for, I boldly put the question, whether or no there was any truth in the reports concerning their eating human flesh. Governor Herbert, the resident, and other Europeans present, sat. all aghast at what they deemed my temérity, and acknowledged afterwards they were fearful of some serious consequence. But, instead of being offended, the head man of the three, with a smiling countenance, as if complimented by the question, readily aswered, that, when they slew an enemy in battle, it was customary to cut him. up, and for the warriors, especially the young men, to take a piece of the flesh and champ it with their teeth, smearing their face and arms. with the blood, in token of triumph as well as to increase their courage; and that some would swallow it, but it was never eaten as food.

3

I acknowledge that this is a savage detestable custom, and lament it, but it does not answer my idea of cannibalism, or man-eating. In truth, I do not believe there are any such people existing, who delight in eating human flesh as food. Necessity has often driven Christians to eat the flesh of their fellow creatures, and so it may occur to savages: their passion for revenge, likewise, as well as the ferocious custom just related of increasing courage by such dar ing, may have induced the world to believe such savages to be cannibals in the strict sense of the word; but, with all the inquiry I have been able

to, make, I could never find sufficient authority to induce me to credit it.

My friendly mountaineers invited me to go up With them to their country, assuring me of per fect safety; and that, if I did not like to stay with them, I might return in about four months, When they purposed being again at Tappanooly; but that they thought I should find the moun tains where they lived, above the clouds, so much preferable to the lower earth, that I might incline to live entirely there. In proof of which, they said that one Englishman had been with them several months, and was so satisfied that He had no wish to accompany them down when they came away, but desired them to bring him an Englishman for a companion.

This was rather a drawback on my vanity, having given myself exclusive credit for their seeming partiality, which I now found was to be divided with another. Had I been as capable of exertion as when I accepted a similar kind of invitation in America, I should most readily have seceded, and been well pleased with the proba bility off owning a countryman. I regretted it was not in my power, and declined the offer. I think it was the resident who inquired if they buch heated the name of this Englishmans it sounded much like my old friend B——, who is spoken off im my first voyage, &e.; but, from thrin proinférution, it was roult to ascertain,

On my pronouncing it, they all nodded their heads, declaring it to be the same: it was not a common name, yet there might be others. I could no way account for his being there, yet his eccentricities made it not very unlikely.

As they intended returning soon, I wrote a short note, mentioning the cause of my quitting India; and, should the person prove to be my old friend, how much it would rejoice me to meet him at Fort Marlbrough, where I was pro ceeding in order to take my passage to England, in a ship which I then understood was not likely

to sail for months.

CHAPTER XLVII

Moco-Moco; visit the old sultan; arrive at Ben coolen; hospitality of the settlement; scarcity of culinary vegetables where vegetation is sq strong fire produced by bamboo-friction; grass too strong for horses to penetrate, its fierce burning.

FROM Tappanoaly, we sailed for Moco-Moco; a place which, for excessive heat, sailors declare to be within a sheet or two of paper from hell.

I did not experience any such extraordinary hot weather the few days we stopped. We paid a short visit of ceremony to the old sultan, who in return asked us to chew beetle-nut with him.

On our arrival at Bencoolen, I waited on the governor, commanding-officer, &c.; and was most hospitably received and entertained, all the time I remained there, by the gentlemen of that settlement. Unfortunately, the ship that was bound to England was not expected to sail for several months; but my time passed merrily and pleasantly, from continual invitations and various excursions into the country. One of the first things that surprized me, was the scarcity of culinary vegetables where vegetation was the most rapid I ever noticed; of which I will relate one instance..

A gentleman of the settlement, intending to build himself a country house, requested my accompanying him to choose a spot. Having rode a few miles south from the fort, we wished to reach an elevated spot on our right, which we conceived would afford us a prospect of the sea. There was nothing but grass to obstruct our riding up a gentle acclivity, to the top of this hill; but we made the attempt in vain. Our horses could not possibly proceed farther than a few roods through the grass, owing to a strong entanglement below of the dry withered part, through which, a very coarse strong grass shot

up five or six feet high. Giving it up for that day, we returned the next with two stout negro, men; ordering them to penetrate and get as far as possible up the hill, and then set fire to the grass. This they did, and their means of procuring fire may appear curious. Splitting a piece of dry bamboo-cane, they scrape the edges. to make a kind of tinder with the fine scrapings. they put this into the hollow between the slit pieces, which are held or tied together. A notch is then cut nearly through one of these pieces, over the place where the tinder-scrapings are put: the edge of another piece of slit bamboo is. applied to the notch, when by the friction of sawing backwards and forwards, fire is pro duced to light the tinder..

I confess I had no conception, before this, that grass would burn with such rapid fierceness as was here proved. It spread in a complete circle, and the loud snapping and crackling of the flames was similar to that which I had known from a fire at Cornhill, in London, when the four corners were ali on fire at the same time. The two negroes, had managed to get within. the circle; and, from their running about to aid the flames where necessary, and tossing the fire along, appeared like devils living within the flames. We left them to attend the fire and spread it so as to procure a path for us, the following day, to the top of the mount,