— Impolicy of this tax.— Gross revenue ni ' or
-.monopoly.— Tox on widows.— On the mendicant — Opium

"Nx.— The Regent detested by the bards.— P rQV \ nc( , “r^‘ tax ---Broom-
Sl'-iod, and fib assumption of the government, afc

moral result of Ms improvements ....., ’ n rnste< 2— Qucstio

Rao
Ahawea,

-1S7

this
m as

4£

CONTENTS.

XXVII

CHAPTER IX.

Political system of the Regent. — His foreign policy. — His pre-eminent in-
fluence in Rajwarra. — His first connexion with the English Govern-
ment. — Monson’s retreat. — Gallant conduct and death of the Hara chief
of Goelah. — Aid given by the Regent involves him with Hoi car. — Holcar
comes to Kotah. — Preparations to attack the capital. — Singular inter-
view with Zalim. — Zalitn’s agents at foreign courts. — Alliance with
Ameer Khan, and tliePindarri chiefs.-Charaeteristic anecdotes.— Zalim’s
offensive policy. — His domestic policy. — Character of Maharao Omed
Sing. — Zalim’s conduct towards him. — Choice of ministers. — Bishen Sing
Foujdnr, — Dulleel Khan Fatlian. — Circumvallation of Kotah. — Founda-
tion of the city Jlmlra-patun. — Mehrab Khan, commander of the forces. 504

CHAPTER X.

The Rajpoot States invited to an alliance with the British Government. —
Zalim Sing tho first to accept it. — Marquis Hastings sends an agent to
his court. — Confederation against the Pindnrris. —The Regent’s conduct
during the war. — Approbation and reward of his services. — Peace
throughout India.— Death of Maharao Omdd Sing. — Treaty and sup-
plemental articles. — Sous of Maharao Omdd Sing. — Their characters. —
Sons of the Regent. — State of parties. — The Regent leaves the Chaoni
for Kotah. — He proclaims Kishore Sing as successor of the late prince. —

His letter to the British agent, who repairs to Kotah.— Dangerous illness
of the Regent. — Plots to overturn the order of succession. — The Regent’s
ignorance thereof. — Intricate position of tho British Government. —
Arguments in defence of tho supplemental articles. — Recognition of all
rulers do facto the basis of our treaties.— Kishore Sing refuses to ac-
knowledge the supplemental articles. — Consequences. — The Regent
blockades the Prince, and demands theBurrender of his son Gordhun-das,

— The Maharao breaks through the blockade. — The British agent inter-
poses. — Surrender and exile of Gordhun-das.- — Reconciliation of the
Maharao aud tho Regent.— -Coronation of the Maharao. — Mutual-cove-
nants executed. — The Regent prohibits dind throughout Kotah. — Reflec-
tions 511

CHAPTER XI.

Banishment of Gordhun-das, the natural son of tho Regent. — His re-
appearance in Malwa. — Consequent renewal of dissensions at Kotah. —

The troops mutiny and join the Maharao. — The Regentnssaults the castle.

— Flight of the.Maharao and party. — Reception at' Boondi. — Tho Maba-
rno’s second brother joins the Regent. — Gordhun-das’ attempt to join the
Maharao frustrated. — The Maharao leaves Boondi. — General sympathy
for him, — Ho arrives at Bindrabun. — Intrigues of Gordhun-das aud supe-
rior native officers of the British Government, who deceive the Maharao'.

— Returns to Kotah at the head of a force. — Summons the Haras to his
- standard. — His demands. — Supplemental article of the treaty considered.

— Embarrassing conduct of the Regent. — The Maharao refuses all media-
tion. — His ultimatum. — British troops march. — J unction with the Regent.

— Attack the Maharao, — His defeat and flight. — Death of his brother
Pirthi Sing. — Singular combat. — Amnesty proclaimed. — Tho Hara chiefs
return to their families, — The Maharao retires to the temple of Crisbna
in war. — Kogocialion for his return.— Satisfactory termination. — Re-
flections on these civil wars. — Character and death of Zalim Sing 525

«

PERSONAL NARRATIVE.

CHAPTER I.

tfcure from the valley of Oodipoor. Lake of Kbyroda. —Ancient
ole of Mandeswar. — Bhartewar. — Its Jain temples. — Kbyroda, Gon-

'U H.] ® in

CONTE N tr B.

xxviii

»»i “-"IfSiSj ,1.«

alienated ns ie l'5 ihata Haiti.—' Trndi* *”V*l v —Grant in* f rib»d on ft
church-lauds. ^ t of Jlynnr U> the l l ' s " ,v - _„W.'V. nn. hfv.uuh.ry

Of the ^wtvr tcrnto.^ thoro

during ins official rcncien

U,M — — . . «rt|T-'Tl III

sr»5

CHAPTER III. , MBhro u w »nd

Morwun.' — -The solitude of tins fine • cl ”o wVvd n tb o MninMtn^

the ancient oity.-Inscnp^ {ro 4 .„ L „„, IU 1 of ft

t ; ge r._Suddond,nngooUhe^cathcr. Dcs

tiger!— -Suddon change thop^u*

temple of Mamfi-ddva.— Important msc uptwft u _^o„ pr£ «M,oii of
try.— Gratitude of tho people to the mi ith or. * _j W . ct> Lic,nof thcmithor.
the peasants.— M nrlah.— Inhabited by ' J5frnkioual ncrooni of

-Curious privilege of the Clmrnnk-Its origin, mjm ^ ^ y c
it.. nf f.hiQ r.olonv in AlvJWftr. tUl|. ^ * .. tfsn •

— Vjurions privnej;»! Y ."‘nr 1 Imnrecatiou of t'llt*. — Tho

the settlement of this colony m MCwar. l \ A MV \ c'Ctortion.--
tandas, or cnravans.-Their immunity from S ul “i 6C avPnncr of Luis-
Tfeembaira. — Rauikhnira.— Indignity committe y u « ^ tion a %

rawun.— Sentence upon the culprit.— lablet to n auj • 50-1

hfeembaira

. t LHC raiim'- -

facture of opium hept pace with the depopulation of Mdvrnr. — Process of
cultivation, and of manufacture. Xts fluctuation of price. — /Vduitet’fttco
opium of Rbantul. Evil consequences of the use of opium.— Duly of tho
paramount power to restrict the culture.— Practicability of such a men-
sure. — Distribution ot crops. Impoiicy of tbo government in reBneftto
t,be opium monopoly < « *

OKA.PTEU *Y,

Oi

'J-u.aL I. Hi lb y ^

Dhareswar.— Ruttungurh Kheyri.— Colony of Chavuns — Littlo Attoa —
Tnarrmtion at Paraguvh. — Doongur Sin" _j o nr , Q . 8 - • Ln ttio ivuoa.

Kala ile^’h. — Omddpoora and its chief — 1 'V, t 5 U }r'"~m aw 0 a d°ptiOU.
v aS-Tablet of BamWul.-Tradj^^TS^ 10 ° f fZ
|ju ara of Bumfioda.-Dangermow.— Singula/oEeetl f ^i 0 H ?^ as, T A ' 1
oiNthe atmosphere of the Pat’liar ecls> produced by the sun

CONTENTS.

snis:

CHAPTER VI.

Bhynsrorgurh. — Cairn of a Rajpoot. — Ragonat’h Sing of Bhynsror. — Castle
of Bhynsror. — Passage forced by the Chnmbul through the Plateau. —
Origin -and etymology of Bhynsror, — Charuns, the carriers of Rajwarra.

Ihe young chief of Mehwo becomes the champion of Mewar. — Avenges
the Rana’s feud with. Jessulmer, and obtains Bhynsror. — Tragical death
of his I haboorani, niece of the Rana. — He is banished. — The Pramar chiefs
of Bhynsror. — Cause of their expulsion. — Lall Sing Cliondawut obtains
- Bhynsror. — Assassinates his friend theRaua’suncle. — Maun Sing,hissou,
succeeds. — Is taken prisoner.- — Singular escape. — Reflections on the
policy of tho British government towards these people. — Antiquities and
inscriptions at Bhynsror. — Dabf. — View from the pass at Nasairab. —
Rajpoot cairns. — Tomb of a bard. — Sentiments of the people on the
effects of our interference. — Their gratitude. — Cairn 6f a Bhatti chief. —
Kurripoor. — Depopulated state of the country. — Inscriptions at Sontra.

— Bhfl temple. — Ruin. — The Holl festival. — Kotah, its appearance 595

CHAPTER VII.

Unhealthiness of the season at Kotah. — Eventful character of the period
of the author’s residence there. — The cuckoo. — Description of the
encampment. — Cenotaphs of the Haras. — Severe tax upon the curiosity
of travellers in Kotah. — General insalubrity of Kotah. — Wells infected, —
Productive of fever. — Taking leave of the Mabarao and Regent. — The
Regent’s sorrow. — Cross the Chumbul. — Restive elephant. — Kunarie. — -
Regent’s patrimonial estate. — Nandta. — Author’s reception by Madhu
Sing. — Rajpoot music.' — The Punjdbi tuppa . — Scene of the early recrea-
tions of Zalim Sing. — Talera. — -Noagoug. — Approach of the Raja of
Boondi — Splendour of the' cortbge. — Boondi. — The castellated palace, or
Boondi camalil . — Visit to the Raja. — Illuess of’our party. — Quit Boondf.

— Cenotaphs in the village of Sitoor. — The tutelary deity, AsApurna, —
Temple of BhAvanl — Banks of tho Maij. — Thanoh. — Inscriptions. —
Jehajpoor. — Respectable suite of the Bussiecbief. — Singular illuess of the

author 608

*•

CHAPTER VIII.

Extraordinary attack of illness in the author. — Suspicion of poison.' —
Journey to Mandelgurh. — The Icirar . — Tranquil state of the country. —

The Meenas subsiding into peaceful subjects. — Scenery in the l'onte. —
Salmm, ov ecclesiastical lands. — Castle of Amergurh. — Kachowra. — Its
ancient importance. — Our true policy with regard to the feudatories in
these parts.— -Damniob. — Manpoora;— • Signs of reviving prosperity. —
Arrival at Mandelgurh. — The Bnssera. — Sickness of the party left
behind. — Assembly of the Bhomias and Patels. — Description of Mandel-
gurh. — Rebuilt by one of the Takshac race. — Legend of Mandelgurh. —
Genealogical tablet of stone. — Pedigrees of the tribes. — Mandelgurh
granted to the Rahtores by Arungzeb. — Recovered by the Rana. — Taxes
imposed,— -Lavish grants. — Bageet. — The author rejoins his party. —
Birslabiis. — Akola. — Desolation of the country. — Inscriptions, — Hamir-
gurh, — Seoroh. — Superb landscape. — Mirage. — Testimony of gratitude
irora the elders of Poor’h.— Thriving state of Morowlee. — Rasmy. — Anti-
quities. — Curious law. — Jnssmoh. — Waste country. — Inscriptions. —
Copper mines.-— Snnwar.— Triveui, or point of junction of three rivers. —
Temple of Parswanat’h. — Deserted state of the country. — Kurairah. —
Mowlee. — Barren country. — Hunting-seat of Nabra-muggra- — Heights

of Toos and Mairta. — End of second journey 617

CHAPTER IX.

The author obliged to take a journey to Boondi — Cause of the journey.

Suddeh death of the Rao Raja, who loft his son to the arRbor’s care.

Tho cholera morbus, or murri. — Its ravages. — Curious expedient to

CONTE nT8,

XXX

630

3 u U n» — CHAPTER XI. . fcQ pucbaiL .

V?|3”-°C»S cK »“ to it. fooodor.-3.roll.

temple of Batolli. t. CHA p TEBl XII.

^fei-ssss-.

bs S- f 0 £

art. — Effects of vegetation S'? „ „ Pl . agm onts of Hculptwc.

ca-coond, or fountain of the i taakt 3-1 M-. a £ 0 rse.— His elephant.—

SKSgsyss.'&J

654

■bazaar

CHAPTER XIII.

-d to noop tbe cround of lion son's retreat. — Battle of Peeply.-— -Heroism
Bo S°: r aSt Chief of Xcelali.- Conduct of General Monsou.-

PncCabar.-Xuu^arra.-TbrWing aspect of the country. r Jhalra-

tiM-uu Temples. — Commercial immunities of the city.— Judicious mca-

ciires of the llegent in establishing this mart. — Public visit of the com-
xnuiiity of Patun.— The ancient city.— Legends of its foundation.—

cures of the llegent m estamisning this mart.— Public visit ol tne ou
“T„,,itv of Patun.— The ancient city.— Legends of its foundation.
Profusion of ancient ruins.— Pine sculpture and architecture of the
+mrmles — *InscnptiotiB.--Croaa jbe natural boundary o£ Harouti and

iSnUra —The cMoni of the Kotab Legent.-CMSnf of the Pindarris.—
Gnrrro-wn.— Xaraynpoor.— PIobundarraPasB.— Inscriptions— Anecdotes
cf the ‘ Lords of the Pass. — The cTidori, ofLh CC m.-Luins. -Ordinances

ot

byabCnr ' CHATTEL XIV.

T ^oS.-S^^^ S ^ thaft

665 .

t.VlA

CONTENTS.

X.

' Chohans wrested tlie throne of Detili from the Tiiavs.— Jain temples. —
Inscriptions. — Sivite temples. — Prodigious extent of ruins. — The Bijollf
chief. — His daughter a Sail. — Myna.1, or Maban&l. — Its picturesque site.

— Records of Pirtbirap the Chohan. — Inscriptions. — Synchronism in an
enigmatical date. — March to Beygoo. — Bumaoda, the castle of Aloo
Hara. — Legend of 'that chief. — Imprecation of the virgin Sait. — Recol-
lections of the Haras still associated with their ancient traditions.— Quit

BumSoda and arrive at Beygoo 679

CHAPTER XV.

Beygoo.— Serious accident to the author. — Affecting testimony of the gra-
titude of the Rawut. — Expulsion of the Mahrattas from Beygoo. — The
estates of the Rawut sequestrated. — Restored. — Bussie — Cheetore. —

‘ Akber’s Lamp.' — Reflections upon the ruiuB of Cheetore. — Description
of the city, from the Khomdn Rdsd , and from observation. — Tour of the
city. — Origin of the Bagrawufc class. — Inscriptions. — Aged Fakir. —
Return to Oodipoor. — Conclusion 690

ANNALS OF MARWAR.

— + —

CHAPTER I.

The various 'etymons of Mario ar. — Authorities for its early history. — Tati
genealogical roll. — The Rah fore race, who inhabit it, descended from the Yavan
Icings of Parlipoor. — Second roll. — Nayn Pdl. — His date. — Conquers Oanouj.
— Utility of Bajpoot genealogies. — The Surya Prakas, or poetic chronicle of
the bard Kurnidhan. — The Baj Boopac Akhedt, or chronicle of Ajit Sing's
minority and reign. — The Beejy Vulas. — The Khedt, a biographical treatise.
— Other sources. — The Yavanas and Aswas, or Indo-Scythic tribes. — The
thirteen Ralitore families, bearing the epithet Camd’huj.—Raja Jeichund, king
of Ganonj. — The extent and splendour of that state before the Mahomedan con-
quest of India. — His immense array. — Title of Mandalica. — Divine honours
paid to him. — Bite of Soenair undertaken by Jeichund. — Its failure and con-
sequences. — State of India at that period. — The four great Hindu monarchies.
— Delili. — Ganouj. — Mewar. — Anhnlwarra. — Shabudin, king of Gor, invades
India. — Overcomes the Ghohan king of Dehli. — Attacks Canouj. — Destruction
of that monarchy after seven centuries’ duration. — Death of Jeichund. — Date
of this event.

Marwar is a corruption of Maroo-wdr, classically Maroost’hali or
Haroost’han, ' the region of death/ It is also called Maroo-desa,
whence the unintelligible Mardds of the early Mahomedan writers.
The hards frequently style it Mord’hur, which is synonimous with
Maroo-desa, or, when it suits their rhyme, simply Maroo. Though
now restricted to the country subject to the Rahtore race, its ancient
and appropriate application comprehended the entire 1 desart/ from
the Sutlej to the ocean.

■ A concise genealogical sketch of the Rahtore rulers of Marwar has
already beeu given ;* we shall therefore briefly pass over those times
‘ when a genealogical tree would strike root in any soil when the
ambition of the Rahtores, whose branches (sae’hoij spread rapidly
over f the region of death / was easily gratified with a solar pedigreeT 7
As it is desirable,* however, to record their own opinions regarding
their origin, we shall make extracts from the chronicles (hereafter
enumerated), instead of fusing the whole into one mass, as in the

[Vol. II.]

* See Yol, I, p. 80.

1

2

annals of marwar.

[CHAF. I.

Annals of Mewar. The reader will occasionally bo presented with
simple translations of whatever is most interesting m the Ealitoro

Let us begin with a statement of the author’s authorities ; first, a
genealogical roll of the Rah tores, furnished by a Yati, or Jam priest,
from the temple of Nadolaye.* This roll is about fifty feet in.leugth,
commencing, as usual, with a theogony, followed by the production
of the ‘ first Rahtore from the spine ( rahtj of Indra, the nominal
father being " Yavanaswa, prince of Parlipoor.” Of the topography
of Parlipoor, the Rahtores have no other notion than that it was m
the north; but in the declaved race of their progenitor, a Yavan
prince, of the Aswa or Asi tribe, f we have a proof of the Scythic
origin of this Rajpoot family.

The chronicle proceeds with the foundation of Kanya-chbja, J
or Canouj, and the origin of Cama-dhwnja,§ (vulgo Camd’huj), the
titular appellation of its princes, and concludes with the thirteen
great sac’ha, or ramifications of the Rahtores, and their Gotra-
acharya , or genealogical creed, jj

Another roll, of considerable antiquity, commences in the fabulous
age, with a long string of names, without facts ; its solo value con-
sists in the esteem in which the tribe holds it. Wo may omit all
that precedes Nayn Pdl, who, in the year S. 526 (A.D. 4701f), con-
quered Canouj, slaying its monarch Ajipal ; from which period the
race was termed Canoujea Rahtore. The genealogy proceeds to
Jeichund, the last monarch of Canouj ; relates the emigration of his
nephew Sdoji, or Sevaji, and his establishment in the desarb
(MctroowarJ , with a handful of his brethren (a wreck of the mighty
kingdom of. Canouj) ; and terminates with the death of Raja Jes-
wunt Sing, in S. 1735 (A.D. 1679), describing every branch and
scion, until we see them spreading over Maroo.

Genealogy ceases to be an uninteresting pursuit, when it enables
us to mark the progress of animal vegetation, from the o-erm to the
complete development of the tree, until the land is overshadowed
with its branches; and bare as is the chronicle to the moralist or

•la.

* An ancient town in Mar war.

■f One oE the four tribes which overturned tlo , , . ,

The ancient Hindu costnograDhers claim the Aswt.. ^ kin S<fom of Bactr....
early family, and doubtless "the ludo-Scvthin a S ra,l d braucli of their

Ganges, were one race. ^ people, from the Oxus to the

From Cubja (the spine) of the virgin (Kaium >

- Cama-dhivaja, ‘ the banner oE Cupid ’ '

O , V ' L.

11 Gotama Gotra, Mardwandani S&'chd, Sooh-firln,- - r,,

Panlt'hani Devi. miya Guru, Gar-rnpti Agni,

IF It is a singular fact, that there is no avail n hi
century for any of the great Bajpoob families, all 0 f dat6 bc J’ 0,id the fourth
north. This was the period o£ one of the grand irt-ii °k' are bl ' on ght from the
from Central Asia, who established kingdoms in the fche Gctio races

Pal or Pah, the universal adjunct to every proper nnm • , and on the Indus
race of these invaders.

> every proper name 011 the Indus.

me ) indicates the pastoral

CHAP. I.]

ANNALS OP MABWAE.

3

historian, it exhibits to the observer of the powei’S of the animal
economy, data, which the annals of no other people on earth can
furnish. In A.D. 1193, we see the throne of Jeichund overturned]
his nephew, with a handful of retainers, taking service with a petty
chieftain in the Indian desart. In less than four centuries, we find
the descendants of these exiles of the Ganges occupying nearly the
whole of the desart] having founded three capitals, studded the
land with the castles of its feudality, and bringing into the field fifty
thousand men, eh hap ca hdtd, ‘ the sons of one fathei'/ to combat the
emperor of Dehli. What a contrast does their unnoticed growth
present to that of the Islamite conquerors of Canouj, of whom five
dynasties passed away in ignorance of the renovated existence of .the
Ralitore, until the ambition of Shere Shah brought him into contact
with the descendants of S£6ji, whose valour caused him to exclaim

he had nearly lost the crown of India for a handful of barley,” in
allusion to the poverty of their land !

What a sensation does it not excite, when we know that a senti-
ment of kindred pervades every individual of this immense affiliated
body, who can point out, in the great tree, the branch of his origin,
whilst not one is too remote from the main stem to forget its pristine
connexion with it ! The moral sympathies created by such a system
pass unheeded by the chronicler, who must deem it futile to describe
what all sensibly feel, and which renders his page, albeit little more
than a string of names, one of paramount interest to the ‘ sons of
Se'fiji/

The third authority is the Sooraj Pralcas ( Surya Prahasa), com-
posed by the bard Kurnidhan, during the reign and by command of
Raja Abhye Sing. This poetic history, comprised in 7,500 stanzas,
was copied from the original manuscript, and sent to me by Raja
Man, in the year 1820.* As usual, the havya (bard) commences with
the origin of all things, tracing the Rahtores from the creation down
to Soomitra ; from whence is a blank until he recommences with the
name of CamdTtuj, which appears to have been the title assumed by
Nayn Pal, on his conquest of Ganouj. Although Kurnidhan must
have taken his facts from the l’oyal records, they correspond very
well with the roll from Nadolaye. The bard is, however, in a great
hurry to bring the founder of the Rahtores into Marwar, and slurs
over the defeat and death of Jeichund. Nor does he dwell long on
'his descendants, though he enumerates tb6m all, and points out the
leading events until he reaches the reign of Jeswunt Sing, grand-
father of Abhye Sing;, who e< commanded the bard to write the Sooraj
u Projects P '

The next authority is the Raj Roopac Akhe&t, or ( the royal
relations/ This work commences with a short account of the
Suryavansa , from ‘their cradle at Ajodia ; then takes up Sdoji’s
emigration, and in the same Strain as the preceding work, rapidly

* This manuscript is deposited in the library of the/Royal Asiatic'Soc'
tvos. n.3 . u '

' ANNALS OP MARWAR.

[CHAP. I.

passes over all events until the death of Raja Jeswunt ; but it becomes
a perfect chronicle of events during the minority of his successor
Ailt his eventful reign, and that of Abliye Sing, to the conclusion of
the war against Sirbolund Khan, viceroy of Guzzerat. throwing
aside the meagre historical introduction, it is professedly a chronicle
of the events from S. 1735 (A.D. 1679), to S. 1787 (A.D. 1 734), the
period to which the Sooraj Pralcas is brought down.

A portion of the JBeejy Yulas, a poem of 100,000 couplets, also
fell into my hands : it chiefly relates to the reign of the prince whoso
name it bears, Beejy Sing, the son of Bukht Sing. It details tho
civil wars waged by Beejy Sing and his cousin Ram Sing (son of
Abhye Sing), and the consequent introduction of the Mahvattas into

Marwar.

From a biographical work named simply Khcat, or ‘ Story/ I
obtained that portion which rolates to the lives of Raja Oodi Sing,
the Mend of Akber ; his son Raja Gnj, and grandson Jeswunt Sing.
These sketches exhibit in true colours the character of the Raktores.

Besides these, I caused to be drawn up by an intelligent man, who
had passed his life in office at Jodpoor, a memoir of transactions
from the death of Ajlt Sing, in A.D. 1629, down to tho treaty with
the English government iu A.D. 1818. Tho ancestors of the narrator
had filled offices of trust in the state, and he was a living chronicle
both of the past and present.

From these sources, from conversations with the reigning sovereign,
his nobles, his ambassadors, and subjects, materials were collected for
this sketch of the Raktores, — barren, indeed, of events at first, but
redundant of them as we advance.

A genealogical table of the Raktores is added, shewing the grand
offsets, whose descendants constitute the feudal frerage of the present
day. A glance at this table will shew the claims of eaok.kouso ; and
in its present distracted condition, owing to civil broils, will enable
the paramount power to mediate, when necessary, with impartiality,
in the conflicting claims of the prince and his feudatories.

We shall not attempt to solve the question, whether tlieRahtores
are, or are not, Rawud-vansa, < Children of the Suu/ nor shall we
dispute either the birth or etymon of the first Rahto re (from the 1
rafc/or spine of Indra), or search in the north for the kingdom of the
nominal father - but be content to conclude that this celestial inter-
ference m the household concerns of the Parlipoor prince was
invented to cover some disgrace. The name of Yavana, with the
ad]unct Asiva or As%, clearly indicates the Indo-Scythic f barWinn’
from beyond the Indus. In the genealogy of the Lunar races
descended of Budlia and Ella {Mercury and the Earth-sec Table'
I, Yol. I), the five sons of Baj-aswa are made to people the countries
£ r on and beyond the Iudus ; and in the scanty records of Alexander’s
p/ipvasion, mention is made of many races, as the Asasenee and Vs np , ri ;
race ill dwelling in these regions. ' c ’

CHAP. I.]

ANNALS OP MARWAR.

5

This period was fruitful in change to the old established dynasties
of the Hindu continent, when numerous races of barbarians, viz.,
Huns, Parthians, arid G-etes, had fixed colonies on her western and
northern frontiers.* * * §

" In S. 526 (A.D. 470), Hayn Pal obtained Canouj, from which
period the Rahiores assumed the title of Camd J huj. His son was
Pudarut,f his Poouja, from whom sprung the thirteen great families,
bearing the patronymic Carndfiiuj, viz. :

"1st. — DhurmaBhumbo; his descendants styled Ddnesra Camd’huj .
"2d. — Bhanooda, who fought the Afghans at Kangra, and founded
Abhipoor ; hence the Abhipoora Camd’huj
“ 3d. — Virachandra, who married the daughter of Hamira Chohan,
of Anhulpoor Pattun'; he had fourteeu sons, who emigrated to the
Dekhan ; his descendants called Kuppolia Gamd’huj.

"4th. — Umrabeejy, who married the daughter of the Pramara
prince of Korakgurh on the Ganges; — slew 16,000 Pramaras, and
took possession of Horah, whence the Korah Gamd’huj.%

' " 5th. — Soojun Binode; his descendants Jirkhaira Gamd’lmj.

" 6th. — Pndma, who conquered Orissa, and also Bogilana, from.
Raja Tejinun Yadu.

" 7th. — Aihar, who took Bengal from the Yadus ; hence Aihara
' Gamd’Imj.

" 8th. — Bardeo; his elder brother offered him in appanage Benares,
and eighty-four townships ; but he preferred founding a city, which
he called Paruk-poor :§ his descendants Partik Camd’lmj.

" 9th. — Oogra-Prebhoo, who made a pilgrimage to the shrine of
Hinglaz Chandel,|| who, pleased with the severity of his penance,
caused a sword to ascend from the fountain, with which he con-
quered the southern countries touching the ocean :^[ his descendants
Glcandaila Gamd’Imj.

" 10th.— Mookta-Mun, who conquered possessions in the north
from Bhdn Tuar : his descendants Beera Gamd'huj.

“ 11th. — Bhurut, at the age of sixty-one, conquered Keneksir,
under the northern hills, from Roodra-sen of the Birgoojur tribe :
his descendants styled B bureau Camd’huj.

"12th. — Allunkul founded Khyroda; fought the Asuras (Moslems)
on the banks of the Attok : his descendants Khyrodea Gamd’Imj.

* Cosmas. Annals of Mewai*. Gete or Jib Inscription, Appendix, Vol. I.

f Called Blmrut in the Tati’s roll ; an error of one or other of the authorities,
in transcribing from the more ancient records.

J An inscription given in the Transactions of the Itoj’al Asiatic Society, (vol.
is, p. 410) found at Korah, relates to a branch of'the Oanouj family.

§ Qu. Parkur, towards the Indus p
'(] On the coast of Mekrau. ■

T[ If we can credit these legends, we see the Rahtore Rajpoots spreading over
all India. I give these bare facts verbatim as somd ti’aces may yet remain of
the races in those countries.

-6

ANKAIS OF MARWAR.

[chap. r.

“ 13th. — Giand obtained Tarrapoor in the north. He mamed a
daughter of the Chohan of Tahera* * * § a city well known to the world .
with her he came to Benares.

“ And thus the race of Surya multiplied.

“ Bkumbo,t or Dherma-Bhumbo, sovereign of Canouj, bad a son,
Aiv-Chund.t For twenty-one generations they bore the titles^ot
Eao ; afterwards that of Baja. Oodicbund, Nirpati, Keneksen,
Sebes-sal/Megsdn, Birabbadra, Deosdn, Bramlsen, Dansdn, Mokund,
Blioodu, Rajsen, Tirpal, Sree-Punja, Beejy Ckund,§ his son
Jeickund, who became the Naek of Canouj, with the surname Dul
Pangla/’

Nothing is related of the actions of these princes, from the
conquest of Canouj by Nayn Pal, in A.D. 470, and the establishment
of his thirteen grandsons in divers countries, until we reach J eichund,
in whose person (A.D. 1193) terminated the Rahtore sovereignty
on the Ganges ; and we have only twenty-one names to fill up the
space of seven centuries, although the testimony on which it is
given|| asserts there were twenty-one princes bearing the title of
Bao prior to the assumption of that of Baja. But the important
information is omitted as to who was the first to assume this title.
There are names in the Yaths roll that are not in the Sooraj Tralcas,
which we have followed ; and one of these, “ Rungut D’hwnj,-” is
said to have overcome Jesraj Thar, king of Dehli, for whose period
we have correct data : yet we cannot incorporate the names in the
Yati’s roll with that just given without vitiating each ; ’and as we
have no facts, it is useless to perplex ourselves with a barren gene-
alogy. But we can assert that it must have been a splendid dynasty,
and that their actions, from the conqueror- Nayn P&l, to the la3t
prince, Jeichund, were well deserving of commemoration. That they
were commemorated in written records, there cannot he a doubt ; for
the trade of the bardie chroniclers in India has flourished in all ages.

Although we have abundant authority to assert the grandeur of
the kingdom of Canouj*i[ at the period of its extinction, both from
the bard Cliund and the concurrent testimony of Mahomedan authors,
yet are we astonished at the description of the capital, attested not

thec!fo!mns mBn3 ^ ^ Sahtore8 » bufc those of their antagonists,

The circumvallation of Canouj covered "a'ipace^of more than thirty
miles ; and its numerous forces obtained for its prince tbe epitbet of
Bui Pang a, meaning that the mighty host (Did) ^as lame or bad

of 'w'hicli Clruna

a halt in its movements owing to its numbers,

* A city often mentioned by Ferishtn, in tbeearlv times of fhn w i j

f Kay n Pal must have preceded Dlierma-BbumbVCfivrohL i 0111 ^^ 8 '

t Cnllcd Abb6-chand, in the Sooraj Traltxxs. ' S ouer ations.

§ Also styled Beejy Pal ; classically Vijy-pala, 1 Fosterer of *

|| The Sooraj Prafcas.

T Sec Inscriptions of Jeicbnnd, Yiiyndnmd.atid Korab, in tbe on, „ j
vole, of tbe Asiatic Hescnrches. ail dl4th

CHAP. I.]

ANNALS OF MARWAK,

7

observes, that in the march “ the van had reached their ground ere
“ the rear had moved off.” The Sooraj PraJcas gives the amount of
this army, which in numbers might compete with the most potent
which, in ancient or modern times, was ever sent into the field.
“ Eighty thousand men in armour ; thirty thousand horse covered
“ with paJehur, or quilted mail • three hundred thousand paehs or
" infantry ; and of bow-men and battle-axes two hundred thousand ;
" besides a cloud of elephants bearing warriors.”

This immense army was to oppose the Tavana beyond the Indus ;
for, as the chronicle says, “ The king of Gor and Irak crossed the
“ Attolc. There Jey Sing met the conflict, when the Ntldb changed
“ its name to Soorhhab.* There was the Ethiopic ( Habshee ) king,
" and the slcilful Frank, learned in all arts,^ overcome by the lord
" of Canouj . 55

The chronicles of the Chohans, the sworn foe of. the Rahtores,
repeat the greatness of the monarch of Canouj, and give him the
title of “ Mandalica .” ' They affirm that he overcame the king of
the north, J making eight, tributary kings prisoners ; that he twice
defeated Sidraj,. king of Anhulwarra, and extended his dominions
south of the Nerbudda, and that at length, in the fulness of his pride,
he had divine honours paid him in the rite Soenair. This distinction,
which involves the most august ceremony, and is held as a virtual
assumption of universal supremacy, had in all ages been attended
with disaster. In the rite of Soenair, every office, down to the
scullion of the "Rusorah,” or banquet-hall, must be performed by
royal personages ,- nor had it been attempted by any of the dynasties
which ruled India since the Paudu : not even Vicrama, though he
introduced his own era, had the audacity to attempt what the Rah-
tore determined to execute. All India was agitated by the accounts
of the magnificence of the preparations, and circular invitations were
despatched to every prince, inviting. him to assist at the pompous
ceremony, which was to conclude with the nuptials of the Raja’s only
daughter, who, according to the customs of those days, would select
her future lord from the assembled chivalry of India. The Chohan bard
describes the revelry and magnificence of the scene : the splendour
of the Yug-s&la, or ‘ hall of sacrifice , 5 surpassing all powers of descrip-
tion ; in which was assembled all the princes of India, “ save the
<f lord of the Ohohaus, and Samara of Me war , 55 who, scorning this
assumption of' supremacy, Jeichund made their effigies in gold,
assigning to them the most servile posts ; that of the king of the
Chohans being Poleah, or f porter of the hall . 5 Pirthiraj, whose
life was one succession of feats of arms and gallantry, had a
double motive for action — love and revenge. He determined to

• The Nil-db, or * blue water,’ tlie Indus, changed its name to the * lted-
stream’ Soorlc- 'ab, or * ensanguined.’

f It is singular that Chund likewise mentions the Prank as being in the army
of Shabudin, in the conquest of his sovereign Pirthiraj. If this be true, it
must have been a desultory or fugitive band of crusaders.

t They thus style the kings west of the Indus.

8

ANNALS OF HARYfAR.

[CHAP. I*

- ov Loth or perish in the attempt; "to spoil the sacrifice
« and bear away ? the fair of Oanouj from its halls, though beset
« by all the heroes of Hind.- The details of this exploit form the.
most spirited of the sixty-nine books of the bard. _ The Ohohan
executed his purpose, and, with the elite of the warriors of Dehli,
bore off the princess in open day from Canou], A desperate tunning
hght of five days took place. To use the words of the bard, He
« preserved his prize ; he gained immortal renown, but he lost the
“ sinews of Dehli.” So did Jeichund those of Oanouj ; and each, who
had singly repelled all attacks of the kings, fell in turn a prey to
the Ghori Sultan, who skilfully availed himself of these interna-
tional feuds, to make a permanent conquest of India.

We may here briefly describe the state of Hindusfhan at this
epoch, and for centuries previous to the invasions of Mahmoud.

There were four great kingdoms, viz, :

1st. — Dehli, under the Tuars and Ohohans ;

2nd. — Oanouj, under the Rahtores ;

3d. — M ewak, under the Ghelotes ;

4h. — Anhulwarra, under the Chauras and Solanlthis.

To one or other of these states, the numerous petty princes of
India paid homage and feudal service. The boundary between
Dehli and Oanouj was the Cali-nadi, or ‘ black stream / the Calindi
of the Greek Geographers. Dehli claimed supremacy over all the
countries westward to the Indus, embracing the lands watered by
its arms, from the foot of the Himalaya, — the desert, — to the
Aravulli chain. The Chohan king, successor to the Tuars, enumer-
ated one hundred and eight great vassals, many of whom were
subordinate princes.

The power of Oanouj extended north to the foot of the Snowy
mountains ; eastward to Cast (Benares) ; and across the Chumbul to
the lands of the Chundail (now Bundelkhund) ; on the south its
possessions came in contact with Mewar.

Mdwar, or Mcchja-vjar, -the ‘central region/ was bounded to the
1 i' V n lar 'b^b ^ ie Eon tk by the Pramaras of Dhar
5 J ^ Ca " on 3 ) J and westward by Anhulwarra, which state

r Esft 0 10 ao,ia ' fte ^ »» a-o -a

generally allies, and the Rahtores and Tfiars (ureclocp^n '
Cholians) who were onlv divided by the Calimadi off 1K ;i°
with their blood. Yet this warfare was never of an ext ^ *
kmd ; a marriage quenched a feud, and they remained b-iends'n^tn
some new cause of strife arose.

IF, at the period preceding Mahmoud, the traveller had .

through the courts of Europe, and taken the line of route irTs'b

CHAP, I.]

ANNALS op 1IABWAR.

sequent ages pursued by Timoor bv Tt

(adorned with the spoils of India) to p antlm ?’ trough Ghizni
tow superior in all that constitutes ctV °T°^ andA ^^llT
princes have appeared to him !— i n arts : ™ atl0n Wou]d the Eaipoot
by no means inferior. At that epoch b )^ eas ^ b fy so ; in ^
eveiy state was governed on feudal princinle^ 6 as iu east
the democratical principle gained adS! Ha PP iJ J for Europe'
T 1 " to •«? institutions? whifCmT: "f »2

f Asia, remained permanently excluded \ 3fcnte of India, indeed
government which was supported by its fabou!* 311 Share in the
that of arms being deemed ignoble. Vthi ? ' ever J P«rsuit but
wars which feudality engenders t ?„,* Js cause .> and the endleso

£>"» attacked b y t/e mefofat ^ id'of feil ■

the north. ommand of the despotic kings of

invaded of th e S e dissensions

Dehh, the outwork and bulwark of CJlollan king of

tan attacked. Jeichund, who wa wel Jned br ta* ^ Sh » b “to
Canouj put forth all her strength hnt b Z pre7 ! 0us draggle.
was the last son of “the Yavala o£pJfiJ 0 l*i a ? d hei> monafch
banks of the Gauges. He met a death Rnrmf u Wl ° rule d on the
drowned rn the sacred stream in attempt Eind "' be “-

Thts event happened in S. 1249 (A D ll«<n ? P ,
ta overgrown, gorgeous Conoui ceased to he » ”' ,lioh Period

"tarty-sis races" of vassal princes from , ““l? ci ‘L "Ian the
1 \dhya, who served under ta banners of “ .ai d l » the

to their patrimonial estates. But though thfi t? Sena >”* retired
to exist on the shores of the Ganges destinW^ 01 ’ 0 ^ 1 ” 6 ceased
S°A d bo .E aerTC . d .' P-otoce in®. hvtyJZS?*** * -*m

--V, ^yo„ lTOU1) cue Ring, the lord nf ^aja man,

g onous of the sceptre of Maroo as either T E l otdd ^eas vain-

Snr^! dlVI + ne ho T aVSj or his still more vemolfn^ ^ hen J ie corn-
fourteen 'centuries before, when he erected iZ i? !UWest ° v Nayn Pal
Pah to re may well boast of his pedigree w£ ^f hroue 111 Ca uouj. The

interpolated pages of the Purina,, the b^orta

L VOL, -II.]

10

ANNALS OP MARWAR.

[CHAP. I.

CHAPTER II.

Emigration of Seoji and Saitram, grandsons of Jeichund.— Their arrival in the
Western Desert.— Sketch of the tribes inhabiting the desert to the Indus at that
epoch.— Seoji offers his services to the chief of Eoloomud.— They are accepted —
He attacks Dahlia Phoolana, the famed freebooter of Phoolra, who is defeated.
—Saitram hilled.— Seoji marries the Solanld’s daughter— Proceeds by Anhui-

• warra on his route to Divarica. — Again encounters Dahlia Phoolana, whom he
slays in single combat. — Massacres the Dabeys of Mehwo, and the Gohils of
Eherdhnr. — Seoji establishes himself in “ the land of Elier.” — The Brahmin
community of Palli invoke the aid of Seoji against the mountaineers. — Offer
him lands. — Accepted. — Birth of a son. — Seoji massacres the Brahmins, and
usurps their lands. — Death of Seoji. — Leaves three sons. — The elder, Asot'hama,
succeeds. — The second, Soning, obtains Edur. — Ajmal, the third, conquers
Okamundala, originates the Badhail tribe of that region. — Asot'hama leaves
eight son6, heads of clans. — Dooliur succeeds. — Attempts to recover Canouj . —
Failure. — Attempts Mundore. — Slain. — Leaves seven sons. — Raepal succeeds . —
Revenges his father’s death. — His thirteen sons. — Their issues spread over
Maroo.— Rao Kanlml succeeds. — Rao Jalliun. — Rao Cliado. — Rao Theedo . —
Oarry on tvars with the Bhattis and other tribes. — Conquest of Beenmalil . —
Rao Siluk. — Rao Beerumdeo, killed in battle with the Joliyas. — Clans, their
issue. — Rao Ohonda. — Conquers Mundore from the Purihar.— Assaults and
obtains Nagore from the Imperialists. — Captures Nadole, capital of Godispr . —
Marries the Princes of Mundore. — Fourteen sons and one daughter, \oho
married Lakha Rana of Meioar. — Result of this marriage. — Fend belf zen-
Irinkowal, fourth son of Chonda, and the Bhatti chieftain of Poogul . — Chj ida>
slain at Nagore. — Rao Rinmul succeeds. — Resides at Cheetore. — Conquers
Ajmer for the Rana. Equalizes the iveights and measures of Marwar, tohich he
divides into departments. — Rao Rinmul slain. — Leaves twenty-four sons, whose
issue constitute the present frerage of Marwar. — Table of clans.

In S. 1268 (A.D. 1212) eighteen years subsequent to the over-
tbrew o£ Canon], Seoji and Saitram, grandsons of its last monarch,
abandoned the land of their birth, and with two hundred retainers
the wreck of their vassalage, journeyed westward to the desert, with
the intent, according to some of the chronicles, of making a pilgrim-
age to the - shrine of Dwarica ; but accordmo- in niw.? . At
more probability, to carve their fortunes in fresh finlrU ' an f ?
the luxuries in which they had been tried and ttl*’ " 11Scatlied h /
and sole heritage, the glory of Canouj. P1 ° ud ,u their P OTerfc y

Let us rapidly sketch the geographv of 1 , 1 m i„;u„„
was destined these emigrants of the Ganges should ^blin^he
mastery, from the Jumna to the Indus, and the Garah • Dam tue
Aravulli hills. First, on the east, the Cutchwahas 11r ' l | Ver -. fc ? ^'. e
whose father, Rao Pujoon, was killed in the war of Canoi ' Gr ~r a * s b
Sambhur, and the best lands of the Ohohans, fell ran’ ll
Islamite — though the strong-holds of the Aravulli yet ^ ^ t '^ 1Q

CHAP. H.]

ANNALS OP UARWAR.

n

some, and Nadole continued for a century more to be governed by a
descendant of Beesuldeo. Mansi, It an a of tbe Eendob tribe, a branch
of tbe Purihavs, still held Mundore, and tbe various Bhomias around
paid bim a feudal subjection as tbe first chief of tbe desert. North-
ward, about Nagore, lived tbe community of tbe Mobils (a name
now extinct), whose chief place was Aureent, on which depended 1,440
villages. The whole of the tracts now occupied b} 7 Bikaner to
Bhntnair were ■ partitioned into petty republics of Getes or Jits,
whose history will hei'eafter be related. Thence to the Garah river,
the Johyas, Dyas, Cathaa, Laugahas, and other tribes whose names
are now obliterated, partly by the sword, partly by eonvei’sion to
Islamism. The Bhattis had for centuries been established within
the bounds they still inhabit, and little expected that this handful
of Rah tores was destined to contract them. The Soda princes
adjoined the Bhattis south, and the Jharejas occupied the valley of
the Indus and Cutch. The Solankhis intervened between them and
the Pramaras of Aboo and Chandravati, which completed the chain
by junction with Nadole. Various chieftains of the more ancient
races, leading a life of fearless independence, acknowledging an occa-
sional submission to their more powerful neighbours, were scattered
throughout this space; such as the Dabeys of Eedur and Mehwo ;
the Gohils of Khdrdfiiur; the Deoras of Sanchore ; and Sonigufras of
Jbaloi'e ; the Mohils of Aureent ; the Sanklas of Sindli, &c. ; all of
whom have either had their birth-right seized by the Rahtore, or the
few who have survived and yet retain them, are enrolled amongst
their allodial vassals.

The first exploit of Se6ji was at Koloomud (twenty miles west of
the city of Bikandr, not then in existence), the residence of a chief-
tain of the Solankhi tribe. He received-the royal emigrants with
kindness, and the latter repaid it by the offer of their services to
combat his enemy, the Jhareja chieftain of Pboolra, well known
in all the annals of the period, from the Sutlej to the ocean, as
Lakha Phoolana, the most celebrated river of Maroo, whose castle
of Phoolra stood amidst the almost inaccessible sand-hills of the
desert. By this timely succour, the Solankhi gained a victory over
Lakha, but with the loss of Saitram and several of his band. In
gratitude for this service, the Solankhi bestowed upon Seoji his sister
in marriage, with au ample dower ; and he continued his route by
Anhui warra Patun, where he was hospitably entertained by its prince,
to the shrine of Dwarica. It was the good fortune of Seoji again to
encounter Lakha, whose wandering habits had brought him on a
foray into the territory of Anhulwarra. Besides the love of glory
and the ambition of maintaining the reputation of his race, he had
the stimulus of revenge, and that of a brother's blood.' He was
successful, though he lost a nephew, slaying Lakha in single combat,
which magnified his fame in all these regions, of which Phoolana
was the scourge.

Mushed with success, we hear nothing of the completion of Seoji’s

[Yon. IL] 2 a

n

ANNALS OF MARTVAR.

[cnAP. xi.

pilgrimage : but obedient to the axiom of the Rajpoot, got land,
we find him on the banks of the Looni, exterminating, at a feast,
theDabeys ofMehwo,* * * § and soon after the Golnls of Kherdhur,f
whose chief, Mohesdas, fell by the sword of the grandson of Jeichund.
Here, in the ,f land of Kkdr,” amidst the sand-hills of the Loom, (the
salt-river of the desert), from which the Goliils wore expelled, S6oji
planted the standard of the Rahtores.

At this period, a community of Brahmins held the city and exten-
sive lauds about Palli, from which they wore termed Palliwal ; and
being greatly harassed by the incursions of the mountaineers, the
Hairs and Meenas, they called in the aid of Sdoji’s band, which
readily undertook and executed the task of rescuing the Brahmins
from their depredations. Aware that they would be renewed, they
offered Sdoji lands to settle amongst them, which were readily
accepted) and here he had a son by the Solankhani, to whom he
gave the name of Asofhama. With her, it is recorded, the sugges-
tion originated to make himself lord of Palli ; and it affords another
example of the disregard of the early Rajpoots for the sacred order,
that on the Eoli, or f Saturnalia/ he found an opportunity to “ obtain
“ land,” putting to death the heads of this community, and adding
the district to his conquests. Sd&ji outlived his treachery only
twelve months, leaving his acquisitions as a nucleus for further
additions to his children. He had three sons, Asot’hama, Soning,
and Ajmal.

One of the chronicles asserts that it was Asot’hama, the successor
of Seoji who couquered u the land of Kher” from the Gohils. By
the same species of treachery by which his father attained Palli, he
lent his aid to establish his brother Soning in Eedur. This small
- principality, on the frontiers of Guzzerat, then appertained, as did
Mehwo, to the Dabey race j and it was during the maaluni, or period
of mourning for one of its princes, that the young Rahtore chose to
obtain a new settlement. His descendants are dTstiuguished as the
HatondiaRahtores. The third brother, TJja, carried his forays as far as
Hie extremity of the Saurashtra peninsula, where he decapitated
Beekams! the Ohewara chieftain of Okam«ndala,i and established

hl “* actbl . s brancb bec ame known as the Badhail

and the Badhails are still in considerable number in that furthest
track of ancient Hinduism called the " World’s End ”

. A ' , 7 0 , t ’ ,l ™ a died, leaving eight sons, who became the heads of elans

Bkopsoo, Dhandnl, Jaitmal, Bandn r ;

* The Dabey was one of the thiity-six royal nwc - , ... . ,

last mention of their holding independent uossessio.m, ’ t -T s ls Q h T1 osb the
t In my last journey through these regions, I visited thf 7-°l P ' 105 ' .
at Bhaouuggur, in the Gulf of Cambay. I transcribed °^. the Gohils

which trace their migration from “Kberdhur,” but in defective annals,

it is ! See. Tol. I, p. 104. ^solute ignorance where

1 Oil the western coast of the Saurashtra' peninsula.

§ From bhada, ' to slay.’

CHAP, IX.]

\

'i

ANNALS OP JIARWAE. 13

and Oohur ; of which, four, Dookur, Dhandul, Jaitmal, and Oohur,
are yefc known.

Dookur succeeded AsoChama. He made an unsuccessful effort to
recover Canouj ; and then attempted to wrest Mundore from tlie
Puriliars, but “ watered tbeir lauds with bis blood." He left seven
sons, viz., Raepal, Keerutpal, Bebur, Peetul, J oogail, Daloo, and Begur.

Raepal succeeded, and revenged the death of bis father, slaying
the Purihar of Mundore, of which he even obtained temporary
possession. He had a progeny of thirteen sons, who" rapidly spread
their issue over these regions. He was succeeded by his son Kankul,
whose successor was his son Jalkun; he was succeeded by his son
Chado, whose successor was his son Theedo. All these carried on a
desperate warfare with, and made conquests from, their neighbours.
Chado and Theedo are mentioned as very troublesome neighbours in
the annals of the Bhattis of Jessulmer, who were compelled
to carry the war against them into the “ land of Khdr." Rao
Theedo took the rich district of Beenmahl from the Sonigurra, and
made other additions to his territory from the Deoras and Baleckas.
He was succeeded by Siluk or Silko. His issue, the Silkawuts, now
Bhomias, are yet numerous both in Mehwo and Rardurro. Silko
was succeeded by his sou Beerumdeo, who attacked the Jokyas of
the north, and fell in battle. His descendants, styled Beerumote and
Beejawut, from another son Beejo, are numerous at Saitroo, Sewanok,
and Daickoo. Beerumdeo was succeeded by his son Clionda, an
important name in the annals of the Rahtores. Hitherto they had
attracted notice by their valour and their raids, whenever there was
a prospect of success ; but they had so multiplied in eleven genera-
tions, that they now essayed a higher flight Collecting all the
branches bearing the name of Rahtore, Chonda assaulted Mundore,
slew the Purihar prince, and planted the banners of Canouj on the
ancient capital of Maroo.

So fluctuating are the fortunes of the daring Rajpoot, ever courting
distinction and coveting bhom, ‘ land/ that but a short time before
this success, Chonda had been expelled -from all the lands acquired
by his ancestors, and was indebted to the hospitality of a bard of the
Gkarun tribe, at Kaloo ; and they yet circulate the cavit, or quatrain,
made by him when, in the days of his greatness, he came and was
refused admittance to ‘ ‘ the lord of Mundore •” he took post under
the balcony, and improvised a stanza, reminding him of the Charun
of Kaloo : “ Chonda mihyn aw6 chit’ll, Katchur Kaloo tinna ?

“ Bhoop b’hyo b’hy-b’hWh, Mkmdaumr ramalcd ?” “ Does not Chonda
“ remember the porridge of Kaloo, now that the lord of the land
" looks so terrific from his balcony of Mundawur V 1 Once established
in Mundore, he ventured to assault the imperial garrison of Nagore.
Here he was also successful. Thence he can’ied his arms south, and
placed his garrison in Nadole, the capital of the province of Godwar.
Remarried a daughter of the Purihar prince,* who had the satisfac-

* He was of the Hondo branch of the Purihars, and his daughter is called
the “ Eendovatni."

14

ANNALS OF MARWAR.

[CHAP. II.

tion to see his grandson succeed to the throne of Mundore, Chonda
ms blessed with a progeny of fourteen sons

around him. Their names were Rnimul* Sutio, Rmdlieei, It in
lowed , f Poonja, Blieem, Kana, Ujo, Ramdeo, Bee]o, Seliesinul, Bagh,
Loombo, Seoraj.

Chonda had also one daughter named Ucmso, married to Lakha
Sana of Mewar, whose son was the celebrated Koombho. it was
this marriage which caused that interference in the aflame of Mewar,
which had such fatal results to both, states. J

The feud between his fourth son, Irinkowal, and the Bliatti prince
of Poogul, being deemed singularly illustrative of the Rajpoot
character, has been extracted from the annals of Jessulmer, in
another part of this work.§ The Rahtore chronicler does not enter
into details, but merely states the result, ns ultimately involving the
death of Chonda — simply that “ he was slain at Nagore with one
“ thousand Rajpoots and it is to the chronicles of Jessulmer we are
indebted for our knowledge of the manner. Cliondn acceded in S.
1438 (A.D. 1382), and was slain in S. 1465.

Rinmul succeeded. His mother was of the Gohil tribe. In
stature he was almost gigantic, and was the most athletic of all the'
atheltes of his nation. With the death of Chonda, Nagore was agnin
lost to the Rahtores. Rana Lakha presented Rinmul with the
township of Durlo and forty villages upon his sister’s marriage, -when
he almost resided at Cheetore, and was considered by the Rana as
the first of his chiefs. With the forces of Mewar added to his own,
under pretence of conveying a daughter to the viceroy of Ajmdr, he
introduced his adherents into that renowned fortress, the ancient
capital of the Chohans, putting the garrison to the sword, and thus
- restored it to Mewar. Khemsi Pancholi, the adviser of this measure,
was rewarded with a grant of the township of Kaatoli, then lately
captured from the Kaim-Khiinis. Rinmul went on a pilgrimage to
Gya, and paid the tax exacted for all the pilgrims then assembled.

The bard seldom intrudes the relation of civil affairs into his page,
a?id when he does, it is incidentally. It would be folly to suppose
that the princes of Maroo had no legislative recorded; but with
these the poet had no bond of union. He, however, condescends to
. inform ns of an important measure of R ao Rinmul, namely that
he equalized the weights and measures throughout his dominions
which he divided as at present. The last art t?; i a . omimonb >
erously attempting to usurp the throne of the hifaut
was deservedly punished, and ’he was slain by the f

as related in the annals of that.state.il Thie ° j Chonda,
of demarcation of the two states,^ and wWl^ ori g m ated the line
remained unaltered

*Tbe descendants o£ those whose names are in UnUnc *-n
+ This is the prince mentioned in the l

p. 539) from the annah of Jessulmer. Incidentally we have? d reatc<i (vol. i
nisms in the annals of these states, which, however slicrlw synchro'

t See Yol. I, p. 231. § Page 539. || p ag e 235 6 0f import.

11 Page 237

CHAP, II.]

ANNALS OP MARWAR.

until recent times, when Marwar at length touched the AravulH.
Kao Kinmul left twenty-four sons, whose issue, and that of his
eldest son, Joda, form the great vassalage of -Marwar. For this
reason, however barren is a mere catalogue of names, it is of the
utmost value to those who desire to see the growth of the frerage
of such a community.*

Names. • Claus. Chieftainships or Fiefs.

1. Joda (succeeded)...

Joda.

2. Kandul

| Kandulote, conquered
\ lands in

3. Champa

Champawut

4. Akhirai ")

had seven sons :

Koompawnb

1st Koorapo \

5. Mandlo

Mandlote

6. Patta

Pabtawut

7. Lakha

Lakliawut

8. Bala

Balawut

9. Jaitmnl

Jaitmulote

10. Rurno

Kurnote

11. Roopa

Roopawub

12. Nabhoo

Nathawub

Dnono-ftrnto

14. Sanda

Sandawut

15. Mando

Mandnote

16. Biroo

17. Jugmal

18. Hampo

19. Sakfco

20. Kerimchuud

21. TJ rival

22. Kebsi

23. Sutrosal

24. Tezmal

Birote

Jugmalote .
Hampawufc.
Saktawut .

TJrivalote ..

Kebsiote

SutrosSlote
Tezmalote ..

Bikandr.

Ahwa, Kaatob, Palri, Hur-
sola, Robit, Jawula, Sutlana,
Siugari.

Asope, Kuntaleo, Chundawul,
Sirriari, Kharlo, Hursore,
Bulloo, Bajoria, Soorpoora,
Dewureo.

Saroonda.

Kurnichari, Baroh, and Des-
nokh.f

Dhoonara.

Palasni.

Loonawas.

Ohoobeela.

Bikandr.

Estates not mentioned ; their
descendants have become
dependent on the greater
clanships.

* It is only by the possession of such knowledge, that we can exercise with
justice our right of universal arbitration,

f Brave soldiers, but, safe in the deep sands, they refuse to serve except on.
emergencies.

ANNAXiS OF WAItWAR.

*l6

[chap, iii.

CHAPTER III.

Accession of Kao Joda.-Transfers the seat of government from Mun clove to the
new capital Jodpoor. -The cause.-Tho Vana-penst, or Druids of India, -
Their penances. — T/to fourteen sons of Joda. New settlements of Satuhna,
Mairta Bikaner. -Joda dies.-Aitecdofes regarding him.— His personal
appearance. — Rapid increase of the Ralitoro race. -Names of tribes displaced
■ thereby.— Accession of Bao Soojoh.— First conflict of the Bahtores with the
Imperialists— /tape of the Bahtore virgins at Peepar.— Gallantry of Soojoh-
—Eis death— Issue.— Succeeded by his grandson Bao Ganga.— Hie uncle
Saga contest eilte throne.— Obtains the aid of the Lodi Pat'lians.— Civil TFnr.

Saga slain.— ’-Baber's invasion of India. — Bana Sanga generalissimo of the

Rajpoots. — Bao Ganga sends his contingent under his grandson Bacmul—
Slain at Biana— Death of Ganga.— Accession of Bao Maldeo.— Becomes thb'
first amongst the princes of Bajpootana. — Rc-conquers Nagore and Ajmer
from the Lodis, Jhalore and Sewanoh from the Sindhils. — Reduces the
rebellious allodial vassals.— Conquest from Jessuhner.—The Maldotee.— Takes
Poliurn. — Dismantles Satulmer.—His numerous public works. — Cantons
belonging to Hanvar enumerated. — Maldeo resumes several of the great estates .
— Makes a scale of rank hereditary in the line of Joda. — Period favourable
to Maldeo’ s consolidation of his power. — Eis iuhospitality to the Emperor
Hemayoon.—Shere Shah invades Manvar. — Maldeo meets him. — Danger of
. the Imperial army. — Saved by stratagem from destruction. — Bahtore army
' retreats. — Devotion of the tivo chief clans, — Their destruction. — Aider invades
Manvar. — Takes Mairta and Nagore. — Confers them on Bae Sing of Bikaner •
— Maldeo sends his second son to Akber's court \ — Refused to pay homage in
person. — The emperor gives the firman of Jodpoorto Bae Sing. — Bao Maldeo
besieged by Aider. — Defends Jodpoor. — Sends his son Oodi Sing to Aider.—
Eis reception. — Receives the title of Baja. — Chunderscn maintains Bahtore
independence. — Retires to Sewanah. — Besieged, and slain. — His sons. — Maldeo
witnesses the subjection of his kingdom. — His death.— His twelve sons.

Joda was born at Dunlo, tbe appanage of his father in Mewar,
m the month . Bysak S. 1484, In 1511 he obtained Sojut, and
an tbe month Jait, 1515 (AD. 1459), laid the foundation of Jodpoor,
to whach be transferred the seat of government from Mundore.
Watb the superstitious Rajpoot, as with the ancient Roman,'
every event being decided by the omen or the augur it would be
contrary to rule if so important an occasion as fho f ° •. i

and that of an infant state, were not TaXed L J g< 3 ° f ’

p-edige, that would justify the abandonment of? city won by the
sword, and which had been for ages the canitnl Jm ■ C

intervention, in thisinstance, wasof asimple nn+^v . n .^ ic

of birds, the lion’s lair, nor celestial manifestation^* ’the flight
of an anchorite, whose abode, apart from mankind Hie ordinance
mountains of Baknreheerea. But the behests of'. a C ^ fc .
secondary only to those of the divinity, wh n«*/ SUCa asce ^ cs are .
deemed. Like the Druids of the Celts, the Vann _ 01 ? a 1 ri ® ^hey are

« vana-penst Jogi, from

CHAP. III.]

ANNALS OT MARWAB.

>

r<

the glades of the forest (vana) or recess in the rocks (gopha), issue
their oracles to those whom chance or design may conduct to their
solitary dwellings. It. is not surprising that the' mandates of such
beings prove compulsory on the superstitious Rajpoot : we do not
mean those'squalid ascetics, who wander about India, and are objects
disgusting to the eye ; but the genuine Jogi, he who, as the’term
imports, ’mortifies the flesh, till the wants of humanity are restricted
merely to what suffices to unite matter with spirit ; who has studied
and comprehended the mystic works, and poured over the systems of
philosophy, until the full influence of maia (illusion) has perhaps
unsettled his understanding; or whom the rules of his sect have
condemned to penance and solitude; a penance so severe, that we
remain astonished at the perversity of reason which can submit to
it.* To these, the Druids of India, the prince and the chieftain
would resort for instruction. They requested neither lands nor
gold : to them “ the boasted wealth of Bokhara'’'’ was as a particle of
dust. Such was the ascetic who recommended Joda to erect his
castle on ‘ the Hill of Strife 5 ( Jodcigir ), hitherto known as Balcur-
cheerea, or c the bird 5 s nest , 5 a projecting elevation of the same range
on which Mundore was placed, and about four miles south of it.
Doubtless its inaccessible position seconded the recommendation of
the hermit, for its scarped summit renders it almost impregnable,
while its superior elevation permits the sons of Joda to command,
from the windows of their palace, a range of vision almost compre-
hending the limits of their sway. In clear weather, they can view
the summits of their southern barrier, the gigantic Aravulli ; but in
every other direction, -it. fades away in the boundless expanse of
sandy plains. Neither the founder, nor his monitor, the ascetic,
hpwever, were engineers, and they laid the foundation of this strong-
hold without considering what an indispensable adjunct to successful
defence was good water ; but to prevent any slur on the memory of
Joda, they throw the blame of this defect on the hermit. Joda 5 s
engineer, in tracing the line of circumvallation, found it necessary to
include the spot chosen as his hermitage, and his remonstrance for
undisturbed possession was treated with neglect; whether by the
prince as well as the chief architect, the legend says not. .The
incensed Jogi pronounced an imprecatiou, that the new castle should

"We have seen one of these objects, self-condemned never to lie down
during forty years, and there remained but three to complete the term. He
bad travelled much, was intelligent and learned, but far from having contracted
the moroseness of the recluse, there was a benignity of mien, and a suavity and
simplicity of manner in him, quite enchanting. He talked of his penance with
no vain-glory, and of its approaching term without any sensation. The resting
position of this Druid ( vana-perist ) was by means of a rope suspended from
the bough of a tree, iu the manner of a swing, having a cross-bar, ou which he
reclined. The first years of this penance, he says, were dreadfully painful j
ewolleu limbs affected him to that degree, that he expected death ; but this
impression had loiig since worn off, “Even in this, is there much vanity,”
and it -would be a nice point to determine whether the homage of man or the
approbation of the Divinity, most sustains the energies under such appalling
discipline.

[Von. II.] 3

[chap.

III.

annals of mabwab.

and all the efforts made by^uooeeding

possess only brackish water, a . n , blasting the rock, have failed,

princes to obtain a better qnal h I > ^y thou | 1 his anger compelled
The memory of the Jogi is sancti ^d, ^ tor for fche supply of

them to construct Jlake at the foot of the rock

the garrison is elevated fro from the walls, an assailant would

which, being entice y commanded £ °m t to , m the

find difficult to cut off. f T~ S tfiT setttement of Se6]i*
fortunes of the Rahtores, from princes, that the limits

Such was the abundant progeny , aofced> The issue of the

of their conquests soon ^fourteen sons of Ohonda, the twenty -four
three last princes, viz., the already apportioned amongst

of Binmul, and fourteen of 5 an d‘it became necessary to

Sein'w^r^the Kahtove need.-

Joda had fourteen sons, viz. :

Same ot Chiefs. Clans. K* «J

1. Santul, or Satil a D..»«nndn^ .Tnda.

2. Soojoh (Sooraj)

3. Gomob

4. Doodob

Sncceeded Joda.

No issue. , . _

Doodob took Sambbnr
from the Cbobans. tie
, bad one son, Beerum,

Mairtea '• Mairta ■> ^P^jugmal,' founded

the clans Jeimulote and

Jugmalote.

Nolai In Malwa.

I K s .—

7 Bharmul Bharmulote... Bai Bbilara

8. Seoraj Seorajote Dhoonara ..

9. Kurmsi Kunnsote ... Kewusir

10. Raemul Raemul oto ... ~ _ —

11. Samutsi Samutsdote ... Daw«rot >j a „ ore district.

m BunimV 1 Clans and fiefs notmen-

14. Neembo

On the Looui.

tioned.

The eldest sou, Santul, born of a female of Boondi, established

himself in the north-west corner, on the lauds of the Bhattis, a

"built a fort, which he called Satulmdr, about five miles from rolaii •
Ho was killed in action by a Khan of the Sahra.es (the Saracens o
the Indian desert), whom he also slew. His ashes were burnt a
Kusmoh, and an altar was raised over them, where seven of ms

wives became suttees.

The fourth sou, Doodob, establishedhimself on the plains ofMairta,
and his clau, the Mairtea, is numerous, audhas always sustained the

_ M?alli did not remain to Seoji’s descendants, when they went westward
and settled on the Looni : the Seesodins took it with other lands from the
Purihnr of Mundore. It was the feud already adverted to with Mewar which
obtained for him the fertile districts of Palli and Sojut, by which bis territories
at leuetb touched the Aravulli, and the fears ot the assassin of Raua Koombho
made his narricidal son relinquish the provinces of Sambhuv and Ajmer. —
See Yol. I, p. 2-U.

CHAP. Ill],

ANNALS OP HARWAK.

reputation of being the “ first swords” of Maroo. His daughter was\
the celebrated Meera Bae, wife of Ran a Khoombo,* and he was the\
grandsire of the heroic Jeimul, who defended Cheetore against Akber,
and whose descendant, Jeyt Sing of Bednore, is still one of the
sixteen chief vassals of the Oodipoor court.

The sixth son, Beeko, followed the path already trod by his uncle
Kandul, with whom he united, and conquered the tracts possessed by
the six Jit communities. He erected a city, which he called after
himself Beekaner, or- Bikaner.

Joda outlived the foundation of his new capital thirty years, and
beheld his sons and grandsons rapidly peopling and subjugating the
regions of Mai’oo. In S. 1545, aged sixty-one, he departed thislife,
and his ashes were housed with' those of liis fathers, in the ancestral
abode of Mundore. This prince, the second founder of his race in
thelse regions, was mainly indebted to the adversities of early
life for the ' prosperity his later years enjoyed; they led him to
the discovery of worth in the more ancient, but neglected, allodial
proprietors displaced by his ancestors, and driven into the least
accessible reigons of the desert. It was by their aid he was enabled
to redeem Mundore, when expelled by the Gehlotes, and he nobly
preserved the remembrance thereof in the day of his prosperity.
The warriors whose forms are sculptured from the living rock at
Mundore, owe the perpetuity of their fame to the gratitude of Joda ;
through them he not only recovered, but enlarged his dominions, f
In less than three centuries after their migration from Canouj, the
Rahtores, the issue of Se6ji, spread over a surface of four degrees of
longitude and the same extent of latitude, or nearly 80,000 miles
square, and they amount at this day, in spite of the havoc occasioned
by perpetual wars and famine, to 500,000 souls. While we thus
contemplate the renovation of the Rahtore race, from a single scion
of that magnificent tree, whose branches once overshadowed the
plains of Ganga, let us withdraw from oblivion some of the many
noble names they displaced, which now live only in the poet’s page.
Well may the Rajpoot repeat the ever-recurring simile, “Allis unstable;
“ life is like the scintillation of the fire-fiy ; house and land will
“ depart, but a good name will last for ever 1” What a list of noble
tribes could we enumerate now erased from independent existence
by the successes of “ the children of Seva’’ ( Seva-ptitra ) ! J Puriharas,
Eendos, Sanldas, Chohans, Gohils, Dabeys, Sindhils, Mohils, Soni-
gurras, Cattis, Jits, Hools, &c., and the few who still exist only as
retainers of the Rahtore.

Soojoh§ (Soorajmul) succeeded, and occupied the gadi of Joda
during twenty-seven years, and had at least the merit of adding to
the stock of Sdoji.

,* See Yol. I, p. 243. f See Yol. I, p. 624.

t Seoji is the Bhalia for Seva th eyi is merely anadjunct of respect.

§ One oE the chronicles makes Satil occupy the gadi after Joda, during three
years; but this appears a mistake — he was killed in defending Satulmdr.

[Voii. H.] 3 a

annals of marwar.

[chap. Ht.

The contentions for empire, during the vacillating dynasty of the
juodi kino-s of Delili, preserved the sterile lands of Maroo from their
cupidity ° and a second dynasty, the Shere-skahi, intervened ere the
sons of Joda, ■ were summoned to measure swords with the Impe-
rialists. But i.i S. 1572 (A..D. 1516), a desultory band of Pat bans
made an incursion during the fair of the Teej * held at the town
of Peepar, aud carried off one hundred and forty of tlie maidens
of Maroo. The tidings of the rape of the virgin Raj poo tins
were conveyed to Soojoh, who put himself at the head of such
vassals as were in attendance, and pursued, overtook and redeemed
them, with the loss of his own life, but not without a fall measure
of vengeance against the “ northern barbarian.'’-’ The subject is one
chosen by the itinerant minstrel of Maroo, who, at the fair of the
Teej, still sings the rape of the one hundred and forty virgins of
Peepar, and their rescue by their cavalier prince at the price of j his
own blood.

Soojoh had five sons, viz., 1, Bhago, who died in non-age : his son
Ganga succeeded to the throne. 2, Oodoh, who had eleven sons :
they formed the clan. Oodawut, whose chief fiefs areNeemaj, Jytarun,
Goondoche, Biratea, Raepoor, &c , besides places in Mewar. 3. Saga,
from whom descended the clan Sagawut ; located at Burwoh. 4,
Priag, who originated the Priagote clan. 5, Beerumdeo, whose son,
Navoo, receives divine honours as the putra of Maroo, and whose
statue is worshipped at Sojut. His descendants are styled Narawub
Joda, of whom a branch is established at Puchpahai*, in Harouti.

Ganga, grandson of Soojoh, succeeded his grandfather in S. 1 572
(A.D. 1516); but his uncle, Saga, determined to contest his right to
the gadi, invited the aid of Dowlnb Khan Lodi, who had recently
expelled the Rah tores from Nagore. With this auxiliary a civil
strife commenced, and the sons of Joda were marshalled against each
other. Ganga, confiding in the rectitude.of his cause, and reckoning
upon the support of the best swords of Maroo, spurned the offer of
compromise made by the Pat’hau, of a partition of its lands between
the claimants, and gave battle, in which his uncle Sao-a was slain,
and Ins auxiliary, Dowlut Khan, ignominionsly defeated.

Twelve years after the accession of Ganga, the sons of Joda were
called on to unite their forces to Mdwar to oppose the invasion of the
Moguls from Turkistan Sanga Ran a, who had resumed the station

• L , ^f l \ C r e " S i am0U F-i t1lB P Tmc f 0^ Hind, led the war, and the
king of Maroo deemed it no degradation to acknowledge') is supre-

“S T qu 3 \ 0 - figU u,,aer tlie standard of Mdwar,

whose chronicles do more -justice to the TV, • ’

own bards. This, which was the last' confed ' rT f %

Rajpoots for national independence, was defeat pA 10I i ma , ae ^7 ^

in the fatal field of Biana, wherm had^ vested,

intrepid Baber, the Rahtore sword would have had ^ ^

rescuing the nation from the Mahomedan yol ce^L ^ffident to

* Por a description of this festival,

CHAF. m.]

AHNALS OF MABWAR.

2 ?

state that a Rah tore was in the battle, to know that he would bear
its brunt ; and although we are ignorant of the actual position of the
Rana, we may assume that their post was in the van. The young
prince Raemul (grandson of Ganga), with the Mairtea chieftains
Khartoe and Rntna, and mauy others of note, fell against the
Chagitni on this eventful day.

Ganga died* four years after this event, and was succeeded by

Maldeoin S. 158S (A.D. 1532), a name as distinguished as any of
the noble princes in the chronicles of Maroo. The position of
Marwar at -this period was eminently excellent for the increase and.
consolidation of its resources. The emperor Baber found no temp-
tation in her st'erile lands to divert him from the rich plains of the
Ganges, where he had abundant occupation; and the districts and
strong-holds on the emperor’s frontier of Maroo, still held by the
officers of the pi’eceding dynasty, were rapidly acquired by Maldeo,
who plauted his garrisons in the very heart of Dhoond&r. The
death of Sanga Rana, and the misfortunes of the house of Mewar,
Cursed with a succession of minor pifiuces, and at once beset by the
Moguls from the noi'th, and the kings of Guzzerat, left Maldeo to the
uncontrolled exercise of his power, which, like a true Rajpoot, he
employed against friend and foe,'aud became beyond a doubt the
first prince of Rajwai-ra, or, in fact, as styled by the Mahomedau
historian Feriskta, “ the most potent prince in Hindustan.”

The year of Maldeo’s installation, he redeemed the two most
important possessions of his house, Nagore and Ajmdr. In 1596 he
captured Jhalore, Sewanoh, aud Bhadrajoon from the Sindhils ; and
two years later dispossessed the sons of Beeka of supreme power
in Bikaner, Mehwo, and the tracts on the Looni, the earliest
possessions of his house, which had thrown off all dependence, he
once more subjugated, and compelled the ancient allodial tenantry to
hold of him in chief, and serve with their quotas. He engaged in
war with the Bhattis, and conquered Beekumpoor, where a branch of
his family remained, and are now incorporated with the Jessulmdr
state, and, uuder the name of Maldotes,f have the credit of being the
most daring robbers of the desert. He even established branches of
his family in Mewar and Dhoondar, took, and fortified Chatsoo, not
twenty miles south of the capital of tbe Ontchwahas. He captured
aud restored Serohi from the "Deoras, from which house was his
mother. But Maldeo not only acquired, but determined to retain,
his conquests, aud erected numerous fortifications throughout the
country. He enclosed the city of Jodpoor with a strong wall,
besides erecting a palace, and adding other works to the fortress.
The circumvallations of Mairtea and its fort, which he called Mal-
kote, cost him £21,000. He dismantled Satulmer, and with the

* The Tati’s roll, says Ganga, was poisoned ; but this is not confirmed by any
Other authority.

t Mr. Elphinstone apprehended an attack from the Maldotes on his way to
Gabul.

,2

ANNALS OP HAEWAE.

[CHAP. III.

materials fortified Pokurn, which he took from the KiattiB, trans-
planting the entire population, which comprehended the richest
merchants of Bajast’han. He erected forts at Bhadrajoon, on the
hill of Bheemlode, near Sewauob, at Goondocbe, at Beeah, Peejiar,
and Dhoonara. He made the Koondulkote at Sewanoh, and greatly
added to that of Filodi, first made by Hamira Nirawub. He also
erected that bastion in Gurh Beetli (the citadel of Ajmer) called the
Kote-boorj, and shewed his skill in hydraulics by the construction
of a wheel to briug water into the fort. The chronicler adds, that
“ by the wealth of Sambur,” meaning the resources of this salt lake,
he was enabled to accomplish these works, and furnishes a list of
the possessions of Jodpoor at this period, which we cannot exclude :
Sojut, Sambur, Mairtea, Khatah, Bednore, Ladnoo, Baepoor, Bhad-
rajoon, Nagore, Sewanoli, Lohagurh, Jykulgurh, Bikandr, Beenmahl,
Pokurn, Barmair, Kusoli, Bewasso, Jajawur, Jhalore, Baoli/Mular,
Hadole, Filodi, Sanchore, Deedwana, Ohatsoo, Lowain, Mularna,
Deorab, Futtehpoor, Umursir, Khawur, Baniapoor, Tonk, Thoda,
Ajmer, Jehajpoor and Pramar-ca-Oodipoor (in Shekhavati) ; in all
thirty-eight districts, several of which, as Jhalore, Ajmdr, Tonk,
Thoda and Bednore, comprehended each three hundred- and sixty
townships, and there were none which did not number eighty. But
of those enumerated in Dhoonddr, as Chatsoo, Lowain, Tonk, Thoda,
and Jehajpoor in Mewar, the possession was but transient; and
although Bednore, and its three hundred and sixty townships, were
peopled by Bahtores, they were the descendants of the Mairteas
under Jeimul, who became one of the great vassals of Mdwar, and
would, in its defence, at all times draw their swords against the land
which gave them birth * This branch of the house of Joda had for
sometime been too powerful for subjects, and Mairtea was resumed.
To this act Mewar was indebted for the services of this heroic chief.
At the same time, the growing power of others of the great vassalage
of Marwar was checked by resumptions, when Jytarun from the
Oodawuts, and several other fiefs, were added to the fisc. The
feudal allotments had never been regulated, but went on increasing"
with the energies of the state, and the progeny of its princes, each
having on his birth an appanage assigned to him, until the whole

fnncf-f r °f "T ^ n -° ln ™erable portions. Maldeo saw
the necessity for checking this subdivision, and he created a grada-

tlm S 0 ons a o?Tl/^r f i f lts Pf P efc uity in certain branches of
the sons of Bmmul and Joda, which has never been altered

Ten years of undisturbed possession were granted Maldeo to
perfect his designs, ere his cares were diVAvfn/-r. A. ?
own defence. Baber, tbe founder of the

and his son and successor had been driven fro™ 1 ; ynast /> was dead 4
throne by bis provincial lieutenant “^conquered

revolutions crowd upon each other where the swordis theSLol

*Sach is the Bajpoot’s notion of swamdhermn
‘ salt they eat,” their immediate lord, even against their king^ t0

him whose

CHAP. III.]

ANNALS OB' MARWAR.

23

arbitrator. We have elsewhere related that the fugitive monarch
sought, the protection of Maldeo, and we stigmatized his conduct as
unnational ; but we omitted to state that Maldeo, then heir-apparent,
lost his eldest, perhaps then only son Raemul in the battle of Biana,
who led the aid of Marwar on that memorable day, and consequently
the name of Chagitai, whether in fortune or in flight, had no great
claims to his regard. But little did Maldeo dream how closely the
fortunes of his house would be linked with those of the fugitive
Hemayoon, and that the infant Akber, born in this emergency, was
destined to revenge this breach of hospitality. Still less could the
proud Rabtore, who traced his ancestry on the'throne of Canouj one
thousand years before the birth of the " barbarian” of Ferghana,
deem it within the range of probability, that he should receive
honours at such hands, or that the first title. of Raja, Rajeswar , or
‘ raja, lord of rajas/ would be conferred on his own son by this infant,
then rearing amidst the sand-hills at the extremity of his desert
dominion ! It is curious to indulge in the speculative inquiry,
whether, when the great Akbdr girded Oodi Sing with the sword of
honour, and marked his forehead with the unguent of Raja-shah, he
brought to mind the conduct of Maldeo, which doomed his birth to
take place in the dismal castle of Amerkote, instead of in the
splendid halls of Dehli.

* Maldeoderivednoadvantagefromhisinhospitality; forwhether the
usurper deemed his exertions insufficient to secure the royal fugitive,
or felt his own power insecure with so potent a neighbour, he led an
army of eighty thousand men into Marwar. Maldeo allowed them
to advauce, and formed an army of fifty thousand Rajpoots to oppose
him. The judgment and caution he exercised were so great, that
Shere Shah, well versed in the art of war, was obliged to fortify his
camp at every step. Instead of an easy conquest, he soon repented
of his rashness when the admirable dispositions of the Rajpoots made
him dread an action, and from a position whence he found it impos-
sible to retreat. . For a month the armies lay in sight of each other,
every day the king’s situation becoming more critical, and from which
he saw not the slightest chauce of extrication. In this exigence he
had recourse to one of those stratagems which have often operated
successfully on the Rajpoot, by sowing distrust in his mind as to the
fidelity of his vassals. He penned a letter, as if in corresjjondence
with them, which he contrived to have dropped, as by accident, by
a messeuger sent to negotiate. Perhaps the severity of the resump-
tions of estates seconded this scheme of Shere Shah ; for when the
stipulated period for the attack had arrived, the Raja countermanded
it. The reasons 'for this conduct, when success was apparent, were
soon propagated; when one or two of the great leaders, in order to
demonstrate their groundlessness, gave an instance of that devotion
with which the annals of .these states abound. At the head of
twelve thousand, they attacked and forced the imperial entrenched
camp, carrying destruction even to the quarters of the emperor; but
multitudes prevailed, and the patriotic clans were almost annihilated..

CHAP. III.]

ANNALS OF MARWAR.

25

Chundersen, with a considerable number of the brave vassals of
Maroo, determined to cling to independence and tbe rude fare of tbe
desert, rather tbau servilely follow in'" tbe train of tbe despot. When
driven from Jodpoor, they took post in Sewanob, in tbe western
extremity of tbe state, an.d there held out to tbe death. For seventeen
years be maintained bis title to tbe gadi, and divided tbe allegiance of
tbe Rabtores with bis elder brother Oodi Sing (though supported by
tbe king), and stood tbe storm in wbicb be nobly fell, leaving three
sous, Oogursdn, Aiskurn, and Rae Sing, who fougbt a duel with Rao
Soortan, of Sirolii, and was slain, with twenty-four of his chiefs,*
near tbe town of Duttani.

Maldeo, though be submitted to acknowledge tbe supremacy of
tbe emperor, was at least spared tbe degradation of seeing a daughter
of bis blood bestowed upon tbe opponent of bis faith ; he died soon
after tbe title was conferred on bis son, which sealed the dependence
of Maroo. His latter days were a dismal contrast to those which
witnessed bis conquests in almost every part of Rajpootana, but be
departed from this world in time to preserve bis own honour
, untarnished, with tbe character of tbe most valiant and energetic
Rajpoot of his time. Could be have added to his years and
maintained their ancient vigour, be might, by a junction with Pertap
of Mfrtvar, who single-handed commenced bis career just as Maldeo* s
closed, have maintained Rajpoot independence against tbe rising
power of tbe Moguls.t

Maldeo, who died S. 1671 (A.D. 1615), had twelve sons : —

1. — Ram Sing, who was banished, and found refuge with the
Rana of Mewar ; be bad seven sons, the' fifth of whom,
Kdsoodas, fixed at Cbooly Mahdswur.

' 2. — Raemul, who was killed in tbe battle of Biana.

3. — Oodi Sing, Raja of Marwar.

4. — Chundersen, by a wife of tbe Jhala tribe ; bad three sons, tbe

eldest, OogJjxscn.,^got Binai ; he bad tbi’ee sons, Kurrun,
Kanji, and Kabun. '^'“~~* r ^T'

5. — Aiskurn ; descendants at Jooneab.

6. — Gopal-das ; killed at Eedur.

7. — Pirthi Raj ; descendants at Jhalore.

8. — Ruttunsi; descendants at Bhadrajoon.

9. — Bbairaj ; descendants at Abari.

10. — Bikramajeet ")

11. — Bban > No notice of them.

12. — J

* It was fought with a certain number on each side, Rahtores against Deoras,
a branch of the Chohaus, the two bravest of all the Rajpoot races. It reminds
us of some of the duels related by Froissart,
f See Annals of Mewar, p. 282 et seq,

*

[Ton. II.]

4

CHAP. IV.]

ANNALS OP MA'HWAE.

27

Before we proceed to trace the course pursued by Oodi Sing, who
was seated upon the cushion of Maldeo in S. 1640 (A.D. 1584), let
us cast a short retrospect over the annals of Maroo, since the migra-
tion .of the grandson of the potentate of Canon], which, compared
with the ample page of western history, present little more than a
chronicle of hard names, though not destitute of facts interesting to
political science.

In the table before the reader, aided by the explanations in the
text, he will see the whole process of the conquest, peopling, and
settlement of an extensive region, with its partition or allotments
amongst an innumerable frerage (bltyad), whose children continue to
hold them as vassals of their king and brothei’, the descendant of
their mutual ancestor Sdvaji.

We may divide the annals of Marwar, from the migration of
Sevaji from Canouj to the accession of Oodi Sing, into three distinct
epochs :

1st. — Prom the settlement of Sdbji in the land of Kher, in A.D.
1212, to the conquest of Mundore by Chonda, in A.D. 1381 ;

2d. — Prom the conquest of Mundore to the founding of Jodpoor,
in A.D. 1459; and

3d. — Prom the founding Of Jodpoor to the accession of Oodi Sing,
in A.D. 1584, when the Rahtores acknowledged the supremacy of
the empire.

The two first epochs were occupied in the subjugation of the
western portion of the desert from the ancient allodiality ; nor was
it until Chonda conquered Mundore, oh the decline of the Chohans
of the east, that the fertile lands on either side the Looni were
formed into fiefs for the children of Rinmul and Joda. A change
of capital with the Rajpoot is always productive of change in the
internal organization of the state ; and not unfrequently the race
changes its appellation with its capital. The foundation of Jodpoor was
a new era, and henceforth the throne of Maroo could only be occupied
. by the tribe of Joda, and from branches not constituting the vassals
of the crown, who were cut of from succession. This is a peculiar
feature in Rajpoot policy, and is common to the whole race, as will
be hereafter more distinctly pointed out in the annals of Ajmer.

Joda, with all the ambition of the founder of a state, gave a new
-form to the feudal institutions of his country. Necessity, combined
with pride, led him to promulgate a statute of limitation of the sub-
infeudations of Maroo. The immense progeny of his father Rinmul,
twenty -four sons, and his own, of fourteen, almost all of whom had
-numei-ous issue, 'rendered it requisite to fix the number and extent
of the fiefs; and amongst them, henceforward constituting perma-
nently.the/rerope of Maroo, the lands were partitioned, Kandul having
emigrated and established his own numerous issue, the Kandulotes,
in Bikandr. The two brothers next to Joda, viz., Champa, and
Xoompa, with his two sons, Doodo and Kurmsi, and his grandson,
[Von. H.] 4 a

28

ANNALS OF MARWAR.

[CHAP.' IV.

declared the heads of the feudal association under their

wy.ww J _ C_J * f nr A A AN

of the nominal annual value of fifty thousand rupees (£5,000); were
settled on these persons, and their immense influence Las obtained many
others for younger branches of their clans. The title of the first
noble of Maroo was given to Champa and his issue, who have often
made its princes tremble on their thrones. Besides these, inferior
appanages- were settled on the junior branches, brothers, sons, and
grandsons of Joda, which were also deemed hereditary and ir resum -
able; to use their own phrase, their bat’h ,* or f allotment/ to which
they consider their title as sacred as that of their prince to his throne,
of whom they say, "When our services are acceptable, then is he our
“ lord, when not, we are again his brother’s and kin, claimants, and
“ laying claim to the land.f”

Rao Maldeo confirmed this division of Joda, though he increased
the secondary fiefs, and as the boundaries of Marwar were completed
in his reign, it was essentially necessary to confirm the limitation.
The feudal states of Marwar are, therefore, perpetuated in the .
offspring of the princes from Joda to Maldeo, and a distinction exists
between them and those subsequently conferred ; the first, being
obtained by conquest, are deemed irrevocable, and must be perpetu-
ated by adoption on the failure of lineal issue ; whereas' the other
may, on lapses, be resumed and added to the fisc whence it emanated.
The fiscal domain of the Rajpoot princes cannot, says their tradi-
tionary lore, be alienated for more than a life-interest ; but this wise
rule, though visible iu anecdotes of past days, has been infringed
with their general disorganization. These instances, it may be
asserted, afford the distinctions of allodial and feudal lands. Of the
numerous clans, the issue of Seoji to Joda, which are spread over the
northern and western parts of the state, some, partly from the
difficulty of their position, partly from a feeling of respect to their
remote ancestry, enjoy almost entire independence. Yet they recog-
nize the prince of Maroo as their liege lord when his crown is
en angered, and render homage on his accession or any great family
event These clans hold without grantor fine, and may properly
be called the allodial ckieftams. Of this number we may enumerate
the lordships of Barmaxr, Kotorah, Sed, Phulsoond, &c. Others

ShUiilS Wll (° M 10Ugh le f mde P enden t, may also be styled the
fmnSS L!T ° t0 fa™** their quotas when'

f v ° f

over tie land, or serving tie more modern chieftains are re “(railed
by their patronymic distinctions, by those versed in the chroScles -
though many hear the names of Poohurc q, Manguleat OohS, and

* From latna, ‘ to divide, to partition.’ ~ ~

f See the remonstrance of the vassal descendants of (1, , . . ,

their patrimony by their prince, to the English enemy y^j S j c ^ lefs ’ expelled

CHAP. IV.]

ANNALS OF MARWAR.

29

Dhandul, without knowing them to be Rah tore. The mystic page
of the bai*d is always consulted previous to any marriage, in order
to prevent a violation of the matrimonial canons of the Rajpoots,
which are stricter than the Mosaic, and this keeps up the knowledge
of the various branches of their own and other races, which would
otherwise perish.

Whatever term may be applied to these institutions of a martial
race, and which for the sake of being more readily understood we
have elsewhere called, and shall continue to designate, c feudal/ we
have not a shadow of doubt that they were common to the Rajpoot
races from the remotest ages, and that Seoji conveyed them from
the seat of his ancestors, Oanouj. A finer picture does not exist of
the splendour of a feudal array than the camp of its last monarch,
Jeichund, in the contest with the Chohan. The annals of each and
every state bear evidence to a system strictly parallel to that of
Europe 3 more especially Mewar, where, thirteen hundred years ago,
we see the entire feudatories of the state throwing up their grants,
giving their liege lord defiance, and threatening him with their
vengeance. Tet, having ‘ eateu his salt/ they forebore to proceed to
hostilities till a whole year had elapsed, at the expiration of which
they deposed him.* Alcbdr, who was partial to Hindu institutions,
borrowed much from them, in all that concerned his own regulations.

In contrasting these customs with analogous ones in the west, tho
reader should never lose sight of one point, which must influence the
analogy, viz., the partriarchal form which characterizes the feudal
system in all countries 3 and as, amongst the Rajpoots, all their
vassalage is of their own kin and blood (save a slight mixture of
foreign nobles as a counterpoise), the paternity of the sovereign is
no fiction, as in Europe 3 so that from the son of Champa, who takes
the right hand of his prince, to the meanest vassal, who serves
merely for his ‘ paiti,-\ (rations), all are linked by the tie of consan-
guinity, of which it is difficult to say whether it is most productive
of evil or good, since it has afforded examples as brilliant and as
dark as any in the history of mankind. The devotion which made
twelve thousand, out of the fifty thousand, “-sons of Joda,” prove
their fidelity to Maldeo, has often been emulated even to the present
day.

The chronicles, as before stated, are at variance with regard to the
accession of Oodi Sing : some date it from the death of Maldeo, in S.
1625 (A.T). 1569) 3 others from that of his elder brother Chundersen,
slain in the storm of Sewanoh. The name of Oodi appears one of
evil portent in the annals of Rajastffian.J While “ Oodi, the fat,”

* See Yol. I, page 189.

t Literally, ' a bellyful.’

j Instead "of being, as it imports, the "ascending,” (1) it should for ever, in
both the bouses of Maroo and Mewar, signify " setting;” the pusillanimity of
the one sunk Mdwar, that of the other Marwar.

(1) Oodya, in Sanscrit, (Oodi, in the dialect), is tantamount to Oriens, the
point of rising : — ex Udyadita, ‘ the rising sun.’

•So

ANNALS or 'MARWAP..

[CHAP. IT.

was inbaling the breeze of imperial power, which spread a lmze of
prosperity over Maroo, Pertap of Mewar, tbo idol of the Rajpoots,
was enduring every hardship in the attempt to work out -his
country’s independence, which had been sacrificed by his father,
Oodi Sing. In this ho failed, but he left a name hallowed in the
hearts of his countrymen, and immortalized in the imperishable
verse of the bard.

On the union of the imperial house with that of Jodpoor, by the
marriage of Jod Bae to Akber, the emperor not only restored all the
possessions he had wrested from Mar war, with the exception of Ajmer ,
bnt several rich districts in Malwa, whose revenues doubled the
resources of his own fiscal domain. With the aid of his imperial
brother-in-law, he greatly diminished the power of tlio feudal aristo-
cracy, and clipped the wings of almost all the greator vassals, while
he made numerous sequestrations of the lauds of tlio ancient
allodiality and lesser vassals ; so that it is slated, that, either by
new settlement or confiscation, he added fourteen hundred villages to
the fisc. He resumed almost all the lands of the sons of Doodoh,
who, from their abode, were termed Mnirtca ; took Jaitarun from
the Oodawnts, and other towns of less note from the sons of Champa
and Koompo,

Oodi Sing was not ungrateful for the favours heaped upon him by
the emperor, for whom his Ralitores performed many signal services :
for the Raja was latterly too umvieldly for any steed to bear him to
battle. The f king of the Desert’ (the familiar epithet applied to him
by Akbdr) had a numerous progeny ; no less than thirty-four legiti-
mate sons and daughters, who added new clans and new estates to
the feudal association of Maroo : of these the most conspicuous are
Govingurh and Pisangurh ; while some obtained settlements beyond
its limits which became independent and bear the name of the
founders. OE these are ICishengurli and Rutlam in Malwa.

Oodi Sing died thirteen years after his inauguration on the cushion
of Joda, and thirty-three. after the death of Maldeo. The manner of
bis death, as related in the biographical sketches termed f Kheat,’
affords such a specimen of superstition and of Rajpoot manners that
it would be impi'oper to omit it. The narrative is preceded by some
reflections on the moral education of the Rahtore princes, and the
wise restraints imposed upon them under the vigilant control of
chiefs of approved worth and fidelity • so that, to use the words of
the text - they often passed their twentieth year, ignorant of
woman. If the f fat rap’ had ever known this moral restraint, in
his riper years he forgot it j for although he had no less than twenty-
seven queens he cast the eye of desire on the virgin-daughter of a
subject, ana that subject a Branmm. °

It was on the Raja’s return from court To his native land, that he
beheld the damsel and he determined, notwithstanding the sacred
character of her father and his own obligations as the dispenser of
law and justice, to enjoy the' object of his admiration. The Brahmin

CHAP. IT.]

ANNALS OF HAWAII.

31

was an ' Ayd-punti,’ or votary of Ay d- Mata , whose shrine is at Bai-
Bhilara. These sectarians of Maroo, very different from the abstinent
Brahmins of Bengal, eat flesh, drink wine, and share in all the
common enjoyments of life with the martial spirits around them.
Whether the scruples of the daughter were likely to be easily over-
come by her royal tempter, or whether the Baja threatened force, the
* hit eat’ does not inform us ; but as there was no other course by
which the father could save her from pollution but by her death, he
resolved to make it one of vengeance and horror. He dug a sacrificial
pit, aud having slain his daughter, cut her into fragments, and
mingling therewith pieces of flesh from his own person, made the
c homa’ or burnt sacrifice to Aya-Math, and as the smoke and flames
ascended, he pronounced an imprecation on the Baja : " Let peace be
" a stranger to him ! and in three pahars,* three days, and three yeai’S,
"let me have revenge ! 55 Then exclaiming, "My future dwelling is the
" ‘ Dabi Baori !’ ” sprung into the flaming pit. The horrid tale was
related to the Baja, whose imagination was haunted by the shade oE
the Brahmin; and he expired at the assigned period, a prey to
unceasing remorse. .

Superstition is sometimes made available for moral ends ; and the
shade of the Ayd-punti Brahmin of Bhilara has been evoked, in subse-
quent ages, to restrain and lead unto virtue libidinous princes, when
all other control has been unavailing. The celebrated Jeswuut Sing,
the great grandson of Oodi, had an amour with the daughter of one
of his civil officers, and which he carried on at the Dabi Baori. f
Bub the avenging ghost of the Brahmin interposed between him and
his wishes. A dreadful struggle ensued, in which Jeswuut lost his
senses, and no effort could banish the impression from his mind. The
ghost persecuted his fancy, aud he was generally believed to be
possessed with a wicked spirit, which, when exorcised, was made to
say he would only depart on the self-sacrifice of a chief equal in
dignity to Jeswunt. Nairn r Khan, ‘ the tiger lord , 5 chief of the
KoompaWut clan, who led the van in all his battles, immediately
offered his head in expiation for his prince; and he had no sooner
expressed this loyal determination, than the holy men who exorcised
the spirit, caused it to descend into a vessel of water, and having
waved it thrice rouud his head, they presented it to Nahur Khan
who drank it off, and Jeswuut 5 s senses were instantly restored. This
miraculous transfer of the ghost is implicitly believed by every chief
of Bnjast’han, by whom Nahur was called ‘ the faithful of the faithful.’
Previous to dying, he called his son, and imposed on him and his
descendants, by the solemnity of an oath, the abjuration of the office
of Purclhan, or hereditary premier of Marwar, whose dignity involved
such a sacrifice; and from that day, the Champawnuts of Ahwa
succeeded the Koompawuts of Asope, who renounced the first seat
on the right for that on the left of their princes.

* A pahar is a watch of the day, about three hours.
-}- A reservoir excavated by one of the Dabi tribe.

32

ANNALS OF HAPAVAB.

[CHAP. IV.

We shall conclude the reign of Oodi Sing with the register of- his
issue from f the Book of Kings/ It is by no means an unimportant
document to such as are interested in these singular communities,
and essentially useful to those who are called upon to interfere in
their national concerns. Here we see the affinities of the branch
(sac’ha) to the parent tree, which in one short century has shaded
the whole land,- and to which the independents of Kishengurh,
Boopnao'urli, and Rutlam, as well as the feudal chiefs of Govingurh,
Khyrwa° and Pisangurh, all issues from Oodi Sing, look for protection.

Issue of Raja Oodi Sing : —

1. — Soor Sing, succeeded.

2. — Akhiraj.

3. — Bugwandas; had issue Bullo, Gopaldas, Govindas who

founded Govingurh.

4. — N ururdas,

5. — Sukut Sing, > had no issue attaining eminence.

6. — Bhoput, j ,

7. — Dilput had four sons ; 1, Muliesdas, whose son, .Rutna,

founded Rutlam j* 2, Jeswunt Sing ; 3, Pertap Sing ; 4,
Kunirain.

8. — Jaet had four sons ; 1, Hur Sing; 2, Umra; 3, Kuiiniram;

4, Praimraj, whose descendants held lands in the tract
called Bullati and Khyrwa.

9. — Kishen,inS. 1669 (A.D. 1613), founded Kisheugurh; he had

three sons, Schesmul, Jugmul, Bharmul, who had Hari Sing,
who had Roop Sing, who founded Roopnagurh.

10. — Jeswunt, his son Maun founded Manpoora, his issue called

Manroopa Joda.

11. — Kesoo founded Pisangurh.

12. — Ramdas,

13. — Poorunmul,

14. — Madoodas,

15. — Mohundas,

16. — Keerut Sing,

\ No mention of them.

And Seventeen daughters not registered in the chronicle.

* Rutlam, Kishongurb, and Roopnagurh, are independent, and all under the
separate protection of the British Government.

CHAP. V.]

ANNALS OF MARYVAR.

33

CHAPTER V.

Accession of Raja Soor. — H is military talents obtain him honours. — Reduces
Jiao Soor tan of Sirohi. — Commands against the King of Guzzerat. — Battle
of Dhnndoca gained by the Jtaja , — Wealth and honours acquired. — Gifts to
the bards, — Commanded against Umrn Balechct. — Battle of the llewa. — Slays
the Chohan. — Fresh honours, — Raja Soor and his soil Gvj Sing attend the
court of .Wtaugiv . — The heir of Manvar invested with the sword by the
Emperor s own hands. — Escalade of Jhalorc . — Raja Guj attends Prince
Khoorm against the liana of Mi war. — Death of Jtaja Soor. — Maledictory
pillar erect'd on the Kcrhndda. — The Rahtore chiefs’ dissatisfaction at their
long detention from their native] land. — Raja Soor embellishes Jodpoor . —
H is issue . — Accession of Raja Guj. — Invested with the Rajas hip of Boorhan-
poor. — Made Viceroy of the Jlehhan . — The compliment paid to his contingent.
— His various actions. — Receives the title of DuH’humna, or ‘ barrier of the
host.' — Causes of Rajpoot iiglwncc on the Imperial succession. — The Sultans
Purer: and Khoorm, sons of Rajpoot Princesses. — Intrigues of the Queens to
secure the succession to (htir immediate cfspring. — Prince Khoorm gdnts
against his brother. — Endeavours to gain Raja Guj, but fails . — The Prince
cause*: the chief adviser of Raja Guj to be assassinated. — Raja Guj quits the
royal army. — Prince Khoorm assassinates his brother PurvtZ. — Proceeds to
dipose his father Jehangir, who appeals to the fidelity of the Rajpoot Princes.
— They rally round the throne , and encounter the rebel army near Benares.
— The Emperor t tights the Rahtore I’rincc, which proves nearly fatal to his
cause. — The rebels defeated. — Flight of Prince Khoorm . — Raja Guj slain on
the GuzzCiai frontier. — Hie second son, Raja ,/ceunint, succeeds. — Reasons for
occasional depnrtmc from the rules of primogeniture amongst the Rajpoots . —
Umra, th* elder, excluded the succession. — Sent mice of banishment pi onounced
against him. — Ceremony of des-vatti, or ’exile,' described . — Umra. repairs to
the Mogul court. — Honours conferred upon him. — Hit tragical death.

Soon Si no succeeded in S. 1051 (A.D. 1595). lie was serving with
the imperial forces at Laliore, where he had commanded since S. 1G48,
when intelligence reached him of his father’s death. 1 1 is exploits
and services were of the most brilliant nature, and had obtained for
bim, even during his father’s life, tlio title of f Sowao Raja/ and a
high grade amongst the dignitaries of the empire. He was com-
manded by Akber to reduco tho arrogant prince of Sirohi, who,
trusting to the natural strength of his mountainous country, still
refused to acknowledge a liege lord. This service well accorded with
his private views, for he had a feud (pverj with Rao Soortan, which,
according to tho chronicle, ho completely revenged. “ He avenged
(< his feud with Soortan and plundered Sirohi. The Rao had not a
” pallet left to sleep upon, but wasobliged to make a bed for his wives
“ upon the earth.” This appears to have humbled the Deora, <c who,
“ W his prido, shot his arrows at the sun for daring to shine upon
tc him.” Soortan accepted the imperial firmfin in token of sub-
mission, and agreed to serve with a contingent of his hardy clans-
[Yox,. II.] 6

34

ANNALS OF MARWAR.

[CHAP. V.

men in the -war then entrusted to Raja Soor. against the king of
Guzzerat, whose success we shall relate in the simple language of the
chronicle The Raja took the pdn against the king Mozuttur,
“ W xfcli the title of viceroy of Guzzerat. The armies met at Dhun-
ct doc a, where a terrible conflict ensued. The Ralitores lost many
" valiant men, but the Shah was defeated, and lost all the
" insignia of his greatness. He sent the spoil of seventeen thousand
« towns to the king, but kept a erore of dribs for himself, which he
“ sent to Jodpoor, and therewith he enlarged the town and fort. For
“ this service Akber increased his munsub , and sent him a sword,
“ with a khelat, and a grant of fresh lands.”

Raja Soor, it appears in the sequel, provided liberally for the
bards ; for no less than ‘ six lords of verse/ whose names are given,
had in gift £10,000 each of the spoils of Guzzerat, as incentives to
song.

On the conquest of Guzzerat, Raja Soor was ordered to the
Dekhan. “He obeyed, and with thirteen thousand horse, ten large
“ guns, and twenty elephants, he fought three grand battles. On
“.the Rewa (Nerbudda) he attacked Utnra Baldcha,* * * § who had five
“ thousand horse, whom he slew, and reduced all his country. For
“ this service the king sent him a nohut (kettle-drum), and con-
“ ferred on him Dhar and its domain.”

On Akbdr’s death and the accession of Jahangir, Soor Sing
attended at court with his son and heir, Guj Sing, whom the king
with his own hands invested with the sword, for his bravery in the
escalade of Jhalore, which had been conquered by the monarch of
Guzzerat and added to his domain. The poet thus relates the event :
“ Gujf was commanded against Behari Pat’han ; his war-trump
“ sounded ; Arabudha heard and trembled. What took Alla-o-din
years, Guj accomplished in three months; ho escaladed JhalindraJ
swoid in hand; many a Rahtore of fame was killed, but he put
‘ kke sword seven thousand Pat’hans, whose spoils were sent to
“ the king.

Raja Soor, it would appear, after the overthrow of the dynasty of
Guzzerat remained at the capital, while his son and heir, Gui Sing,
attended the king s commands, and, soon after the taking of Jhalor!
was ordered with the Marwar contingent against Ran a Umra of
Mewar it was at the very moment of its expiring liberties S for the
chronicle merely adds, “ Kurrun agreed to serve thr> i ; a n '

“ Sing returned to Tarragurh.|| The king TncrealA Gn]

“ munsub (dignity) and that of his father^Raja Soor ^ OTm

* Baldcba is one of the Ghohan tribes. " "

f Guj, ‘ the elephant.’

j Classical appellation of Jhalore.

§ The chronicle says, “ In S. 1669 (A.D. 16131, the 1-;™ t
;ainst the Eana which accords exactly with the daiA ;„T/ :0med an arm y
ln me emperor's own.

against

■memoirs.

Ajmer, of which the citadel is styled Tarragurh.

CHAP. V.]

ANNALS OP MARWAR.

35

Tlius the Rajpoot chronicler, solicitous only to record the fame of
his own princes, does not deem it necessary to concern himself with
the agents conjoined with them, so that a stranger to the events of
the period would imagine, from the high relief given to their actions,
that the Rahtore princes commanded in all the great events described;
for instance, that just mentioned, involving the submission of
the Rana, when Raja Guj was merely one of the great leaders who
accompanied the Mogul heir-apparent, Prince Khoorm, on this
memorable occasion. In the Diary of Jdhangir, the emperor,
recording this event, does not even mention the Rahtore pi'ince,
though he does those of Kotah and Duttea, as the instruments by
which Prince KhoOrm carried on the negociation ;* from which we
conclude that Raja Guj merely acted a military part in the grand
army which then invaded Mewar.

Raja Soor died in the Dekhan, in S. 1676 (A.D. 1620). He added
greatly to the lustre of the Rahtore name, was esteemed by the
emperor, and, as the bard expresses it, “ His spear was frightful to
rr the Southron.” Whether liaja Soor disapproved of the extermin-
ating warfare carried ■on in- these regions, or was exasperated at the
unlimited service he was doomed to, which detained him from his
native land, he, in his last moments, commanded a pillar to be
erected with a curse engraven thereon, imprecated upon any of
his race who should once cross the Nerbudda. Prom his boy-
Jiood he had been almost an alien to his native land : he had
accompanied his father wherever he led the aid of Maroo, was
serving at Lahore at the period of his accession, and died far from
the monuments of his fathers, in the heart of the peninsula.
Although the emperor was not ungrateful in his estimate of these
services, — for Raja Soor held by patent no less than “ sixteen
te grand fiefs”/ of the empire, and with the title of sowae raised above
all the princes, his associates at court, — it was deemed no compensa-
tion for perpetual absence from the hereditary domain, thus aban-
doned to the management of servants. The great vassals, his clans-
men, participated in this dissatisfaction, separated from their wives,
families, and estates ; for to them the pomp of imperial greatness; or
the sunshine of court-favour, was as nothing when weighed against
the exercise of their influence within their own cherished patrimony.
The simple fare of the desert was dearer to the Rahtore than all the
luxuries of the imperial banquet, which he turned from with disgust
to the recollection of r the green pulse of Muudawur,’ or his favorite
rabrif or f maize porridge/ the prime dish with the Rahtore. These

* See Annals of Me war, Yol.' I, p. 304

f Of these, nine were the subdivisions of his native dominions, styled “ The
‘‘Kino Castles of Maroo for on becoming one of the great feudatories
of the empire, he made a tornml surrender of these, receiving them again
by grant, renewed on every lapse, with all the ceremonies of investiture and
relief. Jive were in Quzzerat, one in Malwa, and one in the Dekhan. We
see that thirteen thousand horse was the contingent of Mnrwar for the lands
thus held.

[Von. II.]

5a

36

ANNALS OF MARWAR.

[CHAP, V,

minor associations conjoined with greater evils to increase the mal
de pays, of whose influence no human being is more susceptible than

the brave Rajpoot. tip.

Raja Soor greatly added to the beahty of Ins capital, and left sevo?

ral works which bear his name ; amongst them, not the least useful
in that arid region, is the lake called the Soor Sagur , or ' v\ amor s
Sea/ which irrigates the gardens on its margin. He left six sons and
seven daughters, of whose issue we have no account, viz., Guj Sing,
liis successor ; Subhul Sing/Beerumdeo, Beejy Sing, Per tap Sing,
and Jeswunt Sing.

Raja Guj, who succeeded his father in A. D. 1620, was born at
Lahore, and the teeJca of investiture found him in the royal camp at
Boorhanpoor. The bearer of it was Darab Khan, the sou of the
khankhanan, or premier noble of the emperor’s court, who, as the
imperial proxy, girt Raja Guj with the sword. Besides the ‘ nine
castles’ ( Nolcotee Manvar), his patrimony, his patent contained a
grant of ‘ seven divisions’ of Guzzerat, of the district of Jhulaye in
Dhoondar; and what was of more consequence to him, though of less
intrinsic value, that of Musaoda in Ajmer, the heir-loom of his house.
Besides these marks of distinction, he received the highest proof of
confidence in the elevated post of viceroy of the Dekhan; and, as a
special testimony of imperial favour, the Rahtore cavaliers composing
his contingent were exempted from th Q-dai/’h, that is, having their
steeds branded with the imperial signet. His elder son, Urnra Sing,
served with his father in all his various battles, to the success of
which his conspicuous gallantry ou every occasion contributed. In
the. sieges and battles of Kirldgurh, Golconda, Kelena, Pernala,
Gujuugurh, Asair and Sattara, the Rahtores find their full share of
glory, which obtained for their leader the title of DuU’humna, or,
‘ barrier of the host.’ We have already* remarked the direct influ-
ence which the Rajpoot princes had in the succession to the imperial
dignity, consequent upon the inter-marriage of their daughters with
the crown, and the various interests arisiug therefrom. Sultan
<dder sou atl( l heir of Jehangfr, was the issue of a priucess
of Mai war, while the second son, Khoorm, as his name imports, was
the son of a Cutchwahat princess of Amber. Beino- the offspring of
polygamy, and variously educated, these princes were little disposed
to consider consanguinity as a bond of natural union - and their
respective mothers, with all the ambition of their race, thought of
nothing but obtammg the diadem for the head of their children.
With either of these rival queens, the royal children who were not
her own, had no affinity with her or hers and r v

imparted from the birth to their issue, and thus it too n, ee l n £ S wer ®
that the heir of the throne was looked upoTwiffit I™ lla PP ehed
a bar to be removed at all hazards. This evil alrnrwf nviou ®. as
great advantages derived from inter-marriag ewith the ffiffigenous

* See Yol. I, p. 316. ~ " ~ ~~ 8

+ Outchwa and Khoorm. aro synonymous tfrms for tv.

Amber, — The Tortoises o£ Rajasthan. s e race which r

ules

CHAP, V,]

ANNALS OP MARWAR.

37

races of India ; but it was one which would have ceased with poly-
gamy. Khoorrn feifchis superiority over his elder brother, Purvdz,
in all but the accidental circumstance of birth. He was in every
respect a better man, and a braver and more successful soldier ; and,
having his ambition thus early nurtured by the stimulants adminis-
tered by Bheem of Me war, and the intrepid Mohabet,* he.determined
to remove this barrier between him and the crown. His views were
first developed whilst leading the armies in the Bekhan, and he
communicated them to Raja Guj of Marwar, who held the post of
honour next the prince, and solicited his aid to place him on the
throne. Gratitude for the favours heaped upon him by the king,
as well as the natural bias to Purvez, made the Raja turn a deaf
ear to his application. The prince tried to gain his point through
Goviudas, a Rajpoot of the Bhatti tribe, one of the foreign nobles
of Maroo, and confidential adviser of his prince; but, as the
annals say, ” Govindas reckoned no one but his master and the
“ king.” Frustrated in this, Khoorrn saw no hopes of success but by
disgusting the Rahtores, and lie caused the faithful Govindas to be
assassinated by Kishen Singjf on which Raja Guj, in disgust, threw
up his post, and marched to his native laud. From the assassination
of Purvez, which soon followed, the deposal of his father appeared
but a step ; and Khoorrn had collected means, which he deemed
adequate to the design, when Jdhaugir appealed to the fidelity of
the Rajpoots, to support him against filial ingratitude and domestic
treason ; and, in their general obedience to the call, they afforded a
distinguished proof of the operation of the first principle, Gadi-cct-dn,
allegiance to the throne, often obeyed without reference to the
worth of its occupaut. The princes of Marwar, Amber, Kotah, and
Boohdi put themselves at the head of their household retainers on
this occasion, which furnishes a confirmation oE a remark already
made, that the respective annals of the states of R ijast’han so rarely
embrace the contemporaneous events of the rest, as to lead to the
conclusion, that by the single force oE each state this rebellion was
put down. This remark will be further exemplified from the annals
of Boondi.

Johaugir was so pleased with the zeal of the Rahtore prince, —
alarmed as he was at the advance of the rebels, — that he not only
took him by the hand, but what is most unusual, kissed it. When
the assembled princes came in sight of the rebels, near Benares, the
emperor gave the herole, or vanguard, to the Outchwaha prince, the
Mirza Raja of Amber. Whether this was a point of policy, to secure
his acting against prince Khoorrn, who was born of this race, or
merely, as the Marwar annals state, because he brought the greater
number into the field, is immaterial; but it was very nearly fatal in
its consequences : for the proud Rahtore, indignant at the insult

* A ltajpoot of the liana’s house, converted to the faith.
f This was the founder of Kisheugurh ; for this iniquitous service he was
made an independent Raja in the town which he erected. His descendant is
now an ally by treaty with the British government.

3S

ANHALS OP UARWAR.

[CHAP. V.

offered to him in thus bestowing the post of honour, which was liis
' rio-ht, upon the rival race of Ambdr, furled his banners, separated
from the royal army, and determined to be a quiet spectator of the
result. But for the impetuous Bheem of Mewar, the adviser of
Khoorm, he might that day have been emperor of India. He sent a
taunting message to Baja Guj, either to join their cause or aiaw
' « their swords." The Rahtores overlooked the neglect of the king
in the sarcasm of one of their own tribe ; and Bheem was slain,
Govindas avenged, the rebellion quelled, andKhoorm put to flight,
chiefly by the Rahtores and Haras.

In S. 1694 (A.D. 1638), Raja Guj was slain in an expedition into
Guzzerat; but whether in the fulfilment of the king’s commands, or
in the chastisement of freebooters on his own southern frontier, the
chronicles do not inform us. He left a distinguished name in the
annals of his country, and two valiant sons, Urara and Jeswunt, to
maintain it: another son, Acliil, died in infancy.

The second son, Jeswunt, succeeded, and furnishes another of many
instances in the annals of Rajpootana, of the rights of primogeniture
being set aside. This proceeded from a variety of motives, sometimes
merely paternal affection, sometimes incapacity in the child ‘ to head
fifty thousand Rahtores,’ and sometimes, as in the present instance, a
dangerous turbulence and ever-boiling impetuosity in the individual,
which despised all restraints. While there was an enemy against
whom to exert it, TJmrawas conspicuous for his gallantry, and in all
his father’s wars in the south, was ever foremost in the battle. His
daring spirit collected around him those of his own race, alike in
mind, as connected by blood, whose actions, in periods of peace, were
the subjects of eternal complaint to his father, who was ultimately
compelled to exclude Umra from his inheritance.

In the month of Bysak, S. 1690 (A.D. 1634), five years before the
death of Raja Guj, in a convocation of all the feudality of Maroo,
sentence of exclusion from the succession was pronounced upon
Umra, accompanied by the solemn and seldom practised rite of
Des-vatoli or exile. This ceremony, which is marked as a day of
mourning in the calendar, was attended with all the circumstances of
funereal pomp. As soon as the sentence was pronounced, that his
birth-right was forfeited and assigned to his junior brother/ and that
ho ceased to be a subject of Maroo, the Ichelat of banishment was
brought forth, consisting of sable vestments, in which he was clad •
a sable shield was hung upon his back, and a sword of tbe same hue
girded round lnm ; a black horse was then led out, being mounted on
which, he was commanded, though not in anger, to depart whither
lie listed boyoncl the limits of Maroo.

Umra went not alone ; numbers of each clan, who had always
regarded him as then- future lord, voluntarily partook of bis exile
He repaired to the imperial court ; and although the emperorapproved
and sanctioned his banishment, ho emploved him n- ,i ,
noon von him tie title of Rao end the o£ a leafe of fcee

CHAP, y.]

ANNALS OP MARWAR.

39

thousand, with fclie grant of Nagore as an independent domain, to be
held directly from the crown. B ut the same arrogant and uncontroll-
able spirit which lost him his birth-right, brought his days to a
tragical conclusion. He absented himself for a fortnight from court,
hunting the boar or the tiger, his ouly recreation. The emperor
(Shah Jehan) reprimanded him for neglecting his duties, and threat-
ened him with a fine. Umra proudly replied, that he had only gone
to hunt, and as for a fine, he observed, putting his hand upon his
sword, that was his sole wealth.

The little contrition which this reply evinced, determined the king
to enforce the fine, and the paymaster-general, Sallabut Khan,* was
sent to Umra’s quarters to demand its payment. It was refused, and
the observations made by the Syud not suiting the temper of Umra,
he unceremoniously desii’ed him to depart. The emperor, thus
insulted in the person of his officer, issued a mandate for Umra’s
iustant appearance. He obeyed ; and having reached the aum-hhas,
or grand divan, beheld the king, “ whose eyes were red with anger/*
with Sallabut in the act of addressing him. Inflamed with passion
at the recollection of the injurious language he had just received,
perhaps at the king’s confirmation of his exclusion from Marwar, he
unceremoniously passed the Omrahs of five and seven thousand, as
if to address the king; when, with a dagger concealed in his
sleeve, he stabbed Sallabut to the heart. Drawing his sword, he
made a blow at the king, which descending on the pillar, shivered
the weapon in pieces. The king abandoned his throne and fled to
the interior apartments. All was uproar and confusion. Umra
continued the work of death, indifferent upon whom his blows fell,
and five Mogul chiefs of eminence had fallen, when his brother-in-
law, Urjoon Gore, under pretence of cajoling him, inflicted a mortal
wound, though he continued to ply his dagger until he expired. To
avenge his death, his retainers, headed by Bulloo Champawut and
Bhao Khoompawut, put on their saffron garments , and a fresh
carnage ensued within the loll Icelah.f To use the words of their
native bard, “ The pillars of Agra bear testimony to their deeds, nor
“ shall they ever be obliterated from the record of time : they made
u their obeisance to Umra in the mansions of the sun.” The faithfnl
band was cut to pieces; and his wife, the princess of Boondi, came
in person and carried away the dead body of Umra, with which she
committed herself to the flames. The Bokhara gate by which they
gained admission, was built up, and henceforward known ouly as
” Umra Sing’s gate ;” and in proof of the strong impression made by

* Sallabut Khan Bulcshee, he is called. The office of Bukshee is not only
one of paymaster (as it implies), but of inspection and audit. We cau readily
imagine, with such levies as he had to muster and pay, his post was more
honourable than secure, especially with Buch a band as was headed by Umra,
ready to take offence i£-the wind but displaced their moustache. The annals
declare that Umra had a feud {ioer) with Sallabut ; doubtless for no better
reason than that he fulfilled the trust reposed in him by the emperor,
t The palace within the citadel {Icelah •), built of red {loll) freestone.

40 ANNALS OF MARWAR. [CHAr. V.

•this event,* it remained closed through centuries, until opened in
1809 by Capt. Geo. Steel!, of tlie Bengal engineers.f

*■ It nmy be useful to record such facts, by tbe way of contrast with the state
policy of tbe west, and for the sake of observing that which would actuate the
present paramount power of India should any of its tributary princes defj' them
as Umra did that of the universal potentate of that country. Even these
despots borrowed a lesson of mercy from the .Rajpoot system, which does not
deem treason hereditary, nor attaints a whole line for the fault of one unworthy
link. Shah Tchan, instead of visiting the sins of the father on the son, installed
him in his fief of Nagore. This son was Rae Sing ; and it devolved to his
children and grand-children, (1) until Indur Sing, the fourth in descent, was
expelled by the head of tbe Rah tores, who, in the weakness of the empire,
re-annexed Nagore to Jodpoor. But perhaps we have not hitherto dared to
imitnte the examplos set us by the Moghul and even by the Mahratta; not
having sufficient hold of the affections of the subjected to venture to be
merciful; and thence our vengeance, like the bolt of heaven, sears the very
heart of our enemies. “Witness the many chieftains ejected from their
possessions ; from the unhallowed league against the ltohillas, to that last act
of destruction at Bhnrtpoor, where, as arbitrators, we acted the part of the lion
in the fable. Our present attitude, however, is so commanding, that we can
afford to display the attribute of mercy; and should unfortunately, its action
be required in Rajpootanu, let it be ample, for there its grateful influence is
understood, and it will return, like tbe dews of heaven, upon ourselves. But if
wc nvo only to legulate our political actions by tbe apprehension of danger, it
must one day recoil upon us iu awful retribution. Our system is filled with
evil to the governed, where a fit of bile in ephemeral political agents, may
engender a quarrel leading to the overthrow of a dominion of ages.

t Since these remarks were written, Captain Steell related to the author a
singular anecdote connected with the above circumstance. While the work of
demolition was proceeding, Capt. S. was urgently warned by the natives of tbe
danger ho incurred in the operation, from a denunciation on the closing of the
gate, that it should thenceforward be guarded by a huge serpent— when
suddenly, the destruction of the gate being nearly completed, a large Cobra-di-
capelln rushed between his legs, as if in fulfilment of the anathema. Capt. S.
fortunately escaped without injury.

0,22 ! ins ' W , s 8011 A "°P ? in 5> son Indur Sing, his son Mokum

‘c fhion of inT’ i ° Sy0nda, J f- the rightful heir to the

Marwar The svstom ^‘"dled into one of the petty thacoors, or lords of
reproduction never°perishDs. eternrd ™rssrtudes, amidst which the germ of

CHAP. VI.]

ANNALS OF MARWAR.

41

CHAPTER YI.

Baja Jesmrnt mounts the gadi of Manvar. — His mother a princess of JUewar . —
He is a patron of science. — His first service in Gondwana . — Prince Bara
appointed, regent of the empire hy his father, Shah Jehan. — Appoints Jesmrnt
viceroy in Malwa. — Rebellion of A rungzeb, who aspires to the a won, — Jeswunt
'appointed generalissimo of the army sent to oppose him.— Battle of Futteha-
bad, a drawn battle. — Je&ivuut retreats. — Heroism of Bao llutna of Butlam . —
Arungzeb proceeds towards Agra. — Battle of Jajow. — Bajpoots overpowered . —
Shah Jehan deposed. — Arungz'eb, now emperor, p>ardons Jesmrnt, and sum-
mons him to the presence. — Commands him to join the army formed against
Shvja. — Battle of Gudjiva. — Conduct of Jesicunt. — Betrays Arungzeb and
jrlunders.kis camp. — Forms a junction with Bara. — This Prince’s inactivity.
— Arungzeb invades Manvor. — Detaches Jesivunt from Dara. — Appointed
■viceroy of Guzzerat. — Sent to serve in the Dehhan. — Enters into Sevoji’s
designs. — Plans the death of Shaista Khan, the king’s lieutenant . — Obtains this
office. — Superseded by the Prince of Amber. — Re-appointed to the army of the
Dekhan.— -Stimulates Prince Moaczim to rebellion. — Superseded by Delire.
Khan. — Jesivunt tries to cut him off. — BemoveA from the Bekhan to Guzzerat.
— Outivitted by the king. — Ordered against the rebellious Afghans of CabuX.
Jesivunt leaves his son, Pirthi Sing, in charge of Jodpoor. — Pirthi Sing
commanded to Court by Arungzeb, who gives him a poisoned robe. — UisBeath . —
Character. — The tidingsreach Jesivunt at Cabal, and cause his death. — Charac-
ter of Jesivunt. — Anecdotes illustrative of Bahtorc character. — Nahur Khan . —
H is exploits with the tiger, and against Soortdn of Sarohi.

Raja Jeswunt, who obtained, by the banishment of Umra, the
f cushion’ of Marwar, was born of a princess of Mewar ; and although
this circumstance is not reported to have influenced tbe change of
succession, it will be borne in mind that, throughout Rajpootana,
its princes regarded a connexion with the Rana’s family as a
primary honour.

“ Jeswunt (says tbe Bardai) was unequalled amongst the princes
of his time. Stupidity and ignorance were banished ; and science
flourished where he ruled : many were the books composed under
his auspices.”

The south continued to be the arena in which the martial Rajpoot
sought renown, and the emperor bad only rightly to understand his
character to turn the national emulation to account. Shah Jehan,
in the language of the chronicler, “ became a slave to the seraglio,”
and sent his sons, as viceroys, to govern the grand divisions of the
empire. The first service of Jeswunt was in the war of Gondwana,
when he led a body composed of “ twenty-two different contingents”
in the army under Arungzeb. In this and various other services (to
enumerate which would be to go over the ground already passed),*

* The new translation of Ferishta’s History, by Lieut-Col. Briggs, a work
much wanted, inay be referred to by those who wish to see the opinion of tbe
Mabomedan princes of their Rajpoot vassalage.

[Vol. II.]

6

42

ANNALS OF MARWAR.

[CHAP. VI.

the Rahtores were conspicuous. Jeswunt played a comparatively
subordinate part, until the illness of the emperor, in A.D. 1658, when
his elder son Dara was invested with the powers of regent. Prince
Dara increased the munsub of Jeswunt to a leader of f five thousand/
and nominated him his viceroy in Maiwa.

In the struggle for empire amongst the sons of Shah Jehan, con-
sequent upon this illness, the importance of the Rajpoot princes and
the fidelity we have often had occasion to depict, wei’e exhibited in
the strongest light. While Raja Jey Sing was commanded to
oppose prince Shuja, who advanced from his viceroyalty of Bengal,
Jeswunt was entrusted with means to quash the designs of Arungzeb,
then commanding in the south, who had long cloaked, under the
garb of hypocrisy and religion, views upon the empire.

The Rahtore prince was declared generalissimo of the army
destined to oppose Arungzeb, and he marched from Agra at the head
of the united contingents of Rajpootana, besides the imperial guards,
a force which, to use the hyperbole of the bard, “made Shesnag
“ writhe in agony.” Jeswunt marched towards the Nerbudda, and
had encamped his army in a position fifteen miles south of Oojein,
when tidings reached him of his opponent's approach. In that
field on which the emperor erected a town subsequently designated
Futtehabad, or f abode of victory/ Jeswunt awaited his foes. The

battle which ensued, witnessed and so circumstantially related by
Bernier, as has been already noticed in this work,* was lost by the
temerity of the Rahtore commander-in-chief, who might have
crushed the rebellious hopes of Arungzeb, to whom he purposely
gave time to effect a junction with his brother Morad, from the vain-
glorious desire “to concur two princes at once.” Dearly did he
pay for his presumption ; for he had giren time to the wily prince
to sow intrigues iu his camp, which were disclosed as soon as the
battle joined, when the , Mogul horse deserted and left him at
the head of his thirty thousand Rajpoots, deemed, however,
by their leader and themselves, sufficient against any odds.
“Jeswunt, spear m hand, mounted his steed Maboob, and
‘ charged the imperial brothers; ten thousand Moslems fell
“in the onset, which cost seventeen hundred Eahtores, besides

Gehlotes, Haras,t Gores, and some of every clan of Rajwarra.

Arung and Morad only escaped because their days were not
“yet numbered. Maboob and his rider were covered with blood;.
“ Jesoh looked like a famished lion, and like mio 1 10 „„r • i id •

“ prey.” The bard is fully confirmed in ^

by the Mogul historian and by Bernier who snvc, e ^ a 3h both
standing the immense superiority of the imperial nri ‘ ^ ^

numerous artillery served by Frenchmen night nces ' aided by a

the contest of science, numbers, and artillery,

* Yol. I, page 535. ~ ~

t See Kotah annals, which state that that prince nnS «
this field oi carnage. 1 and five brothers all fell in

CHAP. VI.]

ANNALS OP MARWAB.

43

Both armies remaiued on the field of battle, and though we have no
notice of the anecdote related by the first translator of Ferishta, who
makes Jeswunt “ in bravado drive his car round the field / 1 it is
certain that Avungzeb was too politic to renew the combat, or molest
the retreat which took place next day towards his native dominions.
Although, for the sake of alliteration, the bard especially singles out
the Gelilotes and Gores, the tribes of Mewar and Seopoor, all and
every tribe was engaged ; and if the Rajpoot ever dared to mourn
the fall of kindred in battle, this day shonld have covered every
house with the emblems of grief ; for it is stated by the Mogul
historian that fifteen thousand fell, chiefly Rajpoots. This was one
of the events glorious to the Rajpoot, shewing his devotion to whom
fidelity ( swamd’hermci ) had been pledged, — the aged and enfeebled
emperor Shah Jehau, whose “ salt they ate/ 1 — against all the tempt-
ations offered by youthful ambition. It is forcibly contrasted with
the conduct of the immediate household, troops of the emperor, who,
even in the moment of battle, worshipped the rising sun, whilst the
Rajpoot sealed his faith in his blood ; and none more liberally than
the brave Haras of Kotah and Boondi. The annals of no nation on
earth can furnish such an example, as an entire family, six royal
brothers, stretched on the field, and all but one in death.*

Of all the deeds of heroism performed on this day, those of Rutna
of Rutlam, by universal consent, are pre-eminent, and “ are wreathed
“into immortal rhyme by the bard 11 in the Rasa Rao Rutna . f He
' also was aRahtore, the great grandson of Oodi Sing, the first Raja of
Maroo ; and nobly did he show that the Rahtore blood had not
degenerated on the fertile plains of Mahva. If aught were wanting
to complete the fame of this memorable day, which gave empire to
the scourge of Rajpootana, it is found in the conduct of Jeswunt’s
queen, who, as elsewhere related, % shut the gates of his capital on her
fugitive lord, though he “ brought back his shield 11 and his honour.

Arungzdb, on Jeswunt 1 s retreat, entered the capital of Malwa in
triumph, whence, with all the celerity requisite to success, he pursued
his march on the capital. At the village of Jajow, thirty miles south of
Agra, the fidelity of the Rajpoots again formed a barrier between
the aged king and the treason of his son ; but it served no other
purpose than to illustrate this fidelity. The Rajpoots were over-
powered, Dara was driven from the regency, and the aged emperor
deposed.

Arungzeb, soon after usurping the throne, sent, through the prince
of Ambdr, his assurances of pardon to Jeswunt, and a summons to
the presence, preparatory to joining the army forming against his
brother Shuja, advancing to vindicate his claims to empire. The
Rahtore, deeming it a glorious occasion for revenge, obeyed, and

* See Kotah annals, which state that that prince and five brothers all fell in
this field of carnage.

f Amongst the MSS. presented by the Author to the Royal Asiatic Society,
is this work, the Rasa Rao Rutna.

t See Yol. I, p. 535.

[You. II.]

6a

44

ANNALS OF MARWAR.

[CHAP. VI.

communicated to Shuja liis intentions. The hostile armies met at
Cudjwa, thirty miles north of Allahabad. On the first onset, Jeswunt,
wheeling about with his Eahtore cavaliers, attacked the rear- ward
of the army under prince Mohammed, which he cut to pieces, and
plundering the imperial camp (left unprotected), he deliberately
loaded his°camels with the most valuable effects, whch he despatched
under part of the force, and leaving the brothers to a contest, whichhe
heartily wished might involve the destruction of both, he followed
the cortege to Agra. Such was the panic on his appearance at that
capital, joined to the rumours of Arungzdb’s defeat, which had nearly
happened, that the wavering garrison required only a summons to
have surrendered, when he might have released Shah J ehan from
confinement, and with this “ tower of strength” have rallied an
opposition fatal to the prince. r

That this plan suggested itself to Jeswunt's sagacity we cannot
doubt ; but besides the manifest danger of locking up his army
within the precincts of a capital, if victory was given to Arungz6b,

he had other reasons for not halting at Agra. All his designs were
in concert with prince Dam, the rightful heir to the throne, whom
he had instructed to hasten to the scene of action; but while
Jeswunt remained hovering in the rear of Arungzeb, momentarily
expecting the junction of the prince, the latter loitered on the
southern frontier of Marwar, and thus lost, for ever, the crown
within his grasp. Jeswunt. continued his route to his native
dominions, and had at least the gratification of housing the spoils,
even to the regal tents, in the castle of Joda. Dara tardily formed
a junction at Mairta ; but the critical moment was lost, and
Arungzeb, who had crushed Shuja J s force, rapidly advanced, now
joined by mauy of the Eajpoot princes, to overwhelm this last
remnant of opposition. The crafty Arungzeb, however, who always
preferred stratagem to the precarious issue of arms, addressed a letter
to Jeswunt, not only assuring him of his entire forgiveness, but
offering the viceroyalty of Guzzerat, if he would withdraw his
support from Dara, and remain neuter in the contest. Jeswunt
accepted the conditions, aud agreed to lead the Eajpoot contingents,
under priuce Moazznn, in the war against Sevaji, bent on reviving
tlio independence of Malirnshtra. Erom the conduct again pursued
by the Eahtore wo have a right to infer that he only abandoned
Dara because, though possessed of many qualities which endeared
lnm to the Eajpoot, besides Ins title to the throne, he wanted those

virtues necessary to ensure success against Ins energetic brother.

Scarcely had Jeswunt reached the Dekhan when he opened a com-
mnmcation with Seva], planned the death of the king’s lieutenant, '
bhaista Khan, on which lie hoped to have the guidance of the army,
and the young viceroy. Arungzdb received authentic intelligence of
tins plot, and the share Jeswunt had m it; but he temporized, and
even sent letters of congratulation on his succeeding to the pa
in chief. But he soon superseded him by Eaja Jey Sing of A Id-
who brought the war to a conclusion by the capture of Sevaji '"tTo

CHAP. VI.]

ANNALS OF MARWAR.

45

honour attending this exploit was, however, soon exchanged for
disgrace ; for when the Arnbdr prince found that the tyrant had
designs upon the life of his prisoner, for whose safety he had pledged
himself, he connived at his escape. Upon this, Jeswunt was once
more declared the emperor’s lieutenant, and soon inspired prince
Moazzim with designs, which again compelled the king to supersede
him, and Delire Khan was declared general in chief. He reached
Arungabad, and the night of his arrival would have been his last,
but he l’eceived intimation and rapidly retreated, pursued by the
prince and Jeswunt to the Nerbudda. The emperor saw the necessity
of removing Jeswunt from this dangerous post, and he sent him the
firman as viceroy of Guzzerat, to which he commanded him to repair
without delay. He obeyed, reached Ahmedabad, and found the king
had outwitted him and his successor in command ; he, therefore,
continued his course to his native dominions, where he arrived in S.
1726(A.D. 1670.)

The wily tyraut had, in all these changes, used every endeavour to
circumvent Jeswunt, aud, if the annals are correct, was little scrupu-
lous as to the means. But the Baja was protected by the fidelity of
his kindred vassalage. In the words of the bardic chronicler, “ The
“ Asivapati * Arung, finding treachery in vain, put the collar of simu-
lated friendship round his neck, and sent him beyond the Attok
"to die.”

The emperor saw that the only chance of counteracting Jeswunt’s
inveterate hostility was to employ him where he would be least
dangerous. He gladly availed himself of a rebellion amongst the
Afghans of Cabul ; and with many promises of favour to himself
aud his family, appointed him to the chief command, to lead his
turbulent Rajpoots against the equally turbulent and almost savage
Afghans. Leaving his elder son, Pirthi Sing, in charge of his ancestral
domains, with his wives, family, and the chosen bands of Maroo,
Jeswunt depai'ted for the land of the ‘ barbarian,’ from which he was
destined never to return.

It is related, in the chronicles of Maroo, that Arungzeb having
commanded the attendance at court of Jeswunt’s heir, he obeyed,
and was received not only with the distinctions which were his due,
but with the most specious courtesy : that one day, with unusual
familiarity, the king desired him to advance, and grasping firmly
his folded hands (the usual attitude of deference) in one of his own,
said, “ Well, Ralitore, it is told me you possess as nervous an arm as
" your father; what can you do now ?” " Grod preserve your majesty,”
replied the Rajpoot prince, “ when the sovereign of mankind lays
“ the hand of protection on the meanest of his subjects, all his hopes
“ are realized ; bub when he condescends to take both of mine, 1 feel
“ as if I could conquer the world.” His vehement and animated
gesture gave full force to his words, and Arungzeb quickly exclaimed,

* The common epithet of the Islamite emperors, iu the dialect of the bard,
is Asput, classically A swap at i, ‘ lord of horses.’ •

46

ANNALS OP MABWAE.

[CHAP. VI.

“ All ! liere is another Khootun,” (the term ho always applied to
Jeswunt) ; yet, affecting to he pleased with the frank boldness of
his speech, he ordered him a splendid dress, which, as customary, ho
put on, and, having made his obeisance, left the presence m the
certain assurance of exaltation.

That day was his last l— ho was taken ill soon after reaching his
quarters, and expired in great torture, and to this hour his death is
attributed to the poisoned robe of honour presented by the king/*-

Pirthi Sing was the staff of his father’s age, and endowed with all
the qualities required to lead the swords of Maroo. His death, thus
reported, cast a blight on the remaining days of Jeswunt, who, m
this cruel stroke, saw that his mortal foe had goiie beyond him m
revenge. The sacrifice of Pirthi Sing was followed by the death of
his only remaining sons, Juggut Sing and Dulbhumun, from the
ungenial climate of Cabul, and grief soon closed the existence of the
veteran Rahtore. He expired amidst the mountains of the north,
without an heir to his revenge, in S. 1737 (A.D. 1 681), having ruled
the tribes of Maroo for two and forty years. In this year, death
released Arungzdb from the greatest terrors of his life ; for the
illustrious Sevaji and Jeswnnt paid the debt to nature within a few
months of each other. Of the -Rahtore, we may use the words of
'the biographer of his contemporary, Rana Raj Sing of Me war :
“ Sighs never ceased flowing from Arung’s heart while Jeswunt

lived.”

The life of Jeswunt Sing is one of the most extraordinary in the
annals of Rajpootana, and a full narrative of it would afford a
perfect and deeply interesting picture of the history and manners
of the pei’iod. Had his abilities, which were for above mediocrity,
been commensurate with his power, credit, and courage, he might,
with the concurrent aid of the many powerful enemies of Arungzdb,
have overturned the Mogul throne. Throughout the long period
of two and forty years, events of magnitude crowded upon each
If n 1 '’ P. er *?^ hi® first contest with Arungzeb, in the

battle of the Nerbudda, to his conflicts with the Afghans amidst'
the snows of Caucasus. Although the Rahtore had a preference
amongst the sons of Shah Jelian, esteeming the frank Dara above
the crafty Arungzeb, yet he detested the whole race as inimical to
the religion and the independence of his own • and he only fed the

the ’battle of Ke'wlf ^ £ S&STSlS

* 'this mode of being rid of enemies isfil^dTbdi^ 7 7

several other instances of it are recorded in this wort- rn 1 ■ Ra JP oots >
by porous absorption ; and in a hot climate, where onlv ™ USt b °

next the skin, much mischief might be done, though it is difficult I 1 ”" 0 , 1S Y 01 ' V
how death could be accomplished. That the belfef i= - fc . fc ? understand

only to recal the story of Hercules put into doggerel by Pope^ ° ate, '' Te ^ avo

“ Wrapp'd in the envenomed shirt^and^t' on fo™

CHAP. VI.]

ANNALS OF II AH WAR.

47

prevented his reaping the fruit of his treachery at Cudjwa. The
former . event, as it reduced the means and lessened the fame of
Jeswuut, redoubled his hatred to the conqueror. Jeswunt neglected
no opportunity which gave a chauce of revenge. Impelled by this
motive, more than by ambition, he never declined situations of trust,
and in each he disclosed the ruling passion of his mind. His
overture to Sevaji (like himself the implacable foe of the Mo^ul),
against whom he was sent to act ; his daring attempt to remove the
imperial lieutenants, one by assassination, the other by open force ;
his inciting Moazzim, whose inexperience he was sent to guide, to
revolt against his father, are some among the many signal instances
of Jeswunt’s thirst for vengeance. The emperor, fully aware of
this hatred, yet compelled from the force of circumstances to
dissemble, was always on the watch to counteract it, and the artifices
this mighty king had recourse to in order to conciliate Jeswunt,
perhaps to throw him off his guard, best attest the dread in which
ho held him. Alternately he held the viceroyalty of G-imerat, of
the Dekhan, of Malwa, Ajmer, and Cabul (where ho died), either
directly of the Icing, or as the king's lieutenant, and second in
command under one of the princes. But he used all these favours
merely as stepping-stones to the sole object of his life. Accordingly,
if Jeswunt's character had been drawn by a biographer of the court,
viewed merely in the light of a great vassal of the empire, it would
have reached us marked with the stigma of treachery in every trust
reposed in him ; but, on the other hand, when we reflect on the
character of the king, the avowed enemy of the Hindu faith, we only
see in Jeswunt a prince putting all to hazard in its support. He had
to deal with one who placed him in these offices, not from personal
regard, but because he deemed a hollow submission better than
avowed hostility, and the Raja, therefore, only opposed fraud to
hypocrisy, and treachery to superior strength. Doubtless the
Rahtore was sometimes dazzled by the baits which the politic king
administered to his vanity ; and when all his brother princes
eagerly contended for royal favour, it was something to he singled
out as the first amongst his peers in Rajpootana. By such
conflicting impulses were both parties actuated in their mutual
conduct throughout a period in duration nearly equal to the
life of man ; and it is no slight testimony to Arungzeb's skill
in managing such a subject, that he was able to neutralize the
hatred and the power of Jeswunt throughout this lengthened
period. But it was this vanity, and the immense power wielded by
the kings who could reward service by the addition of a vice-royalty
to their hereditary domains, that made the Rajpoot princes slaves ;
for, had all the princely contempoi'aries of Jeswunt, — Jey Sing of
Ambdr, the Rana Raj of Mdwar, and Sevaji, — coalesced against their
national foe, the Mogul power must have been extinct. Could Jes-
wunt, however, have been satisfied with the mental wounds he in-
flicted upon the tyrant, he would have had ample revenge ; for the
image of the Rahtore crossed all his visions of aggrandizement. The

48

annals of marwar.

[OHAP. VI.

cruel sacrifice of liis heir, and the still more barbarous and unrelent-
ing ferocity with which be pursued Jeswunt’s innocent family,. are
tlie surest proofs of tlie dread which the Rahtore prince inspiie
while alive.

Previous, however, to entering on this and tlie eventful period
which followed Jeswunt’s death, we ruay record a few anecdotes
illustrative of the character and manners of the vassal chieftains, by
whose aid he was thus enabled to brave Arungzeb. Nor can we do
better than allow Nahur Khan, chief of the Koompawuts and pre-
mier noble, to be the representative portrait of the clans of Maroo.
It was by the vigilance of this chief, and his daring intrepidity, that
the many plots laid for Jeswunt’s life were defeated ; and in the
anecdote already given, when in order to restore his prince from a fit
of mental delusion,* he braved the superstitions of his race, his devo-
tion was put to a severer test than any which could result from per-
sonal peril. The anecdote connected with his nom de guerre of Nahur
(tiger) Khan, exemplifies his personal, as the other does his mental
intrepidity. The real name of this individual, the head of the Koom-
pawut clan, was Mokundas. He had personally incurred the dis-
pleasure of the emperor, by a reply which was deemed disrespectful
to a message sent by the royal ahdy, for which the tyrant condemned
him to enter a tiger’s den, and contend for his life unarmed. With-
out a sign of fear, he entered the arena, where the savage beast was
pacing, and thus contemptuously accosted him : ” Oh tiger of the
" meah,\ face the tiger oi Jeswunt exhibiting to the king of the
forest a pair of eyes, which auger and opium had rendered little less
inflamed than his own. The animal, startled by so unaccustomed a
salutation, for a moment looked at his visitor, put down his head,
turned round and stalked from him. “ You see,” exclaimed the
Rahtore, tc that he dare not face me, and it is contrary to the creed
“ °f a true Rajpoot to attack an enemy who dares not confront him.”
Even the tyrant, who beheld the scene, was surprised into admira-
tion, presented him with gifts, and asked if he had any children
to inherit his prowess. His reply, '* how can we get children,
“ when you keep us from our wives beyond the Attok ?” fully shews
that the Rahtore and fear were strangers to each other. From this
singular encounter, he bore the name of Nahur Khan, ‘ the tiger
' lord. • °

On another occasion from the same freedom of speech, he incurred
the displeasure of the Shahzada or prince-royal, who, with youthful
levity, commanded the 'tiger lord' to attempt a feat which he deemed

'B„a feat, tecpinng both agilit, Ji

~ See page 31.

f Meah is a term used by the Hindu to a Mooslim, who himself
applies it to a pedagogue : the village-schoolmaster has always the
epithet of Meah-ji! J u

generally

honorable

CHAP. VI.]

ANNALS OF MARWAR.

49

a common amusement, and it is related, in the annals of Mewar, that
the chief of Bundra broke his spine in the attempt; and there werefew
who did not come off with bruises and falls, in which consisted the
sport. When Mahur heard the command, he indignantly replied, he
e< was not a monkey ;” that “ if the prince wished to see his feats, it
“ must be where his sword had play ;” on which he was ordered
against Soortin, the Deora prince of Sirohi, for which service he had
the whole Rahtore contingent at his disposal. The Deora prince,
who could not attempt to cope against it in the field, took to his
native hills; but while he deemed himself secure, Mokund, with a
chosen band, in the dead of night, entered the glen where the Sirohi
prince reposed, stabbed the solitary sentinel, bound the prince with
his own turban to his pallet, while, environing him with his clans-
men, he gave the alarm. The Deorus starting from their rocky
beds, collected round their prince, and were preparing for the rescue,
when Nahur called aloud, “ You see his life is in my hands ; be
“ assured it is safe if you are wise ; but lie dies on the least opposition
“ to my determination to couvey him to my prince. My sole object in
“ giving the alarm, was that you might behold me carry off my
te prize.' 1 '’ He conveyed Soort&n to Jeswunt, who said he must intro-
duce him to the king-. The Deora prince was carried to court, and
being led between the proper officers to the palace, he was instructed
to perform that profound obeisance, from which none were exempted.
But the haughty Deora replied, “ His life was in the king’s hands, his
“ honour in his" own ; he had never bowed the head to mortal man, and
“ never would.” As Jeswunt had pledged himself for his honourable
treatment, the officers of the ceremonies endeavoured by stratagem
to obtain a constrained obeisance, and instead of introducing him as
usual, they shewed him a wicket, knee high, and very low overhead,
by which to enter, but putting his feet foremost, his head w r as the
last part to appear. This stubborn ingenuity, his noble bearing, and
his long-protracted resistance, added to Jeswunt’s pledge, won the
king’s favour; and he not only proffered him pardon, but whatever
lands he might desire. Though the king did not name the return,
Soortan was well aware of the terms, but he boldly and quickly
replied, ct What can your Majesty bestow equal to Achilgurh ? let me
“ return to it is all I ask.” The king had the magnanimity to comply
with his request; Soort&n was allowed to retire to the castle of Aboo,*
nor did he or any of the Deoras ever rank themselves amongst the
vassals of the empire ; but they have continued to the present hour
a life of almost savage independence.

Prom such auecdotes we learn the character of the tiger lord of
Asope, and his brother Rahtores of Marwar ; men reckless of life
when put in competition with distinction and fidelity to their prince,
as will be abundantly illustrated in the reign we are about to describe.)

* Achilgurh, or * the immoveable castle,’ is tbe name of the fortress of the
Deora princes of Aboo and Sirohi, of which wonderful spot I purpose in another
work to give a detailed account.

♦

[Tot. n.]

7

50

ANNALS OF MARWAR.

, [chav. VII.

CHAPTER VII.

The pregnant queen of Jeswunt prevented from hemming Rati. — Seven concubines
and one limn hum with him— The Chandravati Rani mounts the pyre at 2 Mm-
dove- General grief for the loss of Jeswunt.— Posthumous birth of Ajit.-Jes-
want’s family and contingent return Jrom Cohn! to Marwar. — Intercepted by
Arungr.cb, who demands the surrender of the infant A jit. — The chiefs destroy the
females and defend themselves . — Preservation of (he infant prince. — The Eendos
tahe Mundorc — Expelled. — •Arungzcb invades Mo near, talccs and plunders Jod-
poor, and snehs all the large towns. — Destroys the. Hindu temples, and commands
the conversion of the Itahiore rare. — Impolicy of the measure. — Establishes the
Jezeya, or tux on infidels. — The. If ah tores and Secsodias unite against the Iting . —
Events of the war from the Chronicle. — The Mairtru clan oppose the entire royal
army, but arc cut to pieces. — The combined. Rajpoots fight the imperialists at
Nadole. — Bhcem, thesonof the, liana, slain. — Peine-' A hber disapproves the war
against the, Rajpoots. — -Makes ovei lures. — Coalition . — The Rajpoots declare Abler
emperor. — Treachery and death ofTyber Khan. — A l;btr escapes, and claims pro-
tection from the Rajpoots.— Doorga conducts Prince Ahbcr to the Dekhan . —
Soiling, brother of Doorga, leads the Rahtores. — Conflict at Jodponr. — Affair at
Sojut. — The cholera morbus appears. — Arungzcb offers peace. — The conditions
accepted bySoning. — Soiling's death. — Arungzcb annuls thetreatg. — PrineeAzim
left to carry on the war. — Maoslem garrisons throughout Marwar. — The Rahtores
take post in the AraViilli hills. — Numerous encounters. — Affairs of Sojut . —
Gheraic.—Jytarnn, — Rainpoor. — Palli.— Immense sacrifice of lives.— The
Bhattis join the Rahtores. — The Mairlcn chief assassinated during a trurc.
— Further encounters. — Seivanoh assaulted. — The Mooslem garrison put to
the sivord. — Noor Alii abducts the Assam damsels. — Is pursued and hilled.
— Mooslem garrison of Sambliur destroyed. — Jhalorc cn 2 iilnlatcs to the Rajpoots.

“ W H ion Jeswunt died beyond tlie Attok, bis wife, the (future)
mother of Ajit, determined to burn with lier lord, but being in the
seventh month of her pregnancy, she was forcibly prevented by
Ooda Koompawut. His other queen and seven patras (concubines)
mounted the pyre ; and as soon as the tidings reached Jodpoor, the
Chundiavati queen, taking a turban of her late lord, ascended the
pile at Mundore _ The Hindu race was in despair at the loss of the
support of then- faith. The bells of the temple were mute ; the sacred
shell no longer sounded at sun-rise; the Brahmins vitiated their
doctrines and learned the Mooslem creed .’ 5

The queen was delivered of a boy, who received the name of Aift
As soon as she was able to travel, the Rahtore contino-ent with their
infant prince, his mother, the daughters, and establishments tbeirlate
sovereign, prepared to return to their native land. But the unrelent
ing tyrant, carrying his vengeance towards Jeswunt even beyond the"
grave, as soon as they reached Dehli, commanded thatthe infant should
be surrendered to his custody/' Arung offered to divide Maroo amoim-st
them if they would surrender their prince; but they replied ' O •
country js with our sinews, and these can defend both it and our

CHAP. VII.]

ANNALS OP MARWAR.

51

lord.’ With eyes red with rage, they left the Aum-Mds. Their
abode was surrounded by the host of the Shah. In a basket of
sweetmeats they sent away the young prince, and prepared to defend
their honour ; they made oblations to the gods, took a double portion
of opium, and mounted their steeds. Then spoke Rinckor, and
Goviud the son of Joda, and Chundurbhan the Darawut, and the
son of Raghoo, on whose shoulders the sword had been married at
Oojein, with the fearless Bharmul the Oodawnt, and the Soojawut,
Raghoonat'h. ' Let us swim/ they exclaimed, ' in the ocean of fight.
Let us root up these Asuras, and be carried by the Apsaras to the
mansion of the sun/ As thus each spoke, Soojah the bard took
the word : 'for a day like this/ said he, 'you enjoy your fiefs (puttas),
to give in your lord's cause your bodies to the sword, and in one
mass to gain sivergci (heaven). As for me, who enjoyed his friend-
ship and his gifts, this day will I make his salt resplendent. My
father's fame will I uphold, and lead the death in this day’s fight,
that future bards may hymn my praise.' Then spake Doorga son
of Assoh : ' the teeth of the Yavans are whetted, but by the light-
ning emitted from our swords, Dehli shall witness our deeds ; and the
flame of our anger shall consume the troops of the Shah.' As thus
the chiefs communed, and the troops of the king approached, the
Raj-loca* * * § of their late lord was sent to inhabit swerga. Lance in
hand, with faces resembling Yama, t the Rahtores rushed upon the
foe. Then the music of swords and shields commenced. Wave
followed wave in the field of blood. ' Sankra J completed his chaplet
in the battle fought by the children of Dookur in the streets of
Dehli. Rutna contended with nine thousand of the foe; but his
sword failed, and as he fell, Rembah § carried him away. Dilloh
the Darawut made a gift of his life ; || the salt of his lord he mixed
with the water of the field.^ Chundurbhan was conveyed by the
Apsaras to Chandrapoor.** ' The Bhatti was cut piece-meal and lay
on the field beside the son of Soortan. The faithful Oodawut
appeared like the crimson lotos ; he journeyed to Swerga to visit
Jeswunt. Sandoh the bard, with a sword in either hand, was in
the front of the battle, and gained the mansion of the moon. ft Every
tribe and every clan performed its duty in this day's pilgrimage to

* A delicate mode of naming the female part of Jeswunt’s family ; the ‘ royal
abode' included his young daughters, sent to inhabit heaven ( swerga ).

t Pluto.

t ‘The lord of the shell,’ an epithet of Siva, as the god of war ; his war-trump
being a shell ( sanlck ); his chaplet / maid), which the Rahtore bard says was in-
complete until this figbt, being of human sculls.

§ Queen of the Apsaras, or celestial nymphs.

|j Pope makes Sarpedon say :

The life that others pay, let us bestow.

And give to fame what we to nature owe.

i. e., blood.

‘ The city of the moon.’ , .

Ti* The lunar abode seems that allotted for all bards, who never mention
Dhanloccti or the 'mansion of the sun, 5 as a place of reward for them. Doubt-
less they could assign a reason for such a distinction.

[Von. II.] 7 a

ANNALS OF HARWAR.

52

[chap. vir.

the stream of the sword, in which Doorgadas ground the foe and
saved his honour.'’'’ *

When these brave men saw that nothing short of the sui'render
of all that was dear to a Rajpoot was intended by the fiend-like
spirit of the king, their first thought was the preservation of their
prince; the next to secure their own honour and that of their late
master. The means by which they accomplished this were terrific.
The females of the deceased, together with their own wives and
daughters, were placed in an apartment filled with gunpowder, and
the torch applied — all was soon over ! This sacrifice accomplished,
their sole thought was to secure a niche in that immortal temple,
which the Rajpoot bard, as well as the great minstrel of the west,
peoples with ‘‘youths who died, to be by poets sung/’ For this,
the Rajpoot’s anxiety has in all ages been so great, as often to defeat
even the purpose of revenge, his object being to die gloriously rather
than to inflict death ; assured that his name would never perish,
but, preserved in “ immortal rhyme” by the bard, would serve as the
incentive to similar deeds. Accordingly, “the battle fought by the
sons of Doohurea-f- in the streets of Dehli,’’ is one of the many themes
of everlasting eulogy to the Rahtores : and the seventh of fjravan,
S. 1736 (the second month of the Monsoon of A.D. 1680), isasacred
day m the calendar of Mavoo.

In the midst of this furious contest, the infant prince was saved,
o avoid suspicion the heir of Maroo, concealed in a basket of sweet-
meats, was entrusted to a Mooslem, who religiously executed his
an ^ on y6y e d him to the appointed spot, where he was joined
by the gallant Doorgadas with the survivors who had cut their way
through all opposition, and who were doomed often to bleed for the
Kf W! US P reserved ' 11 is Phasing to find that, if to

misprv 610 ( ^^^l/^l^kigeted Arungzdb, they owed so much
meservntinn 6 i a n d r E humble life )> of tbe same faith, they owed the
manhood and Hip eU ,i lne ' + - ^- be P ves erver °f Ajit lived to witness his

^ Wrth-righfc, and to find that
was never addressedHmf^ 1 ’ for be was distinguished at court,
Honoul S ' -X‘ h? P ™ ce: “ d t0 . tllB

are still enjoyed by U, TdosoonSs^ ° SettW "P°“

a ‘V Doorga and

him in a monastery of recluses. There the w " °U^ h ° 0 ’ and P laced
m entire ignorance of his birth Still v “ of Maro ° was reared
of Jeswunt lived ; that Door 'a an d a W ^ ? revailed > that a son

dians ; and this was enough for the lovll Sf* 68 , Were L j s , .& aor “

-7 —- . - — T yal Ka lP 00 t, who, confiding in

this is but a short transcript of the nnnHr. 7 ~~.

the deeds, name, and tribe of every warnor who' fTn ° £ H 1 ' 8 babtle > in which
of Thormopylte had not a more brilliant theme fortlm W? lated- The Zeroes
t Here is another, instance of the ancient pat°onvmic b - u
the bards, and it is thus they preserve the names and g , bl ’°ughb in by

past days. Eoa Doohur was one of the earliest Eahtoro ld„2 £ worthies of

or Alarwar

CHAP. VII.]

ANNALS OP UAEWAE.

53

the chieftain of Droonara, allowed the mere name of ‘ Dhunni* (lord)
to be his rallying- word in the defence of his rights. These were soon
threatened by a host of enemies, 'amongst whom were the Eendos,
the ancient sovereigns of Mavoo, who saw an opening for the redemp-
tion of their birth-right, and for a short time displayed the flag of
the Purihavs on the walls of Mundore. While the Eendos were rejoic-
ing at the recovery of their ancient capital, endeared to them by tra-
dition, an attempt was made by Rufcna, the son of Umra Sing (whose
tragical death has been related), to obtain the seat of power, Jodpoor.
This attempt, instigated by the king, proved futile ; and the clans,
faithful to the memory of Jeswunt and the name of Ajit, soon expel-
led the Eendos from Mundore, and drove the son of Umra to his
castle of Nagore. It was then that Arungzeb, in person, led his army
into Maroo ; the capital was invested ; it fell and was pillaged, and
all the great towns an the plains, as Mairtea, Deedwana, and Rokit,
shared a similar fate. The emblems of religion were trampled under
foot, the temples thrown down, mosques were erected on their site,
and nothing short of the compulsory conversion to the tenets of Islam
of every Rajpoot in Marwar, would satisfy his revenge. The conse-
quences of this fanatical and impolitic conduct recoiled not only upon
the emperor but his whole race, for it roused an opposition to this
iron yoke, which ultimately broke it iu pieces The emperor pro-
mulgated that famous edict, the ‘ Jezeya/ against the whole Hindu
race, which cemented into one compact union all who cherished either
patriotism or religion. It was at this period of time, when the Rah-
tores and Seesodias united against the tyrant, that Rana Raj Sing
indited that celebrated epistle, which is given in a preceding part of
this work.*

“ Seventy thousand men,” says the bard,*}* ” under Tyber Khan,

* Yol. I, p. 322.

•f lb may be well to exhibit the manner in which the poetic annalist of Raj-
pootana narrates such events, and to give them in his own language rather than
in an epitome, by which not only the pith of the original would be lost, but the
events themselves deprived of half their interest. The character of historic
fidelity will thus be preserved from suspicion, which could scarcely be withheld
if the narrative were exhibited in any but its native garb. This will also serve
to sustain the Annals of Marwar, formed from a combination of such materials,
aud dispose the reader to acknowledge the impossibility of reducing such ani-
mated chronicles to the severe style of history. But more than all, it is'with
the design to prove whab’in the preface of this work, the veader was compelled
to take ou credit; than the Rajpoot kingdoms were in no ages without such
chronicles; aud if we may nob compare them with Froissart, or with Monsbre-
let, they may be allowed to compete with the Anglo-Saxon chronicles, and
they certainly surpass those of Ulster. Bub we have stronger motives than,
even legitimate curiosity, in allowing the bard to tell his own tale of tho thirty
years’ war of Rajpootana ; the desire which has animated this task from its
commencement, to give a correct idea of the importance of these events, and
to hold them up as a beacon to the present governors of these brave men. How
well that elegant historian, Orme, appreciates their importance, as bearing on
our own conduct in power, the reader will perceive by reference to his Frag-
ments (p. 165), where he says, “ there are no states or powers on the continent
'* of India, with whom our nation has either connexion or concern, which do nob

54

ANNALS OF 1TABWAE.

[CHAP. VII.

<c were comm&nded to destroy the Rujpoots, aod Arung followed in
<f person to Ajmer. The Mairtea clan assembled, and advanced to
“ Pooshkur to oppose him. The battle was in front of the temple ot
“ Varaha, where the swords of the Mail-teas, always first in the fight,
“ played the game of destruction on the heads of the Asuras. Here
“ the Mairteas, were all slain on the llth Bhadoon, S. 1/36.

“ Tyber continued to advance. The inhabitants of Moordhur fled
to the mountains. At Goorah the brothers Roopa and Koombo took
post with their clan to oppose him; but they fell with twenty-five
of their brethren. As the cloud pours water upon the earth, so did
Arung pour his barbarians over the land. He remained bntfivedaysat
Ajidoorg (Ajmer) ; and marched against Cheetore. It fell ! it appeared
as if the heavens had fallen. Ajit was protected by the Rana, and
the Rahtores led the van in the host of the Seesodias. Seeing the
strength of the Yavans, they shut up the young prince, like a flame
confiued in a vessel. Dehli-pat (the king of Dehli) came to Debarri,* at
whose pass he was opposed by Koombo, Oogursen, and Oodob, all
Rahtores. While Aruugzeb attacked Oodipoor, Azini was left at Chee-
tore. Then the king learned that Doorgadas had invaded Jhalore ; he
abandoned his conquest, and returned to Ajmdr, sending Mokurra
Khan to aid Beharri at Jhalore; but Doorga had raised contributions
{dind), and passed to Jodpoor, alike forced to contribute 3 for the
son of Indur Sing, 011 the part of the king, now commanded in
Tricu ta ( triple-peaked mount). Arung Shah measured the heavens;
he determined to have but one faith in the land. Prince Akber was
sent to join Tyber Khan. Rapine and conflagration spread over the
land. The country became a waste ; fear stalked triumphant. Provi-
dence had willed this affliction. The Eendos were put in possession
of Jodpoor; but were encountered at Kaitapoor and put to the sword
by the Champawuts. Once more they lost the title of Raos of
Moordurdas, and thus the king's intentions of bestowing sovereignty
on the Purihars were frustrated on the 13th day of Jeit, S. 1736.

“ The Aravulli gave shelter to the Rahtores. Prom its fastnesses
they issued, and mowed down entire harvests of the Mooslem, piling'
them in lcullas.\ Arung had no repose. Jhalore was invaded by
one body, Sewanoh by another of the faithful chiefs of Ajit, whose
dnX daily increased, while Arung's was seldom invoked. The king
gave up the war against the Rana to send all his troops into Maroo ;

owe the origin of their present condition to the reign of ArmWb, or its influ-
ence on the reigns of his successors. It behoves us, therefore, to make our-
selves acquainted with the causes, as well as the characters of those who occa-
sioned the downfall of our predecessors m the sovereignty of Indin wiih
this object in view, the bard shall tell his own tale from the birth of’Aitt in
S. .1737, to 1767, when he had vanquished all opposition to Amngzgb and re-
i^nined the throne of Maroo. 6 ’

* The Cenotaph of these warriors still marks the spot whero thev fell
the right on entering the portals. - el ’

t The heaps of grain thrashed in the open field, preparatory to being divided
and housed, are termed Icullas. b

J Oath of allegiance.

ANNALS Or MARWAIt.

56

[chap. vir.

tniii suction, and in tlie annuls of Mewar and Marwar, we present tile
latter verbatim from tlie chronicle.

“ Akber, with multitudes of Rajpoots, advanced upon Ajm£r. But
while Arung- prepared for the storm, the prince gave himself up to
women and the song, placing everything in the hands of Tyber
Khan. We are the slaves of fate; puppets that dance ns it pulls
the strings. Tyber allowed himself to dream of treason; it was
whispered in his ear that if he could deliver Akber to his father,
high rewards would follow. At night he went privily to Arungzeb,
and thence wrote to the Rahtores : ‘ I was the bond of union betwixt
you and Akber, but the dam which separated the waters has broken
down, father and son again are one. Consider the pledges, given
and received, as restored, and depart for your own lands/ Having
sealed this with his signet, and despatched a messenger to the
Rahtores, he appealed before Arungzeb to receive the fruit of his
service. But his treason met its reward, and before he could say, l
the imperial orders were obeyed, a blow of the mace from the hand i
of the monarch sent his sold to hell. At midnight the Derveisli
messenger reached the Ralitore camp ; he put the letter into their
hand, which stated father and son were united ; and added from
himself that Tyber Khan was slain. All was confusion ; the Rah-
tores saddled and mounted, and moved a coss from Akber’s camp.
The panic spread to his troops, who fled like the dried leaves of
the sugar-cane when carried up in a whirlwind, while the prince
was attending to the song and the wiles of the wanton.”

This narrative exemplifies most strongly the hasty unreflecting
character of the Rajpoot, who always acts from the impulse of the
moment. They did not even send to Akber’s camp, although close
0Wllj to inquiie the truth or falsehood of the report, but
saddled and did not halt until they were twenty miles asunder. It
is tiue, that in these times of peril, they did not know in whom to
?°vf , e ’ being headed by one of their own body, they could not
tell how far he might be implicated in the treachery.

da { tbe - v were undeceived by the junction of the prince,

tiLt tin hr q f U m n 1 ted tbe de P ai ’ture of his allies, and the

men to obfdf v V*? 1 Khan ’ could freely collect a thousand
men to abide by his fortunes. With these he followed his panic-

td°pro ec S C Z7 md Ub "P°s their hospitality

conduct to be pursued to the prince now cWmbT* aS t0 tbe

when the bard takes occasion to relate the pediA^J^ ( " anctuar y ) ^
the chiefs of every clan. Each chief SX s ren °™ ° f
speech full of information respecting their national “ ents m a
manners. It also displays a good picture of “the powel and

"and the necessity of feeding them with pearls? to enable themTo

CHAT, vri.]

ANNALS OP HABWAB.

sing with advantage. The council breaks up with the declaration
of its determination to protect Akber at all hazards, and daita, the
brother of the head of the Champawuts, is nominated to the cliargo
of protector of Alcbdr's family. The gallant Doorga, the Ulysses of
.the Ralitores, is the manager of this dramatic convention, the details
of which are wound up with an eulogy, in true oriental hyperbole,
in the Doric accents of Maroo :

' 1 1 Dh ! Mata pool esa jin
. Jessa Doorr/a-das
Band Afoordra rakheo
Bin t’hamba dlihds.

“ Oh, mother ! produce such sous as Doorga-das, who first supported
“ the dam of Moordra, and then propped the heavens.”

This model of a ltajpoot, as wise as he was brave, was the saviour
of his country. To his suggestion it owed the preservation of its
prince, and to a series of heroic deeds, his subsequent and more
difficult salvatiou. Many anecdotes are extant recording the dread
Arungzeb had of this leader of the Rahtores, one of which is amus-
ing. The tyrant had commanded pictures to be drawn of two of the
most mortal foes to his repose, Sevaji and Doorga : “ Seva was
c< drawn seated on a couch ; Doorga in his ordinary position, on
“ horseback, toastiug" bhawtics, or barley-cakes, with the point of
“ his lauce, on afire of maize-stalks. Arungzeb, at the first glance,
“ exclaimed, ‘ I may entrap that fellow (meaning Sevaji), but this
" dog is born to be my bane.’’ ”

Doorga at the head of bis bauds, together with young Akbdr,
moved towards the western extremity of the state, in hopes that
theyjmierht lead the emperor in pursuit amongst the saud-liills of
the Looni ; but the 'Wf (p-SM n avcl 1 tried other arts, and first attempted
to corrupt Doorga. lie sen C 'i 1 .msigl) L JikQl’Sai 1 <3 - gold. m oh u rs, *
which the Rajpoot instantly applied to the necessities of Akbdr, who
was deeply affected at this proof of devotion, and distributed a
portion of it amongst Doorga's retainers. Arungzdb, seeing the
futility of this plan, sent a force in pursuit of his sou, who, knowing
he had no hopo of mercy if he fell into his father's hands, was
anxious to place distance between them. Doorga pledged himself
for liis safety, and relinquished all to ensure it. Making over the
guardianship of young Ajit to his elder brother, Soning, and placing
himself at the head ot one thousand chosen men, lie turned towards
the south. The hard enumerates the names and families of all the
chieftains of note who formed the body-guard of prince Alcber in
this desperate undertaking. The Champawuts were the most
numerous, blit he specifies several of the home clans, as the .Toda
audMairtea, and amongst the foreign Rajpoots, the Jadoon, Choban,
Bhntti, Deora, Souigurra, nud Mangulea.

* The Mowar chronicle says forty thousand,

CVOL. II.]

8

68

ANNALS OF MARWAR.

[CHAP. VII,

“ The king followed fclieir retreat: his troops surrounded the Rah-
tores j but Doorga with one thousand chosen men left the north on
their backs, and with the speed of the winged quitted the camp.
Aiung continued the pursuit to Jhalore, when he found he had been
Jed on a wrong scent; and that Doorga, with the prince, keeping
Guzzerat on his right, and Chnppun on his left, had made good his
retreat to the Nerbudda. Rage so far got the better of his religion,
that he threw the Korcin at the head of the Almighty . In wrath,
he commanded Azim to exterminate the Rah tores, but to leave Oodi-
poor on one side,* and every other design, and first secure his brother.
The deeds of CamundaJ removed the troubles of Metvar, as the wind
disperses the clouds which shade the brightness of the moon. In ten
days after Azim inarched, the emperor himself moved, leaving his
garrisons in Jodpoor and Ajmer. Do organs name was the charm
which made the hosts of locusts quit their ground. J Doorga was the
sea-serpent ; Akber the mountain with which they churned the ocean
Arung, and made him yield the fourteen gems, one of which our
religion regained, which is Lacskmi, and our faith, which is Dlni-
nnntra the sage.

• " Jn fidelity who excelled the Kheechees Seo Sing and Mokund,

who never left the person of Ajif, when his infancy was concealed in
the mountains of Arbood ? to them alone, and the faithful Sonigurra,
did Doorga confide the secret of his retreat. The vassals of the
Nine Gastles of Naroo kuew that he was concealed; but where or
in whose custody all were ignorant. Some thought he was at Jes-
sulmdr; others at Beekumpoor; others at Sirohi. The eight divisions
nobly supported the days of their exile; their sinews sustained the
land of Mord'hur. Raos, Rajas, aud Ranas applauded their deeds, for
all were alike enveloped in the net of destruction. In all the nine
thousand [towns] of Mord’hur, and the ten thousand of M6war§ inha-
bitants there were none. EnayetKhan wag-Isit with ten thousand

-feuJuiis Ohampawut is the Soomer of
Maroo, and without’fear was Doorga’s brother. Soiling. With Khem-
kurn the Kuruote, and Subliul the Joda, Beejmal the Mahecha, Jait-
mal Soojote, Kesuri Kurnote, aud the Joda brethren Seodan and
Bheem, and many more collected their clans and kin, and as soon
as they heard that the king was within four coss of Ajmer, they
blockaded the Khan in the city of Joda; but twenty thousand
Moguls came to the rescue. Another dreadful conflict ensued attne
gates of Jodpoor, in which the Jadoon Kesore/who led the battle,
and many other chiefs were slain, yet not without many hundreds
of the foe ; the 9th Asar, S. 1/S/.

« Soiling carried the sword and the flame into every quarter.

* That is, dropped all schemes against it at that moment.

tod recc r . to, in order to

^ fl flio-hf- of these destructive insects from the fields they light on.

“1 »' f° rmel dy constituting tto arond, ss o»«n(.

of each state.

CHAP. VII.]

ANNALS OP MAttWAK.

59

Arung could neither advauce nor retreat. He was like the' serpent
seizing the musk-rat, which, if liberated, caused blindness ; but if
swallowed, was like poison. Hurn&t and Kana Sing took the road
to Sojut. They surrounded and drove away the cattle, which brought
the Asoors to the rescue. A dreadful strife ensued ; the chief of
the Asoors was slaiu, but the brothers and all their kin bedewed the
land with their blood. This, the saca of Sojut, was when 1737
ended and 1738 commenced, when the sword and the pestilence
( miirri *) united to clear the laud.

11 Soiling was the Tioodra of the field ; Agra and Dehli trembled
at his deeds ; he looked on Arung as the waning moon. The king
sent an embassy to Souing ; it was peace he desired. He offered
the mtiusub of Sat’h Hazari for Ajit, and what dignities he might
demand for his brethren — the restoration of Ajmer, and to make
Soniug its governor. To the engagement was added, f the pnnja is
affixed in ratification of this treaty, witnessed by God Almighty.
TheDewan, AsudKhan, was the negociator, and the Aremdi,% who
was with him, solemuly swore to its maintenance. The treaty con-
cluded, the king, whose thoughts could not be diverted from Akber,
departed for the Dekhan. Asnd Khan was left at Ajmdr, and
Soiling at Mnirta. But Souing was a thorn in the side of Arnng-
zeb; he bribed the Brahmins, who threw pepper into the homa
(burnt sacrifice) and secured for Souing a place in Sooraj Mandala
(the mansion of the sun). The day following the treaty, by the
incantations of Arunga, Soning was no more.§ Asoj the 6th, S. 1738.

* Murri, or ‘ death' personified, is the name for that fearful scourge the
spasmodic cholera morbus, which has caused the loss of so many lives for the
last thirteen years throughout India. It appears to have visited India often,
of which we have given a frightful record in tiie Annals of Mdwar in the reign
of Ran a llaj Sing (See Yol. I, p. 332), in S. 1717 or A.D. 1661 (twenty years
prior to the period wc treat of) ; and Orme describes it as raging in the
Dekban in A.f). 168-1 Tliej' bad likewise a visitation of it within the memory
of many individuals now living.

•Regarding the nature of this disease, whether endemic, epidemic, or conta-
gious, and its cure, wc are as ignorant now ns the first day of onr experience.
There have been hundreds of conflicting opinions and hypotheses, but none
satisfactory. In India, nine medical men out of ten. as well as those not pro-
fessional, deny its being contagious. At Oodipoor, the Rnua’s only son, her-
metically sealed in the palace against contact, was the first seized with the dis-
order : a pretty sti-ong proof that it was from atmospheric communication. He
was also the last man in his father’s dominions likely, from predisposition, to
be attacked, being one of the. most athletic and prudent of his subjects. I saw
him through the disorder. AVe were afraid to administer remedies to the last
heir of Bappa Rawul, but I hinted to Amurji, who was both bard and- doctor,
that strong doses of musk (12 grs. each) might be beneficial. These he had,
and I prevented his having cold water to drink, and also checking the insen-
sible perspiration by throwing ofi the bed-clothes. Nothing but his robust
and youth made him resist this tremendous assailant.

• f See Vol. I, p. 330, for an explanation of the pnnja — and the treaty which
preceded this, made by Rana Raj Sing, the fourth article of which stipulates
for terms to the minor son of Jeswunt.

$ I know not.wkat officer is meant by the Aremdi, sent to swear to the good
faith of the king.

§ His death was said to be effected by incantations, most probably poison.

- [Von. II.] 8a

60

ANNALS OF MARWAU.

[CHAP. Yn.

Asud sent the news to tbs Icing, This terror being removed, the
king withdrew his jyunja from his treaty, and in joy departed for
the Dekhan. The death of Soqing' shed gloom and grief over the
land. 1 hen Mokund Sing’ Mairtea, sou of Kulian, abandoned his
inunsub and joined his country's cause. A desperate encounter
soon followed with the troops of Asud Khan near Mairta, in which
Ajit, the sou of Beetuldas, who led the fight, was slain, with many
of each clan, which gave joy to the Asoors, but grief to the faithful
Rajpoot ; on the second day of the bright half of the moon of Kartik,
S. 1738.

“ Prince Azim was left with Asud Khan ; Enayet at Jodpoor ; and
their garrisons were scattered over the land, as their tombs (ghor)
everywhere attest. The lord of Chundawul, Simboo Koompawnt,
now led the Rahtores with Oodung Sing Bukshee, and Tejsi, the
young son of Doorga, the bracelet on the Arm of Mahadeva,' with
Putteh Sing aud Ram Sing, just returned from placing Akber safely
in the Delchau, and many other valiant Rahtores.* They spread
over the country even to Mdwar, sacked Poor-Mandil, and slew the
governor Kasim Khan."

These desultory and bloody affrays, though they kept the king’s
troops in perpetual alarm and lost them myriads of men, thinned
the ranks of the defenders of Maroo, who again took refuge in the
Aravulli. From hence, watching every opportunity, they darted on
their prey. On one occasion, they fell upon the garrison of Jvtarnn,
which they routed and expelled, or as the chronicle quaintly says,
(l with the year 1 739 they also fled." At the same time, the post of
Sojut was carried by Beejo Champawut, while the Jodawuts, under
Ram Sing, kept their foes in play to the northward, and led by
Oodi-bhan, attacked the Mirza Noor Alii at Cheraie: fr the contest
“ lasted for three hours ; the dead bodies of the Tavans lay in heaps
ff in the Alchara ; who even abandoned their Nakarras."

“ After the affair of Jytarun, when Oodi Sing Champawut, and
- Mohkim Sing Mairtea were the leaders, they made a push for Guz-
zerat, and had penetrated to Kheiraloo, when they were attacked,
pursued, and surrounded in the hills at Rainpoor, by Syed Moham-
med, the Hakim of Guzzerat, All night they stood to their arms.
In the morning the sword rained and filled the cars of the Apsaras.
Kurrun and Kesuri were slain, with Gokuldas Bbatti, with all their
civil officers, and Ram Sing himself renounced life on this day.f
But the Asoors pulled up the reins, having lost many meu. Palli
was also attacked in the mouth of Bhadoon this year 1 739 f then
the game of destruction was played with Koor Alii, three hundred
Rahtores against' five hundred of the king's troops, which were
routed, losing their leader, Ufzul Khan, after a desperate struggle.

#■ M an y W ere enumerated by the bardic chronicler, who would deem it
sacrilege to omit a single name in the page of fame.

f Hewas one of the gallant chiefs who, with Doorga, conveyed prince Akber

to the sanctuary with the Mahrattas.

CHAP, virj

ANNALS or HARWAR.

<31

“ Balia was the hero .who drove the Yavau from this post. Oodya
attacked the Sidl at Sojut. Jylanm was again reinforced. In
Bysak, Mokkitu Sing Mairtea attacked the royal post at Mairta,
slew Syed Alii, and drove out the king’s troops.”

The year 1739 was one of perpetual conflict, of captures aud
recaptures, in which many parties of twenty aud thirty on each side
fell. They afford numerous examples of heroic patriotism, in which
Rah tore blood was lavishly shed ; but while 1o them each warrior
was a loss not to be replaced, the despot continued to feed the war
r with fresh troops. The Bhnttis of Jessulmer came forward this
year, and nobly shed their blood in seconding the efforts of the
Raktores in this patriotic warfare.

“ In S. 1710, Aziin and Asud Kknn joined the emperor in the
Dokhan, and Enayet Khan was left in command at Ajmdr — being
enjoined not to relax the war in Manvar, even with the setting in of
the rains. Mainvarra afforded a place of rendezvous for the Rail-
tores, and security for their families. Here eleven thousand of the
best troops of Enayet invaded the hills to attack the united Jodas
and Champawuts, who retaliated on Palli, Sojut, and Godwav. The
ancient Muudore, which was occupied by a garrison under Khwaja
Saleh, was attacked by the Mandaicba Bhntti aud driven out. At
Bagrie, a desperate encounter took place in the month of Bysak,
when Ram Sing and Sawuut Sing, both Bliatti chiefs, fell, with two
hundred of their vassals, slaying one thousand of the Moguls. The
Kurumsotes and Koompawuts, under Anop Sing, scoured the banks
of the Looni, and put to the sword the garrisons of Oosturrok aud
Gangaui. Mohkim, with his Mairleas, made a descent on his
patrimonial lauds, and dvow upon him the whole force of its
governor, Mohammed Alii. The Mairtoas met him on their own
native plains. The Yavau proposed a truce, and at the interview
assassinated the head of the Mairteas, tidings of whose death rejoiced
the Shah in the Dekhan.

“At the beginning of 1741, neither strife nor fear had abated.
Soojan Sing led the Rahtores in the south, while Laklia Ckampawufc
and Kesar Koompawut aided by the Bhattis and Oholiaus, kept the
garrison of Jodpoor in alarm. When Soojan was slain, the bard
was sent to Singram, who held a munsub aud lands from the king ;
he was implored to join his brethren ; he obeyed, aud all collected
around Singram.* Sewauchaf was attacked, aud with Bkalotra
and Pauehbadra wore plundered; while the blockaded garrisons
were* unable to aid. An hour before sunset, every gate of Maroo
was shut. The Asoors had tlie strong-holds in their power ; but the
plains resounded with the An J of Ajlt. Oodi-bkan, with his Joda-
. wuts, appeared before Bkadrajoon ; he assaulted the foe and captured

* We are nob informed of wliat clan he was, or his rank, which must have
been high.

f The bract; so called, of which Sewanoh is the capital.

j Oath of allegiance.

62

ANNALS OF MARWAE.

[CHAP. VII.

liis gnus and treasure. An attempt from Jodpoor made to recapture
the trophies, added to the triumph of the Joda.

“ Poordil Khan* * * § lield Sewanoh ; and Nahur Khan Mewatti, Kunari.
To attack them, the Champawuts convened at Mokulsir. Their
thirst for vengeance redoubled at the tidings that Noor Alii had
abducted two young women of the tribe of Assuui. Rutna led the
Rahtores ; they reached Kunari and engaged Poordil Khan, who was
put to the sword with six hundred of his men. The Rahtores left
one hundred in tbo field that day, the ninth of Cheyt. The Mirzaf
no sooner heard of this defeat than he fled towards Thoda, with the
Assnni damsels, gazing on the mangoes as they ripened, and having
reached Koochal, he encamped. Subhul Sing, the son of Aiskurn,
heard it; he took his opium, and though the Mirza was surrounded
by pillars, the dagger of Aiskurn’s son reached his heart ; but tlfe
BkattiJ was cut in pieces. The roads were now impassable ; the
T’hanas§ of the Tavans were reduced to great straits.

“ The year 1742 commenced with the slaughter of the king’s
garrison at Sambliur by ihe Lakhawufs and Assawuts;|| while from
Gfodwar the chiefs made incursions to the gates of Ajmer. A battle
took place at Mairta, where the Rahtores were defeated and dispersed;
hut in revenge Singram burned the suburbs of Jodpoor, and
then came to Dhoounra, where once more the clans assembled. They
marched, invested Jhalore, when Beharri, left without succour, was
compelled to capitulate, and the gate of honour (dhermadwam) was
left open to him. And thus ended 1742.-”

* It is almost superfluous to remark, even to the mere English reader, that
whenever he meet the title Khan, it indicates a Mnhomednn ; and that of Sing
(lion) a Rajpoot.

f Roor Alii. Mirza is a title only applied to a Mogul.

+ As a Bhabti revenged this disgrace, it is probable the Assam’ damsels, thus
.abducted by the Mirza, were of his own race.

§ Garrisons and Military posts.

j| These are of the most ancient vassalage of Maioo.

CHAP, VIII.]

ANNALS OP MARWAR.

63

CHAPTER VIII.

The clans petition to see the young Raja.—Doorjun Sal of Kotah joins the
Itahtore cause. — They proceed toAboo. — Are introducedto Ajit, who is conveyed
to Ahwa, and makes a tour to all the chieftainships. — Consternation of
A rungzcb, — lie sets up a pretender to Jodpoor. — The Rahtores and Haras
drive the Imperialists from Marwar. — They carry the war abroad. — Storm of
Poor A f audit . — The Kara Prince slain. — Doorgadas returns from the Dekhan.
— Defeats Sefi Khan, governor of Ajmer, who is disgraced by the king. — Seji
Khan attempts to circumvent Ajit by negotiation. — His failure and disgrace . —
Rebellion m Mcivar. — The Rahtores support the Rana. — Arungzeb negotiates
for the daughter of prince Akb'er left in Manvur. — A jit again driven for refuge
into the hills. — Affair at Beejipoor. — Success of the Rahtores. — Arungzeb’ s
apprehension for his grand-daughter. — The Rana sends the coco-nut to Ajit,
who proceeds to Oodipoor, and marries the liana’s niece. — Negotiations for
peace renewed . — Tenninate. — The surrender of the princess . — Jodpoor restored.
— Magnanimity of Doorgadas. — Ajit takes possession. — Ajit again driven
from his capital. — Afflictions of the Hindu race. — A son born to Ajit, named
Abhye Sing. — His horoscope.— Battle of Droonara. — The viceroy of Lahore
passes through Marwar to Guzzerat. — Death of Arungzeb. — Diffuses joy.— Ajit
attacks Jodpoor. — Capitulation. — Dispersion and massacre of the king’s
troops. — Ajit resumes his dominions. — Azim, with the title of Bahader Shah,
mounts the throne. — Battle of Agra. — The king' prepares to invade Marwar . —
Arrives at Ajmer. — Proceeds to Bai Bilaru. — Sends an embassy to Ajit, who
repairs to the imperial camp . — Reception. — Treachaous conduct of the
emperor. — Jodpoor surprised. — Ajit forced to accompany the emperor to the
Dekhan. — Discontent of the Rajas. — They abandon the king, and join Rana
Umra at Oodipoor. — Triple alliance. — Ajit appears before Jodpoor, which
capitulates on honourable terms. — Ajit undertakes to replace Raja Jey Sing on
the gadi of Amber. — Battle of Sambhur, Ajit victorious. — Amber abandoned to
Jey Sing . — Ajit attacks Bikaner . — Redeems Nagore \— The Rajas threatened by
the king. — Again unite. — The king repairs to Ajmer . — The Rajas join him . —
Rcceivcfmn&ns for their dominions. — Ajit makes a pilgrimage to Curu-kketa.
— Reflections on the. thirty years’ war waged by the Rahtores against the empire
' for independence. — Eulogium on Doorgadas.

“ In the year 1743, the Chainpawuts, Koompawuts, Oodawuts,
Mairteas, Jodas, Kurumsotes, and all the assembled clans of
Mai'oo, became impatient to see their sovereign. They sent
for the Kbeecbi Mpkund, and prayed that they might but
behold him 3 but the faithful to his trust replied “ He,* who confided
“him to me, is yet in the Eekhau .” — “ Without the sight of our
“ Lord, bread and water have no flavour.” Mokuud could not with-
stand their suit. The Hara prince Doorjun Sal, having come to
their aid with one thousand horse from Kotah, f they repaired to the

♦Meaning Doorgadas.

•f His principal object was to marry the daughter of Sujaun Sing Champawufc
, the sister o£ the brave Mokund Sing, often mentioned in the chronicle. The

G4

ANNALS 05 MARWAR.

[OHAP. Vlll.

hill of Aboo, when on the last day of Cheyt 1743, they saw their
prince. “ As tbe lotos expands at the sunbeam, so did the heart of
each Rahtore at tlie sight of their infant sovereign; they drank
liis looks, even as the papaya in the month Asoj sips drops of
imritu ( ambrosia ) from the Champa .* There were present, Oodi
Sing, Singram Sing, Beeji-Pal, Tej Sing, Moknud Sing, and Naliur
sou of Huree, all Champawuts. Raj Siug, Juggut Sing, Jeit Sing,
Samunt Sing, of the -Oodawuts; — Ram Sing, Futtek Sing, and
Kesuri, Koompawufcs. There was also the Oohur chief of pure
descent, f besidestheKheecbiMokund, the Purohit, the Purihar, and
the Jain priest, Yaii Gy an, Becjy. In a fortunate hour, Ajit became
known to the world. The Iiara Rao first made his salutation; he
was followed by all Marwar with offerings of gold, pearls, and horses.

“Enayet conveyed the tidings to Arung Shah ; the Asoor chief
said to the king, ‘ if without a head, so long they had combated him,
what could now be expected V be demanded reinforcements.

“In triumph they conveyed the young Raja to Aliwa, whose
chief made the badhoo% with pearls, and presented him with horses ;
here he was entertained, and here they prepared the teeka dour.
Thence, taking Raepoor, Bilara, and Baroonda in his way, and
receiving tbe homage and nuzznrs of their chiefs, he repaired to
Asope, where he was entertained by the head of the Koompawuts.
From Asope ho went to the Bhatti fief of Loweiroh; thence to Reah, _
the chief abode of the Mairteas ; thence to Kewnsir, of the Kurrn-
sotes. Each chief entertained their young lord, around whom all
the clans gathered. Then he repaired to Kaloo, the abode of Pabhoo
Rao Dliandul,§ who came forth with all his bands; and at length
he reached Pokurn, where he was joined by Doorgadas from the
Dekhan, the 10th of Bhadoon 1744.

-Enayet Khan was alarmed. He assembled a numerous array to
quell this fresh tumult, but death pounced upon him. The king
was afflicted thereat. He tried another stratagem, and set up a
pretended son of Jeswunt, styled Mohammed Shah, and offered Ajit
the munsub of five thousaud to submit to bis 'authority. The
pretender also died as lie set out for Jodpoor, and Sujait Khan was
made tbe Governor of Marwar in the place of Enayet. How the
Rahtores and Haras united, having cleared Maroo of their foes,
attacked them in a foreign land. The garrisons of Alalpoora and
Poor Mandil were put to the sword, and here the Hara prince was

Kotali prince dared not, according to every Rnjpoot maxim of gallantry, refuse
his aid on such occasion ; but the natural bravery and high mind of Doorjun
Sal required no stimulus.

* The Hindoo poet says tbe Papaya bird becomes intoxicated with the
flowers.

t A name now lost.

j Waving a brass vessel, filled with pearls, round bis head.

§ Pabhoo Rao Rahtore is immortalized by tbe aid of his lance on this occa-
sion ; he wag of the ancient chivalry of Maroo, and still held his allodial
domain.-

CHAP. VIII.]-

ANNALS OF MARWAR.

65

killed by a cannon shot in leading the storm. Here they levied
eight thousand mohurs iu contribution and returned to Mur way,
while the civil officers and Purohits made collections in his country;
and thus passed 1744.

“ The year 1745 commenced with proposals from Sujait Khan to
hold Marwar iu farm ; he promised one-fourth of all transit duties
if the Rabtoi-es would respect foreign commerce : to this thev agreed.
The son of Eunyet left Jodpoor for Dehli ; he had reached Rainwal,
but was overtaken by the Joda Hurnat, who released him both of
wives and wealth. The Khan fled to the Cutchwahas for shelter.
Sujah Beg, who left Ajmdr to release him, fared no better : he was
attacked, defeated, and plundered by Mokundas Champawut.

In 1747, Sefi Khan was Hakim of Ajmer: Doorga determined
“ to attack him. The Hakim took post in the pass which defends the
u road ; there Dooi'ga assailed him, and made him fly to Ajmer. The
“ tidings reached the king; he wrote to the Khan, if he discomfited
s< Doorgadas, he -would raise him over all the khans of the empire ; if
“ he failed, he should send him bracelets,* and order Sujait from
“ Jodpoor to supersede him.” Sefi, before abandoning his trust, tried
to retain his honours by the circumvention of Ajit. He addressed a
letter fo him, saying he held the imperial sunnud for the restoration
of his paternal domains, but that, as the king’s representative, he
must come and receive it. Ajit marched at the head of twenty
thousand Rahtores, sending in advance Mokund Ckamapawut to
observe whether any treachery was contemplated. The snare
was discovered and reported to Ajit, as he arrived at the foot
of the pass beyond the mountains. * Let us, however, have
a sight of Ajidoorg as we are so near/ said the young prince, f and
receive the compliments of the khan.’ They moved on towai’ds
the city, and Sefi Khan had no alternative but to pay his obeisance
to Ajit. To enjoy his distress, one said, c let us fire the city.’ The
Hakim sat trembling for its safety and his own; he brought forth
jewels and horses, which he presented to Ajit.

<( In 1748, the troubles re-commenced in Mewar. Prince Umi-a
rebelled against his father, Rana Jey Sing, and was joined by all his
chiefs. The Rana fled to Godwar, and at Ganorah collected a force,
which Umra prepared to attack. The Rana demanded succour of
the Rahtores, and all the Mail-teas hastened to relieve him ; and soon
after Ajit sent Doorgadas and Bugwan, with Rinmnl Joda, and
f the eight ranks of Rahtores’ to espouse the father’s cause. But the
Ckondawuts and Suktawuts, the Jhalas and Chohans, rather than
admit foreign interference in their quarrel, thought it better to effect
a reconciliation between father and son; and thus the Rana was
indebted to Marwar for the support of his throne.

<c The year 1749 passed in negotiation to obtain the daughter of
prince Akber, left in charge of Doorgadas, for whose honour Arung-

[VOL. II.]

* A mark of contempt.

9

66

ANNALS OF HARWAR.

[CHAP. VIII.

zeb was alarmed, as Ajit was reaching manhood ; Nai’ayndasKoolmbi
was the medium of negotiation, and Sefi Khan caused all hostilities
to cease while it lasted.

“ In 1750,-theMooslem governors of Jodpoor, Jhalore, and Sewanoh,
combined their forces against Ajlt, who was again compelled to
retreat to the mountains. Akho, the Balia, received their attack,
but was defeated in the month of Magh. Another combat was
hastened by the wanton slaughter of a sand’ll,* * * § when the Hakim of
Chank, with all his train, were made prisoners at Mokulsir by the
Champawut Mokundas.

“To such straits were the Mooslems put in 1751, that many dis-
tricts paid chout’h , others txdbute, and many tired of this incessant
warfare, and unable to conquer their bread, took service with the
Rahtores. This year, Kasim Khan and Lushkur Khan marched
against Apt, who took post at Beejipoor. Doorga’s son led the onset,
and the Khan was defeated. With each year of Ajit grew the hopes
of the Rahtores; while Arungzeb was afflicted at each month’s
growth of his graud-daughter. He wrote to Sujait, the Hakim of
Jodpoor, to secure his honour at whatever cost; his applications for
Akber’s daughter were unwearied.

“ This year the coco-nut studded with perns, -j- two elephants and
ten steeds, all richly caparisoned, were sent by the Rami to affiance
the daughter of his younger brother, Guj Sing, to Ajit. The present
was accepted, and in the month of Jeit, the prince of the Rahtores
repaired to Oodipoor, where the nuptials were solemnized. In Asar
he again married at Deolah.J

“ In 1753, negotiations were renewed through Doorgadas, and the
protracted restoration of the Sultani obtained the seat of his ances-
tors for the Jodani. Doorga was offered for himself the munsub of
five thousand, which he refused ; he preferred that Jhalore,
Sewanchi, Sanchore, and Tlieraud, should revert to his country. Even
Aruug admired the honourable and distinguished treatment of his
grand-daughter.

“ In Pos 1757,§ Ajit regained possession of his ancestral abode: on
his reaching Jodpoor he slew a buffalo at each of its five gates. Tko
Shahzada Sooltan led the way, Sujait being dead.||

ff In 1759, Azirn Shah again seized on Jodpoor, and Ajit made
Jhalore his abode. Some of his chiefs now served the foe, some the

* One of those pampered bulls, allowed to wander at liberty and fed by
every one.

t The coco, the symbol of a marriage offer.

j Pertabgurh Deolnb, a small principality grown out of rffewnr.

§ I cannot now call to mind whether this break of four years in the chronicle
of the bard Knrnidhan occurs in the original, or that in translating I left the
hiatus from there being nothing interesting therein. Tho tyrant was now fully
occupied in the Dekhan wars, and the Rajpoots had time to breathe.

[j This Shahzada must have been prince Asim, who was nominatad viceroy
of Guzzerafc and Marwar.

CHA1\ VIII,]

ANNALS OS' MARWAR.

67

Haim whose hopes were on Eldinga alone; while the lord of Amber
served the king in the Dekhan. The enormities of the Asoors had
reached their height ; the sacred kine were sacrificed even at
Mat’hoora, Priag, and Okamandel ; the Jogis and Byragis invoked
heaven for protection, but iniquity prevailed as the Hindu strength
decayed. Prayers were everywhere offered up to heaven to cleanse
the land from the iniquities of the barbarians.* In this year, the
month of Magh 1759, the Mittum Lciggun (the f sun in Gemini’), a
son was born of the Cbohani, who was called Abhye Sing. (See end
of this Chapter, p. 73, for the Horoscope of Abhye Sing.)

“In 1761, Eusopli was superseded by Moorshid Kooli as Hakim
of Jodpoor. On his arrival he presented the royal sunnud for
the restoration of Mairta to Ajit. Koosul Sing, the Mail-tea
Sirmor, with the Dhandul Govindas, were ordered to take the
charge, which incensed the son of Indur, (Mohkim Sing), who
deemed his faithful service during his minority overlooked by
this preference. He wrote to the king to nominate him to the com-
mand of Marwar, and that he would fulfil his charge to the satis-
faction both of Hindu and Moslem.

“In 1761 the star of the foe began to decline. Moorshid Kooli,
the Mogul, was relieved by Jaffier Khan. Mohkim’s letter was
intercepted. He had turned traitor to his prince, and joined the
king’s troops. Ajit marched against them ; he fought them at
Droonava ; the king’s troops were defeated, and the rebel Eendawut
was slain. This was in 1762.

“ In 1763, Ibrahim Khan the king’s lieutenantf at Lahore, passed
through Marwar to relieve Azim in the vice-royalty of Guzzerat.
On the second day of Cheit, the obscure half of the moon, the joyful
tidings arrived-of the death of the king.J On the fifth, Ajit took
to horse; he reached the town of Joda, and sacrificed to the gates,
but the Asoors feared to face him. Some hid their faces in fear,
while others fled. The Mirza came down, and Ajit ascended to the
halls of his ancestors. The wretched Yavans, now abandoned to the
infuriated Rajpoots smarting under twenty-six years of misery,
found no mercy. In hopeless despair they fled, and the wealth
which they had amassed by extoitiou and oppression, returned to
enrich the proprietor. The barbarians, in turn, were made captive ;
they fought, were slaughtered and dispersed. Some sought sirna
(sanctuary), and found it ; even the barbarian leader himself threw
fear to the winds in the unconcealed sanctuary of the Koompawut.
But the triumph of the Hindu was complete, when, to escape from
perdition, their flying foes invoked Seeta-Ram and Hur-govind,
begging their bread in the day, and taking to their heels at night.

* This record of the manifold injuries, civil and religious, under which the
Hindu nation groaned, is quite akm to the sentiments of the letter of remon-
strance addressed by liana Raj Sing to Arungzdb — See Yol. I, p. 322.
f He is called the sumdi, or ‘ son-in-law of the king.’

£ oth Cheit S. 1763. The 28tb Zekaud.

[Vox.. II.]

9a

68

ANNALS OP MAHWAR.

[CHAP. VIH.

The chaplet of the Moolla served to count the name of Rama, and a
handful of gold was given to have their beards removed.* * * § Nothing
but the despair and flight of the ‘Mleteha’ was heard throughout
Moordliur. Mairta was evacuated, and the wounded Mohkim fled
to Nagore. Sojut and Paili were regained, and the land returned to
the Jodftni. Jodgurh was purified from the contaminations of the
barbarian with the water of the Ganges and the sacred Toolsi, aud
Ajit l’eceived the tiluk of sovereignty.

Then Aziin marched from the south and Moazzim from the north.
At Agra a mighty battle for empire took place between the two
Asoors, but Allumf prevailed aud got the throne. The tidings soon
reached the king, that Ajit had plundered his armies in Maroo and
taken possession of the ‘ cushion ’ of his fathers.

fe The rainy season of 1764 had vanished, the king had no repose;
he formed an army aud came to Ajmer. Then Huridas, the son of
Bugwan, with the Oohur and Mangalea chiefs, t aud Rutna the
leader of the Oodawuts, with eight hundred of their clan, entered
the castle aud swore to Ajit, that whatever might be his intentions,
they were resolved to maintain the castle to the death. The royal
army encamped at Bai Bilara, and Ajit prepared for the storm ; but
the king was advised to try peaceful arts, and an overture was made,
aud the messenger was sent back to the king accompanied by Nahur
Khan. The embassy returned bearing the royal finnan to Ajit ;
but before he would accept it, he said he would view the royal army,
and on the first day- of Phalgoon he left the hill of Joda aud reached
Beesilpoor. Here he was received by a deputation from the king,
headed by Sujait Khaii, son of the Kbanklianan, accompanied by
the Raja of Badoria and Rao Boodh Sing of Boondi : — the place of
meeting was Peepar. That night passed in adjusting the terms of
the treaty. The ensuing morn he marched forward at the head of
all the men of Maroo ; and at Anundpoor the eyes of the king of the
barbarians ( Mletcha ) fell on those of the lord of the earth. He gave
him the title of Teg Bahader.^ But fate decreed that the city of
•Joda was coveted by the king; by stealth he sent Mairab Khan to
take possession, accompanied by the traitor Mohkim. Ajit burned
with rage when he heard of th'is treachery, but he was compelled to
dissimulate and accompany Allum to the Dekhan, and to serve
uuder Kambuksh. Jey Sing of Ambev|| was also with the king,
and had a like cause for discontent, a royal garrison being placed
in Ambdr, aud the gadi of the Raja bestowed on his younger

* The Rajpoots gave up beards the better to distinguish them from the
Mooslems.

f Shah Allum, who assumed the title of Bahader Shah, ou mounting the
throne.

J The Mangalea is a branch of the Grhelotes, severed from the original stem
in the reign of Bappa Rawul eleven centuries ago.

§ * The -warrior’s sword.’ ' .

ij This is the Mima Baja, Jey Sing ; — the posterior Jey Sing had the epithet
Sowae.

CHAP.'VHI.]

ANNALS OF MARWAfi.

69

brother, Beojy Sing. Now tlio army rolled ou like a sea overflow-
ing its bounds. As soon as the king crossed the Nerbudda,* the
Bajas executed their designs, and without saying a word, at the head
of their vassals retrograded to Raj wav ra. They repaired to Oodi-
poor, and were received by Raua Umra with rejoicing and dis-
tinction, who advanced to conduct them to his capital. Seated
together, the chaorl waving over their heads, they appeared like the
Triuna,f Brimha, Vishnfl and Mahdsa. Prom this hour the fortunes
of the Asoors sunk, and virtue again began to shew herself. j: From
Oodipoor the two Rajas passed to Manvar. They reached Ahwa,
and here the Champawnt Singram, sou of Oodibhftu, spread the foot-
carpet (pug-munda) for his lord.

" The mouth of Sawtm 1705 set in, and the hopes of the Asoor
expired. Mairab was in consternation when he heard that A jit had
returned to his native laud. On the 7th the hall of Joda was siir-
rounded by thirty thousaud Rahtores. On the 12th the gate of honour
was thrown open to Mairab ; he had to thank the son of Aislcurn§
for his life, lie was allowed an honourable retrofit, and Ajlt once
more entered the capital of Maroo,

" .ley Sing encamped upon the banks of the Soor Sagur ; but a
prince without a country, he was unhappy. Bub as soon as t,lio rains
were passed, Ajmal, the sanctuary of the Cutchwalia, proposed to
reinstate him in Amber. When conjoined the}’’ had reached Maivta,
Agra and Dehli trembled. When they arrived at Ajmer its governor
sought sirna with the saint, || and paid the contributions demanded.
Then, like the falcon, Ajib darted upon Sambhur; and here the vas-
sals of Ambdr repaired from all quarters to the standard of their lord.
With twelve thousaud raeu, the Syed advanced aloug the edge of the
salt lake, to encounter Ajmal. The Koompawut led the charge ; a
desperate battle ensued ; Hussein, with six thousand men, lay on the
field, while the rest took to flight and sought refuge in the castle.^f
His lieutenant, tho Purihar, chief pandoo , here fell** into the hands
of Ajtt ; he then felt he had recovered Muudore. On intelligence of
this history, tho Asoors abandoned Amber, and having placed a gar-
rison in Sambhur, in the month of Megsir, A jit restored Jey Sing to
Amber, and prepared to attack Bikaner, Ajit, committed the
administration of all civil affairs to the faithful Raghouath Bindarri,

* Tlie Mooslcm historian montions in Yol. I, p. 340, that Bnhnder was then
on route to Lahore.

f'L'ri-anga, the triple-bodied, or Iri-murli.

j The bard of idaroo passes over the important fact of the intermarriage
which took place on this occasiou of the Rajpoot triplo alliance. See-
Yol. I, p. 399.

SDoorgndas, who recommended tho acceptance of tho proffered capitulation.

([The shrine of Khwaja Kootub.

q[ Although the Mnrwar chronicler takes all the credit of this notion, it waa
fought by the combined Rajpoots of the alliance. Yol. I, p. 341-2.

** Pandoo is tho squire, the shield-bearer, of tho Rajpoots.

70

ANNALS Or MARWAE.

[cHAr. Till.

Tvitla tlie title of Dewau. Ho was well qualified, both, from his
experience in civil affairs and from his valour as a soldier.

“ InBhadoon of the year 1766, Arungzeb put to death Kambuksk,*
aud Jey Sing entered iuto negotiations with the king. Ajit now
went against Nagore j but Indur Sing being without resource, came
forth and embraced Ajit’s feet, who bestowed Ladnoo upon him as a
heritage. But this satisfied not him who had been the lord of Nagore,
and Indur carried his complaints to Dehli. f The king was enraged
— his threats reached the Rajas, who deemed it safe again to re-unite.
They met atKoleo near Didwanah, aud the king soon after reached
Ajmer. Thence he sent his firm fins and the punja as terms of friend-
ship to the Rajas : Nabur Khan, chclah of the king, was the bearer.
They were accepted, and on the 1st Asar both the Rajas repaired to
Ajmer. Here thekingreceivod them graciously ,in the face of the world;
to Ajifc he presented the snnnud of the Nine Gastles of Maroo, and to
Jey Slug that of Amber. Having taken leave of tbe king, the two
Rajas went on the purbh to the sacred lake of Pooshkur. Here they
separated for their respective domains, and Ajit reached Jodpoor in
Sawuu 1767. In this year he married a Gor Rani, and thus quenched
tho feud caused by Arjoon, who slew Umra Sing in the Aum-khas.f
Then he went on a pilgrimage to Curukheb, the field of battle of the
MalidbMvat, aud made his ablutions in the fountain of Bhlsama.§
Thus 1767 passed away.

** Kntnbuksh was tbe child of tbe old age of tbe tyrant Artmgzdb, by a Itaj-
poot piincess. He appears to have held him in more affection than any of bis
other sous, as bis letter on bis death-bed to him testifies. See. Yol.I, p. 320.

f Indur Sing was the son of Umin, tbe eldest brother of Jeswnnt, and the
father of Mobkim, who, being disappointed of the government of Mairta,
deserted to the king.

J This is another of the numerous instances of contradictory feelings in the
Rajpoot character. Umra, elder brother of Jeswunt, was banished from iMarwar,
lost his birtli-vight, and was afterwards slain at court, ns already related. His
son, Indur Siug, and grnudson Mobkim, from Hagore, which they held in
separate grants lrom the king, never forgot their title ns elder branch of the
family, and eternally eon tested their claim against A jft. Still, as a Iinhtore, he
was bound to avenge the injuries of a Kahtore, even though his personal foe. —
Singular inconsistency !

§ There is' an anecdote regarding the fountain of this classic field of strife,
the Troad of Rajast’han, which well exemplifies tbe superstitious belief of the
warlike Rajpoot. The emperor Baliader Shah was desirous to visit this scene
of the exploits of the beioes of antiquity, stimulated, no doubt, by Ins
Rajpootnl queen, or bis mother, also of this race. He was seated under a tree
which shaded the sacred fount, named after the great leader of the Owns, his
queen by bis side, surrounded by haiidts to hidethemfrom profane eyes, when
a vulture perched upon the tree with a bone in its beak, which falling in the
fountain, the bird set up a scream of laughter. The king looked up in astonish-
ment, which was greatly increased when the vulture addressed him in human
accents, saying, 11 that in a former birth she was a Jogini, and was in tho field
of slaughter of the great war, whence she flew away with the dissevered arm of
one of its mighty warriors, with which she alighted on that very tree, that the
arm was encumbered with a ponderous golden bracelet, in which, as an amulet,
were set thirteen brilliant symbols of Siva, and that after devouring the flesh,
she dropped the bracelet, which fell into tbe fountain, and it was this awakened
coincidence which had caused “ the scream of laughter.” We must suppose

chap, virr.]

ANNALS OF MARWAR.

71

Hero let us, for a while, suspend the narrative of the chronicler,
and talco a retrospective glance at the transactions of the Rahtores,
from the year 1787, the period of Raja Jeswunt’s death at Cabul, to
the restoration of Ajifc, presenting a continuous conflict of thirty
years’ duration. In vain might we search the annals of any other
nation for such inflexible devotion as marked the Rahtore character
through this period of strife, during which, touso their own phrase,
" hardly a chieftain died ou his pallet.” Lob thoso who deem the
Hindu warrior void of patriotism read the rude chronicle of this
thirty years’ war; let them compare it with that of any other
country, and do justice to the magnanimous Rajpoot. This narrative,
the simplicity of which is the best voucher for its authenticity,
presents an uninterrupted record of patriotism and disinterested
loyalty. It was a period when the sacrifice of these principles was
rewarded by the tyrant king with the highest honours of the state ;
nor are we without instances of the temptation being too strong to be
withstood : hub the}* are rare, and serve only to exhibit, in more pleas-
ing colours, the virtues of the tribe which spurned the attempts at
seduction. What n splondidexample is the heroic Doorg’adas of all that
constitutes the glory of the Rajpoot! Valour, loyalty, integrity, com-
bined with prudence in all the difficulties which surrounded him, are
qualities which entitle him to the admiration which his memory
continues to enjoy. Tho temptations held out to him were almost
irrosistible : not merely the gold, which he and thousands of his
brethren would alike have spurned, but the splendid offer of power
in the proffered f muusub of five thousand,’ which would at once
have lifted him from his vassal condition to an equality with the
princes and chief nobles of the land. Doorga had, indeed, but to
name his reward ; but, ns the bard justly says, he was ‘ amulctc /

that this, the j mlchara of tho field of slaughter, spoke Sanscrit or its dialect,
interpreted by his Rajpoot queen. Instantly the pioneers were commanded to
clear the fountain, nud behold tho relic of the Muhabharut, with the symbolic
emblems of tho god all-perfect ! and so large were ’they, that the empei’or
remarked they would answer excellently well for 1 slaves of tho carpet.’ Tho
Hindu princes then present, among whom were the Rajas Ajlt and Joy Sing,
were shocked at this levity, and each entreated of the king one of tho phallic
symbols. The Mirza Raja obtained two, and both are yet at Jeipoor, one in
the Temple of Silla Devi, (1) tho other in that of Govinda. Ajft ltad one, still
preserved nud worshipped at the shrine of Ginlhari at Jodpoor. My old tutor
and friend, the Yati Gyanchaudrn, who told the story while ho read the
chronicles as' I translated them, has often seen and made homage to all the
three relics. There is one, ho believed, tit Boondl or Kotah, and the Rana by
some means obtained another. They are of puro rock crystal, and as each
weighs some pounds, there must have been giants in the days of the BhArat.to
have supported thirteen in one armlet. Homer's heroes were pigmies to the
Ouriiij, whose bracelet we may doubt if Ajax could have lifted. My venerable
tutor, though liberal in his opinions, did not choose to dissent from the
general belief, for man, lie said, had beyond a doubt greatly degenerated
since tho heroic ages, and was rapidly approximating to the period, the
immediate forerunner of a universal renovation, when only dwarfs would
creep over the land.

(1) Tho goddess of arms, their Pallas.

72

ANNALS OF MARTVAR.

[CHAP. Till.

beyond nil price, ‘ mioJco,’ unique. 3STot oven revenge, so dear to the
llajpoot, turned him aside from the dictates of true honour. The
foul assassination of liis brother, the brave Soiling, effected through
his enemies, made no alteration in his humanity ■whenever the chance
of war placed his foe in bis power ; and in this, his policy seconded
his virtue. His chivalrous conduct, in the extrication of prince
Akbdr from inevitable destruction had he fallen into his father’s
hands, was only surpassed by his generous and delicate behaviour
towards the prince’s family, which was left in his care, forming a
marked contrast to that of the enemies of his faith on similar
occasions. The virtue of the grand-daughter of Arungzeb, in the
sanctuary ( sirnn ) of Droonarn,* was in far better keeping than in
the trebly-walled harem of Agra. Of his energetic mind, and the
control ho exerted over those of his confiding brethren, what a proof
is given, in his preserving the secret of the abode of his prince
throughout the six first years of his infancy ! But, to conclude our
eulogy in the words of their bard : he has reaped the immortality
destined for good deeds ; his memory is cherished, his actions are
the theme of constant praise, and his pictui’e on his white horse, old,
yet in vigour, is familiar atnougst the collections of portraits of
JRajpootana.

But there was not a clan, or family, that did not produce men of
worth in this protracted warfare, which incited constant emulation ;
and the bards of each had abundant materials to emblazon the pages
of their chronicles. To the recollection of these, their expatriated
.descendants allude in the memorial of their hardships from the
cruel policy of the reigning chief, the last lineal descendant of the
prince, whose history, has just been narrated. We now resume the
narrative in tbe language of the chronicle.

* Doorgn's fief on the Looni.

CHAP, VIII,]

ANNALS OP HARWAR. '

73

HOEOSCOPE OF EAJA ABHYE SING.

In the jcncm-patri, or horoscope of Abhye Sing (referred to in p,
07) ; the 4th, 7th, 8th, 10th, 11th, and 12th houses denote the
destinies of the heir of Ajit. In the 4th we have the monster Itdhoo,
the author of eclipses. Of the 7th, or house of heirs, the Moon and
Venus have taken possession ; of the 8th, or house of strife, the Son
and Mercury. In the 10th is K6too, brother otRahoo, both signs of
evil portent. Mars rides in the house of fate, while Saturn and
Jupiter are together in the abode of sovereignty. Like that of
every man living, the horoscope of the heir of Maroo is filled with
good and evil : could the Jolishi , or astrological seer, have put the
parricidal sign in the house of destiny, he might have claimed some
merit for superior intelligence. Those who have ever consulted any
works on this foolish pursuit, will observe that the diagrams of the
Europeau astrologers are exact copies of the Hindu, in proof of
which I have inserted this : to trace darkness as well as light from
the East !

[Vot. II.] - 10

74

ANNALS OF MARWAR.

[CHAP, IX.

CHAPTER IX.

Ajit commanded to reduce Nairn and the rebels of the Sewaluk mountains.— The
emperor dies,— Civil wars. — Ajit nominated viceroy of Guzzerat.—AjU com -
maiided to send his son to couft, — Daring attach on the chief of Nagore, ivho is
slain, — Retaliated. — The king's army invades Marwar. — Jodpoor invested —
Terms. — Abhye Sing sent to court. — Ajit proceeds to Dehli. — Coalesces with
the Syed ministry of the king. — Gives a. daughter in marriage to the emperor . —
Returns to Jodpoor.— Repeal of the Jezeya. — Ajit proceeds to his viceroyalty
of Guzzerat. — Settles the province . — Worships at Dwarica. — Returns to Jod~
poor. — The Syeds summon him to court. — The'splendour of his tram. — Leagues
with the Syeds. — The emperor visits Ajit. — Portents — Husein Alii arrives
from the Dekhan. — Consternation of the opponents of the Syeds and Ajit . —
Ajit blockades the palace with his Rahtores. — The emperor pul to death. — Suc-
cessors.— Mohammed Shah. — He marches against Amber. — Its Raja claim
sanctuary with Ajit. — Obtains the grant of Ahmedabad. — Returns to Jodpoor.
— Ajit mutes his daughter to the Prince of Amber. — The Syeds assassinated . —
Ajit warned of his danger. — Seizes on Ajmer. — Slays the governor. — Destroys
the mosques, and re-establishes the Hindu rites. — Ajit declares his independence. .
— Coins in his own name. — Establishes weights and measures, and his own
courts of justice. — Fixes the gradations of rank amongst his chiefs. — The
Imperialists invade Marwar. — Abhye Sing heads thirty thousand Rahtores to
oppose them. — The king's forces decline battle. — The Rahtores ravage the
Imperial provinces.— Abhye Sing obtains the surname of ‘Dhonkul,’ or
exterminator. — Returns to Jodpoor.— Battle of Sambhur. — Ajit gives sanctuary
to Choramun J At, founder of Bhurtpore. — The cmp>eror puts himself at the
head of all his forces to avenge the defeat of Sambhur. — Ajmer invested. — Its
defence. — Apt agrees to surrender Ajmer. — Abhye 'Sing proceeds to the
imperial camp. — His reception. — His arrogant bearing. — Murder of Ajit by
his son. — Infidelity of the bard. — Blank leaf of the Raj Roopaca, indicative of
this event. — Extract from that chronicle. — Funereal rites. — Six queens and
fifty-eight concubines determine to become Satis. — Expostulations of the Nazir,
bards, and purohits. — They fail. — Procession. — Rite concluded . — Reflexions on
Ajit's life and history.

"In 1768 Ajit was sent against Nahn and the chiefs of the snowy
mountains, whom he reduced to obedience. Thence he went to the
Ganges, where he performed his ablutions, and in the spring he
returned to Jodpoor. -

“ In 1769 Shah Allum went to heaven. The torch of discord was
lighted by his sons, with which they fired their own dwelling. Azim
Ooshawn was slain, and the umbrella of royalty waved over the
bead of Moiz-oo-deen. Ajit sent the Bindarri Kaimsi to the presence,
who returned with the sunnud of the vice-royalty of Guzzerat In
the month of Megsir 1769, he prepared an army to take possession
of the Satra-sches ,* when fresh dissentions broke out in the house of .

* The * seventeen thousand towns' of Guzzerat.

CHAP. IX.]

ANNALS Or 11ARWAR.

7b

the Chagitai. The Syeds slew Moiz-oo-deen, and Ferocbser became
king. Zoolfecar Khan was put to death, and with him departed the
strength of the Moguls. Then the Syeds became headstrong. Ajit
was commanded to send his son, Abhye Sing, now seventeen years
of age, with his contingent, to court; but Ajit having learned that the
traitor Mokund was there and in great favour, sent a trusty band,
who slew him even in the middle of Dehli. This daring act brought
the Syed with an army to Jodpoor. Ajit sent off the men of wealth to
Sewanoh, and his son and family to the desert of Rardurroh.* * * § The
capital was invested, and Abhye Sing demanded as a hostage for the
conduct of Ajit, who was also commanded to court. To neither was
the Raja inclined, but the advice of the Dewan, and still more of
Kesar the bard, who gave as a precedent the instance of Rao Ganga
when invaded by the Lodi, Dowlut Khan, who entrusted his affairs
to his son Maldeo, was unanimously approved.-)- Abhye Sing was
recalled from Rardurroh, and marched with Husein Alii to Delhi,
the end of Asar 1770. The heir of Maroo received tho munsub of
five thousand from the king.

tc Ajit followed his son to the court, then held at Dehli. There
the sight of the altars raised over the ashes of chiefs who had
- * perished to preserve him in his infancy, kindled all his wrath, and
he meditated revenge on the whole house of Timoor. Four distinct
causes for displeasure had Ajmal : —

” 1st. — The Noroza ;J

“ 2d. — The compulsoiy marriage of their daughters with the king;

f< 3d — The killing of kine ;

“ 4th." — The Jezeya, or capitation-tax/'^

Here we must interrupt the narrative, in order to supply an
important omission of the bard, who slurs over the hardest of the
conditions demanded of Ajit on the invasion of the Syed, viz., the
giving a daughter to Perochser, the important political results of
which are already related in the first part of this work.|| This
compulsory marriage only aggravated Ajit's desire of vengeance, and
he entered into the views of the Syeds with the true spii-it of his
father; obtaining meanwhile, as the price of coalition, the compliance
with the specified demands, besides others of less moment, such as
“ that the bell for prayer should be allowed to toll in the quarters
ff of the city allotted to the Rajpoots, and that their temples should
“ be, held sacred ; and last, but not least, the aggrandisement of his
ff hereditary dominions.’' Let us again recur to the chronicle.

* The tract west of the Loom.

t They slur over the most important demand — a daughter to wife to the
king— it is at this Ajit hesitates, and for which the precedent is given',

f See Yol. I, p. 290.

§ Described in Yol. I, p. 319.

|j Yol. I, p. 342.

[Vos. II.]

10a

76

ANNALS OF MAIttVAK.

[CHAP. IX.

“ In Jeit 1771, having secured all his wishes, Ajlfc left the court,
and with the renewed patent as viceroy of Guzzerat, returned to
Jodpooi’. Through Kaimsi,his minister, the jczeya was repealed.' The
Hindu race owed eternal obligation to the Mor {crown) of Mordhur,
the sanctuary of princes in distress.

“ In 1772, Ajit prepared to visit his government : Abhye Sing
accompanied .his father. He first proceeded to Jhalore, where he
passed the rainy season. Thence he attacked the f Mewasso P* first
Neemuj, which he took, when the Deoras paid him tribute. Feroz
Khan advanced from Palhaupoor to meet him. The Ran of Therad
paid a lac of rupees. Cambay was invested and paid ; and the
Koli chief, Kemkurn, was reduced. From Pattiu, Sukta the Cham-
pawut, with Beejo Bindarri, sent the year preceding to manage the
province, came forth to meet him.

" In 1 773, Ajit reduced the Jhala of Hulwu'd, and Jam of Nonnug-
gur, who paid as tribute three lacs of rupees, with twenty-five choice
steeds ; and having settled the province, he worshipped at Dwaricn,
and bathed in the Gomtee.f Thence ho returned to Jodpoor, where
he learned that Indur Sing had regained FTagoro ; but he stood not
before Ajit.

" The year 1774 had now arrived. The Syeds and their opponents
were engaged in civil strife. Husein Alii was in the Dekhan, and
the mind of Abdoolla was alienated from the king. Paper on paper
came, inviting Ajit. He marched by Nngore, Mairta, Poshkur,
Marote, and Sambhur, whose garrisons he strengthened, to Dehli.
From Marote ho sent Abhye Sing back to take care of Jodpoor.
The Syed advauced from Dehli to meet the Dhnnni (lord) of Marwar
who alighted at Aliverdi’s serai. Here the Syed and A jit formed a
league, to oppose Jey Sing and the Moguls, while the king remained
like a snake coiled up iu a closed vessel. To get rid of their chief
opponent, Zoolfecar Khan, was first determined.

“ When the king heard the Ajit had reached Dehli, he sent the
Hara Rao Bheem of Kotah, and Khandowran Khan to introduce him
to the presence. Ajit obeyed. Besides his own Rahtores, he was
accompanied by ltao Bisheu Sing of Jessulmdr, and Puddum Sing of
Derawul, withFutteh Sing, a noble of Mewar, Maun Sing Rahtore,
chief of Seeta Mhow, and the Chunderawut, Gopal of Rampoora,
besides Oodi Sing of Knudaila, Sukut Sing of Munohurpoor, Kisken

* il feivasso is a t.erm given to the fastnesses in the mountains, which the
aboriginal tribes, Kolis, Meenas, and Mnirs. and not unfrequently r.he Rajpoots,
make their retreats; and in the present instance the bard alludes to the
* Mewasso’ of the Deoras of Sirolii and Aboo, which has annoyed the
descendants of Ajit to this hour, and has served to maintain the independence
of this Chohan tribe.

t This is all in the district of Oka ( Oka mandala), where the Badbails fixed
themselves on the migration of Seoji from Canouj. It would have been
instructive had the bard deigned to have given us any account of the recognition
which this visit occasioned, and which beyond a doubt caused the * books of
Chronicles and Kings’ to be opened and referred to.

CHAP. IX,]

ANNALS OP HARWAE.

77 '

• of Kulcliipoor, and many others.* * * § The meeting took place at the
Mooti Bagh. The king bestowed the munsub of Heft Honan
(seven thousand horse) on Ajit, and added a crore of dams to his
rent-roll. He presented him with the insiguia of the Mold lloratib,
with elephants and horses, a sword and dagger, a diamond aigrette
(Sirpech)' aud plume, and a double string of pearls. Having left
the presence, Ajit went to visit A.bdoolla Khan. The Syed advanced
to meet him, aud his reception, with his attendants, was distin-
guished. They renewed their determination to stand or fall together.
Their conference caused dismay to the Moguls, who lay in ambush to
put Ajit to death.

“ On the second day of the bright moon of Pos, 1775, the king
honoured Ajit with a visit. Ajit seated the king on a throne formed
of bags of rupees to the amount of one lac,f aud presented elephants,
horses, and all that was precious. In the month of Phalgoon, Ajit
and the Syed went to visit the king ; and after the conference wrote
to Husein Alii revealiug their plans, and desiring his rapid march
to unite with them from the Dekhan. How the heavens assumed
portentous appearances; the desa% was red and fiery; jackasses
brayed unusually ; dogs barked ; thunder rolled without a cloud ;
the court., late so gay, was now sad and gloomy ; all were forebodings
of change at Delhi. In twenty days, Husein reached Dehli ; his
countenance was terrific ; his drum, which now beat close to the
palace, was the knell of falling greatness. He was accompanied by
myriads of horse. Dehli was enveloped in the dust raised by his
' hostile steeds. They encamped in the north of the city, and Husein
joined Ajit and his brother. The trembling Icing sent congratula-
tions aud gifts; the Mogul chiefs kept aloof in their abodes; even
as the quail cowers in the grass when the falcon hovers over it, so
did the Moguls when Husein reached Dehli. The lord of Amber
was like a lamp left without oil.

“ On the second day, all convened at AjiPs tents, on the banks of
the Jumna, to execute the plans now determined upon. Ajit mounted
his steed ; at the head of his Rahtores, he marched direct to the
palace, and at every post he placed his own men : he looked like the
fire destined to cause pralaya .§ When the sun appears darkness
flies ; when the oil fails the lamp goes out : so is it with crowns and
kings, when good faith and justice, the oil that feeds their power, is
wanting. The crash which shivered the umbrella of Dehli rever-
berated throughout the land. The royal treasuries were plundered.
Roue amidst the Moguls came forward to rescue, their king
(Perochser), and Jey Sing fled from the scene of destruction. Another

* This list well exemplifies fclie tone now assumed by the Rahtores; bub this
grand feudal assemblage was in virtue oE bis office of viceroy of truzzeia .
Each and all of these chieftainships the author is as familiar with as With. t. ie
pen he now holds.

t £10,000 to £12,000.

$ Omen of the quarter.

§ The final doom.

78

ANNALS OF MARWAR.

[CHAP. IX.

"king was set up, but in four months he was seized with a distemper
and died. Then /Dowlas* was placed on the throne. But the
Moguls at Dehli set up Neko Shah at Agra, and Husein marched
against them, leaving Ajit and Abdoolla with the king.-f-

“ 1776, Ajit and the Syed moved from Dehli ; but the Moguls
surrendered Keko Shah, who was confined in Selimgurh. At this
time the king died, and Ajit and the Syeds made another, and placed
Mahomed Shah on the throne. Many countries were destroyed, and
many were made to flourish, during the dethronement of kings by
Ajit. With the death of Ferochser Jey Singj’s views were crushed,
and the Syeds determined to punish him. The lord of Amber was
like water carried in a platter.J The king reached the Durgah at
Sicri, in progress to Amber, and here the chieftains sought the sirna
(sanctuary) of Ajit. They said the Khoorvi was lost if he protected
them not against the Syeds. Even as Krishna saved Arjoon in the
Bharat, so did Ajit take Jey Sing under his protection. He .sent the
chiefs of the Champawuts and his minister to dispel his fears ; they
returned with the lord of Ambdr, who felt like one who had escaped
the doom ( pralaya ). Ajitplacedonemonarchonthethrone,andsaved
another from destruction. The king bestowed upon him the grant
of Ahmedabad, and gave him permission to visit his home. With
Jey Sing of Amber, and Bood Sing Hara of Boondi he marched for
Jodpoor, and in the way contracted a marriage with the daughter of
the Shekhavut chief of Munohurpoor. In the month of Ahsun, he
reached Jodagir, when the lord of Ambdr encamped at Soor Sagur,
and the Hara Bao north of the town.

“ The cold season had fled ; the spring ( Bussunt ) approached. The
peacock was intoxicated with the nectar-drops distilled from the
sweet blossomed Amba (mango) ; the rich sap exuded ; the humming-
bees clustered round the flowers ; new leaves budded forth; songs
of joy resounded ; the hearts of gods, men, and women expanded
with mirth. It was then the lord of Amber was bedecked in saffron
robes, to espouse the ‘ virgin of the sun’ (Suri/a Komari), the child
of Ajit. On this he had consulted the Champawuts, and according
to ancient usage, the Ad-Purdlian, or chief minister, the Koompawut:
likewise the Bindarri Dewan, and the GArG. But were I to dwell
on these festivities, this book would become too large ; I therefore
say but little !

“ The rains of 177.7 set in, and Jey Sing and Bood Sing remained
with Ajit, when a messenger arrived with tidings that the Moguls
had assassinated the Syeds, and were now on the watch for Ajit.

*Ruffek ool Dowlah.

fThis is both minutely and faithfully related, and fully as much so as the
IMabomedan record of this black deed. We bare already (Yol. I, p. 347)
described it, and given a translation of an autograph letter of the prince of
Ambdr, written on this memorable day. The importance of the transaction, as
well as the desire to show the Bardic version, will justify its repetition.

+ In allusion to his vacillation, for which the ‘ Mirza Raja’ was notorious.

•CHAP. IX.]

ANNALS OP MARWAR.

79

He drew his swovd, and swore be would possess himself of Ajmdr,
He dismissed the lord of Amber. In twelve days after Aj it reached
Mairta. In the face of day he drove the Mooslem from Ajmer and
made it his own. He slew the king’s governor and seized on Tarra-
gurh.* * * § Once more the bell of prayers was heard in the temple,
’while the bang f of the Mesjid was silent. Where the Koran was
read, the Purdn was now heard, and the Mindra took the place
of'the Mosque. The Kazi made way for the Brahmin, and the pit
of burnt sacrifice ( homa ) was dug, where the sacred kine were slain.
He took possession of the salt lakes of Sambhurand Didwanoh, and
the.records were always moist with iusertmgfresk conquests. Ajit
ascended his own throne ; the umbrella of supremacy he waved over
his head. He coined in his own name, established his own guz
(measure), and seer (weight), his own courts of justice, and a new
scale of rank for his chiefs, with nallcees and mace-beai’ers, nobuts
and standards, 'and every emblem of sovereign rule. Ajmal in Ajmer,
was equal to Aspati in Dekli.J The intelligence spread over the
land ; it reached even Mecca and Iriin, that Ajit had exalted his own
faith, while the rites of Islam where prohibited throughout the laud
of Mai-oo.

“In 1778, the king determined to regain Ajmer. He gave the
command to Mozuffur, who in the rains advanced towards Marwaiv
Ajit entrusted the conduct of this war to his son, the ' shield of
Maroo,’ the ‘fearless’ ( Ablnje ), with the eight great vassals, and
thirty thousand horse •, the Ckampawuts on the 1 ’iglit, the Koompa-
wuts on the left, while the Kurumsotes, Mairteas, Jodas, Eendos,
Bhattis, Sonigurras, Deoras, Klieechies, Dhonduls and Gogawuts,§
composed the main body. At Amber, the Rah tores and imperialists
came in sight ; but Mozuffur disgraced himself, and retii’ed within
that city without risking an encounter. Abhye Sing, exasperated at
this display of pusillanimous bravado, determined to punish the
king. He attacked Shahjehanpoor, sacked Narnol, levied contributions
on Patuu ( Tudrvati ) and Rewari. He gave the villages to the flames,
and spread conflagration and consternation even to Aliverdi’s Serai.

* The Star Fort , the castle of Ajmer.

I The call to prayer of the Mooslem.

This exact imitation' of the manners of the imperial court is still strictly
maintained at Jodpoor. The account of the measures which followed the
possession of Ajmer is taken from the chronicle Sunja Prdhas ; the only part
not entirely translated from the Raj Roojiac Akheat. Ajmal is a license of the
poet, where it suits his rhyme, for Ajit. Aspati, ‘lord of steeds,’ is the common
epithet applied to the emperors of Dehli. It is, however, but the second degree
of paramount power — Gujpati ‘ lord of elephants,’ is the first.

§ The two latter tribes are amongst the most ancient of the allodial chieftains
of the desert ; the Dhonduls being descendants of Rao Gango : the Gogawuts^.
of the famous Goga the Ohohan, who defended the Subledge, in the earliest
Mooslem invasion recorded. Both Goga and his steed Jowudia are immortal
in Rajast’han. The author had a chestnut Catbiawar, called Joioadia; he was
perfection, and a piece of living fire when mounted, scorning every pace out the
antelope’s bounds and curvets.

80

ANNALS OF SIARWAE.

[CHAP. IX.

Delili and Agra trembled with affright j the Asoors fled without their
shoes at the deeds o£ Abhye, whom they styled Dhonhul, ‘ the exter-
minator. 5 He retuz-ned by Sambhur and Ludhana, and here he
married the daughter of the chief of the Naroocas.*

“In 1779, Abhye Singremained at Sambhur, which he strengthened,
and hither his father A] it came from Ajmer. The meeting was like
that between f Casyapa and Surya •/ for he had broken the bow of
Mozuffnr and made the Hiudu happy. The king sent his Chelcih ,
Nahur Khan, to expostulate with A jit ; but his language was offen-
. give, and the field of Sambhur devoured the tiger lord (Nabur Klmn)
and his four thousand followers. The son of Olioramun the Jab,f
now claimed sanctuary with Ajit. Sick of these dissentions, the
unhappy Mahomed Shah determined to abandon his crown, and retire
to Mecca. But determined to revenge the death of Nahur Khan,
be prepared a formidable army. He collected [the contingents of]
the twenty-two SatrapsJ of the empire, and placed at their head
Jey Sing of Amber, Hyder Kooli, Eradut Khan Bungusb, &c. In the
month ofSawun (July), Tarragurh was invested ; Abhye Singmarched
out and left its defence to Umra Sing. It had held out four mouths,
when through the prince of Amber (Jey Sing), Ajit listened to terms,
which were sworn to on the Koran by the nobles of the king ; and
he agreed to surrender Ajmdr. Abhye Sing then accompanied Jey.
Sing to the camp. It was proposed that in testimony of his
obedience he should repair to the presence. The prince of Amber
pledged himself ; but the Fearless (Abhye) placed his hand on his
sword, saying, c this is my surety V ”

The heir of Marwar was received by the king with the utmost-
honour,- but being possessed of a double portion of that arrogance
which forms the chief characteristic of his race, (more especially of
the Rahtoz-e and Chohan, from which he sprang), his reception nearly
produced at Delhi a l-epetition of the scene recorded in the history of
hismncestor Umra at Agz-a. Knowing that his father held the fii’st
place on the king's right hand, he considered himself, as his repre-
sentative, entitled to the same honour; and little heeding the
unbending etiquette of the- proudest court in the woi-ld, he uncere-
moniously hustled past all the dignitaries of the state, and bad even
ascended a step of the throne, when, checked by one of the nobles,
Abhye’ s hand was on his dagger-, and but for the presence of mind
of the monarch “ who threw his own chaplet round his neck” to
restrain him, the Divan would have been deluged with blood.

We shall now drop the chronicles, and in recordingthe muz-der of
Ajit, the foulest crime in the annals of Rajast’han, exemplify the
mode in which their poetic historians gloss over such events. It was-
against A jit's will that his son went to court, as if he had a presenti-

f One of the great clans of Amb(5r ; of whom more hereafter.
T Founder of the Ehurtpore state,
j The Byeesa, or ‘ twenty-two’ viceroys of India.

CHAP. IX.]

ANNALS OP MAKWAK.

81

meat of the fate which awaited him, and which has been already circum-
stantially related.* The authors from whose records this narrative
1 b chiefly compiled, were too polite to suffer such a stigma to appear
in their chronicles, f written by desire* and under the eye of the
parricide, Apt's successor. The Surya PralcAs merely says, ff at this
“ time Ajit went to heaven j” but affords no indication of the person
who sent him there. The Baj Boopaca , however, not bold enough
to avow the mysterious death of his prince, yet too honest altogether
to pass it over, has left an expressive blank leaf at this part of his
chronicle, certainly not accidental, as it intervenes between Abhye
Sing’s reception at court, and the incidents following his father’s
death, which I translate verbatim , as they present an excellent
picture of the results of a Rajpoot potentate’s demise.

“ Abhye, a second Ajit, was introduced to the Aspati ; his father
heard the news and rejoiced. But this world is a fable,— a lie.
Time will sooner or later prey on al) things. What king, what Raja
can avoid the path leading to extinction ? The time allotted for our
sojourn here is predetermined ; prolong it we cannot. The decree
penned by the hand of the Creator is engraven upon each forehead
at the hour of birth. Neither addition nor subtraction can be made.
Fate (honhdrj must be fulfilled. It was the command of Govinda,f
that Ajit (the Avatar of Indra) should obtain immortality, and leave
his renown in the world beneath. Ajit, so long a thorn in the side
of his foe, was removed to Purloca.% He kept afloat the faith of
the Hindu, and sunk the Mooslem in shame. In the face of day, the
lord of Maroo took the road which leadB to Paradise (Yaicoonta).
Then dismay seized the city ; each looked with dread in his neigh-
bour’s face ashe said, ‘ our sun has set!’ But when the day of Yama-raj§
arrives, who can retard it ? Were not the five Pandas enclosed in
the mansion of Himala ?|| Harchund escaped not the universal
decree ; nor will gods, men, or reptiles avoid it, not eyen Vicrama or
Gama ; all fall before Yama. How then could Ajit hope to escape ?

" On As &r, the 13th, the dark half of the moon of 1780, seventeen
hundred warriors of the eight ranks of Maroo, for tkelast time marched
before their lord.^f They placed his body in a boat,** and carried him
to the pyre, ff made of sandal-wood and perfumes, with heaps of
cotton, oil, and camphor. But this is a subject of grief : how can the
bard enlarge on such a theme ? The Nazir went to the Bawula%'. £
and as he pronounced the words e Bao sidaoe ,’ the Chohani queen,
with sixteen damsels in her suit, came forth : •' This day,’ said she.

* Seo Yol. I, p. 636. f The sovereign judge of mankind,

f ‘ The other world lit. * another place.’ § ‘ Lord of hell.

|| Him ‘ ice’ and ala, ‘ an abode.’

Both head and feet are uncovered in funeral processions.

■** Id est a vehicle formed like a boat, perhaps figurative of the sail crossing
the ‘Yoiturna/ or Styx of the Hindu.

ff For the mode of conveyiug princes to their final abode, I refer the Header
to a description at Yol. I, p. 152, Trans. Royal Asiatic Society,
ff The queen’s palace.

[Vol. II.]

II

ANNALB OP MARWAR.

82

[chap. IX.

* is one of joy ; my race stall be illustrated ; our lives have passed
together, how then can I leave him ?* * * §

' “ Of noble race was the Bhattiani queen, a scion (sac’haj of Jessul,
“ and daughter of Birjung. She put up a prayerto the Lord who wields
“ the discus. f ‘ With joy I accompany my lord ; that my fealty ( satij
“ may be accepted, rests with thee/’ In like manner did the Gazelle
(Mirgavati) of Derawul,| and the Tu&r queen of pure blood, § the
Chaora Rani, )| and her of Shekhavati, invoke the name of Heri, as
they determined to join their lord. For these six queens death had
no terrors ; but they were the affianced wives of their lord : the
curtain wives of affection, to the number of fifty-eight, determined
to offer themselves a sacrifice to Agni.*[[ ‘ Such another opportunity/
said they, f can never occur, if we survive our lord ; disease will seize
and make us a prey in our apartments. Why then quit the society
of our lord, when at all events we must fall into the hands of Yama,
for whom the human race is but a mouthful ? Let ns leave the iron
age (Kal-yuga) behind usd Without our lord, even life is death/
said the Bhattiani, as she bound the beads of Toolsi round her neck,
and made the lilac with earth from the Ganges. While thus each
spoke, Nat’hoo,the Mazir,** thus addressed them: f This is no 1 amuse-
ment ; the sandal-wood you now anoint with is cool : but will your
resolution abide, when you remove it with the flames of Agni ?
When this scorches your tender frames, your hearts may fail, and the
desire to recede will disgrace your lord’s memory. Reflect, and
remain where you are. You have lived like Indrani, j-j* nursed in
softness amidst flowers and perfumes ; the winds of heaven never
offended you, far less the flames of fire/ But to all his arguments
they replied : f The world we will abandon, but never our lord.’
They performed their ablutions, decked themselves in their gayest
attire, and for the last time made obeifeance to their lord in his car.
The ministers, the bards, the family priests ( Purohits ), in turn,
expostulated with them. The chief queen (Pdtrdni) the Chohani,
they told to indulge her affection for her sons, Abhye and Bnkhta ;
to feed the poor, the needy, the holy, and lead a life of i-eligious
devotion. The queen replied : ‘ Koonti, the wife of Pandii, did not
follow her lord ; she lived to see the greatness of the five brothers,
her sons ; but were her expectations realized ? This life is a vain
shadow ; this dwelling one of sorrow ; let us accompany our lord to
that of fire, and there close it/

“ The drum sounded ; the funeral train moved on ; all invoked

* This is the lady whom Ajit married in his non-age, the mother of the
parricide. ,

f Crishna.

J Aucient capital of the Bhattis.

§ Descended from the ancient dynasty of the Hindu kings of Debit
|| Tribo of the first dynasty of Anhulwarra Pattun.

If The fire.

** The Nazir (a Mooslem epithet) has the charge of the harem.

•ff' The queen of heaven.

CHAP. IX.]

ANNALS OP MARWAR.

83

the name o£ Eeri * * * § Charity -was dispensed like falling rain, while
the countenances of the queens were radiant as the sun. Prom
heaven TJmiaf looked down ; in recompense of such devotion she
promised they should enjoy the society of Ajffc in each successive
transmigration. As the smoke, emitted from the house of flame,
ascended to the sky, the assem filed multitudes shouted Khartum !
Khaman ! ‘ well done ! well done !’ The pile flamed like a volcano;
the faithful queens laved their bodies in the flames, as do the celes-
tials in the lake of Mansurwar.% They sacrificed their bodies to
their lord, and illustrated the races whence they sprung. The gods
above exclaimed, ‘ Dhun Dhun§ Ajit! who maintained the faith,
and overwhelmed the Asuras.’ Savitri, Gorl Sarasvati, Gunga, and
Gomjti|| united in doing honour to these faithful queens. Forty-five
years, three months, and twenty -two days, was the space of A jits
existence, when he went to inhabit Amrapoora, an immortal ahocle /”

Thus closed the career of one of the most distinguished princes
who ever pressed the ‘ cushion’ of Maroo ; a career as full of incident
as any life of equal duration. Born amidst the snows of Cabul,
deprived at his birth of both parents, one from grief, the other by
suicidal custom; saved from the Herodiau cruelty of the king by
the heroism of his chiefs, nursed amidst the rocks of Aboo or the
intricacies of the Aravulli until the day of danger passed, he issued
forth, still an infant, at the head of his brave clans, to redeem the
inheritance so iniquitously wrested from him. In the history of
mankind there is nothing to be found presenting-a more brilliant
picture of fidelity, than that afforded by the Rahtore clans in their
devotion to their prince, from his birth until he worked out his own
and his country’s deliverance, It is one of those events which
throw a gleam of splendour upon the dark picture of feudalism, more
prolific perhaps in crime than in virtue. That of the Rajpoots,
indeed, in which consanguinity is superadded to the- other reciprocal
ties which bind a feudal body, wears the more engaging aspect of a
vast family. How affecting is the simple language of these brave
men, while daily shedding their blood for a prince whom, uutil he

* Her! Crishna is the mediator and preserver of the Hindu Triad; his name
alone is invoked in funeral rites. (See Yol. I, page 460.) The following extract
from Dr. Wilkins’ translation of the Geeta will best disclose his attributes: —
Crishna speaks :

“I am the journey of the good ; thecomforter ; the creator; the witness; the
resting-place ; the asylum ; and the friend. I am generation and dissolution ;
the place where all things are deposited, and the inexhaustible soul of all
nature. I am death and immortality ; I am never-failing time ; the preserver,
whose face is turned on all sides. I am all grasping death ; and I am the
resurrection of those who are about to die.”

"A name of Doorgn, the Hindu Juno.

11 The sacred lake in Thibet.

§ Dhun is ‘ riches,’ but is here used in the sense of glory ; so that riches and
glory are synonymous in term with the Hindu, as in practice in the west; the
one may always command the other, at least that species of it for which nine-
tenths of mankind contend, and are satisfied with obtaining.

II Celestial queens.

[Yon. II.] - 1U

84

ANNALS OF MARWAR.

[chap. II.

had attained his seventh, year, they had never beheld ! " Without
“ the sight of our lord, bread and water have no flavour.” And how
successfully does the bard pourtray the joy of these stern warriors,
when he says, “ as the lotos expands at the sun-beam, so did the
“ heart of each Rahtore at the sight of their infant sovereign ; they
“drank his looks even as tk e pepay a in the month of Asoj sips the
“drops of amrita (ambrosia) from the Champa.”

The prodigality with which every clan lavished its blood, through
a space of six-and-twenty years, may in part be learned from the
chronicle j and in yet more forcible language from the cenotaphs
scattered over the country, erected to the manes of those who fell in
this religious warfare. Were other testimony required, it is to be
found in the annals of their neighbours and their conquerors ; while
the traditional couplets of the bards, familiar to every Rajpoot,
embalm the memory of the exploits of their forefathers.

Ajit was a prince of great vigour of mind as well as of frame.
Valour was his inheritance ; he displayed this hereditary equality at
the early age of eleven, when he visited his enemy in his capital,
displaying a courtesy which can only be comprehended by a Rajpoot.
Amongst the numerous desultory actions, of which many occurred
every year, there were several in which the whole strength of the
Rahtores was led by their prince. The battle of Sambhur, in S.
1765, fought against the Syeds, which ended in an union of interests,
was one of these ; and, for the rest of Ajit’s life, kept him in close
contact with the court, where he might have taken the lead had his
talent for intrigue been commensurate with his boldness. From this
period until his death, Ajit’s agency was recognized in all the
intrigues and changes amongstthe occupants of Timoor’s throne, from
Ferochser to Mahomed. He inherited an invincible hatred to the
very name of Mooslem, and was not scrupulous regarding the means
by which he was likely to secure the extirpation of a race so inimical
to his own. Viewing the manifold reasons for this hatred, we must
not scrutinize with severity his actions when leagued with the Syeds,
even in the dreadful catastrophe which overwhelmed Ferochs6r, to
whom he owed the two-fold duty of fealty and consanguinity.

There is one stain on the memory of Ajit, which, though unnoticed
in the chronicle, is too well ascertained to be omitted in a summary
of his character, more especiallyas it illustrates- that of the nation
and of the times, and shews the loose system which holds 'such
governments together. The heroic Doorgadas, the preserver of his
infancy, the instructor of his youth, the guide of his manhood, lived
to confirm the proverb, “ put not thy faith in princes.” He, who by
repeated instances of exalted self-denial, had refused wealth and
honours that might have raised himself from his vassal condition to
an equality with his sovereign, was banished from the land which
his integrity, wisdom, and valour had preserved. -Why, or when,
Ajit loaded himself with this indelible infamy was not known ; the
fact was incidentally discovered in searching a collection of original

CHAP. IX.]

ANNALS OP MARWAR.

85

newspapers written from the camp of Bahadoor Shah,* in ono
of which it was stated, that 11 Doorgadas was encamped with
<f his household retainers on the banks of the Peshola Lake at
“ Oodipoor, and receiving daily five hundred rupees for his support
“ from the Rana; who when called on by the king (Bahader Shah) to
“ surrender him, magnanimously refused.” Imagining that Ajit had
been compelled to this painful sacrifice, which is not noticed in the
annals, the compiler mentioned it to a Yati deeply versed in all the
events and transactions of this Btate, Aware of the circumstance,
which is not overlooked by the hards, he immediately repeated the
couplet composed on the occasion :

“ Doorga, cUs-sd kar-jea
“ Gold } Gangani /”

u Doorga was exiled, and Gangani given to a slave.”

Gangani, on the north bank of the Looni, was the chief town of
the Kurnote fief, of which clan Doorga was the head. It is now
attached to the KhaUsa, or fisc, but whether recently, or ever since
Doorga, we know not. The Kurnotes still pay the last rites to
their dead at Gangani, where they have their cenotaphs ( chehtris ).
Well may we repeat, that the system of feudality is the parent
of the most brilliant virtues and the darkest crimes ! Here, a
long life of uninterrupted fidelity could not preserve Doorga
from the envenomed breath of slander, or the serpent-tooth of
ingratitude : and whilst the mind revolts at the crime which left a
blank leaf in the chronicle, it is involuntarily carried back to an act
less atrocious, indLeed, than one which violates the laws of nature,
but which in diminishing none of our horror for Abhye Sing, yet
lessens our sympathy for the persecutor of Doorgadas.

* Discovered by the Author amongst the Rana’s archives.

86

ANNALS OP MARWAR.

[CHAP. I.

CHAPTER X.

The parricidal murder of Ajit, the cause of the destruction of Marwar.— The
parricide, Ahhye Sing, invested as Raja by the emperor’s own hand— He
returns from court to Jodpoor, — II is reception. — Tie distributes gifts to the
lards and priests. — The bards of Rajpootana. — Kurna, the poetic historian of
Marwar. — Studies requisite to form a Bardai. — Ahhye Sing reduces Nagore.—
Bestows it in appanage upon his brother Bulclita . — Reduces the turbulent
allodialists. — Commanded to Court. — Makes a tour of his domain. —Seized by
the small-pox. — Reaches the court. — llebcllio)s of the viceroy of Quzzerat, and
of prince Jungali in the Delchan. — Picture of the Mogul court at this time.—
The beera of foreign service against the rebels described. — Refused by the
assembled nobles. — Accepted by the Rahiore prince. — He visits Ajmer, which he
garrisons. — Meeting at Pooshkur with the Raja of Ajmer. — Plan (he destruc-
tion of the empire. — At Mairla is joined by his brother Bulchi Sing.— Reaches
Jodpoor. — The kbdr, or feudal levies of Marwar, assemble. — Consecration of
the guns. — The Meenas carry of the cattle of the train. — Rajpoot contingents
enumerated. — Ahhye reduces the Meena strong-holds in Sirohi. — The Sirohi
prince submits, and gives a daughter in marriage as a peace-offering. — The
Sirohi contingent joins Ahhye Sing. — Proceeds against Ahmcdabad. — Summons
the viceroy ta surrender. — Rajpoot council of war. — Bakhta claims to lead the
van. — The Ralitore prince sprinkles his chiefs with saffron-water. — Sirbullund’s
plan of defence. — His guns manned by European's. — His body-guard of Euro-
pean musketeers. — The storm . — Victory gained by the Rajpoots • — Surrender of
Sirlullund. — He is sent prisoner to the emperor. — Abhyo Sing governs
Quzzerat. — Rajpoot contingents enumerated . — Conclusion of the chronicles, the
Raj Roopaca and Surya Prakas. — Ahhye Sing returns to Jodpoor. — Thespoili
conveyed from Guzzerat.

The parricidal murder of Ajit is accounted the germ of destruction,
■which, taking root in the social edifice of Marwar, ultimately rent it
asunder. Bitter has been the fruit of this crime, " even unto the
“ third and fourth generation” of his unnatural sous, whose issue,
.hut foi^ this crime, would in all human probability have been the
most potent princes in India, able single-handed to have stopped
Mahratta aggrandisement.

“ It was in 17^1 (says the bard), Ajit went to heaven. With his
own hand did t,he emperor Mahomed Shah put the teelca on the fore-
head of Abhge Sing, girded him with the sword, hound the toorah
on his, headr pi ace< 2 a dagger set with gems in his girdle, and with
O aons, an d Nakarras, and many valuable gifts, invested

e young prince in all the dignities of his father. Even Nagore

son °f ^ mra and included in his sunnud.
.onours that m- ai '^ s ro y a ^ favour, he took leave of the court, and
an equality wit 6 P a t erna l dominions. From village to village, as he
his integrity, aiewai 'd, the Ttilllas was raised on the head.* When
Ajit loaded hi. ^ ' ~Z 7T

fact-, waq inoir ?, 18 ^brazen vessel, of household use. A female of each family,
hese with water, repairs to the house of the head of the village

CHAP. X.]

ANNALS OP MARWAR.

87

he reached Jodpoor, he distributed gifts to all his chiefs, and to the
Bardais (bards) and Oharuus, and lands to the family priests (Pu-
rohils).”

' -A. day at the court of the desert king, related in the phraseology
of the chronicle, would be deemed interesting as a picture of man-
ners. It would also make the reader more familiar with Kurna, the
most celebrated bard in the latter days of Rajpoot independence :
but this must be reserved for an equally appropriate vehicle,* and
we shall at present rest satisfied with a slight sketch of the historian
of Maroo.

Carna-Cavya, or simply Kurna, who traced his descent from the
last household bard of the last emperor of Oanouj, was at once a
politician, a warrior, and a scholar, and in each capacity has left
ample proofs of his abilities. In the first, he took a distinguished
part in all the events of the civil wavs; in the second, he was one of
the few who survived a combat almost without parallel in the annals
even of Rajpoot chivalr3 r ; and as a scholar, he has left us, in the
introduction to his work,f the most instructive proof, not only of
his inheriting the poetic mantle of his fathers, but of the course he
pursued for the maintenance of its lustre. The bare enumeration of
the works he had studied evinces that there was no royal road to
Parnassus for the Rajpoot ‘ Cavfswar/f but that, on the contrary,
it was beset with difficulties not a little appalling. The mere no-
menclature of woi'ks on grammar and historical epics, which were to
be mastered ere he could hope for fame, must have often made
Kurna exclaim, “How hard it is to climb the steeps” on which
from afar he viewed her temple. Those who desire to see, under a
new aspect, an imperfectly known but interesting family of the
human race, will be made acquainted with the qualifications of
our bardic historians, and the particular course of studies which
fitted Kurna “ to sit in the gate§ of Jodagir,” and add a new book
to the chronicles of its kings,

These festivities of the new reign were not of long duration, and
were succeeded by warlike preparations against Nagore, which.

when, being all convened, they proceed in a body to meet the person to whom
they render honour, singing the suhailea, or ‘ song of joy.’ The presenting
water is a token of homage and regard, and one which the author has often had
paid to him, especially in Mdwar, where every village met him in this way.

* I hope some day to present a few of the works of the great bard Chuud,
with a dissertation on the Bardais, and all the ‘sons of song.’
f Entitled the ‘ Surya Prakfis,’ of 7,500 stanzas. ,

1 G avis war, or cavya-iswara, ‘ lord of verse,’ from cavya, 1 poesy, and iswctra,
‘lord.’ „ _

§The portal of the palace appears to have been the bard s posk 1 ope gives
the same position to his historic bards in ‘ the Temple of Fame :

Fall iu the passage of each spacious gate, _

The ea"e historians in white garments wait!

Grav’d o’er the seats the form of Time was found,

TTi'r scythe remov’d, and both his pinions bound.

88

ANNALS OP MAEWAR.

[CHAT, X.

^during tlie contentions between Ajife and tbe emperor, bad been
assigned to tbe descendant of tbe ancient princes of Mundore.

“ When Ajmer was invested by tbe collective force of tbe empire,*
Eradut Kban (Bungnsli), collector of tbe Jezeya, f took tbe JEendo
by tbe ai’m, and seated bim in Nagore. J But aB soon as tbe Hooli §
was past, tbe ‘ Avatars of Jowala-mookbf’|| were consecrated : goats
were sacrificed, and tbe blood, with oil and vermilion, was sprinkled
upon them. Tbe tents were moved out. Hearing tbis, Rao Indra
produced tbe imperial patent, with tbe personal guarantee of Jey
Sing of Amber. Abbye beeded not, and invested Nagore; bat
Indra left his honour and bis castle to tbe Fearless,^ wbp bestowed
it on Bnkhta bis brother. He received tbe congratulations of Mewar,
Jessulmer, Bikaner, and Amber, and returned to bis capital amidst
tbe rejoicings of bis subjects. Tbis was in S. 1781.

“ In S. 1782, be was employed in restraining tbe turbulent
Bhomias on tbe western frontiers of bis dominions ; when tbe
Sindils, tbe Deoras, the Balas, tbe Boras, tbe Beleckas, and the Sodas
were compelled to servitude.

“In S. 1783, 'a firman of summons arrived, calling tbe prince fo
attend tbe Presence at Dehli. He put it to bis bead, assembled all
bis chiefs, and on bis passage to court made a tour of bis dominions,
examining bis garrisons, redressing wrongs, and adjusting whatever
was in disorder. At Purbutsir be was attacked by tbe small-pox :
tbe nation called on Jug Rani** to shield him from evil.

“ In 1784, tbe prince reached Dehli. Khandowran, the chief noble
of the empire, was deputed by the emperor to conduct him to tbe
capital; and when be reached tbe Presence, his majesty called him
close to his person, exclaiming, ' welcome, RhooshbuhhtjjY Maharaja'
Itajesivar ,%% it is long since we met ; this day makes me happy ; the
splendour of the Aum-kh6s is redoubled/ AYben.be took leave, tbe
king sent to his quarters, at Abhyepoor, choice fruits of the north,
fragrant oils, and rose-water.”

In the original, “ by the byeesd ,” the ‘ twenty-two,’ meaning the collective
fprce of the twenty-two soobahdars, or ‘ satraps of the provinces/

f Oapitation-tax.

$ The poet calls it by its classic appellation, Ndgcidoorga, the ‘ castle of the
serpent.’

§ For this festival, see Yol. I, p. 604.

11 Joivala-mookM, the ‘mouth of flame,’ the cannon, which are thus con-
secrated before action. They are called avatars, or ‘ incarnations of Jowala-
mookhi, the Etna of India, at the edge of whose crater the Hindu poet very
properly places the temple of Joivali Rani, ‘the terrific’ Kali-md, the Hindu
Hecate.

If Abhye, the name.of the prince, means ‘fearless,’ from b/iye, ‘fear,’ and
privative prefix.

** Jug-Rani (I write all these phrases exactly as pronounced in the western
dialect), ‘ Queen of the world/ tiitla Mata is the common name for tbe goddess
who presides over this scourge of infancy.

•ft ‘ Of happy fortune.”

t+ Maharaja- Rajasvjar, the pompous title of ,the kings of Maroo ; * great Baja,
lord of Enjas/

CHAP. X]

ANNAHS OP JIARWAB.

89

The prince of Maroo was placed at the head of all the nobility.
About the end of S. 178-1, Sirbullund Khan's rebellion broke out,
which gave ample scope for the valour of the Bahtoresand materials
for the bard, who thus circumstantially relates it :

“ The troubles in the Dekbau increased. The Shahzada Jung alt* * * §
labelled, and forming an army of sixty thousand men, attacked the
provincial governors of Mnlwa, Surat, and Ahmedpoor, slaying the
king’s lieutenants, Geerdhur Bukadoor, Ibrahim Kooli, Boostum Alii,
and the Mogul Shujalt.

“ Hearing this, the king appointed Sirbullund Khan to quash the
rebellion. He marched at the head of fifty thousand men, having a -
crore of rupees for their subsistence ; but his advanced army of ten
thousand men being defeated in the first encounter, he entered into
terms with the rebels, and agreed to a partition of the country."

It was at this time the prince of Marwar begged permission to
retire to his hereditary dominions. The bard's description of the
court, and of the emperor's distress on this occasion, though prolix,
deserves insertion:

“The king was seated on his throne, attended by the seventy-
two grand Omras of the empire, when tidings reached him of
the revolt of Sirbullund. There was the vizier Kumur-oo-Dxn
Khan, Itimad-oo-Doulab, Khaudowrnn, commander-in-chief, (Meer
Bulcshee), Shnmsam-oo-Doulab, the Ameer-ool-Omrah, Munsoor
Alii, Boshau-oo-Doulab, Toora Biiz Kban, the Lord Marcher
( Seem Ka Bulcshee) ; Boostum Jung, Afghan Khan, Khwaja Syed-
oo-Din, commandant of artillery ( Meer Atusli) ; Saadut Khan,f
grand chamberlain ( JDaroga Khoivas), Boorhan-ool-Moolk, Abdool
Summud Khan, Delhi Khan, Zuffiriah Khan, governor of Lahore,
Dulail Khan, Meer Jfimla, Khankhanan ; Zuffar Jung, EradutKkan,
Moorshid Kooli Khan, Jaffier Khan, Aliverdi Khan.J Mozuffur
Khan, governor of Ajmdr. Such and many more were assembled in
the Presence.

“ It was read aloud that Sirbullund had reduced Guzzerat, and
proclaimed his own ‘ tin; 3 that he bad ground the Kolis to dust;
that he had vanquished the Mandillas, the Jhalas, the Ckaurasimas,
the Bhagails and the Gohils, and had nearly exterminated the Balas ;
that Hallarliad agreed to pay tribute, and that such was the fire of
this Yavan, that the Bhomias of themselves abandoned their strong-
holds to seek sanctuary with him whom the ‘ seventeen tbousand'§

* In none of the Mohammedan histories of this period is it mentioned, that
there was an imperial prince at the head of the first Mahratta nruption ,
probably he was a mere tool for the purposes of others.

t Afterwards Yizier of Oude, a state founded and maintained by consummate
treason.

1 Nawab of Bengal, another traitor. , ,

§ This number of cities, towns, and villages, constituted the kingdom of
Guzzerat under its ancient sovereigns.

[Yol. II.]

12

ANNALS OF MA1WAR.

90

[chap. X.

now called sovereign ; that he had set himself up a king in Akrneda-
bad, and made a league with the c Southron.’

“ The emperor "saw, that if this defection was not quelled, all the
viceroys would declare themselves independent. Already had
Jugureah Khan in the north, Saadnt'Khan in the east, and the
2Ileteh Nizam-ool-Moolk in the south, shewn the blackness of their
designs. The tup’h (verve) of the empire had fled.

“ The deem was placed on a golden salver, which the Meer Tojuk
bore in his extended arms, slowly passing in front of the nobles
ranged on either side of the throne, mighty men, at the sight of
whose faces the rustic would tremble: but in vain he passed both
lines ; no hand was stretched forth ; some looked awry ; home trem-
bled • but none cast an eye upon the deem.

“ The f almighty monarch’ ( Punneswar Padshah ), who could
make the beggar an Omra of twelve thousand, and the noble of
twelve thousand a beggar, was without resource. ‘ Who,’ said one,
* would grasp the forked lightning, let him engage Sirbullund 1’
Another exclaimed, ‘ who would seize the vessel, and plunge with
her in the whirlpool, he may contend with Sirbullund.’ And a third,
‘ whoever dare seize the forked tongue of the serpent, let him engage
Sirbullund.’ The king was troubled ; he gave a sign to the Meer
Tojuk to return the heera to him.

“ The Raktore prince saw the monarch’s distress, and as he was
about to leave the aum-lchas, he stretched forth his hand, aud placed
the heera in his turban, as he said, 1 be not cast down, oh king of
the world; I will pluck down this Sirbullund:* leafless shall be the
boughs of his ambition, and his head {sir) the forfeit of his arrogant
exaltation ( boolund ).’

“ When Abhye Sing grasped the heera, the breasts of the mighty
were ready to burst with the fuluess of envy, even like the - ripe
pomegranate, as the king placed the grant of Guzzerab into the
hands of the Raktore. The Shah’s heart was rejoiced, as he said,
‘ thus acted your ancestors in support of the throne ; thus was
quelled the revolt of Khoorm aud Bkeeru in the time of Jehangir;
that of the Dekhan settled ; and in like manner do I trust that, by
you the honour and the throne of Mahomed Shah will be upheld.’

“ Rich gifts, including seven gems of great price/were bestowed
upon the Raktore ; the- treasury was unlocked aud thirty-one lacs
of coin were assigned for the troops. The guns were taken from the
arsenals, and with, tile patent of the vice-royalties of Ahmedabad and
Ajmdr, in the month 'of 'Asar (1786), Abhye took leave of the king.”+

The political arrohdissement of Marwar dates from this period ;
for the rebellion of Sii\bullund was the forerunner of the disintegra-

* Sir, ' the head,’ boolimd, ' exalted, high, arrogant.’ I write the name
Sirbullund, being the orthography long known. _

j* In the original, the emtoeror is called the Aspati, * lord of swords,’ or
perhaps Aswapati, ‘ lord of s\eeds.’

CHAV, X.]

ANNALS OF MARWAR.

91

tion of the empire. It was in June A.D. 1730, that the prince of
Manvar left the court of Dehli. He had a double motive in proceed-
ing direct to Ajmer, of which province he was viceroy ; first, to take
possession of his strong-hold (the key not only of Marwar but of
every state in Eajpootana) ; and second, to consult with the prince
of Ambdr on the affairs of that critical conjuncture. What was the
cause of Jey Sing’s presence at Ajmdr the chronicle says not; but
from circumstances elsewhere related, it may be conjectured that it
was for the purpose of celebrating ‘ the rites of the Pitrisvjara-
(manes of his ancestors) at Pooshlcur. The bard gives a most prolix
account of the meeting, even to the pugtur, ‘ or foot-clothes’ spread
for “ the kings of the Hindus” to walk on, ff who feasted together,
“ and together plotted the destruction of the empire from which we
perceive that Ehirna, the bard, had a peep behind the curtain.

Having installed his officers in Ajmer, Abhye Sing proceeded to
Mairfca, when he was met by his brother, Bukht Sing, on which
occasion the grant of bfagore was bestowed upon the latter. The
brothers continued their route to the capital, when all the chiefs
were dismissed to their homes with injunctions to assemble their
vassals for the eusuing campaign against Sirbullund. At the
appointed time, the lcli '4r (feudal array) of Marwar assembled under
the walls of Jodpoor. The occasion is a delightful one to the bard, who
revels in all * the pomp and circumstance of war :’ from the initiatory
ceremony, the moving out the tents, to the conseci'ation of the
1 mighty tubes’ (bahva-ncdj the * volcanos of the field,’ or, as he
terms them, the 1 crocodile-mouths’ (mngur-moolchanj ‘ emblems of
Tama,’ which were sprinkled abundantly with the blood of goats
slain under their muzzles. He desci'ibes each clan as it arrives,
their steeds, and caparisons.

Instead, however', of proceeding direct to the main object of the
war, Abhye Sing took advantage of the immense anny thus placed
uuder his command, as viceroy of Guzzerat, to wreak his own
vengeance upon his neighbour, the gallant prince of Sii’obi, who,
trusting to his native strength, had spurned every compromise which
involved his independence. This resolution he maintained by his
natural position, strengthened by alliances with the aboriginal races
who hemmed his little state on all sides, excepting that towards
Marwar.

These Meenas , the mountaineers of the Avavulli, had given offence
to Abhye Sing; for while the prince, between his arrival at Jodpoor
and the assemblage of the Icher, gave himself up to indolence and
opium, they carried off the whole cattle of the train to the moun-
tains. When this was reported to Abhye Sing, he coolly said,

-h e t them go, they knew we were short of forage, and have only
1 taken them to their own pastures in the mountains. ’ Strange to
8a 7, they did return them, and in excellent condition, as soon as he
prepared to march. When he heard of this, he observed, “ Did I not

tell you these Meenas were faithful subjects ?’’

[Vos. II.] 12a

92

ANNALS OP MARWAR.

[CHAP. X.

The order to march was now given, when the bard enumerates the
names and strength of the different Rajpoot princes, whose contin-
gents formed this array, in which they were only two Mohammedan
leaders of distinction : — “ The Haras of Kotah and Boondi ; the
Keechies of Gagrown ; the Gores of Seopoor ; the Outchwahas of
Amber, and [even] the Sodas of the desert, under their respective
princes or chiefs, were under the command of the Mavwar prince.
His native retainers, the united clans of Marwar, formed the right
wing of the whole army, headed by his brother Bukhta.

“ On the 10th Oheit (Sood) S. 1786, Abbye marched from Jodpoor,
by Bhadrajoon and Malgurh, Sewanoh and Jhalore. Rewarro was
assaulted ; the swords of the enemy showered, and the Champawub
fell amidst heaps of slain. The Deoras abandoned the hill and fled.
The trees were levelled to the summit; a garrison was posted, and
the array moved on to Possalio. Then, Aboo shook with affright.
Affliction seized Sirohi ; its prince was in despair when he heard
Rewarro and Possalio were destroyed.* The Chohan preferred
decking his daughter in the bridal vestments, to arraying his army
to oppose Abhemal.”

Rao Narrain Das, through the intervention of a Rajpoot chieftain,
named Myaram, of the Chaora tribe, made overtures to the Rahtore,
proposing his niece (daughter of Maun Sing his predecessor) in
marriage. “ In the midst of strife, ‘ the coco-nut/ with eight choice
,c steeds and the price of four elephants, were sent and accepted.
" The drum of battle ceased ; the nuptials were solemuized, and in
“ the tenth month Ram Sing was born at Jodpoor.” The bard
however, lets us into the secret, and shews that the Rajpoots had
1 secret articles/ as well as the more polished diplomacy of Europe ;
for besides the fair Chohani, the Rao consented to pay Pesh-aeh’hdnt,
a ‘ concealed tribute.*

The Deora chiefs united their contingents to the royal army, for
the subjugation of Sirbulluud, and the march recommenced by Pal-
hanpoor and Sidpoor, on the Sarasvati. Here they halted, and “ an
“ envoy was despatched to Sirbullund, summoning him to surrender
“ the imperial equipments, cannons, and stores ; to account for the
“ revenues, and to withdraw his garrisons from Ahmedabad and all

* Both these places are famous in the Mewasso, or fastnesses of Sirohi, and
gave the author, who was intrusted with its political affairs, much trouble.
Fortunately for the Deora prince, descendant of Rao Narrain Das, the author
knew their history, and was enabled to discriminate the claims which Jodpoor
assert? rl overJ — virtue of such attacks as this ; in short, between the claims
ixjincv, m the fflO{ arffar ^ and the king’s lieutenants of Guzzerat. In these

The political a. Jodpoor advanced its pretensions to suzerawite over Sirohi,
for the rebellion oi e ^ ^be right, he clearly distinguished the claims of the
their capacities of viceroys of the empire, and argued
" > Sirohi in that character guaranteed none to them, in

* Sir, ‘ the head,’ boi, as chiefs of Marwar a distinction which they affected
Sirbullund, being the ortrhich was at length fully recognized and acted on by

■J* In the original, the <rohi is maintained in ids ancient independence, which
perhaps Aswapati, ‘ lord oledge must have been inevitably lost.

■CHAP. X,]

ANNALS OP MARWAR.

93

'' the J strong-holds of tlie province ” The reply was laconic and
dignified ; "that he himself was king, and his head was with Ahme-
" dabad,”

A grand council of war was convened in the Rajpoot camp, which
is described con amove by the bard. The overture and its reception
were communicated, and the debates and speeches which ensued
thereon, as to the future course of proceeding, are detailed. The
bard is, however, satisfied with recording the speeches of 'the chiefs
of the eight grades of Maroo . 5

“ First spoke the chief of the children of Champa, Koosul, son of
Hurnat of Ahwa, whose seat is on the right of the throne. Then
Kunneram of Asope, leader of the Koompawuts, whose place is on
the left : ' let us, like the Kilkila,* * * § dive into the waters of battle/
He was followed by Kesuri, the Mairtea Sirmor ; — then by the
veteran who led the Oodawuts : old and brave, many a battle had
he seen. Then the chief of Khanwa, who led the clan of Joda,
protested he would be the first to claim the immortal garland from
the hand of the Apsaras ;f ' let us stain our garments with saffron,
and our lances with crimson, and play at ball with this Sirbullund/f
Fufcfceh the Jaitawut, and Kurnavat Abhi-mal, re-echoed his words.
All shouted /battle!'’ 'battle / while some put on the coloured
garments, determined to conquer Bhanloca. Kurna, the Champawut,
said aloud, ‘with sparkling cup the Apsaras will serve us in the
mansion of the sun/§ Every clan, every chief, and every bard,
re-echoed * battle !’

" Then Bukhta stood up to claim the onset, to lead the van in
battle against Sirbullund, while his brother and priuce should await
the result in his tents. A jar of saffron-water was placed before the

*The killcila is the bird we call the kingfisher.

fThe maids of war, the Vallcyris of Rajpoot mythology,

j Another jeu-de-mots on the name Sirbullund, with whose head (sir) the
Joda chief proposes to play at ball.

§ The young chieftain of Saloombra, the first of the nobles of M^war, was
sitting with me, attentively listening as I was translating the war against
Sirbullund, read by my old tutor. His family possess au hereditary aversion to
“the cup,” which is under solemn prohibition from some cause which 1 forget;
and so far did his grandfather carry his antipathy, that a drop fallingupon him
at au entertainment, he cut out the contaminated part with bis dagger.. Aware
of this, I turned round to the young chief and said ; “Well, Rawut-ji, would
you accept the cup from the .hand of the Apsara, or would you refuse the
mnnwar (pledge) p” “ Certainly I would take it; these are very different cups
“from ours was his reply. “Then you believe that the heavenly fair carry the
souls of those who fall in battle to the mandal of Surya?” “ Who dare doubt
“ it p When my time comes, I will take that cup 1” a glorious creed for a soldier !
He sat for hours listening to my old tutor and friend ; for none of their bards
expounded like him the hhojunga (serpentine verse) of the poet. I have rated,
the Rawut for beiug unable to repeat the genealogy of his housefrom Chondato
himself; but the family bard was dead and left no progeny to inherit his
mantle. This young chief is yet (A.D. 1820) bnttwenty-two, and promises to be
better prepared.

94 ' ANNALS OP MAR WAR. [CHAP. X.

prince, with which he sprinkled each chief, who shouted, f they would
people TJmrapoor.’ ”*

The bard then describes the steeds of the Rajpoot chivalry, in
which the Beemrafc’halli of the Dekhan takes precedence; he is
followed by the horses of Dkat and Rardurro in Marwar, and the
Kattiawar of Saurashtra.

Sirbullund’ s plans of defence are minutely detailed. At each gate
be posted two thousand men and five guns, “ manned by Europeans,"
of whom he had a body of musketeers round his person. The
cannonade had been kept up three days on both sides, in which the
son of Sirbullund was killed. At length, Bukhta led the storm,
when all the otes aud awnts performed prodigies of valour. The
Champawut Koosulwas the first to be carried to the “immortal
“ abode ;’’ but though “ the sun stood still to see the deeds of the
“ son of Hurnafc,’’ we cannot particularize the bard’s catalogue of
heroes transferred to Suralocaf on this day, when the best blood of
Rajpootana was shed on the walls of Akmedabad. Both the princely
brothers had their share in “ the play of swords,’’ and each slew
more than one leader of note. Umra, who had so often defended
Ajmdr, slewfive chiefs of the grades of two and three thousand horse.

“Eight ghurries of the day remained, when Sirbullund fled; but
Ulyar, the leader of his vanguard, made a desperate resistance, until
he fell by the hand of Bukht sing. The drum ef victory sounded.
The JSTawab left his pani in the Rincoond.% The “ would-be-king”
was wounded ; his elephant shewed the speed of the deer. Four
thousand four hundred and ninety-three were slain, of whom one
hundred were Pallet Ntisheens, eight Hati Nuslieens ,§ and three
hundred entitled to the Tazeem on entering the Diwan Aum.||

“ One hundred and twenty chieftains of note, with five hundred
horse, were slain with Abhye Sing, and seven hundred wounded.

u The next morning, Sirbullund surrendered with all his effects.
He was escorted towards Agra, his wounded Moguls dying at every
stage ; but the soul of the ' Fearless’ was sad at the loss of hiskin.*|[

* ‘ The city of immortality.’

f The abode of heroes, the Valhalla of the Rajpoot mythology.

t Rincoond is the ‘fountain of battle,' aud paniis applied, as we use the word
water, to the temper or spirit of a sword: a play on swords.

§ Chiefs entitled to ride in palkis and on elephants.

|| A long list of names is given, which would only fatigue the reader; but
amongst them we select a singular one, Nolakh Khan Anglez, ‘Nolakh the
Englishman.’

*lf The bard enumerates with the meed of praise each vassal who fell, whether
Bahtore or of the contingents of the other principalities serving under the
prince of Marwar. The Champawuts bore the brant, and lost Kurrun of Pally.
Kishen Sing of Sindri, Gordhan of Jhnlore, audKmlian. The Koompawufcs lost
also several leaders of clans, as Nursing, Soortan Sing, Pudma, son of Doorjun-
The Joda tribe lost three leaders, viz., Heatmul, Goman, and Jogidas. The
brave Mairteas also lost three: Bhom Sing, Koosul Sing, and Golab, son of
Hatti. The allodial chieftains, the Jadoons, the Sonigurras, the Dhonduls,
and Kheechies, had many brave men "carried to Bbanloca,” and even bards
and purohits were amongst the slain.

CHAP. XI.]

ANNALS OF MARWAR.

. 95

Ab Li- Mai ruled over the seventeen thousand to vine o£ Guzzevat and
the nine thousand of Marwar, besides one thousand elsewhere. * The
princes of Edur, of Booj, of' Parkur, of Sinde, and of Sirohi, the
Ckalook Ran of Euttehpoor, Jhoojoouoo, Jessulmer, Nagore, Donger-
poor, Blianswarra, Lunawarra, Hulwad, every morning bowed the
head to Abhi-Mal.

“ Thus, in the enlightened half of the moon, on the victorious
tenth* (S. 1787, A.D. 1731), the day on which Ramachundra captured
Lanka, the war against Sirbullund, an Ornra (lord) of twelve
thousand, was eoncluded.'”f

Having left a garrison of seventeen thousand men for the duties
of the capital and province, Abhye Sing returned to Jodpoor with
the spoils of G-uzzerat, and there he deposited four crores of rupees,
and one thousand four hundred guns of all calibres, besides military
stores of every description. " With these, in the declining state of the
empire, the desert king strengthened his forts and garrisons, and
determined, in the general scramble for dominion, not to neglect his
own interests. .

CHAPTER XI.

Mutual jealousies of the brothers. — Abhye Sing dreads the military fame of
Biikhta. — His policy.— Prompted by the bard Kama, who deserts’ Jodpoor for
Nagore. — Scheme laid by Bukhta to thwart his brother. — Attach of Bikaner by
Abhye Sing. — Singular conduct of his chiefs, who afford supplies to the besieged.
— Bakhta's scheme to embroil the Amber Prince with his brother. — His overture
and advice to attach Jodpoor in the absence of his brother. — Jey Sing of
Amber . — His reception of this advice, which is discussed and rejected in a fill
council of the nobles of Amber. — -The envoy of Bukhta obtains an audience of
the Prince of Amber. — Attains his object. — ■ His insulting letter to Baja Abhye
Sing. — The latter’s laconic reply. — Jey Sing calls out the Kher, or feudal army
of Amber. — Obtains foreign allies. — One hundred thousand men muster under
the ivalls of his capital. — March to the Marwar frontier. — Abhye Sing raises
the siege of Bikaner. — Bukhta’ s Strange conduct. — Swear shis Vassals. Marches
with i his personal retainers only to combat the host of Ambdr. Battle oj
Gangaria. — Desperate onset of Bukhta Sing. — Destruction of his band. With
sixty men charges the Amber Prince , who avoids him. — Eulogy of Bukhta by
the Amber bards.— Kurno. the bard prevents a third charge. — Bukhta’ s distress
at the loss of his men— The liana mediates a peace.— Bukhta loses his tutelary
divinity.— Restored by the Amber Prince.— Death of Abhye Sing —Anecdotes
illustrating his character.

The tranquillity which for a while followed the campaign in Guz-
zerat was of no long duration. The love of ease and opium, w ic

t With this battle the RajlRoopaca and Surya Prdkas terminate.

96

ANNALS OP AIAlfWAR.

[CHAP. X

C

increased with the years of Abhye Sing, was disturbed by a per-
petual apprehension of the active courage and military genius of the
brother, whose appanage of Nagove was too restricted a field for
his talents and ambition. Bukhta was also aw r are that his daring
nature, which obtained him the suffrages, as it would the swords, of
his turbulent and easily excited countrymen, rendered him an object
of distrust, and that without great circumspection, he would be
unable to- maintain himself in his imperium in imperio , the castle
and three hundred and sixty townships of Nagore. He was too
discreet to support himself by foreign aid, or by fomenting domestic
strife ; but w,ith the aid of the bard, he adopted a line of policy, the
relation of which will develope new traits in the Kajpoot character,
and exemplify its peculiarities. Kurna, after finishing his historical
chronicle, concluding with the war against Sirbullnnd, abandoned
“ the gate of Jodpoor, for that of Nagore.-” Like all his tribe, the
bard was an adept in intrigue, and his sacred character forwarded
the secret means of executing it. His advice was to embroil their
common sovereign with the prince of Amber, and an opportunity
was not long wanting.

The prince of Bikaner, a junior but independent branch of Marwar,
had offended his yet nominal suzerain Abhye Sing, who, taking
advantage of the weakness of their common liege lord the emperor,
determined to resent the affront, and accordingly invested Blkandr,
which had sustained a siege of some weeks, wdien Bukhta determined
to make its release subserve his designs ; nor could he have chosen
a. better expedient. Although the prince of Marwar had led his
united vassalage against Bikaner, they were not only lukewarm as
to the success of their own arms, but, anomalous as it must appear
in the annals even of feudal warfare, they furnished the besieged with
the means of defence, who, but for the supplies of opium, -salt, and
ammunition, would soon have been compelled to surrender. We can
account for this : Bikaner was of their own kin, a branch of the great
tree of which Sd6ji was the root, and to which they could cling in
emergency; in short, Bikaner balanced the power between them-
selves and their head.

The scheme being approved, its execution and mode of develop-
ment to Jey Sing were next canvassed. "Touch his pride/’ said
Kurna ; “ tell him the insult to Amber, which your ancestor invested,
has never been balanced, and that he will never find a time like the-
present to fling a few shot at Jodpoor.’-’

Bukhta addressed a letter to Jey Sing, and at the same time sent
instructions to the envoy of Bikaner at his court how to act.

The prince of Amber, towards the close of his cai’eer, became piir-
tial to f the cup but, aware of the follies it involved him in, an edict
prohibited all official intercourse with him while he was under its
influence. The direct overture of Bukhta was canvassed, and all
interference between the kindred belligerents was rejected in a full

CHAP. XI.]

ANNALS OF MARWAR.

97

ajsi

council of tli e cliiefs of Amber. But tbe envoy bad a friend in tbe
famous Yidyadhur,* tbe chief civil minister of tbe state, through
whose means he obtained permission to make c a verbal report, stand-
ing/ “ Bikaner,” he said, “was in peril, and without his aid must
“ fall, and that his master did nob consider the sovereign of Marwar,
“ but of Atnbdr, as his suzerain/’ Yanity and wine did the rest. The
prince took up the pen and wrote to Abyhe Sing, “That they all
“ formed one great family ; to forgive Bikaner and raisehis batteries
and as he took another cup, and curled his moustache, he gave the
letter to bo folded. " Mahraja,” said the envoy, “ put in two more
“ words: ‘ or, my name is Jey Sing/” They were added. The overjoyed
envoy retired, and in a few minutes the letter was on transit to its
destination by the s-wiftest camel of the desert. Scarcely had the
envoy retired, when the chief of Bkansko, the Mentor of Jey Sing,
entered. He was told of the letter, which “ would vex his 8agga. 33 f
The old chief remoustrated ; he said, “ unless you intend to extin-
guish the Cutchwahas, recall this letter/’ Messenger after messenger
was sent, but the envoy knew his duty. At the dinner hour, all the
chiefs had assembled at the ( Rusora ) banqnet-lmll, when the spokes-
man of the vassalage, old Deep Sing, in reply to the communication
of his sovereign, told him he had done a cruel and wanton act, and
that they must all suffer for his imprudence.

The reply, a laconic defiance, was brought back with like celerity ;
it was opened and read by Jey Sing to his chiefs : “ By what right
“ do you dictate to me, or interfere between me and my servants ? If
“ your name is ’ the Lion of Victory’ (Jey Sing), mine is ‘ the Lion
“without Fear’ (Abhye Sing)

The ancient chief, Deep Sing, said : “ I told you how it would be ;
“ but there is no retreat, and our business is to collect our friends .”
The Kher , or ‘ levy" cn masse, 3 was proclaimed ! Every Cutchwaha
was commanded to repair to the great standard planted outside the
capital. The home-clans came pouring in, and aid was obtained from
the Haras of Boondi, the Jadoons of Kerowli, the Seesodias of Skah-
poora, the Klieechies, and the Jats, until one hundred thousand men
were formed beneath the castle of Amber. This formidable array
proceeded, mavch after march, until they reached Gangwani, a village
on the frontier of Marwar. Here they encamped, and, with all due
courtesy, awaited the arrival of the f Feai’less Lion/

They were not long in suspense. Mortally offended at such wanton
interference, which compelled him to relinquish his object on the very

* Yidyadlnir was a Brahmin of Bengal, a scholar and man of science. The
plan of the modern city of Amber, named Jeipoor, was his : a city as regular as .
Darmstadt. He was also the joint compiler of the celebrated genealogical
•tables wbicb appear in the first Volume of this work,
t Sagga is a term denoting a connexion by marriage.

j I write the names as pronounced, and as familiar to the readers of Indian
history. Jya , in Sanscrit, is ‘victory,’ A’buhye, ‘fearless.’

(Vol. II.]

13

98 ANNALS OP MARWAR. [CHAP. XI.

eve of attainment, Abhye Sing raised bis batteries from besieging
Bikaner and rapidly advanced to tbe encounter.

Bukbta now took alarm. He had not calculated the length to
which his intrigues would involve his country ; he had sought but
to embroil the border princes, but had kindled a national warfare.
Still his fears wei’e less for the discovery of his plot, than for the
honour of Marwar, about to be assailed by such odds. He repaired
to his brother and liege lord, and implored him not to raise the
siege ; declai-ing that he alone, with the vassals of Nagore, would
receive the Bugtea's * battle, and, by God’s blessing, would give a
good account of him. Abhye Sing, not averse to see his brother
punished for his conduct, though determined to leave him to the
brunt of the battle, rejected with scorn the intriguing preposition.

“ The NaJcarra sounded the assembly for the chivalry of Nagore.
Bukhta took post on the balcony over the Dehli gate, with two
brazen vessels ; in the one was an infusion of opium, in the other
saffron-water. To each Rajpoot as he entered he presented opium,
and made the impress of his right hand on his heart with the
saffron-water. Having in this manner enrolled eight thousand
Rajpoots, sworn to die with him, he determined to select the most
resolute ; and marching to the edge of an extensive field of luxuriant
Indian corn ( bajra ), he halted his band, and thus addressed them' :
” Let none follow me who is not prepared for victory or death : if
“ there be any amongst you who desire to return, let them do so in
“ God’s name.” As he spoke, he resumed the march through the
luxuriant fields, that it might not be seen who retired. More than
five thousand remained, and with these he moved on to the combat.

The Ambdr prince awaited them at Gungwani : soon as the hostile
lines approached, Bukhta gave the word, and, in one dense mass, his
gallant legion charged with lance and sword the deepened lines of
Amber, carrying destruction at every pass. He passed through and
through this host • but when he pulled up in the rear, only sixty of
his band remained round his person. At this moment, the chief of
Gujsingpooi’a, head of all Lis vassals, hinted there was a jungle in
the rear : “ and what is there in front” said the intrepid Rahtore,
" that we should not try the road we came ?” and as he espied the
panchrcmga , or five-coloured flag, which denoted the head quarters
of Amber, the word again was given. The cautious Khoombani’f'
advised his prince to avoid the charge : with some difficulty he was
made to leave the field, and as a salvo to his honour, by a flank
movement towards Kundailah north, that it might not be said he
turned his back on his foe. As he retreated, he exclaimed, "seventeen
“ battles have I witnessed, but till this day never one decided by the
"sword.’ r Thus, after a life of success, the wisest, or at least the
most learned and most powerful prince of Rajwarra, incurred the

*Sugtaa is ‘a devotee:’ fcho term is bete applied reproachfully to Joy Sing,
on account of bis very religious babius,

f The clau of tbe Bhansko chief.

CHAP. XI.]

ANNALS OF MARWAR.

\,

99

disgrace of leaving the field in the face of a handful of men,
strengthening the adage “fchafcone Rahtore equalled tenCutchwahas/’

Jey Sing’s own bards could not refrain from awarding the meed
of valour to their foes, and composed the following stanzas on the
occasion : “Is it the .battle cry of Cali, or the war-shout of Hano-
" wanta, or the hissing of Schesnag, or the denunciation of Kapilis-
“ war ? Is it the incarnation of Nursing, or the darting beam of
“ Surya ? or the death-glance of the Dakuni ?* or that from the
“ central orb of Trinetra ?f Who could support the flames from this
“ volcano of steel, when Bukhta’ s sword became the sickle of time ?”

But for Kura a the bard, one of the few remaining about his person,
Bukhta would a third time have plunged into the ranks of the foe ;
nor was it till the host of Amber had left the field, that he wan
aware of the extent of his loss. J Then, strange inconsistency! the
man, who but a few minutes before had affronted death in every
shape, when he beheld the paucity of survivors, sat down and wept
like an infant. Still it was more the weakness of ambition than
humanity ; for, never imagining that his brother would fail to
support him, he thought destruction had overtaken Mar war • nor
was it until his brother joined and assured him he had left him all
the honour of the day, that he recovered his port. Then “ he curled
“his whiskers, and swore an oath, that he would yet drag the
“ f Bkuggut’ from his castle of Ambdr.”

Jey Sing, though he paid dear for his message, gained his point,
the relief of Bikandr ; and the Rana of Oodipoor mediated to prevent
the quarrel going further, which was the less difficult since both
parties had gained their ends, though Jey Sing obtained his by the
loss of a battle.

It is related that the tutelary deity of Bukht Sing fell into the
hands of the Amber prince, who carried home the sole trophy he
could boast, married the Rahtore deity to a female divinity of Amb4r,
and returned him with .his compliments to Bukhta. Such were
the - courteous usages of Rajpoot chivalry. The triple alliance
of the chief Rajpoot princes followed this battle, cemented by the
union of the rival houses to daughters of Mewar. There they met,
attended by their vassalage, and, in the nuptial festivities and the
1 cup,’ forgot this bitter strife, while enmity and even national
jealousy were banished by general courtesy. Such is the Rajpoot,
who can be judged after no known standard : he stands alone in the
moral history of man.§

This is the last conspicuous act of Abhye Sing’s life on record. He

* The witch of India is termed Dahun '%.

t A title of Siva, god of destruction, the ‘ three-eyed.’ .

I Though the bard does not state, it is to be supposed, that the main body
came up and caused this movement.

§ This singular piece of Rajpoot history, in the annals of Marwar , is con-
firmed by every particular in the “ one hundred and nine acts of the Great J ey
Sing of Ambdr. The foe does ample justice to Rahtore valour,

[Vol. n.] 1Sa

100

ANNALS OF MARWAR.

[CHAP. II.

died in S. 1806 (A.D. 1750), at Jodpooi'. His courage, which may
be termed ferocious, was tempered only by his excessive indolence,
regarding which they have preserved many amusing anecdotes ; one
of these will display the exact character of the man. The chronicle
says : “ When Apt went to marry the Chohani, he found two lions
“ in his path — the one asleep, the other awake. The interpretation
“ of the sooguni (augur) was, that the Chohani would bear him two
“ sons; that one would be a Sooti khan (sluggard), the other an active
“ soldier.” Could the augur have revealed that they would imbrue
their hands in a father’s blood, he might have averted the ruin of his
country, which dates from this black deed.

The Rahtores profess a great contempt for the Cutchwahas as
soldiers; and Abhye Sing’s was not lessened for their prince, because
he happened to be father-in-law to the priuce of Ambdr, whom he
used to mortify, even in the “ Presence,” with such sarcasm as, “ You
“ are called a Cutchwa, or properly Guswa, from the Gusa; and your
“ sword will cut as deep as one of its blades :” alluding to the grass
thus called. Irritated, yet fearing to reply, he formed a plan to
humble his arrogance in his only vulnerable point, the depreciation
of his pei'sonal strength. While it was the boast of Jey Sing to
mingle the exact sciences of Europe with the more ancient of India,
Abhye’s ambition was to be deemed the first swordsman of Rajwarra.
The scientific prince of Amber gave his cue to Kirpanvm, the pay-
master-general, a favourite with the king, from his skill at chess, and
who had often the honour of playing with him while all the nobles
were standing. Kirparam praised the Rahtore prince’s dexterity in
smiting off a buffalo’s head; on which the king called out, “Rajeswar,
“ I have heard much of your skill with the sword .” — ” Yes, Huzrit,
“ I can use it on an occasion.” A huge animal was brought into the
area, fed in the luxuriant pastures of Heriana. The court crowded out
to see the Rahtore exhibit; but when he beheld the enormous bulk,
he turned to the king and begged permission to retire to his post,
the imperial guard-room, to refresh himself. Taking a double dose
of opium, he returned, his eyes glaring with rage at the trick played
upon him, and as he approached the buffalo, they fell upon Jey Sing,
who had procured this monster with a view to foil him. The Amb6r
chief saw that mischief was brewing, and whispered his majesty, not
to appi'oach too near his sou-in-law. Grasping his sword in both
hands, Abhye gave the blow with such force that the buffalo’s head
“ dropped upophis knees,” and the Raja was thrown upon his back.
All was well ; but, as the chronicle says, “ the king never asked the
“Raja to decollate another buffalo.”

It was during the reign of Abhye Sing, that Nadir Shah invaded
India ; but the summons to the Rajpoot princes, to put forth their
• strength in support of the tottering throne of Timoor, was received
with indifference. Not a chief of note led his myrmidons -to the
plains of Kurnal ; and Dehli was invested, plundered, and its monarch
dethroned, without exciting a sigh. Such was their apathy in the

CHAP, XII. j

ANNAiS OF MARWAR.

101

cause, when the imbecility of Makommed Shak succeeded to tke
inheritance of Arungzeb, that with tkeir own bands these puppets o£
despotism sapped the foundations of the empire.

Unfortunately for Rajpootana, the demoralization of her princes
prevented their turning to advantage this depression of the empire,
in whose follies and crimes they participated.

With the foul and monstrous murder of the Raja Ajit (A.D. 1750)
commenced those bloody scenes which disgrace the anuals of Marwar ;
yet even' in the history of her crimes there are acts of redeeming
virtue, which raises a sentiment of regret that the lustre of the one
should be tarnished by the presence of the other. They serve,
however, to illustrate that great moral truth, that in every stage of
civilization, crime will work out its own punishment ; and grievously
has the parricidal murder of Ajit been visited on his race and country.
We shall see it acting as a blight on that magnificent tree, which,
transplanted from the native soil of the Granges, took root and
flourished amidst the arid sands of the desert, affording a goodly
shade for a daring race, who acquired fresh victories with poverty — <
we shall see its luxuriance checked, and its numerous and widely-
spread branches, as if scorched by the lightnings of heaven, wither
and decay; and they must utterly perish, unless a scion, from the
uncontaminated stem of Edur,* be grafted upon it : then it may
revivej and be yet made to yield more vigorous fruit.

o

’ CHAPTER XII.

Ram Sing succeeds. — His impetuosity of temper. — Hisuncle, Bulchta Sing, absents
himself from the rite of inauguration. — Sends his nurse as proxy. — Construed by
Ram Sing as an insult. — He resentsi , andresumssthe fief of Jhalore. — Confidant
of Ram Sing. —The latter insults the chief of the Ghampawuts, who withdraws
from the court. — His interuieio with the chief bard. — J oins Bulchta Sing. — The
chief bard gives his suffrage to Bultlita. — Civil war. — Battle of Mnirta. — Ram
Sing defeated. — Bulcht Sing assumesthe sovereignty. — The Bagri chieftain girds
him with the stvord. — Fidelity of the Purohit to the ex-prince, Ram Sing. — He
proceeds to the Dekhan to obtain aid of the Mai if alias . — P oeiical correspondence
between Rajah Bulchta and the Purohit. — Qualities , mental and personal, of
Bulchta. — The Mahr atlas threatenMarxuar. — All the clans uniter oundBukhta.

He advances to give battle. — Refused by the Mali 1 ) alias. — He takes post at the pass
of Ajmer. — Poisoned by the queen of Amber . — Bakhta’s character. — Reflections on
the Rajpoot character. — Contrasted with that of the European nobles in the darks
ages — Judgment of the bards on crimes. — Improvised stanza on the princes of
Jodpoor and Amber. — Anathema of the Sati, wife of Apt. Its fulfilment.
Opinions of the Rajpoot of such inspirations.

Ram. Sing succeeded at that dangerous age, when parental control is
most required to restrain the turbulence of passion. Exactly twen y

* The Heir of Edur is heir presumptive to the gadi of Marwar.

102 '

ANNAIS OF MARWAR.

[CHAP. XII.

years liad elapsed since the nuptials at Sirolii, when Hymen extin-
guished the torch o£ discord, and his mother was the hearer of the
olive branch to Abhye Sing, to save her house from destruction.
The Rajpoot, who attaches everything to pedigree, has a right to
lay an interdict on the union of the race of Agni ,* with the already
too fiery blood of the Rahtore. Ram Sing inherited the arrogance
of his father, with all the impetuosity of the Chohans; and the
exhibition of these qualities was simultaneous with his coronation.
Wo are not told why his uncle, Bukht Sing, absented.himself from
the ceremony of his prince’s and nephew’s installation, when the
whole kin and clans of Mnroo assembled to ratify their allegiance by
their presence. As the first in blood and rank, it was his duty to'
make the first maidc of inauguration on the forehead of his prince.
The proxy he chose on the- occasion was his dhad, or ‘ nurse,’ a
personage of no small importance in those countries. Whether by
such a representative the haughty warrior meant to insinuate that
his nephew should yet be in leading strings, the chronicle affords us
no hint; but it reprehends Ram Sing’s conduct to this venerable
personage, whom, instead of treating, according to usage, with the
same respect as his mother, he asked, "if his uncle took him for an
" ape, that he sent au old hag to present him with the teelca ?” and
instantly despatched an express desiring the surrender of Jhalore.
Ere his passion had time to cool, he commanded his tents to be
moved out, that he might chastise the insult to his dignity. Despis-
ing the sober wisdom of the counsellors of the state, he had given
his confidence to one of the lowest grade of these hereditary officers,
by name Umiah, the nalcarchi , f a man headstrong like himself.
The old. chief of the Champawuts, on hearing of this act of madness,
repaired to the castle to remonstrate ; but scarcely had he taken his
seat before the prince assailed him with ridicule, desiring " to see
" his frightful face as seldom as possible.” "Young man,” exclaimed
the indignant chief, as with violence he dashed his shield reversed
upon' the carpet, " you have given mortal offence to a Rahtore, who
" can turn Marwar upside down as easily as that shield.’ With eyes
darting defiance, he rose and left the Presence, and collecting his
retainers, marched to Moondlnavar . This was the residence of the
Pat-JBardai, or ‘ chief bard,’ the lineal descendant of the Barud
Roera, who left Canouj with Sdoji. The esteem in which his sacred
office was held may be appreciated by his estate, which equalled that
of the first noble, being one lac of rupees, (£10,000) of revenue.

The politic Bukhta, hearing of the advance of the chief noble of
Maroo on the border of his territory, left N a gore, and though it was
midnight, advanced to welcome him. The old chief was asleep ;
Bukhta forbade his being disturbed, and placed himself quietly
beside his pallet. As he opened his eyes, he called as usual for his

* The Deora of Sirohi is a branch of the Chohans, oueof the four Agniculas,

, n race sprung from fire. See Vol. I.

f The person who summons the nobles by beat of the state nalearm, or
' great kettle-drum.’

CHAP. XII.] ANNALS OP HARWAR. 10S

pipe (hooka), when the attendant pointing to the prince, the old
chief scrambled up. Sleep had cooled his rage, and the full force of
his position rushed upon him; but seeing there was now no retreat,
that the Itnbicon was crossed, " Well, there is my head,” said he;
" now it is yours.'” The bard, who was present at the interview, was
sounded by being requested to bring tho chiefs wife aud family from
Ahwa to Nagore ; aud he gave his assent in a mauner characteristic
of his profession : “ farewell to the gate of Jodpoor,” alluding to the
station of the bard. The prince immediately replied, “ there was no
“ difference between the gate of Jodpoor aud Nagore; and that while
“ he had a cake of hajra, he would divide it with the bard.”

Ram Sing did not allow his uncle much time to collect a force ;
and the first encounter was at 'Khoyrlie. Six actions rapidly fol-
lowed ; the last was at Loouawas, on the plains of Mairta, with
immense loss of life on both sides. This sanguinary battle has been
already related,* in which Ram Sing was defeated, and forced to seek
safety in flight; when Jodpoor was surrendered, aud Buklita invested
with the llajtilac and sword by tho hands of the Jaitawut chief of
Bagri, whose descendants continue to enjoy this distinction, with
the title of kfarwar ca bar Kewdr , ‘ the bar to the portal of Mar war/

With the possession of the seat of Government, and the support
of a great majority of the clans, Bnklit Sing felt secure against all
attempts of his uephow to regain his lost power. But although his
populavit}’- with his wavliko kiudred secured their suffrages for his
maintenance of the throne which the sword had gained him, there
were other opiuious which Bukht Sing was too politic to overlook.
Tho adhesion of tho hereditary officers of the state, especially those
personal to tho sovereign, is requisite to cloak tho crime of usurpa-
tion, in which light only, whatever tho extent of provocation,
Bukhta's conduct could be regarded. The military premier, as well
as the higher civil authorities, were won to his cause, aud of those
whose sacred office might seem to sanctify the crime, the chief bard
had already chauged his post u for the gate of Nagore.” But there
was one faithful servant, who, in the general defection, overlooked
the follies of his prince, in liis adherence to the abstract rules of
fidelity ; and who, while his master fouud refuge at Jeipoor, repaired
to the Dekhan to obtain the aid of the Mahrattas, the mercenaries of
Rajpootana. Jaggo was the name of this person; his office, that of
Purohit , the ghostly adviser of his prince aud tutor to his children.
Bakhta, at once desirous to obtain his suffrage, and to arrest the
calamity of foreign invasion, sent a couplet in his own hand to the
Purohit :

” The flower, Oh bee, whose aroma regaled you, has been assailed
“ by the blast ; not a leaf of the rose-tree is left ; why longer cling. to
“ the thorns ?”

The reply was iu character : “ In this hope does the bee cling to

* See Vol 1, p. 039, et seq.

104 A'NNAIiS OF MARWAB. * [OHAP. XII.

“ tlie denuded rose-tree ; that spring may return, and fresli flowers
“ bud forth.”*

Bukhta, to bis honour, approved the fidelity which rejected his
overtures.

There was a joyousness of soul about Bukhta which, united to an
intrepidity and a liberality alike unbounded, made him the very
model of a Rajpoot. To these qualifications were superadded a
majestic mien and Herculean frame, with a mind versed in all the
literature of his country, besides poetic talent of no mean order ; and
but for that one damning crime, he would have been handed down
to posterity as one of the noblest princes Rajwarra ever knew.
These qualities not only rivetted the attachment of the household
clans, but secured the respect of all his exterior relations, so that
when the envoy of the expatriated prince obtained Sindia’s aid for
the restoration of Ram Sing, The popularity of Bukhta formed an
army which appalled the “ Southron,*' who found arrayed against
. him all the choice swords of Rajwarra. The whole allodial power of
the desert, “ the sons of Sedji” of every rank, rose to oppose this
first attempt of the Mahrattas to interfere in their national quarrels,
and led by Bukhta in person, advanced to meet Madaji/the Patel.
But the Mahratta, whose object was plunder rather thau glory, satis-
fied that he had little chance of either, refused to measure his lance
{hirchi) with the sang and sir oh if of the Rajpoot.

Poison effected what the sword could not accomplish. Bukhta
^determined to remain encamped in that vulnerable point of access to
his dominions, the passes near Ajmer. Hither, the Rahtore queen
of MadhuSing, prince of Amber, repaired to compliment her relative,
and to her was entrusted the task of removing the enemy -of her
nephew. Ram Sing. The mode in which the deed was effected, as
well as the last moments of the heroic but criminal Bukhta, have
been already related. J He died in S. 1809 (A.D. 1753), leaving a
disputed succession, and all the horrors of impending civil strife, to
his son, Beejy Sing.

During his three years of sovereignty, Bukhta had found both
time and resources to strengthen and embellish the strong-holds of
Marwar. He completed the fortifications of the capital, and greatly
added to the palace of Joda, from the spoils of Ahmedabad. He
retaliated the injuries on the intolerant Islamite, and threw down
his shrines and his mosques in his own fief of Nagore, and with the
wrecks restored the edifices of ancient days. It was Bukhta also
who prohibited, under pain of death, the Islamite's call to prayer
throughout his dominions, and the order remains to this day

* That beautiful simile of Ossian, or of Macpberson, borrowed from the
canticles of the Royal Bard of Jerusalem, will be brought to mind in the roply
of the Purohit — t- I was a lovely tree in thy presence, Oscar, with all my
branches around me; ” &e.

•j" Sang is a lance about ten feet long, covered with plates of iron about four
feet above the spike. The sirohi is the sword made at the city, whence its
name, and famous for its temper, J See Vol. I, p. 643.

CHAP*. XII.]

ANNALS OF HARWAR.

105

/

unvevoked in Marwar. Had lie been spared a few years to direct
the storm then accumulating, which transferred power from the
haughty Tatar of Dehli to the peasant soldier of the Kistna, the
probability was eminently in favour of the Rajpoots resuming their
ancient rights throughout India. Every principality had the same
motive for union in one common cause, the destruction of a power
inimical to their welfare : but crimes, moral and political, rendered
an opportunity, such as never occurred in their history, unavailing
for their emancipation from temporal and spiritual oppression.

We will here pause, aud anticipating the just horror of the reader,
at finding crime follow crime — one murder punished by another —
prevent his consigning all the Rajpoot dynasties to infamy, because
such foul stains appear in one part of their annals. Let him cast
his eyes over the page of western history ; aud commencing with the
period of Seoji's emigration in the eleventh century, when the curtain
of darkness was withdrawn from Europe, ns it was simultaneously
closing upon the Rajpoot, contrast their respective moral charac-
teristics. The Rajpoot chieftnin was imbued with all the kindred
virtues of the western cavalier, and far his superior in mental
attainments. There is no period on record when these Hindu princes
could not have signed their names to a charter ; many of them
could have drawn it up, and even invested it, if required, in a poetic
garb ; and although this consideration perhaps enhances, rather
than palliates, crime, what are the instances in these states, we may
ask, compared to the wholesale atrocities of the ' Middle Ages' of
Europe ?

The reader would also be wrong if he leaped to the conclusion,
that the bardic chronicler passed no judgmeut on the princely
criminal. His “'empoisoned stanzas" (visiva sloca), transmitted' to
posterity by the mouth of the peasant and the prince, attest the
reverse. One couplet has been recorded, stigmatizing Bukhta for
the murder of his father ; there is another of the chief bard, improvised
while his prince Ablive Sing, and Jey Sing of Amber, were passing'
the period devoted to religious rites at the sacred lake of Poslikur.
These ceremonies never stood in the way of festivity ; and one
evening, while these princes and their vassals were in the height of
merriment, the bard was desired to contribute to it by some extempo-
raneous effusion. He rose, and vociferated in the ears of the horror-
struck assembly the following quatrain :

“ Jodpoor, aur Amber,

“ JDoono tliap oot'hdp ;

“ Koorma mard deekro,

“ Kamd’huj mard bdp.”

“ [The princes of] Jodpoorand Amber can dethrouethe enthroned.
But the Eooi’ma* slew his son ; the Kamd'hujf murdered his father.

* J Kooima or Cuichwa (the tribe of the princes of Amb6r), slew his son, Set)
Sing.

■f Kavxd’huj, it must be remembered, is a titular appellation of the Eahtoro
kings, which they brought from Canouj.

[Von. II.]

14

106 .

ANNALS ON MARWAR.

[CHAP. XIII.

The words of the poetic seer sank into the minds of his hearers,
and passed from month to mouth. They were probably the severest
vengeance either prince experienced in this world, and will continue
to circulate down to the latest posterity. It was the effusion of the
same uudaunted Kurna, who led the charge with his prince against
the troops of Amber.

We have also the anathema of the prophetic Sati, wife of Ajit,
who, as she mounted the pyre with her murdered lord, pronounced
that terrific sentence to the ears of the patriotic Rajpoot : “ May the
“ bones of the murderer be consumed out of Maroo !”* In the value
they attach to the fulfilment of the prophecy, we have a commentary
on the supernatural power attached to these self-devoted victims.
The record of the last moments of Bukhta, in the dialogue with his
doctor,-)- is a scene of the highest dramatic and moral interest ; and,
if further comment were required, demonstrates the operations of
the hell within, as well as the abhorrence the Rajpoot entertains for
such crimes.

CHAPTER XIII.

Accession of Beejy Sing. — Receives at Mairtathe homageofhis Chie/s. — Proceeds to
the capital. — The ex-prince Ram Sing forms a treaty with the. Mnhrattas and the
Cutchwalias. — Junction of the Confederates. — Beejy Sing assembles the Clans ou-
tlie plains of Mairta. — Summoned to surrender the gadi. — His reply. — Battle . —
Beejy Sing defeated. — Destruction of the Iia/t<ore Cuirassiers . — Ilvsc de guerre . —
Beejy Sing left alone . — His flight. — Eulogies of the Bard. — Fortresses surrender to
Ram Sing. — A ssassination of the Mahratta commander. — Compensation for the
murder. — Ajmer surrendered. — Tribute or Cbout’h established.— Mahrattas
abandonthe cause of RamSing. — Couplet commemorative of this event. — Cenotaph
toJeyAppa. — Ham Sing dies — His character. — Anarchy reigns in Marwar.— The
Bahtore oligarchy. — Lows of adoption in the case of Pohurn fief . — Insolence of its
Chie f to its Prince, who entertains mercenaries. — This innovation accelerates the
decay of feudal principles. — The Raja plans the diminution of the Aristocracy . —
The Robles confederate.— Gordhan Kheechie. — His advice to the Prince . —
Humiliating treaty betweenthe Rajaand his vassals. — Mercenaries disbanded.—
Death of the Prince's guru or priest. — His prophetic words . — Kerea-cnrma or
funeral rites, made the expedient to entrap the chiefs, who are condemned to death '
— Intrepid conduct of Devi Sing of Poliurn.— His last words.— Reflections on
their defective system of government. — Sacrifice of the law of primogeniture. — Its
consequences. — Subhul Sing arms to avenge h is father’s death. — Is slain. — Power
of the nobles checked. — They are led against the robbers of the desert. — Amerhote
seized from Sinde. — Godivar taken from Metvar. — Manoar and Jeipoor unite
against the Ufahrattas, whoare defeatedat Tonga. — DeBoigne’s first appearance
— Ajmer recovered by the Rahiores. — Battles of Patun and Mairta. — Ajmer
surrenders. — Siiicideofthegovernor. — Beejy Sing’s concubine adopts Maun Sing.
— Her insolence alienates the Nobles, who plan the deposal of the Raja. — Murder
of the concubine. — Beejy Sing dies.

Beejt Sing, then in his twentieth year, succeeded his father, Bukhta.
His accession was acknowledged not only by the Emperor, but by

* Sco Vol. I, p. 613.

f See Vol. I, p. G42.

CHAP, xn.]

ANNALS OF MARWAR.

107

all tlie princes around him, and lie was inaugurated at the frontier
town of Marote, when proceeding to Mairta, where he passed the
period of matum or mourning. Hither the independent branches of
his family, of Bllcandr, Kisliengurh, and Roopnagurh, came simul-
taneously with' their condolence and congratulations. Thence he
advanced to the capital, and concluded the rites on death and acces-
sion with gifts and charities which gratified all expectations.

The death of his uncle afforded the ex-prince, Ram Sing, the
chance of redeeming his birthright ; and in conjunction with the
prince of Ambdr, he concluded a treaty* with the Mahrattas, the
stipulations of which were sworn to by their leaders. The
“ Southrons'-' advanced by Kotah and Jeipoor, where Ram Sing, with
his personal adherents and a strong auxiliary band of Amber, united
their forces, and they proceeded to the object in view, the dethrone-
ment of Beejy Sing.

Beejy Sing was prepared for the storm, and led his native chivalry
to the plains of Mairta, where, animated with one impulse, a deter-
mination to repel foreign interference, they awaited the Mahrattas,
to decide the rival claims to the throne of the desert. The bard
delights to enumerate the clans who mustered all their strength ;
and makes particular allusion to the allodial Pattawuts, who were
foremost on this occasion . From Poslikur, where the combined army
halted, a summons was sent to Beejy Sing “ to surrender the gadi of
cf Maroo.’ 3 It was read in full convention and answered with shouts
of “Battle! Battle! 33 “Whoisthis Happa,f tbusto scare us, when,-
“were the firmament to fall, our heads would be pillars of support
5‘to preserve you? 3 ’ Such is the hyperbole of the Rajpoot when
excited, nor does his action fall far short of it. The numerical odds
were immense against the Rahtores j but they little esteemed the
Cutcliwahas, and their courage had very different aliment to sustain
it, from the mercenary Southron. The encounter was of the most
desperate description, and the bard deals out a full measure of
justice to all.

Two accidents occurred during the battle, each sufficient to turn
victory from the standard of Beejy Sing, on the very point of frui-
tion. One has elsewhere been related, J namely, the destruction of
the " Sillehposbiaus, 33 or cuirassiers, tbe chosen cohort of the Rah tores,
when returning from a successful charge, who were mistaken for the
foe, and mowed down with discharges of grape-shot. This error, at
a moment when the courage of the Mahrattas was wavering, might

* This treaty is termed huldi, or bid patra, ‘a strong deed.’ The names of
the chiefs who signed it were Jaukoji Sindia, Santoji Bolia, Dan to Patel, Rana
Borteo, Atto-Jeswunt Rne, Kano, and Jewa, Jadoons; Jeewa Powar, 1 elooji
and Sutwa, Sindia Mnlji, Tnntia Cheetoo, Ragbu Pagia, Ghosnha Jadoon,
Moolla Tar Alii, Feeroz Khan ; all great leaders amongst the Southrons or that
day.

+ Tbe A, to the Rajpoot of the north-west, is as great a Shibboleth as to the
Cockney : — thus Appa becomes Happa.

JSeeVol. I, p.644.

_ [Von. II.]

14a.

U08

ANNALS 01” MARWAR.

[CHAP. XII.

have been retrieved, notwithstanding the superstitious converted tbe
disaster into an omen of evil. Sindia had actually prepared to quit
the field, when another turn of the wheel decided the event m his
favour: the circumstance exhibits forcibly the versatile character of
tbe Rajpoot.

The Raja of Kishengurh had deprived his relative of Roopnagurh
of bis estates ; both were junior branches of Marwar, but held direct
from the emperor. Sawuut Sing, chieftain of Roopnagurh, either from
constitutional indifference or old age, retired to the sanctuary of
Vindrabun on the Jumua, and, before the shrine of theHindu Apollo,
poured forth his gratitude for “ bis escape from Hell,” in the loss of
bis little kingdom. But it was in vain he attempted to inspire
young Sirdar with the like contempt of .mundane glory ; to his
. exhortations the youth replied, “ It is well for you, Sire,* who have
“ enjoyed life, to resign its sweets so tranquilly ; but I am yet a
“ stranger to them.” Taking advantage of the times, he determined
to seek a stronger auxiliary for the recovery of his rights than the
poetic homilies of Jydeva. Accordingly, he joined the envoy of Ram
Smg, and returned with the Mahratta army, on whose successful
operations his hope of reconquering his patrimony rested. It was at
that moment of doubt, that Appa, the Mahratta commander, thus
addressed young Sirdar : “ Your star, young man, is united to Ram
“ Sing’s, which fortune does not favour; what more is to be done
“ before we move off ?” Inexperienced as he was, Sirdar knew his
countrymen, and their vacillation when touched by superstition;
and he obtained permission to try a ruse , as a last resort. He des-
patched a horseman of his own clan to the division which pressed
them most, who, coming up to the Mainote minister, as if of his own
party, asked “ what they were fighting for, as Beejy Sing lay dead,

” killed by a cannon-shot in another part of the field V’ Like the
ephemeral tribe of diplomacy, the Mainote saw his sun was set. He
left the field, followed by the panic-struck clans, amongst whom the
report circulated like wild-fire. Though accustomed to these stra-
tagems, with which their annals teem, the Rajpoots are never on
their guard against them; not a man inquired into the truth of the
report, and Beejy Sing, — who, deeming himself in the very career
of victory, was coolly performing his devotions amidst the clash of
swords, — was left almost alone, even without attendants or horses.

_ The lord of Marwar, who, on that morning, commanded the lives of
one hundred thousand Rajpoots, was indebted for his safety to the
mean conveyance oi a cart and pair of oxen.-j-

Every clan had tol erect tablets for the loss of their best warriors; ,
and as in their civil wars each strove to be foremost in devotion,

* Bawp-ji. I

+ The anecdote is related in VoL T, p. 646. The Beejy Yulds states that the
prince rewaided the pea'sant with five hundred beegas of land in perpetuity,
i which his descendants enjoy, saddled with tiie petite eirjanterie of “ cm ds mid
“ bajra cakes," m remembrance of the fare the 1 Jfit provided for his prince
on that emei gency. 1

CHAPr xii.]

ANNALS OP 1TARWAR.

109

"most; o£ fcbe chieftains of note were amongst the slain.* The bard
metes out a fair measure of justice to their auxiliaries, especially the
Suktawuts_ of Mewar, whose swords were unsheathed in the cause
. of the son-in-law of their prince. Nor is the lance of the Southron

• passed over without eulogy, to praise which, indeed, is to extol
^themselves.

! With the loss of this battle and the dispersion of the Rahtores,
-the strong-holds rapidly fell. The cause of Ram Sing was triumph-
ing, and the Mahrattas were spreading over the land of Maroo, when
foul assassination checked their progress. f But the death of Jey

• Appa, which converted his hordes from auxiliaries to principals in
the contest, called aloud for vengeance, that was only to be appeased
by the cession of Ajmdr, and a fixed triennial tribute on all the lands
of Maroo, both feudal and fiscal. This arrangement being made, the
-Mahrattas displayed the virtue common to such mercenary allies :
they abandoned Ram Siug to his ‘ evil star/ and took possession of
this strong-hold, which, placed in the very heart of Rajast’hau, per-
petuated their influence over its princes.

With this gem, thus rudely torn from her diadem, the indepen-
dence of Marwar from that hour has been insecure. She has strug-
gled on, indeed, through a century of invasions, rebellions, and
crimes, all originating, like the blank leaf in her annals, from the
murder of Ajit. In the words of the Doric stauza of the hostile
-bards' on this memorable chastisement,

“ Bad glmnna din aosi
“ Hdppd wdld hel
“ Bhdgd tin-o bu-pati
“ Mdl kazdna mol.”

” For many a day will they remember the time (hel) of Appa,
cc when the three sovereigns fled, abandoning their goods and trea-
e< sures alluding to the princes of Marwar, Bikaner, and Kishen-
gurh, who partook in the disasters and disgrace of that day.

The youthful heir of Roopnagurh claimed, as he justly might, the
victory to himself; and goiug up to Appa to congratulate him, said,
in the metaphorical language of his country, “ You see I sowed

Rae r Snig, chief of the Koompavmfcs, the second noble in rank of Marwar;
Lall Sing, head of the Seesawuts, with the leader of the Keetawuts, are
especially singled out as sealing their fidelity with their blood ; but all the oies
and awuts of the country come in for a share of glory.

1 f This occurrence has been related in the Personal Narrative, Yol. I, P-Gl-7,
but it ism ore amply narrated in the chronicle, the Beejy Vulas, from which I
am now compiling. In this it is said that Jey Appa, during the siege, having
fallen sick, the Rahtore priuce sent his own physician, Soorajmul, to attend
him ; that the doctor at first refused the mission, saying, “ You may tell me to
. “ poison him; and I will not obey “ On the contrary,” said his prince, “ let your
" skill cure in two days what would take you four, and I shall favour you ; but
what was far move strange, Appa objected not, took the medicines of the bed,
and recovered.

110

ANNALS OF MARWAIi.

[CHAP. XII.

ic mustard-seed in my hand as I stood comparing the prompt success
of his stratagem to the rapid vegetation of the seed.' But Sirdar
■was a young man of no ordinary promise; for when Sinditi, in
gratitude, offeredimmediately to put himinpossession of Roopuagurli,
he answered, “ No pthat would be a retrograde movement,” and told
him to act for his master Ram Sing, “whose success would best
“ insure his own.'” But when treachery had done its worst on Jey
Appa, suspicion, which fell on every Rajpoot in the Mahratta camp,
spared not Sirdar : swords were drawn in every quarter, and even
the messengers of peace, the envoys, were everywhere assailed, and
amongst those who fell ere the tumult could be appeased, wasRawut
Kobeer Sing, the premier noble of Mewar, then ambassador from the
Rana with the Mahrattas.* With his last breath, Jey Appa protected
and exonerated Sirdar, and enjoined that his pledge ot restoration
to his patrimony should be redeemed. The body of this distinguished
commander was burned at the Taos-sir, or e Peacock pool/ where a
cenotaph was erected, and in the care which the descendants even of
his enemies pay to it, we have a test of the merits of both victor
and vanquished.

This was the last of twenty-two battles, in which Ram Sing was
prodigal of his life for the recovery of his honours. The adversity
of his later days had softened the asperity of his temper, and made
his early, faults be forgotten, though too late for his benefit. He died
in exile at Jeipoor, in AD. 1773. His person was gigantic; his
demeanour affable and courteous; and he was generous to a fault.
His understanding was excellent and well-cultivated, buthis capricious
'temperament, to which he gave vent with an unbridled vehemence,
disgusted the high-minded nobles of Maroo, and involved him in
exile and misery till his death. It is universally admitted that,
hoth in extei’ior and accomplishments, not even the great Ajit could
compare with Ram Sing, and witchcraft, at the instigation of the
chieftain of Asope, is assigned to account for his fits of insanity,
which might be better attributed to the early and immoderate use
of t^ium. But in spite of his errors, the fearless courage he displayed,
against all odds, kept some of the most valiant of the clans constant
to his fortunes, especially the brave Mail-teas, under the heroic Shere
Sing of Knah, whose deeds can never be obliterated from the recol-
lections of\the Rahtore. Hot the least ardent of his adherents was
the allodial qhief Roop Sing, of the almost forgotten clan, Pattawut ;
who held out nn Pilodi against all attempts, and who, when'provisions
failed, with liiV, noble associates, slew and ate their camels. The
theme is a favourite one for the Kamrea minstrel of Maroo, who
sings the fidelity g>£ Roopa and his band to the notes of his rhehdb ,
to their ever attentive descendants.

* I have many origmal V^utograph letters of this distinguished Rajpoot on the
transactions of this perioo-i ; -for it was he who negotiated the treaty between

RajaMadhu Sing, of" Jeipoor, t!5>® ‘ nephew of Mdwar,’ and the Mahrattas. At
this time, his object was to induct Jey Appa to raise the siege of Nagore.

CHAP. XIII.]

ANNALS OP MARWAR.

Ill

We may sum up fclie character of Ram Sing in the words of the
hard, as he contrasts him with his rival. “ Fortune never attended
" the stirrup of Beejy Sing, who never gained a battle, though at the
“ head of a hundred thousand men ; but Ram Sing, by his valour
“ and conduct, gained victories with a handful.”

The death of Ram Sing was no panacea to the griefs of Marwar
or of its prince. The Mahrattns, who had now obtained a point-
d’appui in Rajwavra, continued to foster disputes which tended to
their advantage, or when opportunity offered, to scour the country
in search of pay or plunder. T3eojy Sing, young and inexperienced,
was left without resources ; ruinous wars and yet more ruinous
negotiations had dissipated tho hoards of wealth accumulated by
his predecessors. Tho crown-lands were uncultivated, the tenantry
dispersed ; and commerce had diminished, owing to insecurity and
the licentious habits of the nobles, who everywhere established
their own itnposfs, and occasionally despoiled entire caravans.
While tho competitor for the throne was yet living, the Raja was
compelled to shut his eyes on these inroads upon his proper power,
which reduced him to insignificance even in his own palace.

The aristocracy in Marwar has always possessed more power than
in any of the sister principalities around. The cause may be traced
to their first settlement in the desert ; and it has been kept in action
by tho peculiarities of their condition, especially in that protracted
struggle for the rights of tho minor Ajifc, against the despotism of
the empire. There was another cause, which, at the present juncture,
had a very unfortunate influence on the increase of this prepon-
derance, and which arose out of the laws of adoption.

The fief of Poknrn, the most powerful. (although a junior) branch
of the Champawut clan, adopted a son of Raja Ajft as their chief-;
his name was Devi Sing. The right of adoption, ns has been already
explained, rests with the widow of the deceased and the elders of the
clan. Why they exercised it ns they did on this occasion does not
appear ; but not improbably at the suggestion of the dying chief, who
wished to seehis sovereign’s large family provided for, having no sons
of his own : or, the immediate claimants may not have possessed the
qualities necessary to lead a clan of Maroo. Although the mo'ment suck
adoption takes place, when “ the turban of the late incumbent
c< encircled the new lord of Poknrn,” be ought to forget he had any
other father than him he succeeded, yet we can easily imagine that, in
the present case, his propinquity to tho throne, which under other
circumstances he might soon have forgotten, was continually forced
upon his recollection by the contentions of his parricidal brothers
and their offspring for the ‘ cushion’ of Marwar. It exemplifies
another feature in Rajpoot institutions, which cut off this son
(guiltless of all participation in the treason) from succession, because
he was identified with the feudality ; while the issue of another, and
junior brother, at the same period adopted into the independent

112

ANNALS OF MARWAR.

[CHAP. SHI.

f

liouse of Edur,* were heirs presumptive to Marwar ; nay, must
supply it witli a ruler ou failure of heirs, though they should have
but one son and bo compelled to adopt iu his room.t

The Champawuts determined to maintain their influence over the
sovereign and the country; and Devi Sing leagued with Ahwa and
the other branches of this clan to the exclusion of all competitors.
They formed of their own body a guard of honour for the person of
the prince, one half remaining on duty in the castle, the other half
being in the town below. While the Raja would lament the dis-
tracted state of his country, the inroads of tbe Hill tribes, and the
depredations of his own chiefs, Ddvi Sing of Pokurn would reply,
“ why trouble yourself about Marwar ? it is in the sheath of my
“ dagger / 5 The young prince used to nnburthen his griefs to his
foster-brother Jaggo, aman of caution and experience, which quali-
ties he instilled into his sovereign. By dissimulation, and an appa-
rent acquiescence in them plaus, he not only eluded suspicion, but,
availing himself of their natural indolence of character, at length
obtained leave not only to entertain some men of Sinde as guards for
the town, but to provide supplies for their subsistence : the first
approximation towards a standing mercenary force, till then unknown
in their annals. We do not mean that the Rajpoot princes never
employed any other than their own feudal clans ; they had foreign
Itajpoots in their pay, but still on the same tenure, holding lands for
service; but never till this period had they soldiei’s entertained on
monthly stipend. These hired bands were entirely composed of
infantry, having a slight knowledge of European tactics, the supe-
riority of which, even over their high-minded cavaliers, they had so
severely experienced in their encounters with the Mahrattas. The
same causes had operated on the courts of Oodipoor and Jeipoor to
induce them to adopt the like expedient; to w'hich, more than to
the' universal demoralization which followed the breaking Up of the
empire, may be attributed the rapid decay of feudal principles
throughout Rajpootana. These guards were composed either of
Poorbea+ Rajpoots, Sindies, Arabs, or Robillas. They received their
orders direct from the prince, through the civil officers of the state,
by whom they were entrusted with the execution of all duties of
importance or despatch.. Thus they soon formed a complete harrier
between the prince and his vassals, and consequently became objects-
of jealousy and of strife. In like manner did all the other states
make approaches towards a standing army ; and though the motive
in all cases was the same, to curb, or even to extinguish, the strength
of the feudal chiefs, it has failed tbi-ougbout, except in the solitary
instance of Kotah, where twenty well disciplined battalions/and a
hundred pieces of artillery, are maintained chiefly from the feudal
sequestrations.

* lb will be remembered that Edur was conquered by a brother of Seojis.

f We shall explain this by a cutting of the genealogical tree : it may be found
useful should we be called on to arbitrate in these matters.

% Foorheas, ‘ men of the east,’ as the Mugrabies are ‘ of the west.’

CHAP. XIII.]

ANNALS OP AIARWAR.

113

To return : the Dhabhae, having thus secured a hand of seven
^ hundred men, and obtained an aid (which we may term scutage )
from the chiefs for thoir maintenance, gradually transferred them
from their duties above to the gates of the castle. Somewhat
released from the thraldom of faction, the Raja concerted with his
foster-brother and the Ddwan, Futteh Chund, the means of restor-
ing prosperity and order. So destitute was the prince of resources,
that the Dhabhae had recourse to threats of suicide to obtain
50,000 rupees from his mother, acquired as the nurse {dime) of his
sovereign • and so drained was the country of horses, that he was
compelled to transport his cavaliers (who were too proud to walk)
on cars to Nagore. There, under the pretence of curbing the
hill tribes, he formed an army, and dismounting the guns from the
walls of the town, marched an ill-quipped force against the border-
mountaineers, and being successful, he attacked on his return
the castle of Seel-Bukri. This was deemed a sufficient indication of
his views ; the whole feudality of Maroo took alarm, and united for
mutual safety at Birsilpoor, tw r enty miles east of the capital.

There was a foreign Rajpoot, whose valour, fidelity, and conduct
has excited the notice and regard of Bukht Sing, who, in his dying
hour, recommended him to the service of his son. To Gordhun, the
Keechie, a name of no small note in the subsequent history of this
reign, did the young Raja apply in order to restrain his chiefs from
revolt. In the true spirit of Rajpoot sentiment, he advised his prince
to confide in their honour, and, unattended, to seek and remonstrate
with them, while he went before to secure him a good reception. At
day-break, Gordhun was in the camp of the confederates ; he told
them that their prince, confiding in their loyalty, was advancing to
join them, and besought them to march out to receive him. -Deaf,
however, to entreaty and to remonstrance, not a man would stir, and
the prince reached the camp uninvited and unwelcomed. Decision
and confidence are essential in all transactions with a Rajpoot.
Gordhuu remained not a moment in deliberation, but instantly carried
his master dmoct to the tent of the Ahwa chief, the premier noble of
Marwar. Here the whole body congregated, and silence was broken
by the prince, who demanded why his chiefs had abandoned him ?

ec Maliraja/’ replied the Champawut, “ our bodies have but one
“ pinnacle; were there a second, it should be at your disposal.” A
tedious discussion ensued: doubts of the future, recriminations
respecting the past ; till wearied and exhausted, the prince demanded
Vo know the conditions on which they would return to their alle-
giance, when the following articles were submitted :

. 1st. — To break up tho force of the Dhabhae;

2d. —To surrender to their keeping the records of fiefs {jmtta-
huhye) j

3d. — That the court should be ti’ansferred from the citadel to the

town.

[Vox,, ii.]

15

114

ANNALS OF MARWAR.

[CHAP. XIII.

There was no alternative but the renewal of civil strife or
compliance; and the- first article, which was a sine qua non, the
disbanding of the obnoxious guards, that anomalous appendage to
a Rajpoot prince’s person, was carried into immediate execution.
Neither in the first nor last stipulation could the prince feel surprize
or displeasure ; but the second sapped the very foundation of his
rule, by depriving the crown of its dearest prerogative, the power of
dispensing favour. This shallow reconciliation being effected, the
malcontent nobles dispersed, some to their estates, and the
Chondawub oligarchy to the capital with their prince, in the hope of
resuming their former influence over him and the country.

Thus things remained, when Atmaram, the cjurti or ‘'ghostly
comforter,’ ofBeejy Sing, fell sick, and as he sedulously attended him,
the dying priest would tell him to be of good cheer, for when he
departed, he “ would take all his troubles with him.” He soon died,
and his words, which were deemed prophetic, were interpreted by
the Dhabhae. The Raj:t feigned immoderate grief for the loss of his
spiritual friend, and in order to testify his veneration, an ordinance
was issued commanding that the kcreacarma, or ‘rites for the dead/
should be performed in the castle, while the queens, on pi-etence of
paying their last duty to his remains, descended, carrying with them
the guards and retainers as their escort. It was an occasion on
which suspicion, even if awake, couldnot act, and the chiefs ascended
to join in the funereal rites to the saint. As they mounted the steps
cut out of the rock which wound round the hill of Joda, the miud of
Devi Sing suddenly misgave him, and he exclaimed, that “the day
“ was unlucky j” but it passed off with the flatteringremark, “you are
“the pillar of Maroo ; who dare even look at yon?” They paced
slowly through the various barriers, until they reached the alarum
gate.* It was shut! "Treachery!” exclaimed the chief of Ah wa, as
he drew his sword, and the work of death commenced. Several were
slain ; the rest were overpowered. Their captivity was a sufficient
presage of their fate ; but, like true Rajpoots, when the Dhabhae told
them they were to die, their last request was, “ that their souls
“ might be set at liberty by the sword, uot by the uusanctified ball of
“ the mercenary.” The chronicle does not say whether this wish was
gratified, when the three great leaders of the Olianipawuts, with Jaet
Sing of Ahwa ; Ddvi Sing of Pokurn ; the lord of Hursola ; Chuttur
Sing, chief of the Koompawuts ; Kdsuri Sing of Ohandrain ; the heir
of Neemaj ; and the chief of Raus, then the principal fief of the
Oodawuts, met their fate. The last hour of Devi Sing was marked
with a distinguished peculiarity. Being of the royal line of Maroo,
they would not spill his blood, but sent him his death-warrant in a
jar of opium. On receiving it, and his prince’s command to make
his own departure from life, “ What !” said the noble spirit, as they

* The nc/fcar a duiwaza, where the grand kettle-drum is stationed, to give the
alarm or summons to the chieftains to repair to the Presence, To this gate
Raja Maun advanced to meet the Author, then the representative of the
Governor-General of India.

CHAP, sir.]

ANNALS OF MARWAR.

' 115

presented the jar, “ shall Devi Sing take his iimul (opiate) out of an
“ earthen vessel ? Let his gold cup be brought, and it shall be wel-
come. 5 ’ This last vain distinction being denied, he dashed out his
brains against the walls of his prison. Before he thus enfranchised
his proud spirit, some ungenerous mind, repeating his own vaunt
demanded, “ where was then the sheath of the dagger which held the
“ fortunes of Mavwar V 5 “ In Subbnla 5 s girdle at Pokurnn / 5 was

the laconic reply of the undaunted Chondawut.

This was a tremendous sacrifice tor the maintenance of authority,
of men who had often emptied their veins in defence of their country.
But even ultra patriotism, when opposed to foreign aggression, can
prove no palliative to treason or mitigate its award, when, availing
themselves of the diminished power of the prince, an arrogant and
imperious oligarchy presumes to enthral their sovereign. It is the
mode in which vengeance was executed, at which the mind recoils,
and which with other instances appears to justify the imputation of -
perfidy, amongst the traits of Rajpoot character. But if we look
deeply into it, we shall find reason to distrust such conclusion. The
Rajpoot abhors, in the abstract, both perfidy and treason ; but the
elements of the society in which he lives and acts, unfoi'tunately too
often prompt the necessity of sacrificing principles to preservation :
but this proceeds from their faulty political constitution ; it is
neither inculcated iu their moral code, nor congenial to their moral
habits.

The perpetual struggle between the aristocracy and the sovereign,
which is an evil inherent in all feudal associations, was greatly
aggravated in Marwar, as well as in Mewar, by- the sacrifice of that
corner-stone even of constitutional monarchy, the rights of primo 1 -
geuiture. But in each case the deviation from custom was a volun-
tary sacrifice of the respective keirs-apparent to the- caprices of
parental dotage. In no other country in the world could* that
article of the Christian, decalogue, “ Honour thy father and thy
“mother/-’ be, better illustrated than in Rajpootana, where, if we
have had. to record two horrid examples of deviation from, we have
also exhibited splendid proofs of, filial devotion, in Chonda of Mdwar;
and Champa oi Marwar, who resigned the “ rods” they were born to
^vield j and served, when they should have swayed, to gratify their
fathers 5 love for the fruit of their old age. These are' instances of
self-denial hardly to be credited ; from such disinterested acts, their
successors claimed-an importance which, though natural, was totally
unforeseen, and which the extent of compensation contributed to
foster. They asserted the right, as hereditary premiers of the state,
to be the advisers, or rather the tutors, of their sovereigns, more
especially in non-age, and in allusion to this surrender of their birth-
right, arrogantly applied the well-known adage, Pat ca rnaUJe myn
ho, Baj'ca maliJc ooa, ‘ He is sovereign of the state; but I am the
master of the throne / and insisted on the privilege of being con-
sulted on every gift of land, and putting their autograph symbol to
[Vol. II.] 15*

116

ANNALS OF MARWAR.

[CHAP. XII.

the deed or grant.* These pretensions demanded the constant
exertions of the sovereign to resist them ; for this purpose, he excited
the rivalry of the less powerful members of the federated vassalage,
and thus formed a kind of balance of power, which the monarch, if
skilful, could always turn to account. But not even the jealousies thus
introduced would have so depi’eciated the regal influence in Marwar,
nor even the more recent adoption of a son of the crown into the
powerful fief of Pokurna, had not the parricidal sons of Ajit degraded
the throne in the eyes of their haughty and always .overreaching
vassals, who, in the civil strife which followed, were alternately in
favour or disgrace, as they adhered to or opposed the successful
claimant for power. To this foul blot, every evil which has since
overtaken this liigh-miuded race may be traced, as well as the extir-
pation of that principle of devoted obedience which, in the anterior
portion of these annals, has been so signally recorded. To this hour
it has perpetuated dissensions between the crown and the oligarchy,
leading to deposal and violence to the princes, or sequestration,
banishment, and death to the nobles. To break the bonds of this
tutelage. Ram Sing’s intemperance lost him the crown, which sat
uneasy on the head of his successor, who had no other mode of
escape but by the severity which has been related. But though it
freed him for a time, the words of the dying chief of Pokurna con-
tinued to ring in his ears ; aud “ the dagger left in the girdle of his
“ son” disturbed the dreams of his rest throughout a long life of
vicissitudes, poisoning the source of enjoyment until death itself
was a relief.

The nuncupatory testament of the Champawut was transmitted
across the desert to his son at Pokurna, and the rapidity of its trans-
mission was only equalled by the alacrity of Subbula, who at the head
of his vassals issued forth to execute the vengeance thus bequeathed.
First, he attempted to burn and pillage the mercantile town of Pally
— foiled in which, he proceeded to another wealthy city' of the
fisc, Bilwara on the Looni j but here .terminated both his life and
his revenge. As he led the escalade, he received two balls, which
hurled him back amongst his kinsmen, and his ashes next morning
blanched the sandy bed of the Looni.

i or a time, the feudal interest was restrained, auarchv was allayed,
commerce again flourished, and general prosperity revived : *tc?
use the words of the chronicle, “ the subject enjoyed tranquillity,
“.and the tiger and the lamb drank from the same fountain.” Beejy
Sing took the best means to secure the fidelity of his chiefs, by find-
ing them occupation. He carried his arms against the desultory
hordes of the desert, the Khosas and ScLliraes, which involved him in
contests with the nominal sovereign of Sinde, and ended in the con-
quest of Amerkote, the key to the valley of the Indus, and which is
now the .most remote possession of Marwar. He also curtailed the
territories of Jessulmlr, on his north-west frontier. But more im-

* See Yol. I, p. 686.

■CHAP. XII.]

ANNALS OF MARWAR.

117

porfcanfc than all was the addition of the rich province of Godwar
from the Rana of Mdwar. This tract, which nearly equals in value
the whole fiscal domain of Mavoo, was wrested from the ancient
princes of Mundovo, prior to the Rahfcores, and had been in the pos-
session of the Seesodias for nearly five centuries, when civil dissen-
sion made the Rana place it for security under the protection of
Raja Beejy Sing ; since which it has been lost to Mewar.

Marwar had enjoyed several years of peace, when the rapid strides
made by the Mahratfcas towards universal rapine, if not conquest,
compelled the Rajpoots once more to form an union for the defence
of their political existence. Pertap Sing, a prince of energy and
enterprize, was now ou the gadi of Amber. In S. 184?3 (A.D. 1787),
he sent an ambassador to Beejy Sing, proposing a league against the
common foe, and volunteering to lead in person their conjoined
forces against them. The battle of Tonga ensued, in which Rahtore
valour shone forth in all its glory. Despising discipline, they charged
through the dense battalions of DeBoigne, sabring his artillery-men
at their guns, and compelling Sindia to abandon not only the field,
hut all his conquests for a time.* Beejy Sing, by this victory,
redeemed the castle of Ajmer, aud declared his tributary alliance
null and void- But the genius of Sindia, and the talents of De
Boigne, soon recovered this loss ; and in four years the Mahi’atta
marched with a force such as Indian warfare was stranger to, to
x*edeem that day's disgrace. In S. 1847 (A.D. 1791), the murderous
battles of Patun and Mairta took, place, in which Rajpoot courage
was heroically but fruitlessly displayed against European tactics
and unlimited resources, and where neither intrigue nor treason was
wanting. The result was the imposition of a contribution of sixty
lacs of rupees, or £600,000 ; and as so much could not be drained
from the country, goods and chattels were everywhere distrained,
and hostages given for the balance.

Ajmer, which had revolted on the short-lived triumph of Tonga,
was once moi’e surrendered, aud lost for ever to Marwar. When
invested by DeBoigne, the faithfnl governor, Durnraj, placed in the
dilemma of a disgraceful surrender, or disobedience to his prince's
summons, swallowed diamond-powder. fr Tell the Raja," said this,*,
faithful servant , (C thus only could I testify my obedience ; and over
"*my dead body alone could a Southron enter Ajmer."f

The paramount influence which the morals and manners of a
court exert upon a nation, is everywhere admitted. In constitu-
tional governments, there is a barrier even to court influence and cor-

* See Vol. I, p. 650, for the details of this battle. ,

t Durnraj was not a Rajpoot, but of the Singtui tribe, one of the civil omcers ,
though it is a curious and little-known Fact, that almost all tlie mercantile
tribes of "Western India are of Rajpoot origin, and sank the name and profession
of arms when they became proselytes to Jainism, in the reign of Raja Rheera
Pramar. The Cheetore inscription (see Vol. T, p. 740, and note 3), y*. e

name of this prince. He was ancestor of Raja Maun, whose date o. 7/0, (A.L>.
714), allows us to place this graud conversion prior to A.D. 650.

118

ANNALS OF IIARWAR.

[CHAP. SIX.

ruption, in fclie vast portion of wealth and worth which cannot be
engulphed in their vortex. But in 'these petty sovereignties, no
such check is found, and the tone of virtue and action is given from
the throne. The laws of setni-barbarous nations, which admit of
licentious concubinage, has ever been poculiar to orientals, from the
days of the wise king of the Jews to those of Beejy Sing of Mar-
war; and their political consequence has been the same, the sacri-
fice of the rights of lawful inheritance to the heirs of ellicit affection.
The last years of the king of Maroo were engrossed by sentimental
folly with a young beauty of the Osteal tribe, on whom he lavished
all the honours due only to his legitimate queens. Scandal affirms,
that, she frequently returned his passion in a manner little becoming
royal dignity, driving him from her presence with the basest of mis-
siles — her shoes. As the effects of this unworthy attachment, com-
pleted the anarchy of Mar war, and as its consequences on deviat-
ing from the established rules of succession have entailed a per-
petuity of crime and civil war, under which this unfortunate state
yet writhes, we shall be minute, even to dullness, in the elucida-
tion of this portion of their annals, to enable those who have now
to arbitrate these differences to bring back a current of uncontami-
nated blood to sway the destinies of this still noble race.

Baja Ajffc bad fourteen sons.

Abliye Sing,
Bam Sing.

Bukbt Sing,

Beejy Sing.

Antind Sing. Rnsso, D6vl Sing,
j adopted into adopted into

adopted into the Jabboa Pokurna.

Edur house. (in Malwa).

TTuttdh
Sing, died
of small-
pox in
infancy.

Zalim Sing Sawunt
by a Sing,

princess of
Mdwar,
the right-
ful heir of Soor Sing.
Beojy Sing.

Shore Sing, Bhom Sing, Goman
f [ Sihg,

adopted j

Maun Sing. Bheem

Sing. Maun Sing.

Jr

Dhonkul

Sing

(Pretender)

Sirdar Sing,
killed by
Bheem.

* *

So infatuated was Beejy Sing with the Pdsbdni concubine, that on
losing tbe only pledge of their armours, he v put into her lap/ (adopted)
his own legitimate grandchild. Maun Sing. To legalize this adoption,
the chieftains were ordained to present their nuzzurs and congratula-
tions to the declared heir of Marwar ; but the haughty noblesse
refused f to acknowledge, the son of a slave' as their lord, and the
Baja was compelled to a fresh adoption to ensure such token of

CHAP. XIII.]

ANNALS OF MARWAR.

119

sanction. Content at having by this method succeeded in her wishes,
the Pdsbdni sent off young Maun to the castle of Jhalore ; but
fearing lest the experience of Shere Sing, his adopted father, might
prove a hindrance to her control, he was recalled, and her own creatures
left to guide the future sovereign of Marwav. The dotage of Beejy
Sing, and the insolence of his concubine, produced fresh discord, aud
the clans assembled at Malkasuni to concert his deposal.

Recollecting the success of his former measures to recall them to
their duty, Beejy Sing proceeded to their camp ; but while he was
negotiating, and as he supposed successfully, the confederates wrote
to the chieftain of Raus, whose tour of duty was in the castle, to
descend with Bheem Sing. The chief acquainted the Pdsbdni that
her presence was required at the camp by the Raja, and that a guard
of honour was ready to attend her. She was thrown off her guard,
and at the moment she entered her litter, a blow from an unseen
hand ended her existence. Her effects were instantly confiscated,
and the chief of Raus descended with Bheem, whose tents were
pitched at the Nagore barrier of the city. If, instead of encamping
there, they had proceeded to the camp of the confederates, his arrival
and the dethronement of Beejy Sing would have been simultaneous :
but theRaja received the intelligence as soonns thechiefs. Hastening
back, he obtained the person of the young aspirant, to whom, to
reconcile him to his disappointment, he gave in appanage the districts
of Sojut and Sewanoh, and sent him off to the latter strong-hold ;
while to restrain the resentment of his eldest son, Zalim Sing, whose
birth-right he had so unworthily sacrificed, he enfeoffed him with
the rich district of Godwar, giving him private orders to attack his
brother Bheem, 'who, though ajiprised of the design in time to make
head against his uncle, was yet defeated and compelled to fly. He
found refuge at Bokurna, whence he went to Jessulmer.

In the midst of this conflict, his dominions curtailed, his chiefs in
rebellion, his sons and grandsons mutually opposed to each other,
and the only object which attached him to life thus violently torn
from him, Beejy Sing died, in the month A.sar S. 1850, after a l’eign.
of thirty-one years.

120

ANNALS OF MAKWAIt.

[CHAP. XIV.

CHAPTER XIV.

Raja Bheem seizes upon the gadi. — Discomfiture of his competitor, Zalim Sing . —
Bheem destroys all the other claimants to succes sion, excepting Maun Sing , —
Blockaded in Jhalore. — Sallies from the garrison for supplies. — Prince Maun
heads one of them. — Incurs the risk of capture. — Is preserved by the Abort
chief. — Raja Bheem offends his nobles. — They abandon Marwar. — The fief of
Neemaj attached. — Jhalore reduced to the point of surrender. — Sudden and
critical death of Raja Bheem. — Its probable cause. —The Vedyas, or ‘ cunning •
men,’ who surround the prince. — Accession of Raja Maun. — Rebellion of
Soivab Sing of Pohurn. — Conspiracy of Ghampasuni. — Declaration of the
pregnancy of a queen of Raja Bheem . — Convention with Raja Maun . — '
Posthumous births. — Their evil consequences in Ilajwarra. — A child born . —
Sent off by stealth to Pohurn, and its birth Jeept a secret. — Named Dhonhul.—
Raja Maun evinces indiscreet partialities . — Alienates the Champawnts . —
Birth of the posthumous son of Raja Bheem promulgated. — The chiefs call on
Raja Maun to fulfil the terms of the convention. — The mother disclaims the
child.— The Pohurn chief sends the infant Dhonhul to the sanctuary of Abhye
Sing of Khetri. — Sowae opens his underplot. — Embroils Raja Maun with the
courts of Amber and Mewar . — He carries the Pretender Dhonhul to Jeipoor . —
Achnowledged and proclaimed as Raja of Marwar. — The majority of the chiefs
support the Pretender. — The Bikaner prince espouses his cause. — Armies called
in the field. — Baseness of Holcar, who deserts Raja Maun. — The armies
approach. — Raja Mann’s chiefs abandon him. — He attempts suicide. — Is
persuaded to fly. — He gains Jodpoor . — Prepares for defence. — Becomes sub.
picious of all his kin. — Refuses them the honour of defending the castle . — They
join the allies, who invest? Jodpoor. — The city taken and plundered. — Bistress of
the besiegers. — Meer Khan’s conduct causes a division. — His flight from
Manvar. — Pursued by the Jeipoor commander. — Battle. — Jeipoor force
destroyed, and the city invested. — Dismay of the Raja. — Breaks up the siege of
Jodpoor. — Pays £200,000 for a safe passage to Jeipoor. — The spoils of Jodpoor
intercepted by the Rahtores, and wrested from the Cutchwahas. — Meer Khan
formally accepts service with Raja Maun, and repairs to Jodpoor with the
four Rahtove chiefs.

The intelligence of Beejy Sing's death was conveyed by express to
his grandson Bheem., at Jessulmer. In “ twenty-two hours" he was
at Jodpoor, and ascending directly to the citadel, seated himself upon
the gadi, while his rival, Zalim Sing, the rightful heir, little
expecting this celerity, was encamped at the Mairta gate, awaiting
the “ lucky hour" to take possession. That hour never arrived ; and
the first intelligence of Bheem being on' “ the cushion of. Joda," was
conveyed to the inhabitants by the nalcarras of his rival on his
retreat from the city, who was pursued to Bhilara, attacked, defeated,
and forced to seek shelter at Oodipoor, where, with an ample
domain from the Rana, he passed the rest of his days in literary
pursuits. He died in the prime of life : attempting to open a vein

CHAP. XIV.]

ANNALS -OF MARWAR.

121

with his own hand, he cut an artery and bled to death. He was a

man of great personal and mental qualifications ; a gallant soldier
and no mean poet.* ° '

Thus far successful. Raja Bheem determiued to dismiss " com

‘ P Unctl . d "f i Ud be a kill & de f ad0 if not dc h™. Death

had carried off three of his uncles, as well as his father, previous to

this event ; but there were still two others, Shere Sing, his adopted
fathei, and Sirdar Sing, who stood m his way: the last was put to
death j the former had his eyes put out ; and, soon after, the unfortu-
nate prince released himself from life by dashing out his brains,
boor Sing, the favourite of all Beejy Sing's descendants, remained.
±Lis superior claims were fatal to him and his life fell a sacrifice with
the others.

A single claimant alone remained of all the blood royal of Maroo
to disturb the repose of Bheem. This was young Maun, the adopted
son of the concubine, placed beyond his reach within the walls of
Jhalore. Could Bheem's dagger have reached him, he would have
stood alone, the last surviving scion of the parricide,

“ With none to bless him,

“ None whom ho could bless

an instrument, in the hand of divine power, to rid the land of an
accursed stock. Then the issue of Abhye Sing would have utterly
perished, and tlieir ashes might have been given to the winds, and no
memorial of them left. Edur must then have supplied an heir,f and
^doubtful pretensions of Dhonkul,| the posthumous and reputed

* My own venerable tutor, Yati Gynncbandra, who was with me for ten
years, said he owed all his knowledge, especially his skill in reciting poetry (in
w “ loh ” e surpassed all the bards as Oodipoor), to Zalim Sing.

t Amongst the numerous autograph correspondence of the princes of Haj-
pootana with the princes of Mdwar, of which 1 had the free use, I selected one
?,\ e \ T. W84-, A.D. 1728, written conjointly by Jey Sing of Ambdr and
‘T® Sing Jodpoor, regarding Edur, and which is so cut-ions, that I give a
veiuatim translation in the Appendix (No. I). I little thought at the time how
completely it would prove Abhye Sing’s determination to cut off all but his
T Tr j ,g? l ' r T' dnl issue from the succession. An inspection of the genealogy
(p. 18), will shew that Anund Sing of Edur, who was not to be allowed " to
escape alive,” was his younger brother, adopted into that house.

I Dhonkul Sing, the posthumous issue of Bheem, the last of the parricidal
me, -nhether real or suppositious, must be sef aside, and the pure current of
tantore blood, derived from Sdoji, Joda, Jeswunt, and Ajft, be brought from
ur, nnd installed on “ the gndf of Joda.” This course of proceeding would .
eet universal approbation, with the exception of some selfish miscreants about
io person of this pretended son of Bheem, or the chieftain of Pokurn, in
nrtherance of his and his grandfather's yet unavenged feud. A sketch of the
e\euts, drawn from their own chronicles, and accompanied by reflections,
“P-W miseries springing from an act of turpitude, would come home to
a , and they would sbower blessings on the power which, while it fulfilled the
uties of protector, destroyed the germ of internal dissension, and gave them
a Ounce of their own pure blood, whom all parties could honour nnd obey.

n l doubt remained of the probable unanimity of such policy, let it be previ-
Twt - su b m kted to a punchaei, composed of the princes of the land, viz., of
. Ambdr, Kotah, Boondi, Jessulmdr, &c., leaving out whichever may bo

uenced by marriage connexions with Dhonknl Sing.

[Von. II.]

1C

122

ANNALS OF MARWAR.

[CHAP. XIY.

son of the wholesale assassin Bheem, to sit upon the gacU of Ajit,
would never have been brought forward to excite another murderous
contest amongst the sons of Joda.

Having sacrificed all those within his reach who stood between •
him and the throne,, Bheem tried to secure the last sole claimant in
Jhalore. But the siege of such a stroug-hold with his feudal levies,
or loose mercenary bauds, was a tedious operation, and soon
became an imperfect blockade, through which young Maun not
unfrequently broke, and by signal formed a junction with his
adherents, and plundered the fiscal lands for support. One of
these excursions, however, an attempt to plunder Palli, had nearly
proved fatal to him ; they were attacked on their return, and young
Maun, whose secluded education had confined him more to mental
than to personal accomplishments, was unhorsed, and would have
been captured, but for the prowess of the chief of Ahore, who took
him up behind him and bore him off in safety. Nothing but the
turbulence of the chiefs who supported Raja Bheem saved young
Mauu's life. A disputed succession has always produced an odious
faction ; and Bheem, who was not disposed to bend to this oligarchy,
appears to have had all the imprudence of the dethroned Ram Sing :
he threatened those entrusted with the siege to give them “ oxen to
“ l-ide instead of horses." The chiefs fired at the insult, aud retired
to Ganorah, the principal fief in Godwar; but, disgusted with .both
parties, iustead of obeying the invitatiou of young Maun, they
abandoned their country altogether, and sought au asylum in the
neighbouring states. jMany fiefs were sequesti’ated, aud Neemaj, the
i chief seat of the Oodawuts, was attacked, and after a twelve months'

I defence, taken; its battlements were ignominiously destroyed, 4 and
the victoi's, chiefly foreign mercenaries, reinforced the blockade of
Jhalore.

With the exile of his partisans and daily diminishing resources,
when the lower town was taken, there appeared no hope for young
Maun. A small supply of millet-flour was all the provision left to
his half-famished garrison, whose surrender was now calculated upon,
when an invitation came from the hostile commander for Maun to
repair to his camp, and adding “ he was now the master; it was his
u duty to serve." On that day (the 2d Kartik S. 1860, Dec. 1804),
after eleven years of defence, his means exhausted, his friends banished,
and death from starvation or the sword inevitable, intelligence came
' of Raja Bheem's demise ! This event, as unlooked-for as it was
welcome, could scarcely at first be credited; and the tender of the
.homage of the commander to Maun as his sovereign, though accom-
panied by a letter from the prime minister Induraj, was disregarded
till the gurti Deonafk returned from the camp with confirmation of
the'liappy news, that “ hot a moustache was to be seen in the camp."*
Thither the prince repaired, and was hailed as the head of the
Rahtores.

* This mark o£'mourning is common to all India. Where this evidence of
manhood is not yet visible, the hair is cut off ; often both.

CHAP. XIV.]

ANNALS OF MAEWAK.

123

It' is said that the successor of the guru Atmarain, “ who carried
“ all the troubles of Beejy Sing with him to heaven/' had predicted
of young Maun Sing, when at the very zero of adversity, that "his
"fortunes would ascend." What were the means whereby the
ghostly comforter of Baja Bheem influenced his political barometer,
we know not; but prophetic gurus, bards, astrologers, physicians,
and all the Vedyds or ‘ cunning-men,'* who beset the persons of
princes, prove dangerous companions when, in addition to the office
of compounders of drugs and expounders of dreams, they are invested
with the power of realizing their own prognostications.

On the 5th of Megsir, 1860 (A.D. 1804), Raja Maun, released from
his perils, succeeded to the honours and the feuds ofBeejy Sing. He
had occupied the ‘ cushion of Maroo' but a very short period, when
the Pokurna chief “ took offence," and put himself in hostility to his
sovereign. The name of this proud vassal, the first in power though
only of secondary rank amongst the Champawuts, was Sowae Sing,
with whom now remained “ the sheath of the dagger which held the
“ fortunes of Maroo." If the fulfilment of vengeance be a virtue,
Sowad was the most virtuous son on earth. The dagger of Devi
Sing, bequeathed to Subbula, was no imaginary weapon in the hands
of his grandson Sowae, who held it suspended over the head of Raja
Maun from his enthronement to his death-hour. Soon after Raja
Maun's accession, Sowad retired with his partizans to Champasuni, a
spot about five miles from the capital, where the conspiracy was
prepared. He told the chiefs that the wife of Raja Bheem was
pregnant, and prevailed on them to sign a declaration, that if a son
tvas born, he should be installed on the gadioi Joda. They returned
in a body to the capital, took the pregnant queen from the castle,
and placed her in a palace in the city, under their own protection.
Moreover, they held a council, at which the Raja was present, who
agreed to recognize the infant, if a male, as the heir-apparent of
Maroo, and to enfeoff him in the appanage of Nagore and Sewanoh;
and that if a female, she should be betrothed to a prince of Dhoondar.

Posthumous births are never-failing germs of discord in these
states ; and the issue is inevitably branded by one party with the
title of ‘ supposititious.' It is likewise a common saying, almost
amounting to a proverb, that a male child is the uniform result of
such a position. In due course, a male infant was born ; but, alarmed
for its safety, the mother concealed both its birth and sex, and
placing it in a basket, conveyed it by a faithful servant from the city,
whence it soon reached Sowae Sing at Pokurn. He bestowed upon
it the inauspicious name of c Dlionkul,' that is, one born to tumult
and strife. It is said that, during two years he kept the birth a
profound secret, and it is even added, that it might have remained
8o, had Raja Maun forgot the history of the past, and dispensed
even-handed justice. Wanting, however, the magnanimity of tho

* Vedyci, or ‘ science : the term is also used to denoto cunning, magic, or
knowledge of whatever kind.

[VOL. II.]

16a

124

ANNALS OF MARWAR.

[CHAP. XIV.

Fourth Henry of France, who scorned f< to revenge the wrongs of the
“ Prince of Navarre/* he reserved his favours and confidence for those
who supported him in Jhalore, whilst he evinced his dislike to
others who, in obedience to their sovereign, served against him. Of
these adherents, only two chiefs of note were of his kin and clan ;
the others were Bhatti Rajpoots, and a body of those religious mili-
tants called B islienswmnis, under their Mehunt, or leader, Kaimdas.*

At the expiration of two year’s, Sowae communicated the event to
the chiefs of his party, who called upou Raja Maun to redeem
his promise and issue the grant for Nagore and Sewanoh. He pro-
mised compliance if, upou investigation, the infant proved to be the
legitimate offspring of his predecessor. Personal fear overcame
maternal affection, and the queen, who remained at Jodpoor, dis-
claimed the child. Her reply being communicated to the chiefs,
it was for a time conclusive, and the subject ceased to interest
them, the more especially as her concealed accouchement had never
been properly accounted for.

Though Sowad, with his party, apparently acquiesced, his determin-
ation was taken ; but instead of an immediate appeal to arms, he
adopted a deeper scheme of policy, the effects of which he could not
have contemplated, and which involved his own destruction, and with
it the independence of his country, which was transferred to strangers,
their very antipodes in manners, religion, and every moral quality.
His first act was to procure a more powerful protection than Pokurn
afforded; and under the guarantee of Chutter Sing Bhatti, he was
sent to the sirna (sanctuary) of Abhye Sing of Khetri.f Haviug-
so far succeeded, he contrived an underplot, in which his genius for
intrigue appears not below his reputation as a soldier.

The late prince Bheem had made overtures to 'the Rana of Mewar
for the haud of his daughter, but he died before the preliminaries
were adjusted. This simple circumstance was deemed sufficient by
the Champawut for the ground- work of his plot. He contrived to
induce the voluptuous Juggut Sing, the prince of Jeipoor, to put
himself m the place of Raja Bheem, and to propose for the fair haud
of Kishna. This being, accomplished, and nuptial presents, under a
guard of four thousand men, being despatched to Oodipoor, Sowae
intimated to Raja Maun that he would be eternally disgraced if he
allowed the prince of Amber to carry off “ the betrothed/'’ that*’ 1 ’ it
“ was to the throne of Maroo, not its occupant, she was promised.
The bait was greedily swallowed, and the summons for the hher (or

* They follow the doctrines of Yishmi (Bishen). They are termed gosens, as
well as the more numerous class of church militants, devoted to Siva. Both
are c elibaluires, as gosen imports, from mastery (sen) over the sense (go). They
occasionally come in contact, when their sectarian principles end in furious
combats. At the celebrated place of pilgrimnge, Heridwar (Hurdwar), on tho
Ganges, we are obliged to have soldiers to keep the peace, since a battle
occurred, in which they fought almost to extirpation, about twenty years ago.
Thej- are the Templars of Rajast’han.

t One of the principal chiefs of the Shekhawut confederation.

CHAP. XIV.]

ANNALS OP MARWAR.

125

levy en masse ) of the Rahtores was immediately proclaimed. Maun
instantly assembled three thousand horse, and' joining to them the
mercenary bauds of Heera Sing, then on the frontier of Mdwar, he
intercepted the nuptial gifts of Ambdr. Indignaut at this outrage,
J uggut Sing took to arms, and the muster-book was declaimed open
to all who would serve in the war which was formally declared
against Maroo.

Having thus opened the drama, Sowad threw off the mask, and
repaired to Kbefcri, whence he conveyed the Pretender, Dhonkul, to
the court of Juggut Sing at Jeipoor. Here his legitimacy was
established by being admitted f to eat from the same platter’ with
its prince ; and his claims, as the heir of Marwar, were publicly
acknowledged and advocated, by his f placing him in the lap of his
aunt,’ one of the wives of the deceased Raja Bheem. His cause
thus espoused, and being declared the nephew of Amber, the nobles
of Marwar, who deemed the claims of the Pretender superior to
those of Raja Maun, speedily collected around his standard.
Amongst these was the prince of Bikaner, whose example (he being
the most powerful of the independents of this house) at once
sanctioned the justice of Dhonkul’s cause, and left that of Raja
Maun almost without support. Nevertheless, with the heredi-
tary valour of his race, he advanced to the frontiers to meet his
foes, whose numbers, led bj r the Jeipoor prince and the Pretender,
exceeded one hundred thousaud men! This contest, the ostensible
object of which was the princess of Mdwar, like the crusades of
ancient chivalry, brought allies from the most remote parts of India.
Even the cautious Mahratta felt an unusual impulse in this rivalry,
beyond the stimulants of pay and plunder which ordinarily rouse
him, and corps after corps left their hordes to support either cause.
The weightier purse of Jeipoor was the best argument for the justice
of his cause and that of the Pretender ; while Raja Maun had only
the gratitude of Holcar to reckon upon for aid, to whose wife and
family he had given sanctuary when pursued by Lord Lake to the
Attoc. But here Sowae again foiled him ; and the Mahratta, then
only eighteen miles from Maun, and who had promised to join him
next day, made a sudden movement to the south. A bribe of
£100j000, in bills upon Kotali, to be paid on Holcar’s reaching that
city, effected this desertion ; which being secured, Juggut Sing’ and
the Pretender advanced to overwhelm their antagonist, who was
posted at Greengoli. As the armies approached each other. Raja
Mann’s chiefs rode up to salute him, preparatory, as he thought, to
head their clans for the combat ; but it was their farewell obeisance.
The cannonade opened, they rallied under the standard of the Pie-
tender, and on Sowae advancing on the right of the allied line, so
entire was the defection, that even the Mairtea clan, whose vn tue
and boast it is “ to adhere to the throne, whoever is the occupant,
deserted, with the Champawuts, Jaitawuts, and minor chiefs. lour
chieftains alone abided the evil hour of Raja Maun, namely , K. 00 -
chamun, Ahore, Jhalore, and Neemaj ; and with their quotas alone.

126

ANNALS OF MAEWAR.

[CHAP. xiv'.

mid tlie auxiliary bauds of Booudi, be would have rnsbed into tbe
“battle. Hindered from tbis, be attempted bis own life : but tbe
desigu was frustrated by Seonalb of Koochamun, wbo dismounted
bim from bis elephant, and advised bis trusting to tbe fleetness of
bis steed, while they covered bis flight. The Rnja remarked, be
was tbe first of bis race wbo ever disgraced the name of Ralitore by
showing bis back to a Cutcbwaba. The position be bad taken that
morning was favourable to retreat, being a mile in advance of tbe
pass of Parbutsir : tbis was speedily gained, and nobly defended by
the battalions of Boondi, and those of Hundall Khan, in tbe pay of
Raja Maun, which retarded tbe pursuit, beaded by tbe Rao of
Ooniara. Raja Maun reached Mairta in safety ; but deeming it
incapable of long resistance, be continued bis flight by Peepav to tbe
capital, which be reached with a slonder retinue, including tbe four
chiefs, wbo still shared bis fortunes. Tbe camp of Raja Maun was
pillaged. Eighteen guns were taken by Balia Rao Inglia, one of
Sindia's commanders, and tlielighter effects, tbe tents, elephants, and
baggage, were captured by Meer Khan ; while Parbutsir, and the
villages in tbe neighbourhood, wei-e plundered.

Thus far, tbe scheme of Sowad and tbe Pretender advanced with
rapid success. When tbe allied army reached Mairta, tbe prince of
Jeipoor, whose object was tbe princess of Mewar, proposed to Sowae
to follow up tbeir good fortune, while be repaired to Oodipooi’, and
solemnized tbe nuptials. But even in the midst of liis revenge,
Sowae could distinguish “ between tbe cause of Maun Sing and the
<c gadi of Mar war and to promote the success of Jeipoor, though
he had oi’iginated the scheme to serve his own views, was no part
of his plan. He was only helped out of this dilemma by another,
which he could not anticipate. Hot dreaming that Raja Maun
would hold out in the capital, which had no means of defence, but
supposing be would fly to Jhalore, and leave Jodpoor to its fate and
to tbe Pretender, Sowae, desirous to avoid tbe further advance of
tbe allies into the country, halted the army for three days at Mairta.
His foresight was correct : the Raja had reached Birsilpoor in full
flight to Jhalore, when, at the suggestion of Gaenmul Smgwi, a civil
officer in his train, he changed his intention. “ There,” said the
Singwi “ lays Jodpoor only nine coss to the right, while Jhalore is
rc sixteen further j it is as easy to gain the one as the other, and if
” you cannot hold out in the capital, what chance have you else-
“ where ? while you defend your throne your cause is not lost.”
Raja Maun followed the advfce, reached Jodpoor in a few hours, and
prepared for his defence. This unexpected change, and the halt of
the allied army, which permitted the dispersed bauds to gain tbe
capital, defeated the schemes of Sowae.

With a body of three thousand men, selected from Hundall
Kbards brigade, tbe corps of Bisbeuswamis, under Kaimdas,
and one thousand foreign Rajpoots, consisting of Oholians, BhattiS,
and Eendos (tbe ancient lords of Mundore), Raja Mauu foi'med
a garrison of five thousand men, on whom he could depend.

CHAP, XIV.] ,

ANNALS. OS' MARWAR.

127

So ample did lie deem this number, that he despatched strong-
garrisons from HundalPs brigade, with some Deora Rajpoots, to
garrison Jkalore,.and preserve the distant castle of Amerkote from
surprise by the Sindies. Having thus provided against the storm,
he fearlessly awaited the result. But so alienated was his mind
from his kindred, that he would not even admit to the honour of
defending his throne the four faithful chieftains who, in the general
desertion, had abided by his fortunes. To all their entreaties to be
received.into the castle, that “They might defend the Icangrcis (battle-
“rnents) of Joda/-’ he replied, they might defend the city if they
pleased ; and disgusted with such a return for their fidelity, they
increased the train of his opponents, who soon encompassed Jodpoor.

- The town, little capable of defence, was taken and given up to
unlicensed plunder; and with the exception of Pilodi, which was
gallantly defended for three months, and given to Bikaner as the
reward of its alliance, the an of the Pretender was proclaimed
throughout Marwar, and his allies only awaited the fall of the
capital, which appeared inevitable, to proclaim him king. But a
circupistance occurred, which, awakening the patriotism of the
Rahtores, thwarted these fair prospects, relieved Raja Maun from his
peril, and involved his adversaries in the net of destruction which
they had woven from him.

The siege had lasted five months without any diminution of the
ardour of the defenders ; and although the defences of the north-east
angle were destroyed, the besiegers, having a perpendicular rock of
eighty feet to ascend before they could get to the breach, were nob
nearer their object, and, in fact, without shells, the castle of Joda
would laugh a siege to scorn. The numerous and motley force under
the banuers of Jeipoor and the Pretender, became clamorous for pay ;
the forage was exhausted, and the partizan horse were obliged to
bivouac in the distant districts to the south. Availing himself of
their separation from the main body, Ameer Khan, an apt pupil of
the Mahratta school, began to raise contributions on the fiscal lands,
and Palli, Peepar, Bhilara, with many others, were compelled to
accede to his demands. The estates of the nobles who espoused the
cause of the Pretender, fared no better, and they complained to the
Xerxes of this host of the conduct of this unprincipled commander.

Tlie protracted defence having emptied the treasury of Amber, the
arch-intriguer of Pokurn was called upon to contribute towards satis-
fying the clamour of the troops. Having exhausted the means of
bis own party, he applied to the four chieftains who had been
induced to join the cause of the Pretender by the suspicions of Raja
Maun, to advance • a sum of money. This appeal proved a test o
their zeal. They abandoned the Pretender, and proceeded direct to
the camp of Ameer Khan. It required no powerful rhetoric to
detach him from the cause and prevail upon him to. advocate that ol
Raja Maun ; nor could they have given him better counsel towards
this end, than the proposal to carry the war into the enemy s

128

ANNALS OF MARWAR.

[CHAP. XIV.

country: to attack and plunder Jeipoor, now left unguarded. ' At
this critical moment, tlie Jeipoor prince, in consequence of tlie
representation of tlie Marwar chiefs, had directed his commander-in-
chief, Seolall, to chastise Meer IChan for his lawless conduct. Seolall
put a stop to their deliberations, attacked and drove them across the
Looni, surprised them at Govingurh, again in a night attack at
Hursoori, and pursued the Khan to Phaggi, at the very frontier of
Jeipoor. Astonished at his own success, and little aware that the
chase was in the direction projected by his enemy, Seolall deemed he
-had accomplished his orders in driving him out of Marwar; halted,
and leaving his camp, repaired to Jeipoor to partake of its festivities.
The Khan, who with his allies had reached Peeploo near Tonic, no
sooner heard of this, than he called to his aid the heavy brigades of
Mahomed Shah Khan and Raja Buhader (then besieging Iserdoh),
and availed himself of the imprudent absence of his foe to gain over
the Hydrabad Rasctla , a legion well-known in the predatory wars of
that period. Having effected this object, he assailed the Jeipoor
force, which, notwithstanding this defection and the absence of its
commander, fought with great valour, the battalions of Heera Sing
being nearly cut to pieces. The action ended in the entire defeatof
the Jeipooreans, and the capture of their camp, guns, and equipage.
Prompted by the Ralitore chieftains, whose valour led to this result,
Meer Khan rapidly followed up his success, and Jeipoor- was dis-
mayed by the presence of the victor at her gates. The generalship
of the Khan was the salvation of Raja Maun ; it dissolved the
confederacy, and fixed the doom of Sowae, its projector.

The tempest had been some time gathering ; the Rajas of Bikaner
and Shapoora had already withdrawn from the confederacy and
marched home, when, like a clap ’ of thunder, tbe effeminate
Cutchwaha, who had in the outset of this crusade looked to a full
harvest both of glory and of love, learned that his army was
annihilated, and his capital invested by the Khan and a handful of
Rahtores. Duped by the representations of Sowae, Rad Chund,
D divan or prime minister of Jeipoor, concealed for some days these
disasters from his sovereign, -who received the intelligence by a
special messenger sent by the queen-mother. Enraged, perplexed, and
alarmedforhis personal safety, he broke up the siege, and sendingon in
advance the spoils of J odpoor (including forty pieces of cannon), with
his own chieftains, he sent for the Mahratta leaders,* and offered
them £120,000 to escort him in safety to his capital ; nay, he secretly
bribed, with a bond of £90,000 more, the author of his disgrace.
Ameer Khan, not to intercept his retreat, which was signally iguo-

®Bapoo Sindia, Balia Bao Inglia, with the brigade of Jean Baptiste, all
Sindia’s dependents. This was early in 1806. The author .was then in Sindia’s
camp and saw these troops marched off ; and in 1807, in a geographical tour,
he penetrated to Jeipoor, and witnessed the wrecks of the Jeipoor army. Tho
sands round the capital were white with the bones of horses, and the ashes of
their riders, who had died in the vain expectation of getting their arrears
of pay.

CHAP. XlY.]

ANNALS OP MARWAR.

129

minious, burning his tents and equipage at every stage, and at length
with his own hand destroying his favourite elephant, which “ wanted
" speed for the rapidity of his flight.”

But the indignities he had to suffer were not over. The chieftains
whose sagacity and valour had thus diverted the storm from Baja
Mann, 'determined that no trophies of Bahtore disgrace should enter
Jeipoor, united their clans about twenty miles east of Mairta, on the
line of retreat, appointing Induraj Singwi their leader. This person,
who had held the office of Dewdn under two predecessors of Baja
Maun, was driven to a temporary defection from the same suspicions
which made the chiefs join the Pretender. But they resolved to wash
away the stain of this brief alienation from Raja Mauu with the
blood of his enemies, and to present as the token of returning fidelity
the recaptured trophies. The encounter took place on the joint
frontier. It was short, but furious; and the Cutchwahas, who could
not withstand the Bahtores, were defeated and dispersed, and the
spoils of the spoiler, including the forty cannon, were safely lodged
iu Kochamun. Flushed with success, the victors addressed the Baja
of Kishengurh, who, though a Bahtore, had kept aloof, to advance
funds to secure the continuance of Meer Khan’s aid. Two lacs of
rupees (£20,000) effected this object; and the Khan, pledging him-
self to continue his support to-Baja Maun, repaired to Jodpoor. The
four chiefs who had thus signalized themselves, preceded him, and
were received with open arms : their offences were forgiven, and
their estates restored, while Induraj was appointed Bukshee or com-
mander of the forces.

17

130

ANNALS OF llAUWAB.

[CHAP. XV.

CHAPTER XY.

Meer Khan’s reception at Jodpoor.— Engages to extirpate Sowae’e faction.—
Interchanges turbans with the Raja.-The Khan repairs to Nagore.-Inter-
view with Sowae. — Swears to support the Pretender. — Massacre of the Rajpoot
chiefs.— Pretender flies.— The Khan plunders Nagoro.— Receives £100,000
from Raja Maun. — Jeipoor over-run . — Bikaner attacked. Meer Khan obtains
the ascendancy in Marwar. — Garrisons Nag ore with his Nathans. Parti-
tions lands amongst his chiefs. — Commands the salt lakes of Nowah and Sam-
bhur. — The minister Induraj and high priest Deonat h assassinated. Raja
Maun’s reason affected. — His seclusion. — Abdication in favour of his son
Chuttur Sing. — He falls the victim of illicit pursuits. Madness of Raja
Maun increased — Its causes. — Suspicions of the Raja having sacrificed
Induraj. — The oligarchy, headed by Salim Sing of Pokurn, son of Sowae ,
assumes the charge of the government. — Epoch of British universal supremacy ■
— Treaty with Marwar framed during the regency of Chuttur Sing. The
oligarchy, on his death, offer the gadi of Marwar to the house of Edttr. — Re-
jected . — Reasons. — Raja Maun entreated to resume the reins of power. — Evi-
dence that his madness was feigned. — The Raja dissatisfied with certain stipu
lations of the treaty. — A British officer sent to Jodpoor. — Akhi Chnnd chief oj
the civil administration. — Salim Sing of Pokurn chief minister. — Oppositior
led by Futteh Raj. — British troops offered to be placed at the Baja’s disposal
— Offer rejected. — Reasons. — British agent returns to Ajmer. — Permanent agen
appointed to the court of Raja Mann. — Arrives at Jodpoor. — Condition o
the capital. — Interviews with the Raja. — Objects to be attained described.—
Agent leaves Jodpoor. — General sequestrations of the fiefs. — Raja Maun appa
rently relapses into his old apathy. — His deep dissimulation. — Circumvent
and seizes the faction. — Their ivealth sequestrated. — Their ignominious death
— Immense resources derived from sequestrations. — Raja Maun’s thirst fo
blood. — Fails to entrap the chiefs. — The Neemaj chief -attacked. — His gallan
defence. — Slain. — The Pokurn chief escapes. — Futteh Raj becomes minister.—
Raja Maun’s speech to him. — Neemaj attacked. — Surrender. — Raja Mann'
infamous violation of his pledge. — Noble conduct of the mercenary commando
Voluntary exile of the whole aristocracy of .Manvar. — Received by th
neighbouring princes. — Maun’s gross ingratitude to Anar Sing. — The exile
chiefs apply to the British Government , which refuses to mediate. — Raja Man
loses the opportunity of fixing the constitution of Marwar.- — Reflexions.

Xmrur Khan was received by Raja Maun, with distiuguishe
hoii°uys ; a palace in the castle was assigned as his residence ; vak
able gifts were presented to him and great rewards held in pei’spec
tive 3 if, through his agency, the rebellion should be completely sul
dued. He swore to extirpate Sowars faction, and in token of iden
^Rh Raja Maun, he was admitted to the honour of
that last proof of devotion to his cause, " an interchange of turbans/’

of h^b^d* 11108 ^ ree ^ aGSj or £30,000 3 for the immediate payment

CHAP. XV.]

ANNALS OP MARWAR.

131

On the raising of the siege of Jodpoor, Sowad conducted the
Pretender to the appanage of tlie heirs of Marwar, the city
of Nagore. There they were deliberating as to their future
plans, when a message was brought from Ameer Khan from Moon-
dhiawur, ten miles distant, begging permission to perfoim his
devotions at the shrine of the Mooslem saint. Peer Tarkeen, the sole
relic of the Islamite which Bulcht Sing had spared. His request
being complied with, he with a slight cavalcade left his camp, and
having gone tlirough the mummeries of devotion, paid his respects
to Sowae. When about to take leave, he threw out hints of Raja
Mpnn’s ungrateful return for his services, and that his legions might
have been better employed. Sowae greedily caught at the bait j he
desired the Khan to name his terms, and offered £200,000 on the day
that Dhonkul should possess the gacU of Jodpoor. The Khan
accepted the conditions and ratified the engagement on the Koran,
and to add to the solemnity of the pledge, he exchanged turbans
with Sowae. This being done, he was introduced to the Pretender,
received the usual gifts, pledged his life in his cause, took leave, and
returned to his camp, whither he invited the prince and his chiefs on
the following day to accept of an entertainment.

On the morning of the 19th of Cheit, S. 1864 (A.D. 1808), Sowae,
attended by the chief adherents of the Pretender and about five
hundred followers, repaired to the camp of the Khan, who had made
every preparation for the more effectual perpetration of the bloody
and perfidious deed he meditated. A spacious tent was pitched in
the centre of his camp for the reception of his guests, and cannon
were loaded with grape ready to be turned against them. The visitors
were received with the most distinguished courtesy ; turbans were
again exchanged; the dancing-girls were introduced, and nothing
but festivity was apparent. The Khan arose, and making an excuse
tohisguestsfor amomentary absence, retired. The dancing continued,
when at the word “ dugga pronounced by the musicians, down sunk
the tent upon the unsuspicious Rajpoots, who fell an easy prey to
the ferocious Pat’hans. Forty-two chieftains were thus butchered
in the very sanctuary of hospitality, and the heads of the most
distinguished were sent to Raja Maun. Their adherents, taken by
surprise, were slaughtered by the soldiery, or by cannon charged
with grape, as they fled. The Pretender escaped from Nagore, which
was plundered by the Khan, when not only all the property of the
party, but the immense stores left by Bukht Sing, including three
hundred pieces of cannon, were taken, and sent to Sambhur and
other strong-holds held by the Khan. Having thus fulfilled his
instructions, he repaired to Jodpoor, and received ten lacs or
£100,000, and two large towns, Moondhiawur and Koochilawas, of
thirty thousand rupees annual rent, besides one hundred rupees daily
for table-allowance, as the reward of his signal infamy.

Thus, by the murder of Sowae and his powerful partizans, the
confederacy against Raja Maun was extinguished ; but though the
[Yol. II.] • 17a

132

ANNALS OF MAKWAR.

[chap. XV.

Raja had thus, miraculously as it were, defeated the gigantic schemes
formed against him, the mode by which it was effected entailed upon
him and upon his country unexampled miseries. _ The destruction of
the party of the Pretender was followed by 'rotnliat ion on the various
members of the league. The Jeipoor territory was laid waste by tho
troops of Meer Khan, aud an expedition was planned against, Bikaner.
A .11 army consisting of twelve tlionsand o£ Raja Jlnun s feudal levies^
under the command of Induraj, with a brigade ofMcer Khan, and that of
Hundall Khan with thirty-five guns, marched against tho chief of
the independent Rahtores. The Bikaner Raja formed an army little
inferior in numbers, aud gave bis suzerain tho meeting at Bapri ; but
after a partial encounter, in which the former lost two hundred men,
he fell back upon his capital, pursued by the victors, who halted at
G-ujnair. Here terms were offered ; two lacs as the expenses ot
the war, and the surrender of the bone of contention, the town of
Filodi, which had been assigned to Bfkan6r as the price of joining
the confederacy.

The Khan was now the arbiter of Marwnr. lie stationed Gkufoor
Khan with a garrison in Nagore, and partitioued tho lands of Mnirta
amongst his followers. He likewise placed his garrison in the castle
of Nowah, which gave him the command of the salt-lakes of Nowak
and Sambhur. Induraj aud the high-priest DeonaPh were the only
counsellors of Raja Maun, aud all the oppressions which the chief-
tains suffered through this predominant foreign interference, were
attributed to their advice. To cut them off, the chiefs in their turn
applied to Ameer Khan, who for seven lacs (£70,000), readily
consented to rid them of their euemies. A plot was laid, in which
some of his Pat’ bans, under pretence of quarrelling with Induraj for
their arrears, put this minister and the high-priest to death. ' .

The loss of DeonaVh appeared to affect the reason of Raja Mann.
He shut himself up in his apartments, refused to communicate with
any one, and soon omitted every duty, whether political or
religious, until at length he was recommended to name his only
sou Chuttur Sing as his successor. To this he acceded, and
with his own hand made the mark of inauguration on his fore-
head. . But youth aud base panders to bis pleasures seduced him
from Ins duties, and he died, some say, the victim of illicit pursuits,
others from a wound given by the hand of one of the chieftains,
whose daughter he attempted to seduce.

The premature death of his only son, before he had attained the
years of majority, still more alienated the mind.of Raja Maun from
all state affairs, and his suspicions of treacherous attempts on bis
person extended even to his wife. He refused all food, except that
which was brought by one faithful menial. He neglected his ablu-
tions, allowed bis face to be covered with hair, and at length either
was, or affected to be insane. He spoke to no one, and listened with
the apathy of an idiot to the communications of the ministers, who
were compelled to carry on the government. By many it is firmly

CHAP. XV.]

ANNALS OP HARWAR.

133

believed that the part he thus acted was feigned, to escape the
snares laid for his life; while others think that it was' a melancholy
mania, arising from remorse at having consented to the murder of
Induraj, which incidentally involved that of the Guru* In short,
his alliance with the atrocious Kliau exposed him to the suspicion
of a participation in his crimes, which the bent of his policy too
much favoured. In this condition — the Government being managed
by an' oligarchy headed by Salim Sing (son of Sowae) — did Raja
Maun remain, until the tide of events carried the arms of Britain
even to the desert of Maroo.

When, in 1817, we invited the Rajpoots to disunite from the pre-
datory powers, and to join us in establishing order throughout India,
the young son of Raja Maun, or rather his ministers, sent envoys to
Dehli. But ere the treaty was ratified, this dissipated youth was
no more. On this event, the Pokurn faction, dreading Raja Mauu’s
resumption of the Government, made an application to Bdur for a
son to adopt as their sovereign. But splendid as was the offer, the
Raja, who had but one son, rejected it, unless the demand were sus-
tained by the unanimous suffrages of the nobles. Unanimity being*
unattainable, the faction had no alternative save the restoration of
Raja Maun; but it was in vain they explained the new position of
Marwar, the alliance with the Euglish, which awaited his sanction,
and the necessity that he, and the last prop of the royal family, should
resume the reins of power. He listened to all with the most apathetic
indifference. But although he saw in this new crisis of the political
condition of his country, motives for effecting his escape from bond-
age, his mind was so tutored by bitter experience that he never for
an instant betrayed its workings. When at length he allowed
himself to comprehend the full nature of the changes which made
even the factiou desire his egress from solitude, so far from express-
ing any joy, he even disapproved of part of the treaty, and espe-
cially the article relating to the armed contingent of his vassals to be
at the disposal of the protecting power, in which he wisely saw the -
germ of discord, from the certainty of interference it would lead to.

It was in December 1817 that the treaty t was negotiated at
Dehli by a Brahmin named Byas Bishen Ram, on the part of the
regent prince,, aud in December 1818, an officer of the British gov-
ernment]: was deputed to report on its actual condition. Notwith-
standing the total disorganization of the government, from the
combination of causes already described, the court had lost nothing
of its splendour or regularity ; the honour of all was concerned in
preserving the dignity of the f gadi though its incumbent was an
object of distrust and even detestation. The ministry at this period
was conducted by Akhi Chund ( Dewdn ), and Salim Sing of Pokurn
as the representative of the aristocracy, with the title of bhanjgur .

*For the character of this priest, see Yoh I. p. 613.

+ See treaty, Appendix No. II.

+ Mr. Wilder, superintendent of the district of Ajm4r,

ANNALS OP MARWAIt,

[CHAP. XV.

1S4<

All the Garrisons and offices of trust throughout the country were
the 'creatures of a junto, of which these were the heads,
rni-p-- however, already the nucleus of an opposition m the

brother of’ the murdered minister, named Futteh Rap who was
entrusted with the care of the city. The instructions of the agent
were to offer the aid of the British Government towards the settle-
ment of Raja Mann’s affairs j and at a private interview three days
after the agent’s arrival, troops were offered to be placed at Ins
disposal. But the wariness of his character will be seen m the use
he made of this offer. He felt that the lever was at hand to crush
faction to the dust j and with a Machiavelian caution, he determined
that the existence of this engine should suffice ; that its power should
be felt, but never seen; that he should enjoy all the advantages this
influence would give, without risking any of its dangers it called into
action. Thus, while he rejected, though with thanks,, the essential
benefit tendered, qualifying his refusal with a sufficient reason
“reliance ori himself to restore his state to order,” — he failed not to
disseminate the impression amongst his chiefs, which was enough for
his purpose, and which besides checked the dictation and interference
that uniformly result from such unequal alliances.

Energetic councils and rapid decision are unknown to Asiatic
governments, whose subjects are ever prone to suspicion whenever
unusual activity is visible; and Raja Maun bad been schooled into
circumspection from his infancy. He appeared anxious to bury the
past in oblivion, by choosing men of both parties for the inferior
duties of the ministry ; and the blandness of his manners and his
conciliatory address, lulled the most suspicions into security. After
a short residence, the agent returned to Ajmer, having in vain tried
to convince Raja Maun that his affairs were irretrievable without the
direct aid of the paramount power, which he persisted in repudiating,
assigning as his reason that he felt convinced, from “ the measures
“ then in train,” he should accomplish the task himself : of these
measures conciliation appeared to be the basis.

At this period* an envoy was appointed, with powers direct from
the Goveruor-Geueval to Raja Maun, but he was for some mouths
preveuted from proceeding to his court, from various pauses. f

*In February 1819, the author had the political duties of Mar wav added to
those of the States of Oodipoor, Kotab, Boondi, and Sirohi.

t One of these was an unpleasant altercation, which took place between the
towns-people of the Commercial Mnit ot Palli and an English gentleman,
sent unofficially to feel his way ns to the extension of commercial enterprize,
carrying specimens of the staple commodities of our trade. This intex-ference
with the very fountain-head of theiv trade alarmed the monopolists of Palli,
who, dreading such competition, created or took advantage of an incident to
rid themselves of the intiuder. The commercial men of these regions almost all
profess the Jain religion, whose first rule of faith is the preservation of life, in
beast as in man. By them, therefore, the piece-goods, the broad-cloths and
metals of the Christian trader, were only less abhorred than his flesh-pots, and
the blood of the goats sworn to hare been shea by his servants within the
hounds of Pulli, rose in judgment against their master, of whom a formal

CHAP, XV.]

ANNALS OP MARWAR.

X 30

The agent, who reached Jodpoor early in the month of November,
found matters in nearly the same state as on his predecessor's
departure in February. The same faction kept the prince and all
the officers of government at their disposal. The Raja interfered
but little with their measures, except to acquiesce in or confirm
them. The mercenary bands of Sindies or Pat' bans were in miserable
plight and clamorous for their pay, not having been accounted with
for three years ; and they were to be seen begging in the streets of
the capital, or hawking bundles of forage on their heads to preserve
them from starvation. On the approach of the agent of the British
Government, the forms of accounts were gone through, and they
gave in acquittances in full of all demands, on condition of receiving
thirty per cent, of their arrears ; but this was only a form, and with
his departure (in about three weeks), they despaired even of that.

The name of justice was unknown : — though, in allusion to the
religion of the men in power, it was common to hear it said, ” you
“ may commit murder and no one will notice it ; but woe to him who
“ beats or maims a brute, for dogs are publicly fed while the soldier
“ starves." In short,- the sole object of the faction was to keep at a
distance all interposition that might lead the prince to emancipate
himself from their control. During the agent’s stay of uearly three
weeks, he bad several private interviews with Raja Maun. The
knowledge he had of the history of his ancestry and his own situation,
and of the causes which had produced it, failed not to beget a corres-
ponding confidence ; and these interviews were passed in discussions
on the ancient history of the country as well as on his own immediate
affairs. The agent took leave with these words : <c I know all the
“ perils through which you have passed; I am aware how you sur-
Cf mounted them. By your resolution, your external enemies are now

complaint waslaid before Raja Maun. It lost none of its acrimony in coming
through the channel of his internnncio at Oodipoor, the Bx-ahmin, Bishen Ram.
Mr. Rutherford rebutted the charge, and an investigation took place at the
capital on oath, upou which, as the merchants and the governor of Palli (a
nephew of the minister), could not substantiate their charge, the latter was
severely reprimanded for his incivility. Bnt whether the story was true or
false, it was quite enough for their purpose. The interdict between Mr.
Rutherford and the inhabitants of Palli was more effectual than the sanUaiy
cordon of any prince in Christendom. The feeling of resentment against him
reached the agent of government, who was obliged to support what appeared
the cause of truth, even according to the deposition made before their own
judgment-seat, and he was consequently deemed inimical to the prince and the
faction which then guided his councils. Mr. Rutherford proceeded afterwards
to Kotah, to exhibit the same wares ; hut he was there equally an object of
jealousy, though from letters of recommendation from the agent, it was less
strongly manifested. It furnished evidence that such interference would never
succeed. It is well his mission did not appear to be sanctioned by the Govern-
ment. What evil might not be effected by permitting unrestricted and
incautious intercourse with such people. wlio can, and do obtain all they require
of^our produce without the presence of the producers, who, whether tv i thin or
without the pale of the Company’s service, will not I trust be prematurely
forced on Rajpootana, or it will assuredly hasteu the day of inevitable
separation !

ANNAI/S OF MARWAlt.

[CHAP. XV,

Wd6

« gone • von have the British Government as a friend ; rely upon it
« fvith the same fortitude, and, in a very short time, all will bo as yon

“ could desire."

Raia Maun listened eagerly to these observations. His fine
features, though trained to bear no testimony to the workings within,
relaxed with delight as he rapidly replied, “ In one twelvemonths,
“ my affairs will be as friendship could wish. To which the agent
retained. “In half tho time, Maliraja, if you are determined : though
the points to which he had to direct his mind were neither few nor
slight, for they involved every branch of government ; as

1. — Forming an efficient administration.

2. — Consideration of the finances ; the condition of the crown
lands j the feudal confiscations, which, often unjust, had caused great
discontent.

3. — The re-organization aud settlement of tho foreign troops, on
whose service the Baja chiefly depended.

4. - — An effective police on all the frontiers, to put down the whole-
sale pillage of the Mairs in the south, the Larlchanis in the north, -
and the desert Sabraes and Khosas in the west ; reformation of the
tariff, or scale of duties on commerce, which were so heavy as almost
to amount to prohibition ; and at the same time to provide for its
security.

Scarcely had the ageut left Jodpoor, before the faction, rejoiced at
the removal of the only restraint on their narrow-minded views,
proceeded in the career of disorder. Whether the object were to
raise funds, or to gratify ancient animosities, the coui'Se pursued by
the Dewan and his junto was the same. Ganorah, the chief fief of
Godwar, was put under sequestration, and only released by a fine of
more than a year’s revenue. All the minor chiefs of this rich tract
suffered in the same manner, besides the indignity of having their
lands placed under the control of a brother of the minister. Cban-
dawul was put under sequestration, and ouly released on a very heavy
fine. At length the D&wiin had the audacity to put his hand on
Ahwa, the chief fief of Marwar ; but the descendant of Champa
replied, <f my estate is not of to-day, nor thus to. be relinquished.”
Gloom, mistrust, and resentment, pervaded the whole feudal body.
They saw a contemptible faction sporting with their houour and
possessions, from an idea they industriously propagated, tha,t an
unseen but mighty power was at hand to support their acts, given
out as those of the prince. If the Raja did dictate them, he took
especial care it should not he seeu ; for in the absence of the Bi'itish
agent, he once more resumed his sequestrated habits, and appeared to
take no interest in the government further than to promote a coali-
tion between Akhi Cliund and Futteh Raj, who was supported by a
strong party of the chiefs, and the influence of the favourite queen.
But Akhi Chund, who commanded, through his creatures, all the
resources of the country, and its strong-holds, even to the castle of

CHAP. XV.]

ANNALS OF MARVVAR.

139

Jodpoor, rejected these overtures, and feigning that there were plots
against his personal safety, left the city ; and the better to exclude
his adversaries from the prince, l’esided entirely in the citadel.

Six months had thus fled. The fiat of Akhi Chund was supreme;
he alone was visible ; his orders alone were obeyed. Raja Mauu was
only heard of as an automaton, moving as the Dewan pleased. But
while the latter was thus basking in the full sunshine of prosperity,
enriching himself and his dependants, execrated by the nobles and
envied by his fellow-citizens, they heard of his fall ! Then, the
insanity of his master proved to be but a cloak to the intensity of
his resentment. But a blind revenge would not have satisfied Raja
Maun. The victims of his deep dissimulation, now in manacles, were
indulged with hopes of life, which, with the application of torture,
made them reveal the plunder of prince and subject. A schedule of
forty lacs, or £400,000, was given in by the Dewcin and his dependants,
and their accounts beiug settled in this world, they were summarily
dismissed to the other, with every mark of ignominy which could add
to the horrors of death. Nugji, the Kelleddr, and misleader of the
late regent prince, with Moolji Dandul, one of the old allodial stock,
had each a cup of poison, and their bodies were thrown over the
1 Gate of Yictory’ (Futteh Pol). Jevai’aj, a brother of the Dandul,
with Beharri-das Kheecliie, and the tailor, had their heads shaved,
and their bodies were flung into the cascade beneath. Even the
sacred character of “ expounder of the Vedas,” and that of “ revealer
“ of the secrets of heaven,’'’ yielded no protection ; and Beas Seodas,
with Sri-Kislien, Jotishe, the astrologer, were in the long list of pro-
scriptions. Nugji, commandant of the citadel, and Moolji, had retired
on the death of the regent-prince ; and with the rvealth they had
accumulated, while administering to his follies, had erected places of
strength. "On the restoration of Raja Maun, and the general amnesty
which prevailed, they returned to their ancient offices in the castle,
rose into favour, and forgot they had been traitors. Having obtained
their persons. Maun secured the ancient jewels of the crown, bestowed
on these favourites during the ephemeral sway of his son. Their
condemnation was then passed, and they were hurled over the
battlements of the rock which it Was their duty to guard. With
such consummate skill was the plot contrived, that the creatures of
the minister, in the most remote districts, were imprisoned simul-
taneously with himself. Of the many subordinate agents thus
confined, mauy -were liberated on the disclosure of their wealth ;
and by these sequestrations. Raja Maun obtained abundant supplies.
The enormous sum of a crore, or near one million sterling, was stated;
but if they yielded one-half (and this was not unlikely), they gave
the means, which he was not slow to use, for the prosecution of
what he termed a just punishment, though it better deserves the
name of a savage revenge. Had he been satisfied with inflict-
ing the last penalty of the law on the nefarious Akhi Chund,
and some of the household officers whose fidelity ought ever to be
firm, and with the sequestration of the estates of some two or three
[Yon. II.] 18

ANNALS OF MARWAR.

[CHAr. XY.

l«f

of the vassals whose power had become dangerous, or their treason
too manifest to be overlooked, he would have commanded the ser-
vices of the rest, and the admiration of all conversant with these
events But this first success added fuel to his revenge, and he sought
out more noble victims to glut it. His circumspection and dissimu-
lation were strengthened, not relaxed, by his success. Several of the
chiefs, who were marked out for death, had received, only a few days
before, the highest proof of favour in additional lands to their rent-
roll, and accident alone prevented a group of the most conspicuous
from falling into the snare which had inveigled Alchi Chund.'
Salim Sing of Pokurn, and his constant associate Soortan of Heetnaj,
with Anar Sing of Ahore, and the minors of their clans, whose duty
daily carried them to the court, as the chief advisers of the prince,
formed a part of the administration of the Ddwdu, and they naturally
took alai’in upon his confinement. To obviate this, a deputation was
sent by the prince to tranquillize them by the assurance that, in the
confinement of the minister, whose rapacity and misconduct deserved
punishment, the Raja had attained all his ends. Thus, in order to
encompass the destruction of the Polcuru chief, he would not have
scrupled to involve all the rest. The prince, with his own mouth,
desired the confidential servant of Anar Sing, who was his personal
friend, to attend with the others. Their distrust saved him. The same
night, the mercenary bands, to the number of eight thousand men,
with guns, attacked Soortan Sing in his dwelling. With one hun-
dred aud eighty of his clan, he defended himself against great gnus
and small aims, as long as the house was tenable, aud then sallied
out sword in hand, and, with his brother and eighty of his kin, fell
nobly in the midst of his foes. The remainder retreated with their
arms to defend Neemaj and their infant chief. This gallant defence,
in which many of the towns-people were slain, prevented a repeti-
tion of the attempt against the Pokurn chief, who remained on the
defensive ; until, seeing an opportunity, he fled to his asylum in the
desert, or he would that day have renounced “ the sheath of the dagger
which held the fortunes of Mar war,” and which now contained the
accumulated revenge of four generations : of Deo Sing, of Snbbulln, of
Sowae, and his own. His death would have terminated this branch
of Ajit s issue, adopted into the house of Pokurn, in the history of
which we have a tolerable picture of the precariousness of existence
m Mat-war.*

What better commentary can be made on Raja MamPs character,

Ift2n In r t0 tlie G°7 e ™ment on these events, dated July 7,

,« A 0 ’ -\ he dr T ger , ls ’ , that s ’l ccess may tempt him to go beyond

" with the lw SB l 7 ’f ei h j r f01 ' C ‘! ends of i ustice or security. If he stops
« ngng IndThp or fcw£ ? ' nferi °r, concerned in the coalition of

“ the 6 civU m °L h H so, !W‘ t ' h c . he . condign punishment of a few of

“ involves Ahwn .nl ?? ord a . opinion of his character ; bnt if he
"nrovohe n Rf-rifo —i,- if °.]} er Principal chiefs, in these proscriptions, he may
Justice and evlflr 1 him. He has done enough .for

.. tab ' w 5,1 ® 1 a “TW Y blcb bas been carried too far as regards Soor-
tan Sing, whose death (which I sincerely regret) was a prodigal sacrifice/*

CHAP. XV.]

ANNALS OF MARWAR.

139

than fclie few recorded words addressed to FuttehRaj, whom he sent,
for to the Presence, on the day succeeding these events ? “ Now you
" may perceive the reasons why I did not sooner give you office.” This
individual, the brother of the late Induraj, was forthwith installed
in the post of Dewan ; and with the sinews of war provided by the
late sequestrations, the troops were satisfied, while by the impression
so sedulously propagated and believed, that he had only to call on
the British power for what aid he required, the whole feudal body
was appalled : and the men, who would have hurled the tyrant from
his throne, now only sought to avoid his insidious snares, more dan-
gerous than open force.

Neemaj was besieged and nobly defended; but at length the son
of Soortan capitulated, on receiving the sign-manual of his prince
promising pardon and restoration, guaranteed by the commander of
the mercenary bands. To the eternal disgrace of the Raja, he broke
this pledge, and the boy had scarcely appeared in the besieging
camp, when the civil officer produced the Raja’s mandate for
his captivity and transmission to the Presence. If it is painful
to record this fact, it is pleasing to add, that even the mercenary
commander spurned the infamous injunction. “ No,” said he ; “ on
“ the faith of my pledge (bitchun) he surrendered; and if the Raja
“ breaks his word, I will maintain mine, and at least place him in
“ security.” He kept his promise, and conveyed him to the Aravulli
mountains, whence -he passed over to, and received pi-otection in
Mdwar.

This and similar acts of treachery and cold-blooded tyranny com-
pletely estranged all the chiefs. Isolated as they were, they could
make no resistance against the mercenary battalions, amounting to
ten thousand men, exclusive of the quotas ; and they dared not
league for defence, from the dreaded threat held over them, of
calling in the British troops ; and in a few months the whole feudal
association of Marwar abandoned their homes and their country,
seeking shelter in the neighbouring states from the Raja’s cruel and
capricious tyranny. To his connection with the Bi'itish Govern-
ment alone he was indebted for his being able thus to put forth the
resources of his policy, which otherwise he never could have
developed either with safety or effect ; nor at any former period of the
history of Marwar could the most daring of its princes have under-
taken, with any .prospect of success, what Raja Maun accomplished
under this alliance.

These brave men found asylums in the neighbouring states of Kotah,
Mewar, Bikandr, and Jeipoor. Even the faithful Anar Sing, whose
fidelity no gratitude could ever repay, was obliged to seek refuge in
exile. He had stood Maun’s chief shield against the proscription of
Raja Bheem, when cooped up in Jhalore, and sold his wife’s orna-
ments, “even tohernose-ring,” to procure him themeansof subsistence
and defence. It was Anar Sing who saved him when, in the attempt
upon Palli, he was unhorsed and nearly made prisoner. He was
[You. II.] ■ 18 a

140

ANNALS OF MAUWAR.

[CHAP. XV.

among the four chiefs who remained by his fortunes when the rest

deserted to the standard of the Pretender; and he was one of the
same body, who rescued the trophies of their disgrace from the hands
of their enemies when on the road to Jeipoor. Last or all, lie was
mainly instrumental in the Raja’s emancipation and in lus resump-
tion of the reins of Government. Well might the fury of his revenge
deserve the term of madness ! In A.D. 1821, the greater chieftains
of Marwar, thus driven into exile, were endeavouring to obtain the
mediation of the British authorities ; but another year lmd elapsed
without the slightest advance to accommodation. Their conduct has
been exemplary, but their degrading position, dependent on the
scanty resources of others, must of itself work a cure. Their manly
remonstrance addressed to the British functionary is already before
the reader.* He did not hesitate to tell them, that if in due time no
mediation was held out, they must depend on themselves for z'edress !

Such was the political condition of Marwar until the year 182-3.
Had a demoniacal spirit of revenge nob blinded Raja Mauu, he lmd
a fine opportunity to lay the principles of order on a permanent
basis, and to introduce those reforms necessary for his individual
welfare as well as for that of the state. Ho had it in his power to
modify the institutions, to curb without destroying the feudal chiefs,
and to make the whole subservient to the altered condition of affairs.
Instead of having the glory of fixing the constitution of his country,
he has (reposing on external protection) broken up the entire feudal
association, and rendered the paramount power an object of hatred
instead of reverence.

Having thus rapidly sketched the history of this intei’esting
branch of the Rajpoot race, from the destruction of their ancient
seat of empire, Canouj, and their settlement in the Indian desert
more than six centuries ago, to the present day, it is impossible to
quit the subject without a reflection on the anomalous condition of
their alliance with the British Government, which can sanction the
existence of such a state of things as we have just described. It
illustrates the assertions made in an early part of this work, of the
ill-defined principles which guide all our treaties with the Rajpoots,
and which, if not early remedied, will rapidly progress to a state of
things full of misery to them, and of inevitable danger to ourselves.
T hese “ men of the soil,” as they emphatically designate themselves,
cling to it, and their ancient and well-defined privileges, with an
unconquerable pertinacity ; in their endeavours to preserve them,
whole generations have been swept away, yet has their strength
met eased in the very ratio of oppression. Where ave mow the
oppressors ? the dynasties of Ghizni, of Ghor, the Ghiljis, the Lodis,
the Pat hans, the Timoors, and the demoralizing Mahratta ? The
native Rajpoot has flourished amidst these revolutions, and sur-
vived their fall; and butjior the vices of their internal sway, chiefly

*Vol. I, p. 681.

f Vol. I, p. 112.

CHAl’. XV.]

ANNALS OF MARWAR.

141

contracted from such association, would have risen to power upon
the ruin of their tyrants. But internal dissension invited the spoiler;
and herds of avaricious Mahrattas and ferocious Pat'hans have
reaped the harvest of their folly. Yet all these faults were to be
redeemed iu their alliances with a people whose peculiar boast was,
that wisdom, justice, and clemency were the corner-stones of their
power: seeking nothing from them beyond the means for their
defence, and an adherenco to the virtues of order. How far the pro-
tecting power has redeemed its pledge, in allowing years to pass away
without some attempt to remedy the anarchy we have described, the
reader is iu a condition to judge. If it be said that we have tied up
our hands by leaving them free agents in their internal administra-
tion, then let no offer of support be given to the head, for the oppres-
sion of the vassal and his rights, co-equal with those of the sove-
reign ; and if our mediation cannot be exerted, let us withdraw
altogether the chocks upon the operation of their own system of
government, and leave them free agents in reality. A wiser, more
humane, and liberal policy would be, to impose upon ourselves the
task of understanding their political condition, and to use our just
influence for the restoration of their internal prosperity, and with it
the peace, present as well as prospective, of an important part of
our empire. The policy which such views would suggest, is to
support the opinion of the vast majority of the Rahtores, and to
seize the first opportunity to lend at least our sanction to an
adoption, from the Edur branch, of Rah tore blood, not only unconta-
minated, but heirs pi-esumptive to Joda, and exclude the parricidal
line which will continue to bring misery on the country. If how-
ever, we apply only our own monarchical, nay despotic principles, to
this feudal society, and interfere but to uphold a blind tyranny,
which must drive these brave chiefs to despair, it will be well to
reflect and consider, from the acts we have related, of what they are
capable. Very different, indeed, would be the deeds of proscribed
Rajpoots from those of vagabond Piudarries, or desultory Mahrattas;
and what a field for aggression and retreat 1 Rumour asserts that
they have already done themselves justice ; and that, driven to
desperation, and with no power to mediate, the dagger has reached,
the heart of Raja Maun ! If this be true, it is a retribution which
might have been expected ; it was the only alternative left to the
oppressed chiefs to do themselves justice. It is also said, that the
‘ Pretended* son of Raja Bheem is now on the gadi of Joda. This
is deeply to be lamented. Raja Dhonkul will see only the party
who espoused his pretensions, and the Pokurn chief and faction will
hold that place iu the councils of his sovereign, which of right
belongs to the head of his clan, the Champawut chief of Ahwa, an
exile in Mewar.* Jealousy, feuds, and bloodshed will be the conse-
quence, which would at once be averted by an adoption from Edur.
Were a grand council of Rajpoots to be convened, in order to adjust

* He was so when the author loft India in 182S.

142

ANNALS OF MARWAR.

[CHAP. XVI.

the question, nine-tenths would decide as proposed j the danger of
interference would be neutralized, and peace and tranquillity would
be the boon bestowed upon thousands, and, what is of some conse-
quence, future danger to ourselves would be avoided.

CHAPTER XVI.

Extent and population of Marwar. — Classification of inhabitants— Jits.— Raj-
poots, sacerdotal, commercial, and servile tribes. — Soil. — Agricultural products.
Natural productions. — Salt lakes. — Marble and limestone quarries.— Tin, lead,
and ironmines — Alum. — Manufactures. — Commercial marts. — Transit trade.
— Talli, the emporium of Western India. — Mercantile classes. — Ehnriras and
Osioals. — Kutars, or caravans. — Imports arid exports enumerated. — Chnruns,
the guardians of the caravans. — Commercial decline. — Causes. — Opium mono-
poly. — Fairs of Moon dhw a and Bhalotra. — Administration of justice. — Punish-
ments. — Baja Beejy Sing's clemency to prisoners, who arc maintained by private
charity. — Gaol deliveries on eclipses, births, and accession of princes . — Sogun,
or ordeals: fire, water, burning oil. — Punchdets. — Fiscal revenues and regula-
tions . — Bufctae, or corn-rent . — Sbenahs and Knmrarris. — Taxes . — Anga, or
capitation tax. — Gaswali, or pasturage. — K6wf»ri, or door-tax ; how originated ■
— Sayev, or imposts ; their amount . — Dhannis, or collectors. — Revenues from the
salt-lakes. — Tandas, or caravans engaged in this trade. — Aggregate revenues.—
Military resources. — Mercenaries. — Feudal quotas.— Schedule of feoffs. — Quali-
fication of a cavalier.

The extreme breadth of Marwar lies between two points in the
parallel of the capital, viz., Girap, west, and Shamgurh, on the
Aravulli range, east. This line measures two hundred and seventy
British miles. The greatest length, from the Sirohi frontier to the
northern boundary, is about two hundred and twenty miles. Prom
Remote angle, N.N.E., in the Deedivnuoli district, to the extremity
of Sanchore, b.W., the diagonal measurement is three hundred and

fty miles. Ihe limits of Marwar are, however, so very irregular,
ana present so many salient angles and abutments into other states,
that without a trigonometrical process we cannot arrive at a correct
estimate or its superficial extent : a nicety not, indeed, required.

. r l'beni°st marked feature that diversifies the face of Maroo, is the
river Loom, which rising on her eastern frontier at Poshkur, and
pursuing a westerly course, nearly bisects the country, and forms
the boundary between the fertile and sterile lands of Maroo. Bat
although the tracts south of this stream, between it and the Aravulli,
are by far the richest part of Marwar, it would be erroneous to

+bl i\T 6 part aa sfcerile - An ^eal line, passing

thiough Nagore and Jodpoor to Bhalotra, will mark the just distinc-

SEL S ri h ° f p 8 ! ^ f e districts of Deedwanoh, Nagore,

Mairta, Jodpoor, Palli, Sojut, Godwar, Sewanoh, Jhalore. Beenmahl,

CHAP. XVI.]

ANNALS OP HAEWAU.

143

and Sanchore, inost of which are fertile and populous ; and we may
assign a population of eighty souls to the square mile. The space
north of this line is of a very different character, but this requires a
subdivision ; for while the north-east portion, which includes a por-
tion of Nagore, the large towns of Filodi, Pokurn, &c., may he calcu-
lated at thirty, the remaining space to the south-west, as Gogadeoca-
thul or ‘ desert of Goga/ Sheo, Barmair, Kotra, and Ohotun, can
scarcely he allowed ten. In round numbers, the population of Mar-
war may he estimated at two millions of souls.

Glasses of Inhabitants. — Of this amouut, the following is the
classification of the tribes : — The Jits constitute five-eighths, the Raj-
poots two-eighths, while the remaining classes, sacerdotal,* commer-
cial, and servile, make up the integral number. If this calculation
be near the truth, the Rajpoots, men, women, and children, will
"amount to five hundred thousand souls, which would admit of fifty
thousand men capable of bearing arms, especially when we recollect
that the Jits or Jats are the industrious class.

It is superfluous to expatiate on the peculiarities of the Rahtore
character, which we have endeavoured to extract from their own
actions. It stands deservedly high in the scale of the ” thirty-six
“ tribes,” and although debased by one besetting sin (the use of
opium), the Rahtore is yet a noble animal, and requires only some
exciting cause to shew that the spirit, which set at defiance the
resources of the empire in the zenith of its prosperity, is dormant
only, not extinct. The reign of the present prince has done more,
however, than even the arms of Arungzdb, to deteriorate the Rah-
tores. Peace would recruit their thinned ranks, but the mistrust
sworn in every house by unheard-of duplicity, has greatly demoral-
ized the national character, which until lately stood higher than that
of anyof the circumjacent tribes. A popular prince, until within these
very few years, could easily have collected a magnificent army, eh bcip
cd bdtd, 1 the sons of one father/ round the ‘gadi of Joda in fact, the
panchdz huzar turwar Rahtoran, meaning the 'fifty thousand Rah-
tore swords/ is the proverbial phrase to denote the muster of Maroo,
of which they estimated five thousand cavalry. This was exclusive
of the household and foreign troops supported on the fiscal lands.
The Rahtore cavalry was the best in India. There were several
horse-fairs, especially those of Bhalotra and Poshkur, where the horses
of Cutch and Oattiawar, the jungle, and Mooltan, were brought [in
great numbers. Valuable horses were also bred on the western
frontier, on the Looui, those of Ravdurro being in high estimation.
But the events of the last twenty years appear to have dried up
every source of supply. The breeding studs of Rardurro, Cutch, and
the jungle are almost extinct, and supplies from the west of the Indus
are intercepted by the Sikhs. The destruction of the predatory sys-
tem, which created a constant demand, appears to have lessened the

* The district of Sanchore is almost entirely Brahmin, forming a distinct
tribe, called the Sanchora Brahmins.

144

ANNALS OF MABWA15.

[CHAF. XVI.

supply. So much for the general peace which the successes of
Britain have produced.

In periods of civil commotion, or when the safety of the state was
perilled, we hear of one clan (the Cbampawut) mustering four
thousand horse. But if ever so many of “the sons of Champa wei e
congregated at one time, it is an extraordinary occurrence, and lav
beyond the demand which the state has upon their loyalty. _ To esti-
xuate Avlia t may be demanded of tliorn^ we have only to divide the
rent-roll by five hundred rupees, the qualification for a cavalier in
Marco, and to add, for each horse, two foot-soldiers. A schedule of
the greater feudal estates shall be appended.

Soil , Agriculture , Products. — The following is the classification
of the different heads of soil in Marwar : — Baihal , Chihli , Peela, and
Suffed. The first (whose etymology I know not) pervades the greater
part of the country, being a light sand, having little or no earthy
admixture, and only fit to produce bajra (millet), moong , moth
(pulse), til (sesamum), melons and gowur. Chihli (fat), a black earth,
pervades the district of Deedwanoh, Mairta, Palli, and several of the
feudal lauds in Godwar. Wheat and grain are its products. The
peela (yellow) is a sandy clay, chiefly about Kewnsir and the capital,

- also Jhalore and Bhalotra, and portions of other districts. It is best
adapted for barley, and that kind of wheat called patt'ageon (the
other is Icatta-geon) ; also tobacco, onions, and other vegetables: the
staple millets are seldom grown in this. The suffed (white) is almost
pure silex, aud grows little or nothing, but after heavy falls of rain.

The districts south of the Looni, as Palli, Sojut, and Godwar, ferti-
lized by the numerous petty streams flowing from the Aravulli, pro-
duce abundantly every species of grain with the exception of bajra,
which thrives best in a sandy soil ; and in Nagore and Mairta consi-
derable quantities of the richer grains are raised by irrigation from
wells. The extensive western divisions of Jhalore, Sancliore, and
Beenmahl, containing five hundred and ten towns and villages,
which are Khalisa, or ‘ fiscal land,’ possess an excellent soil, with
the advantage of the rills from Aboo, and the great southern barrier;
but the demoralized government of Baja Maun never obtains from
them one-third of their intrinsic capability, -while the encroachment
of the Sabraes, and other robbers from the Sindie desert, encroach
upon them often with impunity. Wheat, barley, rice, jooar (millet),
moong , (pulse), til (sesamum), are the chief products of the richer
lands; while amidst the sandy tracts they are confined to bajra
moong, and til. With good government, Marwar possesses abun-
dance of means to collect stores against the visitations which afflict
these northern regions : but prejudice steps in to aid the ravages of
famine, and although water is near the surface in all the southern
districts, the number of wells hears no proportion to those in Mewar.

S rea * dlstrict of hTagore, of five hundred and sixty towns and
villages the appanage of the heirs-apparent of Maroo, in spite of
physical difficulties, is, or has been made, an exception ; and the

CHAP. XVI.]

ANNALS OF MAKWAK.

145

immense slieet of sandstone, on which, a humid soil is embedded, has
been pierced throughout by the energies of ancient days, and con-
tains greater aids to agriculture than many more fertile tracts in
the country.

Natural productions. — Marwar can boast of some valuable pro-
ductions of her sterile plains, which make her an object of no little
importance in the most distant and more favoured regions of India.
The salt lakes of Pachbhadra, Deedwanoh, and Sambhur, are mines
of wealth, and their produce is exported over the greater part of
Hindustan ; while to the marble quarries of Mokrauo (which gives
its name to the mineral), on her eastern frontier, all the splendid
edifices of' the imperial cities owe their grandeur. The materials
used in the palaces of Dehli, Agra, their mosques, and tombs, have
been conveyed from Marwar. The quarries, until of late years,
yielded a considerable revenue ; but the age for palace-building in
these regions is no more, and posterity will ask with surprise the
sources of such luxury. There are also limestone quarries near
Jodpoor and Nagore ; and the concrete called kunlcur is abundant
in many of the districts, and chiefly used for mortar. Tin and lead
are found at Sojut ; alum about Palli, and iron is obtained from
Beenmahl and the districts adjoining Guzzerat.

•Manufactures. — The manufactures of Marwar are of no great
importance in a commercial point of view. Abundance of coarse
cotton cloths, and blankets, are manufactured from the cotton and
wool produced in the country, but they are chiefly used there.
Matchlocks, swords, aud other warlike implements, are fabricated at
the capital and at Palli ; and at the latter place they make boxes of
iron, tinned, so as to resemble the tin boxes of Europe. Iron platters
for culinary purposes are in such great demand as to keep the
forges constantly going.

Commercial Marts. — None of these states are without traffic ; each
has her mart, or entrepot ; and while M4war boasts of Bhilwara,
-Bikaner of Chooroo, and Amber of Malpoora (the city. of wealth),
the Rahtores claim Palli, which is not only the rival of the places
just mentioned, but may make pretensions to the title of emporium
of Rajpootana. These pretensions we may the more readily admit,
when we recollect that nine-tenths of the bankers and commercial
men of India are natives of Maroodes, and these chiefly of the
Jain faith. The laity of the JLhartra sect sent forth thousands
to all parts of India, and the Oswals, so termed from the town
of Osi, neai’ the Looui, estimate one hundred thousand families
whose occupation is commerce. All these claim a Rajpoot descent,
a fact entirety unknown to the European enquirer into the pecu-
liai’ities of Hindu manners. The wealth acquired in foreign lands,
from the Sutlej to the ocean, returns chiefly to their native soil;
but as neither primogeniture nor majorats are sanctioned by the
Jain lawgivers, an equal distribution takes place amongst all the
sons, though the youngest (as amongst the Getes of Asia, and the
[Vol. il] 19

146

ANNALS OP HARWAR.

[CHAP. XVI.

Juts of Kent), receives often a double portion. 11ns arises wlien the
division takes place while the parent is living, being the portion set
apart for his own support, which ultimately falls to the youngest,
with whom he probably resides. It would be erroneous to say this
practice is extensive; though sufficient instances exist to suppose
it once was a principle.* The bave enumeration of the tribes fol-
lowing commerce would fill a short chapter. A priest of the Jains
(my own teacher), who had for a series of years devoted his attention
to form a catalogue, which then amounted to nearly eighteen hundred,
classes , renounced the pursuit, on obtaining from a brother priest,
from a distant region, one hundred and fifty new names to add to

his list.

Palli was the entrepot for the eastern and western regions, where
the productions of India, Cashmere, and China, were interchanged
for those of Europe, Africa, Persia, and Arabia. Caravans ( Jcutars ),
from tbe ports of Cutch and Guzzerat, imported elephant’s teeth,
copper, dates, gum-arabic,borax, coco-nuts, broad-cloths, silks, sandal
wood, camphor, dyes, drugs, oxide and sulphuret of arsenic, spices,
coffee, &c. In exchange, they exported chintzes, dried fruits, jeeroh ,
assafoetida from Mooltan, sugar, opium (Kotah and Malwa), silks and
fine cloths, potash, shawls, dyed blankets, arms, and salt of home
manufacture.

The route of the caravans was by Sooie Bah, Sauchore, Beenmahl,
Jhalore to Palli, and the guardians of the merchandize were almost
invariably Charuns, a character held sacred by the Rajpoot. The most
desperate outlaw seldom dared to commit any outrage on caravans
under the safe guard of these men, the hards of the Rajpoots. If not
strong enough to defend their convoy with sword and shield, they
would threaten the robbers with the chandi, or ‘ self-immolation
and pi'oceed by degrees from a gash in the flesh to a death-wound, or
if one victim was insufficient a whole body of women and children
was sacrificed (as in the case of the Bhamnnia Bliats), for whose
blood the marauder is declared responsible hereafter.

There is nothing which so much employs the assessors of justice, in those
tribunals of arbitration, the punchdete, as the adjudication of questions of.
property. The highest compliment ever paid to the author, was by the liti-
gants of property amounting to half a million sterling, which had been going
the rounds of various puuc/idefs and appeals to native princes, alike unsatis-
factory in their results. They agreed to admit as final the decision of a conrb
oi bis nomination. It was not without hesitation I accepted the mediation
propounded through the British superintendent of Ajmdr (Ur. Wilder) ; but
knowing two men, whose integrity as well as powers of investigation were
above all encomium, I could not refuse. One of these had given a striking
instance of independence m support of the award his penetration had led him
to pronounce, and which award being set aside on appeal, through favoritism,
he abjured every future call as an arbitrator. He was not a wealthy man, hut
sudi was the homage paid to his integrity and talents, that the greatest despot
“ ? ndla f ?, u ? d .I 6 P° llfclc t0 re-assemble the court, have the case re-considered,
g&P"™* justice to take its course. In like manner, his demand was, that,
! r ,. e agreed to devote his time to unravelling all the intricacies of the case,

hate H “ mooehOka, or 1 bond,’ W abide by the award. I

nave no recollection how it terminated. J

CHAP. XVI.]

ANNALS OF MARWAR.

147

, Commerce has been almost extinguished within these last twenty
years ; and paradoxical as it may appear, there was tenfold more
activity and enterprise in the midst of that predatory warfare, which
rendered India one wide arena of conflict, than in these days of
universal pacification . The torpedo touch of monopoly has had more
effect on the Kutars than the spear of the desert Sahrae, or banvuttia
(outlaw) Rajpoot — against its benumbing qualities the Charun's
dagger would fall innocuous ; it sheds no blood, but it dries up its
channels. If the products of the salt-lakes of Rajpootana were
preferred, even at Benares, to the sea-salt of Bengal, high impost
duties excluded 'it from the market. If the opium of Malwa and
Harouti competed in the China market with our Patna monopoly,
again we intervened, not with high export duties, which we were
competent to impose, but by laying our shackles upon it at the
fountain-head. “ Aut Ocesar, aut nullus,” is our maxim in these
regions; and in a country where our agents are established only
to preserve political relations and the faith of treaties, the basis of
which is non-interference in the internal ai’rangement of their affairs
— albeit we have not a single foot of land in sovereignty, we set
forth our perm anas, as peremptory as any Russian ulmse, and com-
mand that.no opium shall leave these countries for the accustomed
outlets, under pain of confiscation. Some, relying on their skill in
eluding our vigilance, or tempted by the high price which these
measures produce, or pei’haps reckoning upon our justice, and upon
impunity if discovered, tried new routes, until confiscation brought
them to submission.

We then put an arbitrary value upon the drug, and forced the
grower to come to us, and even take credit to ourselves for consulting
his interests. Even admitting that such price was a remunerating
one, founded upon an average of past years, still it is not the less,
arbitrary. No allowance is made for plentiful or bad seasons, when
the drug, owing to a scarcity, will bear a double price. Our legisla-
tion is for ” all seasons and their change.” But this virtual infrac-
tion of the faith of treaties is not confined to the grower or retailer ;
'it affects others in a variety of ways; it injures our reputation and
the welfare of those upon whom, for benevolent purposes, we have
forced our protection. The transit duties levied on opium formed
an item in the revenues of the princes of Rajpootana ; but confisca-
tion guards the passes of the Aravulli and Guzzerat, and unless the
smuggler wrap up his cai'go in ample folds of deceit, the Rajpoot
may go without his ‘ uml-pdni/ the infusion of this poison, dearer
to him than life. It is in vain to urge that sufficient is allowed for
home consumption. Who is to be the judge of this ? or who is so
blind as not to see that any latitude of this kind would defeat the
monopoly, which, impolitic in its origin, gave rise in its progress to
fraud, gambling, and neglect of more important agricnltui’al economy ?
But this policy must defeat itself: the. excess of quantity produced
will diminish the value of the original (Patna) monopoly, if its now
tVox,. II.] 19 a

148

ANNA1S of makwar.

[chap. xvr.

deteriorated quality should fail to open the eyes of the quick-sighted
Chinese, and exclude it from the market altogether.

Fairs . — There were two annual fairs in his country, Moondhwa
and Bhalotra ; the first chiefly for cattle. The merchandize of various
countries was exposed and purchased by the merchants of the adjoining
states. It commenced with the month of Magh, and lasted during six
weeks. The other was also for cattle of all kinds, horses, oxen, camels,
and the merchandize enumerated amongst the imports and exports
of Palli. Persons from all parts of India frequented them; but all
these signs of prosperity ai’e vanishing.

Administration of Justice . — The administration of justice is now
very lax in these communities; but at no time were the customary
criminal laws of Rajpootana sanguinary, except in respect to politi-
cal crimes, which were very summarily dealt with when practicable.
In these feudal associations, however, such crimes are esteemed
individual offences, and the whole power of the government is con-
centrated to punish them; but when they are committed against
the community, justice is tempered with mercy, if not benumbed
by apathy. In cases even of murder, it is satisfied with fine, corporal
punishment, imprisonment, confiscation, or banishment. Inferior
crimes, such as larcenies, were punished by fine and imprisonment,
and, when practicable, restitution ; or, in case of inability to pay,
corporal punishment and confinement. But under the present lax
system, when this impoverished government has to feed criminals,
it may be supposed that their prisons are not overstocked. Since
Raja Beejy Sing’s death, the judgment-seat has been vacant. His
memory is held in high esteem for the administration of justice,
though he carried clemency to excess. He never confirmed a sen-
tence of death; and there is a saying of the criminals, yet extant,
more demonstrative of his humanity than of good policy : “ When at
“ large we cannot even get rabri (porridge), but in prison we eat
cc ladoo a sweetmeat).” Here, as at Jeipoor, confined criminals are
maintained by individual charity ; and it is a well known fact, that
at the latter place, but for the humanity of the mercantile classes,
especially those of the Jain persuasion, they might starve. Perhaps
it is the knowledge of this circumstance, which holds back the hand
of the Government, or its agents, who may apply to their own uses
the prison-fare. When once confined, the criminals are little thought
of, and neglect answers all the ends of cruelty. They have, however,
a source of consolation unknown to those who have passed ff the
" bridge of sighs,” or become inmates of the f oubMettes > of more
civilized regions. That fortitude and resignation which religion
alone can bestow cm the one, is obtained through superstition by° the
, other; a,nd the pi'ayers of the prison are poured forth for one of
those visitations otVProvidence, which, in humbling the- proud,

thafc^ortant modifications ^TthTs system have been
l lGSlslafci :° authorities ah home: of their extent he is ignorant,.

ST hll tor tie io,s ? f ‘™ sit ■»»

CHAP. XVI.]

ANNALS OP MAHWAR.

149

prompts acts of mercy to otliers in order to ensure it to themselves-
The celestial phenomena of eclipses, whether of the sun or moon,
although predicted by tho Pundits, who for ages have possessed the
most approved theory for calculation, are yet looked upon with
religious awe by the mass, and as “ foreboding change to princes."
Accordingly, when darkness dims the beams of Suryaor Chaudra,
the face of the prisoner of Maroo is lighted up with smiles; his
deliverance is at hand, and he may join the crowd to hoot and yell,
and frighten the monster Rahoo* from his hold of the “silver-moon."-f
The birth of a son to the prince, and a new reign, are events like-
wise joyful to him.

The trial by sogun, literally ‘ oath of purgation/ or ordeal, still
exists, and is occasionally had recourse to in Maroo, as in other parts
of Rajpootana ; and, if fallen into desuetude, it is not that these
judgments of God (as they were styled in the days of European bar-
barism) are less relied on, but that society is so unhinged that even
these appeals to chance find no subjects for practice, excepting by
Zalim Sing ; and he to the last carried on his antipathy to the
dhahuns (witches) of Haroutf, who were always submitted to the
process by * water. 1 Trial by ordeal is of very ancient date in India :
it was by ‘fire 1 -that Rama proved the purity of Seeta, after her
abduction by Ravana, and in the same manner as practised by one
of our Saxon kings, bj> making her walk over a red-hot ploughshai*e.
Besides the two most common tests, by fire and water, there is a
third, that of washing the hands in boiling oil. It should be stated,
that, in all cases, not only the selection but the appeal to any of
these ordeals is the voluntary act of the litigants, and chiefly after
the Punchaets, or courts of arbitration, have failed. Where justice
is denied, or bribery shuts the door, the sufferer will dare his adver-
sary to the sogun , or submission to the judgment of God ; and the
solemnity of the appeal carries such weight, that it brings redress
of itself, though cases do occur where the challenge is accepted,
and the author has conversed with individuals who have witnessed
the operation of each of the ordeals.

Punchdcls. — The Punch&ets arbitrate in civil cases. Prom
these courts of equity, there is an ajjpeal to the Raja; but
as unanimity is required in the judges, and a fee or fine must
be paid by the appellant, ere his case can come before the prince,
litigation is checked. The constitution of this court is simple. The
plaintiff lays his case before the Hakim of the district, or the Patel
of the village where he resides. The plaintiff and defendant have
the right of naming the villages (two, each,) from whence the mem-
bers of the Punchaet are to be drawn. Information is accordingly
sent to the Patdls of the villages specified, who, with their respective
Patwarris (Registers), meet at the At’hcie or f village-court. 1 Wit-

* The Hajpoohs and Hindus in general hold precisely the same idea, of the
cause of eclipses, as the Gete of Scandinavia.

t Chandra-ma. The moon is represented by silver, which is called after her
(or him) chandi.

150

ANNALS OF MARWAR.

[CHAr. XVI.

nesses are summoned and examined on oath, tlie most common of
which is the gacU-ca-dn, ‘ allegiance to the throne, resembling the
ancient adjuration of the Scythians as recorded by Herodotus. Ibis
oath is, however, more restricted to Rajpoots ; the other classes have
various forms based upon their religious notions. AA hen the proceed-
ings are finished, and judgment is given, the Hakim puts his seal
thereto, and carries it into effect, or prepares it for appeal. It is
affirmed that, in the good times of Rujpootaua, these simple tribunals
answered every purpose.

Fiscal Revenues . — The fiscal revenues of Marwararo derived from
various sources ; the principal are.

1st . — « The Khalisa or f crown-lands; 5
2d . — " The salt lakes ;

3d. — “ Transit and impost duties;

4th. — “ Miscellaneous taxes, termed Ilasil.”

The entire amount of personal revenue of the princes of Marwar
does not at present exceed ten lacs of rupees (£100,000 sterling),
though in the reign of Beejy Sing, half a century ago, they yielded
full sixteen lacs, one-half of which arose from the salt lakes alone.
The aggregate revenue of the feudal lands is estimated as high as
fifty lacs, or £500,000. It may be doubted whether at present they
yield half this sum. The feudal contingents are estimated at five
thousand horse, besides foot, the qualification being one cavalier and
two foot-soldiers for every thousand rupees of income. This low-
estimate is to keep up the nominal value of estates, notwithstanding
their great deterioration ; for a ‘ knight's fee 5 of Marwar was formerly
estimated at five hundred rupees.

The sum of ten lacs, mentioned as the gross income of the prince,
is what is actually realized by the treasury, for there are many public
servants provided for out of the crown-lands, whose estates are not
included.

The revenues are collected from the ryots in kind. A corn-rent,
the only one recognized in ancient India, and termed Buttae, or
f division/ is apportioned equally between the prince and the hus-
bandman : a deviation from tlie more lenient practice of forinei'
times, which gave one-fourth, or one-sixth to the sovereign. Besides
this, the cultivator has to pay the expense of guarding the crops, and
also those who attend the process of division. An assessment of two
igpees is made on every ten maunds,^ which more than covers the
salaries paid to the /S Jnfnahs (watchmen), and JFimi vawis -j- and
leaves a surplus divided by the Patel and village register ( Patwarri ).
A cart-load of Jcitrbi (the stalks of joo&r and bajra) is exacted from
every cultivator as fodder for the prince's cattle ; but tliis is com-
muted for a rupee, except in seasons of scarcity, when it is stored up.
The other officers, as the Patwarris and Patels, are paid out of the

. " The maund is about seventy-five Ihs. weight.

f Kim, ‘ corn.’

CHAP. XVI,]

ANNALS OP MARWAR.

151

respective shares of the farmer ancl fclie crown, viz., one-fourth of a
seer each, from every maund of produce, or an eightieth part of the
gross amount. The cultivators of the Pattaiuuts or feudal chiefs, are
much better off than those of the Khalisci : from them only two-
fifths are exacted ; and in lieu of all other taxes and charges, a land-
tax of twelve rupees is levied on every hundred beegas of land culti-
vated. The cultivators repay this mild assessment by attachment
to the chiefs.

Angah is a poll-tax (from anga ‘ the body J ) of one rupee, levied
on adults of either sex throughout Marwar.

Gasmali is a graduated tax on cattle, or, as the term imports, the
right of pasture. A sheep or goat is estimated at one anna (one-six-
teenth of a rupee) ; a buffalo eight annas, or half a rupee ; and each
camel, three rupees.

Kewari is a tax on doors [heivar), and is considered peculiarly
oppressive. It was first imposed by Beejy Sing, when, towards the
latter end of his reign, his chiefs rebelled, and retired in a body to
Palli to concert schemes for deposing him. Thither he fruitlessly
followed in order to pacify them, and on his return found the gates
(Mivdr) of his capital shut in his face, and Bheem Sing placed upon
the gadi. To supply the pecuniary exigencies consequent upon this
embarrassing situation, he appealed to his subjects, and proposed a
‘ benevolence/ in aid of his necessities, of three rupees for each house,
giving it a denomination from the cause whence it originated.
Whether employed as a punishment of those who aided his anta-
gonist, or as a convenient expedient of finauce, he converted this
temporary contribution into a permanent tax, which continued until
the necessities of the confederacy against the present prince, Raja
Maun, and the usurpation of the fiscal lands by the PaPhans, made
him raise it to ten rupees on each house. It is, however, not equally
levied ; the number of houses in each township being calculated, it
is laid on according to the means of the occupants, and the poor man
may pay two rupees, while the wealthy pays twenty. The feudal
lands are not exempted, except in cases of special favour.

In estimating the amount of the sayer , or imposts of Marwar, it
must be borne in mind that the schedule appended represents what
they have been, and perhaps might again be, rather than what they
now are. These duties are subject to fluctuation in all countries, but
how much more in those exposed to so many visitations from preda-
tory foes, civil strife, and famine ! There is no reason to doubt that,
in the u good old times” of Maroo, the amount, as taken from old.
records, may have been realized :

Jodpoor Rs. 76,000

Nagore 75,000

Deedwanoh 10,000

Carried over. . . 1 61,000

152

ANNALS OF MARWAB. •

[CHAP. XVI.

Brought forward 161,000

Purbutsir 44,000

Mairfca 11,000

Koleah '• 5 ' 00 9

Jhalore 25,000

Palli 75 > 000

Jessole and Bbalotra fairs 41,000

Beemnahl 21,000

Sancbore 6,000

Pilodi 41,000

Total 4,30,000

The Dhannis , or collectors of the customs, have monthly salaries
at the large towns, while the numerous petty agents are paid by a
per centage on the sums collected. The sayer, or imposts, include
all those on grain, whether of foreign importation, or the home-grown,
in transit from one district to another.

The revenue arising from the produce of the salt lakes has deterio-
rated with the land and commercial revenues; and, though affected by
political causes, is yet the most certain branch of income. The
following schedule exhibits what has been derived from this lucrative
source of wealth :

Pachbhadra •.. Rs. 2,00,000

Pilodi 1,00,000

Deedwanoh 1,15,000

Sambhur 2,00,000

Nowah 1,00,000

Total 7,15,000

This productive branch of industry still employs thousands of
hands, and hundi’eds of thousands of oxen, and is almost entirely
in the hands of that singular race of beings called Sunjarras , some
of whose tandas , or caravans, amount to 40,000 head of oxen. The
salt is exported to every region of Hindustan, from the Indus to the
Ganges, and is universally known and soldunder the title of SambKur
Loon, or salt of. Sambhur,’ notwithstanding the quality of the
different lakes varies, that of Pachbhadra, beyond the Booni, being
.’lost esteemed. * It is produced by natural evaporation, expedited
by dividing the surface into pans by means of mats of the Sirhunda
grass, wnicli lessons the superficial agitation. It is thou gathered

* The averace selling price at Jodpoor is two’ rupees themaund; four at
Sambhur and Deedwanoh, and five at Pachbhadra, Pilodi, and bTowah Why
the price at the capital is fifty per cent, lower than elsewhere, I know not even
this statement is correct. *

CHAP. XVI.]

ANNALS OP MARWAR.

153

and heaped up into immense masses, on whose summit they burn a
variety of alkaline plants, such as the saji, by which it becomes
impervious to the weather.

We may recapitulate what the old archives state of the aggregate
fiscal revenues in past times, amounting to nearly thirty lacs of
rupees. It would be hazardous to say to what extent the amount
was over-rated :

1st. — Klialisa , or fiscal land, from 1,484 towns

and villages Rs.

2d . — Sayer or imposts

3d. — Salt lakes

4th. — Ucisil, or miscellaneous taxes ; fluctuating
and uncertain; not less than

15,00,000

4.30.000

7.15.000

3,00,000

Total. . . . 29,45,000
Feudal and ministerial estates 50,00,000

Grand Total 79,45,000

Thus the united fiscal and feudal revenues of Marwar are said to
have amounted almost to eighty lacs of rupees (£800,000). If they
ever did reach this sum, which may be doubted, we do not err in
affirming that they would now be over-rated at half that amount.
Large fortunes aie said to centre in the families of the ex-ministers,
especially the Singwi family, reported to be immensely rich. Their
wealth is deposited in foreign capitals. But much bullion is lost to
the currency of these countries by the habits of secreting money.
A very large treasure was discovered in Nagore by Beejy Sing, when
demolishing some old buildings.

Military Forces . — It only remains to state the military resources
of the Rahtores, which fluctuate with their revenues. The Rajas
maintain a foreign mercenary force upon their fiscal revenues to
overawe their own turbulent vassalage. These are chiefly Rohilla
and Afghan infantry, armed with muskets and matchlocks ; and
having cannon and sufficient discipline to act in a body, they are
foi’midable to the Rajpoot cavaliers. Some years ago, Raja Maun
had a corps of three thousand five hundred foot, and fifteen hundred
horse, with twenty-five guns, commanded by Hundall Khan, a native
of Panniput. He has been attached to the family ever since the
reign of Beejy Sing, aud is (or was) familiarly addressed kalecuo r
* uncle/ by the prince. There was also a brigade of those monastic
militants, the FHshenswamis, under their leader, Kaimdas, consisting
of seven hundred foot, three hundred horse, and an establishment of
rockets ( bhan .), a very ancient instrument of Indian warfare, and
mentioned long before gunpowder was used in Europe. At one
period, the Raja maintained a foreign force amounting to, or at least
mustered as, eleven thousand men, of which number two thousand
five hundred were cavalry, with fifty-five guns, and a rocket estab-
[Vol. II.] 20

154

ANNAIS OP MAEWAR.

[CHAP. XVI.

lishment. Besides a monthly pay., lands to a considerable amount
were granted to the commanders of the different legions. By these
overgrown establishments, to maintain a superiority over the feudal
lords which has been undermined by the causes related, the demoral-
ization and ruin of this country have been accelerated. The exist-
ence of such a species of force, opposed in moral and religious
sentiment to the retainers of the state, has only tended to widen the
breach between them and their head, and to destroy every feeling
of confidence.

In Mdwai’, there are sixteen great chiefs ; in Amber twelve ; in
Marwar eight. The following table exhibits their names, clans,
residences, and rated revenue. The contingent required by their
princes may be estimated by the qualification of a cavalier, viz., one
for every five hundred rupees of rent.

Names of Chiefs.

Clans.

Places of
Abode.

FIRST CLASS.

Revenue

Remarks.

1. Kesarl Sing ...

Champawut ...

1

Ahwa

2. Jluktawar Sing.

iioompawut ...

Asope

3. Salim Sing

Champawut ...

Pokurn

4. Soortan Sing...

Oodawub

Neemaj

5

6. Ajifc Sing

Mairtea

Gnnorah

7

Kurrumsote

Kewnsir, i
Keemsir

8

Khejurla

1

i

t

I

100,000

50,000

100,000

50,000

.. 25,000

.. 50,000

| 40,000

25,000

Premier noble of
[Marwar. Of this
sum, half is the ori-
ginal grant : the
rest is by usurpa-
tion of the inferior
branches of his clan.

The Pokurn chief
is by far the roost
powerful in Mar-
war.

The fief of Nee-
maj is now under
sequestration, since
the last incumbent
was put to death
by the Raja.

The Mail-tea is
deemed the bravest
of all the Eahtoro
clans.

This feoff formed
one of the sixteen
great feoffs of Md-
war. The town,
which is large, has
been dismantled,
and several villages
sequestrated.

The only foreign
chief in the first
grade of tho nobles
of Marwar.

CHAP. XVI.]

ANNALS OP MARWAR.

• 155

Names of Chiefs.

1 .

2 .

3.

4.

5.

6.

7.

8.
9.

10 .

11 .

12 .

13.

14.

15

16

Seonat Sing....
Soorfcau Sing
Pirfcbi Sing...,

Tez Sing

Anar Sing...

Jaib Sing

Pudum Sing

Kurrun Sing ...
Zftlim Sing
Sowa6 Sing

Seodau Sing .
Znlim Sing ....
Sawul Sing....
i. Hookun Sing

Clans.

Places of t-
Abode.

SECOND

CLASS.

Oodawnb

Koocbnman ...
Khari-<ja-dewa
Cbundawul ...
Khada

Oodaivub

DO eeuaev

Ah ore

Koompawnt ...
Do '

Baggori

Gnjsingpoorn.
Mebtri

Marote

Koompawut ...

■Rofifc ,

Cbaupur

Boodsoo

Clmmpawut ..
Do

KAotnb (great)
Hiirsolab

Do

Degode

Do

Kaptab (little)

50.000

25.000

25.000

25,000

11.000

40.000

25.000

40.000

15,000

15,000

15.000

20.000

40.000

10.000

10,000

11,000

Remarks.

A chief of consi-
derable power.

In exile.

These are the principal chieftains of Marwar, holding lands on the
tenure of service There are many who owe allegiance and . service
on emergencies, the allodial vassals of Marwar not enumerated in
this list ; such as Barman*, Kottorah, Jessole Phulsoond Bngong,
Bankuria, Kalindri, Baroonda, who could muster as -rong :

force if their good-will were conciliated, and e pun not be

his requisition. The specified census of the estates may not be
exactly correct. The foregoing is from an old record ^ which is m all
probability the best they have j for so rapid aie describing 1

countries, amidst the anarchy and rebellion we a to form as

that the civil officers would deem it time rown b ^

in past times, an exact patta’buhye, or ‘ re g»toi f

ancient qualification was one horseman and two ' t p e

"required," for eaoli five hundred rupees , w .the rental , bu^the

estates have been curtailed in extent an 1 , . y, e

order to keep up their nominal amount, one

qualification.

. ANNALS OF BIKANER,

CHAPTER I.

Origin of the state of Bikaner.— Beeka, the founder —Condition of the aborigi-
nal Jits or Getes. — The number and extensive diffusion of this Scythic race,
still a majority of the peasantry in Western Itajpootana, and perhaps in
Northern India. — Their pursuits pastoral, their government patriarchal, their
religion of a mixed land. — List of the Jit cantons of Bikaner at the irruption
of Beeka. — Causes of the success of Beeka. — Voluntary surrender of the supre-
macy of the Jit elders to Beeka. — Conditions. — Characteristic of the Getic
people throughout India. — Proofs. — Invasion of the Johy as by Beeka and his
Jit subjects.— Account of the Johy as. — Conquered by Beeka. — He ivrests
Bhagore from the Bhattis, and founds Bikaner, the capital, A.D. 1489.— His
uncle Kandul makes conquests to the north. — Death of Beeka. — His son Noon-
kurn succeeds. — Makes conquests from the Bhattis. — His son Jaet succeeds . —
Enlarges the power of Bikaner. — Rah Sing succeeds . — The Jits of Bikaner lose
their liberties. — The state rises to importance. — Bad Sing's connexion with
Akber. — His honours and poiver. — The Johy as revolt and are exterminated . —
Traditions of Alexander the Great amongstthe ruins of the Johyas. — Examined.
— The Pooniah Jits vanquished by Ram Sing, the Raja’s brother. — Their sub-
jection imperfect. — Rae Sing' s daughter weds prince Selim, afterwards Jehangiv.
— Rae Sing succeeded by his son Kurrun. — The three eldest sons of Kurrun fall
in the imperial service. — Anop Sing, the youngest, succeeds. — Quells a rebellion
in Cabul.—His death unceitain. — Suraop Sing succeeds. — He is hilled.-?-
Sujaun Sing, Zooianaun Sing, Guj Sing, and Raj Sing succeed.— The latter
poisoned by his brother by another mother, who usurps the throne, though
opposed by the chiefs —He murders the rightful heir, Ms nephew. — Civil war ,
— Muster-roll of the chiefs. — The usurper attacks Jodpoor . — Present state of
Bikaner. — Account of Beedavati.

Bikaner bolds a secondary rank amongst tbe principalities of Raj-
pootana. It is an offset of Marw ar, its princes being scions of the
bouse of Joda, wbo established themselves by concjuest on tbe
northern frontier of the parent state ; and its position, in tbe heart of
the desert, has contributed to tbe maintenance of their independence.

It was in S. 1515 (A.D. 1459), tbe year in which Joda transferred
the seat of government from Mundore to Jodpoor, that his son Beeka,

CHAP. X.J

ANNALS OP BIKANER.

157

under the guidance of his uncle Kandul, led three hundred of the
sons of Sdoji to enlarge the boundaries of Rahtore dominion amidst
the sands of Maroo. Beelca was stimulated to the attempt by the
success of his brother Beeda, who had recently subjugated the terri-
tory inhabited by the Mohils for ages.

Such expeditions as that of Beeka, undertaken expressly for con-
quest, were almost uniformly successful. The invaders set out with
a determination to slay oi*'be slain ; and these forays had the addi-
tional stimulus of being on 1 fated days/ when the warlike creed of.
the Rajpoots made the abstraction of territory from foe or friend a
matter of religious duty.

Beeka, with his baud of three hundred, fell upon the Sanklas of
Jangloo, whom they massacred. This exploit brought them in con-
tact with the Bhattis of Poogul, the chief of which gave his daugh-
ter in marriage to Beelca/ who fixed his head-quarters at Korum-
desir, where he erected a castle, and gradually augmented his con-
quests from the neighbourhood.

Beeka now approximated to the settlements of the Jits or Getes,
who had for ages been established in these arid abodes ; and as the
lands they held form a considerable portion of the state of Bikaner,
it may not be uninteresting to give a sketch of the condition of this
singular people prior to the son of Joda establishing the feudal sys-
tem of Rajwarra amongst their pastoral commonwealths.

Of this celebrated and widely-spread race, we have already given
a succiuct account.* It appears to have been the most numerous
as well as the most conspicuous of the tribes of ancient Asia, from
the days of Tomyris and Cyrus to those of the present Jit prince of
Lahore, whose successor, if be be endued with similar energy, may,
on the reflux of population, find himself seated in their original
haunts of central Asia, to which they have already considerably
advanced. f In the fourth century, we find a Yuti or Jit kingdom
established in the Punjab ; J but how much earlier this people colon-
ized those regions we are ignorant. At every step made by Mako-
medan power in India, it encountered the Jits. On their memorable
defence of the passage of the Indus against Mahmood, and on the
■war of extirpation waged against them by Timoor, both in their
primeval seats in Maver-ool-nehi’, as well as east of the Sutlej, we
have already enlarged ; while Baber, in bis Commentaries, informs
us that, in all his irruptions into India, he was assailed by multi-
tudes of Jits§ during his progress through the Punjab, the peasantry

Yol. I, p. 96, Hist, of the Rajpoot tribes — Article, Jits, or Getes.

" t Runjeet has long been in possession of Peshore, and entertained views on
Cabal, the disorganized condition of which kingdom affords him a favourable
opportunity of realizing them.

| See Inscription, Vol. I, p. 700. „ , . , ,

§ “ On Friday the 14th (Dec. 29, A. D. 1525). of the first Rebi, we arrived at
Sailkote. Every time that I have entered Hindostan, the Jits and Gujers have
regularly poured down in prodigious numbers from their hills and wilds, in.

158

ANNALS ON BIKANER.

[CHAP. I.

of which region, now proselytes

well as the military rf £2rf 8» or .‘ disciple.’*
me rge the « ot 14 « J* 01 . Jats> «* ,* far

In short, whether as Yuti 3 Get , > otlier tribe or race m

surpassed in numbers, toe centu g rti J te „ vast majority of

“ 4 Pe " toPS °‘

^'what period these Jits

gl " :+ es brought from the JaxaUes, ^ t fc e r tenets

have nearly the Asi, th kingdom of Baetria.

“;i: :^"-T i-acs»

boasts of the myriads of Jd souls TMBoriin a; so we may o

»Fs£tet«i*SSte

“ storehouse of nataons Beeka ^ severe gn. h

established therein forages J 0 f ffff/teUry formin?

1. Poomah, ' ,

5 . Beniwah

2. Godarraj

3. Sarun,

6 . Johya, or Joweya;

order to «,£ - - ^ 5S

distinction betwe accompanied

not maintainable. „ Colonel Pitman (wno . embassy)*

#”lt is worthy 0 s r f,Xhntbe twohrst Doabebs (retnrn o tbo cm ^

ElpLinstonetoCabul), cultivators of the soil being «

:: Ess.'S.KiS- “ th0 s,a “'

CHAP. I.]

ANNALS OP BIKANER.

159

though this last is by some termed a ramificati on of the Yadu-Bhatti :
an affiliation by no means invalidating their claims to be considered
of Jit or Tuti origin.*

Each canton bore the name of the community, and was subdivided
into districts. Besides the sis Jit cantons, there were three more
simultaneously wrested from Rajpoot proprietors ; viz., Bhagore, the
Kharri-putta, and Mohilla. The six Jit cantons constituted the
central and northern, while those of the Rajpoots formed the western
and southern frontiers.

Disposition of the Cantons at that period.

Cantons. No. of Tillages. Districts.

1. — Pooniah 300 Bhaderan, Ajitpoor, Seedmookh, Rajgur’h,

Dadrewob, Sankoo, &c.

2. — Bdniwal ... 150 Bookurko, Sondurie, Munohurpoor, Kooie,

Bad, &c.

3. — Johya 600 Jaetpoor, Koombanoh, Mahajin Peepasir,

Oodipoor, &c.

4. — Asiagffi ... 150 Raotsii’, Birmsir, Dandoosir, Gundaeli.

5. — Sarun 300 Kaijur,Phoag, Boochawas, Sowad, Badinoo,

Sirsilah, &c.

6. — Godarra ... 700 Poondrasir, Gosensir (great), Shekhsir,

Gursisir, Garibdesir, Rungaysir, Kaloo,

&c.

Total in the six
Jit cantons. 2,200

7. — Bhagore ... 300 Bikaner, Nal, Kailah, Rajasir, Suttasir,

Chutturgur’h, Rindisir, Beetnok’h,
Bhavanipoor, Jeimulsir, &c.

8. — Mohilla 140 Chaupur (capital of Mohilla), Saondah,

Herasir, Gopalpoor, Charwas, Beedasir,
Ladnoo, Mulsisir, Khurbooza-ra-kote.

9. — Kharri-putta*

or salt district. 30

Grand Total. 2,670

With such rapidity were states formed in those times, that in a
few years after Beeka left his paternal roof at Mundore, he was lord
over 2,670 villages, and by a title far stronger and more legitimate
than that of conquest — the spontaneous election of the cantons.
But although three centuries have scarcely past since their amalga-
mation into a sovereignty, one-half of the villages cease to exist ;

'*■ The Jits of the Agva province consider themselves illegitimate descendants
of the Yndus of Biana, and have a tradition that their wntluii is Candahar.

]gQ ANNALS OF BIKANElt. [CHAP. I.

uor are there now 1,300 forming tlie raj of Soorut Sing, the present
occupant and lineal descendant of Beelca.

The Jits and Johyas of these regions, who extended over all the.
northern desert even to the Garah, led a pastoral life, their wealth
consisting in their cattle, which they reared in great numbers, dispos-
ing of the superfluity, and of the ghee (butter clarified) and wool,
through the medium of Sarsote ( Scirasvati ) Brahmins (who, in these
regions, devote themselves to traffic), receiving in return gram and
other conveniences or necessaries of life.

A variety of causes conspired to facilitate the formation of the
state of Bikandr, and the reduction of the ancient Scytbic simplicity
of the Jit communities to Rajpoot feudal sway; and although the
success of his brother Beeda over the Mohils in some degree paved
the way, his bloodless conquest could never have happened but foi
the presence of a vice which has dissolved all the republics. of the
world. The jealousy of the Johyas and Godarras, the two most
powerful of the six Jit cantons, was the immediate motive to the
propitiation of the ‘ son of Joda ;’ besides which, the communities
found the hand of Beeda, which had extirpated the ancient Mohils
when living with them in amity, most troublesome neighbours.
Further, they were desirous to place between them and the Bhattis
of Jessulmer -a more powerful barrier; and last, not least, they
dreaded the hot valour and ‘ thirst for land* which characterized
Beelca’s retainers, now contiguous to them at Jangloo. For these
weighty reasons, at a meeting of the ‘ elders'" of the Godarras, it was
resolved to conciliate the Rahtore.

Pandfi was the patriarchal head of the Godarras; his residence
was at Sheklisir.* The f elder" of Roneab -was next in rank and
estimation to Paudd, in communities where equality was as absolute
as the proprietary right to the lauds which each individually held :
that of pasbui’e being commou.

The elders of Sheklisir and Roneab were deputed to 'enter into
terms witb tbe Rajpoot prince, and to invest him with supremacy
over their community, on the following conditions : —

First . — To make common cause with them, against the Johyas
and other cantons, with whom they were then at variance;

Second . — To guard the western' frontier against the irruption of
the Bhattis ; ...

Third . — To hold the rights and privileges of the community
inviolable.

On the fulfilment of these conditions, they relinquished to Beeka
and his descendants the supreme power over the Godarras; assigning
to him, in perpetuity, the power to levy dhooa , or a * hearth-tax," of

, * Tliis town is named after tbe Islamite taint, Sbekh Fureed of Pakputtun,
who has n dwqali here. He was greatly esteemed by the Jits, before tbe Iona ,
dea assumed the shape of a Jiini, to whom, tinder the title of Carani Mata,

1 a ray of the mother," all bend the bead.

CHAP. I.]

ANNALS OF BIKANER.

161

one rupee on eacli house in the canton, aucl a land-tax of two rupees
on each hundred beegas of cultivated land within their limits.

Apprehensive, however, that 'Beeka or his descendants might
encroach upon their rights, they asked what security he could offer
against such a contingency ? The Rajpoot chief replied that, in
order to dissipate their fears on this bead, as welPas to perpetuate
the remembrance of the supremacy thus voluntarily conferred, he
would solemnly bind himself and his successors to receive the tiha of
inauguration from the hands of the descendants of the elders of
Shekhsir and Roneah, and that the gadi should be deemed vacant
until such rite was administered.

In this simple transfer of the allegiance of this pastoral people, we
mark that instinctive love of- liberty which accompanied the Gete in
all places and all conditions of society, whether on the banks of the
Oxus and the Jaxartes, or in the sandy desert of India; and although
his political independence is now annihilated, he is still ready even
to shed his blood if his Rajpoot master dare to infringe his inalien-
able right to his baggota, his paternal acres.

It is seldom that so incontestable a title to supremacy can be
asserted as that' which the weakness and jealousies of the Godarras
conferred upon Beeka, and it is a pleasing incident to find almost
throughout India, in the observance of certain rites, the remembrance
of the original compact which transferred the sovereign power from
the lords of the soil to their Rajpoot conquerors. Thus, in Mewar,
the fact of the power conferred upon the Ghelote founder by the
Bhil aborigines, is commemorated by a custom brought down to the
present times. (See Vol. I, p. 186.) At Amber, the same is recorded
in the important offices retained by the Meenas, the primitive
inhabitants of that land. Both Kotah and Boondi retain in their
names the remembrance of the ancient lords of Harouti ; and Beeka's
. descendants preserve, in a twofold manner, the recollection of their
bloodless conquest of the Jits. To this day, the descendant of Pandu
applies the unguent of royalty to the forehead of the successors of
Beeka; on which occasion, the prince places ‘ the fine of relief/
consisting of twenty-five pieces of gold, in the hand of the Jit.
Moreover, the spot which he selected for his capital, was the birth-
right of a Jit, who would only concede it for this purpose on the con-
dition that his name should be linked in perpetuity with its
surrender. - Naira, or N era, was the name of the proprietor, which
Beeka added to his own, thus composing that of the future capital,
Bikaner.

Besides this periodical recognition of the transfer of power, on all
lapses of the crown, there are annual memorials of the rights of the
Godarras, acknowledged not only by the prince, but by all his Raj-
poot vassal-kin, quartered on the lands of the Jit ; and although
‘ the sons of Beeka/ now multiplied over the'country, do not much
respect the ancient compact, they at least recognize, in the mainte-
nance of these formulas, the origin of their power.

[Von. II.]

21

162

ANNALS OF BIKANER.

[CHAP. I.

On the spring and autumnal* festivals of the Holi and Dewdli,
the heirs of the patriarchs of Shekhsirand Rouenh give the iil;a to
the prince and all his feudality. The Jit of Roneah bears the silver
cup nud platter which holds the ampoule of the desert, while his
compeer applies it to the prince's forehead. The Raja in return
deposits a nuzsserana of a gold mohur, aud five pieces of silver;
the chieftains, according to their rank, following his example. The
gold is taken by the Shekhsir Jit, the silver by the elder of Roneah.

To resume our narrative : when the preliminaries w6re adjusted,
by Beeka' s swearing to maintain the rights of the community which
thus surrendered their liberties to his keeping, they united their
arms, and invaded the Johyas. This populous community, which
extended over the northern region of the desert, even to the Sutlej,
reckoned eleven hundred villages in their canton ; yet now, after the
lapse of little more than three centuries, the very name of Johya is
extinct. They appear to be the Jenjookeli of Baber, who, in his
irruption into India, found them congregated with the ' Jnds / about
the cluster of hills in the first doabeh of the Punjab, called c the
mountains of Joude;’ a position claimed by the Yadus or Jadoos in
the very dawn of their history, and called Jaddoo ca dang , c the
Jaddoo hills.' This supports the assertion that the Johya is of
Yadn race, while it does not invalidate its claims to Yuti or Jit
descent, as will be further shewn in the early portion of the annals of
the Yadu-Bhattis.f

The patriarchal head of the Johyas resided at Bhuropal ; his name
was Shere Sing. He mustered the strength of the canton, and
for a long time withstood the continued efforts of the Rajpoots
and the Godarras; nor was it until ‘ treason had done its worst.,'
by the murder of their elder, and the consequent possession of Bhu-
ropal, that the Johyas succumbed to Ralitore domination.

With this accession of power, Beeka carried his arms westward,
and conquered Bhagore from the Bhattis. It was in this district,
originally wrested by the Bhattis from the Jits, that Beeka founded
his capital, Bikaner, on the loth Bysak S. 1 545, (A.D. 1489); thirty
years after his departure from the parental roof at Mundore.

When Beeka was thus firmly established, his uncle Kandul, to
whose spirit of enterprize he was mainly indebted for success, departed
with his immediate kin to the northward, with a view of settling in
fresh conquests. He successively subjugated the communities of
Asiag'k Beniwal, and Sarun, which cantons are mostly occupied by
his descendants, styled " Kandulote Rahtores," at this day, and
although they form an integral portion of the Bikaner state, they

* Vide Yol. I, pp. 486, 512 — for an account of these festivals.

f I presented a work on this race, entitled c The Book of the Johyas,’ (sent
me by the prime minister of Jessulm6r) to the Royal Asiatic Society. Having
obtained it just before leaving Rajpootana, I never had leisure to examine it,
or to pronounce on its value as an historical document ; but any work having
refereuca to so singular a community can scarcely fail to furnish matter of
interest.

CHAP. I.J

ANNALS OP BIKANER.

163

evince, in their independent bearing to its chief, that their estates
were et the gift of their own swords, not of his patents and they
pay but a reluctant and nominal obedience to his authority. When
necessity or avarice imposes a demand for tribute, it is often met by
a flat refusal, accompanied with such a comment as this : “ Who
“ made this Raja ? Was it not our common ancestor, Kandul? Who
“ is he, who presumes to levy tribute from us ?” Kandul's career of
conquest was cut short by the emperor's lieutenant in Hissar; he
was slain in attempting this important fortress.

Beeka died in S. 1551 (A.D. 1495), leaving two sons by the
daughter of the Bhatti chief of Poogul, viz., Noonkurn, who succeeded,
and Gursi, who founded Gursisir and Ursisir. The stock of the lat-
ter is numerous, and is distinguished by the 'epithet Qursote Beelca,
whose principal fiefs are those of Gursisir and Garibdesir, each having
twenty-four villages depending on them.*

Noonknrn made several conquests from the Bhattis, on the wes-
tern frontier. He had four sons ; his- eldest desiring a separate estab-
lishment in his lifetime, for the fief of Mahajin and one hundred
and forty villages, renounced his right of primogeniture in favour of
his brother Jaet, who succeeded in S. 1569. His brothers had each ~
appanages assigned to them. He had three sons, 1st, Calian Sing j
2d, Sdoji, and 3d, Aishpal. Jaetsi reduced the district of Narnote
from some independent Grasia chiefs, and settled it as the appanage
of his second son, Seoji. It was Jaetsi also who compelled r the sons
of Beeda/ the first Rahtore colonists of this region, to acknowledge
his supremacy by an annual tribute, besides certain taxes.

Calian Sing succeeded in S. 1603. He had three sons, 1st, Rae
Sing ; 2d, Ram Sing, and 3d, Pirthi Sing.

Rae Sing succeeded in S. 1630 (A.D. 1573). Until this reign, the
Jits had, in a great degree, preserved their ancient privileges. Their
maintenance was, however, found rather inconvenient, by the now
superabundant Rajpoot population, and they were consequently dis-
possessed of all-political authority. With the loss of independence
their military spirit decayed, and they sunk into mere tillers of the
earth. In this reign also Bikandr rose to importance amongst the
principalities of the empire, aud if the Jits parted with their liber-
ties to the Rajpoot, the latter, in like manner, bartered his freedom
to become a Satrap of Dehli. On hisfather’s death, Rae Singin per-
son undertook the sacred duty of conveying his ashes to the Ganges.
The illustrious Akbdr was then emperor of India. Rae Sing and the
emperor had married sisters, princesses of Jessulmer. This connexion

To the few who will peruse these annals of the desert tribes, it will bo
interesting to observe the development of families, and the maintenance, by
such distinctive patrouj-raics. of their origin . In the annals of this remote
state, I shall not enter at any length into the history of their wars, which are,
with a change of names and scene, all pretty much alike ; but confine myself,
after a succinct and connected genealogical relation, to the manners of the
people, the aspect, productions, and government of the country.

[Vol. II.] 21a

164

ANNALS OF BUTANE!!.'

[CHAP. I.

obtained for him, on bis introduction to court by Raja Maun of
Amber, tbe dignity of a leader of four thousand horse, the title of
Raja, and the government of Hissar. Moreover, when Maldeo of
Jodpoor incurred tbe displeasure of tbe king, and was dispossessed of
tlie rich district of Nagore, it was given to Rad Sing. With these
honours, aud increased power as one of tbe king’s lieutenants, be
returned to bis dominions, aud sent bis brother Ram Sing against
Bbutnair, of which be made a conquest. This town was the chief
place of a district belonging to tbe Bhattis, originally Jits* of Yadn
descent, but who assumed this name on becoming proselytes to tbe
faith of Islam.

Rae Sing, at the same time, completely subjugated the Johyas,
who, always troublesome, bad recently attempted to -regain their
ancient independence. The Rajpoots carried lire and sword into
this country, oE which they made a desert. Ever since it line
remained desolate : the very name of Johya is lost, though tlis
vestiges of considerable towns bear testimony to a remote antiquity.

Amidst these ruins of the Johyas, tbe name of ' Selc under Roomi
(Alexander tbe Great) has fixed itself, and the desert retains tbe
tradition that the ruin called Rung-mahl , the ‘painted palace/ near
Dandoosir, was the capital of a priuce of this region punished by a
visitation of the Macedonian conqueror. History affords no evidence
of Alexander’s passage of the Garah, though the scene of his severest
conflict was iu that nook of the Punjab not remote from the lands of
the Johyas. But though the chronicler of Alexander does not sanc-
tion our indulgingin this speculation, the total darkness in which
we appear doomed to remain with regard to Bactria and the petty
Grecian kingdoms on the Indus, established by him, does not. forbid
our surmise, that by some of these, perhaps the descendants of Python,
such a visitation might have happened.f Tbe same traditions assert
that these regions were not always either arid or desolate, aud tbe
living chronicle alluded to iu tbe note, repeated tbe stanza elsewhere
given, which dated its deterioration from tbe drying up of the Habra
river, which came from the Punjab, aud flowing through tbe heart of
this country, emptied itself into tbe Indus between Rory Baklier and
Ootch.

Tbe affinity that this word ( HaJera ) has both to the Caggar, and
Sanhra,% would lead to the conclusion of either being the stream

In the Annals of Jessulmer, tlie number of offsets from the Yndu Bhatti
tribe which assumed the name of Jit, will be seen ; an additional ground for
asserting that tbe Scythic Yadu is in fact the Yiiti.

f My informant of this tradition was an old inhabitant of Dandoosir, and
although seventy years of age, had never left the little district of bis nativity
until he was brought tome, as one of the most intelligent living records of the
past.

t The natives of these regions cannot pronounce the sibilant; so that, as I
nave already stated, the s is converted into h. I gave as an example the name
Jalnlmer, which becomes ‘ tbe hill of fools,’ instead of ‘ the hill of Jasil.’ S aider a,
m like manner becomes Hgnhra.

CHAP. I.]

ANNALS OP BIKANEB.

165

referred to. The former we know as being engulphed in the sands
about the Heriana confines, while the Sankra is a stream which,
though now dry, was used as a line of demarcation even in the time
of Nadir Shah. It ran eastward, parallel with the Indus, and by
making it his boundary. Nadir added all the fertile valley of the
Indus to his Persian kingdom. (See Map.) The only date this
legendary stauza assigns for the catastrophe is the reign of the Soda
prince, Hamir.

Ram Sing, having thus destroyed the power of future resistance in
the Johyas, turned his arms against the Pooniah Jits, the last who
preserved their ancient liberty. They were vanquished, and the Raj-
poots were inducted into their most valuable possessions. But the
conqueror paid the penalty of his life for the glory of colonizing the
lands of the Pooniahs. He was slain in their expiring effort to shake
off the yoke of the stranger ; and though the Ramsingotes add to the
numerical strength, and enlarge the territory of the heirs of Beeka,
they, like the Kandulotes, little increase the power of the state, to
which their obedience is nominal. Seedmook’h and Sankoo are the
two chief places of the Ramsingotes.

Thus, with the subjugation of the Pooniahs, the political annihila-
tion of the six Jit cantons of the desert was accomplished : they are
now occupied in agriculture and their old pastoral pursuits, and are
an industrious tax-paying race under their mdolent Rajpoot masters.

Raja Rad Sing led a gallant band of his.Rahtores in all the wars of
Akber. He was distinguished in the assault of Ahmedabad, slaying in
single combat the governor, Mirza Mohammed Hussein. The emperor,
who knew the value of such valorous subjects, strengthened the
connexion which already subsisted between the crown and the Rab-
tores, by obtaining for prince Selim (afterwards Jehangir) Rae Sing’s
daughter to wife. The unfortunate Purvez was the fruit of this
marriage.

Rae Sing was succeeded by his only son, Kurrun, in S. 1688
‘ (A.D. 1632). •

Kurrun held the ‘ munsub of two thousand/ and the government
of Doulatabad, in his father’s life-time. Being a supporter of the just
claims of Dara Sheko, a plot was laid by the general of his antagonist,
with whom he served, to destroy him, but which he was enabled to
defeat by the timely intelligence of the Hara prince of Boondl. He
died at Bikandr, leaving four sons : 1, PudmaSing; 2, Kesuri Sing;
3, Moliun Sing, and 4, Audp Sing.

This family furnishes another example of the prodigal sacrifice of
Rajpoot blood in the imperial service. The two elder princes were
slain in the storm of Beejipoor, and the tragical death of the third,
Moliun Sing, in the imperial camp, forms an episode in Ferishta’s
History of the Dekhan.

* The young desert chieftain, like all his tribe, would find matter for quarrel
in the wmd blowing in his face. Having received what he deemed an insult
from the brother-in-in-law of the Shazada, in. a dispute regarding a fawn, lio

166

ANNALS on BIKANER.

[CHAT.

I.

_ - / a i K74A "For the services of
Ab 6 p Sing succeeded in S. Adorn conferred upon him,

p»'

interference about his g ^ _ Sing and Snjaun Siug.

Blkanfir. He left two sons, Su P * did not long enjoy

Suroop, who succeeded m S. 7C l ^ recover Adorn, which the -
his honours, being ki JV fa thev’s leaving the army.
el “suiann stgThS successor, nothmg. ? The domestic

Zoorawur Sing b eca ™® ^eign^are without interest,

incidents of this, as of th P g i 7 46). Throughout a long

n ; qincr succeeded m b. ' bor der strife with the

Gu l f tatv-one yeavs, tins pr.nc» fOTmCT 1)6 t0 ° k

Site “d tie tSSf Cnipo^Mootalai, aod othev

Bajasiv, «h£ Khan he -covered th,

ho portent frontier castle of ^P8»' ’‘ consW e,'ab)e tract of entry

t0 piwent tto

the Daodjpotras* — : ;

the Daodpotl CIS. - - "T” , be p re sence-cbamber, in

appealed to Wj ^ “^Twas '

sSLSrsfass

“"^VT^re" 5SiSSB53 on , £ the ; ,o. = . * t, .

surrounded by n * . ‘ serving with their contm p ei , the murder of his

all the then, on the to* to their own

f a T ’ They all a greed to nb,.ndon the kwg^amy^oo^^. but in vain,
brother. I‘ ie y ° expostulate oy r rnve j the summary

homes. A l b at°the prince not only for f a J„ e J VstSi. and in a body had
He urged ‘“ at the Bab tore: they refused to listen, an d

“ k “Xoot, mil„i *h,» *• P™“ ■« J er S r 3 “i to the camp,
retired more tba tu ] al ; 0 ns overcoming them, y j fc is reC orded

concessions and P . tba6 the two elder Iwotbe combat. For

Itwas Rub ^Srothor, that lie slew on enomous ton in b ^ , , bc

^imi^h^'reM^ve^an^^^^^^^^'.^^L^h^dr^Abys^^ia^chieb whu 00 ^™'

Seisian.

CHAP, r.]

• ANNALS OP BIKANER. 1

167

Raja Guj had some celebrity from 'the number of his offspring,
having had sixty-one childreu, though all but six were the ‘ sons of
love/ The legitimates were, Chuttur Sing, who died in infancy ; Raj
Sing, who was poisoned by the mother of Soorut Sing, the reigning
prince; Soortan Sing and Ajib Sing, both of whom fled the paternal
roof to escape the fate of their elder brother, and are now at Jeipoor ;
Soorut Sing, Raja of Bikaner ; aud Siam Sing, who enjoys a small
appanage in Bikaner. . -

Raj Sing succeeded his father S. 1843 (A.D. 1787), but he enjoyed
the dignity only thirteen days, being removed by a dose of poison
by the mother* of Soorut Sing, the fifth son of Raja Guj. The
crown thus nefariously obtained, this worthy son of such a parent
determined to maintain his authority by like means, and to leave no
competitor to contest his claims. He has accordingly removed by
death or exile all who stood between him and the ‘ gadi of Beelca/

Raj Sing left two sons, Pertap Sing and Jey Sing. On the death
of Raj Sing, the office of regent, a word of ominous import in these
regions, was assumed by Soorut Sing, who, during eighteen months,
conducted himself with great circumspection, and by condescension
. and gifts impressed the chiefs in his favour. At length he broke his
plans to the chiefs of Mahajin and Bahaderan, whose acquiescence
in his usurpation he secured by additions to their estates. The
faithful Buklitawar Sing, whose family during four generations had
filled the office of Dewan, discovered the scheme, though too late to
counteract it, and the attempt was punished by imprisonment.
Prepared for the last step, the regent collected foreign troops from
Batinda and other parts, sufficient to overcome all opposition. The
infant prince was kept secluded; and at length the regent issued the
warrant in his own name for the nobles to assemble at the capital.
Except the two traitors enumerated, they to a man refused ; but
instead of combining to oppose him, they indolently remained at
their castles. Collecting all his troops, the usurper passed to Nohur,
where he enticed the chief of Bookurko to an interview, and lodged
him in the fortress of Nohur. Thence he passed to Ajitpoora, which
he plundered ; and advancing to Sankoo, he attacked it in form.
Doorjun Bing - defended himself with valour, and when reduced to
extremity, committed suicide. His heir was put in fetters, and a
fine of twelve thousand rupees was levied from the vassals of Sankoo.
The commercial town of Chooru was next attacked ; it held out six
months, when the 'confined chief of Bookurko, as the price of his
own freedom, treacherously offered to put the tyrant in possession.
He effected this, and a fine of nearly two lacs of rupees (£20,000)
was offered to spare the town from plunder.

By this act of severity, and the means it furnished, Sobrut returned
to Bikandr, determined to remove the only bar between him and
the crown, his pi’ince and nephew. In this he found some difficulty,

* She was the sister of the Jhulye chief, heir presumptive to the gadi o£
Jeipoor, on failure of lineal issue.

168

ANNALS OF BIKANER.

[CHAP. I.

from fcbe virtue and vigilance of bis sister, "who never lost sight, of
the infant. Frustrated in all attempts to circumvent her, and not
daring to blazon the murder by open violence, be invited tbe needy
Raja of Nirwar to make proposals for bis sister's band. In vain she
urged her advanced period of life; and in order to deter tbe suitor,
that sbe bad already been affianced to Rana Ursi of Mewar. All his
scruples vanished at tbe dower of three lacs, which tbe regent offered
tbe impoverished scion of tbe famous Raja Nala.* Her objections were
overruled and sbe was forced to submit; though sbe not only saw'
through her brother’s anxiety for her removal, but boldly charged
him with bis nefarious intentions. He was not content with dis-
avowing them, but at her desire gave her tbe most solemn assurances
of tbe cliild’s safety. Her departure was the signal of bis death ; for
not long after, he was found strangled, and it is said by the regent’s
own hands, having in vain endeavoured to obtain the offices of the
Mahajin chieftain as tbe executioner of his sovereign.

Thus, in one short year after the death of Raja Raj, the gcidi of
Beeka was dishonoured by beiug possessed by an assassin of his
prince. In S. 1857 (A.D. 1801), the elder brothers of the - usurper,
Soortan Sing and Ajib Siug, who had found refuge in Jeipoor,
repaired to Bhutnair and assembled the vassals of the disaffected
nobles and Bhattis in order to dethrone the tyrant. But the recol-
lection of his severities deterred some, while bribes kept back others,
and tbe usurper did not hesitate to advance to meet his foes. The
encounter, which took place at Beegore, was obstinate and bloody,
and three thousand Bhattis alone fell. This signal victory confirmed
Soorut’s usurpation. He erected a castle on the field of battle, which
he called Futtehgurh, ‘ the abode of victory.’

Flushed with this brilliant success, Soorut Sing determined to
make his authority respected both at home and abroad. He invaded
his turbulent countrymen, the Beedawuts, and levied fifty thousand
xaipees from their lands. Choorij, which had promised aid to the
late confederacy, was once more invested and mulcted, and various
other places were attacked ere they could join. But one solitary
castle was successfully defended, that of Oh’hani, near Bahaderan.
Here the usurper was foiled, and, after six months’ fruitless siege,
compelled to return to his capital.

Shortly after, he eagerly availed himself of an opportunity to
punish the excesses of the Daodpotras, and to.withdraw attention
from himself, by kindling a popular war against these powerful and
turbulent neighbours. The occasion was the Kerani chief of Tearoh
demanding his aid against his liege lord, Bhawul Khan. As these
border feuds are not extinguished even in these days of universal
peace, it may not be uninteresting to see the feudal muster-roll of

4 " The story of Ualaatid Dumyauti (or, JYul Dumun, as it is familiarly called
in tliese regions) is well known iu oriental literature. From Nal, the famed
castle of Nnrwar is named, of which this suitor for the baud of the Bikaner
princess -was deprived by Sindin.

CHAP. X.]

ANNALS OP BIKANER.

169

the desert chiefs on such occurrences, ss well as the mode in which
they carry on hostilities. It was very shortly before that victory
had preponderated on the side of the Rahtores by a gallant conp-de-
rnain of the lord marcher of Bikaner, who carried the castle of
Mozgurh in a midnight assault. The hero on this occasion was uot a
Rahtore, but a Bhatti chief, in the service of Bikaner, named Hindh.
Siug, who gained ‘ immortality-’ by the style in which he scaled the
walls, put Mahomed Maroop Kerani, the governor, and the garrison
to the sword, and brought away captive to Bikaner the governor's
wife, who was afterwards ransomed for five thousand rupees and
four hundred camels.

The outlaw who sought sirna at Bikaner, on this occasion, was
of the same tribe, Kerani, his nafhe Khodabuksh ( c gift of god'),
chief of Tearoli, one of the principal fiefs of the Daodpotras. With
all his retainers, to the amount of three hundred horse and five
hundred foot, he threw himself on the protection of Soorut Sing, who
assigned him twenty villages, and one hundred rupees daily for his
support. The Keranis were the most powerful vassals of Bhawul
Khan, who might have paid dear for the resumption of Tearoh, whose
chief promised the Rajpoot nothing less than to extend his conquests
to the Indus. Allured by this bait, the hher was proclaimed and the
sons of Beeka assembled from all quarters.

Horse. Foot. Guns.

Abhye Sing, chief of... Bookurko. 300 2,000

Rao Ram Sing, of...Poogul 100 400

-T-T- » • * ^ f -T-» • O -t H n

Hatti Sing, of...Ranair 8 150

Kurrun Sing, of . . . Suttasir. . . 9 150

Anop Sing Jussaroh... 40 250

Khdt Sing Jemunsir.. 60 350

Bheni Sing, of... Jangloo.... 9 250

Bhom Sing, of.. .Beetnoke.. 2 61

Feudal Retainers 528

Park under Muji Purihar —

Foreign Brigade fKhasPaega, or household troop... 200

In the° -< Camp of Gunga Sing 200

• Raja’s Service. ( Bo. of Doorjun Sing 60

''Anoka Singh 300

Laori Sing > Sikh chieftains — 250
Auxiliary Levies. J Bood Sing J 250

400

3,611

1,500

600

21

4

4

Total 2,188 5,711 29

The command-in-chief of this brilliant array was conferred on
Jaitroh Matoh, son of the Dewan. On the 13th of Magh 1856
(spring of 1800) he broke ground, and the feudal levies fell in on
[Von. II.] 22

170

ANNALS or BIKANER.

[chap. r.

tlie march by Kunasir, Rajasir, Kaili, Rauair, and Andpgurh, the last
point of rendezvous. Thence he proceeded by Seogurh,* Mozgurh,
and Phoolrn, all of -which were taken after a few weeks' siege, and
from the last they levied a lac and a quarter of rupees, with other
valuables, and nine guns. They advanced to Kbyrpoor, within three
miles of the Indus, when being joined by other refractory chiefs,
Jnitroh marched direct on the capital, Bhawnlpore, within a short
distance of winch he encamped preparatory to the attack. The
Khan, however, by this delay, was enabled to detach the most con-
siderable of his nobles from the Rajpoot standard : on which the
Bikaner Dewan, satisfied with the honour of having insulted Bhawul-
poi’e, retreated with the spoils he had acquired. He was received
by the usurper with contempt, and degraded for not fighting.

The Bhattis, smarting with the recollection of their degradation,
two years after the battle of Beegoi-e attempted the invasion of
Bikaner, but were again repulsed with loss; and these skirmishes
continued until S. 1S61 (AD. 1805), when Raja Soorut attacked the
Khan of the Bhattis in his capital, Bhutnair. It capitulated after a
siege of six months, when Zabta Khan, with his garrison and effects,
was permitted to retire to Rhania, since which this place has
remained an appanage of Bikandr.

The coalition against Jodpoor was ruinous to Soorut, who sup-
ported the cause of the Pretender, on which the usurper expended
twenty-four lacs of rupees, nearly five years' revenue of this desert
region. On this occasion, he led all his troops in person against
Jodpoor, aud united in the siege, which they were however compelled
to abandon with dishonour, and retrograde to their several abodes.
In consequence of this, the usurper fell sick, and was at the last
extremity ; nay, the ceremonies for the dead were actually com-
menced ; but he recovered, to the grief and misery of his subjects.
To supply an exhausted treasury, his extortions know-no bounds ;
and having cherished the idea that he might compound his past sins
by rites and gifts to the priests, he is surrounded by a group of
avaricious Brahmins, who are maintained in luxury at the expense
of his subjects. His cruelty keeps pace with his avarice an,d his
fears. The chief of Bookurko he put to death, notwithstanding his
numerous services. Nahur Sing of Seedmookh, Gyan Smg°and
Goman Sing of Gundaili, amongst the chief feudatories of the state,
shared the same fate. Choovu was invested a third time, and with
its chief, fell into the tyrant's hands.

With this system of terror, his increasing superstition, and dimin-
ished. attention to public duties, the country is annually deteriorat-
ing in population and wealth ; and as if they had not misery
enough within, they have not had a single good season for years.f
Owing to the disobedience of the northern chiefs, and the continual

x Its former name was Bullnr, 021 c of the most ancient cities of the de&eit, as
is Plioolra, a Joliya possession.

t This account -was drawn up in 1814.

OHAP. I.]

ANNAES or BIKANER.

171

incursions of tbe Raids , or ‘’Bhatti robbers/ who sweep tbe land of
cattle, and often cut and carry off entire crops', tbe peasant Jit, tbe
ancient lord of tbe soil, is often left to tbe alternative of starvation
or emigration. Many have consequently sought shelter in tbe
British frontier territories, in Hansi and Heriaua, where they are
kindly x’eceived. Since tbe English have occupied Sirsah and tbe
lands belonging to tbe Bbatti Babader Khan, tbe misfortunes of tbe
cultivators of tbe northern parts of Bikaner have been donbled by
tbe inrpads of a band left without resource. In some parts, tbe Jits
combine to protect themselves against these inroads : every hamlet
has its post of defence, a tower of earth, on which is perched a
watchman and kettle-drum, to beat the alarum, which is taken up
from village to village, and when an enemy is discovered, all are in
arms to defend their property. The unfortunate Jit is obliged to
plough his fields under the load of shield and sang, or heavy iron
lance ; so that, at no distant period, the whole of this region must
become as desolate as the tracts once possessed by the Johyas.*

Such, at the end of three hundred and twenty-three years, is the
change which a Rajpoot usurper has effected in the once com-
paratively populous communities of the Jits. From the founder,
Beeka, to the present tyrannical governor, there have been only
eleven descents though thirteen reigns, giving an average of thirty
years for the one, and twenty -five for the other : a fact which speaks
-forcibly for the general morality of the descendants of Beeka.

Before we enter on the physical aspect of the country, we must
make mention ofBeedavati, the lands of ‘ the sons ofBeeda/now an
integral portion of Bikandr. It will be borne in mind that Beeda,
the brother of Beeka, led the first Rajpoot colony from Mundore, in
search of a fresh establishment. His first attempt was in the pro-
vince of Godwar, then belonging to the Rana : but his reception
there was so warm, that he moved northward, and was glad to
take service with the chief of the Mohils. This ancient tribe
is by some termed a branch of the Yadus, but is by others
considered a separate race, and one of the ‘ thirty-six royal
races all are agreed as to its antiquity. The residence of the
Mohil chief was Chaupur, where, with the title of Thalcoor,
he ruled over one hundred and forty townships. Beeda deemed
circumvention better than open force to effect his purposes ; and as,
according to the Rajpoot maxim, in all attempts ‘ to obtain land/
success hallows the meaus, he put in train a scheme which, as it
affords the least cause for suspicion, has often been used for this
object. Beeda became the medium of a matrimonial an’angement
between the Mohil chief and the prince of Marwar ; and as the rela-
tion and natural guardian of the bride, he conveyed the nuptial train
unsuspected into the castle of the Mohils, whose, chiefs were assembled

* "While putting this to the press, rumour says that the chiefs of Bikan6r aro
in open rebellion against tho Baja, who has applied, but without success, to the
British Government for support. This, if true, is as it should be.

[Von. II.] 22a

172

ANNALS OF BIKANER.

[cHAI*. I.

to honour the festivities. But instead of the Bahtore fair and
her-hand of maidens, the valorous sons of Joda rushed sword in hand
from the litters and covered vehicles, and treacherously cut off the
best men of Mohilla. They kept possession of the inner fortress
until tidings of their success brought reinforcements from Jodpoor.
For this aid, Beeda assigned to his fathei', Ladnoo and its twelve
villages, now incorporated with Jodpoor. The son of Beeda, Tez Sing,
laid the foundation of a new capital, which he called after his father,
Beedasir. The community of the Beedawttts is the most powerful in
Bikaudr, whose priuce is obliged to be satisfied with almost nominal
marks of supremacy, and to restrict his demands, which are else-
where unlimited. The little region of theMohillas, around the ancient
capital Chaupur, is an extensive flat, flooded in the periodical rains
from the surrounding teebas or ‘ sand-hills/ the soil of which is excel-
lent, even wheat being abundantly produced. This Oasis, as it is
entitled to be termed, may he twenty-five miles (twelve coss) in
extreme length, by about six in broadth. We cannot affirm that the
entire Beedawut district of one hundred and forty villages, aud to
which is assigned a population of forty thousand to fifty thousand
souls, one-third beiug Bahtores, ‘ the sons of Beeda’ is within this
flat. It is subdivided into twelve fiefs, of which five are pre-eminent.
Of the ancient possessors, the indigenous Mohils, there are not more
than twenty families throughout the land of Mohilla ; the rest are
chiefly Jit agriculturists and the mercantile castes.

We do the sons of Beeda no injustice when we style them a com-
munity of plunderers. Like the sons of Esau, “their hand is against
“ every man and they are too powerful to fear retaliation. In
foriner times they used to unite with the Larkhauis, another horde
of robbers, and cany their raids into the most populous parts of Jei-
poor. In these habits, however, they only partake of the character
common to all who inhabit desert regions. What nature has denied
them, they wrest from those to whom she has been more bountiful.
But it is to the absence of good government more than to natural
sterility, that we must attribute the moral obliquity of the Raja-
putras , ‘ the offspring of regality,’ spi’e ad over these extensive regions,
who little discriminate between meum and tuum, in all that refers to
their neighbours.

CHAP. XI.]

ANNALS OP BIKANER.

173

CHAPTER II.

Actual condition and capabilities of Bikaner. — Causes of its deterioration . —
Extent. — Population. — Jits. — Saraswafi Brahmins. — Charuns. — Mallis and
Naes. — Chooras and Thaories. — Rajpoots. — Face of the country. — Grain and
vegetable productions. — Implements of husbandry . — Water. — Halt lakes. — Local
physiognomy. — Mineral productions. — Unctuous clay. — Animal productions . —
Commerce and Manufactures. — Fait s. — Government and revenues. — The fisc.
— Dhooah,orhearth-tax. — Anya, or capitation-tax. — Sayer, or imposts. — Pusaeti ,
or plouyh-tax. — Malbah, or ancient land-tax. — Extraordinary and irregular
resources. — Feudal levies. — Household troops.

This region is but little known to Europeans, by whom it has
hitherto been supposed to be a perfect desert, unworthy of examina-
tion. Its present condition bears little comparison with what tradi-
tion reports it to have been in ancient times ; and its deterioration,
within three centuries since tliQ Rajpoots supplanted the Jits, almost
warrants our belief of the assertion, that these deserts were once fer-
tile and populous ,• nay, that they are still capable (notwithstanding -
the reported continual increase of the sand) to maintain an abundant
population, there is little room to doubt. The princes of Bikaner
used to take the field at the head of ten thousand of their kindred
retainers ; and although they held extraordinaiy grants from the
empire for the maintenance of these contingents, their ability to do so
from their proper resources was undoubted. To other causes than
positive sterility must be attributed the wretched condition of
this state. Exposed to the continual attacks of organized bands of
robbers from without, subjected internally to the never-ending
demands of a rapacious government, for which they have not a shadow
of advantage in return, it would be strange if aught but progressive
decay and wretchedness were the consequence. In three centuries,
more than one-half of the villages, which either voluntarily or by
force submitted to the rule of the founder, Beeka, are now without
memorial of their existence, and the rest are gradually approximat-
ing to the same condition. Commercial caravans, which passed
through this state and enriched its treasury with the transit duties,
have almost ceased to frequent it fi’om the increasing insecurity of
its territory. Besides the personal loss to the prince, the country
suffers from the deterioration of the commercial towns of Choorti,
Rajgurh , and Rinnie, which, as entrepots, supplied the country with
the productions of Sinde and the provinces to the westward, or those
of Gangetic India. Nor is this confined to Bikaner ; the same cause
affects Jessulmer, and the more eastern principalities, whose mis-
government, equally with Bikaner, fosters the spirit of rapine:
the Maldotes of Jessulmer and the Larkhanis of Jeipoor are as
notorious as the Beedawuts of Bikaner; and to these may be added
. the Sahr&es, Khosas, and Rajuvs, in the more western desert, who,
in their habits and principles, are as demoralized as the Bedouins of
Arabia.

174

ANNALS OV B1KANEK.

[CHAP. II.

Extent . — Population. — Soil. — Tertian or Sand-hills. — The Hue of
greatest breadth of this stale extends from Poogul to Rajgurh, and
measures about one hundred and eighty miles ; while the length
from north to south, between Bhutnair and Mahajin, is about one
hundred and sixty miles : the area may not exceed twenty-two
thousand miles. Formerly they reckoned two thousand seven hun-
dred towns, villages, and hamlets scattered over this space, one-half
of which are no longer in existence.

An estimate of the population of this arid region, without pre-
senting some data, would be very unsatisfactory. The tract to the
north-west of Jaetpoor is now perfectly desolate, and nearly so from
that point to Bhutnair : to the north-east, the population is but
scanty, which observation also applies to the parts from the meridian
of Bikaner to the Jessulmdr frontier ; while internally, from these
points, it is more uniform, and equals the northern parts of Marwar,
From a census of the twelve principal towns, with an estimate,
furnished by well-informed inhabitants, of the remainder, we may
obtain a tolerably accurate approximation on this point.

Chief Towns. No. of Houses.

Bikaner 12,000

Nohur 2,500

Bahaderan 2,500

Binnie 1,500

Rajgurh 3,000

Choord 3,000

Mahajin 800

Jaetpoor 1,000

Beedasir 500

Ruttungurh 1,000

Daismookh 1,000

Senthal 50

28,850

100 villages, each having 200 houses 20,000

100 Ditto 150 ditto ... 15,000

200 Ditto 100 ditto ... 20,000

800 hamlets 30 each . 24,000

Total number of houses... 107,850

Allowing five souls to each house, we have a total of 539,250 souls,
giving an average of twenty-five to the square mile, which I cannot
think exaggerated, and making the desert regions depending on
Blkandr equal, in the density of population, the highlands of Scot-
land.

Of this population, full three-fourths are the aboriginal Jits : the
rest are their conquerors, descendants of Beeka, including the Sarsote

CHAP. II.]

ANNALS OP BIKANER.

175

Brahmins, Charuns, Bards, and a few of the debased classes, whose
numbers, conjointly, are not one-tenth of the Rajpoots.

Jits . — The Jits are the most wealthy as well as the most numer-
ous portion of the community. Many of the old Bhomia landlords,
representatives of their ancient communal heads, are men of sub-
stance ; but their riches are of no use to them, and to avoid the
rapacity of their government, they cover themselves with the cloak
of povertj 7 , which is thrown aside only on nuptial festivities. On
these occasions they disinter their hoards, which are lavished with
unbounded extravagance. They even block up the highways to
collect visitors, whose numbers form the measure of the liberality
and munificence of the donor of the fete.

Sarsote (properly Sarasvati ) Brahmins are found in consider-
able numbers throughout this tract. They aver that they were masters
of the country prior to the Jit colonists. They are a peaceable,
industrious race, and without a single prejudice of ‘ the order they
eat meat, smoke tobacco, cultivate the soil, and trade even in the
sacred kine, notwithstanding their descent from Siugiricsha,'son of
Brahma.

Oharuns . — The Charuns are the sacred order of these regions ; the
warlike tribes esteem the heroic lays of the bard more than the
homily of the Brahmin. The Charuns are throughout reverenced
by the Rah tores, and hold lands, literally, on the tenure of f an old
song."’ More will be said of them in the Aunals of Jessulmer.

Mollis, Noes, gardeners and barbers, are important members of
every Rajpoot family, and to be found in all the villages, of which
they are invariably the cooks.

Ghooras, Thaoris, are actually castes of robbers : the former, from
the Lakhi Jungle ; the latter, from Mewar. Most of the chieftains
have a few in their pay, entertained for the most desperate services.
-The Bahaderan chief has expelled all his Rajpoots, and retains only
Chooras and Thaoris. The Chooras are highly esteemed for fidelity,
and the barriers and portals throughout this tract are in their custody.
They enjoy a very singular perquisite, which would go far to pi’ove
their being the aborigines of the country ; namely, a fee of four
copper coins on every dead subject, when the funeral ceremonies are
over.

Rajpoots . — The Rahtores of Bikaner are unchanged in their martial
qualifications, bearing as high a reputation as any other class in
India; and whilst their brethren of Marwar, Amber, and Mewar,
have been for years groaning under the rapacious visitations of
Mahrattas and Patfflans, their distance and the difficulties of the
cou n try have saved them from such afflictions : though, in truth,
they have had enough to endure at home, in the tyranny of their
own lord. The Rahtores of the desert have fewer prejudices than
their more eastern brethren ; they will eat food, without enquiring
by whom it was dressed, and will. drink either wine or water, with-
out asking to whom the cup belonged. They would make the best

174

ANNALS OF BIKANEE.

[CHAP. II.

Extent. — Population. — Soil. — Teelas or Sand-hills . — Tile line of
greatest breadth of this state extends from Poogul to Eajgurh, and
measures about one hundred and eighty miles ; -while the length
from north to south, between Bhutnair and Mabajin, is about one
hundred and sixty miles : the area may not exceed twenty-two
thousand miles. Formerly they reckoned two thousand seven hun-
dred towns, villages, and hamlets scattered over this space, one-half
of which are no longer in existence.

An estimate of the population of this arid region, without pre-
senting some data, would be very unsatisfactory. The tract to the
north-west of Jaetpoor is now perfectly desolate, and nearly so from
that point to Bhutnair : to the north-east, the population is but
scanty, which observation also applies to the parts from the meridian
of Bikaner to the Jessulmdr frontier ; while internally, from these
points, it is more uniform, and equals the northern parts of Marwar.
From a census of the twelve principal towns, with an estimate,
furnished by well-informed inhabitants, of the remainder, we may
obtain a tolerably accurate approximation on this point.

Chief Towns. No. of Houses.

Bikaner 12,000

Nohur 2,500

Bahaderan 2,500

Kinnie 1,500

Eajgurh 8,000

Choorh 3,000

Mahajin 800

Jaetpoor 1,000

Beedasir ' 500

Ruttungurh 1,000

Daismookh 1,000

Senthal 50

28,850

100 villages, each having 200 houses 20,000

100 Ditto 150 ditto ... 15,000

200 Ditto 100 ditto ... 20,000

800 hamlets 30 each . . . . ‘ 24,000

Total number of houses... 107,850

. Allowing five souls to each house, we have a total of 539,250 souls,
giving an average of twenty-five to the squai-e mile, which I cannot
think exaggerated, and making the desert regions depending on
Bikandr equal, in the density of population, the highlands of Scot-
land.

Of this population, full three-fourths are the aboriginal Jits : the
rest are their conquerors, descendants of Beeka, including the Sarsote

CHAP. II.]

ANNALS OF BIKANER.

175

Brahmins, Charuns, Bards, and a few of the debased classes, whose
numbers, conjointly, are not one-tenth of the Rajpoots.

Jits . — The Jits are the most wealthy as well as the most numer-
ous portion of the community. Many of the old Bhomia landlords,
representatives of their ancient communal heads, are men of sub-
stance; but their riches are of no use to them, and to avoid the
rapacity of their government, they cover themselves with the cloak
of poverty, which is thrown aside only on nuptial festivities. On
these occasions they disinter their hoards, which are lavished with
unbounded extravagauce. They even block up the highways to
collect visitors, whose numbers form the measure of the liberality
and munificence of the donor of the fete.

Sarsote (properly Sarasvati) Brahmins are found in consider-
able numbers throughout this tract. They aver that they were masters
of the country prior to the Jit colonists. They are a peaceable,
industrious race, and without a single prejudice of ' the order ; ; they
eat meat, smoke tobacco, cultivate the soil, and trade even in the
sacred kine, notwithstanding their descent from Singiricsha,*son of
Brahma.

Gharuns . — The Charuns are the sacred order of these regions ; the
warlike tribes esteem the heroic lays of the bard more than the
homily of the Brahmin. The Charuns are throughout reverenced
by the Rah tores, and hold lands, literally, on the tenure of ‘ an old
song/ More will be said of them in the Annals of Jessulmer.

Mallis, NaeSj gardeners and barbers, are important members of
evei-y Rajpoot family, and to be found in" all the villages, of which
they ai’e invariably the cooks.

Chooras, Tkaoris, are actually castes of robbers : the former’, from,
the Lakhi Jungle; the latter, from Mewar, Most of the chieftains
have a few in their pay, entertained for the most desperate services.
/The Bahaderan chief has expelled all his Rajpoots, and retains only
Chooras and Thaoris. The Chooras are highly esteemed for fidelity,
and the barrier’s and portals throughout this tract are in their custody.
They enjoy a very singular perquisite, which would go far to prove
their being the aborigines of the country ; namely, a fee of four
copper coins on every dead subject, when the funeral ceremonies ai’e -
over.

Rajpoots . — The Rahtores of Bikaner are unchanged in their martial
qualifications, bearing as high a reputation as any other class in
India; and whilst their brethren of Marwar, Amber, and Mewar,
have been for years groaning under the rapacious visitations of
Mahrattas and PaPhans, their distauce and the difficulties of the
country have saved them from such afflictions : though, in truth,
they have had enough to endure at home, in the tyranny of their
own lord. The Rahtores of the desert have fewer prejudices than
their more eastern brethren ; they will eat food, without enquiring
by whom it was dressed, and will.driuk either wine or water, with-
out asking to whom the cup belonged. They would make the best

176

ANNALS OF BIKANER.

' [CHAP. II.

soldiers in the world if they would submit to discipline, as they are
brave, hardy, easily satisfied, and very patient ; though, on the other
hand, they have imbibed some qualities, since their migration to
these regions, which cuuld only be eradicated in the rising generation :
especially the inordinate use of opium, and smoking intoxicating
herbs, in both which accomplishments ‘ the sons of Beeka’ are said
to bear the palm from the rest of the Ghatees raj cut a, the thirty-six
royal tribes of India. Th e piald, or f cup/ is a favourite with every
Rajpoot who can afford it, and is, as well as opium, a pnuacea for
ennui, arising from the absence of all mental stimulants, in which
they are more deficient, from the nature of the country, than most
of their warlike countrymen.

Face of the country. — The whole of this principality, with the
exception of a few isolated spots, or oases, scattered here and there,
consists more or less of sand. Prom the easteim to the western
boundary, in the line of greatest breadth, it is one continuous plain
of sand, though the teehas, of sand-hills, commence in the centre of
the country, the principal chain running in the direction of Jessul-
mer, and shooting forth subordinate branches iu every direction ; or
it might be more correct to designate this main ridge, originating in
the tracts bordering the eastern valley of the Indus, as terminating
its elevations about the heart of Bikandr. On the north-east quarter,
from Rajgurli to Noliur and Raotsir, the soil is good, being black
earth, slightly mixed with sand, and having water near enough to
the surface for irrigation ; it produces wheat., gram, and even rice, in
considerable quantities. The same soil exists from Bhutnnir to the
banks of the Gai-ah. The whole of the Mohilla tract is a fertile
oasis, the teebas just terminating their extreme offsets on its northern
limit : being flooded in the periodical rains, wheat is abundantly
produced.

But exclusive of such spots, which are ” few and far between/’
we cannot describe the desert as a waste where “ no salutary plant
“ takes root, no verdure quickens;” for though the poverty of the
soil refuses to aid the germination of the more luxuriant grains,
Providence has provided a countervailing good, in giving to those it
canrear arichness and supei'iority unknown to m ore favoured regions.
The bajra of the desert is far superior to any grown in the rich loam
of Malwa, and its inhabitant retains an instinctive partiality, even
when admitted to revel in the luxurious repasts of Mewar or Amber,
for the bhaiotis, or f bajra cakes,’ of his native sand hills, and not
more from association than from their intrinsic excellence. In a
plentiful season, they save enough for two years’ consumption. The
grain requires not much water, though it is of the last importance
that this little should be timely.

Besides bajra, we may mention mot’h and til ; the former a useful
pulse both for men and cattle ; the other the oil-plant, used both for
culinary purposes and burning. Wheat, gram, and barley, are pro-
duced in the favoured spots described, but in these are enumerated
the staple products of Bikaner.

CHAP. II.]

ANNALS OF BIKANRR. '

177

Cotton is grown in the tr.icts favourable for wheat. The plant is
said to be septennial, even decennial, in these regions. As soon as
the cotton is gathered, the shoots are all cut off, and the root alone
left. Each succeeding year, the plant increases in strength, and at
leugth attains a size unknown where it is more abundantly cultivated.

Nature lias bountifully supplied many spontaneous vegetable
products for the use of man, and excellent pasture for cattle. Gowar ,
Katchri , Knhree, all of the cucurbitaceous family, and water-melons
of a gigantic size, are produced in great plenty. The latter is most
valuable ; for being cut iu slices and dried in the sun, it is stored up
for future use when vegetables are scarce, or in times of famine, on
which they always calculate. It is also an article of commerce, and
much admired even where vegetables are more abundant. The
copious mucilage of the dried melon is extremely nourishing ; and
deeming it valuable as an antiscorbutic iu sea-voyages, the author
sent some of it to Calcutta many years ago for experiment.* Our
Indian ships would find no difficulty in obtaining a plentiful supply of
this article, as it can be cultivated to any extent, and thus be made to
confer a double benefit, on our seamen and the inhabitants of those
desert regions. The superior magnitude of the water-melons of the
desert over those of interior India gives rise to much exaggeration,
and it has been gravely asserted by travellers in tlie sand iccbas, f
where they are most abundant, that the mucilage of one is suffi-
cient to allay the thirst both of a horse and his rider.

In these arid regions, where they depend entirely on the heavens
for water, and where they calculate on a famine every seventh year,
nothing that can administer to the wants of man is lost. The seeds
of the wild grapes, as the bhoorut, buroo, herraro , sewun , are col-
lected, and, mixed with frayra-flour, enter much into the food of the
poorer classes. They also store up great quantities of the wild her,
Ithyr , aud Jcharil berries ; and the long pods of the Icaijrd , astringent
and bitter as they are, are dried aud formed into a flour. Nothing
is lost in these regions which can be converted into food.

Trees they have none indigenons (mangoes aud tamarind are
planted about the capital), but abundant shrubs, as the babool, and
ever-green peeloo , the jhal, and others yieldiug berries. The Beeda-
wuts, indeed, apply the term e tree/ to the rocurci, which sometimes
attains the height of twenty feet, and is transported to all parts for
house-building, as likewise is the nhna, so well known throughout
India. The p’hoJc is the most useful of all these, as with its twigs
they frame a wicker-work to line their wells, and prevent the sand
from falling in.

The dk } a species of euphorbia, known in Hindustan as the madar ,

3 sent specimens to Mr. Moorcroft so for back as 18111, but never learned
tbe result. — See Article “ On tbc Preservation of Food,” Edin. Beview, 3\o. 45,
p. 115.

t Mr. Barrow, iu bis valuable work on Southern Africa, desci ibes the water-
melon as self-sown and abundant.

[Vor.. II.]

23

178

ANNALS OP BIKANER.

[CHAP. II.

grows to an immense height and strength in the desert ; from its
fibres they make the ropes in general use throughout these regions,
and they are reckoned superior, both in substance and durability/to
those formed of moonj (hemp)/ which is however cultivated in the
lands of the Beedawuts.

Their agricultural implements are simple and suited to the soil.
The plough is one of single yoke, either for the camel or ox : that with
double yoke being seldom required, or chiefly by the mallis
(gardeners), when the soil is of some consistence. The drill is invari-
ably used, aud the grains are dropped singly into the ground, at
some distance from each other, and each sends foi’th a dozen to
twenty stalks. A bundle of bushes forms their harrow. The grain
is trodden out by oxen ; and the mot’h (pulse), which is even more
productive than the bajra, by camels.

Water . — This indispensable element is at an immense distance
from the surface throughout the Indian desert, which, in this respect,
as well as many others, differs very materially from that portion of
the great African desert in the same latitudes. Water at twenty-
feet, as found at Mourzook by Captain Lyon, is here unheard-of, and
the degree of cold experienced by him at Zuela, on the winter sol-
stice, would have “ burnt up” every natural and cultivated produc-
tion of our Hindu Seharra. Captain Lyon describes the thermometer
in lat. 26°, within 2° of zero of Reaumur. Majors Denham and Clap-
perton never mark it under 40° of Fahrenheit, and mention ice, which
I never saw but once, the thermometer being 28° ; and then not only
the mouths of our mushihs, or ‘ water-skins/ were frozen, but a
small pond, protected from the wind (I heard, for I saw it not),
exhibited a very thin pellicle of ice. When at 30° the cold was
deemed intense by the inhabitants of Maroo in the tracts limiting
the desert, and the useful dJt, and other shrubs, were scorched and
withered; and in north lat. 25°, the thermometer being 28°, desola-
tion and woe spread throughout the land. To use their own phrase,
the crops of gram and other pulses were completely “ burnt up, as
” if scorched by the lightnings of heaven •/’ while the sun's meridian
heat would raise it 50° more, or up to 80°, a degree of variability at
least not recorded by Captain Lyon.

At Daisuok’h, near the capital, the wells are more than two hun-
dred cubits, or three hundred feet, in depth ; and it is rare that
water fit for man is found at a less distance from the surface than
sixty, in the tracts decidedly termed t’hul, or ' desert though some
of the flats, or oases, such as that of Mohilla, are exceptions, and
abundance of brackish water, fit for cattle, is found throughout at
half this depth, or about thirty feet. All the wells are lined with
basket-work made of p’hok twigs, and the water is generally drawn
up by hand-lines.*

* Water is sold, in nil the largo towns, by the mallis, or ‘gardeners,' who
have the monopoly of this article. Most families have largo cisterns or reser-

CHAP. II.]

ANNALS OP BIKANER.

179

Sirr, or ‘salt lakes ,’ — There are a few salt lakes, which, thronghout
the whole of the Indian desert, are termed sirr, though none are of
the same consequence as those of Marwar. The largest js at the
town of Sirr, so named after the lake, which is about six miles in
circumference. There is another at Cbaupur about two miles iu
length, and although each of them frequently contains a depth of
four feet of water, this entirely evaporates in the hot winds, leaving
a thick sheet of saline incrustation. The salt of both is deemed of
inferior quality to that of the more southerly lakes.

Physiognomy of the country. — There is little to vary the physiog-
nomy of this region, and small occasion to. boast either of its
physical or moral beauties ; yet, strange to say, I have met with
many whose love of country was stronger than their perceptions of
abstract veracity, who would dwell on its perfections, and prefer a
mess of rabri x or porridge made of bajra,, to the greater delicacies of
more civilized regions. To such, the teebas, or ‘ sand-ridges,’ might
be more important than the Himalaya, and their diminutive and
scanty brushwood might eclipse the gigantic foliage of this huge
barrier. Verdure itself may be abhorrent to eyes accustomed to
behold only arid sands ; and a region without tofdns or ‘ whirlwinds/
or armies of locusts rustling like a tempest, and casting long shadows
on the lands, might be deemed by the prejudiced, deficient in the
true sublime. Occasionally the sand-stone formation rises above the
surface, resembling a few low isolated hills ; and those who dwell on
the boundaries of Nagore, if they have a love of more decided ele-
vations than their native sand-hills afford, may indulge in a distant
view of the terminations of the Aravulli.

Mineral productions . — The mineral productions of this country
are scanty. They have excellent quarries of freestone in several
parts, especially at Husairah, thirteen coss to the north-east of the
capital, which yield a small revenue estimated at two thousand
rupees annually. There are also copper mines at Beerumsir and
Beedasir ; but the former does not repay the expense of working,
and the latter, having been worked for thirty years, is nearly
exhausted.

An uuctuous clay is excavated from a pit, near Kolat’h, in large
quantities, and exported as an article of commerce, besides adding
fifteen hundred rupees annually to the treasury. It is used chiefly
to free the skin and hair from impurities, and the Outchie ladies are
said to eat it to improve their complexions.

Animal ‘productions . — The kine of the desert are highly
esteemed;. as are (he camels, especially those used for expedition

voirs, called tunicas, which are filled iu the rainy season. They are of masonry,
■wir.h n small l.rap-door at the ton. made t.o exclude the external air, and having
a lock and key affixed. Some large tankas are established for the community,
and l understand this water keeps sweet for eigb t and twelve months’ consump-
tion.

[Vox,. II.]

23a

180

ANNALS OF BIKANER.

[CHAP. II.

and tlie saddle, winch bear a high price,* and are considered
superior fco any in India. They are beautifully formed, and the head
possesses much blood and symmetry. Sheep are reared in great
abundance, and find no want of food in the excellent grasses and
shrubs which abound. The p’hok, joiuas, and other prickly shrubs,
which are here indigenous, form the dainties of the camel in other
regions. The Nilgai, or elk, and deer of every kind, are plentiful ;
and the fox of the desert is a beautiful little animal. Jackals and
hymnas are not scarce, and even lions are by no means unknown in
Bikaner.

Commerce and Manufactures. — Rajgurh was the great com-
mercial mart of this country, and the point of rendezvous for caravans
from all parts. The produce of the Punjab and Cashmere came
formerly direct by Hansi-Hisar, — that of the eastern countries by
Dehli, Rewan’i,Dadri, &c.,consistingof silks, fine cloths, indigo, sugar,
iron, tobacco, &c . ; from Harouti and Malwa came opium, which
supplied all the Rajpoot states ; from Sinde, vid Jessnlmdr, and by
caravans from Mooltan and Shikarpoor, dates, wheat, rice, loongees
(silk vestments for women), fruits, &c. ; from Palli, the imports from
maritime countries, as spices, tin, drugs, coco-nuts, elephants 5 teeth,
&c. Much of this was for internal consumption, but the greater part
a mere transit trade, which yielded considerable revenue.

Woollens. — The wool of the sheep pastured in the desert is, how-
ever, the staple commodity both of manufacture and trade in this
region. It is worked into every at tide of dress, both male and
female, and worn by all, rich and poor. It is produced from the
loom, of every texture and quality, from the coarse looie or ‘blanket , 5
at three rupees per pair (six shillings), to thirty rupees. The quality
of these last is very fine, of an intermediate texture between the
shawl and camlet,' and without any nap : it is always bordered with a
stripe of chocolate brown or red. Of this quality are the do-patis or
* scarfs 5 for the ladies. Turbans are also manufactured of it, and
though frequently from forty to sixty-one feet in length, such is the
fineness of the web, that they are not bulky on the head.

Prom the milk of the sheep and goats as well as kine, ghee or
‘ clarified butter 5 is made, and forms an important article of trade.

Manufactures in Iron. — The Bikaneris work well in iron, and
have shops at the capital and all the large towns for the manufacture
of sword-blades, matchlocks, daggers, iron lances, & c. The sword-
handles, which are often inlaid with variegated steel, or burnished,
are in high request, and exported to various parts of India. They
have also expert artists in ivory, though the articles are chiefly such
as are worn by females, as chooris, or ‘ bracelets . 5
* Coarse cotton cloths, for internal consumption, are made in con-
siderable quantities.

* One thousaud rupees have been given for one ; one hundred is the average
value. ' "

CHAP. ir.J

ANNALS OF BIKANER.

181

Fairs. — Annual fairs were held, in the months of Kartilc and
Phalgoon, at the towns of Kolat’h and Gujnair, and frequented by
the merchants of the adjacent countries. They were celebrated for
cattle, chiefly the produce of the • desert, camels, kine, and horses
from Mooltan and the Lakhi Jungle, a breed now almost extinct.
These fairs have lost all their celebrity : in fact, commerce in these
regions is extinct.

Government revenues. — The personal revenues of the Raja were
derived from a variety of sources : from the Khalisa , or ‘ crown-lands'
imposts, taxes on agriculture, and that compendious item which makes
up the deficiencies in all oriental budgets, dind, or ‘ contribution/
But with all these “ appliances and means to boot," the civil list of
this desert king seldom exceeded five lacs of rupees, or about £50,000
per annum. The lands of the feudality are more extensive pi'opor-
tionally in this region than in any other in Rajpootana., arising out
of the original settlement, when the Beedawuts and Kandulotes,
whose joint acquisitions exceeded those of Beeka, would noo admit
him to hold lands in their territory, and made but a slight pecuniary
acknowledgment of his supremacy. The districts in which the crown
lands lie are Rajgnrh, Rinnie, Nohur, Garib, Ruttengurb, Ranniah,
and more recently Choonj.

The following are the items of the revenue : — 1st, Khalisa, or
fiscal revenue ; 2d, Dhoodh ; 3d, Angah ; 4th, Town and transit
duties; 5th,- Pusdeti, or ‘ plough- tax ;’ 6th, Malbah.

•1st. — The fisc. Formerly this branch of revenue yielded two lacs
of rupees ; but with progressive superstition and prodigality, the
Raja has alienated almost two-thirds of the villages from which the
revenue was drawn. These amounted to two hundred ; now they
do not exceed eighty, and their revenue is not more than one lac of
rupe'es. Soorut Sing is guided only by caprice ; his rewards are
uniform, no matter what the seiwice or the object, whether a Brahmin
or a camel-driver. The Khalisa is the only source which he consi-
ders he has merely a life-interest in. To supply the deficiencies, he
has direct recourse to the pockets of his subjects.

2d. — Dhoodh may be rendered'- hearth-tax, though literally it is a '
smoke (dhoodh). tax. ‘AH must eat; food must be dressed; and as
they have neither chimneys nor glass windows on which to lay the
tax, Soorut Sing’s chancellor of the exchequer makes the smolce pay
a trausit duty ere it gets vent from the various orifices of the edifice.
It only amounts to one rupee on each house or family, but would
form an important item if not evaded by the powerful chiefs : still
it yields a lac of rupees. The town of Makajin, which was settled
, on Ruttun Sing, son of Raja Noonkurn, on the resignation of his
right of primogeniture and succession, enjoys exemption from this
tax. It is less liable to fluctuation than other taxes, for if a village
becomes half- deserted, those who remain are saddled with the whole.
Dhoodh is only known to the two western states, Bikaner and Jes-
' sulraer.

182

ANNALS OF BIKANEK.

[CHAP. II.

3d. — Angah. This is not a capitationt but a body-tax (from angah
the body), and was established by Raja An<5p Sin g. It might almost
be termed a property-tax, since it embraced quadrupeds as well as
bipeds of every sex and age, and was. graduated according to age and
sex in the human species, and according to utility in the brute.
Each male adult was assessed one angah, fixed at four annas (about
sixpence), and cows, oxen, buffaloes, were placed upon a level with
the lord of the creation. Ten goats or sheep were estimated as one
angah ; but a camel was equivalent to four angahs , or one rupee,
which Raja Guj Sing doubled. This tax, which is by far the most
certain in a country, perhaps still mme pastoral than agricultuial, is
most providently watched, and though it has undergone many
changes since it was originally imposed, it yet yields annually two
- lacs of rupees.

4th,' — Sayer, or f imposts/ This branch is subject to much fluctu-
ation, and has diminished greatly since the reign of Soorut Sing.
The duties levied in the capital alone formerly exceeded what is
collected throughout the whole of his dominions ; being once esti-
mated at about two lacs, and now under one. Of this amount, half
is collected at Rajgurh, the chief commercial mart of Bikaner. The
dread of the Bahts, who have cut off the communications with the
Punjdb, and the want of principle within, deter merchants from
visiting this state, and the caravans from M ooltan, Bhawulpoor, and
Shikarpoor, which passed through Bikandr to the eastern states,
have nearly abandoned the route. The only duties of which he is
certain are those on grain, of four rupees on every hundred maunds
sold or exported, and which, according to the average sale price of
these regions, may be about two per cent.

5th . — Pusdeti is a tax of five rupees on every plough used in
agriculture. It was introduced by Raja Rad Sing, in commutation
of the corn-tax, or levy in kind, which had long been established at
one-fourth of the gross produce. The Jits were glad to compound,
and get rid of the agents of corruption, by the substitution of the
plough-tax. It formerly yielded two lacs of rupees, but with de-
creasing agriculture has fallen, like every other source, to a little
more than one-half, but still yields a lac and a quarter.

Cth . — MaJbah is the name of the original tax which the Jit com-
munities imposed upon themselves, when they submitted to the
sway in perpetuity of Beeka and his successors. It is the land-tax*
of two rupees on each hundred beegas of land cultivated in Bikaner.
It is now unproductive, not realizing fifty thousand rupees, and it is
said that a composition has been effected, by which it has been or
will be, relinquished : if so, Soorut Sing gives up the sole legitimate
source of revenue he possesses.

v Jlfrtf is tbe term for laud which has
heavens.

no irrigation but from the

^ CHAP. II.] ANNALS OP BIKANER. 183

Recapitulation .

• 1st. — Khalisa, or fisc* 1,00,000

2d. — Dhooah 1,00,000

Sd. — Angah ; 2,00,000

4tb. — Sayer, imposts! 75,000

5 th. — Pus&eti plough-tax 1,25,000

6th. — Malbah, laud-tax 50,000

Total 6,50,000

Besides this, the fullest amount arising to the prince from annual
taxatiou, there are other items which occasionally replenished the
treasury of Soornt Sing.

Dhatoie is a triennial tax of five rupees levied on each plough.
It was instituted by Raja Zoorawur Sing. The whole country is
liable to it, with the exception of fifty villages in Asiagati, and
seventy of the Bdmwals, conditionally exempted, to guard the
borders. It is now frequently evaded by the feudal chieftains, and
seldom yields a lac of rupees.

In addition to these specific expedients, there are many arbitrary
methods of increasing the “ ways and means” to satisfy the necessi-
ties or avarice of the present ruler, and a train of dependent harpies,
who prey upon the cultivating peasantry, or industrious trader. By
such shifts, Soorut Sing has been known to double his fixed revenue.

Dind , KhooslidU . — The terms Bind, and Khoosh&li, though etymo-
logically the antipodes of each other, — the first meaning a c compul-
sory contribution/ the other a ‘ benevolence, or voluntary/! — have a
similar interpretation in these regions, and make the subjects of
those parts devoutly pray that their prince’s house may be one rather
of mourning than rejoicing, and that defeat rather than victory may
be attendant on his arms.

The term dind is coeval with Hindu legislation. The bard Chund

* Nohur district

Rinnie

Rani ah ...,

” Jalloli

Rs. • 2,000

10,000

5,000

75.000

45.000

1,37,000

X Khoosh means ‘ happiness, pleasure, volition :’ — dp cd Iclwosln , '* at your
pleasure.’

since Rajgurh, Chooru, and other places recovered,
f Impost Duties in old times, viz. .-

Town of Noonkurn ;

v Rajgurh

Shekhsir

Capital — Bikandr ".

From Ohoorii and other towns

84 villages. ..Revenue Rs. 1,00,000

-24 ditto 10,000

4*4 ditto 20,000

1 ditto 5,000

Total original Fiscal Lands 1,35,000

184 *

ANNALS OP BIKANER,

[CHAP. II.'

describes it, and' tbe chronicler of the life of the great Si (3 raj of
Anhulwarra, " who expelled tlie seven Diddas or f great evils/
whose initial letter was d, enumerates d%nd as one of them, and
places it with the Dholis and Dhaleuns, or minstrels and witches,
giving it precedence amongst the seven plagues which his ancestors
and tyrant custom had inflicted on the subject. Unhappily, there
is no Sidraj to legislate for Rajpootana • and were there fourteen
Diddas by which Soorut Sing could swell his budget, he would
retain them all for the oppression of the impoverished Jits, who, if
they could, would be happy to expel the letter S from amongst
them. But it is from the chieftain, the merchant, and the banker,
that the chief sums are realized; though indirectly the poor peasant
contributes his share. There are fourteen collectors of dind, one to
every cheera or division, and these are furnished with arbitrary
schedules according to the circumstances, actual or supposed, of each
individual. So unlimited are these exactions, that the chief of
G-undaili for two years offered the collector of his quarter ten
thousand rupees if he rvesid guarantee him against any further
demand during even twelve months ; and being refused, he turned
the collector out, shuttlie gates of his casth;, and boldly bid hismaster
defiance.

One of his expedients to levy a Itliooshdli, or ‘ benevolence/ is
worth relating : it was on the termination of his expeditiou against
Bhutnair, which added this celebrated desert and castle to his
territory, and in which he was attended by the entire feudal army
of Bikaner.* On his return, “ flushed with conquest,” he demanded
from each house throughout his dominions the sum of ten rupees to
cover the expenses of the war. If the tyrant-ridden subjects of Soorut
Sing thus rejoice in his successes, how mu^fc they feel for his defeats !
To them both are alike ominous, when every artifice is welcomed,
every villainy practised, to impoverish them. Oppression is at its
height, and must work out its own cure.

Feudal levies . — The disposable force of all these feudal princi-
palities must depend on the personal character of the Raja. If Soorut
Sing were popular, and the national emergencies demanded the
assemblage of the kher or lev<Ze en masse, of the ‘ sons of Beeka * he
might bring ten thousand Rajpoots into the field, of whom twelve
hundred might be good horse, besides the foreign troops and park •
but under present circumstances, and the rapid deterioration of every
branch of society, it may be doubted whether one-half could be col-
lected under his standard.

The household troops consist of a battalion of foreign infantry of
five hundred meu with five guns, and three squadrons°of horse about
two hundred and fifty in number; all under foreign leaders ’ This
is independent of the garrison of the capital, whose commandant is
a Rajpoot of the Purihar tribe, who has twenty-five villages assigned
lor the payment of his troops. °

* This written in ISTa ~

CHAP. II.]

ANNALS OP BIKANER.

185

Schedule exhibiting the Fiefs of Bikaner.

Names of
Chieftains.

Beri Sal

Abliyd Sing

An<5p Sing ...
Paim Sing ...
Ohyn Sing ...
Hirnmut Sing. . .

Seo Sing

Omdd Sing
Jaet Sing..

BuhaderSing")
Sooraj Mull (
Gomaun Sing f
Attie Sing )

Shere Sing

Davee Sing .
Oindd Sing l
Soorfcau Sing t
Kurrni Dan )
Soortan Sing ..
Puddum Sing..

Clans.

Beeko.

JBenirote

Beeko

Do

Be'nirote..

Raot

Beuirote . .

Beedawut

Kishen Sing ...
Rao Sing

Sooltan Sing ...
Lnkteer Sing...
Kurnie Sing ...
Bhom sing

Cutehwaha
Pov&r

Beeko..
Bhatti .

4 Chieftains, f
viz.,

J . Bhonni Sing.

2. Zalim Sing...

3. Sirdar Sing.

4. Kaet Sing

Do.

Do.

Do.

Do.

Do.

Places of
Abode.

!

Mahnjin .

Revenue

Boolturko.

Jessanoh .

Baie

Sawoh

Raotsir ...
Ckooru ....
Bedasir
Saondwa.

Maynsir ..
Teandesir.

K attur

Kootcbore

Neembaje. ..

Seedmook

Kurripoora

Ajeetpoora

Bcabsir

Nynawass ..

Jaetsisir.

40,000

25.000

5,000

5,000!

20,000j

20.000

25,000!

60,00o'

40,000j

s.ooo 1

Hyadesir. ,
Poogul* ..

Rajasir

Ranair

Sutasir

Chnckurra.

Beetchnok.

Do Gurrialah.

Do Sonrjerah .

Do Rundisir...

Retainers :

Foot.

Horse.

5,000

Remarks.

5.000

400

400'

2 , 000 ,

2 , 000 '

2.000

10,000

4,000;

500

20,000' 5,000

4.000

5.000

5 , 000 !

0,000

1,500.

2,000

1,100

1,500

1,500

1,100

800

600

Carried forward * 2,85,100| 39,372] 4,562

150

200

200i

1,500,

200

400

200

60,

60,

40

30

32

100

200

40

25

300

300

200

2,000

500

125

400

30

100

50

40

50

75

9

4

One hundred and
forty villages at-
tached to this fief,
settled on the heir
of RajaNoonkurn,
who consequently
forfeited the gadl.

The first of the
chiefs of Bikandr.

One hundred
and forty Icolies
(f amilies.lit. cham-
bers) of this class.

These two fiefs
are held by
foreign nobles pf
the bouse of Am-
ber, and the an-
cient pramara,
(vulg. Fowar).

The fief of Poo-
gul was wrested
from the Bhattis
of Jcssulmer.

* Poognl Putta.

t These chiefs are called Sirdars of Khari Putta, one of the original conquests
of the founder, Beeka.

[Vol. II.] --

24

186

ANNALS OF BIKANER.

[CHAP. III.

Names of
Chieftains.

Clans.

Places of
Abode,

Revenue

Retainers :

Remarks.

Foot.

Horse.

Brought

forward

2,85,100

39,372

4,502

Chund Sing ...

Kurrumsaut

Nokho

11,000

1,500

*500

Twenty .Bevon

villages depend-

enton this fami-

ly from Jodpoor,

and settled here

eleven years.

Sutti Dan

Roopawut ...

Badilah

5,000

200

25

Bhom Sing

Bhatti

Jnngloo

2,500

400

9

Kaitsi

Do

Jatninsir

15,000

500

150

Twenty-sevon

villages.

Issreo Sing

Mundiiah ..

Saroonda ...

11,000

2,000

150

Puddum Sing

Bhatti

Koodsoo ...

1,500

60

4

•>

Kullian Sing ...

Do

Naiueah

1,000

40

2

Total

3,321,00

44,072

5,402

If ever the whole feudal array of Bilcandr amounted to this, it
would assuredly he found difficult now, were the ban proclaimed, to
assemble one-fourth of this number.

Foreign Troops.

Foot. Horse. Guns.

Sooltan Khan — 200 —

Anokha Sing', Sikh — 250 —

Boodh Sing Dewarah — 200 —

Doorjun Sing's Battalion... 700 - 4 4

Gunga Sing’s Battalion.*.... 1,000 25 6

Total Foreigners... 1,700 679 10

Park 21

1,700 679 31

<*

CHAPTER III.

Bhutnair, its origin and denomination. — Historical celebrity of the Jits of Bhut-
nair.— Emigration of Bdrsi. — Succeededby Bhiroo. — Embraces Islamism. — Bao

Duleech. — HosainKhan,HoseinHahmood,EmamMahmood,andBuliaderKhan.

— Zabta Khan, the present ruler. — Condition of the country. — Changes in its
physicalaspect. — Ruins of ancientbuildings — Promising scene for archaeological
inquiries. — Zoological and botanical curiosities. — List of the ancient towns . —
Relics of the arrow-head character found in the Desert.

Bhtjtnair, which now forms an integral part of Bikaner, was
anciently the chief abode of another Jit community, so powerful as

CHAP. III.]

ANNALS OF BIKANER.

187

at one time to provoke the vengeance of kings, and at others to
succour, them when 'in distress. It is'asserted that its name is in no
wise connected with t,lie Bbattis who colonized it, but derived from
the Bardai, or Bliat, of a powerful prince, to whom the lands were
granted, and who, desirous to be the founder of a poetic dynasty,
gave his professional title to the abode. In the annals of Jessulmer,
it will be seen that there is another story accounting for the appel-
lation, which recalls the founding of Carthage or- Byrsa. Both
legends are improbable ; and the Bhatti annals confirm what might
have been assumed without suspicion, that to a colony of this race
Bhutnair owes its name, though not its existence The whole of the
northern part is called Nair in the ancient geographical nomencla-
ture of Maroost’hali ; and when some of the Bhatti clans became
proselytes to Islam, they changed the vowel a to u, to distinguish
them from the parent stock, viz., Bhatti for Bhutti. We shall, how-
ever, furnish evidence by and bye, in the annals of the original race,
that in all probability the Yadu-Bkatti is the original Yuti colony
from Central Asia ; and that “ the Jit prince of Salpoor, 55 whose
inscription is in the first volume of this work, was the predecessor
of these very races.

Neither the tract depending on Bhutnair, nor that north of it to
the Garah river, presented formerly the scene of absolute desolation
they now exhibit, and I shall append a list of towns, to which a
high antiquity is assigned, whose vestiges still remain, and from
which something might perhaps be gleaned to confirm or overturn
these deductions.

Bhutnair has attained great historical celebrity from its position,
being in the route of invasion from Central Asia to India. It is
more than probable that the Jits, who resisted the advance of
Mahmood of Gliizni in a naval warfare on the Indus, had long
before that period established themselves in the desert as well as in
the Punjab; and as we find them occupying a place amongst the
thirty-six royal tribes, we may iufer that they had political power
many centuries before that conqueror. In A. I). 1205, only twelve
years after the conquest of India by Shabudin,his successor, Kootub,
was compelled to conduct the war in person against the Jits of the
northern desert, to prevent their wresting the important post of
Hansi from the empire; and when the- unfortunate and intrepid
queen Rizzia, the worthy heiress of the great Feroz, was compelled
to abandon her throne to an usurper, she sought and found protec-
tion amongst the Jits, who, with their Scythic brethren, the Ghikers,
assembled all their forces and marched, with their queen at their
head, like Tomyris of old, to meet her foes. She was not' destined
to enjoy the same revenge, but gained a glorious death in the attempt
to overturn the Salic law of India.* Again, in A. D. 1397, when
Timoor invaded India, Bhutnair was attacked for “ having distressed
“ him exceedingly on his invasion of Mooltan,” when he “in person

I presented to Mr. Marsden a unique coin of this ill-fated queen.
[Von. II.] . ' 24 a

188

ANNALS OP BIKANEB.

“ scoured tbe country, and cut of a tribe of banditti called"

In short, tbe Bbuttis and Jits were so intermingled, that did
was impossible. Leaving this point, therefore, to be adjuster
annals of the Bhattis, we proceed to sketch the historj
colony which ruled Bhutnair when subjugated by the RahK_

It was shortly after Ti moor’s invasion, that a colony of*
migrated from Marote and Phoolra, under their leader Bersi «. 8eV enii
saultedandcapturedBhutnairfrom a klahotnedan chief; but wh'oend.
one of Timoor’s officers, or a dependent, of Delhi, remains unkno'u'd
though most probably the former. His name, Ohigat Khan, almosi
renders this certain, and they must have made a proper name out of
his tribe, Cbagitai, of which he was a noble. This khan had con-
quered Bhutnair from the Jits, and had acquired a considerable
territory, which the Bhatti colony took advantage of his return to
invade and conquer. Sixteen generations have intervened since
this event, which bringing it to the period of Timoor’s invasion,
furnishes an additional reason for concluding tbe khan of Bhutnair
to have been one of his nobles, whom he may have left entrusted
with this important point of communication, should he meditate
further intercourse with India.

Bersi ruled twenty-seven years, and was succeeded by his son
Bhiroo, when the sous of Chigat Khan, obtaining aid from the Dehli
monarch, invaded Bhutnair, and were twice repulsed with great loss.
A third army succeeded ; Bhutnair was invested and reduced to
great straits, when Bhiroo hung out a flag of truce, and offered to
accept any conditions which would not compromise his castle. Two
were named •. — to embrace Islamism, or seal bis sincerity by giving
his daughter to the king. He accepted the first alternative, and
from that day, in order to distinguish these proselytes, they changed
the name of Bhatti to Bhutti. Six chiefs intervened between Bhiroo
and

Rao Duleech, surnamed Hyat Khan, from whom Rne Sing of
Bikaner wrested Bhutnair, and Futtehabad became the future resi-
dence of the Bhutti Khaus. He was succeeded by

Hosein Khan (the grandson of Hyat), who recaptured Bhutnair
from Raja Sujawun Slug, and it was maintained during the time of
Hosein Mahmood and Bmam Mali mood, until Soorut Sing made the
final conquest of it from Bnhader Khan, father to the present titular
head of the Bhuttis,*

Zabta Khan, who resides at Raniah, having about twenty-five
villages dependent tlicreon. f Rauiah was founded by Rae Sing of
Blkandr, and named after his queen {Rani), to whom it was assigned.

-if j n j 857 (A. D. 1801), rhe celebrated George Thomas, for tbe sum of
three lacs, put tbe Bbuttis into the tempoi ary possession of Bhutnair: but
the succeeding year it was again tah.eu fioni them by tbe Babtores.

f This memoir was written in 1813-14, and may contain many inaccuracies,
from its very remote situation, and the difficulty of obtaining correct inform- .
ation.

ANNALS OF BIKANER.

189

«tf-^aHAP, in.]'

i

It was taken by Emdm Mahmood. The Bhutti Khan is now a robber
by profession, and his revenues, which are said to have sometimes
amounted to three lacs of rupees, are- extorted by the point of his
lance. These depredations are carried to a frightful extent, and the
poor Jits are kept eternally on the alert to defend their property.
The proximity of the British, territory preventing all incursions* to
the eastward, they are thrown back upon their original haunts, and
make the whole of this northern region their prey. To this circum-
stance is attributed the desertion of these lands, which once reared
cattle in abundance, aud were highly valued. It is asserted that
from the northern boundary of Bhutnair to the Gfarah, there are
many tracts susceptible of high cultivation, having water near the
surface, aud many large spaces entirely free from t'hul, or f sand-hills.'
To the drying up of the Hakra, or Caggar, many centuries ago, in
conjunction with moral evils, is ascribed the existing desolation.
According to tradition, this stream took a westerly direction, by
Phoolra, where it is yet to be traced, and fell into the Indus below
Ootch. The couplet recording its absorption by the sands of Nair ,
has already been given, in the time of Rao Hamir, prince of Dhat.
If the next European traveller who may pass through the Indian
desert will seek out the representative of the ancient Soda princes
at Chore, near Amerkote, he may learn from their bard (if they
retain such an appendage) the date of this prince, and that of so
important an event in the physical and political history of their
regions. The vestiges of large towns, now buried in the sands,
confirm the truth of this tradition, and several of them claim a
high antiquity : such as the Rung-mahel, already mentioned, west
of Bhutnair, having subterranean apartments still in good preseiwa-
tion. An aged native of Dhandoosir (twenty-five miles south of
Bhutnair) replied, to my inquiry as to the recollections attached to
this place, that “ it belonged to a Powar prince who ruled once all
“ these regions, when Sekunder Roomi attacked them. 1 ”

An excursion from Hausi Hissar, our western frontier, into these
-•regions, would soon put the, truth of such traditions to the test, as
far as these reported ruins are concerned : though what might appear
the remains of palaces of the Pramaras. the Johyas, and the Jits of
ancient days, to the humble occupaut of a hut in the desert, may
only prove the foundations of some castellated building. But the
same traditions are circulated with regard to the more western desert,
where the same kind of vestiges is said to exist, and the annals
make mention of capitals, the sites of which are now utterly unknown.
Considering the safety, and comparative ease, with which such a
journey can be made, one cannot imagine a more agreeable pursuit,
than the prosecution of arclimological inquiries in the northern
deserts of Rajpootaua, where traditions abound, and where the exist-
ing manners, amongst such a diversity of tribes, would furnish ample
materials for the portfolio, as well as for memoirs. Its productions,
spontaneous or cultivated, though its botanical as well as zoological
specimens may be limited, we know to be essentially different from

190

ANNALS OF BIKANER.

-those of Gangetic India, ami more lilcely to find a parallj lei

natural productions and phenomena of the great Afric) lai

The Bhuttis, the Khosas, the Rajurs, the Salir&es, the Man; rks. hill
Sodas, and various other nomadic tribes, present a wid; kSeli

observation; and the physiologist, -when tired of the habii hola

may descend from the nobler animal to the lion, the wild < jiss, er
kind of deer, the flocks of sheep which, fed on the succuleni> 7 . B evjio ra55
touch not water for six weeks together, while the variousnendihri
esculent plants and shrubs, salt lakes, natron beds, &c., would^/i gh
abundant scope for commentary and useful comparison. lie will
discover no luxuries, and few signs of civilization ; the jhopm (hut)
constructed of poles aud twigs, coated inside with mud and covered
with grass, being little better than the African^ dwelling.

We shall conclude this imperfect sketch of Bikaner and the desert
with the names of several of their ancient towns, which may aid the
search of the traveller in the regions on its northern border : —
Abhore; Bunjarra ca Nuggur ; Rung-Mahel; Sodul, or Sorutgurh;
Macliotal; Raati-bung; Kali-bung; Kaliansir; Phoolra; Marote ;
Tilwarra ; Gilwarra ; Bunni ; Manick-Khnr; Soor-sagur ; Bhameni ;
Koriwalla ; Kul-Dlierani.

Some names in this list may be unimportant, but if two, or even
one, should be the means of eliciting some knowledge of the past,
the record will not be useless.

Phoolra and Marote have still some importance : the first is very
.ancient, and enumerated amongst the * No-hoti Maroo-ca / in the
earliest periods of Pramara (vulg. Poivdr ) dominion. I have no
doubt that inscriptions in the ornamental nail-headed character
belonging to the Jains will be found here, having obtained one from
Lodorva in the desert, which has been a ruin for nine centuries.
Phoolra was the residence of Lakha Phoolani, a name well-known
• to those versed in the old traditions of the desert. He was. cotem-
porary with Sid Rad of Anhulwarra, and Udyadit of Dhar.

ANNALS OF JESSULMEK.

CHAPTER I.

Jessulmer. — The derivation of its name. — The Rajpoots of Jessulmer called
Bhatlis, are of the Yadn race. — Descended from Bharat, Icing of Bharat -
versha, or Indo-Scyth ia. — Restricted bounds of India of modern invention . —
The ancient Hindus a naval people. — First seats of the Yadus in India,
Braga, Mat’hura, and Dwarica. — Their international wars. — Heri, Icing of
Mathura and Dwarica, leader of the Yadus. — Dispersion of his family . —
His great-grandsons Ndba and Khtra. — Naha driven from Dwarica, becomes
prince of Maroosthali , conjectured to be the Mam, or Merve of Iran . —
Jhardja and Jud-blian. the sons of Khtra. — The former founds the Sind -
samma dynasty, and Jud-blidn becomes prince of Behera in the Punjab . — -
Prithibahu succeeds to JYdba in Mdroo. — His son B6.hu. — His posterity . —
Raja Ouj founds Gujni. — Attacked by the kings of Syria and Kliorasan, who
are repulsed. — Raja Guj attacks Cashmere. — His marriage. — Second invasion
from Khorasan. — The Syrian king conjectured to be Antiochus. — Oracle pre-
dicts the loss of Gujni, — Guj slain. — Gujni token. — Prince Salbahan arrives
in the Punj&b. — Founds the city of Salbahana, S. 7. 72. — Conquers the
Punjab. — Marries the daughter of Jeipal Tuar of Delili. — Re-conquers Gujni.
— Is succeeded by Balund. — His numerous offspring. — Their conquests. — Con-
jecture regarding the Jadoon tribe of Eusofzye, that the Afghans are Yadus>
not Yabudis, or Jeivs . — Balund resides at Salbahana. — Assigns Gujni to his
grandson Ohdkito, who becomes a convert to Islam and king of Khorasan . —
The ■ Chahito Moguls descended from him. — Balund dies. — His son Bhatti
succeeds. — Changes the patronymic of Yadn, or Jadoo , to Bhatti. — Succeeded
by Mungul Rao. — His brother Musoor Rao and sons cross the Garah and take
possession of the Lakhi jungle. — Degradation of the sons of Mungul Rao . —
They lose their rank as Rajpoots. — Their offspring styled Abhorias and Juts.
— Tribe of T&h.—The capital of Ta.viles discovered. — Mungul Rao arrives in
the Indian desert. — Its tribes. — His son, Majum Rao, marries a princess of
Amerkote. — His sonKehur. — Alliance with the Deora of Jhalore. — The found-
ation of Thanote laid. — Kehur succeeds. — Thanote attacked by the Baraha
tribe. — Thanote completed, S. 787. — Peace with the Barakas. — Reflections.

Jessuliier. is tEe modern name oE a tract of country comprehended^

according to ancient geography, in Maroost’hali, the desert of India .

192

ANNALS OF JESSULMER.

[char. I.

Ifc is termed Mev in the traditional nomenclature of this region, from
being a rocky (mer) oasis in the heart of the sandy desert, interest-
ing both from its physical features, and its position as the ultima
Thule of independent Hinduism. Yet, however entitled to regard
from its local peculiarities or its products, the history of the tribe
which inhabits it presents a still more engrossing subject for inves-
tigation.

This tribe is the Bhatti, a branch of the Yadu or Jadoo race,
whose power was paramount in India three thousand years ago ; and
the prince now governing this distant corner of India, claims descent
from those Yadu kings who ruled from the Yamuna to the ‘ world’s
end/* at that remote period.

It were preposterous to expect to find, in the annals of a people
so subject to the vicissitudes of fortune, an unbroken series of
historical evidence in support of this ancestry; but they have pre-
served links of the chain which indicate original affinities. In tracing
the Yadu-Bhatti history, two hypotheses alternately present them-
selves to our minds, each of which rests upon plausible grounds ; the
on,e supposing the Bhattis to be of Scythic, the other of Hindu
origin. This incongruity may be reconciled by presuming the
co-mixture of the two primitive races; by enlarging our views, and
contemplating the barrier, which in remote ages separated Scythia
and India, as ideal; and admitting that the various communities,
from the Caspian to the Ganges, were members of one grand family,
having a common languageand common faith, fin that ancient central
empire whose existence has been contended for and denied by the
first names in science;! the Bharatversha of the Hindfis, the Indo-
Scythic empire of king Bharat, son of Budha, the ancestor of the
Yadu-Bhattis, now confined to a nook of the desert.

It would be vain to speculate upon the first colonization of India
proper by the Rajcula , or ‘ royal tribes.’ It appears to have

* Juggut Coont, the point of Innd beyond Dwaricn, the last strong-hold of tho
Yeans when their power was extinguished.

■f Menu says: “ The following races of Csliatriyas, by their omission of holy
rites, and by seeing no Brahmans, havo gradually sunk among men to tho
lowest of the fourth class (i. o.> tfit dm.); Panndracas, Odrae, and IJraviras ;
Civnhojas, Yaranas, and Socns ; Parados, Pahlaras, Chinas, Chains, Driadas,
and O'hasas. — Arts. 43 and -i t, Cliap. X, page 279, Bauciitox’s 3rd edition,
published by Higginbotham: & Co.

It is a great mistake to suppose tho Bnctrinn Greeks arc these Yal'nnas, who
are descended from Tuvan, fifth son of Tnynt, third son of the patriarchal
Hahns, though tho Ionians may he of this race. The h'acas are the Harm, the
races of central Asia, (the Sac’na Itajpoot) ; the Pahlavas, the ancient Persians,
or Guebres; the Chinas, the inhabitants of China ; ana the C'hosos, inhabitants
of tho great snowy mountains (Zdio), whence Klio-cltaea (the Vasia monies of
Ptolemy), corrupted to Caucasus.

I Tho illustrious Cuvier questions tho existence of an ancient central king-
dom, because " ni Monte, ni ITomere, nc nous pari nit d’tm grand empire dans la
“ llaute-Asio .” — (Diecottrssurles Revolutions de la surface du Globe, p. 20G.) —
Who. then, were “the sous of Togarmah” mentioned by Ezekiel) who con-
quered and long held Egypt?

CHAP. I.]

ANNALS OF JESSTJLMER.

193

possessed an indigenous population prior to the races of.Suiya, or
Indu, tliougli the geuealogies which give the origin of these degraded
races of Cabas,* BM]s, Meras, Goands, &c. assert that they were all
from the same stem, and that their political debasement was the
effect of moral causes. But as there is no proof of this, we must
attribute the fable to the desire of the Brahmin arcliaelogist to
account for the origin of all things. Modern enquiries into these
matters have been cramped by an erroneous and contracted view of
the power of this ancient people, and the direction of that power.
It has been assumed that the prejudices originating in Mooslem
conquest, which prevented the Hindu chieftain from crossing the
forbidden waters of the Attoc, and still more from “ going down to
“ the sea in ships,” had always existed. But were it not far more
difficult to part with erroneous impressions thnn to receive new and
correct .views, it would be apparent that the first of these restrictions
is of very recent origin, and on the other hand, that the Hindus of
remote ages possessed great naval power, by which communication
must liavo been inaintained with the coasts of Africa,]- Arabia, and
Persia, as well as the A ustralian Archipelago. J It is ridiculous, with all
the knowledge now in ourpossession, to suppose that theHindus always
confined themselves within their gigantic barriers, the limits of
modeni India. The cosmography of the Poorans, imperfect and
puerile as it is, and some of the texts of Menu, afford abundant
evidence of an intimate intercourse between the countries from the

* The Cuba race is almost extinct; it was famed, even in thedavs of Crishnn,
as the savage inhabitants of Saurnshtra. When the forester Bhfl, who mortally
wounded Crishnn, was expressing his contrition for the unintentional act,
he was forgiven, with the remark, that it was only retributive justice, ns “ in a
“ former birth,” ns the godlike Rama, Crishnn had slaiu him. Thus Rama
appears as the subjugator and civilizer of these indigenous tribes, of whom the
Cabas are described as plundering Crisbnn’s family after his decease.

f Whence the Hindu names of towns at the estuaries of the Gambia and
Sbenegai rivers, the Tambaconda and other condas, already mentioned?

J Mr. Mnrsden, at an early period of his researches into Hindu literature,
shares the merit of discovering with Sir W. Jones, that the Malayan language,
disseminated throughout the Archipelago, and extending from Madagascar to
Easter Island, a space oE 200° of longitude, is indebted to the Sanscrit for
a considerable number of its terms, and that the intercourse which effected this
was many centuries previous to their conversion to the Mahomednn religion.
He is inclined to think that the point of communication was from Guzzerat.
The legends of these islauders also abound with allusions to the Mdhdbhdrat
and Itamayuna. (See Asiatic Res., Yol. IY, p. 226, Second Edition.)

Since Mr. M. wrote, the revelation of tbe architectural antiquities in these
isles, consequent to British Oouquosts, establishes the fact that they were
colonized by the Suryns, whose onthological nnd heroic history is sculptured
in their edifices and maintained in their writings. 2sTor should we despair that
similar discoveries may yet disclose the link which of yore connected India
with Egypt, and to which Ceylon was buttlie first stepping-stone. That Rama
possessed great naval means is beyond doubt, inherited from his ancestor
Sagara * the sea-king,’ twenty generations before the hero of Lanka, which place
I have long imagined to he Ethiopia; whence ancient writers assert Egypt to
have had her institutions, and that tbe Ethiopians were of Indian origin.
Cuvier, quoting Syncollus, even assigns the reign of Ameuophis as the epoch of
the colonization of Ethiopia from India. — Page 180 of his * Discours,’ &c.

[Yon. II.] 25

194

ANNALS OF JESSUI/MER.

[CHAP.

Oxus to tile Gauges ; and even in tlieir allegories, we trace fies
streams of knowledge flowing into India from that central yegioi
stigmatized in latter days as the land of the barbarian ( Mietcna
Menu corroborates the Poorans , from which wc infer, the fact, (hr
in distant ages one. uniform faith extended from Sacd-dwipa, tl
continent of the Sacte, to the Gauges.* These observations it
necessary to premise before we attempt, by following the tide of
Yadu migration during the lapse of thirty centuries, to trace them
from Iudraprest’ha, Surapura, Mafhura, Praga, Dwnrica, Judoo-ca-
dang (the mountains of Jud), Behera, Gnjni in Zabulisthnn ; and
again refluent into India, at Salbnhana or Salpoora in theTunjab,
Tunnote, Derawnl, Lodorva in the desert, and finally Jessulmdr,
founded in S. 1212, or A.D. 1156.

Having elsewhere descanted'at length on the early history of the
Yadus,f we may refer those tvho are likely to take an iuterest in
this discussion to that paper, and proceed at once to glean what we
can from the native annals before us, from the death of their
leader, Heri-Crishna, to the dispersion of the Yadus from India. The
bare fact of their migration altogether out of India proper, proves
that the original intercourse, which conducted Budha, the patriarch
of the Yadu race, into IndjaJ (where he espoused Ella a princess of

* The cosmography of the Agni Pooran divides the world then known to the
Hindus into seven dwipas, or continents: one of these is •' Saca-dwipn, whose
"inhabitants, descended from Bup’hn.are termed Saccswara (i. e., Saca;-lords).’!
His (Bup’has) offspring or descendants were Julnd, Sookmar, Manichuk,
Koorurn, Ooturds, Dnrbeeka, Droomn, each of whom gave his name to a kftand,
or division (qtt. Sookmarkliand ?) The chief ranges of mountains were Juldus,
Ttaivat, Siamnh, Indue, Amki, Rim, and Kesari. " There were seven grand
“ rivers, viz., Mug, Mugud, Arvernn, &o. .The inhabitants worship the sun.”

Slight as this information is, we must believe that this Sacd-dwipa or Sacatai,
is the Scythia of the Ancients ; and the Sdceswara (the Sacas of Menu), the
Sacte so well known to western history, the progenitors of the Pnrthiaus, whose
first (ad) king was Arsaca. The sun-worship indicates the adorer of Mithras,
the Mitra or Surya of the Hindu ; the Arvernn recalls the .'lrct.res applied to -
the Jaxartes ; while Jnlud, the proper name of the son of the first king of
Saca-d wlpa, appears to be the J nidus of the Tatar historian Abulgazi.who uses
the same term as does the Hindu, to designate a range of mountains. Whence
this identity between Pooruuic and Tatar cosmography ?

“ A chief of the twice-born tribe (i. e„ Brahmins) was brought by Yishnu’s
“ eagle from Saca-dwipa, and thus have Sacd-dwipa Brahmins become known in
“ Jambu-dwipa” (India). — Mr. Colebrooke on Indian Classes, Asiatic Res., Vol.
Y, p. 53. And Menu says that it was only on their ceasing to sanction Brahmins
residing amongst them, that the inhabitants of these remote western regions
became ‘ Mletcha,’ or bai-bariaus : testimonies which must be held conclusive of
perfect intercourse and reciprocity of sentiment between the nations of Central
Asia and India at periods the most remote.

f Vide “ Essay on the Hindu and Theban Hercules,” Transactions of the
Royal Asiatic Society, Yol. III.

t The Bhagvat says, “ Budha (a wiseman — a patriarch) came to Bbarntkhnnd
“ to perform penitential rites, and espoused Ella, by whom be had Prururwa
“ flounder of Mat’hura), who had six sons, viz., Ayu, &c. who carried on the lunar
(Indu) races m India.” How this Ayu is likewise the patriarch of the Tatars'
and m that language signifies the moon, a male divinity both with Tatars and

CHAP. I.]

ANNALS OF JESSULMER.

195

the Surya race, and by -whom bis issue was multiplied), was not
forgotten, though fifty generations had elapsed from the patriarchal-
Budha to Heri — to whom and the chronicle we return.

“ Praga* is the cradle of the Yadus who are Soma'oansa (of the
lunar race). Thence Mat’hura founded by Prururwa remained for
ages the seat of power. The name of Jadoo (Yadu), of whom there
were fifty-six tribes, f became famous in the world, and of this race
was the mighty Heri-Crishna, who founded Dwarica.”

The grand international conflicts amongst the “ fifty-six Yadu
u tribes,” at Curukheta, and subsequently at Dwarica, are sufficiently
known to the reader of Hindu history, and may be referred to else-
where.;}: These events are computed to have happened about 1,100
years before Christ. On the dispersion of these races many aban-
doned India, and amongst these, two of the many boiis of Crishna.
This deified leader of the Yadus had eight wives, and the offspring
of the first and seventh, by a singular fate, now occupy what may be
termed the outposts of Hinduism. §

Rookmani was the senior of these wives ; and the eldest of her
sons was Pridema, who was married to a princess of Bidurba ; she
bore him two sons, Anurad and Bujra, and from the latter the Bhattis
claim descent. Bujra had two sons, Nairn and Khfra.

“When the Jadoos were exterminated in the conflict at Dwarica,
and Heri had gone to heaven, Bujra was on his way from MaPhura
to see his -father, but had only marched twenty coss (forty miles),
when he received intelligence of that event, which had swept away
his kindred. He died. upon the spot, when Naba was elected. king
and returned to Mat’hura, but Khira pursued his journey to
Dwarica.

“ The thirty-six tribes of Rajpoots hitherto oppressed by the
Yadus, who had long held universal dominion, now determine to
be l'evenged. Naba was compelled to fly the holy city [Dwarica] ;
he became prince of Maroosfhali in the west.

Rajpoots. Throughout there are traces of an original identity, which justifies
the application of the term ludo-Scythic to the Yadu race. — Vide Genealogical
Table, Vol. I.

*■ Piacia is the modern Allahabad, at the confluence of the Jumna and
Ganges, the capital of the Prasii of Megasthenes.

f This is alternately called Chapun Cilia and Chapun Grove, “ fifty-six
“ tribes,” and “ fifty-six millions,” of Yadus. As they were long supreme over
India, this number is not inadmissible.

J Transactions of the Royal Asiatic Society, Yol. III. Vide paper entitled,
“ Comparison of the Hindu and Theban Hercules.”

§ Jambuvati was the name of the seventh wife, whose eldest son was called
Samba — he obtained possession of the tracts on both sides the Indus, and
founded the Sind-Samma dynasty, from which the Jharejas are descended.
There is every probability that Sambos of Samba-nagari ( Minagara ), the oppo-
nent of Alexander, was a descendant, of Samba, son of Crishna. The Jhardja
chronicles, in ignorance of the origin of this titular appellation, say that their
“ ancestors came from Sham, or Syria.”

[Vol. H.] _ 25a

196

ANNALS OF JESSULMER.

[CHAP. I.

“ Thus far from the Bhagvat, (says the Bbatti chronicler) and I
continue the history of the Bliattis, by the Brahmin Sookhd kei ma
of- Mat’hura.

“ Naba had issue Prithib&ku.

“ Khira had two sons, Jhareja aud Jud-bbanA
“ Jud-bhan was on a pilgrimage ; the goddess heard his vows ;
she awoke him from his sleep, and promised whatever he desired. ,
'< Give' me land that I may inhabit/ said the youth ; ‘ Rule in
these hills/ replied the goddess, and disappeared. When Jud-bh&n
awoke, and was yet pondering on the vision of the night, a confused
noise assailed him; and looking out, he discovered that the prince
of the country had just died without issue, and they were disputing
who should succeed him. The prime minister said, ‘he dreamed
that a descendant of Crishua had arrived at Behera / + and proposed
to seek him out and invest him as their prince. All assented, and
Jud-bhan was elected king*. He became a great prince, had a
numerous progeny, and the place of their abode was henceforth
styled Judoo-ca-dang , ‘the mountains of Judood

“ Prithi-bdhu (‘ the arm of the earth*), son of Nab a, prince of
Maroost’hali, inherited the insignia of Sri-Criskna with the regal

* Jid, Jud, Jadoo, are the various modes of pronouncing Yadu in the Bhalclia,
or spoken dialects of the west. Jud-Bh&n, ‘the rocket of the Yadus,’ would
imply the knowledge of gunpowder at a very remote period.

f The precise knowledge of the topography of these regions, displayed in the
Bbatti annals, is the most satisfactory proof of their authenticity. In the pre-
sent day, it would be in vain to ask any native of Jessulmer the position of the
“hill -of Jud,” or the site of Behera; and but for the valuable translation of
Baber’s Memoirs, by Mr. Erskine, we should have been unable to adduce the
following testimony. Baber crossed the Indus the 17th February 1519, and on*
the 19th, between that river aud one of its great towns, the Behat, he reached
the very tract where the descendant of Crishna established himself twenty -five
centuries before. Baber says, “ Seven Icos from Behreh to the north there is a
hill. This hill in the Zefer 3STameh (History of Tiraoor), and other books, is
recalled the Hill of Jud. At first I was ignorant of the origin of its name, but
afterwards discovered that in this hill there were two races of men descended
of the same father. One tribe is called Jud, the other Jenjfibdh. From old •
tiroes they.havebeen the rulers and lords of the inhabitants of this hill, and of
the I island Ulitses (political divisions) between Hilab and Behreh. Their
power is exerted in a friendly and brotherly way. They cannot take from them
whatever they please. They take as their share a portion that has been fixed’
from very remote times. . The Jtld is divided into various branches or families,
as well as the J enjfihoh. The chief man amongst them gets the name of Bad, —
Brddne’s Baber, p. 254. . .

Here is a decided confirmation that this Hindu colony preserved all their
original manners and customs even to Baber’s day. The tribe of Jenjflhehes
beyond a doubt, is the tribe of Johya, so celebrated in the region skirting the
Sutlej, and which will be noticed hereafter. I presented a small work entirely
relating to their history, to the Royal Asiatic Society. As Baber says they are
of the same family as the Jfids, they are probably the descendants of Jinj, the
Brother of Bbatti, who changed the family patronymic from Jadoo or Judo o
to Bbatti ; and thus it appears, that when the elder branch was driven from
Gtijni, they retreated amongst their relations of the hills of Jfid. Baber was
quite enamoured with the beauty of the bill of Jud, which, with its lake and
valleys, ho describes as a miniature Cashmere. — P. 255.

CHAP. I.]

ANNALS OP JESSULMER.

197

umbrella (ch’hetri) made by Viswacarma, He bad a son Bahubal
(‘ strong arm’), wbo espoused Camlavati, daughter of Vijya Sing,
Prince of Malwa, who gave in dower ( daejd )* one thousand horses
of Khorasan, one hundi’ed elephants, pearls, gems, and gold innu-
merable, and five hundred handmaids, with chariots and bedsteads
of gold. The Piiar (Pramar) Camlavati became the chief queen and
bore her lord one son,

“ BdkUf killed by a fall from his horse ; he left one son,

“ Soob&hu, who was poisoned by his wife, a daughter of Mund
Raja Chohan of Ajmdr : he left a son,

“ Bijh , who reigned twelve years. He was married to Soobh’ag
Soondri , daughter of Ber Sing, prince of Malwa. Having, when
pregnant, dreamed that she was delivered of a white elephant, the
astrologers, who interpreted this as an indication of greatness,
desired he might be named Guj ;f as he approached manhood, the
coco-nut came from Jud-bhan, prince of Poorubdes (the eastern),
and was accepted. At the same time tidings arrived that from the
shores of the ocean, the barbarians ( H’letchci .), who had formerly
attacked SoobdliUjt were again advancing, having Perid Shah of

* The Pramars were formerly the most powerful potentates of central India.
Handmaids, and bedsteads of gold, were always a part of the daejd or dower
of Hindu princesses.

f Abulfazi mentions Joga as prince of Gasmien and Cashmere, who was
slain by Oguz Khan, the Patriarch of the Tatar tribes.

J In this early portion of the annals there is a singular mixture of historical
facts, and it appears that the Yadu scribes confound their connections with
the Syrian and Bactriaii Greeks, and with the first Mooslem conquerors.
Imperfect as is this notice of Soobahu, his son Rijb, and grandson Gnj, who
were thus assailed by Perid of Khorasan (Bactria), and his auxiliary, the king
of Room (Syria), we have a powerful allusion to Antiochus the Great, who,
two hundred and four years before Christ, invaded Bactria and India.
Amongst the few facts left, of this expedition is his treaty with Sophagaseuus,
the Indian monarch, in which the Syrian king stipulated for a tribute in
elephants. There are, even in this medley of incidents, grounds for imagining
that Sophagasenus is the Yadu prince of Gbjni. Whether, out of Soobahu and
Guy the Greeks manufactured their Sophagasenus, or whether prince Guj
could have been entitled Soobagh’h-sen, in compliment to his mother, Soobag’h-
Soondri, of Malwa, must be left for the speculative to decide. In is not unlikely
that the nature of the tribute, said to have been elephants, which the Indian
agreed to furnish to the Greek prince, may have originated with the name of
Guj, which meaus ‘ elephant.’

There is at the same time much that refers to the early progress of Islam in.
these regions of central Asia. Price, in his excellent history, extracting from
the Khola%isut~ul-Alcbar, says, “ Hejauge was entrusted with the government of
Khorasan, and Obaidoolah with Seistau, who had orders from Hejauge, his
superior, to invade Cabul, whose prince was Reteil or Retpeil, whom the
author supposes either a Tatar or Hindoo prince. Artfully retiring, he drew
the Mohammedan army into the defiles, and blocking up the rear, cut off their
retreat, and Obaidoolah was compelled to purchase his liberation by the pay-
ment of seven hundred thousand dirhems.”

This was the seventy-eighth year of the Hegira, or A. D. 697. Conjoined to
what follows, it appears to have reference to Rijh, father of Guj. Again,

“ Obaidoolah and Abdoorehman invaded Seistan with forty thousand men.
The prince of Cabul tried' the same manoeuvre, but was outwitted by the

198

ANNA1S OF JESSULMER.

[CHAP. J.

Khorasan at the head of four lacs of horse, from whom the people
fled in dismay. The Raja sent scouts to obtain accurate intelligence;
and marched to Harreou to meet him ; while the foe encamped two
coss from Koonjsheher.* A battle ensued, in which the invader
was defeated with the loss of thirty thousand meu, and four thousand
on the part of the Hindus. But the foeman rallied, and RajaRijb,
who again encountered him, was wounded and died just as prince
Guj returned with Hansavati, his bride, daughter of Jud-blian of
the east. In two battles the king of Khorasan was vanquished,
when he obtained an auxiliary in the king of Room (Romi-pah) , to
establish the Koran and the law of the prophet in infidel lands.
While the armies of the Asiiras were thus preparing their strength.
Raja Guj called a council of ministers. There being no strong-hold
of importance, and it being impossible to stand against numbers, it
was determined to erect a fortress amidst the mountains of the
north. Having summoned his fi'iends to his aid, he sought council
of the guardian goddess of his race ; who foretold that the power of
the Hindus was to cease, but commanded him to erect a fort and call
it Qujni. While it was approaching completion, news came that
the kings of Room and Khorasan were near at hand :

lioomi-pat, Khorasdn-pat, hde, gOi, palchur, p&i,

Chinta ierd, chit'll legi ; soono Jud-pcii liae . f
“ The stick wounded the drum of the Jadoo prince; the army was
formed, gifts were distributed, aud the astrologers were commanded
to assign such a moment for marching as might secure the victory.

Mohammedan, who conquered a gi eat part of Cabnland acquired great booty,
with which he returned to Seistnn, to the great displeasure of Hejauge; and
Abdooreliman entered into a confederacy with Eetpeil to attack Hejauge, and
absolve Cabul from tribute. Moghairah was the successor -of Abdoorebtnan
in Khorasan, while his father, Mobile!, was employed beyond the Jehoon, but
died fttMeru of a burning diarrhoea, bequeathing his government to Yezzid.”

This account of Moghairnh’s (the governor of Khorasan) death, while carry-
ing on war against the Hindu Retpeil of Cabul, has much analogy to the sud-
den death of uiz^ the foe of Rijh of Zabulistban. One thing is now proved,
that princes of the Hindu faith ruled over nil these regions in the first ages of
Islnmism, and made frequent attempts, for centuries after, to reconquer them.
Of this fact, Baber gives us a most striking instance in his description of Gujni,
or, as he writes, Ghazni. He says, “ I have seen, in another history, that when
“ the Rai of Hind besieged Subaktegin in Ghazni, Subnktegin ordered dead flesh
“and other impurities to be thrown into the fountain, when there instantly arose
“ a tempest and hurricane, with rain and snow, and by tbisdevice be drove away
“ the enemy.” Baber adds, “ I made then inquiry m Ghazni for this well, but
“ nobody could give me the slightest information regarding it,”p ; 1 50. Doubtless,
when Baber conquered Indio, and became better acquainted with the Hindu
warriors, he would have got to the bottom of this anecdote, and have seen that
the success of the ruse of Subaktegin arose out of the religion of bis foes, who
could not use water thus contaminated by the flesh of the sacred kine. ' The
celebrated Balabhi was reduced by the same stratagem.

• Neither of these towns appears in any mayn “ There is a Koonj Resbak in
Khorasan, and a Penjher in Balk.”— Sir W. Ousley's Mn Haukal.pp, 213-223,
f .The king of Room and the king of Khorasan, with horse (hde) elephants
(<?cu or guj) caparisons (p&hlmr) and foot-soldiers pdi or pdelc) Tare at band!
Beware, let it enter your mind, oh Ra6, Lord of the Judoos !’’

CHAP. I.] ANNALS OP JESSULMER. 199

“ Thursday ( Vrishpahvar ) fclie 13th of Mali, the enlightened half
of the moon, when one gliurri of the day had fled, was the auspicious
hour; and the drum of departure sounded. That day he marched
eight coss, and encamped at Doolapoor. Thecombinedkingsadvanced,
but in the night the Shah of Khorasan died of indigestion. When
it was reported to the king of Room (Shah Seconder Roomi) that
Shah Mamraiz was dead, he became alarmed and said, f while we
mortals have grand schemes in hand, he above has other views for
us.’. Still his army advanced like waves of the ocean ; caparisons
and chains clank on the backs of elephants, while instruments of
war' resound through the host. Elephants move like walking
mountains; the sky is black with clouds of dust; bright helms
reflect the rays of the sun. Four coss (eight miles) separated the
hostile armies. Raja Guj andhis chieftains performedtheirablutions,
and keeping the Joginis * in their rear, advanced to the combat.
Each host rushed on like famished tigers ; the earth trembled ; .the
heavens were overcast; nor was aught visible in the gloom but the
radiant helm. War-bells resound; horses neigh; masses of men
advance on each other, like the dark rolling clouds of Bhadoon.
Hissing speeds the feathered dart ; the lion roar of the warriors is
re-echoed; the edge of the sword deluges the ground with blood;
on both sides the blows resound on the crackling bones. Here was
Jud-Rad, there the Khans and Ameers, as if Time had encountered
his fellow. Mighty warriors strew the earth ; heroes fall in the
cause of their lords. The army of the Shah, fled ; he left twenty-five
thousand souls entangled iu the net of destruction ; he abandoned
elephants and horses, and even his throne. Seven thousand Hindus
lay dead ou the field. The drum of victory resounded, and the
Jadoou returned triumphant to his capital.

“On Sunday, the 3d of Bysak, the -spring season ( Vasant ), the
Rohini Nikhitra, and Samvat Dherma-raja ( Yudishtra ) 3008, f seated
on the throne of Gujni, he maintained the Jadoou race. With this
victory his power became firm : he conquered all the countries to the
west, and sent au ambassador to Cashmere to call its prince Kan-
drukelj to his presence. But the prince refused the summons : he
said the world would scoff at him if he attended the stirrup of
another without being first worsted in fight. Raja Guj invaded
Cashmere ; and married the daughter of its prince, by whom he had
a son, called Salbahan.

” When this child had attained the age of twelve, tidings of another
invasion came from Khorasan. Raja Guj shut himself up for three
entire days in the temple of Culadevi|:§ on the fourth day the god-

■ * The unclean spirits of Rajpoot martial mythology, who feed on the slain.

■f This date is circumstantial, and might be fixed or disproved by calcu-
lation; if the heterogeneous mixture of such widely separated incidents us
those in Syro-Maoedouiau and Mahomcdau History did not deter us from the
attempt.

| No such name appears in Wilson's Raj Taringini.

§ Tutelary goddess, or “ of the race (cilia).”

200

ANNALS ON JESSULHElt.

[CHAP. I.

dess appeared and revealed fco him his' destiny j that Gujni would
pass from his hands, but that his posterity would ve-mhent it, not
jis Hindus but as Mooslems ; and directed him to send his sou
Sal bah an amongst the Hindus of the east, there to erect a city to be
named after him. She said that he would have fifteen sons, whoso
issue would multiply ; ' that he (Raja GujJ would fall in the defenco
of Gujni, but would gain a glorious reward hereafter.

“ Having heard his fate revealed, Raja Guj convened his family
and bin, and on pretence of a pilgrimage to Jowala-mookhi,* he
caused them to depart, with the prince Salbahan, foi the east.

“ Soon after the foe approached within five coss of Gujni. Leaving
therein his uncle Seydeo for its defence, Raja Guj marched to meet
him. The hiu g of Kliorasau divided his ni my into five divisions;
the Raja formed liis into three : a desperate conflict ensued, in which
both the hingand the Raja were slain. The battle lasted fivey>'i(7i(n'S,'j'
and a hundred thousand Meers and thirty thousand Hindus strewed
the field. The king's son invested Gujni ; for thirty days it was
defended by Seydeo, when he performed, the and- nine

thousand valiant men gave up their lives.

“ When tidings of this fatal event were conveyed to Salbahan, for
twelve days the ground became his bed.§ He at length reached
the Punj&b, where lie fixed on a spot with abundance of water, and
having collected his clansmen around him, he laid the foundation of a
city which he named after himself, Salbahanpoor. The surrounding
Bliomias attended, and acknowledged his supremacy. Seventy-two
years of the era of Vi cram a had elapsed when Salbahanpoor was
founded, upon Sunday, the 8th of the mouth of Bhadoon.||

“ Salbahan conquered the whole region of the Punjab. He had
fifteen sons, who all became Rajas : viz., Bnlnnd, Rnsaloo, Dhur-
mungud, Vacha, Roopa, Soondur, LekTi, Juslcuru, Naitna, Maut,
Neepak, Gangeou, Jugeou • all of whom, by the strength of their
own arms, established themselves in independence.

'* This valcano is a well known place of pilgrimage in the Sewnlnk mountains,
f A puhar is one-fouith of the day.

X For a description of this rite, see Yol. I, p. 276.

§ In confoimity with the Hindu oidinnnce of matim, or mourning.

11^ Here is another circumstantial date, S. 72. or A.D. 16, for the foundation
of Salbahana in the Punjab, by the fugitive Yadu prince from Gujni. Of its
exact position we have no means of judging, but it could not have been remote
from Lahore. Itmay be deemed a fortunate coincidence that I should discover
that ancient inscription (Yol. I, pp. 700-1,) of this capital, styled Scilpoor ,
governed by a Gete or Jit in the fourth century; which suggested the idea
(which many facts tend to prove), whether these Yndns (whose illegitimate
•issue, as will appear in the sequel, are called Juts) mnv not be thcYuti or
Gef es from Central Asia. The coincidence of the dnte of Salbnhan-Yadu with
that of the Sacn Salivnhan, the Talc, will not fail to strike the encrairer into

VnrW : , the Ien curious circumstance, that these

inchis, oi Yuti, displaced the Tnkshac; or Tak, from this region, as will appear
immediately In further corroboration, see notes 2 and 2 pp 7M-1 and
inscriptions, II, p. 702 and VI, p. 707. ’ PP ' ™

CHAP. I.]

ANNALS OF JHSSTOMER.

-201

“ The coco-nut from Eaja Jeipftl Tiiar was sent from Delhi, and
accepted.* Balund proceeded to Delhi, whose prince advanced to
meet him. On his return with his bride, Salbahan determined to
redeem Gujni from the foe and avenge his father’s death. He crossed
the Attoc to encounter Jellal, who advanced at the head of twenty
thousand men. Crowned with victory, he regained possession of
Gujui, where he left Balund, and returned to his capital in the
Punjab : he soon after died, having, ruled thirty-three years and
nine-months.

“ Balund succeeded. His brothers had now established themselves
in all the mountainous tracts of the Punjab. But the Toorlcs-\ began
rapidly to increase, and to subjugate all beneath their sway, and the
lands around Gujni were again in their power. Balund had no
minister, but superintended in person all the details of his govern-
ment. He had seven sons : Bhatti, Bhupati, Kullur, Jinj, J Surmor,
Bhynsrdcha, Mnngreo. The second son Bhupati {%. e., lord of the
earth) had a son, Chakito, from whom is descended the Chakito
( Ghagitai) tribe. §

<e Chakito had eight sons, viz., Deosi, Bharoo, Khemkhan, Nahur,
Jeipal,|| Dharsi, Beejli-Rhan, Shah Summund.

“ Balund, who resided at Snlbahanpoor, left Gujni to the charge
of his grandson Chakito ; and as the power of the barbarian ( M’letcha )
increased, he not only entertained Hoops of that race, but all his
nobles were of the same body. They offered, if he would quit the
religion of his fathers, to make him master of Balich Bokhara, where
dwelt the Oosbek race, whose king had no offspring but one daughter.
Chakito married her, and became king of Balich Bokhara, and lord
of twenty-eight thousand horse. Between Balich and Bokhara runs
a mighty river, and Chakito was king of all from the gate of Balicli-
shan to the face of Hindust’an ; and from him is descended the
tribe of Chakito Moguls.^

, * At every page of these annals, it is evident that they have been transcribed

by some ignoramus, who has jumbled together events of ancient and modern
date. The prince of Dehli might have been Jeipal, but if wo are to place any
faith in the chronology of the Tiiar race, no prince of this family could be
synchronous with the Yadu Salbahan. Iam inclined to think that the emigra-
tion of Salbahan’s ancestors from Gujni was at a much later period than S.
72, as I shall note as we proceed.

■f Toork is the term in the dialects which the Hindus apply to the races from
central Asia, the Turshha of the Poorans.

t Doubtless. the ancestor of the Johya race, termed the Jenjflheh by Baber,
and who dwelt with the Juds in the hills of Jud, the Juddoo-ca-dang of the
Bhatti MSS.

§ However curious this assertion, of the Cbagifcnis being descended from tbe
Yadus, it ought nob to surprise us : I repeat, that all these tribes, whether
termed Indo-Scythic or Tatar, prior to Islamism, professed a faith which may
be termed Hinduism.

|| As it is evident tbe period has reference to the very first years of Islamism,
and it is stated that tbe sons of Guj were to be proselytes, it is by no means
improbable that this is Jypal, the infidel prince of Khwarezm. — See Price’s
Mahomedan History.

*5T This is a most important admission of the proselytism of the ancient Indo-
[Von. II.] 26

202

ANNALS OF JESSULHEK.

[CHAP. I.

« Kullur, third son of Balund, had eight sons, whose descendants
are designated Kuliur.* Their names were, Seodas, Ramdas, Asso,
Kistna, Samoh, Gango, Jesso, Bhago ; almost all of whom became
Moosulmauns. They are a numerous race, inhabiting the moun-
tainous countries west of the river,')' and notorious robbeis.

« Ji n j ) the fourth son, had seven sons ; Champo, Gokul, Mehraj,
Hunsa, Bhadon, Rasso, Juggo, all whose issue bore the name of
Jinj and in like manner did the other sons become the patriarchs
of tribes.

" Bhatti succeeded his father Balund. He conquered fourteen
princes, and added their fortunes to his own. Among his effects, he
reckoned twenty-four thousand mules§ laden with treasure ; sixty-
thousand horse, and innumerable foot. As soon as lie mounted the
gadi, he assembled all his forces at Lahore preparatory to the techa-
dour\\ destined against Beerbhan Bhagel, lord of Kenekpoor,
Beerbban fell in the battle which ensued, at the head of forty-
thousand men.

“ Bhatti had two sous, Mungul Rao and Musoor Rao. With
Bhatti, the patronymic was changed, and the tribe thenceforth was
distinguished by his name.

“ Mungul Rao succeeded, but his fortune was not equal to that of
his fathers. Dhoondi, king of Guzni, with a mighty force, invaded

Scythic Tadu princes to the faith of Islam, though there can be no reasonable
doubt of it. Temugin, better known by his nomine cle guerre, Jungeez, the
father of Chagitai, according to the Mahomednn historians, is termed an infidel,
and so was Tacash, the father of Mahomed of Khwarezm : the one was of tho
Getic or Yuti race ; the other, as his name discloses, of tho Tak or Takshac, the
two grand races of central Asia. The insertion of this pedigreo in this place
completely vitiates chronology : yet for what purpose it could have been inter-
polated, if not founded on some fact, we cannot surmise.

* We can, by means of the valuable translation of the Commentaries of
Baber, trace many of these tribes.

+ It has already been stated, that the fifteen brothers of Balund established
themselves in the mountainous parts of the Punjab, and that his sons inherited
those West of the Indus, or Damaun. The Afghan tribes, whose supposed
genealogy from the .Tews has excited so much curiosity, and who now inhabit
the regions conquered by the sons of Salbahan, are possibly Yadns, who, on
conversion, to give more eclat to their antiquity, converted Yadu into Yahudi,
or Jew, and added the rest of the story from the Koran. That grand division
of Afghans called the Euzofzye, or ‘ Sons of Joseph,’ whose original country
was Cabul and Guzni, yet retain the name of Jadoon (vulgar of Yadu), as one
of their principal subdivisions ; and they still occupy a position in the hilly
region east of the Indus, conquered by the sons of Balund. Tt would be a
curious fact could we prove the Afghans not Yahudzs but Yadvs.

t Doubtless the junction of Jinj with that of Joliya, another numerous tribe,
formed the Jenjuh&i of Baber; the Johyas of the Bhatti annals, now known
only by name, but whose history forms a volume. The sons of Jini have left
numerous traces — Jenjian on the Garah ; Jinjinialli in the desert &c

§_Even the mention of an animal unknown in the desert of India, evinces the
ancient source whence these annals are compiled. Had the Yadu colony at
this period obtained a footing m the i desert, south of the Sutlej, the compu-
tation would have been by camel-loads, not by mules. J 1

H See Yol. I. p. 313, for an account of this military foray.

CHAP. I.]

ANNALS OF JE8SULMER. 1

203

Lahore ;* nor did Mungul Rao oppose him, but with his eldest son
fled into the wilds on the hanks of the river. The foe then invested
Salbahaupoor, where resided the family of the Raja ; but Musoor
Rao escaped and fled to the Lakhi Jungle. f There being only a
cultivating peasantry in this tract, he overcame them, and became
master of the country. Musoor Rao had two sons, Abhd Rao and
Sarun Rao. The elder, Abkd Rao, brought the whole Lakhi Jungle
under his control, and his issue, which multiplied, became famous as
the Abhoria Bliattis. Sarun quarrelled with and separated from his
brother, and his issue descended to the rank of cultivators, and are
well known as the Sarun Juts.J *

“ Mungul Rao, the son of Bhatti, and who abandoned his kingdom,
had six sons : Mujtim Rao, Kullursi, Moolraj, Seoraj, Phool, Kewala.

“When Mungul Rao fled from the king, his children were secreted
in the houses of his subjects. A Bhomia named Satidas, of the tribe
of Tu7r,§ whose ancestors had been reduced from power and wealth by
the ancestors of the Bhatti prince, determined to avenge himself, and
informed the king that some of the children wei'e concealed in the
house of abaulcer ( saltoocar ). The king sent the Tak with a party
of troops, and surrounded the house of Sridhar, who was carried

* This would almost imply that Lahore and Salbahana were one and the
same place, but from what follows, the intervening distance could not have
been great between the two cities. There is a Sangala, south of Lahore, near
the altars of Alexander, and a Sialkote in our modern maps. Salbahana,
Salbahaupoor, or simply Salpoora, may have been erected on the ruins .of
Kampilanagri. We may hope that researches in that yet untouched region,
the Punjab, -will afford much to the elucidation of ancient history.

f The Lakhi Jungle is well known in India for its once celebrated breed of
horses, extinct witbm the last twenty years.

+ Thus it is th.it the most extensive agricultural races spread all over India,
called Jats or Jits, have a tradition that they are descended from the Xadu rnce,
(qu. Yuli ?) and that their original country is Candahar. Such was stated to
me as the origin of the Jats of Biaua and Bburtpore. Wbj r the descendants
of Sarun assumed the name of Juts is not stated.

§ This iucideutal mention of the race of Tak, and of its being in great
consideration on the settlement of thelTadusin the Punjab, is very important,
I have given a sketch of this tribe (Vol. I, p. 93), but since I wrote it, I have
discovered the capital of the T&h, and on the very spot where I should have
expected the site of Taxila, the capital of Taxiles, the friend of Alexander.
In that sketch I hesitated not to say, that the name was not personal, but arose
from his being the head of the Taltshac or Nctga tribe, which is confirmed. It
is to Baber, or rather to his translator,.that I am indebted for this discovery.
In describing the limits of Bauu, Baber thus mentions it : “ Ana on the west
“ is Desht, which is also called Bazar and Talc ; ” to which the erudite translator
adds, ‘‘Tak is said long to have been the capital of Daman.” In Mr. Elpliin-
stone’s mop, Bitzar, which Baber makes identical with Talc, is a few miles north
of the city of Attoc. There is no question that both the river and city were
named after the race of Tak or Takshac, the PTagas, Nagvansi, or * snalce race,
who spread over India. Indeed, I would assume that the name of Omphis,
which young Taxiles had on his father’s death, is Ophis, the Greek version of
Tak, the ‘ serpent.’ The Take appear to have been established in the same
■regions at the earliest period. The ZlahabJiarat describes the wars between
Janmdjo and the Takshacs, to revenge on their king the death of his father
Pnrikhit, emperor of Indraprest’lm, or Dehli.

[Von. n.] "

26 a '

[chap. X.

204

ANN AM OF JESSULMER.

before the king, who swore he would wt farmed
he did not produce the young pn Eaia's. for that the

banker protested he had no children of fte Ea]a s
infants who enjoyed bis protection we.c , theo ottspn ^ ^ ^

SgassiSrjfsSss «s

StS forth ?n S peasants garb ate with jbkg"* * * §

S: ,^ a • - ^ ^

(hhom&r), fell into that class. _ n

« Mungul Rao, who found shelter m the wilds o , ? nerioO'

crossed that stream and subjugated a new ter ntorj. A Ji *>
the tribe of Baraka* inhabited the banks of the nvei , ^ e y ^

•were the Boota Rajpoots of Bootaban.t In Po °^ E • oots icL
Pramara ; % in Dbat the Soda§ race; and the Lodra|| Rajpoots^
Lodorva. Here Mungul Rao found security, and wi ‘

of the S^da prince, he fixed his future abode in the centre of the
Ws of the Lodras, the Barahas, and the Sodas. On the death ot

Mungul Rao, he was succeeded by

“ Muiurn Rao, who escaped from Salbahanpoor with is a •
He was recognized by all the neighbouring princes, wko s ®
usual presents on his accession, and the Soda prince of Am
made an offer of his daughter in marriage, which was accept ,

• the nuptials were solemnized at Amerkote. He had tin >

Kehur, Moolraj,^ and Gogli.

* The names of these Rajpoot races, several of which are now blotte
the page of existence, prove the fidelity of the original manuscript.
Barahas are now Mahomedans.

f The Boota is amongst the extinct tribes. _ p r

{ Poogul" from the most remote times has been inhabited by the r r.
race. It is one of the No-Koli Maroo-cd, the nine castles of the desert.

§ The Sodas of Amerkote have inhabited the desert from time immemou >
and are in all probability the Sogdi of Alexander. See Yol. I, p. 85.

|| Lodorva will he described hereafter. . ,

IT Moolraj had three sons, Rajpal, Lohwa,' and Choobar. The elder son M
two sonB, Ranno and Geegoh ; the first of whom had five sons, Dhooknr,
Pohor, Bood, Koolroo, Jeipal, all of whom had issue, and became heads o
' ‘ ' oiBSSr-— Tkc-dcgsondauts of Geegoh bore the name of Khengar (gu. chiefs o
Girnar ?) The annals'vof all these states abound with similar minute genea-
logical details, which to;the Rajpoots are of the highest importance in enabling
them to trace the affinities of families, but which it is imperative to omit, as
they possess no interest'Ior the European reader. I have extracted the names ox
tho issue of Moolraj to phew this. TheKhengars were famed in the peninsula
of Salirashtra — nine of them ruled in Joonagur Girnar ; and but for this inci-
dental relation, their origin must have over remained concealed from tho
nrchmologist, as the race liaS long been extinct.

CHAP, I.]

ANNALS ON JESSULHEK.

205

“ Kehur became renowned for his exploits. Hearing of a caravan.
f hafila ) of five hundred horses going from Arore* to Mooltan, he
pursued them with a chosen band disguised as camel-merchants, and
came up with his prey across the Punjnud, + where he attacked and
captured it, and returned to his abode. By such exploits he became
known, aud the coco-nut f narjil ) was sent to Mujum Rao, and his
two elder sons, by Allansi Deora, of Jhalore. The nuptials were
celebrated with great splendour, and on tlieir return, Kehur laid the
foundation of a castle, which he named Tunnote in honour of Tunno-
devi. Ere it was completed, Rao Mujum died.

11 Kehur succeeded. On his accession, Tunnote was attacked by
„ Jesrit, chief of the Barakas,:}: because it was erected on the bounds
of his tribe ; but Moolraj defended it, and the Barahas were com-
pelled to retire.

" On Mungulwar (Tuesday), the full moon of Mah, S. 787§ (A.D. fj
731), the fortress of Tunnote was completed, and a temple erected to"/
Tuimo-Mata. Shortly after a treaty of peace was formed with the,/
Barahas, which was concluded by the nuptials of their chief with the
daughter of Moolraj/ 5

Having thus fairly fixed the Yadu Bhatti chieftain in the laud of
Maruca, it seems a proper point at which to close this initiatory
chapter with some observations on the diversified history of this
tribe, crowded into so small a compass ; though the notes of explana-
tion, subjoined as we proceeded, will render fewer remarks requisite,

#The remains of this once famous town, the ancient capital of the upper
valley of the Indus, I had the happiness to discover by means of oue of my
parties, in 1811. It is the Alore of Abulfazil, the capital of RajaSehris, whose
kingdom extended north to Cashmere, and south to the ocean; and the Azour
of D’Anville, who, on the authority of Ebn Haukal, says, “Azour est presque
“ comparable d Multan pour la grandeur.” He adds, that Azizi places it “trente
" paras angesdde Mans ora.” If Mansora is the ancient Belcher (capital of the
Sogdi), w.e should read three instead of thirty. See Map.

j* Punjnud is the name which the Indus bears immediately below the point
of confluence of the five streams ( punj-nadi ). The mere mention of such
terms as the Punjnud, and the ancient Arore, stamps these annals with
authenticity, however they may be deformed by the interpolations aud
anachronisms of ignorant copyists. Of Arore, or the Punjnud, excepting the
regular casids, or messengers, perhaps not an individual living in Jessulmdr
could now speak,

JTbis shews that the Baraha tribe was of the same faith with the Yadu
Bhatti; in fact “ the star of Islam” did not shine in these regions for some
-time after, although Omar, in the first century, had established a colony of the
faithful at Belcher, afterwards Mansoora. The Barahas are mentioned by
Pottinger in his travels in Balochistan.

§ There are but six descents given from Salbakan, the leader of the Yadu
colony from Zabulist’han into the Punjab, and Kehur, the founder of their
first settlement in the desert of India. The period of the first is S. 72, of the
other S. 787. Either names are wanting, or the period of Salbahan is erroneous.
Kchur’s period, viz., S. 787, appears a landmark, and is borne out by numerous
subsequent most valuable synchronisms. Were we to admit one hundred years
to have elapsed between Salbahan and Kehur, it would make the period of
expulsion from Zabulist’han about S. 687, which is just about the era o£
Mahomed.

206

ANNALS OF JESSULMER.

[chat, i.

since vrifcli tlieir help the render may draw hts own conclusions as
to the value of this portion of the Bhatti nnnals, which may bo
divided into four distinct epochs :

1st —That of Iferij tho ancestor of tho Yadu nice.

2 d Their expulsion, ov tho voluntary' abandonment of India by

his children, with their relations of tlm lloricnla and Pnndn races,
for the countries west of tho Indus: their settlements m JInroos-
i/luili : tlio founding of Gujui, nnd coinbnt.s with tlu* kings of ivootn
and IChornsan.

3d. Their expulsion from Zabnlist’han, colonization of tho Punjab,

and creation of tho now capital of Salliahanpoor.

• ,ith. — Their expulsion from the Punjab, and settlement in Mer,
the rocky oasis of Mnroo, to tho erection of Tnnnotc.

It is tho more unnecessary to outer into greater details on those
outlines of the early Yadu’ history, since the subject lias been in
part treated elsewhere/' A multiplicity ol scattered facts and
geographical distinctions, fully warrants our absent to the general
truth of these records, which prove that the Yadu race had dominion
iu central Asia, and wore again, ns Islnuiism advanced, repelled upon
Indin. The obscure legend of their encounters with the allied Syrian
and Bnctriau kings would have seemed altogether illusory, did not
evidence exist that Antioclms the Great, was slain in these very
regions by an Indo-Scythian piince, called by* the Greek writers
Sophngasenas : a name in all probability compounded from SoobfUm
and his grandson Guj (who might have used the common ufiix of
sen a), the Yadu princes of Gujui, who are both stated to have had
conflicts with tho Bnctriau (IChorasun) kings.

Seestan (the region of cold, * see’) and both sides of the valley,
were occupied in the earliest, periods by another branch of tho Yadus;
for the Sind-Samnm dynasty was descended from Sambav (which
like Yadu became a patronymic) — of which the Greeks made Savibus
— and one of whose descendants opposed Alexander in his progress
down the Indus. The capital of this dynasty was Samma-ca-kcte,
or Samanagari, yet existing on the lower Indus, and which was cor-'
rnpted into Minagara by the Greeks.

It is an interesting hypothesis, that would make the Clingitais
descendants of the Yadns.i In like manner, Bappd, tho ancestor of

t

* . Essay 0V1 the Hindu mid Theban Hercules,” Transactions of the

jRoynl Asiatic Society, Vol. III.

f Mr. Wilson discovered the name of Pandu in Ptolemv’s Geography of
Sogdmnn ; and according to Ebn Hauknl, the city of Herat, is also called Heri.
this adjoins Morn, oi^Mnrve, and to Mnroost’hali tho Pnndu and Hericula races
retired on their exilo f rom India. If ever these remote regions are searched for
ancient inscriptions, Vre may yet ascend the Indder of Time. What mas that
ATcmm language, uiscHbed on the gate of Samarkand ? (Ouseley, Ebn Hankal,
p. _o‘ .) Iho lamented; death of that enterprising traveller, Mr. Brown, when
i T3S \ fc,ng Transoxinnn, leaves n fine field to the adventurous. The
Jauddlnst colossal sculptures and caves at Bamian, with such inscriptions os

CHAP. I.]

ANNALS OP JESSULHEE.

207

the Ranas o£ Mewar, abandoned central India after establishing
his line in Gkeetore, and retired to Khorasan. All this proves that
Hinduism prevailed in these distant regions, and that the inter-
course was uni'estricted between central Asia and India. We have
undiscovered fields of inquiry in Transoxiana, and in the still more
accessible region of the Punjab, where much exists to reward the
arehmologist : Salbahanpoor, Kampilnagari, Behera, the hill of Jud,
perhaps Bucephalia,* the seven towns of Ooch, but, above all, the
capital of Taxiles. Let us hope that, in this age of enterprize, these
suggestions may be followed up : we can promise the adventurer a
very different result from that which tempts the explorer of bar-
barous Africa, for here he would penetrate into the first haunts of
civilization, and might solve one of the great problems which still
distract mankind.

they may contain, are of the highest importance ; and I have little doubt, will
be found-of the samo character as those discovered in the cave-temples of India,
attributed to the Pandus.

* In a portion of the essay “ On the Theban and Hindu Hercules.” which I
suppressed as better suited to an intended dissertation “ On the Sepulchral
“Monuments of the Rajpoots,” where I trace a close analogy between^ their
customs and those of the Scythic and Scandinavian Warriors, my particular
attention was drawn to that singular monument discovered by Elphinstone,
called the “ Tope Maniltyanla.” I had before (Trans. R. A. S. Yol. I, p. 330)
conjectured it to be one of the many mausoleums erected to Menander, but on.
observing the geography of St. Croix, in his ' Exanien Critique des
Historiens d’ Alexandre,’ who places the city of Bucephalus on the very spot
where the monument found by Mr. E. exists, I gave up Menander ior
Alexander’s horse, and this, long anterior to its reported excavation by the
Chev. Ventura, for whose subsequent observations we impatiently wait.

208

ANNALS' or JESSTTLMER.

[CHAP. II.

CHAPTER II.

Jiao Kelmr , cotemporary of lie Caliph Al Walid.—His offspring become heads
of tribes.— Eehur, the first who extended his conquests to the 'plains— He is
slain. — Tunno succeeds, — He assails the Bardlets and Langas. Tunnote in-
nested by the prince of Mooltan, who is defeated. — Jiao Tunno espouses the
daughter of the Boota chief. — His progeny. — Tunno finds a concealed trea-
sure.— Er ects the -castle of Beejnote— Tunno dies.— Succeeded by Iieeji Itae.—
He assails the Bahara tribe, who conspire with the Langas to attach the Bhatti
prince. — Treacherous massacre of Beeji ltad and his kindred. — Deoraj saved
by a Brahmin. — Tunnote taken. — Inhabitants put to the sword. — Deoraj joins
his mother in BootabOn. — Erects Deorawul, which is assailed by the Boota chief,
who is circumvented and put to death by Deoraj . — The Bhatti prince is visited
by a Jogi, whose disciple he becomes. — Title changed from Bao to Raioul . —
Beoraj massacres the Langas, who aclcnoivledge his supremacy. — Account of
the Langa tribe. — Beoraj conquers Lodoiva, capital of the Lodra Rajpoots . —
Avenges an insult of the prince of Dhdr. — Singular trait of patriotic devotion,
— Assaults Dhdr. — Returns toLodorva. — Excavates lakes inKhaddl. — Assas-
sinated. — Succeeded by Rawul Moond, ivho revenges his father's death. — His
son Bachera espouses the daughter of Bnllub-Sen, of Puttun Anhulwarra . —
Cotemporaries of Mahmoud of Gujni. — Captures a caravan of horses. — The
Pahoo Bhatlis conquer Boogul from the Johyas. — Doosaj, son of Bachera t
attacks the Kheechies. — Proceeds with his three .brothers to the land of Kher,
where they espouse the Gohilote chief’s daughters. — Important synchronisms . —
Bachera dies. — Doosaj succeeds. — Attacked by the Soda prince Hamir, in
whose reign the Caggar ceased to flow through the desert.— Traditional couplet.
— Sons of Doosaj. — The youngest, Lavja Beeji Rad, mai vies the daughter of
hidraj Solanki, king of Anhulwarra. — The other sons of Boos&j, Jesul, and
Beeji Rac. Bhojdeo, son of Banja Beeji Roe, becomes lord of Lodorva on the
death of Doosaj. Jesul conspires against his nephew Bhojdeo. — Solicits aid
from the Sultan of Ghor, whom he joins at- Arore. — Swears allegiance to the
Sultan. Obtains Ms aid to dispossess Bhojdeo. — Lodorva attacked and plun-
dered.— Bhojdeo slain.— Jesul becomes Rawul of the Bhattis.— Abandons
Lodorva as too exposed.— Discovers a site for a new capital.— Prophetic in-
sci iption on the Brimsir-coond, or fountain.— Rounds Jessulmer.— Jesul dies,
and is succeeded by Salbahan II.

Thc dates of tlie varied events related in the preceding chapter
may be of doubtful accuracy, but we have at length arrived on the
term fir ma of Bhatti chronology. We may distrust the date, 3008
ot Yudishtra s era, for the victory obtained by the Jadoon prince of
Wjm over the kings of Room and Khorasan ;* as well as that of S.
U assi S Ded for the exode of Salbahan and his Yadus from Zabu-

applr 1 the E°7r/l ab0r tells l \V V‘ his Oomr »entaries, that the people of lad
appij the term Khorasan , to all the regions west of the Indus.

CHAP. II.]

ANNIES OP JESSULMER.

209

list’ll an, and tlieir colonization of the Punjab j* but their settlements
in the desert, and the foundation of Tunnote, their first seat of
power, in S. 787 .(A. D. 731), are corroborated by incontrovertible
synchronisms in almost every subsequent reign of these annals.

Kehur, a name highly respected in' the history of the Bhatti race,
and whose exploit has been already recorded, must have been the
cotemporary of the celebrated Khalif A1 Walid, the first whose arms
extended to the plains of India, and one of whose earliest conquests
and chief positions was Arore, the capital of Upper Sinde.

Kehurf had five sons ; viz., Tunno, Ooti-rao, Chunnur, Kafrio,
Tliaem. All of them had offspring, J who became the heads of clans,
retaining the patronymic. All were soldiers of fortune, and they
conquered the lauds of the Chunna Raj poots ;§ but the latter revenged
themselves upon Kehur, whom they attacked and slew as he was
hunting.

Tunno succeeded. He laid waste the lands of the Barahas, [| and
those of the Laugaha of Mooltan. But Hnsein Shah advanced with
the Laugaha Pat’hans,^[ clothed in armour with iron helms, with the
men of Doodi,** of Kheecheeff the Kliokur;JJ the Mogul, the
Joliya,§§ the Jood,§§ and Syed, all mounted on horses, to the number

* Notwithstanding t,he lapse of eleven hundred years since the expulsion of
the Bhatlis from the Punjab, and in spite of the revolutions in laws, language,
and religion, since the descendants of Salbnhan abandoned that region, yet, even
to this day, there is abundant testimony in its geographical nomenclature that
the JBHnttis had dominion there. We have Pindi JBhattia-ca, Bhaiti-cct-cliulc, in
the very position where we should look for Snlbahnnpoor.

f Although I omit the inverted commas indicative of translation, the reader
is to understand that what follows is a tree interpretation of the original
chronicle,

X Ooti-rno had five sons. Soma, Sehesi, Jeevn, Cbako, and Ujo ; their issue
had the generic term of Ootirao. It is thus their clans and tribes are multi-
plied ad infinitum, and since the skill of the genealogist ( bhdt ) is required to
keep them clear of incestuous marriages, even such uninteresting details have
some value, as they stamp their annals with authenticity.

§ The tribe of Chunna is now extinct.

■ (1 These Indo-Scythie tribes were designated by the names of animals. The
Barahas are the hogs; the Noomries, the foxes; Talcehacs, the snakes ; Asivas
or Asi, the horses, &c.

IT These Laugaha Pnt’hans were proselytes from the Solanki Rajpoots, one of
the four Agniciila races. Probably they inhabited the district of Lnmgban,
west of the Indus. It is curious and interesting to find that the Solanki goira-
acharya, or ‘ genealogical creed,’ claims Lokoteas their settlement. The use of
the word Pat’han by no means precludes their being Hindus.

** Baber, in his valuable Autobiography, gives us the names of all the tribes
ho met in his passage into India, and this enumeration goes far to prove the
authenticityiof the early annals of the Bhattis, Baber does not mention “the
‘‘ men of Doodi.”

ft The introduction of the name of this tribe here is highly important, and
very interesting to those who have studied, in the Rajpoot bards, their early
history. The bards of the Kbeechees give them this northern origin, and state
that all Sindsagur, one of the do-dhehs of the Punjab, belonged to them.

J+ The Khokur is most probably the Grhiker. Baber writes the name
4 Guker,’ a singular race, and decidedly Scythic iu their habits even in his day.

§§ Of the Joodis aud Johyas we have already spoken as inhabiting the range
[Tot. II. J 27

210

ANNALS Or JESSTTLMER.

[CHAP. II.

of ten tkousaud men, to attack tlie Jadoo. They reached the
territory of the Barakas, who joined them, and there they encamped.
Tnnno collected his brethren around him, and prepared for defence.
Durinc four days they defended the castle ; and on the fifth the Rao
ordered the gates to be thrown open, and with his son, Beeji Rad,
sallied out sword in hand, and attacked the besiegers. The Barahas
were the first to fly, and they were soon followed by the rest of the
Asoors. The victors carried the spoils of the field into Tunnote.
As soon as the armies of Mooltan and Langaha were driven off, the
coco-nut came from Jeejoo, chief of the Bootas of Bootaban,* and an
alliance offensive and defensive was formed against the prince of
Mooltan.

Tuuno had five sons, Beeji Rae, Makur, Jeytung, Allun, and
Rakecho. The second son, Makur, had issue Maipah, who had two
sons, Mohola and Decao, the latter of whom excavated the lake
known by his name. His issue became carpentei’s ( sootar ), and are
to this, day known as the ‘ Makur sootar.

The third son, Jeytfing, had two sons, Ruttunsi and Ohohir. The
first repaired the ruined city of Beekumpoor.j: Ckohir had two
sons. Kola and Grir-r6j, who founded the towns of Kolasir and
G-irajsir.J

The fourth son, Allun, had four sons, Deosi, Tirpal, Blxaoni, and
Rakecho. The descendants of Deosi became Rebams (who real*
camels), aud the issue of Rakecho became merchants ( baniahs ), and
are now classed amongst the Oswal ti’ibe.§

called in the native annals Jziddoo-ca-daug, and by Baber ‘the hill of Jud,’
-skirting the Behab. The position of Behera is laid down in that monument of
genius and industry, the Memoir of Renuel (who calls it Bheera), in 32° N.
and 72° 10' E. ; and by Elphinstone in 32° 10’, but a whole degree further to
the east, or 73° 15'. This city, so often mentioned in the Yadu-Bhatbi annals
as one oE their intermediate places of repose, bn their expulsion from India
and migration to Central Asia, has its position minutely pointed out by the
Emperor Baber (p. 259), who, in his attack on the hill tribes of Jibs, Goojurs,
Grukers, &c., adjoining Cashmere, “ expelled Had Guker from Behreh, on the
“Behut River, near the cave-temples of Gar-kotri. at BIkrum,”of which the
able annotator remarks, that as well as those of Bub Bamian they were proba-
bly Budhisb. Baber (291) also found the Jits masters of Sialkote, most likely
the Salpoor of the Inscription (Vol. I, 707), conquered from a Jib prince in
the twelfth century by the Patuu priuce, and presumed to be the Salbahanpoor
founded by the fugitive Yadu prince of Gujnj.

* Bootaban, probably from vanu, pronounced in the dialect bun, the ‘wild'
or ‘ forest’ of Boota.

flllegitimate children can never overcome this natural defect amongst the
Rajpoots. Thus we find among all classes oE arbizans in India, some of royal
but spurious descent.

J These towns and lakes are well known, but have been seized by Bikanfir.
See Map.

§ The Oswal is the richest and most numerous of the eighty-four mercantile
tribes of India, and is said bo amount to one hundred thousand families. They
are called ‘ OsivaV from their first settlement, the town of Ossi. They are all
of pure Rajpoot birth, of no single tribe, but chiefly Piiavs, Solankis, and
Bhattis. All profess the Jain tenets, and it is a curious fact, though little

OHAP. II.]

ANNALS OF JESSULMER.

211

Tuuno liaving, by tbe interposition of tbe goddess Beejasenrflj
discovered a bidden treasure, erected a fortress, which be named ^
Beejnote ;* and in this be placed a statue of tbe goddess, on tbe 13th,
tbe eulightened part of the month Megsir, the Bohini Nikbitra, S.
S13 (A.D. 757). He died after ruling eighty years.

Beeji Rae succeeded in S. S70 (A.D. 814). He commenced bis
reign with the teelca-clour against bis old enemies, tbe Barakas, whom
be defeated and plundered. In S. 892, be bad a son by tbe Boota
queen, who was called Deoraj. Tbe Barahas and Laugahas once
more united to attack tbe Bbatti prince ; but they were defeated
and put to flight. Binding that they could not succeed by open
warfare, they bad recourse to treachery. Having, under pretence of
terminating this long feud, invited young Deoraj to marry tbe
daughter of tbe Bavaha chief, tbe Bbattis attended, when Beeji Rad
and eight hundred of bis kin and clan were massacred. Deoraj
escaped to tbe house of tbe Purohit (of tbe Barahas, it is presumed),
whither be was pursued. There being no hope of escape, tbe Brah-
min threw tbe Brabminical thread round tbe neck of tbe young
prince, and in order to convince bis pursuers that they were deceived
as to tbe object of their search, be sat down to eat with him from
tbe same dish. Tunnote was invested and taken, and nearly every
“soul in it put to tbe sword, so that tbe very name of Bbatti was for
a while extinct.

Deoraj remained for a long time concealed in tbe territory of tbe
Barahas; but at length be ventured to Boota, bis maternal abode,
where be bad tbe happiness to find bis mother, who bad escaped tbe
massacre at Tunnote. She was rejoiced to behold her son's face, and
" waved tbe salt over bis bead,” then threw it into tbe water,
exclaiming, "thus may your enemies melt away 1” Soon tired of a
life of dependence, Deoraj asked for a single village, which was pro-
mised ; but tbe kin of tbe Boota chief alarmed him, and he recalled
it, and limited bis grant to such a quantity of land as be could encom-
pass by tbe thongs cut from a single buffalo's bide : and this, too, in
tbe depth of tbe desert. For this expedient be was indebted to tbe
architect Kelceya, who bad constructed tbe castle of Bbutnair.f

known, that tbe pontiffs of that faith must be selected from the youth of Ossi.
Tbe wealthy bankers and merchants of these regions scattered throughout
India, are all known under one denomination, Manoari, which is erroneously
supposed to apply to the Jodpoor territory, whereas, in fact, it means belonging
to the desert. It is singular that the wealth of India should centre in this
region of comparative sterility !

* See map.

•f This deception practised by the Bbatti chief to obtain land on which to
erect a fortress is not unknown in other parts of India, and in more remote
regions. Bhutnair owes its name to this expedient, from tbe division ( bhatna )
of tho hide. The etymology of Calcutta is the same, hut should be written
JDialcutta, from the cuttings of the hide ( lihal ). Byrsa, the castle of Carthage,
originates from the same story. If there existed any affinity between the
ancient Pali language of India and the Punic or Phoenician (as the names of
its princes and their adjuncts of bal would indicate), and the letters Baud Ch
were as little dissimilar in Punic as in Sanscrit, then Pyrsa would become
[Yon. II.] 27a

212

ANNALS 03? JESSULMER.

[CHAP. II.

Deoraj immediately commenced erecting a place of strength, which
he called after himself Deogurh, or Deorawul,* on Monday, the 5th
of the month Mah { soodi ), the Pook’h Nikhitra, S. 909.

Soon as the Boota chief heard that his son-in-law was erecting,
not a dwelling, but a castle, he sent a force to raze it. Deoraj des-

clmrsa, * hide or skin,’ which might have originated the capital of the African
Mauritania, as of the Indian Marut’han. Thns Marocco may be from Maru-ca,
of, or belonging to Maru, the desert, also probably the origiu of the Murve of
Iran. The term Moor may likewise be corrupted from Mauri, an inhabitant
of Maruca, while the Sehrad of our Indian desert is the brother in name and
profession of the Saracen of Arabia, from Sebra, a desert, and zuddun, to
assault. The Nomadic princes of Mauritania might therefore be the Pali or
shepherd kings of Mar&i’han, the great African desert. And who were these
Philita or Pali kings of Barbary and Egypt p It is well known that the
Bdrb^rs who inhabited Abyssinia and the south coast of the Red Sea, migrated
to the northern coast, not only occupying it, as well as Mount Atlas, but
pushing their tribes far into the grand sehra, or desert. To those colonists,
that coast owes its name of Barbary. Prom the days of Solomon and his
cotemporary Sisbac, an intimate communication subsisted between the eastern
coast of Africa and India; and I have already hazarded the opinion, that wo
must look to this coast of ./Ethiopia and Abyssinia for the Lanka of the
Rameses (Rameswar) of India; and from the former country the most skilful
archmologists assert that Egypt had her mythology, and more especially that
mystery, the prominent feature of both systems — the Phallic rites, or worship
of the lingam. Berber, according to Bruce, means a shepherd, and as bey
sheep in the language of India, bevber is a shepherd in the most literal sen!
and consequently the synonym of Pali. It has been asserted that this r.
colonized these coasts of Africa from India about the time of Amenophis,
that they are the Yhsos, or ‘ shepherd-kings,’ who subjugated Egypt. On t,
account a comparison of the ancient architectural remaius of Abyssinia
Ethiopia with those of the ancient HinduB is most desirable. It is asse<
and with appearance of truth, that the architecture of the Pyramids is distinct
from the Pharaonic, and that they are at once Astronomic and Phallic. \^ n
India, the symbolic pinnacle surmounting the temples of the sun-god
always pyramidal. If the forthcoming history of the Berbers should reveal the ~
mystery of their first settlements in Abyssinia, a great object would be
attained; audif search were made in the old cave-temples of tbat»coast, some
remains of the characters they used might aid in tracing their analogy to the
ancient Pali of the East: an idea suggested by an examination of the few
characters fouud in the grand desert inhabited by the Tuaricks, which have a
certain resemblance to the Punic, and to the unknown characters attributed to
the Indo-Scythic tribes of India, as on their coins and cave-temples. Wide
asunder as are these regions, the mind that will strive to lessen the historical
separation may one day be successful, when the connexion between Aeb’biopia
(qu : from c'ulUya and contracted ait, the sun ?) and Saurashtra, * the land of the
Sun,’ or Syria of India, may become more tangible. Ferishta (vide Briggs’
Translation, Vol. IV, p.408,) quoting original authorities, says, “ the inhabitants
“ of S elan dip, or the island ot Ceylon, were accustomed to send vessels to the
“ coast of Africa, to the Red Sea, and Persian Gulf, from the earliest acres, and
“ Hindu pilgrims resorted to Mecca and Egypt for the purpose of°paying
“ adoration to the idols. It is related also that this people trading from Ceylon .

“ became converts to the true faith at so early a period as the first caliphs all
which confirms the fact of early intercourse between Egypt and India.— See
. Vol. I, p. 517. .

T Deorawul is in the map ; it was one of the points of halt in Elphinstone's
mission to Cabnl. This discloses to us the position of the Boota territory, and

ArSn°T a data ! i re Slven ' tho<,e inclined to prove or disprove the Bhatti
chronology have ample means afforded. F

CHAP, II.]

ANNALS OP JBSSULMER.

213

patched his mother with the keys to the assailants, and invited the
leaders to receive the castle and. his homage ; when the chief men,
to the number of a hundred and twenty, entering, they were
inveigled, under pretence of consultation, ten at a time, and each
party put to death and their bodies thrown over the wall.
Deprived of their leaders, the rest took to flight.

Soon after, the prince was visited by his patron, the Jogi who
had protected him amongst the Barahas, and who now gave him
the title of Sid. This Jogi, who possessed the art of transmuting
metals, lodged in the same house where Deoraj found protection
on the massacre of his father and kindred. One day, the holy man
had gone abroad, leaving his jirghirhunta, or ‘ tattered doublet/ in
which was the Rascoompa, or ‘ elixir-vessel/ a drop of which having
fallen on the dagger of Deoraj and changed it to gold, he decamped
with both, and it was by the possession of this he was enabled to
erect Deorawul. The Jogi was well aware of the thief whom he
now came to visit ; and he confirmed him in the possession of the
stolen property, on one condition, that he should become his chela
and disciple, and, as a token of submission and fidelity, adopt the
external symbols of the Jogi. Deoraj assented, and was invested
with the Jogi robe of ochre.* * * § He placed the moodraf in his ear,
the little horn round his neck, and the bandage ( langota ) about his
loins ; and with the gourd ( cupra ) in his hand, he perambulated the
dwellings of his kin, exclaiming, Aluc ! Aluc !\ The gourd was
filled with gold and peai'ls ; the title of Rao was abandoned for that
of Raivul;§ the teelca was made on his forehead; and exacting a
pledge that these rites of inauguration should be continued to the
latest posterity, the Baba Ritta (for such was the Jogfls name)
disappeared.

Deoraj determined to wreak his revenge on the Barahas, and he
enjoyed it even <! to shipping the scarfs from the heads of their
ff females.” On his return to Deorawul, he prepared for an attack
on Langaha, the heir of which was then on a marriage expedition at
Aleepoor. There, Deoraj attacked and slew a tbonsand of them, the
rest henceforth acknowledged his supremacy. The Langahas were
gallant Rajpoots.

As the tribe of Langaha, or Langa, will from this period go hand
in hand, in all the international wars of the Yadu-Bbattis, from their
expulsion from the Punjab to their final settlement in the Indian
desert, it is of some interest to trace its origin and destiny. It is
distinctly stated that, at this epoch, the Langas were Rajpoots ; and
they are in fact a subdivision’ of the Solanki or Chalook race, one of
the four Agnicida ; and it is important to observe that in their gotra-

* Called geeroo ;■ garments coloured with this dye are worn by all classes of.
mendicants.

f The moodra is around prickly seed worn by the ascetics as ear-rings.

1 The Supreme Being; the universal and One God.

§ Rawul is still the title of the princes of Jessulmer, as it once was that
of the Me war house.

214

ANNALS OF JESSUlMER.

[CHAP. II.

achcmja, or ff genealogical creed/ they claim Lokote in the Punjab as
their early location ; in all probability prior to their regeneration on
Mount A boo, when they adopted Brahminical principles. Prom the
year S. 787 (A.D. 731), When the castle of Tunnote was erected by
the leader of the Bhatti colony, down to S. 1530 (A.D. 1474), a-
period of seven hundred and foity -three years, perpetual border-
strife appears to have occimed between the Bhattis and Langas,
which terminated in that singular combat, or duel, of tribe against
tribe, during the reign of Rawul Chachik, in the last-mentioned
period. Shortly after this, Baber conquered India, and Mooltaii
Became a province of the empire, when the authority of tribes
ceased. Perishta, however, comes to our aid and gives us au account
of an entire dynasty of this tribe as kings of Mooltan. The first of
this line of five kings began his reign A.H. 847 (A.D. 1443) or thirty
years anterior to the death of Rawul Chachik. The Mooslem
historian (see Briggs 5 Perishta, Yol. IY, p. 388), says that when
Khizer Khan Syud -was emperor of Delhi, he sent Shekh Yusoopli
as his lieutenant to Mooltan, who gained the esteem of the surround-
ing princes ; amongst whom was Rae Sehra, chief of Seevee, head
of the tribe of Laugn, who came to congratulate him, and to offer
his services and a daughter in marriage. The offer was accepted ;
constant communication was kept up between Seevee "and Mooltan,
till at length Rad Sehra disclosed the object of all this solicitude ;
he threw aside the mask, confined the Shekh, sent him off to Delhi,
and crowned himself king of Mooltan under the title of Kootub-u-din.

Perishta calls Rae Sehra and his tribe of Langa, Afghans ; and
Abulfazil says, the inhabitants of Seevee were of the Noomrie (fox)
.tribe, which is assuredly one of the most numerous of the Jit orGete
race, though they have all, since their conversion, adopted the distinc-
tive term of Baloch. The Bhatti chronicle calls the Langas in one
page Pat’han, and in another Rajpoot, which are perfectly recon-
cileable, and by no means indicative that the Patfhan or Afghan of
that early period, or even in the time of Rae Sehra, was a Mahome-
dan. The title of Rae is sufficient proof that they were even then
Hindus. Mr. Elphinstone scouts the idea of the descent of the
Afghans from the Jews ; and not a trace of the Hebrew is found in
the Pooshtoo, or language of thistribe, although it has much affinity
to the Zend and Sanscrit. I cannot refrain from repeating my con-
viction of the origin of the Afghans from the Yadu, converted into
Yahucli, or ' Jew/ Whether these Yadus are or are not Yuti or
Getes, remains to be proved

fj To the south of Deorawul dwelt the Lodra Rajpoots ; their capital
^/was Lodorva, an immense city, having twelve gates. The family
Purohit, having been offended, took sanctuary {sirna) with Deoraj,
.and stimulated him to dispossess his old masters of their territory
A marriage was proposed to Nirp-bhau, the chief of the Lodras,
which being accepted, Deoraj, at the head of twelve hundred chosen
horse, departed for Lodorva. The gates of the city were thrown
open as the bridegroom approached ; but no sooner had he entered

CHAP. II . ]

ANNALS OF JESSULMER.

215

wifcli Ms suite, than swords were drawn, and Deoraj made Mmself
master of Lodorva.* He married tlie cMeFs daughter, left a garrison
in Lodoiwa, and returned to Deorawul. Deoraj was now lord of fifty-
six thousand horse, and a hundred thousand camels. f

At this period, a merchant of Deorawul, named Jiskurn, having '
gone to Dharanagari, was imprisoned by its prince, Brij-bhan Piiar,
and compelled to pay a ransom for his liberty. On his return to
Deorawul, he showed the mark of the iron-collar to his sovereign,
who, indignant at the dishonour put upon his subject, swore he
would not drink water until he had avenged the insult. But he had
not calculated the distance between him and his foe; in order,
however, to redeem his pledge, a DZidr of clay ( gdr-rd-dhdr ) was
constructed, on which lie was about to wreak his vengeance, but
there were Pramars in his army, who were at -their post ready to
defend their mock capital ; and, as their astonished prince advanced
to destroy it, they exclaimed —

Jdn Piiar t’hydn Dhdr hyn
Or Dhdr t’hydn Piidr
Dhdr binna Piidr nuhyn
Or nuhyn Piiar binna Dhdr.

which may be thus translated :

“ Wherever there is a Piiar, there is a Dhar ; and where there is a
Dhdr, there is a Piiar. There is no Dhar without a Piiar ; neither is
there a Piiar without a Dhdr. •’■’I

.Under their leaders, Tejsi and Sarung, they protected the mock
Dhar, and were cut to pieces to the number of one hundred and
twenty. Deoraj appi’oved their valour, and provided for their
children. Being thus released from his oath, he proceeded towards
Dhdr, reducing those who opposed his progress. Brij-bhan defended
Dhdr during. five days, and fell with eight hundred of his men ;
'upon which Deoraj unfurled the flag of victory and returned to his
late conquest, the city of Lodorva.

Deoraj had two sons, Moond and Chedoo ; the last, by a wife of
the.Baraha tribe, had five sons, whose descendants were styled Clieda

* We are not told of what race {cilia) was tho Lodra Rajpoot; in all proba-
bility it was Pramara, or Piiar, which at one time occupied the whole desert of
India. Lodorva,' as will be seen, became the capital of the Bhattis, until the
founding of their last and present capital, Jess aimer : it boasts a high anti-
quity, though now a ruin, occupied by a few families of shepherds. Many
towns throughout the desert were formerly of celebrity, but are now desolate,
through tho conjoined causes of perpetual warfare and the shifting sands. X
•obtained a copper-plate inscrinbiou of the tenth century from Lodorva, of the
period of Beeji Raj, in the ornamental Jain character; also some clay signets,
given to pilgrims, bearing Jain symbols. All these relics attest the prevailing
religion to have been Jain.

. f A gross exaggeration of the annalist, or a cypher in each added by the
copyist.

t Dhar, or Dharanagari, was the most ancient capital of this tribe, the most
numerous of the Agnicula races. See a sketch of the Piiars, or Pramaras,
Vol. I, p. 82 .

21G

ANNALS OF JESSULMER.

[CHAP. II.

Rajpoots. Dooraj excavated several large lakes in the territory of
Khaclal (in which Deorawul is sitnated) ; one at Tunnote is called
Tumio-sirr; another, after himself, Deo-sirr. Having one day gone
to hunt, slightly attended, he was attacked by an ambush of the
Cbunna Rajpoots, and slain with twenty-six o£ his attendants, after
having reigned fifty-five years. His kin and clans shaved their locks
and moustaches, excepting*

Moond, who succeeded, and performed all the ceremonies during
the twelve days. Having made his ablutions with the water from
sixty-eight different wells, in which were immersed the leaves of one
hundrod and eight different shrubs and trees, a female of spotless
virtue waved the burning frankincense over his head. Before him
was placed the pinij-amrit , consisting of curds, milk, butter, sugar,
and honey ; likewise pearls, gems, the royal umbrella, the grass
called el’hoob, various flowers, a looking-glass, a young virgin, a
chariot, a flag or banner, the vela flower, seven sorts of grain, two
fish, a horse, a nuFhtinlc (unknown), a bullock, a shell, a lotus, a
vessel of water, the tail of the wild ox (chcionr), a sword, a female
calf, a litter, yellow clay, and prepared food. Then, seated on the
lion’s hide, — (on which were painted the seven divipas or continents
of Hindu cosmography, apparelled in the dress of the Jogi, and
covered with ashes ( bhuboot ), with the moodra in his ears),-— 1 Hie
white chdonr (ox-tail) wms waved over his head, and he was inaugu-
rated on the gadi of Deoraj, while the Purohit and chiefs presented
their offerings. The teelca-dour was against the assassins of liisfather,
who had congregated for defence, eight hundred of whom were put
to death. Rawul Moond had one son, who was called Bachera.
When about fourteen years of age the coco-nut came from Bullub-
sdn Solanki, Raja of Patuu.f He forthwith proceeded to Patun,
where he married the Solanki priucess, and died not long after his
father.

Bachera succeeded on Saturday the 12th Sravau, S. 1035. J The
same rites of installation were performed ; the hanferra (split-eared)
Jogi was the first to put the regal tiluc on his forehead, and ‘ his

* There is no interregnum in Rnjwnrra : the king never dies,
t This affords a most important synchronism, con-oborative of the correct-
ness of these annals. Raja Bullub-sdn of Patun (Auhulwarra) immediately
followed Chamund Rae, who was dispossessed of the throne by Mahmoud of
Gbizni, in the year A.D. 1011, or S. 1067. Bullub-sdu died the year of his in-
stallation, and was succeeded by Doorlubh, whose period has also been syn-
chronically fixed by an inscription belonging to the Pramaras. — See Transac-
tions of the Royal Asiatic Society, Yol. 1, p. 223.

j This date, S. 1035, is evidently an error of the copyist. Bachera married
Bullub-sen’s danghter in S. 1067, and he died in S. 1100; so that it should be
either S. 1055 or 1065. It is important to clear this point, as Rawul Bachera
was the opponent of Mahmoud of Ghizni in his invasion of India A. H. 393,
A.D. 1000, = S. 1056 or S. 1066, the Samvat era being liable to a variation of
ten years, (Colebrooke). If we are right, a passage of Perishta, which has
puzzled the translators, should run thus : ‘ Mahmoud directed his march
against the Bbatti, and passing Mooltan, arrived at Behra, a Bhatti citv.”-~
Compare Dow, Yol. I, p. 58, (4to. edition; and Briggs, Yol. I, p. 38. '

CHAP. II.]

ANNALS OP JE8SULMEB.

217

hand upon his back/ Rawul Backera had five sous, Doosaj, Singh,
Bappi Rao, Unkho, and Maal-Pusao ; all of whom had issue, forming
clans.

A merchant came to Lodorva with a caravan of horses, of which
there was one of a race so superior, that a lac of rupees was fixed
as his price ; the breed belonged to a Pafkan chief, west of the
Indus. To obtain it, Doosaj and his son Unlcho put themselves at
the head of a band, crossed the Indus, slew Gazi Khan, the PaPlian
chief, and carried off his stud.

Sing* had a son, Sacka-rae ; his son was Balia, who had two sons,
.Ruttuu and Jugga ; they attacked the Purihar prince Juggernath of
Mundore, and carried off five hundred camels : their descendants are
styled Singrao Rajpoots.

Bappi Rao had two sons, Pakoo and Mandun. Pakoo had likewise
two, Beerum and Toolir, whose numerous issue were styled the Pakoo
Rajpoots. The Pahoos issued from their abode of Beekumpoor, and
conquered the lauds of the Johyas, as far as Devi-jhdl ; and having
made Poognl* their capital, they dug numerous wells in the t’hul,
which still go by the name of the Pahoo wells.

Near Kkaloh, in the Nagore District of Marwar, there dwelt a
warrior of the Keechee tribe, named Jiddra, who often plundered
even to the gates of Poogul, slaying many of the Jytung Bhattis.
Doosaj prepared a kafila (‘ caravan,-’) under pretence of making a
pilgrimage to the Ganges, invaded unawares the Kheeckee ckiePs
territory, and slew him, with nine hundred of his men.

Doosaj, with his three brothers, went to the land of Kker, where
dwelt Pertap Sing*, chief of the Gohilotes,f whose daughters they
espoused. “ In the land of Kkdr, the Jadoon showered gold, enrich -
“ ing it.” In the daeja (dower) with his daughter, the Gohilote gave
fifteen Dewa-darries, or ‘ virgin lamp-holders.” Soon after, the
Balockes made an inroad into the territory of Kkdd&l ; a battle
ensued, in which five hundred were killed, and the rest fled beyond
the river. Backera died, and was succeeded by

Doosaj, in the month of Asai*, S. 1 100. Hamix*, prince of the Sodas, J
made an incursion into his territories, which he plundered. Doosaj
having unavailingly remonstrated, reminding him of ancient ties, he

See Map. This was one of the points touched at in Mr. Elpbinstone’s
journey,

t The chief of the Gohilotes is now settled at Bhaonuggur, at the estuary of
the Myhie : where I visited him iu, 1823. The migration of the family from
Kherdhur occurred about a century after that period, according to the docu-
ments iu the Eao’s family. And we have only to look at the opening of the
Annals of Marwar to see that from its colonization by the Rabtores, the Gobil
community of Kerdhur was finally extinguished. To the general historian
these minute facts may be unimportant, but they cease to be so when they
prove the character of these annals for fidelity.

t If this is the Harnfra alluded to in the Annals of Bikandr,' in whose time
the Caggar river ceased to flow in these lands, we have another date assigned
to a fact of great physical importance.

[Vol. II.]

28

218

ANNALS Of JESSULMEK.

[CHAP. II.

marched into Dhafc, and gained a victory. Doosaj bad two sons,
Jesul aud Beejiraj, and in bis old age a third son, by a Ranawut
princess of the bouse of Mewar, called Lnvja Beeji llnd, who, when
DoosAj died, was placed on the throne by the uobles and civil officers
of the state. Previous to his elevation, he had espoused a daughter
of Sidraj Jey Sing, Solauld. During the nuptial ceremonies, as the
mother of the bride was marking the forehead of the bridegroom
with the Ululi, or ‘ inauguration mark/ she exclaimed, “ My sou, do
<< thou become the portal of the north — the barrier between us and
“ the king, whose power is becoming strong/’* B} T the princess of
Puttun lie had a son, who was named Bhojdeo, and who, by the
death of his father when he attained the age of twenty-five, became
lord of Lodorva. The other sons of Doosaj were at this time
advanced in manhood, Jesul being thirty-five, and Beejiraj thirty-two
years of age.

Some years before the death of Doos&j, Raedhuwal Pilar, son (or
descendant) of Udyaditof Dhar, had three daughters, one of whom
he betrothed to Jeipal (Ajipal) Solanki, son of Sidraj ;f another to
Beejiraj Bhatti, and the third to the Rana of Cheetore. The Bhatti
prince left Lodorva for Dhar at the head of seven hundi-ed horse, and
arrived at the same time with the Seesodia and Solanki princes. On
his return to Lodorva, he erected a temple to SMslinga , close to
which he made a lake. By the Piiar princess he had a sou named
Rahir, who had two sons, Netsi and Kdksi.

Bhojdeo had not long occupied the gadi of Lodorva, when his

* Here we have another synchronism. In the Komarpal Oharitra, or history
of the kings of Anhulwarra Puttun, the reign of Sidraj was from S. 1150 to S.
1201, or A.D. 1094 to 1145; the point of time intermediate between the
invasion of Mahmoud of Ghizni and the final conquest of India by Shnbudin,
during which they were many irruptions into Iudiaby the lieutenants of the
monarchs of Ghizni. There was one in the reign of Musood, in A.H. 492 (A.D.
1098), four years after the accession of Sidraj ; another in A.D. 1120, in the
reigu of Byram Shah, during which, according to Ferishta, the Ghaznevide
general, Balin, rebelled and assailed the Hindu Rajas from Nagore, where be
established himself. In alL probability this is the event alluded to by the queen
of Puttun, when she nominated the Bhatti prince as her champion.

t The mention of these simultaneous intermarriages in three of the principal
Rajpoot monarchies of that day, vis , Dhar, Puttun, and Cheetore, is important,
nob ohly as establishing fresh synchronisms, bub as disclosing the intercourse
between the Bhattis and the more aucient princely families of India. The period
of TJdyadit Pramar has been established beyond cavil (see Trans. R. A. S., Vol.
I, p. 223), and that of Sidraj, likewise, whose sou and successor, Ajipal, had but
a short reigu when he was deposed by Komarpal, whose date is also found from
inscriptions. It is a singular fact, that all the Rajpoot dynasties of these regions
were established about the same epoch, viz., Puttun by the Chauras, Cheetore by
the Gehlotes, Dehli, refounded by the Tiiars, and the Bhatti principality by
the descendant of Salbahau. This was in the middle of the eight century of
Yicramaditya, wheu the older Hindu governments were broken up. The
admission of the Bhatti to intermarry with their families proves one of two
facts : either that they were considered Rajpoots, notwithstanding their being
inhabitants of the regions beyond the Indus ; or, that the familiel mentioned,
with which they intermarried, were Indo-Scythic like themselves

CHAP. II.]

AHNALS OP JE8SUEMER.

219

uncle Jesul conspired against liirn ; but being always surrounded by
a guard of five .hundred Solanki Rajpoots, his person was unassail-
able. At this time, the prince of Puttun was often engaged with the
king’s troops from Tat’ha. Jesul, in pursuance of his plan, deter-
mined to coalesce with the king, and cause an attack on Puttun
(Anhulwarra), by which alone he could hope for the departure of the
Solanki body-guard. Jesul, with his chief kin, escorted by two
hundred horse, marched to the Punjnud, where he saw the king of
Ghor, who had just overcome the king of Tat’ha,* and placed his
own garrison there, and he accompanied him to Arore, the ancient
capital of Sinde. There he unfolded his views, and having sworn
allegiance to the king, he obtained a force to dispossess his nephew
of his territory. Lodorva was encompassed, and Bhojdeo slain in
its defence. Iu two days the inhabitants were to carry off their
effects, and on the third the troops of Ghor were permitted the
license of plunder. Lodorva was sacked, and Kureem Khan departed
for Bekher with the spoils.

Jesul thus obtained the gadi of Lodorva ; but it being open to
invasion, he sought a spot better adapted for defence, and he found
one only five coss (ten miles) from Lodorva. Upon the summit of a
rocky ridge, he discovered a Brahmin, whose solitary hermitage
adjoined the fountain of Brimsir. Having paid homage, and dis-
closed the purport of his visit, the recluse related the history of the
triple-peaked hill, which overlooked his hermitage. He said, that in
the Treta, or f silver age/ a celebrated ascetic called Kak, or Kaga,
resided at this- fountain, after whom the rivulet which issued thence
had its name of Kaga ; that the Pandu Arjoon, with Heri Crishna,
came there to attend a gi-eat sacrifice, on which occasion Crishna
foretold that, in some distant age, a descendant of his should erect a
town on the margin of that rivulet, and should raise a castle on
Tricuta, the triple-pealced mount.*!* While Crishna thus prophesied,
it was observed to him by Arjoon that the water was bad, when
Crishna smote the rock with his chakra (discus), whereupon a sweet
spring bubbled up, and on its margin were inscribed the prophetic

* At every step we see, however meagre may be the outline, the correctness
of this historical sketch. It was, according to Ferisbta, in A.H. 555(A.D. 1159,
or S. 1215), that the prince of Ghor conquered Gkizni, and immediately after
overran Mooltan and Sind (see Briggs, V ol. I, p. 157) ; aud doubtless it was on
this occasion that the Bhatti prince swore allegiance to Sbabudin, and obtained
the force which drove his nephew from Lodorva, which being sacked by bis
auxiliaries, ho founded Jessulmer in S. 1212. The three years’ discrepancy
between the Mahomedan and Hindu dates is of little consequence ; but even
this could be remedied, when we recollect that the Samvat, according to Mr.
Colebrooke, is liable to a variation of ten years.

■f If there were no better support for the assumed descent of the Bhatti
founder of Jessulmer from the Y&dics of the Bharat, than this prophecy, we
should be confirmed in our suspicion that they are a colony of the Yuli, and
that the Brahmins took advantage of the nominal resemblance to incorporate
them in the Ohatees Sajct'da, or thirty-six royal races.

[Vo l. II.]

28 a

ANNALS OF JBSSbLMER.

220

[CHAP. II.

stanzas which the hermit Eesul now pointed out to the Bhatti prince,
who read as follows :

1

“ Oh prince of Jidoo-vansa ! come into this lend, and on this mountain’s ton
erect a triangular castle.

2

“ Lodorva is destroyed, but only five coss therefrom is Jesanob, a site of
twice its strength.

3

*• Prince, whose name is Jesul, who will be of Tadu race, abandon Lodor-
poora ; here erect thy dwelling.”

The hermit Eesul alone knew the existence of the fountain on
whose mai’gin these lines were engraved. All that he stipulated for
himself was, that the fields to the westward of the castle should
retain his name, " the fields of Eesul.-” He foretold that the intended
castle should twice and a hall times he sacked ; that rivers of hlood
would flow, and that for a time all would be lost to his descendants.

On Rubwar, ‘ the day of the sun,’ (a favourite day for commenc-
ing any grand undertaking with all these ti’ibes), the 12th of Sravan,
the enlightened half of the rnoou, S. 1212 (A.D. I156)j the foundation
of Jessulmdr was laid, and soon the inhabitants, with all that was
valuable, abandoned Lodorva,* and began to erect new habitations.
Jesul had two sons, Kailun and Salbahan. He chose his chief minis-
ters and advisers from the children of Sodil, of the Pahoo tribe, who
became too powerful. Their old enemies, the Chunna Eajpoots,
again invaded the lands of Khadal ; but they suffered for their
audacity. Jesul survived this event five years, when he died, and
was succeeded by his youngest son, Salbaban tbe II.

* Lodorva remains in ruins ; a journey fcbifcber might afford subject-matter
for the antiquary, and enable him to throw light upon the origin ot the Bbatti
tribe. I omitted to place it in tbe Map : it is ten miles N. W. of the pi esent
capital.

CHAP. III.]

ANNALS OF JESSULMER.

221

• - . CHAPTER III.

Preliminary observations.— The early history of the Bhattis not devoid of inter -
est.— Traces of their ancient manners and religion. — The chronicle resumed . — -
Jesxil survives the change of capital twelve years. — The heir Kailun banished. — ,
Salbahan, his younger ^ brother , succeeds. — Expedition against the Oatti or
Cat’hi. — Their supposed origin. — Application from the Yadtt prince of Badri-
nat’hfor a prince to fill the vacant gadi. — During Salbahan’s absence, his son
Beejil usurps the gadi. — Salbahan retires to Kliddal, and falls in battle against
the Baloches. — Beejil commits suicide. — Kailun recalled and placed on the
gadi. — Bis issue form clans — Khizzur Khan Baloch again invades Khdddl . —
Kailun attacks him, and avenges his father' s death. — Death of Kailun. — Sue.
ceeded by Chachik Deo. — He expels the Ghunna Rajpoots. — Defeats the Sodas of
Amerkole. — The Rahtores lately arrived in the desert become troublesome . —
Important synchronisms. — Death of GhachicJc. — He is succeeded by his grand-
son Kurrun, to the prejudice oj the elder, Jaetsi, who leaves Jessulmer. — Re-
dresses the wrongs of a Baraha Rajpoot. — Kurrun dies. — Succeeded by Lakhur
Sen. — His imbecile character . — Replaced by his son Poonpal, who is dethroned
andbanished. — His grandson, Raning-deo, establishes himself at Marote and
Poogul. — On the deposal of Poonpal, Jaetsi is recalled and placed on the
gadi. — He a fords a refuge to the Purihar Prince of Mundore, when attacked
by Alla-o-din. — The sons of Jaetsi carry off the imperial tribute of Tat'lia and
Mooltan. — The king determines to invade Jessulmer. — Jaetsi and his sons
prepare for the storm. — Jessulmer invested. — First assault repulsed. — The
Bhattis keep an army in the field. — Rawul Jaetsi dies. — The siege contmues . —
Singular friendship between his son Ruttun and one of the besieging generals.
— If oolraj succeeds. — General Assault. — Again defeated. — Garrison reduced
to great extremity. — Council of war. — Determination to pei form the saba. —
Generous condxict of the Mahomedan friend of Ruttun to his sons. — Final
Assault. — Raivul M oolraj and Ruttun and their chief kin fall in battle . —
Jessulmer taken, dismantled, and abandoned.

Having thus epitomized the Bhatti annals, from the expulsion of
the tribe from the Punjab, and the establishment of Tunnote in the
Indian desert, in A.D. 731, to the foundation of the existing capital,
Jessulmdr, in A.D. 1156, we shall continue the sketch to the present
day, nearly in the language of the chronicle, adding explanatory
notes as we proceed.

The interval between the erection of the castle of Tunnote and
the present time is exactly eleven hundred years j during which the
historical narrative, whatever may he its value, is at least continuous,
and the events recorded are corroborated, even in the darkest period,
by numerous synchronisms in the annals of the other states ; and
viewed synoptically, it presents matter of deep interest to the
explorer of Indian history. The period of four hundred and twenty-
five years, embraced iu the preceding chapter, is full of incidents.
It is a record of a people who once deemed their consequence and their
fame imperishable. And even were it less diversified by anecdotes

222

ANNALS OF JESSULMEE.

[CHAP. III.

descriptive of manners, it would still possess claims to interest as a
simple relation of tlie gradual peopling of a great portion of the
Indian desert. We see tribes and cities disappearing; new races
and new capitals taking their place ; and although not a syllable is
written which hears directly upon religion, we can see, incidentally,
the analogy of these Indo-Scythic tribes, from Zabulist'kau and
Salbaliaua, with the Hindu, confirming what Menu says, that the
Sdcas, Tavavas , Pchlavis, and the Khascis* of Central Asia, were all
Ch’bettris or Rajpoots. We now' proceed with the chronicle.

Jesul, the founder of Jessulmer, survived the change of capital
only twelve years. His elder son, Kailun, having given displeasure
to the Paboo minister, was expelled, aud bis younger brother placed
upon the gadi.

Salbahau, a name of celebrity in the annals, renewed in the son
of Jesul, succeeded in S. 1224 (A.D. 11G8). His first expedition was
against the Catti or Cat'lii tribe, who, under their leader, Jugbhan,
dwelt between the city of Jahlore and the Aravulli.f The Cat' hi
Rao was killed, and his horses and camels were carried to Jessulmer.
The fame of this exploit exalted the reputation of Salbahau. He
bad three sous, Beejir, Banar, and Hasso.

In the mountains of Bhadrinath, there was a state, whose princes
-were of the Jadoon (Yadu) race, descended from the first Salbahau
at the period of the expulsion from Gujni.J At this time, the prince
of this state dying without issue, a deputation came to Jessulmer to
obtain a prince to fill the vacant gadi. Hasso was accordingl)' sent,
but died just as he arrived. His wife, who was pregnant, was taken

* There is a race in the desert, now Mnhomedan, and called Khossas , Elpbin-
stone mentions tlie Khasa-Khcl. Klmsgnr is ‘the legion of the Khnsas,’ the
Casia liecfia of Ptolemy.

t We can scarcely refuse our assent to the belief, that the Cat’lii or Catti
'tribe, here mentioned, is the remnant of the nation which so manfully opposed
Alexander. It was then located about Moolton, at this period occupied by the
Langas. The colony attacked by tbe Bhatti was near the Aravulli, in ah
probability a predatory band from the region they peopled and gave tlioir name
to, Cattiawar, in the Sauinshtra peninsula.

JMr. Elphinstone enumerates the Jadoon as a subdivision of the Eusofzyes,
one of the great Afghan tribes, who were originally located about Oabnl and
Ghizni. I could not resist surmising the probability of the term Jadoon,
applied to a subdivision of the Afghan lace, originating from the Hindu*
Scytliic Jadoon, or Yadu; whence the boasted descent of tbe Afghans from
Saul king of the Jews (Ydkudis). The customs of the Afghans would support
this hypothesis : “The Afghans (says the Emperor Baber, page 159), when
“ reduced to extremities in war, come into the presence of their enemj’ with grass
“ between their teeth, being as much ns to say, ‘ I am your ox.' ” This custom-
is entirely Bajpoot.andeverrecurringininscriptionsrecording victories. They
have their bards or poets in like m annex-, of whom Mr. Elphinstone gives an
interesting account. In features, also, they resemble tbe Northern Raj Doots,
•who have generally acquiline noses, or, as Mr. Elnhinstone expresses it, i’p the
account of his journey through the desert, “Jewish features;” though this
might tempt one to adopt the converse of my deduction, and say, that these
Yadus of Gujni were, with the Afghans, also of Y&Mdi origin : from the lost
tribes of Israel.

CHAP. III.]

ANNALS OP JESStTLMEB.

223

wibli tbe pains of laboui' on tlie journey, and was delivered of a son
under the shade of a palas tree, whence the child was called Palaseo.
This infant succeeding, the raj (principality) was named after him
Plaseoh .*

Proposals of marriage came from Maunsi Deora of Sirohi. The
Rawul left Jessulmdr to the care of his eldest son Beejil. Soon after
his departure, the foster-brother ( dhabhae ) of che young prince propa-
gated the report of the Rawuks death in an encounter with a tiger,
and prompted Beejil to assume the dignity. Salbahan, on his return*
finding his seat usurped, and having in vain expostulated with his
traitorous son, proceeded to Khad&l, of which Deorawul is the capital,
where he was slain, with three hundred of his followers, in repelling
an irruption of the Baloches. Beejil did not long enjoy the dignity :
having in a fit of passion struck the dliabhae , the blow was returned,
upon which, stung with shame and resentment, he stabbed himself
with his dagger.

Kailun, the elder brother of Salbahan, who was expelled by the
Pahoos, was now (A.D. 1200) recalled, and installed at the age of
fifty. He had six sons, Chachick Deo, Palhan, Jeichund, Peetumsi,
Petumchund, and Usrao. The second and third had numerous issue,
who are styled Jaseir and Seehana Bajpoots.

Kbizzur Khan Baloch, with five thousand men, at this time again
crossed the Mehran (Indus), and invaded the land of Khadal, which
was the second irruption since he slew Selbahan. Kailun marched
against him at the head of seven thousand Rajpoots, and, after a
severe engagement, slew the Baloch leader and fifteen hundred of
his men. Kailun ruled nineteen years.

Chachick Deo succeeded, in S. 1275 (A.D. 1219). Soon after his
accession, he carried on war against the Chunna Rajpoots (now-
extinct), of whom he slew two thousand, capturing fourteen thousand
cows, and compelling the tribe to take refuge with the Johyas.
Soon after, the Rawul invaded the lands of Rana Urmsi, prince of
the Sodas, who, though taken by surprise, assembled four thousand
horse : but was defeated, and forced to fly for shelter to the walls of
his capital, Amerlcote. The Piiar ’was glad to obtain the absence of
his foe by the offer of his daughter in marriage. f

* See Mr. Blphinstone’s map for the position of the Jadoon branch of the
Eusofzyes at the foot of the Sewalik hills.

f In this single passage we have revealed the tribe ( gate ), race ( ct'ila ), capital,
and proper name, of the prince of Dh&t. The Soda tribe, as before stated, is an
important branch of the Pramara (Piiar) race, and with the Oomras and Soomvas
gave dynasties to the valley of Sinde from the most remote period. The Sodas ,
I have already observed, were probably the Sogdi of Alexander, occupying
Upper Sinde when the Macedonian descended that stream. The Soomra
dynasty is mentioned by Perish ta from ancient authorities, but the Mahomedan
historians knew nothing, and cared nothing, about Rajpoot tribes. . It is from,
such documents as these, scattered throughout the annals of these principalities*
and from the ancient Hindu epic poems, that I have concentrated the " Sketches
" of the Rajpoot Tribes,” introductory to the first volume, which, however slight
.they appear, cost more research than the rest of the book. I write this note

224

ANNALS or JKSSDIiMER.

[chap m.

The Rabtores, recently established in the laud of Kh4r, had become
troublesome neighbours ; Chachick obtained the aid of the Soda
troops to chastise them, and he proceeded to Jessole and Bhalotra,
■where they "were established ; but Chadoo and his son Tlieedo
averted his wrath by giving him a daughter to wife.*

Raw ul Chachick ruled thirty-two years. Ho had only one son,
Tej Rao, who died at the age of forty-two, from the small-pox,
leaving two sous, Jaetsi and Kumin. To the youngest the Rawul
was much attached ; and having convened tlio chiefs around his
death-bed, ho entreated they would accede to his last wish, that his
youngest grandson might be his successor.

Kurruu having succeeded, his elder brother, Jaetsi, abandoned his
country, and took service with the Mahomcdans in Guzzerat. About
this time, Mozuffer Khan, who occupied Nngore with five thousand
horse, committed great outrages. There was a Bhomia of the Baraka
tribe, named Bhugaoti-das, who resided fifteen coss from Nngore, and
was master of ouo thousand five hundred horse. Ho had an only
daughter, who was demanded by the Khan, and being unwilling to
comply, and unable to resist, he resolved to abandon the country.
For this purpose he prepared carriages, in which he placed his
family and chattels, and at night proceeded towards Jessulmdr; but
the Khan, gaining intelligence of his motions, intercepted the convoy.
A battle ensued, in which four hundred of the Barakas were killed,
and his daughter and other females were carried off. The afflicted
Baralia continued his route to Jessulmer, and related his distress to
Rawul Kurruu, who immediately put himself at the head of his
followers, attacked the Khan, whom he slew', with three thousand
of his people, and reinducted the Bhomia in his possessions. Kurrun
ruled tweuty-eiglit years, and was succeeded by his son,

Lakliur Sdn, in S. 1327 (A.D. 1271). He was so great a simple-
ton, that when the jackals howled at night, being told tbat it was
from being cold, he ordered quilted dresses ( cluglas ) to be prepared
for them. As the howling still continued, although he was assured

chiefly for the information of the patriarch of oriental lore on the Continent,
the learned and ingenuous De Sncy. If this Mentor nsk, •' Where are now the
“ Sodas P” I reply, the ex-prince of Amerkote, witli whose ancestors Hemaypon
took l-efnge, —in whose canital in the desert the great Akber was born,— and
who could on the spur of the moment oppose four thousand horse to invasion,
has only one single town, that of Chore, left to him. The Rabtores, who, in
the time of Urmsi Rail a and Rawul Chncbick, were hardly known in hlarudcs,
have their flag waving on the battlements of the “ immortal castle,” ( dmnrcuto ),
and the Ameers of Sinde have incorporated the greater part of Dhat with their
state of Hydrabad.

** To those interested in the migration of these tribes, it must be gratifying
to see these annals thus synchronically corroborating each other. About two
centuries before this, in the reign of Doosfrj, when the Bhatti capital was at
Lodorva, an attack was made on the land of Kher, then occupied by the Golii-
lotes, who were, as related in the Annals of Marwar, dispossessed by the
Rabtores. None but' an inquirer into these annals of the desert tribes can con-
ceive the satisfaction arising from such confirmations.

CHAP. III.]

ANNALS OP JESSULMER.

225

Ills orders had been fulfilled, be commanded bouses to be built for
tbe animals in tbe -royal preserves (rumna), many of which yet
remain. Lnkbur was tbe contemporary of Kanirdeo Sonigurra, whose
life was saved by bis (Lakhnr’s) wife’s knowledge of omens. Lakliur
was ruled by this Rani, wbo was of tbe Soda tribe. She invited
her brethren from Amerkote; but tbe madman, her husband, put
them to death, and threw their bodies over tbe walls. He was
allowed to rule four years, and was then replaced by bis son,

Poonpal. This prince was of a temper so violent that the nobles
dethroned him, and lecalled tbe exiled Jaetsi from Guzzeiat. Poon-
pal bad a residence assigned him in a remote quarter of tbe state.
He bad a son, Lakmnsi, wbo bad a son called Rao Rnningdeo, wbo
by a stratagem pointed out by a Kburl* Rajpoot, took Marote from
the Johyas, and Poogul from tbe Thories, thieves by profession,
whose chief, styled Rao, be made captive; and in Poogul he settled
bis family. Rao Railing bad a son called Sadool, who alternately
bathed in tho sea of pleasure, and struggled in that of action : to
their retreat tbe father and son conveyed tbe spoils seized from all
around them.

Jaetsi obtained tho rjadi in S. 1332 (A.D. 1276). He bad two
sons, Moolraj and Ruttunsi. Deoraj, tbe son of Moolraj, espoused
tbe daughter of tbe Sonigurra chief of Jhalore. Mahomed [ICbooni]
Padsha invaded the dominions of Rana Roopsi, tbe Pnrihar prince
of Mundore,f wbo, when defeated, fled with Ins twelve daughters,
and found refuge with tbe Ruwul, wbo gave him Baroo as a
residence.

Deoraj, by bis Sonigurra wife, bad three sons, Jangbau, Sirwun,
and Hamir. This Hamir was a mighty warrior, wbo attacked
Kompob Sen of Meliwo, and plundered bis lands. He bad issue
three sous, Jaito, Loonkurn, and Mairoo. At this period, Ghori
Alla-o-din commenced tbe war against tbe castles of India. Tbe
tribute of TatTia and Mooltan, consisting of fifteen hundred horses
and fifteen hundred mules laden with treasure and valuables, was at
Bekher in progress to tbe king at Debli. Tbe sons of Jaetsi
determined to lay an ambush and capture tbe tribute. Disguised
as grain-mercbauts, with seven thousand horse and twelve hundred
camels, they set out on their expedition, and on tbe banks of tbe
Punjnud found tbe convoy, escorted by four hundred Mogul and tbe
like number of Pat’han horse. The Bhattis encamped near tbe
convoy ; and in tbe night they rose upon and slew tbe escort,
carrying tbe treasure to Jessulmer. Tbe survivors carried the news
to tbe king, wbo prepared to punish this insult. When tidings
reached Rawul Jaetsi that tbe king was encamped on tbe Anasagur
at Ajmer, be prepared Jessulmer lor defence. He laid in immense
stores of grain, and deposited all. round tbe ramparts of tbe fort

* This tribe is unknown to Central India. . .

t The title, tribe, and capital o£ this race, shew that the Bhattis were inti-
mately connected with the neighbouring states.

[Ton. II.]

29

226

ANNALS OP JESSULMER.

[CHAP. III.

large round stones to hurl on the besiegers. All the aged, the
infirm, and his female grand-children, were removed into the
interior of the desert, while the country around the capital for
many miles was laid waste, and the towns made desolate. The
Rawul, with his two elder sons and five thousand warriors, remained
inside for the defence of the castle, while Deornj and Hamiv formed
an army to act against the enemy from without. The Sooltanin
person, remaiued at Ajmer, aud sent forward an immense force of
Khorasanis aud Koreishes, cased in steel armour, ff who rolled on
“ like the clouds in Bhadoon. 33 The fifty-sis bastions were manned,
and three thousand seven hundred heroes distributed amongst them
for their defence, while two thousand remained in reserve to succour
the points attacked. Daring the first week that the besiegers
formed their entrenchments, seven thousand Moosulmans were slain,
and Meer Mohabet and Alii Khan remained on the field of battle.
Dor two years the invaders were confined to their camp by Deoraj
and Hamir, who kept the field, after cutting off their supplies,
which came from Mundore, while the garrison was abundantly
furnished from Khadal, Barmair, and Dibit. Eight years* had the
siege lasted, when Rawul Jaefcsi died, and his body was burnt
inside the fort.

During this lengthened siege, Ruttuusi had formed a friendship
with the Kawab Maboob Khan, and they had daily friendly
meetings under a Ichaijra-ivee, between the advanced posts, each
attended by a few followers. They played at chess together, and
interchanged expressions of mutual esteem. But when duty called
them to oppose each other in arms, the whole world was enamoured
with their heroic courtesy. Jaetsi had ruled eighteen years when
he died.

Moolraj III, in S. 1350 (A. D. 1294), ascended the gadi surrounded
by foes. Ou this occasion, the customary rejoicings on installation
took place, at the moment when the two friends, Rnttunsi and
Maboob Kban, had met, as usual, under the Khaijra tree. The cause
of vejoiciug being explained to the Nawab, he observed that the
Sooltan had heard of, and was offended with, these meetings, to
which he attributed the protracted defence of the castle, and
acquainted Ruttuusi that next day a general assault was com-
manded, which he should lead in person. The attack took place $ •
it was fierce, but the defence was obstiuate, aud the assailants were
beaten back with the loss of nine thousand men. But the foe
obtained reinforcements, and towards the conclusion of the year, the
garrison was reduced to the greatest privations, and the blockade
being perfect, Moolraj assembled his kinsmen and thus addressed,
them : “ For so many years we liave defended our dwellings ; but

our supplies are expended, and there is no passage for more

* This can mean uofcV ___ more than that desultory attacks' were carried on'

bh ? Bhatf: .-ijab It is certain that Alla never carried his arms in
person again- .osultndr.

CHAP. III.]

ANNALS OF JESSULMEE.

227

“ What is to be done ?” The chiefs, Sehir and Bikumsi, replied,
“ a salca must take place ; we must sacrifice ourselves but that
same day the royal army, unaware of the distress of the beseiged,
retreated.

The friend of Rut tun si had a younger brother, who, on the retreat
of the royal forces, was carried inside the fort, when, seeing the real
state of things, he escaped and conveyed intelligence of it, upon
which the siege was renewed. Moolraj reproached his brother as
the cause of this evil, and asked what was fit to be done ? to which
Ruttunsi replied, “there is but one path open; to immolate the
“ females, to destroy by fire and water whatever is destructible, and
“ to bury what is not; then open wide the gates, and sword in hand
“rush upon the foe, and thus attain siverga.” The chiefs were
assembled ; all were unanimous to make Jesa-nuggur resplendent
by their deeds, and preserve the honour of the Jadoo race. Moolraj
thus replied: “you of a warlike race, and strong are your arms
“ in the cause of your prince ; what heroes excel you, who thus tread
“ in the Ohetrie's path ? In battle, not even the elephant could stand
“ before you. For the maintenance of my honour the sword is in
“your hands ; let tfessulmer be illumined by its blows upon the foe.”
Having thus inspired the chiefs and men, Moolraj and Ruttun
repaired to the palace of their queens. They told them to ta£e the
sohagj* * * § and prepare to meet in heaven, while they gave up their
lives in defence of their honour and their faith. Smiling, the Soda;
Rani, replied, “ this night we shall prepare, and by the morning's
“ light we' shall be inhabitants of siverga ” (heaven); and thus it
was with the chiefs and all their wives. The night was passed
together for the last time in preparation for the awful morn. It
came; ablutions and prayers were finished, and at the JRajdiudra *f*
were convened bald, prude, and bridUh.% They bade a last farewell
to all their kin; the johur commenced, and twenty-four thousand
females, from infancy to old age, surrendered their lives, some by
the sword, others in the volcano of fire. Blood flowed in torrents,
while the smoke of the pyre ascended to the heavens : not one feared
to die, every valuable was consumed with them, not the worth of a
straw was preserved for the foe. This work done, the brothers
looked upon the spectacle with horror. Life was now a burthen,
and they prepared -to quit it. They purified themselves with water,
paid adoration to the diviuity, made gifts to the poor, placed a branch
of the toolsi§ in their casques, the s a1igram§ round their neck; and
having cased themselves in armour and put on the saffron robe, they

* Soh&qun, one who becomes sati previous to her lord’s death : Doh&gun, who
follows him after death.

f Literally, ‘ the royal gate;’ an allusion to the female apartments, or
Raj-loca.

f Bald , is under sixteen ; pritde, middle-aged ; bridu, when forty.

§ The funereal qualities ot the foolsi plant, and the emblematic saligrctm, or
stone found in the G undue river, have been often described.

[Von. II.]

29a

228

ANNALS OF JESSULMBR.

[chap. m.

bound the mor* (crown) around their heads, and embraced each
other for the last time. Thus they awaited the hour of battle. Three
thousand eight hundred warriors, with faces red with wrath, pre-
pared to die with their chiefs.

Ruttunsi had two sons, named Grarsi and Kanur, the eldest only
twelve years of age. He wished to save them from the impending
havoc, and applied to the courteous foeman. The Mooslem chief
swore he would protect them, and sent two confidential servants to
receive the trust ; to whom, bidding them a last farewell, their father
consigned them. When they reached the royal camp they were kindly
welcomed by the Nawab, who, putting his hand upon their heads,
soothed them, and appointed two Brahmins to guard, feed, and
instruct them.

On the morrow, the army of the Sooltan advanced to the assault.
The gates were thrown wide, and the fight began. Ruttun was lost
in the sea of battle,- but one hundred and twenty Meers fell before
his sword ere he lay in the field. Moolraj plied his lance on the
bodies of the barbarians : the field swam in blood. The unclean
spirits were gorged with slaughter ; but at length the Jidoon chief
fell, with seven hundred of the choice of his kin. With his death
the battle closed ; the victors ascended the castle, and Maboob Khan
caused the bodies of the brothers to be carried from the field and
burned. The salca took place in S. 1351, or A.D. 1295. Heoraj,
who commanded the force in the field, was carried off by a fever.
The royal garrison kept possession of the castle during two years, -
and at length blocked up the gateways, and dismantled and aban-
doned the place, which remained long deserted, for the Bhattis had
neither means to repair the Jcangras (battlements), nor men to.
defend them.

* On two occasions the Rajpoot chieftain wears the mor, or ' coronet ; ’ on his
marriage, and when going to die in battle ; symbolic of his nuptials with the
Apsara, or * fair of heaven.'

CHAP. IV.]

ANNALS OP JESS ULMER.

229

CHAPTER IV.

The Haiti ores of Mi'll wo settle amidst the ruins of Jessulmer.— Driven out by
the Bhatti chieftain Dood.no, who is elected Rawul.— He carries off the stud of
Feeroz Shall.— Second storm and ml ; n of Jessulmer.— Doodoo slain.— Mogul
invasion of India. — The Bhatti princes obtain their liberty.— Rawul Gursi
re-establishes Jessulmer. — Kchur, son of Deonij. — Disclosure of his destiny by
a prodigy.— Is adopted by the wife of Banjul Gursi, who is assassinated by the
tribe of Jesur. — Kchur proclaimed. — Beemlade becomes snti . — The succession,
entailed on the sons of Uamir. — Matrimonial overture to Jaitafrom Mcwar.
— Engagement broken off. — The brothers slain. — Penitential act of Rao Railing.
Offspiing of Kchur. — Soma the cider departs with his bussie and settles at
Giraup. — Sons of Rao Railing become Mooslems to avenge their father’s death.
— Consequent forfeiture of their inheritance. — They mix with the Abhoria.
Bhaitis. — Kalian, the third son of Kchur . , settles in the forfeited lands. — Drives
the Dahy as front Khdddt. — Kailun erects the fortress ofKcrroh on the Behah
or Guru . — Assailed by th-‘ Johyas and Langas under Ameer Khan KorAi,
who is defeated. — Subdues the Chahils and Mohils. — Extends his authority to
the Punjnv.d. — Ran Kailhtn marries into the Sam in a family. — Account of the
Savima race. — lie seizes on the Sammu dominions. — Makes the river Indus
his boundary — Kailun die s. — Succeeded by Ohachik. — Makes Marolehis head-
quaiirrs. — League headed by the chief of Mooltav against Ohachik, who
invades (hat territory, and returns with a rich booty to Marote. — A second
victory. — Leaves a garrison in the Punjab. — Defeats Maipul, chief of the
Dooudis. — As ini, nr Aswini-Kote. — Its supposed position. — Anecdote, — Feud
with Satilmcr. — Its consequences. — Alliance with TTybut Khan. — Rao OUabhih
invades Pccleebungu. — The Khoknrs nr Ghikers described. — The Langas drive
his garrison from Dhonniapoor. — Rao Uhachik falls sick. — Challenges the
prince of Mo nit an. — Reaches Dhonniapoor. — Rites preparatory to the combat . —
Worship of the sword. — Ohachik is slain with all his bands. — Koombho, hitherto
insane, avenges Ids father's feud. — Birsil re-establishes Dhooniapoor. — Repairs
to Kcrorc. — Assailed by the Langas and Baloches. — Dcjeats them. — Chronicle
of Jessulmer resumed. — Rawul Bcrsi meets Rao Birsil on his return from his
expedition in the Ptinjdb. — Conquest of Jlooltan by Baber . — Probable cornier*
sion of the Bhatlis of the Pnnjdb. — Rawul Bcrsi, Jait, NoonJcurn, Bhcem,
Munohur-das, and Sublul Bing, six generations.

Some years subsequent to this disastrous event in the Bhatti annals,
Jugmal, son of Maloji Rahtore, chief of Mehwo, attempted a settle-
ment amidst the ruins of Jessulmer, and brought thither a large
force, with seven hundred carts of provisions. On heaving this, the
Bhatti chiefs, Doodoo and Tiluksi, the sons of Jesir, assembled their
kinsmen, surprised the Rahtores, drove them from the castle, and
captured the supplies. Doodoo, for this oxploit, was elected Rawul,
and commenced the repairs of Jessulmer. He had five sons. Tiluksi,
his brother, was renowned for his exploits. He despoiled the Balocb,
the Manguleo, the Mehwo, and the Deoras and Sonigurras of Aboo

230

annals of jessulheb.

[chap. IV.

aud Jhalore felt; Lis power. He even extended Lis raids to Ajmdr,
and carried off the stud of Feeroz Shah from the Anasagur (lake),
where they were accustomed to he watered. This indignity provoked
another attack upon Jessulmer, attended with" the same disastrous
results. Again the salca was performed, in which sixteen thousand
females* were destroyed; and Doodoo, with Tiluksi aud seventeen
hundred of the clau, fell in battle, after he had occupied the gadi
ten years.

On the death of Rawul Doodoo, in S. 1362 (A.D. 1306), the young
princes, Gursi and Kanur, by the death of their patron Maboob, were
left to the protection of his sons, Zoolficar and Gazi Khan. , Kanur
■went privately to Jessulmer, and Gursi obtained leave to proceed
westward to the Mehwo tract, where he married Bhnladevf, a widow,
sister to the Rabtore, who had been betrothedf to the Deora. While
engaged in these nuptials, he was visited by his relation Soningdeo,
a man of gigantic strength, who agreed to accompany him on his
return to Delhi. The king made trial of his force, by giving him to
string an iron bow sent by the king of Khorasan, which the nervous
Bliatti not only bent but broke. The invasion of Delhi by Timoor
ShahJ having occurred at this time, the services of Gursi were so
conspicuous that he obtained a grant of his hereditary dominions,
with permission to re-establish Jessulmdr. With his own kindred,
and the aid of the vassals of his friend Jngmal of Mehwo, he soon
l’estored order, aud had an efficient force at command. Hamir and
his clansmen gave their allegiance to Gursi, but the sons of Jesir
were headstrong.

Deoraj, who married the daughter of Roopra, Rana of Mundore,
had a son named Kehur, who, when Jessulmer was about to be
invested by the troops of the Sooltau, was conveyed to Mundore
with 'his mother. When only twelve years of age, he used to accom-
pany the cowherds of the old Rao’s kine, and his fovourite amuse-
ment was penning up the calves with twigs of the dll, to imitate the
picketting of horses. One day, tired of this occupation, young Kehur
fell asleep upon the hole of a serpent, and the reptile issuing there-
from, ai’ose and spread its hood over him as he slept. A Oharun
(bard, or genealogist), passing that way, reported the fact aud its

* The Rajpoots, by tlieir exterminating sakas, facilitated the views of the
Mahomedans. In every state we read of these horrors..

t The mere act of being betrothed disqualifies from a second marriage; the
affianced becomes a rand (widow), though a lcomari (maid).

J Even these anachronisms are proofs of the fidelity of these' Annals.
Ignorant native scribes, aware but of one great Mogul invasion, consider the
invader to be Timoor ; hue there were numerous Mogul invasions during the
reign of Alla-o-din. In all probability, that for which the services of the
Bbatti prince obtained him the restoration of his dominions, was that of Bibafc
Khan, general of the king of Tran sox i an a, who invaded India in A. H. 705
(A.D. 1305), and was so signally defeated, that only three thousand out of
nity-seven thousand horse escaped the sword, and these were made prisoners
and trod to death by "elephants, when pillars of skulls were erected to
commemorate the victory.— See Briggs’ Ferishta, Yol. I, p. 364.

CHAP. IV.]

ANNALS OP JBSSHIiMER.

231

import immediately to the Ran a, who, proceeding to the spot, found
it was his own grandson whom fate had thus pointed out for
sovereignty. Gursi, having no offspring by Bimladevi, proposed to
her to adopt a son. All the Bhatti youth were assembled, but none
equalled Keliur, who was chosen. But the sons of Jesir wei-e dis-
pleased,. and conspired to obtain the gadi. At this time, Rawul
Grursi was in the daily habit of visiting a tank, which he-
was excavating, and they seized an occasion to assassinate him ;
whereupon, in order to defeat their design, Bimladevi immediatelv
had Keliur proclaimed. The widowed queen of Gursi, with the
view of securing the completion of an object which her lord had
much at heart, namely, finishing the lake Qursi-sirr, as well as
to ensure protection to her adopted son Kehur, determined to protract
the period of self-immolation ; but when six months had "elapsed,
and both these objects were attained, she finished her days on the
pyre. Bimladevi named the children of Hamiv as the adopted sons
and successors of Kehui'. These sons were Jaita and Loonkurn.

The coco-nut was sent by Koombho, Rana of Cheetore, to Jaita.
The Bhatti prince marched for Mewar, and when within twelve coss
of the Aravulli hills, was joined by the famous Sankla Meeraj, chief
of Salbanuy. Next morning," when about to resume the march, a
partridge began to call from the right : a bad omen, which was
interpreted by the brother-in-law of the Sankla, deeply versed in the
scieuce of the Soolcuni and the language of birds.* Jaita drew the
rein of his horse, and to avert the evil, halted that day. Meanwhile,
the partridge was caught and found to be blind of an eye, and its
ovaiy quite filled. The next morning, as soon as they had taken
horse, a tigress began to roar, and the Soolcuni chieftain was again
called upon to expound the omen. He replied that the secrets of
great houses should not bo divulged, but he desired them to desjiatch
a youth, disguised as a female Nae (barber class), to Komulmer, who
there would learn the cause. The youth gained admission to ‘ the
ruby of Mewar/ (Ldld Mewari), who was anointing for the nuptials.
He saw things were not right, aud returning made his report; upon
hearing which, the Bhatti prince married Marrud, the daughter of
the Sankla chief. The Rana was indignant at this insult, but a
sense of shame prevented his resenting it; and instead of proclaim-
ing the slight, he offered his daughter’s hand to the famous Kheechee
prince, Achildas of Gagrown, and it was accepted.-]- Jaita met his
death, together with his brother Iioonlcurn, and his brother-in-law,
in an attempt to surprise Poogul : he fell with a hundred .and

* It is scarcely necessary to repeat that this is a free translation of tlio
chronicle.

fThe Kheechee prince, we may suppose, had no follower skilled in omens
thej’ lived very happily, as apoeais by the Kheechee chronicle, and she bore
him a son, who was driven from Gagrown. The scandal propagated against the
4 ruby of Mewar’ was no doubt a ruse or the Sankla chief, as the conclnsion.
sheivs. However small the intrinsic worth of these anecdotes, they auoia
links of synchronisms, which constitute the ralue of the annals of all these
states.

232

ANNALS OP JN3SNLMER.

[CHAP. XV.

twenty followers. When the old Rao,‘Raningdeo, discovered against
whom he had thus successfully defended himself) he clad himself in
“black garments, and in atonement performed pilgrimage to all the
shrines in India.* On his return, he was forgiven and condoled
with by Kekur.

Kehur had eight sons : 1st, Somaji, who had a numerous offspring,
called the Soma-Bkattis ; 2d, Lnkmun ; 3d, Kailun, who forcibly
seized Beekumpoor, the appanage of his elder brother Soma, who
departed with all his faissie , f and settled at Giraup ; 4tli, Kilkurn;
5th, Satul, who gave his name to an ancient town, and called it
Satulmer. The names of the rest were Beejo, Tunno, and Tejsi.

When the sons of Raningdeo became couverts to Islam, in order
to avenge their father’s feud with the Rahtore prince of Nagove, they
forfeited their inheritance of Poogul and Marote, and thenceforward
mixed with the Abhoria Bhattis, and their descendants are termed
Mouitm Moosulman Blmfcti. On this event, Kailun, the third son of
the Rawul, took possession of the forfeited lands, and besides Bee-
kumpoor, regained Dcorawul, which had been conquered by their
ancieut foes, the Dahya Rajpoots.

Kailun built a fort on the Beyah, called, after his father, Kerrob,
or Kerore, which again brought the Bhattis into collision with the
Joliyas and Laugas, whose chief, Ameer Khan Korai, attacked him,
“but was defeated. Kailun became the terror of the Chahils,! the
Mohils,! and .Johyas,J who lived in this quarter, and his authority
extended as far as the Punjnud. Kailun married into the Saimaa
family of Jam,§ aud arbitrated their disputes on succession, which

Sudoo was tlio son and heir of Baningdeo, and it was from this portion of
Ihe Bbatti aTUials I extracted that singular story, i elated at page 539, Vol.I, to
illustrate r.he influence which the females of Bnjpootana hare on national
manners. The date ot this tragical event was S. 14 62, according to the Bhattt
annals; and Bana Mokul, the cotemporary of Bawul Jair.and BaoBnningdeo.
was oil the throne of Jldwar from S. 1454 to S. 1475. The annals of this state
(p. 238) notice the marriage of tho‘I?tiln/’ toDheruj. son of Achildas, but say
nothing on the other point. A vague recollection of some matrimonial insult
being offered evidently yet prevails, for when a marriage was contracted in
A.D. 1821, through the author’s intervention, between the Bana of Oodipoor’s
daughter and the present Bawnl Gnj Sing of Jessnlmdr, it was given out that
there was no memoiial of any man inge-nlliance between the two bouses.
After all, it. may be a vain-glorious invention of the Bbatti annalist.

■f The term bussie has been explained in Yol. I.p. 158. The bnssie is a slave in
the mildest sense; one who in distress sells his liberty. His master cuts the
choti, or lock of hair, from the centre of the bead, as a fnaik of bondage. They
are transferable, like cattle. This custom prevails more in the desert states
than iircentral Bajwnrra; there every great man has bis bussie. Sbiam Sing
Clmmpawut of Pokurn had two hundred when he fled to Jeipoor, and they all
fell with him fighting against the Mnlirattas All castes, Brahmins and Baj-
poots, become hussies : they can redeem their liberty by purchase.

J These three tribes are either extinct, orwere lost on becoming proselvtes to
Islam ism.

§ The Samma or Summa tribe, which is well known in Maliomedan history,
as having given a dynasty to Sinde in modern times, is a great branch of the
xadus, and descended from Samba, son of Crishna; and while the other branch

CHAP. IV.]'

ANNALS OP JE8SULMEK.

233

had caused much bloodshed. Shujahit Jam, whom he supported,
accompanied him to Marote, on whose death, two years after, Kailun
possessed himself of nil the Sarnrna territory, when the Sinde river
became the boundary of his dominion. Kailun died at the age of
seventy -two, and was succeeded by* °

Chacliiclc-deo, who made Marote his head-quarters, to cover his
territories from the attacks of Mooltan, which took umbrage at the
return of the Bhattis across the Garah. The chief of Mooltan united
in a league all the ancient foes of the Bhattis, the Langas, the
Johyas, the Kheeckees, and all the tribes of that region. Chachick
formed an army of seventeen thousand horse and fourteen thousand
foot, and crossed the Beyah to meet his foes. The encounter was
desperate; but the Bhattis were victorious, and returned with. rich
spoil to Marote. In the year following another battle took place,
in which seven hundred and forty Bhattis were slain, and three
thousand of the men of Mooltan. By this success, the conquests of
Chachick were extended, and he left a garrison ( thanna ) under hiB
son in Asini-kote, beyond the Behah, and returned to Poogul. He
then attacked Maip&l, chief of the Doondis, whom he defeated.
After this victory he repaired to Jessulmdr, to visit his brother
Lukmun, reserving the produce of the lauds dependent on Asini-
kotef for his expenses at court. On his return home by Baroo, he
was accosted by a Jinj Rajpoot,]: pasturing an immense flock of

colonized Zabulist’han, maintaining the original name of Yadus, the sons of
Samba made liis name the patronymic in Seistan and the lower valley of the
Indus. Samma-ka-kote, or Samma-nagari, was the capita], which yet exists,
and doubtless originated the Minagara of the Greeks. Sambus, the opponent
of Alexander, it is fair to infer, was the chief of the Samma tribe. Samba,
meaning * of, or belonging to Sham or Sama’ (an epithet of Crishua, from bis
dark complexion), was son of Jnmbuvati, one of the eight wives of this deified
Yadn. The Jharejas of Cutch and Jams of Sinde and Saurashtra are of the
same stock. The Siud-Samma dynasty, on the loss of their faith and coining
into contact with Islam, to which they became proselytes, were eager to adopt a
pedigree which might give them importance in the eyes of their conquerors;
Sam was transformed into Jam, and the Persian king, JamsMd,wns adopted as
the patriarch of the Sammas.in lieu of the legitimate Samba. Ferishta gives
an account of this dynasty, but was ignorant of tbeir origin. He says, “The
“Zemindars of Sinde were originally of two tribes or families, Somuna and
“Soomura; and the chief of the former was distinguished by the appellation of
“ Jam.”— Briggs’ Ferishta, Yol. IY, p. 422. The historian admits they were
Hindus until A.H. 782 (A.D. 1380, S. 1436); apointof little doubt, as we see the
Bbatti prince intermarrying w;th this family about twenty years subsequent
even to the date assigned by Ferishta for their proselytism.

I may here agaiu state, once for all, that I append these notes in order not to
v interfere with the text, which is abridged from the original chronicle.

*Itis said that Rinmul succeeded; but this was only to the northern portion,
his appanage : he lived but two months. .

f Positiou unknown, unless it be the Tchin-hot of D’Anville, at the confluence
of the river of Cabul with the Indus. There is no doubt that this castle of the
Bbatti prince was in the Punjab ; and coupled with his alliance with the chief
of Sehat or Swat, that it is the Tchin-kot, or Ashnagur of that celebrated
geographer, whence the Acesines of the Greeks. .

I Imay here repeat, that the Jinj and .Tohya were no doubt branches of the same
face; the Jenjillidh of Baber, who locates them about the mountains of Joude.

[Vox,. II.] 30

234 ANNALS OF JESSULSIER, [CHAP. IV.

goats, who presented the best of his flock, and demanded protection
against the raids of Birjung Eahtore. This chief had wrested the
celebrated fortress of Satulmer,* the abode of wealthy merchants,
from a Bhatti chief, and extended his forays far into the desert,
and the Jiuj was one of those who had suffered by his success.
Not long after Rao Chackick had passed by the pastures of the Jiuj,
he received a visit from him, to complain of another inroad, which
had carried off the identical goat, his offering. Ohachick assembled
his kinsmen, and formed an alliance with Shoomar Khan, chief of
the Seta tribe, -f- who came with three thousaud horse. It was the
custom of the Rah tores of Satulmer to encamp their horse at a tank
some distance from the city, to watch, while the chief citizens used
daily to go abroad. Ohachick surprised and made prisoners of the
whole. The bankers and men of wealth offered large sums for their
ransom ; but he would nob release them from bondage, except on
condition of their settling in the territory of Jessulmer. Three
hundred and sixty-five heads of families embraced this alternative,
and hence Jessulmer dates the influx of her wealth. They were
distributed over the principal cities, Deorawul, Poogul, Marote, &c,J
The three sons of the Raktore were also made prisoners ; the two
youngest were released, but Mairah, the eldest, was detained as a
hostage for his father's good conduct. Ohachick dismissed his ally,
the Seta chief, whose granddaughter, Sonalddvi, he married. The
father of the bride, Hybat Khan,§ gave with her in daeja (dower)
fifty horses, thirty-five slaves, four palkis, and two hundred, female
camels, and with her Ohachick returned to Marote.

Two years after this, Ohachick made war on Tkir-raj Khokur, the
chief of Peeleebunga,j| on account of a horse stolen from a Bhatti.
The Khokurs were defeated and plundered; but his old enemies
the Laugas, taking advantage of this occasion,- made head against
Ohachick, and drove his garrison from the new -possession of

^Now belonging to Marwar, and on its north-western frontier; but I believe
in ruins.

f Most likely the Swatees, or people of Swat, described by Mr. Elphiustono
(Yol. I, p. 506), as of Indian origin, and as possessing a kingdom from the
Hydaspes to Jellalabad, the tfuasiene of Ptolemj'.

I It must not be forgotten, that Satulmer was one of the Bbar.ti castles
wrested from them by the Ruhtores, wiio have greatly curtailed their frontiers.

§ Prom this and many other instances we come to the conclusion that the
Tatar or Indo-Scythic. title of Khan is by no means indicative of the Mahome-
dan faitln__ Here we see the daughtor of the prince of Swat, or Suvat, with a
genuine Hindi name.

|1 The position of Pecleebunga is unknown ; in all probability it has under-
gone a metamorphosis with the spread of ‘the faith’ over these regions. As
before mentioned, I believe this race called Khokur to bo the Ghiker, so well
known to Baber, and described as his inveterate foes in all his irruptions into
India. Their manners, especially that distinctive mark, polynndrism,
mentioned byPerishta, mark the Ghikers as Indo-Scythic. The names of their
chiefs are decidedly Hindu. They were located with the Joudis in the upper
part of the Punjab, and, according to Elphinstone, they retain their old posi-‘
tion, contiguous to the Ensofzye Jadoons,'

CHAP. IV.]

ANNALS OF JESSHLMER.

235

Dhooniapoor.* * * § Disease at length seized on Rawul Chachick, after a
long course of victorious warfare, in which he subdued various tracts
of country, even to the heart of the Punjab. In this state he deter-
mined to die as he had lived, with arms in his hands; but having
no foe near with whom to cope, he sent an embassy to the Langa
prince of Mooltan, to beg, as a last favour, the jood-ddn, or c gift of
battle/ that his soul might escape by the steel of his foeman, and
notfall a sacrifice to slow disease. f The prince, suspecting treachery,
hesitated; but the Bhatti messenger pledged his word that his master
only wished an honourable death, and that he would only bring five
hundred men to the combat. The challenge being accepted, the
Rawul called his clansmen around him, and on recounting what he
had done, seven hundred select Rajpoots, who had shaved in all his
victories, volunteered to take the last field, and make snnhhif
(oblation) of their lives with their leader. Previous to setting forth,
he arranged his affairs. His son Guj Sing, by the Seta Rani, he sent
with her to her fathers house. He had five other sons, viz., Koombho,
Birsil, Bheemdeo (by Lala Rani, of the Soda tribe), Rutto and Rind-
heer, whose mother was Soorajdevi, of Chohan race. Birsil, his eldest
son, he made heir to all his dominions, except the land of IChadal
(whose chief town is Deorawul), which he bestowed upon Rindheer,
and to both he gave the tika, making them separate states. Birsil
marched to Kerore,} his capital, at the head of seventeen thousand
men.

Meanwhile, Rawul Chachick marched to Dhooniapoor, ‘ to part
with life/ There he heard that the prince of Mooltan was within
two coss. His soul was rejoiced; he performed his ablutions,
worshipped the sword§ and the gods, bestowed charity, and withdrew
his thoughts from this world.

The battle lasted four glmrris (two hours), and the Jadoon prince
fell with all his kin after performing prodigies of valour. Two
thousand Khans fell beneath their swords : rivers of blood flowed in
the field; but the Bhatti gained the abode of Indra, who shared his
throne with the hero. The king crossed the Behah, and returned to
Mooltan.

While Rindheer was performing at Deorawul the rites of the
twelve days of matum , or f mourning/ his elder brother, Koombho,

* Dhooniapoor is not located.

In this chivalrous challenge) or demand of the Jood-ddn , we recognize
another strong trait of Scytbic manners, as depicted by Herodotus. Tho
. ancient Gete of Transoxiana could not bear the idea of dying of disease, a
■. feeling which his offspiing carried with them to the shores of the Baltic, to
Yen t- land, or Jutland ! , ,

t This fortress, erected by Rao Eailun, is stated to be twenty-two coss, about
forty miles, from Bahvrulpoor ; but though the direction is not stated, there is
little doubt of its being to the northward, most probably in that do-abeh called

Sind-Sctgur. „ .

§ Couple this martial rite with the demand of yood-daw, and there is -an
additional reason for calling these Yadus, Indo-Seytbic. See Vo). 1, p. 4«y, lor
an account of the worship of the sword, or JLlMivg-thujond.

[Tot. IL]

30a

236

ANNALS OF JESSULMER.

[chap. rv.

afflicted wifcli insanity, rushed into the assembly, and swore to
avenge his father’s death. That day he departed, accompanied by a
single slave, and reached the prince’s camp. It was surrounded by a
ditch eleven yards wide, over which the Bhatti leaped his horse in
the dead of night, reached the harem, and cut off the head of Kaloo
Shah, with which he rejoined his brethren at Deorawul. Birsil
re-established Dhooniapoor, and then went to Kerore. His old foes,
the Langas, under Hybafc Khan, again attacked him, but they were
defeated with great slaughter. At the same time, Husein Khan
Baloch invaded Beekumpoor*

Rawul B^rsi, who at this time occupied the gadi of Jessulmer,
went forth to meet Rap Birsil on his return from his expedition in
the Punjab. In S. 1530 (A.D. 1474), he made the gates and palace
of Beekumpoor.

We may, in this place, desert the literal narrative of the chronicle ;
what follows is a record of similar border-feuds and petty wars,
between ‘ the sons of Kailun’f and the chiefs of the Punjab, alter-
nately invaders and invaded, which is pregnant with mighty words
and gallant deeds, but yielding no new facts of historical value. At
length, the numerous offspring of Kailun separated, and divided
amongst them the lands on both sides of the Garah ; and as Sultan
Baber soon after this period made a final conquest of Mooltan from
the Langas, and placed therein his own governor, in all probability
the Bhatti possessors of Kerore-kot and Dhooniapoor, as well as
Poogul and Marote (now Mahomedans), exchanged their faith
(sanctioned even by Menu) for the preservation of their estates.:}:
The bard is so much occupied with this Poogul branch that the
chronicle appears almost devoted solely to them.

He passes from the main stem, Rawul Bdrsi, to Rawuls Jait,
Noonkurn, Bkeem, Munohnr-das, to Subbul Sing, five generations,
with little further notice than the mere enumeration of their issue.
With this last prince, Subbul Sing, an important change occurred in
the political condition of the Bhattis.

* The foregoing (from page 233), including the actions of Kailun, Chachick,
and Birsil, must be considered as an episode, detailing the exploits of the Raos
of Poogul, established by Kailun, third son of Rawul Kehur of Jessulmer. It
was too essential to the annals to be placed in a note.

Rao Kailun had established his authority over nine castles, heads of
districts, viz., Asiui, or Aswiui-kote, Beekumpoor, Marote, Poogul, Deorawul,
Kerore (twenty-two coss, or about forty miles, from Bahwulpore), Goomun,
Bahun, Nadno, and Matailoh, on the Indus.

t There uever was anything so degrading to royalty as the selfish protection
guaranteed to it by this Lycurgusof the Hindus, who says, “Against misfortune,
“let him preserve his wealth ; at the expense of his wealth, let him preserve his
“ wife ; but let him at all events preserve himself, even at the hazard of his
“ wife and riches .” — Menu on Government, or on the Military Class. The entire
history of the Rajpoots shews they do not pay much attention to such unmanly
maxims.

CHAP. Vi]

ANHAXS OP JESSULMER.

237

CHAPTER V.

Jessulmer becomes afiefofthe empire.— Changes in the succession —Subbul Sing
serves with the Bliaiti contingent.— Eis services obtain him the gadi of Jessyl-
mer.— Boundaries of Jessulmer at the period of Baber's invasion —Subbul
succeeded by his son, Umra Sing, who leads the tika-dour into the Baloch
. territory. — Crowned on the field of victory.— Demands a relief from his sub-
jects to portion his daughter.— Puts a chief to death who refuses— Revolt of
the Chunna Rajpoots. — The Bhatti chiefs retaliate the inroads of the Rahtores

• of Bikaner. — Origin of frontier-feuds.— Bhattis gain a victory.— The princes
of Jessulmer and Bikaner are involved in the feuds of their vassals. — Baja
An op Sing calls on all his chiefs to revenge the disgrace. — Invasion of Jessul-
mer. — The invaders defeated. — The Rawul recovers Poogul. — Makes Barmair
tributary. — Umra dies. — Succeeded by Jeswunt. — The chronicle closes. — De-
cline of Jessulmer. — Poogul. — Baimair. — Filodi wrested from her by the
Rahtores. — Importance of these transactions to the British Government . —
Khddal to the Gdrah seized by the D&odpotras. — Akha Sing succeeds. — Eis
uncle , Tej Sing, usurps the government. — The usurper assassinated during
the ceremony of Las. — Akhi Sing recovers the gadi. — Reigns forty years . —
Balmul Khan seizes on Khaddl. — Raivul Moolraj. — Suvoop Sing Mehiamade
minister. — Bis hatred of the Bhatti nobles. — Conspiracy against him by the
heir apparent , Rae Sing. — Deposal and confinement of the Raivul. — The
prince proclaimed. — Refuses to occupy the gadi. — Moolraj emancipated by a
Rajpootni. — Resumption of the gadi — The prince Rae Sing receives the black
khelafc of banishment.— Retires to Jodpoor. — Outlawry of the Bhatti nobles . —
Their lands sequestrated, and castles destroyed. — After twelve years, restored
to their lands. — Rae Sing decapitates a merchant. — Returns to Jessulmer . —
Sent to the fortress of Dew oh. — Salim Sing becomes minister. — Eis chaiacter.
— Falls into the hands of Ms enemies, but is saved by the magn animity of
Zooraivur Sing. — Plans his destruction, through his own brothers wife . —
Zoorawur is poisoned. — The Mehta then assassinates her and her husband . —
Fires the castle of Dewoh. — Rae Sing burnt to death. — Murder of his sons.
The minister proclaims Guj Sing. — Younger sons of Moolraj fiy to Bikaner.
— The longest reigns in the Rajpoot annals are during ministerial usurpation . .
— Retrospective view of the Bhatti history. — Reflections.

We have now reached that period in the Bhatti annals., when Shah
Johan was emperor of India. Elsewhere, we have minutely related
the measure which the great Akber adopted to attach his Rajpoot
vassalage to the empire ; a policy pursued by his successors. Subbul
Sing, the first of the princes of Jessulmer who held his dominions
as a fief of the empire, was not the legitimate heir to the gadi ox
Jessul/* Munohur-das had obtained the gadi by the assassination o

* Noonkurn bad three sons, Hur-raj, Maldeo, and Kalmudas ; eacbhad issue.
Hur-raj had Bheem (who succeeded his graudfather Noonknrn). Maldeo had.
Kaefcsi, who had Diald&s, father of Subbul Sing, to whom was given in.

238

ANNALS OP JESSULMER.

[CHAP. Y.

his nephew, Rawul Nat’hoo, the son and heir of Bheem, who was
returning from his nuptials at Bikaner and had passed the day at
Pilodi, then a town of Jessulme'r, when poison was administered to
him by the hands of a female. But it was destined that the line
of the assassin should not rule, and the dignity fell to Subbul Sing,
the third in descent from Maldeo, second son of Rawul Noonkurn.

The good qualities of young Subbul, and the bad ones of Ram-
ckuud, son of the usurper, afforded another ground for the prefer-
ence of the former. Moreover, Subbul was nephew to the prince of
Atnbdr, under whom he held a distinguished post in the government
of Peshore, where he saved the royal treasure from being captured
by the Afghan mountaineers. For this service, and being a favourite
of the chiefs who served with their contingents, the king gave Jes-
wunt Sing of Jodpoor command to place him on the gacli. The
celebrated Nahur Khan Koompawut* was entrusted with this duty,
for the performance of which he received the city aud domain of
Pokurn, ever since severed from Jessulmer.

This was the first considerable abstraction from the territories
which bad been progressively increased by Rawul Jessul aud his
successors, but wbicb have since been wofully curtailed. A short
time before Babei ,5 s invasion, the dependencies of Jessulmer extended
on the north to the Garah river, f west to the Mebran or Indus ; and
on the east and south, they were bounded by the Rahtores of
Bilcauer and Marwar, who had been gradually encroaching'for two
centuries, aud continue to do so to this day. The entire t’lml of
Barmair and Kottorali, in the south, were Bhatti chieftainships, and
eastward to the site of Bikaner itself.

IJmra Sing, son of Subbul, succeeded. He led the ttJea-doiir
against the Baloclies, who had invaded the western tracts, and was
installed on the field of victory. Soon after, he demanded aid from
his subjects to portion his daughter, and being opposed by his

appanage the town of Mundilln, near Pokurn. The third son, Knliandns, had
Muiiobur-das, who succeeded Bheem. Rnmchnnd was the son of Munohur-dns.
A slip from the genealogical tree will set this in a clear light.

1. Noonkurn.

Hur-raj. Maldeo. Kaliandas.

2. Bheem. Knetsi. 3. Munoliurdas.

Nathoo. DIaldas. Ramchund.

\ 4. Subbul Sing,

* Another synchronism (see Annals of Marwar for an account of Nahur
Khan) of some value, toco it accounts for the first abstraction of territory by
the Rahtores from the Bhnttis.

I The Garah is invariably called the Behah in the chronicle. Garah, or
Ghhrrn, is so called, in\ all - probability, from the mud {.gar) suspended in its
waters. The Garah is composed of the waters of the Behah and Sutloj.

CHAP. V.]

ANNALS OP JESSULMER,

239

Rajpoot, minister, Ragkouat’h, lie put him to death. The Ckunna
Rajpoots from the north-east, having renewed their old raids, he in
person attacked, and compelled them to give bonds, or written obli-
gations, for their future good conduct.

Provoked by the daily encroachments of the Kandulote'Rahtores,
Soonder-das and Dilput, chiefs of Beelcumpoor, determined to reta-
liate : " let us get a name in the world,” said Dilput, and attack the
“ lands of the Raktores.” Accordingly, they invaded, plundered,
and fired the town of Jujoo, on the Bikaner frontier. The Kandu-
lotes retaliated on the towns of Jessulmdr, and an action took place,
in which the Bhattis were victorious, slaying two hundred of the
Raktores. The Rawul partook in the triumph of his vassals. Raja
An<5p Sing of Bikandr was then serving with the imperial armies in
the Dekhan. On receiving this account, he commauded his minister -
to issue a summons to every Kaudulote capable of cariying arms to
invade Jessulmdr, aud take and raze Beekumpoor, or he would
consider them traitors. The minister issued the summons ; every
Rahtore obeyed it, and he added, as an auxiliary, a PaPkan chief
with his band from Hissar. Rawul Umra collected his Bhattis
around him, and instead of awaiting the attack, advanced to meet
itj he slew many" of the chiefs, burnt the frontier towns, and
recovered Poogul, forcing the Rahtore chiefs of Barmair and
Kottorali to renew their engagements of fealty and service.

Dmra had eight sons, and was succeeded by Jeswunt, the eldest,
in S. 1758 (AD. 1702), whose daughter was married to the heir-
apparent of Mewar.

Here ends the chronicle, of which the foregoing is an abstract :
the concluding portion of the annals is from a MS. furnished by a
living chronicler, corrected by other information. It is but a sad
record of anarchy and crime.

Soon after the death of Rawul Umra, Poogul, Barmair, Filodi,
and various other towns and territories in Jessulmer, were wrested
from this state by the Raktores.*

The territory bordering the Gdrah was taken by Daod Khan, an
Afghan chieftain from Skikarpoor, and it became the nucleus of a
state called after himself Daodpotra.

Jeswunt sin tr succeeded. He had five sons, Juggut Sing, who

O

* The most essential use to which my labours can be applied, is that of
enabling the British Government, when called upon to exercise its functions,
o.s protector and arbitrator o£ the inter national quarrels of liajpoo ana,^ o
understand the legitimate and original grounds of dispute. Heie wo
the germ of the border feuds, which have led to so much bloodshed e l
Bikaner and Jessulmer, in which the former was the first aggressor ; but as tl o
latter, for the purpose oE redeeming her lost territory, most frequent y n PP*-‘ *■
as the agitator of public tranquillity, it is necessary to look for the tei
cause in pronouncing our award.

240

annals of jessulmer.

[chap. V.

^srfea. xs“— "®tt

Slug, uucle to tlie ±tawu , F & . , tben , grand-uncle,

fled to Delhi to save g* jeswunt), was serving the king, and

Burn Smg (bio tnei 01 , nsurner It is customary for

he returned m order to di p ^ - n s ? ate to the lake Gursi-sirr,
the prince of Jessulmei to g f in away the accumulation

to Perfor™ ^e'wremOTy rf takes out a handful, when rich

SXg 7 etC “ SST « W** was so Lvorely wooded that
i°e diedfand was succseded by Ms son, ^

■JsSsrX— ■

*rSSSSSt rsris JBSs

Kfflf “i"" «“ »• - — •'

orDaodpotra. i«ifi (AD 1762). He had three sons,

Moolraj succeeded m S. 181 ( • • 1 un happy choice of a

Ea6 Sing, Jaet Smg, and M&n S 1D demoralization of the Bhatti
minister by ^ Sing, a Bania o be

principality. 1 his mmistei , be tho exterminators ot the

Jain faith and Mehta famiy, Jessu] y The cause of hatred and

laws and fortunes of the b Bhatti aristocracy arose out

revenge of this son of »“«»!„, a fail- frail one, a
of a disgraceful dispute ieg g the R a j p0 ot, Sirdar Smg,

favourite of the Mehts but w P ol „. rie d bis complaint of tie

““^erttb^eJ^rent, Bad Sing, who__ba_d also cause of

priDCBbUF^ "“-r , - u in his lather's presence; auu

by the princes own _ _ Moolrai for protection, it was proposed to
Mebta, in falling, slung g|, e proposition, however, was

take off Moolraj at - *be sum .time. ^ saH ,fled

rejected with houo J escape to the female apartments ; but

The Bawul was allowed to escapo^^ ^ ^ from ft0

the chieftains, w . eBtiu g Rae Sing, and if he refused, on placing
Rawul, insisting , The an of Rae Sing was proclaimed ; hut
Ris brother on 1 1 e • gaa ^ ]d induce kj m to listen to the proposal of
no intreaty or thr , _ beu 0 £ w hich he used a pallet (lihal-)
occupying the n V > d bad p asse d since the deposal and
Three months an j, en a female resolved to emancipate him :

bondage ,o£ " i0 ° l J’ ) w if e of the chief conspirator, and confir
this female was the [w

CHAP. V.]

ANNALS OF JESSULMER.

241

dential adviser of the regent prince. This noble dame, a Raktore
Rajpootni, of the Makecka clan, was the wife of Anop Sing of
Jinjiuialli, the premier noble of Jessulmer, and who, wearied
with the tyranny of the minister and the weakness of his prince,
had proposed the death of the one and the deposal of the other.
We are not made acquainted with any reason, save that of
siuamd’herma , or r fealty/ which prompted the Rahtorni to rescue
, her prince even at the risk of her kusbaud’s life; but her appeal to
'Tier, son Zoorawur, to perform his duty, is preserved, and we give it
1 verbatim : “ should your father oppose you, sacrifice him to your
“ duty, and I will mount the pyre with his corpse.” The son yielded
obedience to the injunction of his magnanimous parent, who had
sufficient influence to gain over Arjoon, the brother of her husband,
as well as Meg’li Siug, chief of Baroo. The three chieftains forced
an entrance into the prison where their prince was confined, who
refused to be released from his manacles, until he was told that the
Maheclii had promoted the plot for his liberty. The sound of the
grand nalcarra, proclaimiugMoolraj’s repossession of the gadi, awoke
his son from sleep ; and on the herald depositing at the side of his
pallet the sable siropa ,* and all the insignia of exile, — the black
steed and black vestments, — the prince, obeying the command of the
emancipated Rawul, clad himself therein, and accompanied by his
party, bade adieu to Jessulmer and took the road to Kottorah.
When he arrived at this town, on the southern frontier of the state,
the chiefs proposed to c run the country / but he replied, “the
“ country was his mother, and every Rajpoot his foe who injured
“ it.” He repaired to Jodpoor, but the chieftains abided about Sheo
Kottoroli and Bavmair, and during the twelve years they remained
outlaws, plundered even to the gates of Jessulmer. In the first
tkreeyears they devastated the country, their castles were dismantled,
the wells therein filled up, and their estates sequestrated. At the
end of the twelve, having made the tilalc, or oath against further
plunder, their estates were restored, and they were re-admitted into
their country.

The banished prince remained two years and a half with Raja
Beejy Sing, who treated him like a son. But he carried his arrogant
demeanour with him to Jodpoor ; for one day, as he was going out
to hunt, a Bania, to whom he was indebted, seized his horse by the
bridle, and invoicing the an of Beejy Sing, demanded payment of
his debt. The priuce, in turn, required him, with the invocation
“ by Moolraj !” to unloose his hold. But the man of wealth, disre-
garding the appeal, insolently replied, “ what is Moolraj to me ?” It
was the last word he spoke ; the sword of Rne Sing was unsheathed,
and the Bania’s head rolled on the ground : then, turning his horse’s
head to Jessulmer, he exclaimed, ” better be a slave at once, than

* Siropn is the Rajpoot term for hhelat, and is used by those who, like tbo
Rana of Oodipoor, prefer the vernacular dialect to the corrupt jargon of the
Islamite. Sir-o-pa (from 1 head,’ sir, to ‘ foot’ pa) means a complete dress ; in
short, cap-d-pied.

CVot. II.]

31

242

ANNALS OF JESSULMER.

[CHAP V.

<e . live on the bounty of another/’ His unexpected- arrival outside
his native city brought out the entire population to see him. His
father, the Rawul, sent to know what had occasioned his presence
and he replied, that it was mei'ely preparatory to pilgrimage. He
was refused' admittance ; his followers were .disarmed, and he was
sent to reside at the fortress of Dewoh, together with his sons Ablie
Sing and Dhonkul Sing, and their families.

Salim Sing, who succeeded his father as prime minister of Jessul-
mer, was but eleven years of age at the time of his murder. His
young mind appears, even at that early age, to have been a hot bed for
revenge; andtheseeds which were sown soon quickened into a luxuri-
ance rarely equalled even in those regions, where human life is held in
little estimation. Without any of that daring valour which distin-
guishes the Rajpoot, he overcame, throughout a long course of years,
all who opposed him, uniting the subtlety of ’the serpent to the
ferocity of the tiger. In person he was effeminate, in speech bland;
pliaut and courteous in demeanour ; promising, without hesitation,
and with all the semblance of sincerity, what he never had the
most remote intention to fulfil. Salim, or, as he was generally
designated by his tribe, the Mehta , was a signal distance of a fa'ct of
which these annals exhibit too many examples, namely, the inade-
quacy of religious professions, though of a severe character, as a
restraint ou moral couduct : for though the tenets of his faith (the
Jain) imperatively prescribe the necessity of “ hurting no sentient
“ being,” and of sitting in the dark rather than, by luring a moth
into the flame of a lamp, incur the penalty attached to the sin of
insect-murder, this mau has sent more of “ the sons of Jessoh” to
Yamaloca ,* than the sword of their external foes during his long
administration. He had scarcely attained mai/s estate when the
outlawed chiefs were restored to their estates by a singular interven-
tion. Raja Bheem Sing had acceded to the gadi of Marwar, and
the Mehta was chosen by the prince of Jessulmer, has his representa-
tive, to convey his congratulations, and the Uka of acknowledgment
on his succession, to Raja Beejy Sing. On his return from this
mission, he was waylaid and captured by the outlawed chieftains,
who instautly passed sentence of death upon the author of their
miseries. The sword was uplifted, when, ‘ placing his turban at the
feet of Zoorawur Sing/ he implored his protection — and he found it !
Such is the Rajpoot ; — au anomaly amongst his species; his character
a compound of the opposite and antagouistical qualities which impel
mankind to virtue and to crime. Let me recal to the mind of the
reader, that the protector of this vampire was the virtuous son
of the virtuous Rajpootni who, with an elevation of mind
equal to whatever is recorded of Greek or Roman heroines,
devoted herself, and a husband .whom she loved, to the one
predominant sentiment of the Rajpoot, swamd’herma , or 'fealty

* Pluto’s realm.

CHAP. V.]

ANNALS OP JESSULMEK.

243

to the sovereign.’ Yet had the wily Mehta effected the disgrace of
'this brave chief, to whom the Bawul owed his release from bondage
and restoration, to his throne, and forced him to join the outlaws
amidst tli6 sand-hills of Barmair. Nothing can paint more strongly
the influence of this first of the Bhatti chiefs over his brethren than
the act of preserving the life of their mortal foe, thus cast into their
hands ; for not only did they dissuade him from the act, but pro-
phesied his repentance of such mistaken clemency. Only one con-
dition was stipulated, their restoration to their homes. They were
recalled, but not admitted to court : a distinction reserved for
Zoorawur alone. '

When Bad Sing -was incarcerated in Dewoh, his eldest son, Abhe
‘Sing, Rajkovicir, ‘ heir-apparent/ with the second son, Dhonlcul, were
left at Barmair, with the outlawed chiefs. The Bawul, having in
vain demanded his grand-children, prepared an army and invested
Barmair. It was defended during six months, when a capitulation
was acceded to, and the children were given up to 'Moolraj on the
bare pledge of Zoorawur Sing, who guaranteed their safety ; and
they were sent to the castle of Dewoh, whei*e their father was con-
fined. Soon after, the castle was fired, and Bad Sing and his wife
were consumed in the flames. On escaping this danger, which was
made to appear accidental, the young princes were confined in the
fortress of Bamgurh, in the most remote corner of the desert, bor-
dering the valley of Sinde, for their security and that of the Bawul
(according to the Mehta’s account), and to prevent faction from
having a nucleus around which to form. But Zoorawur, who enter-
tained doubts of the minister’s motives, reminded the Bawul that
the proper place for the heir-apparent was the court, and that his
honour stood pledged for his safety. This was sufficient for the
Mehta, whose mind was instantly intent upon the means to rid
himself of so conscientious an adviser. Zoorawur had a brother
named Kaitsi, whose wife, according to the courtesy of Bajwarra,
had adopted the minister as her brother. Salim sounded his adopted
sister as to her wish to see her husband become lord of Jinjinialli.
The tempter succeeded : he furnished her with poisoned comfits,
which she administered to the gallant Zoorawur ; and her lord was
inducted into the estates of Jinjinialli. Having thus disposed of
the soul of the Bhatti nobility, he took off in detail the chiefs of
Baroo, Dangri, and many others, chiefly by the same means, though
some by the dagger. Kaitsi, who, whether innocent, or a guilty
participant in his brother’s death, had benefited thereby, was marked
in the long list of proscription of this fiend, who determined to ex-
terminate every Bajpoot of note. Kaitsi knew too much, and those
connected with him shared in this dangerous knowledge; wife, brother,
son, were therefore destined to fall by the same blow. The immediate
cause of enmity was as follows. The minister, who desired to set
aside the claims of the children of Bae Sing to the gcuM, and to
nominate the youngest son of Moolraj as heir-apparent, was opposed
by Kaitsi, as it could only be effected by the destruction of the
[Vol. II.] 31a , -

244

ANNALS OF JESSULMER.

[CHAP. V.

former ; and lie replied, -that “no co-operation of his should sanction
“ the spilling of the blood of any of his master's family." Salim
treasured up the remembrance of this opposition to his will, though
without any immediate sign of displeasure. Soon after, Kaitsi and
his brother Suroop were returning from a nuptial ceremony at
Kunero, in the district of Bhalotra. On reaching JBeejoraye, on the
Jessulmer frontier, where the ministers of the Mehta's vengeance
were posted, the gallant Zoorawnr and his brother were conducted
into the castle, out of which their bodies were brought only to be
burnt. Hearing of some intended evil to her lord, Kaitsi's wife, with
her infant son, Megha, sought pi'otection in the minister’s own abode,
where she had a double claim, as his adopted sister, to sanctuary
and protection. For five days, the farce was Icept up of sending food
for herself and child; but the slave who conveyed it remarking, in
coarse, unfeeling language, that both her husband and her brother
were with their fathers, she gave a loose to grief and determined on
revenge. This being reported to the Mehta, he sent a dagger for
her repose.

The princes, Abhe Sing and Dhonkul Sing, confined iu the fortress
of Eamgurh, soon after the murder of Kaitsi were carried off,
together with their wives and infants, by poison. The murderer
then proclaimed Guj Sing, the youngest but one of all the posterity
of Moolraj, as heir- apparent. His brothers sought security in flight
from this fiend-like spirit of the minister, and are now refugees in
the Bikaner territory. The following slip from the genealogical
tree will shew the branches so unmercifully lopped off by this
monster :

Moolraj.

I I i

Bad Sing, Jaefc Sing ( Icana ), Man Sing,

poisoned. living. killed by a ball from his horse.

Abhe Dhonkul Maha Tej Sing, Devi Sing, Guj Sing, Fufcti
Sing, Sing, Sing, in in reigning Sing,

poisoned. poisoned. blind. exile. exile. prince, in exile.

Maha Sing, being blind of one eye* (Icana) could not succeed ;

person blind of one eye is incompetent to succeed, according to Ilindu
law. Kana is the nickname given to a person labouring under this personal
defect, which term is merely an anagram of dnlca, ‘ the eye.’ The loss of an eye
does not deprive an occupant of his rights — of which we had a curious example
in the siege of the imperial city of Deldi, which gave rise to the remark, that
the three greatest men therein had only the complement of one man amongst
them : the Emperor had been deprived of both eyes by the brutality of Ghol»m
Kadir: the besieging chief Holcar was Icana, as was the defender, SirD.
Ocliterlony. Holcar’s name has become synonimous with l-ana, and many a
horse, dog, and man, blind of an eye, is called after this celebrated Mnhrnttn
leader. Tho Hindus, by what induction Iknow not, attach a degree of moral
obliquity to every individual Icana, and appear to make no distinction between
tho natural and the acquired defect ; though to all Jcanas they apply another

CHAP. V.]

ANNALS OF JESSU1MER.

245 .

and Man Sing being killed by a fall from bis horse, the Mebta was
saved tbe crime of adding one more " mortal murtber to bis crown.”

It is a singular fact, that tbe longest reigns we know of in
Raj war r a occurred during ministerial usurpations. The late
Maharao of Kotah occupied tbe gadi upwards of half a century, and
tbe Rawul Moolraj swayed tbe nominal sceptre of this oasis of tbe
desert upwards of fifty-eight years. His father ruled forty years,
aud I doubt whether, in all history, we can find another instance of
father aud son reigning for a century. This century was prolific in
change to tbe dynasty, whose whole history is full of strange
vicissitudes. If we go back to Jeswunt Sing, the grandfather of
Moolraj, we find the Bhatti principality touching the Garah on the
north which divided it from Mooltan ; on the west it was bounded
by the Punjnud, and thus included a narrow slip of the fertile valley
of Sinde ; and we have seen it stretch, at no remote period, even to
the ancient capital Mansoora, better known to the Hindu as Rori-
Bekber, the islandic capital of the Sogdi (Soda) of Alexander. To
the south, it rested on Dhat, including the castles of Sheo, Kottoroh,
and Barmair, seized on by Marwar ; and in the east embraced the
districts of Pilodi, Polcurn, and other parts, also in the possession of
Marwar or Bikaner. The whole of the state of Bhawulpoor is
formed out of the Bhatti dominion, and the Rahtores have obtained
therefrom not a small portion of their western frontier. This
abstraction of territory 'will account for the heart-burnings and
border-feuds which continually break out between the Bhattis and
Rahtores, aud “ the children of David (Ddodpotras)

Could the same prophetic steel which carved upon the pillar of
Brimsir the destinies of the grandson of the deified Heri, eleven
hundred years before Christ, have subjoined to that of Jessoh the
fate which awaited his descendant Moolraj, he would doubtless have
regarded the prophecy as conveying a falsehood too gross for belief.
That the offspring of the deified prince of Dwarica, who founded
Guzni, and fought the united kings of Syria and Bactria, should, at
length, be driven back on Iudia, and compelled to seek shelter under
the sign of the cross, reared amidst their sandhills by a handful of
strangers, whose ancestors, when they were even in the maturity of
their fame, were wandering in their native woods, with painted
bodies, and offering human sacrifices to the sun-god, — more resem-
bling Ba’lsiva than Balcrishna, — these would have seemed prodigies
too wild for faith.

aud. more dignified appellation, 'Siilcr&cftdrycl, the Jupiter of their astro-' mytho-
logy! which very grave personage came by his misfortune in no creditable way, —
for, although the guru, or spiritual head of the Hindu gods, he set as bad a
moral example to them as did the classical Jupiter to the tenants of the Greek
and Roman Pantheon.

.246

ANNALS OP JESSULMER.

[CHAP. YE

CHAPTER VI.

Rawul ]\foolraj enters into treaty vjith the English. — The Raja dies. —His
grandson, Guj Sing, proclaimed. — He becomes a mere -puppet in the minister's
hands. — Third article of the Treaty. — Inequality of the alliance.— Its
importance to Jessulmdr. — Consequences to be apprehended by the British
Government. — Bangers attending the enlarging the circle of our political
connexions. — Importance of Jessuhndr in the event of Russian invasion . —
British occupation of the valley of the Indus' considered. — Salim Sing's
administration resumed. — His rdpacity and tyranny increase. — Wishes his
office to be hereditary. — Report of (he British agent to his Government . —

E allheals self-exiled. — Bankers' families kept as hostages. — Revenues arising
from confiscation. — Wealth of the minister. — Border-feud detailed to exemplify
the interference of the paramount poiver. — The Maldotes of Baroo. — Their
history. — Nearly exterminated by the Rahtores of Bikaner. — Stimulated by
the minister Salim Sing. — Causa of this treachery. — He calls for JBntish
interference. — Granted. — Result. — Rawul Guj Sing arrives at Oodipoor . —
Mai vies the liana’s daughter. — Influence of this lady.

It was in the Sam vat (era) of Vicrama, 1818,, that Rawul Moolraj
•was inaugurated on the throne of Jessoh ; and it was in the year of
our Lord 1818, that a treaty of “ perpetual friendship, alliance, and
“ unity of interests’'' was concluded between the Honourable East
India Compauy and Maha Rawul Moolraj, the Raja of Jessulmer, his
heirs and successors, tho latter agreeing “ to act in subordinate
<r co-operation with the British government, and with submission to
“ its supremacy.’ 5 * This was almost the last act of Rawul Moolraj,
who had always been a mere puppet in the hands of Mehta Salim
Sing or his father. He died A.D. 1820, when his grandson,
Guj Sing, was proclaimed.

Rawul Guj Sing was fitted, from his years, his past seclusion, -
and the examples which had occurred before his eyes, to be the
submissive pageant Salim Sing required. Isolated, in every
sense, from intercourse with the rest of mankind, by the policy
of the minister, he had no community of sympathy with them,
and no claim upon their aid. Surrounded by the creatures of
Salim Sing, who, even to their daily dole, ascribe everything to
this man’s favour, each word, each gesture, is watched and reported.
The prince himself, his wives and family, are alike dependents on
tlie minister’s bounty, often capriciously exercised. If he requires a
liorse, lie must solicit it ; or if desirous of bestowing some recompense,
lie requests to be furnished with the means, and deems himself -
fortunate if he obtain a moiety of his suit.

It will be observed from the date of this treaty (Dec. 1818), that
Jessulmer was the last of the states of India received under the,
•protection of the British Government. Its distance made it an
object of little solicitude to us ; and the minister, it is said, had .

♦See Appendix No. Ill, for a copy of this treaty.

CHAP. VI.]

ANNALS OP JESStJLMER.

247

many long and serious consultations with his oracles before he united
his destiny with ours. He doubted the security of his power if the
Rawul should become subordinate to the British Government; and
he was only influenced by the greater risk of being the sole state iu
Rajwarra without the pale of its protection, which would have left
him to the mercy of those enemies whom his merciless policy had
created around him. The third and most important article of the
treaty* tranquillized his apprehensions as to external foes ; with
these apprehensions all fear as to the consequences arising from
ministerial tyranny towards the princely exiles was banished, and
we shall presently find that this alliance, instead of checking his
rapacity and oppression, incited them. But it is necessary, in the
first place, to bestow a few remarks on the policy of the alliance as
regards the British Government.

Its inequality requires no demonstration : the objects to be attained
by it to the respective parties having no approximation to parity.
The advantages to Jessulmer were immediate ; and to use the phra-
seology of the treaty, were not only of “ great magnitude,” but were
vitally important. From the instant the treaties were exchanged,
her existence as a permanent state, which was not worth half a
century's purchase, was secured. Her power had been gradually
declining, and reign after reign was narrowing her possessions to the
vicinity of the capital. One state, Bhawulpoor, had been formed
from her northern territory ; while those of Sinde, Bikaner and
Jodpoor, had been greatly aggrandized at her expense; and all were
inclined, as occasion arose to encroach upon her feebleness. The
faithless character of the minister, Salim Sing afforded abundant
pretexts for quarrel, and the anarchy of her neighbours proved her
only safeguard during the later years of her independent existence.
Now, the British Government having pledged itself to exert its
power for the protection of the principality, in the event of any ^
<f serious invasion,” her fears either of Sin dies, Daodpotras, or of
Rahtores, are at rest. The full extent of this pledge may not have
been contemplated when it was given ; like all former alliances, it is
the base of auother step in advance. Instead of restricting the
vast circle of our political connexions, it at once carried us out of
India, placing us iu actual contact and possible collision with the
rulers of Sinde aud the people beyond the Indus. Marwar and
Bikaner being already admitted to our alliance, the power of settling
their feuds with the Bhattis is comparatively simple ; but with
Ddodpotra we have no political connexions, and with Sinde, only
those of “ perpetual friendship, aud mutual intercourse but no
stipulation ensuring respect to our remonstrances in case of the
aggression of their subjects on our Bhatti ally. Are we then to push

* Art. III. “In the event of any serious invasion directed towards theover-
“ throw of the principality of Jessulmdr, or other danger of great magnitude
“ occurring to that principality, the British Government will exert its power for
“ the protection of the principality, provided that the cause of the quarrel ua
“ not ascribable to the Bnja of Jessulmdr.”

248

ANNALS OF JESSULMER.

[CHAP. VI.

our troops through the desert to repel such acts, or must we furnish
pecuniary subsidies (the cheapest mode), that she may entertain
mercenaries for that object ? We must view it, in this light, as an
event, not only not improbable, but of very likely occurrence. Our
alliance with Cutch involved us in this perplexity in 1819. Our
armies were formed and mo\ ed to the frontier, and a declai’ation
of war was avoided only by accepting a tardy amende in no way
commensurate with the insult of invading massacring, and pillaging
our allies.* Iu this instance, our means of chastisement were
facilitated by our maritime power of grnppling with the enemy;
but if the insult proceeds from the government of Upper Sinde (only
nominally dependent on Hydrabad), or from Bhawulpoor, how are
we to cope with these enemies of our ally ? Such wars might lead
us into a terra incognita beyond the Indus, or both the spirit and
lettor of the treaty will be null.

What, therefore, are the advantages we can hold out to ourselves for
the volunteer of our amity and protection to this oasis of the desert?
To have disregarded the appeal of Jessulmer for protection, to have
made her the sole exception in all Eajpootanafrom our amicable rela-
tions, would have been to consign her to her numerous enemies, and to
let loose the spirit of rapine and revenge, which it was the mainobject
of all these treaties to suppress : the Bhattis would have become a
nation of robbers, the Bedouins of the Indian desert. Jessulmdr
was the first link iu a chain of free states, which formerly united
the commerce of the Ganges with that of the Indus, but which inter-
minable feuds had completely severed ; the possibility of reunion
depending upon a long continuance of tranquillity and confidence.
This object alone would have warranted our alliance with Jessulmer.
But if we look to .futurity, to the possible invasion of India, which
can be best effected through the maritime provinces of Persia, the
valley of the Indus will be the base of the invader's operations. The
possession of Jessulmdr would then be of vital importance, by giving
ns the command of Upper Sinde, and enabling ns to act against the
enemy simultaneously with our armies east of. the Delta, the iuost
practicable point of advance into India. We may look upon inva-
sion by the ancient routes pursued by Alexander, Mahmood, and-
Timoor, as utterly visionary, by an army encumbered with all the
materiel necessary to success, and thus the valley of Sinde presents
the only practicable route. But it would be a grand error, bothin a
political and military poiut of view, to possess ourselves of this valley,
even if au opportunity were again to occur. It is true, the resources

The attitude assumed by the energetic Governor of Bombay, Mr. Elphinstone,
on that occasion, will for along time remain a lesson to the triumvirate govern-
merit of Sinde. To the author it still appears a subject of regret, that, wifcn
tho adequate preparation, the season, and everything promising a certainty °t
success, the pacific tone of -Lord Hastings’ policy should have prevented the
proper assertion of our dignity, by chastising an insult, aggravated in every
shone. A treaty of amity and mutual, intercourse was the result of tins
armament ; but although twelve years have since elapsed, our intercourse has
.remained in statu quo : but this is no ground for quarrel.

CHAP. VI.]

ANNALS OF JESSNLMER.

249

of that fertile region, so analogous to Egypt, would soon, under our
management, maintain an army sufficient to defend it; and this
would bring us at once into contact with the power (Persia) which
clings to us for support, and will he adverse to us only when ren-
dered subservient to Russia. It were well to view the possible
degradation and loss of power to Russia, in Europe, as likely to
afford a fresli stimulant to her ancient schemes of oriental aggran-
disement. By some these schemes are looked upon as Quixotic, and
I confess myself to be of the number. ThebetterRussiais acquainted
with the regions she would have to pass, the less desire will she evince
for an undertaking, which, even if successful in the outset, would
he useless ; for if she conquered, she could not maintain India. But,
to me, it still' appears imperative that this power should formally
renounce such designs : the state of perpetual preparation ren-
dered necessary by her menacing position, being so injurious to our
finances, is worse than the actual attempt, which would only entail
upon her inevitable loss. We lost, through our unwise economy, a
noble opportunity of maintaining an ascendancy at the court of
Cabul, which would have been easily prevailed upon, for our
pecuniary aid, to make over to us the sovereignty of Sinde
(were this desirable), which is still considered a grand division
of Cabul.

But setting the political question aside, and considering our pos-
session of the valley of Sinde only in a military point of view, our
occupation of it would be prejudicial to us. We should have a long
line to defend, and rivers are no barriers in modern warfare. Whilst
an impassable desert is between us, and we have the power, by
means of our allies, of assailing an enemy at several points, though
we are liable to attack but from one, an invader could not maintain
himself a single season. On this ground, the maintenance of friend-
ship with this reinote nook of Rajpoot civilization is defensible, and
we have the additional incitement of rescuing the most industrious
and wealthy commercial communities in India from the fangs
of a harpy : to whom, and the enormities of his government, we
return;

No language can adequately represent the abuse of power with
which the treaty has armed the rapacious minister of Jessulmer, and
it is one of the many instances of the inefficacy of our system of
alliances to secure prosperity, or even tranquillity to these long-
afflicted regions ; which although rescued from external assailants,
are still the prey of discord and passion within. It will not be
difficult, at the proper time and place, to make this appear.* The
Mehta felt the advantages which the treaty gave him, in respect to
neighbouring states ; but he also felt that he had steeped himself

* It is my intention (if space is left) to give a concise statement of the effects
of our alliances, individually and collectively, in the states of Rnjwavrn, with a
few hints towards amending the system, at the conclusion of this volume.
[Von. II.] 32

250

ANNALS -OF JESSULMER.

[CHAP. .VI.

too deeply in the “blood of his master’s family, and in that of his
noblest chieftains, to hope that any repentance, real or affected,
could restore to him the confidence of those he had so outraged.
With commercial men, with the industrious husbandman or pastoral
communities, he had so long forfeited all claim to credit, that his
oath was not rained at a single grain of the sand of their owmdeserb
dominion.

The bardic annalist of Rajpootana, when compelled bo record the
acts of a tyrant, first announces his moral death ; then comes the
metempsychosis, — the animating his frame with the spirit of a
demon. In this manner is delineated the famed Yisaldeo, the Chohan
king of Ajmer. Whether the Bhatti minister will obtain such a
posthumous apology for his misdeeds, a future historian will learn;
but assuredly lie is never mentioned, either in poetry or prose, but
as a vampire, draining the life-blood of a whole peojfie. For a short
time after the treaty was formed, he appeared to fall in with the
march of universal reformation ; but whether it was that his crimes
had outlawed him from the sympathies of all around, or that he
could feel no enjoyment but in his habitual crimes, he soon gave
ampler indulgence to his l'apacious spirit. The cause of his
temporary forbearance was attributed to his anxiety to have
an article added to the treaty, guaranteeing the office of prime
minister in his family, perhaps with a view to legalize his plunder;
but seeing uo hope of fixing an hereditary race of vampires on the
land, bis outrages became past all endurance, and compelled the
British agent, at length, to report bo his government (on the 17th
December 1821), that he considered the alliance disgraceful to our
reputation, by countenancing the idea that such acts can be tolerated
under its protection. Representations to the minister were a
nullity; he protested against their fidelity; asserted in specious
laiiguage his love of justice aud menty; aud 'recommenced his
system of confiscations, contributions, and punishments, with
redoubled severity. All Rajwarra felt au interest in these proceed-
ings, as the bankers of Jessulindr, supported by the capital of that
singular class, the Palliwals, are spread all over India. But this rich
community, amounting to five thousand families, are neaidy all m
voluntary exile, and the bankers fear to return to their native land
with the fruits of their industry, which they would renounce for
ever, but that he retains their families as hostages: Agriculture is
almost unknown, and commerce, internal or external, has ceased
through want of security. The sole revenue arises from confiscation.
It is asserted that the minister has amassed no less than two crores,
which wealth is distributed in the various cities of Hindust’han, and
has been obtained by pillage and the destruction of the most opulent
families of his country during the last twenty years. He has also,
it is said, possessed himself of all the ci’own-jewels and property of
value, which he has sent out of the country. Applications were
continually being made ,to the British agent for passports ( perwaiias ),

CHAP. VI.]

ANNAL8 OF JESSULMEE.

251

by commercial men, to withdraw their families from the country.
Bat all have some ties which would be hazarded by their with-
drawing, even if such a step were otherwise free from danger; for
while the minister afforded passports, in obedience to the wish of
the agent, he might cut them off in the desert. This makes many
bear the ills they have.

We shall terminate our historical sketch of Jessulmer with the
details of a border-feud, which called iuto operation the main condi-
tion of the British alliance, — the right of universal arbitration in the
international quarrels of Rajpootana. The predatory habits of the
Maldotes of Baroo originated a rupture, which threatened to involve
the two states in war, and produced an invasion of the Rahtores,
sufficiently serious to warrant British interference. It will hardly
be credited that this aggression, which drew down upon the
-Maldotes the vengeance of Bikandr, was covertly stimulated by the
minister, for the express purpose of their extirpation, for reasons
which will appear presently ; yet he was the first to complain of the
retaliation. To understand this matter, a slight sketch of the
Maldote tribe is requisite.

The Maldotes, the Kailuus, the Birsungs, the Pohurs, and Tezma-
lotes, ave all Bhatti tribes ; but, from their lawless habits, these nameB
have become, like those of Bedouin, Kuzzak, or Pindarri, synonimous
with ‘robber. 5 The first are descended from Rao Maiden, and hold
the fief (puttaj of Baroo, consisting of eighteen villages, adjoining
the tract called Khari-putta, wrested from the Bhattis by the Rah-
tores of Bikaner, who, to confess the truth, morally deserve the per-
petual hostility of this Bhatti lord-marcher, inasmuch as they were
the intruders, and have deprived them (the Bhattis) of much terri-
tory. But the Rahtores, possessing the right of the strongest, about
twenty-five years ago exercised it in the most savage manner ; for,
having invaded Baroo, they put almost the entire community to the
sword, without respect to age or sex, levelled the towns, filled up the
wells, and carried off the herds and whatever was of value. The
survivors took shelter in the recesses of the desert, and propagated
a progeny, which, about the period of connexion with the British,
re-occupied their deserted lands. The minister, it is asserted, beheld
the revival of this infant colony with no more favourable eye than
did their enemies of Bikandr, whom, it is alleged, he invited once
more to their destruction. The lawless habits of this tribe would
have been assigned by the minister as his motive for desiring their
extermination ; but if we look back (p. 243), we shall discover the
real cause in his having incurred the lasting enmity of this cldn for
the foul assassination of their chief, who had been a party to the
views of the heir-apparent, Rae Sing, to get rid of this incubus oti
their freedom. The opportunity -afforded to take vengeance on the
Maldotes arose out of a service indirectly done to the British Govern-
ment. On the revolt of the Peshwa, he sent his agents to Jessulmdr

[Vot. ii.] 32a

252

ANNALS OF JESSULMEB.

[CHAP. VI.

to purchase camels. One herd, to the number of four hundred, had
left the Bhatti frontiers, and "whilst passing through the Bikaner
territory, were set upon by the Maldotes, who captured the whole,
and conveyed them to Baroo. It is scarcely to be supposed that
such an aggression on the independence of Bikaner would have
prompted her extensive armament, or the rapidity with which her
troops passed the Bhatti frontier to avenge the insult, without some
private signal. from the minister, who was loud in his call for
British interference ; though not until Nokha and Baroo, their
principal towns, were levelled, the chief killed, the wells filled
up, and the victorious army following up its success by a rapid
march on Beelcumpoor, in which the fiscal lands began to suffer.
The minister then discovered he had overshot the mark, and claimed
our interference,* which was rapid and effectual ; and the Bikandr
commander the more willingly complied with the request to
retire within his own frontier, having effected more than his
object.

The tortuous policy, the nevei*-ending and scarcely- to-be-compre-
hended border- feuds of these regions, must, for a long while, generate
such appeals. Since these associated bands attach no dishonour to
their predatory profession, it will be some time before they acquire
proper notions ; but when they discover there is no retreat, in which
punishment may not reach them, they will learn the benefits of
cultivating the arts of peace, of whose very name no trace exists in
their history.

We have lost sight of the Rawul, the title of the prince of Jessul-
mdr, in the prominent acts of his minister. Guj Sing, who occupies
the gadt of Jessoh, to the prejudice of his elder brothers, who are
still in exile in Bikaner, appears very well suited to the minister’s
purpose, and to have little desire beyond his horses, and vegetating
in quiet. The physiognomists of Jessulmdr, howevei’, prognosticate
the development of moral worth in due season : a consummation
devoutly to be wished, and the first symptom of which must be the
riddance of his minister by whatever process. The artful Salim
deemed that it would redound to his ci’edit, and bolster up his
interest, to seek a mati’imouial alliance with the Rana’s family of
Mewait The overture was accepted, and the coco-symbol transmitted
to the Rawul, who put himself at the head of the Bhatti chivalry to
wed aud escort his bride through the desert. The ©ahtore princes
of Bikaner and Kishengurh, who were at the same time suitors for
the hands of another daughter and a grand-daughter of the Rana,

The author haa omitted to mention that ho was Political Agent for
Jessulmdr ; so that his control extended uninterruptedly, almost from Sinde to
Sinde: i. e., from the Indus, or great Sind’h, to the Ohoota-Sind’h or little
river. — (See Map.) There are several streams designated Sind'b, in Central
India, a word purely Tatar, or Scytbio. Aba-Sin, ‘the Father-river,’ is one
of the many names of the Indus.

CHAP. VII.] ANNALS OF JESSULMER. 253

simultaneously arrived at Oodipoori with their respective corteges ;
and this, triple alliance threw a degree of splendour over the capital
of the Seesodias, to which it had long been a stranger. Guj Sing
lives very happily with his wife, who has given him an heir to his
desert domain. The influence of high rank is seen in the respect
paid to the Ranawut-ji, (the title by which she is designated,) even
by the minister, and she exerts this influence most humanely for
the amelioi’ation of her subjects.*

CHAPTER VII.

Geographical position of Jessulmer. — Its superficial area. — List of its chief
towns . — Population. — Jessulmer chiefly desert . — Muggro, a rocky ridge,
traced from Gutch. — Sirrs, or salt-marshes. — Kanoad Sirr. — Soil. — Produc-
tions. — Husbandry. — Manufactures. — Commerce . — Kuttars, or caravans . —
A rticles of trade. — Revenues. — Land and transit taxes . — Dhanni, or Collector .
— Amount of land-tax exacted from the Cultivator . — Dhooa, or hearth-tax . —
T’half, or tax on food . — Dind, or forced contribution. — Citizens refuse to pay . —
Enormous wealth accumulated by the minister by extortion . — Establishments-
— Expenditure. — Tribes . — Bhatds. — Their moral estimation. — Personal ap-
pearance and dress — Their predilection for opium and tobacco . — Palliwals,
their history. — Numbers , wealth, employment. — Curious rite or worship. — Patti
coins. — Pokurna, Brahmins. — Title. — Numbers. — Singular typical worship . —
Race of Jut. — Castle of Jessulmer.

The country still dependent on the Rawul extends between 70° 30'
and 72° 30' E. long., and between the parallels of 26° 20' and 27° 50'
N. lat.., though a small strip protrudes, in the N.E. angle, as high as
28° 30'. This irregular surface may be roughly estimated to contain
fifteen thousand square miles. The number of towns, villages, and
hamlets, scattered over this wide space, does not exceed two hundred
and- fifty ; some estimate it at three hundred, and others depress it
to two hundred : the mean cannot be wide of the truth. To enable
the reader to arrive at a conclusion as to the population of this
region, "we subjoin a calculation, from data furnished by the best-
informed natives, which was made in the year 1815; but we must
add, that from the tyranny of the minister, the population of the
capital (which is nearly half of the country), has been greatly
diminished.

* I bad the honour of receiving several letters from this queen of the desert
who looked to her father’s house and bis friends, as the best objects for support,
whilst such a being as Salim was the master of her own and her hus < <d’
destiny. " -

254

ANNAES or JESSULMEB.

[CHAP. VI!.

Towns.

, Wumber Number ot
Fiscal and 0 £ Inlmbi-
Feudnl. xi nnS es. rants.

Jcssnlmcr Capital ... 7,000

35,000

Beekumpoor

■ Putt S. 6 t ... 500

i do ... 300 i

Seernroh ao '

do • 400 '

NTncbna ’ , ' 300 .

Ivatori F » scal 300

K»b»). »; ' mo ,

fS £"!- r .* 2 S -*™ =ooj

jinjinwu ^

Devr-Koto 1 ' saal 200

Bbmip p ut ; & 6fc ". 150

Balana ... 100

Sntiasob' au

do. ... 200

Baroo

do .- 200

Chaun.. • 150 |

Lobarki • 150

Noantullob 300

Labtr ... • 150

Mundaye j ' 2 00

Bamgurb 200

Birsilpoor PuttaSC ..

Girajsir 1 tt0 - -

to eacb. Total

Remarks

r The chief has the title of Kao,
\ and twenty-four villages
-j dependent, not inoludedm
( this estimate.

(Knilun Bhatu : the Kalian
\ tribe extends to Poognl.

Rawulote chief.

1 Rawulote : first noble of Jes-

| sulmdr.

fMaldote : ban .
j villtigeB attacbedf
(_ included in this.

800
600
600
1,200
600
800
800
800
800
600 ]

56,400

18,000

74,400

AH of the Rawulote clan.

of the secondary ohm » on0 .], a lf, too, belonging to the eajh '

Sbbetag'oSttod, the result would giro from two to the

only tor each square io'le. el . part of Jessulm* is <« “

Face of the Gountiy ; I ( S w F gfce y From Lowar, on the

rooe, both terms meamng a & e le touching Smd, the

Jodpoor frontier, to Khaim, tn e 6 tract of and sand,

country may . be descnbed^ as ^ ^ ^ some p rts covered

frequently rising va 7 hi ^ nearly bisects Jessulmer, is

-with low jungle, this line,

CHAP. VJI.j

ANNAI8 OF JESSUMIER.

255

the line of demarcation of positive sterility and comparative cultiva-
tion. To the north, is one uniform and naked waste ; >to the south,
are ridges of rock termed muggro, rood, and light soil.

The ride of hills is a most important feature in the geology of
this desert region. It is to be traced from Cutch Bhooj, strongly or
faintly marked, according to the nature of the country. Sometimes
it assumes, as at Chohtim, the character of a mountain; then dwindles
into an insignificant ridge scarcely discernible, and often serves as a
bulwark for the drifting sauds, which cover and render it difficult to
trace it at all. As it reaches the Jessnlmer country it is more
developed; and at the capital, erected on a peak about two hundred,
and fifty feet high, its presence is more distinct, and its character
defined. The capital of the Bhattis appears as the nucleus of a
series of ridges, which diverge from it in all directions for the space
of. fifteen miles. One branch terminates at Ramghur, thirty-five
-miles north-west of Jessulmer; another branch extends easterly to
Pokurn (in Jodpoor), and thence, in a north-east direction, to
Pilodi; from whence, at intervals, it is traceable to Gnrriala, nearly
fifty miles due north. It is a yellow-coloured sand-stone, in which
ochre is abundantly found, with which the people daub their houses.

These barren ridges, and the lofty undulating teebas of sand, are
the only objects which diversify the almost uniform sterility of these
regions. No trees interpose their verdant foliage to relieve the eye,
or shelter the exhausted frame of the traveller. It is nearly a
boundless waste, varied only by a few stunted shrubs of the acacia
or mimosa family, some succulent plants, or prickly grapes, as the
bhoorut or b urr^w hjch-ay! : ngs to bis garment and increases his
4T rr, tjP 0 mfoT' sn 1 1 u tvn,uuufra sfgiTot 1 ontli arn mortip n, w here

the vicinity of the capital is a paradise.

There is not a running stream throughout Jessulmer ; but there .
are many temporary lakes or salt-marshes, termed szrr, formed by
the collection of waters from the sand-hills, wlnoli aie eas y
daramed-in to prevent escape. They are ephemeral, seldom last i g
but a few months; though after a very severe monsoon they have
been known to remain throughout the year One o£ ^® 8 ®'
the Kanoad Sirr, extends from Kanoad to Mohunguyh, coveiing
space of eighteen miles, and in which some water remains g

the year. When it overflows, a small stream issues from e , < .

pursues an easterly direction for thirty miles befoie l is . , *

its existence depends on the parent lake. The salt which it pi oduces
is the property of the crown, and adds something to the revenue.

* do Mr. Elphinstono describes t.be tract about Poogul, one. o if die ^

possessions of the Bhattis, and one of tlie No-lcoti a „d mnin-

the desert/ around whose sand-hills as brave a colo n ■ j whose son

tained as ever carried lance, Rao Bailing was lord of

originated that episode given in Tol. I, p. 569 . E ® l vegetation' could be
November appeared to Mr. Elphinstone without a sign of vegetation, could

made to yield good crops of bajra.

256

ANNALS OF JESSULMBR.

[CHAP- VII.

M UusU^ry,

SeSX SMe° WhTtSTpSl iavoureble

t7b^ra V h^l y heen satm^ted or 5 great

aey »»»- J^uch vain when the prepare advance^ ^
?*”£ ' littte tenacity, they are often washed . ^ nduat’hsn, nhS

fteeandMHa is deemed far aXto wheat which does not hear a

nreindice gives it a preference ev ; n plentiful seasons, sells

higher price, in tunes of scare jn J ' UMs a „ eB not often occni ,
one and ahalf mannds foi a lupee . . Jot, nr is also

Is they calculate five bad s “a° DS c f “ 0 n f 8 produced in the same
Sown, but only in the low flate. Cotton P ^ requires

fodas the 6«j™. It' 8 “ ot B f“ “p -i s deteriorated in the plains of

^iTas

he qoivar, a diminutive melon, not ^ fclie capital, and between

jentf hundreds of miles, as aiai 7- ed aT id where they dam-

Vlfi ride-es -where soil is deposited 01 t01 “' f w } ie at of very goo
he wK, are grown «®® d era^qaanfejes £ fc goo

^ality, turmeric, and garden-staffs^ ^ liafVS entirely

RapiurbJl-X^Vaney of Sinda . u w , it will

Implements of husbandry. ei !® s They have two kinds

concluded that the implements aie ampl. 3 an imal ism<

slough, for one or two oxen, or for the camel, , wmc ^ ^ ^ pa

in requisition. They tread ou \^ e |rain the cattle to tli

of India, and not unfrequently they y j

haherries, or carts, and pass the' whole over g uity 0 f

Manufactures . — There' is little scope J° l .. clot bs, but the i

- mechanic in this tract. They make coaise . , 0 £ man ufact

material is almost all exported. Their grand t 1 ^ & fal

is from the wool of the sheep pastured 1U turbans, of every

cated into looes, or blankets, scarfsf pe ' J al oa U e d aboor, »
duality. Cups and platters are made fiom a m . , jj-^t broffR
• calcareous substance, of a dark chocolate gvouu ^ fc et fc a ndarms

vermiculated stripes ; female ornameutsofelephan actions

of 'an inferior quality . These comprehend the ai tmc I

„ of this desert capital —

* About a hundred-weight tor two shillings. borders, suffic> cnl ’' 5 '

1 1 brought home several pairs of these, with crimso
ue to bo worn as a winter shawl in this country.

IHAP. I.]

INDIAN DESERT.

265

of sand, which, rising often to the height of two hundred feet above
the level of the river, leads one to imagine that the chasm, now
forming this rich valley, must have originated in a sudden melting
of all the glaciers of Caucasus, whose congregated waters made this
break in the continuity of MaroosPhali, which would otherwise be
united with the deserts of Arachosia.

We may here repeat the tradition illustrating the geography of
the desert, i. e., that in remote ages it was ruled by princes of the
Powar (Pramara) race, which the sloca, or verse of the bard, record-
ing the names of the nine- fortresses (No-lcoti Maroo-ca), so admir-
ably adapted by their position to maintain these regions in subjec-
tion, further corroborates. We shall divest it of its metrical form,
and begin with Poogul, to the north ; Mundore, in the centre of all
Maroo ; Aboo, Kheraloo, and Parkur, to the south ; Chotun,
Omurkote, Arore, and Lodorva, to the west ; the possession of which
assuredly marks the sovereignty of the desert. The antiquity of
this legend is supported by the omission of all modern cities, the
present capital of the Bhattis not being mentioned. Even Lodorva
and Arore, cities for ages in ruins, are names known only to a few
who frequent the desert ; and Chotun and Kheraloo,* but for the
traditional stanzas which excited our research, might never have
appeared on the map.

We purpose to follow the natural divisions of the country, or
^tliose employed by the natives, who, as stated above, distinguish
ythem as t’huls ; and after describing these in detail, with a summary
\notice of the principal towns whether ruined or existing, and the
various tribes, conclude with the chief lines of route diverging from,
or leading to, Jessulmer.

The whole of Bikaner, and that part of Shekhavati north of the
Aravulli, are comprehended in the desert. If the reader will refer
to the map, and look for the town of Kanorb, within the British
frontier, he will see what Mr. Elphinstone considered as the com-
mencement of the desert, in his interesting expedition to Cabul.j*
“ EromDelly to Canound (the Kanorh of my map),| a distance of one
hundred miles is through the British dominions, and need not be
described. It is sufficient to say, that the country is sandy, though
not ill- cultivated. On approaching Canound, we had the first speci-
men of the desert, to which we were looking forward with anxious
curiosity. Three miles before reaching that place we came to sand-
hills, which at first were covered with bushes, but afterwards were
naked piles of loose snnd, risingone after another like the waves of
the sea, and marked on the surface by the wind like drifted snow.
There were roads through them, made solid by the treading of
animals ; but off the road our horses sunk into the sand above the
knee.” Such was the opening scene ; the route of the embassy was
by Singana, Jhoonjoonoo, to Chooroo, when they entered Bikaner.

Unfortunately omitted in the Map \ it is fifteen miles north of Chotun.

fit left Dehli the 13th October 1808.

J Original map omitted in this Edition for reasons given in the Preface.

[Yon. II.] 34

CHAP. I.]

INDIAN DESERT.

267

ocean to the ■ blue waters ( Nil-ab )* of the Indus, embrace in his
vision its whole course from Hydrabad to Ootch, he would perceiye,
amidst these vallies of sand-hills, little colonies of animated beings,
congregated on every spot which water renders habitable. Through-
out this tract, from four hundred to five hundred miles in longi-
tudinal extent, and from one hundred to two hundred of diagonal
breadth, are little hamlets, consisting of the scattered huts of the
shepherds of the desert, occupied in pasturing their flocks or culti-
vating these little oasis for food. He may discern a long line of
camels (called hutdr, a name better known than either kafila or
carw&n), anxiously toiling through the often doubtful path, and the
Charun conductor, at each stage, tying a knot on the end of his
turban. He may discover, lying in ambush, a band of Sehrads, the
Bedouins of our desert ( sehra ), either mounted on camels or horses,
on the watch to despoil the caravan, or engaged in the less hazard-
ous occupation of driving off the flocks of the Rajur or Mangulia
shepherds, peacefully tending them about the turs or bawds, . or
hunting for the produce stored amidst the huts of the ever-green
j’hdl, which serve at once as grain-pits and shelter from the sun. A
migratory band may be seen flitting with their flocks from ground
which they have exhausted, in search of fresh pastures ;

“And if the following day they chance to find
A new repast, or an untasted spring,

Will bless their stars, and think it luxury !”

Or they may be seen preparing the rabri, a mess quite analogous to
the housleous of their Numidian brethren, or quenching their thirst
from the Wall of their little oasis , of which they maintain sovereign
possession so long as the pasture lasts, or till they come in conflict
with some more powerful community.

We may here pause to consider whether in ihebdh, bdwd, or wait,
of the Indian desert, may not be found the oasis of the Greeks,
corrupted by them from el-iuah, or, as written by Belzoni (in his
account of the Libyan desert, while searching for the temple of
Ammon), Elloah. Of the numerous terms used to designate water in
these arid regions, as par, rdr, tir, de or dey, bah , bawd, ivuh, all but
the latter are chiefly applicable to springs or pools of water, while
the last ( wdh ), though used often in a like sense, applies more to a'
water-course or stream. El-wah, under whatever term, means —

‘ the water. 3 Again, dey or de, is a term in general use for a pool,
even not unfrequently ra running streams and large rivers, which,
ceasing to flow in dry weather, leave large stagnant masses, always
called de. There are many of the streams of Rajpootana, having
such pools, particularized as hati-de, or f elephant-pool/ denoting a'
sufficiency of water even to drown that animal. Now the word de
or dey, added to the generic term for water, wdh, would make wadey
(pool of water), the Arabian term for a running stream, and commonly
used by recent travellers in Africa for these habitable spots. If the

[yon. ii.}

* A name often given by Ferishta to the Indus.

34a

2G8

SKETCH OF THE

[CHAP. I.

Greeks took tke word wadey from any MS., the transposition would
be easily accounted for : wadey would be written thus ^ jb and by
tke addition of a point wazey, easily metamorphosed, for a

eupbonous termination, into oasis.*

At the risk of somewhat of repetition. We must here point out the
few grand features which diversify this sea of sand, and after
defining the difference between rooe and t’hul, which will frequently
occur in the Itinerary, at once plunge in medias res.

We have elsewhere mentioned the tradition of the absorption of
the Caggar river, as one of the causes of the comparative depopulation
of the northern desert. The couplet recording it I could not recall at
the time, nor any record of the Soda prince Hamir, in whose reign
this phenomenon is said to have happened. But the utility of these
ancient traditional couplets, to which I have frequently drawn the
reader’s attention, has again been happily illustrated, for the name
of Hamir has been incidentally discovered from the trivial circum-
stance of an intermarriage related in the Bhatti annals. His co-
temporary of Jessulmer was Doosauj, who succeeded in S. 1100 or
A.D. 1044, so that we have a precise date assigned, supposing this to
be the Hamir in question. The Caggar, which rises in the Sewaluk,
passes Hansi Hissar, and flowed under the walls of Bhutnair, at
which place they yet have their wells in its bed. Thence it passed
Rung-make], Bullur, and Phoolra, and through the flats of Khad&l (of
which Derrawul is the capital), emptying itself according to some
below Ootch, but according to Abu-Birkftt (whom I sent to explore in
1809, and who crossed the dry bed of a stream called the Khuggur,
near Shahgur’h), between Jessulmer and RoriBekker. If this could
be authenticated, we should say at once that, united with the branch

* When I penned this conjectural etymology, I was- not aware that any
speculation had been made upon this word : I find, however, the late M.
Langlds suggested the derivation of oasis (variously written by the Greeks
avaais, tarns and vaa-is ) from the Arabic | \j : and Dr. Wait, in a series of inter-
esting etymologies (see Asiatic Journal, May 1830), suggests cjlH nasi from
efU vas, * to inhabit.’ Yasi and vacris quasi vasis are almost identical. My
friend SirW. Ouseley gave me nearly the same signification of Wadey as

appears in Johnson’s edition of liickai dsou, viz , a valley, a desert, a channel of
a river — a river wadey-alkabir, ‘the great river,’ corrupted into

Guadalquiver, which example is also given in d’Herbefot (see Vadi Oehennem),
and by Thompson, who traces the word water through all the languages of
Europe — the Saxon water, the Greek vdag, the Islandic udr. the Slavonic wod
(whence woder and oder, ‘ a river’) : all appear derivable from the Arabic wad,
‘a river’ — or the Sanscrit wdh ; and if Dr. W. will refer to p. 314'0f the
Itinerary, he will find a singular confirmation of his etymology in the word Ms
(classically vds) applied to one of these habitable spots. The word baetee, also
of frequent occurrence therein, is from vasnd, to inhabit; vast, an inhabitant;
or vds, a habitation, perhaps derivable from icah, indispensable to an oasis !

CHAP. I.]

INDIAN DESERT.

2G9

from Dura, it gave its name to the Sangra, which unites with the
Looni, .enlarging the eastern branch of the Delta of the Indus.

The nest, and perhaps most remarkable feature in the desert, is
the Looni, or Salt river, which, with its numerous feeders, has its
source in the springs of Ihe Aravulli. Of Marwar it is a barrier
between the fertile lands and the desert ; and as it leaves this country
for the VI ml of the Chokans, it divides that community, and forms a
geographical demarcation ; the eastern portion being called the Raj
of Sooe-Bah ; and the western part, Parkur, or beyond the Khar, or
Looni.

We shall hereafter return to the country of the Chohans, which is
bounded to the south by that singular feature in the physiognomy
of the desert, the Runn, or Bin, already slightly touched upon in the
geographical sketch prefixed to this work. This immense salt-marsh,
upwards of one hundred and fifty miles in breadth, is formed chiefly
by the Looni, which, like the Rhone, after forming Lake Leman,
resumes its name at its further outlet, and ends as it commences with
a sacred character, having the temple of Narayn at its embouchure,
where it mingles with the ocean, and that of Brimha at its source of
Poshkur. The Runn, or Rin, is a corruption of Aranya, or f the
waste nor can anything in nature be more dreary in the dry
weather than this parched desert of salt and mud, the peculiar abode
of the khur-gudda, or wild-ass, whose love of solitude has been
commemorated by an immortal pen. That this enormous depository
of salt is'of no recent formation we are informed by the Greek
writers, whose notice it did not escape, and who have preserved in
Erinos a nearer approximation to the original Aranya than exists
in our ' Bin 5 or 1 Runn . 3 Although mainly indebted to the Looni for
its salt, whose bed and that of its feeders are covered with saline
deposits, it is also supplied by the overflowings of the Indus, to which
grand stream it may be indebted for its volume of water. We have
here another strong .point of physical resemblance between the
vallies of the Indus and the Nile, which Napoleon at once referred to
the simple operations of nature ; I allude to the origin of Lake
Mceris, a design too vast for man/'

As the reader will often meet with the words t’hul and roo£, he
should be acquainted with the distinction between them. The first
means an avid and bare desert ; the other is equally expressive of
desert, but implies the presence of natural vegetation ; in fact, the
jungle of the desert.

*The “ greatest breadth of the valley of the Nile is four leagues, the least,
“ one so that the narrowest portion of the valley of Sinde equals the largest of
the.Nile. Egypt alone is said to have had eight millions of inhabitants ; what
then might Sinde maintain ! The condition of the peasantry, as described
by Bourrienne, is exactly that of Rajpootana : “ the villages are fiefs belonging
“ to any one on whom the prince may bestow them ; the peasantry pay a tax
“ to their superior, and are the actual proprietors of the soil : amidst all the
“ revolutions and commotions, their privileges are not infringed.” This right
(still obtaining), taken away by Joseph, was restored by Sesostris.

270

SKETCH OP THE

' [CHAP, r

T’lml of the Looni. — This embraces the tracts on both sides of
the river, forming Jhalore and its dependencies. Although the
region south of the stream cannot be included in the t’lml, yet it is
so intimately connected with it, that we Bhall not forego the only
opportunity we may have of noticing it.

Jhalore.- — This tract is one of the most important divisions of
Marwar. It is separated from SewdncM by the Sookri and Hharf, *
which, with many smaller streams, flow through them from the
Aravulli and Aboo, aiding to fertilize its three hundred and sixty
towns and villages, forming a part of the fiscal domains of Marwar.
Jhalore, according to the geographical stanza so often quoted, was
one of the f nine castles of Maroo,’ when the Pramar held paramount
rule in Maroost’hali. "When it was wrested from them we have no
clue to discover; but it had long been held by the Chohans, whose
celebrated defence of their capital against Alla-o-din, in A.D. 1301,
is recorded by Ferishta, as well as in the chronicles of their bards. This
branch of the Chohan race was called Mallani, and will be again
noticed, both here and in the annals of Haroutf. It formed that
portion of the Ohohan sovereignty called the JTdppd Raj , whose
capital was Jdnah Chotun, connecting the sway of this race in the
countries along the Looni from Ajmer to Parkur, which would appear
to have crushed its Agnicula brother, the Pramar, and possessed all
that region marked by the course of the c Salt river’ to Parkur.

Sondgir, the r golden mount/ is the more ancient name of this
castle, and was adopted by the Chohans as distinctive of their tribe,
when the older term, Mallani, was dropped for Sonigurra. Here
they enshrined their tutelary divinity, Mallinat’h, ‘god of the
Malli,’ who maintained his position until the sons of Seoji entered
these regions, when the name of Sondgir was exchanged for
that of Jhalore, contracted from Jhalinder-nat’h, whose shrine
is about a coss west of the castle. Whether Jhalinder-nat’h,
the ‘ divinity of Jhalinder/ was imported from the Canges, or left
as well as the god of the Malli by the ci-devant Mallanis, is
uncertain : but should this prove to be a remnant of the foes of
Alexander, driven by him from Mooltan,-j- its probability is increased
by the caveB of Jhalinder (so celebrated as a Hindu pilgrimage even
in Baber’s time) being in their vicinity. Be this as it may, the
Bahtores, like the Boman conquerors, have added these indigenous
divinities to their own pantheon. The descendants of the expatri-
ated Sonigurras now occupy the lands of Cheetulwano, near the
furca of the Looni.

* Another salt river.

f Mooltan and Junah (Chotun, qu. Choban-tan,) have the same signification,

( the ancient abode,’ and both were occupied by the tribe of Malli or Mallani, -
said to be of Chohan race ; and it is curious to find at Jhalore (classically
Jhalinder,) the same divinities as in their haunts in the Punjab, viz., Malli- 1
nat’b, Jhalinder-nat’h, and Balnat’h. Abulfazil says, (p. 108, Vol. II.) “the cell
“ of Bnlnasbis in the middle o£ Siad-sagnr;” and Baber(p.293,} places u Balmdt-
“jogi below the hill of Jud,five marches east of the Indus,” the very spot claimed
by the Yadus, when led out of India by their deified leader Buldeo, or Balnat’h.

CHAP. I.]

INDIAN DESERT.

271

Jhalore comprehends the inferior districts of Se wan chi, Beenmal,
Sanchore, Morseen, all attached to the Jchalisa or fisc ; besides the
great puttdebs, or chieftainships, of Bhadrajoon, Mehwo, Jessole, and
Sindri — a tract of ninety miles in length, and nearly the same in
breadth, with a fair soil, water near the surface, and requiring only
good government to make it as productive as any of its magnitude
in these regions, and sufficient to defray the whole personal expenses
of the Rajas of Jodpoor, or about nine lacs of rupees; but in
consequence of the anarchy of the capital, -the corruption of the
managers, and the raids of the Sehr&es of the desert and the Meenas
of Aboo and the Aravulli, it is deplorably deteriorated. There are
several ridges (on one of which is the castle) traversing the district,
but none uniting with the table-land of Mewar, though with breaks
it may be traced to near Aboo. In one point it shews its affinity to
the desert, i. e., in its vegetable productions, for it has no other
timber than the j’hdl , the babool , the Ichureel, and other shrubs
of the t’hul.

The important fortress of Jhalore, guarding the southern frontier
of Marwar, stands on the extremity of the range extending north to
Sewanoh. It is from three to four hundred feet in height, fortified
with a wall and bastions, on some of which cannon are mounted.
It has four gates ; that from the town is called the Sooruj-pol, and
to, the north-west in the Bal-pol ( f the gate of Bal/ the sun-god),
where there is a shrine of the Jain pontiff, Parswanatffi. There are
many wells, and two considerable baiucirts, or reservoirs of good
water, aud to' the north a small lake formed by damming-up the
streams from the hills ; but the water seldom lasts above half the
year. The town, which contains three thousand and seventeen,
houses, extends on the north and eastern side of the fort, having the
Sookrie flowing about a mile east of it. It has a circumvallation as
well as the castle, having guns for its defence ; and is inhabited by
every varietj' of ‘ tribe, though, strange to say, there are only five
families of Rajpoots in its motley population. The following census
was made by one of my parties, in A.D. 1813 :

Houses.

Mallis , or gardeners 140

Tailis, or oilmen, here called ghatchi 100

Khomars , or potters 60

• Tliatairas, or braziers 30

Oheepas , or printers 20

Bankers, merchants, and shop-keepei’s 1,156

Moosulmauu families 936

Khuteehs , or butchers 20

Ndes, or barbers 16

Khuldls, or spirit-distillers 20

Weavers 100

Silk 15 .

Yatis ( J ain priests) : 2

Brahmius 100

272 SKETCH OP THE [CHA.P. I.

Goojurs 40

Rajpoots 5

Bhojuks 20

Meenas - '60

Bhils 15

Sweetmeat-shops 8

Ironsmitlis and carpenters ( Lohars and Sootars)... 14

Choorfovallas, or bracelet-manufacturers • 4

Tlie general accuracy of this census was confirmed.

Sew&ncM is the tract between the Looni and Sookrie, of which
Sewanoh, a strong castle placed on the extremity of the same range
with Jhalore, 'is the capital. The country requires no particular
description, being of tlie same nature as that just depicted. In
former times it constituted, together with Nagore, the appanage of
the heir-apparent of Marwar ; but since the setting-up of the
Pretender, Dhonkul Sing, both have been attached to the fisc : in
fact, there is no heir to Maroo ! Ferishta mentions the defence of
Sewanoh against the arms of All-o-din.

Macholah* and Morseen are the two principal dependencies of
Jhalore within the Looni, the former having a strong castle guarding
its south-east frontier against the depredations of the Meenas ; the
latter, which has also a fort and town of five huudred houses, is on
the western extremity of Jhalore.

Beenmal and S anchor e are the two principal subdivisions to the
south, and together nearly equal the remainder of the province, each
containing eighty villages. These towns are on the high road to
Cutch and Guzzerat, which has given them fi-om the most remote
times a commercial celebrity. Beenmal is said to contain fifteen
hundred houses, and Sauchore about half the number. Yery wealthy
Mahajuns, or ‘ merchants/ used to reside here, but insecurity both
within and without has much injured' these cities, the first of which
has its name, Mai, from its wealth as a mart. There is a temple of
Baraka (Y&raka, the incarnation of the hog), with a great sculptured
boar. Sanchore possesses also a distinct celebrity from being the
' cradle of a class of Brahmins called San chora, who are the officiating
priests of some of the most celebrated temples in these regions, as
" that of Dwavica, Mat’kura, Poslikur, Nuggur-Parkur, &c. The name
of Sanchore is coi'rupted from Sati-poora, Sati, or Suttee’s town,
said to be very ancient.

Bhadrajoon . — A slight notice is due to the principal fiefs of Jhalore,
as well as the fiscal towns of this domain. Bhadrajoon is a town of
five hundred houses (three-fourths of which are of the Meena class),
situated in the midst of a cluster of hills, having a small fort. The
chief is of the Joda clan ; his fief connects Jhalore with Pali in
Godwar.

CHAP. I.]

INDIAN DESERT.

273

Mehwo is a celebrated little tract on both banks of tbe Looni, and
one of tbe first possessions of tbe Rabtores. It is, properly speaking,
in Sewdnchi, to wbicbit paysatribute, besides service when required.
Tbe chief of Mehwo has the title of Rawul, and his usual residence
is the town of Jessole. Soornt Sing is the present chief ; his relative,
Soorajmul, bolds the same title, and the fief and castle of Sindri,
also on the Looni, twenty-two miles south of Jessole. A fend reigns
between them : they claim co-equal rights, and the consequence is
that neither can reside at Mehwo, the capital of the domain. Both
chiefs deemed the profession of robber no disgrace, when this memoir
was written (1813) ; but it is to be hoped they have seen the danger,
if not the error, of their ways, and will turn to cultivating the fertile
tracts along the ‘Salt Rivor,* which yield wheat, jooar, and bajra in
abundance.

Bhalotra, Tilwarra, are two celebrated names in the geography of
this region, and have an annual fair, as renowned in Rajpootana as
that of Leipsic in Germany. Though called the Bhalotra meld
(literally, ‘ an assemblage, or concourse of people-*), it was held at
Tilwarra, several miles south, near an island of the Looni, which is
sanctified by a shrine of Malli-nat’h, ‘the divinity of the Malli/ who,
as already mentioned, is now the patron god of the Rabtores. Tilwarra
forms the fief of another relative of the Mehwo family, and Bhalotra,
which ought to belong to the fisc, did and may still belong to Ahwa,
the chief noble of Manvar. But Bhalotra and Sindri have other
claims to distinction, having, with the original estate of Droonara,
formed the fief of Doorgadas, the first character in the annals of
Maroo, and whose descendant yet occupies Sindri. The fief of Mehwo,
which includes them all, was rated at fifty thousand rupees annually.
The Puitacts with their vassalage occasionally go to court, but hold
themselves exempt from service except on emergencies. The call
upon them is chiefly for the defeuce of the frontier, of which they
are the sim-iswara , or lord-marchers.

JSendovdti . — This tract, which has its name. from UiG Bs. 3 jj.i 3 t tribe
of Eeudo, the chief branch of tbe- Furihavs, (the ancient sovereigns
of Muudore), extends from Bhalotra north, and west of the capital,
Jodpoor, and is bounded on the north by the t’hul of Gogd. The t’lml
of Eeudovati embraces a space of about thirty coss in circumference.

Gogadeo-ca-t'hid. — The t’hul of Goga, a name celebrated in the
heroic history of the Chohaus, is immediately north of Eendovati,
and one description will suit both. The sand-ridges ( t’hnl-ca-teela )
are very lofty in all this tract ; very thinly inhabited; few villages;
water far from tbe surface, and having considerable jungles. Thobe,
Phulsoond, and Beemasir are the chief towns in this rooe. They
collect rain-water in reservoirs called tanlca, which they are obliged
to use sparingly, and often while a mass of corruption, producing
that peculiar disease in the eyes called rat-anda (corrupted by ns to
rotunda) or night-blindness,* for with the return of day it passes off.

* It is asserted by tbe natives to be caused by a small thread-like worm,
[Yol. II.] 35

274

SKETCH OF THE

[CHAP, I. -

The i’hul of Tirrurod intervenes between that of Gogadeo and the
present frontier of Jessulmer, to which it formerly belonged. Poknrn
is the chief town, not of Tirruroe only, but of all the desert interposed
between the two chief capitals of Maroost’hali. The southern part
of this t’hul does not differ from that described, but its northern
portion, and more especially for sixteen to twenty miles around the
city of Pokurn, are low disconnected ridges of loose rock, the continu-
ation of that on which stands the capital of the Bhattis, which give,
as we have already said, to this oasis the epithet of Mer, or rocky. The
name of Tirrurod is derived from tirr, which-signifies moisture, humi-
dity from springs, or the springs themselves, which rise from the rooe.
Pokurn, the residence of Salim Sing (into the history of whose family
we have so fully entered in the Annals of Marwar), is a town of two
thousand houses, surrounded by a stone wall, and having a fort,
mounting several guns on its eastern side. TJnder the west side of
the town, the inhabitants have the unusual sight in these regions of
running water, though only in the rainy season, for it is soon
absorbed by the sands. Some say it comes from the Sirr of Kanoad,
others from the springs in the ridge ; at all events, they derive a
good and plentiful supply of water from the wells excavated iu its
bed. The chief of Pokurn, besides its twenty-four villages, holds
lands between the Looni and Bandy rivers to the amount of a lac
of rupees. Droonara and Munzil, the fief of the loyal Doorgadas,
are now in the hands of the traitor Salim. Three coss to thenorth
of Pokurn is the village of Ramdeora, so named from a shrine to
Ramdeo, one of the Paladius of the desert, and which attracts people
from all quarters to the meld , or fair, held in the rainy month of
Bhadoon. Merchants from Koratchy-bundur, Tatta, Mooltan,
Skikarpoor, and Cutch, here 'exchange the produce of various
countries : horses, camels, and oxen used also to be reared in great
numbers, but the famine of 1813, and anarchy ever since Baja
Maun 5 s accession, added to the interminable feuds between the
Bhattij^nnd.Ruhtores, have checked all this desirable intercourse,
'which occasionally made the very heart of the desert a scene of joy
and activity,

T’hul of Khawur . — This t’hul , lying between Jessulmdr and
Barmair, and abutting at Giraup into the desert of Dh&t, is in tho
most remote angle of Marwar. Though thinly inhabited, it possesses
several considerable places, entitled to the name of towns, in this
‘ abode of death.’ Of these, Sheo and ICottorok are the most consi-
derable, the first containing three hundi’ed, the latter five hundred
houses, situated upon the ridge of hills, ■which may be traced from
Bhooj to Jessulmdr. Both these towns belong to chiefs of the
Rahbore family, who pay a nominal obedience to the Raja of Jodpoor.
At no distant period, a smart trade used to be carried on between

which also forms in the eyes of horses. I have seen it in the horse, moving
hum 1Vlt k § rea t velocity. They puncture and discharge it with the aqueous

CHAP. I.]

INDIAN DESERT.

275

Anhulwarra Patun and this region ; but the lawless Sehraes
plundered so many lcafilas> that it is at length destroyed. They
find pasture for numerous flocks of sheep and buffaloes in this t’huL
Malli-nat’h-ca-t’hul , or Barmair. — The whole of this region was
formerly inhabited by a tribe called Malli or Mallani who, although
asserted by some to be Rah tore in origin, are assuredly Ckohan,
and of the same stock as the ancient lords of Jflnah Chotun.
Barmair was reckoned, before the last famine, to contain one
thousaud two hundred houses, inhabited by all classes, one-fourth of
■whom were Sanckora Brahmins. The town is situated in the same
range as Sheo-Kottoroh, here two to three hundred feet in height.
Prom Sheo to Barmair there is a good deal of flat intermingled with
low teebas of sand, which in favourable seasons produces enough
fdod for consumption. Puddum Sing, the Barmair chief, is of the
same stock as those of Sheo-Kottoroh, and Jessole ; from the latter
they all issue, and he calculates thirty-four villages in his feudal
domain. Formerly a danme (which is, literally rendered, doudnier )
resided here to collect the transit duties ; but the Sehraes have
rendered this office a sinecure, and the chief of Barmair takes the
little it realizes to himself. They find it more convenient to be on
a tolerably good footing with the Bhattis, from whom this tract was
conquered, than with their own head, whose officers they very often
oppose, especially when a demand is made upon them for dind ; on
which occasion they do not disdain to call in the assistance of their
desert friends, the Sehr&es. Throughout the whole of this region,
they rear great numbers of the best camels, which find a ready
market in every part of India.

Kherd’lmr. — ■* The land of Kher’* has often been mentioned in the
annals of these states. It was in this distant nook that the Rahtores
first established themselves, expelling the Gohil tribe, which migrated
to the Gulf of Cambay, and are now lords of Gogd and Bhaonuggur ;
and instead of steering f the ship of the desert* in their piracies on
the Icafilas , plied the Great Indian Ocean, even ce to the golden coast
” of Sofala,” in the yet more nefarious trade of slaves. It is difficult
to learn what latitude they affixed to the 1 land of Kher,* which in
the time of the Gohils approximated to the Looni; nor is it neces-
sai'y to perplex ourselves with such niceties, as w r e only use the
names for the purpose of description. * In all probability, it compre-
hended the whole space afterwards occupied by the Mallani or
Chohans, who founded .JfirAk Chotun, &c., which we shall therefore
include in Kherdhur. Kheraloo, the chief town, was one of the
f nine castles of Marco/ when the Pramar was its sovereign lord.
It 1ms now dwindled into an insignificant village, containing no

* Named, in all probability, from the superabundant tree of tbe desei fc termed
kher, aud d’hur, ‘land.’ Itis also called Kherdloo , but more properly Kheidld,
‘ the abode of Kher a shrub of great utility in these regions. Its astringent
pods, similar in appearance to those of the liburnam, they convert into food.
Its gum is collected as an article of trade ; the camels brouze upon its twigs, and
the wood makes their huts.

[Vox,. II.]

35a

SKBTCH OF THE

276

[chap. I.

more than forty houses; surrounded on all sides by hills u of a black
“ colour;’'’ part of the same chain from Bhooj.

J undh Ghotun , or the ‘ ancient’ Chotun, though always conjoined
in name; are two distinct places; said to be of very great antiquity, and
capitals of the Udp'pd- sovereignty. But as to what this Hdppfi, Raj
wa?; beyond the bare fact of its princes being Chohan; tradition is now
mute. Both still present the vestiges of large cities, more especially
Jundh, c the ancient,’ which is enclosed lh a mass of hills, having but
one inlet, on the east side, where there are the ruins of a small castle
which defended the entrance. There are likewise the remains of two
more on the summit of the range. The mouldering remnants of
mundurs (temples), and bawaris (reservoirs), now choked up, all
bear testimony to its extent, which is said to have included twelve
thousand habitable dwellings ! Now there are not above two
hundred huts on its site, while Chotun has shrunk into a poor
hamlet. At Dhorimun, which is at the farther extremity of the range
in which are Junah and Chotun, there is a singular place of worship,
to which the inhabitants fleck on the teej, or third day of Saiuun of
each year. The patron saint is called Allundeo, through whose
means some grand victory was obtained by the Mallani, The
immediate objects of veneration are a number of brass images called
aswamookhi, from having the f heads of horses’ ranged on the top of
a' mountain called Allundeo. Whether these may further confirm
the Scythic ancestry of the Mallani, as a branch of the Asi, or Aswa
race of Central Asia, can at present be only matter of conjecture.

Nuggur-Gooroh. — Between Barmair and Nuggur-Gooroh on the
Looni is one immense continuous t’huJ, or rather rooe, containing
deep jungles of khyr, or kher, kajri, kureel, 'keip, phoke, whoso
gums and berries are turned to account, by the Bhils and Kelts of
the southern districts. Nuggur and Gooroh are two large towns on
the Looni (described in the Itinerary), on the borders of the Chohan
raj of Sooe-bali. and formerly part of it.

Here terminate our remarks on tbe t’huls of western Marwar,
which, sterile as it is by tbe band of Nature, bad its miseries com-
pleted by tbe famine that raged generally throughout these regions
in S. 1868 (A.D. 1812), and of which this* is the third year. The
disorders which we have depicted as prevailiug at tbe seat of
government for tbe last thirty years, have left these remote regions

* That is, 1814. I am transcribing from my journals of that day, just after
the return of one of my parties of discovery from these regions, bringing with
them natives of Dhat, who, to use their own simple but exui essire phraseology,

“ had the measure of the desert in the palm of their hands for they had been
employed as Jeasids, or messengers, for thirty years of their lives. Two of them
afterwards returned and brought away their families, and remained upwards
of five years in my service, and were raithful, able, and honest in the duties 1
assigned them, nsjnmadars of daks, or superintendents of posts, which were for
many years under my charge when at Sindia’s court, extending at one timo
from the Ganges to Bombay, through the most savage and little-known regions
in India. But with such men as I drilled to aid in these discoveries, I found
nothing insurmountable.

CHAP. II.]

INDIAN DESERT.

277

entirely to the mercy of the desert tribes, or their own scarce less
lawless lords : in fact, it only excites our astonishment how man
can vegetate in such a land, which has nothing but a few sirrs, or
salt-lakes to yield any profit to the proprietors, and the excellent
camel pastures, more especially in the southern tracts, which produce
the best breed in the desert.

—

CHAPTER II.

Chohan Bdj. — Antiquity and nobility of the Ohohans of the desert. — Dimension
and peculation of the Raj. —Fnggur. — Banhasirr. — Theraud. — Face of the
Ghohan Raj — Water. — Productions. — Inhabitants. — Rolls and Phils . —

'Pithils. — Thule of Dlidt and Omursoomva. — Depth of wells. — Anecdote . —
City of Arore, the ancient capital of Sinde. — Dynasties of the Soda, the
Soomura, and the Samma princes . — Their antiquity. — Inferred to he tho
opponents of Alexander the Great, and Menander. — Lieutenant of Walid
takes Arore. — Omurhote, its history. — Tribes of Sinde and the desert . —
Diseases — Narooa or Guinea worm. — Productions, animal and vegetable, of
the desei t. — Daodpotra. — Itinerary.

Ckohan Raj. — This sovereignty {raj) of the Chohans occupies the
most remote corner of Rajpootana, and its existence is now for the
first time noticed. As the quality of greatness as well as goodness
is, in a great measure, relative, the raj of the Chohans may appear
an empire to the lesser chieftains of the desert. Externally, it is
environed, on the north aud east, by the tracts of tlie Marwar state
we have just been sketching. To the south-east it is bounded by
Koliwarra, to the south hemmed-in by the Rin, and to the west by
the desert of Dhat. Internally, it is partitioned into two distinct
governments, the eastern being termed Yira-Bab, and the western,
from its position ‘ across the Looni,’ Parkin* j* which appellation,
conjoined to Huggur, is also applied to the capital, with the
distinction p£ Sir-Nuggur, or metropolis. This is the Negar-'Parkur
of the distinguished Rennel, a place visited at a very early stage
of our intercourse with these regions by an enterprising Englishman
named Whittington.

The Chohans of this desert boast the great antiquity of their
settlement, as well as the nobility of their blood : they have only to
refer to Manik Rae and Beesildeo of Ajm6r, and to Pirlkiraj, the
last Hindu sovereign of Delhi, to establish the latter fact ; but tbe
first we must leave to conjecture and their bards, though we may
fearlessly assert that they were posterior to the Sodas and other
branches of the Pramar race, who to all appearance were its masters

, * Prom Par, ‘ beyond,’ and liar or khar, synommons with Looni, the ‘ salfc-
rirer. 5 We have several Khai i Nadis, or salt-rivulets, in Rajpootana, though
only one Looni. The sea is frequently called tlie Loona-pdni, ‘ the salt-water,’
or Khai a-pani metamorphosed into Kald-pdni, or ’ the black water,’ which is
by no means insignificant.

278

SKETCH OF THE

[CHAP. II.

when Alexander descended tbe Indus. Neither is it improbable
that tbe Mali or Mallani, -whom be • expelled in that corner of the
Punjab, wrested f tbe land of Klidri from tbe Sodas. At all events,
it is certain that a chain of Chohan principalities extended, from
tbe eighth to the thirteenth century, from Ajmdr to the frontiers of
Sinde, of which Ajmer, Nadole, Jhalore, Sirohi, and Jun&h Chotun
were the capitals ; and though all of these in their annals claim to
be independent, it may be assumed that some kind of obedience was
paid to Ajrndr. We possess inscriptions which justify this asser-
tion. Moreover, each of them was conspicuous in Mooslem history,
from the time of the conqueror of Ghuzni to that of Alla-o-din, sur-
named f the second Alexander/ Mahmood, in his twelfth expedi-
tion, byMooltan to Ajmer (whose citadel. Perish ta says, “he was
“ compelled to leave in the hands of the enemy”), passed and sacked
Nadole (translated Buzule ) ; and the traditions of the desert have
preserved the recollection of his visit to Jun&h Chotun, and they
yet point out the mines by which its castle on the rock was
destroyed. Whether this was after his visitation and destruction of
Nehrvalla (Anliulwai'ra Puttun), or while on his journey, we have
no means of knowing ; but when we recollect that in this his last
invasion, he attempted to return by Sinde, and nearly perished with
all his army in the desert, we might faii’ly suppose his determina-
tion to destroy Junah Chotun betrayed him into this danger : for
besides the all-ruling motive of the conversion or destruction of the
* infidels/ in all likelihood the expatriated pi’inces of Nehrvalla had
sought refuge with the Chobans amidst the sand-hills of Khdrdffiur,
and may thus have fallen into bis grasp.

Although nominally a single principality, the chieftain of Parkur
pays little, if any, submission to his superior of Virii-Bah. Both of
them have the ancient Hindu title of liana, and are said at least to
possess the quality of hereditary valour, which is synoninious with
Chohan. It js^unnecessaiy to particularize the extent in square
^''miles/of t’hul in thisA , a]7‘'0r _ cO- -.attempt, to number .its population,
which is so fluctuating ; but we shall subjoin a brief account of the
chief towns, which will aid in estimating the population of Maroos-
Phali. We begin with the first division.

The principal towns in the Chohan raj, are Sooe-Bak, Dhurm-
dur, Bankasir, Theraud, Hoteegong, and Ckeetulwanoh. Bana
Narayn Rao resides alternately at Sood and Bah, both large towns
surrounded by an abbatis, chiefly of the babool and other thorny
trees, called in these regions Icdt’h-ca-lcote, which has given these
simple, .but very efficient fortifications the term of Jcant’ha-ca-kote,
or, ‘ fort of thorns/ The resources of Nai’ayn Rao, derived from
this desert domain, are said to be three lacs of rupees, of which lie
pays a triennial tribute of one lac to Jodpoor, to which no right
exists, and which is rarely realized without an army. The tracts
watered by the Looni yield good crops of the richer grains ; and
although, in the dry season, there is no constant stream, plenty of

[CHAP.> J '

. sketch OF tub - , ^

ssgliSSS

is tta f;feS»emalf» »

tliis iaB-ij 1 wherever the soi 1 ‘ es peciahy c ‘ e a ] s0

iuevaM*

“hU Gml a , renl wTroast describe *» ^terete BitWijj.

I^aWtof 0 “ ov „£ tbe a »S raids Mo SicdeG^*.^

Kalli £oe of A‘®* a bo us edto entry then property ’ » ^

. Vanity °f tbemseives on pv u gova nm^, «

and b'iar "^> gu g ere a from a asse vted supremacy Q^aurai:

>SsSSs*Ss*

OHAP. II.]

INDIAN DEBEET.

281

deer, hog ; nor do they even object to such as have died a natural
death. Like the other debased tribes, they affect to have Eajpoot
blood, and call themselves Ghohan Koli, Bahtore Koli, Purihar Koli,
&c., which only tends to prove their illegitimate descent from the
aboriginal Koli stock. Almost all the cloth-weavers throughout
India are of the Koli class, though they endeavour to conceal their
origin under the term Jlrildo , which ought only to distinguish the
Mooslem weaver. The Bbils partake of all the vices of the Kolis,
and perhaps descend one step lower in the scale of humanity ; for
they will feed on vermin of any kind, foxes, jackals, rats, guanas,
and snakes; and although they make an exception of the camel and
the pea-fowl, the latter being sacred to f Mata/ the goddess they
propitiate, yet in moral degradation their fellowship is complete.
The Kolis and Bhils have no matrimonial intercourse, nor will they
even eat with each other — such is caste ! The bow and arrow form
their arms, occasionally swords, but rarely the matchlock.

Pit’hil is the chief husbandman of this region, and, with the
Baniah , the only respectable class. They possess flocks, and are also
cultivators, and are said to be almost as numerous as either the
Bhils or Kolis. The Pit ; hil is reputed synonimous with the Koormi of
HindusPhan and the Kolmbi of Malwa and the Dekhan. There
are other tribes, such as the Bebarry, or rearer of camels, who will be
described with the classes appertaining to the whole desert.

Dhat and Omursoomra. — We now take leave of Bajpootana,
as it is, for the desert depending upon Sinde, or that space
between the frontier of Bajpootana to the valley of the Indus,
on the west, and from D&odpotra north, to Buliari on the
Bin. This space measures about two hundred and twenty miles _
of longitude, and its greatest breadth is eighty ; it is one entire t’hul,
having but few villages, though there are many hamlets of shepherds
sprinkled over it, too ephemeral to have a place in the map. A few
of these pooras and vas, as they are termed, where the springs are
perennial, have a name assigned to them, but to multiply them
would only mislead, as they exist no longer than the vegetation.
The whole of this tract may be characterized as essentially desert,
having spaces of fifty miles without a drop of water, and without
great precaution, impassable. The sand-hills rise into little mountains,
and the wells are so deep, that with a large Icafila , many might die
before the thirst of all could be slaked. The enumeration of a few
of these will put the reader in possession of one of the difficulties
of a journey through Maroo ; they range from eleven to seventy-five
poorsh, or seventy to five hundred feet in depth. One at Jeysing-
desir, fifty poorsh ; Dhote-ca-bustee, sixty ; Griraup, sixty; Hamir-
deora, seventy ; Jinjinialli, seventy-five ; Chailak, seventy-five to
eighty.

In what vivid colours does the historian Ferishta describe the
miseries of the fugitive emperor, Hemayoon, and his faithful followers,
at one of these wells ! “The country through which they fled being
[Von. IL] 36

282

SKETCH OP THE

[CHAP. II.

“ an entire desert of sand, the Moguls were in the utmost distress for
"water: some ran mad; others fell down dead. For three whole days
“there was no water; on the fourth day they came to a well, which
“was so deep that a drum was beaten, to give notice to the man
“driving the bullocks, that the bucket had reached the top; but the
“ unhappy followers were so impatient for drink, that, so soon as the
“first bucket appeared, several threw themselves upon it, before it had
“ quite reached the surface, and fell in. The next day, they arrived at
“ a brook, and the camels, which had not tasted water for several days,
“were allowed to quench their thirst; but, having drunk to excess,
“ several of them died. The king, after enduring unheard-of miseries,
“ at length reached Omurlcote with only a few attendants. The Raja,
“ who has the title of Rana, took compassion on his misfortunes, and
“ spared nothing that could alleviate his sufferings, or console him m
“his distress.” — Briggs' Ferishfca, Vol. II, p. 95.

We are now in the very region where Hemayoon suffered these
miseries, and in its chief town, Omurkote, Akber,the greatest monarch
India ever knew, first saw the light. Let us throw aside the veil
which conceals the history of the race of Hemayoon's protector, and
notwithstanding he is now but nominal sovereign of Omurkote, and
lord of the village of Chore, give him “a local habitation and a
“ name,” even in the days of the Macedonian invader of India. .

Dhat, of which Omurkote is the capital, was one of the divisions
of Maroost'hali, which from time immemorial was subject to the
Pramar. Amongst the thirty-five tribes of this the most numerous
of the races called Agaicula, were the Soda, the Omur, and the
Soomura;* and the conjunction of the two last has given a distinc-
tive appellation to the more northern t’hul , still known as Omursoonira,
though many centuries have fled since they possessed any power.

Arore, of which we have already narrated the discovery, and
which is laid down in the map about six miles east of Belcher on
the Indus, was in the region styled Omursoonira, which may once
have had a much wider acceptation, when a dynasty of thirty-six
princes of the Soomura tribe ruled all these countries during fi^e
hundred years, -j- On the extinction of its power, and the restoration
of their ancient rivals, the Sind-Surama princes, who in their turn
gave way to the Bhattis, this tract obtained the epithet of Bliattipoh ;
but the ancient and more legitimate name, Omursoomra, is yet
recognized, and many hamlets of shepherds, both of Omurs and
Soomuras, are still existing amidst its sand-hills. To them we shall
return, after discussing their elder brethren, the Sodas. We can
trace the colonization of the Bhattis, the Chawuras, and the Solanlcis,
the Gehlotes, and the Rahtores, throughout all these countries, both
of central and western Rajpootana; and wherever we go, whatever
new capital is founded, it is always on the site of a Pramar establisb-

* §.ee table of tribes, and sketch of the Pramaras, Vol. I, pp. 75,85.
t Perishta, Abulfazil.

CHAP. II.]

INDIAN' DESERT.

283

ment. Tirthi tijn na Pramar cd, or ‘ the world is the Praraars/ I
may here repeat, is hardly hyperbolical when applied to the Rajpoot
world.

Arore, or Aloro us written by Abulfazil, and described by that
celebrated geographer, Ebn-Haukal, as “ rivalling Mooltan in great-
" ness,” was one of the ‘ nine divisions of Maroo’ governed by the
Pramar, of which we must repeat, one of the chief branches was the
Soda. Theislandic Belcher, or Mansoora (so named by the lieutenant
of the Khalif Al-Munsoor), a few miles west of Arore, is considered
as the capital of the Sogdi, when Alexander sailed down the
Indus : and if we couple the similarity of name to the well-authenti-
cated fact of immemorial’ sovereignty over this region, it might not
be drawing too largely on credulity- to suggest that the Sogdi and
Soda are one and the same.* The Soda princes were the patriarchs
of the desert when the Bhattis immigrated thither from the north :
but whether they deprived them of Arore as well as Lodorva, the
chronicle does not intimate. It is by no means unlikely that the
Omurs and Soomras, instead of being co-equal or co-eval branches
.with the Soda, may be merely subdivisions of them.

We may follow Abulfazil and Ferishta in their summaries of the
history of ancient Sinde, and those races. The former says : “ In
ancient times there lived a Raja, named Sehris, whose capital was
Alore, and his dominions extended to Cashmere north, to Mehr&u
(the Indus) west, while the sea confined them 'to the south. An
army from Persia invaded this kingdom; the Raja was killed in
battle, and the Persians, after plundering everything, returned
home. The Raja was succeeded by his son Roysabyf {qu. Rae-sa,
or Soda?) This dynasty continued until the Khalifdt of Walid,

*To convince the reader I do nob build upon nominal resemblance, wber
localities do nob bear me out., he is requested to call to mind, that we have else
where assigned to the Yddus of the Punjab, the honour of furnishing th« well
known king named Porus ; although the P'uar, the usual pronunciation ol
Pramar, would afford a more ready solution.

-f- Colonel Briggs, in hia translation, writes it Hully Sa, and in this very place
remarks on the “ mutilation of Hindu names by the early Mabomedan writers
“ which are frequently not to be recognized or, we might have learned that the
adjunct Sa to Hully (qu. Heri), the son of Sebris, was the badge of his tribe
Soda. The Roy-saby, or ttnd-sa of Abulfazil, means ‘ Prince Sa’ or ‘Prince ol
the Sodas.’ Of the same family was Dnhir, whose capital, in A. H. 99, was (say e
Abulfazil) “ Alore or Debeil,” in which this historian makes a geographical
mistake : Alore or Arore being the capital of Upper Sinde, and Debeil (correctly
Dewiil, the temple,) or Tatta, the capital of Lower Sinde In all probability
Dnhir held both. We have already dilated, in the Annals of lie war. on a
foreign prince named “ Dahir Despati,” or the sovereign-prince, Dahir, being
amongst her defenders, on the first Mooslem invasion, which we conjectured
must have been that of Mahomed Kasim, after he had subdued Sinde. Bappa,
the lord of Cheetore, was nephew of Raja Maun Mori, shewing a double motive
in the exiled son of Dahir to support Cheetore against his own enemy Kasim.
The Moris and Sodas were alike branches of the Pramar (see Yol. I, p. 85). Ifc
is also worth while to draw attention to the remark elsewhere made (p, 184) on
the stir made by Hejauje of Khorasan (who sent Kasim to Sinde) amongst the
Hindu princes of Zabulist’han : dislocated facts, all demonstrating one of great
[Vos. H.] , 36 a

284-

SKETCH OP THE

[CHAP. II.

when Hejauje the governor of Irac, sent Mahomed Kasim, A.H. 99,
or A.D. 717, who succeeded in the conquest, slaying the Hindu
prince, Dahir. After this, the country was governed by the family
of Ausary ; next, by the family of Soomra; and then came the
dynasty of Seemeh (Sammah), who esteemed themselves of the stock
of Jumsbeed, and each took the name of Jam.”*

Ferishta gives a similar version. " On the death of Mahomed
Kasim, a tribe who trace their origin from the Ansaris established a
government in Siude ; after which the zemindars (lords of the soil
or indigenous chiefs) usurped the power, and held independent rule
over the kingdom of Sinde for the space of five hundred years. These,
the Soomuras, subverted the country of another dynasty called
Somuna (the Seemeh of Abulfazil), whose chief assumed the title of
Jam.”f

The difficulty of establishing the identity of these tribes from the
cacography of both the Greek and Persian writers, is well exemplified
in another portion of Ferishta, treating of the same race, called by
him Somuna, and Suma by Abulfazil. “ The tribe of Sahna appears
“ to be of obscure origiu, and originally to have occupied the tract
“ lying between Bekher and Tatta in Sinde, and pretend to trace their
ff origin from Jemshid.” We can pardon his spelling for his exact
location of the tribe, which, whether written Somuna, Sehna, or
Seemeh, is the Summaor Sarnma tribe of the great Yadfirace, whose
capital was Summa-ca-kote, or Samma-nagari, converted into
Minagara, and its princes into Sambas, by the Greeks. Thus the
Sodas appear to have ruled at Arore and Bekher, or Upper Sinde,
and the Sammas in the lower, J when Alexander passed thi'ough this
region. The Jhardjas and Jams of Noanuggur in Saurashtra claim
descent from the Summas, hence called elsewhere by Abulfazil “ the
” Sinde-Summadynasty;” but having been, from their amalgamation
with the ” faithful,” put out of the pale of Hinduism, they desired to
conceal' their Samma-Yadu descent, which they abandoned for
Jumshid, and Sarnma was converted into Jam.

We may, therefore, assume that a prince of the Soda tribe held

importance, namely, the wide dominion of the Rajpoot race, previous to the
appearance of Mahomed.

Oriental literature sustained a loss which can scarcely be repaired, bj- the
destruction of the valuable MSS. amassed by Colobel Briggs, during many
years, for the purpose of a general history of the earJy transactions of the
Mahomed an 6.

* Of the latter stock he gives us a list of seventeen princes. Giadwin’s'trans-
lation of Ayeo» Ahbari, Vol. II, p. 122. .

t See Briggs’ Ferishta, Vol. IV, pp. 411 and 422.

j The four races called Agnic&la (of which the Pramar was the most
numerous), at every step of ancient Hindu history are seen displacing the
dynasty of Yadd. Here the struggle between them is corroborated by the two
best Mahomedan bistorians, both borrowing from the same source, the more
ancient histories, few of which have reached us. It must be borne in mind
that the Sodas, the Omurs, the Soomuras, were Pramars (vulg. Pic dr) ; while
the Summas were Yadus, for whose origin see Annals of Jessulmer, p. 194.

CHAP. IX.]

INDIAN DESERT.

285

that division of fclio great Piictr sovereignty, of which Arove, or the
insular Belcher, was the capital, when Alexander passed down
the Indus : nor is it improbable that the army, styled Persian
by Abulfazil, which invaded Arore, aud slew Raja Sehris, was
a Grmco-Baefcriau army led by Apollodotus, or Menandei’, who
traversed this region, ruled by Sigertides” ( qu . Raja Sehris ?)
even to “ the country of the Swpor,” or Sam-ashtra, where,
according to their -historian, their medals were existent when
he wrote in the second century.* The histories so largely quoted
give ns decided proof that Dahir, and his son Rae-sa, the victims
of the first Islamite invasion led by Kasim, were of the same
lineage as Raja Sehris; and the Bhatti annals prove to demon-
stration, that at this, the very period of their settling in the
desert, the Soda tribe was paramount, (see p. 204) ; which,
together with the strong analogies in names of places and priuces,
affords a vei’y reasonable ground for the conclusion we have come
to, that the Soda tribe of Puitr race was in possession -of Upper
Sinde, when the Macedonian passed down the stream ; and that,
amidst all the vicissitudes of fortune, it has continued (contesting
possession with its ancient Yadu antagonist, the Samtna) to main-
tain some portion of its ancient sovereignty unto these days. Of
this portion we shall now instruct the reader, after hazarding a
passing remark on the almost miraculous tenacity which has pre-
served this race in its desert abode during a period of at least two
thousand two hundred years, bidding defiance to foreign foes,
whether Greek, Bactrian, or Mahomedan, and even to those visit-
ations of nature, famines, pestilence, and earthquakes, which have
periodically swept over the land, and at length rendered it the
scene of desolatiou it now presents ; for in this desert, as in that of
Egypt, tradition records that its increase has been and still isprogres-
sive, as well in the valley of the Indus as towards the Jumna.

Oviurhote . — This stronghold (hote) of the Gaiurs, until a veiy^Lw
years back, was the capital of the Soda Raj, which extended, two

* Of these, .t l, e author was so fortunate as to obtain one of Menander, and
threzJi Apollodotus, whose existence had heretofore been questioned: the first
of the latter from the wreck of Surapoori, the capital of the Suraceni of Menu
and Arrian ; another from the ancient Awinti, or Oojem, whose monarch,
according to Justin, held a correspondence with Augustus ; and the third, in
company with a whole jar of Hmdu-Scythic and Bactrian medals, at Agra,
which was dug up several years since iti excavating the site of the more
ancient city. This, I have elsewhere surmised, might have been the abode o£
A ggraines, Agra-gr&m-eswar, the “ lord of the city of Agra,” mentioned by A man
as the most potent monarch in the north of India, who, after the death of Porus,
was ready to oppose the further progress of Alexander. Let ns hope that the
Punjab may yet afford us another peep into the past. For an account of these
medals, see Transactions of the Royal Asiatic Society, Vol. I, p. 313.

f Captain, now Colonel, Pottiuger, in his interesting work on Sinde and
Balooehistan, in extracting from the Persian work “ Mujmood Waridat,” calls
the ancient capital of Sinde, Ulaor, and mentions the overthrow of the dynasty
of “Sahir,” (the Sehris of Abulfazil), whose ancestors had governed Siude
for two thousand years.

286

SKETCH OF THE

centuries ago, into tlie valley of Simile, and east to the L’ooiii ; but
the Rahtores of Marwar, and the family at present ruling Sinde,
have together reduced the sovereignty of the Sodas to a very confined
spot, and thrust out of Omurkote (the last of the nine castles of
Maroo) the .descendant of Sekris, who, from Arore, held dominions
extending from Cashmere to the ocean. Omurkote has sadly fallen
from its ancient grandeur, and instead of the five thousand houses
it contained dui-ing the opulence of the Soda princes, it hardly
reckons two hundred and fifty houses, or rather huts. The old 'castle
is to the northwest of the town. It is built of brick, and the
bastions, said to be eighteen in number, are of stone. It has an
inner citadel, or rather a fortified palace". There is an old canal to
the north of the fort, in which water still lodges pai't of the year.
When Raja Maun had possession of Omurkote, he founded several
villages thereunto, to keep up the communication. The Talpooris
then found it their interest, so long as they had any alarms from
their own lord paramount of Candahar, to court the Rahtore prince;
but when civil war appeared in that region, as well as in Marwar;
the cessation of all fears from the one, banished the desire of paying
court to the other, and Omurkote was unhappily placed between
the Kulloras of Sinde and the Rahtores, each of whom looked upon’
this frontier post ns the proper limit of his sway, and’ contended for
its possession. We shall therefore give 'an account of a feud between
these rivals, which finally sealed the fate of the Soda prince, and
which may contribute something to the history. of the ruling family
of Sinde, still imperfectly known.

When Beejy Sing ruled Marwar, Meah ISToor Mahomed, Kullora,
governed Sinde ; but being expelled by an army from Candahar, he •
fled' to Jessulmdr, (where he died. The eldest son, Un tur Khan, and
his brothers, found refuge with Bukadoor Khan Kbyrani; while a
natural brother, named Gholam Shah, born’of a common prostitute,
fAunu means to establish himself on' the musnud at Hydi’abad.' The
chiefs of Daodpobra espoused the cauGs- of Untur Khan, and prepared
' to expel the usurper. Babadoor Khan, Suo«m I Khan, Alli- Morad,
Mohumud Khan, Kairn Khan, Alii Khan, chiefs ol t-lie Khyram
[tribe, united, and marched with Untur Khan to Hydrabad. Gholam
""'Shah advanced to meet him, and the brothers encountered at
Obaora; but legitimacy failed: the Kbyrani chiefs almost all
perished, and Uutur Khan was made prisoner, and confined for life
in Guja-ca-kote, an island in the Indus, seven coss south of Hydrabad.
Gholam Shah transmitted his musnud to his sou Serefraz, who,
dying soon after, was succeeded by Abdul Nubbee. At the town of
Abkepoora, seveu coss east of Skeodadpoor (a town in Lokri Sinde),
resided a chieftain of the Talpoori tribe, a branch 1 of the Balocli,
named^ Goram, who had two sons, named Beejur and Sobd&u.
Serefraz demanded GoranRs daughter to wife ; he was refused, and
the whole family was destroyed. Beejur Khan, who alone escaped’,
the massacre, raised his clan to avenge him, deposed the tyrant, and
placed himself upon the musnud of Hydrabad'. The Kulloras

CHAP, ll.]

INDIAN DESERT.

287

dispersed ; but tbe Beejur, who was of a violent; and imperious
temperament, became involved in hostilities with tbe Rahtores
regarding the possession of Omurkote. It is asserted that be not
only demanded tribute from Marwar, but a daughter of tbe Rahtore
prince; to wife; setting forth as a precedent bis grandfather; Ajit, who
bestowed a wife on Ferochsere. This insult led to a pitched battle,
fought at Doogara, five coss from Dhurnidur, in which tbe Baloch
army was fairly beaten from the field by the Rahtore; but Beejy
Sing, not content with his victory, determined to be i-id of this thorn
in his side. A Bhatti and Chondawut offered their services, and
lands being settled on their families, they set out on this perilous
entorprize in tbe garb of ambassadors. When introduced to the
Beejur, be arrogantly demanded if the Raja had thought better of
his demand, when the Chondawut referred him to his credentials.
As tbe Beejur rapidly ran his eye over it, muttering “no mention of
“ the dola (bride)/ 1 the dagger of the Chondawut was buried in bis
heart. “ This for tbe dola,” he exclaimed ; and “this for the tribute/'
said bis comrade, as he struck another blow. The Beejur fell lifeless
on his cushion of state, and the assassins, who knew escape was
hopeless, plied their daggers on all ai'ound; tbe Chondawut slaying
twenty-one, and the Bhatti five, before they were hacked to pieces.
The nephew of Beejur Khan, by name Futteh Alii, son of Sobdan,
was chosen his successor, and the old family of Kullora was dis-
persed to Bhooj, and Rajpootana, while its representative repaired
to Candabar. There tbe Shah put him at tbe head of an army of
twenty-five thousand men, with which he reconquered Sinde, and
commenced a career of unexampled cruelty. Futteh Alii, who had
fled to Bhooj re-assembled his adherents, attacked tbe army of the
Shah, which he defeated and pursued with great slaughter beyond
Shikarpoor, of which he took possession, and returned in triumph to
Hydrabad. The cruel and now humbled Kullora once more appeared
before the Shah, who, exasperated at tbe inglorious result of his
arms, drove him from his presence ; and after wandering about, he
passed from Mooltan to Jessulmdr, settling at length at Pokurn,
where he died. The Pokurn chief made himself his heir, and it is
from the great wealth (chiefly in jewels) of the ex-prince of Sinde,
that its chiefs have been enabled to take the lead in Marwar. The
tomb of the exile is on the uorth side of the town.*

* The memoir adds : Futteh AUi was succeeded by his brother, the present
Gholam Alii, aud he by his son, Kurrmn Alii. The general correctness of this
outline is proved by a very interesting work (which has only fallen into my
hands in time to make this note), entitled “ Narrative of a Visit to the Court of
“ Sinde,” by Dr. Burnes. Beejur Khan was minister to the Calora rulers of
Sinde, whose cruelties at length gave the government to the family of the
minister. As it is scarcely to be supposed that Baja Beejy Sing would furnish
assassins to the Calora, who could have little difficulty in finding them in
Sinde, the insult which caused the fate of Beejur may have proceeded from his
master, though ho may have been made the scape-goat. It is much to be
regretted that the Author of the ‘‘Visit to Sinde” did not accompany the
Ameers to Sehwan (of which I shall venture an account obtained nearly twenty
years ago). With the able memoir and map (by his brother, Lieut. Burnes) o£

288

SKETCH OF THE

[CHAP. 11.

This episode, wliich'properly belongs to the history of Marwar,
or to Sinde, is introduced for the purpose of shewing the influence
of the latter on the destinies of the Soda princes. It was by the
Beejur, who fell by the emissaries of Beejy Sing, that the Soda Raja
was driven from Omurlcote, the possession of which brought the
Sindies into immediate collision with the Bknttis and Raktores. But
on his assassination and the defeat of the Sinde army on the Rin,
Beejy Sing re*in ducted the Soda prince to his gadi of Omurkote;
not, however, long to retain it, for on the invasion from Caudahar,
this poor country underwent a general massacre and pillage by the
Afghans, and Omurkote was assaulted and taken. When Fufcteh Alii
made head against the army of Caudahar, which he was enabled to
defeat, partly by the aid of the Rahtores, he relinquished, as the
price of this aid, the claims of Sinde upon Omurkote, of which
Beejy Sing took possession, and on whose battlements the flag of
the Rahtores waved until the last civil war, when the Sindies ex- .
pelled them. Had Raja Maun known how to profit by the general
desire of his chiefs to redeem this distant possession, he might have
got rid of some of the unquiet spirits by other means than those
which have brought infamy on his name.

Chore . — Since Omurkote has been wrested from the Sodas, the
expelled prince, who still preserves his title of Rana, resides at the
town of Chore, fifteen miles north-east of his former capital. The
descendant of the princes who probably opposed Alexander, Menan-
der, and Kasim, the lieutenant of Walid, and who sheltered Hema-
yoou when driven from the throne of India, now subsists on the
eleemosynary gifts of those with whom he is connected by marriage,
or the few patches of land of his own desert domain left him. by the
rulers of Sinde. He has eight brothers, who are hardly pushed for
a subsistence, and can only obtain it by the supplement to all the
finances of these states, plunder.

The Soda, and the Jhareja, are the connecting links between the
Hindu and the Mooslem ; for although the further west we go, the
greater is the laxity ot Rajpoot prejudice, yet to something more
than mere locality must be attributed the denationalized sentiment,
which allows the Soda to intermarry with a Sindie : this cause
is hunger ; and there are few zealots who will deny that its
influence is more potent than the laws of Menu. Every third year

the Rin, a new light has been tin own on the history and geography of this
most interesting and important portion of India. It is to be desired that to a
gentleman so well piepared may be entrusted the examination of this still
little-known region. I had long entertained the hope of passing through the
desert, by Jessulme'r to Ootcb, and thence, sailing down to Mansooro, visiting
Arore, Sehwkn, Samma-nagoil, and Bamunwasso. The rupture with Sinde in
1820 gave me great expectations of accomplishing this object, and I drew up
and transmitted to Loid Hastings a plan of marching a force through the
desert, and planting the cross on the insular capital of the Sogdi; but pence
was the order of the day. I was then in communication with Meer Sohrub,
governor of Upper Sinde, who, I have little doubt, would have come over to
our views.

OHAP. II.]

INDIAN DESEET.

289

brings famine, and those who have not stored up against it, fly to
their neighbours, and chiefly to the valley of the Indus. The con-
nexions they then form often end in the union of their daughters
with their protectors ; but they still so far adhere to ancient usage,
as never to receive bade into the family caste a female so allied. The
present Rana of the Sodas has set the example, by giving daughters
to Meer Gholam Alii andMeer Solirab, and even to the Khossa chief
of Dadar ; and in consequence, his brother princes of Jessulmdr, Bah
and Pnrlcur, though the)' will accept a Soda princess to wife (because
they can depend on the purity of her blood), yet will not bestow a
daughter on the Rana, whose offspring might perhaps grace the
harem of a Baloch. But the Ralitores of Marwar will neither give
to, nor receive daughters of Dhat. The females of this desert region,
being reputed very handsome, have become almost an article of
matrimonial traffic ; and it is asserted, that if a Sindie heai-s of the
beauty of a Dhatliani , he sends to her father as much grain as he
deems an equivalent, and is seldom refused her hand. We shall not
here further touch on the manners or other peculiarities of the Soda
tribe, though we may revert to them in the general outline of the
tribes, with which we shall conclude the sketch of the Indian
desert.

Tribes . — The various tribes inhabiting the desert and valley of
the Indus would alone form an ample subject of investigation, which
would, in all probability, elicit some important truths. Amongst the
converts to Islam, the inquirer into the pedigree of nations would
discover names, once illustrious, but which, now hidden under the
mantle of a new faith, might little aid his researches into the history
of their origin. He would find the Soda, the Oatti, the Mallani,
affording in history, position, and nominal resemblance, grounds for
inferring that they are the descendants of the Sogdi, Gafin, and
Malli, who opposed the Macedonian in his passage down the Indus;
besides swarms of Getes or Yuti, many of whom have assumed the
general title of Baloch, orretain the ancient specific name of Noomri;
while others, in that of zj’hut, preserve almost the primitive appella-
tion. We have also the remains of those interesting races the Johyas
and Daliyas, of which much has been said in the Annals of Jessulmdr,
and elsewhere ; who, as well as the Getes or Jits, and Huns, hold
places amongst the “ thirty-six royal races” of ancient India.*
These, with tlio Barahas and the Lohanas, tribes who swarmed a few
centuries agn in the Punjab, will now only be discerned in small
numbers in “ the region of death/’ which has even preserved the
illustrious name of Kdonva, Crishna’s foe in the Bharat. The
Sehrcid, or great robber of our western des'ert, would alone afford a
text for discussion on his habits and his raids, as the enemy of all
society. But wo shall begin with those who yet retain any preten-
sions to the name of Hindu (distinguishing them from the proselytes
to Islam), and afterwards descant upon their peculiarities. Bhatti,

[Vot. II.]

* See sketch of the tribes, Yol. I, p. 75.

37

SKETCH OP THE

[CHAP. IX.

290

Bali tore, Joda, Choban, Mallani, K&orwa, Johya, Sooltano, Lohana,
Arorah, Khoomra, Sindil, Maisuri, Vishnuvi, J akhur, Shiag’h. or
Ashlag, Pooniali.

Of the Mahomedan there are but two, Kullora and Sehrae,
concerning whose origin any doubt exists, and all those we are aborit
to specify are Nydds ,* or proselytes chiefly from Rajpoot or other
Hindu tribes :

Zj’hut; Rajur ; Oomra; Soomra; Mair, or Mdr ; Mor, or Mohor;
Baloch; Loomrea, or Looka; Sumaioha ; Mangulia ; Baggreah ;
Dahya; Joliya; Kairooe ; Jauguvea; Oondur ; Berowee ; Bawnri ;
Tawuri; Chrendea; Khossa; Sudani; Lohanas.

Before we remark upon the habits of these tribes, we may state
one prominent trait which characterises the Nydd, or eonvei't to
Islam, who, on parting with his original faith, divested himself of its
chief moral attribute, toleration, and imbibed a double portion of the
bigotry of the creed he adopted. Whether it is to the intrinsic
quality of the Mahomedan faith that we are to trace this moral
metamorphosis, or to a sense of degradation (which we can hardly
suppose) consequent on his apostacy, there is not a more ferocious,
or intolerant being on the earth than the Rajpootconvert to Islamism.
In Sinde, and the desert, we find the same tribes, bearing the same
name, one still Hindu, the other Mahomedan ; the first retaining his
primitive manners, while the Convert is cruel, intolerant, cowardly,
and inhospitable. Escape, with life at least, perhaps a portion of
property, is possible from the hands of the Maldote, the Larlchani,
the Bhutti, or even the Tawui'ies, distinctively called u the sons of
“ the devil f but from the Khossas, the Sehraes, or Bhuttis, there
would be no hope of salvation. Such are their ignorance and brutality,
that should a stranger make use of the words russah, or install
(rope, and road), he will be fortunate if he escape with bastinado
from these beings, who discover therein an analogy to rusool, or
' the prophet ho must for the former use the words kilbur , rundovi ,
and for the latter, duggra , or diigg.f It will not fail to strike those
who have perused the heart-thrilling adventures of Park, Denham,
and Clapperton — names which will live for ever in the annals of
discovery — how completely the inoffensive, kind, and hospitable
negro, resembles in these qualities the Rajpoot, who is transformed
into a wild-beast the moment he can repeat “ La-allah il-allah,
ff Mahomed Rusool dlla/’ ‘ there is but one Hod, and Mahomed is the
prophet of God while a remarkable change has taken place amongst
the Tatar tribes, since the anti-destrnctive doctrines of Bftdha (or
Hinduism purified of polytheism) have been introduced into the
regions of Central Asia.

On the Bhattis, the Rahtores, the Chohans, and their offset the

* Ny&d is the noviciate, literally the first (ad) new (nod), or original
converts, I suppose.

f Duggra is very common in Bajpoofcana for a ‘ path-way but the substitute
here used for russah , a rope; I am not acquainted with.

chap. IX. j

INDIAN DESERT.

. desert.

bufc n a ? : h We iave sufficiently 291

fc a fe ^ peculiarities nf S Plated, and in •

&A>.-The Soda , 8 a “ er «<=» rtafoT? °“ ‘he Sod a .

so (a,- discarded In O ? 0 laa retained the 16 ” 0tice<J - ' '

tM&H

•ffirdlo • , u,e:Q J tile sword j , :° ^uzzerat aw ° ema es and
F" d e ^ serves eif'l and shield, with a i lbe ariQ s of the

S$£^ssaig®ss

?WACS^ s *'-iSB , s “* ...

.^i^a^Sf^e.'SSS

tempo ra , y huts J tb ‘ P?|tare for their cattle “n d “, oan ’P wl «wer

<% : f 6 ‘°P ^atafer/S * feltfo ‘

■msgs&ggsasg

species of f,„„ e ;° f™> “mopg their erer-rt ‘“ U T *Witi™ of
»nrae entailed upon th P r Ct ’ is “‘Wbuted fo 4 bret1 *'™ mjW /
^bu&Ioes, aS ‘ar„h°? remote ,t Dta ‘«) 'foa

SfsS£#SS|#53

“"—sal pan,„„ ,?"..™ a S by the delffi 6 , tte ^ert p-ith

1 >“«■ moral and phygcal the

palaces ofthfr^ 00 * bl W« n can »r ■„ -
universal ° Wa creation W fl Wll] P^p]

i panacea for ilJ s ] 1nfl J the delio-htfnl mtt

■ f 5*1 Of zn^ is alh t” ■' “* ‘be

J aud this mess Will
37 a

292

SKETCH OP THE

[CHAP. II.

suffice for a large family. The cows of the desert are much larger
than those of the plains of India, and give from eight to ten seers
(eight or ten quarts) of milk daily. The produce of four cows will
amply subsist a family of ten persons from the sale of ghee ; and
their prices vary with their productive powers, from ten to fifteen
rupees each. This rabri, so analogous to the houshous of the African
desert, is often made with camel's milk, from which ghee cannot be
extracted, and which soon becomes a living mass when put aside.
Dried fish, from the valley of Sinde, is conveyed into the desert on
horses or camels, and finds a ready sale amongst all classes, even as
far east as Barmair. It is sold at two dolcras (coppers) a seer. The
pooras, or temporary hamlets of the Dhattis, consisting at most of
ten huts in each, resemble those of the Kaorwas.

Lohana , — This tribe is numerous both in Dhat aud Talpoora :
formerly they were Rajpoots, but betaking themselves to commerce,
have fallen into the third class. They are scribes and shopkeepers,
and object to no occupation that will bring a subsistence ; and as to
food, to use the expressive idiom of this region, where hunger spurns
at law, “ excepting their cats and their cows, they will eat any-
u thing.'”

Arorah . — This class, like the former, apply themselves to every
pursuit, trade, and agriculture, and fill many of the inferior offices of
government in Sinde, being shrewd, industrious, and intelligent.
With the thrifty Arorah and many other classes, flour steeped in
cold water suffices to appease hunger. Whether this class has its
name from being an inhabitant of Arore, we know not.

Bhattiah is also one of the equestrian order converted into the
commercial, and the exchange has been to his advantage. His habits
are like those of the Arorah, next to whom he ranks as to activity
and wealth. The Arorahs and Bhattiaks have commercial houses at
Shikarpoor, Hydrabad, and even at Surat and Jeipoor.

Brahmins. — Bishnuve is the most common sect of Brahmins in
the desert and Sinde. The doctrines of Menu with them go for as
much as they are worth in the desert, where ” they are a law unto*

“ themselves.” They wear the junnoo, or badge of their tribe, but
it here ceases to be a mark of clerical distinction, as no drones are
respected; they cultivate, tend cattle, aud barter their superfluous
ghee for other necessaries. They are most numerous in Dhat, having
one hundred of their order in Chore, the residence of the SodaRana,
and several houses in Omurkote, Dkarnas, and Mittie. They do <■
not touch fish or smoke tobacco, but will eat food dressed by the
hands of a malli (gardener), or even a nae (barber caste ) ; nor do
they use the chouka , or fireplace, reckoned -indispensable in more
civilized regions. Indeed, all classes of HinduB throughout Sinde
will partake of food dressed in the serai, or inn, by the hands of the
Butearin. They use indiscriminately each other's vessels, without
any process of purification but a little sand and water. They do
not even burn their dead, but bury them near the threshold ; and

CHAP. It.]

INDIAN DESERT.

29S

those who can afford it, raise small chabootras , or altars, on which
they place an image of Siva, and a gurra, or jar of water. The
junnoo , or thread which marks the sacerdotal character in Hindu-
st'han, is common in these regions to all classes, with the exception
of Kolis und Lokanas. This practice originated with their governors,
in order to discriminate them from those who have to perform the
most servile duties.

Rebarris . — This term is known throughout Hindust'kan only as
denoting persons employed in rearing and tending camels, who are
there always Mooslems. Here they are a distinct bribe, and Hindus,
employed entirely in rearing camels, or in stealing them, m which
they evince a peculiar dexterity, unitiug with the Bhattis in the
practice as far as Daodpotra. When they come upon a herd grazing,
the boldest and most experienced strikes his lance into the first he
reaches, then dips a cloth in the blood, which at the end of his lance
he thrusts close to the nose of the next, and wheeling about, sets off
at speed, followed by the whole herd, lured by the scent of blood
and the example of their leader.

Jalchur, Shiag’b , Pooniah, are all denominations of the Jit race, a
few of whom preserve under these ancient subdivisions their old
customs and religion ; bub the greater part are among the converts
to Islam, and retain the generic name, pronounced zj’hut. Those
enumerated are harmless and industrious, and are found both in the
desert and valley. There are besides these a few scattered families
of ancient tribes, as the Sooltano* and Khoomra, of whose history
we are ignorant, Johyas, Smdils and others, whose origin has already
been noticed in the annals of Maroost'kali.

We shall now leave this geueral account of the Hindu tribes, who
throughout Sinde are subservient to the will of the Mahomedan,
who is remarkable, as before observed, for intolerance. The Hindu
is always second : at the well, he must wait patiently until his
tyrant has filled his vessel ; or if, in cooking his dinner, a Mooslem
should require fire, it must be given forthwith, or the shoe would be
applied to the Hindu's head.

Sehrdd, Kossah, Ghandea , Sudani — The Sehr&e is the most
numerous of the Mahomedan tribes of the desert, said to be Hindu
in origin, and descendants of the ancient dynasty of Arore ; but
whether his descent is derived from the dynasty of Sehris (written
Sahir by Pottinger), or from the Arabic word sehrd, ‘ a desert,' of
which he is the tenw, is of very little moment. The Kossas or
Khossas, &c., are branches of the Sehr&d, and their habits are the
same. They have reduced their mode of rapine to a system, and
established hoorie , or black-mail, consisting of one rupee and five

# Abulfazil, in describing the province of Bijore, inhabited by the Eusofzyes,
says that a tribe called “ Sultana, who affirmed themselves to be the descendants
“ of the daughter of Sultan Secuuder Zulkernain, came from Cabnl in the time
“ of Mirza Ulugh Beg, and possessed themselves of this country.” Mr. Elphin-
stone enquired in vam for this offspring of Alexander the Great.

294

SKETCH OF THE

[CHAP. II.

dim is o£ grain for every plough, exacted even from the hamlets of the
shepherds throughout the t’hul. Their bauds are chiefly mounted
on camels, though some are on horseback ; their arms are the si mil
or sang (lances of bamboo or iron), the sword and shield, and but
few fire-arms. Their depredations used to be extended a hundred
coss around, even into Jodpoor and Daodpotra, but they eschew
coming in contact with the Bajpoot, w r ho says of a Sehrae, “ he is
e< sure to be asleep when the battle naharra beats.*’ Their chief
abode is in the southern portion of the desert ; and about bjoakote,
Mittie, ns far as Buliarie. Many of them- used to find service at
Oodipoor, Jodpoor, and Sooe-Bah, but they are cowardly and
faithless.

Sumaicha is one of the nydd , or proselytes to Islam from the
Soda race, and numerous both in the t’hul and the valley, where
they have many pooras or hamlets. They resemble the Dhotes in
their habits, but many of them associate with the Sehraes, and
plunder their brethren. They never shave or touch the hair of their
heads, and consequently look more like brutes than human beings.
They allow no animal to die of disease, but kill it when they
think there are no hopes of recovery. The Sumaicha women
have the reputation of being great scolds, and never veil their faces.

Rajurs . — They are said to be of Bhatti descent, and confine their
haunts to the desert, or the borders of Jessulmer, as at Kamgurh,
Keallab, Jaraillab, &e. ; and the t’hul between Jessulmer and Upper
Sinde : — they are cultivators, shepherds, and thieves, and are
esteemed amongst the very worst of the converts to Mahomedanism.

Omurs and Soomras are from the Pramar or Piiar race, and are
now chiefly in the ranks of the faithful, though a few- are to he
found in Jessulmer and in the t’hnl called after them ; of whom we
have already said enough.

Kullorah and Talpoori are tribes of celebrity in Sinde, the first
having furnished the late, and the other its present, dynasty oi
rulers ; and though the one has dared to deduce its origin from the
Abbasides of Persia, and the other has even advanced pretensions to
descent from the prophet, it is asserted that both are alike Baloobes,
who are said to be essentially Jit or Gete in origin. The Talpooris,
who haye their name from the town (poora) of palms (tdl or are
said to amount to one-fourth of the population of Lohri or Little
' Sinde, which misnomer they affix to the dominion of Hydrabad.
There are none in the t’hul.

Noomrie, Loomrie, or Loolca . — This is also a grand subdivision of
the Baloch race, and is mentioned by Abulfazil as ranking next to
the Kulmam, and being able to bring into the field three hundred
cavalry and seven thousand infantry. Gladwin has rendered the
name Nomurdy, and is followed by Kennel. The Noornries, or
X/oomries, also styled Loolca, a still more familiar term for fox, are
likewise affirmed to be Jit in origin. What is the etymology of the

CHAP. If.]

INDIAN DESEQT,

295

generic term Balooch , which they hare assumed, or whether they
took it from, or gave it to, Baloochistan, some future enquirer into
these subjects may discover.

Zj’hut , Jut , or Jit . — This very original race, far more numerous
than perhaps all the Rajpoot tribes put together, still retains its
ancient appellation throughout the whole of Sinde,. from the sea to
Daodpotva, but there are few or none in the t’Jml. Their habits
differ little from those who surround them. They are amongst the
oldest converts to Islam.

Mair, or Mer . — We .-should scarcely have expected to find a
mountaineer (mera) in the valley of Sinde, but their Bhatti origin
sufficiently accounts for the term, as Jessulmdr is termed Mer.

Mohor, or Mor . — Said to be also Bhatti in origin.

Taivuri , T’hori, or Tori . — These engross the distinctive epithet of
bhoot, or f evil spirits/ and the yet more emphatic title of, ‘ sons of
the devil.'’ Their origin is doubtful, but they rank with the
Bawuris, Kheng&rs, and other professional thieves scattered over
Rajpootana, who will bring you either your enemy’s head or the
turban from it. They are found in the t’huls of D&odpotra, Beejnote,
Noke, Noakote, and Oodur. They are propi-ietors of camels, which
they hire out, and also find employment as convoys to caravans.

Johyas, Dahyas, Manguleas , once found amongst the Rajpoot
tribes; now proselytes to Islam, but few in number either in the
valley or the desert. There are also Bairowis, a class of Baloch,
Khairoivis , Jangreas, Oondurs, Baggreahs, descended from the
Pramar and Sankla Rajpoots, but not possessing, either in respect to
numbers or other distinctive marks, any claims on our attention.

Daodyotra . — This petty state, though beyond the pale of Hinduism,
yet being but a recent formation out of the Bhatti state of Jessul-
mer, is strictly within the limits of Maroosb’hali. Little is known
regarding the family who founded it; and we shall therefore confine
ourselves to this point, which is not adverted to by Mr. Elphinstone,
who may be consulted for the interesting description of its prince,
audhis capital, Bhawulpoor, duriug the halt of the embassy to Cabul.

Daod Khan, the founder of Daodpotra, was a native of Shikarpoor,
west of the Indus, where he acquired too much power for a subject,
and consequently drew upon himself the arms of his sovereign of
Candahar. Unable to cope with them, he abandoned his native' place,
passed his family and effects across the Indus, and followed them
into the desert. The royal forces pursued, and coming up with him
at Sootialloh, DAod had no alternative bub to surrender, or destroy
the families who impeded his flight or defence. He acted the Rajpoot,
and faced his foes; who, appalled at this desperate act, deemed it
unwise to attack him, and retreated. D&od Khan, with his adherents,
then settled in the hutchee , or flats of Sinde, and gradually extended
his authority into the t’Jml. He was succeeded by Mobarick Khan ;
he, by his nephew Bhawul Khan, whose son is Sadik Mahomed

296

SKETCH OF THE

[CHAP. II.

Khan, the present lord of Bhawulpoor, or D&odpotra, a name
applied both, to the country and to its possessors, “ the children
“ of David.” It was Mobarick Who deprived the Bhattis of the
district called Khadal, so often mentioned in the annals of
Jessulmdr, and whose chief town is Derrawul, founded by Kawul
Deoraj in. the eighth century ; and where the successor of DSod
established his abode. Derrawul was at that time inhabited
by a branch of the Bhattis, broken off at a very early period;
its chief holding the title of Rawu], and whose family since
their expulsion have resided at Gurialah, belonging to Bikaner, on
an allowance of five rupees a day, granted by the conqueror. The
capital of the “sons of David” was removed to the south bank of the
Garab by Bhawul Khan (who gave it his name), to the site of an
old Bhatti city, whose name I could not learn. About thirty years
ago* an army from Candahar invaded Daodpotra, invested and took
Derrawul, and compelled Bhawul Khan to seek protection with the
Bhattis at Beekumpoor. A negociation for its restoration took
place, and he once more pledged his submission to the Abdalli king,
and having sent his son Mobarick Khan as a hostage and guarantee
for the liquidation of the imposition, the army withdrew. Mobarick
continued three years at Cabul, and was at length restored to liberty
and made Khan of Bhawulpoor, on attempting which he was impri-
soned by his father, and confined m the fortress of Kinjer, where he'
remained nearly until Bhawul Khan's death. A short time previous
to this, the principal chiefs of Dfiodpotra, viz., Buddaira Khyranf,
chief of Mozgurh, Khodabuksh of Teraroh, Ilchtiar Khan of Gurhie,
and Hadji Khan of Ootch, released Mobarick Khan from Kinjer,
and they had reached Mornrrah, when tidings arrived of the death
of Bhawul Khan. He continued his route to the capital; but
Kuseer Khan, son of Allum Khan, Goorgdcbd (Baloch), having
formerly injured him and dreading punishment, had him assassin-
ated, and placed his brother, the present chief, Sadik Mahomed,
on the musnud : who immediately shut up his nephews, the
sons of Mobarick, together with his younger brothers, in the
fortress of Derrawul. They escaped, raised a force of Rajpoots
and Poorbias, and seized upon Derrawul; but Sadik escnladed it,
the Poorbias made no defence, and both his brothers and one
nephew were slain. The other nephew got over the wall, but
was seized by a neighbouring chief, surrendered, and slain; and
it is conjectured the whole was a plot of Sadik Khan to afford a
pretext for their death. Nuseer Khan, by whose instigation he
obtained the musnud, was also put to death, being too powerful for
a subject. But tbeKbyrani lords have always been plotting against
their ljege ; an instance of which has been given in the annuls of
Bikaner, when Teraroh and Mozgurh were confiscated, and the chiefs
sent to the castle of Kinjer, the state prison of DAodpotra. Gurhie
still belongs to Abdalla, son of Hadjf Khan, but no territory is

. * This memorandum was written, I think, in 1811 or 1812 .

CHAP. II.]

INDIAN DESKET.

297

annexed to. it. Sadik Mahomed has not the reputation of his father,
whom Beejy Sing, of Marwar, used to style his brother. The
Daodpotras are rnnch at variance amongst each other, and detested
by the Bhattis, from whom they have hitherto exacted a tribute to
abstain from plunder. The fear of Candakar no longer exists at
Bkawulpoor, whose chief is on good terms with his neighbour of
Upper Sinde^ though he is often alarmed by the threats of Runjeet
Sing of Lahore, who asserts supremacy over “ the children of David.”

Diseases . — Of the numerous diseases to which the inhabitants of
the desert are subjected, from poor and unwholesome diet, and yet
more unwholesome drink,'rdia?ida or night-blindness, the narooa or
Guinea-worm, and varicose veins, are the most common. The first
and last are mostly confined to the poorer classes, and those who
are compelled to walk a great deal, when the exertion necessary to
extricate the limbs from deep sand, acting as a constant drag upon
tlie elasticity of the fibi'es, occasions them to become ruptured. Yet,
such is the force of habit, that the natives of Dhat in my service,
who had all their lives been plying their limbs as hasids, or carriers
of despatches, between all the cities on the Indus and in Rajpootana,
complained of the firmer footing of the Indian plains, as mom fatigu-
ing than that of their native sand-hills. But I never was a convert
to the Dhattks reasoning ; with all his simplicity of character, even
in this was there vanity, for his own swelled veins, which could be
compared to nothing but rattans twisted round the calf of his limbs,
if they did not belie his assertion, at least proved that he had paid
dearly for his pedestriauiem in the desert. From the narooa, or
Guinea- worm, there is no exemption, from the prince to the peasant,
and happy is the man who can boast of only one trial. The disease
is not confined to the desert and western Rajpootana, being far
from uncommon in the central states; but beyond the Aravulli the
question of ” how is your narooa V 3 is almost a general form of
greeting, so numerous are the sufferers from this malady. It gene-
rally attacks the limbs and the integuments of the joints, when it is
excruciating almost past endurance. Whether it arises from animal-
culse in sand or water, or porous absorption of minute particles
imbued with the latent vital principle, the natives are not agreed.
But the seat of the disease appears immediately under and adhesive
to the skin, on which it at first produces a small speck, which,
gradually increasing and swelling, at length reaches a state of inflam-
mation that affects the whole system. The worm then begins to
move, and as it attains the degree of vitality apparently necessary
for extricating itself, its motions are unceasing, and night and day
it gnaws the unhappy patient, who only exists in the hope of daily
seeing the head of his enemy pierce the cuticle. This is the moment
for action : the skilful narooa - doctor is sent for, who seizes upon the
head of the worm, and winding it round a needle or straw, employs
it as a windlass, which is daily set in motion at a certain hour, when
they wind out as much line as they can without the risk of break-
ing it. Unhappy the wretch whom this disaster befals, when,
[Voa. II.] 38

298

SKETCH OF THE

[CHAP. II.

happening to fall into a feverish slumber, be kicks the windlass,
and snaps the living thread, which creates tenfold inflammation
and suppuration. On the other hand, if by patience and skill it is
extracted entire, he recovers. I should almost imagine, when the
patriarch of XJz exclaims, "My flesh is clothed with worms : my
ff skin is broken and become loathsome. When I lie down, I say,
e< when shall I arise and the night be gone V* that he must have
been afflicted with the narooa, than which none of the ills that flesh
is heir to can be more agonizing.*

They have the usual infantine and adult diseases, as in the rest
of India. Of these the seetla, or ‘ small-pox/ and the teejdrrd , or
‘ tertian/ are the most common. For the first, they merely recom-
mend the little patient to ‘ Seetla Mata/ and treat the other with
astringents, in which infusion of the rind of the pomegranate is
always (when procurable) an ingredient. The rich, as in other
countries, are under the dominion of empirics, who entail worse
diseases by administering mineral poisons, of whose effects they are
ignorant. Enlargement of the spleen under the influence of these
fevers is very common, and its cure is mostly the actual cautery.

Famine is, however, the grand natural disease of these regions,
whose legendary stanzas teem with records of visitations of Soolcha
Mata, the c famished mother/ from the remotest times. That whioh
is best authenticated in the traditions of several of these states,
occurred in the eleventh centuiy, and continued during twelve
years ! It is ei'roneously connected with the name of Lakba Phoolani,
who was the personal foe of Sdoji, the first Rahtore emigrant from
Canouj, and who slew this Robin Hood of the desert in S. 1268
(A.D. 1212). Doubtless the desiccation of the Caggar river, in the
time of Hamir Soda., nearly a century before, must have been the
cause of this. Every third year they calculate upon a partial visita-
tion, and in 1812 one commenced which lasted three or four years,
extending even to the central states of India, when flocks of poor
creatures found their way to the provinces on the Ganges, selling
their infants, or parting with their own liberty, to sustain existence.

Productions, animal and vegetable. — The camel, e the ship of the
desert/ deserves the first mention. There he is indispensable ; he
is yoked to the plough, draws water from the well, bears it for his
lordly master in mesheks, or r skins/ in the passage of the desert, and
can dispense with it himself altogether during several days. This
quality, the formation of his hoof, which has the property of con-
tracting and expanding according to the soil, and the induration of
his mouth, into which he draws by his tongue the branches of the

* My friend Dr. Joseph Duncan (attached to the Residency when I was
Political agent at Oodipoor) was attacked by the narooa in a very aggravated
form. It fixed itself in the ancle-joint, and being broken in the attempt to
extricate it, was attended by all the evil results I have described, ending in
lameness, and generally impaired health, which obliged him to visit the Gape
for recovery, where I saw him on my way home eighteen months after, but
he had even then not altogether recovered from the lameness.

CHAP. II,]

INDIAN DEBEET.

•299

balool, the kher, nnd jowds, with their long thorns, sharp and hard
as needlos, attest the beneficence of the supreme Artist. It is singular
that the Arabian patriarch, who so accurately describes the habits of
various animals, domestic and ferocious, and who was himself lord of
three thousand camels, should not have mentioned the peculiar
properties of the camel, though in alluding to the incapacity of the
unicorn (rhinoceros) for the plough, he seems indirectly to insinuate
the use of others besides the ox for this purpose. The camels of the
desert are far superior to those of the plains, and those bred in the
Vhuh of Dlifit and Barmair are the best of all. The Rajas of Jessul-
mer nnd Bikandr have corps of camels trained for war. That of the
former, state is two hundred strong, eighty of which belong to the
prince ; the rest are the quotas of his chiefs ; but how they are rated,
or in what ratio to the horsemen of the other principalities, I never
thought of enquiring. Two men are mounted on each camel, one
facing the head, the other the rear, and they are famous in a retreat-
ing action : but when compelled to come to close quarters, they
make the camel kneel down, tie his legs, and retiring behind, make
a breastwork of his body, resting the matchlock over the pack-saddle.
There is not a shrub in the desert that does not serve the camel for
fodder.

Khur-guddha , Gorki cur, or the wild ass, is an inhabitant of the
desert, but most abounds in the'southern part, about Dh&t, and the
deep rood which extends from Barmair to Bankasirr and Buliari,
along the north bank of the great Rnnn, or ‘salt desert/

Boz or Nilgde, Lions, &c. — The noble species of the deer, the
nilgad, is to be met with in numerous parts of the desert; and
although it enjoys a kind of immunity from the Rajpoot of the
plains, who may hunt, but do not eat its flesh, here, both for food
and for its hide, it is of great use. Of the other wild animals com-
mon to India they have the tiger, fox, jackal, have, and also the
nobler animal, the lion.

Of domestic animals, as horses, oxen, cows, sheep, goats, asses,
there is no want, and even the last-mentioned is made to go in the
plough.

Goats and shee})- — Flocks (hero termed chang) of goats and
sheep are pastui'ed in vast numbers in the desert. It is
asserted that the goat can subsist without water from the month
of Kartick to the middle of Ckeyt., the autumnal to the spring equi-
nox. — apparently an impossibility: though it is well known that
they can dispense with it during six weeks when the grasses are
abundant. In the t’huls of Daodpotra and Bhattipoh, they remove
to the flats of Sinde in the commencement of the hot weather. The
shepherds like their flocks, go without water, but find a substitute
in the chauch , or butter-milk, after extracting the butter, which is
made into ghee, and exchanged for grain, or other necessaries. Those
who pasture camels also live entirely upon their milk, and the wild
fruits, scarcely ever tasting bread.

’ [Vot. II.] 38 a

300

SKETCH OF THE

[CHAP, H.

Shrubs and fruits. — W e have often had occasion to mention the
Ithyr or Ichureel ; the hhaijrt, whose pod converted, when dried, into
flour, is called sangri ; the jhdl, which serves to hut the shepherds,
and in Jeyt and Bys&k affords them fruit ; the peeloo, used as food;
the labool , which yields its medicinal gum; the her, or jujube, which
also has a pleasant fruit; all of which serve the camel to bronze on,
and are the most common and most useful of the shrubs : the jowds,
whose expressed juice yields a gum used in medicine; the phoke,
with whose twigs they line their wells ; and the alkaline plant the
saji, which they burn for its ashes. Of these, the first and last are
worthy of a more detailed notice.

The khureel, or Jchyr (the capparis , or caper.-bush), is well-known
both in Hindust/han aud the desert : there they use it as a pickle,
but here it is stored up as a culinary article of importance. The bush
is from ten to fifteen feet in height, spreading very wide; there are
no leaves on its ever-green twig-like branches, which bear a red
flower’, and the fruit is about the size of a large black currant. When
gathered, it is steeped for twenty-four hours in water, which is then
poni’edoff, and it undergoes, afterwards, two similar operations, when
the deleterious properties are carried off; they are then boiled and
eaten with a little salt, or by those who can afford it, dressed in ghee
and eaten with bread. Many families possess a stock of twenty
maunds.

The saji is a low bushy plant, chiefly produced in the northern
desert, and most abundant in those tracts of Jessulmer called KMdal,
now subject to Daodpotra. Prom Poogul to Derrawul, and thence
by Moreed-kote, Ikhtiar Khan-ca-gurhie, to Khyrpoor (Dyr Alii),
is one extensive t’hul, or desert, in which there are very considerable
tracts of low hard flat, termed chittrdm ,* formed by the lodgment of
water after rain, and in these spots only is the saji plant produced.
The salt, which is a sub-carbonate of soda, is obtained by incinera-
tion, and the process is as follows : Pits are excavated and filled
with the plant, which, when fired, exudes a liquid substance that
falls to the bottom. While burning, they agitate the mass with long
poles, or throw on sand if it burns too rapidly. When the virtue
of the plant is extracted, the pit is covered with sand, and left for
three days to cool ; the alkali is then taken out, and freed from its
impurities by some process. The purer product is sold at a rupee
the seer (two pounds weight) ; of the other upwards of forty seers
are sold for a rupee. Both Rajpoots and Mahomedans pursue this
employment, and pay a duty to the lord paramount of a copper pice
on every rupee’s worth they sell. Oharuns and others from the

* Okittrdm, the name applied to these flats of hard soil (which Mr. Elphin-
Btone happily describes, by saying that it rings under the horse’s hoots in
marching over it), is literally ‘ the picture,’ from the circumstance of such
‘spots almost constantly presenting the mirage, here termed chittrdm , How
far the soil, so deeply impregnated with alkaline matter, may tend to heighten,
,if not to cause this, we have elsewhere noted in a geueral account of this
optical phenomenon in various parts of northern India.

CHAP. II,]

INDIAN DE8EET.

301

towns of Mavwar purchase and transport this salt to the different
marts, whence it is distributed over all parts of India. It is a
considerable article of commerce with Sinde, and entire caravans of
it are carried to Bekher, Tatta, and Catch. The virtue of the soda is
well understood in culinary purposes, a little saji added to the' hard
water soon softening the mess of pulse and rice preparing for their
meals ; and the tobacconists use cousiderable quantities in their
trade, as it is said to have the power of restoring the lost virtues of
the plant.

Grasses are numerous, but unless accompanied by botanical illus-
tration, their description would possess little interest. There is the
gigantic sehwun , or seon, classically known as the cits ci, and said to
have originated the name of Cush, the second son of Rama, and
his race the Cushwaha. It is often eight feet in height ; when
young, it serves as provender for animals, and when more mature,
as thatch for the huts, while its roots supply a fibre, converted by
the weavers into brushes indispensable to their trade. There is
likewise the sirJtunda , the dhmrnn, the dhooba, and various others ;
besides the gokra the papri, and the bhoorut, which adhering to
their garments, are the torment of travellers.

Melons. — Of the cucurbitaceous genus, indigenous to the desert,
they have various kinds, from the gigantic khurbooza and the chipra,
to the dwarf gowdr. The tomata, whose Indian name I have not
preserved, is also a native of these regions, and well-known in other
parts of India. We shall trespass no further with these details, than
to add, that the botanical names of all such trees, shrubs, or grains,
as occur in this work, will be given with the general Index, to avoid
unnecessary repetition.

ITINERARY.

Jessuhner to Sehuian, on the right banle of the Indus , and Hydra-
bad , and return by Omurlcote to Jessuhner.

Kooldnirra , (5 coss.) — A village inhabited by Palliwal Brahmins ;
two hundred houses ; wells.

Gujea-ca-bustee, (2 coss.) — Sixty houses; chiefly Brahmins; wells.

Khaba, (3 coss.) — Three hundred houses; chiefly Brahmins; a small
fort of four bastions on low hills, having a garrison of Jessuhner.

Kunohij (5 coss.) ) An assemblage of hamlets of four or five huts on

Soom, (5 do.) j one spot, about a mile distant from each other
conjointly called Soom, having a boorj or tower for defence,
garrisoned from Jessulmdr ; several large wells, termed baireah ;
inhabitants, chiefly Sindies of various tribes, pasture their flocks,
and bring salt and Jcharra (natron) from Deo Chundeswar, the
latter used as a mordant in fixing colours, exported to all parts.
Half-way between Soom and Moolanoh is the boundary of
Jessulmer and Sinde.

Moolanoh ,* (24 coss.) — A hamlet of ten huts ; chiefly Sindies ;
situated amidst lofty sand-hills. Prom Soom, the -first half of
the journey is over alternate sand-hills, rocky ridges (termed
muggro), and occasionally plain ; for the next three, rocky ridges
and sand-hills without any flats, and the remaining nine coss a
succession of lofty teebas. In all this space of twenty-four coss
there are no wells, nor is a drop of water to be had but after
rain, when it collects in some old tanks or reservoirs, called
nadi and tabah, situated half-way, where in past times there
was a town.

* There are two routes from Moolanoh to Sehwan. The Dbatti went the
longest on account of water. The other is Sukrund, as follows :

Palri 5 coss. Svkrwnd 3 coss.f

Padsha-ca-bustee... 6

Oodani 5

Mittrao 10

Meer-ca-khod ...... 6

Soopurie 6

JKumber-ca-nnlla.., 9

Nalla Oi'l

Mnkrund 4

Koka-ca-bustee 6

The Sinde 10

Sehwan 0

f Town high road from Upper to Lower Sinde.

This appears
very circuitous.

ITINERARY.

303

It is asserted, that before the Mahomedans conquered Sinde
and these regions, the valley and desert belonged to Rajpoot
princes of the Pramar and Solanki tribes ; that the whole t’hul
(desert) was more or less inhabited, and the remains of old tanks
aud temples, notwithstanding the drifting of the sands, attest
the fact. Tradition r-ecords a famine of twelve years’ duration
during the time of Lakha Foolani, in the twelfth century, which
depopulated the country, when the survivors of the t’hul fled to
the Jcutchi, or flats of the Sinde. There are throughout still
many oases or cultivated patches, designated by the local terms
from the indispensable element, water, which whether springs
or rivulets, are called wdh, bdh, baireah, rdr, tir, prefixed by
the tribe of those pasturing, whether Sodas, Rajurs, or Sumai-
chas. The inhabitants of one hamlet will go as far as ten miles
to cultivate a patch .

Bhore, (2 coss.)
Pain, (3 do.)
Rajur-ca-bustee,

(2 coss.)

Hamlet of Rajurs,
(2 coss.)

S'

These are all hamlets of about ten huts, inha-
bited by Rajurs, who cultivate patches of laud
or pasture their flocks of buffaloes, cows,
camels, goats, amidst the t’hul ; at each of
these hamlets there are plenty of springs ;
at Rajur-ca-bustee there is a pool called
Mahadeo-ca-de. (See p. 268.)

Deo Ohandesivar Mahadeo, (2 coss.) — When the Soda princes held
, sway in these regions, there was a town here, and a temple to
Mahadeo, the ruins of which still exist, erected over a spring
called Sooruj coond, or fountain of the Sun. The Islamite
destroyed the templo, and changed thename of the spring to Deen-
Baiuah, or f waters of the faith/ The coond is small, faced with
brick, aud has its margin planted with date trees and pome-
granates, and a Moolla, or priest from Sinde, resides there and
receives tribute from the faithful. For twelve coss around this
spot there are numerous springs of water, where the Rajurs find
pasture for their flocks, and patches to cultivate. Their huts
are conical like the wigwams of the African, and formed by
stakes tied at the apex and covered with grass and leaves, and
often but a large blanket of camel’s hair stretched on stakes.

Ohandia-ca-bustee , (2 coss.) — Hamlet inhabited by Mooslems of the
Ohandia tribe, mendicants who subsist on the charity of the
traveller.

Rajur-

ca-bustee,

(2

coss.)''

Sumaicha-ca-do,

(2

do.)

Rajur

do.

(1

do )

Do.

do.

(2

do.)

Do.

do.

(2

do.) |

Do.

do.

(2

do.)

Do.

do.

(2

do.)

Do.

do.

(2

do.)..

Poonoas, or hamlets of shepherds, Su-
maichas, Rajurs, and others, who are all
migratory, aud shift with their flocks
as they consume the pastures. There
is plenty of water in this space for all
their wants, chiefly springs.

804

ITINERARY.

Odhanioh, (7 coss.) — Twelve ‘lints ; no water between it and tbe
last bamlefc.

Nullah, (5 coss.) — Descent from tbe i’hul, or desert, which ceases a
mile east of the nalla or stream, said to be the same which
issues from the Indus at Dura, above Bory-Bekhur; thence it
passes east of Solirab’s Khyrpoor,a«d by Jinar to Bairsea-ca-rar,
whence there is a canal cut to Omurkote and Chore.

Mittrao, (4 coss.) — Village of sixty bouses, inhabited by Baloches ;
a thanna, or post here from Hydrabad ; occasional low sand-
hills.

■ Meer-ca-kooe, (6 coss.) — Three detached hamlets of ten huts each,
inhabited by Aroras.

Sheopoori, (3 coss.) — One hundred and twenty houses, chiefly Aroras ;
small fort of six bastions to the south-east, garrisoned from
Hydrabad.

Knmaira-ca-Nalla, (6 coss.) — This nalla issues from the Indus
between Kakur-ca-bustee and Sukrund, and passes eastward;
probably the bed of an old canal, with which the country is
everywhere intersected.

Sidcntnd, (2 coss.) — One hundred houses, one-tbird of which are
Hindus; patches of cultivation ; numerous water-courses'neg-
lected ; everywhere overgrown with jungle, chiefly jhoio and
lchaijri, (tamarisk and acacia). Cotton, indigo, rice, wheat,
barley, peas, grain, and maize, grow on the banks of the
water-courses.

Jtittooe, (2 coss.) — Sixty houses; a nalla between it and Juttooe.

Casi-ca-Seher , (4 coss.) — Four hundred houses; two nallns intervene.

Makairo, (4 coss.) — Sixty houses ; a nalla between it and Juttooe.

Kakur-ca-bustee (G coss.) — Sixteen houses; half-way the remains
of an ancient fortress ; three canals or nallas intervening; the
village placed upon a mound four miles from the Indus, whose
waters overflow it during the periodic monsoon.

Poora, or Hamlet , (1 coss.) — A ferry. •

The Indus, (1 coss.) — Toole boat and crossed to

Beiuan or Sehwan, (14 coss.) — A town of twelve hundred houses on
the right bank, belonging to Hydrabad.*

* Sehwan is erected on an elevation within a few hundred yards of the river,
having many clumps of trees, especially to the south. The houses are built of
clay, often three stories high, with wooden pillars supporting the floors. To the
north of the town are the remains of a very ancient and extensive fortress,
sixty of its bastions being still visible; and in the centre the vestiges of a
palace still known ns Raja Bhirterri-ca-lfahl, who is said to have reigned here
when driven from Oojein by his brother Yicramaditya. Although centuries
have flown since the Hindus had any power in these regions, their traditions
lmve remained. They relate that Bhirterri, the eldest son of Gundrup Sen, was
so devoted to his wife, that he neglected the affairs of government, which made
his brother expostulate with him. This coming to his wife’s ears, she insisted

ITINIjRAfeY.

30o

Sehwan to Hydrabad.

Jut-ca-bustee, (2 coss.) — The word jit or jut is here pronounced
z’hut. This hamlet f bustee / is of thirty huts, half a mile from
the Indus: hills close to the village.

oil the banishment of Yieranm. Soon nfter a celebrated ascetic reached his
court, and presented to Bhirterrithe Amur-p’hul, or ‘ fruit of immortality,’ the
reward of years of austere devotion at the shrine of Mahadeo. Bhirterri gave
it to his wife', who bestowed it .on an elephant-driver, her paramour ; ho to a
common prostitute, his mistress : who expecting to be highly rewarded for it,
carried it to the Raja. Incensed at such a decided proof of infidelity-, Bhirterri,
presenting himself before. his queen, asked for the prize — ‘ she had lost it.’
Having produced it, she was so over-whelmed with shame that she rushed from
his presence, and precipitating herself from the walls of the palace, was dashed
to pieces. Raja Bhirterri consoled himself with another wife, Rani Pingla, to
whose charms he in like manner became enslaved; but experience bnd taught
him suspicion. Having one day gone a hunting, his huntsman shot a deer,
whose doe coming to the spot, for a short time contemplated the body, then
threw herself on his antlers and died. The shekari, or huntsman, who bad
fallen asleep, was killed by a lmge snake. His wife came to seek him, sup-
posing him still asleep, but at length seeing he was dead, she collected leaves,
dried reeds, and twigs, and having made a pyre, placed the body under it ; after
the usual perambulations she set fire to, and perished with it. The Raja, who
witnessed these proceedings, went home and conversed with Pinglnni on these
extraordinary snltees, especially the Sheknris, which lie called unparalleled.
Pinglnni disputed the point, and said it was the sacrifice of passion, not of
love ; had it been the latter, grief would have required no pyre. Sometime
after, having again gone a hunting, Bhirterri recalled this conversation, and
having slain a deer, he dipped his clothes in the blood, and sent. them by a
confidential messenger to report his death in combat with a tiger. Pinglani
heard the details; she wept not, neither did she speak, but prostrating herself
before the sun, ceased to exist. The pyre was raised, and her remains were con-
suming outside the city as the Raja returned from his excursion. Hastening to
the spot of lamentation, and learning the fatal issue of his nrtifice, he threw off
the trappings of sovereignty, put on the pilgrim’s garb, and abandoned Oojein
to Yicrama. The only word which he uttered, as he wandered to and fro, was
the name of his faithful Pinglnni ! “ II a e Pingla ! Hae Pingla !” The royal
pilgrim at length fixed his abode at Sehwan ; but although they point out the
ruins of a palace still known even to the Islamite as the aum-lehds of Rajn
Bhirterri, it is admitted that the fortress is of more ancient date. There is a
mindra, or shrine, to the south of the town, also called, after him, Bhirterri- ca-
mindra. In this the Islamite has deposited the mortal remains of a saint-
named Lall Peer Shahaz, to whom' they attribute their victorious possession of
Sinde. The cenotaph of this saint, who has the' character of a proselyte Hindu,
is in the centre of the mindra, and surrounded by wooden stakes. It is a
curious spectacle to see both Islamite and Hindu paying their devotions in the
same place of worship ; and although the first is prohibited from approaching
the sacred enceinte of the pee?-, yet both adore a large saligram, that vermicn-
■lated fossil sacred to Yishnu, placed in a niche in the tomb. The fact is a
curious one, and although these Islamite adorers are the scions of conversion,
it perhaps shews in the strongest manner that this conversion was of the sword,
for. generally speaking, the converted Hindu makes the most bigoted and
intolerant Mussulman. My faithful and intelligent emissaries, Madnri Loll
nnd the Dhatti, brought me a brick from the ruins of this fortress of Sehwan.
It was about, a cubit in length, and of symmetrical breadth and thickness,
uncommonl} r well burnt, and rang like a bell. They also brongbt me some
charred wheat, from pits where it had been burned. The grains were entire’
and reduced to a pure carbon. Tradition is again at work, mid asserts its 1
having Inin there for some thousand years. There is very little doubt that this
[Von. II.] 39

.306

ITINERARY.

Stimaicha-ca-bustee, (2| coss.) — Small village.

LuliM coss.) — Sixty Louses ; one mile and a Lalf from the River :
canal on tLe north side of the village ; bauks^well cultivated.
In the hills, two miles west, is a spot sacred to Parbutti and
Mahadeo, where are several springs, three of which are hot.*

Oomri, (2 coss.) — Twenty-five houses, 'half a mile from the River;
the hills not lofty, a coss west.

Soomri, (3 coss.) — Fifty houses, on the River hill ; one and a half coss
west.

Sindoo or Sunn, (4 coss.) — Two hundred houses aud a bazaar, two
hundred yards from the River ; hills one and a half coss west.

Majend, (4<| coss.) — On the River two hundred and fifty houses,
considerable trade ; hills two coss west;

Oomur-ca-bustee, (3 coss.) — A few huts, near the River.

Syed-ca-bustee, (3 coss.)

is the site of one of the antagonists of the Macedonian conqueror, perhaps
Musicanus, or Mookh-Sewan, the chief of Sehwan. The passage of the
Grecian down the Indus was marked by excesses not inferior to those of the
’Ghazmvede king in later times, and doubtless they fired all they could not
plunder to carry to the fleet. There is also a Nanuk-barra, or place of worship
sacred to Manuk, the great apostle of the Sikhs, placed between the fortress
aud the river. Sehwan is inhabited by Hindus and Islamites in equal pro-
portions : of the former, the mercantile tribe of Maisuri from Jessulmdr, is the
most numerous, and have been fixed here for generations. There are also many
Brahmins of the Pokurna(l) caste, Socmans or goldsmiths, and other Hindu
artizans ; of the Moaslem the Syed is said to be the most numerous class. The
Hindus are the mouied men. Cotton and indigo, and great quantities of rice
,in the husk (paddy), grown in the vicinage of Sehwan, are exported to the ports
of Tat’ha and Koratchy Bunder by boats of considerable burthen, manned
entirely by Mahomedans. The Hakim of Sehwan is sent from Hydrabnd.
The range of mountains which stretch from Tat’ba nearly parallel with the
Indus, approaches within three miles of Sehwan, and there turn off to the
north-west. All these hills are inhabited as far as the shrine of Hinglaz
. Mata,(2) on the coast of Mekran, (placed in the same range) by the Loomrie, or
Noomrie tribe, who though styling themselves Baloches, are Jins in origin.(3)

* These springs are .frequented, despite the difficulties and dangers of the
route from the savage Noomrie, by numerous Hindu pilgrims. Two of them
are hot, and named tiurya-coaud and Chandra-coond, or fountains of the sun
and moon, aud imbued with especial virtues ; but before the pilgrim can reap
any advantage by purification in their waters, he must undergo the rite of con-
fession to the attendant priests, who, through intercession witli Mahadeo, have
the nower of granting absolution. Should a sinner be so hardened as to plunge
in without undergoing this preparatory ordeal, he comes out covered with
boils! ! ! This is a curious confirmation that the confessional rite is one of
very ancient usage amongst the Hindus, even in the days of Rama of Kosula. —
See Yol. I, p. 72.

(1) See Annals of Jessulmer. p. 262.

(2) This famous shrine of the Hindu Cybele, yet frequented by numerous
rotaries, is nine days' journey from Tat’ha by Koratchy Bunder, and about nino
miles from the sea-shore.

(3) These are the Nomurdies of Rennel.

ITINERARY.

307

SMIcarpoor , (4 coss.) — On the river; crossed to the east-side.

Hydrabad, (3 do.) — One and a half coss from the river Indue.
Hydrabad to Nusurpoor, nine coss ; to Sheodadpoor, eleven do.;
to Sheopori, seventeen do.; to Rory-Bekher, sis do. ; total forty-
three coss.

Hydrabad vid OmurJeote, to Jessulmer.

Sindoo Khan ca-bustee , (3 coss.) — West bank of Phooldli river.

Tajpoor, (3 coss.) — Large town, north-east of Hydrabad.

Kutrail, (1J coss.) — A hundred houses.

Niisurpoor, ( 1 h coss.) — Bast of Tajpoor, large town.

TJllyar-ca-Tanda,* (4 coss.) — A considerable town built by Ullyar
Khan, brother of the late Gholam Alii, and lying south-east of
Nusurpoor. Two coss north of the town is the Sangra Nalla
or Bawah* said to issue from the Indus between Hala and
Sukrund, and passing Jundeela.

Meerbah, (5 coss.) — Forty houses ; Bah, Tanda , Goto, Poonva, are all
synonimous terms for habitations of various degrees.

Soonario, (7 coss.) — Forty houses.

JDingano, (4 do.) — To this hamlet extends the flats of Sinde. Sand-
hills five and six miles distant to the north. A small river runs
under Dingano.

Korsano, (7 coss.) — A hundred houses. Two coss east of Korsano.
are the remains of an ancient city ; brick buildings still remain-
ing, with well and reservoirs. Sand-hills two to three coss to
the northward.

Omurkote , (8 coss.) — There is one continued plain from Hydrabad to
Omurkote, which is built on the low ground at the very
extremity of the t’hulov sand-hills of the desert, here commenc-
ing. In all this space, estimated at forty-four cncha coss, or
almost seventy miles of horizontal distance, as far as Sonario,
the soil is excellent, and plentifully irrigated by bawahs, or
canals from the Indus. Around the villages there is consider-
able cultivation ; but notwithstanding the natural fertility,
there is a vast quantity of jungle, chiefly babool ( mimosa
arabica ), the evergreen j’hal, and jhow or tamarisk. From
Sonario to Omurkote is one continued jungle, in which there
are a few cultivated patches dependent on the heavens for irri-
gation ; the soil is not so good as the first portion of the route.

Kuttar, (4 coss.) — A mile east of Omurkote commences the t’lml or
sand-hills, the ascent a hundred and fifty to two hundred feet.
A few huts of Sumaichas who pasture ; two wells.

* This is the Sankra of Nadir Shah’s treaty with Mahomed Shah of India,
which the conqueror made the boundary between India and Persia, by which
he obtained the whole of that fertile portion of the valley of Sinde, east of that
stream. Others say, it issues from Dura, above Bory-Bekher. ,

[Yol. II.]

39a

308

JUNE BABY.

Dhoie-ca-biistee, (4 coss.) — A few huts ; oue well ; Dhotes, Sodas,
and Sindies cultivate and. pasture.

Dharnas, (8 coss.) — A hundred houses, chiefly Pokurna Brahmins
and Banyas, who purchase up the ghee from the pastoral
tribes, .which they export to Bhooj and the valley. It is also an
entrepot for trade ; caravans from the east exchange their goods
for the ghee, here very cheap, from the vast flocks pastured in
the Rooe.

Khairloo-ca-Par , (3 coss.) — Numerous springs (par) and hamlets
scattered throughout this tract.

Lanailo, (1| coss.) — A hundred houses ; water brackish ; conveyed
by camels from Khairloo.

Bhaj-ca-Par, (3 coss.) — Huts ; wells ; patches of cultivation.

Bhoo, (6 coss.) — Huts.

Ourrira, (10 coss.) — Asmalltown of three hundred houses, belonging
to Sowae Sing Soda, with several pooras or hamlets attached to
it. This is the boundary between Dhdt or the Soda raj and
•Jessulmdr. Dhat is now entirely incorporated in Sinde. A
dhanni, or collector of the transit duties, resides here.

Hursani, (10 coss.) — Three hundred houses, chiefly Bhattis. It
belongs to a Rajpoot of this tribe, now dependent on Marwar.

Jinjinialli, (10 coss.) — Three hundred houses. This is the fief of
the chief noble of Jessulmdr ; his name Kaitsi,* Bhatti. It is
the border town of Jessulmer. There is a small mud fortress,
aud several tallaos , or sheets of water, which contain water often
during three-fourths of the year; and considerable cultivation
in the little valleys formed by the teebas, or sand ridges. About
two miles north of Jinjinialli thei'e is a village of Charuns,

Guj Sing-ca-bnstee, (2 coss.) — Thirty-five houses. Water scarce,
brought ou camels from the Gharun village.

Hamir-deora , (5 coss.) — Two hundred houses. There are several
bairas or pools, about a mile north, whither water is brought on
camels, that in the village being saline. The ridge of rocks
from Jessulmer here terminates.

Chailalc , (5 coss.) — Eighty houses ; wells ; Ghailalc on the ridge.

Bhopa , (7 coss.) — Forty houses ; well; small tallao or pool.

Bhao , (2 coss.) — Two hundred houses ; pool to the west ; small wells.

Jessulmdr , (5 coss.) — Eighty-five and a half coss from Omurlcote to _
Jessulmdr by this route, which is circuitous. That by Jinjiniali
26 coss, Giraup 7, Neelwa 12, Omurkote 25 ; in all -70 pucka
coss, or about 150 miles. Caravans or leuttdrs of camels pass in
four days, casids or messengers in three and a half, travelling
night and day. The last 25 coss, or 50 miles, is entire desert :

*■ See Annals of Jessulmer for an account of the murder of this chieftain,
p. 244'.

ITINERARY.

309

add to this 44 short coss from Hydrabad to Omurkote, making
a total of 12911 coss. The most dii-ect road is estimated at 105
pucka coss, which, allowing for sinuosities, is equal to about
195 English miles.

Total of this route, 85^ coss.

Jessidmdr to Hydrabad, by Baisnau

Kooldur, (5 coss.)

Khaba, (5 coss.)

Lahha-ca-gong, (30 coss.) — Desert the whole way ; no hamlets or
water.

Baisnau, (8 coss.)

Bairsea-ca-Rar, (16 coss) — Wells.

Theepro, (8 coss.)

Meeta-ca-dhair, (7 coss ) — Omurlcote distant 20 coss.
Jundecla, (8 coss.)

Ullyar-ca-Tanda , (10 coss.) — Sankra, or Sangra nalla.

Tajpoor, (4 coss.)
Jam-ca-Tanda , (2 coss.)
Hydrabad, (5 coss.)

r

In the former route the distance from
Ullyar-ca-Tanda, by the town of
Nusurpoor, is called 13 coss, or two
more than this. There are five nallas
or canals in the last five coss.

Total of this route, 103 coss.

Jessulmer, by Shahgurh, to Kliyrpoor of Meer Sohrdb.

Ana-sag ur, (2 coss.)

Chonda, (2 coss.)

Pani-ca-tur, (3 coss .) — Tur or Tir, springs.

Pani-ca-koochri, (7 coss.) — No village.

Korialloh, (4 coss.)

Shahgurh, (20 coss.*) — Roo6 or waste all this distance. Shahgurh
is the boundary ; it has a small castle of six bastions, a post of
Meer Sohrab, governor of Upper Smde.

Qurseah, (6 coss.)

Gurhur, (28 do.) — Rood or desert the whole way ; not a drop of
water. There are two routes branching off from Gurhur, one
to Khyrpoor, the other to Rauipoor.

Baloch-ca-bustee, (5 coss.)
Sumaicha-ca-bustee, (5 coss.) J

i Hamlets of Baloches and Sumaiclias.

* Sh6kk Abul Biikab makes the distance only nine coss from Shahgnrh to
Koilalloh, and states the important fact of crossing the dry bed of the Caggur,
five coss west of Koifalloh ; water found plentifully by digging in the bed.
Numerous bairas, to which the shepherds drive their flocks.

310

ITINERARY.

If alia, (2 coss.) — The same stream which flows from Dura, andthrough
the ancient city of Alore ; it marks the boundary of the desert.

Khyrpoor, .(18 coss.) — Meer Sohr&b, governor of Upper Sinde, and
brother of the prince of Hydrabad, resides here. He bas erected
a stone fortress of twelve bastions, called Noakote or Mew-castle.
The 18 coss from the nalla to Khyrpoor is fiat, and marks the
breadth of the valley here. The following towns are of conse-
quence : —

Khyrpoor to Lvdkana. — Twenty coss west of the Indus, held by
Kurrum Alii, son of the prince of Hydrabad.

Khyrpoor to Lulchi. — Fifteen coss, and five from Shikarpoor.

Khyrpoor to Shikarpoor, (20 coss.)

Gurhur to Ranipoor.

Fumroh, (10 coss.) — A village of fifty houses, inhabited by Sindies
and Kurars; several hamlets around. A dhanni or collector of
transit dues resides here on the part of Meer Sohrab, the 1 ’oute
being travelled by kuttars or caravans of camels. The nalla
from Durak passes two coss east of Furarok, which is on the
extremity of the desert. Commencement of the ridge called
Tukur, five coss west of Furaroh, extending to Rory-Bekher,
sixteen coss distant from Furaroh. From Furaroh to the Indus,
eighteen coss, or thirty miles breadth of the valley here.

Ranipoor * (18 coss.)

Jessulmer to Rory-Bekher.

Korialloh, (18 coss.) — See last route.

Bandoh, (4 coss.) — A tribe of Mooslems, called Oondur, dwell here.

Goteroo, (16 coss.) — Boundary of Jessulmer and Upper Sinde. A
small castle and garrison of Meer Sohrab' , s ; two wells, one
inside ; and a hamlet of thirty huts of Sumaichas and Oondurs ;
teebas heavy.

Oodut, (32 coss.) — Thirty huts of shepherds ; a small mud fortress.
Rood, a deep and entire desert, throughout all this space ; no
water.

Sunlcram, or Sungrum, (16 coss.) — Half the distance sand-hills,
the rest numerous temporary hamlets constructed of the joodr,
or maize stalks ; several water-courses.

Nalla-Sangra, (£ coss.) — This nalla or stream is from Dura, on the
Siude, two coss and a half north of Rory-Bekher; much
cultivation ; extremity of the sand-hills.

Tirgateo, (£ coss.) — A large town: Bankers andBanias, here termed^
Kirar, and Sumaichas.

* Considerable town on the high road from Upper to Lower Sinde. See
subsequent route.

ITINERA BY.

311

Lowridgeof hills, called Tekher, (4coss.) — This little chain of silicious
rocks runs north and south ; Noakote, the new-castle of Sohrab,
is at the foot of them ; they extend beyond Furaroh, which is
sixteen coss from Rory-Bekher. Groomut is six coss from Noa-
kote.

Rory, (4 coss.) ) On the ridge, on the left bank of the Indus. Crossed

Belcher , (£ do.) > over to Belcher; breadth of the river near a mile.

Sekher , (£ do .) J Bekher is an island, and the other branch to Selcher

is almost a mile over also. This insulated rock is of silex,
specimens, of which I possess. There are the remains of the
ancient fortress of Mausoora, named in honour of the Caliph
Al-Mausoor, whose lieutenants made it the capital of Sinde on
the opening of their conquests. It is yet more famed as the
capital of the Sogdi of Alexander; in all probability a corrup-
tion of Soda, the name of the tribe which has ruled from imme-
morial ages, and who till very lately held Omurkote.

JSf.B. — Casids or messengers engage to carry despatches from ■
Jessulmer to Rory-Bekher in four days and a half ; a distance
of one hundred and twelve coss.

Bekher to Shikarpoor.

ijukie, also called Lukiesirr, (12 coss.)

Sindu Kalla , (3^ coss.)

Shikarpoor , (4 coss.)

Total of this route, 16 coss.

Bekher to Ludkana, (28 coss.)

Shikarpoor to Ludkana, (20 coss.)

Jcssulmdr to Dyv Alii Khyrpoor.

Korialloh, (18 coss.)

Kharroh, (20 coss.) — Rooe or desert all the way. This is the dohud ,
or mutual boundary of Upper Sinde and Jessulmer, and there
is a small milti-ca-kote or mud fort, jointly held by the respec-
tive troops ; twenty huts and one well.

Sootialloh, (20 coss.) — Rooe all the way. A dand for the collection of
duties; six wells.

Khyrpoor ( Dyr Alii) (20 coss.) — Rood, and deep jungle of the ever-
greens called larva and jhcll, from Sootialloh to Khyrpoor.

Total of this route, 78 coss.

Khyrpoor ( Dyr Alii) to Ahmedpoor.

Ohdora, (6 coss.) — Considerable town ; Indus four coss west.

Subzwl-co.-kote, (8 coss.) — Boundary of Upper Sinde and Daodpotra.
This frontier castle, often disputed, was lately taken by Meer
Sohrab from Bhawul Khan. Numerous hamlets and water-
courses.

itinerary.

312

(8 coss.)-Co,s« ga-ontown ° f
two battalions and sixteen g
Total of this route, 22 coss.

Khyrpoor (Dyr Alii ) to Iiydrabad.

(O pms v— Four coss from the Indus.

GotH, (7 coss.)-Two cobs from the Into.

D«ci!o/r, (8 do.) Two coss from to fcto ^ teniporaI7 villages,

cultivation in all this space.

-1 K l Six coss from the Indus.
Khyrpoor....... j » ' olx

T ^edium 'between

coss and the Meta of c mean 8 n half.

The medium of one and « ^

coss

.... 8 ^

(Sohrdb-ca-

Goomut |

Ranipoor ••••• "

(See route to it from Gurhur.)

Ring ore "

Bhiranapoor *

Huliani *

Kunjerro

Kosheyra °

Mora.

JShahpoora "

TV .7 ..fmrwir o

Boulutpoor

Meerpoor

Srto each coss, dednctmg

for windings, appeals

after numer-

svinujiugD, -t-r— - - . , fpi,{c is

ous comparisons, to e pi *r ginde>
alike applicable to all Upp

J n TtU 1us Here Madam crossed to

'' 0n Setaan, and returned to Meerpoor^

j Kazi-ca-Gote ® 1 . -Ips each : which,

Sulcrand 1 The coss .about fop w ; nd ings of

Mala

Khurdao J

Muttari *

JETydrabad 0

deducting one in ten or win

the road, may be protected.

Total... 145 coss.

Jcmdmif to nchtiarinan-ca-Gurhie- ^

These villages are nil ’^.^temed Knn-

Brlmsirr, (4 coss.) ^“'Kbidil^of which Katin, eight 00 ®
Vordfrr, (8 do dal m ; Mm

0 do! ] ) "S Ii!rto7pook of water.

Sohr.cct.Qm-m (25

T wt toBtttis of Jessulmer. About fort.

ITIHERARY.

313

huts and little cultivation. It is a place of toll for tlie Euttars
or caravans ; two rupees for each camel-load of ghee, and
four for one with sugar; half a rupee for each camel, and a
third for an ok laden with grain.

Moreecl Kote, (24 coss.) — Rooe or desert. Ramgurli is four coss east
of this.

Ikhti ar-ca-Gurhi c, (15 coss.) — Rood until the last four coss, or eight
miles. Thence the descent from the teebas or sand-hills to the
valley of the Indus.

Total of this route, 79 coss. Ikhtiar to Ahmedpoor 18 coss.

Khanpoor 5

Sooltanpoor... 8

Jessulmfr to Slico-Kottoroh, Kheraloo, Chotun, Euggur-Parhur,
Mittic, and return to Jessulmer.

Dabla , (3 coss.) — Thirty houses, Pokurna Brahmins.

Alculli, (2 do. ) — Thirty houses, Ckohans, well aud small tallao.

Chore, (5 do. ) — Sixty houses, mixed classes.

Deikotc, (2 do. ) — A small town of two hundred houses ; belongs to
the jessulmer fisc or khnlsa. There is a little fort aud garrison.
A tallao or pool excavated by the Palliwals, in which water
remains throughout the year after much rain.

Sangur, (6 coss.) — N.B. This route is to the east of that (following)
by Ckeonclm, the most direct road to Bhalotra, and the one
usually travelled ; but the villages are now deserted.

Beasirr , (2 coss.) — Porty houses, and tallao. Beejoordc, 2 coss distant.

Mundayc (frontier), (2i coss.) — Twoliundredand fifty houses. Saheb
Khan Sohr&d with a hundred horse is stationed here; the town
is lchalsa aud the last of Jessulmer. The ridge from Jessulmer
is close to all the places on this route to Mundaye.

Qooxigah, (A\ coss.) — Thanna, or post of Jodpoor.

Sheo, (2 coss.) — A large town of three hundred houses, but many
deserted, some tlu-ough famine. Chief of a district. A Hakim
resides here from Jodpoor ; -collects the transit dues, and pro-
tects the country from the depredations of the Selira6s.

Kottovoh, (3 coss.) — Town of five hundred houses, of which only two
hundred are now inhabited. On the north-west side is a fort
on the ridge. ARahtore chief resides here. The district of Sheo
Kottoroh was taken from the Bhattis of Jessulmer by the
Rahtores of Jodpoor.

Beesallao, (G coss.) — In ancient times a considerable place ; now only
fifty houses. A fort on the ridge to the south-west, near two
hundred feet high; connected with the Jessulmer ridge, but
often covered by -the lofty teebas of sand.

Iiheraloo, (7 coss.) — Capital of Kherd’hur, one of the ancient divi-
sions of MaroosPhali: Two coss south of Beesallao crossed a pass
over the hills.

[Von. II.]

40

314

ITINERARY.

Ckotun, (10 coss. — An ancient city, now in rains, having at present
only about eighty houses, inhabited by the Sehr&es.

BanJcasirr, (11 coss.) — Formerly a large city, now only about three
hundred and sixty houses.

Bhil-ca-bustee, (5 coss.) 1 ^ ,

n » » l ) a j ( > Few huts m each.

Chohan-ca-poora, (o do. ) J

Nuggur , (3 coss.) — A large town, capital of Parkur, containing one
thousand five hundred houses, of which one-half are inhabited.

Kahn Khan Sehrdd-ca-bustee, (18 coss.) — Thirty houses in the t’hul;
wells, with water near the surface ; three coss to the east the
boundary of Siude and the Chohan Raj.

Dhote-ca-poora, (15 coss.) A hamlet; Rajpoots, Bhils, and Sehraes.

Mitti or Mittri-ca-Jcote, (3 coss.) — A town of six hundred houses in
Dhat, or the division of Omurkote belonging to Hydrabad ; a
relative of whose prince, with the title of Nawab, resides here :
a place of great commerce, and also of transit for the caravans ;
a fortified mahl to the south-west. When the Shall of Cabul
used to invade Sinde, the Hydrabad prince always took refuge
here with his family and valuables. The sand-hills are
immensely high and formidable.

Ghailasirr, (10 coss.) — Four hundred houses, inhabited by SehrS.es,
Brahmins, Beejurauis, and Bunyas; a place of great importance
to the transit trade.

Sumaicha-ca-bustee, (10 coss.) — T’hul from Chailasirr.

Noor-Alli, Pam-ca-Tir, (9 coss.) — Sixty houses of Charuns, Sooltano
Rajpoots and Kaoreas, (qu. the ancient Kaorea ?) water (pani-
ca-tir ) plenty in the t’hul.

Roal, (5 coss.) — Twelve hamlets termed bds, scattered round a tract
'of several coss, inhabited by different tribes, after whom they
are named, as Soda, Sehrae, Kaorea, Brahmin, Banya and Sootar
as Soda-ca-bds, Sehrdd-ca-bds , or habitations of the Sodas; of
the Sehraes, &c., &c.

Daellie, (7 coss.) — One hundred houses ; a dhanni, or collector of
duties, resides here.

Gurt'irak, (10 coss.) — Describedin route from Omurkote to Jessulmer,

Raidanoh, (11 do. ) — -Forty houses; a lake formed by damming up
. the water. Aggur } or salt-pans.

• j Kottoroh, (9 coss.)

Bheo, (3 coss.) — The whole space from Nuggur to Skeo-Kottoroh is a
continuous mass of lofty sand-hills (\ t’hul-ca-teebaj , scattered
with hamlets (poorwas), in many parts affording abundant
pasture for flocks of sheep, goats, buffaloes, aud camels; the
t’hul extends south to Noakote and Bulw'ar, about ten coss
south of the former and two of the latter. To the left of Noa-
kote ai’e the flats of Talpoora, or Lower Sinde.

ITINERARY.

S15

Jessulmer to Sheo-Kottoroh , Burmair, Nuggur-Gooroh and

Sooe-Bah.

Dhunno , (5 coss.) — Two hundred houses of Palliwals ; pool and
wells ; ridge two to three hundred feet high, cultivation between
the ridges.

Gheencha,' (7 coss.) — Small hamlet; Sirroh, half a coss east; ridge,
low t 5 hul, cultivation,

Jussorana , (2 coss.) — Thirty houses of Palliwals, as before ; Keeta
to the right half a coss.

Oonda , (1 coss.) — Fifty houses of Palliwals and Jain Rajpoots ;
wells and pools ; country as befoi’e.

Saiigur, (2 coss.) — Sixty houses ; only fifteen inhabited, the rest
fled to Sinde during the famine of 1813; Charuns. Grand
t’hul commences.

■Sangur-ca-tallao, (i coss.) — Water remains generally eight months
in the tallao or pool, sometimes the whole year.

Beejorae, (H coss.) 1 Between is the sand’h or boundary of Jessulmer

Khorael, (4 do. ) j andJodpoor. Beejorae has one hundred and
twenty houses of Palliwals ; wells and pools at both places.

Bajarail , (1 coss.) — Seventy houses ; most deserted since famine.

Gongah, (4 do. ) — Hamlet of twenty huts ; bairns, or small wells
and pools ; to this the ridge and t’hul intermingle.

Sheo, (2 coss.) — Capital of the district.

Neemlah, (4 coss.) — Forty houses ; deserted.

Bhadlco, (2 do. ) — Four hundred houses ; deserted. This is ‘ the
third year of famine !’

Kupooln, (3 coss.) — Thirty huts, deserted ; wells.

Julepah, (3 do. ) — Twenty huts ; deserted.

Nuggur ( Gooroo ), (20 coss.) — This is a large town on the west bank
of the Looni river, of four to five hundred houses, but many
deserted since the famine, which has almost depopulated this
region. In 1813, the inhabitants were flying as far as the
Ganges, and selling themselves and offspring into slavery to
save life.

Barmair, (6 coss.) — A town of twelve hundred houses.

Gooroo, (2 do. ) — West side of the Looni ; town of seven hundred
houses ; the chief is styled Rana, and of the Chohan tribe.
Batto, (3 coss.) — West side of river.

Putturno, (1 coss.) 1 w . . , f -
Gadlo, (L do. ) J West Slde of riTer *

Bunas, (3 do. ) — East side of river.

Charuni, (2 do. ) — Seventy houses ; east side.

[Vol. II.] 40a

316 ITI2JJBBABY.

Cheetulwano, (2 coss.) — Town of three hundred houses'; east side of
river; belonging to a Chohan chief, styled Ban a. Sanchore
seven coss to the south.

Butoroh, (2 coss.) — East side of river ; deserted.

Koteegong, (2 do. ) — South side of river ; temple to Phoolmook-
heswar Mahadeo.

JDhootok, (2 coss.) 1 North side.. On the west side the Fhul is very

Tappee, (2 do. ) j heavy ; east side is plain ; both sides well
cultivated.

Lalpoora , (1 coss.) — West side.

Soorpoora, (1 do. ) — Crossed river.

Sunlotti , (2 do. ) — Eighty houses, east side of river.

Bhodteroo , (2 do. ) — East side ; relation of the liana l'esides here.

Pfarhe, (4 coss.) — South side of river; Bhils and Sonigurras.

Karoe, (4 do. ) — Sehraes.

Pitlanoh , (2 coss.) — Large village ; Kolis and Pithils.

Bhurnidur, (3 coss.) — Seven or eight hundred houses, nearly
deserted, belonging to Sood-Bah.

Bah, (4 coss.) — Capital of Rana Narrayn Rao, Chohan prince of
Vird-Bah.

Loonah, (5 coss.) — One hundred houses.

Sooe, (7 coss.) — Residence of Chohan chief.

Bhalotra on the Looni river to Pohurn and Jessulvier.

Panchbuddra, (3 coss.) — Bhalotra fair on the llthMaug — continues
ten days. Bhalotra has four to five hundred houses in the tract
called Sdwdnchi ; the ridge unites with Jhalore and Sewanoh.
Panchbuddra has two hundred houses, almost all deserted
since the famine. Here is the celebrated Agger, or salt-lake,
yielding considerable revenue to the government.

Gopti, (2 coss.) — Forty houses; deserted ; one coss north of this the
deep t’hul commences.

Patode, ( 4 coss.) — A considerable commercial mart; four hundred
houses ; cotton produced in great quantities.

Seevaie , (4 coss.) — Two hundred houses, almost deserted.

Seruroh, (1 coss.) — Sixty houses. To Patode the tract is termed
Sewanchi ; from thence Eendavfiti, from the ancient lords of
the Eendo tribe.

Boongurro, (3 coss.) ) Boongurro has seventy houses, Solan’kitullo

Solanldtullo, (4 do. ) j- four hundred, and Pongulli sixty. Through-

Pongulli, (5 do. ) J out sand hills. This tract is called TTu-

laicha, and the Rahtores who inhabit it, T’hulaicha Raktores.
There are many of the Jit or Jat tribe as cultivators. Pongulli
a Charun community.

ITINBKABY.

317

Sodacoor, (2 do.) / '
Chandun, (4 do.) f

Balcwrri, (5 coss.) — One hundred houses; inhabited by Charuns.

Dholsirr, (4 do.} — Sixty houses., inhabited by Palliwal Brahmins.

Pohurn, (4 do. ) — Prom Bakurri commences the Pokurn district
all flat, and though sandy, no teebas or hills.

Odhanio, (6 coss.) — Fifty houses; a pool, the south side.

Lahti, (7 do. ) — Three hundred houses ; Palliwal Brahmins.

! } Sodacoor has thirty houses and Chandun fifty;
Palliwals. Dry nalla at the latter; water
obtained by digging in its bed.

Bhojha, (3 do.) — One coss to the left is the direct road to Basunki,
seven coss from Chandun.

Basunhi-talao, (5 coss.) — One hundred houses; Palliwals.

Moldait, (14 coss.) — Twelve houses; Pokurna Brahmins.

Jessulmer, (4 do. ) — From Pokurn to Odhanio, the road is over a low
ridge of rocks; thence to Lahti is a well- cultivated plain, the
ridge being on the left. A small t’hul intervenes at Sodacoor,
thence to Chandun, plain. From Chandun to Basunki the road
again traverses the low ridge, increasing in height, and with
occasional cultivation, to Jessulmer.

Bilcaner to Ihhtiar Khan-ca-Qnrhie, on the Indus.

Pae-ca-bustee, (4 coss.)

‘ Sandy plains ; water at all these villages.
From Girajsirr, the Jessulmer frontier,
the teebas or sand-hills commence, and
continue moderate to Beekumpoor.

Gujnair,
Gooroh,
Beetnohe,
Girajsirr,
Narraye ,

(5 do. )
(5 do. )
(5 do. )
(8 do. )
(4 do. )

-Beehum'poor, (9 coss.)
Mohungurh, (16 do. ) t

1 } Beekumpoor to Mohungurh, rood or desert
all the way, having considerable sand-
hills and jungle.

Patchna, (16 coss.) — Teebas , or sand-hills throughout this space.

Pavrdie, ( 9 do. ) — A Brahmin village.

Nohur-ca-Gurhie, (24 coss.) — Deep rood or desert; the frontier
garrison of Sinde; the gurhie, or castle, held by Hadji Khan.

Moreed Kote, (24 coss.) — Rood, high sand-hills.

Gurie Ilihtiav-Khan-ca, (18 coss.) — The best portion of this through
the Kutch/i, or flats of the valley. Gurhie on the Indus.

Total 147 coss, equal to 2204 miles, the coss being about a
mile and a half each ; 200 English miles of horizontal distance
to be protracted.

ANNALS

OF

AMBER,* OR DHOONDAR.

4

CHAPTER I.

Designations given by Europeans to the principalities of Bajpootana. — Dhoondar
hnown by the name of its capitals, Amber or Jcipoor. — The country of the
Cutchwahas an aggregate of conquests by the race so called. — Etymology of
' Dhoondar.’ — Origin of the Cutchwahas. — Baja Hal founds Nurwar. — Dhola
Rae expelled, and founds Dhoondar. — Romantic legend of Dhola Rae. — His
treachery to his benefactor, the Meena lord of Khogong. — Marries a daughter
of a Hirgoojur chief, and becomes his heir. — Augments Ms territories, and
transfers his government to Ramgurh. — Marries a daughter of the prince of
Ajmer. — Is hilled in battle with the Meenas. — Die son Kanhul conquers
Dhoondar. — Maidul Rae conquers Amber, and other places. — Conquests of
Uaandeo. — Of Koontnl. — Accession of Pujoon. — Reflections on the aboriginal
tribes at this penod. — The Meena race. — Ftijoon marries the sister of Pirthi
Raj of Deldi. — Hismilitaiy proivess. — Is hilled at the rape of the princess of
Canoicj. — Maleei succeeds. — His successors. — Pirthi Raj creates the Sara-hot ns
or twelve great fiefs of Amber. — He is assassinated. — Bahannxill. — The first to
wait on the Malioniedan power. — Bhagivandas the first Rajpoot to give a
daughter to the imperial house. — His daughter marries Jehangir, and gives
birth to Khoosroo, — Accession of Mann iSing. — His power, intrigues, and
death. — Rao Bhao Maha. — Mirza Raja Jey Sing, brother of Raja Maun, suc-
ceeds. — Repairs the disgraces of Ms two predecessors, and renders immense
services to the empire.-— Is poisoned by his son. — Ram Sing. — Bishen Sing.

By some conventional process, Europeans in India have adopted the
habit of designating the principalities of Rajpootana by tlie names

^This account of theAmbdror Jcipoor state, is nearly what I communicated
to the Marquis of Hastings in 1814-15. Amidst the multiplicity of objects
which subsequently engaged my attention, I had deemed myself absolved from
the necessity of enlarging npon it, ti listing that a more competent pen would
have superseded this Essay, there having been several political authorities at
that court since it was written. Being, however, unaware that anything has
been done to develope its historical resources, which are more abundant than
those of any other court of India, I think it right not to suppress this sketch,
however imperfect.

CHAP. I.]

ANNALS OF AMBER.

319

~ of their respective capitals, instead of those of the countries. Thus
Marwar and Mewar are recof o,ised under the titles of their chief
cities, Jodpoor and Oodipoo:ef Kotah andBoondi are denominations
indiscriminately applied toscfaravati, the general term of the region,
which irurarely mentioned ; and Dhoondar is hardly known by that
denomielibion to Europeans, who refer to the state only by the names
of its capitals, Ambdr or Jeipoor, the last of which is now universally
used to designafceD'ae region inhabited by the Outchwahas.

Like all the othek Rajpoot states, the country of the Outchwahas
is an assemblage of communities, the territories of which have been
wrested from the aboriginal tribes, or from independent chieftains,
at various periods ; and therefore the term Dhoondar, which was
only one of their earliest acquisitions, had scarcely a title to impose
its name upon the aggregate. The etymology of Dhoondar is from
a once celebrated sacrificial mount (d’hoondj on the western frontier,
near Kalik Jobnair.*

The Cutchwaha or Outchwa race claims descent from Oush, the
second son of Rama, King of Koshula, whose capital was Ayodhia,
the modem Oude. Cush, or' some of his immediate offspring, is said
to have migrated from the parental abode, and erected the celebrated
castle of Rhotas, or Rokitas,f on the Soane, whence, in the lapse of
several generations, another distinguished scion. Raja Nal, migrated
westward, and in S. 351, or A.D. 295, founded the kingdom and city
of Nurwar, or classically, Nishida. J Some of the traditional chroni-
cles record intermediate places of domicile pi’ior to the erection of

* The traditional history of the Chohans abei'-filf that this mount was the

E lace of penance ( tapasya ) of their famed king Beesildeo of Ajmdr, who, for
is oppression of his subjects, was transformed into a llalcus, or Demon, in
which condition he continued the evil work of his former existence, ‘ devouring
his subjects’ (as literally expressed), until a grand-child offered himself as a
victim to appease his insatiable appetite. The language of innocent affection,
made its way to the heart of the Ralcus, who recognized his offspring, and
winged his flight to the Jumna. It might be worthwhile to excavate the
d'hoond of the transformed Chohan king, which I have some notion will prove
to be his sepulchre.

j- Were this celebrated abode searched for inscriptions, they might throw
- light on the history off the descendants of Rama.

J Prefixed to a descriptive sketch of the city of Nurwar (which I may
append), the year'S. 351 is given for its foundation by Raja Nal, but whether
obtained from an inscription or historical legend, I know not. It, however,
corroborates, in a remarkable manner, the number of descents from Hal to
Dhola Rati, viz., thirty-three, which, calculated according to the best data (see
Vol. I, p. 49), at twenty-two years to a reign, will make 726 years, which
subtracted from 1023, the era of Dhola Rae’s migration, leaves 297, a difference
of only fifty-four years between thepomputed and settled eras ; and if we
allowed only twenty-one years to a reign, instead of twenty-two, as proposed in.
all long lines above twenty-five generations, the diffei’euce would be trifling.

We may thus, without hesitation, adopt the date 351, or A.D, 295, for the
period of Raja Nal, whose history is one of the grand sources of delight to the
bards of Rajpootaua. The poem rehearsing his adventures under the title of
Nal and Damyantu (fam. Nal-Dummun), was translated into Persian at
Akber’s command, by Piezi, brother of Abulfazil, and has since been made
known to the admirers of Sanscrit literature by Professor Bopp of Berlin. •

[chap. I.

!

* (

S20 ANNALS OF AMt/e R.

i

ibis famed city : first, tlie town of Bahar, in tlie heart of a tract yet
named Cutchwagar, or region (gar) o^ he Cutchwahas; and secondly,
that of Gwalior. Be this as it mayv ' -.he descendants of Raja Ral
adopted the affix of Pal (which appeals to be the distinguishing
epithet of all the early Rajpoot tribes), until Sora Sing - ( tj '/ ty-third
in descent from Nal), whose son, Dhola Rad,Vas expelled '^pater-
nal abode, and in S. 1023, A.D. 967, laid the foi) 'dation of the state
of Dhoondar. | /

A family, which traces its lineage from Rama of Koshnla, N ala of
Nisliida, and Dhola the lover of Mai'oni, may bp allowed ‘ the boast
of heraldry and in remembrance of this descent, the Cushites of
India celebrate with great solemnity ‘ the antfual feast of the sun/
on which occasion a stately car, called the chariot of the sun (Surya
rat’ ha), drawn by eight horses, is brought^ from the temple, and the
descendant of Ramdsa, ascending therein^ perambulates his capital.

A case of simple usurpation originated the Cutchwaha state of
Amber; but it would be contrary to precedent if this event were
un tinged with romance. As the episode, while it does not violate
probability, illustrates the condition of the aboriginal tribes, we do
not exclude the tradition. On the death of Sora Sing, prince of
Nunvar, his brother usurped the government, depriving the infant,
Dhola Rae, of his inheritance. His mother, clothing herself in mean
apparel, put the irifant in a basket, which she placed on her head,
and travelled westward until she reached the town of Khogong
(within five miles cf the modern Jeipoor), then inhabited by the
Meenas. Distressed^^ » -bger and fatigue, she had placed her
precious burthen on the^ round, and wn's plucking some wild berries,
when she observed a hooded serpent rearing its form over the basket.
She uttered a shriek, which attracted an itinerant Brahmin, who
told her to be under no alarm, but rather to rejoice at this certain
indication of future greatness in the boy. But the emaciated parent
of the founder of Amber replied, “ What may be in futurity I heed
<( not, while I am sinking with hunger on which the Brahmin put
her in the way to Khogong, where he said her necessities would be
relieved. Taking up the basket, she reached the town, which is
encircled by hills, and accosting a female, who happened to .be a
slave of the MeeDa chieftain, begged any menial. employment for
food. By direction of the Meena Rani, she was entertained with
the slaves. One day she was ordered to prepare dinner, of which
Ralnnsi, the Meena Raja, partook, and found it so superior to his
usual fare, that he sent for the cook, who related her stoi’y. As
soon as the Meena chief discovered the rank of the illustrious fugitive,
he adopted her as his sister, and Dhola Rae as his nephew. When
the boy had attained the age of Rajpoot manhood (fourteen) he was
sent to Dehli,* -with the tribute of Khogong, to attend instead of
the Meena. The young Cutchwaha remained there five years, when
he conceived the idea of usurping his benefactor’s authority. Having

* The Tiiar tribe were then supreme lords of India.

CHAP. I.]

ANNALS 03? AMBER.

321

consulted the Meena d’hadi ,* or bal’d, as to the best means of execut-
ing bis plan, be recommended liim to take advantage of the festival
of the Dewali, when it. is customary to perform the ablutions en
masse, in a tank. Having brought a few of his Rajpoot brethren
from Dehli, he accomplished his object, filling the reservoirs in which
the Mceuns bathed with their dead bodies. The treacherous bard
did not escape; Dhola Had put him to death with his own hand,
observing, “ he who had proved unfaithful to one master, could not
“ be trusted by another.*' He then took possession of Khogong.
Soon after, he repaired to Deosah, a castle and district ruled by an
independent chief of the Birgoojur tribe of Rajpoots, whose daughter
he demanded in marriage. “ How can this be,’* said the Birgoojur
“ when we are both Suryavansi, and one hundred generations have
ft not yet separated us ?’*+ But being convinced that the necessary
number of descents had intervened, the nuptials took place, and as
the Birgoojur had no male issue, he resigned his power to his son-in-
law. With the additional means thus at his disposal, Dhola deter-
mined to subjugate the Seroh ti’ibe of Meenas, whose chief, Rao
Hatto, dwelt atMauch. Again he was victorious, and deeming his
new conquest better adapted for a residence than Khogong, he
transferred his infant government thither, changing the name of
Maucli, in honour of his great ancestor, to Ramgurh.

Dhola subsequently married the daughter of the prince of Ajmer,
whose name was Maroni. Returning on one occasion with her from
visiting the shrine of Jumwahf Matd, the whole force of the Meenas
of that region assembled, to the number of eleven thousand, to
oppose his passage through their country. Dhola gave them battle :
but after slaying vast numbers of his foes, he was himself killed,
and his followers fled. Maroni escaped, and bore a posthumous
child, who was named Kankul, and who conquered the country of
Dhoondar. His son, Maidul Rao, made a conquest of Amber from
the Soosawut Meenas, the residence of their chief, named Bhatto,
who had the title of Rao, and was head of the Meena confederation.
He also subdued the Haudla Meenas, and added the district of
Gatoor-Gatti to his territory. 1 ”^ 11 ^

Hoondeosucceeded, and, like Ins’" .^ecess'ors^m turned the warfare
against the Meenas. He was sr eeded by Koontul, whose sway
extended over all the hill tribes . ind his capital. Having deter-
mined to proceed to Bhutwar, 1 ,iere a Ohohan prince resided, in
order to marry his daughter’, his Meena subjects, remembering the

* D’hddi,d’hoU, d’hSm, J&ega, are all terms for the bards or minstrels of the
Meena tribes.

f The Birgoojur tribe claims descent from Lava or Luo, the elder son of
Rama. As they trace fifty-six descents from Rama to Yicrama, and thirty-three
from Raja Mala to Dhola Rad, we have only to calculate the number of gene-
rations between Vicrama and Mai, to ascertain whether Dbola’s genealogist
went on good grounds. It was in S. 351 that Raja Mai erected Nnrwar,
which, at twenty- two years to a reign, gives sixteen to be added to fifty-six,
and this added to thirty-three, is equal to one bunded and five generations
from Rama to Dhola Rad.

[Tot. II.]

41

'ANNALS f 6F AMBER.

[CHAP. I.

S2&

former fatality, collected from all quarters, demanding that, if he
went beyond the borders, he should leave the standards and nakarras
of sovereignty in their custody. Koontul refusing to submit, a battle
ensued, in which the Meenas were defeated with great slaughter,
which secured his rule throughout Dhoondar.

Koontul was succeeded by Pujoon, a name well known to the
chivalrous Rajpoot, and immortalized by Chund, iu the poetic history
(Rasd) of the emperor Pirthi Raj. Before, however, we proceed
further, it may be convenient to give a sketch of the power and
numbers of the indigenous tribes at this period.

We have already had frequent occasion to observe the tendency
of the aboriginal tribes to emerge from bondage and depression,
which has been seen in Mewav, ELotah, and Booudi, and is now
exemplified in the rise of the Cutchwahas in Dhoondar. The original,
pure, nnmixed race of Meenas, Mynas, or Mainas, of Dhoondar, were
styled Puchwarra, and subdivided into five grand tribes. Their
oi’iginal home was in the range of mountains called Kdli-kho, extend-
ing from Ajmer nearly to the Jumna, where they erected Amber,
consecrated to Amba, the universal mother, or, as the Meenas style
her, Ghatta Rani, ‘ Queen of the pass/ In this range was Khogong,
Mauch, and many other large towns, the chief cities of communities.
But even so late as Raja Baliarmull Cutchwaha, the cotemporary of
Baber and Hemayoon, the Meenas had retained or regained great
power, to the mortification of their Rajpoot superiors. One of these
independent communities was at the aucient city of Nadn, destroyed
by Baharmull, no doubt with the aid of his Mogul connexions. An
old historical distich thus records the power of the Meena princes of
Kaen :

“ Bavoun Icofe chapun durwaza
‘‘ Myna murd, Aden ca Baja
“ Booro raj N&en Ico
“ Jab bhoos myn bhutto mango.”

That is, ” There were fifty-two strong-holds,* and fifty-six gates
“ belonging to the manly Myna, the Raja of Naen, whose sovereignty
“ of Naen was extiyip tilths, even of chaff {bhoos) he took a share.”
If this is not an exa[k n d. itjfy.ould appear that, during the distrac-
tions of the first Islitaite dynast jy of Dehli, the Meenas had attained
their primitive importance. Cfeeninly from Pujoon, the vassal chief--
tain of Pirthi Raj, to Baharmlpr, the cotemporary of Baber, the,
Cutchwahas had but little increased their territory. When Qbg
latter prince destroyed the Meena sovereignty of Naeu, hepfevelled
its half-hundred gates, and erected the town of Lowara f lltnY tbe
residence of the Rajawut chief) on its ruins. ^

A distinction is made in the orthography and Enunciation 0 f
the designation of this race : Myna , or Mama, me^- no . t be asil or
— ^ere ° 1

Koie is ‘ a fortress but it may be applied simply to _
of Na 6n, which in the number of its gates might rival T'
on its ruins, contains three thousand houses, and has ei
dependent on it. /

au„

her of ba'siions
owain, built
townships

5 .

CHAl>. I.]

ANNALS OP AMBER.

323

‘ umnixed class/ of which there is now but one, the Oosarra ; while
Meena is that applied to the mixed, of which they reckon bara pdl,*
or twelve communities, descended from Rajpoot blood, as Chokan,
Tiiar, Jadoon,.Purihar, Cutchwaha, Solanki, Sankla, Ghelote, &c.,and
these are subdivided into no less than five thousand two hundred
distinct clans, of "which it is the duty of the Jadga, Dholi, or Dhom,
their genealogists, to keep account. The unmixed Oosarra stock is
now exceedingly rai’e, while the mixed races, spread over all the hilly
and intricate regions of central and western India, boast of their
descent at the expense of “legitimacy . 55 These facts all tend strongly
to prove that the Rajpoots were conquerors, and that the moun-
taineer's, whether Kol{s, Bhils, Mynas, Goands, Sairias or Sarjas, are
the indigenous inhabitants of India. This subject will be fully
treated hereafter, in a separate chapter devoted to the Meena tribes,
their religion, manners, and customs.

Let us return to Poojoon, the sixth in descent from the exile of Nur-
war, who was deemed of sufficient consequeuce to obtain in marriage
the sister of Pirthi Raj, the Chokan emperor of Dehli, an honour
perhaps attributable to the splendour of Pujoon’s descent, added to
his great personal merit. The chivalrous Chohan, who had assembled
around him one hundred and eight chiefs of the highest rank
in India, assigned a conspicuous place to Pujoon, who commanded a
division of that monarch's armies in many of his most important
battles. Pujoon twice signalized himself in invasions from the north,
in one of which, when he commanded on the frontier, he defeated
Shabudin in the Khyber Pass, and pursued him towards Gazni. His
valour mainly contributed to the conquest of Makoba, the country of
the Chundails, of which he was left governor ; and he was one of the
sixty-four chiefs who, with a chosen body of their retainers, enabled
Pirthi Raj to carry off the princess of Canouj. In this service, cover-
ing the retreat of his liege lord, Pujoon lost his life, on the first of
the five days 5 continuous battle. Pujoon was conjoined with Govind
Gehlote, a chief of the Mewar house ; — both fell together. Chund,
the bard, thus describes the last hours of the Cutchwaha prince :
“ When Govind fell, the foe danced witli joy : then did Pujoon
thunder on the curtain of fight : with both hands he plied the Jtarg
(sword) on the heads of the barbarian. Pour hundred rushed upon
him ; but the five brothers in arms, Kehuri, Peepa, and Boho, with
Narsing and Cuchra, supported him. Spears and daggers are plied —
heads roll on the plain — blood flows in sti'eams. Pujoon assailed
Itimad ; but as his head rolled at his feet, he received the Khan’s
lance in his breast; the Coormaf fell in the field, aud the Apsaras

Pal is the term for a community of any of the aboriginal mountain races;
its import is a ‘defile,’ or ‘■valley,’ fitted for cultivation and defence. It is
probable that Poligar may be a corruption of Paligar, or the region (gar) of
these P(ds. Palitu, Bliilita, Philita, are terms used by the learned for the Bhil
tribes. Main a or Myna, Maira, Mairote, all designate mountaineers, from Mair,
or Mer, a hill.

f Coorma, or Cutchioa, are syuonimons terms, and indiscriminately applied
to the Kajpoots of Ajmer; meaning ‘ tortoise.’

(Tot. II.]

41a

[cbm*- n -

TkT( , oF ambb r '

. •«, them in durbar,

«Fvb

and dasbwg ' o . g - n my ^ reaching the ; cd tfnrwni, «*
«thoiateoxU Those vaunt n j cn t which , succession

■'can cast a«J. > diabolktO . n „ pvom«f $ tho «»)»■ t0 ,

recotn* to ■ *® bo »ssassiao£tasi- ^ y„»ng« “ ecte a tbs '.«j

““SVaif ° { ^Sa«teotterBam Smg,' by n^mg V» the

£ Hgjvss* w^r rs»» says

° £ Ka “ t f ttr tbonsand

king only B* ^her declined. w «nsub o£ Upon 1» 1B

the chronicle, de a, hudtlm Assamese. d e

*'■ •

short period. __

- -

yevsioH °J e 6atis &n Ins ?>t rc : Sine, in contvaclis-

conctd> M1C8 of Sov/ao 3ey << ‘MirZR

TT better hnown by the ' e entitled the ^ year V%£

£&££ “«*>■ ‘f £lS£SSa«i'-f Ho

tmc Apd in S. 1 T -ti,;,! six years ot tua _ r 0 { succession

sueeee ^ n) a-udTfi Bekhan, and m { AmmA' Shah,

fte princo Bea ar BoU , son J th >J tnttle

“ftlcbel bimVt . t " t ? r unV b i. lv “a";?S tbb elevation L,f Shalt
^ tto . rP a success 01 ' ° -i pd in their death «• , sequestrated,

5 C &v, tWs oppo^ ttSon-, bd J|y Sing

tlumBahadoorS^ rn0V se nt to ^ / out the tang Bensons,
tad “» fflS-A-’Si 1 Sjttfe* of Manwav fov then LnnW

entered hises Vj 6 witn . of

and £orm ed \ PB l e hrated Rajpoot through his

• preservation- \ to pursue t^ lS . Y . {ou r years he occ/apied the

Xt -would he tedmusl during the f j { it from its combination
aesnitoiy tnffitany i3 already knotvn J

9 adi oi Amber j e

CHAP, n.]

ANNALS OS' AMBEB.

829 \

with the Annals of Me war and Boondi, of wliicli Louse Le was the
implacable foe. Although Jey Sing mixed in all the troubles and
warfare of this long period of anarchy, when the throne of Timoor
was rapidly crumbling into dust, his reputation as a soldier would
never have handed down his name with honour to posterity ; on the
contrary, his courage had none of the fire which is requisite to make
a Rajpoot hero; though his talents for civil government and court
intrigue, in which he was the Machiavelli of his day, were at that
period far more notable auxiliaries.

As a statesman, legislator, and man of science, the character of
Sowae Jey Sing is worthy of an ample delineation,* which would
correct our opinion of the genius and capacity of the princes
of Rajpootana, of whom we are apt to form too low an
estimate. He was the founder of the new capital, named after
him Jeipoor, or Jeinuggur, which became the seat of science
and art, and eclipsed the more ancient Amber, with which the forti-
fications of the modern city unite, although the extremity of the one
is six miles from the other. Jeipoor is the only city in India built
upon a regular plan, with streets bisecting each other at right .
angles. The merit of the design and execution is assigned to Yed) T -
adhar, a native of Bengal, one of the most eminent coadjutors of the 1
prince in all his scientific pursuits, both astronomical aDd historical.
Almost all the Rajpoot princes have a smattering of astronomy, or
rather of its spurious relation, astrology ; but Jey Sing went deep,
not only into the theory, but the practice of the science, and was so
esteemed for his knowledge, that he was entrusted by the emperor
Mahomed Shah with the reformation of the calendar. He had
erected observatories with instruments of his own invention atDehli,
Jeipoor, Oojein, Benares, and MaPhura, upon a scale of Asiatic
graudeur ; and their results were so correct as to astonish the most
learned. He had previously used such instruments as those of Ulug
Beg (the royal astronomer of Samarcand), which faded to answer his
expectations. From the observations of seven years at the various
observatories, he constructed a set of tables. While thus engaged,
he learned through a Portuguese missionary. Padre Manuel, the
progress which his favourite pursuit was making in Portugal, and he
sent " several skilful persons along with him^f to the court of
Emanuel. The king of Portugal despatched Xavier de Silva, who

# For such a sketch, the materials of the Ambdr court me abundant; to
instance only the Calpndroomo, a miscellaneous diary, in which everything of
note was wiitten, and a collection entitled TSh $eh noli noon Jey Sing ca, or
‘ the one hundred and nine actions of Jey Sing,’ of which I have heard several
narrated and noted. Hts voluminous coirespondenee with all the princes and
chiefs of his time would alono repay the tionbie of translation, and would
throw a more perfect light on the ‘manners and feelings of his countrymen
than the most laborious lucubrations of any European. 1 possess an autograph
letter of this prince, on one of the most important events of Indian history at
this period, the deposal of Eerochser. It was addressed to the liana.

f It would be wot th ascertaining whether the archives of Lisbon refer to
this circumstance.

[Vol. II.]

4 2

330

ANNALS OP AMBER.

[chap. II.

communicated to the Rajpoot prince the tables of De la Hire.* “ On
rt examining aud comparing the calculations of these tables (says the
” Rajpoot prince) with actual observation, it appeared there was an
u error in the former, in assigning the moon's place, of half a degree;

“ although the error in the other planets was not so great, yet the
“ times of solar and lunar eclipses he-f fouud to come out later or
“ earlier than the truth by the fourth part of a ghurry, or fifteen puls
“ (six minutes of time) In like manner, as he fouud fault with the
instruments of brass used by the Toorki astronomer, and which he
conjectures must have been such as were used by Hipparchus and
Ptolemy, so he attributes the inaccuracies of De la Hire’s tables to
instruments of ” inferior diameters." The Rajpoot prince might
justly boast of his instruments. With that at Dehli, he, in A.D.
1729, determined the obliquity of the ecliptic to be 23° 28'; within
28" of what it was determined to be, the year following, by Godin.
His general accuracy was further put to the test in A.D. 1793, by
our scientific countryman. Dr. W. Hunter, who compared a series of
observations on the latitude of Oojein with that established by the
Rajpoot prince. The difference was 24"; and Dr. H. does not
depend on his own observations within 15''. Jey Sing made the
latitude 23° 10' N. ; Dr. Hunter, 23° 10' 24" N.

Prom the results of his varied observations, Jey Sing drew up a
set of tables, which he entitled Zeij Mahomedshalri, dedicated to that
monarch ; by these, all astronomical computations are yet made, and
almanacks constructed. It would be wrong, — while considering
these labours of a prince who caused Euclid's Elements, the treatises
on plain and spherical trigonometry, f Don Juan’ Napier on the
construction and use of logarithms, to be translated into Sanscrit, —
to omit noticing the high strain of devotion with which he views
the wonders of the “ Supreme Artificer;" recalling the line of one of
our own best poets :

“ An undevout astronomer is mad.”

The Rajpoot prince thus opens his preface: “ Praise be to God,
such that the minutely discerning genius of the most profound -
geometers, in uttering the smallest particle of it, may open the
mouth in confession of inability ; and such adoration, that tho study
and accuracy of astronomers, who measure the heavens, may acknow-
ledge their astonishment, and utter insufficiency! Let ns devote
ourselves at the altar of the King of Kings, hallowed be his name !
in the book of the register of whose pdwer the lofty orbs of heaven
are only a few leaves ; and the stars, and that heavenly courser the
sun, small pieces of money, in the treasury of the empire of the
Most High.

“ Prom inability to comprehend the all-encompassing beneficence
of his power, Hipparchus is an ignorant clown, who wrings the
hands of vexation ; and in the contemplation of his exalted majesty,

* Second, edition, published in A.D. 1702. Jey Sing finished hisin A.D, 1728.

■f Jey Sing always speaks of himself in the third person.

CHAP. IX.]

ANNALS OP AMBER.

331

Ptolemy is a bat, who cau never arrive ab the sun of truth : the
demonstrations of Euclid are an imperfect sketch of the forms of
his contrivance.

“Bub since the well-wisher of the works of creation, and the
admiring spectator of the works of infinite wisdom, Sevai Jey Sing,
from the first dawning of reason in his mind, and during its progress
towards maturity, was entirely devoted to the study of mathematical
science, and the bent of his mind was constantly directed to the
solution of its most difficult problems; by the aid of the Supreme
Artificer, he obtained a thorough knowledge of its principles and
rules,” &c.*

Besides the construction of these objects of science, he erected, at
his own expense, caravanserais for the free use of travellers in many
of the provinces. How far vanity may have mingled with benevo-
lence in this act (by no means uncommon in India), it were unchari-
table to enquire : for the Hindu not only prays for all those “who
“travel by land or by water,” but aids the traveller by serais, or
inns, and wells dug at his own expense, and in most capitals and
cities, under the ancient princes, there were public charities for
necessitous travellers, at which they had their meals, and then
passed on.

When we consider that Jey Sing carried on his favourite pursuits
in the midst ‘of perpetual wars and court intrigues, from whose
debasing influence he escaped not untainted; when amidst revolution,
the destruction of the empire, and the meteoric rise of the Mahrattas,
he not only steered through the dangers, but elevated Amber above
all the principalities around, we must admit that he was an extra-
ordinary man. Aware of the approaching downfall of the Mogul
empire, and determined to aggrandize Amber from the wreck, he
was, nevertheless, not unfaithful to his lord-paramount; for, on the
conspiracy which deprived Ferochser of empire and of life, Jey Sing
was one of the few princes who retained their fidelity, and would

* See “ Account of the astronomical labours of Jyn Sing, Raja of Ambdr,” By
Dr. W. Hunter ; (Asiatic Researches, Vol. Y, p, 177), to whom I refer the reader
for the description of the instruments used by the Raja. The author has seen
those ab Dehli and Mat’hurn. There is also an equinoctial dial constructed on
the terrace of the palace of Oodipoor, and various instruments at Kotah and
Boondi, especially an ai miliary sphere, at the former, of about five feet in
diameter, all in brass, got up under the scholars of Jey Sing.

Dr. Hunter gives a most interesting account of a young pundit, whom ho
found at Oojein, the grandson of one of the coadjutors of Jey Sing, who held
the office of Jyotieh-Jine, or Astronomer-Royal, and an estate of five thousand
rupees annual rent, both of which (title and estate) descended to this young
roan : but science fled with Jey Sing, and the Barbarian Mahrattas had ren-
dered his estate desolate and unproductive. He possessed, says Dr. H , a
thorough acquaintance with the Hindu nstronomical science contained in the
various Siddhantas, and that not confined to the mechanical practice of rules,
but founded on a geometrical knowledge of their demonstration. This
inheritor of the mantle of Jey Sing died at Jeipoor, soon after Dr. Hunter left
Oojein, in A.D. 1793.

[Vol. H.]

\

42a

ANNALS OF AMBER.

332

[chap. ir.

have stood by him to the last, if he had possessed a particle of the
valour which belonged to the descendants of Timoor.*

Enough has been said of his public life, in that portion of the
Annals of Mewar with which he was so closelj' connected, both by
political and family ties. The Syeds, who succeeded to power on
the murder of their sovereign Ferochsdr, were too wise to raise
enemies unnecessarily; and Jey Sing, when he left tlie unhappy
monarch to his fate, retired to his hereditary dominions, devoting
himself to his favourite pursuits, astronomy and history. He appears
to have enjoyed three years of uninterrupted quiet, taking no part
in the struggles, which terminated, in A.D. 172 1, with Mahomed
Shah’s defeat of his rivals, and the destruction of the Syeds. At
this period, Jey Sing wajj called from his philosophical pursuits, and
appointed the king’s lieij tenant for the provinces of Agra and Malwa
in succession : and it ^as during this interval of comparative repose,
^Eaikir&fireStfid. tho%© monuments which irradiate this dark epoch of
the history of IucfTa.f Nor was he blind to the interests of his nation
or the honor of Amber, and his important office was made subser-
vient to obtaining the repeal of that disgraceful edict, th ejezeya, and
authority to repress the infant power of the Jats, long a thoirn in
the side of Ambdr. But when, in A.D. 1732, the Baja, once more
lieutenant for Malwa, saw that it was in vain to attempt to 'check
the Mahratta invasion, or to prevent the partition of the empire, he
deemed himself justified in consulting the welfare of his own house.
We know not what terms Jey Sing entered into with the Mahratta
leader, Bajirow, who, by his influence was appointed Soobadar of
Malwa; we may, however, imagine it was from some more powerful
stimulant than the native historian of this period assigns, namely,
■” a similarity of religion.” By this conduct, Jey Sing is said empha-
tically, by his own countrymen, to have given the key of Hindust’han
to the Southron. The influence his character obtained, however,
with the Mahrattas was even useful to his sovereign, for by it he
retarded their excesses, which at leugth reached the capital. In a
few years more (A.D. 1739), Nadir Shah’s invasion took place, and
the Rajpoots, wisely alive to their own interests, remained aloof
from a cause which neither valour nor wisdom could longer serve.
They respected the emperor, but the system of government had long
alienated these gallant supporters of the throne. We may exemplify
the trials to which Rajpoot fidelity was exposed, by one of “ the
“hundred and nine deeds of Jey Sing,” which will at the same time
serve further to illustrate the position, that half the political and

* Scott, in his excellent history of the successors of Arnngzdb, gives a full
account of this tragical evenr,. on which I have already touched in Vol I
346, of this work; where I have given a literal translation of the anf-mirnnh
letter of Raja Jey Sing on the occasion. iw>„rapti

f The Raja says he finished his tables in A.D. 1728, and that he had occupied
himself seven years previously in the necessary observations; in fact the first
quiet years of Mahomed Shah’s reign, or indeed that India had known for
centuries.

333

ahnais of ambbb.

AN»A1i3 «« —

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two BOOS, JeySiaS

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^SSs^S^iiS;

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v ^‘Cofato-S of «w • *. 7-srSai

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position : , satisfied wit i „ rp be y a&vt d } 16 was '

•- £ SS-ss sjSsr *-£s«s

jsS fi^assaf- -s."fisri ;« ms

at the roorf^iefs to act for tan. wit h all the uece ^
powers to the >chi« ^ Bee jy Sing, P>» h , a no 0°”*“° “a in the

Bent their minis prince^' 3?oy themself

*'l'be Hazn’

-n ALemi, ■ j^m, dan,

fViorrowed ons>““'^ ) uir oan events, Saloombra pt

i °a PViund) S° verU , , e this house ( as , the ‘ Patel of

^tsrtSSm 01 tt *

££WAm«r,wh. M v.rthey

1/

334

ANNAES OP AMBER.

[CHAP. II.

from his engagements, they were his/ and would themselves place
him ou the gadt of Ambdr.

Me accepted their interposition and the grant, which being
explained to his patron, he was by no means satisfied,- nevertheless
lie ordered Khandoran and Kirpararn to accompany him, to see him
inducted in his new appanage of Busswa. The chiefs, anxious to
reconcile the brothers, obtained Beejy Sing’s assent to a meeting, and
as he declined going to Amber, Chomoo was proposed and agreed to,
but was afterwards changed to the town of Sanganair, six miles
south-west of Jeipoor, where Beejy Sing pitched his tents. As Jey
Sing was quitting the durbar to give his brother the meeting, the
Nazir entered with a message from the queen-mother, to know,
" why her eyes should not be blessed with witnessing the meeting
" and reconciliation of the two Laljis The Kaja referred the
request to tho chiefs, who said there could be no objection.

The Nazir prepared the inahctdole, with three hundred chariots for
the females ; but instead of the royal litter containing the qneeu-
mother, it was occupied by Oogur Sdn, the Bhatt.i chief, and each
covered chariot contained two chosen Sillehposlnans , or men at arms.
Not a soul but the Nazir and bis master were aware of the treachery.
The procession left the capital; money was scattered with profusion
liy the attendance of the supposed queen-mother, to the people who
thronged the highways, rejoicing at the approaching conclusion of
these fraternal feuds.

A messenger having brought the intelligence that the queen-mother
had ai’rived at the palace of Sanganair, the Baja and his chiefs
mounted to join her. The brothers first met and embraced, when
Jey Sing presented the grant of Busswa, saving, with some warmth,
that if his brother preferred ruling at Amber, he would abandon his
birth-right and take Busswa. Beejy Sing, overcome with this
kindness, replied, that "all his wants were satisfied.” When the
time to separate had arrived, the Nazir came into the court with a
message from the queen-mother, to say, that if the chiefs would
withdraw she would come and see her children, or that they might
come to her apartment. Jey Sing referred his mother’s wish to the
chiefs, saying he had no will but theirs. Having advised the brothers
to wait, on the queen-moth ei’, they proceeded hand iu hand to the
interior of the mahl. When arrived at the door, Jey Sing, taking
his dagger from his girdle, delivered it to an eunuch, saying, "what
"occasion for this here?” and Beejy Sing, not to be outdone iu
confidence, followed his example. As the Nazir closed the door,
Beejy Sing found himself, not in the embrace of the queen-
motber, but in the iron gripe of the gigantic Bhatti, who
instantly bound him hand and foot, and placing him in the
mahadole, the mock female procession with their prisoner returned
to Ambdr. In an hour, tidings were conveyed to Jey Sing

* Lalji is an epithet of endearment used by all classes of Hindus towards
their children, from the Sanscrit larla.

CHIP. II.]

ANNALS OF AMBER.

335

of the prisoner being safely lodged in the castle, when he rejoined
the conclave of his chiefs; who on seeing him euter alone, attended
by some of the 1 men at arms’ stared at each other, and asked “what
“ had become of Beejy Sing ?” — “ Humdra-pait myn,” ‘ in my belly !’
was the reply. “We are both the sons of Bishen Sing, and I the
“ eldest. If it is your wish that he should rule, then slay me and
“ bring him forth. For you I have forfeited my faith, for should
“ Beejy Sing have introduced, as assuredly he would, your enemies
“ and mine, you must have perished.” Hearing this, the chiefs were
amazed; but there was no remedy,’ and they left the palace in
silence. Outside were encamped six thousand imperial horse,
furnished by the vizier as the escort of Beeji Sing, whose commander
demanded what had become of their trust. Jey Sing replied, “It
“ was no affair of theirs,” and desired them to be gone, “ or he would
“ request their horses of them.” They had no alternative but to
retrace their steps, and thus was Beeji Sing made prisoner.*

Whatever opiuion the moralist may attach to this specimen of
“ the hundred and niue goon ” of the royal astronomer of Amber,
which might rather be styled goona\ (vice) than goon (virtue), no
one will deny that it was done in a most masterly manner, and
where chul or stratagem is a necessary expedient, did honour to the
talents of Jey Sing and the Nazir, who alone, says the narrative,
were accessory to the plot. In this instance, moreover, it was
perfectly justifiable; for with the means and influence of the vizier
to support him, Beejy Sing must, sooner or later, have supplanted
his brother. The fate of Beejy Sing is not stated.

The Cutchwaka state, as well as its capital, owes everything to
Jey Sing: before his time, it had little political weight beyond that
which it acquired from the personal character of its princes, and
their estimation at the Mogul court. -Yet, notwithstanding the
intimate connexion which existed between the Amber Rajas and the
imperial family, from Baber to Arungzeb, their patrimonial estates
had been very little enlarged since Pujoon, the cotemporary of the
last Rajpoot emperor of Dehli. Nor was it till the troubles which
ensued on the demise of Arungzeb, when the empire was eventually
partitioned, that Arnbdr was entitled to the name of a raj. During
those troubles, Jey Sing’s power, as the king’s lieutenant in Agra,
which embraced his hereditary domains, gave him ample opportunity '
to enlarge and consolidate his territory. The manner in which he
possessed himself of the independent districts of Deoti and Rajore,
affords an additional insight into the national character, and that of
this prince.

At the accession of Jey Sing, the raj of Ambdr consisted only of
the three pergunhahs or districts of Ambdr, Deosah, and Bussao ; the

* I have made a verbatim translation of this goon.

t This is a singular instauce of making the privative an affix instead of
prefix ; a-goon, * without virtue,’ would be the common form.

336

A&MLS Of AMBER.

[CHAP, if,

■western tracts had been sequestrated, and added to ttie royal domains
attached to Ajmer. The Shekhavati confederation was superior to,
and independent of, the parent state, whose boundaries were jib
follows: The royal t’hatona (garrison) of Chatsoo, to the.sonth;
those of Sambhur to the west, and Hastinah to the north-west ;
while to the east, Deosah and Bussao formed its frontier. The
kotribunds, as they denominate the twelve-great feudalities, pos-
sessed but very slender domains, and were held cheap by the great
vassals of Mewar, of whom the Saloombra chief was esteemed, even
by the first Pdshwa, as the equal of the prince of the Cutchwahas.

Rajore was a city of great antiquity, the capital of a petty state
called Deoti, ruled by a cliief of the Birgoojur tribe, descended, like
the Cutchwahas, from Rama, but through Lao, the elder sou. The
Birgoojurs of Rajore had obtained celebrity amongst the more
modern Rajpoots, by their invincible repugnance to matrimonial
alliance with the Mahomedaus ; and while the Cutchwahas set the
degrading example, and by so doing eventually raised themselves to
affluence, the Birgoojur 'conquered renown in the song of the bard/
by performing tbe saka in defence ofhis honour. While, therefore,
Sowad Jey Sing ruled as a viceroy over kingdoms, the Birgoojur
was serving with his contingent with the Byeesd, and at the period
in question, in Anopsheher, on the Ganges. When absent on duty,
the safety of Rajore depended on his younger brother. One day,
while preparing for the chase of the wild boar, he became so
impatient for his dinner, that his sister-in-law remarked, "one would
“ suppose you were going to throw a lance at Jey Sing, you are in
“ such a hurry.'” This was touching a tender subject, for it will be
recpllected that the first territory in the plains obtained by ‘the
Cutchwahas, on their migration from Nurwar, was Deosah, ‘a
Birgoojur possession “ By Thalcoor-ji (the Lord), 1 shall do so, ere
" I eat from your bands again,” was the fierce reply. With ten
horsemen he left Rajore, and took post under the dhoolkdte, or
c mud walls/ of Amber. But Tfeeks and months 'fled ere he
found an opportunity to execute his threat - he gradually Sold
all his horses, and was obliged to dismiss his attendants. Still he
lingered, and sold his clothes, and all his arms, except his spear;
he had been three days without food, when he sold half his
turban for a meal. That day, Jey Sing left the castle by the
road called mora, a circuitous path to avoid a hill. He was in his
soolc’hdsun ; as he passed, a spear was delivered, which lodged in
the corner of the litter. A hundred swords flew'out to slay the
assassin ; but the Raja called aloud to take him alive, and early him
to Amber. When brought before him and asked who he was, and
the 'cause of such an acr, he boldly replied, “I am the Deoti Bir-
“ goojur. and threw the spear at you merely from' some words with
“ m y Bhdbee j either kill or release me.” He related how long he
had lain in wait for him, and added, that " had he not been four

* A litter, literally ‘ seat (aeun) of ease ( sooh’h ).’

CHAP. II.]'

ANNALS OP AMBER.

337

" days without food, the spear would have douo its duty.” Jey Sing,
with politic magnanimity, freed him from restraint, gave him a
horse and dress of honour ( Ichclut ), and sent, him, escorted by fifty
horse, in safety to Rnjore. Iluviug told his adventure to his sister-
in-law, she replied, "you have wounded the envenomed snalco, and
“ have given water to the state of Rajore." She knew that n pretext
alone was wanting to Jey Sing, and this was now unhappily given.
With the advice of the ciders, the females and children wore sent to
the Raja at Andpsheher,* and the castles of Deoti and Rnjore were
prepared for the storm.

On the third day after the occurrence, Joy Sing, in a full meeting
of his chiefs, related the circumstance, and hold out the bcera against
Deoti ; but Mohun Sing of Chornoo warned bis prince of the risk of
such an attempt, ns the Birgoojur chief was not only estimated at
court, but then served with his contingent. This opinion of the
'chief noble of Atnbdr alarmed the assembly, and none were eager to
seek tho dangerous distinction. A month passed, and war against
Deoti was again proposed!; but none of the Kotribunds seeming
inclined to oppose the opinion of their ostensible head, Futteh
Sing Buubocrpota, the chieftain of one hundred and fifty vassals,
accepted the bcera, when five thousand horse were ordered to
assemble under his command. Hearing that tho Birgoojur had left
Rajoro to celobrate tho festival of Gnngore, he moved towards him,
sending on some messengers with " the compliments of Futteh Sing
" Bunbeerpota, and that he was at band." The young Birgoojur, who,
little expecting any hostile visitation, was indulging during this
festive season, put the heralds to denth, and with his companions, com-
pletely taken by surprise, was in turn cut to pieces by the Jeipoor
troops. Tho Rani of Rajore was the sister of the Chutchwaha chief
of Chomoo : she was about giving a pledge of affection to her absent
lord, when Rajore was surprised and taken. Addressing. the victor,
Futteh Sing, she said, "Brother, give me the gift {dan) of my
" womb j" but suddenlyrecollecting that her own unwise speech had
occasioned this loss of her child's inheritance, exclaiming, " Why
should I preserve life to engender feuds ?” she sheathed a dagger in
her bosom and expired. The heads of the vanquished Birgoojurs
were tied up in handkerchiefs, and suspending them from their
saddle-horses, the victors returned to their prince, who sent for that
of his intended assassin, tho young Birgoojur chieftain. As soon as
Mohun Bing recognized the features of his kinsman, the tears poured
down his face. Jey Siug, recollecting the advice of this, the first
' noble of his court, which delayed his revenge a whole month, called
his grief treason, and upbraided him, saying, “ when the spear was
" levelled for my destruction, no tear fell." He sequestrated Chomoo,
and banished him from Dhooudar : the chief found refuge with the
Rana at Oodipoor. " Thus (says the manuscript) did Jey Sing dis-

* Tho descendants of this chieftain still occupy lands at Andpsbeher.
[Ton. II.] 43

338

ANNALS OF AMBER

[CHAP. n.

tc P oss . es . s Birgoojur of Deoti and Rajor f, which were added to his

dominions : they embraced all the tract now called Macberri.”*

Amongst fcbe foibles of Jey Sing’s chayaeter was his partiality to
“ strong drink.” What this beverage was, whether the juice of the
madhu (mead), or the essence (arac) or rice, the traditional chro-
nicles of Ambdr do not declare, though they mention frequent
appeals from Jey Sing drunk, to Jey $iug sober : one anecdote has
already been related. -j- /

In spite of his many defects, Jey Sing’s name is destined to
descend to posterity as one of the most remarkable men of his age
and nation. j

\

Until Jey Sing’s time, the palace of Amber, built by the great
Raja Maun, inferior to many private houses m the new city, was
the chief royal residence. The Mirza Raja made several additions to
it, but these were ti’ifles compared wit|i the edifice addedj by Sow&e
Jey Sing, which has made the residence of the Cutchwaha princes
as celebrated as those of Boondl or Oodipoor, or, to borrow a more
appropriate comparison, the Kremlin at Moscow. ,It was in S, 1784
(A.D. 1728) that he laid the foundation of Jeipoor. Raja Mull was
the mosaheb, Kirparam the stationary vakeel at Dehli, and Boodh
Sing Khombani, with the oordoo, or royal camp, in the Dekhan :
all eminent men. The position he chose for the new capital enabled
him to connect it with the ancient castle of Arnbdr, situated upon a
peak at the apex of the re-entering angle of the range called Khali-
Jcho ; a strong circumvallation enclosed the gorge of the mountain,
and was carried over the crest of the hills, on either side, to unite
with the castle, whilst all the adjoining passes were strongly fortified.

The sumptuary laws which he endeavoured to establish throughout
Rajpootana for the regulation of marriages, in order to check those
lavish expenses that led to infanticide and satis, will be again called
forth when the time is ripe for the abolition of all such unhallowed
acts. For this end, search should be made for the historical legends
called the ‘ hundred and nine acts,’ in the archives of Jeipoor, to
which ready access could be obtained, and which should be ran-
sacked for all the traces of this great man’s mind.§ Like all Hindus,

* Rnjore is esteemed a place of great antiquity, and the chief seat of the
Bimcojur tribe for ages, a tribe mentioned with high respect in the works of
the^bard Cbund, and celebrated in the wars of Pirthi Raj. I sent a party to
Rajore in 1813

f Annals of Marwar, Vol. II, p. 96. ,

+ The manuscript says, “ On the spot where the first Jey bing erected the
« three malils, and excavated the tank called the Talhtitora, he erected other

edifices.” As Hindu princes never throw down the works of their pi edecessors,

this means that he added greatly to the old palace.

g By such researches we should in all probability recover those sketches of >
ancient history of the various dynasties of Rajpootana, which he is said to have

collected with great pnins and labour, and the genealogies of the old races,

under the titles of Hajawcili and H&j Taviugvni: besides, the astronomical
works, either original or translations, such as were collected by Jey Sing,
would be a real gift to science.

CHAP. II.]

ANNALS OP AMBEK.

339

he was tolerant ; and a Brahmin, a Mahomedan, or a Jain, were
alike certain of patronage. The Jains enjoyed his peculiar estima-
tion, from the superiority of their knowledge, and be is said to have
been thoroughly conversant both in their doctrines andtheirhistories.
Yidhyadkur, one of his chief coadjutors in his astronomical pursuits,
and whose genius planned the city of Jeipoor, was a Jain, and
claimed spiritual descent from the celebrated Hemackarya, of Nehr-
valla, minister and spiritual guide of his namesake, the great Sidraj
Jey Sing.*

Amongst the vanities of the founder of Amber, it is said that he
intended to get up the ceremony of the aswamedha yuga, or ‘ sacrifice
of the horse,’ a rite which his research iuto the traditions of his
nation must have informed him hadhe entailed destruction on all who
had attempted it, from the days of Janmeja the Pandu, to Jeichund,
the last Rajpoot monarch of Canouj. It was a virtual assumption
of universal supremacy ; and although, perhaps, in virtue of his
office, as the satrap of Dehli, the horse dedicated to the sun might
have waudeied unmolested on the banks of the Ganges, he would
most assuredly have found his way into a Rahtoi’e stable had he
roamed in the direction of the desert : or at the risk both, of jeva and
gadi (life and throne), the Hara would have seized him, had he
fancied the pastures of the Chmnbul.f He erected a sacrificial hall
of much beauty and splendour, whose columns and ceilings were
covered with plates of silver ■, nor is it improbable that the steed,
emblematic of Siirya, may have been led round the hall, and after-
wards sacrificed to the solar divinity. The Yugsala of Jey Sing,
one of the great ornaments of the city, was, however, stripped of its
rich decoration by his profligate descendant, the late Juggut Sing,
who had not the grace eveu of Rekoboam, to, replace them with
inferior oimameuts ; and the noble treasures of learning which Jey
Sikg had collected from every quarter, the accumulated results of
his own research and that of his predecessors, were divided into two
portions, and one-hal f was given to acommon prostitute^ the favourite
of the da) r . The most remarkable MSS. were, till lately, hawking
about Jeipoor.

Sowae Jey Sing died in S. 1799 (A.D. 1743), having ruled forty-
four years. Three of his wives and several concubines ascended his
funeral pyre, on which science expired with him.

* Ho ruled from S. 1150 to S. 1201, A.D. 1094, 1145.
f See Yol. T, p. 71, for a description of the rite of Aswamedha.

43a

340

ANftALS OF AMBER.

[chap, air.

CHAPTER III.

The Rajpoot league. — Aggrandizement of Amber. — Eesitii Sing succeeds.—
Intestine houbles produced by polygamy.— Madhu Sing. — The Jats— Their
Rajas. — Violation of the Amber territory by the Jats. — Rattle. — Rise of
Macheni. — Recline of the Outclmaha power after the death of Madhu Sing . —
Pirthi Sing. — Pertap Sing. — Inti igues at his court. — The stratagems of
Khooshialiram, and the Macherri chief. — Death of Feeroz the feelban,
paramour of the Pat-Rani. — Broils with the Mahrattas. — Pei tap attains
majority, and gains the victory of Tonga — Sis dijficulties. — Exactions of the
Mahrattas. — Juggut Sing. — Sis follies and despicable character. — Makes Ras-
caphoor, his concubine, queen of half Amber. — Project to depose him prevented
by a timely sacrifice. — Mohun Sing elected his successor.

The league formed at this time by the three chief powers of Raj- -
pootana has already been noticed in the Annals of Mewar. It was
one of self-preservation ; and while the Rahtores added to Mavwar
from Guzzerat, the Cutchwalias consolidated all the districts in their
neighbourhood under Amber. The Shekhavati federation was com-
pelled to become tributary, and but for the rise of the J&ts, the
state of Jeipoor would have extended from the lake of SambhuV to
the Jumna.

Eesuri Singsucceeded to a well-defined territory, heaps of treasure,
an efficient ministry, and a good army ; hut the seeds of destruction
lurked in the social edifice so lately raised, and polygamy was again
the immediate^ agent. Eesuri Sing was the successor of Jey Sing,
according to the fixed laws of primogeniture ; hut Madhu Sing, a
younger son, bora of a princess of Mewar, possessed conventional
rights which vitiated those of birth. These have already been dis-
cussed, as well as their disastrous issue to the unfortunate Eesuri
Sing, who was not calculated for the times, being totally deficient
in that nervous energy of character, without which a Rajpoot prince
can enforce no respect. His conduct on the Abdalli invasion
'admitted the construction of cowardice, though his reti*eat from the
field of battle, when the commander-in-chief, Kumurodin Khan, was
killed, might have been ascribed to political motives, were it not
recorded that his own wife received him with gibes and reproaches.
There is every appearance of Jey Sing having repented of his
engagement on obtaining the hand of the Seesodia princess, namely,
that her issue should Succeed, as he had in his life-time given an
appanage unusually large to Madhfi Sing, viz., the four pergunnahs
of Tonk, Rampoora, Phaggi, and Malpoora. The Rana also, who
supported hik nephew's claims, assigned to him the rich fief of
Rampoora Bhanpoora in Mdwar, which as well as Tonk Rampoora,
constituting apettyr sovereignty, were, with eighty-fourlacs (£840,000
sterling), eventually made over to Holcar for supporting his claims
to the 1 cushion' of Jeipoor. The consequence of this barbarous
intervention in the international quarrels of the Rajpoots annihilated

CftAP. III.]

‘ANNALS 'OP AMBER.

tlie certain >profepect thOy bad of national independence, on the
breaking up of the empire, and subjected them to a thraldom still
more degrading, from which a chance of redemption is now offered
to them.

Hadhd Sing, on his accession, displayed great vigour of mind, and
though faithful to his engagements, he soon shewed the Mahrattas
he would admit of no protracted interference in his affairs; and had
not the rising power of the J&ts distracted his attention and divided
his l'esources, lie would, had his life been prolonged, in conjunction
with the Itahtores, have completely humbled their power. But this
near enemy embarrassed all his plans. Although the history of the
Jfbts is now^well known, it may not be impertinent shortly to com-
memorate the rise of a power, which, from a rustic condition, in
little more than half a century was able to baffle the ai’mies of
Britain, led by the most popular commander it ever had in the East ;
for till the siege of Bhurtpore the name of Lake was always coupled
with victory.

The JSts* are a branch of the great Getic race, of which enough
has been said in various parts of this work. Though reduced from
the x’nnk they once had amongst the * thirty-six royal races/ they
appear never to have renounced the love of independence, which
they contested with Gyrus in their original haunts in Sogdiana. The
name of the Cincinnatus of the Jats, who abandoned his plough to
lead his couutrymen against their tyrants, was Cliooramun. Taking
advantage of ’the sanguinary civil wars amongst the successors of
Arungzeb, they erected petty ‘ castles in the villages (whose lands
they cultivated) of Thoon and Sinsini, and soon obtained the dis-
tinction of Icuzzdks, or 'robbers/ a title which they were not slow to
fflerit, by their inroads as far as the royal abode of Ferochsdr. The
Syeds, then in power, commanded Jey Sing of Amber to attack
them in their strong-holds, and Thoon and Sinstni were simulta-
neously invested. But the J&ts, even in the very infancy of their
powbr, evinced the same obstinate skill in defending mud walls,
which in later times gained them so much celebrity. The royal
astronomer 'of Ambdr was foiled, and after twelve months of toil, waS
ingloriously compelled to raise both seiges.

Not long after this event, Buddun Sing, the younger brother of
Chooramun, and a joint proprietor of the land, was for some mis-
conduct placed in restraint, and had remained so for some years,
when, through the intercession of Jey Sing and the guarantee of the
other Bhonna J&ts, he was liberated. His first act was to fly to
Ambdr, and to bring its prince, at the head of an army, to invest
Thoon, which, after a gallant defence of six months, surrendered and
was razed to the ground. Chooramun and his son, Mohkum Sing

* It has been seen how the Yadu-Bhatfcl princes, when they fell from their
rank of Rajpoots, assumed that of Jits, or Jats, who are assuredly a mixture of
the Rajpoot and Yuti, Jib, or Gete races. See p. 204 .

342

ANNALS OF AMBEK.

[CHAP. III.

effected tlieir escape, and Budduh Sing was proclaimed chief of the
J&ts, and installed, as Raja, by Jey Sing, in the town of Deew,
destined also in after-times to have its share of fame.

Buddun Sing had a numerous progeny, and four of his sons
obtained notoriety, viz., Soorajmull, Subharam, Pert&p Sing, and
Beernarain. Buddun Sing subjected several of the royal districts t-o
his authority. He abdicated his power in favour of his elder son,
Soorajmull, having in the first instance assigned the district of Wayr,
on which he had constructed a fort, to his son Pertap.

Soorajmull inherited all the tm'bnlence and energy requisite to carry
on the plans of his predecessors. His first act was to dispossess a
relative, named Raima, of the castle of Bhurtpoor, afterwards the
celebrated capital of the Jats. In the year S. 1820 (A.D. 1764),
Soorajmull carried his audacity so far as to make an attempt upon
the imperial city ; but here his career was cut short by a party of
Baloch horse, who slew him while enjoying the chase. He had five
sons, viz . , Jowahir Sing, Ruttun Sing, Newul Sing, Nahur Sing,
Runjeet Sing, and also an adopted son, named Hurdeo Bulcsh, picked
up while hunting. Of these five sons, the first two were by a wife
of the Koormi* tribe ; the third was by a wife of the Malm, or
horticultural class; while the others were by Jatni’s, or women of
his own i-ace. '

Jowahir Sing, who succeeded, was the contemporary of Raja
Madhfi Sing, whose reign in Jeipoor we have just reached; and to
the Jat’s determination to measure swords with him were owing,
not only the frustration of his schemes for humbling the Mahratta,
but the dismemberment of the "country by the defection .of the chief
of Macherri. Jowahir Sing, in A.H. 1182, having in vain solicited
the district of Ramona, manifested hisresentment byinstantlymarch-
ing through the Jeipoor territories to the sacred lake of Posbkur,
without any previous intimation. He there met Raja Beejy Sing of
Marwar, who, in spite of his Jat origin, condescended to “exchange tur-
bans,” the sigu ot friendship and fraternal adoption. At this period,
Madhu Sing’s health was on the decline, and his counsels were guided
by two brothers, named Hursae and Goorsae, who represented
the insulting conduct of the J&tand required instructions. They were
commanded to address him a letter warning him not to return
through the territories of Amber, and the chiefs were desired to
assemble their retainers in order to punish a repetition of the insult.
But the Jat, who had determined to abide the consequences, paid no
regard to the letter, and returned homewards by the same route.
This was a justifiable ground of quarrel, and the united Kotribunds
marched to the encounter, to maintain the pretensions of their
equestrian order against the plebeian Jat. A desperate conflict
ensued, which,— thottgh4fe-tei£ninated in favour of the Outchwahas,

* The Koormi (the Koolmbi of the Dekhan) is perhaps the most numerous, i
next to tho Jats, of all the agricultural classes.

■CHAP, nr.]

ANNALS OP AMBER.

343

and in the flight of the leader of the JAfcs, proved destructive to
Amber, in tbe loss of almost every chieftain of note.*

This battle "was the indirect cause of the formation of Machevri
into an independent state, which a few words will explain. Pertap
Sing, of the Narooka clan, held the fief of Macherri ; for some fault
he was banished the country by Madhu Sing, and fled to Jowahir
Sing, from whom he obtained sirna (sanctuary), and lands for his
maintenance. The ex-cliieftain of Macherri had, as conductors of
his household affairs and his agents at court, two celebrated men,
Khooshialirauvf and Nnndram, who now shared his exile amongst
the Jilts. Though enjoying protection and hospitality at Bhurtpoor,
they did not the less feel the national insult, in that the Jat should
dare thus unceremoniously to traverse their country. Whether the
chief saw in this juncture an opening for reconciliation with his
liege lord, or that a pure spirit of patriotism alone influenced him, he
abandoned the place of refuge, and ranged himself at his old post,
under the standard of Ambdr, on the eve of the battle, to the gaining
of which he contributed not a little. For this opportune act of
loyalty his past errors were forgiven, and Madhii Sing, who only
survived that battle four days, restored him to his favour and his
fief of Macherri.

Madhu Sing died of a dysentery, after a rule of seventeen years.
Had he been spared, in all human probability he would have repaired
the injurious effects of the contest which gave him the gadi of
Amber; but a minority, and its accustomed anarchy, made his death
the point from which the Cutekwaha power declined. He built
several cities, of which that called after him Madhupoor, near the
celebrated fortress of Rinthumbor, the most secure of the commercial
cities of Rajwarra, is the most remarkable. He inherited no small
portion of his father's love of scieuce, which continued to make
Jeipoor the resort of learned men, so as to eclipse even the sacred
Benares.

Pirthi Sing II, a minor, succeeded, under the guardianship of the .
mother of his younger brother, Pertdp. The queen-regent, a Ohonda-

* Having given a slight sketch of the origin of the Jats, I may here
conclude it.

Ruttun Sing, the brother of Jowahir, succeeded him. He was assassinated
by a Gosadu Brahmin from Bindrabund, who had undertaken to teach tbe Jfit
prince the transmutation of metals, and had obtained considerable sums on
preteuce of preparing the process. Finding the day arrive on which he was to
commence operations, and which would reveal bis imposture, be had no way of
escape but by applying the knife to his dupe. Kesuri Sing, an infant, suc-
ceeded, under the guardianship of his uncle, Newul Sing. Runjeet Sing suc-
ceeded him, a name renowned for the defence of Bhurtpoor against Lord Lake.
He died A.I). 1815, and was succeeded by the eldest of four sons, viz., Rundheer
Sing, Baldeo Sing, Hurdeo Sing, and Luchmuu Sing. The_jnfan6 son of
Rundheer succeeded, under the tutelage of his uncle-;-to remove whom tbe
British army destroyed Bhurtpoor, which plundered it of its wealth, both
public and private. j

f Father of two men scarcely less celebrated than himself, Chutturbhoj and.
Duolut Ram.

344

AjfKALS OF AMflEB.

[CftiAF. III.

wafcni, was of an ambitions and resolute character, but degraded by
ber paramour, Feeroz, a Feelbdn , or f elephant-driver,’ whom she
made member of her council, which disgusted the chiefs, who
alienated themselves from court and remained at their estates.
Determined, however, to dispense with their aid, she entertained
a mercenary army under the celebrated TJmbaji, with which
she enforced the collection of the revenue. Arut Ram was at
this period the Dewan, or prime minister, and Khooshialiram Bora,
a name afterwards conspicuous in the politics of this court, was
associated in the ministry. But though these men were of the
highest order of talent, their influence was neutralized by that of
the Feelbdn, who controlled both the regent Ban! and the state.
Matters remained in this humiliating posture during nine years,
when Pirthi Sing died through n fall from his horse, though not
without suspicions that a dose of poison accelerated the vacancy of
the gadi, which the Rauf desired to see occupied by her own son.
The scandalous chronicle of that day is by no means tender of the
imputation of Madhu Sing’s widow. Having a direct interest in the
death of Pirthi Sing, the laws of common sense were violated in
appointing her guardian, notwithstanding her claims as Pat Pant,
or chief queen of the deceased. Pirthi Sing, though he never
emerged from the trammels of minority and the tutelage of the
Chondawatni, yet contracted two marriages, one with Bfkandr, the
other with Kishengurh. By the latter he had a son. Maun Sing.
Every court in Rajpootana has its Pretender, and young Maun was
long the bugbear to the court of Ambdr. He was removed secretly,
on his father’s death, to the maternal roof at Kishengurh ; but, as
this did not offer sufficient security, he was sent to Sindia’s camp,
and has ever since lived on the bounty of the Mahratta chief at
Gwalior.*

Pertap Sing was -immediately placed upon the gadi by the queen-
regent, his mother, and her council, consisting of the Feelbiin, and
Khooshialiram, who had now received the title of Ruja, and the rank
of prime minister. He employed the power thus obtained to
Supplant his rival Feeroz, and the means he adopted established the
independence of his old master, the chief of Macherri. This chief
was the only one of note who absented himself from the ceremony
of the installation of his sovereign. 'He was countenanced by the
minister, whose plan to get rid of his rival was to create as much
confusion as possible. In order that distress might reach the court,
he give private instructions that the zemindars should withhold

* Two or three times lie had a chance of being placed on th & gadi (vide letter'
of Resident with Sindia to Government, 27th March 1812), which assuredly
ought to be his : once, about 18)0, when the nobles of Jeipoor were disgusted
with the libertine Juggut Sing ; and again, upon the death 6f this dissolute
prince, in 1820. The last occasion presented a fit occasion for his accession ;
but the British Government were then the arbitrators, and I doubt much if bis
claims were disclosed to it, or understood by those who had the decision of the
question, which nearly terminated in a civil war.

ANNALS OP AMBEP/

345 ’

CHAP. III.]'

their payments ; "but these ‘minor stratagems would have been,
unavailing, bad be not associated in bis schemes the last remnants!
of power about the Mogul throne. Eu j if Khan was at this time the
imperial commander, who, aided by the Mahratths, proceeded to
expel the Jats from the city of Agra. He then attacked them in
their strong-hold of Bhurtpoor. Newul Sing was then the chief of
the Jats. The Macherri chief saw in the last act of expiring vigour,
of the imperialists an opening for the furtherance of his views, and
he united his troops to those of Nnjif Khan. This timely succour,
and his subsequent aid in defeating the Jats, obtained for him the
title of Kao Kaja, and a simnud for Macherri, to hold direct of the
crown. Khooshialiram, who, it is said, chalked out this course,
made his old master's success the basis of his own operations to
supplant the Feelban. Affecting the same zeal that he recommended
to the chief of Macherri, he volunteered to join the imperial standard
with all the forces of Amber. The queen-regent did not oppose the
Bliora's plan, but determined out of it still higher to exalt her
favourite : she put him at the head of the force, which post the
minister had intended for himself. This exaltation proved his ruin.
Feeroz, in command of the Ambdr army, met the Kao Raja of
Macherri on equal terms in the tent of the imperial commander.
Foiled in these schemes of attaining the sole conti’ol of affairs,
through the measure adopted, the Macherri chief, at the instigation
of his associate, resolved to accomplish his objects by less justifiable
means. He sought the friendship of the Feelban, and so successfully
ingratiated himself in his confidence as to administer a dose .of
poison to him, and in conjunction with the Bhora succeeded to the
charge of the government of Ambdr. The regent-queen soon
followed the Feelbau, and Raja Pertap was yet too young to guide
the state vessel without aid. The Rao Raja and the Bhora, alike
ambitious, soon quarrelled, and a division of the imperialists, under
the celebrated Hamadan Khan, was called in by the Bhora. Then
followed those interminable broils which brought in the Mahrnttns.
Leagues were formed with them against the imperialists one day,
and dissolved the next; and this went on until the majority of
Pertap, who determined to extricate himself from bondage, and
formed that league, elsewhere mentioned, which ended in the glorious'
victory of Tonga, and for a time the expulsion of all their enemies,
whether imperial or Mahrattas.

To give a full narrative of the events of this reign, would be tp
recount the history of the empire in its expiring moments. Through-
out the twenty-five years' rule of Pertap, he and his country under-
went many vicissitudes. He was a gallant prince, and not deficient
; in judgment; but neither gallantry nor prudence could successfully
apply the resources of his petty state against its numerous pre-
P> datory foes and its internal dissensions. The defection of Macherri
was a serious blow to Jeipoor, and the necessary subsidies soon
lightened the hoards accumulated by his predecessors. Two payments
to the Mahrattas took away eighty lacs of rupees (£800,000) ; yet
[Vol. II.] 44

346

ANNALS OF AMBER,

[chap. III.

bucIi was the mass of treasure, notwithstanding the enormous sums
lavished by Madhu Sing for the support of his claims, besides those
of the regency, that Pertap expended in charity alone, on the victory
of Tonga, A.D. 1789, the sum of twenty-four lacs, or a quarter of a
million sterling.

In A.D. 1791, after the subsequent defeats at Patun, and the .
disruption of the alliance with the Rahtores, Tukaji Holcar invaded
Jeipoor, and extorted an annual tribute, which was afterwards trans- .
ferred to Ameer Khan, and continues a permanent incumbrance on
the resoui’ces of Jeipoor. Prom this period to A.D. 1803, the year of
Pertap’s death, his country was alternately desolated by Sindia’s
armies, under De Boigne or Perron, and the other hordes of robbers,
who frequently contested with each other the possession of the'

spoils.

Juggut Sing succeeded in A.D. 1803, and ruled for seventeen years,
with the disgraceful distinction of being the most dissolute prince of
his race or of his age. The events with which his reign is crowded
would fill volumes were they worthy of being recorded. Foreign
invasions, cities besieged, capitulations and war-contributions, occa-
sional acts of heroism, when the invader forgot the point of honour,
court intrigues, diversified, not unfrequently, by an appeal to the
sword or dagger, eveu in the precincts of the court. Sometimes the/
daily journals ( alcbars ) disseminated the scandal of the rawulal
(female apartments), the follies of the libertine prince with his concu-l
bine Ras-caphoor , or even less worthy objects, who excluded from
the uupfcial couch his lawful mates of the noble blood of Jod a, or
Jessa, the Rahtores and Bhattis of the desert. We shall not disgracri
these annals with the history of a life which discloses not our*
redeeming virtue amidst a cluster of effeminate vices, including tA )
rankest, in the opinion of a Rajpoot — cowardice. The black transai .
tion respecting the princess of Oodipoor has already been relateR
(Yol. I, p. 396), which covered him with disgrace, and inflicted fi.
greater loss, in his estimation, even than that of character — a milliorit
sterling. The treasures of the Jey-Mindm were rapidly dissipated, }
to the grief of those faithful hereditary guardians, the Meenas of/
Kalikko, some of whom committed suicide rather than see these
sacred deposits squandered on their prince’s unworthy pursuits. The
lofty walls which surrounded the beautiful city of Jey Sing were
insulted by every marauder; commerce was interrupted, and
agriculture rapidly decliued, partly from insecurity, but still more
from the perpetual exactions of his miuions. One day a tailor*
•^^uled the councils, the next a Bauiak, who might be succeeded by a
' L T-- -''-v^ud ea.ch had in turn the honour of elevation to the donjon
b'li— the^ca^s tl e where criminals are confined overlook-
* Ro, 'ji Khaims
exercised the trade. He

x

tailor

councillors of JW u6 j , ®? e T er » amongst belleve . had in early life

treat with Lord Laf e g ’ and Ul »6c) one of tlwa^ allehs ’ 0!> »rivy

Si,uw <irs sent to

CHAP. III.]

ANNALS OP AMBER.

347

ing the city. r f^he feudal chiefs held both bis authority and bis
person in utter 'contempt, and the pranks he played with the
‘Essence of Camphor’ ( ras-cuphoor ),* at one time led to serious
thoughts of deposing him ; which project, when near maturity, was
defeated by transferring “ this queen of half of Amber,” to the prison
of Nahrgurh. In the height of his passion for this Islamite concu-
biue, he formally installed her as queen of half his dominions, and
actually couveyed to her in gift a moiety of the personalty of the
crown, even to the invaluable library of the illustrious Jey Sing,
which was despoiled, and\its treasures distributed amongst her base
relations. The Raja even\ struck coin in her name, and not only
rode with her on the same elephant, but demanded from his chief-
tains those forms of reverence towards her, which were paid only
to his legitimate queens. This their pride could not brook, and
though the Dewan, or prime minister, Misr Sheonarain, albeit a
Brahmin, called her “ daughter,” the brave Chand Sing of Doonee
indignantly refused to take part in any ceremony at which she was
present. This contumacy was punished by a mulct of £20,000,
nearly four years’ revenue of the fief of Doonee !

Menu allows that sovereigns may be deposed, and the aristocraby
of Ambdr had ample justification for such an act. But unfortunately
the design became known, and some judicious friend, as a salvo for
the Baja’s dignity, propagated a report injurious to the fair fame
of his Aspasia, which he affected to believe ; a mandate issued for
the sequestration of her property, and her incarceration in the castle
allotted to criminals. There she was lost sight of, and Juggut
continued to dishonour the gadt of Jey Sing until his death, on a
day held especially sacred by the Rajpoot, the 2lst of December
1818, the winter solstice, when, to use their own metaphorical lan-
guage, “the door of heaven is re-opened.”

Raja Juggut Sing left no issue, legitimate or illegitimate, and no
provision had been made for a successor during his life. But as the
laws of Rajpootaua, political or religious, admit of no interregnum,
and the funereal pyre must be lit by an adopted child if there be
no natural issue, it was necessary at once to inaugurate a successor;
and the choice fell on Mohun Sing, son of the ex-prince of Nurwar.
As this selection, in opposition to the established rules of succession,
would, but for a posthumous birth, have led to a civil war, it may be
proper to touch briefly upon the subject of heirs presumptive in Raj-
pootana, more especially those of Jeipoor: the want of exact
knowledge respecting this point, in those to whom its political rela-
tions with us were at that time entrusted, might have had the most
injurious effects on the British character. To set this in its proper
light, we shall explain the principles of the alliance which rendered
Jeipoor a tributary of Bi’itain.

* lias-caplioor, I am aware, means * corrosive sublimate,’ but it may also be
interpreted * essence of camphor.’

+

[Von. II.]

44a

348

.annals of amber.

[chap. it.

CHAPTER IY.

Jeipoor the' last, of the Rajpoot states io embrace the proffered alliance of the
British.— Procrastination habitual to the Rajpoots, as to all Asiatics.— Motives
an d considerations which influence the Jeipoor court in declining our alliance.
—A treaty concluded— Death of Juggut Sing.— Effects of our interference in
the intrigues respecting the succession.— Law of primogeniture— The evils
attending on ignorance of Rajpoot customs.— Violation of the law oj succession
in the placing of ilohun Sing on the gadi .— Reasons for departing from the
rule of succession.— Conduct of the British authorities.— The title of Alohun
Sing disputed by the legal heir -presumptive.— Dilemma of the Rar.ir and his
faction —The threatened disorders prevented by the unexpected pregnancy of
one of the queens of Juggut Sing.— Birth of a posthumous son.

Jeipoor was tlie last of the principalities of Rajpootana to accept
tlie protection tendered by the government of British India. To the
latest moment, she delayed her sanction to a system which was to
banish for ever the enemies of order. Our overtures and expostu-
lations were rejected; until the predatory powers of India had been;
one after another, laid prostrate at our feet. The Pindarries were
annihilated ; the Pdshwa was exiled from Poona to the Ganges; the
Boonsla was humbled; Sindia palsied by bis fears; and Holcar. wbo
had extensive lands assigned him, besides a regular tribute from
Jeipoor, had received a death-blow to his power in the field of
Mehidpoor.

Procrastination is the favourite expedient of all Asiatics ; and the
Rajpoot, though a fatalist, often, by protracting the irresistible
honhar (destiny), works out his deliverance. Ameer Khan, the
lieutenant of Holcar, who held the lands and tribute of Jeipoor in
jaed&cl, or assignment for his troops, was the sole enemy of social
order left to operate on the fears of Jeipoor, and to urge her to take
refuge in our alliance ; and even he was upon the point of becoming
one of the illustrious allies, who were to enjoy tho “ perpetual friend-
“ ship” of great Britain. The Khan was at that very moment
battering Madhurajpoora, a town almost within the sound of cannon-
shot of Jeipoor, and we were compelled to make an indirect use of
this incident to hasten the decision of the Cutchwalia prince. The
motives of his backwardness will appear from the following details.

Various considerations combined to check tbe ardour with which
we naturally expected our offer of protection would be embraced.
The Jeipoor court retained a lively, but no grateful remembrance, of
tlie solemn obligations we contracted with ber in 1803, and the
facility with which we extricated ourselves from them when expe-
diency demanded, whilst we vainly attempted to throw the blame of
violating the treaty upon our ally. To use the words of one who
has. been mixed up with all the political transactions of that event-
ful period, with reference to the letter delivered by tbe envoy at the
Jeipoor court from our viceroy in the East, notifying the dissolution

CHAP. IV. 3

ANNALS OP AMBEB.

349

of the alliance; “ the justice of these grounds was warmly disputed
“ by the court, which, under a lively sense of that imminent danger
“ to - tyliich it had become exposed from this measure, almost forgot
“ for a moment the temper and respect which it owed to the English
“ nation.” But the native envoy from Jeipoor, attending the camp
of the gallant Lake, took a still higher tone, and with a manly
indignation observed, that “ this was the fivst time, since the English
“ government was established in India, that it had been known to
“ make its faith subservient to its convenience a reproach the
more bitter and uupalatable from its truth.* * * §

The enlarged and prophetic views of Marquis Wellesley, which
suggested the policy of uniting all these regular governments in a
league against the predatory powers, were counteracted by the timid,
temporising policy of Lord Cornwallis, who could discover nothing
but weakness in this extension of our influence. What misery would
not these states have been spared, had those engagements, executed
through the noble Lake (a name never mentioned in India, by
European or native, without reverence), been maintained; for the
fifteen years which intervened between the two periods produced
more mischief to Rajwarra than the preceding half century, and
half a century more will not repair it !

A circumstance that tended to increase this distrust was our
•tearing Vizier Alii from his sanctuary at Jeipoor, which has cast an
indelible stain upon the Cutchwaha name. We have elsewheref
explained the privileges of sirna, or f sanctuary/ which, when claimed
by the unfortunate or criminal, is sacred in the eye of the Rajpoot.
This trust we forced the Jeipoor state to violate, though she was
then independent of us. It was no excuse for the act that the
fugitive was a foul assassin : we had no right to demand his
surrender, f

There were other objections to the proffered treaty of no small
weight. The Jeipoor court justly deemed one-fifth (eight lacs ) of
the gross revenues of the crown, a high rate of insurance for protec-
tion ; but when we further stipulated for a prospective increase§ of

* Vide Malcolm’s Political History of India, p. 434. f Vol. I, p. 454.

$ A better commentary on tko opinions held by the natives upon this subject
could not be given than the soeecb of Holcar’s envoy to the agent of the
Governor-General of India, then with Lord Lake : “Holcar's vakeel demanded,
with no slight degree of pertinacity, the cession of the Jeipoor and Boondf
tributes; and one of them, sneaking of the former, stated, that he no doubt
would continue to enjoy the friendship of the English, as be had disgraced
himself to please that nation, by giving up Yizier Alii (who had sought his
protection) to their vengeance. The vakeel was severely rebuked by the agent
(Colonel, now Sir John Malcolm) for this insolent reflection on the conduct of
an ally of the British Government, who had delivered up a murderer whom it
would have been infamy to shelter ;” though the author'' the “ Political

“ History of India” might have added — but whom it was / -*• —

aceot ding to their Gode, to surrender. See Malcolm’s Poli'
p. 432. \

§ See Article 6 of the Treaty, Appendix Ho. 5. I

"ter infamy,
/ of India,

350

ANNALS OP AMBER.

[CHAP. IT.

nearly one-third of all surplus revenue beyond forty lacs, they saw,
instead of tbe generous Briton, a sordid trafficker of mercenary
protection, whoso rapacity transcended that of the Mahratta.

Independent of these state objections, there were abundance of
private and individual motives arrayed in hostility to the British
offer. For example : the ministers dreaded the surveillance of a
resident agent, as obnoxious to their authority' and influence; and
the chieftains, whom rank and ancient usage kept at court as the
counsellors of their prince, saw in prospect the surrender of crown-
lands, which fraud, favour, or force, had obtained for them. Such
were the principal causes which impeded the alliance between Amb6r
and the Government-general of British India; but it would have
marred the uniformity' of Lord Hastings’ plan to have left a gap in
the general protective system by the omission of Jeipoor. The
events rapidly happening around them — the presence of Meer Ivhan
— the expulsion of the orange flag of the Mahratta, and the substitu-
tion of the British banner on the battlements of Ajmer — at length
produced a tardy and ungracious assent, and, on the 2d of April
1818, a treaty of ten articles was concluded, which made the Cntch-
waha princes the friends and tributaries in perpetuity' of Great
Britain.

On the 21st of December of the same year, Juggut Sing died, and
the choice of a successor speedily evinced to the ministers the
impracticability of their exercising, as in days of yore, that “ absolute
“ power over their country aud dependents,” guaranteed to them by
the treaty.* Our office of arbitrating the differences between the
Baja and his vassals, on the subject of the usurpations from the
crown-lands, was easy, and left no unpleasant feeling; but when we
intermeddled with the intrigues respecting the succession, our
ignorance of established rights and usage rendered the interference
offensive, and made the Jeipoor chiefs repent the alliance which
temporary policy had induced their prince to accept.

It may be of use iu future negotiations, to explain the usages
which govern the different states of Bajpootana in respect to
succession. The law of primogeniture prevails in all Rajpoot
sovereignties; the rare instances in which it has been set aside, are
only exceptions to the rule. The inconclusive dicta of Menu, on
this as on many other points, are never appealed to by the Rajpoots
of modern days. Custom and precedent fix the right of succession,
whether to the gadi of the state, or to a fief, in the eldest son, who
is styled Rajlcomdr, Pat-lcomdr, or simply Komar ji, ‘ the prince;’
while his brothers have their proper names affixed, as Komdr Jowan
f ^ nc . e J° wan -'’ Seniority is, in fact, a distinction pervading
all ranks’ offile> ^ e I her in royal families or those of chieftains ; all
have their Pat-lc6md^^^^^ l b or f head child,’ and ‘head
queen.’ The privileges of the Ba^raffr-SjjQ^ory considerable. In

* gee Article 8 of the Treaty, Appendix Ho. IV.

CHAP. IV.]

ANNALS OP AMBER.

351

minorities, slie is the guardian, by custom as well as nature, of her
child ; and in Mewar (the oldest sovereignty in India), she is publicly
enthroned with the Rana. Seniority iu marriage bestows the title
of Pat-rani , but as soon as an heir is given to the state, the queen-
mother assumes this title, or that of Mdhji, simply ‘ the mother/*
In the duties of guardian, she is assisted by the chiefs of certain
families, who with certain officers of the household enjoy this as an
established hereditary distinction.

On the demise of a prince without lawful issue of his body, or
that of near kindred, brothers or cousins, there are certain families
in every principality (raj) of Rajwarra, iu whom is vested the right
of presumptive heirship to the gadi. In order to restrict the circle
of claimants, laws have been established in every state limiting this
right to the issue of certain family in each principality. Thus, in
Mewar, the elder of the Ranawut clans, styled Babas, or ‘ the infants,'’
possesses the latent right of heir presumptive. In Mar war, the
independent house of Eedur, of the family of Joda; in Boondi, the house
of Doogari • in Kotali, the Apjfs of Polaitoh ; in Bikaner, the family
of Mahajiu; and in Jeipoor, the branch Rajawut (according to
seniority), of the stock of Raja Maun. Even in this stock there is a
distinction between those prior, and those posterior, to Raja Madhfi
Sing ; the former are styled simply Rajawut , or occasionally con-
joined, Mansingote ; the other Madhani. The Rajawuts constitute
a numerous f rerage, of which the Jhulaye house takes the lead; and
in which, provided there are no mental or physical disabilities, the
right of f uimishing heirs to the gadi of Jeipoor is a long-established,
incontrovertible, and inalienable privilege.

We have been thus minute, because, notwithstanding the
expressed' wish of the government not to prejudge the question, the
first exercise of its authority as lord-paramount was to justify a pro-
ceeding by which these established Usages were infringed, in spite
of the eighth article of the treaty : “ The Mahraja and his heirs and
“ successors shall remain absolute rulers of their country and depend-
“ ants according to long-established usage/’ &c., “ G’ est lepremierpas
“ qui coute and this first step, being a wrong one, has involved an
interference never contemplated, and fully justifying that wariness
on the part of Jeipoor, which made her hesitate to link her destiny
with ours. •

Both the sixth and seventh articles contain the seeds of disunion,
whenever it might suit the chicanery or bad faith of the protected,
or the avarice of the protector. The former has already been called
into operation, and the f absolute rulers’ of Jeipoor have been com-
pelled to unfold to the resident agent the whole of their financial
and territorial arrangements, to prove that the revenues did not

* In Mewar, simply Maliji ; at Jeipoor, where they have long used the
language and manners of Dehli, they affix the Persian word Sahebeh, or ‘ lady-
mother.’

353

ANNALS OF , AMBER-./

[cRAP.,-m

exceed the sum of forty lacs, as, of the sum in excess (besides tho
stipulated tributary fifth), our share was to be three-sixteenths .* ' i

While, therefore, we deem ourselves justified in interfering in the
two chief branches of government, the succession and finances, how
is it possible to avoid being implicated in the acts of the govern-,
ment-functionaries, and involved in the party views and iutrigues.of
a court, stigmatized even by the rest of Rajwarra with the epithet
of joot’ka durbar, the f lying court V While there is a resident-
agent at Jeipoor, whatever his resolves, he will find it next to im-
possible to keep aloof from the vortex of intrigue. The purest
intentions, the highest talents, will scarcely avail to counteract this
systematic vice, and with one party at least, but eventually with all,
the reputation of his government will be compromised.

This brings us back to the topic which suggested these remarks,
the installation of a youth upon the gadi of Jeipooi*. We shall expose
the operation of this transaction by a literal translation of an
authentic document, every word of which was thoroughly substan-
tiated. As it presents a curious picture of manners, and is valuable
as a precedent, we shall give it entire in the Appendix, and shall
here enter no farther into details than is necessary to unravel the
intrigue which violated the established laws of succession.

The youth, named Mohun Sing, who was installed on the gadi of
Jeipoor, on the morning succeeding Juggut Sing’s decease, was the
son of Muuohur Sing, the ex-Raja of Nurwai-, who was chased from
his throne and country by Sindia. We have stated that the Jeipoor
family sprung from that of Nunvar eight centuries ago; but the
parent state being left without direct lineage, they applied to Ambdr
and adopted a sou of Pirthi Raj I, from whom the boy now brought
forward was fourteen generations in descent. This course of pro-
ceeding was in direct contravention of usage, which had fixed, as
already stated, the heirs-presumptive, on failure of lineal issue, to
the gadi of Amber, in the descendants of Raja Maun, and the branch
Madhani, generally sty\ed‘ Raj awut, of whom the first claimant was
the chief of Jhulaye, and supposing his incompetency, Kamah, and
a dozen other houses of the ‘ infantas’ of Jeipoor.

* Me war was subjected to the same piemium on her reviving prosperity.
The author unsuccessfully endeavoured to have a limit fixed to the demand;
but he has heard with joy that some important modifications have since been;
made in these tributary engagements both with Mdwar and Amber : they
cannot he made too light. Discontent in Rajpootana trill not be appeased by
a few lacs of extra-expenditure. 1 gave my opinions fearlessly when I had
everything at stake; I will not suppress them now, when I have nothing
either to hope or to fear hut for the perpetuity of the British power in these
regions, and the revival of the happiness and independence oE those who hate
sought our protection, lie will prove the greatest enemy to his country, who,
in ignorance of the true position of the Rajpoots, may aim at further trenching
upon their independence. Read the thirty years’ war between Arungzeb and
the RahtoresI where is the dynasty of their tyrant ? How differentwo'uld »
Rajpoot foe prove from a contemptible Mahratta, or the /mercenary array of
traitorous Nawabs, whom we have always found easy conquests ! Cherish the'
native army: conciliate the Rajpoots; then, laugh at foes.

CHAP. IT.]

ANNALS OP AMBER.

353

The causes o£ departure from the recognized rule, iu this respect,
were the following: At the death of Juggut Siug, .the reins of
power were, and had been for some time, in the hands of the chief
eunuch of the raivula (seraglio), whose name was Mohun Nazir,* a
man of considerable vigour of understanding, and not without the
reputation of good intention in his administration of affairs, although
the system of chicanery and force, -f by which he attempted to
carry his object, savoured more of self-interest than of loyalty. The
youth was but nine years of age ; and a long minority, with the
exclusive possession of power, suggests the true motives of the
Nazir. His principal co-adjutor, amongst, the great vassals of
the- state, was Meg’h Sing of Diggee, a chief who had contrived by
fraud and force to double his hereditary fief by usurpations from
the crown-lands, to retain which he supported the views of the Nazir
with' all the influence of his clan (the Khangarote), the most powerful
of the twelve great families of Amber. J The personal servants of the
crown, such as the Purohiis, Dhabhaes (domestic chaplains and foster-
brothers), and all the subordinate officers of the household, con-
sidered the Nazir’s cause as their own : a minority and his favour
guaranteed their places, which might be risked by the election of a
prince who could judge for himself, and had friends to provide for.

A reference to the “ Summary of Transactions” (in the Appendix)
will shew there was no previous consultation or concert amongst the
military vassals, or the queens, on the contrary, acting entirely on
his own responsibility, the Nazir, on the morning succeeding the
death of his master, placed young Mohun in " the car of the sun,” to
lead the funeral procession, and light the pyre- of his adopted sire.
Scarcely were the ablutions and necessary purifications from this
rite concluded, when he received the congratulations of all present
as lord of the Cutchwahas, under the revived name of Maun Sing
the Second. The transactions wbioh followed, as related in the
diary, until the final dinouevient, distinctly shew, that having com-
mitted himself, the Nazir was anxious to obtain through the resident
agents of the chieftains at court, their acquiescence in the measure
under their signs-manual. It will be seen that the communications
were received and replied to in that cautious, yet courteous manner,
which pledged the writer to nothing, and gained him time for the
formation of a deliberate opinion : the decision was thus suspended;
all eyes were directed to the paramount power ; and the Nazir,
whose first desire was to propitiate this, entreated the British func-

,* Nazir is t.lie jnfficial name, n Mahomcdnn one, denoting his capacity, as
emasculated guardian of the seraglio. Jeipoor and Boondi are the only two of
the Rajpoot principalities who, adopting the Mooslem cnstom, have contami-
nated the palaces of their queens with the presence of these creatures. tuu

+ See “ Summary of Transactions,” Appendix No. 5. . a in the room at the
j The Khangarote clan enumerates twentv-t.wf r
amount to 4,02,506 rupees nnnunlly.jjqjecember 1818, and the announcement of
the state, six hundred gnd^ ^hth month of her pregnancy,” was on the 2-ltli
and infelhVpnee. *' ” D

body, had *

[Tot. > •

45a

354

ANNALS OF AMBER.

[CHAP, IV.

tionary at Delili to send his confidential mooushee to Jeipoor with-
out delay. This agent reached Jeipoor from Dehli six days after
the death of Juggnt. He was the bearer of instructions, " requiring
“ a full account of the reasons for placing the son of tiio Nu invar Raja
" on the musnud ; of his family, lineage, right of succession, and by
“ whose couucds the measure was adopted.” On the lltli of January
this requisition was reiterated; and it was further asked, whether
the measure had the assent of the queens and chiefs, and a declara-
tion to this effect, under their signatures, was required to be
forwarded. Nothing could be more explicit, or more judicious, than
the tenor of these instructions.

The replies of the Nazir and confidential mooushee were such, that
on the 7th of February the receipt of letters of congratulation from
the British agent, accompanied by one from the supreme authority,
'was formally announced, which letters being read in full court, "the
“ nobut (kettledrum) again sounded, and young Maun Sing was
“ conducted to the Pertdp Mnhl, and seated on the musnud.” Ou
this formal recognition by the British government, the agents of the
chieftains at their sovereign's court, in reply to the Nazir’s demand,
" to know the opinions of the chiefs,” answered, that “ if he called
" them, they were ready to obey;’’ but at the same time they rested
their adhesion ou that of the chief queen, sister of the Raja of
Jodpoor, who breathed nothing but open defiance of the Nazir and
his junta. Early in March, public discontent became more manifest :
and the Rajawut chief of Jhulaye determined to appeal to arms in
Support of his rights as heir presumptive, and was soon joined by
the chiefs of Sirwur and Eesurda, junior but powerful branches of
the same stock.

Another party seemed inclined, on this emergency, to revive the
rights-of that posthumous son of Pirthi Sing, whom we have already
described as living in exile at Gwalior, on the bounty of Sindia ;
and nothing hut the unfavourable report of his intellect and debased
habits prevented the elder branch of the sons of Madhu Sing recover-
ing their lost honours.

While the paramount authority was thus deluded, aud the chief-
tains were wavering amidst so many conflicting opinions, the queens
continued resolute, aud the Rnjawuts were arming — aud the Nazir, in
this dilemma, determined as a last resource, to make Raja Maun of
Jodpoor the umpire, hoping by this appeal to his vanity, to obtain
his influence over his sister to an acquiescence in the irremediable
step, which had been taken “ in obedience (as he pretended) to the
"will of the deceased prince.” Raja Mmm’s reply is important :
" that there could be no occasion for his or his sister’s signature to
hHcnoiaiice ol ^eclavarion on the right of succession to the musnud
upon tlieir independence. ^ ttP ol b aud was vested in, the elders of
the Hah tores ! where is the dynasty oi tbatif they approved and signed
Rajpoot foe prove from a contemptible Mahr;u,tfi' ) -„, TVfn ,q g himself would
traitorous Nawabs, whom we have always found easy conqm^ .
native army : conciliate the Rajpoots ; then, laugh at foes 1

0 HAP, IV.]

ANNALS OP AMBEK.

355

The Nazir and liis faction, though aided by the interposition of
the moonshee, were now in despair, and in these desperate circum-
stances, he attempted to get up a marriage between the puppet he
had enthroned and the graud daughter of the Ran a of Mewar. It
was well contrived, and not ill-received by the R.-ma; but there
was an influence at his court which at once extinguished the plot,
though supported at Dehli by the R ana’s most influential agent.
It was proposed that, at the same time, the Rana should consum-
mate his nuptials with the Jeipoor Raja’s sister, the preliminaries of
which had been settled a dozen years back. Money in abundance
was offered, and the Rana’s passion for pageantry and profusion
would have prevented any objection to his proceeding to the Jeipoor
capital. To receivo the chief of the universal Hindu race with due
honour, the whole nobility of Amber would have left their estates,
which would have been construed into, and accepted as, a voluntary
acquiescence in the rights of the Nazir’s choice, which the marriage
would have completely cemented. Foiled in this promising design,
the knot, which the precipitate and persevering conduct of the Nazir
liad rendered too indissoluble even for his skill to undo, was cut by
the annunciation of the advanced pregnancy of the Bhattianf queen.

This timely interposition of Mata Januvi (the Juno Lucina of
Rajwarra) might well be regarded as miraculous ; and though the
sequel of this event was conducted with such publicity as almost to
choke the voice of slander, it still found utterance.* It was deemed
a sort of prodigy, that an event, which would have caused a jubilee
throughout Iflioondar, should have been kept secret until three
months after the Raja’s death. f The mysteries of the raimilas of
Rajpoot princes find their way to the public out of doors ; and in
O.odipoor, more especially, are the common topics of conversation.
The variety of character within its walls, the like variety of cbm-
municants without, the conflicting interests, the diveisified objects
of contention of these little worlds, render it utterly impossible that
any secret can long be maintained, far less one of such magnitude as
the pregnancy of the queen of a prince without issue. That this
event should be revealed to the Nazir, the superintendent of the
queen’s place, with all the formality of a new discovery, three
"ilis after Juggut Sing’s death, must, excite surprise ; since to
'°u the bearer of such joyful intelligence to his master, to
- much attached, must have rivetted his influence.

k on the 1st of April, a council of sixteen queens,
.e late prince, and the wives of all the great vassals

, on this occasion, is precisely of the same character as marked
t of the Duchess de Berri, who, it is said, not only had the
to silence the voice of doubt, but absolutely insisted on the
ell as the Marechales of France being in the room at the
rition.

Sing died the 21st December 1818, and the announcement of
ng in “ the eighth month of her pregnancy,” was on the 24th

45a

356

ANNALS OF AMBER.

[CHAP. rv.

of the state, " assembled to ascertain the fact of pregnancy,” whilst
all the great barons awaited in the anti-chambers of the Zendna
Deor'i the important response of this council of matrons. -When it
announced that the Bhattiani queen was jsregnant beyond a doubt,
they consulted until seven, when they sent in a written declaration,
avowing their unanimous belief of the fact; and that “should a son
“ he born, they would acknowledge him as their lord, and to none
“ else pledge allegiance.'’’ A transcript of this was given to the
Nazir, who was recommended to forward an attested copy to the
British agent at Dehli. From these deliberations, from which there
was no appeal, the Nazir was excluded by express desire of the
Rahtore queeu. He made an ineffectual effort to obtain from the
chiefs a declaration, that the adoption of the Nurwar youth was in
conformity to the desire of the deceased prince, their master ; but
this attempt to obtain indemnity for his illegal acts was defeated
immediately on the ground of its untruth.*

By this lawful and energetic exertion of the powers directly vested
in the queen-mother and the great council of the chiefs, the tongue
of faction was rendered mute ; but had it been otherwise, another
queen was pronounced to be in the same joyful condition.-)- On the
morning of the 25th of April, four mouths and four days after
Juggut Sing’s death, a son was ushered into the world with the
Usual demonstrations of joy, and received as the Autocrat of the
Cutchwahas ; while the infant interloper was removed from the
gadi, and thrust back to his original obscurity. Thus terminated an
affaib which involved all Rajwarra in discussion, and at one time
threatened a very serious result. That it was disposed of in this
manner was fortunate for all parties, and not least for the protecting
power.

Having thus given a connected, though imperfect, sketch of the
history of the Jeipoor state, from its foundation to the present time,
before proceeding with any account of its resources, or the details of
its internal administration, we shall delineate the rise, progress, and
existing condition of the Shekhavatf federation, which has risen out
of, and almost to an equality with, the parent state.

* Deeming a record of these transactions useful, not only as descriptive of
manneis, but as a p inasmuch as they shew the powers and position
of the different authorities composing a Rajpoot state in cases of succession I
have inserted it in the Appendix. ’

f hTo notice, that lam aware of, was ever taken of this second annunciation.

<3 HAP. V.]

ANNALS OP AMBER.

357

SHEKHAWUT FEDERATION.

CHAPTER Y.

Origin of the Sliekh&vati federation. — Its constitution. — Descent of the chief s-
from Baloji of Amber. — Mokulji. — Miraculous birth of his son. — Shehhji . —
Aggrandises his territory. — Itaemul. — Sooja. — ltaesil. — Hislieroism — Obtains
grants from Alcber. — Gets possession of Khundaila and Oodipoor. — His
exploits and character. — Ghirdhurji. — Is cut off by assassination. — D warcadas.
— His extraordinary feat with a lion. — Falls by Khan Jehan Lodi. — Birsing-
deo. — His authority usurped by his son. — Buliadoor Bing. — Arungzeb directs
the demolition of the temple of Khundaila. — Buhadoor deserts his capital . —
Shnjaun Sing Kaesilote flies to its defence. — He is slain, the temple razed, and
the city garrisoned — Kesuri. — Partition of the territory between Kesuri and
Fulteh Bing. — Futteli Sing assassinated. — Kesuri resists the regal authority.
— Is deserted in the field and slain. — His son Oodi Bing taken to Ajmer . —
Khundaila retaken, and restored to Oodi Sing, who is liberated. — He resolves
to punish the Munohurpoor chief. — Is bafjled by that chief’s intrigues . — Is
besieged by Jey Sing of Amber. — Khundaila becomes tiibntary to Amber.

We proceed to sketcli tlie history of tlie Shdkliawut confederation,
wliicb, springing from the redundant feudality of Amber, through
the influence of age and circumstances, lias attained a power and
consideration almost equalling that of the parent state ; and although
it possesses neither written laws, a permanent congress, nor any
visible or recognized head, subsists by a sense of common interest.
It must not be supposed, however, that no system of policy is to be
found in this confederation, because tlie springs are not always
visible or in action ; the moment any common or individual interest
is menaced, the grand council of the Barons of Shekhavati assembles
at Oodipoor to decide the course of action to be pursued.

The Shekh&wnt chieftains are descended from Baloji, the third son
of Raja of Oodikurn, who succeeded to the throne of Amber in S.
1445, A.D. 1389. At this period, if we look back to the political
state of society, we find that nearly the whole of the tracts, which
now obey the Shekhavati federation, were pai’celled out amongst
numerous chieftains of the Cholian or Tiiar tribes,* the descendants
of the ancient Hindu emperors of Dehli, who evinced no more
submission than the sword and their Islamite successors exacted
from them.

* The lovers of antiquity liave only to make tlie search to find an abundant
harvest, throughout all these countries, of ancient capitals and cities, whose
names are hardly known even to the modern inhabitants. Of the ancient
Rafore I have already spoken, and I now draw the attention of my countrymen
to Abhanair, which boasts a very remote antiquity ; and from an old stanza,
we might imagine that its princes were connected with the Kaian dynasty of
Persia. I copied it, some twenty years ago, from an itinerant bard, who bad.

358

ANNALS OP AMBER.

[CHAP. V.

Baloji, who was the actual founder of . the numerous families
now designated by the more distinguished name of Sh6klrji, his
grandson, obtained as an appanage the district of Amrutsir, but
whether by his own prowess or by other means, is not mentioned.
He had three sons ; Mokulji, Khemraj, and Kharnd. The first
succeeded to the patrimony of Amrutsir ; the second had a numerous
issue styled balajiota, one of whom was adopted into the twelve
chambers ( bara-Icofri ) of Cufcciiwahas. The third had a son called
Kiimun, whose descendants were styled Kumawut, but are now
nearly extinct.

an imperfect knowledge of it liimself, and 1 have doubtless made it more 'so,
but it is still sufficiently intelligible to point at a remarkable coincidence:

“ Baja Chvnd cd Abhanair,

“ Been Sanjog, ago Girnair ( Gi'rndrJ
“ Delc'h bhdrat, lea biitdo
“ Keo bidnt, mini begsde,

“• Deao Sanjog, Pet maid lurre
“ Kos sat’li so, mun cliit d'harre;

“ Til beti Kaicum ca
“ Navi Permala (a) ho
“ Lehha liooa hurtdr ho
“ Ecajana sarb ho."

This is a fragment of a long poc-tn relative to tlie rivalry of Raja Clmnd of
Abhanair, and Raja Soorsdn of Indrnpooti, who was betrothed to Permala,
daughter of K&uum, and bad gone to Girnair, or Girndr, to espouse her, when
the Abhanair prince abducted her. Raja SoorsCn of Indrupoori (Delili), ?/thc
ancestor of tlio Surdseni, and founder of Soorpoori, existed probably twelve
hundred years before Christ. That aun-worsbippers bad established themselves
in the peninsula of Saimishtra, (whose capital was Junagurh-Girnar), its appel-
lation, in the days of the Greeks of Bnctria, as now, proves;' (see Strabo,
Justin, &c.) but whether Kfticum, the father of Permnln, is the Caicunmras of
Ferdoosi, we shall not stop to inquire. The connection between this peninsula
' and Persia was intimate in later times, so as even to give rise to the assertion
that the Ranas of Me war were descended from the Sasssnnitni kings. It was
my good fortune to discover Soorpoori, on the Jumna, the residence of the rival
of Ohund of Abhanair. which city 1 leave to some one imbued with similar taste
to visit, and merely add, he will find there an inscription in a coond or fountain -
dedicated to the Sun. The distance however, seven hundred coss ( hossul’hso ),'
whether from Indrapoori or Abhanair, to Giinar, even admitting them to be
gao coss, would be too much. I believe this would make it eight hundred
miles, and certainly, as the crow flies, it is not seven hundred. Interwoven
■with the story there is much about Raja Chambhn, prince of Jajnuggur, a city
of great antiquity in Orissa, and containing some of the finest specimens of
sculpture I ever saw. There is also mention of a Raja Sadr, (qu. Sabir or
Sehris of Arore) of Permnn. In 1801, I passed through Jajnuggur, nfter the
conquest of the province of Cuttack, with my regiment. At Jajnuggur, my
earliest friend, the late Captain Bellet Sealy, employed his pencil for several
days with the sculptured remains. These drawings were sent to the authorities '
at Calcutta : perhaps this notice may rescue from oblivion the remains of
• Jajnuggur, and of my deceased friend’s talent, for Captain Bellet Sealy was
an ornament equally to private life and to bis profession. He fell a victim
tj< \ fever contracted in the Nepal war. The ruins of Abhanair are On the
Rangungd, three coss east of Lalsont,

(a) Peri-mdld, means Fairy garland.

CHAP. V.]

ANNALS OF 'AMBEB.

359

Mokul liad a son who was named Shekhji, in compliment to a
miracle-working Islamite saint, ‘to whose prayers the childless
chief was indebted for a son destined to be the patriarch of a
numerous race, occupying, under the term Shekhawut, an im-
portant portion of the surface of Rajpootana. Shekh Boorhan was
the name of this saint, whose shrine (still existing) was about six
miles from Achrole, and fourteen from the residence of Mokul. As
the period of time was shortly after Timoor's invasion, it is not
unlikely he was a pious missionary, who remained behind for the
"conversion of the warlike but tolerant Rajpoot, with whom, even if
he should fail in his purpose, he was certain of protection and
hospitality. The Shdkh in one of his peregrinations had reached the
confines of Amrutsir, and was passing over an extensive meadow, in
which was Mokulji. The Mangta (mendicant) approached with the
usual salutation, “ have you anything for me ?” “ Whatever you

“ please to have, Babaji (sire),” was the courteous reply. The request
was limited to a draught of milk, and if our faith were equal to the
Sliekh&wut's, we should believe that Shekh Boorhan drew a copious
stream from the exhausted udder of a female buffalo. This was
sufficient to convince the old chief that the Shdkh could work other
miracles; and he prayed that, through his means, he might no
longer be childless. In due time lie had an heir, who, according to
the .injunctions of Boorhan, was styled, after his own tribe, Shdkh.
He directed that he should wear the buddea ,* which, when laid
aside, was to be suspended at the saint's durgah, and further, that
he should assume the blue tunic and cap, abstain from hog's flesh,
and eat no meat “ in which the blood remained.'' He also ordained
.that at the birth of every Shekhawut male infant a goat should be
sacrificed, the Kulma (Islamite creed) read, and the child sprinkled
with the blood. Although four centuries have passed away since
these obligations were contracted by Mokul, they are still religiously
maintained by the little nation of his descendants, occupying a space
of ten thousand square miles. The wild hog, which, according to
immemorial usage, should be eaten once a year by every Rajpoot, is
rarely even hunted by a Shekhawut; and though they have relaxed
in that ordinance, which commanded the suspension of the buddeas
at the shrine of Boorhan, still each infant wears them, as well as the
blue tunic and cap, for two years after his birth ; and a still greater
mark of respect to the memory of the saint is evinced in the blue
peunon which surmounts the yellow banner, or national flag, of the
Shdkhawuts. It is even gravely asserted, that those who, from
indolence, distance, or less justifiable motives, have neglected the
least important injunction, that of depositing the initiatory strings or
buddeas , have never prospered. - But a still stronger proof is fur-
nished of the credulity, the toleration, and yet immutability of the
Rajpoot character, in the fact, that, although Amrutsir, f and the

* Strings, or threads, worn crossways by jM ipdan. children.

f The town of Amrutsir and forty-five village*, Mnnohur-

poor branch.

360

ANNALS ’OP AMBEK.

’ [CHAP. V.

lands around the dutgcih. are annexed to the fisc of Amber, yet the
shrine of Shekh Boorhan continues a sirna, (sanctuary), while lands
are assigned to almost a hundred families, the descendants of the
saint, who reside in the adjacent town of Talla.

Shekhji, when he attained man’s estate, greatly augmented the
territory left by his father, and had consolidated three hundred and
sixty villages under his sway, by conquest from his neighbours,
when his reputation and power attracted the jealous notice of the
lord paramount of Amber. He was attacked; but by the aid of the
Punnee Pat’hans* he successfully withstood the reiterated assaults,
of his suzerain. Up to this period, they had acknowledged the
Ambdr princes as liege lords, and in token of alliance paid as tribute
all the colts reared on the original estate. f A dispute on this point
was the ostensible cause (though subordinate to their rapid pros-
perity), which occasioned a total separation of the Shdkhawut
colonies from the parent state, until the reign of Sow&e Jey Sing,
who, with his means as lieutenant of the empire, compelled homage,
submission, and pecuniary relief from them. Shekhji left a well-
established authority to his son, Raemul, of whom nothing is
recorded. Raemul was followed by Sooja, who had three sons, viz.,
Noonkurn, Raesil, and Gopal. The elder succeeded to the patrimony
of Amrutsir and its three hundred and sixty townships, while to his
“brothers, the fiefs of Lambi and Jharli were respectively assigned.
With the second brother, Raesil, the fortunes of the' Shekhawuts
made a rapid stride, from an occurrence in which the Rajpoot
appears in the position we desire to see him occupy.

Noonkurn, the chief of the Shekhawuts, had a minister named
Devid&s, of the banya or mercantile caste, and, like thousands of
that caste, energetic, shrewd, and intelligent. He one day held
an argument with his lord (which the result proves he main-
tained with independence), that “ genius with good fortune was
“ the first gift of heaven, and to be far more prized than a man’s
<{ mere inheritance.” Nooukurn warmly disputed the point, which
ended by his telling the minister he might go to Lambi and
make experiment of the truth of his argument on his brother
Raesil. Ddvidas lost no time, on this polite dismissal from his office,
in proceeding with his family and property to Lambi. He was

* The Puimees are a tribe of Doorannees, regarding whom Mr. Elphinstone’s
account of Cabul may be consulted. In after-times, there was a chieftain of
this tribe so celebrated for his generosity and hospitality, that his name has
become proverbial :

Bunne, to, bun ne

jS'uhyn, Ddod Khan jPunne ;

that is, if they failed elsewhere, there was always Daod Khan in reserve. His
gallant bearing, and death in Ferocbser’s reign, are related in Scott’s excellent
History of the Dekhan.

f This will recall to the reader’s recollection a similar custom in the ancient
Persian empire, where the tribute of the distant Satranies was of the same kind.
Armenia, according to Herodotus, alone gave an annual tribute of twenty
thousand colts.

CHAP. V.]

ANNALS Of A5IBEE.

361

received with the usual hospitality ; but soon discovered that Raesil’s
menus were too confined to bear an additional burthen, and that the
field was too restricted to enable him to demonstrate the truth of
the argument which lost him his place. He made known his deter-
mination to proceed to the imperial city, and advised Raesil to
accompany him, and try his luck at court. Raesil, who was valiant
and not. without ambition, could only equip twenty horse, with
■which he arrived at Dehli just as an army was forming to oppose
one of those Afghan invasions, so common at that period. In the
action which ensued, Raesil had the good fortune to distinguish
himself by cutting down a leader of the enemy, in the presence of
the imperial general, which had a decided influence on the event of
the day. Enquiries were made for the brave unknown, who had
pel-formed this heroic deed ; but as, for reasons which will be per-
ceived, he kept aloof from the quarters of his countrymen, the argu-
ment of Ddvidas lvould never have been illustrated, had not the
imperial commander determined to seek out and reward merit. He
ordered a graud zcufut, or 'entertainment’ to be prepared for the
chiefs of every grade in the army, who were commanded afterwards
to pay their respects to the geueral. As soou as Raesil appeai-ed,
he was recognized as the individual of whom they were in search.
His name and family being disclosed, his brother, Noonkurn, who
was serving with his quota, was called, whose anger was peremp-
torily expressed at his presuming to appear at court without his
permission ; but this ebullition of jealousy was of little avail. Raesil
was at once introduced to the great Akber, who bestowed upon him
the title of Raesil Durbari* and a more substantial mark of royal
favour, in a grant of the districts of Rewasso and Kliasulli, then
belonging to the Chundaila Rajpoots. This was but the opening of
Raesil’s career, for scarcely had he settled his new possessions, when
he was recalled to court to take part in an expedition against
Bhntnair. Fresh services obtained new favours, and he received a
grant of Ivhundaila aud Oodipoor, then belonging to the Nurbhan
Rajpoots, who disdained to pay allegiance to the empire, and gave
themselves up to unlicensed rapine.

Raesil finding it would be a work of difficulty to expel the brave*
Nurbhaus from their ancient bapota (patrimony), had recourse to
stratagem to effect his object. Previous to the expedition to Bhut-
nair, Raesil had espoused the daughter of the chief of Khundaila,
and it is related that a casual expression, dropped on that occasion,
suggested his desire to obtain it for himself. Being dissatisfied with
the dower ( ddeja ) given with his bride, he, with no commendable
taste, pertinaciously insisted upon an increase ; upon which the
Nurblian chief, losing patience, hastily replied, " wo have nothing

* It is always agreeable to find the truth of these simple annals corroborated
in the historical remains of the conquerors of the Rajpoots. The name of
Raesil Diirbarf will be found, in the Ayeon Akberri, amongst the munsubdars
of twelve hundred and fifty horse ; a rank of high importance, being equiva-
lent to that conferred on the sons of potent Rajas.

[Vox.. II.]

46

362

ANNALS OP AMBER.

[CHAP. T.

" else to give, unless you take the stones of the hill.” The attendant
Sooguni (augur), immediately turning to Raesil, said, in an under-
tone, " tie a knot on the skirt of your garment iu remembrance of
" this.” An expression like this from a prophetic longue, gave birth
to the wish to be lord of Khundaila; while his services to the king,
and the imbecility of its Nurbhan possessor, conspired to fulfil it.
Watching his opportunity, ho marched against the place, and being
in all probability supported by his liege lord, it was abaudouod
without defence, and the inhabitants tendered their submission to
him. Henceforth, Khundaila was esteemed the principal city of
the Sheklulwut confederation; and the descendants of Raesil, using
his name as a patronymic, are styled Raesilote, occupying all
southern Shdklulvatl ; while another branch of later origin, called
Sadhani, holds the northern tracts. Immediately after the occupation
of Khnudaila, Raesil obtained possession of Oodipoor, formerly
called Kasoombi, also belonging to tho Nurbhaus.*

Raesil accompanied his proper liege lord, the groat Raja Maun of
Amber, against the heroic liana Pert&p of Mewar. He was also in
the expedition to Cabul, against tho Afghans of Cohistdn, iu all of
which enterprizes he obtained fresh distinctions. Regarding his
death, there is no record; but his history is another illustration of
the Rajpoot character, whilst it confirms the position of the Bnny & ,
that "genius and good fortune are far superior to inheritance.”

Raesil, at his death, had a compact and well-managed territory,
out of which he assigned appanages to his seven sons, from whom
are descended the various families, who, with relative distinctive
patrouymics, Bhojctuis, Sadhauis, Larkh finis, Taj-khauis, Pursram-
potas, Hur-rampotas, are recognized throughout Rajwavra by the
generic name of Shekliawut.

1. — Grirdhur had Khundaila and Rewasso.

2. — Larkhan Kachridwas.

3. — Bhojraj Oodipoor,

4. — Tirmul Rao Kasulli and eighty-four villages,

' 5. — Pursram Bae.

6. — Hur-ramji Moondurri.

7. — Taj-khan No appanage.

We shall not break the thread of the narrative of the elder branch
of Khundaila, "chief of the sons of Shekhji,” to treat of the junior
line, though the issue of Bhojraj have eclipsed, both in population
and property, the senior descendants of Raesil.

Gfrdliur-ji succeeded to the prowess, the energy, and the estates
of his father, and for a gallant action obtained from the' Emperor the

Tho Nurbhan is a sach’ha, or ramification of the Chohan race. They bad
long held possession of these regions, of which Kdls, or Kasoombi, now Oodi-
poor, was the capital, the city where the grand council of tho confederation
always meets on great occasions. This may throw light on the Cusoorobeo
mentioned on the triumphal pillar at Dehli ; the Nurbhan capital is more
likely to he the town alluded to, than Cusoombee on the Ganges.

CHAP. 7.]

ANNALS OF AMBER.

363

title of Raja of Khundaila. At this period, the empire was in a most
disordered states and the mountainous region, called Mdwat, was
inhabited by a daring and ferocious banditti,- called Mewohs, who
pillaged in gangs even to the gates of the capital. The task of taking,
dead or alive, the leader of this banditti, was assigned to the chief of
Kliundaila, who performed it with signal gallantry and success.
Aware that, by the display of superior force, his enemy would remain
in his lurking places, Girdhur put himself on terms of equality with
his foe, and with a small but select band hunted the Mewatti leader
down, and in the end slew him in single combat. The career of
Girdhur, short as it was brilliant, was terminated by assassination,
while bathing' in the Jumna. The anecdote is descriptive of the
difference of inanners between the rustic Rajpoot and the debauched
retainer of the court.

One of the Kliundaila chief’s men was waiting, in a blacksmith’s
shop, while ,his sword was repaired and sharpened. A Mooslem,
passing by, thought he might have his jest with the unpolished
Rajpoot, and after asking some impertinent questions, and laughing
at the unintelligible replies in the JBaJcha of Rajwarra, slipped a
heated cinder in. the turban of the soldier: the insult was borne
with great coolness, which increased the mirth of the Mussulman,
and at length the turban took fire. The sword was then ready, and
the T’htiliOor, after feeling the edge, with one blow laid the jester’s
head at his feet. He belonged to one of the chief nobles of the court,
who immediately led his retainers to the Khundaila chief’s quarters,
and thence to where he was performing his religious ablutions in the
Jumna, and whilst engaged in which act, unarmed and almost
unattended, basely murdered him. Girdhur left several children.

Dwarca-das, his eldest son, succeeded, and soon after his accession
nearly fell a victim to the jealousy of the Munohurpoor chief, the
representative of the elder branch of the family, being the lineal
descendant of Noonkurn. The emperor had caught a lion in the
toils, and gave out a grand hunt; when tbe Munohurpoor chief
observed that hip relative, the Raesilote, who was a votary of -Nahr -
singh, was the proper person to engage the king of the forest.
Dwarca-dcis saw through his relative’s treachery, but cheerfully
accepted the proposal. Having bathed and prayed, to tbe astonish-
ment of the king and court, he entered the arena unarmed, with a
brazen platter containing the various articles used in pooja (worship),
as grains of rice, curds, and sandal ointment, and going directly up
to the monster, made the tilac on his forehead, put a chaplet round
his neck, and prostrated himself in the usual attitude of adoration
before the lion ; when, to the amazement of the spectators, the noble
beast came gently ujj, and with his tongue repeatedly licked his face,
permitting him to retire without the least indication of anger. The
emperor, who concluded that his subject must ” wear a charmed life,”
desired the Khundaila chief to make any request, with the assurance
of compliance ; when he received a delicate reproof, in the desire
[Vox,. II.] 46 a

364

ANNALS OF AMBER.

[CHAP. V.

“ that liis majesty would never place another person iu the same
" predicament from which he had happily escaped.*?

Dwarca-aas was slain by the greatest hero of the hge in which ho
lived, the celebrated Khan Jehau Lodi, who, according to the legends
of the Shdkhawuts, also fell by the hand of their lord; and they
throw an air of romance upon the transaction,; which would
grace the. annals of chivalry iu any age or country'. Khan Jehan
and the chieftain of Khundaila were sworn friends, anti when nothing
but the life of the gallant Lodi would satisfy tho, king, Dwarca
gave timely notice to his friend of the hateful task> imposed upon
him, advising either submission or flight. His fafcq, which forms
one of the most interesting episodes in Perishta’s history, involved
that of the Shekhawut chief. |

He was succeeded by his son, Birsingdeo, who served with his
contingent in the conquest of the Dekhan, aud was made governor of
Pernalla, which he had materially assisted in reducing. The Kliuu-
daila annalist is desirous to make it appear that his service was
independent of his liege lord of Amber; but the probability is that
he was under the immediate command of the Mirza Raja Jey Sing,
at that period the most distinguished general of his nation or of the
court.

Birsingdeo had seven sons, of whom the heir-apparent, Baliadoor
Sing, remained at Khundaila ; , while estates were assigned to his
brothers, viz., Amur Sing, Siam Sing, Jugdeo, Bhopal Sing, Mokri
Sing, and Paim Sing, who all increased the stock of Raesilotes.
While the Raja was performing his duties in the Dekhan, intelligence
reached him that his sou at home had usurped his -title and autho-
rity; upon which, with only four horsemen, he left the army for his
capital. When within two coss of Khundaila, he alighted at the'
house of a Jatni, of whom he requested refreshment, and begged
especial cave of his wearied steed, lest he should be stolen ; to which
she sharply replied, <l Is not Bahadoor Sing ruler here ? You may
“leave gold in the highway, and no one dare touch it.” The old
chieftain was so delighted with this testimony to his. son’’ s discharge
of a prince's duties, that, without disclosing himself or his suspicions,
he immediately returned to the Dekhan, where he died.

Bahadoor Sing succeeded, and on his father’s death repaired to the
armies in the south, commanded by Arungzeb in person. Being
insulted by a Mooslem chief, bearing the same name with himself,
and obtaining no redress from the bigotted prince, he left the aimy
in disgust, upon which his name was erased from the list of mun-
subdars. It was at this time the tyrant issued his mandate for the
capitation- tax on all his Hindu subjects, and for the destruction of
their temples.*

* The numerous ruined shrines and mutilated statues in every town and
village, still attest the zeal with which the bigot’s orders were obeyed ; nor is
there an image of any antiquity with an entire set of features (except in spots
impervious to liis myrmidons), from Lahore to Cape Comorin. Omkarji ? whose

CHAP. V.]

ANNALS OF AMBEK.

$65

To the personal enemy of the ShdkMwut was intrusted the two-
fold duty of exacting tribute, and the demolition of the temple, the
ornament of Khundaila, whose chief, degrading the name of Baka-
door (warrior), abandoned his capital; and the Royal army had
arrived within two coss without the appearance of opposition. The
news spread over the lands of the confederacy, that Bahadoor had
fled from Khundaila, and that the Toorkwas bent on the destruction
of its shrines. It reached the ear of Shujaun Sing, the chieftain of
Ohapowlee, a descendant of Bhojraj, the second son of Raesil.
Embued with all the spirit of this hero, the brave .Bhojani resolved
to devote himself to the protection of the temple, or perish in its
defence. At the moment the tidings reached him, he was solemniz-
ing his nuptials on the Marwar frontier. Hastening- home with his
bride, he left her with his mother, and bade both a solemn farewell.
In vain his kindred, collecting round him, dissuaded him from his
design, urging that it was Bahadoor Sing’s affair, not his. “ Am not
“ I,” he said, “ also of Raesil’s stock, and can I allow the Toork to
“ desti-oy the dwelling of the T’halcoor (lord), and not attempt to
“ save it ? Would this be acting the part of a Rajpoot ?” As their
•entreaties were vain, they, to the number of sixty, resolved to
accompany him, and share his fate. They were joined by a party
of Bahadoor’s adherents, and succeeded in entering Khundaila. The
imperial commander, to whom this unlooked-for opposition was
reported, well aware of what a Rajpoot is capable when excited to
action, and perhaps moved by a generous feeling at seeing a handful
of men oppose an army, requested that two of their number might
be deputed to his camp to confer with him-. He told them, that
notwithstanding it was the king’s command that he should raze the
temple to the ground, he would be satisfied (if accompanied by proper
submission) with taking off the kullus, or golden ball which sur-
mounted its pinnacle. They endeavoured to dissuade him ; offered
money to the utmost possible amount of their means ; but the answer
was, “the hullus must come down.” One of these noble delegates,
no longer able to contain himself, exclaimed, “ Break down the
“ Imllus /” as with some moist clay at his feet he moulded a ball,
which he placed on a little mound before him ; and drawing his
sword, repeated, “ Break down the hullus ! I dare you even to break
“ this ball of clay !” The intrepidity of this action gained the
applause even of the foe, and they had safe conduct to rejoin their
brethren, and prepare them for the worst.

At this time, Khundaila had no fortifications ; there was, however.

temple is on a small island of the Nerbudda, alone, it is said, supported his
dignity in the indiscriminate attack on the deities of Hind. “ If they are gods
“ (said the tyrannical bat witty iconoclast), let them evince their power, and
“by some miracle resist my commands.” Omkarji received the first blow on
his head, as if embued with mortal feeling, for the blood gashed from his nose
and month, which prevented a repetition of the injury ! This sensibility, though
without the power of avenging himself, made Omkar’s shrine doubly respected,
and it continues to he one 5 oAhe best frequented and most venerated in these
regions.

,36G

ANNALS OF A5IBKR.

[CHAP. V.

a gateway half way tip the hill in the route o£ ascent, which led to
the place of residence of its chieftains, adjoining which was the
temple. One party was stationed in the gateway, while Shujaun
reserved for himself the defence of the temple, in which he took post
with his kinsmen. When the mercenaries of the tyrant advanced,'
the defenders of the gateway, after dealing many a distant death,
marched upon them sword in hand, and perished. When they
pushed on to the chief object of attack, the band issued forth in
small detached parties, having first made their obeisances to the
image, and Carried destruction along with them. Shujaun was the
last who fell. The temple was levelled to the earth, the idol broken
in pieces, and the fragments thrown into the foundation of a mosque
erected on its ruins. There is hardly a town of note in Rajwarra
that has not to relate a similar tale of desperate valour in the defence
of their household gods against the iniquitous and impolitic Arung-,
zeb. Khundaila received a royal garrison ; but the old officers, both
territorial and financial, were retained by the conqueror.

Bakadoor Sing continued to reside in an adjacent township, and
through his Dewan, obtained a certain share of the crops and transit
duties, viz., a seer out of every maund of the former, and one pice in
every rupee of the latter. In process of time, the family residence
and gardens were given up to him, and when the Syeds obtained
power he regained his country, though a garrison of the royal troops
was retained, whose- expenses he paid. He left three sons, viz.,
Kesuri Sing, Futteh Sing, and Oodey Sing.

Kesuri, solicitous to hold his lands on the 6ame terms as his
ancestors, namely, service to the lord-paramount, assembled his
adherents, aud with his second brother, Futteh Sing, departed for
the imperial camp, to proffer his service. The Munohurpoor chief,
the elder branch of the family, was in the royal camp, and having
regained his lost consequence by the depression of Khundaila, was
by no means willing again to part with it. He intrigued with the
second brother, Futteh Sing, to whom he proposed a division of the
lands j the latter lent himself to the intrigue, aud the Dewan, seeing
that a family quarrel would involve the destruction of them all,
repaired to Khundaila, and through the mother, a Gor Rajpootni, he
advocated the partition. A census was accordingly made of the
population, and a measurement .of the lands, of which two portions
were assigned to Futteh Sing, and the three remaining to the Raja.
The town itself was partitioned in the same manner. Henceforth,
the brothers held no intercourse with each other, and Kesuri pre-
ferred Kaotah as his residence, though whenever he came to Khuu-
daila, Futteh Sing withdrew. Things remained in this state until
the Dewan prompted his master to get rid of the agreement which
had secured the ascendancy of Munohurpoor in the ShekMwut
federation, by destroying his brother. The Dewan arranged a
friendly meeting at K&otah for the avowed purpose of reconciliation,
when Futteh Sing fell a victim to assassination ; but the instigator

CHAP. V.]

ANNALS OF AMBER.

367

to the crime met his propor reward, for a splinter of the sword which
slew Futteh Sing ontorod his neck, and was the occasion of his
death.

Kesuri Sing, having thus recovered all his lost authority, from the
contentious at court conceived he might refuse the tribute of
Rewasso, hitherto paid to the Ajtndr treasury, while that of Khun-
daila went to Naruol. Syed Abdoolla, then vizier, found leisure to
I’esent ibis insult, and sent a force against Khundaila. Every
Raesilote in the country assembled to resist the Toorlc, and oven his
foe of Muuohurpoor sent his quota, led by the dhdbliad (foster-brother),
to aid the national cause. Thus strengthened, Kesuri determined to
oppose the royal forces hand to hand in the plain, and the rival
armies encountered at. the border town of Deolee. While victory
manifested a wish to side with the confederated SlidkhiWuts, the
old jealousies of Muuohurpoor revived, and he withdrew his quota
from the field, at the same moment that the Kasulli chief, on whom
much depended, was slain. To crown these misfortunes, the Larkhani
chief of Dauta, basely deeming this an opportunity to consult his
own interest, abandoned the field, to take possession of Rewasso.
The ‘ lion’ of Khundaila (Kesuri), observing these defections, when
the shout of fr Jy ! jy !” (victory, victory), already rang in his ears,
could not help exclaiming, in the bitterness of despair, “Had Futteh
" Sing been here, lie would not have deserted me” He disdained
however, to give away, and prepared to meet his fate like a true
Raesilote. Sending to where the battle yet raged for his youngest
brother’, Oodey Sing, he urged him to save himself; but the young
Rajpoot scorned obedience to such a behest, until Kesuri made
known his determination not to quit the field, adding that if he also
wore slain, there would be an end of his line. Others joined their
persuasions, and even attemped to turn Kesuri from his purpose.
“ No/* replied the chief, “I have no desire for life; two black deeds
“ press upon me; the murder of my brother, aud the curse of the
” Charuns of Bikaner, whom I neglected at the distribution of the
u nuptial gifts. I will not add a third by dastardly flight.” As
Oodey Sing reluctantly obeyed, while the swords rung around him,
Kesuri made a hasty sacrifice to Aioini-mata (mother earth), of
which flesh, blood, and earth are the ingredients. He cut pieces
from his own body, but has scarcely any blood flowed, his own uncle,
Moknm Sing of Allodah, parted with some of his, for so grand an
obligation ' as the retention of Khundaila. Mixing his own flesh,
and his uncle’s blood, with a portion of his own sandy soil, he
formed small balls in dan (gift), for the maintenance of the land to
his posterity. The D’homb (bard), who repeated the incantations,
pronounced the sacrifice accepted, aud that seven generations of his
line should rule in Khundaila.* The brave Kesuri was slain, the

* The fifth, ns will bo seen hereafter, has been expelled, and authority
usurped by the Kasulli branch of the family, aud unless some fortunate change
should occur, the devotion of Kesuri was useless, and the prophecy must fall
to the ground.

368 ANNALS ^6r amber. [chap. V.

town taken, and Oodey Sing carried to Ajmdr, where he remained
three years in captivity. At this time, the chiefs of Oodipoor and
Kasulli determined to cut off the royal-garrison in Khundaila; but
apprehensive of the danger it might octsasion to their chief, they
sent a special messenger to Ajmdr, to acquaint the viceroy of their
scheme, previous to its execution, to prevent his being implicated.
Khundaila was surprised, and Deonath ana three hundred Toorlcs
put to the sword. The viceroy, desirous to recover the place, con-
sulted his prisoner, who offered to re-instate him if lie granted him
liberty. The Nawab demanded a hostage, but the young Rajpoot
said he knew of none but his own mother, who willingly became the
pledge for her son. He fulfilled his agreement, and the viceroy was
so pleased with his frank and loyal conduct, that on paying a large
nuzzeranct , he restored him to his capital.

Oodey Sing's first act was to assemble his brethren, in order to
punish Munohurpoor, whose treachery had caused them so much
misery. The foster-brother, who commanded on that occasion, was
again entrusted with the command; but he fled after a sharp
encounter, and Munohurpoor was invested. Seeing he had no chance
of salvation, he had again recourse to clnil (stratagem). There were
two feudatories of Noonkurn's line, joint-holders of Khajvolli, who
had long been at variance with Deep Sing of Kasulli, the principal
adviser of the young Raja of Khundaila. They were gained over to
the purpose of the Munohurpoor chief, who sent them with a private
message to Deep Sing, that no sooner should Munohurpoor fall than
he would be deprived of Kasulli. These treacherous proceedings
were but too common amongst ‘’'the sons of Shdkhji.” Deep Sing
fell into the snare, and at break of day, when the trumpets sounded
for the assault, the drums of the Kasulli chief were heard iu full
march to his estate. Oodey Sing, thus deprived of his revenge,
followed Deep Sing, who, aware of his inability to cope with his
immediate chief, fled for succour to Jeipoor, and Kasulli fell a
sacrifice to the artifices which preserved Munohurpoor. The great (
Jey Sing then ruled Amber; he received the suppliant chief, and
promised him ample redress, on his swearing to become his vassal
and tributary. Deep Sing swore allegiance to the gadi of Jey Sing,
and signed a tributary engagement of four thousand rupees
annually.

Thus recommenced the supremacy of Amber over the confederated
Shekh^wuts, which had been thrown off ever since the dispute
regarding the colts of Amrutsir, the ancient mark of homage, when
“ the sons of Shekhji” consisted only of a few hundred armed men.
Shortly after this transaction, Jey Sing proceeded to the Ganges to
fulfil certain rites ujion an eclipse, and while performing his ablutions
in the sacred stream, and the gifts for distribution to the priests
being collected on the bank, he inquired “ who was present to receive

dan that day?” The Kasulli chief, spreading out the skirt of his
garment, replied, he was an applicant. Such ddn (gifts, being only

CHAP. V.]

ANNALS OP AMBER.

369

given to mangtas , or mendicants, in which class they put priests,
poets, and the poor, the Raja asked, laughing, " What is your desire,
c< T’hakoor ?” To which Deep Sing replied, that through his inter-
cession the son of Futtoh Sing might obtain his father’s share of
Khundaila; which request was complied with.

This occurrence was in A.D. 1716, when the J&ts were rising into
power, and when nil the minor Rajas served with their contingents
under the great Joy Sing, as lieutenant of the emperor. Along with
the princes of Kerowli, Bliadorea, Sheopoor, and many others of the
third rank, was Oodey Sing of Khundaila. During the siege of
Thoon, the Shdldiawut chief was reprimanded for neglect of duty,
and although he owed a double allegiance to Jey Sing, as his natural
liege lord and lieutenant of the king, he would not brook the censure
from one of his own race, and indignantly withdrew fi’om the siege.
Chooramnn the Jilt, having contrived to make his peace with the
Syed vizier, when Thoon was upon the eve of surrender, and Oodey
Sing being implicated in this intrigue, Jey Sing, who was mortified
at an occurrence whicliprevented the gratification of a long-cherished
resentment against the upstart Juts, determined that the Khundaila
chief should suffer for his audacity. Attended by the imperialists
under Bazeed Khan, and all his home clans, he laid siege to the
citadel called Oodigurh. Oodey Sing held out a month in this castle
he had constructed and called by his own name, when his resources
failing, he fled to Nuroo in Marwar, and his son, Sow&e Sing,
presented the keys, throwing himself on the clemency of the
conqueror. He was well received, and pardoned, on condition of
becoming tributary to Amber. He followed the example of the
Kasulli chief, and signed an engagement to pay annually one lac of
rupees. From this a deduction of fifteen thousand was subsequently
made, and in time being reduced twenty thousand more, sixty-five
thousand continued to be the tribute of Khundaila, until the decay
of both the parent state and its scion, when the weakness of the
former, and the merciless outrages of the predatory powers, Pat’lian
and Mahratta, rendered its amount uncertain and difficult to realize.
Moreover, recalliug his promise to Deep Sing, he restored the
division of the lands as existing prior to the murder of Futteh Sing,
viz., three shares to Sowae Sing, with the title of chief of the
Shdkbfvwuts, and two to Dlieer Sing, son of Futteh Sing. The young
cousin chieftains, now joint-holders of Khundaila, attended their
liege lord with their contingent ; and Oodey Sing, taking advantage
of their absence, with the aid of a band of outlawed Larklianis,
surprised and took Khundaila. Attended by the Jeipoor troops,
the son performed the dutiful task of expelling his father from
his inheritance, who again fled to Nuroo, where he resided upon
a pension of five rupees a day, given by his son, until his death.
He, however, outlived Sowae Sing, who left three sons ; Bindrabun,
•who succeeded to Khundaila ; Sirnboo, who had the appanage of
•Ranolli ; and Koosul, having that of Piperolli.

[Von. II.]

47

370

ANNALS OF AMBER.

[CHAP. VI.

CHAPTER VI.

Bindrahun Dan adheres to Martha Sing hi tin' civil tram of /hither. — Partition
of lands annulled. — Self-immolation of the Brahmin it. — Consequences to
Bindrabun. in lhs routes! with Inrtnr Sing, th" other rhif of Khvndaila . —
Civil war. — Prodigal expiatory sacrifice if Bindrabun, — JTr ub'Hcatcs , —
Govinrt Sing. — In assassinated. — Nursing- Dae. — llhe and devastations of Ilia
Mahratlas — Siege of Khnnrtaila. — Terms of redemption. — Murder of deputies
by the Mahratlas. — Inrtnr Sing perishes in the attempt to rtv<nyr them . —
Pcrtdp Sing. — Rise of the Seek nr chief — Transactions bctirceu Pert dp and
Nursing, his co-partner — Pei tap obtains the ichole of Khundaila. — hurting
recovers by stratagem his share of Khnndaila . — Domestic broils and feuds . —
General assembly of the Sndhani and Itacsilote chiefs, to counteract the
encroachments of Amber. — Treaty lichee n the SheldwKut* and the court of
Amber . — Violated by the latter. — The confederacy assault the toicn of the
Ihildea faction. — Nm sing refuses tribute to the mini, and Khnndaila is
sequestrated — Nursing and Pcrtdp treacherously made .captive, and conveyed
to Jeipoor. — Khnndaila annexed to the fisc.

Bindrabun Das steadfastly adhered to Madhti Sing in the civil wars
■which ensued foi; the ejadi of Ambdr, and the latter, when success
ntteuded his cause, wished to reward the important services of his
feudatory. At. his request, he consented that the partition of the
lauds which had caused so much bloodshed should bo annulled, and
that Bindrabun should rule ns sole lord of Khundailn. Pive thousand
men were placed under his command for the expulsion of the minor,
Indur Siug, grandson of Deo Sing, who made a stout resistance for
many months; but at length his little castle was no longer tenable,
and lie fled to Parasoli, where he again defended himself, and was
again on the point of surrender, when an unexpected accident not
only saved him from exile, but restored him to his rights.

The mercenaries were supported at the sole charge of Bindrabun,
and as his ancestors left no treasury, lie was compelled to resort to
the contribution called dind from his subjects, not even exempting
the hierarchy. Piqued at this unusual demand, some of the wealthiest
Brahmins expostulated with the Raja on this indignity to the
order. But their appeals were disregarded by their chief, whose
existence depended on supplies. The loss of .influence as well ns
wealth being the fruit of this disregard of their remonstrance, they
had recourse to that singular species of revenge termed chandi, or
self-immolation, and poignarded themselves in bis presence, pouring
maledictions on his head with their last breath. The blood of
Brahmins now rested on the head of Bindrabun ; even amongst his
personal friends he laboured under a species of excommunication,
and his liege lord, Madhu Sing of A mbdr, in order to expiate his
indirect share in the guilt, recalled his troops, and distributed twenty
thousand rupees to the Brahmins of his own capital. Indur Sing
had thus time to breathe, and having collected all his retainers.

CHAP, VI.]

ANNALS OP AMBER.

371

wisely joined the Jeipoor army assembling under the command of
the celebrated Khoshialiram Bhora to chastise the Kao of Macherri'
who was expelled and obliged to seek refuge with the Jats. In this
service Indur Sing so much distinguished himself, that, on the pay-
ment of a nuzzerana of fifty thousand rupees, he recovered his lost
share of Khundaila, by a regular jpntta, or grant, of the Raja.

Perpetual feuds, however, raged between these two kings of
Khundaila, each of whom had his castle, or fortified palace. Each
day tf there was war eveu in the gates” of Khundaila, and at the
hazard of prolixity we shall state how it was conducted, challenging
the records of any civil war to produce an instance in which all the
ties of blood and kindred were more disregarded than in this helium
plusquam civile.

Indur Sing had popularity on his side to balance the other’s
superior power, and he was briskly pushing an attack on Oodigurh,
the castle of his opponent, when he was joined by Raglnlnat Sing,
the younger son of his foeman. This youth, who had the township
of Koochore in appanage, helped himself to three more, to retain
which he sided with his father’s foe. Bindrabun, in order to create
a diversion, sallied out to attack Koochore ; to oppose which, his son,
together with his nephew, Pirthi Sing of Ranolli and his retainers,
withdrew from the batteries to defend it. But the attack on
Koochore had already failed, and Bindrabun was on his retreat to-
regain Khundaila, when he was intercepted. The battle took place
outside the city, whose gates were shut against friend and foe, to
prevent a pell-mell entry. At the same time, the siege of Oodigurh
was not slackened ; it was defended by Govind Sing, the eldest son
of Bindrabun, while the batteries against it were commanded by
another near kinsman, Nahr Sing of Cherana. For several days
daily combats ensued, in which were to be seen father and son,
uncles and nephews, and cousins within every degree of affinity,
destroying each other. At length, both parties were exhausted and
a compromise ensued, in which Indur Sing obtained the rights he
had so manfully vindicated.

At this time, a dying and desultoxy effort to regain his lost power
was made by Nujuf Kooli Khan, at the head of the imperialist, who,
conducted by the traitorous Macherri Rao, led the royal army into
the lands of the confederacy to raise contributions, for which he was
coi'dially and laudably detested. Nowul Sing of Nowulgurh, Bagh
Sing of Keytri, Soorajmul of Bussao, all chieftains of the Sadhanis,
unable to comply with the requisitions, were carried off, and retained
captive till ransomed for many lacs of rupees ; all eventually raised
upon the impoverished husbandman and industrious merchant.

The din of civil war having ended, the ministers of religion never
ceased pouring into the ears of Bindrabun, the necessity of expiation
and oblations for the murder of their brethren, and he was daily
sacrificing the birthright of his children, in grants of the best lands
of Khundaila, to these drones of society, yhen Govind, the heir-
[Von. II.] 47a

372

ANNAL8 op amber.

[chap. VI,

apparent, remonstrated, -which was followed by the abdication of
Bindrabun, who, appropriating five townships and the impost
duties of Khundaila for his support, left the cares of government
to his son.*

Govind Sing did not long enjoy the honours of chief of the Raesi-
lotes. The year of his elevation having produced an unfavourable
harvest, at the request of his vassal of Ranolli he proceeded to
inspect the crops preparatory to a reduction in the assessment. Less
superstitious than his father, he persevered in spite of the predic-
tions of the astrologer, who told him, “ to beware the ides ( amavus )

' of “ Pausli,” and not to go abroad that day. In the course of the
excursion, one of his personal attendants, a Rajpoot of Kajrolli, had
lost some valuable article entrusted to his charge, and the impetuous
chief broadly taxed him with theft. His protestations of innocence
were unavailing, and considering himself dishonoured b}' the imputa-
tion, which might possibly be followed by some disgraceful punish-
ment, he determined to anticipate his chief, and murdered him that
night. Govind left five sons, Nursing, Soorajmul (who had Dodea),
Bagh Sing, Jowan Sing, and Runjeet, all of whom had families.

Nursing-Das, his eldest son, succeeded. In spite of internal
dissensions, occasional chastisement, and pecuniary exactions from
the imperial armies, or those of their immediate liege lord of Arab dr,
. the confederated frerage of Shekhavati had increased their territory
and population. Only the shadow of a name now remained to the
empire of the Great Mogul; and their own lord-paramount, satisfied
with a certain degree of homage, tribute, and service on emergencies,
was little inclined to trench further upon their national indepen-
dence. But a new enemy had now arisen, and though of their own
faith, far more destructive than even the intolerant Islamite. Happy
were the inhabitants of the desert, who had an ocean of sand
between them and this scourge of India, the insatiable Mahratta.
After the fatal day of Mairta, where the evil genius of Rajpootana
enabled De Boigne to give the last blow to her independence, the
desultory hordes roved in bauds through the lands of the confedera-
tion, plundering, murdering, and carrying off captive the principal
chiefs or their children, as hostages for contributions they could not
realize. These were dragged about after their armies, until the
hardships and indignities they underwent made them sell every
article of value, or until the charge of keeping, or the trouble of
guarding them, rendered their prolonged captivity burdensome to
the wandering Southrons.

Let us follow the path of the barbarians, and trace only one day’s
acts of outrage. When the Mahrattas entered the lands of the
federation, soon after the battle of Mairta, they first attacked Bae.
The inhabitants, knowing that they had no hope of mercy from these
marauders, fled, carrying away all the effects they could to the larger
towns, while a garrison of eighty Rajpoots took post in the little

* Hia second son, Raghunatb, had Koochore in appanage.

CHAP. VI.]

ANNALS OP AMBER.

373

castle, to defend the point of honour against this new assailant. Bae
was stormed; not oue Rajpoot would accept of quarter, and all were
put to the sword. The enemy proceeded to Khundaila, the route
marked by similar tracks of blood. When within two coss of the
town, the horde halted at Hodegong, and a Pundit * was sent to
Rao Indur Sing to settle the contribution, which was fixed at twenty
thousand rupees, besides three thousand iu ghoosf (bribe), for the
Brahmin negociator. The two chiefs, who negociated on the part of
the joint Rajas of Khundaila, proceeded with the Pundit to the
enemy’s camp ; their names were Nowal and Duleel. As it was out
of their power to realize so large a sum, they were accompanied by
the joint revenue officers of Khundaila as ole, or hostage, when to
their dismay, the Southron commander demurred, and said they
themselves must remain. One of the chieftains, with the sang
froid which a Rajpoot never loses, coolly replied, that should not be,
and taking his hoolca from his attendant, began unceremoniously
to smoke, when a rude DeJehany knocked the pipe from his hand.
The T’hakooi-’s sword was unsheathed in an instant, but ere he had
time to use it a pistol-ball passed through his brain. Duleel Sing’s
party, attempting to avenge their companion, were cut off to a man ;
and Indur Sing, who had left Khundaila to learn how the negotia-
tions sped, arrived just in time to see his clansmen butchered. He
was advised to regain Khundaila : ff No,” replied the intrepid
Raesilote ; “ better that I should fall before the gates of Khundaila
" than enter them after such disgrace, without avenging my kinsmen.”
Dismounting from his horse, he turned him loose, his adherents
following his example ; and sword in hand they rushed on the host
of assassins and met their fate. Indur Sing was stretched beside his
vassals, and, strange to say, Duleel was the only survivor : though
covered with wounds, he was taken up alive,, and carried to the
hostile camp.

Such was the opening scene of the lengthened tragedy enacted in
Shekhavati, when Mahratta actors succeeded to Pat’hans and
Moguls : heirs to their worst feelings, without oue particle of their
magnanimity or courtesy. But the territory of the confederacy was
far too narrow a stage ; even the entire plain of India appeared at
one time too restricted for the hydra-headed banditti, nor is there a
principality, district, or even township, from the Sutlej to the sea,
where similar massacres have not been known, and but for our inter-
position, such scenes would have continued to the present hour.

* The ministers of religion were the only clerics amongst this race of depre-
dators, and they were not behind the most illiterate in cupidity, and to say
the truth, courage, when required ; and as for skill iu negociation, a Mahratta
Brahmin stands alone: keen, skilful, and imperturbable, be would have baffled
Machiavelli himself.

t QI1008 is literally ‘ a bribe;’ and no treaty or transaction was ever carried
on without this stipulation. So sacred was the ghoos held, from tyrant usage,
that the Peshwa ministers, when they ruled the destinies of their nation, stipu-
lated that the ghoos should go to the privy purse !

374 • ' ANNALS OP AMBER. [CHAP. VI.

Perfcap Sing, who succeeded his brave father in his share of the
patrimony, was at this crisis with his mother at Sikrae, a strong fort
in the hills, ten miles from Khundaila. To save the town, the prim
cipal men dug up the grain-pits, selling their property, to release
their minor chief from further trouble. Having obtained all they
could, the enemy proceeded to the lands of the Sadhauis. Oodipoor
was the first assaulted, taken, and sacked ; the walls were knocked
down, and the floors dug up in search of treasure. After four days’
havock, they left it a ruin, and marched against the northern chief-
tains of Singhana, Jhoonjoonoo, and Keytri. On the departure of
the foe, young Pertdp and his kinsman. Nursing, took up their abode
in Khundaila ; but scarcely had they recovered from the effects of
the Dekhani incursion, before demands were made by their liege
lord of Amber for the tribute. Pertap made his peace by assigning
a fourth of the harvest ; but Nursing, in the procrastinating and
haughty spirit of his ancestors, despised an arrangement which, he
said (and with justice), would reduce him to the level of a common
JBhomia landholder.

At this period, a remote branch of the Khundaila Shekhawuts
began to disclose a spirit that afterwards gained him distinction.
Devi Sing, chieftain of Seelcur, a descendant of Kao Tirmul of
Kasulli, had added to his patrimony by the usui-pation of no less
than twenty-five large townships, as Lohagurra, Kho, &c. ; and he
deemed this a good opportunity, his chief being embroiled with the
court, to make an attack on Eewasso ; but death put a stop to the
ambitious view's of the Seekur chieftain. Having no issue, he had
adopted Luchmun Sing, son of the Sliahpoora T’hakoor ; but the
Jeipoor court, which had taken great umbrage at these most unjusti-
fiable assaults of the Seekur chief on his weaker brethren, com-
manded Nundram Huldia (brother of the prime minister Doulet
Ram), collector of the Shekhawut tribute, to attack and humble
him. No sooner were the orders of the court promulgated, than all
the Banvuttias * gathered round the standard of the collector, to
aid in the redemption of their patrimonies wrested from them by
Seekur. Besides the Khundaila chief in person, there were the
Puttawxds of Kasulli, Bilai’a, and others of Tirmul’s stock ; and even
the Sadhauis, who little interfered in the affairs of the Raesilotes,
repaired with joy with their tribute and their retainers to the camp
of the Jeipoor commander, to depress the Seekur chief, who was
rapidly rising over them all. ■ Nearly the whole troops of the con-
federacy where thus assembled. Devi Sing, it may be imagined,
was no common character, to have excited such universal hatred ;
and his first care had been to make strong friends at court, in order
to retain what he had acquired. He had especially cultivated the
minister’s friendship, which w r as now turned to account. A deputa-

* Bmwutiia, is ‘one expatriated,’ from bar, ‘out of,’ and wuttun, ‘ »
country,’ and h nieans either an exile, or an outlaw, according to the measure
nf crime which caused his banishment from his country.

CHAP. VI.]

ANNALS OF AMBER.

375

tion, consisting of a Cbondawufc chief, the Dew&n of Seekur, and that
important character the Dhabhae , repaired to the Huldia, and im-
plored him in the name of the deceased, not to give up his infant
son to hungry and revengeful Barwattias. The Huldia said there
was hut one way by which he could avoid the fulfilment of his
court's command, which was for them, as he approached the place,
to congregate a force so formidable from its numbers, as to exoneiate
him from all suspicion of collusion. With the treasury of Devi Sing,
overflowing from the spoliation of the Kaimkhani of Futtehpoor, it
was easy to afford such indemnity to the Huldia, at whose approach
to Seekur ten thousaud men appeared to oppose him. Having made
a shew of investing Seelcur, and expended a good deal of ammunition,
he addressed his couit, where his brother was minister, stating ho
could make nothing of Seekur without great loss, both of time, men,
and money, and advising an acceptance of the proffered submission.
Without waiting a reply, he took two lacs as a fine for his
sovereign, and a present of one for himself. The siege was broken
up, and Seekur was permitted to prosecute his schemes ; in which
he was not a little aided by the continued feuds of the co-partner
chiefs of Khundaila. Pert&p took advantage of Nursing's non-com-
pliance with the court's requisition, and his consequent disgrace, to
settle the feud of their fathers, and unite both shares in his own
person ; and stipulated in return to be responsible for the whole
tribute, be ready witb bis contingent to serve die court, and pay
besides a handsome nuzzerana or investiture. The Huldia was
about to comply, when liawul Indur Sing of Samote, chief of the
Nat'hawut clan, interceded for Nursing, and inviting him on his own
responsibility to the camp, acquainted him with the procedure of his
rival, in whose name the patent for Khundaila was actually made
out ; “ but even now," said this noble chief, “ I will stay it if yon
“ comply with the terms of the court." But Nursing either would
not, or could not, and the Samote chief urged his immediate depar-
ture ; addiug that as he came under his guarantee, he was desirous
to see him safe back, for ” such were the crooked ways of the Amber
“ house," that if he prolonged his stay, he might be involved in ruin
in his desire to protect him. Accordingly, at dusk, with sixty of his
own retainers, he escorted him to Nowulgnrh, and the next morning
he was in his castle of Govindgurli. The precautions of the Samote
chief were not vain, and he was reproached and threatened with the
court’s displeasure, for permitting Nursing's departure; but lie
nobly replied, “ lie had performed the duty of a Rajpoot, and would
“ abide the consequences." As the sequel will further exemplify the
corruptions of courts, and the base passions of kindred, under a
system of feudal government, we shall trespass on the reader’s
patience by recording the result.

Samote and Ghomoo are the chief houses of the Nat'hawut clan ;
the older branch enjoying the title of Rawul, with supremacy over
the numerous vassalage. '"But these two families had often contested
the lead, and thoir feuds had caused much bloodshed. On the dis-

376

ANNALS OF AMBER.

[CHAP. VI.

grace of Indur Sing, as already related, his rival of Chomoo 3'epaired
to court, and offered so large a nitzzercina as to be invested with
rights of seniority. Avarice and revenge were good advocates : a
warrant was made out and transmitted to Indur Sing (still serving
with the collector of the tribute) for the sequestration of Samote.
Placing, like a dutiful subject, the warrant to his forehead, he
instantly departed for Samote, and commanded the removal of his'
family, his goods and chattels, from the seat of his ancestors, and
went into exile in Marwar. In after-times, his Rani had a grant of
the village' of Peeplye, to which the magnanimous, patriotic, and
loyal Indur Sing, when he found the hand of death upon him,
impaired, that he might die in the lands of the Outchwahas, and have
his ashes buried amongst his fathers. This man, who was naturally
brave, acted upon the abstract principle of swamdherma, or 1 fealty/
which is not even now exploded, in the midst of corruption and
demoralization. Indur Sing would have been fully justified, accoi’d-
ing to all the principles which govern these states, in resisting the 1
iniquitous mandate. Such an act might have been deemed rebellion
by those who look only at the surface of things ; but let the present
lords-paramount go deeper, when they have to decide between a
Raja and his feudatories, and look to the origin and condition of
both, and the ties which alone can hold such associations together.

To return : Pertap Sing, having thus obtained the whole of Khun-
daila, commenced the demolition of a fortified gate, whence during
the feuds his antagonist used to play some swivels against his castle.
While the work of destruction was advancing, an omen occurred,
foreboding evil to Pertap. An image of Ganesa, the god of wisdom
and protector of the arts, (more especially of architecture), was fixed
iu the wall of this gate, which au ill-fated and unintentional blow
knocked from its elevated position to the earth, and being of terra-
cotta, his fragments lay dishonoured and scattered on the pavement.
Notwithstanding this, the demolition was completed, and the long
obnoxious gateway levelled with the eai’th. Pertdp, having adjusted
affairs in the capital, proceeded against Rewasso, which he reduced,
and then laid siege to Govihdgurh, aided by a detachment of the
Huldia. Having encamped at Goorah, two coss from it, and twice
that distance from Ranolli, its chief, who still espoused the cause of
his immediate head, the unfortunate Nursing, sent his minister to
the Huldia, offering not only to be responsible for all arrears due by
Nursing, but also a handsome douceur , to restore him to his rights.
He repaired to Khundaila, stationed a party in the fortified palace
of Nursing, and consented that they should be expelled, as if by
force of his adherents, from Govindgurh. Accordingly, Soorajmul
and Bagh Sing, the brothers of Nursing, in the dead of night, with
one hundred and fifty followers, made a mock attack on the Huldia’s
followers, expelled them, and made good a lodgment in their ancient
dwelling. Pertap was highly exasperated ; and to render the acqui-
sition useless, he ordered the possession of a point which commanded
the mahl ; but here he was anticipated by his opponent, whose party

CHAP. VI.]

ANNALS OP AMBER.

377

now poured into Khundaila. He then cut off their supplies of water,
by fortifying the reservoirs and wells, and this brought matters to a
crisis. An action ensued, in which many were killed on each side,
when the traitorous Huldia interposed the five-coloured banner, and
caused the combat to cease. Nursing, at this juncture, joined the
combatants in person, from his castle of Govindgurh, and a treaty
was forthwith set on foot, which left the district of Rewasso to
Pertap, and restored to Nursing his share of Khundaila.

These domestic broils continued, however, and occasions were
perpetually recurring to bring the rivals in collision. The first was
on the festival of the Gangore ;* the next on the Ranolli chief placing
in durance a vassal of Pertap, which produced a general gathering
of - the clans : both ended in an appeal to the lord-paramount, who
soon merged the office of arbitrator in that of dictator.

The Sadlianis, or chieftains of northern Shekhavati, began to feel
the bad effects of these feuds of the Raesilotes, and to express dis-
satisfaction at the progressive advances of the Jeipoor court for the
establishment of its supremacy. Until this period they had escaped
any tributary engagements, and only recognized their connexion
with Amber by marks of homage and fealty on lapses, which
belonged more to kindred than political superiority. But as the
armies of the court were now perpetually on the frontiers, and might
soon pass over, they deemed it, necessary to take measures for their
safety. The township of Tooe, appertaining to Nowulgurh, had
already been seized, and Rauolli was battered for the restoration of
the subject of Pertap. These were grievances which affected all the
Sadhauis, who^ perceiving they could no longer preserve their
neutrality, determined to abandon their internal dissensions, and
form a system of- general defence. Accordingly, a general assembly
of the Sadhani lords, and as many of the Raesilotes as chose to
attend, was announced at the ancient place of rendezvous, Oodipoor.
To increase the solemnity of the occasion, and to banish all suspicion
of treachery, as well as to extinguish ancient feuds, and reconcile
chiefs who had never met but in hostility, it was unanimously
agreed that the most sacred pledge of good faith, the Noon-dab, + or
dipping the hand in the salt, should take place.

The entire body of the Sadhani lords, with all their retainers, met
at the appointed time, as did nearly all the Raesilotes, excepting the
joint chieftains of Khundaila, too deeply tainted with mutual distrust
to take part in this august and national congress of all “ the children
“ of Shekhji. 1 ’ It was decided in this grand council, that all inter-
nal strife should cease ; and that for the future, whenever it might
occur, there should be no appeals to the arbitration of Jeipoor; .but
that on all such occasions, or where the general interests were
endangered, a meeting should take place at “ the Pass of Oodipoor, ”

* See Yol. I, p. 489, for an account of this festival,
t Aoon or loon ‘ salt,’ arid dabna, ‘ to dip, bespatter, or sprinkle.’
[ Vol. II.] 48

378

ANNALS OF AMBER.

[OHAP. TI.

to deliberate and decide, but above all to repel by force of arms, if
necessary, the further encroachments of the court. This unusual
measure alarmed the court of Ambdr, and when oppression had
generated determined resistance, it disapproved and disowned the
proceedings of its lieutenant, who was superseded by Rora Ram,
with orders to secure the person of his predecessor. His flight pre-
served him from captivity in the dungeons of Amber, but his estates,
as well as those of the minister his brother, were resumed, and all
their property was confiscated.

The new commander, who was a tailor by caste, was ordered to
follow the Huldia to the last extremity ; for, in these regions, dis-
placed ministers and rebels are identical. It was expected, if they
did not lose their heads, to see them in opposition to the orders of
their sovereign lord, whose slaves they had so lately proclaimed
themselves : in fact, a rebel minister in Raj war ra, is like an ex-Tory
or ex- Whig elsewhere, nor does restoration to the councils of his
sovereign, perhaps in a few short months after Ije carried arms
against him, plundered his subjects, and carried conflagration in his
towns, excite more than transient emotion. The new commander
was eager to obtain the services of the assembled Shekhawuts against
the Huldias, but experience had given them wisdom ; and they not
only exacted stipulations befitting their position, as the price of this
aid, but, what was of more consequence, negotiated the conditions of
their future connexion with the lord-paramount.

The first article was the immediate restoration of the townships
which the Huldia had seized upon, as Tooe, Gwala, &c.

The second , that the court should disavow all pretensions to exact
tribute beyond what they had voluntai-ily stipulated, and which
they would remit to the capital.

Third , that on no account should the armies of the court enter the
lands of the confederation, the consequences of which had been so
strongly marked in the atrocities at Khundaila.

Fourth, that the confederacy would furnish a contingent for the ,
service of the court, which should be paid by the court while so
employed.

The treaty being ratified through the intervention of the new
commander, and having received in advance 10,000 rupees for their
expenses, the chiefs with their retainers repaired to the capital, and
after paying homage to their liege lord, zealously set to work to exe-
cute its orders on the Huldia faction, who were dispossessed of their
estates. But, as observed in the annals of the parent statA, Jeipoor
had obtained the distinction of the jootha durbar , or r lying court/
of the justness of which epithet it afforded an illustration in its
conduct to the confederated chieftains, 'rt'ho soon discovered the dif-
ference between promises and performance. They had done their
duty, but they obtained not one of the advantages for which they
agreed to serve the court ; and they had the mortification to see

CHAP. VI.]

ANNALS OP AMBER.

381

l merely displaced the garrisons of the Huldia for those
lid. After a short consultation, they determined to seek
es the justice that was denied them ; accordingly, they
1 in succession the towns occupied by Rora Ram's myrmi-
Dve them out, aud made them over to their original pro-

i same time, the court having demanded the usual tribute
irsing Das, which was always in arrear, he had the impru-
stone the agent, who was a relation of the minister. He
L to the Presence, “ threw his turban at the Raja’s feet,”
he was dishonoured for ever. A mandate was instanta-
ssued for the sequestration of Khundaila and the capture of
, who bade his liege lord defiance from his castle of Govind-
ut his co-partner, Pertap Sing, having no just cause of
ision, remained in Khundaila, which was environed by the
;roops under Assaram. His security was his ruin ; but the
nyan (Assaram), who wished to seize at once the joint
if the estate, offered no molestation to Pertap, while he laid
or the other. He invited his return, on the buclmn, or
of safety/ of the Munohurpoor chief. Nursing did not
for rank as was the character of his countrymen in these
ite days, no Rajpoot had ever incurred the epithet of Buchun-
m-fold more odious than that of murderer, and which no
.ction, however brilliant, could obliterate, even from his
mts to the latest posterity. On the faith of this buchun,
came, and a mock negotiation was carried on for the arrears
te, and a time fixed for payment. Nursing returned to
ila, and Assaram broke up his camp and moved away. The
anyan, having thus successfully thrown him off his guard,
third day rapidly retraced his Bteps, and at midnight sur-
Nursing in his abode, who was ordered to proceed forthwith
imp. Burning with indignation, he attempted self-destruc-
b was withheld ; and accompanied by a few Rajpoots who
protect or die with him, he joined Assaram to see the issue.

pie plan was adopted to secure Pertap, and he fearlessly
;he summons. Both parties remained in camp ; the one was
with a negotiation for his liberation -on the payment of a
9 other had higher hopes; and in the indulgence of both,
jsals relaxed in vigilance. While they were at dinner, a
inted in ambuscade rushed out, and before they could seize
ns, made' captive both the chiefs. They were pinioned like
iut into a covered carriage, despatched under the guard of
idred men to the capital, and found apartments ready for .

the state-prison of Amber. It is an axiom with these
;h at the end sanctifies the means ; and the prince and his
congratulated each other on the complete success of the
Khundaila was declared hhalisa (fiscal), and garrisoned by
idred men, from the camp, while the inferior feudatorieB,
n.] 48a

378

ANNALS OP AMBER,

[CHAP. VII.

aiding estates detached from the capital, were received on terms,
and even allowed to hold their fiefs on the promise that they did .
not disturb the sequestrated lands.

♦

CHAPTER VII.

Bagh Sing opposes tho faithless court of Amber. — He is joined by the celebrated
George Thomas. — Desperate action. — Bagh Sing placed in the fortified palace
at Khundaila. — His garrison, with his brother, slain by Hunwunt Sing, son
of PertAp. — Bagh regains the palace. — The lands of Khundaila farmed by
Amber to two Brahmins. — They are expelled by the feudatoiy Bnrwuttins,
who resist the court. — They become a banditti. — Singram Sing , cousin to
Pertap, their leader. — He avoids the treachery of the court. — His death. — The
confederacy unite in the league against Jodpoor. — Hew treaty with the Amber
court. — Liberation of Pertdp and Nursing. — Grand union of the Shehliawnts.

— Abhe Sing succeeds in Khundaila. — Treachery of the court.— Hunwunt
regains Oovindgurh, Khundaila, Spci — Restoration of Klioshialiram to the
ministry of Jeipoor. — New investitures granted to the feudatories of
Khundaila. — Abhe and Pertap inducted into their ancestral abodes. — Incident
illustrative of the defects of the Rajpoot feudal system. — Khundaila assailed by
Luchman Sing, chief of Seehur.— Gallant defence of Hunwunt — His death . —
Surrender of Khundaila to Luchman Sing. — The co-heirs exiled. — Power and
influence of Luchman Sing. — Foils the designs of the Purohit. — Present
attitude of Luchman Sing. — Subordinate branches of the Shehliawnts. — The
Sadhanis. — Their territories wrested from the Kaimhhanis and Rajpoots . —
The Keytri branch of the family of Sadhoo attains superiority. — Bagh Sing
of Keijtri murders his own son. — The Larhhanis-- Revenues of Shekliavati.

Deenaram Bohra was now (A.D. 1798-9) prime minister of
Jeipoor, and he no sooner heard of the success of Assaram, than
he proceeded to join him in person, for the purpose of collect- ,
ing the tribute due by the Sadhani chiefs. Having formed a
junction with Assaram at Oodipoor, they marched to Pursaram-
poor, a town in the heart of the Sadhanis, whence they issued
commands for the tribute to be brought; to expedite which,
the ministers sent cP/ioos* to all the townships of the confederacy.
This insulting process irritated the Sadhanis to such a' degree
that they wrote to Deenaram to withdraw his parties instantly,
and retrace his steps to Jhoonjoonoo, or abide the consequences;
declaring, if he did so, that the collective tribute, of which ten
thousand was then ready, would be forthcoming. All had assented
to this arrangement but Bagh Sing, brother of the captive prince
of Khundaila, who was so incensed at the faithless conduct of

D'hoos is an expedient to hasten the compliance of a demand from a
dependent. A party of horse proceeds to the township, and are commanded to
receive so mnch per day till the exaction is complied with. If the d’hoos is
refused, it is considered tantamount to an appeal to arms.

CHAP. VII.]

ANNALS OP AMBER.

381

the court, after the great services they had so recently performed,
that he determined to oppose by force of arms this infraction of
their charter, which declared the inviolability of the territory of the
confederation so long as the tribute was paid. He was joined by
five hundred men of Keytri, with which having levied contributions
at Singhana and Futtehpoor from the traitorous lord of Seekur, he
invited to their aid the celebrated George Thomas, then carving out
his fortunes amongst these discordant political elements. Nearly the
whole of the Jeipoor mercenary and feudal army was embodied on
this occasion, and although far superior in numbers to the confedera-
tion, yet the presence of Thomas aud his regulars more than counter-
poised their numerical inferiority. The attack of Thomas was irre-
sistible ; the Jeipoor lines led by Rora Ram gave way, and lost several
pieces of artillery. To redeem what the cowardice and ill conduct
of the general in chief had lost, the chieftain of Chomoo formed a
gole or dense band of the feudal chivalry, which he led in person
against Thomas's brigade, charging to the mouths of his guns. His
object, the recovery of the guns, was attained with great slaughter
on each side. The Chomoo chief (Runjeet Sing) was desperately
wounded, and Buhadoor Sing, Pahar Sing, chiefs of the Khangarote
clans, with many others, were slain by discharges of grape ; the guns
were retrieved, and Thomas and his auxiliaries were deprived of a
victory, and ultimately compelled to retreat.*

The captive chiefs of Khundaila deemed this revolt and union of
their countrymen favourable to their emancipation, and addressed
them to this effect. A communication was made to the discomfited
*Rora Ram, who promised his influence, provided an efficient body of
Raesilotes joined his camp, and by their services seconded their
requests. Bagh Sing was selected; a man held in high esteem by
both parties, and even the court manager of Khundaila found it
necessary to retain his services, as it was by his influence only over
his unruly brethren that he was enabled to make anything of the
new fiscal lands. For this purpose, and to preserve the point of
honour, the manager permitted Bagh Sing to remain in the fortified
palace of Khundaila, with a small party of his brethren : but on
being selected to lead the quotas of his countrymen with the court
commander, he left his younger brother, Luchman Sing, as his
deputy.

No sooner did it reach the ears of Hunwunt Sing of Silledd, son
of the captive Pert&p, that Bagh Sing had joined the army, than in
the true spirit of these relentless feuds, he determined to attempt
the castle. As soon as the darkness of night favoured his design, lie
hastened its accomplishment, escaladed it, and put the unprepared,
garrison to the sword. Intelligence of this event reached Bagh Sing

* Franklin, in his life of George Thomas,' describes this battle circumstan-
tially; but makes it appear an affair of the Jeipoor court, with Thomas and tho
Mahrattas, in which the Shekhawuts are not mentioned. Thomas gives tho
Rajpoot chivalry full praise for their gallant bearing. — Memoir of George
Thomas, p. 109.

382

ANNALS OF AHBEB.

[OHAF. VII.

at Ranolli, who instantly countermarched, and commenced the assault 1 ’
into which even the townspeople entered heartily, inspired as they 1
were with indignation at the atrocious murder of the young chief.
The day was extremely hot ; the defendants fought for their existence,
for their leader could not hope for mercy. The assailants were served
with the best food; such was the enthusiasm, that even the women
forgot their fears, and cheered them on as the ladders were planted
against the last point of defence. Then the white flag was displayed,
aud the gate opened, but the murderer had fled.

Manji Das succeeded Deenaram as minister of Jeipoor; and Rora
Ram, notwithstanding his disgraceful defeat and the lampoons of
the bards, continued to be collector of the Shekhawut tribute, and
farmed the fiscal lands of Khundaila to a Brahmin for twenty
thousand rupees annually. This Brahmin, in conjunction with
another speculative brother, lad taken a lease of the Mdpd Bahdarij
or town and transit duties at Jeipoor, which having been profitable,
they now agreed to take on lease the sequestrated lands of Khundaila.
Having not only fulfilled their contract the first year, but put money
in their pocket, they renewed it for two more. -Aided by a party of
'.'the Sillehposhians of the court, the minister of religion shewed he
was no messenger of peace, and determined to make the most of his
emphemeral power, he not only levied contributions on the yet inde-
pendent feudatories, but attacked those who resisted, and carried
several of their castles sword in hand. The brave ” sons of
“ RaesiP could not bear this new mark of contumely and bad
faith of the court , — “ to be made the sport of a tailor and
“ a Brahmin,” — and having received intimation from the captive
chiefs that there was no hope of their liberty, they at once threw
away the scabbard, and commenced a scene of indiscriminate
vengeance, which the Rajpoot often has recourse to when urged to
despair. They at once assailed Khundaila, and in spite of the resist-
ance of seven thousand Dcidoopuntis, dispossessed the Purohit, and
sacked it. Then advancing within the Jeipoor domains, they spread
terror and destruction, pillaging even the estates of the queen. Fresh
troops were sent against them, and after many actions the con-
federacy was broken up. The Ranolli chief aud others of the elder
branches made theirpeace, but the younger brancbesfled the country,
and obtained sirna (sanctuary) and subsistence in Harwar and'
Bikaner : Singram Sing of Soojawas (cousin to Pert&p) sought the
former, Bagh Sing and Sooruj Sing the latter, whose prince gave
them lands. There they abode in tranquillity for a time, looking to
that justice from the prince which tributary collectors know not;
but when apathy and neglect mistook the motive of this patient
suffering, he was roused from his indifference to the fate of the brave
Baniruttias, by the tramp of their horses’ feet even at the gates of
his capital.

Singram Sing headed the band of exiles, which spread fear and
desolation over a great portion of Dhoondar. In many districts they

ANNALS OF AMBfefe.

383

CHAP. VII.]

1

J

istablished \'elcioalli;* and wherever they succeeded in surprising a
hanna (garrison) of their liege lord, they cut it up without mercy.
They sacked the town of Kho, within a few miles of the city of
Jeipoor, from under whose walls they carried off horses to mount
their gang. Animated by successful revenge, and the excitement of
a life so suited/ to the Rajpoot, Siugram became a leader of a band
of several huridi’ed horse, bold enough to attempt anything. Com-
plaints for redress poured in upon the court from all quarters, to
which a deijff ear might have been turned, had they not been accom-
panied with applications for reduction of rent. The court at length,
alarmed tit this daring desperado, made overtures to him through
Sliiaui Sj/ng, Sadhani, the chief of Buss&o, on whose bitch un (pledge)
Singrarrj consented to appear before his liege lord. As soon as he
arrived/under the walls of the city, his cavalcade was surrounded by
all classes, 1 but particularly the Sikh mercenaries, all of whom recog-
nized their property, some a horse, some a camel, others arms, &c. ;
but none durst advance a claim to their own, so daring was their

attitude and so guarded their conduct. The object of the minister
was to secure the person of Singram, regardless of the infamy which
would attach to the chief who, at his desire, had pledged himself for
his safety. But Shiam Sing, who had heard of the plot, gave Sin-
gram warning. In forty-eight hours, intelligence reached the court
that Singram was in Tuarvati, and that, joined by the Tiiars and
Larkhanis, he was at the head of one thousand horse. He now
assailed the large fiscal towns of his prince; contributions were
demanded, and if they could not be complied with, he carried off in
ole (hostage) the chief citizens, who were afterwards ransomed. If
a delay occurred in furnishing either, the place was instantly given
over to pillage, which was placed upon a body of camels. The
career of this determined Banouttia was at length closed. He had
surrounded the town of Madhfipoor, the estate of one of the queens,
when a ball struck him in the head. His body was carried to
Ranolli and burnt, and he had his cenotaph amongst the joojdrs
(those slain in battle) of his fathers. The son of Singram succeeded,
to the command and the revenge of his father, and he continued the
same daring course, until the court restored his patrimony of Sooja-
was. Such were the tumultuous proceedings in Shekhavati, when
an event of such magnitude occurred as to prove an epoch in the
history of Rajpootana, -and which not only was like oil effused upon
their afflictions, but made them prominent to their own benefit in
the transaction.

That grand international war, ostensibly for the hand of the Helen
of Rajwarra, was on the point of bursting forth. The opening scene
was in Shekhavati, and the actors chiefly Sadhanis. It will be
recollected, that though this was but the underplot of a tragedy,
chiefly got up for the deposal of Raja Maun of Jodpoor, in favour of
Dhonkul Sing, Rae-Ohund was then Dewan, or prime minister, of

* The salvamentci, or black-mail of our own feudal system. See Vol. I, p. 156.

384

ANNALS or AMBER.

.[CHAP.Yll.

Jeipoor; and to forward his master’s views for the hand/ i of Kislina
supported the cause of the Pretender. t ea §

The minister sont his nephew, Kirpnram, to obtain ttA I
Shckhawuts, who appointed Kislien Sing as iatevpr/tJe

_ be aid of the
ey ifer of their

wishes, while the Klier assembled at the “Pass of Oodi/^’.poor.” Theie
a new treaty was formed, the main article of which S. the libera-
tion of their chieftains, the joint Rajas of Khundaila, mK re d the renewal
of the ancient stipulations regarding the non -in terf exigence of the
court in their internal arrangements, so long as they paft x d the regu-
lated tribute. Kislien Sing, the organ of the confederation a, together
with Kirpnram, left the assembly for the capital, whereV they soon
returned with the ratification of their wishes. On these celPonditions
ten thousand of the sons of Shekhji were embodied, and wrendy to
accompany their lord-paramount wherever he might leaaf e them,
receiving paiti , Or subsistence, while out of their own lands.

These preliminaries settled, Sliiarn Sing Cknmpawut (nepliyuv of
the Polcurn chief) with Kirparam repaired to Keytri, whence yhey
conveyed the young Pretender, Dhonlcul Sing, to the camp of me
confederates. They were met by a deputation headed by the
princess Auundi Kowur (daughter of the late Raja Pertap, and one
of tho widows of Raja Bheem of Marwar, father of the Pretender),
who received the boy in her arms as the child of her adoption, and
forthwith returned to the capital, where the army was forming for
the invasion of Marwar.

It moved to Kfitoo, ten coss from Khundaila, where they waited
the junction of the Bikandr Raja and other auxiliaries. The Shek-
hawut lords here sent in their imperative demand for the liberation
of the sons of Raesil, “ that they might march under a leader of
“ their own, equal in celebrity to the proudest of that assembled
“host.” Evasion was dangerous; and in a few days their chiefs
were formally delivered to them. Even the self-abdicated Bindrabun
could not resist this general appeal to arms. The princes encamped
in the midst of their vassals, nor was there ever such a convocation
of c the sons of Shekhji Raesilotes, Sad ban is, Bhojanis, Larkbanis,
and even t*he Barwuttias, flocked around f the yellow banner of
Raesil.’ The accounts of the expedition are elsewhere narrated, and
we shall only add that the Shekhawuts participated in all its glory
aud all its disgrace, and lost both Rao Nursing and his father ere
they returned to their own lauds.

Ablid Sing, the son of Nursing succeeded, and conducted the con-
tingent of his countrymen until the ill-starred expedition broke up,
when they returned to Khundaila. But the faithless court had no
iutention of restoring the lands of Khundaila. Compelled to look
about for a subsistence, with oue hundred aud fifty horse, they went
to Raja Buktawur Sing of Macherri; blithe performed the duties*
of kindred and hospitality so meanly, that they only remained a
fortnight, In this exigence, Pertap and his son repaired to the
Mahratta leader, Bapoo Sindia, at Dewnsa, while Hunwunt, in the

CHAP. VII.]

ANNALS OF AMBER.

385

ancient spirit of his race, determined to attempt Hovindgurhi In
disguise, he obtained the necessary information, assembled sixty of
his resolute clansmen, whom he concealed at dusk in a ravine,
whence, as soon as silence proclaimed the hour was come, he issued,'
ascended the well-known path, planted his ladders, and cut down
the sentinels ere the garrison was alarmed. It was soon mastered,
several being killed and the rest turned out. The well-known beat
of the Eaesilote nakarras awoke the Larkhanis, Meenas, and all the
Rajpoots in the vicinity, who immediately repaired to the castle. In
a few weeks the gallant Hunwunt was at the head of two thousand
men, prepared to act offensively against his faithless liege lord.
Khundaila and all the adjacent towns surrendered, their garrisons
flying before the victors, and Khoshial Daroga, a name of note in all
the intrigues of the 'durbar of that day, carried to court the tidings
of his own disgrace, which, his enemies took care to proclaim, arose
from his cupidity : for though he drew pay and rations for a garrison
of one hundred men, he only had thirty. Accompanied by Ruttun
Chund, with two battalions and guns, and the reproaches of his
sovereign, he was commanded at his peril to recover Khundaila. The
gallant Hunwunt disdained to await the attack, but advanced out-
■ side the city to meet it, drove Khoshial back, and had he not in the
very moment of viotory been wounded, while the Larkhanis hung
behind, would have totally routed them. Hunwunt was compelled
to reti’eat within the walls, where he stood two assaults, in one of
yrhich he slew thirty Sillehposh , or men in armour, the body-guard
of the prince ; but the only water of the garrison being from tankas
(reservoirs), he was on the point of surrendering at discretion, when
an offer of five townships being made, he accepted the towns.

Another change took place in the ministry of Amber at this
period; and Khoshialiram, at the age of fourscore and four years,
was liberated from the state-prison of Amber, and once more’
entrusted with the administration of the government. This hoary-
headed politician, who, during more than half a century, had alter-
nately met the frowns and the smiles of his prince, at this the
extreme verge of existence, entered with all the alacrity of youth
into the tortuous intrigues of office, after witnessing the removal of
two prime minister’s, his rivals, who resigned power and life together’.
Khoshialiram had remained incarcerated since the reign of Raja
Pertab, who, when dying, left three injunctions ; the first of which
was, that ‘ the Bohra (his caste) should never be enfranchised ; but if
in evil hour his successor should be induced to liberate him ” he
“ should be placed uncontrolled at the head of affairs/’*

When this veteran politician, whose biography would fill a

*■ The second injunction ■was to keep the office of Foujdar, or commander of
the forces, is the family of Simboo Sing, Googawut, a tribe always noted for
their fidelity, and like the Mairteas of Marwar, even a blind fidelity, to the
gadi, whoever was the occupant. The third injunction is left blank in my
manuscript.

[Von. II.]

49

38G

ANNALS OF AltBCR.

[CHAP. to.

volume,* succeeded to tlie helm at Jeipoor, a solemn deputation of the
principal Shokhawut chieftains repaired to the capital, and begged
that through his intercession thoy might be restored to the lands of
their forefathers. The Bohra, who had always kept up, as well from
sound principle as from personal feeling, a good understanding with
the feudality, willingly became their advocate with his sovereign, to
whom he represented that the defence of the state lay in a willing
and contented vassalage : for, notwithstanding their disobedience
and turbulence, they were always ready, when the general weal was
threatened, to support it with all their power. Ho appealed to the
late expedition, when ton thousand of the children of Sliekhji were
embodied in his cause, and what was a better argument, he observed,
the Mahvattas had only boen able to prevail since their dissensions
amongst themselves. The Bohra was commanded to follow his own
good will and pleasure ; and having exacted an engagement, by
which the future tribute of the Itaesilotes was fixed at sixty thousand
rupees annually', and the immediate payment of a nuzzcnma of forty
thousand, fresh puttas of investiture were made out for Khundaila
and its dependencies. There are so many conflicting interests in all
these courts, that it by no means follows that obedience runs on the
heels of command ; even though the orders of the prince were coun-
tersigned by the minister, the Hffagas, who formed the garrison of
Khundaila, and the inferior fiefs, shewed no disposition to comply.
The gallant Hunwunt, -justly suspecting the Bohra’ s good faith,
proposed to the joint ltajas a coup de main, which he volunteered
to lead. They had five hundred retainers amongst them ; of these
Hunwunt selected twenty of tho most intrepid, and repaired to
Oodigufh, to which he gained admission as a messenger from him-
self ; twenty more were at his heels, who also got in, and the rest
rapidly following, took post at the gateway. Hunwunt then dis-
closed himself, and presented the fresh putta of Khundaila to
the Nagas, who still hesitating to obey, he drew his sword, when
seeing that he was determined to succeed or perish, they reluctantly
withdrew, and Abhe and Pertdp were once more inducted into tho
dilapidated abodes of their ancestors. The adversity they had under-
gone, added to their youth and inexperience, made them both yield
a ready acquiescence to the advice of their kinsman, to whose valour
and conduct they owed the restoration of their inheritance, and
the ancient feuds, which were marked on every stone of their castel-
lated maids , were apparently appeased.

Shortly after this l'estoration, the Shekhawut contingents were
called out to serve against the common enemy of Bajpootana, the

* His first net, after his emancipation from the dungeons of Amber, was the
delicate negociation at Hhonee, the castle of Cband Sing, Googawut. Ho died
L .Bus8Wab, 22d April 1812, on his return from Maclierri to Jeipoor, where ho
s been unsuccessfully attempting a reconciliation between the courts. It
''\£oj_tiu£, be forgotten that the independence of the Narooca chief in Hacbcrri
Mahrat v ™aiuly achieved by the Bohra, who was originally the homme d'affaires
torous Harooca. \

ciur. vii.]

ANNALS OP AMBER.

387

notorious Moor Khan, whose general, Mahomed Shnh Khan, was
closely blockaded in the fortress of Bhomgm'h, near Tonk, by the
whole strength of Jeipoor, commanded by Eao Chand Sing of
Dhoonee. An incident occurred, while the siege was approaching a
successful conclusion, which well exemplifies the incorrigible imper-
fections of the feudal system, either for offensive or defensive opera-
tions. This incident, trivial as it is in its origin, proved a death-
blow to these unfortunate princes, so long the sport of injustice, and
appeal's destined to falsify the dhum, who prophecied, on the accept-
ance of his self-sacrifice, that seven successive generations of his
issue should occupy the cjadi of Khundaila. In the disorderly
proceedings of this feudal array, composed of all the quotas of Amber,
a body of Shelchawuts had sacked one of the townships of Tonk, in
which a Googawut inhabitant was slain, and his property plundered,
in the indiscriminate pell-mell. The son of the Googawut instantly
carried his complaints to the besieging general. Chand Sing, the head
of his clan, who gave him a party of the Sillchposh (men in armour)
to recover his property. The Shelchawuts resisted, and’ reinforced
their party ; Chand Sing did the same ; the Khundaila chiefs repaired
in person, accompanied by the whole confederacy, with the excep-
tion of Seelcur : and the Googawut chief, who had not only the ties
of clanship, but the dignity of commander-in-chief, to sustain, sent
every man he could spare from the blockade. Thus nearly the
whole feudal arrav of Amber was collected round a few bakeries
(carts), ready to cut each other to pieces for the point of honour :
neither would l-elinqnish the claim, and swords were already drawn,
when the Khaugarote chief stepped between them as peace-maker,
and proposed an expedient which saved the honour of both, namely,
that the plundered property should be permitted to proceed to its
destination, the Khundaila prince’s quarters, who should transmit it,
“ of his own accord ,” to the commauder-in-ckiof of the army. The
Shekhawuts assented; the havoc was prevented; but the pride of
Chand Sing was hurt, who saw in this a concession to the com-
mander of the army, but none to the leader of the Googawuts.

• Luchman Sing, the chief of Seelcur, who, as before stated, was the
only Shekhawut who kept aloof from the affray, saw the moment
was arrived for the accomplishment of his long-concealed desire to
, be loi'd of Khuudaila. The siege of Bhomgurh being broken up, in
consequence of these dissensions and the defection of the confederated
Shekhawuts, tho Seekur chief no sooner saw them move by the
circuitous routeof the capital, than' he marched directly for his estates,
and ' throwing aside all disguise, attacked Seessoh, which by an
infamous stratagem he secured, by inveigling oho commandant, the
son of the late Bohra minister. Then making overtures to the
enemy, against whom ho had just been fighting, for the sum of two
lacs of rupees, he obtained a brigade of the mercenary Pat/hans,
under their leaders Mnnnoo and Mahtab Khan, the last of whom,
but a' few days before, had entered into a solemn engagement with
■ Hunwunt, as manager for the minor princes, to support whose
[Too. II.] * 49a

388

ANNALS OF AMBER.

[CHAP. VII. '

cause, and fco abstain from molesting their estates, he had received
fifty thousand rupees ! Such nefarious acts were too common at
that period even to occasion remark, far less reprehension.

The gallant Hunwunt now prepared for the defence of the lands
which his valour had redeemed. His foeman made a lavish applica-
tion of the wealth, which his selfish policy had acquired, andRewasso
and other fiefs were soon in his possession. The town of Khundaila,
being open, soon followed, but the castle held out sufficiently long
to enable him to strengthen and provision Kote, which he determined
to defend to the last. Having withstood the attacks of the enemy,
during three weeks, in the almost ruined castle, he sallied out sword
in hand, and gained Kote, where he assembled all those yet faithful
to the family, and determined to stand or fall with the last strong-
hold of Khundaila. The other chiefs of the confederation beheld
with indignation this unprovoked and avaricious aggression on the
minor princes of Khundaila, not only because of its abstract injustice,
but of the undue aggrandizement of this inferior branch of the
Raesilotes, and the means employed, namely, the common enemy of
their country. Many leagued for its prevention, but some were
bribed by the offer of a part of the domain, and those who were too
virtuous to be corrupted, found their intentions defeated by the
necessity of defending their own homes against the detachments of
Meer Khan, sent by desire of Seekur to neutralise their efforts.
The court was steeled against all remonstrance, from the unhappy
rapture at Bhomgurh, the blockade of which, it was represented, was
broken by the conduct of the followers of Khundaila.

Hunwunt and some hundreds of his brave clansmen were thus left
to their own resources. During three months, they defended them-
selves in a position outside the castle, when a general assault was
made on his intrenchments. He was advised to retreat into the
castle, but he nobly replied, “ Khundaila is gone for ever, if we are
“ reduced to shelter ourselves behind walls and he called upon bis
brethren to repel the attack or perish. Hunwunt cheered on his
kinsmen, who charged the battalions sword in hand, drove them from
their guns, and completely cleaved the intrenchments. But the
enemy returned to the conflict, which lasted from morn until nightfall.
Another sortie was made again the enemy was ignominiously
dislodged, but the gallant Hunwunt, leading his men to the very
muzzle of the guns, received a shot which ended his career. The
victory remained with the besieged, but the death of their leader
disconcerted his clansmen, who retired within the fort. Five
hundred of the mercenary Paffhans and men of Seekur (a number
equal to the whole of the defenders), accompanied to the shades the
last intrepid Raesilote of Khundaila.

The nest morning, an armistice for the removal of the wounded
and obsequies of the dead was agreed to, during which terms were
offered, and refused ‘by the garrison. As soon as the de&ljh 0 ^
Hunwunt was known, the Oodipoor chief, who from the first ly

CHAP. VII.]

ANNALS OF AMBER.

389

upheld the cause of justice, sent additional aid both in men and
supplies ; and had the Keytri chief been at his estates, the cause
would have been further supported ; but he was at court, and had
left orders with his son to act according to the advice of the chief
of Bussao, who had been gained over to the interests of Seekur by
the bribe of participation in the conquered lands. Nevertheless, the
garrison held out, under every privation, for five weeks longer, their
only sustenance at length being a little Indian corn introduced by
the exertions of individual Meenas. At this extremity, an offer
being made of ten townships, they surrendered. Pertap Sing took
his share of this remnant of his patrimony, but his co-heir Abhe
Sing inherited too much of Raesil's spirit to degrade himself by
owing aught to his criminal vassal and kinsman. It would have
beemwell for Pertap had he shewn the same spirit ; for Luchman
Sing, now lord of Khundaila, felt too acutely the injustice of his
success, to allow the rightful heir to remain upon his patrimony ;
and he only allowed sufficient time to elapse for the consolidation of
his acquisition, before he expelled the young prince. Both the co-heirs,
Abhd Sing and Pertap, now reside at Jhoonjoonoo, where each
receives five rupees a day, from a joint purse made for them by the
Sadhanis, nor at present* is there a ray of hope of their restoration
to Khundaila.

In 1814, when Misr Sheonarain, then minister of Jeipoor, was
.involved in great pecuniary difficulties, to get rid of the importunities
of Meer Khan, he cast his eyes towards the Seekur chief, who had
long been desirous -to have his usurpation sanctioned by the court ;
and it was stipulated that on the payment of nine lacs of rupees
(viz., five from himself, with* the authority and force of Jeipoor to
raise the rest from the Sadhanis), he should receive the pxdta of
investiture of Khundaila. Meer Khan, the mutual agent on this
occasion, was then at Ranolli, where Luchman Sing met him and
paid the amount, receiving his receipt, which was exchanged for the
grant under the great seal.

Immediately after, Luchman Sing proceeded to court, and upon
the further payment of one year's tribute in advance, henceforth
fixed at fifty-seven thousand rupees, he received from the hands of
his liege-lord, the Raja Juggut Sing, the hhelat of investiture. Thus,
by the ambition of Seekur, the cupidity of the court, and the
jealousies and avarice of the Sadhanis, the birthright of the lineal
heirs of Raesil was alienated.

Luchman Sing, by his talents and wealth, soon established his
influence at the court of his sovereign ; but the jealousy which this
excited in the Purohit minister of the day very nearly lost him his
dearly-bought acquisition. It will be recollected .that a Brahmin
obtained the lease of the lands of Khundaila, and that for his extor-
tions he was expelled with disgrace. He proceeded, however, in his
career of ambition ; subverted the influence of his patron Sheonarain

* This was written in 1813-14-.

390

ANNALS OF AMBER.

[chap. viL

Misr, forcing him to commit suicide, ruined the prospects of his son,
aud by successful and daring intrigue established, himself in the
ministerial chair of Amber. The influence of Luchman Sing, who
was consulted on all occasions, gave him umbrage, and he determined
to get rid of him. To drive him into opposition to his sovereign
was his aim, and to effect this there was no better method than to
sanction an attack upon Khundaila. The Sadkanis, whose avarice
and jealousies made them ovei'look their true interests, readily-
united to the troops of the court, and Kkundaila was besieged.
Luchman Sing, on this occasion, shewed he was no common chai-ac-
ter. He tranquilly abided the issue at Jeipoor, thus neutralizing the
malignity of the Purohit, while, to ensure the safety of Khundaila,
a timely supply of money to the parfcizan, Jumsheed Khan, brought
his battalions to threaten the Purohit in his camp. Completely
foiled by the superior tact of Luchman Sing, the Brahmin was com-
pelled to abandon the undertaking and to return to the capital,
where his anger made him throw.aside the mask, and attempt to
secure the person of his enemy. The Seekur chief had a narrow
escape ; he fled with fifty horse, hotly pui-sued by his adversary,
while his effects, and those of his partizans (amongst whom was the
Samote chief) were confiscated. The Sadbanis, led by the chiefs of
Keytri and Bussao, even after the Purohit had left them, made a
bold attempt to capture Khundaila, which was defeated, and young
Abbe Sing, who was made a puppet on the occasion, witnessed the
last defeat of his hopes.

If necessity or expediency could palliate or justify such nefarious
acts, it would be shewn in the good consequences that have resulted
from evil. The discord and bloodshed produced by the partition of
authority between the ’sons of Bahadoor Sing are now at an end.
Luchman Sing is the sole tyrant in Khundaila, and so long as the
system which he has established is maintained, he may laugh at the
efforts, not only of the Sadbanis, but of the court itself, to sup-
plant him.

Let us, in a few words, trace the family of Luchman Sing. Tt will
be recollected that Raesil, the first Raja amongst the sons of Shekbji,
had seven sons, the fourth of whom, Tirmuji (who obtained the title
of Rao), held Kasulli and its eighty-four townships iu appanage.
His son, Hurree Sing, wrested the district of Bilava, with its one
hundred and twenty-five townships, from the Kaimkhanis of Futteh-
poor, and shortly after, twenty-five more from Rewasso. Seo Sing,
the son of Hurree, captured Futtehpoor itself, the chief abode of
the Kaimkhanis, where he established himself. His son, Chand
Sing, founded Seekur, whose lineal descendant, D6vi Sing, adopted
Luchman Sing, son of his near kinsman, the Shahpoora t’halcoor-
The estates of Seekur were in admirable order when Luchman suc-
ceeded to his uncle, whose policy was of the exterminating sort.
Luchman improved upon it; and long before, he acquired Khiis3vl®»
had demolished all the castles of his iuferior feudatories, not ev| n

CHAP, vir.]

ANNALS OP AMBER.

391

sparing that of Shabpoora, the place of his nativity, as well as Bilara,
Buthofcie, and Kasulli ; aud so completely did he allow the ties of
adoption to supersede those of blood, that his own father preferred
exile, to living under a son who, covered with u the turban of See-
“ kur,” forgot the author of his life, and retired to Jodpoor.

Luchman Sing has now a compact and improving country, con-
taining five hundred towns and villages, yielding a revenue of eight
lacs of rupees. Desirous of transmitting his name to posterity, he
erected the castle of Luchmangurffi,* * * § and has fortified many other
strong-holds, for the defence of which he has formed a little army,
which, in these regions, merits the title of regulars, consisting of
eight battalions of alligole, armed with matchlocks, with a brigade
of guns to each battalion. He has besides an efficient cavalry, con-
sisting of one thousand horse, half of which are bargeers, or stipen-
diary ; the other half jagheerdnrs , having lands assigned for their
support. With such means, and with his ambition, there is very
little doubt that, had not the alliance of his liege lord of Amber with
the English government put a stop to the predatory system, he
would, by means of the same worthy allies by whose aid he obtained ■
Khundaila,-)- before this time have made himself supreme in Shek-
havati.

Having thus brought to a conclusion the history of the princes of
Khundaila, we shall give a brief account of the other branches of
the Shekhawuts, especially the most powerful, the Sadhani.

• The Sadhanis are descended from Bhojraj, the third son of Baesil,
and in the division of fiefs amongst his seven sons, obtained Oodi-
poor and its dependencies. Bhojraj had a numerous issue, styled
Bhojani, who arrogated their full share of importance in the infancy
of the confederacy, and in process of time, from some circumstance
not related, perhaps the mere advantage of locality, their chief city
became the rendezvous for the great council of the federation, which
is still in the defile of Oodipoor.J

Several generations subsequent to Bhojraj, Jugram succeeded to
the lands of Oodipoor. He had six sons, the eldest of whom,
Sadhoo,- quarrelled with his father, on some ceremonial connected
with the celebration of the military festival, the doserrah,§ and

_ P

* Luchtnangur’h, or “ the castle of Luchman,” situated upon a lofty
mountain,' was erected in S. 1862, or A.D. 1806, though probably on the ruins
of some more ancient fortress. It; commands a most extensive prospect, and is
quite a beacon in that country, studded with bill-castles. The town is built on
the model of Jeipoor, with regular streets intersecting each other at right
angles', in which there .are many wealthy merchants, who enjoyed perfect security.

f Khundaila is said to have derived its name from the Kholcur Rajpoot. The
Khokur is often mentioned in the Bhatti Annr.l3, whom I have supposed to bo
the Ghuker, who were certainly Indo-Scy thic. Khundaila has four thousand
houses, and eighty villages dependent on it. _

* The ancient name of Oodipoor is said to be Kaes ; it contains three
thousand houses, aud has forty-five villages attached to it, divided into four
portions.

§ See Vol. I, p. 495.

392

ANNALS 0

AMBER.

[CHAP. TIL

quitting the paternal roof., sought his' fortunes abroad . At this time,
almost all the tract now inhabited by the Sadhanis was dependent on
Futtelipoor (Jhoonjoonoo), the residence of a Nawab of the Kaim-
khani tribe of Afghans, who held it as a fief of the empire. To him
Sadhoo repaired, and was received with favour, and by his talents
and courage rose in consideration, until he was eventually intrusted
with the entire management of affairs. There are two accounts of
the mode of his ulterior advancement : both may be correct. One
is, that the Nawab, having no children, adopted young Sadhoo, and
assigned to him Jhoonjoonoo and its eighty-four dependencies,
which he retained on the Kaimkhani’s death. The other, and less
favourable though equally probable account, is that, feeling his
influence firmly established, he hinted to his patron, that the town-
ship of was prepared for his futui’e residence, where he

should enjoy a sufficient pension, as he intended to retain possession
of his delegated authority. So completely had he supplanted the
Kaimkliani, that he found himself utterly unable to make a party
against the ungrateful Shekhawut. He therefore fled from ^Jhoon-
jeonoo to Futtehpoor, the other division of his authority, or at least
. one of his own kin, who espoused his cause, and prepared to expel
the traitor from Jhoonjoonoo. Sadhoo, in this emergency, applied
to his father, requesting him to call upon his brethren, as it was a
common cause. The old chief; who, in his son’s success, forgave and
forgot the conduct which made him leave his roof, instantly
addressed another son, then serving with his liegelord, the MirzaBaja
Jey Sing, in the imperial army, to obtain succour for him ; and some
regular troops with guns were immediately despatched to reinforce
young Sadhoo and maintain his usurpation, which was accomplished,
and moreover Futtehpoor was added to Jhoonjoonoo. Sadhoo
bestowed the former with its dependencies, equal in value to his own
share, on his brother, for his timely aid, and both, according-to
previous stipulation, agreed to acknowledge their obligations to the
Baja by an annual tribute and nuszerana on all lapses, as lord-
paramount. Sadhoo soon after wrested Singbana, containing one
hundred and twenty-five villages, from another branch of the Kaim-
khanis ; Sooltano, with its chourasi, or division of eighty-four town-
ships, from the Gror Bajpoots; and Keytri and its dependencies from
the Tiiars, the descendants of the ancient emperors of Dehli : so that,
in profeesB of time, he possessed himself of a tei'ritory comprising
more than one thousand towns and villages. Shortly before his
death, he divided the conquered lands amongst his five sons, whose
descendants, adopting his name as the patronymic, are called
Sadhani ; viz., Zoorawur Sing, Kishen Sing, Nowul Sing, Kesuri
Sing, and Pahar Sing, t

Zoorawur Sing, besides the paternal and original estates, had, in
virtue of primogeniture, the town of Chokeri and its twelve sub-
ordinate villages, with all the other emblems of state, as the ele-
phants, palkees, &c . ; and although the cupidity of the Keytri chief, \
jhe descendant of the second son, Kishen, has wrested the patrimony

CHAP. Til.]

ANNA1S OP AMBEE.

393

from tlie elder branch, who has now only Ohokeri, yet the distinc-
tions o£ birth are never lost in those of fortune, and the petty chief
of Ohokeri, with its twelve small townships, is looked upon as the
superior of Abhd Sing, though the lord of five hundred villages.

The descendants of the other four sons, now the most distin-
guished of the Sadhanis, are,*

Abbd Sing of Keytri ;

Shiam Sing of Buss&o;

Gyan Sing of Nowulgurh ;f

Shere Sing of Sooltano.

Besides the patrimonies assigned to the five sons of Sadhoo, he
left the districts of Singhana, Jhoonjoonoo, and Soorujgurh (the
ancient Oreecha), to be held in joint heirship by the junior members
of his stock. The first, with its one hundred and twenty-five villages,
has been usurped by Abhe Sing of Keytri, bub the others still con-
tinue to be frittered away in sub-infeudations among this numerous
and ever-spreading frerage.

Abhd Sing has assumed the same importance amongst the Sad-
hanis, that Jjuchman Sing has amongst the Baesilotes, and both by
the same means, crime and usurpation. The Seekuv chief has
despoiled his senior branch of Khundaila ; and the Keytri chief has
not only despoiled the senior, but also the junior, of the five branches
of Sadhoo. The transaction which produced the last result, whereby
the descendant of Shere SiDg lost Sooltano, is so peculiarly atrocious,
that it is woi’th relating, as a proof to what lengths the Bajpoofc
will go “ to get land.”

Pahar Sing had an only son, named Bhopfil, who being killed in
an attempt on Loharoo, he adopted the younger son of his nephew,
Bagh Sing of Keytri. On the death of his adopted father, the
Sooltano chief, being too young to undertake the management of his
fief in person, remained under the paternal roof. It would appear as
if this alienation of political rights could also alienate affection and
rupture all the ties of kindred, for this unnatural father embrued his
hands in the blood of his own child, and annexed Sooltano to Keytri,
But the monster grievously sufferedfor the deed; he became the scorn
of his kinsmen, " who spit at him and threw dust on his head,” until
he secluded himself from the gaze of mankind. The wife of his
bosom ever after refused to look upon him ; she managed the estates
for her surviving son, the present Abhe Sing. During twelve years
that Bagh Sing survived, he never quitted his apartment in the
castle of Keytri, until carried out to be burned, amidst the execra-
tions and contempt of his kinsmen.

Larlthanis. — Having made the reader sufficiently acquainted with
the genealogy of the Sadhanis, as well as of the Baesilotes, we shall

* It must be borne in mind that this was written in 1814.

f Nowulgurh contains four thousand bouses, environed by a seherpunna. It
is on a more ancient site called Koleani, whose old castle in ruins is to tbe
south-east, and the new one midway between it and tbe town, built by Nowul
Sing in S. 1802, or A.D. 1746.

[Von. II.]

50

394'

ANNAM OF AMBER.

[CHAP. VII.

conclude with a brief notice of the Larkhanis, which term, trans-
lated, “ the beloved lords, ” ill-accords with their occupation, as the
most notorious marauders in Rajpootana. Ldrla is a common infan-
tine appellation, meaning r beloved but whether the adjunct of
Khan to this son of Raesil, as well as to that of his youngest, Taj-
khan (the crown of princes), was out of compliment to some other
Mooslem saint, we know not. Larkhan conquered his own appanage,
Dantali Ramgui’h, on the frontiers of Marwar, then a dependency of
Sambhur. It is not unlikely that his father’s influence at court
secured the possession to him. Besides this district, they have the
tuppa of Nosul, and altogether about eighty townships, including
some held of the Rajas of Marwar and Bikaner, to secure their
abstinence from plunder within their bounds. The Larkhanis are a
community of robbers ; their name, like Pindarri and Kuzzdh, is
held in these regions to be synonimous with ‘ freebooter,’ and as
they can muster five hundred horse, their raids are rather formidable.
Sometimes their nominal liege lord calls upon them for tribute, hut
being in a difficult country, and Ramgurh being a place of strength,
they pay little regard to the call, unless backed by some of the
mercenary partizans, such as Meer Khan, who contrived to get pay-
ment of arrears of tribute to the amount of twenty thousand rupees.

Revenues . — We conclude this sketch with a rough statement of
the revenues of Shekhavati, which might yield in peace and pros-
perity, now for the first time beginning to beam upon them, from
twenty-five to thirty lacs of rupees ; but at present they fall much
short of this sum, and full one-half of the lands of the confederation
are held by the chiefs of Seekur and Keytri : —

Rupees. '

Luchman Sing, of Seekur, including Khundaila 8,00,000

Abhe Sing, of Keytri, including Kot-Pootli, given by

lord Lake 6,00,000

Shiam Sing of Bussao, including his brother Runjeet’s

share of 40,000, (whom he killed) 1,90,000

Gyan Sing of Nowulgurh, including Mundao, each fifty

villages 70,000

Luchman Sing, Mayndsir, the chief sub-infeudation of

Nowulgurh 30,000

Taen and its lands, divided amongst the twenty-seven
great-grandsons of Zoorawur Sing, eldest son of

Sadhoo 1,00,000

Oodipoor-vati 1,00,000

Munohurpoor* 30,000

Carried over. . . 19,20,000

* The Munohurpoor chief wns pub to death by Raja Juggut SiDg (vide
Madarrl Lall’s Journal of A. D. 1814), and his lands were sequestrated and
partitioned amongst the confederacy : the cause, his inciting, the lidlilis or Bade
(an epithet for the proselyte Bhntti plunderers of Bbattiana) to invade and
plunder the country.

395

CHAP. VIII.] ANNALS OF AMBEK. -397

Brought forward ... 1 9,20,000

Larkkanis 1,00,000

Hur-ramjis 40,000

Girdkur-potas 40,000

Smaller estates ' 2,00,000

23,00,000

c t

The tribute established by Jeipoor is as follows : —

Rupees.

Sadhauis 2,00,000

Kkundaila 60,000

Euttekpoor 64,000

Oodipoor and Bubhye 22,000

Kasulli 4,000

3,50,000

Thus, supposing the revenues, as stated, at twenty-three lacs, to
be near the truth, and the tribute at three and a half, it would be
an assessment of one-seventh of the whole, which is a fair propor-
tion, and a measure of justice which the British Government would
do well to imitate.

♦

CHAPTER VIII.

Reflections. — Statistics of Amber. — Boundaries. — Extent. — Population. — Number
oftoionships. — Classification of inhabitants. — Soil. — Husbandry. — Products . —
Revenues. — Foreign army. — The feudal levies.

We have thus developed the origin and progress of the Cutchwaha
tribe, as well as its scions of Shekhavati and Macherri. To some, at
least, it may be deemed no uninteresting object to trace in continuity
the issue of a fugitive individual, spreading, in the course of eight
hundred years, over a region of fifteen thousand square miles ; and
to know that forty thousand of his flesh and blood have been mar-
shalled in the same field, defending, sword in hand, their country
and their prince. The name of 1 country' carries with it a magical
power in the mind of the Rajpoot. The name of his wife or hia
mistress must never be mentioned at all, nor that of his country but
with respect, or his sword instantly unsheathed. Of these facts,
numerous instances abound in these Annals ; yet does the ignorant
p>urd4si (foreigner) venture to say there are no indigenous terms
either for patriotism or gratitude in this country.

[Vol. II.]

394

ANNALS ON AMBER. [CHAP. Till.

/

Boundaries and Extent. — Its greatest breadth lies between Sam-
bhur, touching the Marwar frontier on the west, and the town of
Surout, on the JM frontier, east. This line is one hundred and
twenty British milesj whilst its greatest breadth from north to south,
including Shekhavati, is one hundred and eighty. Its form is very
irregular. We may, however, estimate the surface of the parent
state, Dhoondar or Jeipoor, at nine thousand five hundred square
miles, and Shekhavati at five thousand four hundred ; in all, four-
teen -thousand nine hundred square miles.

Population. — It is difficult to determine with exactitude the
amount of the population of this region ; but from the best informa-
tion, one hundred and fifty souls to the square mile would not be
too great a proportion in Amber, and eighty in Shekhavati ; giving
an average of one hundred and twenty-four to the -united area,
which consequently contains 185,670 ; and when we consider the
very great number of large towns in this region, it may not be
above, but rather below, the truth. Dhoondar, the parent country,
is calculated to contain four thousand townships, exclusive of
poonvds, or hamlets, and Shekhavati about half that number, of
which Luchman Sing of Seekur and Khundaila, and Abhe Sing of
Keytri, have each about five hundred, or the half of the lands of the
federation.

Glassification of Inhabitants. — Of this population, it is still more
difficult to classify its varied parts, although it may be asserted with
confidence that the Rajpoots bear but a small ratio to the rest,
whilst they may equal in number any individual class, except the
aboriginal Meenas , who, strange to say, are still the most numerous.
The following are the principal tribes, and the order in which they
follow may be considered as indicative of their relative numbers :
1, Meenas; 2, Rajpoots ; 3, Brahmins ; 4, Banias ; 5, J ats ; 6, Dhakur,
or Kirar (qu. Cirata ?) ; 7, Groojurs.

Meenas. — The Meenas are subdivided into no less than thirty-two
distinct clans or classes, but it would extend too much the annals of
this state to distinguish them. Moreover, as they belong to every
state in Rajwarra, we shall find a fitter occasion to give a general
account of them. The immunities and privileges preserved to the
Meenas best attest the truth of the original induction of the exiled
prince of Nurwar to the sovereignty of Ambdr; and it is a curious
fact, showing that such establishment must have been owing to
adoption, not conquest, that this event was commemorated in every
installation by a Meena of Kalikho marking with his blood the
teeha of sovereignty on the forehead of the prince. The blood was
obtained by incision of the great toe, and though, like many other
antiquated usages, this has fallen into desuetude here (as has the
same mode of inauguration of the Rauas by the Ondeva Bhils),
yet both in the one case and in the other, there cannot be more
convincing evidence that these now outcasts were originally the .

CHA.P. vm.]

ANNALS OF AMBER.

397

masters. The Meenas still enjoy the most confidential posts about the
persons o£ the princes of Amber, having charge of the archives
aud treasure in Jeygurh ; they guard his person at night, and have
that most delicate of all trusts, the charge of the rawula, or seraglio.
In the earlier stages of Cutckwaha power, these their primitive sub-,
jects had the whole insignia of state, as well as the person of the
prince, committed to their trust ; but presuming upon this privilege
too far, when they insisted that, in leaving their bounds, he shon ' '
leave these emblems, the nakarras and standards, with them
pretensions were cancelled in their blood. The Meenas, JS
.Khars, are the principal cultivators, many of them holdii Sindia ;
estates. ^ y them.

Jats. — The JAts nearly equal the Meenas in numbi Xs
extent of possessions, and are, as usual, the most inu
husbandmen.

Brahmins. — Of Brahmins, following secular as well at.
employments, there are more in Amber than in any other sta.

Raj war ra ; from which we are not to conclude that her princes w._Js
more religious than their neighbours, but on the contrary, that they
were greater sinners.

Rajpoots. — It is calculated that, even now, on an emergency, if a
national war roused the patriotism of the Cutchwaha feudality, they
could bring into the field thirty thousand of their kin and clan, or,
to repeat their own emphatic phrase, “ the sons of one father,”
which includes the Naroocas and the chiefs of the Skekhawut
federation. Although the Cutchwalias, under their popular princes,
as Pujoon, Raja Maun, and the Mirza Raja, have performed exploits
as brilliant as any other tribes, yet they do not now enjoy the
same reputation'for courage as either the Rahtores or Haras. This
may be in part accounted for by the demoralization consequent
upon their proximity to -the Mogul court, and their participation in
all its enervating vices ; but still more from the degradations they
have suffered from the Makrattas, and t p which their western
brethren have been less exposed. Every feeling, patriotic or
domestic, became corrupted wherever their pernicious influence pre-
vailed.

Soil, husbandry, products. — Dhoondar contains every variety of
soil, and the khureef and rubbee, or autumnal and spring crops, are
of nearly equal importance. Of the former bajrd predominates over
joodr, and in the latter barley over wheat. The other grains, pulses,
and vegetables, reared all over Hindust’kau, are here produced in
abundance, and require nob to be specified. The sugar-cane used to
be cultivated to a very great extent, but partly from extrinsic causes,
and still more from its holding out such an allurement to the renters,
the husbandman has been compelled to curtail this lucrative branch
of agriculture; for although laud fit for eek (cane) is let at four to
six rupees per beega, sixty have been exacted before it was allowed

398

AHNALS OP AMBER.

[CHAP. VIII.

to be reaped. Cotton of excellent quality is produced in con-
siderable quantities in various districts, as are indigo and other dyes
common to India. Neither do the implements of husbandry or their
application differ from those which have been described in this and
various other woi’ks sufficiently well known.

Farming System. — It is the practice in this state to farm its lands
to the highest bidder; and the mode of farming is most pernicious
miles,' interests of the state and the cultivating classes, both of whom
teen thou£t eventually impoverish. The farmers-general are the wealthy
,s and merchants, who make their offers for entire districts;

PopulatiOny underlet in tuppas, or subdivisions, the holders of which
amount of tlu c }iyi ( jo£2 16m into single villages, or even shares of a village,
tion, one hun prpP^&'of all these persons, the expenses attending collec-
too great a piwportqg 0 f burhendases , or armed police, are the poor
an average of omj^yofcg saddled. Could they only know the point
which consequjiiioa mug fc stop, they wo_uld still have a stimulus to
very great n xrhen the crops are nearly got in, and all just demands
above, bijhd, they suddenly hear that a new renter has been installed in
i&lq district, having ousted the holder by some ten or twenty
thousand rupees, and at the precise moment when the last toils of
the husbandman were near completion. The renter has no remedy;
he may go and u throw his turban at the door of the palace, and
“ exclaim dohae, Raja Saheb !” till he is weary, or marched off to the
cutwaks chabootra, and perhaps fined for making a disturbance.
Knowing, however, that there is little benefit to be derived
from such a course, they generally submit, go through the whole
accounts, make over the amount of collections, and with the
host of vultures in their train, who, never unprepared for such
changes, have been making the most of their ephemeral power by !
fattening on the hard earnings of the peasantry, retire for this fresh
band of harpies to pursue a like course. Nay, it is far from uncom-
mon for three different renters to come upon the same district in one
season, or even the crop of one season, for five or ten thousand r
rupees, annulling the existing engagement, no matter how far '
advanced. Such was the condition of this state ; and when to these
evils were superadded the exactions called dind, or burrar , forced
contributions to pay those armies of robbers who swept the lands,
language cannot exaggerate the extent of misery. The love of
country must be powerful indeed which can enchain man to a land
so misgoverned, so unprotected.

Revenues . — It is always a task of difficulty to obtain any correct
account of the revenues of these states, which are ever fluctuating.
We have now before us several schedules, both of past and present
reigns, all said to be copied from the archives, in which the name of
every, district, together with its rent, town and transit duties, and
other sources of income, are stated ; but the details would afford
little satisfaction, and doubtless the resident authorities have access
to the fountain head. The revenues of Dhoondar, of every descrip-
tion, fiscal, feudal, and tributary, or impost, are stated, in round

CHAP. Yin.]

ANNALS OF AMBER.

401

numbers/ at one orore of rupees, or about a million of pounds
sterling, which, estimating the difference of the price of labour, may-
be deemed equivalent to four times that sum in England. Since
this estimate was made, there have been great alienations of terri-
tory, and no less than sixteen rich districts have been wrested from
Amber by the Mahrattas, or her own rebel son, the Narooca chief of
Macherri.

The following is the schedule of alienations

Taken by General Perron, for his master Sindia;-
since rented to the J&ts, and retained by them.

2. Khori j-

3. Pahari )

4. Kanti

'i'k

5 .

.6.

6 .

Oolcrode

Pundapun

Gazi-ca-t’hana

Rampoora (kirda)

.vie .

Seized by the Macherri Kao.

v.

aie

rbainie

ozpoor Hursana.

£anonh or Kanound* ( ™ en t ^ B “S De .

, < Morteza Khan, Baraitch, confirmed

iNarn0i t in them by Lord Lake.

*r

T r , fl C Taken in, the .war of 1803-4, .from the Mahrattas,
o poo . and given by Lord Lake to Abhe Sing of Keytri.

15. Tonk Granted to Holcar by Raja Madku Sing; confirmed

16. Ra'mpoora. ) in sovereignty to Meer Khan by Lord Hastings.
It must, however, be borne in mind, that almost all these alienated

districts had but for a comparatively short' period formed an integral
portion of Dhoondar ; and that the major part were portions of
the imperial domains, held in jaed&d, or ‘ assignment/ by the princes
of this country, in their capacity of lieutenants of the emperor. In
Raja Pirthi Sing’s reign, about half a century ago, the rent-roll of
Amber and her tributaries was seventy-seven lacs : and in a very
, minute schedule formed in S. 1S5S (A.D. 1802), the last year of the
reign of Raja Pertab Sing, they were estimated at seventy-nine lacs :

■ an ample revenue, if well administered, for every object. We shall

■ present the chief items which form the budget of ways and means
• of Amber.

* Knnorh was the fief of Ameer Sing, Khangarote; °ne of the twelve great
lords of Ambdr.

398

ANNALS ON AMBER. [CHAP. VIII,

+ /Schedule of the Revenues of Amber for S. 1858 (A.D. 1802-3), the
year of Raja Juggut Singh’s accession.

Khalsa, or Fiscal land.

Rupees.

Managed by the Raja, or rented 20,55,000

Deori talooka, expenses of the queen's house-
hold 5,00,000

Sagird-pesha, servants of the household 3,00,000

Ministers, and civil officers 2,00,000

Jagheers for the Sillehposh, or men at arms. 1,50,000
Jagheers to army, viz., ten battalions of

infantry with cavalry 7,14,00 0

Total Fiscal land 39,19,000

Feudal lands (of Jeipoor Proper) 17,00,000

Ooduk, or charity lands, chiefly to Brahmins... 16,00,000
DS,n and Mauppa, or transit and impost duties

of the country 1,90,000

Cutcherri, of the capital, includes town-duties,

fines, contributions, &c., &c 2,15,000

Mint 60,000

e

Hoondi-bharra, insurance, and dues on bills of

exchange 60,000 {

Foujdari, or commandant of Ambdr (annual fine) 12,000 \

Do. do. of city Jeipoor 8,000

Bedaefc, petty fines from the Cutcherri; or hall of \

justice... 16,000

Subzi-mandi, vegetable market 3,000 t

Total lacs 77,83,000

f Shekhavati 3,50,000

m -v 4 .^ ) Raiawut and other feudatories

Tribute... ^ Jeipoor * 30,000

V. \Kotrees of Haroutif 20,000

Total Tribute 4,00,000

Add Tribute 4,00,000

Grand Total 81,83,000

d-

*Burwarr a, Kheerni, Sowar, Iserdeb, &c., &c.
f Ant'erdeb, Bulwuu, and Indurgur’b.

CHAP. VIII.]

ANNAXS OF AM3EE.

401

If this statement is correct, and we add thereto the Shekhawut,
Rajawut, and Hara tributes, the revenues fiscal, feudal, commercial,
and tributary, of Arnbdr, when Juggut Sing came to the throne,
would exceed eighty lacs of rupees, half of which is Jchalsa, or apper-
taining to the Raja — nearly twice the personal revenue of any other
prince in Rajwarra. This sum (forty lacs) was the estimated
amount liable to tribute, when the treaty was formed with the
British government, and of which the Raja has to pay eight lacs
annually, and jive- sixteenths of all revenue surplus to this amount.
The observant reader will not fail to be struck with the vaBt
inequality between the estates of the defenders of the country, and
these drones the Brahmins, — a point on which we have elsewhere
treated :* nor can anything more powerfully mark the utter prostra-
tion of intellect of the Cutchwaha princes, than their thus maintain-
ing an indolent aud baneful heirarchy, to fatten on the revenues
which would support four thousand Cutchwaha cavaliers. With a
proper application of her revenues, aud princes like Raja Maun to
lead a brave vassalage, they would have foiled all the efforts of the
Mahrattas ; but their own follies and vices have been their ruin.

Foreign army. — At the period (A.D. 1803) this schedule was
formed of the revenues of Amber, she maintained a foreign army of
thirteen thousand men, consisting of ten battalions of infantry with
guns, a legion of four thousand Nagds, a corps of alligoles for police
duties, and one of cavalry, seven hundred strong. With these, the
regular contingent of feudal levies, amounting to about four thousand
efficient horse, formed a force adequate to repel any insult ; but
when the Icher, or levee en masse, was called out, twenty thousand
men, horse and foot, were ready to back the always embodied force.

A detailed schedule of the feudal levies of Amber may diversify the
dry details of thes'e annals, obviate repetition, and present a perfect
picture of a society of clanships. In this list we shall give precedence
to the Icotnbnnd, the holders of the twelve great fiefs ( bara-Ttotri )
of Amber.

* See Dissertation on the Religious Establishments of Mewar, Vol. I, p. 437.

Schedule of the names and appanages of the twelve sons of Raja, Rirbhi Raj, whose
descendants form the bara-kotn, or twelve great fiefs of Amber.

402

annals of ambek,

[chap. vin.

CHAP. YIII.]

ANNALS OP AMBEB.

403

It ■will be remarked that tbe estates of these, the chief vassals of
Amber, are, with the exception of two, far inferior in value to those
of the sixteen great chiefs of Mewar, or the eight of Marwar ; and a
detailed list of all tbe inferior feudatories of each Jcotree , or clan,
would show that many of them have estates greater than those of
their leaders : for instance, Kishen Sing of Ohomoo has upwards of
a lac, while Bern Sal of Samote, the head of the clan (NaPhawut),
has only forty thousand: again, the chief of Ballahairi holds an
estate of thirty-five thousand, while that of the head of his clan
is but twenty-five thousand. The representative of the Sheobur-
runpotas has an estate of only ten thousand, while the junior branch
of Goo roh has thirty-six thousand. Again, the chief of the Khan-
garotes has but twenty-five thousand, while no less than three junior
branches hold lands to double that amount; and the inferior of the
Balbudhurotes holds upwards of a lac, while his superior of Acherole
has not a third of this rental. The favour of the prince, the turbu-
lence or talents of individuals, have caused these inequalities ; but,
however disproportion ed the gifts of fortune, the attribute of honour
always remains with the lineal descendant and representative of the
original fief.

Wo shall further illustrate this subject of the feudalities of Ambdr
by inserting a general list of all the clans, with the number of sub-
divisions, the resources of each, and the quotas they ought to furnish.
At no remote period this was held to be correct, and will serve to
give a good idea of tho Cutchwaha aristocracy. It was my inten-
tion to have given a detailed account of tho subdivisions of each
fief, thoir names, and those of their holders, but on reflexion, though
they cost some diligence to obtain, they would have little interest
for the general reader.

Schedule of the Cutchwaha clans ; the number of fiefs or estates in

each; their aggregate value, and quotas of horse for each estate.

Names of Clans. "

.

Number of Fiefs
in each Clan-
ship or Clan.

Aggregate

Revenue.

Aggregate

Quotas.

f Chuthurbhojote^....

6

92

Jlullianote

19

2,45,196

422

NaPhawut

10

371

Balbudkurote

2

1,30,850

157

Kbangavote

22

4,02,806

643

T 0* J

Sooltanote

—

_

Puchaenote

3

24,700

45

Googawut

13

1,67,900

273 .

Khoombani

2

23,787

35

Kkoombawut

6

40,738

68

Seoburrunpota

3

49,500

73

Bunbeerpota

3

26,575

48

* The twelve are the Bam-kotris, or twelve great fiefs of Amb6r.
[Voa. IL] 51a '

404

annals of amber.

[chap. TUI,

Schedule of the Outclmaha clans ; fyc. — continued.

Names of Clans.

Number of Fiefs
in each Clan-
ship or Clan.

Aggregate

Revenue.

Aggregate

Quotas.

{ Rajawut

16

1,98,137

392

j Narooca

6

91,069

92

1 Bhankawut

4

34,600

53

( Purinmulote

1

10,000

19

fBhatti

4

1,04,039

205

Chohan

’ 4

30,500

61

Birgoojur

6

32,000

58

Chuuderawut

1

14,000

21

Sikerwar

2

4,500

8

Goojurs

3

15,300

30

^RangrAs

6

2,91,105

549

Khettris

4

1,20,000

281

Brahmins

12

3,12,000

606 ,

Musultndn

—

9

1,41,400

274

Wo shall conclude the annals of Amber with the names of a few
of the ancient towns, in which research may recover something of
past days. .

Mora — Nine coss east of Deonsah; built by Mordhuj, a Chohan
Raja.

Ahhdnair — Three coss east of Lalsont; very ancient, capital of a
Chohan sovereignty.

Bhdngurh — Rive coss from Tholai ; the ruins of an ancient town
and castle in the hills, built by the old princes of Dhoondar, prior to
the Cutchwahas.

Amurgurh — Three cosS from Kooshalgurh ; built by the Nagvansa.

Birdt — Three coss from Bussye in Macherri, attributed to the
Pandiis.

Patun and Ganipoor — Both erected by the ancient Tiiar kings
of Dehli.

Khurar, or Khanddr — Near Rinthumbor.

Ootgeer — On the Chumbul.

AmMr, or Amb-Keswur, a title of Siva, whose symbol is in the
centre of a coond or tank in the middle of the old town. The water
covers half the lingam; and a prophecy prevails, that when it is
entirely submerged, the state of Ambdr will perish ! There are
inscriptions.

* The four are of the Cutchvvaha stock, but not reckoned amoagst the
KoMbunds.

t The ten are foreign chieftains, of various tribes and classes.

No doubt great changes have taken place since this list was formed, espe-
cially amongst the mercenary Puttaets, or Jagheerdars. The quotas -are also
irregular, though the qualification of a cavalier in this state is reckoned at
five hundred rupees of income.

ANNALS OF HARAVATL

*

CHAPTER I.

Hardvali defined. — Fabulous origin of the Agnicula races. — Mount Aboo. — The
Chahans obtain Ifacdvati, Golconda, and the Konlcaiu — Found Ajmer . —
Ajipdl. — Afanih Rac. — First Islamite invasion. — Ajmer taken. — Sambhur
founded ; its salt lake. — Offspring of Manilc Rae. — Establishments in Raj-
poot ana. — Contests loith the Mahomedans. — Bcelundeo of Ajmer; Goga
Ohohan of Mchera ; both slain by Mahmoud. — Beesaldeo Generalissimo of the
Rajpoot nations; his period fixed; his column at Dehli ; his alliances . —
Origin of the Mara tribe. — Amir A j obtains Asi. — Dispossessed. — Ishtpdl
obtains Aser. — llao Mamir. — Rao Ghund slain. — Aser taken by Alla-o-din . —
Prince Rainsi escapes to Cheetore ; settles at Bhynsror, in Mcivar. — His son
Kolun declared lord of the Patbtir.

HaravAti, or Haronti, c the country of the Haras/ comprehends two
principalities., viz., Kotah and Boondi. The Chumbul intersects the
territory of the Hara race, and now serves as their boundary,
although only three centuries have elapsed since the younger branch
separated from and became independent of Boondi.

The Hara is the most important of the twenty- four Chohan sac’hd,
being descended from Anfiraj, the son of Manik Rae, king of Ajmer,
who in S. 741 (A.D. 685) sustained the first shock of the Islamite
arms.

We have already sketched the pedigree of the Chohans,* one of
the most illustrious of the " thirty-sis royal races” of India.f We
must, however, in this place, enter into it somewhat more fully ; and
in doing so, we must not discard even the fables of their origin,
which will at least demonstrate that the human understanding has

* See Yol. I, p. 83.

- f According to Herodotus, the Soythic sacce enumerated eight races with
the epithet o£ royal, and Strabo mentions one of the tribes of the Thyssagetse
as. boasting tbe title of basilii. Tbe Rajpoots asserbjthat in ancient times they
only enumerated eight royal sac’ham or branches, viz., Surya, Soma, Hya or
Aswa (qu. Asi?) Kimn, and the four tribes of Agnivansn, viz., Prnmara,
Purihara, Solanki, and Chohan.

Abulgazi states that the Tatars or Scythians were divided - into six grand
families. The Rajpoots have maintained these ideas, originally brought from
the Oxus.

406

ANNALS 03? HARAVATI.

[CHAP, i.

been similarly constructed in all ages and countries, before the thick
veil of ignorance and superstition was withdrawn from it. So scanty
are the. remote l'ecords of the Chokans, that it would savour of
affectation to attempt a division of the periods of their history, or
the improbable, the probable, and the certain. Of the fifs't two, a
separation would be impracticable, and we cannot trace the latter
beyond the seventh century. .

“ When the impieties of the kings of the warrior race drew upon
them the vengeance of Pursarama, who twenty-one times extirpated
that race, some, in order to save their lives, called themselves bards ;
othei’s assumed the guise of women; and thus the singh (horn) of
the Rajpoots was preserved, when dominion was assigned to the
Brahmins. The impious avarice of Sehsra Arjuna, of the Hya race,
king of Makdswar on the Nurbudda, provoked the last war, having
slain the father of Pursarama.

“ But as the chief weapon of the Brahmin is his curse or blessing,
great disorders soon ensued from the want of the strong am.
Ignorance and infidelity spread over the land; the sacred books
were trampled under foot, and mankind had no refuge from the
monstrous brood.* In this exigence, Viswamitra, the instructor in
armsf of Bliagwan, revolved within his own mind, and determined
upon, the re-creation of the Chetries. He chose for this rite the
summit of Mount Aboo,J where dwell the hermits and sages (Moonis
and lioosis) constantly occupied in the duties of religion, and who
had carried their complaints even to the Iceer samudrd (sea of curds),
where they saw the Pather of Creation floating upon the hydra
(emblem of eternity). He desired them to regenerate the warrior
race, and they returned to Mount Aboo with Indra, Brimha, Roodra,
Vishnu, and all the inferior divinities, in their train. The fire-foun-
tain (anhul-coond) was lustrafced with the waters of the Granges;
expiatory rites were performed, and, after a protracted debate, it -
was resolved that Indra should initiate the work of re-creation.
Having formed an image (pootU) of the dhuba grass, he sprinkled
it with the water of life, and threw it into the fire-fountain. Thence,
on pronouncing the sajivan mantri (incantation to give life), a figure
slowly emerged from the flame, bearing in the right hand a mace,
and exclaiming, “ Mar ! mar !” (slay, slay). He was called Pramnr ;
and Aboo, Dhar, and Oojein were assigned to him as a territory.

“ Brimha was then entreated to frame one from his own essence
(ansa). He made an image, threw it into the pit, whence issued a
figure armed with a sword (Jcharga) in one hand, with the veda in
the other, and a aunoo round his neck. He was named Chalook or
Solanki, and Anhulpoor Patun was appropriated to him.

* Or, as the bard says, Dytes, Asuras, and Danoos, or demons and infidels, as
they style the Indo-Scythio tribes from the north-west, who paid no respect to
the Brahmins,
t A wad-guru.

t My last pilgrimage was to Aboo.

BOONDI.

4*07

CHAP. I.]

“ Roodra formed the third. The image "was sprinkled with the
water of the Ganges, and on the incantation being read, a black
ill-favoured figure arose, armed with the d’hcinoos or bow. As his
foot slipped when sent against the demons, he was called Purihar,
and placed as the poleoh, or guardian of the gates. He had the
nondngul Maroost’ halt, or ’ nine habitations of the desert/ assigned
him.

“The fourth was formed by Vishnu; when an image like himself,
four-armed, each having a separate weapon* issued from the flames,
and was thence styled Chuthurbhooja Ohau-h^n, or the ‘ four-armed/
The gods bestowed their blessing upon him, and Mdcavati-nagri as
a territory. Such was the name of Gurra-Mundilla in the Bwapur,
or silver age.

“ The Bytes were watching the rites, and two of their leaders
were close to the five-fountain *, hut the work of regeneration being
over, the new-born warriors were sent against the infidels, when a
desperate encounter ensued. But as fast as the blood of the demons
was shed, young demons arose ; when the four tutelary divinities,
attendant on each newly-created race, drank up the blood, and thus
stopped the multiplication of evil. These were
Asdpurana, of the Choban.

Gajun MatA, Purihar.

Keonj Mata, . Solanki.

Sanchair Mata, Pramara.

“ When the Dytes were slain, shouts of joy rent the sky ; ambro-
sial showers were shed from heaven ; and the gods drove their cars
( vahan ) about the firmament, exulting at the victory thus achieved.

“Of all the thirty-six royal races (says Chund, the great bal’d of
the Ohohans), the Agnicula is the greatest : the rest were born of
woman; these were created by the Brahmins!* — Gofcr-acharya of
the Ohohans. Sham Veda, Somvansa, MadTiooni sac’ha, Vacba
gotra, pancbupurwur junoo, Laktuncari nekas, Chandrabhaga Nadi,
Brigoo nesh&n, Amba-ca-Bhavani, Baiun Pfifcra, EAl-Bhiroo, Aboo
Achileswar Mahadeo, Chatur bhooja Chau -ban.'”

The period of this grand convocation of the gods on Mount Aboo,
to regenerate the warrior race of Hind, and to incite them against
“ the infidel races (who had spread over the land/’ is dated so far
back as the opening of the second age of the Hindus : a point which
we shall not dispute. Neither shall we throw a doubt upon the
chronicles which claim Prince Sebl, one of the great heroes of the

* It is by no means uncommon for this arrogant priesthood to lay claim to
powers co-equal with those of the Divinity, nay often superior to them. Wit-
ness the scene in the Jiamayuna, where they make the deity a mediator, to
entreat the Brahmin Vashista to hearken to king Vishwamitra’s desire for
his friendship. Can anything exceed this ? Parallel it, perhaps, we may, in
that memorable instance of Christian idolatry, where the Almighty is called
on to intercede with St. Janunrius to perform the annual miracle of liquefying
the congealed blood.

408

ANNALS OF HARAVATI. '

[CHAP. I.

Mdhdblidrat, as an intermediate link between Anhui Chohan and
Satpati, who founded Macavati, and conquered the Konkan ; while
another son, called Tuntur Pal, conquered As dr and Gowalcooiid
( Qolconda ), planted his garrisons in every region, and possessed nine
hundred elephants to carry puckals, or water-skins.

Let us here pause for a moment before we proceed with the
chronicle, and inquire who were these warriors, thus regenerated to
fight the battles of Bralnninism, and brought within- the pale of their
faith ? They must have been either the aboriginal debased classes,
raised to moral importance by the ministers of the pervading
religion, or foreign races who had obtained a footing amongst them.
The contrasted physical appearance of the x’espeetive races will
decide this question. The aborigines are dark, diminutive, and
ill-favoured ; the Agnicfilas are of good stature, and fair, with promi-
nent features, like those of the Parthian kings. The ideas which
pervade their martial poetry are such as were held by the Scythian
in distant ages, and which even Brahminism has failed to eradicate ;
while the tumuli , containing ashes and arms, discovered throughout
India, especially in the south about Gowdlcoond, where the Chohans
held sway, indicate the nomadic warrior of the north as the proselyto
of Mount Aboo.

Of the four AgnicAla races, the Chohans were the first who
obtained extensive dominion. The almost universal power of the
Pramaras is proverbial ; but the wide sway possessed by the Chohans
can only be discovered with difficulty. Their glory was on the
wane when that of the Pramaras was in the zenith ; and if we may
credit the last great bard of the Rajpoots, the Chohans held in cajpitc
of the Pramaras of Telingana, in the eighth century of Viera mo,
though the name of Pirthi Raj threw a parting ray of splendour
upon the whole line of his ancestry, even to the fire-fountain on the
summit of classic Aboo.

The facts to be gleaned in the early page of the chronicle are con-
tained in a few stanzas, which proclaim the possession of paramount
power, though probably of no lengthened duration. The line of tbo
ISfurbudda, from Macavati, or MacSouti, to Maheswar, was their
primitive seat of sovereignty, comprehending all the tracts in its
vicinity both north and south. Thence, as they multiplied, they
spread over the peninsula, possessing Mandoo, Aser, Golcondn, and'
the Konkan ; while to the north, they stretched even to the foun-
tains of the Ganges. The following is the bard’s picture of tho
Chohan dominion :

"From f the seat of government/ (rajdst’hdn) Macaouti, the oath
of allegiance (an) resounded in fifty-two castles. Tho land of Tatba,
Lahore, Mooltan, Pesbore,* the Chohan in his might] arose aud

* Tho Mabomedan writers confirm this account, for in their earliest recorded
invasion, in A. H. 143, the princes of Lahore arid Ajmdr, said to hoof the rams
family, are tho great opponents of Islam, and combated its advance in fieWs
west of the Indus. Wo know beyond a doubt that Ajmdr was then the chic*
seat of Chohan power.

CHAP, X.]

B00ND1.

409

conquered even to the hills of Bhadri. The infidels (asuras) fled, and
allegiance was proclaimed in Dehli and Cabul, while the country of
Nepal he bestowed on the Mallard.* * * § Crowned with the blessing of
the gods, he returned to Mac&outi.”

It has already been observed, that Macaouti-Nagri was the aucient
name of Gurra Muudilla, whose princes for ages continued the
surname of Pal, indicative, it is recorded by tradition, of their
nomadic occupation. The Aheers, who occupied all Ceutral India,
and have left in oue nook ( Aheerwarra ) a memorial of their existence,
was a branch of the same race, Aheer being a synonym for Pal.
Bhelsa, Bkojpoor, Diep, Bhopal, Airun, Garspoor, arc a few of the
ancient towns established by the Pals or Palis ; and could we master
the still unknown characters appertaining to the early colonists of
India, more light would be thrown on the history of the Chohans.f

A scion' from Macaouti, named Ajipal, established himself at
A]mex’,J and erected its castle of Tarragur’h. The name of Ajip&lis
one of the most conspicuous that tradition has preserved, and is
always followed by the epithet of clmJciva, or universal potentate.
His era must ever remain doubtful, unless, as already observed, we
should master the characters said to belong to thiB race, and which
are still extant, both on stone and on copper.§ From what cause' is
not stated (most probably a failui’e of lineal issue), Pirthi Pahar was
brought from Macaouti to Ajmdr. By a single wife (for polygamy
was then unknown to these races), he had twenty-four sons, whose
progeny peopled these regions, one of whose descendants, Manika
Rae, was lord of Ajmer and Satnbhur, in the year S. 741, or A.D.
685.

With the name of Manilc Rae, the history of the Chohnn emerges
from obscurity, if not fable ; and although the bard does 'not subse-

* The Mallani is (or rather was) one of the Chohai) Saebte, and may be the
Malli who opposed Alexander at the confluent arms of the Indus. The tribe
is extinct, and was so little known eten five centuries ago, that a prince of
Boondf, of the Hara tribe, intermarried with a Mallani, the book of genealogical
affinities not indicating her being within the prohibited canon. A more skilful
bard pointed out the incestuous connection, when divorce and expiation
ensued. Fide page 270.

f All these towns contain remains of antiquity, especially in the district of
Diep, Bhojpoor, and Bbdlsa. Twenty years ago, in one of ray journies, I passed
the ruins of Airun, where a superb column stands at the junction of its two
streams. It is about thirty feet in height, aud is surmounted by a human
figure, having a glory round his head j a colossal bull is at the base of
the column. I sent a drawing of it to Mr. Colebrooke at the time, but possess
no copy.

J It is indifferently called Aji-mer and Aji-doorg, tbe invincible hill (mera),
or invincible castle ( doorg ). Tradition, however, says that the name of this
renowned abode, the key of Rajpootana, is derived from the humble profession
of tbe young Ghohan, who was a goatherd : Jja meaning ‘a goat’ in Sanscrit ;
still referring to the original pastoral occupation of the Palis.

§ I obtained at Ajmer and at Poshkur several very valuable medals, Bnctrinn,
Indo-Scythic, aud Hindu, having the ancient Pali on one side, and the effigy of
a liorso on the other,

[VOL. II.] ‘

52

410

ANNALS OP HAKAVATI.

[CHAP. I.

quently entertain us with much substantial information, we can
trace his subject, and see his heroes fret their hour upon the uucerfcain
stage, throughout a period of twelve hundred years. It was at this
era (A.D. 685), that Rajpootana was first visited by the arms of
Islam, being the sixty-third year of the Hejira. Marika Rae, then
prince of Ajmer, was slain by the Asuras, and his only child, named
Lot, thou an iufaut of seven years of age, was killed by an arrow
while playing on the battlements (Icangras ) . The invasion is said
to have been from Siude. in revenge for the ill-treatment of an
Islamite missionary, named Roshan Alt, though the complexion of
the event is more like an enterprise prompted by religious enthusiasm.
The missionary beiug condemned to lose his thumb, “ tbe disjointed
“ member, flew to Mecca,” and gave evidence against the Rajpoot
idolater; when a force was prepared, disguised as a caravan of
horse-merchants, which surprised and slew Doola Rae and his son,
and obtained possession of Gurh-beetli, the citadel.

Puerile as is the transaction, its truth is substantiated by the fact,
that tbe Calipb Omar at this very time sent an army to Sinde, whose
commander, Abul Aas, was slain in an attempt on the ancient capital,
Alore. Still nothing but tbe enthusiasm of religious frenzy could
have induced a band to cross tbe desert in order to punish rhis insult
to the new faith.

Whatever were the means, however, by which Ajmer was captured,
and Doola Rae slain, the importance of the event has been deeply
imprinted on tbe Chohaus ; who, in remembrance of it, deified the
youthful heir of Ajmer ; “ Lot pdtra” is still the most conspicuous
of the Chohan penates. The day on which he was killed is sanctified,
and his effigy then receives divine honours from all who have the
name of Chohan. Even the anklet of bells which he wore has
become an object of veneration, and is forbidden to be used by the
children of this race.

“ Of the house of Doola Rae of Chohan race, Lot-Deo, the heir-
apparent, by the decree of Siva, on Monday the 12th of the mouth
of : Jeyt, went to heaven/’

Manika Rae, the uncle of the youth ( putra ), (who is still the
object of general homage, especially of the Chohan fair), upon the
occupation of Ajmer, retired , upon Sambhur, which event another
couplet fixes, as we have said, in S. 741.* Here the bard has recourse
to celestial interposition in order to support Manika Rae in his
adversity. The goddess Sdcambhari appears to him, while seeking
shelter from the pursuit of this merciless foe, and bids him establish
himself in the spot where she manifested herself, guaranteeing to
him the possession of all the ground he could encompass with his
horse on that day ; but commanded him uot to look back until he

* “ Savivat, sat'h soh eldalees

1 “ Malut bali bes

“ Sambhur aya iuli surr-ut
. “ Mantle Rae, Nitr-es.”

CHAP. I.]

BOONDI.

411

liad returned to the spot where he left her. He commenced the
circuit, with what he deemed his steed could accomplish, but forgetting
the injunction, he was surprised to see the whole space covered as
with a sheet. This was the desiccated sir?, or salt-lake, which he
named after his patroness S&cambhari, whose statue still exists on a
small island in the lake, now corrupted to Sambhur.*

However jejune these legends of the first days of Chohan power,
they suffice to mark with exactness their locality ; and the importance
attached to this settlement is manifested in the title of c ‘ Sambhri
“ Rao,” maintained by Pirthi Raj, the descendant of Manika Rae,
even when emperor of all northern India.

Manika Rae, whom we may consider as the founder of the Chohans
of the north, recovered Ajmdr. He had a numerous progeny, who
established many petty dynasties throughout western Rajwarra,
giving birth to various tribes, which are spread even to the Indus.
The Kheechie, j' the Hara, the Mobil, Nurbhana, Badorea,Bhowrdcha,
Dhunairea, and Bagrdcha, are all descended from him. The Kheechies
were established in the remote Do-abeh, called Sinde-Sagur, compris-
ing all the tract between the Behutand the Sinde, a space of sixty-
eight coss, whose capital was Kheechpoor-Patun. The Haras obtained
or founded Asi ( Hans'i ) in Heriana ; while another tribe held Gowal-
coond, the celebrated Golconda, now Hydrabad, and when thence
expelled, regained Asdr. The Mohils had the tracts round Nagore.f
The Bhadoreas had an appanage on the Chumbnl, in a tract which
bears their name, and is still subject to them. The Dhunaireas
settled at Shahabad, which by a singular fatality has at length come
into the possession of the Haras of Kotah. Another branch fixed at
Nadole, but never changed the name of Chohan. §

* An inscription on tbo pillar at Feroz Shah’s palace nt Dehli, belonging to
this family, in which the word Sacambhari occurs, gave rise to many ingenions
conjectures by Sir W. Jones, Mr. Colebrooke, and Colonel Wilford.

f Called Kheech-kote by Baber.

J In the annals of Marwar it will be shewn, that the Rahtores conquered
Nagore, or JVdga-doorg (the * serpent’s castle’), from the Mohils, who held four-
teen hundred and forty villages so late as the fifteenth century. So many of
the colonies 'of Agniculas bestowed the name of serpent on their settlements,
that I am convinced all were of the T&k, TakBhac, or Nagvansa race from
Sacadwipa, who, six centuries anterior to Vicramaditya, under their leader
Scbesnaga, conquered India, and whose era must be the limit of Agnicula
antiquity.

§ The importance of Nadole was considerable, and is fully attested by exist-
ing inscriptions as well as by the domestic chronicle. Midway from the
founder, in the eighth century, to its destruction in the twelfth, was Rao
Lakhun, who in S. 1039 (A.D. 983), successfully coped with the princes of
Nehr valla.

“ Sumeah dos sell onch&lees
“ Bar elcliouta, Patun pgla pol
1 *' Ban Ghohdn agdvi

’ " Mewar Dhanni dind bhurri

“ Tis Idr Bao Lakhun t'huppi
“ Jo arumha, so Sum.”

laterally : “ In S. 1039, at the farther gate of the city of Patun, the Chohan
[Yon. II.] 52 a

412

ANHA1S OP HARAVATJ.

[CHAP. X.

Many chieftainships were scattered over the desert, either trusting
to their lances to maintain their independence, or holding of superiors)
but a notice of them, however interesting, would here, perhaps, be
out of place. Eleven princes are enumerated in the Jdega’s catalogue?
from Manika Rae to Beesildeo, a name of the highest celebrity-in
the Rajpoot annals, and a landmark to various authorities, who
otherwise have little in common even in their genealogies, which I
pass over in silence, with the exception of the intermediate name of
Hursraj,* common to the Samir Rasa as well as the Jaega's list.
The authority of Hursraj sti’etched along the Aravulli mountains
to Aboo, and east of the Chumbul. He ruled from S. 812 to 827
(A.H. 188 to 153), and fell in battle against the Asiiras, having
attained the title of Ari-murdhan. Ferishta says, that “ in A. H.

“ 143, the Mooslems greatly increased, when issuing from their hills
“ they obtained possession of Kirman, Peshore, aud all the lands
“ adjacent ; and that the Raja of Lahoi'e, who was of the faxnilv of
“ the Raja of Ajmer, sent his brotherf against these Afghans, who
“ were reinforced by the tribes of Ghilji, of Ghor and Cabul, just
“ become proselytes to Islam /'f and he adds, that during five months,
seventy battles were fought with success ; oi-, to use the historian's
own words, “ in which Sepdlii sirmah (General Frost) was victorious .
“ over the infidel, but who returned when the cold season was passed
“ with fresh force. The armies met between Kirman aud Peshawur;

“ sometimes the infidel (Rajpoot) earned the war to the Kohistan,

“ 'mountainous regions/ and drove the Moosulmauns before him;

“ sometimes the Moosulmauns, obtaining reinforcements, drove the
<( infidel by flights of arrows to their own borders, to which they
“ always retired when the torrents swelled the ISTilab {Indus).”

Whether the Raja of Ajmdr personally engaged in these distant
combats the chronicle says not. According to the Samir Rasa,
Hursraj was succeeded by Doojgun-deo, whose advanced post was
Bhutnair, and who ovei’came Nasii’-oo-din, from whom he captured
twelve hundred hoi’se, and hence bore the epithet of Sooltan Gh'aha,

collected the commercial duties (dan). He took tribute from the lord of
Mewar, and performed whatever he had a mind to.”

Lakhun drew upon him the arms of Soobektegin, and his son Mahmoud,
when Nadole was stripped of its consequence ; its temples were thrown down,
and its fortress was dilapidated. But it had recovered much of its power, and
even- sent forth several branches, who all fell under Alla-o-din in the thirteenth
century. On the final conquest of India by Shahbudin, the prince of Nadole
appears to have effected a compromise, and to have become a vassal of the
empire. This conjecture arises from the singularity of its currency, which
retains on the one side the names in Sanscrit of its indigenous princes, and on
the other that of the conqueror.

* Hursraj aud Besjy Raj were sons of Ajipal, king of Ajmer, according to
the chronicle.

f This is a very important admission of Ferishta, concerning the proselytism
of all these tribes, aud confirms my hypothesis, that the Afghans are converted
Jadoons or Yadus, not Yahudis, or Jews. The Gor is also a well-known
Rajpoot tribe, and they had only to convert it into Ghor. Fide Annals of the
' Bhattis.

OHAP. I.]

BOONDI.

413

or f King-seizer.’ Nasir-oo-din, was tlie title of the celebrated Soo-
bekfcegin, father to the still more celebrated Mahmood. Soobekfcegin
repeatedly invaded India during the fifteen years’ reign of his prede-
cessor Aliptegin.

Passiug over the intermediate reigns, each of which is marked'by
some meagre and unsatisfactory details of battles with the Islamite,
we arrive at Beesildeo. The father of this prince, according to the
Hara genealogists, was Dberma-Guj, apparently a title, — fin faith like
an elephant,’ — as in the Ja6ga’s list is Beer Beelundeo, confirmed by
the inscription on the triumphal column at Dehli. The last of
Mahmood’s invasions occurred during the reign of Beelundeo, who,
at the expense of his life, had the glory of humbling the mighty
conqueror, and forcing him to relinquish the siege of Ajmer. Before
‘ wecondonse the scanty records of the bards concerning Yisala-Deva,*
we may spare a few words to commemorate a Chohan, who conse-
crated his name and that of all his kin, by his deeds in the first
passage of Mahmood into India.

Goga Chohan was tlieson of Vacha Rnja, a name of some celebrity.
He held the whole of Jungal-des, or the forest lands from the Sutlej
to Heriana ; his capital, called Mehera, or, as pronounced, Goga ca
Mairi, was on the Sutlej. In defending this he fell, with forty-five
sons and sixty nephews; and as it occurred on Sunday ( Rubwdr ),
the ninth ( nomee ) of the month, that day is held sacred to the
manes of Goga by the " thirty-six classes”! throughout Raj poo tana,
but especially in the desert, a portion of which is yet called Gogadeo
ca t’hul. Even his steed, Javadia ,% has been immortalized, and has
become a favorite name for a war-horse throughout Rajpootana,
‘whose mighty men swear “ by the saca of Goga,” for maintaining
the Rajpoot fame when Mahmood crossed the Sntlej.

This was probably the last of Mahmood’s invasions, when he
marched direct from Mooltan through the desert. He attacked
Ajmdr, which was abandoned, and the country around give a up to
devastation and plunder. The citadel, Gurh-Beetli, however, held
out, and Mahmood was foiled, wounded, and obliged to retreat by

* The classical mode of writing the name of Beesildeo.
f Chatees-pon.

j It is related by the Rajpoot romancers that Goga had no children ; that
lamenting this, his guardian deity gave him two barley-corns ( java or jao), one
of which he gave to his queen, another to his favonme mare, which produced
the steed ( Javadia ) which became ns famous as Goga himself. The Rana of
Oodipoor gave the author a blood-horse of Kattiawar, whose name was Javadia.
Though a lamb m disposition, when mounted, he was a piece of fire, and
admirably broken in to all the manege exercise. A more perfect animal never
existed. The author brought him, with another (il firg-rdj), from Oodipoor to
the ocean, intending to bring them home ; but the grey he gave to a friend, and
fearful of the voyage, he sent Javadia back six hundred miles to the Rana,
requesting “ he might be the first worshipped on the annual military festival
a request which he doubts not was complied with.

414

ANNALS OF HABAVATI.

[CHAP. I,

*

Nadole,* another Chohan possession, which he sacked, and then pro-
ceeded to Nehrwalla^ which he captured. His barbarities promoted
a coalition, which, by compelling him to march through the western
deserts to gain the valley of Sinde, had nearly proved fatal to his
army.

The exploits of Beesildeo form one of tk6 books of' Ohund the
kard. The date assigned to Beesildeo in the Basa (S. 921) is inter-
polated— a vice not uncommon" with the Bajpoot bard, whose periods
acquire verification from less mutable materials than those out of
which he weaves his song.f

Cliund gives an animated picture of the levy of the Bajpoot
chivalry, which assembled under Beesildeo, who, as the champion of
the Hindu faith, was. chosen to lead its warriors against the Islamite
invader. The Chalook king of Anhulwarra alone refused to join the
confederation, and in terms which drew upon him the vengeance
of the Chohan. A literal translation of the passage may be inter-
esting : —

“ To the Goelwal Jait, the prince entrusted Ajmer, saying, ‘ on
your fealty I depend where can this Chalook find refuge ? He
moved from the city (Ajmer), and encamped on the lake Visala,|
and summoned his tributaiies and vassals to meet him. Maunsi
Purihar, with the array of Mundore, touched his feet.'§ Then came
the Glielote, the ornament of the throng ;|| and the Pawasir,

# See note, p. 411, for remurks on Nndole, whence the author obtained ranch
valuable matter, consisting of coins, inscriptions on stone and copper,' and
MSS., when on a visit to this ancient city in 1821.

f We have abundant checks, which, could they have been detailed in the
earlier stage of inquiry into Hindu literature, would have excited more
interest for the hero whose column at Dehli has excited the inquiries of Jones,
, Wilford, and Colebrooke.

j This lake still bears the name of IJeesil-ca-tal notwithstanding the changes
winch have accrued during a lapse of one thousand years, since he formed it
by damming up the springs. It is one of the reservoirs of the Looni river.
The emperor Jdhangfr erected a palace on the banks of the Beesil-ca-tal, in
- which he received the ambassador of James I, of England/

§ This shews that the Purihars were subordinate to the Chohans of Ajmdr.
fj The respectful mention of the Gheloie as ‘ the ornament of the throng,'
clearly proves that the Cheetore prince came as an ally. How rejoicing to an
antiquary to find this confirmed by an inscription found amidst the ruins of a
city of Me war, which alludes to this very coalition ! The inscription is a record
of the friendship maintained by their issue in the twelfth century, — Samarsi of
Cheetore, and Pirthi Raj, the last Chohan king of India — on their combining
to chastise the king of Patun Anhulwarra, “ in like manner as did Beesildeo
“ and Tejsi of old unite against the foe, so,” &c., &c. Now Tejsi was the grand-
father of Bawul Samarsi, who was killed in opposing the final Mooslem
invasion, on the Oaggar, after one of the longest reigns in their annals: from
which' we calculate that Tdjsi must have sat on the throne about the year
S. 1120 (A.D. 1064.) His youth and inexperience would account for his noting
subordmately to the Chohan of Ajmer. The name of Udyadita further con-
firms the date, as will be mentioned in the text. His date has been fully
settled by various inscriptions found by the author. (See Transactions Roys*
Asiatic Society, Yol. I, page 223.)

CHAP. I.]

BOONDI.

419

of Dehli ; with Doorlub and Bhima of Guzzerat ; with Bhoj and
Udyadit of Dhar ; with Pudumsi and Tejsi of Mdwar; and the
confederacy which he headed must have been that against the
Islamite king Modud, the fourth from Mahmood of Ghizni, whose
expulsion from the northern parts of Rajpootana (as recorded on the
pillar 'of Dehli) caused Aryaverta again to become f the land of
virtue. 5 Mahmood’s final retreat from India by Sinde, to avoid the
armies collected “ by Byi’amdeo and the prince of Ajmdr, 55 to oppose
him, was in A.H. 417, A.D. 1026, or S. 1082, nearly the same date
as that assigned by Chund, S. 1086.

We could dilate on the war which Beesildeo waged against the
prince of Guzzerat, his victory, and the erection of Beesil-nuggur,*
on the spot where victory perched upon his lance ; but this we
reserve for the introduction of the history of the illustrious Pirthi
Raj. There is much fable mixed up with the history of Beesildeo,
apparently invented to hide a blot in the annals, warranting the
inference that he became a convert, in all likelihood a compulsory
one, to the doctrines of Islam. There is also the appearance of his
subsequent expiation of this crime in the garb of a penitent ; and
the mound (dhooncl), where he took up his abode, still exists, and is
called after him, Beesil-ca-d’hoond, at Kalik Jobnair.f

According to the Booh of Kings of Gomund Ram (the Hara
bard), the Haras were descended from Anuraj, son of Beesildeo; but
Mog-ji, the Kheechie bard, makes Anuraj progenitor of the Khee-
chies, and son of Maniba Rae. We follow the Hara bard.

Anuraj had assigned to him in appanage the important frontier
fortress of Asi ( vulg . Hansi). His son Ishtpal, together with
Agunraj, son of Ajey-Rao, the founder of Kheeclipoor Patun in Sind-
Sagur, was preparing to seek his fortunes with Rundheer Chohan
prince of Gowalcoond : but both Asi and Golcouda were almost
simultaneously assailed by an army “ from the wilds of Gujlibund. 55
Rundheer performed the sdcd ; and only a single female, his
daughter, named Soorahb&d, survived, and she fled for protection
towards Asi, then attacked by the same furious invader. Anfiraj
prepared to fly ; but his son, IshtpS.1, determined not to wait the
attack, but seek the foe. A battle ensued, when the invader was
slain, and Ishtp&l, grievously wounded, pursued him tilhhe fell, near
the spot where Soorahbae was awaiting death under the shade of a
peepul : for “ hopes of life were extinct, and fear and hunger had re-
“ duced her to a skeleton. 55 In the moment of despair, however, the
ashtwa (peepul) tree under which she took shelter was severed, and

* This town, — another proof of the veracity of the chronicle,— yen exists in
Northern Guzzeiat.

f The pickaxe, if applied to this mound (which gives its name to Dhoondar),
might possibly shew it to be a place of sepulture, and that the Ohohans, even
to this period, may have entombed at least the bones of their dead. The
numerous tumuli about Hydrabad, the ancient Gowalcoond, one of the royal
abodes of the Chohans, may be sepultures of this race, and the arms and vases
they contain all strengthen my hypothesis of th°ir Scyfhic origin.

[Yol. II.] 53a

420

ANNALS Or HARAVATI.

[CHAT. t.

Asapurnd, the guardian' goddess of lier race, appeared before her.
To her, Soorahh&e related 1 ,how her father and twelve brothers had
fallen in defending Goleondfy against f the demon of Gujiibund/ The
goddess told her to be of goiod cheer, for that a Chohan of her own
race had slain him, and was. then at hand ; and led her to whero
Ishtpal lay senseless from hiss wounds. B 3 7 her aid he recovered,*
and possessed himself of thatVocient heir-loom of the Chohans, the
famed fortress of Aser. \

IshtpS.1 the founder of the HarAs, obtained Aser in S. 1081f (or
A.D. 1025) ; and as Mahmood’s last), destructive visit to India, by
Mooltan through the desert to Ajmer, w/as in A.H. 417, or A.D. 1022,
we have every right to conclude that Ilfs' father Anur&j lost his life
and Asi to the king of Gbizni; at the sli^me time that Ajm^r was
sacked, and the country laid waste by thilk conqueror, whom the
Hindu bard might well style " the demon frm T Gujlibund.^J The
Mahomedan historians give us no hint even*' of any portion of
Mahmood’s army penetrating into the peninsula, through thatgrasping
ambition, which considered the shores of Sauram^htra but an inter-
mediate step from Ghizni to the conquest of Ceylorrv and Pegu, § may
have pushed an army during his long halt at Anhui w?\ arra > an ^ ^ mve
driven Rindheer from Golconda. But it is idle to li'P ecu ^ a ^ e ^P 011
such slender materials ; let them suffice to illustrate q,' ne new ^ a0 *'»
namely, that these kingdoms of the south as well as the u01 *k were
held by Rajpoot sovereigns, whose offspring, blending— ^ : w itk the
original population, produced that mixed race ofMahrattas,\nj, u ^ e, '^ in ^
with the names, the warlike propensities of their ancestors/ 'a> t
assume the name of their abodes as titles, as the Mmallal
Phalkias, the Patunkars, instead of their tribes of Jadoon, ‘Tiiafr
Piiar, &c., &c. ^

Ishtpal had a son called Chand-kurn ; his son, Lok Pal, had H<>
and Gumbir,names well known in the wars of PirthiRaj. The broth J; ' rs
well enrolled amongst his one hundred and eight great vassals, fu. , m

a —

* Or, as the story goes, his limbs, which lay dissevered, were collected b,
Soorahbae, and the goddess sprinkling them with “ the water of life,” ho arose” > *
Hence the name Sara, which his descendants bore, from har, or ‘ bones,’ thus
collected ; but more likely from having lost ( Jiara ) Asi.

f The Hara chronicle says S. 931, but by some strange, yet uniform error, all
the tribes of the Chohans antedate their chronicles by a hundred years. Thus
Beesildeo's taking possession of Anhulnoor Patun is “ nine hundred, fifty,

“ thirty and six” (S. 986), instead of A 1086. But it even pervades Clutnd, the
poet of Pirthi Raj, whose birth is made 1115, instead of S. 1215; and here, in
all probability, the error commenced, by the ignorance (wilful we cannot
imagine) of some rhymer.

$ ‘ The elephant wilds.’ They assert that Ghhni is properly Gujni, founded by
the Yadns : and in a curious specimen of Hindu geography (presented by mo
to the Royal Asiatic Society), nil the tract about the glaciers of the Ganges is
termed Gujlibun, or Gujlibu, the * Elephant Forest.’ There is a “ Gujinijmh ”
mentioned by Abulfazil in the region of Bijore, inhabited by the Sooltano,
Jadoon, and Eusofzye tribes.

§ See Eerisbta, life of Mabmood.

CHAP, r.]

BOONDI.

421

which, we may infer that, though Aser was not considered, absolutely
as a fief, its chief paid homage to' Ajmer, as the principal seat of the
Chohans.

' In the Canouj Saniya, that book of the poems of Chund devoted
to the famous war in which the Chohau prince carries of the princess
of Canouj, honourable mention is made of the Hara princes in the
third day's fight, when they covered the retreat of Pirthi Raj : —

“ Then did the Hara Rao Hamir with his brother Gumbir, mounted
on Lakhi steeds, approach their lord, as thus they spoke : ‘ Think of
thy safety, Jungul-es,* while we make offerings to the array of
Jycliund. Our horses’ hoofs shall plough the field of fight, like the
ship of the ocean.’ ”

The brothers encountered the contingent of the prince of Kasi
(Benares), one of the great feudatories of Canouj. As they joined,
“ the shout raised by Hamfr reached Doorga on her rock-bound
“ throne.” Both brothers fell in these wars, though one of the few
survivors of the lost battle fought with Shahbudin for Rajpoot inde-
pendence^ was a Hara : —

Hamir had Kdlkurna, who had’ MAh a Mugd : his son was Rao
Bacha; his, Rao Chund.

Amongst the many independent princes of the Chohan race to
whom Alla-oo-din was the messenger of fate, was Rao Chund of Aser.
Its walls, though deemed impregnable, were not proof against the
skill and valour of this energetic warrior ; and Chund and all his
family, with the exception of one son, were put to the sword. This
son was prince Rainsi, a name fatal to Chohan heirs, for it was borne
by the son of Pirthi Raj who fell in the defence of Dehli : but Rainsi
of Aser was more fortunate. He was but an infant of two years aud
a half old, and being nephew of the Rana of Cheetore, was sent to
him for protection. When he attained man’s estate, he made a suc-
cessful attempt upon the ruined castle of Bhynsror, from which he
drove Doonga, a Bhil chief, who, with a band of his mountain
brethren, had made it his retreat. This ancient fief of Mewar had
been dismantled by Alla-oo-din in his attack on Cheetore, from which
the Ranas had nob yet l-ecovered when the young Chohan came
amongst them for protection.

Rainsi had two sons, Kolun and Kanlcul. Kolun being afflicted
with an incurable disease, commenced a pilgrimage to the sacred
“ Kedarnath,” one of the towns of the Ganges. To obtain the
full benefit of this meritoi’ious act, he determined to measure his
length on the ground the whole of this painful journey. In six
months he had only reached the Binda Pass, where, having bathed
in a fountain whence flows the rivulet Bangunga, he found his
health greatly restoi’ed. Kedarnathi" was pleased to manifest him-

* Jungul-6s, ‘lord of the forest lands,’ another of Pirthi Raj’s titles.

■f “ The lord of Kddar,” the gigantic 'pine of the Himalaya, a title of Sxva.

422

ANNALS OP HAKAVATI.

[CHAP. I.

self, to accept his devotions, and to declare him “ King of the
“ Path Sr,” or plateau of Central India.* The whole of this tract
was under the princes of Cheetore, but the sack of this famed for-
tress by Alla, and the enormous slaughter of the Gehlotes, had so
weakened their authority, that the aboriginal Meenas had once more
possessed themselves ot all their native hills, or leagued with the
subordinate vassals of Cheetore.

In ancient times, Raja Hoon, said to be of the Pramara race, was
lord ot the Pathfir, and held his court at Myual. There are many
memorials of this Hoon or Hun prince, and even so far back as the
first assault of Cheetore, in the eighth century, its prince was aided
in his defence by ,l Ungutsi, lord of the Hoons.” The celebrated
temples of Barolli are attributed to this Hoon Raja, who appears in
so questionable a shape, that we can scarcely refuse to believe that
a branch of this celebrated race must in the first centuries of Vicrama
have been admitted, as their bards say, amongst the thirty-six royal
races of the Rajpoots. Be this as it may, Rao Bango, the grandson
of Kolun, took possession of the ancient Mynftl, and on an elevation
commanding the western face of the Pathfir erected the fortress of
Bumaoda. With Bhynsror on the east, and Bumaoda and Mynal on
the west, the Haras now occupied the whole extent of the Pathar.
Other conquests were made, and Mandelgurh, Bijolli, Beygoo,
Rutna'gnrh and Choraitagurh, formed an extensive if not a rich,
chieftainship.

Rao Bango had twelve sons, who dispersed their progeny over
the Pathar. He was succeeded by Dewa, who had three sons, •viz.,
Hur-raj,t Hatiji, and Samarsi.

The Haras had now obtained such power as to attract the atten-
tion of the emperor, and Rae Dewa was summoned to attend the
court when Secunder Lodi ruled. He, therefore, installed his son,
Hur-iaj, in Bumaoda, and with his youngest, Samarsi, repaired to
Dehli. Here he remained, till the emperor coveting a horse of the
‘ king of the Pathar/ the latter deteimmed to regain his native hills.
This steed is famed both in the annals of the Haras and Kheechies,
and, like that of the Mede, had no small share in the future fortunes
of his master. Its birth is thus related. The king had a horse of
such mettle, that u he could cross a stream without wetting his hoof.”
Dewa bribed the royal equerry, and from a mare of the Pathar had
a colt, to obtain which the king broke that law which is alike bind-
ing on the Mooslem and the Christian. • Dewa sent off his family

He bestowed in appanage on bis brother Knnkalji a tenth of the lands in
his possession. From* Kankal aie descended the class of Bhats, called “ Krot la

Hnr-raj had twelve sous, the eldest or whom was Aloo. who succeeded to
JBumaoda. Aloo Bara's name will never die as long as one of his nice inhabits
the Pathar; and there aie many Bhomias descended from him still holding
lands, as the Kombawut and Bhojawut Haras. The end of Aloo Hara, and the
destiuction of Bumaoda (which the author has visited), will be related m the
Personal Narrative.

CHA.P. I.]

BOONDI.

423

by degrees, and as soon as they wore out of danger, he saddled
his chargor, and lance in hand appeared under the balcony
where tho emperor was seated. “ Farewell, king/ 1 said the Rangra;
" there are three things your majesty must never ask of a Rajpoot;
"his horse, his mistress, and his sword.” He gave his steed tho
rein, and in snfoty regained tho Pat liar. Having resigned Bumaoda
to Huv-raj, he came to Bandoo-Nal, the spot where Ins ancestor
Koluu was cured of disease. Hero tho.Meeuns of tho Oosarra tribe
dwelt, under tho patriarchal government of Jaitah, their chief.
There was then no regular city; tho extremities of tho valley (t’hal)*
were closed with barriers of masonry aud gates, and the huts of the
Meenas wore scattered wherever their fancy led them to build. At
this time, tho community, which had professed obedience to tho
Rana on the sack of Choetore, was suffering from the raids of Rao
Gango, tho Kheechic, who from his castle of Rniugur’k (Relawnu)
imposed “ birchi-dohuc” on all around. To save themselves from
Gaugo, who used " to drive his lauce at tho barrier of Bandoo,” tho
Meenas entered into terms, agreeing, on the full mpon of every
second month, to suspend tho tribute of the chout’li over tho barrier.
At the appointed time, tho Rao came, but no bag of treasure
appoared. " Who has been before mo ?” demanded Gango ; when
forth issued tho "lord of the Pathfir,” on tho steed coveted by the
Lodi king. Gango of Rolawun bestrode a charger not less famed
than his antagonist’s, " which owed his birth to tho river-horse of
" the Par, and a mare of the Khoechio chieftain’s, as she grazed on its
" margin.f Mounted on this steed, no obstacle could stop him, and
" even the Chumbul was no impediment to his seizing the tribute at
" all seasons from the Meenas.”

The encounter was fierce, but the Hara was victorious, and Gango
turned his back on tho lord of tho Path&r, who tried the mettle of
this son of thp Par, pursuing him to the banks of the Chumbul.
What was his surpriso, when Gango sprang from the cliff, and horse
and rider disappeared in tho flood, but soon to re-appear on the
opposite bank ! Down, who stood amazed, no sooner beheld tho Rao
emerge, than he exclaimed " Bravo, Rajpoot ! Let me know your
" name.” " Gango Kheechie,” was the answer. " And mine is Down
" Hara; we are brothers, and must no longer be enemies. Let the
" river bo our boundary.”

It was in S. 1398 (A.D. 1342) that Jaffa and tho Oosarras
acknowledged Rae Dewa as their lord, who erected Boondi in tho
centre of the Bandoo-ca-ndl, which henceforth became the capital
of the Haras. The Chumbul, which, for a short rime after the
adventure here related, continued to be the barrier to the eastward,
was soon overpassed, and the bravery of the race bringing them into
contact with the emperor’s lieutenants, the Haras rose to favour aud

* T'hdl and Ndl are both terms for a valley, though the latter is oftener
applied to a defile.

| The Par, or Parbutty river, flows near Ramgur’h Relawun.

424-

o

ANNALS OF HAEAVATI.

[CHAP, la

power, extending their acquisitions, either by conquest or grant, to
the confines of Malwa. The territory thus acquired obtained the
geographical designation of Hiiravati or Harouti.*

©

55 +

CHAPTER II.

Recapitulation of the Hara princes from the founder Anur&j to Rae Dewa.—lle
erects Boondi. — Massacre of the Oosarras. — Dewa abdicates. — Ceremony of
Yugaraj, or abdication. — Succeeded by Samarsi . — Extends his sway east of the
% Chmnbul. — Massacre of the Eoteah Bhils. — Origin of Kotah. — Napooji suc-
ceeds. — Feud with the Solanki of Thoda . — Assassination of Napooji .■ — Singular
Sati. — liamoo succeeds. — The Bana asserts his right over the Pathar.—Hamoo
demurs, defies, and attacks him. — Anecdote. — Birsing. — Biroo. — liao Bands • *
— Famine. — Anecdote. — Bando expelled by his brothers ; converts to Mahome-
danism. — Narayndas puts his uncles to death, and recovers his patrimony . —
Anecdotes* of Narayndas. — Aids the Rana' of Oheetore. — Gains a victory —
Espouses the niece of Rana Raemull. — His passion for opium. — Death. — Rao
Soorajmul. — Marries a princess of Oheetore. — Fatal result . — Aihara, or
Spring hunt. — Assassination of the Bao. — His revenge . — Twofold Sail. — Rao
Soortan. — His cruelly, deposal, and banishment. — Bao Arjoon . elected.—
Romantic death. — Rao Soorjun accedes.

Having sketched the history of this race, from the regeneration of
Anhui, f the first Chohati (at a period which it is impossible to fix),
to the establishment of the first Hara prince in Boondi, we shall here
recapitulate the most conspicuous princes, with their dates, as
established by synchronical events in the annals °of other states,
or by inscriptions ; and then proceed with the history of the Haras
as members of the great commonwealth of India. 0
An uraj obtained Asi or Hansi.

Ishtpal, son of An uraj ; he was expelled from Asi, S. 1081 (A.D.
1025), and obtained Aser. He was founder of the Haras; the
chronicle says not how long after obtaining Asi, but evidently
-very soon.

Hamir, killed in the battle of the Caggar, on the invasion of
Shahbudin, S. 1249, or A.D. 1193.

Rao Chund, slain in Aser, by Alla-oo-din, in S. 1351.

Rainsi, fled from Aser, and came to Mewar, and in S. 1353
obtained Bhynsror.

Rao Bango, obtained Bumaoda, Mynal, &c.

Rao Dewa, S. 1398 (A.D. 1342), took the Bandoo valley from the .
Meenas, founded the city of Boondi, and styled the country Hdravati.

In'Mahotnedan authors, Hadouty.
f Anhui and Agni have the same signification, vis., ‘ fire.’

BOONDI.

A

i-3

415

'uh Tiiar, 1 2 and Raina tbe Gor f with Mohes the lord of Mewat. 3
'he Mohil of Doonapoor with tribute sent excuse. 4 With folded
/lands arrived the Baloch 5 6 but the lord of Bamuni abandoned
Wide. 0 Then came the Nnzzur from Bhutnair, 7 8 and the Ncdbundi
Vm Tatta 5 and Mooltau. 9 When the summons reached the
v \omia Bhatti of Derrawul, 10 all obeyed; as did the Jadoon of
valkmwas. 11 The Mori 12 and Birgoojur 13 also joined with the
, Dutch wahas of Anterved. 14 The subjugated Moras worshipped his
/ feet. 15 * Then came the array of Takifcpoor, headed by the Goelwal
Jait. 1G Mounted in haste came Udya Pramar, 17 with the .Nurbhan 18
and the Dor, 19 the Ckundail, 20 and the Daliima.” 21

In this short passage, a text is afforded for a dissertation on the
whole genealogical history of Rajpoofcana at that period. Such
extracts from the more ancient baf-ds, incorporated in the works of
their successors, however lacouic, afford decisive evidence that their
poetic chronicles bore always the same character ; for this passage is
introduced by Ohund merely as a preface to the history of his own
prince, Pirthi Raj, the descendant of Beesildeo.

A similar passage was given from the ancient chronicles of Mewar,
recording an invasion of the Mooslems, of which the histories of the
invaders have left no trace. (Vol. I, p. 208.) The evidence of both
is incontestable ; every name affords a synchronism not to be
disputed ; and though the isolated passage would afford a very faint
ray of light to the explorer of those days of darkness, yet when the
same industrious research has pervaded the annals of all these races, a

1 This Tiiar must have been one of the Dehli vassals, whose monarch was
of this race.

2 The Gor was a celebrated tribe, and amongst the most illustrious of the
Chohan feudatories ; a branch until a few years ago held Sooe-Soopoor and
about nine lacs of territory. I have no doubt the Gor appanage was west of
tbe Indus, and that this tribe on conversion became the Ghor.

3 The Mewoh race of Mewat is well known, all are Mahomedans now.

4 The Mobils have been sufficiently discussed.

5 The Baloch was evidently Hindu at this time ; and as I have repeatedly
said, of Jit or Gete origin.

6 ,f The lord of Bamuni,” in other places called Bamuuwasso, must apply to
the ancient Brahminabad, or Dewul, ou whose site the modern Tatta is built.

7 See Annals of Jessulmdr.

8 & 9 All this evinces supremacy over the Princes of this region : the Soda,

the Satmna, and Soomura.

10 Of Derrawul we have spoken in the text.

1 1 , Mallunwas we know not.

12 & 13 & 14 The Moris, the Cutchwahns and Birgoojurs require no further
notice.

15' The Meras inhabited the Aravulli.

16 Takitnoor is the modern Tiioda near Tonk, where there are fine remains.

17 TJdyadita, now a land-mark in Hindu history.

IS See annals of Shekhavati for the JTurbhans, who held Khundaila as a

fief of Ajmer.

,19 & 20 The Dor and Chundail were well known tribes; the latter contended

with Pirthi llaj, who deprived them of Mahoba and Kalinger, and all modern.

Boondelkund.

21 The renowned Dahima was lord of Biana ; also called Druinadbar.

416 ANNALS OF HARAVATI. [CHAP, t

flood of illumination pours upon us, and we can at least tell who til
races were who held sway in these regions a thousand years ago. |

Amidst meagre, jejune, and unsatisfactory details, the annalist o
Rajpootana must be content to wade on, in order to obtain sow
solid foundation for the history of the tribes •, but such facts as thy
stimulate his exertions and reward his toil : without them, .his t/
would be hopeless. To each of the twenty tribes enumerated
formed under the standard of the Chohan, we append a separati
notice, for the satisfaction of the few who can appreciate their impor
tance, while some general remarks may suffice as a connection witl
the immediate object of research, the Haras, descended fron
Beesildeo.

In the first place, it is of no small moment to be enabled to adjus
the date of Beesildeo, the most important name in the annals of th<
Ckohans from Manik Rae to Pirthi Raj, and a slip from the genea
logical tree will elucidate our remarks.

CHOHAN GENEALOGX.

428

ANNALS OF HaRAVATI. •

[chap. II.

sionj or drive the stock of Dewa’ from the Patkar. Hamoo defied,
and determined to brave, .his resentment. The Ran a of Jldwar
marched with all his 'vassals to Booudi, and encamped at Neemairo,
only a few miles from the city. Five hundred Haras, “ the sons of
“one father,” put on the saffron robe, and rallied round their chief,
determined to die with him. Having no hope but from an effort of
despair, they marched out at midnight, aud fell upon the Rana’s
camp, which was completely surprised; and each Seesodia sought
safety in flight. Hamoo made his way direct to the tent of Hinclu-
pati ; but the sovereign of the Seesodias was glad to avail himself
of the gloom and confusion to seek shelter in Cheetore, while his
vassals fell under the swords of the Haras.

Humiliated, disgraced, and enraged at being thus foiled by a
handful of men, the Rana reformed his troops under the walls of
Cheetore, and swore he would not eat until he was master of Boondi.
The rash vow went round ; but Boondi was sixty miles distant, and
defended by brave hearts, His chiefs expostulated with the Rana
on the absolute impossibility of redeeming his vow ; but the words
of kings are sacred : Boondi must fall, ere the king of the Gehlotes
could dine. In this exigence, a childish expedient was proposed to
release him from hunger and his oath ; “ to erect a mock Boondi,
“ and take it by storm.” Instantly the mimic town arose under the
walls of Cheetore ; and, that the deception might be complete, the
local nomenclature was attended to, and each quarter had its appro-
priate appellation. A band of Haras of the Pathar were in the
service of Cheetore, whose leader, Koomboo-Bairsi, was returning
with his kin from hunting the deer, when thoir attention was
attracted by this strange bustle. The story was soon told, that
Boondi must fall ere the Rana could dine. Koombo assembled his
brethren of the Pathai', declaring, that even the mock Boondi must
be defended. All felt the indignity to the clan, and each bosom
burning with- indignation, they prepared to protect the mud walls of
the pseudo Boondi from insult. It was reported to the Rana that
Boondi was finished. He advanced to the storm : but what was his
surprise when, instead of the blank-cartridge he heard a volley of
balls whiz amongst them ! A messenger was despatched, and was
received by Bairsi at the gate, who explained the cause of the unex-
pected salutation, desiring him to tell the Rana that “ not even the
“ mock capital of a Hara should be dishonoured.'’'’ Spreading a sheet
at the little gateway, Bairsi and the K&awunts invited the assault,
and at the threshold of “ Gar-ca-Boondt ” (the Boondi of clay) they
gave up their lives for the honour of the race.* The Rana wisely

* Somewhat akin to this incident is the history of that summer abode of
ttie kings of France in the Bois de Boulogne at Paris, called “ Madrid.” When
Francis I, was allowed to return to his capital, he pledged his Parole that he
would return to Madrid. But the delights of liberty and Paris were too much
xor honour : .and while he wavered, a hint was thrown out similar to that sug-
gested to the Rana when determined to capture Booudi. A mook Madrid
arose in the Bois de Boulogne, to which Francis retired.

CHAP. II.]

BOONDI.

429

remained satisfied with this salvo to his dignity, nor sought any
further to wipe off the disgrace incurred, at the real capital of the
Haras, perceiving the impolicy of driving such a daring clan to des-
peration, whose services he could command on an emergency.

Hatnoo, who ruled sixteen years, left two sons ; 1st, Birsing, and
2d, Lalla, who obtained Khutkur, and had two sons, Novarma and
Jaita, each of whom left clans called after them Novarma-pota and
Jaitawut. - Birsing ruled fifteen years, and left three sons ; Biroo,
Jubdoo, who founded three tribes,* and Nima, descendants Nirna-
wuts. Biroo, who died S. 1526, ruled fifty years, and had seven
sons ; 1, Rao Bando ; 2, Sando ; 3, Ako ; 4, Oodoh ; 5, Chanda ;
6, Samarsiug ; 7, Umursing : the first five founded clans named
after them Akawut, Oodawut, Chondawut, but the last two abandon-
ed their faith for that of Islam.

Bando has left a deathless name in Rajwarra for his boundless
charities, more especially during the famine which desolated that
- country in S. 1542 (A. D. 1486). He was forewarned, says the
bard, in a vision, of the visitation. Kal (Time or the famine per-
sonified) appeared riding on a lean black buffalo. Grasping his sword
and shield, the intrepid Hara assaulted the apparition. “ Bravo,
“ Bando Hara,” it exclaimed ; “ I am Kal (Time) ; on me your sword
“ will fall -in vain. Yet you are the only mortal who ever dared to
u oppose me. Now listen : I am Btfalees (forty-two) ; the land will
“ become a desert ; fill your granaries, distribute liberally, they will
“ never empty.” Thus saying, the spectre vanished. Rao Bando
obeyed the injunction; he collected grain from every surrounding
state. One year passed and another had almost followed, when the
periodical rains ceased, and a famine ensued which ravaged all India.
Princes far and near sent for aid to Boondi, while his own poor had
daily portions served out gratis : which practice is still kept up in
memory of Rao Bando, by the name of Lungur-ca-googn, or e anchor
of Bando.'

But the piety and charity of Rao Bando could not shield him
from adversity. His two youngest brothers, urged by the temptation
of' power, abandoned their faith, and with the aid of the royal
power expelled him from Boondi, where, under their new titles of
Samarcandi and Umurcandi, they jointly ruled eleven years. Bando
retired to Matoonda, in the hills, where he died after a reign of
twenty-one years,' and where his cenotaph still remains. He left two
sons, 1st, Narayndas, aud 2d, Nir-Boodh, who had Matoonda.

Narayn had grown up to manhood in this retreat ; but no sooner
was he at liberty to act for himself, than he assembled the Haras of
the Pathar, and revealed his determination to obtain Boondi, or
perish in the attempt. They swore to abide his fortunes. After the
days of raatum (mourning), were over, he sent to his Islamite uncles

* Jubdoo had three sons ; each founded clans. The eldest, Bach a, had two
sons, Sewaji and Seranji. The former had Meoji ; the latter had Sawuud,
whose descendants are styled Meoh and Sawunt-Haras.

430

ANNALS OF HARAVATI.

[CHAP. II.

a complimentary message, intimating bis wish to pay his respects to
them; and not suspecting danger from a youth brought up in
obscurity, it was signified, that he might come.

With a small hut devoted baud, he reached the chowlc (square),
■where he left his adherents, and alone repaired to the palace. He
ascended to where both the uncles were seated almost unattended.
Thoy liked not the resolute demeanour of the youth, and tried to
gain a passage winch led to a subterranean apartment ; but no sooner
was this intention perceived, than the Ichcuida, or ‘ double-edged
sword/ of Bando’s son cut the elder to the ground, while his lance
reached the other before he got to a place of security. In an instant,
he severed both their heads, with which he graced the shrine of
Bhavani, and giving a shout to his followers in the chowlc, their
swords were soon at work upon the Mooslems. Every true Hara
supported the just cause, and the dead bodies of the apostates and
their crew were hurled with ignominy over the walls. To commemo-
rate this exploit and the recovery of Boondi from these traitors, the
pillar on which the sword of the young Ilara descended, when he
struck down Samarcandi, and which bears testimony to the vigour
of his arm, is annually worshipped by every Hava on the festival of
the Dussera *

Narayndas became celebrated for his strength and prowess. He
was one of those undaunted Rajpoots who are absolutely strangers
to the impression of fear, and it might be said of danger and himself,

“ that they were brothers whelped the same day, and he the elder/'
Unfortunately, these qualities were rendered inert from the enormous
quantity of opium he took, which would have killed most men ; for
it is recorded “ he could at one time eat the weight of seven pice/'t
The consequence of this vice, as might he expected, was a constant
stupefaction, of which many anecdotes are related. Being called to
aid the liana Raemull, then attacked by the Pathans of Mandoo, he
set out at the head of five hundred select Haras. On the first day's
march, he was taking his siesta, after his usual dose, under a tree,
his mouth wide open, into which the flies had unmolested ingress,
when a young tailani% came to diaw water at the well, and on
learning that this was Boond/s prince on his way to aid the Rana in
his distress, she observed, “ If he gets no other aid than his, alas for
“ my prince !" “ The umuldar I opium-eat'er) has quick ears, though

“ ho eyes/ 5 is a common adage in Rajwarra. " What is that you say,

“ rand (widow) ? 55 roared the Rao, advancing to her. Upon her
endeavouring to excuse herself, he observed, u do not fear, hut repeat

it. In her hand she had an iron crow-bar, which the Rao, taking
it from her, twisted until the ends met round her neck. tr Wear thi3

* Though called a pillar, it is a slab in the staircase of the old nalace, which
1 have seen.

"+ The copper coin of ‘Boondi, equal to a lialfDenny. One pice weight is a
sleep* 10 ’ 1 d0S6 t0r an ° rdmary Ea jP oofc > b «t would send the uninitiated to eternal „

+ Wife or daughter of a tail f, or oilman.

CHAP. II.]

BOONDI.

431

“ garland for me/’ said he, “ until I return from aiding the Ran a,
.“unless in the interim you can find someone strong enough’ to
“ unbind it."

Cheetore was closely invested ; the Rao moved by the intricacies
of the Pathar, took the royal camp' by surprise, aud made direct for
the tent of the generalissimo, cutting down all in his way. Confusion °
and panic seized the Mooslems, who fled m all directions. The
Boondi nakarras (drams) struck up; and as the morning broke,
the besieged had the satisfaction to behold the invaders dispersed
and their auxiliaries at hand. Rana Raemull came forth, and
conducted his deliverer in triumph to Cheetore. All the chiefs
assembled to do honour to BoondPs prince, and the ladies
“ behind the curtain” felt so little alarm at their opium-eatmg
knight, that the Rana’s niece determined to espouse him, and next
day communicated her intentions to the Rana. “ The slave of
“ Harayn” was too courteous a cavalier to let any fair lady die for
his love ; the Rana was too sensible of his obligation not to hail
with joy any mode of testifying his gratitude, and the nuptials of
the Hara and K4tu were celebrated with pomp. With victory and
his bride, he returned to the Baudo valley ; where, however, ‘ the
flower of gloomy Dis J soon gained the ascendant even overCamdeo,
and his doses augmented to such a degree, that “ he scratched his
“ lady instead of himself, aud with such severity that he marred
“ the beauty of the Mdwari.” In the morning, perceiving what had
happened, yet being assailed with no reproach, he gained a reluctant
victoi'y over himself, and “ consigned the opium-box to her keeping.”
Narayndas ruled thirty-two yeai’s, and left his country in tran-
quillity, and much extended, to his only son.

Soorujmull ascended the gadi in S. 1590. (A.D. 1534).* Like his
father, he was athletic in form and dauntless in soul ; and it is said
possessed in an eminent degree that unerring sign of a hero, long
arms, his (like those of Rama aud Pirthi Raj) “reaching far below his
“ knees.”

The alliance with Cheetore was again cemented by intermarriage.
Sooja Bae sister to Soorujmull, was espoused by Rana Rutua, who
bestowed his own sister on the Rao. Rao Soojo, like his father, was
too partial to his uml. One day, at Cheetore, he had fallen asleep
in the Presence, when a Poorbia chief felt an irresistible inclination
to disturb him, and “ tickled the Hara’s ear with a straw.” He
might as well have 'jested with a tiger: a back stroke with his
Ichanda stretched the insulter on the carpet. The son of the Poorbia
treasured up the feud, and waited for revenge, which he effected by
making the Rana believe the Rao had other objects in view, besides
visiting his sister Sooja Bad, at the Rawula. The train thus laid,
the slightest incident inflamed it. The fair Sooja had prepared a
repast, to which she invited both her brother and her husband: she .
had not only attended the culinary process herself, but waited on
these objects of her love to drive the flies from the food. Though.

-432

ANNALS OF H ABA V ATI.

[CHAP. H.

tlio wedded fair of Rajpootana clings to the husband, yet she is ever
more solicitous for the honor of the house from whence she sprung,,
than that into which she has been admitted; which feeling has
engendered numerous quarrels. Unhappily, Sooja remarked, on
removing the dishes, that “ her brother had devoured his share like
“ a tiger, while her husband had played with his like a child (balac).”
The expression, added to other insults which he fancied were put
upon him, cost the Kao his life, and sent the fair Sooja an untimely
victim to Iudraloca. The dictates of hospitality prevented the Kana
from noticing the remark at the moment, and in fact it was more
accordant with the general tenor of his character to revenge the
affront with greater security than even the isolated situation of the
b! •ave Hara afforded him. On the latter taking leave, the Kana
invited himself to hunt on the next spring festival in the rumnaz
or preserves of Boondi. The merry month of Phalgoon arrived ; the
Rana and his court prepared their suits of amoivah (green), and
ascended the Pathar on the road to Boondi, in spite of the anathema
of the prophetic Sati, who, as she ascended the pyre at Bumaoda,
pronounced that whenever Rao and Rana met to hunt together at
the Aihara, such meeting, which had blasted all her hopes, would
always be fatal. But centuries had rolled between the denunciation
of the daughter of Aloo Hara and Sooja Bae of Boondi ; and the
prophecy, though in every mouth, served merely to amuse the leisure
hour; the moral being forgotten, it was only looked upon as ' a tale
that was past/

' The scene chosen for the sport was on the heights of Nandta, not
far from the western bank of the Chuinbul, in whose glades 'every
species of game, from the lordly lion to the timid hare, abounded.
The troops were formed into lines, advancing through the jungles
with the customary noise and clamour, and driving before them a
promiscuous herd of tenants of the forest, — lions, tigers, hyenas,
bears, every species of deer, from the enormouB , bara-singa and
Nilgae to the delicate antelope, with jackals, foxes, hares, and the
little wild dog. In such an animated scene as this, the Rajpoot
forgets even his opium; he requires no exhilaration beyond the
stimulus before him ; a species of petty war, not altogether free
frrom danger.

It was amidst the confusion of such a scene that the dastard
Rana determined to gratify his malice. The princes had con-
venient stations assigned them, where they coutd securely assail
the game as it passed, each having but one or two confidential
attendants. With the Rana was the Iago of his revenge, the
son of the Poorbia, whom the Hara prihce had slain. et Now .is
the moment, , said the Rana to his companion, “ to slay the
boar, and instantly an arrow from the bow of the Poorbia was
sped at the Rao. c With an eaglets eye h§ saw it coming, and turned
“ it off with his bow.” This might have been chance, but another
tom the foster-brother of the Rana convinced him there was

-CHAP. IX.]

BOONDI.

433

treachery. Scarcely had he warded off the second, when the Rana
darted at him on horseback, and cut him down with his Jchcinda.
The Eao fell, hut recovering, took his shawl and tightly bound up
the wound, and as his foe was making off, he called aloud, “ Escape
“ you may, but you have sunk Mewar.” The Poorbia, who followed
his prince, when he saw the Eao bind up his wound, said, " the
" work is but half done;” and like a coward, Eutna once more
' charged the wounded Eao. As his arm was raised to finish the
deed of shame, like a wounded tiger, the Hara made a dying effort,
caught the assassin by the rope, and dragged him from his steed.
Together they came to the ground, the Eana underneath. The Eao
knelt upon his breast, while, with preternatural strength, with one
hand he grasped his victim by the throat, with the other T he searched
for his daggle. What a moment for revenge ! He plunged the
weapon into his assassin’s heart, and saw him expire at his feet.
The Rao was satisfied; there was no more life left him than sufficed
for revenge, and ! he dropped a corpse upon the dead body of his
foeman.

The tidings flew to Boondi, to the mother of the Eao, that her
son was slain in the Aihara. “ Slain !” exclaimed this noble dame,
“ but did he fall alone ? Never could a son, who has drunk at this
“ breast, depart unaccompanied;” and as she spoke, “maternal feel-
“ iug caused the milk to issue from the fount with such force, that it '
“ rent the slab on which it fell.”

. The dread of dishonour, which quenched the common sympathies
of nature for the death of her son, had scarcely been thus expressed,
when a second messenger announced the magnitude of his revenge.
The Rajpoot dame was satisfied, though fresh horrors were abo,utto
follow. The wives of the murdered princes could not survive, and
, the pyres were prepai’ed on the fatal field of sport. The fair Sooja
■expiated her jest, which cost her a husband and a brother, in the
flames, while the sister of Eana Rutna, married to the Eao, in
accordance with custom or affection, burned with the dead body of
her lord. The cenotaphs of the princes were reared where they 'fell ;
while that of Sooja Bae was erected on a pinnacle of the Pass, and
adds to the picturesque beauty of this romantic valley, which
possesses a double charm for the traveller, who may have taste -to
admire the scene, and patience to listen to the story.

^'■ortau succeeded in S. 1591 (A.D. 1535), and married the

slighter of the celebrated Sulcta, founder of the Suktawuts of
Mewar. He became an ardent votary of the blood-staiued divinity
of war, Kdl-jBhiroo, and like almost all those ferocious Rajpoots
who resign themselves to his horrid rites, grew cruel and at length
deranged. Hliman victims are the chief offerings to this brutalized
personification of war, though Soortan was satisfied with the eyes
of his subjects, which he placed upon the altar of “ the mother of
“ war.” It was then time to question the divine right by which he
ruled. The assembled nobles deposed aud banished him from
[Voii. 11-3 55

434

ANNALS OP HAKAVATI.

[CHAP. II.

Boondi, assigning a small village on tile Chumbul for bis residence,
to which lie gave the name Soorfcanpoor, which survives to hear
testimony to one of many instances of the deposition of their princes
by the Rajpoots, when they offend custom or morality. Having no
offspring, the nobles elected the son of Nirboodh, son of Rao Bando,
who had been brought up in his patrimonial village of Matoonda.

Rao Arjoon, the eldest of the eight sons* of Nirboodh, succeeded
his banished cousin. Nothing can more effectually evince the total
extinction of animosity between these valiant races, when once f a
feud is balanced/ than the fact of Rao Arjoon, soon after his acces- '
sion, devoting himself and his valiant kinsmen to the service of the
son of that Rana who had slain his predecessor. The memorable
attack upon Gheetore by Bahadoor of Gruzzerat, has already been
related, t and the death of the Hara prince and his vassals at the
post of honour, the breach. Rao Arjoon was this prince, who ppas
blown up at the Gheetore boor] (bastion). The Boondi -bard makes
a striking picture of this catastrophe, in which the indomitable
courage of their prince is finely imagined. The fact is also confirmed
by the annals of Me war :

“ Seated on a fragment of the rock, disparted by the explosion of
the mine, Arjoon drew his sword, and the world beheld his departure 1
with amazement/-’ J

Soorjun, the eldest of the four sons§ of Arjoon, succeeded in’
S. 1589 (A.D. 1533).

* Pour of these had appanages and founded clans, namely, Bheem, irno had
Takurda; Pooro, who had Hurdoe ; Mapal and Puchaen, whose abodes are not
recorded.

fSeeVol. I,p. 261.

J “ Sdr n a ken bohut jor
“ Dhur purbut orf silla
“ Tyn kdvi tnvwdr

“ Ad pa.tia, Hara Uja.” (1 ) ■.

§ Ram Sing, clan Rama Hara; Akbiraj, clan Alchirajpota; Kand/. clan
Jessa Hara.

(1) Uja, t»be familiar contraction for Arjoona, -

CHAP. III.]

BOONDI.

435

CHAPTER III.

Rao ‘Soorjun obtains Rinthumbor. — Is besieged by Alcber. — The Boondi prince
surrenders the castle. — Becomes a vassal of the empire. — Magnanimous sacrifice
of Saioant-Hara. — Alcber bestows the title of Rao Raja on the Kara prince.
— He is sent to reduce Gondwana — His success and honours. — Rao Bhoj
succeeds. — Akber reduces Guzzerat. — Gallant conduct of the Haras at Surat
and Ahmednuggur. — Amazonian band. — Disgrace of Rao Bhoj. — Cause of
Akber's death. — Rao Ruthin. — Rebellion against the emperor Jehangir. — The
Hara prince defeats the rebels . — Partition of Harouti. — Madhu Sing obtains
Kotah. — Rao Ruthin slain. — His heir Gopinath killed. — Partition of fiefs in
Harouti. — Rao Gliutter Sal succeeds. — Appointed governor of A gra. — Services
in the Delchan. — Escalades Doulntabad. — Calberga. — Daviounee. — Civil war
amongst the sons of Shah Jelian. — Character of Arungzeb by the Boondi
prince. — Fidelity of the Hara princes. — Battles of Oojein and Dholpoor . —
Heroic valour of Chutter Sal. — Is slain, with twelve princes of Hara blood . —

, -Rao Bhao succeeds. — Boondi invaded. — Imperialists defeated. — llao Bhao
restored to favour. — Appointed to Arungabad. — Succeeded by Rao Anurad . —
Appointed to Lahore. — His death. — Rao Boodh. — Battle of Jajow. — The Hara
princes of Kotah and Boondi opposed to each other. — Kotah prince slain , —
Gallantry of Rao Boodh. — Obtains the victory for Buhadoor Shah. — Fidelity
of the Boondi prince. — Compelled to fly. — Fend with the prince of AmMr . —
Its cause. — Ambitious views of Amber. — Its political condition. — Treachery of
Amber. — Desperate conflict. — Rao Boodh driven from Boondi. — Boondi terri-
' 'tory curtailed. — Rao Boodh dies in exile. — His sons.

With Rao Soorjun commenced a new era for Boondi. Hitherto her
princes had enjoyed independence, excepting the homage and
occasional service on emergencies which are maintained as much
£rom..kinship as vassalage. But they were now about to move in a
moil extended orbit, ,and to occupy a conspicuous pagein the future
history of the empire of India.

Sawuut Sing, a junior branch of Boondi, upon the expulsion of
the Shereshahi dynasty, entered into a correspondence with the
Afghan governor of Rinthumbor, which terminated in the surrender
of this celebrated fortress, which he delivered up to his superior, the
Rao Soorjun. For this important service, which obtained a castle
and possession far superior to auy under Boondi, lands were assigned
near the city to Sawuntji, whose name became renowned, and was
transmitted as the head of the clan, Sawnnt-Hara.

•

The Chohan chief of Baidla, who was mainly instrumental to the
surrender of this famed fortress, stipulated that it should be held by
Rao Soorjun, as a fief of Mewar. Thus Rinthumbor, which for ages
was au appanage of Ajm4r, and continued until the fourteenth
century in a branch of the family descended from Beesildeo, when it
[Vol. II.] 55a

ANNALS OF HARAVATI.

436

[chap, hi.

was captured from fclie valiant Hamir* * * § after a desperate resistance,
once more reverted to the Chohan race.

Bintliumbor was an early object of Akbev’s attention, who
besieged it in person. He had been some time before its impregnable
walls without the hope of its surrender, when Bhagwandns of Amber
and his son, the more celebrated Raja Maun, who had not only
tendered their allegiance to Alcber, but allied themselves to him by
marriage, determined to use their influence to make Soorjun Hara
faithless to his pledge, “to hold the castle as a fief of (Jheetore’’t
That courtesy, which is never laid aside amongst belligerent Raj-
poots, obtained Raja Maun access to the castle, and the emperor
accompanied him in the guise of a mace-bearer. While conversing,
au uncle of the Rao recognized the emperor, and with that sudden
impulse which arises from respect, took the mace from his hand and
placed Alcber on the f cushion’ of the governor of the castle. Akber’s
presence of 'mind did not forsake him, and he said, “Well, Rao
“ Soorjun, what is to be done ?” which was replied to by Raja
Maun’," “ Leave the liana, give up Rinthumbor, and become the
“ servant of the king, with high honours and office.” .The preferred
bribe was indeed magnificent ; the government of fifty-two districts,
whose revenues were to be appropriated without inquiry, on furnish-
ing the customary contingent, and liberty to name any other terms,
which should be solemnly guaranteed by tbe king.J

A treaty was drawn up upon the spot, and mediated by the prince
of Amber, which presents a good picture of Hindu feeling :

1st. — That the chiefs of Booudi should be exempted from that
custom, degrading to a Rajpoot, of sending a dohi§ to tbe royal
harem.

2d. — Exemption from the jezeya, or poll-tax.

3d. — That the chiefs of Booniii should not be^compelled to cross
the Attoc. " "

' 4th. — That the vassals of Boondf should be' exempted from the
obligation of sending their waves or female relatives “ to hold a stall
,f in the Meena Bazaar” at the palace, on the festival of.Eorozn.||

* His fame is immortalized by a descendant of the bard Chund, in tbe works
already mentioned, as bearing his name, the Hamir-rasa and Uamir-cavyk-

■f The Raja Maun of Amber is styled, in. the poetic chronicle of the Haras,
“the shade of the Kali Yuga a powerful figure, to denote that his baneful
influence and example, in allying himself by matrimonial ties with the ^
imperialists, denationalized ttie Rajpoot character. In refusing to follow this
example, we have presented a picture of patriotism in the life of Rana PertAp
of Mdwar. E,ao Soorjun avoided by convention what the Cheetore prince did
by arms.

J We may here remark, that the succeeding portion of the annals of Boondi
is a free translation of uu historical sketch drawn up for me by tbe Raja of
Boondi from his ' own records, occasionally augmented from the bardic
Chronicle, /

§ Bola is the term for a princess affianced to the king.

]} Aivancient institution of the Timoorean kings, derived from their Tartar
Ancestry. , Eor a description of this festival, see Vol. I, p. 290 and Gladwin s
Ayeen Abberri.

r

• CHAP. III.]

BOONDI.

437

5th. — That they should have the privilege of entering the Dewan-
mim, or ‘ hall of audience/ completely armed.

6th. — That their sacred edifices should be respected.

7th. — That they should never be placed under the command of a
Hindu leader.

8th. — That their horses should not be branded with the imperial
dag’li.*

9th. — That they should be allowed to beat their naharras, or
'kettle-drums/ in the streets of the capital, as far as the lal durwaza,
or * red-gate/ and that they should not be commanded to make the
' prostration/f on entering the Presenqe.

10th. — That Boondi should be to the Haras what Dehli was to
the king, who should guarantee them from any chauge of capital.

Iu addition to these articles, which the king swore to maintain,
he assigned the Rao a residence at the sacred city of Kasi, possessing
that privilege so dear to the Rajpoot, the right of sanctuary, which
is maintained to this day. With such a bribe, and the full accept-
ance of his terms, we cannot wonder that Rao Soorjun flung from
him the remnant of allegiance he owed to Mewar, now humbled by
the loss of her capital, or that he should agree to follow the vic-
torious car of the Mogul. But this dereliction of duty was 'effaced by
the rigid virtue of the brave Sawunt-Hara, who, as already 'stated,
had conjointly with the Kotario ChohanJ obtained Rinthumbor. He
put on the saffron robes, and with his small but virtuous clan deter-
mined, in spite of his sovereign's example, that Akber should only
gain possession over their lifeless bodies.

Previous to this explosion of useless fidelity, he, -set up a pillar
with a solemn anathema engraved thereon, on “ whatever Hara of
“ gentle blood should ascend the castle of Rinthumbor/ or who should
- “ quit it alive.” Sawunt and his kin made the sacrifice to honour;
" they gave up their life’s blood to maintain their fidelity to the
“Rana,” albeit himself without a capital; and from that day, no
Hara ever passes Rinthumbor without averting his head from an
object which caused disgrace to the tribe. With this transaction all
intercourse ceased with Mdwar, and from this period the Hara boro
the title of “Jiao Raja” of Boondi.

Tliis brand ( dag'll ) was a flower on the forehead,
f Similar to the ho-tow of China. Had our ambassador possessed.tho vrif of
Rao Soortan of Sarohi, who, when compelled to pay homage to the king, deter-
mined at whatever hazard not to submit to this degradation, be might have
succeeded in his mission to the ** son of heaven.” For the relation of this
anecdote see page 49, Anna Is of Mannar.

JThis conjoint act of attaining the castle of Rinthumbor is confirmed in the
annals of the chieftains of Kotario, of the same original stock ns the Haras :
though a Poorbia Chohau. I knew him very well, as also one of the same stock,
of Baidla, auother of the sixteen Put taels of M6war.

438

ANNALS 01' HAItAVATI.

[CHAr. III.

Rao Soorjuu was soon called into action, and sent as commander
to reduce Gondwaua, so named from being the <f region of the
« G-oands.” He took their capital, Bari, by assault, and to comme-
morate the achievement erected the gateway still called the Soor-
juupol. The Goaud leaders he carried captives to the emperor, aud
generously interceded for their restoration to liberty, and to a portion
of their possessions. On effecting this service, the king added seven
distiicts to his grant, including Beunris and Oliunar. This was in
S. 1632, or A.D. 1570, the year in which Rana Pertap of Mewar
fought tho battle of Huldighat against Sultan Selim.*

Rao Soorjuu resided at his government of Benares, aud by his
piety, wisdom, and generosity, benefited the empire and the Hindus
at large, whose religion through him was respected. Owing to the
prudence of his admiuistration aud the vigilance of his police, the
most perfect security to person and property was established
throughout the province. lie beautified and ornamented the city, •
especially that quarter where he resided, and eighty-four edifices,
for various public purposes, aud twenty baths, -were constructed
under his auspices. He died there, and left three legitimate sons:
1, Rao Bhoj ; 2, Dooda, nicknamed by Akber, Lukur Khan ; 3,
Raemull, who obtained the town and dependencies of Polaita, now
one of the fiefs of ICotah and the residence of the Jtaemulotc Haras.

About tbis period, Akber transferred the seat of government from
Delili to Agra, which he enlarged and called Alcberabad. Having
determined on the reduction of Guzzerat, he despatched thither an
immense army, which he followed with a select force mounted on
camels. Of these, adopting the custom of the desert princes of India,
he had formed a corps of five hundred, each having two fighting
men in a pair of panniers. To this select force, composed chiefly of
Rajpoots, were attached Rao Bhoj and Dooda his brother. Proceed-
ing with the utmost celerity, Akber joined his army besieging Surat, \
before which many desperate encounters took place. In the final ;
assault the Hara Rao slew the leader of the enemy; on which
occasion the king commanded him to “ name his reward." The Kao
limited his request to leave to visit his estates annually during the
periodical rains, which was granted.

The perpetual wars of Akber, for the conquest and consolidation of
the universal empire of India, gave abundant opportunity to tho
Rajpoot leaders to exert their valour ; and the Haras were ever at tho
post of danger and of honour. The siege nDd escalade of the famed
castle of Ahmeduuggur afforded the best occasion for the display of
Hara intrepidity ; again it shone forth, and again claimed distinction
and reward. To mark his sense of the merits of the Boondi leader, the
king commanded that a new bastion should be erected, where he led
the assault, which he named the Bhoj hoorj ; and further presented
him his own favourite elephant. In this desperate assault, Cb&nd

* See Vol. I, p. 285.

chap, in.]

BOONDI.

439

B^gum, the queen of Ahmednuggur, and an armed train of seven
hundred females, were slain, gallantly fighting for their freedom.

Notwithstanding all these services, Rao Bhoj fell under the
emperor’s displeasure. On the death of the queen, Joda Bad Akber
commanded a court-mourning ; ant] that all might testify a participa-
tion in their mastei'’s affliction, an ordinance issued that all the
'Rajpoot chiefs, as well as the Mooslem leaders, should shave the
moustache and the beard. To secure compliance, the royal barbers
had the execution of the mandate. But when they came to the
quarters of the Haras, in order to remove these tokens of manhood,
they were repulsed with buffets and contumely. The enemies of
Rao Bhoj aggravated the crime of this resistance, and insinuated to
the royal ear that the outrage upon the barbers was accompanied
with expressions insulting to the memory of the departed princess,
who, it will be remembered, was a Rajpootni of Marwar. Akber,
forgetting his vassal’s gallant services, commanded that Rao Bhoj
should be pinioned and forcibly deprived of his ‘ viouche.' He might
as well have commanded the operation on a tiger. The Haras flew
to their arms ; the camp was thrown into tumult, and would soon
have presented a wide scene of bloodshed, had not the emperor,
seasonably repenting of his folly, repaired to the Boondi quarters in
person. He expressed his admiration (he might have said his fear)
of Hara valoui', alighted from his elephant to expostulate with the
Rao, who with considerable tact pleaded his father’s privileges, and
added “ that an eater of pork like him was unworthy the distinction
“ of putting his lip into mourning for the queen.” Akber, happy to
obtain even so much acknowledgment, embraced the Rao, and carried
him with him to his own quarters.

In this portion of the Boondi memoirs is related the mode of
Akber’s death.* He had designed to take off the great Raja Maun
by means of a poisoned confection formed into pills. To throw
the Raja off his guard, he had prepared other pills which were
inuocuous; but in his agitation he unwittingly gave these to the
Raja, and swallowed those which were poisoned. On the emperor’s
death, Rao Bhoj retired to his hereditary dominions, and died in his
palace of Boondi, leaving three sons, Rao Ruttun, Hurda Narayn,T
and Kesoodas.J

■ Jdhangir was now sovereign of India. He had nominated his son
Purvez to the government of the Dekhan, and having invested him
in the city of Boorlianpoor, returned to the north. But Prince
Khoorm, jealous of his brother, conspired against and slew him.
This murder was followed by an attempt to dethrone his father
Jehangir, and as he was popular with the Rajpoot princes, being son

SeeVol. I,o. 296.

t He held Kotali in separate grant from the king during fifteen years.

X He obtained the town of Dheepri (on the Ohumbul), with twenty-seven
villages, in appanage.

440

ANNALS OP HARAVATJ.

[CHAP. II r.

of a princess of Amber, a formidable rebellion was raised ; or, as the
chronicle says, " the twenty -two Rajas turned against the ting, all
“ but Rao RuttuS

i“ Surumr p’fooia, jul bahd,

Ah hea lcurro juttun ?

“ Jata gur’li J ehangir cd,

“ Relcha Rao liuttun.”

“ The lake had burst, the waters were rushing out ; where now
“the remedy? The house of Jdhangir was departing; it was
“ sustained by Rao Ruttun.” j

With his two sons, Madhu Sing and Heri, Ruttun repaired to
Bobrhanpoor, where he gained a complete victory over the rebels.
Ill this engagement, which took place on Tuesday the full moon of
Cartica, S. 1635 (A.D. 1579), both his sons were severely wounded.
Tor these services, Rao Ruttun was rewarded with the government
of Boorkanpoor ; and Madhu his second son received a grant of the
city of Kotah and its dependencies, which he and his heirs were to
hold direct of the crown. Prom this period, therefore, dates the
partition of Harouti, when the emperor, in his desire to reward
Madhu Sing, overlooked the greater services of his father. But in
this Jehangir did not act without design ; on the contrary, he dreaded
the union of so much power in the hands of this brave race as
pregnant with danger, and well knew that by dividing, he could
always rule both, the one through the other. Shah Jehan confirmed
the grant to Madhu Sing, whose history will be resumed in its proper
place, the Annals of Kotah.

Rao Ruttun, while he held the government of Boorkanpoor,
founded a township which still bears his name, Ruttunpoor. He
performed another important service, which, while it gratified the
emperor, contributed greatly to the tranquillity of his ancient lord-
paramount, the Ran a of Mewar. A refractory noble of the court,
Deriou Khan, was leading a life of riot and, rapine in that countiy,
when the Hara attacked, defeated, and carried him captive to the
king. Por this distinguished exploit, the king gave him honorary
‘nohuts , or kettle-drums ; the grand yellow banner to be borne in
stale processions before his own person, and a red flag for his camp;
which ensigns are still retained by his successors. Rao Ruttun
obtained the suffrages not only of his Rajpoot brethren, but of the
whole Hindu race, whose religion he preserved from innovation/
The Haras exultingly boast that no Mooslem dared pollute the
quarters where they might be stationed with the blood of the sacred
kine. After all his services, Ruttun was killed in an action near
Booihaupoor, leaving a name endeared by his valour and his virtues
to the whole Hara race.

Rao Ruttun left four sons, G-opinntb, who had Boondi; Madhfi
Sing, who had Kotah; Heriji, who had Googore ;* Jugernath, who

There are about fifty families, his descendants, form in " a community
round Reemoda. •

CHAP. III.]

BOONDI.

441

had - no issue; and Gopinatk, tliQ heir of Boondi, wlio died before
bis father. The manner of bis death affords another trait of Rajpoot
character, and rnen’ts a place amongst those anecdotes which form
the romance of history. Gopinath carried on a secret intrigue with
the wife of a Brahmin of the Buldea class, and in the dead of night
used to escalade the house to obtain admittance. At length the
Brahmin caught him, bound the hands and feet of his treacherous
prince, and proceeding direct to the palace, told the Rao he had
caught a thief in the act of stealing his honour, and asked what
punis hmentjw as due to such offence. “ Death,” was the reply. He
waited for no'utlTei’, returned home, and with a hammer beat out the
victim’s brains, throwing the dead body into the public highway.
The tidings flew to Rao Ruttun, that the heir of Boondi had been
murdered, and his corpse ignominiously exposed; but when he
learned the cause, and was reminded of the decree he had unwit-
tingly passed, he submitted in silence.*

Gopinath left twelve sons, to whom Rao Ruttun assigned domains
still forming the principal kotris, or fiefs, of Boondi :

1. — Rao Chutter Sal, who succeeded to Boondi.

2. — Indur Sing, who founded Indurgurh.f

3. — Beri Sal, who founded Bulwun and Filodi, and had Kurwar
and Peepaldo.

4. ~Mokhim Sing, who had Anterdeh.

5. — Maha Sing, who had Thanoh.J

*,This trait in the character of Rao Ruttun forcibly reminds us of a similar
case which occurred at Ghizni, and is related by Ferishta in commemoration of
the justice of Mahmoud.

f These, the three greatfiefs of Boondi, — Indurgurh, Bulwun, and Anterdeh,
are now all alienated from Boondi by the intrigues of Zalim Sing of Kotab. It
was unfortunate for the Boondi Rao, when both these states were admitted to
an alliance, that all these historical points were hid in darkness. It would be
yet abstract and absolute justice that we should negotiate the transfer of the
allegiauce of these chieftains to their proper head of Boondi. . It would be a
matter of little difficulty, and the honour would be immense to Boondi aud no
'hardship to Kotab, but a slight sacrifice of a power of protection to those who
no longer require it. All of these chiefs were the founders of clans, called
after them, Indursalote, Berisalote, Mokhimsingote ; the first can muster
fifteen hundred Haras under arms. Jeipoor having imposed a tribute on these
chieftains, Zalim Sing undertook, in the days of predatory warfare, to be
responsible for it; for which he received that homage and service due to
Boondi, then unable to protect them. The simplest mode of doing justice
would bo to make these chiefs redeem their freedom from tribute to Jeipoor,
by ‘the payment of so many years’ purchase, which would relieve them
altogether fiom Zalim Sing, and at the same time be in accordance with
our treaties, which prohihit such ties between the states.

$ Thanoli, formerly called Jujawur, is the only fief of the twelve sons of
Ruttun which now pays obedience to its proper . head. The Mahraja
Bikramnjeet is the lineal descendant of Maha Sing, and if alive, the earth
bears not a morfe honourable, brave, or simple-minded Rajpoot. He was the
devoted servant of his young priuce, and my very sincere and valued friend ;
hub we shall have occasion to meution the ‘ lion-killer’ in the Personal
Harrative.

[Von. IL]

55

442 • ANNALS • OF HAEAVATI. [CHAP. III.

It is useless to specify the names of the remainder, who left no
issue.

Chutter Sal, who succeeded his grandfather, Rao Rufcfcun, was not
only installed by Shah Jehau in his hereditary dominions, hut
declared governor of the imperial capital, a post which he held
nearly throughout this reign. When Shah Jehan partitioned the
empire into four vice-royalties, under Kis sous, Dara, Arungzdb,
Shuja, and Morad, Rao Chutter Sal had a high command under
Arungzeb, in the Dekhan. The Hara' distinguished himself by his
bravery and conduct in all the various sieges and actions, especially
at the assaults of Doulutabad and Beedir ; the last was led by -
Chutter Sal in person, who carried the place, and put the garrison to
the sword. In S. 1709 (A.D. 1653), Calberga fell after an obstinate
defence, in which Chutter Sal again led the escalade. The last
resort was the strong fort of Damounee, which terminated all resist-
ance, and the Dekhan was tranquillized.

“ At this period of the transactions in the south, a rumour was
propagated of the emperor’s (Shah Jehan) death; and as during
twenty days the prince (Arungzeb) held no court, and did not even
give private audience, the report obtained general belief.* Dara
Shekho was the only one of the emperor’s sons then at court, and
the absent brothers determined to assert their several pretensions to
the throne. While Shuja marched from Bengal, Arungzeb prepared
to quit the Dekhan, and cajoled Morad to. join him with all his
forces ; assuring him that he, a derveish from principle, had no
worldly desires, for his only wish was to dwell in retirement,
practising the austerities of a rigid follower of the prophet ; that
Dara was_a.n infidel, Shuja a free-thinker, himself an anchorite ; and
that he, Morad, aloue of the sons of Shah Jehau was worthy to
exercise dominion", to aid in which purpose he proffered his best
energies.!

“ The emperor, learning the hostile intentions. of Arungzeb, -wrote '
privately to the Hara prince to x’epair to the Presence. On receiv-
' ing the mandate, Chutter Sal revolved its import, but considering
e that, as a servant of the gadi (throne), his only duty wasqbedience
he instantly commenced his preparations to quit the Dekhan. Tins
reaching the ear of Arungzeb, he enquired the cause of his hasty
departure, observing, that in a very short time he might accompany
him to court. The Boondi prince replied, e his first duty was to the
reigning sovereign,’ and handed him the firman or summons to the
Presence. Arungzeb commanded that he should not be permitted
to depart, and directed his encampment to be surrounded. Dut

* The reader will observe, as to the phraseology of these important occur-
rences, that the language is that of the original : it is, in fact, almost a verbatim
translation from the memoirs of these princes in the Boondi archives.

• "l" The Rajpoot prince, who drew up this character, seems to have veil .

ytudied Arungzeb, and it is gratifying, to find such concurrence with every

authority. But could such a character be eventually mistaken P

CHAP, in.]

BOONDI.

443

Chutlcr Sal, foreseeing this, had already sent on liis baggage, and
forming his vassals and those of other Rajpoot princes attached to
the royal cause into one compact mass, they effected their retreat to
the Nerbudda in the faco of their pursuers, without their daring to
attack them. By the aid of some Solanki chieftains inhabiting
tho banks of this river, the Boondi Rao was enabled to pass this
dangorous stream, then swollen by the periodical rains. Already
baffled bj- the skill and intrepidity of Chutter Sal, Arnngzeb was
compelled to give up the pursuit, and tho former reached Boondi in
safety. Having made his domestic arrangements, he proceeded
forthwith to the capital, to help the aged emperor, whose power,
and oven existence, were alike threatened by the ungrateful preten-
sions of his sons to snatch the sceptre from the hand which still
held it.”

If a reflection might be here interposed on the bloody wars which
desolated India in consequence of the events of which the foregoing
were the initial scenes, it would be to expose the moral retribution
resulting from evil example. Were we to take but a partial view
of the picture, we should depict the venerable Shah Jehan, arrived
at the verge of tho grave, into which the unnatural contest of his
sons for empire wished to precipitate him, extending his 'arms for
succour in vain to the nobles of his own faith and kin ; while the
Rajpoot, faithful to his principle, ‘allegiance to the throne/ staked
both life and land to help him in his need. Such a picture would
enlist all our sympathies on the side of the helpless king. But
when we recall the past, and consider that Shah Jehan, as prince
Khoorm, played the same part (setting aside the mask of hypocrisy),
which Arnngzeb now attempted ; that, to forward his guilty design,
he murdered his brother Purvez, who stood between him aud the
throne of his parent, against whom he levied war, our sympathies
are checked, aud we conclude that unlimited monarchy is a curse to
itself aud all who are subjected to it.

The battle of Futteliabad followed not long after this event, which,
gained by Arungzdb, left the road to the throne free from obstnpc-
- tion. We are not informed of the reasqn why the prince of Boondi
did not add his contingent to the force assembled to oppose Arungzeb
under Jeswunt Sing of Marwar, unless it be found in that article of
the treaty of Rao Soorjun, prohibiting bis successors from serving
under a leader of their own faith and nation. The younger branch
of Kotah appears, on its separation from Boondi, to have felt itself
exonerated from obedience to this decree; for four royal brothers of
Kotah, with many of their clansmen, were stretched on this field in
the cause of swamdherma and Shah Jehan. Before, however,
Arungzdb could tear the sceptre from the enfeebled hands of his
parent, he had to combat his elder brother Dara., who drew together
at Dholpoor all those who yet regarded “ the first duty of a Rajpoot.”
The Boondi prince, with his Haras clad in their saffron robes, the
ensigns of death or victory, formed the vanguard of Dara on this
[Von. II.] . 56a

444

ANNALS OF UARAVATI.

[chap. nr.

day, the opening scene of his sorrows, which closed but -with his
life • for Dholpoor was as fatal to Dam the Mogul, as Arbelawas to
the Persian Darius. Custom rendered it indispensable that the
princely leaders should be conspicuous to the host, and in conformity
thereto, Dura, mounted on his elephant, was in the brunt of the
battle, in the heat of which, when valour and fidelity might have
preserved the sceptre of Shah Jolian, Dara suddenly disappeared.
A panic ensued, which was followed by confusion and flight. The
noble Ham, on this disastrous event, turned to his vassals, and
exclaimed, “ Accursed be he who flies 1 Here, true to my salt, my
“feet are rooted to this field, nor will I quit it alive, but with victory."
Cheering on his men, ho mounted his elephant, but whilst
encouraging them by In's voice and example, a cannon-shot hitting
his elephant, the animal turned and fled. Chatter Sal leaped from-
his back and called for his steed, exclaiming, “ my elephant may
“turn his back on the enemy, but never shall his master."
Mounting Ins horse, and forming his men into a dense mass ( cjolc ),
he led them to the charge against prince Morad, whom he singled
out, and had his lance balanced for the issue, when a ball
pierced his forehead. The contest was nobly .maintained .by his
youngest son, Bharat Sing, who accompanied his father in death,
and with him the choicest of his clan. Mokliim Sing, ’brother of the
Kao, with two of his sons, aud Oudi Sing, another nephew, sealed
their fidelity with their lives. Thus in the two battles of Oojein
and Dholpoor no less than twelve princes of the blood, together with
the heads of every Ham clan, maintained their fealty (svjamdherma)
even to death. Where are we to look for such examples ?

" Kao Clmtter Sal had been personally engaged in fifty-two
“combats, and left a name renowned for courage and incorruptible
“ fidelity." He enlarged the palace of Boondi by adding that portion
which bears his name, — the Chatter Mahl, — and the temple of
Keshoorae, at Patuu, was constructed under his direction. It was
in S. 1715 he was killed; lie left four sons, Kao Bhao Sing, Bheem
Sing, who got Googore, Bugwunt Sing, who obtained -Mow, and
Bharat Sing, who was killed at Dholpoor.

A.rungzeb, on the attainment of sovereign power, transferred all
the resentment he harboured against Chutfer Sal to his son and
successor, Rao BhS,o. He gave a commission to Raja Atmaram.
Gor, the prince of Sheopoor, to reduce “ that turbulent and disaffectec
i “race, the Ham," and annex Boondi to the government of Rinthum
bor, declaring that he should visit Boondi shortly in person, on hi
way to the Dekhan, and hoped to congratulate him on his success
Raja Atmaram, with an army of twelve thousand men, entere
Hav&vati and ravaged it with fire and sword. Having laid sieg
to Khatolli, a town of Indurgurh, the chief fief of Boondi, the clai
secretly assembled, engaged Atmaram at Goturda; defeated and p
him to flight, capturing the imperial ensigns and all his baggag
Hot satisfied with this, they retaliated by blockading Sheopot

CHAP. III.]

BOONDT.

445

•when the discomfited Raja continued his flight to court to relate
this fresh instance' of- Hara audacity. The poor prince of the Grors
was received with gibes and jests, and heartily repented of his
inhuman inroads upon his neighbours in the day of their disgrace.
The tyrant, affecting to be pleased with this instance of Hara courage,
sent a firman to Rao Bliao of grace and free pardon, and com-
manding his presenc6 at court. At first the Rao declined ; hut
having repeated pledges of good intention, he complied and was
honoured with the government of Arungabad under prince Moazzim.
Here he evinced his independence by shielding Raja Kurrun of
Bikaner from a plot against his life. He performed many gallant
deeds with his Rajpoot brethren in ai’ms, the brave Boondelas of
Orcha and Duttea. He erected many public edifices at Arungabad,
where he acquired so much fame by his valour, his charities, and
the sanctity* of his manners, that miraculous cures were (said to
be) effected by him. He died at Arungabad in S. 1 738 (A.D. 1682),
and, being without issue, was succeeded by Anurad Sing, the grand-
son of his brother Bheem."j*

Anurad’ s accession was confirmed by the emperor, who, in order
to testify the esteem in which lie held his predecessor, sent his own
elephant, Quj-gowr, with the khelat of investiture. Anurad accom-
panied Arungzeb in his wars in the Dekhan, and on one occasion
performed the important service of rescuing the ladies of the harem
out of the enemy’s hands. The emperor, in testimony of his
gallantry, told him to name his reward ; on which he requested he
might be allowed to command the vanguard instead of the rear-
guard of the army. Subsequently, he c was distinguished in the
siege and storm of Beejapoor.

An unfortunate quarrel with Doorjun Sing, the chief vassal of
Boondi, involved the Rao in trouble. Making use of some improper-
expression, the Rao resentfully replied, “ I know what to expect from
» “you;” which determined Doorjun* to throw his allegiance to the
dogs. He quitted the army, and arriving at his estates, armed his
kinsmen, and, by a coup-de-main, possessed himself of Boondi. On
learning this, the emperor detached Anurad with a force which
expelled the refractory Doorjun, whose estates were sequestrated.
Previous to his expulsion, Doorjun drew the teelca of succession on
the forehead of his brother of Bulwun. Having settled the affairs
of Boondi, the Rao was employed, in conjunction- with Raja Bishen
Sing of Amber, to settle the northern countries of the empire,
governed by Shah Alum, as lieutenant of the king, and whose head
quarters were at Lahore, in the execution of which service he died.

Anurad left two sons, Boodh Sing and Jod Sing. Boodh Sing

* It is a fact worthy of notice, that the most intrepid of the Rajpoot princely-
cavaliers are of a very devout frame of mind.

fBkeem Sing, who had the fief of Googore bestowed on him, had a son,
Kishen Sing, who succeeded him, and was put to death by Arungzeb. Anurad
was the son of Kisben.

446

ANNALS' OP HAIiAVATI.'

[CHAP. III.

succeeded to the lionours aud employments of bis father. Soon
after, Arungzeb, whq bad fixed bis residence at Arungabad, fell ill,
and finding bis end approach, the nobles aud officers of state, in
apprehension of the event, requested him to name a successor. The
dying emperor replied, that the succession was in the bands of God,
•with whose will and under whose decree be was desirous that bis
son Buhadoor Shall Alum should succeed ; but that be was appre-
hensive that prince Azim would endeavour by force of arms to seat
himself on the throne.* As the king said, so it happened ; Azim
Shah, being supported in his pretensions by the army of the Dekhan,
prepared to dispute the empire with his elder brother, to whom he
sent a formal defiance to decide their claims to empire on the plains of
Dholpoor. Budaboor Shall convened all the chieftains who favoured
his cause, and explained his position. Amongst them was Rao Boodh,
now entering on manhood, and he was at that moment in deep afflic-
tion for the untimely loss of his brother, JodSing.j- When the king
desired him to repair to Boondi to perform the offices of mourning,
and console his relations and kindred, Boodh Sing replied, “It is not
“ to Boondi my duty calls me, but to attend my sovereign in the field
“ — to that of Dholpoor, renowned for many battles and consecrated
“ by the memory of the heroes who have fallen in the performance
“ of their duty adding “ that there his heroic ancestor Chutter Sal
“ fell, whose fame he desired to emulate, and by the blessing of
“ beaven, bis arms should be crowned with victory to the empire/’

Shah Alum advanced from Lahore, and Azim, with his son Bedar
Bukt, from the Dekhan ; and both armies met on the plains, of
Jajow, near Dholpoor. A more desperate conflict was never recorded
in the many bloody pages of the history of India. Had it been a
common contest for supremacy, to be decided by the Mooslem sup-
portei-s of the rivals, it would have ended like similar ones, — a
furious onset, terminated by a treacherous desertion. Buthere were
assembled the brave bands of Rajpootana, house opposed to house,
and clan against clan. The princes of Duttea and Kotah, who had
long served with prince Azim, and were attached to him by favours,
forgot the injunctions of Arungzdb, and supported that prince’s
pretensions against the lawful heir. A powerful friendship united
the chiefs of Boondi and Duttea, whose lives exhibited one scene of
glorious triumph in all the wars of the Dekhan. In opposing the
cause of Shah Alum, Ram Sing of Kotah was actuated by bis ambi-
tion to become the head of the Haras, and in anticipation of success
had actually been invested with the honours of Boondi. With such
stimulants on each side did the rival Haras meet face toface on the
plains of Jajow, to decide at the same time the pretensions to empire,
and what affected them more, those of their respective heads to
superiority. Previous to the battle. Ram Sing sent a perfidious

It is useless to repeat that this is a literal translation from the records and
journals of the Hara princes, who served the'emperors.

fThis catastrophe will be related in the Personal Narrative.

CHAP. III.]

BOONDI.

447

message to Rao Boodh, inviting him to desert the cause he espoused,
and come over to Azim ; to which he indignantly replied : tf That
" the field which his ancestor had illustrated by his death, was nob
*' that whereon he would disgrace his memory by the desertion of his
“ prince.”

Boodh Sing was assigned a distinguished jiost, and by his conduct
and courage mainly contributed to the victory which placed Buha-
dcor Shah without a rival on the throne. The Rajpoots on either
side sustained the chief shock of the battle, and the Hara prince of
- Kotah, and the noble Boonddla Dulput of Dnttea, were both killed
by cannon-shot, sacrificed to the cause they esjioused ; while the
pretensions of Azim and his son Bedar Bukt, were extinguished
with their lives.

For the signal services rendered on this important day, Boodh
Sing was honoured with the title of Rao j&aja, and was admitted to
the intimate friendship of the emperor, which he continued to enjoy
until his death, when fresh contentions arose, in which the grandsons
of Aruugzeb all perished. Feroksere succeeded to the empire, under
whom the Syeds of Barra held supremo power, and ruined the
empire by their exactions and tyranny. When they determined to
depose the king, the Hara prince, faithful to his pledge, determined
to release him, and in the attempt a bloody conflict ensued in the
{chowlc) square, in which his uncle Jaet Sing, and many of his
clansmen, were slain.

The rivalry which commenced between the houses of Kotah and
Boondi, on the plains of Jajow, in which Ram Sing was slain, was
maintained by his son and successor. Raja Bheem, who supported
the party of the Syeds. In the prosecution of his views and revenge.
Raja Bheem so far lost sight of the national character of the Rajpoot,
as to compass his end by treachery, and beset his foe unawares
while exercising his horse in the Middn, outside the walls of the
capital. His few retainers formed a circle round their chief, and
gallantly defended him, though with great loss, until they reached a
place of safety. Unable to aid the king, and beset by treachery,
Rao Boodh was compelled to seek his. own safety in flight.* Ferok-
sere was shortly after murdered, and the empire fell into complete
disorder; when the nobles and Rajas, feeling their insecurity under
the bloody and rapacious domination of the Syeds, repaired to their
several possessions.f

At this period. Raja Jey Sing of Amber thought of dispossessing
Boodh Sing of Boondi. Rao Boodh Sing was at this time his

* Vide Yol. I, p. 3+6, et passim, in which the Boondi Annals are corroborated
by the Annals of Mdwar, and by an autograph letter of Raja Jey Sing of
Ambdr, dated the 19bh Falgoon, S. 1775 (A.D. 1719).

j* These subjects being already discussed in Yol. I, would have had no
place here, were it not necessary to show how accurately the Boondi princes
recorded events, and to rescue them from the charge of having no historical
■documents.

448

ANNALS Or HAEAVATI. -

[cHAr. 1H.

guest, having accompanied him from court to Amber. The cause of
the quarrel is thus related : The Hara prince was married to a sister
of Jey Sing ; she had been betrothed to the emperor Buhadoor
Shah, who, as one of the marks of his favour for the victory of
Dliolpoor, resigned his pretensions to the fair in favour of Rao Boodh.
Unfortunately, she bore him no issue, and viewed with jealousy his
two infant sons by another Rani, the daughter of Kala-Megh of
Beygoo, one of the sixteen chiefs of Mewar. During her lord's
absence, she feigned pregnancy, and having procured an infant,
presented it as his lawful child. Rao Boodh was made acquainted
with the equivocal conduct of his queen, to the danger of his proper
offspring, and took an opportunity to reveal her conduct to her
brother. The lady, who was present, was instantly interrogated by
ber brother ; but exasperated either at the suspicion of her honoui’,
or the discovery of her fraud, she snatched her brother's dagger from
his girdle, and rating him as “ the son of a tailor,"* would have slain
him on the spot, had he not fled from her fury.

To , revenge the insult thus put upon him, the Raja of Ambdr
determined to expel Rao Boodh from Boondi, and offered the gadx
to the chief of its feudatories, the lord of Indui'gurh ; but Deo Sing
had the virtue to refuse the offer. He then had recourse to the
chieftain of Kurwur, who could not resist the temptation. This
chief, Salim Sing, was guilty of a double breach of trust; for he
held the confidential office of governor of Tarragurh, the citadel
commanding both the city and palace.

This family dispute was, however, merely the underplot of a
deeply-cherished political scheme of the prince of Ambdr, for the
maintenance of his supremacy over the minor Rajas, to which his
office of viceroy of Malwa, Ajmer, and Agra, gave full scope,' and he
skilfully availed himself of the results of the civil wars of the Moguls.
In the issue of Feroksere's dethronement he saw the fruition of his
schemes, and after a show of defending him, retired to his dominions
to prosecute his views.

Amber was yet circumscribed in territory, and the consequence
of its princes arose out of their position as satraps of the empire.
He therefore determined to seize upon aT\he districts on his frontiers
within his grasp, and moreover to compel the services of the chief-
tains who served under his banner as lieutenants of the king.

At this period, there were many allodial chieftains within the
bounds of Amber; as the Puchwana Chohans about Lalsont, Goorah,
Ueemrana, who owed neither service nor tribute to Jeipoor, but led
their quotas as distinct dignitaries of the empire under the flag of

^llns lady was sister do Clmmunji, elder bi other to Jey Sing, and heir-
apparent to the gadi of Ambe'r, who Mas put to death by Jey Sinv To this
ninroer the Kahtorobard alludes in the couplet given in their annals, Yol. II, p.
lOo. Clmmunji ’ is the title of the heirs-appnrent of Amb6r. I know not
whether Chumun 3 j, which is merely a term of endearment, may not be Beciy
fcnng, whose captivity wo have related. See p. 334.

CHAP. III.].

BOONDI.

449

Amber. Even tbeir own stock, the confederated Skekkawuts, deemed
themselves under no suck obligation. The Birgoojurs of Raj ore, the
Jadoous of Biaua, and many others, the vassalage of older days,
were in the samo predicament. These, being in the decline of the
empire unable to protect themselves, the more readily agreed to hold
their ancient allodial estates as fiefs of Amber, and to serve with
the stipulated quota. But when -Jey Sing’s views led him to hope
ho could in like manner bring the Haras to acknowledge his supre-
macy, he evinced both ignorance and presumption. He therefore
determined to dethrone Boodli Sing, and to make a Raja of his own
choice, hold of him in chief.

The Hara, who was then reposing on the rites of hospitality and
family ties at Amber, gave Jey Sing a good opportunity to developo
his views, which wore first manifested to the Boondi prince by an
obsem'o offer that he would make Amber his abode, and accept five
hundred rupees daily for bis train. His uncle, llie brother of Jaet,
who devoted himself to save his master at Agra, penetrated the'
infamous intentions of Jey Sing. He wrote to Boondi, and com-
manded that the Beygoo Rauf should depart with her children to her
father’s ; and having given time for this, he by stealth formed bis
clansmen outside tlic walls of Ambei’, and having warned bis prince
of bis danger, they quitted the treacherous abode. Raja Boodh, at
the head of three hundred Haras, feared nothing. He made direct
for his capital, but they were overtaken at Panckolas, on the mutual
frontier, by the select army under the five principal chieftains of
Amber. The little baud was enclosed, when a desperate encounter
ensued, Rajpoot to Rajpoot. Every one of the five leaders of Amber
was slain, with a multitude of tbeir vassals; and tlie ceuotapbs of
the lords of Eesurda, Sirwar, and Bhowar, still afford evidence of
Hara revenge. The uncle of Boondi was slain, and Ihe valiant band
was so thinned, that it was deemed unwise to go to Boondi, and by
the intricacies of the Plateau they reached Beygoo in safety. This
dear-bought success enabled Jey Sing to execute bis plan, and Dnleel
Sing, of Kurwur, espoused the daughter of Amber, and was invested
with the title of Rao Raja of Boondi.

Taking advantage of the distress of the elder branch of his house,
Raja Bheem of Kotab, now strictly allied with Ajit of Mavwar and
the Syeds, prosecuted tbe old feud for superiority, making tbe
Chumbul tbe boundary, and seizing upon all tbe fiscal lands of
Boondi east of this stream (excepting the Kotris), which be attached
to Kotab.

Thus beset by enemies on all sides, Boodb Sing, after many fvuit-
. less attempts to recover his patrimony, in which much Hara blood
was uselessly slied, died iu exile at Beygoo, leaving two sons, Omdda
Sing and Deep Sing.

The sons of Rao Boodh were soon driven even from the shelter of
the maternal abode ; for, at the instigation of tbeir enemy of Amber,
tbe Rana sequestrated Beygoo. Pui'sued by this unmanly vengeance,
[You. II.] . • . 57

450

ANNALS OF HARAVATI.

[CHAP. IT.

tjie brave youths collected a small band, and took refuge in the
wilds of Puchail, whence they addressed Doorjun Sal, who had
succeeded Raja Bheem at Kotah. This prince had a heart to
commiserate their misfortunes, and the magnanimity not only to
relieve them, but to aid them in the recovery of their patrimony:

«

CHAPTER IY.

Jiao Omeda defeats the troops of Amber.— Conflict at Dnblana. — Omeda defeated
and obliged to fly. — Death of Hwnja, his steed. — Takes sefuge amidst the
ruins of the Chumbul — Redeems his capital. — Is again expelled from it . —
Interview until the widow of his father; she solicits aid from Tlolcar to
reinstate Omeda. — The Amber Prince forced to acknowledge the claims of
Omeda. — lie recovers Boondi. — Suicide of the Amber piince. — First alienation
of land to the Mahrattas. — Jiladhu Sing of Amber asserts supremacy over
Harouti. — Oiigin of tributary demands thereon. — Halim Sing. — Mahratia
encroachments. — Omeda's revenge on the chief of Indurgurh; its cause and
consequences. — ‘Omeda abdicates. — Ceremony of Yu "raj, or abdication. —
Installation of A jit. — Omeda becomes a pilgrim; his wanderings ; cause of
their interruption. — Aftl assassinates the liana of Mewar. — Memorable Sail
imprecation. — Aiofnl death of Ajit. — Fulfilment of ancient prophecy.— -Rao
Bishen Sing succeeds. — Omeda's distrust of his grandson ; their reconciliation.
— Omida's death. — British army retreats through Harouti, aided by Boondi.
— Alliance with the English — Benefits conferred on Boondi. — Bishen Sing
dies of the Cholera Morbus; forbids the rite of Sati. — His character;
constitutes the Author guardian of his sou, the Rao Raja Ram Sing.

Omeda was but thirteen years of age on the death of his house’s
foe, the Raja of Amber, in S. 1800 (A.D. 1744). As soon as the
event was known to him, putting himself at the head of his
clansmen, he attacked and carried Pabun and Gainolli. ff When it was
“ heard- that the son of Boodh Sing was awake, the ancient Haras
“ flocked to his standard,” and Doorjun Sal of Kotah, rejoicing to see
the real Hara blood thus displayed, nobly sent his aid.

Esuri Sing, who was now lord of Amber, pursuing his father’s
policy, determined that Kotah should bend to bis supremacy as well
as the elder branch of Baondi. The defiance of his power avowed
in the support of young Omeda brought his views into action, and
Kotah was invested. But the result does not belong to this part of’
our history. On the retreat from Kotah, Esuri sent a body of
Nanulcpuntfs to attack Omdda in his retreat at Bood (old) Lohai’i,
amongst the Meenas, the aboriginal lords of these mountain-wilds,
who had often served the cause of the Haras, notwithstanding they
had deprived them of their birthright. The youthful valour and
distress of youug Omeda so gained their hearts, that five thousand
bowmen assembled and desired to be led against his enemies. With
these auxiliaries, he anticipated his foes at Beechorie, and while the
nimble mountaineers plundered the camp, Omeda charged the

451

CHAP. IV.] . BOONDT.

Jeipoor army sword in hand, and slaughtered them without mercy,
taking their kettle-drums and standards. On the news of this defeat,
another army of eighteen thousand men, under Narayudas Khetvi,
was sent against Omeda. But the affair of Beeehorie confirmed tho
dispositions of the Haras : from all quarters they flocked to the
standard of tho young prince, who determined to risk everything
in a geueral engagement. Tho foe had reached Dublana. On the
cvc of attack, young Omeda went to propi/'ato “ the lady of Sitoon,”
the tutelary divinity of his race ; and y o knelt before the altar of
Asapurna (the fulfiller of hope), his y falling upon the ’turrets of
Boondi, then held by a traitor, ho^g ,o conquer or die.

Inspired with like sentiments, o clansmen formed around

the orange flag, the gift of Jtg Bao Buttun ; and as they

cleaved tho pass leading to ju ’ the foe was discovered
marshalled to receive them. In ows. ose compact masses, termed
golc, with serried lances ndvanced/V adda led his Haras to the
charge. Its physical and moral impression was irresistible ; and a
vista was cut through tho denso host opposed to them. Again they
formed; and again, in spito of tlio showers of cannon-shot, the
sword renewed its blows ; but every charge was fatal to tho bravest,
of Omeda’s men. In tho first onset fell his maternal uncle, Pifthi
Sing, Solanki, with the Maliraja Murjnd Sing of Motrn, a valiant
Hara, who fell just as lie launched his chakra (discus) at the head of
the . Khetri commander of Ambdr. Prag Sing, chief of Soruu, a
branch of the Tliana fief, was also slain, with many of inferior note.
Tho steed of Omdda was struck by a cannon-ball, and the intestines
protruded from tho wound. The intrepidity of the youthful hero,
nobly seconded by his kin and clan, was unavailing ; and the
chieftains, fearing he would throw awny a life tho preservation of
which they all desired, entreated he would abandon the contest ;
observing, “ that if he survived, Boondi must bo 'theirs •. but if he
“was slain, there was an end of all their hopes.”

"With grief ho submitted; and as they gained the Sowalli Pass,
which leads to Indurgurh, he dismounted to breathe his faithful
steed; .and as he loosened the girths, it expired. Omdda sat down
and wept. Hunja was worthy of such a mark of his esteem : he
was a steed of Irak, tho gift of the king to his father, whom ho had
borne in many an encounter. 3STor was this natural ebullition of tho
young Hara a transient feeling : Hunja's memory was held in vene-
ration, and the first act of Omeda, when he recovered his throne, was
to erect a statue to' the steed who bore him so nobly on tho day of
Dublana. It stands in the square ( clionlc ) of the city, and receives
•. the reverence of each Hava, w|io links his history with one of tho
brightest of their achievements, though obscured by momentary
defeat.*

J have mado my salaam to tho representative of 'Hunja, and should have
graced his neck with a chaplet on every military festival, had I dwelt among
the Haras.

[Voa. II.]

57a

452

ANNALS OF HARAVATI.

[CHAP. IV.

Omeda gained Indurgurh, which was close at band, on foot ; but
tbis traitor to the name of Hara, wbo bad acknowledged tbe supre-
macy of Amber, not only refused bis prince a borse in bis adversity,
but warned bim of tbe domain, asking “ if be meant to be tbe ruin
“ of Indurgurb as well as Boortdi ?” Disdaining to drink water
witbin its bounds, tbe young prince, stung by tbis perfidious mark
of inbospitality, took tbe direction of Kurwain. Its chief made
amends for tbe other’s churlishness : be advanced to meet him, offered
such aid as be bad to give, and presented bim with a borse. Dis-
missing bis faithful kinsmen to their homes, and begging their swords
when fortune might be kiuder, be regained bis old retreat, tbe ruined
palace of Rampoora, amongst tbe ravines of tbe Obumbul.

Doorjun Sal of Kotali, wbo bad so’ bravely defended bis capital
against tbe pretensions to supremacy of Esuri Sing and bis auxiliary,
Appa Siudia, felt more interest than ever in tbe cause of Omdda.
The Kotah prince’s councils were governed and bis armies led by a
JBhat (bard), wbo, it may be inferred, was professionally inspired by
tbe heroism of tbe young Hara to lend bis sword as well as bis muse
towards reinstating bim in tbe balls of bis fathers. Accordingly, all
the strength of Kotali, led by tbe Bb&t, was added to tbe kinsmen
and friends of Omeda; and an attempt on Boon dii was resolved.
Tbe city, whose walls were in a state of dilapidation from tbis con-
tinual warfare, was taken without difficulty ; and tbe assault of the
citadel of Tarragurb bad commenced, when tbe heroic Bhat received
a fatal shot from a treacherous band in bis own party. His death
was concealed, and a cloth thrown over bis body.' ' The assailants
pressed on ; tbe usurper 1 , alarmed, took to flight j the ‘ lion’s ‘hope’*
was fulfilled, and Omeda was seated on tbe throne of his fathers.

Duleel fled to bis suzerain at Amber, whose disposable forces,
under tbe famous Khetri Kesoodas, were immediately put in motion
to re-expel tbe Hara. Boondi was invested, and having bad no time
given to prepare for defence, Orndda was compelled to abandon the
walls so nobly won, and “ the flag of Dhoondar waved over the
“ lehangras (battlements) of Ddwd-Bango.” And let tbe redeeming
virtue of the usurper be recorded; who, when bis suzerain of Amber
desired to reinstate bim on the gadi, refused ff to bring a second
“ time tbe stain of treason on bis head, by which be bad been
ff disgraced in tbe opinion of mankind.”

Omeda, once more a wanderer, alternately courting tbe aid of
Mdwar and Marwar, never suspended bis hostility to the usurper of
bis rights, but carried bis incursions, without intermission, into bis
paternal domains. One of these led bim to tbe village of Binodia :
hither tbe Cutchwaba Rani, tbe widowed queen of bis father, and
tbe cause of all their miseries, bad retired, disgusted with herself
■ and the world, and lamenting, when too late, tbe ruin she had
brought upon her husband, herself, and the family she bad entered.
Omeda paid her a visit, and tbe interview added fresh pangs to her

* Omeda, c liope;’ Sing’ll,, 'a lion.’

CHAP. IV.]

BOONDI.

453

self-reproach. His sufferings, his heroism, brightened by adversity,
originating with her nefarious desire to stifle his claims of primo-
geniture by a spurious adoption, awakened sentiments of remorse,
of sympathy, and sorrow. Determined to make some amends, she
adopted the resolution of going to *tke Dekhan, to solicit aid for the
son of Boodh Sing. When she arrived on the banks of the Nerbudda
a pillar was pointed out to her on which was inscribed a prohibition
to any of her race to cross, this stream, which like the Indus was
also styled attoc, or ‘ forbidden.’ Like a true Rajpootni, she broke
the tablet iu pieces, and threw it into the stream, observing with a
Jesuitical casuistry, that there was no longer any impediment, when
no ordinance existed. Having passed the Rubicon, she proceeded
forthwith to the camp of 'Mulhar Rao Holcar. The sister of Jey
Sing, the most potent Hindu prince of India, became a suppliant to
this goatherd leader of a horde of plunderers, nay, adopted him as
her brother to effect the redemption of Boondi for the exiled Omeda.
Mulhar, without the accident of noble birth, possessed the senti-
ments which belong to it, and he promised all she asked. How far
his compliance might be promoted by another call for his lance from
the Rana of Mdwar, in virtue of the marriage-settlement which
promised the succession of Ambdr to a princess of his house, the
Boondi records do not tell : they refer only to the prospects of its
own prince. But we may, without any reflection on the gallantry of
Holcar, express a doubt how far he would have lent the aid of his
horde to this sole object, had he not had in view the splendid bribe
of sixty-four lacs fro/ft the Rana, to be paid when Esuri Sing should
be reihoved, for his. nephew Madhu Sing.*

Be rSiis as it may, the Boondi chronicle states that the lady, instead
of th-v' temporary expedient of delivering Boondi, conducted the
march of the Mahrattas direct on Jeipoor. Circumstances favoured
her designs. The character of Esuri Sing had raised up enemies
about his person, who seized the occasion to forward at once the
views of Boondi and Mewar, whose princes had secretly gained them
over to their views.

The Ambdr prince no sooner heard of the approach of the
Mahrattas to his capital than he quitted it to offer them battle.
But their strength had been misrepresented, nor was it till he
reached the castle of Bhagroo that he was undeceived and sur-
rounded. When too late, he saw that “ treason had done its worst/"'
and that the confidence he had placed in the successor of a minister
whom he had murdered, met its natural reward. The bard has
transmitted in a sloca the cause of his overthrow :

“ Jub-'t, churl Reward

“ Raj carna ca as
, “ Muntri mootd rnarld

“ Khetri Jlessoodds.”

“ Esuri forfeited all hopes of regality, when he slew that great
" minister Kesood&s.-”

*.See annals of Mdwar, Yol. I, p. 363.-

454

ANNALS OP HA RAY ATI.

[CHAP. IV.

The sons of this minister, named Hursad and Gursae, betrayed
their prince to the “ Southron,” by a false return of their numbers,
and led him to the attack with means totally inadequate. Eesist-
ance to a vast numerical superiority would have been madness : he
retreated to the castle of this fief of Amber, 'where, after a siege of
ten days, he was forced not only to sign a deed for the surrender of
Boondi,- and tho renunciation of all claims to it for himself and his
descendants, but to put, in full acknowledgment of his rights, the
tiled on the forehead of Omeda. With this deed, and accompanied
by the contingent of Kotah, they proceeded to Boondt ; the traitor
was expelled; and while rejoicings were making to celebrate the
installation of Omeda, the funereal pyre was lighted at Amber, to
consume the mortal remains of his foe. Eaja Esuri could not
survive his disgrace, and terminated his existence and hostility by
poison, thereby facilitating the designs both of Boondi and Mewar.

Thus in S. 1805 (A.D. 1749) Omdda regained his patrimony, after
fourteen years of exile, during which a traitor had pressed the royal
“ cushion'*'’ of Boondi. But this contest deprived it of many of its
ornaments, and, combined with other causes, at length reduced it
almost to its intrinsic worth, “ a heap of cotton.” Mulhar Eao, the
founder of the Holcar state, in virtuo of his adoption as the brother
of the widow-queen of Boodk Sing, had the title of mavioo, or uncle,
to young Omdda. But true to the maxims of his race, he did not
take his buckler to protect the oppressed, at the impulse 'of those
chivalrous notions so familiar to the Eajpoot, but deemed a portion
of the Boondi territory a better incentive, and a more unequivocal
proof of gratitude, than the titles of brother and uncle. Accordingly,
he demanded, and obtained by regular deed of surrender, the town
and district of Patun on the left bank of the Chumbul.* 1
The sole equivalent (if such it could be termed) for these fourteen
years of usurpation, where the fortifications covering the palace and
town, now called Tarragurh (the ‘ Star-fort’), built by Duleel Sing.
Madhu Sing, who succeeded to the gadi of Jeipoor, followed up the
designs commenced by Jey Sing, and which had cost his successor
his life, to render the smaller states of Central India dependent on
Amber. For this Kotah had been besieged, and Omeda expelled,
and as such policy could not be effected by their unassisted means,
it only tended to the benefit of the auxiliaries, who soon became
principals, to the prejudice and detriment of all. Madhu Sing,
having obtained the castle of Einthumbor. a pretext was afforded

* As in those days when Mabratta spoliation commenced, a joint-stock purse
was made for all such acquisitions, so Patun was divided into sbaies, of which
the Peshwa had one, and Sindia another ; but the Peshwa’s share remained
nominal, and the revenue was carried to account by Holcar for the services of
the Poona state. In the general pacification of A.D. 1817, this long lost and '
much cherished district was once more incorporated with Boondi, to the
unspeakable gratitude and joy of its prince and people. In effecting this for
the grandson of Ome'da, the author secured for himself a gratification scarcely

CHAP. IV.]

BOONDI.

455

for these pretensions to supremacy. From the time of its surrender
by Eno Soorjuu to Akber, the importance of this castle was
established by its becoming the first sircar , or f department/ in the
province of Ajmer consisting of no less than “ eighty -three mohals/'
or extensive fiefs, in which were comprehended not only Boondi and
Kotah, and all their dependencies, but the entire state of Seopoor,
and all the petty fiefs south of the Baugunga, the aggregate of
which now constitutes the state of Amber. In fact, with the
exception of Mahmoodabad in Bengal, Einthumbor was the most
extensive sircar of the empire. In the decrepitude of the empire,
this castle was maintained by a veteran commander as long as
funds and provisions lasted; but these failing, in order to secure it
from falling into the hands of the Mahrattas, and thus being lost for
ever to the throne, he Sought out a Eajpoot prince, to whom he
might entrust it. He applied to Boondi; but the Hara, dreading
to compromise his fealty if unable to maintain it, refused the boon ;
and having no alternative, he resigned it to the prince of Amber as
a trust which he could no longer defend.

Out of this circumstance alone originated the claims of Jeipoor to
tribute from the Kotris, or fiefs in Harouti ; claims without a shadow"
of justice ; but the maintenance of which, for the sake of the display
of supremacy and paltry annual relief, has nourished half a century
of irritation, which it is high time should cease.*

It was the assertion of this supremacy over Kotah as well as
Boondi, which first brought into 'notice the most celebrated Eajpoot
of modern times, Zalirn Sing of Kotah. Eao Doorjuu Sal, who then
ruled that state, had too much of the Hara blood to endure such
pretensions as the casual possession of Einthumbor conferred upon
his brother prince of Amber, who considered that, as the late
lieutenant of the king, he had a right to transfer his powers to
himself. The battle of Butwarro, in S. 1817 (A.D. 1761), for ever
extinguished these pretensions, on which occasion Zalim Sing, then,
scarcely of age, mainly contributed to secure the independence of the
state he was ultimately destined to govern. But this exploit belongs
to the annals of Kotah, and would not have been here alluded to.

* The universal arbitrator, Zaliin Sing of Kotab, having undertaken to
satisfy them, and save them from the annual visitations of the Jeipoor troops,
withdrew the proper allegiance of Iudurgurb, Bulwun, and Anterdek to him-
self. The British government, in ignorance of these historical facts, and not
desirous to disturb the existing state of things, were averse to hear the Boondi
claims for the restoration of her proper authority oyer these her chief vassals.
With all his gratitude for the restoration of his political existence, the brave
and good Bisken Sing could not suppress a sigh when the author said, that
Lord Hastings refused to go into the question ox the Kotris, who had thus
transferred their allegiance toZalim Sing of Kotah. In their usualmetapliorical
style, he said, with great emphasis and sorrow, “ My wings remain broken.”
It would be a matter of no'difficulty to negotiate the claims of Jeipoor, and
cause the regent of Kotah to forego his interposition, which would be attended
with no loss of any, kind to him, but would afford unspeakable benefit and
pride to Boondi, which has well deserved the boon at our hands.

456

ANNALS OF HARAYATI.

[CHAP. IV.'

except to remark, that had the Boondi army joined Kotak in this
common cause, they would have redeemed its fiefs from the tribute
they are still compelled to pay to Jeipoor.

Omdda 5 s active mind was engrossed with the restoration of the
prosperity which the unexampled vicissitudes of the last fifteen"
years had undermined ; but he felt his spirit cramped and his ener-
gies contracted by the dominant influence and avarice of the insati-
able Malirattas, through whose means he recovered his capital; still
there was as yet no fixed principle of government recognized, and
the Rajpoots, who witnessed their periodical visitations like flights
of locusts over their plains, hoped that this scourge would be equally
transitory. Under this great and pernicious error, all the Rajpoot
states continued to mix these inteilopers in their national disputes,
which none had more cause to repent than the Haras ofiBoondi.
But the hold which the Mahraltas retained upon the lands of
“ Dewa-Bango” would never have acquired such tenacity, had the
"bold. arm and sage mind of Omeda continued to guide the vessel of
the state throughout the lengthened period of his natural existence:
his premature political decease adds another example to the truth,
that patriarchal, and indeed all governments, are imperfect where •
the laws are not supreme.

An act of revenge stained the reputation of Omoda, naturally
virtuous, and but for which deed we should have to paint him as
one of the bravest, wisest, and paost faultless characters which
Rajpoot history has recorded. Eight years had elapsed since the
recovery of his dominions, and we have a right to infer ^ that his
wrongs and their authors had been forgotten, or rather forgiven, for
human nature can scarcely forgot' so treacherous an act as that of
his vassal of Indurgurh, on the defeat of Dublana. As so long a
time had passed since the restoration without the penalty of his
treason being exacted, it might have been con eluded that the natural
generosity of this high-minded prince had co-operated with a wise,
policy, in passing over the wrong without foregoing his right to
avenge it. The degenerate Rajpoot, who could at such a moment
witness the necessities of his prince and refuse to relieve them, could
never reflect on that hour without self-abhorrence ; but his spirit
was too base to offer reparation by a future life of duty ; he cursed
the magnanimity of the man he had injured; hated him for his very
forbearance, and aggravated the part he had acted by fresh injuries,
and on a point too delicate to admit of being overlooked. Omeda
had “ sent the coco-nut,” the symbol of matrimonial alliance, toMadhu
Sing, in the name of his sister. It was received in a full assembly
of all the nobles of the court, and with the respect due to one of the
most illustrious races of Rajpootana. Deo Sing of Indurgurh was at
that time on a visit at Jeipoor, and the compliment was jaaidkim by
the Raja of asking “ what fame said of the daughter of Boodh Sing V’
It is not impossible that he might have sought this opportunity of
further betraying his prince; for his reply was an insulting inuendo.

CHAP. IV.]

BOONDI.

457

leading to doubts as to tbe purity o£ her blood. That it -was grossly
false, ivas soon proved by tbe solieitatiou of ber band by Baja Beejy
Sing of Marwar. "Tbe coco-nub was returned to Boondi,” — an
insult never to be forgiven by a Rajpoot.

Iu S. 1818 (A.D. 1757), Omeda went to pay bis. devotions at tbe
sbrino of Boejaseni Mata tbe ruotber of victory’), near Kurwur.
Being in tbe vicinity of Indnrgurb, be invited its chief to join tbe
assembled vassals with their families ; and though dissuaded, Deo
Sing obeyed, accompanied by bis son aud grandson. All were cut
off at one fell swoop, and tbe line of tbe traitor was extinct : as if
tbe air of heaven should not be contaminated by tbe smoke of their
ashes, Omdda commanded that the body of tbe calumnious traitor
and bis issue should bo thrown into the lake. His fief of Indurgurb
was given to bis brother, between whom and tbe present incumbent
four generations havo passed away.

Fifteen years elapsed, during which tho continual scenes of dis-
order around him furnished ample occupation for bis thoughts. Yet,
in the" midst of all, would intrude tbe remembrance of this single
act, in which be bad usurped tbe powers of Him, to whom alone it
• belongs to execute vengeance. Though no voice was lifted up
against the deed, though be bad a moral conviction that a traitor’s
death was tbe duo of Deo Sing, bis soul, generous as it was brave,
revolted at the crime, however sanctified by custom,* which con-
founds tbe innocent with tbe guilty. To appease bis conscience, be
determined to abdicate tbe throne, and pass the rest of bis days in
penitential rites, and traversing, in tbe pilgrim’s garb, tbe vast
regions of India., to visit the sacred shrines of bis faith.

In S. i827(A.D. 1 771), tbe imposing ceremony of “ joograj,” which
terminated the political existence of Omeda, was performed. An
image of tbe priuce was made, and a pyre was erected, on which it
was consumed. Tho hair and whiskers of Ajit, bis successor, were
taken off, and offered to the manes ; lamentation and wailing were
beard in tbe rinwds ,]* and tbe twelve days of matum, or ‘ mourning,’
'were passed as if Omeda was really deceased ; on tbe expiration of
which, the installation of bis successor took place, when Ajit Sing
was proclaimed priuco of tbe Haras of Boondi.

Tbe abdicated Omeda, with the title of Sri-ji (by which alone be
was henceforth known), retired to that holy spot in the valley
sanctified by tbe miraculous cure of tbe first " lord of tbe Patbar,”|
and which was named after one of the fountains of the Ganges,
Kedarnath. To this spot, hallowed by a multitude of associations,
the warlike pilgrim brought

“Tlie fruit and flower of many a province,”
and bad tbe gratification to find these exotics, whether tbe hardy

*The laws of revenge are dreadfully absolute: had the sons of Deo Sing
survived, tho feud upon their liege lord would have been entailed with their
estate, lb is a nice point for a subject to balance between fidelity to his prince,
and a father’s fend, banp ca ber.

f The queen’s apartments.

[Von. II.]

J See page, 422.

5S

458

ANNALS OP HAKAVATI.

[CHAP. IV.

offspring of the snow-clad Himalaya, or the verge of ocean in the
tropic, fructify and flourish amidst the roclcs of his native abode. It
is curious even to him who is ignoraut of the moral vicissitudes which
produced it, to see the pine of Thibet, the cane of Malacca, and other
exotics, planted by the hand of the princely ascetic, flourishing
around his hermitage, in spite of the intense heats of this rock-bound
abode.

When Omeda resigned the sceptre of the Haras, it was from tlio
conviction that a life of meditation alone could yield the consolation,
and obtain the forgiveness which he found necessary to his repose.
But in assuming the pilgrims staff, he did not lay aside any feeling
becoming his rank or his birth. There was no pusillani mous prostration
of intellect ; no puling weakness of bigotted. sentiment, but the same
lofty mind which redeemed his birthright, accompanied him when-
ever he bent his steps to seek knowledge in the society of devout*
and holy men. He had read in the annals of his own and of other
states, that “ the trappings of royalty were snai’es to perdition, and
“ that happy was the man who in time threw them aside and made his
" peace with heaven.” But in obeying, at once, the dictates of con-
science and of custom, he felt his mind too much alive to the
wonders of creation, to bury himself in the fane of Kanya, or the
sacred baths on the Ganges ; and he determined to see all those holy
places commemorated in the ancient epics of his nation, and the
never-ending theme of the wan dering devotee. In this determination
he was, perhaps, somewhat influenced by that love of adventure in
which he had been nurtured, and it was a balm to his mind when he
found that ai*ms and religion were not only compatible, but that his
pious resolution to force a way through the difficulties which beset
the pilgrim's path, enchanced the merit of his devotioil. Accordingly,'
the royal ascetic went forth on his pilgrimage, not habited in the
hermit's garb, but armed at all points. Even in this there was
penance, not ostentation, and he carried or buckled on his person
one of every species of offensive or defensive weapons then in use : a.
load which would oppress any two Rajpoots iu these degenerate
times. He wore a quilted tunic, which would resist a sabre-cut ;
besides a matchlock, a lance, a sword, a dagger, and their appur-
tenances of knives, pouches, and priming-horn, he had a battle-axe, a
javelin, a tomahawk, a discus, bow and quiver of arrows; and it is
affirmed that such was his muscular power, even when threescore
and ten years had blanched his beard in wandering to and fro thus
accoutred, that he could place the whole of this panoply within his
shield, and with one arm not only raise it, but hold it for some
.seconds extended.

With a small escort of his gallant clansmen, during a long series
of years he traversed every region, from the glacial fountains of the
Ganges to the southern promontory of Ramaiser ; and from the
hot-wells of Seeta in Arracan, and the Moloch of Orissa, to the
shrine of the Hindu Apollo at ff the world’s end.'' Within these

CHAP. IV.]

BOONDI. '

459

limits of Hinduism, Omeda saw every place of holy resort, of
curiosity, or of learning; and whenever he re-visited his paternal
domains, his return was greeted not only by his own tribe, but by
every prince and Rajpoot of Rajjvarra, who deemed his abode
hallowed if the princely pilgrim halted there on his route. He was
regarded as an oracle, while the treasures of knowledge which his
observation had accumulated, caused his conversation to be courted
and every word to be recorded. The admiration paid to him while
living cannot be better ascertained than by the .reverence manifested
by every Hara to his memory. To them his word was a law, and
every relic of him continues to be held in veneration. Almost his
last journey was to the extremity of his nation, the temples at the
Delta of the Indus, and the shrine of the Hindu Cybele, the terrific
Agni-devi of ITinglaz, on the shores of Mekran, even beyond the
Rubicon of the Hindus. As he returned by Dwarica, he was beset
by a band of Kabas, a plundering race infesting these regions. But
the veteran, uniting the arm of flesh to that of faith, valiantly
defended himself, and gained a complete victory, making prisoner
their leader, who, as the price of his ransom, took an oath never
again to molest the pilgrims to Dwarica.

The warlike pilgrimage of Omdda had been interrupted by a
tragical occurrence, which occasioned the death of his son, and
compelled him to abide for a time at the seat of government to
superintend the education of his grand-child. This eventful catas-
trophe, interwoven in the border history of Mewar and Harouti, is
well worthy of narration, as illustrative of manners and belief, and
fulfilled a prophecy pronounced centuries before by the dying Sail
of Bumaoda, that “ the Rao and the Ran should never meet at the
“ Almira (or sprung hunt) without death ensuing.” Wbat we are
about to relate was the fourth repetition of this sport with the like
fatal result.

The hamlet of Bilaita, which produced but a few good mangoes,
and for its population a few Meenas, was the ostensible cause of
dispute. The chief of Boondi, either deeming it within his territory,
or desiring to consider it so, threw up a fortification, in which he
placed a garrison to overawe the freebooters, who were instigated by
the discontented chiefs of Mewar to represent this as an infringe-
ment of their prince's rights. Accordingly, the Rana marched with
all his chieftains, and a mercenary band of Siudies, to the disputed
point, whence he invited the Boondi prince, Ajit, to his camp. He
came, and the Rana was so pleased with his manners and conduct,
that Bilaita and its mango grove were totally forgotten. Spring
was at hand; the jojmus month of Phalgun, When it was necessary
to open the year with a sacrifice of the boar to Gouri. (See Yol. I,
p. 489.) The young Hara, in return for the courtesies of the Rana,
invited him to open the Almira , within the rumnas or preserves of
Boondi. Tho invitation was accepted; the prince of the Seesodias,
according to usage, distributed the green turbans and scarfs,' and on

. [You. II.] 58 a

'ANNALS OF HAKAVATI.

460

[chap. IV.

the appointed day., with a brilliant cavalcade, repaired to the heights
of Nandta.

The abdicated Rno, who had lately returned from Budrinatb, no
sooner heard of the projected hunt, than he despatched a special
messenger to remind his son of the anathema of the Salt. The
impetuous-Ajifc replied that it was impossible to recall his invitation
on such pusillanimous grounds. The morning came, and the Rana,
filled with sentiments of friendship for the young Rao, rode with
him to the field. But the preceding evening-, the minister of Mewar
had waited on the Rao, and in language the most insulting told him
to surrender Bilaita, or he would send a body of Sindies to place him
in restraint, and he was vile enough to insinuate that he was merely
the organ of his prince’s commands. This rankled in the mind of
the Rao throughout the day ; and when the sport was over, and he
had the Rana’s leave to depart, a sudden idea passed across his mind
of the intended degradation, and an incipient resolution to anticipate
this disgrace induced him to return. The Rana, unconscious of any
offence, received his young friend with a smile, repeated his
permission to retire, and observed that they should soon meet again.
Irresolute, and overcome by this affable behaviour, his half-formed
intent was abandoned, and again he bowed and withdrew. But
scarcely had he gone a few paces, when, as if ashamed of himself, he
summoned up "the powers of revenge, and rushed, spear in hand,
upon his victim. With such unerring force did he ply it, that the
head of the lance, after passing through the Rana, was transfixed in
the neck of his steed. The wounded prince had merely time to
exclaim, as he regarded the assassin on whom he had lavished his
friendship, cc Oh, Hara ! what have you done ?” when the Indurgurh
chief finished the treachery with his sword. The Hara Rao, as if
glorying in the act, carried off the chuthur-ch angi, c the golden sun
in the sable disk,’ the x-egal insignia of Mewar, which he lodged in
the palace of Boondi. The abdicated Omeda, whose gratified
revenge had led to a life of repentance, was horror-struck at this
fresh atrocity in his house : he cried “ shame on the deed !” nor would
he henceforth look on the face of his son.

A highly dramatic effect is thrown around the last worldly
honours paid to the murdered king of Mdwar ; and although his fate
has been elsewhere described, it may be proper to record it from the
chronicle of his foeman.

The Rana and the Boondi prince had married two sisters,
daughters of the prince of Kishengurh, so that there were ties of
connexion to induce the Rana to reject all suspicion of danger,
though he'hnd been warned by his wife to beware of bis brother-
in-law. The ancient feud hncTbeen balanced in the mutual death of
the last two princes, and no motive for enmity existed. On the day
previous to this disastrous event, the Mewar minister had given a
feast, of which the princes and their nobles bad partaken, when all
■was harmony and friendship ,- but the sequel to the deed strongly

CHAP. IV.]

EOONDI.

4GJ

corroborates the opinion that- it was instigated by the nobles of
Mewar, in hatred of their tyrannical prince ; and other hints wero
not wanting in addition to the indignant threats of the minister to
kindle the feeling of revenge. At the moment the blow was struck,
a simply ’■''’ace-bearer alone had the fidelity to defend his master •
not a (f .'as at hand either to intercept the stroke, or pursuo the
ass assay the contrary, no sooner was the deed consummated,
than theVuole chivalry of Mewar, as if panic-struck and attacked
by a host, took to flight, abandoning their camp and the dead body
of their master.

A single concubine remained to perform the last rites to her lord.
She commanded a costly pyre to be raised, and prepared to become
his companion to a world unknown. With the murdered corpse in
her arms, she reared her form from the pile, and as the torch was
applied, she pronounced a curse on his murderer, invoking the tree
under whose shade it was raised to attest the prophecy, “ that, if a
“ selfish treachery alone prompted the deed, within two months the
<c assassin might he an example to mankind; but if it sprung from
tc a noble revenge of any ancient feud, she absolved him from the
“ curse : a branch of the tree fell in token of assent, and the ashes
“ of the Raua and the Salt whitened the plain of Bilaita.”

Within the two months, the prophetic anathema was fulfilled ;
the Rao of the Haras was a corpse, exhibiting an awful example of
divine vengeance : “ the flesh dropped from his bones, and bo
“ expired, an object of loathing and of misery.” Hitherto these feuds
had been balanced by the lex talionis , or its substitutes, but this
last remains unappeased, strengthening the belief that it was
prompted from Mewar.

Bishen Sing, the sole offspring of Ajit, and who succeeded to the
$adt, was then an infant, and it became a matter of necessity that
Sri-ji should watch his interests. Having arranged the affairs of the
infant Rao, and placed an intelligent Dhahhae (foster-brother) at the
head of the government, he recommenced his peregrinations, being
often absent four years at a time, until within a few years of his
, death, when the feebleness of age confined him to his hermitage of
Kedarnath.

It affords an additional instance of Bajpoot instability of character,
or rather of the imperfection of their government, that, in his old
age, when a life of austerity had confirmed a renunciation which
reflection had prompted, the venerable warrior became an object of
distrust to his graucl-child. Miscreants, who dreaded to see wisdom
near the throne, had the audacity to add insult to a prohibition of
Sri-ji’s return to Booudf, commanding him "to eat sweetmeats and
" tell his beads at Benares.” The messenger, who found him
advance as far as Nya-shelier, delivered the mandate, adding that
his ashes should not mingle with his fathers’. But such was the
estimation in which he was held, and the sanctity he had acquired
from these pilgrimages, that the sentence was no sooner known than.

462 •.

ANNALS OB' HAKAVATI.

[CHAP. IV.

the neighbouring princes became suitors for bis society. The heroism
■of bis youth, the dignified piety of bis age, inspired the kindred
mind of Pertap Sing of Ambdr with very different feelings from
those of bis own tribe. He addressed Sri-ji as a son and a servant,
requesting permission to ‘ dursun-ltar 5 (worship him), and convey
him to his capital. Such was the courtesy of the flower of the
Cutchwahas ! Sri-ji declined this mark of homage, but accepted tho
invitation. He was received with honour, and so strongly did the
gallant and virtuous Pertap feel the indignity put upon the abdicated
prince, that he told him, if “ any remnant of worldly association yet
“ lurked within him/'’ lie would iu person, at the head of all the
troops of Amber, place him on the throne both of Boondi and Kotah.
Sri-jfis reply was consistent with his magnanimity : “ They are both
“ mine already, — on the one is my nephew, on the other my grand-
“ child/ 5 On this occasion, Zalim Sing of Kotah appeared on the
scene as mediator] he repaired to Boondi, and exposed the futility
of Bishen Sing 5 s apprehensions ; and armed with full powers of
reconciliation, sent Lalaji Pundit to escort the old Rao to his capital.
The meeting was such as might have been expected, between a
precipitate youth tutored by artful knaves, and the venerable chief
who had renounced every mundane feeling but affection for his
offspring. It drew tears from all eyes : ” My child/ 5 said the pilgrim-
warrior, presenting his sword, “ take this ; apply it yourself if you
“ think I can have any bad intentions towards you ; but let not the.
“ base defame me/ 5 The young Rao wept aloud as he entreated
forgiveness; and the Pundit and Zalim Sing had the satisfaction of
seeing the intentions of the sycophants, who surrounded the minor
prince, defeated. Sri-ji refused, however, to enter the halls of
Boondi during the remainder of his life, which ended about eight
years after this event, when his grand-child entreated “ he would
“ close his eyes within the walls of his fathers. 55 A remnant of that
feeling inseparable from humanity made the dying Omeda offer no
objection, and he was removed in a sooh’hpdl (litter) to the palace,
where he that night breathed his last. Thus, in S. 1860 (A.D. 1804),
Omeda Sing closed a varied and chequered life : the sun of his
morning rose amidst clouds of adversity, soon to burst forth in a •
radiant prosperity ; but scarcely had it attained its meridian glory
ere crime dimmed its splendour, and it descended in solitude and
sorrow.

Sixty years had passed over his head, since Omdda, when only
thirteen years of age, put himself at the head of his-Haras, and
carried Patun and Gainolli. His memory is venerated in Harouti,
and but for the stain which the gratification of his revenge has'left
upon his fame, he would have been the model of a Rajpoot prince. -
But let us not apply the European standard of abstract virtue to
these princes, who have so few checks and so many incentives to
crime, and whose good acts deserve the more applause' from an
appalling honhar (predestination) counteracting 1 moral respon-'
nihility.

CHAP. IV.]

BOONDI.

' 463

The period of Sri-ji’s death was an important era in the history
of the Ilaras. It was at this time that a British army, under the
unfortunate Monsou, for the first time appeared in these regions,
avowedly for the purpose of pntting down Holcar, the great foe of
the Rajpoots, but especially of Boondi. Whether the aged chief
was yet alive aud counselled this policy, which has since been grate-
fully repaid by Britain, we are not aware; but whatever has been
done for Boondi, has fallen short of the chivalrous deserts of its
prince. It was not on the advance of our army, when its ensigns
were. waving in anticipation of success, but on its humiliating flight,
that a safe passage was not only cheerfully granted, but aided to the
utmost of the Raja’s means, aud with an almost culpable disregard
of his own welfare and interests. It was, indeed, visited with retri-
bution, which we little knew, or, in the pusillanimous policy of that
day, little heeded. Suffice it to say, that, in 1817, when wo called
upon the Rajpoots to arm aud coalesce with us in the putting down
of rapino, Boondi was one of the foremost to join the alliance. Well
she might be; for the Makratta flag waved in unison with her own
within the walls of the capital, while the revenues collected scarcely
afforded the means of personal protection to its prince. Much of
this vras owing to our abandonment of the Rao in 1804. Through-
out the contest of 1817, Boondi had no will but ours ; its prince and
dependents were in arms ready to execute our behest; and when
victory crowned our efforts in every quarter, on the subsequent
pacification, the Rao Raja Bishen Sing was not forgotten. The
districts held by Holcar, some of which had been alieuated for half
a century, and which had become ours by right of conquest, were
restored to Boondi without a qualification ; while, at the same time,
we negotiated the surrender to him of the districts held by Sindia,
on his paying, through us, an aunual sum calculated on the average
of the last ten years’ depreciated revenue. The intense gratitude
felt by the Raja was expressed in a few forcible words : “ I am not a
“ man of protestation ; but my head is yours whenever you require
“ it.” This was not an unmeaning phrase of compliment ; he would
have sacrificed his life, and that of every Hara who “ ate his salt,”
had we made experiment of his fidelity. Still, immense as were the
benefits showered upon Boondi, and with which her prince was
deeply penetrated, there was a drawback. The old Macbiavel of
Kotah had been before him in signing himself “fields Sirlcar Iligrez ”
(the slave of the English government), and had contrived to get
Indurgurh, Bulwun, Anterdek, and Kkatolli, the chief feudatories of
Boondi, under liis protection.

The frank and brave Rao Raja could not help deeply regretting
an arrangement, which, as he emphatically said, was “ clipping his
“ wings.” The disposition is a bad one, aud both justice and politi-
cal expediency enjoin a revision of it, and the bringing about a
compromise which would restore the integrity of the most interesting
and deserving little state in India.* Well has it l’epaid the anxious

* The author had the distinguished happiness o£ concluding the treaty with

464 .

ANNAIS OP HARAVATI.

[chap. IT.

care we manifested for its interests ; for while every other princi-
pality has, by some means or other, caused uneasiness or trouble to
the protecting power, Boondi has silently advanced to comparative
pi'osperity, happy in her independence, and interfering with no one.
The Rao Raja survived the restoration of his independence only four
short years, when he was carried off by that scourge the cholera
'morbus'. In his extremity, writhing under a disease which unmans
the strongest frame and mind, he was cool and composed. He
interdicted his wives from following him to the pyrd, and bequeath-
ing his son and successor to the guardianship of the representative
of the British government, breathed his last in the prime of life.

The' character of Bishen Sing may be summed up in a few words.
He was an honest man, and every inch a Rajpoot. Under an
unpolished exterior, he concealed an excellent heart and an energetic
soul ; he was by no means deficient in understanding, and possessed
a thorough knowledge of his own interests. When the Mahrattas
gradually curtailed his revenues, and circumscribed his power and
comforts, he seemed to delight in shewing how easily he could
dispense with unessential enjoyments ; and found in the pleasures of
the chase, the only stimulus befitting a Rajpoot. He would bivouac
for days in the lion’s lair, nor quit the scene until he had circum-
vented the forest’s king,.the only prey he deemed worthy of his skill.
He had slain upwards of one hundred lions with his own hand,
besides many tigers, and boars innumerable had been victims to his
lance. In this noble pastime, not exempt from danger, and pleasur-
able in proportion to the toil, he had a limb broken, which crippled
him for life, and shortened his stature, previously below the common
standard. But when he mounted his steed and waved his lance
over his head, there was a masculine vigour and dignity which at
once evinced that Bishen Sing, had we called upon him, would have
wielded his weapon as worthily in our cause as did his glorious
ancestors for Jehangir or Shah Allum. He was somewhat despotic
in his own little empire, knowing that fear is a necessary incentive
to respect in the governed, more especially amongst the civil servants
of his government ; and, if the Gourt Journal of Boondi may bo
credited, his audiences with his chancellor of the exchequer, who
was hispremier,musthave been amusing to thosein the ante-chamber.
The Raja had a reserved fund, to which the minister was required
to add a hundred rupees daily •, and whatever plea he might advance
for the neglect of other duties, on this point none would be listened

Boondi in February 1818. His previous knowledge of her deserts was not
disadvantageous to her interests, and be assumed the responsibility of con-
cluding it upon the general principles which were to regulate our future policy
as determined in the commencement of the war; and setting aside the views
which trenched upon these in our subsequent negotiations? These general
principles laid it down as a sine qua non that the Mahrattas should not have a
foot of land in Knjpootana west of the Chumbul ; and he closed -the door to
recantation by sealing the re-union in perpetuity to Boondi, of Patun and all
land so situated.

CHAP. IV.]

BOONDI.

'4G5

to, or the appeal bo Indrajeet was threatened. “ The conqueror of
“ Iudra” was uo superior divinity, but a shoe of super-human size
suspended from a peg", where a more classic prince would have
exhibited his rod of empire. But he reserved this for his Barons,
and the shoe, thus misnamed, was the humiliating- corrective for an
offending- minister.

At Boondi, as acall these patriarchal jn-incipalitios, the chief agents
of power are tew. They are four in number, namely: — 1, The
Dewan, or Moosaheb ; 2, The Foujdar, or Killedar , 3, The Buckshee ;

4, The Bassala, or Comptroller of Accounts.

This little state became so connected with the imperial court, that,
like Jeipoor, the princes adopted several of its customs. The
Purdhan, or premier, was entitled Dewan and Moosaheb ; and he
had the entire management of the territory and finances. The
Foujdar or Killedar is the g-overnor of the castle, the Maire do
Palais, who at Boondi is never a Rajpoot, but some Dhabhae or
foster-brother, identified with the family, who likewise, heads the
feudal quotas or the mercenaries, aud has lands assigned for their
support. The Buclcshee controls generally all accounts ; the Rassala
• those of the household expenditure. The late prince’s. management
of his revenue was extraordinary. Instead of: the surplus being
lodged in the treasury, it centered in a mercantile concern conducted
by the Prime Minister, in the profits of which the Raja shared. But
w-hile he exhibited bub fifteen, per cent, gain in the balance-sheet,
it was stated at thirty. Prom this profit the' troops aud dependents
of the court were paid, chiefly in goods and grain, and at such a rate
as he chose to fix.* Their necessities, and their prince being joint
partner in the firm, made complaint useless ; but the system entailed
upou the premier universal execration.

Bishen Sing left two legitimate sons ; the Rao Raja Rani Sing.« -
then eleven years of age, who was installed in August 1821; aud
the Mahraja Gopal Sing, a few months younger. Both were most
promising youths, especially the Raja. He inherited his father’s
passion for the chase, and even at this tender age received from the
noblest their nuzzurs and congratulations on the first wild game he
slew. Hitherto his pigmy sword had been proved only on kids or
lambs. His mother, the queen-regent, is a princess of Kishengurh,
amiable, able, and devoted to her son. It is ardently hoped that this
most interesting state and family will vise to their ancient prosperity,
under the generous auspices of the Government which rescued it
from ruin. In return, we mav reckon on a devotion to which our
power is yet a stranger — strong bauds mid grateful henits, which
will court death in’ our behalf with the same indomitable spirit that
has been exemplified iu days goue. by. Our wishes are for the
prosperity of the Haras !

■ r 'Tlie truck system, called puma, is well known in Ilafpootana.
t And from the Author with the rest, whose nephew lie was by courtesy and
adoption.

[Vol, H.]

59

ROT AH.

CHAPTER VI.

Separation of Kotah from Boondi. — The Koleah JJluls. — Madhii Sing, first
Prince, of Kotah. — Its division into fiefs. — The Madlumi. — Raja Mokund . —
Instance of devotion. — lie is slain with four brothers. — Jtiggut Sing. — Pahn
Sing. — Is deposed. — Kishore Sing . — Is slain at Arcdt. — Law of primogeniture
set aside. — Ram Sing. — Is slain at Jajow. — Bheem Sing. — Ghuker-Sen, king
of the Phils. — His power is annihilated by Raja, Bheem. — Omut tribe . —
Origin of the claims of Kotah thereon. — Raja Bheem attacks Kiram-ool-
Moolk, and is slain. — Character of Raja Bjicem. — II is enmity to Boondi . —
Anecdote. — Title of Malm Rao bestowed on Raja Bheem. — Rao Arjoon . —
Civil contest for succession. — Siam Sing slain. — Maharao Doorjun Sal. — First
irruption of the Mahrattas. — League against Kotah, which is besieged . —
Defended by Himnmt Sing Jhala. — Zalim Sing born. — Siege raised. — Kotah
becomes tributary to the Mahrattas. — Death of Doorjun Sal. — His character.
— His hunting expeditions. — His queens. — Bravery of the Jhala chief. — Order
of succession restored. — Maharcto Ajit. — Rao Ghntter Sal. — Madhii Sing of'
Amber claims supremacy over the Kara princes, ai)d invades Harouii , —
Battle of Butivarro. — Zalim Sing Jhala. — The Haras gain a victory. — Flight
of the Amber army, and capture of the “ five-coloured banner.” — Tributary
claims on Kotah renounced. — Death of Chatter Sal:

The early bistory of the Haras of Kotah belongs to Boondi, of
which they were a junior branch. The separation took place when-,
Sbab Jelian was emperor o£ India, who bestowed Kotah and its
dependencies on Madbu Sing, the second son of Rao But tun, for bis
distinguished gallantry in the battle of Boorhanpoor.

Madhii Sing was born in S. 1621 (A.D. 15G5). -At. the early age
of fourteen, be displayed that daring intrepidity which gave him the
title of Raja, and Kotah with its three hundred and sixty townships
(then the chief fief of Boondi, and yielding two lacs of I’ent), inde-
pendent of his father.

It has already been related, that the conquest of this tract was
made from the Koteah Bhiis of the Oojla, the ‘ unmixed/ or
aboriginal race. From these the Rajpoot will eat, and all classes will
‘ drink water’ at their hands, Kotah was at that time but a series
of hamlets, the abode of the Bhfl chief, styled Raja, being the
ancient fortress of Elcailguih, five coss south of Kotah. But when
Madhu Sing was enfeoffed by tho king, Kotah had already attained
extensive limits. To the south it was bounded by Gagrown and
Ghatolli, then held by the Kheechies ; on the east, by-Mangrole and
Nahi-gurli, the first belonging to the' Gor, the last to a Rahtore
Rajpoot, who had apostatized to save his land, and was now a
Nawab ; to the north, it extended as far as Sooltanpore, on the
Ckumbul, across which was tho .small domain of JTandta. In this

CHAP. VI.]

KOTAH.

467

space were contained three hundred and sixty townships, and a rich
soil fertilized by numerous large. streams.

The favour and power Madhu Sing enjoyed, enabled him to
increase the domain he held direct of the crown, and his authority at
his death extended to the barrier between Malwa and Harouti.
Madhu Sing died in S. 1687, leaving five sons, whose appanages
became the chief fiefs of Kotah. To the holders and their descend-
ants, in order to mark the separation between them and the elder
Haras of Boondi, the patronymic of the founder was applied, and the
epithet Madliani is sufficiently distinctive whenever two Haras,
bearing the same name, appear together. These were,

1. — Mokund Sing, who had Kotah.

2. — Mohun Sing, who had Polaito.

3. — Joojarh Sing, who had Kotra, and subsequently Ramgurh-
Relawun.

4. — Kuniram, who had Koelah.*

5. — Kishore Sing, who obtained Sangode.

Raja Mokund Sing succeeded. To this prince the chief pass in the
barrier dividing Malwa from Harouti owes its name of MoJcundurra,
which gained an unfortunate celebrity on the defeat and flight of
the British troops under Brigadier Monson, A.D. 1804. Mokund
erected many places of strength and utility; and the palace and
petta of Antah are both attributable to him.

Raja Mokund gave one of those brilliant instances of Rajpoot
devotion to the principle of legitimate rule, so many of which illus-
trate his national history. When Arungzeb formed his parricidal
design to' dethrone his father Shah Jehan, nearly every Rajpoot
rallied round the throne of the aged monarch; and the Rahtores and
the Haras were most conspicuous. The sons of Madhu Sing, besides
the usual ties of fidelity, forgot not that to Shah Jehan they owed
their independence, and they determined to defend him to the death.
In S. 1714, in the field near Oojein, afterwards named by the victor
JPuttehabad, the five brothers led their vassals, clad in the saffron-
stained garment, with the bridal mor (coronet) on their head,
denoting death or victory. The imprudent intrepidity of the
Rahtore commander denied them the latter’, but a glorious death
no power could prevent, and all the five brothers fell in one field.
The youngest, Kishore Sing, was afterwards dragged from amidst
the slain, and, though pierced with wounds, recovered. He was
afterwards one, of the most conspicuous of the intrepid Rajpoots
serving in the Dekhan, and often attracted notice, especially in the
capture of Beejajroor. But the imperial princes knew not how to
appreciate or to manage such men, who, when united under one
who could control them, were irresistible.

Juggut Sing, the son of Mokund, succeeded to the family estates.

* He held also the districts of Deb and Goorab in grant direct of the empire.
[Von, 110 59 a

468

ANNALS OF HARAVATI.

JeHAP* VT.

and to the munsub or dignity o£ a commander of two thousand, in
the imperial army. He continued serving in the Dekhan until his
death in S. 1726, leaving no issue.

Paim Sing, son of Kuniram of Koelah, succeeded ; but was so
invincibly stupid that the panch (council of chiefs) set him aside
after six months’ rule, and sent him back to Koelah, which is still
held by his descendants.*

Kiskore Sing, who so miraculously recovered from his wounds,
was placed upon the gadi. When the throne was at length obtained
by Arungzdb, Kiskore was again serving in the south, and shedding
his own blood, with that of his kinsmen, in its subjugation. He
greatly distinguished himself at the siege of Beejapoor, and was
finally slain at the escalade of Areatgurk (Arcot), in S. 1742. He
was a noble specimen of a Hara; aud, it is said, counted fifty
wounds on his person. He left three sons, Bishen Sing, Bam Sing,
and Hurnat Sing. The eldest, Bishen Sing, was deprived of his
birthright for refusing to accompany his father to the south ; but
had the appanage and royal palace of Antah conferred upon him.
His issue was as follows : Pirthi Sing, chief of Antah, whose son,
Ajit Sing, had three sons, Ckutter Sal, Goman Sing, and Baj Sing.

Bam Sing, who was with his father when he was killed, succeeded
to all his dignities, and was inferior to none in the contests which
fill the page of imperial history, and in opposing the rise of the
Mahrattas. In the war of succession, he embraced the cause of
Prince Azim, the viceroy in the Dekhan, against the elder, Monzzxm,
and was slain in the battle of Jajow, in S. 1764. In this memorable
conflict, which decided the succession to the throne, the Kotah
prince espoused the opposite cause to the head of his house of
Boondi, and Hara met Hara in that despei-ate encounter, when a
cannon-shot terminated the life of Bam Sing in the very zenith of
his career.

Bheem Sing succeeded ; and with him Kotah no longer remained
'a raj of the third order. On the death of Bukadoor Shah, and the
accession of Ferokser, Baja Bheem espoused the cause of the Syeds,
when his munsub was increased to f five thousand/ a rank hereto-
fore confined to princes of the blood and rajas of the first class. The
elder branch of the Haras maintained its fealty to the throne against
these usurping ministers, and thus the breach made at the battle of
Jajow was widened by their taking opposite sides. The disgraceful
attempt of Baja Bheem on the life of Eao Raja Boodk of Boondi has
already been recorded. Having completely identified himself with

* A descendant of liis covered Monson’s retreat even before this general
reached the Mokundurra Pass, and fell defending the ford of the Amjar,
disdaining to retreat. His simple cenotaph marks the spot where in the gallant
old style this chief “ spread his carpet” to meet the Dekhany host, while a
British commander, at the head of a force capable of sweeping one end of India
to the other, fled l The author will say more of this in his Personal Narrative,
having visited the spot.

CHAP. VJ.]

KOTAH.

469

'the designs of the Syeds and Jey Sing of Amber, he aided all the
schemes of the latter to annihilate Boondi, an object the more easy
of accomplishment since the unmerited and sudden misfortunes of
Kao Boodh had deprived him of his reason. Baja Bheem obtained
the royal sunnud or grant for all the lands on the Pathar, from
Kotah west, to the descent into Aheerwavra east ; which compre-
hended much land of the Kheechies as well as of Boondi. He thus
obtained the celebrated castle of G-agrown, now the strongest in
Harouti, and rendered memorable by its defence against Alla-o-din ;
likewise Mow Mydana, Sbirgurh, Barah, Mangrole, and Barode,
all to the eastward of the Chumbul, which was formally constituted
the western boundary of the state. The aboriginal Bhils of Oojla,
or ‘ pure 5 descent, had recovered much of their ancient inheritance
in the intricate tracts on the southern frontier of Harouti. Of these,
Munohur Tkana, now the most southern garrison of Kotah, became
their, chief place, and here dwelt * the king of the Bhils , 5 Baja
Cliuker-Sen, whose person was attended by five hundred horse and
eight hundred bowmen, and to whom all the various tribes of Bhils,
from Mewar to the extremity of the plateau, owed obedience. This
indigenous race, whose simple life secured their preservation amidst
all the vicissitudes of fortune, from Baja Bhoj of Dhar to Baja
Bheem of Kotah, were dispossessed and hunted down without
mercy, and their possessions added to Kotah. On the occasion of
the subjugation of Bhilwarra, the latter assigned tracts of land to the
Omut chiefs otNursingurh aud Bajgurh Patun, with townships in
tlidli ,* in Kotah proper, aud hence arose the claim of Kotah on these
independent states for the tribute termed tunica.* At the same time,
all the chieftains acknowledgedtke supremacyof Kotah, under articles
of precisely the same nature as those which guaranteed the safety and
'independence of Bajwarra by Britain; with this difference, that the
Omuts could not be installed without the Ichelat of recognition of the
princes of Kotah. Had Baja Bheem lived, he would further have
extended the borders of Harouti, which were already carried beyond
the mountains. Onarsi, Dig, Perawa, and the lands of the Chundera-
wuts, were brought under subjection, but were lost with his death,
which, like that of his predecessors, was an untimely sacrifice to
duty towards the throne.

.When the celebrated Khilij Khan, afterwards better known to
history as Nizam-ool-Moolk, fled from the court to maintain himself
by force of arms in his government of the Dekhan, Baja Jey Siug of
Ambdr, as the lieutenant of the king, commanded Bheem Sing of
Kotah and Guj Sing of Nurwar to intercept him in his passage. The
Hizam was the Pugri buddul Blrne, or f turban -exchanged brother/
of the Hara prince, and he sent him a friendly epistle, entreating
him “ not to credit the reports to his disadvantage, telling him that

■■'This is one more or the numerous inexplicable claims which the British.
Government has had to decide upon, since it became the universal arbitrator.
Neither party understanding their origin, the difficulty of a just decision must
be obvious. This sets it at rest.

470

ANNALS OF HARAVATI.

[CHAP, VIv

<e he had abstracted no treasures of the empire, and that Jey Sing
“ was a meddling knave, who desired the destruction of both ; and
“ urging him to heed him not, nor offer any molestation to his
“ passage to the south. 5 ’ The brave Hara replied, that “he knew
“the line between friendship and duty; he was commanded to
“ intercept him, and had advanced for that purpose; it was the king’s
te order ; fight him he must, and nest morning would attack him.”
The courtesy of the Rajpoot, who mingled no resentment with his
hostility, but, like a true cavalier, gave due warning of his intention,
was not thrown away upon the wily Mooslem. The Nizam took
post amidst the broken ground of the Sinde, near the town of
Koorwye Bhorasso. There was but one approach to his position
without a circuitous march, which suited not the impatient Rajpoot;
and there his antagonist planted a battery, masked by some brush-
wood. At the peela badul (morning-dawn), Raja Bkeem, having
taken his uml-pani, or opium-water, mounted his elephant, and
■uniting his vassals to those of the Cutchwaha, the combined clans
moved on to the attack, in one of those dense masses, with couched
lances, whose shock is irresistible. They were within musket-shot
of the Nizam : had they reached him, Hydrabad would never have
arisen on the ruins of Gowalcoond, the ancient Hai'a abode : but the
battery opened, and in an instant the elephants with their riders.
Raja Bheem and Raja Guj, were destroyed. Horse and foot became
commingled, happy to emerge from the toils into which the blind
confidence of their leaders had carried them; and Khilij Khan
pursued the career that destiny had marked out for him.

On this occasion the Haras sustained a double loss : their leader,
and their titular divinity, Brij-ndth , the god of Brij. This palladium
of the Haras is a small golden image, which is borne on the saddle-
bow of their princely leader in every conflict. When the gole is
formed and the lances are couched, the signal of onset is the shout
of ‘\Jy Brij-Ndthji /” “Victory to Brij-n&th !” and many a glorious
victory and many a glorious death has he witnessed. After being
long missing, the representative of the god was recovered and sent
to Kotah, to the great joy of every Hara. It was in S. 1 776 (A.D.
1720) that Bheem Sing perished, having ruled fifteen years, during
which short period he established the affairs of his little dominion
on a basis which has never been shaken.

The rivalry 'that commenced between the houses, when Hara
encountered Hara on the plains of Dholpoor, and each princely leader
sealed his fidelity to the cause he espoused with his blood, was
brought to issue by Raja Bheem, whose attack upon Rao Boodh of
Boondi, while defending the forlorn Keroksdr, has already been
related, though without its consequences. These were fatal to the
supremacy of the elder branch ; for, taking advantage of his position
and the expulsion of Rao Boodh, in which he aided. Raja Bheem
made an attempt upon Boondi, and despoiled that capital of all the
insignia of sovereign rule, its nalcarras, or kettle-drums, with the

CHAP. YI.]

KOTAH.

471

celebrated rin-sanlth, or war-shell, an heir-loom descended from the
hcoes of antiquitj*. Even the military baud, whoso various discor-
dant instruments are still in use, may bo heard in •pseudo coucerfc
from the guard -room over the chief gate of the citadel, at Kotah •
while the “ orange Hag,” the gift of Jeluingir to Rao Ruttnn, around
winch many a brave JLiara has breathed his last, is now used by the
junior house in all processions or battles.

To recover these ensigns of fallen dignity, manv a stratagem has
been tried. False keys of the city gates of Kotah and its citadel
had been procured, and its guards won over by bribery to favour
admission j but an unceasing vigilance defeated tho plan when on
the brink of execution : since winch, tho gates of Kotah are always
closed at sunset, and never opened even to the prince. This custom
has been attended with great lucouveiuenco ; of which the follow-
ing anecdote affords au instance. When Raja Doorjuu after his
defeat reached Kotah at midnight, with a few attendants, he called
aloud to the sentinel for admittance ; but the orders of the latter
were peremptory, and allowed of no discretion. The soldier desired
the Raja to be gone ; upon which, expostulation being vain, he
revealed himself as the prince. At this the soldier laughed ; but,
tired of importunity, bade his sovereign “ go to ‘hell,” levelled
his match-lock, and refused to calhlkc ollicer on guard. The prince
retired, and passed the night in a temple close at hand. At day-
break the gates were opened, and the soldiers were laughing at their
comrade's story of tho night, when the Raja appeared. All were
surprised, but most of all tbe sentinel, who, taking bis sword and
shield, placed them at his sovereign's feet, and in a manly but
respectful attitude awaited liis decision. The prince raised him, and
praising his fidelity, bestowed tbe dress he then wore upon him,
besides a gift of money.

The Kara chronicler states, that Raja Bheem's person was seamed
with scars, and so fastidious was he, through the fear of incurring
the imputation of vanity, that he never undressed m presence of
his attendants. Nor was it till his death-wound at Koorwye that this
singularity was explained, on one of his confidential servants express-
ing his surprise at tho numerous scars ; which brought this charac-
teristic reply ; “ He who is bom to govern Haras, and desires to
“ preserve bis land, must expect to get these : the proper post for a
, c< Rajpoot prince is ever at tho head of his vassals.''

Raja Bheern was the first prince of Kotah who had the dignity of
Pimj-hazari, or ‘ leader of five thousand,' conferred upon him. Ho
was likewise the first of his dynasty who boro tbe title of Maha-Rao ,
or f Great Prince ;' a title confirmed though not conferred by tho
paramount sovereign, but by tbe head of their own princely tribes,
Jho Rana of Mewar. Previous to Gopinatk of Boondi, whose issue
'are the great feudal chiefs of Haronti, their titular appellation was
' Apji } which has the same, import as herself (or rather himself),
applied to highland chiefs of Scotland 3 but when Indur Sal went

472

ANNALS OF HAKAVATJ.

[CHAP. VI.'

to Oodipoor, lie procured tlie title of Mahraja for himself aud his
brothers; since which Apji has been applied to the holders of the
secondary fiefs, the Madhani of Kotali. Raja Bheem left- three
sons, Arjoon Sing, Siam Sing, and Doorjun Sal.

Maha-Rao Arjoon married the sister of Madhu Sing, ancestor of
Zalim Sing Jhala; but died without issue, alter four years’ i ide.
On his death, there aioso a civil war respecting the succession, in
which the vassals were divided. Clan encountered clan in the field
of Oodipoora, when the, fate of Siam Sing was sealed iu his blood.'
It is said, the survivor would willingly have given up dominion to
have restored his brother to life ; that lie cursed his ambitious rash-
ness, and wept bitteily over the dead body. By these contentions,
the rich districts of Rampoora, Bhanpoorn, and Kalapote, which the
Ring had taken from the ancient family aud bestowed on Raja
Bheem, were lost to the Haras, and regained bt' their ancient
possessors. “ 7

Doorjun Sal assumed ‘ the rod’ in S. 1780 (A.D. 1724). His
accession was acknowledged by Mahomed Shah, the last of the
Timoorean kings who deserved the appellation, and at whose court
the prince of Kotali received the hhdlat and obtained tlie boon of
preventing the slaughter of kiue iu every part of the Jumna
frequented by his nation. Doorjun Sal succeeded on the eve of
an eventful period in the annals of his country. It was in his
reign that the Mahrattas under Bnjrao first invaded Hindustan.
On this memorable occasion, they passed by the Tarnj Pass, and
skirting Harouti on its eastern frontier, performed a service to
Doorjun Sal, by attacking and presenting to him the castle of
Nahrgurh, then held by a Mussulman chief. It was in S. 170 5*
(A.D. 1739), that, the first connexion between the Haras and the
‘ Southrons' 1 took place ; and this service of the Peshwa leader was
a return for stores and ammunition necessary for his enterprise.
But a few years only elapsed before tins friendly act and the gflod
understanding it .induced were forgotten.

We have recorded, iu the annals of Boondf, the attempts of the
princes of Amber, who were armed with the power of the monarchy,
to reduce the chiefs of Harouti to the condition of vassals. This
policy, originating with Jey Siug, was pursued by his successor,
who drove the gallant Boodh Sing into exile, to madness and death,
though the means by which he effected it ultimately recoiled upon
film, to his humiliation and destruction. Having, however, driven
Boodh Sing from Boonili, and imposed the condition of homage and
tribute upon the creature of his installation, he desired to inflict his
supremacy on Kotali. Iu this cause, in S. 1800, he invited the
three great Mahratta lenders, with the -Juts under Sooruj Mull, when,
after a severe conflict at Kotree, the city was invested. During

■''In tiiis year, when Bajrao invaded Himlostan, passing through Harouti,
Himmuti Sing- Jhala foujdar of Kotuh. In that year Seo Sing, and in the
succeeding, the celebrated Zalim Siug was bom.

chav. vi.]

KOTAH.

473

three months, every effort was made, “but in vain,- and after cutting
down tlio trees and .destroying the gardens in the environs, they
were compelled to decamp, the leader, Jey Appa Sindia, leaving one
of his hands, which was carried off by a cannon-shot.

Doorjun Sal was nobly seconded by the courage and counsel of the
Foujdar, or f commandant of the garrison/ Himmut Sing, a ltajpoot
of tho JR ala tribe. It was through Himmut Sing that the negotia-
tions were carried on, which added Nahrgurh to Kotah ; and to
him were confided those in which Kotah was compelled to follow tho
general denationalization, and become subservient to the Mahrattas.
Between these two events, S. 1795 and S. 1800, Zalim Sing was
born, a name of such celebrity, that his biography ivould embrace all
that remains to be told of the history of the Haras.

When Esuri Sing was foiled, the brave Doorjun Sal lent his
assistance to replace tho exiled Omeda on the throne which his
father had lost. But -without Holcar’s aid, this would have been'
vain; and, in S. 1805 (A.D. 1749), the year of Omeda 3 s restoration^
Kotah was compelled to become tributary to the Mahrattas.

Doorjun Sal added several places to his dominions. Ho took
B’hool-Burrode from the Kkeechies, aud attempted- the fortress of
Googore, which was bravely defended by Balbudur in person, who
created a league against the Hava composed of the chiefs of Rampoora,
Sheopoor, andBooudi. The standard of Kotah was preserved from
falling into the hands of the Kheechies by the gallantry of Omeda'
Sing of Boondi. The battle between the rival clans, both of Chohan
blood, was inS. 1810 ; and in three years more, Doorjun Sal departed
this life. He was a valiant prince, and possessed all the qualities of
which tho Rajpoot is enamoured; affability, generosity, and bravery.'
Ho was devoted to field-sports, especially the royal one of tiger-
hunting; and had Rnmnas or preserves in every corner of his
dominions (some of immense extent, with ditches and palisadoes,
and sometimes circumvallations), in all 'of which he erected hunting- •
seats.

In these expeditions, which resembled preparations for war, he
invariably carried the queens. These Amazonian ladies were taught the
use of the matchlock, and being placed upon the terraced-roofs of
the hunting-seats, sent their shots at the forest-lord, when driven
past their stand by the hunters. On one of these' occasions, tho
Jhala Fouj dar was at the foot of the scaffolding ;, the tiger, infuriated
with the uproar, appioached him open-mouthed ;. but the prince had
not yet given tho word,. and none dared to fire without this signaL
Tho animal eyed his victim, and was on the point of springing,
when the Jhala advanced his shield, sprung upon him, and with one
blow of bis sword laid him dead at his feet. The act was applauded
by the prince and his court, and contributed not a little to tho
character he bad already attained.

Doorjun Sal left no issue. He was married to a daughter of the
[Vox,. II.] 60

474

ANNALS OF HAEAVATI.

[CHAP. VI.

Rana of Mewar. Being of fceu disappointed, and at length despairing
of an heir, about three years before his death, he told the Rani it
was time to think of adopting an heir to fill the gadi, “ for it was
“ evident that the Almighty disapproved of the usurpation which
“ changed the order of succession.” It will be remembered that
Bishen Sing, son of Ram Sing, was set aside for refusing, in com-
pliance with maternal fears, to. accompany his father in the wars of
the Dekhan. When dispossessed of his birthright, he was established
in the fief of Antah on the Chumbul. At the death of Doorjun Sal,
Ajit Sing, grandson of the disinherited prince, was lord of Antah,
but he was in extreme old age.- He had three sons, and the eldest,
whose name of Chutter Sal revived ancient associations, was formally
“ placed in the lap of the Raul Mewari; the asees (blessing) was
“ given; he was' taught the names of his ancestors (being no longer
“ regarded as the sou of Ajit of Antah), Chutter Sing, son of Doorjun
“ Sal,Bheemsingote,Ram Sing,Kishore Sing, &c.,&c.,” and so on, to
the fountain-head, Dewa-Bango, and thence to Manik Rae, of Ajmer.
Though the adoption was proclaimed, and all looked to Chutter Sal
as the future lord of the Haras of Kotah, yet on the death of Doorjun,
the Jhala Foujdar took upon him to make an alteration in this
important act, and he had power enough to effect it. The old chief
of Antah was yet alive, and the Foujdar said, “ it was contrary to
“ nature that the son should rule and the father obey but doubtless
.other motives mingled with his piety, in which, besides self-interest,
may have been a consciousness of the danger's inseparable from a
minority. The only difficulty was to obtain the consent of the chief
himself, then "fourscore years and upwards,” to abandon his peaceful
castle on the Cali Sfnde for the caves of government. But the
Foujdar prevailed ; old Ajit was crowned, and survived his exalta-
tion two years and a half. Ajit left three sons, Chutter Sal, Goman
Sing, and Raj Sing.

Chutter Sal was proclaimed the Maha Rao of the Haras. The
celebrated Himmut Sing Jhala died before his accession, and his
office of Foujdar was conferred upon his nephew, Zalim Sing.

At this epoch, Madhu Sing, who had acceded to the throne of
Amber on the suicide of his predecessor, Esuri, instead of taking
warning by example, prepared to put forth all his strength for. the
revival of those tributary claims upon the Haras, which had cost his
brother his life. The contest was between Rajpoot and Rajpoot ;
the question at issue was supremacy on the one hand, and subser-
viency on the other, the sole plea for which was that the Hof ah
. contingent had acted under the princes of Arab dr, when lieutenants
of the empire. But the Haras held in utter scorn the attempt to
compel this service in their individual capacity, in which they only
recognized them as equals.

It was in S. 1817 (A.D. 1761), thatthe prince of Amber assembled
all his clans to force theHaras to acknowledge themselves tributaries.
The invasion of the Abdalli, which humbled the Mahrattas and put a

CHAP. VI.]

KOTAH.

475

stop to their pretensions to universal-sovereignty, left the Rajpoots to
themselves. Madhu. Sing, in. his march to Harouti, assaulted Ooniara,
and added it to his territory. Thence he proceeded to Lakhairi, which-
he took, driving out tho crest-fallen Southrons. Emboldened by this
success,, he crossed at the Pally Ghat, the point of confluence of the Par
and thcChumbul. The Hnra chieftain of Sooltanpore, whose duty was
tho defence of the ford, was taken by surprise ; but, like a true Hava, he
gathered his kinsmen outside his castle, and gave battle to the host.
Ho made amends for his supineness, and bartered his life for his
honour. It was remarked by the invaders, that, as he fell, his
clenched hand grasped the earth, which afforded merriment to some,
but serious reflection to those who knew the tribe, and who converted
it into an omen " that even in death the Hara would cling to his
“ land. 5 ’ The victors, flushed with this fresh success, proceeded
through the heart of Kotah, until they reached Butwarro, where
they found five thousand Haras, eh hemp ca beta, all c children of
one father/ drawn up to oppose them. The numerical odds were
fearful against Kotah •, but the latter were defending their altars and
their honour. The battle commenced with a desperate charge of the
whole Cutchwaha horse, far more numerous than the brave legion of
Kotah ; but, too confident of success, they had tired their horses ere
they joined. It was met by a dense mass, with perfect coolness, and
the Haras remained unbroken by the shock. Fresh numbers came
up ; the infantry joined the cavalry, and the battle became desperate
and bloody. It was at this moment that Zalim Sing made his debut.
He was then twenty-one years of age, and had already, as the
adopted son of Himmut Sing, " tied his turban on his head,” and
succeeded to his post- of Foujdar. While the battle was raging,
Zalim dismounted, and at the head of his quota, fought on foot, and
at the most critical moment obtained the merit of the victory, by
the first display of that sagacity for which he has been so remark-
able throughout his life.

Mulhar Rao Holcar was encamped in their vicinity, with the
remnant of his horde, but so crest-fallen since the fatal day of
•Panniput,* that he feared to side with either. At this moment,
young Zalim, mounting his ste6d, galloped to the Mahratta, and
implored him, if he would not fight, to move round and plunder tho
Jeipoor camp : a hint which needed no repetition.

The little impression yet made on the Kotah band only required
the report that " the camp was assaulted,” to convert the lukewarm
courage of their antagonists into panic and flight : " the host of
“ Jeipoor fled, while the sword of the Hara performed teerut
” (pilgrimage) in rivers of blood/’

The chiefs of Macherri, of Esurdeh, Watlco, Barrole, Atchrole, with
all the otes and awats of Amber, turned their backs on five thousand
Haras of Kotah ; for the Boondi troops, though assembled, did not

? It is singular enough, that Zalim Sing was born in the year of Haidar
Shah's invasion, and made his political entree in that o£ the Abdalli.

[Von. II.] 60 a

476

ANNALS OP HAKAVATI.

[CHAP. VII.

join, and lost the golden opportunity to free its hotrees, dr fiefs, from
the tribute. Many prisoners were taken, aud the five-coloured,
banner of Amber fell into the bands of tbe Haras, whose bal'd was
not slow to turn the incident to account in the stanza, still repeated
whenever he celebrates the victory of Butwarro, and in which the
star ( tarra ) of Zalim prevailed :

“ Jung Butwarro jeet
“ Tarra Zalim Jhala
“ Ring 61c rung cliurra '

“ Bung Panch-rung cci.”

“ In the battle of Butwarro, the star of Zalim was triumphant.
“ In that field of strife ( ringa ), but one colour (rung) covered that
“ of the five-coloured (panch-runga ) banner meaning -that the
Amber standard was dyed in blood.

The battle of Butwarro decided the question of tribute, nor has
the Cutchwaha since this day dared to advance the question of
supremacy; which, has lieutenant of the empire, he desired to transfer
to himself. In derision of this claim, ever since the day of Butwarro,
when the Haras assemble at their Champ de Mars to celebrate the
annual military festival, they make a mock castle of Amber, which
is demolished amidst shouts of applause.

Chutter Sal survived his elevation and this success but a few
years ; and as he died without offspring, he was succeeded by his
brother.

«

CHAPTER VII. •

Malta Rao Gomdn Sing. — Zalim Sing. — His birth, ancestry, and progress to
power. — Office of Foujdar becomes hereditary in his family. — His office and
estate resumed by Gomdn Sing. — He abandons Kotah. — Proceeds to Mcwar . —
Performs services to the Rana, and receives the title of Raj Rinna’, and
estates. — Serves against the Mahrattas . — Is wounded and made prisoner . —
Returns to Kotah. — Maliaratta invasion. — Storm of Bulcddnie. — Its glorious
defence. — Sacrifice of a dan. — Garrison of Sulceit destroyed. — Zalim Sing
employed. — His successful negotiation. — Restoration to power . — Rao Goman
constitutes Zalim guardian of Ms son Omed Sing, ivlio is proclaimed. — The
Tika-dour, or ‘raid of accession.’ — Capture of Kailwarra. — Difficulties of the
protector’s situation. — Cabal against his power. — Destruction of the conspi-
rators. — Exile of the nobles. — Sequestration of estates. — Conspiracy of Athoon.
— Predatory bands. — Athoon surrenders. — Exile oftheHara nobles. — Curtail-
ment of the feudal interests. — Conspiracy of Mosain. — Plan for the destruction
of the regent and family. — Mosain chief takes sanctuary in the temple. — Is
dragged forth and slain. — -Malta. Ilao’s brothers implicated in the pilot. — Their
incarceration and death. — Numerous projects against the life of the regent . —
F emale conspiracy. — How defeated. — The regent’s precautions.

Goman Sing, in S. 1822 (A.D. 1766), ascended the gadi of his
ancestors. Ho was in the prime of manhood, full of vigonr and

<3 HAP. VII.]

KQTAH.

477

intellect^ and well calculated to contend witli tlie tempests collecting
from tlie south, ready to pour on the devoted lands of Rajpootana,
But one short lustrum of rule was all that fate had ordained for him,
when lie was compelled to resign his rod of power into the hands of
an infant. But ere we reach this period, we must retrace our steps,
and introduce more prominently the individual whose biography is
the future history of this state ; for Zalim Sing is Kotah, his name
being not only indissolubly linked with ker’s in every page of her
existence, but incorporated with that of every state of Rajpootana
for more than half a century. He was the privmm mobile of the
region ho inhabited, a sphere far too confined for his genius, which
required a wider field for its display, and might have controlled the
destinies of nations.

Zalim Sing is a Rajpoot of the Jkala tribe. He was born in S.
1796 (A.D. 1740), an ever memorable epoch (as already observed) in
the history of India, when the victorious Nadir Shah led his hordes
into her fertile soil, and gave the fiuisking blow to the dynasty of
Timour. But for this event, its existence might have been protract-
ed, though its recovery was hopeless : the principle of decay had
been generated by the policy of Arungzeb. Mahomed Shah was at
this time emperor of India, and the valiant Doorjun Sal sat on the
throne of Kotah. Prom this period (A.D. 1740), five princes have
passed away and a sixth has been enthroned ; and, albeit one of these
reigns endured for half a century, Zalim Sing has outlived them all,*
and though blind, his moral perceptions are as acute as on the day
of Butwarro. What a chain of events does not this protracted life
embrace ! An empire then dazzling in glory, and now mouldering in
the dust. At its opening, the highest noble of Britain would have
stood at a reverential distance from the throne of Timour, in the
attitude of a suppliant, and now,

“None so poor

“ As do him reverence/’

To do anything like' justice to the biography of one who for so
long a period was a prominent actor in the scene, is utterly

impossible; this consideration, however, need not prevent our
attempting a sketch of this consummate politician, who can scarcely .
find a parallel in the varied page of history.

The ancestors of Zalim Sing were petty chieftains of Hulwud, in
the district of Jhalawar, a subdivision of the Saurashtra peninsula.
Bhao Sing was a younger son of this family, who, with a few
adherents, left the paternal roof to seek fortune amongst the
numerous conflicting armies that ranged India during the contests for
supremacy amongst the sons of Arungzeb. His son, Madhu Sing,
came to Kotah when Raja Bheem was in the zenith of his power.
Although he had only twenty-five horse in his train, it is a proof of
the respectability of the Jkala, that the prince disdajned not his
alliance, and even married his son, TJrjoon, to the young adventurer’s

* This was written in A.D. 1821, when Maka ltao Kiskore Sing succeeded.

478

ANNALS OF HAEAVATI.

[CHAP. VIU

sister. Not long after, tlie estate of Nandta was entailed upon him,
witli the confidential post of Foujdar, wlaicli includes not only the
command of the troops, but that of the castle, tlie residence of the
sovereign. This family connexion gave an interest to his authority,
and procured him the respectful title of Mdmdh,* from the younger
branches of the prince’s family, an epithet which habit has continued
to his successors, who are always addressed Mdmdh Saheb, ‘ Sir,
Uncle !’ Muddun Sing succeeded his father in the office of Foujdar.
He had two sons, Himmut Sing, and Pirthi Sing.

Bbao Sing, left, Hulwad with twenty -five horse.

Madhu Sing.

Muddun Sing.

Himmut Sing. Pirthi Sing.

Seo Sing, Zalim Sing,

born in S. 1795. born in S. 1796.

I

Madhu Sing,
present regent.

Bappa Loll,

twenty-one years of age.

The office of Foujdar which, like ail those of the east, had become
hereditary, was advantageously filled by Himmut Sing, whose
bravery and skill were conspicuous on many trying emergencies.
He directed, or at least seconded, the defence of Kotah, when first
assailed by the combined Mahratta and Jeipoor troops, and con-
ducted the treaty which made her tributary to the former, till at
length so identified was his influence with that of the Haras, that
with their concurrence he restored the ancient line of succession.
Though neither the prince, Doorjun Sal, nor his Major Fouio, had
much merit in this act, it was made available by Zalim Sing in
support of his pretensions to power, and in proof of the ingratitude
of his sovereign, “ whose ancestors recovered their rights at the
“ instigation of his own.” But Zalim Sing had no occasion to go
back to the virtues of his ancestors for an argument on which to base
his own claims to authority. He could point to the field of J3ut-
warro, where his bravery and skill mainly ;_'ied to vanquish the
enemies of Kotah, and to crush for ever those arrogant pretensions
to supremacy which the Jeipoor state strained every nerve to
establish.

It was not long after the accession of Gorman Sing to-tlie sceptro
of the' Haras, that the brave and handsome Major Fomo , having
dared to cross his master’s path in love, lost his favour, and the
office of Foujdar, which he had attained in his twenty-first year. It

* Mdmdh is ‘ maternal uncle Kaha, ' paternal uncle.’

CHAP. VII.] . K0TAH. 479

is probable be evinced little contrition for bis offence, for tbe con-
fiscation of Nandta soon followed. This estate, on tbe west bank of
tbe Cbumbul, still enjoyed as a fief in perpetuity by tbe Jbala
family, was tbe original appanage of tbe Kotab state when a
younger branch of Boondi. From hence may be inferred tbe con-
sideration in which tbe Jhala ancestor of our subject was held,
which conferred upon him the heir-loom of the house. Both the
office and the estate thereto attached, thus resumed, were bestowed
upon the maternal uncle of the prince, Bhoput Sing, of the Banknote
tribe. By this step, the door of reconciliation being closed against
the young Jbala, he determined to abandon the scene of his disgrace,
and court fortune elsewhere. He was not long in determining the
path be should pursue : Amber was shut against him, and Manvar
held out no field for bis ambition. Me war was at band, and a chief
of bis own tribe and nation then ruled the councils of Ban a TTrSi,
who had lately succeeded to power, but a power paralyzed by faction
and by a Pretender to the throne. The Jhala chieftain of Dailwarra,
one of the sixteen great barons of Mewar, had headed the party
which placed his sovereign on the throne ; and he felt no desire to
part with tbe influence which this service give him. He entertained
foreign guards about the person of his prince, and distributed estates
at pleasure among those who supported his measures ; while from
the crown domain, or from the estates of those who were hostile to
his influence, he seized upon lands, which doubled bis possessions.
Such was the court of Rana Ursi, when the ex-Major Domo of
Kotab came to seek a new master. His reputation at once secured
him a reception, and his talents for finesse, already developed, made
the Rana confide to him the subjection in which he was held by bis
own vassal-subject. It was then that Zalim, a youth and a stranger,
shewed that rare union of intrepidity and caution, which has made
him the wonder of the age. By a most daring plan, which cost tbe
Dailwarra chief bis life, in open day and surrounded by attendants,
tbe Bana was released from this odious tutelage. For this service,
tbe title of Raj Rinna ,* and the estate of Cheeturkbaira on the
southern frontier were conferred upon Zalim, who was now a noble
of the second rank in Mewar. The rebellion still continued, however,
and tbe pretender and bis faction 'sought tbe aid of the Mahrattas ;
but under tbe vigorous councils of Zalim, seconded by tbe spirit of
tbe Bana, an army was collected which gave battle to the combined
rebels and Mahra: °is. The result of this day has already been
related.']* The Bana was discomfited and lost the flower of his
nobles when victory was almost assured to them, and Zalim was
left wounded and a prisoner in the field. He fell into the hands of
Trimbuck Bao, the father of the celebrated Umbaji Inglia, and the
friendship then formed materially governed the future actions of bis
life.

The loss of this battle left the Bana and Mewar at the mercy of

* Not liana, which he puts upon his seal.

f See Yol. I, p. 367.

480

ANNALS Off HAEAVATI.

[CHAP. VII.

the conqueror. Oodipoor was invested, and capitulated, after a noble
defence, upon terms which perpetuated her thraldom. Zalim, too
•wise to cling to the fortunes of a falling house, instead of returning
to Oodipoor, bent his steps to Kotah, in company with the Pundit,
Lallaji Belial, the faithful partaker of his future fortunes. Zalim
foresaw the storm about to spread over Bajwarra, and deemed him-
self equal to guide and avert it from ICotah, while the political
levity of M<iwar gave him little hopes of success at that court.

Baja Goman, however, had neither forgotten nor forgiven his
competitor, and refused to receive him : but in no wise daunted, he
trusted to his* address, and thrust himself unbidden on the prince.
The moment he chose proved favourable ; and he was not only
pardoned, but employed.

The Mahrattas had now reached the southern frontier, and
invested the castle of Bukaeuie, which was defended by four hundred
Haras of the Sawunt clan,* under its chief, Madhff Sing. ' The enemy
had been foiled in repeated attempts to escalade, and it furnishes a
good idea of the inadequate means of the ‘Southrons’ for the opera-
tions of a siege, when their besieging apparatus was confined to an
elephant, whose head was the substitute for a petard, to burst open
tbe gate. Bepeated instances, however, piove that this noble animal
is fully equal to the task, and would have succeeded on this occasion,
had not the intrepidity of the Hara chieftain prompted one of those
desperate exploits which fill the pages of their annals. Armed with
his dagger, Madhii Sing leaped from the walls upon the back of the
elephant, stabbed the rider, and with repeated blows felled .the
animal to the earth. That he should escape could not be expected ;
hut his death and the noble deed kindled such enthusiasm, that his
clan threw wide the gate, and rushing sword in hand amidst the
multitude, perished to a mau. But they died not unavenged:
thirteen hundred of the bravest of the Mahrattas accompanied them
to Suraloca, the warriors’ heaven. The invaders continued their
inroad, and invested Snlieit : but the prince sent his commands to
the garrison to preserve their lives for Kotah, and not again sacrifice
them, as the point of honour had been nobly maintained. Accord- »
ingly, at midnight, they evacuated the place ; but whether from
accident or treachery, the grass jungle which covered their retreat
was set fire to, and cast so resplendent a ligbk. that the brave
garrison had to fight tbeir way against despera ce odds, and many
were slain. Mulbar Holcar, who had been great]/ disheartened'at
the loss sustained at Buk&enie, was revived at this success, and
prepared to follow it- up. Baja Goman deemed it advisable to try.
negotiation, and’the Bankrote Foujdar was sent with full powers to
ti*eat with the Mahratta commander; but be failed and' returned!

Such was the moment chosen by young Zalim to force himself
into the presence of his offended prince. In all probability he

CHAP. VII.]

KOTAH.

481

mentioned the day at Butwarro, -whereby his courage, and still
more by his tact, he released Kotah from the degradation of being
subordinate to Arnbdr; and that it was by his influence with the
same Mulhar Holcar, who now threatened Kotah, he was enabled to
succeed. He was invested with full jiowers ; the negotiation was
renewed, and terminated successfully : for the sum of six lacs of
rupees, the Maliratta leader withdrew his horde from the territory
of Kotah. His prince’s favour was regained, his estate restored, and
the unsuccessful negotiator lost the office of Foujdar, into which
young Zalim was re-inducted. But scarcely had he recovered his
rights, before Goman Sing was taken grievously ill, and all hopes of
his life were relinquished. To whom could the dying prince look
at such a moment, as guardian of his infant son, but the person
whose skill had twice saved the state from peril ? He accordingly
proclaimed his will to his chiefs, and with all due solemnity placed
Omdd Sing, then ten years .of age, “ in the lap” of Zalim Sing.

Om6d Sing was proclaimed in S. 1827 (A.D. 1771). On the day
of inauguration, the ancient Rajpoot custom of the tilcci-dour was
revived, and the conquest of Kailwarra from the house of Ndrwar
marked with ecldt the accession of the Maha Rao of the Haras of
Kotah, and gave early indication that the genius of the Regent
would not sleep in his office of Protector. More than half a century
of rule, amidst the most appalling vicissitudes, has amply confirmed
the prognostication.

The retention of a power thus acquired, it may be concluded,
could never be effected without severity, nor the vigorous authority,
wielded throughout a period beyond the ordinary limits of mortality,
be sustained" without something more potent than persuasion. Still,
when we consider Zalim’ s perilous predicament, and the motives to
perpetual re-action,. his acts of severity are fewer than might have
been expected, or than occur in the course of usurpation under
similar circumstances. Mature reflection initiated all his measures,
and the sagacity of their conception was only equalled by the
rapidity of their execution. Whether the end in view was good or
evil, nothing was ever half-done ; no spark was left to excite future
conflagration. Even this excess of severity was an advantage ; it
restrained the repetition of what, whether morally right or wrong,
he was determined not to tolerate. To pass a correct judgment on
these acts is most difficult. What in one case was a measure of
barbarous severity, appears in another to have been one indispen-
sable to the welfare of the state. But thisisnotthe place to discuss
the character or principles of the Regent ; let us endeavour to unfold
both in the exhibition of those acts which have carried him through
the most tempestuous sea of political convulsion in the whole history
of India. When nought but revolution and rapine stalked through
the land, when state after state was crumbling into dust, or sinking
into the abyss of ruin, he guided the vessel entrusted to his care
safely through all dangers, adding yearly to her riches, until lie
placed her in security under the protection of Britain.

[Vox,. II.]

61

482

AKNALS OP HARAVATI.

[CHAP. VII.

Scarcely had Zalim assumed the protectorate, when he was com-
pelled to make trial of those MachiaveTian powers which have never
deserted him, in order to baffle the schemes devised to oppose him.
The duties of Foujdar, to which he had hitherto been restricted
were entirely of a military nature ; though, as it involved the charge
of the castle, in which the sovereign resided, it brought him in
contact with his councils. This, however, afforded no plea for
interference in the dewdm , or civil duties of the government, in
which, ever since his own accession to power’, he had a co-adjutor in
Rae Akirarn, a man of splendid talents, and who had been Dewan
or prime minister throughout the reign of OhutterSal and the greater
part of that of his successor. To his counsel is mainly ascribed the
advantages gained by Kotah throughout these reigns ; yet did he
fall a sacrifice to jealousies a short time before the death of his prince,
Gfom&n Sing. It is not affirmed that they were the suggestions of
young Zalim ; but AkiranPs death left him fewer competitors to
dispute the junction in his own person of the civil as well as military
authority of the state. Still he had no slight opposition to overcome,
in the very opening of his career. The party which opposed the
pretensions of Zalim Sing to act as Regent of the state, asserting
that no such power had been bequeathed by the dying prince,
consisted of his cousin, the Mahraja Suroop Sing, and the Bankrote
chief, whose disgrace brought Zalim into power. There was, besides,
the Dhabhae Juskurn, foster-brother to the prince, a man of talent
and credit, whose post, being immediately about his person, afforded
opportunities for carrying their schemes into effect. Such was the
powerful opposition arrayed against the Protector in the very com-
mencement of his career. The conspiracy was hardly formed,
however, before it was extinguished by the murder of the Mahraja
by the hands of the Dhabhae, the banishment of the assassin, and
the flight of the Bankrote. The rapidity with which this drama
was enacted struck terror into all. The gaining over 'the foster-
brother, the making him the instrument, of punishment and banish-
ing him for the ci'ime, acted like a spell and appeared such a
masterpiece of daring and subtilty combined, that no one thought
himself secure. There had been no cause of discontent between the
Mahraja and the Dhabhae, to prompt revenge ; yet did the latter, in
the glare of open day, rush upon him in the garden of Vrij-Yulas,
and with a blow of his scimitar end his days. The Regent was the
loudest in execrating the author of the ci’ime, whom he instantly
seized and confined, and soon after expelled from Harouti. But
however well acted, this dissimulation passed not with the world;
and, whether innocent or guilty, they lay to Zalim'’ s charge the plot
for the murder of the Mahraja. The Dhabhae died in exile and
contempt at Jeipoor ; and in abandoning him to his fate without
provision, Zalim, if guilty of the deed, shewed at once his knowledge
and contempt of mankind. Had he added another murder to the
first, and in the fury of an affected indignation become the sole
depository of his secret, he would only have increased the suspicion

CHAP. VII.]

KOTAH.

483

of tlie world ; but in turning the culprit loose on society to proclaim
bis participation in tbe crime, be neutralized tbe reproach by destroy-
ing the credibility of one who was a self-convicted assassin when be
bad it in bis power to check its circulation. In order to unravel
this tortuous policy, it is necessary to state that tbe Dhabkae was
seduced from tbe league by tbe persuasion of tbe Regent, who
insinuated that tbe Habraja formed plans inimical to tbe safety of
tbe young prince, and that bis own elevation was tbe true object of
bis hostility to tbe person entrusted with tbe charge of tbe minor
sovereign. Whatever truth there might be in this, which might be
pleaded in justification of the foul crime, it was attended with the
consequences he expected. Immediately after, the remaining member
of the adverse junta withdrew, and at the same time many of the
nobles abandoned their estates and their country. Zalim evinced
bis contempt of their means of resistance by granting them free
egress from the kingdom, and determined to turn their retreat to
account. They went to Jeipoor and to Jodpoor; but troubles
prevailed everywhere; the princes could with difficulty keep the
prowling Makratta from their own doors, and possessed neither
funds nor inclination to enter into foreign quarrels for objects which
would only increase their already superabundant difficulties. The
event turned out as Zalim anticipated ; and the princes, to whom the
refugees were suitors, had a legitimate excuse in the representations
of the Regent, who described them as rebels to their sovereign and
parties to designs hostile to his rule. Some died abroad, and some,
sick of wandering in a foreign land dependant on its bounty, solicited
as a boon that their “ ashes might be burned with their fathers . 5 55
In granting this request, Zalim evinced that reliance on himself,
which is the leading feature of his character. He permitted their
return, but received them as traitors who had abandoned their prince
and their country, and it was announced to them, as an act of
clemency, that they were permitted to live upon a part of their
estates; which, as they bad been voluntarily abandoned, were
sequestrated and belonged to the crown.

Such was Zalim Sing's triumph over the first faction formed
against his assumption of the full powers of Regent of Kotak. Not
only did the aristocracy feel humiliated, but were subjugated by the
rod of iron held over them ; and no opportunity was ever thrown
away of crushing this formidable body, which in these states too
often exerts its pernicious influence to tbe ruin of society. The
thoughtlessness of character so peculiar to Rajpoots, furnished
abundant opportunities for the march of an exterminating policy,
and, at the same time, afforded reasons which justified it.

The next combination was more formidable ; it was headed by
Deo Sing of Athoon, who enjoyed an estate of sixty thousand rupees
rent. He strongly fortified his castle, and was joined by all the
discontented nobles, determined to get rid of the authority which
crushed them. Tbe Regent well knew tbe spirits be had to cope
[Von. II.] 61a

ANNALS Of HAEAVATI.

[CHAP. VII.

4§4

with, and that the power of the state was insufficient. By means
of “ the help of Moses” (such is the interpretation of Hoosa Mudut,
his auxiliary on this occasion), this struggle against his authority
also only served to confirm it ; and their measures recoiled on the
heads of the feudality. The condition of society since the dissolution
of the imperial power was most adverse to the institutions of
Rajwarra, the unsupported valour of whose nobles was no match for
the mercenary force which their rulers could now always command
from those bands, belongingto no government, but roaming whither
they listed over this vast region, in search of pay or plunder. The
“ help of Moses” was the leader of one of these associations, — a name
well-known in the history of that agitated period; and he not only
led a well-appointed infantry brigade, but had an efficient park
attached to it, which was brought to play against Athoon. It held
out several months, the garrison meanwhile making many sallies,
which it required the constant vigilance of Moses to repress. At
length, reduced to extremity, they demanded and obtained an
honourable capitulation, being allowed to retire unmolested whither
they pleased. Such was the termination of this ill-orgauized
insurrection, which involved almost all the feudal chiefs of Kotak in
exile and ruin, and strengthened the Regent, or as he would say, the
state, by the escheat of the sequestrated property. Deo Sing of
Athoon, the head of this league, died in exile. After several years
of lamentation in a foreign soil for th e-junum bitom , the f land of
their birth/ the son pleaded for pardon, though his heart denied all
crime, and was fortunate enough to obtain his recall, and the estate of
Bamolia, of fifteen thousand rupees I’ent. The inferior members of
the opposition were treated with the same contemptuous clemency ;
they were admitted into Kotah, but deprived of the power of doing
mischief. What stronger proof of the political courage of the Regent
can be adduced, than his shutting up such combustible materials
within the social edifice, and even living amongst and with them, as
if he deserved their friendship rather than their hatred.

In combating such associations, and thus cementing his power,
time passed away. His marriage with one of the distant branches
of the royal house of Mdwar, by whom he had his son and successor
Madhfi. Sing, gave Zalim an additional interest in the affairs of that
disturbed state, of which he never lost sight amidst the troubles
which more immediately concerned him. The motives which, in
S. 1847' (A.D. 1791), made him consider for a time the interests of
Kotah as secondary to those of Mewar*, are related at length in the
annals of that state;* and the effect of this policy on the prosperity
of Kotah, drained of its wealth in the prosecution of his views, will
appear on considering the details of his system. Referring the
reader, therefore, to the Annals of Mewar, we shall pass from
S. 1847 to S. 1856 (A.D. 1800), when another attempt was made by
the chieftain to throw off the iron yoke of the Protector.

* Yol. I, p. 380.

CHAP. VII.]

KOTAH.

485

Many attempts at assassination had been tried, but his vigilance
baffled them all ; though no bold enterprize was hazarded since the
failure of that (in S-. 1833) which ended in the death and exile of its
contriver, the chieftain of Athoon, until the conspiracy of Mohsain,
in S. 1856, just twenty years ago.* Bahadoor Sing, of Mohsain, a
chieftain of ten thousand rupees’ annual rent, was the head of this
plot, which included every chief and family whose fortunes had been
annihilated by the exterminating policy of the Regent. It was
conducted with admirable secrecy ; if known at all, it was to Zalim
alone, and not till on the eve of accomplishment. The proscription-
list was long ; the Regent, his family, his friend and counsellor the
Pundit Lallaji, were amongst the victims marked for sacrifice. The
moment for execution was that of his proceeding to hold his court,
in open day; and the mode was by a coup tie main whose very
audacity would guarantee success. It is said that he was actually
in progress to durbar, when the danger was revealed. The paega ,
or ‘'select troop of horse’ belonging to his friend and always at hand;
was immediately called in and added to the guards about his person ;
thus the conspirators were assailed when they deemed the prey
rushing into the snare they had laid. The surprise was complete ;
many were slain ; some were taken, others fled. Amongst the latter
was the head of the conspiracy, Bahadoor Sing, who gained the
Chumbul, and took refuge in the temple of the tutelary deity of the
Haras at Patun. But he mistook the character of the Regent when
he supposed that either the sanctuary ( sirna ) of Kesliorae, or the
respect due to the prince in whose dominions (Boondi) it lay, could
shield him from his fate. He was dragged forth, and expiated his
crime or folly with his life.

According to the apologists of the Regent, this act was one of just
retribution, since it was less to defend himself and his immediate
interests than those of the prince whose power and existence were
threatened by the insurrection, which had for its object his deposal
and the elevation of one of his brothers. The 'members of the ilaha '
Rao’s family at this period were his uucle Raj Sing, and his two
brothers, Gordhun and Gopal Sing. Since the rebellion of Athoon,
these princes had been under strict surveillance ; but after this
instance of re-action, in which their names were implicated as hav-
ing aspired to supplant their brother, a more rigorous seclusion was
adopted ; and the rest of their days was passed in solitary confine-
ment. Gordhun, the elder, died about ten years after his incarcera-
tion ; the younger, Gopal, lived many years longer ; but neither
from that day quitted the walls of their prison, until death released
them from this dreadful bondage. Kaka Raj Sing lived to extreme
old age ; but, as he took no part in these turmoils, he remained
unmolested, having the range of the temples in the city, beyond
which limits he had no wish to stray.

We may in this place introduce a slip from the genealogical tree

* This was written at K^otali, in S. 1876 (A.D. 1820.)

486

ANNALS -OF HABAVATI.

[CHAP. VII.

of the forfeited branch of Bishen Sing, but which, in the person’ of
bis grandson Ajeet, regained its rights and the gadt. The fate of
this family will serve as a specimen of the policy pursued by the
Begent towards the feudal interests of Kotah. It is appalling, when
thus marshalled, to view the sacrifices which the maintenance of
power will demaudin these feudal states, where individual will iBlaw.

The plots against the existence and authority of the Protector
were of every description, and no less than eighteen are enumerated,
which his nevei’-slumbering vigilance detected and baffled. The
means were force, open and concealed, poison, the dagger, — until at
length he became sick of precaution. “ I could not always be on my
u guai’d,” he would say. But the most dangerous of all was a female
conspiracy, got up in the palace, and which discovers an amusing
mixture of tragedy and farce; although his habitual wariness would
not have saved him from being its victim, had he not been aided by
the boldness of a female champion from a regard for the personal
attractions of the handsome Regent. He was suddenly sent for by
the queen-mother of one of the younger princes, and while waiting
in an antichamber, expecting every instant “ the voice behind the
<e curtain ,” he found himself encircled by a band of Amazonian Raj-
pootnis, armed with sword and dagger, from whom, acquainted as he
was with the nerve, physical and moral, of his country women, he
saw no hope of salvation. Fortunately, they were determined not
to be satisfied merely with his death ; they put him upon his trial ;
and the train of interrogation into all the acts of his life was goiug
on, when his preserving angel, in the shape of the chief attendant of
the dowager queen, a woman of masculine strength and courage,
rushed in, and with strong dissembled anger, drove him forth amidst
a torrent of abuse for presuming to be found in such a predicament.

White bathing, and .during the heat of the chase, his favourite
pursuit, similar attempts have been made, but they always recoiled
on the heads of his enemies. Yet, notwithstanding the multitude of
these plots, which would have unsettled the reason of many, he
never allowed a blind suspicion to add to the victims of his policy ;
and although, for his personal security, he was compelled to sleep in
an iron cage, he never harboured unnecessary alarm, that parent of
crime and blood in all usurpations. His lynx-like eye saw at once
who was likely to invade bis authority, and these knew their peril
from the vigilance of a system which never relaxed. Entire self-
reliance, a police such as perhaps no country in the world could
equal, establishments wellpaid, services liberally rewarded, character
and talent in each department of the state, himself keeping a strict
watch over all, and trusting implicity to none, with a daily personal
supervision of all this complicated state-machinery — such was tbo
system which surmounted every peril, and not only maintained, but
increased the power and political reputation of Zalim Sing, amidst
the storms of war, rapine, treason, and political convulsions of more
than half a century’s duration.

-CHAP. YIH.]

KOTAH.

487

CHAPTER VIII.

-Zalim regarded as a legislator. — His ’political views on Mewar. — Kotah
sacrificed thereto. — His tyranny. — His superstition. — Malces a tour of Ms
dominions. — Establishes a permanent camp. — Trains an army. — Adopts
European arms and discipline. — Revises the revenue system of Harouti. — The
Patel system described. — Council of Four.— Extent of jurisdiction. — The
Bohoras described. — Their utility in the old farming system of India. — Patels
usurp their influence. — Depression of the peasantry. — Patels circumvented,
imprisoned, and fined. — Patel system destroyed. — Return to the old system.
— Moral estimation of the peasant of Rajpootana. — Modes of realizing the
land-revenue described. — Advantages and disadvantages.

We are now to examine the Protector in another point of view,
as the legislator and manager of the state whose concerns he was
thus determined to rule. For a series of years, Kotah was but
the wet-nurse to the child of his ambition, a design upon Mewar,
which engulphed as in a vortex all that oppression could extort from
the industry of the people confided to his charge. From his first
acquaintance with the court of the Ran a, in S. 1827, to the year
1856, he never relinquished the hope of extending the same measure
-of authority over that state whioh he exerted in his own. To the
prosecution of this policy Harouti was sacrificed, and the cultivator
lowered to the condition of a serf. In the year 1840, oppression
was at its height ; the impoverished ryot, no longer able to pay the
extra calls upon his industry, his cattle and the implements of his
labour distrained, was reduced to despair. Many died from distress;
some fled, but where could they find refuge in the chaos around
them ? The greater part were compelled to plough for hire, with
the cattle and implements once their own, the very fields, their free-
bold, which had been torn from them. From this system of uni-
versal impoverishment, displayed at length in unthatched villages
and untilled lands, the Regent was compelled to become farmer-
general of Kotab.

Fortunately for his subjects, and for his own reputation, his sense
of gratitude and friendship for the family of Inglia, — whose head,
Balia Rao, was then a prisoner in Mewar, — involved him, in the
attempt to obtain bis release, in personal conflict with the Rana, and
he was compelled to abandon for ever that long-cherished object of
his ambition . It was then he perceived he had sacrificed the wel-
fare of all classes to a phantom, and his vigorous understanding
suggested a remedy, which was instantly adopted.

Until the conspiracy of Mohsain in S. 1S56, the Regent had resided
in the castle, acting the part of the maire du palais of the old
French monarchy ; but on his return from the release of Balia Rao,
in S. 1860 (AD. 1808-4), when the successes of the British arms
disturbed the combination of the Mahrattas, and obliged them to
send forth their disunited bauds to seek by rapine wbat they bad
lost by our conquests, the Regent perceived the impolicy of such

488

ANNALS OF HAEAVATJ.

[CHAP. YIIIj

permanent residence, and determined to come nearer to the point of
danger. He had a double motive, each of itself sufficiently powerful
to justify the change : the first was a revision of the revenue system;
the other, to seek a more central position for a disposable camp,”
which he might move to any point threatened by these predatory
bodies. Though these were doubtless the real incentives to the
project, according to those who ought to have known the secret
impulse of his mind, the change from the castle on the Chumbul to
the tented field proceeded from no more potent cause than an
ominous owl, telling his tale to the moon from the pinnacle of his
mansion. A meeting of the astrologers, and those versed in prodi-
gies, was convened, and it was decided that it would be tempting
honhar (fate) to abide longer in that dwelling. If this were the
true motive, Zalim Sing’s mind only shared the grovelling supersti-
tion of the most illustrious and most courageous of his nation, to
whom there was no presage more apalling than a googoo on the
house-top. But, in all likelihood, this was a political owl conjured
up for the occasion ; one seen only in the mind’s eye of the Regent,
and serving to cloak his plans.

The soothsayers having in due form desecrated the dwelling of the
Protector, he commenced a perambulation and survey of the, long-
neglected territory, within which he determined henceforth to limit
his ambition. He then saw, and perhaps felt for, the miseries his
mistaken policy had occasioned ; but the moral evil was consum-
mated; he had ruined the fortunes of one-third of the agriculturists/
and the rest were depressed and heart-broken. The deficiency in
his revenues spoke a truth no longer to be misinterpreted; for his
credit was so low in the mercantile world at this period, that his
word and his bond were in equal disesteem. Hitherto he had shut
his ears against complaint ; but funds were necessary to forward
his views, and all pleas of inability were met by confiscation. It
was evident that this evil, if not checked, must ultimately denude
the state of the means of defence, and the fertility of his genius pre-
sented various modes of remedy. He began by fixing upon a spot
near the strong fortress of Gagrown, for a permanent camp, where he
continued to reside, with merely a shed over his tent : and although
the officers and men of rank had also thrown up sheds, he would
admit of nothing more. All the despatches and newspapers were
dated f from the Ohdonif or camp.

The situation selected was most judicious, being nearly equi-
distant from the two principal entrances to Harouti from the south,
and touching the most insubordinate part of the Bhil population;,
while he was close to the strong castles of Shirgurh and Gagrown,
which he strengthened with the utmost care, making the latter the
depot of his treasures and his arsenal. He formed an army ; adopted
the European arms and discipline ; appointed officers with the title
of captain to his battalions, which had a regular' nomenclature, and
his c royals 5 ( Raj Pultun) have done as gallant service as any that

CHAP. Till.]

KOTAH.

489

ever bore the. name. These were ready at a moment’s warning to
move to any point, against any foe. Moreover, by this change, he
was extricated from many perplexities and delays which a residence
in a capital necessarily engenders.

Up to this period of his life, having been immersed in the troubled
sea of political intvigue, the Protector had no better knowledge of
the systems of revenue and landed economy than other JRangra
chieftains ,• and he followed the immemorial usage termed lat’ha and
luttaie , or rent in kind by weight or measure, in proportion to the
value of the soil or of the product. The Regent soon found the dis-
advantages of this system, which afforded opportunity for oppression
on the part of the collectors, and fraud on that of the tenant, both
detrimental to the government, and serving only to enrich that
vulture, the Patel. ■ When this rapacious, yet indispensable medium
between the peasant and ruler, leagued with the collectors — and
there was no control to exaction beyond the conscience of this con-
pt-'tuted attorney of each township, either for the assessment or
collection — and when, as we have so often stated, the Regent cared
not for the means so that the supplies were abundant, nothing but
ruin could ensue to the ryot.

«

Having made himself master of the complicated details of the
buttaie, and sifted every act of chicanery by the most inquisitorial
process, he convoked all the Patels of the country, and took their
depositions as to the extent of each •p&teli their modes of collection,
their credit, character, and individual means ; and being thus enabled
to form a rough computation of the size and revenues of each, he
recommenced his tour, made a chaJclundt, or measurement of the
lands of each township, and classified them, according to soil and
fertility, as peeival, or irrigated ; gorvia, of good soil, but dependant
on the heavens; and mormi, including pasturage and mountain-
tracts. He then, having formed an average from the accounts of
many years, instituted a fixed money-rent, and declared that the
battaie system, or that of payment in kind, was at an end. But
even in this he shewed severity ; for he reduced the jureeb, or
standard measure, by a third, and added a fourth to his averages.
Doubtless he argued that the profit which the Patdls looked forward
to would admit of this increase, and determined that his vigilance
should be more than a match for their ingenuity.

Having thus adjusted the rents of the fisc, the dues of the Patel
were fixed at one and a half annas per beega on all the .lands con-
stituting a pateli ; and as his personal lands were on a favoured
footing and paid a much smaller rate than the royts, he was led to
understand that any exaction beyond what was authorized would
subject him to confiscation. Thus the dues on collection would
realize to the Patel from five to fifteen thousand rupees annually.
The anxiety of these men to be reinstated in their trusts was evinced
by the immense offers they made, of ten, twenty, and even fifty
thousand rupees. At one stroke he put ten lacs, or £100,000 ster-
[Von. II.] 62

490

ANNALS ON HAEAVATI.

[CHAP. VIII.

ling, into his exhausted treasury, by the amount of nuzzeranas, or
fines of relief on their re-induction into office. The ryot hoped for
better days ; for notwithstanding the assessment was heavy, he saw
the limit of exaction, and that the door was closed to all subordinate
oppression. Besides the spur of hope, he had that of fear, to quicken
his exertions ; for with the promulgation of the edict substituting
money-rent for buttaie, the ryot was given to understand that ‘ no
account of the seasons* would alter or lessen the established dues of,
the state, aud that uncultivated lands would be made over by the
Patel to those who would cultivate them ; or if none would take
them, they would be incorporated with the lihas or personal farms
of the Regent. In all cases, the Patdls were declared responsible for
deficiencies of revenue.

Hitherto this body of men had an incentive, if not a license, to •
plunder, being subject to an annual or triennial tax termed patel-
burrar. This was annulled ; and it was added, that if they fulfilled
their contract with the state without oppressing the subject, they
should be protected and honoured. Thus these Patels, the elected
representatives of the village and the shields of the ryot, became the
■ direct officers of the crown. It was the Regent’s interest to con-
ciliate a body of men, on whose exertions the prosperity of the state
mainly depended ; and they gladly and unanimously entered into
liis views. Golden bracelets and turbans, the signs of inauguration,
were given, with a "grant of office,” to each Patel, and they departed
to their several trusts.

A few reflections obtrude themselves on the contemplation of such
a picture. It will hardly fail to strike the reader, how perfect are
the elements for the formation of a representative government in
these regions ; for every state of Rajwarra is similarly constituted ;
ex uno disce omnes. The Patels would only require to be joined by
the representatives of the commercial body, and these are already
formed, of Rajpoot blood, deficient neither in nerve nor political saga-
city, compared with any class on earth; often composing the ministry,
or heading the armies in battle. It is needless to push the parallel
farther ; but if it is the desire of Britain to promote this system in
the east, to enthrone liberty on the ruins of bondage, and call forth
the energies of a grand national punchaeb, the materials are ample
without the risk of innovation beyond the mere extent of members,.
We should have the aristocratic T’halcoors (the Rajpoot barons),
the men of wealth, and the representatives of agriculture, to settle
the limits and maintain the principles of their ancient patriarchal
system. A code of criminal and civil law, perfectly adequate,
could be compiled from their sacred books, their records on stone, or
traditional customs, and sufficient might be deducted from the
revenues of the state to maintain'municipal forces, which could unite
if public safety were endangered, while the equestrian order would
furnish all state parade, and act as a moveable army.

But to return to our subject. Out of this numerous body of

CHAP. VIII.]

KOTAH.

491

i

Patdls, Zalira selected' four of the most intelligent and experienced,
of .whom he formed a council attached to the Presence. At first
their duties were confined to matters of revenue; soon those of
police were superadded, and at length no matter of internal regula-
tion was transacted without their advice. In .all cases of doubtful
decision, they were the court of appeal from provincial punchaets,
and even from those of the cities and the capital itself. Thus they
perfonned the three-fold duties of a board of revenue, of justice, and
of police, and perhaps throughout the world, there never was a
police like that of Zalim Sing : there was not one FoucM, but four;
and a net of espionnage was spread over the country, out of whose
meshes nothing could escape.

Such was the Patel system of ICotah. A system so rigid had its
alloy of evil ; the veil of secrecy, so essential to commercial pursuits,
was rudely drawn aside ; every transaction was exposed to the
Regent, and no man felt safe from the inquisitorial visits of the spies
of this council. A lucky speculation was immediately reported, and
the Regent hastened to share in the success of the speculator. Alarm
and disgust were the consequence ; the spirit of trade was damped ;
none were assured of the just returns of their industry ; but there
was no security elsewhere, and at Kotak only the Protector dared to
injure them.

The council of Venice was not more arbitrary than the Patel board
of Kotah ; even the ministers saw the sword suspended over their
heads, while they were hated as much as feared by all but the
individual who recognized their utility.

It would be imagined that, with a council so vigilant' the Regent
would feel perfectly secure. Not so : he had spies over them. In
short, to use the phrase of one of his ministers, — a man of acute
perception and powerful understanding, when talking of the vigour
of his mental vision, — when his physical organs had failed, pain
pm, mir moot tolnd, which we will not translate.

The Patel, now the virtual master of the peasantry, was aware
that fine and confiscation would follow the discovery of direct
oppression of the ryots ; but there were many indirect modes by
which he could attain his object, and he took the most secure, the
medium of their necessities. Hitherto, the impoverished husband-
man had his wants supplied by the Bohora , the sanctioned usurer
of each village ; now, the privileged Patdl usurped his functions, and
bound him by a double chain to his purposes. But we must explain
the functions of the Bohora, iu order to show the extent of subordi-
. nation in which the ryot was placed.

■ The Bohora of Rajpootana is the Metayer of the ancient system
of France. • He furaishes the cultivator with whatever he requires
for his pursuits, whether cattle, implements, or seed ; and supports'
him and his family throughout the season until The crop is ready
for the sickle, when a settlement of accounts takes place. This is
done in two ways ; either by a cash payment, with stipulated
[Vox,. II.] 62 a

492 . •

ANNALS OP HARAVATI.

[CHAP. VIII.

interest according to the risk previously agreed upon ; or, more
commonly, by a specified, share of the crop, in which the Bohora
takes the risk of bad seasons with the husbandman. The utility of
such a person under an oppressive government, where the ryot can
store up nothing for the future, may readily be conceived; he is, in
fact, indispensable. Mutual honesty is required ; for extortion on
the part of the Bohora would lose him his clients, and dishonesty
ou that of the peasant would deprive him of his only resource
against the sequestration of his patrimony. Accordingly, this
monied middle-man enjoyed great consideration, being regarded as
the patron of the husbandman. Every peasant had his particular
Bohora , and not unfrequently from the adjacent village in preference
to his own.

Such was the state of things when the old system of lat'lia hattaie
was commuted for heec/oU , a specific money-i’ent apportioned to the
area of the land. The Patdl, now tied down to the simple duties of
collection, could touch nothing but his dues, unless he leagued with
or overturned the Bohora ; and in either case there was risk from
the lynx-eyed scrutiny of the Regent. They, accordingly, adopted
the middle course of alarming his cupidity, which the following
expedient effected. When the crop was ripe, the peasant would
demand permission to cut it. “ Pay your rent first,” was the reply.
The Bohora was applied to : but his fears had been awakened by a
caution not to lend money to one on whom the government had
claims. There was no alternative but to mortgage to the harpy Patel
a portion of the produce of his fields. This was the precise point at
which he aimed; he took the crop at his own valuation, and gave his
receipt that the dues of government were satisfied; demanding a certi-
ficate to the effect “ that having no funds forthcoming when the rent
“ was required, and being unable to raise it, the mortgagor voluntarily
“ assigned, at a fair valuation, a share of the produce.” In this
manner did the Patels hoard immense quantities of grain, and as
Kotah became the granary of Rajpootana, they accumulated great
wealth, while the peasant, never able to reckon on . the fruits of
his industry, was depressed and impoverished. The Regent could
not long be kept in ignorance of these extortions; but the treasury
overflowed, and he did not sufficiently heed the miseries occasioned
by a system which added fresh lands by sequestration to the home
farms, now the object of his especial solicitude.

Matters proceeded thus until the year S. 1867 (A.D. 1811), when,
like a clap of thunder, mandates of arrest were issued, and every
Patel in Kotak was placed in fetters, and his property under the
seal of the state : the ill-gotten wealth, as usual, flowing into the
exchequer of the Protector. Few escaped heavy fines ; one only
was enabled altogether to evade the vigilance of the police, and he
had wisely remitted his wealth, to the amount of seven lacs, or
£70,000, to a foreign country; and from this individual case, a
judgment may be formed of the prey these cormorants were com-
pelled to disgorge.

CHAP. VIII.]

KOTAH.

493

It is to be interred that tbe Regent must have well weighed the
present good against tbe evil he incurred, in destroying in one
moment the credit and efficacy of such an engine of power as the
pdtdli system he had established. The Council of Pour maintained
their post, notwithstanding the humiliated condition of their com-
peers ; though their influence could not fail to be weakened by the
discredit attached to the body. The system Zalim had so artfully
introduced being thus entirely disorganized, he was induced to push
still further the resources of his energetic mind, by the extension of
his personal farms. In describing the formation aud management of
these, we shall better pourtray the character of the Regent than by
the most laboured summary : the acts will paint the man.

Before, however, we enter upon this singular part of his history,
it is necessary to develop the ancient agricultural system of Harouti,
to which he returned when the pdteli was broken up. In the
execution of this design, we must speak both of the soil and the
occupants, whose moral estimation in the minds of their rulers must
materially influence their legislative conduct.

The ryot of India, like the progenitor of all tillers of the earth,
bears the brand of vengeance ou his forehead ; for as Cain was cursed
by the Almighty, so were the cultivators of India by Ramachund,
as a class whom no lenity could render honest or contented. When
the hero of Ayodia left his kingdom for Lanka, he enjoined his
minister to foster the ryots, that he might hear no complaints on his
return. Aware of the fruitlessness of the attempt, yet determined
to guard against all just cause of complaint, the minister reversed
the 7 nauna, or grain measure, taking the share of the crown from
the smaller end, exactly one-half of what was sanctioned by imme-
morial usage. When Rama returned, the cultivators assembled in
bodies at each stage of his journey, aud complained of the innova-
tions of the minister. “ What had he done V’ “ Reversed the
“ mauna.” The monarch dismissed them with his curse, as ” a race
“ whom no favour could conciliate, and who belonged to no one;” a
phrase which to this hour is proverbial, c ryot ledssi cd nuhyn hyn
and the sentence is confirmed by the historians of Alexander, who
tell us that they lived unmolested amidst all intestine wars ; that
“ they only till the ground aud pay tribute to the king,” enjoying an
amnesty from danger when the common wealth suffered, which must
tend to engender a love of soil more than patriotism. It would
appear as if the Regent of Kotak had availed himself of the anathema
of Rama in his estimation of the moral virtues of his subjects, who
were Helots iu condition if not iu name.

We proceed to the modes of realizing the dues of the state, in
which the character and condition of the peasant will be further
developed. There are four modes of levying the land-tax, three of
which are common throughout Rajwarra ; the fourth is more peculiar
to Harouti aud Mdwar. The first aud most ancient is that of buttaie ,
or ^payment inkind/ practised before metallic currency was invented.

494

annals of haravati.

[chap. viii.

Tlie system of buttaic extends, however, only to corn ; for sugar-cane,
cotton, hemp, poppy, al, kosoomba, ginger, turmeric, and other dyes
and drugs, and all garden stuffs, pay a rent in money. This rent was
arbitrary and variable, according to tho necessities or justice of the
ruler. In both countries five to ten rupees per beoga are demanded
for so gar- can 0 ; three to five for cotton, poppy, hemp, and oil-plant;
and two to four for the rest. But when heaven was bounteous,
avarice and oppression rose in their demands, and seventj’- rupees per
beoga were exacted for the sugar-cane, thus paralysing the industry
of, tho cultivator, and rendering abortive the beneficence pf the
Almighty.

Buttaic, or ‘ division in kind/ varies with the seasons and their
products :

1st. — Tho undhi , or f summer harvest/ when wheat, barley, and a
variety of pulses, as gram, motb, moong, til, are raised. Tho share of
the state in these varies with the fertility of the soil, from one-fourth,
one-third, and two-fifths, to one-half — tho extreme fractions being
the maximum and minimum; those of one-third and two-fifths
are the most universally admitted as the share of the crown. But
besides tliis, there are dues to tbe artificei’S and mechanics, whose
labour to tho village is compensated by a share of tho harvest from
each cultivator; which allowances reduce tho portion of the latter
to one — half of the gross produce of his industry, which if he realize,
he is contented and thrives.

Tho secoud harvest is tho sidloo, or f autumnal/ and consists of
mulct n or boota, (Indian corn,) of jour, bajri, the two chief kinds of
maize, and til or sesamum, with other small seeds, such as hanging'
with many of the pulses. Of all these, one-half is exacted by the
state.

Such is the system of buttaic ; let us describe that of Icoont.i
Koont is the conjectural estimate of the quantity of the standing
crop on a measured surface, by the officers of the government m
conjunction with the proprietors, when the share of the state is
converted into cash at the average rate of the day, and the peasant
is debited tbe amount. So exactly can those habitually exercise
in this method estimate the quantity of grain produced on a given
surface, that they seldom err beyond one-twentieth part of the crop.
Should, however, the cultivator deem his crop over-estimated, he
has the power to cut and weigh it; and this is termed lat’ha.

The third is a tax in money, according to admeasurement of the
field, assessed previously to cultivation.

* JPanicam Italicum, produced abundantly in tbe valley of tbe Bbine, as
well as ttnikhi, there called Yelsh corn ; doubtless the maizes would alike grow
in perfection. _ , .

fib would be more correct to say that batiaie, or ‘payment'in kind, is
divided into two branches, viz., Jcooht and lat’ha ; the first being a portion 0
tho standing crop by conjectural estimate ; the other by actual measure, alter
reaping and thrashing.

CHAP. VIII.]

KOTAH.

495

The fourth is a mixed tas;, of both monfey and produce.

Neither of these modes is free from objection. That of Icoont or
conjectural estimate of the standing crop, is, however, liable to much
greater abuse than lat’ha, or measurement of the grain. In the first
case, it is well known that by a bribe to the officer, he will Icoont a
field at ten maunds, which may realize twice the quantity; for the
chief guarantees to honesty are fear of detection, and instinctive
morality; feeble safeguards, even in more civilized states than
Eajwarra. If he be so closely watched that he must make a fair
Icoont, or estimate, he will still find means to extort money from the
ryot, one of which is, by procrastinating the estimate when the ear
is ripe, and when every day's delay is a certain loss. In short a
celebrated superintendent of a district, of great credit both for zeal
and honesty, confessed, "we are like tailors ; we can cheat you to
" your face, and you cannot perceive it." The ryot prefers the Icoont;
the process is soon over, and he has done with the government- but
in lat’ha, the means are varied to perplex and cheat it ; beginning
with the reaping, when, with a liberal hand, they leave something
for the gleaner; then, a "tithe for the Jcoorpi, or f sickle •' ” then
the thrashing ; and though they muzzle the ox who treads out the
corn, they do not their own mouths, or those of their family. Again
if not convertible into coin, they are debited and allowed to store it
np, and, " the rats are sure to get into the pits." In both cases, the
shanahs, or village-watchmen, are appointed to watch the crops as
soon as the ear begins to fill; yet all is insufficient to check the
system of pillage; for the ryot and his family begin to feed upon
the heads of Indian corn and maize the moment they afford the least
nourishment. The slianah, receiving his emoluments from the
husbandman as well as from the crown, inclines more to his fellow-
citizen ; and it is asserted that one-fourth of the crop, and even
a third, is frequently made away with before the share of the
government can be fixed.

Yet the system of lat’ha was pursued by the Eegent before he
commenced that of pateli, which has no slight analogy to the
permanent system of Bengal,* and was attended with similar
results, — distress, confiscation, and sale, to the utter exclusion of the
hereditary principle, the very corner-stone of Hindu society.

. * The Patel of Harouti, like the zemindar of Bengal, was answerable for the
revenues ; the one, however, was hereditary only during pleasure ; the other
perpetually so. The extent of their authorities was equal.

496

ANNALS OP HARAVATI.

[CHAT. VIII.

CHAPTER Yin.

Farming system of Zalim Sing. — Extent to which it has leen carried. — Its
prosperity fallacious and transitory. — Details of the system. — Soil of Kotah.
— The Regent introduces foreign ploughs. — Area cultivated. — Net produce . —
Yahte. — Grain pits. — Prices in plenty and famine. — Zalim sells in one year
grain to the amount of a million sterling. — Monopoly. — The tithe, or new tax
on exported grain , — The jugabl, or tax-gatherer. — Impolicy of this tax. — Gross
revenue of Kotah. — Opium monopoly. — Tax on widoios. — On the mendicant.
— Gourd-tax. — Broom-tax. — The Regent detested by the bards. — ] Province of
Kotah at this period , and at assumption of the government, contrasted . —
Question as to the moral result of his improvements.

Let us proceed with, the most prominent feature of the Regent’s
internal administration — his farming monopoly — to which he is
mainly indebted for the reputation he enjoys throughout Rajpootana.
The superficial observer, who can with difficulty find a path through
the corn-fields which cover the face of Harouti, will dwell with
rapture upon the effects of a system in which he discovers nothing
but energy and efficiency : he cannot trace the remote causes of this
deceptive prosperity, which originated in moral and political injus-
tice. It was because his own tyranny had produced unplonghed
fields and deserted villages, starving husbandmen and a diminishing
population ; it was with the distrained implements and cattle of his
subjects, and in order to prevent the injurious effects of so much
waste land upon the revenue, that Zalim commenced a system which
has made him farmer-general of Harouti ; and he has carried it to
an astonishing extent. There is not a nook or a patch in Harouti,
where grain can be produced, which his ploughs do not visit.
Forests have disappeai’ed ; even the barren rocks have been covered
with exotic soil, and the mountain’s side, inaccessible to the plough,
is turned up with a spud, and compelled to yield a crop.

In S. 1840 (A.D. 1784), Zalim possessed only two or three hundred
ploughs, which in a few years increased to eight hundred. At the
commencement of what they term the new era ( nya-samval ) in the
history of landed property of Kotah, the introduction of the pclteh
system, the number was doubled ; and at the present time* no less
than four thousand ploughs , of double yoke, employing sixteen
thousand oxen, are used in the farming system of this extraordinary
man ; to which may he added one thousand more ploughs and four
thousand oxen employed on the estates of the prince, and the
different members of his family.

This is the secret of the Raj Rana’s power and reputation ) and to
the wealth extracted from her soil, Kotah owes her preservation
from the ruin which befel the states around her during the convul-
sions of the last half century, when one after another sank into
decay. But although sagacity marks the plan, and unexampled

* This was drawn up in 1820-21.

CHAP. Till.]

KOTAH.

497'

energy superintends its details, we must, on examining the founda-
tions of the system either morally or politically, pronounce its effects
a mere paroxysm of prosperity, arising from stimulating causes
which present no guarautee of permanence. Despotism has wrought
this magic effect there is not one, from the noble to the peasant,
who has not felt, and who does not still feel, its pveseuce. When
the arm' of the octagennriaw Protector shall bo withdrawn, and the
authority transferred to his son, who possesses none of the father’s
energies, then will the impolicy of the system become apparent. It
was from the sequestrated estates' of the valiant Hara chieftain, and
that grinding oppression which thinned Harouti of its agricultural
population, and left the lands waste, that the Eegent found scope
for his genius. The fields, which had descended from father to son
through the lapse of ages, the unalienable right of the peasant, were
seized, in spite of law, custom, or tradition, on every defalcation ;
and ibis even affirmed that he sought pretexts to obtain such lands
as from their contiguity or fertility he coveted, and that hundreds
were thus deprived of their inheritance. In vain we look for the
peaceful hamlets which once studded Harouti : we discern instead
the oric, or farm-house of the Eegent, which would be beautiful
were it not erected on the property of the subject; but when we
enquire the ratio which the cultivators bear to the cultivation, and
the means of enjoyment this artificial system has left them, and find
that the once independent proprietor, who claimed a sacred right of
inheritance,* now ploughs like a serf the fields formerly his own,
all our perceptions of moral justice are shocked.

The love of country and the passion for possessing land are strong
thi’oughout Eajpootana : while there is a hope of existence, the
cultivator clings to the ‘ lapotaf and in Harouti this amor patricc is
so invincible, that, to use their homely phrase, ” he would rather
"fill his pait in slavery there, than live in luxury abroad.” But
where could they fly to escape oppression ? All around was desola-
tion ; armies perambulated the country, with rapid strides, in each
other’s train, " one to another still succeeding.” To this evil Kotah
was comparatively a stranger ; the Protector was the only plunderer
within, his domains. Indeed, the inhabitants of the surrounding
states, from the year 1865, when rapine was at its height, flocked

* Throughout tlioBoondi territory,- whore no ltegent has innovated on the
established laws of inheritance, by far the greater part of the land is the
absolute property of the cultivating ryoi, who 1 can sell or mortgage it. There is
ft curious tradition that this right was obtained by one of tbe ancient princes
making a general sale of tbe crown land, reserving only the tax. In Iloondi,
if a ryot becomes unable, from pecuniary wants or otherwise, to cultivate his
lands, he lets them ; and custom has established four annas per beega of
irrigated land, and two annas for gonna, that dependant on the heavens, or a
share of the produce in a similar proportion, as his right. If in exile, from
whatever cause, he can assign this share to trustees ; and, the more strongly to
mark his inalienable right in such a case, the trustees reserve on his account
two 'seers on every mound of produce, which is emphatically termed “ hulclcipata
“ cd bhom,” the “ dues of the patrimonial soil.”

[Von. II.]

63

498

ANNALS .OF HARAVATI.

[CHAP. TUI.

into Kotah, and filled up tlie cliasm which oppression had produced
in tlie population. But witli ths banisliment of predatory war, and
the return of industry to its own field of exertion, tin's panacea for
tlie wounds which the ruler has inflicted will disappear; and
although the vast resources of the Regent’s mind may check the
appearance of decay, while his faculties survive to superintend this
vast and complicated system, it must ultimately, from the want of
a principle of permanence, fall into rapid disorganization. We
proceed to the details of the system, which will afford fresh proofs
of the talent, industry, and vigilance of this singular character.

The soil of Kotah is a rich tenacious mould, resembling the best
parts of lower Malwa. The single plough is unequal to breaking it
up, and the Regent has introduced the plough of double yoke 'from
the Concan. His cattle are of the first quality, and equally fit for
the park or the plough. He purchases at all the adjacent fairs,
chiefly in his own dominions, and at the annual meld (fair) of his
favourite city Jhalra-Patun. He has tried those of Mavwar and of
the desert, famed for a superior race of cattle ; but he found that the
transition from their sandy regions to the deep loam of Harouti soon
disabled them.

Bach plough or team is equal to the culture’of one hundred'
beegas; consequently 4,000 ploughs will cultivate 400,000 during
each harvest, and for both 800,000, nearly 300,000 English acres.
The soil is deemed poor which does not yield seven to ten maunds*
of wheat per beega, and five to seven of millet and Indian corn. But
to take a very low estimate, and allowing for bad seasons, we may
assume four maunds per beega as the average produce, (though
double would not be deemed au exaggerated average) : this will give
3,200,000 maunds of both products, wheat and millet, and the pro-
portion of the former to the latter is as three to two. Let us estimate
the value- of this. In seasons of abundance, twelve rupees per
7ncram,t in equal quantities of both grains, is the average ; at this
time (July 1820), notwithstanding the preceding season has been a
failure throughout Rajwarra, (thou gk there was a prospect of an
excellent one), and grain a dead weight, eighteen rupees per mauni
is the current price, and may be quoted as the average standard of
Harouti : above is approximating to dearness, and below to the
reverse. But if we take the average of the year of actual plenty, or
twelve rupeesj per mauni of equal quantities of wheat and joar, or
one rupee per maund, the result is thirty-two lacs of rupees annual
income.

Let us endeavour to calculate how much of this becomes net pro-

* A mauud is seventy-five pounds.
f Grain Measure of Itajpootana. — 75 pounds = 1 seer.

43 seers = 1 maund.

12 maunds =* 1 mauni.

100 maunis = 1 manassa.

I It does descend as low as eight rupees per mauni for wheat and barley,
and four for the millets, in seasons of excessive abundance.

•CHAP* YXI1.]

KOTAH.

499

duce towards tlio expenses of the government,, and it will be seen
that the charges are about one-third the gross amount.

Expenses.

Establishments — viz., feeding cattle and servants,

•wear and tear of gear, and clearing the fields —

one-eighth of the gross amount,* or 4,00,000

Seed..._ 6,00,000

Replacing 4,000 oxen annually, at 20s 80,000

Extras 20,000

11,00,000

We do not presume to give this, or even the gross amount, as
more than an approximation to the truth ; but the Regent himself
has mentioned that in one year the casualties in oxen amounted to
five thousand ! We have allowed one-fourth, for an ox will work
well seven years, if taken care of. Thus, on the lowest scale, sup-
posing the necessities of the government required the grain to be
sold in the year it was raised, twenty lacs will be the net profit of
the Regenks farms. But he has abundant resources without being
forced into the market before the favourable moment ; until when,
the produce is hoarded up in subterranean granaries. Everything
in these regions is simple, yet efficient : we will describe the grain-
pits.

These pits or treuches are fixed on elevated dry spots ; their size
being according to the nature of the soil. All the preparation they
undergo is the incineration of certain vegetable substances, and
lining the sides and bottom with wheat or barley stubble. The
grain is theu deposited in the pit, covered over with straw, and a
terrace of earth, about eighteen inches in height, and projecting in
front beyond the orifice of the pit, is raised over it. This is secured
with a'coating of clay and cow-dung, which resists even the mon-
soon, and is renewed as the torrents injure it. Thus the grain may
remain for years without injury, while the heat which is extricated
checks germination, and deters rats and white ants. Thus the
Regent has seldom less than fifty lacs of maunds in various parts of
the country, and it is on emergencies, or in bad seasons, that these
stores see the light; when, instead of twelve rupees, the mauni runs
as high as forty, or the famine price of sixty. Then these pits are
mines of gold ; the Regent having frequently sold in one year sixty
lacs of maunds. In S. 1860, (or A.D. 1804), during the Mahratta
war, when Holcar was in the Bhurtpoor state, and predatory armies
were moving in every direction, and when famine and war

* !*■ js hot uncommon in Rajwarra, when the means of individuals prevent
them From cultivating their own lands, to hire out the whole with men and
implements ; for the use of which one-eigirfh of the produce is the established
consideration. We have applied this in the rough estimate of the expenses of
the Regent’s farming system.

[Yon. II.]

63 a

498 ANNALS ..OF HARAVATI. [CHAP. VIII.

into Kotah, and filled up the chasm which oppression had produced
in the population. But with ths banishment of predatory war, and
the return of industry to its' own field of exertion, this panacea for
the wounds which the ruler, has inflicted will disappear; and
although the vast resources of the Regent’s mind may check the
appearance of decajq while his faculties survive to superintend this
vast and complicated system, it must ultimately, from the want of
a principle of permanence, fall into rapid disorganization. We
proceed to the details of the system, which will afford fresh proofs
of the talent, industry, and vigilance of this siugular character.

The soil of Kotah is a rich tenacious mould, resembling the best
parts of lower Malwn. The single plough is unequal to breaking it
up, and the Regent has introduced the plough of double yoke 'from
the Concan. His cattle are of the first quality, and equally fit for
the park or the plough. He purchases at all the adjacent fairs,
chiefly in his own dominions, and at the annual meld (fair) of his
favourite city Jhalra-Patun. He has tried those of Marwar and of
the desert, famed for a superior race of cattle ; but he found that the
transition from their sandy regions to the deep loam of. Harouti soon
disabled them.

Each plough or team is equal to the culture' of one hundred'
beegas ; consequently 4,000 ploughs will cultivate 400,000 during
each harvest, and for both 800,000, nearly 300,000 English acres.
The soil is deemed poor which does not yield seven to ten maunds*
of wheat per beega, and five to seven of millet and Indian corn. But
to take a very low estimate, and allowing for bad seasons, we may
assume four maunds per beega as the average produce, (though
double would not be deemed an exaggerated average) : this will give
3,200,000 maunds of both px-oducts, wheat and millet, and' the pro-
portion of the former to the latter is as three to two. Let us estimate
the value- of this. In seasons of abundance, twelve rupees’ per
mauni, + in equal quantities of both grains, is the average ; at this
time (July 1820), notwithstanding the preceding season has been a
failure throughout Rajwarra, (though there was a prospect of an
excellent one), and gi'ain a dead weight, eighteen rupees per mauni
is the current price, and may be quoted as the average standard of
Harouti : above is approximating to dearness, and below to the
reverse. But if we take the average of the year of actual plenty, or
twelve rupeesj; per mauni of equal quantities of wheat and joflr, or
one rupee per maund, the result is thirty-two lacs of rupees annual
income.

Let us endeavour to calculate how much of this becomes net pro-

, * A maund is seventy-five pounds,
f Grain Measure of liajpootana . — 75 pounds = 1 seer.

43 seers = 1 maund.

, . 12 maunds •==/ 1 mauni.

, 100 maunis = 1 manassa.

t It does descend, as low as eight rupees per mauni for wheat and barley,
and four for the millets, iu seasons of excessive abundance.

CHAP, vm.] . ^ KOTAE.

499

duce towards tho expenses of the government, and it will be seen
that the charges are about one-third the gross amount.

Expenses.

Establishments — viz., feeding cattle and servants,
wear and tear of geai', and clearing the fields —

one-eiglith of the gross amount,* or

Seed

Replacing 4,01)0 oxen annually, at 20s

Extras

4.00. 000

6.00. 000
80,000
20,000

11,00,000

We do not presume to give this, or even the gross amount, as
more than an approximation to the truth ; but the Regent himself
has mentioned that in one year the casualties in oxen amounted to
five thousand ! We havo allowed one-fourth, for an ox will work
well seven years, if taken care of. Thus, on the lowest scale, sup-
posing the necessities of the government required the grain to be
sold in the year it was raised, twenty laos will be the net profit of
the Regent’s farms. But he has abundant resources without being
forced into the market before the favourable moment ; until when,
the produce is hoarded up in subterranean granaries. Everything
in these regions is simple, yet efficient : we will describe the grain-
pits.

These pits or trenches are fixed on elevated dry spots ; their size
being according to the nature of the soil. All the preparation they
undergo is the incineration of certain vegetable substances, and
lining l he sides and bottom with wheat or barley stubble. The
grain hen deposited in the pit, covered over with straw, and a
terrace of earth, about eighteen inches in height, and projecting in
front beyond the orifice of the pit, is raised over it. This is secured
with a coating of clay and cow-dung, which resists evon the mon-
soon, and is renewed as the torrents injure it. Thus the grain may
remain for years without injury, while the heat which is extricated
checks germination, and deters rats and white ants. Thus the
Regent has seldom less than fifty lacs of maunds in various parts of
the country, and it is on emergencies, or in bad seasons, that these
stores see the light; when, instead of twelve rupees, the mauni runs
as high as forty, or the famine price of sixty. Then these pits are
mines of gold ; the Regent having frequently sold in one year sixty
lacs of maunds. In S. 1860, (or A.D. 1804), during the Mahratta
war, when Holcar was in the Bhurtpoor state, and predatory armies
were moving in every direction, and when famine and War

* It is not uncommon in Rajwarra, when the means of individuals prevent
them from cultivating their own lands, to hire out the whole with men an
implements ; for the use of which one-eighth, of the produce is the establish
cousideiatiou. We have applied this in the rough estimate of the espens'
the Regent’s farming system. • *

[Vol. II.]

63a

500

ANNALS OF HAEAVATI.

[chap. vrn.

conjoined to desolate the country, Kotah fed the whole population
of Rajwarra, and supplied all these roving hordes. In that season,
grain being fifty-five rupees per niauni, he sold to the enormous
amount of one crore of rupees , or a million sterling !

Reputable merchants of the Mahajin tribe refrain from speculating
in grain, from the most liberal feelings, esteeming it dhcrm nv.hyn
hyn , 'a want of charity/ The humane Jain merchant says, “ to
“ hoard up grain, for the purpose of taking advantage of human
“misery, may bring riches, but never profit.”

According to the only accessible documents, the whole crown-
revenue of Kotah from the tax in kind, amounted, under bad manage-
ment, to twenty-five lacs of rupees. This is all the Regent admits
he collects from (to use his own phrase) his handful ( pucliewara ) of
soil : of course he does not include his own farming system, but only
the amount raised from the cultivator. He confesses that two-thirds
of the superficial area of Kotah were waste; but that this is now
reversed, there being two-thirds cultivated, and only one-third waste,
and this comprises mountain, forest, common, &e.

In S. 1S65 (A.D. 1809), as if industry wei’e not already sufficiently
shackled, the Regent established a new tax on all corn exported
from his dominions. It was termed lut’ho, and amounted to a rupee
and a half per mauni. This tax — not less unjust in origin than
vexatious in operation — worse than even the infamous gabelle, or
the droit d’aubaine of France — was another fruit of monopoly. It
was at first confined to the grower, though of course it fell indirectly
on the consumer; but the Jagdti, or chief collector of the customs,
a man after the Regent’s own heart, was so pleased with its effi-
ciency on the very first trial, that he advised his’ master to push it
farther, and it was accordingly levied as well on the farmer as the
purchaser. An item of ten lacs was at once added to the budget;
and as if this were insufficient to stop all competition between the
Regent-farmer-general and his subjects, three, foui’, nay even five
lut’hos, have been levied from the same grain before it was retailed
for consumption. Kotah exhibited the picture of a people, if not
absolutely starving, yet living in penury in the midst of plenty.
Heither the lands of his chiefs noy those of his ministers were exempt
from the operation of this tax, and all were at the mercy of the
Jagdti, .from whose arbitrary will there was no appeal. It had
reached the very height of oppression about the period of the alliance
with the British government. This collector had become a part of
his system ; and if the Regent required a few lacs of ready money,
Jo lioolium, 1 your commands,’ ,was the reply. A list was made out
of 1 arrears ot lut’ho/ and friend and foe, minister, banker, trader/
aud farmer, had a circular. Remonstrance was not only vain hut
daugerous : even his ancient friend, the Pundit Belial, had twenty-
've thousand rupees to pay in .one of these schedules : the homme

affaires or one of his confidential chiefs, five thousand; his own
and igu minister a share, and many bankers of the town, four

CHAP. VIII.]

KOTAH.

501

thousand, five thousand, and ten thousand each. The term lut’ho
•was an abuse of language for a forced contribution : in fact the ob-
noxious apd well-known din cl of Rajwarra. It alienated the minds
of all men, and nearly occasioned the Regent's ruin ; for scarcely
was their individual sympathy expressed, when the Hava princes
conspired to emancipate themselves from his interminable and gal-
ling protection.

When the English government came in contact with Rajwarra, it
wps a primary principle of the universal protective alliance to pro-
claim that it was for the benefit of the governed as well as the
governor’s, since it availed little to destroj' the wolves without, if
they were consigned to the lion within. But there are and must be
absurd inconsistencies, even iu the policy of western legislators,
where one set of principles is applied to all. Zalim soon discovered
that the fashion of the day was to purwurush, ‘ foster the ryot.’
The odious character of the tax was diminished, and an edict limited
its operation to the farmer, the seller, and the purchaser; and so
anxious was he to conceal his weapon of oppression, that the very
name of lut’ho was abolished, and sowde hasil, or * extraordinaries/
substituted. This item is said still to amount to five lacs of rupees.

Thus did the skill and rigid system of the Regent exact from his
puchewara of soil, full fifty lacs of rupees. We must also recollect
that nearly five more are to be added on account of the household
lauds of the members of his own and the prince's family, which is
almost sufficient to cover their expenses.

What will the European practical farmer, of enlarged means and
experience, think of tho man who arranged this complicated system,
and who, during forty years, has superintended its details ? What
opinion will he form of his vigour of mind, who, at the age of four-
score years, although blind and palsied, still sujierinteuds and main-
tains this system ? What will he think of the tenacity of memory,
which bears graven thereon, as on a tablet, an account of all these
vast depositories of grain, with their varied contents, many of them
the store of years past; and the power to check the slightest errors
of the intendant of this vast accumulation ; while, at the same time,
he regulates the succession of crops throughout this extensive range ?
Such is the minute topographical knowledge which the Regent
possesses of his country, that every field in every farm is fami-
liar to him : and woe to the superintendent liaveldar if he discovers
a fallow nook that ought to bear a crop.

Yet vast as this system is, overwhelming as it would seem to
most minds, it formed but a part of the political engine conducted
and kept in action by his single powers. The details of his adminis-
tration, internal as well as external, demanded unremitted vigilance.
The formation, the maintenance, and discipline of an army ot twenty
thousand men, his fortresses, arsenals, and their complicated minutiae,
were amply sufficient for one mind. The daily account from lr
police, consisting of several hundred emissaries, besides the equa

500

ANNALS Or HABAVATI.

{CHAP. Till.

conjoined to desolate tlie country, Kotah fed tlie whole population
of Rajwarra, and supplied all these roving hordes. In that season,
grain being fifty-five rupees per viauni , he sold to the enormous
amount of one wore of rupees , or a million sterling !

Reputable merchants of the Mahajin tribe refrain from speculating
in grain, from the most liberal feelings, esteeming it dherm nuhyn
hyn , f a want of charity.'’ The humane Jain merchant says, “ to
a hoard up grain, for the purpose of taking advantage of human
t( misery, may bring riches, but never profit.”

According to the only accessible documents, the whole crown-
revenue of Kotah from the tax in kind, amounted, under bad manage-
ment, to twenty-five lacs of rupees. This is all the Regent admits
he collects from (to use his own phrase) his handful ( puchewara ) of
soil : of course he does not include his own farming system, but only
the amount raised from the cultivator. He confesses that two-thirds
of the superficial area of Kotah were waste ; but that this is now
reversed, there being two-thirds cultivated, alid only one-thii’d waste,
and this comprises mountain, fopdst, common, &c.

In S. 1865 (A.D. 1809), a£ if industry were not already sufficiently
shackled, the Regent established a new tax on all corn exported ’
from his dominions. It was termed lut’ho, and amounted to a rupee
and a half per mauni . This tax — not less unjust in origin than
vexatious in operation — worse than even the infamous gabelle , or
the droit d’aiibaine of France — was another fruit of monopoly. It
was^akfirst confined to the grower, though of course it fell indirectly
An the consumer ; but the Jag&ti, or chief collector of the customs,
a man after the Regent’s own heart, was so pleased with its effi-
ciency on the very first trial, that he advised his master to push it
farther, and it was accordingly levied as well on the farmer as the
purchaser. An item of ten lacs was at once added to the budget;
and as if this were insufficient to stop all competition between the
Regent-farmer-general and his subjects, three, four, nay even five
lut’hos, have been levied from the same grain before it was retailed
for consumption. Kotah exhibited the picture of a people, if not
absolutely starving, yet living in penury in the midst of plenty.
Heither the lands of his chiefs nor those of his ministers were exempt
from the operation of this tax, and all were at the mercy of the
Jagdti, .from whose arbitrary will there was no appeal. It had
reached the very height of oppression about the period of the alliance
with the British government. This collector had become a part of
his system ; and if the Regent required a few lacs of ready money,
Jo hoolium, c your commands/ ,was the reply. A list was made out
of f arrears ot lut’ho / and friend and foe, minister, banker, trader,*
and farmer, had a circular. Remonstrance was not only vain hut
dangerous : even his ancient friend, the Pandit Belial, had twenty-
've thousand rupees to pay in, one of these schedules: the hominc

affaires of one of his confidential chiefs, five thousand ; his own
and ign minister a share, and many bankers of the town, four

CHAP. VIII.]

KOTAH.

501

thousand, five thousand, and ten thousand each. The term lut’ho
was an abuse of language for a forced contribution : in fact the ob-
noxious and well-known dind of Rajwarra. It alienated the minds
of all men, and nearly occasioned the Regent’s ruin ; for scarcely
was their individual sympathy expressed, when the Hara princes
conspired to emancipate themselves from his interminable and gal-
ling protection.

When the English government came in contact with Rajwarra, it
was a primary principle of the universal protective alliance to pro-
claim that it was for the benefit of the governed as well as the
governors, since it availed little to destroy the wolves without, if
they were consigned to the lion within. But there are and must be
absurd inconsistencies, even in the policy of western legislators,
where one set of principles is applied to all. Zalim soon discovered
that the fashion of the day was to purtourush, ‘ foster the ryot.’
The odious character of the tax was diminished, and an edict limited
its operation to the farmer, the seller, and the purchaser • and so
anxious was he to conceal his weapon of oppression, that the very
name of lut’lio was abolished, and soiude hasil, or ‘ extraordinaries/
substituted. This item is said still to amount to five lacs of rupees.

Thus did the skill and rigid system of the Regent exact from his
pticlieiuara of soil, full fifty lacs of rupees. We must also recollect
that nearly five more are to be added on account of the household
lauds of the members of his own and the prince’s family, which is
almost sufficient to cover their expenses.

What will the European practical farmer, of enlarged means and
experience, think of the man who arranged this complicated system,
and who, during forty years, has superintended its details ? What
opinion will he form of his vigour of mind, who, at the age of four-
score years, although blind and palsied, still superintends and main-
tains this system ? What will he think of the tenacity of memory,
which bears graven thereon, as on a tablet, an account of all these .
vast depositories of grain, with their varied contents, many of them
the store of years past ; and the power to check the slightest errors
of the intendant of this vast accumulation ; while, at the same time,
he regulates the succession of crops throughout this extensive range ?
Such is the minute topographical knowledge which the Regent
possesses of his country, that every field in every farm is fami-
liar to him : and woe to the superintendent haveldar if he discovers
a fallow nook that ought to bear a crop.

Yet vast as this system is, ■ overwhelming as it would seem to
most minds, it formed but a part of the political engine conducted
and kept in action by his' single powers. The details of his adminis-
tration, internal as well as external, demanded unvemitted vigilance.
The formation, the maintenance, and discipline of an ai'my of twenty
thousand men, his fortresses, arsenals, and their complicated minutice. .
were amply sufficient for oue mind.' The daily account from Ir
police, consisting of several hundred emissaries, besides the equa

'502

ANNALS* OF HAEAVAW.

Ichap. vrri.

numerous reports from tlie bead of each district, would have
distracted an ordinary head, “ for the winds could not enter and
“ leave Harouti without being reported.” But when, in addition to
all this, it is known that the Regent was a practical merchant a
speculator in exchanges, that he encouraged the mechanical arts, "
fostered foreign industry, pursued even horticulture, and, to use his
own words, “considered no trouble thrown away which made the
“rupee return sixteen and a half annas, with whom can he he
“ compared ?”* Literature, philosophy, aud cxcerptce from the grand
liistoncal epics, were the amusements of his hours of relaxation ;
but here we anticipate, for we have not yet finished the review of
his economical character. His monopolies, especially that of grain,
not only influenced his own market, but affected all the adjacent
countries ; and when speculation in opium ran to such a demoraliz-
ing excess in consequence of the British government monopolizing
the entire produce of the poppy cultivated throughout Malwn, he
took advantage of the mania , and by his sales or purchases raised
or depressed the market at pleasure. His gardens, scattered
throughout the country, still supply the markets of the towns and
capital with vegetables, and his forests furnish them with fuel.

So rigid was his system of taxation, that nothing escaped it.
There was a heavy tax on widows who remarried. Even the gourd
of the mendicant paid a tythe, and the ascetic iu his cell had a
domiciliary visit to ascertain the gains of mendicity, in order that a
portion should go to the exigencies of the state. The toomba lunar,
or c gourd-tax/ was abolished after forming for a twelvemonth part
of the fiscal code of Harouti, and theu not through auy scruples of
the Regent, but to satisfy his friends. Akin to this, and even of a
lower grade, was the jahroo-lurrdr, or ‘broom-tax/ which continued
for ten years ; but the many lampoons it provoked from the satirical
Mat operated on the more sensitive feelings of his son, Madhu Sing,
who obtained its repeal.

Zalina was no favorite with the bards; and that he had little
claim to their consideration may be inferred from the following
anecdote. A celebrated rhymer was reciting some laudatory stanzas,
which the Regent received rather coldly, observing with a sneer,
that “they told nothing but lies, though be should be happy to
“ listen to their effusions when truth was the foundation/’ The
poet replied, that “ he found truth a most unmarketable commodity ;

“ nevertheless, he had some of that at his service and stipulating
for forgiveness if they offended, he gave the Protector his picture in
a string of improvised stanzas, so full of vis (poison), that the lands
of the whole fraternity were resumed, and none of the order have
over since been admitted to bis presence.

Though rigid in his observance of the ceremonies of religion, and
sharing in the prevailing superstitions of his country, he never allows
’.he accidental circumstance of birth or caste to affect his policy*

* There are sixteeriMi nnas to a rupee.

CHAP. VIII.]

KOTAH.

503

Offences against the state admit of no indemnity, he the offender a
Brahmin or a bard ; and if these classes engage in trade, they ex-
perience no exemption from imposts.

Such is an outline of the territorial arrangements of the Regent
Zalim Sing. When power was assigned to him, he found the state
limited to Kailwarra on the east; he has extended it to the verge of
the Plateau, and the fortress which guards its ascent, at first rented
from the Mahrattas, is now by treaty his own. He took possession
of the reins of power with an empty treasury and thirty -two lacs of
accumulating debt. He found the means of defence a few dilapi-
dated fortresses, and a brave but unmanageable feudal army. He
has, at an immense cost, put the fortresses into the most complete
state of defence, and covered their ramparts with many hundred
pieces of cannon ; and he has raised and maintains, in lieu of about
four thousand Hara cavaliers, an army, — regular we may term it, —
of twenty thousand men, distributed into battalions, a park of one
hundred pieces of cannon, with about one thousand good horse,
besides the feudal contingents.

But is this prosperity ? Is this the greatness which the Raja
Gomanintended should be entailed upon his successors, his' chiefs, and
his subjects? Was it to entertain twenty thousand mercenary soldiers
from the sequestrated fields of the illustrious Hara, the indigenous
proprietor ? Is this government, is it good government accoi-ding to
the ideas of more civilized nations, to extend taxation to its limit,
in order to maintain this cumbrous machinery ? We may admit
that, for a time, such a system may have been requisite, not only
for the maintenance of his delegated power 1 , but to preserve the state
fi’om predatory spoliation ; and now, could we see the noble restored
to his forfeited estates, and the ryot to his hereditary rood of land,
we should say that Zalim Sing had been an instrument in the hand
of Providence for the preservation of the rights of the Haras. But,
as it is, whilst the corn which waves upon the fertile surface of Kotah
presents not the symbol of prosperity, neither is his well-paid and
well-disciplined army a sui’e mean of defence : moral propi-iety has
been violated ; rights are in abeyance, and untd they be restored,
even the apparent consistency of the social fabi’ic is obtained by
means which endanger its security.

504

ANNALS OF HARAVATI.

[CHAP. IX.

CHAPTER IX.

Political system of the Regent— His foreign policy.— His pre-eminent influence
in Rojwarra. — His first connexion luith the English government. — Monson’s
retreat. — Gallant conduct and death of the Hara chief of Goelah. — Aid given
by the Regent involves him with Holcar. — Holcar comes to Kotah. — Prepara-
tions to attach the capital. — Singular intervieiv with Zalim. — Zalim’s agents
at foreign courts. — Alliance with Ameer Khan, and the Pindarri chiefs . —
Characteristic anecdotes. — Zalim' s offensive policy. — His domestic policy . —
Character of Haharao Omed Sing. — Zalim’ s conduct toivards 1 vim. — Choice of
ministers. — Bishen Sing Fovjdar. — Dnlleel Khan Pathan . — Circumvallation
of Kotah. — Foundation of the city Jhalra-patun. — Melirab Khan, commander
of the forces.

The foregoing reflections bring us back to political considerations,
and these we must separate into two branches, the foreign and
domestic. We purposely invert the discussion of these topics, for
the sake of convenience.

Zalim 5 s policy was to create, as regarded himself, a kind of balance
of power ; .to overawe one leader by bis influence with another, yet
by the maintenance of a good understanding with all, to prevent
individual umbrage, while bis own strength was at all times suffi-
cient to make the scale preponderate in bis favour.

Placed in the very heart of India, Kotah was for years the centre
around which revolved the desultory armies, or ambulant govern-
ments, ever straugers to repose ; and though its wealth could not
fail to attract the cupidity of these vagabond powers, yet, by the
imposing attitude which he assumed, Zalim Sing maintained, during
more than half a century, the respect, the fear, and even the esteem
of all; and Kotah alone, throughout this lengthened period, so
full of catastrophes, never saw an enemy at her gates. Although
an epoch of perpetual change and political convulsion, — armies
destroyed, states overturned, famine and pestilence often aiding moral
causes in desolating the land — yet did the Regent, from the age of
twenty -five to eighty-two,* by his sagacity, his energy, his modera-
tion, his prudence, conduct the hark intrusted to his care through
all the shoals and dangers which beset her course.' It may not excite
surprise that he was unwilling to relinquish the helm when the
vessel was moored in calm waters ; or, when the unskilful owner,
forgetting these tempests, and deeming his own science equal to the
task, demanded the surrender, that he shouldhoist the flag of defiance.

There was not a court in Rajwarra, not even the predatory govern-
ments, which was not in some way influenced by his opinions, and
often guided by his councils. At each he had envoys, and when
there was a point to gain, there were irresistible arguments in reserve
to secure it. The necessities, the vanities, and weaknesses of man,

* I may once more repeat, this was written in A.D. 1820-21, when Zalim
Sing had reached the age of fourscore and two.

CHAP. XX.]

KOTAH. '

505

lie could enlist on Lis side, and Le was alternately, by adoption, tbe
father, uncle, or brother, of every person in power during this event-
ful period, from the prince upon the throne, to the brat of a Pindarri.
He frequently observed, that “ none knew the shifts he had been
“put to; 53 and when entreated not to use expressions of humility,
which were alike unsuited to his age' and station, and the reverence
he compelled, he would reply," God grant you long life, but it is
“ become a habit. 33 For the last ten years, he not only made his
counexion with Aleer Khau subservient to avoiding a collision with
Holcar, but converted the Khan into the make-weight of his balance
of power : “ he thanked God the time was past, when lie had to
“ congratulate- even the slave of a Toork on a safe accouchement , and
“ to pay for this happiness. 33

Though by nature irascible, impetuous, and proud, he could bend
to the extreme of submission. But while he would, by letter or
conversation, say to a marauding Pindarri or Pathan, “ let me
“ petition to your notice, 33 or “ if my clodpole understanding
“ ( bhomia hood’h) is worth consulting; 33 or reply to a demand for a
contribution, coupled with a threat of inroad, “that the friendly
“epistle had been received ; that he lamented the writer 3 s
“ distresses, &c., &c.; 33 with a few thousand more than was demanded,
and a present to the messenger, he would excite a feeling which at
least obtained a respite ; on the other hand, he was always prepared
to x-epel aggression; and if a single action would have decided his
quarrel, he would not have hesitated to engageany power in the circle.
But he .knew even success, in such a case, to be ruin, and the general
feature of his external policy was accoi’dingly of a tempoi-izing and
very mixed nature. Situated as he xvas, amidst conflicting elements,
he had fi-equently a double game to play. Thus, in tbe coalition of
1806-7, against Jodpoor, he had three parties to please, each request-
ing his aid, which made neutrality almost impossible. • He sent
envoys to all ; aud while appearing as the universal mediator, he
gave assistance to none.

It would be vain as well as useless to attempt the details of his
foi’eign policy ; we shall merely allude to the circumstance which
fii'st brought him in contact with the Bi’itish government, in A.D.
1803-4, and then proceed to his domestic administration.

When the ill-fated expedition under Monson traversed Central
India to the attack of Holcar, the Regent of Kotah, trusting to the
invincibility of the British arms, did not hesitate, upon their appear-
ance within his territory, to co-operate both with supplies and men.
But when the British army retreated, and its commander demanded
admission within the walls of Kotah, he met a decided and very
proper refusal. "You shall not bring anarchy and a disorganized
“ax'my to mix withmypeaceablecitizens;butdrawupyourbattalions
“ under my walls ; I will furnish provisions, and I will march the
“ whole of my force between you and the enemy, and bear the brunt
“ of his attack. 33 Such were Zalim’s own expressions : whether it
[Vol. II.] ' 64

506

ANNALS OF HABAVATI.

[CHAP.

would have been, wise to accede to his proposal is not the point of
discussion. Monson continued his disastrous flight through the
Boondi and Jeipoor dominions, and carried almost alone the news of
his disgrace to the illustrious Lake. It was natural he should seek
to palliate his error by an attempt to involve others; and amongst
those thus calumniated, first and foremost was the Regent of Kofah,
“ the head and front of whose offending,” — non-admission to a panic-
struck, beef-eating army within his walls, — was translated into
treachery, and a connivance with the enemjr ; a calumny which long
subsisted to the prejudice of the veteran politician. But never was
there a greater wrong inflicted, or a move unjust return for services
and sacrifices, both in men and money, in a cause which little con-
cerned him; and it nearly operated hurtfully, at a period (1817)
when the British government could not have dispensed with his ‘aid.
It was never told, it is hardly yet known at this distant period,
what devotion he evinced in that memorable retreat, asit is misnamed,
when the troops of Kotah and the corps of the devoted Lucan were
sacrificed to ensure the safety of the army until it left the Mokun-
durra Pass in its rear. If there be any incredulous supporter of the
•commander in that era of our shame, let him repair to the altar of
the Coelah chief, who, like a true Hara, ct spread his carpet” at the
ford of the Amjar, and there awaited the myrmidons of the Mah-
rattas, and fell protecting the flight of an army which might have
passed from one end of India to the other. Well might the veteran
allude to our ingratitude in S. 1804, when in A.D. 1817 he was called
upon to co-operate in the destruction of that predatory system, in
withstanding which he had passed a life of feverish anxiety. If
there was a doubt of the part he acted, if the monuments of the
slain will not be admitted as evidence, let ns appeal to the opinion
of the enemy, whose testimony adds another feature to the portrait
of this extraordinary man. *

Besides the Coelah chief, and many brave Haras, slain on the
retreat of Monson, the Bukshee, or commauder of the force, was
made prisoner. As the price of his liberation, and as a punishment
for the aid thus given to the British, the Mahratta leader exacted a
bond of ten lacs of rupees from the Bukshee, threatening on refusal
to lay waste with fire and sword the whole line of pursuit. But
when the discomfited BuksheeappearedbeforetheRegent, he spurned
him from his presence, disavowed his act, and sent him back to
Holcar to pay the forfeiture as he might.* Holcar satisfied himself
then with threatening vengeance, and when opportunity permitted,
he marched into Harouti aud encamped near the capital. The walls
were manned to receive him ; the signal had been prepared which
would not have left a single house inhabited in the plains, while the
Bhils would simultaneously pour down from the hills on Holcar’s
supplies or followers. The bond was again presented, and without

■- If my memory betrays me not, this unfortunate commander, unable to
bear his shame, took poison.

CHAP. IS.]

KOTAH.

507

hesitation disavowed : hostilities appeared inevitable, when 'the
friends of both partied concerted an interview. But Zalim, aware of
the perfidy of his foe, declined this, except on his own conditions.
These were singular, and will recall to tniud another and yet more
celebrated meeting. He demanded that they should discuss the
terms of peace or war upon the Chumbul, to which Holcar acceded.
For this purposeZalim prepared two boats, each capable of containing
about twenty armed men. Having moored his own little bark in
the middle of the stream, under the cannon of the city, Holcar,
accompanied by his cavalcade, embarked in his boat and rowed to
meet him. Oai’pets were spread, and there these extraordinary men,
with only one eye* between them, settled the conditions of
peace, and the endearing epithets of ‘ uncle* and e nephew* were
bandied, with abundant mirth on the peculiarity of their situation ;
while, — for the fact is beyond a doubt, — each boat was plugged, and
men were at hand on the first appearance of treachery to have sent
them all to the bottom of the river. But Holcar’s necessities were
urgent, and a gift of three lacs of rupees averted such a catastrophe,
though he never relinquished the threat of exacting the ten lacs ; and
when at length madness overtook him, “ the bond of Kaka Zalim
“ Sing’* was one of the most frequently-repeated ravings of this
soldier of fortune, whose whole life was one scene of 'insanity.

It will readily be conceived, .that the labours of his administration
were quite sufficient to occupy his attention without intermeddling
with his neighbours ; yet, in order to give a direct interest in the
welfare of Kotah, he became a competitor for the fai’ming of the
extensive districts which joined his southern frontier, belonging to
Sindia and Holcar. From the former he rented the punj-mohals,
and from the latter the four important districts of Dig, Perawa, &c.,
which, when by right of conquest they became British, were given
in sovereignty to the Begent. Hot satisfied with this hold of self-
interest on the two great predatory powers, he had emissai'ies in the
persons of their confidential ministers, who reported every move-
ment; and to “ make assurance doubly sure,** he had Mahratta
pundits of the first talent in his own administration, through whose
connexions no political measure of their nation escaped his know-
ledge. As for Meer Khan, he and the Regent were essential to each
other. From Kotah the Khan was provided with military stores and
supplies of every kind ; and when his legions mutinied (a matter of
daily occurrence) and threatened him with the bastinado, or fasten-
ing to a piece of ordnance under a scorching sun, Kotah afforded a
place of refuge during a temporary retreat, or ways and means to
allay the tumult by paying the arrears. Zalim allotted the castle of
Shirgurh for the Khan*s family, so that this leader had no anxiety
on. their account, while he was pursuing his career of rapine in more
distant scenes.

* It should be remembered that Zalim was quite blind, and that Holcar had
lost the use of one eye.

[Vox,. II.]

•64a

508

ANNALS OF HARAVATI.

[CHAP. IX.

Even the Pindarris were conciliated with all tlie respect and
courtesy paid to better men. Many of their leaders held grants of
land in Kotah : so essential, indeed, was a good understanding with,
this body, that when Siudia,in A.D. 1807, entrapped and imprisoned
in the dungeons of Gwalior the celebrated Kureem, Zalim not only
advanced the large sum required for his ransom, but had the temerity
to pledge himself for his future good couduct : an act which some-
what tarnished his reputation for sagacity, but eventually operated
as a just punishment on Sindia for his avarice.

The scale of munificence on which the Regent exercised the rites
of sanctuary ( sirna ) towards the chiefs of other countries claiming
his protection, was disproportioned to the means of the state. The
exiled nobles of Marwar and Mewar have held estates in Kotah
greater than their sequestrated patrimonies. These dazzling acts of
beneficence were not lost on a community amongst whom hospitality
ranks at the head of the virtues. In these regions, where the
strangest anomalies and the most striking contradictions present
themselves in politics, such conduct begets no astonishment, and
rarely provokes a remonstrance from the state whence the suppliant
fled. The Regent not only received the refugees, but often reconciled
them to their sovereigns. He gloried in the title of ‘ peace-maker/
and whether his conduct proceeded from motives of benevolence or
policy, he was rewarded with the epithet, sufficiently exalted in
itself. “ They all come to old Zalim with their troubles,'” he
remarked, “as if he could find food for them all from ‘ his handful of
. “ soil.* ”

To conclude : his defensive was, in its results, the reverse of his
offensive policy. Invariable and brilliant success accompanied the
one ; defeat, disappointment, and great pecuniary sacrifices, were the
constant fruits of the other, Mewar eluded all his arts, and involved
Kotah in embarrassments from which she will never recover, while
his attempt to take Sheopoor, the capital of the Gores, by a coup do
main, was signally defeated. Had he succeeded in either attempt,
and added the resources of these acquisitions to Kotah, doubtless his
views would have been still more enlarged. At an early period of
his career, an offer was made to him, by the celebrated Pert&p Sing
of Jeipoor, to undertake the duties of chief minister of that state : it
is vain to speculate-on what might have been the result to the state
or himself, had he been able to wield her resources, at that time so
little impaired.

Let us now view the domestic policy of the Regent ; for which
purpose we must again bring forward the pageant prince-of Kotah,
the Raja Omdd Sing, who was destined never to be extricated from
the trammels of a guardianship which, like most offices in the East,
was designed to be hereditary : and at the age of threescore and ten,
Onffid Sing found himself as much a minor as when his dying father
“ placed him in the lap” of the Protector Zalim Sing. The line of
conduct he pursued towards his sovereign, through half a century’s

CHAP. IX.]

KOTAH.

I

509

duration, was singularly consistent. The age, the character, the
very title of Nanah, or ‘ grandsire,’ added weight to his authority,
and the disposition of the prince seemed little inclined to throw
it of. In short, his temperament appeared exactly suited to
the views of the Regent, who, while he consulted his wishes in
every step, acted entirely for himself. ‘ The Maharao was a
prince of excellent understanding, and possessed many of those
qualities inherent in a Rajpoot. He was fond of the chase, and
was the best horseman and marksman in the country; and the
Regent gained such entire ascendancy over him, that it is doubtful
whether he was solicitous of change. Besides, there was no appear-
ance of constraint ; and his religious occupations, which increased
with hisage, went far to wean him from a wish to take a more
active share in the duties of government. His penetration, in fact,
discovered the inutility of such a desire, and he soon ceased to
entertain it ; while in proportion as he yielded, the attentions of the
minister increased. If an envoy came from a foreign state, he was
introduced to the Prince, delivered his credentials to him ; and from
him received a reply, but that reply was his minister’s. If a foreign
noble claimed protection, he received it from the Prince : he was the
dispenser of the favoui’3, though he could neither change their
nature nor amount. .Nay, if the Regent's own sons required an
addition to their estates, it could only be at the express desire of the
Maharao ; and to such a length did the minister carry this defer-
ence, that an increase to his personal income required being pressed
upon him by the Prince. If horses arrived from foreign countries
for sale, the best were set aside for the Maharao and his sons. The
archives, the seal, and all the emblems of sovereignty, remained as
in times past in the custody of the personal servants of the Prince, at
the castle, though none durst use them without consent of the
Regent. He banished his only son, Madhu Sing, during three years,
to the family estate at Nandta, for disrespect to the heir-apparent,
Kishore Sing, when training their horses together ; and it was with
difficulty that even the entreaty of the Maharao could procure his
.recall. There are many anecdotes related to evince that habitual
deference to everything attached to his sovereign, which, originat-
ing in good feeling, greatly aided his policy. The Regent was one
day at prayer, in the family temple in the castle, when the younger
sons of the Maharao not knowing he was there, entered to perform
their devotions. It was the cold season, and the pavement was
damp; he took the quilt which he wore from his shoulders, and
spread it for. them to stand upon. On their retiring, a servant,
deeming the quilt no longer fit to be applied to the Regent’s person,
was putting it aside ; but, guessing his intention, Zahm eagerly-
snatched it from him, and recovering himself, observed it was now
of some value, since it was mai'ked with the dust of the feet of his
sovereign’s children. These are curious anomalies in the mind of a
man who had determined on unlimited authority, No usurpation
was ever more meek, or yet more absolute ; and it might be affirmed

510 ANNAIiS OF HAEAVATT. [CHAP. IX.

that the Prince and the Regent were made for each other and the
times in which they lived.

It was to he expected that a man, whose name was long synoni-
mous with wisdom, should shew discernment in 'the choice of his
servants. He had the art of attaching them to his interests, of
uniting their regard with a submissive respect, and no kindness, no
familiarity, ever made them forget the bounds prescribed. But while
he generously provided for all their wants, and granted them every
indulgence, he knew too well the caprice of human nature to make
them independent of himself. He would provide for them, for their
relations and their dependents ; his hand was ever bestowing gra-
tuities" on festivals, births, marriages, or deaths ; but he never
allowed them to accumulate wealth. It is to be remarked that his
most confidential servants were either Pat ’bans or Mahratta Pundits :
the first he employed in military posts, the other in the more com-
plicated machinery of politics. He rarely employed his own coun-
trymen ; and the post of Foujdar, now held by Bisheu Sing, a
Rajpoot of the Suktawut clan, is the exception to the rule. Dulleel
Khan and Mehrab Khan were his most faithful and devoted servants
aud friends. The stupendous fortifications of the capital, with
which there is nothing in India to compete, save the walls of Agra,
were all executed by the former. By bim also was raised that
pride of the Regent, the city called after him, Jhalra-patun ;* while
• all the other forts were put into a state which makes Kotah the
most defensible territory in India. Such was the affectionate esteem
in which Dulleel was held by the Regent, that he used often to say,
<e he hoped he should not outlive Dulleel Khan.” Mehrab Khan
was the commander of the infantry, which he maintained in a state
of admirable discipline and efficiency ;t they received their bees roza
or twenty days’ pay, each month, with their arrears at the end of
every second year.

^ Jhala-ra-Putun, ‘the city of the Jhala,’ the Regent’s tribe.

+ Mehrab Khan was the commandant of one division of Zalim’s contingent,
placed at my disposal, which in eight days took possession of every district of
Holcar’s adjacent to Harouti, and which afterwards gained so much credit by
the brilliant escalade of the ‘Soudi’ fortress, when co-operating with General
Sir John Malcolm. The J’oi/als (Boj-Faltan) were led by Syf Alii, a gallant
soldier, but who could not resist joining the cause of the Maharao and legiti-
macy in the civil war of 1821 .

CHAP. X.]

KOTAH.

511

CHAPTER X.

The Rajpoot Stales invited to an alliance with the British Government. — Halim
Sing the first to accept it. — Marquis Hastings sends an agent to his court . —
Confederation against the Pindarris.—The Regent’s conduct during the icar . —
Approbation and reward of his services. — Peace throughout India.— Death of
Maharaa Omcd Sing. — Treaty and supplemental articles. — Sons of Maharao
Om6d Sing. — Their characters. — Sons of the Regent. — State of parties. — The
Regent leaves the Chuoni for Hot ah. — He proclaims Kishnre Sing as successor
of the late prince. — Ills letter to the British, agent, who repairs to Kotah . —
Dangerous illness of the Regent. — Plots to overturn the order of succession . —
The Regent's ignorance thereof. — Intricate position of the British Government.
— Arguments in defence of the supplemental articles. — Recognition of all
fillers do facto the basis of our treaties. — Kislioro Sing refuses to acknowledge
the supplemental articles. — Consequences. — The Regent blockades the' Prince,
and dejnands the surrender of his son Gordhun-das. — The Maharao breaks
through the blockade. — The British agent, interposes. — Surrender and exile of
Gordhnn-das. — Reconciliation of the Maharao and the Regent. — Coronation of
the Maharao. — Mutual covenants executed. — 'The Regent prohibits dind
throughout Kotah. — Refections.

Wk now enter upon that period of the Regent's history, when the
march of events linked him with the policy of Britain. When, in
A.D. 1817, the Marquis of Hastings proclaimed war against the
Pindarris, who were the very bees of the predatory hordes, which
tho discomfiture of the greater powers had thrown off, neutrality
was not to be endured ; and it was aunounced that all those who
were not for us iu this graud enterprize, which involved the welfare
of all, would be considered against us. The Rajpoot states, alike
interested with ourselves iu the establishment of settled government,
were invited to an alliauce offensive and defensive with us, which
was to free them for ever from the thraldom of tie predatory armies ;
in return for which, we demanded homage to our power, and a
portion of their revenues as the price of protection. The eagle-eye
of Zalim saw - at once the virtue of compliance, and the gain
attendant on its being quickly yielded. Accordingly, his envoy was
the first to connect Kotali in the bonds of alliance, which soon
united all Rajwarra to Britain. Meauwhiie, all India was in arms ;
two hundred thousand men were embodied, and moving ou vai'ious
points to destroy the germ of rapine for ever. As the first scene of
action was expected to be in the countries bordering upon Harou'ti,
the presence of an agent with Zalim Sing appeared indispensable.
His instructions were to make available the resources of Kotah to
the armies moving round him, and to lessen the field of the enemy’s
manoeuvres, by shutting him out of that country. So efficient were
these resources, that in five days after the agent reached the Regent’s
camp,* every pass was a post ; and a corps of fifteen hundred men.

* The author of these aunals, then assistant Resident at Sindia’s Court was

512

ANNALS OF HA RA VAT I.'

[CHAP. X.

infantry and cavalry, with four gnus, was marched to co-operate
•with General Sir John Malcolm, who had just crossed the Nerbudda
with a weak division of the army of the Dekhan, and was marching
northward, surrounded by nnnjerous foes and doubtful friends.
Throughout that brilliant and eventful period in the history of
British India, when every province from the Ganges to the ocean
was agitated by warlike demonstrations, the camp of the Regent
was the pivot of operations and the focus of intelligence. The part
he acted was decided, manly, and consistent; and if there were
moments of vacillation, it was inspired by our own conduct, which
created doubts iu his mind as to the wisdom of his course. He had
seen and felt that the gx-and principle of politics, expediency, gxiided
all courts and councils, whether Mogul, Mahratta, or Bi'itish ; The
disavowal of the alliances formed by Lord Lake, under Marquis
Wellesley’s administration, proved this to demonsti'ation, and he was
too familiar with the history of our power to give more credit than
mere politeness required to our boasted renunciation of the rights
of anticipated conquest. A smile would play over the features of
the orbless politician when the envoy disclaimed all idea of its being
a war of aggrandisement. To all such protestations he would say,
“ Mahraja, I cannot doubt you believe what you say ; but remember
“ what old Zalirn tells you ; the day is not distant when only one
“ emblem of power ( eld sicca) will be recognized throughout India.”
This was in A.D. 1817-18 ; and the ten years of life since granted
to him must have well illustrated the truth of this remark ; for
although no absolute conquest or incorporation of Rajpoot territory
has taken place, our system of control, and the establishment of our
monopoly within these limits (not then dreamed of by ourselves),
has already vei’ified in part his prediction. It wei’e indeed idle to
suppose that any protestations could have vanquished the arguments
present to a miud which had pondered on eveiy page of the
histoi-y of our power; which had witnessed its development,
from the battle of Plassy under Clive, to Lake’s exploits at
the altars of Alexander. He had seen throughout, that the funda-
mental rule which guides the Rajpoot prince, "obtained land,” was one
both practically and theoretically understood by viceroys from
the west, who appeared to act upon the four grand political princi-
ples of the .Rajpoot, sham , dan, bed , dind ; or, pei’suasion, gifts,
stratagem, force; by which, accoi-ding to their great lawgiver,
kingdoms ai’e obtained and maintained, and all mundane affairs
conducted. When, therefore, in order to attain our ends, we
expatiated upon the disinterestedness of our views, his co-operation
was granted less from a belief in our professions, than, upon a dispas-
sionate consideration of the benefits which such alliance would
confer upon Xotah, and of its utility in maintaining his family in
the position it had so long held in that state. He must have

deputed by Lord Hastings’ to the Raj Raua Znlim Sing. He left the residence
at Gwalior on the 12tb November 1817, and reached the Regent’s camp at
Iiowtnh, about twenty-five miles S.S.E. of Kotab, on the 23d. 1

CHAP. X.]

KOTAH.

51 3

balanced the difficulties lie had mastered to maintain that power,
against the enemies, internal and external, which had threatened it,
and he justly feared both would speedily be sacrificed to the inca-
pacity of his successors. To provide a stay to their feebleness was
the motive which induced him to throw himself heart and hand into
tlie alliance we sought ; and of signal benefit did he prove to the
cause he espoused. But if we read aright the workings of a mind,
which never betrayed its purpose either to friend or foe, we should
find that there was a moment wherein, though he did not swerve
from the path he had chalked out, or shew any equivocation in
respect to the pledge he had given, the same spirit which had guided
him to the eminence he had acquired, suggested what he might
have done at a conjuncture when all India, save Rajpootana, was in
arms to overthrow the legions of Britain. All had reason to dread
her colossal power, and hatred and revenge actuated our numerous
allies to emancipate themselves from a yoke, to which, whether they
were bound by friendship or by fear, was alike galling. If there
was one master-mind that could have combined and wielded their
resources for our overthrow, it was that of Zalim Sing alone.
Whether the aspirations of his ambition, far too vast for its little
field of action, soared to this height, or were checked by the trammels
of nearly eighty winters, we can only conjecture. Once, and once
only, the dubious oracle came forth. It was in the very crisis of
operations, when three English divisions were gradually closing
upon the grand Pindarri horde, under Kureem Khan, in the very
heart of his dominions, and his troops, his stores, were all placed at-
om' disposal, he heard that one of these divisions had insulted his
town of Barah : then, the ideas which appeared to occupy him burst
forth in the ejaculation, “ that if twenty years could be taken from
“ his life, Dehli "and Dekhan should be one ■/’ and appeared to point
to the hidden thoughts of a man, whose tongue never spoke but in
parables.

There is also no doubt that his most confidential friends and
ministers, who were Mahrattas, were adverse to his leaguing with
the English, and for a moment he felt a repugnance to breaking
the bond which had so long united him with their policy. 'He
could not but enumerate amongst the arguments for its maintenance,
his ability to preserve that independence which fifty years had
strengthened, and he saw that, with the power to which he was
about- to be allied, he had no course but unlimited obedience ; in
short, that his part must now be subordinate. He preferred it,
however, for the security it afforded; and as in the course of nature
he must soon resign his trust, there was more hope of his power
descending to his posterity than if left to discord and faction. But
when hostilities advanced against the freebooters, and the more
settled governments of the Peshwa, Bkoonsla, Rolcar, and Sindia,
determined to shake off our yoke, we could urge to him irresistible
arguments for a perfect identity of interests. The envoy had only
to hint that the right of conquest would leave the districts he rented
[Von. II.] . 65

514

ANNALS OF HARAVATI.

[CHAP. X.

from Holcar at our disposal ; and that as we wanted'no territory
in Central India for ourselves, we should not forget our friends at
the conclusion of hostilities. If ever there were doubts, they were
dissipated by this suggestion ; and on the grand horde being broken
up, it was discovered that the families of its leaders were concealed
in his territory. Through his indirect aid we were enabled to
secure them, and at once annihilated the strength of the marauders.
For all these important services, the sovereignty of the four districts
he rented from Holcar was guaranteed to the Regent. The circum-
stances attending the conveyance of this gift afforded an estimate of
Zalim’s determination never to relinquish his authority ; for, when
the sunniid was tendered in his own name, he declined it, desiring
the insertion of that of “ his master, the Maharao.” At the time, it
appeared an act of disinterested magnanimity, but subsequent acts
allowed us to form a more correct appreciation of his motives. The
campaign concluded, and the noble commander and his enlightened
coadjutor* left the seat of war impressed with the conviction of the
great services, and the highest respect for the talents, of the veteran
politician, while the envoy, who had acted with him during the
campaign, was declared the medium of his future political relations.

In March A.D. 1818, profound repose reigned from the Sutlej to
the ocean, of which Rajpoot history presented no example. The
magic Runes, by which the north-man could ff hush the stormy
,f wave,” could not be more efficacious than the rod of our power in
tranquillizing this wide space, which for ages had been the seat of
conflict. The satya yuga, the golden age of the Hindu, alone afforded
a parallel to the calm which had succeeded eras of tumultuous
effervescence.

Thus matters proceeded till November 1819, when the death of
the Maharao Omed Sing engendered new feelings in the claimants
to the succession, and placed the Regent in a position from which not
even his genius, might have extricated him, unaided by the power
whose alliance he had so timely obtained. And here it becomes
requisite to advert to the terms of this alliance.. The treatyf was
concluded at Dehli, on the 26th of December 1 817, by the envoys of
the Regent, in the name of his lawful sovereigu, the Maharao Omdd
Sing, ratified by the contracting parties, and the deeds were inter-
changed at the Regent’s court early in January. To this treaty his
sovereign’s seal and his own were appended; but no guarantee of
the Regent's power was demanded pending the negotiation, nor is he
mentioned except in the preamble, and then only as the ministerial
agent of the Maharao Omdd Sing, in whose behalf alone the treaty
was virtually executed. This excited the surprise of the British
representative,! who, in his official despatch detailing the progress

I allude to Mr. Adam, who divided with the noble Marquis the entire
merits of that ever memorable period.

1" Copy of this is inserted in Appendix No. 6.

J 9' ? Ietca!fo ! ® sc b fc hen resident at Dehli, now Sir C. T. Metcalfe, Bart.,
member of council in Bengal.

CHAP. £.]

KOTAH.

515

and conclusion of the negotiations, intimated that he not only
expected sucli stipulation, but was prepared for admitting it. There
was no inadvertence in this omission; the Regent saw no occasion
for any guarantee, for the plenary exercise of the powers of sovereign
during more than half a century had constituted him, de facto, prince
of Kotah. Moreover, we may suppose, had he felt a desire for such
stipulation, that a feeling of pride might have stifled its expression,
which by making the choice of ministers dependent on a foreign
power would have virtually annulled the independent sovereignty
of Kotah. Whatever was the reason of the omission, at a season
when his recognition might have had the same formal sanction of
all the parties as the other articles of the treaty, it furnished the
future opponents of the Regent's power with a strong argument
against its maintenance in perpetuity on the death of the Maharao
Omed Sing.

It has been already said, that the treaty was concluded at Dehli in
December 1817, and interchanged in January 1818. In March of
the same year, two supplemental articles were agreed to at Dehli,
and transmitted direct to the Regent, guaranteeing the administra-
tion of affairs to his sons and successors for ever.

Having premised so much, let us give a brief notice of the parties,
whose future fate was involved in this policy.

The Maharao Omdd Sing had three sons, Kishore Sing, Bishen
Sing, and Pirthi Sing. The heir-apparent, who bore a name dear to
the recollection of the Haras, was then forty years of age. He was
mild in his temper and demeanour ; but being brought up in habits
of seclusion, he was more conversant with the formulas of his religion,
and the sacred epics, than with the affairs of mankind. He was no
stranger to the annals of his family, and had sufficient pride and
feeling to kindle at the recollection of their glory ; but the natural
r bent of his mind, reinforced by education, had well fitted him to
follow the path of his father, and to leave himself and his country to
be governed as best pleased the Ndnali-saheb >,* the Regent.

Bishen Sing was about three years younger; equally placed in
disposition, sensible and sedate, and much attached to the Regent.

Pirthi Sing was under thirty ; a noble specimen of a Kara, eager
for action in the only career of a Rajpoot — arms. To him the
existing state of things was one of opprobrium and dishonour, and
,his mind was made up to enfranchise himself and family from the
thraldom in which his father had left them, or perish in the attempt.
The brothers were attached to each other, and lived in perfect
harmony, though suspicions did exist that Bishen Sing’s greater
docility and forbearance towards the Regent’s son and successor,
arose from interested, perhaps traitorous, views. Each of them had

* This was the parental epithet always applied to the Regent by Omcd Sing
and his sons, who it will bo remembered mingled some of the Jhala blood in
their veins. Nanah-salieb, * sir graudsire,’

[Toi,. II.]

65a

ANNALS OF HARAV.&H.

516

[chap. X.

estates of twenty-five thousand 'rupees’ annual rent, which they
managed through their agents.

The Regent had two sons, the elder, Madhu Sing, legitimate ; the
vounger, Gordhun-das, illegitimate ; but he was regarded with more
affection, and endowed with almost equal authority with the
declared successor to the regency. Madhu Sing was about forty-six
at the period we speak of. A physiognomist would discover in his
aspect no feature indicative of genius, though he might detect amidst
traits which denoted indolence, a supercilious tone of character, the
effect of indulgence. This was fostered in a great degree by thelate
Maharao, who supported the Regent’s son against his own in all
their dissensions, even from their infancy, which had increased the
natural arrogance developed by power being too early entrusted to
him : for when the Regent, as before related, quitted the capital for
the camp, Madhfi Sing was nominated to the office of Foujdar, the
hereditary post of his father, and left as his loctom tenens at Kotah.
This office, which included the command and pay of all the troops,
left unlimited funds at his disposal; and as the checks which
restrained every other officer in 'the state, were inoperative upon his
sons, who dared to inform against the future Regent ? Accordingly,
he indulged his taste in a manner which engendered dislike to him :
his gardens, his horses, his boats, were in a style of extravagance
calculated to provoke the envy of the sons of his sovereign ; while
his suite eclipsed that of the prince himself. In short, he little
regarded the prudent counsel of his father, who, in their metapho-
rical language, used to express his fears c< that when he was a
“ hundredyears old,” (he., dead,) the fabric which cost alifein rearing
would fall to pieces.

Gordhun-das,* the natural son of the Regent, was then about
twenty-seven,-}- quick, lively, intelligent, and daring. His conduct
to his sovereign’s family has been precisely the reverse of his
brother’s, and in consequence he lived on terms of confidential friend-
ship with them, especially with the heir-apparent and prince, Pirbhi
Sing, whose disposition corresponded with his own. His father, who
viewed this child of his old age with perhaps more affection than his '
elder brother, bestowed upon him the important office of Purclhan,
which comprehends the grain -department of the state. It gave h im
the command of funds, the amount of which endangered the declared
succession. The brothers cordially detested each other, and many
indignities were cast upon Gordhun-das by Madhu Sing, such as
putting him in the guard, which kindled an irreconcilable rancour
between them. Almost the only frailty in the character of the
Regent was the defective education of his sons: both were left to
the indulgence of arrogant pretensions, which ill-accorded with the

*Anglicc, ‘ the slave of Gordhun,’ one of the names of Crishna, the tutelary
. divinity of the Begent.

t Let me again remind the reader, chat this was written in 1820-21; for
many reasons, the phraseology and chronology of the original MS. are retained.

CHAT, X,]

KOTAH.

517

tenor of his own behaviour through life, or the conduct that was
demanded of them. Dearly, bitterly, has the Regent repented this'
error, which in its consequences has thrown the merits of an active
and difficult career into the shade, and made him regret that his
power was not to die with him.

Such was the state of parties and politics at Kotah in November
1819, when the death of the Maharao developed views that had long
been concealed, and that produced the most deplorable results. The
Regent was at the Ghaoni, his standing camp at Gagrown, when this
event occurred, and he immediately repaired to the capital, to see
that the last offices were properly performed, and to proclaim the
an, or oath of allegiance, and the accession of the Maharao Kishore
Sing.

The political agent received the intelligence* on his march from
Marwar to Mdwai*, and immediately addressed his government on
the subject, requesting instructions. Meanwhile, after a few days'
halt at Oodipoor, he repaired to Kotah to observe the state of parties,'
whose animosities and expectations were forebodings of a change
which menaced the guaranteed order of things. On his arrival, he
found the aged Regent, still a stranger to the luxury of a house,
encamped a mile beyond the city, with his devoted bands around
him ; while his son, the heir to his power, continued in his palace in
the town. The prince and brothers, as heretofore, resided at the
palace in the castle, where they held their coteries , of which Gor-
dhun-das and Pirthi Sing were the principals, moulding the new
Maharao to their will, aud from which the second brother, Bishen
Sing, was excluded. Although the late prince had hardly ceased to
breathe, before the animosities so long existing between the sons of
the Regent burst forth, aud threatened ” war within the gates;’' and
although nothing short of the recovery of rights so long in abeyance
was determined upon by the prince ; yet, — and it will hardly be
believed, — these schemes escaped the vigilance of the Regent.

The death of his friend and sovereign, added to care and infirmity,
brought on a fit of illness, the result of which was expected to crown
the hopes of the parties who were interested in the event ; and
when, to their surprise and regret, he recovered, the plans of his

The following is a translation of the letter written by the Regent, announc-
ing the decease ot his master, dated 1st Suffur, A.H. 1235, or November 2lst,
1819:—

“ Until Sunday, the eve of the 1st Suffur, the health of the Maharao Omdd
ging was nerfectly good. About an hour after sunset, he went to worship Sri
Byjnath-ji. Having made six prostrations, and while performing the seventh,
he fainted and remained totally insensible. In this state ho was removed to
his bed-chamber, when every medical aid was given, but unavailiugly ; at two
in the morning he departed for heaven.

“ Such affliction is not reserved even for a foe ; but what refuge is their
against the decree? You are our friend, and the honour and welfare of those
whom the Maharao has left behind are now in your hands. The Maharao
Kishore Sing, eldest son of the Maharao deceased, has been placed upon, the
throne. This is written for the information of friendship.

518

ANNALS OF HAEAVATI.

[chap. X.

prince and natural son were matured, and as notorious as the sun at
noon to every person of note but the Regent himself. He was not,
indeed, the first aged ruler, however renowned for wisdom, who had
been kept in ignorance of the cabals of his family. It required a
prophet to announce to David the usurpation of Adonijah and
the same cause, which kept David ignorant that his son had
supplauted him, concealed from the penetrating eye of Zalim
Sing the plot which had for its object that his power should
perish with him, and that his son Gordhun should supersede the heir
to his hereditary staff of office. Strange as it must appear, the
British Agent acted the part of Nathan on this occasion, and
had to break the intelligence to the man who had swayed for
sixty years, with despotic authority, the destinies of Kotah, that his
sons were arming against each other, and that his prince was deter-
mined that his wand ( churri ) of power should (to speak in their
metaphorical style) be consumed in the same pyre with himself
whenever the “ decree of Bhagwan” went forth.

It was then that the supplemental articles, guaranteeing Madhu
Sing in the succession to the regency, proved a stumbling-block in
the path of our mediation between parties, the one called on to
renounce that dear-bought power, the other determined to regaiii
what time and accident had wrested from him. Had the emergency
occurred while the predatory system was predominant, not a whisper
would have been raised ; the point in all probability would never-
have been mooted : it would have been considered as a matter of
course, where

“ Amuralh to Amurath succeeds,”

that the Maharao Kishore should continue the sams puppet in the
hands of Madhfi Sing that his father had been in Zalim’s. This
would have excited no surprise, nor would such a proceeding have
afforded speculation for one hour. Nay, the usurper might have
advanced to the ulterior step; and, like the Frank maire du palais,
have demanded of the pontiff of Nat’hdwara, as did Pepin of Pope
Zacharius, “ whether he who had the power, should not also have
“ the title, of kiug;”+ and the same plenary indulgence would have
awaited the first Jhala Raja of Kotah as was granted to the first of
the Carlovingian kings ! It, therefore, became a matter of astonish-
ment, especially to the unreflecting, whence arose the general
sympathy, amounting to enthusiasm, towards this hitherto dis-
regarded family, not only from chief and peasant, within the bounds
of Harouti, and the foreign mercenary army raised and maintained
by the Regent, but from the neighbouring princes and nobles, who
had hitherto looked upon the usurpation in silence.

A short explanation will solve what was then enigmatical, even

^“Nathan spake unto Batbsheba, ‘ hast thou not heard that Adonijah, the
son of Hngithn, does reign, and David onr Lord knoweth it not?’ ”

t Such was the question propounded, and answered as Pepin expected,
regarding the deposal of Childeric, the last of the Merovingian race.

CHAP. X.]

KOTAH.

519

to those most interested in forming a just opinion. The practice of
the moral virtues amongst any portion of civilized society may be
uncertain, but there is one invariable estimate or standard of them
in theory. The policy of 1817 changed the moral with the political
aspect of Rajast’han. If, previous thereto, no voice was raised against
usurpation and crime, it was because all hope that their condition
could be ameliorated was extinct. But this was to them any a.
samvat, a c new era/ a day of universal regeneration. Was the
sovereign not to look for the restoration of that power which had
been guaranteed by treaty, — nor the 'chiefs to claim the restitution
of their estates, — nor the peasant to hope for the lands now added
to the crown domain ; — and were not all foreign potentates interested
in calling for an example of retributive justice for ministerial usur-
pation, however mildly exercised towards the prince ? With more
rational than political argument, they appealed to our high notions
of public justice to accomplish these objects. Unhappy position, in
which circumstances, — nay, paradoxical as it may appear, political
gratitude and justice, — dictated a contrary course, and marshalled
British battalions in line with the retainers of usurpation to combat
the lawful sovereign of the country ! The case was one of the most
difficult that ever beset our policy in the Bast, which must always
to a certain extent be adapted to the condition of those with whom
we come in contact ; and perhaps, on this occasion, no caution or
foresight could have averted the effects of this alliance.

There is not a shadow of doubt that the supplemental articles of
the treaty of Kotah, which pledged our faith to two parties in a
manner which rendered its maintenance towards both an impossi-
bility, produced consequences that shook the confidence of the people
of Rajwarra in our political rectitude. They established two 1
pageants instead of one, whose co-existence would have been miracu-
lous : still, as a measure ought not to be judged entirely by its
results, we shall endeavour to assign the true motive and character
of the act.

If these articles were not dictated by good policy; if they cannot
be defended on the plea of expediency; if the omission in the
original treaty of December could not be supplied in March, without
questioning the want of foresight of the framer ; he might justify
them on the ground that they were a concession to feelings of grati-
tude for important services, rendered at a moment when the fate
of our power in India was involved to an extent unprecedented
since its origin. To effect a treaty with the Nestor of Rajwarra,
was to ensure alliances with the rest of the states, which object was
the very essence of Lord Hastings’ policy. Thus, on general
views, as well as for particular reasons (for the resources of
Kotah were absolutely indispensable), the co-operation of the
Regent was a measure vitally important. Still it may be urged that
as the Regent himself, from whatever motive, had allowed the
time to go by when necessity might have compelled us to incorporate

520

ANNALS OF IIARAYATI.

[CHAP. X.

sucli an article in the original treaty, was there no other mode o£
reimbursing these services besides a guarantee which was an apple
of discord? The war was at an end; and we might with justice
have urged that 'the state of Kotah/ with which we had treated,
had, in the destruction of all the powers of anarchy and sharing in
its spoils, fully reaped the reward of her services. Such an argument
would doubtless have been diplomatically just ; but we were still
revelliu'g in the excitement of unparalleled success, to which Zalim
had been no mean contributor, and the future evil was overlooked
in the feverish joy of the hour. But if cold expediency may not
deem this a sufficient justification, we may find other reasons. When
the author of the policy of 1817 had maturely adjusted his plans for
the union of all the settled governments in a league against the
predatory system, it became necessary to adopt a broad principle
with respect to those with whom we had to treat. At such a moment
he could not institute a patient investigation into the moral dis-
cipline of each state, or demand of those who wielded the power by
what tenure they held their authority. It became, therefore, a
matter of necessity to recognize those who were .the rulers de facto,
a principle which was publicly promulgated and universally acted
upon. Whether we should have been justified in March, when all
our wishes had been consummated, in declining a proposal which we
would most gladly have submitted to in December, is a question
which we shall leave diplomatists to settle,* and proceed to relate
the result of the measure.

The counsellors of the new Mahavao Boon expounded to him the
terms of the treaty, and urged him to demand its fulfilment accord-
ing to its literal interpretation. The politic deference, which the
Regent had invariably shewn to the late prince, was turned skilfully
into an offensive weapon against him. They triumphantly appealed
to the tenth article of the treaty, “ the Maharao, his heirs and
ei successors, shall remain absolute rulers of their country and
demanded how we could l’econoile our subsequent determination to
guaiantee Madhu Sing and his heirs in the enjoyment of power,
which made him de facto the prince, and “ reduced the gadi of ‘Kotah
“ to a simple heap of cotton ?” — with the fact beforepur eyes, that
the seals of all the contracting parties were to the original treaty, bufi
that of the supplemental articles the late Maharao died in absolute
ignorance.

All friendly intercourse between the prince and the Regent, and
consequently with Madhu Sing, was soon at an end, and every effort

* The overture for these supplementary articles, in all probability, originated
not with the Regent, but with the son. Had the author (who was then the
medium of the political lelations with Kotab) been consulted regarding their
tendency, he was as well aware then as non), what he ought to have advised.
Whether his feelings, alike excited by the grand work in which he bore no
mean part, would have also clouded bis judgment, it were useless to discuss.
It is sufficient, in nlltbe spirit of candour , to suggest such reasons as may have
led to a measure, the consequences of which have been so deeply lamented;

CHAP. X.]

Ko'tIH.

521

•was used whereby the political enfranchisement of the former could
be accomplished. The eloquence of angels must have failed to check
such hopes, still more to give a contrai-y interpretation to the simple
language of the treaty, to which, with a judicious pertinacity, they
confined themselves. It would be useless to detail the various
occurrences pending the reference to our Government. The prince
would not credit, or affected not to credit, its determination, and
founded abundant and not easily-refutable arguments upon its
honour and justice. When told that its instructions were, “ that no
“ pretensions of the titular Raja can be entertained by us in opposi-
tion to our positive engagement with the Regent; that he alone
“ was considered as the head of the Kotah state, and the titular Raja
<f no more deemed the ruler of Kotah, than the Raja of Satarra the
“ leader . of the Mahrattas, or the Great Mogul the emperor of
“ Hindustan,” the Maharao shut his ears against the representation
of the Agent, and professed to regard the person who could compare
his case to others so little parallel to it, as his enemy. While his
brother, Pirtki Sing, and Gordhun-das formed part of the council of
Kishore Sing, it was impossible to expect that he would be brought
to resign himself to his destiny; and he was speedily given to
understand that the removal of both from his councils was indis-
pensable. '

But as it was impossible to effect this without escalading the
castle, in which operation the prince, in all human probability, might
have perished, it was deemed advisable to blockade it and starve
them into surrender. When reduced to extremity, the Maharao
took the determination of trusting his cause to the country, and
placing himself at the head of a band of five hundred horse, chiefly
Haras, with the tutelary deity at his saddle-bow, with drums
beating and colours flying, he broke through the blockade, fortu-
nately, no instructions had been given for resistance, and his caval-
cade passed on to the southward unmolested. As soon as the
movement was reported, the Agent hastened to the Regent’s camp,
which he found in confusion ; and demanded of the veteran what
steps he had taken, or meant to take, to prevent the infection spread-
ing. His conduct, at such a crisis, was most embarrassing. Beset
by scruples, real or affected, the Agent could only obtain ill-timed if
not spurious declarations of loyalty ; “ that he would cling to
“ his sovereign’s skirts, and chakri bar (serve him) ; that he
“"■would rather retire to Nat’hdwai’a, than blacken his face
“ by any treason towards his master.” Rejoiced at the mere
hint of a sentiment which afforded the least presage of the only
mode of cutting the Gordian knot of our policy, the Agent eagerly
replied, “ there was no earthly bar to his determination, which he
“ had only to signify;” but abhorring duplicity and cant at such a
moment, when action of the most decisive kind was required, and
apprehensive of the consequences of five hundred unquiet spirits
being thrown loose on a society so lately disorganized, he hastily
bid the veteran adieu, and galloped to overtake the prince s caval-
[Vol. II.] 60

522 ' ANNALS OF HARAVATI. . [CHAP. X.

cade. He found it bivouacked at tlie EungMri, a country-seat
six miles south of the capital. His followers and their horses, inter-
mingled, were scattered in groups outside the garden-wall ; and
the prince, his chiefs, and advisers, were in the palace, deliberating
on their future operations. There was no time for ceremony ; and
he reached the assembly before he could be announced. The rules
of etiquette and courtesy were not lost even amidst impending
strife ; though the greeting was short, a warm expostulation with
the prince and the chiefs was delivered with rapidity ; and the
latter were warmed that their position placed them in direct enmity
to the British government, and that, without being enabled to
benefit their sovereign, they involved themselves in destruction.
The courtesy which these brave men had a right to was changed
into bitter reproof, as the Agent turned to Gordhun-das, whom he
styled a traitor to his father, and from whom his prince could expect
no good, guided as he was solely by interested motives, and warned
him that punishment of no common kind awaited him. His hand
was on his sword in an instant ; but the action being met by a smile
of contempt, and his insolent replies passing unheeded, the Agent,
turning to the prince, implored him to reflect before the door would
be closed to accommodation ; pledging himself, at the same time,
to everything that reason and his position could demand, except
the surrender of the power of the Regent, which our public faith
compelled us to maintain; and that the prince’s dignity, comforts,
and happiness, should be sedulously consulted. While he was
wavering, the Agent called aloud, “ the prince’s horse !” and taking
his arm, Kishore Sing suffered himself to be led to it, observing as
he mounted, I rely implicitly on your friendship.” His brother,
Pirthi Sing, spoke ; the chiefs maintained silence ; and the impetu-
osity of Gordhun and one or two of the coterie was unheeded. The
Agent rode side by side with the prince, surrounded by his bands,
in perfect silence, and in this way they re-entered the castle, nor did.
the Agent quit him till he replaced him on his gadi, when he
reiterated his expressions of desire for his welfare, but urged the
necessity of his adapting his conduct to the imperious circumstances
of his position ; and intimated that both his brother and Gordhun-
das must be l’emoved from his person, the latter altogether from
Harouti. This was in the middle of May; and in June, after the
public deportation of Gordhun-das as a state- criminal to Dehli, and
ample provision being made for the prince and every member of his
family, a> public reconciliation took place between him and the
Regent.

The meeting partook of the nature of a festival, and produced a
spontaneous rejoicing, the populace, with the loudest acclamations, ■
crowding every avenue to the palace by which the Regent and his
son were to pass. The venerable Zalim appeared like their patriarch ;
the princes as disobedient children suing for forgiveness. They
advanced bending to embrace his knees, whilst he, vainly attempt-
ing to restrain this reverential salutation to his age and to habit.

ciiap. x.}

KOTAIT.

523

endeavoured by tbe same lowly action to shew bis respect, to bis
sovereign. Expressions, in keeping with sucb forms of affection
and respect, from the Mabarno, of honour and fidelity from tbe
f guardian of bis father* and himself, were exchanged with all the
fervour of apparent sincerity. Anomalous condition of human
affairs ! strange perversity, which prevented this momentary illusion
from becoming a permanent reality !

This much-desired reconciliation was followed on the Stk of
Sawun, or 17th August A.D. 1820, by the solemnities of a public
installation of tbe Mabarao on the ejadi of his ancestors: a pageantry
which smoothed all asperities for the time, and, in giving scope to
the munificence of tho Regent, afforded to the mass, who judge
only by the surface of things, a theme for approbation. We leave
for another place* tho details of this spectacle ; merely observing
that the representative of the British government was the first
(following the priest) to' make the tilca, or unction of sovereign tyf
on the forehead of the prince ; and having tied on the jewels,
consisting of nigrette, necklace, and bracelets, he girded on, amidst
salutes of ordnance, the sword of investiture. The Maharao, with
an appropriate speech, presented one hundred and one gold mohurs,
as tho nuzzur or fine of relief, professing his homage to the British
government. At tho same time, a hhelat, or dress of honour, was
presented, in the name of the Governor-general of India, to the
Regent, for which ho made a suitable acknowledgment, and a
nuzzur of twenty-five gold mohurs.

Mndhu Sing then fulfilled the functions of hereditary Foujdar,
making tho tilca, girding on the sword, and presenting the gift of
accession, which was returned by the Maharao presenting to Madhh
Sing the Ichelat of ultimate succession to the regency : the grand
difficulty to overcome, and which originated all these differences.
The Agent remained an entire month after the ceremony, to
strengthen the good feeling thus begun ; to adapt the Maharao’ s mind
to tho position in which an imperious destiny had placed him : and
also to impress on the successor to the regency the dangerous respon-
sibility of the trust which a solemn treaty had guaranteed, if by
his supineness, want of feeliug, or misconduct, it were violated. On
the 4th September, previous to leaving Kotah, the Agent was present
at another meeting of all the parties, when there was as much appear-
ance of cordiality manifested as could be expected in so difficult a
predicament. The old Regent, the Maharao, and Madhu Sing, joined
hands in reciprocal forgiveness of- the past, each uttering a solemn
asseveration that he would cultivate harmony for the future.

It was on this occasion that the Regent performed two deliberate

* The details of this ceremony will be given in the Personal Narrative,
t "Anointing” appears to have been, in all ages, the mode of installation.
Tho unguent on this occasion (s of sandal-wood and utr of roses made into a
paste, or very thick ointment, of which a little is placed upon the forehead
with the middle finger of the right hand.

[Von. II.]

66a

524

ANNALS OP HARAVATI.

[CHAP. X.

acts, which appear suitable accompaniments to the close of bis
political life, both as respects bis prince and bis subjects. He bad
prepared a covenant of surety for bis old and faithful servants after
bis' death, demanding the Maharao’s, bis son Madhu Sing’s, and the
Agent’s signatures thereto, stipulating that <c if bis successor did not
“ choose to employ their services, they should be free agents, be
“ called to no account for the past, but be permitted to reside
“ wherever they pleased.” The Maharao and Madhii Sing having
signed the deed, the British agent, at the desire of the Regent, placed
his signature as a guarantee for its execution. In this act, we not
only have proof that to the last the Regent maintained the supre-
macy of his master, but evidence of the fears he entortaiued respect-
ing the conduct of his successor.

The other act was a brilliant victory over the most inveterate
habits of his age and country, — the revocation of dind, or forced
contributions, throughout the dominion of Eotah. This spontaneous
abolition of a practice so deeply rooted in Rajast’han, is another
proof of the keen penetration of the Regent, and of his desire to
conciliate the opinions of the protecting power, as to the duties
of princes towards their subjects; duties regarding which, as
he said, “ theoretically we are not ignorant;” and on which he has
often forcibly descanted before his son, whilst laying down rules of
conduct when he should be no more. At such moments, he entered
fully and with energy into his own conduct ; condemning it ; pointing
out its inevitable results, and the benefits he had observed to attend
an opposite course of action. “ My word, son, was not worth a
” copper,” he would say ; ” but now nobody would refuse anything
“ to old Zalim.” It was, therefore, as much from a conviction of the
benefit to himself and the state which would attend the renuncia-
tion of this tax, as with a view of courting golden opinion, that he
commanded a stone to be raised in the chief town of every district
of his country, on which was inscribed the edict of perpetual
abolition of dind, with the denunciation of eternal vengeance on
whoever should revoke it. The effigies of the sun, the moon, the
cow, and the hog, animals reverenced or execrated by all classes,
were carved in relief, to attest the imprecation.

Such was the pacific termination of a contest for authority, which
threatened to deluge Kotah with blood. Whether we had a right to
hope that such high and natural pretensions could rest satisfied with
the measures of conciliation and concession that were pursued, the
sequel will disclose to those who judge only by results.

CHAI>. XI.] .

ROTAF.

525

CHAPTER XI.

Banishment of Gordhun-das, the natural son of the Regent. — Bis re-appearance
in Malioa. — Consequent renewal of dissensions at Kotah. — The troops mutiny
and join the Maharao. — The Regent assaults the castle. — Flight of the
Maharao and party.— Reception at Boondi.—The Maharao’ e second brother
joins the Regent. — Gordhun-das' attempt to join the Maharao frustrated. — The
Maharao leaves Boondi. — General sympathy for him. — lie arrives at
Bindrahun. — Intrigues of Gordhun-das and superior native officers of the
British Government, who deceive the Maharao. — Beturns to Kotah at the head
of a force. — Summons the Haras to his standard. — ZTjs demands. — Supple-
mental article of the treaty considered. — Embarrassing conduct of the Regent.
— The Maharao refuses all mediation. — His ultimatum. — British troops
march. — Junction with the Regent, — Attach the Maharao. — llis defeat and
flight. — Death of his brother Pirlhi Sing. — Singular combat. — Amnesty
proclaimed. — The Hara chiefs return to their families. — The Maharao retires
to the temple of Crishna in Mowar. — Negotiation for his return. — Satisfactory
termination. — Reflections onrfhese civil wars. — Character and death of Zalim,
Sing.

'Pur solo measure of! severity which arose out of these commotions
was exorcised on the natural son of tho Regent, who was banished
in tho faco of open day from the scene of his turbulent intrigue.
Gordhun-das, or, as his father styled him, n Gordun-ji/’ was the
* child of love’ and of his old age, and to his mother the Regent, it
is said, folt tho most ardent attachment. The' perpetual banishment
of this firebrand was essential to tranquillity ; yet, notwithstanding
his misdeeds, political and filial, it was feared that the sentiments
of the Jewish monarch, rather than the sternness of the Roman father,
would have influenced the Rajpoot Regent, whose bearing, when
the sentence of condemnation was enforced, was to be regarded as
the test of a suspicion that tho Maharao had been goaded to his
coarse through this channel by ulterior views which he dared not
openly promulgate. But Zalirn's fiat was worthy of a Roman, and
sufficed to annihilate suspicion — “ Let the air of Harouti never more
“ be tainted by bis presence.” Dohli and Allababad were the cities
fixed upon, from which ho was to select his future residence, and
unfortunately the first was chosen. Hero ho resided with his family
upon a pension sufficiently liberal, and had a range abundantly
excursive- for exercise, attended by some horsemen furnished by tbe
British local authority.

About the close of 1821, permission wUs imprudently granted to
tho exilo to visit Malwa, to fulfil a marriage-contract with an illegi-
timate daughter of the cliieftain of Jabboa. Scarcely bad he sethis
foot in that town, wben symptoms of impatience, in lieu of perfect
tranquillity, began to be visible at Kotah, and a correspondence
both there and at Boondi was hardly detected, before a spirit of
revolt was reported to have infected the tried veterans of the

526

ANNALS OF ' HARAVATI.

[CHAP. .XI.

Eegent. Syef Al’li, the commander of the ' royals’ (Raj Pulton), an
officer of thirty 'years* standing, distinguished for his zeal,, fidelity,
and gallantry, was named as having been gained over to the cause
of his nominal sovereign. This was looked upon as a slander-; but
too wise entirely to disregard it, the Regent interposed a force
between the disaffected battalion and the castle, which brought .the
matter to issue. The Maharao immediately proceeded by water, and
conveyed Syef Alii and a part of his battalion to the palace ; which
was no sooner reported, than the blind Regent put himself into his
litter, and headed a force with which he attacked the remainder,
while two twenty-four pounders, mounted on a cavalier, which com-
manded not only every portion of the city, but the country on both
sides the Ohumbul, played upon the castle. In the midst of this
firing (probably unexpected), the Maharao, his brother Pirthi Sing,
and their adherents, took to boat, crossed the river, and l'etired to
Boondi, while the remainder of the mutinous 'royals’ laid down their
arms. By this energetic conduct, the new attempt upon his power
was dissolved as soon as formed, and the gadi of the Haras was
abandoned. Bishen Sing escaped from His brothers in the midst of
the fray, and joined the Regent, whose views regarding him, in this
crisis, however indirectly manifested, could not be mistaken-; but
our system of making and unmaking kings in these distant .regions,
though it may have enlarged our power, had not added to our repu-
tation ; and the Agent had the most rooted repugnance to sanction
the system in the new range of our alliances, however it might have
tended to allay the discord which prevailed, or to free the paramount
power from the embarrassment in which its diplomatic relations had
placed it, and from whence there was no escape without incurring
the two just reproach of violating the conditions we-had imposed.
Common decency forbade our urging the only plea we could in
forming the treaty, namely, our considering the prince as a mere
phantom ; and if we had been bold enough to do so, the reply would
have been the same : “ why did you treat with a phantom ?” while'
he would have persisted in the literal interpretation of the bond.

There was but one way to deal with. the perplexity-— to fulfil ! the
spirit of the treaty, by which public peace would be ensured.
Instructions were sent to the prince of Boondi, that there was no
restraint Upon his performing the rites of hospitality and kindred to
the fugitive princes, but that he would be personally responsible if
he permitted them to congregate troops for the purpose of hostility
against the Regent: while, at the same time, .the commander of the
British troops at Neemuch was desired to interpose a light corps on
the line bf Jabboa and .Boondi, and to capture Gordhun-das, dead or
alive, if he attempted to join-' the Maharao. He, however, contrived;
through the intricacies of the plateau, to elude the well-arranged
plan ; but finding that the prince of Boondfhad the same determina-
tion, he made direct' for Marwar, where being also denied an’asylum,
he had no alternative but to return to Dehli, and-'to a more strict
' surveillance. This', however, may have been concerted ; for soon

CHAP. XI.]'

KOTAH.

527

after, ttie Maharao broke ground from Boondl, giving out a pilgrim-
age to Bindrabun; and it was hoped that the tranquillity and
repose .lie would find amidst the fanes of his tutelary deity,
Brijnat’h-ji, might tempt a mind prone to religious seclusion, to pass
his days there. While he remained at Boondi, public opinion was
not at all manifested; the distance was trifling to Kotah, and being
with the head of his race, the act was deemed only one of those
hasty ebullitions so common in those countries, and which would be
followed by reconciliation. But as soon as the prince moved north-
ward, expectation being excited that his cause would meet atten-
tion elsewhere, he had letters of sympathy and condolence from
every chief of the - country, and the customary attentions to
sovereignty were paid by those through whose states he passed,
with the sole exception of that most contiguous to our provinces,
Bhurtpore. The prince of this celebrated place sent a deputa-
tion to the frontier, excusing himself on account of his age and
blindness ; but the Hara prince, knowing what was due 'from
a Jat zemindar, however favoured by the accessions of fortune,
repelled with disdain both his gifts and his mission. For this
haughty, though not unbecoming maintenance of precedent, the
Maharao was warned off the bounds of Bhurtpore. Having remained
sometime among the “ groves of Vrija,” there was reason to believe
that the canticles of Jydeva had rendered an earthly crown a mere
bauble in the eyes of the abdicated Hara, and that the mystical
effusions of Kaniya and Radha had eradicated all remembrance of
the rhapso.dies of Chund, and the glories of the Chohan : he was
accordingly left at discretion to wander where he listed. As it was
predicted, he soon felt the difference between his past and present
mode of life, surrounded by a needy crew in a strange laud; and
towards the middle of April he had reached Muttra, on his return
from Bindrabun to Kotah. But his evil genius, in the shape of
Gordhun-das, had destined this should not be ; and notwithstanding
the rigorous surveillance, or, iu fact, imprisonment, which had been
enjoined, this person found .an opportunity to carry on cabals with
natives of high rank and office.

Intrigues multiplied, and false hopes were inspired through these
impure channels, which were converted by his corrupt emissaries
into fountain-heads of political control, superseding the only autho-
rized medium of communication between the misguided prince and
the paramount power. Accordingly, having collected additional
troops about him, he commenced his march to Harouti, giving out
to the chiefs through whose dominions he passed, that he was
returning by the consent of the paramount power for the resumption
of all his sovereign rights, so long in abeyance. Men with badges in
his train, belonging to the persons alluded to, and an agent from the
native treasurer of Dehli, who supplied the prince with funds, gave
a colour of truth which deceived the country, and pi’oduced ardent
expressions of desire for his success. As he proceeded, this force
increased, and he reached the Chumbul, towards the close of the

528

ANNALS OF HARAVATI.

[CHAP. XI

monsoon 1821, with about three thousand men. Having crossed
the river, he issued his summons in a language neither to be mis-
understood nor disobeyed by a Rajpoot ; he conjured them by their ;
allegiance to join his cause, “ that of seolcing justice according to the
“ treaty and the call was obeyed by every Hara of the country.
His conduct afforded the most powerful illustration of the Rajpoot’s
theory of fidelity, for eveu those closely connected by ties of blood
and by every species of benefit, withdrew from the Regent, to whom
they owed everything, in order to join their hereditary and lawful
prince, whom some had never seen, and of whom they knew nothing.
Negotiation, and expostulation the most solemn and earnest on the
personal dangers he was incurring, were carried on, and even public
tranquillity was hazarded, rather than have recourse to the last
argument, which was the less necessary, as universal peace reigned-
around us, and the means of quelling revolt were at hand. An
entire month was thus consumed : but the ultimatum* left no means

* Letter of Maharao Ivishore Sing, accompanying counter-articles, presented
to Capt. Tod, dated Asoj bud Panchmee, or 16th September, ,r Camp Meanoh.”

(After compliments.)

•Chaud Khan bas often expressed a desire to know what were my expectations.
These had been already sent to you by my vakeels, Mirza Mohumud AJeeBeg,
and Lalla Salik Ram. I again send you the Schedule of Articles. According
to their purport you will act. Do me justice as the representative of the
BritishGovernment,and let the master be ns master, and the servant as servant ;
this is the ease everywhere else, and is not bidden from you.

Articles, the fulfilment of which was demanded by Maharao Xishore Sing,
and accompanying his letter of 16th September.

1. According to the treaty executed at Dehli, in the time of Maharao
Omed Sing, I will abide.

. 2. I have every confidence in Nana-ji Zalim Sing; in like manner as

he served Maharao Omdd Sing, so he will serve me. I agree to his adminis-
tration of affairs ; but between Mndbfi Sing, and myself suspicions and
doubts exist; we can never agree; therefore, I will give him a jageer ;
there let him remain. His son, Bnppa Ball, shall remain with me, and in
the same way as other ministers conduct state business before their princes,
. so shall ho before me. 1, the master, he, the servant ; arid if ns the servant
he acts, it will abide from generation to generation. •

3. To the English Government, and other principalities, whatever
letters are addressed shall be with my concurrence and advice.

4. _ Surety for his life, and also for mine, must be guaranteed bv the
English Government.

5. I shall allot a jageer for Pirthi Sing (the Mabarao’s brother), at which
he .will Teside. The establishments to reside with him aud my brother
Bishen Sing shall be of my nomination. Besides, to my kinsmen and
clansmen, according to their rank, I shall give jageers, and they shall,
according to ancient usage, be in attendance upon me. , ’

6. My personal or Jclias guards, to the amount of three thousand, with
Bappa Lall (the Regent’s grandson) shall remain in attendance.

7. The amount of the collections of the country shall all be deposited
in the Kishen B'mdav (general treasury), and thence expenditure made.

8. The killedars (commandants) of all the forts shall be appointed by
me, and the army shall be under my orders. He (the Regent) may desire
tUo omcers of Government to execute bis commands, but it shall be with
my advice and sanction.

These are the Articles I desire ; they are according to the rules for Govern -
xnent (raj-reet)— Mithi Asod Panchmee, S. 878 (1822?) ' °

CHAP. XT.]

KOTAH.

529

of putting a stop to increasing disorders but that appeal which from
various considerations had been so long delayed.

The tried troops of the Regent could not he depended on ; he
confessed it ; and in this confession, what an evidence is afforded of
the nature of his rule, and of the homage to immutable justice in all
parts of the world ! Every corps, foreign or indigenous, was ready to
range on the side of legitimate authority against the hand which had
fed and cherished them. So completely did this feeling pervade
every part of the political fabric, that the Regent himself said, in his
forcible manner, on his escape from the danger, “ even the clothes on
“ his hack smelt of treason to him.” Ic was hoped that “ the wisdom
“ which called aloud (even) in the streets” would not be disregarded
by the veteran ■ that disgust at such marks of perfidy would make
him spurn from him the odium of usurpation^ and thus free the
paramount power from a situation the most painful and embarrass-
ing. Abundant opportunities were afforded, and hints were given
.that he alone could cut the knot, which otherwise must be severed
by the sword. But all was fruitless : “ he stood upon his bond,” and
the execution of the treaty. The Maharao, his nominal sovereign,
took the same ground, and even sent a copy of the treaty to the
Agent, tauntingly asking whether it was to be recognized or not ?
All this embarrassment would have been avoided, had the supple-
mental articles been embodied in the original treaty ; then the literal
interpretation and its spirit would not have been at variance, nor
have afforded a pretext to reproach the paramount power with a
breach of faith and justice : charges which cannot in fact be supported,
inasmuch as the same contracting parties, who executed the original
document, amended it by this supplemental deed. The dispute then
resolves itself into a question of expediency, already touched on, viz.,
whether we might not have provided better for the future, and sought
out other modes of reward for services we had acknowledged, than
the maintenance of two pageants of sovereignty, both acknowledged,
the one de facto, the other dejtire. It was fortunate, however, that
the magnitude of the titular prince’s pretensions placed him com-
pletely in opposition to the other contracting parties, inasmuch as
he would not abide by either the spirit or the letter of the treaty or
its supplement, in the most modified sense. His demand for “ a
“ personal guard of three thousand of his kinsmen, that he might
“ allot estates at pleasure to his chiefs, appoint the governors of
“ fortresses, and be head of the army,” was a virtual repudiation of
every principle of the alliance ; while the succession to the adminis-
trative powers of the state, secured to the issue of the Regent, was
made to depend on his pleasure : rather a frail tenure whether in
Europe or Rajpootana. ■

Everything that could be done to withdraw the infatuated prince
from the knot of evil advisers and fiery spirits who daily flocked to
his standard, carrying with them their own and their ancestor’s
wrongs, being ineffectual and hopeless, the troops which had been
called upon to maintain the treaty’ moved forward in combination
[You. II.] 67

530

ANNALS OP HAKAVATI.

[CEAF. XI,

with the army of the Regent. As the force readied tlie Caly-Siud,
-which alone divided the rivals for power, torrents of rain, which
during several days swelled it to an impassable flood, afforded more
time to try all that friendship or prudence could urge to save the
Maharao from the impending ruin. But all was vain ; he saw the
storm, and invited its approach with mingled resolution and despair,
proclaiming the most submissive obedience to the paramount power,
and avowing a conviction of the good intentions and friendship of
its representative ; but to every remonstrance he replied, "what was
“ life without honour; what was a sovereign without authority?
" Death, or the full sovereignty of his ancestors ! ”

The conduct of the Regeut was not less perplexing than that of
the prince; for while he affected still to talk of fealty, " to preserve
" his white beard from stain,’' he placed before him the ample shield
of the treaty, although lie expected that his power should be main-
tained without any active measures on his own part for its defence :
a degree of irresponsibility not for a moment to be tolerated. It
was in vain he hinted at the spirit, more than doubtful, of his army ;
that in the moment of conflict they might turn their guns agaiust
us ; even this he was told we would hazard : and, it was added, if
he desired, at whatever cost, to preserve the power guaranteed to
his family, ho must act offensively as well as defensively ; for it
would shortly be too late to talk of reconciling fealty with the
preservation of his power. The wily Regent desired to have his
work done for him ; to have all the benefit which the alliance com-
pelled us to afford, with none of the obloquy it entailed. The
Agent had some hope, even at the twelfth hour, that rather than
incur the opprobrium of the world, and the penalty denounced
against the violation of sxvamdherma, in committing to the chance
of battle the lives of all those to whom he was Protector, he would
draw back and compromise his power ; but the betrayal of his lmlf-
formed designs in hypocritical cant adapted only for the multitude,
soon dispelled the illusion ; and though there w T as a strong internal
.struggle, the love of dominion overcame every scruple.

The combination of the troops was discussed in his presence and
that of his officers; and in order, that unity of action might be
insured, a British officer was at his request attached to his force.*

At daybreak on the 1st of October, the troops moved down. to the
attack: The Regent's army consisted of eight battalions of infantry,
with thirty-two pieces of cannon and fourteen strong pacgas or
squadrons of horse. ‘ Of these, five battalions, with fourteen pieces
and ten squadrons, composed the advance; while the rest formed a
reserve with the Regent in person, five hundred yards in the rear.
The British troops, consisting of two weak battalions and six squad-
' rons of cavalry, with a light battery of horse-artillery, formed on

* Lieutenant M’Millan, of the 5th Regt. Native Infantry, volunteered for this
duty, and. performed it as might have been expected from an- officer of his
gallantrv and o.nndrmf. - *

CHAP. XI.]

KOTAff.

531

tho right of the Regent's force as it approximated to the Maharao’s
position. The ground over which the troops moved was an extensive
plain^ gradually shelving to a small shallow stream, whence it again
rose rather abruptly. The Maharao’s camp was placed upon a rising
ground, a short distance beyond the stream : he left his tents standing,
audhaddisposedhisforce onthemargin of the rivulet. The “ Royals,”
’who had deserted their old master, with their leader, Syef Alii, were
posted oti the left ; the Maharao with the tflife, a baud of full five ■
hundred Hara cavaliers, upon the right, and the interval was filled by
a tumultuous rabble. The combined force was permitted to choose its
position, within two hundred yards of the foe, without the slightest
demonstration of resistance or retreat. The Agent took advantage
of the pause to request tho British commander to halt the whole
line, in order that he might make a last attempt to withdraw the
infatuated prince and his devoted followers from the perils that
confronted them. He advanced midway between the lines, and
offered the same conditions and an amnesty to all ; to conduct and
replace the prince on the gadi of his ancestors with honour. Yet,
notwithstanding ruin stared him in the face, he receded from none
of his demands ; he insisted on the sine qua non, and would only
re-enter Kotah surrounded by three thousand of his Hara kinsmen.
During the quarter of an hour allowed him to deliberate ere the
sword should be drawn, movements in position on both sides took
place ; the Maharao’s chosen band, condensing all their force on the
right, opposed tho Regent’s advance, while the British troops'formed
so in cchellon as to enfilade their dense masses.

The time having expired, and not an iota of the pretensions being
abated, the signal, as agreed upon, was given, and the action com-
menced by a discharge of cannon and fire-arms from the Regent’s
whole line, immediately followed by the horse-artillery on the right.
"With, all the gallantry that has ever distinguished the Haras, they
acted as at Futtiabad and Dholpoor, and charged the Regent’s line,
when several were killed at the very muzzle of the guns, and but for
the advance of three squadrons of British cavalry, would have turned
his left flank, and probably penetrated to the reserve, where the
Regent was in person.* Defeated in this design, they had no
resource but a precipitate retreat from the unequal conflict, and the
Maharao, surrounded by a gole of about four hundred horse, all
Haras, his kinsmen, retired across the stream, and halted on the
rising ground about half a mile distant, while his auxiliary foot
broke and dispersed, in all directions. The British troops rapidly
crossed the stream, and while the infantry made a movement to cut
oil retreat from the south, two squadrons were commanded to charge
the Maharao. Determined not to act offensively, even in this emer-
gency he adhered to his resolution, and his band awaited in a
dense mass and immoveable attitude the troops advancing with

Tho' Author, who placed himself on the extreme lett of the Regent’s line, ,
to bo a check upon tho dubious conduct of bis troops, particularly noted this
intended movement, which was frustrated only by Major Kennedy’s advance.

.[Vox,. II.] 67 a

532

ANNALS OF HAKAVATI. .

[CHAP. XI.

rapidity against them, disdaining to fly and yet too proud to yield.
A British officer headed each troop ; they and those they led had
"been accustomed to see the foe fly from the shock ; but they were
Pindarris, not Rajpoots. The band stood like a wall of adamant ;
our squadrons rebounded from the shock, leaving two brave youths - ''
dead on the spot, and their gallant commanderf was saved by a #
miracle, being stuuned by a blow which drove in his casque, his
reins cut, and the arm raised to give the coup de grace , when a
pistol-shot from his orderly levelled his assailant. The whole was
the work of an instant. True to the determination he expressed,
the Maharao, satisfied with repelling the charge, slowly moved off ;
nor was it till the horse-artillery again closed, and poured round
and grape into the dense body, that they quickened their retreat;
while, as three fresh squadrons had formed for the charge, they
l’eached the mukhi fields, amongst the dense crops of which they
were lost.

Pirthi Sing, younger brother of the prince, impelled by that heroic
spirit which is the birthright of a Hara, and aware that Hai’outi
could n6 longer be a home for him while living, determined at least
to find a grave in her soil. He returned, with about five and twenty
followers, to certain destruction, and was found in a field of Indian
corn as the line advanced, alive, but grievously wounded. He wfts
placed in a litter, and, escorted by some of Skinner’s horse, was
conveyed to the camp. Here he was sedulously attended; but
medical skill was of no avail, and he died the next day. His
demeanour was dignified and manly ; he laid the blame upon destiny,
expressed no wish for life, and said, looking to the tree near the tent,
that “his ghost would be satisfied in contemplating therefrom the
“ fields of his forefathers.” His sword and ring had been taken
from him by a trooper, but his dagger, pearl necklace, and other,
valuables, he gave in charge to the Agent, to whom he bequeathed
the care of his son, the sole heir to the empty honours of the sove-
reignty of Kotah.

It was not from any auxiliary soldier that tbe prince received his
death-wound ; it was inflicted by a lance, propelled with unerring
force from behind, penetrating the- lungs, the point appearing
through the chest.' He said it was a revengeful blow from some
determined hand, as he felt the steeled point twisted in the
wound to ensure its being mortal. Although the squadrons of the
Regent joined in the pursuit, yet not a man of them dared to come to
close quarters with their enemy ; it was therefore supposed that
some treacherous arm had mingled with his men, and inflicted the
blow which relieved the Regent from the chief enemy to his son
and successor.

The Maharao and his band were indebted for safety to the forest
of corn, so thick, lofty, an d luxuriant, that even his elephant was

* Lieutenants Clarke and Read, ot the Fourth Regt. Light Cavalry.

t Major now Lt.-Col. J. Ridge, C.B. J

CHAP. X.I.]

KOTAH.

533

lost sight of. This shelter extended to the rivulet, only five miles
in advance, which forms the boundary of Harouti ; but it was
deemed sufficient to drive him out of the Kotah territory, where
alone his presence could be dangerous. The infantry and foreign
levies, who had no moral courage to sustain them, fled for their lives,
and many were cut to pieces by detached ti’oops of our cavalry.

The calm undaunted valour of the Maharao and his kin could not
fail to extort applause from those gallant minds which can admire
the bravery of a foe, though few of those who had that day to
confront them were aware of the moral courage which sustained their
opponents, and which converted their vis inertial into an almost
impassable barrier.

But although the gallant conduct of the prince and his kin was in
keeping with the valour so often recorded in these annals, and now,
alas ! almost the sole inheritance of the Haras, there was one
specimen of devotion which we dare not pass over, comparable with
whatever is recorded of the fabled traits of heroism of Greece or
Borne. The physiognomy of the country has been already described;
the plains, along which the combined force advanced, gradually
shelved to the brink of a rivulet whose opposite bank rose perpendi-
cularly, forming as it were the buttress to a table-land of gentle
acclivity. The Regent’s battalions were advancing in columns along
this precipitous bank, when their attention was arrested by several
shots fired from an isolated hillock rising out of the plain across the
stream. Without any order, but as by a simultaneous impulse, the
whole line halted, to gaze at two audacious individuals, who appeared
determined to make their mound a fortress. A minute or two passed
in mute surprise, when the word was given to move on ; but scarcely
was it uttered, ere several wounded from the head of the column
were passing to the rear, and shots began to be exchanged very
briskly, at least twenty in return for one. But the long matchlocks
of the two heroes told every time in our lengthened line, while they
seemed to have “ a charmed life,” and the shot fell like hail around
them innocuous, one continuing to load behind the mound, while the
other fired with deadly aim. At length, two twelve-pounders were
unlimbered ; and as the shot whistled round their ears, both rose on
the very pinnacle of the mound, and made a profound salaam for
this compliment to their valour ; which done, they continued to
load and fire, whilst entire platoons blazed upon them. Although
more men had suffered, an irresistible impulse was felt to save these
gallant men ; orders were given to cease firing, and the force was
directed to move on, unless any two individuals chose to attack
them manfully hand to hand. The words were scarcely uttered
when two young Rohillas drew their swords, sprung down the bank,
and soon cleared the space between them and the foemeu. All was
deep anxiety as they mounted to the assault ; but whether their
physical frame was less vigorous, or their energies were exhausted by
wounds or by their peculiar situation, these brave defenders fell on

534

ANNALS OF HAKAVATI.

[CHAP. XI.

tlie mount, whence they disputed the march of ten battalions of
infantry and twenty pieces ot cannon.* They were Haras ! But
Zalim was tbe cloud which interposed between them and their
fortunes ; and to remove it, they courted tbe destruction which at
length overtook them.

The entire devotion which the vassalage of Harouti manifested for
tbe cause of the Maharao, exemplified, as before observed, the nature
and extent of swamdhcrma or fealty, which has been described as
the essential quality of the Rajpoot character; while, at the same
time, it illustrates the severity of the Regent’s yoke. Even the
chief who negotiated the treaty could not resist the defection
(one of his sons was badly wounded), although he enjoyed estates
under the Regent which his hereditary rank did not sanction,
besides being connected with him by marriage.

The Maharao gained the Parbutty, which, it is said, he swam
over. He had scarcely reached the shore when his horse dropped
dead from a grape-shot wound. With about three hundred horse
he retired upon Baroda. We had no vengeance to execute; we
could not, therefore, consider the brave men, who abandoned their
homes and their families from a principle of honour, in the light of
the old enemies of our power, to be pursued and exterminated.
They had, it is true, confronted us in the field; yet only defensively,
in a cause at least morally just and seemingly sanctioned by
authorities which they could not distrust.

The pretensions so long opposed to the treaty were thus signally
and efficiently subdued. The chief instigators of the revolt
were for ever removed, one by death, the other by exile ; and
the punishment which overtook the deserters from the regular
forces of the Regent would check its repetition. Little prepared for
•the reverse of that day, the chiefs had made no provision against it,
and at our word every door in Rajwarra would have been closed
against them. But it was not deemed a case for confiscation, or one
which should involve in proscription a whole community, impelled
to the commission of crime by a variety of circumstances which they
could neither resist nor control, and to which the most crafty views
had contributed.f The Maharao’s camp being left standing, all his
correspondence and records fell into our hands, and developed such
complicated intrigues, such consummate knavery,, that he, and the
brave men who suffered from espousing his pretensions, were
regarded as entitled to every commiseration. { As soon, therefore,

* Lieut, (now Captain M’Millau and tbe Author were tbe only officers, 1
believe, who witnessed this singular scene.

| In a letter, addressed by some of tbe principal chiefs to tbe Regent,
through the Agent, they did not hesitate to say they had been guided in the
course they adopted of obeying the summons of the Maharao, by institutions
of his confidential minister.

t The native treasurer at Dehli, who conducted these intrigues, after a strict
investigation wasdismissed frcm hit office ; and the same fate was awarded to
the chief moonshi of the Persian secretary’s office at the seat of government.

CHAP, xr.]

KOTAH.

535

as the futility of their pretensions was disclosed, by the veil bein°-
thus rudely torn from their eyes, they manifested a determination
to submit. The Regent was instructed to grant a complete amnesty,
and to announce to the chiefs that they might repair to their homes
without a question being put to them. In a few weeks, all was
tranquillity and peace; the chiefs and vassals returned to their
families, who blessed the power which tempered punishment with
clemency.* ^

Regular treaties and bonds were found in tbe camp of the Maharao, which
afforded abundant condemnatory evidence against these confidential officers,
who mainly produced the catastrophe we have to record, aud rendered nugatory
the most strenuous efforts to save the misguided prince and his brave brethren.

* The Author, who bad to perfom the painful duty related m this detailed
transaction, was alternately aided and embarrassed by his knowledge of the
past history of the Haras, and the mutual relations of all its discordant
elements. Perhaps, entire ignorance would have been better — a bare knowledge
of the treaty, and the expediency of a rigid adherence thereto, unbiassed by
sympathy, or notions of abstract justice, which has too litr.le in common with
diplomacy. Bat without overlooking the colder dictates of duty, he determined
that the aegis of Britain should not be a shield of oppression, and that the
remains of Hara independence, which either policy or fear had compelled the
Regent to respect, should not thereby be destroyed ; and he assumed the re-
sponsibility, a few days after the action, of proclaiming a general amnesty to the
chiefs, and an invitation to each to return to his dwelling. He told the Regent
that any proceeding which might render this clemency nugatory, would not
fail to dissatisfy the Government. All instantly availed themselves of the per-
mission ; and in every point of view, morally and physically, the result was
most satisfactory, and it acted as a panacea for the wounds our public faith
compelled us to inflict. Even in the midst of their compulsory infliction, he
had mauy soni'ces of gratulntion : and of these he will give an anecdote illus-
trative of Rajpoot character. In S. 1807, when the author, then commencing his
career, was wandering alone through their country, surveying their geography,
and collecting scraps of their statistics, he left Sindia battering Rathgurb, aud
with a slender guard proceeded through the wilds of Chanderi, and thence
direct westwards, to trace the course of all the rivers lying between the Betwa
and the Chumbul. In passing through Harouti, leaving his tent standing at
Barah, he had advauced with the perambulator as far as the Caly-Sind, a dis-
tance of seventeen miles ; and, leaving his people to follow at leisure, was
returning home unattended at a brisk canter, when, as he passed through the
town of Bamolia, a parry rushed out and made him captive, saying that he
must visit the chief. Although much fatigued, it would have been folly to
refuse. He obeyed, and was conveyed to a square, in the centre of which was
an elevated chabootra or platform, shaded by the sacred tree. Here, sitting On
carpets, was the chief with his little court. The Author was received most
courteously. The first act was to disembarrass him of bis boots ; but this,
heated as he was, they could not effect : refreshments were then put before
him, and a Brahmin brought water, with a ewer and basin, for bis ablutions.
Although he was then but an indifferent linguist, and their patois scarcely
intelligible to him, he passed a very happy hour, in which conversation never
flagged. The square was soon filled, and many a pair of fine black eyes smiled
courteously upon the stranger — for the females, to his surprise, looked abroad
without auy fear of censure ; though he was ignorant oE their sphere in life.
The author’s horse was lame, which the chief had noticed ; and on rising to go,
he found one ready caparisoned for him, which, however, he would not accept.
One reaching his tent the Author sent several little articles as tokens of regard.
Fourteen yeUrs after this, the day following the action at Mangrole, he received
a letter by a messenger from the mother of the chief of Bamolia, who sent her

536

ANNALS OF HAEAVATI.

[CHAP. xr.

The Maliarao continued his course to Nat’hdwara in Mewar,
proving that the sentiment of religious abstraction alone can take
the place of ambition. The individuals who, for their own base
purposes, had by misrepresentation and guile guided him to ruin,
now deserted him ; the film fell from his eyes, and he saw, though
too late, the only position in which he could exist. In a very short
time, every pretension inimical to the spirit and letter of the treaty,
original and supplemental, was relinquished; when, with the
Regent’s concurrence, a note was transmitted to him, containing the
basis on which his return to Kotah was practicable. A transcript
with his acceptance being received, a formal deed was drawn up,
executed by the Agent and attested by the Regent, not only defin-
ing the precise position of both parties, but establishing a barrier
between the titular and executive authorities, which must for ever
prevent all collision of interests : nothing was left to chance or cavil.
The grand object was to provide for the safety, comfort, and dignity
of the prince, and this was done on a scale of profuse liberality ; far
beyond what his father, or indeed any prince of Kotah had enjoyed,
and incommensurate with the revenue of the state, of which it is
about the twentieth portion. The amount equals the household
expenditure of the Rana of Oodipoor, the avowed head of the whole
Rajpoot race, but which can be better afforded from the flourishing
revenues of Kotah than the slowly improving finances of Me'war.

These preliminaries being satisfactorily adjusted, it became
important to inspire this misguided prince with a confidence
that his welfare would be as anxiously watched as the stipula-
tions of the treaty whose infringement had cost him so much
misery. He had too much reason to plead personal alarm as one
of the causes of his past conduct, and which tended greatly to
neutralize all the endeavours to serve him. Even on the very day
that he was to leave Nat’hdwara, on his return, when after great
efforts his mind had been emancipated from distrust, a final and
diabolical attempt was made to thwart the measures for his restora-
tion. A mutilated wretch was made to personate his brother
Bishen Sing, and to give out that he had been maimed by com-
mand of the Regent’s son, and the impostor had the audacity to
come within a couple of miles of the Maliarao ; a slight resemblance
to Bishen Sing aided the deceit, which, though promptly exposed,
had made the impression for which it.was contrived, and it required
some skill to remove it. The Rana of. Oodipoor no sooner heard of
this last effort to defeat all the gdod intentions in which he
co-operated towards the Maliarao, to whose sister he was married,
than he had the impostor seized and brought to the city, where his

blessing, and invoked, him, by past friendship and recollections, to protect her
son, whose honour had made him join the standard of his sovereign. The
author had the satisfaction of replying that her son would be with her nearly
as soon as the bearer of the letter. The Jlauiolia chief, it will be recollected,
was the descendant of the chief of Athoon, one of the great opponents of the
Hegent at the opening of his career.

CHAP. XI.]

KOTAH.

537

story had caused a powerful sensation. His indiscreet indignation
for ever destroyed the clue by which the plot might have been
unravelled ; for he was led immediately to execution, and all that
transpired was, that he was a native of the Jeipoor state, and had
been mutilated for some crime. Could the question have been
solved, it might have afforded the means of a different termination
of these unhappy quarrels, to which they formed a characteristic
sequel : intrigue and mistrust combined to inveigle Kishore Shm
into attempts which placed him far beyond the reach of reason, and
the most zealous exertions to extricate him.

This last scene being over, the Maharao left his retreat at the fane
of Kaniya, and marched across the plateau to his paternal domains.
On the last day of the year, the Regent, accompanied by the Agent,
advanced to re-conduct the prince to the 'capital. The universal
demonstration of satisfaction at his return was the most convincing
testimony that any other course would have been erroneous. On
that day, he once more took possession of the gadt which he had
twice abandoned, with a resignation free fx*om all asperity, or even
embarrassment. Feelings arising out of a mind accustomed to reli-
gious meditation, aided while they softened the bitter monitor,
adversity, and together they afforded the best security that any
deviation from the new order of things would never proceed from
him.

Besides the schedule of the personal expenditure, over which he
was supreme, much of the state expense was to be managed under
the eye of the sovereign : such as the charities, and gifts on festivals
and military ceremonies. The royal insignia • used on all great
occasions was to remain as heretofore at his residence in the castle,
as was the band at the old guard-room over the chief portal of
entrance. He was to preside at all the military or other annual
festivals, attended by the whole retinue of the state ; and the gifts
on such occasions were to be distributed in his name. All the
palaces, in and about the city, were at his sole disposal, and funds
were set apart for their repairs : the gardens, rumnas , or game-
preserves, and his personal guards, were also to be entertained and
paid by himself. To maintain this arrangement inviolate, an officer
of the paramount power was henceforth to reside at Kotah. A hand-
some stipend was settled on the minor son of the deceased Pirthi
Sing; while, in order to prevent any umbrage to the Maharao, his
brother Bishen Sing, whose trimming policy had been offensive to
the Maharao, was removed to the family estate at Antah, twenty
miles east of the capital, on which occasion an increase was spon-
taneously made to his jagheer.

The Agent remained an entire month after this, to strengthen the
good understanding now introduced, i He even effected a reconcilia-
tion between the prince and Madhff Sing, when the fornier, with
great tact and candour, took upon himself the blame of all these
disturbances : each gave his hand in token of future amity, and the
prince spontaneously embraced the man (the Regent’s son) to whom
[You. II.] 68

538

ANNALS OF fiABAVATI.

[chap* xr.

lie attributed all bis misery. But the Maharao's comforts and
dignity are now independent of control, and watched over by a
guardian who will demand a rigid exaction of every stipulation in
his favour. The patriarchal Zalim Was, or affected to be, overjoyed
at this result, which had threatened to involve them all in the abyss
of misery. Bitter was his self-condemnation at the moral blindness
of his conduct, which had not foreseen and guarded against the
storm ; and severe, as well as merited, was the castigation he
indicted on his successor. " It is for your sins, son, that I am
"punished,” was the conclusion of every such exhortation.

It will be deemed a singular fatality, that this last conspicuous
act in the political life of the Regent should have been on the spot
which exactly sixty years before witnessed the ojiening scene of his
career : for the field of Butwarro* adjoined that of Mangrole. What
visions must have chased each other on this last memorable day,
when he recalled the remembrance of the former ! when the same
sword, which redeemed the independence of Kotah from tributary
degradation to Amber, was now drawn against the grandson of that
sovereign who rewarded his services with the first office of the state !
Had some prophetic JBardai withdrawn the mantle of Bhdvani , and
disclosed through the vista of threescoi’e years the Regent in the
foreground, in all the panoply of ingenuous youth " spreading his
" carpet” at Butwarro, to review the charge of the Cutchwaha
chivalry, and in the distant perspective that same being palsied,
blind, and decrepit, leading a mingled host, in character and costume
altogether strange, againstthegrand-children of his prince, and the
descendants of those Haras who nobly seconded him to gain this
reputation, what effect would such a prospect have produced on one
whom the mere hooting of an owl on the house-top had " scared
" from his property ?”

•Soon after the satisfactory conclusion of these painful scenes, the
Regent returned to the Ghaoni , his fixed camp, and projected a tour
of the state, to allay the disorders which had crept in, and to regulate
afresh the action of the state-machine, the construction of which
had occupied a long life, but which could not fail to be deranged by
the complicated views which had arisen amongst ' those whose
business was to work it. Often, amidst these conflicts, did he exclaim,
with his great prototype both in prosperity and sorrow, " my kins-
" folk have failed, and my familiar friends have forgotten me." But
Zalim had not the same resources in his griefs that Job hid ; nor
Could he with him exclaim, "if my land cry against me, if I have
"eaten the fruits thereof without money, or caused the owners
" thereof to lose their lives, let thistles grow instead of wheat and
" cockles instead of barley ”f His yet vigorous mind, however/ soon
restored everything to its wonted prosperity ; and in a few weeks
not a ti’ace was left of the commotions which for a while had totally

«>£££&£ utSOwT * * 1817 ” AD - »«< **• «*•

t J ob, cbap. xx.ti.

CHAP. XI.]

KOTAH.

. . 539

■unhinged society, and threatened to deluge the land with proscription
and blood. The prince was reseated on the throne with far greater
comforts about him and more certainty of stability thaii previous' to
the treaty; the nobles took possession of their estates with not a
blade of grass. removed, and the gur’h-khetie, the home-farms of the
Regent, lost none of their productiveness : commerce was unscathed,
and public opinion, which had dared loudly to question the moral
justice of these proceedings, was conciliated by their conclusion.
The’ Regent survived these events five years ; his attenuated frame
was worn out by a spirit, vigorous to the last pulsation of life, and
too strong for the feeble cage which imprisoned it.

■ If history attempt to sum up, or institute a scrutiny into, the
character of this extraordinary man, by what standard must we
judge him ? The actions of his life, which have furnished matter for
the sketch we have attempted, may satisfy curiosity ; but the
.materials for a finished portrait he never supplied : the latent springs
of those actions remained invisible save to the eye of Omniscience.
No human being ever shared the confidence of the Machiavelli of
Rajast 5 hau, who, from the first dawn of his political existence to its
close, when lt fourscore years and upwards / 5 could always say
“ my secret is my own .’ 5 This single trait, throughout a troubled
career of more than ordinary length, would alone stamp his character
with originality. No effervescence of felicity, of success, of sympathy,
which occasionally bursts from the most rugged nature, no sudden
transition of passion, — joy, grief, hope, even revenge, — could tempt
him to betray his- purpose. That it was often fathomed, that his
“ vaulting ambitionhasoverleaptitself, 55 and.made himlose his object,
is no more than may be said of all who have . indulged in " that sin
“ by which angels fell ; 55 -yet he never failed through a blind confi-
dence in the instruments of his designs. Though originally sanguine
in expectation and fiery in temperament, he subbued these natural
defects, and could await with composure the due ripening of his
plans : even in the hey-day of youth he bad attained this mastery
over himself. . To this early discipline of his mind he owed the many
escapes from plots against his life, and the difficulties which were
perpetually besetting it increased his natural resources. There was
no artifice, not absolutely degrading, which he would not condescend
to employ : his natural simplicity made humility, when necessary,
a plausible disguise ; while his scrupulous attention to all religious
observances caused his mere affirmation to be respected. The
sobriety of his demeanour gave weight to his opinions and influenced
the judgment ; while his invariable urbanity gained the good will
of his inferiors, and .his superiors were won by the delicacy of his
flattery, in the application of which he was an adept. To crown
the whole, there was a mysterious ’brevity, an oracular sententious-
ness, in his conversation, which always left something to the imagi-
nation of his auditor, who gave him credit for what he did not, as
well as what he did utter. None could better appreciate, or studied
more to obtain, the meed of good opinion; and throughout his
[Von. IL] •' - 68 a

540 .

ANNALS OT HARAVATI.

[CHAP. XI.

lengthened life, until the occurrences just described, he threw over
his acts of despotism and vengeance a veil of such consummate art,
as to make them lose more than half their deformity. With him it
must have been an axiom, that mankind judge superficially ; and in
accordance therewith, his first study was to preserve appearances,
and never to offend prejudice if avoidable. When he sequestrated
the estates of the Hara feudality, he covered the fields, by them
neglected, with crops of corn, and thereby drew a con trast favourable
to himself between the effects of sloth and activity. When he
usurped the functions of royalty, he threw a bright halo around the
orb of its glory, overloading the gadi with the trappings of
grandeur, aware that

“the world is e’er deceived by ornament;”’
nor did the princes of Kotah ever appear with such magnificence' as
when he possessed all the attributes of royalty but the name.
Every act evinced his deep skill in the knowledge of the human
mind and of the elements by which he was surrounded; he could
circumvent the crafty Mahratta, calm or quell the arrogant Rajpoot,
and extort the applause even of the Briton, who is little prone to
allow merit in an Asiatic.' He was a depository of ' the prejudices
and the' pride of his countrymen, both in religious and social life ;
yet, enigmatical as it must appear, he frequently violated them,
though the infraction was so gradual as to be imperceptible except
to the few who watched the slow progress of his plans. To such he
appeared a compound of the most contradictory elements : lavish
aud parsimonious, oppressing and protecting; with one hand bestow-
ing diamond aigrettes, with the other taking the tythe of the
anchorite’s wallet; one day sequestrating estates an d driving into
exile the ancient chiefs of the land ;, the next receiving with open
arms some expatriated noble, aud supporting him in dignity and
affluence, till the receding tide of human affairs rendered such
support no longer requisite.

We have already mentioned his antipathy to the professors of
“ the tuneful art;” and he was as inveterate as Diocletian to the-
alchemist, regarding the trade of both as alike useless to society :
neither were, therefore, tolerated in Kotah. But the enemies of the
Regent assert that it was from no dislike of their merit,. but from
his having been the dupe of the one, and the object of the other’s
satire (vis). His persecution of -witches (dhakun) was in strict
conformity with the injunction in the Pentateuch : " Thou shall not
“ suffer a witch to live” (Exod. chap, xxii, ver. 18). But his ordeal
was> worse than even death itself : handling balls of Lot iron was
deemed too slight for such sinners ; for it. was. well known they bad-
substances which enabled them to do this with impunity. Throwing
them into a pond of water was another trial : if they sunk, they
were innocent, if they unhappily rose to the surface, the league with
the powers of darkness was apparent. A gram-bag of cayenne
pepper tied over the head, if it failed to suffocate, afforded another
proof of guilt ; though the most humane method, of rubbing the

CHAP. XI.]

KOTAH.

541

oyes wibh.a well-dried capsicum, was perhaps the most cflmmon, and
certainly if they could furnish this demonstration of their innocence
by .withholding tears, they might justly be deemed witches. These
dhakuns, like the. vampires of llie German bardais, are supposed to
operate upon the viscera of their victims, which they destroy by
N slow degrees with charms and incantations, and hence they are
called in Sind (where, as Abulfazil says, they abound) Jigger-Mor
or ' liver-devourers.’ One look of a dhahun suffices to destroy; but
there are few who court the title, at least in Kotab, though old age
and eccentricity are sufficient, in conjunction with superstition or
bad luck, to fix the stigma upon individuals.

Aware of the danger of relaxing, u to have done,” even when
eighty-five winters had' passed over his head, was never in his
thoughts. He knew that a Rajpoot’s throne should be the back of
his steed; and when blindness overbook him, and he could no longer
lead the chase on horseback, lie was carried in his litter to his grand
hunts, which consisted sometimes of several thousand armed men.
Besides dissipating the ennui of his vassals, he obtained many other
objects by ah amusement so analogous to their character ; in the
unmasked joyousness of the sport, he heard the unreserved opinions
of his companions, and gained their affection by thus administering
to the favourite pastime of the Rajpoot, whose life is otherwise
monotonous. When in the forest, he would sit down, surrounded by
thousands, to regale on the game of the day. Camels followed his
train, laden with flour, sugar, spices, and huge cauldrons for the use
of his sylvan cuisine ; and amidst the hilarity of the moment, he
would go through the varied routine of government, attend to
foreign and commercial policy, the details of his farms or his army,
the reports of his police ; nay, in the very heat of the operations,
shot flying in all directions, the ancient Regent might be discovered,
like our immortal Alfred or St. Louis of the Pranks, administering
justice upder the shade of some spreading peepul tree; while the
day so passed would be closed with religious rites, and the recital of
a mythological epic : he found time fob all, never appeai'ed hurried,
nor eould lie be taken by surprise. When he could no longer see to
sign his own name, he had an autograph fac-simile engraved, which
was placed in the special care of a confidential officer, to apply when
commanded. Even this loss of one sense was with him compensated
by another, for long after he was stone-blind, it would have been
vain to attempt to impose upou him in the choice of shawls or clothes
of any kind, whose fabrics and prices he could determine by the
touch ; and it is even asserted that he could in like manner distin-
guish colours.

If, as has been truly remarked, “ that man deserves well of his
“ country who makes a blade of grass grow where none grew before,”
what merit is due to him who made the choicest of nature’s products
flourish where grass couldnob grow ; who covered the bare rock around
his capital with soil, and cultivated the exotics of Arabia, Ceylon, and
the western Archipelago ; who translated from the Indian Apennines

512

AN'NAf.S OF UAUAYA‘11.

[chap. xi.

(the mount rfina of Mhlnbnr) thecoco-nnt ami palmyra ; and thus refuted
the assertion that, these trees could not nourish remote from the
influence of it marine atmosphere ? In his gardens were to he found the
apples and quinces of Oubiil, pomegranates from the famed stock of
Knqln cn btujh in the desert, oranges of every kind, prions of Aground
Syihet, the nmbn of Mnzngon,«nd t he r/iumpf?-/>7u, or golden plantain,
of the Delchnn, besides the indigenous productions of Rajpootann.
Some of the wells for irrigating those gardens, cost in blasting the*
rock thirty thousand rupees each ; he hinted to his friends that they
could not do better than follow his example, and a hint always
snlliced. lfe would lmvo obtained n prize from any horticultural
society for his improvement of tin* wild b*'r fjvjubr) , which by
grafting he increased to the size of a small apple. In chemical
science lie had gained notoriety; his «//»>*,* ir essential oils of roses,
jessamine, and brunt, were far superior to any that could be
purchased. There was no occasion to repair to the valley of Cashmere
10 witness the fabrication of its shawls ; for the looms and the wool
of that fairy region wore transferred to Kotah, and the Gnslnneriim
weaver plied the shuttle under Halim's own eye. But, as in the
case of his lead-mines, ho found that this branch of industry did not
return even sixteen annas and a half for the rupee, *" tbo minimum
profit at which he fixed his remuneration ; so that after satisfying
his curiosity, he abandoned the manufacture. Ilis forges for swords
and fire-arms hud a high reputation, and his matchlocks rival those
of Boondi, both in excellence and elaborate workmanship.

ITis corps of gladiators, if we may thus designate the Jdctls,
obtained for him equal credit and disgrace. The funds pet. apart for
this recreation amounted at one time to fifty- thousand rupees per
annum ; but his wrestlers surnnssed in skill and strength those of
every oblioi 1 court iuKnjwurra, and the most renowned champions of
other states were made ” to view the heavens, ”+ if they came to
Kotah. But, in his younger days, Zalim was not satisfied with the
use of mevo natural weapons, for occasionally lie made his jdetis
fight with the bdgnul’,% or tiger-claw, when they tore oil the flesh
from each other. The chivalrous Onied Sing of Booudf put a stop to
this barbarity. Returning from one of his pilgrimages from
Dwavicn, ho passed through Kotah while Zalim aud bis court were
assembled in tho alchara (arena) where two of these stall-fed prize-,
fighters wero. about to contend. Tho presence of this brave Kara'
checked tho bloody exhibition, and he boldly censured the Regent,
for squandering on such a worthless crew resources which ought to
cherish his Rajpoots. Tin's might have been lost upon the Protectoi ; ,
had>not the royal pilgrim, in tho fervour of his indignation, thrown"
down the gauntlet to the entire nssombly of Jdetis. Putting his

* There are sixteen annas to tlio rupee or half-crown.

t “ Asmun dccUonti,” is the phrase of the * Faun/ in these regions, for
victory ; when the vanquished is thrown upon his back aud kept in that
attitude.

$ Seo an account of this instrument by Colouol Briggs, Transactions of Jtoynl
Asiatic Society, Vol. II.

CHAP. XI.]

KOTAH.

643

shield ou the ground, lie placed therein, one by one, the entire
panoply of armour which he habitually wore in his peregrinations,
namely, his matchlock and its ponderous accompaniments, sword,
daggers, staff, and battle-axe, and challenged any individual to raise
it from the ground with a single arm. All tried and failed; when
Sriji, though full sixty years of age, held it out at arm's length
during several seconds. The Haras were delighted at the feat of
their partriarchal chief; while the crest-fallen Metis hung their
heads, and from that day lost ground in the favour of the Regent.
But these were the follies of his earlier days, not of the later period
of his life ; he was then like an aged oak, which, though shattered
aud decayed, had survived the tempest and the desolation which had
raged around it.

To conclude : had he imitated Diocletian, - and surrendered the
purple, he would have afforded another instance of the anomalies of
the human understanding; that he did not do so, for the sake of his
own fame and that of the controlling power, as well as for the
welfare of his prince, must be deeply lamented ; the more especially
as his churri (rod) has descended to feeble hands. He had enjoyed
the essentials of sovereignty during threescore years, a period equal
in duration to that of Darius the Mede ; and had overcome difficul-
ties which would have appalled no ordinary minds. He had van-
quished all his enemies, external and internal, and all his views as
regarded Harouti were accomplished.

Amongst the motives’ which might have urged the surrender of
hie power, stronger perhaps than his desire of reparation with heaven
and his prince, was the fear of his successor’s inefficiency : but this
consideration unhappily was counterbalanced by the precocious
talents of his grandson, whom he affectionately loved, and in whom
he thought he saw himself renewed. Pride also, that chief ingre-
dient in his character, checked such surrender ; he feared the world
would suppose he had x’elinquished what he could no longer retain ;
aud ruin would have' been preferred to the idea that he had been
“ driven from his stool.” Able and artful ministers flattered the
feeling so deeply rooted, and to crown the whole, he was supported
by obligations of public faith contracted by a power without a rival.
Still, old age, declining health, the desire of repose and of religious
retirement, prompted wishes which often escaped his lips ; but
counteracting feelings intruded, and the struggle between the
good and evil principle lasted until the moment had passed when
abdication would have been honourable. Had he, however, obeyed
the impulse, his retreat would have more l’esembled that of the fifth
Charles than of the Roman king. In the shades of Nat’hdwara he
'Would have enjoyed that repose, which Diocletian could not find at
Salona; and embued with a better philosophy and more knowledge
of the human heart, he would have practised what was taught, that
“ there out to be no intermediate change between the command of
“ men and the service of God.”

PERSONAL NARRATIVE.

+

CHAPTER J.

Departure /tom the valley of Oodipoor.— Lalce of Khyroda.— Ancient temple of
Mandesioar. — Bharteioar. — Its Jain temples. — Ehyroda. — Connected with the
history of the feuds of Mewar.— Exploits of Singfam Sing. — Be obtains
Ehyroda.— Curious predicament of Joy Sing, the adopted heir of Singram.—
Calmness with which political negotiations are managed in the east. — The
agricultural economy of Khyioda. — Precarious nature of sugar-cultivation . —
Heentah. — Large proportion of land alienated as religious grants. — Heentah
and Doondia established on church-lands. — Mandhata Raja. — Traditions of
him. — Performed the Aswamedhn . — His grant of Myndr to the Rishis . —
Grant inscribed on a pillar. — Exploit of Raj Sing against the Mahrattas . —
Monvun, boundary of the Mewar ten'itory. — Refections on that state. — The

author’s policy during his official residence there. . *

*• »

Oodipoor , January 29, 1820. — The Personal Narrative attached to
the first volume of this work terminated with the author’s return to
Oodipoor, after a complete circuit of Marwar and Ajmdr. He
remained at his head-quarters at Oodipoor until the 29th January
1820, when circumstances rendering it expedient that he should
visit the principalities of Boondi and Kotah (which were placed
under his political superintendence), he determined not to neglect the
opportunity it afforded of adding to. his portfolio remarks on men
and manners, in a country hitherto untrodden by Europeans.

Although we had not been a month in the valley of Oodipoor, we
were all desirous to avail ourselves of the lovely weather which the
cold season of India invariably brings, and which exhilarates the
European who has languished through the hot winds, and the still
more oppressive monsoon. The thermometer at this time, within
the valley, was at the freezing point at break of day, ranging after-
wards as high as 90°, whilst the sky was without a cloud, and its
splendour at night was dazzling.

Khyroda .' — On the 29th, we broke ground from the heights of
Toos, marched fifteen English miles (though estimated at only six
and a half coss), and encamped under the embankment of the spa-
cious lake of Khyroda. Our route was over a rich and well-watered
plain, hut which had long been a stranger to the plough. Three
miles from Duboke we crossed our own stream, the Bairis, and

CHAP. I.]

PERSONAL NARRATIVE.

- 545

at tho village o£ Dorowlee is a small outlet from this river, which
runs into a hollow anti forms a jhcel, or lake. There is a highly
interesting temple, dedicated to Mandeswar (Siva), on the hanks of
this stream, the architecture of which attests its antiquity. It is the
counterpart in miniature of a celebrated temple at Chaudravati, near
Aboo, and verifies the traditional axiom, that the architectural rules
of past ages were fixed on immutable principles.

We passed the serai of Soorujpoora, a mile to the right, and got
entangled in the swampy ground of Bhartewar. This town, which
belongs to the chieE of Kanor’h, one of the sixteen great barons of
Mdwar, boasts a high antiquity, and Bhartirri, the elder brother of
Vicrama, is its reputed founder. If we place any faith in local tradi-
tion, the bells of seven hundred and fifty temples, chiefly of the Jain
faith, once sounded, within its walls, which were six miles in length ;
but few vestiges of them now remain, although there are ruins of
some of these shrines which show, they were of considerable import-
ance. Within a mile and a half of Khyroda we passed through
Khyrsann, a largo charity-village belonging to the Brahmins.

Kbyroda is a respectable place, having a fortress with double
ditches, which can be filled at pleasure from the river. Being
situated on the high-road between the ancient and modern capitals,
it was always a bone of contention in tho civil wars. It was in the
hands of Itawut JeySing of Law ah, the adopted heir of Singram ,
Suktawut, one of tho great leaders in the struggles of the year 1748,
an epoch as well known in Mdwar as the 1745 of Scotland. Being
originally a fiscal possession, and from its position not to be trusted
to the hands of any of the feudal chiefs, it was restored to the
sovereign ; though it was not without difficulty that the never of.
Lawah agreed to sign the constitution of the 4th of May,* and
relinquish to his sovereign a stronghold which had been purchased
with the blood of his kindred.

The history of Khyroda would afford an excellent illustration of
the feuds of Mdwar. In that between Singram Sing the Suktawut,
and Bhiroo Sing Choudawut, both of these chief clans of Mdwar lost
the best of their defenders. InS. 1733, Singram, then but a youth (his
father, Lalji, Rawut of Seogurh, being yet alive), took Khyroda from
his sovereign, and retained it six years. In S. 1740, the rival clans of
Deogurli, Mrnait, Korabur, &c., under their common head, the chief
of Saloombra, and having their acts legalized by the presence of the
Depra minister, united to expel the Suktawut. Singram held out
four months ; when he hoisted a flag of truce and agreed to capi-
tulate, on condition that he should be permitted to retreat unmo-
lested, with all his followers and effects, to Bheendir, the capital of
the Suktawuts. • This condition was granted, and the heir of Seogurh
was received into Bheendir. Here he commenced his depredations,
the adyentures attending which are still the topics of numerous tales.
In one of his expeditions to the estate of Korabur, he carried off both

* See treaty between the liana and his chiefs, Vol. I, page 693.

[Vol. II.]

69

546

PERSONAL NARHATIVE.

[CHAP. I.

the cattle and the inhabitants of Goovli. Zalim Sing, the heir o£
Korabur, came to the rescue, but was laid low by the lance of Sin-
gram. To revenge his death, every Chondawut of the country
assembled round the banner of Saloombra ■ the sovereign himself
espoused their cause, and with his mercenary bands of Sindies suc-
ceeded in investing Bheendir. Dining the siege, Urjoon of Korabur,
bent on revenge for tb$ loss of his heir, determined to surprise
Seogurh, which he effected, and spared neither age nor sex. 5 ^
Khyroda remained attached to the fisc during several years, when
the Ran a, with a thoughtlessness which has nourished these feuds,
granted it to Sirdar Siug, the Chondawut chief of Bhadaisir. In S.
1746, the Chondawuts were in rebellion and disgrace, and their
rivals, under the chief of Bheendir. assembled their kindred to drive
out the Sindiegaiuison, who held Khyroda for their foe. Urjoou of
Korabur, with the Sindie Koli, came to aid the garrison, and an
action ensued under the walls, in which Singram slew with his own
hand two of the principal subordinates of Korabur, viz., Goman the
Sikerwal, and Bheemji Ranawut. Nevertheless, the Chondawuts
gained the day, and the Suktawuts again retired on Bheendir.
There ‘they received a reinforcement sent by Zalim Sing of Kotali
(who fostered all these disputes, trusting that eventually he should
be able to snatch the bone of contention from both), and a band of
Arabs, and with this aid they returned to the attack. The Chon-
dawuts, who, with the auxiliaries of Sinde, were encamped in the
plainsof Akolah, willingly accepted the challenge, bnt were defeated;
Sindie Koli, leader of the auxiliaries, was slain, and the force was
entirely dispersed. Singram, who headed this and eveiy assault
against the rival clan, was wounded in three places ; but this he
accounted nothing, having thereby obtained the regard of his
sovereign, and the expulsion of his rival from Khyroda, which <
remained attached to the fisc until the year 1758, when, on the
payment of a fine of ten thousand rupees, the estate was assigned
to him under the royal signature. This was in the year A.D.
1802, from which period until 1818, when we had to mediate
between the Rana and his chiefs, Khyroda remained a trophy
of the superior courage and tact of the Suktawuts. No wonder
that the Rawut Jey Sing of Lawah, the adopted heir of Sin-
gram, was avUrse to renounce Khyroda. He went so far as
to man its walls, and forbid any communication with the servants of
his sovereign : the slightest provocation would have compelled a
siege'and assault, in which all the Chondawuts of the country would
gladly have pined, and the old feuds might have been revived on
the very dawn of disfranchisement from the yoke of the Mahrattas:
But what will be thought of this transaction when it is stated, that
the lord of Khyroda was at this time at court, the daily companion
of his sovereign ! Although the dependents of Jey Sing would have
fired on any One of his master’s servants who ventured to its walls,
and, according to our notions, he was that moment a rebel both to

* The sequel o£ this feud has been related, Vol. I, p, 376.

CHAP. I.]

PERSONAL NARRATIVE.

547

his prince and the paramount Protector, notan uncourtly phrase was
ever heard, nor could it be discovered that the liana and the Rawut
stood in any other relation than as tho gracious sovereign and the
loyal subject. These matters are conveniently managed: all the
odium of discussion is left to the Icamdars , or delegates of the prince
and the chief, between whom not the least diminution of courteous
etiquette would be observable, whilst there remained a hope of
adjustment. Asiatics do not count the moments which intervene
between tho conception and consummation of an undertaking as do
those of colder climes. In all their transactions, they preserve more
composure, which; whatever be its cause, lends an air of dignity to
their proceedings. I have risen from discussion with the respective
ministers of tho sovereign and chieftains regarding acts involving
treason, in order to join the principals in an excursion on the lake,
or in the tilt-yard at the palace, where they would be passing their
opinions on the points of ahorse, with mutual courtesy and affability.

-This is no unamiable feature in the manners of theEast, and tends to
strengthen the tie of fraternity which binds together the fabric of
Rajpoot policy.

The .agricultural economy of Khyroda, which discovers distinct
traces of the patriarchal system, is not without interest. Khyroda
is a tttppa, or subdivision of one of the greater Ichalisa or fiscal
districts of Mewar, and consists of fourteen townships, besides their
liamlets. It is rated at 14,500 rupees of yearly rent, of which itself
furnishes 3,500. The land, though generally of a good quality, is
of three classes, viz., pccwul, or watered from wells; gorma, also
irrigated land, extending three or four hhaits, or fields, around the
village ; and mar or mal, depending on the heavens alone for
moisture. As has been already stated, there are two harvest's, viz.,
the oonaloo (from oon, ' heat’), or summer-harvest ; and the sedloo
(from sec , * cold 5 ), the winter or autumnal. The share of the crown,
as in all the ancient Hindu governments, is taken in kind/ and
divided as follows. Of the first, or oonaloo crop, consisting of wheat,
barley, and gram, the produce is formed, in to hallas (piles or heaps)
of one hundred maunds each; these are subdivided into four parts,
of twenty -five maunds each. The first operation is to provide from
one of these the seerano, or one seer on each maund, to each indi-
vidual of the village-establishment : viz., the patel, or head-man ;
the patwari, register or accountant; the shanali, or watchman; the
bullae ’, or messenger and also general herdsman ;* the hdt’hi (alias
sootdr) or carpenter; the lolidr, or blacksmith; the hhomdr, or
potter; the ~ dhoVi, or washerman ; the chamdr, who is shoemaker,
carrier, and scavenger; the nae, or barber-surgeon. These' ten
seeranos , or one seer on each kulla, or two maunds and a half to each
individual, swallow up one of the subdivisions. Of the three

* The bullae or bullaiti is the shepherd of the community, who drives the
village-flock to tho common pasturage ; and, besides his seerano, has some
trifling reward from every individual. It is his ospecial duty to prevent
cattle-trespasses.

[Von. II.]

69a

548

PERSONAL NARRATIVE.

[CHAP. r.

remaining parts, one share, or twenty-five maunds, goes to the raj or
Sovereign, and two to the ryot, orcultivator, after deducting a seerano
of 'two maunds for the heir-apparent, which is termed Kowur-mutha ,
or ‘pot for the prince/ An innovation of late years has been
practised on the portion belonging to the village, froln which no less
than three seeranos of one maund each are deducted, previous to
subdivision amongst the ten village officers; vie., one c pot for the
prince,’ another for the Rina’s chief groom, and a third for his moodi,
or steward of the grain department. These all go to the government,
which thus realizes thirty maunds out of eachhundred, or three-tenths,
instead of one-fourth, according to ancient usage. But the village-
establishment has an additional advantage before the grain is
thrashed out ; this is the Jcirpah or sheaf from every beega (a third
of an acre) of laud cultivated, to each individual; and each sheaf is
reckoned to yield from five to seven seers of grain. The reapers are
also allowed small Itirpas or sheafs, yielding two or three seers each ;
and there were various little larcenies permitted, under the terms of
duntuni and chabuni, indicating they were allowed the use of their
teeth (dant) while reaping: so that in fact they fed ( r chabna, td
bite or masticate’) upon roasted heads of Indian 'corn and maize.

Of the seaho crop, which consists of mulchi, or Indian corn, and
joodr and bajra, or maize, with the different pulses, the process
of distribution is as follows. Prom every hid la, or heap of
one hundred maunds, forty are Set apart for the raj or government,
and the rest, after deducting the seeranos of the village-establishment,
goes to the cultivator.

On the culture of sugar-cane, cotton, indigo, opium, tobacco, til or
sesamum, and the various dyes, there has always been a fixed money-
rent, varying from two to ten rupees per beega.

There is nothing so uncertain in its results as the cultivation of
sugar-Cane, which holds out a powerful lure for dishonesty to the
collector for the crown. But it is asserted here that the l’yot had no
option, being compelled to cultivate, in due proportion, cane, opium,
and grain, from the same chursa or well. A rough estimate of the
expense attending the culture of a chursa , or what may be irrigated
by ohe well, may not be uninteresting. Let us take, first, one beega
of Cane, and no more can be watered with one pair of oxen, pre-
mising that the cane is planted in the month of Aggun, and x'eaped in
the toe month next year ; that is, after a whole twelve month of
labour : —

Hasil, or rent Rupees 10

Seed of one beega 20

" Got, or Stirring up the earth with spuds, eight times
before reaping, sixteen men each time, at two annas
to each jg

Carried" over... 46

<5hap. i.]

PERSONAX NARP.A'flVfe.

549

Brought forward... 46

Two men at the well, at four rupees each per month,
for twelve months

Two oxen, feeding, &c 18

Baring and cutting forty thousand canes, at four annas

per thousaud 10 *

Placing cakes in the mill, clothes to thb men, besides
one seer of sugar out of every maund 20

Shares of all the village-establishment ; say if the
beega yields fifty maunds, of which they are entitled
to one-fifth 40

Wood 2

Hii’e of boiler 6

Rupees... 238

A beega will yield as much as eighty maunds of sugar,
though fifty is esteemed a good crop ; it sells at

about four rupees per maund, or 200

Leaving the cultivator minus Rupees... 38

It will be observed that the grower’s whole expenses are charged;
’besides, to make up, we must calculate from the labour of the samp
two men and cattle, the produce profit of one beega of opium and
four beegas of wheat and barley, as follows :

Surplus profit on the opium, seven seers of opium, at
four rupees per seer Rupees 28

One hundred and fifty iphunds of grain, of both
harvests, of which one-third to the raj, leaves one
hundred maunds, at one rupee each maund 100

Rupees... 128

Deduct deficiency on cane 38

Profit left, after feeding, men and cattle, &c.,&c., Rupees 90

Sometimes} though rarely, the cane is sold standing, at four to five
rupees the thousand; but, occasionally, the whole crop is lost, if the
cane should unfortunately flower, when it is rooted up and burnt, or
given to the cattle, being unfit for the use of man. This may be
superstition ; though the cultivators of the cane in the West-Indies
may perhaps say that the deterioration of the plant would render it
not worth the trouble of extracting the juice. I shall here conclude
this rough sketch of the agricultural economy of Khyroda, which
may be taken as a fair specimen of the old system throughout Mewar,

* This goes to feed the cultivator, if he works himself.

550

PEBBONAL N ABB AT I'VE.

[chap. I.

-with remarking that, notwithstanding the laws of Menu, inscriptions
on stone, and tradition, which constitute in fact the customary law
of Bajpootana, make the rent in kind far lighter than what we have
just recorded, yet the cultivator could not fail to thrive if even this
system were 'maintained. But constant warfare, the necessities of
the prince, with the cupidity and poverty of the revenue officers,
have superadded vexatious petty demands, as Iclmr-laJcur (wood and
forage), and ghur-g'mU (house-tax); the first of which was a tax of
one rupee annually on every beega of. land in cultivation, and the
other the same on each house or hut inhabited. Even the kcied sdli,
or triennial fine on the headman and the register, was levied by these
again on the cultivators. But besides these regular taxes, there was
no end to irregular exactions of burrar and dind, or forced contribu-
tions, until, at length, the country became the scene of desolation
from, which it is only now emerging.

Heentah, January 30 th. — This was a short march of three and a
half coss, or nine miles, over the same extensive plain of rich black
loam, or mal, whence the province of Malwa has its name. We
were on horseback long before sunrise ; the air was pure and invigo-
rating ; the peasantry were smiling at the sight of the luxuriant
young crops of wheat, barley, and gram, aware that no ruthless hand
could now step between them and the bounties of Heaven. Fresh
thatch, or risiug walls, gave signs of the exiles’ return, who greeted
ns, at each step of our journey, with blessings and looks of joy
mingled with sadness. Passed the hamlet, or poonva, of Amerpoora,’
attached to Khyroda, and to our left the township of Myn&r, held in
sasun, (religious grant) by a community of Brahmins. This place
affords a fine specimen of ‘ the wisdom of ancestors’ in Mewar, where
fifty thousand beegas, or about sixteen thousand acres of the richest
crown-land, have been given iu perpetuity to these drones of society ;
and although there are only twenty families left of this holy colony,
said to have been planted by Baja Mandhata in the trata-yug, or silver
age of India, yet superstition and indolence conspire to prevent the
resumption even of those portions which have none to cultivate them.
A “sixty thousand years’ residence in hell” is undoubtedly no comfort-
able prospect, and to those who subscribe to the doctriueof transmigra-
tion, it must be rathor mortifying to pass from the purple of royalty
into tf a worm in ordure,” one of the delicate purgatories which the
Bajpoot soul has to undergo, before it can expiate the offence of resum-
ingthe lands of the church ! I was rejoiced, however, to find that some
of ‘ the sons ot vSukta,’ as they increased in numbers, in the inverse
ratio of their possessions, deemed it better to incur all risks than
emigrate to foreign lands in search of bhom ; and both Heentah and
Doondia have been established on the lands of the church. Desirous
of preserving every right of every class, I imprecated on my head
all the anathemas of the order, if the Kaua should resume all beyond
what the remnant of this family could require. I proposed that a
thousand lecgas of the best land should be retained by them ; that
they should benot only furnished with cattle, seed, and implements of

CHAP. I.]

PERSONAL NARRATIVE.

'551

agriculture, but that there should be wells cleared out, or fresh ones
dug for them. At this time, however, the astrologer was a member
of the cabinet, and being also physician in" ordinai’y, he, as oue of
the order, protected his brethren of Myn&r, who, as may be supposed,
were in vain called upon to produce the tamba-patra, or copper-
plate warrant, for these lands.

Mandlmta Baja, a name immortalized in the topography of these
regions, was of the Pratnar tribe, and sovereign of Central India)
Avhoso capitals were Dhar and Oojein ; aud although his period is
uncertain, tradition uniformly assigns him priority to Yicramaditya,
whose era (fifty-six years anterior to the Christian) prevails through-
out India. There are various spots on the Nerbudda which perpe-
tuate his'name, especially where that grand stream forms oue of its
most considerable rapids. Cheetore, with all its dependencies, was
but an appanage of the sovereign ty of Dhar in these early limes,
nor can we move a step without discovering traces of their para-
mount sway in all these regions : and in the spot over which I am
now moving, the antiqnary might without any difficulty fill his
portfolio. Both Heentah aud Doondin, the dependencies of Mynar,
are brought in connexion with the name of Maudliata, who performed
the grand rite of asivaviedha , or sacrifice of the horse, at Doondia,
where they still point out the coond, or ‘ pit of sacrifice/ Two
Rishis, or f holy men , 5 of Heentah attended Maudhata, who, on the
conclusion of the ceremony, presented them the customary poon, or
‘ offering , 5 which they rejected ; but on taking leave, the Baja
delicately contrived to introduce into the beera of pan, a grant for
the lands of Mynar. The gift, though unsolicited. Was fatal to their
sanctity, and the miracles which they hnd hitherto been permitted
to form, ceased with the possession of Mammon. Would the reader
wish to have an instance of .these miracles ? After their usual
manifold, ablutions, and wringing the moisture of their dhoti, or
garment, they would fling it into the air, where it remained
suspended over their head, as a protection against the sun 5 s rays.
On the loss of their power, these saints became tillers of the ground.
Their descendants hold the lands of Mynar, and are spread over this
tract, named Burra Ohoubcesa, f the great twenty-four !”

We also passed in this morning’s march the village of Bamuneo,
having a noble piece of water maintained by a strong embankment
of masonry. No less than' four thousand beegas, are attached. It
was fiscal land, but had been usurped during the troubles, aud being
nearly depopulated, had escaped observation. At this moment it is
in the hands of Mooti Pasban, the favourite handmaid of “ the Sun
" of the Hindus . 55 This * Pearl 5 {mooti) pretends to have obtained
it as a mortgage, but it would be difficult to shew a lawful mort-
gager. Near the village of Bhansaira, on the estate of P utfceh Sing,
brother of Bheendir, we passed a seura or sulci, a pillar or land-mark,
having a graut of land inscribed thereon with the usual denuncia-
tions, attested by an image of the. sacred cow, engraved in slight
relief, as witness to the intention of the donor.

552

PERSONAL NARRATIVE.

[CHAP. I..

Heentah was a place of some consequence in the civil wars, and
in S. 1808 (A.D. 1752) formed the appanage of one of the labas , or
infants of the court, of the Mahraja Sawunt Sing. It now belongs
to a subordinate Suktawut, and -was the subject of considerable
discussion in the treaty of resumption of the 4th of May 1818,
"between the Rana and his chiefs.

It was the scene of a gallant exploit in S. 1812, when ten
thousand Mahrattas, led by Sutwa, invaded Mewar. Raj Sing, of the
Jhala tribe, the chief of Sadri, and descendant of the hero who rescued
that first of Rajpoot princes, Rana Pertap, had reached the town of
Heentali in his passage from court to Sadri, when he received intelli-
gence that the enemy was at Salniro, only three miles distant. He
was recommended to make a slight detour and go by Blieendir ; but
having no reason for apprehension, he rejected the advice, and pro-
ceeded on his way. He had not travelled half a mile, when they fell
in with the marauders, who looked upon his small but well mounted
"band as legitimate prey. But, in spite of -the odds, they preferred
death to the surrender of their equipments, and an action ensued,
in which the Raj, after performing miracles of valour, regained
the fort, with eight ouly of his three hundred and fifty retainers.
The news reaching Khpshial Sing, the chief of Blieendir, who,
besides the sufficient motive of Rajpooti , or c chivalry,’ was
impelled by friendship and matrimonial connexion, he assembled
a trusty band, and marched to rescue his friend from captivity and
his estate from mortgage for his ransom. This little phalanx
amounted only to five hundred men, all Suktawuts, and of whom
three-fourths were on foot. They advanced in a compact mass, with
lighted matches, the cavaliers on either flank, with Khoshial at their
head, denouncing death to the man who quitted his ranks, or fired
a shot without orders. They were soon surrounded by the cloud of
Mahratta horse ; but resolve was too manifest in the, intrepid band
even for numbers to provoke the" strife. They thus passed over the
immense plain between Blieendir and Heentah, the gates of which
they had almost reached, when, as if ashamed "at seeing their prey
thus snatched from their grasp, the word was given, “ birch ee cle !”
and a forest of Mahratta lances, each twelve feet long, bristled
against the Suktawuts. 'Khoshial called a halt, wheeled his cavaliers
to the .rear, and allowed the foe to come within pistol-shot, when a
well-directed volley checked their impetuosity, and threw them into
disorder. The little band of cavalry seized the moment and charged
in their turn, gave time to load again, and returned to their post to
allow a second volley. The gate was gained, and the Sadri chief „
received into the ranks or deliverers. Elated with - success, the
Mahraja promptly determined rather to fight his way back than
coop himself up in Heentah, and be starved into surrender; all
seconded the resolution of their chief, and with little comparative
loss they regained Blieendir. This exploit is universally known,
nnd related with exultation, as one of' the many brilliant deeds of

CHAP. I.]

PERSONAL NARRATIVE.

553

“ the sons of Sukta,’ 5 of whom the Mahraja Khoshial Sing was con-
spicuous for worth, as well as gallantry.

Morwun , 31st January . — The last day of January (with the
thermometer 50° at day-break); brought us to the limits of Mewar.
I could not look on its rich alienated lands without the deepest
regret, or see the birthright of its chieftains devolve on the mean
Mahratta or ruthless Pat’hyn, without a kindling o£ the spirit
towards the heroes of past days, in spite of the vexations their less
worthy descendants occasion me ; less worthy, yet not worthless, for’
having left my cares behind me with the court, where the stub-
bornness of some, the vices and intrigues of others, and the apathy
of all, have deeply injured my health. There is something magical
in absence ; it ’throws a deceitful medium between us and the objects
we have quitted, which exaggerates their amiable qualities, and
curtails the proportions of their vices. I look upon Mewar as the
land of my adoption, and, linked with all the associations of my
early hopes and their actual realization, I feel inclined to exclaim
with reference to her and her unmanageable children,

“ Mdvrar,- with all thy faults, I love thee still.”

The virtues owe an immense debt to the present feudal nobility,
not only of Mdwar but of Rajpootana, and it is to be hoped that the
rising generation will pay to it what has been withheld by the past;
that energy and temperance will supersede opium and the juice of
the mawah, aud riding in the ring, replace the siesta, and the tabor
(tabla) and lute. I endeavoured to banish some of these incentives
to degeneracy ; nor is there a young chief tain, from the heir-apparent
to the throne to the aspirant to a skin of land (when opportunity
was granted), from whom 1 have not exacted a promise, never to
touch that debasing drug, opium. Some may break this pledge,
but many will keep it ; especially those whose minority I protected
against court-faction and avarice : such a one as Urjoon Sing, the
young chief of Bussie, of the Sangawut branch of the Chondawut
clan. His grandfather (for his father was dead) had maintained the
old castle 1 and estate, placed on the elevated Oopermal, against ali
attempts of the' Mahrattas, but had incurred the hatred of Bheem
Sing of Saloombra, the head of his clan, whom S. 1846 dispossessed
him, and installed a junior branch in the barony of Bussie. vBut
the energetic Tukt Sing regained his lost rights, and maintained
them, until civil broils and foreign foes alike disappeared, on their
connexion with the British in S. 1818. Then the veteran chief, with
his grandson, repaired to court, to unite in the general homage to
their prince with the assembled chiefs of Mdwar. But poverty and
the remembrance of old feuds combined to dispossess the youth, and
'the amount of fine (ten thousand rupees) had actually been fixed for
the installation of the interloper, who was supported by all the influ-
ence of the chief of Saloombra. This first noble of Mewar tried to
avail himself of my friendship to uphold the causQ of his protegee,
Burrud Sing, whom he often brought to visit me, as did old Tukta
[Vot. II.] 70

554

PERSONAL NARRATIVE.

[CHAP., I.

his grandson. Both were of the same age, thirteen ; the aspirant
to Bussie, fair and stout, but heavy in his looks ; while the
possessor, Urjoon, was spare, dark, and beaming with intelli-
gence. Merit and justice on one side ; stupidity and power
on the other. But there were duties to be performed ; and
the old T’liakoor’s appeal was not -heard in vain. “ Swam-
“ dherma and this” (putting his hand to his sword), said the aged
chief, “ hafe hitherto preserved our rights ; now, the cause of
“ the child is in his sovereign’s hands and your’s ; but here money
<' buys justice, and right yields to favour.” The Rana, though he
had assented to the views of Saloombra, left the case to my adjudi-
cation'. I called both parties before me, and in their presence, from
their respective statements, sketched the genealogical tree, exhibiting
in the remote branches the stripling competitors, which I shewed to
the Rana. Ever prone to do right when not swayed by faction, he
confirmed Urjoon’s patent, which he had given him three years
previously, and girt him with the sword of investiture. This
contest for his birthright was of great advantage to the youth ; for
his grandfather was selected to command the quotas for the defence
of the frontier fortress of y J ekajpoor, a duty which he well performed ;
and his grandson accompanied him and was often left in command
while he looked after the ostate. Both came to visit me at Cheetore.
Urjoon was greatly improved during his tWo years’ absence from the
paternal abode, and promises to do honour to the clan he belongs to.
Amongst many questions, I asked " if he had yet taken to his uml ?”
to which he energetically replied, “ my fortunes will be cracked
“ indeed, if ever I forget any injunction of yours.’’

But a truce to digression : the whole village punch act has been
waiting this half hour under the spreading burr tree, to .tell me, in
the language of homely truth, Jehoosh hyn Gompani saheb ca-part&p
sa, that “ by the auspices of Sir Company they are happy; and that
“ they hope I may live a thousand years.’’

I must, therefore, suspend my narrative, whilst I patiently listen
till midnight to dismal tales of sterile fields, exhausted funds, exiles
unretmmed, and the depredations of the wild mountain Bhil.

CHAP. II.]

PERSONAL NARRATIVE.

555

CHAPTER n.

Tk 'tho7l °^ A Eemt f-'~ :D! ^ enUl J of “'-ranging the separation ofSeentah from
iJ^M.-Anomahns character of its present chief, Maun Sing Suldawnt.-
JT s history.— Lalji Rawul of Nct’harr a. -Origin of the Bodeah family-
Adventure of Sen gram Sing, the Rana of Mewar.-His son, ChandrabMn,
and RanaUaj.-Extraordinary manner in which he acquired Lawah.-
JJechnc oj the family.— Form of deed of conveyance of lands from the lord
paramount.— Address of Maun Sing.— Atrocious murder of a Rahtore hoy.
— Its singular sequel.

I was not deceived; it is now midnight, but, late, as it ib, I will
introduce to the reader a few of my visitors. The chief of Heentah
who was absent at his patrimonial estate of Koon, on the hills of
Clmppun, sent his brother and his homme d’affaires to make his
compliments to me, and express his regret that he could not offer
them personally at Heentah, which he said was “ my own township/’
This was not mere customary civility. Heentah had been taken by
the Suktawuts soon after the commencement of the civil wars of S.
1824, which was within the period (A.D. 1766) fixed by the general
arrangements of the 4th of May 1818, for restitution ; and it was
impossible, •without departing from the principle on which they were
based, that the chief should retain it, though he could plead the
prescriptive right of half a century.

The discussions regarding Heentah were consequently very warm :
the renunciation of ten valuable townships by the Maharaja Zoor awur
Sing of Bheendir, the head of the Suktawut clans, did not annoy
the Bheendir chief so much as liis failure to retain Heentah as one
of his minor feuds : nay, the surrender of Arjab, the price of blood,
a far more important castle and domain, by his own brother Fufcteh
Sing (the original acquisition of which sealed the conclusion of a
long-standing feud), excited less irritation than the demand that
Heentah should revert to the fisc. “ It is the key of Bheendir,”
said the head of the clan. “ It was a Suktawut allotment from the

“ first,” exclaimed his brother. “ The Ranawut was an interloper,”
cried another. “ It is my bapotn, the abode of my fathers,” was the
more feeling expression of the occupant. It was no light task to deal
with such arguments; especially when an appeal to the dictates
"?>£ reason and justice was thwarted by the stronger impulse of self-
interest. But in a matter involving so important a stipulation of the
■ treaty, which required “that all fiscal possessions which, since S. 1822
“ (A D. 1766), the commencement of the civil wars, had, by wliateve^r
« means, passed from theRana to the chieftains, should be reclaimed,
firmness was essential to the success of a measure on which depended
the restoration of order. The Suktawuts behaved nobly, and
with a purely patriotic spirit throughout the scene, when almost
all had to relinquish important possessions. The issue was, that
Heentah, with its domain, after remaining twelve months incor-
porated with the fisc, was restored to Zoorawur, but curtailed of

[Yon. IL] 70a

556

PERSONAL NARRATIVE.

[chap''.

Doondia and its twelve hundred acres, which, though united to
Heentah, was a distinct township in the old records. Having paid
ten thousand rupees as the fine of relief, the chief was girt with the
sword, and re-established in his bapota , to the great joy of the whole
clan.

Heentah is burthened with the service of fourteen horse and four-
teen foot ; its relc’h, or nominal value, in the putta-biihye, or f record
of fiefs/ being seven thousand rupees ; but, in consideration of the
impoverished condition of his estate, the chief was only called on to
furnish five horse and eight foot. The present possessor of Heentah
is an adoption from the chieftainship of Eoon ; but, contrary to
established usage, he holds both Heentah and Koon, his parent fief,
whereby he has a complex character, and conflicting duties to fulfil.
As chief of Koon, he belongs to the third class of nobles, styled gole,
and is subject to constant personal attendance on the Eana ; as lord
of Heentah, too, he has to furnish a quota to serve “ at koine or
“ abroad !” Being compelled to appear at court in person, his
quota for Heentah was placed under the charge of Maun Sing
(another of the Suktawut sub-vassalage), and was sent to the t’hana
of little Sadrf, on the Malwa frontier, to guard it from the depreda-
tions of the forester Bhll. But I was commissioned by the Eana to
reprimand the representative of Heentah, and to threaten him with
the re-sequestration of the estate, if he did not better perform the
service for which he held it. In consequence of this remonstrance,
I became acquainted with a long tale of woe; and Maun Sing’s
vindication from a failure of duty will introduce a topic worthy of
notice connected with the feudal system of Mdwar, namely, the
subdivision of fiefs.

Maun Sing Suktawut is a younger branch of the Lawah family,
and one of the infants who escaped the massacre of Seogurli, when
Lalji Rawut and two generations were cut off to avenge the feud
with Korabur. In order, however, to understand the claims of Maun
Sing, we must go back to the period when Lalji Rawut was lord of
Net’harra, which, for some offence, or through some court-intrigue, ■
was resumed, and bestowed on one of the rival clan of Chondawut.
Being a younger branch of the Bhansi family (one of the senior
subdivisions of Bheendir), Lalji was but slenderly provided for in
the family allotment ( b’hut ). On losing Net’harra, he repaired to
Dongerpoor, whose Rawul gave him a grant of Seogurh, an almost
inaccessible fort on the borders of the two countries. Thus compelled,
through faction, to seek subsistence out of his native, soil, Lalji
renounced his loyalty, and with his sons, now barwutteas or ‘ out-
laws/ resolved to prey upon Mewar. They now looked to Bheendir,
the head of their clan, as their lord, and joined him in opposing
their late sovereign in the field, levying black-mail from the estates
of their rivals ; or, when, the influence of the latter sunk at court,
and was supplanted by the clan of Suktawut, Lalji poised his lance
m the tram of his chief in defence of the’ throne. Thus passed his

CHAP. II.]

PERSONAL NARRATIVE.

557

life, a chequered course of- alternate loyalty and treason, until its
tragical close at Seogurh.*

Singram Sing, the eldest son of Lalji,f with his infant nephews,
Jey Sing andNahur (wlio was absent^ escaped tlie avenger 5 s swordj
under which perished his father, mother, both brothers^ and all his
own children, at one fell swoop! Singram succeeded to the possession
of Seogurh, and to the feuds of his family. His nephew, young
Hahur, joined in all his enterprizes, from the defence of Khyroda to
the escalade and capture of the castle of Lawah, in which he main-
tained himself until the Rana not only pardoned him, but gave him
precedence above his enemies in his own councils. >

Lawah was wrested by Singram Sing Suktawut from Singram
Sing the Dodeah, an ancient tribe, but like many others little
known, until the incident we are about to relate gave it a momentary
gleam of splendour, and afforded the bard an .opportunity to
emblazon its fame upon his page. Even in these regions, so full of
strange vicissitudes, the sudden rise of the Dodeah is a favourite
topic of the traditional muse of Mewar.

ChandrabMn was the father of this meteor of the day ; his sole
wealth consisted of a team of oxen, with which he tilled a few beegas
of land at the base of Nahra-mugra, the ‘ tiger mount/ where the
liana had a rumna or preserve, for the royal sport of tiger-hunting.
It was during the autumnal harvest, when the Dodeah had finished
his day’s work, having put up the last rick of muFhi (Indian corn),
as he was driving home the companions of his tail, a voice hailed
him from the wood. He answered, and advanced to the spot
whence it issued, where he, found a stranger, evidently of rank,
with his horse panting for breath. After inquiring his tribe, and
bein" told “'Rajpoot,” the stranger begged a little water, which was
supplied, along with two coarse cakes of muh’hi, and a little chunna-
ca-dal, pulse cooked with ghee, or clarified butter, which the honest
Dodealf took out of a cloth not over clean. Having performed all
the other duties which hospitality requires, the Dodeah made his
salaam, and was about to depart, when a train of horsemen coming
in sight, he paused to look at them. All went up to the stranger;
and, from the profound respect paid to him, he found that he had
entertained no common guest.

It was in fact his sovereign, the Rana J uggut Sing, who delighted in
the chase, and having that day been bewildered in the intricacies of
Nahra-mugra, had stumbled on the Dodeah carle. The latter expressed
neither surprise nor delight when introduced to the Rana, and replied

* See Yol. I, p. 377.
f Laiji’s issue :

Singram. Seo Sing. Soortan Sing.

His children massacred «Jey Sing,

at Seogurh.

Hahur Sing.
Maun Sing.

to all liis questions with the frankness that grows out of the sentiX
ment of honest pride and independence, which never abandons a\
Rajpoot, whatever be his condition.* The Rana was so much pleased
with his rustic host, that he commanded a led horse to be brought '
forth, and desired the Dodeah would accompany him to Oodipoor,
only ten miles distant. c The rocket of the moon* ( Chandrabhan ), .
in his peasant’s garb, bestrode the noble chai’ger with as much ease
as if it were habitual to him. The nest day, the Dodeah was con-
ducted to the Presence, and invested with a dress which had been
worn by his sovereign (a distinguished mark of royal favour), accom-
panied with the more solid reward of the grant of Kowario and its
lands in perpetuity.

Chandrabhan and his benefactor died about the same time. Rana
Raj had succeeded to the throne of Mewar, and Sirdar Sing, son of
Chandrabhan, did personal service for the lands of Kowario. It was
a source of daily amusementfor the prince and his youthful associates
to plunge into the fountain at the Suhailea-ca-barH,f a villa about
two miles from the capital, on which occasions reserve was banished,
and they gave themselves up to unrestrained mirth. The young
Dodeah had some peculiarities, which made him a butt for their wit.
The following incident will shew the character of‘ these princely
pastimes. It was one day remarked, that’ when refreshing in the
coond, or reservoir, Sirdar Sing did not lay aside his turban, which
provoked- a suspicion that he had no hair. The Rana, impatient to
get a peep at the bare head of the son of Chandrabhan, proposed
that they should push each other into the water. The sport began,
and the Dodeah’s turban falling off, disclosed the sad truth. The
jest, however, was not relished by Sirdar ; and he tartly replied', in
answer to his sovereign’s question, “ what had become of bis hair ?”
that “ he had lost it in his service, in a former birth, as cheld,% by
“ carrying wood upon bis head to feed the flame, when bis sovereign,
“ as a jogi, or ascetic, performed penance ( tapasya ) in the bills of
“ Buddrinath.” The prince felt that be bad violated decorum ; but
the reply was pregnant with sarcasm, and his dignity must he
maintained. “ Sirdar must bring proof of bis assertion, or punish-
“ ment awaits him,” was the rejoinder. The young chief, in the
same lofty tone, offered the evidence of the deota (divinty) of the
temple of Kowario. This was a witness whose testimony could not
he impugned, and he had leave to bring it forward.

* In my days of inexperience, when travelling through countries unknown,
ana desirous to take the first peasant I found as a guide, J have been amused
by his announcing to me, before a-question was put, “ I am a Rajpoot,” as if in
anticipation of the demand and a passport to. respect; literally, “I am of royal
■‘descent;” a reflection which lends an air of dignity to all his actious, and
distinguishes him from every other class.

f * The nymphs' parterre s’ for the barri is more a flower-garden than one of
indiscriminate culture.

X Child is a phrase which includes servitude or domestic slavery : bub implies,
at the same time, treatment as a child of the family. Here it denotes that of a
servant or disciple.

CHAP. II.]

PERSONAL NARRATIVE.

559

Afc tlie village of Gopalpoor, attacked to liis estate of Kowario,
wag a temple of the Bagrawuts, a tribe little known, having a shrine
oi their divinity, who was personified by an image with a timer’s
(bag')^]ies.d. lie invoked liis support on this occasion, when the

deota threw him the flower^- in his hand, and desired him to canw

it to his sovereign. 5 He did so, and the Rana’s faith was too great
to dispute the miracle. What honours could suffice for the man who
had performed- the most meritorious service to his priuce in former
transmigrations ! Mang , c ask,’ was the sign of grace and favour.

V Sin gram’s request was governed by moderation ; it was for Lawab
and its lands, which adjoined his estate at Kowario.

The Rana being yet a minor, and the queen-mother at the head of
affairs, he hastened to her to be released from the debt of gratitude.
But Hawaii, unluckily, was held by herself,- and although she was
not heretic enough to doubt the miraculous tale, she thought the
Dodeak might have selected any other laud but her’s, and testily
replied to her sou’s request, that “ he might give him Mewar if he
“ chose.” Displeased at this unaccommodating tone, the prince
quickly rejoined, ‘' f M<$war shall be his then.” The word of a prince
is sacred ; he sent for Singram, and thus addressed him : (< I give yon
“ Mewar for the space of three days ; make the best use of your
“ time ; my arsenals, my armouries, my treasury, my stables, my
“ throne and its ministers, are at your command.” The temporary .
Rana availed himself of this large power, and conveyed to his
estate whatever he had a mind to. During the abdication. Sirdar held
his court, though he had too much tact actually to press the cushion
of his master; but seated himself on one side of the vacant throne,
attended by all the nobles, fully impressed with the sanctity of the
individual who had attained such distinction. On the third day,
the queen-mother sent her son the patent for Lawak ; and on the
fourth, the Dodeah surrendered the sceptre.

•With the wealth thus acquired, he erected a castle in his domain
oE Lawak, on which he expended nine lacs of rupees, about £100,000.

He formed a lake ; ;and a single Idori or reservoir, in the fort, cost
another lac. He built a splendid palace, whose china and mirror-halls
are still the theme of encomium. These were greatly defaced by an
explosion of a powder-magazine, which threw down half the fortress
that had taken twenty years’ to complete ; and though it underwent
considerable repairs, it lost much of its splendour, which the guns of
Holcar aided to diminish : but the castle of Lawah is still one of
the finest in Mewar. Sirdar Sing had also a grant of one of the
royal maids or palaces of Oodipoor, erected on the margin of the
lake, after the model of the Jugmunder. Although it now belongs
to the chief of Amait, it is only recognized as the Dodeah-ca-mahl ;
but its halls are the dwelling of the bat and the owl : tlie burr has
taken root in its light airy porticos, and its walls have every
direction but the perpendicular. Sirdar lived twenty years after

* That sculptured from the stone is meant,

560

PERSONAL NARRATIVE.

\

the erection of Lawah ; he died in S. 1838 (A.D. 1782), leaving one
son, the heir of his honours and estates. Throughout his long life,
he lost no portion of the respect paid to his early yeais; but with
him the name of Dodeah again sunk into obscurity, or lived but as
a memento of the instability of fortune. It was this son who, when
driven from Lawah by Singram Sing Suktawut, had no place of
shelter, and died in indigence and obscurity. Ilis son (grandson of
Sirdar, and great-grandson of the c rocket of the moon’) is now
patronized by the heir-apparent. Prince Jow*an Sing, and receives a
daily allowance, but has not a foot of land.

Singram, the Suktawut, had a regular sannud for the fief of
Hawaii, which was rated at twenty-three thousand rupees of annual
rent, while Kowai*io has reverted to the fisc. The lake of Lawah,
which irrigates some thousand acres of rice-land, alone renders it
one of the most desirable of the secondary estates of Mdwar. Sin-
gram’s children being all murdered in the feud of Seogurh, he
was succeeded by Jey Sing (son of Seo Sing, his second brother),
who was received as lihola, or son of adoption, by all the retainers
of Lawah. While Singram Sing lived, no subdivision of allotments
took place ; all, to use the words of Maun Sing, “ ate out of one
dish and his own father ISTahur, who had aided in the enterprize, \
having by a similar coup^ rfe main secured the estate of Bunwull
for himself, no necessity for such partition existed. But Bunwull
belonging to the fisc, to which it reverted on the restoration of order
' in A.D. 1818, young Maun had no alternative but to turn round on
Jey Sing, the adopted heir of Singram, and demand his bind, or
share of the lands of Lawah, in virtue of the right of joint acquisi-
tion, and as a younger brother. Jey Sing refused : but custom
prevailed, and the village of Jaetpoorah, of fifteen hundred rupees’
annual revenue, was bestowed upon the son of Nahur Sing. So
long as Maun Sing performed his duties-to his chief, his share of
Lawah was iiresumable and inalienable: hence the stubborn
tenacity of the chiefs of their share in the patrimonial acres, even
when holding largely, but separately, of the crown, since of the
latter, caprice or intrigue may deprive them ; but their own miscon-
duct alone can forfeit their bapota. The simple deed of conveyance
will better establish this point :

“ Maharao Sri Jey Sing, plighting his faith ( buchundeto ).

“ At this time, Brother Maun Sing, I bestow upon thee, of my
“ own free will, the village and lands of Jaetpoorah. This donative
“ shall not look to rankroos : su-poot, ca-poot :*your issue shall enjoy
“ them. Of this intention I call the four-armed divinity ( Ghatoorbooja )

“ as witness. You are my own child (chooroo) : wherever and when-
“ ever 1 ordei ', yon will do my service : if you fail, the fault be oil
“your own head/-’

* ktanh oob is a phrase embracing mental or physical iiifirmhv - hpra

strengthened by the words which follow. Su-pool means ‘ woX? or ** <5
jssue (puli a), ns ca-poot, the reverse, * bad or incompetent issue. 5 ’ °

CHAP. II.]

PERSONAL NARRATIVE.

561

lietliei Maun Sing failed in. his duty to his superior, or other-
wise, Jaetpoorah was resumed ; and having in vain endeavoured to
obtain justice through the ministers, he came to me to solicit atten-
tion to his case. With the resumption of Khyroda, his brother, the
chief of Lawak, lost half his nominal income; and it may therefore
be conjectured he would not be slow to listen to any charge against
Maun, by which he might get back his allotment. On my departure
for Marwar, in August 1820, he had written to me to say that Jey
Sing had summoned him to evacuate Jaetpoorah. In my reply, I said,
it was a matter for the Rana alone to decide. He accordingly went
to court, and failing there, followed me; but, as at my desire he had
been appointed to head the quotas on the Sadri frontier, and had
performed this duty very negligently, I received him coolly : this,
however, only gave additional eagerness to his defence, as he assigned
strong personal reasons for the neglect. But the son of e the tiger’
(Nahur Sing) shall speak for himself. Let the reader imagine a young-
man of twenty-five, above six feet high, of an athletic figure and
chivalrous demeanour, his expression at once modest and indepen dent,
with those indispensable appendages to a Rajpoot warrior’s visage,
well- trimmed favoris and moustache , and armed at all points : such
was the lord-marcher (Seem-iswar) , Maun Sing. Having presented
his patent for my perusal, he continued : “ had I failed in my obliga-
tions to my brother, he would have been justified in this step ; but
since you took Bunwull from me, my retainers, at his beck, eqnalled
his own in numbers ; what right therefore had he to resume Jaet-
poorah ? "When Singram Sing died, Lawah was in my hands :
who could have prevented my keeping it, had it been my pleasure ?
The son of Nahur Sing would have been preferred by the vassals
of Singram to one they had never even seen ; but I respected his
rights, though even now he could not forcibly dispossess me. When
the T’hakoor of Amait, on his way to court, beat his drums on the
bounds of Lawah, did I not assemble my retainers and avenge the
insult to my chief ? My head was Jey Sing’s, — that is, with the
hangras (battlements) of Lawah : but he never could have dared to
take Jaetpoorah, had not respect for the chief of Lawah, respect for
the Rana, and for you, made me passive. Only bid me retake it,
and I am not the sou of Nahur Sing if he keeps it a day. Its little
castle, erected by these hands, sheltered my wife and children, who,
now expelled from my patrimony, are compelled to seek refuge
elsewhere. The lands assigned me in lieu of Bunwull are waste.
3?or eVery rupee I can hope to derive from them, I must expend one ;
and on Jaetpoorah alone could I raise any funds. Reckoning on
this, I paid my fine of two thousand five hundred rupees for my
putta (grant), and from its produce I looked to maintain my family
and followers until the first should be made productive. When I
lost this support, my creditors assailed me : to satisfy them, I sold
all I had of- value, even to my wife’s jewels, and the horse you saw
me ride when I came to meet you at Gangapoor. I laid my case
before P'irtM-nut’h , and here is his reply, deciding in my favour
[yon. II.] 71

562

PERSONAL NARRATIVE.

[CHAP. II.

I represented it through Jawandas (a natural brother of the Rana),
and five hundred rupees were demanded and agreed to by me,-
provided buclmn (security) was given me of success. The Bikaner f-
jPs* was given ; but the purse of the T'bakoor of Jaetjioorah is not
so long as the chieftaiu of Lawah's, and one thousand rupees., offered
by him, made his the juster cause ! It is this that makes me negli-
gent of my duty; this which incited the Pat'haus to carry off my
little harvest from Salairoh ; and Bhairawi f is still in the hands of
the foresters. Here is my case : if I demand aught that is not just,
or that is contrary to usage, deal with me as you please. There is
Futteh Singh, who holds in separate grant from the Rana an estate
of thirty thousand rupees ; but as a younger brother of Bheendir,;he
enjoys five thousand from his brother : and Ajeit Sing of Alisind,
though richer than his immediate head of Korabuiy yet, as the son
of Avjoon Sing, holds his allotment (bhut) from him : but you know
all this, why should I repeat it V 3 'Here the T'kakoor concluded,
without any interruption being given to his animated harangue, the
interest of which was enhanced by his natural eloquence, and his
manly but modest deportment. He is a noble specimen, not of his
tribe alone, but of the human character. His appeal was irresistible ;
and would almost have carried conviction of its justice, even to
those who could not have understood his tongue. Still it was requi-
site to steel myself against impulses ; and I recommended, as the
best mode of enabling me to advocate his cause, that he should
repair to his post, and establish fresh claims to his sovereign's regard,
by punishing an atrocious act which in all probability his absence
had occasioned. With the gift of a brace of pistols, and the usual
leave-taking hint of utr-pdn, Maun Sing quitted my tent.

And now for the melancholy occurrence which preceded that of
the young Suktawut. On the borders of Little Sadri, where the
quotas are posted, is a mountainous tract covered with deep foi’est,
the abode of the half-savage Meenas and Bhils. Mixed with them
are the estates of some vassal chiefs, whose duty it is to repress their
excesses ; but, in such times as we have described, they moi’e fre-
quently instigated them to plunder’, receiving a share of the spoils.
Amongst the foremost in this association was the steward of KaH-
kote. At the foot of a pass leading into the wilds of Ohuppun was
the hamlet of Beeleo, occupied by a Rahtore Rajpoot, who had
snatched from the mountain-side a few beegas of land, and dug'
some wells to irrigate the arable patches about his cot. With severe
toil he raised a subsistence for himself, his wife, and an only son,
who was to inherit this patrimony. Returning homewards one day,
after his usual labour, he was met by his wailing help-mate ; she
said the savage Bhil had rifled his cot, and with the cattle carried
off their prop, their only child, and at the same time a young ffogi,
his playmate. The afflicted father spake not a word, but loading his

* One of the queens, a princess of Bikaner,
t The two villages he obtained in lieu of Buhwull.

CHAP. II.]

PERSONAL NARRATIVE.

563

matchlock, took tlie road to Kal&kote. What was his liorror when,
at the entrance of the village, he stumbled over the headless bodies
of his boy and his young companion ! He learned that the savages
belonged to the lordship of Kalakote; that having conveyed the
children from their home upon the cattle they had stolen, they were
entering the place, when the young Hah tore, recognizing the steward,
called out, “ Save me, uncle, any my father will ransom me at your
“ own price ! 55 ' This was the object for which he had been abducted;
but these words proved that the steward was known to be the
author of the outrage, and they were the last the child spoke. With
this intelligence, the wretched father entered the f black-castle 5
(Kalakote), in quest of the steward. He denied all participation in
the abduction or the murder ; and commiserating the Kahtore’s
misfortune, offered him four times the number of cattle he had lost,
twice the amount of all his other losses, and to pay double the sum
of mirkhdd, or money expended in the search. “ Can you give me
“ back my son ?’ 5 was the only reply : “ I want justice and ven-
“ geance, not money. I could have taken it in part, 5 ’ continued he ;
“ for what is life now ? but let it fall on all . 55

Ho attempt at consolation could diminish the father’s grief ; but
in promising him my aid to realize his vengeance, I gave him hope
to cling to ; and on handing him over to Maun Sing, saying his own
suit would be best promoted by the imprisonment of all concerned
in this outrage, he quitted me with some mitigation of his grief.
But before he left my camp, tidings arrived that the chief culprit
was beyond the reach of man ; that the Great Avenger had summoned
to his own tribunal the iniquitous steward of KaMkote ! Even in
these regions of rapine, where the blood of man and of goats is held
in almost equal estimation, there was something in the wild grief of
the Eahtore that sunk into the hearts of the vassals' of Kalakote :
they upbraided the steward, and urged him to confess the share he
had in the deed. But he swore 1 by his God 5 he had none, and
offered to ratify the oath of purgation in his temple. Nothing less
would satisfy them, and they proceeded to the ordeal. The temple
was but a few hundred yards distant. The steward mounted his
horse, and had just reached the shrine, when he dropped dead at the
threshold ! It caused a deep sensation-; and to the vengeance of an
offended divinity was ascribed this signal expiation of the triple
urime of theft, murder, and sacrilege. There now only remain the
base accomplices of the wretch who thus trafficked with the liberty
of his fellow-men ; and I should rejoice to see them suspended on
the summit of the Beeleo pass, as a satisfaction to the now childless
Eahtore, and a warning to others who yet follow such a course.

[Voa. II.]

564

PERSONAL NARRATIVE.

[CHAP. III.

CHAPTER III.

Morwun. — The solitude of this fine district. — Caused by the Mahrattas and
their mercenaries. — Impolicy of our conduct towards the Mahrattas, •
Antiquities of Morwun. — Tradition of the foundation and destruction of the
ancient city. — Inscriptions. — Jain temple. — Game. — Attach by a tiger.
Sudden change of the weather. — Destructive frost. — Legend of a temple of
Mdmd deva. — Important inscription. — Distress of the peasdntry. — Gratitude
of the people to the author.— Nehoomp — Oppression of the peasants.— Murlah.
—Inhabited by Gharuns— Reception of the author.— Curious privilege of the
Char unis. — Its origin.— Traditional account of the settlement of this colony
in Mewar.— Imprecation of satis.— The tandas, or caravans. — Their immunity
from plunder and extortion. — Neembaira. — Ranilchaira. — Indignity com-
mitted by a scavenger of Laisrawun. — Sentence upon the culprit. — Tablet to a
SilpL — Reception at Neembaira.

Morwun, February 1st. — Yesterday, Maun Sing took up the
whole of my time with the feuds of -Lawah an d their consequences.
It obliged me to halt, in order to make inquiries into the alienated'
lauds in its vicinity. Morwun is, or rather was, a township of some -
consequence, and head of a tuppa or subdivision of a district. It is
rated, with its contiguous hamlets, at seven thousand rupees annual
rent. The situation is beautiful, upon heights pleasingly diversified,
with a fine lake to the westward, whose margin is studded with
majestic tamarind trees. The soil is rich, and there is water in
great abundance within twenty-five feet of the surface ; hut man is
wanting ! The desolation of . solitude reigns throughout, for
(as Rousseau observes) there is none to whom one can turn and say,
que la solitude est belle !

I experienced another pang at seeing this fertile district revert to
the destroyer, the savage Pat'han, who had caused the desolation,
and in the brief but expressive words of a Roman author,
solitudinem fac.it, pacem appellat. Morwun is included in the
lands mortgaged for a war-contribution, but which with others has
remained in the hands of the Mabratta mortgagees or their mercenary
subordinates. But it is melancholy to reflect that, hut for a false
magnanimity towards our insidious, natural enemies, the Mahrattas,
all these lands would have reverted to their legitimate masters, who
are equally interested with ourselves in putting down predatory
warfare. Justice, good policy, and humanity, would have been
better consulted had the Mahrattas been wholly banished from
Central India. When I contrasted this scene with the traces of
incipient prosperity I had left behind me, I felt a satisfaction that
the alienated acres produced nothing to the possessor, save luxuriant
grass, and the leafless Icesoola or plds.

Morwun has some claims to antiquity ; it derives its appellation
&om the Mon tribe, who ruled here before they obtained Cheetore.
lue rums of a fort, still known by the name of Chi trims' Mori's
castle, are pointed out as his residence ere he founded Cheetore, or

CHAP. III.] PERSONAL NARRATIVE. 565

*

more properly Cheetore. The tradition runs thus: Chitrung, n.
subordinate of the imperial house o£ Dhar, held Morwun aud°tke
adjacent tract, in appanage. One of his subjects, while ploughing,
struck the share against some hard substance, and on examination
found it was stransmuted to gold. This was the pciris-piittur,* or
' philosopher’s stone,’ and he carried it forthwith to his lord, with
whose aid he erected the castle, and enlarged the town of Morwuu,
and ultimately founded Cheetore. The dhoollcote, or site of Mori-ca-
puttun, is yet pointed out, to the westward of the present Morwun.
It was miraculously destroyed through the impieties of its inhabi-
tants by fire, which fate recalls a more celebrated catastrophe ; bub
the act of impiety in the present case was merely seiziug a rishi, or
‘ hermit,’ while performing penance in the forest, and compelling him.
to carry radishes to market ! The tradition, however, is of somo
value ; it proves, first, that there were radishes in those days ; and.
secondly, that volcanic eruptions occurred in this region. Oojein-
Ahar, in the valley of Oodipoor, and the lake of which is said in
'Some places to be d’tac, ' deeper than plummet sounded,’ is another
proof of some grand commotion of nature. Morwun boasts of three
mindras, or temples, one of which is dedicated to Schcshndg, the
thousand-headed hydra which supports the globe. Formerly, saffron
was the meet offering to this king of reptiles ; but ho is now obliged
to be content with ointment of sandal, produced from the evergreen,
which is indigenous to Mewar.

Having heard of an inscription of the township of TTnair, fivo
miles distant, to the south-west, I requested my old guru to take a
ride and copy it. It was of modern date, merely confirming the
lands of Unair to the Brahmins. The tablet is in the temple of
Chatoorbhooja (the four-armed divinity), built and endowed by Eana
Singram Sing in S. 1570 (A.D. 1514); to whose pious testament n
codicil is added by Rana Juggut Sing, S. 1791, imprecating an
anathema on the violator of it. There was also engraved upon one
of the columns a voluntary gift, from the village-council of Unnir to
the divinity, of the first-fruits of each harvest; viz., two and a-half
seers from each fadla, or beep, of the spring-crops, and the same of
the autumnal. The date, S. 1845 (A.D. 1789), shews that it was
intended to propitiate the deity during the wars of Mewar.

Directly opposite, and very near the shrine of the * four-armed,’ is
a small Jain temple, erected, in S. 1774, to cover an image of the
great pontiff, Parswanat’b, found in digging near the spot. Here at
every step are relics of past ages.

February 2. — An accident has compelled another halt at Morwun.
The morning was clear and frosty, not a cloud in the sky, and wo
rose with the sun ; my kinsmau, Captain Waugh, to try Ins Arab at
a nilgde, and myself to bag a few of the largo rock-pigeons which
are numerous about Morwun. My friend, after a hard run, had

* Iu the Sanscrit pullur, ‘ stone, rock,’ wc have nearly the pefree of tlio
Greeks.

566

PERSONAL NARRATIVE.

tCHAP. IH.

drawn blood from the elk, and was on the point of spearing him
effectually just as he attained a thick part- of the jungle, which not
heeding, horse and rider came in contact with a tree, and were
dashed with violence to, the ground. There he lay insensible, and
was brought home upon a charpae , or cot, by the villagers, much
bruised, but fortunately with no broken bones. A leech was not to
be had in any of the adjacent villages ; and the patient complain*
ing chiefly of the hip-bone, we could only apply emollients and
recommend repose. I returned with no game except one or two
hlack-partridges and batten-quail. The rock-pigeons, or bar-teehir,
though unaccustomed to the fowler, were too wild for me to get a
shot at them. The bird bears no analogy to the pigeon, but has all
the rich game plumage of the tcetur, or partridge, in which name
the ornithologist of the west will see the origin of tctrao. There are
two species of this bird in India, one much smaller than the common'
partridge ; that of which I speak is much larger, and with the
peculiarity of being feathered to the toe. I have since discovered it
to be the counterpart of a bird in the museum at Chambery, called
* barteveldt des Alpcs the ptarmigan of the highlands of Scotland.
■The male has exactly these redundant white feathei’s ; while that I
saw in Savoy was a richly-plumaged female bur-tectur. ■

Our annual supply of good things haying reached us this morning,
we were enjoying a bottle of some delicious Burgundy and ‘ La
Bose 5 after dinner, when we were roused by violent screams .in the
direction of the village. We were all up in an instant, and several
men directed to the spot. Our speculations on the cause were soon
set at rest by the appearance of two hircarras (messengers), and a
lad with a vessel of milk on his head. For this daily supply they
had gone several miles, and had nearly reached the camp, when
having outwalked the boy, they were alarmed by his vociferations,
“ oh uncle, let go— let go — I am your child, uncle, let me go !”
They thought the boy mad, and it being very dark, cursed his uncle,
and desired him to make haste ; but the same wild exclamations
continuing, they ran back, and found a' huge tiger hanging to
his tattered cold- weather doublet. The hircarras attacked the beast
most manfully with their javelin-headed sticks, and adding their
screams to his, sood brought the whole village men, women, and
children, armed with all sorts of missiles, to the rescue ; and it was
their discordant yells that made us exchange our good fare for the
jungles of Morwun . „

The ‘ lord of the black rock , 5 for such' is the designation of the
tiger, was one of the most ancient bourgeois of Morwun ; his free-
hold is Kalfi-p&har, between this and Mugurwar, and his reign for a
long series- of years has been unmolested, notwithstanding -his
numerous acts of aggression on his bovine subjects : indeed., only
two nights before, he was disturbed gorging on a buffalo belonging
to a poor oilman of Morwun. Whether this tiger was an incaroa-
. tion of one of the Mori lords of Morwun, tradition does not say ; -but

■CHAP. III.]

PERSONAL NAEBATIVE.

567

neither gun, bow, nor spear, had ever been raised against him. Irt
return for this forbearance, it is said he never preyed upon man, or
if he seized one, would, upon being entreated with the endearing
epithet of mamoo or uncle, let go his hold ; and this accounted for
the little ragged urchin using a phrase which almost prevented the
hircarras returning to his rescue.

February 3rd. — Another halt for our patient, who is doing well,
arid greatly relieved by the application of leeches obtained from'
Neembaira. What a night ! the clouds which had been alternately
collecting and dispersing ever since we left Marwar, in December
last, but had almost disappeared as we commenced our present
march, again suddenly gathered. The thermometer, which had
averaged 41° at daybreak throughout the last month, this morning
rose to '60°. On the 1st, the wind changed to the south, with
showers, where it continued throughout yesterday; but during the
night it suddenly veered to the north, and the thermometer at day-
break was 28°, or four degrees below the freezing point. Reader, do
you envy me my bon vin de Bourgogne et murailles de coton, with,
not even a wood fire, labouring under a severe pulmonary affection,
with work enough for five men ? Only three days ago, the thermo-
meter was 86° at noon, and to-day it is less at noon than yesterday
at daybreak : even old England, with all her vicissitudes of weather,
can scarcely show so fapid a change as this.

Ill-Mted Mdwar ! all our hopes are blasted; this second visitation
has frustrated all our labours. The frost of December, which sunk
the mercury to 27° as we passed over the plains of Marwar, was felt
throughout Rajwarra, and blighted every pod of cotton. All was
(C burnt up;” but our poor exiles comforted themselves, amidst the
general sorrow, with the recollection that the young gram was safe.
But even this last hope has now vanished : all is nipped in the bud.
Had it occurred a month ago, the young plant would have been
headed down with the sickle, and additional blossoms would have
appeared. I was too unwell to ride out and see the ravages caused
by this frost.

February 4th. — Our patient is doing so well, that we look to
moving to-morrow. Thermometer 28° at daybreak, and 81° at
sunrise, with a keen cutting wind from the north. Ice closed the
orifice of the meshek, 'or leathern water-bag. Even the shallow
stream near the tents had a pellicle of ice on its surface : our people
huddling and shivering round their fires of bajra sticks, and the
cattle bf all classes looking very melancholy.

My Yati friend returned from Palode, where I had sent him to
copy ah inscription in a temple dedicated to Mdmd-deva, the mother
of the gods ; but he was disappointed, and brought back only the
following traditional legend. The shrine, erected by a wealthy J ain
disciple, was destined to receive the image of one of their pontiff’s :
but on its completion, Mdmd-ddva appeared in propria persona to
the founder, and expressed so strongly her desire to inhabit it, that.

568

PERSONAL NARRATIVE.

[CHAP. III.

heretic as lie was, lie could not deny tbe goddess’ suit. He stoutly,
refused, however, to violate the rules of his order : fC by my hands
ee the blood neither of goats nor buffaloes can be shed,” said the Jain.
But, grateful for the permission that a niche should be set apart for
her suroop (form), she told him to go to the Sonigurra chief of
Cheetore, who would attend to the rites of sacrifice. The good Jain,
with easy faith, did as he was commanded, and erecting another
temple, succeeded at length in enshrining Parswanat’h. My old
friend, however, discovered in a temple to Mataji , 'the Universal
Mother,’ an inscription of great importance, as it fixes the period of
one of the most conspicuous kings of the Solanki dynasty of Nehr-
valla, or correctly, Anhulwarra Puttun ; and, in conjunction with
another of the same prince (which I afterwards discovered in
Cheetore), also bearing the very same date,* demonstrates that
the Solanki' had actually made a conquest of the capital of
the Gehlotes. The purport is simply that "Komarpal Solanki
<e and his son Sohunpal, in the month of Pos (tbe precise
"day illegible), S. 1207 (winter of A.D. 1151), came to worship the
“ Universal Mother in her shrine at Palode.’’t The Seesodias try to
get rid of this difficulty by saying, that during the banishment of
Komarpfll by Sidraj, he not only enjoyed sirna (refuge) at Cheetore,
but held the post of prime minister to llawul .Samarsi, the friend
and brother-in-law of the Chohan emperor of Dehli ; but the inscrip-
tion (given in the first volume), which I found in the temple built
by LakhaBana, is written in the style of a conqueror, fr who planted
" his standard even in Salpoor,” the city of the Getes in the Punjab.
At all events, it is one more datum in the history of Bajpootanai ,

February 5th, thermometer .30° . — Mounted Bajraj, ‘ The royal
steed,’ and took a ride over the heights of Morwun, a wild yet fairy,
scene, with the Pat’har or table-land bounding the perspective to the
east. The downs are covered with the most luxuriant grasses, and
the d’hdh or plus dried by the wintry blast, as if scorched by the
lightning, faintly brought to mind the poet’s simile, applied to this
tree, even in the midst of spring : “ the black leafless Icesoola .” We
entered a village in ruins, whose neem trees bid defiance to winter j
the ‘ thorny babool’ ( mimosa Arabica) grows luxuriantly out of the
inner sides of the walls, and no hand invades the airy nest of the
imitative papy a, fantastically pendant from the slenderest branches.
Ho trace of the presence of man ; but evidence that he has been
here. The ground was covered with hoar-frost, and the little stream
coated with ice. Many a heavy heart has it caused, and plunged
joyous industry into utter despondence. Take one example : yonder
Jut, sitting by the side of his field, which he eyes in despair three
months since, he returned, after many years of exile, to the bapota,
the land of his sires, without funds, without food, or even the imple-

* See Inscription, Yol. I, p. *707,

-tut tP 16 inscription is perfectly in unison with the inscriptions on

tbe temples and statues of Egypt. '

CHAP, in.]

PERSONAL NARRATIVE.

569

merits for obtaining it. He bad been labouring as a serf in other
lands, but be beard' of peace in bis own, and came back to the
paternal acres, -which bad been a stranger to the ploughshare since
be was driven from bis cot in S. 1844, immediately following the
battle of Hurkea-Khal, when the f Southron* completed the bondage
of Mewar. What could be do ? his well was dried up, and if not, he
bad no cattle to irrigate a field of wheat or barley. But Mewar is a
kind mother, and she yields her chunna crop without water. To
the lohora (the metayer ) be promised one-fifth of the produce for
the necessary seed and the use of a pair of oxen and a plough; one-
fifth more was the share of the state from land so long sterile ; there
were three-fifths left f6r himself of bis long neglected but at once
luxuriant fields. He watched the crop with paternal solicitude, from
the first appearance of verdure to the approach of bnssimt, the
joyous spring. Each night, as be returned to his yet roofless abode,
be related the wonders .of bis field and its rapid vegetation ; and as
be calculated the produce, be anticipated its application ; “ so muck
“ shall go for a plough, so much for the bohora, so much in part
“ payment of a pair of bullocks, and the rest will keep me in bread
“ till the muhhi crop is ready.” Thus the days passed, until this
killing frost nipped his hopes in the bud, and now see him wringing
bis bands in the bitterest anguish ! This is no ideal picture : it is
one to be found in every village of Mewar. In this favoured soil,
there is as much of chunna in the rubbee harvest as of wheat and
barley conjoined, and in the first crop sown in bunjur, or soil long
sterile, wheat and chunna are sown together. It is a sad blow to
the exiles; though happily in the crown-lands their distress will be
mitigated, as these are rented on leases of five years, and the renters
for their own sakes must be lenient, and moreover they are well
watched:

January 6th. — Still baiting; our patient very well, though he
feels his bruises : but we shall put him on an elephant to-morrow.
The jealousy of the Mahrattahad hitherto prevented ’the inhabitants
from fulfilling their desire to come and visit me; but to-day, the
elders forming the punchaet, beading the procession, they caine on
masse. The authorities need not have feared exposing the nakedness
of the land, which is too visible ; but they apprehended the contrast
of their condition with our poor subjects, who were at least unmo-
lested in their poverty. It was a happiness to learn that this contrast
was felt, 'and as the Pate'l presented to me an engaging little child,
bis daughter, he said, “let not our misfortunes be our faults; we all
“ belong to Mewar, though we are not so happy as to enjoy.your profec-
“ tion and -care.” I assured him, that although under the Toofk, I
should look upon them as myj children, and the subjects, of .the liana ;
and I have had.it in my power to redeem this pledge — for, strange
to say, even .Ameer Khan, seeing that the prosperity of the subject
is that of the prince, has commanded his governor of Neembaira'to
consult me in everything, and has even gone so far as to beg I
would considerlke place as under my authority. Already, following
[Von. II.] 172

570

PERSONAL NARRATIVE.

[CHAP. III.

our example, he has reduced the transit duties nearly -one-hair, and
begins to think the Fringi notions o£ economy better than his own,
his loss having proved a gain.

Nelcoomp, January 7 th, eleven miles. — Midway, passed through
Chakoorla, a village "belonging to Meer Khan. Nekoomp is a talooh
of Jawud, which with Mundipea was held by the Pindarri freebooter,
Fazil, while J'eswunt Row Bhao held them in jaedacl. They are now
leased to a Pundit by the Hakim of Jawud, which latter is assigned
by Sindia to his father-in-law, the Senapati. Nekoomp is a good
village, but more than two-thirds depopulated, and the renter is
prevented from being lenient, as he experiences no mercy himself.
Notwithstanding they have all been suffering as we have from
this frost, an assessment is now levying. One poor fellow said
to me, “I returned only three months ago from exile, and I
had raised the mud-walls of my hut two feet, when my wife
died, leaving me to take care of a boy eight years of age, and to get
bread for both. If the walls were two feet higher I would cover it
in • but though I have not a foot of land, my roofless half-finished
cot is assessed a rupee and a-half a gift of two rupees made him
'happier than his Hakim !

The country is beautiful, the soil rich, and water, as already
mentioned, about twenty-five feet from the surface. Wo are now
in the region of the flower sacred to cc gloomy Dis,” the accursed
poppy. The crop looks miserable from the frost, but those patches
within the influence of the wells are partly saved by the fields being
inundated, which expedient is always successful upon such visita-
tions, if applied with judgment. The mountains touching great
Sadi’i lay twelve miles south coming from Pertabgurh, and ranging
to Saloombra and Oodipoor, where they commingle with the giant
Aravulli.

Hurlah , January 8th : seven miles. — Crossed two ridges running
northward to Bhadaisir. The intervening vallies, as usual, fertile,
with numerous villages, but alienated to the southern Goths or the
partizan Pat’han. Passed many large townships, formerly iu the
fisc of Mewar, as Baree, Binotah, Bumboree, &c. In the distance, saw
“ the umbrella of the earth,’* tbe far-famed Cheetore. Murlah is an
excellent township, inhabited by a community of Char uil s, of the
tribe Cucholeah, who are Bunjarris (earners) by profession, though
poets by birth. The alliance is a curious one, and would appear
incongruous, were not gain the object generally in both cases. It
was the sanctity of their office which converted our hardais into
bunjarris, for their persons being sacred, the immunity extended
likewise to their goods, and saved them from all imposts ; so that in
process of time they became the free-traders of Rajpootana, I was
■highly gratified with the reception I received from the community,
which collectively advanced to me at some distance from the town,
lhe procession was headed by the village-band, and all the fair
arums, who, as they approached, gracefully waved their scarfs

CHAP. III.]

PERSONAL NARRATIVE.

571

over me, until I was fairly made captive by the muses of Murlali !
It was a novel and interesting scene : tbe manly persons of the
Charuns, clad in tbe flowing white robe, with tbe bigb loose folded
turban inclined on one side, from wbicb the mala, or chaplet, was
gracefully suspended ■ the naiques , or leaders, with their massive
necklaces of gold, with the image of the pitriswur (manes) depend-
ing therefrom, gave the whole an air of opulence and dignity. The
females were uniformly attired in a skirt of dark brown camlet,
having a boddice of light-coloured stuff, with gold ornaments worked
into their fine black hair ; and all had the favourite ehooris , or rings
of hdti-ddnt (elephant’s tooth), covering the arm from the wrist to
the elbow, and even above it. Never was there a nobler subject for
the painter in any age or country; it was one which Salvator Rosa
would have seized, full of picturesque contrasts : the rich dark tints
of the female attire harmonizing with the white garments of their
husbands ; but.it was the mien, the expression, the gestures, denot-
ing that though they paid homage they expected a full measui-e in
return. And they had it : for if ever there was a group which
bespoke respect for the natural dignity of man and his consort, it
was the Charun community of Murlah.

It was not until the afternoon, when the naiques again came to
see me at my camp, that I learned the full value of my escape from
the silken bonds of the fair Oharunis. This community had enjoyed
for five hundred years the privilege of making prisoner any Rana
of Mdwar who may pass through Murlah, and keeping him in
bondage until he gives them a gate, or entertainment : and their
chains are neither galling, nor the period of captivity, being thus in
the hands of the captivated, very long. The patriarch told me that
I was in jeopardy, as the Rana’s representative ; but not knowing
how I might have relished the joke, had it been carried to its con-
clusion, they let me escape, though they lost a feast by it. But I told
them I was too much delighted with old customs not to keep up this ;
and immediately sent money to the ladies with my respects, and a
request that they would hold their gate (feast). The patriarch and
his subordinate naiques and their sons remained with me to discourse
on the olden time. ,

The founders of this little colony accompanied RanaHamir from
Gruzzerat in the early part of his reign, and although five centuries
have elapsed, they have not parted with one iota of their nationality
or their privileges since that period : neither in person, manners, nor
dress, have they anything analogous to -those amidst whom they
dwell. Indeed, their air is altogether foreign to India, and although
they have attained a place, and that a high one, amongst the tribes
of Hind, their affinity to the ancient Persian is striking ; the loose
rope, high turban, and flowing beard, being more akin to the figures
on the temples of the Guebres than to anything appertaining to
the Gharburrun, or four classes of the Hindus. But I must give
the tale accounting for their settlement in Mewar. Rana Hamby so
[Vor. II.] ' 72 a

572

PERSONAL NARRATIVE.

[CHAP. III.

celebrated in tbe history of Mewar, had a leprous spot on his hand,
to remove which he made a pilgrimage to the shrine of Hinglaz, upon
the coast of Mekran, the division Oritce of Arrian’s geography. He had
reached the frontiers of CutchBhooj, when' alighting near a tanda,
or encampment of Oharuns, a young damsel abandoned the meal she
was preparing, and stepped forward to hold the stranger’s steed.
Thanking her for her courtesy, he jocosely observed that he wished
his people had as good a breakfast as she was preparing, when she
immediately made an offering of the contents of the vessel] on
which Hamir observed, it would go but a short way to satisfy so
many hungry mouths. “ Not if it pleased Hinglaz.ji,” she promptly
replied ; aud placing the food before the Rana and his train, it
sufficed for all their wants. A little well, which she excavated in
the sand, was soou filled with a copious supply of water, which served
to quench their thirst. It was an evident interposition of the god-
dess of Hiuglaz in favour of this her royal votary. He returned
from- her shrine cured, and the young Charuni’s family were induced
to accompany him to Mewar, where he bestowed upon them the
lands of Murlah, with especial immunities in their mercantile
capacity : and as a perpetual remembrance of the miraculous feast,
permission was granted to the Charuni damsels to make captive of
their sovereign as related above.

The colony, which now consists of some thousands of both sexes,
presented" an enigma to our young Englishmen, who think
“ all black fellows alike, ’’and equally beneath notice: it was x-emarked
how comfortable they looked in house and pei-son, though there was
not a vestige of cultivation around their habitations. The military
policy of the troubled period accounts for the first ; and a visit to
the altars of Murlah will furnish the cause of the neglect of the
agi’arian laws of Mewar. As the community increased in numbers,
the subdivision of the lands continued, according to the customs of
Cutch, until a dispute regarding limits produced a civil war. A
ferocious combat ensued, when the wives of the combatants who
were slain ascended the funeral pile ; and to prevent a similar catas-
trophe, imprecated a curse on whomever from that day should
cultivate a field in Murlah ; since which the land has lain in absolute
sterility ! Such is the implicit reverence for the injunction of a
sati, at this moment of awful inspiration, when about to take leave
of the world. In M^war, the most solemn of all oaths is that of the
sati. M aha sati’an-cci-dn, ! by the great satis/ is an adjuration

fi'equently used in the royal patents.

\

The tanda or caravan, consisting of foui’ thousand bullocks, has
been kept up amidst all the evils which have beset this land, through
Mogul and Hahratta tyranny. The.' utility of these caravans, as
general carriers to conflicting armies, and as regular tax-paying
subjects, has proved their safe-guard, "and they were too strong to
be pillaged by any petty marauder, as any one who has seen a
ijunjam encampment will be convinced. They encamp in a square ;

±‘48 \

CHAP. III.] PERSONAL NARRATIVE. 573

their grain-bags piled over each other breast-high, with interstices
. left for their matchlocks, make no contemptible fortification. Even
.the ruthless Toork, Jemshid Khan, set up a protecting tablet in
favour of the Oharuns of Murlab, recording their exemption from
dind contributions, and that there should be no increase in duties,
with threats to all who should injure the community. As usual, the
sun and moon are appealed to as witnesses of good faith, and
sculptured on the stone. Even the forester Bhil and mountain Mair
. have set up their signs of immunity and protection to the chosen of
Hinglaz ; and the figures of a cow and its Icairie (calf), carved in.
rude relief, speak the agreement that they should not be slain or
stolen within the limits of Murlah.

Neembaira : seven miles. — The soil, as usual, excellent ; but
from Ranikhaira to Neembaira the blue schist at intervals penetrates
the surface, and there is but little superincumbent soil even to the
bed of the stream, which makes an entire disclosure of the rock,
over which flows a clear rivulet abounding with small fish, amongst
which the speckled trout were visible. Ranikhaira, through which
we passed, is the largest township of this district, and was built by
the Rani, of Ursi Rana, mother of the present ruler of Mewar, at
whose expense the temple, the bawari or f reservoir,’ and the paved
( street, were constructed. Although in the alienated territory, I had
a visit from its elders to complain of an indignity to the community
by the bungi, or scavenger, of Laisrawun, who had killed a hog and
thrown it into the reservoir, whose polluted waters being. thus
rendered unfit for use, the inhabitants were compelled to get a purer
element from the adjacent villages. This baivari is about half a mile
from the town, and being upon the high-way, the council and train
very wisely stopped at the spot where the aggression had happened :
and although the cavalcade of the Hakim of JSTeembaira was in sight,
advancing to welcome me, it wasimpossible to proceed until I heard
the whole grievance, when adjured by “ subjects of Mewar, and
“ children of the Rana, though unhappily under the- Toork” to see
their wrongs redressed. I might not have recorded this incident, but
for its consequence ; as the hog thrown into the reservoir of Bdeji-
Bdj, e the royal mother’ of Mewar, affords an instance of the extent
to which mortgage is carried.

The Buhingis, or scavengers, of Ranikhaira, the very refuse of
mankind, had mortgaged their rights in the dead carcases of their
] toVrn to a professional brother of Laisrawun ; but, on the

t Return of these halcyon days, they swerved from their bond,

tllhe chieftain of Laisrawun espoused his vassal’s cause, and probably
pointed out the mode of revenge. One morning, therefore, not having
-j the fear of Jemshid of Neembaira before his eyes, the said mortgagee

J slew his pig; and, albeit but the wreck of n human being, contrived

j to cast his victim into the pure fountain of f Queenstown,’ and

! immediately fled for sirna to Bheendir. But what could be done to'

a wretch, who for former misdeeds had already suffered the dismem-

574

PERSONAL NARRATIVE.

[CHAP. lit.

berment of an arm, a leg, and Lis nose ? Here is the sentence ! f ‘ To
“ he paraded, mounted on an ass, his face blackened, with a chaplet
<( of shoes round his neck, and drummed out of the limits of Rani-
“ khaiva !” The fountain is now undergoing purification • and when
the polluted waters are baled out, it is to be lustrated with the holy
stream of the Ganges, and the ceremony will conclude with a gote ,
or feast, to one hundred Brahmins. Previous to this, I took a peep
at the humble altars of Ranikhaira. All is modern ; but there is
one tablet which pleasingly demonstrates that both public feeling
and public gratitude exist in these regions. This tablet, set up by
the council of the town, recorded that Kistna, the ‘ silpi } or stone-
cutter, did at his own expense and labour repair all the altars then
going to decay; for which pious act they guaranteed to him and his
successors for ever six thdlts or platters of various viands, saffron,
oil, butter, and several pieces of money, at every village fete. Doubt-
less such traits are not confined to Ranikhaira. I accepted with
kindness the offerings of the elders and assembled groupes — a pot of
curds and sundry blessimgs — and continued my journey to meet the
impatient cavaliers of Neembaira, who, to fill up the interlude, were
1,-aroivUng, with matchlock and spear, their well-caparisoned
chargers. The Khan was in the centre of the groupe, and we had a
friendly, unceremonious dustabazee, or shaking of hands, without
dismounting. He is a gentlemanly PaPhan, of middleage, courteous
and affable, and a very different personage from the two-lianded
Jemshid his predecessor, who lately died from a cancer in his back :
a judgment, if we are to credit our Mewar friends, for his horrible
cruelties and oppressions over all these regions, as lieutenant of
Ameer Khan during many years. The Khan welcomed me to
Neembaira with true Oriental politessc, saying, fC that the place was
t! mine ;’’ and that he had received the ” positive instructions of the
“ Nawab Sahib (Ameer Khan, whose son-in-law he is) to look upon
“ me as himself:.” I replied, that, in accepting such a trust, I could
not say more than that I would, whenever occasion presented itself,
act for him as if Neembaira were really my own. The Khan had
reason to find that his confidence was not misplaced ; and while
enabled to benefit him, I had also the opportunity of protecting the
interests of the feudatories, who by this alienation (as is fully related
in the Annals of Mewar) were placed beyond the pale of the Rana's
power.. The Khan, after accompanying me to my tents, took leave ;
but paid me a long visit in the evening, when we discussed all that
concerned the welfare of his charge and the peace of the borders. As
matters stand, it is a duty to concilitate and to promote prosperity;’
but it is melancholy to see this fertile appanage of Mdwar in the
hand of so consummate a villain as Meer Khan ; a traitor to his
master Holcar, for which he obtained the ‘ sovereignty in perpetuity 1
of many rich tracts both in Mewar and Amber, without renderin'*
the smallest service in return. Let this be borne in mind when
another day of reckoning comes. Heembaira is a considerable town,
witii an excellent stone circumvallation ; and, being on the high road

CHAP. IV.]

PERSONAL NARRATIVE.

583

sugar-cane, and other products, which would onrich instead o£ demo-
ralizing, and therefore impoverishing, the country. We have saved *
Itajpootana from political ruin ; but the boon of more existence will
be valueless if we fail to restore the moral energies of her popula-
tion; for of this due region and noblo race we might say, as Byron
does of Greece —

‘‘ ’Tts Greece — but living Greece no more !”
for the mind is docayed, and the body often palsied and worn out,
in the very meridian of life. As far as my personal influence went,

I practised what I preach ; and, as I havo already stated, exacted a -
promise, from tho liana on the throne to the lowest T’hakoor, that
they would never initiate their children in this debasing practice.
Burns mere declamation can do very little good, I will here insert a
portion of the Agrarian customary code of Mowar and Malwa, which
may be brought into operation directly or indirectly. The distribu-
tion of crops was as follows :

To each churrw *, ehnrsa, or skin of land, there is attached twenty-
five beegas of irrigated land, for wheat and barley, with from thirty
to fifty beegas more, called mar, or vial, dependent on the heavens
for water, and generally sown with gram. Of tho twenty-five beegas
of land irrigated from the well, tho legislature sanctioned one beega.
of opium, and ten to fifteen bisreas (twenty biswas are a beega) of
sugai'-cane. But in these days of anarchy and confusion, when every
one follows his own view of things, they cultivate two of opium
and three of cane, and perhaps two of barley , instead of twenty-five,
to feed the family ! What an unnatural state of agricultural economy
is this, when the cultivator sometimes actually purchases food for
his family, in order that he may bestow his time and labour on this
enervating exotic ! But should the foreign markets be closed, and
famine, as is not unusual, ensue, what must be the consequence,
where the finestcorn-country in Indiais converted to a poppy-garden !

In Haronti, they manage these things better ; and although its old
politic ruler makes use of the districts in Malwa, which he rents
from the Mahrattas, for the culture of opium, being himself a trader
in it, yet I do not believe bo permits its demoralizing influence to
ontoi'-within his proper domain. It is pleasing to see some traces of '
tho legislative wisdom of past days, and old Zalim knows that it is
by tho more generous productions of tho plough that his country
must prosper. But our monopoly acted as an encouragement of this
vice; for no sooner was it promulgated that the Oompani Saheb
was contractor-general for opium, than prince and peasant, nay, tho
very scavengers, dabbled in the speculation. All Malwa was thrown
into a ferment ; like the Dutch tulip-bubble, the most fraudulent
purchases and transfers were effected by men who had not a seer of
opium in their possession. The extent to which this must have gone
may be imagined when, according to the return, the sales, in the first
year of our monopoly, exceeded one million sterling, in which I
rather think we gained a loss of some £40,000 ! It is to be hoped

584

PERSONAL NARRATIVE.

[CHAP. V.

ilie subject is now better understood, and that the Legislature at
borne will perceive tbat a perseverance in tbis pernicious traffic is
consistent neither with our honour, our interest, nor with humanitjv
I£ the facts I have collected are confirmed on enquiry, the late
measures of Government,* in whatever motives originating, will only
augment the mischief. Even admitting their expediency in protect-
ing our Patna monopoly, and their justice as affecting the native
governments (the contractors and cultivators of the drug), still other
measures might have been devised, equally efficacious in themselves
and less pregnant with evil consequences. •

\

«

CHAPTER V.

Dhareswar. — lluttungurh Kheyri . — Colony of Charuns. — Little Atioa. — Inscrip-
tion at Paraffin'll. — Doongur Sing. — Sco Sing. — Lav) of adoption. — Kola
Mcg'li.- — Omedpoora and its chief. — Singolli. — Temple of Bhaivanz. — Tablet of
liana Mohul. — Traditionary tales of the Haras. — Aloo Hard of Bum&.oda . —
Dangermoiu. — Singular effects produced by the sun on the atmosphere of the
Pat’har. • (

Dhareswar, January 14th, six miles ; therm. 46° at 5 a.m. — Erom
K une roh to Dhareswar there is a gradual descent, perhaps equal to
one-third of the angle of ascent of the table-land. For half the
distance the surface is a fine rich soil, but the last half is strewed
with fragments of the rock. Dhareswar is beautifully situated at
the lowest point of descent, with a clear stream, planted with fine
timber to the south. The Bliomia rights are enjoyed by some Cutch-
waha Rajpoots, who pay a share of the crops to Kuneroh. Passed
a few small hamlets in the grey of the morning, and several herd of
elk-deer, who walked away from ns with great deliberation ; but the
surface was too stony to try onr horses’ mettle.

15th, Huitungurh Kheyri, distance nine miles. — The road over a
bare rock, skirting a stream flowing on its surface. Two miles from
Dhareswar is the boundary of Kuneroh, and the chourdsi (eighty-four
townships) of Kheyri ; the descent still graduating to Kheyri, which
is probably not above one hundred feet higher than the external plains
of Mewar. The road was over loose stones with much jungle, hut
here and there some fine patches of rich black soil. We kept
company with the Dhareswar nulla all the way, which is well-
wooded in its course, and presented a pretty fall at one point of our
journey. Passed several hamlets, and a colony of Charuns, whom I
found to he some of my friends of Murlab. They had not forgotten
their privilege ; but as the ladies were only the matrons of >tbe
colony, there would have been no amusement in captivity ; so I
dropped five rupees into the brazen Itullas, and passed on; The

) Ib lRoo° ' Je borno Tnim b fc bafc this was written on the spot, in January,

A.D. 1820.

PERSONAL NARRATIVE.

575

/

CHAP. IV.]

between Malwa and Hindust’han, it enjoys a good share of traffic.
Upwards of one hundred villages are attached to it, and it was
estimated at three lacs of rupees, of annual rent.

*

CHAPTER IV.

The Pat'har or Table-land of Central India . — View from thence. — Project of <x
canal. — Its advantages to Meivar. — Utility of further works to the people.
— Traces of superstition 'in the Pat’har. — Temple of Soolchdeo. — The Dyte-
ca-har, or ' Giant’s bone.’ — The Vira-jhamp, or ‘ Warrior’s Leap.’ — Pro-
prietorship of the Pat’har. — Its products. — The poppy. — Pernicious effects of its
increased cultivation. — Account of the introduction and mode of culture of
* opium. — Original spot of its cultivation. — The manufacture of opium kept
pace ivith the depopulation of Meivar. — Process of cultivation, and of manu-
facture. — Its fluctuation of price. — Adulterated opium of Khantul . — Evil
consequences of the use of opium. — Duty of the paramount power to restrict
thq culture. — Practicability of such a measure. — Distribution of crops . —
Impolicy of the government in respect to the opium monopoly.

Kunairoh, February 13f7i., nine miles. — A new feature in the face
of Mdwar was this day disclosed to us. At the termination of our
short march, we ascended the Pat’har , or plateau of Central India,
the grand natural rampart defending Mdwar on the east. <As we
approached it, the level line of its crest, so distinct from the pinnacled
Aravulli, at once proclaimed it to be a table-land, or rock of the
secondaiy, formation. Although its elevation is not above four
hundred feet from its western base, the transition is remarkable,
and it presents from the summit one of the most diversified scenes,
whether in a moral, political, or picturesque point of view, that I
ever beheld. Prom this spot the mind’s eye embraces at once all the
grand theatres of the history of Mewar. Upon our right lays
Cheetove, the palladium of Hinduism; on the west, the gigantic
Aravulli, enclosing the new capital, and the shelter of her heroes ;
here, at our feet, or within view, all the alienated lands now under
the ‘barbarian Toork’ or Mahratta, as Jawud, Jeerun, Neemucb,
Neembaira, Kheyri, Ruttengurh. What associations, what aspira-
tions, does this scene conjure up to one who feels as a Rajpoot for
this fair land ! The rich flat we have passed over — a space of nearly
- seventy English miles from one table-range to the other— appears as
a deep basin, fertilized by numerous streams, fed by huge reservoirs
in the mountains, and studded with towns, which once were populous,
but are for the most part now in ruins, though the germ of incipient
prosperity is just appearing. Prom this height I condensed all my
speculative ideas on a very favourite subject — the ^formation of a
canal .to unite the ancient and modern capitals of Mewar, by which,
her soil might bo made to return a ten-fold harvest, and famine be

576

rERSONAIi NARRATIVE.

[CHAP. 1Y.

sltufc out for ever from her gates. My eye embraced tbe whole line
of tbe Bairis, from its outlet at the Godisdgur, to its passage within
a mile of Cheetore, and the benefit likely to accrue from such a work
appeared incalculable. What new ideas would be opened to the
Rajpoot, on seeing the trains of oxen, which now creep slowly along
with merchandize for the capital, exchanged for boats gliding along
the canal ; and his fields, for many miles on each side, irrigated by
lateral cuts, instead of the cranking Egyptian wheel, as it is called,
"but which is indigenous to India ! If the reader will turn to the map,
he will perceive the great facilities for such an undertaking. Ho
will there see two grand reservoirs within six miles of each other,
the Peshola, or internal lake, having an elevation of eighty feet above
the external one, the Oodisagur, whose outlet forms the Bairis river;
hut for which the valley of the capital would be one wide lake, and
which, for want of proper regulation, once actually submerged a
third of it. The Pdshola may be called the parent of the other,
although it is partly fed by the minor lake at the villa of Suhailea-
ca-bari. Both are from twelve to fourteen miles in circumference, in
some places thirty-five feet deep, and being fed by the perennial
streams from the Aravulli, they contain a constant supply of water.
Prom the external lake to Cheetore, the fall is so slight that few
locks would be required ; and the soil being a yielding one through-
out, the expense of the undertaking would be moderate. There is
plenty of material in the neighbouring hills and forests, and by
furnishing occupation for the wild population, the work would tend
not a little to reclaim them. But where are the means ? With this
difficulty, and the severe blow to our incipient prosperity in this
untimely frost, our schemes dissipate like the mist of the morning.
But I cannot relinquish the conviction that the undertaking, if
executed, would not only enable the Pan a to pay his tribute, but to
be more merciful to his subjects, for whose welfare it is our chief
duty to labour.*

The summit of the Pat’har has a fertile soil, welf- watered and well-
wooded, and producing the mango, mhowa, and neem ; and where the
appearance of the crops a criterion, we should say it was equal in
fertility to the best part of Mdwar. In anoient inscriptions, the
term Oopermdl is applied, as well as Pat’har , to this markedfeature
in the geological structure of Central India : the first being rendered
exactly by the German oberland ; the other signifying ( flat/ tor
'table-land. ° ”

In tbe indented recesses of this elevated land, which covers an
immense portion of. Central India, there are numei'ous spots of
romantic beauty, which enthusiasm has not failed to identify with
religious associations. Wherever there is a deep glen, a natural

this from my journal, I would almost (when
xal T l fims . hed ) risk .' a c °uple ot years’ residence in’* the happy
another^avourifRwn ^ ®vct en]°yed one day of i health, to execute this and
favourite project— the re-opemng of the tin-mmes of Jawura.

CHAP. IV.]

PERSONAL NARRATIVE.

577

fountain, or a cascade, the traveller will infallibly discover some
traces of the ‘ Great God 5 (Mahadeva)o£ the Hindus, the creator.and
destroyer of life.

By the stupidity of my guide, and the absence of the indefatigable
Balgovind, my Brahmin antiquarian pioneer, I lost the opportunity
of seeing the shrine of Sookhdeo, situated in a dark cleft of the
rock, not two miles from the pass where I ascended. In excuse, he
said he thought, as my camp was near, that it would be easy to
descend to the shrine of the ‘ease-giving 5 god, Sookhdeo (from soolch,
‘ ease 5 ) ; but revocare gradum was an evil which, added to the
necessity of extracting all the information I conld from some of the
opium-growers in attendance, deterred me. The abode of Sookhdeo
is in a deep recess, well- wooded, with a cascade bursting from the
rock near its summit, under a ledge of which the symbolic represent-
ative is enshrined. Around it are several gop’has or caves of the
anchorite devotees : but the most conspicuous object is a projecting
ledge, named Dyte-ca-hdr , or ‘ Giant 5 s-bone, 5 on which those who ate
in search of c ease 5 jump from above. This is called the Viraj’hamp,
or ‘ warrior 5 s-leap/ and is made in fulfilment of vows either
for temporal or future good. Although most of the leapers
perish, some instances of escape are recorded. The love of
offspring is said to be the principal motive to this pious act of
saltation ; and I was very gravely told of one poor woman, whose
philoprogenitive bump was so great, that she vowed to take the leap
herself with her issue ; and such, says the legend, was her faith, that
both escaped. A taili, or oilman, was the last jumper of Sookhdeo,
and he was no less fortunate; to him the ‘ giant 5 s-bone 5 was a bed
of roses. So much for the faith of the oilman of Jawud ! There
are. many such Leucotheas in this region of romance : that at Oonkar,
on the Nerbudda, and the sacred mount Girnar, are the most
celebrated.

Until the last sixty years, the whole of the plateau, as far as thd
Chumbul, belonged to Mewar; but all, with the exception of
Kuneroh, are now in the hands of Sindia. Kundroh is the chief
township of a small district of twenty-two villages, which, by the
change of events, has'fortunately reverted to the Bana, although it
was not extricated from the grasp of the Mahrattas without some
difficulty; it was taken first, and the right of repossession argued
afterwards. Would we had tried the same process with all the rest
of the plateau ; but unhappily they were rented to old Lalaji Belial,
a lover of order, and an alley of old Zalim Sing ! But let me repeat,
for the tenth time, that all these lands are only held by Sindia on
mortgage for war-contributions, paid over and over again : and when
an opportunity occurs, let this be a record, and the Pat’har west of
the Chumbul be restored to hid war.

' I was delighted to see that the crops of Kuneroh had only partially
suffered from the ravages of the frost of the 3d, 4th, to 25th, which
extended over Malwa, and that although the gram was destroyed,
[Yon. II.] 73

580

PERSONAL NARRATIVE.

[CHAP. IV,

famine, augmented their virulence, and depopulated Rajpootana, so
did the culture of this baueful weed appear to thrive. The predatory
system, which succeeded Mogul despotism, soou devastated this fair
region, and gradually restricted agricultural pursuits to the richer
harvests of barley, wheat, and gram ; till at length even these were
confined to a bare sustenance for the families of the cultivator, who
then found a substitute in the poppy. From the small extent of its
culture, he was able to watch it, or to pay for its protection from,
pillage ; this he could not do for his corn, which a troop of horse
might save him the trouble of cutting. A lcind of moral barometer
might, indeed, be constructed, to shew that the maximum of oppres-
sion in Mewar, was the maximum of the culture of the poppy in
Mahwa. Emigration commenced- in S. 1840 (A.D. 1784); it was at
its height in S. 1856 (A.D. 1800), and went on gradually depopulat-
ing that country until S. 1874 (A.D. 1818). Its consumption, of
course, kept pace with its production, it having found a vent in
foreign markets.

The districts to which the emigrants fled were those of Mundisore,
Kachrode, Oneil, and others, situated on the feeders of the Ohumbul,
in its course through Lower Malwa. There they enjoyed com-
parative protection and kind treatment, under Appa Saheb and his
father, who were long the farmers-general of these fertile lauds. It
could not be .expe'cted, however, that the nefv settlers should be
allowed to participate in the lands irrigated by wells already
excavated ; but Appa advanced funds, and appointed them lands,
all fertile though neglected, in which they excavated wells for them-
selves. They abandoned altogether wheat and barley, growing only
mulchi or ‘ Indian corn/ for food, which requires no irrigation, and
to which the poppy succeeds in rotation; to these, and the sugar-
can e, all their industry was directed.

But to proceed with the process of cultivation. When the crops
of Indian corn (■ mulchi ) or of hemp (sunn) are gathered in, the stalks
are rooted up and burned ; the field is then flooded, and, when
sufficiently saturated, ploughed up. It is then copiously manured with
cow-dung, which is deemed the best for the purpose ; but even this
has undergone a preparatory operation, or chemical decomposition,
being kept in a hollow ground during the rainy season, and often
agitated with long poles, to allow the heat to evaporate. In this
state it is spread over the fields and ploughed in. Those who do
not keep kine, and cannot afford to purchase manure, procure flocks
of goats and sheep, and pay so much a night for having them penned
in the fields. The laud being ploughed and harrowed at least six or
seven times, until the soil is almost pulverized, it is divided into
beds, and slight embankments are formed to facilitate irrigation.
The seed is then thrown in, the fields are again inundated ; and the
seventh day following this is repeated to saturation. On the seventh
or ninth , but occasionally not until the eleventh day, the plant springs
up ; and on the twenty-fifth , when it has put forth a few leaves, and

CHAP. IV.]

PERSONAL NARRATIVE.

581

begins to look withered, -they water it once more. As soon as this
moisture dries, women and children are turned into the fields to
thin the plants, leaving them about eight inches asunder, and
loosening the earth around them with iron spuds. The plant is at
this stage about three inches high. A month later, it is watered
moderately, and when dry, the earth is again turned up and loosened.
The fifth water is given in about ten days more ; two days after
which, a flower appears here and tlieie. This is the signal for
another watering, called ‘the flower- watering ; 5 after which, in
twenty-four or thirty-six hours, all the flowers burst their cells.
When about half the petals have fallen, they irrigate the plants
sufficiently to moisten the earth, and soon the rest of the flowers
drop off, leaving the bare capsule, which rapidly increases in bulk.
In a short period, when scarcely a flower remains, a whitish powder
collects outside the capsule, which is the signal for immediate applica-
tion of the lancet.

The field is now divided into three parts, in one of which operations
commence. The cutting-instrument consists of three prongs, with
delicate points, arouud which cotton tlwead is bound to prevent its
making too deep an incision, aud thus causing the liquid to flow into
the interior of the capsule The wound is made from the base
upwards, and the milky juice which exudes coagulates outside.
Each .plant is thrice pierced, on three successive days, the operation
commencing as soon as the sun begins to warm. In cold mornings,
when it congeals rapidly, the coagulation is taken off with a scraper.
The fourth morning, each plant is once more pierced, to ascertain
that no juice remains. On each morning this extract is immersed in
a vessel of linseed oil, to prevent it from drying up. The juice being-
all collected, there remains only the seed. The capsules are there-
fore broken off and carried to the barn, where they are spread out
upon the ground; a little water is sprinkled over them, and being
covered with a cloth, they remain till the morning, when the cattle
tread out the seed, which is sent to the oilmen, and the refuse is
burnt, lest the cattle should eat them, as even in this stage the}- are
poisonous. Poppy oil is more used for the clierag’h (lamp) than any
other in Mewar. They calculate a rnaund (of forty seers,' or about
seventy-five pounds weight) of seed for every two seers of milk.
The price of seed is now twenty rupees per mani of one hundred
and twelve ( cutcha ) maunds.

One becga of Malwa laud, of the measure Shahjeh&m (when the
jureebj or rod, is one hundred cubits long) will yield from five to
fifteen seers of opium-juice, each seer being forty-five salimshahi
rupees in weight : the medium is reckoned a good produce. The
cultivator or farmer sells it, in the state described, to the speculator,
at the price current of the day. The purchaser puts if into cotton
bags of three folds, and carries it home. Having obtained the leaves
of the poppy, he spreads them in a heap of two or three inches in
depth, and thereon deposits the opium, in balls of fifteen rupees’

582

PERSONAL NARRATIVE.

[CHAP. IV.

weight each, 'which are allowed to remain five months for the
purpose of evaporation. If. the milk has been thin, or treated with
oil, seven parts in ten will remain; but if good and pure, eight.
The beojparHs (speculators) then sell it, either for home-consumption
in Rajpootana, or for exportation.

From the year S. 1840 (A.D. 1784) to S. 1857 (A.D. 1801), the
market-price of the crude opium from the cultivator ran from
sixteen to twenty-one salimshahi rupees per- durri, a measure of
five pucka seers, each seer being the weight of ninety salimshahi
rupees. I give the price of the drug by the grower in the first' stage,
as a better criterion than that of the manufacturer in its prepared
state. In the year S. 1857, it rose to twenty-five rupees ; in S. 1860
to twenty-seven, gradually increasing till S. 1865 (A.D. 1809), when
it attained its maximum of forty-two, or an advance of one hundred
and seventy per cent, above the price of the year A.D. 1784. But
some natural causes are assigned for this extraordinai’y advance ;
after which it gradually fell, until S. 18/0 (A.D. 1804), when it was
so low as twenty-nine. In S. 1878 it had again risen to thirty-three,
and in S. 1784-5, when its transit to the ports of Sinde and Guzzerat
was unmolested (whence it was exported to China and the Archi-
pelago), it had reached thirty-eight and thirty-nine, where it now (S.
1876, or A.D. 1820) stands.

In Kanthul (which includes Pertabgurli Deola), or the tracts upon
the Myhie river, opium is cultivated to a great extent, and adul-
terated in an extraordinary manner. This being sold in China as
Malwa opium, has greatly lessened the value of the drug in that
market. The adulteration is managed as follows : a preparation of
refined goor (molasses) and gum, in equal proportion, is added to
half its quantity of opiate coagulum ; the mass is then put into
cauldrons, and after being well amalgamated by boiling, it is taken -
out, and when sufficiently dry is well beaten, and put into cotton
bags, which are sewn up in green hides, and exported to Muska-
Mundi. The Gosdns of these parts are the chief contractors for this
impure opium, which is reckoned peculiarly unwholesome, and is
never consumed in Rajpootana. Rumour says that it is transported
to the Spice Islands, where it is used as a manure in the cultivation
of the nutmeg. The transit-duties on opium, in the native states,
are levied on each bullock-load, so that the adulterated pays as
much as the pure. The Gosens smuggle great quantities.

Such is the history, and I believe a pretty correct one, of the
growth and extension of this execrable and demoralizing plant, for
the last forty years. If the now paramount power, instead of
making a monopoly of it, and consequently extending its cultivation,
would endeavour to restrict it by judicious legislative enactments,,
or at least reduce its culture to what it was forty years ago, genera-
tions yet unborn would have just reason to praise us for this work
of mercy. It is no less our interest than our duty to do so, and to
call forth genuine industry, for the improvement of cotton, indigo,'

i

CHAP. V.]

PERSONAL NARRATIVE.

585

cavalcade of the Komasdar of Kheyrf was also at hand, consisting of
about two hundred horse and foot, having left his castle on the peak
to greet and conduct me to my tent. He is a relation of old Lallaji
Belial, and intelligent and polite. Our tents were pitched near the
town, to which the Pundit conducted us • after which act of civility,
in the character of the locum, tenens of my friend Lallaji, and his
sovereign Sindia (in whose camp I sojourned twelve long years),
he took his leavej inviting me to the castle ; but as it contained
nothing antique, I would not give cause for jealousy to his prince
by accepting his invitation, and civilly declined.

The Cliour&si, or eighty-four [townships] of Ruttungurh. Kheyri,
was in S. 1828 (A.D. 1772) assigned to Madaji Sindia, to pay ofE a
war-contribution ; and until S. 1832, its revenues were regularly
accounted for. It was then made over to Berji Tap, the son-in-law
of Sindia, and has ever since remained alienated from Mdwar. The
treason of the chief of Beygoo, ono'of the sixteen nobles of the Pan a,
lost this jewel in his crown, for he seized upon the Cliour&si, which
adjoined his own estate, situated on the skirt of this alpine region.
To expel him the Raua called on Sindia, who not only took the
Chourdst, but Beygoo itself, which was heavily fined, and forty of
its best villages, or half his fief, were mortgaged to pay the mulct.
The landscape from these heights is very fine ; the Pundit, from his
aerial abode, can look down on Kheyn, and exclaim with Selkirk :

“ I am monarch of all I Burvey

but I would dispute his right with all my heart, if I could do so
with success.

Little Attoa . — Distance eight miles, thermometer at daybreak 40°
with a cutting wind, straight from the north, which we keenly felt
as our party ascended the heights of Ruttungurh. The altitude of
this second steppe in the plateau is under four hundred feet, although
the winding ascent made it by the perambulator five furlongs. The
’ fort is erected on a projection of the mountain, and the works are
in pretty good order. They had been adding fresh ones on the
accessible side, which the general state of security has put a stop to.
In fact, it could not hold out twenty-four hours against a couple of
mortars, the whole interior being commanded from a height within
easy range. I asked my old guide if the castle had ever stood a
storm ; his reply was in the negative ; “ she is still a Icomari
“ (a virgin), and all forts are termed Icomaris, until they stand an
“ assault/’’’ We had a superb view from the summit, which is
greatly above the level of Kuneroh, whose boundary line was
distinct: The stream from Dhareswar was traced gliding through
its embankments of black rock, covered with luxuriant young crops,
and studded with maugo and mowali trees. It is a singular fact,
that the higher we ascended, the less mischief had been inflicted on
the crops, although the sugar-cane looked prematurely ripe. The
wheat fields were luxuriant, but the barley shewed in their grizzly
beards here and there an evidence of having suffered. I also noted
[Yo&. II.] 74

586

PERSONAL NARRATIVE.

[CHAP. V.

that invariably all the low branches of the mowah trees wereinjured,
the leaves shrivelled and dried up, while the superior ones were not
affected. The field-peas ( butloe ) sown with the barley were more
or less injured, but not nearly so much as at Kuueroh.

The road was execrable, if road it could be termed, Which for
many miles was formed for me by the kindness of the Pundit, who
cut a path through the otherwise impenetrable jungle, the abode of
elks and tigers, sufficient to pass my baggage. This route is never
passed by troops ; but I had curiosity to indulge, not comfort.
About four miles from the castle, we ascended another moderate
elevation to the village of Oomur, whence we saw Paragurh on the
left, and learning that it contained an inscription, I despatched one
of my Pundits to copy it. A mile further brought us to the
extremity of the ridge serving as a land-mark to the Qhourdsi of
Kheyri. From it we viewed another steppe, that we shall ascend
the day after to-morrow, from which I am told the Pat’har gradually
shelves to the banks of the Ohumbul, the termination of ouivjonraey.
As we passed the village of Omddpoora ( Hopetoivn ), a sub-infeuda-
tion of Beygoo, held by the uncle of its chief, we were greeted by
the T’hakoor, accompanied by two of his kinsmen. They were all
well-mounted, lance in hand, and attired in their quilted tunics and
deer-skin doublet, of itself no contemptible armour. They conveyed
their chief’s compliments, and having accompanied me to my tents,
took leave.

Ghoota, or little Attoa, is also held by a sub-vassal of the same
clan, the Meghawuts of Beygoo ; his name Doongur Sing, f the
mountain lion, now with me, and who long enjoyed the pre-eminent
distinction of being chief riever of the Pat’hav. With our party
he has the familiar appellation of Roderic Dhu, and without
boasting of his past exploits, he never dreams of their being coupled
with dishonour. Although he scoured the country far and near to
bring black-mail to his mountain -retreat, it was from the Mahrattas
chiefly that his wants were supplied ; and he required but the power,
to have attained the same measure of celebrity as his ancestor the
‘ Black-cloud' (Kala Meg’h) of Beygoo. Still, his name was long the
bugbear of this region, and the words Doongur Sing dyd ! ‘ the
mountain lion is at hand P were sufficient to scare the peaceful
occupants of the surrounding country from their property, or to arm
them for its defence. With the 'Southron’ he had just cause of
quarrel, since, but for him, he would have been lord of Nuddowae
and its twenty-four villages, of which his grandfather was despoiled
at the same time that this alpine region was wrested by Sindia from
his sovereign. This tup>pco, however, fell to Holcar ; but the father
of Doongur, lance in hand, gave the conqueror no rest, until he
granted him a lease in perpetuity of four of the villages of his
patrimony, two of which were under Holcar’s own seal, and two
under that of the renter. About twenty years ago, the latter having
een resumed, Seo Sing took up his lance again, and initiated the

PERSONAL NARRATIVE.

587 "

CHAP. V.]

mountain-lion , his son, in the lex talionis. He flung away the
scabbard, sent his family for security to the Baja of Shapoora, and
gave his mind up to vengeance. The father and son, and many
other brave spirits with the same cause of revenge, carried their
incursions into the very heart of Malwa, bringing back the spoils to
his den at little Attoa. But though his hand was now raised against
"every man, he forgot not his peculiar feud (her), and his patrimony of
Nuddowad yielded little to the Mahratta. But Seo Sing was
surrounded by foes, who leagued to circumvent him, and one day,
while driving many a goodly buffalo to his shelter, he was suddenly
beset by a body of horse placed in ambush by the Bhow. But both
were superbly mounted, and they led them a chase through Mandel-
gurh, and were within the very verge of security, when, as Seo Sing
put his mare to the nulla , she played him false and fell, and ere she
recovered herself the long lance of the Mahratta was through the
rider. Young- Doongurwas more fortunate, and defying his pursuers
to clear the rivulet, bound up the body of his father in his scarf,
ascended the familiar path, and burnt it at midnight, amongst the
family altars of Nuddowae. But far from destroying, this only
increased the appetite for vengeance, which has lasted till these
days of peace ; and, had every chieftain of Mdwar acted like
Doongur, the Mahratta would have had fewer of their fields to batten
on to-day. His frank, but energetic answer, when the envoy men-
tioned the deep complaints urged against him by the present
manager of Nuddowae, was “I must have bread !” and this they had
snatched from him. But Holcar’s government, which looks not to
the misery inflicted, carries loud complaints to the resident authori-
ties, who can only decide on the principle of possession, and the
abstract view of Doongur’s course - of life. For myself, I do not
hesitate to avow, that my regard for the chiefs of Mdwar is in the
ratio of their retaliation on their e Southron’ foe ; and entering
deeply into all their great and powerful grounds for resentment, I
warmly espoused the cause of the ‘ mountain-lion ;’ and as the case
(through Mr. Gerald Wellesley) was left by Holcar’s government to
my arbitration, I secured to the chief a part of his patrimony under
their joint seal, and left him to turn his lance into a ploughshare,
until fresh causes for just aggression may arise. This settlement
gave me another proof of the inalienable right in land granted by
the ryot cultivator, and its supex-iority over that granted by the
sovereign. There were certain rights in the soil ( bhom ) which
Doongui-’s ancestors had thus obtained, in the township of Nud-
dowad, to which he attached a higher value than to the place itself.
Doongur’s story affords a curious instance of the laws of adoption
superseding, if not the rank, the fortune resulting from birthright.
Seo Sing and Doulut Sing, both sub-vassals of Beygoo, were brothers ;
the former had Nuddowad, the latter Bawurdo. But Doulut Sing,
having no issue, adoptedSalim Sing, the younger brother of Doongur,
who has thus become lord of Bawurdo, of nearly four thousand
Rupees’ annual rent, while Doongur’s chief placers liftle Atfoa, and
[Vox,. II.] ' 74 a

588

.PERSONAL NAI(UA,'1I VA.

the bhom of Nuddowae. Salim Sing is now in high favour with his
chief of Beygoo, to whom he isfoujdar, or leader-of the vassals. In
personal appearance he has greatly the advantage of Doqngur ■
Salim is tall and very handsome, bold in speech and of gentlemanly
deportment; Doongar is compact in form, of dark' complexion,
rugged in feature, and bluntuess itself in phrase, but perfectly good-
humoured, frank, and unreserved ; and as he rode by my side, he
amused me with many anecdotes connected with the scenery around.

Singolli , February 17 th, eight and a half miles, thermometer 40°.
— This town is chief of a tuppa or subdivision, containing fifty-two
villages, of the district of Antri, a term applied to a defile, or tract
surrounded by mountains. The Antri of Mewar is fertilized by the '
Bhamuni, which finds its way through a singular diversity of country,
after two considerable falls, to the Chumbul, and is about thirty
miles in length, reckoning from Beeckore to the summit of the steppe
of the plateau, by about ten miles in breadth, producing the most
luxuriant crops of wheat, barley, gram, sugar-cane, and poppy ; and
having, spread over its surface, one hundred villages and hamlets ; '
but a section of the country will make it better understood.

3 descent to the Chumhut.

From Beeckore, the pass opening from the plains of Mewar, to
the highest peak of this alpine Pat’har the Kala Meg’ll, or 'black-
cloud/ of Bey goo, bore sway. From him sprung another of the
numerous clans of Mdwar, who assumed the patronymic Megliawut.
These clans and tribes multiply, for Kala Mcg’li and his ancestors
were recognized as a branch of the Sangawut, one of the early sub-
divisions of the Ohondawut, the chief clan of Mewar. The descend-
ant of the ‘ black- cloud, 3 whose castle of Bevgoo is near the entrance
to Antri, could not now muster above a, hundred and fifty men at
arms throughout the Pat’ bar ; to which he might add as many more of
foreign Rajpoots, as the Hara and G-or, holding lands for service. The
head of the Megkawuts’ has not above twenty villages in his fief of
•Beygoo, though these might yield twenty-five, thousand rupees
annually, if cultivated ; the rest is still in the hands of the Maliratfcas,
as a mortgage contracted nearly forty years ago, and which has been

CHAP. V.]

PERSONAL NARRATIVE.

589

' liquidated ten times over : they include, in this, even a third of the
produce of his own place of residence, and the town itself is never
free from these intruders, who are continually causing disturbances.
Unhappily for Mewar, the grand principle of tbe campaign and its
political' results “ that of excluding the Mahrattas from the west
bank of the Chumbul,” was forgotten in our successes, or all the
alienated lands of Mewar as far as the Malwa frontier would have
reverted to the Rana. The hamlets on the Pat’har consist of huts
with low mud walls, and tiled roofs : even Omedpoora, though
inhabited by the uncle of the chief, is no better than the rest, and
his house is one which the poorest peasant in England would not
occupy. Yet steeped in poverty, its chieftain, accompanied by his
son, nephew, and fifteen more of his kin and clan, came “ for the
“ purpose of doing himself, his lord paramount of Beygoo, and the
“British Agent, honour.” The mountain-chief of Omedpoora affords
a fine example, that noble bearing may be independent of the Map-
pings of rank : high descent and proper self-respect appeared in
every feature and action. Dressed in a homely suit of amoivah, or
russet green, with a turban of the same (the favourite hunting
costume of the Rajpoot) ; over all the corselet of the skin of the elk,
slain by himself ; with his bright lance in hand, and mounted on a
good strong horse, whose accoutrements like his master’s were
plain but neat, behold the vassal of Omedpoora equipped for the
chase or foray. The rest of his party followed him on foot, gay and
unconcerned as the wild-deer of the Pat’har ; ignorant of luxury,
except a little uml-pani when they go to Beygoo : and whose entire
wants, including food, raiment, gunpowder, and tobacco, can be
amply supplied by about £8 a year each ! The party accompanied
me to my tents, and having presented brilliant scarlet turbans and
scarfs, with some English gunpowder, to the chief, his son, and
nephew, we parted mutually pleased at the rencontre .

The descent to Singolli is very gentle, nor are we above eighty
feet below the level of Oomur, the. highest point of the Pat’har,
which I rejoice to have visited, but lament the want of my baro-
meters. Singolli, in such a tract as this, may be entitled a town,
having fifteen hundred inhabited dwellings encompassed by a sti’ong
wall. The Pundit is indebted to his own good management, and
the insecurity around him, for this numerous population. In the
centre of the town, the dingy walls of a castle built by Aloo Hara
strike the eye, from the contrast with the new works added by the
Pundit; it has a deep ditch, with a fausse-braye, and parapet. The
circumvallation measures a mile and three-quarters. About a mile
to the north-west are the remains of a temple to Yijyaseni Bbavanf,
the Pallas of the Rajpoots. I found a tablet recording the piety of
the lord paramount of the Pat’har, in a perpetual gift of lights for
the altar. It runs thus : “ Samvat 1477 (A.D. 1421), tbe 2d of
Asoj, being Friday ( Brigwdf *), Maharaja Sri Mokul-ji, in order to

•* A name of Sfihrd-dckdnja the Regent of the planet Venus. The ‘ star of eve’
is always called Sulim, bub presents a most unpoetic idea to the mind, when

590

PEES ON AIi NAEKATIVE.

[CHAP. V.

furnish liglits {jote ivdsta) for Yijydsen'o Bhdvdm-ji, has granted one
u beeja and a half of land. Whosoever shall set aside this offering,
« the goddess will overtake him.” This is a memorial of the cele-
brated Ran a Mokul of Mewar, whose tragical death by assassination
has been recorded in the annals of that state.* Mokul was one of
the most celebrated of this race ; and he defeated, in a pitched battle
at Raepoor, a grandson of the emperor of Dehli. He was the father
of Ldl-Bae, called ‘ the Ruby of Mewar/ regarding whom we have
related a little scandal from the chronicle of the Bhattis (see p. 231) :
but the bard of the Kheechies, who says that prince Dheernj espoused
her in spite of the insult of the desert chief, had no cause to doubt
the lustre of this gem.

The Pat’h ar resounds with the traditionary tales of the Haras,
who, at a very early period, established themselves in this alpine
region, on which they erected twelve castles for its protection, all of
them still to be traced existing or in ruins ; and although they assumed
the title of “ lords of the Pat’har/’ they acknowledged the supremacy
of the Ranas of Mewar, whom they obeyed as liege-lords at this very
time. Of these twelve castles, Ruttungurh is the only one not
entirely dismantled ; though even the ruins of another, Dilwai’gurh,
have been the cause of a bloody feud between the Meghawut of
Beygoo and the Suktawut of Gwalior, also in the Pat’har. That of
Paranuggur, or Parolli, lays a short distance from thence, but the
most famous of all is Bumdoda, placed upon the western crest ofthe

we learn that this star, the most beautiful of the heavenly host, is named after
an immoral one-eyed male divinity, who lost his other orb in an undignified
personal collision, from an assault upon 2’tird ((ho star) the wife of a brother-
god. Sukra-acharya, notwithstanding, holds the office of gurii, or spiritual
adviser, to the whole celestial body — we may add ex uno disco ■ omnes : and
assuredly the Hindu who takes the mythological biography of his gods aujiied
de la lettre, cannot much strengthen bis morality thereby. The classical Hindu
of these days values it as he ought, looking upon it as a pretty astronomical
fable, akin to the voyage of the Argonauts ; but the bulk enter the temple of
the “ thirty-three millions ot gods” with the same firmness of belief as did the
old ltoman his Pantheon. The first step, and a giand one, has been made to
destroy tliis fabric of Polytheism, and to turn the mind of the Hindu to the
perception of bis own purer creed, adoration of * the one, omniscient, omni-
potent, and eternal God.’ Rammohun Roy has made this step, who " has
“ become a law unto himself,” and a precursor, it is to be hoped, of benefit to
his race. In the practical effects of Christianity, he is a Christian, though still a
devout Brahmin, adoring the Creater alone, and exercising an extended charity,
with a spirit of meekness, toleration, and benevolence, added to manly resist-
ance of all that savours of oppression, wbicb stamps him as a man chosen for
great purposes. To these moral, he adds mental qualifications of the highest
order : clear and rapid perception, vigorous comprehension, immense industry
of research, and perfect self-possession 5 having, moreover, a classical know-
ledge, not of our language only, but of Hebrew, Greek, Latin, Persian, Arabic,
and the. ‘mother-tongue’ or langue-mere of all, the Sanscrit.

T . of this simple tablet, ire detect an anachronism in the chronicle.

It is stated in page 240 ot the first volume, that Koombho succeeded his father
-Kana ALokul in S. 1454, or two years anterior to the date ofthe grant of lights

irL f.u - S T ch pkeokB upon Rajpoot chronology cr.e always falling in
atro way of those who will read ns they run.

chap; v.]

•PERSONAL NARRATIVE.

591

plateau, and overlooking tlie whole plain of Mewar. Although some
' centuries have elapsed since the Haras were expelled from this table-
land, the name of Aloo of Bumaoda still lives, aud is familiar even
to the savage Bhil, who, like the- beasts, subsists upon the wild-fruits,
of the jungles. It is mj intention to return by another route across
the Pat’liar, and to visit the site of Aloo's dwelling ; meanwhile I
•will - give one of the many tales related of him by my guide, as I
traversed the scenes of his glory.

Aloo Hara, one day, returning homeward from the chase, was
accosted by a Charun, who, having bestowed his blessing upon him,
would accept of nothing in exchange but the turban from his head.
Strange as was the desire, he preferred compliance to incurring the
visenuci, or' f vitupei’ation of the bard;’ who, placing Aloo's turban
on his own head, bade him ‘ live a thousand years/ and departed.
The Charun immediately bent his steps to Mundore, the capital of
Maroo ; and as he was ushered into the presence of its prince, aud
pronounced the byrd of the Rahtores, he took off his turban with
the left hand, aud performed his salutation with the right. The
unusual act made the prince demand the cause, when in reply he
was told “ that the turban of Aloo Hara should bend to none on
u earth.” Such reverence to an obscure chief of the mountains of
Mewar enraged the King of the Desert, who unceremoniously kicked
the tm-ban out of doors. Aloo, who had forgotten the strange request
was tranquilly occupied in his pastime, when his quondam friend
again accosted him, his head bare, the insulted turban under his arm,
aud loudly demanding vengeance on the Rahtore, whose conduct he
related. Aloo was vexed, aud upbi’aided the Charun for having
wantonly provoked this indiguity towards him. “ Did I not tell you
“ to ask land, or cattle, or mouey, yet nothing would please you but
ee this rag ; and my head must answer for the insult to a vile piece

of cloth : for nothing appertaining to Aloo Hara shall be insulted
c< with impunity even by the T’hakoor of Mar war.” Aloo forthwith
convened his clan, and soon five hundred “ sons of one father” were
assembled within the walls of Bumaoda, ready to follow wheresoever
he led. He explained to them the desperate nature of the enterprise,
frprn which none could expect to return ; aud he prepared the fatal
joliur for all those who determined to die with him. This first step,
to vengeance being over, the day of departure was fixed; but previous
to this he was anxious to ensure the safety of his nephew, who, on
failure of direct issue, was the adopted heir of Bumaoda. He accord-
ingly locked him up in the inner keep of the castle, within seven
gates, each of which had a lock, and furnishing him with provisions,
departed.

*

The Prince of Mundore was aware he had entailed a feud ; but so
little did -lie regard what this mountain-chief might do, that he pro-
claimed " all the lands over which the Hara should march to be in
ff ddn (gift) to the Brahmins.” But Aloo, who despised not the aid
of stratagem, disguisedhis little troop as horse-merchants, andplacing

592

PERSONAL NARRATIVE.

[CHAP. V. '

tlieir arms and caparisons in covered carriages, and their steeds
in long strings, the hostile cai’avau reached the capital unsuspected.
The party took rest for the night; but with the dawn they
saddled, and the nakarras of the Hara awoke the Rahtore prince
from his slumber ; starting up, he demanded who was the auda-
cious mortal that dared to strike his drum at the gates of Mundore ?
The answer was , — “ Aloo Hara of Bumaoda P

The mother (probably a Chaonl) of the King of Maroo now asked
lier son, “ how he meant to fulfil his vaunt of giving to the Brab-
“ mins all the lands that the Hara passed over ?” but he had the
resolution to abide by his pledge, and the magnanimity not to take
advantage of his antagonists position ; and to his formal challenge,
conveyed by beat of nalcarra, he proposed that single combats
should take place, man~for man. Aloo accepted it, and thanked him
for his courtesy, remarking to his kinsmen, ff At least we shall have
“ five hundred lives to appease our revenge I”

The lists were prepared ; five hundred of the “ chosen sons of
c< Seoji” were marshalled before their prince to try the manhood of
the Haras ; and now, on either side, a champion had stepped forth
to commence this mortal strife, when a stripling rushed in, his horse
panting for breath, and demanded to engage a gigantic Rahtore.
The champions depressed their lances, and the pause of astonishment
was first broken by the •exclamation of the Hara chieftain, as he
thus addressed the youth : <c Oh ! headstrong and disobedient, art
“ thou come hither to extinguish the race of Aloo Hara V 3 — Let it
“ perish, uncle (IcaJcu), if, when you are in peril, I am not with you !”
replied the adopted heir of Bumaoda. The veteran Rahtore smiled
at the impetuous valour of the youthful Hara, who advanced with
his swoi’d ready for the encounter. His example was followed by
his gallant antagonist, and courtesy was exhausted on either side to
yield the first blow ; till, at length, Aloo’s nephew accepted it ; and
it required no second, for he clove the Rahtore in twain. Another
took his place — he shared the same fate ; a third, a fourth, and in
like manner twenty-five, fell under the young hero’s sword. But he
bore “ a charmed life the queen of armies (Vyydsem) , whose
statue guards the entrance of Bumaoda, had herself enfranchised the
youth from the seven-fold gates in which his uncle had incarcerated
him, and having made him invulnerable except in one spot (the
neck) sent him forth to aid his uncle, and gain fresh glory for the
race of which she was the guardian. But tkewulnerable point was
at length touched, and Aloo saw the child of his love and his adop-
tion stretched upon the earth. The queen-mather of the Rahtores,
who witnessed the conflict, dreaded a repetition of such valour, from
men in whom desire of life was extinct ; and she commanded that
the contest should cease, and reparation be made to the lord of the
Pat’har, by giving him in marriage a daughter of Mundore. Aloo’s
honour was redeemed ; he. accepted the offer, and with his bride
repaired to the desolate Bum&oda. The fruit of this marriage was a

CHAP. V.]

PERSONAL NARRATIVE.

593

daughter ; but destiny bad decreed that the race of Aloo Hara
should perish. When she had attained the age of marriage, she was
betrothed. Bumaoda was once more the scene of joy, and Aloo went
to the temple and -invited the goddess to the wedding. All was
merriment; and amongst the crowd of mendicants who besieged the
door of hospitality was a decrepit old woman, who came to the thresh -
hold of the palace, and desired the guard to <c tell Aloo Hara she had
“ come to the feast, and demanded to see him/ 5 but the guard,
mocking her, desired her to be gone, and “ not to stand between the
“ wind and him she repeated her request, saying that " she had
“ come by special invitation.” But all was in vain ; she was driven
forth with scoi'n. Uttering a deep curse, she departed, and the race
of Aloo Hara was extinct. It was Vijy&seni herself, who was thus
repulsed from the house of which she was protectress !

A good moral is here inculcated upon the Rajpoot, who, in the
fatal example of Aloo Hara, sees the danger of violating the laws of
wide-extended hospitality : besides, there was no hour too sacred,
no person too mean, for such claims upon the ruler. For the present,
we shall take leave of Aloo Hara, and the “ Mother of Victory” of
the Pat’har, whose shrine I hope to visit on my return from
Haravati ; when we shall learn what part of her panoply she parted
with to protect the gallant heir of Bumftoda.

-January 18 tli, Danyermow, eight miles; thermometer 48°. — A'
choice of three routes presented itself to us this morning. To the
left lay the celebrated Mynftl, once the capital of Ooperm3,l ; on the
right, but out of the direct lirTe, was the castle of Bhynsror, scarcely
less celebrated ; and straight before ns the pole-star and Kotah, the
point to which I was journeying. I cut the knot of perplexity by
deviating from the direct line, to descend the table-land to Bhynsror,
and without crossing the Chumbul, nearly retraced my steps, along
the left bank, to Kotah, leaving MynSl for my .return to Oodipoor.
Our route lay through the antri, or valley, whose northern boundary
we had reached, and between it and the Bhamuni. The tract was
barren but covered with jungle, with a few patches of soil lodged
amidst the hollows or otherwise bare rock, over whose black surface
several rills had cut a low bed, all falliug, into the Bhamuni. One
of these had a name which we need not translate, Pambor-ca-Khdl,
and which serves as a boundary between the lands of the Mdghawuts
of Antri and the Suktawuts of Bhynsror.

Dangermow-Borclo’, is a small putta of twelve villages, yielding
fifteen thousand rupees of annual rent ; but it is now partitioned, —
six villages to each of the towns above mentioned. They are Suktawut
allotments, and the elder, Sukt Sing, has just returned from court,
where he had been to have the sword of investiture ( tulwar bandai)
girt on him as the lord of Boriio. Bisken Sing of Dangermow is at
Kotah, where he enjoys the confidence of Zalim Sing and is com-
mandant of cavalry. He has erected a castle on the very summit of
the third steppe of the Pat'har, whose dazzling white walls contrast
[Vox,. II.] 75

594

PBftSONAIi NARRATIVE.

[CHAP. V.

powerfully with the black and bleak rock on which it stands, and
render it a conspicuous object. The Suktawuts of the PaPhar are of
the Bans! family, itself of the second grade of nobles of Mdwar ; and
the rank of both the chiefs of Dangermow and Borao was the third,
or' that termed gole ; but now, having each a putta (at least
nominally) of above five thousand rupees yeai'ly rent, they are lifted
into tlie bateesa, or amongst the ‘ thirty-two 1 of the second class.

The Bhamuni, whose course will carry us to its close at Bhy’nsror,
flows under the walls of both Dangermow and Boi'cio, and is the
cause not ouly of great fertility but of diversity, in this singular
alpine region. The weather has again undergone a very sensible
change, and is extremely trying to those, who, like myself, are
affected by a pulmonary complaint, and who are obliged to brave
the mists of the mountain-top long before the sun is risen. On the
secoud, at daybreak, the thermometer, stood at 60°, and only three
days after, at 27° • again, it rose to 40° and for several days stood at
this point, and 75° at mid-day. The day before we ascended the
Paffhar it rose to 54°, and 94° at noon ; and on reaching the summit,
60° and 90° ; again it falls to 40°, and we now shiver with cold.
The density of the atmosphere has been particularly annoying both
yesterday and to-day. Clouds of mist rolled along the surface of the
mountain, which, when the sun cleared the horizon, and shot about
/ spear-high 1 iu the heavens, produced the most fantastic effects.
The orb was clear and the sky brilliant ; but the masses of mist,
though merely a thin vapour aud close to the spectator, exhibited
singular and almost kaleidoscopic changes. There was scarcely a
figure that the sun did not assume ; the upper half appearing
orbicular, the lower elliptical : in a second, this was reversed. Some-
times it was wholly elliptical, with a perfect change of the axis, the
transverse and conjugate changing places — a loaf, a bowl, and at one
instant a scollop-shell, then 1 round as my shield, 1 and again a.
segment of a circle, and thus alternating until its ascension dissipated
the medium of this beautiful illusion, the more pei'fect from the sky
being cloudless. The mists disappeared from the mountain long
before this phantasmagoria finished.

CHAP. VI.]

PERSONA! NARRATIVE.

595

CHAPTER VI.

%

Bhynsrorgurh. — Cairn of a Rajpoot. — Ragonat’h Sing of Bliynsror — Castle of
Bhjnsror. — Passage forced by the Chwnbul through the Plateau. — Origin and
etymology of Bliynsror. — Oharutts, the carriers of Rajwarra. — The young chief
of Mehwo becomes the champion of Meivar. — Avenges the Rana’s feud with
Jessulmer, and obtains Bliynsror. — Tragical death of his T’hahoordni, niece of
the Rana. — He is banished. — The Pramar chiefs of Bliynsror. — Cause of
their expulsion. — Ball Sing Chondawut obtains Bliynsror. — Assassinates Ms
friend the Rana’s uncle. — Maun Sing, Ms Son, succeeds. — Is talcen prisoner.

, — Singular escape. — Reflections on the policy of the British government
towards these people. — Antiquities and inscriptions at Bliynsror. — Dnbi . —
Yieiv from the passed Nasairah. — Rajpoot cairns. — Tomb of a bard. — Senti-
ments of the people on the effects of our interference . — 'J'heir gratitude. — Cairn
of a Bhatti chief. — Kurripoor. — Depopulated state of the country. — Inscrip-
tions at Sontra. — Bliil temple. — Ruins. — The Soli festival.— Kotah, its
1 appearance.

February 19th , Bhynsrorgurh , ten miles, four furlongs ; ther-
mometer 5i°. — Atmosphere dense and oppressive, androads execrable
through a deep forest ; but for the hatchets of my friends, my
baggage never could have been got on. We passed several hamlets,
consisting of a dozen or more huts, the first of which I find belongs
to my young firiend Morji of G-oorah, himself a vassal of the Pramar
of Bijolli (one of the sixteen .Omras of Mdwar), and holding a few
beegas of bhom , as his vat or share of the bdpota (patrimony) of
Borfto. We have elsewhere given a copy of the tenure on which
Morji holds a village in the fief of Bijolli.* At seven miles from
Dangermow, we came to a small "shi'ine of an Islamite saint, who
buried himself alive. It is an elevated point, from whence is a wild
but lovely prospect. There is a coond , or ‘ fountain,’ planted with
trees, close to the shrine, which attracts a weekly me la or ‘ fair,’
attended by all classes, who cannot help attributing some virtue to
a spot where a saint, though a Mooslem, thus expiated his sins. In
descending, we heard the roaring of mighty waters, and soon came
upon the JBhamum, forming a fine cascade of about fifty feet in
height ; its furious course during the monsoon is apparent from the
weeds it has left on the trees, at least twenty feet above its present
level. The fall of the country is rapid, even from this lower spot,
to the bed of the’ Chumbul. Oopermal must have a considerable
elevation above 1 the table-land! of Janapa,. where the Chumbul” and
other streams have their fountains ; but of all this we shall by
and bye form a more correct opinion. We passed "the cairn of a
Rajpoot who fell defending his post against' the Heenas of the”

Hairar, a- tract on the banks of the Bunas, filled with this ban ditti:
♦ ✓

[Vox,. II.]

.• See Yol. I, p. 692.

75a

596

PERSONAL NARRATIVE.

[CHAP. vr.

in one of their last irruptions which disturbed tbe peace of this
region. Each traveller adds a stone, and I gave my mite to swell
the heap.

The pvtfa o£ Bhynsror is held by RagonaPh Sing, oue of the
sixteen great lords of Mdwar, having the very ancient title of Rawut,
peculiar to Rajpoofcaua, and the diminutive of Ba a. Bhynsror is
one of the best fiefs of Me war, and the lands attached to it are said
to be capable of yielding one lac of annual revenue, equal to £50,000
in the dearest countries of Europe ; and when I add that a cavalier can
support himself, his steed, &c., ou £50, its relative value will at ouce
be understood. He has also a toll upon the ferries of the Chumbul,
though not content therewith, he levied until lately a per-centage
on all merchandize, besides impositions on travellers of whatever
description, under the name of / cote murimut, or f repairs of the
castle were we, however, to judge by its dilapidated condition, we
should say Ins exactions were very light, or the funds were mis-
applied. This is the sole passage of the Chumbul for a great extent,
and all the commerce of higher Malwa, Harouti, and Mdwar, passes
through this domain. The class of bunjarris (traders) termed
Vishnde, long established at the city of Poor’ll in Mewar, frequent
no other route in their journey from the salt-lakes of the desert to
Malwa or Boondelkhnnd. Their tanda or caravan consists of six
thousand bullocks, and they never make less than two, and often
three, trips in the year. The duty of the raj is five rupees for each
hundred head thus laden ; but the feudatoxy, not content with his
imposition of " castle repairs’-’ and ” bhom” as lord of the manor, has
added a hundred and fifty per cent, to the regular transit duty of
the state, which is divided into two items ; viz., three rupees aud a
half for the ferry, and as much for bolai, or safe escort through his
territory. But as Harouti always afforded protection (which could
be said of no other region of independent India), the ghat of, the
Chumbul was much frequented, in spite of these heavy di’awbacks
to industry. My friend the Rawut has, however, found it expedient
to remove all these war-taxes, retaining only that portion which has
been attached to the frontier post, for protection ; and a portion of
the ferry-rate granted to this fief nearly two centuries ago. Instead
of about fifteen per cent., as heretofore levied, including that of the
crown, it amounts to less than one-half, and the revenue has been
quadrupled !

The castle of Bhynsror is most l'omantically situated upon the
extreme point of a ridge, on an almost isolated rib of the Pafhar,
fromwhich we have descended. To the east, its abrupt cliff overhangs
the placid expanse of the Chumbul, its height above which is about
two hundred feet : the level of the river in the monsoon is marked
at full thirty feet above its present elevation. The Bhamuni hounds
•Bhynsroi’ on the west, and by the rapidity of its fall has completely
scarped the rock, even to the angle of confluence within which is
p aceathe castle, to whose security a smaller intermediate stream not

CHAP, yi.]

PERSONAL NARRATIVE.

597

a little contributes. On tbe north alone is it accessible, and there the
hill is scarped; but this' scarp, which is about three hundred yards
distant, forms a good cover, aud a few shells thence played upon the
castle would soon compel it to surrender. The imck is a soft, loose,
blue schistose slate, which would not retard the miner. The approach
from the river, here about five hundred yards wide, would be des-
truction. It is never fordable, and its translucent sea-green waters
are now full forty feet in depth. When in the periodical rains it
accumulates at its soui'ce, and is fed during its passage by many
minor streams from the Vindhya.and this oberland, its velocity is
overwhelming; it rises above the opposing bank aud laying the whole
tract to the base of the table-land of Harouti under water, sweeps
away in its irresistible course even the rocks. Speculation might here
be exhausted in vain attempts to explain how nature could overcome
this formidable obstacle to her operations, and how the stream could
effect its passage through this adamantine barrier. The channel
cut in the rock is as clean as if performed by the chisel, and stand-
ing ou the summit of the cliff, which is from three hundred to seven
hundred feet in height, one discerns in imagination the marks of
union : to use the words of our last great-bard, ou the Rhone,

“Heights which appear as lovers who have parted

“In hate, whose mining depths so intervene,

“That they can meet no more, though broken-hearted.”

I shall by aud bye, I trust, obtain a more coi-rect knowledge of the
comparative elevation of this pZafeaie, and the crest of the Vindhya
whence issues the Chumbul ; but although this strgam is, of course,
much below the level of its source, yet there is little doubt that the
summit of this chasm ( Oopermal ) is, as its name indicates, the
f highest land’ of Malwa. I say this after making myself acquainted
with the general depression of Malwa to this point, in which we are
aided by the course of the stream. Under Bhynsror, the current is
never very gentle ; but both above and below there are rapids, if
not falls, of thirty to fifty feet in descent. That above the stream is
termed the Ghooli, because full of whirlpools and eddies, which have
given a sacred character to it, like the Nerbudda, at ‘ the whirlpools
* of the great god/ Ghooli Mahesiuar. A multitude of the round stones
taken out of these vortices, when they have been rounded by attri-
tion into a perfectly orbicular form, only require consecration and a
little red paint to be converted into the representatives of Bhiroo,
the god of war, very properly styled the elder born of Siva, the
destroyer. This is about two miles up the stream; there is another
at Kotrah, about three miles down, with several successive rapids.
Three is a fall in the vicinity of Rampoora, and another about five
coss north of it, at Choraitagurh, where the river first penetrates the
plateau. There, I understand, it is not above seventy yards in
breadth, confined between cliffs perfectly perpendicular. There is
also said to be another fall or rapid intermediate between Rampoora
and its source in the peak of Janap<i, in the neighbourhood of Oneil.

598

PERSONAL NARRATIVE.

[CHAP. VI.

If tliese are all the falls, though only amounting to rapids, we may
form a tolerable idea of the difference of level between the base of
the Oopermal and the highland of the Vindbya, whence the Ghuin-
bul issues ; and still we shall see that there are points where the
perpendicular cliffs must be somo hundred feet above the peak of
Janapa. ; if so, this chasm was never formed by water.

Mewar still extends oast of the river, and the greater part of the
estate of Bhynsror is on the opposite side. A small stream, called
the Kurb-cd-Khhl, divides the lands of the Haias from those of the
Seesodias, and there is a beejuk-marlca, or land-mark inscription, at
the Shdsa tallao, put up centuries ago. To this line, and between
it and the Chumbul, is the putta of Koondhl ; and farther south,
towards Rampoora, is that of Pnchail, both containing twenty-four
villages attached to Bhynsror. All that tract fai ther inland in Upper
Malwa, termed Malki-des, in which are the towns of Ohychutand
Sukeit, was in old times included geographically in Mewar ; it is
yet possessed by the Snktawuts, though subject to Kotah.

Tradition bas preservod the etymology of Bhynsror, and dates its
erection from the second century of the era of Vi ciain a, though
others make it antecedent even to him. Be that as it may, it adds
a fact of some importance, viz., that the Charuns, or bards, were
then, as now, the privileged carriers of Rajwarra, and that this was
one of their great lines of communication. Bhynsror, therefore,
instead of being the work of some mighty conqueror, owes its exist-
ence to the joint" efforts of Bhynsa Sah, the merchant, and Rora, a
Charun and Bunjarri, to protect their tandas (caravans) from the
lawless mountaineers, when compelled to make a long halt during
the periodical rains. How many lines of heroes possessed it before
the Haras established themselves among its ruins is unknown,
though the “ universal Pramar” is mentioned. Its subsequent
change of masters, and their names and history, are matters of less
doubt ; since the altars of the Dodeah, the Prarnar, the Rahtore, the
Suktawut, the Chondawut,

“ — wlio sought and found, by dangerous roads*

“A path to perpetuity of fame;”

are still visible. Of the Dod'eah name we have already preserved
one wreck, though whether the f rocket of the moon’ -was of the
family who dwelt upon the whirlpools of the Chumbul, we’ must,
leave to conjecture. Hot so of his successor, the Rahtore, who
was a scion of the house of Mehwo, on the Salt River of the
-desert, from which, though he was bub a vassal of Mundore, the'
Rana scorned not to take a wife boasting the purer blood of the
kings of Canouj. A younger brother accompanied 1 her to the court
of Oheetore. Soon after, the Rawul of Jessulmer dared to put an
affront upon the Rana, the acknowledged’ head of the Rajpoot
race ! The chivalry of Mewar wasi assembled, and the 1 beera of
vengeance held up, which the sti’ipling heir of Mehwo, darting '
forward, obtained. Although but fifteen years"! of age, entreaties

CHAP. VI.]

PERSONAE NARRATIVE,

599

were lost upon liim to induce him to renounce the enterprize, which
in all probability some border-feud of his paternal house and the
Bhattis, as well -as swavidherma, or fealty, to his sovereign and
kinsman, may have prompted. His only request was that he might
be aided by two of his iutimate friends, and five hundred horse of
his own selection. How ho passed the desert, or how he gained
admittance to the chief of the Bhatti tribe, is not stated ; suffice it
to say, that be brought the RawuPs head and placed it at the feet
of the sovereign of Cheetore, for which service he had a grant of
Saloombra; and subsequently (fiefs in those days not being amovible )
he was removed to Bhynsror. The young Huh tore continued to
rise in favour : ho was already by courtesy and marriage the
bhanctij, or nephew, of his sovereign, who for this action bestowed
upon him a young princess of his own blood ; an honour which
in the end proved fatal. One day, the T’hakoor (chief) was enjoy-
ing himself in his baronial hall of Bhynsror, in the midst of
his little court, with a nautch , when a fatal curiosity, perhaps
instigated by jealousy, induced his Rani to peep out from the
lattice above. Offended at this violation of decorum, he said
aloud to an attendant, “ Tell the T’halcoorani, if she is eager to
" come abroad, she may do so, and I will retire.” The lady disputed
the justice of the reprimand, asserting that her lord had been
mistaken, and tried to shift the reproach to one of her damsels ;
but failing to convince him, she precipitated herself from the battle-
ments into the whirpools beneath : the spot where she fell into the
Chumbul still retains the name of Ranigutta. When it was reported
to the' Ran a that a false accusation had caused the suicide of his
niece, the sentence of banishment from Mewar was pronounced .
against the Rahtore, which was afterwards commuted, out of a
regard for his former service, to the sequestration of Bhynsror ; and
he had the small fief of Neetnrie and its twenty dependent hamlets,
situated upon the Pat’ liar, and not far from Bhynsror, bestowed
upon him.

Beejy Sing, the descendaut of the hero of this tale, has just been
to see me; a shrewd aud stalwart knight, not a whit degenerated
by being transplanted from the Looui to the Chumbul; for, though
surrounded by Mahratta depredators, by means of the fastnesses in
which he dwells, and with the aid of his good lance, with which he
repays them in kind, he has preserved his little estate in times so
fatal to independence. Had,I not entered deeply into the history of
the past, I might have been led away by the disadvantageous reports
given of these brave men, who were classed with the common free-
booters of the hills, and pointed out as meriting similar chastise-
ment ; since these associations, both for their own security and
retaliation on the vagabond Mahrattas, who usurped or destroyed
their birthright, gave a colour to the complaints against them.

The Pramar, ( vulg . Piiar) succeeded the Rahtore in the fief of
Bhynsror. How long the former held it is uncertain ; but the mode

600

PERSONAL NARRATIVE.

[CHAP. 'VI.

in -which the last vassal chieftain lost it and his life together, affords
another trait of national manners. Hero again the fair, whose
influence over the lords of Rajpootana we have elsewhere mentioned,
was the cause of the catastrophe. The Prtim&r had espoused the
daughter of his neighbour chieftain oE Beygoo, aud they lived
happily until a game nt_2 oachccsi, somewhat resembliug chess, caused
a dispute, in which he spoke slightingly of her family, an affront
never to lie pardoned by a Rajpootm ; and the next day she wrote
to her father. The messenger had not left his presence with the
reply, before the uakarra beat tbe assembly for the Icher. The
descendants of the ‘ black cloud* ( KalaMcgli ) obeyed tbe summons,
and the hamlets on the Bliamuni, or the Pat’har, poured forth their
warriors at the sound of the tocsin of Beygoo. When the cause of
quarrel was explained, it came homo to every bosom, and they
forthwith marched to avenge it. Their road lay through the forest
of Antri ; but when arrived within a few coss of Bhynsror, they
divided their band, and while the chief took the more circuitous
route of the pass, the heir of Beygoo followed the course of the
Bhamuni, took the Prdmiir by surprise, and hud slain him in single
combat ere his father joined him. The insult, to the Mdghawuts
being avenged, tho Priimdrs were about to retaliate ; but seeing the
honour of her house thus dearly maintained, affection succeeded to
resentment, and the Rajpootnl determined to expiate her folly with
her life. The funeral pile was erected close to the junction of the
Bhamuni and Chumbul, and she ascended with the body of her lord,
her own father setting fire to it. I encamped close to the altars
recording the event.

This feud changed the larv of succession in the Beygoo estate.
The gallantry of the young Megliawut consoled the old chief for the
tragical event which lost him a daughter ,• and in a full council of
* the sons of Kala Meg’ll/ the rights of primogeniture were set aside
in favour of the valorous youth, and the lord paramount (the Rana)
confirmed the decision, The subordinate fief Of Jthauoli, which
formerly comprehended the present district of Jawud, was settled
on the elder son, whose descendant, Tej Sing, still holds a share of
it, besides the title of Rawut. Both estates have alike suffered from
the Mabrattas, equally with, otliers in Mewar.

The successor of the Pramar was a Chondawut, of the branch
Kislienawut, aud a younger sou of Snloombra; and it would be well
for Ball Sing had he sought uo higher distinction than that to which
bis birth entitled him. But Lalji Kawut was a beacon in the
annals of crime, and is still held out as an example to those who
would barter a good name here, aud the hope of the life to come, for
the evanescent gifts of fortune. He purchased the honours of
Bhynsi’or by shedding the blood of his bosom-friend, the uncle of
bis sovereign.

Mahraja N&thji was one of the sons of Rnna Singram Sing, and
m-otfier to the reigning prince Juggut Sing, on whose death, doubts

CHAP. VI.]

PERSONAL NARRATIVE.

601

o£ the legitimacy o£ his successor Raj Sing being raised, Ndthji
aspired to the dignity; but his projects failed by the death of Raj
Sing. He left a posthumous child, whose history, and the civil wars
engendered by his uncle XJrsi, who took possession of the gadi, have
been fully detailed. Ursi, who was assuredly a" usurper, if the Pre-
tender was a lawful son of Rana Raj, had suspicions regarding his
own uncle N&thji, who had once shown a predilection for the supreme
power; but the moment he heard that his nephew fancied he
was plotting against him, he renounced ambition, and sought to
make his peace with heaven ; amusing himself with poetry, in which
he had some skill, and^by cultivating his melons in the bed of the
Bunas, which ran under the walls of hiB castle, Bagore. The fervour
of his devotions, and the love and respect which his qualifications as
a man and a Rajpoot obtained him, now caused his l-uin. In the
coldest nights, accompanied by a single attendant, he was accustomed
to repair to the lake, and thence convey water to sprinkle the
statue of his tutelaxy divinity, the f god of all mankind/
{JuggefnaVli). It was repoi'ted to the Rana that, by means of these
ascetic devotions, he was endeavouring to enlist the gods in his
traitorous designs, and, determined to ascertain the trath, XJrsi, with
a confidential friend, disguised himself, and repaired to the steps of
the temple. Nathji soon appeared with his bi*azen vessel of water 1 ,
and as he passed, the prince, revealing himself, thus addressed him :
“Why all this devotion, this excess of sanctity ? if it be the throne
“you covet, uncle, it is your’s;” to which XJrsi, in no wise thrown
off his guard, replied with much urbanity, f You are my sovereign,
“ my child, and I consider my devotions as acceptable to the deity,
“from their giving me such a chief, for my prayei’s are for your
“prosperity. This unaffected sincerity l’eassured the Rana; but the
chiefs of Deogur’h, Bheendix-, and other clans, being dissatisfied
with the harsh and uncompromising temper of their sovei’eign,
endeavoured to check his ebullitions by pointing to the Mahraja
as a l’efuge against his tyranny.

To be released from such a restraint, XJi’si at last resolved on
assassinating hiB uncle ; but his valour and giant strength made the
attempt a service of dangex’, and he therefore employed one who,
under the cloak of friendship, could use the poignard without risk.
Lall Sing was the man, the bosom fi’iend of the Mahraja, who,
besides exchanging tui-bans with him, had pledged his fi-iendship at
the altar; a man who knew every seci’et of his heart, and that there
was no treason in it. It was midnight, when a voice bi'oke in upon
his devotions, calling on him from the portico by name. No other
could have taken this liberty, and the reply, “ Come in, brother
“Lalji; what brings you here at such an hour V’ had scarcely
passed the lips of Natliji, when, as he made the last prostration to
the image, he received the dagger of his friend in his neck, and the
emblem of Siva was covered with his blood ! For this service, the
assassin was.rewarded with the fief of Bhynsroi’, and a seat amongst
the sixteen barons of Mewar ; but as the number cannot be increased
[Von. II.] • 76

602

PERSONAL NARRATIVE.

[CHAP. VI.

the rights of the Sjiktawut chief of Bansi were cancelled : thus
adding one crime to another, which however worked out its own,
reward, and at once avenged the murder of Nathji, and laid Mdwar
in ruins, causing fresh stveams of the blood which had 'already so
copiously flowed from the civil wars arising out of the hostility of
these rival clans, the Suktawuts ana Chondawuts.

Lalji did not long enjoy his honours ; his crime of “ triple dye”
was ever present to his mind, and generated a loathsome, incurable
disease : for even in these lands, where such occurrences are too
frequent, <f the still small voice” is heard : worms consumed the
traitor while living, and his memory is blasted now that he is dead;
while that of Nathji is sanctified, as a spirit gentle, valorous, and
devout.

Maun Sing, the son of this man of blood, succeeded to the honours
of Bhynsror, and was a soldier of no common stamp. At the battle
of Oojein, where the Ran a of Mewar made the last graud stand for
independence. Maun was'badly wounded, made captive, and brought
in the train of the conquering Mahratta, when he laid siege to
Oodipoof. As he was recovering from his wounds, his friends
attempted to effect his liberation through that notorious class called
the Bcioris , and contrived to acquaint him with the plot. The
wounded chief was consoling himself for his captivity by that great
panacea for ennui , a nautch, and applauding the fine voice of a
songstress of Oojein as she warbled a tuppa of the Punjab , when *
significant sign was made by a stranger. He instantly exclaimed
that his wounds had broken out afresh, staggered towards his pallet,
and throwing down the light, left all in confusion and darkness>
which favoured the Bdori’s design ; who, while one of his friends took
possession of the pallet, wrapped the sick chief in a chadur (sheet),
threw him on his back, and carried him through the camp of the
besiegers to the city. The Raua, rejoiced at his liberation, com-
manded a salute to be fired, and the first intelligence the Mahratta
leader had of his prisoner’s escape, was in answer to the question as
to the cause of such rejoicing : they then found one of the vassal
substitutes of Maun still occupying the bed, but the sequel does not
mention how such fidelity was repaid. The cenotaph ( chetrt ) of
this brave son of an unworthy sire is at the Tribent, or point of conflu-
ence of the three streams, the Ohumbul, the Bhamuni, and the Kkdl ;
and from its light and elegant construction, 'adds greatly to the
picturesque effect of the scenery. The present chief, Raghonat’k
Sing, who succeeded Maun, has well maintained his independence
throughout these perilous times. Bapoo Sindia, whose name will long
be remembered as one of the scourges of these realms' tried his skill
upon Bhynsror, where the remains of his trenches, to the north-west
of the town, are still conspicuous ; but he Was met with sortie after
norfcie, while the hill-tribes were nightly let loose upon him, until he
Was forced to make a precipitate retreat.

I cannot conclude the annals of this family without a passing

CHAP. VI.]

PERSONAL NARRATIVE.

603

remark on the great moral change effected since the power of Britain
has penetrated into these singular abodes. It was my habit to attend
on any of the chieftains who honoured me by an invitation to their
family fetes, such as their sdl girds, or ‘ birth-days •/ and on these
occasions, I merged the Argent of the British government entirely in
the friend, and went without ceremony or parade. Amongst my 1
numerous ‘pagri budul bhde, or c adopted brothers’ (as well as sisters),
was the Maharaja Sheodan Sing, the grandson and possessor of the
honours and estates of. Nath ji, who still enjoys the domain of Bagore,
and from v’hom I used to receive a share of its melons, which he
cultivates with the same ardour as his grandsire. The ‘ annual knot’

( sulgird ) of my friend was celebrated on the terraced roof of his
palace, overhanging the lake of Oodipoor, and I was by his side
listening, in the intervals of the song, to some of his extemporaneous
poetical effusions (on which my friend placed rather too high a value),
when amongst the congratulatory names called aloud by the herald,

I was surprised to hear, “ Maharaja Salumnt, Rawut Raghonat’h
<c Sing-ji-ca moojra Icejo !” or, “health to the Maharaja, and let him
■ <c receive the compliments of Rawut Raghonat’h Sing the grandson
of the murderer come to pay his respects to the grandson of the
murdered, and to press with his knee the gadi on which he sat !
With .justice may w r e repeat their powerful metaphor, on such
anomalies in the annals of their feuds — bhdr aur bakri did t’hdU sa
pid, ‘ the wolf and the goat drink from the same platter.’ We might
thus, by a little attention to the past history and habits of these
singularly interesting races, confer signal moral benefits upon them ;■
for it must be evident that the germs of many excellent qualities
require only the sunshine of kindness to ripen into goodly fruit,
and for the sake of our own welfare, as well as that of humanity, let
not the protecting power, in the exercise of patronage, send amongst
them men, who' are not embued with feelings which will lead them
to understand, to appreciate, and to' administer fitting counsel, or
correction where necessary. The remembrance of these injuries is
still fresh, and it requires but the return of anarchy again to unsheath
the poniard and drug the cup ; but if we consult their real good, the
recollection will gradually grow fainter.

Before, however, we altogether quit the wilds of the Chumbulj we .
must record that Bhynsror had been visited by another man of blood,<
the renowned Alla-o-diu, in whose epithets of hhooni, or f the’
sanguinary and Scciindcr Sani', or f the second Alexander,’ by which
history has given him perpetuity of infamy, we recognize the devas-
tating and ferocious Grhilji king, wbo assailed every Hindu prince in
. India. Obedient to the letter of the law, he had determined to leave'
not one stone upon another of the temples or palaces of .Bhynsror.
Everywhere we searched for memorials of the Hoon, whose name
' is also connected with the foundation of Bhynsror j of the Pramar, -
or the Dodeah ; but in vain. The vestiges of these ages had disap-
peared, or been built up in the more modern fortifications. 1 Two
such inscriptions we indeed discovered reversed and applied as
[Voi.. n.] . . 76 a

604

PERSONAL NARRATIVE.

[CHAP. VI.

common building materials in the walls around the town : one was
dated S. 1179 (A.D 1123), but being in the old ornamented Jain
character, would have required time and labour to decypher. The
other is also anterior to Alla, and the ornaments in this are decidedly
Jain ; its purport is as follows : <c on the purb (full moon) of Seor&tri
(the birth-day of Siva), M&ha Rae 5 an Der&e R&e Sing Deo bestowed,
in the name of Rameswar, the village of Tuttagurh in poon (religious
gift). Those who maintain the grant will enjoy the fruits resulting
therefrom or, in the words of the original :

‘‘ Jissa jiesd jidhn Ihomi,

“ Tissa, Used tidhu phuliung."

“ Samvat 1302 (A.D. 1246).” This form of sasun, or religions
charity, is peculiar, and styled sasun Udyadit, which proves that
the Pramar, of whom this is a memorial, was a feudatory of the
prince of Dhar, whose era has been fixed. These discoveries stimu-
lated our research, and my revered friend and gfaru, who is now
deeply embued with antiquarian enthusiasm, vainly offered a large
reward for permission to dig for the image of ParswanaPh, his great
pontiff, of whose shrine he has no doubt the first inscription is a
memorial. When about to leave this place (indeed our baggage had
gone on), we were informed of some celebrated temples across the
river at a place called Barollf, anciently Dholpoor. The shrine is
dedicated to G-uteswara Mahadeva, with a lingam revolving in the
yoni, the wonder of those who venture amongst its almost impervious
and unfrequented woods to worship. As 1 could not go myself, I
despatched the guru, to hunt for inscriptions and bring ine an account
of it.

Dabi,20thJamiary, eleven miles ; thermometer 48°. — Re-ascended
the third steppe of our miniature Alp, at the Nasairah pass (gh&t ),
the foot of which was exactly five miles from Bhynsror, and three
and a-half furlongs more carried us to its summit, which is of easy
ascent, though the pathway was rugged, lying between" high peaks
on either side. This alone will give a tolerable idea of the height of
the PaPhar above the level of the river. Majestic trees cover
the hill from the base to its summit, through which we could never
have found a passage for the baggage without the axe. Besides some
noble tamai-iud (imlt) trees, there was the lofty semul, or cotton-
tree ; the knarled salcoo, which looks like a leper amongst its healthy
brethren ; the taindoo, or ebony -tree, now in full fruit, and the useful
dho, besides many others of less magnitude. The landscape from
the summit was grand : we looked down upon the Glxirmitti ( vulg .
Chumbul) and the castle of RaghonaPh ; while the eye commanded a
long sweep of the black Bhamunx gliding through the vale of Antri
to its termination at the tombs of the Suktawuts. The road to
Dabi was very fair for such a tract, and when within four miles of
our tents, we crossed a stream said to have its fountain at Mynal,
which must consequently be one of the highest points of Oopermfil.
This rill afforded another means of estimating the height of our

CHAP. VI.]

PERSONAL NARRATIVE.

605

•

position, fov besides tlie general fall to tbe brink of tbe chasm, it:
precipitates itself in a fine cascade of three hundred feet. Neither
time'nor place admitted of our following this rill to its termination,
about six miles distant, through a rugged woody tract. From the
summit of the pass of Nasairah, we had a peep at the tomb of a
Mooslem saint, whence the ground gradually shelved to the eud of
our journey at Kotah.

Dabi is the line of demarcation between Mewar and Boondi, being
itself in the latter state, in the district of Loecha, — dreary enough !
It produces, however, rice and mulchi, or Indian corn, and some good
patches of wheat. We passed the cairns, composed of loose stones,
of several Rajpoots slainin defending their cattle against the Meenas
of the Kairar. I was particularly struck with that of a Chavurt
bard, to whose memory they have set up a pallia, or tomb-stone,
on which is his effigy, his lance at rest, and shield extended, who
most likely fell defending his tanda. This tract was grievously
oppressed by the banditti who dwell amidst the ravines of the Bunas,
on the western declivity of the plateau. “ Who durst,” said my guide,
as we stopped at these tumuli, “ have passed the Pat’har eighteen
“ months ago ? they (the Meenas) would have killed you for the cakes
“ you had about you ;■ now you may carry gold. These green fields
” would have been shared, perhaps reaped altogether, by them ; but
" now, though there is no superfluity, there is ‘ play for the teeth,’ and
“ we can put our turban under our heads at night without the fear of
" missing it in the morning. Atul Bdj ! may yonr sovereignty last
“ for ever !” This is the universal language of men who have never
known peaceful days, who have been nurtured amidst the elements
of discord and rapine, and who, consequently, can appreciate the
change, albeit they were not mere spectators. " We must retaliate,”
said a sturdy Chohan, one of Morji’s vassals, who, with five besides
himself, insisted on conducting me to Bhynsror, and would only
leave me when I would not let them go beyond the frontier. I was
much amused with the reply of one of them whom I stopped with
the argumentum ad verecundiam , as he began a long harangue
about five buffaloes carried off by the T’hakoor of Neemrie, and
begged my aid for their recovery. I said it was too far back ; and
added, laughing, “ Gome, T’hakoor, confess ; did you never balance
“ the account elsewhere ?” — " Oh Maharaja, I have lost many, and
“ taken many, but Ram-dohde ! if I have touched a blade of grass
"since your raj, I am no Rajpoot.” I found he was a Hara, and
complimented him on his affinity with Aloo^the lord of Bum&oda,
which tickled his vanity not a little. In vain I begged them to
return, after escorting me so many miles. To all my solicitations the
Chohan replied, " Ton have brought us comfort, and this is mun ca
■" chaJerie, ' service of the heart.” I accepted it as such, and we
“ whiled the gait” with sketches of the times gone by. Each foot /
of the country was familiar to them. At one of the cairns , in the
midst of the wood, they all paused for a second ; it was raised over
the brother of the Bhatti T’hakoor, and each, as he passed, added a

606

PERSONAL NARRATIVE.

[CHAP. VI.

•

stone to this monumental heap. I watched., ~to discern whether the
same feeling was produced in them which the act'created in me ; hut
if it existed, it was not betrayed. They were too familiar with the
reality to feel the romance of the scene ; yet it was one altogether
nob ill-suited to the painter.

Kurripoor , 21st February , 91 miles. — Encamped in the glen of
Kurripoora, confined and wild. Thejmometer, 51°, but a fine,
clear, bracing atmosphere. Our route lay through a tremendous
jungle. Half-way, crossed the ridge, the altitude of which made up
for the descent to Dabf, but from whence we again descended to
Kurripoora. There were many hamlets in this almost impervious
forest; but all were desolate, and the only trace of population was
in the altars of those who had defended to the death their dreary’
abodes against the ruthless Meena of the Kairar, which we shall
visit on our return.

About a mile after we had commenced our march this morning,
we observed' the township of Sontia on our right, which is always
conjoined to Dabl, to designate the tuppa of Dabl-Sontra, a sub-
division of Loecha. Being informed by a scout that it contained
inscriptions, I requested my guiu and one of my Brahmins to go
there. The search afforded a new probf of the universality of the
Pramar sway, and of the conquests of another “ Lord of the world
“ and the faith,” AJla-o-din, the second Alexander. The Yatf found
several altars having inscriptions, and many pallias, from three of
which, placed in juxta-position, llecopiedthefollowinginscriptions: — ,

“ Samvat 1422 (A.D. 1366). Pardi, Teza, and his son, Deola Pardi,
from the fear of shame, for the gods. Brahmins, their cattle, and
their wives, sold their lives.”

"S. 1446 (A.D. 1390). In the month of Asar (badi elmn) :
Monday, in the castle of Sontra (Sutravjan doorg), the Pramar Ooda,
Hula, Bhoona, for their kine,. wives, Brahmins, along with the pfitra'
Chonda, sold their existence.” 1

” S. 1466 (A.D. 1410), the 1st As5r, and Monday, at Sontragram, •
Boogha, the Chaora, in defence of the gods, his wife, and the Brah-
mins, sold his life,”

The following was, copied from a coond , or fountain, excavated in
the rock : —

ff S. 1370 (A.D. 1314), the ICth of Asar (sudi elcam), he, whose
renown is unequalled, the king, the lord of men, Maharaja Adheraj,
Sri Alla-o-din, with his army of three thousand elephants, ten lacs
of horse, war-chariots and foot without number, conquering from
Sambhur in the north, Malwa, Kurnat, Kanor’h, Jhalore, Jessulmer,
Deogir, Tylung, even to the shores of the ocean, and Chandrapoori
in the east ; victorious over all the kings ofthe earth, an’d by whom
Sutrawan Doorg, with its twelve townships, have been wrested from
the Pramdr Maunsi ; by whose son, Beelaji, whose birth-place
(pot-pat) is Si4 Dhar, this fountain was excavated. Written and also*
engraved by Sydeva the stone-cutter (sootrad’kar) .”

CHAP. VI.]

PERSONAL NARRATIVE.

607

Beneath the surface of the fountain was another inscription, but
there was no time to bale out the water, which some future traveller
over the Pat’har may accomplish. Sontra, or as classically written,
Subroodoorg, “ the inaccessible to the foe,” was one of the castles of
the Pramar, no doubt dependent on Cheetore when under the Mori
dynasty ; and this was only one of the subdivisions of Central India,
which was all- under Pramar dominion, from the Nerbudda to the
Jumna : an assertion proved by inscriptions and traditions. "We
shall hear more of this at Mynal and Bijolli on our return over
Oopermftl, which I resolve to be thoroughly acquainted with.

Kotah, February 22 d, eleven miles to the banks of the Chumbul.
Although not a cloud was to be seen^ the sun was invisible till more
than spear-high, owiug to a thick vapoury mist, accompanied by a
cold piercing wind from the north-west. The descent was gradual
all the way to the river, but the angle may be estimated from the
fact that the pinnacle ( hullus ) of the palace, though one hundred
and twenty feet above the level of the Chumbul, was not visible
until within five miles of the bank. The barren tract we passed
over is all in Boondi, until we approach Kotah, where the lands of
Nandta intervene, the personal domain of the regent Zalim Sing,
and the only territory belonging to Kotah west of the Chumbul.
Kurripoora, as well as all this region, is inhabited by Bhils, of which
race a very intelligent individual acted this morning as our guide.
He says it is called by them Baba ca noond, and that they were the
sovereigns of it until dispossessed by the Rajpoots. We may credit
them, for it is only fit for Bhils or their brethren of the forest, the
wild-beasts. But I rejoiced at having seen it, though I have no
wish to retrace my steps over this part of my journey. Half-way,
we'"passed a roofless shed of loose stones, containing the divinity of
the Bhils : it is in the midst of a grove of thorny tangled brushwood,
whose boughs were here and there decorated with shreds of various
coloured cloth, offerings of the traveller to the forest divinity for
protection against evil spirits, by which I suppose the Bhils them-
selves are meant.*

We must not omit (though we have quitted the Pat’har) to notice
the * Maypoles’ erected at the entrance of every village in the happy
'vassant or spring, whose concluding festival, the Holi or Saturnalia,
is just over. This year the- season has been most ungenial, and has
produced sorrow rather than gladness. Every pole has a bundle
of hay or straw tied at the top, and some have a cross stick like
arms and a flag flying; but in many parts of the Pat’har, the
more symbolic plough was substituted, dedicated to the goddess
of fruition, and served the double purpose of a Spring-pole, and
frightening' the deer from nibbling the young corn. ,

The appearance of Kotah is very imposing, and impresses the
mind with a more lively notion of wealth and activity than most
cities in India. A strong wall with bastions runs paralled to, and at

*The same practice is described by Park as existing in Africa:

608

PERSONAL NARRATIVE.

[CHAP. VII,

bo great distance from, the river, at the southern extremity of which
is the palace (placed within a castle separated from the town), whose
cupolas and slender minarets give to it an air of light elegance. The
scene is crowded with objects animate and inanimate. Between the
river and the city are masses of people plying various trades ; but
the eye dwells upon the terminating bastion to the north, which is a
little fort of itself, and commands the country on both banks. But
we shall have more to say regarding this during our halt, which is
likely to be of some continuance. •

4

CHAPTER VII.

b

TJnhealtlnness of the season at Kotali.— Eventful character of the period
of the authors residence there. — The cuckoo. — Description of the encamp-
ment. — Cenotaphs of the Haras. — Severe tax upon the curiosity of travel-
lers in Kotali. — General insalubrity of Kolah . — Wells infected. — Produc-
tive of fever. — Taking leave of the Maharao and Regent. — The Regent's
sorrow. — Cross the Chumbul. — Restive elephant. — Kunarie. — Regent's patri-
monial estate. — Nandta. — Author's reception hj Madhil Sing. — Rajpoot music.
— The Punj6bi tuppa. — Scene of the early recreations of Zalirn Sing.—Talera.

. — Noagong. — Approach of the Rajah of Boondi. — Splendour of the cortfcge.—

. Boondi. — The castellated palace, or Boondi-ca-mahl. — Visit to the Rajah.—
Illness of our party. — Quit Boondi. — Cenotaphs in the village of Sitoor . —
The tutelary deity, Asdpim id. — Temple of Bhdvani. — Banks of the Maij . —
Thanoh. — Inscriptions. — Jehajpoor. — Respectable suite of the Bussio chief.—
Singular illness of the Author.

Nandta , September 10th, 1821. — A day of deliverance, which had
been looked forward to by all of us aB a new era in our existence.
The last four months of our residence at Kotah was a continued
struggle against cholera and deadly fever : never in the memory of
man was such a season known. This is not a state of mind or body
fit for recording passing events; and although the period of the last
six months — from my arrival at Kotnh in February last, to my
leaving it this morning — has been one of the most eventful of my
life, it has left fewer traces of these events upon my mind for notice
in my journal than if I had been less occupied. The readermay be
referred, for an abstract of these occurrences, to Chapter Sixth, which
will make him sufficiently acquainted with the people amongst
whom we have been living. To try back for the less imporiant ,
events which furnish the thread of tbo Personal Narrative, would
be vain, suffering, whilst this journal is written, under fever and
ague, and all my friends and servants in a similar plight. Though
we move than once changed our ground of encampment, sickness
still followed us. TVe got through the hot winds tolerably until the
ciog-dnys of June ; but, although I had experienced every vicissitude
<> temperature in every part of India, I never felt anything to he
compared w.lli the few days of June at Kotah.

CHAP. VII.]

PERSONAE NARRATIVE.

609

It was shortly after we had shifted the camp from the low paddy-
fields to the embankment of the Kishore sagur, or ‘ lake/ imme-
diately east of the city, the sky became of that transparent blue which
dazzles the eye to look at. Throughout the day and night, there
was not a zephyr even to stir a leaf, but the repose and stillness of
death. The thermometer was 104° in the tent, and the agitation of
the punlca produced only a more suffocating air, from which I have
fled, with a sensation bordering on madness, to the gardens at the
base of the embankment of the lake. But the shade even of the
tamarind or cool plantain was still less supportable. The feathered
tribe, with their beaks opened, their wings flapping or hanging
listlessly down; and panting for breath, like ourselves, sought in
vain a cool retreat. The horses stood with heads drooping before
their untasted provender. Amidst this universal stagnation of life,
the only sound which broke upon the horrid stillness, was the note
of the cuckoo ; it was the first time I had ever heard it in India, and
its cheerful sound, together with the associations it awakened, pro-
duced a delightful relief from torments which could not long be
endured. We invariably remarked that the bird opened his note at
the period of greatest heat, about two o’clock in the day, and con-
tinued during intervals for about an hour, when he changed his
quarters and quitted us. I afterwards became more familiar with
this bird, and every day in the hot weather at Oodipoor, when I
resided in one of the villas in the valley, I not only heard but fre-
quently saw it.*

The reader can easily conceive the scene of our encampment; it
was at the north-eastern angle of the lake, having in front
that little fairy islet with its light Saracenic summer abode.
Gardens fringed the base of the embankment, which was bordered
with lofty trees ; the extended and gigantic circumvallation, over
the parapets of which peeped the spires and domes of temples or
mosques, breaking the uniformity, and occasionally even shewing
the distant and elevated land beyond the Chumbul. We had also
close to us a spot sacred to the manes of the many heroes of this
noble family. I frequented the cenotaphs of the Haras, which, if
less magnificent than those of Marwar or Mewar, or even of the
head of their line of Boondl, may vie with them all in the recollec-
tions they conjure up of patriotism and fealty, and of the deadly
rancour attendant on civil strife. This cluster of monuments
approaches near to the city wall, but is immediately under the dam
of the lake, and being enveloped in foliage, almost escapes observa-
tion. I was rejoiced to see the good order in which they were main-
tained, which was another of the anomalies in the Regent's character :
for what can so much keep alive the proud spirit of the Haras as
these trophies of their sires ? But whatever the motive of the act,
it is a tribute to virtue ; nor could I resist an exclamation of respect

* In almost every respect like a sparrovr-bawk, perhaps a little more
elongated and elegant in form ; and tbe beak I think Tras straight.

[Vol. II.] 77

610

PERSONAL NARRATIVE.

[OHAP. VII.

to the veteran Regent, who is raising a monument to the last prince,
which, if it survive to distant times, will afford room to some future
traveller to say, that, with Maharao Omdd Sing, Retail appears to
have attained the summit of its power. JSTor should I deny myself
the praise of having something to do with this harmless piece of
vanity ; for I procured for the Regent free permission from the
Rana of Mdwar to take from the marble quarry at Kankerowli what-
ever suited his purpose, without price or duty: a request- he was
too proud to make himself since their ancient quarrel. We had
also the range of Madhfi Sing’s magnificent gardens, of many acres
in extent, abounding in exotic flowers and fruits, with parterres of
rose trees, each of many roods of land. But what were all these
luxuries conjoined, with cholera morbus, and tup-tezarra ,, 'tertian
fever/ and every other fever, around us ? But even these physical
ills were nothing compared to the moral evils which it was my duty
to find remedies for or to mitigate; and they were never adveited
to in the many despatches addressed, during our residence in this
petit enfer, to supreme authority.

The enthusiast may imagine how delightful travelling must be
amongst such interesting races'; to visit the ruins of ancient great-
ness, and to read their history in their monuments ; to march along
the margin of such streams as the Chumbul or the Bhamuni ; to be
escorted by these gallant men, to be the object of their courtesy and
friendship, and to benefit the condition of the dependant class ; but
the price of this enjoyment was so high that few would voluntarily
pay it, namely, a perpetuity of ill-health. Fortunately, however,
for ourselves and our country, if these offices are neither sinecures
nor beds of roses, we do not make them beds of thorns ; there is a
heart-stirring excitation amidst such scenes, which keeps the powers
of mind and body alert : a feeling which is fortunately more conta-
gious than cholera, and communicable to all around. How admirably
was this feeling exemplified tShis morning ! ,Could my readers but
have beheld the soldiers of my escort and other establishments, as
•they were ferried over the Chumbul, he would have taken them for
ghosts making the trajet of the Styx ; there was not one of them
who had not been in the gripe of pestilential fever or ague. Some
of them had had choleras aud half of them had enlarged spleens.
Yet, although their muskets were too heavy for them, there were
neither splenetic looks nor peevish expressions. It was as delight-
ful as it was wonderful to see the alacrity, even of the bed-ridden,
to leave their ills behind them east of the Chumbul.

Scarcely any place can be more unhealthy than Kotah during
the monsoon. With the rise of the Chumbul, whose waters filtrate
through the fissures of the rock, the wells are filled with mineral
poison aud the essence of decomposed vegetation. All those in the
low ground at our first encampment were overflowed from this
cause ; and the surface of each was covered with an oily pellicle of
metallic lustre, whose colours were prismatic, varying, with position
or reflection, from shades of a pigeon’s breast (which it most

PEKSONAL NARRATIVE;

611 -

CHAP. VII.]

resembled), to every tint of blue blending witli gold. It is tbe same
at Oodipoor during tbe periodical rains, and -with similar results,
intermittent and tertian fevers, from which, as I said, not a man,
European or native, escaped. They are very obstinate, and tbougb
not often fatal, are difficult to extirpate, yielding only to calomel,
wbicb perhaps generates a- train of ills.

Tbe last few days of our stay were passed in tbe ceremonials of
leave-taking. On the 5tb, in company with tbe Regent;, I paid my
last visit to tbe Maharao, wbo with bis brothers returned my fare-
well visit tbe day following ; and on the 8th and 9th tbe same
formalities were observed with tbe Regent. Tbe man who bad
passed through such scenes as tbe reader has perused, now at tbe
very verge of existence, could not repress bis sorrow. His orbless
eyes were tilled with tears, aud as I pressed bis palsied bands which
were extended over me, tbe power of utterance entirely deserted
him. I would expunge this, if I did not know that vanity has no
share in relating what I consider to be a virtue in tbe Regent. I
have endeavoured to paint bis character, and could not omit this
trait. I felt be bad a regard for me, from a multitude of kind
expressions, but of their full value waB always doubtful till this day.

I did not get down to tbe point of embarkation for some hours
after my suite, having been detained by tbe irresistible bold of ague
and fevei', tbougb I started before tbe hot-fit bad left me. The
Regent bad prepared tbe grand barge, wbicb soon landed me on tbe
opposite bank ; but Futteh Bahadoor, my elephant, seemed to prefer
bis present quarters to Oodipoor *. after bis howda, pad, and other
gear, bad been taken off and put into tbe boat, he plunged into the
Chumbul with delight, diving in tbe deepest water, and making a
water-spout of bis proboscis. He bad got a third of tbe way across,
when a new female elephant, less accustomed to these crossings,
turned back, and, Futteh Bahadoor, regardless of bis master, was so
gallant as to go after her. In vain the mahout (driver) used his
fursi, digging it into bis bead behind the ear ; this only exasperated
tbe animal, and be made one or two desperate efforts to shake off.
bis pigmy driver. Fortunately (being too weak to mount a horse),
I found a baggage-elephant just beginning to be loaded ; I put my
howda upon her, and the ‘ victorious warrior 5 suffered tbe indignity
of carrying a load..

We passed tbe town of Kunarie, belonging to Raj Golaub Sing,
Jhala, a relation of tbe Regent, and one of tbe Omras of Kotah. It
is a thriving comfortable place, and tbe pinnacled mahl of tbe Raj
gave to it an air of dignity as well as of tbe picturesque. Our route
to Nandta was over a rich and highly-cultivated plain, studded with
mango-groves ; wbicb do not surprise us, since we know it is tbe
family estate of the Regent. .The patrimonial abode is, therefore,
much 'cherished, and is the freguent residence of bis son Madhij Sing,
by whom I was met half-way between Kunarie, and conducted to
the family dwelling.

[Von II.] 77a

612

PERSONAL 1 NARRATIVE.

[CHAP. VII.'

Nandta is a fine specimen of a Rajpoot baronial residence. We
entered through a gateway, at the top of which was the nobui-
hhaneh , or saloon for the band, into an extensive court having colon-
naded piazzas all round, in which the vassals were ranged. In the
centre of this area was a pavilion, apart from the palace, surrounded
by orangeries and odoriferous. flowers, with- a jet-d’eau in the middle,
whence little canals conducted the water aud kept up a perpetual
verdure. Under the arcade of this pavilion, amidst a thousand wel-
comes, thundering of cannon, trumpets, and all sorts of sounds, we
took our seats; aud scarcely had congratulations passed and the area
was cleared of our escorts, when, to the .sound of the tabor and
saringt , the sweet notes of a Punj&bl tuppa saluted our ears. There
is a plaintive simplicity in this music, which denotes originality, and
even without a knowledge of the language, conveys a sentiment to
-the most fastidious, when Warbled in the impassioned manner which
some of these syrens possess. While the Mahratta delights in the
dissonant droopud !, which requires a rapidity of utterance quite sur-
prising, the Rajpoot reposes in his tuppa, which, conjoiued with hiB
opium, creates a paradise. Here we sat, amidst the orange-groves of
Nandta, the jet-d’cau throwing a mist between us and the groupe,
whose dark tresses, antelope-eyes, and syren-notes, were all thrown
away upon the Prank, for my teeth were beating time from the
ague-fit.

It was in this very area, now filled with the youth and beauty of
Kotab, that the Regent exhibited his wrestlers ; and it was from the
very seat I occupied, that Sri-ji ofBoondi challenged these ruffians
to the encounter related in the annals. Having sat a quarter of an
Hour, in obedience to the laws of etiquette, and' in courtesy to the
son of the Regent, who had come thus far to escort me, we took
leave and hastened to get a cup of tea.

Talera, September 11th. — Two miles north-west of Nandta we
passed the boundary of the Regent’s estate and the Boondl territory.
The roads were good, over a well-cultivated and well-wooded plain,
the cotton particularly thriving. Talera is a large village on the
margin of a fine clear stream, its banks delightfully wooded, abound-
ing in fish, which even tempted my invalid friends to try their luck.
Talera is in the jageer of the vakeel who attends me on the part of
the Boondl Raja, but is still a heap of ruins, and being on the high
road, is open to parties of troops.

Noagong, February 12th. — The road very fair, though a little
winding, to avoid some deep ravines. The land, rich, well-watered,
and too much wooded ; but man is wanting to cultivate the fertile
waste. The encamping ground afforded not a single tree to_ screen
us from a scorching sun. We passed two cenotaphs, where Rajpoots-
had. fallen ; but there was no inscription, and no One could reveal
their history.

Boondi, September 13th. — The country and roads, as usual, fiat,
"With an apparent descent from Talera to the base of the Boondl

612 PERSONAL'. NARRATIVE;. [CHAP. . VII,'

Nandta is a. fine specimen- oba Rajpoot baronial- residence. We -
entered through a* gateway, at' the: top ofwhich was the nobut-
hhaneh, or saloon for: the Band; into an extensive court having colon-
naded piazzas all round, in which the vassals were ranged, lu-tho
centre. of this areaiwas a pavilion> apart' from the palace, surrounded
by orangeries and odoriferous-flowers/with-ayef-d'eau in. the middle,
whence little canals conducted, the. water and kept up a perpetual
verdure. Under the arcade of this pavilion, amidst a thousand wel-
comes, thundering of cannon, ..trumpets, and all. sorts of sounds, we
took our seats; and scarcely had congratulations passed and the area,
was cleared of pur escorts, when, to the sound of the.tabor and-
saringi, the sweet notes of a Panj&bi tuppa saluted our ears. • There,
is a plaintive simplicity in this music, which denotes: originality, and
even without a knowledge of the language, conveys. a sentiment to.
-the most fastidious, when warbled in the impassioned manner which
some of these syrens possess. While the; Mahratta. delights in the
dissonant droopud, which requires a. rapidity of utterance quite sur-
prising, the Rajpoot, reposes in his. tuppa,, which, conjoined with his j
opium, creates a paradise. . Here wa sat,, amidst the orange-groves of
Nandta,, the jet-d’eau throwing, a mist between us and the.gyoupe,
whose dark tresses, antelope-eyes, and syren-notes, were all thrown
away- upon the Prank, for my teeth were beating time from the
ague-fit'. ' .

It was in this very area,, now filled with the youth and beauty of
Kotah, that the Regent exhibited his wrestlers.;. and - it was from the
very seat I occupied, that Sri-ji of Bbondi challenged' these ruffians
to the encounter related in the annals. Having sat: a quarter of an
hour,, in obedience to the laws of etiquette, and* in courtesy to the:;
son- of' the' Regent, who had come:, thus far to escort' me, we: took
leave and hastened to get a cup of tea.

Talera, September 1 lth.— Two miles/ north-west of Nandta we
passed the boundary of the Regent's estate and the Boondi territory..
The roads were good, over a well-cultivated and well-wooded plain!)
the cotton particularly thriving. Talera is- a largo village on tho
margin of a fine clear stream, its banks delightfully wooded, abound-
ing in fish, which even tempted my invalid friends to try their luck.
Talera is in the jageer of the vakeel who attends me on the part, of,
the Boondi Raja, but is still a heap of ruins, and being on the high
road, is open to parties of troops. ' ;

Noagong, February 12th. — The road very fair, though a little
winding, to avoid some deep, ravines. The land rich, well-watered,,
and too much wooded;, but man is wanting to, cultivate the fertile
waste. The encamping ground afforded not a single tree to screen
us from a scorching sun, "We passed two cenotaphs, where Rajpoots
had fallen; but there was no inscription, and no one could reveal
their history.

Boondi, September 13th. — The country and roads, as usual, flat,
with an apparent descent- from Talera to the base of tho Boondi

CHAP.. VII.];

PERSONAL NARRATIVE.

613

range, whose craggy and unequal summits shewed it could be no
buttress to the table-land with which it unites. The general direc-
tion of the rauge is east-north-east, though there are diverging
ridges, the course of which it is impossible to delineate.

As we neared the capital of the Haras, clouds of dust, gradually
obscuringthe atmosphere, were the first signal of the Raja’s approach :
soomthe sound of, drums, the clangour of trumpets, and tramping of
steeds, became audible, and at length the Sdiulni-asivars, or camel-
messengers, announced the Raja’s presence. He was on horseback.
Instantly I dismounted from my elephant, and although too weak to
contend with the fire of my steed Javadia, it would have been an
unpardonable sin against etiquette to have remained elevated above
the prince. All Javadia’s warlike propensities were awakened at
the stir of this splendid retinue, from which ever and anon some
dashing young Hnra issued, “ witching the world with noble horse-
“ manship j” and as, in all the various evolutions of the manage,
there was not a steed in Raj warm could surpass mine, to my vast
inconvenience and no small danger’, he determined on this occasion
to shew them off. In one of his furious bounds, he had his fore-
feet on the broken parapet of a reservoir, and as I turned him short,
he threw up his head, which came in contact with mine, and made
my Ghabookswar exclaim, “ Alt muclat /” “ the help of Ali !” and a
few more bounds brought me in contact with my friend, the Rao
Raja,, when we dismounted and embraced. After going through
the same ceremony with the principal chiefs, he again gave me three
fraternal hugs to prove the strength of his friendship, as he said,,
with blunt sincerity, “ this is your home, which you have come to at
” last.” With other affectionate welcomes, he took leave audpreceded’
me. His retinue was striking, but not so much from tinsel'
ornament, as from the joyous feeling which pervaded every part of'
it. As my friend twirled his lance in the midst of about eight
hundred cavaliers and fifteen huudred foot, I thought of the deeds
his ancestors had< performed, when leading such a gole, to maintain
their reputation for fealty. It recalled his words on the formation
of the treaty, when the generosity of Britain again restored his
country to independence. ” What can I say, in return for the
“ restoration of my home ? My ancestors were renowned in the.

“ time of the kings, in whose service many lost their lives ; and the
“ time may come when I may evince what I feel, if my services should -
“ be required : for myself, my chiefs, are all your’s !” I would pledge
my existence that performance would not have lagged behind his
promise. We allowed a quarter of an hour to elapse, in order to
avoid the clouds of dust which a Rajpoot alone can breathe without ..
inconvenience ; and accompanied by ray worthy and dignified old’
friend, the Maharaja Bikramajeet, we pi’oceeded to our tents, placed’
upon the bank of a tank beyond the town.

The coup cl’ceil of the castellated palace of Boondi, from which-
ever side you approach it, is perhaps the most striking in India.

614

PERSONAL NARRATIVE.

[OHAP. VII.

Throughout Raj war r a, which boasts manyfine palaces, the "Boondi-
“ ca-mahl” is allowed to possess the first rank ; for whicli it is
indebted to situation, not less than to the splendid additions which
it has continually received : for it is an aggregate of palaces, each
having the name of its founder ; and yet the whole so well har-
monizes, and the character of the architecture is so uniform, that its
breaks or fantasies appear only to arise from the peculiarity of the
position, and serve to diversify its beauties. The Chutter-mahl, or
that built by Raja Chutter Sal, is the most extensive and most
- modern addition. It has two noble halls, supported by double-
ranges of columns of serpentine from hia own native quarries, in
which the vassals are ranged, and through whose ranks you must
pass before you reach the state apartments; the view from which is
grand. Gardens are intermingled with palaces raised on gigantic
terraces. In one of these I was received by the Raja, on my visit
the next day. Whoever has seen the palace of Boondi, can easily
picture to himself the hanging-gardens of Semiramis. After wind-
ing up the zig-zag road, I passed by these halls, through a vista of
the vassals, whose contented manly looks delighted me, to the inner
palace ; when, having conversed on the affairs of his country for
some time, the Raja led the way to one of the terraces, where I was
surprised to find a grand court assembled, under the shade of im-
mense trees, tvelissed vines, and a fine marble reservoir of water.
The chiefs and retainers, to the number of at least a hundred, were
drawn up in lines, at the head of which was the throne. The pros-
pect was fine, both for near and distant views, as it includes the
lakes called the Jeit Sagur and Prem-Sagur, with the gardens on
their margins, and in the distance the city of Kotah, and both hanks
of the Chumbul ; and beyond these successive terraces and mahals,
to the submit of the hill, is seen the cupola of the DJiabhde’s tomb,
through the deep foliage, rising above the battlements of Tarragurh.
This terrace is on a grand bastion, which commands the south-east
gorge of the valley leading to the city; and yet, such is the
immense mass of building, that from the town one has no idea of its
size.

It were vain to attempt a description of Boondi, even were I
inclined. It was the traitor of Kurwar who raised the walls of Tar-
ragurb, and it was Raja Boodh Sing who surrounded the city with
walls, of which Omdd Sing used to say “ they were nob required
<c agaiust an equal foe, and no defence against a superior, — and only
“ retarded re-conquest if driven out of Boondi, whose best defence
“ was its hills.”

September 21sf. — Partly by business, partly by sickness, we # were
compelled to halt here a week. Our friend the doctor, who had
.been ailing for some time, grew gradually worse, and at length gave
himself up. Cary found him destroying his papers and making
his will, and came over deeply affected. I left my bed to reason
with my friend, who refused all nourishment, and was sinking fast

PERSONAL NARRATIVE.

CHAP. VII. p

ffl

but; as much from .depresssion of spirits as disease. In vain I used
tbe common arguments to rouse him from his lethargy ; I then .tried,
as the last resort, to excite ‘his anger, and reviled him for" giving
way, teljing him to teach by example as well as precept. By this
course, I raised a tinge of blood in my poor friend's cheek, and what
was better 1 , got a tumbler of warm jelly down his throat ; and
appointing the butler. Kali Khan, who was a favourite and hapL
great influence,’ to keep rousing and feeding him, I left him. No
sooner was he a little mended, than'" Cary took to his bed, and
nothing coulfl rouse him. But, as time passed, it was necessary to
get on j and with litters furnished by the Raja we re-commenced
’our journey.

, Sanies of the Maij River , September 2 6th, distance ten miles. — I
th,is day quitted my hospitable .friend, the Rao Raja. As I
Iqft my tent, I found the Mahraja of Thanoh, with the Dub-
laua contingent ( zabta ), amounting to a hundred horse, appoint r
ed to escort me to the frontier. Our route lay through the
Banda-ca-n&l) 1 the valley of Banda/ whose gorge near the
capital is not above four hundred yards in breadth, but
gradually expands until we reach Sitoor, about two miles distant.
On both sides of this defile are numerous gardens, and the small
temples and cenotaphs which crown the heights, in many places
well-wooded, produce a most picturesque effect. All these cenotaphs
are perfectly classical in form, being simple domes supported by
slender columns ; that of Sooja Bad is peculiarly graceful. As we
reached Sitoor, the valley closed our last view of the fairy palace of
the Karas, rearing its domes and gilded spires half-way up the
mountain, the Tcangras of Tarragurh encircling it as a diadem, whilst
the isolated hill of Meeraji, at the foot of which was the old city,
terminates the prospect, and makes Boondi appear as if entirely
shut in by rocks. Sitoor is a sacred spot in the history of the Haras,
and here’ is enshrined their tutelary divinity, fair Hope ( Asdpwnd ),
who has never entirely deserted them, from the sac& of Asi, Gowal-
coond, and Aser, to the present hour j and though the enchantress has
often exchanged her attributes for those of Kdlimci, the faith of her
votaries had survived every metamorphosis. A high antiquity is
ascribed to Sitoor, which they assert is mentioned in the sacred
books j if so, it is not in connexion with the Haras. The chief
temple is dedicated to Bhavam, of whom Asapiirna is an emanation.
Inhere is nothing striking in the structui’e, but it is hallowed by the
multitude of sacrificial altars to the manes of the Haras who have
‘ fallen in the faith of the Chetri.' There were no inscriptions, but
abundance of lazy drones of Brahmins enjoying their ease under the
wide-spreading burr and peepul trees, ready, when well-paid, to
prepare their incantations to Bhavam, either for good or for evil :
it is chiefly for the latter purpose, that Sitoor-ca-Bhdvani is cele-
brated. We continued our journey to Noagong, a tolerable village,
bub there being no good encamping ground, our tents were pitched
a mile farther on;Upon the bank of the Maij, whose turbid waters

6X6 PERSONAL NARRATIVE. [CHAP, Til,

were flowing with, great velocity from the accumulated mountain-
rills which, fall into it during the equinoctial rains.

Thanoh , September -nth. — This is the seat of Maharaja Sawunt
Sing, the eldest son of my friend Maharaja Bikramajeet of Kheenee.
He affords another instance in which the laws of adoption have
given the son precedence of the father, who, while he receives
homage in one capacity, must pay it in another ; for young Sawunt
was raised from the junior to the elder bx*anch of Thanoh. The
castle of Sawunt Sing, which guards the western frontier, is small,
hut of solid masonry, erected on the crest of a low hill'. There are
only six villages besides Thanoh forming his fief, which is burthened
with the service of twenty- five horse. In Boondi, ‘aknight J s fee/
or what should equip one cavalier, is two hundred and fifty rupees
of rent. In the afternoon, the Maharaja brought his son and heir
to visit me, a fine little fellow six years of age, who with his sword
buckled by his side and miuiature shield on his back, galloped his
little steed over hill and dale, like a true Rajpoot. I procured several
inscriptions, but none above three hundred years old.

Jehajpoor , September 28th. — At daybreak, I again found the
Maharaja at the head of his troop, ready to escort me to the frontier.
In vain I urged that he had superabundantly performed all the
duties of hospitality ; “ such were his orders, and he must obey
“ them.” I well knew the laws of the Medes were not more per-
emptory than those of Bishen Sing ; so we jogged on, beguiling the
time in conversation regarding the semi-barbarous race of the tract
I was about to enter, the Meenas of Jehajpoor and the EJr&r or
fastnesses of the Bunas, for ages the terror of the country, and who
had studded the plains with cenotaphs of the Haras, fallen in defend-
ing their goods and chattels against their inroads. The fortress of
Jehajpoor was not visible until we entered the pass, and indeed bad
nearly cleared it, for it is erected on a hill detached from the range
but on its eastern face, and completely guards this important point
of ingress to Mewar. This district is termed Chourdst , or consisting
of eighty -four townships, a favourite territorial subdivision : nor is
there any number intermediate between this and three hundred and
sixty. Jehajpoor, however, actually contains above a hundred
townships, besides numerous poor was, or ‘ hamlets/ The population
consists entirely of the indigenous Meenas, who could turn out four
thousand laimptas, or e bowmen/ whose aid or enmity were not to
be despised, as has been well demonstrated to Zalim Sing, who held
the district during fifteen years. t Throughout the whole of this
extensive territory, which consists as much of land on the plains as
in the hills, the Meena is the sole proprietor, nor has the Rana; any
property but the two tanks of Bood Lohari, and these were wrested,
from the Meenas by Zalim Sing during his tenure.*

^The indigenous Meena affords here an excellent practical illustration of
Menu s axiom, that) is the right in the soil belongs to him "who first cleared aud
* land" The Rajpoot conqueror claims and receives the tribute of

CHAP. VIII.]

PERSONAL NARRATIVE.

617

I was met at the frontier by the tynciti of Jehajpoor, headed
by the old chief of Bussie and his grandson Urjoon, of whom,
we have spoken in the journey to Kotah. _ It was a very respec-
table troop of cavalry, and though their appointments were not
equal to my Hara escort, it was satisfaetory.to see assembled, merely
at one post, a body which the Rnna two years ago could not have
collected round his own person, either for parade or defence: as a
beginning, therefore, it is good. Received also the civil manager,
Sobharam, the nephew of the minister, a very good man, but with-
out the skill to manage such a tract. He was accompanied by several'
of the Meena naiqucs, or chiefs. There is much that is interesting
here, both as matter of duty and of history; we shall therefore halt
for a few days, and rest our wearied invalids.

*

CHAPTER VIII.

^Extraordinary attach of illness in the author. — Suspicion of poison. — Journey
to Mandelgurh. — The Knar. — Tranquil state of the country. — The Aleenas
subsiding into peaceful subjects. — Scenery in the route . — Sabsun, or ecclesiasti-
cal lands.— Castle of Amergurh. — Rachowra, — Its ancient importance. — Our
true policy with regard to the feudatories in these parts. — Damnioh . —
Manpoora. — Signs of reviving prosperity . — Arrival at Mandelgurh. — The
Dnssera. — Sichness of the party left behind. — Assembly of the Bhomias and
Patels. — Description of Mandelgurh. — Rebuilt by ono of the Talcshao race . —
Legend of Mandelgurh. — Genealogical tablet of stone. — Pedigrees of the tribes,
— Mandelgurh granted to the Rahtores by Arungzbb. — Recovered by the liana.
— Taxes imposed. — Lavish grants. — Bageet. — The author rejoins his party . —
Bb'slaMs. — Aholah. — Desolation of the country. — Inscriptions. — Hamirgurh.
— Seoroh. — Superb landscape. — Mb age. — Testimony of gratitude from the
elders of Poor'h. — Thriving state of Morowlee. — Rasmy. — Antiquities . —
Curious laiu. — Jassmoh . — Waste country. — Inscriptions . — Copper mines . —
Sumvdr. — Tiiveni, or. point of junction of three rivers. — Temple of Parsiva-
nat’h. — Deserted state of the country. — Kurairah. — Mowlee. — Barren country •
— Hunting seat of Nahra-Muggra. — Heights of Toos and Mairta. — J End of
second journey.

Je/ictjpoor, October 1st. — My journalizing had nearly terminated
yesterday. Duncan and Cary being still confined to their beds, my

the soil, but were be to attempt to enforce more, he would soon be brought to
his senses by one of their various modes of self-defeuce — incendiarism, self-
immolation, or abandonment of the lands in a body. We have mystified a very
simple subject by basing our arguments on the arrangements of the Alnho-
medan couqueror. If we mean to follow’ his example, whose doctrine was the
law^)f the sword, let us do it, but we must not confound might with right :
consult custom aud tradition throughout India, where traces of originality yet
exist, and it will invariably appear that the right in the soil is in the cultivator,
who maintains even in exile the huh bap6td-ca-bhom r in as decided a manner
as any fieeholder in England. But Colonel Briggs has settled this point, to
those -who are not blinded by prejudice.

[Yon. II.]

78

618

PEESONAL NABEATIVE,

[CHAP. Till.

relative, Captain Waugh, sat down with me to dinner ; but fever
and ague having destroyed all appetite on my part, I was a mere
spectator. I had, however, fancied a cake of mulclit flour, but had
not oatou two mouthsful before I experienced extraordinary sensa-
tions ; my head seemed expanding to an enormous sizo, as if it alone
would have flUed the tent ; my tongue and lips felt tight and
swollen, and although I underwent no alarm/ nor suffered the
slightest loss of sense, I deemed it the prelude to one of those violent
attacks, which have assailed me for several years past, and brought
me to the verge of death. I bogged Captain Waugh to leave me;
hut ho had scarcely gone before a constriction of the throat came
on, and I thought all was over. I rose up, however, and grasped
the tent-pole, when my relative re-entered with the surgeon. I
beckoned them not to disturb my thoughts, instead of which they
thrust some ether and compounds down my throat, which operated
with magical celerity. I vomited violently ; the constrictum ceased;
I sunk on my pallet, and about two in the morning I awoke, bathed
in perspiration, and without a remnant of disease. It was difficult
to account for this result : the medical oracle fancied I had been
poisoned, but I was loth to admit. If the fact were so, the poison
must have been contained in the cake, and as it would have been too
great a risk to retain the person who prepared it, the baker was
discharged. It was fortunate that the symptoms were such as to
induce Captain Waugh to describe them so fully, and it was still
more fortunate for me that the doctor was not ablo to go out with
his fishing-rod, for the whole transaction did not last five minutes.
This is about the fourth time I have been “ upon the brink”
[canari ponchd) since I entered Mdwar.

Kujoori , October 2d . — Left my sick friends this morning to nurse
each other, and having an important duty to perform at Mandelgurb,
which is out of the direct route, appointed a rendezvous where I
shall meet them when this work is over. I was for the first time
compelled to shut myself up in m y jialki; incessant fever and ague
for the last two months have disorganised a frame which has had to
struggle with many of these attacks. We are uow iu what is termed
the ICir&r , for so the tract is named on both banks of the Bunas to
the verge of the plateau ; aud my journey was through a little nation
of robbers by birth and profession : but their Jcumjptas (bows) were
unstrung, aud their arrows rusting in the quiver. Well may our
empire iu the east be called one of opinion, when a solitary indivi-
dual of Britain, escorted by a few of Skinner's horse, may journey
through the valley of Kujoori, where, three short years ago, every
crag would have concealed an ambush prepared to plunder him !
At present, I could by signal have collected four thousand bowmen
around me, to protect or to plunder ; though the Meenas, finding
that their lights are respected, are subsiding into regular tax-paying
subjects, and call out with their betters “ Utul Raj !” {“ May your
u sway be everlasting !”) We had a grand convocation of the Meena
Naiques , and, in the Rana's name, I distributed crimson turbans and

Q54P. VIII,]

PERSONAL NARRATIVE,

619

scarfs ; for 'as through our mediation the Rana had just recovered
the district of Jehajgurh, he charged me with its settlement. I
found theso Meenas true children of nature, who fur the first time
seemed to feel they were received within the pale of society, instead
of. being considered as outcasts. “ The heai’t must leap kindly back
“ to kindness/’ is a sentiment as powerfully felt by the semi-barbarians
of the Kirar as by thb more civilized habitants of other climes.

Our route was through a vary narrow valley, little susceptible of
cultivation, though a few patches were visible near the hamlets,
scattered here and there. The scene was wild, and the cool morning
air imparted vigour to my exhausted frame. The slopes of the valley
in many places are covered with trees to the very summit of the
mountains, on which the Icoorlceroo or wild cock was crowing his
matins, and we were in momentary expectation of seeing some beai’s,
fit associates of the Meenas, in their early promenades. As we
approached Kujoori, the valley widened, so as to admit of its being
termed a township of fifty-two thousand beegas, which afforded
another proof of ancestral wisdom, for it was in sahsun , or grant to
the Brahmins : but the outlaws of the Kir&r, though they sacrifice a
tithe of their plunder to f our Lady of the Pass' (Ghatta Rani), have
little consideration for the idlers of the plains. This feeling is not
confined to the Meenas ; for the Bhomia Rajpoots, despising all the
anathemas of the church, have seized on the best lands of Kujoori.
But only a small portion of the bawuna (fifty-two thousand), about
seventeen thousand English acres, is arable.

Kcichola, or Kachowra , October 8 d. — Execrable roads ! Our route
continued through the same valley, occasionally expanding 1 to the
westward. Half-way, we passed the baronial castle of Amergurh,
whose chief, Rawut Dulleel Sing, is now on duty with his quota at
Jehajpooi-, but his uncle PaMr Sing, who is a great favourite with
our party (by whom he is known as f the mountain-lion') came to
"meet and conduct me to the castle. But I was too unwell, or should
on many accounts have desired to visit this somewhat celebrated
abode of one of the Babas ( infants ) of Mewar, whose feud I main-
tained for him against his potent neighbour of Shahpoora, which
has elsewhere been related.* It is quite unassailable, being built on
an isolated rock, and, except by a circuitous path on one side, there
is no passage through the dense jungle that surrounds it : a mode of
fortifying recommended by Menu, but which, if universally followed
in this land so studded with fortresses, would waste no small portion
of the sovereignty. I was quite satisfied with this view of the
castle of Dulleel, and enjoyed from the point of descent a noble
prospect. In the foreground is the cenotaph of Rana Ursi, in the
centre of the valley, which extended and gradually opened towards
Mandelgurh, whose blue ridge was distinctly visible in the distance.
The hills to the right were broken abruptly into masses, and as far as
the eye could stretch on every side, were disordered heaps of gigantic

[Ton. IL]

* See Yol. I, p. 162.

78a

620

PERSONAL NARRATIVE.

[CHAP. VIII,

rocks. To reclaim this district;, the largest in Mo wav, I am now intent,
having convoked all the Bhomiaa and Patdls of its three hundred
and sixty townships at the chief city, Mandelgui’h. My friend,
Pak&r Sing, as locum tenens of his uncle, expended powder on the
occasion; and must have charged his patereroes to the mizzle.
Pah&r-ji joined me on his Panch-Kalidn (so they term a horse with
four white legs and a white nose), and determined to escort me to
Maudelgurh ; a service, as he said, not only due from his family, hut
in accordance with the commands of his sovereign the Rana, of
whom Pah&r was a faithful, zealous, and valiant supporter during
his adversity. The Bhomias of Mandelgurh,iufact, generally deserve
the praise of having maintained this strong-hold without either
command or assistance throughout the whole period of his misfor-
tunes.

Kackowra is a township rated at six thousand rupees of annual
revenue in the rent-roll of Me war, but is nowau inconsiderable village.
In former times, it must have been a place of importance, for all
around, to a considerable distance, the ground is strewed with frag-
ments of sculpture of a superior character, and one spot is evidently
the site of the cenotaphs of the family. The town had stood on the
western bank of an immense lake, which through neglect is now a
swamp ; and, half-way up the hill, are disclosed, amidst the brush-
wood of the dho, the ruins of a temple : but tradition has perished
with the population, who were subjected at once to the curse of
constant foreign invasion and the inroads of the Meenas of the Kir&r.
Thus a soil, whose richness is apparent from the luxuriance of its
meadows, is in a state of entire desolation. Kackowra forms the
putta, of Shahpoora iu this district, whose chief’ has to serve two
masters, for he is a tributary of Ajmer for Shahpoora, itself a fief of
Mewar, and holds au estate of about forty thousand rupees of annual
rent in Maudelgurh, which has been two years under sequestration
for his refusal to attend the summons to Oodipoor, and for his
barbarous murder of the chief of Amergurh.* This is a state of
things which ought not to exist. When we freed these countries
from the Mahrattas, we should have renounced the petty tributes
imposed upon the surrounding chiefs not within the limits of the
district of Ajmer, and the retention of which is the source of irritat-
ing discussions with these princes through the feudatories. Presum-,
ing on this external influence, the Shahpoora Raja set his sovereign's
warrant at defiance, and styled himself a subject of Ajmdr ; nor was
it until he found he was bound by a double tie of duty, that he
deigned to appear at the capital. The resumption of the
estate in Maudelgurh alone overcame the inertness of the chief
of Shahpoora; he has already too much iu the Qhoitr&si , or eighty-
four townships of Shahpoora, for such a subject as he is, who prefers
a foreign master to his legitimate lord. I would recommend that the
Rahtore chiefs of Marwar, beyond the Aravulli hills, now tributary

* See Yol. I, p. 163.

CHAP. VIII.]

personal narrative.

621

to Ajmer, apd wlio consequently only look to that state, should be
replaced under their proper head : the sacrifice is of no moment to
us, and to them it will be a boon.

Damnioh , 9th October. — I was detained at Kachowra by a violent
accession of fever and ague, as well as spleen, increased no doubt by
the unhealthiness of the position amidst swamps and jungle. This
is a' fine healthy spot, where I should like to convene the bhomias
and ryots, to endeavour to remove the reproach of so beautiful a land
remaining waste. Damnioh, which is in the sequestrated putta of
Shahpoora, is a town of two thousand houses ; a universal ruin !

Manpoora, 15th. — After a week’s halt, reached this spot, about a
mile soutfi-west of the town, and on the bank of the Bunas.* The
entire population of Manpoora turned out to receive me; the damsels
with their brazen vessels of water on their heads ; but the song of
the Suhailea had ceased to charm, and my ague made me too ill even
to return their kindness. To-day it has abated, and^to-morrow, with,
another respite, I will try to get through the work which brought
me here. Mandelgurh is three coss from hence. I was rejoiced to
see the signs of reviving prosperity about Manpoora; some fine
patches of sugar-cane were refreshing sights.

Mandelgurh, 1 5th and nth . — Proceeded up the valley and
encamped within half a mile of the city, from which the governor and
his cortege came to meet and welcome me ; but I was too enfeebled
to ascend the fort, which was a subject of regret. It is by no means
formidable, and may be about four furlongs in length, with a low
rampart wall, and bastions encircling the crest of the hill. The
governor’s residence appears on the west side, at which spot the
Regent of Kotah' was compelled to abandon his ladders, which they
retain as a trophy. This is the festival of the Dussera, the day sacred
to Rama ; but feasting is lost upon me, for this is the ninth day of
abstinence from dinner. Captain Waugh rejoined me yesterday,
looking very ill, ‘and giving a poor account of my friends, especially
Cary, who is sinking rapidly. He left them encamped at Bageet, the
point of rendezvous in the Bunas where I shall join them to-morrow.
He found me on my charpae (pallet), with some threescore leeches
(which I had got from Mandelgurh) on my left side,f while I was
attending to and noting down the oral reports of the Bhomias and
'Patdls of the district, who filled my tent, many remaining in groupes
outside. I notwithstanding got through the work to my satisfac-
tion, and have obtained a thorough insight into the agricultural details
of this fine tract, which I may touch upon, if I am able, the first halt.

* By mistake, Manpoora is not rightly placed in the map.
t Enlargement of the spleen appears an invariable accompaniment of pro-
tracted fever and ague, arising from such causes as afflicted us. I could feel the
spleen at the very pit of the stomach, as hard as a stone. The bleeding reduced
it, as it did generally iu my case ; for the leeches were enormous, and must
have each draiued half an ounce of blood; but I had only the choice of
them or the actual cautery, which was strongly recommended by my native
friends: of two evils I chose what appeared to me the least.

622

•PERSONAE NARRATIVE.

[CHAP. TUI.

Mandelgurh ms rebuilt by a chief of the B&lnote tribp, onq of the
ramifications of the Solanki or CKalook -race, -which furnished a
splendid dynasty of kings to Anhulwarra (Nchr walla) Patun, who
rpled over the western maritime provinces of India from the tenth
to the fourteenth, century. They were of. the great Takshac or
Ophite race, which, with three other tribes, became converts to
Brahminism. The Balnote of Mandelgurh was a branch of the'family
which occupied Tonk-Thoda on the Bunas, recognized in their tradi-
tional poems as Takshac, or, in the dialect, Takftpoora, c city of the
Takshac, or snake.’* Although, tradition asserts that the Solanki of
Thoda migrated from Patun during the religious wars in the twelfth
century, it is more probable that'the branch fixed itself here during
their progress from tho north in search of settlements ;* for, their
genealogical creed assigns Lokote, in the Punjab, as the cradle of*
their power. It is indeed a curious fact, amounting to demonstration
of the Indo-Scythic origin of the Agnicula races, that they all lay
claim to this northern origin, in spite of their entrance into the world
through the medium of fire ( agni ) .• in fact, the glorious egotism
the Brahman is never more conspicuous than when he asserts tl
superiority of the Chohans over the more ancient races of Surya ar
Soma ; that “ these were born of women, but they were made by tl
“ Brahmins a proof of conversion which requires no comment. ]
spite of this fabled birth at the fountain-head, the Anhulcoond ■
Aboo, tradition negatives the assumed pedigree of the Brahmins, ar
brings them all from the north. Be this as it may, the branch whit
fixed itself at Mandelgurh gave its name to the tract, which is st:
l-ecognized by some as Balnote. The first possession the founder In
was Larpoora, a town of great antiquity. He had in his service
Bhil, named Maudoo, who, while guarding the sugar-cane from tl
wild hog, came upon one' sound asleep. To ensure his arrow piercin
the animal, he began to sharpen it upon a stone ; and, to h
astonishment, found it transmuted to gold. He repaired to his mnste
who returned with Mundoo, and found the stone, with the he
still asleep beside it but no sooner bad he seized upon his priz
than Bar aha disappeared. "With the possession of the paris-putti
the f philosopher’s stone,’ he raised the walls of Mandelgurh, whic
was so named after the fortunate Bhil. By an act of injusth
to one of his subjects, he forfeited Maudelgurh to a descendan
This subject was a Jogi, who bad a mare of such extraordinai
speed as to be able to run down an antelope. Whether the Ba
note prince thought the sport unsuitable to an ascetic we are n<
told ; but he forcibly took away the mare. The Jogi complained i
the king, who sent a force and expelled the Balnote from Maude
gurh, and his descendants are petty Bhomias at Jawul and Had
rode, retaining, though mere peasants, the distinctive title of Ba<

* Tonk-Tlioda is well worth visiting. The artist might fill a portfolio wil
architectural and picturesque sketches. Moreover, topazes of a good quality
found in its hills. The sacred cave of Gokurno, celebrated in the history of tl
great Chohan king, Besildeo of Ajmer, i3 also worth notice.

CHAP. VIII.]

PEKSONAL NABEATIVE.

623

The numerous stories of this kind, common throughout Rajwarra,
accounting for the foundation of many ancient places, may merely
record, in this mauner, the discovery of mineral wealth ; from the
acquisition and the loss of which the legendary moralist has con-
structed his tale. . •

I discovered in the remains of a marble bdwari, or reservoir, at
Kachowra, two large tablets, containing the pedigree of the Solanki
family, which will require timo to decipher. Tradition, however, is
busy with the name of Raja Bheem, and his son Bui’run of Anhul-
warra, from whom- many tribes branched off; and although, from
the first, only royal houses were founded, the other claims a greater
celebrity from originating a heterogeneous breed, which descended
into the third and fourth great classes, the Vaisya and Sudra.
Prom him the Bhagairwal Mahajins, who became converts to the Jain
faith, 'claim descent, as well as the Goojurs of Sonte-Katorioh, the
Soonurs , or goldsmiths, of Bonkun ; the Bhll communities of Oguna-
Panora (or Mewar) ; and likewise those of Mow-Maidana, in Kotah.
Whether from Burma and his degenerate offspring originated the
name of burrun-sankur, applied to the mixed classes, I amnot informed.
The Bhagairwal is one of the “ twelve and a half (sari bdra nyat)
<< castes of Mahajins/’ or mercantile tribes, subdivided into innumer-
able families, the greater portion of whom profess the Jain creed,
and nearly all are of Rajpoot ancestry : an important fact in the
pedigree of this considerable part of the population. The lineal
descendant of the Thoda Rao still I’esides at Bussie in a small village ;
aud two other branches, who held large possessions at Thodri and
Jehajpoor retain the villages of Mirckeakhaira and Butwarro, both
in Cheetore ; they have preserved the title of Rao amidst all the
revolutions that have deprived them of their estate ; nor would any
prince of Raj warm deem himself degraded by their alliance. Such
is the virtue of pedigree in these regions. I should imagine that
the Balnotes held of the Ran as of Mewar, as Mandelgurh has been
an integral portion of that state during the most flourishing period
of the Anhulwarra dynasty, although the inscription of Cheetore
savours of conquest ; in which case we have at once a solution of the
question, and proof that the Balnote was inducted into Mandelgurh
by his superior, Komarpal.*

In S.*1755 (A.D. 1699), the tyrant Arungzeb granted Mandelgurh
to the Rahtore chief of Pisangun, named Doodaji, who subdivided it
into allotments for his brethren, leaving no revenue for the duties of
the civil administration and repairs of the castle. To l’emedy this,
he imposed a tax, called ddotrd or dasotrd , or ‘ tenth/ of the net
value of each harvest, upon his Bhomia brethren. When the Rana
succeeded in expelling the royal garrison, he found it a work of some
difficulty to get rid of the Rahtore feudatories ; and he gave them
regular puttas for their estates, subject to the payment of dasotrd ;
but as he found it led to interference, in the inspection of crops, and

* Sea Inscription, Yol. I, p. 702.

624

PERSONAL NARRATIVE.

[chap, vnr.

to fluctuation and appeals in bad seasons, he commuted the tax for
service of one horseman and one foot-soldierr for each five hundred
rupees of rent, and a certain small sum annually to mark their
tributary condition.

In these times of turbulence, other impositions were laid on the
Bhomias of his own kindred, the Banawuts, Kanawuts, and
Suktawuts, who established their rights with their swords when the
district was subjected to the emperor. In the same manner as with
the Bahtores, the Bana confirmed their acquisitions on the payment
of certain fines called bhom-btirrur , which were either burzlcar and
iris old, or ‘ annual* and 1 triennial ; 5 the first being’ levied from the
holders of single villages, the latter from those who had more than
one. Thus, Amergurh was fixed at two thousand five hundred
rupees; Amuldoh, fifteen hundred; Teentoro, thirteen hundred;
Jhoonjralo, fourteen hundred, &c., triennially, having obtained their
lands by main force. They also, when Mandelgurh was threatened,
would repair with their vassals and defend it during ten days at
their own expense, after which they received rations from the state.
There were various other fines collected from the Bhomia vassalage,
such as lodsma, or for the support of the NalcarcMs (kettle-
drummers), the mace, standard, and even the torch-bearers attached
to each garrison. There was also khur-lakur, for wood and forage,
which has been elsewhere explained ; hal-burra, or ‘ plough-tax/ and
ghasmali , or e pasturage, 5 the rates of which are graduated, and vary
in amount with the power of enforcing their collections. But owing
to these circumstances, the best land in Mandelgurh belongs to the
Bhomia chieftains.

It was about this time, in the reign of Juggut Sing II, that
Omdd Sing of Shahpoora had the grant of seventy-three villages in
Mandelgurh, one-fifth of the whole district, subject only to the fine
of three thousand two hundred and fifty rupees annually for glw
mail, with five hundred more to the deputy governor, and two hun-
dred to the Ohoudri, or territorial head of the district. In this
lavish manner were estates disposed of. This family continued to
hold it until S. 1843, when the minister Somji, in order to obtain
his support during the Chondawut rebellion, gave him a formal
acquittance for this service, and in addition to'these lands, the two
subordinate fiefs of Daogermow and Borwah on the Plateau, and
the rich estate of Ageoncha on the Khari ; in return for which, he
exacted a stipulation to serve with four hundred horse : a contract
fulfilled only by one chief of the family, who fell leading his contin-
gent at the battle of Oojein. His descendants seem to have claimed
immunity on the score of his service; and the present incumbent is
a madman. Gieat changes, however, have recently been made in

the condition of the Bhomias, and these desultory fines have ajl
merged into a duty more accordant with the character of the Baj-
poot : service in the garrisons of Mandelgurh and Jehajpoor, and
a fixed annual sum from those who are top poor to command'even a
single horse.

CHAP. VIII.]

PERSONAL NARRATIVE.

625

Bagcet, ISHi, eight milo3. — A largo village on the west of our own
stream, the Bairis, coming from the Oodisagur. Our road lay over
a rich soil, as usual overgrown with grass. Hero I rejoined my
sick friends, all very ill ; the Doctor better, but Cary in a very
precarious condition-

Birslulus , 19tli. — The route over the most fertile plains of Mdwar ;
but ono continuous mass of jungle aud rank grass. The Maharaja
camo out to meet me, a courteous, polished Rajpoot. He is of the
Rauawut clan, descended from liana Umra Sing, and the elder
bi’auch of the Shahpoora family. Both his father and grandfather
Cell defeudiug the causo of Shah Jehau against tlio usurper Arung-
2 db, which lost him his birthright; but he has five villages left
attached to Birslabas. Encamped near tho altars of his heroic
ancestors.

Ambah, 2 b t, six and a-half miles. — The route over a scone of
desolation; fine fields, fruitful of grass and ruins. Sent one of my
Brahmins to tho town of Akolah, two coss distant, and had several
inscriptions copied; they were all immunities or grants of privileges
to tho printers of that town, thence called Oheepd-cd-A Icolah, to
distinguish it from anothor of tho same name. I halted at Birslabfls,
received several visits, aud held interesting conversations with the
Maharaja; but fever aud ague leave the mind in a sorry state. I
can pay no attention to barometer or perambulator ; of the latter
Baboo Mokes keeps a diary, and on his intelligence I cau depend.

Mamirgurlij 22 d . — This town belongs to Beerumdeo, Ranawut, #
the son of Dlieeruj Sing, who was the chief adviser of the Saloom-
bra princes in the rebellion of S. 18-13, during which he obtained it.
Tho present chief is an oaf, always intoxicated ; and as he did not
discharge tho haons } or professional thieves in his service, on the
ruturu of these days of peace, he was deprived of two towns
amounting to seven thousand rupees annual rent. He ought,
indeed, by the treaty of A. D. 1818, to have lost Hamirgurh, but he
contrived by various indirect means to elude it, and to retain this,
ono of tho most thriving places in Mewar. It contains about eight
huudred inhabited houses, tenanted chiefly by manufacturers of
chintz and dopattis , or 'scarfs/ such as are worn by all the Raj-
pootuis. It has a hue lake, filled with a variety of wild duck, which
livo unmolested amidst the sangam aud lotos. The more ancient
name of this placo is Bakrole, as I found by two inscriptions, which
again furnish specimens of sumptuary legislation.

Sednoh , 23d, eight miles aud three furlongs. — We are now in the
very heart of Mewar, plains extending - as far as the eye can reach.

' Traces of incipient prosperity are visible, but it will require years
to repair the mischief of the lust quarter of a century. Passed
through Ojhauoh, Amleo, Nereoh — all surrendered in consequence
of the treaty of A.D. 1818 : the last-mentioned, together with Sednoh,
from the "Red Riever,” as we have nicknamed the chieftain of
Bhadaisir. The prospect from this ground is superb : the Oodipoor
[Vor. II.] v 79

626

PERSONAL NARRATIVE.

[chap. VIII.

hills in the distance ; those o£ Poor’ll and Goorlah, with their cupo-
las, on oar right; the fantastic peak of Bnrrujc rising insulated
from the plain. We are now approaching a place of rest, which we
all much require ; though I fear Cary’s will be one of perpetuity.
Saw a beautiful Mirage ( see-lcote ) this morning, the certain harbinger
of the cold season. The ridge of Poor’h underwent athousand traus- -
formations, and the pinnacle of Burruk was crowned with a multi-
tude of spires. There is not a more delightful relaxation than to
watch the changes of these evanescent objects, emblems of our
own ephemeral condition. This was the first really cold morning.
The £>ztnc7iae£, or elders of Poor’h, with several of the most respect-
able inhabitants to the number of fifty, came all this way to see
me, and testify their happiness and gratitude ! Is there another
nook in the earth where such a principle is professed, much
less acted on ? Hear their spokesman’s reply to my question, “,why
“ did they take the trouble to come so far from home ?” I give it
verbatim : “ Our town had not two hundred inhabited dwellings
“ when you came amongst us ; now there are twelve hundred : the
“ Rana is our sovereign, but yCu are to us next to Purmesivar (the
“Almighty); our fields are thriving, trade is reviving, and we have
“ not been molested even for the wedding-portion.* We are happy,

“ and we have' come to tell you so ; and what is five coss, or five,
“hundred, to what you have done for us ?” All very true, my
friends, if you think so. After a little wholesome advice to keep
party feuds from the good town of Poor’h, they took leave, to return
. their ten miles on foot.

Since the town council left me, I have been kept until half-past
seven by the Baba of Mungrope, and the T’hakoor of Rawurdoh,
whose son I redeemed from captivity in the fortress of Ajmer Worn
out ; but what is to be done ? It is impossible to deny one’s self to
chiefs who have also come miles from the best motives. How for
coffee and the oharpatf.

Rasmy, 23d October. — The direct or usual route is thirteen and
a-hal£ miles, but as I unade a circuit by Morowlee, it was fifteen.
Had I taken the common route, I should have followed the Bunas
the whole way ; as it was, for the last half I skirted its low banks,
its limpid stream flowing gently to the north-east. Pound the
cultivation considerably increased compared with last year ; but it
is still a desert, overgrown with grass and bimshwood, in which these
little cultivated oases are “ few and far between.’’ Morowlee was
thriving in the midst of ruin, with fifty-seven ploughs at work;
there were but twelve when I entered Mewar, Rasmy has also
seventy families instead of the twenty I found ; and in a few years
I hope to see them greatly increased. We had some delicious trout
from the Bunas, some of them equal to what we caught last year at

* When the Rana was about celebrating simultaneously the marriage of two
daughters and a grand-daughter to the princes of Jessulmer, Bikajidr, and
Kishengurh, his subjects were called on for the “ tenth.”

CHAP. VIII.]

PERSONAL NARRATIVE.

627

Pohona, the largest of which weighed seventy-three rupees, or about
two pounds, and near seventeen inches long by nine in girth. My
friend Tom David Sfceuart was more successful than we were in
getting them to rise at the fly ; in revenge we took them, unsports-
manlike, in a net. This appears to be the season for eating them.

Basmy is a place of considerable interest, and tradition is at work
to establish its antiquity, connecting it with the name of Baja Ohund ;
but whether the Pr&mar of Chunderavati, or the Chohan of Abha-
nair, I cannot learn. There were vestiges of past days ; but even
in these regions, where to a certain extent they respect antiquity, I
find the ruined temples are despoiled, and appropriated to modern
fabrics. Amongst the groves of Basrny I found some fragments of
patriarchal legislation, prohibiting ff the ladies from carrying away
“ under their ghagra (petticoats) any portion of the sad, or village-
<c feast !” I also discovered a tablet raised by the collective inhabi-
tants of Basmy, which well illustrates the truth, that they had
always some resort against oppression. It runs as follows: “ Written
“ by the merchants, bankers, printers, and assembled punchaet of
“ Basmy — Whereas the collector of town-duties oppressed the
ce merchant by name Pakur, and exacted exorbitant duties on grain
“ and reza (unbleached cloth), for which he abandoned the place;
“ but the government-officer having forsworn all such conduct for the
" future, and prevailed on him to return, and having taken the god
“ to witness — we, the assembled 'punch , have set up this stone to
“ record it. Asar the 3d, S. 1819.’’

Fourteen years have elapsed since I first put my foot in Mewar,
as a subaltern of the Besident’s* escort, when it passed through
Basmy. Since that period, my whole thoughts have been occupied
with her history and that of her neighbours.

Jassmoh , 24th j distance fourteen miles, but not above twelve
direct. — This in past times was a township of celebi’ity, and in the
heart of the finest soil in India, with water at hand ; but it had not
a single habitation when we entered the country ; now, it has eighty
families. Our way for fourteen miles was through one wide waste of
untrodden plain; the Bunas continued our companion halfway,
when she departed for Guloond to our right. Saw many inscriptions,
of which we shall give an account hereafter. Passed the copper-
mines of Dureeba ; but they are filled with water, and the miners
are all dead.

$ unwar, 25th ; distance twelve and a half miles by the direct route
through Loueroh; but I made a circuit to visit the celebrated field
of battle between Bawul Samarsi, of Cheetore, and Bhola Bheem, of
Anhulwarra Patun, recorded by the bard Chund in his Rasa. This
magnificent plain, like all the rest of this once garden of Me'war, is
overgrown with the hesoola or plds, and lofty rank grass ; and the
sole circumstance by which it is known is the site. The bard

* My esteemed friend, Mr. Graeme Mercer, of Moevisbank.
[Tot. II.] * 79 a

628

PERSONAL NARRATIVE.

[chap. vm.

describes the battle as having occurred in Kkel~Kuraira or field of
Kuraii’a, and that tlie Solanki, on his defeat, retreated across the river,
meaning theBairis, which is a few miles to the south. A little way
from hence is the Sungum , or point of junction of the Bairis and
Bunas, which, with a third small stream, forms a invent ; at their
point of confluence there is an altar to Mahadeo.

At Kuraira there is a temple of some celebrity, dedicated to the
twenty-third of the Jain apostles, Parswanat’h. I found several
inscriptionsrecordingitsfoundationinS.il . . , and severalfrom 1800
to 1350. We must supply the figures wanting in the first. The
priests are poor and ignorant •, but they ai'e transcribing its history,
and such as it is it shall be given. The temple is imposing, and
though evidently erected in the decline of the arts, may be considered
a good specimen for the twelfth century. It consists of two
domes, supported by numerous massive columns of a species of
porphyry, of close texture, excessively hard, and taking a fine polish.
The capitals of the columns are filled with Jain figures of their pon-
tiffs. The domes are of nearly equal diameters, about thirty feet
each, and about forty in height ; under the further one is the sanc-
tum of Parswa, and the other within the votaries. There is a splen-
did colonnaded vestibule at the entrance, richly sculptured, which
gives a very grand appearance to the whole edifice ; but it stands in
the midst of desolation. Even thirty years ago, these plains were
covered with crops of jocir, in which an elephant would have been
lost } now there is scarcely the trace of a footpath, and with some
difficulty did I make way in my pallet (for I am unable to mount
my horse) through the high grass which completely ovei’topped it,
and the babool trees, the thorns of which annoyed us. Kuraira,
which formerly contained six hundred houses, has now only sixty •,
and more than half of these have been built since we came amongst
them. The damsels of Kuraira came out to welcome me with the
c song of joy/ and bringing water. The distance is seven miles from
Rasmy to Kuraira, and nine thence to Sun war. The latter belongs
to one of the infants ( bdbds ) of Mewar, the Mahraja Dowleb Sing,
now killehdar or commandant of Komulmer. This chief town of the
estate of my friend the Mahraja is but small, and in no flourishing
condition. There is a small fort, in which he contrived to maintain
himself against' the savage bands who long prowled over the coun-
try. — Transcribed an inscription, and found it to be the abolition of
a monopoly of tobacco, dated S. 1826.

Mdoiulee, 26 th , seven and a half miles. — As usual, all was barren
between Sunwar and Maowlee ; though at each are the traces of
reviving industry. This was formerly a considerable town, and rated
in the books at seven thousand rupees’ annual rent ; but now it yields
not seven hundred. Its population consists of about eighty families
of all classes, half of which have been recalled from their long exile
in Mai w a and Candeish, and have already given a new aspect to
Maowlee in its sugar-canes. Her highnesses* steward, however, is not

CHAP. VIII.]

PERSONAL NARRATIVE.

629

one o£ fclie faithful. There is a very fine bawari, or reservoir, of coarse
marble, constructed by Baeji Raj , e the royal mother’ of the present
Eana and his sister, in whose appanage it is. — An inscription, dated
S. 1737, recorded an ordinance in favour of the Jains, that “ the
“ oil-mill of Maowlee should not work on the four rainy months in
order to lessen the destruction of animal life.

Heights of Toos and Mairta, 27th , fourteen miles and a-half. — At
length there is an end to our disastrous journey ; and from this
ground I stir not again, till I start for Samoodra (the sea),
to embark for the land of my sires. Our route, as usual, over
desolate fields, doubly striking as we passed the hunting-seats
of Nahra-Muggra, or 'tiger mount.’ Baj raj, the royal steed, who
seemed instinctively to know he was at the end of his journey,
was unwilliug to quit the path and his companions, when I
urged him to pick his way amidst the ruined palace of the Eanas,
where, without metaphor, ff the owl stands sentinel and which
was crumbling into and choking up the Bhamuni, whose monoton-
ous murmur over these impediments increased the melancholy sen-
sations which arose on beholding such a scene. Every year is aiding
its rapid decay, and vegetation, fixing itself everywhere, rends its
walls asunder. The range of stabling for thirty horses, all of stone,
even to the mangers, is one extensive ruin. It was on this spot,
according to the chronicles, that the sage Harit bestowed the enchanted
blade upon the great sire of the Seesodias, eleven centuries ago ;
but they have run their career, and the problem remains to be solved,
whether they have to commence a new course, or proceed in the
same ratio of decay as the palace of the tiger-mount. The walls
around this royal preserve no longer serve to keep the game from
prowling where they please. A noble boar crossed our path, but
had no pursuers ; ‘ our blood was cold ;’ we wanted rest. As we
approached our old ground, my neighbours of Mairtq and villages
adjacent poured out to welcome our return, preceded by the dholi of
Toos and his huge kettle-drum, and the fail’, bearing their lootas, or
brazen vessels with water, chaunted the usual strain of welcome. I
dropped a piece of silver into each as I passed, and hastened to rest
my wearied limbs.

Poor Cary will never march again ! Life is almost extinct, and all
of us are but the ghosts of what we were.

630

PERSONAL NARRATIVE.

[CHAP. IS.

CHAPTER IX.

The author obliged to take a journey to Boondi. — Cause of the journey. —Sudden
death of the Jiao liaja, who left his son to the author's care. — The cholera mor-
bus, or murri . — Its ravages. — Curious expedient to exclude it from Koiah and
Boondi. — Bad weather. — Death of the author's elephant. — Pohona. — lildl-
warra. — Gi edifying reception of the author. — State of the toiun contrasted with
its former condition. — Projects for its further improvement. — Reflexions on its
rise. — Jehajpoor. — Difficulties of the road. — Arrival at Boondi. — The aspect
of the court. — Interview with the young Rao Raja. — Attentions paid to the
author.

Oodipoor, July 1821. — When I concluded the narrative of my jour-
ney in October last year, I had no expectation that I should ever put
my foot in the stirrup again! except en roitte to Bombay, in order to
embark for Old England; bub f Jionhdr /' as my Rajpoot friends
exclaim, with a sigh, when an invincible destiuy opposes their inten-
tions. I had only awaited the termination of the monsoon to remove
the wreck of a once robust frame to a more genial clime ; and now
it will remain to be proved whether my worthy friend Duncan^s pro-
phecy — “ you must die, if you stay here six months more" — will be
fulfilled. Poor Cary lies entombed on tbe heights of Maivta ; the
doctor himself is just going oft to the Cape, half-dead from the Kotah
fever ; and, as if that u'erc not enough, the narooa, or Guinea-worm,
has blanched his cheek and made him a cripple. My cousin. Captain
Waugh, is at Kotah, depressed by a continuance of tbe same malaria,
and a few days I again start solus, in the midst of the monsoon, for
Harouti.

A few days ago I received an express from Boondi, announcing the
sudden death of my estimable friend, tbe Rao Raja, who in bis last
moments nominated me guardian of bis infant son, and charged me
to watch ovdr his welfare and that of Boondi. The more formal let-
ter of the minister was accompanied by one from tbe Rani, mother
of the young prince, from whom also, or in his name, I had a few
lines, both seconding the bequest of the dying prince, and reminding
me of the dangers of a minority, and the elements by which they
were surrounded. The appeal was irresistible, and the equipage was
ordered out for immediate, departure to Mairta, and thence toMaow-
lee, twenty-five miles distant, where I should join them.

The Raja fell a victim to murri, the emphatic appellation of
cholera, which has now been wasting these regions since 1817. They
might well. say that, if at this important period in their history, we
destroyed the demon of rapine, which had so long preyed upon their
repose, we had in lieu of it, introduced death amongst them, for such
is the interpretation of murri.* It was in our armies that this
disease first appeared in northern India; and although for some time
. we flattered ourselves that it was only the intemperate, the ill-fed.

* Prom the Sanscrit mri, { to die,’

PERSONAL NARRATIVE.

631

CHAP. XX.]

or ill-clothed, that fell victims to it, we soon discovered that murri
was no respecter of pei’sons, and that the prince and the peasant,
the European and the native,tlie robustand fclie weak, the well-fed and
the abstinent, were alike subject to her influence. I can number
four intimate friends, my brother officers, who were snatched away
in the very prime of life by this disease ; and in the states under my
political control, it assailed in two instances, the palace : the Oodi-
poor prince recovered, but the Boondi Rao's timo was come. He con-
ducted himself most heroically, and in the midst of the most dreadful
torture with which the human frame can be afflicted, he never lost his
self-possession, but in every interval of suffering, conversed upon the
affairs of his little dominion, giviu'g the fullest instructions for the
future with composure. He particularly desired that none of his
wives should mount the pyre with his corpse ; and that as soon as
he ceased to breathe, I should be invited to Boondi ; for that “ he
“ left Lalji (an endearing epithet to children) in my lap.” It was only
during our last journey through Boondi, that I was amused with my
friend’s expedient to keep “ death” out of his capital, and which I
omitted to mention, as likewise the old Regent's mode of getting i‘id
of this unwelcome visitor in Kotah ; nor should they be separated.
Having assembled the Brahmins, astrologers, and those versed in
incantations, a grand rite was got up, sacrifice made, and a solemn
decree of desvatto, or banishment, was pronounced against murri.
Accordingly, an equipage was prepared for her, decorated with fune-
ral emblems, painted black and drawn by double team of black oxen ;
bags of grain, also black, were put into the vehicle, that the lady
might not go forth without food, and driven by a man in sable vest-
ments, followed by the yells of the populace. Murri was deported
across the Chumbul, with the commands of the priests that she
should never set foot again in Kotah. No sooner did my deceased
friend hear of her expulsion from that capital, and being placed en che-
mmforJBoondf, than the wise menof this city were called on to provide
means to keep her from entering therein. Accordingly, all the water
of the Ganges at haudwas in requisition, an earthen vessel was placed
over the southern portal, from which the sacred water was continually
dripping, and against which no evil could prevail. Whether my
friend’s supply of the holy water failed, or Murri disregarded such
opposition, she reached his palace.*

*1 have in other parts of my work touched upon this terrific scourge, from
which it will bo seen that it is well known throughout India under the same
appellation ; and it is not one or the least curious results of my endeavour to
prove that the Hindus had historical documents, that by their means I am
enabled to trace this disease ravaging India nearly two centuries ago. At page
59, it is thus described in the Annals of Marwar : “ This, the sded (putting a
garrison to the sword) of Sojut, was when S. 1737 ended, and S. 1738, or A.D.
“ 1681-2, commenced, yhen the sword and murri (pestilence) united to clear the
“land. _ Orme, in his fragments, mentions a similar disease in A.D. 1681,
raging in the peninsula of India, and sweeping off five hundred daily in the
imperial camp at Goa; and again, in the Annals of llewar, Yol. I, p, 332, it is
described in the most frightful colours, as ravaging that couutry twenty years

632

PERSONAL NARRATIVE.

[CHAP. IS.

Pownah, or Pohona , July 2blh. — Yesterday was a day of disaster :
I loft the capital amidst torrents of rain, and between Manta and
Mtlowleo found my best elephant lying dead ; the long and sudden
inarch, and too heavy a load, had destroyed the lino animal. It was
rather ominous to lose tho emblem of wisdom in the outset of this
journey. Wo passed a most uncomfortable day, and still more
nncomfortablo night, for a strong gale forced up the tent-pins
from the clay soil, and brought down the tent over my ears. I had
an escape from tho pole, part of which I propped under tho fly to
keep mo from suffocation. Around mo were nothing but yells of
distress, half laughable, half serious; horses loose, and camels roaring
in discordant gutturals. We were glad long before dawn to pack up
our chattels, thoroughly soaked, and ‘consequently double Weight,
and begin moving for Pohona, where we are promised a little teposo.
I have taken this route as it is tho last occasion l shall have to visit
tho work of my own hands, the mart of Bhflwavra. Pohona is or
was a placo of sorno value ; but the Brahmins, through the influence
of tho liana’s sister, had got it by means of a forged grant, and
abided by tho privileges of their order. But fortuuatoly they abused
the right of sanctuary, iu giving protection to a thief and assassin
from interested motives ; consequently, the penalty oE resumption
was incurred, and wo hopo to suffer no other ill-effects than Chaud
Bill’s displeasure.

J3h iltvarrci, July 2 Oth. — Yaruua, tho J upiter pluvuilU of the Hindu,
jyns been most complaisant, and for two days has stopped up all tho
“ bottles of heuveu,” and I made my triumphal entry into our good
town of Bhilwavra, on ono of those days which are peculiarly splendid
in the monsoon, when tho sun deigns to emerge from behind the
clouds.

My reception was quite Asiatic ; the entire population, headed by
the chief merchants, and preceded by the damsels with tho Icullus,
advanced full a mile to meet and conduct me to a town which, a few
years ago, had not ono inhabited dwelling. I passed through the

before, or m S. 17 17 (A.D. 1661); so tout m tho space o£ twenty years, wo Lava
it described m tho peninsula, iu tho desert of India, and in the plains of Central
India ; and what will appear not tho least singular part of the history of this
distemper, so analogous to the present date, about the intermediate time of
theso extreme periods, that is about A.D. 1669, a similar disease was raging in
England. I huvo no doubt that other traces of the disorder may appear in the
chronicles for their bards, or iu Huhomedau writers, judging from these inciden-
tal notices, which might never have attracted attention had not uturri come
to our own doors. I hove had many patients dying about me, but no man
over dreamed of contagion; to propagate which opinion, and scare ns from all
fcha sympathies of life, without proof absolutely demonstrative, is, to say the
least, highly censurable. There is enough of self iu this laud or ultra civiliza-
tion, without drawing a cordon samtaue round every individual. Tho
Oodipoor prince was the first person seized with the disease in that capital :
a proof to me, against all the faculty, that to other causes than personal
communication its influence must be ascribed. I will not repeat treatment
in this case (see p, 59), which may deservo notice, though prescribed by the
umuitiated. J » =» r

CHAP. IX.] PERSONAL NARRATIVE. * 638

main street, surrounded by its wealthy occupants, who bad suspended
over the projecting awnings the most costly silks, brocades, and other
finery, to do honour -to one whom they esteemed their benefactor,
and having conducted me to my tent, left me to breakfast, and
returned in the afternoon. As the tent would not contain a tenth of
the visitors, I had its walls removed, and all were welcome to enter
who could. Every moment I expected to see it fall upon us, as there
were hundreds of hands at each rope, swaying it in every direction,
in their eagerness to see what was going on within between the
saheb and the punchaet of both sects, Oswal and Mahesri, or J ain and
Vishnuve. We talked over many plans for the future benefit of the
town; of further reducing the duties, and giving additional freedom
to the transit-trade. I offered, in the Rana’s name to expend the
next two years’ income on a circumvallation for the protection of the
town ; which, for many good reasons, they refused ; and principally,
that it would be a check on that very freedom it was my desire they
should enjoy, as it would prevent uninterrupted ingress and egress.
I, however, sent for the chiefs, to whom, with their quotas, was
confided the duty of guarding this town, and before the assembled
groupes explained the necessity of preventing any complaints from
want of due vigilance, and told them they were to be in lieu of walls
to Bhllwarra. My good friends having no inclination to retire, I sent
for the presents I intended for the heads of the sectarian merchants,
with the utr-pdn (that most convenient mode of hinting to a friend
that you are tired of him), aud they departed with a thousand
blessings, and prayers for the perpetuity of our raj.

Bhilwarra is perhaps the most conspicuous instance in all India of
the change which our predominant influence has effected in four
short years ; and to many it must appear almost miraculous that,'
within that period, a great commercial mart should be established,
and three thousand houses, twelve hundred of which are those of
merchants or artizans, be made habitable, the principal street being
entirely rebuilt; that goods of all countries should be found there ;
bills of exchange to any amount, and on any city in India, obtained,
and that all should be systematically organized, ap if it had been
the silent growth of ages. To me it afforded another convincing
proof, in addition to the many I have had, of the tenacity and
indestructibility of the institutions in these regions, and that very
little skill is requisite to evoke order and prosperity out of con-
fusion and distress. I have no hesitation in saying that, were it not
now time to withdraw from interference in the internal concerns of
Mdwar, the machine of government having been once more put into
action, with proper management this place might become the chief
mart of Rajpootana, and ten thousand houses would soon find
inhabitants : such are its local capabilities as an entrepbt. But while
I indulge this belief, I should at the same time fear that the rigid
impartiality, which has prevented the quarrels of the sectarian
traders from affecting the general weal, would be lost sight of in the
[Vor,. n.] ' 80

634 * PERSON AIi NARRATIVE. [CHAP. IX,

apathy and intrigue -which are by no means banished from the
councils of the capital.

I bade a last farewell to Bhilwarra and its inhabitants, with prayers
for the welfare of both.

Bhilwarra, 2.8th . — Though pressed for time, and the weather had
again become bad, I could not resist the kind entreaties of the
people of Bhilwarra that I would halt one more day amongst them ;
and albeit neither my health nor occupations admitted of my being;
the lion to the good traders of the city without inconvenience, the
slight personal''sacrifice was amply repaid by the more intimate
acquaintance I gained with men belonging to every region of
Raj war r a. '

Jehajpoor , 29th . — This was a long march in a torrent of rain, the
country flooded, and roads cut up ; and although I have not
incommoded myself with much baggage, the little I have is in a
wretched plight. The crockery-bearer fell with, his load, and
smashed the contents. Passed over the encamping-ground of last
year, and bestowed a transient thought upon the scene enacted
there. I was equally near ‘the brink’ this spring. The Rana had
stopped the nakarra, and many a rupee’s-worth of kesur (saffron)
was promised to the divinities both of the Jains and Yishuuvis
for my recovery. My kinsman, Captain Waugh, was admitted,
after many days’ exclusion, to take a last adieu ; but I told the
doctor I was sure hq was wrong ; and here I am, bound for the same
scenes of misery from which I so lately, escaped, and under which
several of my establishment, besides poor Cary, have succumbed.

Boondi, 80th . — Another fatiguing march brought us to the con-
clusion of our journey ; and notwithstanding a deluge of rain, we
were met three miles from the city by the minister and the principal
chiefs, with whom an interchange of bugul-geeri (embracing) took
place in spite of the raging elements. All preceded to announce our
approach, but my faithful old friend, the Maharaja. Bickramajeet,
whose plain and downright honesty in all that appertains to his
master’s house has won my warmest regard. He rode by my side,
and told me of the changes that had taken place, of the dangers of
the young Ram Sing from the interested views of those who affected
the semblance of devotion ; “ but,” observed the veteran, “ you know
“ us all, and will trust no individual with too much authority.” He
could speak thus without fear of being misunderstood, for no
persuasion would have induced him to enter into their cabals, or
compromise his trust of watching over, the personal safety of hia
infant prince ; though without any ostensible post or character save
that pioud title which was ascribed to him by all parties— ‘the
loyal Bickramajeet.’

The beauties of the scenery passed unheeded, and have already
been sufficiently described, though there is novelty in every point
of view from which, the fairy palace is seen ; and as it burst upon us
this morning, a momentary gleam, passing over its gilded pinnacles.

CHAP. IS.]

PERSONAL NARRATIVE.

635

displayed its varied outline, which has rapidly immerged into the
gloom that hung over it, according well with the character of its
inmates. As it was my policy to demonstrate, by the rapidity of my
movements (which had brought me in six days at such a season
from Oodipoor to Boondi), how much the British government had at
heart the welfare of its young prince, I hastened to the palace in
my travelling costume, to pay my respects, wishing to get over the
formal visit of condolence on the loss the prince had sustained.

I found the young chief and his brother, Gfop&l Sing, surrounded by
a most respectable court, though, as I passed along the lineof retainers
occupying each side of the long collonnaded bara-durri, I could
perceive looks of deep anxiety and expectation blended with those
of welcome. Notwithstanding the forms of mourning must ‘destroy
much of the sympathy with grief, there is something in the settled
composure of feature of an assembly like this, convened to receive
the condolence of a stranger who felt for the loss in which he was
called to sympathize, that fixes the mind. Although I was familiar
with the rite of matim, which, since the days of “.David, who sent
“ to comfort Hanum, son of the king of the children of Ammon, when
“ his father died,” is generally one of ‘ the mockeries of woe/ its ordi-
nary character was changed on this occasion, when we met to
deplore the loss of the chief of all the Haras.

I expressed the feelings which the late event had excited in me,
in which, I observed, the most noble the governor-general would
participate; adding that it was a consolation to find so much
promise in his successor, during whose minority his lordship
would be in the place of a father to him in all that concerned
his welfare ; and that in thus speedily fulfilling the obligations of
public duty and friendship to the will of his deceased parent, I but
evinced the deep interest my government had in the rising prosperity
of Boondi ; that, thank God, the time was past when a minority
could endauger his welfare, as it would only redouble the anxiety
and vigilance of my government; with much more to the same
purport, which it is unnecessary to repeat. The young prince replied
with great propriety of manner and speech, concluding thus: “My
“ father left me in your lap ; he confided my well-being to your
“ hands.'” After a few remarks to the chiefs, I repaired to the
residence prepared for me at no great distance from the palace.
Here I found all my wants supplied and my comforts most carefully
studied ; and scarcely had I changed my garments, when a sumptuous
dinner was announced, sent by the queen-mother, who in order to do
more honour had ordered a Brahmin to precede it, sprinkling the
road with holy-water to prevent the approach of evil !

[VOL. II.]

80 i.

636

PERSONAE NARRATIVE.

[CHAP. X.

CHAPTER X.

t

Ceremony of Rdj-tilac, or inauguration. — Personal qualities of the Rao Raja
and his brothers. — The installation. — The tilacjirsi made by the author, as repre-
sentative of the British government. — Ceremonies. — Message from the queen-
mother. — Balwunt Rao, of Goterah. — The Bohora, or chief minister. — Power
and disposition of these two officers. — Arrangements made by the author . —
Interview and conversation with the Rani. — Literal y and historical researches
of the author . — Revenues of Boondi. — Its prospects. — Departure for Kotah . —
condition of the junior branches of the Haras. — Rowtah. — Grand hunts in
Harouti.

August the oth . — The ceremony o£ Jtaj-tilac, or inauguration of
fclie young Rao Raja, had been postponed as soon as the Ranl-mother
heard of my intention to come to Boondi, and as the joyous “ third
“ of Sawun,” Saioun-ca-teej , was at hand, it was fixed for the day
following that festival. As the interval between the display of grief
and the expression of joy is short in these states, it would have
been inauspicious to mingle aught of gloom with this most celebrated
of all the festivals of the Haras, in which the whole city partakes,
•The queen-mother sent a message to request that X would accompany
her son in the procession of the fee/, with -which invitation I most
willingly complied ; and she also informed me that it was the custom
of Rajwarra, for the nearest of kin, or some neighbouring prince, ou
such occasions, to entreat the mourner, at the termination of the
twelve days of m&tim , to dispense with its emblems. Accordingly,
I prepared a coloured dress, with a turban and a jewelled sirpesh,
which I sent, with a request that the prince would ee put aside tho
“ white turban.” In compliance with this, he appeared in these
vestments in public, and I accompanied him to the ancient palace in
old Boondi, where all public festivities are still held.

• The young prince of the Haras is named Ram Sing, after one of
the invincibles of this race, who sealed his loyalty with his life ou
the field of Dholpoor. He is now in his eleventh year, fair, and with
a lively, intelligent cast of face, and a sedateness of demeanour which,
at his age, is only to be seen in the east. CopiU Sing, his brother,
by a different mother, is a few mouths younger, very intelligent, and
in person slight, fair, and somewhat marked with the small-pox,
Thero is a third boy, about four; who, although illegitimate, W03
brought up with equal regard, but now ho will have no consideration.

Tho cavalcade was uumerous and imposing ; tho chiefs and their
retainers well-mounted, their equipments all new for the occasion,
and tho inhabitants in their best apparel, croated a spectacle which
was quite oxhilarating, and which Boondi had not witnessed for a
century : indeed, X should hardly have supposed it possible that four
years could have produced such a change in tho general appearance
or numbers of tho population. After remaining a few minutes, X

CHAP. X.]

PERSONAL NARRATIVE.

637

took leave, tliat I might impose no restraint on the mirth which the
day produces.*

\

The'next day was appointed for the installation. Captain Waugh,
who had been sent from Oodipoor to Kotah in December last, when
the troubles of that state broke out afresh, joined me this day in
order to be present at the ceremony, though he was in wretched
health from the -peculiar insalubrity of Kotah at this time of the
year. We proceeded to the Rajmahl, where all the sons of Dewa-
Bango have been anointed. Every avenue through which we passed
was crowded with well-dressed people, who gave us hearty cheers of
_ congratulation as we went along, and seemed to participate in the
feeling evinced towards their young prince by the represent-
ative of the protecting power. The courts below and around the
palace were in like manner filled with the Hava retainers, who
rent the air with Jy ! Jy ! as we dismounted. There was a very full
assemblage within, where the young Raja was undergoing purification
by the priests ; but we found his brother the Maharaja Go pal Sing,
Bulwuut >Sing of Goterah, the first noble of Boondi, the chiefs of
Kaprain and Thana, old Bickramajeet, and likewise the venerable
chief of Doogarie (son of Sriji), grand-uncle of the young prince, who
had witnessed all the revolutions which the country had undergone,
and could appreciate the existing repose. It was gratifying to hear
this ancient, who could remember both periods of prosperity, thank
Parmeswar that he had lived to see the restoration of his country's
independence. In this manner we had some interesting conversation,
while sacrifice and purification were going on in the adjoining apart-
ment. . When this was over, I was instructed to bring the young
Raja -forth and lead him to a temporai-y f cushion of state/ when a
new round of religious ceremonies took place, terminating with his
re-election of the family Purohit and Beas, by marking their fore-
heads with the' tilac : which ordination entitled them to put the
unction upon the prince's, denoting the “ divine right” by which he
was in future to rule the Haras. The young prince went through a
multitude of propitiatory rites with singular accuracy and self-pos-
session ; and when they were over, the assembly rose. I was then
* requested to conduct him to the gacli, placed in an elevated balcony
overlooking the external court and a greatpart of the town ; and it
being too high for the young prince to reach, I raised him to it. The
officiating -priest now brought the vessel containing the unction,
composed of sandal-wood powder and aromatic oils, into which I
dipped.the middle finger of my right hand, and made the tilac on his
forehead. I then girt him with the sword, and congratulated him
_ in the name of my government, declaring aloud, that all might hear,
that the British government would never cease to feel a deep interest
in all that concerned the welfare of Boondi and the young prince’s
family. Shouts of approbation burst from the immense crowds who
thronged the palace, all in their .gayest attire, while every valley

* See the description of the Tee/, Yol, I, p. 497.

638

' PERSONAL NARRATIVE.

[CHAP. X'.

re-eclioed the sound of tlie cannon from the citadel of Tarragurh. I
tlien put -on the jewels, consisting of sirpesh, or aigrette, wbicli I
"bound round Ms turban, a necklace of pearls, and bracelets, with
twenty-one shields (the tiay of a Rajpoot) of shawls, brocades, and
fine clothes. An elephant and two handsome horses, richly capari-
soned, the one having silver, the other silver-gilt ornaments, with
embroidered velvet saddle-cloths, were then led into the centre of
the court under the balcony, a Jchelat befitting the dignity both of
the giver and the receiver. Having gone through this form, in
which I was prompted by my old friend the Maharaja Bickramajeet,
and paid my individual congratulations as the friend of his father
and his personal guardian, I withdrew to make room for the chiefs,
heads of clans, to perform the like round of ceremonies : for making
the tilac, they at the same time acknowledge his accession and their
own homage and fealty. I was joined by Gop&l Sing, the prince's
brother, who artlessly told me that he had no protector but myself;
and the chiefs, as they returned from the ceremony, came and con-
gratulated me on the part I had taken in a rite which so nearly touched
them all ; individually presenting their nuzzurs to me as the repre-
sentative of the paramount power. I then made my salutation to the
prince and the assembly of the Haras, and returned. The Rao Raja
afterwards proceeded with his cavalcade to all the shrines in this
city and Sitoor, to make his offerings.

The next day, I received a’ message from the queen-mother with
her blessing (usees), intimating her surprise that I had yet sent no
special deputation to her, to comfort her under her affliction, and to
give a pledge for her own and her child's protection; and that
although on this point she could feel no distrust, a direct communi-
cation would be satisfactory. In reply, I urged that it was from
delicacy alone I had erred, and that I only awaited the intimation
that it would be agreeable, though she would See the embarrass
ment attending such a step, more especially as I never employed my
own servants when I could command the services of the ministers ;
and that as I feared to give umbrage by selecting any one of them, if
she would receive the tour, I would send with them a confidential
servant, the aklarmivees or news- writer, as the bearer of my mes-
sage. Her.anxiety was not without good grounds : the elements of
disorder, though subdued, were not crushed, and she dreaded the
ambition and turbulence of the seniornoble, Bulwunt Rao of Goterah,
who had proved a thorn in the side of the late Raja throughout his
life. This audacious but gallant Rajpoot, about twelve years before,
had stormed aud taken Nynwa, one of the chief castles of Boondi
in the face of day, and defeated with great slaughter many attempts
to retake it, still holding it in spite of his prince, and trusting to his
own party and the Mahrattas for support. In fact, but for the change
in his relations, he neither would have obeyed a summons to the
Presence, nor dared to appear uninvited ; and even now his appear-
ance excited no lessalarmthansurprise. "Bulwunt Sing at Boondx !"
"was repeated by many of the surrounding chiefs, as one of the

<J2Ap„ X.]

PBESONA^ NARRATIVE,.

689

anomalous, . signs q£. the times; for to have. heard that a lion from
theip. jungles had gone to congratulate the Raja, would have eaus.ed
less,, wonder* and- infinitely less.- apprehension. The Rani was not
satisfied, nor- had -her* late lord been, with the chief minister, the
Bohora, Simbhoo - Ram, who only a few days before the Raja’s
death had expressed great unwillingness, when called on, to
produce his account of the finances. It was, chiefly with a view to.
guard against, these individuals, that the deceased Rao Raja had
nominated the British Agent as the guardian of his son and the state
during his minority, and the queen-mother’ besought me to see his
wishes faithfully, executed. Fortunately, there were some men who
could be depended on, especially Grovind Ram, who had attended the
agent as vakeel ; a simple-minded man, full of integrity and good
intentions, though no match for the Bohora in ability or intrigue.
There was also the dliabhde , or foster-brother of the late prince, who
held the important office of killehdar of Tarragurh, and who, like all
his class, is devotion personified. There was likewise Chanderbhau
Naique, who, from a low condition, had risen to favour and power,
and being quick, obedient, and faithful, was always held as a check
over the Bohora. There were also- two eunuchs of the palace,
servants, entirely confidential, and with a very good notion of the
general affairs of the state

Such were the materials at my disposal and they were ample for
all the. concerns of this little state. Conformably to the will of the
late prince, and the injunctions of the queen- mother, the Agent
entirely reformed the functions of these officers, prohibited the
revenues of the state from heing confounded with the mercantile
concorns of the minister, requiring them henceforth to be deposited
at- the lashen-bindar, or treasury in the palace, providing a system
of checks, as well on the receipts as the expenditure, and making all
the four jointly and severally answei’able ; yet he made no material
innovations, and displaced or displeased no one ; though in raising
those whq were noted throughout the country for their integrity, be
confirmed their good intentions and afforded them scope, while his
measures were viewed with general satisfaction. After these
arrangements, the greatest anxiety of the queen was for the absence
of Bulwunfc Rao ; and, as it was in vain to argue against her fears,
she requested that, when the ceremonies of installation were over,
the chiefs-might be dismissed to their estates, and that I would take
the opportunity, at the next durbar , to point out to them the exact
line of their duties, and the necessity of observance of the customs
of past days : all of which was courteously done.

Although the festival of the Ralchi was not until tho end of the
‘ month, the mother of the young prince sent me by the hands of the
bjiut, or family priest, the bracelet of adoption as. her brother, which
made my young ward henceforth my bhdnaij , or nephew. With
this mark of regard, she also expressed, through the ministers, a
wish- that I would pay her a visit at the palace, as she had many

640

PERSONAL NARRATIVE.

[chap. X.

poinfcs to discuss regarding ,LaIji’s welfare, which could only be
satisfactorily argued vivd voce. Of course I assented ; and, accom-
panied by the Bohora and the confidential' eunuchs of the rciwula , I
liad a conversation of about three hours with my adopted sister ; a
curtain being between us. Her language was sensible and forcible,
and she evinced a thorough knowledge of all the routine of govern-
ment and the views of parties, which she described with gre at clear-
ness and precision. She especially approved of the distribution of
duties, and said, with these checks, and the deep interest I felt for
all that concerned the honour of Boondl, her mind was quite at ease ;
nor had she anything left to desire. She added that she relied
implicitly on my friendship for the deceased, whose regard for me
was great. I took the liberty of adverting to many topics for her
own guidance ; counselling her to shun the error of communicating
with or receiving reports from interested or ignorant advisers; and
above all, to shun forming parties, and ruling, according to their
usual policy, by division ; I suggested that the object would be best
attained by never intimating her wishes but when the four ministers
were together; and- urged her to exercise her own sound judgment,
and banish all anxiety for her son’s welfare, by always recalling to
mind what my government had done for the interests of Boondi.
During a great part of this conversation, the Bohora had retired, so
that her tongue was unrestrained. With utr-jpan and her blessing
(asees) sent by one of her damsels, she dismissed me with the oft-
repeated remark, “ Forget not that Lalji is now in your lap."

I retired with my conductors, highly gratified with this interest-
ing conversation, and impressed with respect for her capacity and
views. This Rani, as I have elsewhere mentioned, is of the Rahtore
tribe, and of the house of Kishengurh in Marwar; she is the
youngest of the late Rao Raja’s four widowed queens, but takes the
chief rank, as mother and guardian of the minor prince.

I remained at Boondi till the middle of August ; when, having
given a right tone and direction to its government, I left it with the.
admonition that I should consider myself authorized, not as the
agent of government so much as the executor of their late lord’s
wishes, and with the concurrent assent of the regent-queen, to
watch over the prince’s welfare until the age of sixteen, when
Rajpoot minority ceases; and advertised them, that they must
not be • surprised if I called upon them every year to inform
me of the annual surplus revenue they had set aside for accu-
mulation until his majority. I reminded the Bohoi’a, in the
words of his own beautiful metaphor, when, at the period of '
the treaty, my government restored its long-alienated lands, “ again
“ will our lakes overflow ; once more will the lotus shew
“ its face on the waters.’’ Nor had he forgotten this emblematic
phraseology, and with his coadjutors promised his most strenuous
efforts. During the few remaining days of my stay, I had continual
messages from the young prince, by the “ Gold stick,’’ or dhabhcU

CHAP. X.]

PERSONAL NARRATIVE.

641

which were invariably addressed to me as “ the Mamoo Saheb ” or
uncle. He sent me specimens of his hand-writing, both in
Devanagari and Persian, in which last, however, he had not got
farther than the alphabet ; and he used to-ride and Icarowli his horse
within sight of my tents, and always expressed anxiety to know
what the “ Maiao” thought of his horsemanship. I was soon after
called upon by the queen-mother for my congratulations on Lalji
having slain his first boai*, an event that had summoned all the Haras
to make their offerings ; a ceremony which will recall a distinction
received by the Macedonian youths, on a similar occasion, who were
not admitted to public discussions until they had slain a wild.boar.

Whilst partaking in these national amusements, and affording all
the political aid I could, my leisure time was employed in extracting
from old chronicles or living records what might serve to develop
the past history of the family ; in frequent visits to the cenotaphs
of the family, or other remarkable spots, and in dispersing my
‘ emissaries for inscriptions in every direction. This was the most
singular part of my conduct to the Boondi court ; they could not
conceive why I should take an interest in such a pursuit.

The fiscal revenues of Boondi do not yet exceed three lacs of
rupees ; and it will be some time before the entire revenues, both
fiscal and feudal, will produce more' than five ; and out of the crown
domain, eighty thousand rupees annually are paid to the British
government, on account of the lands Sindia held in that state, and
which he relinquished by the treaty of A.D. 1818. Notwithstanding
his circumscribed means, the late Rao Raja put every branch of his
government on a most respectable footing. He could muster seven
hundred household and Puttaet horse ; and, including his garrisons,
his corps of golandaz, and little park (jinsi ) of twelve guns, about
two thousand seven hundred paid infantry ; in all between three
and four thousand men. For the queens, the officers of government,
and the pay of the garrisons, estates were assigned, which yielded
sufficient for the purpose. A continuation of tranquillity is all that is
required, and Boondi will again take its proper station in Rajwarra.

Gam p, Roiutah , November 19th . — On the 14th of August, I departed
for Kotah, and found the junior branches of the Haras far from
enjoying the repose of Boondi. But on these subjects we will not
touch here, further than to remark, that the last three months have
been the most harassing of my existeuce :* civil war, deaths of
friends and relatives, cholera raging, and all of us worn out with
perpetual attacks of fever, ague, anxiety, and fatigue.

Rowtah, the spot on which I encamped, is hallowed by recollec-
tions the most inspiriting. It was on this very ground I took up
my position throughout the campaign of 1817-18, in the very centre
of movements of all the armies, friendly and hostile. j*

* For an account o£ these transactions, vide Chap. XI, Annals of Kotah.

fit was from this ground I detached thirty-two firelocks of my guard,
supported by two hundred of the Regent’s men, with two camel swivels, to beat
[Toil. II.] 81

642

PERSONAL NARRATIVE.

[chap. X.

As we were now in the vicinity of the chief Rumna in Havouti,
the Raj Rana proposed to exhibit the mode in which they carry on
their grand hunts. The site chosen was a large range running into
and parallel to the chain which separates Harouti from Malwa. At
noon, the hour appointed, accompanied by several officers of the
Neemuch force (amongst whom was my old friend Major Price), we
proceeded to the Shilcargas, a hunting seat, erected half-way up the
gentle ascent, having terraced roofs and parapets, on which the
sportsman lays his gun to massacre the game ; and here we waited
some time in anxious expectation, occasionally some deer scudding by.
Gradually, the din of the hunters reached us, increasing into
tumultuous shouts, with the beating of drums, and all the varieties of
discord. Soon various kind of deer galloped wildly past, succeeded by
nilgdes, bdrd-singds , red and spotted. Some wild-hogs went off
snorting and trotting, and at length, as the hunters approached, a bevy
of animals, amongst which some black-snouted hyamas were seen, who
made a dead halt when they saw themselves between two fires. There

up a portion of the main Pindar! horde, when broken by our armies. But my
little band out-marched the auxiliaries, and when they came upon the foe, they
found a camp of 1,500 instead of 500 men ; but nothing daunted, aud the
surprise being complete, they poured in sixty rounds before the day broke, and
cleared their camp. Then, each mounting a marauder’s horse and driving a
laden camel before him, they returned within the twenty-four hours, having
inarched sixty miles, and slam more than four times their numbers. Nothing
so clearly illustrated the destitution of all moral courage in the freebooters, as
their conduct on this occasion ; for at dawn of day, when the smoke cleared
away, and they saw the handful of men who had driven them into the Caly
Sinde, a body of about four hundred returned to the attack ; but my Sipahis,
dismounting, allowed the boldest to approach within pistol-shot before they
gave their fire, which sufficed to make the lancers wheel off. The situation
recalled the din which announced their return : upon which occasion, going
out to welcome them, I saw the Regent’s camp turn out, and the trees were
crowded with spectators, to enjoy the triumphal entry of the gallant little band
with the spoils of the spoiler. The prize was sold aud divided on the drum-
head, and yielded six or eight months’ pay to each ; but it did not rest here,
for Lord Hastings promoted the non-commissioned officers and several of the
men, giving to all additional pay for life.

The effect of this exploit was surprising; the country people, who hitherto
would as soon have thought of plundering his Satanic majesty as a Pindarrf,
amassed all the spoils abandoned on their flight, and brought them to the camp
of the Regent ; who, as he never admitted the spoils of an enemy into his
treasury, sent it all to our tents to be at my disposal. But, as I could see no
right that we had to it, I proposed that the action should be commemorated by
the erection of a bridge, bearing Lord Hastings’ name. There were the spoils
of every region ; many trays of gold necklaces, some of which were strings of
Venetian sequins ; coins of all ages (from which I completed a series of the
Mogul kings), and five or six thousand head of cattle of every description.
The Regent adopted my suggestion : a bridge of fifteen arches was constructed,
extending over the river at the breadth of a thousand 1 feet, eastward of Kotah ;
and though more solid and useful thau remarkable for beauty, will serve to
perpetuate, as Hasteen-pool, the name of a gallant soldier aud enlightened
statesman, who emancipated India from the scourge of the Piudarris. He is
now beyond the reach, of human praise, and the author may confess that he is
proud of having suggested, planned, aud- watched to its completion, this
trophy to his fame.

CHAP. SI.]

PERSONAL NARRATIVE.

643

-svas no tiger, however, in the assemblage, -which rather disappointed us,
but tbe still more curious wild dog was seen by some. A slaughter
commenced, the effects of which I judged less at the time, but soon
after I got to my tents, I found sis camel-loads of deer, of vai-ious
kinds, deposited. My friend. Major Price, did not much admire this
unsportsmanlike mode of dealing with the lords of the forest, and
although very well, once in one’s life, most would think a boar hunt,
spear in hand, preferable. Still it was an exhilarating scene ; the
confusion of the animals, their wild dismay at this compulsory
association ; the yells, shouts, and din from four battalions of regulars,
who, in addition to the ordinary band of huntsmen, formed a chain
from the summit of the mountain, across the valley to the opposite
heights, and, last not least, the placid Regent himself listening to
the tumult he could no longer witness, produced an effect not easily
forgotten. This sport is a species of petty war, not altogether free
from danger, especially to the rangers ; but I heard of no accidents.
We had a round of a-nilgde, and also tried some steaks, 'which ate
very like coarse beef.

It is asserted that, in one shape or another, these hunting excur-
sions cost the state two lacs, or £20,000 annually. The Regent’s
regular hunting-establishment consisted of twenty-five carpenters,
two hundred aireas, or huntsmen, and five hundred occasional rangers.
Rut the gotes, or ‘ feasts,’ at the conclusion of these sports, occasioned
the chief expense, when some thousands were fed, and rewards and
gratuities were bestowed upon those whom the Regent happened to
be pleased with. This was one of the methods he pursued to
ingratiate himself with the Haras, and he was eminently successful;
the only wonder is, that so good an opportunity should have -been
neglected of getting rid of one who had so long tyrannized over
them.

We here took a temporary leave of the Regent; and we intend to
fill up the interval till the return of the Maha Rao from Mdwar, by
making a tour through upper Malwa, in which we shall visit the falls
,of the Chumbul amidst the dense woods of Puchail.

i

-

CHAPTER XI.

Bass of Mokundurra. — View from the summit of the pass into Puchail. — Marks
set up by the Bunjarris. — Monastery of Atteets, or Jogis. — Their savage aspect.
— The author elected a chela . — The head of the establishment.— Eis legend of
the origin of the epithet Seesodia .— The grand temple of Barolli.— Conjecture
as to its founder. — Barolli.

W e marched before day break through the fame d pass of Mokundurra,*
and caught a glimpse at the outlet of the fine plains of Malwa. We

• Burra, a corruption of Dw&r, ‘a barrier, pass, outlet, or portal:’ and
Mokand, one of tbe epithets of Crishna, Mokundurra and Divaricanat'h are
synonimous ‘ tbe pass and portal of the Deity.’

CVol, n.]

81 a

044 PERSONAL NARRATIVE. [dlAP. XL

\

then turned abruptly to the right, and skirted the range which
divides Haravati from Malwa, over a rich campaign tract, in a
re-entering angle of the range, which gradually contracted to the
point of exit, up the mountains of Pncbail.

The sun rose just as we cleared the summit of the pass, and we
halted for a few minutes at the tower that guards the asceut, to look
upon the valley behind : the landscape was bounded on either side
by the ramparts of nature, enclosing numerous villages, until the
eye was stopped by the eastern horizon. We proceeded on the terrace
of this table-land, of gradual ascent, through a thick forest, when,
as we reached the point of descent, the sun cleared the barrier which
we had just left, and darting his beams through the foliage, illumin-
ated the castel of Bhynsror, while the new fort of Dangermow,
appeared as a white speck in the gloom that still enveloped the
Pat’har.

We descended along a natural causeway, the rock being perfectly
bare, without a particle of mould or vegetation. Small pillars, or
uninscribed tablets, placed erect in the centre of little heaps of stone,
seemed to indicate the scene of murder’s, when the Bhil lord of the
pass exacted his toll from all who traversed his dominion. They
proved, however, to be marks placed by the bunjarris to guide their
tandas , or caravans, through the devious tracks of the forest. As we
continued to descend, enveloped on all sides by woods and rocks, we
lost sight of the towers of Bhynsror, and on reaching the foot
of the Pass, the first object we .saw was a little monastery
of Atteets, founded by the chiefs of Bhynsror: it is called
Jhalaca. We passed close to their isolated dwelling, on the
terraced roof of which a party of the fraternity were squatted
round a fire, enjoying the warmth of the morning sun. Their wild
appearance corresponded with the scene aroundj theirmattedhairand
beared bad never known a comb ; their bodies were smeared with
ashes ( bhaboot ), and a shred of cloth round the lions seemed the sole
indication that they belonged to a class possessing’ human feelings.
Their lives are passed in a perpetual routine of adoration of Ohatoor-
bhoojn , the e four-armed'’, divinity, aud they subsist on the produce ot
a few patches of land, with which the chiefs of Bhynsror have
endowed this abode of wild asoetics, or with what their patrons or
the town’s-people and passengers make up to them. The head of
the establishment, a little vivacious, but wild-looking being, about
sixty years of age, came forth to bestow his blessing, and to beg
something for his order. He, however, in the first place, elected me
one of his chelds , or disciples, by marking my forehead with a tilcco
of bhaboot , which he took from a platter made of dhdlc- leaves ; to
which rite of inauguration I submitted with due gravity. The old
man proved to be a walking volume of legendary lore ; but his con-
versation became insufferably tedious. Interruption was in vain ;
he could tell his story only in his own way, and in order to get at a
point of local history connected with the sway of the: lianas, I was

PERSONAL NARRATIVE,

6-15

<JHAP, XI,]

obliged to begin from the creation of the world, and go through all
the theogonies, the combats of the Soors and Asoors, the gods and
Titans of Indian mythology ; to bewail with Seeta the loss of her
child, her rape by Rawun, and the whole of the wars of Rama
waged for her recovery; when, at length, the genealogy of the
family commenced, which this strange being traced through all their
varying patronymics of Dlts, Rics, Grohelote, Aliarya, §eesodia ; at
which last he again diverged, and gave me an episode to explain the
etymology of the distinguishing epithet. I subjoin it, as a specimen
of the anchorite’s historical lore : —

In these wilds, an ancient liana of Cheetore had sat down to a
gate (feast) consisting of the game slain in the chase ; and being very
hungry, lie hastily swallowed a piece of meat to which a gad-fly
adhered, The fly grievously tormented the Rana’s stomach, and he
sent for a physician. The wiseman {bed) secretly ordered an
attendant to cutoff the tip of a cow’s ear, as the 'only means of
saving the monarch’s life. On obtaining this forbidden morsel, the
bed folded it in a piece of thin cloth, and attaching a string to it,
made the royal patient swallow it. The gad-fly fastened on the bait,
and was dragged to light. The physician was rewarded ; but the
curious Rana insisted on knowing by what means the cure was
effected, and when he heard that a piece of sacred kine had passed
his lips, he determined to expiate the enormity in a manner which
its heinousness required, and to swallow boiling lead ( seesa ) ! A
vessel was put on the fire, and half a seer soon melted, when, praying
that his iuvoluntary offence might be forgiven, he boldly drank it
off ; but lo ! it passed through him like water. From that day, the
name of the tribe was changed from Aharya to Seesodia. The old
Jogi as firmly believed the truth of this absurd tale as he did his
own existence, and I allowed him to run on till the temple of Barolli
suddenly burst upon my view from amidst the foliage that shrouded
it. The transition was grand ; we had for some time been picking
our way along the margin of a small stream that had worked itself
a bed in the rock over which lay our path, and whose course had
been our guide to this object of our pilgrimage. As we neared the
sacred fane, still following the stream, we reached a level spot over-
shadowed by the majestic koroo and amba, which had never known
the axe. W,e instantly dismounted, and by a flight of steps attained
the court of the temple. To describe its stupendous and diversified
architecture is impossible ; it is the office of the pencil alone, but
•the labour would be almost endless. Art seems here to have
exhausted itself, and we were, perhaps now for the first time, fully
impressed with the beauty of Hindu sculpture. The columns, the
ceilings, the external roofing, where each stone presents a min iature
temple, one rising over another, until crowned by the urn-like
leullus , distracted our attention. The carving on the capital of each
column, would require pages of explanation, and the whole, in spite
of its high antiquity, is in wonderful preservation. This is attribu-
table mainly to two causes : every stone is chiselled out of the close-

646

PERSONAL NARRATIVE.

' [chap, si.

grained quartz rock, perhaps the most durable (as it is the most
difficult to work) of any ; and in order that the Islamite should have
some excuse for evading their iconoclastic law, they covered the
entire temple with.the finest marble cement, so adhesive, that it is
only where the prevalent winds have beaten upon it that it is
altogether worn off, leaving the sculptured edges of the stone as
smooth and sharp as if carved only yesterday.

The grand temple of Barolli is dedicated to Siva, whose emblems
are everywhere visible. It stands -in an area of about two hundred
and fifty yards square, enclosed by a wall built of unshaped
stones without cement. Beyond this wall are groves of majestic
trees, with many smaller shrines and sacred fountains. The first
object that struck my notice, just before entering the area,
was a pillar, erect in the earth, with a hooded-snake sculptured
around it. The door-way, which is destroyed, must have been
very curious, and the remains that choke up the interior are
highly interesting. One of these specimens was entire, and
unrivalled in taste and beauty. The principal figures are of Siva
and his consort, Parbutty, with their attendants. He stands
upon the lotus, having the serpent twined as a garland. In his
right hand he holds the dumroo , or little drum, with which, as the
god of war, he inspires the warrior ; in his left is the cupra, “formed.
of a human skull, out of which he drinks the blood of the slain. The
other two arms have been broken off : a circumstance which proves
that even the Islamite, to whom the act may be ascribed, respected
this work of art. The “ mountain -born” is on the left of her spouse.
Standing on the coorm, or tortoise, with braided locks, and ear-rings
made of the conch-shell. Every limb iB in that easy flowing style
peculiar to ancient Hindu art, and wanting in modem specimens.
Both are covered with beaded ornaments, and have no drapery. The
firm, masculine attitude of ‘ Bala Adam / as I have heard a Kajpoot
call Mahadeo, contrasts well with the delicate feminine outline of
his consort. The serpent and lotus intertwine gracefully over their
heads. Above, there is a series of compartments filled with various
figures, the most conspicuous of which is the chimerical animal
called the gras , a kind of horned lion ; each compartment being
separated by a wreath of flowers, tastefully arranged and distributed.
The animal is delineated with an ease not unworthy the ait in
Europe. Of the various other figures many are mutilated ; one is a
hermit playing on a guitar, and above him are a couple of deer in a
listening posture. Captain Waugh is engaged on one of the figures,
which he agrees with me in pronouncing unrivalled as a specimen
of art. There are parts of them, especially the heads, which would
•not disgrace Canova. They are in high relief, being almost
detached from the slab. In this fragment (about eight feet by three)
the chief. figures are about three feet.

The centre piece, forming a kind of frieze, is nearly entire, and
about twelve feet by three ; it is covered with sculpture of the same

CHAP. XI.]

PERSONAL NARRATIVE.

647

character, mostly the celestial choristers, with various instruments,
celebrating the praises of Siva ancf Parbutty. Immediately within
the door- way, is a smalll shrine to' the f four-armed but the Islamite
having likewise deprived him of the supernumerary pair, the Bhil
takes him for Ddvi, of whom they are desperately afraid, and in
consequence the forehead of the statue is liberally smeared with
vermilion.

On the left, in advance of the main temple, is one about thirty feet
high, containing an image of Asht-Mata, or the ‘ eight-armed mother/
but here the pious Mooslem has robbed the goddess of all her arms,
save that with which she grasps her shield, and has also removed
her head. She treads firmly on the centaur, Maheswar, whose
dissevered head lies at some distance in the area, while the lion of
the Hindu Oybele still retains his grasp of his quarters. The Joginis
and Apsaras, or f maids of war 5 of "Rajpoot martial poetry, have been
spared. ’

On the right is the shrine of Tri-murti, the triune divinity.
Brimha’s face, in the centre, has been totally'obliterated, as has that
of Yishnu, the Preserver; but the Destroyer is uninjured. The
tiara, which covers the head* of this triple divinity, is also entire,
and of perfect workmanship. The skill of the sculptor “ can no
“ further go.” Groupes of snakes adorn the clustering locks on the
ample forehead of Siva, which are confined by a bandeau, in the
centre of which there is a death’s head ornament, hideously exact.
Various and singularly elegant devices are wrought in the tiara : in
one, two horses couped from the shoulder, passing from a x’ich
centering and surmounted by a death’s head : a dissevered arm points
to a vulture advancing to seize it, while serpents are wreathed round
the neck and hands of the Destroyer, whose half-opened mouth
discloses a solitary tooth, and the tongue curled up with a demoniacal
expression. The whole is colossal, the figures being six feet and a
half high. The relief is very bold, and altogether the groupe is
worthy of having casts made from it.

We now come to the grand temple itself, which is fifty-eight feet
in height, and in the ancient form peculiar to the temples of Siva,
The body of the edifice, in which is the sanctum of the god, and
over which rises its pyramidal sikr, is a square of only twenty-one
feet ; but the addition of the domed vestibule ( muiuluf ) and portico
makes it forty-four by twenty-one. An outline of this by Ghassi, a
native artist (who labours at Oodipoor for the same daily pay as a
tailor, carpenter, or other artizan), will give a tolerably good notion
of its appearance, though none of its beauty. The whole is covered
with mythological sculpture, without as well as within, emblematic
of the ‘ great god’ ( Mahadeo ), who is the giver, as well as the
destroyer, of life. In a niche outside, to the south, he is armed
against the Dytes (Titans), the roond-mala, or skull- chaplet, reaching

* The Tn-murti is represented with three faces ( murli ) though but one
head.

648

PERSONAL NARRATIVE.

[chap. si.

to his knees., and in. seven of bis arms are offensive weapons. His
cap is the frustrum of a cone, composed of snakes interlaced, with a
fillet of skulls : the cupra is in his hand, and the victims ai’e scat-
tered around. On his right is one of the maids of slaughter (Jog ini)
drunk with blood, the cup still at her lip, and her countenance
expressive of vacuity ; while below, on the left is a female personi-
fication of Death, mere skin and bone : a sickle ( koorpi ) in her right
band,* its knob a death's head, completes this groupe of the attri-
butes of destruction.

To the west is Mahadeo under another form, a beautiful and
animated statue, the expression mild, as when he went forth to
entice the mountain-nymph, Mera, to his embrace. His tiara is a
blaze of finely-executed ornaments, and his snake-wreath, which
hangs round him has a garland, has a clasp of two heads of Schesnag
(the serpent-king), while Nanda below is listening with placidity to
the sound of the dumroo. His cupra, and Icarg, or skull-cap, and
sword, which he is in the attitude of using, are the only accompani-
ments denoting the god of blood.

The northern compartment is a picture, disgustingly faithful, of
death and its attributes, vulgarly known us Bhooka Mdtd , or the
personification of famine, lank and bare ; her necklace, like her
lord's, of skulls. Close by are two mortals in the last stage of
existence, so correctly represented as to excite an unpleasant surprise.
The outline, I may say, is anatomically correct. The mouth is half
open and distorted, and although the eye is closed in death, an
expression of mental anguish seems still to linger upon the features.
& beast of prey is approaching the dead body; while, by way of
contrast, a male figure, in all the vigour of youth and health, lies
prostrate at her feet.

Such is a faint description of the sculptured niches on each of the
external faces of the mindra , whence the spire rises, simple and
solid. In order, however, to be distinctly understood, I shall give
some slight ichnographic details. First, is the mindra ., or cella, in
which is the statue of the god ; than the munduf, or, in architec-
tural nomenclature, the pronaos ; and third, the portico, with which
we shall begin, though it transcends all description. '

Like 'all temples dedicated to Bal-Sxva, the viyifier, or ‘ sun god,' it
faces the east. The portico projects several feet beyond»the mttndjif,
and has four superb columns in front, of which the outline by Ghassi
conveys but a very impei'fect idea. . Flat fluted pilasters are placed
on either side of the entrance to the'munduf, serving as a support
to the internal torun, or triumphal arch, and a single column
intervenes on each side between the pilasters and the columns
in front. The columns are about eighteen feet in height. The
proportions are perfect; and though the difference of diameter

* Nowhere else did I ever see the emblem of Time, the counterpart of the
scythe with which we furnish him, which is unknown to India'.

CHAP. S(.]

PERSONAL NARRATIVE.

649

between the superior and inferior' portions of the shaft is less than
the Grecian standard, there is no want of elegance of effect, whilst
it gives an idea of more grandeur. The frieze is one mass of
sculptured figures, generally of human beings, male and female, in
pairs ; the horned monster termed Gras, separating the different pairs.
The internal torlin or triumphal arch, which is invariably attached
to all ancient temples of the sun-god, is of that peculiar curvature
formed by the junction of two ares of a circle from different centres,
a form of arch well known in Gothic and Saracenic architecture, but
whicli is an essential characteristic of the most ancient Hindu
temples. The head of a gras crowns its apes, and on the outline is
a concatenation of figures armed with daggers, apparently ascending
the arch to strike the monster.- The roof of the munduf ( pronaos ),
cannot be described : its various parts must be esamined with
microscopic nicety in order to enter into detail. In the whole of
the ornaments there is an exact harmony which I have seen
nowhere else ; even the miniatui’e elephants are in the finest propor-
tions, and exquisitely carved.

The ceilings both of the portico and munduf, are elaborately
beautiful : that of the portico, of one single block, could hardly be
surpassed. Of the exterior I shall not attempt further description :
it is a grand, a wonderful effort of the silpi (ai-chitect), one series
rising above and surpassing the other, from the base to the urn
■ which surmounts the pinnacle.

The sanctum contains the symbol of the god, whose local appel-
lation is Rori Barolli, a corruption of Bal-rori, from the circumstance
of B&lnat’h, the sun-god, being here typified by an orbicular
„ stone termed rori, formed by attrition in thechoolis or whirlpools of the
Ohumbul, near which the temple stands, and to which phenomena
it probably owed its foundation. This symbolic rori is not fixed,
but lies in a groove in the internal ring of the Toni ; and so nicely
is it poised, that with a very moderate impulse it will continue
revolving while the votary recites a tolerably long hymn to the
object of his adoration. The old ascetic, who had long been one of
the zealots of Barolli, amongst his other wondei’s gravely told me,
that with the momentum given by his little finger, in former days,
he could make it keep on its course much longer than now with the
application of all his strength. .

Some honest son of commerce thought it but right that the
tnindra (cella) of Bal-rori should be graced by a Parbutty, and he
had one made and placed there. But it appeared to have offended
the- god, and matters soon after went wrong with the Banya : first
his wife died, then his son, and at length he became dewali, or
f bankrupt.'’ In truth he deserved punishment for his caricature of
the c mountain-born’ Mdra, who more resembles a Dutch burgomestre
than the fair daughter of Syeel.

■ Fronting the temple of Bal-rori, and apart from it about twenty
yards, is another superb edifice, called the sdngdr-clidori, or nuptial
[Vot. II.] 82

650 * PERSONAL NARRATIVE. [CHAP. XI.

hall.* It is a square ( chdSri ) of forty feet, supported by a double
range of colutaus On each face, the intercoluinniations being quite
open ; and although theso columns want the elegant proportions of
the larger temple, they are covered with exquisite sculpture, as well
as the ceilings. In the centre of the. hall is an open space about
twelve feet square ; and here, according to tradition, the nuptials of
Raja Hoon with the fair daughter of a Rajpoot prince, of whom he
had long been enamoured, were celebrated ; to commemorate which
event, these magnificent structures were raised : but more of this
R un anon. The external roof (or sikr , as the Hindu silpi terms
the various roofs which cover then’ temples) is the frustrum of a
pyramid, and a singular specimen of architectural skill, each stone
being a miniature temple, elegantly carved, gradually decreasing in
size to the hullus or ball, and so admirably fitted to each other, that
there has been no room for vegetation to insinuate itself, and con-
sequently they have sustained no injury from time.

Midway between the nuptial hall and 1 the main tenqile, there is a
low altar, on which the bull, Nand-iswar still kneels before the
symbolic representation of its sovereign lord. Is war. But sadly
dishonoured is this courser of the sun-god, whose flowing tail is
broken, and of whose head but a fragment remains, though his
necklace of alternate skulls and bells proclaims him the charger of
Siva.

Around the temple of the 1 great-god’ ( Mahadeva ) are the shrines ’
of the dii minores , of whom Ganesa, the god of wisdom, takes
precedence. The shrine of this janitor of Siva is properly placed to
the north, equi-distant from the nuptial hall and the chief temple.
But the form of wisdom was not spared by the Tatar iconoclast. ' His 4
single tooth, on which the poet Chundis so lavish of encomium, is
broken off; his limbs are dissevered, and he lies prostrate on his
back at the base of his pedestal, grasping, even in death, with his
right hand, the ladoos, or sweetmeat-balls he received at the nuptial
feast.,

Near the dishonoured fragments of Ganesa, and on the point of
losing his equilibrium, is the divine Nareda , the preceptor of
Parbutty, and the. Orpheus of Hindu mythology. In his hands he
yet holds the lyre (vino), with whose heavenly sounds he has been
charming the son of his patroness; but more>than one string of the
instrument is wanting, and one of the, gourds which, united by a
sounding board, from the vdna, is broken off.

To the south are* two columns, one erect and the other prostrate,
which appear to have been, either the commencement of another
temple, ox; what is more probable from their excelling every-
thing yet described, intended to form a tonin', having a simple
architrave laid across them; which served as a swing for the recre-

< n ? fc , the literal interpretation, but the purpose for which it ia

applied. OMori is the term always, appropriated to the place of nuptials :
sangS.r means ‘ ornament.’ “ y ^

chap, xr.]

PEBSONAIi NARRATIVE.

651

ation of the god. Their surface, though they have been exposed
for at least one thousand years to the atmosphere, is smooth, and
little injured : such is the durability of this stone, though it is
'astonishing how it was worked, or how they got instruments to
shape it. There is a baiuari, or reservoir of water, for the use either
of gods or mortals, placed in the centre of the quadrangle, which is
strewed with sculptured fragments.

We quit the enclosure of KajaHoon to visit the fountain ( caond )
of Makadeo, and the various other curious objects. Having passed
through the ruined gate by which we entered, we crossed the black
stream, and passing over a fine turf plot, reached the coond , which
is a square of sixty feet, the water (leading to which are steps)
being full to the brim, and the surface covered with the golden and
silver lotus. In the centre of the fountain is a miniature temple to
the god who delights in waters ; and the dam by which it was once
approached being broken, it is now completely isolated. The
entrance to the east has two slender and well-proportioned columns,
and the whole is conspicuous for simplicity and taste.

Smaller shrines surround the coond, into one of which I entered,
little expecting in a comparatively humble edifice the surprise which •
awaited me. The temple was a simple, unadorned hall, containing
a detached piece of sculpture, representing Narayana floating on the
chaotic waters. The god is reclining in a fit of abstraction upon his
sches-sejd, a couch formed of the hydra, or sea-snake, whose many
heads expanded from a canopy over that of the sleeping divinity, at
whose feet is the benignant Lacshmi, the Hindu Ceres, awaiting the
expiration of his periodical repose. A group of marine monsters,
half-man, half-fish, support the couch in their arms, their scaly
extremities gracefully wreathed, and in the centre of them is a horse,
rather too terrestrial to be classical, with a conch-shell and other
marine emblems near him. The back-ground to this couch rises
about two feet above the reclining figure, and is divided horizon-
tally into two compartments, the lower containing a group of
six chimerical monsters, each nearly a foot in height, in mutual
• combat, and in perfect relief. Above is a smaller series, depict-
ing the Avatars, or incarnations of the divinity. On the left,
Goormci, the ’tortoise, having quitted his shell, of which he makes
a pedestal, denotes the termination of the catastrophe. Another
marine monster, half-boar {Varaha), half- fish, appears recovering the
Yowl, the symbol of production, from the alluvion, by his tusk. Next
to him is Harsinga, tearing in pieces a tyrannical king, with other
allegorical mysteries having no relatiqn to the ten incarnations,
but being a mythology quite distinct, and which none of the well
informed men around me could interpret ; a certain proof of its
antiquity.

The position of Narayana was that of repose, one hand supporting
his head, under which lay the gada, or mace, while in another he
held the conch-shell, which, when the god assumed the terrestrial
[Toa. H.] 82a

652

PEESONAL NARRATIVE.

[CHAP. SI.

form and led the Yadn hosts to battle, was celebrated as Deleshina-
verta, from having its spiral involutions reversed, or to the right
(i delcshin ). The fourth arm was broken off, as were hiB nether limbs
too near the knee. From the nab or ndf (navel), the umbilical cord
ascended, terminating in a lotus, whose expanded flower served as a
seat for Brimha, the personification- of the mind or spirit “ moving
“ on the waters” (i Yarayana) of chaos. The beneficent and beautiful
Lacshmi, whom all adore,, whether as Anapurana (the giver of food),
or in her less amiable character as the consort of the Hindu Plutus,
seems to have excited a double portion of the zealots’ ire, who have
not only visited her face too roughly, but entirely destroyed the
emblems of nourishment for her universal progeny. It would be
impossible to dwell upon the minuter ornaments, which, both for
design and execution, may be pronounced unrivalled in India. The
highly imaginative mind of the artist is apparent throughout ; he
has given a repose to the sleeping deity, which contrasts admirably
with the writhing of the serpent upon which he lies, whose folds,
more especially under the neck, appear almost real • a deception
aided by the porphyritie tints of the stone. From the accompani-
ments of mermaids, conch-shells, sea-horses, &c., we may conclude
* that a more elegant mythology than that now subsisting has been
lost' with the art of sculpture. The whole is carved out of a single
block of the quartz rock, which has a lustre and polish equal to
marble, and is of far greater durability.

The length of this marine couch {seja) is nearly eight feet, its
breadth two, and its height somewhat more than three : the figure,
from the top of his richly wrought tiai'a, being four feet. I felt a
strong inclination to disturb the slumbers of Narayana, and transport
him to another clime : in this there would be no sacrilege, for in his
present mutilated state, he is looked upon (except as a specimen of
art) as no better than a stone.

All round the coond the ground is covered with fragments of
shrines erected to the inferior divinities. On one piece, which must
have belonged to a roof, were sculptured two busts of a male and a
female, unexceptionably beautiful. The head-dress of the male was *
a helmet, quite Grecian in design, bound with a simple and elegant
fillet : in short, it would require the labour of several Artists for sis
months to do anything like justice to the wonders of Barolli.

There is no chronicle to tell us for whom or by whom this temple
was constructed. The legends are unintelligible; for although Raja
Hoon is the hero of this region, it is no easy task to account for his
connexion with the mythology. If we, however, connect this
apparently wild tradition with what is" already said regarding his
ruling at Bhynsror, and moreover with what has been recorded in 1
the first part of this work, when ‘ TJngutsi, lord of the Hoons/ was
enrolled amongst the eighty-four subordinate princes who defended
Cheetore against the first attempt of the Islamite, in the eighth
century, the mystery ceases. The name of Hoon is one of frequent

CHAP. XI-]

PERSONAL NARRATIVE.

653

occurrence in ancient traditions, and tlie early inscription at Mongliir
has already been mentioned, as likewise the still more important
admission of this being one of the thirty-sis royal tribes of Rajpoots ;
and as, in the Cheetore chronicle, they have actually assigned as the
proper name of the Hoon prince that (Ungutsi) which designates,
according to their hist 9 riau Deguignes, the grand horde, we can
scarcely refuse our belief that “ there were Huns” in India in those
days. But although Raja Hoon may have patronized the arts, we
can hardly imagine he could have furnished any ideas to the artists,
who at all events have not produced a single Tatar feature to attest
their rule in this region. It is far more probable, if ever Grecian
artists visited these regions, that they worked upon Indian designs
— an hypothesis which may be still further supported. History
informs us of the Grecian auxiliaries sent by Seleucus to the (Piiar)
monarch of Oojein (Ozene), whose descendants corresponded with
Augustus ; and I have before suggested the possibility of the temple
of Komulmdr, which is altogether dissimilar to any remains of
Hindu art, being attributable to the same people.

We discovered two inscriptions, as well as the names of many
visitors, inscribed on the pavement and walls of the portico, bearing
date seven and eight hundred years ago ; one was “ the son
“ of Jalunsi, from Dhawulnagri j” another, which is in the
ornamental Nagari of the Jains, is dated the 13 th of Oar tic
(the month sacred to Mars), S. 981, or A.D. 925. Unfortunately it
is but a fragment, containing five slocas in praise of Sideswar, orMaha-
deo, as the patron of the ascetic Jogis. Part of a name remains ; and
although my old Gurfi will not venture to give a translation without
his sybelline volume, the Vyakwna, which was left at Oodipoor,
there is yet sufficient to prove it to be merely the rhapsody of a
Pundit, visiting Rori Barolli, in praise of the f great god’ and of the
site.* More time and investigation than I could afford, might make
further discoveries ; and it would be labour well rewarded, if we
could obtain a date for this Augustan age of India. At the same
time, it is evident that the whole was not accomplished within one
man’s existence, nor could the cost be defrayed by one year’s revenue
of all Rajpootana.

We may add, before w / quit this spot, that there are two piles of
atones, in the quadrangle of the main temple, .raised over the defunct
priests of Mahadeo, who, whether Gosens, Sanyasis, or Dadoopantis,
always bury their dead.

Barolli is in the tract named Puchail, or the flat between the river
Chumbul and the pass, containing twenty-four villages in the lord-
ship of Bhynsror, laying about three miles west, and highly improv-
ing the sfcene, which could otherwise be one of perfect solitude.
According to the local tradition of some of the wild tribes, its more
ancient name was Bhadravati, the seat of the Hoons ; and the traces
of the old city in extensive mounds and ruins are still beheld around

* This is deposited in the museum of the Royal Asiatic Society.

654

PEKSONAI. NAEKATIVE.

[CHAP. XII.

the more modern Bhynsror. Tradition adds, that the Chirmitti (the
classic name of the Chumbul) had not then ploughed itself a channel
in this adamantine bed ; but nine centuries could not have effected
this operation, although it is not far from the period when Ungutsi,
the Hoon, served the Bana of Cheetore.

«

CHAPTER XII.

The choolis, or whirlpools of the Ohumbul. — Grandeur of the scene. — Description
of the falls and rochs of the Chumbul in this part. — The remarlcable narrow-
ness of its led. — The roris, or stones found in the whirlpool #. — V.isit to Ganga-
bheva. — Its magnificent temple and shrines. — The details of their architec-
ture. — The main temple more modern than the shrines around it. — Dilapida-
tion of these fine specimens of art. — Effects of vegetation. — The gigantic
amei'vela. — Ndoli . — Takaji-ca-coond, or fountain of the jnahe-hing. — Frag-
ments of sculpture. — Mausoleum of Jeswunt Bao ITolcar. — Ilolcar’s horse . —
Eis elephant. — Bhanpoora. — Tranquillity and prosperity of these parts . —
Gurrote. — Traces of Icing Satid Fatal, of the era of the Pandits. — Agates
and cornelians. — The caves of Dhoomnar. — Description of the cave's and
temples. — Explanation of the figures. — Jain symbols on one side of the caves,
Brahmin on the other. — Statues of the Jam pontiffs. — Bheem’s bazaar.

December 3d. — Having halted several days atBarolli to admire the
works of man, we marched to contemplate the still more stupendous
operations of nature — the choolis, or f whirlpools/ of the Chumbul.
Eor three miles we had to hew. a path through the forest for our
camels and horses ; at the end of which, the sound of many waters
gradually increased, until we stood on the bleak edge of the river's
rooky bed. Our little camp was pitched upon an elevated spot,
commanding a view over one of the most striking objects of nature
— a scene bold beyond the power of description. - Behind us was a
deep wood • in front, the abrupt precipices of the Pat'har ; to the
left, the river expanded into a lake of ample dimensions, fringed
with trees, and a little onward to the right, the majestic and mighty
Chirmitti, one of the sixteen sacred rivers of India, shrunk into such
a narrow compass, that even man might bestride it. Prom the tent f,
nothing seemed to disturb the unruffled surface of the lake, until
we approached the point of outlet, and beheld the deep bed the
river has excavated in the rock. This is the commencement of the
falls. Proceeding along the margin, one rapid succeeds another, the
gulf increasing in width, and the noise becoming more terrific, until
you arrive at a spot where the stream is split into four distinct
channels ; and a little farther’, an isolated rock appears, high over
which the whitened spray ascends, the sun-beams playing on it.
Here the separated channels, each terminating in. a cascade, fall into
an ample basin, and again unite their waters, boiling ai’ound the
masses of black rock, which ever and anon peeps out and contrasts

CHAP. XIX.] . - PERSONAL .NARRATIVE. 655

with th8 foaming surge rising from the whirlpools ( ehoolis ) beneath.
From this huge cauldron, the waters again divide into two branches,
encircling and isolating the rock, on whose northern face they
re-unite, and form another fine fall.

A tree is laid across the chasm, by the aid of which the adven-
turous may attain the summit of the rock, which is quite flat, and is
called “ the table of the T'hakoor of Bhynsror,” who often, in the
summer, 'holds his goto or feast there, and a fitter spot for such an.
entertainment can scarcely be imagined. Here, soothed by the
murmur of foaming waters, the eye dwelling on a variety of
picturesque objects, seen through the prismatic hues of the spray-
_ clouds, 'the baron of Bhynsror and his little court may sip their
amrit ,, fancying it, all the while, taken from the churning of the
little ocean beneath them.

On issuingfrom the ehoolis , the river continues its course through
its rocky bed, which gradually diminishes to about fifteen feet, and
with greatly increased velocity, until, meeting a softer soil, under
Bhynsror, it would float a man-of-war. The distance from the lake
first described to this rock is about a mile, and the difference of
elevation, under two hundred feet ; the main cascade being about
sixty feet fall. It is a curious fact that, after a course of three
hundred miles, the bed of a. mighty river like this should be no more
than about three yards broad. The whirlpools are huge perpendi-
cular' caverns, thirty and forty feet in depth, between some of which
there is a communication under-ground ; the orbicular stones, termed
■roris,. are often forced up in the agitation of these natural cauldrons *
one of them represents the object of worship at Bal-rori. For many
miles down the stream, towards Kotah, the rock is everywhere
pierced' by incipient ehoolis , or whirlpools, which, according to their
size and force, are always filled with these round'ed stones.

. From hence the Chumbul pursues its course through the plateau
(sometimes six hundred feet high) to Kotah. Here nature is inher
grandest attire. The scene, though wild and rugged, is sublime ;
and were I offered an estate in Mewai*, I would choose Bhynsror,
and should be delighted to hold my gate enveloped' in the mists
which rise from the whirlpools of the Chumbul 1 .

656

PERSONAL NARRATIVE.

• [CHAP. XII.

December 4f/i. — The carpenters have heen at work for some days
hewing a road for us to pass to Ganga-bheva, another famed retreat
in this wild and now utterly deserted abode. We commenced our
march through a forest, the dog-star nearly south; the river dimly
seen on our right. On our left were the remains of a ruined circum-
vallation, which is termed Rana-Koto; probably a nmna , or
preserve. At daybreak we arrived at the hamlet of Kheyrli ; and
.here, our course changing abruptly to J the south-east, we left the
river, and continued our journey through rocks and thickets, until a
deep grove of lofty trees, enclosed by a dilapidated wall, shewed that
we had reached the object of our search, Ganga-bheva.

What a scene burst upon us, as we cleared the ruined wall and
forced our way over the mouldering fragments of ancient grandeur !
Ganga-bheva, or * the circle of Ganga/ appeal's to have been selected
as a retreat for the votaries of Mahadeva, from its being a little oasis
in this rock-bound valley ; for its site was a fine turf, kept in per-
petual verdure by springs. 4

The chief object is the temple, dedicated to the creative power; -
it stands in the centre of a quadrangle of smaller shrines, which have
more the appearance of being the cenotaphs of some ancient dynasty
than domiciles for the inferior divinities. The contrast between the
architecture of the principal temple, and that of the shrines which
surround it, is remarkable. The body of the chief temple has been
destroyed and with its wrecks a simple, inelegant mindra has been
raised ; nor is there aught of the primitive structure, except the -
portico, remaining. - Its columns are fluted, and the entablature
(part of which lies prostrate and reversed) exhibits a profusion of
rich sculpture. In front of the temple is a circular basin, always
overflowing, and whence the term bhevo or bhco, ‘ a circle/ added to
the name of the spring, which is feigned to be an emanation of
Ganga. The surface of its waters is covered with the flower sacred
to the goddess, that particular lotus termed camod’hun, which may
be rendered, f the riches of love/

The chief temple evinces the same skill and taste as the structures
of Barolli, and the embellishments are similar. We here recognize
the groupes of Mahadeva and’ Parbutty, with the griffins (gras),
the Nagunis, hall-serpent, ' half-female, &c., though not in so
finished a style as at Barolli. Whatever be the age of this temple
(and we found on the pavement the name of a votary with the
date S. 1011, or A.D. 955), it is many centuries more recent
than those which surround it, in whose massive simplicity we
have a fine specimen of the primitive architecture of the Hindus.
Even of these, we can trace varieties. Eive of these small shrines
filled up ‘each face of the quadrangle, but with the exception of
those on the east side, all are in ruins. The doors of those which
possess an enclosed sanctum , face inwards towards the larger shrine :
and each has a simple low altar, on which are ranged the attendant
divinities of Mahadeva. The sculpture of all these is of a much latter

CHAi*. XII.]

PERSONAL NARRATIVE.

657

date than the specimens at Barolli, and of inferior execution, though
far superior to anything that the Hindu sculpture of modern days
can fabricate. They may possibly be of the date found insci’ibed
(the tenth century), posterior to which no good Hindu sculpture is
to be found. As this spot is now utterly deserted, and the tiger and
wild boar are the only inhabitants that visit the groves of Ganga-
bheva, I shall be guilty of no sacrilege in removing a few of these
specimens of early art.*

Nature has co-operated with the ruthless Toork in destroying the
oldest specimens of the art. Wherever there is a chink or crevice,
vegetation fixes itself. Of this we had a fine specimen in a gigantic
but now mouldering horoo , which had implanted itself in the
munduf of the principal-temple, and rent it to its foundatiqn. On
examining its immense roots, large slabs were actually encased with
the wood, the bark of which nearly covers a whole regiment of petty
gods. This fact alone attests the longevity of this species of tree,
which is said to live a thousand years. The fountain temple has, in
a similar way, been levelled by another of these .koroo-trees, the
branches of which had gradually pressed in and overwhelmed it.
The Sengdr-chdori, or nuptial-hall, is also nearly .unroofed; and
although the portico may yet survive for ages, time is rapidly con-
suming the rest.

I should ihave said > that there are two distinct enclosures, an
interior and exterior, and it is the first which is crowded with the
noblest trees, everywhere clustered by the amervdla, ‘ the garland
of eternity,'’ sacred to Mahadeva, which shades the shrine, overhang-
ing it in festoons. This is the giant of the parasitic tribe, its main
stem being as thick near the root as my body. I counted sixty
joints, each apparently denoting a year's growth, yet not half-way
up the tree on which it climbed. That highly-scented shrub, the
Icetlci-, grew in great profusion near the-cooncZ, and a bevy of monkeys
were gambolling about them, the sole inhabitants of the grove. The
more remote enclosure contained many altars, sacred to the manes
of the faithful wives who became satis for the salvation of their
lords. On some of these altars were three and four pootlis, or
images, denoting the number of devotees. It would require a
month's halt and a company of pioneers to turn over these ruins,
and then we might not be rewarded for our pains. We have there-
fore set to work to clear a path, that we may emerge 1 from these
wilds.

Ndoli, December 5th , twelve miles. — The road runs through one
continued forest, which would have been utterly impassable but for
the hatchet. Half-way, is the boundary between Bhynsror and

* Of the style of these specimens the curious are enabled toiudge, as seveial
are deposited in the museum of the Royal Asiatic Society. 1 These mark the
decline of the arts ; as do those of Barolli, 'its perhaps highest point of excel-
lence.

•LVon. II.]

83

658

EEBSONAL NAEEATIVE.

[chap. sir.

Bhanpoora, also an ancient appanage of Mdwar, but now belongb
to Holcar. * Kholi is a comfortable village, having tbe remains of
fort to the westward.

In the evening I went to visit Tdhdji-ca-coond, or f fountain of
the snake-king/ It is about two miles east of Naoli f'the road,
through a jungle, over "the flat highland of Pat’har, presents no
indication of the object of research, until you suddenly find your-
self on the brink of a precipice nearly two hundred feet in depth,
crowded with noble trees, on which the knotted karoo was again
conspicuous. The descent to this glen was over masses of l’ock •
and about half-way down, on a small platform, are two shrines ; one
containing the statue of TaJcshac , the snake-king ; the other of
Dhunantra , the physician, who was produced at the ‘ churning' of
the ocean.’ The cpond, or fountain, at the southern extremity of
the abyss, is about two hundred yards in. circumference, and termed
ci’tjidg, or f unfathomable,’ according to my guide, and if we may
judge from its dark sea-green lustre, it must be of considerable
depth. It is filled by a "cascade of full one hundred feet perpendi-'
cular height, under which is a stone-seat, sacred to the genius of the
spot. At the west side issues a rivulet, called the TalchaUi, or
serpentine, which, after pursuing a winding course for many miles,
some hundred feet below 'the surface of the Pat’har, washes the
eastern face of Hinglazgurh, and ultimately joins the Amjar. Grhassi,
my native artist, is busy with the effigy -of the snake-king, and
Dhunantra, the Vedya. Prom the summit of the plateau we had a
view of the castle of Hinglaz, celebrated in Lord Lake’s war with
the Mahrattas, and which was taken by Captain Hutchinson with a
few men of the Bengal artillery.

Bhanpoora, December 6th, eight miles.— -This was a delightful
march, presenting pictures at every step. Two miles, through jungle,
brought us to the abrupt crest of the Pat’har. For some distance
the route was over a neck or chine, with deep perpendicular dells on
each side, which, at its extremity, the point of descent, termed the ,
ghat or pass, became a valley, gradually expanding until we reached
Bhanpoora. At the ghat are the remains of a very ancient fortress,
named Indorgurh, which must have been one of the strong-holds- of
this region long anterior to the Chanderawut feudatories of Mewar.
Some fragments of sculpture indicate the presence of the artist of
Barolli ; but all search for inscriptions was fruitless. Prom hence
we saw the well-defined skirts of the plateau stretching westward
by Rampoora to the Lassaughat, Tarrapoor, and Jawud, the point of
our assent last year.

It was pleasing, after a week’s incarceration amidst these ruin’s
and scenes of natural grandeur, where European foot had never trod,
to see verdant fields and inhabitants of the plain;' such alternations
make each delightful in its turn. We had been satiated with the
interminable flats and unvarying corn-fields of Harouti, and it was

60 c3

CRAP. XII.]

PERSONA! NARRATIVE.

659

a relief to quit that tame tranquillity for the whirlpools of the
Chumbul, the cooncls of Ganga, and the snake-king in the regions of
the inaccessible Doorga.

As we approached Bhanpoora, we crossed a small rivulet, called
the Bewa, coming from the glen of the pass ; near which is the
mausoleum of Jeswunt Rao Holcar, adjoining the scene of his greatest
glory, when he drove an English army from his territory. The
architecture is worthy of the bai’barian Mahratta ; it is a vaulted
building, erected upon a terrace, all of hewn stone : its only merit is
its solidity. There is a statue of this intrepid chieftain, of the
natural size, in the usual ungraceful sitting posture, with his little
turban ; but it gives but a mean idea of the man who made terms
with Lake at the altars of Alexander. It is enclosed by a miniature
and regularly-built fortress, with bastions, the interior of which are
hollow and colonnaded, serving as a dhermsala, or place of halt for
pilgrims or travellers ; and on the terrace are a few refolds, or swivels.
On the right of the temple destined to receive the effigy of J eswunt,
.is a smaller cenotaph to the memory of his sister, who died shortly
after him. The gateway leading into this castellated tomb has
apartments at top, and at the entrance is a handsome piece of'brass
ordnance, called kali, or ‘ death.' There is a temporary buildiug on
the light of the gateway, where prayers are recited all day long for
the soul of Jeswunt, before an altar on which were placed twenty-
four deivds, or lamps, always burning. A figure dressed in white
was on the altar; immediately behind which, painted on the wall,
was Jeswunt himself, and as in the days of his glory, mounted on
his favourite war-horse, Mowah. The chaour was waving over his
head, and silver-mace bearers were attending, while the officiating
priests, seated on carpets, pronounced their incantations.

I left the master to visit Mowah, whose stall is close to the
mausoleum of Holcar, whom he bore in many a desperate strife.
The noble animal seemed to possess all his master's aversion to a
Frengi, and when, having requested his body clothes to be removed,
I went up to examine him, he at first backed his ears and shewed
fight; but at last permitted me to rub, his fine forehead. Mowah
is a chesnut of the famed Beemrat’hali breed ; like his master, a
genuine native of Maharashtra, he exhibits the frame-work of a
perfect horse, though under 14. 3. ; his fore-legs shew what he has
gone through. His head is a model, exhibiting the highest quality
of blood : ears small and pointed, eye full and protruding, and a
mouth that could drink out of a tea-cup. He is in very good
condition ; but I put in my urzee that they would provide more
ample and sweeter bedding, which was readily promised. The
favourite elephant is a pensioner as well as Mowah. Even in these
simple incidents, we see that the mind is influenced by similar
associations all over the world.

Bhanpoora is a town of five thousand houses, surrounded by a
wall in good order; the inhabitants apparently well contented with
[Von. II.] ' 83i.

660

PERSONAL NARRATIVE.

{CHAP. XII.

the mild administration of Tantia Jogh, the present Dewan of
Holcar’s court; but they are all alive to the conviction that this
tranquillity is due to the supervising power alone. I was greatly
gratified by a visit from the respectable community of Bbanpoora,
merchants, -bankers, and artizans, headed by the Hakim in person;
nor could the inhabitants of my own country, Mdwar, evince more
kind and courteous feeling. In fact, they have not forgotten the
old tie ; that the Rao of Bhanpoora, though now holding but a small
portion of his inheritance, was one of the chief nobles of Mdwar,
and even still receives the tilac of accession for Arnud from the
hands of his ancient lord, though nearly a century has elapsed since
Holcar became his sovereign do facto : but associations here are all-
powerful.

Gurrote, December 7th ; distance, thirteen miles ; direction,
S.S.E. — It was delightful to range over the expansive plains
of Malwa, and not to be reminded at every step by the excla-
mation ‘ tholcur !’ of the attendant, that there was some stony
impediment ready to trip one up, the moment one’s vision was.
raised above the earth. A singular contrast was presented
between the moral aspect of these plains and of Harouti. Here,
though the seat of perpetual war, still visible in sterile fields, we
observe comfort displayed in the huts and in the persons of the
peasantry ; there, amidst all the gifts of Anapurana, the - miserable
condition of the ryot provokes one to ask, (C whence this difference
The reason is elsewhere explained.

Gurrote is a thriving town of twelve hundred houses, the chief of
a tuppa or subdivision of Rampoora, whence a deputy hakfai is sent
as resident manager. It is walled in ; but the inhabitants seemed
to feel they had now a better security than walls. Here there is
nothing antique ; but Moli, with its old castle, about midway in this
morning’s journey, might furnish something for the porte-feuille,
especially a fine sculptured torun yet standing, and fragments
strewed in every direction. Tradition is almost mute, and all I
could learn was, that it was the abode of a king, called Satul-Patul,
whom they carried back to the era of the Paddus.

I was much surprised to find the plain strewed with .agates and
cornelians, of every variety of tint and shape, both veined and plain,
semi-transparent and opaque, many stalactitic, in various degrees of
hardness, still containing the fibre of grass or root, serving as a ■"
nucleus for the concretion. There are no hills to account for these
products in the black loam of the plains, unless the Chumbul should
have burst his bed and inundated them. Nor are there any nullas
which could have carried them down, or any appearance of calca-
reous deposit in the soil, which, when penetrated to any depth, was
found to rest upon blue slate.

Oaves of Dhoomnar, December Sth; direction, south 10° west;
distance, twelve miles.' — The country reminded us of Mewar, having

e same agreeeble undulations of surface and a. rich soil, which was

CHAP. XII.]

PERSONAL NARRATIVE.

661

strewed throughout, ms .yesterday, with, agates. As we approached
the object of our search, the caves of DhoomrAr, we crossed a rocky
l-idge covered with the dhalc jungle, through which we travelled
until we arrived at the mount. We found our camp pitched at the
northern base, near a fine tank of water ; but our curiosity was too
great to think of breakfast until the mental appetite was satiated.

The hill is between two and three miles in circumfei’ence ; to the
north it is bluff, of gradual ascent, and about one hundred and forty
feet in height, the summit presenting a bold perpendicular scarp,
about thirty feet high. The top is flat, and covered with b urr trees.
On the south side it has the form of a horse-shoe, or irregular cres-
cent, the horns of which are turnod to the south, having the same
bold natural rampart running round its crest, pierced throughout
with caves, of which I counted one hundred and seventy ; I should
rather say that these were merely the entrances to the temples and
extensive habitations of these ancient Troglodytes. The rock is a
cellular iron-clay, so indurated and compact as to take a polish.
There are traces of a city, external as well as internal, but whether
they were eotemporaneous we cannot conjecture. If we judge from
the remains of a wall about nine feet thick, of Cyclopean formation,
being composed of large oblong masses without cement, we might
incline to that opiniou, and suppose that the caves were for the
monastic inhabitants, did they not afford proof to the contrary in
their extent and appropriation.

On reaching the scarp, we wound round its base until we arrived
at an opeuing cut through it from top to bottom, which proved to
be the entrance to a gallery of about one hundred yards in length
and nearly four in breadth, terminating in a quadrangular court,
measuring about one huudred feet by seventy, and about thirty-five
feet in height; in short, an immense square cavity, hollowed out of
the rock, in the centre of which, cut in like manner out of one single
. mass of stone, is the temple of the four-armed divinity, Chatoor-
bhooja. Exclusive of this gallery, there is a staircase cut in the
north-west angle of the excavation, by which there is an ascent to
the summit of the rock, on a level with which is the pinnacle of the
temple. Apparently without any soil, some of the finest trees I
ever saw, chiefly the sacred peepul, burr, and tamarind, are to be
found here.

The ground-plan of the temple is of the usual form, having a
mindra , munduf, and portico, to which the well-kuown term ■pagoda
is given, and there is simplicity as well as solidity both in the design
and execution. The columns, entablatures, with a good sbow of
ornament, are distinct in their details ; and there are many statues,
besides flowers, not in bad taste, especially the carved ceilings. It
would be. regarded as a curiosity if found on a plain, and put
together in the ordinary manner; but when it is considered that ail
is from one block, and that the material is so little calculated to
display tbe artist’s skill, the work is stupendous.

662

PERSONAL NARRATIVE.

[CHAP. XII.

Vishnu, who is here adored as the “ four-aimed/’ was placed upon
an altar, clad in robes of his favourite colour (pandit, or yellow
ochre), whence one of his titles, Pand&raruj. The principal shrine
is surrounded by the inferior divinities in the following order : First,
on entering are the Poleasov f Porters / Ganesais upon the right, close
to whom is Sarasvati, “ whose throne is on the tongue •” and on the
left are the twin-sons of Kali, the Bhiroos, distinguished a3 Kala
(black), and Gora (fair) ; a littlo in advance of these is a shrine con-
taining five of the ten Mahaledias, or ministering agents of Kali,
each known by his symbol, or vahan, as the bull, man, elephant,
buffalo, and peacock. The Malmbedias are all evil genii, invokedin
jup, or incantations against an enemy, and phylacteries, containing
formulas addressed to them, are bound round the arms of warriors
in battle.

At the back of the chief temple are three shrines ; the central one
contains a statue of Narayaua, upon his hydra-couch, with Lacshmi
at bis feet. Two Dytes, or evil spirits, appear in conflict close to
her ; and a second figure represents her in a running posture, looking
back, in great alarm, at the combatants. Smaller figures about
iNarayana represent the heavenly choristers administering to his
repose, playing on various instruments, the moorali, or flute, the
vlna, or lyre, the muyoora, or tabor, and the mudhung and thdl,
or cymbals, at the sound of which a serpent appears, rearing his
crest with delight. The minor temples, like the larger one, are also
hewn out of the rock ; but the statues they contain are from the
quartz rock of the Pat 1 bar, and they, therefore, appear incongruous
with the other parts. In fact, from an emblem of Mabadeva, which
rises out of the threshold, and upon which the “ four-armed’’'* Vishnu
looks down, I infer that these temples were originally dedicated to
the creative power.

We proceeded by the steps, cut laterally in the rock, to the south
side, where we enjoyed, through the opening, an unlimited range of
vision over the plains beyond the Chumbul, even to Mundisore and
Sondwarra. Descending some rude steps, and turning to the left,
we entered a cavern, the roof of which was supported by one 'of
those singularly-shaped columns, named after the sacred mounts of
the Jains ; and here it is necessary to mention a curious fact, that
while everything on one side is Budhist or Jain, on the other all
is Sivite or Vishnuvi. At the entrance to the cave adjoining this
are various colossal figures, standing or sitting, too characteristic of
the Budhists or Jains to be mistaken; but on this, the south side,
everything is ascribed to the Pandus, and a recumbent figure, ten
feet in length, with his hand under his head, as if asleep, is termed
“ the son of Bheem/’ and as the local tradition goes, “ only one hour
<c old a circumstance which called forth from my conductor, who
gravely swallowed the tale, the exclamation — “What would he have
“been if noh maliina ca balue , f a nine months’ child’ !” The chief
group is called the Five Pandus, who, according to tradition, took

CHAP. XXI.]

PERSONAL NARRATIVE. '

663

up their abode here during their exile from the Jumna ; and the
other figures are performing menial offices to the heroes.

Fortunately, I had my Jain Guru with me, who gave me more
correct notions of_these groups than the local cicerone. All these
figures are representations of the deified pontiffs of the Jains, and
the group of five are the most celebrated of the twenty-four, and
distinctively called the Panch- Teeruti, viz,, Rishubdeva, the first ;
SnntnAit’h, the sixteenth ; NdmnaFh, the twenty-second; Parswan&Ph,
the twenty-third ; and Mahavira, the twenty-fourth. Each has his
sacred mount, or place of pilgrimage ( teerut ), and each is recognized
by his symbol, viz., the bull, black antelope, conch-shell, hooded
serpent, and tiger ; and it is quite sufficient to find one of these
symbols upon the plinth to ascertain the particular pontiff to which
it belongs. There was also, in a sitting posture, Chandra Prebhoo,
known by his sign, the crescent. All the figures are from ten to
eleven feet high. That in a recumbent position, my friend said was
one of the pontiffs, about to “ shuffle off this mortal coil,” prepara-
tory to apotheosis... “ When such an event took place, the throne of
" Indra shook, and he sent a deputation to convey the deceased
“ through the Kecr Samudra (sea of curds), to the great temple of
“ deification, whither the whole heavenly host advanced to con-
“ duct him.”

Next to, and communicating by a passage with, this hall of the
Jain pontiffs, is the most extensive excavation of Dhoomnar, locally
designated as “ Bhecuds Bazaar.” The extreme length of this exca-
vation is about a hundred feet, and the breadth eighty. Although
the name of' this leader of the Pandus designates every subdivision
of this cave, yet everything is Budhist. The main apartment is
that called Bheem’s armoury or treasury, the entrance to which is
through a vestibule, about twenty feet square, supported by two
columns, and having- four lateral semicircular niches, now empty,
but probably intended for statues : this opens to the armoury,
which is a vaulted apartment, about thirty feet by fifteen, having
at the further end a dhagope, supporting the roof. These singularly
formed columns, if we may so term them, are named after their
sacred mounts j and this is called Soomdru, which being sacred to
AdnaFh, the first pontiff, we may conclude he was here adored. An
extensive piazza, full twenty feet wide, evidently a dhermsala for
the pilgrims, runs round this apartment, supported by rows of
massive square columns, all cut out of the rock ; and again, on the
exterior, are numerous square cells, called the apartments of
the Srawulcs, or Jain laity ; in one of which there is a sub-
porting dhagope, and in another two statues of the twenty-
third pontiff, Parswa. A part of the vaulted roof of Bheem’s
treasury, as it is called, has fallen in, so that the vault of heaven
• is seen through the aperture of the mountain. This is also
attributed to Korea Ghoor (thief), whose statue appears on the
pinnacle of the temple of Barolli, indicating the old enemy- of

664

PERSONAL JTARRATIYE.

[chap. XU.

the Pandus, who robbed them of ‘their .kingdom. Close to the
armoury is an apartment called theBdjloca, or for the ladies ; but
here tradition is at fault, since, with the exception of Koonti, the
mother, Droopdevi alone shared the exile of the Pandus.

Still further to the right, or south-west, is another vaulted and
roof-ribbed apartment, thirty feet by fourteen, and about sixteen in
central height, supported by another image of Soomeru. -The sacred
burr, or fig-tree ( ficus religiosa ), had taken root in the very heart
of this cavern, and having expanded until checked by the roof,' it
found the line of least resistance to be the cave’s mouth, whence it
issued horizontally, and is now a goodly tree overshadowing the cave.
Around this there are many joausid-salas, or halls for the Yatis, or
initiated disciples, who stand in the same upright meditative posture
as the pontiffs.

But it is impossible, and the attempt would be tedious, to give,
by any written description, an adequate idea of the subterranean
town of Dhoomnar. It is an object, however, which will assist in
illustrating the subject of cave-worship in India; and though in
grandeur these. caves cannot compare with those of Ellora, Carli, or
Salsette, yet in point of antiquity they evidently surpass them.
The temple dedicated to the Tirthancars, or deified Jin-esivars
(lords of the Jains), are rude specimens of a rude age, when the-art of
sculpture was in its very infancy ; yet is there a boldness of delinea-
tion, as well as great originality of design, which distinguishes
them from everything else in India. "In vain we hunted for inscrip-
tions ; but a few isolated letters of that ancient and yet undeciphered
kind, which occurs on every monument attributed to the Pandus,
were here and there observed. There were fragments of sculpture
about the base of the hill, differing both in design find material from
those of the mountain. Altogether, Dhoomnar is highly worthy of
a visit, being one of the most curious spots in this part, jvhich
abounds with curiosities. ;

CHAP, XIII.],

PERSONAL NARRATIVE.

665

CHAPTER XIII.

Route over the ground of JSLonson’s retreat. — Battle of Peeply. — Heroism of Umr
Sing Hard, chief of Koelah. — Conduct of general Monson. — Puchpahar . —
Kunwarra,. — Thriving aspect of the count i y. — Jhalra-Patun. — Temples . —
Commercial immunities of the city. — Judicious measutes of the Regent in
establishing this mart. — Public visit of the community of Palun. — The ancient
city. — Legends of its foundation. — Profusion of ancient ruins. — Fine sculpture
and architecture of the temples. — Inscriptions . — Cross the natural boundary _
of Harouti and Maliva. — The chaoni of the Kotah Regent. — OMon! of the
P-indai ) is. — Qagroiun. — Haraynpoor. — Mohundurra Pass. — Inscriptions . —
Anecdotes of the “ Lords of the Pass." — The chftorl of Bheem. — lluins.
— Ordinances of the Extra princes. — Return to Kotah . — Field sports. — Author
attached by a bear. — Ruins of Ehailgurh.

Puchpahar, 10th December. — We returned to Gurroti yesterday,
■whence we marched ten miles north-north-east this morning over
memorable ground. It was from Gurrote that the retx-eat of Monson
commenced, an event as remarkable in the history of British India
as the retreat of Xenophon in that of Greece. The former has not
' been commemorated by the commander, though even the pen of
Xenophon himself could not have mitigated the reproach which that
disastrous event has left upon our military reputation. Holcarwas
at Pertabgurh, when, hearing of the advance of the English army,
he made direct on Mundisore, where he halted merely to refresh his
horses, and crossing the Chumbul at the Aora ford, he pushed direct
on Gurrote, a distance of nearly fifty miles. Local report states that
Monson, in utter ignorance of the rapid advance of Holcar, had that
morning recommenced his march for Chandwasso, with what object
is unknown ; but as soon as he learned the vicinity of the foe,
without awaiting him, he ordered a retrograde movement to gain
the Mokundurra pass, leaving Lucan with the irregular horse and
the Kotah auxiliaries, chiefly Hara Rajpoots, to secure his retreat.
Hoi caps army amounted to ten thousand horse, in four goles, or

masses, each acting separately. That under Khan Bungush

came on Lucan from the south, while that under Hurnat Dada, from
the direction of Bhanpoor, attacked the Kotah contingent. Lucan
defended himself like a hero and having repelled all their charges,
had become the assailant, when he received his death-blow from a
hand in his own pcUgd. My informant, who was that day opposed
to this gallant soldier, described the scene, pointing out the mowah
tree close to which he fell.

• The auxiliary band of Kotah was led by the Hara chief of Koelah,
his name Umr Sing. On receiving, the orders of the English com-
mander, he prepared, in the old Hara style, to obey them. The
position he selected was about a quarter of a mile west of Lucan, on
the north hank of the Amjar, his left protected by the village of
Peeply, which stands on a gentle eminence gradually shelving to
the stream, the low abrupt bank of which would secure him from
[Vol. n.] . 84

666

PERSONAL NARRATIVE.

[CHAP. XIII.

any charge in front. Here, dismounting from his horse, Umr Sing,
surrounded by one thousand men, “ spread his carpet,” resolved to
defend the passage of the Atnjar. His force was chiefly infantry,
who met the enemy with volleys of matchlocks, and filled the
stream with their bodies ; but just as he was about to close with
them, a ball hit him in the forehead and another in the right breast.
He fell, but immediately rose again, and reclining against a sugar-
mill-stone, encouraged his men to the charge. The calmness of his
manner indicated no danger, but it was the dying effort of a Hara :
pointing with his sword to the foe, he fell back and expired. Four
hundred and fifty of his men were either killed or wounded around
their chief, and among the latter, the Polaita tjjiief, the next in l’ank
to Koelah, and the bukshee, or paymaster-general of Kotah was
made prisoner, and forced to sign a bond for ten lacs of rupees as a
ransom, a penalty for siding with the English.

A htiuible altar of clay marks the spot where the brave Hara fell,
having a tablet, ov j oo jar’ll, representing as usual a cavalier and his
steed, armed at all points. I felt indignation at the indifference of
the Regent, who had not marked the spot with a more durable
monument ; but he is no Hara ; though could he entomb the whole
tribe, he would erect a structure rivalling even that of Mausoleus.
But this receives a homage which might be denied to a more
splendid one ; for the villagers of Peeply fail not in their duty to
the manes of Umr Sing, whose lowly altar is maintained in repair.
The devoted Lucan lias not even so frail a monument as this ; nor
could I learn if the case which enclosed' his gallant spirit had any
rites of sepulture. But his memory will be cherished by the inhabit-
ants of Peeply, who will point to the mowah tree as that of “Lucan
“ Saheb ca Joo jar’ll. ”

By the sacrifice .off these brave men, the British commander
gained the Mokundurra pass, without seeing even an enemy; had
he there left> only five companies, with sufficient supplies and
ammunition, under such men as • Sinclair or Hicliol, Mokundurra
might have rivalled Thermopylae in renown ; for such is the pecu-
liarity of the position, that it would have taken a we'ek to turn it,
and that could be done by infantry alone. But the commander
“ had no confidence in his men why then did he accept the com-
mand ? Throughout the retreat, the sepahis were eager for the fight,
and expressed their opinion openly of their leader ; and wheu this
‘ doubting 5 commander left five companies to defend the passage of
the Bunas, how did they perform it ? by repelling every assault,
while a particle of ammunition lasted. I have often passed this ford,
once with Sindia’s army, and only three years after the retreat. The
gallant stand was admirably described to me by Zemaun Khan
• Rohilla, a brave soldier and no boaster, (and that day among our
foes,) who cooly pointed to the precise spot where he shot one of our
officers, in the last charge, with his pistol. He said that the Mahratta
infantry would no longer return to the charge, and that Jeswunt

CHAP. XIII.]

PEESONAE NABBATIVE.

667

Rao was like a madman, threw his turban on the ground and called
for volunteers amongst the cavalry, by whom at length Sinclair and
his men were cut off. It is a lesson by which we ought to profit,
never to place in command of sepahis those who do not understand,
confide in, and respect them.

Puchpahar is a thriving town, the head of one of the four districts
of which, by the right of war, we became possessed, and have trans- „
ferred from Holcar to the Regent : so far we have discharged the
debt of gratitude. Eighty villages are attached to Puchpahar
which,- though never yielding less than half a lac of rupees, is
capable of raising more than twice that sum. There are two
thousand houses in the town, which has an extensive bazaar filled
with rich traders and bankers, all of whom came to visit me. The
cornelian continues to strew the ground even to this place.

Kumvarra, 11th December ; thirteen miles ; direction, 1ST. E. by
E. — Passed ovei* a fine .rich soil, with px'omising young crops of
wheat and gram, and plenty of the last crop ( jodr ) in stacks; a sight
not often seen in these war- trodden plains, and which makes the
name, Kunwarra, or “ the land of corn," very appropriate. At the
village of Aonla, four miles south, we crossed the high road leading
from Oojein through the clurra to HindusPhan, the large town of
Soneil lying three miles to our right.

Jhab-a-Patun, 12th December ; ten miles; direction, N.N.E. — •
The road over the same fertile soil. — Passed the Chunderbhaga
rivulet, the source of which is only two'coss distant, and was shown,
within the range, the isolated hill of Relaitoh, formerly the retreat
of a Bhil community, which sent forth four thousand bowmen to
ravage the plains of Malwa : these were extirpated by Zalim Sing.

Jhalra-Patun is the creation of the Regent ; and, as we approached
it, his kindness procured me the distinction of being met, a full mile
beyond the town, by the chief magistrate, the council, and the
most wealthy inhabitants : an honour duly appreciated, this being
the only town in India possessing the germs of civil liberty, in the
power of framing their own municipal regulations. This is
the more remarkable, as the immunities of their commercial
charter were granted by the most despotic ruler of India ; though the
boon was not a concession to liberty, but an act of policy ; it was
given for value received, or at least expected, and which has been
amply realized. Having exchanged salutations, and promised a
more extended courtesy at my tents in the evening, we took advan-
tage of the town being thinned, and passed in under a general digr
charge of ordnance from the ramparts. The city is nearly a square,
surrounded by a substantial wall and bastions, well furnished with
cannon. The ground plan is simple, being that of the Indian choiu-
pun or cross, with two main streets intersecting each other at right
angles, and many smaller ones ruuning parallel to them. The main
street is from south to north. We proceeded through this hurra
bazaar , until we reached the point of intersection,- where, upon a
fiVon. II. ] • 84 a

668

PERSONAL NARRATIVE.

[CHAP, mb

broad terrace, stands a temple to Ohatoorbhooja, the ( four-armed'
god, at least ninety feet in height. The marble dome and colon-
naded miincluf, and the general proportions of the structure,
attracted my attention; but having been recently repaired and
coated with white, I passed it by, conceiving it to be modern, and
not likely to furnish historical data From thence to the northern
gate is a range, on either side, of houses of a uniform structure,
having a great appearance of comfort ; and the street, which, is
nearly a mile long, terminates with a temple erected by the Regent
to his favourite divinity, Dwaricanat'h, The image here enshrined
was ploughed up from the ruins of the ancient city, and carried to
the Regent at Kotah, who, leaving to the choice of the god the title
under which, and the site where, he would be worshipped, his
various names were inscribed and placed under the pedestal; the
priest drew forth that of Gopal-ji, and a magnificent shrine was
erected to him upon the bank of one of the finest lakes in India,
the waters of which, raised by an artificial* dam, could be made to
environ it at pleasure.

In a street to the north, and parallel to the first, but as yet incom-
plete, is a handsome temple, dedicated to the sixteenth Jain prophet.
This also, I afterwards discovered, was an antique structure, recently
repaired, and one-of the hundred and eight temples, the bells of
which sounded in the ancient city ; whence its name Jhalm-patun ,
or c tho city of bells,' and not, as' erroneously stated hitherto, from
the tribe of the Regent, Jhala-ra-patun, .or f city of the Jhala;'
ignorance of which fact made me pass over the temples, under the
supposition that they were coeval .with its modern foundation. I
stopped for a few moments at the mansion of the chief magistrate,
Sah Munniram, and having expressed my admiration of all I had
seen, and my hope that the prosperity of the city would redouble
under his paternal care in these days. of peace, I made my salaanji
and took leave. Opposite his house, engraved on a pillar of stone,
is the charter of rights *of the city.* Its simplicity will excite a
smile ; but the philosopher may trace in it the first rudiments of
that commercial greatness, whi'cb made the free cities of Europe the
instruments of general liberty. Few of these had their privileges
so thoroughly defined, or so scrupulously observed; and the motive
which brought the community together was the surest guarantee
against their infringement. A state of general war made them con-
gregate, and was the origin of these immunities, which the existing
peace and tranquillity will perpetuate. Any want of good faith
would be the destruction of Patun.

When the Regent took advantage of the times to invite the
wealthy of all the surrounding regions to become settlers in this new
mart, he wisely appealed to the evidence of their senses as the best
pledge for the fulfilment of his promises. Simultaneously with the
charter, the fortifications were commenced, and an adequate garrison

* See, Vol. I, p. 690.

PEESQUAIi NAEBATIVE.

669

CHAP. XIII.]

■sya,s placed here under a commandant well kuown and respected.

He excavated wells, repaired the dam of the old lake, and either
built anew or repaired the religious edifices of nil sects at the
expenscof the state; and, to secure uniformity and. solidity in the
new habitations, he advanced to every man who required it half the
money necessary for their construction. But the greatest boon of
all was his leaving the administration of justioe, as well as of
internal police, entirely in the hands of the municipal authorities,
who, to their credit, resolved that the fines and forfeitures arising
therefrom, instead of becoming a bait for avarice and vexatious
interference, should be offerings to the shrine of Dwaricanat’h.

It is proper to say that the chief magistrate, Sah Munniram, who
is of the Yishnud sect, has a coadjutor in Gomani Ram, of the
OswM tribe and Jain faith, and each has his separate tribunal for
the classes he represents, while the tvhole form a joint council for
the general weal. They pull well together, and each has founded a
poora, or suburb, named after their children. The Oholiteas, or
members of this council, are selected according to the general sense
entertained of their fitness ; and were the chief magistrates also the
free choice of the inhabitants at large, f the city of bells' wpuld require
no addition to her freedom. Thus, in the short space of twenty years,
has been raised a city of six thousand comfortable dwellings, with a
population of at least twenty-five thousand souls. But the hereditary
principle, so powerful throughout these countries, and which, though
it perpetuates many evils, has likewise been productive of much good,
and has preserved these states from annihilation, will inevitably
make the f turban’ of magistracy descend from the head of Munniram
or Gomftni to their children, under whom, if they be not imbued
-with the same discretion as their parents, the stone tablet, as well as
the subsequent privileges of Jhalra-patun, may become a dead letter.
The only officers of government residing in the town are the com-
mandant and the collector of the imposts ; and so jealous ai*e they
of the least interference on his part, that a fine would be inflicted on
any individual who, by delaying the payment of the authorized
duties, furnished an excuse for his interference.

Such is an outline of an internal administration, on which I have' x ^
just had a commentary of the most agreeable description : a public
visit from all "the wealth and worth of Patun. First, came the
merchants, the brokers, the insurers of the Yi simile persuasion, each
being introduced with the name of the firm ; then followed the
Oswal merchants, in similar form, and both of them I seated in the
- order of their introduction and respectability. After them followed
the trades, the'Ohohtea or deacons, each making his nuzzur in the
name of the whole body. Then came the artizans, goldsmiths,
braziers, dyers, confectioners, down to the barbers, and town-crier.
The agricultural interest wag evidently at a discount in Patun, anql
subordinate to the commercial ; the old Mundlooe Patels were,

“ though last, not least” in this interesting assemblage. Even the

670

PERSONAL NARRATIVE.

[CHAP. XIII.

frail sisterhood paid their devoirs , and, in their modesty of demean-
our, recalled the passage of Burke applied in contrast to a neigh-
bouring state, “ vice lost half its deformity, by losing all its gross-
“ ness.” Sah Munniram himself preserved order outside, while to his -
colleague he left the formalities of introduction. The goldsmiths'
company presented, as their nazzur , a small silver powder-flask,
shaped as an alligator, and covered with delicate chain- work, which
I shall retain not only as a specimen of the craft, but in remembrance
of a day full of unusual interest. They retired in the same order as
they came, preceded by the town-band, flags, trumpets, and drums.

Such is Jhalra-Patuu. May the demon of anarchy keep from its
walls, and the orthodox and heterodox Duumvirs live in amity for
the sake of the general good, nor by their animosities, increase the
resemblance which this mart bears to the free cities of Europe !

From all I could learn, justice is distributed with as even a hand
as in most societies, but wherever existed the community that
submitted to restraint, or did not murmur at the fiat of the law ?
Jhalra-Fatun is now the grand commercial mart of Upper Malwa,
and has swallowed up all the commerce of the central towns between
its own latitude and Indore. Though not even on the high road,
when established, this difficulty was overcome by the road coming
to it. The transit-duties on salt alone must be considerable, as that
of the lakes of western Rajwarra passes through it in its way to the
south-east. It is not famed, however, for any staple article of trade,
but merely as au entrepot.

We have said enough of the modern city, and must now revert
to the ancient, which, besides its metaphorical appellation of “ the
“ city of bells," had the name of Ohandravati, and the rivulet which
flowed through it, the Ohandrabhaga. There is an abundance of
legends, to which we may be enabled to apply the test of .inscrip-
tions. In some, Raja Hoon is again brought forward as the founder
of the city ; though others, with more probability, assign its founda-
tion to the daughter of Chandrasen, the Pramar king of Malwa, who
was delivered of a son on this spot while on a pilgrimage. Auother
ascribes it to a more humble origin than either, i. e. to Jussoo, a
poor wood-cutter of the ancient tribe of Or, who, returning home- 5 ,
wards from his daily occupation, dropped his axe upon the paris-
puttur, with the aid of which he transmuted iron to gold, and raised
“ the city of the moon" {Ohandravati) ; and the lake is still called
after him Jussoo Or ca-talldb. The Pandu Bheem likewise comes
in for his share of the founder's fame ; who, with his brethren during
their covenant with the Kaorea, found concealment in the forest ;
but his foe, fearing the effect of his devotions, sent his familiar to
disturb them. The spirit took the form of a boar, but as he sped
past him through the thicket, Bheem discharged an arrow, and on
the spot where this fell, the Ohandrabhaga sprung up. Whoever
was the founder, I have little doubt that tradition has converted
Jussoo-verma, the grandson of Udyadit, the monarch of all Malwa,

CHAP. Sill.]

PERSONAL NARRATIVE.

671

into tlie 'wood- cutter ; for not only does tliis prince’s name occur in
one of tlie inscriptions found here, but I have discovered it in almost
every ancient city of Central India, over which his ancestors had
held supreme power from the first to the thirteenth century of
Vicrama.*

The sites of temples mark the course of the stream for a consider-
able distance, the banks being strewed with ruins. Flights of steps,
forming ghats , reach to the water’s edge, where multitudes of gods,
goddesses, and dejnons, ai’o piled, and some of the more perfect
placed upou altars of clay, around which some lazy, well-fed Cosens
loiter, basking in the sun. Understanding that no umbrage could
be taken if I exported some of them to Oodipoor, I carried off
Narayana on his hydra-couch, a Parbutty, a tri-murti , and a cart-
load of the dii minor es 3 which I found huddled together under a
burr- tree. There was a fine statue of Gandsa, but our efforts to
move Wisdom were ineffectual, and occasioned not a few jokes
among my Brahmins 3 nor must I pass over a colossal haraha (boar),
of which no artist in Europe need be ashamed.

The powers of Destruction and Re-production were those propi-
tiated among the one hundred and eight shrines of Chandravati • of
which only two or three ‘imperfect specimens remain to attest the
grandeur of past days. Everywhere, the symbolic lingam was
scattered about, and the m unduf of one of those still standing I
found filled with representations of the Hindu Hecate and a host of
lesser internals, the sculpture of which, though far inferior to that
at Barolli, is ot a high order compared with aught of modern times.
The attitudes are especially well-managed, though there is a want
of just proportion. Even the anatomical display of the muscles
is attended to 3 but the dust, oil, and sindoor (vermilion) of twelve
centuries were upou them, and the place was dark and damp, which
deterred us from disturbing them.

Chassi is now at work upon the outline of two of the remaining
shrines, and has promised to give up ten days to the details of the
ceilings, the columns, and the rich varied ornaments, which the
pencil alone can represent. One of these shrines, having a part of
the sengdr chdori still standing, is amongst the finest idlings in Asia,
not for magnitude, being to all appearance merely receptacles for the
inferior divinities surrounding some grand temple, but for the
sculptured ornaments, which no artist in Europe could surpass.
Each consists of a simple m indra, or cella, about twenty feet square, .
having a portico and a long open colonnaded vestibule in front for
the priests and votaries. Every one of these numerous columns

On a stone tablet, which I discovered at Boondi, of the Takshao race, are
the names both of Ghandi asca and Jussoo-verma, and though no date is visible,
yet that of the latter is fixed by another set of inscriptions, inserted in the first
volume of the Transactions of the Royal Asiatic Society, at S. 1191 or A.D.
1135: the period when the old Hindu monarchies were breaking up, and-
consequently the arts beginniug to decay.

672

PERSONAL NARRATIVE.

[CHAP. XIII.

differs in its details from the others. But the entrance chiefly excites
admiration,, being a mass of elaborate workmanship of a peculiar
kind, and the foliage and flowers may be considered perfect. It is
deeply to be lamented that no artists from Europe have made casts
from these masterpieces of sculpture and architecture, which would
furnish many new ideas, and rescue the land sacred to Bh&vani
(Minerva) from the charge of having taught nothing but deformity :
a charge from which it is my pride to have vindicated her.

While I remained with Ghassi, amidst the ruins, I despatched my
gtiru and Brahmins to make diligent search for inscriptions ; but
many of these, as well as thousands of divinities, the wrecks of
ancient Patun, have been built up in the new town or its immense
circum vallation ; but our efforts were not altogether unrewarded.

The oldest inscription, dated S. 748 (A.D. 692), bore the name of
Raja Doorgangul, or ‘ the bar of the castle/ It is very long, and in
that ornamented character peculiar to the Budhists and Jains
throughout these regions. It contains allusions to the local traditions
of the Pandu Arjoon, and his encounter with the demon Virodhi
under the form of Baraha, or the boar ; and states, that from the spot
where the baraha was wounded, and on which his blood fell, a
figure sprung, originating from the wound (lchet) , whose offspring in
consequence was called Khetrie : “ of his line was Crishna Bkut
Khetrie, whose son was TaTcyac. What did he resemble, who obtained
the fruits of the whole earth, conquering numerous foes ? He had
a sou named Kyule , who was equal to the divinity which supports
the globe : in wisdom he was renowned as Mahadeo : his name sent
to sleep the children of his foe : he appeared as an avatar of Boodh,
and like the ocean, which expands when the rays of the full moon
fall upon it, even so does the sea of our knowledge increase when he
looks upon it ; and his verses are filled with ambrosia ( amrita ).
Erom Cheyt to Cheyt, sacrifice never ceased burning : Indra went
without offspring.* The contributions from the land were raised
with justice, whilst his virtues overshadowed the three worlds. The
light which, shines from the tusks of his foe's elephant had departed;
and the hand which struck him on the head, to urge him on, emitted
no sound. Where was the land that felt not his influence ? Such
was Sri Kyuk ! when he visited foreign lands, joy departed from the
wives of his foe : may all his resolves be accomplished !

“ S. 748 (A.D. 692), on the full moon of Jeyt, this inscription was
placed in the mindra, by Goopta, the grandson of Bhat Gandswar,

' lord of the lords of verse of Moondal, and son of Hur-goopta : this
writing was composed, in the presence of Sri Doorgangul Raja, to
cs whom, salutation ! that forehead alone is fair which bows to the
“ gods, to a tutor, and to woman ! Engraved by Oluk the stone-
“ cutter."

* The allusion to this affords another instance of the presumption of tho
priests, who compelled tho gods to attend the sacrificial rites, and hence Indra
could nob visit his consort Iudranf.

CHAP. XIII.]

PERSONAL NARRATIVE.

673

Ou tliis curious inscription we may bestow a few remarks. It
appears to me tliat tbe wild legion of tke creation of this Khetri,
from tbe blood of Baraha, represented as a danoo, or demon in
disguise, is another fiction to veil tbe admission of some northern
race into tbe great Hindu family. Tbe name of Baraha, as an
ancient Iudo-Scytbic tribe, is fortunately abundantly preserved in
the annals of Jessulmdr, which state, at tbe early periods of tbe
Yadu-Bhatti history, opposed their entrance into India ; while both
Takshac (or T&k) and Kyuk are names of Tatar origin, the former
signifying ‘ the snake/ the latter ' the heavens/ The whole of this
region bears evidence of a race whose religion was ophite, who bore
the epithet of Takshac as the name of the tribe, and whose inscrip-
tions in this same nail-headed character are found all over central
and western India. If we combine this with all that we have already
said regarding Baja Hoon of Bhadridti, and Uugutsi the Hun, who
served the Bana of Cheetore at this precise period f when an
irruption is recorded from Central Asia, we are forced to the conclu-
sion, that this inscription (besides many others), is a memorial of a
Scythic or Tatar prince, who, as well as the Gete prince of Salpooiyj-
was grafted upon Hindu stock.

The inscription next in point of antiquity was from the Jain
temple in the modern town. It was dated the 3rd of Jeyt, S. 1103
(A.D 1047) but recorded only the name of a visitor to the shrine.

Near the dam of the Or-s&gur, there was a vast number of funeral
memorials, termed nisea , of the Jain priesthood. One is dated
tf the 3rd of Magh, S, 1066 (A.D. 1010), on which day Srimunt Deo,
“ Child, or disciple, of Achaiya Srimana Dewa, left this world/-’
The bust of the acharya, or doctor, is in a studious posture, the
book laying open upon the thotmi or cross, whioh forms a reading-
desk, often the only sign on the nisea to mark a Jain place of
sepulture.

The adjoining one contained the name of Devindra Acharya ; the
date S. 1180.

Another was of Cf Komar- deo, the pundea or priest of the race of
“ Koomand Chandra Acharya, who finished his career on Thursday
“ ( goorbdr ) the Mool nekshitra of S. 1289.”

There were many others, but as, like these, they contained no
historical data , they were not transcribed.

Naraijanpoor , Y&th December , eleven miles. — Marched at daybreak,
and about a coss north of the city asconded the natural boundary of
Harouti and Malwa ; at the point of .ascent was Gondore, formerly
in the appanage of the Ghatt£-Bao (lord of the pass), one of the
legendary heroes of past days ; and half a coss further was the point
of descent into the Ar.tr i, or f valley/ through which our course lay
due north. In front, to the north-west, Gagrown, on the opposite
range, was just visible through the gloom ; while the yet more.

4 See Yol. I, pp. 206-7. t See Inscription, Yol. I, p. 700

[VOL. U.J 85

674

PERSONAL NARRATIVE.

[CHAP. XIII.

ancient Mliow, tlie first capital of tlie Kheechees, was pointed out
five coss to tlie eastward, I felt most anxious to visit this city,
celebrated in tlie traditions of Central India, and containing in itself
and all around much that was worthy of notice. But time pressed ;
so we continued onr route over the path trodden by the army of
Alla-o-din when he besieged Achildas in Gagrown. The valley was
full three miles wide, the soil fertile, and the scenery highly pictur-
esque, The forest on each side echoed with the screams of the
peacock, tho calls of the partridge, and the note of the jungle-cock,
who was crowing his matins as the sun gladdened his retreat. -It
was "this antri, or valley, that the Regent selected for his chaoni , or
‘ fixed camp/ where he has resided for the last thirty years. It had
at length attained the importance of a town, having spacious streets
and well-built houses, and tho materials for a circumvallation were
rapidly accumulating : but there is little chance of his living to see
it finished. The site is admirably chosen, upon the banks of the
Amjar, and midway between the castle of Gagrown and Jhalra-patun.
A short distance to the west of the Regent’s camp, is the Pindarn-
ca-chaont , where the sons of Kureem Khan, the chief leader of those
hordes, resided ; for in these days of strife, the old Regent would
have allied himself with Satan, if he had. led a horde of plunderers.
I was greatly amused to see in this camp, also assuming a permanent
shape, the commencement of an eedgd , or ‘ place of prayer for the
villains, while they robbed and murdered even defenceless woman,
prayed five times a day !

We crossed the confluent streams of the Aou and Amjar, which,
flowing through the plains of Malwa, have forced their way through
the exterior chain into the antri of Gagrown, pass under its western
face, dividing it from the town, and then join the Caly Sinde.

Until you approach close to Gagrown, its town and castle appear
united, and present a bold and striking object; audit is only on
mounting the ridge that one perceives the strength of this position.

CHAP. XIII.]

PJ3ES0NAL NAKKATIVE.

675

the rook being scarped by the action of the waters to an immense
height. The ascent to the summit of the ridge was so gradual that
our surprise was complete, when, casting our eye north, we saw the
Caly Sinde sweeping along the northern face of both fort and town,
whence it turns due north, ploughing its serpentine passage, at a
depth of full two hundred feet below the level pf the valley, through
three distinct ranges, each chasm or opening appearing in this bold
perspective like a huge portal, whence the river gains the yielding
plains of Haronti. As we passed under the town, we were saluted
by a discharge from all the ordnance on its ramparts, and the
governor, who had advanced to meet us at the express desire of his
master, invited us in; but though strongly pressed, and equally
desirous to see a place of such celebrity, I would not make myself
acquainted with the secrets of this chief stronghold of the Regent.
On whichever side an enemy might approach it, he would have to .
take the bull by the horns. It was only by polluting the waters
with the blood of the sacred kine, that Alla, c the sanguinary’ Jchooni ),
took it about five centuries ago from the valiant Kheechee, Achildas,
an account of whose family would be here out of place. Independ-
ent of ancient associations, there is a wild grandeur about Gagrown,
which makes it well worthy of a visit, and -the views from the north
must be still finer than from the point whence we beheld it.

We passed over the ridge at the extremity of the town, and
descended into another antri, up which we journied nearly due
w.est until we reached our camp at Narayanpoor. The valley was
from four to six hundred yards in breadth, and in the highest state
of cultivation ; to preserve which, and at the same time to secure
the game, the Regent, at an immense expense, has cut deep trenches
at the skirt of the hills on each side, over which neither deer nor
hog can pass, while the forest that crown the hills to their summit
are almost impervious even to wild beasts. We passed various small
cantonments, where the Regent could collect the best part of his
army, some even on the summit of the ridge. At all of these are
wellB, and reservoirs termed po.

Moltundurra, December 14 th, ten miles. — At daybreak, com-
menced our march up the valley, and midway between Naraynpoor ' •
and the durra , reached the ruined castle of Ghatti so called from its
being erected on the summit of the ridge commanding an outlet of
the valley. Partly from the gradual ascent of the valley, and from
the depression of the ridge, we formed rather a mean opinion of the
pass (ghatti) ; but this feeling was soon lost when we attained the
crest, and found ourselves on a scarped rock of some hundred feet in
elevation, commanding a view over all the plains of Malwa, while
at our. feet was a continuation of the antri of the Amjar, which we
observed gliding through the deep woods the Regent has allowed to
remain at the entrances of these vallies.

Tradition is eloquent on the deeds of the f Lords of the Pass/ both
of the Kheechee and Hara, and they point out the impression of
[Vot. II.] 85 a

676

PERSONAL NARRATIVE.

[chap,. SHI.

Melxvaj Kheechee’s charger, aa he sprang upon the Islamite invaders.
There are nymy cenotaphs to the memory of the slain, and several
small shrines to Siva and his consort, in one of which I found an
inscription not only recording the name of Mehraj, but the curious
fact that four generations were present at the consecration of one to
Siva. It ran thus: “In S. 1657 and Saca 1522, in that particular
“ year called Somya, the sun in the south, the season of cold, in the
“ happy month Asoj, the dark half thereof, on Sunday, and the thirty-
“ sixth gurrie ; in such a happy moment, the Keechee of Ckokan
“race, Maharaj Sri Rawut Hursing-deo, and his son Sri Rawut
“ Mehraj, and his son Sri Chundersen, and his son Kalian-das, erected
“this seo-dli (house of Siva) : may they be fortunate ! Written by
“ Jey Serman, and engraved by Kumma, in the presence of the priest
“ Kistna, the son of Mohes.”

• We shall pass over the endless tales of the many heroes who fell
in its defence, to the last of any note — Goman Sing, a descendant of
Sawunt Hara. The anecdote I am about to insert relates to the
time when Rao Doorjun Sal was prince of ICotah, and the post of
Foujdar was held by a Rahtore Rajpoot, Jey Sing of Gagorni.
Through the influence of this Foujdar, Goimln was deprived of
the honour of defending the pass, and his estate sequestrated.
He was proceeding homeward with a heavy heart from the
presence of his sovereign, when he met the Foujdar with his train.
It was dark, and a torch-bearer preceded him, whom Goman dashed
to the earth, and with his iron lance transfixed the Rahtore to. bis
j pallet . Making for the gate, he said it was the Rao’s order that
none should pass until his return. As soon as he gained his estate,
he proceeded with his family and effects to Oodipoor, and found
sirna with the Rana, who gave him an estate for the support of
himself and his followers. There he remained until Kotah was
besieged by Raja Esuri Sing of Jeipoor, when he obtained the Rana’s
leave to fly to its defence. Passing over the Pat’har, he made for
Kotah, but it was invested on every side. Determined to reach it
or perish, he ordered his nakarra to beat, and advanced through the
heart of the enemy’s camp. The Jeipoor prince asked who had the
audacity to beat close to his quarters, and being told “ the Rawut
“ of the Pass, from Oodipoor,” he expressed a wish to see the man,
of whom he had heard his father say, he had, unarmed, slain a tiger.
The Hara obeyed the summons, but would only enter the Presence
in the midst of his band. He was courteously received and offered’
large estates in Jeipore ; the Raja remarking, that Goman Sing
was only going to his doom, since “ in the space of eating a p&n, he
“ (Esuri Sing) would be master of Kotah.” Losing all patience,
Goman said, “ take my salaam and my defiance, Maharaj ; the heads
“ of twenty thousand Haras are with Kotah.” He was permitted
to pass the batteries unmolested, and on reaching the river, he called
aloud, “ the Ghatta Rawut wants a boat,” to conduct him to his
sovereign, whom he found seated behind the walls encouraging the
defence. At that very moment a report was brought that a breach

CHAP, xnr.]

PERSONA! NARRATIVE.

677

was nearly effected at a particular point ; and scarcely had the
prince applauded his swamdherma, than, making his bow, Goman
marched his followers to the breach, and “ there planted his lance. 3 ’
Such were the Haras of past days; but the descendants of the
‘ Rawut of the Pass! are now in penury, deprived of their lands, and
hard-pressed to find a livelihood.

We continued our march from this Pass, often moistened with
Rajpoot blood, and reached the Dnrra, outside of which we found
the old Regent encamped, and whence we issued on our tour just
three we„eks ago. It was by mere accident that, some distance up
the valley, (a continuation of that we had just quitted,) we heard of
some ruins, termed the e( Ck&oriof Bbeern, 33 one of the most striking
remains of art I had yet met with. It is the fragment only of a
quadrangular pile, of which little now remains, the materials having
been used by one of the Kotak princes, in erecting a small palace to
a Bhilni concubine. The columns possess great originality, and
appear to be the connecting link of Hindu and Egyptian architec-
ture. Not far from the GhaoH, where, according to local traditions,
the Pandu Bheem celebrated his nuptials, are two columns, standing
without relation to any other edifice ; but in the lapse of ages the
fragments appertaining to them have been covered with earth ox*
jungle. At every step we found joojarhs, or funeral stones ; and as
this “ Pass of Mokund 33 must, as the chief outlet between the Dekhan
and northern India, have been a celebrated spot, it is not unlikely
that in remote ages some city was built within its natural ramparts.
Throughout this town, we found many traces of the beneficent but
simple legislation of theHara princes ; and when the Regent set up his
pillar, prohibiting chiefly his own violence, he had abundant formulas
to appeal to. We have already alluded to this circumstance in the
sketch of his biography, and we may here insert a free translation
of the ordinance we fouud engraved in the Pass, and which is
recorded throughout Harouti.

“ Makaraj Makarao-ji Kishore Sing, ordaining! To all the
merchants ( mahajins ), traders, cultivators, and every tribe inhabit-
ing Mokundurra. At this time, be full of confidence; trade, trafipc,
exchange, borrow, lend, cultivate, and be prospei’ous ; for all dind s -v
(contribution) is abolished by the Durbar. Crimes will be punished
according to their magnitude. All officers of trust, Patels, Patwarris,
Sasurris (night-guards), and mootsuddies (scribes), will be rewarded
for good services, and for evil. None of them shall be guilty of
exactions from merchants or others : this is a law sworn to by all
that is sacred to Hindu or Mooslem. Ordained from the royal
mouth, and by command of Nanah-ji (graudsire) Zalim Sing, and
uncle Madku Sing. Asoj the 10th, Monday S. 1877 (A.D. 1821,. 3 '

Having halted a few days, we returned to Kotah by the towns of
Puekpahar and Anundpoor ; both large and thriving, situated upon
the banks of fine pieces of water. Madhfi. Sing, at the head of a
splendid cavalcade, with six field-pieces, advanced a couple of miles-

678

PERSONAL ‘NARRATIVE,

[CHAP. XIII,

to conduct me to my old residence, the garden-house, east of the
town. During the six weeks that we remained here to watch
the result of the measures elsewhere described, we endeavoured
to find amusement in various ways, to divert us from brooding
upon the cholera which was raging around us. This season attracts
flocks of wild-geese to prey upon the young corn, and we had
the double pleasure of shooting and eating them. Occasionally, we
had a shot at a deer, or hunted them down with the Regent’s
cheetrs (hunting-leopards) ; or with the dogs ran down jackals,
- foxes, or hares. There was a ntmna for wild-hogs about five miles
from our abode, and a delightful summer-retreat in the midst of a
fine sheet of water. The animals were so tame, from the custom of
feeding them, that it was almost unsportsmanlike to shoot at them.
On one occasion, the Maharao prepared an excursion upon the water)
in' which I was not well enough to join. Numerous sheJcarris, or
f hunters/ proceeded up either bank to rouse the bears or tigers that
find cover there, whea the party from the boats shot at them as
they passed. Partly for the purpose of enjoying this sport, and
partly to see the fortress of Ekailgurh, six miles south of the city,
we afterwards made another excursion, which, though not unattended
by danger, afforded a good deal of merriment. The river here is
confined by perpendicular rocks, full three hundred feet in height ;
and amidst the debris, these wild animals find shelter. As the side
on which we were did not promise much sport, we determined to
cross the stream, and finding a quantity of timber suited to the
purpose, we set to work to construct a raft ; but had only pushed a
few paces from the shore when we began to sink, and were compelled
" to make a Jonas of the. doctor, though we afterwards sent the vessel
back for him, and in due time landed all our party and appendages.
Being furnished -with huntsmen by the Regent, who knew the lairs
of the animals, we despatched them up the stream, taking post
ourselves behind some masses of rock in the only path by which
they could advance. We had been seated about half an hour, when
the shouts of the hunters were heard, and soon a huge beai’, his
muzzle grey from age, came slowly trotting up the pathway. Being
unable to repress the mirth of Captain Waugh and the doctor’, who
''■were conning over the events of the morning, just before he came in
sight, I had quitted them, and was trying to gain a point of security
a little remote from them ; but before I could attain it, they had
both fired and missed/and Bruin came at a full gallop towards me.
When within ten paces, I fired and hit him in the flank ; he fell,
but almost instantly recovered, and charged me open-mouthed,
when 'one of my domestics boldly attacked him with a hog^spear
and saved me from a hug. Between the spear and the shot, he
went floundering off, and was lost in the crevices of the rock. On
our return, we passed the day amidst the ruins of Ekailgurh, an
enormous pile of stones without cement; in all probability, a fortress
of some of»the aboriginal Bhils. Both crests of the mountain are
covered with jungle, affording abundant sport to the princes of

CHAP. SIV.]

PERSONAL NARRATIVE.

679

Kotah. There is a spot of some cel ebrity a few coss to the south of
this, called Gypur-Mahadeo, where there is a cascade from a stream
that falls into the Chutnbul, whose banks are said to be here upwards
of six hundred feet in. height. There are few more remarkable spots
in India than the course of the river from Kotah to Bhynsror, where
both the naturalist and the painter might find ample employment.

I sent scouts in all directions to seek for inscriptions ; some of
which are in an unknown character. One of the most interesting,
brought from Kunshwah, of a Jit prince, has been given in the first
volume of this work.

CHAPTER XIY.

Visit to Myndl. — Definition of the servile condition termed bussie. — Bijolli . —
Inscriptions. — Ancient history of BijolK. — Evidence that the Ohohans wrested
the throne of Dahli from the Tiiars. — Jain temples. — Inscriptions. — Slvite
temples — Prodigious extent of ruins. — The Bijolli chief. — His daughter a Sail.
— Myndl, or Mahandl.— Its picturesque site. — Records of Pirthi Raj, the
Ohohan. — Inscriptions. — Synchronism in an enigmatical date. — March to
Beygoo. — Bumaoda, the castle of Aloo Hava. — Legend of that chief. — Impre-
cation of the virgin Siiti. — Recollections of the Haras still associated ivith
their ancient traditions. — Quit Bumaoda and arrive at Beyjoo.

In February, I recommenced my march for Oodipoor, and having
halted a few days at Boondi, and found all there as my heart could
wish, I resumed the march across the Pat’har, determined to put
into execution my wish of visiting Mynal. About ten miles north,
on this side of it, I halted at Bijolli, one of the principal fiefs of
Me war, held by a chief of the Pr&mar tribe, with the title of Kao.
This family, originally Raos of Jugnair, near Biana, came into
Mdwav in the time of the great Umr Sing, with all his bussie ,
upwards of two centuries ago ; the Rana having married the daughter
of Rao Asocaj to whom he assigned an estate worth five lacs
annually. I have elsewhere (Yol. I, p. 160) explained the meaning
of a term which embraces bondage amongst its synonyms, though it
is the lightest species of slavery. Bussie , or properly vdsi, means »'
‘ settler,'’ an f inhabitant/ from vds, c a habitation/ and vasna , ‘ to
inhabit,'* but it does not distinguish between free settlers and com-
pulsory labourers ■ but wheresoever the phrase is used in Rajwarra,
it may be assumed to imply the latter'. Still, strange to say, the
condition includes none of the accessories of slavery : there is no
task-duty of any kind, nor is the individual accountable. for his
labour to any one : he pays the usual taxes, and the only tie upon
him appears to be that of a compulsory residence in his vas, and the
epithet, which is in itself a fetter upon the mind of the vdsi of
Bijolli.

Bijolli ( Vijydvalli ) stands amidst the ruins with -which this
Oopermdl, or highland, is crowded. From the numerous inscriptions

680 PERSONAL NARRATIVE. [CHAP. IIV.

we here found, we have to choose, for its ancient name, between ’
Ahaichpoor and Morakuro ; the latter is still applied, though the
former appears only on 'the recording stone. This western frontier
teems - with traditions of the Chohans, and seems to have been a
dependency of Ajmer, as these inscriptions contain many celebrated:
names of that dynasty, as Beesildeo, Sounds war, Pirthi Raj; and chiefly
record the martial virtues and piety of Irno-Raj of Moralcuro, and
his offspring, Bahir-Raj and Koontpal, who appear cotemporary with
their paramount prince and relative, Pirthi Raj, king of Debit and
Ajmer. ' " . • . ' h \V

One inscription records the actions of. the dynasty of Cheetore,
and they are so intermingled as to render it almost impossible to .
separate the Gehlotesfrom the Chohans. It begins with an invoca-
tion to tc Sdcambhari Jimmie Mata, the mother of births, guardian ;
“ of the races (scicain), and of mighty castles (doorga), hills, and ruins,

“ the Protectress.” Having- mentioned the names of nine Chohans
(of Yach-gotra), 'it flies off to Srimad Bappa-Raj, Yindhya Nirpatl,
or, f Bappay sovereign of the Yindhya Hills/ the founder of the
Ranas of Mewary hut the names that follow do not belong to his
dynasty, which leads me to imagine that the Chohans of Oopermdi .
were vassals of Cheetore at that early period. Since antiquarian
disquisitions, however, would be out of place boro, wo shall only
give the concluding portion. It is of Koontpal, the grandson b£
Irno-Raj, “who destroyed Jawulapoor, and tho fame of whoso exploit
“ at the capture of Dolili is engraved on the gate of Balabhi. - His
“ elder brother’s son yvas Pirthi Raj, who amassod a purl of gold,

“ which he gave in charity, and built in Morakuro a temple to
“ ParswanaPh, Having obtained the regal dignity, through Sornds-
“ ijvar, he was thence called Someswar, for the sake of whose soul
“this mindra was erected, apd the village of Rowan a on the Rew»j
“ bestowed -for its support. — S. 122Q (A.D. 1170).” This appears
completely to set at rest the question whether tbe Cbobans wrcsteid
by force the throne of Dehli from the Tiiars ; and it ig singular, that
from, the most remote part of the dominions of this illustrious Hue,
wo should have a confirmation, of the fact asserted by their great;

• bard Chuncl. The inscriptions at Asi (Hansi), and on the qplupiii of
Pehli, were all written about the same period as this (see p. 417).
But the appeal made to “the gate of Balabhi,” the ancient capital
of tlio Gehlotes in Saurashtra, is tho most singular part of it, and
will only admit of one construction, namely, that when Pirthi Raj
revenged tho death of bis father, Somdswar, ivho was slaiu in bat tle
by the prince of Saurashtra and Guzzerat, Koontpal must have
availed himself of that opportunity to appropriate the share ho had
in the capture of Dehli. Chund informs us ho made a conquest of
the whole of Guzzerat from Bhola Bheom. : •” v \-

We havo also two other not unimportant pieces of information :
first, that Morakuro was an ancient namo of Bijolli, and next, that
tho Chohau prince was a disciple of the Jains, which, according to

. CHAP. XIV.]

PERSONAL NARRATIVE.

681

Chun cl, was nob uncommon, as lie tells us that lie banished his son
Sarungdeo from Ajmer, for attaching himself to the doctrines of the
Budhists. .

Morakuro, about half a mile east of Bijolli, is now in ruins ; but
there are remains of a hote, or castle, a palace called the No-choki,
and no less than five temples to Parswanat’h, the twenty-third of
the Jain pontiffs, all of considerable magnitude and elaborate architec-
tural details, though not to be compared with Barolli. Indeed, it
is everywhere apparent, that there is nothing classical in design or
execution in the architecture of India posterior to the eleventh
century. One of my scribes, who has a talent for design, is delineat-
ing with his reed {culm) these stupendous piles, while my old Jain
gAru is hard at work copying what is not the least curious part of
the antiquities of Bijolli, two inscriptions cub in the rock ; one of
the Chohan race, the other of the Sanh’h PiXran, appertaining to his
own creed, the Jain. It is fifteen feet long by five in breadth, and
has fifty-two lines.* The other is eleven feet six inches by three
feet six, and contains thirty-one lines : so that the old gentleman has
ample occupation. A stream runs amidst the ruins, called the
Mundagnl (fire-extinguishing) ; and there is a coond, or fountain,
close to the temples of Parswa, with the remains' of two noble
reservoirs. All these relics indicate that the Jains were of the
Digumher sect. The genealogy is within the Icote , or precincts of
tho old castle.

There are likewise three temples dedicated to Siva, of still greater
magnitude, nearer to the town, but without inscriptions ; though one
in an adjoining coond , called the Bewati, records the piety of the
Gohil chief Bahil, who had bestowed f< a patch of land in the Antri”
defining minutely its limits, and inviting others (not ineffectually, as
is proved by other bequests), in the preamble to his gift, to follow
his example by the declaration that “ whoever bathes in the Bewati
“ fountain will be beloved by her lord, and have a numerous progeny.’'

The modern castle of Bijolli is constructed entirely out of the
ruins of the old shrines of Morakuro, and gods and demons are
huddled promiscuously together. This is very common, as we have
repeatedly noticed •, nor can anything better evince that the Hindu
attaches' no abstract virtue to the material object or idol, but regards
it merely as a type of some power or quality which he wishes to
propitiate. On the desecration of the receptacle, the idol becomes
again, in his estimation, a mere stone, and is used as such without
scruple. • All around, for several miles, are seen the wrecks of past
days. At Dorowlee, about four miles south, is an inscription dated
S. 900 (A.D. 844), but it is unimportant ; and again, at Telsooah, two
miles farther south, are four mundirs , a coond , and a torun, or

* I have never had time to learn the purport of this inscription, but hold it,
together with a host of others, at the service of those who desire to expound
them. For myself, without my old guru, I am like a ship without helm or
compass (ns Chund would say) “in ploughing the ocean of (Sanscrit) rhyme.”

[Vox,. II.] • 86

682

PERSONAL NARRATIVE.

[CHAP. XIV.

triumphal arch, but no inscription. At Jarowla, about sis miles
distant, there are no less than seven munclirs and a coond — a mere
heap of ruins. At AmbaghAti, one of the passes of descent from the
table-land into the plain, there are the remains of an aucieut castle
and a shrine, and I have the names of four or five other places, all
\yithin five miles of Bijolli, each having two and three temples in
ruins. Tradition does not name the destroyer, but as it evidently
was not Time, we may, without hesitation, divide the opprobrium
between those great iconoclasts, the Ghori king Alla, and the Mogul
Arungzeb, the first of whom is never named without the addition of
lihooni , ‘ the sanguinary/ whilst the other is known as Kal-juman,
the demon-foe of Crishna.

The Bijollia chief is greatly reduced, though his estates, if culti-
vated, would yield fifty thousand rupees annually ; but he caunot
create more vdsi , unless he could animate the prostrate forms which
lie scattered around him. It was his daughter who was married
to Prince IJmra, and who, though only seventeen, withstood all
solicitation to save her from the pyre on his demise. * I made use of
the strongest arguments, through her uncle, then at Oodipobr,
promising to use my influence to increase his estate, and doubtless
his poverty reinforced his inclination ; but all was in vain — she deter-
mined “ to expiate the sins of her lord.” Having remained two or
three days, we continued our journey in quest of the antique and
the picturesque, and found both at

Myndl , February 21st. — It is fortunate that the pencil can here
pourtray what transcends the power -of the pen ; to it we shall,
therefore, leave the architectural wonders of Mahandl, and succinctly
describe its site. It is difficult to conceive what could have induced
the princely races of Cheetore or Ajmer to select such a spot as an
appauage for the cadets of their families, which in summer inust be a
furnace, owing to the reflexion of the sun's rays from the rock :
tradition, indeed, asserts that it is to the love of the sublimo alone
we are indebted for these singular structures. The name is derived
from the position Makd-ndl, e the great chasm/ or cleft in the
western face of tho Pat'har, presenting an abyss of about four
hundred feet in depth, over which, at a sharp re-onteriug angle, falls
a cascade, and though now but a rill, it must be a magnificent
object in the rainy season. Within this dell it would be -death to
enter : gloomy as Erebus, crowded with majestic foliage entangled
by the twisted houghs of the amerccla, and affording cover to all
description of the inhabitants, quadruped and feathered, of tho
forest. On the very brink of the precipico, overhanging the abyss,
is the group of mixed temples and dwellings, which bear the name of
Putin ilaj ; while those on the opposite sido are distinguished by that
of Samarsi of Cheetore, the brother-in-law of tho Choh:j.u emperor of
Dehli and Ajmer, whose wife, PirthA.-B.le, has been immortalized by
Chuud, with her husband and brother. Here, tho grand cleft

* See Transactions, Koyol Asiatic Society, Yol, I, p, 102.

CHAP,, XIV.]

PERSONAL NARRATIVE.

•»

683

between them, these two last bulwarks of the Rajpoot races were
accustomed to meet with their families, and pass days of affectionate
intercourse, in which no doubt the political condition of India was a
prominent topic of discussion. If we may believe, and we have no
reason to distrust, the testimony of Ckund, had Pirthi Raj listened to
the counsel of the Ulysses of the Hindus, (in which light Samarsi
was regarded by friend and foe), the Islamite never would have been
lord of Hindust’han. But the indomitable courage and enthusiastic
enterprise of Pirthi Raj sunk them all ; and when neither wisdom nor
valour could save him from destruction, the heroic prince of Cheetore
was foremost to court it. Both fell on the banks of the Cao-o-ar,
amidst heroes of every tribe in Rajpootana. It was indeed to thorn',
as the bard justly terms it, pralaya, the day of universal doom ;
and the last field maintained for their national independence. To
me, who have poured over their poetic legends, and imbibpd all those
sympathies which none can avoid who study the Rajpoot character,
there was a melancholy charm in the solemn ruins of Mynal. It
was a season, too, when everything conspired to nourish this
feeling ; the very trees which were crowded about these relibs of
departed glory, appearing by their leafless boughs and lugubrious
aspect to join in the universal mourning.

We found many inscriptions at Mahanal, and of one I shall here
insert a free translation, as it may he applied hereafter to
the correction of the chronology of -the Haras, of which race it
contains a memorial.

“By Asapurana* * * § [the ffilfiller of our desires] the cula-cUvif
[tutelary goddess] of the race, by whose favour hidden treasures are
revealed, and through whose power many Chohan kings have ruled
the earth, of which race was Bhadnrd’hun,% who in the field of
strife attained the desires of victory. Of his race was the tribe of
Hara, of which was Koolun,§ of illustrious and pure descent in both
races ; whose fame was fair as the rays of* the moon. From him was
Jypdl } \\ who obtained the fruits of the good works of - his foi’mer
existence in the present garb of royalty ; and whose subjects prayed
they might never know another sovereign. * From him- was
Ddva-raj,*[[ the lord of the land, who gave whatever was desired, -
and whose wish was to render mankind happy. He delighted in

* Asa is literally, ‘ Hope.’ f Goddess of the race, pronounced cool .

J ‘The wealth of the bee;’ such are the metaphorical appellations amongst

the Rajpoots.

§ This is the prince who crawled to Kedarnut'h (see p. 421), and son Of
Ramsi, the emigrant prince from As6r, who is perhaps here designated’ as e the
wealth of the bee.’ This was in S. 1353, or A.D. 1297.

jj Jypal (‘fosterer of victory’) must be the prince familiarly called “ Bango”
in the annals (p. 422,) and not the grandson but the son of Koolun — there said
•-to have taken Mynal or Hahan&i.

5f'D6wa is the son 1 of 'Bango (p. 422), and founder of Boondi, in S. 1398/ or
A.D. 1342.

[yon. II.]

86a

'684 . PERSONAL NARRATIVE. [CHAP. XIV.

the dance and the song. His son was Hur-raj ,* * * § whose frame wa3
apiece of fire; who, -in the field of battle, conquered renown from
the princes of the land [hhom-eswar], and dragged the spoils of
victory from then* pinnacled abodes.

“ From him were the lords of Bumaoda,-}- whose land yielded to
them its fruits, From Deva-raj was Rit-pdl,% who made the
rebellious bow the head, or trod them under foot, as did Oapila the
sons of Sagara. From him was Kelhan , the chief of his tribe, whose
son Koontul resembled Dhermaraj : he had a younger brother,
called Dedd. Of his wife, Rajuldevi, n son was born to Koontul,
fair as the offspring' of the ocean.§ He was named Mahadeva. He
was [in wisdom] fathomless as the sea, and in battle immovable as
Soomdru; in gifts he was the Oalpa-vricsha of Indra. He laid the
dust raised by the hoofs of hostile steeds, by the blood of his foe.
The sword grasped in his extended arm dazzled the eye of his enemy,
as when uplifted o’er the head of Umi Shah he rescued the Lord of
Me dp at, and dragged Kaitah from his grasp, as his Chandra from
Rahoo.|| He trod the Sooltan’s army under foot, as does the ox the
corn ; even as did the Danoos (demons) churn the ocean, so did
Mahadeva the field of strife, seizing the gem ( rutna ) of victory from
the son of the King, and bestowing it on Kaitah, the lord of men.
From the centre even to the skirts of space, did the fame of his
actions extend, pure as curdled milk. He had a son, Doorjun, on
whom he bestowed the title of Jiva-rSjlf (Jeojraj), who had two
brothers, Soobut-sal and Ctimbhucarna.**

* Hur-raj, elder son o£ Dewa, became lord of Bumaoda, by the abdication
of his father, who thenceforth resided at his conquest at Boondf — See p. 425.

■f* Hur-raj had twelve sons, the eldest of whom, the celebrated Aloo Hara,
succeeded to Bumaoda. See note, p. 422.

J Here we quits the direct line of descent, going back to Ddwa. Rit-pal, in -
all probability, was the offspring of one of the twelve sons of Hur-raj, having
Mynal as a fief of Bumaoda. •

§ In the original, “ fair as Ghanderma (the moon), the offspring of Samudra
“ (the ocean)".” In Hindu mythology, the moon is a male divinity, and son of
the ocean, which supplies a favourite metaphor to the Bardai , — the sea
expanding with delight at the sight of his child, denoting the ebb and flow of
the waters.

|| This Umi Shah can only.be the Pat’han emperor Humayoon, who enjoyed • ,
a short and infamous celebrity ; aud Mahadeo, the Hara prince of Mabanal,
who takes the credit of rescuing prince Kaitsi, must have been one of the
great feudatories, perhaps generalissimo of the armies of Mewar {Meclp&t). It
will be pleasing to the lovers of legendary lore to 'learn, from a singular tale,
which we shall relate when we get to Bumaoda, that if on one occasion he
owed his rescue to the Hara, the last on another took the life he gave ; aud as
it is said he abdicated in favour of his son Doorjun, whom he constituted
Jiva-raj, or king (raj), while he was yet in life ( jiva ), it is not unlikely that, in
order to atone for the crime of treason to his sovereign lord, he abandoned the
gadi of Mynal.

5 Here it is distinctly avowed that Mahaddva, having constituted his son
Jiva-raj, passed his days in devotion in the temple he had founded.

** Pronounced' Koomblmrun, ‘a ray of the Cdmbhd,' the vessel emblematic
of Ceres, and elsewhere described. ‘

CHAP. XIV. J

PERSONAL NARRATIVE.

685

“Here, at Hahan&l, the lord . of the laud, Mahadeva, made
a mindra, in whose variously-sculptured .wall this treasure [the
inscribed tablet] is concealed. This (the temple) is an epitome of
the universe, whose pinnacle (silcra). sparkles like a gem. The mind
of Mahadeva is bent on devotion in Mahanal, the emblem of Kylas,
where the Brahmins perform varied rites. While the science of arms
endures, may the renown of Mahaddva never perish;^ and until
Ganges ceases ' to * flow, and Soomeru to be immovable, may this
memorial of Mahadeva abide fixed -at Mahanal. This invocation to
Mahaddva was made ‘by Mahadeva, and by the Brahmin Dhuneswar,
the dweller in Chutturkote (Qheetore), was this prashista com-
posed : ■

Arga, Goon, Chandra, Indu.

” The month of Bys&k ( soodi ), the seventh. By Vfradhwul, the
“ architect ( silpi ), learned in the works of architecture ( silpa-sastra ),
“ was this temple erected.”

The cryptographic date, contained in the above four words, is not
the least curious • part of this inscription, to which I did not even
look when composing the Boondf annals, and wkiph is another of
the many powerful proofs of the general fidelity of their poetic
chronicles.

Arga is the sun, and denotes the number 12 ; Goon is the three
principal passions of the mind ,• and Chandra and Indu each stand
for one : thus,

Arga, Goon, Chandra, Indu.

12 . 3 . 1 . 1 . .

and this cc concealed ( gooptd ) treasure,” alluded to in the inscription,
must be read backwards. But either my expounder, or the silpi,
was out, and had I not found S. 1446 in a comer, we should never
have known the value of this treasure. Many inscriptions are
useless from their dates being thus enigmatically expressed ; and
I subjoin, in a note, a few of the magic runes, which may aid others
to decipher them.f

I was more successful in another inscription of Irno or Arnoddva
(fam. Arndeo), who appears to have held the entire Oopermal as a
fief of Ajmdr, and who is conspicuous in the Bijolli inscription. Of

* It appears he did not forget he had been a warrior.

f Indu (the moon) 1

PttJcheo (the two fortnights) 2

Netra (the three eyes of Siva) 3

Veda (the four holy books) 4

Sur (the five arrows of Cnmdeo, or Cupid).... 5

Sest (the six seasons, of two months each) 6

Juludhee (the seven seas, or Samoodras) 7

Sid’h 8

Nid’h (the nine planets) 9

Dig (the ten corners of the globe) 10

Eoodra (a name of Siva) r 11

Arga (the sun) 12

686

HEESONAL NAERATIYE.

'[CHAP. X1Y.

this, suffico it to say, that it records his having " made the gateway
“ to Mynal, otherwise termed the city of Somdswar /’ and the date is

Anhui, Nund, Ind, Ind.

3. 9. 1. 1.

Anhui (fire) stands for three, denoting the third eye of Mahadeva,
,which is eventually to cause pralaya or £ destruction.’ Nund stands
for nine, or the no-nund of their ancient histories. Indu, the
moon, (twice repeated,) is one, and the whole, read backwards, is S.
1193, or A.D. 1137.

In the mundur of Samarsi, we found-the fragment of another
inscription, dated S. 12-2, and containing the eulogy of Samarsi and
Arnoraj, lord of the region ; also the name of " Pirthi Kaj, who
“ destroyed the barbai’ians and concluding with Sawunt Sing.

Beygoo, "February . — We commenced our march at break of day,
along the very crest of the Pat’har ; but the thick woods through
which lay our path did not allow us a peep at the plains of MMpat,
until we reached the peak, where once stood the castle of Aloo
Hara. But silent were the walls ofBumaoda; desolation was in
the courts of Aloo Hara. We could trace, however, the plan of this
famed residence of a hero, which consisted of an exterior and an
interior castle, the latter being a hundred and seventy cubits by a
hundred and twelve. There are the ruins of, three Jain temples, to
Siva, Hanuman, and Dhermaraja, the Hindu Minos; also three
tanks, one of which was in excellent preservation. There are like-
wise the remains of one hall, called the andheari IcotH, or f dark
chamber,'’ perhaps that in which Aloo (according to tradition) locked
up his nephew, w;hen he carried his feud into .the desert. The site
commands an extensive view of the plains of Mewar, and of the
arneo-ghati (pass), down the side of the mountain, to the valley of
Beygoo. Beneath, on a ledge of rock, guarding the ascent, was the
gigantic statue of f Jogini Mata/ placed on the very verge of the
precipice, and overlooking one of the noblest 'prospects in nature.
The hill here forms a re-entering angle of considerable depth, the
sides 'scarped, lofty and wooded to the base ; all the plain below is
covered with lofty trees, over whose tops the parasitic amervelci
forms an umbrageous canopy, extending from rock to rock, and if
its superfluous supports were removed, it would 'fomra-sylvaniiall,
where twenty thousand men might assemble.

'Over this magnificent scenery, "our Queen of the Pass” looks
grimly down ; but now there is neither foe to oppose, nor scion of
i>“jiaoda to ( guard. I could no,t learn exactly who had levelled the
castle of Aloo Hara, although it would appear to have been the act
of the lord paramount of Ghee tore, on whose land it is situated ; it
is now within the fief of Beygoo. We have already given one legend
of Aloo ; another from the spot may not be unacceptable.

In one of the twenty-four castles dependant on Bumaodo, resided
Ballaji, a kinsman of Aloo. He had one daughter, in whose name

CHAP. XIV.];

PEKSOXAL NAEKAMVE.

687

lie sent fclie coco-nut to hia liege-loul, the Eana of Cheetore;
bat the honour was declined. The family priest was returning
across the antrij when be encountered tbe beir of Gbeetore
returning from tbe chase, who, on learning tbe cause of tbe boly
man's grief, determined to remove it by taking tbe nuptial- symbol
bimself. He dismissed tbe priest, telling bim be should soon appear
to claim bis bride. Accordingly, witb an escort befitting tbe beir
of Cheetore, and accompanied by a bard then on a visit to the
Eana, be set out for Bumaoda. Bheemsdn Bardai was a native
of Benares, and happened to pass through Mewar on bis way
to Cutch-Bhooj, at the very period when all “ tbe sons of rhyme”
were under sentence of exile from Md war: a fate which we frequently
find attending tbe fraternity in this country, Tbe cause of this
expatriation was as follows : an image of tbe deity bad been
discovered in clearing out tbe waters of tbe lake, of a form so
exquisitely beautiful as to enchant every eye. But tbe position of
tbe arms was singular : one pointed upwards, another downwards, a
third horizontally towards the observer. The band-writing on tbe
wall could not have more appalled tbe despot of Babylon, than this
footli of Chutterbhooja, or ‘ image of tbe foiu*-armed god/ Tbe
prophetic seers were convened from all parts.; but neither tbe Bhats
nor tbe Cbaruns, nor oven the cunning Brahmin, could interpret the
prodigy; until, at length, tbe bard of the Jarejas arrived and
expounded tbe riddle. He showed that the finger pointing upwards
imported that there was one Indra, lord of heaven ; and that down-
wards was directed to tbe sovereign of piital (hell) ; whilst that which
pointed to tbe Eana indicated that lie was lord of the central region
(Medpdt), which being geographically . correct, bis interpretation
was approved, and met witb such reward, that he became the pdt-
Inrdai , or chief bard to Hamir, who, at his intercession, recalled bis
banished brethren, exacting in return for such favours that “he
“would extend tbe palm to no mortal but himself/' This was the
bard who accompanied tbe beir of Cheetore to espouse tbe daughter
of Bumttoda. The castle of tbe Hara was thronged ; the sound of
mirth and revelry rang through the castle-balls, and tbe bards, who
from all parts assembled to singathe glories of the Haras, were loaded
, witb gifts. Bheemsen could not withstand tbe offering made by
tbe lord of tbe Pat'bar, a horse richly caparisoned, splendid clothes,
and a huge bag of money : as the bard of tbe Haras (who told me
the tale) remarked, “although he had more than enough, who can
“ forget habit; ? We are beggars (mangtas) as well as poets by
“profession.” So, after many excuses, he allowed tbe gift to bo
left; but his soul detested tbe sin of bis eye, and resolving-»2u' expiate
tbe crime, be buried bis dagger in bis heart, Cries rent tbe air ;
“ tbe sacred bard of Cheetore is slain !” met tbe ear of its prince at
tbe very moment *of hataili (junction of bands). He dropped tbe
band of bis bride, and demanded vengeance. It was now tbe Hara's
turn to be offended : to break off tbe nuptials at such a moment was
redoubling tbe insult already offered by bis father, and a courso

688

PERSONAL NARRATIVE.

[CHAP. XIV.

•which not even the bard’s death could justify. The heir of Cheetore
was conducted forthwith outside Bumaoda ; but he soon returned
with the troops of Cheetore, and hostilities commenced where
festivity so lately reigned. Falgoon approached, and the spring-
hunt of the ahairea could not be deferred, though foes lyere around.
Lallaji, father of the bride, went with a chosen band to slay a boar
to Gouri, in the plains of Tookeraye ; but Kaitsi heard of it, and
attacked them. Alike prepared for the fight or the feast, the Hara
accepted the unequal combat j and the father and lover of the bride
rushed on each other spear in hand, and fell by mutual wounds.

The pyres were prepared within the walls of Bumaoda, whither
the vassals bore the bodies of their lords ; on one was placed the
prince of Cheetore, on the other the Hara kinsman ; and while
the virgin-bride ascended with the dead body of the prince, her
mother was consumed on that where her father lay. It was on this
event that the imprecation was pronounced that ‘ Eana and Rao
should never meet at the spring-hunt ( ahairea ) but death should
ensue/ We have recorded, in the annals of the Haras, two subse-
quent occasions ; and to complete their quatrain, they have made the
defeat of Eana Mokul (said Koombho in the Annals, see page 432)
fill up the gap. Thus : —

“ Hamoo, Molcul mdryd
Italia, Klulita Ban
Soojah, Bntna sengariu
Ajmal, Ursi Ban.”

In repeating these stanzas, the descendant of Aloo Hara may find
some consolation for the mental sufferings he endures, when he casts
a glance upon the ruins of Bumaoda and its twenty-four subordinate
castles, not one of which now contains a Hara : —

“ And there they stand, as stands a lofty mind.

Worn, but unstooping to the baser crowd ;

All tenantless, save to the crannying wind.

Or holding dark communion with the cloud,”

That these ruins make a powerful appeal to the Hara, I can
prove, by letters I received in October last year, when, in obedience
to a mandate of the cc Queen of the Pass,” a band collected at her
shrine to obey her behest, whatever that might be. — Extract from
Alcbar (newspaper), dated Boondf, October 18, 1820.

“ Warrants were sent to all the chiefs for their attendance at the
capital to celebrate the festival of the Duserra. The whole of the
chiefs and landholders came, with the exception of the T’hakoors
of Burr, who returned the following reply : — ‘ We have received a
communication (pygdm) from Sri Bhavdm of Bumaoda , who com-
mands us no longer to put the plough in the soil, but to sell our
horses and our cattle, and with the amount to purchase sixty-four*

# A number sacred (according to Ohund) to this goddess, who is chief of the
sixty-four Joginis.

CHAP, XIV,]

PERSONAL NARRATIVE,

689

buffaloes and thirty-two goats, for a general sacrifice to Mataji, by
obeying which we shall re-possessBumaoda.’ Accordingly, no sooner
was this known, than several others joined them, both from Boondi.
and Kotah. The T’hakoor of Burr had prepared dinner near the
statue of Mata for two hundred, instead of which five hundred
assembled ; yet not only were they all abundantly satisfied, but
some food remained, which convinced the people there that the story
(the communication) was true.”

This was from Boondi • but the following was from my old, steady,
and faithful Brahmin, Balgovind, who was actually on the spot, dated
“ Myn&l, 1st Kartik : — A few days ago, there was a grand sacrifice
“ to Jogini Mata, when thirty-one buffaloes and fifty-three goats
“were slain. Upon two bulcras (he-goats), three Haras tried their
" swords in vain ; they could not touch a single hair, at which all were
“ much surprised. These goats were afterwards turned loose to feed
" where they pleased, and were called amur (immortal).”

Hot a comment was made upon this, either by the sensible Bal-
govind or the Yati Gryanji, who was with him. There was, therefore,
no time to be lost in preventing an explosion from five hundred
bi’ave Haras, deeming themselves convened at express command
of Bliavani, to whom the sacrifice proved thus acceptable ; and I sent
to the Eaja to break up the party, which was effected. It, however,
shews what an easy matter it is to work upon the credulity through
the feelings of these brave men.

I left the spot, hallowed by many feelings towards the silent walls
of Bumaoda. We wound our way "down the rocky steep, giving a
look to the ‘ mother of the maids of slaughter’ as we passed, and
after a short passage across the entrance of the valley, encamped in
a fine grove of trees close to the town of Beygoo. The Rawut,'
descendant of ‘ the black cloud/ came out to meet me ; but he is
yet a stranger to the happiness that awaits him — the restoration of
more than half of his estate, which has been in the hands of the
Mahratta Sindia since A.D. 1791.

690

PERSONAL NARRATIVE.

[CHAP. XV.

CHAPTER XV.

Beygoo. — Set ious accident to the author. — Affecting testimony of the gratitude of
the Raiout. — Expulsion of the Mahrattas from Beygoo.— The estates of the
Rawut sequestrated. — Restored. — Bussie. — Oheetore. — ‘ Aider's Lamp.' — Reflec-
tions upon the Ruins of Oheetore. — Description of the city, from the Khoman
Rasa, and from observation. — Tour of the city. — Origin of the B&giquout class.
— Inscriptions. — Aged Fakir. — Return to Oodipoor. — Conclusion.

' Beygoo, February 26th. — The chances were nine hundred and
ninety-nine to one that I ever touched a pen again. Two days ago,
I started, with all the “ pomp and circumstance” befitting the
occasion, to restore to the chief the land o£ his sires, of which force
and fraud had conspired to deprive them during more than thirty
years. The purport of my visit being made known, the f sons of
Kala Meg’ll’ assembled from all quarters ; but Jionhar has again
interfered. The old castle of Beygoo has a remarkably wide moat,
across which there is a wooden bridge communicating with, the town.
The avant-couriers of my cavalcade, with an elephant bearing the
union, having crossed and passed under the arched gateway, I
followed, contrary to the Mahout's advice, who said there certainly
would not be space to admit the elephant and howda. But I heed-
lessly told him to drive on, and if he could not pass through, to
dismount. The hollow sound of the bridge, and the deep moat on
either side, alarmed the animal, and she darted forward with the
celerity occasioned by fear, in spite of any effort to stop her. As I
approached the gateway, I measured it with my eye, and expecting
inevitable and instantaneous destruction, I planted my feet firmly
against the howda, and my fore-arms against the archway, and, by
an almost preternatural effort of strength, burst out the back of the
howda : the elephant pursued her flight inside, and I dropped sense-
less on the bridge below. The affectionate sympathies and attention
of those around revived me, though they almost extinguished the
latent spark of life in raising me into my palki, and carrying me to
my tent. I, however, soon recovered my senses, though sadly bruised ;
but the escape was, in a two-fold degree, miraculous; for, in
avoiding decollation, hadl fallen half an inch more to the side, I should
have been caught on the projecting spikes of the gateway. My
tent was soon filled by the Rawut r ji and his brethren, who
deplored the accident, and it was- with difficulty I could get them to
leave the side of my pallet ; but what was my astonishment
when, two days after, going to fulfil my mission, I saw the noble
gateway, the work of Kala Mdg’h, reduced to a heap of ruins,
through which I was conducted to the palace on an ample terrace,
in front of which I found the little court 'of Beygoo ! The Rawut
advanced and presented me the keys, which having returned in his
sovereign’s name, I deplored his rash destruction of the gateway,
blaming honhar and my own want of bood’h (wisdom), for the
accident. But it was in vain : he declared he never could have

CHAP, XY.]

PEKSONAL NARRATIVE.

691

looked upon it with complacency, since it had nearly deprived of life
one who had given life to them. The restored estates had been mort-
gaged to old Sindia for the payment of a war-exaction, and the
Eawut held regularly-executed deeds, empowering him to recover
them when the contribution should be liquidated. Wheu the 1 reign
of justice* commenced in these regions, he produced his bond ; he
shewed that the exactions had been paid twice over, and demanded,
through the intervention of the British agent, that Sindia should be
brought to a settlement. _ The replies and rejoinders were endless ;
and at length the Eawutji, wearied out, one morning took the law
into his own hands ; assaulted, carried, and, with the loss of some
lives, drove out the Mahrattas, who had built a castellated residence
even under his eye. It was necessary for form-sake to punish this
act, which we would not prevent ; and accordingly Beygoo was put
under sequestration, and the Eana's flag was planted upon its walls.
The chief submitted to all with a good grace, and with a cause so
just, I made an excellent case against Sindia, who talked of papers
which he never produeed. Allowing, therefore, some months more
to elapse, we executed the bond, and restored Beygoo to its rightful**
owner. I was the more rejoiced at effecting this, as the Eawut had
set the example of signing the deed of renunciation of May 1818,
which was the commencement of the prosperity of Mewar.

Bussie , February 27th. — Compelled to travel in my palki, full of
aches and ails. I think this will complete the disorganization of my
frame ; -but I must reserve the little strength I have for Cheetore,
and, coute qui coute, climb up and take a farewell look,

Oheetore. — My heart beat high as I approached the ancient capital
of the Seesodias, teeming with reminiscences of glory, which every
stone in her giant-like Jcangras (battlements) attested. It was from
this side that the imperial hosts under Alla and Akber advanced to
force the descendant of Kama to do homage to their power. How
the summons was answered, the deeds of Eanas TJrsi and Pertap
have already told. But there was one relic of “ the last day” of
Cheetore, which I visited in this morning* s march, that will immor-
talize the field where the greatest monarch that India (perhaps Asia)
ever had, erected the green banner of the faith, and pitched his
tent, around which his legions were marshalled for the reduction of
the city. This still perfect monument is a fine pyramidal column,
called by some the GMrdj dan, and by others Akber-cct-deivd, both
having the same meaning, f Akber’s lamp.* It is formed of large
blocks of compact limestone, admirably put together, about thirty-
five feet high, each face being twelve feet at the base, and gradually
tapering to the summit, where it is between three and four, and on
which was placed a huge lamp ( cherdgh ), that served as a beacon to
the foragers, or denoted the imperial head-quarters. An interior stair-
case leads to the top ; but, although I.had the strongest desire to
climb the steps, trodden no doubt by A kb oris feet, the power was not
obedient to the will, and I was obliged .to continue my journey

[Vox,, n.] 87 a

692

PERSONAL NARRATIVE,

[CHAP, XV.

passing through, the Tulaiii, as they term the lower town of
Cheetore. Here I got out of my palki, and ventured the ascent, not
through one, but five gates, upon the same faithless elephant ; but
with this difference, that I had no howda to encase me a Q d prevent
my sliding off, if I found any impediment; nevertheless, in passing
under each successive portal, I felt an involuntai-y tendency to stoop,
though there was a superfluity of room overhead. I hastened to iny
bechdhd,* pitched upon the margin of the Suryacoond, or ‘ fountain
of the Sun/ and with the wrecks of ages around me, I abandoned
myself to contemplation. I gazed until the sun's last beam fell
upon “ the ringlet of Cheetore/' illuminating its gray and grief-worn
aspect, like a lambent gleam lighting up the face of sorrow. Who
could look on this lonely, this majestic column, which tells, in
language more easy of interpretation than the tablets within, of

“ deeds, which should not pass away,

And names that must not wither/'

and withhold a sigh for its departed glories ? » But in vain I dipped
.pny pen to embody my thoughts in language ; for, wherever the
"eye fell, it filled the mind with images of the past, and ideas rushed
too tumultuously to be recorded. In this mood I continued for some
time, gazing listlessly, until the shades of evening gradually en-
. shrouded the temples, columns, and palaces ; and as I folded up my
paper till the morrow, the words of the prophetic bard of Israel came
forcibly to my recollection : ff How doth the city sit solitary that
” was full of people ! how is she become a widow !' she, that was great
“ amongmations, and princess among provinces, how is she become
“ tributary !”

But not to fatigue the reader with reflections, I will endeavour to
give him some idea of these ruins. I begin with the description
of Cheetore from the Khomdn Bdsd , now beside me : “ Chutter-
fc kote is the chief amongst eighty-four castles, renowned for
c< strength ; the hill on which it stands, rising out of the
f- level plain beneath, the tilac on the forehead of Awini (the
f f earth). It is within the grasp of no foe, nor can the
c< vassals of its chief know the sentiment of fear. Ganga flows
c< from its summit ; and so intricate are its paths of ascent, that
“ though you might find entrance, there would be no hope of return.
“ Its towers of defence are planted on the rock, nor can their inmates
“ even in sleep know alarm. Its Icotars (granaries) are well filled,
ee and its reservoirs, fountains, and wells, are overflowing. Rama-
“ chandra himself here dwelt twelve years. There are eighty-four
ic bazaars, many schools for children, and colleges for every kind of
“ learning; many scribes (kyot) of the Beedur tribe, and the eighteen
“ varieties of artizans. (Here follows an enumeration of all the trees,
“ shrubs, and flowers, within and surrounding the fortress.) Of all,

the Ghelote is sovereign ( dhanni ) served by numerous troops, both

* A snmll.tenfc without (be) a pole (chohd).

PERSONAL NARRATIVE.

693

CHAP. XV.]

"horse. and foot, and by all the r thirty. six tribes of Rajpoots/ of
" which he is the ornament ( chatees ctildn sengdr ).”

The Khomdn Rasa , or story of Rawut Khoman, was composed in
the ninth century ; and the poet has not exaggerated : for of all tho
royal abodes of India, none could compete with Cheetore before she
became a “ widow.” But we must abaudon the Rasa for a simple
prose description. Cheetore is situated on an isolated' rock of the
same formation as the Pat’har, whence it is distant about three miles,
leaving unfertile valley between, iu which are the estates of Beeji-
poor, Gwalior, and part of Beygoo, studded with groves, but all
waste through long-continued oppression. The general direction of
the rock is from S.S.W. to N.N.E. ; the internal length on the
summit being three miles and two furlongs, and the greatest central
breadth twelve hundred yards.. The circumference of the hill at its
base, which is fringed with deep woods, extending to the summit, and
iu which lurk tigers, deer, hogs, and even lions, is somewhere above
eight miles, and the angle of ascent to its scarped summit about
45°. The Tulaiti , or lower town, is on the west side, which in some
places presents a double scarp, and this side is crowded with
splendid objects : the triumphal column, the palaces of Chitrung Mori,
of Rana Raemul, the huge temple of Rana Mokul, the hundred
pinnacles of the acropolis of the Ghelotes, and last, not least, the
mansions of Jeimul and Pubto, built on a projecting point, are
amongst the most remarkable monuments overlooking the plain.
The great length of Cheetore, and the uniformity of the level crest,
detract from its height, which in no part exceeds four hundred feet,
and that only towards the north. In.the centre of the eastern face,
at “ the gate of the sun” ( Soorajjpol ), it is less than three hundred,
and at the southern extremity, the rock is so narrow as to be
embraced by an immense demi-lune, commanding the hill called
Cheetorie, not more than one hundred and fifty yards distant ; it is
connected with Cheetore, but lower*, and judiciously left out of its
circumvallation. • Still it is a weak point, of which the iuvader has
availed himself. On this, Madaji Sindia raised his batteries, when
called on by the 'Rana to expel his rebellious vassal of Saloombra
(Yol. I, p. ’381). The Mahratba's batteries, as well as the zigzag
lines of his ascent, iudicate that, even in S. 1848 (A.D. 1 792), he had
the aid of no unskilful engineer. Prom this point, the Tatar Alla
stormed, and to him they attribute Cheetorie altogether, alleging
that he raised it by artificial means, “ commencing with a copper for
iC every basket of earth, and at length ending with a piece of gold.”

It would, indeed, have taken the twelve years, assigned by tradition •
to AllaVsiege, to have effected this, though there. cannot be a donbt
that he. greatly augmented it, aud planted there his munjaneelcds ,
or balistas, iu the same manner as he did to reduce the fortress of
Rayn, near Rinthumbor.

Having wandered for two or three days amongst the ruins, I
commenced a regular plan of the whole, going to work trigono-

694

PERSONAL NARRATIVE.

[CBAP. XV.

metrically, and laying down every temple or object that still retained
a name, or bad any tradition attached to it. I then descended with
the perambulator and made the circuit.

The first lateral cut of ascent is in a line due north, and before
another angle, you pass through three separate gates ; between the
last of which, distinctively called the footd diudrd, or c broken door/
and the fourth, the Eanuman pol (porte), is a spot for ever sacred
in the history of Cheetore, where its immortal defenders, Jeimuland
Putto, met their death. There is a small cenotaph to the memory
of the former, while a sacrificial JoojdrJt , on which is sculptured the
effigy of a warrior on horseback, lance in hand, reminds the Seesodia
where fell the stripling chief of Amait. Near these is another
cenotaph, a simple dome supported by light elegant columns, and
covering an altar to the manes of the martyr, Ragoode, the deified
piUra of Mewar. After passing three more barriers, we reach the
Rampol, which crowns the whole, and leads into a noble JDurri-
Jchaneh , or f hall of assembly/ where the princes of Cheetore
met on grand occasions ; and it was in this hall that the genius
of Cheetore is said to have revealed to Rana Ursi that his
glory was departing. On a compartment of the Rampol, we
found an interdict inscribed by the rebel Bheem of Saloombra,
who appears to have been determined to place upon his own head
the mor of Cheetore, so nobly renounced by his ancestor Cbonda
many centuries before. This was, however, set up when he was
yet loyal, and in his soveregin’s name as well as his own, ” abolish-
ing forced labour from -the towns-people, and likewise dind> or
“ contribution •/’ concluding with a grant of land to a patriotic
caypenter of Gosoonda, who had, at his own expense, furnished the
Rampol with a new gate : the cow and hog are attesting witnesses
to the deed. The next building I came to, as I skirted the western
face in a southerly direction, was a small antique temple to Toolsi
Bhavani, the divinity of the scribes, adjoining the Tope-lchaneh
Ghaari , a square for the park, where a few old cannon’ the relics of
the plunder of Cheetore, still remain. The habitation of the Puro-
hits, or chief priests of the Ran as, a plain, commodious, and sub-
stantial edifice, was the next 3 and close by was that of the Musani ,
or master of the horse, with several others of the chief household
officers. But the first imposing edifice is that termed NolaJcha
Bindar. This is a small citadel in itself, with massive, lofty walls,
and towers built entirely of ancient ruins. Its name would import
. that it was a receptacle tyindar') for treasure, though it is said to
have been the residence of the usurper Bunbeer. At the north-
eastern corner, it has a little temple, richly sculptured, called the
Seng&r-CMdr{. Prom this we pass on to the palace of the Ranas,
which, though attributed to Rana Raemul, is of the same character
as those of a much higher antiquity. It" is plain, capacious, and in
excellent taste, the only ornament being its crenated battlements,
and gives a good idea of the domestic architecture of the Rajpoots/

CHAP. XV.]

PERSONAL NARRATIVE,

695

long auterior to tho intrusion of tlie Islamite amongst them. The
vaulted chamber, the projecting gokra or balcony, and the gentle
exterior slope ov. talus of tho walls, lend a character of originality
to all the ancient structures of Cheetore. Tho industrious Ghassi
mado sketches for me of all their domestic dwellings, from the
ancient abode of Chitrung Tt[ori,~down to the mahls of Jeimul and
Putto. A court-yard surrounds the palace, in which there is a
small temple to Deoji, through whose interposition Rana Sanga
effected ail his conquests. This unknown divinity I find is styled
one of the eleven builds , or Mahabedians, incarnate in the person
of a celebrated warrior, named Bhoj, whose father was a Ohohan,
and his mother of tho Goojur tribe, which originated a new class,
called tho Bagrawut. The story of this Deo will add another to the
many tales of superstition which are listened to with reverence, and I
imagine generally with belief. The incarnate Bftgrawut, while on
his way to revenge an ancient feud with the Purihars of Ran-Binai,
approached Cheetore, and Rana Sanga, aware of his sanctity, paid
him all tho dues of hospitality; in return for this, the Deoji
bestowed a charm upon Sanga, by means of which, so long as he
followed tho prescribed injunctions, victoiy was always to attend
his steps. It was placed in a small bag, and to be worn round the
neck; but he was warned against allowing it to turn towards the
back. The Deo had the power of raising the dead, and in order to
shew tho Rana the value of the gift, he put into his hand a peacock’s
feather, with which having touched all who were then lying dead in
Cheetore, they were restored to life ! With this new proof of Deoji’s
power, Rana Sanga went forth to pursue his conquests, which had
extended to tho fortress of Biana, when one day, while bathing in
the peeld-bhdl , the charm slipped round, and straight a voice was
heard, saying, his “ mortal foe was at baud J” So impressed are the
Seesodias with tho truth of this tale, that Deoji has obtained a dis-
tinguished niche in their Pantheon ; nor in all their poverty has oil
been wanting for the lamp which is constantly burning before the
Bagrawut chieftain, whose effigy, on a horse painted blue, and lance
in hand, still attracts their homage. To buy golden opinions, I
placed three pieces of silver on the altar of the saint, in the name of
the brave Sanga, tho worthy antagonist of Baber, the “ immortal
“ foe,” who at the peeld-bhdl at Biana destroyed the charm of the
Deoji.

On leaving the court of Rana Raemul, we reached two immense
temples dedicatee! to tho black god of Vrij; one being erected by
Rana Khoombo, the other by his celebrated wife, the chief poetess
of that age, Meera Bae, to the god of her idolatry, SMmnath. We
have elsewhere mentioned the ecstasies of this fair votary of the
Apollo of the Yamuna, who even danced before his shrine, in which
her last moments were passed : and, to complete the picture, so
entirely were the effusions both of her heart and pen approved, that
“ the god descended from his pedestal and gave her an embrace,.

69G

PERSONAL NARRATIVE.

[CHAP. XV;

“ which extricated tlie spark of life. ‘ Welcome, Meera/ said the
“ lover of Radha ! and her soul was absorbed into his \” This rhap-
sody is worthy of the fair authoress of the Tilta, or sequel to the
Gitcl Govhula, which is said not to be unworthy even of Jyddva,

Both these temples are entirely constructed from the wrecks of more
ancient shrines, said to have been brought from the ruins of a city of
remote antiquity, called Nagara , three coss^ northward of Cheetore.*
Near these temples of Koomb-Shtlm are "two reservoirs, built of
large blocks, 'each one hundred and twenty-five feet long by fifty
wide, and fifty deep, said to have been excavated on the marriage
of * the Ruby of Mewar/ to Achil Kheechee of Gagrown, and filled
with oil and ghee, which were served out to the numerous attendants
on that occasion.

We are now in the vicinity of the Kheemt-Khumb , the pillar -
erected by. Rana Khoombo on his defeat of the combined armies of
llalwa and Guzzerafc. The only thing in India to compare with this
is the Kootub Minar at Dekli; but, though much higher, it is of a
very inferior character. This column is one hundred and twenty-
two feet in height, the breadth of each face at the base is thirty -five
feet, and at the summit, immediately under the cupola, seventeen
feet and a-half. It stands on an ample terrace, forty-two feet square.
It has nine distinct stories, with openings at every face of each
story, and all these doors have colonnaded porticos ; but it is
impossible to describe it ; and therefore a rough outline, which will
shew Ghassi's notions of perspective, must suffice. It is built chiefly
of compact limestone and the quartz rock on which it stands, which
takes the highest polish : indeed there are portions possessing the
hardness, and exhibiting the fracture, of jasper. It is one mass of
sculpture ; of which a better idea cannot be conveyed than.in the
remark of those who dwell about it, that it contains every object
known to their mythology. The ninth Ichund, or ‘ story/ which, as
' I have stated, is seventeen feet and a-half square, has numerous
columns supporting a vault, in which is sculptured Kanya in the
o-asmandala (celestial sphere), surrounded by the gopis , or muses,
each holding a musical instrument, and in a dancing attitude.
Beneath this is a richly carved scroll fringed with the sarus , the
phenicopteros of ornithology. Around this .chamber had been
arranged, on black marble tablets, the whole genealogy of the Ranas
of Cheetore ; but the Goths have broken or defaced all, save one
.slab, containing the two following slocas :

Sloca 172 : “ Shaking the earth, the lords of Goojur-khand and
Malwa, both the sultans, with armies overwhelming as the ocean,
invaded MMpat. Koombkuru reflected lustre on the land : to what

I .trust this may by pub to the proof: for I think it will prove to be
Tahshac-nagara, of which I have long been in search ; and which gave rise to'
the suggestion of Herbert that Cheetore was of Taxila Forus (the f ilar ?),

CIUI*. XV.]

PS830XA& XAItKATIVE.

697

point curi wo exalt kis renown ? In the midst of tke armies of kis
foe, Kkoombo was as a tiger, or as a flume .in a dry forest,”

Sicca 183 : “ Whilo tke sun continues to warm fcko earth, ,so long'
may the fame of Kkoombo Kana endure. While tko icy mountains
(hcmagir) of the north rest upon their base, or so long as Himackil
is stationary, whilo oeoau continues to form a garland round tho
neck of Awini (tho earth), so long may Khoombo’s glory be per-
petuated ( Slay tho varied history of his sway aud tho splendour of
liis dominion last for over ! Seven yours had elapsed beyond fifteen
hundred when Kana IChoombo placed this ringlet on tho forehead
of Cheetoro. Sparkling like tho rays of tho rising sun, is tho torun ,
rising liko tho bridegroom of tho hind.

” In S. 1515, tho templo of Britnka was founded, and this year,
Vriahpatwar (Thursday), the 10th tifc'h and Pookkfa Nikshitra, in
tho mouth of Alilgh, on the immoveable Ckuttorkote, this ICheeruU
sthamha was finished. What does it resemble, which makes Chee-
toro look down on Meru with derision ? Again, what does Ckutter-
lcotu resemble, from whose' summit tho fountains are -ever flowing,
tho circular diadem on whoso crest is beauteous to tho eye ; abound-
ing in temples to the Almighty, planted with odoriferous trees, to
which myriads of bees resort, and where soft zephyrs love to play.
This iminoveablo fortress (Achil-doorga) was formed by Maha-
ludra’s own hands.”

How many more slocas there may have beou, of which this is the
183d, wo can only conjecture; though this would seem to be the
winding-up.

The view from this elevated spot was superb, extending far into
the plains of Mahva. Tho lightning struck aud injured the dome
some years ago, but generally, there is no semblance of decay, though
some shoots of the peopul havo rooted themselves where the bolt of
Iudra fell. It is said to havo cost ninety lacs of rupees, or near a
million sterling ; and this is only one of the many magnificent works
of Rana IChoombo within Ckeotore ; the temples to Cristina, the
lake called Goorm Sugar , the templo and fountain to Kookreoo
Mahadeo, having been erected by him. He also raised tho stupen-
dous fortifications of Komuhner, to which place the seat of govern-
ment was transferred. It is asserted that the immense wealth in
jewels appertaining to the princes of Guzzerat, was captured by
Mahomed Begra, when he took Komuhner, whence he carried forty
thousand captives.

Hear this is the grand templo of Brimha, erected also by Kkoombo,
in honour of his father Mokul, whose name it bears, and whose bust
is the only object of veneration within. It would seem as if
Kkoombo had been a deist, worshipping the Creator alone ; though
his inspired wife, Meora B&d, seems to have drawn a portion of his
[Tot. II.] < £ 8

698

PERSONAL NARRATIVE.

[CHAP. XV.’

regard fco MooraHdhar , ‘ he who holds fche flute/ Adjoining the
shrine of fche great; spirit, is fche Oharbdg’h ; where fche ashes- of ,the
heroes, from B&ppa down fco fche founder of Oodipoor, are entombed.
Many possessed great external interest ; but I was forced to be
content with what I saw, for fche chronicler is dead.

Through these abodes of silence, a rugged path leads to a seques-
tered spot in a deep cleft of fche rock, where there is a living fountain,
called the gao-onoolch , or f cow’s mouth/ under the shade of an
umbrageous burr tree. On one s side of the dell is the subterranean
channel called Rani-binddr , which, ifc is said, leads to suites of
chambers in the rock. This was the scene of fche awful johv/r , on
the occasion of Alla sacking Oheetore, when fche queens perished in
the flames ; on which the cavern’s mouth was closed.

Still ascending, I visited fche edifices named after Jeimul and
Pufcfco, and fche shrine of EAlk& Ddvf, esteemed one of the most
ancient of Cheefcore, existing since the time of the Mori, the dynasty
prior to the Ghelofce. But; fche only inscription I discovered was fche
following :

“ S. 1574 Magh (stldi) 5fch, and Revafcl Nikshifcra, the stone-eufcfcers
“ Kaloo, Kalmeiyand fchir fey-six others (whose names are added),
“enlarged fche fountain of the sun (- surga-coonda ), adjacent to the
“ temple of Kalka Ddvl/-’ Thence I passed fco the vaulted cenotaph
of Chonda, the founder of the Chondawufcs, who surrendered his
birthright to please his aged sire. A little farther, are the mabls of
Rana Bheem and Pudmani. Beyond this, within a stone enclosure,
is the place where the victorious Khoombo confined fche king of
Malwa ; and touching ifc is fche mahl of fche Raos of Rampoora. .

Purfcher south is a spot of deep interest ; the tank and palace of
Ohitrung Mori, the ancient Piiar lord of Cheefcore, whose inscription
I have already given. The interior sides of the tank are divided
into sculptured compartments, in very good taste, but not fco be
compared with the works at Barolli, though doubtless executed under
the same family. Being now within two hundred yards of the
southern bastion, I returned by fche mahls of the once vassals of
Cheefcore, viz., Sirohi, Boondl, Sonfc, Lunawarra, to the Ghaogdn, or
f field of Mars,’ where the military festival of the Duserra is yet
held by the slender garrison of Cheefcore. Close to’ ifc is a noble
reservoir of a hundred and thirty feet in length, sixty-five in width,
and forty-seven in depth. It is lined with immense sculptured
masses of masonry, and filled with water.

«

Higher up, and nearly about the centre, is a remarkable square
pillar, .called the Iclimvasiu-sthamba (column). It is seventy-five feet
and a-half in height, thirty feet in diameter at the base, and ’fifteen
at fche top, and covered with Jain figures. Ifc is very ancient, and I
found a fragment of an inscription at its base, which shew 3 that ifc

CHAP. XT,]

PERSONAL NARRATIVE.

699

was dedicated to Adnath, the first of tlie twenty-four Jain pontiffs :
“By Sri . Adnath, and tlie twenty-four Jin-Zsioara, Poondarica,
“ Ganesa, Surya, and the nine planets, may you be preserved ! S. 952
“ (A.D. 896) Bysak (sudi) the 30th, Gurwar (Thursday)."

I found also another old inscription near the very antique temple
of Kookr^eswar Mahadeo : — “S. 811, Mali sood 5th, Yrishpatwar
“ (Thursday), A.D. 755, Baja Kookr-eswar erected this temple and
“ excavated the fountain."

There are many Jain inscriptions, but amidst the heaps of ruins I
was not fortunate enough to make any important discovery. One
in the temple of SuntnaPh was as follows : “ S. 1505 (A.D. 1449),
“ Sri Maharana Mokul, whose son Koombkurn’s treasurer, by name
“ Sah Kolak, his son Bin darn Butna, and wife Beelunddvi, erected
a this shrine to Snntnath'h. The chief of the Khartra-gutcha, Jinraj
“ Soor and apparent successor , Sri Jin Chandra Soor-ji, made this
“ writing. 0

Close to the Sooraj-pol , or gate in the centre of the eastern face,
is an altar sacred to the manes of Suheedas, the chief of the Chonda-
wuts, who fell at his post, the gate of the sun, when the city. was
sacked by Bahadoor Shah.

At the north-western face is a castle complete within itself, the
walls and towers of which are of a peculiar form, and denote a high
antiquity. This is said to be the ancient palace of the Moris and
the first Kauas of Cheetore. But it is time to close this description,
which I do by observing, that one cannot move a step without
treading on some fragment of the olden times :

“ Column strewn, and statues fallen and cleft,

“ Heaped like a host, in battle overthrown.”

Before, however, I quit this spot, hallowed by these remains, I
may mention having seen a being who, if there is any truth in
Chutterkote, must be a hundred and sixty years old. This wonder
is a 'Fakir, who has constantly inhabited the temples, within the
memory of the oldest inhabitants ; and there is one carpenter, now
upwards of ninety, who recollects “ Babaji as an old man and the
“ terror of the children." To me he did not appear above seventy.'
I found him deeply engaged at pacheesi with one of the towns-
folk. When I was introduced to this extraordinary personage, he
looked up at me for an instant, and exclaiming, “ what does he
“ want here V' quietly resumed his game. When it was finished, I
presented my wuzztir to the inspired (for madness and inspiration
are here synonimous), which he threw amongst the bystanders,
and bolted over the ruins, dragging through the brambles a
fine shawl some one has presented to him, and which, becoming
an impediment, he left there. In these moods none durst

[Top. II.] • , 88a,

700

PEEBONAL NAERATIVE.

[CHAP. XV.

inolesb. Him, aud when iacliaed for food or pastime. His wants were-
quickly supplied. For one moment I got Him to cast His mental eye
back upon the past, andke mentioned sometkingof Adina Begand the
Punjab (of which they say Ha was an inhabitant) ; but the oracle
deigned nothing farther.

Oodipoor, March 8th, 1822. — Here I am once more in the capital
of Hindupati (chief of the Hindu race), from which no occurrence
shall move me until I go to- f< eat the air" of my native land. I
require repose, for the - ' last fifteen years of my life have been one
continuous tissue of toil and accident, such as are narrated in these
records of a few of my many wanderings. . The bow must be unbent,
or it will snap, and the time for journalizing must cease with every-
thing else under the sun. I halted a few days at Mairta, and found
my house nearly finished, the garden looking beautiful, the aroo or
peach-tree, the seo or apple, the suntra , narinji, and nimboo , or
various orange' and lime-trees, all in full blossom, and shewing the
potent influence of Surya in these regions ; the sureefa or seetuphal
(fruit of Seeta), or custard-apple, the andr , the held, pomegranate,
plantain, and various indigenous fruits, were all equally forward.
These plants are mostly from Agra, Lucknow, or Cawnpoor ; but
some of the finest peaches are the produce of those I planted at
Gwalior, — I may say their grandchildren. When I left Gwalior in
1817, I brought with me the stones of several peach-trees, and
planted them in the garden of Rung-p&tvi, my residence at Oodi-
poor: and more delicious or more abundant fruit I never saw. The
stones of these I again put in the new garden at Mairta, and these
again exhibit fruit, but it will require another year to prove
whether they maintain the character they held in the plains of
Rarew, or in this city. The vegetables were equally thriving-: I
never saw finer crops of Prussian-blues, of Icobis, pliool-ltobis , or
cabbages and cauliflowers, celery, and all that belongs to the kitchen-
garden, and which my Rajpoot friends declare far superior to their
indigenous race of- sae, or greens : the Dewdnji (Rana) has mono-
, polized'the celery, which he pronounces the prince of vegetables. . I
had also gob my cutter for the Oodisagur , and we promised ourselves
many delightful days, sailing amidst its islets and fishing in its
stream. “ But in all this was there vanity — poor Carey lies under
, the sod ; Duncan has been struggling on, and is just about to depart
for the Cape of Good Hope ; Patrick, who was left at Kobah, writes
me dismal accounts of his health and his solitude, and I am left
almost alone, the ghost of what I was. <f I looked on all the works
(( that my hands had wrought, and on the labour I had laboured to
” do ; and behold all was vanity and vexation of spirit !" And such
I fear will it prove with more important works than these amuse-
ments of the hour; bub it were certain death to stay, and the doctor
insists on my sending in cc a sick certificate/’ and putting my house'
in order for departure. The month of May is fixed, a resolution
which has filled the Rana with grief; but he ee gives me leave only

<JHAP. XV.]

PERSONA!, NARRATIVE.

701

for three years, and Ms sister, Chandji Bae, desires me to bring back
"a wife that she may love/’

I would willingly have dispensed with, the honours of a public
entree: but here, even health must bend, to forms and the laws of
the Rajpoots ; and the Rana, Prince Jo wan Sing, and all the Seesodia
cMvalry, advanced to welcome our return. Ap gurh ay a ! " you
“ have' come home !** was the simple and heartfelt expression of the
Rana, as he received my reverential salaam • but he kindly looked
round, and missed my companions, for Waugh Sahib and Doctor
Sahib were both great favourites : and, last not least, when he saw
me bestride Javadia, he asked, “where was JBaj-rdj ?” but the
“ royal-steed” (his gift) was no move, and lies entombed at Kotak.
Mae ! Jiae ! alas ! alas ! (exclaimed Pirthinafli) ; hurra soch. pun
halamanicle cha, “ great grief, for he was a good man.”* The virtues
of Bajr&j were the subject of conversation until we reached the f gate
of the sun* ( Soorajpol ) ; when the Rana “ gave me leave to go
“ home,” and he continued his promenade.

Bajraj was worthy of such notice and of his name : he was perfec-
tion, and so general a favourite, that his death was deemed a public
misfortune, for he was as well known throughout all these regions
as his master. The general yell of sorrow that burst from all my
sepoys and establishment on that event, was astounding, and the
whole camp attended his obsequies ; many were weeping, and when
they began to throw the earth upon the fine beast, wrapped up in
his body-clothes, his sues (groom) threw himself into his grave, and
was quite frantic with grief. I cut some locks off his mane in
remembrance of the noblest beast I ever crossed, and in a few days
I observed many huge stones near the spot, which before I left
Kotah grew into a noble chabootra, or c altar* of hewn stone about
twenty feet square and four feet high, ou which was placed the
effigy of Bajr&j large as life, sculptured out of one block of free-
' stone. I was grateful for the attention, but the old Regent had
caught the infection, and evinced his sense of the worth of Bajraj
by a' tomb such as his master cannot expect; but in this case
perhaps I divided the interest, though there was no prince of Raj-
warra more proud of his stud than the blind chief of Kotah. Prom
the days of the Pandus to Dewa-Bango of Boondi, many a war has
been waged for a horse, nor can we better declare 'the relative
estimation of the noble animal, than in the words of that stalwart
Hara to the.Lodi king : “ there are three things you must not ask
“ of a Rajpoot, his horse, his mistress, or his sword.**

In a few days, I shall leave the capital for the villa of the Hara
Rani, sister of the Kotah prince, and whose bracelet also I have had,
the symbol of adoption as her brother. To airtheir customs, to all
their sympathies, and numerous acts of courtesy and kindness, which

* Manilc or munilc, is the diminutive of man.

702

PERSONAL NARRATIVE.

[CHAP. XV.

have made this not a strange land to me, I am about to bid fare-
well ; whether a final one, is written in that book, which for wise
purposes is sealed to mortal vision : but wherever I go, whatever
days I may number, nor place, nor time can ever weaken, far less
obliterate, the remembrance of the valley of Oodipoor.^

w By a singular coincidence, the day on which I closed these wanderings, is
the same on which I have put the last stroke to a work that has afforded me
some pleasure and much pain. It was on the 8th March 1822, 1 ended my
journey and entered Oodipoor : on the 8th March 1832, 1 am transcribing this
last page of my journal : in March my book appears before the public ; I was
born in March ; embarked for India in March ; and had the last glimpse of its
land, the coast of Ceylon, in March. Bub what changes has not the ever-
revolving wheel produced since that time ! The hand of genius which has
illustrated this work, and which will, I trust, perpetuate his own name with the
monuments time has spared of Hindu art, is now cold in death. Captain
Waugh returned to England about six mouths after me ; his health much
shattered. We met, and lived together, in London, in Belgium, and in France :
but amidst all the beauties of novelty, Rajpootana was the theme to which we
constantly reverted. He returned to India, had just obtained his majority,
and was marching in command of his regiment, the 10th Light Cavalry,
from Muttra to Mhow, when, in passing through the land where we had
seen many happy days together, he was invited by the chief of Doonee
to renew old.reeollections by a visit. Though in the highest spirits, my poor
cousin went with a presentiment of evil. He was accompanied by some of his
officers. In ascending the hill he fell, and sustained an injury which rendered
an operation necessary. This succeeded so well, that in two days he proceeded
in a litter ; when, on arriving at the ground, his friends drew the curtain of his
dooli, and found him dead ! His ashes repose in Mdwar, under a monument
raised by his brother officers. He did nob live to see the completion of these
labours, which none bub him could fully appreciate. No man was ever more
beloved in private life ; and the eulogium passed upon him, bub two days ago,
by his old friend and commander, the gallant General Sir Thomas Brown, —
“ he was one of the best cavalry officers who ever served under me,” — is an
honourable testimony to his public career. No apology is required for this
record of the talent and worth of one who, in addition to the ties of kindred,
was linked to me by the bonds of friendship during twenty years. — 8tli
March, 1832.

APPENDIX.

Written

cording

a

P cj

3 ig -o —

*r- 2 •-« rr-J

a o d o

333 S3
a'H-S'H.
§.

nc- No. I.

custom intke^^' f rom ^ a J a ^ ei J Sing of Am Mr to Eana Singram
margin with -Sing of Mdwar, regarding Edur.

S,a2’ s Sa, Bam,,*

Ski Seeta Rajhi,

When I was in the presence afc Oodipoor, you commcoidedf thab
Mdwar was my home, and fchab Edur was the portico of Mewar,
and to watch the occasion for obtaining it. Prom that time I
have been on the look-out. Your agent, Myaratn, has again
written regarding it, and Dilpufc line read the letter to me verbatim,
on which I talked over the matter with Maharaja Abhd Sipg, who
acquiescing in all your views, has made a nuzsur of the pergunna
to you, and his writing to this effect accompanies this letter.

The Maharaja Abh<5 Sing petitions that you will so manage that
the occupant Anund Sing does not escape alive; as, luilhout his death,
your possession will be unstable ,-J this is in your hands. It is my
.wish, also, that you would go in person, or if you deem this inex-
pedient, command the Dhnbluie Nuggo, placing a respectable fores
under his orders, and having blocked up all the passes, you may
then slay him. Above all things let him not escape — let this bs
guarded against.

. Asar badf .7th, (22nd of the first month of the monsoon),

S. 1784 (A.D. 1728).

Envelope.

.The pergunna of Edur is in Maharaja Abh6 Sing’s jagheer, who
makes a nuzzur of it to the Huzoor ; should it bo grauted to auy
other, take care the Munsubdar never gains possession.

8th. S., 1784.

.2 a

fc 5 .£3 •§

a pq != p, 13
o.2

o

r, -*-< jt; «#**

■“ o £ a,

d

o

aj O 5 u
0-^3 .-2 O
tn u ^3 .

O uo *•> a

Ja > c
^ o o *3 Pi
o cs

^ ? §30

g « 3 202

"3

R C3

* Ram and Seota, wliom. the prince invokes, are the groat parents of the Cue in valia
•race, of which Raja Joy Sing is tlio head. I have omitted • the usual string of intro-
ducfcoiy compliments. •

f These terms completely illustrate tho superior character in which tho Ranas of
Mewar wore held by the two princes next in dignity to him in Rajpootana a century

as °‘ »

J This deop anxiety is abundantly explained by looking at the genealogical slip of
the Rah tore 3, at page 118, where it will bo seen that Anund Sing, whom tho ‘‘parri-
cidal Abho Sing is so anxious to bo rid of, is his own brother, innocent of any
participation in that crime, and zvhose issue, although adopted into Edur, were heirs -
pres umptive to Mar war !

704

APPENDIX.

No. II.

TREATY between the. Honourable English East-India Company
and Maharaja Maun Sing Buhadoor, Raja of Joudpoor, re-pre-
sented by tile Koowur Regent Joograj Maharaj Koowur Ohutter
Sing Buhadoor , concluded by Mr. Charles Theophilus Metcalfe on *
the part of the Honourable Company, in virtue of poivers granted
by His Excellency the Most Noble the Marquis of Hastings, K. G.
Governor General , and by Byas Bishen Ram and By as Ubhee
Ram on the part of Maharaja Maun Sing Buhadoor, in virtue
of full poivers granted by the Maharaja and Joograj Maharaj
Koowur aforesaid.

First Article. — There shall be perpetual friendship, alliance, and unity of
interest between the Honourable English East-India Company and Maharaja
Maun Sing and his heirs and successors ; and the friends and enemies of one
party shall be friends and enemies of both.

Second Article. — The British Government engages to protect the principality
and territory of Joudpoor.

Third Article. — Maharaja Maun Sing and his heirs and successors will act in
subordinate co-operation with the British Government, and acknowledge its
supremacy ; and will not have any connection with other chiefs and states.

Fourth Article. — The Maharaja and his heirs and successors will not enter
into negotiation with any chief or state without the knowledge and sanction
of the British Government. But his usual amicable correspondence with
friends and relations shall continue.

Fifth Article. — The Maharaja and his heirs and successors will not commit
aggressions on any one. • If by accident disputes arise with any one, they shall
be submitted to the arbitration and award of the British Government.

Siwth Article.— 'Axe tribute heretofore paid to Sindia by the state of Joud-
poor, of which a separate schedule is affixed, shall be paid in pei’petuity to the
British Government; and the engagement of the state of Joudpoor with -
Sindia respecting tribute Bhall cease.

Seventh Article. — As the Maharaja declares that besides the tribute paid to
Sindia by the state of Joudpoor, tribute has not been paid to any other state,
and engages to pay the aforesaid tribute to the British Government ; if either
Sindia or any - one else lay claim to tribute, the British Government engages
to reply to such claim,

Fighth Article. — The state of Joudpoor shall furnish fifteen hundred horse
for the service of the British Government whenever required; and when
necessary, the whole of the Joudpoor forces shall join the British army, except-
ing such a portion as may be requisite for the internal administration of the
country.

Ninth Article .' — The Maharaja and his heirs and' successors shall remain
absolute rulers of their country, and the jurisdiction or the British Government
shall not be introduced into that principality.

Tenth Article. — This treaty of ten articles having been concluded at Dihlee*
and signed and sealed by Mr. Charles Theophilus Metcalfe and Byas Bishen
Bam and Bya3 Ubhee Bam ; the ratifications of the same by his Excellency
the Governor General and by Baj Bajeesur Maharaja Maun Sing Buhadoor
and Jugraj Maharaj Koowur Chutter Sing Buhadoor, shall be exchanged
within ^x weeks from this date.

Done at Dihlee this sixth day of January, A.D, 1815.»

(Signed) (L.’S.) 0. T. METOALEE, Besident.

BYAS BISHEM BAM.

(L. S.) BYAS UBHEE BAM.

APPENDIX,

705

No. III.

Treaty with the Raja of Jessulmer.

TREATY between the Honourable English East-India Company
and Malut Rawul Moolraj Buhadoor, Raja of Jessulmer, con-
cluded on the part of the Honourable Company by Mr. Charles
Theophilus Metcalfe , in virtue of full poiuers granted by his Ex-
cellency the Most Noble the Marquis of Hastings , K. 0., Governor-
General, &c., and on the part of the Maha Raja Dehraj Maha
Rawul Moolraj Buhadoor by Misr Motee Ram and T’hakoor
Dowlet Sing , according to full poiuers conferred by Maha Rawul.

Fhst Article . — There shall be perpetual friendship, alliance, and unity of
interests between the Honourable English Company and Haha Rawul Moolraj
Buhadoor, the Raja of Jessulmer, and his heirs and successors.

Second Article . — The posterity of Maha Rawul Moolraj shall succeed to the
principality of Jessulmdr.

Tint d At tide. — In the event of any sei ioue invasion directed towards the
overthrow of the principality of Jessulmer, or other danger of g) eat magnitude
occurring to that principality, the British. Government will exert its power fox*
the protection of the principality, provided that the cause of the quarrel be not
ascnbable to the Raja of Jessulmdr.

Fourth Ai tide. — The* Maha Rawul and his heirs and successors will always
act in subordinate co-operation with the British Government, and with sub-
mission to its supremacy.

Fifth Ai tide . — This treaty of five articles haviug been settled, signed, and
sealed by Mr. Charles Theophilus Metcalfe and Misr Motee Ram and T'hakoor
Dowlet Sing, the ratifications of the. same by his Excellency the Most Noble
tho Governor-General and Malm Raja Dehraj Maha Rawul, Moolraj Buhadoor,
shall be exchanged in six weeks from the presont date.

Done at Dihlec this twelfth day of December, A. D. 1818.

(L. S ) C. T. METCALFE, ( Signed ) MISR MOTEE RAM.

(L. S.) T’HAKOOR DOWLET SING.

( Signed) 0. T. M.

No. IY.

TREATY between the Honourable English East-lndia Company
and Maharaja Siwace Juggut Singh Buhadoor , Raja of Jypoor ,
concluded by Mr. Charles Theophilus Metcalfe , on the part of the
Honourable Company, in virtue of full powers granted by his
Excellency the.Most Noble the Marquis of Hastings, K.G., Gover-
* nor-General, <&c. y and by T'hakoor Raivul Byree Saul Nattawut,
on the part of Raj Rajindur Sree Maharaj Dheraj Siwaee Juggut
Sing Buhadoor, according to full powers given by the Raja.

First Ai tide . — There shall be perpetual friendship, alliance, and unity of
interests between the Honourable Company and Maharaja Juggut Singh, and
his heirs and successors, and the friends and enemies of one party shall be tho
friends and enemies of both parties.

[Vos. II.]

89

706

APP.ENDIX.

Second Article. — The British Government engages to protect the territory of
Jypoor, and to expel the enemies of that principality.

Third Article. — Maharaja Siwaee Juggut SiDgb, aud his heirs and successors,
will act in subordinate co-operation with the British Government, and acknow-
ledge its supremacy ; and will not have any connection with other chiefs and
states.

Fourth Article. — The Maharaja, and his heirs and successors, will nob enter
into negotiation with any chief or state, without the knowledge and sanction,
of the British Government ; but the usual amicable correspondence with friends
and relations shall continue.

Fifth Article. — The Maharaja, and his heirs and successors, will not commit
aggressions on any one. If it happen that any dispute arise with any one, it
shall be submitted to the arbitration aud award of the British Government.

Sixth Article. — Tribute' shall be paid in perpetuity by the principality of
Jypoor to the British Government, through the treasury of Dihlee, according
. to the following detail :

First year, from the. date of this treaty, iu consideration of the devastation
•which has prevailed for years in the Jypoor country, tribute excused:

Second year....'. Four lacs of Dihlee rupees.

Third year Five lacs. _

Fourth year...... Six lacs.

Fifth year ...Seven lacs.

Sixth year Eight lacs.

Afterwards eight lacs of Dihlee rupees annually, until the revenues of the
principality exceed forty lacs. .

And when the Rajah’s revenue exceed forty lacs, five-sixteenths of the
excess shall be paid in addition to the eight lacs above-mentioned.

Seventh Article. — The principality of Jypoor shall furnish troops according
to its means, at the requisition of the British Government.

Eighth Article. — The Maharaja, aud his heirs and successors, shall remain
absolute rulers of their country, and their dependents, according to the long-
established usage ; and the British civil and criminal jurisdiction shall not be
introduced into that principality.

Ninth Article. — Provided that the Maharaja evince a faithful attachment to
the British Government, his prosperity and advantage shall be favourably con-
sidered and attended to.

Tenth Article. — This treaty of ten articles having been concluded, and signed
and sealed by Mr. Charles Theophilus Metcalfe, and T’bakoor Rawul Byree
Saul Nattawub, the ratifications of the same, by his Excellency the Most Noble
the Governor-General, and Raj Rajinder Sree Maharaj Dhiraj Siwaee Juggut
Sing Buhadoor, shall be mutually exohauged within one month from the
present date.

Done at Dihlee thi3 second day of April, A.D. 1818.

(Signed) (L. S.) C. T. METCALFE,

. Resident.

(L.S.) TAUKOOR RAWUL BYREE SAUL NATTAWUT.

T.

No. Y, being a large paper is omitted.

APPENDIX.

707

VI.

TREATY between the Honourable the English East-India Company
on the one part, and Maha Rao Omed Sing Buhadoor, the Raja
of Kota, and his heirs and successors, through Raj Rana Zalim
Sing Buhadoor, the administrator of the affairs of that princi-
pality ; on the other concluded on. the part of the Honourable
English East-India Company by Hr. Charles Theophilus Metcalfe,
in virtue of full powers granted to him by his Excellency the
Most Noble the Marquis of Hastings, K.Q. } Governor-General,
and on the part .of Maha Rao Omed Sing Buhadoor, by Maha
Raja Sheodan Sing, Sah Jeewun Ram, and Lala Hoolchund, in
virtue of full poivers granted by the Maha. Rao aforesaid, and
his administrator, the above-mentioned Raj Rana.

First Article . — There shall he perpeiual friendship, alliance, and unity of
interests between the British Government on the one hand, and Maha Kao
Omed Sing Buhadoor, and his heirs and successors, on the other.

" Second Article . — The friends and enemies of either of the contracting parties
shall be the same to both.

Third Article . — The British Government engages to take under its protec-
tion the principality and territoi’y of Kota. .

Fourth Article.— The Maha Kao, and his heirs and successors, will always
act in subordinate co-operation with the British Government, and acknow-
ledge its supremacy, and will not henceforth have any connection with the
chiefs and states with which the state of Kota has been heretofore connected*

Fifth Article. The Maha Kao, and his heirs and successors, will not enter

into any negotiations with any chief or state without the sanction of the British
Government. But his customary amicable correspondence with friends and
relations shall continue.

Sixth Article —The Maha Kao, and his heirs and successors, will not commit
aeeressions on any one ; and if any dispute accidentally arise with any one,
nroceedin" either from acts of the Maha Rao, or acts of the other party the
adjustment of such disputes shall be submitted to the arbitration, of the
British Government.

Seventh Article .—' The tribute heretofore paid by the prmcipahty of Kota to
the Mahratta chiefs, for instance, the Peshwa, Sindia, Holkar, and Powar, shall
be paid at Dihlee to the British Government for ever, according to the separate
schedule annexed.

Eiqht Article.— No other power shall have any claim to tnbute from the
principality of Kota; and if any one advance such a claim, the British Govern-
ment engages to reply to it.

Ninth Article— The troops of the principality of Kota, according to its means,
-shall be furnished at the requisition of the British Goyernment.

m enth Arlide -The Maha Kao, and bis heirs and successors , shall, remain
absolute rulers of their country, and the civil and criminal jurisdiction of the
British Government shall not be introduced into that principality.

EU,,., Ih A, iicU -lhi, teatj

“SMSffi&SSS ICs“w T «S»», a-d 1* ■ Hoo.chuna

[Von. II.]

708 '

appeit D.rx:

on the other, the ratifications of the same by his Excellency the Most Noble the
Governor-General, and Maha Rao Omed Sing, and his administrator Raj Rana
Zalim Sing, shall be exchanged within a month from this date.

Done at Dihlee the 26th day of December, A .D. 1817.

f Signed J C. T. METCALFE,

Resident.

No. VII.

TREATIES between the Honourable English East-India Company
and the Maha Roto Raja Bishen Sing Bahadoor, Raja of Boondee,
concluded by Captain James Tod on the part of the Honourable
Company, in virtue of full powers from his Excellency the Most
Noble the Marquis of Hastings, K.G., Governor-General, $c. Sjc.,
and by Bohora Tolaram on the part of the Raja, in virtue of
full powers from the s aid Raja. *

First Article . — There shall be perpetual friendship, alliance, and unity o£
interests between the British Government on the one hand, and the Raja of -
Boondee and his heirs and successors on the other.

Second Article . — The British Government takes uuder its protection the
dominions of the Raja of Boondee.

Third Article . — The Raja of Boondee acknowledges the supremacy of, and
will co-operate with, the British Government for ever. He will not commit
aggressions on any one. He will not enterinto negotiations with any one with-
out the consent of the British Government. If by chance any dispute arise
with any one, it shall be submitted to the arbitration and award of the British
Government. The Raja is absolute ruler of his dominions, and the British
jurisdiction shall not be introduced therein.

Fourth Article . — The British Government spontaneously remits to the Raja,
and his descendants the tribute which the Raja nsed to pay to Maharaja
Holkar, aud which lias been ceded by the Maharaja Holkar to the British
Government ; the British Government also relinquishes in favour of the state
of Boondee the lauds heretofore held by Maharaja Holkar within the limits of
that state, according to the annexed Schedule (No. 1).

Fifth Article . — The Raja of Boondee hereby engages to pay to the British
Government the tribute aud revenue heretofore paid to Maharaja Sindia,
according to the Schedule (No. 2). »

Sixth Article . — The Raja of Boondee shall furnish troops at the requisition
of the British Government according to his means.

Seventh Article . — The present Treaty of seven articles having been settled at>
Boondee, aud signed and sealed by Captain James Tod aud Bohora Tolaram,
the ratifications of the same by his Excellency the Most Noble the Governor- _
General and the Maba Row Raja, of Boondee, shall be exchanged within one
month from the present date.

Done at Boondee, this tenth day of February, A-D. 1S18; correspond-
ing to the fourth of Rubbee-ool-Sanee 1233, and fifth day of Maug
Soondee of the Sumbut, or iEra of Bikramajeet, 1874.

INDEX

VOLUME II.

A

Aseyb Sing of Marwar, bis horoscope,
73. His history, 75 — 99, Charac-
ter, 100.

Aboo, convocation of gods there to
regenerate the warrior caste, 407.

Aboriginal tribes of India, 289,303.

Acnicu'la race, not aborigiual in
India, 408,409.

Ahairea, or ‘ spring-hunt, prophetic
imprecation of a Satf respecting,
* 432,688.

Aheeks, anciently occupied all Central
India, 409.

Aji'rVr,, a ehuJcwa, or universal poten-
tate, 409.

Aji't Sing, Raja of Marwav, 50, Devo-
tion of his chiefs to preserve
him from Arungzeb, 51 . Con-
cealed on Mount Aboo, 52.
Heads an army and defeats
the imperialists, 65. Restores
Jey Sing to Ambdr, 69. Ob-
tains a Sunnud from Arung-
zeb, 70. His conduct in the
wars of the succession, 75.
Takes Ajmei-, 79. Is murder-
ed by his sou, 80. His cha-
racter, 84. His murder the
germ of destruction to Mar-
war, 86. Sea Personal Narra-
tive.

-Rao, of Booudi, tragical death

of, 462.

-of Kotah, 474.

Akber, Emperor, visits the castle of
Rinthumbor in disguise, 436._ Con-
cludes a treaty with the prince of
Boondf, id. Employs the Haras, 438.
Remarkable manner of his death,
-439.

Akber, Priuoe, his operations against
the Rahtores, 53 — 55. An
object of jealousy to his father
Arungzdb, 57.

Akbbr-ca'-de wa, or ‘Akber’s lamp’
at Cheetore, 691.

A Kin Sing, Rawul of Jessulmdr, 240.

Alexander the Great, traditions of,
amongst the Johyas, 164.

Aloo Hara, of Bumaoda, 591,686.

Ambe It, or Dboondar, annals of, 318.
Its origin, 319. Foundation of
Dhoondar, by Dhola Rae, 320. Le-
gend of the origin of the state of
Amber, ib. Sketch of indigenous
tribes, 322. Connection oi the Am-
ber princes with the Mogul dynasty,
325. Splendid reign of Jey Sing,
328. ' Amber owes everything to
him, 335. Aggrandizement of Am-
ber, 340. Injurious effects of con-
tentions between Madhu Sing and
Beejy Sing, 343. Intrigues of the
queen Regent and the Feelbun, 344.
Vicissitudes of Ambdr under Pertap
Siug. 345. Invasion of the Mabruttas,
ib. Profligate reign of Juggut Sing,
346. Amb6r the last of the Rajpoot
states to accept the British alliance,
348. Reasons, ib. Erroneous prin-
ciples aud inconvenient results of
the alliance, 352. Court of Ambdr
termed, the 'Jyiug Court,’ ib. De-
parture from the rule of succession,
353. Intrigues of Mohun Nazir to
set up Mohun Sing of Nnrwar, ib.
Ended by birth of a posthumous son
of Jnggnt Sing, 356. Statistics of
A mb dr, 395. Soil and agriculture,
397. Revenues, 398. Military force,
401. Fiefs, 402. See Shekhavati.

Ameer Khan, his importance in the
affairs of Mar war, 130. His atroci-
ties, 131—132.

710

INDEX.

Ano'f Sing, Raja of Bikaner, 1 66.

Architecture, ancient, of the Hindus,
at Barolli, 646 — 653 : Ganga-bhdva,
656 : Dhoomn.tr, 660 : Chandrabhaga,
670 : Bijolli, 679 : Cheetore, 691 — 693.
Perfection of ancient Hindu archi-
tecture, 646 : Chadri of Bbeem, con-
necting link between Hindu and
Egyptian architecture, 677.

Arorah, tribe of the desert, 292.

Akungze'b, Emperor, marches into
and plunders Mar-war, 55. Promul-
gates th ejezeya, 53. His treachery
towards the Marwar chiefs, 57. In-
stigates the poisoning of Jey Sing
of Amber by his son, 328.

Asot’hajia, Rao of Marwar, 12.

Ahmets, ascetics, of Mokundurra, 644.
See Jogis.

Aya'-punti Brahmins, votaries of AytU
Mata, 31.

B

Bahaiuiull, Raja of Amber, the first
prince to pay bomnge to the Maho-
medau armies, 325.

Baj-aswa, his five sons people India
. beyond the Indus, 4. ' ,

Bando, Rao of Boondi, 429.

Barolli, architectural remains at, 646
—653.

Barwuttias, or exiles, 382.

Bhedavati', lands of the sons of
Beeda, 171.

Beejx Sing, Raja of Marwar, 106.
Defeated at the battle of Mairta,
109. Treachery towards his chiefs,
’ 114. Enlarges his territory and
leagues with Pertdp of Mewar
against the Mahrattns, 117. Is infa-
tuated with a Pasbanl concubine,
118.

Beeka, founder of Bikaner, 157.

Beerumdeo, Rao of Marwar, 13.

Beesildeo of Haravati, his exploits
celebrated by Chund, 414. Men-
tioned in the inscription on the co-
lumn at Dehli, 417. His date estab-
lished, 418.

Bersi, Rawul of Jessulmer, 236.

Bhagwandas, Raja of Amfidr, 325.

Bhartewar, ancient town of, 545.

Bhats. See Gharuns.

Bhattiahs, tribe of the Desert, 292.

Bheeji Sing, Raja of Marwar, usurps
the gad% to the prejudice of his
nephew, 120. Destroys the royal
blood of Maroo, 121.

Bheeji Sing, Raja of Kotah, 468. His
conduct towards Khilij Khan the
celebrated Hizam-ool-Moolk, 469.

Bhi'lwarra, a commercial mart estab-
lished by the author, 632. His gra-
tifying reception at, ib. Its pros-
perity an example of the effects of'
British influence in these regions,
633.

Bhoj Rao, raja of Boondf, 438.

Bhutnair, portion of Bikaner, 1$6.
Its chief, 188. Traditions of its ancient
splendour, 189. Its natural produc-
tions, ib.

Bhynsror, pass in the Pat’har, 596.

Its traditional history, 598. Sindia
foiled before its castle, 602.

Bijolli', architectural remains at, 679.

Bikaner, annals of, 156. Its foun-
dation, ib. conditions of Beeka’s ,
supremacy, 160. Capabilities of
Bikaner, 173. Its extent, 174. Popu-
lation, ib. Soil, 176. Products, 177.
Salt lakes, 179. Mineral productions,
ib. Animals, ib. Commerce and
manufactures, 180. Revenues, 181.
Feudal levies, 184.

Biihkn Sing, Rao of Boondi, 461. His
character, 464.

• , Raja of Kotah, deprived of

his birthright, 468. Consequences,
473.

Bishenswamii, military devotees, 126.

Bouora, or licensed usurer of Raj-
pootana, 491.

Boodh Sing, Rao Raja of Boondi, 445.
His brave conduct at the battle of
Jajow, 447. Resists the Syeds, ib.
Quarrel with Jey Sing of Amber,
448, Dies in exile, 449.

Boondi’, annals of, 424. Foundation
of city, ib. Instances of abdication
among its princes, 425. Dispute

x respecting the supremacy of M£war;
427. The Rana- marches against
Boondi, and his defeated, ib. Hisrash
vow, 428. Rao Bando expelled from
Boondi, 429. Matrimonial alliances
with Mewar, 431. Rise of Boondi
under Rao Soorjun, 435. He re-
nounces allegiance to Mdwar, s and
becomes a vassal of the empire, 436.
Titles of its princes changed to Rao
Raja, 437. Kotah detached from
Boondi, ib. Connections of the Hara
princes with the empire, 438. Des-
perate battle of Jajow, 446, Designs
of J ey Sing of Ambdr on Boondi, 447.
Boondi despoiled by Mewar, Amber
and Kotah, 449. Reigning family

INDEX.

711

exiled, ib. Omfeda Sing’s attempts
to recover his patrimony, 45 0. Mah-
' rat t as become his auxiliaries, 453.
Omeda Sing restored, 454. Perni-
cious influence of the Mahrattas, 456.
Tragical end of A jit Sing, 460. Con-
duct of the Eao to Brig. Monson on
his retreat, 463. .Rewarded by Brit-
ish Government, ib. Court of
Boondi, 465. Visited by the author,
634. Measures adopted by him for
future administration of its affairs,
640. Revenues and Military estab-
lishments of Boondi, 641.

Brahmins of the Desert, 292.

Brjj-nath, palladium of the Haras, 470.
Lost at the battle of Bhorasso, ib.

British power in India, its beneficial
effects, 587,589,603, 611,618,660.

Bohingis, or scavengers, of Ranik-
haira, 573.

• Btjkhta Sing, Raja of Marwar, his
intrigues aud exploits, 96 — 99.
Usurps the authority of'Ram Sing,
103. Is poisoned, 104. His cha-
racter, 105.

Buha'oda, Seat of AIoo Hara, 590.

Bussis, servile condition so called, 679.

Buttaie, payment in kind, 493.

Buiwarro, battle of, 475.

Chohans, pedigree of, 405. Said to be
formed by Vishnu, 407. First of
Agnicula races which obtained ex-
tensive'dominion, 408. Genealogical
table of, 416. Proof that they wrest-
ed Dehli from the Tiiars, 680.

Cholera morbus, in Marwar, 59. In
Boondf, 630, In Kotah, 631. Curi-
ous mode of expelling it, ib.

Chonda, Rao of Marwar, 14.

Ciiqolis, or whirlpools, of the Chum-
bul, 597,655. -

Chuaibul, whirlpools of, 597,655.

Chunderse'n, of Marwar 1 , erects an
independent authority in Sewanoh,
25.

Cuutter Sal, Rao Raja of Boondi,
442. Becomes Viceroy of
Dehli, ib. Aids the emperor
Shah Jehan, 443. Killed at
the battle of Fattehabad, 444.
His heroic character, ib.

■ Mabarao of Kotab, 474.

Coins, Bactrian, 285.

Crusaders, traces of them in Rajpoo-
tana, 7.

Cryptographic dates explained, 685.

Cdtcuwahas, race of, 319,339. See
Amber.

C

D

Caggar, its absorption in the desert,
189,268.

Calian Sing, Raja of Bikaner, 163.

Cahd'hdj, the thirteen great families
so called, 3

Ganouj, its early history, 2. Its ex-
tent and grandeur, 6,7. Falls to
Shabudiu, 9.

Caves of Dhoomnar, 660.

Chado, Rao of Marwar, 13.

Chandrabhaga, architectural remains
at, 670.

Chandravati, 670. 1

Cuaruns, the carriers and free-traders
of Rajast’han, 570. Curious privi-
lege of the Cbarunis of Slurlab, 571.

Cheetoue, description of, from the
Khoman Rasa, 692. By the author,
693. See Bappa and Mewar.

Chb'ka'g-da'.v, or ‘Akber’s lamp’ at
Cheetore, 691. *

Chetri caste, or re-creation of by
Viswamitra, 406.

Chittrah, see Mirage.

Ohitrung Mori, PLiarlord of Cheetore,
palace of, 695.

Dabi Baori, or reservoir, abode of the
spirit of the Ayapunti Brahmin of
Bbilara, 31.

Da'odpotua, in the desert, 295. His-
tory of its founder, ib.

Deonat’h, high priest of Marwar, 132.

Desert, the Indian, 263. General
aspect of, 264. Its boundaries aud
divisions, ib. Looni, or salt River,
269. Rin, orRunu, ib. Distinction
between t’hul and Rood, ib. Jha-
lore, 270. T'huls, 274. Chohan Raj,
277. Population of the Raj, 280.
Part of desert dependent on Sinde,
281. Feud between Sinde and
Mewar, 286. Tribes of the desert,
289. Daodpotra, 295. Diseases of
the desert, 297. Animals, 298. Vege-
table productions. ■ 300. Itinerary,
302.

De's-vatoh, or exile, -rite of, 38.

De'vi' Sing of Pokurn, 111. Peculiar
circumstances attending his death,
115.

Dewa Rae, first Hara prince of Boondf,
,424.

Dhola Rae, founder of Dhoondar, 320-

*

712

Index

Dhonkol Sing, Posthumous son of
"Raja Beejy Sing of Marwar, 123.

Dhoohna'e, caves of, 660. Temples
and habitations of Troglodytes, 661.
Both Budhisfc and Sivite, 662.
‘ Bheem’s bazaar,’ 663.

Dhoondar, see'Ambdr.

Dhote, or Dfaatti, Rajpoots of tbe
desert, 291.

Dodeah, incidents connected with the
rise of this ancient tribe in Mcwar,
557.

Doohub, Rao of Marwar, 13.

Doobjun Sal, Maharao of Kotah, 472,
His actions and character, ib.

Ddsiraj of Marwar, his heroism, 117.

E

Eendos, ancient sovereign of Marwar,
53. Expelled from Mundore, ib.

F

Faxi’r, at Cheetore, aged 160, 699.
Feeroz, the Feelbdn, his intrigues in
Ambei‘, 344.

Franks, (Europeans), mentioned by
early historians, 7.

Futtehabad, battle of, 443.

G-

Gang a, Rao of Marwar, 20. Join3
Sanga Rana of Mewar, .against Ba-
ber, ib.

Ganga-bhe’va, architectural remains
at, 656.

Gehlotes, see Mdwar.

Goga, Chohan, his patriotic death, 413.
His name and tbe day of his death
sacred throughout Rajpootana, ib.

Goman Sing, Maharao of Kotah, 476.
His conduct towards Zalim Sing, the
future Regent, 478.

Grants, religious, pernicious magni-
tude of, in Mdwar, 550.

Guj, Raja of Marwar, 36. Favoured
by J6hangir, ib. Rejects the
proposal of prince Khoorm to
take part. against his brother,
Purvez, 37. Joins the other
princes of Rajas t’han to pro-
tect Jehangir against prince
Khoorm, 38.

— — , Rawul of Jessnlmer, 197. An

instrument of the Mehta, 246.

GuJ Sing, Raja of Bikaner, 166. ‘

Guasi, ancestor of the Gursote Rah*
tores, 163. *

H

Haiue, of Haravati, falls in battle with
Shabudiu on the Caggar, 421 — 423.
Tradition respecting him, 571.

Haras, see Haravati.

Haravati, or Harouti, 405. Its
boundaries, ib. PedigreeoftheHaras,
ib. Descended from Manika Rae,
409. Conquests of the Haras, 410.
Era of Beesildeo, 413. -The Haras
obtain As er, 420. As<5r taken by
Alla-oo-diti, 421. Chief of the Haras
summoned to court of Secunder
Lodi, 422, Princes of Harouti, 424.
Dispute respecting the supremacy of
Mdwar over the Haras of the Pat’bar,
427. Partition of Harouti, 440.
Origin of the claims of Ambdr to
tribute from the Kotria, 455. Mon-
son’s retreat an important event in
the history of the Haras, 463.
Slaughter of kine forbidden in
Harouti, 472. First connexion with
the Mahrattas, 473. Curious custom
of tbe Haras in commemoration of
the battle of Butwarro, 476. The
Pat’har resounds with traditionary
tales of the Haras, ‘lords of the
Pat'har,’ 590. See Boondi and Kotah.

Hindust’han, four great kingdoms
of, 8.

Holkar, Jeswunb-Rao, mausoleum of,
659.

Houa, human sacrifice to Aya-Matd,
31.

Horses of Marwar, 148,

Hoon, ancient Raja of the Pat’har, 422.
His existence questionable, ib. His
legend connected with the edifices
at Barolii, 653.

Hospitality, rigid observance of the
rite among the Rajpoots, 593.

Hunja, steed of Omed Sing of Boondi,
veneration paid to its memory, 451.

I

Inscriptions, ancient, at Morwnn, 564 ;
Palode, 567 ; Singolli, 588 ; BhynB-
ror, 595 ; Sontra, 606 ; Mandelgurh,
621 ; Akolah, 625 ; Hamirgurb, ib. ;
Rasmy, 626 ; Kuraira, 62S ; MJow-'
lee, io. ; Barolii, 648; DhoomnSr

_ INDEX.

713

660 ; Chandrabhaga, 670 ; Molcun-
durra, 675 ; Bijolli, 679 ; Morakuro,
681 ; Dorowlee, ib. ; Mynal, 682 ;
Cheetore, 691,694,699.

Ishtpa'l founder of the Haras, 420. -
Itinerary through the desert, 302.

J

Jaet, Baja of Bikaner, 163.

Jains, their numbers and wealth in
Marwar, 145.

Jajow, battle of, 446.

Jalun, Eao of Marwar, 13.

Ja'ts of Bhurtpore, 341 ; of Amber, 397.

Jeicddnd, the last Rahtore sovereign
of Canouj, d. His power, ib. His
victories, 7. Meditates the rite of
Soenair, ib. Is attacked by Pirthi
Baj, who carries off his daughter, 8.
He falls a. victim to the Ghori Sul-

- tan, ib. Is drowned in the Ganges, 9.

jEiroor, see Ainbdr.

Jessume'b, annals of, 191. Inhabited
by the Bhatti Rajpoots, 192. Colo-
nization by the Yadus, ib. Early
annals of the state, 193. Remarks
on the Tadu-Bhattis, 202. Founda-
tion of Jessulmer, 220. Besieged by
Alla-o-din, 225. Re-established by
Gursi, 228. First diminution of ter-
ritory, 238. The heir, Rae Sing,
exiled, 240. The princes murdered
by Zalina Sing, the minister, 244.
Last state to accept alliance with
British government, 246. Reflections
on the policy of this alliance, 247.
Border-feud, 251. Geography, 253.
Population, ib. Face of the coun-
try, 254. Soil, husbandry and pro-
ducts, 256. Manufactures, ib. Com-
merce, 257. Revenues and taxes, ib.
Expenditure, 259. Tribes, ib. Dress
of the people, 260. Brahmins, 261.
Jesswunt Sing, Raja of Marwar, 41.
Patron of science, ib. He
opposes Arungzfcb, 42. Neg-
lects the opportunity of re-
leasing Shah Jeban, 44. His
changes of party, ib. Dies in
Cabul, 46. His character, ib,
Saits at his death, 50.

Rawul of Jessulmer, 240.

Jex Aopa, Mahratta, assassination of,
109.”

Jey Sing, Raja of Amhhr, the Mirza\
Baja, 327. His services to the em-
pire, ib. Poisoned by his son at the
instigation of Arungzdb, 328,

*-TTr> TT T

Jezeya, or capitation-tax, 53.

Jhaloke, in the desert, 270. Its
geography and history, ib. Its de-
pendencies, 271.

Jhalra-Patcn, 510,667. Its free in-
stitutions, 669.

Jiiarejas, of the desert, connecting
link between the Hindu nud Moos-
lem, 288.

Jits, or Getes, race of, 157,341. In-
scriptions relative to, 699.

Pooniab, conquered by Rad Sing,

of Bikaner, 165.

—• of the desert, 295.

J on a, Rao of Marwar, 15. Incident
connected with his foundation of
Jodpoor, 17.

JoDPOoa, founded by Joda, 17. Heads
of clans, 18.

Jogis, the Druids of India, 17. See
Atteets.

Johur, rite of, 227. The cave in which
it was celebrated at Cheetore, 693.

Johyas, subjugated by Rae Sing, of
Bikaner, 164. Their name lost, ib.

Joograj, ceremony of, 457.

Juggut Sing, Raja of Amber, 346.
His dissolute and profligate reigu ,ib.

K

Kandue, founder of the Kanduloto
Rabtores, 162.

Kanhul, Rao of Marwar, 13.

Kaorwa, nomade tribe of Rajpoots'
in the desert, 291.

Kueechies, origin of the tribe, 411.

Kehur, Raja of Jessulmer, 209.

Kikxma'n RasA, chronicle so called, 693.

Khoaibo, of Mewar, pillar erected
by him at Cheetore, 695. r

Khooshkoz, see Noroza,

Kuyroda, feuds connected with, 545.
Its agricultural economy, 547. Dis-
covers traces of the patriarchal sys-
tem, ib.

Kishokk Sing, Raja of Kotali, 467.

, Mnharao of Ivotab, 518.

Breaks with the Regent, 520. Com-
mences hostilities, 521. Reconciled
to him by the intervention of the
British Agent, 522. Re-comruences
hostilities, 526. Defeated, 532. Is
again reconciled, 535.

Kokeau, devotion of the Hara chief of,
on Monson’s retreat, 665.

Kgont, payment in kind, 495.

Kotaii, annuls of, 466. Its separation
from Boondf, ib. Conquered from
90

714

INDEX.

the Koteah Bbfls, ib. Fidelity of
its princes to the empire, 467. En-
larged under Bheem Sing, 468. Civil
wars, 470. Invasion of, by Madhu.
Sing, of Amber, 474. Victory of
Butwarro, aud rise of Zalim Sing,
476. Invaded by the Mahrattas, 480.
Zalim Sing negociafces their retreat,
481. Regency of Zalim Sing, 483.
Kotah sacrificed co his views on
Mewar, 484. His reforms, 488 — 503.
Kotah the first state to accept the
British alliance in 1817, 511. State
of affairs on the death of Omed Sing,
514. Consequences of our guarantee
of the regency to Zalim and his son
Madhu, 515. Designs of the new
rince and the Regent’s natural sou,
17. Dilemma of the British go-
vernment, 5l8. The Maharao com-
mences hostilities against the Regen t,
520. Interference of the Agent, 521.
Banishment of Zalim’s natural son,
525. Further intrigues and conten-
tions, ib. Difficulties resultiug from
the treaty, 527. Perplexing conduct
of the Regent, 530. Further disputes
and hostilities, ib. The Maharao
defeated, 532. Death of Prince
Pirthi Sing, ib. Heroism of two
Haras, ib. Reconciliation of the two
parties, 534.

Kotah, visit of the author to, 607.
Description of the city and its en-
virons, ib. Second visit to, 612.
Return to, 677. Amusements at, 678.

Kurna, celebrated bard of Marwar, 91.

Kurnidhan, Rahtore bard, 3.

Kxjrrun, Raja of Bikaner, 165.

L

Lakha Phoolana, Jbareja' of Phoolra,

11 .

Laxsont, battle of, see Tonga.

Laukhanis, branch of the Shekawuts,

' 393.

Las, ceremony of, 240.

.Lat’ha land-tax, 495.

Lohana, tribe of the desert, 292.

Loom, or salt river, 269.

M

Madhu' Sing, Raja of Amb<5r, 340.

-, Raja of Kotah, 466.

Mahjiood of Ghiztii, his last invasion
unrecorded by Mahomedan writers.

Mahomedans, their first invasion of
Rajpootana, 410.

Mahrattas, incidents attending their
rise, 420. First crossed the Chum-
bul in 1735, 472. Thejr mix in the
politics of Rajpootana and get a
footing there, 453. Our false policy
towards them, 564. They aid the
Haras at Butwarro, 475. Assist the
Seesodias, 479. Attack Haravati,
-480. Their hold on the Pat’bar,
577,588.

Mairta, battle of, 107.

Maldeo, Rao Marwar, 21. Enlarges
Marwar and improves J odpoor, ib.
Checks the subdivision of estates,
and establishes a gradation of ranks,

22. His inhospitality to Hemayoon,

23. Resists Shere Shah, and is de-
feated, ib. He submits to Akb6r, 24.
His death an important epoch in the
Rahtore annals, 25.

Man, see Mann.

Mandamca, title given to Jeichund
of Canouj, 7.

Mandexgurh, history of, 620.

Mandhata Raja, ancient sovereign
of Central India, 551. f

Manik Rae, his era, 409. Founder of
the Chohans of the north, 411.

Marwar, annals of, 1. Etymons of
its name, ib. Genealogy of its rulers,
2. Change of title of its princes from
Rao to Raja, 6. Antiquity of their
pedigree, 9. Declension of the power
of the state, 24. Its submission to the
empire, 26. Retrospective summary
of its annals, 27. Allodial and feudal
lands, 28. Patriarchal inflnenceon the
feudal system of Rajast’ban, 29. Mar-
warinvadedand wasted by Arungzeb,
55. The Rahtores take shelter in the
Aravulli, 54. Battle of Hadole, 55.
Wars with Arungzeb, 65- Sunnud
to Ajft, 70. The germ of destruction
of Marwar dated from thejmurder
of Ajft, 86,101. Influence of the
Mahrattas in Marwar, 1 10. Aristo-
cracy of, ib. Law of adoption in, ib.
First use of mercenaries, 111. Effects
of struggle between the aristocracy
and the Sovereign, 115. First inter-
course of British government with
Marwar, 133. Its condition under
Raja Maun, 137. Extent of Marwar,
142. Its inhabitants, 143. Soil and
agriculture, 144. Natural produc-
tions, 145 Manufactures, ib. Com-
mercial marts, ib. Mercantile class,
146. Decay of commerce, 147. Fairs,

INDEX.

715

148. Administration of justice, ib.
Pnncbaets,. 149. Revenues, ISO.
Military forces, 153. 'See Personal
Narrative.

Maun Sing, Baja of Marwar, history
of, 122. His chiefs conspire against
him, 124. Intercepts the nuptial
gifts from -Mewar to Amber, 125.
Defection of his chiefs, 127. Res-
cued by means of Ameer Khan, ] 28.
His chiefs return to their allegiance,
129. Falls into mania or melancholy,

132. His supposed dissimulation,

133. A British envoy sent to his
court, ib. Mann’s sanguinary mea-
sures, 136. His chiefs exiled, 139.

Maun, Raja of Amber, 326.

Meenas, etymology of the term, 295.

Of Amber, 396. See Mairs.
Mercenaries, in Rajpootana, 122.
Mikage, 594.

Mohun Sing, adopted as Raja of
Ambdr from the house of Nurwar,
352.

Mohun Nazir, of Amber, his attempt
to set up Mohun Sing, 353.

Moron d Sing, Raja of Kotah, 467.
' His devotion to the empire, ib.
Morundurra, pass of, 643,675.
Monson, Brigadier, his retreat, 463,
468. His disasters, 505. Devotion
of theHara auxiliaries, 506. Details,
665. Oouducb of Monson, 666.
Moolkaj, Rawul of Jessulmer, 216.
Morakuko, architectural remains at,
_ 681.

Mundoee, ancient capital of Marwar,
13.

MynaL, or Mahanal, architectural re-
mains at, 685. s

Nahur Khan, Koompawut, his heroic
character, 48.

Naeooji, Rao of Boondi, 425. Assas-
sinated by the Thoda chief, 426.
Narayndas, Rao of Boondf, 429. _ An
•enormous opium eater, 430. Delivers
Cheetore from the Mooslems, 431.
Nays Pal, of Cononj, 2. His pos-
terity, 4.

Nizam-ool-Moolk, of Hyderabad, 469,
Noonkurn, Raja of Bikauer, 163.

0

Oasis, probable etymology of the term,
266.

rvoii. ii.]

Ome'da Sing, Rao of Boondf, 450. De
feats the Jeypoor army, 451. Is
defeated, ib. Recovers Boondf, 453.
Re-expelled, 454. Regains his patri-
mony by help of the Mahrattas, ib.
His reputation stained by an act of
revenge, 457. Abdicates and spends
the remainder of his life in penitence
under the name of Sri-ji, ib. His
pilgrimage and character, 458. His
death, 462.

Omk’d Sing, Maharao of Kotah, 481.
Zalim Sing appointed Regent during
bis minority, ib.

Omubkotk, capital of the Soda Raj, in
the desert, 285,

Oodipoor, the author’s visit to, 700.

Oody Sing, first Raja of Marwar, the
* Moota Raja/ 26 — 30. Reduces the
power of his vassals, 30. The first
who gave a daughter to the Tatar, ib.
Superstitious incident connected
with his death, 31.

Oopekmal, see Pat’har.

Opium, pernicious effects of its intro-

' duction into Rajpootana, 578. His-
tory of its cultivation, and manufac-
ture, 580 — 582. Profits of its culti-
vation, 583. Its extended culture,
ib. Mode of reducing it, ib. Con-
sequences of our encouragement and
monopoly, 584.

Ordeals, 149.

P

PallIwal Brahmins, invite Seoji
prince of Canouj, 12. Are slain by
him, ib.

Pat'har, or Plateau of Central India,

576. Anciently governed by Raja
Hoon, 422. The Haras established
as ‘ lords of tbo Pat’har/ ib. Most of
it now in the bands of the Mahrattas,

577.

Peeply, battle of, 666.

Personal Narrative, Journey to Kotah
and Boondf, 544. Ancient town of’
Bhartewar, 545. History of Khy-
rpda, illustrating the feuds of Mewar,
ib. Agricultural system of Khyroda,
547, Large religious grants in
Mdwar, 550. Heenta, the scene of
a gallant exploit against the Mtth-
rattas, 552r Extent of alienations in
Mewar, 553. Discussions respecting
the separation of Heentah from tbo
fisc, 555. History of Maun Sing
Suktawub, 556. Fabulous incidents
90a

71 6

IJTDBX.

connected with the rise of the Do-
deah tribe, 557. Tragical narrative
of a Bah tore family of Sadri, the
steward of Kalakote, 562. Onr false
policy towards the Mahrattas, 564.
Curious tradition respecting Mor-
wun, ib. Accident to Captain
Waugh, 565. Attack by a tiger, 566.
Disastrous effects of a severe frost,
567. Legend of the temple of Palode,
ib. Punchaet of Morwun, 569. Com-
munity of Charuns, 570. The free-
traders of Rajast’han, ib. Curious
privilege of the Charunis. ib. Anec-
dote of the buhinqis, or scavengers
of Ranikhaira, 573. Ascent of the
Pat’har, 575. Prospect from'thence,
ib. Projects for the amelioration of
Mdwar, 577. Shrine of Sookhdeo, ib.
Cultivation of opium, 578. Anec-
dote of Doongur Sing, 586. Kala
Meg’h, chief of Beygoo, 588. Tradi-
tional tales of the Baras of the
Pat’har, 590. Bumaoda, seat of Aloo
Barn, ib. Anecdote of Aloo, 591.
A tmosnherieal phenomena on the
Pat’har, 594. Bhynsror, its import-
ance, 595. Its traditional history,
596. Choalis of the Chumbul, 597.
Anecdote of the young chief of
Mehwo, 598. Assassination of Nath-
ji of Beygoo. 601- Beneficial moral
changes produced by British influ-
ence, 603. Arrival at Kotah, 607.
Unhealthiness of the climate, 608.
Beauty of the scenery, 609. TJn-
wholesomeness of the water, 610.
Nandta, the family estate of 'the
Regent, 612. Enter Boondi, ib.
The city, 614. Departure for Jehaj-
poor, 6 1 6.' Extraordinary attack of
illness sustained bv the author, Sl8.
Convocation of the Meena chiefs, 620.
Arrival at Mandelgurh, 621. Its
history, 622. Assembly of Bhomias
and Patdls, ib. Punchaet of Poor’b,

626. Their gratitude to the author,
ib. Scene of the battle between
Bawul Samarsi and Bhola Bheem,

627. Bunting seats of the Rpuas, 629.
Journey to Boondi and Kotah, 630.
Death of the Bao of Boondi, ib. The
author’s gratifying receDhion at Bhf 1-
wara, 632. Its flourishing condition,
G33. The author’s serious illness,
634. Arrival at Boondi, 636. In-
auguration and installation of the
young Bao Baja, 637. Measures
taken by the author for the future
administration of affairs, 639. De-

parture for Kotah, 641. Grand hunt
at Kotah, 642. The pass of Mokun-
dnrra, 643,675. Monastery of Atteets,
644. The temple of Barolli, 646.
Choolis of the Chumbul, 654. Su-
perb scene, 655 Splendid ruins of
Ganga-bheva, 657. The Tahaji-ca-
hoond, 658. Mausoleum of Jeswnnt
Bao Holcar, 659. Agates and cor-
nelians, 660,667. Visit to the caves
of Dhoomn&r. ib. Scene of the battle
of Peenly, 665. Heroism of the Bara
chief of Koelah, 666. Jhalra-Patnn,
667. Its free institution, 668. De-
putation to the author, 669. Ancient
‘ city of bells,’ 670. Legend of its
foundation, ib. Remains of ancient
sculpture and architecture, 671.
Ghabnx, or camp of Zalim Sing. 674-
Deeds of the ‘ Lords of the Pass,’
675. Goman Sing, the Rawut of the
pass, '676. ChSjori of Bheem, a strik-
ing ruin, 677. Ordinance of Zalim
Sing, ib. Recreations at Kotah, 678.
The author attacked by a bear, ib.
Antiquities at Bijollf, 679. At Mora-
kuro, 681. My rial, architectural
wonders at, 628. Beygoo, 686.
.Castle of Aloo Bara of Bum&oda, ib.
Legend of Aloo. 687. Recollections
of the modern Earns of the pass, 688.
Serious accident which befel the
author, 690. Affecting instance of
gratitude in the Rawut, ib. Restora-
tion of his estate, 691. Visit to
Chgetore, ib. Its remains, 693. Re-
turn to Oodinoor, 700.

Perta’p Sing. Raja of Ambdr, 344.

Pirthi Raj, Chohan, rivalry between

' him and Jeichund of Canouj,

8. A diseinle of the Jains, 680.

Raja of Amber, 324.

Sing of Marwar, supnosed to

be poisoned by Arungz6b, 45.

Pits for storing grain. 499.

Poi/ygamy, evils of, in Rajnootana, 333,
340.

Primogeniture, law of, prevails in all
Rajpoot states, 350. Its sacrifice pro-
ductive of injurious effects, 118. In-
vaded in Marwar, 38.

Ponchaets, 149. '

Pdruiar, tribe of, created by Roodra',
407.

Putto, see Pertap. •

R

Raepal, Rao of Marwar, 13. ;

Rag’ Sing, Raja of Bfkandr, 165.

I-HJJEX.

717

.tiUTOUES of-Marwar, their early his-
tory, 2. The nominal first Rahtore,
Yavanaswa of Parlipoor, ib. His
origiu, 4. Reflections on the Rahtore
character, 71,143. See Marwar.

Iaj Sing, Raja of Bfkandr, 167.

Rajpoots, their genealogies illustrated,
416. No available date for any of the
Rajpoot great families beyond the
fourth century, 2. Their superior
civilization at the period of Mah-
mood’s invasion, 8. . Apology for the
crimes of their princes, 105. Prodi-
gal sacrifice of their blood in the
imperial service, 165. Rajpoots con-
verted to Mahomedanism ferocious
and intolerant, 290. Evils attending
on ignorance of their customs on our
part, 352. Their princes deposed
when they offend against custom or
morality, 433, Elements for the for-
mation of a representative govern-
ment amongst them, 490. Their
passion for land, 497. Beneficial
effects of our authority amongst
them, 513,519. Their composure
and dignity in personal intercourse,
547. Influence of females over the
Rajpoots, 600. Affecting instance
of their gratitude, 690. See Tribes.
Rajpoot.

Rajpootni's, see Manners.

Ra'j-tilac or inauguration, ceremony
of, 63 6.

Rak.hi, festival of, 639.

Ram Sing, "Raja of Marwar, 101. De-
prived of the gadi, 103- Restored,
107. His character, 110.

Ram Sing, Rao Raja of Boondi, 636.

Rbbarris of the desert, 293. ’

Rin, or Runu, description of, 269.

Rinmul, Rao of Marwar, 14. His issue
the great vassalage of that state, 15.

Roob', desert, 269.

Roais, orbicular stones, objects of
worship, 655.

otna of Rutlam, his heroism at the
battle of Futtebabad, 43.

itUTTUN Rao, Raja of Boondi, 439.
Take part with Jdhaugfr against
prince Khoorm, 440. A name dear
to the Haras, ib. Unwittingly con-
demns his own son, 441.

Ryots, their condition in Kotah, 493.
Cursed by Rama, ib.

S

Sacas of Jessulmdr, 227,228. Of Rund-
heer, 419.

Sadhanis, chiefs of northern Sbckba-
vati, 377,391.

S A] Tit am of Canouj, 10. His death, 12.

Salbahan, Raja of Jessuline'r, 200.
Pounds Salbahanpoor, ib.

.Salim Sing, the Mehta of Jessulmer,
242. Destroys the royal family and
chiefs, 244. Proclaims Guj Sing, tb.

Sanga, or Singram, Rana' ot Mdwar,
.legend of, 695.

Sati, or female, immolation, the So-
lanki queen of Boondf, 427- Sooja
Bae of Boondi, 433. The wife of the
chief of Beygoo, 600. The daughter
of the Bijollia chief, 682. At Bu-
maoda, 688. Prophecy of a Sati
>in Mdwar, 459,572. Anathema of tho
Satf respecting the Ahairea, 461.

Satgl-Patul, a Paudu king, tradition
of, 660.

Sawunt Sing, of Rinthumbor, his
devoted patriotism, 435.

Sculpturk, ancient, at Chandravati,
670. At Barolli, 646,652. At Jbulra-
Patan, 670. See Architecture.

Suekotb, see Mirage.

Se'oji, of Canonj, 10. His victory
over Lakha Phoolana, 11. Settles
in Khcrd’hur, ib. Usurps the dis-
trict of Palli, 1 2.

Seesodias, the solar race, legend of the
origin of the name, 645. See Mdwar.

Shabudin’, of Ghor, invades India, 9.

Sukkiiawut, or Shekbavati federation
357. Legend of its origin from
Shekbji, 358. Occupation of Khun-
daila, its capital, by Raesil, who
eularges its territory, 362. His son
obtains the title of llaja, from the

'"Emperor, 363. The temple of Khun-
daila razed and the city garrisoned
by Arungzdb, 365. Partition of tho
territory between two brothers, ib.
Becomes tributary to Amber, 368.
Internal dissentions and civil wars,
370. Ravnges of the Mahrattas, 372.
Contests between the two princes,
375. Grand national congress of tho
‘ children of Shekhji’, 377. Opposi-
tion to tho assumed supremacy of
Amber, 378. The chiefs by treachery
made prisoners, 379, and carried to
Jeipoor, 379. Khundaila annexed
to the fisc of Amber, ib. Bagh Sing
resists the authority of Ambdr, 3S0.
Exploits of the jRancuitias or exiles,
383. Favourable treaty with Ambdr,
3S7. Treachery of the Court of Jei-
poor, ib. Fall of Hnnwuut Sing, 338.
Luchmau Sing obtains Khundaila,

718

INDEX.

dependant upon Amber, 390. Sub-
ordinate branches of the Shekha-
wuts, 391. Revenues of Sbekhavati,
394.

Siluk, or Silko, Rao of Marwar, 13.

SniBULLUND Khan, revolt of, 89. The
forerunner of the disintegration of
the Empire, 90. Defeated and taken
by Abhye Sing of Mewar, 94.

Sirdar, ot Roopnagurb, his exploit at
the battle of Mairta, 108.

Sodas of the desert, the connecting
link between the Hindus and Moos-
lems, 288. Account of them, 291.

Soenaik, rite of, 7.

Sodanki tribe, created by Bramha,406.

Soring, Rahtore, treacherously obtains
Eedur, 12.

Soojoh, or Soorajmul, Rao of Marwar,
19. Slain by the Pat’hans, 20.

Soon Sing, Raja of Marwar, 33. De-
feats Mozuffur Shah, 34, Embel-
lishes the capital 36.

Soorjun, Rao of Boondi, 435. Con-
cludes in person a treaty with Akber,
436. Becomes a dignitary of the
empire, 438.

Soortan, Rao of Boondi, deposed by
his nobles, 433.

Soorut Sing, usurps the gadi of Bi-
kaner, 168.

Sowab' Sing, of Pokurna, conspires
against Raja Maun of Marwar, 123.
His destruction, 131.

Sowar' Jey Sing, Raja of Amber, 328.
His astronomical knowledge, 329.
His character, ib. His ‘ one hundred
and nine acts,’ ib. Partial to strong
drink, 338. His improvement of the
capital, ib. His sumptuary laws, ib.

Sri-ji, name assumed by Omdda Sing
of Boondi, 457.

Subbud Sing, Rawul of Jessulmdr, 237.
Hot the legitimate heir, ib. The 1
first of the princes who held it as a
fief ot the empire, ib.

Sugar, results of its cultivation in
Rajast’han, 548.

Sujaun Sing, Raja of Bikandr, 166.

Suroop Sing, Raja of Bikandr, 166.

T

Temples, ancient, on the Bairis, 544 ;
at Kuraira, 628 ; Barolli, 616 ;
Ganga-bhdva, 656; DhoomnAr, 661;
Jhalra-Patun, 670 ; Morakuro, 681 ;
Cheetore, 691 — 693 ; Nagara, 696.

• Tenures of land, in Hindust’ban ;
original compact between the prince

and the proprietors of the soil,
traceable almost throughout India,
161.

Tbkedo, Rao of Marwar, 12.

Thomas, George, his action with the
Jeipooreans, 381.

T’hul, or desert, 264.

Tribes of the desert, 289.

Tybkr Khan, his treason and death, 56.

U

Uja, Rahtore, founder of the Bad-
hails, 12.

Umra Sing, of Marwar, loses his birth-
right, 38. Obtains Hagore, 39.
Assassinates Sallabut Khan
and attempts Shab Jehan, ib.
His death, ib.

- , Rawul of Jessulmer, 238.

V

Yk'dya's, or ‘ cunning men/ 123.
Yana-perist, Jogis, 16.

W

Water of the desert, 267. Of Ko
610.

Waugh, Captain, accident to, whilst
hunting, 565. Death of, 702.

Z

ZiilH Sing, of Marwar, deprived of
the gadi by his uncle Bheem,
120. His great personal and
mental qualifications, 121.

— of Kotab, incident which

firsc brought him into notice, 455,
His debut at the battle of Butwarro,
475. His history, 477. Appointed
Regent, 481. His talenis and policy,
ib. Pactions and conspiracies form-
ed against him, 482. He marries into
the house of Mdwar, 484. His peril
from a band of Rajpootnis, 486. His -
character as a legislator, 487. His
views of Mewar, ib. His agricul- >..%
tural system, ib. His superstition, “
488. Organizes an army on -the
European model, ib. His revenue
reforms, 489, His Patdl board, ib. ^
His farming system, 496. General
character of his domestic adminis- "

INDEX.

719

evasion, oOl. His vigorous political
plans, 504. His foreign policy, ib.
His conduct to the British troops on
Monson’s retreat, 505. Offends
Holcar thereby, 506. His system of
espionage, 507. He conciliates the
Pindarris, 508. Extensive scale on
which he exercised Sima, ib. Op-
posite results of his offensive and
defensive policy ib. His conduct in
the war of 1817, 511. His prophetic
remark on the extension of British

Rule in Iudia, 512. His latent ambi-
tion, 513. His predicament on tlia
death of Omdda Sing, 5M. Hostility
of the new Mabarao, Kishoro Sing,
520. Their reconciliation, 522. The
last acts of his political life, 524.
Banishment of his natural sou, 525.
His perplexing conduct in the sub-
sequent hostilities by the Maharao,
530. Summary of his character, 539.

ZooiuwtJR Sing, Raja of Bikaner, 166.