The duties which brought Carlton to Calcutta were now at an end, and the
Lieutenant had to return to head quarters. Edith, being of an enquiring
turn of mind, acquired a great deal of information respecting the
natives' character, their castes, customs and ceremonies, and by the aid
of a Moonshee soon learned to speak with ease and fluency the Hindostan
language. This she turned to account in the management of the household
servants.

Calcutta is the largest city in British India, and is situated on the
bank of the Hoogley, one of the branches of the river Ganges, held as
sacred by the natives. There are quite a number of Europeans and
professing Christians, numbering in the aggregate about fourteen
thousand, the principal portions of which are half castes, three
quarter castes, Euroasians, Portuguese and Hindoo Britons. The half
castes are the progeny of the European men and native women. The
three-quarter-castes, that of European fathers and half-caste mothers.
The Euroasians spring from European and three-quarter-caste parents,
while the Hindoo Britons are the children of European parents, born in
India. The Portuguese likewise intermarry with these classes. These
people make up the principal number of those professing Christianity
throughout the Presidency. The churches of England, Rome, and Scotland
were well attended by the officers of the civil service, army and navy,
with their families, among which there is very little sectarianism. But
the Roman Catholic faith is largely diffused among the other classes.
The native population of all castes number about six hundred thousand,
and although they have no regular Sunday or day of rest, they have quite
a number of religious festivals or holidays which they scrupulously
observe.