Round this corner were some most grotesque stones; and here
the sacred fish were assembled in such shoals as to jostle each other
almost out of the water; but whether they were attracted by the fresh
supply of water or the sacred images covered as they were with votive
offerings of milk and rice, flowers, &c., the fish or the Brahmins
alone can tell.
Tradition states that an infidel Christian officer once killed three of
these fish, and having eaten one of them, died shortly after. Putting
their sanctity out of the question, however, the little creatures
are so tame and so numerous that few people would be inclined either
to kill or to eat them. While feeding them with bread, I could have
caught any number with my hand; and holding a piece of tough crust
under water, it was amusing to feel them tugging and hauling at it,
making occasional snaps at one's fingers in their efforts. They were
generally about half a pound in weight.
Our baraduree was built of wood, in the usual style, with latticed
windows of various designs, and having one room overhanging the
stream which ran through the centre of the house from the sacred
tanks.
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