h of rupees. But
no--they landed from the boats, and pushed her into the water with long
poles, while she screamed for pity. A large alligator swam up to her,
and she fell senseless with fright, just before he received her in his
jaws. So I don't think the poor creature suffered much after that,
although the agony of anticipation must have been worse than the
reality. That one instance affected me more than the scores of infants
that were sacrificed to Moloch."

Distressing as the narrative was, there was a novelty and interest in
it, and a degree of feeling unexpectedly shown by the captain of the
pilot vessel that raised him in the opinion of Captain M---, who became
anxious to obtain further information.

"They consider the river as sacred--do you imagine that they consider
the alligators to be so?"

"I rather think that they do, sir, although I only judge from what I
have seen, as I have read nothing about it. At all events, the presence
of an alligator will not prevent them from performing a customary duty
of their religion, which is, bathing in the sacred river. The people
come down to bathe at the different ghauts, and if an alligator takes
one of them down, it will not prevent the others from returning the next
morning, even if one was to be taken away each succeeding day. I rather
think that, in the discharge of a sacred duty, they consider all
accidents of this kind as according to the will of the deity, and a sort
of passport to heaven. A party of murderous villains turned this
feeling of their countrymen to good account at a ghaut up the country.
The natives had bathed there for centuries without any accident on
record, when, one day, a woman disappeared under the water from amongst
the rest, and every day for many weeks the same untoward circumstance
occurred. It was supposed to be an alligator, but it was afterwards
ascertained that this party of thieves had concealed themselves in the
jungle on the opposite side of the river, which at that part was deep,
but not very wide, and had a rope with a hook to it extended under water
to the ghaut, where the people bathed. Some of the gang mingled with
the bathers, and slipping down under water, made the rope fast to the
legs of one of the women, who was immediately hauled under the water by
his comrades, concealed on the opposite side. You may be wondering why
the rascals took so much trouble: but, sir, the women of this country,
especially those of