Travels in India Including Sinde and the Punjab (Hardcover, New edition)

This travelogue of the German captain Leopold von Orlich was undertaken around the time of the end of the first Afghan War (1840's). He started from Southhampton and reached Bombay. The book is in the form of a series of letters written to his friends. From Bombay he went to Poona and then returned. In a travel book it must be understood that all the description made are eye witness accounts or first hand experiences. The author describes all that he saw; the topography, the people and their customs, the rites and ceremonies, the flora and fauna, the commerce and trade, the law and governance etc. From Bombay he sets out for Karachi and thence to Ferozpur via Retee, Khanpur and Bhawalpur. In the Panjab he notices Ranjit sings and his court and give a description of the sati of his 11 wives on his pyre.From Ferozpur he goes to Lahore and then returns. Starting again from Ferozpur he makes his way to Delhi via Dathal, Saqun, Keythul and Karnal. In Delhi he visited the Redfort, the Qutab Minar, and the prepares to visit Agra. Seeing the sights in Agra he visits Secondurabad and Fatehpur Sikr; and goes onward to Kanpur and form there to Lucknow. He dwells in the description of his city and offers observations of the palaces, gardens, bazzars; he visits the king and then goes back to Kanpur, to proceed to Allahabad and form there to Benaras. In his 9th letter he describes the criminal tribes of India called the Thugs and Phansigars. From Banaras he goes to Calcutta and gives a vivid description of that city. He then returns to Bombay via steamer and returns to England. This book is a reprint of the 1845 edition. Translated from German. The book has some rare illustrations that show the native industry in India in the 19th century.