Page:Sir Thomas Munro and the British Settlement of the Madras Presidency.djvu/24

 1 6 S/J^ THOMAS MUNRO

live with Mr. Ross, I spent the greatest part of my time at his house, amusing myself with shells and flowers ; but before that I employed it differently.

after having determined whether shii*t No. 3 or 4 was best, I worked at my needle till breakfast. When it was over I examined the cook's accounts, and gave orders about dinner ; I generally read the rest of the day till the evening, when I mounted to the top of the house to obsei-ve the stars I had been reading of during the day in Ferguson's Astronomy.
 * I rose early in the morning to review my clothes ;

'While I remained in Madras, my pay as a cadet was eight pagodas ^ a month ; of this I gave two to a servant called a dubash, one to a cook, and one to the washerman ; the remaining four were to answer every expense in a place where everything is sold at the highest price.

'With all my economy, it was near six months before I could save money enough to buy me a few suits of linen. I did not choose then to ask any of Mr. R. : and Mr. H. did not seem disposed to give me any assistance till I should leave Madras. But Mr. R., wishing to get me appointed to join the detachment under Colonel Baillie, I continued in Madras, making application for this purpose, till Haidar entered the Karnatik, when I joined the army in the field.'

^ A pagoda was worth about 7s. 6d.