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error with truth, it often happens that the shadow cast by the error gets deeper and deeper, till at last the truth is lost in it; and so, at length, the Persians worshipped the sun as God, and all forgot that there was one Great One, who commanded the sun, and it riseth not; and sealeth up the stars; who alone spreadeth out the heavens, and treadeth upon the waves of the sea; who maketh Arcturus, and Orion, and Pleiades, and the chambers of the south, Job ix. 7, 8, 9. They used to go to the mountain heights when the morning sun first gilded their summits, and, lifting up their hands, they then offered their devotions to the great luminary; but they built no temples, for roofs and walls, they deemed, would exclude some of those rays which they regarded as the essence of the Deity himself.

But as years passed on, a philosopher arose among the Persians, whose powerful mind enabled him to gain great influence over them. His name was Zoroaster. He taught them anew the old forgotten truth, that there was one God over all the earth; but he left some old errors untouched, and introduced some new ones. He bade them still to reverence the sun and fire; and taught the existence of the two great principles of good and evil. He assured them, too, that he had obtained sacred fire from heaven, so that when the sun nightly withdrew his rays, some symbol of Deity yet might even be present with the fireworshippers. He ordered temples to be built to contain sacred fires, all to be kindled from the flame which he professed to have received. These fires were neither to be blown by bellows nor by the breath of man, and woods of kinds deemed peculiarly sacred were alone to form their fuel. By day and night the priests tend these fires, and keep them ever burning; and the Parsees believe that they have yet in their temple the sacred flame of Zoroaster.

The doctrines of Zoroaster spread, and became the general religion over all the western parts of Asia, from the time of the reign of Cyrus, till the period when Alexander the Great conquered Persia. In the third century after Christ, the Persian monarchy was again established by Artaxerxes, and then the form of religion taught by Zoroaster became the general faith of the east, and men were commanded to follow it. Thus it continued till the religion of Mohammed was established in Persia.

The modern Parsees believe the doctrines of their great teacher; and when the sun rises in brightness, and when "his going forth is from the end of the heaven, and his circuit unto the ends of it," Psa. xix. 6, or when he sets in "the golden clouds of even," the Parsees assemble in great numbers on the public walks of Bombay, to present their morning or evening devotions. They do not bury their dead, but when a Parsee dies, his remains are laid on a high stone wall, when the birds of prey hover over the corpse till it is consumed. They have not castes, like the Hindoos; and they do not, like the Mohammedans, abstain from wine. They regard no particular food as unclean; but, on account of their peculiar superstitions respecting fire, they will not eat food prepared by any but Parsees. They are not like the men of the east in general, who marry several wives, for they admit of one only; nor are they, like so many natives of oriental countries, addicted to untruth, and to habits of cheating. They are, as a body, remarkable for their upright and honourable dealings, and the morality of their lives; and they partake with the Persians in a politeness of manner, which renders them very pleasing in their address. They dress like Hindoos, but their complexion is lighter than theirs. Its tint, indeed, is but of a pale olive, and not dark enough to hide those variations in colour, to which sensitive persons are subject, as different emotions affect the mind. The changing colour, the deepening blush, which so often adds expression to the countenance, is plainly visible on the Parsee cheek. Their eyes are dark and intelligent.

Nearly all the isle of Bombay belongs to the Parsees, and several families reside at Surat. The British houses of business in the former place have, very generally, a Parsee partner, and many of these people are very rich, and have large estates. They generally speak English well, and associate much with the British residents of India. The poorer people are agriculturists, or practise several mechanical trades; but they will not be blacksmiths, or carry on any business in which fire is used. Their ideas respecting fire also prevents their being soldiers, on account of the fire-arms; and, like the Persians, they seem to have, from generation to generation, a great dislike to the sea, which prevents their being sailors. It has been said of them, by British writers,

that when fires occur in Bombay, they stand quietly by, and make no effort to extinguish the flames; but this the Parsees decidedly deny, and affirm, no doubt truly, that they have, in several instances, extinguished the fire, when property was burning in the town of Bombay.

There is a celebrated spot on the borders of the Caspian sea, to which the Parsees of Bombay and Yezd make occasionally a long and fatiguing pilgrimage. It is called the "Place of Fires," of Shirwan. This spot is about two miles from the town of Bakan, and an inflammable gas exists there, which will become a flame, if lighted by any burning substance. The flame may be conducted to the height of some inches above the ground, by inserting a tube or funnel into the soil. Very ancient, but small stone temples are built on this spot, in each of which a fire burns; while a flame which burns in the centre of these buildings, and which never goes out, is believed by the Parsees to have burned thus since the world was created, and to be destined to continue till the world shall end. The flame in these places is like that of spirits of wine, and the pilgrim Parsees not only value it as the object of their devotion, but use it too in preparing their simple food, and in warming themselves, when the cold of winter renders Shirwan a dreary land. At a little distance from the temple, a beautiful clear flame issues perpetually from a natural cleft in a rock, and it is, of course, regarded with great veneration by the pilgrims. Springs of naphtha, too, an inflammable substance, are found in several parts of this province; and the naphtha which floats upon the water will, if a light be applied, produce a clear blue flame. These springs boil up about two or three feet high. The pilgrims to the "Place of Fires" attribute great virtues to naphtha in the cure of diseases, but these they believe are owing to the sacredness of the spot whence it is taken. The poor people of the neighbourhoods where it is found mix it with sand for fuel, for wood is rare in Persia; and they use it too as oil for their lamps; while, when hardened, it is an excellent material for forming the flat roofs which the people of Bakan, like other oriental people, have on the tops of their houses. Both on the continent of Europe, and also in our own country, naphtha is used for a variety of domestic purposes, and it has lately been employed as a remedy in

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consumption. Of the use of naphtha for
giving light Milton speaks, when, de-
scribing the home of the fallen angels,
he says:
"From the arched roof,

Pendent by subtle magic, many a row
Of starry lamps and blazing cressets, fed
With naphtha and asphaltes, yielded light
As from a sky."

All false religions have some books, from which those who profess them derive their opinions. The people of China had an ancient philosopher, who was called Confucius, and the moral principles recorded in his books form the religion of their nation. Mohammed, who made many people receive his doctrines, by threatening them with death if they were not his followers, wrote a book called the Koran; and the many thousands of Arabians, and other people, who are still living in the darkness of the Mohammedan religion, and raising the crescent as their standard, believe that the Koran was inspired by God. The Hindoos have their sacred books. And Christians have that holy book for their guidance, which now blesses both the British palace and the cottage, teaching alike the rich and the poor how we may walk with God.

The book said to be written by Zoroaster is called the Zendavesta. We cannot tell, certainly, when it was written; for we are not sure exactly at what time Zoroaster lived. But it is, by some writers, thought that it was during the period when the Jews were captives at Babylon, at that time when Nebuchadnezzar, king of Babylon, came to Jerusalem, and besieged it. Daniel, as my young readers will remember, was, at that period, a captive in the great city. The writers of the east are very fond of saying that Zoroaster conversed with the captive Jews, and that Daniel and others among them taught their philosopher much of what he recorded. Perhaps it might be so, for certainly there are in the sacred book of the Parsees many sentiments which are like those of the Jewish Scriptures; and amidst all its errors, the Zendavesta teaches the one great truth, that there is one Almighty God, Lord over all.

But it may be asked, How came so many of the Parsees to be so far from their native land, and to have settled in India? Did they not like their own country? Yes, all people do that. The love of our native land is not merely because it is a beautiful land, and because it gives great natural, or even social advantages. The Laplander, amidst his

snows, and the Negro, on his sandy wastes, alike loves the land of his birth, and would not unnecessarily say adieu to it for ever. The Arab youth in England, who seemed tolerably cheerful and happy till he saw his native palm-tree in an English hothouse, and then burst into tears, and expressed a deep yearning for the soil whence it sprung, only feels as millions would do, if taken from their early home, and the scenes of their childhood. Yes, Persia, with its wild mountains and wide wastes, varied by spots of luxuriant vegetation, and enlivened by brilliant flowers, and famed, from earliest ages, for its magnificent gardens, was a lovely land to the Persians. They loved to look up to its cloudless sun, shining nowhere more brightly than in their native land; they enjoyed the pure air, where no damp mists float to obscure the bright light of day, or the silver moon and golden stars of night. The Persians would not have forsaken Iran; but the conqueror came with fire and sword, and, after many struggles, they were obliged to flee.

It was in the seventh century that the Arabian Mohammedans made themselves masters of Persia. The Mohammedans of every country have a great dislike to those who do not adopt the religion of him whom they term "The Prophet." They call them all infidels. In Turkey this word is applied very unceremoniously to all Europeans; and an Englishman, as he walks along a Turkish street, thinks it no wonder to hear a nurse say to the child under her charge, "Look there, my little rose, there goes a dog, an infidel!" But in Persia the term is applied more especially to the fire-worshipper; and the modern Persian calls the Parsee, gueber, (or infidel,) with the most bitter expression of scorn and hatred.

With a determination, so far as possible, to root out every other religion save that of their prophet, the Arabs strove to make the fire-worshippers submit to the rites and practices of Mohammedanism. Many of them embraced the doctrines of Mohammed, and many, after bravely resisting their oppressors, fled to another land. A few only remained in Persia, and the descendants of these are now to be found chiefly in the barren sandy province of Kerman, where, in the large city of Yezd, built on a green spot in the desert, and called by them "The Seat of Religion," they still practise the

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ceremonies of their forefathers, and worship in a fire temple, in which they think the flame has burned since the days of Zoroaster. But the modern Persians oppress them in various ways, make them pay heavy taxes-and not content with addressing them in words of reviling, they circulate cruel and false stories of these unoffending people. And just as, in former times, the Jews were falsely accused, in our land, of sacrificing little children at the feast of the passover, so, now, the Parsees are said by the Arabs to kill and eat infants. These oppressors, however, allow them to erect a temple for the sacred fire; and here the Parsees, strangers in the land of their fathers, assemble in humiliation, to mutter a few prayers and devotions; but they seem to have but a very confused and imperfect idea of the religious belief of their ancestors.

We all feel an interest in those who suffer for their religion, however it may be mixed up with errors. There is something noble in a fixed principle, and in the determination to uphold it at any risk of lesser interest; and the suffering for any belief, at least proves that the sufferers are sincere. But it is truly a melancholy sympathy which we feel for men who, like the Parsees, have much to endure for a faith, which after all has so little of hope for the future, and so much of doubt and darkness. It is, we feel, suffering for a superstition, and not for a valuable truth. When the holy men of old died for the faith of the gospel, or when the martyrs were burned alive at Smithfield, or other places, we know that they were supported by God's especial presence; and they had promises, that as soon as death was over, they should live for ever in glory; and when they were cast out from men, and had to wander in dens and in mountains, and in caves of the earth, because they would follow the commands of Christ, they did not do these things on some vague notion of what awaited them. God had given them promises of support in trouble; for Christ had said, "Every one that hath forsaken houses, or brethren, or sister, or father, or mother, or wife, or children, or lands, for my name's sake, shall receive a hundredfold, and shall inherit everlasting life,” Matt. xix. 29. And every one who has read the account of" the deaths of the noble army of martyrs," who from among our fathers were appointed to follow Christ through "great tribulation," must

have seen how remarkably God was with them in their hour of trial, so that they could speak cheerfully, and glorify his holy name in a most triumphant manner, in a season of great agony. Heart and flesh were failing, but they sang with David, "God is the strength of my heart, and my portion for ever." And in that glorious vision which the apostle John saw in the isle of Patmos, and which was written for their sakes and ours, we find St. John describing the martyrs, as those that were slain for the word of God, and for the testimony which they held, and white robes were given unto every one of them, Rev. vi. 9-11; while he also speaks of some who were arrayed in white robes, and had palms in their hands: "These are they which came out of great tribulation, and have washed their robes, and made them white in the blood of the Lamb. Therefore are they before the throne of God, and serve him day and night in his temple, and he that sitteth upon the throne shall dwell among them. They shall hunger no more, neither thirst any more; neither shall the sun light on them, nor any heat. For the Lamb which is in the midst of the throne shall feed them, and shall lead them to living fountains of water, and God shall wipe away all tears from their eyes,' Rev. vii. 14-17. Well might such men exclaim with St. Paul, "We glory, there fore, in tribulation;" but the poor Parsees who fell in the contest, or who quitted their native land because of their religion, had no promises like these to cheer their sorrows, or soothe their poverty. But the day is coming when God will teach and guide them; and missionaries are even now in India, who watch for their souls, and who pray and labour, that God may yet bring these amiable people into the fold of the great Shepherd of Israel.

But we must now turn our attention from the Parsees in general to speak of a small party of them, who, in the year 1838, visited England, and two of whose number were introduced at the commencement of this little book. This party consisted of three gentlemen and their two servants. The names of two, who were cousins, were Jehangeer Nowrojee, and Hirjeebhoy Merwanjee. Their friend and preceptor was called Dorabjee Muncherjee. They are known at Bombay as members of the Lowjee family, and one of their ancestors founded the dockyard there, while their forefathers have been

long shipbuilders in the presidency. According to the eastern custom, the sons follow, from generation to generation, the trade or profession of their ancestors, and thus the two Parsees, of whom we are speaking, had also been trained as shipbuilders, and it may be observed, that owing to the wealth and skill employed by various members of the family, a dockyard now exists, which ranks as the first naval arsenal in India; and that Bombay, which was formerly a small and insignificant island, offers a city equal in importance to almost any in India. Before the dockyard was built there, the vessels of India were constructed at Surat, a city on the western side of India. One of the younger Parsees then in England, was the son, and the other the nephew, of the present master-builder in the Honourable East India Company's dockyard at Bombay.

The object which induced these strangers to visit our land, was that they might learn the mode of building steam-vessels and ships, and for this purpose they resided in England for rather more than three years.

It has been observed that the Parsees, as well as the Persians, dislike the sea, and the present party formed no exception. Although they did not share in that sea-sickness so usually. felt by those who cross the ocean for the first time, yet the difficulties which they had to encounter on the voyage, made them lament having chosen that mode of reaching England, and they observed, that had there not been a number of innocent children on board, whose playful tricks amused them during the passage, the voyage would have been intolerably tedious. They were not used to the tossing of the waves, and the blowing of gales, and they were sadly annoyed when the things on the cuddy table were carried away, and when they found that they could with difficulty take their meals, owing to the rolling of the vessel. "The plan we adopted," said they, was that of holding the plate in one hand, and eating out of it; but the most laborious task was that of taking tea. We were obliged to hold the cup in our hands, and pour out the liquid, and drink it off as fast as we could ;" and with the feelings of men, accustomed to the luxuries, and little used to the hardships of life, they thought with regret on the homes they had left, and determined that they would not again undertake such a voyage, but would return to India by the overland route.

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THE ALBATROSS.

The Albatross.

THE albatross is three or four feet in length, and nine or ten from the tip of one wing to that of the other, while some of these birds have been seen of even much larger dimensions. The bill of the albatross, which is a formidable weapon, is of a yellowish colour, and six inches in length, terminating in a crooked point. Its head is a bright brown, the back has a dingy, deep-spotted appearance, and the belly and under part of the wings are white. These colours, however, undergo considerable alterations, according to the age of the bird, the young ones having a dirty cast, while the old ones are of a snowy white, excepting the tips of the wings, which are dark brown. They then present a magnificent appearance as they hover over the bosom of the ocean, or wing their rapid flight in the upper regions of the air.

During the breeding season, they retire to the groups of rocky and desolate islands that are scattered over the ocean's bosom, as the Marion Isles, Crozettes, Tristan d'Acunha, and the Falkland Isles; while we are informed that they also visit the coast of Patagonia. Captain Hunt, who for some time commanded at the settlement on the Falkland Islands, states that he was often astonished at the peculiar

attachment which existed between the albatross and the penguin, and the regularity with which they mingle their nests. On that bleak and desolate spot, of which these birds had long-continued and undisturbed possession, their little buildings were arranged by thousands, with the greatest uniformity. In the centre the albatross raised its nest of heath, sticks, and long grass, about two feet above the surface, and then seven or eight penguins using the nest of the albatross as a centre, made holes in the ground around its outer circumference. These settlements were, however, abandoned on the approach of man, and the albatross and penguin have gone to more distant shores to continue their friendly intercourse. During the season of incubation, the male bird is assiduously engaged in providing for the wants of his companion; and at this period the birds are so tame as to allow themselves to be pushed from the nest while the eggs are removed, though at other times they will defend themselves stoutly with their bills.

The power of flight possessed by the albatross is truly wonderful; for they have been often noticed between six and seven hundred leagues from land, in the middle of the Southern Ocean. Some persons, however, have partly accounted for this distance, by supposing that they rest

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