by means of a feal, Ayder figns the difpatches in order as they are compleated, as well as a number of private orders. Many writers report the contrary to this; which only proves that they have never feen Ayder half an hour at a time. The orders that iffue from the offices of the minifters, have no other fignature than that of the great feal, of which they are the depofitories; and the difpatch is clofed with the private feal of the minifter. The letters figned by Ayder are clofed by the feal of the fovereign, of which the principal fecretary is guardian. When this Nabob writes any interefting letter, or gives an order of importance, he affixes a particular or private feal, which he always wears on his finger; and in that cafe he himself carries the packet to one of his couriers, who conveys it as far as the firft ftation. To the packet is joined a paper, denoting the hour it was fent off; and at every station the time of its arrival is marked. We fhall afterwards have occafion to speak of these pofts, which have been fince imitated by the English.

If Ayder purchases horfes or ele. phants, or if new pieces of cannon have been founded or brought from any port or arfenal, he infpects them during this audience; the ani. mals or pieces of cannon being brought into the court or fquare of the palace.

Minifters, generals, ambaffadors, and other great men, rarely appear at this audience, unless commanded, or unless urged by extraordinary affairs. It is peculiar to their digpity to fee the prince only in the evening, when none but men of confequence are admitted; and nothing elle is thought of but to make their

court to the fovereign, or to share his pleafures. The great have agents, who are ufually Bramins, who folicit their affairs either with the prince or his minifters; and these agents, who have the title of Ouaquils, or envoys, have their leave of admiffion to the prefence when they have been prefented by their mafters, and are honourably received. nifters fend one of the principal fecretaries of their department to the prince; who, fitting before him in the fame pofture as the other fecretaries, communicate their business and converfe with him.

The mi

A great ambaffador, or other perfon of confequence, is announced in a loud voice by the chief of the ufhers, in thefe terms, "Your Ma"jefty, the lord of- -falutes

you." Minifters, fecretaries, ouaquils, or other men of bufinefs, are not announced, but go in and out without particular obfervation, except that they are careful to falute the Naboh. When a great man is' annour ced, the prince returns the falute, and begs him to be feated: the friends and other great men, who furround the fovereign, falute him alfo; and in proportion to the esteem or favour he as in with the Nabob, they give place, that he may approach him. A perfon of ordinary rank, who has requested an audience, makes three, reverences in entering, by moving his hand from his forehead almost to the ground; and afterwards places himself on one Gide of the chief usher, continuing filent, with his hands joined before him. The Nabob returns the falute by fimply touching his turban with his hand, and affects to continue the difcourfe with thofe about him after which he makes a fign for the perfon to advance, and de

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mands, in an engaging and affectionate manner, the fubject of his vifit and upon the expofition of the affair by the fuppliant, he receives a decifive anfwer. If he be aftran. ger of a genteel rank or employ ment, as a trader or merchant of confequence, he receives orders to fit; and his place is ufually on the right, fronting the fecretaries. The Nabob afks him fome questions re. fpecting his ftate of life, his country, or his voyage, and appoints a time when he will fee his merchandizes. Betel is then prefented to the ftranger, and is understood as equivalent to a permiffion to retire; which is done with the fame ceremony as at the entrance.

This audience continues till after three o'clock, which is the hour he returns to his apartment to fleep, or make the fiefto, as it is called in Italy.

About half past five, the prince returns into the hall of audience, or fome other large apartment, where he places himself in a balcony to fee his troops exercife, and his cavalry defile before him. He is, as in the morning, furrounded by fome of his friends or relations; and the fecretaries are bufied in reading letters, o: writing.

About half after fix, when the day clofes in, a great number of Manel. falgis, or bearers of flambeaux, appear in the court of the palace, and falute the prince as they pafs on the fide of the apartment where he is. They illuminate all the apartments in a moment, efpecially that in which the Nabob is, with tapers in chandeliers of exquifite workmanfhip, ornamented with feftoons of flowers of the utmost lightness and delicacy. These chandeliers, on account of the wind, are covered

with large fhades of English glass. There are likewife, in fome parts of the palace, large glafs lanthorns, painted with flowers of all colours. The great men, minifters, and ambaffadors, vifit the Nabob only at night. They are ufually perfumed with the most coftly perfumes. Befides the men in power and employment, the apartments are filled with young nobility; and every body affumes the most polite and engaging manners. After having faluted the prince, the falute is paid to his fons and relations, his minifters, and others, in an easy, unaffected man. ner. Among the young nobility, there are a certain number who have the title of Arabfbequi; which anfwers nearly to that of chamberlain, in Germany. There are ordinarily four in waiting each day : they are diftinguished by their fabre, which they carry in their hand in the fheath, ufing it nearly as a walking ftick. All the other company leave their arms in the hands of their pages and other attendants, who are very numerous, and fill the avenues of the palace. The pages alone are permitted to enter: they follow their mafter, bearing his train into the apartments, till they quit their flippers at their stepping on the carpet: the pages then let fall the train, and put the flippers in a bag. Ayder, who fets no great value on thefe ceremonies, permits the Europeans to come in with their fhoes on; though his apartments are commonly covered with white muflin, fpread upon the most fuperb Perfia carpets. He has fuch a predilection for white, that he caufes wainscotting, that is painted, gilt, and varnished, to be covered with white muflin; and even chairs and fophas of embroidered velvet or gold

ftuff.

Stuff. The Europeans deceive themfelves exceedingly in fuppofing, that it is by way of diftinction or pre eminence that they are permitted to enter the apartments in fhoes. This permiffion, given them in fome of the Indian courts, is occafioned by a notion the Indian princes have, that the Europeans are obftinate, and bigotted to their own cuftoms, however repugnant to decency and propriety. M. de Buffi, to coneiliate the Indian customs with those of the French, carried velvet flippers to the court of the Suba of Decan, which he put on; and made ufe of a kind of pantoufle in paffing from his carriage to the border of the car pet, where he threw them off. We may often avoid offending ftrangers by little attentions that coft nothing, and tend exceedingly to conciliate their affections.

There is, for the moft part, a comedy every night, that commences about eight in the evening, and lafts till eleven: it is intermixed with dances and fongs. During this comedy, the Arabfbequi continue near the ftrangers, and politely inform them of every thing they may defire to know; as the fubject of the comedy, the news of the day, &c. They are careful to afk, if he chooses to drink or eat; in which cafe, they cause fherbet, warm milk, fruits, or confectionary to be prefented to him; but they feldom eat. If the stranger chooses to play chefs, they play with him, or propofe a party. Ayder, to whom the entertainments of the ftage are very in different, difcourfes with his minif ters or ambassadors, fometimes paffing into a cabinet to fpeak with more fecrecy; and continues, as in the morning, to dispatch business, without feeming to be bufy. Al

moft always, before the end of the performance, flowers are brought to him in a basket of filigram, out of which he himself gives a few to the lords who are about him; and afterwards the basket is carried into the apartments of the theatre, every one taking afmall flower from them, and returning a profound reverence to the prince. This takes place even to the loweft fecretary. When Ayder wishes to give a particular mark of his efteem, he himself makes a collar of jafmine flowers, knotting them with filk as he con verfes, which he himself adjusts round the neck of the happy mortal to whom he gives this glorious mark of his esteem and favour. He has feveral times conferred this honour on the chiefs of his Europeans, knowing well that the French, above all nations, efteem themselves well paid by this fort of money. He who has received this honour, is vifired the following day by the first people of the court to compliment, him.

If a battle has been gained, or any other glorious event has happened in favour of the prince, the poet of the court arrives, announcing himself, at his first entering the apartments, by the pompous and extravagant titles he beftows on the prince: as, "Health to the greatest "king on earth, whofe name alone "caufes his enemies to tremble," &c. All the world, at the voice of the poet, becomes filent and attentive. The comedy or dance is interrupted; the poet enters, feats himfelf in the place immediately oppofite the prince, and recites a poem, which every body affects to hear with the utmost attention, except the prince, who feems at that time to be more particularly bufied

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in converfing with his minifters. The poet ufually, after fpeaking of the prince, proceeds to his relations, and the generals or principal officers; not forgetting the minifters and favourites. The young courtiers, or baras à demi, who are ufu. ally included altogether in the praifes bestowed by the poet, often turn it into ridicule; and their derifion extends even to thofe who are the highest fpoken of. They and the fecretaries, or other inferior courtiers, often parody the words of the, poem very pleafantly, fparing no body but the prince and his fon: but as they have no printing, both the poem and the criticifm are of fhort duration. We cannot speak of their public entertainments, without mentioning the Bayaderes, of whom the Abbe Raynal has drawn fo advantageous a portrait in his Hiftoire Philofophique.

At the prefent time, the court of Ayder is the most brilliant in India; and his company of performers is without contradiction the firft, as well on account of its riches, as because the Bayaderes are the women to whom he gives the preference. Being fovereign of part of Vifapour, he has every facility of procuring among this clafs of women, thofe who are most remarkable for their beauty and talents.

The comedians of the court are all women. A directrefs, who is likewife manager, purchafes young girls at the age of four or five years, who are chofen on account of their beauty. She caufes them to be in oculated, and then provides them with mafters both for dancing and mufic. They are taught every ac. complishment that can infpire the prince and his court with the love of

pleafures; and their fuccefs is fuch, that they delight and feduce the mott infenfible of men. They begin to appear in public at the age of about ten or eleven years. They have generally the most delicate features, large dark eyes, beautiful eyebrows, fmall mouth, and the finest teeth; their cheeks are dimpled, and their black hair hangs in flow. ing trefes to the ground; their complexion is a clear brown, not fuch as that of the mulatto women, who are incapable of blufhing; but like that of a country girl in the flow of health, who has preferved the rofes, after fuffering the lillies to fade. Thefe are the yellow wo men, that the Orientals prefer to all other they give themselves that tinge by painting their cheeks of a jonquil colour, in the fame manner as the French women ufe rouge; and it is remarkable that in a very fhort time one becomes habituated to this colour, and finds it agreeable. Their habit is always a fine gauze, very richly embroidered with gold; and they are covered with jewels: their head, their neck, their ears, their breasts, their arms, fingers, legs, and toes, have their jewels; and even their nofe is ornamented with a small diamond, that gives them an arch look, which is far from being unpleafing.

The comedies are all pieces of intrigue. They perfonate either women who league together to deceive a jealous husband, or young girls that confpire to deceive their mother. It is impoffible to play with more art or with more natural ease. Their fongs are gay and agreeable. The words that are fung by a fingle voice are almoft always the complaint of a lover. Those which are

fung

fung in chorus are much gayer; but they have no fecond parts, and are always repeated.

The dancers are fuperior in their performance to the comedians and fingers it may even be affirmed that they would afford pleasure on the theatre of the opera at Paris. Every part is employed when these girls dance; their heads, their eyes, their arms, their feet, and all their body feem to move only to enchant and furprise. They are very light, and very strong in the legs; turning round on one foot, and fpringing up immediately after with a Surprising force. They have fo much accuracy in their movements, that they accompany the inftruments with bells that are on their feet; and as they are of the most elegant figures, all their motions are graceful. No Bayadere of the prince's company is more than feventeen years old. At this age they are difmiffed; and either travel over the province, or attach themfelves to the Pagods.

The directress of this company is paid by the prince; but her emo. luments are not known. She has always a number of pieces ready in rehearsal to be played at a moment's notice. Though there is every reafon to think he is well paid by Ayder for the pleasures the procures him, the emoluments the receives from private individuals of fortune, are ftill more advantageous to her. When a great man gives a fet fupper, he has ufually a comedy ornamented with fongs and dances. The directress of the prince's company is paid one hundred rupees for every actress that plays, fings, or dances.

The number of these actresses is often more than twenty, the inftrumental mufic not being charged.

If a fupper is given to a few private friends, the fingers and dancers are likewife employed at the fame price of one hundred rupees. Befides which, they must be fornifhed with fupper, and abundance of fruits, fweetmeats, and warın milk. If the friends are retained to fleep (as is often done, where their fuppers are more friendly than ceremonious) they chufe each a companion for the night among the performers, for which the directrefs is likewife paid one hundred rupees each; and the mafter of the houfe muft prefent his friend with fome trinket, or piece of stuff, to be given to the damfel when the is fent away in the morning.

Befides the prince's company, there are feveral others in the town where the court is kept, and in the armies. There are even fome that are compofed of men only but the people of the court never have re courfe to any but the prince's company.

At eleven o'clock, or about midnight, every one retires but thofe that fup with the Nabob; who, except on grand feftivals, are always his friends and relations.

This mode of life pursued by Ayder, is, as may be cafily imagined, interrupted in the army. It is likewife occafionally interrupted by hunting parties, by excurfions on foot or horfeback, or by his attending to affift at the exercises and evclutions made by confiderable bodies of his troops.

When he is obliged to remain a

month