labour from the
husbandman of India in procuring his daily provision. Indeed the actual
wants of the lower order of Natives are few, compared with those of the
same class in England; exertion has not, therefore, been called forth by
necessity in a climate which induces habits of indulgence, ease, and quiet;
where, however it may have surprised me at first, that I found not one
single Native disposed to delight in the neat ordering of a flower-garden,
I have since ascertained it is from their unwillingness to labour without
a stronger motive than the mere gratification of taste.[37] Hence the
uncultivated ground surrounding the cottages in India, which must
naturally strike the mind of strangers with mingled feelings of pity and
regret, when comparing the cottages of the English peasantry with those of
the same classes of people in Hindoostaun.

The bamboo presents to the admirer of Nature no common specimen of her
beautiful productions; and to the contemplating mind a wide field for
wonder, praise, and gratitude. The graceful movements of a whole forest of
these slender trees surpass all description; they must be witnessed in
their uncultivated ground, as I have seen them, to be thoroughly
understood or appreciated, for I do not recollect wood scenery in any
other place that could convey the idea of a forest of bamboo.

The bamboos are seen in clusters, striking from the parent root by suckers,
perhaps from fifty to a hundred in a patch, of all sizes; the tallest in
many instances exceed sixty feet, with slender branches, and leaves in
pairs, which are long, narrow, and pointed. The body of each bamboo is
hollow and jointed, in a similar way to wheat stalks, with bands or knots,
by which wonderful contrivance both are rendered strong and flexible,
suited to the several designs of creative Wisdom. The bamboo imperceptibly
tapers from the earth upwards. It is the variety of sizes in each cluster,
however, which gives grace and beauty to the whole as they move with every
breath of air, or are swayed by the strong wind.

Where space allows the experiment, the tallest bamboo may be brought down
to a level with the earth, without snapping asunder. In the strong tempest
the supple bamboo may be seen to bow submissively,--as the self-subdued
and pliant mind in affliction,--and again rear its head uninjured by the
storm, as the righteous man 'preserved by faith' revives after each trial,
or temptation.

The wood of the bambo