had himself been concerned in regulating the tax laid by the Indian government on all pilgrims approaching the temple, and in the year 1806 had visited the temple himself, to judge on the spot of the regulations most proper to be adopted. In the letter above mentioned, he defends the tax laid on the pilgrims approaching the temple, as tending to diminish their numbers. He admits the former "horrors of the scene" as evidenced by the 16 numerous human bones on the road." He states, that the number of the "lower order of pilgrims" had been much diminished by the imposition of the tax. He contends that the number of immolations under the wheels of the car in which the idol is carried is small-that the indecencies so much insisted upon by Dr. Buchanan were wholly unobserved by him-that the songs sung by the priest are much like some of those admitted into our sacred writings.

To this letter Dr. Buchanan, with that facility which truth always creates, immediately replied; and we shall give some extracts from that reply.

It may be right to mention that Dr. Buchanan's accuracy had been doubted, in charging on the East India Company any concern in regulating the business of the temple of Juggernaut. Here then he has to thank Mr. Buller, who has both admitted and endeavoured to justify this superintendance.-It had been also affirmed that Dr. Buchanan had most profusely multiplied the pilgrims who visited the idol, and too strongly coloured the scenes of misery which presented themselves to the by-stander. But here also Mr. Buller himself authenticates the statement, by admitting that before the tax was imposed, the "scenes" had been "truly shocking."-In like manner Mr. Buller admits, that the immolations which Dr. Buchanan had recorded with so much hazard to his own character did sometimes take place. Thus far their ac counts were not materially dissimilar. But Mr. Buller had directly impeached the authority of Dr. Buchanan in some particulars, which are noticed in the following extracts-extracts, which, we think, must satisfy all ingenuous examiners where the truth lies; and which therefore we think it incumbent upon us to present to our readers.

"The writer marvels, in the next place, that I should have heard any thing distinctly, on account of the noise of the people clapping their hands, talking, shouting, and merry-making, in a crowd of about one hundred thousand,' particularly when, owing to the di stance of the platform on which the priest stands, one could not by any endeavours get within ten yards of him.' Mr. Buller would have it to be inferred here, that I was not within ten yards' of the priest; whereas I state, in the printed account, that I went on in the procession close by the tower;' and in the letters circulated at

Calcutta, it was stated, that I was so close to the tower, as to receive a garland of flowers from the hand of the priest. The fact was, Į could touch the car with my hand, during almost the whole time.

"Mr. Buller observes again, that the noise of the people was incessant, and without intermission, so that he could not hear any thing that was said. Doubtless, he could not hear what was said by the priest, if he stood at a distance. It is proper to explain here, that, on these occasions, Europeans in India usually look on at a distance, on account of the press of the people. At Juggernaut, in 1806, the English gentlemen usually sat in the Huchery, or public office, to see the procession pass. I sat there for a while on different days; but I could hear or see nothing distinctly, except at the moment of passing, and I joined the procession. Mr. Buller mentions that some ladies were with him: it is therefore probable that Mr. Buller sat all the while with the ladies in the Huchery, and that they did not follow the idol for two or three hours, to see what was transacting among the people, at their celebration of the famed Rutt Jutra. "Mr. Buller thinks that the noise of the people about the car is incessant, without intermission; but if he had joined the car, he would have found that this is not the case. When the priest pronounces his stanzas, which he does generally while the car stands still, there is a solemn silence among the people who are near it, and they listen with keen attention: at the conclusion they respond with a sensual yell of approbation, and then urge the car along. Many such yells I am sure Mr. Buller must have heard, although he might not have known what it was that produced them. To suppose that the priest should, on any public occasion, address the people and not be listened to, is hardly consistent. Mr. Buller's acknowledged ignorance of this notorious circumstance, viz. that there is a frequent intermission of the noise of the people about the car, and a gaping attention to devour the words of the priest, entirely convinces me that he must be wholly ignorant of many important par ticulars of the native scenes at Juggernaut."

But passing from this particular controversy, we would now call the attention of our readers to the bearing of this work, and some other parliamentary documents to which this has guided our enquiries upon the general question of evangelizing India. Let us enquire what answer is supplied from these sources to some current objections.

In the first place, the sanguinary character of the Indian su perstition, proved in part by the atrocities of Juggernaut, had been stoutly denied. Now, in this volume we have all the worst facts with regard to Juggernaut, admitted to a great extent by Mr. Buller himself. We have them also more minutely detailed by Dr. Buchannan. And finally, we are directed to a most de cisive extract from the Periodical Account of the Baptist Missions, in which the state of things is described in 1811, that is, after some years trial of the means applied by Mr. Buller himself

for the preservation of good order. And from this statement it appears, that in the year 1811 one hundred and fifty persons were killed by the crowd in approaching the temple-that numbers destroyed themselves by failing under the wheel of the idol's car, laying" themselves on their backs for the purpose of being crushed to death by it." Another missionary, the distinguished oriental scholar Dr. Carey, has calculated the expenditure of life in this single pilgrimage to Juggernaut at 100,000 persons.

Again, a flat denial had been opposed to the alleged indecen cies of this feast, and to the general charges of the same kind brought against the religion of India. Now there are obvious reasons why neither Dr. Buchanan nor ourselves could display very fully the evidence upon this point. But he says enough to convince us that nothing but the nature of the subject has hitherto protected the character of Hinduism. Its obscenities have been kept back, not because they were difficult of detection, but because they were too monstrous to be dragged to the light.

So far had the pictures of the Hindus presented to us in early life, especially those partial portraits executed by the hands of certain great masters, on, or we may say for, the trial of Mr. Hastings, deluded us--that we ourselves were among those who did not at once give all the credit due to the evidence by which any facts injurious to their character were songht to be established. And the features of gross obscenity were, we confess, among the last to enter into the representation of a Hindu as it had formed itself on our minds. But Dr. Buchanan, with many concurring witnesses, has incontrovertibly established the charge; has convinced us that Hinduism is inferior to no form of heathenism in its brutalizing influence upon the mind. “Let us only (says Dr. Buchanan) suppose that the youth of Great Bri tain of both sexes were accustomed to worship at the altar in company with a band of impure females, invested with a sacred character, and there to witness the songs and dances of those females in the same place, and what would be the character of the people of this country in a few years?" "The two characteristics of the religion of Brahma are impurity and blood. The emblems of the former vice are engraved in durable sculpture every where upon the walls. Why are they thus engraved ? Because they constitute the very essence of the Brahminical superstition. No labour of language, no qualification of expression, can ever do away this notorious fact." In an unsuspected work of Mr. Ward, on the religion of the Hindus (p. 200), we find evidence of the same complexion. "I will give one instance only as a specimen. as a specimen. It is related by an unexceptionable witness. I suppose 2000 men, women, and

children might be assembled. I observed, that one of the men, standing before the idol in a boat, dancing and making indecent gestures, was stark naked. As the boat passed along he was. gazed at by the mob; nor could I perceive that this abominable, action produced any other sensation than that of laughter. Be fore other images, young men dressed in women's clothes were dancing with other men, making indecent gestures. I have seen the same abominations exhibited before our own door.'" Nor need we confine ourselves to individual testimonies. The East India directors, who have very injuriously been identified with their own Indian government in every transaction connected with Christianity, have spoken out upon this point. The table of parliament, which proclaims many a tale whispered only to the reeds on the Ganges or the Thames, has revealed to us a curious fact on this very point. It appears that the directors had honesty and piety enough to remonstrate with their government in India on their interference with the temple at Juggernaut, deeming such interference unseemly in a Christian nation-and grounding their remonstrance chiefly on the nature of the "emblems" exhibited at this feast, and especially on the car of the idol. This remonstrance unhappily was struck out by the Board of Control-a measure, of which that administration who so nobly supported the cause of religion in the face of parliament must now see the impolicy, and we should add, the guilt. But all other facts and statements are superseded by this now acknowledged fact, that the millions of India universally adore an image, the description of which we must be content to omit, to avoid polluting our pages. Who, after this, can see with tranquillity the reign of such a religion without wishing to render its votaries apostates? Who will not confess that it is behind no modification of heathenism in its brutalizing and sensualizing tendencies? Who will not stand confounded at the moral taste of those whom the Hindus remind of golden ages and Arcadian purity? And are we still to hear of the comparative merits of the Bible and the Shasters?

A third point, laboured by the enemies of missions with much assiduity, is to prove that all the statements respecting the burning of widows have been much exaggerated. Now, independently of the statements of Dr. Buchanan, this volume gives two extracts from the hitherto unquestioned work of Mr. Ward, which display transactions of so much deeper dye than any which we had ever pictured to ourselves, that we cannot withhold them from our readers.

"About the year 1796 (says Mr. Ward) the following most shocking and atrocious murder, under the name of suhumurunu,

was perpetrated at Mujilapoor, about a day's journey south from Calcutta. Vaucharamu, a Bramhun, of the above place, dying, his wife went to be burnt with the body; all the previous ceremonies were performed; she was fastened on the pile, and the fire was kindled. The funeral pile was by the side of some brushwood, and near a river. It was at a late hour when the pile was lighted, and was a very dark rainy night. When the fire began to scorch this poor woman, she contrived to disentangle herself from the dead body, crept from under the pile, and hid herself among the brushwood. In a little time it was discovered that only one body was on the pile. The relations immediately took the alarm, and began to hunt for the poor wretch who had made her escape. After they had found her, the son dragged her forth, and insisted upon her throwing herself upon the pile again, or that she should drown or hang herself. She pleaded for her life, at the hands of her own son, and declared she could not embrace so horrid a death. But she pleaded in vain; the son urged that he should lose his cast, and that, therefore, she should die, or he would. Unable to persuade her to hang or drown herself, the son and the others then tied her hands and her feet, and threw her on the funeral pile, where she quickly perished." Another example, given by Mr. Ward, is the following:

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Goopinathu, a Bramhun, employed in the Serampore printing office, in the year 1799 saw twenty-two females burnt alive with the remains of Ununta, a Bramhun of Bagnaparu, near Nudeeyu. This Hoolinu Bramhun had more than a hundred wives. At the first kindling of the fire only three of these wives had arrived. The fire was kept kindled three days. When one or more arrived, the ceremonies were gone through, and they threw themselves on the blazing fire! On the first day three were burned; on the second and third days, nineteen more. Among these women were some as much as forty years old, and others as young as sixteen. The three first had lived with this Bramhun, the others had seldom seen him. He married in one house four sisters; two of these were among the number burnt."

In the fourth place, the Anglo-Indians boldly denied that the Company's government in India had ever interfered with the management of the temples and rites of Hinduism, except with the view of checking tumult and contention. On this point also the papers now before parliament are equally decisive; if the admissions of Mr. Buller himself, an agent of that government at Juggernaut, may be received in evidence.

Whoever will be at the trouble of consulting this huge mass of documents will be astonished to find, in a protracted correspondence on the subject of the idol, between Mr. Buller and the Indian government, that he and his employers occupied themselves inall their arrangements exclusively with a single point; viz. the so maintaining the reputation and splendour of the idol, as to secure