remains in well-preserved condition as an
evidence of the deep astronomical knowledge of the Hindoos at that
period. It is a large stone building with a flat roof, on which are
constructed astronomical instruments and figures of brick and mortar of
gigantic proportions. As examples I shall mention a quadrant which is
eleven feet high and nine feet wide in the direction of the meridian,
and is made for calculating the altitude of the sun, and another
instrument, thirty-six feet long and four and one-half feet high which
is used in calculating the altitude and distance of a planet or a star
from the meridian.

Descending from the observatory my attention was called to a large crowd
of people on a knoll near the river bank. Going over there I found what
might be called a religious circus attended by thousands of people, in
the midst of which was a group of Fakirs. Most of them were squatting
with crossed legs, one arm extended toward the river, and the eyes fixed
on a certain spot in the water or on the sky. One was squatting on a
plank through which long sharp nails were driven with their points
projecting upward over an inch. I counted eight such nails about an inch
long under each foot. The nails had not caused bleeding wounds, but
simply made deep indentures in the flesh which must have been very
painful, at least in the beginning. One Fakir had suspended himself on
an eight-foot-tall cross, with the head downward, by tieing one of his
feet to the top of the cross by a cord. Formerly they used to suspend
themselves by a big iron hook penetrating their muscles, thus swinging
their bodies back and forth for hours; but this practice is now
prohibited by the English government. An acrobatic Fakir was turning
sommersets on a grass mat, and was considered very holy because he could
twist his limbs as if they had been without bones. Another carried an
iron cage which was forged around his neck, and which he had carried
thus for years in order to mortify his flesh. A loathsome dwarf, kept
in an iron cage, was blessing the admiring crowd, several dancing girls
gave animation to the scene by singing and dancing, some Brahmins were
exhibiting a sacred bull, others sacred monkeys, and liberal offerings
were made everywhere by the enraptured pilgrims. Such are the religious
ceremonies in the sacred city of India.

[Illustration: FAKIR WITH IRON CAGE.]

During my stay in Benares I visited one of the most remarkable ruins in
the