Manacocha for Peru. Vitzliputzli and Kaloc for Mexico. Odin, Frea, and Thor for Scandinavia, and the endless idols of wood, stone, and other materials for the five hundred millions of pagans that are now scattered about in various parts of the world.

At this moment, it is supposed, that there are a thousand millions of human beings in existence; of these, one half are pagans. Not a fourth part of the inhabitants of the earth are Christians, reckoning the Greek and Roman Catholic churches as well as the Protestant. Such were my thoughts as I pursued my way to the panorama of Benares, anxious to gaze on the semblance of a city so famous throughout the world. Benares, the most holy city of Hindostan, situated on the northern bank of the sacred Ganges, has been long celebrated as the seat of brahminical learning, and the great sanctuary of brahminical superstition. Whether regarded in respect of its population, wealth, or antiquities, it is alike worthy of attention, while the singularity of its various structures attach to it an added interest and a peculiar charm.

The scene is now before me in splendid confusion; temples, mansions, and mosques, turrets, battlements, and domes, pagodas, cupolas, pavilions, minarets, and mud-built hovels, seem huddled all together. The ghauts, prodigious flights of steps, are crowded with multitudes of both sexes, and in every variety of strange costume. Hindoos of all castes are mingled; the lowly sudra, the mendicant fakir, and the proud brahmin, while peepul, tamarind, and other trees vary the distant view, and pinnaces, budgerows, and baggage boats, give an interest to the flowing river.

Though prepared to gaze on a novel sight, the scene is more strange and striking than I had imagined; and, judging by the surprise in the countenances of those around me, a similar impression is very general. That Juggernaut temple yonder excites much attention, and well it may; for who has not heard of the horrid idol, and of the poor ignorant and deluded Hindoos, who superstitiously fling themselves beneath his grinding car? The laureate Southey has thus described the dreadful and disgusting scene.

"A thousand pilgrims strain

To drag that sacred wain,

And scarce can draw along the enormous load. Prone fall the frantic votaries on its road,

And calling on the god,

Their self-devoted bodies there they lay
To pave his chariot way.

On Juggernaut they call;

The ponderous car rolls on and crushes all. Groans rise unheard; the dying cry,

And death and agony,

Are trodden under foot by yon mad throng, Who follow close, and thrust the deadly wheels along."

Fully to enter into this panorama, some preliminary knowledge is necessary. In such situations as this, we are soon taught that we know but little. "The Hindoos are divided into four principal castes, which are again subdivided into many others; for the general purposes of civil life the castes appear to mix together when it suits their convenience; but they never intermarry, and scrupulously avoid eating in common. Hindoos, Mohammedans, and Parsees, all wear the jamma, or long robe of cotton, crossed at the breast, and tied round the middle by a scarf; the Hindoos fasten the robe on the left side, the Mohammedans on the right. The fineness of the materials, and the addition of gold and jewels, mark the relative ranks of the wearers. Many of the lower classes wear only a piece of cloth round their loins, called a cummerband. The distinguishing badge of castes is a string tied round the shoulders, the number, form, colour, and order of the threads in which indicate the various orders, the lowest not wearing any. Certain marks on the forehead or face designate the principal sects; the followers of Vishnu marking their foreheads with longitudinal, those of Siva with parallel lines of chunam, or clay. The females of high caste are handsome, their forms delicate and graceful, and their dresses superb; but they rarely quit the Zenana. The inferior castes are rather small of stature, and not very good looking, perhaps owing to the labour they undergo. They universally wear the cotton shalice, an immense scarf, which they manage with classical grace; even the lowest orders wear armlets, bangles, earrings, and sometimes a jewel from the nose.'

To the left, there is another pagoda of Siva, or Seeva; for Brahma is more generally worshipped at Benares as Seeva, the destroyer, than in any other

and main,

on the bull Nundi, with one head,

The new palace, erected by the expeishwa of the Deccan, occupies a commanding position, and is, indeed, a beautiful structure, partaking more of the European than the Asiatic style of architecture. The mosque of Aurungzebe is also a striking object. The pagodas of the Hindoos present a character altogether different from the mosques of the Mussulmans; the former being of a sugar loaf, domelike form, while the latter are invariably built with minarets, towering high above the surrounding edifices.

To the left of the bolio there, (pleasure boat,) is a marriage procession; but the figures of the group are too small for me to perceive them distinctly. The peculiar customs observed at the wedding of Hindoo, have prevailed, with scarcely any change, for at least three thousand years, though during that time the Hindoo has been the slave of many masters. He bends like the reed to the storm, and when it has passed again recovers his wonted position.

For the last ten minutes, I have narrowly observed a gentlemanly man, who has been conversing with the attendant of the place. He is unquestionably well informed, and his observations bespeak him a man of much shrewdness and sagacity; but wherever he stirs, he has a well-dressed, well-behaved man at his side, who waits upon his every movement with his hat in his hand. Ay, I see now how the matter stands. He is under the care of his attendant; his mind is subject to aberration. Who, and what am I, to be mercifully kept free from such a calamity! "What shall I render unto the Lord for all his benefits toward me ?" Psa. cxvi. 12.

The ghauts, leading from the pagodas down to the river, have a very

On the brink of the river, I can distinguish some Brahminy bulls were bulls and monkeys suffered to wander lazily about the streets of London, as they are allowed to lounge about those of Benares; were they permitted to help themselves without restriction to vegetables at Covent Garden and Leadenhall markets, and to cakes and tarts at the pastrycooks of the city and at the west end of the town, it would be some time before we should learn to look at them without amazement. These animals, however, being held sacred by the Brahmins, are left at liberty to follow out their inclinations, unmolested.

At the foot of the opposite pagoda, is a native of rank, with his train. Such is the Hindoo custom, that a man of rank is rarely seen abroad without a great number of attendants. Servants and retainers of all kinds, chobdars, chauprassies, and chattah bearers accompanying him as his shadow. When the middle and lower ranks of society of different countries sum up the advantages of their position, that of being able to walk abroad unattended and unobserved should not be forgotten.

A sight of this panorama is well adapted to call forth curiosity respecting the Hindoo nation. It turns over a new page in the history of the world we inhabit, as full of interest as it is of novelty. The authenticated accounts received of Hindoo ignorance and superstition, appear like fables to us, That human beings should condemn themselves to incessant silence, wear collars with iron spikes around their necks, remain in painful attitudes for days, weeks, and months, and travel

scores of miles by repeatedly measuring their length on the ground, is difficult to believe; but the most horrible of Hindoo superstitions is that of the widow burning herself, or rather being burned alive on the funeral pile of the deceased husband. To read or to hear of this is fearful, but to witness the reality must be dreadful.

"You cannot hear her cries-all other sound

In that wild dissonance is drowned;

But in her face you see

The supplication and the agony.

strength,

That with vain effort struggles yet her life;
Her arms contracted now, in fruitless strife,
Now wildly at full length

Toward the crowd in vain for pity spread;
They force her on, they bind her to the dead;-
Then all at once retire:

Circling round the fire the ministering Brahmins
stand,

Each lifting in his hand a torch of fire;
Alone the father of the dead steps forth
And lights the funeral pyre."

Benares, as a city, is more striking externally than internally. There is a picturesque beauty in its curious and fantastic edifices, its flat-roofed houses, obtuse-pointed pagodas, minareted mosques, arches, verandahs, galleries, projecting mullioned windows, turrets, balustrades, and overhanging eaves, many of them rendered pre-eminently singular by their ancient style of architecture, grotesque sculpture, and gaudy colours, that lead the stranger to expect something in the internal arrangement of the place beyond what he finds. The narrow winding streets of Benares, on a nearer approach, sadly interfere with the beauty of the city.

Many people regard Benares, not only as an ancient city of Hindostan, but also as one of the most ancient of the world. According to Hindoo cosmogony, "it is a place of more than ordinary sanctity, standing, as the people affirm, on a more stable foundation than any other part of the world, for whilst all other portions of the terrestrial globe rest only on Ananta, the thousandheaded serpent of eternity, Benares and ten miles round it is based upon the points of Siva's, or Seeva's trident, and is therefore proof against all casualties: it is consequently regarded with the same veneration by the Hindoos, that Mecca is by the Mohammedans, and considered to be the centre of all that is sacred, the focus of all that is wise, the fountain of all that is good, and the royal road to heaven; the shortest re

sea of fourteen thousand feet. During the rains of July, August, and September, it rises sometimes more than thirty feet above its accustomed level, and when a wind from the north-west assists the current at this season, it becomes impetuous, raging furiously, with an appearance like that of the angry ocean, and overflowing its common boundary.

I see in the stream a floating human corpse, with a vulture preying upon it -hateful sight! and yet this is a frequent occurrence, a thing that the Hindoo regards without emotion. Such as reside at a moderate distance only from the river, when approaching their latter end are placed on a rude frame of matting stretched over four bamboos, called a charpoy, and brought down to the edge of the water; the holy mud of the Ganges is then placed on the breast, and crammed into the mouth, nostrils, and ears. In other cases, they are lifted from the charpoy, laid down partly in the water, and left there to die. Hundreds of devotees render this ceremony unnecessary, by sacrificing themselves in the Ganges, and perishing beneath its sacred stream.

The vessels on the river are interesting from their peculiarity and variety. The richly ornamented moah punkee, is a contrast to the simply constructed and unornamented canoe, and the clumsy looking budgerow and dacca pulwar. Look at that moah punkee! built for the accommodation of the nawab of Moordashabed, and fancy that you see it sailing down the river, its carved head and high-peaked stern, painted, gilt and varnished, lit up by the sunbeam. Its splendidly clad rowers, its gilt pillars, and embroidered awnings, are a pageant more than usually attractive to an European eye. Ferry boats, bolios, acachas, patellas, baggage boats, and cook

boats, are but a few of the many kinds | of craft seen upon the Ganges.

There is a crocodile, one of the scaly monsters of the river that banquet on the well-supplied feast of Hindoo corpses floating down the stream. Yonder in the distance is the palace and fort of Ramnugghur, belonging to the rajah of Benares; and, near to it, elephants may be seen bathing in the stream; while farther to the right, though too distant to be distinctly represented, is the procession of a rajah.

O pomp, how great thy power to lure
The steps of man aside,
And fill his weak and foolish heart
With vanity and pride!

Elephants in splendid trappings, with howdahs of silver and gold; camels richly caparisoned, studs of noble horses, and guards of mounted suwars, form only part of these dazzling and magnificent oriental spectacles.—

But I have lingered long at Benares, and must now steal a hasty glance at Macao.

This view of the only European settlement in the empire of China, derives much of its interest from the unsettled commercial relations between the British and the Chinese, though the commanding and romantic situation of the place undoubtedly impart to it a beautiful and picturesque appearance. Macao stands on a peninsula, at the southern extremity of the island of Heang-shan, and looked upon from the bay of Typa, presents its British side to the spectator. The fine crescent curve of the Praya Grande, a spacious quay, the painted houses, the churches, and sacred edifices; the hills, forts, and monasteries, together with the towering mountains of a neighbouring isle, form together a pleasing scene.

The most prominent objects are Penha hill and church; the latter dedicated to the protecting saint of mariners. The Lappa, a range of high and barren hills, on the island called Tuymeen-shan, or Priest's island. Forte Monte, on the mount of St. Paul, and Fort Guia and the hill of Charil. These are the most elevated points, and they give a variety to the buildings nearer the water, to the vast extent of sea which presents itself to the eye, and to the dim descried islands in the distance.

Macao was a desert rock in the sixteenth century; but the Portuguese, the first Europeans who extended their

navigation to the southern confines of China, occasionally landed there. By degrees, they obtained permission of the mandarins to build huts, and at last were admitted as vassals of the celestial empire. A town and factory were erected, so that, according to a mandarin dispatch, "Macao, formerly an insignificant place, is now a kingdom; it has many forts, and a great and insolent population.'

But though Macao thus rose in importance, and the Portuguese obtained immense profits by their trade with China, Japan, Tunquin, Cochin China, and Siam; yet these profits decreased when the Dutch and English became competitors in the trade, and Macao began to decay. Revolutions in the affairs of nations, and the jealousies and exactions of the Chinese officers, also contributed to the decline of Macao. By degrees, the English, Dutch, French, Danes, Swedes, and Americans established themselves in the city. The commerce in opium carried on here, was at first very lucrative, but afterwards it declined. It would be difficult to speculate wisely on the question, how far Macao may be affected by the quarrel existing between the British and Chinese.

Among the many attractive points of the panorama, the residence of the celebrated missionary, Dr. Morrison, will not be passed over without a thought. It was here that the first herald of the gospel to the Chinese, prosecuted his arduous task of forming a grammar, translating the sacred Scriptures and various tracts into Chinese, and compiling an Anglo-Chinese dictionary: thus laying the foundation of a goodly building that may yet arise, whose walls may be termed Salvation, and whose gates may be called Praise.

The Chinese junk there, and the cutter receiving passengers and goods, have an arresting reality about them that fixes at once the eye of the beholder. Taken together, the sea and land view of this exhibition of Macao, though not equal in interest to the panorama of Benares, will be gazed upon with pleasure, and call up in the mind of the visitor associations not likely rapidly to pass away.

UNDESIGNED COINCIDENCES OF
SCRIPTURE.-No. VIII.

I. "And Baasha, king of Israel," we read, "went up against Judah, and built