Page:Ramtanu Lahiri, Brahman and Reformer - A History of the Renaissance in Bengal.djvu/92

 Diarrhoea was the first complaint, then followed fever. Recovery was doubtful, unless the sufferer hurried home, and placed himself under a regular course of treatment. I came here quite healthy, but within a short time my digestive powers were so injured that I was compelled to be very careful about my diet. I lived on very simple food; but yet, far from being better, I rather grew worse, lost all appetite, and my constitution became a wreck of what it had previously been. At length, my guardian took me home, and I commenced feeling better the day following my arrival there.”

Calcutta spread a moral infection also. Men did not hesitate to feather their nests by telling lies, cheating, taking bribes, and committing forgeries and similar crimes, and, instead of being looked down upon, they were praised for their cleverness. The rich vied with one another in extravagance; and they were not ashamed to indulge in open immorality. The more nautches a Babu gave, the more was he extolled as a man of taste and fashion. Next in importance to the rich ranked another class of Bengali Babus, who knew Persian and had only a smattering of English, and, backed by this knowledge held in contempt the religion of their country. Without any higher end in view, they lived for themselves alone, pleasure being the be-all and end-all of their existence. With faces bearing marks of debauchery, heads covered with a profusion of waving curls, tinged teeth like so many pieces of jet, pieces of thin, black-bordered muslin round their waists, cambric banians so made as to show their figures to the best advantage, neatly folded scarves thrown over their shoulders, and shoes ornamented with broad buckles, they strolled along the streets, humming or whistling a favourite tune. Their chief enjoyments during the day were sleeping, flying kites, watching bul-bul fights, and