At Three A.M. We Reached The "Hingus Nuddee," Or River; And
Changing Our Solitary Horse For Two Fat Bullocks, We Crossed Its
Sandy Bed, And Over A Bridge Of Boats - Not So Genteelly, Perhaps,
But Much More Securely, Than We Could Have Otherwise Done.
There were
the remains here of a handsome suspension bridge; but the chains had
been cut by the rebel Sepoys, and nothing but the pillars now remained.
MAY 25. - At four A.M. we crossed the bridge of boats over the Jumna,
and found ourselves under the gloomy battlements of the Fort of Delhi.
Entering by the Calcutta Gate, we drove through large suburbs, lighted
up with rows of oil lamps, reminding one, in the dim light, a good
deal of Cairo. Arriving at the dak bungalow, we found it such a dirty
looking deserted building, and the interior so much of a piece with
the exterior, that we mounted again, and set off to try the Hotel, or
"Pahunch Ghur," - a name originally intended to convey the meaning
"An arriving house," but neatly and appropriately corrupted into the
term "Punch Gur," which speaks for itself, and troubles no one much
about its derivation. We were rather disappointed with the general
appearance of the city: dirt and grandeur were closely combined,
and the combination gave the usual impression of shabby genteelness
in general, not at first sight prepossessing. After driving through
what might have been an Eastern Sebastopol, from the amount of ruin
about, we reached a cut-throat-looking archway; and the coachman, here
pointing to a dirty board, above his head, triumphantly announced the
"Punch Gur!" Hot and thirsty, we got out, with visions of rest and
cooling sherbets, too soon to be dispelled. Passing through long dirty
halls, and up unsavoury steps, we at last reached a sort of court,
with beds of sickly flowers, never known to bloom, and from thence
issued to a suite of musty hot Moorish-looking rooms, with gold-inlaid
dust-covered tables, and a heavily-draped four-post bedstead, the
very sight of which, in such a climate, was almost enough to deprive
one of sleep for ever. Our speech forsook us, and without waiting to
remark whether the lady of the house was an ogress, or possessed of a
"rose-coloured body" and face like the full moon, we fairly turned
tail, and drove in all haste to our despised dak bungalow, where,
meekly and with softened feelings towards that edifice, we were
glad to deposit ourselves on a couple of charpoys, or "four-legs,"
as the bedstead of India is called, and endeavour to sleep the best
way we could. "Delhi," we found, quite kept up its reputation of being
the hottest place in India. All idea of sight-seeing was out of the
question, and the whole of our energies we were obliged to expend in
endeavouring to keep moderately cool.
After enjoying the two first of blessings in a hot climate - viz. a
plentiful supply of cold water and a change of raiment, we felt
ourselves able to undergo the exertion of meeting the traditional
grilled fowl at breakfast, and of inspecting the curiosities from the
bazaars. At the first wish on the latter subject, we were invaded by
a crowd of bundle-carrying, yellow-turbaned, rascally merchants, who,
in half a minute, had the whole of their goods on the floor - rings,
brooches, ivory ornaments, and inutilities of all sorts and kinds,
all of them exorbitantly dear, and none of any real value.
We left Delhi again at about six P.M., after loitering about the
city for a short time, among the teeming bazaars, some parts of
which were picturesque and "Eastern" enough. Outside the city walls,
the country was ruined and dilapidated in the extreme; demolished
houses and wasted gardens telling their tale of the loss of Delhi,
and our struggle for its recapture.
MAY 26. - During the night, we got over seventy-three miles, and
reached "Kurnaul" at seven A.M. The bungalow we found unusually
comfortable, being a remnant of the old regime, and one of the few
which escaped from the hands of the rebels during the mutiny.
The country here begins to improve in appearance - more trees and
cultivation on all sides; and the natives appear finer specimens
than their more southern relations. The irrigation, too, seems to be
carried on with more systematic appliances than further south - the
water being raised by the Persian wheel, and bullock-power introduced
in aid of manual labour.
MAY 27. - Arrived at Umballa at three A.M., and found the staging
bungalow full. The only available accommodation being a spare
charpoy in the verandah, F. took a lease of it, while I revelled in
the unaccustomed roominess of the entire carriage, and slept till
six, when we got into our lodgings. Although so near the foot of
the Himalayas, the weather was so oppressive here that exploring
was out of the question; and at six P.M., changing our carriage for
palankeens, or dolies, we commenced a tedious and dusty journey to
the village of "Kalka," the veritable "foot of the hills," where we
were met by a string of deputies from the different "DRY-LODGINGS" in
the neighbourhood, soliciting custom. The first house we came to was
guarded by an unmistakeable English hotel-keeper, of some eighteen
stone; and so terrible was the appearance she presented, with her
arms akimbo, rejoicing in her mountain air, that in our down-country
and dilapidated condition, we felt quite unequal to the exertion of
stepping into HER little parlour; and passing her establishment -
something in the small bathingplace-style of architecture - we went
on to the next, very much of the same order, and called the "Brahminee
Bull." Here, to my dismay however, standing in the selfsame position,
weighing the same number of stone, and equally confident in the
purity of her air as her neighbour, stood another female "Briton,"
with the come-into-my-parlour expression of countenance, regarding us
as prey.
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