The Massachusetts spy, and Worcester County advertiser. [volume] ([Worcester, Mass.]) 1825-1831, 1829-02-04
From the Nottingham Eng.) Journal.
SUTTEE IN INDIA.

The following extract from letter of
young officer in Bengal to his friends in
this town, contains an interesting account
OF Suffice, at which he was spectator:
"On the 18th of March | left the camp
at Kollearee, and arrived at Odeypore on
the 18th. The morning / arrived we went
to the lake, where the Ranah Prince and
all the great people of the court were as
sembled in boats to celebrate some festival.
we went into boat, and pulled up along
side the Ranah, and the entertainment,
which was varied, concluded with a fine
display Of fireworks; but, alas for the
poor old Ranah. ne ate too much that fatal
night, and died OH the Both for want of
proper adVice,) after a reign of 55 years.
At sunrise the body of the Ranah was car
RED out from the palace in a splendid litter
ne was full dressed, decorated with all his
Jewels, and sitting cross-legged, Just as if
he had been alive, eight of his wives, splen-
didly attlred, covered with valuable orna-
ments, and mounted on most beautiful hor-
ses, rode in advance of the corpse; they
had three miles to go from the palace to
the burylng ground. The women threw
among the crowd immense sums of money.
Arrived at the burying ground, the body OF
the Ranah was placed, sitting in state, in
the inside of the funeral pile. The ground
from the floor had heen removed, and the
hollow occasioned by this was filed with
cotton, grease, rosin, &C.; over this was
laid carpet of crimson silk, with broad
border of rich gold lace. The women went
| to small stream, washed themselves, and
said brief prayer: they then walked round
the outside of the pile, and one at time
entered It, seating themselves near the body,
according to their rank; the door was then
closed. The principal Rance sung three
verses of hymn and then gave the dread
tul order for firing the pile. In a moment
the whole was one complete fame, and the
! heat so intense that every one ran to a dis
lance. There was no noise-not even a
shrek 80 horrible most horrible !" even
now it makes my blood run cold to think of
such dreadful thing! The women burnt
with almost all their ornaments on-nany
of very great value; one of them gave a
priest a set of pearls worth $4,000 rupees.
The fire was kept up three days and three
nights, and then cooled with milk; the
ashes were carefully collected. and sent to
be thrown into the Gauges. 1t is generally
supposed that at a Suffice the women are
intoxicated or supplied with opium; this
was not the case here. Never were women
more collected or more perfectly in their
senses; they bore more the appearance of
persons going to some place of pleasure
than to so horrible death. There was a
pretty young creature among them, aged
about q years. | wished much to have got
something belonging to her, if it had only
been one OF her Mreaths OF roses to have
cloth of which their dresses were compos-
ed has so much gold in it, that it is sold by
weight. What can equal the courage of
these women? Nothing but their vanity.
Their religion does not require this sacra-
flee from them, and their vanity alone gives
them courage"