rried down to
be in time for the ceremony of his reception.

In a few moments we were rattling in one of the only carriages in Nepaul
over one of the only carriage-roads of which it can boast, and soon
reached the bridge, near which was pitched a spacious tent. On our way
we passed a square lined with soldiers, and the streets were crowded with
a motley population, such as it would be vain to endeavour to describe,
but which increased in density as we approached the centre of attraction,
near which we were obliged to leave the carriage, and were conducted
between rows of soldiers by various members of the royal household, each
of us being led by the hand in the most affectionate manner. My
conductor was a brother of Jung Bahadoor's, who distinguished himself
about a week afterwards by a base attempt to assassinate the minister. I
was unfortunate in my friends in other instances besides this: one old
man, who had accompanied the minister to Europe, and was an especial ally
of mine on board ship, was implicated in the same vile plot against the
life of the man towards whom he had every reason to feel gratitude, if
such a sentiment is known amongst Orientals. Poor old Kurbeer Kutrie was
a venerable-looking dignified old man, bigoted to an excess, and
thoroughly disgusted with his trip to the land of the beef-eaters, though
he could not but admit that what he saw was wonderful! The ignominious
punishment which was inflicted upon him for his share in the conspiracy,
and by which he lost caste, was doubtless more severely felt by him than
death would have been. Not that it signifies in the least in Nepaul
whether a man is a fratricide or prefers making away with more distant
relatives. If you do not associate with assassins, you must give up the
pleasures of Nepaul society. Among the natives assassination is not
looked upon as a crime, but as a matter of course; the minister, however,
with those of his suite who accompanied him on his recent mission, have
become more enlightened in this respect, and have found to their
astonishment that indiscriminate murder is not the usual mode adopted in
the civilized world for bringing about political changes or accomplishing
private ends.

Jung Bahadoor, no doubt, now wishes that more of the Durbar had made the
same trip, and profited by it in like manner, since the custom above
alluded to must be highly inconvenient to him, more particularly since he
has eight brothers, most of