kings of Assam, to found their capitals on the bank of the Brahmaputra or other navigable streams, and to choose a situation removed alike beyond the reach of inundation, and the chance of being swept away by the floods-advantages which are possessed by Porá in an admirable degree. "Ramachandra was, according to the volume I consulted, the twenty-fourth sovereign of a kingdom which embraced part of ancient Kámrúp, and made the eleventh of a third dynasty of its kings. Shubáhu, the thirteenth sovereign, and ninth and last of the second dynasty, was vanquished by Vikramaditya, and was succeeded by Jitari, a pious Chhatrí from Dabera in the Dakhan, who overcame Kámrúp, and, on ascending the throne, assumed the title of Dharma-pál. He was the progenitor of Rámachandra, who began to reign A. S. 1160 (A. D. 1238-9), and is the first prince the date of whose accession is commemorated in the volume. Rámachandra is stated to have wedded with a daughter of the Kiat rájá, who ruled a country on the south bank of the Brahmaputra, and whose subjects followed the occupation of fishermen; some remains of his capital are to be seen, it is affirmed, on the Bakaní Chaprí, an extensive island supposed to have been separated from the main land, or thrown up by the river. The princess, his daughter, was known among the people by the name of the Kamalá Kunrí, but in books she is styled Chandra Prabhá. She was walking one day, during her husband's absence, on the bank of the Brahmaputra, when the god, becoming enamoured of her extraordinary beauty, fell a prey to sensual desires, and effected his purpose by embracing the princess with his waves; but another account attributes her impregnation, with greater show of probability, to a young brahman of the prince's household, and declares the amour with the river god was a fabrication of the lady, to conceal the lapse of which she was guilty from her parent. Passing over that part of the narrative, which details the discovery of her inconstancy, and the means to which Ramachandra had recourse to put a termination to her existence, all of which failed of success, we come to the period when the princess, who had taken refuge at her father's court, gave birth to a son, who was called from his beauty Shashank; his head bore the impress of an ári-fish, which marked his parentage, and hence he acquired the surname Arimastha, or Arimath, i. e. having the head of an árí-fish. He passed his early years with the father of his mother, and subsequently removed to the north bank of the Brahmaputra, where he acquired territory; he made war upon rájá Phénua, of Phenuagarh, in Kamrup, where the remains of a small fort are still to be seen, and reduced that prince to subjection; and afterwards constructed a fort, called Badyagarh, at Háthimorá, in Kacharí mahal, which is still in existence, and made it his residence. In the course of his wars, Arimath extended his conquests to the kingdom of Ramachandra, of whose relationship to himself he was ignorant; he laid siege to Pratáppúr, and through the treachery of a drummer of the garrison, who gave notice of a fitting time for attack, he surprised a part of the works that were imperfectly defended, made himself master of the fortress, and, beheading Ramachandra, returned in triumph to Badyagarh. "Some discrepancies are here apparent in two MSS. I consulted; one account states Arimath slew Phenua, while another maintains that Phenua usurped the throne of Arimath on the death of the latter, and abode in Phenuágarh. Gajank, the son of Arimath, succeeded Phenua, and made his residence near Pratáppur, in the vicinity of Agnigarh, and it is provoking, that from this time no further mention is made of the place. I shall merely add, that the last named prince was followed by his son Sukrank, who died without issue A. S. 1400 (A. D. 1478-9), when the dynasty of Jitarí become extinct. "The destruction of the temples at Porá is ascribed by some to an apostate brahman of Kánoj, called Porá Suthan, or Kálápahar, who was compelled to embrace Muhammedanism, and at whose door the Chárdwárians, and others in Assam, lay all the sacrilege and mischief that has been consummated in the province. From their massive proportions, and the carving and ornaments being so much worn by time and exposure, the fanes are evidently the work of a remote era; I sought in vain for an inscription, and neither the priests of the district, nor the ancient families whom I consulted, could assist my researches, or point, with an approximation to accuracy, to the date of their origin. "Unconnected with the first temple, and retired some yards deeper in the wood, or rather grove of trees, which was in likelihood planted by the priests who ministered at the temples, I found the ruins of six or seven other enormous structures of granite, broken into thousands of fragments, and dispersed over the ground in the same extraordinary manner as those already described. Altars of gigantic proportions were among the most remarkable objects: one of these, measuring upwards of six feet each way, and eighteen inches thick, was elevated from seven to eight feet above the level of the plain, and approached on each side by layers of stone disposed in the nature of steps. It was hewn from a single block of granite; underneath was a sort of cavern: the top had holes for iron links, and a receptacle to receive flowers and water, to bedew the Nandi, or sacred bull of Siva, who was placed, my informants imagined, on the brink of the reservoir. Six or eight other altars, one of them making a square of forty-six feet, and eighteen inches thick, are to be seen in other parts of the ruins, and several square blocks, each measuring from twenty to thirty feet, concave in the centre, and sculptured in imitation of circlets of flowers, must have formed the Bedí, or altar-place or Siva, as there is a seat for the Ling, or symbol of the deity, in the middle of each. "Among the specimens of sculptured figures that fell under observation, I discerned on a portion of frieze, nine images, each about a foot high, of whom Kanheya playing on a flute, and flanked by two Suhelis (damsels), were the only persons I could identify, though assisted by the priests of Chardwár. There were four figures of naked children eight inches high, that looked very much like Cupids; they were executed like the rest in basso relievo, and were dancing or gambolling together in pairs, and another groupe of five figures, eight inches high, two of them in an obscene attitude, appeared like the others to have formed part of a cornice. "It will be seen, from the sketch which accompanies this description, that the ruins are partly encompassed by walls, which extend in so many directions, that it is scarcely possible to guess at the purpose of the architect. The walls have their foundations laid very deep in the earth: they are in an unfinished state, and were evidently constructed at a period long subsequent to the temples; they are built of massive blocks of cut stone, sometimes disposed in a double row, and exhibit a good deal of carving. The stones are of various shapes, and rise three or four feet from the ground, and were all intended to be united with bands of iron. The entrance of the principal enclosure appears to have been from the south, where lie some pedestals, and three or four wedge-shaped stones, about five feet long and three broad, of a flattened pentagonal shape, intended, I presume, to have formed the voussoirs of an arch; and the middle of the key-stone is decorated with a handsome diadem or plumed tiara. "A little to the north of the wood, buried in a forest of reed grass, which an elephant penetrated with difficulty, I discovered a very interesting frag ment; this was a solid mass of granite, of a much finer grain than the kind used in the temples, measuring ten and a-half feet in length, two and threequarters in breadth, and two feet in depth. On this were sculptured, in very high relief, eighteen figures of gods, partially mutilated, but generally in a good state of preservation. Fifteen of the figures correspond in size, and are each eighteen inches high, and placed lengthwise in compartments, in groups of threes. Of these, the two external groupes, and the centre one, representing, I think, Padma (Lacshmi), supported by two females, are raised on the stone more than half a foot above the others; and again, each centre figure (Pádmá) of the compartments, is more in relief than its fellows. The whole of the images have high, cone-shaped, head-dresses and ear-rings, and Padmá is represented standing on a snake, and the attendants are supported on or rising from lotus flowers. The groupes of the two divisions, which are less elevated than the others, exhibit, I believe, Durgá, flanked by Lacshmi and Saraswati; five of these figures are crowned with a sort of tri-pointed diadem, while the sixth has a round turban or cap. One of the forms of Durgá has the right foot on the head of the demon, while the left is twisted up at her side, and the hands are clasped over the breast, in the attitude of supplication. Under the central groupe of the whole, and forming part of what may have been intended for the ornamented frieze of the temple, is a seated figure of Ganesh in relief, five inches high, flanked by two other persons, one of them playing on a stringed instrument, and the other wielding a club. The lower part and sides of the block are decorated with a band of carving, showing beasts of different kinds, encircled by wreaths of flowers, in relief, and the gods are placed in scalloped arches, supported by pillars, which divide each of the images from its neighbour. "The priests are so little versed in the distinguishing characteristics of the Hindu deities, that they could not determine whom the figures were intended to represent. "Near the images, are nine square pedestals of large dimensions, with three carved feet, which must have been intended to give support to as many columns; of these, several have almost disappeared in the earth; and it is likely others are lost altogether. It shews, at all events, the design of the temple must have been projected on a large scale. These pedestals do not appear to have been moved from the spot where they were originally carved, and they are so little impaired by time and exposure to the elements, that I feel assured they are of modern date, compared with the buildings in the plantation and on the adjacent plains; they were, indeed, as fresh to look at as if but recently executed by the mason's chisel. Vast fragments of the epistylium and frieze, carved with beaded drapery, also lie half buried in the soil. The people at one time commenced fracturing the stones, from an idea that gold was concealed in their cavities, but desisted, on a mysterious warning of the goddess Durga, who threatened to visit such sacrilegious attempts with death. "In the south-west angle of the Porá plains, there is another curious remnant of sculpture, also wrought from a single mass of granite, upwards of ten feet long, and two and a-half thick at the middle; it appears to have formed the side of a gate, and has a band of carving three inches broad on each side, showing in relief elephants, tigers, deer, rams, cattle, and swans, encircled by scrolls of flowers. The stone has in all twenty-five figures of Hindu deities, disposed cross-wise upon it; of these, the eighteen upper ones are in six rows, three of a row, and each in a separate compartment, while the centre figure is much more elevated than its fellows: they represent male and female divinities, twenty inches high; among them I recognized Hanuman. Another image has a fish's tail, and represents, I think, the Machh Avatár, or first incarnation of Vishnu, who is recorded to have appeared in the form of a fis fish to Satyavruta, to warn him of the great flood. Several other figures are are playing on stringed instruments, and the three lower ones are merely busts, with hands clasped oyer the breast. The lowest compartment embraces three images, of whom Siva occupies the middle place, and is provided with a a venerable flowing beard;" he stands thirty inches high, and on each side of him are females, twenty-six inches high: one has been destroyed, but the other is playing on a stringed instrument, and her ears are strung with a pair of enormous circular rings. Over this compartment are two groups of dwarf figures, six inches high, in ạ, sedentary posture, and the whole sculpture bears evident marks of having been mutilated by a barbarian hand. "No quarries were discovered, to indicate that the stones were disembowelled from the hills; but quantities of chips were seen in places: and once I came upon pillars and altars in an unfinished state, shaped from blocks of granite, on the surface of the earth; and there seems no question that all the material employed on the fabrics was similarly procured from the masses of rock that cover the hills in great abundance. Once or twice only I fell in with well-burnt bricks; they were smooth and thin, of rather a large size, but not badly shaped. Great part of these extensive ruins are buried or have sunk into the earth, and they cover altogether four or five acres of land. I have been thus particular in noticing them, because there are not, so far as I know, any architectural remains in Assam, that can challenge a comparison with them for durability of material and magnitude of design; and it is certain, from the prodigious number of ruinous and deserted temples, all of which appear to have been dedicated to Siva, being within the circuit of a few miles of Porá (I discovered twelve or fifteen in as many days on the hills and highlands at their feet), that this spot must have been the capital of a sovereign prince, or a principal seat of the Hindu religion, and enjoyed a large share of prosperity at some remote period." * God gave a king a son, who was extremely cunning. The king placed him under a tutor, to learn knowledge. The child said to his preceptor," My dear master, I see no end to study; life itself is not long enough to acquire all the sciences; teach me one that can be speedily acquired, and which will afford me happiness in this world and in the next." "Then practise silence," said the tutor. The youth from this moment became mute. His father was in great distress. Supposing the taciturnity of his son to be the effect of disease, he had recourse to physicians and enchanters; all was in vain. The king one day went out hunting, and took his son with him. A heathcock uttered a cry, and was taken. "If this bird had been mute," observed the prince, "he would not have been caught." Some one told the king, his son had spoken. The king sent for his son, but could not get a word from him. The king was wroth, and beat his son; whereupon the latter exclaimed, "my master had good reason to inculcate silence; if I had held my peace, I should have escaped these blows. The prophet was right in saying, He that holds his tongue is safe,'”’* da, dscn1' Journ, Asiatique, Juillet 1835, v. 93,. 1 ༤་ MEMOIRS OF AMEER KHAN.* HOLKAR now rejoined the Ameer, and it was agreed that the whole force should march on Poona, against Sindhia. Bajee Rao, the Peshwa, was on good terms with Sindhia, and his force joined to that of Suda Sheeo Rao made upwards of 100,000 men. Holkar and Ameer Khan could muster 70,000. The action between the two Mahratta chiefs, which took place on the 25th October 1802, it is well known, ended, after some vacillation of fortune, in the defeat of Sindhia's army, and Holkar and Ameer Khan entered Poona in triumph. This celebrated battle was gained by Holkar's infantry, under Capt. Harding, an Englishman, who fell at the close of the action. But no mention is made of him in the narrative before us, which enters into minute details of the various operations, giving great praise to Holkar himself, who is compared to a lion in his rage, whilst the Ameer's prodigious deeds are recited in poetry, prose being too feeble a vehicle. The military reader may he gratified by a succinct account of the tions, condensed from the wordy description of the moonshee. opera Holkar made his dispositions the night before the battle. Two brigades, and Holkar's special brigade, with some Pindarry and other horse, were placed on the right wing, rather in advance; the Ameer's horse was in the centre; the household and personal troops of Holkar were posted on the extreme left; the Maharaj himself, with his body-guard, and the Ameer, with his self-mounted troopers, were to take their station in the rear, upon elephants, to regulate the battle. On the other side, the Peshwa had posted the brigades of Sheikh Ulub Alee and of Capt. Dawes (of Perron's troops) in advance, with the artillery; the Poona sirdars, the special troops, Mahrattas and others, were on his right, and Sindhia's cavalry on the left. Thus ranged, the brigades of infantry, on both sides, forming the strength of the two lines, commenced the action with a cannonade and advanced against each other. Sindhia's infantry were old battalions; Holkar's cansisted of raw soldiers. For this reason, it had been arranged that, when the infantry lines approached near enough, Holkar should open his artillery with grape, and that the cavalry should then charge in support of the brigades. The Maharaj, accordingly, waited the signal; but, before the enemy were within grape-range, his artillerymen began their discharge, and the Holkar sirdars came down from the left flank to charge; but, this being premature, they did not reach the enemy; on the contrary, being exposed to the grape of Sindhia's brigades, they suffered so much as to threaten the loss of the day. At the same time, the Peshwa's household troops charged the Holkar cavalry from behind the brigades, cut them up and put them to flight, the Ameer's men flying with them. Upon seeing this, Ameer Khan mounted on horseback, and ordered some eighteen-pounders to open with chain-shot upon the enemy's horse in pursuit, which obliged them to retire. The Ameer now advised Holkar to charge in person from the left, whilst he (the Ameer) advanced in front. The Maharaj, accordingly, charged the * Concluded from p. 232. Asiat. Journ. N.S.VOL. 18.No.72. 2 L |