her; in this I readily acquiefced, having before felt fome degree of inclination for it, which I had fupprefsed, on finding that none of my friends were difpofed to accompany me. It was not without confiderable difficulty that I traced the folitary to his cave; and on leaving him wandered about for fome time over a moft defolate country, before I could rejoin my companions. Conceive an open country many miles in circumference, with numberlefs tracts interfecting one anether, all leading to widely different places, and all equally remarkable; conceive me alfo on this heath, on which I had never been before, in thickest of fogs, and you will have fome idea of my fituation. I must own my old friend gave me as good a description as he could of the road I was to take; but he pointed out fome objects for direction, which I could not fee through the mist, as it came on much faster after I had quitted him; and he acknowledged,moreover, that, feldom leaving his cell, he knew little of the different paths that conducted to "the bufy haunts of men," It is probably in most cases fome difguft conceived against man-. kind, arifing from the bafenefs of individuals connected with him, that has made the melancholy and fentimental hermit forfake the chearful circles of fociety; and a cause of this fort feems to have operated very forcibly on the mind of the folitary I am defcribing. He, in the early part of life, (he is now feventy-three) received a brother into his houfe, who, after having wafted his fubftance in riotous living, was greatly diftreffed, and who requited his hofpitality by debauching his wife; he then fold a fmall freehold, and wandered about the country for feveral years after the death of his unfaithful partner. He married a second time; it was to a widow,and she behaved well to him; when he died, he betook himself to his old trade of a bricklayer, and but whither am I going? this hermit of mine has already filled too many pages to my correfpendent; let me call another cause. I AMUSING ACCOUNT OF AN ELEPHANT HUNT IN THE EAST INDIES. MY DEAR SIR, filled with the Nawab's women; many large and fmall boats carried on carts drawn by 50, 40, 30, or 20 bullocks; tygers, leopards, hawks, fighting-cocks, quails, and nightingales; pigeons, dancing women, and boys; fingers, players, buffoons, and mountebanks. In short, his Excellency had every thing, every object which could pleafe or furprife, caufe a fmile, or raise a fneer, attract admiration, fix with wonder, or convulse with laughter; captivate the eye, lull the ear, or tickle the palate; above 500 Coolees were employed to carry his fhooting apparatus, guns, powder, fhot, and etceteras; he has above 1000 double barrel guns, the finest Kk 2 AM juft returned from a four months excurfion with his Excellency the Nawab, and as a sketch of Our ramble may afford you fome amusement in an idle hour, I fhall detail a few of the most agreeable and interesting circumftances which occurred. We left Lucnow on the 4th of October 1793, and directed our course towards Baraeech: our Kafeela confifted of about 40,000 men and 20,000 beafts, compofed of ten thousand foldiers, 1000 cavalry, and near 150 pieces of cannón: 1500 elephants, 3000 Hackeries, and an innumerable train of camels, horfes, and bullocks; great numbers of Ruts * *Ruts are covered carriages for women, drawn by oxen. that that Manton and Nock could make, and fingle barrels, piftols, fwords, and spears without number. Religion constrained him to stop fome days at Baraeech to pay hom age at the tomb of a celebrated Saint*; all good men who are able refort to worship this holy Anchorite once a year, generally in the month of May; his bones were discovered about 400 years ago, and manifefted their fanctity by fome miraculous marks. From Baraeech we steered towards Nanpara, a small town in the first range of mountains, commonly called the Commow Hills, which extend from the Eastern extremity of Bootan to Hurdwar, and divide Hindof tan from Tibet and Napal. Game of all forts were destroyed every morning and evening without number or diftinction; his Excellency is one of the best marksmen I ever faw; it would be ftrange if he was not, as one day with another he fires above 100 fhots at every species of birds and animals, The first tiger we faw and killed was in the mountains: we went to attack him about noon; he was in a narrow valley, which the Nawab surrounded with above 200 elephants; we heard him growl horribly in a thick bush in the middle of the valley. Being accustomed to the fport, and very eager, I pushed in my elephant; the fierce beast charged me immediately; the elephant, a timid animal, as they generally are, turned tail, and depriv ed me of the opportunity to fire; I ventured again, attended by two or three other elephants; the tiger made a fpring, and nearly reached the back of one of the elephants, on which were three or four men ; the elephant shook himself fo forcibly as to throw these men off his back; they tumbled into the bush; I gave them up for loft, but was agreeably furpri zed to see them creep out unhurt.—— His Excellency was all this time on a rifing ground near the thicket, looking on calmly, and beckoning to me to drive the tiger towards him; I made another attempt, and with more success; he darted out towards me on my approach, roaring furiously, and lathing his fides with his tail. I luckily got a shot, and hit him; he retreated into the bush, and ten or twelve elephants just then pushing into the thicket, alarmed the tiger, and obliged him to run out towards the Nawab, who inftantly gave him a warm reception, and, with the affiftance of fome of his Omraos, laid the tiger sprawling on his fide as dead as a ftone. A loud hout of wha! wha! proclaimed the victory; and those who had been too timid to approach before from idle apprehenfion, affumed their valour,andrufhed on the fallen hero with flaughtering fwords. On elephants there is no danger in encountering thefe favage beafts, which you know from repeated trials. I have been at the killing of above thirty tigers, and seldom saw any one hurt: if you recollect, I was once thrown off my elephant on one, and efcaped with a bruise. The next fport we had of any magnitude was the attack on a wild elephant, which we met a few days af ter, the battle with the tiger: we ef pied him on a large plain overgrown with grafs. The Nawab, eager for fuch diverfions, immediately formed a femi-circle with 400 elephants, who were directed to advance on and encircle him. This was the first wild elephant I had ever feen attack. ed, and confefs I did not feel very eafy, however I kept alongfide of his Excellency, determined to take my chance. When the femi-circle of elephants got within three hundred yards of the wild one, he looked amazed, but not frightened, two * Named Salar Gazee. large * large muf elephants of the Nawab's were ordered to advance against him; when they approached within 20 yards, he charged them; the fhock was dreadful; however, the wild one conquered, and drove the must elephants before him. As he paffed us, the Nawab ordered fome of the strongest female elephants with thick ropes to go along fide of him, and endeavour to entangle him with noofes and running knots; the attempt was vain, as he fnapped every rope, and none of the tame elephants could stop his progrefs. The Nawab, perceiving it impoffible to catch him, ordered his death, and immediately a volley of above 100 fhots were fired; many of the balls hit him, but he feemed unconcerned, and moved on towards the mountains: we kept up an inceffant fire for near half an hour; the Nawab and most of his Omraos ufed rifles which carried two or three ounce balls, but they made very lit tle impreffion; the balls juft entered the fkin and lodged there. I went up repeatedly, being mounted on à female elephant, within ten yards of the wild one, and fired my rifle at his head; the blood gushed out, but the fkull was invulnerable. Some of the Kandahar horfe galloped up to the wild elephant, and made cuts at him with their fabres; he charged the horsemen, wounded fome, and killed others. Being now much exhausted with the lofs of blood, having receiv ed above 3000 shots,and many strokes of the fabre, he flackened his pace, quite calm and ferene, as if determined to meet his approaching end with the undaunted firmness of a hero. I could not at this time refrain from pitying fo noble an animal, and thought I faw in him the great Epa * minondas incompaffed by the Lacede monians, at the battle of Mantineia. The horfemen feeing him weak and flowdifmounted,and with their fwords. began a furious attack on the tendons of his hind legs; they were foon cut; unable to proceed, this noble monarch of the woods staggered, looked with an eye of reproach mixed with contempt at his unfeeling foes, and then fell without a groan, like a mountain thrown on its fide. The Hatchetmen now advanced, and commenced an attack on his large ivory tusks, whilst the horfemen and foldiers, with barbarous infult, began a cruel and degrading affault on the extended hero; to try the sharpness of their fabres; difplay the strength of their arm, and fhew their invincible courage. The fight was very affecting: he ftill breathed, and breathed without a groan; he rolled his eyes with anguish on the furrounding crowd; and, making a last effort to rise, expired with a figh! Thus has many a brave Roman met his fate, overcome by fuperior numbers. The Nawab returned to his tents, as much flushed with vanity and exultation as Achilles; and the remainder of the day, and many a day after, were dedicated to repeated narrations of this victory, which was ornamented and magnified by all the combined powers of ingenious flattery and unbounded exagge ration. "Sooth'd with the found, the Prince grew vain, "Fought all his battles o'er again, "And thrice 'he routed all his foes, " and thrice he flew the flain." From the mountains we directed our courfe towards Buckra Jeel, where we arrived on the 4th of December, Buckra Jeel is a large lake about three Muft elephants are those who are in high rut; they are then very unmanage able, bold, favage, and often very dangerous. The male elephants become must at a certain age, which fome fay is forty years; the muft elephants are the only ones who will dare to face a wild one; they are alfo ufed in the elephant-fights exhibited before the Princes of India. three miles round at its most contracted exiftence, and about 30 in its extenfive period; furrounded by thick and high grafs, at the foot of the Gor. sackpoor hills; the Jungle which entours the lake is full of wild elephants, rhinocerofes, tigers, leopards, wild buffalos, deer, and every species of aerial game. This was the place deftined for the grand hunt, which we were daily taught to expect with pleafing anxiety, by the florid defcriptions of his Excellency. On the 5th of December, early in the morning, we were fummoned to the Sylvan war: a line of 1200 elephants was drawn up on the North of the Jake, facing the Eaft; and we proceeded rapidly through the high grafs with minds glowing with the expectation of the magnanimous fport we hould meet. Lay down your pipes, ye country fquires, who boaft in fuch pompous language the deftruction of a poor fox or pufs, and say in what fplendid lexicon ye could find terms to convey a resemblance of the scene I faw, and now endeavour to def. cribe. When we had arrived at the Eaftern extremity of the lake, we perceived a large drove of wild elephants feeding and gambling at the foot of the mountains; I counted above one hundred and seventy. At this critical moment Mr Conway, a Genleman in the Nawab's fervice, fell off his elephant, owing to the animal's flipping his fore foot into a concealed hole. Mr Conway was much bruised, pale, and almost fenfelefs; the Nawab ftopped to put him into a palankeen, and fent him back to the encampment. This gave the wild elephants time to gaze on our dreadful front, and recover from their amaze; many of them fcampered off towards the hills. The Nawab divided our line of 1200 elephants into four bodies, and fent them in pursuit of the wild ones, which they were to take or deftroy; I remained with the divifion attached to the Nawab; we attacked a large male elephant, and after a long contest killed him in the fame manner as the one I have already defcribed; we killed alfo four fmaller ones, and our divifion, including the other three, caught 21 elephants, which we led to our encampment in high triumph. I have only given a fhort account of this grand hunt, as it is impoffible for the most fplendid language to defcribe what we faw and felt. The confufion, tumult, noife, firing, fhrieking, and roaring of 1200 tame elephants attacked and attacking 170 wild ones, all in terrible diforder toffed, formed a dreadful melange which cannot be imagined by the most luxuriant fancy; to attempt therefore a delineation would be to injure the fublime subject. There were above 10,000 shots fired from all quarters; and confidering the confufion, I am furprised the fcène was not more bloody on our fide; about 20 men were killed and maimed, and near half a dozen of horfes. I had two rifles and two double barrels, and a boy to load for me in the Khawas* ; yet I could not fire quick enough, though I expended 400 balls. Many of our tame elephants, who were muft, and brought to oppose the wild ones, were knocked down, bruifed, pierced, and made to fly; the largest elephant we killed was above ten feet high +, and would have fold for 20,000 rupees if it had been caught. Our prize of this day *The Khawas is a place in the rear of the Howda, where the attendant fits. The Howda is a carriage or box like the body of a phaton, tied on the back of the elephant, where the rider is feated. Travellers fay there are elephants 16 feet high, but this is the language of romance; I never faw one 11 feet high, and I have feen above fome thoufands. The Nawab gives extravagant prices for large elephants, and he has none 11 feet high. 2500l. fterling. day might, without amplification, be eftimated at 50,000 rupees §; but you know the love of lucre was not our aim. Paufe for a moment, my dear Sir, and reflect on the fcene I have defcribed; and you will confefs, though feen through the imperfect medium of a defcription, that it must have been the fublimeft fight that ever was prefented to the mind of man in the Sylvan war. Apollo would have been aftonished; Acteon confterned; and Diana and her nymphs frightened out of their wits. We expatiate on it with rapture to this day; and no one who was prefent will lofe the re membrance of it as long as he enjoy his rappellant faculties. From Buckra Feel we came to Faizebad, where we repofed for three weeks, to recover from the great fatigue we had undergone. After a gay scene of every species of oriental amufement and diffipation, we returned to this place, having killed in our excurfion eight tigers, fix elephants, and caught twenty-one. To enumerate the other kinds of game would require a fheet as ample as the petition which was prefented to Junggaze Khan; and might perhaps be treated by you in the manner that conqueror treated the petition. AUTHENTIC AND INTERESTING STORY OF ADAM FLEMING, AND ELLEN IRVINE. THE val was finally difmiffed. Jealous at this preference, and provoked beyond measure at his ill fortune, the difappointed man waited with gloomy anxiety for the day of revenge. That day came unfortunately too foen.-Having traced the lovers from their home to one of the romantic feats already defcribed near the banks of the rivulet, where they were fitting, and difcourfing of their approaching marriage, the ruffian returned to his houfe, deliberately loaded his carbine, and took his station among fome dwarf trees which grew on the other fide of the ftream. When he thought he had a convenient opportunity, he levelled his aim at his fuccessful rival; but the faithful Ellen, who perceived his murderous defign, and was refolved to prevent it, had time to caft herself before her lover; and having received the contents of the carbine in her own breast, fhe instantly expired. Words cannot paint the amazement, the horror, and despair, of the wretched Adam Fleming. Inftantly, however, he purfued the affaffin, who vainly hoped to escape by flight, and, having taken from him a life too justly forfeited, he left Scotland, and ferved with diftinction ig Above 6cool. fterling. In the reign of the lovely, but unfortunate, Mary, their lived near this enchanting spot a young maid named Ellen Irvine; who, tho' a vaffal to the Laird of Kirkconnel, was herself heiress to a very confiderable fortune. This circumstance, and her beauty, for which he was fo highly celebrat ed as to be called by way of diftinction The Fair Ellen, procured her numerous admirers. Two of thefe, in particular, one whofe name is not handed down to us, the other a youth of amiable character, by name Adam Fleming, preffed their fuit with equal eagerness, and, for a time, with equal fuccefs. At length the virtues of young Fleming prevailed, and his ri the |