It Is Watered By Two Famous Rivers, The Taptii And Tapei[192] By Many Creeks That Form Several Islands.

Guzerat is all plain, so that they generally travel in waggons, as in Flanders, but lighter made, which are easily drawn by oxen, smaller than those of Spain.

The country breeds cattle in great abundance, and plenty of provisions of all sorts. The natives are of four different kinds. The first called Baneanes Baganzariis, feed after our manner: The second called simply Baneanes[193], who eat of nothing that hath life. Their priests are called Vertias, who are clothed in white, and never change their apparel till it falls in pieces. These live altogether on charity; and, like the children of Israel in the desert, they never keep any thing for the next day. They place their greatest hope of salvation in abstaining from killing any creature whatever, and even use no light at night, lest any moth should fly into the flame; and always carry a broom to sweep the ground they tread on, that they may not trample any worm or insect to death. The third race consists of the Resbuti or Rajputs, who are good soldiers, and to whom formerly the kingdom belonged. These people acknowledge one God in three persons, and worship the blessed Virgin, a doctrine which they have preserved ever since the time of the apostles[194]. The fourth and last class of inhabitants are the Mahometans called Lauteas, consisting both of strangers who have conquered the country, and natives who have embraced that religion. The inhabitants of Guzerat are very ingenious mechanics in works of silk, gold, ivory, mother-of-pearl, tortoise-shell, crystal, ebony, and other articles. They follow the rules of Pythagoras, killing no creature; but rather buy all, though even venomous, from those who take them, on purpose to set them free. They have even a set of men whose only employment is to go about the towns and fields looking out for sick beasts, which are tended with great care in hospitals built on purpose. Yet in spite of all this charity to the brute creation, they are devoid of human kindness, and will not reach out their hand to help a fellow creature in the utmost need.

[Footnote 189: These mountains are in the middle of Guzerat, which they pervade in a range of considerable length from N.E. to S.W. - E.]

[Footnote 190: More properly Agimere, in which is the town or city of Cheitore, whence the name in the text. - E.]

[Footnote 191: Malwa, one of the kingdoms or Soubahs of Hindostan is to the east of Guzerat. The meaning of the name in the text is not obvious. - E.]

[Footnote 192: The Taptee is evidently one of these, but it is hard to say what river is meant by the other. Next to the Taptee on the north, the great river Nerbuddah flows into the Gulf of Cambay, dividing the two great Subahs of Malwa and Candeish. The Mahie divides Guzerat from Malwa; and the Mehindry and Puddar pervade Guzerat; which is bounded on the west by the Cagger, dividing it from the great sandy desert of Sinde or Jesselmere, and from Cutch. - E.]

[Footnote 193: Banians: It would much exceed the bounds of a note to enter upon any explanation here of the Hindoo casts, which will be fully illustrated in the sequel of this work. - E.]

[Footnote 194: It is most wonderful, that in the grossest, most ridiculous, and most obscene of all idolatrous polytheism, the Portuguese should have fancied any resemblance to the pure religion of Christ! even under its idolatrous debasement of image worship, and the invocation of legions of saints. The monstrous superstitions of the bramins will be discussed in a future division of this work. - E.]

In the year of God 1292, or according to the Mahometan account the 700, a pagan king named Galacarna ruled in peace in Guzerat; but involved the country in war to deprive his brother of the kingdom of hampanel or Champaneer which had been left him by their father. Galacarna employed two generals in this war, one of whom named Madana had to wife one of the most beautiful women of the country, of the race of Padaminii, who, besides their beauty, are said to have so sweet a scent from their skin that they are esteemed beyond all other women. It is said there are scarcely any of these women in Guzerat, but many in Orissa. There is no mischief without a woman even with an ill savour, how much more then for one of a good scent! King Galacarna fell in love with the wife of Madana, and used every means to gain her but to no purpose. But she being chaste, which was doubtless the sweet smell, gave notice to her husband and brother of the dishonourable conduct of the king; on which they called in Shah Nasr Oddin king of Delhi, who invaded the kingdom of Guzerat and slew Galacarna in battle; after which he left his general Habed Shah to reduce the kingdom to subjection, having in the first place rewarded the two brothers for their services, and made the kings of Mandou and Cheitore tributary[195]. Shah Nasr Oddin was soon afterwards killed by his nephew, and the kingdom of Delhi was so much weakened by civil war, that Habed-shah revolted and set himself up as king of Guzerat.

[Footnote 195: Probably Malwa and Agimere are here meant. - E.]

In 1330, Hamet a Mahometan Tartar, who resided in the city of Cambay, by the assistance of a number of Arabs, Persians, and Rumes or Turks, usurped a great part of Guzerat, then possessed by Deosing-rao. Ali Khan succeeded Hamet, and left forty sons, three of whom became kings. The eldest Peru-shah succeeded in the kingdom of Guzerat. The second Azeide-khan got the kingdom of Mandou or Malwa by his wife; and the third named Ali-khan acquired the kingdom of Agimere in the same manner.

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