This small river flows along a little to the right of our march this morning.  About half way we passed a very pretty village, held and cultivated by families of Kunojee Brahmins, who condescend to hold and drive their own ploughs.  Other families of this class pride themselves upon never condescending to drive their own ploughs, and consider themselves in consequence a shade higher in caste.  Other Brahmin families have different shades or degrees of caste, like the Kunojeeas; but I am not aware that any family of any other class of Brahmins condescend to hold their own ploughs.  I told them, that “God seemed to favour their exertions, and bless them with prosperity, for I had not seen a neater village or village community.”  They seemed to be all well pleased with my compliment.  At Palee resides Bulbhuder Sing, a notorious robber, who was lately seized and sent as a felon to Lucknow.  After six months’ confinement he bribed himself out, got possession of the estate which he now holds, and to which he had no right whatever, and had it excluded from the jurisdiction of the local authorities, and transferred to the “Hozoor Tuhseel.”  He has been ever since diligently employed in converting it into a den of robbers, and in the usual way seizing upon other people’s lands, stock, and property of all kinds.

Hundreds in Oude are doing the same thing in the same way.  Scores of those who suffer from the depredations of this class of offenders, complain to me every day; but I can neither afford them redress, nor hold out any hope of it from any of the Oude authorities.  It is a proverb, “that those who are sentenced to six years’ imprisonment in Oude, are released in six months, and those who are sentenced to six months, are released in six years.”  Great numbers are released every year at Lucknow for thanksgivings, or propitiation.  If the King or any member of his family becomes sick, prisoners are released, that they may recover; and when they recover, others are released as a grateful, and, at the same time, profitable acknowledgment, since the Government relieves itself from the cost of keeping them; and its servants appropriate the money paid for their ransom.  Those who are in for long periods are, for the most part, great offenders, who are the most able and most willing to pay high for their release; those who are in for short ones are commonly the small ones, who are the least able and least disposed to give anything.  The great offenders again are those who are most disposed, and most able, to revenge themselves on such persons as have aided the Government in their arrest or conviction; and they do all they can to murder and rob them and their families and relatives, as soon as they are set at large, in order to deter others from doing the same.  This would be a great evil in any country, but is terrible in Oude, where no police is maintained for the protection of life and property.  The cases of atrocious murders and robberies which come before me every day, and are acknowledged by the local authorities, and neighbours of the sufferers, to have taken place, are frightful.  Such sufferings, for which no redress is to be found, would soon desolate any part of India less favoured by nature.