The French papers seem to be
rather jealous about Ghuzni. How the English papers butter it up! and
yet it was not half so brilliant an affair as Kelat, nor so hardly
contested; but very little is said about the latter.
Enclosed, I send you a view of the north front of Kelat, shewing the
gate by which we entered. It gives you a pretty good idea of the place,
and was drawn by Lieutenant Creed, of the Engineers.
I went yesterday to see a tank, about seven miles from this place, in
which are a great quantity of alligators, half tame. The tank in which
they are belongs to a Mahomedan temple, which is considered a very holy
one, and much resorted to, and these animals are kept there by the
priests of the establishment, in order to induce a greater number of
visitors. A calf was killed and thrown in among the scaly gentlemen, who
very soon demolished it. I never saw anything so loathesome and
repulsive as these monsters.
This letter goes by the "Hannah" packet, which sails this evening for
Bombay, and will, I hope, reach that place in time to go by the
"overland packet." I suppose you know that this is classic ground, and
the place from which Nearchus, Alexander's admiral, started on his
return to the Euphrates.
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