Forbes, James, 1749–1819, James Forbes letter, Bombay, 1770 March 1, copied between 1794 and 1800
- Call Number:
- Folio A 2023 69
- Holdings:
- Accessible by appointment in the Study Room [Request]
- Creator:
- Forbes, James, 1749–1819
- Title(s):
- James Forbes letter, Bombay, 1770 March 1
- Date:
- copied between 1794 and 1800
- Classification:
- Archives and Manuscripts
- Series:
- Series I: A voyage from England to Bombay with descriptions in Asia, Africa, and South America
- Part of Collection:
- volume 3, page 151-163
- Provenance:
- Yale Center for British Art, Paul Mellon Collection
- Conditions Governing Access:
- The materials are open for research.
- Conditions Governing Use:
- The collection is the physical property of the Yale Center for British Art. Literary rights, including copyright, belong to the authors or their legal heirs and assigns. For further information, consult the Curator of Rare Books and Manuscripts.
- Scope and Content:
- In this letter, Forbes describes the city of Bombay along with its English inhabitants. He begins with an overview of the city’s geography, fortifications, as well as its most prominent landmarks, or, those most important to the English inhabitants of the city. He first introduces the castle, where one finds “bomb-proof lodgerments, a laboratory, and other military purposes.” Other public buildings include the Treasury, Custom-house, and Prison, along with multiple hospitals, for Europeans, Sepoys (Indian soldiers of the East India Company), and convalescents. There is only one English church, with a separate burial ground which Forbes deems “absolutely necessary” in a hot climate. The English homes are, according to Forbes, both beautiful and expensive. After a brief description of Bombay’s markets, Forbes discusses its method and practices of government. He contrasts the opulence of the Company’s leadership with the “trifling” salaries afforded the average writer. Indeed, for many on the company’s payroll, life in India was characterized less by luxury than by disease, poor wages, and premature death. A soldier, for instance, could, upon enlisting, confidently expect to die in India before the end of his tour. Forbes expresses a fear that, given this situation, those “honest and faithful servants of the Company” may, as “venality and corruption [find] their way to the East,” be passed over for “ministerial favorites” and those not committed to the success of Company operations. Forbes then gives details of the military garrison in Bombay—suited to defend against the French, or other European militaries, according to its commander—the city’s annual revenues, and the structure of the Company’s legal system. Forbes leaves his ambivalence over the East India Company’s past and future behind, however, when he turns his attention to its officers. He writes glowingly of the company’s employees: “their moral character, in my opinion, shines with superior lustre,” and “when called forth to vigorous, manly, and arduous enterprises, they conduct themselves with fortitude, penetration, and magnanimity.” As to friendship—“I daily taste all the honied drops of its nectarous Cup!” Forbes attributes this to a variety of causes, among which is the ease of attaining a fortune in India, thereby allowing individuals to express generosity more freely. The leisurely activities of the English in India are, Forbes notes, heavily circumscribed by the climate. Morning is meant for business, midday for rest. Only during the evening can one enjoy the country. Forbes notes that, while some have taken to gardening and other past-times, this is hindered by the fact that few “look upon India as our home” and are therefore reluctant to invest energy in their immediate surroundings. Nonetheless, Forbes speaks with admiration for the Indian night: “when enjoying the fresh breeze of the evening on the flat roofs of the Asiatic houses, and viewing the grandeur of the heavenly bodies, it is almost impossible not to be led to the Great Parent of all that is lovely, fair, and good.” Forbes includes a quotation from English poet Edward Young (1683-1765). Forbes closes with a few other observations about the city—such as a new lighthouse—as well as another pleasure enjoyed by English and Indian alike: “A great luxury, altho’ of a very different nature, enjoyed in these delightful evenings, both by the Asiatics and Europeans, is smoking Tobacco in the Hooka or Calloon, a refinement as yet unknown in England.” It’s a most pleasant device, one Forbes details at length. Portions of this text appear in <title>Oriental Memoirs</title>, volume 1, pp. 151-158. Bibliography: Marshall, P.J. “British Society in India Under the East India Company.” <title>Modern Asian Studies</title> vol. 31 no. 1 (1997): 89-108.
- Physical Description:
- 13 pages
- Genre:
- Correspondence , Botanical illustrations, Ornithological illustrations, Travel sketches, Maps, Watercolors (paintings), Drawings (visual works), Engravings (prints), and Portraits
- Subject Terms:
- Forbes, James, 1749-1819. Descriptive letters and drawingsForbes, James, 1749-1819. Oriental memoirs
- Associated Places:
- EnglandItalyScotlandWales
- Associated People/Groups:
- East India CompanyForbes, James, 1749-1819
- Finding Aid Title:
- James Forbes archive
- Collection PDF:
- https://ead-pdfs.library.yale.edu/11734.pdf
- Archival Object:
- https://archives.yale.edu/repositories/3/archival_objects/3199472
- Metadata Cloud URL:
- https://metadata-api.library.yale.edu/metadatacloud/api/aspace/repositories/3/archival_objects/3199472?mediaType=json&include-notes=1&include-all-subjects=1