royal fœtus in her womb,) but the princess perceived the uneasiness of her husband, prostrated herself at his feet, and begged his forgiveness for her mistake; when the hermit, with the view of avoiding the dishonour he would, as a Bramin, incur if his wife was brought to-bed of a Chattriah child, implored both Vishnoo and Bruma to divert this dishonour, and to change the Chattriah foetus in the womb of his wife into a Bruma one; the princess, his wife, was consequently brought to-bed of a Bruma child, which was named Jamadakiny, and her mother of another child, who was named Visvamittraru. Jamadakiny, in imitation of his father, became also an hermit, and was mar ried with Renooga, daughter to Wais. sidian, a Bramin. Roossigar, content with the service rendered by Renooga, his daughter-in-law, commanded her to ask what she wanted; but decency having not permitted her to ask of her father-in-law the grace of becoming fecund, she stood confounded and ashamed. The father-in-law having perceived the perplexity of her mind, and having penetrated into her desire, blessed her with five children; foretold her, that the fifth child would be endowed with a miraculous strength of body, and with every astonishing perfection; and that if she obeyed perfectly her husband, she would be respected and honoured by the world: after having conferred these blessings on his daughter in law, he retired to the shore of the Gangah.

Effectively she had five children; the first named Roomanmah, the second named Sooshanan, the third named Vassoo, the fourth Visvavassoo, and the fifth named Parassooraman Vishnoo himself, who is incarned for restoring justice to its ancient splendour,and for comforting and relieving the Earth (a deity) from her burden.

It was usual to Renooga, to bring for the daily worship of her husband, called Poossa, water in a pot formed by her with the sand of the river, (because it is said, that in the ancient time chaste women may operate such miracles as they think of.) A certain day she was forming a pot with sand, when a kondravan, (angel) named Setrangoodan, passed by in the air: Renooga having seen his shape in the water, was astonished at his beauty, and instantly her chastity being spotted by this astonishment, the pot formed by her was broken, she perceived her fault, and gave her husband notice of the cir

cumstances.

But Jamadakiny, incensed against his wife for her unchaste thought, commanded four of his eldest sons to behead their mother; but they thro' horror for the matricide, refused to comply with his order. Provoked by their disobedience, he cursed them, and immediately they were metamorphosed into birds. The fifth son, Persooramah, arrived there, and was desired by his father to behead his mother, which was instantly executed. The father, satisfied with the unprecedented obedience of his youngest son, desired him to demand what he liked. He, profiting of the generous disposition of his father, implored him to bring again his mother to life, and to restore his metamorphosed brothers to their ancient state: the filial and fraternal attachment, added to his unprecedented obedience, raised the affection of his father the more for him, and indu'ced him to grant the request of his son: the corpse of Renooga was then brought in, and a new head created, and incorporated with the dead body, which was instantly brought to life; the old head, having been the throne of the unchaste thought which had occasioned these evils, was cast off.

Renooga,

Renooga, having been much concerned about the fate of her old head, implored her husband to bestow any blessing upon it. Jamadakiny, in compliance to the intreats of his wife, blessed that it should be respected and worshipped by the world under the name of Ellaman, and Mootauluman, these five children having then retired into different remote forests as hermits.

Some time after, the hundred sons of the King Kartigavirachurchinen, whose capital town is Mayooshpady, having set out a hunting, came by chance to the residence of Jamadak iny, and paid their respects to him. Being wrapt in an extacy, in contemplation of the supreme and omnipotent being, he did not return their respects; but this they attributed to the braminical pride, and provoked by his silence, they immediately be headed him. The sorrow of Rencoga on that occasion cannot be ex. pressed, but to put an end to it, she was resolved to burn herself with the dead body of her husband, as the Saustrum, or code of rites, prescribed, that the corpse should be burned within a Moogoortum, (or one hour of time :) the wood was then prepared and kindled, when Renooga set herself on it by the corpse of her husband: they were burning, when a heavy rain fell and quenched the fire; but she was not consequently dead: her cloth was consumed by fire, the burnt parts of her body was then formed into pustules, she got up crying, and was running from one place to another, with fiery dizziness, and all other symptoms attend. ing rage, and arrived at last to the residence of the Pariah people. The Pariah women then tied Margoesa branches to her loins, as a cloth, and fanned her with the same leaves, and offered her, as she was a Bramin, meal of rice to eat.

Persooramah, her fifth son, hav. ing, though in a remote country, seen

Dec. 1806.

by his spiritual view all that happened to his parents, fled with the swiftness of wind to the assistance of his mother, who, at the first sight of her son, beat her breast 21 times: Persooramah having seen his mother in a desperate state and desolation, was resolved to take revenge for 21 generations on the princes who had killed his father, and on the other princes of the world who did not assist his mother in this circumstance. He, as Vishnoo, has blessed his mother, that she would have a powerful influence over ma..kind, and communicated to them the pain she was then labouring under, and that she would be respected and worshipped by the world, and be a favoùrite divinity to the Pariah, that last class of people, that she, having been preserved by the rain from bong burnt by fire, will be named hereafter Maury, and Mauriamal by the name of rain, which is styled in the Malabar and Grandum languages Maury.

Persooramah has effectively taken revenge on all the princes for 21 generations, and granted this world to Kasia Bruma as a gratuity, and resides in the Maliaulum, or Malabar coast.

MONTROSE.

MILO.

This word is uniformly pronounced Mon Ross. From the similarity of sound, the Romish ecclesiastics probably took it for an English name, viz. Mount rose, i. e. Rose-hill; and hence, no doubt, Buchanan, &c. borrowed their Mons Rosarum. Knox, in his history, borrows it from the French, and writes it Montrois, i. e. the three hills. There are three hills here, viz. the Horologe hill, the Fort hill, and the Windmill hill. Tho' from the nature of the soil it is not probable any of these hills were hills of roses; it cannot be denied that there are three hills; and, as far as matter of fact is concerned, Knox's etymology is the most plausible.

But, unfortunately for the above theories, the Montrose in question is not the original one, but derives its name from old Montrose, situated about four miles farther up, and on the opposite side of the River South Esk, and to which neither Buchan. an's hill of roses, nor Knox's three hills will apply.

A Dorsum, or ridge of about 300 feet elevation, reaches from the high hill of Bonnyton to the South Esk, and terminates in a promontory overlook ing the west point of the extensive bason of Montrose; and on this pro montory stands the village of old Montrose. This ridge for about a mile not only overlooks, but bounds the fertile vale of Kinnaird on the East side. This vale is almost level, and of great extent. The original soil is a thin cover of moss on a deep sub-stratum of clay. A considera ble part of this vale was a complete

morass, till within these four years it was drained by the late Sir David Carnegie at an immense expence; and

there is no reason to doubt that the whole, at or least the most considerable part of it, originally lay in the same state. Whoever indeed looks at this level district, must be convinced that it has been recovered from its origin al state at immense expence.

Having premised these few facts, how beautifully natural will appear the true etymology Mon Ross, which consists of two Gaelic words, Mon and Ross, literally signifying the Promontory of the Moss!

Dundee. History informs us Earl David, the king's brother, landed here in a storm, and on his getting ashore exclaimed Donum Dei, i. e. the gift of God, and that from this circumstance the town changed its old name Allectum, and took the new one, Donum Dei, i. e. Dundee. All that we can infer from this silly story is, that the Romish ecclesiastics, to whom Earl David was a great benefactor, wished it to be so, and they have in a great measure succeeded.

It is reported that the Romans, when they first saw the Tay, exclaimed Ecce Tiberim, and from this town's delightful situation on the imaginary Tiber, it is not improbable that they might call it Allectum Opidum, i. e. the beloved or delightful city, in allusion to Rome.

Be that as it may, we have fortunately preserved to us, by Buchanan and others, who were not to be duped by Popish fictions and legendary tales, the antient name of this town, viz. Taodunum, i. e. Dun Tay, e. The hill or fort of Tay. There is something so peculiar and appropriate in the Gaelic names, that they speak conviction at once, neither can a foreign etymology be fixed on them without the most palpable absurdity. This town takes its name from an old Caledonian fort on the banks of Tay. These forts were uniformly called

Duns,

Duns, a name much more ancient than Rome itself. But how much more natural and appropriate is the name Dun Tay, than the fictitious and absurd ones, viz. The Beloved City, or the Gift of God?

Catterthun.

Your correspondent R H. in a former Number of your Miscellany, has given several etymologies of this word. Many, of our old names, owing to the mutability of language, cannot be perhaps at the present day satisfactorily analysed, and this is perhaps one of them. I shall therefore advance nothing posi tively respecting it, but content my self with exploding the ridiculous ery mology whichis in every one's mouth, viz, Castra Thani, i. e. the Thane's Camp This absurd etymology was probably fabricated by the Romish ecclesiastics of Brechin, to flatter Lindsay of Finhaven, (within whose bounds this hill stood) or some other feudal lord, who had been their benefactor, and might use this fortress occasionally as a camp. Whoever can swallow Donum Dei, for Dun Dee, may also swallow Castra Thani for

his wife to gut three fish for King David, when he was shipwrecked there-and that the King, in consequence of his hospitality, gave him the name of Gut-three, whence both the estate and family derived the name of Guthrie ?

The Guthries of Guthrie with justice claim as high antiquity as any family in the county of Angus. The above ridiculous etymology is therefore the fabrication of some well meaning though injudicious panegyrist, or, what is more probable, of some rival family of later date, to mortify the pride, and lessen the consequence of the Guthries.

At any rate, it is totally void of foundation, nor was it possible that King David would address an illiterate fisherman in a language unknown at that time in the North of Scotland; whereas the name Guthrie is not only Gaelic, but accords to facts, and delineates the situation and circumstances of the estate to which it gives name.

at once so palpably absurd, and at the same time have such an air of similarity, that it is difficult to suppose them other than the work of one and the same hand.

Guthrie, i. e. The neck or outlet of the river. The river Lunan takes its rise near Forfar, and is almost one continued loch, till it approaches the estate of Guthrie, where it breaks out and assumes the regular shape of a river. From this circumstance the estate of Guthrie derives its name, and from this estate the family of Guthrie also take their name.

But what man acquainted with the Gaelic,and the situation of this estate, can suppres his laughter, when he reads in the Statistical account of Bervie, that Guthrie is Gut-three?That the ancestor of the family was a fisherman at Bervie, and ordered

BOXING.

By Samuel Argent Bardsley. THERE is a kind of personal

contest to which I shall devote a few remarks, as it has been the source of obloquy and reprobation among foreigners, to the national character. The public exhibition of boxing, and the practice of the same art in deciding private and personal quarrels, are here alluded to.. The exhibition of pugilism on a public stage is most probably a relic of one species of the Roman gymnastic. This mode of venal stage - fighting is a barbarous prostitution of a manly and useful art, whether considered as an exercise calculated to inspire fortitude and intrepidity, or to afford efficacious means of defence against persona! insult and violence. But when consi

der..

dered merely in the light of yielding gratification as a public spectacle, or of furnishing an opportunity for gambling speculations, it is then viewed in all its naked deformity: yet is not the art of boxing, by which instantaneous insult may be avenged, or personal injury averted, less dangerous than any other practice adop ted by the inhabitants of the continent, on similar occasions, and for similar purposes? The question is an important one; and the following facts and observations may serve, perhaps, to apologize for, if they cannot justify, a custom so interwoven with our national manners and cha

racter.

So long as man is subject to the imperfection of his nature, he must becompelled to acquire the art of selfdefence, as well as that of annoyance to others. Our experience of his conduct and character, teaches us the impossibility of extinguishing the pas sions of pride and resentment, which, although they frequently involve him in misery, are still the sources of some of his noblest qualities and attributes. As some portion of evil will attach to the best and wisest system of moral or civil restraint, that policy is perhaps the wisest, which legislates for man as he is, not altogether as he ought to be. Suffer the passions to reign uncontrouled, and you dissolve the bonds of society; stifle the active energies of a resolute independent spirit, and you' degrade the man into a passive slave. The feeling of resentment for unprovoked injury and insult is a salutary, if not instinctive provision of our common nature. It may be asked, Is man then to be the judge and avenger of his own wrongs? Is not every offence against the person of a citizen a breach of the laws of society and should it not he punished as such? Certainly But if in the best regulated states it be found im practicable to prevent man from

frequently asserting a claim to the vindication of his own real or sup posed wrongs, it then becomes a question of expediency as to the most preferable mode by which he may be enabled to obtain this end. Boxing may not unjustly be considered as the most eligible means of offence. and defence. It is properly ranked among those athletic exercises which, at the same time that they impart address and strength to the body, inspire courage and fortitude to the mind. It may indeed lead bad hearts and bad heads into acts of presumption and petty tyranny; but this propensity to an improper exertion of skill and courage would be checked, in proportion as men were more equally possessed of the means of defence or aggression. They would learn to respect the skill and bravery of each other, and conse. quently be less prone to undue resentment and quarrels. The government that would attempt, with a despotic and severe authority, to controul the exertions of self-confidence, and a moderate exercise of just resentment, could only expect to rule a nation of timid and revengeful slaves. The open and ingenuous expression of manly indignation might be repressed; but the rancorous feelings of malignant revenge would be fostered and encouraged. But no state can, with any prospect of success, attempt such an absolute dominion over the passions of men. And if it did, “it must (according to the observation of a spirited author) in order to act consistently, prohibit the use of knives, hatchets, and even pokers; for any of these, upon a sudden emergency, might impart a fearful power to the enraged and the feeble."

If we consider the practice of other countries, where boxing is unknown, we shall find that the modes of resenting injuries, resorted to by the common people, are full of danger and ferocity,

Ia