The drainage about Seetapoor is into the small river Surain, which flows along on the west boundary, and is excellent; and the lands in and about the station are at all times dry.  The soil, too, is good; and the place, on the whole, is well adapted for the cantonment of a much larger force.

March 13, 1850.—­Khyrabad, east nine miles, over a plain of doomuteea soil with much oosur.  A little outlay and labour seem, however, to make this oosur produce good crops.  On entering the town on the west side, we passed over a good stone bridge over this little stream, the Surain; and to the east of the town is another over the still smaller stream of the Gond.  Khyrabad is not so well drained as Seetapoor, nor would it be so well adapted for a large cantonment.  It is considered to be less healthy.  There is an avenue of good trees all the way from Seetapoor to Khyrabad, a distance of six miles, planted by Hakeem Mehndee.  Our camp being to the eastern extremity of the town, renders the distance nine miles.

Yesterday at Seetapoor I had a visit from Monowur-od Dowla, late prime minister, and Moomtaz-od Dowla, grandson to the late King, Mahommed Allee Shah, on their way out to the Tarae forest to join Kindoo Rao, the brother of the Byza Bae, of Gwalior, in pursuit of tigers.  This morning on the road, old Bukhtawur Sing, after a sigh, said:  “I presented a nazur to the prince, Moomtaz-od Dowla, sir; he is the grandson of a King, and the victim of the folly and crime of shooting a monkey!  His father, Asgur Allee Khan, was the eldest son of Mahommed Allee Shah, and elder brother of Amjud Allee Shah, the father of the present King.  He was fond of his gun, and one day a monkey, of the red and short-tailed kind, came and sat upon one of his out-offices.  He sent for his gun, and shot it dead with a ball.  The very next day, sir, he had a severe attack of fever, which carried him off in three days.  During this time he frequently called out in terror, ‘Save me from that monkey! save me from that monkey!’ —­pointing to the part of the room in which he saw him.  The monkey killed Asgur Allee Khan, sir; and no man ever escapes death or misery who wilfully kills one.  Moomtaz-od Dowla might, sir, have been now King of Oude had his father not shot that monkey.”

“But I thought,” said I, “it was the hanoomaun, or long-tailed monkey, that was held sacred by the Hindoos?”—­“Sir,” said Bukhtawur Sing, “both are alike sacred.* Nuseer-od Deen Hyder, the predecessor of Mahommed Allee Shah, went one day shooting in the dilkhoosha park.  Several of the long-tailed monkeys came and sat upon a mango-tree near him.  He could not resist the temptation, and shot several of them, one after another, with ball.  He returned to the palace; but had not been home more than three hours, when he and his favourite wife, the Kooduseea Begum,** had a fierce quarrel, in which both became insane; she was so enraged that she took poison forthwith,