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LETTER XIV.

SINCE I laft took up the reed of fiendfhip, my heart has beet fretted with vexation, and my foul chilled with aftonishment. Will the friend of Zaarmilla believe it poffible, that I fhould have found fraud and falfehood, venality and corruption, even in that court-protected vehicle of public information, that pure fource of intelligence, called a Newspaper?

The manner in which I made the dif agreeable discovery, was, to me, no lefs extraordinary, than the difcovery itself. I went, as ufual, yefterday morning, to fpend an hour at the neighbouring coffeehouse, and, on entering it, was surprised to find myself the object of univerfal attention. Every eye was turned towards me; fome few feemed to regard me with a look of contempt; but the general expreffion was that of pity and compaffion. I had advanced to a box, and called for a newspaper, but was hesitating whether I fhould retire, cr ftay to perufe its contents; when a gentleman, whom I ob ferved to eye me with particular eager

nefs, approaching me with much for mality, begged leave to enquire, whether I was indeed the Rajah of Almora, a native Prince of Rohi'cund? On being answered in the affirmative, the gentleman, again bowing to the ground, thus proceeded: "I hope your highness will not attribute it to any want of refpect, that I have thus prefumed to intrude myfelf into your prefence. I entertain too much refpect, for whatever is illustrious in birth, or honourable in rank, or dignified in title, or exalted in authority, to do any thing derogatory to its greatness. I am but too confcious of the prejudice which your highness must inevitably entertain against this nation, to hope that you will look upon any individual belonging to it, without fufpicion and abhorrence! But I hope to convince you, in fpite of the reafons you have had to the contrary, that we are not a nation of monfters. Some virtue ftill remains among us, confined to me, and my honourable friends, it is true; but we, Sir, are Englishmen. Englishmen, capable of blufhing at the nefarious practices of delegated authority. Englishmen, who have not been completely embowelled,of our natural entrails; our hearts, and galls, and fpleens, and livers, have not been forcibly torn from our

bodies, and their places fupplied by fhawls and lacks, and nabob-fhips, and dewannes! We have real hearts of flesh and blood, within our bofoms. Hearts, which bleed at the recital of human mifery, and feel for the woes of your unhappy country, with all the warmth of unfophifticated virtue." Perceiving my intention to speak, "I know, Sir, what you would say," cried he, with vehemence: "You would tell me, that your hatred to the English race, was founded in nature and in juftice.-You would tell me, that it is we who have defolated your Empire, who have turned the fruitful and delicious garden of Rohilcund, into a wafte and howling wilderness.-We, who have extirpated the noble race of warriors, who were your kind protectors! your indulgent lords! your beneficent friends!-to whom you paid a proud fubmiffion; a dignified obedience; a fubordination more defirable than the tumultuous spirit of the moft exalted freedom!" Again I attempted to fpeak." Ah!" cried he, in a fill louder tone, " you need not defcribe to me, the ravages you have feen committed; the infults you have fuftained! You need not tell me, that your friends have been flaughtered: your country plundered; your houfes burned; your land laid wafe; your Zenana difhonoured: and

the favourite, the lovely, the virtuous wife of your affections, perhaps, torn from your agonizing bofom!" This was a chord not to be touched, even by the rude hand of a stranger, without exciting a visible emotion. "I fee the fubject is too much for you," cried he, " it is too fraught with horror, to be furveyed with indif ference. Nature fickens at the recollection, but you need fay no more; depend upon it, I fhall make a proper reprefentation of your cafe. Through me, your wrongs fhall find a tongue. I will pro

claim to the world, all that I have heard you utter. That mafs of horrors, that fyftem of iniquity, which your highness would defcribe, fhall be laid open to the eye of day, and its wicked, nefarious, abominable, and detefted author, expofed to the juft indignation of the congregated univerfe!"-At thefe words, again bowing to the ground, he turned round, and departed. As I had no doubt of the unhappy man's infanity, I exceedingly rejoiced at his departure, and that he had done no mifchief to himself or others, during this paroxyfm of delirium.

Among the crowd, which the vociferation of this unhappy maniac had attracted round us, I perceived one of the gentlemen I had met at Mifs Ardent's; and

was happy to take the opportunity of renewing our acquaintance. From him I learned, that the notice of the noisy orator, had been drawn upon me, by a paragraph inferted in a newfpaper of that morning, which, after mentioning my name, and defcribing my perfon, fafely and wickedly infinuated, "that I had come there on behalf of the Hindoo inhabitants of Bengal, to complain of the horrid cruelties, and unexampled oppreffion, under which, through the mal-adminiftration of the British governor of India, we were made to groan.'

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I was exceedingly fhocked at the idea of the confequences, that might arise to the chofen fervant of the minifter, the writer of the newspaper, from having fuffered himfelf to be thus impofed upon. I did not know what punishment might await the confidential conductor of this vehicle of intelligence, fhould his mafter difcover that he had fuffered a falfehood to pollute that pure fountain of public inftruction, in which his care for the morals, the virtue, the fortune, the health, and the beauty of all the fubjects of this extenfive Empire, is fo fully evinced. The gentleman obferving my anxiety, told me, that the beft method of proceeding, was, to authorise the publisher to contradict the VOL. II. F

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