Akhbar-i Mahabbat 1.4

1.4

Calcutta is a large city, situated on the banks of the Bhagirathi. It is a large port, and the great mart of the trade of the Honourable Company and their dependents. Small vessels called silap (sloops ?) every year trade with this port from China, Europe, and other countries, and almost at all times some are at anchor there. In these days this city is the residence of the chief English officers, and the city and its dependencies are considered their property. The buildings are built entirely of masonry, plastered with lime or mud. The land, on account of its vicinity to the sea, is very brackish and damp, and hence the houses are raised two or three stories high. The lower apartments are not fit to be inhabited. The buildings are like those of Europe, airy, spacious, and commodious. The city is very large, and all constructed of brick. Besides the English, the Bengalis, Armenians, and other inhabitants, are also opulent merchants. The water of the wells, on account of its brackish quality, is not drinkable. If any person drinks it, he is sure to suffer. In the hot and rainy seasons it becomes peculiarly bitter and saline, and consequently drinking water is procured from tanks. The sea is forty kos distant from the city, and the ebb and flow of the tide occur every day and every night. At full moon the bore rushes in for three days with unusual violence. It presents a curious and wonderful scene; it throws some boats on the shore, and breaks others to pieces;