As we advance up the river we find huge mills erected on the river banks—witnesses of the growing prosperity of Calcutta, and we pass some of the stately mansions at Garden Reach, which used, in bygone times, before they were shorn of their splendour, to surprise and delight the eye of the stranger, as he approached the ," City of Palaces." When these country seats were first erected it is difficult to decide. Mrs. Fay, whose letters throw much light on Calcutta in the olden days, writes (May 22, 1780) as fol lows : " As you enter Garden Reach, which extends about nine miles below the town, the most interesting views that can possibly be imagined greet the eye. The banks of the river are, as one may say, absolutely studded with elegant mansions, called here, as at Madras, ' garden-houses.' These houses are surrounded by groves and lawns, which descend to the water's edge, and present a constant succession of whatever can delight the eye, or bespeak wealth and elegance in the owners. The noble appearance of the river also, which is much wider than the Thames at London Bridge, together with the amazing variety of vessels continually passing along its surface, add to the beauty of the scene." When the ex-Nawab of Oude was allowed to settle at Garden Reach, the wealthy owners deserted their noble mansions, and Garden Reach ceased to be a fashionable suburb. The fantastic palace, which that monarch erected on the river side, is fast being pulled down by the syndicate which purchased it, and the land is to be let as sites for mills. Opposite the King of Oude's palace is that lovely park of lawns and walks and noble trees—the Botanical Gardens of Calcutta. A century ago they were founded by Colonel Alexander Kyd, for " the collection of plants indigenous to the country, and for the introduction and acclimatisation of plants from foreign parts." The object of the founder has been fully realized. Trees of the rarest kinds, from Nepal and the Cape, Brazil and Penang, Java and Sumatra, are gathered together in that spot. The mahogany towers there, and the Cuba palms form an avenue like the aisle of some lofty cathedral. Noble mango trees and tama rinds are dotted about the grassy lawns ; and there arc stately casuarinas around whose stems are trained climbing plants. There are plantains of vast size and beauty from the Malay Archipelago, and giant creepers from South America. The crimson hibiscus and scarlet passion-flower dazzle the eye, and the odour of the champak and innumer able jessamines float upon the breeze. As Bishop Heber remarked, " The Botanic Gardens would perfectly answer to Milton's idea of Paradise, if they were on a hill instead of a dead flat." North of the gardens lies Bishop's College, and its smooth green lawns and Gothic buildings recall to mind bright days spent on the banks of the Cam. The college was founded by Bishop Middleton, the first of the Metropolitans of India =prelates who, by their learning, their devotion and their zeal, would do credit to any Church in the world. The object of this institution was " the education of Christian youth in sacred knowledge, in sound learning, and in the principal language used in the country, in habits of piety and devotion to their calling, that they may be qualified to preach among the heathen." • The College owes its Gothic style to William Jones, one of the most remarkable men who ever came to India, and who, by the discovery of coal in Burdwan, has done more than any other man to develop the material wealth of the land. In i800 he landed at Calcutta, and for ten years followed the trade of a working mechanic. He then became the proprietor of a canvas manufactory at Howrah, and was the founder of that prosperous suburb. In 1811, when an expedition was about to start for Java, the Government found themselves in want of cartridges, and Jones exercised his mechanical skill in establishing a small paper manufactory from which he supplied the Government with all the paper they required. When the expedition was over the factory was closed. Jones was not only a mechanic, but a successful builder. He contracted for the building of the College, be cause he had a great desire to erect the first Gothic edifice in India. But he was not destined to see the fulfilment of his great ambition. While superintending the erection of the building he caught a fever, which proved fatal in three days.
As we steam past Bishop's College a forest of masts bursts upon our view, and before us, enveloped in a grey mist, lies the port of Calcutta. After passing the entrance of the new docks, the eye is arrested by the vast outlines of the parapets of Fort William, the picturesque gateways and a long row of white barracks half visible above the green forti fications. In 1775, shortly after the battle of Plassey, the fort was commenced by Clive. Captain John Brohier was brought over from Madras to design it. At a consultation held on July 25, 1757—two months before Plassey was fought—a letter was read from Captain Brohier, in which he states : " The works I propose to erect, with your Honour's approba tion, are to form an hexagon, as a citadel to the town from the old dock southwards, as the bank of the river projects in this part, and admits that three of the sides of this citadel flank the current of the river, which I propose to strengthen with proper outworks before them, to multiply the defences of these fronts ; for, as the channel is on this side, a naval force will thereby be exposed to the fire of Jo() pieces of cannon, which I conceive must effectually prevent any squadron from passing further up." In order to " accomplish this great undertaking with all the frugality and diligence which the present state of the Company's affairs and that of Europe demands," Captain Brohier requests that he should employ his own overseers and be allowed to keep the accounts of the expense. But there was neither frugality nor diligence displayed in the erection of Fort William, and it cost two millions of money —of which fifty thousand pounds were spent in keeping off the encroachments of the river. At the south-west angle of the fort stands an ugly yellow structure, which, the makers of guide-books are pleased to state, is in the " Grecian Ionic style of architecture." It was erected by the citizens of Calcutta—European and Native--to perpetuate the memory of James Prinsep, who founded the science of Indian numis matics and chronology, and who rescued from the dark oblivion of two thousand years the name and history of the great Buddhist Emperor, Asoka, the Constantine of the East. It was the genius of Prinsep which brought to light the long hidden secrets of the inscriptions incised on pillars and rocks. Like most Anglo-Indian workers in the field of knowledge he was a busy official, and the periods during which he won his laurels were stolen from repose earned by long and monotonous drudgery in the Assay Master's office at the Cal cutta Mint. " My whole day," wrote Prinsep, " is consumed at the scales. What a waste of precious moments ! " His short life comprised in all but forty years, and five of these sufficed for all his splendid discoveries. A road now separ ates the building from the river, and as it can no longer be used as a landing-stage it might be pulled down and a more suitable monument erected in honour of James Prinsep.
As we pass Prinsep's Ghat we notice a Muslim shrine, whose copper dome glistens in the sun. It is, however, no shrine, but the monument erected by Lord Ellenborough in memory of the battles of Maharajpoor and Punniar, which crushed the rebellion of the overgrown Gwalior army. On December 28, 1843, at Maharajpoor, the English once more encountered the Mahrattas. They fought with all their ancient valour, but had, after a desperate resistance, to yield to British bayonets. Three thousand of the enemy lay dead upon the field, and fifty-six superb bronze guns were the spoils of the victors, and it is these guns which supplied the metal for the cupola and the pillars which support it. The same day another British force encountered another portion of the Mahratta army at Punniar, twelve miles from Gwalior, and gained a complete victory. Lord Ellen borough, whose vanity prevented his great energy and un doubted ability being sufficiently appreciated, was present at Maharaj poor, and showed much humane attention to the wounded. His prompt action regarding the mutinous army of Gwalior was one of the most creditable events in his administration, but owing to his love of theatrical display he could not help detracting from its merit by issuing high sounding proclamations about the glory of British arms on the Plains of Scindia.