________________
FEB. 2, 1872.]
MISCELLANEA.
63
ed with any religious rite, a feast to all the villagers being the chief part of the ceremony. The Nagag, so called from the phrase naga or naked, are & lazy and savage race. They go almost undressed, their solo covering being a small piece of cloth tied round the waist. They load themselves, however, with ornaments made mostly of brass wire, shells, or cowries. An armlet which they wear is peculiar to them though it has now been adopted also by the Kukis. It is
brass rod twisted some eight or ten times in the shape of a wire-spring, and fitting tightly on to the flesh between the shoulder and the elbow. They all wear ear-rings of brass wire, and their chief weapon is the spear. They have a great many deities, one of whom is blind, and he is system- atically cheated by his worshippers. He is worshipped at cross-roads, where the Nagas place large baskets with small offerings in them, trusting that he judges of the quantity of the contents from the largeness of the receptacles. It is supposed that the population of the hills in North Kachar has accumulated from the successive waves, from the north side, of fugitive Tatars : and from the south and west sides from similar waves, of the inhabitants of Chitagong and Tipera, and the plains of India, giving place to conquerors, and retreating into the hills and jungles before them. They would appear to be either of pure Tatar origin, or an intermixture of Tatar and Malay. Such are the hill tribes of North Kachar and the Barel.-Bengal Times, Dec. 30.
THE MINES OF MEWAR. SOME twenty miles from Udepur, towards the south, you enter the beautiful Valley of Jowara, more famed for its mineral wealth than for its natural beauty. Yet, in truth, rarely does one see a more magnificent vale than this. In the rains a foaming river roars past a ruined town, temples of hoar antiquity, and many & spot hallowed by Associations of past heroism and glory. Here it was that the noble Pratip Singh, the saviour of his country, paused awhile to recruit his strength, ere he made a burst upon the foe, which was as unexpected as it was irresistible; and, as the result, to plant the new standard of his race in the new capital--the beautiful city of Udepur. Around Jowara, hills, clothed with verdure, rise to a great height on every side ; and the eye is attracted by & picturesque fort, temple, or cenotaph on almost every prominent elevation. Yet, though there are so many indications of a large population, life is wanting ; for Jowars was deserted when the fortunes of the country fell. At the sonth corner of the valley stands a temple dedicated to & Devi, a goddess (80 her votaries say) of wonderful power; but some are found to own that they have their doubts as to her being present in this particular shrine in these days of degeneracy and dis- sipation. The high priest is there, than whom it would be difficult to find one of more clerical cut. But he, with doleful countenance, because of glory departed, will assure you, in trembling accents, that the goddess has withdrawn her patronage from the caste of miners, hence they have forgotten their business. Be this true or not, the minera no longer exist-probably enough because they fled when the war-cry of the Maratha invader re-echoed through the land. There remains in Jowara a temple which is well worth examination. The dome of the anti-chamber is of considers - Lle beauty, and the carving is in wonderful preservation, although the building is close upon three hundred years old. But this is not the oldest temple. At the north-east of the valley stands a temple older than this by a hundred years, and it, too, though standing amid the ruins of the town, is in a good state of preservation. Ramnath and Bhairavnáth occupy the moat prominent positions whilat Hanuman, Ráma's monkey-general, is placed in front, in a posture of adoration. A noble tank, surround-
ed by smaller shrines, spread out in front of the principal entrance. All around lie ruins of temples and houses. The walls of the latter must have been constructed of the earthen pots used by the smelters, and the lay remaining after the ore had been extracted.
But let us to the mines, which may yet be again lail under contribution by the rulers of Mewar. Giant herpes of refuse point the road to the principal of them. The path leads through the thickest and most beautiful jungle, over rivulets, through defiles, through thickets which electrify the botanist, and dense jungle which afford the huntsman true earnest that royal game is well within reach of his rifle. The mines themselves are mere clefts in the solid rock-apparently natural, yet doubtless, superficial. In some places, attempts at regular work appear to have been made ; but, as a rule, the miners were contented with boring only far enough into the hill to obtain ore without trouble, never venturing where the natural solidity of the stone would not suflice for the support of the rock above. Veins of almost pure lead ramify through the primitive rock; whilst beautifully coloured ores of the mineral sparkle overhead. Silver is obtained in small quantities, whilst gold has been found, it is said, on several occasions. A very short time sufficed to find numerous valuable specimens; no doubt more extended research woull have shown that these mines could be worked with profit. A hundred years ago, in 1760, Jowara alone poured two lakhs of rupees into the Maharána's treasury. About the beginning of this century an attempt was made to re-work these mines; but it failed-it may have been from an imperfect knowledge of the science of mining, or from the fear that increase of wealth would attract the spoiler from the plains. Such a feeling still exists. When these mines were visited, with a view to obtaining some little material for this letter, they had not been visited by any native for five or six years, although the hill is almost entirely perforated. There the tiger had its lair, and the panther its habitation. Towards the south there are smaller mines, which are better known.
A steep and rugged path winds up the great hill overlooking the Temple of Kali, crosses a wall of stone of enormous thickness, and finally is lost in
plain which is surrounded by a girdle of other hills, wherein are dug the mines. Traces of walls are to be found all round, and ruins of forts on every prominent spur. It was here that Pratap Singh held out when driven from his capital, and here he lived with those trusty followers who still preferred patriotism to ease, until the dawn of better days. Aided they were by the trusty Bhills, lords of the Passes and Monarchs of the Wood. In these caves there were preserved, for generations, the rings and bolts to which the cradles of Pratáp Singh's children had been attached ; and even now, the inhabitants of the village on this elevated plain speak of their being there still. Shafts and mines are innumerable. There are traces of steps, walls, and outlets for water which show that more attention had been paid to the working-probably because the ore was not so abundant. Perhaps Pratáp himself opened the mines when in exile here. However it may be the extensive ruins show that he must have had a large host with him.
The highest point on the hill commands & magnificent view of the country for many miles around; but more magnificent and grinder far is the view from the summit of the Hill of Prasád-ten miles farther south. To the north-west and south stretch ranges upon ranges of everlasting hills. Dungarpur, the capital of the Aharia Prince of Dungarpur, the head of the eldest branch of the royal race of Mewar, is distinctly visible. Salumbra can also be seen, the chief town of the descendant of the elder son of a former Rana,
d, for rehs of ly the
