'A voyage from England to India, in the year 1754, and an historical narrative of the operations of the squadron and army in India, under the command of Vice-Admiral Watson and Colonel Clive, in the years 1755, 1756, 1757 ... Also a journey from Persia to England by an unusual route. With an appendix, containing an account of the diseases prevalent in Admiral Watson's squadron, etc.' [‎31] (56/562)

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CHAP. III.
The Kent and Saliibury leave Fort St. David, and arrive at Bombay.-—
Defcription cf that place, and its inhabitants. — Account of the Perfees
refiding there, and their religious tenets.—A particular cujtom of the Indiana
cf Bombay, at the death of a relation.—Account of the religious perfons, called
Joogees.— Extraordinary circumftance of ffh being found in every pond at
Bombay during the rainy feafon.— Curious account of the quantity of water
that fell in the rainy feafon.—Several curiofities at Bombay.— Value of monies,
—Lift of Indian drugs.—Defcription of the Elephant a,
OCtober the nth, the day that the furpenfion of arms between the 1754*
EngUJh and French companies and their allies took place, we left Fort v —-v——^
St. David in company with the Salijhury, Capt. KnowleVy and on the 13th
oi November anchored in Bombay road.
Bombay is a fmall ifland, but for its llze, perhaps the moft ffouriilimg of any
this day in the univerfe. Though the foil is fo barren as not to produce any
one thing worth mentioning, yet the convenience of its fituation will always^
more than make up for that defeft. It may be juftly ftiled " the grand
ftore-houfe of all Arabian and Perfian commerce.'* When this ifland was
firft furrendered to us by the Portuguefe, we hardly thought it worth notice;
but, in a very few years afterwards, we experimentally found the value of
it, and it is now become our chief fettlement on i\\z Malabar coafh i
The natives are fhorter and Wronger made than thofe on the Ccromandel
coaft; only four Cocleys carry a Palanquin here, whereas fix are generally ufed at
Madrafs and Fort St, David. The inhabitants of this place are numerous, and
are made up of almoft every nation in Aft a, among many others, we met
with feveral Persees ; who, like their forefathers the ancient Pcrfians, are
followers of Zor0after, who is faid to have modelled and reduced into order
the religion of the ancient Magi ; the fundamental maxim of which was, the
worfhipping only one God under the fymbol of light. They adore the fun,,
and particularly the rifing fun, with the profoundeft reverence and vene
ration i and by a natural conlequence of the worfhip they pay the fun, thty
likewife pay a particular veneration to fire.
I met with a very remarkable inftance of this while I was at Bombay \ one
day paffing through the llreet, I heard a very uncommon noife, and feeing
at the fame time a large fire rn one of the houfes, curiofity led me a little
elofcr to it ; in the middle of the houfe was fet a large brafspan with a fire in
it; before this fire, or rather on each fide of it,, two men were kneeling at
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