Show froin from the western luter letter from elder robert skelton 0 of the east india mission after laboring in this place elder ballantyne twelve months and myself seventeen inon hs we ire left fil fit the former on account of it ill lii health myself by b request of the president of the mission having baptized twelve persons two of whom are arc proficient in theology and were formerly fori forr preachers of the baptist persuasion aua nua bion sion these are now authorized elders and have charge of the madras mission their names are J mills and john mccarthy six members have been added to the church mince my departure from that place there being a greater number of the humble class here greater inducements are held out to the thet laborers who flatter themselves that a woo goo work will eventually be done among them 0 I 1 however have little faith for the inhabitants at present and have from the commencement of my labors among them believed that after the chastising hand of f the almighty passes over them that forget god a I 1 remnant may per chance be saved whilst thus engage engaged may mag pro mul gating the truths of heaven we have been tenderly cared for by instruments raised up tip for our especial benefit who I 1 am confident will receive a disciples reward the manners and customs of the people are entirely different from those of european ex traction the engliski Engli sli however do to not riot diffie materially bal baving saving III in habit their dress being chiefly the tile same labor ia is almost unknown among them it beit belt being ir performed by the native community an ordinary family cannot do without three servants at the very least and f for the most part vary from eight to twelve not including shermen wa who are always sep sepe strat arate from efrom the domestic servants each bachna na tive live has his own trade cook ki kid dinager maper mater the man who cleans the furniture gate keeper groom ac ac and the whole posse of will not do tiie tile smallest chore out of their line and caste no matter how bow urgent the case may be the poor groom 1 room haq liis I 1 think thinly an arduous duty to berf perform orin mornia g and evening running before the horses and carriage to clear chear tile the way vay the inhabitants abitanta inh being so numerous crowd the avenues to overflowing overdo whig g and are very apt to run before the team in confusion on fusion many of course are run over and ani ant riot not a few killed in large cities those who are not able to purchase horses and ind cari carl carriages lagis use pallies pal kies kles as it is altogether impracticable to travel in fit the scorching hot buil suii some europeans Euro pears peats have done it it is true but at the cost of much sickness the natives do not buffer suffer f from roin tile the effects their dresa dress being light and a in many instances they go without any the edans wear a very comely dress consisting of a loose robe wide pantaloons and turban the better class among the llin doos copy after the europeans the middling dlin class oasis wear a fine light currah coveri covert covering dg the person unlike the coolies who mho bestow only a narrow strip which is placed around the loins lollis children for lle ile lie the most par part run gunj naked bathing in the ganges const constitutes it it te a aj great luxury with them having traveled considerably in the interior of the country I 1 have lave save had an opportunity to observe the general characteristics and great difference between the christians and idola tors from personal observation and diligent inqui j ries relative to the character of each party I 1 ii have found vice to preponderate mostly where civilization exists some districts where here europeans are unknown the tile people are in favor of capital punishment ish ment in cases of seduction others again tolerate it without restraint and it is said that in some villages they have their wives in common if it the good man of the house should return from a journey and find his liis neighbors slippers at the threshold of the door he take takes this as a sign that his presence would mar the unlawful indulgence of the parties and he forbears to enter I 1 have traveled in tile the bengal presidency beyond its south west boundaries into the madras presidency the chief cities along this coast are midnapore Midna pore balassone Balas sore 0 tack P 0 oree 0 gannam Chit pore and Beram pore these ar ares r e all military stations custack being a large settlement I 1 ret rei resided sie d there six months preaching the gospel and warning the people endeavoring to gather up those who embraced the truth it is situated situate dj on a iov low lov swamp W twenty enty feet below the sur stir g face 0 of high i water it is dreaded on oil account accounts sil sit of sickness bickness s especially for a loathsome itch itchy that haunts his this region of country country during the months of june an and july uly a nu num in j berless concourse of pilgrims pass through th roligh thing this place to or juggernaut five hundred hundreds were lepor reported ed to have been drowned hilst whilst crossing the river Maha naddy in 1853 1855 during my stay inspired by a reckless spirit not caluin valuing life nor limb enthusiasm the pil pilgrims rims crowd themselves into th the e ferry boat clinging to the sides craving for admit tance the women appear to be worse in this tills respect than the men risking their lives in injo ethus th is attempting to scramble up the side amidst the tile most indescribable tumult the margin 0 of the stream is usually covered with people who h camp there in order to get a speedy passage passages across the celebrated river g j A frightful amount of sickness haunts this place during the great influx to the crandles grand fes J celebrated twice in the year sear tile the in magis 1 sted of custack Cut tack however prevented ne t them m from passing through the city by the main roa roat but notwithstanding extra are area placed at the passes numbers find their hayg luto titto the city hospitals are established bot both wai war I 1 at thle thie place and at where embere the sick are alej cared for on oil my approach to the city of jug aernaut geni ger aut illes viles piles of bones were to be see seen n and in in some p places aces the vultures and jackals jackala devour the tIse dead presenting anything but all an agreeable sight accompanied with a very offensive smell amon umon among 0 the Ilin doos the ties of kindred are not respected whilst on a pilgrimage if any are taken sick they are left tin cared for by their companions who consider it to be the greatest blessing that call can becal them to die martyrs to their religion it is not uncommon j for them to remove the dying to the waters edge where they stop th he el ir r mouth with mud lest they should recover again and lose their caste villages of people of this description descriptions long iong live by themselves not being allowed to return returns homa homr again after being carried out for dead is sited on a sand bluff on the bay oft of bengal the outskirts of the tile city are shock angly filthy there here being a great number of stagnant ponds or tanks an almost continual malady preys upon the inhabitants and rew few feeg men are left it is is said that nine out of ten die dle dieg on this pilgrimage I 1 am inclined to think thinks however diat that this is an exaggeration though thought there cannot be anything like a correct esti estl g mate formed relative to them immediately behind tha grand temple is the place called by y europeans goig golgotha otha where the surface sui bui face of the ground is literally covered with bones f the ile grand temple is enclosed by a wall 20 feet high having four gates opening to ihei the four foun points of the compass one hundred minor temp temples 1 e 9 are appended to that of J jugger er g which is a stupendous massive bu buildings ya n L two hundred and twelve feet high built in ill a circular form terminating at the top obtusely it is built in such a manner as to form anster slices in which images of the most extra extravagant vagan fancies are placed obscenity appears to be their depraved choice in decorating their temples it is baid said to cons con coni S tain four hundred families all cooks one hun hunk hung g dred prostitutes six hundred officers three threet thousand brahmin brah mins s a large collection of all ail alls kinds of animals and a celebrated banyan tree in which one of their deities is said to be bei bej embodied B europeans being prohibited from entering vi I 1 was unable to form a correct idea of the inte integ g dior further than I 1 could see in through the 5 pates gates ates all of which were open the prince of th this 1 place ace is said to be a leper yet has lias forty wives and lives in a miserable house or rather ther a series of houses huddled together the th streets of the city are arc very vers narrow cx ex hepting the main avenue here where jug juggernaut is annually paraded mounted on m the big car cari licentiousness is practised practiced to an alarming extent brahmin bulls monopolize a considerable space near the temple where they bloat themselves by drinking congy coagy water which runs perpetually from the deside reside inside the animal is never maltreated mal treated for his insolence but to the contrary is is revered and worshipped wor shipped being scientific j beggars these creatures haunt twe the bazaar adjacent to the temple where they tithe the venders benders without meeting resistance nere there are many interesting incidents which have occurred during my travels that I 1 carl cati cannot liot I 1 i incorporate n orate ih ill this small sheet subsequent to athis this cot I 1 took a tour to the north of custack Cut tack fol lowing some where in in the vicinity of the ma afa river making a circular trip of over two hundred miles descended the Brah irIny river from bych cool the tempora temporary rv residence of elder Y 3 P PI riel meik melk I 1 to the junction junca lon ion of the main road leid lead ng from calcutta to juggernaut the nati natives e in in these parts are rude and as might be e exi ex exl i pecked acted ery very cry ignorant and cowardly it is a hilly nily country to the north of cor the na tives lives manufacture a rude species of iron I 1 was much exposed among them yet I 1 was wash never assaulted by any one although I 1 travel ed through some jlii jill pillages ages where a white man never before trod I 1 the only difficult difficulty in getting e ati in along hem them is their cupidity cupidity ian lan and avaricious desires for or money vice in these parts however is to very small compared with calcutta and the rhe more I 1 learned of the hindmo character the more I 1 was convinced that the they would not receive the truth they may perchance perc perchance Kance maake make out to perform a I 1 pilgrimage to jerusalem dur ur ing ng the millennium when hard pushed for rain his this in my confirmed opinion is is all hey they will billj do lo 10 until the power of the almighty shakes not the heavens but also the earth having traveled through this country I 1 had bad to 0 pass dense jungles infested by bears and tigers my teamster was much afraid to travel after night hight but I 1 escaped perfectly unharmed and without seeing one of these monsters in this place the same as it is all through india where I 1 hate have been physical deformities crea tures ures with distorted withered and diseased limbs imbs occur throughout the nation they however lo wever live temperately as a general thing using only vegetable food curry and rice they are niggardly in this respect and will billj starve themselves in order to augment riches they cannot but degenerate wh alien en confined to toi plain alain rice and insipid water plant which is the he fare of tens lens of thousands being already admonished of fhe len ien length lenth r th of this his article I 1 must forbear lest I 1 weary your patience but suffice it to say I 1 have been in common with all the elders of the mission mission greatly blessed the god of jacob lia iia has 9 labored with us although to a superficial reader our work appears small yet for one I 1 feel perfectly satisfied that w we e haar have done our duty to 0 those unto whom we were sent I 1 have lef left t J P meik melk a devout man of god in charge of the mission elders mccune and smith remain in calcutta with a few to emigrate the girst first and most favorable opportunity brother mccune has labored for fur the last five live years in in burdall Bur mall roah but was about to move up to calcutta when I 1 left the saints are very desirous to emigrate but for the most part lack the means in justice to the saints in india I 1 must say that a more liberal kind hearted people are not to be found the they have cared for us its in the uli ull full sense of the word wor and all who cleave to the truth amidst the shipwreck of many are strong in the faith elder mills labors assiduously in the madras presidency arid and has hasi translated ran slated the only only way to be saved into tamil besides this translation into the native tongue there herc is one a tre arf treatise adise on oil the tiie godhead God head bead in binl marratta Mah ratta by elder hugh findlay and a synopsis n op sis of the th eLife elire life of joseph smith the prophet p het bet by J P meik melk he has also translated twenty chapters of the book of mormon not yet published the life of joseph josiph is not yet yeti out of press the aggregate number of the saints was about sixty three when I 1 left on the ath of may alay I 1 took leave of the saints Si ints took passage on the ship earl of eglington bound for china we had a protracted voyage down the and the bahof bay of bengal we made singapore on tile tiie ath of june where we tarried five days and from there we sailed to macao in china where we arrived on the mh iga of the same month the monsoons having now set in we were weather bound nine days dayse after which we proceeded to hongtong Hong nong kong rig I 1 took passage on board the bark caesar and sailed for san francisco on the first of july 1 I have had remarkably fine weather all the way from calcutta in hort short the blessings of god have attended me all the day long lonz several ships that were passing up tip the caf china ir ia s bea sea ba at th the e same ti time in e we ire were came into hon non kong dismasted distasted dis masted by the monsoons I 1 have realized the salvation of god both by sea and land having sailed twenty five thou sand miles by rby course and have only one dan dangerous erous storm which was in the bay of on my way to madras in 1853 and thus the predictions of modern prophets have been fulfilled upon my head and it have returned in peace and safety 1 since my return V 1 have enjoyed myself very much with the missionaries now on their way to the sandwich cli cil islands also with those al already sailed for australia whilst pondering pond eringi over the columns of your valuable paper I 1 have been led to predict good concerning the work of tile tiie lord in this ibis place it will prosper and the floods f falsehood will be stemmed hon honl j est men will embrace the truth and ere long you vou will realize the fruits of your labors that hat the god of israel may strengthen your hands handi together with all the faithful is the prayer of your brother in the gos e I 1 of peace it TX ELTON |