Natural history, sport, and travel

Preface

ON arrival in England after spending the best part of my life in the Bengal Civil Service, I was cautioned, on the risk of being voted a bore, never to mention India; and the proprietor of one of the leading journals, who for many years has taken great interest in literature connected with the east, on hearing that I proposed writing a book about India, warned me that I had no chance whatever in securing readers in England, unless I told my story briefly, and in the lightest possible style.

Believing this advice to be sound, I have followed it as far as possible here, particularly

IV PKEFACE.

as I shall be glad if I can attract the attention of those who have an India career before them to the study of natural history, a subject which at present appears insufficiently developed in the education of youth.

In illustration of this I may mention that during twenty years' service, although I constantly heard people regretting their ignorance of botany, with the exception of a short interview which I had two years ago with Dr. Watt, the Professor of Botany at the Hoogly College, I have never, in India, met an Englishman who could identify any but the most common trees and plants which grew around us, much less arrange them according to their affinities or natural orders. This has always been a source of wonder, considering the intense pleasure which even a desultory study of the fauna and flora of my district has always afforded me.

Some of the incidents which I have mentioned have previously appeared in the Calcutta " Englishman," and in " Land and Water," and the " Field," whose columns are read all

PREFACE. V

over India, and which have given a stimulus to the study of natural history more than any other previous publications.

The account which I have given of the Mahwa tree, corresponds with a paper which I read early in the year before the Linnean Society of London.

In his beautiful edition of "White's Selborne," Mr. Frank Buckland says : " There is hardly a parish in England or Wales where the clergyman has not opportunities of writing a local * White's Selborne.' ' The idea of writing the following pages was here suggested, for I thought that if a country clergyman has opportunities of writing anything interesting on the natural history of his parish, how much greater opportunities has the Indian District Officer, with thousands of square miles under him.

The last chapter, giving a short account of a tour made by myself and my wife in Palestine, is inserted in order to show how easily officers and others returning to England from India overland, can visit by far the most interesting

VI PKEFACE.

country in the world to all who profess the Christian faith.

I take this opportunity of thanking Mr. F. Smith, of the British Museum, for his kindness in identifying the insects in my collection, whose scientific names I was unacquainted with.

EDWARD LOCKWOOD.

Chapter I

The District of Monghyr in Bengal. — Separation of Species by the Granges. — Population of the District. — Checks to Population. — The early History of Monghyr. — The bondmen Mushirs. — The Famine of 1873-74 — The " Black Pamphlet." — Difficulty in getting correct Information regarding the Condition of the People. — The Famine Durbar held by the Prince of Wales at Patna. — History of the Famine proposed by a native Gentleman. — Irrigation as a Preventive of Famine. — Emigration. — Timidity of the Natives. — Scene at the Kharakpoor Irrigation Works. — Apathy of the Natives led out to Execution. — Antiquities of Monghyr. — Search for reported buried Treasure .... Page 1

Chapter II

Poverty of the People of Monghyr. — Cheapness of Food. — The Crops of the District. — Abundance of Fish. — Fishing in the Government Tank. — Water Insects. — Catching a Eaja. — The Mango and Mahwa Crops. — The

Vlll CONTENTS.

Mahwa Flowers as an Article of Commerce. — Oil Seeds. — Indigo. — Opium. — Tobacco. — Government Experimental Garden. — Indolence of the "Natives. — Productive Powers of the Land. — Potatoes. — The Native Method of Feeding Cattle. — Method of raising Funds for Cattle Breeding. — Certain Method for catching a Thief. — Exciting Chase ....... Page 31

Chapter III

The Birds of Prey in Monghyr. — Their Nesting in Villages.— Vultures' Nests. — Eagle's Nest attacked by a Lizard. — Tree Planting along the District Roads. — Novel Method of preventing Damage to the Trees. — Pilgrims to Bhaijnath. — Christianity in Monghyr. — Cholera. — Green Pigeons. — The Swinging Festival. — Camping in Monghyr. — Supplies to Government Officers.— Treatment of Native Servants. — Bribery and Corruption. — Present from a Native. — Setting up House in Monghyr. — The pecuniary State of the Indian Civil Service . Page 56

Chapter IV

Madhuban, or the Honey wood. — Land brought under cultivation by the Santhals. — A Day's Jungle-fowl shooting in the Kharakpoor Hills. — Plants, Birds, and Insects. — Archery in the Shade. — Ants and Kites. — Split-headed Mantis. — Scarcity of large Birds in Europe when com-

CONTENTS. IX

pared with India. — Kites-nesting near the Houses in Monghyr. — Nests in Casuarina Trees. — Cuckoos. — Starting a Museum. — The Domestic Pig of India. — The Monoculus, Scorpions. — Snakes in Monghyr. — The Snakes' Barber. — Snake by Post. — Coiners and their Dupes Page 79

CHAPTER Y.

TheKharakpoor hills. — Recent Changes in the surrounding Country. — The Irrigation Works. — Picnic on the Lake. — Plants on the Banks of the Lake. — Santhal Villages. — Beautiful Scenery. — Birds andFish. — Bhim-band. — Hot Springs. — Trees in the Vicinity. — A brave Hermit. — The Pleasures of an Ascetic Life . . . Page 107

Chapter VI

Expedition to the Marak hill. — Running with the Natives. — The G-oosander. — Heavy Dew. — Oil Seeds grown by the Santhals. — A bad Shot. — Killing a Tiger. — Ducks and Drakes on the Pool of a Waterfall. — Monkeys. — The Serpent Creeper. — Curious Grasshoppers, and Locusts. — Want of faith in English Medicine on the part of the Natives. — Useless Fruit in the Kharakpoor Hills. — Attractive Seeds. — Marak Spiders. — A Bird-killing Spider. — Beautiful View. — Flowering Bamboos . Page 123

X CONTENTS.

Chapter VII

The Bamboo Cart. — Roads in Monghyr. — Fertile appearance of the Country in February. — Jackals feasting in Graves. — Government Estate reclaimed from the Ganges. — Poverty of the People. — Severe Bit. — Cruelty of the Natives. — Quail. — A Primary School in Monghyr. — Swarm of Caterpillars. — Litigation caused by the Ganges changing its course. — Confidence of the Natives in the Courts of Law. — Toddy Palms ; Insects' found on them. — Wasp killing a Snake. — Trees by the road side. — Birds. — Ignorance of the Natives regarding the outside World. — Their knowledge of Simples. — The Molanaggar Monastery. — Curious Scene there. — The Bench at Sheikhpura. — A Native Gentleman's House and Garden. — Early Reminiscences of an Indian Court . Page 140

Chapter VIII

Camp Life. — Beauty of the Country during the cold Weather. — Sun Hemp. — Flax. — The Silk-cotton Tree. — Birds. — Insects. — Toads. — The Flame Tree. — Beetles. Vast flocks of Wild-fowl. — Crested Grebes. — Ibises. — Snake Birds. — Egrets' Nests. — Coots. — Mullets. — Weeds. — Skylarks and Roses . . . Page 172

CHAPTER, IX.

Pariah Dogs in Monghyr. — Vast number killed annually. —Fishing in the Ganges. — Crocodiles. — Inundations during the Rainy Season. — One hundred Miles in the

CONTENTS. XI

Ganges on a bundle of Castor-Oil Sticks. — The Death of the late Bishop Cotton. — The Government Gardens at Monghyr. — Large Vegetables. — Bright Flowers. — The Calabash Tree. — Chameleons. — The Chameleon Fish. — Mahogany Trees. — Winged Seeds. — Baptists in Monghyr Page 194

Chapter X

Pir-pahar, or the Saints' Hill. — View from the top. — Horned Owls. — Stone Plovers. — Migrating Birds. — Pelicans. — Eagles. — Insects at Pir-pahar. — The Gular Fig. — European Artizans and Natives. — The sacred hot Spring at Sitakoond. — Pure drinking water. — The Sitakoond Lake. — Fish. — Ospreys. — Kingfishers. — Desperate struggle with a Miller. — Water Beetles . Page 219

CHAPTER XL

Destruction of Wild Beasts in India. — Scarcity of Game in Behar. — The Tree Shrew. — Extraordinary combative Instinct. — Bears. — A Fight for a Cave. — Game Birds' struggle for Existence. — Their numerous Enemies in Monghyr. — Scarcity of Food-yielding Fruits in the Forests. — Absence of Birds in the Forests. — Geology of the Kharakpoor Hills. — Iron Ore. — Former Trade in Hardware at Monghyr. — Monghyr compared with Birmingham. — A Gun - smith's Shop. — Lead Ore. — Slate. — Timber found in the Hills. — Ebony. — Mistletoe. — Cabinet work of Monghyr. — Beautiful Flowers Page 237

Xll CONTENTS.

Chapter XII

Monkey Island. — The Paradise Fly-catcher. — The Kabur Swamp. — Narrow escape from drowning. — Birds on the Swamps. — Jacanas. — Purple Coots. — Cormorants. — Abundance of Fish. — Myriads of wild Ducks. — The Goose-teal. — Water Plants. — Picnic on the Swamp. — The Sacred Island. — Monkeys. — Ascetics. — Ospreys. — Plants on the Island. — Fresh-water Sponges. — Abundance of Mosquitos. — Myriads of Swallows. — Duck-shooting , . . . . . . Page 253

Chapter XIII

A Visit to Syria and Palestine on the way Home from India. — Jaffa. — The House of Simon the Tanner.— American Tourists. — Birds seen in Palestine. — Russian Pilgrims. — Their- Faith and Enthusiasm. — The first sight of Jerusalem. — The Mount of Olives. — Distance lends Enchantment to the View. — Filthy state of the City. — Journey to Jericho. — Bad Eoads. — Jumping the Brook Chereth. — Bathing in the Dead Sea. — Bathing in the Jordan. — Return to Jericho on our Homeward Route . . . . . . . . Page 267

NATURAL HISTORY,

SPORT, AND TRAVEL

Chapter I

The District of Monghyr in Bengal. — Separation of Species by the Granges. — Population of the District. — Checks to Population. — The early History of Monghyr. —The bondmen Mushirs.— The Famine of 1873-74.— The " Black Pamphlet." — Difficulty in getting correct Information regarding the Condition of the People. — The Famine Durbar held by the Prince of Wales at Patna. — History of the Famine proposed by a native Gentleman. — Irrigation as a Preventive of Famine. — Emigration. — Timidity of the Natives. — Scene at the Kharakpoor Irrigation Works. — Apathy of the Natives led out to Execution. — Antiquities of Monghyr. — Search for reported buried Treasure.

THE district of Monghyr, which consists of some four thousand square miles, is divided into two nearly equal portions by the Granges. The northern part is an extensive plain formed

1 -»-

2 SEPARATION OF SPECIES.

by the rich alluvial soil, brought down by the ever changing river, whilst the southern portion consists of vast rice tracts, and forests which cover the metamorphic hills, extending far away into Central India from the town of Monghyr, three hundred miles north-west of Calcutta.

Lovers of natural history who visit Monghyr, find that this division of the district separates also in a very marked manner, the most conspicuous species of the animal and vegetable kingdoms ; and the sportsman who to-day may find tigers, bears, baboons, tupaias, peacocks, jungle-fowl, and grey partridges, in the undulating country to the south, will look in vain for such things if to-morrow he crosses the river northward. The river separates also the most conspicuous trees and plants. In the forests of the south are found the ebony tree (Diospyros melanoxylon), the sal (Shorea robusta), the most useful of all Indian timber trees, and the Mahwa (Bassia latifolia) which supplies not only food to the lower classes, but also, a hundred thousand gallons of spirit yearly to the drinking portion of the population.

The south also yields vast quantities of rice, and a hundred and fifty tons of opium, grown

VAST FLOCKS OF WILD FOWL. 3

on twenty-five thousand acres of land, whilst, after crossing the Ganges, little rice and not a single poppy will be seen.

In the north nine-tenths of the trees are cultivated mangoes, whilst wheat, Indian corn, various kinds of millet, peas, Masur (Cicer lens) Rahar (Cytisus cajan), oats, indigo, mustard, linseed, and castor-oil, are the principal crops which the land-holders find profitable to grow.

The northern portion of the district, also, during the cold weather, forms a vast feeding ground for swimming and wading birds. On some of the marshes a hundred thousand ducks may be seen, so close together that they almost hide the water; and as flock after flock pass overhead on being disturbed, the sound of their wings resembles waves breaking on a troubled shore.

The seasons in Monghyr correspond nearly with those of Bengal proper. The rains set in about the middle of June, and subside about the 20th of October, during which time the 40 or 50 inches of rain which fall, so completely saturate the rich alluvial soil of the low-lying country, that an abundant cold-weather crop of wheat, barley, peas, &c., is often reaped in

4 TEEMING POPULATION.

April, without a single shower falling on it from the day it appeared above the ground in the previous November.

The population of Monghyr, according to the last census, is nearly two millions, and considering that one-third of the district consists of sand, rock, forest, and other unculturable waste, each square mile under cultivation has to feed and clothe seven hundred human beings. This number, in the present state of agriculture in India, appears the utmost limit which the ground can support, and in the absence of other appreciable checks to population, want of food and pestilence carry off the superabundant mouths. The present teeming population is the result of British rule, which permits no sword to be drawn in anger in the district, — which hunts down murderers, tigers, wolves, bears, and poisonous snakes, — which abhors Sutti and infanticide,— which sends gangs • of vaccinators over the district, distributes cholera pills to all police stations, and spends vast sums of money in distributing food to the hungry mouths which cannot feed themselves.

In the year 1780, my grandfather who held the same appointment which I held nearly a

DESTRUCTION BY TIGERS. 5

hundred years later, was deputed by the Government to ascertain the early history of Monghyr, and the old people from whom he inquired, spoke of a time not long since passed away, when the surrounding country was a wild jungle without a vestige of cultivation, and inhabited only by hermits, who resided in the woods and on the rocks in the vicinity of the Granges.

The first attempt to reclaim the jungle is said to have been made by one of these holy men, who calling in the aid of the godBishkarna, the patron of artists, built a fort on the present site of Monghyr, and the place having acquired an odour of sanctity, not only hermits assembled from all parts of the country, but a pious agricultural population sprang up and the primeval woods resounded with the woodman's axe.

Clearing the jungle at that period, however, must have been very perilous work ; for even now-a-days tigers not unfrequently carry off the wood-cutters, and the Maharaja Sir Jai- Mangal- Singh told me that when he was a boy, more than a thousand people were yearly killed by wild beasts on his estates alone. It would

0 LEOPARD HUNTERS.

indeed almost appear that the power given to Adam over the beasts of the field was reversed in India, and in an old Hindustani book which I have read, a woman alluding to her death says she hopes to get along somehow until a tiger catches her, as though being killed by a tiger was the ordinary cause of death.

The influx of Englishmen, however, soon lessened the ravages of wild beasts, and besides the legitimate hunting which goes on when there is any chance of sport, the Government offers so high a reward for the destruction of tigers and leopards, that a hundred skins have been brought to me by one party of hunters, who had been prowling about the country setting bows charged with poisoned arrows in every path frequented by wild beasts.

As the ancient checks to population in Monghyr, — war, murder, sutti, infanticide, wild beasts, small-pox, and famine, — are now cornbatted with more or less success by the Government, and as the improvident natives marry without a thought for the future, they would long ago have been trampled to death from over-crowding but for cholera, which, notwith-

CHECKS TO POPULATION. 7

standing the distribution of pills at the police stations, acts as one of the principal checks to keep the people within bounds. Indeed this mysterious disease appears to keep pace with the population, and rages when poverty causes a ready sale for bad grain, bad vegetables, and fish. Although it is principally a poor man's disease, it is by no means a respecter of persons, and its constant presence is one of the chief drawbacks to a residence in Monghyr.

So long as there are railroads in India famine, in its strictest sense, namely where food is not procurable for money, will probably never occur ; but whilst the natives increase as they do at present, it is difficult to imagine how the millions of pauper children which are born are to be kept alive. Their tendency is to increase in geometrical ratio, whilst the food supply stands still. It has been calculated that the produce of a single pair, if unchecked, in a hundred generations would not only cover the whole world flattened out, but would form a solid column of human beings three thousand times the distance from the earth to the sun. The natural checks to population are, however,

8 THE MOUSEBS OF MONGHYE.

so enormous that the present population of the earth could be stowed away within a cube, whose side measures a thousand yards ; and there is difficulty in getting food for even this comparatively insignificant number.

The Mushirs, or Mousers, as they may be called, are found in every village of Monghyr, and are half-starved even in times of plenty. They seldom see coin, but receive their scanty wages in coarse grain, which they flavour with rats, mice, snails, and jungle roots, whilst living in hovels which an English pig would consider poor accommodation. One would imagine that such persons must find difficulty in getting wives, but the contrary is the case, for bachelors and spinsters are unknown. Directly they arrive at the age of puberty they present themselves at their landlord's house, and having signed a deed binding themselves to remain in bondage for the term of their natural lives, receive a few shillings in return, with which to entertain their friends at a marriage feast, and to set up house. As they can hardly support themselves in times of plenty, most of their children die from want when the times are hard.

EXACTING BONDS. 9

The bonds to which the mushirs attach their marks — for none of them can write — are curious documents, to be found in every village, though they are very seldom seen by European eyes. The following is a translation of one which came into my possession during the recent famine.

Agreement between A. B., a mushir of village Mulleypore, pergunnah Purbutpara, zillah Monghyr, on the one hand, and Baboo C. D., Rajpoot, on the other. On consideration of receiving Rs. 5 in cash to celebrate his marriage, A. B. hereby binds himself to plough, sow, irrigate, and reap the fields of C. D., and perform faithfully all the duties of a kamiya or bondman. The said A. B. binds himself to continue in the service of his master, C. D., and never to refuse doing any work imposed on him; morning and evening, day and night, he will be present and ready to work, and he will never absent himself, even for a visit to a friend or relation, without leave. If on any occasion the said A. B. should absent himself, that day's work will be placed to his debit, and he will be liable for such damage as Her Majesty's courts of law may direct.

In addition to the above duties, the said A. B. binds himself to furnish the said C. D. with the following commodities as may be directed by a council of ten, peers of the said C. D. : — thatching grass, bamboos, string, wood, and other things (waghaira). This deed is executed in good faith, 22nd Assarl265 (corresponding to A.D. 1857), and holds good at the present day.

(Sd.) A. B. (fog mark).

C. D. and witnesses.

10 DISTRICT OPFICEES.

An old hag, who sat by the door of my tent mumbling over the hardness of the times, was pointed out to me as the person for whom A.B. had sold himself in bondage. Truly, I thought, steam the great civilizer has not done much for this man, although the railroad runs within twenty yards of his door.

District Officers* in Bengal should never cease to pray that the land may bring forth its fruit in due season, as failure of a single crop means that thousands within his jurisdiction will die of want if not fed by Government.

But the vast amount of extra work which failing crops create, although his hands may be already full, is not the chief cause for the District Officer's prayer. If he allows them to starve, as he did in Orissa, or feeds them, as he did in Behar, when the rice crop failed in 1873, he must not be surprised if he finds himself regarded by the public as an unprofitable ser-

* The District Officer, or Collector-Magistrate, is the principal executive officer in the large tract of country which constitutes a District in India. The Government looks to him for any information which it may require regarding the people under his charge.

FAILURE OF THE EICE CROP. 11

vant, subject rather to impeachment than to praise.

When I arrived at Monghyr, early in 1873, I found that Famine was the official bugbear. District Officers pricked up their ears when the subject was mentioned, as men prick up their ears when a cry of " mad dog " is raised in the London streets. The Lieu tenant- Governor, Sir George Campbell, as President of the Committee appointed to inquire into the Orissa famine, knew what would be expected from him if the crops failed within his province, and he was not the man to allow a district to remain in the hands of any officer who lacked energy, or who might appear unequal to the extraordinary amount of labour which even approaching famine would call forth. Great was the excitement, therefore, in September, when the rice in Behar began to turn yellow from want of rain, and when from all quarters reports of impending famine came pouring in. Nor was the excitement allayed when an order arrived from England that no one was to starve, whatever the cost might be. Behar officials felt that the eyes of the world were turned towards them, and they vied with each

12 INFOBMATION EEQUIEED BY GOVERNMENT.

other in making their preparations for all emergencies, complete. At Monghyr the increase to official correspondence was enormous ; the postman staggered along under the weight of it, and the telegraph wires were never at rest, either by day or night.

The principal subjects on which information was required were —

The crop prospects.

The resources of the people, and the amount of Government aid which might be required to keep them from starving.

Accurate information regarding the rice was easily obtained ; the crop in nearly every village had failed, or was being fed off by cattle; and, as regards the future spring crop of wheat, barley, and peas, deficient rain had allowed the sun to bake the soil almost into the consistency of bricks, and much of the land throughout the district remained unsown.

But there was, and always will be in India, great difficulty in forming an accurate estimate regarding the condition of the people and their resources. Village after village was visited, and the inhabitants who crowded round had

" FAMINE THEEMOMETEBS." 13

only one story to tell, namely, that they had nothing ; neither grain, nor money, nor credit ; that they must starve unless fed by Government ; and they pointed to their rack-rented land, to their children, most of whom were suffering from spleen, to a few filthy pigs, and to their empty rick-yards, as all the property which they possessed on earth. How far this startling statement was true it was impossible at the time to form a very accurate judgment, for experience had taught officials that a man with ten thousand silver coins buried in the ground would have little hesitation in assuming the garb of a mendicant and declaring himself utterly destitute, if he thought any benefit would accrue to himself by doing so.

One of the best tests for ascertaining the scarcity or otherwise of food grains was visiting the marshes which abound in some parts of Behar. The margins are fringed with sedges (Gyperus palustris), locally known as Chicoras. They maybe called "famine thermometers," for in times of plenty they are abandoned to the pigs, but in times of scarcity the bulbs are grubbed up by the natives for food,

14 IMPOET OP BICE.

and when I saw five hundred persons chicorahunting on a single marsh, I knew that there was famine in the land.

I retailed the information which I had gained to Lord Northbrook and Sir' Richard Temple when they visited my district in November, and it was agreed that although the spring crops might be saved by unexpected rain, yet it would not be safe to delay for a single day the import of grain from Burmah.

The grain arrived, and with it abundant rain, which saved that part of the district where the spring crops grew, indeed, considering the high price of food, wheat-growers were enabled to realize what, to their humble ideas, were almost fortunes. Still, the rice-cultivators, whose crops had failed, had to be fed ; and, although it subsequently turned out that many had clearly exaggerated their poverty, thousands who otherwise must have starved were kept alive by the Government bounty, and by the extensive public works which the Government undertook.

Those who were engaged during this season of scarcity in administering the Government

FEEDING THE PEOPLE. 15

relief had unusual opportunities for seeing how much misery has to be endured by a population which has increased beyond the supply of food. Old men who for sixty or seventy years had managed somehow to keep body and soul together, appeared like living skeletons, clutching their pittance of rice in order to preserve their lives a few days longer. Mothers might be seen grovelling on the ground and beseeching for an extra handful of grain in the hope that by eating it they might afford nourishment to the emaciated infants at. their breasts ; and, saddest sight of all, skeleton troops of children might be seen, their beautiful gazelle-like eyes overflowing with tears of hunger as they received the Grovernment bounty of rice in the rags which hung around them, but which barely covered their nakedness.

The order received from England, however, that no one was to starve, was carried out, and the " Times," summing up the famine, said, " The Lieutenant-Governor of Bengal may take all credit to himself for hard work, faithfully done, and so may District and Famine officers, while to Lord Northbrook

16 THE FAMINE DDKBAB.

will belong the high honour of commanding in one of the purest and noblest campaigns ever fought in India." The satisfaction which this high praise afforded us was enhanced by the receipt of an invitation to attend a "Famine Durbar," presided over by H. R. H. the Prince of Wales, at Patna, on the 1st January 1876 ; for District officers thought that the zeal they had shown in carrying out the orders of Government that no one was to starve would be publicly commended. The result, however, proved the vanity of human wishes, for, on the morning of the Durbar, a certain anonymous " Black Pamphlet " was circulated among the Prince's suite, asserting that the so-called Famine was a myth, that the money spent in relief works had been wilfully squandered, and that, instead of receiving praise, the Famine officers should be condemned. This scurrilous pamphlet, which totally misrepresented facts, made such an impression at the time, and afterwards, until its misrepresentations were exposed, that the Famine officers who had been summoned to the Durbar returned unnoticed to their districts, sadder, if not wiser men.

FAMINE HONORS. 17

The natives were loud in their thanks to the Government, and wherever I went they sang the praises of the Queen who had, so they declared, saved them from the jaws of a horrible death.

The Black Pamphlet kept back the praise which District officers hoped to get at the Famine Durbar, and they had to console themselves with the reflection that virtue brings its own reward. The native gentlemen, who had aided in the famine, however, had very little cause to complain, for honours were showered thick upon them. One of my native subordinates who was made a Khan Bahadoor, equivalent to C.B. in England, was so delighted with the honour conferred upon him that he at once set about writing an account of the famine, which according to the prospectus issued by him, was to commence with a history of his family and of mine ; but the proof sheets sent for my inspection and approval, were rather startling, and would have delighted a disciple of Dr. Darwin; for the history of my family was headed in large capitals — "Geology of the House of Lockwood."