Thofe who hunt the wild boar, have of late been called fimply Hunters.

any

In hunting, they fet out at daybreak, preceded by the beagles, and followed by their fervants with the reft of the dogs; and as they made it a point never to balk their beagles, they were often led by them over the moft frightful precipices, and through places which other mortal would have deemed abfolutely impaffable. As foon as the beagles had rouzed the game, the rest of the dogs ftruck up and furrounded the beaft, ftopping it, and keeping a conftant barking till the Buccaneer could get near enough to fhoot it; in doing this he commonly aimed at the pit of the breaft; when the beaft fell, he ham-ftrung it, to prevent its rifing again. But it has fometimes happened that the creature, not wounded enough to tumble to the ground, has run furioufly as his purfuer, and ripped him open. But in general the Buccaneer feldom miffed his aim, and when he did, was nimble enough to get up the tree behind which he had the precaution to place himfelf. What is more, fome of them have been feen to overtake the beaft in chace, and ham-ftring it without any further ceremony.

their tables ready, for every one had his feparate table, which was the first thing, any way fit for the purpose, that came in their way, a ftone, the trunk of a tree, and the like. No table-cloth, no napkin, no bread or wine graced their board; not even potatoes or bananas, unless they found them ready to their hands. When this did not happen, the fat and lean of the game, taken alternately, ferved to supply the place. A little pimento, and the fqueeze of an orange, their only fauce; contentment, peace of mind, a good appetite, and abundance of mirth, made every thing agreeable. Thus they lived and spent their time, till they had compleated the number of hides for which they had agreed with the merchants; which done, they carried them to Tortuga, or fome port of the great ifland.

As foon as the prey was half fkinned, the mafter cut out a large bone, and fucked the marrow for breakfaft. The reft he left to his fervants, one of whom always remained behind to finish the fkinning, and bring the fkin with a choice piece of meat for the huntsmen's dinner. They then continued the chace till they had killed as many beafts, as there were heads in the company. The maiter was the laft,. to return to the boucan, loaded like the reft, with a skin and a piece of meat. Here the Buccaneers found

As the Buccaneers used much exercife, and fed only on fresh meat, they generally enjoyed a good state of health. They were indeed fubject to fevers, but either fuch as lafted only a day, and left no fenfible impreffion the day following, or little flow fevers, which did not hinder them from action, and were of courfe fo little regarded, that it was ufual with the patient, when afked how he did, to answer, Very "well, nothing ails me but the "fever." It was impoffible, however, they should not suffer confiderably by fuch fatigues under a climate,› to the heat of which few of them had been early enough inured. Hence the most confiderate among them, after they had got money enough for that purpofe, turned Planters.

The reft foon spent the fruits of their labour in taverns and tippling houfes; and many had fo habituated themfelves to this kind of

tife, as to become incapable of any other. Nay, there have been inftances of young men, who having early embarked through neceffity in this painful and dangerous profeffion, perfifted in it afterwards, merely through a principle of libertinifm, rather than return to France, and take poffeffion of the most plentiful fortunes.

Such were the Buccaneers of St. Domingo, and fuch their fitua. tion, when the Spaniards undertook to extirpate them. And at firft they met with great fuccefs; for as the Buccaneers hunted feparately, every one attended by his fervants, they were eafily furprised. Hence the Spaniards killed numbers, and took many more, whom they condemned to a most cruel flavery. But whenever the Buccaneers had time to put themselves in a state of defence, they fought like lions, to avoid falling into the hands of a nation, from whom they were fure to receive no quarter; and by this means they often efcaped; nay there are many instances of single men fighting their way through numbers. Thefe dangers however, and the fuccefs of the Spaniards in difcovering their boucans where they used to fur prife and cut the throats of them and their fervants in their fleep, engaged them to cohabit in greater numbers, and even to act offenfively, in hopes that by fo doing, they might at laft induce the Spaniards to let them live in peace. But the fury with which they behaved whenever they met any Spaniards, ferved only to make their enemies more intent on their destruction; and affiftance coming to both parties, the whole island was turned into a flaughter-houfe, and fo much blood fpilt on both fides, that many places on account of the carnage of

which they had been the theatres, were intitled, of the massacre; fuch as the hill of the maffacre, the plain of the majacre, the valley of the majacre; which names they retain to this day.

At length the Spaniards grew tired of this way of proceeding, and had recourfe to their old method of furprize, which against enemies. of more courage than vigilance was like to fucceed better. This put the Buccaneers under a neceflity. of never hunting but in large parties, and fixing their boucans in the little iflands on the coaft, where they retired every evening. This expedient fucceeded, and the boucans by being more fixed, foon acquired the air and confiftency of little towns.

When the Buccaneers had once fixed themselves, as related, each boucan ordered scouts every morning to the highest part of the island in order to reconnoitre the coast, and fee if any Spanish parties were abroad. If no enemy appeared, they appointed a place and hour of rendezvous in the evening, and were never abfent if not killed or prifoners. When therefore any one of the company was miffing, it was not lawful for the reft to hunt again till they had got intelligence of him if taken, or avenged his death if killed.

Things continued in this fituation for a long time, till the Spaniards made a general hunt over the whole island, and by deftroying their game, put the Buccaneers under a neceflity of betaking themfelves to another course of life. Some of them turned planters, and thereby increased fome of the French fettlements on the coast, and formed others. The reft, not relishing fo confined and regular a life, entered

ticular attention.

T is generally fuppofed, that the peninfula within the Ganges is under the immediate government of the Mogul, and that his mandates from Delli are obeyed in the most remote parts of the coaft; but a great part of that vaft peninfula never acknowledged any fubjection ao the throne of Delli, till the reign of Aureng Zebe: and the revenues from thofe Indian kings, and Moorish governors, who were conquered or employed by him, have, fince his death, been intercepted by the viceroys, which his weaker fucceffors have appointed for the government of the peninfula; fo that at this time neither can the tribute from the feveral potentates reach the court of Delli, nor the vigour of the government extend from the capital to those remote countries. And ever fince the province of Indoftan was ruined by Nadir Shah, the weakness of the Mogul, and the policy and confirmed independency of the vice-roys, have confined the influence of the government to its inland department.

The nominal fovereign poffeffes a third only, and that the leaft valuable part of his empire. Bengal, the smallest but most fertile province, is governed by a vice-roy. The other divifion, called Deckan, extending from Balafore, or Jagonaut, to Cape Comarin, is also delegated by the Mogul to another vice-roy, of exceeding great power, having within his jurifdiction feven large territories, to which he has the undifputed right of nominating feven nabobs, or governors of provinces. In all parts of India there are still large diftricts, which have preferved, with the Gentoo religion, the old form of government under Indian kings, called Rajas. Such are Maiffore, whofe capital is Seringapatam, and Tanjore, whofe capital is Tanjore. There are alfo a among the woods and mountainous parts of the country feveral petty princes, or heads of clans, diftinguifhed by the name of Polygars. These are all tributary to the nabobs, and thofe to the vice-roys, whofe capital is Aurengabad. The Carnatic is that part of the Deckan, which comprehends the principal fettlements of the Europeans, Madrafs, and Pondicherry, and alfo Arcot. To eftablish the government of Arcot, and to oppofe the hoftile intentions of M. Dupliex, the Englifh Eaft India company engaged in this war in fupport of Mahomet Allee Cawn.

The chain of mountains which runs through the peninsula from north to fouth, is the cause of an extraordinary phenomenon in natural hiftory. The countries which are feparated by these mountains, though under the fame latitude. have their feafons and climate entirely different; for while it is winter on one fide of the hills, it is

fum

fammer on the other. On the coaft of Malabar a S. W. wind begins to blow from the fea at the end of June, with continued rain, and continues four months, during which time the weather is calm and ferene on the coast of Coromandel; and toward the end of October, the rainy season, which they term the change of the monfoon, begins on the coaft of Coromandel; at which time, the tempeftuous winds beating continually against a coaft, on which there are no good ports, make it so dangerous for the fhipping to remain there for the three enfuing months, that it is scarce ever attempted. This is the cause of the periodical return of our fhips to Bombay, where there is a fecure harbour, and convenient docks.

Without fome explanations it will be difficult to conceive how a handful of Europeans fhould appear fo refpectable in the field, when oppofed to a multitude of Afiatics.

It is alfo difficult to conceive how fuch vaft multitudes as the Afiatic armies frequently confift of, efpecially with fo large a proportion of horfe, can be fubfifted, as every horfeman has two fervants, one to take care of his horfe, the other to procure him forage, and all thefe are not only accompanied with their wives and children, but there always follows the camp a moveable town of fhops, where every thing is to be fold as in their cities, fome hundreds of elephants for ftate only, and a train of women (with their numberless retinue) belonging to the prince and the great officers.

To provide for all thefe, the whole country is put in motion, and the ftrictest orders are given for all provifions to be brought into the camp. By this means all the cities far and near are exhaufted, but the

camp, for the most part, is plentifully fupplied.

The forage is procured in the following manner: Every horfeman is allowed a man for the purpose, who is conftantly employed in cutting turf, and washing the roots of it; and this is a more hearty food for a horfe than grafs. A fhower of rain produces another crop in a few days time; and, in cafe of continuing dry weather, they move their camp to fresh ground.

They also feed their horses in the rice fields; and where meet is plenty, they boil the offal to rags, and mixing it with butter and fome forts of grain, make balls of it, which they thruft down the horses throats. In a fcarcity of provifions, they give them opium, which has the fame effect both on the horfes and men, for at once it damps their appetites, and enables them to endure fatigue. The horfes of the country are naturally fo exceedingly vicious, that they are not to be broke in the manage, and cannot be brought to act with the fame regularity in the field, as a squadron of European cavalry. The Perfian horfes being more gentle and docile, are greatly esteemed, and often valued at a thoufand guineas. Thofe of India fell for fifty or a hundred.

Many of the Indians abstain from all kinds of animal food, and live chiefly, if not wholly, upon rice; and they have fo great a veneration for cows, that they are all prohibited by their religion, from killing any of that fpecies; therefore there generally is a fufficient fupply of beef for the Mahometan foldiery, and the fmall proportion of Europeans.

Their rivers, when they are not fordable, in the rainy feafon become torrents, being fwelled to fuch a B 4 degree,

degree, that they are not to be paffed but obliquely, the landing place being frequently a mile below the place of embarkation, and heavy veffels, built of timber, could not be brought up againft the ftream to ferve again.

They therefore make large boats of a kind of basket work, which they cover with skins. As there muft be always great plenty of hides in fo numerous an army, they are easily made. They are very light and manageable, and yet they will carry above fifty horfe, and are capable of tranfporting the heaviest artillery.

The Afiatics have an invincible dread of fire-arms, the true cause of which lies in the inexperience of their leading men, who never underftood the advantages of difcipline, and who have kept their infantry upon too low a footing. Their cavalry, though not backward to engage with fabres, are extremely unwilling to bring their horfes within the reach of guns; fo that they do not decline an engagement fo much through fear for their lives, as for their fortunes, which are all laid out in the horse they ride

on.

Such of the natives as have been disciplined and encouraged by Europeans, and formed into a regular infantry, under officers of their own, and generally known by the name of Seapoys, have familiarized themfelves to fire-arms, and behaved well behind walls; and when we give them ferjeants to lead them on, they make no contemptible figure in the field.

Nothing is fo ruinous to their military affairs as their falfe notions of artillery; they are terrified with that of the enemy, and foolishly put a confidence in their own; placing

their chief dependence on the largest pieces, which they neither know how to manage nor move. They give them pompous and founding names, as the Italians do their guns, and have fome pieces which carry a ball of 70 pounds, When we march round them with our light field pieces, and make it neceffary to move thofe enormous weights, their bullocks, which are at beft very untractable, if a fhot comes among them, are quite ungovernable, and at the fame time are fo ill harneffed, that it occafions no fmall delay to free the reft from any one that fhall happen to be unruly or flain.

In war with the Afiatics alone, we have a much greater advantage in their being fo very tenacious of their old manners, than in their want of bravery. Not only the prince himself, but every raja, who has command of all the forces he can bring into the field, be they more or lefs, always appears among them mounted on an elephant, and is at once the general and enfign, or ftandard of that corps, who keep their eyes conftantly on him; and if they lofe fight of him for a moment, conclude that all is loft, Thus we find, Aureng-zebe gained two battles by the treachery of thofe who defired his two victorious brothers to get down from their elephants, mount their horfes and purfue the vanquished; their troops miffing them, immediately difperfed, The fame practice, continued to this day, affords our engineers a fair opportunity of deciding the fate of a whole detachment, by one well directed difcharge of a fix-pounder'; and thofe enormous beafts, now feem to be brought into the field for no other end than to be a mark for our artillery.

Another