columns being mingled with stately cypress trees. The pavilions, galleries, and terraces around, are built and ornamented in the richest style of oriental architecture, that beautiful carved trellis-work, which always produces so exquisite an effect, frequently intervening, while the painting and gilding are equally profuse and striking. The floors are covered with Persian carpets, furnished with cushions richly embroidered in gold; English lustres and mirrors lending their aid, at the reception of company, to complete the brilliancy of the scene. The prodigious number of lights, and their tasteful arrangement, produced an illumination of the most perfect kind, shedding a soft and chastened lustre upon the flowers and waving foliage around. As no entertainment can in India be complete without a nautch, the party, on the evening which they spent at the Rung Muht, were called upon to admire the graces of not fewer than fifty dancing-girls, who, with their attendant musicians, performed for the amusement of the company. After the inferior stars had appeared and disappeared, the grand constellation of Hyderabad enlightened the scene. Talent, as we before have had occasion to state, when once established in India, runs no risk of being eclipsed by the competition of younger aspirants; in fact, the longer a person has appeared before an audience, the more highly do they seem to rise in public estimation. The prima donna absoluta of Hyderabad was said to be nearly sixty years old, and to have shone the reigning beauty for the last half-century. Her countenance, though not destitute of traces of age, retained the marks of that loveliness for which she had been famous, and the youthful voice and air with which she sang and danced, were perfectly surprising. During her public career, this favourite of nature and of fortune had amassed very considerable wealth, contriving also to possess herself of great influence in the place of her abode. Her dress on the present occasion was of the richest and most costly description, and she wore jewels which were valued at three lacs of rupees, or £30,000. Elegance and taste are very frequently sacrificed in the female Asiatic costume to a grand display of precious stones, which are heaped together in every possible way, without the slightest regard being paid to the style of the arrangement. The European portion of the company, after having sufficiently admired the lady and her ornaments, gladly adjourned to an adjoining piece of ground appropriated to another oriental feature-a display of fire-works, for which the natives are famous, and which went off with great éclat.

The splendid remains of the tombs of the kings of Golconda are within an easy distance from Hyderabad; and other agreeable excursions may be made to places which, if not equally attractive, afford a pleasant variety to the scene. In a north-easterly direction from the suburbs, we arrive at the extensive ruins of a city and a palace, now the abode of antelopes, which are preserved by the Nizam, and protected by game laws of great severity, the penalty of loss of sight being attached to the slaughter of one of these animals. They are, in consequence, very numerous, and, being destitute of fear, exceedingly familiar. They are occasionally disturbed by the leopards inhabiting the neighbouring wilds; and it was in consequence of a foray from those spotted poachers, that the expedition, joined by the party at the residency, went out. The scene was wild and singular, and productive of ideas allied to melancholy, raised by the contemplation of the habitations of civilized man, once consecrated to domestic enjoyment, now waste, and abandoned to beasts of the chace. In the same direction, and nearer to the city, are gardens, laid out under the superintendence of the French officers, formerly in the Nizam's service, who occupied them at the time; there is a tomb erected to the memory of one of these gen

tlemen, M. Raymond, presenting a memorial always attended by melancholy recollections to the exile. The neighbourhood of Hyderabad is celebrated for those extensive tanks-reservoirs of water-which are so necessary in Asiatic countries to ensure the supply of one of the greatest blessings of existence, at the failure of rain. The road to the cantonments of that portion of the subsidiary force stationed in the vicinity of the capital, runs for upwards of a mile over one of the gigantic dams, constructed across a valley, for the purpose of confining the stream. This part of the journey is very agreeable, the country on one side being richly cultivated, while a broad sheet of water stretches on the other, spreading itself many miles in circumference. A few miles to the southward of the city, there is another body of water, confined by a bund, or dam, of solid masonry, constructed by the same officer who built the residency, whence it is called by the European inhabitants, the engineer's tank; and, by the natives, Meer Allum, from the minister who caused it to be constructed. This bund is formed of a series of very large stone arches, laid on their sides, with the semi-circular projection opposed to the body of water; these are not ranged in a straight line, but form on the aggregate also a segment of a circle. This sheet of water, when the enclosure is full, measures nearly twenty miles in circumference; there is a small English boat upon it, furnished with oars and sails, belonging to the minister, who, however, seldom ventures so completely out of his element. The party very gladly availed themselves of the opportunity of a sail on this artificial lake, breakfasting merrily in tents pitched upon the banks, and rejoicing over the sight of a wide expanse of water, rare amid their travels in the interior.

IMPROVEMENT OF THE WOOL OF INDIA.

We have made some inquiry into the result of the export of Merino and British sheep to India, by order of the Government, for the improvement of the flocks that cover various districts of our Eastern empire. In a former number we gave the exports of wool from Bombay, which amounted

Our readers probably know that, in 1836-37, Major Jervis, of the Engineers, observing the vast flocks of sheep pervading the country which he travels through, in the course of the performance of his official duties, and their inferiority in every respect to those of Europe, was struck with the great advantage that might be derived from an effort of the Government to improve the breed by the introduction of Merino and other superior sorts of sheep, to cross with the natives, and by degrees to supersede them. He drew up a report, containing much information, which was transmitted by the Bombay Government to the Home Authorities; and in consequence, twenty rams and the same number of ewes, of the pure Merino, and the same number of South-down and long-wool sheep, were sent out, under the care of a Gloucestershire farmer, of great intelligence and experience in the breeding of sheep. To show the facility and little risk of

export, we are enabled to state that, out of thirty-six of the pure Merinos, supplied by Lord Western, one only died on the voyage, and one ewe produced a fine lamb. Of the forty South-downs, supplied by Mr. Elman, of Lewes, eight ewes died on the voyage; principally owing, it is presumed, to their being in lamb. Of the forty long-wool sheep from Gloucestershire, four died; the remainder arrived in good condition. Two rams, selected from the flock of John Benett, Esq., of Wiltshire, and two from the flock of Christopher Tower, Esq., of Essex, also bore the voyage remarkably well. The climate appeared to suit the South-down and longwool sheep well; but seemed, to use the words of the shepherd, "as if natural to the Merinos," which throve and gained flesh after some months' feeding in the country, though they were driven daily a considerable distance for their food; and he has not a doubt, therefore, of the adaptation of the climate to their constitution. This strong opinion he entertains is, we think, very much confirmed by an able exposition of the similarity of climate between parts of Spain and India, by Baron Larrey, in a celebrated work of his entitled Mémoire de Chirurgie Militaire, 4 vols., Paris, 1812.* The impression made by the introduction of these sheep has been already such as could be wished; it has inspired various parties with a desire to follow up the undertaking. Major Jervis applied forthwith to Lord Western for a large supply of Merino rams, and between twenty and thirty were embarked, and have gone some months ago.

It is highly interesting to contemplate the infinite advantage that will result from this undertaking, if it should succeed to the extent we may now fairly contemplate. Some individuals had previously, we understand, made a few experiments upon the introduction of British sheep, and we believe with some success.

Lord Western is of opinion, that all the qualities of the ram may be, with surprising rapidity, engrafted upon the ewe flock, by constant use of the pure rams upon the crossed produce; and this opinion is formed, we believe, upon a variety of experiments he has himself made. Lord Western has, for many years past, sent annually a great many pure rams to our South African colonies; indeed, for the last year or two, the entire male produce of his flock has been exported; but if the spirit and enterprize we anticipate should prevail, the number to be drawn from his lordships' flock, and all that are now bred in England, are nothing to the number which the myriads that cover the Deccan, and plains and hills of that vast country, would require. They must be collected from Spain and Saxony, as well as the few from England, and our Australian colonies will probably ere long supply some.

Calculate the number of ewes merely by the quantity of wool, exported from India last year, and give sixty to each ram, the number requisite to supply the flocks of those boundless plains would be enormous. To be sure, we do not imagine that such a demand would very hastily accrue; but we do hope and believe, the native as well as British proprietors in this country

* See topographical details in that work,

will advance very quickly to the perception of the advantage of so improving their flocks.

The accounts we have do not lead us at all to apprehend that the British sheep may not be speedily reconciled to the climate, though it appears at first to be more genial to the Merinos; and we earnestly hope the experiment will be followed up with zeal and judgment, as regards the introduction of the British as well as the Merino sheep.

The long wools of this country are becoming daily more valuable, and rams of British breeds, such as the South-down and Leicester, might be supplied almost without limit.

EDUCATION OF THE NATIVES OF INDIA.*

THE anxiety which has been exhibited in India, by the British Government, to elevate the intellectual character of the people, by spreading amongst them a knowledge of the English language and literature and of the sciences of Europe, is highly creditable to the national character. At the same time, the slightest acquaintance with the circumstances of the country, and the peculiarities of our position, will suggest the importance of pursuing this object with deliberateness and discretion; and the slightest conversancy with the common feelings of human nature will dictate the necessity of its being conceived and prosecuted in a spirit of benevolence towards those whose benefit it is sought to secure. There can be little hope of success—there must be much fear of mischief-if, in the purpose of educating the people of India, all attention to their prejudices, opinions, and feelings is disregarded, and if sentiments of contempt and hatred are allowed to be manifested towards them and their institutions, with the certainty of exciting alarm and discontent.

Unhappily, of late years, the education of the natives of India has been made the occasion, not of calm, judicious, and benevolent investigation, but of controversial acrimony and intolerant partisanship. The concurrent co-operation of individuals eminently qualified to take a useful part in the education of the people, has been thus rendered impracticable, and the whole authority has devolved upon persons of superior talent, it is true, but of imperfect knowledge, and of confidence proportioned to their defective information. However accurate many of their views, however commendable most of their intentions, they have, by their intolerance of opposition and the precipitate haste with which they would carry their projects into effect, more than counteracted whatever good they may have accomplished, by the wide dissatisfaction which they have created. Their measures have provoked the most unprecedented and energetic protestations from the great majority both of Mohamedans and Hindus. Petitions against their principles and proceedings have been presented to the Government, signed by thousands of both classes in and

* On the Education of the People of India, By C. E. TREVELYAN, Esq., of the Bengal Civil Service. London, 1838. Longman and Co.

about Calcutta alone; and were their objects known beyond those limits, those petitions would be echoed from one end of India to the other. This cannot be a wise-it cannot be a safe-it cannot be a successful course; and it is most certainly not a necessary course, even for the ends which the persons in question are anxious to attain.

What are the points in dispute? It suits the advocates of the party to which the publication we are about to notice belongs, to represent it as a struggle between Oriental and European literature and science. According to them, their opponents seek to discountenance the study of English in India, and to elevate, upon its exclusion, Sanscrit and Arabic, thereby perpetuating all the errors with which Hindu and Musulman literature abound, and all the immorality and false religion to which they are subservient. They, on the other hand, describe themselves as the uncompromising advocates of the wide dissemination of English, and of English alone, as the only certain source of sound learning and morality. Of course the comparison is much to their advantage; but what is the truth? The persons whom they thus misrepresent as the exclusive advocates of oriental literature have never maintained any such principles, or sanctioned them by their practice; on the contrary, it was they who, by their zealous encouragement of English, first gave the natives of Bengal a deep impression, in favour not of the language merely, but of its literature and science; it was they who first introduced, and carried to a degree of success not since surpassed, the English education of the natives, and who created that popularity for the study, of which their opponents have reaped the advantage, and would unjustly appropriate the credit. There is nothing in favour of the consequences of English education, urged by its warmest supporters, which they have not said and done; and it is, therefore, the height of unfairness to represent them as opposed to its dissemination. The questions really at issue are, not whether English shall or shall not be "extensively" studied, but whether it shall be "exclusively" studied; whether the majority of the natives of India, as long as they continue to reverence and love particular branches of literature, have not an equitable claim to some patronage from the state, or whether those esteemed as learned men amongst them ought to be treated with neglect and contumely; whether, with a view to the improvement of the whole people, the most congenial means of enriching their vernacular languages shall be rendered available, or shall be, if possible, annihilated; and whether it be not practicable to carry on at the same time education in both English and the classical languages of India, so as to produce results even more beneficial than the exclusive cultivation of English. Mr. Trevelyan and his friends say, English and nothing but English; those whom he terms orientalists say, English, the learned languages, and ultimately the vernacular dialects. The practicability and reasonableness of their views have been demonstrated by experience, and under their administration the Sanscrit Colleges and Madressas flourished, and English became widely cultivated and highly popular; and what is still more important, all classes of the community were pleased. How far it is just to call them the bigoted