D R I V I N G A B LOG E A R O U T O F S U G A R C A N E S .
„ . l . l l s h mo,nub cxinbilcd in front of lllc Plate, repro.ont the 1,ills raised by
U,osc very eurioos inseels the « Into a„ls. TI.ey are p e rhaps the most clestreot.ve
l i t l l e animals io the whole creation. They arc particularly tond ot all solt
,vood8 sucli as lir. mango. &c.; preferring such as, l ike those tries, are sh-ongly
i m p r e g n a t e d ,vith tnrpcline. They freqt.ently have been known to eat away
t h e bottom of a chest in the coarse of a night. A pleasant anecdote, for the
a u l h c n l i c i t y of which, however, the reader must get some other authority to
v o u c h , is related of a geutlcman ,vho had charge of a chest of money, winch
h e i u " nut on the lloor in a . l amp situation was speedi l y at tacked by the tcnmles,
o r w i l i t e ants, which had Iheir hurrow accidentally jnst under the place where
t h e treasure stood. They soon annihilated the bottom, and were not more
c e r e m o n i o u s in respect to the bags, eonlaining the specie, which being thus sot
loose fell g r adua l l y into ibe hollows in the ants' burrow. When the cash was
c a l l e d for, all wer e amazed at the wondrous powers, both as to the teeth and
s t o m a c h s of the little marauders, which ivere supposed to have consumed the
silver as well as the wood. However, after some years of consternation and
a m a z e m e n l , the house r.Kliiiring repair, the fabulist informs us that the whole
a m o u n t was found some feet deep in the earth ; and the lerniites were rescued
f r om that obloquy, which the supposed power of feasting on precious metals
h a d cast on their whole race !
T h e cunning of the white ants is truly admirable. They ordinarily work
w i t l i i u plastering, occasionally appearing externally, and forming a shelter by
m e a n s of earth, which though Uiken from situations apparently dry as powder,
v e t when worked up is perfectly moist. Whcnee they derive the moisture is
n o t yet known ! In Ihis manner they often construct a kind of tunnel, or
a r e h c d passage, sillllcient to admit passing each other in their way up and
d o w n , with such rapidity as cannot fail to surprise. Hene« they not only arrive
u n s e e n , though their ways are obvious, at any part of a house, but when, from^
l i n d i n g such articles as they might else attack, insulated by means of frames, of
w h i c h the feel are placed in vessels full of water, they have been known to
a s e e n d to the upper tlnoring, and thence to wor k downwards in filaments, like
t h e ramificat ions of the roots of a tree, and thus descend to their object. In fact,
i t is scarcely possible to p revent them from injuring whatever they take a fancy
to. Tiie only preventative I have ever known to be successful, has been the
e a r t h - o i l , extracted from a kind of clay found near Chittagoiig : its smel l is very
oflensive, and is fatal to most insects, but after a few months, it loses its prop
e r t i e s . The white ant is about the size of a small grain of rice, has a white
b o d y , appearing like a maggot, and a very strong head, which is red, and
a r m e d with powerful forceps; it has four sliorl legs.
W h e n a bear finds a nes t of any kind of auts, b u t espeeially whi t e auLs, b e is in
h i s g l o r y ! he tears u p the whol e bur row l icking u p all the elustei-s he can get at,
a n d lying wi t h his tongue out to entice the little prey into his mouth. By this
m e a n s he, no doubt, often obtains an ample meal; for, I think I may with prop
r i e t y asser t , that , f r equent l y a bushe l of w h i t e ant s m a y b e found in the same nest.
T h e presence of bears in the vicinity of a village is generally pretty well
k n o w n by the nature of the covcrs, and their having been, perhaps time out of
m i n d , regular visitors ; sometimes, however, ihc y change thei r haunts, on which
t h e i r neighbourhood is commonl y first discovered by the ant hills, and burrows
n e a r the sides of roads, being found in a state of destruction. The sugar canes
a r e also beaten down and destroyed, and the marks of the bears' paws arc seen
in the litlle rills of water, which serve, as described in a former Numbe r , to
convey water from the wells to the cultivation, according to the system of
i r r i g a l i o n prevalent in India. I have before touched upon this subject, but it
m a y be agreeable to the reader, especially as it is a part of the Plate under
e o u s i d c r a t i o u , to be more e.'iplicit as to the methods of d rawing water.
Ill regar d to the levers in eommon use, they have been suilieiently described.
A n o t h e r mode is equally prevalent, viz. tlie raising water by means of cattle
p r o c e e d i n g down an inciined plane. For this purpose the earth, excavated in
d i g g i n g the well, is formed into a talus or sloping causcway p roceeding directly
f r o m the brink, and farther raised by means of an additional excavation at the
l o w e r extremi t y of the wal k lllus formed for the bullocks, w h i c h is eonsequenl ly
f o r half its lengt h above the level of the lauds, and for the other half is below
i t . A strong forked timber is then placed at the upper cud, well fixed into the
a r t i f i c i a l mound, and projecting over the well : within the fork a solid sheave,
o r wooden block, rests on a wooden axis, to sustain the rope, which has one cud
fixed to the yoke, and the other is furni she d wi t h a few yards of chain, or green
o x - h i d e , as better resistiug the effects of coiistaut moisture. The bag which
r a i s e s the wa t e r is of good tanned leather, the size varying according to circums
t a n e e s , but generally from twent y to fort y gallons. Its 'upper part, or mouth,
i s kept open by an iron ring, to which the chain is fastened with a swivel. One
p e r s o n drives the cattle up and down the slope, and another empties the vwot,
o r leather bag, when arrived above the brink, into a reservoir, usually made of
c l a y ; whence it runs off through small channels, as before described; and is
d i r e c t e d , at pleasure, into the several small banked beds, or compartments, into
w h i c h each field is previousl y divided.
I n general, only one or two moots can be worke d at the same wel l , but at .some
o f the large wel l s to be found in the upper eountry, lined with masonry, and
f r e q u e n t l y from fifteen to tweutyfeet in diameter, six or eigl i tyokes of bullocks
c o u l d be employed, provided the springs proved equal to their supply. These
w e l l s are generally the gifts of individuals, are sunk at a vast expense, and
a p p e a r , from ihe pompous display made of the founder's tilJes, to be rather
i n t e n d e d as monument s of admirat ion than as benefits to the eouiitry. Indeed,
t h e good folks of India, like most others, when they erect an edifice, such as a
¿ / „ . T O , or a mlml, of which some idea may be collected Irom the small
p a v d f i o n - l i k e building on an eminence described In the Plate, are not suffieiently
a t t e u l i v e to the adage of a celebrated poet;
Wlio builds a cliurch to God, ami not to fame,
" Will ne'er pollute ttie marble witb Ilis name !"
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C H A S S A N T U S OFBS B E S " r jWKES D E ^ i r C B E - j :